Espers
III ••••
Wichita
It has been three years since this gloomy drone-folk ensemble released their masterpiece, Espers II. Since then, many of its members have released various experimental solo works, such as Helena Espvall’s Anahita, an avant-garde exploration of ritualistic songmanship and freeform folk, and Meg Baird’s more accessible folksy debut Dear Companion. Now the Philadelphia-based sextet are offering their third full-length record entitled – surprise, surprise – III. But while the title was easy to guess, the content makes for a decidedly refreshing change.
Filed under: album, review | Tags: anja mccloskey, claire robinson, magneta lane, mark goldby, midaircondo, to kill a petty bourgeoisie
In the final part of this month’s roundup, we take a look at Canadian trio Magneta Lane’s latest album, the intriguing return of Swedish duo Midaircondo and the murky, droning new release from America’s To Kill A Petty Bourgeoisie.
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Magneta Lane
Gambling With God •••
Last Gang
Three years on from their debut full-length, Torontonian power-pop trio Magneta Lane return with their risky-sounding second album Gambling With God, only to show that they have taken no such chances with the actual music. Exhibiting little in the way of artistic growth from 2006’s Dancing With Daggers, these 10 tracks suffer a similar fate to that album in that they simply don’t possess enough variety. Singer/guitarist Lexi Valentine, bassist French and drummer Nadia King have stuck fairly rigidly to the pop-noir formula that has served them moderately well in the past, with only a few glimpses of something different.
Filed under: album, mp3, review, video | Tags: 2009, anja mccloskey, music, music for your heart, sandra zettpunkt
Music For Your Heart
Turning Marvel •••
Sunday Service
Music For Your Heart is a project based around the myriad talents of one Sandra Zettpunkt, a German artist who’s already a veteran of several bands. A multi-instrumentalist, she cut her teeth drumming in The Legendary Bang, lent a guiding hand to Camping, Die Fünf Freunde, Kajak and Parole Trixie, and has long curated a radio show with her brother Patrick on Radio FSK in Hamburg. Indeed, it has taken her some 20 years to find her feet in regards to a solo career. Turning Marvel is Zettpunkt’s first album, and practically solo in every sense. Released on her own label Sunday Service, Zettpunkt plays all the instruments (bar a few shades of double bass courtesy of Calexico’s Volker Sander) and impresses her own vision of downtempo pop firmly on every song.
Filed under: album, review | Tags: 2009, anja mccloskey, cabinet of natural curiosities, catie curtis, claire robinson, colbie caillat, jasmine dreame wagner, mary gauthier, music, rhian jones
Part 2 of the August roundup looks at releases from Cabinet Of Natural Curiosities, Colbie Caillat and Catie Curtis.
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Cabinet Of Natural Curiosities
Searchlight Needles •••
For Arbors
Already a Free Music Friday veteran, it’s only right that Jasmine Dreame Wagner (aka Cabinet Of Natural Curiosities) receives a Wears The Trousers review for her first album, albeit already her fifth release. Searchlight Needles is a sort of Americana meets psych-folk poetry amalgamation that, as you can probably detect from this possibly futile descriptive attempt, does not sit easily within any one category. Instead, Wagner’s concoctions happily and gently float through a complex Venn diagram of musical genres, leaving trails of wisdom behind along the way. Opener ‘Little Ice Age’ sets the scene, quietly but freakily, accompanied by densely layered, organic instrumentation. “Little one, are you coming?” sings Wagner eerily, as if waking us up from a really bad dream…in a dark forest, in the middle of the night. Thanks.
Filed under: EP, album, review | Tags: 2009, all the fires, amiina, anja mccloskey, annie and the beekeepers, charlotte richardson andrews, claire robinson, music
In this first part of our monthly roundup of releases we didn’t get time to review in full over the last four weeks, we take a look at some great releases from All The Fires, Amiina and Annie & The Beekeepers.
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All The Fires
‘The Map’ EP ••••
Hobo
Orchestral folk-pop may not be one of music’s most recognisably innovative forms, but don’t equate that with an inability to stir and provoke. Mirroring the famous Korzybski philosophy from which this EP derives its name – “the map is not the territory” – this six-piece band from Falmouth in Cornwall arrive with this debut release to prove once again that genre abstractions can be sorely misleading. All The Fires are a talented bunch who construct often mysterious tales rich in layered three-part harmonies from singers Rosalie James, Kathryn Williams (not the one from Newcastle) and Matthew Dixon, scattering vibrant natural imagery and literary references among them. The Cornish air has clearly got into their heads and blown away any cobwebs as these five tracks all display an impressive clarity and uncommon grace.
Filed under: free music friday, mp3, review | Tags: 2009, anja mccloskey, music, the dutchess and the duke
The Dutchess & The Duke
‘Hands’
As their name suggests, this Seattle-based band centres around a male / female duo. What is intriguing is that Kimberly Morrison and Jesse Lortz are actually childhood friends and have played in bands before – together and apart – that range in style from R&B to surf and garage. As The Dutchess & The Duke, their musical predilection is for alternative folk songs inspired by 1960s realism with close vocal harmonies and a touch of the American Wild West. The first track to air from the band’s upcoming second album Sunset / Sunrise, out November 2nd through Hardly Art, ‘Hands’ starts in a deceivingly simple manner with keyboard, guitar and vocals both resonant (Jesse) and soft (Kimberly) finding their way in. “I can’t win / I can’t lose / and everything I do is wrong,” they sing nakedly, resignedly. The analogue recording affords a refreshingly distant touch and captures the song’s dynamics well as it builds up slowly. Then just when you think you’ve got the measure of the song, just as the vocals are about to climax, an electric guitar comes in and whisks you away on a melodic journey reminiscent of the soundtrack to a John Wayne movie. Very effective and definitely worth a listen. MP3 after the jump.
Filed under: free music friday, mp3, review | Tags: 2009, anja mccloskey, felix, lucinda chua, music
Felix
‘Death To Everyone But Us’
A going concern for around 5 years now, this London-based duo are only just gearing up to release their debut album, You Are The One I Pick, out November 2nd through Kranky Records. Opting for the homemade approach, recording the songs minimally, they used their own equipment and almost lost their minds over frequencies and resonation. Not that you would know it from the outcome. ‘Death To Everyone But Us’ is a positively confusing little song with drowsy piano and contrasting, almost abrupt strings. The vocals are hasty and bizarre; conceptually a bit like Kate Nash doing performance poetry. Frontwoman Lucinda Chua (a classically trained pianist and cellist) has a somewhat dry voice that – perhaps intentionally – gets lost in the instrumental arrangements, making it a challenge to understand the lyrics. But the string arrangements more than make up for any deficit in clarity. A very clever little piece. MP3 after the jump.
Filed under: free music friday, mp3, review | Tags: 2009, anja mccloskey, eternal summers, music
Eternal Summers
‘Lightswitch’
Eternal Summers have the misfortune of sharing their name with an obvious tourist agency slogan, so it’s a little hard to find them on the good old google machine, but they’re definitely worth the search. Formed in November 2008, this quirky duo from Virginia came together with the idea of writing pop songs and having fun at the same time. Don’t fret though; these are not straightforward chart-chasers by any means. More like psych-pop, with mad melodic hooks and an energetic, refreshing rawness. Singer and guitarist Nicole Yun originally hails from Washington DC and has a background in electronic music (her former band was The Mommies), while bandmate David is making his debut as a drummer in this group. Perhaps this is what makes Eternal Summers so charming. They play without pretence – the husky voice and effortless guitar and percussion make for wonderfully honest and eccentric songs. Although ‘Lightswitch’ is a short affair, coming in at under 2 minutes, it’s designed to induce a sweet contentment. “If every word is true, please let me be good to you,” sings Nicole. Yes, please do. MP3 after the jump.
Filed under: album, review, video | Tags: 2009, anja mccloskey, music, speck mountain
Speck Mountain
Some Sweet Relief •••½
Carrot Top
Speck Mountain is first and foremost – at least in historical terms – a peak in central Texas that rises to an elevation of 460 metres above sea level. Its slopes, Google tells us, are surfaced by deep clay loam that supports tall grasses and thick shrubs. Speck Mountain is also the name of this Chicago-based band centering on vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Marie-Claire Balabanian and bassist Karl Briedrick, a pair of New York University graduates who met over Facebook in 2005. Whether the two have any obvious metaphorical connections remains uncertain, but maybe it is the theme of loneliness and harshness that transpires in both settings. It’s clear that no moss gathers on the songwriting pair, who quickly follow up last year’s critically acclaimed debut Summer Above with this intriguingly titled collection.
Filed under: EP, album, review | Tags: 2009, abigail washburn, anja mccloskey, daniel clatworthy, electrelane, honey owens, music, ray rumours, ros murray, the shanghai restoration project, valet
Part IV – reviews of Ray Rumours, Valet and Abigail Washburn & The Shanghai Restoration Project.
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Ray Rumours
Le Pont Suspendu •••
Stitch-Stitch
Ray Rumours is essentially the solo project of Electrelane bassist Ros Murray, but she is often accompanied by Gill Partington and other friends sometimes join the singalong. Le Pont Suspendu may be a retelling of events and memories from the winter of 2007 and spring of 2008 but there’s not even a tiny whiff of self-indulgence about it. The themes are abstract, the music light and uplifting, and the album drifts along, not asking too much of its listeners. Even songs called ‘Snowman’ and ‘Winter Coat’ have the sun shining out of them.
