Vol. 5 Episode 30

There is a new Joanna Greusome split EP with Trust Fund coming out on Happy Happy Birth Day To Me Records. The web site, HHBDTM.com, did not have an actual release date but it was limited to 500 on LP and 100 on cassette.

Bleached will have a new EP out early this fall called ForThe Feel on Dead Oceans Records. It will have three new tracks.

Echo Lake have a new track, This Year, that will appear on Marshall Teller Presents: Broken Record LabelSampler Vol. 1. This record will be put out through The Line Of Best Fit.

I mentioned that you can preorder the new album, Get Hurt, from The Gaslight Anthem last week. I just found out this week there is a limited vinyl version of red and white vinyl (picture disc). The center of the record is heart shaped. This version will not be out until September though. You will have access to the album on the actual release date as a download though. This version is a deluxe version and has extra tracks.

Here we go...

The Gaslight Anthem – Get Hurt/Rollin’ And Tumblin’

With the pre-order of the new album, Get Hurt, you get two tracks as advanced downloads. The first track is the title track for the album, Get Hurt. It is a slower track but has a driving beat that pushes the track along. I guess if you get the slower track out of the way first you don’t need to worry about putting one out later. The song has a good beat and uses a synth sound to accentuate the vocals in the chorus. This is a new addition in sound for the group. I kind of like it actually. This is similar to what the Black Keys did on their last album.

Rollin’ And Tumblin’ is a faster track that I like just a bit more than Get Hurt. This track has a beat that almost reminds me of The White Stripes but the vocals keep it grounded in that classic Jersey sound. The group is not known for using full band staccato notes but they pull that style off very well with this track. The bridge of the song goes back to the classic Gaslight sound that I like. I think that the combination of the different styles works for the group on this track and hope that the rest of the album will have some more surprises.

Family Force 5 – Glow In The Dark

I think that this is the third single released for the new album that comes out around the corner here soon. The song is very exciting and uses the electronic and heavy metal sounds that I love from the group. I am very excited to have this album, especially if these singles that have been released are any indication of how good the album will be.

The Proper Ornaments - Wooden Head

This is the second album from The Proper Ornaments. It will be released on the 5^th of August, 2014 on vinyl and has already been put out on CD. I got my copy on vinyl from Slumberland Records early. This is usually the case if one preorders directly from the record company. I got the limited translucent red vinyl version. It does come with a download code and I also got a sticker of the cover art too. The group draws on the 60s psychadelia, The Jesus And Marry Chain album Darklands and Berlin era Lou Reed. There are fourteen tracks on this album. This means that they need to be short to fit on the album.

There has only been one single digitally released from the album so far. This single is called Magazine. The song is a slow burner but with the vocal style that is employed it works very well. The song is not a sleeper but could easily be put on a night time compilation if you know what I mean. I do really like the track though. The whole of the album has the same feel as this track. The song is not about the paper magazine but it is actually about a bullet in a gun that is ready to fire, just incase you were confused about the reference of the title.

I really like this album. I have read other reviews from people that hate this album because it is too boring or not adventurous enough. I have a feeling that those reviewers haven’t done much research on what the group is about. What I expected, and what I got, was a good representation of psychedelic and a side of the C86 era of the shoegaze sound that doesn’t really show up often on albums, although, it is slowly becoming popular again. It is a style that I really like and hope to hear more of in the future.

Black Tambourine – OneTwoThreeFour

This is a double 7” record that the group recorded together in 2012. It is a cover EP of four Ramones songs. The group had been separated for quite a while but got back together to record this and be a part of Chick Factor when that was started up again. The tracks were sort of pieced together since the members were scattered between two continents. The tracks do sound slightly pieced together but I really can’t complain about it as it is still mixed very well.

I am not a huge fan of the Ramones. I have the compilation of Mania and this is my main reference for the Ramones. As such, I have no reference to two of the songs on the EP, I Want You Arround and I Remember You. Both songs are great. I really like the female vocals of Pam Berry. She has a lazy feel in the vocals that relaxes me. This is somewhat disturbing at the same time as they are both hard core punk tracks.

The other two tracks that I do recognize are What’s YourGame and I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend. Although What’s Your Game isn’t on the Mania compilation I still remember hearing it from somewhere. This cover version is a slow track compared to the Ramones version it is completely sleepy. I almost prefer this cover to the original. I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend is also a slowed down version of the original. It is very beautiful.

I really wasn’t sure that I would like this set of four tracks. After listening to it a few times I have found that it is sleepy and easy to listen to. I am happy to have a copy of this EP.

That's all for now...