The self-titled EP Curtwood Bearsman by Curtwood Bearsman is a quick introduction to some interesting songs performed with a blend of singer-songwriter acoustic folk as well as some amazing flamenco breaks.
“La Guitarra” opens the EP with Ani DiFranco-like strums and a Jack Johnson-esque vocal inflection. The guitar has a thin sound to it, but it works in the context of the album and song, sounding like the ode to the instrument is being performed in an intimate coffeehouse. The breakdown is unexpected but a nice change in the groove, and the solo adds to the texture of the song. “Is This Real?” opens with the cousin to the riff from “Burning Down The House.” The lyrics are sparse for the length of the song, but the double-tracked vocals fill out the sonic spectrum in a subtle but smart way. “Relajandro” is built around a nimble riff that is both intriguing and catchy. The laid-back nature of the vocal performance and strumming patterns lean into a tropical folk rock a la Jimmy Buffett and work well to establish a chill groove. The final guitar lines are clever and make for an excellent coda. “Tiempo” opens with flamenco styled guitar moving quickly with skill and flair around the guitar. It’s a striking and captivating way to open the song. After the vocals enter, the song moves more into an “All Along The Watchtower” pattern with occasional guitar flourishes to complement the vocals. There is a breakdown near the end, which is excellently executed, digging into some of the lower strings of the guitar making for a smart contrast in range. “Far Away” closes the EP with some more flamenco flourishes around a folk rock song. It builds well, and the guitar solo in the middle is well constructed moving through a variety of dynamics giving the song some real power and grit. The instrumental aspects of the EP are quite interesting and show off a fantastic understanding of the guitar. Some of the lyrics could go even deeper to match some of the instrumental performances, but overall it’s quite an enjoyable listen, giving lots of promise to further EPs and albums to be released
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Wingdings like so many other countless bands started in high school and after graduation the band had to break up because everyone was off to college. It wasn’t too long ago that bands would have no way of documenting their sound because home recording equipment was too expensive or just sounded too bad to bother. Fortunately these days you don’t need much money to record yourself (although you still need to have some knowledge when it comes to using it) and that's exactly what Wingdings did.
Their three-song EP entitled Transitions showcases an above average high school band who have a good amount of talent. The EP is far from perfect and the band attempts different styles some of which they get away and others that still need some tweaking. The band opens with “Illusions” which is their finest moment. It’s an upbeat almost funky track that benefits from slightly distorted guitars, tight drumming and impressive bass work. The vocal melody is catchy and I thought the delivery was on point. The vocalist sings “Driving under the fleeting sun / The dusk overtakes all the light that was shunned the beauty of the vast expanse the ocean waves, the flowers dance.” The second song "Vicarious" has good intentions but is a little bit off the mark. It’s a funky rap/jam session and at its best they sound vaguely like something you might have heard from Talking Heads. The vocalist has a bit more trouble with his delivery on this song in that's it's not that convincing or natural. They close strong with the last song entitled “Patience.” The band plays into their strengths by creating a cool, chill vibe that is easy to groove to. So now that the dust has settled and the band is off to college they can at the very least look back on this recording as a document of their younger years. On the other hand college goes by fast. In four or five years these guys could be back and with a whole new wealth of knowledge to sing about.
I listen to a ton of music. Much of it is relatively new music culled from the vast array of let’s call it the “indie rock” genre. Sometimes it’s by choice and other times it’s just business. The thing I have begun to notice about many newer bands today is that they definitely draw heavily on genres, which they weren’t even alive to hear during its heyday. Psychedelic rock seems to be a big one these days, as well as ‘80s synth pop and ‘60s jangle pop. It’s rare that anyone plays good old-fashioned rock n’ roll anymore. Then again these days the term “rock n’ roll” to me at least sometime sounds just as silly a genre name as “slacker-pop.”
Bearing all this in mind, imagine my excitement when I heard the first blistering blues rock chords of “I'm Gonna Make It” the opening track of the eponymous EP The Younger Brothers by San Diego rock n’ roll trio The Younger Brothers cutting through my speakers. I said to myself no matter what the final outcome of this little four-song EP is, at least they know how to open a fucking album. “I’m Gonna Make It” is a tongue in cheek ditty about someone who is trying too hard to “make it” in the music business. And though the ideas may seem a little cliché, the opening lines “More worried about getting famous/Than singing songs you believe” are definitely right on target and so direct. Bassist and lead singer Willis Farnsworth’s vocals have that scrappy sandpaper punk feel to them, and they’re complemented by drummer Steven Moak’s backing vocals and guitarist Jeff Starkey’s shredding guitar riffs. In contrast “O' Brother” has nuances of an Americana jam band. It rambles and ambles with an alt country twang but it reminded me of a cross between late ‘90s pop rock and something plucked from the more mainstream Grateful Dead catalogue. “Diggin'” has that same ‘90s rock vibe coupled with jam band aesthetics and also incorporates a whistle solo along with ‘80s hair metal guitar solos. The changes just didn’t keep the momentum flowing. However the straight up rocker “Red Shoes,” which plays around with jam band choruses, and heavy metal riffs and beats, provides a pretty raucous bookend to The Younger Brothers EP. The Younger Brothers are still young and have a lot to learn about honing in on their desired sound. They should spend a little more time listening to their older brothers’ bands. This isn’t by any means a jab, just a piece of advice from another guy who just happens to have learned everything he knows from his older brother.
Hailing from Newtown, CT Mother Tongue is a three-piece band comprised of Jeff Schmidt (vocals/bass), Chris Cech (guitar) and Ben Stokes (drums). They recently released an EP entitled The Office Life, which is a solid dose of indie rock. My first thought was these guys sound a lot like Cloud Nothings, my second thought was the guys sound like early Pavement.
My comparison to Cloud Nothings comes from mainly the first song “Easy Come Easy Go.” The style is unequivocally similar but nonetheless Mother Tongue still displays a lot of talent. “Easy Come Easy Go” has an undeniable energy and is also quite catchy in a number of ways. “Office Life” is where the Pavement vibe comes in. Schmidt sounds like Stephen Malkmus with his inflection and delivery on this song. The band’s most original sounding song is “Hangin’ Around.” It’s fairly well written but also doesn’t quite define the band's style. They close with “The City” which contains a bit of a bluesy vibe during the verse and rocks out pretty hard towards the end. Mother Tongue formed in February and released this EP in July. It’s really no wonder that they seem to be wearing their influences on their sleeves at this point. The essence of a band to emerge takes time and Mother Tongue is a prime example of a bunch of talented musicians in the embryonic stage that are feeling their way through. There is nothing wrong with that and I have to say I was impressed with what they pulled off in such a short amount of time. The thing is some bands come out of this stage to find their sound and others well just can’t seem to find it. At this point it's just too early to know what these guys are capable of. For right now we can safely put them into a category of “wait and see” but if I was a betting man I would count on the former.
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Jay Kayle’s general vibe is that of the bohemian folk singer who lives his life on a whim and travels from city to city with nothing but a smile and a guitar on his shoulder. If you have ever seen the excellent movie Inside Llewyn Davis, Kayle seems to mimic a lot of the qualities of the protagonist in the movie.
The theme and the titles themselves on the album Two are indicative of the traveling folk hero. Kayle stated that he wrote these songs “during my study abroad so it's mainly about traveling but there are other themes of questioning if you're following the right path and making the right decisions.” The titles of the songs, which include “Guess I'm Leaving Again” and “Running Backwards” only add to the mystique. In general Kayle plays basic guitar chords and has a decent singing voice. He stays in a low, comfortable range, which can be monotonous in a Johnny Cash kind of way. It was never bad but just lacked any kind of dynamics. I would encourage him to listen to Kristian Matsson if he hasn’t already. He shouldn't mimic him but might benefit from seeing how much energy and emotion Matsson is able to generate by stretching his voice to its threshold. The album starts with “Chasing Trains” which starts with a lone harmonica. Once the guitar comes in Kayle sings about the rambling man and rolling hills. He sings, “This road goes on for days / Through north and southern states / It's seen the hills it's seen the shore / I wish that I could see Michigan through Tennessee / From this old hole burnt in the floor.” “Guess I'm Leaving Again” has a good vibrant energy from his guitar but his vocals fail to mimic the energy. I couldn't help but think the song would have benefited from him singing at a higher octave. “The Good Old Days” contains some elements of folk but could be considered straight up pop with the palatable vocal melodies. “Running Backwards” is arguably the highlight and introduces some percussive elements. Unfortunately the percussive is noticeably off time especially when it starts. Kayle has talent but still has plenty of room for improvement. There’s nothing wrong with the folk hero cliché he is barking but at the end of the day he is going to need some individual elements, which separate him from the idea. Hopefully we will be hearing more from him soon.
Jayson M hails from Sydney, Australia and has been writing music for different projects for several years, ranging from pop bands to heavy metal bands. This fact is evident on his release The Dark Eden. He does things like implement a heavy metal type guitar solo into a pop ballad.
I have to admit I have ambivalent feelings about his singing style. He will go from sounding like an almost sensitive, singer/songwriter type to an indignant, pissed off metal singer when he hits higher notes. It struck me as odd that his inflection would change his delivery that much. He usually sounded best as a sensitive singer/songwriter or slightly above. The angrier side wasn't working as much. The production is good at times but suffers from some elements being too loud in the mix There were a number of times where the lead guitars was too loud and his vocals were too soft. The album is low in terms of volume on a song or two and much louder on the rest., The album would benefit from being re-mastered. The Dark Eden starts with “Dream The Future” which is a well-written song that revolves around piano and his vocals. I was reminded of a melodramatic Disney song you would hear on a movie like The Lion King at times. The song’s best moments are around the two-minute mark where he pulls off some engaging instrumental parts. “Satin Sheets” sounds like a mainstream pop song and you will hear him going back and forth between the two vocals styles I described earlier. The lyrics reflect the ubiquitous nature of the song. He sings, “Submerged beneath / Satin sheets that bind us / To the belief that if you / Just bury me In blankets of your love / I won’t leave I won’t leave.” “Ruins” benefits from orchestral strings and impressive lead guitar playing. As the album progresses the song are hit and miss. I was most impressed by his technical ability on the instrumental parts of a couple of songs. Most of the songs revolve around his acoustic guitar and vocals. I’m not exactly sure where these songs land but will they most likely be enjoyed by a large demographic rather than those who prefer niche, esoteric styles of music. I could picture some of his music being played in a movie since it's emotionally dynamic and somewhat thematic.
The attraction to dark subject matter is a strange and loaded contradictory impulse. Take horror movies, for instance - why would be want to see hapless strangers brutally massacred, while we ourselves run the risk of coronary failure? Or what about the attraction of a somewhat sadomasochistic relationship? How can something be simultaneously liberating and demeaning?
These are complicated questions that every lover of the morbid and macabre must ask themselves at some point. This is the dividing line - the crux - that Plike seeks to explore on their newest EP Empathetic Apathy. Austin, TX's Plike, the duo of programmer ASH and siren-like vocalist Mad Madam Em, are working firmly in the darkside, downtempo witch house/trip-hop continuum with occasional forays into drum 'n bass and dubstep territory. Rather than being comprised of standout songs or singles, each track of Empathetic Apathy seems like a movement in a greater whole. The tempo stays close to stately, ponderous techno, dropping into double time when it needs to pick up the pace or switch up the action. This is music for fogged-out Goth club dance floors. Music for festivals at night, under starry skies. Music for dancing, or music for walking and thinking. Music for romance, or getting over romance. ASH is quite the competent programmer, slotting every trick and technique with Jenga-like precision for Em's vocals to soar above, like a stainless steel albatross. Or a banshee. The precise machinations of ASH's production speak to my only minor quibble with this rather fine EP. It's all a little too perfect, a little too put together. Plike sticks to the verse-chorus-verse structure of big room techno theatrics, and, while there's nothing inherently wrong with that, it's very, very hard to stand out in the mix. Consider the elegant, elegiac strings of "Diffidence," a gorgeous and moving track. However, the strings seem to slide right out of the Eustachian canals, as loveliness is stacked on top of loveliness. You can picture people dancing in slow motion to its balletic beauty, but there's no tension, no conflict, no release. The drums are big and epic. The strings are slow and mournful. Mad Madam Em's bewitching vocals are crystal perfection. I'm probably in the minority here, as I'm sure tens of thousands of people wearing big black pants with lots of straps would be drooling blood to dance to Empathetic Apathy, as a lifelong fanatic of the darkside, the romantic, as well as anthemic electronic music, I know they are capable of even more. Let's hear it!
When I was a kid my old man was what my mother would later refer to as “a boozer.” But my old man wasn’t the type who liked to drink at home. He liked to be out and about in the dingy blue collar town I had no choice but to be born and raised in. My old man would often drag me out with him for reasons I’ve just never really felt like asking the answers to. Needless to say I spent a ton of time in bars as a kid and later, following in my old man’s footsteps, on my own.
It was in many of these gritty and narrow wood paneled establishments that there was a small stage near the back of the place, or a small back room of the place where on many nights live bands of varying talents would play for a scattered crowd, myself among them. The flashback above was jolted from the dark recesses of my brain by the Bedford ‘Outlaw Funk’ quartet Honest John after listening to their three song EP Blue Mantra. Honest John, honestly sound like a bluesy and boozy bar band who have an affinity for Cream. This may not be evident on Blue Mantra’s slow post rock meets psych rock opener “Slow Honey.” I wanted it build into something, but it didn’t. I listened again and though I could see reasons it kept its composure. In the end it just seemed a bit flat, especially for an opening track. On a full length this could have been a great transition or beautiful filler, but to be put at the forefront of a three song EP made no sense to me. I of course would have chosen the blues-funk deluge of “The Bluest Black” which highlights the skills of all four members. The funky and slap happy basslines drag you in while the blues-scat guitar riffs and overall funkability make you want to go back and listen again. The same can be said for the blues-funk fanaticism of “Altered States of Mind.” Honest John are still a very young band, having formed only earlier this year but musically they sound like a band that has been together for years. This alone has me looking forward to the funky havoc the band could wreak on a proper full length. Until then I’ll be at the bar, waiting.
The band Fraudband (who in my acquired knowledge seem to be two people) recently released a nine-song album entitled Many ways in... ...one way out. It’s an incredibly sparse album consisting of just drums and guitar. I have to admit I was a bit skeptical at first about how it would unfold. Turns out Many ways in... ...one way out is a solid release that while not exploring new types of possibilities with the guitar makes some good noise. The noise I’m referring to is white and it's one of the reasons the songs work.
This album is all about textures and tone. It was recorded into a Neve desk, which is one factor in how they got that saturated guitar tone. The guitar sound is warm and fuzzy. There aren’t any piercing high-end frequencies, which are all too common these days with movies recording on a digital medium. On their Bandcamp page Fraudband describes their music as garage rock, psychedelic and post-rock. I can see elements of those (except post-rock is definitely arguable) but I think they are cutting themselves short if they don’t consider some of their music experimental. Take for instance “(I've got an) Eastern Block” which flirts with eastern modes and benefits from making drone like sounds with a guitar. Other songs like “Tangled Up” blends elements of blues rock with more extended drones that were most likely implemented with a whammy bar. The band goes into classic rock territory with “Come At Me” which is a great name for the song since it feels like it has a lot of attitude while “Starting Over” is a borderline hypnotic with repeated riffs of chaos. The guitar playing and drumming on Many ways in... ...one way out isn’t impressive because of their technical abilities but rather the stream of conscious type creativity that exudes from the songs. I’m not sure how you feel but I would take this trade off any day of the week. Recommended.
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Getting Over You by Columbia, SC's Passing Worth is an unusual record. It's smooth, soulful, and sultry, warm as honeyed molasses and sweet as sun tea brewed in a jar covered in painted sunflowers. And yet, the sweetness doesn't quite crack the surface, like a smile that doesn't quite reach the eyes.
Getting Over You ranges from jaunty, upbeat keyboard pop, a la Ben Folds or Sir Elton John, with a kind of sweet soulful southernness, with jazzy country male/female vocal harmonies, from Alex Davis, Cassy Renee, and Moses Andrews. This soulfulness is about 10 times as effective as the keyboard pop, which can come across as brittle. The mid-tempo ballads like "Another Night", which sounds like an outtake of a Zooey Deschanel movie, is warmer, more engaging, more emotive. It pulls you in and makes you a part of the story. Ms. Deschanel, with her She & Him project with M. Ward, is largely to blame for this unique dichotomy. Prior to 2005, Appalachian music had its devotees, but was largely relegated to informal bluegrass festivals in large fields. Starting in the mid-2000s, you started to hear more of the vinegary bite of '20s jazz, country, bluegrass, whatever the hell you want to call this style - the million offshoots and progeny of the Grand Ole Opry. This is no criticism, as I would rather hear Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? worship than 1,000 bland generic pop bands. I think the mixture of sounds and styles, with its intimations of heartfulness and soul, makes Passing Worth more interesting and engaging than had they simply been a pop band trying to get on the radio. Except they sometimes do sound like a pop band trying to get on the radio, and it doesn't do them any favors. For their next outing, I'd like to see Passing Worth pick more of a direction and run with it. Personally, I hope that direction is more in the folk tradition, but that's just me. Either way, I think it'd help Passing Worth's worth to stand out.
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