SOON (Local 506, Chapel Hill, 7/10/15)

So I snuck away from the Jphono1/Lakes&Woods 12"release show at the Cradle Backroom (more on that later) to finally see SOON.  Being a fan of the soaring pop of the Love Language, I was always intrigued to see what a band made half from them (Stu McLamb and drummer Thomas Simpson), and half from vets of local metal bands GROHG (Mark Connor) and Bitter Resolve (Robert Walsh), sounded like.  Short of some old hardcore, my tastes don't usually run metallic, or especially heavy.  But within the 3 songs I managed to catch, SOON won me over. 

What stood out from the first song I saw were the multiple vocals... downright operatic (or at least dramatic).  A thunderous kind of melody.  The penultimate cover of Pink Floyd's the Nile Song showcased the vocals even more.  Their last tune (don't know the name) began as a thudding crawl, and was taking so long to build I was wondering when the pay off would come.  Starting very low and slow, teasingly... almost torturously... building gradually, into a long, slow explosion.  But it didn't stop there.  It ramped up to a cathartic barrage of guitar, bass, drums, & voices.  Sometimes ya gotta hold back before the payoff.  Yeah, this one definitely paid off. 

I'll have to catch a full set by these guys soon (no pun... well okay, pun intended).  

VIDEO: T0W3RS - Bounty

From the show blogged about below (Local 506, 6/28/13).  Forgive the subpar sound quality...

Never Say Goodbye - T0W3RS and Lilac Shadows Send Off a Friend (Local 506, 6/28/13)

A couple of weeks back, two of the better local bands, T0W3RS and Lilac Shadows, preformed a farewell show for (and with) one of their 3 shared members, Karen Blanco.  Karen has tickled the keys for both bands for a couple of years now, in a more psychedelic, atmospheric way for Lilac and a jumpier, more experimental way for T0W3RS (as befitting each of those bands' styles).  Her presence will be missed, but she's off to Europe and points beyond.

It was a great send-off.  Zack Mexico came from way out in Kill Devil Hills to open up.  It was only my second time seeing them, and i loved the first.  I was trying to think of a way to define their sound before the show, and the best I could come up with was... well... weird.  I know, very creative.  They have a song called "Weird Reef".  They're sorta surfy, sorta jammy, sorta indie, but they're not really any of the above.  So I asked singer John Saturley how HE would define their sound, and he replied "Weird."  Guess I pegged it.  Surf music can get boring.  Jam bands are definitely boring.  But when Zack Mexico get into a long, droney, surfy jam that goes on and on, you don't want it to stop.  Definitely NOT boring.

Zack Mexico...

As for T0W3RS and Lilac Shadows, I've written about them plenty in the past here, so I'll let a few photos do the talking.  Suffice it to say Lilac is moving in a more straight-ahead rock direction, while T0W3RS is moving perhaps in a more electronic, dancey direction.  Good moves for both... for truly sucky is the band that stands still (I think it was Confucius that said that).  But I hope Derek keeps the twangy edge going... that edge in contrast with the various influences he pulls from are one of the things that makes T0W3RS such a great band.

Lilac Shadows...

T0W3RS....

Good luck, Karen!  I'm sure you'll pop up moonlighting in a techno/cabaret/shoegaze act in Prague (or perhaps wrangling goats in Hamburg).

Multifaceted Noise: Tar Heel Sound Fest (Chapel Hill, 1/12/13)

I just wanted to give props to this little festival held earlier in the month in Chapel Hill.  It was the first (I believe?) Tar Heel Sound Fest, billed as a "festival of cutting-edge music with ties to the Old North State".  Going in, it looked like it'd be kind of a mish-mash, and I guess it was.  But coming out of it, it felt more pleasantly -- no, frankly, astoundingly -- diverse, especially for such a brief event.

The one-night festival was held at four venues and featured 18 bands.  I caught all the acts at the Cave, and one or two over at Nightlight and Local 506.  They were:

The synth-powered punky-pop of Antibubbles...

Traditional Klezmer from Gmish...

Experimental solo trombone explorations from Jeb Bishop... 

The self-styled "deePop" (deep pop) of Kenyattassata...

Corey Pallon's dark, psychedelic, singer-songwriter fare...

... and thundering, poppy indie from North Elementary.

I also missed or only caught seconds of what were probably several other good shows:  Microwaves, Daughter Element, Crowmeat Bob & George Cremaschi, White Cascade, Le Weekend, reggae, electronica, more jazz, etc etc etc...  All-in-all, the Tar Heel Sound fest struck me as gutsy.  With little care for genre-fication, it courageously showcased many (sometimes underrepresented) artistic possibilities, and the vast range of musical talent in (or "with ties to") the Triangle. 

True artistic spirit lay behind the creation of this festival, and I look forward to seeing what they come up with next year.

Some Army EP Release (Local 506, 8/22/12)

I went to this show partially because I hadn't seen T0W3RS enough lately (excepting the Saturday CAM show at Hopscotch, at which time I was -- frankly -- burned out on music), and partially because I had heard good words about Some Army.  Gray Young opened... always great frenetic indie-guitar, but I only caught a small part of their set. And I intentionally put my camera up for T0W3RS because -- well, sometimes you've just gotta stop and smell the roses.  Which for someone who does what I do, means "Put the damn camera up and just LISTEN!"  I'm glad I did.  Plus, I've covered them so much here, if I give them too much more press, I'll have to re-label the blog ("H0w 5trang3 it i5..."?).

So this post is about Some Army.

You hear a lot of bands, especially in these parts, that meld Americana with a more indie sound.  That's not unexpected.  Musical history is full of such progressions.  Run DMC taking an Aerosmith lick, Animal Collective adapting Brian Wilson tricks to modern technology.  But it's usually more subtle... so-and-so does something-with-something else, and you get something "original".  Nothing, of course, is ever totally original.  By way of osmosis, even subconsciously, all new music is informed by what others have done in the past.  But you can make something new from something old.  Music would go nowhere without that possibility.

So as I said, you hear a lot of attempts at this particular synthesis.  Indie-Americana. Alt-Country.  Whatever.  But seldom does it register -- to my ears anyway --  as sounding "new".  Some Army, however, do.   It's not just that they sound new.  They sound natural, like there was no intent.  It just came out that way.  I've heard front-man Russell Baggett say he listened to a lot of No Depression stuff and a lot of indie-rock, and you can hear those things.  But it doesn't sound like those things.  Too many bands sound like those things.  Some Army just sounds like Some Army.

Their self-titled EP (pretty much a short LP) starts with the ghostly Servant Tires. The spectral aura is  accentuated by soft keys and a hard, cutting slide.  Baggett's voice is smooth and high, with ever the slightest drawl... perfect for the music. The second cut is the jazzy Business Gee.  It's jazzy in the way that some 70s pop was: almost cheesy, but in the end, simply cool.  The electric piano, the jazz strumming, calls to mind Gerry Rafferty (or maybe it's the similar vocal timbre?).  Beautiful backing vocals from Elysse Thebner, add to that 70s-jazz-pop vibe, and some great lyrics ebb and flow ("There's a time to lead and a time to follow / and everything else in between rings hollow").

Gee has been on "repeat" in my head for the past week or two.  Great song.

Lifting the pleasant fog of the first two numbers comes the crunchier guitar and driving snare of the more upbeat Under the Streetlights.  This cut gains Some Army admission to the VIP room of that buzz-club called 'Gaze.  But more to the point, on the heels of Business Gee, it really showcases the their diversity.  Following the atmospheric segue of Queens, Fall on Your Sword: returns to a slower, cool, environment -- fuzzy and a little jazzy again.  We've Been Lucky and Children of the Maiz close out the CD with perhaps the two rootsiest numbers, Lucky sounding like as less-jangly Dumptruck, and Maiz running Americana through a Kinks/Stones filter.  Quiet slide returns, complimented by soft strumming, and gradually builds to a rousing guitar/drum/organ crescendo. 

This CD is perfect for a quiet fall night out on the porch, which is exactly how I first took it in.  But Some Army are great for a fall night at a club as well, starting with this week's WKNC Local Beer Local Band night at Tir Na Nog. (Oct 4), followed by the Pinhook on Saturday (Oct 4).  Both shows are FREE!

Here are a few photos from the EP release show at Local 506...

Future Islands, Lilac Shadows (Local 506, 7/20/12)

Future Islands scheduled a last-minute show at Local 506 a couple of weeks back.  They asked locals Lilac Shadows to join them... a very appropriate opener.  I've written a couple of times about Lilac Shadows and their great EP, A Shallow Madness.  Suffice it to say their dark, dreamy pop is getting better and better live.  I heard a few new songs in there, and hopefully, they'll be recorded soon.  Here's a few shots of them, and more on Future Islands below.  Thanks to Adam Graetz for the great projection, which has made for some of my best photos in the past (Lilac Shadows, T0W3RS, Jenny Besetzt).  

I hadn't gotten around to seeing Future Islands live.  This band with coastal NC roots now resides in Baltimore, and are usually bunched in with the techno/dance/pop crowd.  Not my usual thing, which probably explains my neglect.  But live, they are some other kind of animal altogether.  Heavy, emotional, almost sinister.  Harsh white floodlights from below added to this effect (as did singer Samuel T. Herring's choice of outfit, intentionally I'm sure). 

Herring's vocals are operatic, romantic, and sad... a Pagliacci for the indie masses.  They're an acquired taste to be sure.  I hated Morrissey once upon a time, and only gave the Smiths a chance because of Johnny Marr's inventive and catchy guitar.  But it didn't take long before I couldn't see one without the other.  And Herring's voice has already grown on me. 

In this setting -- despite minimal instrumentation of bass and electronic miscellany -- he is undoubtendly a ROCK singer in a ROCK band.  This is hard, heady stuff.  He speaks... nay, preaches to the audience, in between hyper-energetic, somewhat awkward jumps and dance moves.  It's an aggressive performance, almost with the feel (though not sound) of hardcore.  Future Islands have a big sound, for sure.  All the more unexpected considering the recent, rather muted, On the Water.  But I LOVE the ocean sounds and overall atmosphere of that album. 

Anyway, here are some photos of Future Islands.  Shades of Joy Division on the last one (well, for the whole show).

Wye Oak - Local 506, 3/12/11

Baltimore duo Wye Oak played to a sold out crowd at Local 506 the other night. Although they've been described as "indie folk", the word "folk" is probably more an artifact of the minimal cast and instrumentation. One listen belies that minimalism. They create a lush, sonically drenched sound that wanders between shoegaze and soaring pop. Think My Bloody Valentine... a pastoral Sonic Youth. Andy Stack works drums, keyboard and loops like he's been doing it for years (and I guess he has), creating a backing band all on his own. Jenn Wasner's crisp, clarion of a voice can be at once soft and intense, and is the focal point of the band's sound. But I hadn't really taken full notice the first time I saw them, that she can really RAWK the guitar. Unfortunately, after this second show of their tour (their first was broadscast live on NPR... that's where all the buzz bands go these days, didn't ya know?), Jenn's voice gave out. There were a few painful looking coughs between lyrics this night. So they've cancelled the next show or two on the tour. Here's hoping she gets better so the rest of the country can enjoy the great show they gave Chapel Hill.

Here's a few pics of the show.