May 20, 2012

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The Melismatics – Melody Inn 5/18/2012

May 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Please Don’t Stop!

As I watched Minneapolis power-pop juggernaut the Melismatics tear through their set Friday night at the Melody Inn, this was the thought that kept running through my head. Every song they played was a brain wormer, immediately catching hold of the happy, hooky spots in my pop-addled brain and refusing to let go.

The band, frequent visitors to Indy, have been tearing up the road for about 10 years. Friday’s show was in support of newest album, Mania, produced by Jon Auer of the legendary Posies. (Full disclosure: The Posies are my favorite band of all time, so anything with Jon or Ken Stringfellow’s name attached has my attention.) At this point, their manic yet focused stage show is a well-oiled machine. And damn does it work.

Pick a song — Industry of Cool, Soul Sucker, Face to Face, Divided Devotions, the list goes on — and try not to love it. Every Weezer fan should listen to Digging Deep and try to figure out how they missed such a gem. All pop music should be this good.

The Melismatics will likely be back in Indy later this year, and most likely at the Mel. Keep a look out for that next date. I defy you to find a band that puts together a tighter set.

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St. Vincent w/ Shearwater – Deluxe 5/10/2012

May 11, 2012 By 1 Comment

What a double-bill! Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, is a gift of soaring, expressive vocals mixed with jaw-dropping guitar shredding. Shearwarter is Jonathan Meiburg’s art-rock tapestry of swelling emotion and catharsis. Together in one night? To say I’d been anxiously looking forward to this show is an understatement.

Meiburg, sometimes linked to Okkervil River (a band that needs to swing through Indy pronto), has built Shearwater into dynamic mixture of musical adventurousness and gorgeous melodrama. Past albums like Winged Life and Rook were beautiful soundscapes best absorbed in complete listens. Newest album Animal Joy is their most accessible; songs removed from context stand firmly on their own. The band’s set Thursday night focused primarily on that record.

After opening with Rook’s majestic The Snow Leopard, the band jumped into the back-to-back intensity of Animal Life and Dread Sovereign from Joy. Shearwater excel at creating a powerful dreamlike atmosphere with their songs, sucking you in to the music without sacrificing complexity. Heady stuff, but incredibly engaging. You As You Were, also off Joy, was next and my favorite track in the set. By the time they closed with the powerful Breaking the Yearlings and Palo Santo‘s White Waves, I was equally elated and impressed. Meiburg mentioned it was the band’s first appearance in Indy — let’s hope they come back soon.

St Vincent hit the stage next, and from the opening notes of Actor‘s Marrow, she had the sold out crowd enthralled. Strange Mercy‘s Cheerleader was next, followed by an angry and exhausting (in a good way) Chloe in the Afternoon.

It’s a difficult task to pull off sexy and demure in equal measure but Clark may as well file a patent. Best example of the night: An intense version of Dilettante. Let’s see Daughtry (wink) manage that.

Other highlights of the set included a bouncy Cruel, an intense version of Northern Lights, a fierce cover of Pop Group’s She Is Beyond Good and Evil, and encore Your Lips Are Red. Through it all, Clark shredded her guitar like an indie goddess Yngwie Malmsteen. Crazy, crazy good show.

Were you there? What did you think?

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Old 97′s w/ Sam Roberts Band – The Vogue 5/3/2012

May 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Considering how frequently the Old 97′s make it through Indy, it’s been a shocking 5 years since I last saw them at the Vogue. That show, like every 97′s show, was a rollicking blast, so I have few excuses for waiting this long to get reacquainted. Coupled with the late addition of the spectacularly under-appreciated Sam Roberts Band as the opener, this one had an extra dose of sizzle.

Roberts has been building a stellar catalog of music for about a decade, beginning with 2003′s brilliant We Were Born In a Flame. His newest, Collider, has a similar style to that classic. With about 45 minutes to do some damage, Roberts and the band focused predominantly on the 2011 release. Five of the nine songs in the set were from Collider, including tremendous closer The Last Crusade. Roberts also played Lions of the Kalahari and Fixed to Ruin, two of the stronger cuts from 2008′s Love at the End of the World. The latter track was particularly ferocious. I would have loved to hear the band play longer, but it was a treat just to see them. I hope they have a chance to return soon.

Rhett, Murray, Ken, and Philip, aka Old 97′s, hit the stage at 9:15 and proceeded to deliver one of the two best performances I’ve seen thus far in 2012. Opening with The Grand Theatre from the album of the same name, Volume 1, the band brought the good stuff for an unrelenting one hour and 45 minutes.

The energy never let up. The 97′s treated the audience to a lot of the expected — Lonely Holiday, West Texas Teardrops, Four Leaf Clover, Big Brown Eyes, Time Bomb — but also a lot of deep cuts that rarely get played. The Villain was an out-of-left field audible; Hands Off from the band’s first album, 1994′s Hitchhike to Rhome, was also completely unexpected. One of the biggest treats, however, was Miller’s solo encore performance of Johnny Cash’s Wreck of the Old 97.

You could make a list of the classic 97′s songs they didn’t play, but the breadth of the set made those omissions feel like an afterthought. Won’t Be Home, Designs on You, Every Night Is Friday Night — each one was an explosive blast. And, selfishly, after they played my personal favorite, Rollerskate Skinny, I certainly wasn’t going to be picky.

At the Vogue Thursday night, the Old 97′s were fun, loose, exciting, and cathartic — basically what every live act should aspire to be. A fabulous show.

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Fresh Droppings: Budokan – Spin A Little Gold

May 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Budokan — yes, as in Cheap Trick’s At Budokan — understand two of the key principles of good power pop: Make it loud and make it catchy. The Vancouver band doesn’t reinvent the wheel with their debut, Spin A Little Gold, but they know exactly what works and they throw everything into it.

Saint Joan is a snarling machine of crunchy power and bouncy ooh-ooh backing vocals. Gone Back Home could have been written by Sloan. Opening track The Queen’s English is time-shifting, hook party — one of those songs where you find yourself humming a different part after each listen.

I love when a band just gets it. The guitars are fierce, the vocals committed, and the drums pounding. For 13 songs, Budokan goes, goes, goes until you’re equally elated and exhausted. And then you hit play again. Check them out!

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Feist w/ Timber Timbre – Old National Centre 4/30/2012

May 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Leslie Feist is enchanting. Forget the arguably albatross 1234, which she didn’t play at Old National Centre Monday night, and focus on the fact that she’s one of the smoky-coolest singer/songwriters around. For almost two hours, Feist bounced between passionate noise and comfortably intimacy with the sizable crowd. You won’t hear me complaining.

Any indications that this might be a low-key show were immediately removed with the ferocious 1-2 punch of opener Undiscovered First and A Commotion from newest album, Metals. Supported by a limber 3-person band and secret weapons Mountain Man on background vocals, Feist charged through a the Metals-heavy set. The biggest early reaction, however, went to Let It Die‘s Mushaboom.

The show took a slight detour when Feist decided to hold a talent show with members of the audience. The change of pace and audience component was nice — well, except for a crazy piano player that wouldn’t take a hint and leave the stage — but a few songs were needed to reset the flow.

The mid-show highlight was a driving My Moon My Man, which raised the energy in the room to its highest level of the night. Pine Moon and Metals’ percussive The Bad In Each Other were also impressive.

Despite a half-empty room — let’s all blame Yanni, playing in the building’s theater, for this one (why not?) — the audience was held rapt. I told you, she’s enchanting.

Timber Timbre opened the show with short set of dark, Western, neo-noir blues. The Nick Cave meets end-of-the-world vibe from the 3-piece was very cool. An enjoyable nightmare.

Were you in the Egyptian Room? What did you think of the show?

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Fresh Droppings: The Successful Failures – Here I Am

April 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I’ve been following the Successful Failures since I read about 2007′s Ripe for the Burning in the Big Takeover (best music mag on the planet, fyi). As a die-hard fan of chunky power pop bands like Superdrag and Sloan, the Failures immediately hit all my sweet spots. But what sets them apart is their lyrics. Writing about love and relationships is easy; Vikings, Mickey Mantle, China’s rise to superpower status, and the Civil War — those topics take a bit more inspiration.

The band’s newest album, Here I Am, gets you smiling immediately with the sly wordplay of How People Start Sentences. The cleverness continues throughout — I certainly never thought I’d be humming a song called The Rise of China. And just try to remove the addictive opening chant of Pig Tight Cattle High from your brain after the first listen.

Here I Am, like the Successful Failures previous efforts, is a near perfect blend of Replacements-inspired rock, some alt-country leanings (see Clifton Mills), and crunchy melodies that never lose their timelessness. It’s feel-good music. Go ahead and listen.

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Snow Patrol w/ Ed Sheeran – Old National Centre 4/22/2012

April 23, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The evolution of Snow Patrol has been intriguing. From the time the group began breaking through with 2004′s Final Straw, the band has slowly crept into a safer musical zone. While moving in that direction has certainly gained them fans, they’ve lost a bit of the fire that made Straw tracks like Spitting Games and Wow pop. But in the anthemic rock world the band inhabits, Snow Patrol is still one of the best at what they do.

The group brought their show to the Old National Centre Sunday night for a sold out performance. Though touring in support of newest album Fallen Empires, the set list included a great balance of songs going as far back as 2001.

Taking the stage to Berlin from Fallen Empires playing in the background, the band started the set proper with Hands Open, one of several songs from 2006′s popular Eyes Open. Having not seen the band live since 2004, I was impressed with how confident a front man singer Gary Lightbody has become. Earnestness and sincerity come pouring through his vocals and he commands the stage as the unquestionable focal point.

Take Back the City and Crack the Shutters from A Hundred Million Suns followed — the only two songs from that album during the show. After new song This Isn’t Everything You Are, the show hit it’s first high point with Final Straw’s emotional Run, a song which has been the blueprint for many of the band’s later hits.

The biggest surprise of the night came midway through the set when Lightbody solo performed, by request, An Olive Grove Facing the Sea from 2001′s When It’s All Over We Still Have to Clear Up. The song was a great reminder of the band’s early years and one of the subtler moments of the show.

Later set highlights included a sing-a-long Shut Your Eyes, their biggest hit Chasing Cars, which still packs a punch, and an immediate and intense version of Fallen Empires’ percussive title track.

I’d love to see Snow Patrol put a little more edge and danger back into their songs — and the new record does include traces of electronica — but they do what they do so well, it’s difficult to be picky. The audience in the Egyptian Room Sunday night got nearly two hours of polished, professional rock. It’s hard to ask for much more.

UK buzz-worthy singer/songwriter Ed Sheeran opened the show. To be honest, I’m undecided on how I feel about his performance. On one hand, the guy has talent and a way with a making the most of a loop stand. The songs were certainly interesting. One the other, he’s got a bit of a James Blunt/Jason Mraz 2.0 vibe going that’s not my thing. Judging by the number of girlish screams he received when he was on stage, I’m probably not the target audience.

What did you think of the show?

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Fresh Droppings: David Myhr – Soundshine

April 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Perfect pop collections are a rare commodity. Plenty of artists can come up with one or two singles that hit all the right pleasure points, but then they’re tapped out, the rest of the record a batch of half-formed ideas and filler. A full album — now that’s something to get excited about. David Myhr‘s Soundshine makes me ecstatic.

Myhr has a history of knowing his way around a pop hook from his days as part of the beloved Merrymakers, and Soundshine is a top-to-bottom success. The opening notes of first track, Never Mine, set the tone. Bouncy piano, sunny melodies — the song wedges into your brain and doesn’t let go. The next two, Looking for a Life and Got You Where He Wanted, continue the onslaught of hummable gems. The latter, in particular, is a volume up, windows down blaster. In fact, these three rival the opening trio from Sloan’s The Double Cross as the best one-two-three punch from a power pop album in the last couple of years.

Many records begin to tail off at song four. Not the case here. Every song hits the mark. Cut to the Chase is hard-driving pop perfection. Icy Tracks introduces a heavier synth element that offers a new wrinkle to the set. Even when Myhr decides to ease of the pedal with the relaxed The One, the flow doesn’t lag. By the time he closes with Ride Along, you’ll swear you’ve just listened to a master-class in power pop.

Hard copies are available in Europe and Japan. US residents can order the album directly from Myhr’s site or download the album from Amazon.

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Husband&Wife w/ Laura K Balke and NM Kjeldsen – Locals Only 4/13/2012

April 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

It’s strange how it can sometimes take an eternity to check out a band that’s so nearby. Despite being based just an hour or so South of Indy, it took me until Friday night to catch the foursome known as husband&wife. I feel like kicking myself.

Nearly every one of my musical sweet spots — good hooks and harmonies, interesting melodies, a perfect level of distortion — h&w hits repeatedly. The fact that they’re not huge yet is a travesty. In the meantime, I’m going to make a point of checking them out every chance I get. And if you take anything away from this post, remember my plea to go see them as often as you can.

The band took the Locals Only stage for a rousing 9-song set focused primarily on their 2010 release, Proud Flesh. The In-Store booked show opened with I Have Been Made Huge, immediately establishing the band’s Sunny Day Real Estate/Long Winters/Swervedriver hybrid sound. The crowd was next treated to One Lump or 2, a kick-ass new song. A trio of Proud Flesh songs followed, including the chugging title track and the in-a-perfect-world single, Not Every Bird Can Fly. The band wrapped up the set with another new one and Begone Long One, the first song on Flesh.

I can’t overstate how impressed I was with husband&wife. Trust me, go see them. Surprisingly little of the band is on YouTube, so if you want more of a listen, check out their bandcamp page.

The show opened with a short solo set from NM Kjeldsen. Though my first exposure to his music, I was quickly absorbed into his haunting and weary sound. Laura K Balke took the stage after Kjeldsen and crushed it. I’d enjoyed her performance about a month ago solo at the White Rabbit Cabaret; this time, with a drummer/multi-instrumentalist in tow, her songs had a lot more muscle. Two Ships, in particular, had a lot more urgency. Turn the Key and closer, Not For This, were also stellar. Fans of Kathleen Edwards owe it to themselves to check out Balke’s music.

Another great night of Indy (and Bloomington) music. Were you there?

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Mr Gnome w/ Beta Male and Pravada – Radio Radio 4/12/2012

April 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Mr Gnome have been stirring up some righteous noise since 2005, but it’s within the last 1-2 years that people outside the Midwest have started to take notice. And it’s about time. With newest album Madness in Miniature, the Cleveland duo of Nicole Barille and Sam Meister have zeroed in a potent sound that dances the line between the delicate side of Portishead and the fury of pissed off PJ Harvey.

Following nice sets from Pravada (really great to catch these guys again) and Beta Male, Mr Gnome took the Radio Radio stage for a 60-minute showcase of their musical mix of marshmallow and brimstone. Pirates, the lead track from 2008′s Deliver this Creature, was a ferocious roller coaster of sound. Spain, from Heave Yer Skeleton, perfectly encapsulated the band’s range, beginning with a woozy riff and building in power. And Cleveland Polka, a fan favorite they’ll likely never stop playing, was a chugging piece of distorted beauty. Top to bottom the set was a no-filler killer.

Though definitely overdue, Mr Gnome is on the verge of breaking big. If you haven’t checked them out yet, start now.

Were you at the show? What did you think?

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