The
countdown continues…
35.
The Cannanes
Small Batch EP
(Lamingtone/EXROFM)
I know that
I never consciously thought this, but I was pretty sure that I would never be
buying a Cannanes collection again. I
have so many random 7” singles from them from the early 90s, along with (all
that’s left anyway) their amazing Caveat
Emptor CD that features the amazing “Broken Bottles.” They were always all over the map, both
musically, and literally all over the map with releases coming from every
corner of the globe on the tiniest of labels and in various formats. It was impossible to keep up with them – not
to mention that much of what they would record would be released years after
the fact, so there was no way to gauge their actual genuine progression as a
band. Eventually, I gave up and they
eventually disappeared. Yet, here we
are, twenty years after the last record I purchased from them and with no idea
what they’ve been up to. Whatever the
case, somehow I learned of new music of theirs last spring and liked what I
heard. This Small Batch EP is made up of a surprisingly groovy group of six
songs. I say surprisingly, because what
I remember from them is lo-fi ramshackle, pretty and amateurish true indie
pop. They made the kind of music that
was straight from the heart, with little regard to consistent tempos through
songs, or ability to actually play their instruments proficiently. When they happened upon a great idea, this
approach was amazing and heartwarming or wrenching, depending on the message of
the lyrics. They also have always had
the very unique and wonderful voice of Frances Gibson. It’s Frances Gibson and her sweet vocals
along with the only other original member Stephen O’Neil who guide us through
this new direction. The opening “Bumper”
has a jaunty beat, a steady repetitive bass line and some really cool trumpet
fills and a jazzy keyboard improv toward the end, as Gibson sings “Is it worth
another try? My friends don’t think so.”
Could she be referring to her own band?
Next up is the crawling “Crawler” – which opens with the line “let’s
break bottles / let’s jump off chairs / I’ll do that much to show I care” as
Gibson details a fractured relationship over some yearning guitar
plucking. This is a beautiful song that
reminds most of what I remember from a long time ago – aside from the strong
musicianship that is. Then, “Basics”
returns to the steady beat of “Bumper” and provides another winning track, as
does the more straightforward indie feel of “Tiny Compartment.” Meanwhile, “Molecule” hits with a huge deep
bass drum throb, a grinding bass line and some quiet trumpet. Aside from a barely there conversation, this
is a dubby dance mix. Lastly, “Zone”
opens with trumpets blaring just before a trip hop beat bursts in – giving off
a “Step On” Happy Mondays vibe and
the repeated lyric “you’re confusing me.”
I agree, because I’m confused, though completely impressed. I love the new directions, and that they have
kept their songs in bite sized nuggets – none of these surpass three and a half
minutes. This is a great small batch of
songs!
The band
also released their first full length in about 11 years, but I have not yet
tracked that down. It seems as though
(with a new single out as well) they are back in full force with their crazy
release schedule.
34.
Cinerama
“I Wake Up Screaming” 7”
(Artificial
Head)
The Wedding Present
“Two Bridges” 7”
(Scopitones)
Nothing
makes sense anymore. There’s a new
Cinerama single and it’s on a tiny Texas
label. The Wedding Present have been
touring relentlessly for the better part of the last two years in support of
their winning 2012 album Valentina
and various anniversaries of their older material. And yet, here we are with new material under
Gedge’s other band, Cinerama. Cinerama
came about at the end of the 90s when Gedge changed his musical direction quite
drastically and started recording more orchestral baroque pop style songs with
his then girlfriend Sally Murrell. Over
the course of three albums, several line-up changes and about six years, they
were starting to sound like the Wedding Present again, so that seemed to be the
end. There are generally Cinerama songs
performed at their shows, but now we got this new one and it sounds pretty much
exactly like a less loud Wedding Present song.
It’s just all so confusing. Having
said that, “I Wake Up Screaming” is vintage Gedge, as he builds up an overwhelming
jealousy in his dreams only to realize that what he’s been overlooking all the
time. In other words, it all goes poorly
as usual. The B-side is a live version
of “Unzip” from their 2000 Disco Volante
album and it’s oddly a hushed version for a live one. A very good recording, however.
Meanwhile,
the new (mostly) tour only available Wedding Present 7” comes along soon
after. This new song picks up right
where Valentina left off, with some
classic buzzing and quick strumming work before transitioning into the angular
tempo changes that were all over that last album. Despite the shifting moments and at least 45
full seconds of feedback at the end, this is as catchy and memorable as ever –
handclaps and all. The B-side is a cover
of Wreckless Eric’s “Whole Wide
World” (a famous 1977 new wave/punk era classic ballad) and sounds like an
outtake from late 80s Wedding Present full speed ahead and so good to hear that
unbelievably fast electric strum again.
33.
Defiance, Ohio
The Calling EP
(No Idea)
It’s been a
few years since I’ve heard from this Midwestern folk-punk collective (their
fourth album Midwestern Minutes was
my #10 pick of 2010 seen here). I know very little about them other than
their music, but that’s pretty much what matters, right? I first encountered their second album,
2006’s The Great Depression, and
instantly fell for their heartfelt array of personal/political tunes performed
with mostly acoustic instruments (including great violin and piano) and a fun
collaborative feel where every member adds vocals and I’m guessing lyrics. This strength gives them a wonderful variety
without losing their cohesiveness. This
new EP, which apparently was released via free downloads on their website some
time ago, appeared late this last summer and I was excited to truck down to 2nd Avenue Records and pick
up the vinyl. That mission alone always
leads me back to my younger days of buying multiple punk 45s from there based
on label, or cover art or “I think I heard these guys were cool” or from the
various compilations that used to add to my shopping list and maybe that’s what
I kind of like about this band. I love
their passion and desire to truly find answers to social and political
problems. They have that energy that
idealism that I far too often I have lost with age. The opening song, “The Calling” even
addresses this – the progression into soul sucking routine: “Monday morning
drag your feet again / can you feel it? That’s the crawling of your skin,”
which they valiantly fight against and hopefully encourage us all to do the
same (“This is the part where I dig my heels in my heels / dig my own
rut”). Next up is the helpless feeling
protest song “I’m Against the Government” whose obvious title cuts at
itself. It’s not offering any solutions
by throwing up their hands with the question “what do you do with a council full
of charlatans?” before concluding with the painfully obvious and silly line “I
might not ever be the president.” Side
one closes with “Call it a Comeback,” which reminds so much of their work on
the last two albums. There are many
tempo changes and moments of quiet reflection housed with a weeping violin,
before exploding into a rousing chorus.
Side two opens with the strong “Horizon Lines, Volume and Infinity” – a
song that is musically complex (though I could do without the orchestral Beatles style break during the final
verse), and lyrically brilliant. What
makes their messages so perfectly relatable is how they house them in songs
filled with personal imagery and they never preach. This song is about friendship and memories
and realizing their own limitations (“At times I’d like a map to what I cannot
comprehend – but infinite cartographer, your trusted magic pen can only ink
against the edge of understanding”).
Finally, the brief acoustic “Bad Ideas” builds into a nice little
sing-a-long ditty, while the closing song “I’m Just Going to Leave Now” is a
re-recording of one of their earliest songs in honor of their 10th
anniversary as a band and it shows how good they’ve been all along. This stuff should be heard by more
people. Check them out, please.
32.
Ex Cops
True Hallucinations
(Other
Music)
The first LP
from NYC’s is a brief foray into all kinds of sounds and directions and I was
initially drawn in by their two minute chiming guitar burner “You Are a Lion, I
Am a Lamb.” The twin breathy vocals of
songwriter Brian Harding and Amelie Bruun lift this song up to fantastic
heights. The first half of the album is
full of these short moments of pure pop that land somewhere between the modern
revivalist Raveonettes and the UK dream pop
heroes Pale Saints. This is a good thing. Aside from the menacing instrumental that
opens the album, the next five songs are all different ways to achieve this pure
pop bliss. “James” has Harding sounding
a lot like the Pale Saints’ Ian Masters
during the heavy beat and dreamy echo-laden guitars of the verses, while the
chorus explodes in hyper driven “woo woos” on top of a Lacquer-era Popsicle bed
of noise. While “James” and “Spring
Break (Birthday Song)” pull out moments of harmonies born from the Beach Boys
and place them easily into the modern age.
It isn’t until the second half of this collection that the band expands
their sound a little more freely. “Jazz
& Information” is a slow builder with bluesy guitars that shifts into a
really strong catchy tune along the lines of Spiritualized which includes some killer saxophone guiding it
home. Things start to lose focus as the
collection continues. The hazy “The
Millionaire” wallows in the clouds with obscured vocals and a promising melody,
but it’s not enough to break from the fog, meanwhile the fun closing number
“Broken Chinese Chairz” contains similarly altered vocals, but instead this one
zips along with an excited energy.
“Separator” is the mid tempo gem that is the secret weapon of this
album. It is hummable, has a nice guitar
hook, a Kim Deal-like bass line and a dreamy and glowing chorus. I can never figure out why I don’t hear music
like this on the radio. Oh yeah, I gave
up on radio a long long time ago. This
is a varied, promising, and inspired debut that could only be boosted by a
bigger sound. If they can find the
incredible Hugh Jones to produce
their next album, we may be treated to something extra special.
31.
British Sea Power
Machineries of Joy
(Rough
Trade)
British Sea
Power’s fifth album is another perplexing collection. I am coming to realize more and more that
they are probably an acquired taste and one that I was sort of born with. In other words, I like them, but I’m not sure
that they will ever really find anything outside of their rabid small
audience. They are simply too obscure,
despite their big arena rock type moments (especially seen on 2008’s Do You Like Rock Music?), or my
favorite, the focused pop moments of 2005’s Open
Season. With 2011’s epic and chaotic
Valhalla Dancehall (my #21 pick seen here), I think they simply embraced
their eccentricities and went nuts with it.
This is probably a good thing, but no less inconsistent and
confusing. Luckily, Machineries of Joy has some of their best songs to date and some of
the most subdued. Plus this collection
is thankfully much more concise. Now
that the string work from Abi Fry has officially joined the band, there is an
added cinematic quality to their sound that adds warmth and comfort (no wonder
they’ve been tapped for two soundtracks so far). The opening title track is absolutely
excellent. It sputters and builds slowly
and never fully crescendos, but rather floats us into a trance inducing
bliss. “K-Hole” continues their long
history of short bursts of chant along shout outs, as does “Monsters of
Sunderland.” It’s amazing how they can
get one to sing happily along with a catchy chorus from a song full of obscure
historical and scientific references, but they do. Notice the “Radio Goddard” title is not
referencing the legendary film director Jean-Luc
Godard, but rather likely the physicist, and inventor of the first liquid
fueled rocket, Robert Goddard. But
it’s still a song with a nice sentiment and it’s educational too, because I
cannot help but look up some of their mentions and allusions. Another favorite is the quiet “A Light Above
Descending,” which is probably too cleverly wordy, but still somehow finds its
way into the consciousness long after listening. Unfortunately, there are three musical duds
here. “Hail Holy Queen,” “Spring Has
Sprung,” and the closing “When a Warm Wind Blows Through the Grass” all have
the components – beautiful soundscapes, and poetic lyrics, but they don’t seem
to add up to memorable songs. Despite
this, it is the high points here that win out and will keep me coming back for
more from this intriguing and perplexing band.
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