The stripped down album from Sea Wolf has been released to
supporters of the Kickstarter campaign as a download. Check your email if you contributed.
The physical copies still need to be pressed and will take another four or more
weeks for that to happen. Review coming soon.
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart have put out a video for
the third single from the new album, Days of Abandon, called Until The Sun
Explodes. The video totally reminds me of the cartoon from the 80s called
Jem with a logo at the end that resembles the He-man logo from that cartoon. So
much nostalgic fun, it is ridiculous.
Family Force 5 has a new video for the song BZRK.
I am assuming that this is a song from the upcoming album. The video is just a
teaser for the new album but I believe that the song clip is from a song on the
album and it could be the lead single.
Polica are putting out a 10” record of the extra tracks that
were on the deluxe edition of the last album. I will probably get a copy. It
will be released June 23 and is called Raw Exit
Windian Records have posted a new track from The Ar-Kaics; I
don’t even have a copy of the song on the cassette the band sent me, from the
upcoming album, to be released in June, on soundcloud called This
Time Tonight. This song features a little more clarity than previous songs
and is a bit slower. I like it a lot and am excited for the new album.
The Marshmallow Ghosts will have a new EP just in time for
Halloween, October 14, 2014.
Here we go...
This is the first and only album released from Summer Cats.
This album was released in 2009 on Slumberland Records. It was released on CD
and vinyl. The vinyl version was on a hazy clear vinyl with multicolored
splatter. The vinyl also came with a down load card. This was pretty edgy for
2009. The album pays homage to the past classics of the 90s and early 00s indie
scenes while still looking forward to current and future pop.
There were two singles released from the album. The first is
called Wild Rice. The song is simple and slow pop sounding. I like the organ
that is used on the track. It is a slower song with female led vocals. There is
an acoustic guitar with a clean but toned down guitar following the vocals. It
is just a really great pop song.
The second was Lonely Planet. This is a bass guitar lead
track. The guitar has that kind of 60s rock sound of a cheap guitar. There is
also an organ in the back ground on this track too. This is also a slower track
but with that 60s vibe it works very well. It is mainly because of the organ
that I get that 60s vibe. It reminds me of the popular Vox cheap organ with the
reverse colored keys.
Other songs that I really like from the album are Super.
This track is up tempo from the two singles that were released. It is a fun
fast paced track that breaks up in the chorus to break the monotony of the
verse parts. The song moves very smoothly and I can just envision the crowd
doing the pogo to this track as it was played live. It is so much fun.
Hey You is another faster paced song. It is kind of bla
until the break before the chorus which is fast strummed muted chords. It
reminds me of something that I would have done or may yet do on a song. I feel
that this is the part of the song that I really like but it doesn’t diminish
the rest of the song. I think it actually helps me stay interested in the song
really.
Christopher Wren is a beautiful song that uses distorted
organ and, my favorite, a Rhodes keyboard to
lead the melody of the song. The melody is supper catchy and runs through all
of the verse not the chorus. For me this makes it even easier to stick in my
head. The wonderful female vocals follow the melody making a ear worm that one
could only dream of. The track is pure ear candy.
The last song I wan to talk about is called Maybe Pile. This
tracks vocals are lead by the male singer of the band. He has a wonderful lower
tone that reminds me of the Psychedelic Furs. The way that he sings the primary
line in the chorus is intoxicating. He sings, “Chuck me on the maybe pile.” It
is just wonderful to hear that lower tone in a lead vocal sometimes.
This is a great spring/summer album. If you don’t have it
give it a shot.
This is a compilation record released through Slumberland
Records. It was reciently repressed on white vinyl with black and red splatter.
I had stayed away from the group feeling that it was too noisy for me. It was
not until I started getting into some of the noise groups like Joanna Gruesome
or Golden Grrrls that I came back to Black Tambourine. This release compiles
all of their releases up to the 2010 release date. Since the release date they
have put out two new releases. A double 7” called OneTwoThreeFour and a promo
picture disc with a remix on the A side and a B side track that I have never
heard. Actually I have never heard either track but I know that the record
exists.
There are quite a few tracks that I really like from this
compilation. The first track on the album is called For Ex-Lovers Only. I am
actually not a fan of this version as much. There is also included in this
compilation a demo version of this song. This version has less noise/cleaner
sounding than the studio version. The demo version lets the vocals stand out
more. This is a good thing as The female vocals sometimes need space to breathe
and with a cleaner sound they can soar.
The second track that I like is called Can’t Explain. The
track is bass lead with a nice light distortion on the bass. The vocals are
back in the mix a little. This is nice because the vocals become more musical
and I don’t need to focus on the lyrics as much. The guitar has a kind of cheap
guitar sound that makes me want to pick up a Danelectro. It is a cool unique
sound that a lot of indie bands have but maybe not intentionally.
I also like the track Throw Aggi Off The Bridge. This is
also a bass lead track with that light distortion thrown in for good measure.
The bass line reminds me of something that Joy Division would have written. It
could also have been a spin from a Joy Division song even. Either way, it is a
fun track.
Drown is the one slow track on the album. It is based on an
R&B sound but with the noise of indie rock thrown in. The ride cymbal is
what leads the track. The vocals musically remind me of something from the
movie Grease almost. The guitar part is just noise in the background. It is a
fresh take on R&B but I don’t know if it will take off ever.
One of the shortest tracks on the album is called Pam’s Tan.
It is music only, no lyrics. The music kind of has a slightly warped feel. It
is a repeated riff that doesn’t really go anywhere for just shy of a minute and
20 seconds. It is a great break in the album.
Lastly, the track Lazy Heart goes back to that Joy
Division/Ramones bass lead sound. The guitar in this one is fuzzy and follows
the bass very closely. The vocals are in a lower tone to come closer to the tone
of the bass. They are also double tracked and two toned. The musicality of this
track is really amazing.
I am really surprised that this group is not more popular
than they actually are. I guess they are a little bit ahead of their time
seeing as they started way back in 1989.
I have finally gotten my hands on the new single from The
Pains. The cover is a section of the cover of the full length album. The vinyl
is olive green and there is, of course, only two tracks. It is a 45 RPM record
that comes with a download for the two tracks. Slumberland Records put out this
single for the group. I am not sure if Yebo doesn’t do singles or if it was
some other reason that Slumberland and not Yebo put out the single.
The A side of the record is Simple and Sure. I had this to
say about the song when it was released digitally in Vol. 5
Episode 10, “The music for the song is happier than the music that has been
released from the group in the past. It is for sure more pop and I think that
is what Kip is aiming for. The specific parts are more bright and different as
his backing band line up has changed since the last two albums.”
The B side track is called Impossible. This song comes off
just a bit darker than Simple and Sure but reminds me of songs from movies like
Say Anything or The Breakfast Club. The song features picked chords over
strummed and vocals over drums in the break. This song is a lot of fun even if
just a bit depressed. I like the horns that are used at the end of the song as
well. It slightly increases the tension when they are on their own but brings
the tension back down when the rest of the band kicks back in. It is strange
how this happens but it seems to work well in the song.
That is all for now...
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