Liam the Younger – After the Graveyard

Rating: ★★★★☆

Liam the Younger is the project of Liam Betson, a man who’s spent some time playing with his friends, Titus Andronicus.  But, that’s about all he shares, or at least his music shares, with his friends, as After the Graveyard is a stripped down affair of bedroom folk tunes.  It’s just now being released by Underwater Peoples, after being stored away for the perfect day.

One of the first things you’ll notice when listening to opener “Current Joys” is that there’s definitely a minimal recording quality with the album, but I promise that won’t detract from the listening experience–not one bit. There’s a familiarity in Betson’s voice, which reminds me of Elf Power (in vocals only), but it’s his approach, which includes the recording hiss, is reminiscent of a young Conor Oberst.  If you listen to “Ode to Then,” it’s hard not to see the similarity, as his delivery definitely has that same feeling of nonchalance.  And while indifference might not be the most charming attribute for a human, you can appreciate it in the musical sense, as the songs on After the Graveyard come across as personal introspections.

For the most part, most Liam the Younger songs on this effort don’t go too far beyond the 2 minute mark, which might do a bit of a disservice to the songs themselves.  You barely have time to soak in the special quality of each number before you’re on to the next number, but tread carefully, as there are definitely some real gems. “It Is Good” is one such track, and probably one of my favorite of this entire collection.  It begins with a softly picked jangling guitar, which then moves up a bit to more of a steady strum.  The pace carries on for the rest of the song, finally fading towards the very end.  Find this song, and no matter what, you’ll be pleased Liam sat down to pen any songs at all.

All in all, a great deal of these songs come across as brief demos, as if they’re not fleshed out quite as one would expect.  It’s always great to hear someone having fun recording tracks all on their own, but one is left to wonder what would happen with a bit more time spent with each song, narrowing down the precise elements that really stand out.  Don’t get me wrong, After the Graveyard is absolutely chock-full of such elements, so much so that it’s a bit overwhelming at times, but I’d love to see Liam the Younger go back in time and re-record all these tracks with everything he’s learned. Pretty sure he’d be indie newcomer of the year.  For now, he’ll have to settle on being a musician with loads of talent, who just needs a touch more time.

Twerps – s/t

Rating: ★★★★½

For those of you just meeting Twerps, you’d be surprised at the evolution of their sound.  When we first heard them via the folks at Chapter Music, they were a pretty basic lo-fi group, spinning tape loops and coming off a bit lackadaisical on songs like “Good Advice.” On their self-titled record, you’ll get a much more focused group bringing it all home.

“Dreamin” begins Twerps, giving you cascading guitar chords that cut through the careful jangle-pop, even tossing in some backing harmonies from female member Julia MacFarlane. It’s as tight as the band has sounded since they were introduced, and such songs only solidify their presence in our musical world. But, you’re still going to find that carefree spirit within this album.

On “Don’t Be Surprised” Marty Frawley just tosses his lyrics atop a much slower paced jingle, sort of like you’d expect Dan Treacy of Television Personalities to do, that is until mid-track where they just kick it off with this beautiful bit of noisy pop, only to return to their melodious bit of fun.  Twerps use a similar tactic on what is not only the record’s best song, but perhaps one of the top songs of the year, “Who Are You.”  It embodies everything magical in a song: catchy bit of guitar playing, a cool bit of vocal delivery and relatable lyrics.  When Frawley goes into his “who are you/to be actin the way that you do,” it’s all perfectly fitting, and it leads up to the playful “we’ll get drunk/we’ll get stoned/we’ll get high/we’ll get drunk” line that accompanies each chorus. Simply put, there aren’t many songs from this year better than this.

One of the best things about this entire record is that Twerps simply keep you interested, going places you can easily see, but didn’t necessarily expect from the group.  “Jam Song” sort of fills the middle of the record with a rambling bit of ballroom stomp, always keeping their groove.  Or, you could skip a few ahead and find yourself at the simple spoken-word track, “Bring Me Down,” which is joined by a polite little bit of guitar strumming.  There’s pretty much moments for every type of listener out there, be it jangling pop moments like “Dreamin,” or a more-subdued Wavves feel like the closer “Coast to Coast.”  It all fits in with the band’s aesthetic, and it never seems to grow stale.

Twerps have been around for some time now, but this self-titled record is going to be one of the dates that you’ll want to remember, as a band that puts it together this well is very rare.  They’ve got hooks, they’ve got creativity and they even have a bit of attitude (or essence), all making Twerps one hell of a ride.  Mark my word, everyone is going to be talking about this group and this record for some time to come.

Currently you can listen to the whole album HERE. Or jam the opener below.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/The_Twerps_-_Dreamin.mp3]

Download: Twerps – Dreamin [MP3]

More New Music from Twerps

If you’ve been following us, you surely know about my love for Twerps, a band who I’ve fallen in love with ever since the great folks over at Chapter Music introduced us to them. Their sound has definitely grown, coming across with that warm Oceanic pop feel, and even cleaning up the production a bit.  There’s a quality that seemingly gives their songs the feeling of floating music from afar, as if you’re hearing their music dance across the Pacific.  You can grab this song, as well as the rest off their self-titled record on October 18th here in the States via Underwater Peoples.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/The_Twerps_-_Dreamin.mp3]

Download: The Twerps – Dreamin [MP3]

SXSW Watchlist: Twerps

Some good friends of ours from Down Under have been steadily putting out great music, and we’ve tried to do our best to spread the good word here in the States.  One of these bands, which we’ve mentioned before, is the Twerps.  They’ve got a nice little bit of melancholy to go with some oceanic jangle, which is just the right kind of stuff for my ears.  Their newest split single with the Ancients, Black Eyes, is out now, and they’ll have a new one just in time for the band to hit up Austin for SXSW; we’ve got one of those tracks to premiere for you all.   The Twerps will be playing their showcase on Saturday, March 19th at the Black and Tan.  But, if you’re not in Austin, don’t fret, as the band has scattered dates all over the country, so catch them before they bounce abroad again.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Bullies-192.mp3]

Download: Twerps – Bullies [MP3]

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