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Album Reviews -- S - Sm
Sn -
Su continued on next page -- ›
S -- Puking
and Crying
The Sad Riders
-- Lay Your Head on the Soft Rock
Saeta-- We Are Waiting
All For Hope
Satanic Surfers
- Unconsciously Confined
Saves The Day - Stay What You Are
Say Anything -- …is
a Real Boy
Scarlet – Cult
Classic
Jen
Schande – Kisses
From Moters, Gashes from Bellers
The Schande – Two-Song
Sampler
Schatzi – Death of The Alphabet
EP
Schatzi – Fifty Reasons
To Explode
Sea of Tombs – Self-titled
Secondshot -- Seven
Years Bad Luck
Selfmademan – The
Daylight Robbery
Sense
Field -- Living Outside
Serial P.O.P. – White
Sex Male
Serotonin – Universal
Time Constant
Settlefish - Dance A
While, Upset
The
Setup – Tuned To Drop Dead
Sex
Positions – Self-titled
Sex
With Girls – Demo
Shadyside
-- Later In The Past
Shannon Wright -- Dyed
in the Wool
Sharks
And Minnows – The Cost Of Living
Sharky -- Mousam
Lake Sessions
Sheek the Shayk
-- Hour of The Seventh Moon
Shesus -- Loves
You... Loves You Not
Shoplifting -- Self-titled
EP
The
Show Is The Rainbow –
Barry Sure Wrote
A Lot Of Songs About
The
Girls He’s
Loved
Shuttlecock
-- Existing Bridges
Sicbay -- Overreaction
Time
The Sick Lipstick
-- Sting Sting Sting
Sick Of It All - Yours Truly
The
Silver Mt. Zion
Memorial Orchestra & Tra
La La Band -- Born Into Trouble
As The Sparks Fly Upward
Silverstein
-- When Broken Is Easily Fixed
Simply
Waiting – Cutting
Ties
Since by Man -- We Sing
the Body Electric
Sixfinger -- East
Side All-Stars Play Hard
The Six Parts
Seven -- [Everywhere][And Right Here]
The
Six Parts Seven – Lost Notes From Forgotten Songs
The Six Parts Seven --
Things Shaped In Passing
Skeleton Key - Obtanium
Slick Fifty Seven -- The
Ghost of Bonnie Parker
Slow Jets
-- Remain in Ether
Slowride -- Building
a Building
Small Brown Bike - Dead
Reckoning
The Smoking Popes - The
Party's Over
Various Artists
- Smoking Popes Tribute
S -- Puking and
Crying
Suicide Squeeze Records
Haunting atmospheric arrangements and disharmonic melodies
are hardly my usual recipe for a good time. But, as the title here suggests, Puking
and Crying isn’t meant as a party album (it may be meant for the day
after hangover though if that’s any consolation). That’s not to say
that P and C doesn’t accomplish something pretty spectacular though.
The second full-length from Seattle’s Jen Ghetto (co-leader of defunct
indie rockers Carissa’s Weird) is a piecemeal masterpiece of strange electronics
and drum loops, and beautifully wounded vocals that transcend “bedroom
gloom pop opus” and illuminates itself as the aural answer to heartbreak,
insobriety and discomfort. Simply, this is an album for adults – ones who’ve
been around the block. This isn’t your usual twenty-something angst and
disillusionment specially cookie-cuttered for Buzzworthy-ness; the rough cascading
beats of “Metal Beds” and creepy overlapping vocals on “The
Coffin Of Your True Love” are evidence of that much. S is The Postal Service’s
self-mutilating, black sheep cousin who’s likely to receive her invitation
to join Cat Power, Kristen Hersh, Julie Dorion, and P.J. Harvey in the “Happiness
Is Way Overrated Club for Women” soon.
-Tim Anderl
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The Sad Riders
-- Lay Your Head on the Soft Rock
Doghouse
A little background from Chris Wicky, also of Favez (yeah,
it’s a 180 for sure), “So these songs are about that moment, when
you realize how strange the world around you really is, and what influence some
people you hardly knew have on your life.”
I’m once again not floored by the first track, but it proves to be the
only song on the album that falls flat. I think most bands would aspire to having
only one song that didn’t rub someone the right way and this does not detract
from the rest of the album, I just wish it was placed somewhere else.
” Where’s the Light?” is one of the songs that currently has
airplay. The guitar solo at around two and a half minutes on track five is great.
This song is much more upbeat than the majority of the album and is probably
more appealing to the masses, although I don¹t find it nearly as interesting
as some of the other tracks.
” I¹ll see you in the morning” is soft, short and sweet. The
perfect song to end a bad day, it¹s the grown up lullaby any girl would
kill to have sung to her at bedtime.
Overall this album is good. It’s simple. Apparently taught to Wicky’s
friends in a couple of days, I would say that: a. the simplicity makes sense;
b. it works; c. they did a great job. The tracks are a good length and there
is enough variety to keep things interesting. It quickly grows on you and is
up for multiple listens.
This album has the best thing in the liner notes I think I¹ve ever seen: “Raphaël:
oohs on track 5,” which reminds me that for a solo album, there are an
awful lot of folks listed in the liner notes, not that that’s a bad thing,
it just seems kind of amusing coupled with the plural of “rider’ in
the band’s name.
Best tracks: two, three, six, ten
Overall rating: 8+
The next album should be even better if troubles of the heart hold to be inspiring.
After a break up with his girlfriend and now long distance love, Wicky writes, “So
basically, all I have that is stable now is the songs and the guitar. Writing
new stuff for the next Sad Riders album brings me down to the place where I feel
safe and warm, storytelling, my little acoustic moves, a couple of simple melodies,
and sharing that with a few people around the world for whom music is not a gimmick,
not a contest of originality, look or power, but a simple and ancestral way of
bonding lives with univeral tales of death, murder, life, love, dogs and nutella.” Chris,
if you¹re reading this, I think this as a whole would make for a great song.
-Erika Snell
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Saeta -- We
Are Waiting All For Hope
Fish The Cat Records
The Seattle-based chamber-pop trio, proves that
a trip to Steve Albini's Chicago studio can pay off. But can it pay
off the $150,000 he says most records cost to produce (audio price
only)? With vocals on track one beginning like Eric Bachman with
laryngitis, I wasn't initially impressed with Saeta. Maybe it's my
own fault. After all, they were distributed by a record label that
usually puts out stuff I love. They were recorded and mixed by Steve
Albini, who at this point is pretty legendary, synonomous with Shellac.
However, when female vocalist, Leslie Wood entered on the track things
were looking up. Her voice is husky a bit, with a definite
lean towards typical folk: sweet and unassuming. Overall the music is original.
The pairing of piano, guitar and cello is quite lovely. Minimalistic in structure,
but heavily layered, and with changing rythyms and weighted crescendos.
Matt Menovcik's dark vocals lend little to the success of this album. They definitely
have the potential to be good, but often fall flat, devoid of any tonal change.
When mixed with the cello or with Wood¹s voice they don't assault the ear
to the same degree, but definitely drag the album down as a whole.
Overall this wasn't an album that I'd recommend. Vocals are too important to
me as a whole. I do think that with different vocals, this review would be an
entirely different entity. I'd like to move for a motion to increase Wood's part
in the next album, and perhaps introduce another vocalist entirely.
With vocals: 3
Without vocals: 8
-Erika Snell
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Satanic Surfers
- Unconsciously Confined
Bad Taste Records
With much trepidation, I slid this disc out of the jewel case and
into my discman. I gritted my teeth, pushed play and waited for
hell-fire to engulf me. After all, the one-sheet that accompanied
this disc said that the album was recorded at Berno Studios, seemingly
the black metal recording Mecca of Europe who've churned out releases
by The Haunted and The Crown. Would this be more of that same depraved
headbanger, goat-in-the-air, face-melting heavy metal I've come
to expect from that part of the world? Should I fear for my soul?
Not exactly. Satanic Surfers, for those who haven't picked up their
other four full-lengths or peeped them on European tours with Millencolin
and Lag Wagon are politically-aware, circle-pit starting, goat-in-the-air,
riot-inciting punk rock. But before I could exhale in relief, "Forfeiture"
pulled my chair from under me. Agile, speedy guitar work, akin to
Propagandhi, is coupled with evenly-timed drumming, steady bass
work and vocalist Rodrigo's insightful lyrics, "Bureaucracy
can be used to alienate us from what controls our lives/They have
us well in hand, but we can take command/They only have power as
long as we let them." Rodrigo's vocals walk a thin tight rope
between the even-tenor of Sensefield's Jon Bunch and the throatier
baritone of Bad Religion's Greg Graffin while wrestling with a fistful
of topics that range from civil disobedience ("Thoughts, Words,
Action"), to domestic violence ("4 a.m.") to complacency
("State of Conformity"), to globalization ("Don't
Let Silence Be An Option"). While most of the tracks follow
a pretty standard pop-punk formula, Satanic Surfers show maturity
and heart that listeners won't find audible browsing the Fat Wreck
Chords back-catalogue. So, for those who've become jaded enough
to believe revolution is an unachievable ideal, "Unconsciously
Confined" is a staunch wake-up call. For others, it will be
the perfect soundtrack for "black-blocking" and molotov
mixing.
-Tim Anderl
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Saves
The Day - Stay What You Are
This is gayer than I am! I'm envisioning the
owner of Vagrant Records sitting in a room and stroking a white
cat saying "excellent" as he/she sits back and rakes in
the cash that they're label is making off of all the stupid kids
who are buying this garbage. Why is this so popular? Someone fucking
tell me! You do have to hand it to whoever is in charge over there
at Vagrant. That person is a marketing genius.
-H.B.
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Say Anything -- …is
a Real Boy
Doghouse Records
In an era where “music artists” allow skinny ties,
studded belts, and cosmetics to take precedence over strong and energetic songwriting,
it is refreshing to uncover a band that puts melody, mood, lyrics and composition
at the top of the priority list. Say Anything is just that kind of project, and
principle songwriter Max Bemis is just that kind of man (if you can consider
him a man at the ripe age of 19). Conceived as a rock opera, Bemis enlisted the
production expertise of Tim O’Heir (Dinosaur Jr.) and arrangement help
from Stephen Trask (Hedwig and the Angry Inch), for a collection of jaw-dropping
rock and roll songs that borrows equally from indie rock of the 90s (Jawbreaker,
Weezer, Cursive and Archers of Loaf) and lauded singer songwriters of our time
(Elvis Costello most noticeably). Don’t let these comparisons diminish
the rare achievement here though. At their most aggressive (“An Orgy Of
Critics”) the band is a bitter sweet tumultuous affair that will leave
even the most skeptical critic puckering, and at their sweetest (“I Want
To Know Your Plans”) they’d steam Costello’s glasses and knock
Wilson off his feet. Bemis and his Say Anything band are a class act. If there’s
any justice in the world, …is a Real Boy will be one of those
folkloric albums that will continue to have an impact on the great records of
eras that follow it.
-Tim Anderl
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Scarlet – Cult
Classic
Ferret Records
At first listen, I wrote these guys off as a cheap Dillinger
Escape Plan duplicate. They have the same energetic, pulsating style, and obscure
lyric writing. Maybe it’s because I’ve interviewed someone in the
band, and have seen them live, but I’ve come think of them in a totally
different light. They’re music is fairly original and deserves honorable
mention, but I don’t think it’s the musical talent of this band that
attracts me. It’s the overall attitude. I love the mood of this band not
to mention the eccentric and sometimes strange lyrics. I think most of all, I
like what this band stands for (read my interview, you’ll know what I’m
talking about). This album is, in some respects, a big middle finger pointed
directly towards mainstream, MTV marketing executives. It’s a call to pull
music away from the repetitive, monotonous cycle, and inspire artists to think
for themselves; to write, create, and find inspirations for themselves. I think
this album is a step in the right direction.
-Mike Barajas
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Jen Schande – Kisses
From Moters, Gashes from Bellers
Prion 033
The Schande – Two-Song Sampler
And while it seems like all musicians now
a days want to be singer songwriters (myself included), few can
pull it off. Well some people may remember Jen Schande as Jen
Shove from Davis, California’s indie-pop darlings, Shove.
She’s been able to. Her impressive, dark pop songwriting
has caught this listener’s ear for repeated listen. This
is significant, because those of you who think that I’d
really listen to a crappy CD given to me for review multiple
times are severely mistaken. Remember submitters, you can’t
polish a turd. When I receive a turd I flush it. That said, I
wouldn’t think about flushing this one. In fact, I look
forward to more. My personal favorites are “Dig the Halo” and “Baby
Gets So High.” This reminds me of Liz Phair and Velocity
Girl, which are favorites of mine. I’d suggest this to
anyone who holds those artists in high-esteem.
This is infectious pop, that appears on The Schnade’s
two-song sampler, doesn’t veer all that far off of Jen Schande’s
solo material. The first track “Twenty Years before Him” is
a great, driving pop song. The second song “Queen of Summer,” co-written
by Camarojuana (Manana, The Motel Beds) front man PJ Paslowski
is a more mellowed track and reminds me a lot of the band Copper.
This CD is an excellent starter for the band.
-Joe Anderl
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Schatzi
– Death of The Alphabet EP
Mammoth
After waiting in line for what seemed like an
eternity, I finally had my chance on Santa’s lap.
The strong smell of beer on his breath and the fuzzy Christmas
carols that blared from the mall’s sound system threatened to make
me forget my purpose. But,
with determination I announced that my only wish for Christmas was
a big, solid rock album to take me into the New Year -- perhaps
a little something that mixed the pop-sensibilites of Superchunk
or Weezer’s finest, but still managed to flex a little of it’s own
unique musical muscles. While
Chris Cringle’s lazy eye and gruff tobacco choked voice left me
feeling a bit uneasy, the yule tide genius left Schatzi’s Death
of the Alphabet EP under my tree.
From beginning to end, this EP was just what I’d ordered.
For the title track of this EP, the group chose the title
song and its heavenly backing vocals from The Anniversary's Adrianne
Verhoeven. This tremendous
tight, arena-guitar driven rocker was instantly endearing. “The
Spider Smells Disaster” begins with the a bit of angular, flexible
rock guitar soloing that peels into some of the catchiest pop Texas
has ever yielded. Each
track of this eight song masterpeice is as solid and catchy as the
last. It is no
surprise that Death Of The Alphabet, which arrived none-too-late
as one of the premier emo-pop efforts of the year was recorded in
Lawrence, Kansas with producer Ed “Axl” Rose, who sat behind the
boards on Get Up Kids and The Anniversary albums. Naturally, I’ll
be asking St. Nick for the band's forthcoming full-length, 50 Reasons
To Explode for Christmas (or maybe President’s Day depending on
the release date) in 2002.
-Tim Anderl
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Schatzi
– Fifty Reasons To Explode
Mammoth
It seems that most generically-classified, popular
“emo” acts are content to muddy the turbulent waters of power-pop
by rehashing the late nineties sounds of the genre for the purpose
of making a buck (*cough*Unwritten Law*cough*).
The endearing nature of Schatzi’s “borrowing,” in comparison,
to others’ “rehashing,” is that the band doesn’t take itself too
seriously. Schatzi
puts the “heart” in light-hearted and has created a rock record
that will likely be the soundtrack to many summer evenings; the
perfect soundtrack of whiffle ball and knocking back a PBR or two.
A few months ago, I received their Death
of the Alphabet EP and was immediately taken by their Superchunk-
and Weezer- (Blue and Pinkerton, not Green.
Thank God!) inspired treatment of power pop.
If you didn’t heed my advice about these guys then, a few
of the EP’s gems are revisited on the album, including “Death of
the Alphabet,” an arena-guitar driven rocker, which features sweet,
breathy backing vocals from The Anniversary's Adrianne Verhoeven-Pope.
They also revisit “The Spider Smells Disaster,” which begins with
a bit of angular, flexible guitar soloing before peeling into Schatzi’s
brand of catchy-pop. Driven
by a moog, drum and piano intro that breaks into solid pop chording,
“Gladys,” a lament about lost love, borrows its content and sensibility
equally from The Get Up Kid’s “Ann Arbour,” Weezer’s “Suzanne,”
and Elvis Costello’s “Allison.”
If you ask me, those aren’t bad places to borrow from when
writing a short pop ditty about a girl.
Unfortunately, most of the fine females named Gladys I’ve
known were lunch ladies or my buddies’ grandmothers.
“Guitars Vs. Humans,” the song that inspired the album’s
title, injects a bit of sci-fi mystery into the mix.
Racing beeps and blips and the short chorus of, “I’m killing
a guitar slowly, I’m shooting at a star falling,” though a bit whimsical
and underdeveloped, brings the 13th track and the album
to it’s conclusion. If
the album sounds suspiciously familiar, it may be due to production
treatment of Ed Rose who sat behind the boards several of The Get
Up Kids records. Though the added piano and keyboard tinkering seems unnecessary
at times, Rose brings the band’s big rock drumming, tight harmonies
and crunchy guitar sound, which are clearly their strengths, to
the forefront. In short,
Schatzi’s full-length may be the life-preserver that pulls those
of us drowning in frowning at the mere sight of M2, to safety at
a good-natured, musical high ground.
-Tim Anderl
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Sea of
Tombs – Self-titled
Grab your bongs kiddos cause this will make
you want to stock up on your snacks and chill at home for a while.
Dark, instrumental, and psychedelic are all words that come to mind
when I listen to this first album by Sea of Tombs. It features some
incredibly heavy almost jammy guitar work and the drumming of Mario
from Clikatat Ikatowi which is all rounded out by very sturdy bass
lines that the guitar and drums seem to work around. Get it on vinyl
so you can have the artwork huge.
-Dan Rizer
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Secondshot -- Seven
Years Bad Luck
Shove-It Records
Produced by Ryan Greene, most of Secondshot’s songs
could be inserted into albums by several Fat Wreck Chords bands, and no one would
know the difference. I like most artists that work with Greene; therefore, I
can’t really complain about the debut from this SoCal-via-Michigan pop
punk act. I especially enjoyed two consecutive songs on Secondshot’s debut: “Business
as Usual” and “Successfully Lazy,” which coexist like “Punk
Guy” and “Happy Guy” from another Greene recording, NOFX’s
Punk in Drublic (1994). “Business” satirizes the life and times of
a white collar jerk, and “Successfully” either parodies or celebrates
the life of one who has chosen not to work. All of the remaining songs on Seven
Years Bad Luck are also good if you enjoy well-produced pop-punk played
at breakneck speed.
-Jeff Locher
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Selfmademan – The
Daylight Robbery
Smallman Records/Lookout! Records
 Though
I’m not always willing to admit it, during the last ten years of hard-/emo-core
there have been some truly spectacular moments, which undoubtedly included Hot
Water Music’s Forever and Counting, Small Brown Bike’s Dead
Reckoning and Planes Mistaken For Star’s Knife In the Marathoner.
Selfmademan payed attention to these guys, and on The Daylight Robbery it’s
pretty obvious they’ve set out to salute these forefathers while making
their own unique dent in the genre. At times the band is rhythmically crushing
and at others their sense of melody is blinding. And when they combine both of
these elements (“Listen Closely This Time”) the band is indestructible.
Though every member of the band absolutely holds their own, the acrobatic guitar
licks (which are immediately identifiable on the first few seconds of track one, “Who
Will Sing To This?”), and the deep baritone of guitarist/vocalist Jay,
which fits snugly somewhere between HWM’s Chuck Ragan and SBB’s Mike
Reed, are the bands most pronounced attributes. In true hardcore fashion, the
lyrics tackle politics (“Who Will Sing To This?”), capitalism and
the distribution of wealth (“Our Great Redistribution” and “Pipeline”),
but these Montreal-natives have also penned one in French (“le dernier
argument des rois”), though I wasn’t able to decipher the subject
matter. After the first six truly stunning tracks the band takes a major spill
with the “contemplative” acoustic ballad “When Everything’s
Dead We Come Alive. But they regain their momentum with the churn and pummel
tempo of rocker “Curtain’s In Eight Months.” The album peaks
with the harmonics solo’s, falsetto vocals, and precise rhythms of its
most memorable cut, “Our Great Redistribution.” Co-produced by Greg
Dawson (Moneen, and The End), The Daylight Robbery is as fierce as it
is positively addicting. Expect big things from these guys in the very near future.
-Tim Anderl
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Sense Field
-- Living Outside
Nettwerk America
 In
1996, Sense Field’s Building was one of the records that helped
launch a thousand post hardcore/emo ships. Sense Field has a knack for well-crafted,
energetic, and heartfelt song writing, not to mention singer Jon Bunch’s
velvety smooth delivery of smart and poignant lyrics. Everyone anxiously awaited
a follow up to the monumental album. An EP too late, a jump to the larger label,
Nettwerk America, with a release that went nowhere, and sadly Sense Field seemed
to be slipping into indie rock obscurity. Now Sense Field has released Living
Outside, an amazing album. It took a few years, but this is the follow up
to their 1996 release we all hoped for. Although slightly softer and a little
more pop friendly than before, Sense Field has assembled 11 new tracks and one
amazing cover (the Cure’s “A Letter To Elise”), that makes
an unforgettable album from beginning to end. Thankfully, this time out it seems
Nettwerk is giving the band the backing they deserve. Sense Field now has tracks
from Living Outside showing up on movie soundtracks, TV soundtracks,
front and center displays at best buy, and radio rotation. I think this type
of publicity is welcomed. I have always felt Sense Field was and is a band that
is capable of being enjoyed and valued by a “mainstream” audience. Living
Outside is glaring example of the bands’ capability. I’m so
happy to see them return with such a great album and get the label backing they
so deserve. Welcome back Sense Field.
-Clark
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Serial P.O.P. --
White Sex Male
Good Science Recordings
 White
Sex Male is roughly 45 minutes of musical déjà
vu that has me wondering if Serial P.O.P. aren’t some kind
of modern rock legend that I mistakenly missed while mining new
wave and brit pop record bins during the last two decades. SP have
a distinctive techno dance pop flavor that blends drums with synthesizers
with guitar/bass rock chords; the kind of sound that is so hauntingly
familiar that I’m leafing past New Order's Republic,
The Pet Shop Boys' Very, and a handful of Blur and Stone
Roses singles to see if I don't already have this record stashed
somewhere. Pleasantly, while their roots are showing, I don’t
get the feeling that Serial P.O.P. are digging up the decayed corpse
of retro-radio in the hopes of cashing in on the ironic revival
of lightweight dance music. While they may be guilty of nostalgia,
the more likely indictment is hinged on proven pop-sensibility.
The fuzzed-out bass hooks dash between the shimmering, machine-like
beat on "Jakey Moves." "Health and Safety" treads
similar territory to earlier tracks, but relies on a solid guitar
rock groove for the chorus. For their highlight emission "The
Boyfriend" sunshine keyboards appear and disappear behind the
raggedy trot of live drums and the mercury consistency of Tom McFall’s
blue-collar English croon. "Non Starter" is a rowdier
romp that capitalizes on tinny keyboards, which saw against the
grain of a basement baseline. McFall slyly swings his vocal hips
on "TAFKAP." While catchy melodies and seamless production
usually adds up to an easy sell to the massively uninvested in the
pop-radio market, Serial P.O.P. deliver synchronicity and consistency
without wholey relying on the kitsch value of pop's past.
-Tim Anderl
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Serotonin – Universal
Time Constant
Bifocal Media
More often than not, the math rock hitting shelves
these days is precise, technical, complex and ultimately uninteresting
because, to the music’s detriment, there is no sense of passion
behind it. Universal
Time Constant is not one of those records.
While the execution of this record is just as flawless and
complicated, the guitars crest and crash with grandeur, the rhythm
is magnetic and cohesive and the vocals range from half-spoken,
sung and explosively expelled.
Though I feel like I’m almost cheating the band by comparing
them to the dynamic mid-nineties math rock magicians of yesteryear,
it seems this band has more in common with Hal Al Shedad, Ethel
Meserve and Hum than most of the duds of Y2K.
Each track on the album dabbles equally in off-time rhythm
and complex picking, and surging, propulsive guitar work.
Though the monotone-ish half-sung vocals, which are shared
by guitarists Andrew Walker and Ryan Snyder, are likely an acquired
taste, the screams are as throat-busting as they come.
The album’s standout track, and also the longest at over
thirteen minutes, “Labyrinth” runs a gauntlet of Abracadaver-era
Party of Helicopteresque rock movement and soloing, off-time rhythmic
teetering, and agonized vocal bleeding. Amen!
-Tim Anderl
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Settlefish -
Dance A While, Upset
Deep Elm Records
The great thing about this album is that it will
appeal to such a wide audience. Punk fans will love it because of
its powerful energy and spirit, while the musical technicality and
vocal depth will bring in indie and emo enthusiasts alike. Musical
comparisons? Imagine a more melodic At The Drive In on Ritalin.
For their debut album, "Dance A While, Upset," Settlefish
draws you into a contradicting musical dream world of both peace
and chaos. Soft, sweet melodies are unpredictably interrupted by
a whirlwind of screeching guitars and screaming vocals. Each song
builds up, and builds up
until Singer Jonathan Clancy finally explodes with his screams of
lyrical creativity. Settlefish rolls you up to the mountian's edge
overlooking a beautiful horizon, then suddenly pushes you off. Undoubtedly,
this album will stir up a storm of emotions, which can at first
be overwhelming. But when the dust finally settles, it leaves you
wanting more.
-Mike Barajas
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The Setup – Tuned
To Drop Dead
Action Driver
 Perhaps
this is the right time to admit that I don’t know as much about hardcore
as I should. At least not enough to get pinpoint the exact influences of The
Setup or their album Tuned to Drop Dead an unbridled, churning and chaotic
cyclone of twisted rhythms, erupting guitars, and forked tongue vocal delivery.
To say the band is in league with Zao or Shai Hulud may be selling them short,
because Tuned To Drop Dead is likely among their first steps toward
a long and fruitful career, while the latest efforts by the afore mentioned bands
resembled something more along the lines of a final will and testament. Longtime
hardcore fans will find enough carnage on the first track alone to cement their
interest for the unholy ride to come. Hyperspeed riffing, tumultuous rhythms
and vocal hysterics on “From Detroit To The West End” and “Dude,
Where’s My Scarf” will capture the attention of any self-respecting
head banger, that is if it doesn’t snap your neck in two first. “Irony” is
the token acoustic opus that seems to be all the rage among hardcore bands these
days (see From Autumn To Ashes, Between The Buried and Me), but to be honest
it doesn’t add much. “I Call Samesies” picks things back up
with the ferocity of a pack of wild wolves tearing through fresh meat. And this
violence is consistent through the rest of the album, especially on highlight “Are
You Going To Tell An Orc What To Do?,” which bears an uncanny resemblance
to Converge’s recent material, while maintaining an old school feel that
I just can’t quite put a finger on. Perhaps that old school feel comes
from the fact that these guys aren’t relying on all the samples and heavy
production of some of their peers (cough, Poison The Well). Simply, Tuned
To Drop Dead is a heavy hitter and nearly every track is a killing blow.
-Tim Anderl
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Sex Positions – Self-titled
Deathwish
Holy crap! We’re only a quarter in 2004 and I’ve
already found what I’m pretty sure will be one of my favorite albums of
the year. The enigmatic debut by Sex Positions is nothing short of absolutely
death defying. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your vantage point),
there is no way I’m going to be able to pigeonhole this release into some
neat and tidy category that I can sell you in a couple hundred words or less.
These guys defy classification: guitar riffs drop with militant urgency, the
drumming is absolutely muscular, and the addition of electronics give the whole
thing a technical depth that I’d have never seen coming a mile away. Other
critics are gonna compare this band with everyone from The Bronx, Give Up The
Ghost and The Locust to Wire, Liars, Nine Inch Nails, The Refused and At The
Drive In. Frankly, they wont be far off. This band takes punk and hardcore attitude,
dresses it up with chirpy and caustic electronics and then bends it over for
one hell of a satisfying ride. I think I’m gonna be sore and satisfied
all year too.
-Tim Anderl
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Sex With Girls – Demo
Self-released
This demo isn’t terribly different from my first sexual
experience. Sloppy, crashing, bruised, and running only a few minutes, SWG conjures
some uncomfortably satisfying moments. To their extreme credit, they do spit
way better game than I ever had on “Sex Chocolate” (“Can we
check into the Sex Hotel/They’ve got sex chocolates on the pillows there”).
The standout final track (of four), “Let’s Dance,” twists muddled
electronics, vocal histrionics, and lifts some lyrics from New Order’s “Blue
Monday.” Like the moments following my first time “getting busy,” I’m
not sure what to make of this afterglow. I have the feeling I might enjoy this
demo more with just a little more practice. In the meantime, Kill Rock Stars
should be making plans to knock out a Sexy Prison/The Show Is The Rainbow/Sex
With Girls split LP.
-Tim Anderl
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Shadyside -- Later
In The Past
Ex-/Ex-
The dudes in Shadyside have over five years under their belt,
including at least a hundred all-ages shows, and can each play their instruments
like a mother fuck. Why aren’t these dudes signed to some big independent,
headlining their own tours? Simple answer: they’re taking the high road
(for those of you who no them, no pun intended here). Rather than copying New
Found Glory, throwing a couple of metal riffs on top, and sending their discs
straight to Hot Topic, these dudes are obviously challenging their writing and
technical abilities with six and eight minute math rock opuses that veer into
territory Braid and Ethel Meserve briefly touched on during their tenures. However,
as much of their third track (“Life In Rewind”) suggests, Shadyside
also have some very metal tendencies (this particular track reminds me of local
tech metal heroes Eyes Upon Separation). Both styles come to an awkward impasse
on “Past Mistakes Equal Future Blights,” which sounds like Waking
Kills The Dream in a tug of war with Mineral. But, the band gets back in the
fast lane by their final two tracks: pleasantly, the intro for “The Standstill” sounds
a little like The Who’s “Babba O’Riley;” and “A
Wooden Gun (Shot Ring Out)” channels Incubus, Mr. Bungle, and Braid simultaneously.
These days, a disc like Later In The Past is “the road less traveled,” and
unfortunately it isn’t likely to get the attention it deserves. But Shadyside
has already demonstrated that they’re just the kind of badass unsung indie
heroes who’ll keep busting heads and winning over fans one at a time anyway.
-Tim Anderl
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Shannon Wright
-- Dyed in the Wool
Quarterstick Records
Absolutely nothing I write in this review will
be able do justice to this truly powerful record.
Dyed in the Wool is Shannon’s third release as a solo
artist after rising from the ashes of Crowsdell, which she disbanded
in 98 after feeling the sting of major label pressure.
Shannon’s live shows have been described as “crushing” and
I think its fitting. The performances are entrancing and need to be experienced
at least once in your life, just like this album. As in her previous
releases Shannon’s work is truly raw emotion.
The songs are dark and twisting, minor-key ballads that push
thier way in your head, a soundtrack for introspection by candle
light. Shannon’s previous
albums were stripped down basics with little more than drum accompaniment
while Shannon carefully alternated between guitar and piano.
Dyed in the Wool enlisted a “who’s who” list of musical
collaborators from the indie world for this record.
Drum and bass were provided by Brian Teassly and Andy Baker
(Man or Astro-Man) with other guest spots filled with various members
of such bands as the Japancakes, the Rachel’s, Rock*A*Teens, and
many more. These
helping hands allowed Shannon to blend new layers and add a dynamic
to her sound. The songs
are even more powerful than their predecessors and are a fitting
next step in the murky dream-like beauty that is Shannon Wright’s
work.
-Clark
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Sharks
And Minnows – The Cost Of Living
Two Sheds Music
 For
the life of me I can’t believe that Sharks and Minnows, who’s third
record is my first introduction to the band, haven’t cracked their way
onto my radar before. Frankly, I can’t find any reason why these guys
shouldn’t have already made themselves the darlings of modern rock radio.
The 16 songs here are so full of upbeat guitars, seamless harmonies, pristine
melodies and wide-eyed enthusiasm, that if this Hotlanta quartet aren’t
able to spark a serious romance between listeners and their heart-warming style
pop-music then bitches should be checking their pulses. Though the presentation
here confesses a clear allegiance for other great American indie-pop bands
like Archers of Loaf, The Lemonheads, The Wrens, The Pernice Brothers and possibly
Pretty Mighty Mighty or The Damnbuilders, Sharks and Minnows’ striking
resemblance to Guided By Voices will have you questioning whether Dayton and
Atlanta could be sister cities. Some of the palmed guitar chording here, especially
on stand out track “Saint of Anything,” has me wondering if these
guys didn’t have some emo leanings at one time. But if bands like the
Stills can garner critical acclaim despite rumors that they were once a ska
band, one can’t hold their guitarist’s totally tasteful technical
decision here against them. Whether gushing sunshine or soothing broken hearts
with their lush and earnest pop principles, Sharks and Minnows prove that they’re
quite a catch.
-Tim Anderl
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Sharky -- Mousam
Lake Sessions
Self-released
In punk and indie circles it is pretty common knowledge that
Seam singer Sooyoung Park had an integral part in the seminal Bitch Magnet. However,
upon further investigation, I may have uncovered another band that he fronted.
And, for those of you keeping score, the rest of the band may have been comprised
of future members of the Shins – before they discovered psychedelic drugs.
Seriously though, from what I can tell, the D.C.-based indie pop maestros in
Sharky (who to my knowledge have no affiliation with Seam, Bitch Magnet, The
Shins, or your mom) have their shit together. Or they at least had it together
on November 3, 2003 when they recorded seven songs on Mousam Lake, Maine. The
warm, soft sound of “Stars,” the standout track here, also suggests
that they may have drank some hot chocolate with marshmallows and cuddled a bit.
Visit www.sharkypop.com, beg them to send you a copy of this CD, and get “all
warm inside” too.
-Tim Anderl
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Sheek the Shayk -- Hour
of The Seventh Moon
Laughing Outlaw Records
“A special kind of bad.” With songs like "Don’t
Bug the Shayk" and "69 B.C." complete with stolen riff from Jimi
Hendrix’s "Foxy
Lady," Sheek the Shayk’s release is disappointment. Now seriousness
aside, if this band were satire, it would be ingenious; highbrow even. It would
be commentary on bands like Kixx and Tesla, a testament to hair rock and the
absurdity of the 1980s. If they are serious then it could turn out like Indiana’s
Raj Trio; so terrible that an inevitable cult following would ensue.
-Andre Hoilette
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Shesus -- Loves
You... Loves You Not
Narnack Records
.jpg) This
first record from Dayton O's Shesus is quite a mischievous group
of songs. Shesus make smoking cigarettes, jumping turnstiles, and
stealing bubble gum sound like a rite of passage for post high school
adolescence. Part Shangri La's, part Grease Soundtrack, and part
dirty Dayton rock n' roll, Shesus' tendencies towards hooky, anthem
filled, garage by way of bar stool pop never takes itself too seriously.
Shesus' focus is not in femme ferociousness (as their name might
lead you to believe) but in concentrating on making music that sounds
fun and in true Dayton fashion Loves You... Loves You Not
has revealed itself as a great drinking album. Loves You... Loves
You Not is sure to find its' place at this summers parties and
barbecues but proves its' worth in not making you feel dumb for
listening to it alone as well. Outside of Guided By Voices' last
four albums, this is the highest profile release from a Dayton band
in some time. Hopefully it will draw some much needed national attention
to the music scene locally.
-Dan Rizer
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Shoplifting -- Self-titled
EP
Kill Rock Stars
Ex-members of about a bajillion bands, including Chromatics,
Stiletto, Mr. Yuk, The Lumpies, Soiled Doves, Spores, Av Ratz, Emotional Fanny
Pack, Kiss et NoNo, Cabaret Con Carne, and Amok, deliver four sloppy art rock
tunes that leave you wondering if anyone in the band actually know how to play
their instruments, if they’re all sufferers of attention deficit disorder,
or if anything here is at all intentional. You’ll probably also be wondering
why someone drew a picture of George W’s homeless doppelganger for the
CD’s cover. I’m betting these kids will be on to something new
before you figure out the answers to any of those questions.
-Tim Anderl
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The
Show Is The Rainbow – Barry Sure Wrote A Lot Of Songs
About The Girls He’s Loved
Suckapunch Records
I’m not sure what to think of The Show
Is The Rainbow, a self-described “one man, dance and roll
explosion” from the Cornhusker state. Is he Har Mar without
the underoos and gross out glossys, Tracy without the Plastics or
multiple personality disorder, is he Atom without the package, or
is he Ween without the cartoon voices and cowboy hats? I’ll
concentrate on a couple things that I am sure of:
1) “Down The Drain” is a coyly
delivered, twee pop anthem. Darren Keen, the voice behind the show,
drizzles just the right amount of mercury crooning over amateur
electronics to dance himself into my soft spot. Fans of Ben Kweller
and early Ben Lee will get this one.
2) This Lincoln. Neb. native is hoping to start a mix-tape dis war
all 50 Cent vs. Ja Rule style with the whole of the Omaha Saddle
Creek menagerie on “Fashion.” Keen drops the following
science: “In my hometown only one thing matters / It’s
something I don’t have I think / It’s how to get yourself
dolled up / To get yourself signed to Saddle Creek.” I’m
willing to speculate that Keen picked up the same issue of People
magazine that my wife did a few weeks back and saw Connor Oberst
kissing Winona Ryder before she got in her gas-guzzling SUV and
drove off into the polluted sunset.
3) The breakdown on “NYE 2003” comes straight from Michael
Jackson’s “Beat It.” Absolutely genius.
4) Any one of the first three things above should be enough to convince
you to pick up this wonderfully schizophrenic five-song introduction
to The Show Is The Rainbow.
-Tim Anderl
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Shuttlecock
-- Existing Bridges
Friction Records
 I
think I remember hearing Shuttlecock a few years ago on some compilation or
sampler and writing them off as Shellac wannabes. Perhaps I need to check myself
because Shuttlecock have either come a long way or I was having an ignorant
day. Yeah, Shuttlecock do play steady and driving math rock and that guitar
sound is extremely reminiscent of Alibini's, and a certain Mr. Weston recorded
the affair, but Shuttlecock abuse space and time unlike Shellac ever have,
drawing out repetitive beat after repetitive bass line. Then there are those
electronic rhythms and analog synth sounds that certainly set them apart from
their Chicago influences as well. Only two men create this mechanically precise
and cold music, Kenneth Chojnacki on guitar, synths and vocals, and John Hubbell
on drums, synths and vocals. At a brief 4 songs, this EP is a really nice introduction
to Shuttlecock's sound for those interested, and if you've ever found yourself
craving a new and interesting take on the math rock formula then this is a
damn good bet.
-Dan Rizer
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Sicbay -- Overreaction
Time
54° 40' Or Fight!
 Sicbay
is a band with much pedigree, and unfortunately for bands with pedigree
they often don't get thrown much farther than their previous bands
will allow. Lucky for Sicbay then that they're actually quite good
and don't sound too much like their earlier projects. Sicbay contain
members of Dazzling Killmen (the best hardcore band that's not hardcore),
Colossamite (doom ridden, bizarre, artsy music), and Gorge Trio
(melodious and destructive), and all of these bands have or will
record albums for music vivisection label Skin Graft. I guess that
would be the major difference between Sicbay and those other bands
is that their penchant for mathy rhythms and more conventional song
structures would make them seem quite out of place on a label more
concerned with the avant garde. Sicbay actually remind me quite
a bit of some of the earliest innovators of rock before math bands
like Bitch Magnet and Bastro (in fact, bassist, Nick Sake's shouts
and montonality recall David Grubbs during his stint in Bastro).
Sicbay rock like the end of the world is near and I am left wondering
if they know something more than the rest of us.
-Dan Rizer
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The Sick Lipstick
-- Sting Sting Sting
Tiger Style Records
It's easy to get mired in comparisons when describing the
(recently defunct) Sick Lipstick. Bikini Kill. The B-52's. Missing Persons, the
Fall, Huggy Bear. It's all apt. It all fits. But to reduce this band to the appropriated
sum of its parts is a piercing injustice. This isn't just a run-of-the-mill homage
to bands long gone. This is shrill familiarity. This is visiting home only to
find that your childhood bedroom has been gutted and sold.
Hot off the heels of previous project Black Cat #13,
Toronto's the Sick Lipstick are masters of turning hilarity into
creepiness, like a circus boarded up for the night. Sting Sting
Sting teems with the disturbing. A dance-y disco beat quickly
made bone-chilling by ominous guitars slashing at air. Lindsay
Gillard's screechy voice belting out sexually charged images of
childhood lace and frills in stand-out tracks like "Thigh-Master,
I'm Yr Master" and "Pretend I'm Sleeping". Sting
Sting Sting is noise rock for people who don't like noise
rock, a frightening example of what can be done with shards of
the past. We call up the comparisons because it's all we can do;
the familiarity, those ghosts, are anchored firmly to every track
-- but mangled enough to make them great.
-Mollie Wells
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Sick Of It All -
Yours Truly
These boys have outdone themselves. As a fan
of songs that don't make you sad, popping in a bit-o' hardcore first
thing in the morning is better that mixing ripped fuel and a pot
of coffee. The latest contribution from Sick Of It All does that
and more. As this fad of "cry me a river" music spans
the nation, I recommend anyone pick up this CD. It will raise your
head, straighten your back, and throw a powerful fist in the air!
People complain that some bands don't change their sound up. We'll
if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Sick Of It All takes you in, smacks
you around and has you begging for more. I hope to be smacked around
for many years to come. Thank God for Hard Core.
- Ian "Whitey" White
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The Silver
Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra La La Band -- Born Into
Trouble As The Sparks Fly Upward
I know, I know... another Godspeed You Black
Emperor! related album. But before you let out your proverbial “Ugh”
you should realize that this is the best output from Montreal’s
Hotel2Tango collective since Godspeed’s essential “F#A#∞”.
While many of GYBE’s elements are there, this is much more restrained
than any of their work, allowing room for space between the rare
instances of sonic mayhem. Dark and beautiful, “Born Into Trouble...”
will have you clinging to every reverbed strum, piano chord, orchestrated
violin, and dissonant vocal until you find yourself completely immersed
in the filmstrip playing inside your head. Unlike the unescapable
nightmare that GYBE creates The Silver Mt Zion places a ray of hope
that maybe there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
-Dan Rizer
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Silverstein -- When
Broken Is Easily Fixed
Victory Records
 Ugh!!
When will it end? Yet another, believe me I hate this word as much as you do, “ScrEMO” band.
But as long as labels keep putting it out, I have no choice but to continue to
use the word. Nothing new. Screaming vocals, melodic vocals, back to screaming,
melodic chorus, bridge, back to screaming, back to….well you get the point.
Yeah, well, at least the band got their name from famed child poet Shel Silverstein.
However, I ask, not where, but WHEN will the sidewalk end?
-Doran Dalton
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Simply Waiting – Cutting
Ties
Gasoline Records
Lately it seems like Dayton, OH is re-positioning itself as
one of the best modern rock scenes in the country. From the ashes of hardcore
band Waking Kills The Dream comes Simply Waiting. Don’t expect the hardcore
with this band. Simply Waiting plays their own brand of alternative folk rock.
Simply Waiting draws influence from such bands as Coldplay, Hankshaw, and dare
I say Filter among others. Matt Shetler’s truly unique and dynamic voice
combined with constantly sweeping guitar lines, and atmospherical keyboards makes
Simply Waiting’s debut EP on Gasoline Records memorable and leaving the
listener wanting more. The pinnacle of the EP to me is the mid-tempo, driving
anthem of “Ocean." I also highly suggest the slightly darker ballad
of “Little Boy” where Matt Shetler’s voice truly shines. This
is a great effort from this obviously talented group of musicians.
-Joe Anderl
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Since by Man
-- We Sing the Body Electric
Revelation Records
 In
nature it can take centuries to track changes and progression in
evolution. They say we as humans over the last few hundred years
have increased our average height by inches, fascinating. Now at
the other end of the spectrum, music seems to be gaining evolutionary
momentum right before our eyes. We can see with each changing year
styles blend, bend, and breach genera lines to evolve into new exciting
tributaries of awe inspiring new music. Revelation's Since by Man
is a shining example of the new branches of shall we say "post-hardcore."
We Sing the Body Electric can be dissected to reveal perfectly
blended sedimentary layers from roots hardcore, progressive metal,
indie-esque schizophrenia, and heart-on-sleeve emotion. Like driving
thru a thunderstorm, many of the tracks can be dark and ominous
and then allow rays of sunlight to peek thru. The opening track,
"If It Bleeds It Leads," is an explosive introduction
to the eleven-track whirlwind. The songs blast head first thru the
record pausing briefly with the dreamy experimental "In Threes"
only to catch their breath. Since by Man has managed to assemble
a very bold, energetic, and downright refreshing hardcore album.
Printed on the CD itself is the statement "play it fucking
loud." Well, don't mind if I do. Viva la evolution!
-Clark
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Sixfinger -- East
Side All-Stars Play Hard
Rapscallion Records
Hailing from the cigarette-strewn streets of Springfield,
Massachussetts, this five-piece is seeking to carve out a fan base through
touring and a stupid name. I’m not sure it has worked for them just yet.
The hits the nail on the head in the album’s first song (“These
Days in San Diego”) crooning in perfect Get Up Kids style “I hope
it doesn’t remind you/of how things used to sound.” I’m sorry,
but it does. Much too often. I’m hearing the Get Up Kids, Schatzi, and
almost anything Vagrant Records has to offer. I’ll quote my friend Dirty: “This
was good the first time I heard it, 10 years ago, when it was called The Get
Up Kids.” And while that joke may be as old as David Spade has become,
so has this sound.
Another big problem is the utter lack of a decent voice from this singer. The
guitar work shows brief signs of craftsmanship, but often falls into ordinary
background noise and is much overshadowed by the weak vocals. The opening licks
from the first track and Poison-reminiscent cuts from “Letters From Yesteryear” show
signs of hope.
The song titles are cliché, as are most of the lyrics. It’s too
predictable. “Nice Guys Sleep Alone,” “Seize the Moment,” “Sixteen
and Counting,” and even “Letters From Yesteryear” pretty
much say as much as these songs do. While not every song sounds the same (a
huge plus for a new band), often the songs become stagnant with nonexisting
or stagnant tempo changes.
There are, however, two important facts that remain. This band is young (ranging
between the ages of 18-20) and it is clear that they have fun doing this. It
is not a burden for them to write and play. Through practice and the maturation
process, they can improve and perhaps make something of themselves.
-Mike Keller
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The Six Parts Seven
-- [Everywhere][And Right Here]
Suicide Squeeze Records
My ability to enjoy rock music, of any type, is often directly
dependent on how catchy the melodies are, and whether I’m able to relate
to the lyrics. And, for the most part, I’m the kind of person who needs
to have both music and vocals/lyrics. Guitar virtuoso’s like Joe Satriani
and Steve Vaia….no thanks, I’d rather have Van Halen or Aerosmith.
Similarly, avant garde instrumental combos such as Tortoise have never really
been my bag either; I never really felt smart enough to hang with that kind
of stuff. More importantly, it just didn’t turn me on. However, one of
very few instrumental bands who has been able to capture my interest and keep
it (for just short of a decade in fact) is The Six Parts Seven. This is largely
due to the fact that they don’t let their technical virtuosity and music
school panache overrun their ability to move melodies, build dynamics, and
just make you feel it. Kent Ohio’s Karpinski brothers have returned with
their menagerie of collaborators (Tim Gerak, guitars and recording; Mike Tolan,
bass, Rhodes and guitar; Eric Koltnow, vibes and percussion; Ben Vaughan, lap
steel and guitar; and Steve Clements, piano and fantom) for what is the best
effort to date, hands down. On this particular effort, they manage to conjure
a sound that can be roughly, and amateurishly summed up as a strange hybrid
of Modest Mouse’s desperation, Mojave 3’s spaciousness, and Tristeza’s
quiet hopefulness. As an avid fan of almost every band that Kent’s Donut
Friends label every turned out, nostalgia dictates that my favorite track here
is “The Quick Fire,” which was originally written by Party of Helicopters
singer Joe Dennis for his shoegazer band The Man I Fell In Love With. However,
I’ve found myself becoming choked up by both “This One or That
One?” and “A Blueprint of Something Never Finished.” This
record goes where few other instrumental CDs have gone before – to the
top of my pile of favorites.
-Tim Anderl
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The
Six Parts Seven – Lost Notes From Forgotten Songs
Suicide Squeeze
 If
you haven’t heard the Six Parts Seven you must be living under a rock.
This instrumental group from Akron, OH has been delivering dynamic instrumental
music for the past several years. This disk offers other musicians takes/collaborations
with the Six Parts Seven music. While I am normally standoffish towards any tribute/collaboration/
remix record I decided to give this one a try due to my affinity for The Six
Parts Seven. Between the first track, Sam Beam’s remake of “Sleeping
Diagonally,” to Isaac Brock’s addition on “From California
to Houston, on Lightspeed,” and Dave Bazan’s additions on “A
Blueprint of Something Never Finished,” there isn’t a single down
point on the entire record. This is a testament to the excellent songwriting
of The Six Parts Seven, as well as the quality of musicians that they got to
work on this project. This is something that will prove valuable to every fan
of The Six Parts Seven, and frankly, most discerning indie rock collectors.
-Joe Anderl
The Six Parts
Seven -- Things Shaped In Passing
Suicide Squeeze
It's interesting to hear a band that began with
an already mature sound actually become mature. They've taken their
instrumental unrock and injected it with confidence and a sense
of purpose. Content to drift along in a softly swung fashion, the
songs meld together creating a seamless album that becomes almost
meditative. In fact it seems as though the Six Parts Seven hope
to erase seams between albums as well, with the inclusion of the
songs "Spaces Between Days Pts. 3 & 4" continuing
from their last album "Silence Magnifies Sound" which
had Pts. 1 & 2. Shuffling drums, neatly picked and strummed
guitar lines, pedal steel and a strong use of piano fill out their
sound to a whisper.
Don't mistake this lack of volume for lack of impact however, for
the Six Parts Seven use time and space to make their sounds create
something that speaks for the absence of vocals.
-Dan Rizer
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Skeleton
Key - Obtanium
Ipecac Recordings
 When
the mis-creationists in Skeleton Key were wee lads their mom's should've
padlocked, bolted and welded shut the kitchen cabinets that held
their pots and pans. While this would've made preparing meals a
little tricky, it would've also prevented the clamor of perverse
rhythms that would likely result from little Eric Sanko and company
from getting their naughty, nimble fingers on a variety of unlikely
instruments. Fortunately for you dear reader and potential rabid
Skeleton Key fan, Mammas Sanko, Lee, Maxwell and Brooks didn't have
the foresight to hide the "Speak and Spell" (which they've
tweaked and bastardized for the conclusion to "Panic Bullets"
or to lock their medicine cabinets either. After years of practice,
more of the twisted junk rock compositions and deformed ditties
have leaked onto Skeleton Key's first effort for Mike Patton's Ipecac
label. During "Sawdust," a cacophony of synth-based whistles,
bells and wingdings mingle and sway with funky, off-kilter guitars.
When Sanko's reaching baritone delivery is coupled with slash and
burn rock guitar chording, like on "Panic Bullets," or
even with the syncopated rhyme-scheme of the funkier "One Way,
My Way," it is hard not to hear a little bit of Burning Airlines/Jawbox
frontman J. Robbins in the mix. But, that isn't a bad thing is it?
The two probably have more in common than they are willing to admit,
what with the whole signing to a major label, being dumped, but
continuing to create profoundly exceptional music and all. I digress.
Skeleton Key continue to cause a fantastic racket on "The Barker
For the Dupes," with a careening, convulsing mess of percussion,
basement bass work, and floppy, helicopter guitar work. "Dingbat
Revolution" finds the band turning up their Brainiac-infected
head sickness for a robot vs. rock battle royale. "Roost in
Peace" stumbles clumsily between the backwoods sugar shacks
of Tom Waits and The Crash Test Dummies. So, put on a helmet and
pull the ripcord on this tweaked tuneage. When the dizziness subsides,
you'll thank the stars above that mama Sanko ignored the Surgeon
General's warnings.
-Tim Anderl
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Slick Fifty Seven
-- The Ghost of Bonnie Parker
Laughing Outlaw
 This
record is perfectly acceptable, country-influenced punk rock. Nothing
extraordinary, but if that's your thing, go for it. Fans of Irish-influenced
punk (e.g. Fogging Molly, Dropkick Murphys) would probably also
enjoy this record. The songs are catchy and well written, and the
musicianship is good. It's not my thing, and it's unoriginal, but
who said that everything has to be original?
-Chris Worth
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Slow Jets -- Remain
in Ether
Morphius Records
On Remain in Ether, Slow Jets play ambitiously layered
music that feels a little like classic rock and a little like adult contemporary.
The lyrical messages are nice (from “Country Under Canada”: “These
spaces divided in squares / Hear chewing and chewing and chewing / As the snake
devours its tail”), but it’s musicianship that drives Ether.
Slow Jets can play, and they strive to emulate Pink Floyd and Guided By Voices
as they do so. Ultimately, Remain in Ether isn’t something that
will remain in my CD player for long, but I have to give it up for well constructed
pop songs like “Marching into the Ground” that offer much more than
a standard verse-chorus-verse construction.
-Jeff Locher
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Slowride -- Building
a Building
Deep Elm Records
 When
I first popped this into my CD player, the first track had me thinking that it
was showing great promise with an upbeat, Hayden-like acoustic song. Well that
promise was short lived, it lasted 56 seconds to be exact. Track 2 launches into
a vocally distorted nightmare. Through track 5 the band puts in their bid as
the next garage thrash band to hit the streets. Track 6 gets back to the refreshing
Hayden-ish acoustic sound accompanied by some steel guitar. Track 9, 10 and 11
are passable as honorable mentions, with a mid-80’s alternative sound,
on an otherwise boring effort. It’s been done and said many times over,
by many other bands. Slowride needs to take what they’ve done with the
later tracks on this album, and instead of building a building, they
should try building a decent release their next time out.
-Doran Dalton
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Small Brown Bike
- Dead Reckoning
While this two-wheeler is obviously a hand-me-down
from an unnamed Gainesville quartet, the Detroit drivers do just
enough pop-a-wheelies to make it clear they've long since outgrown
training wheels. This disc's 11-tracks of bold, balls-out,
and brazen punk, hurl enough rock during songs "Like A Future
With No Friend" and "See You In Hell" to give any
Jawbreaker or Cursive fan a black eye. With a stage presence
to match, these guys peel-out leaving just enough time to glimpse
their license plate, it reads, "Hot Water who?"
-Tim
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The Smoking
Popes - The Party's Over
Double Zero Records
Various Artists - Smoking Popes Tribute
Double Zero Records
  It
had been at least a couple years since my last fix. That was until
these discs dropped in my lap and the cravings started all over
again. My normally-steady fingers tripped along the corners of the
first CD's wrapping, I swallowed hard and let my stomach plunge,
anticipating the roller-coaster high of revisiting an old addiction.
When The Smoking Popes called it quits after nearly a decade of
notoriously catchy songwriting, I struggled to deaden the edginess
and headaches from withdrawl with a number of other guilty pop-pleasures.
But, none since have produced the same quirky, full-flavor punk
of Chicago's favorite sons.
Led by the slivery croon of Josh Caterer, which resembles a cross
between Morrissey, Frank Sinatra, and Kermit the Frog, the band
immaculately fused classic and sincere lyric-penning, with infectious
punk composition. And as their final, sinfully addictive offering,
The Party's Over allows us to glimpse the sweet fruits of
their final, never-before released studio-album. Recorded in 1998,
the album is a collection of cover versions of songs by Willie Nelson,
Patsy Cline, and more. And classy treatment of these historic pop
gems, which we can probably consider a peep show of The Smoking
Popes' direct influences, is just what they delivered.
Their interpretation of Patsy Cline's "Seven Lonely Days"
kicks off the album, with what is perhaps Josh Caterer's first documented
note-cracking, country croon ("There's no use in deny (falsetto)
ing"). Their treatment of what I believe was originally Ella
Fitzgerald's "Bewitched" has my tear ducts instantly filled
to capacity. Country gospel-style favorite "Farther Along,"
which has some history with Elvis Presley and The Byrds, The Righteous
Brother's "You'll Never Walk Alone," and Etta James' jazz
ballad "Stormy Weather" are the other standout tracks.
The fusion of 40s and 50s era songwriting, with modern, guitar driven
pop is seamless in a way that only these guys can do - with the
attention to detail, respect, and sincerity that the original tracks
deserve.
That said, the second of the two discs finds modern independent
rock bands and solo-artists trying to capture the spirit of the
Popes' songs without mussing or flushing them. Putting this on,
I kept my fingers crossed that I could use this disc as a Stop-Smoking-Popes
supplement - just enough to get me past my cravings and back into
the modern musical world. Though a carbon copy is rarely as brilliant
as the original, most of the bands on this record put their best
foot forward. Death on Wednesday's stab at "Let Them Die,"
which originally appeared on the Popes' Get Fired album, is a slightly-throatier
rendition that is true-to-form, and a smooth listen. Blue Shade
Witness is slightly more ambitious. They drop the musical anchor
on "Mrs. You and Me," significantly slowing the original
pace and taking liberties with the rhythmic timing, but retaining
the original resonating sentiment of the song. Notaword trigger
my gag-reflex with their choppy, Weezer-weaned, emo rendition of
"Off My Mind," so I skip to former-Popes and current solo
artists Tom Daily, "Waiting Around;" and Mike Felumlee,
"Don't Be Afraid." These are a bit rigid, without being
offensive, but also without the original chemistry.
Naturally, the spotlight track, "Do Something," comes
from Duvall, a band comprised of three former Popes. But, The Red
Hot Valentine's rubbery, keyboard and hand-clap infused, "Rubella"
and The Ataris' piano treatment of "Pretty Pathetic" are
pleasantly and well-adapted.
There are a couple of hidden tracks tossed in for good measure,
but you'll have to buy-yo'-own if you want to get the scoop. My
lips are sealed while the shaking and sweating subside. Two intoxicating
releases - I'm gonna need some serious rehabilitation.
-Tim Anderl
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