Every week we mention a couple of artists that are worth your time to check out that were not featured in our weekly reviews.
Artist Album Rating Mood Ring Big Glow 3.5 Sin Thetic Colorblind 3.4 Earthling Language 3.4 The Fractal Perspective EP 3.6 Jimmy Rupnow Behind Fire 3.8 Mount Fuji and the Galaxy Everything is Beautiful 3.3 Trick Grizzly Bear Essentials EP 3.4 Sgt. Troy The Rover 3.8
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For many people the punk rock genre is summed up by musicians with piercings and tattoos who play really fast songs that only last two minutes at most and that they scream with vehement incoherence. But for those who know the real story the punk rock genre is a Goliath, which branches out into many sub genres and sounds. Perhaps one of the most well known offshoots of the punk rock genre is Irish punk, sometimes known as Celtic punk, whose most famous practitioners include Flogging Molly and The Dropkick Murphy’s.
Another such band that practices the fine art of Irish punk on some of their songs is Saginaw Michigan three-piece The Tosspints. And Saginaw Michigan is a fine birthplace for a band that, on their latest record The Privateer chronicle the working class, the underachievers; those for who a life of heavy drinking is just life. The trio waste no time getting down to rocking on the stomp rock opener “Pirates Life,” which exists on the planes of both punk with its speedy drums and quick and jutting start-stops, but also has heavy metal influenced guitars which sear through the song like a fired up piece of steel. They show off their talent for genre hopping inducing the Celtic tempo-ed “Untitled Western” with a gritty old time western guitar feel. But that true classic Celtic punk feel is where The Tosspints really shine. “Marching On” is as political punk as it gets, chronicling a war veteran who has returned home a changed person. The song punches like a fist and there are war cries of “Hurah! Hurah!” as “Marching On” hammers home its theme. The same could be said of the politically charged “We are the Many” with its angry anti-corruption vocals that come out in growls and snarls. Other songs that follow suit are the excellent and true to form drinking anthem “My Last and Only Friend,” and the straight up punk prowess of the short and sweet “Sailors Grave.” The most impressive part of The Privateer is the sprawling epic final track, “The Privateer” a novella of a song on which The Tosspints touch on multiple genres, going from dirge-y ballads, to thrashing punk, to classic rock. “The Privateer” could serve as its own EP in itself. The Tosspints could have gone ahead and made a Celtic punk genre record with each song fast and furious anthem to whiskey and poverty; instead they made a well-rounded record that includes a larger representation than just punk. It is a record made by three people who feel that existence cannot be summed up by three chords and a lot of screaming.
Pull Awake by June Star is a fantastic album of Americana-ish songs that are fused with country, pop and rock influences. Driven by the gritty baritone voice of lead singer/songwriter Andrew Grimm, the songs feel both ancient and contemporary at the same time. Some of this has to do with the well-crafted songs, but the excellent production and engineering certainly contributes to this as well.
From the aching pedal-steel guitars that swim around in “House Call” to the subtle knee-slap like percussion and Rhodes-like keys in the banjo driven “Walk Away,” each instrument is treated smartly and crafted carefully for each song. Songs like “Tether,” “Wonders” and Proof are great examples of radio friendly songs with clever catchy hooks. “Passed Over” sounds like early Wilco meets Beck (when he’s in his folk persona), led by palm-muted guitar and a crisp snare sound. “Coma” contains a catchy hook with some half-time breaks for contrast. “House Call” is probably the best song on the album with lush country harmonies and sly lyrics that border on the edge between sad and funny. “Atrophy” has a nice harmonica solo over brushed snare drums, but the refrain is a bit repetitive. Some more development in this song would be nice (although perhaps it is in reference to the title). “Apollo” has a stoner-rock vibe with grunge-y guitars over a head-nodding beat. The album concludes with “The King Is Dead” which is a stark stripped down song containing only acoustic and pedal steel guitar underneath Grimm’s voice. It’s a haunting conclusion with a very catchy hook, and an interesting hushed way to end the album. Overall, June Star has lots of talent in songwriting, performance and production. By combining all of their strengths, they’ve really caught lightning in a bottle.
If you want to hear the epitome of bubble gum mainstream pop then look no further than Shine by Claudia Norris. Take American Idol and mix it with what it actually feels like to experience Disney World and then deplete the idea that pain, suffering or anything bad could possibly happen to you in this world and you should have an idea of the type of music this is.
The thing that is hard to take about this music is that there is no shade of grey what so ever. It shows a fabricated optimism in a perfect world that doesn’t actually exist in reality. Take for instance the first song “Tonight” which starts with a cliché club beat. Norris sings, “I want to live forever I want to be young with you tonight. Let's blow all our money and dance until we see the sunlight.” The vacuous lyrics and shady advice continues on the chorus. She sings, “tonight let's go crazy.” Every cloud has a silver lining and in this case it is her dynamic vocals. On the next song “Shine” Norris ditches the club beat and goes for more organic instrumentation. The lyrics read like a motivational speech but could use some more originality. “Marry You” paints an insanely unrealistic view of marriage and relationships in general. Norris wraps it all up by singing about love at first sight. It’s another “perfect” story with a “perfect” ending in a “perfect” world. I’m sure Norris is a nice person but this music might be enjoyed by young teenage girls who have led completely sheltered lives rather than adults. Anyone who has actually lived life knows it isn’t an everlasting peachy cream that just gets better. You can fall in love with someone but you can also fall out of love just as quick. Marriage isn’t easy - it takes work a lot of work. There are ups and down, there are good moments and not so great moments. Life is beautiful but it’s also complex, ambiguous, full of grey and can be a struggle. On the same token we are complex creatures and when we turn to music we want truths that reflect the vast array of emotions we experience in some way.
Anchor by My Politic Is a collection of folk songs sung in tight, authentic harmonies over a variety of instrumentation. It’s presented in a laid back way with tape hiss, coughs and other noises present, which adds to the calm ambience of the band.
The Jackson Browne-ish vocal of lead singer Kaston Guffey melds well with the harmonies from Nick Pankey and Wilson Conroy, never overwhelming the melody but instead filling out the frequencies. The sparse instrumentation is nice throughout the album, from the banjo driven songs “Before It’s Too Late” and “Heartless” to the Paul Simon-esque guitar that weaves over the organ of “Ways Of Love.” “Civil War Song” which is a quick but poignant song, opens with the melody on the guitar before a fiddle takes over the solo with whole note double-stops. “Nobody To Blame” is similarly stripped down with tasteful dobro breaks throughout. “The Truth” is a country waltz led by the mandolin. “God Vs. Evolution” has lots going on between dobro slides and mandolin trills, and gets a little hectic in the instrumental sections, each instrument competing for its moment. “Ain’t No Saint” has a beautifully mournful fiddle, but the drums get too busy in the tom fills. The title track which closes the album, a Brown Album-era Band-like song has a similar issue of being too busy on the drums, though the bass lines really drive the song (as well as the mandolin-led bridge). The songwriting is quite good as are the vocal and instrumental performances. The album in general lacks some of the dynamics that seem evident in the performance, which however could be the mastering. It would be nice to hear the tasteful volumes and intensities that seem to be happening by the band to really let the songs and performances swell.
If you’re going to bother wasting your time trying to be an artist, perhaps the best thing you can do for yourself is to have a sense of humor about your work that comes across as self-aggrandizing. The members of Gainesville, Florida chamber pop conglomerate Tacachale Chamber Orchestra describe their debut record Ocean Floor Funeral as “…The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Smiths and The Bluegrass Boys playing a funeral…” I wouldn’t have summed the record out in quite that way although after turning the phrase around in my head a while and listening to Ocean Floor Funeral several times I get the sense of where the band are coming from.
The six songs on Ocean Floor Funeral definitely contain elements attributed to each of the aforementioned bands, the Beatle-esque psych sound and layered vocal tracks via the Beach Boys, the sad subject matter which Morrissey was able to inject into even his most uplifting songs, and the banjo seemingly creeps into every track. Ocean Floor Funeral opens with “Wish You Were Him” a Yellow Submarine sounding orchestral pop ditty the feeling of being underwater as it seemingly drifts along with a quiet and stark humming, over which are layered banjo, electric guitar and electronic samples. Tacachale Chamber Orchestra set the mood here, laying out all their effects in the first song and then making sure each of these effects makes its way, however interchangeably into the next five songs. “Side of the Road” pairs orchestral electric strings with a bouncy piano melody and warm vocals. Near the end the banjo creeps in momentarily if only to keep the formula going. “What's Your Home?” is a Beach Boys likened monk chant, ethereal and the best song on the record. It’s power comes from the harmonization of the multiple vocal tracks and lack of too much instrumentation. “This Verse is Over” and “Don’t Wake Up” are both just a bit over the two-minute mark, but they try to pack so much in both instrumentally and vocally and the songs come off as not fully formed. Tacachale Chamber Orchestra is definitely onto something good with Ocean Floor Funeral. Their inspirations are solid, though they haven’t quite figured how to take these influences and use them in a less direct way. For all their ambitions, the songs, only one of which hits the three-minute mark, are too short to really leave any sort of lasting impression on the listener.
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Jillian Speer is a Los Angeles based singer-songwriter who recently released her EP entitled Daggers & Suede. Daggers & Suede is ultimately a pop album but a number of other styles show up here and there. Speer is at her best when she lets loose almost as if she is improvising. More on that soon.
The album starts with “Fast Car” which is a Tracy Chapman song. I highly recommend the version Xiu Xiu did if you haven't heard it. I enjoyed Speer’s version but I have to admit I liked the delivery on the verse better than the chorus. The verse seemed more soulful and subdued while the verse felt overly poppy. The title track is a solid tune with a catchy vocal melody. It’s probably the most single worthy track out of the six. The everlasting crescendo towards the end will be to many people's liking. “Spill” was a highlight and I started to realize how much I liked her voice when she digs in deep and makes it soulful. “Dum Dum Dai” is the track that has a bit more attitude, energy and really a different vibe from the previous songs. Speer goes off with her vocal performance and I have no idea what she was saying but I enjoyed what I heard. It reminded me of Eastern style singing at point. The lead electric is also a nice addition to this song. “Fisherman” is another strong song, which has an inspired vocal performance while the closer “Change is Constantly Closing” winds things down with a smooth but perfectly enjoyable track. Speer has a lot of talent. She is a great vocalist and great guitarist who can write a good song. There are a lot of good things happening on the album and I hope to hear more soon.
Chicago native Josh Phillips went to school for music and like many other young musicians went to Nashville to establish his career. The pop/Americana singer/songwriter is influenced from everyone from Bob Dylan to James Taylor to John Mayer.
His debut New Beginnings establishes a foundation that he can build upon. The songs feel warm and soft while also containing a lot of mainstream viability. He gets going with “Completely out of You” which jumps out of the gate with a full band. The songs spew the essence of soft rock. It’s a song that could be played on the “feel good all day at work” radio station that contains no surprises and sounds similar like too many songs to mention. “Steal Me Away” has a bit of country flair and could fit under the category of country/pop. You quickly realize that Phillips has done his homework and knows what people who want a simple, easily digestible pop song are looking for. “A New Tomorrow” moves along at a steady pace while “Leave in Love” further establishes the sound Phillips is going for. “Leave in Love” was a highlight amongst the batch and is a heartbreaking song that is quite optimistic. The one deviation and personal favorite was “No Sleep Tonight.” You can hear his influence from Mayer on this song as it drips with a bit more soul and contains elements of blues. I’m sure Phillips is making the music he wants but it also felt safe. I would have liked to hear a bit more experimentation but Phillips seemed happy with following the basic criteria of pop. This is a straightforward debut and you will know fairly quickly if you will be a fan.
The cover art for Bonne Finken’s sophomore effort Fairytales/LoveAffair immediately got my attention. It seemed eccentric, bold and inventive and I was hoping the same for her music. At the end of the day Fairytales/LoveAffair is a pop album that doesn’t take many chances outside of the basic tropes you hear in mainstream pop and also attempts too many different style while not committing to one distinct sound. That being said Fairytales/LoveAffair has some inspired moments and she not only has a powerful voice but often feels empowering.
The album opens with “Fall” which seems like it was put there because it's the most glaring and in your face. Finken gets to the chorus in under a minute and gets out quickly as well. It's undeniable her singing is great and the production is good even if the transitions were predictable. One of the highlights and the most inventive song is “I’mnotwaiting.” The music is between St. Vincent and Lady Gaga. It moves forward with an undeniable energy and the production was really exceptional. Unfortunately that song isn’t indicative of the energy throughout the rest of the album. “Step Back Baby” is a super poppy sounding song that is destined for FM radio or the dance floor. Instead of running with that energy she completely depletes it with “Isaiah.” This is a sparse piano ballad that sounded good by itself but didn’t work quite as well if you wanted to listen to an album from beginning to end. The subdued energy remains with “Please.” The juxtaposition between Lady Gaga dance tracks like “Magic” and “Let’s Play” and a song like “Say You Do” which is straightforward pop makes you wonder what angle the next song will be written from. “My Heart” was a well-produced song that is quite epic in a number of ways. I enjoyed the percussive elements and orchestral string here. Fairytales/LoveAffair is a solid effort but feels like a step towards a more realized work. Although there are some great moments and songs Finken hasn’t defined her sound to the point where if her song comes on the radio you will know who she is. Laying off some of the more predictable pop clichés and digging into her essence as an original artist is where I hope she goes on her next release.
The Stollers have been around the block a couple of times. Heck, they've probably watched the block wane and right itself a handful of times over. The two brothers, Brad and Lesley Stoller, have been gigging around NYC since the ‘70s and, between then and now, ended up with a sound resembling a geologic timetable of the various evolutions and incarnations of folk rock throughout that period. Their recent release, Stationary Sun, comes as a 9th inning debut—but obviously without any elements of a freshman's folly. Instead it captures seasoned musicians nailing down the better part of a lifetime's ideas and styles with both evident ease and thoughtful design.
Stationary Sun wastes no time diving right in and setting the tone. The opening track “Into the Brand New Day” starts with an optimistic horn riff that falls somewhere in between the baroque sensibilities of Beirut and the triumphant classicalism of the Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Like the rest of the album, it doesn't spend too long in one place, quickly shuffling towards sparse guitar chords reminiscent of Neutral Milk Hotel before a wavering harmonica enters and gives way to a piano riff that could have been snatched from a Warren Zevon song. That's just a scant two minutes in! Despite the myriad of snippets that sound like this or that, the song, like the album as a whole, has coherence built around classic pop rock song structuring, various iterations the root riff/hook and on message, if not a bit simple and matter-of-fact, lyrics that sew the whole thing seamlessly together. By the second song, now with momentum established, drums stutter into a guitar and brass intro that harkens back to the Commodores song “Easy” before the piano takes the reigns and holds it down for some classic folk vocals. The vocals trading off with seemingly improvisational instrumental flourishes—often keys, but sometimes guitar, is one of the most unifying factors on the album. While tracks like “Loredana” might find the brothers oozing a little bit of smooth jazz and singing with laid back harmonies similar to Steve Miller, the next track trades in the space cowboy outfit for James Taylor or Neil Young-style soft vocals over Randy Newman-esque keys—but that give and take between vocal lines and loose, spindly guitar twanging maintains the balance that the Stoller brothers have established. The Stollers also stretch in a couple of other directions, from the near Oingo Boingo bounciness of “Culture War,” to the sweet and sweeping piano serenade of the outro track, “Water Wheel,” but they still somehow manage to maintain a very coherent sound. Some of the biggest props I can give these guys are for that ability to make so many years of musical heritage play out with that level of coherence. Despite taking such well worn source material as post-60's singer-songwriter folk tradition, the album excels by probing in several directions—but still finding a natural and intuitive evolution that ties it all together. I don't know that a single song here would make me stop in my tracks, but viewed as a whole it's a wonderful piece of work. The Stollers recorded this album after playing a series of monthly gigs in the East Village so that 'tried and tested on the road' feeling really comes through. The cohorts they conscripted integrate perfectly with the brothers' decades of history—and markedly contribute a depth that give the album a sense of rich, layered fullness in addition to some happy-go-lucky whimsy. Stationary Sun doesn't break the mold, but it does perhaps scrape the years of use from the cast to stamp out something clean and fresh. When they sing, “30 years have come and gone, the children now, as old as we were then,” there's a real sense of and appreciation for time passing. There's something very earnest being put forth here—a lifetime of experiences that still manage to be rooted in the present—with the musicianship and production value to capture it. |
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