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 12.24.07
The Bon Mots
FORTY
DAYS AND FORTY NIGHTS WITH THE BON MOTS- (MELLIFLUID)-
Back in 2003 a little known Chicago band released a terrific
debut record called LE MAIN DRAG and those of us who heard
it flipped out. Rock in a classic sense (if you think the 1980’s
releases on New Zealand’s Flying Nun Records were classic…I
do). Well, it’s now 2007 and the same Chicago band have
returned with another fantastic record and I’m happy
to report no sophomore slump here! I guess the biggest influence
I hear is The Byrds but if the Byrds were updated to the 00’s
Chicago (after having already kicked Crosby out). The opener, “Walk
to California” was ok, not their best but after that
they rattle off a string of classic selections like the gently
beaming “Past or Present” to the 9 miles high whump
of “On her Telephone’ to the jarring “Reasons,
Dear” san on and on. Songwriters Eric Chial and Mike
Coy seem to be dueling each other, trying to see who can write
the better song and it’s that kind of tension that usually
breaks bands up but so far it has seem to only make The Bon
Mots stronger. Chial has the odd songs on the record while
Coy handles the even ones. Go one, give it a listen and try
and pick who’s better. I say they’re dead even! www.thebonmots.com
 12.24.07
Mick Harvey
TWO
OF DIAMONDS- (MUTE)- In addition to being Nick Cave’s
right hand man, this Aussie has also worked his magic on records
by Robert Forster, PJ Harvey, and Scott Walker . This is the
2nd record full of covers for Cave’s secret weapon (Harvey’s
2005 record, ONE MAN’S TREASURE, was full of HAUNTING
covers as well). Well, I believe 10 of these 12 songs are covers
and Harvey does an amazing job of making these songs his own.
Namely “Sad Dark Eyes” (originally done by 60’s
Aussie band The Loved Ones) and the gorgeous piano ballad, “No
Doubt.” Later on he does a playful, bouncy cover of Mano
Negra’s “Out of Time Man” and tackles an
obscure PJ Harvey tune called “Slow-Motion-Movie-Star.”,
both to equal aplomb. I also really enjoyed the two originals
on here, “Blue Arrows’ and the deeply moving “Little
Star.” Not sure if he will ever be a household name (and
something tells me that is not what he’s aiming for)
but with records like this Harvey has already carved out a
name for himself among many of today’s most respected
musicians and he deserves as much respect as any of them. www.mute.com
 12.24.07
Okkervil River
THE
STAGE NAMES--
(JAGJAGUWAR)-
Like a brilliant/cockeyed leader of a ship lost out at sea,
Will Sheff and his hairy brethren start their journey with “Our
Life is not a Movie or Maybe” and end it with the Beach
Boys-inspired/inflected “John Allyn Smith Sails” (diving
into “Sloop John B”). Along the way “Unless
it’s Kicks’ get the crowd revved up in the best
way. It starts with a simple garage riff then slowly other
instruments start joining in (Sheff’s voice, drums,
a maraca, etc.) while “A Girl in Port” is the
most beautiful song I have heard this year and “Savannah
Smiles’ could be considered twee pop if it was done
by any band other than Okkervil River. Elsewhere Sheff is
spouting off about “100 luftbaloons and 97 tears” and
if any other vocalist in rock said that you’d wanna
call em’ a smarmy dick but with Sheff you just call
him a genius one more time. After a bit o’ deliberation
I have found my favorite record of the year…or maybe
it found me. Either way, I can’t stop listening. www.jagjaguwar.com
 12.24.07
Revisions
REVISED OBSERVATIONS-
(DIRTNAP)-Basically
the work of 2 guys, Douglas Burns and Husayn Sayer, these
ex-Observers and Red Don ‘s members have stripped things
down to rocks bare essentials. To be honest I wish The Observers
would have stuck around longer than one minute…they
released one fine, dark record (like “BENEATH THE SHADOWS-era
T.S.O.L.” as Ken Dirtnap used to say) but hey, stuff
happens , right. Apparently, at the behest of an old bandmate
(Colin Grigson), Burns would occasionally perform acoustic
sets and dug it so much he decided to carry on. Like Even
in Blackouts before them, Revisions create songs that crackle
with crackling punk energy (but minus the jokey stuff of
E.I.B.). Both “Lead Pill” and “Useless
Information’ will make a few mix tapes around here
while just like the title implies, “On the Lam” is
a furious mix of punk aggression and paranoia and “Out
of Reach” is the one that gets the crowd all hepped
up (minus the pills) with handclaps and a cool, shuffling
beat . Recorded by the in-demand guy Pat Kearns (Exploding
Hearts, etc.). Curious to catch these guys live (and see
if they utilize the piano, violin or cello that is on the
record) and it’ll be nice to leave the ear plugs home
for a night. www.dirtnaprecs.com
 12.17.07
The Pubes
PEAT
SOUNDS- (ROADHOUSE TUNES)- This is good old-fashioned
hardcore like I have not heard in a long while. The band has
a sense of humor (the record title is an…umm…..homage
to Beach Boys PET SOUNDS) and reminded me of bands both new(The
Briefs) and old (T.S.O.L.) Mario Viele’s guitars are
kicked into overdrive for nearly the whole record (14 songs
in 23 minutes…like an old Circle Jerks record or somethin’)
and in Peat Henry they have a vocalist who could beat Johnny
Rotten at his own game (“Ever feel like you’ve
been cheated?”). “Built My Dancin’ Feet”, “Wolf
Oo-lo” and “Sweet Pea” are a few of my faves
here and the guy who did the cover art deserves some serious
kudos too. The best thing to come out of St Louie since Drunks
w/ Guns (or Sex Robots)? www.roadhousetunes.com
 12.17.07
Sleeper Car
LOVE
AND ANXIETY- (SELF-RELEASED)- Anyone who knows me
knows that I am a sucker for pedal steel and even more of a
sucker for a pedal steel player with a cool name (ie: Sneaky
Pete, Farmer Dave, etc.). Well, in Sleeper Car it’s Tie-Die
Charlie plus they have a violin player in the rock format (bonus
points for that). Thus Chicago bunch take their cues from the
American Folkways catalog and with lovely harmonies (led by
guitarist/vocalist Michael Musikantow) and plenty of hooks.
From Woody Guthrie to The Byrds up to current masters like
Son Volt the band seems to have their heads screwed on tight
and the world by the balls. Only 6 songs here and all of em’ good
(My faves are “I Won’t Break Down” and “Anti
Climactic Girl”). A perfect introduction. www.sleepercarband.com
 12.17.07
Warm In The Wake
AMERICAN
PRHISTORIC--
(LIVE WIRE)-
A lovely mix of acoustic guitars, analog synths and dreamy
vocals from this Atlanta bunch and I have to tell you, I
went from not liking this record to sorta liking it to loving
it in the past 10 minutes. Leader Chris Rowell is onto something
here…in the same ballpark as Band of Horses, Mercury
Rev and The Flaming Lips but still unique enough to stand
in a different line. “Pawn Shop Heart” is an
epic, cosmic rocker that swirls and sways and ends before
you want it to while the title track is epic in a different
way as it soars n’ swoops and never quite lands on
terra firma. “She’d never Seen It” is like
the Feelies fighting The Byrds on angel dust or peyote or
lots of pot. Ok, after I finish this review I’m going
to call up every human being I know and tell them to buy
this record. Now go wait for your call! www.livewirerecordings.net
 12.17.07
The Yarrows
PLUM-
(EMPYREAN)-The
Yarrows are four guys from my old stomping grounds of New
Jersey who apparently formed in an abandoned lodge surrounded
by acres of woods (like maybe where they used to take people
to shoot them in THE SOPRANOS??). They create hazy epics
and not sure how much more detail I can go into other than
they are a rock band but not very loud (but they play guitars,
bass and drums and have a vocalist). I guess if you needed
a real ballpark reference point I might say Band of Horses
but that’s not totally accurate either. To my ears
the guitars usually sound pretty and the melodies strong.
They have really good harmonies too. For further proof check
out “You’re Cruel” or “May” (which
reminded me of The Band). Sometimes the songs go one for
a bit too long (5 of the 10 songs are each over 5 minutes
long) but really that is a minor quibble as PLUM is a fantastic
record. You should really go buy it. www.empyreanrecords.com
 12.10.07
Jule Brown
SOLDIER
IN THE 9TH- (ENABLER)- Jule Brown (aka Jennyanykind’s
Mark Holland) is back with more of the low-endy folky blues
that he has perfected on his last several records (including
last year’s awesome SMOKE NSD MIRRORS). Taking his biggest
cue from Blues great Charley Patton (as well as Bob Dylan…you
can tell it in the vocals) Brown and his motley crew (which
includes help from his brother Michael on bass as well as Dean
Wareham on guitar and Britta Phillips on umm…clavinova??!!)
amble and shuffle on ace songs such as the raw “Stop
What You’re Doin’”, the Kinks-y “Those
Were the Days” the poppier , smooth-as-silk title track.
I hear more organs this time around but the sound is basically
the same as on other J.B. record and while SOLDIER IN THE 9TH
is a terrific record from start to finish I still have to call
SMOME AND MIRRORS as my favorite J.B. record. If you’re
a newby though you’d be just fine starting anywhere in
his catalog. Dive in and discover one of the best songwriters
in America. www.enablerrecords.com
 12.10.07
Fireflies
GOODNIGHT
STARS, GOODNIGHT MOON- (LAVENDER/MUSIC IS MY GIRLFRIEND)-
Absolutely wonderful, gentle soft pop (ala Galaxie 500 or The
Cat’s Miaow) from a Chicago guy named Lisle Mitnik. Each
song tells a poignant story whether hearing fireworks (on the
amazing “We Heard the Fireworks”) or the jitters
when speaking to a girl for the first time (on “The Pull”).
Mitnik has created a gentle record that’s as comfortable
as walking through a New England forest on a crisp Autumn day
as Winter is approaching. A few of the guitar parts on here,
as well as the vocals, really reminded me a lot of that first
Galaxie 500 record (which is fine by me, I wish more records
sounded like that one !). He a adds a bit of Left Banke grace
on “Summer has Gone” and I must say that there
is not one dog amongst these 11 songs. If this guy needs some
encouragement to write more songs then I’ll write a million
of these reviews!
www.myspace.com/fireflies
 12.10.07
The Owls
DAUGHTERS AND SUNS-
(MAGIC MARKER)-
Their mini-lp from 2004 (OUR HOPES AND DREAMS) was a nice
slice of bucolic pop but on DAUGHTERS AND SUNS this Mpls,
MN quartet sound more confident and it shows in the strength
of the songs. The band features 3 songwriters (2 of them,
Brian Tighe and Allison LaBonne were in The Hang Ups and
The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group respectively…drummer John
Jerry rounds out the lineup ) and while I think they could
have picked a better song to lead the record off than the
minorchord-ed “The Way On” (not a bad song but
not a leadoff track) the band then gets on the right on the
path on the very 70’s singer-songwriter “Yellow
Flowers.”One of the record’s best tracks, “Welcome
to Monday”, has some tasty lead guitar and some of
the prettiest “bah buh bah bah bah’s” I’ve
heard in ages while “Peppermint Patty” had some
harmonies to die for. The curvy, swirling “Apocalypse” twists
and turns down a lonely road and “Isaac Bashevis Singer” is
a charming tune about the Yiddish novelist. Not sure at this
point of The Owls are still a side project or the main concern
for these folks but let’s hope it’s the latter
as DAUGHTERS AND SUNS is too good of a record for them to
not wanna make another one. www.magicmarkerrecords.com
 12.10.07
The Silent Boys
ONE STEP CLOSER-
(WALRUS)-There’s
low key then there’s LOW KEY then there’s….well,
off the radar. Unfortunately the Silent Boys are pretty much
off the radar (except for those of us on the indie pop list)
which is a damn shame as they are so good at what they do.
What is it that they do, you ask? Transport us back to a
bygone era called the 80’s when labels like Postcard,
Factory and Sarah (and bands like Orange Juice, The Field
Mice and, of course, Joy Division…who are not exactly
what you’d call jangly) brought us some of the best
low-key jangle pop that any music scene has ever produced.
This is this Virginia bands 3rd record and is definitely
their best. Leader Wallace Dietz’s songwriting has
gotten more confident and with his sturdy rhythm section
(including longtime Virginia mainstay John Morand on drums)
the melody flows and ONE STEP CLOSER is filled with one good
song after another. “St. Paul’s Letter” has
that guitar that speaks the language of love while “Love
Will Keep us Together (I.C. Was here)” is an homage
to (big influences on The Silent Boys) Joy Division and dance-worthy “Love
Struck” nimbly peeks its head in and out of closed
doors. While the rest of the world is vying for my space
and you tube time the Silent Boys seem content to bask in
their own little world and to me that’s perfect. www.silentboys.com
 12.03.07
The State Of Samuel
HERE
COME THE FLOODS- (TOTAL GAYLORD/HUMBLEBEE)- More of
that terrific pop from , where else? Sweden ! T.S.O.S. is a
trio led by Samuel Petersson and this is record #2 from them
(as much as I like this I really need to find their debut,
MUTINY ON MERCURY). There is not much guitar on the record,
the songs are led by some organ , drums and , of course, Samuel’s
vocals but regardless of who or what is up front the songs
have a knack for finding a hook that tickles that sweet spot
of your brain. My favorite songs here are the pure pop ones
like the awesome “Always Under the Gun”, the softer “The
Birds and Bats”, “Square Roots” and the Beatles-ish “Cotton
Island.” The band even has a few forays into more crunchy
power-pop which is good but as I said, I dig the pure pop sound
of the mentioned songs. This is one of those cds I’m
really glad someone took the time out to send me (and I can’t
say that about every cd that comes in my po box). www.totalgaylordrecords.com www.humblebeerecordings.com
 12.03.07
Greg Summerlin
ALL
DONE IN GOOD TIME- (SUPERPHONIC)- Bouncy, joyful pop
from a former member of alt-country favorites The Quinsonics.
Travelling to Minneapolis, like so many before him have, Summerlin
recorded with Mpls guru, Ed Ackerson and the results are a
sunny pop record. Let me add a caveat here, the melodies are
sunny but the song topics aren’t always sunny as tunes
like “Unlucky in Love” or the heavier “Redemption.” The
occasional female vocals will pop in for some terrific call
and response vocals (like on the super “Just Listen Tonight”).
With Ackerson at the helm (and adding guitars, bass, keyboards
and percussion) Summerlin has made a quality record that is
brimming with confidence. Hopefully this is just the beginning
of a long solo career. Hopefully Just a side note that the
label here is Summerlin’s as well (he has already released
a John P. Strohm record and has others in the pipeline). www.superphonicrecords.com
 12.03.07
Stuart Valentine
SUMMER'S WINTER DAY-
(VALENTINE MUSIC)-
Stuart Valentine’s debut cd from a few years ago, MELODY’S
TRUE, was a terrific slice of classic pop in the tradition
of the masters (Beach Boys, Zombies, Left Banke, etc) as
well as more recent stuff ( stuff on labels like Sarah, Creation,
Matinee, etc.) and SUMMER’S WINTER DAY is at least
as good,. Maybe better. Valentine sounds more confident on
this record and the melodies ring truer and freer. He was
a member of both The Outcrowd (which is led by Matt Hollywood,
ex- Brian Jonestown Massacre) and Richmond Fontaine but I
think I like this more than either of them. “Now or
Never” is perfect on a gorgeous spring day while “Wish
I Could Remember Your Name” starts out as a simple
acoustic tune then dives into epic beauty with some wild
guitar leads and fx all over the place. “Never Change’ sounds
like prime Go-Betweens and if you haven’t; already
guessed, this sorta low-key pop is right up my alley. Not
sure what you’re into but this gets a big thumbs up
from me. www.stuartvalentine.net
 12.03.07
Watoo Watoo
LA FUITE-
(LETTERBOX)-Ex-Parisians
(who now live in Bordeaux), W.W. is Michael, who plays all
of the instruments and Pascale , who coos her beautiful pipes.
Though this is only their 3rd full-length they seem to have
been bouncing around the indie scene forever as I’ve
seen their name on lots of comps. LA FUITE is full of sophisticated
60’s pop , some with orchestral arrangements (my favorites
on here) and some with a bossa nova feel and even a few funky
numbers too (“Ipb” being one). Being from France
it would seem that ladies man Serge Gainesbourg would be
an influence and he certainly is. The one electronic tune
could have been dropped (“Decembre”) but otherwise,
LA FUITE is impossible not to like, unless of course you
only dig like Mudvayne and Tool or something. Man, that’s
just wrong. www.letterboxrecords.com
 11.26.07
Nord Express
LOVELAND
1995-2005- (PEAPOD)- The duo of Robert and Ron released
a few records on the Slumberland label back in the mid-90-‘s
before hanging up their instruments. The only thing is…they
never hung up their instruments. As the title implies, these
songs were recorded between the decade of ’05-’05
and this is a collection of tracks from 3 unreleased eps and
if you dig the soft n’ supple pop of the Cat’s
Miaow, The Feelies, Galaxie 500 or Yo la Tengo then you’ll
be ok with this. Robert strums the guitar while Ron taps the
drums (and both sing) and the gentle wisdom that emanates from
cuts like “Follow & I Shall Flee”, “Gem
You Sold” and “Tripleplay” will melt your
heart in an instant. All that and they had the good taste to
cover both The Wedding Present and Jesse Garon & the Desperadoes.
Really glad to see these guys still (occasionally) recording
music together. www.peapodrecordings.com
 11.26.07
Pants Yell!
ALISON
STATTON- (SOFT ABUSE)- A new record by these guys
seems to come at the best of times…..just as i.ve fully
listened to their last one and am jonesing for a new one. Well,
here it is ! This Cambridge, MA trio (who have named their
record after a Young Marble Giants member) keep honing their
pop sound into something a bit more…uh…..sophisticated.
Don’t get me wrong, they’re not Belle & Sebastian
(who I love) but they have honed their craft and have a style
all of their own. The opener “More Purple” reminded
me of Wash, DC’s smooth posters Aden while the suave
pop of “Tried to be Good” was pure Pale Fountains
(love those horns). Vocalist Andrew Churchman has a high reedy
voice and this woulda been perfect on the Postcard records
label had he been writing songs in the early 80’s (and
not been in elementary school). Something tells me these guys
could play a pop fest, biker bar, Bar Mitzvah or a gutter punk
show and win the crowd over at every one of them. Now that’s
a feat , my friends. www.softabuse.com
 11.26.07
The Resonars
NONETHELESS BLUE-
(GET HIP)-
4th record from these peyote-munchin’ gobblers outs
Arizona…actually, I say “these’ but it’s
only one guy, Matt Rendon. The guy sounds totally authentic
like he just stepped out of the Sunset Strip circa 1967 as
the jangle sound brings to mind mostly The Byrds (with a
bit of Curt Boettcher’s The Millennium tossed in for
good measure) . The vintage-sounding tunes come at you, one
right after the other, with hooks galore and smooth vocals
harmonies . Put your ear to tunes like “Whatever You
Want”, “Places You Have Been”, the more
rockin’ “No Problem at All”, or the snappy/suave “If
Darkeness Comes too Fast.” Rendon is a fantastic songwriter
and this being the first time I’ve heard his stuff
I now need to check out this other records and now. www.gethip.com
 11.26.07
Stevie Tombstone
DEVILS
GAME- (SAUSTEX MEDIA)-New
collection featuring tunes from Stevie’s SECOND HAND
SIN (13 tunes) and ACOUSTICA (4 tunes) cds……17
tunes in all and (there;’ some odd n’ sods on
here (including a brilliant cover of Johnny Cash’s “Folsom
Prison Blues”). While I had never heard his music before
now, after hearing this, I wanna find all I can out there.
Tombstone is a fantastic songwriter who dives head on into
straight country, blues and some gospel too and he has a
voice that is pure soul and grit. The spare tunes here ,
like the title track, “Breaking Me Down” and “Blade” showcase
Tombstone’s soulful voice while the songs with fuller
instrumentation add bit of violin (“Dark Shines Through”)
and some pedal steel too (“Same Old Tune”). I
think if this guy was ever looking for a touring partner
he has one here in Portland in the form of Mike Damron (ex-
I Can Lick Any S.O.B. in the House) who is another heart-on-the-sleeve
guy writing some great music (just like Tombstone). Also,
I dare anyone out there to find someone with a better side
of sideburns than Tombstone. Go on…I dare ya’!
www.saustexmedia.com
 11.19.07
Steve Goldberg and the Arch Enemies
S/T-
(SELF RELEASED)- Terrific orchestrated pop from a guy who turned
this record in as a senior project and he got an A. There is
a laundry list of players (most from the Carnegie Mellon University
School of Music) and it all adds up to a heavenly bubble bath
of baroque pop that I can soak in for hours and hours. Remember,
I’m the guy back in 1994 who wouldn’t shut up about
the Cardinal record and this bringing back those same fuzzy
feelings. For fans of Cardinal, The Left Banke, early Bee Gees,
The Zombies and the like. While the songs are seriously orchestrated
some of the lyrics are quite goofy ( they have one song about
wanting to be a cyborg) and they have one of the best promo
shots ever (2 of the band members on the shoulders of the other
two and getting ready to star chicken fighting). Now after
giving this several thorough listens I’m really bummed
about missing these guys in Portland a few weeks ago. www.stevegoldbergmusic.com
 11.19.07
Ham 1
THE
CAPTAIN'S TABLE- (ORANGE TWIN)- Ok, I dug this guy
Jim Willingham’s debut cd from last year and now he’s
back to offer us a 2nd dose and not sure if his students are
driving him to drink or what (he’s a teacher) but Willingham
has come up with his 2nd batch of highly listenable songs.
This thing is all over the map, from lo-fi coughs to the whole
Barnun n’ Bailey trip to something that reminded me of
a Man or Astroman? outtake. “Methmouth’ sounds
like a somber (drunk ) salute to a lost friend …well,
at least until the spacey part kicks in then you’re not
sure what to think while you can almost dance to “Hare
Lipped Bust.” I think Ennio Morricone is a big influence
too so having said all of that Jim, I’m gonna call your
Principal and demand a raise for you. How ‘bout that?
Side note note; I have never seen a picture of Willingham but
for some reason I picture him having really bushy red hair,
a beard and glasses. Don’t ask me where that came from
because I have no idea. www.orangetwin.com
 11.19.07
Dan Kwas
A LIFE TOO LONG FORGOTTEN-
(FLYING SCOOTER RECORDINGS)-
I didn’t recognize the name until I read a bit into
the press sheet and realized that this is the same Dan Kwas
who front Milwaukee’s The Sidewalks all those years
ago ( Hyped2Death put out a great retrospective of the band
last year) . He hung up his guitar, bounced around the country,
got began life as a newspaper editor, got married, had a
family and then realized that music was in his blood so he
went back to it. Smart move as the songs on A LIFE TOO LONG
FORGOTTEN are strong and you’d think this was the work
of a guy who never spent any time away from music. Both the
leadoff track ,“Just Passing Through”, and “The
Tenacity Song” are bouncy ( the former with some great
keyboards) while my favorite song on the record, “Winds
of Change”, add some tension to the proceedings (the
song chronicles a broken relationship). Elsewhere the 6 minute
plus “Back Where I Began” tells a story of a
man’s return to his roots while the hooky “Cold,
Cold Kisses” sounds like prime Old 97’s (I hear
bits of Bob Dylan and The Jayhawks here as well). I hope
Kwas has more songs inside of that head of his because of
so, I want to hear them. www.dankwas.com
 11.19.07
The Lovetones
AXIOM-
(TEE PEE)-Truly
enjoyed their debut (BE WHAT YOU WANT) and missed record
number two (MEDITATIONS)and here we are at their third installment.
From the past (The Byrds) to the current (Teenage fan Club)
and everything in between (Rain Parade, The Chills, The La’s,
etc.) Matt Tow and his unkempt Aussie band mates have taken
a big gulp of the past and let it pour out into 10 gorgeous
songs complete with twinkling melodies, lush harmonies and
swirl of not only all of the normal instrumentation but the
added bonus of mellotrons, brass, strings, sitar and yes
folks, a bozouki (I thought only Damon & Naomi used these
??). The pillowy cloud of “Pieces of Me”, the
baroque opening of “Everybody Hides Away” , the
jangle of “Say You Will”, the positively dreamy
(that ends up majestic and sweeping) “Ordinary Lives’ to
the heavenly, elegiac closer “Alone” AXIOM adds
up to a record that hearkens back to the 60’s but sounds
as current as anything you’re likely to hear on any
modern radio station. It might not change your life but it
could seriously brighten your day. www.teepeerecords.com
 11.05.07
The Condors
WAIT
FOR IT- (RANK OUTSIDER)- Yeah! This So. Cal. foursome
have retained the two most important things that they learned
about rock and roll back in first grade; one, it has to be
retain n that sense of fun that rock can seem to lose from
time to time and two, put as many hooks that you can cram into
a song and then put in a few more ! Taking their cues from
everyone from Cheap Trick to The Knack to The Replacements
to contemporaries like Tsar And The Lolas, this things starts
out in 4th gear and remains there for the whole record. The
first tune, “Waiting Half the Night’ is full of
fist-pumping goodness as is the hilarious “I Don’t
Want a Girl Who’s Been with Jack.” “Carnival
of Fools” is a but darker but no less melodic. More anthems
appear on the 2nd half of the record (“Something better
Coming Soon”, “Wake Up”, etc.). Two things
of note is that this is Pat Todd’s (Lazy Cowgirls) new
label and they get some keyboard help from Brady Bunch alum
Robbie Rist (who I think has played in every L.A. power pop
record) . Also, I had no idea that leader/songwriter pat “Pooch” DiPuccio
is the same Pooch from FLIPSIDE zine all those years ago! Why
didn’t he release a record years ago?? The Condors rule! www.rankoutsiderrecords.com
 11.05.07
The Fairer Sex
TWO
CAN WIN- (IONIK)- My first glanced at Ionik Records
was the fine cd by The Spectacular Fantastic last year so when
this package came Ionik was hoping for more S.F. Not surwe
what happened but when the cd plopped out of the padded manila
envelope , just judging by the name (and the grainy photo on
the press sheet) I was expecting some bad emo but this is quite
pleasant pop with strummy guitars and a general sense of careless
abandon one used to feel when getting the girl’s number
was the most important thing on your mind. Had these guys existed
in san Francisco in the late 90’s they would have been
on every bull with The Aislers Set and The Fairways and wowed
the fans at the S.F. Pop Fests. As it is now with songs like “(The
Conception of) Isabelle Flowers’ and “Penny” they
should be wowing ‘em in Lawrence, KS ( the band’s
hometown). I hear bits of The Feelies, Belle & Sebastian,
The Lucksmiths, and a few other faves. Nice to be knocked back
a bit when I wasn’t expecting too much.www.ionikrecords.com
 11.05.07
Fast Computers
HEART GEOMETRY-
(SELF-RELEASED)-Portland
bunch who (thankfully) raise a giant middle finger top the
rawk scene and are carving out their own niche’ in
our fair city . It is one that includes fancy clothes, Serge
Gainesbourg and ABBA records, expensive booze, framed Stereolab
posters on the wall and, oh…and plenty of terrific
songs. Peter and Jennifer are the core of the band and are
getting heaps of good press and with good reason, tunes like “Math
Predictions”, “Designs”, “Lives of
the Stars” an at least a few others. There’s
even the occasional ballad for the long makeout session (“How
many Times” ). From what I’ve heard they seem
to be a pretty formidable unit on stage as well . There’s
so many bands here in Portland (and so many good ones at
that) that I seem to take a lot of them for granted. Fast
Computer are onto something and I, for one, wanna go along
for this ride. www.thefastcomputers.com
 11.05.07
Fishboy
HOW WE TRIED TO SAVE THE LONE STAR STATE WITH THE POWER OF ROCK N’ ROLL-
(HHBTM)-Wow,
that record title is quite a mouthful. Anywho, like a lot
of Texans they apparently love their state. Denton is the
home of this band, led by the enigmatic Eric Michener. Apparently
he started recording in high school and now at the ripe old
age of…..i dunno, maybe 24, he has continued the project
and gotten a few friends to join in. The songs are short,
choppy, fuzzy and fun ! The band sounds like one of the few
bands who are able to translate their live energy onto record
and if you dig the sounds of early Of Montreal or any of
Colin Clary’s bands (or his solo stuff) then this will
be your new favorite band. I’d drop a 10-spot to hear
them play “Taqueria Girl.” Apparently this guy
Michener has written a ton of songs and if they’re
all as good as this batch then we’ll all have to start
listening a lot more closely. www.hhbtm.com
 10.29.07
Bodies of Water
EARS
WILL POP AND EYES WILL BLINK- (SELF-RELEASED)- Bodies
of Water are an odd bunch….you can tell that just by
looking at the cover of the cd. A grainy, sorta-color photo
with the 4 of them sitting in what looks like a living room
of a house. The guys are wearing rumpled suits and the 2 gals
are wearing, well, either bathrobes or expensive dresses (another
person tried to sneak into the photo but didn’t quite
make it…oh, and there’s a dog in there too!). Anywho,
odd or not , this L.A. is giving that city something to be
proud of, they are a rock/pop band but not in so much of a
traditional sense . Occasionally all 4 of them sing and it
sounds just heavenly and then other times they are all merrily
bashing away on their instruments like they just learned how
to play them (which maybe they did). The amazing “I Guess
I’ll Forget the Sound” ends up on some other planet
with only the prettiest voice being heard while “Doves
Circled the Sky’ adds a bit o’ gallop to the proceedings
(I heard a bit of Calexico). The whole record is full of neat
surprises…..give it a listen. Go on…and if David,
Meredith, Kyle and Jessie ever show up in your town be nice
to them. Give ‘em food, shelter and even gifts. They
deserve it. www.bodiesofwater.net
 10.29.07
The Busy Signals
S/T-
(DIRTNAP)- The Busy Signals just seem like they would be from
Chicago. Now, I’m saying that without ever having been
to the Windy City (thought I did get invited once: when John
Mohr, the vocalist/guitarist for Am. Rep rockers Tar invited
me to his wedding…..man, I almost made it). To me Chicago
is this big, rough, blue collar city and the forces that be
there say your guitars must sound a certain way and if they
don’t…well, the forces that be make you move! Naked
Raygun, The Effigies and Big Black were all allowed to stay
and The Busy Signals (no relation to the home-recorded electronic
indiepop beatbox dude) are allowed to stay. The reason is cos’ this
12 song record trims any and all of the fat and just cranks
out good punked up power pop and a nice rate (no fat but plenty
of protein and carbs). The songs blur by quickly , I like the
female vocalist, the guitar are something you can sink your
teeth into, the rhythm section is rock solid and there’s
hooks all over the flippin’ place ! What more do you
need really? This record is the reason I loved my Buzzcocks
and Briefs records. The whole record is good but first off
check out “Plastic Girl”, “Tell Me”, “Matter
of Time” and their cover of “Oh-Oh” (originally
done by The Limit). The band is in good company on the Dirtnap
label. www.dirtnaprecs.com
 10.29.07
California Snow Story
CLOSE TO THE OCEAN-
(LETTERBOX)-Scotland’s
C.S.S. released a wonderful ep on Shelflife Records a few
years back (2002’s ONE GOOD SUMMER ep) and then ….nothing,
until now. Now sure exactly what the band leader David Skirving
had been doing in the interim (though I do remember hearing
that David, one of the founding members of Camera Obscura,
was quite ill and a few of the other band members skirted
off to other bands, namely the Hermit Crabs and All My Friends)
. The band is now essentially pared down to a duo with David
being joined by a vocalist named Sandra Belda Martinez (2
other folks help on drums and keyboards). The songs are more
gentle and less jangly than the EP and it did take ms a few
plays to get into but get into it I did. The gentle “Begin
Again” starts thing off sounding like a prime Field
Mice song while the next song, the Sandra-sung “My
Life is Only a Daydream” is a bit peppier (as is the
fantastic “Suddenly Everything Happens”). “Future
Perfect’ adds a bit of bossa nova sound to the proceedings
and they tuck two of the best songs near the end of the record; “Wishing
Well” and “You Set the Scene” (not a Love
cover). Suffice it to say if you dig the sound of labels
like Sarah , Sunday or Matinee ( the first 2 listed are long
defunct) then C.S.S. will feel like a favorite old blanket
that you cannot do without. www.letterboxrecords.com
 10.29.07
The Choir Practice
S/T-
(MINT)-You
almost think this is going to be like a Polyphonic Spree
of some sort, lots of folks singing choir-type songs, on
the back cover they aren’t wearing robes but are all
dressed in white in a Christmas photo but this band seems
to have much less of a schtick than the Spree. First off
, there; 12 of them (not 24) and they all sing and play odd
bits of percussion and if I’m not mistaken the band
was started by Coco Culbertson who then, one by one ,began
recruiting members (including Larissa from P:ano) and The
Choir Practice was born! T.C.P. seem like the kind of band
that would have been formed out of some 60’s utopian
community, no bad vibes, all good. Like if The Partridge
Family had driven their bus out into Laurel Canyon in 1967,
picked up half-dozen more recruits and then just driven off
into the sunset where all there is is LEAVE IT TO BEAVER
reruns and Jujubees (with tongues planted firmly in cheek)
. Oh, and the songs are great too ! On “Red Fox” they
ask us all to take off our clothes (ok, I’m naked right
now) and on “Pretty’ they are seriously dissing
some shallow guy who wanted a Ginger or Mary Anne instead
of a Mrs. Howell (“he wanted someone pretty…”).
If you were smart you’d drop what you’re doing
right now, quit your job and your life and move up to Vancouver
and join The Choir Practice. I’m doing it…you
with me? www.mintrecs.com
 10.22.07
The Bongos
DRUMS
ALONG THE HUDSON- (COOKING VINYL)- The Bongos were
one of those bands I had always heard of but had never actually
heard. I certainly wasn’t going to listen to them back
in the early-mid 80’s when hardcore punk ruled my life
(my loss) . Leader Richard Barone was a name I seemed to always
read about in the mags and, after finally listening to the
cd I realized they seemed to bounce out of Hoboken, Nj with
some interesting ideas and along with bands like Let’s
Active and the dB’s ushered in a jangly pop scene amongst
all of the noisemakers. This sweet reissue contains their debut
record (DRUMS ALONG THE HUDSON) as well as an unreleased early
single, a few songs from a live gig in London (w/ fans/friends….Throbbing
Gristle) , a few tunes from their first recorded gig and then,
finally, a song they recorded (this year) with uber fan, Moby.
Some of the live stuff is ok but man, the DRUMS ALONG THE HUDSON
record is fantastic and I can’t believe it took me to
2007 to actually hear it (almost embarrassed to say that )
. The jittery opener “In the Congo” is a rush of
jangly 6-strign energy while “The Bulrushes’ (the
song they redid with Moby) is darker and moodier but no less
engaging as well as “Clay Midgets” and that is
just the first 3 songs. For whatever my opinion is worth ,
the guy who waited over 20 years to listen to it , I can say
that DRUMS ALONG THE HUDSON should be on the shelf in any music
lovers home. www.cookingvinylusa.com
 10.22.07
The Groop
S/T-
(SUNDAZED)- If you want to hear some obscure ,baroque 60’s
pop leave it to Sundazed to reissue it. The Groop were a late
60’s band that was , in a way, manufactured (like The
Monkees) which isn’t to say that their debut record (
and only one) isn’t a near masterpiece of dreamy melodies
and breathtaking harmonies. In much the same way that The Free
Design, The Carpenters, The Cowsills and even the Mamas and
the Papas touched our soft rock side , this 2 man/2 women band
were able to melt hearts with a collective sigh. The story
apparently begins with L.A. record guru Richard Adler who was
managing Sergio Mendes and Brazil ’66 when he met The
Groop’s vocalist, Susan Musmanno and the rest, as they
say , is history. The other band members were friends with
someone or were suggested and it appears that most of these
songs were recorded in 2 sessions, May 20, 1969 and May 27,
1969 and the songs are fabulous. The record opens with “A
Famous Myth” which includes all of the uplifting ,soaring
qualities of a 5th Dimension song with strings, horns and those
heavenly vocals (the song was also a single for the Bell Records
label) then goes right into the equally sublime (and awkwardly
titled ) “I Try to Think of you When I Can” and
right into the bouncy “The Continental.” This cd
includes the record 12 tracks and most written by a young songwriter
named Jeffrey Comanor and hey, lookeee there …one tune
was even written by my beloved Joey Stec and Sandy Salisbury
(from The Millenium ) !! Apparently the band did a disastrous
tour of Spain in the Summer of 1969 and called it quit shortly
after that. If you ,however, like the music of the above mentioned
bands then this is something you really need to hear. Really
enjoyed the liner notes by indie popster (and music aficionado)
Keith D’Arcy too.www.sundazed.com
 10.22.07
Sebadoh
THE FREED MAN-
(DOMINO)-Ok,
back in the day I was , and still am, a huge Dinosaur fan
(I still
hate saying Dinosaur Junior !) but I was always curious to
hear the Lou songs tacked onto the end of the records. They
were always the weird ones (and Lou was a bit weird himself)
but no matter whether he was mumbling about unrequited love
of screaming that no one likes him I was always interested
. Sebadoh began as the duo of Lou Barlow and his pal, Eric
Gaffney and when this first Sebadoh record came out I could
not stop listening to it. It was like nothing i had ever
heard before. Some guy and his buddy recording songs in their
house (an girlfriend’s dorm room as I read in the liner
notes…which is where the record title came from , Friedman
Dorm at Smith College) on a Tascam 4-track recorder , lots
of tape hiss, some samples from old tv commercials and some
seriously good songs. And here it is, nearly 20 years after
first hearing it (with the lo-fi genre being beaten to death
) it still sounds unique and fresh. A few of my favorites
here are “True Hardcore” (where Lou’s voice
cracks) , “Soulmate” (where Lou questions whether
he is gay or not), Eric’s Byrds-like “Julienne” ,
the radio channel switching “Amherst Hanging House” (which
sounds like the same riff a “Temporary Dream” off
WEED FORRESTIN ) and a cover of The Beatles “Yellow
Submarine.” They have also added some redone tracks
from the record as well as their song from the Sonic Life
split 7”, their side of the Magic Ribbons box set and
, most importantly, the songs from their incredibly rare
ASSHOLE 7” that Vertical Records released (that I have
not put on my turntable in years). Not sure what else to
say, if you have read this far and not been scared off yet
then you know, you need this reissue. I mean, come on, what
other band chose to record their cat snoring?!! Pure genius
I tells ya’! www.dominorecordco.us
 10.22.07
Smokey And His Sister
S/T-
(SUNDAZED)-Looking like some
lost Bob Dylan treasure of a record, Smokey and his Sister
record was apparently recorded nearly 40 years ago but sat
shelved until now. The duo of Larry “Smokey” Mims
and his sister Vicki were raised in Cincinnati, Ohio and Smokey
decided he wanted to become a musician after meeting Dylan
himself in Cincinnati in 1965. Then next year he packed his
bags and headed to NYC with his sister following not too far
behind. After playing all of the Greenwich Village folk houses
they were signed first to Columbia Records and then Warner
Bros. From what I understand the Warners record is incredibly
difficult to find while this, as mentioned previously, had
been unreleased in Columbia’s vaults until now (apparently
Clive Davis wasn’t into it and killed the project). This
is dreamy, mysterious folk music with haunting strings and
horns/woodwinds here and there. Things open with the gorgeous,
baroque “Losin” while elsewhere is the haunting “In
a Dream of Silent Seas (you can find me )” , the swaying “A
Simple Cameo”, and two versions of the gentle “A
Far Better Thing.” 13 songs in all and once hearing it
you’ll wonder why anyone would keep these lovely songs
unreleased for so many years. Vicki passed away in 2006 while
Smokey has been m.i.a. Smokey , wherever you are, thanks for
these 13 pearls of beauty. Now, let’ see if that rare
Warner Bros record can get the reissue treatment. www.sundazed.com
 10.15.07
Augie March
MOO,
YOU BLOODY CHOIR- (JIVE)- Hard to believe that as
good as this Aussie band’s songs are how they simply
cannot get noticed over here (and this is record #3 ). Their
previous record STRANGE BIRD,, the first one I heard , was
full of the sort of hazy, emotional, swelling rock that most
bands would kill for and this new one is even better. MOO, … shows
band leader Glenn Richards in fine form creating the sort of
epic tunes that his fellow Aussies Died Pretty used to do back
when Bush #1 was still in office (you haven’t lived until
you’ve heard Died Pretty’s FREE DIRT record) .
The opener “One Crowded Hour” swoops and sways
while the almost bouncy “The Cold Acre” sends shimmering
waves of guitar and piano cascading down your back. The gorgeous,
countrified “Mother Greer” is one of the best songs
I’ve heard this year and on “Thin Captain Crackers’ the
band shows they have a sense of humor with it’s laid-back
n’ loose feel . “Bottle Baby’ is where Richards’ does
his best Dylan imitation (he does a few of those on this record)
and the next-to-last, 7 minute “Clockwork” will
have you exhausted by the songs end. If the intelligent sounds
of bands like Mercury Rev or The Decemberists turns your crank
then MOO, YOU BLOODY CHOIR will be a most pleasant surprise. www.augiemarch.com
 10.15.07
Band Of Horses
CEASE
TO BEGIN- (SUB POP)- Seattle seemed to me to be the
perfect home for the occasionally gorgeous, misty music of
Band of Horses but it calls Seattle home no more. Leader Ben
Bridwell and his bandmates decided to split for back east to
South Carolina to be closer to family and long-time friends.
Though the songs were written back east, this record, like
the bands’ 2006 debut, was recorded at Avast Studios
in Seattle (by Phil Ek) , and not much has changed from the
bands stunning debut, EVERYTHING ALL THE TIME. If it sounds
like that record part deux….well, it is. All of those
major guitar chords and reverb-soaked vocals that draped themselves
over the debut’s songs are back and sound at least as
good as said debut, maybe better. The record’s opener, “Is
There a Ghost” , starts things off with Bridwell creaking “I
could sleep, I could sleee-eep. When I lived alone, is there
a ghost in my house” as the guitars swell and aim for
the crescendo that never comes while Bridwell repeats those
words over and over again. That crescendo does come on “Ode
to LRC’ with its major chords erupting into huge hooks.
Elsewhere, a Beach Boys influence shows up in a that banged-up
piano sound on “The General Specific” and fizzle
out in the shoegazer interlude, “Lamb on the Lam (in
the city).” They nail the soft/loud dynamic better than
anyone these days and Bridwell’s vocals have never sounded
more vulnerable. Plus they have a song called “Detlef
Schrempf”, ummm….how cool is that? www.subpop.com
 10.15.07
The Capstan Shafts
ENVIRON
MAIDEN- (RAINBOW QUARTZ)-I
have had a cd by this guy for a few years now (one on the
Kittridge label) that I keep looking at but never played
it. Well, when ENVIRON MAIDEN came and I noticed it was on
the Rainbow Quartz label then I stood up and took notice.
The Capstan Shafts is the work on one guy, Dean Wells. He
calls Lyndonville, VT home and apparently, since 1999 has
released …well, I dunno how many but a lot of self-released
cds (ok, press release says 17 since 2002 but I have heard
it might be more). ENVIRON MAIDEN has 29 songs, ok, I will
call them fuzzy pop nuggets. They bump into each other and
smile and each song is barely over a minute long and on occasion
they might hit the 2 minute mark but never much longer. This
is music for folks like me who love pop hooks but have no
attention span. It reminds me mostly of GBV when Bob is in
a good mood and tunes like “One of Us Should be Further
Away”, “The Ballad of Kid Butane”, “The
Complete History of Greenland”, and “Right on
the Malthus” are unbelievably tasty an put him in the
same ballpark as some of the indie hall of famers (Pollard,
Lou Barlow, a few of the Elephant 6-ers). Kudos to Rainbow
Quartz for giving this guy the bigger audience he deserves.
www.rainbowquartz.com
 10.15.07
Grand Champeen
DIAL
T FOR THIS- (IMWT)- Nice n’ sturdy rawk from this
Austin, TX The thing about Austin is that bands doing this sort
of p[op-roc are a dime a dozen and to really stand out in that
music-soaked town you’ve gotta have the hooks n’ chops
and Grand Champeen has it in spades. Leader “Carol” Channing
Lewis must’ve listened to some Kinks and ELO records in
his day cos’ the guy, like other Texans Rhett Miller and
Brent Best , can pull a hook out of a hat but for more contemporary
stuff he was taking notes when The Replacements came to town
too (and he maybe took in a few Paul Westerberg solo gigs too
. Not everything here hits the mark but out of these 13 songs
the good to average ratio is titled way to the former. Plus,
in bassist/pianist Alex Livingstone, Lewis has a songwriting
foil who can whip up as many hooks as he can. They spit gold
on “Wounded Eye” , “Cities on the Plain”,
Nice of You to Join Us” , Gonna be the Death of Me” and
at least a few others. As the band has had a trail of labels
behind them maybe they have found a happy home on the Portland-based
In Music We Trust (a fine label run by the hard-working Alex
Steininger). www.inmusicwetrust.com
 10.08.07
Boat
LET'S
DRAG OUR FEET- (MAGIC MARKER)- I think it’s
about time that folks started noticing the little label that
could, Magic Marker Records . In the past few years this Portland
label has been consistently releasing some amazing records
by bands like The Faintest Ideas, Walker Kong, New Zealand
legends The Bats and this hard-working Seattle, trio, Boat.
I thought their debut cd , SONGS THAT YOU MIGHT NOT LIKE (great
title) was a decent to good slice of sloppy indie rock (something
this band is proud of…the sloppy part) but on LET’S
DRAG… the band takes a huge leap forward with better
production/arrangements and , more importantly stronger songwriting.
One listen to “(I’m a ) Donkey for Your Love” should
put a smile on your ugly mug and if it doesn’t well then,
you are checking out the wrong website here my friend. “Illustrate
the History” is more of that clangy n’ chiming
pop with off-kilter backing vocals and a general sense of fun
all the way around (plus I met the singer/guitarist Dave at
a wedding a few weeks ago and he was a stand-up guy ). Look
here you bitter ol’ bastard, Boat is here to stay so
you’d better get used to it. As my dad used to say, if
you can’t beat em’, join em’. www.magicmarkerrecords.com
 10.08.07
Breezy Porticos
THESE
RECORD HIGHS- (BEST FRIENDS)- Ok, this is the 2nd
Breezy’s record I have heard, the first one being their
previous release, KEEP IS CRISP, from a few years ago. But
then I realized something, I wasn’t sure what a portico
was. I used to be an English teacher and pride myself on my
vocabulary but this was one word that escaped my grasp sop
I had to look it up and this is what I found: a structure consisting
of a roof supported by columns or piers, usually attached to
a building as a porch. Ok, now that that is out of the way
time to reviews the cd. This Denver trio like Boat above, seem
to take a rather nonchalant approach to writing songs (though
the BP’s songs are less sloppy and more pop than Boat)
and the record it really hard not to like. Main guy Andy Falconetti
knows just when to drop in a trumpet part (or is that a trombone??)
on the wonderful “Olivetti” , just like the June
Brides used to do. “Vichy Sun” is a jangly rocker
that must warm those Denverites bones when they begin dancing
to it at gigs . And what do ya know, they even do a remake
of one of their own tunes, “Crayola Sunset” (from
their debut 7”). Yeah, I like these Breezy Porticos. www.bestfriendsrecords.com
 10.08.07
The Sammies
S/T-
(MO RISEN)-Damn,
no press release….too bad cos’ I like this. The
vocalist sounds like Richard Butler (from the Psychedelic
Furs) or perhaps a bit of Bryan Ferry, but I think the band
hails from Charlotte, North Carolina (well, that’s
where the label is from, anyway). Plus one of the dude’s
in the band looks like a scruffier version Joey Tribbiani
(“How you doin’?”) . Dig the guitar sound …these
guys have it. The band makes a bold statement on the first
3 tracks where they come out of the gate and immediately
hit you with some classic hooks and seriously good songs
(that lead at the beginning of “For John” could
melt a heart) . On track four ,”Caretaker”, is
where they begin a bit of riff-rawk and then they add some
synth on the 5th song, “She Died.” For the rest
of the record the band goes back and forth between jangling
pop rockers and straight up rockers (not unlike Nada Surf).
Vocalist/guitarist Frank Backgammon has a cool name and a
great set of pipes, a bit raspy with just the right amount
of attitude while the rest of the band backs him up perfectly
with strong chops. I don’t see the west coast mentioned
for upcoming gigs on the bands my space page but hopefully
that will change soon. www.morisen.com
 10.08.07
the Sharp Things
A
MOVEABLE FEAST- (BAR NONE)- When indie rock bands began
adding symphonic elements to their proceedings no one was happier
than me (and if anyone was happier then I have not met them).
For me I think it began with the Cardinal record in 1994 and
has grown since then. I first heard the Sharp Things debut on
an Italian cassette label several years and now, on their 3rd
record, leader (and Joe Pesci lookalike) Perry Serpa has made
his grandest statement yet (well, Serpa and his 9 other band
members, but he is the ringleader). This time out he has enlisted
the help of the New York Symphonic Ensemble (ok, they sound professional/important
to me !) and the songs take off and soar to higher places than
they ever have before. “Through With Love” is an
indie waltz complete with the rises and dips of a waltz dancer
while “An Ocean Part Deux’ is a bit moodier but no
less melodic. The swaying “Cruel Things” is where
Serpa shows us his best Marvin Gaye and he sounds marvelous.
If an Americanized version of Neil Hannon’s The Divine
Comedy is what you’re after then The Sharp Things more
than deliver the goods. I’ll bet record #4 moves mountains. www.thesharpthings.com
 10.01.07
Jason Anderson
TONIGHT-
(ECA)- If I’m not mistaken this is the same guy that
released that record on k a few years ago (though it makes
no mention of it on the one sheet I have ) but I do believe
it is the same guy and even if it isn’t, we will assume
it is. That record was full of quiet/ brooding sad sap tunes
and on TONIGHT , Anderson, has, well…gotten happy. Whomever
first described this as a “poor man’s Springsteen
and his E St. Band” was right on the money. From the
honking sax to the handclaps all over to the general “good
time” vibe Anderson and his cronies have made if nothing
else, a fun record (but it is oh so much more ) . On the opener, “Tonight”,
Anderson and his room full of friends shout the song title
over and over again as the sax player is blasting away . Same
with the next tune, “July 4th, 2004” , tho’ this
song has a bit more melody but again more horns and handclaps.
He slows thing down on “On Vacation” as it’s
long intro has some lovely piano and moodier sax as Andersons
wistful vocals don’t come until a few minutes in, it
totally works though. The other 5 songs , save for “So
Long”, are in the more raucous category and after hearing
this I’m now dying to see the guy live (and apparently
this guy basically lives on the road…I guess all he does
is pretty much tour ). TONIGHT is a total hoot! www.ecarecords.com
 10.01.07
The Dead C.
VAIN,
ERUDITE, STUPID: SELECTED WORKS: 1987-2005 - (BA DA
BING)-
Mind-bending, revelatory comp. from this influential New Zealand band (“leader” Bruce
Russell was in charge of the X-Pressway label, the band also included ex-Verlaines
guy Robbie Yeats on drums and Michael Morley on other guitar…or bass )
that collects all kinds gunk from their storied career. Until reading the liner
notes (by Tom ”Siltbreeze” Lax, Seymour Glass (editor of the defunct
BANANAFISH) and Nick Cain along with track notes from Bruce Russell) I had no
idea just disliked (ok, despised) these guys were in their native country. The
music isn’t …uh…pleasant and not normally the type of thing
I review or even like, but I got turned into these guys fairly early on by Tom
lax and I have dug them ever since. I had a bunch of this stuff on 7” and
12” that I stupidly sold so I could eat back in college but this is a generous
2-cd collection that brings out some of their best work including “Helen
Said This” from an early Siltbreeze 7” plus a cut (“Mighty”)
from their FORCED EXPOSURE single and the amazing “Maggot” from the
EUSA KILLS lp (that Flying Nun released in 1990). The stuff is chronological
so disc one is from 1988-1994 and disc 2 from 1994 til’ 2003. Can you believe
that I sold the stuff so I could eat….imagine that, eating food over listening
to a Dead C. record. Yeah, I was an idiot back then. www.badabingrecords.com
 10.01.07
Tenderhooks
VIDALIA-
(ROCK SNOB)-This
shaggy bunch hail s from, Knoxville, TN and I had never heard
of them before this came tumbling out of my po box a few
weeks ago. One thing is for sure, they have a love of some
serious songwriter from the south. Everyone from Michael
Stipe to Gram Parsons to Alex Chilton to maybe even the Windbreakers
dudes (Bobby Sutliff and Tim Lee) too though the opener, “Kid
Stuff” , the guitars get all tangled up and veer off
into Dream Syndicate territory (first lp where axeman Karl
Precoda wrote a new guitar language). Bassist/vocalist Emily
Robinson sounds lovely singing on track 2, “Mouthful
of Rain” while the title track winds over hill and
dale with some terrific melodies and dynamic changes. Even
when the tone it down a bit, like on the bucolic “Quarter
of a Century’ the band still hits a winning combination
of subtle (and not so ) hooks and solid songwriting. At just
over a half hour the band also abides by the daggerboy credo
of “less is more.” If you’re the kind of
person who wishes that Wilco would go back to their Uncle
Tupelo roots then VIDALIA just might be what you’re
looking for. www.rocksnobrecords.com
 10.01.07
Velcro Stars
HIROSHIMA'S
REVENGE- (HHBTM/ GRAND PALACE)- Well, they sure as heck
do not skimp on the packaging on this one. It’s a cool,
silk-screened cardboard fold-over with a pull-out that has all
kinds of cool artwork on it. The 5-piece, led by guitarists/vocalists
Shane Spresser and Keith Pratt, hail from Murfreesboro, TN which,
from what I gather, is turning into a little hotspot for music
or at least that is what I’ve read (have never been to
that fine state). The Velcro Stars, like a lot of other bands
on the HHBTM label, either call Athens, GA and it’s whimsical
musical spirit home (ie: Elephant 6) or don’t live there
but still have the spirit. This band would fit right in with
the whole Of Montreal (earlier stuff), Masters of the Hemisphere,
Kincaid, Apples in Stereo (who are/were not from Athens but sorta
spearheaded that whole sound) and HIROSHIMA’S REVENGE is
full of sprightly melodies , what sounds like a gazillion instruments
and just basically smiles and good vibes all the way around.
Track #2, which is the title track, bounces along like a dog
after a good leak on a fire hydrant as does the even sunnier, “All
That I Do.” The band seems to know where they want to go
and how they wanna accomplish that and if I can offer any advice
to them is to take the Tenderhooks approach (see above review)
and trim things down next time from 15 songs to about 10 or 11
, trim the fat so to speak. Otherwise, HIROSHIMA’S REVENGE
could be a pop lover’s best friend. www.hhbtm.com www.grandpalace.us
 09.24.07
Every Gentle Air
PT.
2- (THE RECORD MACHINE)- I could just tell this was
gonna be good…….Mansfield, OH (which has apparently
been rated as one of the 5 ugliest cities in the country) duo
of Nathan and Ryan create mini masterpieces out of busted kazoos,
old Tupperware and whatever the hell else they have lying around
the house. Oh, wait, an old oil pan too. All of that (and a
flock of friends helping out ) gives PART 2 a most organic
, disjointed pop feel and as far as I’m concerned Nathan
and Ryan should be hoisted up on people’s shoulders and
paraded throughout the streets of Mansfield (that would make
the city a bit less ugly, no ?) . That and be given a ticker
tape parade too and if any of this doesn’t happen what
is wrong with you people ??!! Since this record is called Part
2 I think it’s pretty mandatory that I hear Part 1 and
if I’ve got to go to Mansfield, Ohio to find a copy then
by god I’ll do it. www.therecordmachine.net
 09.24.07
Donny Hue And The Colors
FOLKMOTE-
(THE KORA RECORDS)-Pretty much everything I have received from
this totally low-key label I have really liked (especially
the Meredith Bragg stuff) and here is something else. I had
never heard of this cat, Donny Hue, before but he sounds like
he’s making a splash in Washington, DC where he used
to reside (Donny is now in NYC while the rest of his bandmates
are in DC). Along with his band, The Colors (which apparently
has some members of Meredith Bragg’s band as well as
the Washington Social Club) like to get a bit out there on
their debut, FOLKMOTE. You’ve probably read it in reviews
before but it does conjure up the memories of some of the better
Elephant 6 bands, mainly Olivia Tremor Control and a bit like
Neutral Milk Hotel and a dash of Of Montreal. I like the just-waking-up
intro to “Piano Dream” while “Real Long Time” has
some of that great banged-up piano that I love and “Humming
with the Flower Birds” is as lovely a song as its title.
The other 8 songs are no slouches either. Dive into the world
of Donny and come up with a smile on your face. www.thekorarecords.com
 09.24.07
The Krinkles 3
THE MORDORLORFF COLLECTION-
(MORDORLORFF)-There
is a handful of bands out there (ok, so more than a handful)
who admit to liking bands
like The Knack and Cheap Trick and have no problem wearing
skinny ties or powder blue jackets or wear their hair in
styles that might be a bit of out of date. The Krinkles,
a Chicago area band, are one of those bands. However , in
addition to The Knack and the ‘Trick (both of whom
I love) they also have plenty of Kinks and Big Star records
in their collections (ok, that line was just to appease the
hipsters). On THE MORDORLORFF COLLECTION the band cranks
the amps up to 11 and lets the melodies rip as guitarist/vocalists
Dan “The Fox” Edwards and Henry Krinkle must’ve
guzzled plenty of Jolt Cola prior to record as did the rock-solid
rhythm section of Jerry on bass and Matty on drums,. Apparently
the band took a bit of a hiatus but you wouldn’t know
it as tunes like “Dirty Girl” , “Best Friend” , “I
Want You” and “Today is the Day” are all
rip-roaring rockers with hooks a plenty. Nothin’ real
fancy here folks, just good pop/rtock tunes played with heart
and plenty of energy. www.myspace.com/thekrinkles
 09.24.07
Young Galaxy
S/T-
(ARTS & CRAFTS)- Except for Broken Social Scene (who I don’t
like) the Arts & Crafts label is all winners as far as I’m
concerned. Not sure why I let this sit in the shrinkwrap for
so long. I had read good things about this Canadian duo (plus
I really like the cover art which is usually a factor in how
long it takes me to wanna listen t something) but this sat in
a big box of promos for quite some time. Well, it is Friday September
21, 2007u and I finally busted it open and played it and I liked
what I heard. The band is essentially the duo f Stephen Ramsay
and Catherine McCandless but there are plenty of players on here
(including The Dears Murray Lightburn and Memphis Chris Seligman)
have really hit on something here, the song bend , sway and swerve
and sometimes break wide open . If you have heard the old Sarah
Records band (now reformed) Secret Shine then you’ll have
a reference point on where this bunch are aimed at. Cuts like
the dreamy “No Matter How Hard You Try” , the gorgeous “Lazy
Religion” or the bucolic, mostly acoustic “Wailing
Wall” will suck you into this band’s seductive vortex.
As the open road in the front cover indicates, the possibilities
are endless and Young Galaxy are willing to explore. www.arts-crafts.ca
 09.17.07
King Louie and the Loose Diamonds
MEMPHIS
TREAT- (EMPTY)- Kept hearing about this guy King Louie
(Louie Bankston), how he was an early member of the Exploding
Hearts and how he wrote (or co-wrote) most of their good songs.
I asked a record store clerk here in town once why he was no
longer in the band and he said “Basically he was too
drunk to be in the band anymore.” Well, now there’s
some sobering words. Apparently they recorded most of this
at Easley Studios in Memphis (and mixed by Jim Dickinson) but
then the studio burnt down…but the master tapes were
fine ! Anywho, on MEMPHIS TREET Louie has assembled a fine
greased n’ grizzled cast of miscreants including members
of The Oblivions, Tearjerkers, Kajun SS and the like and here
he goes from fuzzy power pop (ala Exploding Hearts) on tunes
like “Gypsy Switch” (which is a reworking of the
Exploding Hearts “Shattered (You Left Me)” ) and “Negative
Contact’ to more spare, chicken bone rock on tunes like “Girl
in the Holler” , “Wheelbarrow Whiz’ and the
title track. Not sure if Louie has sobered up these days or
what but MEMPHIS TREET shows a man of (mostly) clear mind and
there’s enough hooks on here to keep a pop loser like
myself happy for weeks. www.emptyrecords.com
 09.17.07
The Mabuses
MABUSED!-
(MAGPIE )-OK, I can’t get too excited about The Mabuses
returning cos’ I had never heard of them in the first
place. The band is apparently led by the elusive Kim Fahy who
has worked with The Jesus and Mary Chain and a few cats from,
the House of Love (he also had a previous band called The Assassins…ok,
never heard of them either). He and his international pals
(with members from the U.K,, Germany and France) have whipped
up some groovy psych-pop here akin to something that the Apples
in Stereo or their zonked-out, defunct pals the Olivia Tremor
Control used to do back when the Advil seemed a bit stronger.
Both the opener “Dark Star’ and “Seasider” are
catchier than psoriasis while a few of the other tunes slip
off into never never land (“Sugarland” sounds like
some tossed-off Robyn Hitchcock outtake). Still, MABUSED! is
an impressive collection of off-kilter pop that any band would
be proud to call their own. And the packaging is quite impressive
as well (wonder how much out of pocket Fahy is for this project?).
Go on, get mabused and I mean now. www.themabuses.com
 09.17.07
Ray's Vast Basement
STARVATION UNDER ORANGE TREES- (HOWELL'S TRANSMITTER)- Jon Bernson wrote
a clutch of songs here dedicated to the genius of John Steinbeck
. Although most of STARVATION UNDER…. Was written for
the Actor’s Theatre production of OF MICE AND MEN some
of the 14 songs on here were inspired by other Steinbeck
tome (TORTILLA FLAT, CANNERY ROW, GRAPES OF WRATH). With
a cast that includes Portland’s own Nate Query and
Larry Crane, Bernson and his cast have cobbled together a
bunch of songs that hold together just fine even though duct
tape and twine are doing the holding. I like the more spare,
mostly acoustic ditties the best, cuts like “Not Just
Mine” and “How Through Sacrifice, Danny’s
Friends Gave a Party.” Was thinking of how it reminded
me a bit of the Michael Zapruder record that this label released
a year (at least in terms of ambitiousness) or so back and
then realized that Zapruder was one of the contributors to
this record. Also in the same ballpark at M. Ward and that’s
not a bad place to be at all. Cover art reminded me something
that the Stone Roses would have done back in their prime.
www.howellstransmitter.com
 09.17.07
A Shoreline Dream
COASTAL-
(LATE WEEKNIGHT)- Still have not had a chance to listen to this
band’s debut, 2006’s AVOIDING THE CONSEQUENCES which
is sitting in a big box of cds. I actually thought this was a
new cd by the band Coastal (Words on Music Records) but then
inspected it a bit more closely and realized it is the new 4
song ep by A.S.D, a trio from Denver, CO led by Ryan Policky
(Erik Jeffries plays guitar , Enoch Torraca manhandles the bass
and they have a new drummer, Jennifer Burns, who didn’t
play on this record) . The first song is the soaring , fuzz-laden “Ukraine” sounding
like an old U.K. post-punk tune from the 1980’s while “The
Barrier’ mashes and swirls with dirgey guitars and tape
loops of voices coming on from as few angles. “New York”,
not unlike the opening cut, does some soaring nosedives and then
gets the plane ready for landing after some air swirling. The
record ends with the haunting “Afershocking”, sounding
like Prime Pale Saints with flanged guitars and moody keyboards
while Policky’s vocals are offering up ever secret in the
universe. You’d better be listening. www.ashorelinedream.com
 09.10.07
1888
HONEY,
I'D KILL...- (CLAY GARDEN )- Don’t remember
a whole lot coming out of Norfolk, Virginia , at least
not in recent years. I think Avail are/were from there
and perhaps Gwar too (ok, the first time I saw them in
a small club in Philly in about 1988 I loved it ) too
but not many others. I think this came in a package from
the fine Planting Seeds records so I had a feeling I’d
dig it and sure enough, I do. This trio, led by the songwriters
Brad Rosenberg and Daniel Driskell ( Rosenberg wrote
8 of the tunes while Driskell write 3) and they each
have a distinct style. Rosenberg goes for a more wigged-out
Feelies-esque feel with meandering guitar leads leading
up to killer climaxes while Driskell seems to be the
more laid back one with a love of acoustic guitars and
possibly George Harrison records (I recently got the
cd reissue of ALL THINGS MUST PASS and have been playing
the heck out of it!) . For me Driskell’s gentle “In
Your Lifetime’ is one of my faves here while Rosenberg’s
equally-as-gentle (thought slightly more off-kilter) “I
Don’t Think” is just as good. I’ve
gotta say for a debut the songwriting is strong and I
wonder what they have up their sleeves next time out? www.claygardenstudio.com
 09.10.07
Immaculate Machine
FABLES -
(MINT )-You know the deal, Carl Newman of the New Pornographers
found out he had a long lost niece named Kathryn Calder.
He asked her to join the New Pornos and the rest, as
they say, is history. But Kathryn has another band, one
that has been going since 2002 called Immaculate Machines.
I believe this is their 4th record (and 2nd for Mint)
and while a bit uneven in parts has some really strong
songs on it and after having just seen them here in Portland
a few nights ago I can say that they are a strong live
band (a lot of fun too). The record starts off with “Jarhand” which,
imho, is as good as anything the New Pornos have done
while the Brooke Gallupe (guitarist) sung “Dear
Confessor” has all the spunk n’ sense of
fun that their live gig had. The strings on “Small
Talk” (done up by Final Fantasy’s Owen Pallett)
add some cool drama (they do the same on “Roman
Statues”) but what I think this band does best
is churn out that Elvis Costello-ish electricity that
songs like “Nothing Ever Happens” , “Pocket” and
the aforementioned “Dear Confessor” are soaked
in and while I do like Gallupe’s voice I do wish
Calder sang more of the lead on the tunes. Still, FABLES
will give you the daily sugar dose needed. www.mintrecs.com
 09.10.07
Princess Ugly
WE
KNEW IT WAS PERFECT- (EMERGENT)- They met in a coffee
shop in NW Portland. Vocalist J. Christopher-Rome had the
Depeche
Mode t-shirt on while instrumentalist Jon-Paul Ruane had
the My Bloody Valentine patch on his backpack (and both had
early Cure cds in their hands) . Their eyes met, they knew
it was chemistry at first sight. Ruane had the instruments
while Rome had the voice. Their friends and family said it
would never work but they tried and tried and persevered
until out of the ugly duckling came…..Prince Ugly!
The warm, moody synth sounds crossed with the icy cool vocals
create pretty tunes like the bitter “Take Everything
and Leave” , the suave “Reasons Don’t Know” or
the supremely melodic “Today Today.” In addition
to the above mentioned bands Rome and his pals go way deeper
into the late 70’s early 80’s new wave and (especially
) post-punk scene. Labels like Rough Trade and , especially,
Factory, are where it sounds like these guys have focused
their attention and any music fan worth their salt knows
that are some good starting points. Not sure if this band
is still Portland based or what though, I don’t see
their name in the listings in the paper, I don’t hear
anyone in town ever mention them . Maybe they’re smart
and avoiding that downtown scene like the plague. Give this
band your undivided attention like they deserve. (2718 NW
Irving St, Portland, OR 97210) www.myspace/uglyprincess
 09.10.07
Sisely And Their Safety Pin-Ups
DO
THE ROBOT!- (TEENACIDE )- Like all (or most ) Teenacide
bands it has to have a cute girl in it is blowing a big bubble
on the back of this one song cd, just like her (probable) hero,
Suzy Quatro (that’s Leather Tuscadero to you). The leader
of this band is Sisely Treasure who for one, has some famous
friends as Blondie’s Clem Burke drums on this and plus,
she has excellent taste in music as she covers The Saint’s
classic tune (well, one of many of their classic tunes). The
song has all the kick, punch and bubblegummy-ness that a cover
of a classic punk tune by a band in Teenacide should have. Get
one of these before they’re long gone. www.teenaciderecords.com
 09.02.07
Antiseen
THE
BOYS FROM BRUTALSVILLE- (TKO)- When you hear
that unmistakable growl of one Jeff Clayton and that
buzzsaw guitar of Mr. Joe Young you know one thing, Antiseen
is around . The sound has barely change since when I
first heard them back in the late 80’s (they were
on the cover of DAGGER #11 when I interviewed them after
a gig at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, NJ) and it’s
like a Ramones or AC/DC thing in that they have a particular
sound and you either like it or you don’t. I like
it. This is a record that was first released back in
2001 and has been out of print for a long while. Thanks
to TKO Records the record is not only back in print but
comes with a dvd that includes two videos “Guns
Ablazin’ and “Commando” plus a live
set from L.A. from Summer of 2001). The best thing about
these guys is that they have not changed their stance
one iota. Never have they agreed to water anything down
or become more (or less ) politically correct. They sing
about what they know and could care less what anyone
thinks about them. For that (and a bushel of great songs)
they should be commended. THE BOYS FROMS BRUTALSVILLE
is yet another reason to keep listening. www.tkorecords.com
 09.02.07
Nick Jaina
THE
7 STATIONS- (BANG BACK)- I’ve seen his
name around here for a few years in the music papers
but this was the first I had actually heard Nick J. and
I like what I hear. He has that sort of world weary voice
that makes it seem like he played in Iowa cornfield in
the 1920’s but he was probably more than likely
born in the 1980’s. He is helped out by some members
of other active Portland bands including Heroes & Villains
, Point Juncture WA and Horse Feathers who add, among
other things, some tasteful piano, clarinet, trumpet,
violin and banjo. “One Had Washing the Other” evoke
such a feeling while “maybe Cocaine’ adds
horns , violin , accordian and more all the while wondering
if “maybe cocaine can ease the weary voices In
my brain…” (trust me Nick, it won’t).
I hate to use the word “refreshing’ but I’ll
use it here, hearing Jaina’s music was a refreshing
experience especially here , today in my house where
I’m sitting here listening to hundreds of records
and writing reviews and quite a bit of what I hear is
dreck. Happy to say no dreck here folks. www.bangbackrecords.com
 09.02.07
Patience Please
FLEETING FREQUENCIES-
(HHBTM)- The Patience Please debut cd-ep from last
year includes 5 slices of ebullient indie pop that was solid
to good . On FLEETING FREQUENCIES, however, the Seattle band
has taken a huge step forward in the songwriting department
with brighter melodies, stronger harmonies and all around
better songwriting. The band which includes all around good
guy on the indie scene , Chris MacFarlane (Chris runs the
fantastic indiepages site) on drums has a terrific vocalist
in Ray Proudfoot (who also plays guitar) with Jordan Michelman
on bass and Keenan Dowers on organ/keys (Keenan’s organ
and keys are a big part of the sound….i love organ
!) . The band drills the pop manifesto home on the first
four cuts, including the especially glorious “You’re
It, I Quit” and “Bint.” They barely allows
themselves a breath when they kick into the driving “I’ll
have What She’s having”, the cascading “Buxtry
Berkeley’ and the bottom-heavy “Science Credits.” They
seem to be touring the country a lot these days so come on
guys, drive the 180 miles south and play here in Portland! www.hhbtm.com
 09.02.07
The Wellingtons
FOR
FRIENDS IN FARAWAY PLACES- (POP BOOMERANG)- Scotty from
the Pop Boomerang label has showcased the talents of his country
for quite some time now (umm…that would be Australia, mate
!) and even though Wellington is a city in neighboring New Zealand,.
The Wellingtons are pure Aussie in that they love their big loud
pop guitars and probably drink lots of beer (Victoria Bitters
? That’s what I drank when I was there in 1991). These
guys probably bow down to the altar of their legendary power-pop
countryman, Dom Mariani and on FOR FRIENDS IN FAR AWAY PLACES
it shows. Big hooks, huge choruses and crashing rhythms all add
up to a near-classic pop record. In the vein of Cheap Trick and
The Lolas (Jam Recordings….check ‘em out ). They
even sing about things near and dear to my heart as the record
opens with “Top 10 List” (other cool tunes include “Girls
in Magazines” and “Singer in a Cover Band”).
The twin guitar attack of Zac (who also sings) and Koji pop rivets
you into submission while the rhythm section of Kate and Lee
holds down the fort so the pop rivet gun doesn’t get away.
Come on, admit it, you like being pounded by killer hooks all
day. Just admit it . www.popboomerang.com
 08.21.07
Anne Briggs
THE
TIME HAS COME- (WATER)- It has taken a while but some
formerly obscure folkies (starting with Nick Drake who’d
be a millionaire if he were alive today ) are finally getting
their due. Case in point; Anne Briggs. It sounds like this
type of music is all the rage these days what with the freak
folk movement and while the music of Anne Briggs is quite like
that of current female folkies such as Meg Baird, ‘cept
that Briggs music was created 35 years prior (Briggs was apparently
a huge influence on Sandy Denny) . Apparently a lover of Bert
Jansch , who helped to nurture her career, the music of Briggs
has a serious air of mystery surrounding it. It begins with
her vocals which at times seem like they are ready to float
away (Nick Drake’s vocals remind me of the same thing
). Whether doing stunning originals (like the title track)
or exceptional covers (such as Henry McCulloch’s “Step
Right Up” or Steve Ashley’s “Fire and Wine” )
her music is never less than compelling. I’m also amazed
at the superb consistency of the Water label with their recent
batch of reissues (this reissue includes liner notes by Andy
Beta) . Keep em’ coming. www.runtdistribution.com
 08.21.07
The Ladybug Transistor
CAN'T
WAIT ANOTHER DAY- (MERGE)- I have been a big fan of
this band for the past decade, since their Merge debut,. BEVERLEY
ATONALE came out (I found their hard-to-find debut several
years back but didn’t like it very much) and while it
took me a while to get into this latest disc, after several
listens I was , once again, hooked. Gone from the last record
, and several others, is Jeff Baron and Sasha Bell (both still
playing in Ladybug’s sister band, The Essex Green) and
they have added a few members of Brooklyn’s Great Lakes
(Ben Crum and Kyle Forester). . What is still there are the
golden crooning pipes of frontman Gary Olson, the creative
bass playing of Julia Rydholm and, while drummer San Fadyl
played on this record, sadly, he has since passed away. The
bands silky 70’s pop sound (think The Association or
early Bee Gees ) still shines through on these 12 songs. Among
the best here are the dreamy “California Stopover”,
the groovy “Always on the Telephone”, and my favorite
on this record, the slightly rootsy “This Old Chase.” Losing
a few key members I was worried what the band would turn into
, but with Olson still steering the Ladybug vessel, it’s
nice to see he still has some tricks up his sleeve. www.mergerecords.com
 08.21.07
Marmalade Souls
S/T- (RAINBOW QUARTZ)- Whoah, a Rainbow Quartz band
that doesn’t hail from, Spain !! Not sure if this is
the label’s first Swedish signing but it might be.
This trio , like all Rainbow Quartz bands, bow down to the
altar of The Beatles . This band formerly known as Marmalade
Skies, is the husband/wife team of Johanna Klemme and her
hubby Michael and the drummer (who incidentally has the coolest
name in rock) Paddy Lawless (any relation to Blackie ???)
. They have their chops down with near-perfect melodies and
harmonies. It’s tough to beat a classic pop tune like
the opener “It Won’t Be Too Long” while
they chop it up a bit on “Fall into the Sky” and
fall into acoustic dreaminess on “My Heart Belongs
to You.” I hear other flourishes of bands like The
Hollies or The Byrds (in some of the acoustic guitar bits
) so the band is firmly rooted in their love of 60’s
pop (and thus, have found a perfect home on the Rainbow Quartz
label). I also really like the way Michael and Johanna trade
off vocals (“Daydreams” is a perfect example
of this). Add another notch to the already impressive belt
of the Rainbow Quartz label. www.rainbowquartz.com
 08.21.07
The Riff Randells
DOUBLECROSS-
(DIRTNAP)- The day I walked into Ken Dirtnap’s record store
(Green Noise) and he told me he signed this bunch I jumped for
joy, doing a cartwheel, then a backflip and then, finally, went
up on the 2nd floor and dove off, falling to into a stack of
rare punk records and breaking them all (but Ken forgave me).
The only tunes I have by these ladies is a 6 songs cd that was
released on Delmonico Records (which might be their own label
??). The band is still Kathy and Anne-Marie (and on this recording
joined by Chixdiggit’s KJ Jansen on bass…I think
they threw Justin out of the band years ago for spilling Crackerjacks
all over the floor of the van on tour). The tunes still rock
with punches, slugs, and hooks all over the place. These 11 songs
crackle with punk-pop energy and just the right amount of snotty ‘tude
and cuts like “Listen Up” “The Only One”, “Double
Cross’ and “Traitor of the Heart’ will all
rock your socks off. Suffice it to say if you dig The way bands
like The Bobbyteens, The Donna or Nikki and the Corvettes smear
their lipstick on the guitar before they plug them in then you’ll
be ok with this. For once, trust me.www.dirtnaprecs.com
 08.12.07
Pelle Carlberg
IN
A NUTSHELL- (TWENTY SEVEN)- I was a big fan of Carlberg’s
previous band, Edson so when he released his solo debut last
year (EVERYTHING NOW!) I was charged. IN A NUTSHELL shows that
Carlberg’s solo career was more than just one record
and after hearing this terrific record, I hope he continues.
If you’re a fan of upbeat, orchestrated pop ( w/ occasionally
wry, biting lyrics) then this will be in your cd player for
days. The songs gently unfold , usually opening with Carlberg’s
gentle voice then bloom into a full monty with strummed acoustic
guitars, horns, tambourine and the awesome sound of a Wurlitzer
organ (I hear a lot of Belle & Sebastian influence on here
) . The record opens with the majestic “Pamplona” (the
place in Spain where they let the bulls run wild) while the
awesomely-titled “I Love You, You Imbecile” has
a serious bounce to its step as well and the charged-up harmonica
on “I Just Called To Say I Love You.” The occasionally
hilarious “Middleclass Kid” (“my sister had
her own, obnoxious little horse”) is probably my favorite
tune on the record and how can you not love a song titled “Clever
Girls like Clever Boys Much More than Clever Boys Like Clever
Girls.” At this point I’d have to say I like his
solo stuff more than the Edson material as Carlberg and friends
have another winner on their hands here. Take a bite….a
big bite. www.twentysevenrecords.com
 08.12.07
The Morning Line
STAY
MY SATELLITE- (TML)- I thought the name Steve Smith
sounded familiar (though there are plenty of Steve Smiths in
the world….a somewhat famous pro football player being
one) and he sure enough is the same guy who was in an early
lineup of Boston favorites Salem 66 (he was definitely on their
FREQUENCY & URGENCY record and maybe one more before that
). I’m glad to hear that he is still making music 20
years later. Apparently he was also in two other notable indie
rock bands: God’s Eye and Green Magnet School ( the latter
with Michael Quercio who was in the Three O’Clock) but
I’d never heard those two bands. He is now a left coaster
and with The Morning Line he makes pop that reminds me of Velvet
Crush (on the poppier tunes) and The Windbreakers (on the moodier
ones) and Buffalo Tom on the others . Along with pals Dave
Shollenbarger (ex-Agent Orange) on drums and Dave Knupp on
extra guitar the songs are crunchy and thick as on the opening
driving “Too Soon” and the melodic “Spellbound.” The
closing song , “Staten Island” is one of the best
songs on the record so make sure you play this all the way
through. I like Smith’s voice and with the strength of
this record they should have no problem in label interest (if
that is what they are looking for). Give it a listen or 10. www.themorningline.net
 08.12.07
John Strohm
EVERYDAY LIFE-
(SUPERPHONIC)- Bravo for this ex-Blake Babie ! John Strohn
has been there and back (and there and back again) and with
EVERYDAY LIFE he comes out smelling like a rose. For his first
record in nearly 7 years Strohm (Strohm is now an attorney
in Alabama) has gone back to the basics, taking cues from masters
like The Band, Neil Young and Mr. Dylan too (plus current maestros
like The Jayhawks, Wilco (from AM) etc) , these 12 cuts ruminate
on life’s everyday mysteries. He leads off with the perfect
opening song, the jagged/melodic “Sha La” then
glides into the Uncle Tupelo-ish “Black Hole in my Heart.” Elsewhere,
Strohm ruminates on many of life’s mysteries whether
he’s simply “Driving on 95” , “Waiting
for the World to End” (“do you remember what it’s
like to be 17 …neither do I “) or writing about
his daughter (“Anna”) Strohm’s songs are
never less than engaging with plenty of hooks and heart. Like
Steve Smith (see above review) another ex-Boston-ite good guy
who is still hanging around 20 years later . Here’s hoping
his next record doesn’t take another 7 years. www.superphonicrecords.com
 08.12.07
Warm Morning
SILVER
RAIN- (SHELFLIFE)- I was hoping for a resurrection of
Shelflife Records and here it is. Head honcho Ed Mazzucco took
a break for a while to focus on other things ( cock fighting,
bare-knuckle brawling and finding rare butterflies just to name
a few) but he is back and with a new home too ( he has moved
the operations up here to Portland). This first new release on
the label is by an Italian brother duo of Simone and Andrea Modicamore
and like many of the Shelflife releases in years past the band
has a slight Brazilian feel with gently strummed acoustic guitars
along with synths, vibraphone mellotron and even a….banjo.
My initial thought is that they sound like Kings of Convenience
, and they do but they have plenty of their own personality and
I like this more than the kings (you can tell these guys really
took their time in the songwriting dept.) . The opening “Feather’ is
as soft as its name while “”Behind the Curtain” ups
the tempo a bit and “White Summer Daydream” has some
lovely instrumentation as a bed of instruments and voice skip
through the park (just before deciding they want to break up
). There’s 2 others songs on the cd (5 in all ) then 2
others on the 7’ that is included with it (it is a 7’ gatefold
sleeve that has a spindle for a cd on it….very cool) and
artwork by the always impressive Jill Bliss. This is limited
(as will be all future releases ) so jump on this quickly. www.shelflife.com
 08.06.07
Airiel
THE
BATTLE OF SEALAND-
(HIGHWHEEL)- I have some friends who swear by these guys earlier
eps…well, I have never heard those eps. THE BATTLE OF
SEALAND (which is the band’s debut lp) was my first exposure
to the band and I really like what I have heard. Actually,
let be more succinct, I love the first half of this record
while the 2nd half is merely good. I guess if you really wanted
to sum these guy’s sound up in one word it would be shoegaze
but even that doesn’t do it justice. True, bands like
My Bloody Valentine and Jesus & Mary Chain are obvious
influences but the band tries other experiments and comes out
on top. The opening fizzle, “Introduction” didn’t
work out so well but “Think Tank” is a nice soaring
guitar workout while “Thrown Idols” is pure MBV
right down to the flanged and weirded- out guitars and “Sugar
Crystal” reminded me of the early-mid 90’s when
bands like Rocketship and Jupiter Sun were all the rage (at
least in the circles I ran in). Later on the band does Brian
Jonestown Massacre one better by perfectly aping 60’s
pop on “Mermaiden Manhole” and other than the plodding “You
Kids Should Know Better”, forget what I said earlier,
the 2nd half of this record rules too. Now I’m bummed
I missed em’ here a few weeks ago. www.highwheelrecordsllc.com
 08.06.07
Little Name
HOW
TO SWIM AND LIVE- (SLEEPY)- Great cover photo of an
indoor swimming pool (I’m guessing somewhere in Little
Name’s native UK) with plants hanging down and big glass
windows to peer out at the lovely English countryside. Plus,
on the inside of the cd (digipak) sleeve Little Name goes on
to mention how healthy swimming it and how much he encourages
it. Well, I like to swim but what I like to do even more is listen
to music and this is right up my alley ! Little Name is basically
one guy, Lee Barker who is obviously influenced by Belle & Sebastian
and Camera Obscura as well as a host of cool 60’s band
. The record opens with the horn-soaked jangle pop classic “For
the Attention Of” and then glides right into the sultry “ I
Always See the Sun Rise.” Song four is my favorite on the
record, a little ditty about love found and then lost “Tracy & I” ( “… I
left her and she left me. We cried about what should have been”).The
opening drum roll of “Orienteering” sounded like
something off the last Camera Obscura record while those bossa
nova horns on “Picked out the Line” added a unique
flavor to the record. Not sure if this is Barker’s first
record but I sure hope this isn’t his last. One of 2007’s
most pleasant surprises. www.sleepyrecords.com
 08.06.07
Love Dance
RESULT-
(MARSH MARIGOLD)- Not sure what the deal is up in Scandanavia
(maybe it’s the water ?) but for the past several years
they have been doing the pop like no other (ok, so it’s
mainly been Sweden). Love Dance fit right into the crowd
with their no-nonsense pop style. Right from the opening
tune, “When You’re With Him” and onto the
last song (“Start of Something”) and everything
in between this is pure jangle pop bliss. Think Sarah Records
(ie; The Orchids or Field Mice) , think Swedish pop (ie;
Acid House Kings, etc.) the band is a 5-piece but the songs
are written by Eirik Vestrheim and Kristopher Strauss who
must have shrines to Johnny Marr and Morrissey in their homes
(and Lawrence and Maurice Deebank too) . In addition to the
near-perfect jangly guitar you have sporty keyboards and
ebullient horns throughout. “It Sometimes Brings me
Down” is pure melody while “Halfheartedness’ is
the true heartbreaker of the record with bah-bah-bah’s
here and there and sultry strings. If you’ve continued
to read this far then you dig this sort of stuff and I don’t
have to tell you what your next move should be. This should
hold you over until the next batch of releases comes out
on Matinee Records. www.marsh-marigold.de
 08.06.07
Utah Carol
RODEO
QUEEN- (SELF-RELEASED)- Judging by the name I was
thinking this was going to be some lame reggae band (not
sure why I thought that but hey, I’m only human, right
?). Another first for me here as this is the first I had
ever heard this Chicago duo and tho’ this is their
3rd record, I really liked what I head on RODEO QUEEN. The
band is two people, guitarist/vocalist Grant Birkenbeuel
and vocalist Jinja Davis (awesome…I have never seen
Ginger spelled that way before ) . Both of them sing and
have created an intoxicating sound here. Apparently they
have been at this since 1995 so I’m surprised I have
not heard the band before. The songs waver back and forth
between pastoral acoustic pop (“Kimberly Smiles”)
, some Americana ( the clopitty clop , whistling “Ruby”)
and just plain dreamy (“I’m Sorry Maria”).
I hear bits of Mojave 3, Crosby Stills and Nash, and some
of the dreamier Sarah Records stuff (ie: Aberdeen, etc.).
I also like when they mix it up a bit and speed things up
on the bouncy “Twilight Time.” Mostly, though,
the sound they create here is real warm and inviting and
perfect for a dinner date when you’re looking for the
right thing to put on the turntable and you have already
played that Mazzy Star record way too many times. www.utahcarol.com
 07.30.07
Bad Brains
BUILD
A NATION-
(MEGAFORCE)- It’s surprising to see
a Bad Brains record (with the original lineup) at this stage
in the game. I have read a few reviews that were saying this
is their best ever and not only did I know it was not going
to be better than the ROIR record , I was expecting a complete
disaster and anyone who heard GOD OF LOVE would agree (and
let’s face it , anyone who thinks this is better than
the ROIR record is mental) but having said all of that, BUILD
A NATION is surprisingly good. They seem to have a made a good
choice in producer MCA (Beastie Boys Adam Yauch) and H.R.’s
vocals, while not the banshee waitl they used to bne, still
sounj fine, wqhile the band still can do the 100 mph then stop
on a dime . I say skip the reggae (not my bag, tho’ they
do it pretty well) and the occasional metal-tinged funk punk
is not my favorite either,. Still , on to the good stuff: “Jah
People Make the World Go Round”, “Pure Love”, “Let
there be Angels”, “Universal Peace” , “In
the Beginning” , and “Send you no Flowers” all
rip so that is a good half of the record. I’d say it’s
worth it for those. Worst song title in music history: “Natty
Dreadlocks ‘pon the Mountain Top.” www.megaforcerecords.com
 07.30.07
The Makes Nice
CANDY
WRAPPER AND TWELVE OTHER SONGS- (FRENETIC)- Leaving
The Fucking Champs was the best move that Josh Brown ever made,
at least in my opinion. I never dug that band but The Makes Nice
rock n’ groove like a fresh haircut. I hear bits of 60’s
stalwarts like The Who, the Faces and The Yardbirds and it’s
obvious these guys have a penchant for 60’s mod-ish/garagey
songcraft but still make things a tad sloppy (just the way I
like it). Along with bassist/vocalist Aaron and drummer Jack
, guitarist/leader Josh has found his life partners so to speak.
Give this a listen cos’ honestly, any one of these 13 tunes
could be a single, the geeetar riffs are good and meaty while
the rhythms are complex in a simple way (if you know what I mean
?) and plenty of oooh’s and ahhh’s in the vocalizing
dept. A few of my faves on here are “Anna Karina”, “California
Sun, “Waves of Summer” , “The Day is Dome”,
and the record-ending “Dear John.” I’ve heard
this stuff described as “freak beat” but you’ll
have to ask Mike Stax about that one (editor of the famed freak
beat bible, UGLY THINGS). Call them whatever you want, just don’t
fall them late for dinner. www.freneticrecords.com
 07.30.07
Silver Sun
DAD'S
WEIRD DREAM- (INVISIBLE HANDS)- I have dug this
band ever since I first heard their early single, “I’ll
See You Around” (which may have been their first
single…not sure ) on some compilation but every time
I looked for one of the bands records I either could not
find anything or when I did, they were expensive imports
(like $30 for a cd on Amazon or something ). When I heard
that an American publicity company was gonna be working
the new S,.S. record I was all ears. The band is basically
the brainchild of James Broad, a quirky Brit who, I’m
guessing, loves The Ramones, The Buzzcocks, and even The
Travolta’s (if he’s even heard them). Still
though, while Brit pop was still enjoying it’s final
throes in the late 90’s Broad and his crew couldn’t
even get arrested, much less get noticed. Power pop fans
have been listening all along, and with good reason. This
is summertime driving music, top down (if you have a convertible…the
windows down for the rest of us ) with hooks all over the
place and some cool harmonies. The production is crisp
(yes, I just used the word crisp ) , it normally would
be a bit too slick for my tastes if the songwriting weren’t
so darn good. The first single; “Fallen” leads
off the record with punchy guitars and spacey synths while “Sunday
Gurl” is riff city and the awesome “Hi Scorpia” is
one of the best pop songs I’ve heard this year. There’s
plenty more pickins here so hop on and ride dad’s
weird dream all the way to whatever planet you feel like
heading to! www.invisiblehands.co.uk
 07.30.07
Seth Tiven
SOLITUDE-
(RAEDELL)- Been a while since we heard from the Dumptruck
leader Tiven. Along with former songwriting partner Kirk
Swan they were responsible for some of the best R.E.M.-
influenced college rock (as they used to call it ) back
in the 80’s. Tiven returned in 1998 with a new Dumptruck
record (minus Swan, at least not as a full-time member)
, the surprisingly terrific TERMINAL. In 2001 he released
another Dumptruck record LEMMINGS TRAVEL TO THE SEA and
then ….nothing, until now. The thing I have always
loved about Dumptruck is Tiven’s vocals , which ot
me have always sounded weary and optimistic at the same
time . Add to it that dirty melodic guitar (perhaps influenced
by Neil Young ?) and Tiven’s tales of woe (the lyrics
, not just on here but on most of his songs, sound like
he’s lived hundreds of lives) ansd you have a recipe
for songs and records that I’ll go back to time and
time again (start with the awesome 3rd record, FOR THE
COUNTRY ) . On “Salad Days” (not a Minor Threat
cover) when he draws out the line “..i found out
everything I had is speeeent’ …… it’s
classic Tiven or on the should-be-a-single, “Bought
and Sold” (perhaps about Tivens’ time on the
crooked Big Time Records ?) when he sings “everybody
wants securiiiiiiity” he sings with a tired, resigned
tone but of someone who refuses to quit fighting the good
fight. The songwriting is strong and it’s good to
see Tiven with old chums, Kirk Swan, Mark Mulcahy (Miracle
Legion) and Ian McLagan (Small Faces) back in the fold.
Recommended for those who want plenty of substance with
their music. www.sethtiven.com
 07.23.07
Ryan Adams
EASY
TIGER-
(LOST HIGHWAY)- I have mixed feelings about Ryan Adams. I loved
the music of Whiskeytown (his first band..or first band that
got famous, anyway ) and I do like his first two solo records
(HEARTBREAKER and GOLD) most of what he has released since
then has been severely inconsistent (including last year when
he released 3 full-length records) but there have been some
definite high points here and there. On EASY TIGER he has released
his most consistent record ….ever. Opening with the loping/swaying “Goodnight
Rose” right into the gorgeous, mostly acoustic acoustic “Two.” Elsewhere
is the self-deprecating rawker “Halloweenhead” and
the cry-in-your-beer “Tears of Gold” (who everyone
compares to Neil Young but it’s definitely more Gram
Parsons) , the bluegrass “Pearls on a String” and
the relaxed “Rip Off.” With his new found sobriety
it seems like Adams is finally putting away destructive things
from his past and not willing to wallow in the self-pity that
he’s been accused of through most of his career. I’d
say Adams has arrived and one listen to EASY TIGER is proof..
www.losthighwayrecords.com
 07.23.07
The Loose Salute
TUNED
TO LOVE- (GRAVEFACE)- If it’s a member of my beloved
Mojave 3 releasing something I’m going to stand up and
take notice (or at least sit on the couch and pop the cd in).
I really dug the solo records from a few years ago by both Neil
Halstead (M-3’s leader) and Rachel Goswell (who was in
both Slowdive , with Halstead, and M-3 as well). T.L.S. is M-3
drummer Ian McCutcheon along with pal Lisa Billson creating a
clutch of tunes that, while definitely in the M-3 vein, is more
upbeat and a bit chirpy at times. The oddly-titled opener “Death
Club’ bounces along like a Monkees tune done by the Beach
Boys after they tossed Mike Love out of the band (not that that’s
ever happened but hey, we can all wish, right?) . We get to hear
Billson’s pipes on the exquisite “Photographs and
Tickets” which has a lovely acoustic backdrop, and “From
Heads to Sandy Toes” sounds like it could have been off
the latest, shuffling Mojave 3 disc (PUZZLES LIKE YOU). I really
like the mixing of styles on here from spare , bare , nearly
naked tunes to more full-on rockers . The Loose Salute are onto
something here and a damn good job to Graveface Records for picking
up on it. www.graveface.com
 07.23.07
Glenn Mercer
WHEELS
IN MOTION- (PRAVDA)- Speaking of being a member
of a beloved band (see above). If it’s a member of
The Feelies I’m all ears. I really enjoyed Brenda
Sauter’s Wild Carnation stuff (and when will there
be a 2nd Yung Wu record ?? Come on…the public demands
it !). I believe this is ex-Feelie Glenn Mercers’ first
solo record which is odd as he seems like he has released
one before but he hasn’t (for the past decade he
had led a band called Wake Oooloo). From the photo on the
back it looks like he hasn’t changed at all from
the old days : hair brushed straight back, sunglasses looking
like the cool/quiet guy he always was. Things start off
with the hypnotic “Days to Come” while tune
two, the title track, is equally as entrancing. If it seems
as if Mercer sounds confident and comfortable ON HERE it’s
because of the company he keeps (which includes Ex-Feelies
Dave Weckerman, Stanley Demeski and Sauter as well as early
Feelies drummers Anton Fier and Vinny DeNunzio). “Whatever
Happened” is about as rocking as he gets and it sounds
fine but we go to Mercer for those slowly building , spellbinding
songs that start off with a single acoustic guitar and
by the end sounds like an orc hestra of acoustic guitar
with Mercer’s low-key vocals laid atop. He sounds
in wonderful form here and I hope he is planning on more
solo records! www.pravdamusic.com
 07.23.07
True West
HOLLYWOOD
HOLIDAY REVISITED- (ATAVISTIC)- Well, it’s
about time (the irony of that phrase is that it was the
first song I ever heard by this band…my pal Bill
put “It’s About Time” on a mix tape for
me back in the 80’s.…..i still have that tape
somewhere). Seriously tho’, it is about time someone
reissued the first few records by this Davis, CA quintet
who mined the territory that became known as the Paisley
Underground (along with the likes of The Dream Syndicate,
Green on Red, Rain Parade, Long Ryders, etc. ). I was lucky
enough to catch last year here in Portland, when they played
a few reunion dates and I’m happ y to report that
they sounded as good then as they ever did. The core of
the band has always been vocalist Gavin Blair and guitarists
Richard McGrath (calling J. Mascis the guitar god of the
80’s isn’t wrong but I’ll bet most of
those people never heard McGrath) and Russ Tolman (they
had a few drummers). This cd collects their HOLLYWOOD HOLIDAY
ep and the lp that followed it (DRIFTERS) along with 3
songs from a session that Tom Verlaine produced. Blair’s
vocals sounded unique, even now , but it’s that amazing
guitar interplay between McGrath and Tolman that’s
truly special. Listen to cuts like “I’m Not
Here”, “And then the Rain” and the previously
mentioned “It’s About Time” (and their
Pink Floyd cover, Lucifer Sam”) from HOLLYWOOD… and “At
Night they Speak”, “Shot You Down” and
the rockin’ “Shot Down” from DRIFTERS.
The Verlaine session is interesting as is the accompanying
20-page booklet complete with liners (by Jud “The
Professor” Cost) , photos and picture of records
covers for the whole shebang. Don’t blow it bub. www.atavistic.com
 07.15.07
The Hex Dispensers
S/T-
(ALIEN SNATCH)- This was thrust into my hand by Ken Dirtnap
who assured me I would like it and as usual, Ken was right.
I looked inside the cd first (thinking they were a European
band, being that they’re on the Germany-based Alien Snatch
Records) but lo and behold, the band hails from Austin, TX
and includes Alex Cuervo. I remembered the name then realized
he was in Blacktop (one of 500 bands Mick Collins has led)
who I booked back in the early-mid 90’s (when Collins
ate all of the food in my house….yup, everything) . Right
out of the gate this bunch decide to make a statement “H.D.
Local 23’ sounds like the earliest, catchiest Misfits
(before Danzig went all haywire on us) as does the fuzzed-out “Evil
Eye.” Later on, “Tentacles” get a bit more
bottom-heavy while still swingin’ the bat in the right
direction,. They also do justice to a Tubeway Army (Gary Numan’s
old band ) cover of “Down in the Park.” I knew
when I heard that this record was done up real nice (ie: recorded
and mixed) by Mark of The Marked Men it was gonna be good.
And it is. Not sure what it is about Texas but when bands from
that state want to, they can rock your socks off. I can honestly
say there is not a bad song on here. Get hexed…now. www.aliensnatch.com
 07.15.07
The Mendoza Line
30
YEAR LOW- (GLURP)- Always a good thing , in my household
to see a new record by the criminally underrated Mendoza Line.
As most of you know, the band took their name from one of the
old (1970’s – ers) members of the Pittsburgh Pirates
(my favorite baseball team since I was a wee tike) who always
had such a lousy batting average (at times under .200) that if
you sucked at hitting you were told you might be under “the
mendoza line”). Anywho, I know the baseball fan of the
band, Peter Hoffman, left a few albums back and I’m now
finding out that another major player, Shannon McArdle , has
left the band too (she and band leader Tim Bracy have split up).
The opening song, “Since I Came” is one of the most
honest, heartbreaking, beautiful songs I have ever heard (it
sounds to me like it is chronicling the breakup of Bracy and
McArdle). With lyrics like “ I never know if I’m
alone when I’m sleeping..” The next tune, is a call
and response rowdy rocker between McArdle and Will Sheff (Okkervil
River). “31 Candles” (again, sung by McArdle) is
yet another honky tonk rocker that would have gotten my grandma
dancing (and she didn’t dance often…I don’t
think they did that sort fo thing in Savannah, GA). Bracy’s
Dylan-esque croak finally comes in on “I Lost my Taste” ,but
on this tune the band sounds more Velvet Underground than Dylan’s
scruffy bunch. The final four songs on 30 YEAR LOW are all emotional
heavyweights as well. The package also comes with a bonus disc
that includes 18 songs of live gunk, radio shows, demos and the
like. If this is indeed the last Mendoza Line record I gotta
say, they have left us with one hell of a catalog. www.glurp.com
 07.15.07
Raquel's Boys
The
Spy Business- (THRIMPTON)- I like this bunch….had
only heard one previous record (2004’s MUSIC FOR THE
GIRL YOU LOVE) . On that record it was Sean Hutton and Reg
Carter but Carter does not seem to be anywhere on this record
(maybe he joined the circus ?) . It’s all Hutton and
sounds at least as strong as the previous disc. It’s
pretty obvious that Hutton has a serious love of 60’s
pop and when you go to the band’s my space site they
have a list of influences a mile long that includes everything
from the Merry-Go-Round to Material Issue and everything
in between (they, they even mention Sundazed Records obscuro’s
like Gary Zekeley and Dottie Holmberg !). This new record
is more of the same as THE SPY BUSINESS includes everything
from the gentle opener “Let’s Live” to
stuff that’s more rockin’ (the killer “Underdog”)
and even includes an old surfy-keyboard driven tune called “Undercover” (that
reminded me a lot of the Joe Meek-produced Tornadoes) and
the title track is pure melody (albeit with a bit of a darker
bent). No rocket science here, just good old-fashioned 60’s
pop folks. www.raquelsboys.com
 07.15.07
Voxtrot
S/T-
(PLAY LOUDER RECORDINGS)- That first EP by these Austin,
TX stalwarts is a stone-cold classic and they have not done
anything since that has equaled it (imho). Now, having said
all of that, does that mean this debut full-length is a letdown
? Absolutely not ! This s/t disc is a strong collection of
tunes that would make any pop fan proud it’s just that
I was hoping they would continue in the Belle & Sebastian/
Smiths vein of that first ep and they haven’t but they
are still melodic as all get out. They must have gotten some
serious coin from somewhere ‘cos I know that producer
Victor Van Vugt (Luna, etc.) does not come cheap. Still ,
aside from occasionally burying the guitars, the tunes here
are still unique enough to make this one of the stronger
pop records this year. “Kid Gloves’ drives right
in head first like an adrenaline rush (as does the stuttering “Brother
in Conflict” ) while the strings on “Ghost’ and “Real
Live Version” add a tender beauty not found on those
early eps and the drum-machined “Every Day” adds
a cooler/icier new wave influence. I have to admit that I’m
still surprised that this band has taken off like they have
(a packed house a Doug Fir last month proves that) but good
for them. It shows me there are some intelligent pop fans
out there and this is a good thing. www.playlouderrecordings.com
 07.09.07
John Ashfield
Love
is Blue-
(POP POP)- I reviewed the last Ashfield cd from a few years
back (DISTANCE TO EMPTY) and I like the one Bobbleheads cd
I have ( the band he is/was in ) so this was a nice surprise
(not a surprise that I like it but that he was nice enough
to send me one). Apparently Ashfield was inspired by a Johnny
Mathis record of the same name (and Ashfield also strikes the
same pose as Johnny on the cover right down to the white duds)
. Not only that but he took the names of the songs on the Mathis
record and wrote his own songs using those titles…..great
idea ! The results make LOVE IS BLUE a strong collection of
easy-going pop with strummy guitars gentle vocals and pleasant
melodies. A few of my faves here are the dreamy “By the
Time I Get to Phoenix” , the hop-skip-jumping “Here,
There , Everywhere” and childlike “Venus.” The
only misstep I hear is the fairly obnoxious “Moon River”,
which sounds totally out of place. Otherwise,
LOVE IS BLUE will turn heads and create smiles wherever it
goes. www.johnashfieldmusic.com
 07.09.07
The Ditchflowers
Carried
Away- (SUNSHINE DRENCHY)- I liked some of the bands
on the now-defunct NYC power-pop label Big Deal Records so when
that label went under in the 90’s it displaced more than
a few talented bands. One being Tampa, Florida’s Barely
Pink. Well, old power-poppers don’t die, they just go on
to form other bands and Mad for Electra’s Ed Woltil and
Brian Merrill ( the Barely Pink dude) formed The Ditchflowers
(with Woltil doing all of the songwriting…’cept two
songs which they co-wrote). Woltil is a master of many instruments
and he never met a hook he didn’t like as the supremely
catchy opener, “My Next Life” , will easily prove.
The exquisite guitar playing of “Home Away from Home” will
appeal to pop music fans and I also like the fact that he and
Merrill split the lead vocals on the songs. Merrill’s vocals,
especially on tunes like the folkier “Hearts Caved In” add
a bit of grit to these (ocasionally ) sterile pop tunes. Woltil
can add some Donovan meets Dylan folkyness of his own on cuts
like the moving “New Skin” and “Boys.” Those
looking for something edgier might want to bypass this record
but for fans of pure pop (like me) will find room on their cd
shelf (look for the cd that’ll remind you of the one Echo & the
Bunnymen one from the 90’s…I think it was called
FLOWERS ). www.theditchflowers.com
 07.09.07
The Lodger
Grown
Ups- (SLUMBERLAND)- A label that I thought was dead
and buried, Slumberland, is still up and running. I should
have figured…….for as long as I’ve known
Mike “Slumberland” Schulman I should have thought
he’d still has plenty o’ tricks up his sleeve.
He had taken a long break before he discovered his last catch,
The Aislers Set, in the 90’s . It took Mike a while
to find some inspiration but find it he did in this UK trio,
The Lodger. The Lodger is basically Ben Siddall, the main
songwriter who apparently started the band in his Leeds bedsit
flat in 2004. I just have one question…what the hell
is a bedsit ??!! Anywho, he asked (connived) two folks into
helping him out (Joe on bass and Katie on drums) , did some
recording and I’ll tell you, GROWN-UPS is as good a
debut as I’ve heard in ages. From the short-circuited
guitar that opens the first song “Many Thanks for Your
Honest Opinion” to the hooky-as-hell “Kicking
Sand” to the moodier , almost dancy “Getting
Special” , they all kick ass in their own unique way …and
that’s just the first three tunes ! And lyrically he
has that same kinda self-deprecating yet acidic wit that
David Gedge employed so well for so many years (“I
couldn’t care less about you now…” from “Kicking
Sand”) . I’m happy to say it’s as good
as I heard it was. www.slumberlandrecords.com
 07.09.07
The Triangles
Seventy-Five
Year Plan- (HALF A COW)- Any band that names one
of their records MAGIC JOHNSON has gotta be ok in my book
and this Aussie 5-piece more than gained points for that
(and for putting out a great record ). This I the 2nd record
I’ve heard by them (I think this is record #4) and
while a bit less poppy than MAGIC JOHNSON the songs are still
unique and challenging as only those Aussie pop bands co
do (check out The Lucksmiths, Architecture in Helsinki or
The Bank Holidays for further proof) . SEVENTY-FIVE YEAR
PLAN has a bit of a country influence but there’ still
plenty o;’ hooks. The harmonies on “Horse in
the Ointment’ are gorgeous (as are the vocals on “Be
careful What You Wish For”) while the fiercer “Meat
Blanket’ shows they ain’t no twee puffs in this
band. Elsewhere, “Our Crops are Doomed to Fail”, “Haven’t
Seen You lately”, “I’ve Had Eyes for You” “Will
It Float” and “Ancient City’ are all aces
as well. I think you’re getting picture here…..this
bunch can write some damn good tunes and if I have my way
every goddamn household in the U.S. of A. will have a copy
of this cd in their home by the end of the week (ok, it might
take me ‘til the end of the month). Do whatever it
takes to get a copy, sell your ‘ol Aunt Bertha if you
have to….JUST GET IT !
www.halfacow.com.au
 06.30.07
Glowfriends
A
Farewell To Fair-Weather- (JAM)- Record #3 and their best yet, from
siblings Mark and April Morris . 3 other folks are in the band and their dad
Jeremy runs their record label. But before you scream “Nepotism ! “ do
not…..this is a fantastic record with lovely, gentle sounds and top-notch
songwriting. The core of the band is April’s shimmering vocals and Mark’s
jangly pop guitar sound and one listen to ace cuts like “All Comes Down”, “Charade” and
the rockin’ “Distance One” will (or should) make a believer
out of you. If that doesn’t then try their terrific Galaxie 500 cover
(“Flowers”) on for size. One of my old bands (Pop Secret) covered
this song and lemme tell you, Glowfriend’s version is much better ! The
thing about Glowfriends is that they are growing up and evolving ( not sure
of their ages but when the band began I believe they were all in high school)
in all of the best ways possible and with each new release their songwriting
is getting better and more confident. This record truly deserves your hard-earned
dough.
(3424 Wedgewood Dr, Portage, MI 49024)
 06.30.07
Les
Breastfeeders
Les
Matins De Grands Soirs- (BLOW THE FUSE)- Molten mod
garage punk from these French Canadians. They have gobs of energy
and the right amount of attitude where needed. I can’t
understand a damn word they’re saying and I still had a
smile on my ugly mug the whole time this record was playing.
You want some song titles ? Well, unless you got an A in French
class you won’t know what the hell the mean but here goes: “Viens
Avec Moi” , the opener kicks out the jams while cut number
two, “Chanson Pour Destinee”, slows things down,
if just a bit, and grinds it out like 60’s legends The
Sonics on some bad (or good ) cough syrup. On “Funny Funiculaire” a
sultry female voice comes into the picture and here is where
they add some humming farfisa which equals the guitar for all
our raucousness. Plus the whole package is rad, it comes in a
digipak sleeve with lyrics (??) and tons of photos. I’ve
gotta vacuum our entire house in a few minutes here and this
is gonna be my soundtrack, I don’t care if our pet bird
likes it or not. I’ll bet live they tear the roof off the
sucka! www.blowthefuserecords.ca
 06.30.07
The
Red Button
She's
About To Cross My Mind-
(SELF-RELEASED) Not really a band per se’ buy a recording
project between two Angelinos, Seth Swirsky and Mike Ruekberg
(who apparently have been around the music scene for quite some
time, though I had never heard of either of them).The obvious
influence here is the Beatles. In fact, this sounds like they
could be a Beatles tribute band but honestly, the songs are so
darn good you won’t mind. These 11 songs breeze by in just
over a half hour and this is everything a pop record should be
and more. The songs are catchy but not sickly sweet (not that
I mind that on occasion) and the melodies and harmonies are there.
Plus the songs are not overly long (hate that) and most of the
songs are about a topic that we can all relate to: girls. Listen
to the near-perfect title track, the 12-string soaked “I
Could Get Used to You” , the total Fab Four-ish “Hopes
Up”, or the quite rockin’ (well, for them) “Gonna
Make You Mine.” If you have any interest in pop music at
all then do yourself a favor and pick this up. It’s one
of the strongest straight-up pop releases I’ve heard in
years. www.theredbutton.net
 06.30.07
Shake
Some Action
S/T- (SATELLITE
451) Any
band that names themselves after a Flamin’ Groovies song (and
not just any Groovies song but my all-time favorite one!) has got
to be worth, at the very least, checking out.Well, S.S.A. are more
than worth simply checking out, in fact these 12 songs deserve
repeated listens. S.S.A. is basically the recording project for an Aussie who
landed in Seattle named James Hall. Hearkening back to masters like The Beatles
and The Byrds all the way up to current heroes like Teenage Fanclub, Hall has
his head screwed on tight and his influence perfectly in line. What I dig the
most is Hall’s occasionally deep croon , it at times (especially on the
opening cut “Sound of Your Mind”) sounding slightly like Dave Vanian
of The Damned. Check out the cool, grinding “ I Can See Where this is
Going Now” , the mod-beat “Damaged”, the Nick Lowe-ish “Without
You” (that even spouts off the lyric, “I was so cruel to be kind….”).
Give this a listen folks, Hall is onto something and even though this was recorded
by himself he has a band and is ready and willing to play weddings, bar mitzvahs
or your local dive. Come on, give him a chance. www.shakesomeaction.net
 06.25.07
Lonely, Dear
Lonely,
Noir- (Sub Pop) So this thing sat in a box of promos
out in the garage (with the cat) for , I dunno,…a while.
I neglected listening to it cos’ that band name…..just
couldn’t grasp it. Well, when I finally did listen
I was blown away. Led by a Swedish dude named Emil Svanagen
(I think it’s him and only him) who has a great falsetto
and is able to conjure up some of the sweetest melodies since
those early-mid 70’s Beach Boy’s records. I’m
still always amazed at what ambitious folks (like Emil) can
do with the rock/pop genre’. Whether it’s bouncing
around on the giggly “I Am John” or the early-Sebadoh-in-a-slightly-happier-mood
(with more of a pop influence) “Hard Days 1,2,3,4.” There
is more introspective stuff on here like “No One Can
Win” and “I am the odd One.” Still though,
this is a summer record through and through and there’ too
much good stuff here to mention…just buy it. Whomever
at Sub Pop discovered this guy, well, give that employee
a raise . ( Po Box 20367 Seattle, WA 98102)
 06.25.07
Pissed
Jeans
Hope
For Men- (Sub Pop) It’s about time someone decided
to take the old metal trashcans out of the shed and start throwing
them at cars.This Philly via Allentown bunch, led by Matt Korvette,
take the whole ugly ball of wax that fell out of the ears of some
1980’s sludegrockers (Drunks w/ Guns, God Bullies, feedtime,
etc.) and decided to do something with it. Umm…make a record.
It opens with People Person” , a coupla minutes of grinding
mayhem (and who knows, maybe, just maybe, they are all people persons
?). “Secret Admirer” reminds me of Kalamazoo, MI’s
great white 80’s/90’s hope, the previously mentioned
God Bullies and “A Bad Wind” is the best tune on here
for driving in your car (if you wanna run someone over). I’ve
only talked about the first 3 cuts and there’s 7 more so
get a listening cos’ Pissed jeans don’t like you very
much and, hard as this is to admit, I don’t think they like
me either. Music for your embarrassing son who sucker punches the
refrigerator door daily just cos’ it’s there. ( 2013
4th Ave (3rd fl), Seattle, WA 98121)
 06.25.07
Swivel
Chairs
The
Slow Transmission- (TRANSIT OF VENUS) With a fairly new
label that has already released two fine records in The Shimmers
and Trolleyvox, Brooklyn’s Swivel Chairs are in darn good
company.This amazingly talented duo , who also have a host of friends
contributing, consists of Jason Brown and ( longtime DAGGER contributor)
Jeremy Grites and this is their boldest and best statement yet.
THE SLOW TRANSMISSIION is full of the kind of indie rock that was
made in the late 80’s/early 90’s when the two word, “indie” and “rock” really
meant something and when the words were joined together meant even
more to those of us looking for something new once punk rock had
finally been laid to rest. The slow, pensive “Here Out of
Reach” opens things up with tender lyrics and some swelling
strings while the strummy “Easy Now” reminded me of
New Zealand’s The Clean with its laidback vibe. “All
at Once” begins with some jarring guitars in the Archers
of Loaf vein (I know A.O.L. is a favorite of these guys) and the
lovely “Sun Goes Down” channels The Byrds as does the
equally terrific “Calloused Hands.” In this day and
age when bands are able to get noticed more quickly (thank you
my space, etc. ) Swivel Chairs deserve their own slice of the pie
and with the quality of songwriting on THE SLOW TRANSMISSION, it
oughta be a damn big slice. www.transitofvenusmusic.com www.swivelchairsmusic.com.
 06.25.07
Walker
Kong
Deliver
Us From People- (MAGIC MARKER) The
first two records gave us an indication n but how was anyone to
know that Walker Kong’s 3rd record was not going to be merely
good but simply brilliant.This band is sorely underrated and if
DELIVER US FROM PEOPLE doesn’t change that, well, then there’s
officially no hope for the human race. Let’s face it, it’s
2007 and main songwriter Jeremy Ackerman can’t even get arrested.
The first two songs, “Change Your Mind” and “We
are the Falling Stars’ are absolutely jarring and a perfect
opening. The next few cuts are more in the whimsical, acoustic
Syd Barrett territory. Alex Ackerman (a female, I think ) sings
on the dreamy “Cloudy Girl from the Western World”,
they crank up a octane, if just a bit, on the garage-er “Metamorphosis
Blues” and on “Belmont, 1973” they bring to mind
the best songs that The Soft Boys ever did (think UNDERWATER MOONLIGHT).
Not sure what else to say here if you like what you’ve read
so far then you’ll love DELIVER US FROM PEOPLE. I’m
not sure what kind of statue or shrine they have built for Prince
in downtown Minneapolis, MN but whatever it is, they should make
is twice and big and twice as expensive for Jeremy Ackerman.www.magicmarkerrecords.com
 06.04.07
The
Gilligans
Snoring
With An Accent- (MAIZE/EAR
THEORY) Had
never heard of this bunch before but any band named after one of
my favorite tv shows (plus the way they write "Gilligans" is
the same way it was written on the show....in that cool, island-esque
writing). I do know that Todd from The Ringles (Jam Records) and
Dan from The Porcupines are in this band and these 10 tunes gave
some bite and kick to em'. Like a long-lost British Invasion band
tossed about in a time machine and being spit out somewhere in
a cornfield in Illinois. The opener "But I Don't Care" kicks
out the jams with some sweet harmonica while smooth riffage is
all around on "The Girl in the Band" (which sounds like
it be a lost Kinks classic) and "Bubble Pop Bird." They
add a bit 'o glammy swagger to the proceedings on the catchy- as
-psoriasis "Sneakers and Makeup." This bunch sound like
they're doing it for nothing more than a simple and true love of
music and for that I applaud them.www.myspace.com/thegilliganspop
 06.04.07
High
Tension Wires
Midnight
Cashier- (DIRTNAP) Straight
outta Denton, TX comes record #2 from the High Tension Wires. One
of the guys is the vocalist from the Riverboat Gamblers (vocalist
Mike Wiebe) one of the other guys are from The Marked Men (guitarist
Mark Ryan) and a 3rd one id from The Reds (bassist Chris Pullian)
and this a nice mix of all those bands. They knock it out with
lots of energy and plenty of melody as well and most of these songs
are memorable. The zippy "Tokyo is Burning Down", the
choppy "They Fall Apart" and the anthemic "Old Enough
to be Home Alone" are all top rank punk burners in the tradition
of all good that has come out of the state of Texas (one of these
days I swear I'm gonna buy a "Don't Mess with Texas' shirt
and wear it proudly ). Maybe not quite in the same league as their "real" bands
but it's close....damn close. www.dirtnaprecs.com
 06.04.07
Suburban
Kids With Biblical Names
S/T- (MINTY
FRESH) Ya' gotta love Sweden.....so
many great bands that are all right up my alley (I think they
must have an airplace flying back and forth across the country
with one of those banners hanging off the back that says "Make
music for Tim Hinely !") . Take, S.K.W.B.N., one of the
best band names around and it belongs to two guys, Peter and
Johan and they play a ton of instruments and they play them all
very well. Aside from the dreary opening song "Marry Me'
(not even sure why this is on the record except just to mess
with out heads ) but the rest of the record is mostly all aces,
a few kings and some queens too. Take "Trees and Squirrels" which
skips along like the early Magnetic Fields songs used to before
Stephin Merritt got all into showtunes and the flute-soaked "Funeral
Face' which stars off with the lyrics, "I love you !?" And
even if this wasn't a great record (which it is ) they still
have the best song titles ("Rent a Wreck", "A
Couple of Instruments", "Little Boys in the Ghetto",
etc.). www.mintyfresh.com
 06.04.07
The
Ugly Beats
Take
A Stand- (GET
HIP) The Uglies
burst upon the scene a few years ago when a previous band, Sir
Finks, broke up under a haze of broken dreams, half-smoked Marlboros
and cheap beer (Schaefer ?). This record, number two by the band
(I never heard the debut) show the band doing a nice mix of 60's
flavored proto-garage , some with saucy farfisa organ while others
are low-key pop (I'm Gonna Break her Heart") and others are
acoustic ("Get in Line"). Apparently on the last record
guitarist/vocalist Joe Emery wrote all or most of the songs but
on TAKE A STAND the band shares the songwriting credits and they
even toss in three covers (The Ventures, Nikki and the Corvettes
and The Remains). These cats seem like they've been around long
enough to know what the real deal is but are also old enough to
know not to drink all night and puke on the stage (or on your shoes).
There's 12 tunes on here and not one dog amongst em' so how about
that ?
 05.25.07
Singles
Start
Again- (SOUND
ARTIFACTS MUSIC) This Detroit
trio had a nifty lil' full-length that came out on the Rainbow
Quartz label back in 2003 and it's been quite some time but they
are back with lp #2 (they have some singles and eps too). The
band, that was a quartet on the BETTER THAN BEFORE debut has
now been pared down to a power trio and the only person left
from that record is vocalist/guitarist/leader Vince Frederick
(drummer Brian Thunders and bassist John Hale round out the trio).
Not sure why Rainbow Quartz didn't release this but it certainly
ain't for a lack of good songs cos' this sizzles ! The opener " I
Want You Back Now" busts out of the gate with crashing drum,
thumping bass and some choice 6-string madness and a general
mayhem like The Who or The Kinks used to create back when pre-British
gals would scream and cry in their presence. I also hear a bit
of a T-Rex influence on some of these cuts like "Summer." Vince
Frederick certainly has quite the pop sensibility and they are
all excellent players. A few of my other faves here are the driving
title track, the bouncy "The Most Beautiful Girl",
and the Beatle-esque, summer fun of "Annette." I do
hope this record gets the attention it deserves because this
is one disc any pop fan would be proud to call their own. www.thesingles.us www.soundartifacts.com
 05.25.07
The
Sirens
More
Is More- (MUSICK) So
much rawk has come outta the Motor City, Detroit, the last
several years that you gotta have some kinda schtick to stand
out. The Sirens have that schtick and she's blonde and stands
about 6 feet tall. Her name is Muffy Kroha and I'm thinking
there has to be some connection to the Demolition Doll Rods
(ex-Gories ) Dan Kroha (wife ? sister ? cousin ??) I was curious
when I began hearing some covers then I read that the band
is an ALL COVERS band ...what a concept (plus they all wear
gold lame'). You want glammy power pop ? You got it on covers
like the Bay City Rollers "Saturday Night", Slade's "Rock
n' Roll Preacher", Girlschool's "1-2-3-4 Rock and
Roll" and, of course, what glam pop covers record would
be complete without a few Sweet covers ?? Here they deliver "Fox
on the Run", "Wig Wam Bam" (in which Muffy does
a cool little asking-the-band-if-they're-ready-to-rock thang)
, and "Hellraiser." There's other covers by The Shangri-La's,
The MC5, Bowie and a few others plus a hidden track (Poison's "Talk
Dirty to Me"...ok, so no one's perfect ). My only complaint
is where Muffy , mainly on the first few tunes, does that obnoxious
scream-singing that I could do without but she sounds a lot
better on the later songs. Otherwise, this record is a blast
and I'd love to see them belt em' out live. www.musickrecords.com
 05.25.07
Tearsrungings
A
Question And An Answer- (LAVENDER/
DISASTER CLUB) It's been
a while but thankfully Ed Mazucco has resurrected his Shelflife
label (this time with a new partner, Matthew Bice) and started
a new one too (Disaster Club, which co-released this) . Not
only that but Mazucco also has a new band, Tearsrunrings. Both
Mazzuco and Bice play in TRR as well as Mazzuco's former bandmate
in The Autocollants , Laura Watling (now Laura Middleton) along
with drummer Dwayne Palasek (so basically this is 3⁄4
of the Autocollants...a few of them were also in the Evening
Lights too) ). TRR, however, have a much different sound than
the 'Collants, ...where that band traipsed and jangled TRR
add waves of distortion and feedback and where the former band
may have worshipped at the altar of Sarah Records , TRR would
probably be more than happy to buy Creation Records exec Alan
McGee a few bottles of vintage wine. The opening title track
is a classic of the shoegaze genre' (sorry if you hate the
word but I don't what else to call it ) as is the driving "Blur
the Lines' (both feature Middleton's dreamy vocals) . "Tomorrow" has
some near-perfect guitar playing while skipping along in a
more pop fashion (until that great distorted guitar blast comes
in ). The final two songs ("Sense of Time" and "Empty
Bottle' are both worthy as well. Since faves like Slowdive
and The Pale Saints bit the dust (years ago ) I have been waiting
for another band to pick up the distortion pedals and run with
them. Tearsrunrings is that band. www.disasterclubrecords.com www.lavender.se
 05.25.07
Youth
Group
Casino
Twilight Dogs- (ANTI) Sydney,
Australia is home to the famed Sydney Opera House, the Harbour
Bridge and some of the nicest beaches I have ever had the pleasure
to visit.....it is also home to Youth Group, a 4-some who have
been turning heads lately with their no-nonsense pop style
( apparently the band is best known for their cover of 80's
pop idol's Alphaville's oldy moldy, "Forever Young",
which was on THE O.C. ) . If you have heard there are some
similarities in sound to The Shins then I am here to tell you
they are true. I do hear some of the Shins crisp pop sound
in some of these 12 songs but I hardly think the band sat down
to write songs that sound like The Shins. Right out of the
gate "On a String" makes a bold statement of a band
that's here and wants you to know they exist. The rhythm section
is smooth as a baby's butt while the guitars speak the language
of love and Toby Martin's vocals glide across the songs with
the greatest of ease. One listen to "Sorry' and you'll
hear some new slang right up there with their Portland, Oregon
counterparts . The thing is, if THE O.C.'s Seth Cohen mentioned
it on the show then I might have run the other way but with
this bunch the songs are too good (and they're not afraid to
rock either). From "Dead Zoo" to ""Under
the Underpass" to "Daisychains" and I could
keep on the going. One of these guys (bassist Patrick
Matthews
) used to be in the highly-overrated Vines and they still manage
to put out a great record
so how about that.www.epitaph.com www.youthgroup.com.au
05.04.07
Colin Bluntstone
One
Year- (WATER) Mr.
Colin Blunstone. He of the velvety voice that Joe Pernice has
probably taken a few cues from .He
being the man other bands have written songs about. He being
the man behind the mic on The Zombies classic: ODESSEY AND ORACLE.
Just his name alone sounds like he should be knighted (love the
way it rolls off the tongue). Anywho, ONE YEAR is his solo debut
from 1972 and it was produced by Zombies cohorts Rod Argent and
Chris White and it’s an nice blend of breezy pop (with
a nice samba-esque Tropicalia bent) like the suave’ opener “She
Loves the way They Love Her” and the bouncy “Mary
Won’t You Warm My Bed.” The other half are more subdued
, spare numbers like the gorgeous “Misty Numbers” or
the dreamy “Caroline Goodbye.” This is a real treat
for Zombies fans (like me !) …some of the songs feel like
they could be part 2 of ODESSEY AND ORACLE , like a long lost
friend who just showed up at your door. Once again the Water
label has done us all a great service by reissuing this and the
16 page booklet has some great liners and photos and quite honestly,
it’s a superb package all the way around. www.midheaven.com 05.04.07
The
Dark Beaks
Spill
Your Heart- (FISHRIDER) Every
once in a while I get records by bands I’ve never heard of
(actually, happens all the time) but when that record comes from
the little island of New Zealand (ok, NZ is actually two islands)
, namely Dunedin and claim inspiration from some of my faves like
The Bats, The Clean and, most importantly, The Chills….then
ol’ Daggerboy sits up and takes notice (I had a boss who ,
when I asked him how he was he would say “Able to sit up and
take nourishment !”). The trio, led by the songwriting of Andrew
Jamison ( all around stand-up guy Ian Henderson on drums and Andrew
Last on drums round out the corp) aren’t all brittle pop (thought
I wouldn’t mind it if they were !) as some of the song seven
recall the soupy turmoil of the X-Pressway (Dead C, etc.) but these
guys are mostly about melody and strong cuts like “Spill Your
Heart”, “Dream About You” , “Roll Along” and
the light n’ drizzly “Open the Window” show a strong
pop sensibility. This bunch has already garnered plenty of rave reviews
in their homeland and if Americans are smart (ok, many are not )
then they will begin to take notice (or take nourishment ). It’s
been too long since I’ve heard something this inspired
come out of New Zealand so get while the gettings good. www.darkbeaks.com 05.04.07
The
Inner Banks
S/T- (DAG) Not
sure what they’re putting in the water in Brooklyn, NY
but I want some of whatever The Inner Banks are having. The little
sticker
on the front says they sound like Air, Japancakes and Azure Ray.
Ok, that was enough to get me to wanna check it out and it’s
a real nice n’ easy listen. The druggies at my high school
would have called this “headphone music” (‘cept
that was in the late 70’s/early 80’s so they would
have been grooving to Rush or Pink Floyd ) but I could never
handle music
with headphones on….i was always too afraid that my sister
was going to sneak up behind and yell, thus scaring the crap
out of me. This is basically the work of David Gould, some guy
from NYC
with way too much time on his hands and a Tascam in his dorm
room . I’m guessing he skipped a year of classes at NYU
to record this and bully for him ! He has his priorities in the
right place
(though his parents are quite bummed) and his gauzy, hazy orchestral
ditties are impressive. The ethereal vocals on “Glittering
Sky” were swoony while the piano on “Siberia” reminded
me of my days ice-fishing in that butt-cold country. He’s
got a whole host of folks playing on this and these 7 songs slide
by
in under 34 minutes so you can’t use the ol’ excuse “not
having enough time.” No time ??? YOU MAKE SOME TIME (and
please forgive me if the info about David going to NYU was completely
wrong
..i mean I gotta make up some stuff, right?).
www.dagrecords.com 05.04.07
Let's
Go Sailing
The
Chaos In Order- (YARDLEY
POP) Long live twee pop !! Twee pop..…..that
disgusting term that everyone hates (including the bands that
are called it ) but I don’t mind it, it’s descriptive.
L.G.S. leader Shana Levy spent some time in L.A. indie-pop
outfit Irving (and has helped out Rilo Kiley, and dios (malos)
on recordings
) so she had some good training prior to recording her debut
cd. Luckily she had already dipped her big toe (make that whole
foot
) into the L.A. pop community and , thankfully , those friends
did not mind lending a hand . With help from members of Silversun
Pickups, Beachwood Sparks and others (Tanya Haden on cello
), Levy and her merry crew have created a terrific pop record
with songs
about icicles and too many stars with Levy’s tender voice
telling the stories. It’s easy to see why the band has
such a devoted following with a slew of interesting melodies
(informed
by her classical piano training ) on songs such as the dreamy, “It’s
As Clear” , the bouncy “Sideways” and the
jangly “We
Get Along.” The cover art (created by Levy herself )
looks like something off of a Beat Happening record so you
know that
L.G.S. is in good company. If any of the above words mean anything
to you then ask grandma to buy you THE CHAOS IN ORDER for your
birthday (or your bar mitzvah) hell…..i think even granny
might dig it.
www.yardleypoprecords.com 04.30.07
Dinosaur
Jr.
Beyond- (FAT
POSSUM) I hear a lot of young un’s talk about
how much they love Dino Jr. but when I ask what their favorite record
is they usually mention one that came after BUG (their 3rd record
and last one with the original lineup). Some of those records aren’t
bad (I do like GREEN MIND) but they ain’t Dinosaur Jr. As far
as I’m concerned to call a record “Dinosaur Jr” .
you have to have J, Lou and Murph and BEYOND is the first record
from these three in 18 years and it sounds great. J’s long
hair has turned gray, Murph is completely and Lou….well, Lou
still kinda looks the same (lotsa hair in his eyes in one recent
promo shot…just like the old days). The perfect opener, “Almost
Ready” opens things up in classic Dino Jr. style and it sounds
like nothing has changed. Next up is my favorite song on the record
the gorgeous “Crumble”, a bit reminiscent of “Severed
Lips” off their first record (or “Quest”). It then
goes right into the guitar-heavy “Pick Me Up” which shows
Mascis has not forgotten how to play a guitar and Lou and Murph can
still pound out that rhythm. Elsewhere you have two Lou songs, the
wonderful “Back to Your Heart” and the meatier (but just
ok) “Lightning Bulb.” Of all of the reunion records coming
out this was the one that I was most anxious to hear (screw The Stooges)
and they did not disappoint ! Thank you.
www.fatpossum.com 04.30.07
The
High Llamas
Can
Cladders- (DRAG
CITY) I must admit, after hearing their sparkling debut,
GIDEON GAYE, I had high hopes for these Llamas. The next record,
HAWAII, was terrific as well if a bit far-reaching but after that…..they
lost me. On later records like COLD & BOUNCY and SNOWBUG the
warmth of the sun seemed to turn more into a chilly coldness, like
an old friend that’s snubbing you. I must say though, on CAN
CLADDERS, it’s great to see leader Sean O’Hagen back
in a radiant pop mode. It’s also great to see him back in the
sandbox (ala’ Mr Beach Boy, Brian Wilson …..O’Hagens’ hero)
) and CAN CLADDERS is full of what made O’Hagen’s songs
so enthralling in those mid-90’s: strings, pianos, horns and
a harp. Tunes like the chiming opener, “The Old Spring Town” (which
begs the question, “How many times have you been to Mexico
?”……..me ? twice ! ) , the gentle “Honeytrop”,
which skips along without a worry in the world or the sublime, tentative
title track (with adds some gorgeous female vocals, which is actually
a troupe of four females: Winnie, Tania, Sylvia and Kelsey ) and
the very baroque “Clarion Union Hall” show O’Hagen
and his cronies have regained their previous magic. Perhaps it was
an inspirational trip to Mexico…I’m not sure where the
new batch of fine songs came from, I’m just glad it’s
here. www.dragcity.com 04.30.07
The
Electric Pop Group
S/T- (SELF
RELEASED) Never had heard of this Swedish bunch
before Chris on the indie pages gave it a good review and likened
it to
some of the old classic stuff on Sarah Records (which I love)
m plus they have a cool name so I just thought I’d like
it.….and
I do. I do have to say that they sound A LOT like the old Sarah
Records band Brighter (and thus, much like Brighter’s current
incarnation, Harper Lee). Bit I have never minded if a band garners
a lot of inspiration
from another band as long a they do it well and the E.P.G. do
it well. The band, at least for this record, was made up for
two brothers
Martin and Erik Aamot who do most of the songwriting on guitar/vocals
and bass respectively with Linnea Nillson on electric organ (Linnea
has since left the band and two other guys have joined). If you
have heard stuff on labels like Sarah, Sunday, Matinee, Shelflife
and
Claire then you know the sound; jangly guitar, gentle vocals
about heartbreak , simmering keyboards, a drum machine and a
mid-tempo
sound. Superb cuts like “Popgirly”, “Don’t
Bring Me Out”, “Walk Away” and “Sweeter
Than the Rest” are pop nuggets that will give you more
cavities than a million Oreos. My only complaint, and it’s
a small one, if that the band stays the mid-tempo sure for the
whole record and
the sound doesn’t veer too far from that. Next time guys
toss in a few faster rave-ups ! Just an idea…otherwise,
this is terrific. www.theelectricpopgroup.net 04.30.07
Maria
McKee
Late
December- (COOKING
VINYL)Most
folks know of Maria McKee as being the singer for the roots band
Lone Justice (and being the half-sister of the
late Love guitarist, Bryan McLean). While her previous record 2005’s
PEDDLIN’ DREAMS was a return to her rootsier days, LATE DECEMBER
is anything but that. McKee who either wrote, or co-wrote (with guitarist/husband
Jim Akin) all 12 of these songs, includes influences of the more
pop variety. Many of these tunes have a majestic sense of urgency
and even include a soulful, Motown influence (mostly in the backing
vocals). The opening title track is moody n’ soulful while
the Bacharachian (as in Burt ) “No Other Way to Love You” swings
and jumps and probably sounds just as great (or better) in a live
setting. On “A Good Heart” McKee lays bare her feelings
and the rootsy, “Too Many Heroes” is probably the closest
they come here to writing a Lone Justice-esque tune and it’s
one of my favorites on the record. A few lovely piano ballads offset
the more rockin’ moments (tho’ “Destine” which
starts off like a quiet piano ballad, does a fake-out move the slips
into Queen territory and truly comes alive !). Having not heard much
of McKee’s music I was not quite sure what to expect with LATE
DECEMBER but in room full of hundreds of new cds to listen to (not
even counting the thousands of old ones I have) I’m glad
I grabbed this one and actually decided to play it. A fantastic
ride
all the way through. www.cookingvinyl.com
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