Vol. 3 Issue 10 June 2006
Happy Anniversary to us! Three years old, and almost potty trained. In dog years we’re twenty one, and that means we’re on My Space (www.myspace.com/bankrobbermusic) and ready to read some blurbs. So, let’s get down to business.
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Current Releases
- Click to see:
- Merge
- Thrill Jockey
- BA DA BING!
- Absolutely Kosher
Merge
www.mergerecords.com
Camera Obscura
"Let’s Get Out Of This Country"
I’m a sucker for retro-60’s pop. Maybe, I’m just a nostalgic bum who thinks “it was all better before cable,” but I’ll be damned if there’s not something elemental in a faux-Phil Spector string flourish. Now that Belle and Sebastian are off mining another decade for pop manna, Camera Obscura are basically tied with Jens Lekman as the only people I know who can get away with titling their band bios as though they were Russian novels – “A Brief History Of...” Biography titles notwithstanding, Camera’s new record, Let’s Get Out Of This Country (Merge) is the band’s best by a long shot. And considering the Camera’s previous two albums were under-the-radar critical smashes, this praise actually means something. The record’s opener, “Lloyd, I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken,” is a brazen indie-pop love song turned upside down – all wistful declarations, and handclaps and Rickenbacker guitar hooks galore. Another hit from the fine folks at Merge Records!
Thrill Jockey
www.thrilljockey.com
Extra Golden
"Ok-Oyot"
Here’s one for the summer, kids. Extra Golden is a cross-continental exercise where African roots music and an American DIY aesthetic break bread. Started as a doctoral thesis project on the music of Kenya and Nairobi, Ian Eagleson’s pursuits gave birth to one of the most addictively upbeat records of the summer. Featuring members of Golden and indie-psychster’s Weird War along with African musicians like the late Otieno Jagwasi – Extra Golden’s Ok-Oyot System (Thrill Jockey) was recorded in a single afternoon in a nightclub in Nairobi. Damn. These boys sure kept the tempos moving for a sweaty good time. This is prime music for your dance-parties, BBQ’s and long summer drives. Hot.
BA DA BING!
www.badabingrecords.com
Beirut
"Gulag Okestrar"
In the course of just one week, 19 year old Zach Condon’s gypsy-folk project, Beirut, went from being a pleasant little record for fans of Neutral Milk Hotel, to one of the year’s most blogged about releases, to, now, the toast of the entire music industry. Whoa. Quicker than you can say “overnight success,” Beirut’s masterful debut Gulag Okestrar (Ba Da Bing!) will have you spellbound with its idiosyncratic mix of all things Gulag with a touch of Rufus Wainwright, and dare I say more than a touch of the Magnetic Fields. Somehow, album standout “Postcards From Italy” manages being a soaring romantic ballad that sounds like it was almost produced by Timbaland with maybe some vocals from Thom Yorke too - a yearning hoe-down in “the old quarter.” W’ever. It works. Plus, “Scenic World,” turns out to be one of the most pleasant electro-pop tracks these ears have heard in a long time. Who knew gypsy-folk music could be so danceable? This 19 year old is worth all the hype.
Absolutely Kosher
www.absolutelykosher.com
Sunset Rubdown
"Shut Up I Am Dreaming"
And now for our number two blog-band of the month – Sunset Rubdown. Quicker than you can say “Wolf Parade side project,” Sunset Rubdown is the Wolf Parade side project from WP keyboard/songwriter/sometime-lead vocalist, Spencer Krug. Krug penned one of WP’s finest moments/one of my top 5 favorite jams of last year, “I’ll Believe In Anything,” so I had some high expectations on this one. Thankfully, Shut Up I Am Dreaming, (Absolutely Kosher) doesn’t disappoint. It manages the uneasy task of sounding not too dissimilar from his main band, yet totally all its own – almost like if Wolf Parade were invaded by a Tom Waits monster who only listened to Arcade Fire… It’s all ragged guitars, and soaring vocals, bells, glockenspiels, accordions and kinetic drums. This one will surely be on year-end, best-of lists. Check out “They Took A Vote And Said No.”
- Click to see:
- Barsuk
- Isan
- Cheap Trick
- Numero Group
Barsuk
www.barsuk.com
Smoosh
"Free To Stay"
Look. This is not a joke. You might’ve already heard about “that band that features those two leggy blonde 12 (!) and 14 (!) year old sisters who play awesome indie-pop songs on vintage keyboards.” Smoosh is that band. And the ladies, nay, the girls’ Barsuk debut, Free To Stay, is better than logic would lead us to believe. Basically, the jams here will be appreciated by more than just the pedophile set. I know dudes making significantly worse music who are older than the two of them combined! Apparently, Death Cab for Cutie’s drummer, Jason McGerr, is their drum teacher and some kind of mentor. He’s done a good job. Not only have the girls toured North America, but, hell, they’ve opened for everyone from Sleater-Kinney to Sufjan Stevens to freakin’ Pearl Jam. And they deserve to. Free To Stay, like just about everything else on Barsuk, is packed with amazingly catchy pop songs. Check out “Free To Stay” and be hooked.
Isan
www.isan.co.uk
Isan
"Drawn In Pencil"
The electronic duo Isan have been quietly making some of the best minimilist idm-jams around. Their label Morr Music is basically seminal for the “organic music made by robots” thing, and Isan is a perfect fit for the template. The duo’s last record, Meet Next Life, was a laid back affair – subtle, intimate, electronic music at its most spellbinding. Plans Drawn In Pencil takes that formula and gives it a shot of energy. There are more sounds on this one, the mix is thicker, and you could get lost in the keyboards. The melodies are as intoxicating as ever.
Cheap Trick
www.cheaptrick.com
Cheap Trick
"Rockford"
Cheap Trick’s first studio album in three years Rockford ( Big 3 Records) is killin’. Do we have to explain that these guys are legendary like we did with Tom Verlaine? And did we mention that Steve Albini co-produced? Check out the single “Perfect Stranger.” At about the two-minute mark the drums drop out and the band kicks back in: CLASSIC Cheap Trick.
Numero Group
www.numerogroup.com
Eccentric Soul
"The Big Mack Label"
It’s not even funny anymore. The fine fellows over at the Numero Group must be showing off or something. Over the course of the last heaven knows how many releases, Numero’s Eccentric Soul series has more than earned its rep as the finest and most dependable collection of the best shoulda-been-classic soul jams around. Personally, I thought the series had peaked with its last release (Deep City), however, the brand new Big Mack is just as good. I don’t know where these guys find this stuff, or how they do it, but the Big Mack label is bursting at the seams with pounding drum breaks, sexy falsettos, and enough retro-soul jams to supply Jim Jarmusch with scores to his next 10 films. Srrsly. It’s hot. Broadway in August hot. ‘Nuff said. Check out Grand Prix’s “You Drive Me Crazy.