Ska-Ca-Doodle-Do – Universal Namespace

Ska-Ca-Doodle-Do is one of the multiple incarnations of the people behind Catastrophe Records. Little info is available about this band in particular, although it clearly bears the mark of Baron’s other projects on Catastrophe such as Kissing Contest. The musicality is subtle but precise, and relaxed production renders the intricate details of pop craftsmanship invisible to the casual listener. This intentional laid-back feel belies cautious and thorough songwriting, which stresses a holistic approach, where the vocals and lyrics fit together seamlessly, and the instruments are carefully arranged and mixed to support each-other and the vocals. Such a sonic hierarchy is somewhat unusual in modern indie-pop, with most bands opting instead for the power of a good hook, a memorable riff, or an anthemic chorus to override more fragile considerations.

“Universal Namespace” starts out with a synthesizer gently plucking out notes like a harp, a bass enters with a dub-like riff, while an almost imperceptible snare keeps time, almost as an after-thought. Hints of guitar frizzle to life, rippling with curtains of soft homogenous distortion, setting the stage for the entrance of a bright acoustic guitar, drum-kit, and electric bass. A piano amid rich backing vocals introduce the verse. A sense of inevitability creates a mood of hopeful melancholy, occasionally interrupted by noodling guitar and electronic noise that demarcate different sections of the song. Carefully enunciated and fluid vocals throughout bring attention to the understated but faintly ironic lyrics. Sung with a little more panache and swing, it wouldn’t be a stretch to fit the voice alongside many of the lesser known tenor crooners of the mid 1930s. An outro eventually emerges from this build-up, and the song concludes, dwindling down to its initial elements with uncanny symmetry. The development feels so natural that it is disconcerting to find that a full three and a half minutes have passed since you were last sitting in silence. The experience is sort of like the strange sense of disappointment one faces when expecting bumper-to-bumper traffic during rush hour, only to turn onto an efficient empty freeway.

Ska-Ca-Doodle-Do and friends create music which at first seems noisy and loose. In fact, the musical construction is economical, even graceful. Neither emotionally draining nor cool and austere, “Universal Namespace” delivers elegant yet subdued indie-pop worthy of download.

Maya Shore – Farewell to Introductions

I feel like this album has something against me. It wants to tease me. Each of the eight tracks on Farewell to Introductions wields some weapon to bore into my skull, puncture my cerebral cortex, and stimulate my motor cortex, thereby resulting in muscle spasms. However, none of the songs ever unleashes that secret weapon that would cause uncontrollable urges to move thy body. No, not one reaches that climactic point that calls for chaotic dancing. The tempo of each song oscillates from slow to medium to a little above medium to slow again. And this tendency gets to me. It boggles my mind.
Then again, maybe Farewell to Introductions is not out to get me. Maybe it has been telling me all along that the intentions of its creator, Maya Shore, lie elsewhere. After all, Maya Shore is an area off the coast of Mexico – a, from what I have heard, peaceful place. Maya Shore seems to be happy with tranquil, guitar-driven songs. And it may be beneficial to not follow the same structured loud-soft formula that many bands churn out. I guess I was expecting another Sunny Day Real Estate. Now that I have been given ample time to ponder the music of Maya Shore, I have concluded that I like their mid-tempo, guitar-droning songs of five to seven minutes in length.
The eight tracks that Farewell to Introductions offers are driven by Kelly Chambers’ lonely electric guitar and passionate vocals. Wade Chamberlain plays a particularly laid-back, indie-sounding bass, and Chris Purdie does everything but pound on his drums. The similar structure among the songs provides for a rather cohesive album instead of a compilation of singles. On the reverse, though, there is not a really great track to be found – just a collection of consistently good ones.
The opener, “Five Minutes,” never seems to fully develop. During my first listen to this song, I truly thought something nuts was going to go down in under a minute. But low and behold, the song remains at an almost constant pace for its duration. “Restless Time” accurately represents what one is to find on the album. The song starts off subdued with slow, crisp guitar work and then climbs to a mid-tempo sound of guitar distortion and dreamy keys. Yet the song does not rock, somehow. The most pleasing vocals are found when Chambers sings “you’re not here / it’s just a video / it’s just restless time / so don’t think / that I don’t care.” Sure, the lyrics are not especially noteworthy, but the way in which Chambers breaks “I” into two syllables makes my throat itch. “Corsa” also displays Chambers’ vocal range as his voice approaches a half-yell when singing the title of the song.
So, the lyrics leave something to be desired, and the songs are more pleasant than instantly catchy. But Fairwell to Introductions makes for a soothing soundtrack for a listener who is tired or lonely. The music of Maya Shore does not take the listener to the place of the same name. Rather, it both pacifies and depresses, transporting the listener to the bleak, windy shores of the eastern United States. Now that I think about it, the album is kind of a downer, actually, but an enjoyable one nonetheless.

Rally Boy – Hooks & Crutches

The nifty little Oregon four-piece known as Rally Boy is comprised of guitarist Dan Blaker, guitarist Ryan Matheson, bassist Justin Scott, and drummer Robert Ham. The first three guys all contribute vocal pieces here and there, just to keep you on your toes. Musically, the boys blend elements of indie rock, pop and punk to create their own semi-unique style. On this EP, Rally Boy craft six catchy little pop songs based around subtle yet somewhat complex layers of guitar work. Everything else is rather simple, and not even the guitars really stand out, but it’s still fun.

“Undrest” sounds similar to what The Pixies would sound like if they, for some unexplainable reason, experimented with a pop-punk sound. It is quirky and built upon some intriguing guitar work and layered vocals, but the drums and bass serve as the steroids, giving the cute little pop song a swift kick in the ass. “Stuck” follows as a short little number with just a touch of alt-country, but more straightforward indie rock than anything else, sounding a tad like Dinosaur Jr. or Sebadoh. “The Check-Out” kills the momentum, slowing things down with its nerd-rock-love-song style; mourning about not being able to talk to the girl you are in love with (“I saw you again today / But when I approached to say hello / The words they slipped away”). “Low E” is essentially the same as the track that comes before it, a slow, lamenting five-minute indie-pop song, spiced up just a little by a couple of odd flute interludes and the banging together of trash cans. After the two-song break, “Slang Tips,” a rant about the odd subject of linguistic purity, gets things going in an entirely new direction, sounding like a noisy garage indie rock/punk band with hoarse, layered vocals and a fitting lo-fi production sound layered over the fast-paced band. “Submarine” closes out the listed tracks with the same poppy/punky sound that makes the first two tracks the best on the album. After a few moments of silence, you get to the hidden track, an upbeat calypso-like song with acoustic guitars, brushed drums, and assorted percussion toys.

Fortunately, the guys don’t seem to be taking themselves too seriously, singing lyrics like “You’ve sunk my battleship / You’ve sunk my submarine / You’ve sunk a lot of things / But not my soul.” As a result, the songs, with the exception of the slower moments, are catchy and fun, sure to make you bob your head or get up and dance. It is a novelty album in a way, because although it won’t strike you as the sort of thing to leave a long-lasting impression, the songs are cute and catchy enough to lodge themselves in your head, at least until you hear something else.

In Arcadia – All Green Lights EP

What ever happened to the day when emo had more in common with hardcore than with pop? There was once a time when emo bands were just as politically or socially oriented as any hardcore band out there. Bands like Endpoint challenged the status quo of the hardcore scene, and, although many times they talked about topics more personally relevant, they helped to bring about a change in hardcore by helping it progress from a sometimes jock-minded mentalility to a more sensitive one. Many question what has happened with emo since these forerunning groups disbanded, many of them leaving the hardcore scene behind altogether. For those longing for the days of the past, In Arcadia combines the hardcore influenced emo of Endpoint or Falling Forward with the melody of Sunny Day Real Estate to create a solid throwback to the glory days of hardcore emo.
The opening track, “Leaving Orlando,” starts the EP off nicely with some quiet guitar picking that bursts forth with shredded vocals allied with a tight melody. Everything is paced out rather nice and moves with ease from chaotic to melancholy. “There’s No Crying in Baseball” has a bit more aggression to it. The guitars have a frenzied and hardcore feel to them as the noisy riffs propel the song into chunky breakdown parts. Although not a total hardcore song, one can tell that the band has some roots in that scene. “Domino, Motherfucker,” the most interesting song title on the CD, begins softly with light drumming and intricate strumming. The track then moves towards its powerful climax with the added benefit of great instrumentation. Piano and bass are brought to the front of the mix, and their use really fills out the sound of the song. “Filler” is the last song on the EP and expands the technique that the band applied to the previous tracks. A mix of noise, sweetness, and controlled emotion bring the EP to a tight close.
Most of the lyrics hint at deep pain and grappling with emotions. Trust, pain, and friendship are among the topics of the songs and one can truly feel the emotion brought forth. The songs have been solidly crafted to let the listener into the heart and mind of the band, and one gets a sense of honesty in the tone.
Overall, In Arcadia’s music is intense enough for those looking for an emotional release, but also adequately somber. Listeners looking for nice and pretty emo only may be turned off by the vocals at times which range from elegant to hoarse, depending on the particular emotion of the song. This band is sure to to put on a great show live if they can pull off the same intensity as their recording. Emo fans that are sick of the purely pop should be enticed by In Arcadia.

Jonathan Richman – Her Mystery Not of High Heels and Eye Shadow

Depending on how much of a punk-rock completist you are, you’ve probably come across the name of Jonathan Richman as being one of the forerunners of the punk’s primitive, back-to-the-basics-aesthetic. Of course, you could have been introduced to him through his cameo in There’s Something About Mary, in which case you might be wholly unaware of his influence. Either way, there is little denying the substantial impact his one-of-a-kind artistry has had on music as a whole. His debut, Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers, was such a watershed release that only a few years later the Sex Pistols would be recording Richman’s rendition of “Road Runner,” and crowds of mohawked kids were gathering at his concerts.
The strange thing was, though, in those few intervening years his musical journey had already taken a hard turn away from the sexually frustrated youth of “Astral Plane” and “Pablo Picasso” and taken him to performing songs so gloriously silly so as to leave punk rock kids completely dumbfounded. As paeans to abominable snowmen, broken-down cars, and ice cream men were presented with such childish glee as to put a smile on even the hardest cynic’s face, Richman moved into decidedly different territory. The primitive driving rock was replaced by stripped-down acoustic pop, owing much more to the golden age of 1950′s rock than the Velvet Underground, whose music he’d been so enamored with as a youth that he’d run away from home and taken up residence with their manager.
That’s pretty much where Richman has been for the last 20 years, cranking out album after album of catchy, generally low-key rock and roll, falling somewhere between Brill Building pop, rockabilly, and doo-wop. And it has mostly been wonderful. Detours into country and Spanish music have provided interesting asides, but he has always returned to his gift for romantic and conversational ditties that hasn’t been blunted from years of touring and band splits. Her Mystery Not of High Heels and Eye Shadow picks up where all the others left off, Richman singing the praises of the simple pleasure of life and the people he shares it with.
Having slid past the age of 50 this year, most of Richman’s topics are life-affirming love songs, paying tribute to the constancy and wonder of love like a starry-eyed teenager in the inviting title track and the delicate balladry of “I Took a Chance on Her.” The naïve humor that dominated some of the past albums rarely turns up here, instead giving way to unflinchingly warm picturesque odes to changing seasons (“Springtime in New York”) and the natural trials of relationships (“Couples Must Fight”). Solid, simple songs done the way that only Richman can, colored with the good-natured innocence that only a very select few songwriters ever discover.
As always, a few great grooves turn up. A reprisal from 1983′s Jonathan Sings, “Give Paris One More Chance” cruises along with one of his classic three-chord hooks, marching drums, and tight guitar solos. “Leaves on the Sidewalk After the Rain” finds a slight Everly Brothers feel, with backup vocals answering Richman’s adenoidal croon. Largely acoustic, with the occasional organ, violin, or woodwind instrument turning up, Richman has the uncanny ability to create songs that sound so familiar that you’ll swear you heard them somewhere before, and when you realize you haven’t, they cause you to kick yourself for not writing them first. Another example of his willingness to do the unexpected, Richman finishes off the album with a return to Spanish songcraft, with four songs injected with the same sturdy Latin rhythms and instrumentation that colored 1994′s Jonathan, Te Vas a Emocionar!
Obviously, Jonathan Richman probably isn’t going to be the flavor of the month any time soon. But the simple, enduring truths of his music – the joy of life, love, and home – are revealed with minimal listens. Notoriously hard to interview for his great reluctance to answer any questions even remotely delving into his personal life, albums like this serve as a great reminder that he isn’t really trying to hide himself. All you need to know about him is presented in his songs – and few artists have allowed us to know them so intimately.

The Lepers – S/T

I was once told by a fellow reviewer that promos received in smashed condition were destined to be bad. This CD arrived not with tattered inserts or bio sheets but a broken jewel case that, when opened, spilled the CD out and into my lap. Well, maybe it’s a good thing. A greeting hello perhaps? Anyhow, Caulfield Records’ sticker of approval appears neatly as well, and, being a fan of Caulfield bands Mineral, Christie Front Drive, MIJ, and Proudentall, I’m thinking the aforementioned destiny incorrect. The name The Lepers and cover art give me a dark feeling. Not only because it’s cracked but because it reminds me of the movie Ben Hur, and that is always a memory accompanied by eerie emotions.
The first taste is haunting and very Frank Black-ish. I wasn’t aware, however, that people actually used that flicker affect knob turned all the way up. The one that quickly causes fade in and out. Anyhow, the song carries on quite noisely and procession driven with hard guitar grinds throughout the short two-and-a-half minute track. I enjoy the second song “Wasteland” a bit more. It again has Modest Mouse Isaac Brock-ish and Frank Black-ish vocals and a slow drum circle effect that sounds a bit like nature films when the vicious lion is creeping up on its prey. There are quiet chants behind the acoustic strums. Again, it’s a short track.
I’m not sure why, but this LP gives me the unfinished feeling. It somewhat drags in it’s dark mood. For instance, a Pixies album is inclusive of the happier arranged songs that cause sing-along and repetition. These songs are more of an “Ed Is Dead” over-and-over feeling. Thick with noise, cymbal use, overlaying vocal tracks and range, and deep, dark drum beats, it only sometimes brightens up with high-pitched “ooooooo’s.” Sort of again like the cover art. Sure, you can look at it intensely and wonder if the photograph is of poisonous berries inside a thought process and what it has to do with lepers, or you can see it simply as some grapes inside of a moon or sphere.
It should be said that the band consists only of two members. In some cases that’s obvious and in some cases impressive. They are a touring group and will be releasing a second album shortly. They also come from Nebraska with the strength of strong weather to coat their style. I’m not sure the quality of danger or fear can be eliminated enough to enjoy this entire LP for myself. I don’t find much standoff-ish about the band lyrically as far as I’m able to tell or much different in song memorabilia. There is the sixth track “When The Party’s Over” that includes a female backup vocalist, a softer feel, and more depth in simplicities. It screams “I don’t want to see her get killed before we make it back to the bedroom.” I can’t help but find it a comfortable side to set it for a more suited day. It is copy righted for last year, as metal was coming back into foreign genres in sparing pieces.

Various Artists – Initial Records Punk Rocker Sampler

Initial Records has been a staple in Louisville’s hardcore scene since before I knew what punk was, boasting such incredible bands as Falling Forward, Elliott, The Enkindles, Boy Sets Fire, King For A Day, Ink & Dagger, The White Octave, The Jazz June, Silent Majority, and so many others. Not to mention that the label put on KrazyFest and released some absolutely amazing comp CDs.
This disc falls in the latter category, and the only thing I can say after listening to it for quite some time now is “wow.” It is an extremely good mix of everything from mathy metal-core to the emo that makes kids break down and cry … well maybe not THAT emo. The one thing that I don’t hear very much of is straight-up punk-rock. By a Thread and Forever and a Day are on the emo spectrum of the punk-rock circuit, while Automatic is almost to the point of being hardcore. But that really isn’t a complaint and if it were, it would be overshadowed by the sheer wonderfulness of this CD.
The brightest spots on the CD in my opinion are Dillinger Escape Plan’s “43% Burnt,” Hot Water Music’s “Free Radio Gainesville,” Himsa’s “Twist,” and Silent Majority’s “Party at Rick’s.” These songs are the ones I listen for every time this finds its way to my CD player, which has been a lot lately.
So, in other words, go pick this one up. There’s something for everybody, from the melody of The Get Up Kids to the sheer ferocity of Eighteen Visions, you listen to all 25 tracks and then go back and do it again and again. Besides, it’s only $5; you don’t need to eat, you need this CD. Oh and by the way, if you suddenly develop an addiction to Himsa because of this CD, it’s not my fault. The same thing happened to me.

Veluxe – S/T EP

First, a geography lesson. Rochester, NY lies in western New York and borders Lake Ontario. Buffalo, NY a bit more well-known and lies about an hour and a half to the west. I’ve been in Rochester for six months, and I had yet to really hear any good local bands. Everyone was from Buffalo. An hour and a half away lay a stellar indie rock scene, and it proved just too far away at times for me to feel a part. There didn’t even seem to be any good shows in Rochester.

So when I talked to Darren DeWispelaere from Veluxe at a rare good show in Rochester, I asked him if there are any good bands in Rochester. He said they’re mostly garage-rock. While most garage-rock bands are noisy and obnoxious, it’s important to remember that the Pixies started out as a garage-rock band. And that’s the first reference point for Veluxe, the first good Rochester band I’ve found.

Three songs from this trio show their penchant for straight-ahead guitar-rock with a twist that, five years ago, I would have called alternative. Live, I got the sense that the band had a metal background, but on album with nearly perfect production, the band sounds smooth and rocking in a nice, unique sense. The guitars blaze, the vocals go from smooth to edgy, and the rhythm is fast and strong.

“Lion’s Face” starts off with a bit of a punk-rock feel. The guitar comes in bursts, driving and quite impressive, but overall, the song has a nice, restrained feel. I can’t decide if I like this smoother sound or the more rough, edgy sound of “In Time” more. The rhythm on “In Time” is allowed to take more prominence, and the song has a more edgy, aggressive feel. In fact, something about the chorus makes me think of old grunge, like when it first came out and was all edgy, with bands like Alice in Chains and Screaming Trees making so much interesting music. “St. Pat’s” finishes off, and here DeWispelaere sounds quite a bit like Frank Black, and the song is much more up-tempo and driving rock-n-roll. Some great guitar and bass here.

I’m very impressed with this demo EP, even more so than with the band’s live show, which was pretty good too. They lead me to think there’s hope for the Rochester scene yet.

The Appleseed Cast – Low Level Owl: Volume II

Starting off as the first volume finishes, Volume II of Low Level Owl is clearly meant to be listened to immediately after the first disc ends. To best experience Appleseed Cast’s latest work, you should have the two hours to spare and play both discs. Why they were sold separately confuses me, because this is clearly one work – one immense, lofty, and absolutely amazing work.

Perhaps taking progressive rock in a new direction, Appleseed Cast can go down as innovators after these releases. The songs are incredibly textured and perfectly produced, and the band experiments with a number of techniques from loops and new drumming styles to intricate instrumentals and ethereal soundscapes. If anything, I’d say Volume II is the better of the two, only because some of the individual songs here stand out more in my mind. But the individual songs are never meant to be taken individually with this band. It’s all about how they fit with the works around them.

The flow of “Strings” is probably one of my favorites on either disc. Repetition is used on this song as on much of the disc, but the flow never becomes tedious. The vocals here mix effortlessly with dreamy guitar and strong rhythm that reverses itself at one point. And it works nicely with the more up-tempo “A Place in Line,” which shows off the band’s talented guitarists. The minimalistic “Shaking Hands” has a Sigur Ros style feel, contrasted with the layers of guitars and drums that make up the spiraling “Rooms and Gardens.” The album gets more introspective with several instrumentals before “Reaction” brings up the tempo again with a more straight-forward rock track full of melodic guitars and the band’s trademark ethereal vocal approach.

As on Volume I, the band breaks off into sometimes long, sometimes short instrumental periods, and here they often try some of their more experimental approaches. Yet even these tracks are often thrilling, with tremendous beauty and passion put into their work. The chiming “Sunset Drama King” is a work of beauty, light and tremendously moving, and “The Last in a Line” gets more moody and tense. Although three fairly long instrumentals in a row might not be the best decision, they do set an interesting mood. The album’s closer, as with the first volume, is a long, almost drone-like instrumental.

There’s not much more to say about Volume II that wasn’t said about Volume I. This is one album, really, with two discs. Don’t get one or the other. If you can’t afford both, you probably shouldn’t bother. Because this is meant to be taken in one sitting, if possible, or at least as one, flowing work. Complex and often beautiful, the band shows they are on the verge of, if not already achieving, greatness.

The New Pornographers – Mass Romantic

A supergroup of sorts, The New Pornographers is something of a side project for its individual members, which include Dan Bejar of Destroyer, folk-country singer Neko Case, Carl Newman of Zumpano, John Collins of Thee Evaporators, Kurt Dale of Limblifter, and filmmaker Blaine Thurier. The real wonders here, however, are Case, who sings on several of the best songs here, and Bejar, who writes most of the songs and adds his tell-tale vocals.

The music on Mass Romantic is unbelievably catchy Brit-pop style rock, bouncy and purely pleasurable. Not since the Beatles and the Stones has a band managed to make such catchy and bouncy music sound so fresh and still rock. And that’s not to say the Pornographers are sounding like a re-hashed version of those bands, for while they tip their hats to the Beatles often, their sound is decidedly modern indie-rock, perhaps one of the best indie-rock bands to get so little notice ever.

The title track kicks off with one of the most catchy and up-beat piece of pop rockdom I’ve heard in years. If you’re not singing along with Case and bopping your head in no time, you must be dead. And if you think you’re immune, you’ll definitely sing along to the chirpy “The Slow Descent into Alcoholism,” perhaps the band’s best song here. The blazing guitar-rock of “Mystery Hours” shows off one side of the band, while the next song, “Jackie” shows off another with vintage Bejar keyboard-driven pop and a kind of melancholy psychedelica.

Case’s vocals sound so perfect on this album, leading off the almost punk-ish number “Letter from an Occupant,” another stellar song with its playful “woo-ooo” and driving guitar lines. On “The Body Says No,” you get a heavy dose of keyboards and horns contributing to the most light-hearted pop song on the release. “Centre for Holy Wars” is a pure rock song, full of numerous singers, layers of guitars over keyboards, and just a pleasant, Monkees-esque beat. “The Mary Martin Show” is an upbeat rock song that lays on the moog and even some saxophone, while “Breakin’ the Law” is a bit more psychedelic, with a veritable circus of sounds and vocalists, sounding more like your favorite Elephant 6 band.

At times sounding like vintage British rock, at times like modern indie rock of the purest pop sensibility, The New Pornographers never sound like they’re not having fun. This is a group of like-minded musicians getting together and enjoying themselves, and there’s nothing better for the soul than that. Of course, it helps when they’re all as talented as these folks. This is an excellent album you’ll doubtlessly listen to over and over again.

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