NEW RELEASES ROCKING THE GARDEN STATE
 THE
MILWAUKEES
American Anthems, Vol. 2
www.milwaukees.com
It’s been four years since Jersey City’s
Milwaukees took a quantum leap forward with “American
Anthems, Vol. 1” but you can tell the time
has been well spent. There’s not a single
snare hit or vocal inflection out of place on this
immaculately conceived and executed collection of
modern American rock, which actually manages to
live up to its lofty title. Many singer/songwriters
do their best work in their teens and twenties,
but Dylan Clark only seems to get better as he matures;
as the Milwaukees enter a second decade as a band,
the current lineup provides the finest ensemble
of players he’s ever worked with, and they
deliver pleasures both small and large throughout
the 10-song album. Clark’s songwriting invokes
the anthemic passion of Tom Petty while capturing
the precision and dry wit of Elvis Costello, while
Pat Fusco’s explosive snare hits pack the
wallop of Max Weinberg’s drums in the E Street
Band. But the Milwaukees remain an American original,
with each track building from an intriguing verse
to a climactic chorus in which Clark’s reedy
falsetto is allowed to soar. From the scintillating
opening rocker “The Way You Wanted It”
to dreamy, evocative power ballads like “Kill
Devil Hills” to anthemic set-closers like
“Victoria,” the Milwaukees impress on
track after track here. Kudos to guitarist Jeff
Norstedt for the sinuous Keith Richards-like riffs
on "Summer's Gone," and passionate backup
vocals. “American Anthems Vol. 2” was
produced by long-time Milwaukees collaborator Wayne
Dorrell at the Pigeon Club in Hoboken. - Jim Testa
 BLACK
WINE
Summer Of Indifference
Don Giovanni Records
The title is an inside joke, as Jeff Schroeck,
Miranda Taylor, and J Nixon recall when they were
top dogs in the most popular bands of a NJ pop-punk
scene that really no longer exists. As Black Wine
struggles through both indifference and its own
search of an identity (not an easy thing with three
co-equal songwriters and lead singers,) their sophomore
album really should have been called This Band
Could Be Your Life. Throughout you'll hear
shards of that generation of punk and indie bands,
from Dinosaur Jr. riffage to Minutmen bass throbs
to Bikini Kill vocal freakouts. Throw in some aggro
Black Flag post-hardcore aggression, some Hootenanny-era
'Mats, and you'll begin to get an idea of Black
Wine's eclectic assault on modern "indie."
Jeff's minor key melodies and focused strumming
on tracks like "Iceball" and "Through
The Foam" recall some of his Ergs tunes, while
J Nixon's "Favorites" takes the nod for
the album's fiercest rager. But as she did on Black
Wine's debut album, drummer Miranda Taylor wins
MVP honors with "Maycrowning," the catchiest
and most memorable track here. The trio's intense
gigging schedule this summer indicates that they're
not at all indifferent about the future of this
band, and one suspects that by their third album,
all of these disparate parts will begin to fuse
together into an awesome whole. - Jim Testa
 OUTSIDE
THE BOX – Bridge (www.outsidetheboxband.com)
Cutting straight to the stirring chase with the
rousing opening song “Love is the Villain,”
this Jersey Shore group rock it up somethin’
sweet with a winning surplus of raw energy, sturdy
musicianship, and positively infectious go-for enthusiasm.
The robust vocals holler with tremendous aplomb
over a dynamic sonic onslaught of rippin’
guitars, poppin’ basslines, and constantly
pushin’ ahead steamroller drums. The songs
work a hot, lively, and tasty groove with always
enjoyable and often exciting results, with the deliciously
lowdown bluesy “I Think It’s Love”
rating as a definite smokin’ highlight. The
snappy tempos and bumpin’ beats rarely let
up for a minute. A totally kick-ass album. - Joe
Wawrzyniak
 Stuyvesant-
Fret Sounds (dromedary-rcords.com)
Wow! On Stuyvesant’s new album, Fret Sounds
I’m hearin lots and lots of punky, open-ended,
stylistic new wavy melodies, and chunks and chunks
of alterative guitars. Mmm-mm-mmm…the band
just rocks my socks off on each and every tune!
I just got back from vacation and man; it feels
great getting back to the music after recharging
my batteries, and sippin’ a Bloody Mary or
two, or three.
Featuring guitarists Ralph Malanga and Sean Adams,
drummer Pete Martinez, and bass player Brian Musikoff,
drop humor, a cool sense of wisdom, above all, passion
into these ten songs.
Gently defying the predictability of the jangle-pop
punk/alterative genre, this quartet from Jersey
has more than enough original ideas about guitar
texture, melody, vocal styling’s, and drumming
(this rhythm section sounds like they’re on
a mission from God), to lift Fret Sounds well above
the ranks of genredom. What I like most is that
they do not lack the mystery that a lot of bands
seem to miss. You’ll what to explore every
song from start to finish, and than wonder what
the next song will be about.- An endless summer
is in store for anyone who picks up Fret Sounds!-Phil
Rainone
If we were back in the day when vinyl records were
king (8-tracks & cassettes were just wee toddlers),
you would listen to side-one of Fret Sounds- cool
nick on The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds album-
you would than use the little handle to pick up
the tone arm off the record, stop the record player,
take the record off the turntable, flip it over,
put it back on the record player, start the record
player, put the tone arm back on the first song,
and playing it from start to finish.- Phew!! Yes,
back then, and even now it may sound like a lot
of work to play a record, but man, Fret Sounds is
worth all the time and effort!
“In an era when inspiration for pop-punk upstarts
dates only as far back as Good Charlotte’s
latest album, what a treat when you find someone
a little older and wiser. Thankfully and rewardingly,
the Garden State-based Stuyvesant is both.”-
From their press kit. I couldn’t agree more!
- Phil Rainone
 WAKING
LIGHTS
Waking Lights - LP
www.wakinglights.com
Following on the heels of Waking Lights' well-received
2010 debut EP “The Rabbit Hole” (also
originally released on vinyl,) “Waking Lights”
finds the group moving in a new direction towards
a bigger, more dynamic, more electric sound. Tall,
lanky, tattooed Matt Maroulakos still fronts the
band, but his reedy, impassioned vocals on the new
album often come soaked in electric distortion.
Gone are the rustic, orchestral strains of cello
and violin and acoustic guitar, replaced by overdriven
electric guitars, rousing gang vocals, tinkling
piano, soulful organ fills, and Dana Lamarca’s
clattering drums.
Matt Maroulakos once said that playing in Waking
Lights feels more like a family than a traditional
band, and you can hear that in the complex, tightly-woven
arrangements on the new record. The funky, percussive
“Everybody Wants You” kicks things off
with a sound that might be described as rustic disco;
Tom Maroulakos’ keyboards and fuzz-box guitars
drive the melody, while Nicole Scorsone’s
soaring violin joins in on the chorus, not standing
alone but as part of an orchestral wash of sound.
Sounding like he’s singing through a distorted
AM radio or a busted speaker, Maroulakos’
vocal leads the way on the merry, skittish “Our
Time Will Come,” with percolating guitars,
and an almost Feelies-esque use of percussion instruments
to drive the rhythm. “The Adventures of Cocaine
Lil and Dopey Slim” continues the old-timey
radio meme; the story-driven, country-flavored tune
sounds like its wafting over the AM airwaves on
some late summer night.
“Untitled (In A Minor)” is another
of those Waking Lights tracks that combines a funky
danceable beat to its signature rough-hewn, ragged
instrumentation; country-industrial, maybe? “Get
yourself together, get yourself together”
implores the singalong chorus, followed by Matt
Maroulakos’ throaty and fevered verses.
But the big revelation on “Waking Lights”
comes on the final song, “The Sounds,”
which – like Steel Train’s “Bullet”
earlier this year – goes whole hog for an
epic E Street Band arena-rock anthem effect, complete
with stirring whoa-oh gang vocals and a host of
unabashed Springsteen tropes – Roy Bittan-esque
piano, tinkling glockenspiel, the subtle strains
of Scorsone’s violin mixed under the verses,
and a finish that’s guaranteed to have fans
singing along waving fists and lighters in the air.
It’s the sort of song a band writes when
they know they won’t be playing small rooms
much long and need a closer that’ll reach
to the rafters in bigger rooms. Look out, America.
Waking Lights is coming your way. Local fans would
be well advised to catch this exciting, passionate,
and talented quintet in the intimate confines of
Maxwell’s while you still can. - Jim Testa
 OLD
WIVES
Tidal Tales
www.oldwives.net
Composed of veterans of several heavy post-punk
bands like Further Seems Forever, ActionReaction,
and Element 101, Old Wives fully embrace the blues
on their new album Tidal Tales.
Fronted by singer/guitarist Jason Gleason and ably
abetted by keyboardist Bella Gleason, Old Wives
mix classic rock bombast (opener “Revolting
French” has a lot of U2 in it) with intimate
instrumentation like acoustic banjo and church organ.
The band stretches out on a few soul jams like the
horn-driven “Rip Van Winkle” and the
funky “Whale,” which showcases some
nice Rhodes organ grooves from Bella. A scorching
jazz sax helps fuel “Alto Cinco,” one
of the most powerful blues wailers on the album.
On “Whiskey Song,” it’s just Jason
and a barely strummed acoustic guitar, a lonely
blues that sounds like it was recorded live in a
hotel room in Natchez while Robert Johnson, a bottle
of bourbon, and the Devil watch on appreciatively.
- Jim Testa
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