Vinyl Collective/Suburban Home UTI Series Volume 5: Drag the River

(Click picture for complete series album listing, and sample tracks)

After the pure rock power of Teenage Bottlerocket and The Ergs, I certainly could use a new record to calm me down, and Drag the River's UTI is the perfect fit for this desire, and I really love what they did with their record. I'm really now kicking myself for taking a pass on this band purely for the reason that J.J. Nobody (of one of my most-hated bands, The Nobodys, more on them coming soon) is a member. I guess it's my fault for missing out on the band for such a silly reason, but the possibility of J.J. picking up where The Nobodys left off by forming a misogynist folk rock band was really enough to have kept me away. Well, now I like Drag the River, and my life is better for it.

Drag the River gets their own album instead of a split, and they opted to cover "Havin' a Party" and "I Know", by Sam Cooke and Jeff Black respectively, and let me say that I've heard a million Sam Cooke covers, but none of them have been have as good as Drag's. I'm not very familiar with Jeff Black, but that doesn't keep the cover from being awesome. Instead of falling back on traditional country and folk like many bands today, Drag the River has a unique mid-western style of country, more suited for camping under the stars than crooning in a honkey-tonk or coffee shop. Their cover of "Havin' a Party" is the both the best indicator of their style, and the more accessible of the two tracks. It starts from a soft croon from a deep bass vocalist (I know the vocalists are Chad Price and Jon Snodgrass, it's just not apparent who is which singer), and picks up speed about halfway through, eventually becoming a duet. The vocal tracks are outstanding. Both vocalists have great voices, both giving talented and soulful performances. The two singers have enough difference in pitch to create some beautiful harmonies without having to belt out or yell just to impress anybody. It's a fun and calm track, and I'm putting it on a playlist for my next small, friendly party.

The second track, "I Know" is my favorite of the two. The tremendous vocal work of "Havin' a Party" is almost blown out of the water in this track. While the first track was more of a showcase for the deeper, throatier sounds of the first vocalist, "I Know" features the higher-voiced of the two, and man can this guy sing like hell. You know how people with good voices and a low-key music style like jazz or country love showing off by singing lightly at first, and then just yelling and belting for the rest of the record? It's always come off as a bit annoying and disengenuous to me- it's grating and usually tries to hide a lack of true emotional appeal to the song. This track is different from those types of talented vocalists. The singer here has a great voice both when subdued and in the few instances when he does become emotionally invested enough in the song to belt out. These high-volume moments aren't really expected, and when played on a good sound system, the few seconds where these moments of excellence so happen sometimes make my hair stand up on end.

Musically, it's a bit formulaic. The instrumentals are mainly limited to a primary acoustic, and secondary electric guitar, with a little bit of bass in the first song. You've heard the guitar and bass parts in a million other country songs, but they're all played well enough to forgive it, in the sense that the music is familiar, but of high quality that it really shouldn't be a bother, especially given the fact that country/blues is a style built upon pretty strict musical rules.

Overall, the tracks are both of amazingly high quality. The music and vocals exhibit a soul and power that are head-and-shoulders above the myriad of crappy Sam Cooke covers, and serve as a great tribute to the late blues singer. I could really recommend this album to anyone who even remotely likes country, western, or folk music. It could be your parents, grandparents, friends, teachers, whatever. I love it.

Alright, since today is nice as hell, and I'd rather be walking around listening to awesome music than sitting and listening to slow folk covers, I'm postponing my Drag the River UTI review in lieu of a playlist. To fit the day's mood, I am listing my warm, sunny outdoor playlist. Keep in mind that these are songs I know and love, and are a mostly a good mix of relaxed and energetic. Listen and go have a fun day. In the order that they show up on my playlist:

Bob Crosby- "Way back home"
The Clash- "Rudy Can't Fail"
Common Rider- "Classics of Love", "Walk Down the River"
Jello Biafra/Mojo Nixon- "Love Me, I'm a Liberal"
Operation Ivy- "Sound System", "Bankshot", "Bad Town" (Come to think of it, anything with Tim Armstrong or Jesse Michaels is almost made for Summer listening)
Rancid (see, I told you)- "Time Bomb", "Salvation", "Gunshot"
Screeching Weasel- "Sunshine"
Violent Femmes- "Jesus Walking on the Water"
The Mad Conductor- "Tomb Digging Shovels"
Harry McClintock- "Big Rock Candy Mountain"

Okay, have to go have fun now. Review tomorrow. WOOO REVIEW.

Vinyl Collective/Suburban Home UTI Series Volume 4: Teenage Bottlerocket/The Ergs (or: God, These Titles Are Getting Too Damned Long)

(Click picture for complete series album listing, and sample tracks)

So, as a re-cap, this series has produced one decent indie album, one awesome folk/alt album, and one passable ska album. Not much in the way of simplistic, energetic punk yet- until now. I really had no urge to go into this series until I saw Teenage Bottlerocket and The Ergs mentioned, and even then I didn't plan on going into it until I was assured that Rocket would cover Green Day, and The Ergs would pound out a completely unexpected pop song. Well, considering I'm reviewing the whole damn series, I think you know what we're going into.

Gather ten of your closest friends together, and play any Teenage Bottlerocket song on your radio/CD player/Gramophone for them. Odds are, someone will eventually say something along the lines of "Oh wow, Green Day finally made a good album again." So it comes as no surprise that Teenage Bottlerocket is covering the "Having a Blast" off of the pop-punk bible, Dookie. On paper, this is the perfect match. TBR is such an awesome call-back to the glory days of pop-punk where you had music that could carry a message, while maintaining a sense of humor about itself that didn't resort to misogyny or making fun of disabled people (Fuck you, Nodody's and Down Syndrom, and your PC baiting). For the most part, this is a perfect cover of the original- almost too perfect. Although TBR outplays Green Day's original recording, rocking the hell out and just all-around belting out each second of the song in pure greasy-headed, bubblegum goodness, it still sounds almost exactly like the original. TBR's '90s pop-punk style is so inspired by Green Day, that it still sounds exactly like Green Day. There's no real twist on the recording, but considering how well the cover is played, this complaint will only create a problem for the pickiest of music snobs.

Following such a kick-ass opening would be hard, and the only band I think that could match the intensity and style of Bottlerocket's opening track would be The Ergs. In what is supposed to be their last-released recording, The Ergs go out with a bang, continuing their trend of high-energy pop-punk covers of songs that you wouldn't expect would be so kick-ass (making you wish Weird Al formed a punk band- no, I'm not kidding). In a sweet genre mash-up, The Ergs take on Devo's "Blockhead." Taking the catchy synth-punk song, and tossing it into a modern hard punk style was a wise decision. The song only benefits from a bunch of twenty-somethings speeding it up, blasting distorted guitars, and ripping the synth parts out on their guitars while yelling each five-word line as hard as possible. The song is catchy and rocking to the point where I've caught myself pounding my head and shouting "FLAT TOP! STARES STRAIGHT AHEAD! STOCK PARTS! BLOCKHEAD!" in crowded public areas and not feeling embarrassed at all. This song is pure beauty, and will find its place prominently next to the rest of my Ergs recordings, and makes me glad that they went out on such a high note with their last few releases.

Overall, this is probably my favorite album in the series. It's so rocking and catchy and just so damned good, that the only criticism I can think of is just based on some kind of snobby semantics that I completely forget once I start actually listening to the song. That said, anyone who likes any of the original or covering bands, punk, rock, whatever will find something great in this album, whether it's vinyl or MP3. Oh yeah, and the album art is sweet as hell for both, too.

Vinyl Collective/Suburban Home UTI Series Volume 3: Mustard Plug/Bomb the Music Industry!

I just got back from work and I still reek of grease and lettuce, so this is gonna be a short one.

I like Mustard Plug. I like Fugazi. I like Bomb the Music Industry. I don't like Pavement. I like when bands I like make new recordings. I sort of liked this record.

Okay, a bit short, but honestly, that's maybe the best way I can describe this record. Featuring Mustard Plug's cover of Fugazi's "Waiting Room" (one of my favorite songs of all time) and Bomb the Music Industry's rendition of "Gold Soundz" by Pavement, this album features the confusing odd mix of '90s alternative and modern ska. I honestly don't know how to comment on two famous ska bands covering two famous alternative bands, so I'm going to have to pussyfoot around deep musical ideas and just rate the quality of the covers.

And there's a lot of quality in the first song, that's for sure. Mixing some Reggae beats into hardcore was Fugazi's idea of a cool music project, and along with bands like Operation Ivy, they were able to form the blueprint of modern ska, influencing countless punkers who wanted to play music that they could enjoy and dance to at the same time. Given this, it would only make sense that Mustard Plug, one of today's biggest ska bands would pay tribute to the progenitors of what is considered to be the modern ska style. The influence is readily apparent, as no matter how hard they may try by adding horns and a more danceable beat with less of a hardcore intensity, the song doesn't really sound too much different with the change of performers. This is not a bad thing, though. The cover is a great mash-up of different eras of the same genre. It keeps its hard-rocking hardcore roots, but the horns and lighter atmosphere ask that you use your feet to tap along to the beat instead of try to kick that kid in the mosh pit with your studded steel-tipped boots. It's a fun track and the conviction of Mustard Plug to rock and have a good time will get you head-banging and skanking at the same time. A good listen from beginning to end. Also, I'd definitely like to see more modern ska with a hard-rocking edge these days, though I don't think too many people will realize the genius of my Streetlight Manifesto/Minor Threat mash-up ideas.

The second track is definitely something I'm lukewarm about, unfortunately. Though Bomb the Music Industry! is one of my favorite bands these days, I just can't get into their cover of Pavement's "Gold Soundz." The problem is that save for a few tracks, I haven't really heard any Pavement influence in BTMI's albums. This shows (or more accurately, doesn't show) in the cover, because it sounds almost nothing like the original. They took a boring alternative song, and just changed it into boring, meandering ska song. I've listened to the whole track maybe six or seven times, but I always trance out around the one minute mark and don't notice until the song is over, and the playlist just hits repeat and sends me back into Mustard Plug's track. Maybe I'm wrong and don't appreciate, but the track is just too boring for me to review. There doesn't feel like there's any soul or artistic investment, the ska-influenced musical meandering is tedious, and for once in his life, Jeff Rosenstock even sounds like he's bored out of his mind, trying to croon then snapping awake with an occasional yell. Overall, I just really don't know what to say other than I didn't like it.

This is definitely a mixed bag. I'm a big fan of Mustard Plug and its cover. I could comfortably recommend that track to any followers of ska, punk, Mustard, or Fugazi. I'm also a big fan of Bomb the Music Industry, but I really can't get into their cover, so I don't really know who to recommend it to. I don't like Pavement or their original all that much, so I guess a Pavement fan may find more enjoyment in it than I can. Even then, I couldn't even think of who to recommend BTMI's "Gold Soundz" to.

Click on the pic at the top of the review to see this album and others, and listen to samples of all of the songs.

Vinyl Collective Series Review Part 2: Whiskey & Co./Ninja Gun

I didn't really get to it in the first series review, and I don't want to go too far in depth, but I'd like to point out how sweet the album art for these splits are. Normally, I'd complain about a two-song vinyl costing $10 plus shipping, but the parody album covers by Mitch Clem and Nation of Amanda (Both of whom have done awesome flier/album/comic artwork for years) just look great, and make the purchase worth it, even just as a display in your collection. God help my wallet if they release the art as posters, cause I might just buy them all.

Now that I made the obligatory punk-rock bow to Clem and Amanda, it's time to stop chowing on the golden-brown, batter-fried skin and get into the hot, delicious white breast meat that is the Whiskey and Co./Ninja Gun split. Whiskey starts out with a cover of "Tuesday Morning" by Celtic folk-punk gods The Pogues. This is the first of the tracks in the series that I've truly enjoyed, and it has propelled me to dig in to W&C's original work. The first thing to really hit me was the vocals. Kim Helm has a wonderful voice, soulful and emotional, matching the mood and feeling of the song, never falling behind (and at times surpassing) Spider Stacey's original vocal recordings. The music is top-notch as well. The Celtic folk influence is delicately replaced with an American folk aesthetic that still fits very nicely with the song. The violins of the original recording are sorely missed at first listen, but every instrument, most notably from the bass and banjo fill in the holes very well with each consecutive play of the recording. Overall, the cover is an exceptional re-imagining of a classic song, played with conviction and reverence for the original.

Ninja Gun keeps up the pace of the great first track with their cover of The Kinks' "This is Where I belong." Another great cover a classic song, Ninja Gun does all the right things. Instead of trying to duplicate The Kinks' sound, they play it their way. Messy power chords, deeper drums, and well-harmonized vocals of a grungier era are mixed in with the Kinks' distinctive later sounds for a great time-line-crossing musical stew. The droning, half-tired/half-relaxed sound of the cover is a good take on the original's mood. The switch is done well, and proves what I tried to so say on Friday: a good cover is signified by the ability to find a common sound without having to remove what is unique between the two performers. In this case, though they have their own unique sounds, you can still hear Ninja Gun in The Kinks, and The Kinks in Ninja Gun, which helps keep a respectability to the sound of both recordings of the same song.

Overall, both tracks are both great covers, and stand well on their own shoulder-to-shoulder with the originals. I heartily recommend to this album to anyone of any age. Pogues fans, Kinks fans, Whiskey and Co. fans, Ninja Gun fans, folk/grunge/classic fans- everybody is welocme. It's done exceptionally well, and The Ninja Gun artwork is awesome in ways that was previously hard to fathom. Definitely worth the cash for a purchase.

Vinyl Collective Series Review Part 1: Fake Problems/Look Mexico

As a quick introduction, I plan for a multi-part review of Suburban Home and Vinyl Collective's Under the Influence split series. Meant as a promotion for some of the rising stars of the modern punk and folk scenes, the series features one or two artists per record covering songs by their biggest musical influences. So far, I've enjoyed what I've heard, and have found some good artists that I most likely wouldn't have heard of had I not jumped into the series.

Quick disclaimer: Though I have a good knowledge of the original versions of most of the songs, I had been previously unfamiliar with a lot of the artists featured in the series, forcing me to take a rudimentary crash-course in each of their respective catalogues. This means that I may not grasp said artists' original acts in their entirety or how their mood works. I will make my unfamiliarities with any act known in each review just for the sake of context. Also, because there are only two songs per record, and all of the songs are decades old and have been reviewed to death by people many years my senior, these reviews will be significantly shorter than my other reviews. I really only plan to cover the quality of each recording. Boring parts over, fun parts start now.

I've always had a strange obsession with covers and Under the Influence albums. If done well, covers and UTI recordings are always fun to hear to understand where your for the novelty value of experiencing old classics played in a new and interesting style by someone who appreciates the source material. Such musical endeavors can give a new life to an old song, and serve as an aural history lesson in how music can evolve over times vis-a-vis new developments in sounds, styles, and technology.

On the flip side, covers and UTI's can be a painful experience if done badly. The problem is that there is a large difference to "enjoying" a source material, and "being influenced" by it. You can almost immediately tell the difference between the two, as "liking" a song means the artist covering enjoys it, but that particular song is not an integral part of said artist's musical development. It's like trying to point out the difference between Hendrix tearing up Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower" and Britney Spears robotically bopping along to "I Can't Get No Satisfaction." One artist likes the song and can perform it well, the other has taken it as a form of their expression.

That said, there is a pretty good selection of songs in the series that I will be reviewing. Overall I have to say that there's some serious required listening for rock, punk, and folk enthusiasts who are looking for good emerging acts. Thanks to some of the tracks, I have been introduced some bands that are now working to the top of my list of favorite current performers if they weren't already. Unfortunately, there some that completely suck ass as well. This is not one of them

The first split consists of Fake Problems and Look Mexico covering "I'm a Ramblin' Man" and "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)," respectively. I'd never really heard of either of the featured bands, but I'm well-familiarized with the source material, having enjoyed Merle Haggard and Looking Glass since I was a tiny little music snob. For the most part, I feel pretty lukewarm on this record. Both covers are okay, but not anything that will grab my by the neck and drag me to the local record store.

The record starts out with Fake Problems performing "I'm a Ramblin' Man" by Merle Haggard. I didn't really know much about Fake Problems going into this one, beyond name drops on music sites. At first I didn't really like it. The instruments are played well, but the singer sounds overly-enthusiastic and goofy, sounding more like he's mocking the song or trying to distance himself from singing it with too much emotion. I realize the original song wasn't really meant to be taken seriously, but it still just bothered me how he just sang it in such a comical fashion. After inspecting some of their original material, I realize the singer sings like that for most of Fake Problem's songs, but it still bugs me. That said, the band plays the song with enthusiasm and conviction, at least lending to the fact that the band appreciates it, and I can definitely hear a large Merle Haggard influence in their original material. Overall it's a nice track that could have benefited by backing off the weirdness in the vocals a little bit.

On the flip side, Look Mexico's cover of Looking Glass's "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" is done quite well enough to the point where I actually enjoy the cover version more than the original. This is likely contributed to the fact that the song matches Mexico's sound more than Glass's, which is pretty odd. Whereas Looking Glass seemed like they released the song as a radio-friendly single, out of place with the rest of their harder-sounding catalogue, Look Mexico plays with conviction and a comfort not felt in the original. Hell, had I not known about the original song, and heard Look Mexico sing it first without any knowledge of Looking Glass's original, I would have assumed Look Mexico had been the original performer of the song. Unfortunately, though the performance is good, it's still a pretty boring song that could have benefited from a heavier bass beat to keep you going along with it.

This record is obviously meant to appeal to an indie rock taste, and it shows. With the mix of Fake Problem's Nashville hokiness and Look Mexico's ambient lounge style, it's suited more for someone who looks for something to relax around the house to, which is where it succeeds. If you want a rock or dance experience though, there's not much for you here.

Review: Off With Their Heads- "From the Bottom"

Yeah, this album was released a while ago, but I didn't really get into Off With Their Heads until very recently, which I regret. Any time someone told me about them, they would just give me the same two adjectives: Depressing pop-punk band. Though pop-punk is probably my favorite form of music (more on that another time), it's been hard for me to take the "depressing" part with a grain of salt and dive in. Odds are if you're saying something is "depressing" in pop-punk, you're usually thinking of some kid in an unfortunate haircut talking about high-school girlfriends or going suicidal because mom and dad tell you to go to school. After inadvertantly hearing "Theme Song" by Off With Their Heads at a friends' house, though, I knew there was something special about them.

Oddly enough, with all of the talk in OWTH's involving depression, loneliness, drug use, messed-up relationships, etc., the last term I'd use to describe their music would be "depressing." Though the lyrical content is morose, the difference between it and modern "emo" rock problems, is that OWTH's songs are very relatable in their lyrical content. When many bands speak of doom and gloom about trivial, banal trials, it's almost laughable that the performers even consider that they should even be screaming and whining, and makes their outpourings and cries for help almost tragically comic. But when you hear Ryan Young belt out the words to any of the songs, you can tell that the man knows what he wants to say, and loves the form in which he expresses it, making the songs relatable and appealing to the point where you feel a serious appeal to the music to a point where the morosity brings a sort of comfort that's hard to describe.

Enough about the lyrics, though. Everyone has commented on them, and while it is a plus, they have so much going for them to just peg them as a depressing band. Music-wise, they are pure awesomeness. Every member is featured in the sound. If you've ever listened to any other high-powered, chunky pop-punk band like Dillinger Four or Bouncing Souls, you'll automatically feel welcome. Harmonized vocals with multiple singers, full-sounding distorted guitars, and a chunky ol' Rickenbacker bass weaving in and out. Mid-west pop-punk bliss. Again, though, the highlights are Ryan's vocals. The man just belts it out on every song, and you can feel that he means every word, as his emotions match the words and the meanings. He doesn't hold back anywhere, and is to me the defining sound of the band that just makes it all pure awesome.

It's not a perfect formula, though. It's got that bad habit many punk bands have where the guitars don't differ much in sound between tracks. Not an inherently bad thing, but having the same distortion, same sound level, etc. through multiple consecutive tracks doesn't help to distinguish one track other greatly from another, disallowing too many stand-out tracks, which is a shame, because they all had the potential to be very quality, if the recorder could just ask the guitarist to ease off the distortion here, or create a small guitar hook here or there. Hell, "Until the Day I Die" basically sounds like every other track, but they added in a nice guitar melody between verses that keeps it going well, and reminds you that you've transitioned from the previous track.

The other large complaint would definitely be part of the reason that OWTH's work is most appealing: the lyrics. There is talent them, there's no arguing that. I'd just like to see them hold back on the swearing for a while. There are F-bombs in almost every track, which is fine, and at times is a great why to pound out a sentence with enthusiasm, such as in the ending line in "Until the Day I Die" with the line "And I'll never let it go/I'll just let it grow/Until the day I die I fucking swear I'm gonna make your life as miserable as mine." It's great, and throws down the emotional investment in that particular line, but it's unfortunately cheapened by constant usage to the point where it takes the sting out of many of the lines that thrive on the colorful language.

Complaints aside, I heartily recommend From the Bottom to any punk fans, from followers of pop to hardcore. It's just a hard-rockin' album with fun melodies and great sing-a-long lyrics. If you can get over some of the lack of track diversity or some gratingly immature lines, then you'll find a solid, listenable, relatable album.

Recommended Listening: "I am you," "Until the Day I Die," "Self Check-Out,"

4-7-09 Show review: Awesome Color, Illinois, and Dinosaur Jr.

I believe "rock" and "rocking" are two completely different ideas. I regard one as a noun referring to a genre of music, and the latter as a rare act where an exceptional performance mentally and emotionally affects you to the point where you're confused about how great it feels. The latter is definitely rare, but it happens. It's happened to me several times in my life, but never the way that it happened last night. Dinosaur Jr. rocks, and is rock. There's no other way to explain what I saw last night, not because I don't know any better words, but that there are no words to better describe what I saw. But first: Opening bands!

The first band was a group called Awesome Color. They were your typical indie psychadelic rock group, all very talented. I'd say that I would have liked them more if they would let the guitarist do his own thing and grab a different vocalist. The bass and drums were exceptionally talented, and when there were no vocals, I was definitely getting into it. Overall, they were good, yet boring, but I can't really blame them since there wasn't really a crowd or spectators willing to even move there.

The crowd began to move in as Illinois was about to start their set, and I can tell I was either in for a really good or really bad show. There were a lot of people, yet they seemed to be all awkward hispters ready to scold anyone who more than bobbed their head to the music. Illinois, though, was pretty solid. They played a mix of cool rock and some disco/funk-style stuff. The latter was amusing, but very boring due to a lack of beat necessary for the type of music. The former, though, was exceptional. "She's So Blonde" is definitely going to find regular play on my Walkman.

It was asses to elbows by the time Dinosaur Jr. was ready to come in. To be honest, I didn't know what to expect. I enjoy their music. It's pretty good, mellow stuff. Almost all of their songs are well-written, and well-played. I figured I was in for what I heard on the albums: entertaining, yet not very moving indie rock.

God, I love it when I'm wrong. The first minute, the first damned minute just blew my brain out the back of my head. Every song rocked, because these guys just knew what the hell your brain, ears, and feet want from a show. Loud, beat-heavy, mind-blowing rock from opening to encore.
The only complaint I could have for the show was that Mascis looked bored out of his skull most of the time, and some of the guitar solos were a little long, but J. Mascis is such a phenomal fucking guitar player that it doesn't bother me. The problem I have with most guitar players these days it that they either try to Herman Hammitt weedly-weedly-wheee just to impress people, or they stick to the same long-ass boring blues solo we've heard a million times. Mascis sings with his guitar. He can play one note and hold it because it sounds like the guitar is just a person pouring their mind out on the floor, and it's great. I only fear that I enjoy the live show much more than their recorded music. I'd really love to see these guys play a venue with a more fun crowd. I actually moved to another side of the venue near some head-banging, fist-bumping punks because one hispter douchebag actually asked me to stop bobbing my head.

All in all, a very good show worth every penny. Charge was $15 ($16 because I bought it early from a record store). 18 years old and up.