ALBUM REVIEW: Sick Sad World - Fear and Lies

Genres like garage rock and power pop are so reliant on certain conventions that it's surprising songwriters still manage to make them feel fresh, but even within the confines of an insanely familiar format there's still plenty of room for artists to inject their own personalities and interests into the mix. That's especially true of solo acts, like Sick Sad World mastermind Jake Jones, who largely colors inside the lines on Fear and Lies, the project's first full-length, but still manages to impress thanks to the record's quirky concoction of acid-damaged skate culture, self-deprecating humor and some incredibly hooky songs.

Using little more than a guitar and a drum machine, Jones starts Fear and Lies out strong with the lovelorn instant earworm "Skateboarding Girl" and rarely if ever loses steam across the album's eleven tracks. The rest cover a similar kind of teenage territory as the first, from being an outcast, like on the surf-inflected "Alone All the Time", to searching for your own identity, as with the individualist, vaguely sci-fi "Being Weird", but whatever the subject matter Jones never descends into self-pity or takes himself too seriously. Despite some bummer themes, Fear and Lies is a consistently fun album.

Between the catchy tunes and the fact that it clocks in at a lean 35 minutes, the release, out now on Help Yourself Records, doesn't lose its somewhat dazed appeal on repeat listens, but its best moments, such as the glammy strut of "Keep It Real" or the surprisingly heavy closer "Stay Gold", stand just fine on their own, and should easily find favor with the Burger crowd. The Seattle-based Jones doesn't bring many new musical ideas to the table with Fear and Lies, but his particular spin on these well-worn rock 'n' roll sounds proves to be infectiously enjoyable.

ALBUM REVIEW: Daycones - The Cruel Echo

Timescape Psalm, the 2013 debut album from Daycones, was a decidedly strong first effort in its own right, the release's heady concoction of stoned surf guitar lines, leaden vocals and loopy atmospherics offering up a relatively unique take on well-trod psychedelic ground, but, just as importantly, it also showed potential for the future, leaving its many offbeat ideas, as impressive as they were, a lot of room to grow. Of course, potential isn't always fulfilled, but Daycones' new The Cruel Echo easily improves on its predecessor, mostly by allowing those earlier flights of fancy to coalesce into something more solid.

Now, that's not to say that fans of the first album's disjointed spaciness will be let down, after all the Arizona-by-way-of-Wisconsin solo artist also known as Ryan Janke did manage to establish an agreeably warm, spacious aesthetic right out of the gate, and was smart enough not to throw out the baby with the bath water, but here all the ethereal meanderings are bolstered with a newfound rhythmic backbone. Increased structure may seem like the antithesis of Daycones' dreamy, freewheeling approach, yet standout tracks such as "Millenials" and the lovelorn "Cult" actually benefit greatly from being a bit more grounded.

However, while The Cruel Echo transitions towards a slightly more accessible, even conventional, psych rock sound, its sonic shifts are ultimately rather subtle, leaving Daycones, thankfully, still planted firmly in left field. The various quirks that made Janke's music so original and arresting in the first place remain intact, as evidenced by viscous, lysergic entries like "Memory Party" and "Illuminated", only now they have something substantial to play against, making their eccentricities even more enjoyable by contrast. In the end, the album is a worthy follow-up to Timescape Psalm, and an enticing look at what Daycones may evolve into next.

CONCERT REVIEW: Appleseeds & Strange Matter (Circle-A Café, Milwaukee)

New local label Dirty Hippy Barn Records drops their third 45 of 2014, Go Milk Yourself, a split EP featuring Milwaukee's own Appleseeds and Strange Matter.

Read my full review here.

ALBUM REVIEW: Mechanimal - Secret Science

It's generally pretty easy to discover specialized record labels that consistently release good music yet restrict themselves to a specific genre, likewise those that put out a wide variety of material while being lax when it comes to quality control, but it's rarer to encounter one that's both eclectic and reliable, which makes independent Greek imprint Inner Ear Records well worth checking out. Covering everything from folk to electronic, the music they issue is usually as intriguing as it is adventurous, and Secret Science, the new sophomore album from Athens-based trio Mechanimal, is a nice addition to that expansive catalog.

Formed by Greek musician/journalist Giannis Papaioannou and American photographer Freddie Faulkenberry, the band members themselves describe their music as "drone 'n' roll", although that's an incomplete (and oddly inaccurate) description of the sounds found on Secret Science, the follow up to their 2012 self-titled debut. In fact, the album bounces between a number of styles, be it the upbeat synthpop of "We Come Alive", the subtly dubby, trip hop feel of "Cut Communications" or the dark, throbbing techno found on the record's muscular closer "Down in the Basement", all of which come with a tasteful amount of Joy Division worship.

Those influences, as well as Secret Science's forays into industrial and more conventional alt-rock, aren't exactly wildly divergent, but the deftness with which the appropriately, hilariously named Mechanimal navigates the transitions from one to the other makes even the occasional misstep, such as the title track, where the clenched-jaw vocals and some overwrought lyrics conspire to push the song into goth cliché, seem less pronounced, even on repeat listens. Altogether it's a cohesive set of songs, but offers its share of surprises, making it more than deserving of a few spins and yet another solid release from Inner Ear Records.

ALBUM REVIEW: Film - Eclipse

While it still retains an air of futurism after all these years, there's nevertheless a strong element of nostalgia in electronic music, be it in the form of vintage synthesizer fetishism or retro styles that seem to get resuscitated every so often. There's nothing wrong with that really, there's room enough for throwbacks in such an eclectic genre, but it only has merit when it goes beyond mimicry and actually recontextualizes its inspirations for a new era, something Eclipse, the 80s-inflected new album from Greek trio Film, manages rather well.

Recalling the cinematic side of Giorgio Moroder or Vangelis, Eclipse, out now on the reliable Inner Ear Records (by way of Rough Trade Distribution), compresses those dramatic arpeggios and sweeping synth textures into concise doses of dark, bouncy pop. The Athens-based group, who've been largely inactive since 2009's well-received Persona, makes no bones about their fondness for the days of analog and generally approaches the whole project with a sense of fun, which adds extra charm to standout cuts such as the urgent "Produkt" or the dreamily wistful title track.

Film puts a sufficiently modern spin on things though, preventing Eclipse from feeling like little more than a collection of winking reference points, but, as enjoyable as the release is, the main flaw is that its soundtrack-esque aesthetic makes it a bit forgettable. Yet, while it doesn't leave much of an impact, Eclipse is a pleasant listen right on through to the delicate closer "Waltz (Telescope)" and is more than deserving of a few spins, even if it's not the most forward-thinking or original example of electronic music out there.

FEATURE: Ramma Lamma Enjoy the Sleazy Fringes of Rock 'N' Roll

After several singles, catchy Milwaukee garage rockers Ramma Lamma finally release their long-in-the-works debut album, the raucous summertime treat Ice Cream.

Read the full piece here.

FEATURE: The Delphines Drop a Punchy Full-Length Debut

Long known for their tantalizingly brief EPs and singles, The Delphines finally take the plunge and release something more substantial (but, appropriately, still pretty short).

Read the full piece here.

ALBUM REVIEW: Space Raft - Space Raft

Buzzed-about locals Space Raft come out swinging with a confident, cohesive debut album, arriving May 10th on the recently revived Dusty Medical Records label.

Read my full review here.

FEATURE: Soup Moat Follow Their Own Misunderstood Muse

Seldom-recorded Milwaukee duo Soup Moat hooks up with eclectic local tape label Organalog, and finally gets the deluxe studio treatment they've long been waiting for.

Read the full piece here.

ALBUM REVIEW: Radio Ready: Wisconsin - Lost Power Pop Hits 1979-1982

Power pop, with its infectious blend of catchy British Invasion hooks and stateside attitude, all boiled down into economically concentrated blasts of teenage drama, has developed an impressively international fan base, but one place it's popularity has proved particularly long lasting is the American Midwest, where it's simple pleasures have never fully gone out of style. It makes sense then that the Austin-based reissue label Cheap Rewards Records, after getting their native Texas out of the way, would turn their attention to the area for the second installment of their Radio Ready series of state-based compilations, and Wisconsin ably lives up to the challenge of representing the region.

Collecting rambunctious sides from 14 Badger State bands, mostly hailing from Milwaukee, Radio Ready: Wisconsin - Lost Power Pop Hits 1979-1982 zeroes in on an especially fruitful time and place, in all its Cheap Trick-inspired glory. Considered as a whole, the selections do an admirable job of seamlessly representing both the "power" and the "pop" sides of the equation, from Muscle Beach's lovably-boneheaded party anthem "Let's Get Dumb" to the almost self-consciously Beatle-esque "Wait a Minute" by the Pops (yes, "the Pops"), but each two-and-a-half minute tale of teen angst and/or ecstasy also stands alone as an earworm worth having stuck in your head for a little while.

With some songs available on other comps, a few of them free, and considering that an essential entry from the Shivvers is missing from the digital version due to licensing conflicts, it's probably best to hold out for the upcoming vinyl release, despite the unappealing cover art, particularly since it's the first time a handful of previously-unreleased tracks have found their way onto wax. That wax even comes in the signature green and gold of the state's beloved Packers in addition to your classic black, although given number of power pop fans in Wisconsin, and the high quality of these cuts, the limited run will likely go fast.

ALBUM REVIEW: Faux Fir - Fashionable Life

In many ways, Fashionable Life, the debut full-length from Milwaukee synthpop group Faux Fir, probably wouldn't exist were it not for the for the Internet. To begin with, the band got its start when Adam Bartell and Ryan Rupprecht, who had both recently relocated to Milwaukee, found each other on Craigslist and, after a string of well-received splits and EPs, found themselves working on their first proper album via email and Instant Messenger, passing files between the core of the band in Milwaukee, Bartell, who'd since returned to Portland, and producer Ryan Weber, now living 8,000 miles away in Kenya.

Fashionable Life, however, doesn't suffer for the physical distance between its makers, sounding conceptually well thought out and cohesive over the course of its roughly 40 minute runtime. That's not to imply that the record is lacking in dynamics, in fact it lands on a quite lively commingling of modern dance pop à la Hot Chip, classic synthpop tropes and a dose of the spritely electronic psychedelia of Of Montreal. The sound comes together best on a handful of standout tracks, like the bouncy lead-off single "Pleasure Prose" or the dreamy "The Wingdings", but it's charmingly bright and catchy throughout.

The mix, while appropriately clean and sparkling energetic, could use some more oomph in the low end, an imbalance which, along with Rupprecht's twangy vocals, can make some passages feel shrill, but, all things considered, Fashionable Life, accessible as it is, should appeal to a broad cross section of listeners and deserves some attention from local radio ("Pizza Hut" seems like a song 88.9 should be beating into the ground). Yet while there's nothing particularly radical or groundbreaking included here, it's an assured, ingratiating release, one which, like the band, owes an unspoken debt to the World Wide Web. 

ALBUM REVIEW: Calibro 35 - Traditori Di Tutti

When Italian record producer Tommaso Colliva invited a handful of musicians into his studio to pay tribute to some of his favorite Italian crime film soundtracks, it was only meant to be a one-off side project, a self-contained expression of admiration to the beguiling funk and jazz that throbbed behind the non-stop action of the colorful poliziotteschi and giallo b-movies prominent in the 1970s and 80s, but the sessions, which resulted in their 2008 self-titled debut, were too fun to give up on. They've since traded in covers for their own compositions and released a handful of albums, but as their new full-length, Traditori Di Tutti, proves, that original cinematic-throwback appeal is still very much intact. 

Beginning with the ominous "Prologue", a moody guitar and organ workout, the album charges through 12 tracks of sinewy rock, funk and jazz, which by and large capture that somewhat indefinable soundtrack music feel so well that you can practically see the nonexistent film unfolding in your mind's eye. There are a few missteps here and there, like the clunky "Stainless Steel", which sounds uncomfortably like Rage Against the Machine attempting to invoke the Kashmere Stage Band, but for the most part it's a credible translation of influences like Ennio Morricone, Goblin and others into an accessible modern pop format. It doesn't live up to those greats, but thankfully it doesn't feel like they're trying to. 

There's of course an air of conceptual cheesiness to Traditori  Di Tutti, which takes its name from a mystery novel by lauded Italian crime writer Giorgio Scerbanenco, yet between tracks like the wah-wah drenched "You Filthy Bastards!" and the swinging, orgasmic "The Butcher's Bride", it's the perfect thing to throw on should you find yourself in a protracted car chase or need to kill a vampire in a particularly funky manner, though it's also fit for a dull morning commute or sitting around playing video games. By this point, it should be obvious that Calibro 35 is extremely derivative, unabashedly so, but while it's admittedly nothing new, Traditori Di Tutti remains a charming exploitation homage.

FEATURE: Toro y Moi Trades Chillwave for Pop and House

In advance of his upcoming Milwaukee gig, I catch up with Chaz Bundick, also known as Toro y Moi, to talk about touring, his graphic design work and going pop.

Read the full piece here.

CONCERT REVIEW: Sat. Nite Duets & Jaill (Polish Falcon, Milwaukee)

Fun-loving local group Sat. Nite Duets take over Riverwest's favorite old-man bar to celebrate the release of their infectious new album Electric Manland.  

Read my full review here.

ALBUM REVIEW: Sleepcomesdown - Cured by the Blur

When digesting an album, it's usually pretty easy to differentiate between those elements that you enjoy and those that you don't, to subconsciously weigh those subjective pros and cons that ultimately tip a listener's scales in one direction or the other, but sometimes a record's greatest strengths are also its greatest weaknesses. Take Cured by the Blur, the latest from Milwaukee psych group Sleepcomesdown, which offers up a sound that's confident and cohesive in a way that's hard not to like, but could ultimately do with a little less consistency and a little more risk-taking.

Heard individually, each of the album's 12 tracks have a lot to recommend them, diving head first into dizzy, strung-out psych bolstered by some punchy, insistent post-punk drums and space-filling effects, but experienced together over the course of 47 minutes, the approach begins to suffer from the law of diminishing returns, robbing standouts like "Float like an Echo" or the title track of some of their impact. It's never dull; thanks mainly to the driving rhythm section, Cured by the Blur always feels like it's going somewhere, but, in the end, the scenery never changes.

It's hard to fault a band for trying to fully explore a sound or create a sustained atmosphere, but a little more dynamics of the sort hinted at by the short, relatively ambient tracks that bookend the album would have let in some much-needed air. If you're the type of person who loads up their iPod and listens on shuffle, then a download is well worth the investment, as there are plenty of standalone gems to be found, but if you prefer to enjoy things straight through, those moments can get obscured by the blur.

ALBUM REVIEW: Spaceships - Cool Breeze Over the Mountains

Not that anyone but the wooden actor's most devoted superfans would realize, but Cool Breeze Over the Mountains, the new debut LP from Los Angeles duo Spaceships, borrows its name from the English meaning of Keanu Reeves' Hawaiian first name. It's a downright useless bit of trivia, but indicative of the pop-damaged sense of fun working just below the album's noisy surface. Its nine tracks may be fuzzy, loud and washed out in a peculiarly stoned sort of way, but you still might catch yourself humming them in the shower, and that underlying catchiness is a big part of its considerable charm.

From the beginning bars of the feet-first opener "Little", you're confronted by a sound that's bigger than it has any right to be, being made by only two people, drummer Kevin LaRose and singer/guitarist Jesse Waite. It helps that everything is slathered in reverb and distortion, but there's more than just effects at work here, a sustained musical attack that isn't aggressive as much as it is omnipresent, rarely allowing listeners to catch their breath. Whether it's applied to the punky energy of "New Wishing" or the numbed-out urban heaviness of "Limit", it lends them an arresting punchiness.

If Cool Breeze Over the Mountains were any longer than its 30 minutes, that all-out aesthetic might get to be a little much, but as it stands, its range and dynamics more than carry it through, and make repeat listens an enjoyable endeavor. Beyond that, it's mostly the earworm hooks, which manage to slice right through the density of the production, as well as Waite's imposing voice, which feels right at home among it, that elevate the album above your run-of-the-mill lo-fi garage rock. It's an impressive album, though what Keanu Reeves has to do with it is anyone's guess. 

ALBUM REVIEW: Raw Geronimo - Dream Fever

Appropriate for a band hailing from the bustling, diverse Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, Raw Geronimo sound assuredly eclectic on their new debut LP Dream Fever, packing a lot of musical ideas, and a lot of style, into its 38 minutes. The sextet, led by multi-instrumentalist and versatile singer Laena Geronimo (daughter of recently departed Devo drummer Alan Myers for what it's worth) has a couple 7"s under their belt, but it seems they've let loose with both barrels on the first full-length, leading to a whole that at times feels a little over-produced, but is never uninteresting.

After the poppy, purpose-stating opener "Lose My Mind", the album careens off in a number of different directions, including the Elastica-like morality tale "Faustine, the candy-coated punk of "Chinatown" and "Bird's Eye Bonsai"'s sultry faux tribalism, which owes a rather large debt to Bow Wow Wow (at times, Geronimo's brash voice even hews pretty close to Annabella Lwin's). There are plenty of other ingredients in Dream Fever's percolating mix, like some syrupy girl group balladry and a dose of glammy sneer, but, somewhat remarkably, it all hangs together rather well, united by a sense of fun and a bristling teenage energy.

As a debut, it makes you wonder where they'll go next (though an overstuffed first record can sometimes foretell the dreaded sophomore slump), but as it stands Dream Fever is an enjoyable summer outing, one with both credibility and crossover appeal. However, there are a few moments, such as the otherwise rocking "Bitched", where there might be a little too much polish, where Raw Geronimo could be a bit more, you know, raw. That's a relatively minor quibble with an album that's well worth a listen, especially one that pulls of so many other tricky balancing acts so well.

ALBUM REVIEW: Ka - The Night's Gambit

It goes without saying that life in the inner city has always been a central subject for rap, ever since its earliest iterations in the bombed-out South Bronx of the late 1970s. As with any topic though, individual artists approach it from a myriad of angles; some turn the streets into a nihilistic cartoon, unapologetically embracing a criminal lifestyle (or at least the trappings of one), while others search for root causes, pointing with righteous indignation at police and politicians. Assuming the MC in question has got the skills to back it up, there's nothing inherently wrong with either approach, but there's more truth in synthesizing the two, as Ka does on his superb new The Night's Gambit. 

Ka, Brooklyn born MC and former member of the Natural Elements crew, has been at it since the early 90s, carving out an impressive underground reputation but largely remaining off the radar of the mainstream. By all outward indications, that suits Ka just fine; there's very little ego on The Night's Gambit, being more concerned with the realities of urban survival than impressing anybody. There's some gritty, noir-ish romance here, right from the dope-slinging album opener "You Know It's About", but balancing it out is an omnipresent sense of guilt, anxiety and paranoia. The toughness of a track like "Soap Box" may sound enticing, but moments later the ominous "Peace Akhi" reveals the pain lurking underneath.

The unflinching, just-the-facts monotone of Ka's delivery is perfectly suited to the subject matter, the voice of someone who's seen it all and has the scars to show for it, but just as important is the production, all slow burn, borderline abstract beats abutting evocative samples culled from Bruce Lee films and The Wire. As tense as the album is, it's not a difficult listen, thanks to his mastery of head-bobbing hip hop fundamentals. Ka pays tribute to his influences on the crate-digging finale, which name checks countless rap classics, from Paid in Full, Criminal Minded and Strictly Business to Ready to Die and Illmatic. The Night's Gambit may not be among them, but it comes close. 

ALBUM REVIEW: Cuttooth - Cuttooth

Northern UK producer Cuttooth operates in a crowded, but ill-defined, field, one alternately referred to as trip hop, electronica or downtempo, depending on where you are and your patience for the cumbersome specificity of genre. Suffice it to say that the blunted boom bap, ethereal voices and soulful samples found on his new self-titled LP, out now on the Dutch label 4 Lux Recordings, will feel somewhat familiar to those well acquainted with the more abstract end of modern electronic music, but while the album doesn't present much that could be considered new, it's still a sterling example of the style.

At times recalling Portishead, Massive Attack and the more luxurious side of Dan the Automator, the record's eleven tracks unfold with a certain organic grace, slowly spinning the warm, ever-present analog crackle of well-worn vinyl into suites of birdsong, sumptuous strings and exotic female vocals. As great as the crisp but natural production is, those international featured guests bring a lot to the table; standout track "Breathe Deeply" wouldn't be nearly as sultry or cinematic without the contribution of the Montreal based Sarah Linhares and Japanese singer-songwriter Hitomi adds an alluring fragility to "Old Tape Machine" and "Illusion Symptom."

At a mere 25 minutes, the album certainly doesn't wear out its welcome, indeed by the time it evaporates back into thin air, it leaves you wanting more, a fact which, along with the uninterrupted fluidity with which it flows from track to track, makes repeat listens almost inevitable. Cuttooth (known by day as Nick Cooke, by the by), is a relatively new name on the scene, having released his solo debut Elements on Psychonavigation records in 2011, but judging by this assured, thoroughly enjoyable addition to his rapidly expanding discography, he's most definitely one to keep an eye on.

ALBUM REVIEW: Catacombz - Catacombz

My review of the newest album by Milwaukee heavy-psych monsters Catacombz, their third overall and the first to be pressed up on sweet, sweet vinyl. You should check out the record, it's rad.

Read my full review here.