Published by Scott December 27th, 2006
in Album, Review and 2006.
The Submarine Races’ self-titled debut came out in June and I had hoped it would make its way to eMusic. In The Red Records, a fine punk/garage label, hadn’t sent anything to eMusic in a long time but finally a few weeks ago this one showed up. I was especially happy because it was at the top of the list for my few and far between brick and mortar purchases.
I’m glad my patience paid off because I would have been disappointed had I bought the physical disc. Not that The Submarine Races is a bad album. It’s very listenable and there are a couple of great songs. It just doesn’t live up to my mental hype. Lead Racer Ian Adams used to be in The Ponys and I was crazy about the tracks he contributed to that band, in particular the sublime “Fall Inn” on Laced With Romance. There are a few moments that equal that gem but generally speaking it’s an average album of artsy garage pop-rock.
Things get off to a particularly rough start with a challenging instrumental noise fest called “Theme.” There’s nothing else like it on the album and it’s really a questionable choice to pull listeners in. The proceedings improve vastly from there, with Adams’ nasal desperation backed by driving bass lines, alternately wiry/chunky guitar, and workmanlike drums. The most memorable songs are the ones with killer choruses, including “Get Yourself Together” and “One Forward, Three Back.” The organ and call-and-response vocals on “Ghosts and Worms” are pretty nifty too.
I noticed a lot of the chord progressions have an oldies vibe to them which contrasts nicely with the otherwise post-punk leanings. This really gives the band a distinctive sound. Hopefully Ian Adams’ tenure with The Submarine Races will at least equal his stint with The Ponys and he’ll continue to build on this promising beginning.
Published by James December 26th, 2006
in Album, Review and 2006.
Drumming is not something that often gets accolades let alone mentioned very often in the non-drummer press and I’ll be the first to admit that if the album isn’t one explicitly built around rhythm I pretty much ignore it which is why I Saw The Devil Last Night And Now The Sun Shines Bright leveled me when I first heard it. Bobby Theberge maintains such a level of power that you can feel him pounding the kit like it was your chest yet he manages such control that his work is lyrical, floating to the front of the mix without being overpowering. His stick work is hypnotic and compelling both in how it propels the group forward but also in how it is integral to the melody in each song.
Now, I know that I am not too dialed into the continually fragmenting sub-genres in the Rock world but I am not entirely sure how the Emo tag was applied to Moros Eros. Maybe it is the thin veneer of keyboards that drift in the background, but the band grinds out songs that fit more in the realm of mid to late 90’s post-punk. They have a strong focus on equity in their compositions with no song being dominated by one instrument’s ego at the expense of the others. The songs are balanced and organized while managing to swing in a sort of angular fashion that is reminiscent of Fugazi and Circus Lupus. The the opening track “Today is the Day” where the drums wrestle with the guitars providing a substantial and sharp sound where Zach Tipton’s vocals can stretch like they do on “When I Wake” where DJ Schulz churns out the melody on bass with care and precision are standouts in this regard.
Maybe the Emo label comes from the lyrical focus of the album laying bare the interconnectedness of the hopeless, the resigned, and the fearful though the wanderings of the Devil in the night. Here the Devil is less an antagonist and more a device to bind these disparate tales together and it is effective as they move from a story of lost love to one where the character is wracked by questions of morality. Moros Eros is tight lyrically as they are as a band, making for a fascinating listen, and one where I often feel compelled to shout out responses in the choruses.
This year has been filled with great releases but Moros Eros’ I Saw The Devil Last Night And Now The Sun Shines Bright, with its power and lyricism, manages to shoulder many of them to the side. It is sitting at the top of my list for one of the best releases of this year. You can stream two tracks off the album “Today is the Day” and “Satan Has A Heart of Gold” over at their Myspace page. Very highly recommended.
Published by Scott December 14th, 2006
in Singles, Review and 2006.
Ah, yes. This Tom Heinl cover is a nice gift from Holly Golightly just in time for the holidays. And what a song! Not like a wimpy little spark from a bad string of lights that slowly consumes tree and house. “Christmas Tree on Fire” is spontaneous combustion, with drums crackling like flames and Holly’s strong voice radiating playful but intense heat. It’s a country-fried scorcher and shows Holly in top form.
The b-side, “Hear My Call, Here,” is pleasant but nowhere near as exciting. Another cover, originally by the Staples Singers, it’s kind of plodding in its angelic, girl-group deliberateness. Seems like it might be a good song for curling up in front of the fireplace with a cup of hot cocoa after clearing your driveway of a foot of snow. Or raking leaves if you’re in the South.
Surprisingly this is the only newly recorded material Holly has released this year. Not to worry though, there’s a new album to look forward to in March ‘07. In the meantime, grab this single from eMusic and mix it in with the holiday classics in your rotation.
Published by James November 6th, 2006
in Album, Review and 2006.
This just landed on my desk and I haven’t had a whole lot of time to digest it but I am really enjoying what I am hearing.
The Blue Van is a handful of Danes that have put together the most uncanny revival of late 60’s early 70’s American Rock and Roll I have heard in a long time. From gritty yet shimmering guitars, warm B3’s, and a drummer that sounds like he is trying to put his sticks straight through the kit their sophomore album, Dear Independence, is a loving nostalgia filled trip through AM rock–if you’re in doubt give “The Time Is Right” a sample with its taste of BTO melodies and harmonies. It is a short and sweet trip that is the perfect compliment to summer, especially the swing and sway of “Momentarily Sane” which has me wanting to belt out the chorus at the top of my lungs alongside the honky tonk piano line.
You can grab a copy of it over a eMusic or likely what ever record purveyor tickles your fancy. Really good stuff.
Published by Scott October 30th, 2006
in Review and 2006.
The differences between Billy Childish’s various projects over the last three decades are subtle, as they’re all pretty much in the same range along the garage-punk-blues-rock spectrum. I count myself as a fan and don’t mean to sound dismissive, but you might generally characterize his music as scrappy and primitive. With snarling, charismatic vocals, thick British accent and often bitingly funny lyrics, Childish taps the raw power of traditional rock and roll and transcends recycled riffs to create some truly exhilarating music. Of course not everything he records is choice material. The guy has put out dozens of albums and hundreds of songs after all. This latest three song EP is pretty good though and serves as a fine farewell for his most recent project.
As the title of suggests, The Last of the Buff Medways is the final recorded efforts by the band. It starts off with “1975,” a rough edged mid-tempo rocker about rejection and longing with a very catchy chorus that makes absolutely no sense in the context of the song. Maybe I’m missing something but the lines, “1959 I was just in time/ 1965 I was still alive/ 1969 I nearly died/ 1975,” have nothing to do with being dissed. Oh well, it sounds good. Next up is “Albion,” which sounds vaguely like Hendrix’s “Fire,” a song that Childish has covered in the past. The title track rounds out the set and is the real attention grabber. In the course of this swaggering pseudo-history of the Medways (with some truthful nuggets), Billy takes swipes at “Jackie White,” John Peel, and Kylie Minogue among others. I’m as puzzled as he is when he sings, “You’d have thought John Peel would be our friend / But there was only silence on his end.” It includes a nice bit of trivia that tells about the band’s name too: buff medways are an extinct breed of chickens!
As prolific as Billy Childish has been in his musical career, I’m sure the end of the Buff Medways merely marks a transition to working with a different group of musicians. Whatever incarnation he assumes next, I’m sure it will be similar to his past work but no less exciting.
Published by Scott May 19th, 2006
in Album, Review and 2006.
I’ve written about my ongoing Billy Childish / Holly Golightly binge on the last few Saturday Playlist posts and haven’t come close to overdosing on them yet. When Down the Line hit eMusic on Tuesday I lunged for it. No need to check the samples or track down reviews. It was new Holly and I had to have it. I was certainly surprised when I gave it an initial spin. Turns out it’s not new material at all but a compilation of songs from her various Damaged Goods releases.
I tried to do some research after the fact but was stonewalled on all fronts. Nothing on AMG, the label page, or Holly’s own site. No reviews anywhere. Pretty mysterious. My best guess is that it’s an internet only release since the only places you can even purchase it from is eMusic and a few other, ahem, inferior online services.
I was definitely disappointed at first that it wasn’t a new album, all the more so considering her last release, 2005’s My First Holly Golightly Album, was also a comp. That one consisted of nine previously released songs plus eight re-recorded “favorites.” I can’t really recommend it because it downplays her rough edged garage-rock-blues material in favor of more pop leaning tunes. I always think of those songs as Nancy Sinatra style Holly, but that characterization is really only based on the one song I know, “These Boots Are Made For Walking.” Still, that song serves as an apt comparison for the type of 60’s influenced pop-rock that fills My First Holly Golightly Album. Not that the compilation is bad or anything. It just misrepresents her body of work and is titled to mislead neophytes into using it as an entry point for her catalog.
Down the Line makes up for those shortcomings. It is far more inclusive in its representation of the different styles Holly Golightly plays and fortunately does not overlap with last year’s collection. The first four songs alone demonstrate this broader range. “I Hear You,” with its heavy tremolo/delay lead guitar, starts things off with a touch of psychedlia. From there it’s the honky-tonk flavored “Dear John,” Ventures inspired “High Time,” and the smoky blue-eyed soul of “Here Beside You.” Elsewhere there’s the killer garage stomp of “I Can’t Be Trusted,” girl group pop on “She Said,” and a stark percussionless heartbreaker from her first album called “The Last Time.”
With fifteen songs clocking in at just over forty minutes, Down the Line is a perfect bite-size introduction to an artist who has released more than ten albums and countless singles. If you want to check out what she’s like, you wouldn’t be wrong making this your first Holly Golightly album.
