Vol. 4 Issue 20 July 2007
Even though it's summer, we're still in high gear. Read/hear all about new jams from John Vanderslice, some fresh talent from Canada named Jenn Grant, and yes, Blitzen Trapper who OF COURSE we were working with BEFORE the Pitchfork review. Check it!
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Current Releases
- Click to see:
- Barsuk
- Misra
- Paris 1919
Barsuk
www.barsuk.com
John Vanderslice
"Emerald City"
Barsuk’s resident mad genius, John Vanderslice, is back! Emerald City (Barsuk), much like its predecessors Pixie Revolt and Cellar Door, is an immaculately orchestrated collection of concept-heavy indie-pop songs. Essentially, the whole record revolves around the fact that Vanderslice’s girlfriend (a French national he met in Paris) got her Visa application rejected by US immigration. Politics aside, Emerald has some catchy, sing-a-long jams like “The Parade,” and the beautiful harmony-filled, “White Dove.” Indie rock’s most consistent wiz kid.
Rocky Votolato
"The Brag & Cuss"
You needn’t have known the title of Rocky Votolato’s 5th album to realize that he’s gone all alt-country on our butts. Yes, The Brag and Cuss, marks somewhat of a stylistic seachange for Barsuk’s reigning singer-songwriter sad guy. Backed by a star-studded band of dudes who’ve played with everyone from Sufjan to Jesse Sykes to Cat Power, and Hank Williams Jr., Brag features more rickety old acoustic guitars, pedal steels, and Hammond B3 organs than a Wilco record. That said, Rocky’s still as adept at writing moving melodies as ever, now there’s just a little more twang with that heart-break.
David Bazan
"Fewer Moving Parts ep"
One of Paste Magazine’s Top 100 Living Songwriters, former Pedro The Lion frontman, David Bazan, does not like Pitchforkmedia very much. The opening track of Fewer Moving Parts (his solo debut ep and first for Barsuk), “Selling Advertising,” lambasts pfork head, Ryan Schreiber, with sarcastic barbs like “if it starts to get you down just pretend that you don’t make a living from selling advertising, tracking trends, corralling demographics, and maximizing traffic.” Oy. Luckily for Bazan, his vaguely grunge-y mid-tempo guitar-driven pop songs are hooky enough to carry the weight of his...ahem...opinions. Check out the power-poptastic "How I Remember," and the going-solo ballad, "Fewer Broken Pieces."
Misra
www.misrarecords.com/
Hallelujah The Hills
"Collective Psychosis Begone"
Misra’s new signees Hallelujah The Hills have "next big thing" written all over them. For one, they’re named after an obscure art film they saw in college at Boston University – hip and smart. For another, their biggest influence seems to be Neutral Milk Hotel … yet HTH seem far poppier and less esoteric than that seminal band of yore. In fact, HTH’s debut, Collective Psychosis Begone, sounds almost like what would happen if Guided By Voices made a record with alt-folk-mariachi collective, Calexico. It’s a good look. And although this Massachusetts six piece has threatened to make a whopping 33 albums before breaking up – I can’t help but think they’ve already made one of their best with Psychosis. Check out: "Wave Backwards To Massachusetts."
Paris 1919
www.paris1919records.com/
Jenn Grant
"Orchestra For The Moon"
Jenn Grant’s bio reads like a who’s who in the whole “songwriting” world. She’s opened for Starbucks-approved folkie Feist and Paste-lauded boho Josh Ritter, inexplicable perennial underdog Ron Sexsmith, and even Julie Doiron’s name pops up somewhere too. Orchestra For The Moon, Grant’s debut, is worthy of such far-reaching and esteemed company. The Nova-Scotia-hailing songstress has that whole wry Billie Holiday by way of Cat Power smokey vocal thing. Moon literally swoops and swoons thanks to lush but not too lush production and Grant’s own wistful homey songs. "Dreamer" builds intensity and shimmers in a way we go nuts for over at BRM – all drizzling glockenspiel notes, gently plucked acoustic guitars, and buttery cellos. Feist is having her big moment right about now, but with a debut this strong, Grant’s own star-turn may not be that far off either.
- Click to see:
- Dead Oceans
- Lidkercow Ltd.
- Absolutely Kosher
- Numero Group
Dead Oceans
www.deadoceans.com/
Bishop Allen
"The Broken String"
It’s been a good long while since Bishop Allen released their indie-pop classic debut, Charm School. 3 years, to be exact. And even though Bishop Allen managed to release an EP for every month of 2006, it’s been too long without a complete album’s worth of tunes. But the wait is over. Bishop Allen & The Broken String (the debut release from the new Dead Oceans label) showcases a young band totally coming into its own sound. Bishop Allen’s two masterminds, Justin Rice and Christian Rudder, pen addictive pop songs that showcase their Ivy League smarts and more than a hint of self-deprecation. Featuring 9 reworked songs from the EP project along with 2 unreleased new jams, at times The Broken String sounds shambolic and off-kilter, while still remaining grand in a vaguely Arcade Fire sort of way. They also write some of the best songs of any band making music today. For camera ads see: “Click Click Click,” and for “picking up the pieces and getting back on your feet montages” see: “Rain.”
Lidkercow Ltd.
blitzentrapper.net/
Blitzen Trapper
"Wild Mountain Nation"
Blitzen Trapper. Remember the name. It’s one that’s about to be everywhere. On the band’s third record, Wild Mountain Nation, this Portland, Oregon-based six-piece does the legacy of Pavement, early-90’s Beck, and Captain Beefheart(!) proud. Nation is a glorious mess full of addictive, rootsy pop songs, funneled through a post-modern sound shredder. It’s no wonder it just scored an 8.5 Best New Music rating with the tastemakers at Pitchforkmedia.com, and New York Magazine head critic, Sasha Frere Jones, already put Nation in his Top 10 of 2007 list. It’s also no wonder these guys turned down many a fine big time Indie label, choosing to put Nation out themselves. It’s an album that stands for nothing if not creative freedom. “Sci-Fi Kid” is an epic unto itself, one part sprawling uptempo acoustic-pop anthem, the other digital nerd-hop. "Murder Babe," and "Wild Mountain Nation" are even better – the former sounds like a collaboration between Big Star and Slint, while the latter is what I always hoped Creedence Clearwater Revival would sound like but never did. BRM BEST of 2007.
Absolutely Kosher
www.absolutelykosher.com/
Get Him Eat Him
"Arms Down"
Providence, Rhode Island's indie-popsters, Get Him Eat Him, are fronted by former Pitchfork scribe, Matt Lemay. Don’t hold that against them. Matt mostly showed the love over at Pfork, and his firm command of indie-rock’s history and impeccable taste-level thankfully translate into the guy’s own songwriting too. Arms Down (Absolutely Kosher) is a far more fleshed-out affair than Get Him’s debut, Geography Cones. Songs fly by in a haze of clean channel guitar chords, wiry synth lines and guest spots from Zach Condon of Beirut!? Indeed. 7.7.
Bottom Of The Hudson
"Fantastic Hawk"
Eli Simon’s Bottom of the Hudson project is nothing if not "unassuming." A one-man band turned 5-member outfit of self-proclaimed "mid-fi bedroom pop," it’s almost a shame how modest BOTH comes off because Fantastic Hawk (Absolutely Kosher) is brimming with everything one could love about indie rock. It almost sounds like Guided By Voices channeled through a Galaxie 500 obsession. Plenty of chimming guitars and big hooks, keyboards, organs, and even some clarinets. And yes, builds too. Check out “Pretty Much It” – you will like.
Numero Group
www.numerogroup.com/
Eccentric Soul: The Prix Label
"Eccentric Soul: The Prix Label"
More reissue shoulda-been classic soul jams from The Numero Group! The latest in Numero’s awe-inspiring Eccentric Soul series, takes the focus back to Columbus, Ohio’s The Prix Label. Something must have been in the water in Columbus cause these cats could play and sing like the best of 'em – if your poison is soul-inflected funk, fresh to death horns, treble crackling breaks, and sensuous vocals – look no further. They did it again. And again. And again.