GospelbeacH - Let It Burn

The alchemy wielded by Brent Rademaker should thrill any fan of American rock. On Let It Burn, the new album for his GospelbeacH project, Brent and his mates blend a California strain of classic rock with Americana, and country, suggesting Tom Petty and the Grateful Dead recording in Laurel Canyon. But that won't surprise fans of his previous projects, such as Beachwood Sparks and The Tyde. With adept, and at times scorching, guitar work by former Beachwood Sparks compatriot Neal Casal (who sadly passed away this summer) and keys by Jonny Niemann, the album serves up ballads, mid-tempo slow burners, power pop, and classic rock, all with sincerity and a heaping dose of California sunshine.

Check this one out -- it may help you hang on to that summer feeling for a few more weeks.

Let It Burn is out now via Alive Naturalsound.











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REVIEW: Circus Devils - My Mind Has Seen The White Trick and When Machines Attack

It's been two years since the last Circus Devils release, Capsized! so of course it's time for two albums in one day - 36 songs of Circus Devils hard/prog rock weirdness. Of all Robert Pollard's projects, Circus Devils seems to be where his hard rock muse spends the most time, but it's also the project with the most pure creativity. Evidence of the former - My Mind Has Seen The White Trick's "Deliver Ice Cream (You Must)" channels Motorhead in a delightful way, while "Mine" is a quieter track with some strange found sounds in the background, akin to something like "Ex-Supermodel" (to use a GbV reference, if that helps). And "Great Orphan" is just a big, strong ballad, proving that in no way are Circus Devils limited to bludgeoning you with hard rock or diverting you with strangeness. Sometimes in the same track, they transition from one to the other: "It Is Not Necessary" is a perfect example, where the hard stuff starts the track, then yields to the narrative, and both sides come together to close it out with a downright pleasant keyboard line behind it all. They are making delightful music on this record. In other words, Circus Devils are real. But, again, real strange. "Bird Zone":



The album features 19 tracks, and plenty of highlights - the electric piano on "Bird Zone", the guitars on "We'd Be Alright", the Captain Beefheart-inspired, unhinged weirdness of "Skyclops", and a sort of campfire singalong, "Eddie's Derangement" - love the acoustic guitar line in this one.

Obviously, a lot of the credit goes to his co-conspirator, Todd Tobias. And we've had evidence of Tobias' creativity apart from Pollard, too - we reviewed his album Medicine Show, and found many of the same strange and delightful characteristics that make Circus Devils' appeal so strong (and admittedly, to such a limited audience).

Along those lines, the second album, When Machines Attack, is the more "Circus Devils-y" of the two, featuring spoken word intro "Beyond the Sky" and a story line that seems to contemplate the uprising of our cars, perhaps in league with an alien race. The sheer terror in Pollard's voice in the next track as he intones the title "You're Not a Police Car" sets the tone. We would seem to be in line to be rescued (or attacked) by Bad Earthman, Craftwork Man (not Kraftwerk Man, though certainly there's plenty of krautrock influence all throughout the Devils' canon), Johnny Dart and Blood Dummies. Each song is a trip, and most of them are strange. Check out "We're Going Inside the Head of a Winner" - there is a nice Pollard ballad in there somewhere, but also plenty of strange effects and horror-movie elements:



The title track's an absolute keeper - it's one of the tracks that stands alone, even while serving as the pivotal track on this concept (?) album. And "Wizard Hat Lost in the Stars" is potentially that "all-time" Pollard ballad that will assume a spot on the never-ending playlist. It has echoes of "May We See the Hostage" from previous Devils record The Harold Pig Memorial, which is one of my favorite Devils tracks, or a GbV track like "Acorns and Orioles".

According to Sgt. Disco, the correspondent at the Circus Devils website, "The car is a metaphor here, in case that needed to be explained. The theme can be described as a trip into the present by way of the future. This is the opposite of a trip into the future by way of the present, something we all think we are familiar with." If you're willing to take the trip by listening to the album, this might make sense. Then again, it might not. But at least you'll have spent the time listening to a Circus Devils album, which is a good thing.

These records are out now (released 10/29) on Happy Jack Rock Records, and available at Rockathon and GBV Digital.

Circus Devils website
Circus Devils at Rockathon Records

REVIEW: Hollis Brown - Ride On The Train

Hollis Brown is a group of native New Yorkers on the venerable blues/rock label Alive/Naturalsound, but their musical influences come from considerably south and east of there. On their debut album, Ride On The Train, they are playing a bracing mixture of something akin to blues-based Southern rock and pure British Invasion-influenced pop. Principal songwriters Mike Montali (vocals) and Jon Bonilla (lead guitar) grew up listening to blues-based classic rock, and claim that the combination of an urban upbringing and throwback musical influences of traditional blues contributed heavily to their sound.

So, the Stones, Springsteen... those are useful touchpoints. Philly soul, Southern rock... useful, too. But go ahead and listen. Here's the video for the title track:



See? like good classic rock fans, they feature the lead guitar often and prominently.

Here's the closing song, "Nightfall" - a great showcase of their sound. It features Montali's soulful vocals, really good piano and acoustic and electric guitar. In a way, I'm reminded of a Lynyrd Skynyrd ballad:



And here's the upbeat, rocking "Down On Your Luck" - tell me if you don't hear a little Latin twinge, reminiscent of some classic East Coast big city guitar rocker like "Rosalita", in some of the solos:



Among the stellar Alive/Naturalsound roster of bands, I'd probably place Hollis Brown somewhere between Lee Bains III and The Buffalo Killers, but lighter on the thrash, heavier on the melody. There really isn't much psychedelic component to their music, the vocals and guitars are prominent, and it is certainly blues-based (most of the tracks feature call/response type structure). While the music is heartfelt and explores many of the traditional pop themes -- unrequited love, jealousy, loneliness -- this is a good-time band for sure. The record is out today.

Hollis Brown at Alive/Naturalsound

Review: Country Mice - Hour of the Wolf

Perhaps because following in the footsteps of rock legends like Tom Petty, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Bob Dylan, R.E.M., and Wilco is such a daunting and seemingly impossible task, few bands seem willing to even try.  Thankfully, Brooklyn-based Country Mice has accepted the challenge and, on their soon to be released second album, Hour of the Wolf, Country Mice has produced remarkable and refreshing American rock, much like Uncle Tupelo during their short but spectacular existence.  Recording with talented and experienced producer Doug Boehm at the controls, Country Mice (Jason Rueger (guitar, lead vocals), Ben Bullington (guitar, vocals), Kurt Kuehn (drums), and Mike Feldman (bass)) have produced a record that should make Country Mice known to a much broader audience than indie rockers digging around the internet for hidden gems.

There are no soft spots on Hour of the Wolf, but it does have its extra high points. "Feathers" starts things off with Crazy Horse inspired rocker that any self-respecting Neil Young fan would have been happy to hear on any of Neil's recent albums.  "Your Black Crow" alternates between a soothing Automatic for the People era verses and a heavy, southern rock guitar laden chorus.  "Giving Your Heart Away" (which can be heard here) rivals some of Tom Petty's most elegant and catchy tunes.  "What You've Done" is a heavy barroom stomper.  "The Wicked" blesses us with another dose of Crazy Horse guitars and riffs accompanied by a seemingly Petty-inspired chorus.  Finally, Rueger closes the record with the graceful and beautiful acoustic "Ash."

With well written and memorable songs, stellar and sometimes searing guitars, and excellent rhythm section work, Hour of the Wolf is a must-have record for fans of rock and roll in its purest form.  Unfortunately, other than the link above, I cannot seem to find much online that can be listened to in advance its release.  Thankfully, you can get your own copy of it soon when it is released on February 19.

In the meantime, enjoy a few tracks from Country Mice's excellent prior album, Twister.


Follow Country Mice on Twitter here and/or on Facebook here.

Oceanography - "Drinking Water", new track from Parachutes of Plenty EP

 

Oceanography is Oakland's Brian Kelly - he's playing rock music that's exhilarating: simultaneously earthy and soaring. His voice is strong and they lay down a heavy bass and drum rhythm under the guitars and keyboards. They're not reinventing rock, and it's not real complicated stuff... they're just playing it really well. Kelly's the main driver here, but he has help from a cast of players including drummer Kathleen Richards and organist (and engineer) Scott Barwick.

From "American Cars", which starts out with a squall of guitar feedback, to "Drinking Water", which builds a little more slowly, they've put together a wall of sound that should appeal to folks who like good guitar rock.

The EP came out in December, and the band has made this single available for free download:

Video for "Napoleon Holiday" - this one has a little more majestic pace to it:

This is really good stuff - these five songs definitely create some expectations.

Oceanography website

 

Melodic Hard Rock Discovery - The Trews, Hope And Ruin - on tour now

The Trews are a pair of Canadian brothers, singer/songwriters and guitarists Colin and John-Angus Young, with their cousin Sean Dalton on drums and Jack Syperek on bass. They've got a big sound - really this is nothing "new", but they do a nice job with melodic hard rock, and they are excellent guitarists. You'll be reminded of the Foo Fighters on straight-ahead, driving rockers like "People Of The Deer" and Pearl Jam on the title cut.

Give a listen to "One By One", which you can download here. And check out their current tour, with US and Canadian dates upcoming (currently they're making their way throughout the US Southeast).