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REVIEWS BY JOE
WAWZYRNIAK
 TWO
DARK BIRDS (myspace.com/twodarkbirds)
Offering up a pleasantly tuneful batch of laid-back
country-rock tunes, this album hits a nicely
mellow groove early on and rides it straight
to your heart by blending the pretty harmonies
with lots of sweet and thoughtful lyrics. Steve
Koester’s warm, husky voice has a soothing
and relaxed quality to it. The arrangements
are likewise very twangy and melodic. The songs
explore various dark and troubling aspects of
the human condition, ranging from slow and mournful
(the lovely “My Mother the Stereo”)
to more gritty and bluesy (the neatly bumpin’
“Great Plains”). Best of all, there’s
a smart, mature and perceptive sensibility at
work here that’s both refreshing and engaging
in equal measure. A fine and affecting album.
KIRA LYNN CAIN - The Ideal Hunter (www.evangelinerecords.com)
Languid and melancholy, sad and slow, with
a brooding gloom-doom atmosphere that’s
thick with anguish and despair, singer/songwriter
Kira Lynn Cain’s striking debut album
cuts deep and makes one hell of a lasting impression.
Granted, the gradual, druggy tempos and trudging
clip-clop beats take a little getting used to,
but the beautifully moody music still draws
you in with its hypnotic mix of plain-spoken
forlornness and powerful sense of eerie mystery.
The spare, yet tuneful arrangements really do
the trick. Cain’s soft, mournful, achingly
delicate vocals and intriguingly abstract lyrics
make for a formidable double act. A supremely
moving and haunting album.
 STEPHANIE
WHITE AND THE NEW JERSEY PHILTH HARMONIC -
Knee Deep InSanity (www.myspace.com/PhilthHarmonic)
Opening on a nice’n’groovy note
with the funky, syncopated slow-drag jazzy number
“Girls Have Expenses,” this six
piece group blends tasty elements of such diverse
music genres as funk, soul, rock, jazz, blues
and folk into a highly cool, rich and delicious
synthesis. Stephanie White’s amazingly
strong and sultry voice totally hits the insanely
sexy’n’smoky spot. The hoppin’
arrangements likewise score a bull’s eye,
with the mellow saxophones, sprightly keyboards,
jaunty acoustic guitars, and sturdy drums keeping
things lively, exciting and above all exquisitely
harmonic throughout. Highlights include the
touching “Teardrops,” the fiercely
crunchy’n’punchy “You’re
Not Alone,” the graceful ballad “Sustain,”
and the wonderfully rousing closing tune “Did
I Change You?”. An excellent and most
impressive album.
EVEREST - Ghost Notes (Vapor Records)
This Los Angeles quintet come through with
a pleasingly mellow and melodic rock music album
that goes heavy on the brooding atmosphere while
still offering plenty of tight and tasty playing.
The appealingly raspy vocals, lulling guitar
riffs, fluid basslines, and steady drums all
seamlessly blend together to create a very rich,
warm and engaging sound that’s a total
treat to hear. Better yet, there’s a real
thoughtfulness and sensitivity evident in the
lyrics throughout. The songs alternate between
low-key and introspective to more punchy and
hard-rocking; all of them hit the tuneful spot
with utmost skill and flair to spare. A nifty
album.
 BOOTLEG
TONIC - Volume 1 (www.bootlegtonic.com)
The duo of Georgiana Trent and Eran Taviv deliver
a beautifully mellow and reflective bluesy gem
of a low-key album. Trent’s supremely hoarse
and throaty voice projects anguish and heartbreak
with extremely bracing and affecting directness.
Taviv’s tight and understated guitar playing
greatly adds to the delicate intimacy of the songs
without ever becoming remotely show-offy or obtrusive.
The slow tempos and gradual beats are both suitably
laid-back, thereby further enhancing the soulful
soothing quality of the music. Better still, there’s
a pleasingly smart and thoughtful mature adult
sensibility at work in the terse, but insightful
lyrics. Moreover, the arrangements are spare and
stripped-down, with no needless tricked-up razzle-dazzle
getting in the way of the arrestingly simple,
yet tuneful melodies. Bootleg Tonic are a couple
of adults who have relevant things to say about
the human condition. It’s this refreshingly
grown-up no-nonsense attitude which in turn makes
this excellent album one to relish.
THE STATELY GENTLEMEN - The Hyperion Sessions
(myspace.com/thestatelygentlemenofreno)
 Hey,
you? Yeah you, pal. Wanna hear some nicely groovin’
and swingin’ 5 song EP CD slice of neatly
laid-back, yet still smoothly bumpin’
rock? I’m sure you do. What makes this
worth a listen, you ask? For starters, there’s
the appealingly raspy vocals. Next up we’ve
got the pleasingly crunchy and tuneful arrangements.
Moreover, you can really dig the steady drums,
rippin’ guitars, and fluid basslines,
all of which keep the music catchy and hoppin’
throughout. That enough to convince you that
this CD makes the cut as one snazzy little number?
Yeah, I’m convinced, too.
HEAD OF FEMUR - Great Plains (www.myspace.com/headoffemur)
I listened to this album after a very long and
grueling day at work. I was tired, I was cranky,
I cursed at my pet parrot, I wasn’t exactly
in the best of spirits. But said sagging spirits
immediately perked right up as I heard the marvelously
quirky and lively opening song “Great Plains.”
I got totally caught up in the rich, complex and
melodic full-bore orchestral arrangements, the
hoarse, yet affecting vocals, the snappy tempos,
the simply heavenly harmonies, the wickedly witty
and creative songwriting, and the amusingly flaky
sensibility which permeates every last gloriously
tuneful and idiosyncratic note of this fabulously
eccentric one-of-a-kind oddball pop-rock marvel.
By the end of the album, I had forgotten all about
my crummy day at work and felt pretty damn happy
and serene. If that alone doesn’t speak
volumes about how terrific this album truly is,
then I guess I better call it a day as a rock
critic.
 THE
MAINE - The Way We Talk (Fearless)
Offering up five songs worth of infectiously
bubbly, catchy and upbeat pop-rock, this nifty
EP CD positively sparkles with a joy and verve
that’s impossible to either dislike or
resist. The cheery vocals, constant snappy tempos,
sharp, tuneful arrangements, and overall pleasant
sensibility all ensure that this breezy little
number is a complete delight from start to finish.
CAROL LESTER - Feed the Love/Starve the War
(www.carollester.com)
Singer/songwriter Carol Lester delivers a beautifully
thoughtful and melodic album which offers 11 marvelously
lovely, lively and engaging tracks. Lester’s
sultry soprano voice and sharp songwriting make
for a potent double whammy, stimulating both the
emotions and the intellect in a most stirring
and straightforward manner. Better still, the
songs themselves are a neatly eclectic bunch:
They range from soft and lulling (the exquisite
opening tune “Precious”), to more
sinewy and hard-rockin’ (the rousing “Feed
the Love, Starve the War”), to even quite
funky (the divinely soulful “Spacious Skies”),
while always remaining harmonic and arresting.
A total treat.
 EVANGELISTA
- Hello, Voyager (Constellation Records)
Here’s another album that goes heavy on
the splendidly singular and irregular “screw
it, do it” defiantly offbeat and uncommercial
avant garde experimental weirdness. Carla Bozulich’s
arrestingly ragged and otherworldly smoky voice
casts a hellishly riveting spell, projecting a
tremendous sense of anguish and pure emotion with
startling directness. The arrangements are likewise
pretty off-the-wall, with clanging drums, piercing
guitar riffs, weeping strings, and gritty basslines
crashing and swirling about with a certain harsh
and abrasive, yet still bracing and compelling
sense of strangely harmonic sonic abandon. Sweet
and standard this music sure ain’t, but
it still hits the satisfying spot as a refreshingly
different and unconventional change-of-pace excursion
into peculiarly beautiful dissonance.
YONI GORDON AND THE GOODS - Buried in
the Basement (www.yonigordon.com)
 Kicking
off to a stirring start with the rousing titular
track, this album bounces and bops along with
a winning blend of catchy hooks and pure go-for-it
infectiously merry momentum. Yoni Gordon’s
vibrant vocals are a treat to hear. Ditto the
fluid guitars, smooth basslines, and steady
stomping drums. Better still, there’s
a real warmth and feeling of sheer joy evident
throughout that’s impossible to either
resist or dislike. The songs all project a real
sparkling aplomb and energy that never let’s
up for a minute, thereby ensuring that this
delightfully dynamic album is a pure pleasure
to listen to from start to finish.
THE HEAVY - Great Vengeance and
Furious Fire (www.myspace.com/theheavy73)
This British band sure ain’t
kiddin’ about their name, baby. This music
definitely is heavy. As in heavy tough, yet
melodic funk. Heavy in yo face soulful vocals.
Heavy urgent horns. Heavy gritty guitars. Heavy
hard grooves. Heavy sinewy beats. Heavy charging
tempos. Heavy throbbin’ bass. Heavy thoughtful
lyrics. Can you dig it, man? Well, I certainly
can. ‘Cause it’s heavy, man. Totally
heavy. In the best way possible, too.
THE FAKE BOYS - Sleepwalk (www.myspace.com/thefakeboys)
 A
perfectly crunchy’n’punchy six song
EP CD explosion of furiously energetic rock’n’roll
done with a winning dearth of pretense and a
galvanizing surplus of pure go-for-it enthusiasm.
The peppy vocals express plenty of joy and vigor
with infectiously unbridled aplomb. The sturdy
basslines, relentless drums, and fiercely poppin’
guitars likewise cut loose with lots of fiery
flair to spare. Moreover, there’s a certain
cheery attitude present throughout which in
turn makes this snappy little number loads of
fun to listen to.
PANDA RIOT (pandariotband@gmail.com)
Offering up nine tracks worth
of beautifully melodic and mesmerizing indie
pop-rock, this excellent and impressive full
length debut album goes down nice and easy.
Rebecca Scott’s breathy vocals are lush
and soothing, projecting a delicate grace and
sweetness that’s a pleasure to hear. The
gradual tempos and heavy, yet constant beats
combine together to create a positively hypnotic
laid-back electronic sound that has a certain
quietly potent and arresting heavenly buzz to
it. The spacey keyboards, humming bass, cutting
guitars, and persistent drum machines keep the
music tuneful and compelling throughout, thus
ensuring that this album overall makes for a
highly satisfying listening experience.
PUNY HUMAN - Universal Freak
Out (www.smallstone.com)
 Assaulting
one’s sonic senses with all the hard-charging
drive and ferocity of an out-of-control locomotive
tearing down the tracks at maximum speed, this
album makes a strong immediate impression with
the powerful opening song “Wake Up Williamsburg.”
The huge, pounding drum beats, fierce churning
basslines, and gritty grinding guitars shred
it up with startling go-for-the-jugular brio.
The raw’n’ragged full-throated vocals
likewise kick major ass in no uncertain terms.
The brisk steamrolling tempos never let up for
a minute. Sweet and subdued this music sure
ain’t, but it definitely hits the savagely
satisfying spot with bracing on-target accuracy
all the same.
MUSIC FROM THE FILM - Playfully
Abrasive (www.myspace.com/musicfromthefilm)
The title of this album sure ain't
kidding. This music is very abrasive indeed.
However, said music is also quirky, inspired,
and highly original as well. We’re talking
seriously hardcore avante-garde experimental
atonal aural oddness that only the most devout
aficionado of extremely weirded-out “screw
it, do it” outre noise could possibly
enjoy listening to. The wonky string-bending
basslines, incessant drums, and such offbeat
instruments as a glockenspiel, maracas, a theremin
and chimes create a strikingly bizarre and mercurial
sound that’s both arresting and unusual
in equal measure. Granted, the music featured
on this highly peculiar album might be an acquired
taste (lovers of generic Top 40 radio shouldn’t
even think of giving this disc a spin on their
CD players), but for those adventurous souls
looking for something fresh and different this
one comes highly recommended.
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