Infinite Shuffle

October 30, 2011

88 – British Sea Power

Filed under: B, England — assman41 @ 4:13 pm

After recently hearing one of their songs randomly on my iPod, it dawned upon me that I had totally neglected the band British Sea Power.

They first entered my consciousness in 2008, when a friend burned me a copy of Do You Like Rock Music? At the time, I had assumed it was their debut, but I now know it was actually the third full-length release from the five-piece indie group based in Brighton, England.

The band has actually been around for more than a decade, forming in 2000, and has put out five albums, including 2009’s Man of Aran (an instrumental soundtrack to a documentary) and Valhalla Dancehall earlier this year.

When I decided I needed to re-acquaint myself with the group, my first stop was its Wikipedia page. According to that venerable site, critics have likened the band to such seminal groups as The Cure, Joy Division, the Pixies and Arcade Fire.

However, immediately after I started listening to their 2003 debut, The Decline of British Sea Power, the one band whose influence seemed unmistakable was Pyschedelic Furs.

(Well, after the album’s first three tracks, which are totally punk-infused and sound nothing like the rest of the band’s catalog.)

On their mostly slow, shoegazing tracks, lead singer Yan (Scott Wilkinson) does his best impression of Furs leader Richard Butler. At times, while listening to the debut and the follow-up, 2005’s Open Season, I thought I was actually listening to a compilation of Furs B-sides.

During one of my listens, I wanted to liken Yan’s vocals to a mixture of Butler and famed singer Jarvis Cocker (Pulp and solo). But I’ve since dropped the Cocker comparisons.

And, admittedly, the reference to The Cure isn’t totally off-base. It can be heard in several songs, especially the xylophone opening to the track “Blackout”. But, even on that track, the Furs influence is hard to ignore.

British Sea Power – Blackout

British Sea Power started to branch out musically on Do You Like Rock Music? creeping away from their post-punk roots and dabbling in more straightforward indie rock.

This is probably still their best album to date, with such strong tunes as “Waving Flags”, “Atom” and “Open the Door”.

British Sea Power – Waving Flags

Perhaps based on the strength of that album, this year’s much-anticipated follow-up doesn’t stack up quite as well. That being said, it’s still a strong record, with such solid songs as “Observe the Skies”, “We Are Sound”, “Who’s In Control?” and “Georgie Ray”.

British Sea Power – We Are Sound

In addition to putting out some quality music, British Sea Power are probably best known for their live shows — most notably their off-the-beaten-path venues.

They have played in a seaside cafe, on a ferry, in some caverns, at the highest inn in the United Kingdom, in a famous English church and at an indoor festival that included vaudeville acts.

Needless to say, it’s a band that should be seen live — something I hope to do one day.

July 17, 2011

76 – Beach Fossils

Filed under: B, Brooklyn — assman41 @ 12:01 am

A band’s name can sometimes be just as important as the music it makes. A name gives a band an identity and can often give the uninformed an idea of what to expect before pressing Play.

A lot of bands pick names that sound cool or are funny or have some inside meaning. Others just lay it all out on the line.

When you see names such as Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax, you know what’s in store for you.

While nowhere near those aforementioned bands on the musical spectrum, the group Beach Fossils do share the trait of owning a pseudo-onomatopoeic name.

As their moniker would imply, Beach Fossils harken back to the golden age of surfer rock. But it’s stripped down to its most lo-fi form, leaving nothing but a guitar, a drum machine and some moderately haunting vocals.

Beach Fossils – Vacation

Putting out their self-titled debut LP in September of last year, Beach Fossils are the latest in of a wave — pardon the pun — of bands going extremely minimal in sound and instrumentation, resulting in an incredibly relaxing, almost trance-inducing sound.

Bands such as Lower Dens, Wild Nothing and The XX have all put their own personal stamp on this genre. What Beach Fossils bring to the mix is an unmistakable sun-and-sand-filled beach vibe, reminiscent of The Drums.

Beach Fossils – Daydream

About a year ago, I found myself listening to Wild Nothing’s album numerous times in a row — often falling asleep to the dulcimer tones. I’ve had a very similar experience listening to Beach Fossils.

So, it’s no surprise that the two Captured Tracks labelmates have combined forces on a release for Record Store Day this year — Gruesome Flowers: A Tribute To The Wake. I had never heard of the Scottish band, but it’s apparently well-known enough to deserve a tribute. On the 7″ release, Wild Nothing covered “Gruesome Castle”, while Beach Fossils put their own spin on “Plastic Flowers”.

Check out both tracks here.

In addition to the LP and split single, the Brooklyn four-piece put out an EP in March of this year, What a Pleasure, which, at eight tracks, should really be considered an abbreviated full-length release.

It’s just as strong as the first album and features Wild Nothing’s Jack Tatum on the track “Out In the Way”. It also includes my favorite song so far by the group, “Face It”.

Beach Fossils – Face It

April 24, 2011

Outroversion threeplay #3

Filed under: B, Dublin, Lake Worth Fla., Los Angeles, Outroversion, R — assman41 @ 12:01 am

In my latest installment of goodies that I found over at Simon’s site, I give you a band that needs to stop making music, another that already has and one that has yet to put out an official album.

Billy Boy On Poison

When you hear, “On My Way”, the opening track on Billy Boy On Poison‘s 2009 debut, Drama Queen Junkie, you’re immediately sent a few years back in time when the band Jet ever-so-briefly ruled the world.

Billy Boy On Poison – On My Way

However, just like their Australian counterparts, BBOP don’t have much staying power. It quickly becomes apparent that they are just a one-trick pony, churning out glam/garage-rock that conjures up thoughts of bands such as The Subways and Living Things.

Although this five-piece band hails from Los Angeles, at times you would swear that it was borne out of the same scene that begat British rockers the Arctic Monkeys and the Fratellis.

They do try to slow things down on occasion, and do so successfully on the introspective “4 Leaf Clover”. But, aside from a couple of good tracks, this album is a throw-away.

The group, which takes its name from a quote in A Clockwork Orange, is said to be working on a sophomore album. But if it’s anything like the first one, don’t waste your time on it.

The Rocking Horse Winner

I begin this entry on a sad note. After putting out two very solid albums at the turn of the century, The Rocking Horse Winner has since disbanded. But their music lives on, and I shall now attempt to describe it.

Fronted by the soft, angelic voice of Jolie Lindholm, TRHW sounded like a less-rocking Shirley Manson fronting Dashboard Confessional. In fact, Lindholm has sung on several of that emo band’s recordings.

Evoking memories of The Sundays in their heyday — and perhaps the Cranberries without the accent — TRHW deliver emotionally raw tunes that uplift rather than depress, like their emo brethren.

The Rocking Horse Winner – When Songbirds Sing

The Lake Worth, Fla., outfit formed out of the ruins of the band As Friends Rust. Lindholm joined as the vocalist and, after making a split demo, they released their debut State of Feeling Concentration in 2001. They put out Horizon the following spring, but within a couple of years, they had called it quits.

The various band members have since gone their separate ways. In fact, unsurprisingly, guitarist Henry Olmino is now touring with Dashboard Confessional.

Meanwhile, Lindholm is fronting a new band, Popvert, which released its second album in 2009.

You can still hear some The Rocking Horse Winner’s songs on their MySpace page.

And, on a sidenote, the band’s name is derived from the title of a short story by D.H. Lawrence. I actually had to read it in high school and watched the movie. It was an interesting one. You should check it out.

The Riot Tapes

It’s difficult to make a good comparison for The Riot Tapes, mostly because there aren’t any well-known acts out right now that sound like them.

This female-fronted pop-rock five-piece from Dublin are most similar to what you might’ve heard on the radio around the late ’90s and early Aughts.

That sound is most prevalent on their first single, “Photograph”, where they sound a lot like Garbage, with Elaine Doyle playing the role of Shirley Manson.

“Open Eyed Dreams” starts out slow, with Doyle baring her soul about a lost love — I think. And song ends with that late ’90s vibe.

That retro label isn’t meant as a bad thing. The Riot Tapes definitely have modern feel as well, especially on the more electro-based tracks “Sun Keeps Beating” and “Everything Is Local”

The Riot Tapes – Everything Is Local

As of yet, The Riot Tapes have only shared some demos online and have not yet put out an album, but when they do, it should be pretty solid.

You can hear six tracks, including a live one and a remix of “Photograph”, on their MySpace and Facebook pages.

February 13, 2011

Random threeplay

Filed under: Aliso Viejo Calif., B, C, Cleveland, Denmark, N — assman41 @ 4:52 pm

Cloud Nothings

It’s been a whirlwind rise to semi-stardom for Dylan Baldi (aka Cloud Nothings). A little more than a year ago, he was an 18-year-old sitting in his parents’ basement in Cleveland, making songs with nothing besides a laptop and a microphone.

Since then, he signed to Carpark Records, which released a compilation of his various tracks called the Turning On EP. And just a few weeks ago, a more properly produced, self-titled, full-length album dropped.

In the interim, he became a darling of the blogosphere and formed a band that played with such acts as Titus Andronicus, Best Coast, Wavves, Real Estate, Woods, Parts & Labor and Kurt Vile.

The songs on the EP are loaded with the obvious lo-fi, fuzzy, garage-rock sound. The best ones are the title track and “Hey Cool Kid”.

Cloud Nothings – Hey Cool Kid

But on the LP, which was produced by Baltimore-based Chester Gwazda (Dan Deacon, Future Islands), the tracks become tighter and crisper. And the sound develops something of a surfer-punk ethos. It kinda reminded me of what Best Coast would sound like with a male lead vocalist.

Cloud Nothings – Should Have

Check out the band’s MySpace page, where you will find seven tracks to listen to.

Bon Voyage

Based in Aliso Viejo, Calif., the husband-wife duo of Jason and Julie Martin have been making music together for more than 15 years.

Bon Voyage began as a side project for Jason, a member of Starflyer 59, and Julie, the former lead singer of Havalina. They put out a couple of 7-inch records in the mid-’90s then a self-titled LP in 1998. Eventually, they followed that with The Right Amount in 2002.

Then they went on their longest hiatus to date before dropping their third full-length release, Lies, in 2008.

The music on Lies is your basic shoegaze/synth-pop with Julie providing the vocals and Jason doing everything else. There are several solid tracks, including the opener, “Monster”, “Birthday” and “Wake Up, Make Up”.

Bon Voyage – Monster

They also do a decent cover of The Smiths’ “Girlfriend In a Coma”.

Northern Portrait

Speaking of Morrissey and the boys, if you’re still waiting for them to get back together it’ll probably be awhile. In the mean time you could always go check out Northern Portrait.

There’s very little you need to know about this group other than the fact that it is composed of a trio of Danish dudes who sound exactly like The Smiths.

Seriously. Pick any of the 10 songs on the band’s debut full-length release, 2010’s Criminal Art Lovers.

Northern Portrait – Life Returns To Normal

Northern Portrait – What Happens Next?

It’s a solid album, but it’s difficult to get past the feeling that you’re listening to a tribute band.

December 5, 2010

54 – The Band Perry

Filed under: B, Mobile Ala., P — assman41 @ 12:01 am

I tend to shy away from country music, almost as a rule. It’s not that I hate it — I just generally loathe the kind of people who love it and the way they rally behind it.

Because of this philosophy, I’m sure I’ve missed out on several solid bands that I would’ve liked. And The Band Perry would have fallen into that pile were it not for my good friend, MK.

She sent me an e-mail a few days ago and told me to give their song, “If I Die Young”, a listen. She said she really liked the singer’s voice.

After listening to it a handful of times, I would concur.

According to the band’s official website, the song just hit No. 1 on the country charts. Who knew?

The group from Mobile, Ala., is made up of the three Perry siblings — lead singer Kimberly and little brothers Reid and Neil. In their rather lengthy bio, they say that they were raised on both classic rock and country.

That upbringing shows in their music. They churn out plenty of country ditties with a rock sensibility as well as some sweet, twangy ballads.

While the big single is clearly a gem, it turns out the band’s entire self-titled debut album is pretty solid.

Other strong tracks include “Hip to My Heart”, “Postcard From Paris”, “Independence”, “Double Heart” and “All Your Life”.

I doubt this discovery will shift my interest in country music much, if at all. But it does go to show that expanding your horizons is never a bad thing.

November 14, 2010

51 – Brackett and Co.

Filed under: Austin, B — assman41 @ 12:01 am

The most interesting part of discovering new bands is the weird ways you sometimes come across one.

While researching the Austin-based group, The Orbans, for a recent post, I was scrolling through their MySpace page and noticed some random concert flyer posted in the comments section. Normally, I wouldn’t even give it a second glance, but for some reason I looked it over and noticed in tiny, almost undecipherable print that one of the performing bands included members of Okkervil River.

“Hmm, I like Okkervil River. Maybe I should check these guys out.”

And that is how I discovered Brackett & Co., a quartet from Austin that includes three members of Okkervil River — former drummer Travis Nelsen, studio guitarist Brian Cassidy and keyboardist/horn player Scott Brackett, who plays guitar and sings in his namesake band.

The band formed about a year ago, and, so far, I’ve only heard the five songs that are posted on its MySpace page. But, in terms of sound, it’s clear B & Co. is definitely its own band, with a slower, heavier sound than the band that spawned them.

Occasionally, I can hear vocals that distinctly remind me of Okkervil River, which makes me think two things — either Okkervil vocalist Will Sheff is sitting in with the band, or Scott Brackett has a larger vocal role in the big band than I realized.

Anyways, this is a pretty solid side project, one that is still unsigned and has yet to properly release any music. So, for now, just check them out on MySpace, or go see them in person if you’re ever lucky enough to make it down to Austin.

October 17, 2010

47 – Best Coast

Filed under: B, Los Angeles — assman41 @ 12:01 am

The band Best Coast first entered my field of vision early in my recent vacation, while I was browsing an Urban Outfitters in suburban St. Louis. The store’s music section was very small, and there was only a couple of actual CDs on display, so it wasn’t too hard for the postcard-looking cover of their debut LP, Crazy For You, to catch my eye.

Considering UO has already earned my respect with its musical tastes, I figured this album was probably worth picking up. But I wasn’t going to buy sound unheard, and since there was no listening station to be found, I walked away but kept it in the back of my mind.

A few days later, before leaving my friend’s abode to experience Portland some more, my e-mail lit up with a Best Coast selection on NPR’s Song of the Day. Two points for Best Coast.

So, by the time I got to Jackpot Records later that day and saw the album in the listening station, I made sure to give it a whirl.

It’s very reminiscent of the girl groups of the ’50s and ’60s — except that it’s just one girl singing this time. And there’s hardly any production value whatsoever — rather than lo-fi, think no-fi.

That being said, it’s not too bad.

If Best Coast sounds familiar to groups such as The Vivian Girls or Dum Dum Girls, that’s because the drummer is Ali Koehler, who joined the group in July after leaving the aforementioned Vivian Girls.

The band was formed by songwriter and frontwoman Bethany Cosentino and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno. It went through a couple of drummers before landing on Koehler.

In addition to putting out the album in July, Best Coast has released three EPs and several singles since 2009.

To hear more of their stuff, check out their MySpace page. And keep tabs on their goings-on by following their blog.

February 28, 2010

17 – Beach House

Filed under: B, Baltimore — assman41 @ 12:01 am

Now that all the end-of-the-year and end-of-the-decade fervor has subsided, we’re already starting to see some recent releases being touted by the indie tastemakers as early front-runners for “top album of 2010.”

The most ballyhooed is Contra by Vampire Weekend. But another that has been receiving plenty of love is Beach House’s Teen Dream.

It’s the third full-length release from the Baltimore-based dream pop duo consisting of Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally. I’d listened to their second album, Devotion, once and wasn’t necessarily floored. Couple that with the fact that they’ve been so hyped by Pitchfork and its brethren, and I found myself growing to resent Beach House a little.

I decided I should give their entire catalogue a listen before I officially passed judgement.

Their self-titled debut dropped in October 2006, followed by Devotion in February 2008. The two albums sound pretty similar — heavy on the atmospheric rhythms and haunting lyrics but lacking much variation.

So it didn’t bode well for Teen Dream as far as I was concerned. However, early on it becomes clear that Beach House’s sound has evolved during the past couple years.

I’m not a musician, so I can’t always describe what I’m hearing, but Teen Dream definitely seems to have a lot more going on than the two earlier albums. The songs are more complex and more filled-out.

The first single, “Norway“, was somewhat bittersweet for me. It’s a solid little ditty from the opening accordion note — which, by the way, called to mind both the Sea Wolf single, “Winter Windows“, and just about any Decemberists song.

The problem with “Norway” is that it sounds so much like “Ghost Under Rocks” by Ra Ra Riot, that I couldn’t get the latter out of my head and kept waiting for the song to transition accordingly.

Thankfully, the next track on the album, “Walk In the Park”, turned out to be my favorite and helped erase some of the bitterness of the preceding song.

The rest of the album is also pretty solid, and, as a whole, Teen Dream probably deserves much of the praise it has been receiving.

So, what have we learned today?

Teen Dream? Good.

Resentment? Bad.

Beach House – Walk In The Park

January 24, 2010

13 – The Boxer Rebellion

Filed under: B, England — assman41 @ 12:01 am

Another album I considered for honorable mention on my Best of 2009 list was The Boxer Rebellion’s Union. But I’d only listened to it once and didn’t have a strong enough grasp on it.

Now, after listening to it a handful more times in the past few weeks, it definitely belongs among the elite.

It took me a couple listens before I was able to pinpoint the band they reminded me of — Radiohead. Part of that is probably my dearth of Radiohead knowledge. But from what I have heard of Thom Yorke & Co., I could tell they were a big influence for The Boxer Rebellion. Just listen to the track “The Gospel of Goro Adachi” and you’ll agree.

There’s even a quote on their MySpace page and their official website that compares their sound to The Bends-era Radiohead.

But after listening to the album a few more times, I could hear The Boxer Rebellion distancing themselves from their legendary counterparts.

There was also a tinge of Muse in their music, but they’re clearly their own band.

On their first album, Exits, their influences were a little more scattered. On the opening track, “Flight,” I was reminded of Filter and Placebo, but by the third track, “We Have the Place Surrounded,” the Radiohead influence was unmistakable and lasted for the remainder of the album.

After that first release, their record company went bust, so the band released Union on its own through iTunes. It became the first unsigned band to hit the Billboard charts with a digital-only release.

Here are my two favorites from Union.

The Boxer Rebellion – Spitting Fire

The Boxer Rebellion – Forces

January 10, 2010

11 – Band of Horses

Filed under: B, Seattle, South Carolina — assman41 @ 12:01 am

When Band of Horses released their debut album, “Everything All the Time” in 2006, I was mildly skeptical about their chances of catching on. The first single, “Funeral” is amazing and seemed to be getting constant airplay.

The problem was that they have the type of sound that could be exhausting for an entire album. Just like the band Muse’s constant anthemic rock sound, the echoey, whisper-scream of BoH lead singer Ben Bridwell permeates every song on the disc. But instead of becoming tiresome, it really works here.

Here’s how they were described on their Wikipedia page:

The band often draws comparisons to My Morning Jacket, largely due to the vocal similarities between Bridwell and MMJ lead singer Jim James, the occasional Southern Rock tendencies that the two groups have in common and a penchant for glimmering reverb.

The song “The Great Salt Lake” was definitely solid, and their song “Our Swords” was on the soundtrack for the movie “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist,” But I was still worried that, with such a great first song, Band of Horses might be destined for the realm of One-Hit Wonders. It didn’t help matters that “Funeral” was being played all over in commercials and a slew of movies and television shows.

However, all of that worrying became a moot point when they dropped their sophomore effort, “Cease To Begin,” in 2007. This was my most-played album of the past year and is slowly becoming one of my all-time favorites.

While their first album has one or two really powerful songs, the second one is packed with them. The singles that you might recognize include “Is There a Ghost” and “No One’s Gonna Love You.”

But even the non-singles are really good. Songs such as “Detlef Schrempf,” “Ode to LRC,” “The General Specific,” “Islands on the Coast” and “Cigarettes, Wedding Bands” could have been successfully released by themselves.

I’m eagerly awaiting another album, which is likely due sometime this year. The disc, which is tentatively titled “Night Rainbows,” was recorded in 2009, but a release date has yet to be announced. I’m also looking forward to catching them the next time they’re on tour.

In the meantime, you can check out some of their biggest songs at their official website or their MySpace page.

I chose to post the following song for two reasons — 1) it’s great, and 2) it’s awesome that the band, which had been based in Seattle before relocating to South Carolina, decided to pay homage to one of the Emerald City’s former basketball greats in the song title.

Band of Horses – Detlef Schrempf

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