I can’t remember why I’ve heard of this band. At any rate, they’re from Leeds, and they sound like they’re from Leeds. This indie rock band has a few stray prog elements but otherwise does its thing just as you would expect. When they play live, you take a second date there. You don’t need to get to know her anymore, but you don’t want music to make out to, either. Even if this is when you discover she has bad gas, it doesn’t matter because the band is worth seeing, regardless of the company you’re keeping.
“Last Roll of the Dice” gets the record off to a good start. Some of the tracks are a little rushed, but not this one. “Rest in Peace” is fine but a little forgettable.
A more rockabilly sound can be found at the beginning of “Trouble,” but then the chorus leaves me thinking of Queen. This band is a rock spectacle.
“I Can See a Murder” has a long instrumental at the beginning, but the lyrics still tell a nice story. The guitar is a little more power pop on this one. I could picture P.I.L. doing something like this.
Another one with the vocals mixed higher is “Quite the Man About Town.” It’s a straight-ahead indie rock track if you’ve ever heard one. Blue Skies for Black Hearts have done this style on their most recent record.
The last track is “Spent Force,” and it’s more the same British sound one would expect after hearing the rest of the album. I challenge anyone to give a reason why they don’t like this record.
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The Scaramanga Six “Cursed”
September 11, 2011Scarlet Youth “Goodbye Doesn’t Mean I’m Gone”/”Breaking the Patterns EP”
September 11, 2011The woman on the cover art and female-sounding band name duped me. But what’s done is done, and my name will be attached to this review for all of KSCU eternity.
Actually, this is pretty good. It is your standard indie band with Killers/My Bloody Valentine sensibility. Throw in a little U2 and Smashing Pumpkins (musically, at least), and you’ve got it.
“Sofia C” provides a good introduction as the leadoff track. If you want mild synths in the background, “Farewell Ghosts” does the trick. I hear some Love and Rockets in there if I listen closely. “Between Summer and Spring” is a carbon copy of “Farewell Ghosts.” You could say they’re twin towers of indie rock goodness.
The guitar intro to “Somewhere” sounds like several Korea Girl tracks I’ve heard, and the song itself is very mellow, almost like Psychedelic Furs. “Walls of Freedom” sounds like Silversun Pickups.
“Sunshowers” plays on the ’80s new wave style, similar to “Somewhere.” The vocals are mixed poorly, but the music is some of the best on the record. It’s so hard to get it together all the way through, it seems.
There’s also an EP from 2009 included on this two-disc Japanese release. The songs are pretty much the same. I like “Gleaming Endless Ocean.” Also, “High on Sky” sounds like Catherine Wheel. “Sunshine Girl” is the other better track on the EP.
Mr. and Mrs. Muffins “The Raindrop Dance & Other Songs About Love”
September 11, 2011Low-key stuff with a lot of accordion but not in the Weird Al way. Maybe this is stuff you play at cocktail parties. It’s not particularly jazzy, but it heads in that direction at times. Very innocuous in every way possible.
Some tracks are instrumentals, but “The Ladybird’s Theme” has maracas but not in a bossa nova way. Good music for when you have bubbly-gum in the old push-broom. All the tracks, by the way, start with “The.” There are no The The covers, however.
It’s hard not to say this band sounds like Corpus Callosum, but just because someone has an accordion doesn’t make it so. Well, I’m making the comparison anyway. Too bad.
“The Painter” has some chanting and harmonizing. It’s very pretty and has a Japanese air to it, like those Arling and Cameron songs when there’s no synths and they just fart around.
Eleanor Friedberger “Last Summer”
September 11, 2011Eleanor Friedberger sounds like the lead singer for The Fiery Furnaces. “My Mistakes” sounds like a power pop version of that band, anyway.
So I just did some research online. She was the lead singer for The Fiery Furnaces. Go, me. No, I don’t ever go back and rewrite my reviews as I listen to the record.
The rest of this review will talk about other songs I liked, but the first paragraph sums it up. “Heaven” has good backing harmonies that stand out in an otherwise simply composed track. In my own little world this was the first song she did on her own, so that’s why it is so basic. Still very good, though.
“Roosevelt Island” sounds more like a The Fiery Furnaces track. There’s a bit of keyboard action here that makes everything fit perfectly. A slower track can be found with “One-Month Marathon.” It reminds me of “Some Senseless Day” by The Reputation because it’s slower than what you usually get, but it still sounds natural.
More The Fiery Furnaces-sounding stuff can be found with “Owl’s Head Park.” It’s a story-telling song, like “My Dog Was Lost But Now He’s Found” was.
So the whole record is good. It’s exactly what you would expect it to be. Have at it.
Dirty Mittens “Heart of Town”
August 28, 2011My girlfriend calls this “throat singing.” My rebuttal is that you can’t sing this style in any other fashion. At any rate, this is standard indie rock with a female lead singer who is one octave higher than normal. It works better when all the instruments are going. “Arcadia” gives you solo singing, fully accompanied singing and male backing vocals that really complete the picture.
“Let It Go” has a lot of energy from the vocalist. She’s really pumped up, but I don’t know enough to know why. Still, there’s no substitute for passion, so it’s nice to hear nonetheless. “B58” does this as well, but I can’t figure out whether it’s about a really weird bingo card.
A Fine Frenzy fans will appreciate “Row.” This one is probably pretty good live. They would do well to get the audience involved by doing that thing where they get everyone to clap.
“Light On” is more of a power-pop track and brings some whimsy to the table. The last track is “Any Time Any Day,” which doesn’t have a comma on the record but does in iTunes. I figured I’d add a dependent clause to that sentence so I could sneak a comma into the title. This wouldn’t work if it were BBC radio. The song itself? It’s a bit of a take on ’60s girl groups. It’s fine, but it’s not what the band usually does.
Katy B “On a Mission”
August 28, 2011Another RPM diva singing over a beat. I can never get enough of this shit. Katy B in particular gets the job done, but I don’t want to make her out to be a truck stop whore. She’s more than that. But don’t expect any surprises. She just knows how to give what people want. I appreciate her having a clue.
“Power on Me” is a good example of what she can do for you. Competent singing and 4:4 beats make for a good time to be had by all, even if you’re out of steamed hams. “Why You Always Here” uses the mid-’90s synths that have fallen out of favor in the years hence. Perfect for me!
I think it is funny that there is another song called “Go Away.” I guess she sings to more than one person. This one is more soulful, and the beat sounds like something Luscious Jackson would do.
“Broken Record” has high production values and seems to have been mixed to be a single. I’ll bite. Maybe that’s what the “B” in Katy B stands for. “Easy Please Me” is similar to “Go Away.”
The last track is “Hard to Get” and has more of a house feel to it. I can’t get more specific than that because I’m trapped in a 1999 time warp, so I don’t know what the kids call anything these days. Ask Scrawny.
Santah “White Noise Bed”
August 28, 2011I don’t practice Santah, really. This is just another indie rock band, which of course is just alternative rock with a folk element. I know, you were wondering. “Irish Wristwatch” is first and sets the tone for what today’s kids really seem to like. I can respect that this is good stuff. It’s just that I’ve already heard enough of this genre. Don’t let me stop you.
There is more energy in “Chips of Paint,” so that’s a better way to go on here. The title track is also good. It focuses on the vocals, which do just fine.
I wouldn’t recommend listening to “When I Couldn’t Move” on your mobile phone, but it’s still a good track. “Bat Suite” makes me batshit crazy.
The last track is “Neighbors & Cousins (Are We Lovers?),” which is little more than an excuse for me to put four different pieces of punctuation together. It’s borderline alt-country but still easy to listen to. Santah may not be the business, but they are probably one of the other sections of the newspaper, probably local.
Karmacoda “Eternal”
August 28, 2011These guys remind me of a mature version of Sweetheart, and that they’re from San Francisco makes it likely that they at least have some mutual friends. There are synths, but you can’t really call it synthpop or electronica. In a lot of ways they’re just a Massive Attack ripoff, but in the nicest way possible.
“If You Give It to Me (Our Summer of Love)” is the first track and provides a good representation of what to expect from this band. “Float Me” uses a little bit of guitar as well as more loudly mixed percussion. This also works, but thankfully we still get a lot of keyboards out of it.
Some guy helps the vocals out on “Get Me Through Another Lonely Night.” The beat makes me think of Usher, but the song itself could be a Sade duet with Random One-Night Stand Man.
“Epic” is clearly the one Karmacoda wants others to hear. It’s a dead ringer for Portishead’s “All Mine.” Not that the rest of the record is bad, but this one is definitely the one to recommend. No surprise that there is also a reprise, which is 3:17 long. Seems long considering the original is 4:46.
More male vocals can be found on “Love Will Turn Your Head Around.” If you want dudes, this takes care of that, I guess. Musically it sounds like all the others.
I enjoy this record, and if they perform locally, which they oughta because they are from here, I would see them at least once.
Various Artists “PDX Pop Now! 2011″
August 28, 2011Once again I get to review this compilation. Last year I reviewed it in June, which only means one thing: I’m way too behind. Since I didn’t comment on all 40 tracks last year, I won’t comment on all 41 this year. Thank goodness for precedent.
The Shivas do melodic indie pop the Portland way (how redundant is that) on “Gun in My Pocket.” The same style but with a fake Peter Murphy singing? O Bruxo does that on “De Colores.” I’m a fan. Or I guess now I just like it. Stupid Facebook.
“Alien Observer” by Grouper has haunting synths but isn’t depressing the way a traditional gothic song would be. Lovers fans rejoice: They’re well-represented here with “Boxer.” Yet another fine track from them. If you want traditional female-led R&B, “Baby What You Do to Me” by Reva DeVito is top notch.
Bright Archer sound better than Tasmin Archer on “Hidden Systems.” This one is a female-fronted ballad with a lot of piano.
The most fundamentally sound track is buried on the first disc. “Majoring in the Arts” by Blue Skies for Black Hearts has a strong chorus with backing vocals and guitar that connects the verses seamlessly. Very straightforward indie rock that hits on all cylinders.
“(Don’t) Panic” doesn’t sound like Portland to me, but regardless the Ascetic Junkies are in charge here. It’s got a Midwest female indie rock feel to it. The musical accompaniment is so strong that it’s easy to overlook the quality vocals that are also present.
The second disc leads off with Viva Voce. “Analog Woodland Song” sounds like Rilo Kiley. The chords aren’t the most inspired, just like Rilo Kiley, but the singing quality and mixing more than make up for it, just like — well, you see where I’m going with this.
If you want metal with a female singer, the comp even offers that. The appropriately named Witch Mountain sings the appropriately named “Veil of the Forgotten.” It’s exactly what you expect it to be.
Synthpop fans will appreciate “I Want You” by Sex Life. It’s modern in the sense that today’s synthpop is a bit of a throwback to 30 years ago. But it sounds like today’s renditions of the early ’80s, rather than the early ’80s themselves. Sort of like The Looney Tunes Show on Cartoon Network. You can tell.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra sound a lot like the Blue Skies for Black Hearts song, so if you liked that, you’ll like “Thought Ballune.” And not to be confused by the Viva Voce song, there is also a band called the Woodlands. “In the Dark on Monday” is to die for. It is more of a late-’80s synthpop song, and this indeed is my favorite era.
More of the haunting female vocals can be found on “Roan Wolf,” by Mojave Bird. This one doesn’t have the dark overtones of Grouper. Rather, it makes you think of Cocteau Twins. The following track is very similar as well. Blouse is a little more focused on the guitar, but “Into Black” still has a great sound.
Almost everything on the comp is fantastic. Once again the guys behind this have put the time into finding what truly deserves to be showcased.
Catherine Anderson “Fashion Accesories Won’t Save You”
August 28, 2011It’s not a bad idea, but I can’t help but think Catherine Anderson is a privileged Gen Y’er who wanted to make a pop rock album. “Lifeguard” has a melody and chords I’ve heard countless times in the ’90s and ’00s.
Murmurs fans will appreciate “Morning.” The lyrics aren’t as clever, but again, you should just be happy that we have more of this type of music out there. There’s even a token song with swearing in it.
The thoughtful song is “White Noise.” Nobody did the thoughtful song better than Veruca Salt (“Sound of the Bell”), but this ranks right up there. The only other song I’d recommend on here is “Beg.” It’s like a downgrade to Fiona Apple, you could say. She does sing “please judge me” on this one, so I will: Your music has no passion, but I like it anyway, because this is one of my favorite genres of music. Next time, put the money into vocal mixing, and you’ll be fine, opening for Damone or, if you’re lucky, Metric.
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