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OUR WEEKLY COLLECTION OF SHORTER REVIEWS
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Braid,
The Masticators,
Zelienople,
The Drop Band,
The Gloria Record,
Golden Millennium,
Coinmonster,
The Scaries,
Swingin' Utters/Youth Brigade,
Lunch With a Bouncing Space Vol. 1,
Mark Kissinger and Rotcod Zzaj,
The Steinbecks,
Brady Harris,
CPU,
Joe Cerisano,
The Hillary Step,
Plumtree,
Copper Minds,
Cupcakes,
Travis
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Braid / Lucky To Be Alive / Glue Factory (CD)
Seeing as Braid broke up in late '99, this isn't the time or place to
critique the band's songwriting. There may be some overly complex riffs or
uncomfortable melodies, but that's Braid's style, and you can take it or
leave it as you please. Lucky To Be Alive chronicles the band's last
show at Chicago's Metro. The energized, adrenaline pumping, post-punk
dramatics of this foursome are glaringly apparent on this live document, as
the band chugs through 17 tracks from their vast catalog. As far as live
recordings go, those familiar with Braid will immediately recognize their
favorites while the unititiated may wish to pick up one of the band's
studio releases before making a sound judgement. If names like Jawbox and
The Dismemberment Plan make you salivate viciously, I suggest further
research into the Braid phenomenon -- and please, wipe your mouth, will ya?. -- am
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The Masticators / Masticate! / To M'Lou Music (CD)
The Masticators are fun. That's really about all you need to know, but
just for the heck of it I'll give you a little more: girl
singer/guitarist, backed by boys on guitar/bass/keys/drums. Think 1980s
girl guitar bands, John Hughes movie sound tracks, Blondie with less
attitude... "He's the One (Island Version)" is a near perfect, lilting
pop song with great lyrics like: "Semi you rule, Semi aaahhhh plenty
ooooohhhh." "Radio Police" almost enters the Elastica zone, but in a
much sweeter, less bad-assed neighborhood. Taking a break from the
hyper-active rockiness of most of the tunes is "Day to Day", a pretty,
sad, countrified number. "Kidnapper Song" kicks right back into full-on
rock and roll bliss. On the down side, most of these songs seem to
remind me of someone else, which is to say The Masticators aren't
exactly blazing any new trails down the rock and roll highway. Oh, and
the lyrics get pretty dopey in a few places. But who cares! Singer Lisa
Mychols has a swell voice, and she sings fun songs that even your mom
will like. Plus there's a cover of a Devo tune ("Uncontrollable Urge").
What more could you want? -- ib
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Zelienople / Green as a Feather / Pipe Down (CD)
Zelienople's press release noted that band members have previously done musical pieces to accompany art installations. I find that quite fitting, as any one of the songs on Green as a Feather would work rather well in that regard. Their compositions are light and airy, the perfect soundtrack for a
leisurely stroll though the gallery of your choice. Combining traditional guitar, drums and bass with clarinets and keys Zelienople create clean and dreamy mellow pop without a hint of pretentiousness. The EP's true highlight is the pastorally fragile “Blueberry Farm,” with its circular guitar, subtle
melody and cascading keyboards. If you're in the market for the perfect music to criticize impressionistic painting by, look no further than Green
as a Feather. -- jj
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The Drop Band / Dropout / Squelch
(CD)
Do you remember the episode of The Brady Bunch where Greg
dressed like Jimi Hendrix? Now imagine if he had played the Bradys'
songs like Hendrix as well. This puts you somewhere in the territory
of the Drop Band. Mixing funk horn sections, sunshine harmonies and
guitar wails, this ten-piece knocks out some excellent jams. Among the
delights here is the rolling, camp-fire sing-a-long of "Take a Trip",
which is possibly the best road trip song ever. While the album is
weighed down by a couple of meandering tunes, the balance is still in
favor of rump-shaking hippie excursions. -- rd
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Are you keen on passionate songs with nice sentiments ("You're just like
everybody else, there's no one like you") that aim to cheer up whole
audiences at once? If so, get experienced on the Gloria Record.
"A Lull in the Traffic", described by the group as an "anthem to
premature-midlife-crisis", is largely just that, as are the remaining four which fill out the disc. With the possible exception of "A Bye",
which is the Gloria Record's take on a pop ballad, all of these songs have
near-cinematic sweep to them, reminding one fondly of great endings to
sloppy Marillion albums like Brave. It seems the Gloria Record is
getting grouped, happily or not, as members of the emo rock movement, but
anyone who loves songs graced with keyboard-driven emotion would be moved by
these guys from Austin who want their songs to be cried to. -- td
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Golden Millennium / EP / Peek-A-Boo (7")
In which a batch of Peek-A-Boo "all-stars" -- members of Silver Scooter,
Spoon, the Kiss Offs, the 1-4-5s, etc. -- cover themselves in glitter and
pound out a bunch of glam rock tunes on collector-bait gold vinyl. It's
fun and funny, and Dean Hsieh's "Abby Alien" fits in seamlessly with T. Rex
and Bowie, though "Sci-Fi Suicide" doesn't fare quite as well. Repeated
plays reveal the fact that Peek-A-Boo's somewhat tinny punk rock production
values don't quite deliver the big sound that's needed to really ram home the
covers (especially "Suffragette City"), but sufficient volume will
compensate. -- gz
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Coinmonster / The Schematic / Bandaloop (CD)
I guess that doing a damn near faithful cover of Hall and Oates' "Sara Smile" puts to rest the question of whether the guys in Coinmonster are as strange as
Mr Bungle. With songs like "Workshop", which include within them traces of rap
and balladeering, as well as a large chunk of hard rock and speed metal,
Coinmonster's fifth release, The Schematic, cements their oeuvre as
one of the more interesting in the ever-expanding genre of metal. Jon
Reider's unexpected attempts to hit high notes in "Kid Across the Street"
works surprisingly well (given that the band has enough testosterone to make
Al Capones out of Spandau Ballet) and the musical variety throughout
more than makes up for the lyrical missteps("Autumn loads with crispy
thoughts of cool, clear morning/waking up to crunching troops of insect
soldiers") which seem the sole prerequisite for calling oneself metal
nowadays. -- td
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The Scaries / Wishing One Last Time / Route 14
(CD)
There's not a whole lot that's left to be said about anthemic
power-punk anthems, and the Scaries don't seem too interested in
breaking new ground -- which is fine, as not everyone needs to
innovate. The band compensates by playing really well, really
fast. They crank out a cover of the Cure's "Pictures of You"
that will undoubtedly score them college radio airplay for
novelty's sake, but which will remain popular after the novelty
wears off thanks to the Scaries' spirited performance. Also
notable here is "Power Ballad", listed in the disc's sequence as
track 69. Yes, there are 58 tracks of silence before it, making
this a rare "un-hidden" hidden track. On the downside, none of the
originals is anywhere near as memorable as "Pictures of You" -- always a bad sign. -- gz
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Swingin' Utters/Youth Brigade / BYO Split Series: Volume II / BYO (CD)
The Bay Area's fantastic four, The Swingin' Utters, join forces with Youth
Brigade for a
split CD. The Utters are in sinewy form, with several tunes sounding like
they could be part
of Five Lessons Learned. With a combination of easy-to-learn
sing-a-longs and hot
blooded guitar parts, the Utters' six songs are a treat by themselves.
However, as shocking
as it may sound, Youth Brigade may actually have the upper hand on this
split, with a
ballsier, unruly sound that demands your attention by applying some of the
Utters' catchy
musical tactics and spicing them up with smartass sincerity. "F**k You"
rages through a
solid old-school-meets-new-school style of punk that'll have all of the
room's available
fists pumping in the air, as jarring guitars lead your lips into expelling
the vernacular
for intercourse. No comprendo? Got your air guitar handy? Mouth after me:
fuck you, pal! -- am
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Various Artists / Lunch with a Bouncing Space Vol. 1 / A Bouncing Space (CASS)
Here it is: the first compilation from Brooklyn’s woefully underappreciated A Bouncing Space records. If ABS ever starts releasing CDs, they'll be a force to be reckoned with in the indie pop market. Side A kicks off with label head Jamey Gray’s candy coated pop machine, 99 cent dream. “Redneck” is an Elliott Smith-like slice of shimmering lo-fi piano-led pop, while fellow conspirators The Sauvie Island Moon Rocket (great name) and Hall Monitor both turn in beautifully hissing songs of wonder love and hope. Side A concludes with the pensively
pretty “A Box of Cotton” from Gray project Gessy. Side B features the cooing female vocals and Day-Glo electric
strum of The Dandelion Clocks’ “Evangeline”, and Alan Wiley’s “Starlight,” a brooding mix of dueling vocal harmonies and elegiac organ. I also have to mention The Cobra La’s and their blazingly great “The One to Blame”, which is a perfect mix of
Bee Thousand-era GBV strangeness and the Stooges’ pummeling rhythmic bombast. Make no mistake, Lunch With A Bouncing Space Vol. 1 is one of the
finest, though perhaps one of the shortest pop compilations I've heard in a long, long time. -- jj
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Mark Kissinger and Rotcod Zzaj / Free Spirit Suites / Zzaj Productions (CD)
I think groups like Jethro Tull and King Crimson are among the least
acknowledged influences on many bands today. Those groups' brains weren't
the biggest, but they always had huge ambitions and the willingness to be
experimental enough to shoot their careers in more than just the feet. Though
Rotcod and Mark are far less bombastic (or ambitious, frankly), I tend to
think back to thick bricks and courts of crimson kings whenever I listen to
this CD. The psychedelic, largely instrumental Free Spirit Suites,
made with Mark Kissinger, seem to be composed with only the players in mind,
but the duo's skill and enthusiasm is good enough to keep things interesting
(and your ears not too annoyed). I hesitate to recommend any avante garde
sixties throwbacks, but if you own all of Robert Fripp's CDs, it's not like
you haven't blown money on stuff like this before. -- td
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The Steinbecks / Recorded Music Salon / Drive-In
(CD)
Under the moniker the Steinbecks, brothers Josh and Joel Meadows play
pretty pop music. Gentle and rolling, these snappy tunes draw from a
variety of sources including the Beatles and the Smiths (minus Morrissey).
On occasion, the hummable melodies even invoke the Beach Boys' delicate
harmonies. Subtle and without guile, the short songs brim with a breezy
sweetness. While the wispy fluffiness of the songs can be a bit rich at
times, it's difficult to dislike something this downright cute. Simple
and lightweight, this album is perfect for those shy spring days when
the sun finally starts to peek at you through the grey. -- rd
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Brady Harris / Good Luck Stranger / Lampshade (CD)
Harris pairs the down-home sincerity of roots-rock Americana
with the vibrant, crackling pop of Revolver-era Beatles.
Sometimes the results come down on the rock-and-roll side of the
fence, while on other occasions you'll find him hip-deep in
country music turf. Harris' former band, the Solid Goldsteins, garnered
many a comparison to the Replacements, and that resemblance can
be spotted on rockier tunes like "Falling Down" and "Feeling
Strangely Fine," though it's often obscured by a haze of wry
John Hiatt-ishness. And on the wicked "Anthrax Blues" --
Good Luck Stranger's finest song -- Brady cranks out an
updated take on the walkin', talkin' Johnny Cash Blues that
should garner some attention from the folks at Bloodshot.
Sometimes, however, Harris' loner stance takes its toll on his
music, as if time spent busking in London and Paris subways has
bled away his passion. Some tunes need only a little more
oomph to push them to the next level, but the world-weary
Harris can't seem to muster the barroom
"ferocity" needed to take rock songs like "Koreatown" to the next level. -- gz
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The man behind CPU is Frode Holm, a Norwegian-born fusion keyboardist. FrodoCPU reflects much of his fusion roots. I'll admit to being fascinated by this album. At times I feel I'm listening to Wham! without the continental suave-factor plus Kenny G (hear "Dedicated to My Love for You"). On other tracks there's a kind of house-y, disco, funk vibe. In sound and tenor "It's Time" seems performed by some strange Norwegian reincarnation of Sly Stone. A happy-jazz-fusion component is omnipresent in the slick synth patches and crisp drumming. Despite my curiosity, however, the songwriting here puts me off. The lyrics, in particular, are consistently not quite right. They are at times clichéd, at times simply obvious and lacking in depth, but generally they are enough to spoil an otherwise nicely produced album. -- nw
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Joe Cerisano / Carbon Copy / Outta the Woods
(CD)
Cerisano's album falls into the big catch-all category -- or
should that be "much-maligned genre"? -- of Americana rock. His
voice, music and heartfelt lyrics recall not only Bruce
Springsteen, Bob Seger and the accompanying herd of tertiary also-rans,
but also Pierce Pettis, Randy Newman and Bruce Hornsby. Those
inclined to shy away from this sort of stuff should be reminded
that in general, it's the drunken, hollering fans who make it
odious -- not the music itself. Cerisano's work is emotional
and, I suspect, cathartic. The sound may be familiar, but the
execution is well above average. -- gz
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The Hillary Step / The Second Time Means Nothing / Urinine (CD)
The Hillary Step is a tough band to pin down, which is -- at least in my opinion -- a good thing, because it's that characteristic that makes The Second Time Means Nothing so compelling. Each song is in and of itself a unique mesh of wracked beauty and cathartic brutality. This is displayed prominently with opener “You and Me and This”, which begins life as a chimingly demure piece of post-rock a la June of 44, only to transform itself into a distortion-fuelled guitar maelstrom. Elsewhere, “Damn the Luck’s” rapid-fire rhythm, twisted guitars and screaming vocals are interspersed with lulling and hypnotic bouts of guitar frippery. Thrillingly chaotic and achingly gorgeous all at the same time, The Second Time Means Nothing proves to be a fitting introduction to a potentially great band. -- jj
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Plumtree / This Day Won't Last At All / Endearing
(CD)
Endearing sums it up on the label they've stuck on the CD cover:
Plumtree are "female vocaled indie rock/indie pop". A fairly
broad description, perhaps, but one that fits reasonably well --
the female vocals are bright and breathy, while the pop/rock is
jangly. Unless you've been living in the jungle for the last 15
years, This Day Won't Last At All won't be a
leaping-from-the-bath, running-down-the-street-shouting-"eureka"
sort of experience. It will, however, be an enjoyable one,
especially on sharper-edged cuts like "My My", which bring to
mind Blake Babies, the Breeders or Dressy Bessy. You'll only be
disappointed if you were expecting something more original. -- gz
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Copper Minds / Bring Me Down / Self-Released (CD)
As Copper Minds possess nice (if eerily familiar) melodies, good musicianship and
adequate singing from Devin (formerly of the better-named Ballads and
Balderdash), it seems silly to ask much more from this young group.
Nonetheless, the songs on Bring Me Down are too by-the-book, as if a
band without a contract is already being hounded by studio moguls to imitate
songs that have generated mass appeal. As a result, we are left with a dozen
minutes of dull predictability, punctuated by metaphorical lines ("I see
myself in your footsteps") that cry to be taken literally, if only to make
the songs more interesting. Still, they put on a fun live show, so perhaps
their taste in covers is more eclectic. However, I would be surprised if
people who go to the bars for the music, rather than the socializing, were too impressed by what Copper Minds can do. -- td
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Cupcakes / s/t / Dreamworks (CD)
Three salient points regarding Cupcakes: (1) Their debut was produced by Stephen Street; (2) They're the new project from Matt Walker, whose brief stint as Smashing Pumpkins' drummer must have helped attract Dreamworks' attention; (3) I realized while listening to the album that I went to high school with Cupcakes vocalist Preston Graves and carried a big torch for his on-again/off-again girlfriend (though, in the interest of Marital Harmony, I should note that I was young and foolish back then). Otherwise, all you really need to know about Cupcakes is that it's a sludgy morass of familiar power-pop riffs and copped rhythms. Yeah, many of the songs are catchy, but in a way that leaves you feeling dirty; it's aural junk food that's briefly satisfying, but ultimately less than nourishing. -- gz
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Travis / The Man Who / Epic (CD)
Supposedly the latest monsters of UK Pop-Rock, Travis don't
really work any new ground. Basically, the band straddles the
Y-shaped fence that separates Radiohead, Blur and Oasis. In
spite of this relative facelessness, they've come up with a few
really nice songs -- "Driftwood" and "Why Does it Always Rain on
Me?" clicked for me immediately, and most of the others are growing on
me. If The Man Who had come out on an indie label, it
probably would've been praised to the skies by now; instead,
it's bound for a lot of people's "guilty pleasures" lists.
That's kind of a shame, as The Man Who is no more
anonymous than many highly-respected indie records -- it's
simply a matter of perspective. Big corporations are evil, yes,
but not everything they touch turns to crap. -- gz
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gz - george zahora | nw - noah wane | am - andrew magilow | ib - irving bellemead | jj - jason jackowiak
ha-n - heidi anne-noel | dd - deirdre devers | td - theodore defosse | rd - ron davies
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