Jersey Beat Music Fanzine
 

 

The Silver Lining - Reviews by Paul Silver

ELEVATOR ART (www.myspace.com/elevatorart)

The first thing that strikes me about this New Jersey based group is the diversity in musical styles on this, their debut album. The tracks range from bluesy to pop rock to folksy to almost psychedelic. The second thing that strikes me is how big the sound is. I guess that’s not surprising, considering that this is a five-piece outfit, with four of the members sharing vocal duties. The one thing these tracks do seem to share in common is a decidedly 70s undercurrent. The album opens with “Matryoshka,” an upbeat pop tune with harmonized vocals, jangly guitars and driving drum beats. I really like “Raised by Wolves,” a very folksy tune that starts out with quiet guitar and a little girls singing some really sad lines, begging her daddy to spend some time with her. It quickly jumps to a more raucous rock tune, with what is supposed to be the now grown-up girl singing about how her life turned out. “Punch & Judy” is very much a 70s prog rock track, in the vein of the likes of Led Zepplin. “Gingerbread Veterans” sounds sort of like a children’s folk song in its simplicity. “How the Day Finds You” sounds just as you would expect from the title, just kind of easy, breezy, footloose, kind of happy-go-lucky ambling along folksy stuff. It really sounds so 70s. I really like “Deja Voodoo,” a song about repetition, a song about repetition (that’s the opening of the track, ha ha). It’s a bouncy tune that really catches me. “Blah Blah Blah is another good one that is very soulful, both in sound and in lyrical content (it’s about religion), and it should have been the closer – it’s a strong song. But an untitled “hidden” track closes things out, with very traditional acoustic folk stuff. Overall an interesting, fun listen.

FREE ENERGY – Stuck on Nothing (DFA Records, www.dfarecords.com)

This is sort of like an updated power pop sound. Some of the songs are borderline “classic rock,” while some have a much more indie sound. It’s mostly reasonably decent stuff, but the problem is there’s not really a whole lot of “power.” Even the tracks that sound like they should be rocking hard, trying to sound like Cheap Trick or something like that, they’re just kind of there. “Light Love” is a good example of this; it sounds like this should be a little faster, a little louder, and have way more energy. The first half of the disc tends to be the more “indie” power-pop sounding stuff, and the latter half tends more toward the “classic rock” sound. The title track starts things out with a decent, if unenergetic power-pop sound. And it just kind of stays the same from there. It’s listenable, but it doesn’t move.

LITHIUM SEVEN – Something Else is Waiting (www.lithiumseven.com)

Lithium Seven, from the Midwest (Ohio/Michigan) present a three-song EP of “Americana,” which is another name for countrified rock music. It seems to be all the rage these days, lots of bands are doing it. Some of them are pretty good, and you’ve seen positive reviews from me in these pages. Some are not so great. Unfortunately, Lithium Seven seem to fall short of the mark, with tracks that just drag too much. If you’re a huge fan of the style, you might want to check them out, but they’re not among my favorites of the genre.

OUT LIKE LAMBS – Not So Winter Waltz (Music of the Spheres,
www.outlikelambs.com)

This one is pretty much impossible to classify. It’s sort of folksy, but it’s also sort of jazzy. The instrumentation includes trumpet, saxophone, flute, and violin, but it also includes mandolin, acoustic guitar, and tambourine. Some of the song structures are very much folk inspired, but some of them are very much free jazz. I really love the sound of “Showdown,” the fourth track on the disc, for the way the keyboards and the violin blend together to create a very atmospheric sound. “Archangel” is a really interesting track that juxtaposes the quiet calm acoustic folk with guitar buzz and manic trumpet and violin doing the free jazz thing. The whole disc sort of walks that fine line between folk and free jazz, and that really grabs my attention. It sort of reminds me of the Dirty Three, in a way, a really interesting Trio from back in the 90s. Good stuff here.

SECRET CITIES
(www.myspace.com/citysecret)

Secret Cities are a three-piece ouf of Mobile, Alabama, and they play some pretty good noise rock, sort of blending the sounds of Sonic Youth, Dischord-ish post-emo, and a little bit of psychedelic sounds. There may be some confusion, because there’s also a band from North Dakota called Secret Cities, who have also just released an album. Not the same group. This disc opens up with “Royal Street,” a track that’s full of sonic tension and plenty of noise, but it’s always good, melodic noise. “He Makes a Watch That Breaks,” the fifth track on this EP, is a good summary of the band’s style. It’s got the guitar dissonance that Sonic Youth is known for, with the post-emo vocal style. This reminds me a lot of what a lot of 90s bands were doing, and I like this stuff a lot.

SHONEN KNIFE –
Live at Mohawk Place 2009 DVD
(Good Charamel, www.goodcharamel.com)

Recorded in Buffalo, New York, the last stop of their American tour in 2009, this is just what you think it would be. It’s three small Japanese women playing big, old-style punk rock, in the Ramones vein. It’s catchy, it’s quirky, it’s silly, and it’s fun. Many of the songs are about food (Banana Chips, I Wanna Eat Chocobars, Fruits and Vegetables, BBQ Party), and others are just plain silly (Flying Jelly Attack, Muddy Bubbles Hell, Giant Kitty, Pyramid Power). Their nearly all infectious and bouncy, and feature a mix of older and newer tunes. The production is pretty darn good, shot with multiple cameras and recorded with excellent sound quality for a live show. Camera work includes interesting angles, ultra-closeups, and rapid zooming in and out to the beat of the music. The band explains that this tour was 30 shows in 34 days – pretty grueling! But they are as energetic as ever, and seem to be having a great time, as do the crowd. As a special treat, original member Atsuko joins the band for a song toward the end of the set. The entire DVD, including opening and closing credits, runs just shy of an hour of enjoyment.

SPARTA PHILHARMONIC – (Trans)migratory Birds (www.myspace.com/spartaphilharmonic)

It’s folk. No, it’s pop. No, it’s noise rock. No, it’s gospel. It’s quiet. No it’s loud. No, it’s – wow. This is all over the place! And it’s pretty cool. Sparta Philharmonic are driven by a pair of brothers from New Jersey, Greg and Alex Bortnichark. The disc starts out with very lo-fi, very quietly recorded acoustic folk. A few minutes into the eleven minute track, the tempo picks up, drums come in, the guitar gets livelier, and the mood jumps from somber to joyful. A couple minutes more and it goes to almost silent, but for a few plucks on the guitar, and then…and then…an explosion of electricity. The mood shifts back to somber, but with huge emotional scars laid bare in the music, with walls of sound. Distorted guitars are everywhere, and they start playing an incredibly beautiful melody on top of a base layer of pure, raw noise. In the last minute of the song, the noise and the guitars fade away to reveal a vocal choir repeating lyrics over and over to the end. The next track stays fairly close to being a standard pop tune. At least at the start. Jangly guitars and vocals, you know. But as the song progresses, it gets thicker and richer, with the addition of more instruments, including violin. Other tracks range from noisy pop to epic sagas to mournful dirges. Sometimes all in the same track! In some ways it reminds me of the late, great Fire Show from Chicago, with its orchestral/experimental pop style. Unfortunately, I don’t have the track names, but this is pretty damn fine stuff, and I am highly recommending it. This album has me just about as excited as I was last year listening to Cymbals Eat Guitars’ debut, or The Antlers’ “Hospice” album.

TOMMY STRAZZA – The Model Citizen LP (Red 5 Records, www.tommystrazza.com)

Listening to Tommy Strazza is like listening to a history lesson of rock & roll. It kinda sounds like what rock music would have been if the money grubbing corporations hadn’t gotten their hands all over it. No, this ain’t indie or alternative or anything like that. It’s plain old rock & roll. The album starts out with “You’re Not the Only Show,” a real swingin’ tune that sounds like it could have come out an early rock band from the 50s in the south, with a real rockabilly flare. “Sensory Overload” is more modern, sounding sort of like an 80s Elvis Costello pop tune up. One track that sticks out as really different from the others is “Too Far Gone,” which is beautiful singer-songwriter fare, with just Tommy and his acoustic guitar. Nice. “Dinneral’s Song” is a good old time honky tonk track. Each track sounds somewhat different than the others, but one thing they all have in common is a purity of spirit. Look, if you’re looking for the latest indie “it” band, or the band that’s going to hit it big on the majors, you’re not looking in the right place. If you’re looking for a mosh-pit hardcore band, forget it. If you’re looking for plain old rock & roll performed with passion, here it is.

SWANS – My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky (www.younggodrecords.com)

They’re back! Michael Gira, founding member of the Swans and Young Yod Records maven, has decided to utilize the Swans to further his musical vision. He’s emphatic that this is not a reunion and it is not a “dumb-ass nostalgia act.” Indeed, this is new, and it’s epic. It also could be the most musical Swans album yet. “No Words/No Thoughts” opens the album with bone-crushing power. It’s ominous, it’s evil. During the first few minutes, you can even hear the power saw cutting through your soul. “Reeling the Liars In” sounds sort of like a cross between Johnny Cash and a sacred hymn from the old West. Except it’s not very sacred, because their tossing liars onto the fire to keep wam. “Jim” starts out a little jazzy, but then lumbers and thuds, continuing the old time sound, this time sounding a little like a warped chain-gang work song crossed with gospel. I mean, the description doesn’t do the track justice. It’s brilliant, it really is; it’s exploding with power. There’s some incredible guitar work from Bill Rieflin (from the Revolting Cocks & Ministry), in which he’s rapidly plucking the strings on multiple acoustic guitars to create a hammered dulcimer sort of sound. “You Fucking People Make Me Sick” is an interesting track, starting out pleasantly enough, with jaw harp rhythms sounding very ethnic. This yields to other instruments, including guitar, piano and electronics, providing a sort of shimmer, and then the mandolins come in, and we get vocals sung by Devendra Banhart and by Michael Gira’s 3 year old daughter. It’s quite delicate, until the vocals complete, and some violent acoustic instruments begin pummeling us, including piano, percussion, and slide trombones and trumpets. “Eden Prison” pounds and drones and swirls. Halfway through the track, the vocals end and the track starts pounding harder and stops swirling. Every instrument pounds, guitars, percussion, chimes, everything. About a minute before the end the pounding stops and fades, and there’s a moment of silence. And then the vocals and swirling returns. The album ends with a track called “Little Mouth.” It’s a fitting closer, sounding like a bit of an ambling song – like something that might be sung ambling through a forest or something. It even includes whistling in the background. The track ends nakedly, with Gira’s acapella vocals. Overall, this album can best be summed up as sounding like the soundtrack to a movie western written and directed by David Lynch. There’s lots of western folk music influence in here, but there’s a darkness, something sinister in the music, something twisted. You know what I mean? Another reviewer for a different publication used the word “grizzled” to describe the sound, and it’s so apt a description, I’ll steal it. The band sounds like it’s been in the desert for years, working in the mines, alternately baking and freezing, walking through sandstorms. An interesting note – if you look at the track times, they seem kind of long, averaging around six minutes each (some are around three, the opener is more than nine). But they don’t seem nearly that long. These are not self indulgent wank fests, on these tracks, every note, every sound is just where it needs to be. Ugh, I’m gushing too profusely. Let’s just say I really like this, and am seriously disappointed that the Swans’ tour won’t take them to Southern California, or anywhere near the west coast, for that matter. A candidate for my best albums of 2010 list, and certainly one of the most anticipated of the year.

THE WHITE RAVENS – Gargoyles and Weather Vanes (whiteravenmusic.com)

Sparkly, silly synth sounds and ferocious female vocals create catchy, quirky pop. Actually, there’s more to it than that, but listening to this disc made me start thinking alliteratively. This is a brother/sister duo from Michigan that produce simple, but rich sounding pop tunes that are sort of campy in a 60s rock musical sort of vein. These tracks sound like they could have come from the competition for the Broadway musical, “Hair.” The disc starts out energetically with a track called, “Sparks,” that sets the tone. It’s very 60s pop-rock show tune, but with synth in the arrangement, along with piano, drums, bass, and the spectacular vocals of Amy Bennett. This certainly isn’t emotionally shattering stuff, for sure. It’s pretty light weight stuff. But it’s certainly a lot of fun. “Rubberband” is a blast of a song, with a hint of funk and a hint of “Rocky Horror.” “Broken Halves” is a hoot, especially the chorus, which starts out with a chord progression of fifths, then sounds all cheesy horror film. The disc has twelve tracks, the last of which is “Eulogy.” It’s the only sad sounding song of the disc, and has an interesting effect of recording the piano part in lo-fi, sounding like a scratchy old recording, but the vocals are in the foreground, very present. This is pretty cool, and quite different.


ALAMANCE – In the Moment
(www.smackinthefacerecords.com)

New Jersey-based Alamance might be living In the Moment, but it’s the wrong moment. This album presents a cross between commercial “alternative” rock and boy-band pop. There’s plenty of loud guitar, bass and drums, and a driving beat, but the vocals are very smooth and harmonized. The songs are all pretty overblown with “emotion” and are borderline ballads. Thankfully, the moment is fairly short, as the album clocks in at under 30 minutes.

HELEN EARTH BAND – Our Own Ghost City (www.helenearthband.com)

Helen Earth Band, from beautiful San Diego, offer up another blend of styles here, with the complex rhythms of math-rock, but the melodic and harmonic lines of indie-pop. I must say I’m really taken with the title track, which has grandiose lines that remind me of some of the great San Diego bands of yore, like Pitchfork/Rocket From the Crypt/Drive Like Jehu. The album has plenty of nice atmospheric touches, driving percussion and rhythm guitar, and soaring vocals. But the album does also tend toward mid-tempo stuff, so a lot of the songs end up sounding fairly similar to each other. Nice stuff, but not earth-shattering.

WILL KNOX – The Matador & the Acrobat (www.willknox.com)

This is true urban folk music. It’s played with acoustic instruments, featuring fiddle, banjo, guitar, upright bass and percussion, plus Knox’s English vocals. The combination reminds me of a less raucous, more sober version of The Pogues, in that respect. The songs have sort of a dark, brooding sadness to them, and that goes quite well with the lyrcal content, featuring songs like “Cog in the Machine,” which tells the tale of someone who is fed up with being the title character in a dead end job. “Buckled Knees” is another downer, about someone who moves to LA to try to make it, makes a deal with the Devil, and pays the consequences. “Painted Smile” is about someone whose world is crumbling, but is in denial and fakes happiness. This is heartbreaking, beautiful stuff.

PERNICE BROTHERS – Goodbye, Killer
(www.ashmontrecords.com)

The Pernice Brothers seem to have a little bit of a split personality on this album. Some of the tracks are very much traditional pop tunes, with sort of a British invasion character, kind of like “Twin Cinema” era New Pornographers, but somewhat lighter and more casual. But then many of the tracks are heavily alt-country tinged. The disc opens with a couple of straight-forward pop number, “Bechamel,” and the slightly edgier “Jaqueline Susann.” And then it’s followed up by an old-timey country burlesque sounding “We Love the Stage.” “Then a more traditional folk-alt-country sort of tune, “Not the Loving Kind.” And on and on, it goes back and forth with a couple tracks of pop, a couple of country. Pernice Brothers should choose something and focus on being really good with it, because this lack of focus tends to lead to tracks that lack intensity. I mean, it’s pleasant enough, but it’s not anything that’s really going to move you.

RICHARD WALTERS – The Animal (Kartel, www.kartelcreative.com)

This is quiet, delicate stuff, with a singer-songwriter vibe to it. It sometimes reminds me a bit of the late Nick Drake, who recorded the same sort of understated stuff. It features elegant, delicate melodies and harmonies, and sad, but romantic vocals. There predominant instrumentation is acoustic guitar and Walters’ tenor vocals, but there’s also some quiet piano, hushed drumming, occasional strings, and some backing vocals. It’s all done rather beautifully. Is it folk? Yes, but not quite? Is it indie-pop? Well, kinda, sorta, but no. It’s somewhere in between, with a generous dose of crooner tossed in. The closer is a stunning cover of the Beatles’ “Julia,” which, I think, outshines the original. Very nice.

VANISH VALLEY (Hard Bark, www.myspace.com/barkhard)

This is really cool stuff. It blends alt-country, folk and a bit of psych to create something fairly unique. Right from the opening track, “Bad Things,” I can tell that this is a special album. Instrumentation includes sitar and really cool distorted electric keyboards. I really love the track, “Hunters,” a very quiet, morose song. The use of backing choir-like vocals reminds me a bit of what the Antlers did on their album, “Hospice,” one of my favorites of last year, and very high praise, indeed, if you read my review of that album. Overall, though, the album sticks fairly close to more traditional instrumentation, and always stays reasonably delicate and understated – no over the top stuff. I really like this – it’s not too country, a little indie, a lot folksy, and a very enjoyable listen.


KAKI KING – Junior (Rounder Records, www.rounder.com)

Kaki King is a talented musician and singer. But the album tends toward middle of the road folk-pop, bordering on a “new age” esthetic. It was so laid back that it faded into the background, with the exception of a couple of tracks. “Falling Day” has a little bit of DC post emo sound to it, while “Death Head,” after starting out with a bit of an ambient intro, gets the raucous guitar treatment that gives it a bit of life. There’s way too much reverb/echo effect in the production, though, and things tend to sound a bit distant. Other than these two tracks, though, it was pretty much a snoozer.

FAN-TAN – Age of Discovery (www.myspace.com/fantanmusic)

Brooklyn-based Fan-Tan, originally formed in Chapel Hill, NC, play 80s goth-inspired synth pop. Think Echo and the Bunnymen, or more obscurely, Strange Boutique. There’s also hints of 80s Brit post new wave stuff, here, such as might have been heard in the Manchester, Factory Records sort of scene. It’s a reasonably short 5-song EP, and each individual song is decent enough for some nostalgia, but every song ends up sounding too much alike. So, while they seem to be decent musicians, they also seem to have a dearth of ideas.

LOCAL NATIVES – Gorilla Manor (www.frenchkissrecords.com)

This is kind of easy, breezy indie rock on the debut album from LA-based Local Natives. On first listen, I didn’t really think too much of it; it was nice and all, but nothing really grabbed me. On second listen, though, some things stood out. There’s some intricate percussion work and use of percussion to nice effect, pretty harmonized vocals, simple, yet shimmering guitars, and some plain good song writing. I really like “World News,” the fourth track on the disc. It’s got some great hooks, and starts out really simply, then builds layers. The closer, “Stranger Things,” is a cool track in waltz time that uses strings, piano, and those harmonized vocals in the layering. And, it turns out a lot of the songs are like these; they’re deceptively simple, but upon deeper reflection, there’s a lot of thought and complexity that’s gone into them. It’s pretty stuff.


MIGGS – Wide Awake
(www.miggsmusic.com)

Miggs is just another band playing overblown, overproduced, “alternative” music. Lots of wanky guitar, overly orchestrated tracks, and faux emotional vocals are par for the course in this sort of album. Folks, this is the arena rock for our time, and not even the headliner; this is the warm-up band. If you’re reading Jersey Beat, then this is the sort of thing you want to avoid. Skip this.




PASSION PIT – Manners (Columbia Records)

At least this band is following the sage advice of music reviewers everywhere: always put your best track first on the album. If the first track is listenable, we’ll keep listening. If it’s not, we may just pop it out and move on. The first track, “Make Light,” is listenable, if not outstanding. It’s sparkly, bouncy, and a little different, with plenty of synth and falsetto vocals. OK, I thought, I’ll listen further. And then came the rest of the disc, a complete waste of aluminum and plastic. Disco beats, funk-like synth, an actual grade school backup vocal chorus, and those damn falsetto vocals won’t go away! Sometimes that sort of thing can work, but here it just gets on my nerves. To add insult to injury, a couple of the tracks are repeated in a less orchestrated version, with just guitar and vocals. The closer is a cover of the Cramberries’ “Dreams,” which should have been left alone. Ugh.

RASPUTINA – Sister Kinderhook (www.rasputina.com)

Rasputina is back with their seventh album of awesome, original, cello rock and roll. The songs have historical references and historical feeling to them, but are certainly relevant to the pop scene. It’s an absolutely beautiful blend of cellos and vocals, melodic, harmonious, and with just the right amount of attitude and edge. A few of the tracks toss in other instruments, but who knew that a string ensemble, and a primarily cello-based one, at that, could make such cool music? It’s hard to pick out favorites, because they’re all so good, but I’ll mention a few. “Sweet Sister Temperance” has a great colonial folk music feel to it, with the low strings providing a menacing sound, but with sort of blues influences vocals. “The Two Miss Leavens” is a really sweet waltz. “Olde Dance” is a way too short instrumental that sounds like it could have come right out of the Renaissance. “Calico Indians” is a great tune, another waltz, but this time less sweet and more forceful. It’s about injustice and dignity. “Snow Hen of Austerlitz” features banjo, and is an odd song about a girl whose mother raises birds, and treats her daughter the same as her birds. The track which provides the album title, “Kinderhook Hoopskirt Works,” is another waltz tempo track, again with banjo, so simple in construction, with just banjo and harmonized vocals, but so beautiful. And the closer, “This, My Porcelain Life,” is stunning, with strings, piano and harmonized vocals. It’s not snotty punk rock, or even sparkly indie-pop, but this is very deserving of your attention. This is going into heavy rotation on my iPod.

TRIKE – Trike & the Vikings ( www.cheapsatanism.com)

They call themselves an electro-disco trash duo, and that’s bringing self-deprecation to a new level. But what else can you expect from Trike, who perform with tongue deeply implanted in cheek? The music is electro-disco wave with an 80s flair, but you don’t have to be a genius to discern that they’re having a great deal of fun and poking fun at the same time. It’s goofy stuff, and very fun. Loads of sparkly electronics and effects are the perfect setting for the oddball lyrics for songs such as “Zombie Tragedy,” which has a chorus, “Oh my God I’m so hot, you said / Holy shit, I’m adorable / Look at me in this outfit / I’m so fuckable.” “Flowers with Viking Powers” is a song that reminds me a hell of a lot of the very underrated DC band, 9353, with its sheer goofiness. They even have an ode to “My Little Pony,” so you know they’re a little off their rockers, but in a good way. “Let’s Jog” is the ultimate 80s tribute song, not only sounding very new wave, but being all about the 80s fitness obsession. “Rollerderby” is another bizarre track, about a girl who has a dream of constructing a roller derby rink in her basement, and a guy who is trying to convince her that he house is too small for it. She objects, saying he’s trying to crush her dreams. The closer, “Trikey,” about a dance step, just has to be heard to be believed! This is just plain fun! Recommended!


THE WAILING WALL – The Low Hanging Fruit (www.jdubrecords.com)

Well, this is quite an interesting disc, with its explorations of ethnic music traditions. The album starts out with “Speak Not Its Name,” echoing American Indian musical traditions. “Bones Become Rainbows” is an indie pop track, as if it had been written in India, with its sitar and tabla providing an interesting atmosphere. And it makes sense, giving that Jesse Rifkin, the force behind The Wailing Wall, has grown up with Hindu chants and Orthodox Judaism. And it was his skepticism after 11 years of day school in the latter tradition that led Rifkin to explore other traditions, both spiritually and musically. Most of the disc tends to be more rustic folk oriented than the first few tracks, but it’s still really nice stuff. “Dandelion” is a cool waltz, with horns giving a slight jazz edge to this otherwise straightforward country tune. “Lame Situation” is very atmospheric, and sort of reminds me of David Grubbs’ folk-inspired album, “The Thicket,” with its quiet, plaintive banjo and vocals. Bu this one has some eerie, atmospheric backgrounds in it. This is a nice change of pace.



 

DANGERMAKER (www.dangermaker.com)

Dangermaker? Uh, not in a million years would this band make any danger. They’re just playing it really, really safe here, playing really dull, plain, unoriginal rock music. This is the kind of stuff you might hear in any run of the mill suburban bar. There’s nothing unique or exciting here, nothing even remotely “indie” or even “alternative” about it. The music just kind of plods along, trying to sound “soulful,” but only succeeding in boring me to tears. Thankfully, it was only a 5-song EP. I don’t think I could have gotten through a full album. The band is proclaiming the second track, “Need,” as their single, but it’s probably the worst track on the disc. Guys, not only are you the wrong kind of music that Jersey Beat readers would care about, you’re also about 15-20 years behind where the commercial rock music world is, so, if you have any dreams of making it big, give them up now.

THE DIRTY WHITE – vs. Evil Circles (www.thedirtywhite.com)

Good stuff that blends the snotty attitude of old school punk rock with the musical esthetic of the post hardcore DC scene. I hear loads of influence from bands like Fugazi, Embrace, Soulside, and much of the late 80s and early 90s Dischord roster. The vocals are pretty much shouted with a nasal, high-pitched quality, with limited melodic lines. The instrumentals are very post-hardcore, early emo. This is very evident on “We Don’t Hunt,” a song that refers to the band’s South Carolina home, where hunting is a typical pastime. “There Were Helicopters” is a pretty manic, angular track that I really liked. And the closer, “OJ and the Isotoners,” besides having a really funny title, is a pretty cool one that has some old school Mission of Burma sound to it. While this doesn’t break any new ground, it’s a solid effort and a decent listen.

LAB PARTNERS – Moonlight Music
(www.pravdamusic.com)


Ohio-based Lab Partners, now signed to Chicago’s long running indie label, Pravda Records, give us their first new recording since 2007’s “Keep Quiet.” It blends space rock, psych, and shoegaze styles to provide the indie rock equivalent of easy listening music. Sometimes it works pretty well, such as on “Steal My Keys,” a track that provides plenty of fuzzy atmosphere, or “All Is Beautiful,” a track that encapsulates the best of the psych and shoegazer sounds. But other times it comes across as a little pompous, such as on “Back’s to the Wall,” a track that seems to be saying, “we’re cool space rockers, look how cool we are.” Or “Barn Burner,” which gets too 60s acid rock for my tastes. When this works well, it works very well, but when it doesn’t work, it fails pretty badly. An uneven effort from these veterans.



THE LOOMIS FARGO GANG – Humans, Nature, and Human Nature (www.theloomisfargogang.com)

> This is all pretty much mid-tempo, understated, even somber stuff. It sort of reminds me of 70s Elton John ballads. “Sun, Flower, Seed,” the eighth track on the disc, even sounds a little twangy, sort of like a 70s Rolling Stones tune. So, yeah, this sounds mostly pretty lame. Until the last three tracks. “The Great Scapegoat,” is a decent track. It has a garage-like guitar sound, and I like the delicate keyboard lines (or is it vibraphone?). “The Moon and Me” is a dark, mysterious track, with plenty of acoustic instrumentation (piano, guitar), and some cool inharmonic touches. The closer, “Everybody’s Changed,” blends dreamy, distorted electric guitar with acoustic guitar, repeating a simple line over and over, and with quiet, simply vocals on top. If only more of the album was like these last three tracks, this would be worth recommending.

THE SILENCE KIT – Dislocations (www.aztecarecords.com)

Immediately, the first track sounds so much like mid to late 80s post-punk, but it’s a little off. The vocals are just out of tune, and it gets on my nerves. And it doesn’t get any better from there. The second track is 80s style electronic goth, with the same out of tune vocals that are really driving me up a wall. After a couple more tracks like this, I couldn’t take it anymore. Learn to sing, dude! Or maybe you need a “silence kit?” The whole disc seems to be a waste of time.




THE TERROR PIGEON DANCE REVOLT! – I Love You! I Love You! I Love You and I’m In Love With You! Have an Awesome Day! Have the Best Day of Your Life! (Luaka Bop, www.luakabop.com)

Take two heaping tablespoons of They Might Be Giants, add in a dash of Black Eyed Peas, and you approximate the sound of the band with a crazy name and a crazier album title. This is almost theatrical, performance art, more so than just indie rock. “Go Directly To Space” is an aptly titled track, sounding like space rock and all…but still with that smarmy “They Might Be Giants” attitude. The last track, “Ride Friendship,” thumps with a rapid, steady beat, and the band sings over and over, “You make my heart explode.” I can hear your heart explode in this one. Interesting instrumentation is used throughout, with trumpet, flute, electronics, and anything else that can enrich the listening experience. Sometimes there’s not enough variation from track to track, but this is a seriously fun album.




TURIN BRAKES – Outbursts (Cooking Vinyl, www.cookingvinyl.com)

Turin Brakes are perhaps best described as easy listening for the rock generation. Their music has a rock beat and esthetic, yet is soft and quiet, full of swelling violins and vocal choir backing, loads of acoustic guitar, and it sounds like even harp. There are hints of folk and country influence in there, too. Is this what the Jersey Beat crowd is going to listen to in our geriatric years? I can imagine us all wearing our Exploited T-shirts, sitting in the rocking chairs, and listening to this stuff, falling asleep on the front porch. But we ain’t there yet. I know I need music a little more vital than this.


SHILPA RAY AND HER HAPPY HOOKERS – A Fish Hook An Open Eye (www.shilparay.com)

Wow, what a stunner of an album! There’s the unexpected juxtaposition of harmonium and glockenspiel against raucous rock. There’s the wide range of Ray’s incredible vocals, from smooth and melodic to growling, mean and nasty. I love the cover of “I Only Have Eyes For You,” an old standard that you’ve never heard done this way. Other tracks, with titles like “Filthy and Free,” “I’m Not Frigid Yet,” and “What the Fuck Was I Thinking?” range from edgy crooners to rootsy, bluesy rock and roll. “The Coward Cracked the Dawn…” has a sort of old western epic ballad feel about, but faster and rowdier. “Woman Sets Boyfriend on Fire” has a scary title, but is really more about the jumbled, confused emotions related to relationships, both being in them and out of them. I think the track that really did me in was the closer, “Looking for Mr. Goodbar,” a simple track with just Ray singing and playing the harmonium. Shilpa, I don’t know if you’re a good person or not (she sings that she isn’t), but you sure are a talented songwriter, singer and musician. I loved this album on first listen, but I’m more enamored with each replay. Highly recommended!

 

VAMPIRE WEEKEND – Contra (XL Recordings, www.xlrecordings.com)

This is a light, breezy, eclectic mix of sounds, from calypso to Afro-pop, all infused with American pop sensibilities. I think that’s why I am instantly reminded of Paul Simon’s African inspired melodies. “California English” is an amazingly weird track, mixing top-40 vocal effects, ethnic melodies, and full-on orchestral arrangements. I really like “White Sky,” too, with its bright electronics and swirling female backing vocals. “Cousins” is a jumpy tune that will have you dancing like a fool. And the closing track, “I Think UR A Contra,” is likely the best on the album, slow and shimmering, a little jazzy, a little lazy and hazy. Falsetto vocals meander around over electronics, piano and percussion. Strings come in about half-way through, setting quite a mood. Just beautiful. I’m impressed!

BOY EATS DRUM MACHINE – Hoop and Wire
(www.tenderlovingempire.com)

Boy Eats Drum Machine is Portland singer, producer, songwriter, visual artist and multi-instrumentalist Jon Ragel. This guy is freakishly talented, playing every instrument on the disc. The songs are very jangly, poppy numbers, all with the aforementioned drum machine pounding away with a steady dance beat. There are some really interesting touches, such as the vocal chorus toward the end of track 2, “Constellation.” There’s some cool sequencing, scratching, and effects added. Saxophone, samples, and other effects punctuate the tracks like crazy, making this sound sort of like a cross between 80s dance music, indie pop, and children’s songs. This is really entertaining stuff, and my first contender of the year for a spot in my top ten list.


PATRICK BOWER AND THE WORLD WITHOUT MAGIC – The Dark Lord (of Love) EP
(www.worldwithoutmagic.com)

Slow, dark and mysterious is the sound that Patrick Bower seems to be shooting for. The vocal quality Bower has is reminiscent of Jim Morrison, with that same deep, smooth, brooding character. But Bower’s phrasing is very halting, with lots of stop/start/stop feel to it, which is a little off-putting. The music ends up sounding a little too slow, a little dull. The result is sort of retro but without any rocking feeling. World without magic, indeed.

HANNIS BROWN – Oh Ah Ee (www.hannisbrown.com)

Yow! Something different, something original! Hannis Brown is an LA-based experimental composer, and this is Brown’s debut album. It blends indie-rock, free jazz, industrial music and avant garde experimentalism to create sonic textures and evoke emotions. Sometimes it reminds me of Roger Miller’s musical journey between his gigs with Mission of Burma. In the intervening years he experimented with various genre mixing, in Birdsongs of the Mesozoic, No Man, and various solo projects. I also hear some of the attitude of one of the obscure bands of the 80s DC scene, 9353, in the slightly inharmonic, falsetto vocals. I also hear a bit of the great, short-lived Chicago band The Fire Show, in some of the dramatic use of strings, and the shifts from minimalist neo-classical to explosive rock. There’s also a bit of the post-rock jazziness of Tortoise in some of the tracks. If I have one complaint, it’s that some of the same ideas a used over and over in many of the tracks, which can lead to a bit of monotony. Overall, a very cool debut, and I look forward to more from Hannis Brown.

DRUG RUG – Paint the Fence Invisible (www.blackandgreenerecords.com)

This is psychedelic pop, with definite debt owed to bands like The New Pornographers. After the sparkly, hazy opener, “Follow,” “Haunting You” comes belting out like it could have come straight out of Vancouver. “Never Tell” has more of a bluesy feel, and then “Blue Moon” comes along with a relaxed psych pop feel, like TNP on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The vocal harmonization is right out of TNP’s playbook. “Hannah Please” is one of the more raucous tracks, the one with the most drive on the album, and is more of a garage pop feel than the rest of the disc. Other tracks go back toward the more relaxed feel, like “Don’t Be Frightened By the Devil,” which almost sounds almost like it could have come from the soundtrack of a 60s era movie with that mod, psychedelic theme. Overall, this is a decent effort, yet a little too laid back. I would like liked a little more of the drive of “Hannah Please” and less of the meandering of some of the tracks.

FELDIKEN – Small Songs About Us (www.feldiken.com)

This is fairly basic singer-songwriter fare, with arrangements a little more elaborate than just acoustic guitar and vocals. Simple arrangements make up the bulk of this disc, with bits of country twang, Zydeco, a bit of jazz, but mostly standard folk-rock sort of stuff. I think the nearest comparison I could make is the late lamented Chicago performer, Steve Goodman. This has a similar vibe. But Feldiken is just a little too laid back; he doesn’t have the energy Goodman had. The tracks are all pretty much at the same tempo, there’s too little variation, and just not enough to hold my interest.


FIGHTING THE VILLAIN – First Impression (Pop Smear Records, www.popsmearrecords.com)

This stuff tries to be crunchy pop-punk, but all it accomplishes is sounding like every other “alternative” band out there trying to make it big. You can hear stuff just like this by simply turning on your radio and tuning to the local alternative rock radio station. There’s really nothing original or unique here, nothing edgy. First Impression is Fighting the Villain’s debut EP, and I’m afraid they haven’t left a very good first impression with me.

HURRICANE BELLS – Tonight is the Ghost (Vagrant Records, www.vagrant.com)

Another one-man effort, Hurricane Bells is Steve Schlitz’s debut solo effort. Schlitz is a member of the heavy rock band Longboard, and is, perhaps, best known for getting a track (Monsters) onto the soundtrack of the teen vampire movie, Twilight: New Moon.” But don’t let that deter you. This is decent, understated music, more in the shoe-gazer genre than anything else. The arrangements are fairly sparse, but reverb and overdubbing helps fill out the sound. “Tonight I’m Going to Be Like a Shooting Star” is a personal favorite. The vocals and acoustic guitar are very front and center, but then there’s some other guitars and flute in the background with reverb, adding atmosphere. The chorus shimmers, sort of like Spacemen 3 or Spiritualized. Nice stuff.

JEMINA PEARL – Break It Up (www.ecstaticpeace.com)

This tries to be “bad girl” punk edged rock’n’roll music, a la Joan Jett. And, while some of the tracks get close, too many of them are a little to boring, like “Ecstatic Appeal,” a track that sounds more like edgy Abba than the Blackhearts, or “Nashville Shores,” a real snoozer. And the production is way too slick to be taken as serious bad girl rock. Probably the best track on the album is the last one, “So Sick;” it comes the closest to achieving what it set out to. As a matter of fact, I would say that the beginning and end of the disc are OK, but the entire middle is pretty dull.

THE SCRUFFS – Conquest (www.thescruffs.com)

OK, so the Scruffs are this on-again off-again band that started out in Memphis in 1977. And they sound like they’re still back there in 1977. The music is just so late 70s soulful rock. On some of the tracks, most notably the closer, “Land of Trance,” I feel like I’m almost listening to Pink Floyd. “Curse of the Mau Mau” sounds like an edgier Beach Boys. If it weren’t for lyrics like those on “iPod Girl” there would be no way to know that this wasn’t recorded back in the seventies. And I guess that’s part of the problem; they haven’t really progressed over the 30 plus years they’ve been around.

SIX GALLERY – Breakthroughs in Modern Art (www.superballmusic.com)

This is reasonably standard “alternative” rock, though the musicianship is at a somewhat higher level than your typical commercial band. The guitarist is constantly showing off his skills with loads of flourishes that sound nice, but really don’t add much. Actually, the guitar work is way overdone, and gets annoying after awhile, with repeating scales and arpeggios, up and down, over and over. OK, you can play fast, who cares? Can you play good hooks and great melodic lines? Vocalist Daniel Francis sounds like he would be equally at home in a boy band as in this “alternative” rock outfit, with his pseudo-dreamy vocals on some tracks, and his Bono-like soaring lines on others. Probably the only decent track on the disc is the last one, “Smile Like a Switch,” which has a much more epic feel, and much more real. It’s, unfortunately, a very short track, but lyrically, it seems to make quite a statement about why the band has gone in the direction they have: “You smile on and off like a switch / I write silly songs to get rich / but it’s honest work when you’ve tried just as hard to stay sick. / Grow old and grow out your mistakes / Firm grasp or occasionally sane / Nothing I do or say / Make peace with your face when it’s fake / I’ll give you what I got to give / Life’s hard, but it’s harder to live / And there’s always dead ends. / We act like we are on sinking ships.” Yeah, life’s hard. Yeah, fans are fickle (especially so with commercially oriented bands). And yes, there are dead ends. But there’s also integrity and being true to one’s self vs. artistic prostitution. You don’t need to make peace with your fake face. Six Gallery is a group of talented musicians, and I wish they would use that talent for good, and do albums that have more songs like this last one. But instead of even just ending on high note, they tack on a “hidden track” of more fast guitar noodling. Guys, you can do so much better.

SUMMER PEOPLE – Good Problems (www.readleaderrecords.com)

This album opens with an upbeat, countrified knee-slappin’ hand clappin’ track, “Two Hearted River,” complete with whoops and hollers. It’s over way too soon, at under two minutes, yet it sets a great tone for the disc. No, the album isn’t alt-country, though some of it is. What it is, though, is energetic and raucous, tender and delicate, and everything in between. “Broken Bones” is a hard rockin’ post-garage punk track that just oozes attitude. The whoops and hollers are back, but in a more greasy, slicked back way than on the opener. The next two tracks explore a quieter side, with “The Other Side” being a mostly acoustic track, with a bit of twang, and “For Giving In” providing a bit of shoegazing shimmer. The title track consists mainly of pounding drums right out of Gene Krupa’s opener to Benny Goodman’s “Sing Sing Sing,” one of the greatest big band swing tracks of all time. The vocals are sort of shouted poetry. Other tracks are equally as varied as the others, with entries such as “See Ya Later, Wouldn’t Want To Be Ya,” an introspective, meandering instrumental, and “Balcony,” a track that slowly builds in intensity, with soaring wall of guitars and vocals. “Eclectic” doesn’t even begin to describe this, but “good” sure does.

TAB THE BAND – Zoo Noises (www.northstreetrecords.net)

The TAB Band is the offspring of Aerosmith – quite literally. Half of the foursome consists of Tony and Adrian Perry, Joe Perry’s kids. The Boston-based quartet start out well enough, with driving, melodic power-pop. But after a couple of decent tracks, things start to change with “I’ll Be Waiting,” which alternates between the sound of the first tracks and the swagger of the Rolling Stones circa 1969. And the longer I listen, the more I’m convinced I’ve traveled back in time and am listening to the new Stones record. Until about the mid-way point, that is, when we get a Sex Pistol’s influenced “Left for Dead in Hilton Head,” sounding for all the world like it’s 1977 all over again. “A Girl Like You” is one redeeming track, with a much more ethnic rock flair, sounding a bit like drunken Irish pub music, part Greek bouzouki. But overall, this album really doesn’t do anything for me. If you’re a fan of late sixties and early 70s power-pop, Rolling Stones, Cheap Trick and the like, you’ll probably enjoy this. But that’s not saying very much.


THIS MOMENT IN BLACK HISTORY – Public Square (www.smogveil.com)

Hailing from Cleveland, Ohio is appropriate for this band. It’s home of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And this band IS rock and roll. It’s raw, energetic, frenetic, spastic, and everything else you would expect. There’s a definite punk sound here, but not old school punk or hardcore. There’s a more modern, yet more garage feel here. The tracks are short, with most clocking in at under two and a half minutes, but that just means more power per second. The tracks are titled very oddly, with names like “Forest Whiteaker (In an Uncompromising Role)” and “Makes My Teeth White.” “Theophylline Valentine” is a great track with a repeating, descending line, and a cross between manic raw rock and free jazz. Speaking of jazz, the opening drum beats of “About Last Night” make me feel almost like I’m listening to an old Blue Note album, but then it quickly launches into another rapid-fire, garage-punk infused fit of frenzy. You get the idea. And you should get this album – it’s a natural choice for Jersey Beat readers, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as much as I did.

 



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JerseyBeat.com is an independently published music fanzine covering punk, alternative, ska, techno and garage music, focusing on New Jersey and the Tri-State area. For the past 25 years, the Jersey Beat music fanzine has been the authority on the latest upcoming bands and a resource for all those interested in rock and roll.


 
 
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