New Music - Arms

Last weekend I got myself wrapped up in a new album called Kids Aflame by Arms, and I‘ve been meaning to get a post up about it ever since. You may have heard of The Harlem Shakes. I have. Never heard their music (yet), but I’ve heard of them. Arms is the solo project of Shakes guitarist Todd Goldstein, and Kids Aflame is his debut solo album. He’s Brooklyn-based (surprise!) and has been recording songs on his own for a few years now. I read the review over at Treble and the interview over at I Guess I’m Floating, both of which perked my interest.

Kids Aflame may be most noteworthy for its diversity - if there’s a sub-genre to indie-rock this album probably has it covered. “Whirring” was released as a single last year and kicks the album off with driving, anthemic guitars. “Kids Aflame” feels vaguely like The Smiths doing ukulele-led folk, and “Shitty Little Disco”, a song from a 2004 EP of the same name, has an 80’s feel to it. Every song is a winner and each seems to have its own personality - perhaps a result of the album being pieced together over the past 3 years. Check it out.

MP3 :: Kids Aflame
MP3 :: Whirring
(from Kids Aflame. Buy here)
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New Music - The Sweetbriars

Sooner or later it was bound to happen. A town the size of Lewisburg, PA, with a population about the same as the average Brooklyn street, just isn’t big enough to hold two talents the size of Earl Pickens and Bruce W. Derr. I can just imagine the tension that there must have been when these two first crossed paths - a volatile, dangerous moment that easily could have exploded into violence. Derr, the longtime Lewisburg resident, jealous of Pickens big city ways, playing in his venues and in front of his peeps. Pickens bullying his songs into people’s heads, trying desperately to steal Derr’s small town thunder. There’d be blood on the floor of the coffeehouse, maybe a strangling with a giant sunflower stem, maybe a smothering with a giant cowboy hat. Maybe worse.

Of course, all of this is just a scene from my lazy summer imagination, and Lewisburg, PA is, by all accounts, a very friendly, civilized place. And when Derr and Pickens first crossed paths there was no territorially motivated mayhem, but a mutual respect and genuine enthusiasm for the other’s music. That’s just speculation as well, but most likely more accurate, as the two have started a new band together. Derr, until recently a reclusive rock star in the making, and Pickens, a seasoned veteran of NY's folk-rock scene, have joined forces, formed The Sweetbriars, and are ready to conquer the world.

You might think that Derr’s lo-fi bedroom leanings and Pickens’ country crooning would make an odd mix. You’d be way wrong - these two different songwriting styles mesh perfectly on The Sweetbriar’s debut record, Please Pass The Revolution!, and show these two are a match made in rock 'n roll heaven. Derr and Pickens wrote all 10 tracks featured on the album together (except one which also features Derr’s brother Ben), and recorded them quickly with one goal in mind - to rock. Rock, that is, with a focus on tight harmonies and some old fashioned, good natured fun. The album mixes Tom Petty styled, radio-ready folk-rock, vintage 70s power-pop, and the “alternative” pop-rock that dominated A.O.R. airwaves in the 90s, and barely comes up for air for 35 minutes. Lead guitarist Paul Curcuruto and drummer Jake Kline, two natives of Central PA and longtime session men, give the songs added muscle.

Early highlights are the first single “Get Down Into It”, a socially conscious rocker that recalls, thematically, what Pickens did a few months ago during the Pennsylvania primaries (his Obama video was featured for a while on the Democratic nominees’ website), “No Way Home From Here”, an urgent folk-rocker with Jayhawks-esque duel vocals and a killer chorus (a line from which I've lifted for my header quote up there), and “Skeletons”, a Derr-sung song that would sound right at home on the first Golden Smog album. Overall there’s not a weak moment - this is a rousing, emotionally charged set of songs that you should check out, and lucky for you, 5 of ’em are streaming over at their myspace:

Stream :: I’ll Be The One / No Way Home From Here / Get Down Into It! / Parade / White As A Ghost (from Please Pass The Revolution! Buy here)
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The Sweetbriars will be making their NYC debut this Saturday night at Hill Country. It’s a free CD release party that will be opened, conveniently enough, by Earl Pickens’ other band, Earl Pickens & The Band Named Thunder. Here’s the first video from Please Pass The Revolution! - for "Get Down Into It!" - and as you’d expect from a video made in part by Pickens, it’s good for more than a few smiles:

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Previously:

Earl Pickens - Singer, Wrong-Righter
Year In Review, Vol. 2 - Earl Pickens
Introducing: Bruce W. Derr
[mp3] Bruce W. Derr - “Mr. Personality”
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Live Review - Wilco @ McCarren Pool

Well, after mentioning it a few times over the past 2 weeks, the night of Wilco’s show at McCarren Pool finally came and went. And what a damn show it was. Unfortunately I forgot my camera, but I suck at taking concert photos anyway so it doesn’t matter. The show itself was the perfect ending to a flawless day. As I did last year after seeing them at the Hammerstein, let’s get to the highlights:

1. There was a guy who walked past my friends and I as we got closer to the venue who whispered “doses” to us. Awesome. Haven’t heard that since Phish back in ’97. Then we thought it would be funny to say it to other people as we walked by them. Chad took it too far when he said it to an 8 year old. That kid’s dad was not amused.

2. Got rid of my extra for an even $50, exactly what I paid after Ticketmaster charges and what not. My buddy John had 2 extras and sold both for $40. Total. Sucker.

3. The show started slowly - “Via Chicago” into “Blood Of The Lamb” (wtf?) into “You Are My Face” into “Hummingbird”. Thankfully things got better quickly.

4. “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart”, despite hearing it every time I’ve ever seen Wilco, was incredible. Then “Shot In The Arm” and I was thinking how superior these songs were to the opening run. And “Handshake Drugs” is still my favorite live song to hear from any band.

5. “Side With The Seeds” = pee break.

6. “Misunderstood” got things going in the right direction and the band never really looked back. They played “Far Far Away” and a really sublime “California Stars” (w/ horns!) that were just beautiful.

7. I was pleasantly surprised by a few old favorites I don’t think I’ve ever heard live before - “Pieholden Suite”, “Pot Kettle Black”, and, best of all by far, “Can’t Stand It”. Wow, that song is such an underrated and overlooked gem in their catalog. Overall, the set was much less dependent on Sky Blue Sky songs and all the better for it.

8. You didn’t hear this from me (I‘m not a gossip site), but a certain older celebrity couple known for being devoutly liberal were hanging out on the soundboard stage enjoying the show. I don’t want to mention any names, but you may know them from a certain stone classic movie about minor league baseball from the late 80s. I was standing pretty much right next to the board and looking over during “California Stars” I noticed the gent lighting up a big fat splif. Hm, I thought. Likes Wilco, likes weed. Cool. Wife shook her head “no thanks”. Soon after security and paramedics were surrounding said gent who was stumbling around the stage and wound up on the ground for a solid half hour, pretty much oblivious to what was going on around him. Silly celebrity, drugs are for kids. I honestly thought I was witnessing what could have been front page news, as the staff people looked confused as to what to do with him. If this wasn’t the guy who starred in that bomb movie with Jeff Bridges or that Mystic River movie with Sean Penn he probably would’ve been tossed out on his a$$. Wouldn’t you know it though - dude was rallying by first encore and walked out on his own after the show.

9. I had a bird’s eye view of my buddy Wagner’s (very) close encounter with a touchy feely dude passing us by. Let’s just say it was very crowded where we were standing and the guy invaded poor Wagner’s personal space. It was pretty sexy.

10. “Poor Places” into “Spiders (Kidsmoke)” was tremendous, as usual. All songs played during the encore (there were about 10 of ’em) were as well. “The Late Greats” was a highlight, as was “Monday” and “Outtamind (Outtasite)” (w/ horns!).

11. I don’t love “I’m A Wheel” but watching Pat Sansone windmill is pretty fuggin’ awesome.

12. No new songs tonight, which was a little disappointing. Really wanted to hear “One Wing”.

13. Goodbye to McCarren Pool - a really fun venue to see a show that’s growing up and becoming a real pool again next year.

13. “Goodnight. Thanks. See you again after we finish our next record”.
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MP3 :: One Wing (live from Lollapalooza)
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[mp3] Motel Motel - "Mexico"

Off to see Wilco in a few minutes and I’m pretty friggin excited about that, duh. But before that I wanted to leave you with this new track from a Brooklyn band called Motel Motel. Listening to their debut album, New Denver, can be quite an intimidating experience. At 13 songs (10 of which are well over 5 minutes) and a running time of an hour and 12 minutes we’re probably looking at an album that’s a half hour too long for one continuous listen. There are gems throughout though, and buried at the album’s midpoint is one that’s really hitting the spot right now - a lilting folk rock tune called “Mexico” that makes for a great sing along.

MP3 :: Mexico
(from New Denver. Buy here)
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Album Review - Conor Oberst

One of the biggest musical surprises of the summer for me is just how much I’m enjoying the Conor Oberst solo album. I don’t know why I’m particularly surprised by this, I mean I’ve enjoyed every Bright Eyes album to varying degrees, especially I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning. But last year’s Cassadaga was kind of an uneven mess, and it’s something I haven’t gone back to in over a year, so I thought my interest in his music was waning. Conor Oberst the album though reestablishes him as one of the better working folk-rock songwriters.

As on Cassadaga, the major theme of Conor Oberst seems to be travel, restlessness, and finding your place in the world. For an artist who has always been thought of as strongly connected to his hometown, Omaha, and who has up until this point stayed loyal to a relatively small hometown label, Saddle Creek, it may be noteworthy that this release is coming from Merge Records - perhaps signifying a major career shift. Multiple songs reference the road as a place of escape - “there’s nothing that the road cannot heel” he sings on “Moab” - and the album was recorded without his usual Bright Eyes cohorts (most notably absent is longtime collaborator Mike Mogis) in Tepoztlán, Morelos, México.

The songs themselves are diverse enough to keep interest, yet flow smoothly from start to finish. Most avoid being overly precious and over-emoting, two things that has plagued Oberst from the start, and rather play to his many strengths - there’s humor, playfulness, reflection, and some poignant character sketches. Most of the songs find characters who are at the end of their ropes, looking for escape and new starts - something that Oberst approaches with a plenty of sympathy. Musically, the change in setting hasn’t really changed the overall approach, as most of the songs adhere to familiarity - simple folk rock, mid-tempo barroom rockers, or straight acoustic ballads prevail, with production that doesn‘t attempt to strip the songs of their loose, off-the-cuff charm.

“Cape Canaveral” and “Milk Thistle” open and close the album with stripped down arrangements and vintage Bright Eyes melodies. In fact, the opening run of songs, up until “Danny Callahan”, a song that uses imagery of a sick child to suggest there’s no order in the world and we should never take life for granted, are all particularly strong. The middle of the album tends to drag somewhat but Conor Oberst comes back to end with some of its better moments. “Moab” and “Souled Out!!!” are slick rockers that would each make good singles and “Milk Thistle” is one of the year’s most beautiful songs. Overall, Conor Oberst isn’t going to sound revelatory or amaze you with new tricks - it’s simply a very solid singer-songwriter album from an artist just restless enough to keep things interesting.

MP3 :: Danny Callahan
(from Conor Oberst. Buy here)
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And here’s that new video for “Souled Out!!!”


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Wilco Demos - Summerteeth / Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Here’s another batch of Wilco rarities to get you tuned up for the band’s upcoming show at McCarren Pool. These are from the Summerteeth / Yankee Hotel Foxtrot years - check out other recent Wilco outtakes posts here and here. “She’s A Jar” comes from the Summerteeth demos - most of which I don’t think are worth a post because the arrangements don’t vary much at all from the final versions. This take though obviously came pretty early in the sessions, as it features the type of stripped down folk setting that was more characteristic of the band’s earlier years.

“Kamera (demo)” and “Not For The Season (demo)” are 2 of my favorite Wilco rarities, both far more rockin’ than anything the band did on YHF. “Kamera” obviously evolved (re: mellowed out) into the well known YHF version. “Not For The Season” got a name change (“Laminated Cat”, eww) and appeared in much different form on the first Loose Fur album. Though never officially a Wilco song, it was played quite a bit during the YHF tour (you should hunt down a bootleg from that time period - they were playing versions based on the Loose Fur version that were downright revelatory), and did turn up on the Jeff Tweedy solo DVD Live From The Pacific Northwest. And “Nothing Up My Sleeve” is a curiosity as it doesn’t seem to fit, musically or lyrically, with what Tweedy was writing during this time. Regardless, it’s a strong, straightforward rock song that never saw official release.

MP3 :: She’s A Jar (acoustic)
(from Summerteeth demos)

MP3 :: Kamera
MP3 :: Not For The Season
MP3 :: Nothin’ Up My Sleeve
(from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot demos)
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New Music - Basement Band

I predicted earlier this year that I’d soon have more to say about the multi-colored gatorade chuggers in New York’s Basement Band. With the recent release of their excellent debut through Baskethouse Records, now’s the time. Until The Evening Came is a remarkably consistent collection of dusty folk-rock gems, barreling barroom honky-tonk, and soaring harmonies. It comes 3 long years after long time friends (singer/songwriter) Jeff Malinowski and (drummer) John Durgee moved to Brooklyn, started up the band, and began playing shows around the Northeast.

“Nine Days” is a standout track - a breezy country rock song whose multi-part harmonies sound like Crosby, Stills, & Nash jamming with Stranger’s Almanac-era Whiskeytown. Malinowski often demonstrates the unique ability to write songs that sound timeless, a talent that is perhaps most noticeable on “Soldiers”. The song, whose vivid detail of young men going off to war could very easily be set during any point in U.S. history, earned him a second place finish in the 2007 Williamsburg Songwriters Contest. With vital alt country (whatever that is) albums all but extinct in 2008, it’s refreshing to find a band breathing some new life into a tired genre.

MP3 :: Nine Days
MP3 :: Soldiers
(from Until The Evening Came. Buy here)
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[mp3] of Montreal - "Id Engager"

After loving last year’s Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? (my personal introduction to Of Montreal) I’ve wanted to post the first single from the forthcoming Skeletal Lamping for about a week now. And I’ve been sitting on it. I guess I just don’t feel the same urgency about posting this as I did last year about many of those songs. I mean, that album was special, you know? Hopefully Skeletal Lamping will be too, but I’m just not that crazy about “Id Engager”, at least not as a single. I mean, it’s good - kind of like some of those post “The Past Is A Grotesque Animal” tracks on Hissing Fauna meets “Rock The Casbah”, at least between the 4 and 23 second mark - and no doubt would be a decent deep cut. It’s just not grabbing me in the same way as “Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse” or “Suffer For Fashion”. Regardless, it’s got a nice little dance floor groove, and it’s kind of (good) kitsch, and it’s all weird, playful sexuality. So it’s prime Of Montreal, no? It's worth a post, no doubt. What do you think? Skeletal Lamping is out October 7th on Polyvinyl.

MP3 :: Id Engager
(from Skeletal Lamping. Info here)
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MP3 :: Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse
(from Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? Buy here)

Polyvinyl has a generous supply of older Of Montreal mp3s available for free download here.
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[mp3] Vivian Girls - "Where Do Yo Run To"

I’m excited to hear the rest of Vivian Girls self-titled debut, which will be reissued by In The Red this Fall. “Where Do You Run To” is equal parts garage rock and melodic girl group pop, and one of the most memorable new songs I’ve heard all summer.

MP3 :: Where Do You Run To
(from Vivian Girls. Info here)
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Vivian Girls’ myspace has tour dates and another track from the album available as a free download:

MP3 :: Tell The World
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Old & New Music - Lambchop

Lambchop, and their 2000 album Nixon in particular, have until very recently always been on my periphery. I’d always heard of the record’s hybrid of smooth countrypolitan and lushly orchestrated soul and expected it to be something I’d enjoy but, after using some of my eMusic downloads last month, I wasn’t prepared to be so taken with it so quickly. Front and center is the band’s resident genius Kurt Wagner, who slips effortlessly between his usual baritone croak of a voice and a disarmingly cracked falsetto - both to equal effect. Originally a 3-piece, the band had grown considerably by Nixon, often including both string and horn sections. Never though does the music seem crowded - in fact I can’t think of another collective with so many members who are able to make music sound this spacious. The songs are continually rewarding from start to finish, my favorite right now being the incredibly weird and beautiful slowly building soul of “You Masculine You”.

MP3 :: You Masculine You
(from Nixon. Buy here)

Lambchop have released several records this decade since Nixon, perhaps most notably 2002’s incredibly sparse and elegant Is A Woman. Now working with Merge Records, Lambchop are preparing the release of OH (ohio) on October 7. The band has been whittled down to its core for this release, but one should still expect the usual variety of genres and sounds. “Slipped Dissolved and Loosed” is the first single from the upcoming release and, with its stately, gentle strings and idiosyncratic lyrics, makes for a fine introduction to the band.

MP3 :: Slipped Dissolved and Loosed
(from OH (ohio). Info here)
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Wilco Demos - Being There / Mermaid Avenue

9 days left until Wilco plays McCarren Pool and my anticipation keeps growing. As promised, here’s another small batch of Wilco rarities, these coming from the Being There / Mermaid Avenue years. “No Poetry”, I believe, is an outtake from Being There and has never appeared on any official release. “Ain’t Gonna Greed My Lord (No More)” is not the technical name for this Woody Guthrie penned track, but it seems a logical fit - and the song remains one of my favorite outtakes from the era. And this version of “At My Window Sad & Lonely” is just a beautiful, stripped down folk version of the song that appeared on Volume 1.

MP3 :: No Poetry
MP3 :: Ain’t Gonna Greed My Lord (No More)
MP3 :: At My Window Sad And Lonely (acoustic)
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New Music :: The Roadside Graves

2007 was quite a successful year for the gritty New Jersey band The Roadside Graves. They released the stellar No One Will Know Where You’ve Been - a spirited take on alternative country-rock that takes inspiration from Springsteen, The Band, and The Stones - on Kill Buffalo Records. The album garnered favorable attention from dozens of blogs (including this one - in my top 15 last year), as well as from both Stereogum and Pitchfork. Any regular reader of Pitchfork knows that roots rock is not usually their genre of choice, but No One Will Know Where You’ve Been did very well for itself, scoring quite a bit higher than Sky Blue Sky and nearly equaling the scores of Steve Earle and Lucinda Williams’ most recent efforts combined. The attention was well deserved for these guys - truly one of the country’s finest acts working in the Americana genre.

2008 finds the band looking for a new home, as they have been shopping a set of newly recorded demos around to various labels. Lead singer John Gleason informed us last December that the working title for the new record is My Son’s Home and, from the sound of these 6 tracks, will once again feature the Graves stirring blend of rock ‘n roll, country, folk, blues, and poignant, afflicted storytelling. “Ruby” has been circulating since being featured on Stereogum a few weeks ago - it’s a stomping barroom folk sing- along and easily among the band’s most memorable songs. The working title track, “My Son’s Home”, shows the quieter side of the band, as Gleason turns in a terrific vocal over rolling, circular acoustic guitars. Another new track, “Far And Wide”, was recently featured over at An Aquarium Drunkard and is streaming at their myspace. The band is looking to hook up with a new label and record another batch of songs to augment these - look for a release either later this year or early next. Can’t wait.

MP3 :: Ruby
MP3 :: My Son’s Home
(demos from My Son’s Home. Info here, eventually)
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And while we’re at it, here’s a solid little Roadside Graves rarity from an unreleased compilation which, if nothing else, has the strangest name you’ll see all day.

MP3 :: Lot Lizards Ain’t Lip Kissers
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