I’m not sure what to make of this. The singing is passable, and the lyrics aren’t making me vomit excessively. It’s just not making me very excited, though. It’s as if I have heard this all before.
“Crazy Thoughts” has a very contemporary feel, and it gives me sudden urges to answer the phone. “Daydream” has wonderful accompaniment, and the singing is also above-average here. I am not surprised that this is the song they recommend on the front. So what makes this track so different? The instrumentation works together, as opposed to competing with each other. The backing vocals are subtle but add to the texture of the song. The melody matches the music. It all comes together naturally, here.
“Hold On” is not a cover. It is perfect for fans of Paula Cole. I suppose much of this album is. “There Are Angels” has good harmonizing. It’d be nice for there to be more of that. There’s some nice stuff here, but I don’t want to have to dig so deep when comparable efforts from other artists are so much easier to find.
Archive for the ‘KSCU’ Category
Chasing Jane “Unravelled”
March 15, 2010Natalie D-Napoleon “Here in California”
March 12, 2010It’s an EP. “To Her Door” is first and has the alt-country sound nailed. The vocals veer on farmers’ market, but it’s not bad enough to cause me to scream for the exits, which is fine, because farmers’ markets don’t have clearly marked exits most of the time.
“Hummingbird” is straight-up country. There’s even fiddle, although the player is not named “Dee Dee.” (It’s Sally.) “You Shook Me All Night Long” is a cover. It is weird to hear this song sung instead of screamed. It’s certainly passable if you want an acoustic version of the song.
“LA Freeway” is heavy on the harmonica. It also answers the question generated by the EP title. “Where in California?” “Southern California.” “Even the Sweet Things Die” has keyboards and is a little more fun than the rest. The vocals sound a bit higher in the mix, so therefore they must be more heartfelt. If this song were a food, it would be all-natural peanut butter.
The title track is the last track. It’s slow yet more than five minutes long. This record is worth a listen, but I don’t know that there is enough to put out a full-length. Perhaps, we shall see someday.
Various Artists “Forty One Sixty: The Songs of the Shambles”
March 10, 2010The Shambles were a San Diego power-pop band in the ’90s, mostly. They did not get the star treatment that other acts did, but they were quite a gem. Somebody in their infinite wisdom decided to create an album of Shambles covers, and here we are. A few San Diego acts are on there, but acts from as far as Serbia provided the 24 tracks on this record.
Liebling are from Denmark and performed “Survive.” It’s a very enjoyable listen and one that could create new Shambles fans as well. “Blurs Somewhere” is done by Happy Losers, who are from Spain, yet the band is not called Perdidores Felices. Well, I guess it’s not for me to say.
The Sleepwalkers are listed as being from California, but it doesn’t say where. They do “Days & Maybes.” This song actually is in Spanish. It is enough to make me doubt the track listing. “Plan of Action” sounds like Dance Hall Crashers are covering it, but alas, it is The Kingpins, straight from Canada.
Anna Troy was perhaps inspired by the to-her local band and contributes “31968.” Mod Fun’s “Nothing Can Be Everything” is quite sharp, as is “Innocence Becomes You” by the Ringles. But the best of the best is when Rachael Gordon decided the extra “a” in her name meant she could cover “Fun at Your House.” What a performance! It really offers up everything you could want. And she’s from San Diego also. It must be something in the water.
Marie Haddad has the sweetest voice of anyone on the record, and she sings “Where You Are” with a stripped-down subtlety that makes me want to buy cage-free eggs at the farmers’ market.
All the songs are good, but then that’s probably because the Shambles were good. This album may have a limited audience, but every member of said audience ought to pick this one up.
Please Do Not Fight “Move”
March 9, 2010It’s an EP. “I Will Not Forget” and “Words Speak Louder” sound the same. This sounds like the next step for bands that dominated the early part of the last decade. I’m looking at you, Dashboard Confessional.
“BAMF” is a funny title because it is a “Swords of Chaos” reference — not that Please Do Not Fight know that, but it is. It also stands for “badass motherfucker,” of course. Might as well have called the song “MFCS.”
“Don’t Wipe That Smile Off Your Face” is better. “Up Up Up” is best. These bands always give one song to the woman, and that’s what they did here.
“Hard to Tell” is last and tries too hard to be clever. You can tell they are proud of their lyrics because they are mixed so high, but I bet when they play loud their instruments are so loud that you can’t hear them.
This record isn’t bad. They could be the resident band at Hemlock Tavern or Nickel City, and no one would bat an eye.
Kitten Forever “Magical Realism EP”
March 8, 2010Well, we had another Kitten Forever EP at the station, and it was better than this one. So here is your chance to listen to Kitten Forever back when they sounded less like Sleater-Kinney and more like Red Aunts. Luckily this is also an EP because there’s not much else to say. “Mind Meld” runs around and ends pretty quickly. “Fake Flesh/Voodoo” is two songs in one, the same way Certs was two mints in one about 20 years ago. The first part has the same basic sound but with backing yelling. It’s not angry yelling, but it’s not happy Bis-style yelling either. Maybe it’s just Red Bull-infused yelling. The second part is probably supposed to be a joke, but I really like it. It’s very cheery and upbeat. “Witch” has a more garage sound. “Death Bed” has a classic Red Aunts sound, including the requisite naughty language. I don’t know. I like the other record better.
Teenage Moods “Teenage Moods EP”
March 4, 2010It could also be an EP titled “Psychic Playlist.” It’s not clear. What is clear is that this is their effort. What is also clear is that this is a high-quality Vaselines ripoff. I’m always happy to hear new acts doing this style of music.
“Psychic Playlist” is the first track. It’s OK. “Sugar Band” is second and a thousand times better. This one really does mimic the Vaselines sound.
“Attic Years” could be a Sonic Youth or Throwing Muses cover, but it’s more likely another original creation. Let’s not mess with Teenage Moods.
Last is “Little Trap.” It sounds like something Matthew Sweet did before he hit it big. It’s pretty exciting when you look at it that way.
There is a good amount of potential with these guys. And they’re from Minnesota, which is surely a way to bypass my stomach yet still reach my heart.
The Godshills “March”
March 2, 2010This marks my 10th year of reviewing records, and one of the nicest things about doing this for so long is watching bands grow up. It’s also nice to see new releases from acts that I’ve reviewed before. Such is the case with the Godshills, although the “2008” copyright confuses me. Is this record older than the one I reviewed last year? I suppose I could look it up on the Internet. Nah, that’s too much work.
Fans of the Godshills will be pleasantly surprised with this effort. Songs such as “Fate” awaken the conspiracy theorist in me. This band sounds a lot like The Reputation, except, hopefully, the lead singer doesn’t also smoke. The Reputation had an album called “To Force a Fate,” and there was a song on it called “March.”
“The Unclean Spirit” is one of the best tracks on the album. It’s a little slower than the others, but it’s also very heartfelt. There are no distractions, and it reminds me of 120 Minutes or Tami Hart.
There’s not a weak track on this release, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out “True” and “Zoewie” as standouts. This is another quality effort from these Baltimore natives.
The Mood Swings “Recessionista”
March 1, 2010This band name is a curse because of a bad Simpsons bit in which Homer Simpson recites “mood swings” in a half-dozen different inflections of voice. At any rate, this is a band that Generation Y will like because it nods at the mid-’90s girl rock revolution (Helium, Letters to Cleo etc.), and Gen Xers will be comfortable with it because songs such as “Crush” sound like the Go-Go’s. And on further review it appears there is actually a song called “Generation Y.” I swear that’s a coincidence.
The combination of the guitar and sirens at the begin of “Let’s Go” reminds me of Reno 911!, but otherwise it sounds like a Veruca Salt cover. This song definitely rocks more than the other ones, but the siren seems to cheapen the effort somehow. Or maybe I’m missing the point.
“Nothing New” has a more modern sound. If Catherine Wheel had a female lead singer, they’d sound like this. “No Place to Hide” gives a Joan Jett vibe.
It’s nice to have another band to listen to that emulates one of my favorite periods in rock ‘n’ roll history, but don’t expect anything too groundbreaking here. I’d certainly pay to see them live, though.
The Bears of Blue River “The Killer Bee Scare”
February 25, 2010It’s an EP. “Crayola” is first and definitely puts me in a periwinkle sort of mood. “Me Me Me” has contemporary guitar and a folksy charm that gets politicians elected in rural communities. “Tickled Pink” sounds like “Crayola.” Rose Melberg would be proud. “Betty HomeMaker” has the best lyrics and percussion. “BubbleGum” is the last track. You’d think it would be a solid pop song, but it sounds like the other ones.
Definitely worth a listen if you want some well-textured folk rock.
Smile Smile “Truth on Tape”
February 24, 2010The musicianship and harmonies are what make this tick. It’s a great record for me because I can never make out lyrics. On occasion I did, such as on “Somebody Else,” and I was not impressed. I just want to hear pretty things, and the title track does this nicely. The woman half of the duo almost sounds like Tanya Donelly on this one. More, please.
“Move Along Folks…” is another winner. The best tracks, though, are when they sing together. Harmony rules the roost on “Days Go By.” Songs such as those are painfully too short.
“Goodbye Caroline” also has great musical accompaniment and would sound great live. It’s a stripped-down song that still provides a lot of layering. It must be how they make that gum taste so good even when it has no sugar in it.
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