Keeping It Sweet

You should definitely check out Wild Sweet Orange if you haven't already. Their five-song EP, The Whale EP caught my ears when I threw a song of theirs on a random mix CD. Now, I'm looking forward to picking up their full-length, We Have Cause To Be Uneasy (yep, that get my vote for best album title of the year).

Additionally, they will be playing the Village Tavern, August 31. You should go. I'll be there. It'll be fun. I'll buy you a drink. And I promise not to hit on you...much.

Also, here's an mp3 from The Whale EP:
Wild Sweet Orange, "Wrestle With God" (Thanks, Spinner)

And let the pissing match begin. Who's got their money on Gretchen Wilson shutting them down? Yeah, that'd be me...as much as I dislike that no-talent redneck hack wannabe. Gretch Wilson, not Chris Robinson.

Interview :: Metavari

Interview :: Metavari

I caught up with Metavari outside of the Village Tavern on June 17 right before their opening gig for El Ten Eleven. The quintet, Ty Brinneman (bass), Tommy Cutter (guitar), Simon Lesser (guitar, keyboards, programming), Andrew McComas (drums), and Nate Utesch (guitar, keyboards) had arrived on the coast of SC after a fifteen hour trek from Fort Wayne, Indiana. The sunburn from their day on Sullivan’s Island didn’t dampen their spirits, though. These five fine gentlemen spoke to me for forty minutes about any topic with a sense of humor and anticipation. Here’s the majority of our conversation:

SIO: This may be a question you get asked a lot but, why no vocals?

Nate: Yeah, that usually is the first question we get asked…

SIO: Don’t get me wrong I’m usually drawn to more music now without vocals, because it’s very easy to ruin songs with vocals…

Tyler: Yeah, well a lot of the music we grew up loving had vocals, but what we were more interested in was the musical aspect of it. We all have our musical band influences but…

Simon: With instrumental music it’s always different. If you have vocals on a song it has lyrics, it has a title, it has a message and that’s what it is across the board. It can be interpreted different ways or it can be ambiguous but it generally has something that it is just across the board. With instrumental music it has the ability to communicate the same ideas, but it’s not the same from person to person. It doesn’t assign anything to the music but you can let loose with your own imagination without the artist dictating their view.

Andrew: With instrumental music and its influence, it can be more powerful than music with lyrics because it forces the listener to be engaged in a certain way than just pulling out a lyric sheet and reading through it. It forces more…I don’t know. It just hits you in a different way.

Ty: I think it’s more listener-participatory.

SIO: Do you guys like the idea of not having to force an image on your listeners?

Ty: Yeah, I feel like you’re forced to have to market yourself in other ways that you don’t want to as a musician so if you can remove that aspect from your music or your art then it’s very freeing.

Andrew: I feel like some people don’t know what to do with our music. We’ll have people who will either think ‘Sweet, you don’t have vocals’ or ‘…well, what do you do then if you don’t have vocals?’ Some people don’t know how to react. I think it definitely separates people into two categories: people who ‘get it’ and people who don’t.

But if you get it, it can move you in different way.

SIO: So, would you say you’re okay with some people not ‘getting it’?

Andrew: Oh yeah. Definitely.

Nate: I feel like stepping into this, we consciously said, ‘Okay, because of what we’re choosing to do, there will only ever be, like, three people who will like us’ (laughs). And we’re okay with that! Because of how much we enjoy it and saturate ourselves with it. Some people kind of want us to explain what they should have been thinking (during our songs) and we always feel like, ‘Well, it’s up to you what you chose to think!’ (laughs).

Simon: Along those lines, we’re surprised on a daily basis…our music is not really that far out there and I think we’re pretty accessible. I mean people’s moms like us. I don’t really think we’re doing something that crazy…we do what we like and hope others like it to.

SIO: Hearing you guys talk about it, it’s nice to hear a band admit, ‘We’re concerned about the audience, but we’re not that concerned about the audience…’ Is that correct?

Nate: Yeah, well there’s a balance. You can do something so self-absorbed that you’re just doing something to be different…

SIO: But then you become Yoko Ono…

Nate: Or you can just be full of formula and be a pop music band. There’s a balance.

SIO: You guys mentioned that you had instrumental bands that influence you growing up. So what are some of your influences?

Andrew: I think one of the bands that most of us can identify with is a band called Unwed Sailor. They’re probably my favorite band to date.

Ty: I’m gonna second the Unwed Sailor. When I broke both my knees and I listened to them and they helped me get around a campground…

SIO: You really broke your knees?

Ty: Yeah, both of them at a music festival...

Andrew: He is walking now, however. (laughs)

Ty: I know Mono is a big influence on me.

Tommy: The first instrumental band I started listening to was Aphex Twin. That had a huge influence on the way I hear music.

Nate: I feel like an album that had vocals on it, but freaked me out because of the way it was structured and layered…

Andrew: I know what you’re going to say…

Nate…was the Low Level Owl records by The Appleseed Cast. And then a split EP with Maserati and Mercury Program are some of my favorites.

SIO: Any older stuff like jazz? I hear a little bit of jazz every now and again in the EP.

Nate: I don’t know. Have we talked about this before? I definitely grew up playing piano and sax, but I’m not a connoisseur. I appreciate it and I’m sure somewhere it’s in there.

SIO: Any classical?

Andrew: Yeah, I was gonna say…I play drums for the band but my first instrument was guitar and I took classical guitar lessons for five years. So I think the idea of instrumental music has always moved me especially.

Ty: I actually grew up a hardcore kid and albums like “The Shape of Punk to Come” really changed everything for me. So other bands influence us just as much. When we first started talking about doing this band, I didn’t know we would start an instrumental band. I just want to have to have passion…aw, but I hate that word…insert some other word for passion. (laughs).

SIO: So is this your first tour?

Nate: Yep. First night of the first tour.

SDE: You guys picked a brave time to go on tour…

Ty: You mean with gas prices and all that?

SIO: Exactly. So was it just a conscious decision to ‘damn the torpedoes’ this is what we want to do?

Andrew: Basically.

Simon: You got to go on tour sometime and if it wasn’t now it would be later. And later is not now.

Nate: The new songs we’re writing and the way the sets are developing, we just felt like we had to hit the road now or else we would go crazy.

Ty: Yeah, we’re already planning a second tour. This one’s been weird. It was supposed to be 12 dates and now it’s like four or five.

Nate: We’ve met a lot of cool people so far so I think the next tour will be even better.

SIO: How did Metavari get started?

Ty: Well, the beginnings are kind of twofold. It started out as an ambient band between Nate and Simon. And then after I got married and quit the metalcore band I was in, Nate and I just started doing what we wanted to do and Tommy got in on it pretty quickly. But at that point Simon was in China. So we were sending him demos and he would respond back with nice things to say. And we just decided that if we were going to do it we needed a drummer. Andrew and I had been in bands in the past, but he had never played drums in them. But he had a [drum] set and he was fun dude to hang out with so we recruited him! (laughs).

Nate: It was crazy because we’ve known Andrew as a guitar player.

Tommy: The first time his parents saw him play, I overheard them say, ‘We spent all that money and all that time on guitar lessons and you’re playing drums.’ (laughs).

Andrew: All the recitals and all the classical guitar lessons just over.

SIO: Have you ever thought about having a spotlight classical guitar solo in the middle of set?

Andrew: I’ve always said that as soon as someone learns how to play the drums… (laughs).

SIO: Nice. So where exactly is the “Former Black Swamp” of Indiana?

Nate: Well, some guy at work told me that he thought that Fort Wayne, Indiana isn’t really in the Black Swamp area of Indiana.

SIO: It sounds like a music mecca is where you guys grew up in.

Simon: I think music just breed out of swamps. (laughs)

Ty: I actually read that Fort Wayne has, like, a solid 100 cover bands. If you can’t find a cover band to join in Fort Wayne something is wrong.

Everybody Else Is Doing It, Why Can't I?

My first YouTube video. Welcome to the machine...
El Ten Eleven live at The Village Tavern, June 17, 2008.

Slacker's Do It When We Get To It

So, yeah. Been a bit behind on the blogging, but here's some photos I snapped from the Metavari/El Ten Eleven show at the Village Tavern three or four weeks ago. All photos are up on Flickr. A cool cat named Jason was there that night, too and took some pics that are way better than mine. (Cheers, Jason.) Check him out on Flickr.





Go and support both of these hard-workin' bands, buy a CD, t-shirt, etc. Your mother would be happy if you did.

Silence Keeps Company

Metavari, Ambling EP
Self-released, 2008

Metavari come to us from the "The Former Black Swamp, Indiana" according to their MySpace page. But they may as well descended to us from the heavens or some other ether of celestial beauty because that's the only imaginable space I can conjure whenever I spin their gorgeous debut Ambling EP.

Metavari are a post-rock instrumental band with tinges of electronic and digital sounds, though I'd like to dispense with using ill-fitting tags to pin their music down because there's always a shining layer of natural textures behind the tracks that defies traditional post-rock sounds. On the sublime opening track, "Satellites Made It Possible" the song keeps to a quiet build, starting innocently enough with electric bleeps before chiming guitars pick and slide their way in amidst a ride cymbal that sounds like a church bell on a clear day. When track one ends, it's a sad moment. I'd like for it to go on for an additional 4 or 5 minutes. It's a short-lived sadness because there's the equally transcendent "Everything Is Fine" in line behind it.

The beats and synths are out in full force here; that's not to say they dominate the track (nor, I should add, is it necessarily bad that electronic instruments make such a good showing on the record). Metavari seem to have pinned the thin balance of interplay between natural and unnatural sounds; almost to suggest there should be no distinction between the two. Rather, they should align in unison, side-by-side. It's not a new concept to be sure, but it is one that is rarely executed so seamlessly. A listener might mistake one for the other if not paying attention.

The remainder of the album is just as soothing and structured. From the crystal chimes of "Road to Awe" to the controlled deconstruction of "There You Are," Metavari are on level with the giants of their genre (Mogwai, Explosions In the Sky, Panda Bear, etc). But, if their first EP is any indication, these five will probably be smart enough to subvert their work into something even greater than the sum of post-rock's collective parts. And I, for one, am looking forward to what they have to offer.

*Metavari will open for El Ten Eleven this Tuesday, June 24 at the Village Tavern in Mt Pleasant. Show starts @ 9PM for $6. Be there.*

MySpace (one of the best looking MySpace sites I've seen; listen to their cover of Panda Bear's "Comfy In Nautica")

Official Website
Buy their CD
Download from iTunes

Take More But Give Less

Ha Ha! Now I will make believers of you all. Here are some photos from The Helio Sequence/The Explorer's Club show at the Village Tavern last Friday night. All of these will be posted on Flickr this weekend, but enjoy these for the time being.

We're sweating our nads off here in Charleston: 105 degrees, full humidity.

mp3: Sigur Ros--"Gobbledigook" (follow the link and enter your email address for a free download)

What? They're from Iceland...where I wouldn't mind being right now.

It's Pudding Time, Children

I did make it out to see The Helio Sequence and The Explorer's Club Friday, at the Village Tavern. I'll have pics by the end of the week (I know, I know...my promises are empty shells of human disappointment).

Saturday I spent painting the garage at the in-laws house. Sunday I cleaned for four hours, but only got in one album b/c the vacuum is loud. Here's the playlist (CD images link to Amazon):

Modest Mouse--We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank

What the hell happened to this album? So much hype surrounded it and then so many fairweather fans and critics disappeared. It may be their finest moment. Have I said that already?

Primus--Frizzle Fry

The tightest album of the 90s; the best moment comes in the breakdown during "Pudding Time." And the lyrics are insanely poignant...not just throwaways.

Built to Spill--There's Nothing Wrong With Love

My love affair with BTS continues. Leave me alone. I know it's unhealthy. I can't help it I want to curl up in Doug Martsch's beard and sleep forever.

Nirvana--Nirvana

Purging Nirvana from my system for years now has only made me appreciate them more. "You Know You're Right" should be required listening for anyone considering starting any type of angsty-knock off band. That should be enough to convince your shitty group to pack it in before you start.

You Can Make Him Like You

Sweet zombie Jesus, The Hold Steady have lined up a date at Charleston's Pour House on August 10. The Loved Ones open the show.

Also at the lovely Pour House on July 25th, an evening with Jason Isbell. Two sets, no opener. That's what I'm talking about.

Built to Spill are taking "Perfect From Now On" on the road for a Summer/Fall tour. I would much prefer a "Keep It Like a Secret" tour, but I'll take what I can get to see Built to Spill before I die. (They are nowhere near the Southeast--unless you count VA, and really who does--so roadtrip people.)

I'll be at the Village Tavern this tomorrow night for The Helio Sequence and The Explorer's Club. Apparently those boys from The Explorer's Club are blowing up. Nice job, boys. Represent Chucktown, ya hear?

(Those boys need some sunlight, stat.)

mp3: The Hold Steady: "Sequestered in Memphis" (Thanks, I Guess I'm Floating)
mp3: The Helio Sequence: "Can't Say No" One of my favorite tracks of the past month. (Thanks, Sub Pop)

The Blind Pig

Photos are up from the Man Man show at the Village Tavern that I was at on March 7. I think they are some of my better photos--mostly because I used a flash and had some decent equipment. Follow this link to see them.

I'll be back in town this Friday from Waldorf, MD. Monday, April 28 I'll be at The Tin Roof taking pics of Athens, GA's The Winter Sounds.
I love this band and you should too. I'll post the interview I did with singer/bassist Patrick Kennan about a year ago for the now-defunct free weekly The Beat.

Thanks much to You Ain't No Picasso who has posted a free download of the entire Man Man show at The Blind Pig in Michigan. Good sound quality, too! Follow this link for all the goodness.
Note that the files are in M4A format, so get out your converters or drop them into iTunes.

Additionally, Sixeyes (have I mentioned how much I love this guy?) has reposted a free Radiohead concert, Live from BBC Radio. As the man says, get 'em while they're hot. Again, amazing sound quality. Here's the link to the goodness.

On Record Store Day I bought the new Helio Sequence album, but haven't had a chance to listen to it, yet. There's something about Maryland that makes one lethargic against all the things we should love. (They're playing the Village Tavern on May 30.) And I managed to snag a copy of Bob Marley, Legend and The Stone Roses, The Complete Stone Roses on the $1 table. I put Nirvana, Unplugged back, though now I wish I hadn't. I've got a fever for some grunge lately.

Back to the Cave from Whence We Came

Man Man, The Village Tavern, Mt Pleasant, SC - March 7, 2008

Behind my back and during several conversations with respected friends, I have heard whispers of the group called Man Man. I never knew who or what they were, let alone what their music sounded like. A few years ago, before I was a Charleston native, I spotted them on the calendar at The Village Tavern and told a pseudo-friend/colleague of mine. His reaction bordered on spastic and made me a bit uncomfortable and nervous in our cramped office quarters.

I suppose his reaction has always resided somewhere in my subconscious and etched a mental note to perhaps see Man Man one day, but preferably to pick up one of their albums. The mental note went untended and, in truth, I trekked to Mt Pleasant to see openers The Felice Brothers more than anything (whom I missed that afternoon at a Monster Music instore performance...long story, don't ask). I caught the last quarter of The Felice Brothers’ last song and pushed my way to damn-near the front of the small VT stage unaware that I may never be the same again.

The Felice Brothers left the stage and the gear just kept coming out onto the stage as if from a magical door. First a xylophone. Then a bullhorn. Next a gong. And…a fire hydrant? They look like normal guys, I thought—perhaps a bit too much like ex-druggies who go on to become Unitarian youth ministers—but normal enough. Then they disappeared. And they reappeared, wearing all white from head to toe and white face paint in random thumb-splotches. And then they began. And I couldn’t stop moving. The sold-out crowd was throbbing and pushing me along in time to songs I had never heard. I couldn’t stop yelling out responses to the singer’s calls. Where had they been all my life? Mind you, I've been to high-energy hardcore shows where I've lifted crowd surfers up and thrown random individuals up on stage only to have them backflip into the crowd. But this was different. This was...fun. And I didn't feel like I might have to start throwing punches to get the guy beside to give me an extra inch of breathing space.

I can’t speak about Man Man’s music, having only heard it for the first time that night. A friend of mine whom I inadvertently ran into at the show described it as “pirate-carnival-death music.” I can see that. But I heard some waltz, blues, polka, and metal thrown in and then beaten to a puree with a spiked mallet. If I purchase one of their albums now (their new LP Rabbit Habits is out April 8 on Anti- Records) I think it would be a bit of a let down. But only a let down because there is no way to ever faithfully recreate what Man Man is—how alive they are—in a concert setting. You know how some shows just feel routine, like there are motions set up for you and expectations that might be met? This is quite possibly one of those shows that ruins all others for me. Don’t ever miss a chance to see them live. Raise your freak flag with them unashamedly and salute their new breed of sound—so intense it can't be described, but so disastrous in its ability to amaze.

This Phony Beatlemania Has Written Its Course

A few links of interest and then it's on to Destroyer...old(er) Destroyer, mind you. After the links is a review of Destroyer's previous album that originally saw print in The Beat (RIP). I've got Man Man photos from their Village Tavern show and a review coming by Friday. Those guys were unreal; my mind was sufficiently blown.

Trent Reznor may be on to something here... Guess I never really thought of it that way, but he makes a valid point. Go your free download of Nine Inch Nail's Ghosts 1-9 here.

SXSW is streaming like nobody's business at NPR. None of the concerts are up for download, but I strongly recommend their live concert podcast.

Get a giant zip file of 1/2 of a Wilco show over at Sixeyes--consistently one of the best blogs for free music and mp3 of the legal variety.

That's all. Now go get Trouble In Dreams from anywhere but iTunes.

Destroyer—Destroyer’s Rubies (Merge Records, 2006)

Dan Bejar has always been the brainchild behind Destroyer, and while I’ve never cared for his previous releases, his work in the supergroup The New Pornographers has always made he question why he can’t create a Jackie Dressed in Cobras (one of the best songs on The New Pornographer’s Twin Cinema) without the help of his supergroup cohorts.

Well, to make up for lost time, Bejar and his new band members in Destroyer have created an album full of intelligent pop that hasn’t left my ears for weeks. Putting what Destroyer does into words is difficult, but the songs have major structure and guitar hooks from hell. And the lyrics, while puzzling at time, serve to enhance the song when necessary and let it be when needed.

The nine minute opener Rubies displays alternating shifts between acoustic strumming and picking and an electric guitar takeover. And even though the chorus consists of little more than Bejar singing, “la da da da da, da da da dum” the song never wears you out as you might expect it to. To counterbalance the chorus, however, are great lines like, “Don’t worry about her/ she’s been know to appreciate/ the elegance of an empty room” and “please don’t wake me/ from this my golden slumber/ I am proud to be a part of this number.” If I didn’t know better I’d say that Bejar was cueing his listeners in to his comfort level; a clearly reflected element in these relaxed and focused songs.

Tracks like 3000 Flowers and Painter in Your Pocket feel like some of the most well-designed songs I’ve heard: they’re elegant in their simplicity, but layered in their meaning. And I love to hear a man write lines that amount to modern poetry—“Where did you get that line?/ Where did you get that rook?/ Where did you get that penchant for destruction in the way you talk?. The only slump is the Neil Young-esque guitar blues on the last track Sick Priest Learns to Live Forever.

There are constant themes throughout the record that I have yet to decipher. For example, blood, oils, priests, and “your blues” (the title of Destroyer’s previous release) come up repeatedly. One could take Destroyer’s Rubies as a concept album, but of what, has to be left up to the listener. And modernist lyrics like, I was Clytemnestra on a good day, can puzzle those not versed in mythology. But one thing that shouldn’t be left up to listeners is the delicacy and greatness of this, Destroyer's finest moment.

Love Comes Like a Kennedy Curse

Back from the Matt Pond PA show at The Map Room on Tuesday night. The "storm of the century" as E called it didn't amount to anything--no tornadoes or severe lightning or anything. Quick update on areas of interest on this here interwebs:

...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead have a session up at Daytrotter for download.

Pitchfork has photos up of the recent Bill Calahan/Johathan Meiburg show at the Village Tavern. I don't know who Drew Katchen is, but apparently he was at the Village Tavern on 2/29 taking photos. I missed the show, but plan on tracking this guy down.

I just discovered JunkMedia; looks like a cool site.

And the award for concert-in-an-amphitheater-that-I-would-go-to-and-then-leave-before the-main-act goes to...Jack Johson with special guests Rogue Wave and Neil Halstead! I know Rogue Wave released Asleep at Heaven's Gate on Jack Johnson's label...but where did they pick up Neil Halstead from? I do recommend "Sleeping On Roads," though.

The Silver Jews are emerging from whatever hole they live in to release a new album, (title here). And their second-ever tour is to follow. The album features Pernice Brother's guitarist Peyton Pinkerton.

Sixeyes has a new mp3 from the Notwist's new album; their first in 6 years since Neon Golden (a fine record).

If I cared I would mention that you can stream Tapes 'n Tapes LP, but their last LP was crappy and for some reason critics went ape-shit over it. And by the time this posts, you can't listen to the streaming album anyway, so nevermind.

Man Man and The Felice Brothers play at the Village Tavern tomorrow night. The Felice Brothers play an in-store at Monster Music beforehand. Apparently they're good.

Dave Eggers is giving a public reading at the Brooks Center, Friday, March 7 at 7:30. It's free and it's part of the Clemson University Literary Festival. Apologies to Woody b/c I can't be there.

That's all. Pix from the Matt Pond PA show and a review coming either tomorrow or Monday.

What Do You Grow at a Music Farm?

Band of Horses @ Music Farm, Charleston, SC
02.10.2008

I've been waiting for Band of Horses to convince me they were more than just another flashy band on Sub Pop. I thought that that time might never come. I thought I would have to begrudgingly smile and tell people, "Yeah, Band of Horses are great and we're proud they call this state home." I didn't want that to happen, but I was as prepared for it as I was a George W. Bush victory in 2004. Thankfully, Sunday night's show at the Music Farm proved me wrong.

Originally scheduled for the much smaller (i.e., intimate) Village Tavern in Mt. Pleasant, SC, the show was rescheduled for two days earlier (from Tues, Feb 12 to Sunday, Feb 10). But apparently a slot on Conan O'Brien takes precedence over a homecoming show and thus, we all ended up highly confused, standing in lines patiently for doors to open (Where did you buy your tickets from originally? What "Will Call" list are you on? Did you already pay? We don't know if the show is sold out.) No harm, no foul, though--at least they showed up. The band had to cancel two dates in Florida due to flu and Ben Bridwell losing his voice.

I wandered around outside while Tyler Ramsey played Red House Painters-esque tunes. And felt bored shitless while Cass McCombs and the Middle Class plodded through a set that I thought would never end. But by 10:15, when the house lights went out and Bridwell announced to a screaming crowd, "Hey everybody, we're Band of Horses and we're from here!" and the first sleepy lull of "Is There a Ghost" chimed out of his Gibson, followed by a three-guitar, six-man wall of sound, you couldn't have kicked the smile off my face.

I could have left after the first thirty minutes: the aforementioned "Is There a Ghost," followed by "Islands on the Coast," and the aptly titled "The First Song"--still one of the best opening tracks on any album I've bought in five years--was what I came to hear. (Admit it, we all go hoping to hear that one song.) And I screamed, and clapped, and did the white-man rock bounce. And I didn't even want to punch the college frat-fuck next to me for saying that he couldn't wait to hear "that song from 'One Tree Hill.'"(That's "The Funeral" for anyone keeping track at home.)

In truth, the crowd was a bit subdued for the final show on their North American Winter tour; not to mention a show in their hometown. But the band didn't seem to notice. And Bridwell had a smile ripped across his face the whole time like a man who loves music as much as the fans do. And he does, too, from what I can see--playing three covers in a 100 minute set seems excessive, but he did it and didn't care what the rules were. As long as the music was loud and everyone felt good about being together, he felt good about showing it. So, when the encore came and he asked us if we wanted to stick around for two more songs, no one complained--even when they closed out the night with a cover of Chicago's "Feelin' Stronger Everyday." There's a metaphor in there, buried skin-deep, I believe. But there was definitely no irony to it. And that only makes me appreciate their music even more.

Concert photos up on Flickr soon.

The Set List:
Is There a Ghost
Islands on the Coast
The Great Salt Lake
Weed Party
The First Song
Our Swords
Cigarettes Wedding Bands
J.J Cale cover (?)
Part One
Keyboardist played a song that I did not catch the title of
The Funeral
Wicked Gil
Ode to LRC
Act Together (Rolling Stones/Ron Wood cover)

Encore:
Monsters
No One's Gonna Love You
The General Specific
Marry Song
Feelin' Stronger Everyday (Chicago Cover)