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September Reviews Artist of the Month: The Silent Type Of Writing/Of Violence Limekiln Records Grade: A-/A This is a review that I’ve put off writing for far too long now. It is not from being lazy or anything, but this Silent Type record is so stunning that Exoduster kept considering it for artist of the month but it just fell short a couple of times to other contestants. With better conscience I can write this review and discuss the phenomenal Richmond-based The Silent Type. Initially forming in 2000 as a solo outlet for Nathan Altice, the Silent Type strayed and wandered for a couple of years with a demo and split with Gregor Samsa before a more solid lineup was secured in 2002. This lineup includes Amber Blankenship (piano, violin and vocals), Billy Mutter (bass), Jared Laine (drums), Nick Wurz (guitar) and Altice. With this thick and full band, the Silent Type started developing the nine songs that would become their full-length debut Of Writing/Of Violence. Besides from the core five-piece, the band also utilized a number of outside players including vocals from Maura Davis of the exceptional though ill-fated Denali. Of Writing/Of Violence starts out on “Kneel” where guitars and bass meander for a minute or so before being confronted by a wave of strings. It is at this point that you realize this is going to be a brilliant opener. At two-and-a-half minutes in, Altice opens the vocals and is soon joined by Blankenship’s vocals and the song continues to dazzle. Even though “Kneel” is over seven minutes, it never feels like any space is being foolishly used. “Ink and Blood” is considerably more uptempo rock and offers the image of the Silent Type as your favorite indie rock band that seethes with that localized sound; a sort of catchy, poppy appeal that is the opposite of commercial polished. Taking a step back, pianos greet the listener on “Soon Enough We’ll Be Found Out” and despite a solid chorus the song is on a melancholy tip. Altice takes to the acoustic guitar on “Vacant Hotel Lobby” as the music moves to singer-songwriter panache but doesn’t stick out as off pace. “Some Curious and Beautiful Maps” features Davis’ ‘dueting’ with Altice, where both use a Belle and Sebastian vocal cadence on the down-tempo affair. What really sets “Some Curious and Beautiful Maps” apart from the rest is a top-notch chorus that doesn’t try to slam you with pop but does draw in your attention. The six-minute number also allows the Silent Type and friends to include nearly even instrument they know on the two-minute instrumental conclusion. The Silent Type includes Sunny Day Real Estate’s Jeremy Enigk’s “Oh John” with a little banjo love, but not necessarily a complete success. The tempo is subsequently picked up on “The Gift,” which is strong if not average mid-tempo indie number. The title track finds the Silent Type drawing on Americana folk with Altice leading the six-minute number on vocals and acoustic number. Of Writing/Of Violence closes in similar fashion to how it began on “Zeppelin.” That is, a plus-seven-minute song that features a preponderance of impressive strings, yet here Altice’s vocals are slightly distorted and minimalized as you feel waves washing over you. Even though it took a long time for the Silent Type to unleash their debut full-length, and almost as long for me to write about, it is clear that these nine songs are well-worth the time. While the causal listener may demand more catchiness, the moments are there and met with thick instrumental constructions that many more will appreciate. I just hope it won’t take as long for a follow-up to be released.
A Change of Pace When a band titles their album as such, questions of lameness begin to find their way to the top of your mind. Thankfully, this Peoria, AZ four-piece doesn’t try to play any games with the title and the Godfather or other mobster-type crap. Instead, they take the name more as a starting point to launch into their debut record that is filled with a base of melodic punk and aided by scores of leaps in varying pop directions. Yet, ACOP want no one to forget that their purpose in life is playing uptempo, catchy punk (and even the dirty word of ‘emo punk’) that will get you going in any scenario. There is only a minimal, and often background, inclusion of screaming and that’s good thing as it only marginally enhances their sound. Getting back to the title thing, ACOP also have a penchant for naming their songs common phrases as demonstrated by “Loose Lips Sink Ships,” “Death Do Up Part,” “Asleep at the Wheel” and “Home is Where the Heart Is.” Among those possible ill-titled songs are some gems including “Death Do Us Part,” “Asleep at the Wheel” thanks to well-placed double bass, “Chippie” and the very-MXPX closer “Queen of Hearts.” One strange aspect of the songs is that they are almost all slightly over three minutes long, but you hardly find a shred of monotony. With a slate of tour dates on the Warped Tour this past summer and such spots of opening for 311 and Unwritten Law (to which you say ‘those bands are still around?’), A Change of Pace can secure the necessary notoriety to gain massive record sales. It is just a matter of time.
A Wilhelm Scream I can count on one hand the number of new melodic punk records that I have liked in the past year. Past an initial throw-off listen, A Wilhelm Scream’s Ruiner is one of the few that I’ve continued spin past a conclusion that they all sound the same. While AWS doesn’t necessarily do anything new and innovative on Ruiner, they do manage to weave variants of punk, hardcore and metal into something that is not screamo, emo, metalcore, or whatever the latest combo of the month. Part of this smart songwriting may have come from supporting veterans Rise Against and the Lawrence Arms on tour – two bands that shun current fads. Though not familiar with their debut Mute Print, Ruiner offers enough material for the causal listener as well as the intensively, obsessive punk fan. Behind timely guitar work by Trevor Reilly and Chris Levesque and strong vocals from Nuno Pereira, the fourteen tracks vary in superiority but leave behind several standout songs. These include the opener “The King Is Dead,” “Killing It” and the awesome (though unfortunately titled) “Me vs. Morrissey in the Pretentiousness Contest (the Ladder Match),” “Congratulations,” the oddly-named “The Kids Can Eat a Bag of Dicks,” “When I Was Alive: Walden III” and the metal riff-drive closer “Cancer Dream” – which combines for a good opening, middle and closer with some drops inbetween. Look for A Wilhelm Scream to become a band on the tips of people’s tongues in the coming year thanks for Ruiner.
James Apollo From a distance the voice of James Apollo can resonate like Harry Conick, Jr., strung out on tumbleweeds and pedal steel. In some ways that is the truth and in others nothing could be more different. Either way, Apollo’s latest offerings on the thirteen-track Good Grief demonstrate one of the few singer-songwriters able to transcend the ordinary and overdone sounds. Aided by drummer Noah Strom, bassist Nate Lamusga and additional love from Alan Estevez and Ben Nordeen, Apollo channels the darker side of Americana; as if Tom Waits didn’t creek and played more within the lines. When Apollo stays on the edge of eclecticism, he is on the edge of greatness. When he drops to more standard rock progressions and ideas, the innovation begins the slippery slide. Take the opening couple of numbers as an illustration. After the short instrumental introduction “Prelude, Colonel Travis” comes probably the best number on Good Grief – “Alamo.” While potentially lamely-named, “Alamo” provides serious western wanderings without being country and makes you come back for seconds. The uptempo “Spring Storm” continues this environment by adding a bit more creepiness, but then a drop dents the package. “Dead Men Weight More” and “Libertyville” are relatively generic and Apollo only takes marginal effort of pulling them up via “Long Rope.” The waltzing “Mercenary Tango” changes the mood, as well as the nearly-Hawaiian/Islander-induced “Neko.” Marginality slides back in with “Lonliness” and “Three Birds,” though “Slow Burn” has its moments. “All the Pretty” is a bit like a bloated pig, while the closing title-track starts rough but takes off on the chorus and notches itself as one of the best here. As an introduction to James Apollo, Good Grief is a strong offering and one that suggests he’ll be around for some time to come.
Bayside Like Bayside’s debut record for Victory Sirens and Condolences, this self-titled release is one that I really want to like but have enormous problems shaking parallel baggage. The most obvious reason for hopeful love is that Bayside are from Long Island and play a variant of melodic punk that while similar to the emo punk of TBS, et al., is also quite different for the area. The other simply is that the guys in Bayside are rad. With the recent inclusion of bassist Nick Ghanbarian (Movielife, Silent Majority) and drummer John Holohan – which is half the band – expectations run high on this latest eleven song affair. The catchy, melodic punk fest is bright and shinny with smiling teeth, but just try to shake the Chicago punk comparisons to the Smoking Popes and the Alkaline Trio. Without Sirens and Condolences sitting in front of me, I don’t remember Bayside aping those two bands sounds to such a vast degree. While the headman Anthony Raneri’s lyrics shift to more sunshine this time, his vocal cadences seem to literally move back and forth between the two bands. Extracting the vocal uggness, it is clear that the addition of Ghanbarian and Holohan to Raneri’s guitar and Jack O’Shea’s bass has made Bayside a considerably more technical band, which is a great thing. Among the tracks to take of note include “Devotion and Desire,” “They Looked Like Strong Hands,” the star “Montauk,” “Existing in a Crisis (Evelyn)” and “We’ll Be Ok.” Those who love bands that sound like the Popes or AT should make a special place on their shelf for Bayside’s latest. For the jaded-type, you may want to avoid the initial onslaught.
Bellini As the most standard rock album that TRL has released in sometime, the wickedly talented four-piece of Bellini offer ten new anthems on their second full-length. Having replaced drummer Damon Che with GVSB drummer Alexis Fleisig, Agostino Tilotta, Giovanna Cacciola and Matthew Taylor enlisted uber-producer Steve Albini to help lay down the tracks in Austin. The result is a terrific and well-managed post-punk record that sounds hip in any environment. The detached feeling across the majority of the three-minute numbers never promises the demolishing track that could get lodge in your noggin, but a wealth of great songs make up the difference. For one, “The Buffalo Song” sounds closer to a KRS-styled, (older) Sleater where lead vocalist Cacciola quasi-shouts her lyrics while Tilotta’s dirty guitar is rocketing off in varying angles. Cacciola hardly pulls out the shouting vocals as usually her vocals are spoken or actually sung as demonstrated on the stellar “The Switched Lovers,” the opener “Room Number Five” and “Fuck the Mobile Phone.” Those who enjoyed Bellini’s first record Snowing Sun will find similar joy from the softer but stronger Small Stones.
The Book of Lists Incredibly thick and dense orchestration coupled with the deep, dark vocal style of Chris Frey combine to make the debut by Vancouver’s The Book of Lists something special. Formed by Frey about a year ago, The Book of Lists is filled out by Brad Cranfield on drums, Laura Piasta on bass and Trevor Larson on guitar. Frey himself concurrently works in the more electro-based Radio Berlin, besides from other endeavors. And unlike Radio Berlin, Frey crafts this six-song, thirty-minute debut with arty, brit pop and splashes of new wave and pre-new wave rock (e.g., Roxy Music). Less on electronics and more on shrouds of darker-toned pop, Red Arrows really has the ability to reign you in after a couple of spins. Well suited for the Sub Pop audience as well as the Rough Trade audience, the listener is unlikely to be immediately floored as the mid-tempo pace on songs like “Pacifist Revolt” hints at lulling to sleep, but others like “Neurosis” grab your attention on first listen. The best strategy is to let it play in the background for a couple of spins and you eventually come to the conclusion that Red Arrows is an excellent record.
Caldwell On their debut full-length, Florida’s Caldwell unleashes a steady diet of melodic hardcore that doesn’t deviate much from the tried and true script nor is a bore. Along with cohorts such as Across Five Aprils and Life In Your Way, Caldwell are tagging the indie hardcore sound held together so well by Indianola. Yet, an 800lb. gorilla was sitting in Caldwell’s recording session and it seems no one wanted to address it. That gorilla is evident thirty seconds into the opening number “Behind the Wheel,” where head vocalist Randy Baublis switches to a singing mode and it literally sounds like someone retarded is singing – and not in a cool way like the Kids of Whidney High. For the first couple of spins of Accidental Renovation I just figured that Caldwell was using two vocalists – the screaming/gruff shouter and the retarded guy. It was only on further inspection that I discovered I was wrong (though I may be wrong about being wrong…either way it’s bad). When the evil red-headed stepchild is kept in the bad child closet, Caldwell rips through a significantly tight hardcore sound that is highlighted by the guitar work of Jordan Leake and Gary Marschika. But the vocals come as so off that it basically ruins you enjoyment. Caldwell should seriously consider dropping the vocal style shifting and utilize the quasi-shouting that Baublis is able to perform sufficiently well.
Call It Arson It is not clear what happened between the conception of Call It Arson in 1994 and the actual formation of the quartet in 2002, but Connecticut’s Call It Arson travel the post-hardcore ground with vast attention to math indie rock. Although the one sheet draws comparisons to Death Cab and Radiohead, what they leave out is how Call It Arson sounds like any one of Stephen Pedersen’s endeavors including the White Octave and Criteria. The comparison is most clearly in the vocal cadence and tone as well as some of the stop-start guitars and section movements. Since I’m smitten by Pedersen’s sound, I quite enjoy a majority of this self-titled full-length. On “Bare Bones” the comparison is not immediately obvious, but within a short time on “Battle Bones” it is quite clear. “Battle Bones” also scores points for the excellent line “I’ve got a stretch mark on my mind.” In actuality, Call It Arson is less intense than a White Octave, particularly on mellow numbers like “Torkamata” and “The Longest Night,” and really only comes off as such on the harder moments. A nice contrast between styles can be heard on “To My Crew” where the soft sounds are met with strong, downstroking sections; just skip the next and awful closer “Transatlantic.” It is too bad that Call It Arson didn’t hit the stage sooner than they have as they would likely be household names by now.
Daphne Loves Derby Passing by the unfortunately band moniker, Seattle-area’s Daphne Loves Derby are a band that essentially mastered Internet marketing allowing them to be in the position they are in today. Still in high school, DLD utilized sites like purevolume and myspace – as every other band in the world does – and actually found success. On the weekend – when not in school – the trio played in shows on the West Coast to drum up support. This led to DLD signing with Colorado-indie Outlook Music. So, how does a band score such a deal – by playing incredibly appealing pop music. Taking turns on the ultra-melodic indie rock that is the providence of Jimmy Eat World, Copeland, Sherwood and others, DLD have developed a near perfect animal. This debut full-length travels through eleven numbers that move with consistent harmonies and solid songwriting. You are met with such tracks as “Hammers and Hearts,” “Sundays,” “If You’re Lucky, No One Will Get Hurt” and “What We Have Been Waiting For.” The significant issue with On the Strength of All Convinced is that most songs are mid-tempo, contain parallel constructions and lengths, leading to difficulty differentiating tracks. It is like all the songs are good, but none are exceptional. None grab you and make you want to hit repeat. That’s unfortunate because such a hook or line could take DLD over the edge. Being quite young, the trio has scores of time to figure out the next level.
Darkest Hour After two phenomenal records on Victory, 2001’s So Sedated, So Secure and 2003’s Hidden Hands of a Sadist Nation, DC’s Darkest Hour present their latest offering in the course of eleven tracks on Undoing Ruin. Unlike their blistering metalcore attack on the previous two, enhanced by recording in Gotenburg for the first, Darkest Hour turn down the heavy explicit metal of the core and replace many of the metal moments with thrash solos (witness “This Will Outlive Us”). Though the band denies any influence, some may attribute this slight shift to Devin Townsend of Strapping Young Lad producing the record. Again, the shift exists on the margins, but for those of us dreaming of taking the speed and dueling guitar riffs to new levels, Undoing Ruin is a bit disappointing. It is almost as if Darkest Hour want to become more of a mainstream metal band and less explicitly tied to a hardcore sound. And that’s cool, but we want something more blistering and less generic. One positive angle is that the record grew on me with more with repeated listens. But you also are exposed to flaws. For instance, the two opening numbers “With A Thousand Words to Say But One” and “Convalescence” are both smoking, but then things begin to fall apart. You have to wait to the eighth track “District Divided” for the intensity to come back and make you want to spend time with Darkest Hour. The follower “These Fevered Times” ain’t half bad either, but the two closing songs “Paradise” and “Tranquil” are only ordinary. While a solid effort by Darkest Hour many may wish for something more from Undoing Ruin.
Doomriders On first listen to the opening title-track rocker you know that there must be some incest between Doomriders and Deathwish. The reason is that Doomriders are one of the few bands completely askew to the Deathwish lineup, as they pound through their own rendition of super heavy, low end classic rock laced with drunken blitzes and hardcore moments. And sure enough, Doomriders are geared up by Converge’s Nate Newton, as well as Jebb Riley, Chris Bevalaqua and Chris Pupecki from Cast Iron Hike. Couple that with Kurt Ballou manning the boards and you have hot incestuous love from Black Thunder. Reflecting such riff-driven acts as Thin Lizzy, Doomriders probably have the most contemporary commonalities with heavy Texas rock propagated by SuperHeavyGoatAss and the like. Without doubt when Doomriders are drilling a thumping distorted riff into your head, they are exceptional. Yet, the foursome also have a penchant for slow, non-dynamic assaults that you often find yourself wishing them to segway (e.g., “The Chase” and “Voice of Fire”). You will find much love, though, on “Black Thunder,” “Ride or Die,” “The Long Walk” and “Listen Up!” In the right atmosphere, or even not, Doomriders should be a kick ass live band.
Eel As the US release of People People, Japan’s Eel is on the cusp of ultra-sweetness but is too frantic and random to get there. Eel is one woman (Eel) with instrumentalist Sandou and an array of electronic instruments, computers and various tools. Eel goes for fun, electronic Japanese school girl kitsch across People People’s fifteen-track fifty- minute effort. There are plugs of greatness as on “Eel, Start It Up!,” “A Primavera,” “696969!” and “Olives,” yet, it almost seems Eel often stops herself before she can complete an astounding pop song and all we are left with are scraps of what could have been. It gives the impression that the songs were thrown together quickly in a bedroom one weekend, instead of at least several weekends. With more concentration on entire pop numbers, Eel may become the hottest thing out of Japan. This is only the second of four full-lengths by Eel, so the follow ups may already solve some of the discrepancy.
Electric Frankenstein As their twelfth million record New Jersey’s Electric Frankenstein offer up fourteen tracks of TNT-fueled dirty punk rock on Burn Bright, Burn Fast. Well maybe not up in the millions, but EF have released a shit-load of material over the past thirteen years including a brief stint on mega Victory. Speaking of thirteen years, this is the thirteen full-length (coupled with thirteen EPs, splits, etc.) and to honor that EF – as the story goes – took their top numbers from previous recording sessions and held them for this anniversary disc. Whether these are actually their best songs is up for debate, but even holding back some numbers is a cool concept. EF took eleven of these numbers and re-recorded them for Burn Bright, Burn Fast, and also included three covers – Music Machine’s “Talk, Talk,” Flo & Eddie’s “Moving Targets” and the Cars’ “Candy-O.” This creates a neat contrast between older and newly-written numbers and something that EF fans will definitely appreciate. Standout songs come from the title track, “Fired Up For Action,” “New World Whore,” “Electric Misery” and the Flo & Eddie cover. The CD also includes enhanced material that be accessed through your computer when hooked up to the Internet. With so many recordings under their belt the question now is whether Electric Frankenstein is up for another thirteen years.
The Exit It is not clear exactly what CD I have here. The bio sheet and CD says it is Home For An Island, but they sheet keeps referring to it as an album. The problem is that there are only four songs, which usually is only referred to as an EP. Either way, this NYC three-piece work their various musical and non-musical backgrounds into their sound. And they are nearly successful at it. When the Exit are fronting the quasi-reggae, quasi-jam band rock sound, as on “Don’t Push,” “Back to the Rebels” and “Home For An Island,” they tend towards the quite annoying. It almost reminds of a bad Oingo song or something dredged up by a 80s beach party band. On the one harder number “Let’s Go to Haiti,” the Exit demonstrate that they could be an awesome contemporary rock band with solid riffs and not have to wear floral shirts. I’m hoping that this is just a sampler and that there is a real full-length with more songs like “Let’s Go to Haiti.”
Eyes to Space This self-titled EP from Chapel Hill’s Eyes to Space illustrates a band on the cusp of great things but just not exactly there yet. Channeling robot electronic rock, the four piece lives in the world of Man or Astroman? and other quirky electronic outfits that have blitz the eclectic music world over the past few decades. As has been become more common than expected, thanks to their pub photo I realize I’ve seen the members of Eyes to Space in various places in Chapel Hill without knowing who they were for years…. Two immediate things hit you about Eyes to Space during the first song “In An Unfamiliar Land” – first, lead vocalist Jay Cartwright exists somewhere between intentional geeky and pedestrian, and second, the band has boatloads of cool guitar and keyboard riffs. These two observations work at cross purposes. If Cartwright’s vocals were accelerating with energy, coupled with the riffs, Eyes to Space would be in another stratosphere. The hooks and marginal vocals continue to rock on “Roadkill” and “Destructive Behavior” is the first song to feature another vocalist – bassist Wendy Spitzer. I can’t decide whether I dig Spitzer’s uber-high vocals or whether it is too much, but either way they give Eyes to Space an eclectic new wave feel. If the tempo was higher, a non-informed listener would likely believe Eyes to Space was a crazy Japanese pop band. The EP winds up on “Dear Sir” where Eyes to Space illustrate a vast ability as musicians, but again the vocals don’t do any favors. If Eyes to Space really want to take this to the next level, they need to either use Spitzer as the lead vocalist, add a singer or make Cartwright take speed to get the energy up. Let’s see what happens.
Fivespeed You can’t fault the guitarists of Fivespeed for their tired rock sound – the guitar works echoes post-hardcore masters Quicksand with bursts of pop (and even Snapcase matching on the opener “The Mess”). Yet, you will immediately want to strangle the lead singer as he fronts a post-grunge vocal ripping pain that parallels anything on Wind-up. The Phoenix outfit inflicts particular soreness on “Hand or Rifle,” where the pseudo-electronic vocal effects make you wish a sniper would take them out. The ‘demo’ on the four-track EP “Are We In?” is flat-out the best number here – largely because it is noticeably less polished particularly on the vocals. Is that the song that convinced EVR to sign Fivespeed? Possibly. Even though this is one EVR’s most commercial releases, a more interesting question is why would Fivespeed want to be on EVR?
Flyleaf This six-song EP from Temple, Texas’ Flyleaf is something that sneaks up on you and bites considerably harder than you would expect. Fronted by the diminutive, but intensely powerful vocalist Lacey Mosley and filled out by guitarists Sameer Bhattacharya and Jared Hartmann, bassist Pat Seals and drummer James Culpepper, Flyleaf stomp through hard rock numbers that combine the varying sub-genres into a sound more of their own. Often there are moments when Mosley’s vocals and accompanying instruments come off as ‘goth,’ but then quickly turn to more straight-ahead rock and pop influences. For instance, on the opener “I’m So Sick” there are requisite squirrelying guitar effects matched with angry vocal bursts, but the chorus transition illustrates a poppier band. The downside to “I’m So Sick,” which is also the band’s first single, is that Mosley overstresses the ‘angry’ effect by occasional scream bursts. The following “Fully Alive” follows in similar fashion and others fall out in parallel forms. This self-titled EP is getting a new push in anticipation of Flyleaf’s debut full-length at the end of September. So be it and we await the next offering.
Fruit Bats Cool CD packaging can get a band in the door, but the music determines whether the only good thing we mention is the packaging. Thankfully, Chicagoan Eric Johnson’s Fruit Bats can back up the gorgeous cover art with a gorgeous record. Matching the Fruit Bats’ previous efforts of Echolocation and Mouthfuls, Johnson layers magical pop over a singer-songwriter core, again echoing his past patronage in such outfits as Califone. Although the Fruit Bats haven’t been ignored over the past few years, it is surprising that they aren’t talked more in the same breath as the Shins and Modest Mouse. Certainly not on the same level as those bands, the Fruit Bats still are an indie force to be reckoned with. I could imagine people being turned off by the super Beatles pop parallels on the openers “Lives of Crime” and “Silent Life” – as in Johnson is aping them too much – but one can’t deny the songs’ pop appeal. This is sometimes enhanced by British-like intonation on such numbers as “The Earthquake of ’73” and “Traveler’s Song.” The songs that excel and present Johnson and his Fruit Bats as their own entity include the string of “Canyon Girl,” “Born in the 70s” and “Legs of Bees.” Another song to tack onto the rad list includes “The Wind That Blew My Heart Away,” which should wind up in your next favorite movie or at least sweet enough to woo girls at your private New England college. The Fruit Bats have already done stints opening for the groups mentioned above as well as Wilco, so it seems that a well-placed soundtrack number or an iPod commercial is going to be necessary for Johnson to accelerate. We hope this happens quickly.
Gooding If want to know the type of music one makes in Wichita, Kansas, Gooding may be both the perfect and worst example. The worst with respect that I doubt many bands in Wichita sound like Gooding. The best in that Gooding may actually be one of the best local bands from the area – I admittedly know about zero about Wichita and their ‘scene.’ What is clear from Angel/Devil’s thirteen songs is that Gooding love to infuse rock, funk, blues and world music into a quasi-jam atmosphere. As such, Gooding is the type of band that I would have to leave a venue during even if it meant hanging with the leprous smokers. Within the amalgam of college town bands, Gooding may be as good as it gets, but that may be it.
Holopaw Pushing aside their self-titled 2003 debut, Gainesville’s Holopaw craft folksy Americana currents into modern singer-songwriter styles with electronic enhancements on Quit +/or Fight. Past touring with labelmates Iron & Wine and Fruit Bats, among others, provides the parameters of Holopaw’s sound. For the most part, the eleven tracks here exist somewhere between light guitars and pedal steel of Jeff Hays’ and the electronics of Michael Johnson – yet, the indie pop wins more of the races and electronics only set the background. Besides from this core instrumental duo, Holopaw is vocally fronted and constructed by John Orth (also of Ugly Casanova) whose potential range is vast, but he mostly keeps it within a defined space. Besides from several guests on Quit +/or Fight, the band is filled out by Tom Reno, Tobi Echevarria and Ryan Gensemer. The record opens on “Losing Light” where the listener is introduce to the mid-tempo folksy pop that will continue throughout the next ten songs. “3-Shy-Cubs” probably has the widest collection of instruments on Quit, most clearly including handclaps and electronics – and stands out as one of the best. Electronics underlie and propel the more ethereal “Curious,” while “Holiday” brings us back to the singer-songwriter rock. “Velveteen (all is bright.)” is one of the more withdrawn numbers where Orth moves along with light synths and drums, and as it builds to a full band you realize this is one of the better tracks on Quit. “Clearing” may be slapped for being overly faux rock, but it serves its purpose as a contrast number. Now these first six songs are nearly all the same length. Yet, by Holopaw slightly shifting constructions and ambiences, it is impossible to confuse one for another. This is a difficult task that is seemingly easy pulled off by Holopaw. Too many albums sound the same when the songs are all the same length and too many bands try to have different songs simply for the purpose of sounding different and wind up sounding too purposeful. Anyway, “Shaver” follows “Clearing” and the tempo is picked up but the drop pace breakdown comes off a bit abrupt. “Needle In the Sway” starts with high note guitars with effects that come across like something on Temporary Residence before Orth’s aching vocals lead you through the strong lyrics. “Found (Quit +/or Fight)” is the shortest and is like an Americanized Belle and Sebastian that is actually quite nice. For some strange reason Holopaw doesn’t include the lyrics to “Found (Quit +/or Fight)” and references their website for them; there most be a background to story to this. Similar to the strong use of electronics setting the stage in “Curious,” “Ghosties” opens with a wall of haunting chorals before it fades to become another solid rock number. The chorals come back to underlie the refrain of “all the little ghosties” and help lead the way to the finish. Quit +/or Fight closes with “Shiver Me,” where Orth is more fragile while being pushed by quick-fingered acoustic guitars. Although “Shiver Me” is delicate, it parallels to light Shins and Simon & Garfunkel forces you to hit repeat from time to time. Although not currently at the top of Sub Pop’s heavy hitters, Quit +/or Fight is surely to place Holopaw on the top rung on everyone’s favorite indie label. It is only a matter of time before Holopaw is on the tip of everyone’s tongues and people connect Holopaw to Gainesville instead of Hot Water Music. A well-placed song or two on film soundtracks could help in this progression.
Hong Kong Six As I’ve been finding myself recently saying about a bunch of records, ‘if the opening song [or so] was as good as the rest, the record would be phenomenal.’ And such is the case with Hong Kong Six’s debut record. The six-piece’s opener “Swim with the Sharks” has an awesomely catchy indie-pop line of “c’mon let’s swim with the sharks, with the sharks.” Although guitarist Darren Geare heads up most of the singing duties, keyboardist Alisa Santoro typically backs and sometimes leads, thus creating the hip indie boy/girl singing style. I’ve have a massive soft spot for this type of vocal construction (see, the Forecast’s recent record), but I’m not entirely smitten by Hong Kong Six – mostly because uber-catchy lines are often left behind for a more angular post-hardcore sound across the album’s ten tracks. Still the use of Tracy Salzer’s viola and the Police-esque guitar use – that sometimes mirrors Oingo (e.g., “Music Is Too Loud” and “Rainy Day”) – allows Hong Kong Six to develop their own sound while standing on the shoulders of the past. Besides from “Swim with the Sharks” check out the chorus on “Read My Mind,” “Rainy Day” and the string work on “Play My Game.” One wouldn’t want Hong Kong Six to shift gears, but sprinkling smidgens more catchy lines may do wonders for their appeal.
Isle of View Baltimore’s Isle of View probably should have included ‘friendly’ into the title of their debut full-length as their melodic pop-punk comes off as friendly for the whole family. Existing somewhere between favorite local band sound and pop-punk commercialism, Isle of View offer a thirteen track album that surrounds, a bit too much, the old song and dance topic of girls. This is apropos material for high schoolers, but it begins to drag considerably on the overall package. There are moments when you want to beat the crap out of Isle of View – like on the lame breakdown on “He Who Laugh Last” – but you also must acknowledge the peppiness of their beats and guitars. Besides from subject matter, another trapping Isle of View fall into is way too obvious rhymes. Typically punk bands can bury bad lyrics in a good cadence, but the offness here comes repeatedly more then the boys would probably prefer. Isle of View is releasing a video for “Ransom,” which better be smoking because the song on its own is only marginally appealing; you find much better material from the opener “Fall Asleep and Die.” Within the realm of young pop punk bands, Isle of View ain’t half bad. But placed against full-scale competition there are much better alternatives.
Jaks Here Lies the Body of Jaks is a vast seventeen-track collection of Jaks’ recorded material during the mid-90s. The quasi-spastic, but mid-tempo, horror rock from the four-piece is most notable by the sheer fact that this music was being made at such a time – and further that I completed missed out on Jaks. The record compiles two of Jaks’ 7”s Damn Bloodsucker and Five-Nine and the full-length Hollywood Blood Capsules. Another piece of interest is that uber-producer Steve Albini worked Damn Bloodsucker and Hollywood Blood Capsules. For a causal listener, even like myself, the great joy of listening to Jaks is that they serve as a bridge between early attempts of punk noise and what would become every variant of spazzcore, horrorcore, etc. One doesn’t get great joy from the songs themselves unless you were a part of Jaks’ world way back when, or you’re a fan of the 3.1.G. and friends catalog. Yet, if you want a great horror introduction, Here Lies the Body of Jaks is a solid start.
The Jena Campaign This expansive ten track album from the Jena Campaign trio of Maggiacomo, Ferguson and Mehlenbacher (ok, no first names) illustrates a significant start at melding the slow, detached acoustic sound into something more impressive. Dropping all the extraneous French history connection and the terrible photos on the one sheet, the Jena Campaign prefer slow tempo songs where they can flesh out layers of varying instruments. While the monotony of the songs begins to drag starting around half-way through, highlights come from “Holiday,” “The Wheel To Your Siren” and “From Here to North Dakota.” The feeling you walk away with from this self-titled record is that regardless of whether or not the band stays together in the future, if the actors continue their path, they will make a serious impact in five to ten years. Whether they want to make the commitment is something entirely different.
Kids Like Us Possibly as a reaction to growing up in a football-all-the-time atmosphere of Tallahassee, FL, Kids Like Us turned toward the old school hardcore staples of the past twenty years to rescue them from persecution. But KLU never turned far enough away from what they were listening and in so doing present a thirteen-song, twenty-minute ‘full-length’ that sounds exactly like every other old school hardcore band. The one sheet mentions several times that KLU include clear southern rock influences into their product, but its location is still MIA. Those from Tallahassee who consider Kids Like Us part of their clan will love Outta Control, everyone else should pass.
Kinski It is not that Seattle’s Kinski play for a small audience. In fact, the foursome’s psychedelic, Krautrock instrumentals are quite appealing and many causal – very causal – will not mind if you lay Alpine Static in their players. At the same time, unless you are really into Kinski’s style, you are not likely to receive satisfaction from the record’s nine tracks. After blowing up SXSW a couple of years ago and getting good nods to 2003’s Airs Above Your Station, Kinski have established themselves within the 70s-esque instrumental rock field. Those types that think SXSW is Mecca and are devoted to rock instrumentals will eat up Alpine Static. For me, I’ve only heard a handful of bands within these parameters that can transcend not having vocals – most specifically, SuperHeavyGoatAss. While Kinski is less dirty and more ethereal, their central attack does come from the heavy rock world. In hopes of ‘getting’ Alpine Static, I played the album repeatedly in different places – headphones, car, background house music – but nothing really pulled me in. As should be clear, those who have heard and like Kinski will unquestionably enjoy Alpine Static. Those first being introduced to the sound will find less love.
Lorene Drive Coming from back desert Victorville, CA, the four-piece of Lorene Drive tightly merge forms of post-hardcore and melodic punk on their debut full-length Romantic Wealth. The band previously released an EP on Savan In Super Pursuit Mode on Top Notch Records that essentially got the ball rolling toward Lobster. As one of the punchiest records from Lobster in awhile, Lorene Drive are in the moment with a sound perfectly crafted for today’s dizzying array of melodic punk bands. That is both a blessing and, in some eyes, a curse. The central turnaway from the ten songs on Romantic Wealth is their deferential use of screaming in an attempt to punctuate their sound. On songs such as “Let It Go” and “So Easy,” Lorene Drive move towards screaming breakdowns that in fact undermines their strong melodic heart. There are enough bands out there melding screaming and hardcore into pop to cover nearly any new attempt. You can hear how much better Lorene Drive are when they drop the overt shifts, probably best exemplified on songs like “A Kiss Won’t Make This Better” and “Lip Service.” As an extra nugget of joy, Romantic Wealth has some enhanced material including a video for “Let It Go” and behind the scenes material. For a band in the musical moment, one could hardly do any better than Lorene Drive. Yet, their melodic underbelly suggests greater things to come.
Megan McCauley Still only a teenager, Megan McCauley channels the vocal powers of labelmate Amy Lee as well as rock superstar Joplin in this four-song sampler of her forthcoming full-length for Wind-Up. With a bunch of ‘broken home’ baggage and what-not, McCauley works the tough-but-sensitive girl singer motif. The first single of McCauley’s “Die For You” – that was on the FF soundtrack – provides the exact backdrop for the rest her numbers. That sound is a near clone of post-grunge except fronted by a female. If you need to vomit to feel better then play the terrible “Fragile.”
Tim Miller At first blush on the opener “Southbound” you are thinking that Tim Miller might be something set apart from the spat of lame singer-songwriters. The main reason is that Miller uses couples the standard fair with this hushed, slightly detached vocal style that echoes Dashboard or even a high strung Elliott Smith. While “Southbound” ain’t half bad, the following title-track begins the downward fall from grace for Miller. Miller trades in the good for exactly the same lame ass singer-songwriter crap that has been sprouted out of too many corners too many times. Miller reminds me of artists who have a strong local following among small clubs and bars, but those same fans get wet for Dave Matthews and the like. Maybe I associate Miller’s sound with college towns in western NY and that makes me ill. But either way, Miller will survive as a local artist in Dallas but until he differentiates himself from the wealth of like sounding musicians – particularly in the Nashville-vein – he’ll remain local.
Minus the Bear For their latest record on Suicide Squeeze, the members of Minus the Bear decided to produce the songs on their own – a decision that can be both liberating and risky concurrently. Yet, the experience of the members’ pre-Minus (e.g., Botch, Kill Sadie) and with Minus at least allows them a better perspective on contexture. The end result on Menos El Oso (Minus the Bear in Spanish) is a collection of eleven well-mannered and constructed melodic math rock. As with previous offerings, the Bear’s mathness isn’t intense angles, but approaches a mellow indie rock version of the Police. For the cerebrally-induced college crowd, it is hard to get better than the songs on Menos El Oso. The major drawback, however, is that none of the songs really grabs a hold of you. Since this typically comes courtesy of a righteously catchy chorus and the Bear only tangentially rub pure catchiness, it is understandable that collar-pulling numbers are absent. Still, check out the loveliness emanating from songs like “The Fix,” “Pachuca Sunrise,” “Hooray” and “Memphis & 53rd.” In the end, probably the best environment and space to enjoy Minus the Bear is cruising on a downer on a soft deep couch with minimal light.
Muggabears First, it is impossible not to like a band called Muggabears – particularly if they are couched in a cute, fun way; like Muggabears could be some ultra-cute Japanese stuff animal or the like. So, beyond the fun name is there anything good about their debut record Kim Berlin? Well, of course. Flush with noisy indie rock that reflects well-rounded late 80s indie rock, but nothing of the cribbing sort, Muggabears can bring you the hip indie rock yet they often leave the hook of pop, catchy love dangling and not entirely fulfilled. Relocated from Norman, OK to NYC, the original bears Travis Johnson, Kevin Frost and Austin Stephens enlisted Emily Ambruso and Ryan Becker to fill out and thicken the walls of sound. Although the one sheet poo poos comparisons to Pavement, the quasi-angular guitars and vocals (of Johnson, I believe) certainly are apropos (see, e.g., “Kimberly”) but the reflection is not immediate or dragging. Numbers to look out for include “One Last Fuck,” the instrumental “Sister Now,” the opener “Your Flower on Drugs” and the groove fulfilled “Nadia’s Pair.” Muggabears sound on the verge of being a scintillating act, but they are just missing that stochastic ingredient to take them over the hill. In the meantime, they should design a stuff animal of a muggabear and sell them at their shows.
Mummy the Peepshow School Girl Pop is the first US release by this all-girl Japanese trio. Formed in 1994, Mummy the Peepshow – which is a rather odd name – keep to the basics of pop punk much along the lines of 90s Lookout Records’ material. What that means is fun, uptempo, catchy songs sung in slightly Japanese-accented English. Behind several previous records, the ladies have only come to the US three times, but hopefully this will increase behind supporting School Girl Pop. While the record sporadically drags, highlights come from the title-track, “Hide-and-Seek on the Turntable,” “Cut,” “In a Hospital” and the closer “(Give Me A) Letter.” School Girl Pop is the perfect record for fans of simple pop punk that was once dominant in the Bay Area or simply for fans of Japanese punk.
Mutant Radio I didn’t think any new bands were aping the rap-rock sound now – after the early 00s explosion with heavyweights Linkin Park and then all followers. Yet, this LA-via-Detroit six-piece is doing exactly that. This might be okay if Mutant Radio were any good, but such is not the case. The members of Mutant Radio are sufficient musicians who as an instrumental band are tight, but the weak rock-funk background and terrible lyrics/rhymes produce projectile vomiting. Besides from the rather generic song structures and compositions, the lyrics here near the distinction of some of the worst ever. Rock bands often can hide bad lyrics in switching cadences or burying stuff underneath a wall of music, but in hip-hop, and subsequently rap-rock, the quality is mainly determined by rhymes. If you really want to stab your eyes out and pull your ear canals to the floor then check the particularly awful “Starsteria” that is followed by the nearly as awful “Proud.” These songs could be used for securing confessions from terrorists. I’m trying to imagine who would actually like Mutant Radio and can only picture musically ignorant teenagers who think they’re cool.
The Myriad On the opening number “Stretched Over,” there is little doubt who among the many is Seattle’s the Myriad’s overriding musical influence – Radiohead. It is more as if Radiohead went back to their rock roots to produce a record that leaves aside electronics. While the comparison is unquestionable, the Myriad go beyond aping a sound and have developed their own thick, orchestral pop on You Can’t Trust a Ladder.” Produced by Copeland’s Aaron March, the Myriad is fronted by Jeremy Edwardson and filled out by guitarists Joe Young and Steven Tracy, bassist John Schofield and drummer Scott Davis. Admittedly never hearing of the Myriad previously, this eleven track album will likely inject the band into the speakers of many other listeners in the near future. Riding the rock new wave wave, the Myriad’s pop and melody easily whisks you away into a daydream. Besides from distancing guitar effects, Edwardson’s vocals are strong and sweetly pitched to lead this pop attack. None of the songs really are slam dunks, but the overall girth of the album basically guarantees radio and tv attention – though a hot video would be provide the quickest route to notoriety. If you want a rock album that the entire family will enjoy then You Can’t Trust a Ladder may be the perfect gift.
The Narrator As the debut record from the Chicago four-piece the Narrator, Such Triumph is a thickly constructed affair that combines and sweetly mangles nearly every hip indie sound for the past ten years – oh, and it’s cool. With clip art to love animals and illustration of growing up in a city for kids’ books, at least one of the twelve songs will hook your mind and say ‘shit, I want to hear that again.’ Or, it will get your friends to say ‘that guy sounds like x or y?’ And it’s true. It’s true that the songs often mirror one of your favorite previous indie bands (e.g., Pavement, Cap N’ Jazz, etc.), but the shifts are more akin to throwing all the sounds into a bowl, stirring and popping out bombs of varying ilk. Some listeners might not like that on the surface it appears the Narrator are just re-creating their influences like homages to greater Gods. But, if you give Such Triumph a few spins you will shake that feeling from your jaded, Aleve-filled mind. Particular attention should be paid to “New Blood/New Weather,” “Pregnant Boys,” “Crapdragon,” “This Party’s Over” and “Wolves in the Walls.” Any one of those songs may become your new pleasure on your local college radio station. Joy should come in waves from the Narrator live and I’m pining for such a moment.
New Electric Composed of jazz-literate Brian McBrearty, Liam Hurley, Anthony Pirog and Oscar Rodriguez, the New Electric weave distorted rock instrumentals into a memorable four-song debut for PMM. With previous experience in Rolo Tomase, Nakatomi Plaza and others, New Electric saddle their songs with temperate drums, constantly walking bass and trading guitars. Seen in the light of a slightly noisier Explosions in the Sky, New Electric first astound you on the second song “Don’t Send Me Home” – the opening track “Surf” is rather blah. “Banarchy” is more rock driven with some manly guitar riffs, while the seven-minute closer “Circus Metal” has enough space to flesh out a variety of New Electric’s influences. As their first offering, New Electric illustrate the potential for terrific releases in the future.
Nural Barely out of the high school, the La Crescenta five-piece of Nural is a borderline questionable outfit to be hooked up with Hopeless. Mostly bolstered by a melodic punk core, Nural also have an affinity for stadium power ballads and post-grunge that sounds more at home on a label like Wind-up. Of course, there are fewer and fewer labels known for one sound these days, so what Hopeless releases in terms of music variances shouldn’t matter. Continuing…the listener is lulled into acceptance on the strong opening number “Tension,” but by the second track “Chasing You” you are trying to figure what the hell is going on. “Chasing You” is the first utterance of lame pop power ballads that you are more likely to find on top forty radio than a Hopeless show. Besides from the pop bliss on The Weight of the World take heed of the band’s Christian messages (e.g., “The Root of All Evil” and “Enlighten Me”). It becomes more comical when Charles Hoy’s first thanks is to “Jesus Christ for dying on the cross” – sort of like ‘Jesus, you rock for dying for our sins and now I play these songs.’ The others thank God, but Hoy might be the first to be so explicit. Do what you will with this pile.
The Old Scratch Revival Singers A previous specialty of the fungamemassive site was to do fictional live show reviews for shows we couldn’t get into or couldn’t make. Typically, they were based on numerous previous live exposures to a band – like Hot Water Music – but they also included the Bloodlet review up on this site. This type of assumption-based reviewing is what I need to here as the Records of the Damned just sent me an LP version of Oh, Didn’t He Ramble and my record player went the way of the Dido bird a bit back – and current funding forestalls any new purchases. The neat artwork and promo photo suggest an Oh, Brother atmosphere that is also recommended in the one-sheet – bluegrass, ragtime, gospel, etc. That OSRS have mandolin, banjo, stand-up bass, clarinet and viola supports this notion. So, sorry about the quasi-review, but if you like the Old Scratch’s way-throw-back sound in general, then you should like Oh, Didn’t He Ramble.
Patient Zero If you work at Sam Ash, then you will likely enjoy Patient Zero’s latest offering Seemingly So…. Why? Because, the eleven songs reflect a bunch of music nerds who have been rocking for a number of years, surviving, but not thriving; just like most employees of Sam Ash. Now, the four-piece would probably like me to write their name like they do – patientZero – but such a spelling is incredibly lame. Maybe that is perfect as the band’s hard rock-progressive rock-jazz-fusion sound is nearly as such. Patient Zero is perfect suited for playing those free rock concerts in city parks where people just get together to do something and drink Bud. Pain awaits beyond that.
The Plus Ones The Plus Ones typically hook people’s attention by the simple fact that they are headed by former MTX bassist Joel Reader – who provided Dr. Frank the harmonies to unleash some of MTX’s best material. As time has passed since Reader’s tenure, the Plus Ones have taken on a life outside of MTX. Yet, the life has been a bit of a rollercoaster with changes in members and subsequent changes in sound. After a good start with the 2000 EP On the List, the band struggled for a couple of years before releasing the 2002 debut full-length It’s a Calling on Asian Man. With the ability to keep themselves going as a band, but not much beyond that, and after some fluctuation, the Plus Ones are now filled out by former Pansy Division drummer Luis Illades, guitarist John Speranza and most notably in terms of sound changes Alexis Melnicki. Even compared with It’s a Calling, the eleven songs on Oh Me of Little Faith illustrate a shift in sound. Besides from the inclusion of Melnicki’s vocal backing of Reader, the songs tend to be mid-tempo and drawn out – often creating a boring time. The songwriting isn’t really strong enough to maintain interest on mid-tempo, non-catchy numbers like “Suicide Pact (You First)” and the awful “What Have I Done?” Desiring a pop-infused sound, Reader and the Plus Ones act as if they want to clearly separate from a punk band, but they really aren’t proficient enough to be a convincing ‘rock’ band. Still you find refuge on songs such as “Lost the Plot,” “A Month of Sundays,” “She’s Not a Metaphor” and “Don’t You Dare.” The Plus Ones also cover Sugar’s (Bob Mould’s) “Helpless” where Reader perfectly mimics Mould’s vocal style which is really weird. Though one may wish them the best, it is hard to ignore that Oh Me of Little Faith isn’t at the level one may desire.
Ponce De Leon As Ponce De Leon’s first full-length, the three-piece of Greg McKenna, John Hogan and Dave Reich lay down ten tracks of indie-rap eclectic fun. A product of several years of bi-coastal love and art-school roots, this record most obviously draws parallels to the humorous side of Cex as well as the tiny NC group Kerblocki. However, the ten self-produced songs here could stack up with anything that Cex has knocked out and often trumps it. As a smart plan, Ponce put all the crazy, comical, non-sensical lyrics in the booklet for your reading pleasure – and it is great. Before you hear the opener “Rhythm Nation 1513” you have to first laugh past the rapping Ponce painting on the cover followed by the three-piece painted onto three flying birds. The magic takes about thirty seconds to kick off on “Rhythm Nation 1513.” The said magic comes from the dance bass chorus where all three hold a long ‘harmony.’ In a wise sequencing move, if the rest of the record was as kitsch-awesome as “Rhythm Nation 1513” this would be one of the most enjoyable records of the year. Still, the next songs find enough love to satisfy your inner pop demons. It is also wise to at least do one listen while reading the lyrics as ridiculous as they are they actually contain inklings of truth (see, e.g., “Snap Goes the Gator”) revolving around, at least marginally, Ponce. Look for smart moments from the half-way point to the finish of “Nail Polish Gun” the quirky electronics bring to a LSD-infused, surreal Chocolate Factory scene. Other songs to notice include the party “Caribbean Zombies,” “Flavorwagon,” the drunken ragtime of “Jungle Tea Party,” the nearly rock vocal emphasis on “My Lord Put a Mountain Down On Me” and the awesome group vocals on “Time Juice™.” It is too bad that Ponce De Leon aren’t rocking out every night for your listening pleasure – thanks to a bi-coastal existence. For more information on Ponce De Leon (the band), you can check them out at www.dolphinstrickedoutwithsubwoofers.com.
Small Towns Burn A Little Slower As the latest melodic punk outfit to fill out Triple Crown’s roster, Minneapolis-based Small Towns Burn A Little Slower are out to a solid start thanks in part to master producer Ed Rose. Although Rose has been spread a bit thin and some of his recent products have failed to dazzle, Mortality As Home Entertainment hits as good any melodic punk offering this year. Three years in existence, Small Towns released an EP on Rise Records and performed the requisite crap touring experiences before getting picked up by Triple Crown. As with many bands hitting the ground these days, Small Towns have to spend a little extra to differentiate from the pack. This is a difficult task to accomplish without coming across like you are specifically trying to sound different (e.g., adding screaming, metal riff, keyboard) – and bands often come off sounding like everyone else doing the same thing. For Small Towns, their appeal arrives from unleashing infectious pop that is familiar but just different enough. To maximize your interest in Small Towns it is best to spin the CD several times to ensure you get the nuances. Highlights come from “Last Blast Off,” the handclaps breakdown on “Alias: The Bee Keeper,” “Lullaby For Sleeping Babies,” “Wait For Me, Abby Bernstein” and “1970 Topps Burt Blyleven Rookie Card.” Naturally, Small Towns will be blitzing your town soon and if accompanied with similar-minded bands, the show might well be sweet.
Somerset Long a staple of the web music writery, this Somerset release is the first release for Punknews.org’s new label Punknews Records. For both Punknews and the Minneapolis-based four-piece of Somerset this is a pretty good deal all around – great exposure for the band and a strong release for the new label. Across Pandora’s twelve-songs, Somerset demonstrate a desire for upbeat punk that is being continuously enhanced by very slight effects like a vocal effect here and background keys there. This creates an environment of prog-punk near the vein of contemporaries Circa Survive, but certainly not as developed. And that is part of the problem for Somerset; they are damn near to being something exceptional, but they haven’t quite passed the threshold yet. You can hear how good Somerset is on such numbers as “More Than Answers,” “Rhyme Over Reason,” “Peppermint Gunpowder” and the flailing closer “House of Knives.” It sounds like Somerset aren’t exactly sure the track they want to take with Pandora. They could pull back from the prog/glam influences and be a cogent, coherent band. Or they could take it even further and include a swath of demolishing guitar work – assuming the technical ability is there. Either way, Pandora is a solid number for band that is still maturing their sound.
Sunset Rubdown If the opening few tracks on Snake’s Got a Leg spark a marked vocal recognition pattern in your brain, it is likely both deserved and confused. Sunset Rubdown is not headed by James Stewart of Xiu Xiu, even though you could swear different. In fact, Sunset Rubdown is a one-man show - Spencer Krug. Krug is/will be one of your new favorite artists thanks to his main outfit Wolf Parade (Sub Pop). Wolf Parade’s latest EP was smoking and we are all crossing our fingers for just as good a full-length. Sunset Rubdown then serves as Krug’s outlet for more esoteric and eclectic musical thoughts where he need not worry as much about pop appeal. As noted, it is hard to distance Sunset Rubdown’s sound from the more accessible material from Xiu Xiu (see, Fabulous Muscles). While Krug is less achingly distraught on vocals, the feeling is often parallel. The causal listen will likely toss off Snake’s Got A Leg, but many will be attracted to such songs as “I’ll Believe Anything You’ll Believe In Anything,” “The Dust You Kick Up Is Too Fine” and even instrumentals like “Cecil’s Bells.” Although Sunset Rubdown must be great for Krug, I’m more interested to see how Wolf Parade’s full-length turns out.
Ten 33 Although Richmond’s Ten 33 follow the tired old school hardcore path so often traveled before, Nightmare on Grace Street comes off not as your standard run of the mill nonsense. This impression is partially formed by blasting Ten 33 while driving through the bullshit STL traffic that shouldn’t exist in the first place. The ten songs keep the blood flowing while you swerve in and out of cars. Besides from this new endeavor, Ten 33 released their debut on Blood & Ink in 2004 entitled Emergency! Emergency! While likely billed as a full-length Nightmare on Grace Street is really an EP – ten songs clock in at only 17 minutes. The hard-hitting short numbers are part of this game, but Ten 33 need a few more to boost the quantity quota on the record. All in all, if you dig old school hardcore a la Bridge Nine then you will love Ten 33.
V/A A benefit comp is always a hard record to critically assess – and this fourteen track benefit for cancer is no different. Formed a couple years back by teenager Eric Grider in Montana, Concert for a Cause started just as that – a concert benefiting cancer victims. While not a new concept – see, e.g., the Cancer Sucks series on Long Island that Channel 59 put on for a few years – Grider is taking things to the next level with compilations to enhance the concerts. As such, this is the second edition and features a swath of bands from Montana and around the country. The comp includes a hodge-podge of punk, indie rock and the various intermingling between sounds. Highlights from the comp include The Forecast’s “Freebird 2: This Time It’s Personal” which is as hot as the material from their latest on Victory and insinuates a Hot Water Music feel, Blake Brown’s understated “I Won’t Make a Sound,” the poorly recorded but strong “Teasing to Please” from Cute Is What We Aim For and Comfortable For You’s blitzing instrumental “Sing At the End.” Concert for a Cause 2005 retails at a decent price, so there is added incentive to score it at smartpunk, interpunk or the organization’s site www.concertforacause.net.
Yesterdays Rising After opening Lightworker with some post-grunge margins on “To the Readers,” Yesterdays Rising sets into developing a prog-infused punk-hardcore offering across the following eleven tracks. This California five-piece first self-released the EP Ship of Relations in 2003 before getting the attention of Fearless – and thus leading to last year’s widespread introduction of the When We Speak We Breathe EP. While still quite young, the Yesterday’s Rising took on the Warped Tour and prepared for a hopefully breakout full-length. In some respects, Lightworker is just that, but not at the level the band probably hoped for. Likely taking nods from Coheed and the Mars Volta, the band unquestionably bolstered the atmospheric ambience with soaring guitars from John Bloom and Richie Ochoa accompanied by Brandon Bolmer’s spaced out vocals; Bolmer’s throat is solid, but a stronger singer could take the songs to another level. A closer contemporary band is Circa Survive. What is strange about Lightworker is that Yesterdays Rising doesn’t do anything new and travel common threads with many bands merging genres, but for some reason it doesn’t annoy the shit out of me. Often these young bands just ape sounds from better groups – as clones – and are otherwise boring. There are numerous strong moments including “Catastrophic” and “My Body Is Like a Metaphor,” and only a few missteps including the god-awful acoustic number “My Conscious Curiosity” – it is not clear why the band or anyone would decide to put this song on the record except as a joke. For those you want more Floyd with their melodic hardcore then Lightworker is a wise choice.
Yip-Yip When you have deranged cat drawings on your cover and Locust-esque performance suits you know that you are in for a good electronic experimental time. And that is exactly what the Yip-Yip two-piece is. Originally formed as a non-live performing entity, Yip-Yip began to play out and release limited CD-Rs of their massive electronic madness. In fact, Pro-Twelve Thinker was initially self-released a year and a half ago, but Strictly Amateur is giving the whole twelve-song, twenty-three minute record a proper pushing off. Yip-Yip’s Brian Esser and Jason Temple are not as spastic hardcore as bands like the Locust, but follow closer to mellow Kid606 in their choice of electronics. A hip live show may put Yip-Yip over the edge of goodness in our books. As quintessential installation art music, one could hardly do any better than Pro-Twelve Thinker.
YMCK It is nearly impossible to not enjoy the twelve songs on Japan’s YMCK new record Family Music. Although many bands have previously mined old Nintendo games from music to sample and incorporate, hardly any do as well a job as YMCK. A significant part of this assessment is due to Midori’s sweet poppy girlie vocals on top. In many respects, you can draw a comparison between Stereo Total and YMCK – except clearly YMCK use more electronics and also their songs have an intermittent swing jazz thing going on (as established on songs such as “Pow * Pow”). The only real fault of Family Music is that there are no songs that really grab your ear and don’t let go. The material is there is make a hot number, but the current twelve don’t entirely live up to the job. Still, the ton of fun electronic songs will get you going for sometime. Don’t expect YMCK to be rolling through you town soon, though. The group has played such few shows – and only in Japan – that they are listed on the one sheet. Hopefully YMCK will come to the US on a Japanese package tour which would be awesome.
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