New Discovery: Twin Library - "No Summer/Shaking Hands"

Twin Library is an Edmonton lo-fi rock band, and they have all the right influences - Guided By Voices, The Velvet Underground, The Wedding Present, The Clean - to grab my attention. And having grabbed it, they're offering a couple of opportunities to download their music and name your price. I recommend it - they're terrific. It's beautiful lo-fi music with definite Pollard influences. As I listen to more, you might see a review of their most recent full-length, Softer Seasons, on WYMA.

New Single from The Twilight Sad - "Sick"

The Twilight Sad, Scottish masters of dense sound and deeply dark stories will be back with a new album, No One Can Ever Know, on Fat Cat Records in February 2012. As a big fan of the group, I'm looking forward to the release of the new album. To occupy us in the meantime, the band has released "Sick", the first official single from the new album. The 7" includes the track "Sick" and and "untitled #67", which may be a demo of another album track. Here is "Sick"--


Album track "Kill It In The Morning" was made available as a free download in September--


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PUJOL - Nasty, Brutish and Short EP

Nashville garage punk wizard Daniel Pujol is making great primitive rock music, and is part of a burgeoning local rock scene. Well worth checking out, especially if you've developed a liking for folks like The Black Keys, JEFF The Brotherhood and Ty Segall...

Here's a free download from Saddle Creek Records:



And here's the video for the title track from his 2010 release Black Rabbit:



Very strong. Check out more - Daniel Pujol MySpace. Not a weak cut in the bunch.

Get to Know: The Make-Overs

Here is another welcome edition of the two-people-make-glorious-racket story. In this case it is a male guitarist (Andreas) and female drummer (Martinique) from Pretoria, South Africa who call themselves The Make-Overs. The band describes their music as "trashpop garage punk something" which, depending on the song, is likely to be an accurate description. Here is the video for the slyly named "Surf Bored", which is the A-side of the band's new 7" on Chicago's HoZac Records:


Also on the 7" is "Will It Ever Grow Back", presented here from a live performance--


This video for their song "What Did I Just Axe You" was posted last spring--


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REVIEW: Bwani Junction - Fully Cocked

One can imagine a young band whose gig is invaded by an axe-wielding madman who commences chopping up the bar, tables and glassware to be a bit intimidated, and perhaps reconsider the wisdom of the venture (and perhaps wonder if all music critics are that bloody emotional). But Edinburgh's Bwani Junction are not that sort of young band. As I recall, they displayed the local paper's headlines of the incident on social media and named their label in honor of the incident. And today their Aksatak Records released the band's first album, Fully Cocked--a debut brimming with quality, confidence, personality, and some of the catchiest guitar pop songs of the year.

Bwani Junction are Fergus Robson (bass, keyboard and vocals), Jack Fotheringham (drums, vibraphone and vocals), Rory Fairweather (guitar and lead vocals) and Dan Muir (lead guitar and vocals), three 19 year-olds and one geezer of 20, all of whom were students at the private Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh. What originally drew me to the band was their sound, which has elements both familiar and exotic. The familiar is easily described--Bwani Junction is a Scottish indie rock band with the expected instruments (two guitars, bass and drums) and song structures. But a few aspects of their sound set them apart from their peers. First and foremost, Dan Muir's African-influenced lead guitar style. And don't assume that this is just a Vampire Weekend-inspired affectation. Dan learned the style directly from Rise Kagona, guitarist for Zimbabwe's Bhundu Boys, for whom his father had served as manager in the late '80s and '90s. Fergus' fat rubbery bass, typical in Afro-beat and reggae, heightens the world beat sheen. Rory's vocal delivery is understated and has the tone of a natural storyteller (embellished by an hint of Edwyn Collins warble). Jack's drums alternate between understated support and aggression.

Of course, all the that talent would still come short without good songs. Fortunately, Fully Cocked reveals the band to be quality songwriters, as well. Rather that reach for the grand scale -- and necessarily speak in platitudes necessary when teenagers aspire to The Grand Statement -- the band writes about what they know. Standout track "Two Bridges" begins "All the boys down Walker Drive / They don't seem so bad any more / Remember nights, little chilly nights / When they was knocking down our door? / Remember Lucy, she was all shook up / Make up running down her face / All she could do was stand and watch / You've got to be tough in this place". Even their foray into political commentary, the anti-war "Today's Crusades", focuses on their observation of troops in nearby barracks leaving for the middle east and returning with fewer members. While the songs often are based on a mid-tempo platform, they feature changes of pace, Dan's engaging lead guitar bridges, sing-a-long choruses joined by the entire band, and positive deliveries, resulting in music that both is varied and invites the listener into the band's world. These aren't songs you put on the pedestal and worship for their indie perfection; these are songs to which you dance, sing along and share with the band.

Bwani Junction hasn't released any videos for Fully Cocked as of this writing. Fortunately, the BBC did an admirable job filming the band's set at the T in the Park festival in Scotland this past summer. The clip features three excellent tracks from the album, "Roots Too Deep", "Today's Crusades", and "Two Bridges". The whole set spans fewer than 16 minutes and is worthwhile in its entirety, but if you only have time for a shorter taste, my recommendation would be to take in the last five minutes because, in my view, the third song -- "Two Bridges" -- is among the best five songs I've heard this year.

I also expect that you can listen to the tracks on Spotify, and snips of tracks on various sites. In addition to "Two Bridges", my favorite tracks include "My Body, My Mind", "Roots Too Deep", "Bianco's", "Today's Crusades", "Marlebone", and "Middle Meadow", roughly in that order.

Fully Cocked was produced by Paul Savage, truly Scotland's hottest producer, at Chem 19 Studios, and funded in part with a grant from the Creative Scotland and the remainder for the boys' pockets. It is released on Aksatak Records. At this point, physical copies are available retail only in the UK and continental Europe. However, Amazon has the MP3s available, and I expect iTunes does as well. You may be able to obtain a physical copy from Sterns Music, Avalanche Records or other sources.

For a final listen, here is "Bianco's", the album's opening track, live at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut in Glasgow--


One of Bwani Junction's peers on the Scottish music scene to told me that he wasn't surprised that a band this young could produce a debut LP, because in his estimation they probably have 30 quality songs already. And I am confident that a band that has this much going for them out of the gate will be on our radar for a long time. They have the songs, the charisma, the drive, and they are managed by a music industry veteran, Gordon Muir. Make no mistake, this Bwani Junction are Fully Cocked.


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New Discovery: Beaten By Them, People Start Listening EP out 11/22

Beaten By Them is an art rock band - at least that's what they sound like to me - with similarities to American Analog Set, but a bit more abstract. One thing they do well is to build their sound... on this four-song EP, People Start Listening, the fourth track "It Can Take You Higher" turns into something you might expect from Mogwai.

For a short EP, they cover a good bit of territory in terms of sound levels and tempo - this is worth your time to check it out.

Here's a video about the making of their most recent album, Invisible Origins. There aren't any videos from the current EP, but they are working on a full album so hopefully more soon.



Check out the EP here:



And here's a free download of "Nusla Nif" from Invisible Origins:

REVIEW: The Circus Devils - Capsized!

Here we are, happily listening to Bob Pollard's sixth full length release of 2011: Capsized! by the Circus Devils.

Circus Devils is Robert Pollard, Todd Tobias and Tim Tobias. They're pretty dark - what would you expect a 'circus devil' to sound like? - and they really do rock. Over their history (nine albums!), I've detected a sense of homage and inspiration from dirty 70's rock, but they are in no way limited to one type or sound, a trait that carries through on this record. Track one, "To England The Tigers", is a dreamy instrumental, almost Enoesque (sorry, had to get an -esque in there). The second song, "Capsized!" is vintage Circus Devils - bringing to mind great psychedelic craziness like "Vegas" from The Harold Pig Memorial, but also maybe Tom Waits as the tour guide on a late night Jungle Cruise. But there is melodic rock music here, too - track three is the very catchy "Cyclopean Runways" (click to download)...

On some of the harder rock songs like the pounding "Leave the Knife Curtis", Pollard shouts over the racket, but on track 9, he whispers over a gently-played piano. The track is "Vampire Playing a Red Piano" and it's Pollard describing the contents of a series of boxes. As with so much of the Circus Devils' work, you are constantly being supplied with atmosphere and imagery: imagine finding yourself in, say, a dark basement, a stranger walking up to you and whispering "Those boxes over there on the floor contain paralyzing secrets"... one of which, it turns out, is a film labeled "Vampire Playing a Red Piano".

Circus Devils is real, and Circus Devils is Pollard at his most unrestrained (which, honestly, is really saying something). There is a track called "Double Vission" which sounds very much like a twisted parody of, say, a Foreigner song, complete with the sounds of someone puking - followed by a strange little instrumental, "What Wallace". If you stick with 'em, though, the Circus Devils' next song rewards you with what is best described as sweet, soulful soft rock - "Plate of Scales". And that, to me, is the point of Circus Devils. You gotta take the whole ride, and it's a blast, but not everybody is gonna get it.

To give you a sense of their aesthetic (and just because I like it), here's an excerpt from the "forum" on www.circusdevils.com:

Oslo Peters from Oslo, Norway: When is Circus Devils going to reunite the classic lineup and play Oslo again?
Dear Oslo: We are still the classic lineup. No personnel changes have ever been made. It seems you are confused on this point. Once we toyed with the idea of allowing a non-human to join the band. We will not go into further detail. All we can say is that there were bites that required stitches, and a really big diaper bill. To answer your second question, we will not play Oslo until we get paid for the last show we did over there, and have our equipment returned. In case you have not heard the story, we were attacked by the sound man at that show. He came at us during our set swinging a lead pipe and screaming in Norwegian. Naturally, we ran for our lives.

Do you want to buy it yet? Well then, go to your local decent record store (mine's Grimey's) or to GBV Digital.

The Soul Corner - Sam Cooke

The Soul Corner is coming up to the end of its calendar year run, and looking for the essential artists or songs we may have overlooked.

No one sang sweeter or with more feeling than the great Sam Cooke. The 1964 classic "A Change is Gonna Come" represented a significant stylistic change for Cooke. Legend has it that hearing Bob Dylan's "Blowing the Wind" while Cooke himself was being denied entry into Southern motels while on tour, inspired him to move away from his pop style hits like "Twisting the Night Away" to write something topical and from his heart. The vocal here is so weary, so heartfelt, so true:

And here's another of my Sam Cooke all-time favorites:

If you have a request for these final editions of the Soul Corner, please post them in the Comments section here or track me down. I'll be posting a survey soon on what we should do on Fridays in 2012.

REVIEW: Shelby Earl - Burn the Boats

Today it is my privilege to review an album notable for all the right reasons, including honest and insightful songwriting and top quality musicianship and production. However, if you are like me, the most notable aspect of the album is the vocals--almost unbelievably clear but redolent of heartache, passion and intriguing depth. Yes, Shelby Earl is one of Seattle's musical treasures, and if the music world is just, Burn the Boats will bring that realization to a wide audience.

A live version of one of the album's better tracks, "At the Start"--


In her early 30s, Shelby Earl worked in jobs in the music industry, including at Seattle's Experience Music Project, for years, but it has taken a while for her to decide to become a professional recording artist. Perhaps the extra time explains her ability to create songs which so well combines youthful hope and adult realism. The result is a remarkably complete debut, devoid of artifice and indifferent to trends. And it is well worth your time.

Album track "Under the Evergreen", live at KEXP's studios:


Burn the Boats was produced (and some vocals contributions) by Seattle indie stalwart, John Roderick, whose band The Long Winters put out some of my favorite Seattle albums in the last decade. it was released November 1 on Rachel Flotard's Seattle-based label, Local 638 Records.

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Local 638 Records

Garage Rock Thursday: Hozac Records Sampler

For your listening pleasure today, we bring you the sampler from Hozac Records, the self-described "Trojan Horse of rock and roll". Hozac Records is a Chicago label, founded in 2006, that has an interesting stable of garage/fuzz rock oriented bands, including the wonderful Wax Idols whose debut release we reviewed a couple of weeks ago (I'm still playing that one regularly, are you?). Hozac has LPs and singles, and the really great thing is that you can hear songs below and decide whether you like them. And if indecision strikes, just buy the sampler; life is good. Enjoy!

Fall 2011 by HOZAC RECORDS

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REVIEW: New Ruins - This Life Is Not Ours To Keep

Sounding like Silver Jews in places and Richard Buckner in others, with the ability to create a wall of sound with the backbeat and bass, yet still sting you with ragged Crazy Horse riffs, New Ruins come on real strong. Other influences also portend well for guitar rock fans - they namecheck Built to Spill in track 8, "Homes of Rich Blood". First time through the record, I was impressed... a couple more times through, this might be on my "Best of 2011" list.

Here's "Blackbirds":

BLACKBIRDS.mp3 by New Ruins

Here's a video of them performing "Crazy Annie". One of the things I especially like about them is their mastery of the tension/release in the guitar lines, which is featured prominently on this track. Also, three guitars!



If you like artists who combine a laid-back vocal style with all kinds of great guitars, don't hesitate. You can listen to a couple of tracks at their website:

New Ruins Website

A new song from Fear of Men -- "Doldrums"

Fear of Men, one of my favorite emerging groups from England, has posted a new song called "Doldrums". I've shared the song with you below in both the Soundcloud and Bandcamp formats. You can listen to more of the group's fine songs at the Soundcloud and Bandcamp links below.

Doldrums by FEAROFMEN



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New Sounds of Scotland-Part 29: The Creeping Ivies; The Hazey Janes

This edition of New Sounds of Scotland could be subtitled New Sounds of Dundee.


Two people can make a lot of glorious musical racket. In the case of The Creeping Ivies, from Dundee, Scotland, the two people are guitarist/vocalist Becca Bomb and drummer Duncan Destruction, who formed the band in 2010 (disclaimer: WYMA has not checked birth certificates to verify the names of the members). The music is energetic garage/punk/60s throwback, and is sounds great to these ears. While The Creeping Ivies don't have a lot of music out there for us to evaluate, a group that list their influences as The Stooges, Bo Diddley, Johnny Thunders, Ramones, Velvet Underground, The Cramps, Hasil Adkins, and Link Wray has got more than a few steps in the right direction.

"Shake It Up"


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Also from Dundee are The Hazey Janes--Andrew Mitchell, Alice Marra, Matthew Marra, and Liam Brennan. The Hazey Janes play muscular, crunchy indie rock. The gang recorded two albums before this year, but the second one was never released due to legal issues. Their third album, The Winter that Was, was released on October 17, 2011 by Armellodie Records.

Here is a single from the new LP: "Girl In The Night" --


And here is the Soundcloud option for the same track (available for free download)
Girl in the Night by The Hazey Janes by Armellodie

"Carmelite" is from the new album as well--

The Hazey Janes - Carmelite from tHJ on Vimeo.

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Rocksteady's Single Pick of the Week: The Louche FC - "Romantic" / "Rain and Thunder, Love Take Me Under"

One of my favorite little known bands from Manchester is The Louche FC. We featured them earlier this year and have been awaiting more music. The music this band makes pushes all the right buttons for me. On November 28 Sways Records are releasing The Louche FC's single "Romantic" / "Rain and Thunder, Love Take Me Under". While it isn't November 28 yet, the video for "Romantic" has been released, so I'm declaring it to by my single of the week.

The Louche FC - Romantic from Sways Records on Vimeo.

You can stream both tracks from the single here:


And the band has made the following track, "Hands", available for free download.
The Louche FC - Hands by sways

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Pollard Update - FREE track from upcoming release - Let's Go Eat The Factory

From Let's Go Eat the Factory, due out January 1, 2012. It's gonna be a good year, because that's the first of TWO new GbV Classic Lineup studio releases planned for 2012.

Tracklist (because GbV song titles are at least as entertaining as most other bands' songs):

Laundry And Lasers
The Head
Doughnut For A Snowman
Spiderfighter
Hang Mr. Kite
God Loves Us
The Unsinkable Fats Domino
Who Invented The Sun
The Big Hat And Toy Show
Imperial Racehorsing
How I Met My Mother
Waves
My Europa
Chocolate Boy
The Things That Never Need
Either Nelson
Cyclone Utilities (Remember Your Birthday)
Old Bones
Go Rolling Home
The Room Taking Shape
We Won't Apologize For The Human Race

Here's a link to download "The Unsinkable Fats Domino". It's a Beatlesque rocker featuring pop and punk elements of the Four P's.

And here's another track, the sweet-sounding "Doughnut For a Snowman":

Guided By Voices - Doughnut For A Snowman by FIRE RECORDS

Saturday Night RS74 Radio

Looking at my news feed on Facebook, I have a number of songs suggested by bands I follow. Some have posted their own songs, some have posted songs by others. So I said to myself, "Self, why don't you share these recommendations with the readers of the WYMA blog." So I have.

PreTeen are a San Francisco band we covered recently. They posted this very nice song, "About A Girl".


Phil Wilson posted this Phil Wilson Band cover of an unreleased song by Granite Shore--


Teens. from Boise, Idaho posted this song from the 60s by Peter & Gordon--


Scottish band Honey posted this song by another Scottish band, The Seventeenth Century--


Reggae star Shaggy posted this video for "For Yur Eyez Only" by Shaggy ft. Alaine--

New Discovery: Republic of Letters - Stories

Republic of Letters is a San Diego band playing Britpop a la Snow Patrol, Coldplay, stuff like that - heavy emotional content, very good lead guitars and soaring melodies.

Here's the video for lead track "Lost Chord" - a big-sounding track with galloping drums and chiming guitars:



And just this week, they released a new video for "Karma", for my money, the rockingest track on the record:



Republic of Letters Website (listen and buy)

Get to Know: The Blue Runes

Gabriel Albelo (guitars, vocals), Eugenio Jimenez (bass), and Ricardo Santana (drums) are The Blue Runes, a rock band with blues, roadhouse and psychedelic (check out "We Call Out the Birds") shadings. The band was formed in Puerto Rico in late 2010, and recently released the following five-song album.



In my view, the boys rock hard but they don't ignore melody.

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The Soul Corner - Harlem Shuffle

Here's a great song that needs no introduction, though I suspect many of you have never heard this original version:

George Harrison reportedly called Bob and Earl's version of "Harlem Shuffle", released in 1963, his favorite song of all time. The song was arranged by a then unknown musician named Barry White who had been the bass player for Bob and Earl in earlier bands.

Love that groove. I appreciate the Stones bringing this song to a larger audience. Here's their version, wonderful, true to the original, but not better in any way in my view:

Shake a tailfeather baby!

Seattle Show: Seapony, Brave Irene; and Generifus

For readers who are in or around Seattle this weekend, we'd like to alert you to a show that includes a band we've written about this year, Seattle's Seapony, a band we probably should have written about at some point, Brave Irene, and Olympia, Washington's folk/pop Generifus. The show is sponsored by The Vera Project, which is located at the corner of Warren & Republican Ave N, in Seattle. The show starts at 7:30 pm, and only costs $10.

As a reminder of the sounds of Seapony, here is "Go Away"--


Seapony - Facebook
Seapony - Label page

Brave Irene is headed by Rose Melburg (of The Softies and Tiger Trap). They released a self titled EP on Slumberland Records earlier this year. Here is "Bank Holiday" from that album--


Brave Irene - Facebook

For a taste of Generifus, here is the album they released in February. It is full of delightful, carefree tunes. The band is the project of Spencer Sult, with Eli Moore, Karl Blau and others helping out.


Generifus - Website
Generifus - Bandcamp

Cool Video Thursday

I've been busy with other projects for the Blog, so we only have one new video this week, but I hope you'll agree that it is a good one.

Seattle soul rockers Pickwick sing an a capella rendition of 'Blackout' to the Suzzallo Reading Room at the University of Washington.

Pickwick - Blackout (Suzzallo Reading Room) from Tyler Kalberg on Vimeo.

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REVIEW: The Windsor Player - The Windsor Player

The Windsor Player is a new group led by Troy Stewart, who plays guitar with Snow Patrol... he's recruited something of an all-star cast: Scott McCaughey (R.E.M., The Minus 5, Young Fresh Fellows), Gregg Williams (Sheryl Crow, Emmylou Harris), Jote Osahn (Elbow, Gorillaz), Chris Schleyer (Prick, Kidneythieves) and additional players Peter Buck (R.E.M., The Minus 5) and Richard Coburn (Belle & Sebastian, Snow Patrol).

The sound varies from well-played folk rock - song 1, "Release" - to country rock that calls to mind 70's stalwarts like The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield and Poco - "Big Texas Sky" - to laid-back sprawling guitar rock on the 8-minute "Best Friend". The influences are good ones, and the vision of country rock is well realized.

Plenty of great guitar sounds throughout - rock guitar, acoustic strumming and pedal steel - are underpinned by a good rhythm section and augmented by strings, piano and mandolin (the aforementioned Peter Buck). There are even well-placed horn parts among the guitars on "Best Friend", too.

Closing track "Big Texas Sky" captures the ethos pretty well - big, sprawling and warm... You can listen and order at Windsor Player Website.

New Video from Black Keys upcoming album El Camino - "Lonely Boy"

Great video, great song... looking forward to this one, and grateful they are giving us a new record so soon:

You Got Your Punk In My Garage

I'm a shameless kind of guy, so I'll make no apologies for shilling You Got Your Punk in My Garage - The Best of the GaragePunk Hideout, Vol. 3, a delightful collection of punk/garage rock from bands you've likely never heard of. And yes, it is 22 tracks for $6.99. The album is released by GRGPNK Records which is a social network-based label created to release the Hideout Comp series. If you click to the Bandcamp page linked below, you'll be able to access other releases in the series.

I've listened to the compilation below, and a few others in the series. I highly recommend them to any garage rock fan.



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GRGPNK Records website
GRGPNK Facebook page
GRGPNK on Twitter

Midweek Roundup: Wet Nuns, New Cassettes, Glossary

This week's Midweek Roundup sounds like the first rainy day at a parochial school... but it's only rock & roll:

Wet Nuns is a Sheffield band that describes itself as "death blues". They've got a single coming out 11/11, which will apparently be available free at their website. They have a real heavy rock sound - reminds me a little bit of Motorhead. Here's a live video:

Wet Nuns Live @ The Bowery from Bowery Sheffield on Vimeo.

Here's "No Death"... more available to stream at Soundcloud:

No Death by Wet Nuns

New Cassettes, another British group, plays a punky style of dance-rock... check it out for yourself:



Download and Stream via Pure Volume:





And finally, here are a couple of entertaining videos from Murfreesboro, TN pop rockers Glossary - trailers for their new record, Long Live All Of Us:





Love the soul influences by way of their Memphis visitors - Jim Spake (Al Green, Alex Chilton) and Nahshon Benford (Snowglobe, Lucero)... Horns, percussion, falsetto vocals in spots, it's another good rock record from Tennessee. They're on tour, check out dates and more info at the Glossary website.

Get to Know: Sun Wizard

Vancouver, BC's Sun Wizard are James Younger, Francesco Lyon, Malcolm Jack, and Ben Frey. They play muscular, crunchy power pop with harmonized vocals, which usually is a winning combination around When You Motor Away. Earlier this year the band released Positively 4th Avenue on Light Organ Records, an excellent LP that unfortunately has been flying under everyone's radar. You can stream the entire album below. But first, we have a video the band shot for one of the songs:

Sun Wizard "World's Got A Handle" from Light Organ Records on Vimeo.

The Quit Acting Cold 7" was released in 2010, and shows the band's promise.


I think it would have been nice to discover these guys before the summer started, but better late than never. Enjoy!

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The Witches - A Haunted Person's Guide To The Witches

They're out on a "Halloween Tour", and playing as good a variety of psychedelic garage rock as you will hear. This is a compilation album - I hesitate to use the term "greatest hits" because well, I wish more people knew about The Witches... so maybe "greatest songs"?

At any rate, this is just the kind of stuff you want to play on Halloween. Or anytime you want some good spooky rock, psychedelic and surf guitar and reverb... really, anytime.

Check out "Down On Ugly Street" and know their greatness:

The Witches - Down On Ugly Street by alivenaturalsound

They're from Detroit, so they share a birthright and a worldview with artists like Mitch Ryder and The Stooges... and they boast bass player (and founder) Troy Gregory (Dirtbombs, Killing Joke), John Nash (Electric Six, LCD Soundsystem) on guitar, and producer Jim Diamond (White Stripes, Von Bondies) on electric twelve-string. If like me, you missed them the first time around, this is the perfect way to catch up.

Here's a fan video for "On The Haunted Side of the House":



The Witches at AliveNaturalsound Records

The Pack a.d. - new video for "Haunt You" from Unpersons

I dig their album (review here), so I'm happy to share this new video from The Pack a.d., released in conjunction with Halloween:



Really good stuff, and keep an eye out for some more Halloween-inspired madness from the twisted mind and control panel of the great Jim Diamond.

Robin Bacior - "Ohio" from Rest Our Wings, out Nov. 1

Here's a new video from a very talented young artist, Robin Bacior:

ROBIN BACIOR | Ohio from Earth vs Space on Vimeo.

Pretty cool video, and I really like the way this song boogies. The rest of it is a little more acoustic in approach. She's got a bright, clear voice and a strong presence.

And you can download "Ohio" here, and listen to several other songs at her website.

Robin Bacior Website

REVIEW: Wake the President - Zumutung!

Exciting artists acknowledge their genre but don't allow themselves to be constrained by the work of others. This attribute is embodied in the music of Wake the President. They clearly embrace the musical template of the '80s Postcard records guitar pop, particularly Orange Juice, The Fire Engines and Josef K. But rather than look backward to make sure they paint within the lines, they stride forward on their own path. The result is Zumutung!, an exuberant, often cynical, and varied collage of emotional snapshots of the subject young men write about--girls. And it is one of my favorite albums of the year.

The core of Wake the President is Bjorn and Erik Sandberg. Twin brothers from Glasgow who have been building a reputation as musicians and promoters for at least the last four years. Erik is the lyricist and main vocalist; Bjorn is the guitarist and focuses on things musical. As with their first album, the Sandbergs have enlisted Paul Savage, producer extraordinaire (and former drummer of The Delgados) to produce Zumutung! at Chem19 Studios. The ten tracks the brothers have crafted for this album are sonically and emotionally diverse. "Elaine" (which is provided below) is the most straightforward indie pop song, and may bring to mind Belle & Sebastian. The albums first four tracks, "She Fell Into My Arms", "Your Expressions", "In Youth There Is Pleasure" and "This Is New" are at the more raucous edge of post punk guitar pop. "Sort of Blonde" is an acoustic music hall sing-along, and "Stockholm's Archipelago", the album's bittersweet closer, shows that Wake the President can nail the grand-scale post rock pop song. However, the sound of the album is nearly universally lively and engaging.

The counterpoint to the exuberant music is in the lyrics. Based on snippets of conversations with various women and laced with literary references, the lyrics present the pitfalls and turmoils inherent in looking for love, or an acceptable facsimile for love. For example, while "She Fell Into My Arms" will entice you to move your feet, the words suggest a cynical take on love:

The voice of the cock, or its flight overhead, it easily managed to shake off a dozen or so lovers that remained bereft, so here’s how I got into this mess: I saw the inscription in your blushing and when you fell into my arms, so willingly, that I wondered why I’d bothered at all.

You buy love, but you can’t afford the hurt that’s printed on the receipt and if affection is a one pound coin then why do you expect a hundred pence in return? She said, “We’re like a couple of ghosts that wander above”. And when you fell into my arms, so willingly, I wondered why I bothered at all.

"She Fell Into My Arms"


An even darker take on relationships is the "In Youth There Is Pleasure":

We don’t just need to be apart, we need a lifetime of it, I’ll admit.
As I unlocked the forbidden room, I was struck by how many corpses there were.
Boy meets girl, girl loses boy: boy opens fire on a choc-a-bloc street.

And the narrator in the delightful sounding "Elaine" explains that he is initiating the end of the relationship, although suggesting that his inadequacies are at fault. But the outlook isn't all gloom and doom. In "E.T." Erik expresses the hope that an ended relationship can be rekindled, and "Sort of Blonde" suggests at least the possibilities for love developing.

In my view, the approach to music and lyrics works perfectly on two levels. First, the album works as an engaging manifesto of guitar pop regardless of the lyrical content. But on another level, the music and lyrics work together to point out that the trips and falls of relationships are just part of the rhythm of life; you soldier on and a new adventure is around the corner. Of course, it is easier to accept all that if you are comfortable with cynicism and, maybe, a dose of paranoia.

"Elaine"


Wake the President's first LP, You Can't Change That Boy, was a mostly lively, but sometimes gentle, textbook of indie pop. Both the music and the stories told were bold and well defined. For Zumutung!, there is a matured palette of expression. While still painted on the Glasgow indie pop canvass, the music is more varied and subtle; there are keyboards and choirs and even strings. And the lyrics match the music with more shaded tones; more areas where the import of direct statements is left unexplained. In my opinion, the additional nuance results in Zumutung! being more evocative and exciting than the excellent debut album because it implicitly invites you to flesh out the story in your own. A note about sourcing the album--Zumutung! may not be available in the States in physical form at this time, but I'm advised that it is available from Amazon, iTunes and Spotify. If you want the physical artifact, which is understandable, try contacting We Can Still Picnic, at the Facebook link or email me through this site and I'll put you in touch.


In their young lives, Bjorn and Erik Sandberg who form the foundation of the band have founded two record labels, Say Dirty and We Can Still Picnic, the second of which is releasing Zumutung!, collaborate with others to keep music and arts vibrant in their community, and have released two LPs and a few singles. I expect them to continue to contribute to music and the other arts, and I encourage everyone to support them.



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REVIEW: Tom Waits - Bad As Me

Time to make room on Mt. Rushmore for one more American hero.

Bad As Me, and of course no one is as gloriously badass as Tom Waits, is the 61 year old artist's first release of new material in 7 years. It was well worth the wait.

Here's Waits' reaction, you judge how tongue-in-cheek, to the album being leaked over the internet prior to release date:



Bad as Me is completely in keeping with the chaos of the day - it clanks, wails, weeps and rages. If I had to describe it with a simple term, it's a rock'n'roll record. There is a groove, energy and major force to this effort. And even classic rockabilly, on the delicious "Get Lost".

It's restless, its characters cooped up and maybe moving across the country, or thinking their relationships are falling apart, searching, longing, in pain, and sometimes even at war.

If you are a musician, and your phone rings and its Tom Waits asking you to play on his record, you of course answer yes. So on guitars here we have Marc Ribot, David Hidalgo and Keith Richards. And wow do they bring it, amplify the deparate mood and get a great sound.

One highlight of Bad As Me is a raging rocker, "Satisfied". Waits, as usual speaking in first person, turns the typical young man voice of rock'n'roll on its ear, tipping his hat to the Rolling Stones classic "Satisfaction", but contemplating later age and impending death, and vowing to go out with a bang, while a now much older Keith Richards is a laying down the big rock riffs over a mile wide groove:

Before I'm gone
I will have satisfaction
I will be satisfied
Now Mr. Jagger and Mr. Richards
I will scratch where I've been itching.



Instead of "I hope I die before I get old", Waits' brand of rock'n'roll here is more like "I am going to kick life's ass and yours too before I get old and die."

Here's the wild and wooly title track:



But just as effective and moving is this gorgeous ballad "Back in the Crowd" that merges mariachi and country music:



As sentimental as Waits can be, and I've always loved that side of his writing, he also presents here one of the harshest and most unflinching songs about war I've ever heard, "Hell Broke Luce", so brutal and real that it's as hard to look away from as it is to absorb.

Here's a terrific feature story on Waits and the making of Bad as Me from the New York Times: Tom Waits: Bad As Me - 10/23 NY Times Feature

And while we are at it, here's an interview Waits did with himself a few years back, one of my all-time favorite pieces of writing, hilarious and brilliant, and a must read:

Waits on Waits - 2008 interview from NPR's All Songs Considered Blog

Artist web page: http://www.tomwaits.com/

Midnight World Pop Scout-33: Recent Reggae Releases: Gregory Isaacs; Sugar Minott; Bristol Reggae Anthologies

Because it's always midnight somewhere....

While vinyl has probably always will be the preferred medium for collectors of reggae (and most other types of popular music), the compact disc has been a boon to us reggae lovers. Because of the digitization of music, and the consolidation of labels and their valuable back catalogs, it is possible to produce compilations sliced and diced in any manner desired by the consumer: By artist, by style, by producer, by unique rhythm, and so on. This flexibility is particularly useful in reggae, where producers had distinctive styles, artists switched labels and producers, and singles rather than albums rule the market. In the wake of the recent deaths of Sugar Minott and Gregory Isaacs, one of the giant surviving labels, VP Records in Queens, New York, has released fine compilations of each man's career. We've highlighted those releases below, and also are bringing to your attention recent releases regarding a lesser known part of the reggae world--the Bristol, UK reggae scene of the late 70s and 80s. We hope you enjoy them.



Gregory Isaacs (b. 7/15/51; d. 10/25/2010) was known as "The Cool Ruler" of reggae. As a reggae artist, Gregory was about as close as one could be to the complete package. He could deliver lover's rock that strummed the heartstings (see "Number One", below), challenge the government on ganja policy (see "Rumors" below), and highlight the plight of the black man in the white man's world (see "Slave Driver", below). And he had the charisma needed to rock the house live.

"Number One"


"Rumors"


"Slave Driver"


VP Records' imprint, 17 North Parade, has just released Reggae Anthology: The Ruler 1972-1990, comprised of 40 tracks from the most productive years of Isaacs' long career, and a DVD of the 1984 Brixton Academy concert. Given the length of Isaacs' career, this collection doesn't include the artist's entire body of work. But as a fan, I think it reflects very good choices. If you want your reggae collection to include Gregory Isaacs and you currently have none, this set would be an excellent choice for the foundation. As an aside, 17 North Parade releases typically are attractively packaged and contain interesting liner notes.

"Night Nurse", from the Brixton Academy concert:


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Reggae great Lincoln "Sugar" Minott (b. 5/25/56; d. 7/10/2010) owes his nickname to a voice that sounded as sweet as sugar. His career spanned most of modern reggae, from the days of Studio One lovers rock through to digital the rhythms of dancehall. His contributions included performing, songwriting, promoting and producing. He also devoted time and money to helping young musicians find their way off the streets and into the studios. As was the case with The Cool Ruler, Minott could add a sweetly sung twist to a nursery rhyme (see "Old King Cole", below), inspire lovers (see "Good Thing Going", below), sing eloquently about the plight of the underclass (see "No Vacancy"), and ride Sly and Robbie's rhythm for the dancehall (see "Devil's Pickney", below).

"Old King Cole"


"Good Thing Going"


"No Vacancy"


"Devil Pickney"


Again through its 17 North Parade imprint, VP Records has just released a Sugar Minott collection Reggae Anthology: Hard Time Pressure. The collection includes 36 of Minott's hits spread over two CDs, and a DVD of a 1986 live performance. If you like reggae and you don't have any of this key reggae artist, this set is a very good way to build a collection. If you want more, you can add his Rare Jems and The Roots Lover: 1978-1983 collections later if you decide that you want more. To be honest, I have trouble evaluating the choices VP made because I have the two other albums as well. Sugar, as is the case with Gregory, is a collector's essential.

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It isn't well known at this point, particularly in North America, but there was a lively reggae scene in Bristol, UK in the late 70s and 80s. Bristol Archive Records has released two anthologies of the scene. What I think is particularly wonderful about these anthologies is that the music is absolutely wonderful reggae, and I've never heard of most of the artists. I can listen to them (as you can below) without and expectations or preconceptions. Moreover, the recordings were pressed in small numbers and sold at gigs, so they have been very rare.





Bristol Archive Records
Bandcamp for the 1978-1983 Anthology
Bandcamp for the '80s Anthology

And a tip of the Rocksteady hat to Ed at the 17 Seconds blog from whom I learned of the Bristol releases.

REVIEW: Joe Henry - Reverie

Joe Henry's a blues singer. He's a real good blues singer with an old soul, a great rhythmic sense and a terrific group of co-conspirators on each and every album. Joe is so consistent, folks may be forgiven for taking him for granted from time to time... but don't make that mistake here. Give a listen to Reverie and marvel at the breadth and strength of one of America's very best songwriters, producers and, oh yes, blues singers.

It starts off slow and sad, with a beautiful piano line on "Heaven's Escape". Henry's voice comes in slowly, and starts to take over as Keefus Ciancia's piano majestically, slowly, ushers the song along. Joe talks like a would-be big shot: "I deserve a much better hotel room than this" - and the irony is, based on his body of work and the quality of his records, he is a big deal but ought to be bigger.

"Odetta", song two, is a big acoustic song reminiscent, to me, of something from Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue period... of course, Henry's worked with T-Bone Burnett and they are in a very real sense, kindred spirits, so that shouldn't be a surprise. About :30 from the end of the song comes Ciancia's piano again, rolling so it would do McCoy Tyner proud, and moving us out of this song and into a wistful "After the War". Delicate piano and plucked acoustic guitar and bass give this one the kind of sadness that makes us revel in our reminiscences.

Here's a trailer to give you the sense of the album... The song here is "Odetta":



There's jazz here: check out "Grand Street", plenty of syncopation and improvisation and that nearly-out-of-control sense you'll recognize from the great American jazz canon. And there's blues here: "Dark Tears" is directly linked to Skip James, Son House, and any of the great acoustic blues players both in spirit and approach. But more than that there's the kind of ragged acoustic rock music that informs 21st century masterpieces like Gillian Welch's Time the Revelator, Tom Waits' Blood Money and Bob Dylan's Time Out of Mind. I understand what type of company that puts Henry's work in... it is my intention to do so.

Reverie was released October 11, and you ought to be able to find it at your local record store. Or check it out at Anti- Records Website

And just because Henry speaks and writes so well, I'll close this with some of his thoughts on the record. It's rare indeed that a rock musician is both willing and able to give you some coherent thoughts that illuminate the work he has committed to record... but if anyone could, it'd be Joe Henry:

This album speaks about time, the great river that reminds us we are buoyant after all, as its moving current lifts us by the chin and just off of the balls of our feet, while we strain to dig our toes into the sandy ground. I am not convinced that any song exists without some knowing nod in its direction. And so with Reverie I am nodding, then –to time, but also to all the love, hope, despair, and revelation that stands naked inside its weather.

Just beautiful... both the thoughts and the record. If you'd like to read more of his writing (which I recommend), go to his website and click on the "Journal" tab at the top:

JoeHenryLovesYouMadly.com

Introducing: Koko and the Sweetmeats

It is Friday, the sky is grey, and I've decided I need a bit of psychedelic blues rock. And since I'm living in Seattle, I've decided that I need psychedelic blues rock from a Seattle band. Fortunately for you, I've decided to share my choice with you; fortunately for all of us, the selected band, Koko and the Sweetmeats, has decided to make their album Sacrifice available for free download. It reminds me of the good parts of late 60s and early 70s music. At least the parts I remember.

The band members are listed as Garett and Laura van der Crimp (some writers have indicated the name is van der Spek) with part time Sweetmeats Kieran Smith and Andrew Houle. If you like The Kinks, Howling Wolf, Screaming Jay Hawkins and the early White Stripes, give these kids a listen.



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By the way, credit to Noah on the Sound on the Sound blog for highlighting this band.

The Soul Corner - The Flirtations: "Nothing But a Heartache"

I've long been a fan of this song, but not until today did I find this video, which is awesome beyond words, perfect and then some.

The Flirtations were a trio from South Carolina - Viola Billups and sisters Ernestine and Shirley Pearce - who signed with Deram Records in England. "Nothing But a Heartache" became a prime example of the "Northern Soul" of England that united mods and R&B fans and became the rage of cool teenagers across the UK in the late '60s-early'70s.

I showed this vid to my 12 year old daughter and she flipped over the fashion. Good taste, that kid.

The over-the-top production here is so great - the piano intro, the big build ups and work out, and the ever increasing drama and high pitch of the vocals: Nothing but a heartache everyday!"

The singer may be miserable but this song can make us in the Soul Corner feel so good.

Cool Video Thursday

It seems that The Black Tambourines, a favorite of ours from the summer has made an official video for their song "Tommy". Any excuse to highlight that group again is OK with me, and this actually is a good excuse.


"From the Morning Heat" by Craft Spells was recorded for the Incase Room 205 sessions. The production values for the Room 205 sessions are uniformly high.


"Pirate's Life" from We Cut Corners. Interesting approach.

We Cut Corners "Pirate's Life" from Kijek / Adamski on Vimeo.

Stephen Marley & The Fugees with Stephen's Dad's "No Woman No Cry". Footage of Bob is laced into the current footage.


"Human Error" from We Were Promised Jetpacks

We Were Promised Jetpacks - "Human Error" from stereogum on Vimeo.

Midweek Roundup: Three Metre Day, Tunabunny, Pepe Deluxe

Three Metre Day is an ethereal folk group with a very pretty sound - violin (Hugh marsh), slide guitar (Don Rooke), and keyboards and vocals from Michele Willis, who's got a clear, sweet voice. Here's a free download of the track "Stay That Way" from their new disc Coasting Notes.

Tunabunny, what kind of name is that? Great indie guitar and terrific female lead vocals - some with sweet harmonies and some kind of "out there". Check out "Song For My Solar Sister" and fondly remember old friends like The Breeders and Throwing Muses. They're from Athens, GA and they really rock. Of course...



And here's a free download of Tunabunny's "Only At Night"

Pepe Deluxe, like its name, doesn't really fit any sort of preconceptions. Crazy surf guitar, some wild drumming and punk vocals all kind of whipped into a frenzy with a theatrical flourish. Check it out for yourself - here's "The Storm", the lead track from an album due to be released in early 2012:

The Storm (Radio Edit) by Pepe Deluxé Official

Update: The Hardy Boys -- British Melancholy

We profiled The Hardy Boys last week, and alerted you to their new album, British Melancholy, which was released earlier this week. However, we did not have a track listing for the album and couldn't provide any songs that we knew were included. Fortunately, Bubblegum has made a stream of the album available on Soundcloud, and we've embedded it for you below. If you like uplifting jangle pop, I think you'll like it.

The Hardy Boys - British Melancholy by bubblegumrecords


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