|
March Reviews Artist of the Month: Devics If the soundtrack to Charlotte’s Web collided with a French Mazzy Starr, the result would be Devics’ Push the Heart. The latest in an array of surprising releases, Push the Heart will surely re-establish Devics as the masters of electronic mope. The duo of Devics should be more familiar than you may know or realize. Composed of the magical vocalist Sara Lov and multi-instrumentalist Dustin O’Halloran, Devics started out in the mid-90s in the LA-area. After a couple of releases in the late 1990s, If You Forget Me and The Ghost and the Girl EP, Devics were signed to UK-based Bella Union, the label of ex-Cocteau Twins Simon Raymonde. That shift from the U.S. to the Europe soon began a cascade of both musical and physical re-location, as their 2001 record My Beautiful Sinking Ship became a relative hit in Europe and the duo soon found themselves spending considerable time on the continent. As such, Devics moved to Italy and released The Stars of Saint Andrea in 2003, another European fave. Success in Europe was gleeful, but Lov and O’Halloran wanted a fitting return to their homeland and a way to push through only underground appreciation in the U.S. Back in LA, Devics wrote and recorded Push the Heart, and the results are simply brilliant. Based on the ten-track Push the Heart it would be fitting to call Devics ‘criminally-overlooked.’ The combination of Lov’s vocals and O’Halloran’s piano, guitar, and electronics creates a devastating sonic appeal. Push the Heart begins with sweeping pianos of O’Halloran and Lov’s vocals on “Lie to Me,” a score that soars on the chorus; and is the source of the Charlotte’s Web comment above. This leads onto the first glimmer of European flavor, as O’Halloran includes a pulsating Parisian according to “Secret Message to You,” a song that simply slides through five calming minutes. “.Salty Seas” is darker as guitars and piano haunts the background, while “Song for a Sleeping Girl” picks up the pace and is the first to include O’Halloran’s vocals. “Song for a Sleeping Girl” is one of the more pop-friendly numbers on Push the Heart and O’Halloran’s vocals clearly reflect a new wave mood that is endearing. The up “Distant Radio” may be a little too perky for Push the Heart and “Just One Breath” really only holds up when Lov pushes her voice. “Moments” returns Devics to electronic moping, and only comes through when O’Halloran adds a slight shooting electronic star; you could slap him for the saxophone inclusion. O’Halloran takes over vocal duties again on the rambling and excellent “If We Cannot See;” another of the more pop accessible songs on the record. After the strange “City Lights,” Push the Heart closes on “Come Up,” a slow piano walk that is rather average in comparison. As Devics welcome-back record, Push the Heart should find a much wider American audience than in years past. And if it doesn’t, Europe is a much better place to be than the US nowadays.
C Ordinarily you should be suspect of a band from the Czech Republic that plays instrumental music and takes the moniker of C. Yet, C’s melding of half-a-million styles into eight songs on Universum illustrates a uniquely appealing sound that is essentially impossible to peg. More unlikely is that most of C’s songs are fairly rock numbers compared to the successful breed of Explosions and the like. That is, songs such as the apt-titled “Lyrics Are Never More Important Than the Music” sound simply like rock songs that are devoid of lyrics, and not rock songs that are designed to be instrumentals. Maybe this is due to some weird happenstance where their singer was hit by a bus on the way to the studio or something. But you also have songs that sound designed for instrumentals like the phenomenal closer “Hymen,” “Le Grand Wazoo,” and “Sixplusone.” Not at the top of your list, but keep your eye out for C.
Channing Cope Initially released by the band’s Northpark label, Michigan’s 54 40 or Fight! picked up Sugar In Our Blood for wider distribution. Featuring Ali Ozkan’s soft vocals and bass, Kenny Schulte’s guitars, and Chris Conner’s drums, Channing Cope excels with slow-to-mid tempo, pulsating ethereal rock. Most of the six songs ride in slow majesty towards five minutes of calming soundscapes that are only broken up by Ozkan’s voice or wise spacey guitar riffs. Not unlike the instrumental magic of many Temporary Residence bands, Channing Cope are essentially an instrumental band who use Ozkan’s vocals as an extra layer of texture. In that respect, choice selections include “From Sky to Core,” “Support the Mountain,” and “Blackbody Curves.” If things are right, Channing Cope should have a new record in the mist.
Ethan Azarian Formerly the frontman of the Orange Mothers and Hollywood Indians, Cross’n Over is Austin-based Ethan Azarian’s sophomore solo record. Unlike the quirky rock of the Orange Mothers, Azarian’s solo work, with the help of Gary Newcomb, Conrad Choucroun, Derek Morris, Jeff Johnston, and Melissa Knight, is contemplative indie-folk with enough pedal steel to give it an edge. Azarian’s been at this for so long that expectedly all twelve songs are well-devised and executed, save for one thing. When Azarian lets his voice get out of wack (e.g., opening parts of “Up Side Down,” “Clementine” and “Feet on the Ground”) or the lyrics lose innovation (e.g. “1000 Miles”), the songs come off more grating than you’d like. It seems that when Azarian is joined on vocals by Choucroun and Johnston, he is more focused and, thus, more appealing; see “Knockin’ On Your Door” and “Cross’n Over.” Other tracks of note include “Mexico” and “Winter” (which only makes sense since Azarian is originally from Vermont). Look for Azarian selling his paintings before playing in your favorite southern college town club.
Exene Cervenka & the Original Sinners Everyone knows who Exene Cervenka is, and even if you don’t think you do, you do. Cervenka helped lead X out of LA’s punk scene in the mid-late 1970s, and thus into punk rock history. All those great X songs – Cervenka was behind most. Over the past thirty years she has continued with X and branched out to her own work, most clearly established on her second record with the Original Sinners. Essentially, this band is Cervenka and guitarist Jason Edge who are bolstered by the trio of musicians from the St. Louis-based band The 7 Shot Screamers – Chris Powers (bass), Dan Sabella (guitars), and Kevin O’Connor (drums). Although you can give leeway to Cervenka given her astounding influence within punk rock, the twelve tracks on Sev7en are simply ordinary at their meanest. Sev7en is filled with stripped-down punk, tinges of classic Chuck Berry guitar rhythms, and Cervenka’s vocals. When they emphasis the Berry-influenced punk, as on “Last Dance,” there is something to sink your teeth in; yet, they don’t go far enough with it. Still, if you are big X and Cervenka fan, then Sev7en is right up your alley.
The Lonely H If you thought that Port Angeles, Washington-based the Lonely H’s press photos make the band look exceedingly young – and they do – is simply because they are – still in HS and some members don’t even look that old. Two immediate observations come to mind from this knowledge and the first couple of songs on Kick Upstairs. The first is that lead singer Mark Fredson’s cadence and intonation is an exact rip of Rivers Cuomo; and further that most of the songs themselves Weezer made more pop. Even though this can be an annoyance, the second observation is that these guys are damn good for being so young. While not playing intricate rhythms and sticking to safe song constructions, the Lonely H are tighter than most bands well beyond on their age. The Lonely H aren’t Weezer all the time as they often try to differentiate their sound through stripped-down rock fashion (e.g. “Draconius”), electronic-tinged ballads (e.g. “Sweet Madeline”), and piano ballads (e.g. “Simple Love”). There is also a DVD on this release that you should totally not watch, because it makes them come off as less authentic and cool. Likely drawing too many parallels will turn you off, but the Lonely H have an exceptional start on a possibly brilliant future.
Mandarin On Fast>Future>Present, Mandarin must overcome a penchant to move away from pop sensibilities within an indie framework in order to be special. Released a year-and-a-half ago, Fast>Future>Present contains the elements for enjoyable listening, but they are often buried by esoteric whispering sections. These sections provide a nice calming influence over the record (e.g., “Eye on Time”), but they also distract the listener from the strong songs amongst the thirteen. It might have been unwise to open Fast with the disjointed “When Heat Sleeps,” when the follower “Shadow Your Shadow” is probably the standout here. Cutting through the fat, time should be spent on “How Long?” and “Pilot Light.” Yet, with a majority of uninspiring tracks, Fast>Future>Present leaves you as unremarkable.
Metal Hearts Metal Hearts’ debut for Suicide Squeeze may be the perfect antidote to coming off a meth-induced frenzy. Eleven tracks of low energy acoustic guitars and mood electronics, Metal Hearts may either become your new favorite indie whisperers or another point in your case against soft-felt indie. The Baltimore duo of Anar Badalov and Flora Wolpert Checknoff are quickly endearing as Socialize opens on the title track with crescendoing acoustic guitars and whispering vocals. Yet, by the Cursive-styled third track “Disappeared” and odd characterization begins to emerge; Metal Hearts are as if you took the indie worlds of Saddle Creek and Sub Pop and just turned down the intensity. For some, this might be the greatest thing ever; others might begin to look elsewhere. Following up on that theme, songs to check out include “Mountain Song,” “Midnight Sun,” and “Airplanes Flying.” Again, Metal Hearts are easily appealing, but one may wonder how much better they’d be if the ratcheted-up the tempo and pop angle.
Midstates Chicago’s Midstates unleash a brilliant display of symphonic pop on their latest full-length Boxing Twilight. Seeing the words ‘symphonic pop’ might have you second guessing such a characterization as appealing, but if electronics and space rock are part of your musical vocabulary then Boxing Twilight might just be for you. Featuring Paul Heintz (vocals, guitar), Steven Munoz (Wurlitzer, vocals), Angel Ledezma (drums), Michael Dahlman (guitar), Sasha (synths, vocals), and Adam Province (bass), Midstates certainly often sound like Men Without Hats came back for a reunion. For some that might be a horrendous idea, but Midstates move beyond with Heintz’s terrific whispering vocals and enough rock progressions to shake off the bad. One drawback to Boxing Twilight is that moments drag as the tempo almost never varies, which sometimes creates a numbing effect on your memory. Still, the three opening numbers “Till Dead,” “Didn’t Ask,” and “Even Though” will make you stand up and take notice. This is particularly the case on “Didn’t Ask” where Heintz’s vocals trip quickly and leads to an exceedingly catchy chorus. And while “Issues Today” and, later, “Either Way” are strong affairs, the album sort of balances out after these openers. In a variety of environments Midstates should be a catch live.
Morricone Youth Formed in 1999 by Devon Levins (guitar), NYC’s Morricone Youth specialize in renditions and covers of soundtracks from films and TV, including material from Danny Elfman, John Carpenter, and, naturally, Ennio Morricone. With an already solid base of eighty-plus covers under their belts, Morricone Youth set out to use that encyclopedia of soundtrack knowledge to lay out their own vision of random moments for a soundtrack. In this voyage, Levins is joined by John Castro (bass, vocals), Dreiky Caprice (vocals, percussion), Sam Champion (drums), Jefferson Rabb (keys), and David Spinley (saxophone). Based on the nearly hour-long Silenzio, it is clear the Morricone Youth shine at the more instrumental numbers where, at most, vocals only serve as harmonies. Such numbers include “Silenzio Violente (Titoli),” “Bye Bye (Take 5),” the 70s “Heist,” and “Brujo Malo.” At times an interesting listen, one can’t imagine a large audience for the exploits of Morricone Youth, but filmmakers might want to take a gander.
Orange Mothers Featuring Ethan Azarian, Jeff Johnston, Tim Audy, and James Welch, the Orange Mothers were quintessentially nineties quirky college rock. In the Orange Mothers’ case, it was to provide the quirk for the tens of thousands of students attending the University of Texas in Austin. Now defunct, and with Azarian striking out on a solo career, Austin-based I Eat Records has decided to cobble together a best of package for these guys. One may question whether a band that put out four records with little notoriety and only has been dead for a few years should have a greatest hits record out so soon; or whether these may be deemed hits. Shouldn’t it coincide with a reunion a few years down the road and a mini-tour or residency? Yet, the band and I Eat put together fourteen tracks here for your listening pleasure. It’s hard to imagine the initial appeal of bands like the Orange Mothers, but if you think back some years the pop college scene, you can envision them fitting in. Highlights include “Love Birds,” “Kids (Don’t Know),” and “Promised Land.”
Portugal. The Man With a penchant for thickly orchestrated music and busy line-filled record art, Portugal. The Man was/is located in one of the most unlikely places; Alaska. (Trying to follow the one-sheet is likely an exercise in picking out all the non sequiturs). Perhaps now partially/fully temporarily/permanently located in Portland, the four-piece of Portugal offer up their latest for Fearless Records. You walk away from Waiter: “You Vultures!” with an image of grandiose, hip indie punk that emphasizes mid-tempo movements, deep lyrics, and non-linear intertwining instruments. Catchiness is generally shunned in favor of more complex understandings of how songs should be constructed; not unlike forerunners Anatomy of a Ghost and labelmates Gatsby’s American Dream. It is not that Portugal doesn’t want hooks for you to sink your teeth into (as demonstrated on songs like “Aka M80 the Wolf”), but that is secondary to complicated, angular riffs – like an indie version of the Blood Brothers. The downside is that you walk away confused and little to hold in your head. One of the few punches on Waiter is the heavy hitting “Chicago” that sounds like Fall Out Boy added a wall of intermittent industrial guitars. Waiter is a solid record that will entice many, but it is difficult to leave with proud glee after a spin.
Pretendo Composed of Devin Goldberg (guitar/vocals), John Castro (bass/vocals), and Steve Calhoon (drums), NYC-based Pretendo play exceedingly ordinary indie rock on their self-titled debut for Country Club Records. In fact, the seven songs on the record are so commonplace that it becomes frustratingly annoying and you wish a quick death for Pretendo. Is it the non-convincing vocals? Or, the heavy mix of the bass on songs like “Samuri Sessions”? Or, the terrible lyrics? You can’t exactly peg the precise nature of your anger, but surely all three play critical roles.
Pseudosix On Portland-based Pseudosix’s Days of Delay, the trio focus on lo-energy acoustic indie-folk ramblings like a quietly discontented collection of over-educated Whole Foods employees. With Tim Perry at the head on vocals and guitars, Emil Snizek on guitars and vocals and Joe Kelly on drums, you are lucky to hear Pseudosix raising their voices and music above a whisper across these fourteen tracks. When they do, e.g. “Love and Logic,” Pseudosix present a much richer aspect of their folk-flavored sound. Save for a couple of annoying disparate tracks (e.g., “The Next One”), Days of Delay will bring you down from a meth high or keep you down if you are already wallowing in self-doubt. Days of Delay is a good record to keep in the background for relaxation, just don’t drive to it as you’ll surely pass out.
Queens of the Stone Age This massive live CD/DVD makes clear that Queens of the Stone Age are one of the best rock bands on the planet as things currently stand. Even if you initially scoffed at their name, but took another look when Dave Grohl was playing drums for them, you haven’t been able to escape the Queens over the past few years. Whether accurate or not, I’ve always associated lead singer Josh Homme as quintessential strange desert-California speed rock; something that is both cool and terrifying simultaneously. Over the Years… showcases the Queens ripping through fantastic sets in London (Brixton Academy and Kokos), with nearly flawless performances and recordings. Save for the crowd and some mic misses on vocals, you’d be hard pressed to figure it was a live recording. Never a big fan of watching recorded performances of bands, the Queens do about a good of a job as possible with an array of digital cameras picking up every angle and interspersing other clips in-between. But, for a straight performance, the CD is a much better way to ride. Joining Homme in this current line-up are Joey Castillo (drums), Troy Van Leeuwen (guitar, bass), Alain Johannes (guitar, bass), and Natasha Shneider (keys), but the DVD also includes a considerable amount with Nick Oliveri. Bonus features on the DVD includes live footage from various times in the Queens’ history, including early stuff and guests spots by Billy Gibbons and Grohl. Over the Years and Through the Woods is an unquestionable must-have for fans of the Queens and even casual fans might want to at least give the CD a spin or two to see how live records should be done.
Rah Bras My first exposure to Rah Bras came a number of years back in NY and continued in CH, with a reminder of a Bifocal Media video, and their appeal has never diminished over time. Incredibly, the three-piece of Rah Bras have been knocking out their strange electro-punk amalgam for entire decade – a relative lifetime. The onslaught continues on the eleven-song Whohm, which was released last year on everyone’s favorite indie Lovitt. Composed of Isabellarah Rubella on synths, Boo Rah on bass, and Jean Rah on drums, Rah Bras literally have no comparison as they pound out their own electronic party. Touring cronies the Locust, the Faint, and Quintron and Miss Pussycat will give you a conception of Rah Bras’ sound, though they aren’t on parallel with any other outfit. Possibly their mild case of esotericism (e.g., “War Ribbing Ode”) has prevented Rah Bras from exploding on to the main stage. Yet, based on electro pop-friendly tracks like the magnificent “No Furture,” if their goal was a mainstream takeover Rah Bras could kick ass up and down the coast. Besides from “No Furture,” other brilliant moments on Whohm come from the opener “As She Rah,” the synth and xylophone magic of “No Wonder (Bread for the People),” “Monde Sewer Cholera Net,” and the terrific instrumental “No Lime.” You better get this record and check out Rah Bras at their next show before this classic electro three-piece hangs it up.
Sicbay Featuring the gruff vocals of Nick Sakes’, Minneapolis-based Sicbay carry their way through ten tracks of guitar-driven post-punk on Suspicious Icons. With cool artwork where thumbs act as naturally-forming rock structures, Sakes is joined with the latest lineup of Greg Schaal on drums and Dave Erb on guitars. Throughout the unfortunately short record (ten songs, twenty-five minutes), Sicbay generally shift between compelling post-punk and less appealing rock. Sicbay kicks off strongly on the title-track where the down-stroking guitars and back swirls meet nicely with Sakes’ HWM-meets-Leatherface-meets-DK tough vocals. From then on, songs are bit hit-or-miss. For instance, after the off “Lackluster Blooms” (umm, yes), you have to trudge through most of “Inhuman Resources” to find a strong guitar rhythm. Other strong moments come from the DK “Riposte in Pieces,” “Gamma Free,” and the closer “Roiling The Panacea.” If Sicbay could match their hooks and Sakes’ vocals with catchy sections, they could take off.
Stranger Lazy Unfortunately, a close headphone listen to Indianapolis-based Stranger Lazy’s The Cox Sintrific reduces some of the atmospheric aurora that resonates from simple background music play. Stranger Lazy excels in spaced-out guitars and keys, compelling vocal cadences and inflection that carries along a confident sense of melody and harmonies. The band’s one-sheet doesn’t do them any favors as they mention parallel bands (like Pavement) three times (though they don’t sound anything like them), have a bad photo, and misspell my neighborhood’s favorite game, bocce ball. That aside, the close listen mentioned above reveals a somewhat shoddy recording with sketchy levels, guitar walls, and background fuzz. Still, if you just let the Cox Sintrific play in the background and run through songs like the opening three tracks “And I Punched It,” “Is It Paul Walter?,” and “3..4..5,” as well as other like “Solar Cop” and “Pictures of People Falling,” then Stranger Lazy are a good listen.
The Apparitions This ten-song quirky, jangly indie pop record from Lexington, KY’s the Apparitions suggests they may be one of the best of indie rock bands that you never heard of. I’m not saying that they are one of the best; I’m just saying they are way fucking better than expectations. What draws you to the Apparitions, even if you are resisting, are their great vocal interplay and three guitar attack that often moves in completely different directions. Add to that timely melodies and attention-holding vocals and you create an environment for great music. The Apparitions waste no time in developing their strategy for rocking you when As This Is Futuristic jump starts with handclaps, muting and pop vocals leading you into guitar rock heaven on the opener “Electricity + Drums.” “Motor Skills” features vocal intonation and cadence that suggests an Irish rock band, while “God Monkey Robot” starts awkwardly but comes through in the end (and not unlike a The Sun song). Pushing up the spacey, jangly guitars is “She Burned Out Their Eyes” that takes awhile to hit full-on and includes sweet background vocals. “Shapeshifters” has its moments, but you can just pass on by “You Chirp Just Like Little Sparrows.” The opening foray into “Arrhythmia” is too LA-rock for the Apparitions, but the jangle is restored on the following “With Wolf Clothes On.” As This Is Futuristic closes on the relatively short “Cemeteries” and “Positively Charged,” neither of which offer much. If the Apparitions’ latest was full of smokers like “Electricity + Drums” and “She Burned Out Their Eyes” it would be one of the best of the year. Still, you should get acquainted with these fellas.
The Building Press Among serious artists, this may be one of the most annoying records in the past year. Apparently, the trio of the Building Press has included vocals for the first time, and it appears a horrific decision at that. The vocals, courtesy of AP Schroder, amount to little more than whining nonsense that grate at your nerves. There are several moments where the instrumentals find a rhythm, but those are often broken down into a wasteland of junk.
The Casting Couch After this Austin-based outfit’s debut Five Songs EP, they are back with their first full-length, a collection of twelve fun and quirky alt-country indie numbers. As with the EP and now with Row Your Boat, it is clear that the Casting Couch is all about a communal musical effort to bring the songs of vocalist/guitarist Wendy Mitchell to life. This sort of rambling wreck countrified-rock mood presents images of friends hanging out in southern college towns and just playing one-offs when the time presents itself. The downside to Row Your Boat is that it doesn’t hold itself together sufficiently enough to be deemed a stellar record. Instead, the songs shift between memorable, enjoyable numbers and immediately forgettable. Part of this impression seems the product of the difference between the more uptempo numbers and those that are less so. Still you will find solace from “Row Your Boat,” “Strawberry,” “Replaced,” “Circumstance,” and the fun keyboard-based “Mix Tape.” The endearing elements on Row Your Boat are Mitchell’s creaky indie vocals and the more quirky pop songs, and it appears that the Casting Couch may want to concentrate future efforts on such matters.
The Glass Family Started several years back and with the requisite billion lineup changes, the Glass Family offers up their debut Sleep Inside the Wheel for upstart I Eat Records. Possibly a function of the diverse sounds making its way through SXSW every year, the Glass Family present a somewhat novel sound composed of moody electronics underlying pop rock. The most surprising part of the Glass Family is the extraordinary vocals courtesy of Michael Winningham. The Glass Family could just be consider some variant of contemporary Brit pop rock, but Winningham’s vocals help take the band to the next level. The combination of the vocals, spacey guitars, and keyboards on such songs as “Honest Tries” suggests the Glass Family could make a name quickly. Other songs on this ten-track record, including “Swimming in Fiction,” “This Is Possible,” and “Stop Dead in Your Tracks,” present similar images of awesomeness. It is unlikely that the Glass Family will ever be polished enough (and dead enough) to become another major label commercial casualty, which is fine for us fans of indie music.
The Handsome Charlies Unlike the cadre of bands on I Eat Records, the Handsome Charlies aren’t from Austin, TX. In fact, this four-piece isn’t even from the U.S. Instead, this pop rock outfit hails from Australia and continues the image of Aussie drinking a lot and just looking to have a good time. The Handsome Charlies present this courtesy of catchy pop songs where you can only imagine that they’re having a blast. Save for some off-horns, which some may love, the Charlies could secretly become your latest guilty pleasure. A closer listen might give a few moments of pause as they tend to include ill-thought sections that elicit thoughts of an amateur outfit or simply a party band; witness the vocal effects on “Mistakes” (or is just a play on the song title?). The Charlies could really benefit from one of those uber-producers who help squeeze out the brilliant and wade through the b.s. Still good times come from “Make Me Love You,” “Friend of Mine,” the uptempo picking duo “Eighty-one” and “Coffee,” and the closer “Perfect.”
The Paper Champions Building on their stellar full-length Weekend of Compromise, Atlanta’s the Paper Champions offer this short, but strong four-song EP entitled End.Transmission. With excellent packaging, this latest from the Paper Champions once again establishes that they’re one of the most underrated indie punk bands going. Traveling familiar routes, the Paper Champions differentiate themselves with impassioned yet melodic vocals from Jason Neubert and the right mix of intertwining guitars from Neubert and Chris Cudzilo. End.Transmission begins on the title track with a long sampling intro that eventually leads to core of the best song on the EP. The most noteworthy aspect of “End.Transmission” is the heavy multi-sectioned song construction that is unfortunately not emulated on the next three songs. “The Canary” is mildly common, while “Oceanbound” may be a bit slow but makes up with downstroking guitars. The EP closes on the excellent “A Long July” with spaced-out guitars that crescendo into a phenom closer a la early HWM. The Paper Champions continue to be a band to lookout for with End.Transmission.
The Seconds If your latest installation art project needs theme music than the Seconds’ eleven-track Kratitude may be the perfect soundtrack. Combining uber-repetitive distorted folk rock with further annoyingly repetitive lyrics, the Seconds excel at wishing you were deaf. Given that the Seconds are composed of Brian Chase (YYYs), Zachary Max (Ex Models) and Jeannie Kwon, you might both expect this assessment and question it. The pushing point is that most of the songs sound like they were just whipped up in a minute with two lines of lyrics that are trying to be arty. Some circles will embrace the Seconds, but most will take a pass.
V/A Austin-based I Eat Records first hit the scene about a year ago with the release of the Casting Couch’s EP. This massively eclectic twenty-one song compilation is sort of the real opening salvo in a slew of I Eat Records’ releases. Some the label’s bands are included here – including the Casting Couch, The Glass Family, Ethan Azarian, Orange Mothers, and the Handsome Charlies – with the rest a compendium of folk-induced indie rock mostly from the Austin-area and southern side of Heaven. Almost by definition including such diverse acts is going to have an effect on the quality of the comp; and so is the case here. Further, the I Eat Records’ bands are clearly more uptempo indie rock than rest of the mostly folk-based artists on this comp. Highlights include The Casting Couch’s “Row Your Boat,” the Glass Family’s “Stop Dead in Your Tracks,” Orange Mothers’ “Kids (Don’t Know)” has its moments, Fine Fifteen’s “Dream,” the Handsome Charlies’ “Makes Me Love You,” Murder Beach’s “Any Day (But the Day that it Happens),” and the closing number “Tide” from Small Things Amplified. All in all, Appetizers & Leftovers serves as a nice introduction to the label.
Valina Chances are slim that you’d peg Valina as coming from Europe, nonetheless Austria. While your initial impression on the terrific opener “Entel Echo” would have you believing the three-piece of Valina are disjointed indie rock from Chicago-scene, the following four songs has you questioning Valina’s apparent lack of style as a style. Slowing down the pace with heavier bass is “Eriny” and then Valina move even slower on the acoustic-based “81 Men Without Memory.” “81 Men Without Memory” has its moments and comes off like the latest Green Carnations record, but it is odd in comparison. The trio comes back with random ‘jazz’ on “Escort of Soda” which should be banned from being ever played again and close out the EP with haunting “The Epilogue.” If nothing else, Valina keeps things interesting on Epode.
copyright exoduster.com 2006 |