CT Indie

Review: The Willow & The Builder

2012-01-25T02:29:00.004-05:00

The Willow & The Builder have a sound. It is a shrill sound, and a pounding sound. A drone, and a staccato.

Drums tuned low pound with tambourine accompaniment as guitars and pianos arpeggio whimsical progressions with virtuosic precision, all the while lithe vocals dance about the foreground of this sonic tapestry, describing in some detail, amongst other things, love, longing, and tea parties held precariously – and inadvisably – amidst the high branches of a tree.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://thewillowandthebuilder.bandcamp.com/album/the-willow-the-builder"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The Willow &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp; The Builder by The Willow &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp; The Builder&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

If this sounds as if it resembles the soundtrack to an iPad commercial, it is because The Willow & The Builder would sound very much at home there, or perhaps even more so amongst the other artists the folks over at iTunes consider “Indie”. Acoustic guitars and pounding pianos, tambourine-topped tom toms, and wispy vocals, the eight songs of their self-titled album are very much reflective of what is stylishly indie these days, the kind of music you’d expect was recorded by candlelight in a barn on a warm summer’s night in rural New England.

It’s certainly catchy, but it may attract the derision of those who think of “indie” and “eclectic” as equivalent terms. If you are one of these people, you may find yourself wanting, for if there is such a thing as an “indie” mold, then The Willow & The Builder fits snugly therein. Theirs is the safe and tried path, and while they do what they do extremely well, they are not for the listener seeking Indie’s next big thing.

But, if you like the musings of, say, the Decemberists, Feist, or Ingrid Michaelson, you’ll like The Willow & The Builder, and with their songwriting expertise and professional production they won’t seem like a weak facsimile thereof, but a potent contender for airplay. With a “name your price” scheme attached to the sale of their album, there’s really excuse for not giving them a sincere listen.

Track: Snake Oil - I Have the Fury of my Own Momentum

2012-01-09T13:59:00.000-05:00

Great track by Snake Oil. "I Have the Fury of my Own Momentum," is off the band's newest release; a two track, self-titled 7" EP. Snake Oil is an instrumental band, and you'd probably guess, judging from their song title, that they sound a lot like Explosions in the sky... well, actually they sound nothing like Explosions in the Sky. There is a slight Post-Rock undertone about the record; however, it seems that the band take more of their influence from groups such as Tortoise and Don Caballero. And, quite possibly, Daybed--a Connecticut band circa 1998.

Buy Vinyl (free digital as well)

Snake Oil I HAVE THE FURY OF MY OWN MOMENTUM. by CTINDIE

Royal Baths w/ Jane Jane Pollock, and Jacques Le Coque @ BAR

2012-01-05T13:05:00.000-05:00

Free show at BAR (254 Crown St, New Haven, CT 06511)

January 11th @ 9pm

* Royal Baths

* Jane Jane Pollock

* Jacques Le Coque

Royal Baths
Jeremy Cox and Jigmae Baer started Royal Baths without a plan in mind but soon the foundation for their writing found inspiration from Cox's interest in the alternate and open tunings of delta blues, their shared fascination in the African rhythm of early Chicago blues, and Baer lyrically attempting to reflect with black humor and little judgment, and the thrills and troubles they stumble through.

Recording on whatever cheap four or single-track cassette recorder they could find, they eventually borrowed a Tascam 388 to make their first 7". The unexpected encouragement of the 7" drove Cox and Baer to perform their first show in a basement in San Francisco's Chinatown. Six months later they began work on Litanies, their debut full length released on Woodsist.

The band began touring before the album was released, opening for bands the first two of which Baer had previously been a member: first with Thee Oh Sees, next Ty Segall, the Fresh and Onlys, and Wild Flag. The Royal Baths went on their first headlining tour after that, where they found inspiration to write their second full-length record, to be completed this time in a studio on higher quality 2" analog tape. They declared the recording process complete only when their meager bank accounts were drained and they had borrowed too much money. Although the Royal Baths developed amidst the encouragement of friends in San Francisco's garage scene they felt stifled by comparisons to a movement where their sound didn't belong to, so they upped and moved to New York to assert their sound. The album Better Luck Next Life is set to be released by Kanine Records on February 7, 2012.
Kanine Records
Mp3s: http://www.myspace.com/baths

Royal Baths - Darling Divine by mexicanrobots

Jane Jane Pollock
Jane Jane Pollock is an experimental-pop quintet that formed in Northern Florida and Southern Georgia. We border hop for our slumber party practices in a comfy trailer hidden in the woods of Thomasville, GA. The sound of our music ranges from a haunted carnival to a hyper moldy children's toy marching band. Pots and Pans, glockenspiel, mandolin, space echo, Wandering Genie organ, Wurlitzer electric piano, jangly guitars, drum machines, 2 female vocals and 1 male crooner comprise our sound. The rest is a mystery.
Mp3s: http://janejanepollock.bandcamp.com/

Jacques Le Coque
Born out of a 60's nuggets and Velvet Underground open mic cover band, four young Connecticut lads quickly transformed into the raw, dirty, garage punkers they were meant to be, Jacques Le Coque. Two years and a hundred shows later, the band now thrives as a two piece, calling to mind Cramps/Ty Segall style surf grit with fuzzed out melodic burners and Back From the Grave era vigor. Garage Punque. Jacques Le Coque.
Mp3s: http://www.myspace.com/jacqueslecoque

2 TON BUG = WTF?!?! = X-D

2012-01-01T18:09:00.003-05:00

2 Ton Bug is heady! It's a combination of VERY different sounds, in an amalgam of VERY different moods and teetering the line of silly and serious. When I first listened to their LP "Wedding of the Century" it sorta left me scratching my head. I couldn't seem to make heads nor tails of it because it conjured a bunch of different flavors of memories and influences. It was just straight up unusual. Then once I got past MY issues with the combination, the pop set in. This is easily one of the catchiest LP's out in CT last year! It has something for everybody: strong dancability, blues riffage (and other southwestern bits), noisy feedback and other sonic landscapes for people of different musical backgrounds and tastes.

The opening track is called "Time Trabblin'" and is a barn burner, taking place inside a burning barn! A mad riff breakdown takes this track to the next level near the halfway point. "Tank Wipe" has immense intensity for busting out your speakers. All songs stand out specifically as party songs but for some reason I feel "Follow the 2 Ton Bug" stands out as a super hit. Allie belts out the shouty awesomeness as the song chugs along like a freight train. "Meth Mouth" is like an old punk rock song set through the 2 Ton Bug filter. "Upgraded" it would seem.

Here is a brief and appropriate Q/A with the band via email:

how do you write your songs?
My grandpa taught us all the songs on Wedding of the Century at a pool party, except for "Follow the 2 Ton Bug" which is just a direct musical transcription of some sick Egyptian hieroglyphics.

what are your recording techniques?
We try to do all our recording in Mike's mobile mixing unit, at various checkpoints on I-84.

do you have any more recordings coming out in the near future?
We will have a fresh new LP coming out for 2012 once we find out from the record company how much it will cost to get 9 songs pressed to a gigantic cookie AND whether we wanna call the record "Tummy Troubles", "The Computer Chronicles" or "ASS WARD"

when is the very next time we can see you play live??!?!?!
I think we're playing at the Flywheel in Easthampton on January 5th, BUT you can always see 2 Ton Bug within the laughter and bonding of families all across Connecticut.

There you have it. Get on board and follow the 2 Ton Bug

2 Ton Bug - Wedding of the Century - 05 Follow the 2 Ton Bug by CTINDIE

THE GURU RETURN TO WOODBURY DECEMBER 30!

2011-12-21T06:24:00.004-05:00

Remember the summer? Recall a little band by the name of The Guru? I'm sure you do as they were blowing up all over the state. Not to mention their album Native Sun was so good we covered it TWICE! Well now they are back home from college for a few weeks and are playing an ENORMOUS show in Woodbury on December 30th.

The lineup is extensive and the cost is only $5 so there is really no excuse anyone can make for not attending. From the look of the Facebook Event, it looks like well over 200 people are already going.

Looks like the secret is out!

So here is the lineup with tentative set start times:

White Savages - 6:45pm

white savages - the fucking documentary trailer from Kyle Rodgers on Vimeo.

Madson - 7:20pm

The Hiya Dunes - 8:00pm

High Pop - 8:40pm

Lovers and Thieves - 9:20pm

The Guru - 10:00pm

The new owner of Woodbury Music Shop will also be there doing raffles and giving away free things!

December 30, 2011 at
Old Town Hall
5 Mountain Rd, Woodbury

Facebook Event Page

The Guru - Barracuda Hands by CTINDIE

Review: Profesa' Dibbs

2011-12-19T00:07:00.005-05:00

Hip hop, as a genre, it seems, has done nothing of late but slowly and deliberately collapse under the dead weight of its own provocative and iterative tendencies. Ten years ago, it was new and threatening. Today, it is comical at best, but more often than not, sadly pathetic. What was once a sharpened edge of wit and social commentary is now nothing more than an open forum for the arrogant and the foolish. Case in point: whereas Snoop Dogg once rapped about what it's like to be a gangsta, Jay-Z now raps about what it is like to be a corporate officer, and whereas A Tribe Called Quest once rapped about the struggles inherent to urban black youth, Lil’ Jon now raps about his testicles.

Let’s be realistic. How many times can we hear the same recycled beat and still be excited to hear it? How many times can we hear a man speak passionately and enthusiastically about his generative organs, and the novel ways in which he seeks to employ them upon the opposite sex, and still be shocked? Did we really expect this train to ride on forever?

Sadly enough, it seems like it will. Despite being utter crap, moronic anthems to wanton greed and puerility are still topping the charts. This success, however, runs in much the same vein as the Call of Duty series of video games. It sells more and more copies with each successive – and infinitely less-inspired – sequel because there just isn’t anything else on the market.

Or is there?

Hip hop is a young genre, in the grand scheme of things. It didn’t achieve mainstream popularity until the late eighties and early nineties. Coincidentally, it was right around this time rock music had hit a similar level of stagnation, and those of us with more “refined” tastes were looking towards the emerging genre of alternative rock to save us from the hair-spray chugging metalhead morons who were ruining rock music and destroying the ozone layer at the same time.

Hip hop, I would argue, is at about this point, and I should hope the masked horsemen of underground hip hop should be riding in at any moment to save the day.

Well, maybe not. But there is always Profesa’ Dibbs…

He doesn’t have a ton of money. He doesn’t drive a fancy car. He doesn’t skeet, skeet, skeet. He doesn’t “oooooookay!” or “yeah!”. He doesn’t rap about his label – because he doesn’t have a label. Neither does he have an album, or an EP, or even a single. What he does have, however, is a collection of songs, completely free, for your enjoyment. They can be found here.

Because Profesa’ Dibbs doesn’t charge money for his music, and because I base my reviews largely on the premise music consumption is an expensive pastime, it would be hard for me not to recommend giving Dibbs a listen. In fact, in the absence of cost as a mitigating factor, I cannot think of a single reason why people shouldn’t. What harm could it do?

However, if you require more convincing, please read on.

Profesa’ Dibbs is much like any other underground/old school hip hop act. Grainy, dry beats drive the songs, which are augmented by sampling which, in the scope of the genre, is fairly sparse. What sets Dibbs apart from his peers, however, is copious helpings of (presumably) Dibbs’ own piano and guitar playing. They certainly don’t sound like samples ripped from old James Brown tunes. This is not to say, however, that Profesa’ Dibbs is just another pompous, destined-to-fail crossover act. The instrumentation is deployed in a very hip hop way, so much, in fact, the bluesy guitar bends and jazzy Rhodes chords almost sound sampled.

Slathered Apron (aka the blues note) by Profesa' Dibbs

Dibbs’ lyrical styling is iterative of the underground movement. No bitches or hos here. No crunk or grinding, or booty-shaking permitted. This is adult swim, and the lyrical pool is noticeably uncontaminated with the obstreperous splashing and hawing of puerile children. Dibbs raps about life, about politics, about the metaphysical. While this may seem novel to those accustomed to Lil Wayne’s particular brand of vodka, it will seem wholly unoriginal to those who have already committed themselves to underground rap. His are the words of the rapper/poets, like Saul Williams or Sage Francis, and his words have been spoken, and recorded, before. Still, Profesa’ Dibbs is probably one of the region’s better hip hop acts, especially so when one considers all the Top 40 imitators who plague Hartford like a bad case of the clap.

Snapped Ring Finger by Profesa' Dibbs

So, if you’re looking for break from the self-indulgent self-immolation of modern mainstream hip hop – or if you’re just looking for a decent local act – Profesa’ Dibbs is well worth your time, especially when you consider it won’t cost you anything. If you’re an underground veteran, Dibbs won’t offer much in the way of new material or techniques, but he’s a good listen, nonetheless.

SoundCloud: Profesa' Dibbs

Joe To The World (And ALLIE!)

2011-12-18T17:31:00.001-05:00

Imagine my surprise when I get a message from Joe of 2 Ton Bug that he and bandmate Allie have put together a Holiday Themed side project! This is funny/odd because I am in the process of reviewing the 2 Ton Bug LP (which is amazing!). So Joe links me to a bandcamp for "Joe To The World (And ALLIE!) with their first eponymous collection of songs. 8 "Snow-Fi" Yuletide Favorites from the FUTURE!!!
I love it so much and you will too. Definitely some strange home recorded stuff with bundle of seasonal cheer (for those of you into that!)

GO BUY IT HERE! You can name your own price and the proceeds go to the Connecticut Cat Connection!

Joe To the World (And ALLIE!) - This Christmas Season by CTINDIE

Dumpster Diving with Mr. Dream

2011-12-18T09:37:00.001-05:00

Interview and article by Ryan Sartor

On Friday, November 18th, I saw Mr. Dream perform at the small Milford, CT music venue of Daniel Street. Before they took the stage, I was only aware of Mr. Dream as “those three Pitchfork writers who became musicians.” Such a description fails to do the band justice, especially since bass player Matt Morello has never written for Pitchfork. When Mr. Dream pulled into town, they had no idea that this gig would take place at a soon to be shuttered venue (and neither did the audience). Alas, it was announced two weeks ago that Daniel Street is being sold on January 3rd, 2012 to a buyer who plans to transform the space into a pizza parlor/hip-hop club. As far as funerals go, Mr. Dream band members Adam Moerder, Matt Morello, and Nick Sylvester sent Daniel Street out on a high note, engaging with their few passionate fans, and ignoring the vast majority—ambivalent philistines, sipping beers from atop padded bar stools. Adam, Matt and Nick seemed oblivious to their chilly surroundings, having more fun on stage than seemed necessary or fair. Such unbridled enthusiasm is so rare in music (and life) and I felt compelled to speak with the band about the 2011 debut album Trash Hit, their distinct sound (which can best be described as “garbage pop”), and why they only use a Boss EX-2 Guillotine sustain pedal (rather than an EX-3).

Ryan Sartor: When I saw you perform at Daniel Street, I was quite unaware of Mr. Dream, but upon listening to the first song, I became instantly enthralled. How important has touring been to your band?

Matt Morello (vocals, bass guitar): Well, first of all, thanks a lot. I think that’s one of the main things you’re hoping for on the road, that someone’s going to get excited about what you’re doing, the songs, what your idea of a show is. Hopefully lots of someones. Getting out and doing it night after night you learn a ton, not just from playing the songs a lot, but because you have so much new shit to deal with every night--like at that Milford show, we had some issues with Adam’s guitar, and there was that cool ledge to jump off of at the front of the stage, and this really receptive core group up front but also this big, maybe-indifferent sports bar in the back, and every night it’s just like, alright, here we go.

R: The most obvious translation of “Trash Hit” is a really bad, successful song. I’m sure that view is too simplistic though. What were you guys aiming for with that song, and how did it being the title track inform the rest of the album?

Adam Moerder (vocals, guitar): No that view is totally valid and not at all simplistic! We liked the ethos of “Trash Hit” (feel free to start making exaggerated masturbation gestures here) because we felt like garbage men. A lot of music that’s trendy right now can be (and has been) called pretty, chill, hazy, etc, and we feel like we’re collecting all the dirty stuff that everyone discarded long ago.

Nick Sylvester (drums, producer): But in the same breath, “Trash Hit” is also a joke on Mr. Dream. “It’s not my cup of tea but what the hey.”

M: The guy in the song thinks he’s doing a diss track about us in a diss track that happens to be about him.

R: I feel that a listener needs to be much more sophisticated than I am to pick up on the musical references in your work. The Pixies and Husker Du are probably the two more mainstream examples. I think that if those two bands were concerned with using pop music and stretching it out, Mr. Dream is about going one step further, poking your head out on the other side—past pop music, past “power pop,” and into something else. Do you allow yourselves to be aware of the musical history that led to the music you’re making, and how does that knowledge inform your work?

A: Every musician is painstakingly aware of his musical lineage. Some namecheck their influences constantly and even admit whom they’re copping, others like to give off the impression that they don’t even know who the Beatles are, like they’re operating in a vacuum of their own musical genius or something, but rest assured all of them know their history. And...we’re no different.

M: I think there’s a sense of possibility that comes from having listened to a ton of great things, and a sense of purpose from wanting to hear more of certain things that might not get made if you don’t make them. You get ideas as well as encouragement that there’s room for what you do.

R: I was quite glad to have Ryan Kattner push me to the front of the venue right before you guys took the stage. He seems like a fun guy to be around. How has it been touring with Mister Heavenly?

N: Ryan, Nick, and Joe were super supportive. They watched our set what had to be almost every night and--yes--did stuff like push people all they way up to the front of the house. That’s not something the headliner usually does.

M: Those guys are masters of that sort of thing, connecting with a crowd, making a show work. They’ll also close and re-close your van if you forget to take the key out of your pocket and keep accidentally hitting the trunk-open button during your set.

R: I wrote this at Daniel Street: “Mr. Dream is an ideal tour mate for Mister Heavenly. They have the lyrical fun of Jonathan Richman, the casual vocals of punks, and the tight awareness of melody and energy that you’d hope for from any decent pop band.” Has Jonathan Richman been an influence on your band? Are there any specific punk bands you guys admire?

N: Modern Lovers’ Jonathan Richman is a different beast from solo Jonathan Richman, but all that Modern Lovers stuff is pitch perfect. He figured out a way to be punk but without being nihilistic, pop without being dumb, smart without being pretentious. I like that guy fine.

M: We’re not hardcore kids by any means, but I think we’ve all had plenty of holy-shit moments with punk bands via recordings or YouTube. Wipers, Black Flag, Minutemen, Descendents, the Dictators, Fugazi if you count them, it’d be a long list.

N: Wire, Pil, Killing Joke. The usual suspects.

R: You seemed to have more fun onstage than any band has a right to, the rhythm section in particular. What’s the key to your ecstatic energy at a venue?

A: This’ll sound stupid, but we try to write songs that we can get excited about playing night in and night out. We’re not making music to study or fall asleep to.

R: I’m really curious as to what you guys will sound like in five years. Do you think that you’ll mellow out a la Nada Surf, or go deeper into the rougher aspects of your sound?

M: Five years is a long time. I think by that time, probably a lot of stuff with contact microphones, vintage tape effects, that sort of thing. Really expensive stuff.

N: Exactly. By then the music will have taken a backseat to Matt and Adam’s modeling careers.

R: Perhaps lingering too much on the album title Trash Hit, I began to think of your music as “garbage pop,” meaning that you have these beautiful melodies and fantastic harmonies, and you bury them under a heap. I find that in digging down to the core of each song, everything I pass along the way is fascinating. Was your album structured this way by design?

N: We’re never asked this kind of question, which is weird considering how much time we (and clearly you too) thought about it. But yes. By design. We like range. That said, I don’t think we buried anything pretty on Trash Hit so much as we just tried to have really strong contrasts. That means within the album--so you have a song like “Knick Knack” and also a song like “Walter”--and also within each song too. To say nothing of the lyrics and vocal melody. The rawest lyrics tend to be attached to the catchiest vocal melodies. Stuff like that.

R: “Crime” is an especially melodic song—very, very catchy. It feels in some ways slightly more accessible than the rest of the album. Did you know when you recorded ‘Crime’ that it would be a single?

N: We didn’t really know until we recorded and mixed it. “Crime” felt pretty puny when we practiced it. But songs with less going on can sound huge when you record them.

R: In “Scarred for Life” and “Holy Name” there is a repeating of phrases: “The same, the same, the same” and “It never made sense to me.” Is that structure planned out while writing the lyrics, or does the music inform the repetition?

N: I don’t remember the specifics with either, like if Adam or Matt went into lyric writing mode with the idea that “OK I want to make sure I repeat phrases this song.” But we all love when lyrics and arrangement communicate with each other like that--poke fun at each other, undermine each other, etc. Matt singing “the same!” over and over again. Stuff like that. Lennon and McCartney are the kings of this obviously.

R: The lyric in “Shotgun Tricks,” “Honey, go get my shotgun” is quite evocative. Do you think of these lyrics as coming from a character, are they metaphorical, or are they just the words that best pair with the energy of the song?

N: The way I always understood this song was that it’s from the perspective of a person who really, really gives a shit about being good with shotguns. “It’s not a game to me.” Like shotgun virtuosity past the point of functionality, let alone past the point of people caring. Caring to the detriment of relationships outside the one with the gun.

R: Mr. Dream the live band and Mr. Dream on record song like different acts to me. What you’re doing on the album feels very specific and I admire the care that goes into its construction. The live show displays a similar attention to musicianship, but there’s also this raw energy that I don’t think could ever be pinned down on tape. An example of this is the opening guitar riff on “Winners,” which sounds technically wondrous on record, but almost sliced off the top of my head when Adam played it live. I don’t mean it as a way of disparaging the album, but I’m just wondering if the differences between album and live performance are intentional, beyond the usual ways that a live show and album will always be different things?

A: We got a lot better at playing our instruments since recording Trash Hit. Also, my equipment in particular has drastically improved. I’m now playing out of a ‘65 Fender Bassman. It’s a super loud amp and does a great job of cutting through live. The near-decapitation you experienced during “Winners” can be attributed to my new sustain pedal, the Boss EX-2 Guillotine.

N: You want to make sure you get the EX-2. The EX-3 has different capacitors and it’s--it’s fine but it’s not an EX-2.

R: How did the song “Knick Knack” come together lyrically?

A: I was listening to a lot of British invasion music and thought it was funny how there were all these really sweet, catchy songs with really harsh lyrics directed at a girl (e.g. the Rolling Stones’ “Yesterday’s Paper”). I don’t condone the message, I just wanted to try writing one of those “I’m awesome, you’re shit” songs.

R: The rumbling guitar in “Croquet,” and the song in general, with its refrain of “Oh my god” and lyrics like “It’s all just a game” feels really exuberant, tragic, and epic all at the same time. Did the song affect you guys emotionally the first time you heard it completed, or at some point during the songwriting process?

A: Our friend Matt LeMay mixed that song. In its early, lyric-less drafts the song was something of a joke to us. We’d sing the chorus as “They’re ice bros/Bros icing bros/they’re ice bros”, so the first time we heard a finished mix we were surprised it sounded like an actual song.

R: There is a spectacular amount of verbal fun being had on the closing track, “Learn The Language.” What is the lyrical aim of the band in general?

A: We don’t have an official band philosophy on writing lyrics, but our vocals are pretty front and center, so we try to make them evocative when we can. Anything that’d look good on a t-shirt typically works.

R: I would remiss if I did not mention Adam and Nick’s history writing about rock music [for the site Pitchfork, as well as other publications], though I may not even put it in the piece as it seems distracting and beside the point and I imagine you guys are sick of discussing it. All that being said, how has your background in music journalism affected your songwriting?

A: It really hasn’t at all. The two processes aren’t really that similar.

N: Ditto. People seem to overestimate how much music journalists actually know about music.

R: I got a real kick out of Matt yelling, “What is this, the fucking Sea Grape in Fairfield?” Have you guys ever played at the Sea Grape, or do you have a personal story from that bar, Matt?

M: We have never played the Sea Grape. I dated a girl from Fairfield for a while, and I know we went once or twice but it’s always been more of a running joke for us, how her friends referred to going to the bar as “graping it,” which in turn we supposed made them “grapists,” etc. Arija was actually supposed to come that night but couldn’t because she was busy with med school. So basically, the story of our band: inside jokes for someone who’s not there, overheard by other people who get them anyways.

Broadcast Hearts, Ghost of Chance @ Elm Bar FRIDAY DECEMBER 23

2011-12-17T16:44:00.006-05:00

Ghost of Chance are an experimental rock band based in New Haven, Connecticut. The group’s distinctive style is characterized by subtle time signature changes and sonically open experimentation set to surrealist lyrics. Ghost of Chance’s sound takes its influence from 1960s psychedelica, math rock and post punk while maintaining the shimmer of classic pop sensibilities.

Broadcast Hearts is a four-piece, alternative rock band from Trumbull, Connecticut. Formed in 2009, the group comprises Avery Bazan (lead vocals, piano), Chris Parian (synth, backing vocals), Justin Molfese (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Ted Ferik (drums).

Noted for their guitar-less set, the keys-based group engages a dynamic sound and style, drawing influence from acts such as Coldplay, Keane, Jack's Mannequin, and Ben Folds. Contrasted by leading piano and synths, the band presents a wide range of music from anthems to ballads. While still young, the band has enjoyed early success in various venues across Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and New York.

ELM BAR

372 Elm St, New Haven, CT 06511-4711

9pm 21+ $3

ghostofchance by GhostofChance

The Fake Babies – Don’t Hold Your Breath

2011-12-16T09:37:00.001-05:00

The Fake Babies, with their late era Modest Mouse/Walkmen-esque vocals, processed drum machines, and haunting synths, create an interesting, artful, and noisy electronic song. The 4-piece, based out of New Haven, Conn., has just begun working on a new LP. Keep your eyes peeled for more stuff by these guys.

Fake Babies - Dont Hold Your Breath by CTINDIE

Charter Oak, Back in the Game

2011-12-12T10:34:00.005-05:00

This is Robert Denby posting for Mr. Andrew Jackson.

The Charter Oak Cultural Center is continuing their tradition of top shelf indie rock shows now in a slightly cozier setting. For the past year, the Oak has been hosting Indie Nights in the Gallery below the sanctuary roughly once per month. The new venue is accessed by the red side door, giving it a decidedly underground feel. This month, the night to remember is Saturday, December 17.

The line up features an all local cast including:

Ghost in your Basement from Torrington

Ports of Spain from New Haven

Pools are Nice from Orange

and getting back together for their second last show ever, the briefly lived Hartford based band

Girls in the Boy Scouts

Doors open at 8 pm and lasts until it is finished.

As always a door fee of 6$ or 5$ and a canned veggie to donate to Hartford Food Not Bombs is suggested.

Charter Oak Cultural Center
21 Charter Oak Avenue
Hartford, CT 06106

Ghost In Your Basement - Basements EP - 01 Basements Pt. 1 & 2 by CTINDIE

Kyuss Lives! At Toads Place December 8

2011-12-07T13:13:00.000-05:00

Sometimes it seems as if a band’s influence trumps its record sales. Okay, maybe this doesn’t apply to the Beatles, but look at bands like the Stooges and the Velvet Underground, who both helped inspire certain forms of music long after their original shot of glory. You can claim that both laid down the blueprint for other musical styles to follow.

When Kyuss busted out of the California desert in the late 80’s/early 90’s, their slowed down and ultra heavy take on hardcore, combined with a deft sense of dynamics and killer songwriting laid down a blueprint for a whole generation of bands to follow.

They released four full lengths, two of which, “Blues For The Red Sun” and “Sky Valley” are considered two of the best heavy rock records of the past 20 years. When they broke up in 1995, people thought little of it, until there seemed to be a resurgence of riff rock in their wake.

It also looked like they would never get back together. All the members of the band went on to other projects. But a spontaneous reunion last year, lead to a re-formation of the band that nobody thought would get back together.

John Garcia (vocals), Nick Oliveri (bass) and Brant Bjork (drums) met at a European festival last year while Garcia was doing his Garcia Plays Kyuss project. He invited his two former band mates on stage; they jammed a bit and decided to make a new go of it as Kyuss Lives! There is one no show though. Guitarist Josh Homme of QOTSA was not involved in the reunion. (Guitarist Bruno Fevery has taken his place.)

“Originally I was doing the Garcia Plays Kyuss thing over in Europe and I ended up at a festival where both Nick and Brant were playing. I invited them onstage to jam and it felt great. So we decided to get together and do some shows in Europe. It made perfect sense to do this. Everybody in the band is putting their other projects on hold to do this,” said Garcia.

What started innocently enough in Europe has extended to two tours of the United States as well as runs in South America and Canada. When they hit Toad’s Place tomorrow, the reformed band will be toward the end of a second leg of United States tour dates.

Suffice to say, Garcia is stoked by the reaction the band has received.

“It’s going really good. I’m just appreciative that people are still psyched to hear this music we made all those years ago,” Garcia said.

This newfound sense of purpose and energy will even lead up to a new a record. It will be recorded next year and they hope to have it out sometime late next year. They are busy writing and when this touring cycle ends in a few days, they are going to take some time off and then reconvene in January to start production on it.

Garcia said he is especially curious to see how this will turn out. He guarantees that the ideas are flowing and that the music will be up to the high standard that the band set for itself many years ago. There are a lot of variables that will go into the making of the new album, but Garcia is confident that the band will deliver a winner.

In the live arena, the band cherry picks the best songs from “Blues For The Red Sun”, “Sky Valley” and “….And The Circus Leaves Town”, and mix it up quite frequently, so some songs get played on certain nights while others don’t. It helps to keep things fresh for the band, and especially for the fans, who don’t know what songs they’ll be getting on their particular night.

As mentioned higher up in the article, when talking about Kyuss, one must also talk about the band’s legacy. This is a band that casts a very large shadow over a certain variety of hard rock that has popped up in the last twenty years. In fact, some would say without the band, the underground music scene would be much different. Garcia understands this but also is careful on what he says concerning this issue.

“When the word legacy gets brought up, I don’t want people to think I’m unappreciative because I’m not. Whatever you want to label the band, I just say we play rock’n’roll. I really don’t mind the term stoner rock anymore. Whatever you want to call it, I’m very appreciative that I’m still able to do this,” said Garcia.

It is understandable that no artist wants to be pigeonholed, because that might seem like they are painting themselves into a corner artistically and give people a false sense of what to expect from them. Still, you have to give him credit, because he isn’t shying away from the “s” rock word, which a certain other member of the original band who is not involved in this resurrection tends to avoid it like the plague. For Kyuss Lives!, embracing their past helps them point to a future for the band.

“It’s been one hell of a year. It’s been great,” said Garcia.

Kyuss Lives!
The Sword
Black Cobra
Curse The Sun

Thursday, December 8
Toad's Place
300 York Street, New Haven, CT 06511

7pm - $23 advance ($25 door) - All Ages

Jukebox The Ghost Plays The Space! Has New Video!

2011-12-03T06:32:00.001-05:00

Philly's own Jukebox The Ghost return to CT on Dec 9th at The Space in Hamden. These guys have played all over CT in the past 5 or more years and people are listening! You should too!
They will be finishing off their December tour on the 9th and will be joined by: Savoir Adore and The Spring Standards.

Jukebox The Ghost also recently released a new video for the song "Half Crazy" from their LP "Everything Under The Sun" out on Yep Roc:

So go to The Space on 12/09, you should be going to The Space as often as it is possible ANYWAY!

Doors: 7PM
Cost: $14 / $12 advanced

BUY TICKETS HERE

Jukebox The Ghost
Savoir Adore
The Spring Standards

295 Treadwell Street
Hamden, CT
06514

Jukebox the Ghost - Schizophrenia by MCT MANAGEMENT

SEASONS SLEAZINGS WITH NIGHTBITCH

2011-12-02T10:12:00.000-05:00

Friday December 9, 9pm
Scotty O'Boyle's
523 North Colony Street, Meriden, CT 06450
Free admission
21+

DJ's will begin spinning the classics at 9 sharp. Think lots of Deep Purple, Priest, Sabbath, Rainbow, Blue Oyster Cult, etc. Nightbitch will perform at midnight

Drink specials and $2 PBR bottles guaranteed to keep your lazer burnin' HOTT
...reindeer fucker for those in the know

SEASONAL ATTIRE:
Gentlemen are encouraged to wear Santa outfits or homely sweaters.
Ladies are encouraged to dress as slutty elves.

ANAMANAGUCHI with MATH THE BAND and 2 TON BUG @ Lilly's Pad

2011-12-01T13:48:00.004-05:00

ASTERISK CONCERTS PRESENTS:

ANAMANAGUCHI
Anamanaguchi is a four-piece group from New York City that combines guitars with the thick, electronic tones of a Nintendo Entertainment System. With driving, dynamic and melodic tracks, they focus on creating sounds that seem bigger than their hardware. A member of the artist collective 8bitpeoples, Peter Berkman has been creating chiptune music since 2003. They have since toured across the country and briefly in the UK and Ireland. Their debut, ‘Power Supply’ EP, was released in 2006 as a free download through 8bitpeoples and has since received over 50,000 downloads.

MATH THE BAND
Math the Band is a electro-punk spazz duo from Providence, RI. They use a combination of old video game systems, analog synthesizers and energy drinks to make the fastest, loudest, most party-est music they can imagine. They've only cracked their head open on stage ONCE

2 TON BUG
I am going to let their facebook bio explain "WE CAME UP THROUGH THE MUD AND STRAIGHT TO YOUR HEARTS". I think that about does it!

This all takes place tomorrow, December 2nd at The Lily Pad (Upstairs at Toad's Place)
300 York St, New Haven
8PM / $10

GET YOUR TICKETS HERE!!!

See you there

Anamanaguchi - 1 - Blackout City by edflores1

The Mountain Movers are a classic modernity!

2011-11-17T11:12:00.006-05:00

The warm tape hiss forewarns of the the abrupt and awesome sonic blast of the first track of The Mountain Movers new 45RPM single. "I Watch The Sea" cracks open like an egg and instantly attracts with its melange of classic and current rock swagger. I hear everything from The Stones to Sonic Youth in this song. It's bursting with attitude and from what I understand is a current live favorite (and rightly so!). This song has several false endings so keep on it, as I am sure this could easily turn into a much longer song live. Up next is the prettiest song on this 45, "World What World" charms us with a lean 1:26 of sweet waxy pop. I think this song stands out as the most accessible one, and thankfully we are able to post/stream it HERE.

Side B has slow chugger "I've Been To Space". While noticably more discordant than the other side, this song is nonetheless as engaging and remarkable. The environment is airy and menacing and eventually unfolds into a squealing feedback outro. I noticed it seems like this 7 " is like day and night on the opposing sides, which I think is pretty neat. The vibes of the music on the first side are certainly more conventionally melodic, and side B is dark and creepy, as well as slightly dissonant.

I am a huge fan of vinyl and this 45 brought back the sensations of my first few K records singles. There is a certain warm excitement that comes from dropping the needle on a short piece of wax from an artist you know is making music not only out of love for creation, but also out of love for the medium they chose. The Mountain Movers take the old, and they make it new!

I did a brief email interview with Rick of The Mountain Movers:

This 45 is very classic! Classic sounding and designed. Is this going to be a single series like the old days? How many singles do you have planned?

This single, "Sea/World/Space", is the first of 3 planned 45rpm 7 inch singles. We will release the next two in the new year. It is a mini-series, in that sense. We are currently working on the next one. Each single will have the same Car Crash Avoiders label sleeve with die-cut center, but there will be design variations on the actual label on the record. Been having a lot of love for the ol' 7" single lately. The format, the label sleeve, the artifact itself...it is really quite special. We were very inspired, visually, by the singles of 60s and 70s. But, of course, Dan Greene has his distinct artistic style that he puts on everything we do, which I think is very unique. It's our twisted homage to that style.

Have you found working with tape to vinyl has met your expectations?

Yes. Tape is the best! All of our releases have been recorded onto tape, with the exception of our debut CD (and picture disc 7" single, recorded during those same sessions). We love records and think there is something truly unique about the format. Tape is warm and organic, fussy and temperamental, just like us. Give us tape...2 inch 16-track reel-to-reel, 4-track cassette tape home recorder...we'll take it any day over digital recording. We love tape hiss. We always include a digital copy with our full length LP releases as we understand folks like to have it for their on-the-go devices (car stereo, mp3 player, etc) but really we are putting out music we love on the formats we love: vinyl and tape.

What is your favorite 45?

This question is near impossible to answer! Personally speaking, prior to this last summer, I would have probably picked a Peruvian cumbia 45 as they sound amazing and look totally awesome with their record label sleeves and interesting label artwork. But right now my most beloved 45 is one that I picked up in Morocco. I don't know who it is and I can't tell if the writing I can read (the few words that are not written in the Arabic alphabet) is the name of the songs, or the singer. "El Farka Chaabia" is the best guess I can make as to the name of the artist. But it is absolutely beautiful, inside and out. I can tell you it is on Koutoubiaphone, the premier Moroccan label of the early 70s, which is when this single dates back to. And while this particular Koutoubiaphone single has a picture sleeve with stunning front and back cover images, their generic label sleeve of the time is very awesome too.

Thanks for the compliment, we are feeling very accomplished with this one! It's nice to have a new release that reflect the current line-up, which we are enjoying tremendously.

And thanks for taking the time to ask some questions!
Cheers
-Rick

Well, there you have it. Go enjoy this and the future 45 singles from this CT powerhouse!

The Mountain Movers - World What World by CTINDIE

MUSIC FOR MEALS at The Space on Saturday!

2011-11-11T12:14:00.004-05:00

Quinnipiac University's 98.1 WQAQ Hosts Upcoming Benefit Concert

Hamden, CT. November 12, 2011--Quinnipiac University's student-run radio station, WQAQ, is holding its annual Music For Meals benefit concert on Saturday, November 12 at The Space in Hamden, CT. Headlining the concert is Brooklyn-based folk pop band Laura Stevenson & The Cans, featuring members of Latterman and Bomb the Music Industry. Their Sophmore LP, "Sit, Resist" was named one of the best records of 2011 by Marcus Gilmer of the A.V. Club.

Rounding out the lineup are Connecticut locals Great Caesar and psychedelic lo-fi group High Pop. The premier of High Pop's "hippie speed ball" was featured online on the College Music Journal. It was also reviewed on CTINDIE.COM right HERE.

Opening the show is New Jersey garage punk band Conor and the Stone Hill Kids. They recently released their independent debut "Don't Move."

Proceeds from the concert will be brought to the Hamden Food Bank to provide food for the Thanksgiving holiday. The Hamden Food Bank is a part of the Keefe Community Center, an organization that works diligently to better the Hamden community.

98.1 WQAQ hosts a charity concert at The Space every November. Past headliners have included Cymbals Eat Guitars, Patent Pending, and Nightmare of You. Doors open at 7 PM and admission is only five dollars, or free with two canned goods.

Check out 98.1 WQAQ on:
Facebook
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Howl Brings The Heavy To Milford on November 17

2011-11-11T08:46:00.000-05:00

Rhode Island’s Howl, deal in the type of filthy, down tuned riff worship that makes any fan of the loud and noisy stuff, grin from ear to ear. Over the course of one EP, and one critically lauded debut album, “Full Of Hell” (both on Relapse), the band has proven they have what it takes to make interesting and exciting heavy music. After getting the debut out of the way, the band is now getting ready to prep album number two, which according to drummer Timmy St. Amour is a very important one in a band’s career.

“There is definitely pressure because the second record is usually known as a make-or-break record. We’re just excited about the new material and we’re looking to show people how far we’ve progressed as a band. We can’t wait for this to come out,” said drummer Timmy St. Amour.
After playing an exhilarating gig at the first annual, Metalsucks.net, Suck Fest last week in New York City, the band is in writing mode, as they get ready to work on more new material for the record and do a string of headlining live dates.

So far, they have 8 songs ready for the record with about another 7 that need a little work. The plan is to have more songs than they need, so when they enter the studio in February or March of next year, they can pick and choose what works best for them. They plan on having the record out in late spring or early summer.

As far as the new material goes, St. Amour says that the new material is a little more straightforward and faster, belying some black metal and speed metal influences, but it’s still plenty heavy and filthy. It’s still Howl, through and through.

To help them out, new member, guitarist Josh Durocher-Jones, has flown in from his home in Cleveland to partake in the live activities and writing process. He is staying at St. Amour’s house.

While it might seem odd that while the rest the band, including guitarist/vocalist Vincent Hausman and bassist Rob Icaza make their homes in Rhode Island, their new member lives in the Midwest. Durocher-Jones came highly recommended from ex-touring mates (and metal warriors in their own right) Skeletonwitch, and has proved his mettle on the road for the band and will make his recorded debut with the band on the new record. St. Amour said it really is no big deal, because Durocher-Jones just flies in whenever they need him to write, record or tour.
They also recently completed and released a video for the “Full Of Hell” track, “Heavenless”, which is a gory and over the top rendering of the song full of bad table manners, fight scenes and pseudo-Victorian clothing. It’s a fun, yet slightly goofy introduction to the band.

St. Amour said it was fun to do, but next time they will exude a little more creative control and make the video a little more serious.

As noted from higher up in this article, Howl are from Rhode Island and so are a bunch of other great loud and heavy bands. For a state its size it seems to turn out a lot of great bands, almost more than should be expected and Howl are proud to come from such a rich scene.
“It’s a really unique music scene. The foundation was laid down by heavy noise bands like Lightning Bolt and the warehouse scene, but that goes back about 10 years. There is also Dropdead and the whole Armageddon record label and store, too. It’s a mixing pot, where kids from the noise scene will go see metal, and people from other scenes will go to another scene’s show. There are no weird competitions. It’s been breeding outside the box for quite some time,” said St. Amour.

(It will be noted that this writer has heard from several Connecticut residents who go to shows in state, that if they could afford it, they would go to Providence for shows. For me, I wish there was less competition between the scenes and maybe some co-operation, but I know that’s a pipe dream.)

But all griping aside, this looks to be fine bill with Howl headlining over a bunch of bands that are all excellent in their own right. Judging by the description on the Manic Productions web site, Worms In Women And Cattle look to bring it, while Sea Of Bones and Red Blade look to represent Connecticut metal in a good way. So why not? It’s a solid bill from top to bottom.

Manic Productions Presents:

Howl
Worms In Women And Cattle
Sea Of Bones
Red Blade

Thursday, November 17
Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street
Milford, CT

8pm - $10 – 21+ BUY TICKETS NOW or pick them up at Redscroll Records.

Joe Lally Plays BAR on November 16

2011-11-10T09:59:00.001-05:00

Photo © Antonia Tricarico

Joe Lally is a man of few words, mainly letting his music do the talking for him. Whether laying down memorable bass riffs, such as the intro for “Waiting Room” by Fugazi or over the course of many side projects and three solo records (“There To Here”, “Nothing Is Underrated” and “Why Should I Get Used To It”), showing an ability to always push himself into new and exciting sonic environments, he has shown he is one of the most innovative punk musicians of the last 20 years.

Even though the shadow of Fugazi looms large, he has managed to carve himself a nice little niche with his solo records, which where started under the humblest of circumstances.

“When Fugazi went on break I found that I wasn't ready to stop playing live music. I had to find a way to keep going,” said Lally.

This led him to three solo records, even solo records would be a misnomer, because the first two, 2006’s “There To Here” and 2007’s “Nothing Is Underrated” are basically collaborations with such underground rock luminaries as Ian MacKaye, Eddie Janney and Scott “Wino” Weinrich. Even on his new record, “Why Should I Get Used To It”, which was recorded in Rome, where Lally makes his home with his wife and daughter, he brought in musicians Elisa Abela (guitar) and Emanuele Tomasi (drums) to help him work out his vision.

Still, despite the collaborative effort of these releases, there are some major differences between how these were done and how writing and recording was done in Fugazi.

“That was the effort of four individuals. My solo work is much more the efforts of one (with some help). I sound the same on bass I think, but most similarities with Fugazi end there. Lyrically I don't think I write anything like Guy or Ian,” said Lally.

Even though, there is a slight difference between the first two solo records and the new one. In the case of the new one, he knew ahead of time who his musicians would be, so that helped greatly in finding a unified sound.

“The first two were written rather open ended. I left a space for what would be the "lead" instrument. With the last one I was ready to see what I might write on guitar. I can't really play guitar so I thought that would keep it interesting. Once I had Elisa as a regular player I wrote a few directed at her way of playing. She's a natural improviser. It's still me writing on bass and singing. That keeps the songs sounding like mine,” said Lally.

When asked who his favorite bass players are, Lally cites the following: Larry Graham, Bootsy Collins, Jah Wobble, Peter Hook, Rick Denko, and Chiara Locardi to name a few. He admits he likes them for their originality and if you listen to any of Lally’s work you will there are a wide range of influences on it, it’s not like he is just influence by funk bassists or dub ones, but by a wide variety of musicians.

Even though, he stays humble when talking how his own bass playing has evolved since his early days.

“I'm not so sure. From the inside of it you can't really measure that. It's been like 26 years or whatever since I picked up the instrument. I'm certainly better at picking out what I like to hear,” said Lally.

Even though, he has been living in Rome for the past four years, he still hasn’t lost interest in what goes in the United States. For instance he is very encouraged by the current “Occupy” protests that have been going on in many cities across our fair land.

“I think it's great. It's the kind of action I think people need to take. It turned rather violent here in Rome the other day, but I think that kind of protest obliterates the message. I think a stronger message is made when people of all kinds are involved, children and the elderly should be in on it. When it gets violent they'll say it was a few young hooligans and dismiss the whole thing,” said Lally.

So come on down to BAR next Wednesday and witness the return of one of the preeminent punk rock musicians of the past 20 years. Sure it’s a Wednesday and it’s Connecticut, but it’s free and should feature some awesome music. So what’s your excuse this time?

Manic Productions Presents:

Joe Lally
Mick Barr
Helen Money

Wednesday, November 16
BAR – New Haven
254 Crown Street
New Haven, CT

9:00pm – Free – 21+

Stephen Bennett at Roaring Brook

2011-11-10T09:21:00.000-05:00

Saturday November 19, 2011
Stephen Bennett
Harp Guitarist

Stephen Bennett is a finger-picking genius on all types of guitars, from acoustic to National Steel resonators, but his expertise lies in playing beautiful tunes on the harp guitar. His style is haunting and moving, and draw you right in with the sheer emotion.

On Saturday Nov 19th he will be playing a solo show at Roaring Brook Nature Center in Canton. Definitely worth checking out.

Roaring Brook Nature Center
70 Gracey Road, Canton, CT 06019
$18.00/ $20.00 Door

For more info check out:
http://www.roaringbrookconcerts.org/

The Field Recordings deserve your attention!

2011-11-09T10:35:00.010-05:00

The Field Recordings pump out high energy guitar-driven pop music. This band could fit in nearly anywhere in the past 30 years of indie rock. I had a chance to see them play at Freight Street Gallery on Friday 10/14 and they gave it their all. It was late and the crowd was dwindling, but the remaining audience members were whipped into a frenzy at first song and stayed going strong until the last beat. Aside from the obvious skill of each of the 3 band members, what impressed me most was how much it appeared that each enjoyed playing the music. Many of the songs intricacies clearly appealed to each member in different ways, and it showed in the performance.

So I got my hands on a copy of their newest release, a full length album called "The Elastic Nostalgia", and the translation from live act to recorded set goes very smoothly. The energy shines through the recordings and has some pretty solid replay value. The drums and bass were expertly played and recorded, as solid as any band of this model can ask for. The parts may appear simple but the embellishments of the drummer (Jared Thompson) and bassist (Noel Thomas) end up being imperative nuances. Then there are the guitar and vocal stylings of Daniel Gallo. This guy knows how to create environments with guitar. The effects he uses manage to change the context of the part he is playing without distracting you from seamless enjoyment. I was most impressed at the careful thought that seems to be evident in the types of tones and effects he chooses for each song. They compliment the compositions gorgeously. The vocals, while quirky, come across as their own sound. I don't like to compare but the vocals contain many different characteristics, from the spazziness of DEVO to the soulful crooning of Dirty Projectors. It's all over the place and dead on note somehow all at the same time.

Now for the album: The collection of songs stands as a unit or as individuals, I really couldn't find an "out of place" moment on the whole thing. Nearly all of the songs have standout potential as singles. Track 2 "(Caught Up In All The) Interludes" is an obvious choice for a lead single, and is placed as such. The time changeups on "Framing Happiness" are wonderful and almost completely seamless despite how dramatically the timing changes. It was at this point where I realized these gentlemen make a much smarter pop music than is generally made. Album closing track "STATESCAPES" is a fitting conclusion. Celebrating the energy prevalent on the entirety of the album as well as providing a musical farewell greeting.

I had a chance to do a phone interview with Daniel Gallo, and here's how it went:

The Field Recordings both live and on record sounds like accomplished musicians all playing in a like-minded model, what were some of the earlier bands you and the other members played in?

Jared and I were in a bunch of really awful punk bands in high school, we've been playing together since we were like 14 and Noel has done just about... everything...

The Elastic Nostalgia is an example of a set of songs that are creatively related, were there any outtakes or songs that did not make the cut?

Yeah, there was one.

Do you have any plans on releasing it?

No. It was a really old one. I think we were already pretty tired of playing it. It could have been a good song, but we lost our objectivity on it. It was one of our really early songs so to me it was pretty evident that I was just patching stuff together and we were just fumbling our way through. We never liked playing it and it got really old and I think we subconsciously tanked the recording of it so we couldn’t put it on the album.

Is there a narrative or story pertaining to The Elastic Nostalgia?

I've really only been thinking about that since its been out, retrofitting a meaning to it. But I'm trying to think of my favorite albums and bands and stuff that I listen to, and what I hold a good album to be, did we actually make that? That seems like a huge mountain for us to have left, as far as like how could we have possibly made it, the album, so to speak. But there are a lot of things that link all the songs together in title or obviously there’s a certain "gallows humor" that runs through all the songs. I think they all do make a piece, make a whole.

What is The Elastic Nostalgia?

I’m hoping it’s one of those nebulous phrases where people can try to understand without technically knowing what it means, like a Bob Dylan lyric or something. It’s a suffocating feeling, to me anyway. It's mostly about getting to this age and looking around at the stuff we've been raised on and you get to a point where you have to reassess everything and there’s no clear path forward and it's a process of looking around and taking the stuff that just does not work and trying to get away from it. It touches on nostalgia being a marketing trick, another point of exploitation. As far as I can feel it, it’s a huge enveloping white noise.

The Field Recordings seem to be a very poppy band, but with complicated time changes and flamboyant energies. How do you maintain your pop sensibilities without getting too far "out there"?

At first when we started we would put down these things we just didn’t want to do. I didn’t want to use bar chords, and I didn’t want to write songs about chicks and whatever. Those were the majorly important things and to try and figure out how to get from one section to another without Noel or I [re-treading something too many times] so some of our old songs were like really pretty tedious 5+ minute long songs just trying to figure out how to even go about it. But I’m hoping that were pretty good self editors, I think I have a pretty decent idea of what will test peoples patience.

What are your plans for the near and far futures?

We're trying to move this forward in a legitimate kind of way. We have to get someone interested. I mean we're a little on the older side for just knocking around town. We're sending stuff out; we're trying to figure out what comes next. Further future, I’d love to get more people in the band, if that’s even possible. At least a keyboardist! I’d really love to make a record that’s longer and dance music.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now there was much more to this interview than was transcribed, as it was done over the phone. To hear the interview in its nearly unedited entirety, check it out HERE

ALSO you had better go see them TONIGHT 11/9 at the ROCCUPATION NEW HAVEN event at CAFÉ NINE at 9PM:

250 State Street

New Haven, CT

Check out the Facebook Event HERE

The Field Recordings - (Caught Up In All The) Interludes by CTINDIE

Review: Brain Room's "Axis II"

2011-11-08T23:44:00.009-05:00

Were the men of Brain Room not musicians, but rather painters, they would no doubt be masters of the landscape, tirelessly manipulating light and shadow and shade and color to render scenes azoic, yet emotive. Their works would be beautiful, but not Baroque. Surreal, but not quite Dali. Rather, they would stand somewhere between ideals, between the real and the fantastic.

For those caught unawares, Brain Room is a New Haven three-piece specializing in a kind aural stimulation which leans towards prog more than somewhat. To assuage the fears of those sonic aficionados who simply cannot help but to deride progressive rock as some halfway home for musically inclined arrogant youth of decidedly middle class stock, I shall clarify here there is no Gabriel-esque whimsy to found in Brain Room’s music or persona, no unintelligible themes or absurdist, pretentious lyrics. There are no costumes, no funny hats, and, as far as I know, no walls or poorly illuminated celestial objects. What Brain Room does have, however, are classically trained musicians as adept at writing songs as they are at playing their particular instruments.

On their recently-released EP "Axis II", pianos pound in the low register and dance lithely in the high. A solo cello whines dryly as an old bow is drawn lightly over its strings. A taught snare snaps like a bullwhip while cymbals clatter on like raindrops against a car windshield. Tucked into a few secluded corners you’ll find guitars both electric and acoustic and the occasional synthesizer tapped for its otherworldly tones.

The end result is an odd blend of music which, when taken as a whole, sounds like Rube Goldberg was handed a stack of classical, folk, rock, and rave albums and was then told to make a song. Each piece of the convoluted contraption is conspicuously unique, yet the end result is functional to its intended design.

Take the track “As Far as it Goes”, for example. The song begins with piano and drums providing an energetic if disco-esque rhythm as the cello belts out am emotive lead. By the thirty second mark, the song has changed pace somewhat, to flighty piano pattern and bittersweet vocal lead, only to change again some ten seconds later, this time to a breakdown á la prog-metal titans MUSE.

THE BRAIN ROOM - As far as it goes by CTINDIE

Each of the five cuts are expertly performed and composed, each distinct yet comfortably juxtaposed with the other songs. The result is a sonically consistent recording that, in the spirit of prog and its longstanding tradition of themed albums, favors a full listen, but will also accommodate a cherry-picking of tracks, if such is your proclivity.

Still, the tracks themselves seem a bit short. While Brain Room obviously favors concise composition over drawn-out jams, “Axis II” seems to build up very quickly, and end just as abruptly. Obviously, an unsigned band must survive on a budget, and albums can be costly. Still, the Wagnerian grandeur of the music demands a grand format, and I do think it would nice to see a full twelve to fifteen tracks from Brain Room in the future.

Though a generally competent vocalist, John Cahill does perhaps overexert himself in a few isolated incidences, though more detracting to the overall quality of the EP, however, is the manner in which the vocals are presented. Quiet and drenched with reverb, the vocal tracks, in some places, are obscured by the frenetic instrument tracks. The vocal melodies may still be heard with some clarity, though they do sound "thin" in contrast to the instrumentation, and the vocals themselves are difficult to decipher in some spots.

In the overall scope of the EP, however, these flaws are relatively minor, and shall no doubt be received as par for the course by any serious indie aficionado. I can say with no uncertainty Brain Room is one of the best bands Connecticut has to offer, and I would readily recommend “Axis II” to anyone who dares inquire.

SLOTHPOP as interviewed by Andrew Jackson

2011-11-08T21:23:00.008-05:00

Robert Denby here, posting on behalf of Willimantics own Andrew Jackson. He sent a "questionnaire" to SLOTHPOP and the fruits of it are here for you to enjoy!
note: answers are in italic
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Coming up on November 11, 2011 (that’s 11/11/11) the smooth sound waves of Slothpop will be hitting us live from their actual instruments (as altered through their amplifiers). Yes they are traveling all the way to us from Indiana to entertain us at the Oak (Charter Oak Cultural Center in Hartford, CT). We decided to get to know them a bit better. This is not so much an interview as it is a questionnaire. I sent all of these questions to them already typed up, they were kind enough to answer them and send them promptly back.

Hey guys, we really don’t have the budget for a full on interview so I was hoping you could fill out this questionnaire. It’s like an interview but you don’t have to worry about me constantly cutting you off to talk about myself. You may assign a single person or answer all together. You may be brief or you may carry on for pages. It would be good if you identified who was answering. Our goal is to make this the third best performance experience you have ever had. So let us begin shall we?

Real quick, here are all of our names (with instruments), so you know who is answering what:

Kristin Newborn – lead vocals, guitar, keyboard
Drew Malott – bass, vocals
Bryan Unruh – drums
Lauren Eison – violin, vocals
Dan Zender – guitar

For starters, I am sure everyone is wondering about your name. Is your music aimed towards arboreal, lethargic primates or generally lazy ne’er-do-wells doomed to walk the first circle of hell?

Yep.

Interesting. So let’s hear about your new release. Where did you record it? How long in the making?

It was recorded at Queensize Studios in Indianapolis. It took about six months from the start of tracking until mixing and overdubbing was complete. - Drew

It seems everyone has only the nicest things to say about it, assuming you consider “weird” a compliment (which I do and I like it). What is the weirdest song? What is the most beautiful song? Not to be crass but, is it selling?

It depends on your definition of “weird.” If you mean weirdest in tone and meaning, it would be “Leaping Over Books.” If you mean weirdest in structure, it would be “Magenta.” – Bryan “Shuffler,” is the most beautiful because it’s inspired by two humans pollinating. -Kristin

We handle all of our distribution, so it’s selling well in the places we’ve played and where people have discovered us. We’re in a very cool place right now because, when people do discover us, they are discovering it for themselves or through their best friends, so they often end up loving it passionately. It’s neat little secret that they’re excited to be a part of. - Drew

Nor, would I my friend…nor would I. Speaking of which, I thought your little stage diagram was adorable. I use it in my D&D campaign as the goblin king’s lair. As it turns out the defensive positioning is often too much for even a fifth level magic user to handle. Where did you get your tactical training? How often do you have to fend off ragtag adventurers seeking fortune and glory at your shows?

The three vocal mics are +3 to INT and STR. Really, though, we all come from varied musical backgrounds and training. Kristin is a classically trained pianist, I studied music tech at Ball State (Muncie, IN; see next question), and so on. We’ve all been in various ensembles with diverse experience. - Drew

As it happens, I am from Indiana myself. I will give you three guesses as to where the coolest bar in Muncie is.

Lauren, Bryan, and Drew went to Ball State, and we all agree it’s the Heorot. But if you’re asking coolest venue, it’s Be Here Now.

Aw, so close, it is the Heorot. It would have been Savages if they had live music there. Ok, now you tell me what the 3 best places to play in Indy are.

White Rabbit, Radio Radio, and, uhhh…

I can see that, although the Alley Cat does have an indescribable charm.

So did you notice how I started each question segment with a phrase that made it sound like I was responding to what you will answer in the future? Do you think that will fool anyone? Did you even try to tailor your answer to fit the responses?

It fooled us.

How is the Indy scene these days? What are some of the other bands you guys are into right now? You can assume “Indy” to include the entire state of Indiana, even Bloomington, although that might piss off those music school snobs. Not “the region” up in the northwest corner though. Let those jerks claim they are from Chicago, everyone knows they are full of crap…am I right?

You’re definitely right. As for favorite bands, we love America Owns the Moon, the Bonesetters, Everything, Now!, Amo Joy, Crys, Jookabox, and Oreo Jones.

So it looks like that person really jacked up their clavicle. Who is that and what the hell happened to it? Has it affected your music at all?

On one fateful day, I was longboarding, and there happened to be a pothole in my way as I glided gracefully down the street. In my periphery, I did not see, the thing that would steal the step from my feet. It broke in five places, and I had to get surgery. It didn’t really affect the music except I had to sit down for our whole tour in June and July. And I always sit in the front seat in the van. - Dan

Speaking of affecting your music, what about all this neutrino business? If it turns out that this particle is actually capable of traveling at speeds faster than light, it could very well turn the music world on its ear. Do you think your band will be able to adapt to a universe where a particle can travel 500 miles in less than 3ms?
We were breaking the speed of light when the neutrinos were still underground.

Well, we should wrap this up I suppose or else no one is going to want to read it when they see how long it is…man you guys like to ramble huh? One last question, well, more of a task. The Beatles were often categorized into one single adjective per band member (ie Ringo the quiet one, John the cute one, George the fast one, and Paul the kleptomaniac). Assuming your fans are this shallow or you are all that mundane, what is the single descriptor you would assign to each of you? Take your time on this, it will be on your permanent record.
Drew: lazy
Kristin: lazy
Lauren: lazy
Bryan: lazy
Dan: priceless

Well, that is all we have timespace for today. Thank you for your gracious answers and we all very much look forward to seeing you at the Oak.

In case you, the reader, missed it:

Friday, November 11, 2011:

Slothpop
Little Ugly
Rum Glass Serenade

Doors open at 8

We ask 6$ at the door or 5$ and a veggie canned good to be donated to Hartford Food Not Bombs however no one is turned away for lack of funds.

New The Cavemen Go Video

2011-11-07T12:54:00.000-05:00

Official music video for The Cavemen Go's single "Someone's Always Trying To Break My Heart." Video done by Max Thomas.

Record Review: Ghost of Chance, A Simple Beast

2011-11-03T18:01:00.001-04:00

A Simple Beast is the sophomore effort from Ghost of Chance, hailing from New Haven. GOC creates a minimalistic atmosphere from the start with the song Carthage.The mellow vocals deliver narrative-style lyrics, over electronic drums, acoustic guitar, and dreamy organs (sounds like a Mellotron throughout the record, I could be wrong). The record has a carefully crafted atmospheric layer of instruments with steady reverb. It seems like a lot of care went to producing here. All the guitar effects are tasteful and purposeful. The recording itself sounds great. The arrangement of tracks works, which can make or break a record of this melodic, poppy and experimental style.

GOC really harness a mix of sounds on this record. Track three, Trident, has a feel of Sparkle Horse, but is followed by Lend Me a Dollar, giving an awesome Yo La Tengo feeling, without sounding derived. Every track is pretty unique. GOC gives the album a punch with the distorted chorus of Pilot. Again, the record surprises with Pipe, giving out an instrumental that is somewhere between the atmosphere of bands like Joan of Arc or Explosions in the Sky.

I can’t wait to see these guys live and see how they deal with the instrumental intricacies. I don’t know if they have any shows planned for the near future, as no shows are listed on their website. Check it out anyway. http://ghostofchance.com/

Ghost of Chance - New Carthage by CTINDIE

Show Review: You Scream I Scream At BAR, October 26

2011-10-28T13:04:00.000-04:00

Halfway through You Scream I Scream’s show last night at BAR in New Haven, opening for White Arrows, the light sabers came out. Yep, instead of glow sticks, the Hartford based band had people brandishing light sabers and getting into mock fights with each other. It was all part of the fun, party vibe the band exudes.

Led by Floyd Kellogg on bass and vocals, the band laid down a danceable and slightly fuzzed out sound, which was equally influenced by grungy, quiet loud dynamics (especially from the rumblings of Kellogg’s bass), the simple yet effective robotic rock drum beats of Audrey Sterk and the psychedelic tinged keys of Jake Vohs. They delivered an inspired set of indie rock that had all the hipsters dancing, with or without light sabers.

They opened with the new wave gone grunge of “Tiny Reward” and kept the indie kids dancing all the way til their final song “Adios Pantalones”, whose title is a cheeky reference to one of Kellogg’s previous bands.

If I were to describe them I would say they sound mostly like a guitar-less grunge band, in that many of the songs are short, snappy and concise, where they start out slow and build to an anthemic chorus. There is a new wave influence too, in the almost simple, but sublime Kraut rock-like drum beats that feature a lot of cymbal rides from Sterk. It’s uncomplicated and catchy, which is quite a refreshing take from a form a music that is getting more baroque, complicated and pretentious every day. (Do we really need any more hipstercana bands?)

So, it was a fun night of unpretentious indie rock. You should definitely check them out.

Twin Lakes Records Presents: Michael Beach, Jay Russel, and Dwight Smith

2011-10-27T20:43:00.000-04:00

Nov. 1st @ Cafe Nine
9 PM

Michael Beach is a San Francisco-based musician who writes, records, and performs under his own name, and as a member of Melbourne-based trio Electric Jellyfish. Since 2008, he has put out records on the Thurston Moore/Byron Coley colab label, Ecstatic Yod, and others such as Twin Lakes and Spectacular Commodity.

‘Mountains + Valleys,’ Beach’s latest solo release, comes on the eve of a second US tour for 2011, a year that also saw him tour Europe and Australia in support of his previous single, ‘A Horse.’ This time around, Beach assembled an all-star cast of West Coast musicians, including drummer Utrillo Kushner (Comets On Fire) and Raymond Raposa (Castanets) on guitar and vocals. Recorded by Trans Am’s Phil Manley, Mountains + Valleys will be released as a limited edition cassette to accompany Beach’s Autumn US Tour. Officially out on November 8th, you can grab one early at this show.
michaelbeach.bandcamp.com
Michael Beach - Straight Spines by CTINDIE

Dwight Smith writes introspective songs that call to mind a stripped-down Sufjan Stevens and Jeff Magnum. His debut single "Plumed Serpent" will be out on Twin Lakes in November (TBD).

Jay Russell of Diamond J and the Rough and Hot Rod Circuit is a local treasure in the New Haven music scene. He says he just likes to play music. Pretty understated, given the depth of his music.
www.myspace.com/diamondjandtherough

NEBC's Final Friday w/ M.T. BEARINGTON

2011-10-27T20:34:00.000-04:00

NEBC's Final Friday w/ M.T. BEARINGTON

FINAL FRIDAY is NEBC's monthly tribute to its patrons and local artists. Each month, NEBC has a local musician perform and invites one and all (over 21 years of age, of course) to come by and share the proverbial fruits of their labor.

$5 gets you a few glasses of NEBC beer as well as an opportunity to hear local music and rub elbows with other fellow beer enthusiasts. Both the beers served and the bands change each month, so keep stopping by for a glimpse at what the general New Haven area and NEBC has to offer!

This month's performer:

Local act M.T. BEARINGTON has been performing since 2007. Having released the 'A Cloak of Nouns & Loss' and 'Love Buttons' LPs on local label Safety Meeting Records, M.T. Bearington offers "an upbeat collection of sonic musings on various forms of love - from the traditional to the twisted."

For a look at what M.T. BEARINGTON is all about, check out the title track off their newest release ('Love Buttons') at http://www.mtbearington.com/

Safety Meeting presents: Ferocious Fucking Teeth, Murder Van, Wrists Like This, & Wry

2011-10-27T13:01:00.000-04:00

Safety Meeting presents:

Ferocious Fucking Teeth,
Murder Van,
Wrists Like This,
& Wry

Friday, Oct 28th
$5 cover
at the El n Gee
86 Golden St, New London, CT

Ferocious Fucking Teeth
http://ferociousfuckingteeth.bandcamp.com/
Heavy Stoney Jams from the New London area! New LP coming this Winter from Safety Meeting. Come check these guys out and get psyched up to grab the record. Bring something put in your ears cause it's gonna get loud.

Murder Van
http://www.murdervan.com
Three piece rock n roll. Heavy, sweaty, a lot of fun from start to finish. Murder Van doesn't fuck around and you should know this before getting in front of them.

Wrist Like This
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wrist-Like-This/103543909732061
These guys are in Fatal Film. I love Fatal Film. Even though I don't know much about this new project, I got a good feeling that this is going to be awesome. Also, people who've seen them have raved about them. So leave your socks at home, unless you don't mind having them blown off.

Wry
http://wrymusic.bandcamp.com/
Keith used to be in Shiv. Shiv was incredible. Keith is still pretty awesome. The other guys are pretty cool too. This is his newest project. Loud, aggressive, rock n roll for your earhole.

Chillingsworth: Wherein Rob Picks On Children

2011-10-25T09:29:00.000-04:00

My reputation as a cynical curmudgeon notwithstanding, I take no pleasure in breaking the spirits of aspiring children. So, imagine my concern when I received an email from the fine folks at CTIndie, requesting I review the musical styling of Weston’s own Chillingsworth, a cadre of five teens not yet old enough to drive. Admittedly, I found myself less than enthusiastic to accept this particular review. What if this band – this Chillingsworth – was simply terribad? Could I publicly criticize a cadre of aspiring kids? If I wound up discouraging them completely, could I deal with it?

I can be cruel, but a man has to draw that line in the sand somewhere.

Luckily, the problem solved itself. I listened to Chillingsworth’s four –track EP “Sir Roger”, and, as it turns out, these youngsters from Fairfield County are surprisingly good. So, I’m making an exception here. Today, Rob beats up on kids.

Perhaps it is because I first listened “Sir Roger” knowing full well it was recorded by musicians too young to collect a paycheck in the State of Connecticut, but what was immediately most noticeable to me was the superb sound quality of the recording. The guitars jangle, the vibes glisten, and the drums are full and free of distortion. I can only conclude these kids have access to a professional studio of some kind, and, let’s be honest here, when it comes to reviewing indie music, an album that does not sound like it was recorded with a tin can and a length of string makes the job that much easier.

Still, we all know professional sound does not mean professional music. A noise gate or a compressor won’t fix bad songwriting. In Chillingsworth’s case, whatever newfangled technology they have at their disposal is entirely deserved. Despite their age, they have a keen grasp of songwriting which eludes even older, more established acts. From the opening metallic jangle of “Cloud” to the frenetic, Latin-esque finale of “Stay Fly”, these songs toe the line between the amateur and the professional.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://chillingsworth.bandcamp.com/track/settle"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Settle by Chillingsworth&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Still, Chillingsworth is a band of youngsters, and like youngsters, they’ve made a few youngster mistakes. Most noticeable amongst said errors are the occasional moments when the band falls out of tempo. This is hardly a deal breaker, however, as the drift is rarely extreme.

Also to the band’s detriment is a noticeable lack of sonic continuity. Chillingsworth draws heavily from indie pop and funk, but rather than fusing the two genres into a cohesive sound, the band recorded what amounts to two indie tracks (“Cloud”, “Settle”), and two funkier tracks (“R.A.C” , “Stay Fly”). A more uniform sound – in either direction – would have made a more cohesive EP, but again, the songs are good on their own merits.

Paramount amongst Chillingsworth’s freshman stumbling, however, is their handling of vocal duties. Despite a dearth of vocal hooks, the lyrics are well composed. The problem is, they are not always well performed. More often than not, the lead vocals are off-key, sometimes, severely so. With an otherwise near-flawless effort, the amateurish singing is somewhat more pronounced. The band would do well to consider vocal training, perhaps taking on a trained vocalist, or at the very least compose vocal melodies more appropriate their skill-level.

Overall, however, Chillingsworth’s “Sir Roger” is still very much worth a listen to anyone who favors pop over experimentation. They can write, they can record, and they can perform. With a few years more experience, and a little practice, these kids are going to go places.

Keep an eye out, Connecticut.

The Loom to play Freight Street Gallery on HALLOWEEN

2011-10-24T11:18:00.005-04:00

Come to Freight Street Gallery on Monday (HALLOWEEN) for a fun night of folk music, courtesy of The Loom, The Grim Generation, and Lys Guillorn!
According to the Freight Street Gallery folks:
"Two great reasons to go out on a Monday night.

1. It's Halloween, so dress up silly, cause your next chance is a whole year away.
2. A great band from Brooklyn is stoping by our fair city to play some amazing tunes.

featuring:

The Loom

"Teeth: the part of you that outlast you longest once you’re gone. That hold a record of what you’ve done with your time, tribute or rebuke. In comparison to their longevity, time for the rest of you is short. So, then – what to do with that time?

For the members of Brooklyn five-piece The Loom, the answer to this question – the reason that they choose to play music together in the first place – is the simple search for joy. It’s a concern that both far outdates, and is reflected in, the searching folk, intricate percussion, and psych-influenced dissonance and atmospherics that they love and wind into their music. But Teeth, their debut, is not all joyful. Like the music that inspires them, it focuses more closely on the myriad hurdles that ensnare us along the way."

https://www.facebook.com/theloommusic

The Grim Generation

" Lyrics are worth paying attention to, as in the closer “End of the World” when Champagne sings, “Remember the day your brother was killed, we were up in your bedroom with a shoebox full, your mom sat downstairs reading magazines and her TV Guide.” That got my attention instantly."
– New Haven Advocate

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Grimm-Generation/349516682318

and the little cowgirl herself, Lys Guillorn

"I was quickly drawn into the world of this talented singer-songwriter-musician, all three of which she excels at. Rather than try to define her, or stamp a genre on her, I will instead say…find her!" – The Village Voice

https://www.facebook.com/lys.guillorn

$7 Suggested Donation
All Ages/BYOB for 21+"

True Believers All by TheLoom

A Well Practiced Sneeze: Melt Banana playing The Space 10/28

2011-10-22T12:50:00.000-04:00

Since their formation in 1992, Japan’s Melt Banana have been blowing the minds of audiences worldwide with their hyper speed take on noise rock, which incorporates elements of punk, metal, J-pop, electronica and even hip-hop. It’s a bug eyed crazy sound, one that is full of energy and sends their fans into fits of joy whenever they play out.

Though not for everybody, the people who love them, love them intensely and it has lead the band to collaborate with such artists as Merzbow, John Zorn, Discordance Axis and Mike Patton. They have even opened for prog metal heavyweights Tool in the United States.

It’s been a long strange trip for the band, one that has seen them grow a sizable fan base among connoisseurs of way out aggressive music in both the United States and Europe. In fact, they end up touring these parts of the world more than their native Japan. One big reason could be the reaction they get from the audiences here and in Europe.

“When we started, we met K.K.Null from Zeni Geva. He gave us a chance to record our first album with Steve Albini in Chicago as well as play shows in Chicago and San Francisco. Our first show in the United States was in Chicago and we liked it a lot. It was totally different from shows we had done in Japan during that period. The audience was loud and told us what they thought about our music and our show. These days the Japanese audience is changing and I think they are getting similar to people in the United States. But it is still fun to play in different countries. So the reason to tour the United States, the UK, or Europe a lot is that we like it and fortunately we have very good people to help us to play shows in those countries,” said guitarist Ichirou Agata, who along with vocalist Yasuko Onuki and bassist Rika Hamamoto form the nucleus of the band. “As far as the fan base goes, we are not sure. The number of people who show up to our concerts, in the US or UK are bigger than the ones who show up in Japan. But we play more than 15 shows in Tokyo every year, so if we only play once every 2 years in Tokyo, then there might be more people showing up to our Tokyo shows,” he added.

As mentioned before, their music is a mish-mash of styles, one that is played with lightning speed and manic energy. Though earlier records have more of a lo-fi sound (recorded with Steve Albini) the newer ones have a clearer, cleaner production. But this doesn’t mean that the music is any less vicious. You can definitely say that the band doesn’t sound like anyone else out there and they wouldn’t want to have it any other way. In fact, that was their intention all along.

“When we started the band, actually we were not really good at playing instruments or singing. We were beginners. But we knew very well about the sound we liked. For example we liked feedback a lot more than just playing the "E" note or "G" note. We liked strange drums rather than normal rock or hip hop drums. So we were very bad at playing normal music, but we practiced a lot, playing our own thing. We wanted to control an obscure, noise sound. So we practiced again and again to play that same obscure, noise sound. It's like when you practice to sneeze again and again to make exactly the same sound every time you sneeze. While playing these sounds, we met many good bands at our shows and on tour and got influenced by them on how to use the "E" note or "G" note, or normal rock or hip hop drums. It's like when you practice saying words the same way every time you speak,” said Agata.

But for them, it’s just not about recording the music. It’s about getting out there and throwing down for their fans. People tend to go batshit crazy during their sets, and they would not have it any other way. But instead of being violent and destructive it’s a way for the band and audience to connect with each other. They form an unbreakable bond with their audience.

“The best thing about playing live is that I can share Melt Banana music with the audience. We are enjoying the music together. We can express and convey our music not only to people’s ears but also their eyes and all of their senses. Also it is nice to see people's faces from the stage. If they look like they are having fun during the show, I become happy too,” said Onuki.

With each tour, usually means they bring out a new drummer. For this current United States trek they have turned to old friend who will be returning to the throne after a little hiatus from the music business.

“Our live drummer for this tour is Takiya Terada. Actually he was with us when we toured with the Fantomas in 2004 and when we went to Europe with us in 2005. After that, he stopped playing music for private reasons, so I won’t talk those here. But, he started playing drums again, so we asked him if he can play with us again. He is a very good person and practices so hard. And since we had already played with him many times and knew about his skills, it was natural decision to ask him to can play music with us again,” said Agata.

Playing music has to be a release for them, because Japan has been a country plagued by a whole bunch of disasters over the past year. The country is hurting and according to Onuki it’s been rough on the people who live there.

“We are still in bad condition; disaster areas are still on the long way to recover, and also nuclear plant problems have been not solved yet and we are even having a hard time living in Tokyo. It is hard to see the truth too, unfortunately. But we need to go forward and solve all problems clearly. I really hope this happens,” said Onuki.

But if there is one thing that lifted the spirits of the Japanese, it was their women’s soccer team winning the World Cup this past summer. The band was in Finland to play a festival, but once they found out, they were quite proud of their fellow countrywomen.

“When I knew about their victory, I thought it was great. It seems like people in Japan got excited and they talked about the team members a lot in the media. But I did not know that there was a professional football league in Japan, so it was big news to me. But I think it is good that their winning brought a good mood to Japan,” said Agata.

After they finish their current North American tour the band is going to head into the studio to record another album for release on the band’s own A-Zap label in the spring or summer, as well doing a whole bunch singles too. They also plan to some things with Melt Banana lite, too.

“There are many things that we want to do!” said Onuki.

So, it looks like the band will be keeping busy, spreading manic, crazy, happy music to all that will be willing to hear it. This is an excellent time to catch the band at the Space. Last time the show sold out and I heard they had to remove all the furniture to make way for the crowd and their “dancing”. Once again, this is another can’t miss show. See you there.

Manic Productions Presents:

Melt Banana
Tera Melos
Fugue (Last Show)

Friday, October 28
The Space
295 Treadwell Street
Hamden, CT

$14 ($12 advance) – All Ages and 21+ to drink at the Outer Space – 7pm

BUY TICKETS NOW or pick them up at Redscroll.

Good Clean Fun: Nightbitch Celebrates Halloween At Ruby's 2

2011-10-21T08:59:00.010-04:00

We (and by “we” I mean “me”), here at CT Indie, love Nightbitch, especially the way they are bringing traditional heavy metal back to Connecticut’s musical landscape. They play it the old way, and should be a must see for any one who likes their metal classic and catchy. When we found out they were playing a strip bar around Halloween, we thought it was the perfect time to sit one of them down and get the scoop on what’s going on in their twisted little world. So we put a few questions to drummer/vocalist Chris Taylor Beaudette, who in addition to Nightbitch plays in a wide variety of bands, and these are the answers we were given.

Warning: If you are easily offended or false, please don’t read this.

So, why decide to play a nudie bar again, especially around Halloween?

The better question Tom, is in fact, “why not?”

Do you think the atmosphere in this type of establishment is the perfect atmosphere for Nightbitch’s music?

We love boobs and naked ladies. And we also love the whole sleazy feel of a strip club. The dark atmosphere, moody lights and the aura of sexuality that is literally writhing about in front of you, it’s all very rock and roll, very metal. It makes some people uncomfortable, like they’re doing something wrong, and that’s what we try to do with our tunes but at the same time, obviously having fun with and embracing it. Sleaze, gritty metal, booze and naked girls are Americana, and we’re an American band.

You played there before. I’m assuming it went well, because here you are, back again. Did it go as well as you expected? Any good stories to tell about that first gig there? Did the strippers, I mean “adult entertainers,” get into the music and bump n grind to such ‘Bitch staples as “Ritual Of Self” and “Sex & Magic”? (I know “Disrober” wasn’t part of your repertoire back then, but I’m sure you’ll play it now! It’s tailored made for this.)

The band has a great friend who works at this fantastic club Ruby 2’s in Bridgeport and with some convincing from the owner we were able to get in there and do our thing. They have a secondary room there they mostly use for parties, with a stage, all mirrored, with 2 poles on it and the girls don’t usually work in there since there’s no dudes. They don’t really have bands in there and we really weren’t sure how it was gonna turn out. It went amazing. We had a big screen TV playing satanic porn the whole show, great crowd and the girls were really receptive (we did some backbreaking pre-show screenings with some of the ladies at the club before hand, strictly business, I assure you). They came up on stage and danced for both sets. I had a hard time playing drums as I set my kit up between the poles, and was often pleasantly distracted by their totally pro pole work. One girl even came up and did this trick with lit matches in her… Well, it was decadent.

Or do you have any stories that won’t get you into trouble with your respective wives, girlfriends and the moral majority of this state?

One of the cool parts was that there was NO photography allowed (club) rule that ended up making it like a stag party. Kinda “hush hush.” Made for a better story too when somebody asked, “how’d it go, sorry I couldn’t make it. It was great to say, “You’ll never know how awesome it was cuz you weren’t there, pal”. And anything that might get anyone into trouble was more likely to have come from the bands significant others than any of us. Hahahhaa. We like ‘em wild.

The band also went into the studio recently to cut a new 7” (“Chainmaker”, right). How did that go? When can we expect to see it? And on what label?

Yup, the “Chainmaker” 7” was recorded just a few weeks ago, at Sonic Environments in Bloomfield, CT. Jeff Weed was at the helm, the same gentleman and studio who recorded the last Ipsissimus record for Metal Blade. He’s a phenomenal dude and we had a blast. It went really well, quite different than the first which was more a slow process. I actually recorded and mixed the Sex and Magic EP myself and it was extremely labor intensive as I’m no professional just a guy who knows a bit and has had a bunch of experience at the helm of a recorder for over 10 years. We did the music first, but at different times with the same mic configuration set up and Phil recorded vocals on his own and I added his parts. I then spent many hours mixing the songs, so it was a bit of a solitary thing for all of us. Also, I was just on the kit for the last record. When NB and Phil Swanson parted ways, we came to a crossroads and had to make the decision to bring in new blood or handle it ourselves. Before I started anything, I was a singer so I asked the guys if I could give it a shot when Phil suggested it to me and said I had his blessing. He said he thought a singer/drummer is badass. Especially for a man of my stature those are BIG shoes to fill but range wise, Phil and I are quite similar so I knew I could sing the tunes, I just had to wait and see if the boys dug it, haha. I’m happy to say they do and so I now have a different job on this one. We recorded live and used one guitar track giving this more much more of a vintage sound. it’s a little more retro, and my voice tends to be a bit more arrogant and saucy than Phil’s, sort of a poor mans Danzig meets a poor man’s Glenn Hughes but a Glenn Hughes who smokes tons of cigarettes. But we’re real happy with what we captured. It’s obviously a little different than S&M, but it without a doubt retains the Nightbitch balance of evil, sleaze and melody. We’re in talks with a few labels now, but its going to be released in the next few months for sure. It’s in the mixing stages so it’ll be a hot minute before it hit’s the streets, but I’m guessing a January release.

You also recently played bass with Kingdom Of Sorrow on three dates of this summer’s Mayhem Festival. How did that come about? And how did it go? But more importantly how did you get Kirk Windstein to wear one of your shirts at the hometown Hartford gig?

One of my oldest friends and band mates, a kid I grew up with, Charlie Bellmore plays for KoS and I just got the call. I actually got confirmation at a Nightbitch gig after we played so I partied extra hard that night. Chuck writes a lot with Jaime (Jasta) and his brother, another of my oldest friends Nicky Bellmore who plays drums for Toxic Holocaust and owns a killer studio called Dexter’s Lab in Milford. They did the most recent KoS record there and were going out on the road for Mayhem. A few different bass players were doing the gig, problem was the first bassist Bubble from Devildriver, threw out his back and couldn’t do the last 3 gigs before his replacement came in. That left them with no bassist. Chuck trusted in me knowing I could handle the tunes and do it quickly with no actual practice so he suggested me and they agreed. I did the Comcast Center in Mansfield Mass, Day 1 of “Heavy MTL” in Montréal and The Meadows (I’m not calling it anything else) in Hartford. It was an amazing experience and the first time I’ve done something that big and commercial. Montreal was the best, amazing food, gorgeous women, and a absolutely amazing Island park that it was held on. Really felt like a Euro-fest. Met a ton of great people, and got to see a few great performances by Megadeth, In Flames, Cryptopsy, Machine Head and Red Fang. Now Kirk, Kirk is amazing… I had more in common musically with him than anybody on the bus, probably because I shoulda been born the year he was. Chuck played him NB before I got on the bus so he knew what I did, and he was into it. We got along real well and I gave him a shirt and he rocked it in Montreal and Hartford. I still don’t know if he wore it so much because he liked it, or because clean laundry is hard to come by on tour. Either way I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.

How many other bands are you in besides Nightbitch? I’m counting at least 500, but I could be wrong. Here’s a chance to set the record straight.

Oh Christ, this is already wordy so I’ll try and be to the point….

Treebeard- I’m the singer and bassist. Stoner metal with clean vox and mystical themes. It’s a lot of fun and with dudes I went to high school with who came from the ashes of another band Covin, which played out for years. Charlie Bellmore plays live 2nd guitar for us. Soon to release a 7 song mini-LP.

The Black Noise Scam- drums. Punk rock/crossover band I joined a couple years ago. Really fast Black Flag style tunes, with a killer guitar player, Warren Brelsford of The Vultures and Old Man Lady Luck. He’s a monster. All the guys are great friends, it keeps my chops up and is a blast to play.

Kings and Liars- Live bass. Charlie Bellmore’s rock project that I help him out on, with bass and backing vocals. Really great stuff, a mix of modern rock with some serious riffage. Just enough to make it true but not too much to scare off a lighter crowd. Soon to be releasing the 8 song record Charlie just finished.

And finally my oldest band, Garbage Barge, which I’ve been in with Reverend George since 1998. Primus, Gwar and SOD thrown into a blender. Offensive and caustic. Also featuring Charlie Bellmore, and Al Chavez from Ipsissimus… a tangled mess of inbred bastardized sons of metal. Too lazy to push forward and too stubborn to quit we have been releasing, recording and playing for 13 years cuz it still makes US laugh and I’m sure the band will outlive me.

What are the future plans for the band?

Well after this 7” we’re trying to finish up 2 more tunes and we have enough for a LP. We want to get these tunes tight and that’s a lot of practices from a band that can’t seem to actually practice at practice for more than an hour or so at a time. We need breaks to drink beer, smoke cigarettes, watch terrible films from the 70’s and listen to Judas Priest. Once we get that recorded we plan for an indie release and another trip back over to Ireland and Europe and visit some buddies we made at Dublin Doom Day 2. We would like to get out there after promoting the record at home for a bit. Got a few mini-tours in the works for 2012, and we’ll be rocking selected shows November-March but we’ll really be hibernating through the winter. Besides, after the show at Ruby’s we’re going to need a few months to recover…

Ruby’s 2 Halloween Bash Featuring:
Nightbitch
Thrillhouse

Saturday, October 29
Ruby’s 2
2362 Fairfield Avenue
Bridgeport, CT

10 pm - $10 (free admission with costume) – 21+ - BYOB

Tyburn Saints, Ghost of Chance, The Invisible Hand at Elm Bar

2011-10-20T14:21:00.005-04:00

Go represent Indie Rock on the Apocalypse. Show 'em what life is really all about!

Elm Bar
Friday Oct 21st @9PM
$3 cover

Tyburn Saints don't sound anything like saints, that's for sure. They actually sound quite like the opposite: maudit artists. Johnny Gimenez's deep, tenebrous tenor knows how to scream at us ("oh Sable"), but also how to lure us with vicious whispers or charming dark ballads ("Bells"). This is well executed dark rock that will find fans among those who revere Mr. Nick Cave's musical output.
-NYC Artists on the Rise, The Deli Magazine

http://tyburnsaints.bandcamp.com/

Ghost of Chance are an experimental rock band based in New Haven, Connecticut. The group’s distinctive style is characterized by subtle time signature changes and sonically open experimentation set to surrealist lyrics. Ghost of Chance’s sound takes its influence from 1960s
psychedelica, math rock and post punk while maintaining the shimmer of classic pop sensibilities.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ghost-of-Chance/283039401524?sk=info

http://www.ghostofchance.com/

The Invisible Hand
http://www.facebook.com/invisiblehands?sk=info
http://www.myspace.com/adamsmith
touring about, come support!

Check out the Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=221076487955896

You don't send for me, I send for you by Tyburns Saints

October 22nd - The Second Annual Gravity Collective Halloween Party at the Branford Legion

2011-10-20T12:43:00.010-04:00

Heavy Breath (CT Easy Listening, Get Young Records)
http://www.heavybreath.com/

...
Living Laser (Poughkeepsie, NY, ex-Robots and Empire. awesome)
http://soundcloud.com/glacialpk/sets/living-laser

Cold Snap (CT Damaging Lyrical Launchers, Get Young Records) (split 7" release show!)
http://thecoldsnap.tumblr.com/

Brass Caskets (CT, members of Cold Snap, Phantoms) (split 7" release show!)
http://www.mediafire.com/?b1v30qbd6nl67g0 -> Nothing Is Sacred Anymore

Misfits Cover Set
(featuring members of Stomped on Sight + Submission)

Night Owls (CT, ex-Don't Say I Won't)
debut EP coming soon! http://nightowlsct.tumblr.com/

Last year I booked a very successful Halloween show at the Branford VFW (so successful that the venue was shut down shortly after) and am looking forward to hopefully spreading the same kind of Halloween cheer this year. There's a lot to like about this gig; it's Living Laser's first show in Connecticut, there's an exclusive Misfits set from various members of Stomped on Sight and Submission, and we're celebrating the release of the great Brass Caskets/Cold Snap 7" on Redscroll Records (http://redscrollrecords.blogspot.com/2011/09/brass-caskets-cold-snap-7-out-now.html). And to round out the lineup we have Heavy Breath (who recently released their debut 12" on Get Young Records) and Night Owls (who should have a new EP ready in the next couple of weeks).

Facebook Event Page

Doors @ 6:30, show @ 7
$8 at the door, $6 in costume

This hall has been home to numerous shows over the past four months and attendance has been great. The only thing we ask is that people don't drink in the hall or parking lot, this is by request of the veterans who run the Legion. There is a bar inside the building that sells cheap beer and has darts and billiards if those happen to be your thing. Let's not lose another hall to mindless drinking.

White Fence (ex-Darker My Love) and Suicide Dolls @ BAR

2011-10-18T19:51:00.003-04:00

Wednesday night 9PM @ BAR

Manic Production presents: White Fence and Suicide Dolls

White Fence

"Tim Presley is a member of the bands Darker My Love and the Strange Boys, which do variations of dirtied-up psychedelic pop. White Fence is his third band and much more idiosyncratic. It’s just Mr. Presley making songs as complicated as he wants, with his multitracked asthmatic voice and his gift for weird, wayward song hooks. On “White Fence,” just released on CD by Woodsist, drum rhythms stumble and recohere; chord changes are half-forgotten or blown altogether. Audio quality changes from track to track or even in the middle of a song, and so does the music’s speed. The album sounds as if it were mastered on a cassette machine with failing batteries. This whole enterprise is way, way moth eaten: the Syd Barrett/1960s Los Angeles garage-punk influences, the dirty-on-purpose sound quality, the overmodulated guitar leads.

By a certain logic it should be a stone loser. But so much in music comes down to conviction. There’s something ritual about these songs, as if Mr. Presley had been carrying them in his head, with all their details, for a long time. Listen even once, and they’re hard to shake. All of Mr. Presley’s strange touches start to seem significant and obsessively desired: a short background sigh, a few seconds of harmonica or xylophone, a new strain plopped into the middle of a song that leads nowhere, a guitar solo that’s longer than it needs to be. It’s mannered and indirect music, but he’s a poet of that." - BEN RATLIFF (NY Times)

Woodsist Records

Mp3s: http://www.myspace.com/whitefenceband

Suicide Dolls

From the ashes of a mid-90's all-noise band, Brian Albano and Michelle Montavon took their new form as the Suicide Dolls in early 2002. Blending the far out, experimental noise jams of their earlier incarnation with familiar and catchy rock/punk structures, the Suicide Dolls recorded their 1st demo in 2003 and have been growing ever since. Matt Covey began drumming with the 'Dolls in 2006, and again in 2009 after a brief departure. The current lineup is at it's strongest to date, and are releasing their full length album "Prayers In Parking Lots' in September of 2011.

Mp3s: http://thesuicidedolls.bandcamp.com/

The Besnard Lakes, Malajube (presented by Manic Productions), The Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, CT - Sat., 8 Oct 2011

2011-10-15T13:28:00.012-04:00

Hartford's The Wadsworth Antheneum had the pleasure to host some of the best current French-Canadian Indie rock bands in Montreal's Malajube and The Besnard Lakes last weekend. Before launching into a discussion of this excellent show hosted by New Haven based Indie promoting staple Manic Productions, allow me to discuss the venue, which, I think, is as good as any that I've been to in CT (at the very least). The Wadsworth's downstairs theater is a ~300 soft-seater with a full stage and incredible sound system. The walls of the theater were adorned with murals of soldiers and horses (which really fit quite nicely with The Besnard Lakes' "...Are The Dark Horses" 2007 album vibe). Outside of the theater, there were small circular tables with ~5 seats/table, a small bar (where I had my first Hooker Octoberfest of the season), a large merchandise stand and large realist paintings with a distinctive French Revolutionary War feel. It's really quite the rare jewel in a mostly barren city for live Indie music (I lived in Hartford for 8 years, so I am speaking from experience not prejudice).

Although the show was originally slated for three bands including the local outfit Smoke Signals, the Facebook invite was changed several days before to just feature two bands. My fiancé and I arrived in media res to find Malajube already in the middle of their set. I knew nothing about the band going into the performance, but I was initially struck by the high pitched vocals and mostly incomprehensible lyrics. I took me a few songs to realize that they were singing in French! The band had an excellent stage presence, and their songs adhered closely to what I've come to identify as a Canadian Indie sound in the vein of Arts and Crafts bands like Broken Social Scene and Stars but with a more post-punk influence than those aforementioned bands. Overall, I thought that their set was up-and-down, but there were definitely a few stand-out tracks. Subsequent research revealed that Malajube is on Dare to Care (Canada) with U.S. distribution by MB3. After being nominated for two Polaris Awards (a Canadian music award for original artistic achievement with a price tag attached), they are touring the U.S. with The Besnard Lakes in support of 2011’s “La Caverne,” which is their 4th full length. Check out some of the live footage that I captured below:

Between sets, several friends were interviewed by a Montreal-based video news crew on tour with the bands. The questions seemed focused on the American perception of the many great Montreal-based Indie bands that have hit the airwaves since the late 90s, e.g. godspeed you! black emperor, The Dears and Arcade Fire. After this brief intermission, The Besnard Lakes hit the stage. The most notable feature was the guitar rack with 5+ guitars and lead singer’s Jace Lasek’s distinctive attire replete with aviator-style transitions and floral pattern button down shirt (a staple of their live performances). Before going on, I just wanted to give a disclaimer that I enjoy most of the bands on the psych rock-heavy Indiana-based label Jagjaguwar, and The Besnard Lakes are no exception. I first heard their sophomore 2007 release “…Are the Dark Horses” and immediately enjoyed their admixture of psych, prog and bombastic stadium rock, which they pull off seamlessly. I was then expecting to be disappointed with their 2010 release “…Are The Roaring Night,” and was pleasantly wrong. Both albums capture a certain flair and bravado that is totally lost in contemporary Indie, i.e. the desire to be rock stars, and they do it in a way that is not at all cloying or cheesy. Some of the closest comparators in this respect are not American or Canadian but 90s British rock bands like (The) Verve and Oasis, who unfortunately were sometimes (or often in the case of Oasis) cloying or cheesy in their path to rockdom.

The Besnards immediately launched into their ~60 minute set with a few choice tracks from “…Are The Roaring Night,” and those in attendance familiar with their sound immediately rose from their soft seats in support to gawk and dance. The climaxes were punctuated by an impressive light show that varied between straight white, straight red, strobe and admixtures of swirling red-and-white (see the videos below). After clipping through many tracks off of the aforementioned album, they returned to some hits off “…Are the Dark Horse,” which the crowd was eager to receive. Before playing “Disaster,” Jace called out to someone expected to be in attendance to clap, and, when they received no reply, he offered, “He’s stoned…he can’t clap that fast,” which received audience laughter. Nevertheless, the medley of “Disaster” into “Devastation” had no one laughing. Instead, most were struggling to keep their jaws closed as the band totally hit their stride at this juncture in a powerfully climactic cacophony. After some slow claps of encouragement, The Besnards returned to the stage to play a two song encore that was also well-received. My sole complaint with the show was that it was often difficult to hear bassist and singer, Olga Goreas’, vocals in the mix, especially during the first few songs. However, the performance and the sound was otherwise perfect.

As we were leaving, The Besnards were outside having a cigarette, and they proved to be an affable lot. We provided some history on the Wadsworth by informing them of the oft-cited contention that it is the first established art history museum in the U.S. They then asked, “Is it haunted?” and explained that, during their set, they heard someone(thing) called the drummer’s name without anyone on stage speaking the word. In true October spirit, we replied that the museum may be haunted. They also had some great merchandise for sale, and I picked up this awesome unidentifying shirt of a kitty astronaut in space. Olga said, “Yeah, the Cat-stronaut,” which is how I will refer to this shirt from now on.

In sum, this was another incredible booking by Manic Productions at what is currently the most underrated venue in CT. I am also posting some footage of The Besnards’ set, but, unfortunately, I did (and am still kicking myself for) not capture “Disaster” into “Devastation.” Yet, you’ll hear just how great the mix was even on these iPhone4 captures:

Freight Street Gallery Presents: EVERYBODY WANTS SOME! This Friday!

2011-10-12T12:16:00.002-04:00

Freight Street Gallery

170 Freight Street

Waterbury, CT

7 p.m. $7 suggested donation BYOB for 21+

Get in on this indie smorgasbord, and make sure you stay for seconds.

Featuring

The Field Recordings - http://thefieldrecorders.bandcamp.com/album/the-elastic-nostalgia
(apparently these guys need NO introduction!!!)

Thank You Mr. Keating - http://thankyoumrkeating.bandcamp.com/album/the-baxter-special

Steady Habits - https://www.facebook.com/steadyhabits

When Waters Rise - https://www.facebook.com/pages/When-Waters-Rise

The Month of June - http://www.myspace.com/themonthofjune08

'Cotton Candy' Featuring members of the Fake Babies - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fake-Babies/242557894283

Th' Legendary Shack Shakers: Fine Southern Gentlemen

2011-10-12T09:53:00.000-04:00

Photo by Joshua Black Wilkins

There are many bands out there today that merge traditional American roots music such as country, bluegrass and the blues with punk rock, but few do it better than Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers. Over the course of six albums, this Kentucky based band has shown that they stand head and shoulders above all the pretenders out there.

Maybe it has to do with the fact that they manage their musical alchemy with seamlessness, sincerity and authenticity or maybe it’s their high live shows, which has earned frequently shirtless and sweaty front man J.D. Wilkes comparisons to such people as Iggy Pop, and has even been called one of the best front person’s out there by the likes of Jello Biafra and Hank III. They have developed into a force to be reckoned with.

“We’re completely different from when we first started out. Originally we were more of a rockabilly band but since then we have become this Frankenstein that incorporates punk rock and blues into the mix. It’s a crunching sound and one that takes us farther away from the core, but at the same time the music is more in the spirit of what we are aiming for, in getting the rhythm of the train and other rural machinery into our sound,” said Wilkes.

The capturing of these rural industrial rhythms are in full display on the band’s new record, which is appropriately titled “Agri-dustrial”. On this one, the band is joined by Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison and his noisy skronks give the music an extra jolt of electricity. (Just check out his slide work on the album’s first track “Sin Eater,” to show this is a perfect musical marriage.) What would seem like an odd pairing at first to many roots rock purists, works wonderfully. (And, yes, he is touring with the band.)

But don’t think this happened at the spur of the moment. The roots of this album and the partnership with Denison go way back. In fact, when the band first started out, Denison and his wife would go out and check out the band, enjoying what they saw and heard. They eventually became friends, and Wilkes actually lived in a room above the garage in Denison’s house for a while. During this time they came up with the concept for this record.

It was all set to go, but then Mike Patton came calling, and Tomahawk was formed. But they didn’t give up on the idea, and about nine years later they were able to put this collaboration into effect.

“It was nice to see the seed we planted all those years ago come to fruition,” said Wilkes.

While this new album is killer and it could be argued that there are no weak links in the band’s catalog, they are known as a fearsome live act. It’s a high energy spectacle that leaves the band covered in sweat. When a band has such a reputation as this, one can’t help but wonder how they keep the energy up, night after night.
It’s very easy, in fact, according to Wilkes.

“It’s always automatic. There is a switch that gets turned on once the music starts. You just get into it and start to move,” said Wilkes.

Actually what irks Wilkes more is some of the crowd reactions to the band, which also features upright bass player Mark Robertson and drummer Brett Whitacre. He can’t see why people just stand still when faced with such high energy music. After all, good music should connect with the hips and the Shack Shakers play some great hip shaking music, so it should be a no brainer to get up and dance. The spirit will move you at one of their shows.

Upcoming future plans for the band include another full length album for the summer 2012, as well as more touring with Europe in their sights and Wilkes plans to do more videos and documentary film making. He made a critically acclaimed documentary called “Seven Signs”, which is about eccentric southern people and culture that won an award at the Rain Dance Film Festival in England a few years back.

We have an acclaimed band with a great live reputation playing on Friday in Connecticut. Here is another show that you should not miss. I keep saying this about most of these, but seriously this is some good shit. Don’t miss out.

Manic Productions Presents:

Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers
Lushlife
The Proud Flesh

Friday, October 21, 2011
Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street
Milford, CT

8:00pm – 21+ - $12 ($10 in advance)

Buy tickets now or pick them up at Redscroll.

Landmine Marathon makes perfectly brutal music

2011-10-12T09:13:00.000-04:00

The first thing that hits you are the guitars, which are thick, fast and dirty. Then the drums and bass come along, synching in lock step with the guitars, continuing the onslaught. Finally the vocals hit, they are low, guttural and acid flecked. Such are the joys of Landmine Marathon, a death/grind band from Arizona that features some bulldozing music as well as the fierce pipes of Grace Perry.

For those of you still living in a timewarp, yes they are a death metal band and yes, their vocalist is female. This shouldn’t be a big deal in this day and age because there are tons of women who have contributed to extreme metal over the years, without having to use their gender as a selling point. If it is a big deal to you, respect her, because she kicks ass, pure and simple.

“I have no idea if I am a role model but I do have a lot of girls that tell me I inspire them, which is one of the most flattering things to hear. It's the 2011, not 1950, and if people still think women have to abuse their sexuality in order to be in a successful band they are idiots. Whenever people compare me to other singers it's not to other females, it's to other singers, male, female, you name it. I want to inspire girls to see that although the metal scene is very much male dominated it should never make a difference,” said Perry. “The good thing about this genre of metal is that politically correct bands still exist and draw influence from bands like Napalm Death who have always had higher moral grounds. I carry myself in a way that doesn't attract that type of behavior and now that our fourth record is coming out it's a joke to think anyone would actually believe I can't hold my own,” she added.

She didn’t start out as a metal singer, she was recruited and found out she loved it. You see originally she played in a screamo band whose sole reason was to piss people off and it did, but (bassist) Matt Martinez saw her perform and liked her screams and growls so much, he asked her if she wanted to start a band. It’s been seven years since that encounter and the rest is history.

“Well let's just say if I didn't have my band all that intensity and aggression might just pour out into my everyday life. It's not that I'm an angry person, we just happen to live on an insane planet that should inspire everyone to create an outlet of their own,” said Perry.

This aggression shows itself in her live performances, where she has been described as a she-demon, throwing herself fearlessly into the performances. It’s a go for broke mentality that has won her many admirers and respect, but it’s also been the cause of various injuries, but to Perry that’s all just part of the game.

“Yes I definitely have my share of injuries; a broken nose, more black eyes and bloody lips than I can count and I most recently sliced my head open on a shitty microphone that had wires jutting out,” said Perry.

And for someone who has a very extreme vocal style, you would think she does exercises or take some type of special liquids to keep her vocal chords in top shape, but actually you would be dead wrong, because you see, just like her personality was made for metal, so is her voice.

“People always ask me this and I'm being honest when I say I do nothing. No special teas, cough drops, warming up, just water. When I am recording my voice will start to get weak after a few hours but the next day I'm ready to go all over again. Just lucky I guess,” said Perry.

But before we forget, Landmine Marathon is a band and a really good one, and this skill is on display on their new album “Gallows”, which came out on September 27 on Prosthetic Records. They have trimmed the fat and tightened their sound, delivering a just under 30 minute blast of exhilaration and brutality. It’s dirty, filthy, dark and easily their best album. Perry credits the band’s commitment to deliver their best album and the acquisition of a new member as the reasons to the album’s face ruling-ness.

“Having our new drummer, Andy York, has definitely changed and improved the dynamic of the band. He is a walking metronome and the most talented drummer I have ever worked with. Vocally I focused on singing mainly lower, more guttural vocals which gave the album an even darker feel than previous Landmine records. (Guitarist) Ryan Butler has recorded all of our albums at Arcane Digital and he spent more hours and hard work on “Gallows” than ever before. We are not trying to break new ground in this genre, just write music we love and hopefully everyone else does too,” said Perry.

The new album also deals with the darkness in the folk tales that have been passed down from generation to generation. To some people this might seem like weird subject matter for a death metal record, but after listening to Perry explain it, it is a perfect fit. After all, remember how dark the original Brothers Grimm fairy tales were, and then this lyrical theme doesn’t seem so out of left field.

“Many of these stories have transformed over hundreds of years into the common the fables we grew up with. When I was in college I took many literature classes that explored this and it opened my eyes to something entirely different. During this era they were not the G-rated family friendly stories we know but in fact brutally graphic,demonic, and downright terrifying. The more research I did the more inspiring it became, countless books depicting self mutilation and the constant death of woman and children, along with evil folkloric creatures always devouring humans. From this I wrote some of my darkest and favorite lyrics to date,” said Perry.

So there you have it. Not only is the band, which also features Dylan Thomas on guitar, a must see live act, they have also released the best record of their career. So there really should be no reason why you shouldn’t get down to the Webster Underground early on October 20 and catch their set. After all, seeing, and hearing, is believing.

Warbringer
Lazarus AD
Landmine Marathon
Diamond Plate
Prime Evil
Shallow Ground

Thursday, October 20, Webster Underground
31 Webster Street
Hartford, CT, 06114
6:00 pm – All Ages - $12 advance/$14 day of show

400 Blows Brings The Noise....

2011-10-10T12:47:00.003-04:00

400 Blows exists in that strange nether realm where punk collides with metal and saddles up with noise rock without really belonging to any of these genres. You can hear traces of each of these aggressive genres in their vicious music which is topped off by the snotty vocals of Skot Alexander, who just happens to sound a little like another infamous punk singer. (But more on that later.)

After a six year absence, the Los Angeles-based band, which features new members Scott Martin, of Big Business and Crom, on guitar, along with drummer Kevin Fitzgerald just released its first new album with this new line-up, “Sickness & Health” earlier this year on Org Music and the band is hitting the road to bring their patented in your face live show to the masses. This tour will take them to Daniel Street in Milford on October 17.

The big question concerning a band that takes this long a hiatus is why it took so long to follow up their last record 2005’s “Angel's Trumpets & Devil’s Trombones” with this year’s album.

“Being prolific has never been a strong point for this band. Most of the previous albums have all come out about 5 years apart. So we are right on schedule. In fact, we already have stuff ready for a new album so it won’t be that long a wait for the next one,” said Alexander.

That’s the short version of the story. The long story deals with two former members leaving the band for various reasons. One was having a baby and wanted to start a family, while other decided to not continue on. So, Alexander, the band’s sole original member and guiding force needed to find new members. He found them in Martin and Fitzgerald.

But the band took their time, writing new material and developing their personality. Alexander said he didn’t want the new version of the band to turn into a cover version of the previous one.

All this waiting paid off because “Sickness & Health” (which by the way fits Alexander’s MO of titling the band’s album with two words that are the complete opposite of each other) is a 34 live wire minute ride through the dark recesses of Alexander’s mind. It is filled with his twisted adult nursery rhymes and totally kills it musically, as Martin and Fitzgerald destroy on their instruments, laying down a dense, energetic racket behind Alexander. The band is in perfect synch on this record making it one of the best loud rock releases of the year.

In fact, Alexander in a way knew it would be good, because he can’t stop singing the praises of his instrumental cohorts.

“They just bring fucking awesomeness to the band. I could just hang out in the audience and watch them play and it would be a great show,” said Alexander adding jokingly, “plus we’ve become a lot more handsome.”

But now back Alexander’s voice. The dude sounds a little like Dead Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra. If you listen to the new album you can hear it. In fact, one critic remarked that it was a “less annoying” version of Jello Biafra’s voice. (Ouch!) You would think this might annoy him but it doesn’t at all.

“There is a big difference between how the Dead Kennedys and 400 Blows sounds, but if you have to compare me to Jello, I don’t mind. I happen to know him. Jello is okay with me,” said Alexander.

But the band really kills it in the live arena. Based on former performances they definitely have the right attitude to deliver the goods live. To paraphrase one of their songs, they kill like champions.

“We don’t do this to suck. We like to leave blood on the stage,” said Alexander. “Not literally, though,” he added.

Based on the above quote you can see that the band is committed to giving awesome performances that are filled with the proverbial blood, sweat and tears that makes great live bands great. So there really is no reason to miss this show if you’re a fan of the loud stuff. After all, it’s only $5 and though it’s on Monday, what better things do you have to do on a Monday in Connecticut?

Nothing. So be there. Here’s another one you’ll be kicking yourself over if you miss.

Manic Productions Presents:

400 Blows
Red Blade

Monday, October 17
Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street
Milford, CT

7pm - $5 – 21+

Buy tickets now or pick them up at Redscroll.

D. GOOKIN - SPIRAL STYLE

2011-10-10T10:35:00.016-04:00

I am not sure when it began or why. In the late 80s and early 90s, which is my remembered youth, I recall coming to the assumption that as technology grew fidelity and quality would grow with it. Over time this assumption was challenged on many fronts with the "art vs. commercial" war of the past 30 years. Automation and machines gave us Kraftwerk but they also gave us Dee-Lite. "Laptop music" ranges from the most predictable disco to the most impromptu experimental drone noise. There is truly no way to accurately measure how technology has affected the many ways we experience and participate in life.
This becomes especially interesting when you see how people use their computers to make music that harnesses the power and fidelity we were "promised" with technologies growth, as well as the less polished, even intrusive sounds that we always seem to gravitate toward. Perhaps it's another constant struggle, this time between our need to achieve "perfection" and our ultimate desire to conquer/destroy it.
D. Gookin is a man who makes musical creations operating out of new haven. For years he has been busting out seriously energetic live shows. His bio says he is a drummer and vocalist, and that the remaining sounds of his band are "lovingly crafted backing tracks".
His newest set of recordings, Spiral Style, was released September 23rd via Moodgadget and EXPLODES into your ears with infectiously sugary electro pop.
Combining 8bit sounds with glossier synth samples, the listener is caught between decades of technology all while celebrating the pulsing thump of the natural pop music we all share instinctively. The drums are expertly played and programmed, and while auto-tune is definitely a cliche in terms of music fashion, the use of it in these enjoyably cliched pop songs feels fitting.
Opener "Way 2 Grow" makes no mistakes about its sound, coming right into being with an intense musical optimism that carries all the way to the closing number "Stealing Sunchips", with no breaks to relax.
I got a chance to ask D. Gookin's Mike Birnbaum a few questions about his music and tastes recently via email, here's what he had to say:

So, what's the big idea with you anyway?
No big deal. I'm just this screwy dude.

How has your perspective on music changed growing up in an increasingly technological world?
My perspective has continuously changed for the better as technology has progressed. As the internet and music making tools have together become easier to maneuver and more uniform, music for me has become de-mystified in a good way. It all makes it easier to have big ideas on a small scale and vice versa. Before having your own solo act vision seemed like a way too personal endeavor for lots of people to care about. But now this kind of "putting out your personalized vibes and doing you" mentality is fully embraced. Whats the most fun and immediate about making music and being creative in general has become what matters the most.

You seem to make infectious pop while simultaneously mocking it, who's side are you on?
My intention has never been to mock pop music. A giant realization for me though at some point was that music I didn't have a choice to listen to ruled my mind and emotions the same as, if not more so, than music I sought out on my own. I'd say also in the scheme of pop music my stuff is too weird to truly be pop. I think my music ends up being laced with poppy feels sounds and melodies because I want my music to come from a really raw and exciting place. And for me that place is usually some kind of overindulgent sugary wasteland.

What is your opinion of "atom and his package"?
Ya know, you asking me this promptly reminded me that it is my duty to finally check that out. My first listen impressions - I am not really a "clever one man act" enthusiast and him laying on the pseudo nerd core vibes is a turn off but some that "worms going into holes posi synth sound meets some big chords" going on in some of those tracks is awesome! Can't hate on that!
What is your dream gig?
Try this one out - Tobacco, Paramore, Millionaires, Super Cat, Andrew W.K., New Boyz, Unicorn Kid, Lady Gaga only performing 'eh eh' and.......Incubus. Secret show too. Ahahah you asked!

Which of your influences would surprise your fans/friends the most?
KELLEY CLARKSON! & as of recent Shwayze & Cisco :)

How do you harness inspiration for songs?
Occasionally I'll go after the "I'm gonna make a song in this style" mentality but mostly looping things that contain vibes I enjoy, trying to hear a melody in it, and staring at something like a recycling symbol or certain girls' facebook photos........YOOOO JUST KIDDING

Learn more about D. Gookin at his website: www.dgookin.com
Also check out his Facebook Page and Bandcamp

Way 2 Grow by DGOOKIN

Man Man, Grandchildren and M.T. Bearington at Daniel Street on WEDNESDAY

2011-10-10T09:26:00.005-04:00

Wednesday, October 12 at 8:00pm

Daniel Street

21 Daniel Street

Milford, CT

$17 ($15 advance) / All Ages

Tickets on sale NOW! http://manicproductions.org/tickets
or get the tickets at Redscroll Records

Check the facebook event page here:
https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=173200439418388

Man Man
Man Man is known for their exuberant live performances. When performing, the members of the band dress in white outfits and wear war paint. Comparisons to the usual avant-garde forefathers - Captain Beefheart, Frank Zappa, Tom Waits - persist, but Man Man are decidedly not identity thieving or even overtly referencing these spiritual godfathers in their music, but rather are acting as torchbearers of the unusual, the spontaneous and the plainly fucking funny in an increasingly homogenized world.
ANTI- Records
Mp3s: http://www.myspace.com/wearemanman

Grandchildren
The drums smack you in the face first, like a hailstorm with no sign of letting up. Then, as waves of harmonies emerge unexpectedly, a joyous sensation sets in, as if someone just snapped you out of a fever dream. The beat-driven, orchestral-pop epics unfold like an audio scrapbook of memories from the life of Grandchildren songwriter Aleksander Martray.
Mp3s: http://www.myspace.com/grandchildren

M.T. Bearington
Matt Thomas knows how to write a song—as evidenced in over a decade of music-making with the Weigh Down, Leaves of Lothlorien, and Short Pants Romance.

Over the past two years, the band has shared the stage with Deerhoof, the Drums, and Tim Easton at New London's 2009 I AM Festival, rocked with Of Montreal and Lupe Fiasco at the 2010 BOMB Fest, and opened for Mates of State on a Northeast stint in February 2010.

Their full-band, follow-up effort "Love Buttons" hits the shelves on Valentine's Day 2011. Produced by Fuzzy Rainbow (Fake Babies, Eula), with a hand from Greg Giorgio at Tarquin Studios (Interpol, The National), it's an upbeat collection of sonic musings on various forms of love—from the traditional to the twisted—through the eyes of characters real and fictional.
Mp3s: http://mtbearington.bandcamp.com/

What Folk Festival TONIGHT at Freight Street Gallery!

2011-10-07T17:00:00.003-04:00

The fine people of Freight Street Gallery are putting on What Folk Festival tonight!

Featuring

Kath Bloom ~ http://www.myspace.com/kathbloomchapter
Levi Strom ~ http://www.myspace.com/levistrom
Colby Nathan (of Hyena) ~ http://www.laughablerecordings.com/
Cranston Dean ~ http://www.reverbnation.com/cranstondean#!
John Muccino ~ http://www.facebook.com/johnsounds

$7 Suggested donation
All ages BYOB for 21+

Kath Bloom is an American singer-songwriter based in Litchfield, Connecticut, whose sad voice often accompanies simple folk melodies.

The daughter of oboist Robert Bloom, Kath grew up in New Haven, where she studied the cello as a child and started playing the guitar when she was a teenager. She collaborated with Bruce Neumann in the early '70s, but it wasn't until she met avant-garde guitarist Loren MazzaCane Connors in 1976 that she started recording. Bloom and Connors recorded multiple albums of fragile, simple folk and blues melodies, the majority of which were written by Bloom herself. Their collaboration ended in 1984 with the release of their final album, Moonlight, of which only 300 copies were pressed.

A Minor Apocalypse, Bright Red Reason, Farewood

2011-10-05T08:56:00.000-04:00

Friday, October 7, 2011, Indie Night @ the Oak presents

Charter Oak Cultural Center
21 Charter Oak Ave
Hartford, CT

All Ages - 8 PM - $6 or only $5 w/ a canned vegetarian good donation for Hartford Food Not Bombs

FB Event page

Farewood is husband and wife songwriters Lou Lorenzo and Leah Booker. Joining them for live performances is soundscaping guitarist Ed Diaz along with veteran drummer and musical instructor Bob Hill. The band finds inspiration for their tunes against the backdrop of their hometown of Meriden, CT. The desolate feel of the city surroundings consistently finds its way into the subconsciousness of their songs, yielding a sound that at times is shadowy, desperate and lonely. But like many Connecticut towns, once you venture out of the emptiness of its downtown center, the back roads can unfold into beautiful, almost country roads. That duality, or contrast if you will, can be found throughout their music. Their songs can be dark, but underneath it all lies a certain unmistakable beauty.

Bright Red Reason is a teenage trio based out of a combination of Medford and Tyngsboro, MA. They have been together since the summer of 2009, and have been writing and independently recording demos, booking, and playing shows since. The group loves performing with lots of energy and has been recognized for their eye-catching, yet comical stage presence. A wide variety of shows have been played in the Greater Boston area as well as New Hampshire, and this fall the band will be expanding on road trips further around New England. With two EPs currently out and a third on the way, their music carries a very individual sound, ranging from straight punk rock jams to catchy, dancey tunes. Bright Red Reason has been compared to groups such as The Runaways and The Ramones, and some influences include: Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Green Day, The Beatles, The Thermals, and The Distillers.

Give up the Ghost by Bright Red Reason

a minor Apocalypse - unfortunately not much out there on the interwebs on these dudes, but I noticed that there is the eponymous Polish novel about someone that "has been asked to set himself on fire in front of the Communist Party headquarters in Warsaw in an act of protest. He accepts the commission, but without any clear idea of whether he will actually go through with the self-immolation. He spends the rest of the day wandering the streets of Warsaw, being tortured by the secret police and falling in love." Maybe that kid from the cover of Bad Religion's Suffer started this band?

CONTEST! The Besnard Lakes Ticket Giveaway

2011-10-02T22:59:00.006-04:00

Saturday Oct 8th, Manic Productions presents:

Wadsworth Atheneum (Aetna Theater)

600 Main Street

Hartford, CT

7:00pm - All Ages - $12

Want win a pair of tickets to see the Besnard Lakes at Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford Oct 8th? Well, send an email to CTINDIECONTEST@GMAIL.COM answering the following: What's your favorite Besnard Lakes song and why? Winner will be picked at random.

(Winner will be notified Friday Oct 7th. So, check your email!)

Bios from Manic's site:

The Besnard Lakes

The Besnard Lakes are a band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, formed by the husband and wife team of Jace Lasek (Vocals/Guitar/Keyboards) and Olga Goreas (Vocals/Bass), and completed by Kevin Laing (Drums) and Richard White (Guitar). According to Songfacts, their name comes from Besnard Lake in North-Central Saskatchewan.

The band gained critical attention with their second album, The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse, that was nominated for a Polaris Prize in 2007. It was recorded at Lasek’s own Breakglass Studios, with members of fellow Canadian bands Stars, The Dears, and Godspeed You! Black Emperor/A silver Mt. Zion making guest appearances. Their debut album, Volume I, was self-released in a limited 1,000-copy edition in 2003 and later rereleased in October 2007.

In March 2010, the band released their third album The Besnard Lakes Are The Roaring Night to widespread acclaim and has also received a nomination for the 2010 Polaris Prize.

Jagjaguwar Records

Also playing:

Malajube

Malajube are an indie rock band from Montréal, Québec. They sing in French and have three albums out on Dare to Care Records.

The group made itself known in 2004 with the release of its first album, “Le Compte Complet.” Critics welcomed the disc with positive reviews, which allowed the group to become instantly famous in the Québécois music scene. Several of its songs, such as “Le Métronome” and “La Valérie,” were prominent mainstays on several Québec radio stations. For the production of the album, the group turned to Martin Pelland from fellow Montreal band The Dears.

Smoke Signals

Coley O'Toole and Joe Ballaro started their first band in the 7th grade in Shelton, Connecticut. They honed their skills as musicians, vocalists and songwriters by playing together daily.

Coley met Zac Clark over a decade later, when Zac moved into a river house on the banks of the Housatonic with Joe. The three toured as The Queen Killing Kings.

In early 2011, the three journeyed to Silverlake, California where Simon Katz (Youngblood Hawke) and Christian Letts (Edward Sharpe) awaited their arrival at the Effie House- a home equipped with, among other items, several recording consoles, a Steinway baby grand, two dozen guitars, a Hammond organ, and a ghost.

The band brought more than 30 songs, out of which one was chosen each day to arrange, record and mix. The 9 songs that comprise the band's debut self titled LP, "Smoke Signals," were recorded live, in the living room, in the span of 9 days.

These songs are a return to the blue-collar landscape of the band's hometown. They are honest, warm and timeless.

On Display at Heirloom Arts: Connecticut Indie Rock Dinosaurs

2011-09-30T18:59:00.014-04:00

Sub Rosa, Heirloom Arts, and WXCI presents:

The Saltwater Swells (Indie Pop)
Season Finale (Fugazi meets Rush and dates Madonna)

UltraCrush (nostalgic indie rock)
Human Vice Patrol (Heavy Rock and Roll)
Ghost of Chance (Ethereal, experimental wall of sound rock)

Saturday Oct. 1st

All Ages

8pm doors
$5 D.O.S

@ Heirloom Arts Theatre
155 Main Street; Suite 103 #103
Danbury, CT 06810

Sounds:

The Saltwater Swells - Who Owns you
Saltwater Swells - Who Owns You by CTINDIE

Human Vice Patrol - High Tide Fist Fight
Human Vice Patrol - High Tide Fist Fight by CTINDIE

Ultracruch -Mess
UltraCrush - Mess by CTINDIE

Ghost of Chance - Livin' Life to the Fullest
06 - Livin' life to the fullest by GhostofChance

The Guru - Native Sun (Revisited)

2011-09-30T12:31:00.005-04:00

Appropriately described as Disco rock, The Guru can certainly get a crowd bobbing their heads—or dancing like maniacs. With a lunatic vocalist, a cross between Isaac Brock and Brak, the band swathes our ears with an overtly melodic mix of dueling guitars, pulsating bass, and drums straight out of boogie nights.

The guitars are absolutely amazing on “Native Sun”—intricate riffs battle for the forefront. Their melodies can be compared to riffs of bands like The Owls or Don Caballero. The Guru is able to utilize traditional jazz chords while maintaining a rock sound—tough to do. In fact, in the breakdown of Pirate’s Cove, the band draws guitar influence from the jazz standard Blue Bossa. The group seamlessly floats through time signatures like they don’t exist. In general, the band has a strong grasp on song writing. Though, at times, the guitars become a bit too much and sound like wanky blues riffing from a 70s porno. But structurally the songs are solid. I do have one cavil though: the album was mastered way too loud and at times digital clipping is apparent. But the mix itself is rather intriguing. The Guru makes great use of space, reverb, and panning.

Buy their album on Bandcamp

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://theguru.bandcamp.com/album/native-sun"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Native Sun by The Guru&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
Barracuda Hands off "Native Sun"
The Guru - Barracuda Hands by CTINDIE

TONIGHT: Suburban Scum, Convulsions, Raindance, Heavy Breath and more

2011-09-30T10:02:00.000-04:00

Friday, September 30, 2011 at
Branford American Legion
243 North Main Street
Branford, CT

$8 - All Ages - Doors at 6:30, show at 7

No drinking/drugs/bullshit, there's a nice bar in the building where you can go to get you drink on. The people who run this hall are fucking awesome so respect them.

Suburban Scum (NJ)

Convulsions (RI, FFO Disembodied)

Black Kites Convulsions Split by Black Kites/Convulsions

Raindance (MA)

Severed Wings and Open Wounds by Raindance

Heavy Breath (CT, Get Young Records)

Ugly Americans by Heavy Breath

Less Life (NJ, members of You and I, Black Kites, The Assistant)

Today Will Be Ours by Less Life

Submission (CTHC)

Al Borland (ex- PoW, Das Hate, Cold Snap)

approx. set times:
Al Borland - 7-7:15
Submission - 7:25 - 7:40
Less Life - 7:55 - 8:15
Heavy Breath - 8:30-8:50
Raindance - 9:05-9:25
Convulsions - 9:35-9:55
Suburban Scum - 10:10-

Elm City Popfest Videos

2011-09-29T13:46:00.006-04:00

The Elm City Popfest is over. But, thanks to Mark Niciu, there are many videos from each night. Here are a couple of the videos. More can be found on February Records Facebook page.

The Inclined Plane - Killer Roentgens

Sidewalk Dave - Chord Organ Blues (Daniel Johnston Cover)

Fugue - YEARS

2011-09-29T10:02:00.005-04:00

Could there be a better time to hear Fugue’s new album than the autumn? Kind of like the mosaic of leaves that swirls around one’s head, Fugue’s YEARS is often a collage of interlaced guitar, keyboard, and bass melodies that combine to give birth to some larger, unified feeling. Unlike a lot of guitar-driven instrumental rock, YEARS resists repeating simple and catchy melodic hooks; rather, the album presents kick-ass melodic lines but allows them to permutate in new shades as each song transforms.

Taken as a whole, each of the songs on YEARS generally has a melancholic quality to it, but it’s one that is complex and rich. Each of the four songs is a journey in which tempos, moods, melodies, and chord progressions are continually evolving. While Fugue impress with their compositional and instrumental virtuosity, they skillfully avoid falling into the trap of becoming over-technical showoffs. Part of the credit there must go to the drummer, who animates the music with surprisingly unconventional rhythms but pulls it off with organic ease. Additionally, for all of its cerebral quality, YEARS is still a post-rock album that will melt your brain with distortion-heavy crescendos and hypnotically charging riffs.

It was sad to hear recently that Fugue is breaking up (they have schedules for their last live shows posted on their FB page). I am, however, looking forward to hearing the new projects that Fugue’s members will inevitably get involved with. This last album speaks to both their musicianship and innovation.

Fugue - YEARS - 02 Vermilion Bird of the South by CTINDIE

Goatcult Presents: Black Twilight Ritual

2011-09-29T08:25:00.000-04:00

Goatcult Presents:

Kallathon
Arizmenda
Shataan
The Haunting Prescence
Nachzehrer

Friday, September 30
Cherry Street Station
491 North Cherry Street Extension
Wallingford, CT

8:00 pm - $10 - 21+

An Awesome Night with a Bunch of Dirty Garage-Rockers

2011-09-27T19:06:00.010-04:00

STRAIGHT ARROWS

ESTROGEN HIGHS

JACQUES LE COQUE

@ Popeye's Garage:

50 Goffe Street

New Haven, CT 06511

Thursday September 29 7PM $5 Cover (Pay it!)

Videos for ya candy

Straight Arrows (upcoming releases on hozac):

Estrogen Highs (Trouble in Mind):

Jacques Le Coque:

High Pop - Hippie Speed Ball

2011-09-25T15:53:00.005-04:00

High pop, indeed! High Pop are a band who channel punk, brit invasion, freak folk and a whole mess of other genres for their EP "Hippie Speed Ball". This band's recordings manage to find intricacy in their quality and mix despite being Lo-Fi. Generally speaking, I love Lo-Fi and there is no exception here! I was most impressed by how this band manages to work their medium for what it's worth. They clearly know what their equipment is capable of and play to the strengths of it. These guys have a real Ty Segal thing going on with their vocals occasionally blowing out all other instrumentation on their recordings. The results are, frankly, exciting!

The songs themselves are lean, which is great for me! I have a pretty bad case of musical ADHD which makes this band particularly favorable in my brain with song lengths averaging on 2 mins.
Opener "The Shakes" belongs right where it is, as the first impression you get of this EP. The chorus is anthemic, despite having more complexity than a song of anthem caliber. I love the Ramones style "The Charm". EP closer "Crafts" is an awesome shoegaze song that gives us a little medium reminder at the finale, with a "tape malfunction" that slows to a grinding halt.
Nice dismount, High Pop!

Do yourselves a favor, head to High Pop's Bandcamp site and get "Hippie Speed Ball" now.

High pop - hippie speed ball - 01 the shakes by CTINDIE

Ghost in your Basement - Basements EP

2011-09-24T16:58:00.015-04:00

Nostalgia: An old photograph of someone passed. Old toys of somebody grown up. A disassembled-bed in the attic. Ghost in your Basement? This four-piece, Torrington, Conn. band wields an interestingly nostalgic (yet hopeful) tone; a singular sound from people so young. But they handle it well on their recent EP “Basements.” Composed of a standard indie-rock setup, two guitars, bass, and drums, Ghost in your Basement envelops us with the sounds of yesteryear.

In 2011, most indie rock groups go for a meagerly composed and emotionally aloof tone. Ghost in your Basement is pretty much the opposite of this. They are sincere; you can tell that they put a lot of time in to their recording. In my notes, I wrote that this EP reminds me of Mogwai and Modest Mouse. But after thinking about it for a while, a better comparison would be the band Bedhead. Lush instrumental parts with vocals sparsely interwoven yields the bands beautiful soundscape. Many of the songs are slow, arpeggiated, and sad. The EP’s Lo-Fi-tone, with noises creepily reverberating in the background, creates an unsettling feeling. But just as it gets a bit too much to handle, the group changes tempos, and direction, leading into a classically driving indie-rock song. These kids certainly have a knack for writing music. While this might not be for all, it is refreshing to hear sincere indie rock. It is certainly worth a listen.

Basements EP for sale on BandCamp (Band is also selling it on Cassette at shows):
&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://ghostinyourbasement.bandcamp.com/album/basements-ep"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Basements EP by Ghost In Your Basement&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

First track off album:

Ghost In Your Basement - Basements EP - 01 Basements Pt. 1 & 2 by CTINDIE

Deluxe - Plastic Glass (Single)

2011-09-22T16:12:00.009-04:00

Deluxe is on the cutting edge of the 1980's vibe! If 2011 is truly the year of retro, then these fine gentleman are striking while the iron is hot. Employing the use of technologies old and new, Deluxe adorns their songs with lush instrumentation. Drum machines, synths and guitar all intermingle on the Plastic Glass single. The short story on Deluxe: Started in 2009 by Jayson Munro (The Striders, Ghost of Chance) and Dave Brook, this project was largely an idea until 2011 with the recording of several new songs. Jayson and Dave wield software like experts, as they do analogue instruments (guitar, bass, analogue synth). While no shows are currently lined up, they are working on their debut release and are hopeful to play shows in support of it. Whether you like synthy, anachronistic pop music or not; the passion embedded in the songs is undeniable. These are people who are here to create music.

Jayson Munro has a long history of writing songs, and he remains true to form with these songs. Solid, natural progressions with the icing of 80's styling make this initial single an obvious portent of what's to come. We wait patiently for Deluxe to fill our ears with a smattering of tongue-in-cheek serious music!

Download the "Plastic Glass" single by Deluxe today and join the future/past!

Keep your eyes peeled for "Color by Deluxe" coming this fall/winter
Plastic Glass Single by 00Deluxe00

Keep your eyes peeled for "Color by Deluxe" coming this fall/winter
Deluxe - plastic glass by 00Deluxe00

Elder brings the heaviness to Cherry Street in Wallingford

2011-09-22T11:51:00.001-04:00

Since releasing their debut self-titled album a few years ago on Meteorcity, Boston heavyweights Elder took a little break before releasing their sophomore effort, “Dead Roots Stirring”, which comes out on October 25. CT Indie sent a bunch of questions to guitarist/vocalist Nick DiSalvo (the band also includes bassist Jack Donovan and drummer Matt Couto) and here are his answers on all things concerning the band. If you like what you read here, remember they are playing this Saturday at the Cherry Street Station in Wallingford with our favorite local sleazy riff slingers NightBitch and Rhode Island’s Thrillhouse. Keep it heavy!

How does the new album differ from the previous one? How are they similar?
In one word, the new album is a lot more personal. It definitely shows a maturation and a move toward a more unique sound within the stoner rock framework, whereas our first album was more a culmination of different sounds that inspired us. Of course we've retained a lot of elements from the last album; lots of fuzz, a driving rhythm section, emphasis on “heaviness”, whatever that means... but we've also become more complex and melodic, and I think overall Dead Roots Stirring is more akin to a classic psychedelic rock record than the modern stoner/doom one.

Why the long wait between albums?
There's quite a few reasons why the new album took so long. One big thing simply had to do with our schedules. We were all going to school and working, and while Matt and Jack live in Boston, I've moved around a bit. Under those circumstances, we just weren't able to practice that often. Another reason has to do with the creative process, I think we're just slow writers and we like to let our songs evolve for a long time before we put them down in stone (or vinyl, for that matter). Lastly, we had some delays between recording, mixing and mastering, and since we're all busy we had to put it on the back burner for a while even though we were all anxious to have it released as soon as possible.

There aren’t a lot of lyrics on the album. Was this intentional? Were you trying to let your instruments communicate ideas that you couldn’t put into words?
Lyrics are always the last thing to be added to a song, and although they could be written at any point during songwriting – or even before, serving as a sort of thematic guideline – they are not the focal point of our songs. I think that's much more apparent on our first album than on Dead Roots Stirring, where the lyrics are certainly more meaningful (no Conan references!). The sparseness of lyrics is intentional in the sense that I write as many or as few as I think the song needs. I think that the music itself is much more evocative of emotions or ideas than any words. We're at the point where I might call ourselves musicians, but I'm definitely no poet, so we let our music do most of the talking.

What is the meaning of the album’s title?
Dead Roots Stirring is a reference to a feeling of rebirth and renewal that comes after a period of stagnancy, depression, hopelessness, etc. In its most literal incarnation, this is springtime, where the “dead” roots of trees are imbued with life, heralding the arrival of another stage of the eternal cycle of life and death. I think its a feeling that everyone can identify with, and it's that feeling which is the undercurrent to the album, giving it a much more uplifting tone than our previous works. If that all sounds too esoteric, the phrase actually was taken and reworded from a scene in War and Peace, which was inspiring and changing me quite a bit at the time. A lot of the lyrics on Dead Roots Stirring, including the title track itself, deal directly with timeless themes from the book.

Was it your intention to take the album in a more psychedelic direction? It’s also more melodic. Was this done intentionally?
That was 100% our intentions. In general we wanted to, and still want to continue moving in a more progressive and psychedelic direction. Elements such as melody and dynamics are so much more expressive than simple, chugging riffs – even though that will always remain a component of our sound! But as we grow individually, as musicians and collectively as a band, we need to reshape things to reflect those changes. I don't expect the Elder of 2015, if we're around that long, to sound much like the Elder of 2011.

How did the recording process go this time? What was it like working with Clay Neely?
The recording process itself went very smoothly, partly because of our preparations (as I said, the songs were fully fleshed out and ready to be recorded) and also because we connect very well with Clay on a musical basis. It was extremely helpful working with an engineer who was familiar with us live to help us tap into the sound aesthetic we were aiming for. Recording for the first time in a “real” studio was also a bit different from our other endeavors (the split with Queen Elephantine and Elder were both recorded in my basement); we had access to awesome gear and the chance to experiment with Clay's know-how.

What are the future plans for the band? More touring? Trying to make the band a full time thing?
I think our biggest ambitions right now are touring and working on new material. I'd like to keep momentum so as to avoid another huge gap between albums, but the future is too uncertain for all of us right now to say that we'll be able to make Elder into a full-time gig. In any case, we plan on touring the US and Europe at the first feasible moment!

Goatcult Presents:

Elder
NightBitch
Thrillhouse

Saturday, September 24
Cherry Street Station
491 North Cherry Street Extension
Wallingford, CT

8pm - $6 – 21+

The Inclined Plane - Please, Come Home

2011-09-22T10:47:00.010-04:00

This is the video for "Please, Come Home" by The Inclined Plane , a band you are probably not cool enough to have heard of yet. Go to their BANDCAMP to hear all of their tunes and prep yourself for the release of their new album "The Backwards Frontier" to be released on 11.11.11 on Popular Wallpaper Recordings
Featuring Jenny Wad on vocals ;)

See more videos from The Inclined Plane by CLICKING HERE

40 Watt Sun Make Beautiful Heavy Music

2011-09-12T11:47:00.000-04:00

The first thing that hits you is the guitar; it’s heavy and fuzzed out, like it’s bearing the weight of the world on its shoulders. Then there are the bass and drums, pounding out time at a slow, deliberate pace. And finally that voice, hits you, but it’s not your standard doom bellow, it’s warm and emotive, more folk singer, than lord of metal. What you hear sounds familiar in some ways but different in others. It may be doomy in some regards, but it definitely isn’t doom in the traditional sense.

Singer/guitarist/songwriter Patrick Walker of 40 Watt Sun wouldn’t want it any other way. You see while us critics like to label things in the most simple ways possible, artists like Walker enjoy messing with our conventions and give a totally fresh take on a very venerable type of music. In fact 40 Watt Sun, is his way of getting out of the shadow of his former band Warning, who were much respected in doom circles.

“I started Warning when I was sixteen years old. It was no longer representative of me as a person or of the music I wanted to make. It was time for me to make a clean start,” said Walker.

Warning ended in 2008 and 40 Watt Sun was started up in 2009 with the sole intention of writing honest songs that reflected his current state of mind. There are some similarities, but the differences are major. They’re more reflective of the here and now and don’t bother with conforming to certain rules of the genre.
“Well obviously I still sing the songs and write the music as I did before. And it’s “heavy”. These are, I guess, obvious but superficial similarities. I think the music is more “song-based” now; Warning was very “riff-based” wasn’t it? But I don’t like to analyze things. The music is just representative of where I am now, that’s all,” said Walker.

One thing that is evident on the band’s, which also features bassist William Spong and drummer Christian Leitch, debut release, “The Inside Room” (Metal Blade/Cyclone Empire) is that while the music on it does bear hallmarks of doom, there are little tweaks to the formula that make it totally unique. For instance, there is a subtle pop element to it, where the songs just aren’t based around the riffs. They are expertly crafted things, ones that stretch boundaries. But even though it’s poppy don’t go trying to put any labels on the music because Walker isn’t having any of that.

“I just wanted, and want, to write good songs; that’s all I was aiming for. I’ve heard “pop doom” used before actually – it’s not a new one. It just sounds like another pedantic, over-specific genrefication term to me and ultimately more than a little ridiculous,” said Walker.

The vocals are another striking feature of the album. In a genre where most vocalists need to sound angry and raw, Walker’s vocals are plaintive and emotive coming off more Michael Stipe than Messiah Marcolin. It’s this commitment to singing more naturally that gives the album more of a special quality. They’re more human. Just don’t go thinking that vocals were made a focal point of the album, because Walker sees it in a complete different way.

“Actually quite the opposite. After "Watching from a Distance" (Warning’s final album) people talked a lot about the vocals on that album and it reached the point where I felt a little uncomfortable about it; adjectives such as “dramatic” or even “theatrical” would sometimes be used. With the 40 Watt Sun record I wanted the songs to speak for themselves; I didn’t want there to be a kind of “vocal performance” at the forefront of it all. So we set the vocals back somewhat. They certainly weren’t meant to be a focal point,” said Walker.

And one more thing, don’t you dare call the record “sad”.

“I think my issue was with people labeling the record “depressing”, albeit in a “complimentary” way,” said Walker.

So, there you have it. 40 Watt Sun are creating genre free music out of the bits and pieces of different genres. By throwing out the rulebook they managed to create one of the more interesting heavy releases of the year, one that is definitely worth checking out, just like the band themselves when they play Daniel Street in Milford on September 18.

If you are a fan of heavy music, you won’t want to miss this one.

Manic Productions Presents:

40 Watt Sun
Treebeard

Sunday Sept. 18
Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street
Milford, CT

7:00 pm – 21+ - $12

BUY TICKETS NOW or buy them at Redscroll Records

LIMBO ~ ReOpening with M.T. Bearington

2011-09-01T12:46:00.000-04:00

LIMBO ~ ReOpening

Saturday September 3rd at:
Freight Street Gallery
170 Freight St
Waterbury, CT

7:00 PM

On July 29th 31 artists from across CT swapped their unfinished art and are spending the month of August transforming their new piece into a true collaboration.

Don't miss the unveiling of the finished work Saturday September 3rd @ 7 p.m.
Featuring Music by M.T. Bearington

plus: A Homemade Trophy Ceremony & Marker Madness

$7 Suggested Donation BYOB for 21+
RSVP on facebook

Titles release new video for Pillowcase

2011-09-01T12:38:00.000-04:00

Titles have followed up their video for Lug Me with yet a new and equally fantastic video for their song Pillowcase.

Info on Titles for those new to this sick band:

New Haven 5-piece, Titles recorded their third studio LP, Dirt Bell at various locations in Connecticut: from their skate park practice space to the guitarits' dad's furniture store, in some attics and basements and wide open spaces. The album was tracked by Titles themselves before the 12 songs were mixed by Greg Giorgio at Tarquin Studios whose previous successes include records by The National, Jónsi Birgisson and Paul Banks.

Dirt Bell takes its name from "Demon and Dirt Bell," a book by songwriter Titles' songwriter himself, Brad Amorosino. The book is an illustrated fairy tale in which a man wanders a dark world in search of a mystic bell that, when struck, rings endlessly and turns evil creatures to dust.

Titles began 5 years ago when songwriter Brad Amorosino and drummer John Miller began as a duo in 2005. The following year the band gained two members and released its debut self titled LP. They went on to release a split with fellow New Haveners, The Mountain Movers in 2007 and in 2008 they released their sophomore LP, Up with the Sun, which found itself on the iTunes Top Ten Best Alternative Albums You Didn't Hear list for 2008. Last year, guitarist/steel player Matt Wilson moved to Knoxville TN and the band was joined by keyboardist Dan Franko.

Field Recordings and Fake Babies

2011-09-01T12:37:00.000-04:00

Safety Meeting Presents:

September 2nd
at ELM BAR
372 Elm St, New Haven

$3 9pm 21+

Come down to Elm Bar for an awesome night of noise pop, electronica, and good times.

The Field Recordings got a new album to check out and will most likely play a lot of material from it.

THE ELASTIC NOSTALGIA by THE FIELD RECORDINGS

Fake Babies just finished recording a couple new tracks as well and will also be playing those that night (no links yet for the new stuff but keep your eyes and ears open, they'll be hitting soon).

We Started Blues by fake babies

Great Big Fun Music Show!

2011-09-01T12:22:00.006-04:00

Sunday, September 4, 2011:

Freight Street Gallery
170 Freight St
Waterbury, CT

4:30 PM

$8 BYOB for 21+
RSVP on facebook

Great Big Fun Show with lots of good bands, and possibly other fun stuff going on!

*THIS WILL BE A POTLUCK DINNER, SO FEEL FREE TO MAKE A DISH AND BRING IT TO SHARE!!!*

*DOORS AT 4:30PM, SHOW STARTS PROMPTLY AT 5:30PM. THERE WILL BE A PRETTY QUICK TURNOVER SO SHOW UP... ON TIME TO CATCH EVERYONE PLAYING!!!*

~~M.T. Bearington~~ are actually playing the night before for the Limbo reopening.

Oiltanker will now be playing! - CT crust

The Proud Flesh - Indie/folk/bluegrass

Tamarin - Philly loud folk

Wry - New Haven indie rock

Iron Hand - CT d-beat/crust

SWORDMASTERS OF GINAZ aka BATTLESTAR CACKALACTICA - North Carolina sci-fi metal!

Napoleon Complex - CT fast punk

Sea - CT Prog-punk/noise

Ashes Vs. Leaves - North Carolina indie (Rob Davis acoustic set)

Jay and Nick - Eurisko acoustic set

Circle Circle - CT folk/pop

Manners, Kids Icarus, Caleb Lionheart, Night Owls, + more

2011-09-01T12:03:00.004-04:00

The Arc Agency presents:

Friday September 2, 2011
Branford American Legion
243 North Main Street
Branford, CT

$8.00
All Ages (There's a 21+ bar inside the building to those of age)
6PM

Kids Icarus/Caleb Lionheart weekend-tour-kickoff-show.

Manners: CT Hardcore.

<a href="http://mannersct.bandcamp.com/album/apparitions">Apparitions by Manners</a>

Kids Icarus: CT Melodic Punk

<a href="http://kidsicarus.bandcamp.com/album/kids-icarus">Kids Icarus by Kids Icarus</a>

The Tired and True: CT Pop Punk

<a href="http://thetiredandtrue.bandcamp.com/album/haunts">Haunts by The Tired And True</a>

Caleb Lionheart: NY Pop-punk

<a href="http://caleblionheart.bandcamp.com/album/live-at-the-soapbox-in-wilmington-nc">Live at the Soapbox in Wilmington, NC by Caleb Lionheart</a>

Night Owls: CT melodic-hardcore/post-punk. They will be releasing their definitive EP in August and hitting the road for a few dates with Deadlights. Ex-Don’t Say I Wont

Kitchen's Floor, Estrogen Highs, Fat History Month

2011-09-01T11:44:00.000-04:00

Friday September 2 at
Popeye's Garage
50 Goffe Street
New Haven, CT

7PM $5.00

Kitchen's Floor - Australian downer punk with new album out on Siltbreeze

Estrogen Highs - New Haven punks first show back from tour

Fat History Month - Boston weird and mathy rock outfit on tour with KF

Old Man Lady Luck, Shrinnirs, Thank You Mr. Keating

2011-09-01T10:18:00.000-04:00

Friday, September 2nd, 2011, Indie Night @ the Oak brings:

Location:
Charter Oak Cultural Center
21 Charter Oak Ave
Hartford, CT

All Ages - 8 PM - $6 or only $5 w/ a canned good donation for Hartford Food Not Bombs

Co-headlined by Shrinnirs (aka Bimbo Shrineheads/Shrin/The Shrinnirs), this Dog-Faced Hermans-like duo starts off the night, going on at 8:00, so do not be late. Dawn Cook (vocals) and Joe Malinowski (drums) are a non-genre. Not to be missed.

Old Man Lady Luck, will be finishing the night off. Dark instrumentals, like The Notekillers slowed to a vicious crawl, setting the mood for a David Cronenberg autopsy scene. With drumming as good as Todd Trainer from Shellac, and an early Jesus Lizard feel, do yourself a favor and stay late for Old Man Lady Luck.

old man lady luck LP by old man lady luck

Thank You Mr. Keating will be playing second, bringing an acoustic version of The Baxter Special to life!

The Baxter Special by Thank You Mr. Keating

JEFF The Brotherhood coming to The Space

2011-08-31T12:05:00.002-04:00

While their name might be a little bit misleading, because there are no Jeffs in the band, brothers Jake (guitar/vocal) and Jamin (drums) Orrall play a stripped down version of garage rock that touches on punk, glam, psycehedelia, power pop and 70’s hard rock. While some people say they the duo sounds like Weezer, to these older and more seasoned ears, I hear traces of the Ramones, Cheap Trick and a whole bunch of bearded anonymous 70’s riff mongers in their sound. Whatever you want to call it, they take all these cool influences and turn it into one energetic and thoroughly enjoyable racket.

To put it bluntly, this shit rocks.

On their newest record (and fifth overall) entitled “We Are The Champions”, which was released through the duo’s own Infinity Cat Recordings, they bring the rock early and often giving a listener an infectious jolt of rock n roll, that’s sure to tickle the their pleasure centers.

Opener “Hey Friend” builds off a primitive, yet effective, beat from Jamin and adds a psychedelic, Middle Easter sounding guitar riff to the mix as Jake sings about loving your mom… and dad. “Cool Out” is a Ramones-like speed workout, while “Bummer” piles on epic and catchy rawk riffs. “Shredder” lives up to its name, as the band plays fast and furious with a riff that is eerily reminiscent of Turbonegro in their “Apocalypse Dudes” hey day. This one just accelerates and accelerates until it explodes in your lap. “Ripper” quite frankly, rips with its combo of punk speed and groove laden riff breakdowns, while “Diamond Way” is pure power pop bliss. Closer “Wastoid Girl” merges all that is good about the band’s sound into one rousing finale. (They also made a very cool video of this song, which will hopefully be featured below. One thing though, it does contain some nudity.)

What’s even more amazing about the duo, is that Jake only plays with three strings on his guitar and Jamin uses just three drums and three cymbals. It’s interesting how they can turn this minimalism into maximum rock’n’roll and have been doing so since they started playing together in their hometown of Nashville back in 2002.

So here’s a chance to see a really excellent band in a nice intimate performance space. Still, this band does sound like they would go better with booze, and The Space, is alcohol free, but no problem, you can just cross the parking lot to the Outer Space and get your drink on if you are so inclined.

So, what are you waiting for?

Manic Productions Presents:
JEFF The Brotherhood
Colleen Green
Ovlov
Dead Wives

Friday, September 2, 2011
The Space
295 Treadwell Street
Hamden, CT

BUY TICKETS NOW or buy them at Redscroll Records

7:00pm - $10 – All Ages and 21+ to drink in the Outer Space

Also playing:

"Green One" is Colleen Green's first release for Hardly Art! Four tracks of lovely, catchy, fuzzy songs that range from 80s pop goulash to psychedelic drone; from 90s power punk to homemade Sebadoh-style songs of heartache.

Ovlov is an alternative grunge rock band based out Newtown, Ct. As Steve and Dave's previous band, Home Movies, had finally come to its slow but certain demise, they decided to pick up where they left off with a heavier take on the pop rock scene, and a new name, of course. Priding themselves on being the loudest band in the room, Ovlov craft alternative rock songs that are smart and infectious. They may wear their influences on their sleeve, but that shouldn’t suggest that they’re simply retreading old territory. The grunge elements are all there, but they’re rearranged in a way that feels fresh. Ovlov perform their songs with such infectious energy and enthusiasm that you’ll banish any thought of this being some winking, ironic tribute to the sounds of yesteryear. If anything, they are carrying that lo-fi torch into the future.

Dead Wives started in 2007, inspired by songwriters such as Robert Pollard and Lou Barlow to compile a vast musical catalog. Their fifth and most recent demo tape was completed in summer 2010, with more apparently on the way, all of which heavily incorporate the muddiness of 80’s proto-grunge. Dead Wives' current lineup formed in 2009, a dynamic 3-piece including members of Ovlov and The Screw-Ups. Some initial reviews described the music as “skate-rock,” a tag the band has proudly adopted. Their “Scuz Bucket” EP was self-released in February 2011.

Heavy Breath Record Release Party w/My Fictions, Yeller, Canvas, Dagwood

2011-08-16T10:38:00.000-04:00

Friday, August 26, 2011

Location:
Branford American Legion
243 North Main Street
Branford, CT

$8 - doors 6:30, show at 7:00

FB event page

Malcolm Tent will be there (once again) selling records with Trash American Style.

The Fresh Cut (Chuck Fresh) will be providing the sounds you hear between bands.

Heavy Breath celebrate the release of Ugly Americans on August 26th, out on Get Young Records. The A side is their new Ugly Americans EP (recorded in June with Jay Maas at the Getaway Group) with their debut EP Synthemesc Dreams on side B.

I was lucky enough to hear all of Ugly Americans shortly after talking up Heavy Breath's July 22nd show. Their track Real Man felt to me like the band was going into more conventional territory, becoming more accessible. Kilian sent me the EP to prove otherwise. My mistake, since the full EP isn't like that at all, and Real Man's accessibility is necessary in the context of the rest of the songs, being essentially a flagship track railing against gender-based violence. The overall theme of the EP, summed up with the final lyric of the EP asking, "What do you stand for?" points to how high the bullshit has been piled in our country, from the economy to our politics. So Heavy Breath is keeping the counter-argument of political hardcore alive, even while facing the fact that the effort might be an exercise in futility. The one exception is their nod to Gaspar Noé's film Enter the Void in the song by the same name. A view of existence through a disembodied drugged consciousness on the one hand, and a search for rebirth on the other, I wonder if it's not the hopeful nature of Heavy Breath asking with this song if life isn't all for nothing.

The E.Ps will be available in red, white or blue vinyl - 100 of each color. The first 25 pre-orders come with a cassette copy of the LP.

Ugly Americans by Heavy Breath

Playing with them:

My Fictions (melodic hardcore from MA, check out their awesome new EP I Want Nothing!)

Yeller (Johnny Clarke and an acoustic guitar, Gravity Collective)

Canvas (members of Call it Arson, Stab You, The Distance, Cold Snap, GYR)

Dagwood/a> (rock and roll featuring members of Fire First and Heavy Breath)

D-Beat til you die with Victims

2011-08-15T09:17:00.002-04:00

Some would say that punk rock is more relevant today than it has ever been, due to the current crazy state of the world with its economic crisises, wars and rioting. Of course, one has to dig below the current glut of mainstream punk or mall punk that is clogging up the airwaves and head directly for the underground where most of the exciting and edgy music is being made.

“Punk rock and hardcore are still relevant as underground entertainment, yes. As long as bands push the boundaries a bit it’s still interesting, I don’t know in what sense it’s relevant? For rebellious teenagers? Probably. I hope so,” said Swedish d-beat heroes Victims guitarist/vocalist Jon Lindqvist.

He does know what he’s talking because Victims have been blowing eardrums and minds since they formed in 1997 and it seems like they are not slowing down for anyone. They’ve just released an excellent new album, “A Dissident” and are in the midst of another North American tour, one that will take them to the Cherry Street Station in Wallingford this Wednesday. These guys are veterans and pros at what they do, and they clearly enjoy what they do.

“I think we all have a common love to play together, or else we'd have quit the band years ago. We also write (to us at least) interesting music,” said Lindqvist
The band play a style of music that is known as d-beat hardcore which usually mixes the ferocity of Discharge (that’s where the “D” in “D-beat” comes from) and the metal leanings of Motorhead. It’s a raucous sound one that definitely takes no prisoners. While some bands would get away from labeling Lindqvist knows what they are and what they do well.

“The similarity is that all records are based on the mighty D-beat, but on every record I think Victims had a BIT of a different take on playing D-beat-hardcore. We definitely became a bit more melodic, but also a bit more focused in our songwriting,” said Lindqvist.

“A Dissident” is a scorching follow up to their “Killers” album. The running time might be double of the last disc, but the band manages to make it a tight and killer 30 minute ride that showcases their ferocity, while letting some hooks sink in along with the odd ripping guitar solo. It will hit the pleasure spots of people who like their punk fast and hard.

The band, which also features Johan Erikkson (vocals/bass), Andy Henriksson (drums) and Gareth Smith, ex-Raging Speedhorn, (guitar) follows in a long line of killer extreme punk and metal bands that hail from Sweden. In fact, it wouldn’t be too far off base to say that Sweden has the most killer bands per capita than any other country in the world. And a lot of these bands are angry and loud, which would seem a little weird, in a country where the populace seems to enjoy a pretty good standard of living. Where does this anger come from?

“I get this question all the time, and it’s such a hard question to answer. I think that much of the reason we've had a good music export since I'd say ABBA, is the convenience with getting state-owned rehearsal spaces. So, blame it on socialism, hahaha,” said Linqvist.

There you have it. Blame Entombed and their ilk on socialism. Just don’t tell any Tea Party members, or Republican punks, because that might not be what they want to hear.

Well, regardless of your political views, it’s worth it to come down to Cherry on Wednesday and witness one the best underground punk bands, doing what they do best, which is lay waste to a club.

Manic Productions and Catamount Productions Presents:
Victims
Northless
Misanthropic Noise
Katahdin
Krakatoa
Wednesday August 17
Cherry Street Station
491 North Cherry Street Ext
Wallingford, CT
7:00 pm - $8 – 21+ Tickets

Vampire Belt, Jon Eriksen, DJ set by Shaki

2011-08-13T08:25:00.000-04:00

from the Vampire Belt/Magik Markers 2008 split on Not Not Fun Records

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Location:
Popeye's Garage
50 Goffe Street
New Haven, CT

All Ages - 7PM - $8 dollars

Vampire Belt: Merciless free scene duo Chris Corsano and Bill Nace.

Jon Eriksen is a visual artist / noise-ician.

Shaki spins you in.

Vampire Belt times 6=

Aug 8 at Problem House in Allston, MA. With Keith Fullerton Whitman, Duck That, Keiichi Hashimoto.
Aug 9 at Gallery X in New Bedford, MA. 169 William St.
Aug 10 at Heldeberg House in Albany, NY. With Burnt Hills.
Aug 11 at The Stone in NYC. 8pm.
Vampire Belt / Evans-Corsano Duo - Aug 12 at Highwire Gallery in Philadelphia, PA. With Michael Evans solo, Julius Masri.
Aug 13 at Popeye's Garage in New Haven, CT. All Ages. $7. With Jon Eriksen, DJ set by Shaki.
Aug 14 at Flywheel in Easthampton, MA. 8pm. $6. With Big Nils, Matt Krefting.

The Guru, Teens Across the North, Girls in the Boy Scouts

2011-08-13T08:23:00.000-04:00

Saturday, August 13, 2011, Elm City Popfest presented by CT Indie with a high-five to the Indie Night @ the Oak crew:

Location:
Charter Oak Cultural Center
21 Charter Oak Ave
Hartford, CT

All Ages - 8 PM - $6 or only $5 w/ a canned good donation for Hartford Food Not Bombs

FB Event page

The Guru: maybe more fIREHOSE than Minutemen, this drummer-fronted spazzpop band is making waves around here with their youthful Isaac Brock-like vocals and busy guitar gymnastics.

Native Sun by The Guru

from the FB event page:
Teens Across the North is a Northampton supergroup of sorts. Featuring Jason Bourgeois, Ken Maiuri, Stephen Gallo and Blyth B. They play “small apartment pop” that’s low on volume and high on melodic dazzle, with harmonies, spirited playing and a creative instrumental palette (toy piano, ukulele, glockenspiel, electric piano, guitars, bass and homestyle percussion).

Girls in the Boy Scouts are by turns sweet pop and free punk, a playful identity crisis of a band. With members Matt and Meghan moving away, not sure how often we will get to see these guys play anymore.

Bird or Leaf by Girls in the Boy Scouts

Indie Night At The Oak 8/12/11

2011-08-09T12:25:00.006-04:00

This Friday night, three Connecticut bands will be playing at the Charter Oak Cultural Center. The bands are

Wry out of New Haven

The Gentle Stunts out of Berlin

The Inclined Plane from Hartford.

The show starts at 8:00pm and it costs $6 to get in or $5 with the contribution of canned goods for Hartford Food Not Bombs.

Register Session with Dr. Caterwaul’s Cadre of Clairvoyant Claptraps

2011-08-09T11:14:00.001-04:00

This Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Words: Jordan Fenster

Want to hear some awesome live and local music but don’t feel like going out on a Wednesday night? Well, we’re making your hump-day a bit more groovy. If you got an internet connection, you got front row seats.

New Haven’s own Dr. Caterwaul’s Cadre of Clairvoyant Claptraps — experts in traditional music of all kinds — will be the featured performer at the Register Session, to be broadcast live, online, Wednesday at 6 p.m., for free, at NewHavenRegister.com and its partner site, CTIndie.com.

Dr. Caterwaul, which consists of Adam Matlock on accordion, Brian Slattery on fiddle and banjo, Nathan Bontrager on cello and percussionist Mike Paolucci, plays a variety of traditional music — Gypsy or Romani, klezmer, African-based, traditional American and more. The band will also be taking questions from the public during their set.
Dr. Caterwaul goes live online at 6 p.m. Wednesday at NewHavenRegister.com and CTIndie.com.

Hell House

2011-08-05T09:29:00.000-04:00

Unfortunately everything in my house is deciding to break, fail, flood, crack, and fry at once. Either a portal to another dimension is slowly opening, or I simply let things go too long because I was totally caught up with our great local music community. Or both. Busy with that distraction until further notice.

Keep the noise going on the fanpage!