REVIEWS Archives - Ground Control Magazine: Recent Episodes
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Ground Control Magazine, LLC, is a music magazine started by a team of experienced music journalists who got sick of seeing music magazines that seem to be more devoted to sarcasm than actually discussing music. It's about people who aren't ashamed to be considered fans as well as audiophiles, who will admit to getting nervous before interviewing certain artists, who are more interested in telling the artist's story than telling all. It's about integrity and appreciation. If we cover it, we like it. That's about it. We're not concerned about being the coolest kids on the block... ...but we are pretty damn proud of our record collections.
Stress Dolls
Queen of No
(Sun Pedal Recordings)
Queen of No, the new Stress Dolls album, lives up to the band name. It is a journey through head Stress Doll Chelsea O’Donnell’s anxieties, ranging from health issues (she suffers from Crohn’s Disease), relationships, social media and more existential questions. Though the music is firmly based in pop-punk, a variety of styles illuminate the various themes which run through the album. In general, the more declarative songs — where she directly confronts her worries (“Body,” “Crazy,” “Queen of No”) — rock the hardest; the more introspective tunes get a quieter, spacey treatment.
I use the phrase pop-punk reluctantly, mostly because I associate it with a certain hyper-masculine form of teenage angst. Musically, it does fit here though; O’Donnell re-recorded two songs (“Alone” and “Crazy”) to make them poppier. But, as is common in other male-dominated music forms such as country and metal, female artists often bring a different sensibility with them. Stress Dolls do deal with angst here, but with a more mature attitude, not to mention having real-life worries to sing about.
The journey starts with “Alone,” which a song about a relationship gone wrong, on the surface. “How dare you remind me, living in fond memories/ Pretending we’re still friends.” The song rises above the specifics of that relationship to evoke an atmosphere of anxiety, which pervades the entire album. This version rocks harder than the original, semi-acoustic take, yet still maintains a questing atmosphere.
“Body,” the second song, addresses the singer’s health issues and gets right to the point. “My body ain’t built to do the things I tell it to.” Still, it comes off as a surprisingly cheerful declaration. The song is full of “dah-dah-dah” choruses which pep it up.
“Close Enough,” an atmospheric tune about searching for meaning and salvation, slows the pace, without changing the themes.
“Waiting softly, for someone to save me
It feels so wrong now but once I felt it was right
It only takes a second for us all to figure out
That no one’s coming and that’s what it’s all about”
Nothing is resolved; the anxiety continues.
Things get rocking again with “Ghostwriter,” about feeling like one does not control their own life, again a reference to O’Donnell’s health issues. “I can’t re-work the plot/ Already wrote the end, but it isn’t what you want.” A soaring violin by Sally Schaefer adds to the tension.
A run of three songs examines O’Donnell’s relationship with the internet. “Illusion” returns to the atmospheres of “Close Enough” for another bout of introspection. In this case, about how social media affects our sense of self. “I heard we’re meant to be ghosts, trapped between life and death/ Pixelated and fading until nothing is left.” She continues the critique in the rocker “Crazy.” “Who needs the whole story/ when you’ve got a summary?/ The whole world has gone crazy/ and so have I.” In both of these, she is less commenting on how the internet affects our self-image than critiquing how it influences our relationship with reality.
The next song, “Pretty,” is the third to address social media. It returns to a contemplative, slower tempo. It starts out tackling the surface concerns with self-image. “I want to be pretty, but I can’t make you see me.” Then it critiques the whole concept of “pretty,” while admitting we all get sucked into it:
“For the one who pretended not to car
About “the look” or what to wear
For the one who claimed not to drink the poison of what other people think:
Do you find me pretty?
Do you fancy me pretty?
Do you think that I’m pretty?
Yeah, pretty wicked for a [saint]”
That last line, which is repeated throughout the song, puts a completely different spin on the concept, turning the song on its head.
At this point I should make it clear that, while I am being pretty cavalier about telling you what these songs are about, I have no special insight. This is just what I get out of them. You may get something completely different.
That seems to tie in nicely with the title song, which covers a pretty common writer’s worry. Am I getting my point across? “I write, and wait, and write again, but it never is enough.” This song is another rocker, as she has something to get off her chest. In terms of the journey, this is the point where the hero become full of self-doubt. Have I accomplished anything? Was it worth it?
Judging from the next song, “Spark,” the conclusion may be, dust yourself and try again. “Take it back, to the beginning/ Light the spark.”
The album ends triumphant, “Better.” She reviews her history of illness, then declares “Fuck yeah! I’m better than I’ve been in a while.” Yet she does make it clear the struggle continues. “I hate this story so much, hate the part I’ve become…/ But there’s still this murky water that is dredging up in me.” Here, she seems to acknowledge that his album is part of the healing process, processing that “murky water.” It remains an ongoing project.
In the end, despite the heavy material, the album’s overall mood is positive. We’ve gone on a journey with O’Donnell, through her various insecurities, but come out the other side confident and refreshed. Or at least, “better than I’ve been in a while.” She has said, “I think that being able to harness the negative energy of anxiety and turning it into something creative helps to ease it for me.”
Take this journey with Stress Dolls. You’ll probably end up feeling better as well. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://stressdollsmusic.com
https://www.facebook.com/stressdollsmusic
https://www.instagram.com/stressdolls
Album:
Queen Of No is out now. Buy it here, directly from the band;s bandcamp page.
The post Stress Dolls – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Cool Club and the Lipker Sisters
Dancing Into Your Dreams
(CD Baby)
One of the recurring pleasures I’ve experienced over the past few years has been attending concerts by Cool Club and the Lipker Sisters. It’s always fun, always energetic, always a tremendous display of musical talent – I catch them whenever I can and, luckily, they play locally often. So I eagerly awaited their new album, Dancing Into Your Dreams, which was released on September 4 and, for the most part, it more than lived up to expectations. It clearly demonstrates their talents both individually and collectively.
The band has two separate components, who joined forces ten years ago. Cool Club is a solid jazz combo which consists of Rick Hoyt – guitarist and main songwriter – drummer Joe Galusha, bassist David Goldstein, and Mark Bradley on saxophone. The Lipker Sisters are, yes, three sisters — Marilla, Grace, and Lizzie — a good generation younger, who have been harmonizing since, as Marilla puts it, they were “little tater tots.” Together, they make quite the team.
Their primary strength, not surprisingly, is the vocal talent of the sisters. Their harmonizing makes an appearance right at the start as they sing “Lovesick Fool” in unison. It reappears throughout the album, notably on “When It Comes to Heartache” and “Goddamn Rock ’n Roll,” but they are also skilled at a variety of backing vocals, whether echoing key lines (“No One Will Ever Know,” “My Baby Got Eyes in the Back of Her Head”), or adding lines to the verses (“Step By Step”). They also use the backing vocals to comment on the lyrical narrative; in “I Can’t Keep From Messin’ Around,” while the lead vocals describe the singer’s lack of control, the backing tells her, “You could if you wanted to.”
They can also belt out a vocal solo as well. Notable examples are “Who Do You Dream About?” a song worthy of Billie Holiday, and the slow blues of “Don’t Make Us Live a Lie,” the one track on here which was recorded live.
All this attention to the vocals should not detract from the skills of The Cool Club. They specialize in, as one of their earlier songs puts it, “Jump Jazz Blues Boogie-Woogie Ragtime and Swing.” That lays down a perfect base of top of which the Sisters to do their thing. They don’t just lay in the background; they throw in a variety of tasteful solos, like the sax on “Step By Step,” “No One Will Ever Know,” and “But You Didn’t.” Rick Hoyt places subtle but catchy guitar lines throughout. Bob Viavattine delivers a sweet trumpet solo on “Who Do You Dream About?” We even get a couple of nice bass solo in “Messin’ Around” and “Goddamn Rock & Roll.”
Hoyt handles the majority of songwriting. He has a taste for turning simple phrases into catchy, entertaining tunes (see some of the above titles). He often has fun with the cliches. In the aforementioned “Messin’ Around,” after the verses offer a non-stop litany of cliched advice, the lead declares “I don’t want to hear another quote!” Hoyt has stated, in shows, that he wrote “But You Didn’t” for the sake of the backing voices, which consist of a series of well-known nonsense syllables — “Papa Oom Mau Mau,” “Shoo Be Doo Be Do,” “Diddy Way Diddy” — just to hear the Sisters sing them.
Marilla Lipker-Gonzalez contributes her own songs to Dancing In Your Dreams as well, bringing a much different style to the music. Several styles, in fact, appear – adding new flavors to the mix. There’s the aforementioned ballad “Who Do You Dream About.” “Lazy Day” is appropriately mellow, while “Losing My Grip” brings in a seductive Latin beat.
Like their live shows, this album is quite playful. The lyrical games of “But You Didn’t” are a great example. Songs like “Messin’ Around,” “When It Comes to Heartache,” and “Eyes in the Back of Her Head” are pure fun. Not only are the lyrics clever, but the Sisters bounce them around in such a way as to emphasize the humor, sometimes backing up the sentiments, sometimes contradicting them.
Still, the album doesn’t quite capture the pure excitement of their live shows. That is the one disappointment. Not that I would expect it to; live performances are their own world, and what they gain in energy is often paid for in sloppiness. Here the intention is clearly to provide the best versions of the songs, and they do succeed at that. It’s a trade-off that’s fine with me.
As if in acknowledgment of this, the group does kick things up a notch on the final cut. I’m not sure if it’s fitting or ironic that, after all this sweet jazz, the album concludes with “Give me some goddamn rock n’ roll!”
Maybe that’s their next album. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://www.coolclubandthelipkersisters.com
https://www.facebook.com/CoolClubandtheLipkerSisters
https://www.instagram.com/cclsflx/?hl=en
Album:
Dancing Into Your Dreams is out now. Buy it here, from the band’s official website.
The post Cool Club and the Lipker Sisters – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Sarah De Valliere
The Healing
(independent)
The Healing is one of the most beautiful albums I have heard in a long time. De Valliere’s vocals and piano are sweet and lush. Her melodies caress the ears. The music is soulful pop, with touches of blues and jazz, as well as orchestral flourishes. The recording is exquisite; every instrument is clear and crisp.
More important, it leaves you feeling beautiful. This is not just an album about healing, as the title indicates, it is healing itself, as the best music can be. After listening, you feel like the world is a better place, that positive possibilities abound.
But first we have to go through the challenges. The opening cut, “Goddess of the River,” is about a baiji, an extinct river dolphin of China. The final nail in its coffin was the Three Gorges Dam. The tune is a slow and mournful piano melody, with accents of violin emphasizing the sadness. But the song remains hopeful:
It’s never too late to fail.
It’s never too late to mend.
I may be dammed
but it’s never too late.
This tale of hope amidst loss sets the stage for the rest of the album.
The title song, next up, introduces the main theme, while picking up the tempo. To a lively, rolling piano, she sings:
These memories are just a feeling —
the space between the hurting and the healing.
So hold on to the feeling.
Hold on to the healing.
Here, she sets up the challenge of the album, to provide that healing, to herself and to her listeners.
In “Lay My Ego Down,” De Valliere recognizes that the first step in healing, especially healing a damaged relationship, is to take responsibility for oneself. Musically, the song touches on blues, as she confronts her own failings, and tells herself what she must do.
Then De Valliere seems to take a sharp turn away from her theme. “Saint Anne” describes an unfinished painting by Da Vinci. But this hymn-like tune touches on creativity, a mother’s love, and an acceptance of what is to come, all key elements in healing.
“Empty Sky” opens with the line, “In 1914 Martha died at a Cincinnati zoo.” Who was Martha? How did she die? Martha was the last passenger pigeon. Yes, we are back to extinct animals. We are back to mourning the losses of the world, but the song makes them personal, by imagining the feelings of a woman, now “old and lonely,” who marveled at bird darkened skies when she was a young girl.
Perhaps thinking about those missing birds, or the other scars of life, “When Daybreak Comes” finds De Valliere worrying into the night. But she can still find the hopeful note. “If I make it through/ when daybreak comes/ I’ll think of you.”
Without a lyric sheet, I struggled with “Fishwife Advent.” It could be the story of a woman who lost her husband to sea. Yet there are hints of a tale of a selkie, a sea creature which takes human form to find love, but inevitably returns to the sea. In any event, it is another tale of loss, of lives lost, whether physical lives or a way of life. Soaring melodies on piano and guitar bring the loss to life.
The final three songs return to the main theme. In fact, they embody it perfectly. “Pour Over Me” discusses how art can be healing, and demonstrates how we need others to heal. “Please pour over me/ while I pour over you.” We need to share our talents and emotions to be whole. In “All Is Not Lost,” the message is the title.
All is not lost.
I promise you will find
Search through this rubble
Things that matter have survived.
“Have a Little Faith: wraps things up nicely:
Can I step back?
Can I walk away?
Can I go off the path
and be a little late?
Can I relax?
Can I make a few mistakes?
Can I take a little chance
and have a little faith
in you?
These three songs make up a suite concluding the album. They bring together the thoughts and feelings. They flow into each other, and all feature the lush production, clear piano and strong vocals which characterize the rest of the album. They even work as a single piece, linked by mutual lyrical and musical themes.
This does point up the one weakness I found on the album. There is a certain similarity between the songs. The slower laments stand out, but much of the rest blends together. Mid-tempo piano ballads, beautiful melodies, but nothing that jumps out.
This is not a totally bad thing. This is an album which should be taken as a whole. The flow of the songs is key. The album feels unified, building to the three song finale. If you’re having a bad day, if you feel in need of some healing yourself, put it on and sink into the beauty, the peace, the curative forces of the music. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://sarahdevalliere.com/
https://sarahdevalliere.bandcamp.com/album/the-healing
https://www.youtube.com/c/SarahDeValli%C3%A8re
Listen:
Sarah De Vlliere – The Healing [Album] – Youtube
Album:
The Healing is out now, Buy it here, directly from the artist. https://sarahdevalliere.bandcamp.com/album/the-healing
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Creation Rebel
Hostile Environment
[U-Sound]
I thank the Clash for many things, and one of those things is getting me into Reggae. I grew up in a tropical island where reggae was a soundtrack to your day, not something you actively sought out. Why would you? Is there anything besides Bob Marley?
Yeah, that’s the mentality I had,
Then I heard the Clash, and I didn’t get it. Then I dug deeper and I had a revelation. Listening to the Clash is deeply personal to me now, and I think about the band and where they were when I listen to their music. I also thank them for opening the world of reggae to me a little more: I learned about dub and Lee Scratch Perry through them, which made me dig deeper and the spiral continues to this day. It’s been a fun ride, but all this came at a cost. It made me a more annoying person, sure, but it also locked me into that style of recording of the albums of the 1970s. What I’m trying to say is that I don’t think reggae should be recorded with modern equipment.
That’s a weird statement and I fully acknowledge it.
I had no idea who Creation Rebel was when I found a CD of Hostile Environment in my mailbox but I wasn’t about to ignore a pedigree like this. Meaning, my much-more-reggae-savvy friend said they’re a revered old reggae band.
Hostile Environment is a cool album. It sounds crisp, and polished, and has the “right” guests like Prince Far I. It sounds moody and spooky and takes itself seriously, and maybe it’s a little boring at times. What else can I say about it? I like it. I really do. It’s a cool album, but maybe would have sounded cooler if it was recorded 50 years ago.
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The Drowns – Blacked Out* LP – “Banger”A deeper look at the grooves pressed into The Drowns’ Blacked Out LP. While the number of ways that a band may choose to change their sound in the name of refreshing it or updating it are almost innumerable, what The Drowns have done on Blacked Out* is genuinely impressive. This time out, the band has left most of the punk and hardcore are forms that the band has been developing and refining over the last few years behind and examined an older form of rock that with soul melodies and pop sensibilities in much the same way that The Bay City Rollers and T. Rex both did between 1971 and 1974, and yet still come away as still sounding like the band what released “She’s The Knife” and “Black Lung,” but also a band focused on chasing new inspiration.
The obvious desire to cover some new ground is apparent from the moment needle catches groove and “Banger” begins the movement of Blacked Out‘s A-side. There, with hand claps and a chunky bass line propelling the song, singer Aaron Peters brings some glam to his Boston-centered vocal pedigree as he chants and growls out his vocals – sometimes by the stanza and sometimes by the letter – in a manner which doesn’t overly spit syllables so much as sweet-talking its way through. It’s a much different style from The Drowns’ previous releases, and the result is that listeners will be drawn in far closer to see how the side will go.
After “Banger” sets the precedent for Blacked Out, The Drowns dig in a little deeper as the album’s A-side continues. “Kedamine & Cola” follows hot on the opener’s heels with a greater focus on vocal melody and vintage guitar styling, and the results are excellent; in fact, the song plays so well that “Banger” almost becomes forgettable in its wake. “Dynamite” tries to follow the example set by “Kedamine & Cola” but ends up coming in distantly behind it (as does “Just The Way She Goes” – which features a comparably mawkish and soft vocal performance), the side begins to recover when the title track employs some great, older school rock n’ roll vocal and instrumental cues and nicely informs “Yob On A Rampage” – which also includes some delivery styling which comes close to feeling County & Western in spite of the British colloquialisms.
As well as the A-side of Blacked Out played and really fleshed out what listeners thought they could expect for the duration of the album, The Drowns really throw a curveball to open the album’s B-side. “1979 Trans Am” lifts the drums from KISS’ “Rock and Roll All Nite” and just bounces along happily, using the song’s growling vocals as a counterpoint to its instrumentation before re-entering the punk stream with “All Charged Up” and then re-writing “Ballroom Blitz” and naming it “Chancer.” While readers may assume that contending any song simply re-writes another implies that “remake” is synonymous with “inferior,” they are absolutely incorrect. In “Chancer”’s case, the guitars run a great, road-ready rhythm that is positively infectious, while the song’s vocals hint at a mania which can only be called good rock n’ roll and the song charges along while taking no prisoners for slightly less than three minutes before clapping shut. Reviewing the song that way is accurate, but it still doesn’t do “Chancer” the justice it deserves; it is raucous, has power for days and really energizes the final quarter of Blacked Out‘s running – after “Chancer,” “Wheels” features a rolling guitar and bass performance which comes close to sounding like a really, really lean-running Ramones cut and “Don’t Have A Job” tries to celebrate unemployment (although Peters doesn’t really sound committed to the song’s inspiration) and then the side closes both sharply and with surprise on “Born To Die In NYC.” There, The Drowns completely step out of the mix and leave Peters alone with a piano plying gently as the singer laments missed opportunities before closing out the album’s play. Now, there’s no question about “Born To Die In NYC”’s quality as the song and the precedent for a punk band stepping out to let their singer play a piano ballad was set long ago (The Replacements were famous for it – as were New York Dolls), but that The Drowns do it as the final note on Blacked Out is still pretty surprising and may have listeners going back after the needle lifts to see if there were hints at where Blacked Out was headed before “Born To Lose In NYC” actually went there and listeners simply didn’t realize.
After one runs front-to-back with Blacked Out, listeners won’t be able to deny that, while The Drowns touch all the bases they expect after the band charts their course through the album, the band still has some surprises up their collective sleeve which can hook listeners pretty hard and in some really unexpected ways. As they walk away from it, listeners may find themselves hoping that The Drowns will do something comparable to Blacked Out again soon – this critic certainly does. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
https://www.facebook.com/thedrowns/
https://www.instagram.com/thedrowns/
https://twitter.com/i/flow/login?redirect_after_login=%2Fwearethedrowns
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJElvKGC0bD_dVHXDx-yjKQ/videos
Further Reading:
Vinyl Vlog 549 – The Drowns – Lunatics EP
Vinyl Vlog 422 – The Drowns – Under Tension LP
Vinyl Vlog 403 – the Drowns – Hold Fast 12’’ single
Album:
Blacked Out is out now. Buy it here, directly from Pirates Press Records.
The post Vinyl Vlog 642 appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Son Henry & T. Rogers Band
Grace
(Twang House Records)
In 2009, American blues musician and lap steel virtuoso Son Henry arrived at a music festival in Estonia with only his lap steel. The rest of his equipment was stuck at Heathrow Airport, where it remained for six months. He was rescued by T. Rogers band, “a group of mad Hungarians,” as he put it. They loaned him equipment and gave him stage time. A lifelong connection was established.
Ten years later, T. Rogers band secured a grant from the Hungarian government for international collaboration in music. Son Henry flew to Hungary in the fall of 2023, where he recorded Grace with the band, comprised of Ferci Kovács on guitar, Zsolt Szatai on bass, Béla Baráth on drums, Krisztián Magi on organ and Stew Hay on harmonica.
Grace is a tour of blues forms. Son Henry says, “I showed up with thirty songs,” covering the variety of American blues, folk, and country. He adds, “T. Rogers were steeped in Chicago blues, but I kicked them right out of their comfort zone.”
The album starts on a somber, reflective note, with the title track and “Josie,” two country tunes with slight tinges of gospel. They are both about regrets and missed opportunities. “Grace” concerns the stresses of caregiving, how we feel we could have done more for those we love. “Josie” describes watching a couple part at a bus station. Son Henry feels these regrets, about “things we could have been more clear about,” are nearly universal experiences. “Those two songs ring really clear and meaningful for me. … Let’s deal with the hard stuff first.”
Things pick up quickly after that, with “Ribbon of Tar,” a hard-rocking road song. Son Henry and T. Rogers Band performed this one regularly over the years, and it shows in the propulsive tempo.
“Waiting on a Sign” returns to the wistful romanticism of “Josie,” a lover waiting to the other person to say the right thing. The soulful instrumentation, reminiscent of acoustic Stones at their best, perfectly captures the emotions of the lyrics.
Poverty and unemployment fuel the old school R&B of “Painted Windows,” propelled by some Chicago style blues harp. The song is based on Son Henry’s experiences in Aberdeen, Scotland, during the 2014 oil crash. He explains that when stores went out of business, they traditionally painted over their windows with whitewash. “When my end comes I’ll know/ If it’s hell I’m gonna know/ I’ll recognize it by the painted windows.”
“Looking at Trouble” picks up the pace again, a classic barroom romp about picking up a strange woman in a bar. He claims the song is about meeting his wife, but the lyrics lead the listener to believe the night did not have such a happy ending. It ends with, “Hey, where are you going?” Either way, the song is pure fun.
We return to poverty in “Down Hard,” which describes the real bottom of economic desperation. Son Henry spent some time homeless himself, living in a Chevy Camaro (“No room to stretch out”). He recalls the ridicule and shame one experiences then. “People aren’t kind,” he comments. His lap steel accents ground the tale in the reality of the street.
“One too many cars in your driveway” tells Son Henry that his latest love affair is over in “It Ain’t You.” The backing is funky R&B with a touch of calypso. Son Henry recalls having to teach the Hungarians these forms, which were new to them. It’s clear they learned the lesson; this song grooves along infectiously.
“Shame Shame Shame,” a hard-rocking blues stomper about a cheating woman, will keep the crowd dancing.
“Three Words,” a slow blues which brings to mind Clapton or B.B. King, brings us more or less back where we started, waiting for someone to say the right thing, afraid that they won’t. The guitar weeps in clean lines throughout the song.
“Better Man” concludes the album with some get-down funk, complete with dirty guitar solo. It’s fitting ending, reflecting back on the hard times, regrets, and disappointments that run through the album, promising to do better next time.
In the end, the album demonstrates how blues, once an exclusively American music form, has become truly international. The album is, in Son Henry’s words, “an interesting polyglot of styles” based in a shared musical language. The American and the Hungarians find common ground, and then settle into it like an old sofa. Take a seat yourself, and get comfortable.
“Grace,” the first single from the song, will be premiered on Friday, March 15, on all streaming platforms. The full album is scheduled for a June release. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://sonhenry.com/
https://www.facebook.com/sonhenryband
https://www.instagram.com/sonhenrylapsteel
Listen:
Son Henry and T. Rogers Band – “Grace” –
The post Son Henry – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Claudia Hoyser
Red Lights Turning Green
(GFI Music)Every now and then, an artist takes you by surprise. Who would expect the Aging Punk to love a Country singer? And not an alt-country artist, either; a pure, down-home Country artist. I am now officially a Claudia Hoyser fan.
A local record store (Record Archive — if you’re ever in Rochester, NY) provides pizza and beer and free music every Wednesday. I often stop in to see what they have. Hoyser was playing one week. Honestly, I expect to have my pizza and beer and listen to a couple of songs and then move on. I stayed for her whole performance though, I was hooked.
Hoyser was the total package. I mean that in a music industry way, not a sexist one. She had the voice, the songs, the looks and the stage presence. It was not hard to see star potential. I hesitate to predict stardom for her, only because I don’t want to jinx her (my predictions, on anything, rarely come true).
Red Lights Turning Green is Hoyser’s debut album and it lives up to everything I saw that evening. Her voice can bring tears to your eyes before you even know what she’s singing about. Naturally soft and caressing, she can certainly turn on the power when it’s called for, although she is neither a belter nor a screamer. Instead, she sings like a best friend offering you comfort; sharing stories of her own struggles and then telling you to get up and kick some butt.
Red Lights Turning Green is an album about struggle; the struggles of love and the struggle to create the life you want. The opener, “Curtains,” places the singer on stage as the curtain rises, ready to do her thing. The title song is about her determination to keep going and to move as soon as the time is right (“Turn the mountains in hills/ I keep trying on my will / Put the struggles in the back seat/ Pedal to the floor/ The red light’s turning green.”) The theme continues through “Tried to Try” (self-explanatory), and “Not For Sale,” about not selling out. The album closes with “Willin’” (“You can’t start living/ Unless you are willin’”), rounding out the theme.
Love can be a struggle too, and she certainly tackles that. Sometimes “loving you is like a summer song” (“Summer Song”), but there’s also “some kind of wicked heartache.” (“Wicked” — “I’m so mad I’d like to break everything we ever had.”) But again she is determined to fight through it. In “Bring on the Cold” she sings, “I’ve got a coat full of broken hearts on my back/ and a scarf of the words that made them crack/… So bring on the cold.”
The musical backing is fairly standard country, complementary to her voice but never overwhelming it. There are tasteful flourishes of banjo, mandolin, and lap steel providing highlights, but the instrumentation is primarily there to support her vocals.
If I have one disappointment with the album it is that it leans towards slower songs. The first half is very mellow. Things pick up a bit with “Bring on the Cold” and “Outlaw” in the second half, but even they are mid-tempo. She has much livelier material in her repertoire, songs about drinking beer and racing cars (not the same song, to be clear), but there’s no sign of them. On the other hand, they might have disrupted the flow and the theme. She albums are coherent statements, some are just collections of songs. As it stands, Red Lights Turning Green is a solid and coherent whole.
Hoyser has a strong presence on You Tube, including videos for all the songs here, as well as multiple covers of classic country and rock songs (I recommend her versions “Turn the Page,” “Wild Horses,” and “Jolene”). Definitely worth checking out are “Duke Devlin” (on this album), about a man who went to Woodstock in 1969 and never left, and “Small Town Motels” (not on this album), which placed first on the CMT video chart for seven weeks straight and counting. Maybe she does have star potential. [G.Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://www.claudiahoyser.com/
https://www.facebook.com/claudiahoyser1
https://www.instagram.com/claudiahoyser/?hl=en
Album:
Red Lights Turning Green is out now. Buy it here, directly from Claudia Hoyser’s official website.
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Neutral Milk Hotel – In The Aeroplane Over The Sea* – “King Of Carrot Flowers (Part 1)”Neutral Milk Hotel
Collected Works [Box Set]
(Merge Records)*I confess I never listened to Neutral Milk Hotel before. I knew it was considered one of the great alternative bands, but I never heard anything else that made me want to listen to them. There were moments I definitely felt I should check it out, wishing, as I do, to be well informed about music. But I never made the move.
Until now. Offered the chance to review their Collected Works, I figured it was time to make their acquaintance. An opportunity to explore their works, and provide a virgin take on it. Neutral Milk Hotel fans will probably be disappointed with the results.
First off, this collection is overwhelming. Both official albums (On Avery Island and In the Aeroplane Over the Sea), plus EPs and live recordings — so much to absorb. But the real problem is that I found Jeff Mangum’s voice annoying. (Neutral Milk Hotel is primarily Mangum and friends. For clarity, I shall refer to all the recordings as by the band, even the solo live material.) Put the two together — the voice and the number of times I had to listen to it — and I could barely get through even a fraction of the collection.
The music is standard lo-fi; basic, rough around the edges, with occasional excursions into noise territory. The live material is primarily acoustic guitar. It does mesh well with the voice, although in an unsettling way. This is not music to relax to.
Then there are the lyrics. Weird doesn’t begin to describe them. Unsettling is too mellow a word. One could spend hours attempting to decipher them, although that is likely a waste of time. Still, it is hard to resist. With songs like “Two-Headed Boy,” “Little Birds” and “Baby for Pree,” it seems there is some sort of family trauma going on here — but not necessarily Mangum’s family. In the live material, he says, “It’s about a family that lived in the 1940s in Europe. I have dreams about one particular member of that family.” Which ties into the song “My Dream Girl Doesn’t Exist.” Is it all some surreal take on the Holocaust?
In fact, the impression I get is that you would gain nothing from learning the stories behind the songs. That the unsettling is the point. These are not songs to be understood, but only to be experienced. There is an adage, although I’m not sure who it is attributed to, that great art should make you uncomfortable — so maybe this is great art, but the admission of that possibility might amount to an unanticipated fault in this music.
I can see how some people love this band, even become obsessed. In fact, the very things I have trouble with could be what others love. The very weirdness has its own appeal. Neutral Milk Hotel are unique; fans can feel exclusive, liking a band that few others enjoy. Although I am able to resist analyzing the lyrics, I can see people spending hours poring over them, trying to ascertain what Mangum is singing about.
I’ll admit, I did get used to the voice, and the lo-fi, and the strangeness. I came to see it all as part of the whole and to appreciate it — in small doses. But I still don’t appreciate the designs of Neutral Milk Hotel’s music enough to make me a fan. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://www.walkingwallofwords.com/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100047049729896
https://www.instagram.com/neutralmilkhotel/?hl=en
Album:
Neutral Milk Hotel’s Collected Works box set is out now. Buy it here, from Merge Records’ official store.
The post Neutral Milk Hotel – [Box Set] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Iggy Pop
Every Loser
(Atlantic/Warner Bros.)I’m never sure what I’ll get when I get a new album by Iggy Pop. Usually, there’s some version of the standard Iggy — rocking hard, with some social criticism, and a ballad or two – but every now and then he throws us a curve ball; a Preliminaires or an Avenue B. With all of that said, Every Loser pretty standard for him.
If there is a surprise here, it is that Iggy Pop sounds content with his life right now. That is not to say he has calmed down though, opener “Frenzy” makes that clear. But even as he declares, “I’m in a frenzy,” he sounds more celebratory than upset. Likewise in “Neo-Punk,” a tongue-in-cheek take on fashion; “punk” is now a declaration of prestige, not outsider-ness. In face, Iggy’s current celebrity status pops up several times, in “Morning Show” and “Comments.” Although he does approach it with a level of cynicism, it is also clear he enjoys it.
Running through the album is a balance of realism, joy, and cynicism. “Strung Out Johnny” revisits Iggy’s junkie days, with an almost audible sigh of relief that those days are over. “New Atlantis” is an almost sweet love song to his adopted city of Miami, but it acknowledges, in its title and lyrics, that Miami is sinking. He is still pissed off about a lot of society, as is addressed in “Modern Day Ripoff” and “The Regency,” but he still enjoys himself. He sings, “Fuck the Regency” with both a sneer and a smile.
For Every Loser, Iggy assembled a band of hard rock heavy-hitters: Duff McKagan (Guns N’ Roses), Chad Smith and Josh Klinghoffer (Red Hot Chili Peppers), and Andrew Watt (producer), with guest appearances by Stone Gossard, Dave Navarro, and the late Taylor Hawkins. The band certainly rocks out. “Frenzy” could be a Guns N’ Roses outtake, while “Neo-Punk” echoes the Stooges (no surprises there). “All the Way Down” evokes the Stones, and “Strung Out Johnny” recalls Johnny Thunders. There are quieter moments as well; “Morning Show” is a ballad and “Modern Atlantis” contains a spoken word interlude. In the end, musically, it is a pretty standard Iggy Pop album.
Every Loser is a very enjoyable Iggy album, but does not break any new ground. Maybe next time. [G.Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://everyloser.iggypop.com/
https://www.facebook.com/iggypop/
https://www.instagram.com/iggypopofficial/?hl=en
Album:
Every Loser is out now. Buy it here on Amazon. https://www.amazon.ca/EVERY-LOSER-Iggy-Pop/dp/B0BLXD3KS4/ref=sr_1_3?crid=29R5S5LW97RWM&keywords=Iggy+Pop+-+Every+Loser&qid=1676661149&sprefix=iggy+pop+-+every+loser%2Caps%2C97&sr=8-3
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Weyes Blood
And In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow
(Sub Pop Records)In her current incarnation as pop songstress, musician Weyes Blood may have produced the definitive post-Covid album. Sweet melodies, lush orchestration and a beautiful voice combine to express the relief and pleasure of passing through the crisis. The instrumentation is standard pop — piano, guitar, synthesizer washes, arranged into sweeping waves of music.
Weyes Blood has claimed “church music” as a great influence on her work, which is a good description of this album; with little direct reference to religion, the music is expansive and reverent. It inspires awe and a sense of something larger than ourselves. She sets the stage with the opener, “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody.” It captures a common sentiment of the pandemic: the feeling of isolation, of being alone. “Does anybody really know me?” she sings. But, by the end of the song, she realizes “It’s not just me, it’s everybody.” Yet there is a sense that this thought isn’t as comforting as one might hope for (made more apparent by the video for the song, which I won’t spoil).
Throughout are verses about reemerging into the world, but still being lost. “Hearts aglow, we don’t know where we’re going… I’ve been waiting for my life to begin for so long…” (“Hearts Aglow”). “Looking like some clear sky… but we’re all lost…. How much can you take/ and when are you going to be okay?” (“Children of the Empire”). “It kept me waiting in the dark” (“Twin Flame”).
Yet within all this hope and beauty, a certain darkness lingers underneath everything. Even the album title indicates this; yes the hearts are aglow, but they are still in the darkness. Or take “God Turn Me Into a Flower” (a rare direct reference to religion), at first listen, it seems like a sweet sentiment. But then you catch the lyrics: “It’s good to be soft/ when they push you down/… It’s such a curse to be so hard/ you shatter easily/ and can’t pick up all those shards.” Is it really such a sweet wish? Is she seeking escape, transcendence, or just an easier existence? Maybe I’m overthinking it, but what starts feeling beautiful ends up creeping me out just a little.
It all comes into a climax with the penultimate song, “The Say the Worst Is Done,” an evaluation of where we all stand after the pandemic. “It’s been a long strange year/ Everyone said they lost what they thought they had.” But the final lines are, “but I think the worst has only just begun.”
It might seem like Weyes Blood’s earlier, noisier music, as on her album, The Outside Room, might be more appropriate for an album about CoVid, but the beauty of her music here fits the theme. It captures the excitement, even joy, of coming through those rough times. But it seems to me that the point is that the fear and depression still linger there, they still underlie our every feeling these days.
If you want to listen to this album and only see the beauty of it, don’t let me deprive you of that. It is a beautiful album. Or you could listen to it as a story of lost love (there are plenty of lyrics to support that as well). But when I listen, I can’t help but hear the darkness beneath the joy. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://www.weyesblood.com/
https://weyesblood.bandcamp.com/album/and-in-the-darkness-hearts-aglow
https://www.instagram.com/weyesblood/?hl=en
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Uqu1mEdkUJxPe7s31n1M9
https://www.facebook.com/weyesblood/
Listen:
Weyes Blood – And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow –
Album:
And In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow is out now. Buy it here, from the artist’s official website.
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John Cale – Mercy* – “Not The End of the World”John Cale
Mercy
(*Domino)
I will admit, with rock stars dropping all around us, listening to this CD made me a little nervous. It sounds like John Cale is reviewing his life, looking back with a critical eye and looking forward with trepidation. Initially, I found myself wondering if Mercy was to be another Blackstar, The Wind or You Want It Darker. Musically, however, this is a forward looking album – as Cale collaborates with a number of fresh musicians, mostly in electronica, such as Laurel Halo, Weyes Blood, Tei Shi, Animal Collective’s Avey Tare and Panda Bear, Dev Hynes, Sylvan Esso, Actress and Fat White Family. The result is a haunting, dreamlike atmosphere throughout. Despite the breadth of collaborators, there is a consistent feel and sound, clearly the result of Cale’s steady hand at the helm.
The music is hallucinogenic, modern acid rock. It is a far cry from the Sixties’ notion of that; musicians now have more tools at their disposal than feedback drenched solos and incoherent jams to express the psychedelic experience. They use the full spectrum on Mercy, which includes cross rhythms in many songs, and various electronics augmenting, at times interrupting, the dark but smooth flow of Cale’s music; just enough to throw you off, make you turn around and say, “What was that?” This contrast can make Mercy a hard album to get into. The music exists on two levels: the underlying tunes and the surface distractions. It takes repeated listens to unify the two.
What you then find is a dark exploration of Cale’s current state of mind. Some threat or fear lurks behind much of the underlying music. Especially dark are “The Story of Blood” and “The Legal Status of Ice” (which is as close as the album gets to Cale’s old rocking days).
The whole album is a drug- (or fever-) induced dream state, in which Cale reviews his life and the various tangents along the way. So he considers how he didn’t appreciate Marilyn Monroe’s appeal in “Marilyn Monroe’s Legs” (“Late to the party/ … there was always beauty elsewhere”); she reminds him of his old friend Nico (another sometime blonde) and his conflicted relationship with her (“Moonstruck”), which gets him contemplating memory and time itself (“Time Stands Still”), until, almost inevitably he is wondering how much time he/we have left (“Not the End of the World”).
But the whole experience is more a series of flashbacks and their attendant random trails than an organized assessment. He is reflecting, not criticizing. In “Everlasting Days” he sings:
“I’m not making excuses
I’m not making amends
Are we saving face
on a day of confusion
or clearing the air? “
Another bit of reflection is in “Moonstruck” when he sings “Please hold me/ yes console me/ I have come to make my peace.” Although it’s not clear if he wants to make peace with Nico herself, or her death.
The penultimate song on Mercy, “I Know You’re Happy” is just what it says, and it captures the sense of returning to earth after a heavy trip. However, “Out Your Window,” the final tune, returns to the darkness. “If you jump out your window/ I will break your fall/ hold you close and keep you calm/ wherever you decide to go/ Please don’t go.” Accompanied by clanging piano chords and a celestial chorus, the words again leave us wondering who is departing, or about to depart.
I certainly hope that Mercy is not Cale’s swansong. The power of the album shows he still has plenty of creativity left in him; but if it is though, what a strong way to go. [G. Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://john-cale.com/
https://www.instagram.com/therealjohncale/
https://www.instagram.com/therealjohncale/
https://twitter.com/therealjohncale
Album:
Mercy is out now. Buy it here on the artist’s own website.
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Anti-Flag – Lies They Tell Our Children* – “Laugh Cry Smile Die”Anti-Flag
Lies They Tell Our Children
(Spinefarm)It might sound a little counter-intuitive but, throughout their career (which has run for thirty-five years now – as of this writing), Anti-Flag has always proven to be at their best when people have already counted the band out – that’s when they have something to prove and that’s when they shine. Most recently, the band shone after they’d finished their two-record contract with RCA and the band released The People or The Gun on SideOneDummy in 2009, and in 2015 when the band jumped to Spinfarm and released American Spring; in that case, a combination of solid and angry songs, a couple of good guest spots [Tom Morello and Tim Armstrong –ed] and a single-minded desire to make a point that they still had something to prove really got the album over. Now, eight years after the last time they did it, Anti-Flag has something to prove again – and they do it well with Lies They Tell Our Children* – Anti-Flag’s lucky thirteenth album.
As prepared to be blown away as listeners might be for the new Anti-Flag assault, the band asserts its own control and dominance to remind listeners who’s in control as a lighter and more subdued air opens “Sold Everything.” Fans who recall the band’s early output (which featured anti-commercialism as a staple) will be delighted to discover that, as much as things might have changed about Anti-Flag’s sound and presentation, the band’s heard and mind has clearly remained unchanged as lyrics like, “Fuck all their borders and fuck all their wars/ The violence of Wall Street and profiteer cures/ Neoliberal white saviors, Murdoch and Fox News/ Fuck the Pittsburgh Police and the President too” present an unavoidable plan of attack as well as an unshakable opinion. It lines everything up in a perfectly understandable way for listeners to absorb at a tempo at a tempo which lets them get every word, every chord, every damned micro-tone; it’s not a mission statement exactly, but listeners will know precisely what they’re in for on Lies They Tell Our Children because of it.
After “Sold Everything” sets up the plan, “Modern Medicine” stands up and seethes to follow up in a way that is solid, but still a little unexpected, because it falls a little closer to emo than the brand of political street punk that fans have come to expect, and with a more methodical pacing than most would consider standard standard for the band – but happily things get far more normal when “Laugh, Cry, Smile, Die” turns in some spectacular “message punk” which covers both the message (“Can you hear me, hear me calling/ I’ve got this idea that I’m selling for nothing”) as well as the blistering sonic assault.
From there, the stage is set; Anti-Flag plants a new flag for every song on Lies They Tell Our Children and dares listeners to even miss one. Some of them qualify as the sort that many bands would stake their careers on – “The Fight Of Our Lives” melts faces with the help of Tim McIlrath and Brian Baker (from Rise Against and Bad Religion respectively), “Victory Or Death”comes startlingly close to presenting the best pop-punk song Anti-Flag has ever written (and it’s more pop than punk to boot) and “NVREVR” nails the flawless brand of molten magma-infused punk that Anti-Flag fans always hope for from the band – and the group really leaves listeners wanting more when the album closes on the frothing anger of “Only In My Mind.” There, Justin Sane is actively trying not to spit in listeners’ collective ear as he delivers lines like, “They’re after me/ Where no one’s free/ The house created by their greed/ Is not the goddamn home that we need/ They’re all after me,” and just rests from exhaustion rather than trying to deliver one last grunt. Some readers might assume that such an end would be anti-climactic, but that couldn’t be further from the truth – the way “Only In My Head” ends will leave listeners energized and ready to go all the way through the album again.
Standing back from it, it really is impossible to say enough about Lies They Tell Our Children. From top to bottom, no track runs as weaker than the rest or out of place – it is a phenomenal album which overshadows Anti-Flag’s last two albums, clearly and handily.Some critics might question the fact that there are so many guest players on the album and if that extra assistance was desired or if it was required but, if one forgets about that and just listens, it will be easy to hear how brightly the album shines. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
http://www.anti-flag.com/
https://www.instagram.com/antiflag/?hl=en
https://www.facebook.com/anti.flag.official/
https://www.youtube.com/c/antiflag
Album:
Lies They Tell Our Children is out now. Buy it here on Amazon.
The post Anti-Flag – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Lou Reed
Words and Music, May, 1965
(Light In The Attic)
One question repeatedly comes up in writers’ groups, especially with beginning writers: “How do I copyright my work?” I resist the temptation to say, “Do you really think someone is going to steal your poetry?” and tell them, “Mail it to yourself.” As long as you don’t open the package, the postmark establishes that you wrote the enclosed material on or before that date. Lou Reed did that with a tape of his original songs back in 1965. The package was first opened about a year ago.
The tape does include early, acoustic versions of several Velvet Underground songs (“Waiting for the Man,” “Heroin” and “Pale Blue Eyes”) and John Cale does accompany Reed on it, but this is not an early glimpse into the band’s development. The purpose of this tape was to establish Reed’s credentials as a songwriter. He was about to leave a job writing novelty tunes and knock-offs of current hits for Pickwick Records, and clearly wanted an opportunity to sell his more serious compositions.
Chances are, the songs on Words and Music, May, 1965 are what Reed considered his strongest work at the time – and they do definitely cover a variety of styles. Despite all the recordings being basic acoustic guitar and occasional harmonica, you can sense the eventual recording styles they were intended for. For example, “Buzz Buzz Buzz” – a fun ditty about not getting through to your girl on the phone – could easily have been a pop hit. “Men of Good Fortune” sounds like an old Appalachian folk tune and “Stockpile” is a straight working-man’s blues. “Walk Alone” is styled as folk here, but could have been pop or blues; “Too Late” has potential as a Brit-Invasion style blues. “Buttercup Song,” a warning against emotional involvement, seems appropriate for a novelty act, although there are rumors VU actually considered recording it.
Then there are the three VU songs. “Pale Blue Eyes” is fairly close to the arrangement VU eventually used; spare, a bit spacey, very melancholy. Both “Waiting for the Man” and “Heroin” are presented in folk style, as gritty tales of urban reality. The emphasis is on the words, the story, although “Heroin” does rave up near the end, hinting at the eventual version on their first album.
Finally (it was the last song on the tape, although not on this CD) we come to “Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams,” which suddenly does sound like classic Velvet Underground. It is a long, slow, drone, with vocals intoned rather than sung (and, coincidence or not, Cale take over the vocals on this one). For the first time, the CD becomes a hint of what is to come.
There are other songs on the CD, taken from previous recording sessions. Some classic folk, some Dylan, some Reed working out blues progressions on his guitar. They give us some hint of where he came from but, if anything, cloud the picture of where he was headed. The Dylan covers, combined with the acoustic, folk stylings of many of the recordings, could give the impression Reed was another Dylan wannabe.
If one wants to guess Reed’s ambitions at this point, it is important to remember what this recording is and what it is not. It is not a demo or audition tape to be sent to record companies looking for a contract as a musician. It is specifically designed to prove that Reed wrote these songs, that he was protecting himself from plagiarism. As I said at the beginning, his ambition here is, apparently, more as a songwriter than a performer.
This is not to say Velvet Underground fans won’t find much here to pique their interest. And fans of Lou Reed’s solo work may find even more, as they see the variety of styles he was trying out. [Murray Thomas]
Artist:
https://loureed.com/
https://loureedarchive.com/
https://www.facebook.com/LouReed/
https://www.instagram.com/loureedofficial/?hl=en
Album:
Words and Music, May, 1965 is out now. Buy it here, directly from the artist’s official online store:
The post Lou Reed – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
The Dils – Live!* – ”It’s Not Worth It”A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the LP+CD reissue of Live! by The Dils. While plenty of punk bands have been well exposed since the public became interested in learning about the early days of the L.A. punk scene (X’s catalogue has been reissued by Fat Possum Records, Porterhouse reissued (MIA) by The Germs and other labels have reissued titles by The Avengers, The Bags and The Runaways too), the truth is that giving all of the talent that L.A. had in reserve in the Eighties its due is still a work in progress. Getting that music exposed is part of what The Dils’ Live! reissue seeks to facilitate; like many of the reissues from the L.A. scene’s early years, Live!* is not without its flaws – but as one pulls apart both the vinyl album (which compiles a show captured in 1977 as well as a show from 1980) as well as the CD (which captures a complete show from March 20, 1978 at the legendary Mabuhay Gardens), fans will recognize to their joy that this is a great conglomerate release which goes out of its way to show off as many of The Dils’ strengths as it is able.
What becomes perfectly self-evident after stylus catches groove on the A-side of the record and “Tell Her I Love Her” opens Live!‘s A-side is that The Dils (and most of the rest of the California punk scene – before the second wave hit in 1994) were completely unlike their peer group of bands. From note one, there is some crunchy simplicity about The Dils (due, in part, to the average age of the band’s members – it could be argued), but there’s also a healthy amount of poppy, Sixties garage rock about them too; in this early going, it’s easy to imagine The Dils being a stereotypical product of the same state which gave us The Beach Boys and innumerable Jan & Dean type acts. That same kind of vibe holds up through “Tell Me What I Want To Hear” [although it also features a slightly more stunted, grindy guitar tone –ed], but begins to hit a much stronger stride with “It’s Not Worth It” – which features the single greatest lyric which forecasts the Nineties SoCal punk explosion with the words, “It’s not worth it/ You might as well spend your days in bed/ It’s not worth it/No matter what you do you’re better off dead.” Here, The Dils don’t rush along at all; drummer John Shivers hits a solid and deliberate tempo which makes it possible to pick out every last syllable on the lyric sheet shared by guitarist Chip Kinman and brother/bassist Tony Kinman, and the assemblage amounts to a sounds that is very possibly one of the best of its place and moment – which, in 1980, would have included The Germs’ last gasp, the beginning of X and the beginning of Los Angeles’ hardcore scene.
Over that peak, the A-side immediately falls back in time to 1977 but, surprisingly the quality of the songs does not diminish in the slightest and the sound quality remains exactly the same. “You’re Not Blank” bounces happily on a surprisingly poppy tip as Chip and Tony display a startling faculty for vocal melody for vocal melody, while “Red Rockers Rule” gives a performance of the calibre that Green Day would make millions with later before “Mr. Big” attempts to tip all those the bandmembers see as “older” and/or “better” than they are over, and then the side ends with another lost pop punk gem called “The Sound Of The Rain.” There too, Chip Kinman bucks tradition and turns in a surprisingly good guitar solo and totally overrides lyrics which detail the band’s wish to see some dead cops before crashing to a close. The way it plays will leave listeners surprised both at how such a bootleg-quality release can be so captivating as well as how polished the songs are; while it normally takes punk bands years to refine their talent and present mature work, The Dils arrive well-developed, here. When both song and side end, listeners will be ready to examine more as soon as the needle lifts.
…And because it worked so well the first time, the B-side of Live! mimics the A-; it splits its time between presenting the balance of the 1980 show as well as four cuts from 1977. It’s actually pretty engaging, that way; here, listeners get to check the development that the band underwent in three years with another presentation of “It’s Not Worth It” [editor’s note: the 1980 version of “It’s Not Worth It” is the superior one] and really get a chance to see that, while the development is hindered by the poorer quality of the source tape, the later songs are really, really good.
On top of the massive helping of audio that the vinyl record serves, listeners actually get a more filling course on the CD in this set. Those listeners who indulge the CD (and, yes, I know many will skip it because CDs are not at all fashionable right now) will be brilliantly rewarded with a show which occurred on March 20, 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens in San Francisco, CA, and happens to feature the most standout, gorgeous audio of the set. “National Guard” opens the running here and, although the patch chord clearly comes out of someone’s mike early on, the band still recovers well and sets a great standard that the amphetamine-powered surf-punk of “Citizen,” the sidewalk stomping singalong of “Class War,” a particularly loose and speedy take of “It’s Not Worth It” and a harrowing rendition of “What Goes On” all manage to surpass as the set progresses. It’s remarkable, to be honest; captured only a year after half of the vinyl portion of this set happened, the performance at Mabuhay Gardens absolutely bristles with raw energy, tight performance and [gasp] improved musicianship. It won’t be the most fashionable thing to say in any context, but the CD portion of Porterhouse’s Live! reissue is the great secret bonus to find, without a doubt.
So how should this reissue be viewed within the context of The Dils’ catalogue? The easiest way to say it is that feelings will definitely be divided. On one hand, longtime fans will have the chance to finally get a copy of some of the band’s music, because everything else in The Dils’ catalogue has been out of print for such a long time. That’s good. On the other hand, live bootlegs invariably leave a tremendous amount to be desired – unless the audio was somehow captured off the mixing board at the venue, and this release is not that. It is pretty raw (which is a negative), but that does not overshadow the quality of the performance. Those who are interested in The Dils and want to pick up a copy of this release will be thrilled as long as they keep their expectations limited; The Dils Live! bootleg is a great souvenir for fans of the band – and the best bootleg on the market. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1777632185628383/
Album:
The Dils Live! is out now. Buy it here, directly from Porterhouse Records.
The post Vinyl Vlog 561 appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Reverend Beat-Man and The Underground – It’s A Matter Of Time* – “I Want To Fuck You, Baby”Reverend Beat-Man and The Underground
It’s A Matter Of Time
(Voodoo Rhythm Records)
It doesn’t happen every day but, every now and again, an album sometimes comes along which is just so fucking weird and good that it totally short circuits listeners’ synapses and leaves them wide open to the possibility of being both won over and perverted all at the same time. Such an idea may leave those unfamiliar with the potential value of such albums with the impression that the prospect of a record twisting listeners in such a way would be a BAD thing, but this critic wants to reassure them that such an event is not a bad one. The list of such records includes Frank Zappa’s We’re Only In It For The Money, Ween’s Chocolate and Cheese, Flaming Lips’ The Soft Bulletin and, now, It’s A Matter Of Time* by Reverend Beat-Man and The Underground. From note one of the off-puttingly entitled “I want to fuck you baby,” Beat-Man and his merry band of miscreants go out of their way to hook listeners with licks cribbed right out of the “Great Big Book of Classic Rock Cliches,” which have been twisted with the kind of weirdness which only appeals to those afflicted with true genius, and simply never lets up; every twist will initially leave listeners scratching their heads at the beginning of each song in this running, but hopelessly in love with each one before they end. Simply said, this ain’t the kind of record you find every day but, after you do find it, it’ll mess you up in the best, most startling and affirming ways, and all you’ll want to say is, “Thank you” and ask politely for another, when it’s done.
As stated, “I Want To Fuck You Baby” opens It’s A Matter Of Time and leaves an indelible impression upon those who hear it as, with campfire-warmed acoustic guitars strumming, the Underground gently pedals out a country flavor like the one which powered Ween’s examination of 12 Golden Country Greats, and that taste somehow gets even stronger when Beat-Man himself coasts in with the title lyric – sounding like a Quebecois punk rocker who just finished a week-long residency at his favorite strip club where he was obviously paid in beer. Needless to say, the sound is incredibly jarring, at first, but it smooths out before long with the help of Milan Slick’s keyboards – which sound like they may have been five-fingered out of The B-52s’ storage unit. It may sound unlikely, in print, but the sound is surprisingly infectious in practice and, when the song finishes after a hair less than two minutes, listeners will find that they;re ready to follow along on the power of perverse curiosity.
After “I want to fuck you baby” sets its precedent, Reverend Beat-Man and The Underground find that the appeal of that original spell actually gets deeper. “Slave to the phone” bemoans the world’s dedication to technology while backed with an angular rhythm which sounds like the 21st century’s answer to New Wave, while “Jesus Christ twist” sounds like the unholy result of Tom Waits trying to move along to an old Sweatin’ To The Oldies video cassette, “Shut Up!” presents and acid-touched Sixties garage rock rave-up (which might just be the solution to many of the current problems in mainstream music), Get down on me” sprinkles some tone deaf pop into the album’s established stew and “Banned from the internet” exposes the twenty-first century’s most appalling social criticism. It’s all great fun in a “pop cocktail with a PCP back” kind of way and, while the album is far from perfect, (every time Beat-Man slows any song’s tempo down – as he does with the title track, “Back to hell” and “Mongolian talks to Alien” – listeners won’t be able to stop themselves from skipping along to the next hot fever dream), it features far more strong songs than insufferable ones and will leave those who hear it interested to see what the band can do with feature releases. Simply said, there are a lot of possibilities sewn into It’s A Matter Of Time – here’s hoping that Reverend Beat-Man and The Underground return refocused and realize them. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
https://reverendbeatman.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/reverend_beat_man/?hl=en
Album:
It’s A Matter Of Time is out now. Buy it here, direct from Voodoo Rhythm Records.
The post Reverend Beat-Man and The Underground – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
The Christian Family – The Raw and Primitive Sound of the Christian Family* – “I’ll Make You Cry”The Christian Family
The Raw and Primitive Sound of…
(Voodoo Rhythm Records)While it would be easy enough to spill plenty of ink on the fact that The Christian Family is pretty evidently a kindred spirit to such popular “dirty shirt rock n’ roll” bands as The White Stripes, Boss Hog, Royal Trux, The Black Keys and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, actually making such comparisons is entirely too convenient and doesn’t actually do anyone any favors. Stripped even more to its essentials as the album is, in fact, only elevates the quality of of this debut, in fact; limited to an impossibly small drum kit (a kick drum and shakers), a very overdriven guitar and the voices of singer/drummer Sister Ann and singer/guitarist Brother Daniel, The Raw and Primitive Sound of…* forces The Christian Family (and their songs, by extension), to either be good or be the single greatest waste of time in all recorded history. There’s no artifice to hide behind here – so there’s simply no choice for the band to either shine or burn and, after “Who’s Gonna Catch Me If I Fall” and “Mad-a-lyn” present that raw and stripped down sound as being the only one that the band makes for the early play on the album, listeners will find the prospect of settling in with them as easy as sinking into a mud bath at a high-end spa, or joining childhood friends for a dip with the frogs in an isolated, backwoods pond.
Simply said, the experience can be great – just be ready to take a shower when its all done.
As The Raw and Primitive Sound of… progresses and the songs have a chance to develop, they actually get even better; the first explosion of brilliance, “You Gotta Luv,” sees Brother Daniel step on a delay pedal and add some genuinely fantastic depth to the song, while his guitar playing actually gets close to that of Jon Spencer’s on “Oh My Don’t Cry,” and “Bbaby Wants More” swings into a hypnotic movement as it sidewinds along.
As the album winds to a close, “I’ll Make You Cry” spontaneously shifts gearsand completely changes the sound of the song with improved production which implies where The Christian Family may be headed on future releases, in so doing. There, seemingly without warning, Sister Ann’s percussion spontaneously grows depth as her kick drum introduces low end, and her added vocals offer more color above it. While previous cuts on the album were easy enough to appreciate, “I’ll Make You Cry” introduces a sense of verve which follows up with closer to pop song dynamics, and “I Got Problems” then closes out the proceedings, strongly. That ending is solid, but really owes a tremendous amount to the inroads cut by “I’ll Make You Cry.” The energy that song injects gives a little more punch to “Tornado” and “I Got Problems,” and is the bright spot that listeners will quietly hope is the thing which reappears on future releases from the group.
…And, after “I Got Problems” slams shut and listeners have had a chance to collect themselves, the’ll recognize just how good The Raw and Primitive Sound of The Christian Family is – and will be only too happy to indulge the album again; even if they are quietly hoping for the arrival of more music as soon as possible at the same time. How soon more music might arrive is up for debate, but that this band deserves a larger presentation is not; hand The Christian Family to Jon Spencer or to Patrick Carney or John Goodmanson – to a producer with the talent to help this band realize their potential, and watch them shine. The Raw and Primitive Sound of The Christian Family illustrates that the band has come a long way on their own, all they need now is a little push to reach the next level. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
https://thechristianfamily.bandcamp.com/album/the-raw-and-primitive-sounds-of-the-christian-family
https://www.facebook.com/thechristianfamilyband/?ref=page_internal
https://www.facebook.com/thechristianfamilyband/?ref=page_internalAlbum:
The Raw and Primitive Sound of The Christian Family is out now. Buy it here, directly from Voodoo Rhythm Records. https://voodoorhythm.ch/4-0/
The post The Christian Family – [Album] appeared first on Ground Control Magazine.
Jon Spencer & The HITmakers – Spencer Gets It Lit* – “Strike 3”Jon Spencer & The HITmakers
Spencer Gets It Lit
(In The Red Records)As he has been famous for doing since he first founded the Blues Explosion in 1991, Jon Spencer has succeeded in confounding his fans by including a couple of songs which didn’t appear on the vinyl release of his newest album, Spencer Gets It Lit, on its CD counterpart.Fans may be less than surprised at Spencer’s choice (the guitarist has a long history of augmenting the track lists depending on where and when they come out, as was illustrated when all the stray tracks got compiled and released as definitive editions of the JSBX catalogue by Shout! Factory in 2010), but even those who appreciate the guitarist’s penchant for hiding Easter eggs (a group among which I number myself)will likely be surprised that two additional songs were included only on the CD release of Spencer Gets It Lit, the songs do not appear on the vinyl release and do not* appear on the bandcamp download of the album either. In fact, the only reason this critic discovered that the extra songs exist at all was because he happened to be browsing around on Youtube and noticed a discrepancy in the number of songs listed in the video stream versus the number of cuts on his vinyl review copy.
…And, no, you can’t bootleg the two extra songs by simply copying the links into a Youtube to MP3 converter, reader. You can try, but every converter I tried crashes, when one attempts to do so. No, apparently, you can listen to the whole album – extra songs included – on Youtube, but the only way to ensnare a complete copy of Spencer Gets It Lit for yourself is to buy a CD copy of the album either from Amazon.com or directly from In The Red Records.
To Spencer’s credit, the treasures among the tracks on Spencer Gets It Lit are certainly worthwhile. Listeners will find that they’re already good and warm after the rapid fire pacing installed in songs like “Worm Town” (which glows, thanks to Spencer’s funky guitar line and his wry delivery of lyrics like, “Twinkle, twinkle little star/Tried to run, but I didn’t get far”), “Bruise” (which revels in its decidedly “honky” performance, bolstered by Spencer’s stringy guitar sound), the grunting, shoving movement of “Layabout Trap,” the wracked, hair-tearing vibe of “Rotting Money” and the jubilant skronking of “Get Up & Do It” and, on the LP version, they’ll find that what they’ve received is more than enough to sustain them for the duration – but, on the CD edition, fans will find they can indeed still be hungry for some more. After “Get Up & Do It” crashes to a close, “Germ Vs. Jerk” bulls in right away complete with screeching guitars and a fantastic, menacing low end which just rolls over listeners who thought they might have had enough. In a way which could only be considered “per usual,” Spencer lets the song’s lyric sheet (sort of) develop as the song moves along (lines about everybody needing to fall in line and battlecries like, “Everybody’s doing time!” firm up with repetition, but don’t really go anywhere) but listeners will know that the song was half-done when it ends.
The final summation of “Germ Vs. Jerk” is that it would be pretty ‘standard issue’ if not for that sinister low end pinning both the song and listeners down, but that fact gives great relief to “The Devil’s Ice Age,” which happens to feature one of the most dramatic lyric sheets that Jon Spencer has ever written. There, the guitarist searches with a tone of desperation in his voice as he confesses that he doesn’t know how it happened, but he’s lost and doesn’t know what happens next and fears that chaos is coming. On one hand, some of these lyrics play exactly like something they’d expect from Jon Spencer, but the tone in the vocal as well as the lyrics which express complete thoughts instead of simply running stanzas over repeatedly are all instantly rewarding – and then the song cinches shut tightly, and the whole thing’s over; the end is clean, but listeners’ collective world will have been decidedly rocked; while “Get Up & Do It” could conceivably leave listeners hoping for more, “The Devil’s Ice Age” locks Spencer Gets It Lit down cold and beautifully. It is the close listeners want from Spencer Gets It Lit, without a doubt. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
https://linktr.ee/Spencerhitmaker?fbclid=IwAR3PyKo5tTSSAQ3kxnD7y871hWzg5w5EhyamfFcovqz6ZZ3PYeOjMNOI-b0
https://jonspencerthehitmakers.bandcamp.com/album/spencer-gets-it-lit
Further Reading:
Ground Control Magazine – Jon Spencer & The HITmakers – Spencer Gets It Lit LP – [Vinyl Vlog]
Album:
The Spencer Gets It Lit CD by Jon Spencer & the HITmakers is out now. Buy it here, on Amazon.
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Neil Young & Crazy Horse Way Down In The Rust Bucket (Deluxe Edition 4LP/2CD/DVD) (Reprise Records/Warner Music Group/The Other Shoe Productions) It’s hard to express how satisfying the experience of witnessing a “whole show” can be, in reference to said show being on a recorded medium. Really, how many pieces are necessary? Well, in the case of the Deluxe Edition 4LP/2CD/1DVD box set which chronicles the show that Neil Young performed with Crazy Horse in Santa Cruz. CA in 1990, […]
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Spencer Burton Coyote (Still Records/Dine Alone) I confess that I was not paying complete attention to the music initially, the first time I threw Coyote on to review it. I figured it would be easy; I put it on and started washing dishes – but I didn’t actually get any dishes washed. In fact, before the second song on the album, “Memories We Won’t Soon Forget” had finished playing, I had stopped moving completely – even that early, all I […]
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Longstocking Singles & Demos 1994 – 1998 (Chainsaw/Jealous Butcher Records) After the release of Once Upon A Time Called Now, the lion’s share of Longstocking’s story had been told. The band had walked the trail in much the same way other groups had; they had released a couple of singles prior to their only full-length album, and the band broke up before the end of that same year. There just wasn’t a whole lot else in the band’s canon to […]
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The Dirty Nil Fuck Art (Dine Alone Records) Rare is the band which knows precisely who they are and actually celebrates that identity rather than asking listeners to excuse it. There’s a certain spark in the music made by bands like that – Alice Cooper Group had it, as did Dead Kennedys, Eagles of Death Metal and Green Day – and The Dirty Nil steps up boldly to prove that they’ve got it with their third album, Fuck Art. Of […]
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Paul Leary Born Stupid (Shimmy-Disc/Joyful Noise) When guitarist Paul Leary suddenly reappeared contributing guitar performances to The Melvins’ twentieth album, Hold It In, as well as contributing some songwriting to the project about six years ago, it felt like a shocking development. Not that Leary had vanished or retired or anything, the guitarist was simply busy with other endeavors; he developed a band or two of his own (Honky was great) as well as doing production work – so his […]
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Round EyeCulture Shock Treatment(Paper + Plastick Records) Fuck this year. 2020 has proven to be the most disappointing annum in many regards but, perhaps most importantly (at least within the goings on for this website), 2020 has gone down as the year which stalled the releases of an impressive number of albums, completely halted all touring routes through North America and diverted attention from most of the things people take pleasure in – and seen it be refocused on despicable […]
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The Flaming Lips American Head (Warner Brothers) From the moment they have the opportunity to hear American Head, there’s no doubt that Flaming Lips fans will rejoice at the band’s return, for several different reasons. Some fans will just be happy the band is back with new music. Other fans will be thrilled that, for for the first time in over a decade, the Flaming Lips have returned to a more rockist permutation of their sound (last time was on […]
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Green DayFather of All Motherfuckers (Reprise/Warner)I must confess that, for the first time in almost thirty years (that was the first time I heard Kerplunk and became a fan), the first new song I heard from Father of All Motherfuckers felt like a balk and not a hit to me. The first song I heard was the album’s title track, and it really took me by surprise; I had read that Billie Joe Armstrong really wanted to change up what […]
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DK40 (3CD)(Manifesto Records)Every fan knows that punk rock has had a fantastic relationship and tradition with bootleg records, and that tradition has now broken into the mainstream as well. Now in the twenty-first century, bands like The Doors, the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Pearl Jam as well as artists like Jeff Tweedy, Neil Young and Lars Frederiksen have released a stream of great sounding like recordings under the “bootleg” moniker to the expressed joy and appreciation of fans, and have […]
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As a music fan, you have a job to do. I know that sounds counter intuitive but hear me out. It’s not enough to listen to music and catch up on the new stuff. You gotta go back to the source as often as possible. You have to understand the lineage and the evolution and the precursors for the music that you love in the present. Sometimes it’s hard work. But that’s just how it is: music should be fun, […]
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