NEW SONG: Myron & E - "If I Gave You My Love" from upcoming album Broadway

Myron & E (Bay Area soul players Myron Glasper and Eric "E da Boss" Cooke) have teamed up with the Soul Investigators to make an album, Broadway, that's due out in July on Stones Throw. The groove is tremendous, and they sing together well - this is fun stuff. 

Check out "If I Gave You My Love", and download it here:

Cooke (DJ, Producer) worked with the Investigators on the beginnings of this album when they were on tour in Europe together, then he came back to write and sing with Glasper, and they make a heck of a team.

I was recently reading the story of Hall & Oates' beginnings in Wax Poetics, and in reading about Myron & E, I was struck by some similarities... Like Hall & Oates, these guys came from the same area, apparently met by chance, and connected later on to make some really smooth music that seamlessly moves from old soul to new soul. They're pretty new, but they're also good and clearly committed. More to come from Stones Throw in advance of the album's release in July... stay tuned.

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REVIEW: The Bohannons - Unaka Rising

The Bohannons are a Chattanooga band that combines swamp boogie, hard blues, full-on glam rock, and punk -- and it's just as bracing and crazy as that sounds. If you've enjoyed some of the proud Southern rock varietals we've blogged about this year: The Alabama Shakes, The District Attorneys, Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires, Patterson Hood - this is something you will want to check out.

On Unaka Rising, they're loud and way up front with shouted vocals, slashing electric guitars and a rhythm section that swings like crazy. The Bohannons consist of  Nick Sterchi, Marty Bohannon, Matt Bohannon and Josh Beaver.

Here's the lead track "Goodbye Bill", available for free download:



They're dipping into the Southern folk tradition, too... listen to Marty Bohannon describe the genesis of "Goodbye Bill": "It's an ode to martyred labor organizer Joe Hill approaching the 100th anniversary of his death. The words are from his last will, as well as from Ethel Raim and The Pennywhistlers' song 'Joe Hill'."

And here you can stream "River Above", a haunting hard rock track with guitars layered on top of guitars:



And here they are playing "Built A World", a plaintive song of lost love as only the Bohannons can play such a thing - with a little bit of a ragtime feel and of course a scorching electric guitar solo:



The whole record is good, but I think the last two tracks are the highlights: "Ponchatrain", a call-and-response, foreboding blues song about an oncoming storm and "In The End", which races along at a punk rock pace and finishes this album by letting me know this band is just starting to shake things up.

Unaka Rising is out now on This Is American Music - produced by David Barbe and Drew Vandenberg.

Nick Waterhouse - Time's All Gone

Jim Desmond just profiled a fine work from JD McPherson, and emphasized his love and appreciation for music of the '60s.  So it seems to be an excellent time to post my review of Time's All Gone by California's retro guitar-slinger, Nick Waterhouse.  Nick doesn't mine the '60s garage scene or the mid '60s soul scene.  He goes back to the late '50s and early '60s R&B.  The sound features Nick's shredding guitar and raw, immediate vocals, both of which hit all the right stylistic and emotional notes and are more effective for being indifferent to session musician perfection.  And it features a great rhythm section, smooth back-up vocals, and a couple of dirty saxophones.  Ladies and gentlemen, this isn't a mimicry of your parent's music, this is roadhouse R&B from the American south.  You listen to it and feel it.  It seems to me that in the background there could, or should, be the sounds of a couple courting, a couple fighting, and maybe a few broken glasses.

For a sample of the music from Time's All Gone, here is one of the top tracks, "Some Place" --



Nick Waterhouse's music is drenched in tension, sexy vibes and muscular horn and guitar riffs. But overall, it is vibrant, fun music.  It has enough polish to have style, and enough lo-fi and loose threads to be immediate and real.  I understand that with his live band, the Tarots, the effect is breathtaking.


Here is one of my favorite songs from the album (and a great video, IMHO): "I Can Only Give You Everything" --



Time's All Gone is out now on the Innovative Leisure label.  This is my late night summer soundtrack, and it could be yours.



Nick also runs Pres Records, which has released material by another of my recent favorites, Allah-Las.  In fact, Nick produced "Catamaran", one of the tracks on that group's excellent spring EP.

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New Discovery: JD McPherson - Signs And Signifiers

I love 1950's and 60's American music. Love it, spend a great deal of time listening to soul, early rock, garage rock, R&B, classic country. But somehow the current and often popular "retro" acts generally leave me cold,  just too uninspired and unemotional. And when I do find a contemporary act whom I dig working in a traditional style, it's more often than not a late bloomer like Charles Bradley, or say Bettye Lavette making a comeback record.
 
But the Alabama Shakes aren't the only new act bringing back the real R&B. JD McPherson, an art teacher from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma has made one hell of a debut record Signs and Signifiers. Here's the insanely catchy lead track and single "North Side Gal":

And as good as it is, "North Side Gal" is not the sole high point, as this entire CD cooks, swings and just gets it. JD's giving away a free download of "Northside Gal":

http://www.jdmcpherson.com/

McPherson's a terrific singer with great phrasing. His band has just the right loose feel, complete with bass slaps, great piano work, toe tapping drum fills, and a fleet of vintage Cadillacs' worth of great guitar sounds.

Signs and Signifiers simply leaps out of the speakers. Check out this title track with its killer guitar hook intro, updating both Bo Diddley, and more modern rock licks like Johnny Marr's "How Soon Is Now?":

The CD reminds me less of any of its particular influences like Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters and Buddy Holly than it does say Dave Alvin, artists with the deep respect for classic sounds, but with their own voice and spirit.

McPherson has been quoted as being just as big a fan of The Ramones and Wu-Tang Clan as he is of any '50's blues or rockabilly artists, and that deep musicality really shows here.

Rolling Stone is streaming the entire record here: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/album-stream-jd-mcpherson-signs-signifiers-20120417

You can listen once but then you gotta go buy it. I promise you it sounds particularly good played loud with your car windows down.

McPherson is on tour now and lucky for me, pulling into Portland this Saturday at my favorite bar in town, Bunk Bar. This is good.

Get this record. Summer's here and the time is right.

New Rock/Soul Discovery: Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires - There Is A Bomb In Gilead

Do yourself a favor and download this song NOW:

"Centreville" by Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires

Lee Bains III is a former member of the Dexateens, a longtime favorite of several on the WYMA staff. I'd have bought this record unheard, given the involvement of garage rock god Jim Diamond, but I have heard it and let me tell you, you will be quite upset if you pass on a chance to see them and to buy this in May when it comes out. "Centreville" is a good representation of their sound - Skynyrd meets The Dirtbombs in Memphis - and the song "Everything You Took" from the Alive Naturalsound compilation Where Is Parker Griggs? (WYMA review here) is as down, sweet and soulful as anything this side of Al Green. I'm not lying and I'm not exaggerating -- Bains is an amazing talent. Soul music this good just has to be heard. Spread the word.

Here's another track: "Righteous Ragged Songs":



A spectacular Allmans guitar intro and, again, that soulful voice fronting a screaming Southern rock band - what's not to like?

They'll be on tour with the Alabama Shakes (we've written about them before here, having first heard about them via the Drive-by Truckers) in March and April:

March 23 - Tuscaloosa, AL - Bama Theatre w/ Dexateens, Alabama Shakes
March 24 - Birmingham, AL - The Nick w/ Black Willis, Bohannons, Doc Dailey
April 5 - Athens, GA - Georgia Theatre w/ Alabama Shakes
April 6 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle w/ Alabama Shakes
April 7 - Baltimore, MD - Ram's Head w/ Alabama Shakes
April 9 - Philadelphia, PA - World Cafe Live w/ Alabama Shakes
April 10 - Hoboken, NJ - Maxwell's w/ The Neutron Drivers
April 11 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom w/ Alabama Shakes
April 12 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg w/ Alabama Shakes
April 14 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground w/ Alabama Shakes
April 15 - Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club w/ Alabama Shakes
April 17 - Toronto, ONT - Lee's Palace w/ Alabama Shakes
April 19 - Cincinnati, OH - The Comet w/ Buffalo Killers
April 20 - Knoxville, TN - The Well
April 21 - Waverly, AL - Old 280 Boogie w/ Centro-matic, Pine Hill Haints

Midnight World Pop Scout: The Weeknd -- Echoes Of Silence released, trilogy complete

Because it is always midnight somewhere...
This week's edition is single offering from Canada, but is part of a three piece project that has earned a lot of attention this year.


The final installment of the Weeknd trilogy, Echoes Of Silence has been released. The first installment was House of Balloons, which was released in the spring. The second installment was Thursday, and was released at the end of the summer.

This project of Abel Tesfaye, supported by Drake and others, is perhaps the most interesting R&B experimentation of the year. And this installment is better than the second installment. The first track is "D.D." --


Here is the entire mixtape, which can be downloaded at the artist website or Soundcloud links:
The Weeknd - Echoes Of Silence by The_Weeknd

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Emerging Seattle Band: Pickwick

Not to get too confessional with all of you virtual strangers, but I'm genuinely remorseful that, as a Seattle-based music blogger, I haven't presented this band to you before now. In addition to exuding quality, and a personalized take on a respected genre, Seattle's Pickwick wins the highly coveted "Best Reinvention" prize from When You Motor Away. The band now presents a R&B/neo-soul oriented version of indie pop along with some of the best vocals I've heard lately. However, when formed in 2008 Pickwick had an alt country sound, and then they tried their luck as a folk act. While struggling to attract a following in those musical spaces, the lead vocalist, Galen Disston, was inspired by Sam Cooke recordings to try a musical style that allowed greater vocal range. The happy result is represented in this live recording from January of this year:

Live From The Basement - Pickwick from Sound on the Sound on Vimeo.

Apparently, enthused by Disston's vision for a new direction, the rockers dug into Stax and Motown recordings. In my view, the result isn't a cover of those great old sounds, but the Pickwick version of those sounds. Yes, the rhythms and vocals are R&B and soul, but there still is an indie rock edge and jangle to the proceedings. I like the result a lot, and hope it helps them stand out.

Here is their March 25, 2011, release, Myths, Vol. 3:


In addition to Disston, the band is comprised of Michael Parker, Garrett Parker, Matt Emmett, Cassady Lillstrom, and Kory Kruckenberg. The band is working on an album intended for release in 2012. I'm not aware of any label in the picture at this point.

Myths, Vol. 2 from December 17, 2010:


Myths, Vol. 1 from November 2010


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