Tag Archives: recent release

Rockabilly in Today’s World: JD McPherson Talks Shop with Reviewsic

23 Jun

JD McPherson is unique not because he sounds unlike anything to ever be part of the music world, but because he sounds like nothing that exists in the music world today. As far as we know he is the only musician today who channels Little Richard on a regular basis and plays rock n’ roll the way that it was played when it took its first steps into popular culture. Songs about shaking it and pretty women may sound like a formula for the latest hip hop hit, but McPherson has taken these familiar themes and classed them up with a bit of saxophone, piano and swingin’ lingo like “scratching circles on the ol’ dance floor”. A high school art teacher in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma is probably the last person you’d suspect to be behind such a rollicking tribute to old school rock n’ roll, but that is exactly who JD McPherson is by the light of day. In his record, Signs & Signifiers  McPherson tips his hat to the likes of Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis and Sammy Davis Jr. with soulful songs chock full of jaunty piano, velvety runs and twangy guitar. However, the allure of McPherson isn’t simply in his nostalgic novelty- this guy can seriously sing and his backing band is nothing short of spot on in every track. Simply put: Signs & Signifiers is probably the most appealing record we’ve stumbled upon in quite some time.

Check out a video of McPherson and the band below and click “continue reading” to read the complete interview we conducted with him this past week about his music, influences and where he sees himself in the next year.

 

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“Fishin’ For Woos” with Bowling for Soup’s Erik Chandler

14 Jun

Recently celebrating the release of their 11th album, Fishin’ For Woos, Bowling for Soup is settling into the first leg of their supporting US tour and getting into position to do what they do best- smother their fans in pop punk.  Back in 94’ three bands broke up, allowing Bowling for Soup to arise from the wreckage and start their jaunty tryst with fame. “Since then it has been the most amazing ride. The past 17 years have taken us to places that we never believed we could go. And then you look around and realize it’s 17 years later. We’re truly lucky to be able to do what we do.” (Erik Chandler).
The newest release from these four epitomizes what, in our opinion, Bowling for Soup has always been about: having fun. A little tongue in cheek and a lot smart-assed, Fishin’ For Woos touches on relationships of both the romantic and platonic persuasion, full of sweet little love stories and nostalgia. Its questionable whether or not this record was merely written to suck in pop punk hungry early teens that weren’t around for the hypnotic lure of “1985” or purposely juvenile for the fun of it, but either way Fishin’ For Woos is a pretty good time. The iTunes version of the album includes a wonderfully ridiculous song that serves as a fan boy’s love letter to Megan Fox, citing the reasons she’s lovely and better than any other celeb hottie with lines like,  “Its not like I don’t understand/ the ass of Kim Kardashian/ it’s power’s beyond anyone’s control/ but I thank god every day/you’re always one click away/ and no one else will ever know what we’ve got”. If that’s not brilliant songwriting, well then, we just don’t know what is. If you’re looking for something you can unplug the analytical side of your brain with or perhaps searching for a way to channel your inner middle-schooler, this is certainly the record for you.

Bowling for Soup bassist Erik Chandler recently talked with us about the music he’s been listening to, the venues he’s loved playing and the way the band has changed over the nearly two decades they’ve been bopping around together.

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Dead Stars and “The Wasted EP”

7 Jun

Brooklyn band Dead Stars have been catching their breath from all the hubbub of SXSW and the late April release of their newest effort, The Wasted EP. Put out digitally on April 26th, the record will also soon be seeing a vinyl release, giving listeners plenty of options for taking in the fuzzed out -sound these guys make.
Formed by cousins Jeff and Jaye Moore in 2008 along with their good friend John Watterberg, the trio quickly fell into their niche with a Dinosaur Jr.-esque fuzziness to what are otherwise tried and true rock rhythms. Dead Stars and The Wasted EP are a little taste of what certain crowds (you know, the ones who weren’t busy listening to Ace of Base) will remember fondly as the sound of the early 90’s, rich with deep, throaty vocals and broad strums of fuzzy guitar.  Reviewsic favorites off this 5-track release include the spiraling guitar of “Killing Time” and the surprisingly upbeat melody of title track “Wasted”.
The EP can be found on Bandcamp and iTunes and collectors should keep an ear to the ground for the announcement of the record’s vinyl release sometime in the near future.

 The men behind the music recently indulged us in a little email interview- read on to learn more about Dead Stars, The Wasted EP, and what bands are in their “Top 25 Most Played” list on iTunes.

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The Hussy Do It Fast and Dirty- Talking Shop with the Garage Rock Duo

25 May

From the 40 second brevity of the aptly titled, “Peace, Bro” to the broad sweeping of the slowed down “Demon Clause”, Madison’s The Hussy have taken 21 minutes and made the most of their time in their recently released LP, Cement Tomb. Bratty beats like “Odd Duck” and “Pavement” carry a playful sense of “We’ll play however the hell we want and fuck you if you don’t like it.”
A hodgepodge of various garage rock styles fill up this record’s 13 tracks, but when it comes down to it they all carry a consistent sense of brash enthusiasm, making the motor-heavy songs mix with the more surf-inspired and making even the slowest of its songs seem fast. Despite being composed of little two minute or less snippets, Cement Tomb still manages to come off as a polished full-length, never seeming half assed or too quick to the finish line. The snarls from both members of this guy-girl two piece are nasally, reckless and chock full of sass. Chicagoans can catch The Hussy’s wild child ways live at the Empty Bottle tomorrow, May 26th.  Half Acre is presenting and joining them on the stage will be The Growlers and The Stranger- show at 9:30 21+ $8.

Download or Stream These Tracks from Cement Tomb
“Sexi Ladi
“Pushin’ My Luck”
“Have A Say”


Read on to check out an interview with Bobby Hussy and Heather Sawyer.

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Bad Translations, Secret Projects and Learning to Slow Down: Talking Shop with Amor de Dias

23 May

Three years in the making, Street of the Love of Days, the debut record from Amor de Dias recently made its way to the public this past week. A hush-hush collaboration between Alasdair MacLean of the Clientele and Lupe Núñez-Fernández of Pipas, Street of the Love of Days is an astral and delicate album, full of lush Spanish guitars, ghostly harmonies and a sweetly comforting folksiness that makes it a record that just begs to be played as you wind down the day. Mutually finding inspiration in “Surrealist poetry, myths, London, books of days, forests, landscape, lullabies”, Alasdair and Lupe’s songs are chock full of narration and strong imagery. Featuring everything from the harp to the bouzouki, trumpet to recorder, Street of the Love of Days is multifaceted both in terms of audio aesthetics and musical styles, a subtle taste of chamber pop mixed with a little Erik Satie, Stars and Sufjan Stevens. For the music listener that is bored with everything else they’ve been listening to, we highly recommend this beautiful collaboration.

Don’t miss Amor de Dias this Friday, May 27th at Lincoln Hall 

Alasdair and Lupe recently talked with us via email about Street of the Love of Days, how the project came to be and what lies ahead for the twosome.

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Free Singles From Our Friends At Tell All Your Friends PR

21 May
1,2,3 “Work” from New Heaven out June 21st on Frenchkiss Records
 
Country Mice “Morning Son” from Twister Out June 7th on Wao Wao Records
 
Eternal Summers “Cog” from Prisoner EP out now on Forest Family / Kanine Records
Other Lives “Tamer Animals” from Tamer Animals out May 17th on tbd / White Iris Records
 
Soema Montenegro “Cuando Pasa” from Passionaria out May 31st on Western Vinyl
 

Talking Shop with Bob Dain of The Sweeps

19 May

It’s every musician’s dream: A wanted ad is posted for a singer. A guitarist answers the ad. After a few rehearsals the two find their styles mesh more than Cher’s wardrobe and a record begins to be written. The end result of this musical fairytale is Midnight at the Box, the first EP from Chicago band The Sweeps and the Prince Charming- Cinderella combo are Santiago Torres and Bob Dain, bassist and lead guitarist, respectively. Though the band recently underwent a line-up change with the resignation of their drummer, The Sweeps are still trucking. Currently in the final 20 bands for Q101’s Jamboree, a featured band on battleofthebands.com and playing local shows as much as they can, these guys aren’t letting a small hiccup affect them and thank goodness for that. The Sweeps reminds us a bit of another small band we stumbled upon last year, Eagle Scout. The same jaunty melodies, rocking rhythms and affable vocals that just feel like they’re coming out of a guy you could trust to watch your drink for you at the bar. Occasionally swelling into a bigger, sweeping sound, such as in “Goodbye”, The Sweeps’ music also possesses the tight bounce of pop punk, giving their music a sense playfulness.
Definitely one of the more joyful bands we’ve stumbled upon in the last few months, The Sweeps are a taste of what a good time sounds like and we hope that when you’re putting together your summer playlist this year you think of these Chicagoans.

Singer and guitarist Bob Dain recently talked with Reviewsic about the band’s new record, The Terrible Children, his favorite venues and how the band has grown since its inception.
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New Record and Free Single from Young Legionnaire

15 May

 Grab a free download of the track “A Hole in the World” here: right click and save as for MP3 or left click to stream

Don’t Miss Soft Speaker at The Deli Chicago’s “Best Emerging Artists of 2010″ Showcase Tomorrow

12 May

Despite having just released their first full-length album, I’ll Tend Your Garden, Chicagoans Soft Speaker have been spending most of their band time in the studio. The analog recorded record went public on April 19th of this year and within a month of sharing their efforts the four-piece band was back at Gallery of Carpet Recording new material. “We recently mixed the centerpiece of the new album, which is a song called “Ask The Guild.”  It’s about 8 minutes long.  It took us 14 hours to mix that song.  Brian Zeiske, who owns and runs Gallery of Carpet Recording, engineers, mixes and masters our material.” (Paul Foreman) After explaining the lengthy process that has gone into recording in this fashion and  the old school perks of using Gallery of Carpet Recording Paul summed up his feelings toward the process in saying, “The bottom line is that the analog gear and tape sound better than digital.  Some people will say that they can get the same tones using Pro Tools and plug-ins, but I don’t agree.”
In our interview with Foreman and fellow Soft Speaker bandmate Joe Daley, the two informed us that the new album should be available sometime this fall and until then fans can look forward to seeing them play around town, perhaps even jumping on a festival or two over the summer.
For Soft Speaker fans looking for a little more instant gratification, the band will be playing this Friday, May 13th over at the Empty Bottle as part of The Deli Chicago’s Best Emerging Artists of 2010 Showcase. The show is presented by The Deli and Betta Promotions, starts at 9:30, is 21+ and will cost $10. Also playing are: Canasta, Dastardly and Secret Colours.

Read on to see what Paul and Joe had to say about their musical preferences, the songs they hate getting stuck in their heads and their newest record, I’ll Tend Your Garden.
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Fishboy Celebrates Release of “Classic Creeps” with New Music Video

10 May

Click here to watch “Alyson Revere “on Vimeo

Stream the entire album and read a comic telling the story here

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