Archive for May, 2008Chicago quartet Victorian Halls will be visiting the East Coast for several shows this summer, including a stint at Championships Pub in Trenton, New Jersey (details are available at http://www.myspace.com/victorianhalls). The band’s forthcoming self-released EP, Springteen, is chock-full of post-punk rambunctiousness.
There have been many months when I’ve not managed to have three of my works performed, so this is a fortunate weekend indeed. Tonight: Premiere of Butterfly Flourish by the Locrian Chamber Players. Riverside Church, NYC, 8 PM June 2: Jody Redhage performs “Otherwise” by Christian Carey and other 21st century songs for voice and cello at Meredith College in Raleigh, NC at 8 PM.
June 3: Premiere of Bagatelles for Alto Flute and Piano in Rome, Italy.
Aula Magna della Facoltà Valdese di Teologia
via P. Cossa 42 (near P.zza Cavour) Rome, Italy Giuseppe Pelura, flute, and Maurizio Paciariello, pianoÂ
May
30
2008
When your band name’s a buzz kill and your cover art scares Grandma…Posted by Christian Carey in UncategorizedFacts about Funerals Love Songs and Funeral Homes Evangeline Records ev0008 (www.evangelinerecords.com)  As she pores over my review queue, my girlfriend asks, “Why do so many of the CDs you get sent to review have either gruesome artwork or grim band names?†True, Facts about Funerals’s Love Songs & Funeral Homes has both gruesome artwork and a grim band name, but their music more than overcomes the initial foreboding impression. The Seattle-based group recorded their debut full length in the UK. Soaking up the scenery, the CD channels a classic British rock combination of crackling guitar riffs and hook-filled songs with a moody ambience. This is quite effective on the slow-burn ballad “Runaway with Me†and “A Different Man,†which features alt-country pedal steel and an understated vocal.  A subdued demeanor also ably serves the delicately hued “Wedding Song.†The band cuts loose on the catchy mid-tempo rocker “Black Whiskey.†The members of Facts about Funerals may seem to require a bit of mood management, but their doldrums are to the listener’s considerable benefit.
May
30
2008
Oxford band soaks up the NY scene on debut full lengthPosted by Christian Carey in UncategorizedFoals Antidotes Sub Pop SPCD 775 (www.subpop.com)  After releasing promising singles such as “Mathletics†and “Hummer,†Oxford quintet Foals decamped to NY to record their debut full length CD. There, they enlisted the help of producer Dave Sitek, whose main gig is as the guitarist for ascendant stars TV on the Radio. Apparently, Foals decided to remix the CD themselves late in the game, but the influence of both locale and producer on Antidotes is still palpable. Indeed, those who have picked up the Sub Pop US release will be able to easily compare the new tracks with the band’s aforementioned singles, which are included as bonus tracks. While both sets of material feature an abundantly energetic and talented band, the latest studio recordings are more rhythmically supple, intricately arranged (note the horn charts), and sonically rich. There’s a dancing vibrancy on Antidotes that one might associate with the resurgent interest in New Wave/college rock on the part of a number of indie bands; but to pigeonhole Foals as merely paying homage to artists such as the Talking Heads or Television would be a mistake. There is a charming steadfastness to their material; Foals are unafraid to follow their muse, even if it guides them towards similar mid-tempo grooves and familiar harmonic changes on a number of Antidotes’ songs. But the group’s ability to create diversity despite these similarities causes the whole recording to cohere into a wonderfully wrought, eminently tuneful collection.
 Man Man  Rabbit Habits Anti Records (www.anti.com)  Philadelphian avant-rockers  Man Man fit on the Anti label – an imprint with such artists as Tom Waits, Nick Cave, and Bob Mould – like hand in glove. Their work encompasses multi-instrumental experimentation, histrionic vocals, and distillation of a variety of musical styles. There’s a warmly exuberant wackiness in “The Ballad of Butter Beans,†which pits quirky xylophone freneticism against shouted lead vocals and diametrically opposed backing vocal “coos.†The ironically titled “Doo Right†wittily lampoons Fifties rock archetypes; but the song constantly provides swerves in the structure, elongating and truncating the harmonic changes seemingly at will. On the other hand, “Easy Eats or Dirty Dr. Galapagos†and “Top Drawer†channel the berserk gonzo aesthetic of vintage Captain Beefheart and Waits’s Swordfishtrombones.  While all of the energetic performances on Rabbit Habits create a stirring, kaleidoscopically hued, experience, there is affecting songwriting here as well. In particular, the title tune, on which the band allows things to be stripped down, preferring a simple voice-piano arrangement, is a delightful pop delicacy: a welcome respite in the midst of the prevailing “everything-PLUS-the kitchen sink†ambience.  It will be interesting to hear Man Man continue to cultivate both sides of their creative personae as they continue to record.
May
27
2008
Preview: The Notwist’s new CD is out June 17thPosted by Christian Carey in UncategorizedThe Notwist The Devil, You + Me Domino Records DNO 167 P (www.dominorecordco.us) “Who’s this you’re playing?†“The Notwist – import only, but it’s worth it!†(Grumbling feebly, I reach for my wallet) Such was my High Fidelity moment in a local record store that was playing the Notwist’s 2003 release, Neon Golden. The band’s combination of glitch electronica and memorable chamber pop grabbed one’s attention and held it for the duration of the CD. The Devil, You + Me, the band’s latest full length, manages to similarly balance exploring a wide and idiosyncratic sonic palette while still creating accessible, even catchy, songs.  Generally speaking, the new recording starts out in a dream pop vein and moves further and further towards IDM/electronica during the course of its duration. Even the more expansive tracks – “Gloomy Planet,†“On Planet Off,†and “Hans on Us†– retain melodic appeal and formal integrity amidst the glitch beats and mercurial arrangements. The Notwist remains a vital connection between Indie Pop and the Experimentalists. -Christian Carey       Cloudland Canyon Lie in Light Kranky Records Krank 117 (www.kranky.net) Brooklynite Kip Uhlhorn and German Simon Wojan have released several recordings as Cloudland Canyon, but their latest full length makes their myriad influences manifest; in particular, it pays homage to Teutonic experimental groups: Can, Gong, Kraftwerk, Faust, and Einstürzende Neubaten, just to name a few likely suspects. From overt signifiers – tracks named “Krautwerk†and “Scheisse Schatzi, Auf Widersehen!†for instance – to a mélange of musical references, Cloudland Canyon revel in the rebellious and exploratory ambience of their predecessors, making stirring music along the way. Rollicking grooves populate “Krautwerk†and “You & I,†while bold drone and noise experimentation is found on “White Woman.†The title track is a rich, thickly wrought wall of ambient electronica; the CD’s closer, “Mothlight Part 1,†employs swaths vocals and heavy rock guitars to fashion a satisfyingly trippy coda. -Christian Carey Â
She and Him Volume 1 Merge Records (www.mergrecords.com)  It seems that a number of actresses are trying to sing of late, with decidedly mixed results. Happily, Zooey Deschanel is a talented double-threat. On She & Him, she joins forces with alt-folk star M. Ward to create an album which channels the lilting sounds of late 1950s popular music – both solidly MOR fare and country stylings. Improbably, the gambit works beautifully, both on cover songs – a twangy version of Lennon and McCartney’s “I should have Known Better†is particularly tasty – and a number of originals. Of the latter, “Why do you let my Stay Here†is a delightful girl group-vocal charmer with some fine guitar work by Ward, “I was Made for You†is a fine rock ‘n roll number, and “Take it Back†is an affecting torch song, with a passionate vocal and piquant harmonies played by strings and piano. It will be interesting to hear if Volume Two tries on another pop era for size, or if Deschanel and Ward continue to mine this surprisingly fresh take on a long gone decade’s music-making. -Christian Carey The Drift
 Post-rock has long been a point of convergence for a variety of styles; its practitioners have employed facets of experimental classical music and jazz as well as rock material. The Drift, a quartet based in San Francisco, continues in this vein on their second full length Memory Drawings, creating extended, questing instrumentals with touches of electronic effects. The band employ two instruments in its line-up often associated with jazz: stand-up bass and trumpet. Its rhythm section blends fusion, dub, and the occasional ambient minimal passages into a fascinating mélange. Set against this are Jeff Jacobs’s soaring trumpet lines, which embody both the lyrical eloquence of an experienced avant-jazz soloist and, where necessary, the economy of a rock musician. Danny Grody fills out the soundscape with sensitive guitar and keyboard arrangements. The Drift may craft spacious music, but there’s nary a lull to be found on this imaginative and at times captivating CD. Chris Garneau |
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