This is fine.
I have been thoroughly enjoying this new psych-rock tune “Specdrum” from Denver based outfit Woodsman. The band have been on my radar for the last couple years after they surprised me in 2010 with their above averag Mystery Tape EP. Well this year they are planning to build on the release of that EP with another 6 song EP entitled Mystic Places. That one is due out October 25th via Fire Talk Vinyl.
Download: Woodsman – Specdrum [MP3]
It seems like Arts and Crafts Records has been rather quiet for some time, but I’ve finally come across some new music from the label, by way of The Darcys. They’ve got a new album, self-titled, coming out on October 25th, and this single is grabbing my attention. It begins with this operatic opening, soaring vocals taking the focal point, but keep on listening. About midway, however, the song gently erupts with discordant guitars and bits of ambient noise exploding into the background. It’s like Antony and the Johnsons if they chose to jump off and throw some guitars in the mix. Should be an interesting listen come October.
Download: The Darcys – Shaking Down The Old Bones [MP3]
| Date | Tuesday, Sept. 27th |
|---|---|
| Location | Mohawk |
| Doors | 630pm |
| Tickets | $12 from Frontgate |
In what is sure to be a great week for one of our favorite local establishments, the Mohawk is kicking off their anniversary week (unofficially) with the most excellent Junior Boys. The band released their latest LP, It’s All True, earlier this year, and it just builds on the band’s ability to compile incredible beats with sexually tinged vocals atop. It’s sure to give you a reason to move your feet, and for the super cheap price, you have no reason not to be there. Opening the show will be Egyptrixx. Let’s all make it a great week for the Mohawk, and get out there and help them do up anniversary week right.
[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/05-In-The-Morning.mp3]Download: Junior Boys – In The Morning [MP3]
It’s been a good year for King Creosote, especially considering all the accolades he’s received working with Jon Hopkins on Diamond Mine (an album you must get your hands on!). Now the duo has pushed out another short EP, Honest Words EP, which features two new songs, and a re-imagining of “Bats in the Attic.” Just one listen to this remarkable track, and you’ll realize why everyone is supporting the collaboration, clamoring for more. It’s the most unassuming pop, and it’s damn near perfection, no matter what. If you haven’t joined the masses by falling in love with this band, now is your chance; you can buy the EP from Domino Records now.
Download: King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Honest Words [MP3]
Rating: 
For the past two years, Dominant Legs has slowly been building their brand name, hoping to break into the larger spectrum of the blogosphere. For the most part the San Francisco duo has succeeded, but the question remaining is whether or not Invitation, the band’s first full length foray would build on that success. After many listens, perhaps the best thing is that the band hasn’t done anything to dissuade listeners from appreciating their recent rise.
Keeping in mind that the first few songs from an album generally are meant to establish a foundation for the rest of the record, it’s easy to say that Invitation begins just by sort of being “there.” “Take a Bow” has a ringing guitar dancing throughout, with splashes of electronics bursting in, but for the most part, it’s sort of an unmemorable track. “Where We Trip the Light” attempts to step it up again, using a lighter mood and a bit more playfulness from singer Ryan Lynch. Sure, the hook’s fairly catchy, generally speaking, but it’s not anything to really shake a stick at.
Perhaps there’s just a bit too much 80s nostalgia coming from Dominant Legs. “Darling Girls” revolves around sort of kitschy electronics, remarkably similar to something one might find on a Richard Marx movie track, albeit one with a more modern singer. Surely there’s a market for this sort of throwback association, but I’m not completely buying into it; it seems forced and contrived. Similarly, “Lady is Sleek and So Petite” uses a very 80s electro-beat to make the song stand up. For some reason, you can’t help but to recall various scores to movies that you vaguely remember and certainly care nothing about. Sadly, that sometimes is the feeling you get from this entire record.
In comparison to the group’s EP, Young at Love and Life, nothing on Invitation really has that freshness; it all sounds awfully bored and disinterested. At times, the vocal interplay between Lynch and his bandmate Hannah Hunt is cute and affecting, but Lynch far too often seems like he’s trying to mimic a bit of Dan Boeckner, to no avail. Even still, those bright moments get nixed by the inclusion of unnecessary saxophone solos.
For all the hype surrounding Dominant Legs, it’s hard to put this listening experience into words. Song after song, I’m grudgingly reminded of my childhood, forced to listen to FM radio in my sister’s car. Not a one of these songs is necessarily bad, but for the most part, none of them is really good. You keep skipping tracks on Invitation, hoping to find one that catches you. For me, it just never happened. I didn’t hate it, I just couldn’t find something worth coming back to again and again. It’s a large miss in my book, but fans of the band will surely find redeemable qualities in it.
[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/02-Where-We-Trip-The-Light.mp3]Download: Dominant Legs – Where We Trip The Light [MP3]
So this is a little off-topic for us, consider it a retro IT Department post. Erasure tickets were a final birthday present to the wife and I was given the opportunity to take photos of the show. This may surprise people, but it was one of the best shows this year. The sold out crowd was ready to have a great time, so many overheard conversations about the last time seeing them live. The venue was ideal. Andy Bell let it loose and left most of the crowd in awe that he still has it vocally.
There are a few more comments and plenty of glorious Bell/Clarke goodness after the break.
Rating:
As the last few years have seen, recording in a home studio has reaped great rewards for many bands, and such is the case for Shimmering Stars, who recorded in a garage studio. While some might yearn for cleaner production, the quality of the recording is one of the attributes that makes Violent Hearts so affecting.
Opening up with “Believe” and “I’m Gonna Try” established a mood rooted in the history of classic pop from an earlier era of music. “I’m Gonna Try” might portray an outcast, or even a rebellious teen, but the melody provides listeners with an endearing warmth, only made stronger by the perceived distance provided in the production.
“East Van Girls” has almost a psychedelic quality to it, pushed through by the deepness of the guitar. Using a vocal that seems to drift in from another room allows Shimmering Stars to maintain that quality of effortless pop one usually achieves when focusing on the craftsmanship of the melody rather than simply using the best equipment available.
While Violent Hearts might have a tendency to get lost in its own dense quality, the brightness created in spots by Rory McClure’s vocal belting always provides a reassuring that the band isn’t here just to give you a muddied spin on pop of year’s past. For instance, “Sun’s Going Down,” opens with a great floating McClure line before the band jangles their way through the song. His vocals always seem to rise and float above the music, sort of the way you would expect Brian Wilson to explore his own garage recordings.
Your first through runs through Violent Hearts might indicate that the band is creating track after track, all blending together, but a closer focus on minor details will reveal that this is not the case, at least not entirely. “I Don’t Wanna Know” easily fits into the modern spectrum of revisionist pop, with Shimmering Stars paying more attention to banging out their notes at various points, rather than holding them back. The album’s closer, “Walk Away” is a trickling pop number, one that doesn’t really fit into the grand spectrum of the record, and it might lead you to wish the band had mixed this number earlier into the collection. It takes a noisy little gallop at moments, always returning to it’s own softness–more such tracks would definitely have benefited the overall sound.
Shimmering Stars definitely have their ears pressed hard in the past, but of course, production value brings them into the present. This is also a moot point, however, as the songs on Violent Hearts easily speak for themselves, allowing breezy pop moments to take the lead, whisking you away down a sunny Interstate drive. At the end of it all, you’ll press play once again, returning to that place in your heart where nostalgia meets the present, pushing you to smile at the joys of music listening today.
[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/SS_NervousBreakdown.mp3]Download: Shimmering Stars – Nervous Breakdown [MP3]
Violent Hearts is out now on Hardly Art Records.
Well, it’s taken us a few days to get over our various illnesses, hangovers, bruised ribs, and what have you, but we’ve compiled our list of who we thought did the best job at ACL this year. For me, I feel sort of underwhelmed by the whole event, but I know I caught some good stuff. Read on for our list.
It’s Friday and I’m in the mood for some sweet pop jams so I hope you’ll join me in appreciating this new tune from Jacksonville based Sunbear! I think it’s a pretty tasty one and I’m hoping it brightens your Friday afternoon. This song appears on the band’s new album You Will Live Forever which is due out November 22nd on New Granada Records. Happy weekend kids.
Download: Sunbears! – Give Love A Try [MP3]
The Parish hosted the Horrors last Wednesday night. It was a lovely way to break the ACL hangover. It takes a few days to get over the festival mentality. You have a craving for tall, expensive cans of beer. You constantly check a schedule. You complain about cell service.
What better way to break the cycle than go see a band in a dark, smallish club atmosphere with expensive bottles of beer? Here are pics and few impressions from The Horrors set at The Parish, The Stepkids opened.
