Tuesday, October 31, 2006
First, congratulations to Nate from Bethesda, MD who is the lucky winner of the signed copy of the new Ben Folds album
Supersunnyspeedgraphic album. You lucky bastard!
Secondly, if I had a dollar for everytime I missed the "next big thing," I'd be at least a few bucks richer. When all you other bloggers said that Beirut's album
Gulag Orkestar was phenomenal a few months back, you were right. Now for those that don't already know,
Beirut is the creation of 20-year-old Santa Fe native Zach Condon and friends. Beirut creates old-world Eastern European influenced (but totally pop) soundscapes that are brought to life by mandolins, ukeleles, accordians, violins, trumpets, ragged percussion, and (even) some unexpected electronics. It evokes images of Balkan gypsys in medevial times. Images of the rise and fall of the Hapsburg Empire. Images of my grandparents in pre-WWII Germany that I've only seen in worn, tattered, and faded photographs that have long since seen better days.
As my wife commented, the music "sounds old." In this case (however) it is a good thing. The melodies often sound decades (if not centuries) old and despite having a festive flair, the songs are strangely mournful and sorrowful. The largely indecipherable vocals somehow manage to be very personal and (like the music itself) has a huge emotional resonance with me. This is the celebratory music of the downtrodden; of peasants. Its ultimately simple music conveying complex emotions that are totally applicable in these modern times that is (unexpectedly) made by a guy from the Southwest.
Gulag Orkestar is a brilliant album full of marches, near-waltzes, and (gasp!) eclectic indie-pop. Out now on
Ba Da Bing Records and highly rec'd by CYSTSFTS.
MP3 |
Beirut - Postcards From Italy Gulag OrkestarMP3 |
Beirut - Brandenburg Gulag Orkestar
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Bethanne from
Clever Titles Are So Last Summer (or CTASLS or the only other blog with an acronym even close to as horrible as mine) has evidently decided to close up shop over there, just as Jennings from
Rbally has decided to do the same. Too bad that two great music blogs are calling it quits.
Here are a few random odds and ends from promo CD's that I've gotten recently. All worth checking out. Also, how bout them 7-0 Chicago Bears!
MP3 |
The Bird & The Bee - Again & Again Again EPMP3 |
Bumpus - Something's Got To Give Promo EPMP3 |
Burden Brothers - Goondight From Chicago MercyMP3 |
O'Neill & Wean - I Found Out You Are Beautiful EP
Saturday, October 28, 2006
I've never been a huge fan of
...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead. In fact, I haven't really heard much from the band at all, and I'm not sure why. I always meant to check out their 2002 album
Source Tags And Codes but never did. Sometimes these things just sneak past you.
Anyhow, I got an advance copy of the new Trail Of Dead album
So Divided a few days ago and have been loving almost every second of it since then. It is subversively catchy and sonically intriguing. I hear shades of everything from Mission Of Burma to (undeniably) late-period Beatles. Basically, this album is melodic yet interesting and with layer upon layer of sound waiting to be revealed. In shot,
So Divided is (at least so far) totally f$%#ing awesome.
So come next week, I'll most certainly be heading out to buy
Source Tags And Codes. Trail Of Dead kicked off a tour with The Blood Brothers yesterday, and you most certainly don't want to miss it. They'll be playing a town near you soon. And when
So Divided is officially released on November 14th, I highly recommend that you pick up your own copy.
MP3 |
Trail Of Dead - Wasted State Of Mind So DividedMP3 |
Trail Of Dead - Stand In Silence So Divided
Thursday, October 26, 2006
I think it was almost two weeks ago that the wife and I headed down to Chicago's Beat Kitchen to see our old-friends (and former bandmates) in Allister before their 2-1/2 month tour of Japan. We expected to have some drinks and a good time, but we didn't expect The Transit War.
San Diego's
The Transit War is the kind of band that (after seeing live) just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy about rock music all over again. They ripped up the stage and just sounded so energetic and so fresh to these ears (and the ears of my wife). Musically the band plays raw and dynamic indie/emo/punk that is also filled with tons of hooks. Always catchy and never totally straightforward, The Transit War (at their most accessible) reminds me of Midtown or Motion City Soundtrack and (at their most complex) they mine the same musical territory (loosely) as both Brand New and the earlier work of Cursive. Who doesn't love jagged buzzsaw guitars amped up to 11 and melodic layered vocal harmonies?
Anyhow, The Transit War's new album
Miss Your Face is out now on
Orange Peal Records. Head over there to download a free six song EP from the band as well. Not only are they a great band, but they are great guys too. Look for them in your town on tour with Lostprophets.
MP3 |
The Transit War - Radar Miss Your FaceMP3 |
The Transit War - Kerosene Small Movements EP
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Paul Duncan (who's
Be Careful What You Call Home was one of my favorite releases of 2005) just got done recording his second album for the Boulder-based
Hometapes label. They've pointed us in the direction of a new song that is unmastered and fresh from the studio and (from this cursory sample) it sounds like this new record should be great.
PS: I'm just loving the pedal steel.
MP3 |
Paul Duncan - Red Eagle Previously Unreleased
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Here is a really obscure entry into this series. Back when the third wave ska/punk fusion was all the rage in the early and mid 90's, one of Chicago's finest was The Eclectics. They put out a few records on Jump Up! Records, including
Idle Worship which was recorded with (none other than) Steve Albini. After a few lineup changes they weren't the same. Anyhow, when former Eclectics frontman Roy started a new band (I think it was about 1997 or so), he incorporated more punk/hardcore/emo stylings into the music. I've also heard (but don't know for sure) that the drummer was also in the Eclectics. To the best of my knowledge, Skokie was only briefly a band and only recorded one demo tape with five songs that is long out of print. Despite that very limited output, I remember them fondly rocking the Fireside Bowl. Here are all five songs in iPod friendly format straight from the original demo tape.
MP3 |
Skokie - Skokie DemoMP3 |
Skokie - Sunday (A Whole Lot Of) DemoMP3 |
Skokie - Some Kind Of Wonderful DemoMP3 |
Skokie - Sam & Diane DemoMP3 |
Skokie - Snow Angel Demo
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Our little ladybug is one year old today.
MP3 |
Elizabeth Mitchell - Ladybug Picnic You Are My Flower
Friday, October 20, 2006
My brother is getting married tomorrow and my daughter celebrates her first birthday on Sunday. Can you believe it? Seems like
only yesterday that we welcomed her into our lives. Needless to say, it will be a busy weekend, so I'll be back here late Sunday with some more musical goodness for y'all. Most likely, another in my "Unofficial History of Chicago Punk Rock" series, but we'll see.
In the meantime (however), the punks in Lifetime have posted a new song
here. Have a listen.
Don't forget about the Ben Folds contest one post below.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
How many of you know that
Ben Folds has a kickass new album called
Supersunnyspeedgraphic coming out on October 24th? We'll that's the truth. Another bit of (awesome) truth is that we here at Can You See The Sunset... are giving away a signed copy of the new album. That's right, a signed copy of the new Ben Folds album!
To win the contest: You have to just leave a comment that states your favorite album of 2006 so far. The winner will be chosen at random, but you've gotta tell me what your favorite album of 2006 so far is. Its that easy! The contest will end next week when the album is officially released on 10/24.
(NOTE: My man Dodge over at
MOKB is running a similar contest, so enter both places to double your chances.)
Here are streams of two tracks from
Supersunnyspeedgraphic to whet your appetite and an MP3 of his version of a classic song originally by The Clash. Pick your poison...
Streaming Audio |
Ben Folds - Learn To Live With What You Are(Lo Win) (Hi Win) (.RAM) (.MOV)Streaming Audio |
Ben Folds - Bruised(Lo Win) (Hi Win) (.RAM) (.MOV) MP3 |
Ben Folds - Lost In The Supermarket (The Clash cover) Over The Hedge OST
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
If spastic and melodic indie rock that you can shimmy and shake to all night long is something that is right up your alley, you need to check out
Scissors For Lefty. This San Francisco, CA quartet straddles that line between synthy dance-punk and angular indie-rock and does it well. The two songs below are from their
American EP and are both singles in the UK. While the band has quite a buzz going across the pond, there are no plans (as of yet) to release their debut full-length
Underhanded Romance stateside. RIYL: Arctic Monkeys, Wolf Parade, etc...
MP3 |
Scissors For Lefty - Ghetto Ways American EPMP3 |
Scissors For Lefty - Mama Your Boys Will Find A Home American EP
Monday, October 16, 2006
It seems like I've read more than just a few reviews/articles recently that have referenced the whole "writing about music is like dancing about architecture" quote. Unfortunately, trying to write about the latest from TV On The Radio is a little like that. The album (for those of you living under a rock) is called
Return To Cookie Mountain and has been getting rave reviews from seemingly everyone.
TV On The Radio is one of those rare bands and
Cookie Mountain is one of those rare albums. The music is fresh, challenging, unconventional, and like nothing else, but (at the same time) is instantly classic with a timeless quality about it. It is an almost other-worldly combination of multi-layered vocals, a looping and pounding rhythm section, buzzing guitars, synths, samples, and atmospheric noise that densely envelopes the whole thing. It is a psychedelic amalgamation of genres that only Brooklyn's best (if not America's best) band could make.
Return To Cookie Mountain is captivating. It is devastatingly beautiful but evokes (at least in me) feelings of sorrow. It is post-punk attitude, with art-rock experimentalism, filtered through the soul music of the 1970's. And while the album has been all over the internet for months now, the album was only recently officially released.
Return To Cookie Mountain is the band's first major label release and with the critical acclaim that the album has already received it is easy to tell that a musical statement this big and bold will not go unnoticed by the public for long.
MP3 |
TV On The Radio - Province Return To Cookie MountainMP3 |
TV On The Radio - Wolf Like Me Return To Cookie Mountain
Sunday, October 15, 2006
So three of the four guys in Boston's
Aberdeen City are originally from Chicago. How's that for a local connection? Anyhow, the band re-released
The Freezing Atlantic back in August and has already managed to snag Best Local Album of 2006 honors at the 2006 Boston Music Awards. In fact, they won Best Local Rock Band as well.
Produced (in part) by Steve Lillywhite (who has also produced the likes of U2 and The Psychedelic Furs) the album bursts out of the speakers with chiming post-punk guitars that crescendo into dramatic and atmospheric Britpop influenced indie rock anthems. Lyrically (and musically) the album is dark and moody but doesn't waste any time wallowing in self-pity. Filled with more than a few catchy and radio-friendly tunes,
The Freezing Atlantic is a surprisingly strong and polished debut that points to the possibility of big things to come from the band.
As mentioned before,
The Freezing Atlantic (originally released on
Dovecote Records) has been re-released by Columbia. Pick up a copy if you like: Interpol, The Killers, Doves, etc...
MP3 |
Aberdeen City - God Is Going To Get Sick Of Me The Freezing AtlanticMP3 |
Aberdeen City - Another Seven Years The Freezing Atlantic
Saturday, October 14, 2006
With colder weather starting to settle in here in Chicago, summer is only a distant memory now. Heck, fall is fading fast as well. There is something so soothing (however) about putting some jazz on the stereo when it gets cold outside and since I haven't posted much jazz lately, this is a great excuse to. Here are a few select (classic and modern) choices for your listening (dis)pleasure.
MP3 |
Hank Mobley - Soul Station Soul StationMP3 |
Ahmad Jamal - Autumn Leaves Ahmad's BluesMP3 |
Organissimo - Pumpkin Pie This Is The PlaceAnd one more for those adventurous souls...
MP3 |
Flaherty, Corsano, & Yeh - Dirty Firetrucker A Rock In The Snow
Friday, October 13, 2006
Backyard Tire Fire is an Illinois-based alt-country/rock trio that brings things backwards. Dishing out heavy doses of blues licks, classic rock riffs, and a little twang, the band's music often gives the feeling of coming from of a gritty and seasoned bar band. Maybe something akin to the Drive-By Truckers, if you will. Anyhow, they have a new full-length record called
Vagabonds And Hooligans that is due out in early 2007, but next Tuesday marks the release of their great little teaser EP
Skin & Bones that features two songs from the forthcoming album.
Tonight (Friday the 13th) is actually the first of their two EP release shows. The other is tomorrow night (Saturday, October 14th) at the
Double Door in Chicago. Check them out if you can and pick up a copy of their EP. From the sound of things,
Vagabonds And Hooligans should be a doozy.
MP3 |
Backyard Tire Fire - Skin & Bones Skin & Bones EPMP3 |
Backyard Tire Fire - Don't Know What To Do Skin & Bones EP
Ok. So we were all bummed (at least I was) when Hot Water Music broke up, right? Well, no need to worry anymore.
The Draft released their debut full-length
In A Million Pieces on September, 12th on
Epitaph Records. For those that aren't aware, The Draft is Chris, Jason, and George from HWM along with Todd Rockhill (ex-Discount). Bitchin.
The tunes on
In A Million Pieces are poppier and more straightforward than I'd expect from HWM (but they were sorta moving in that direction anyhow), and Chuck's departure leaves an absence of "guitarmonies" and dual lead vocals. All in all though, It sounds just like I would have imagined Hot Water Music sounding without Chuck's added gruffness. If you are a HWM fan there is no reason you wouldn't like this.
MP3 |
The Draft - Bordering In A Million PiecesMP3 |
The Draft - Lo Zee Rose In A Million Pieces
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Be He Me is the latest CD from North Carolina's
Annuals and it is dense, eclectic, and just plain good. It is (generally) in the indie rock vein, but references just about every genre imaginable. Freak folk, shoegaze, Caribbean party grooves, country-tinged foot stompers, slow jams, and (yes) even indie rock. What might turn into a mess of sound if played by lesser musicians, (thankfully) doesn't. The band flexes their compositional and instrumental muscle by (oftentimes) jumping erratically from one style to the next. Somehow it works.
Although I'm a little late posting about Annuals, it's only because I've been listening to (and loving)
Be He Me for the past few weeks and trying to wrap my head around it. In the meantime, it seems that there is quite a buzz about the band.
"Ace Fu Records is blowin' up, what with getting their claws into Man Man, blog faves DeVotchka, and Books-alikes Tunng. But if their forthcoming Be He Me album lives up to what this track (Brother) promises, North Carolina-based Annuals might be the label's best find yet." - PitchforkBe He Me officially hits stores on October 17th courtesy of
Ace Fu Records. While other reviews have said Annuals sound like "a band playing Arcade Fire, The Decemberists, and Sufjan Stevens covers all at the same time," I think that there are more obvious comparisons. RIYL: Flaming Lips, Animal Collective, Rogue Wave, The Shins, etc...
MP3 |
Annuals - Brother Be He MeMP3 |
Annuals - Bleary Eyed Be He MeMP3 |
Annuals - Dry Clothes Be He Me
Monday, October 09, 2006
It's been awhile since the last one of these, so are you ready for some more Chicago punk rock? Good. I'll preface this one (however) by saying that this will quite possibly be the shortest write up of the whole series, but still certainly worth your time. This is good stuff!
The Feds were an extremely short-lived band that released (correct me if I am wrong) two 7" singles and one full-length record over the course of 1996 and 1997. They played snotty melodic Chicago-style punk rock in the same vein as Raygun, The Bollweevils, and 88 Fingers Louie. The band was comprised of Ken Weevil (ex-Bollweevils), Mark Piss (ex-Montgomery Burns), and some drummer named Louie. What else can I say? The Feds didn't leave much behind except some great music. Heck, I couldn't even find a picture to post. Listen up.
Speaking of Chicago punk rock, have you heard of
this or
this? Seriously. It's like I've been sucked into a time warp.
MP3 |
The Feds - Distance Chicago BureauMP3 |
The Feds - The Addict Chicago BureauMP3 |
The Feds - Ride It Out Chicago BureauMP3 |
The Feds - I Know Chicago BureauMP3 |
The Feds - Hard To Find Chicago Bureau
Friday, October 06, 2006
Read all my posts from the past week and you'll probably say WTF is this guy thinking? I just want to apologize for going easy on all of you. No worries, though right? Next Tuesday (October 10th) the new record from Seattle's
The Blood Brothers will be officially released. It was co-produced by Guy Picciotto (of Fugazi & Rites Of Spring) and is easily one of the best records of 2006 and will knock your socks off.
The record (which is called
Young Machetes) is a bombastic frenzy that (while still sounding just like The Blood Brothers) finds the band growing as musicians and ambitiously exploring new sounds. During many songs it almost seems like the band is on the verge of imploding only to pull it right back together without missing a single furious beat. It's the shotgun wedding of Barry Gibb's Bee Gees disco classics with the grinding spasms of Converge. Maybe it's like a Black Flag sucker-punch to the face of Charles Mingus. In other words, its dance music.
On
Young Machetes the band sounds dangerous. Not like they are going to mug you and gunpoint dangerous, but (rather) dangerous with smirks on their faces as they wait for their next prank to unfold right on cue. The dual shrieks, screams and singing howls of vocalists Jordan Blilie and Johnny Whitney are the perfect accompaniment (or perhaps distraction) for the jagged guitars and buoyant and relentless rhythm section. Additionally, much of the album features some great keyboard melodies. It is artcore that swings.
While I've never had the opportunity to see the band live, I can just picture them flailing around the stage smashing everything in sight (including themselves).
Young Machetes is a chaotic and tumultuous listen that shifts, shakes, and (ultimately) bashes its way into your head. Never a band to rest contentedly on their laurels, The Blood Brothers have taken another leap forward merging aggression and art into a noisy and brilliantly beautiful mess.
Young Machetes is out October 10th on
V2 Records and the 2xLP vinyl (on limited edition 180 gram vinyl) will be released by
Second Nature Recordings.
MP3 |
The Blood Brothers - Lazer Life Young MachetesMP3 |
The Blood Brothers - Set Fire To The Face On Fire Young Machetes
Thursday, October 05, 2006
If you like sugary sweet pop-rock with a smidge of up-tempo pop-punk thrown in for good measure, you'll most certainly love the new record from the
Plain White T's. Their latest (and third) album
Every Second Counts is full of enough catchy melodies and hooks to rot your teeth out after only a few listens.
My wife (as a fan of theirs for years now) would probably be more qualified to write this review than I am. She has been a big fan since the band formed in the Chicago suburbs at the opening of the new millennium. Heck, she even owned their first album
Stop before it was distributed by
Fearless Records. That's how (un?)punk she is. Anyhow, the T's (as always) have cooked up some good stuff here. What they are doing isn't rocket science but if you need a strong melody (and a stiff drink) because your girlfriend just dumped you, this is your record.
Below is a track from
Every Second Counts and another that I heard a few weeks (or so) ago on the great local college radio station
WONC. Be sure to brush and rinse thoroughly afterwards. RIYL: Spitalfield, The Stereo, Jimmy Eat World, etc...
MP3 |
Plain White T's - Come Back To Me Every Second CountsMP3 |
Plain White T's - Hey There Delilah All That We Needed
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Raise your hand if you were one of the many people that had
My Morning Jacket's phenomenal album
Z near the top of your 'Best of 2005' list. I was, and I'm happy to report that the band is back (sort of). They have a new double live CD called
Okonokos that came out two weeks ago with the DVD scheduled to be released on Halloween. The CD is great. What it lacks in stage banter, it more than makes up for in stellar performances and showcases the band's amazing live show.
The album is out now on
ATO/RCA records and the band will be on tour all of November, plus Jim James is playing solo at
Vegoose. Stop whatever you are doing and go buy tickets to see them live. Go buy the CD (or wait for the DVD). I saw them live for the first time at this year's Lollapalooza and was blown away. You will not be disappointed.
MP3 |
My Morning Jacket - Wordless Chorus (Live) OkonokosMP3 |
My Morning Jacket - Gideon (Live) Okonokos
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
In today's world where all music is quantified, classified, and cornered into genres and sub-genres, what happens to bands like
Augustana? Their sound is not indie enough for the indie kids and not punk enough to appeal to punks. They also have a slight roots vibe happening in their music, but ain't country enough for most alt-country fans. What happens to bands like this? Well, without any easy classification to fit into, they either (by my estimation) go nowhere or are signed to major labels and marketed to the masses.
Augustana's music is easy on the ears and even thought it does sometimes rock pretty good, they won't ever offend your mom. It almost seems like a precarious occupation for a band to play "mainstream" and "accessible" music and without being super successful. Do bands like Augustana risk more than indie and punk rock bands who seemingly play it safe to their little niche audiences? I have had a number of friends who have operated with an indie and DIY attitudes but played un-polarizing music. Despite enormous talent, great songs and great personalities, they have all had a hard time finding their audience.
MP3 |
Augustana - Sunday Best All The Stars And BoulevardsMP3 |
Augustana - Mayfield All The Stars And Boulevards
The
Goran Ivanovic Group is a pan-cultural quartet that (for now) calls Chicago home. Their music (as stated by Goran) has been inspired by the beautiful folkloric music of the Balkans (focusing on Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Serbia). More musically interestingly (though) the band also fuses modern jazz with Balkan roots music and creates a sound like nothing you've probably heard.
On the group's full-lengh
Balkan Songs, roughly half the songs are modern arrangements of traditional Balkan songs, while many of the others are original Ivanovic compositions originally intended for solo guitar that have since been fully orchestrated for the band. Ivanovic (and the rest of the band) showcase their technical prowess and (Goran especially) a passion for flamenco music. This is not typical CYSTSFTS fare, but I really enjoy this album and think you might as well.
MP3 |
Goran Ivanovic Group - Blacksmith's Dance Balkan SongsMP3 |
Goran Ivanovic Group - White Walls Balkan Songs
