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 05.12.08
Michael Dean Damron & Thee Loyal Bastards
BAD DAYS AHEAD- (IN MUSIC WE TRUST)- This is the first release by
Mike D. with his new band, Thee Loyal Bastard after 4 records
with country punk renegades I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch in the
House (one of those was a live record) and a solo record from
a few years ago. He has a solid cast here (including ex-Wipers
drummer Sam Henry) and l’ve said it before and I’ll
say it again, Damron is the hardest working person in show
biz (especially since James Brown is now dead). I must say,
he has mellowed (just a bit) with age but from the opener, “I
Love the Rain”, you’d never know it as bluesy rock
tune howls with ripping guitars and Damron’s tainted
spirit vocals. “By the Time I get to Heaven” is
a crowd-shakin’ melodic pop tune and “Swear to
God” is a guts n’ glory burner, that kind of tune
he perfected in S.O.B. “Ghost’ is a life-affirming
acoustic tune and “Andy Gibb” opens with the line, “go
ahead pass the cocaine, look at all the good it did” (even
if it wasn’t a great song, which it is, I’d still
give him points for naming a song “Andy Gibb”).
The real story is told on the next to last song, “Hotter
Hell”, where Damron admits, “I’m tired of
fighting, I’m tired of runnin’…I’ve
seen hotter hell, I just can’t remember when.” Let’s
just hope those prophetic words don’t end up being truth
as this is the best bunch of musicians he has ever worked with
and I’m hoping this is just the beginning of a new Damron
era. www.inmusicwetrust.com
 05.12.08
The Estranged
STATIC THOUGHTS- (DIRTNAP)- Fairly new Portland trio
who have spent time in gutter punk bands like Remains of
the Day Coldbringer, Hellshock and others (don’t worry,
I haven’t heard of any of them either and I live here).
The thing is, on STATIC THOUGHTS, they eschew the gutter
punk style for something less angry and in your face and
more immediate and arresting. The first band that comes to
mind while listening to this is The Wipers but I also hear
the angular riffage of Mission of Burma (the band cites both
bands as influences). “No Love” is a terrific
opener, one of those songs with a cool, driving rhythm section
and thick guitars while “Don’t They Know” has
a wiry guitar lead (courtesy of guitarist/vocalist Mark Herman)
running through its river with Sage-esque vocals and song
number three, “Nervous Blood”, is a perfect mix
of the first two songs (with some “whoahs” and “yeahs” throw
n in for good measure). The onslaught doesn’t end there, “Nothing
to Say” rips from the get go and then slips into a
cool middle part where bassist Derek Willman gets to show
off his chops. We can’t forget the drummer: Keith Testerman
occasionally overplays and if you think I’m going to
dis that then you’re wrong. I love when drummers overplay
(one of the reasons why I loved bands like Moving Targets,
Bitch Magnet and oh, let’s not forget about Rush).
These guys are going places and I’m happy to say we
have yet another winner from Dirtnap Records.. www.dirtnaprecs.com
 05.12.08
The Service Industry
LIMITED COVERAGE- (SAUSPOP)- Jeff Smith has turned the Texas music scene on
its ear with his mighty fine label Saustex Records where
he has released stellar titles by cow punk bands/artists
like Steve Tombstone, Hickoids and Snowbyrd. With The Service
Industry’s more pop sound Smith started a new arm of
the label, Sauspop, and this Austin bunch are a great way
to start. In much the way that The Minus 5 add the three
H’s: heart, humor and hooks to their tunes, , T.S.I.
, on their second record here, drill home the point with
melodic chugging guitars and a general sense of fun all the
way around. The six folks that make up this band have all
been around the Austin scene for a long time (including bassist
Hunter Darby who has played with both Spoon and Dumptruck)
and most of the tunes were written by vocalist/guitarist
Mike McCoy. Not sure how many lousy jobs McCoy has had but
here are a few of the song titles: “Job of Quality”, “Have
to go to Work” (one of the best songs on here) , “They
Fired Me”, and, of course, the final tune, “Still
Have to go to Work.” I like when percussionist Julie
Lowery (the token female here) adds her vocals to the songs
and I only wish we’d heard more of her. Still, that’s
a small complaint as most of LIMITED COVERAGE is the kind
of bar band rock that I wish more bar bands could play. www.sauspop.com
 05.12.08
She & Him
VOLUME ONE-
(MERGE)-You know her because she has been in ALMOST FAMOUS,
THE GOOD GIRL, ELF, FAILURE
TO LAUNCH and plenty of other movies. You know him because
he has released 4 terrific records on the Merge label (and
worked with tons of other more famous musicians). Zooey Deschanel
and M. Ward together make up She & Him and though you
have never heard the songs on Volume One before (save for
The Beatles and Smokey Robinson covers) they will sound instantly
familiar to you if you grew up on 60’s and 70’s
AM radio. Deschanel, who wrote the songs, has a voice that
is warm, inviting and vulnerable and Ward’s music perfectly
compliments it and what you have is some really low-key pop
tunes. Think Phil Spector, at least on a few songs, minus
the wall of sound. She & Him offer up piano ballads (“Sentimental
Heart”, “I Thought I Saw Your face Today”,
etc.) , rollicking pop (“Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?”, “I
Was Made for You”, ), country twang (“Change
is Hard”, “Black Hole”, “Got Me”),
covers (“You Really Got a Hold on me”, “I
Should Have Known Better”) and two soaring, amazing
pop songs in the batch (“This is Not a Test”, “Sweet
Darlin’). Not a bad ratio here, 10 good to really good
songs and 2 flat out great ones. I’m hoping (assuming)
with the title that they’re leaving the door open for
a Volume Two. www.mergerecords.com
 05.05.08
Robert Forster
THE EVANGELIST- (YEP ROC)- I didn’t
realize that it had been 12 years since the last Forster solo
record (WARM NIGHTS) but now that I think about it that was
right around the time that the Go-Betweens had reformed so
it would make sense. Things probably didn’t get any easier
when Forster lost his songwriting partner and best friend Grant
McLennan to a heart attack 2 years ago but Forster soldiered
on, and thankfully so because THE EVANGELIST is a terrific
record (and three of the songs were co-written by McLennan
as he and Forster were beginning to write the next Go-Betweens
record). Armed with the same rhythm section he has used for
quite a while (Adele Pickvance on bass and Glenn Thompson on
drums) Forster opens the record with two slower, prettier songs
in “If It Rains” and “Demon Days” both
with melodies so subtle you could blink and miss them. Then
the gorgeous, ringing “Pandanus” comes in with
those guitars that sound perfect to these ears. The title track
sounds like it could about Forster’s German wife (now
living in Australia?) while my favorite song on the record,
the upbeat “Let Your Light In, Babe” (love that
mandolin!), a strummy tune about a man finding love with a
woman at his church. The sweeping, majestic “Don’t
Touch Anything” (with its grand strings and cool Hammond
organ) is one of the best songs on the record as is the tribute
to McLennan, “It Ain’t Easy” (“but
it was melody he loved most of all”). THE EVANGELIST
is an outpouring of love and emotion told only in a way that
Forster can do (and has been doing for over two decades). One
of 2008’s best. www.yeproc.com
 05.05.08
The Goldbergs
UNDER THE RADAR- (KOOL KAT)- Led by the affable
Andy Goldberg, this Northeast trio are a power pop band in
the Beatles (and Badfinger) tradition and have no problem
admitting it. It’s not like we need yet another bunch
who dig the Fab Four but Goldberg can write a hooky tune
and as I’ve said before, I don’t care who bands
are heavily influenced by as long as they write good songs
and The Goldbergs do (and it’s not like these guys
sound exactly like The Beatles anyway, it’s just one
of their many influences). I think I heard their 2006 record,
HOOKS, LINES & SINKERS but I don’t remember it
being this good. UNDER THE RADAR begins with the ebullient “Please
Won’t You Please” which is all chiming guitars
and pleading vocals. “Feel the Sun”, like its
title implies, is all about taking time to stop and smell
the roses (or in this case, going outside and enjoying the
sun….not always easy to do in Oregon). “Water
Blue” is one of the slower, more acoustic driven songs
and the band can do that too (no one trick pony here) and
the cool organ on “Better Times” is pure Merseybeat
bop. It’s spring now folks and a perfect time to try
on something new. The Goldbergs might just be a perfect fit.
www.koolkatmusik.com
 05.05.08
Clint Sutton
S/T- (SELF RELEASED)- This guy is probably getting tired of reading reviews
where they call him “that hick from West Virginia” or
that he recorded it “way out in the sticks of West
Virginia.” I mean, that state does have cities you
know. I had never heard of Sutton before but I read about
his cd, but I requested one from him and he was kind enough
to send me one. I’m glad he did too as this is a nice
big old butterscotch kiss on top of the gooey chocolate chip
cookie (fresh out of the oven). The photo on the back cover
of the cd might give away a little bit as above the couch
is a framed picture of a Superdrag poster and even before
seeing that I was going say that the Tennessee crunch popsters
seem to be a big influence on Sutton (Matthew Sweet too).
Hard to believe the record was recorded by Sutton alone as
it sounds like a full rock band, but it was and the opener “Somebody
Told Me” is pure gold, all gushing melody and big guitar.
In fact that’s probably a way I could describe a lot
of this record. Other hook-driven gems include the punchy “Because”,
the swaying “Foregoing the Breakdown”, the crunchy “Theory” and
a few others. Clint may look like a hippy on the cd cover
but trust me, this is no hippy music. www.myspace.com/clintsutton
 05.05.08
The Tripwires
MAKES YOU LOOK AROUND-
(PAISLEY POP)-The always reliable Paisley Pop label returns
with a release that is chock full of chewy melodies courtesy
of the Minus 5’s John Ramberg plus the Sangster Brothers
(Johnny is a studio engineer while bro Jim has played in
the Young Fresh Fellows among others) and Mark Pickeral,
who has drummed with everyone, most notably his old band
the Screaming Trees. Despite all of the talents this is Ramberg’s
baby and anyone who has seen him play guitar in the Minus
5 knows he’s hot shit. This has the same kind of stick
o’ dynamite energy that guys like Nick Lowe and Dave
Edmunds brought onto the scene back when I was just entering
high school. The first tune, “Lessonpony” kicks
out of the gate with some seriously unique, twangy guitar
in there while the start/stop “Arm Twister” adds
a few more hooks to the repertoire. They slow it down on
the pretty “Big Electric Light” and add a big
ol’ gob of melody on the smooth “Comedienne.” They
toss in a Chuck Berry cover near the end (“Tulane”)
and on the band’s my space site the first band listed
in their influences is the Bee Gees so how about that. Ramberg
and his pals have plenty of talent and MAKES YOU LOOK AROUND
proves it. www.paisleypop.com
 04.28.08
The Apples In Stereo
ELECTRONIC PROJECTS FOR MUSICIANS- (YEP ROC)- Offered up as a companion piece
to their first compilation, 1996’s odds and sods collection
SCIENCE FAIRE, this 14 track effort collects, in chronological
order, b-sides and rarities from head Apple Robert Schneider
and his gang of unabashed pop cohorts. Despite the title, ELECTRONIC
PROJECTS FOR MUSICIANS (named after a how-to manual by Craig
Anderton) features no electronic music at all but instead more
of Schneider’s gleeful, fuzzed-out pop music with more
hooks than a tackle box. Let’s face it, Beach Boys- obsessive
Schneider has been mining this pop territory since the early
90’s so at this point he has honed his craft down to
a science. Highlights include the shimmering “Man You
Gotta Get Up” (from a spinART Records 1997 single), the
playful “Onto Something” (from a split 7’ with
Sportsguitar) and the effervescent gush of “Shine (in
your mind).” As the record plays on the songs get better
and better and show Schenider perfecting his craft throughout
the 2nd half of the 90’s and into the 00’s. Chalk
this up as yet another shiny gem in an already impressive jewel
box. www.yeproc.com
 04.28.08
Ivy League
THIS IS IVY LEAGUE-
(TWENTY SEVEN)- I loved this NYC (via Florida) band’s debut
EP from 2006 with the great title track “London Bridges” (included
here) and a terrific Arcade Fire cover (“Crown of Love”)
plus 2 other worthy songs. Well, this full-length has 11
songs and it’s everything I was hoping for. The band
consists of two stylish guys, Ryland Blackinton and Alex
Suarez, who probably get more action than you or me (ok,
I’m married, I don’t count) and the sound is
mostly one of sweeping pop with grand melodies but they also
toss in some flamenco, folk, and some tropicalia/bossa nova
as well (with an Astrud Gilberto influence). The record starts
off with “The Richest Kids”, a suave little mid-tempo
pop song with a cool little island-flavored lick and lots
of oohs and ahhs. “Love is Impossible” picks
up the pace a bit and sweeps across the dance floor in the
smoothest way possible. “Til the Day” sounds
like a Kings of Convenience outtake that is way too good
to be an outtake and “Celebration”, just as its
title implies, gets the party started. From what I hear,
these guys should be huge and if you’re anything like
me then you’ll find this impossible not to like. www.twentysevenrecords.com
 04.28.08
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
JUKEBOX EXPLOSION- (IN THE RED)- While I must admit I was always partial to Pussy
Galore, when the JSBX first burst upon the scene in the early
90’s they were something special. As unique as they
were, they were always a bit out of step with their other
early 90’s indie rock brethren (Pavement, Sebadoh,
etc.) Still, they always threw down with all of their cool
attributes: Spencer howling at the moon, no bass player,
the large drummer pounding the small kit and the other guitarist,
Judah Bauer, bending strings like he invented them. Oh, and
then there was that freaky theremin! Back in the old days
they released a string of what they called juke box singles,
no picture sleeves just paper sleeves and 2 songs (modeled
on a similar series that old rockabilly cat Charlie Feathers
had done in the 70’s). Listen to the beautiful racket
of barn burners like “Shirt Jac”, “Train
#3”, “Naked”, “Latch On”, and
plenty of others (18 songs in all). Plus, the nice, thick
booklet that comes with it gives up plenty of photos and
liner (including one story about the band getting ready to
play “Dig My Shit” on SNL before NBC heard the
song title and scrapped the whole thing). www.intheredrecords.com
 04.28.08
Mia Doi Todd
GEA- (CITY ZEN)-I remember hearing this Southern
California folk gal’s debut (THE EWE AND THE EYE from
1997 on further’s Xmas Records label) back when and
thinking that had something, a special songwriting gift.
Well, here we are and this is Todd’s 7th full length
and it’s her grandest, fullest sounding record to date
(no need to worry though, the Joni Mitchell folkisms are
still there). On GEA Todd is helped along with an array for
players of everything from viola to cello to oboe to flute
to harmonium (played by Todd herself) to clarinet and bassoon
and …well, you get the picture. Todd spared no expense
or turned down any instrument to get the sound she wanted.
This lovely record opens with the 10 minute “River
of Life/The Yes Song” and then goes right into the
equally mystical “Night of a Thousand Kisses.” Up
next, “Big Bad Wolf & Black Widow Spider” picks
up the pace a bit and makes great use of the bongos, “Esperar
Es Caro” is sung completely in Spanish and “Kokoro” waxes
philosophical about the importance of friends (apparently
the record is a song cycle about a difficult breakup). On
GEA Todd has put herself out there as only true artists do
as GEA is at times classic, haunting and passionate. A beautiful
record on many levels and each listen unveils a new layer.
www.miadoitodd.com
 04.21.08
Baby Grand
COMING TRUE- (SELF RELEASED)- I wasn’t aware
of it but apparently this Sacramento, CA band has been around
for quite some time and had a debut record out in 2002 (that
I now need to hear) and that features at least one person from
the late great Frenchmen in Mr. Leon Levy (why, oh why did
they have to break up?!!) an they have a nice, gentle sound
akin to both Belle & Sebastian and Camera Obscura. The
band is led by the vocals/acoustic guitar/songwriting by Gerri
White who has the sweetest, softest coo of a voice, the loveliest
since I first heard Isobel Campbell. Some of the songs, like
the terrific opener, ‘Everything You Say” and “Pop
Psychology” break out of the gate like it has already
had its morning coffee while others, like “Holiday in
Space” and “Autumn Wind” gently unfold, like
taking your head off your soft pillow in the early morning.
The only bummer here is that there’s only 7 songs. Hopefully
they have more in the can …not sure what it is about
Sacramento, maybe it’s the water, but occasionally a
great pop band like this will emerge and restore my faith in
indie pop (remember Rocketship, Tiger Trap, Holiday Flyer,
The Frenchmen, etc.???). www.myspace.com/babygrandmusic
 04.21.08
The Incredible Vicker's Brothers
GALLIMAUFRY-
(BUS STOP)- After yet another long hiatus Brian Kirk returns
with a new release on his long running Bus Stop label. Brian
seems to release some stuff then vanish for while only to
return again with more (usually) stellar releases. And stellar
is definitely a word to describe The Incredible Vickers Brothers.
The band is Bob Vickers, who used to drum for Allen Clapp’s
Orange Peels (Allen produced this) and his brother Rob (my
pal suspected that “Bob” might be Larry Winther
who was in the Orange Peels w/ Allen and Bob). Anywho, no
matter who it is they have created a wonderful 60’s
influenced pop record here that I have not been able to stop
playing over the last several weeks. It starts off with the
acoustic dreamer “Blues for Frankie Valli” and
then rips right into the more upbeat “What She Does” which
is pure good vibes about a very special woman. By mid-record
they toss in two masterpieces: the slap happy “We’re
Gonna Get Along Fine” (sample lyric: “…why
don’t you just admit that you are in the presence of
genius!”) and the driving, epic “English Rose.” They
toss in some more pop candy, a few more Simon and Garfunkel
acoustic gems and the record ends with the vaudeville-esque “Record
Collection Blues” and you, the listener, are feeling
not just content but overjoyed , happy that you’ve
heard one of the best records of the year. www.busstoplabel.com
 04.21.08
The Jet Age
WHAT DID YOU DO DURING THE WAR, DADDY?- (SONIC BOOMERANG)-
After years of toiling in obscurity in his previous Washington,
D.C. combo, The Hurricane Lamps, Eric Tischler returned a
few years ago with another power trio: The Jet Age. This
time with the same bassist, Greg Bennet, but with a new over-the-top
drummer, Pete Nuwayser (a guy who would make Keith Moon proud)
and it cranked things up a notch. WHAT DID YOU ….is
broken up into 3 acts (11 songs in all) and it pieces together
as a “soundtrack to an imaginary musical” about
a guy who become a suicide bomber in order to save his family
during a war. Since Tischler lives near our nation’s
capitol the political things sinks in more. Onto the music,
the band kicks into overdrive on the first cut and don’t
even really take a breath until song five as the first four
blur by with in a whir of crashing drums, thick, thumped
bass and Tischler’s aggressive guitar and nasal vocals
(unmistakable). They then contemplate things on “Shake” and
do so at the start of “Dumb” until that rhythm
section comes rolling in. “False Idols” starts
off with more of that great Wedding Present/Unrest scratchy,
quickly strummed, jangly guitar while “Maybe Love’s
a Transmission” might be my favorite on the record.
It ends with the Beatle-esque, mellow “Ladies, Don’t
Cry Tonight (Reprise)”. Ok, whew….if you think
you; know what’s going on in the mind of Tischler then
just give up. You don’t. WHAT DID YOU DO… shows
a creative mind at work and while not for the faint of heart,
shows a band wanting to push the envelope that much further.
www.sonicboomerangrecords.com
 04.21.08
Summer Cats
SCRATCHING POST-
(POP BOOMERANG)-Always one to discover the talent that seems
to be brimming in the Melbourne, Australia area, Pop Boomerang
comes up with yet another winner on this 5 song ep (3 of
these 5 songs were on their Cloudberry Records release last
year…which I do not own so it was all new to me ) .
Only together since late 2006, this winsome 5-some (3 boys
and 2 girls) only give us five songs here but they are stylish,
winning and catchy as all get out. “Wild Rice” opens
things up with a mid-tempo skree complete with cool organ
and sweet vocals. “Hush Puppy” brings in more
of that organ (reminded me a bit of early Modern Lovers)
with slap dash drums and the vocals that seems a slight but
out of synch with each other (which I why I dig it). Then
next tune, “Super Computer”, might be my favorite
of the bunch, all gushing melody and more of those slightly
off-kilter vocals. The last two songs, “Discotheque’ and “Crocodile”,
are both just as good and at this point I’m wondering
if the band has recorded a full-length yet because from the
sound of this EP they are certainly ready to do so. You have
my blessing Summer Cats! www.popboomerang.com
 04.14.08
The Nines
GRAN JUKLE'S FIELD- (T.A.S. GOLD)- This Canadian bunch is led
by impressive songwriter Steve Eggers. Their debut was released
on the Bare Naked Ladies’ Page Records label (ok, so
no one’s perfect) and while this is the first I’ve
heard of them they have several other records out and this
one was highly anticipated. You’re probably thinking
that the world doesn’t need yet another Beatles influenced
band but trust me, these guys are a cut way above the rest
(and are more influenced by XTC then the Fab Four anyway).
The opener, “Insanity (The Sanest Thing You’ve
Got)” is a perfect opener, pure melody in the Moulding/Partridge
songbook while “Don’t be a Fool” is McCartney
at his chirpiest and “I Am Lost” is pure Bee Gees.
If you want something a bit more rockin’ then “She
Hijacked Me” cranks it up a bit with some cool, rollicking
piano and “Virginia” is a terrific sing along.
I like the mixed bag approach with all sorts of different pop
styles on one record so you don’t feel like you’re
listening to the same song over and over. Eggers has mastered
that art on GRAN JUKLE’S FIELD. www.ninespop.com
 04.14.08
No Age
NOUNS-
(SUB POP)- Guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist
Dean Spunt are the two members of the Los Angeles-based No
Age. In addition to recording numerous 7” singles for
many different labels (collected last year as WEIRDO RIPPERS
on the Fat Cat label) these two art-damaged freaks have designed
hats, curated art shows, created zines and played anyplace
that gave them a stage and an hour (or less). On NOUNS, their
Sub Pop debut, 12 songs nudge up against one another, slug
it out and end up in a group hug by the record’s end.
Coming together at that center of the road where Sonic Youth’s
jagged blasts meet up with The Clean’s loopy, swerving
pop , tunes like the opening “Miner”, the chant-heavy “Teen
Creeps” and the driving “Here Should Be My Home’ all
offer up that salty and sweet dichotomy. No Age is putting
a fresh spin on some tired sounds and it’s as smart
and vital as anything you’ll hear this year. www.subpop.com
 04.14.08
Tears Run Rings
ALWAYS, SOMETIMES, SELDOM, NEVER- (CLAIRE)- The term “shoegazer” has been way overused
when describing a certain type of music but then again, so
have terms like “punk”, “new wave”, “indie
rock ” and however else you want to pigeonhole music.
But when writing reviews you want a point of reference and
for this quintet (based up and down the west coast) shoegazer
fits as well as any. They are influenced by the cream of
the crop of the genre (Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine and
Flying Saucer Attack with dollops of Moose and Secret Shine…who
they recently toured with) Their EP from last year, A QUESTION
AND AN ANSWER was a nice introduction to the band but on
ALWAYS, SOMETIMES, SELDOM, NEVER is where they have put it
all together. “How Will the Others Survive?” is
pure F.S.A. with heaping waves of guitar distortion laid
overtop a bed of dreamy melody and “Beautiful Stranger” hypnotizes
you with that perfect riff repeated over and over again.
On “World Upside Down” they speed it up (if just
a bit) and get fiercer and more in your face and “Waiting
for the End” is, simply put, the best dream you’ve
ever had. The band really took its time on this record, every
note, every riff, every vocal right where it should be and
it paid off in spades. Dive in to the new sound of tomorrow.
www.clairecords.com
 04.14.08
Tennis Courts
S/T- (POP ULYSSES)In this household I never get tired
of intelligent, well-played hooky power pop music with smarts
and this Chicago trio have got an overflow of it. Led by
a guy named Wes Hollywood who I guess has lots of records
out both solo and with other bands but I had never heard
of him before. He and his cohorts (including a drummer named
Jason Styx!) waste no time in rocking the pop as opener “Girls
Like This” suggests with yearning vocals, driving guitars
and punchy rhythms while “Victoria and Monica” is
an homage to The Kinks (who I’m guessing are one of
Hollywood’s favorites) and “She’s out of
Control’ is the big sing along, the one you want playing
in your car while trying to impress someone (a girl? a boss?
a long lost aunt?). From there Wes and his crew still don’t
run out of gas, “All of the Tears’ is a slower
heartbreaker while “Dead End Street” is another
one you want to play air guitar to (as long as no one sees
you) with all the hooks and charm of an early Cheap Trick
song. Wes knows the economics of rock n’ roll, get
in, hammer the song out, go on to the next one. Professor
Hollywood says classis is dismissed. www.myspace.com/tenniscourts
 04.07.08
V/A
CAMP BURLESQUE- (BIRD SONG)- I have to admit I had never
heard of this guy Tony Marsico before this cd came in the mail
but apparently he has played bass on sessions for Bob Dylan,
Neil Young, Willie Nelson and plenty of others (plus he was
in L.A. band The Plugz and The Cruzados). Anywho, from Ric
Menck’s label comes a sweet cd/dvd package that is an
homage to the burlesque flicks that Marsico used to catch while
a youngster. You’ve got some heavy hitters on here like
Matthew Sweet (doing the theme to CAMP BURLESQUE) , John Doe,
Peter Case, Dave Alvin, Big Sandy and The Cruzados with Bob
Dylan as well as plenty of others I hadn’t heard of before
this (The Martini Kings, The Del Reys, Rick Vito, The Big Island
Boys, etc.).. The bands all put their best foot forwards and
grind it out in pure burlesque style and it makes for a lot
of fun to listen to. The dvd is another thing altogether, totally
campy and titillating, you’ll think you found some old
lost Russ Meyer classic that was in your dad’s closet
complete with busty women and , if I’m not mistaken,
Ric Menck himself as the gardener. From the minds of Marsico,
Menck and Sweet, I’m glad someone is putting the fun
back in something these days. Classic! www.parasol.com
 04.07.08
V/A
CINNAMON GIRL: WOMEN ARTISTS COVER NEIL YOUNG FOR CHARITY- (AMERICAN LAUNDROMAT)- This label
has released quite a few tribute records and even though
we have been inundated with tributes these past several years
I still like hearing them, especially if it is an artist
whose music I dig (like Neil). This is a 2-cd set that, as
the title suggests, is all women artists covering Neil tunes.
On disc one the set opens with Tanya Donelly’s lovely
take on “Heart of Gold” while Britta Phillipps
(Luna, Dean & Britta, etc.) offers up a dreamy version
of “I Am a Child” and Veruca Salt (remember them?)
cranks out “Burned.” Elsewhere on disc 1 is Josie
Cotton, Jill Sobule and others. On disc 2 Euro-Trash Girl
opens with smooth version of the title track (“Cinnamon
Girl”) while Elk City does a gorgeous version of “Helpless” and
The Watson Twins melt your heart with their version of “Powderfinger.” Also
on this disc is Kristen Hersh, Louise Post (Veruca Salt)
and plenty of others ( I wish someone would have tackled “After
the Goldrush”, one of my faves). It’s a great
lineup and it’s for a great cause. Casting for Recovery
is a national non-profit support and educational program
for women who have (or had) breast cancers (sadly, American
Laundromat President, Joe Spadaro, lost his mom to the disease
in 2005). Well done! www.alr-music.com
 04.07.08
V/A
MESSTHETICS 104: D.I.Y. 1977-'81 SOUTH WALES- (HYPED 2 DEATH)- After a brief pause (or so it seemed) Hyped2Death records
is back with another volume of their Messthetics set. I truly
don’t know where H2D leader Chuck Warner has found
these bands but they give the word obscure a new name. As
the title implies, volume 104 has 23 bands from South Wales
creating their own version of music. The Czechs start off
this collection with a taut, sharp angular sound on “Suffocation
+ 44 Seconds” while Current Obsession “Fish” sounds
like some the X Ray Spex might have done had they taken a
few downers and “What to Wear” sounds like South
Wales own version of the (early) Feelies. Later on The Spitfire
Boys crank up some old busted synth and get you to dance
while The Sane, with , “Arnold Palmer”, make
The Shaggs sound truly professional. You want more? How about
Table Table, Reptile Ranch, Addiction, Decadent Few, Janet & Johns
and plenty of others. If you’re one of those people
who knows it all…well, you don’t and the Hyped2Death
label will prove it to you (jerk). (Messthetics #105 is out
as well and this documents Scottish d.i.y. and indie post-punk
from the same years (1977-’81) with He’s Dead
Jim, The Exile, Visitors, Strutz, Ettes, Brills, Radio Ghosts,
and plenty of others. Add Hyped2Death to your favorites and
break out your atm card. Time to buy! www.hyped2death.com
 04.07.08
V/A
SWEET RELIEF
EP- (JAM)-From the heart and mind of
Jam Records leader Jeremy Morris comes this 3 cd set that
is a benefit for Hurricane Katrina victims. Morris has long
been a supporter of both good music as well as giving folks
a helping hand when they need it the most and this is a labor
of love from the get go. The cover shows a heart full of
Skittles (or are those M & M’s?) and you get 74
tracks in all (for $10!). The set opens up with The Next
Big Things doing the uplifting “Float Me on the River”,
The classic pop of The Red Button with “Free” (if
you have not heard full-length SHE’S ABOUT TO CROSS
MY MIND , get it !), Israel’s Rockfour with “Where
the Byrds Fly” (pure McGuinn baby!) and elsewhere you
get cool cuts from Dressy Bessy, Glowfriends, Bobby Sutliff,
Seaside Stars (Germany’s answer to Teenage Fanclub)
plus plenty of others and that’s just the first disc.
On the other two discs you’ll get choice gems from
folks like DM3, John Wicks and The Records, The Spongetones,
Shoes, Lolas, The Blondes plus DAGGER contributor Gary Pig
Gold with his band The Ghostrockers and a new favorite of
mine, Pop is Art. It comes with a nice 20 page booklet with
plenty of info/liners. Come on there chumpy, drag two $5
bills out of your wallet and order this, it’s the best
deal in town. www.jamrecordings.com
 03.31.08
Organ Blues
THE TANK EP- (SELF-RELEASED)- Three guys from other places
decided to move to Philly and form a band. Nothing too out
of the ordinary, right? Except all three of these guys are
at least 6’ 8” and weigh in at 275 lbs plus. They
all have beards, like to fight, have all worked as mechanics
at one time or another and would beat you senseless in a bar
merely for walking by and accidentally bumping them and making
them spill some beer. Ok, so maybe none of that stuff is true
(well, they all do now live in Philly) but these are the places
my mind wanders to when I hear words thrown together. The words “Organ
Blues” conjures that up in my mind, so sue me. These
4 songs all wander and creep and then, after sucking you in,
hammer you over the head with a sledge hammer (ouch). “Grow
Your Grass Greener” hammers home a blues riff but it
isn’t blues (thank god) while “Organ Mechanic” has
the filthiest riff since James Williamson last picked up a
guitar. “Little Weasels” sounds like Brian Jonestown
massacre on even more downers and the final cut, “El
Dorado” isn’t exactly what you would call “pop” but
it’s the most charming of the four. The band gets major
bonus point for putting a picture of Al “Grandpa Munster” Lewis
on their myspace site but get docked points for having a photo
of guy named Robert on the same site who has the absolute worst
looking sweater I have ever seen. Oh, did I tell you that you
really need to hear Organ Blues?
www.organblues.com myspace/organ
blues
 03.31.08
The Quarter After
CHANGES
NEAR-
(THE COMMITTEE TO KEEP MUSIC EVIL)- This L.A. band, led by
the Campanella Brothers Dominic (vocalist/main songwriter)
and Rob (guitarist/producer), impressed many (including,
most importantly, me) on their
2005 self-titled debut record (on Ric Menck’s label).
Here they return with their sophomore effort (on Anton Newcombe’s
imprint …go figure) with an even stronger batch of
songs. Mixing up equal parts of The Byrds and Love with dashes
of Rain Parade and even Gram Parsons, CHANGES NEAR genre
hops with jangle (“Sanctuary”), psych (“She
Revolves”), country (“Counting the Score”)
and classic pop (“See How Good it Feels”) and
that’s just the first four songs. Elsewhere, blaring
trumpets are the perfect ingredient to “Early Morning
Rider” while the tabla helps elicit a darker, murkier
feel of “Winter Song.” A few of the songs go
on for a bit too long (“Nothing out of Something”)
but that’s a minor quibble as most of the songs CHANGES
NEAR are just right in length. The Quarter After aren’t
aping their heroes so much as updating a classic sound and
this record finds the Campanella Brothers really hitting
their stride. While producing many of the L.A. area’s
finest bands (The Tyde, Beachwood Sparks, Mia Doi Todd, BJM,
etc.) it’s nice to see them getting recognition for
their own fine band. www.bomp.com
 03.31.08
The Ruby Suns
SEA LION- (SUB POP)-
Just by the cover art I knew I was going to like this. For
some reason I could tell it was from New Zealand even before
I read about it. Back in the mid-80’s records on the
Flying Nun label by bands like The Chills, The Clean and
The Bats (the Holy Triumvirate of N.Z. music, if you ask
me) used to boast similar artwork done by the band members
themselves. The “band” here is actually one guy
and he’s not even from New Zealand, originally. Ryan
McPhun, a California native, has explored the globe and landed
in N.Z. a few years back, assembled a cast of players and
The Ruby Suns were born. The fruits of McPhun’s travels
are the basis for the inspiration behind SEA LION. On “Oh
Mojave” he sounds like an exalted jungle priest from
the wilds of Africa summoning his people to par-teeee while “Tane
Mahuta” is sung entirely in Maori (the native language
of New Zealand) and bounces to a similar jungle/island beat.
You know a record like this a great when there is a song
on here called “Kenya Dig It” and it doesn’t
suck (on the contrary, it’s one of the strongest on
the record). This guy McPhun is putting the “Phun” back
into music (ok, everyone reading just turned off their computer
in disgust) and I am going to see the band this coming week
here in Portland and I simply cannot wait. www.subpop.com
 03.31.08
The Vandelles
S/T EP-
(SAFRANIN SOUND)-These cats (two guys and two gals) look like they
hail from Los Angeles but they call NYC home. The Vandelles
are the product of two previous bands that busted up, The
Mercenary Gang and Del Black Aloha (don’t feel bad,
I hadn’t heard of them either). Only 5 tunes here but
this well-dressed bunch does one of the best Jesus and Mary
Chain/Raveonettes dirty surf sound I’ve heard in a
while. The opener “Fever of the Beat’ sounds
like one of the best nightmares I’ve heard in a long
time while the prime psych out of “Swell to Heaven” ups
the reverb to levels previously unheard and at this very
moment is making the Reid Bros. break out their copies of
PSYCHOCANDY and think about how they could have improved
it. “Die for it Cowboy” is a song that would
have been on the GREASE soundtrack if that film was based
in the 1980’s and Danny and Sandy both got severely
strung out. “Lovely Weather” (definitely not
about Portland at the moment, I got hailed on yesterday)
soaks up all the badness the band garnered in THE WILD ONE
(Brando baby!) and spit out into a 3 minute pop tune. The
record ends with “Dead Wave” which is slower,
creepier and (thankfully) does not let up on the reverb one
iota. Where is the full-length ‘cos as Iggy once said,
I need more. www.safraninsound.com
 03.24.08
Antietam
OPUS MIXTUM- (CARROT TOP)- Was just thinking about this band’s
2nd record, 1986’s MUSIC FROM ELBA (when I thought their
name was pronounced An-tee-tam) and how much I dug it and how
I wish it would get reissued on cd. I had no other choice but
to bust out my vinyl copy, take all of the cds off the turntable
lid and play it. Ya’ know what, it sounded great? Well,
here we are 22 years later and the core of the band Tara Key
and Tim Harris are still chugging along (with longtime, though
not original drummer Josh madell) , this time with a double
cd. This is their first release since VICTORY PARK, which was
four years ago and it’s a double cd (apparently it was
supposed to be two separate records but they decided to release
it as a double). After a brief, quiet intro Tara’s incendiary
guitar kicks in on “RPM” while “Turn it on
Me” has a cool guitar hook while the rhythm section lays
down a warm groove as does the equally catchy “Miss Me
Bliss.” Disc two tosses out a bunch of lush, warm tune
(mostly instrumentals) where Tara gets to show off her chops
even more (the female J. Mascis? ) and while I must admit that
26 tunes is a lot to swallow for any meal, there’s hardly
any throwaways here and for as sprawling as this disc is, that’s
pretty damn impressive. www.carrottoprecords.com
 03.24.08
Ben Forrest Davis
ROUGHS- (BIRD SONG)- This guy was the drummer in a band
called Sugarcult, a band I had heard of but never listened
to (from what I’ve heard, I don’t think I missed
too much). Not sure what happened after Sugarcult bit the
big one but Davis had a rough stretch in life and ended up
being homeless, living in an abandoned mattress warehouse
(and I guess if you’re going to be homeless there could
be a lot worse places to call home than a mattress warehouse).
Here Ben shows us his sensitive singer-songwriter side, “softy
rock” you could call it and the guy has oodles of talent
(plus he tosses in some dashes of country rock). He has a
terrific voice and can place a well-meaning hook right where
it needs to be. The opener, “Wide Open”, is the
one tune on the record not written by Ben (written by his
guitarist, Lance Austin…a fantastic song) but on “Everything
Decays” we hear the secret David Gates buried deep
within while “I Don’t Want to Know” has
some gorgeous piano and “I Don’t Miss You” would
make your girlfriend, your mom, and even your grandmom swoon
with its beauty. Terrific find here from Birdsong Records
prez, Ric Menck (he of a few amazing bands himself) and I,
for one, hope Ben keeps going on the singer-songwriter path.
www.parasol.com
 03.24.08
Days
DOWNHILL- (SHELFLIFE)- This is the third installment in the latest Shelflife
series in which label President and C.E.O. Ed Mazucco finds
a terrific, obscure pop band (the other two were Warm Morning
-001 and A Smile and a Ribbon-002) and includes in the package
a slick 7” gatefold sleeve that comes with a 7” that
has 2 songs and a cd that has 5. The artwork is always choice
and the whole thing screams collector and since I am one
(a collector, that is) I need to have them and so should
you (hey Ed, let’s see some colored vinyl next time!).
Anywho, Days are yet another band from the pop capitol of
the world, Gothenburg, Sweden and met as youngsters and from
I’ve heard this is their first record (though they’ve
recorded “hundreds of songs on old cassettes” says
vocalist Fabian). The sound, as you probably imagine, is
heavily influenced by bands like The Smiths and a few bands
on the Sarah or Sunday labels with brittle, streaming guitars,
gentle vocals and a rhythm section who play off each perfectly.
Should-be pop hits like “A Part of the World”, “Echo
of Last Summer” and “Downhill” are near
the top of any greatest hits that a Swede would make of bands
from his country. That country has a lot of music to be proud
of and I’m happy to say that on this first record,
Days fit in among the greats. www.shelflife.com
 03.24.08
Sambassadeur
MIGRATION- (LABRADOR)-Ya’ know, there’s not
much I can tell you about Sambassadeur except that they fall
in between cds by The Salteens and Samhain in my collection,
they hail from Sweden and that this is the second terrific
record I have heard by them (I also have their BETWEEN THE
LINES ep). And honestly, this sophomore release is better
than their good-but-not-great debut as they have tightened
up their sound considerably and managed to find even more
hooks for us to sink our teeth into. Also, the male/female
vocals are mostly gone too as Anna Person sings all but one
tune on here but I don’t mind as I love her pipes and
it’s nice to hear the hits just keep on coming on MIGRATION.
The first song, “The Park”, has this sparkly
jump to it like it wipes away everything bad in the world
while the alluring strings on “Subtle Changes’ nearly
do the same and, well, add the third song, “That Town’ to
the list too. A hat trick! Then they blow us all away with
a cover of Dennis Wilson’s unreleased, obscure classic “Lady” (here
called “Fallin in Love”). The record stays strong
and even glides into some nice electro-pop on the second
half and my only beef here is that I’d wish I’d
heard the record last year (when it was released) because
it would have been on my top 10 list! www.labrador.se
 03.17.08
The Crowd
LETTER BOMB- (TKO)- The Crowd were always one of those
bands that I had heard about for years but have never heard
until much later. Well, never heard much of I should say, I
have had the BEACH BOULEVARD comp for a long time. I used to
always get them mixed up with The Last, too. They hail from
Orange County, California but somehow did not make it into
the same stratosphere as bands like The Adolescents and Agent
Orange. The good folks at TKO Records have taken it upon themselves
to do us all a favor and reissue LETTER BOMB (originally released
on Flipside Records in 1996) which was a comeback lp , of sorts.
The opener, “Run for the Money” is melodic and
has a cool, slap-happy beat to it while the guitars on “Politics” are
a bit grittier and give the band a real UK punk sound. The
title track hits like a ’57 Chevy at full-speed while “Time’s
Up” sound like prime Saints from 1977 (like something
off the I’M STRANDED record). This reissue includes the
original 14 songs plus 4 songs from the DIG YOURSELF ep (which
includes a fine cover of The Buzzcocks’ “Love You
More”). Thanks TKO for bringin’ The OC back. www.tkorecords.com
 03.17.08
Eux Autres
COLD
CITY-
(HHBTM)- The photo on the inside of the cd cover looks like
they're a couple you might see in
an ad in a fashion magazine but this is no couple. Eux Autres
is the Portland brother/sister duo of Nick and Heather Larimer
who I thought might have broken up. Not only are they still
together but have put out a terrific 2nd record. They originally
hailed from Omaha, Nebraska (if I’m not mistaken) but
have called Portland home for several years now and on COLD
CITY, with the help of producer/engineer Jeff Saltzman, the
sound has tightened up quite a bit and the melodies (and
songwriting) have gotten stronger. The two offer up a fine
blend of garage rock, twee pop, a dash o’ new wave
and a hint of whatever would count as French pop. “The
Deadball Era” is a perfect opener, getting the engine
revved up for what’s to come next: “Molly” has
some tasty backing vocals, “When I’m Up” would
fit on any classic indie pop mix tape, “The Town that
Never Was” adds some guitar grit to the proceedings
and the Nick-sung “The City All to Himself’ is
probably the best song the band has written yet. Kudos to
Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records for having the smarts
to release this. www.hhbtm.com
 03.17.08
The Squires Of The Subterrain
FEEL THE SUN- (ROCKET RACKET)- Really glad to see that upstate New Yawker, Chris
Z. (aka The Squire) is still making music. The first I’d
heard him was his terrific debut, POP IN A CD (1998) , that
sounded like Brian Wilson recording in his bedroom and not
much has changed. The Squire definitely loves his 60’s
pop music idols (Wilson, The Beatles, Kinks, Zombies, etc.).
The opening title track sounds like it could have been a
SMILE outtake while the baroque pop of “Alexander Mannequin” bounces
along like a lost early 70’s classic and “Concerning
Helen White” is GBV at its most polished and melodic. “Red
of Roses’ and “Her Story” are two terrific
ballads which show The Squire isn’t afraid to show
his more tender side (the latter being very Beach Boys influenced).
If you are a newcomer to this guys music and you like what
you’ve read so far then by all means go to his site
and dig in fork first. The guy is an untapped talent just
waiting to be discovered by masses somewhere. I’m surprised
it hasn’t happened yet. www.squiresofthesubterrain.com
 03.17.08
Underwater Tea Party
SUBURBAN METRONOME- (ZIP)-Every
time I turn around it seems like there’s some new band
from Spain coming onto the scene. The tweely (?) named, Underwater
Tea Party is yet another one of those bands. Yes, the name
conjures up images of Sarah Records and bands like The Field
Mice and Tallulah Gosh but they are actually a bit more rockin’ than
their name would imply (but they’re not AC/DC by any
stretch). This bunch play a strummy, breezy brand of pop
that is difficult not to like (unless you’re an Avenge
Sevenfold fan). The opening cut, “Cityscapes and UFO’s”,
is a call to arms as the first line of the songs demands “Gentlemen,
Draw your lines and take control” while “Ampelmann” reminded
me a bit of the best Velocity Girl (or Ivy) tune with a bit
less guitar fuzz and a hint of Stereolab too. “The
Last Good bye” takes things on a bit of a downturn
but the next song, the instrumental “Wildtracks Build
Bricks” (one of my favorites on the record) is one
of my most uplifting instrumentals I have ever heard. And
as good as SUBURBAN METRONOME is, I hear more untapped potential
and an even better record in them. Now that’s something
to look forward to. www.ziprecords.com
 03.10.08
Clockcleaner
BABYLON RULES- (LOAD)- Known as “Philly’s
most hated band”, a badge of honor that these three wear
proudly (slugging it out with Pissed Jeans), John, Karen and
Richard are Clockcleaner. And not since the heyday of Am Rep
Records, specifically the reverse toilet swirl of the God Bullies
(as well as the futuristic hell-on-earth vision of Chrome),
do I remember ugliness being so damn beautiful. I guess you
could call what they are playing minor chords as the dirges
and mangled guitars sound make Kilslug sound like The Partridge
Family (ok, so I’m exaggerating there but you get the
picture). Songs that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside
include the truly wacked “Vomiting Mirrors”, the
dirgy “When My Ship Comes In” and the gnarled synth
chatter of “Human Pigeon” If unemployment sounds
like a better option than whatever crappy job you’re
currently working, then bring this in at the next board (bored)
meeting. www.loadrecords.com
 03.10.08
The Ginger Envelope
EDIBLE ORCHIDS-
(ONE PERCENT PRESS)- …and out of nowhere comes Athens, GA’s
the Ginger Envelope. Patrick Carey and Matt Stoessel were
tired of their band going nowhere in Lafayette, LA so they
picked up stakes and headed east to the indie ‘burb
of Athens. Along the way they picked up members of Dark Meat,
Venice is Sinking and South San Gabriel and out comes this
confident, jangly sound that endeared itself to me on the
first listen. The melodies seem completely effortless and
Patrick Carey’s vocals are smooth as a baby’s
bottom. The fluid opener, “Caretaker”, reminded
me of Sea and Cake and their songwriting ease while “Lady
Barber” brought to mind the country wail of Okkervil
River and that pedal steel on “Dirty Penny” would
make your crotchety grandfather and your bitter uncle both
bawl tears for joy. Let’s hope this isn’t some
pushed-to-the-side side project as if they take it seriously,
this bunch could have a long and storied career. Yes, I did
just use the word storied. www.onepercentpress.com
 03.10.08
Goodnight Loving
CROOKED LAKE- (DUSTY MEDICAL)-
Apparently their debut, CEMETERY TRAILS, had quite a Feelies
vibe to it and since I loved that N.J. band I’ve gotta
find it. Don’t hear much of a Feelies groove on here
but that’s not to say it’s not a good record.
On the contrary, CROOKED LAKE shines with a nice mix of raucous
garage rock and sped up country rock. Like if Camper Van
Beethoven was a bit more reckless, but most of the tunes
are straight up terrific. The opener, “Another Foggy
Yesterday” is the one that they probably open up their
sets with, the one that gets the crowd revved up from the
get-go. “Train Hopping Man” is a bit more, tweaked,
the guitars are bent and the rubber room escapee vocals give
it an extra special twist and the drunken sing along, “My
Important Heart”, is probably the set closer, when
all the drinks have been drank and the crowd is good and
blotto. That’s just the first three songs and there’s
ten more to go. So go ahead, be the first on your block to
discover the music of Goodnight Loving (oh, and don’t
get the record title mixed up with the band name as CROOKED
LAKE is written above Goodnight Loving). www.dustymedical.com
 03.10.08
Julie Ocean
LONG GONE AND NEARLY THERE- (TRANSIT OF VENUS)-It’s pretty
much a given that any band that Terry Banks is in, I’m
bound to like it. He knocked the socks off the indie crowd
with his first band Tree Fort Angst, then did some fine work
in St. Christopher and Glo-Worm, and more recently, The Saturday
People (with Archie from Velocity Girl). In Julie Ocean he
has another V.G. alum in their drummer Jim Spellman (he plays
guitar in Julie Ocean) while the rhythm section of drummer
Alex Daniels and Hunter Bennett have done time in Swiz and
Weatherhead respectively. Now that introductions are out
of the way I’m happy to announce that Julie Ocean kicks
ass! Mixing up a tasty stew of 60’s garage, indie rock
and bubblegum the songs hit you like an Ali one-two punch
with the wiry opener “Ten Lonely Words” leading
the pack right into the should-be-a-hit “#1 Song” (no
pun intended) which then segues into the bashing “My
Revenge. “Here Comes Danny” should be a top 10
hit and the final 1:40 of the closer, “Looking at Me/Looking
at You”, couldnlt have ended this set more perfectly,
all sweaty and panting. I have to say that this is my favorite
record that any of these folks have been involved in (and
that’s saying a lot as I previously mentioned how big
a fan I am of their prior bands) and best of all, the 10
songs blur by in less than half an hour (for those of us
with kids and short attentions spans!). Julie Ocean has given
me my perfect amount of sugar intake today. www.transitofvenusmusic.com
 03.03.08
The Cynics
HERE WE ARE- (GET HIP)- Grinding in the
garage for 2 decades it’s a pleasure to say that at this
stage in the game The Cynics are still making strong, relevant
records. Have they mellowed a bit with age? Sure they have,
heck so have I (I’ll be 44 next month, thank you very
much). Based in Pittsburgh (home to my beloved Pirates…who
I wish would have a winning season !), the songwriting team
of guitarist Gregg Kostelich and vocalist Michael Kastelic
go for a more Byrds-influenced batch of tunes on HERE WE ARE
. The opening title track is pure McGuinn and Co. while “Coming
Round My Way” a real meatgrinder . More six-string jangle
comes courtesy of “The Warning” and “Me Wanting
Her” (especially the latter which sounds straight out
of 1966) and the eerie “She Fell” tells of a story
of a gal who “didn’t jump, she wasn’t pushed
to her death…she fell.” The Cynics have made one
of their strongest records in years and, along with bands like
The Chesterfield Kings and anything Jeff “Monoman” Connelly
has been in, are still near the top of the garage heap and
still daring all comers to try and knock them off. www.gethip.com
 03.03.08
Monster Bobby
GAP- (HYPNOTE)- I was expecting some monster
mash-up doing Bobby Boris Pickett covers but was pleased
as punch to find out that Monster Bobby is one Robert Barry.
On this record it’s all him playing basically everything
but live he and his co-horts are the backing band for The
Pipettes (and apparently he is the brainchild behind that
all-female band as well). This is a lot more low-key, charming
and easily likeable (and I love The Pipettes, just in case
you were wondering). Armed with some cheap synths, a beat-up
Silvertone guitar, samplers, glockenspiel, uke, accordian
an plenty more stuff laying around, Barry find inspiration
in love, both lost and found, and tunes like the infectious “The
Closest Experience to that of being with you is the Experience
of Taking Drugs” (song title of the year ?) , the burbly
synth-pop tune “The Postcard” and the bouncy,
acoustic “3 Days 14 Hours.” For a record that
I thought was going to be mostly gimmicky there’s a
lot of heart found on GAPS. www.hypnote.com
 03.03.08
Vampire Weekend
S/T- (XL)-
Ok, when I first heard the line from a pal , “4
Columbia students have made this incredibly hyped record
that’s influenced by African music” I’m
thinking suck city. Anything with that much hype has gotta
suck, right ? Wrong. I wanted to hate it but…………. …simply…..couldn’t.
They call it “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” ( the name
of one of their songs) and I have also heard the styles of
soweto and soukous bandied about in reviews (ok, I need to
check out Wikipedia and see what those are all about). The
record is an interesting mash-up of early Talking Heads,
The Police, Paul Simon and a slight dash of The Strokes and
Violent Femmes. From the dubby, sizzling opener “Mansard
Roof” to the groove-oriented “Oxford Comma” with
the classic opening line, “Who gives a fuck about an
Oxford Comma?” (that had my 50-plus year old pal burst
out laughing while I played it in the car earlier today)
to the wiry, Wire-esque “A Punk” to the almost
baroque “M79” and on and on and on . The record
is really tough not to like. This may be African music played
by preppy white kids with trust funds but they’ve done
it right. If you’re anything like me you won’t
be able to stop listening. www.xlrecordings.com
 03.03.08
V/A
SONGS FROM THE BIGTOP- (SELF RELEASED)-Not
a whole lot of information on this compilation but I’m
assuming it’s a film soundtrack? On the front of the
cd all it says is “Songs from The Bigtop” ( then
below that “a film by Devon Reed”). What drew
me to the cd though it the impressive list of bands included
on here (and I believe all of the songs here were written
by Devon Reed). Lisa Germano starts things off with the other-worldly “Magic” then
The Clientele do their usual dream-pop goodness on “Your
Song” and the previously unknown Michael Leviton does
the twee pop thing complete with a xylophone. Elsewhere,
Tullycraft does the more pensive “The Girl Who’s
Above Us”, The Owls offer up the folky “I Just
Can’t Keep Up” and The Sprites “Patience” burbles
with a slower electronic energy. Other bands/musicians on
here include Matthew Sweet, Marbles, Eleventh Dream Day,
Damien Jurado and a few others. Definitely one of the better
soundtracks I’ve heard in quite some time and it’s
always a plus when some of the lesser-known, lower-key bands
on the indie pop circuit appear. www.devonreed.com
 02.25.08
Big Dipper
SUPERCLUSTER: THE BIG DIPPER ANTHOLOGY- (MERGE)- It’s always
good to see some of my old favorite bands from the 1980’s,
some of whom I thought were forgotten forever, being reissued.
Merge has done one helluva job here on reissuing the Big Dipper
records into a nifty 3-cd set that includes their one EP, 2
LP’s (that were all on the Homestead label) along with
bonus track and a extra 15 songs, VERY LOUD ARRAY, that were
recorded later with a slightly different lineup. Speaking of
the lineup, it might seem a bit goofy to say it now, but the
word “supergroup” was uttered more than a few times
when they got together (kinda like when Asia started or the
Travelling Wilburys). Vocalist/guitarist Bill Goffrier was
in The Embarrassment ( the pride and joy of Wichita, KS) ,
guitarist Gary Waleik and bassist Steve Michener did time in
the Volcano Sun (Michener was also in Dumptruck) and drummer
Jeff Oliphant came from a band called XS. Together the four
of them created some of the best off-kilter pop music that
the city of Boston, a mecca of great bands back then, had heard
in quite some time. The rhythm section could be subtle or riveting
(depending on their mood) but that guitar interplay between
Goffrier and Waleik had plenty of amazing moments, as if they
had been playing together 30 plus years. If you were around
then put on some favorites like “Faith Healer”, “She’s
Fetching”, “Man o’ War”, “Stardom
Because” and plenty of others. Even with only half of
the original lineup on the final 15 songs (VERY LOUD ARRAY)
the songs still sound strong. Hopefully this is just the beginning
of the 80’s Boston reissues (Salem 66, Volcano Suns,
Kilslug, etc.) www.mergerecords.com
 02.25.08
The Crash That Took Me
ORCHESTRATED KALEIDOSCOPES- (IDOL)- And another winner for
Idol Records here ! This Dallas band, which features members
of some of Idol bands including DARYL and Black Tie Dynasty,
amp up on the psychedelia and while thee cover art might
suggest some bad hippy music this couldn’t be further
from that. Taking cues from Creation Records (late 80’s/early
90’s) and bands like Ride and My Bloody Valentine,
the band easily crank up swirls of heaving guitar waves with
a rock solid rhythm section and added synths, organs, and
even the occasional strings too into one heaping tablespoon
(no teaspoons here) for Grade A prime shoe-gazey psych rock.
The vocal interplay between leader Dylan Silvers and bassist
Fatima Thomas sounds like every great dream you’ve
ever had and cuts like the opening “Faster than the
Light”, the phased-out “Maple Lilys” or
the almost radio-ready “Julianne’ all rove they
have got their chops down, the songs are there, they should
have mountains of good press but I don’t see that much.
Come on, what is with you critics (and fans) , you have an
honest-to-goodness talented guitar band here! Perk them ears
up! www.idolrecords.com
 02.25.08
Grand Archives
THE GRAND ARCHIVES-(SUB POP)-
After Mat Brooke left Band of Horses he wasn’t sure
what he should do. He had a lot of ideas: Try out for left
field for the Mariners? Attempt to scale the Space Needle?
Join the reformed version of The Accused? Open a restaurant/bar?
He did that but was still itching to play music. While staring
at a bunch of his spread-out albums on the floor of his house,
bands that only began with the letter B (Bread, Byrds, Beach
Boys, Badfinger, etc.) he began writing a batch of songs
that, while still keeping the melody of B.O.H. tunes, adds
more “pop!” to the proceedings. “Torn Blue
Foam Couch” slowly unfolds into the most comfortable
piece of furniture you own and “Miniature Birds’ add
some of the best whistling I’ve heard since the last
Lucksmiths song and :”Index Moon” opens with
the most beautiful guitar chords I’ve heard since B.O.H.’s “The
First Song” and “Index Moon” comes pretty
damn close too. The rest of the record continues on with
Brooke’s high-standard of songwriting. I’m not
sure why Brooke left Band of Horses but at this point I don’t
even care as I feel like I’ve gotten 2 for the price
of one (like when Uncle Tupelo broke up and Son Volt and
Wilco came out of it). I’m getting a deal here. www.subpop.com
 02.25.08
Sparky's Magic Piano
FEEL
THE BEAT AND DO IT ANYWAY- (MELODY FACTORY)-Who
is Sparky’s
Magic Piano, you ask/ Why it’s the duo of Pob and
Marion, a guy n’ gal from London who sound like they
were having a blast when they recorded their debut record
here. The record starts off as bouncy and occasionally silly
synth pop that sounds genuine and does not sound like they’re
being cutesy for cutesy sake. Tunes like “Like Falling
in Lo*e” and “Coffee Song” could eek a
smile put of the world’s biggest grump as Marion’s
high-pitched vocals and that rollicking synth do wonders
for your psyche. The record changes gears about midway through
as Pob breaks out his acoustic guitar and goes for a more
melancholy sound on some of the songs. On “Sparky” he
breaks your heart over Sparky while Marion picks up the mic
on “You Like Her”,“You Are the Star” and “Home
Improvement.” They don’t completely forget about
the bounce as 2 songs tucked at the end, “Saccharine
Pop” and “Forget it All” both exude the
shake n’ shimmer of the first four tunes with a bit
of melancholia tossed in for good measure. From both the
front door and the side door Sparky’s Magic Piano have
brightened my day today and I can’t say that about
a lot of records I’ve listened to today (a lot). www.melodyfactory.com
 02.18.08
British Sea Power
DO
YOU LIKE ROCK MUSIC?- (ROUGH TRADE)- Wow, I’d
heard that BSP had locked themselves away in a studio far,
far away to record
their 3rd record (ok, it was actually Montreal) and that it
was gonna be an epic but I had no idea an EPIC! The new record,
DO YOU LIKE ROCK MUSIC? is the band’s boldest, strongest
statement yet. When they arrived on the scene in 2003 with
their debut I was curious; the band name, the band members
fake names, the trees they brought on stage on the first U.S.
tour. I mean, I was thinking, who are these guys? The murky
opener, “All In It” sucks you into the B.S.P. vortex
then bam, it hits. The guitars on “Lights Out for the
Darker Skies” swoon n’ sway but drill the point
home as only the best rock music can do. On “No Lucifer” the
band starts chanting “Easy! Easy! Easy!” while
the guitars swirl into an epic that would make the Arcade Fire
proud (some folks think B.S.P. “stole” Arcade Fire’s
sound but truth be told the Arcades opened up some of their
early gigs for the headlining B.S.P.). “Waving Flags” is
the gleaming, shining moment in a record full of them and on “Canvey
Island” you’ll even learn a little history of the
1953 North Sea flood. There’s plenty more high points
on here and while it’s only February this is already
on my short list for one of the best records of 2008. www.worlds-fair.net
 02.18.08
Angie Heaton & The Gentle Tamers
THE RUMOR MILL- (SPUR/PARASOL)- You may not know her by name
but Angie Heaton has spent time in outfits such as Corndolly
and Liquorette but on THE RUMOR MILL she decided to break
out of her indie rock background and write a batch of songs
with a bit more twang to them. Joined by a country band called
The Gentle Tamers (which includes longtime Nashville session
player, Bob Watson) this includes 9 originals and an interesting
cover of one of my favorite Trembling Blue Stars songs, “Sometimes
I Still Feel the Bruise” (I like Angie’s cover
version more than The Mountain Goats one). The title track
starts things off with its shuffling beat and nimble guitar
playing while “Hide and Seek” adds more beauty
(especially in Heaton’s vocals) and melody to the proceedings.
Angie gets another chance to show off her pipes on “Lucky
in Love” which would appeal to fans of Neko Case (as
would a few others), on “Train” you really get
to hear Watson’s guitar playing skills at work as he
adds some quick, Tex-Mex leads and “Heaven’s
State Line’ is the perfect cry-in-your-beer tune where
after you’re finished crying you grab the drunkest
lass at the bar and do a hillbilly two-step across the dance
floor. THE RUMOR MILL is a terrific record and Heaton and
her band seem to make this all look so easy. www.parasol.com
 02.18.08
Jeremy
YESTERDAY, TODAY AND FOREVER-(JAM)- At this point I’m not sure how many records
this makes for Jeremy Morris. Out of his home in Portage,
MI and on his own imprint, Jam Recordings, he has consistently
released terrific music from bands like The Lolas, Glowfriends,
Raquel’s Boys, Florapop and many more including, obviously,
his own music. YESTERDAY, TODAY AND FOREVER is his homage
to his all-time favorite band, The Beatles. And while he
does have some help on here from some friends (including
his own daughter , April) he plays most of the instruments
which shows just how supremely talented of an individual
he is. On the 17 cuts here (one being an original) he tackles
Fab Four favorites like “Nowhere Man”, “It
Don’t Come easy”, “Norwegian Wood”, “Strawberry
Fields Forever’ as well as lesser known Beatles tracks
(to me, anyway) like “Blackbird”, “I Will” and “It’s
All Too Much.” I’m trying to figure out, just
by listening, as to who his favorite Beatle is: Lennon or
Harrison. I think it might be neck and neck and just for
the sake of curiousity I’m going to email Jeremy to
find out. Whenever time are tough and things have gotten
you down you could do a lot worse than out on some of Jeremy’s
music to be uplifted. Even though it’s a cover record
this is as pleasing as any Jeremy record out there and as
a bonus check out the cool cover artwork by Dennis Preston.
www.jamrecordings.com
 02.18.08
John Wicks And The Records
ROTATE:
AN ANTHOLOGY- (KOOL KAT MUSIK)-Forever etched into
the minds of power pop fan worldwide is the classic tune, “Starry
Eyes” by
The Records. Here we have records leader John Wicks with
a nice little collection of tunes written 1990-2004
(and
includes a terrific, spare cover of The Beatles’ “We
Can Work it Out”). Four of these tunes appeared on
their 1998 album, ROCK’OLA while the other eight are
new (or at least newly recorded). Wicks has perfected the
art of the 3-4 minutes, jangly, mid-tempo pop tune and the
opening “Oh Yeah!” is certainly one of his most
memorable tunes with hooks galore while “Different
Shades of green” add a bit more bite to Wick’s
normally reserved bark. Both “That Girl is Emily” and
the title track are in that Wicks pop mold that many of his
fans (imitators) have tried but failed at replicating. Other
righteous tunes including the driving “Edges of a Dream”,
the autobiographical “The Lost Years’ and the
country-inflected “Come on Round.” Glad to see
that in 2007 with Wicks probably approaching 50 years old
he can release a record and have it not be a lame rehash
or days gone by but be filled with more of the classic, hook-driven
pop music he has been doing for 30 years. Yeah! www.koolkatmusik.com
 02.11.08
Colin Clary
APOCALYPSE
YOW!-
(ASAURUS)- Asaurus Records is a nifty little label that used
to be based in the northeast but now
is based in Athens, GA. While you may not have heard of them
they have released some fine records over the last several
years, including records by, to name just a few: Pants Yell!,
Winter Vacation, Capstan Shafts, Red Pony Clock and , of course,
Colin Clary. Both solo and with his band, The Smittens, Vermont
native Colin Clary has been making some of the best pop music
the past few years. Armed in a cool, green, origami-ish handmade
sleeve, Colin busts out his acoustic guitar on most of these
17 songs and despite the title, this isn’t a doom n’ gloom
end-of-the-world record. Nope, Clary sings the language of
love. On “Unattainable” I’m guessing he’s
singing of a girl he wants but can’t have while “Backseat
Man” might be the same sentiment (“She’s
my A plus number one ticket taker”). “You Don’t
Have to Prove” is a slightly dramatic acoustic tune while ̶
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