New Jam from Outside World

I went checking in on Brain Idea, a band I totally dig, and found that some of the members had begun a new project titled Outside World.  Man, I was surprised at just how great their latest single was; it’s got an old school rock n’ roll sound, filled with infectious hooks and a bit of ramshackle to it. The group’s about to release a new tape for Night People titled Seaside Nowhere, and this song’s going to feature.  If you were once a fan of the Replacements and Superchunk, then this band’s going to find a place in your heart immediately.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/01-Due-to-See.mp3]

 

FT5: Albums of the Year…so far

Let’s face it, every site is doing it, and perhaps we’re a little late on the run in, but technically, we just got to the midway point of the year, so I was holding off until the exact date–I don’t want to get ahead of myself.  So, in all honesty, this is going to be sort of a list of my 2011 albums of the year up to now, but I reserve the right to drastically change my opinion on any, if not all, of these choices. Come on, it’s just now July, so I’ve still got six months to hammer things out in a fully functional list.  Please remember, this is one man’s opinion, not the site as a whole, nor do we disagree with your opinions, unless you like that new Beyonce.

Read more

Cloud Nothings – s/t

Rating: ★★★★½

It’s funny how one of the great hopes for indie rock is being played by a 19 year old from Cleveland.  Dylan Baldi is the teen sensation behind Cloud Nothings, and perhaps his youth and naivete allowed him to create one of the best records of the year.   The self-titled album is everything you could ask from a record: creative, energetic, heart-felt, and just fucking great.

As soon as you press play you just get highly-fueled kick to the face, as “Understand at All” opens with a statement that you’re not going to have much room to breathe here.  Incredibly, you have these angular guitars cutting in and out, yet it all holds tightly onto several melodic moments of hook; you don’t find good energetic rock these days with such pop undertones.  “Not Important” works as the excellent follow-up here, moving just as quickly into the fray as the opener.  A little twist is the rawness of Baldi’s vocals here, almost straining a bit, but it’s pulled off successfully.  Personally, the drum work on this track really  is the winner, though it’s hard to say there’s anything wrong with Cloud Nothings up to this point.

However, it’s not all high octane indie rock.  “Forget You All the Time” might actually be one of the best kept secrets on this album, wrapped at the four spot.  Pacing is slowed, and the melody is really sensational.  Dylan’s vocal performance is one of the warmest of all the tracks here, and you can’t help but be won over by every inch of the recording.  But, it’s sort of the one-off, and though rewarding, it might be nice to see if Cloud Nothings explore a little bit more of that direction in the future.

You know, writing a record review typically isn’t too difficult. You write about a couple of your favorite tracks, point out the flaws you saw, etc, but Cloud Nothings is pretty impossible to write about if you cut it into pieces.  There’s probably not enough praise I can give Baldi on this installation in his catalogue.  Everything seems to offer up little pieces of my somewhat tainted indie past.  Perhaps its the chorus in “Heartbeat” that recalls twee C86 records on speed or the brashness of “Rock.”  You’ll find bits of influences all over the map, from Superchunk to GBV to possibly Pains of Being Pure at Heart (or the like), but it sounds refreshingly sincere, as if Baldi has no intention of just copying his peers or his record collection.

While I’m not sure Cloud Nothings are here to save indie rock, this self-titled record is about as good a record as I’ve heard in a long time.  You can cut your favorites and put them into playlists, or you can play the whole album in its entirety, as its not too long by any means.  In the long run, I’m sort of glad Baldi is so young.  It means, as long as life goes well, that we can expect more excellent records for years and years to come. And if you take one listen to this record, you’ll be grateful.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Cloud-Nothings-Understand-At-All.mp3]

Download: Cloud Nothings – Understand At All [MP3]

Superchunk – Majesty Shredding

Rating: ★★★★½

When you’re putting out records by the likes of Arcade Fire, Spoon and Destroyer, one would think you could easily get influenced by the great songwriting, unless of course, you’re Mac McCaughan, founder of Merge Records.  But, let’s not forget that Mac’s been jamming with his band Superchunk for close to two decades, and their newest album, Majesty Shredding, shows that no matter how often they pop up, they’re always going to be awesome.  Period.

Perhaps this whole record owes to perfect timing, but then again, as soon as you hear the squall of feedback that opens “Digging for Something,” you are met with a barrage of powerful gunshot drums and pure pop sensibility.  Mac’s voice sounds as youthful as ever, and who’s going to argue when he’s tossing up sing-a-long choruses so tasty?  Of course, the band isn’t solely intent upon giving you quick guitars that cut straight to that pop spot in your heart, they’ve got other offerings.

“Rosemarie” takes a softer approach, almost one that lives in the vein of The Replacements, which is completely acceptable, if not utterly awesome.  The balance between Mac and Laura sounds as tight as ever, and they’re not tossing in frills just for the sake of doing so; there’s a purpose in every single musical note on the plate.  You’ll find “Crossed Wires” coming at you in the similar territory, using the most basic formula with guitar interplay to keep it more than interesting.  Hopefully everyone will find themselves enjoying the clarity of the vocals, enjoying the fact that you can turn this album way up, and scream along to the fact that we’ve all got “crossed wires.”

Its funny, as you probably won’t look at Majesty Shredding and think to yourself that this band is breaking new ground, kicking all those tired genres to the curb, but at the same time, they’re not just resting on their laurels, sitting back waiting for you to love them. “Learned to Surf” opens with some great guitar work thats both angular and heavy, things we’ve seen other people do, but not this earnestly.  Superchunk will also throw traditional ballads, of their own personality, at you, like in “Fracture.”  This is the first time you can see a bit of the age in Mac’s vocal performance, not that we’re seeing this as a bad thing by any means.  Even with that, it’s a song that seems forever innocent, almost timeless.  Shouldn’t it all sound just like this?  And, if you want that in your face rocker, then you can visit “Rope Light” late in the record, just in case you weren’t sure how much you would love this album.

Occasionally we find a band like Weezer rehashing the same tired sound, but nothing about the work on Majesty Shredding seems dated, or even throwback.  Time has treated Superchunk with the appropriate amount of wisdom, allowing them to craft an album that isn’t trying to be anything other than good, simple as that.  It’s god ballads you can sing to in your car, its got rockers to get your energy going, and its just a joy to listen to a band who has no intent other than to offer up a great collection of songs that can stand the true test of time. Bands like this make it easy to write about; they just offer up good old fashioned killer rock n’ roll.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/1-01-Digging-For-Something-1.mp3]

Download: Superchunk – Digging for Something [MP3]

1 2