Scroll down for the latest releases by Doleful Lions, Flannelmouth, The Sights, The Hold Steady and Flannelmouth

Doleful Lions
Shaded Lodge And Mausoleum

(Parasol)

parasol.com

Jonathan Scott's aching tenor radiates with vulnerability, no more so then when he's singing "the ghost that haunts your world will disappear." The Doleful Lions leader has often written mystical and mythical lyrics. On the fifth Lions full length, even though this is album is (according to the press materials) inspired by an obscure black metal band called Von, this sounds like a very personal work. This isn't necessarily what I've gleaned from the lyrics. It has more to do with presentation -- Scott's music is often nearly naked, as many of the songs are centered around his quavering voice and his acoustic guitar. He is 100 percent engaged with the material. There are bits where I feel that Scott found something in this material that may have hit home in a deeper manner. If I'm wrong in my interpretation, it only shows how compelling Scott's music is. The instrumental color is provided by his Lions partner, David Jackson, to whom Scott sent the basic tapes, and Jackson layered over keyboards, percussion, etc.. It's odd, in a sense, that a work that sounds so personal to me would be premised on a somewhat impersonal form of collaboration, but maybe this was the best way to do it. It's as if Scott couldn't have anyone else working with him in the studio, and needed someone with distance to provide whatever extra these tracks needed.

The lyrics are uniformly well crafted, and perhaps the record label might want to try to market this to Dungeons & Dragons fans. Scott's world is teeming with swords and Satan and ghosts and visions. He performs them with an utter absence of irony, casting things in a manner that's serious, but not overly so.

The track that keys the album, is the above-referenced "The Ghost That Haunts Your World Will Disappear." The song is elegant and simple, as Scott sings at the top of his range, making his childlike voice sound more innocent than ever. As he delicately plucks his acoustic guitar, Jackson perfectly augments the atmosphere with keyboard and percussion shadings. The song is as pretty and resonant as anything in Nick Drake's catalog, but Nick never sang lyrics like: "O Lucifer/this world it kills for sure/come on to you/this horror Xanadu." Even more intriguing is the song's message of comfort in the face of horror.

Jackson adds light orchestration to "Watch the Skies/A Boy's Life". This only adds to the mythmaking lyrics accompanying this melodic folk song. Here, Scott sings of the need to "unsheathe your sword" and to "snuff the mortal candelabra's light". The song is tailor made for a medieval top 40. I'm curious as to the title – do the words reflect the songwriter's childhood fantasies?
While much of the album is fragile, there are a couple of songs that are more rock oriented, though Scott sticks with his typically basic and lovely melodies, regardless of the tempo and backing. This creates gems like "Satanic Blood", which has hints of New Order and Orchestral Manouevres In The Dark in its keyboard driven bounce. The opener "Sham Magic in the Night Gallery" is likewise upbeat, sounding like something that would have slotted between Aztec Camera and General Public on a really cool ‘80s West Coast radio station.

Still, the essence of the record is in its primarily acoustic numbers. The resolution of the album comes on the penultimate number, "Slip Inside This Gateway", which is about accepting fate and dying. After explaining how one must surrender to the inevitable, Scott's makes some trenchant observations: "If only these magicians/let me know/that behind the smoke and velvet/it's just a show/and holy men who claim to know the truth/are just the loudest magpies on the roof". This bitterness is masked in such gentle music. The ultimate message is that death is a release from the horrors of life. It is not as hopeless and depressing a message at it may seem. If a person can't have control during life, and that person can accept death, then he leaves with a measure of control. That's not to say this song isn't powerful and sad – its sadness gives it power. And Scott's commitment and the innocent sound make it all the sadder. Which is what makes it so compelling.

With each album, Doleful Lions carve out an even more distinctive identity. Their music is somehow instantly attractive and accessible, even when its meaning is obscure and unusual. Scott may have written songs that are, on one level, more insular than ever. But his feelings pour out of every song, making for a rewarding listening experience.

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Flannelmouth
Rain Inside

(Grid)

gridrecords.com

Flannelmouth is a Finnish band who are carrying the torch for a host of melodramatic British guitar pop bands that flourished in the late-‘80s and early-‘90s. When you hear Tuomo Kuusi sing, it all makes sense. He is a terrific lead singer, capable of a milder version of the portent of Ian Curtis in his lower range, and sounding like he could front Gene or Kitchens Of Distinction when he's singing in his spectacular upper range. Kuusi writes the material with rhythm guitarist Ari Virtanen, and the pair have an inexhaustible supply of melodies and indelible choruses at their command.

It's intriguing that lead guitarist Mikko Kapanen does not contribute in the writing process, since Kuusi and Virtanen obviously give him space to work his magic. On some songs, Kapanen has free rein to accent and color, and then, moments later, play a lead line that keys the entire song. Combine this with the steady work of the rhythm section -- Markus Koskinnen on drums and Antti Lonnblad on bass -- and you have the work of a true band.

The band mixes a sense of wonder with the ability to stir the senses with songs that are personal anthems. This is displayed on a series of tracks on the disc that showcase most of the band's strengths, starting with "Street Level". The sentiment of the song is pretty simple -- don't lose the vigor of youth, even when you get older. The song uses self-awareness as a form of empowerment, and if the music sounds a bit overly important in the verses, when the chorus kicks in, with its air of celebration, it all comes together. Kuusi is taking his fun rather seriously, yet it's leavened by the pure joy he feels when singing "let's hit the street and act like kids." (Writer's confession -- the first time I heard the song, I thought that Kuusi was singing "act like geeks" -- that darned Finnish accent, y'know -- and then I looked at the lyric sheet...).

"Bravado" is from the band's most recent single, previously reviewed at Fufkin.com. This song rides a ringing rhythm guitar part and a hesitation rhythm, and it has a realistic take on relationships -- they all go to shit. This is love equated with masochism, and if you can resist singing along with Kuusi in the refrain "I am failing tonight", then you are made of sterner stuff than I. Much like The Smiths, you can take this seriously and wallow blissfully, or take it as tongue deeply buried in cheek and smile at the faux misery.

The next track is pricklier, as spiky guitars and rumbling bass are the recipe for "Here Comes the Fight". This song fits within the powerful rock of bands like Idlewild, Joy Division and The Church, yet doesn't quite sound like any of them. Here, a relationship is analogous to a ship on a rocky sea. The rhythm work in the verses is very creative, light footed even, in contrast to the heavier material throughout. Kapanen's primary lead guitar figure is the essential hook of the song, while the key line is "like a drunkard I stumble into your heart." I would love to see Flannelmouth make more forays into this heavier territory.

Though they shouldn't dispense with the lighter stuff. Or else sweet songs like "Collection" would never see the light of day. Granted, I'm not sure what to make of the lyrics on this song: "I pick your hair from the floor/I'm making a collection". Is this just a sign of devotion beyond compare? A new fetish, popular among those near the equatorial North Pole? Does the protagonist's lover have cancer, and is she going through chemotherapy? I'll say that the first question is the correct one, due to the tone of the song...but who knows?

What I do know is that this is a great slice of rock with a strong pop orientation. It's taken Flannelmouth a few years to finally get a full length record together and they crafted it carefully, not wasting a note. If you want to hear something that is chiming and upbeat, but with a darker undercurrent, this may very well be for you.

The Hold Steady
Separation Sunday

(French Kiss)

frenchkissrecords.com

Craig Finn, the lead singer of The Hold Steady, is a true rock and roll original. He isn't a singer, so much as a narrator, and in both Lifter Puller and The Hold Steady, his sad sack smart-ass persona reigns over ramshackle rock and roll racket. Finn has a plethora of clever couplets and stinging observations, and his voice -- well, he's a tad more musical than Mark E. Smith, and he lovingly enunciates each one of his words with a strange mix of bemusement and bitterness. Once you connect with Finn's mojo, you'll be hooked.

On this second Hold Steady platter, Finn shows that he's ambitious. I suppose you could call this a concept album, as the songs are a series of vignettes centering on a few characters. Finn's lyrics are well suited to this approach. He is not into punny wordplay (a la Elvis Costello), and his brilliance is in his ability to marry his observations to smart word usage, pop culture references and other tricks. The lyric sheet here illustrates that Finn's best work reads as well as it integrates with the music. And, the music is a tad more ambitious too, with Finn's bandmates adding some new wrinkles to the mix.

The central character is Holly (short for Hallelujah), a confused teenager, raised Catholic and doing anything for a thrill, simultaneously naive and wise beyond her years. The narrator remains unnamed, but he tells tales of drug deals, travels across the country and other weird incidents. Finn does not connect all the dots as to Holly's background, but the songs paint a sympathetic character, living the classic rock and roll conflict: sin versus salvation. As the album goes through its arc, and Holly's love for Jesus is trumped again and again by her lust for kicks, and you get to know her so well, that the ultimate resolution of her story is poignant.

Yes, poignance on an album where the catchiest song is "Your Little Hoodrat Friend". (For those, like me, not hep to all the street lingo of the moment, hoodrat is slang for a woman who's pretty much slept with everyone in the ‘hood). "Hoodrat Friend" is an essential slice of Hold Steady rock. The band's music is steeped in ‘70s rock, with none of the bloat or stiffness that description may imply. You can hear bits of Bruce Springsteen, Graham Parker & The Rumour, Tonio K., Thin Lizzy and Elvis Costello teeming through this record. To some degree, they operate on a similar plane as Marah, without any of the pretensions of those Philly boys. Back to the song -- it has a singalong chorus with a simple and effective melody, uses dynamics effectively, and has a hyped up pub rock bounce.

The bread-and-butter rock and roll is keyed by the strong lead guitar work of Tad Kubler and the creative keyboard augmentation from Franz Nicolay. Nicolay's work at times is on par with Elvis Costello's reliable running mate Steve Nieve. His electric piano is the underpinning on "Cattle and Creeping Things", and then he adds other cool bits of keyboard magic, while Kubler's strong guitar lines punch and jab away. It's visceral and sophisticated, all at the same time. Nicolay provides some old-fashioned rock and roll/gospel style piano on "Don't Let Me Explode", giving the song a classic ballad feel, though the guitars kick in at the track's emotional high point.

While everyone deserves props, this is Craig Finn's show. I could easily fill a page with quotes of great lyrics. He's stunningly good with words. As good as a line as "she climbed the cross and found she like the view" (on "Crucifixion Cruise") is, it's not mere cleverness for the sake of being clever. It exists within the overall structure of the narrative, as Holly reaches a crossroads in her life. Finn can come up with lines that hit like a champion pugilist -- indeed, the album goes for the gut right away (on "Hornets! Hornets!") with "She said always remember/never to trust me/she said that/the first night she met me." Brilliant.

Throughout the album, Holly and the narrator are getting "high as hell", scrounging for money, crashing wherever they can, and just getting by. The fun times are always soaked with regret. Holly is so vulnerable and likeable. How can you not like a girl who can make an observation like this: "She said you remind me of Rod Stewart when he was young/you got passion, you think that you're sexy/and all the punks think that you're dumb."

When you get down to it, The Hold Steady are basically the world's smartest bar band. Like a Nelson Algren or Charles Bukowski, Finn has created a decadent and compelling world, and, most impressively, he and his bandmates have found a way to wed the words to music that makes everything live and breathe. This is clearly one of the best records of 2005.

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The Sights
The Sights

(New Line)

newlinerecords.com

One of the most promising bands to arise from Detroit's recent garage rock revival, The Sights don't so much fulfill that promise on their third album, as reiterate it. This is pretty much a sequel to their brilliant 2002 album Got What We Want and, insofar as sequels go it's pretty good, though it's not quite as good. Yet again, the band mixes an ear for ‘60s-style British pop with a burning blues rock mojo. On this effort, produced yet again by Jim Diamond, the band tilts a bit more to flat out rock.

It almost sounds like this should have been the second album, and Want would have been the logical follow up. The Sights seem to be doing a lot more exploring on this album, and don't have as many great pop songs. When it comes to rocking, the band navigates a middle ground between The Yardbirds and Live At Leeds style Who. They want to kick out the jams, but they don't want to jam. While I'm all for concision, they might be more effective by letting loose and seeing where it takes them, which they've been known to do on stage. However, such an approach would be at odds with their emphasis on the song.

The band kicks things off with an old gospel number, "I'm Going to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song", and Bobby Emmett's ever present Hammond Organ and frontman Eddie Baranek's soulful shouting get this brief shot of R & B cooking. The band then proceeds to stay in blues mode for the next three tracks. The band is deft enough to avoid plodding, mindless boogieing or choogling. Every track yields at least one hook. Baranek's lead guitar work (particularly on "Will I Be True?") is stellar. Yet only on the slower blues-pop of "Scratch My Name in Sin", kind of a Sights variation of "Bell Bottom Blues", does it sound fully engaging. This is what seems to haunt the whole album -- a sense that everything here is good, but that this talented band settled for good, rather than trying to be great.

The same holds true for the more straightforward pop material. "Just Got Robbed" is instantly catchy, and effortlessly so. Baranek seems to have an inexhaustible supply of hooks at his disposal, and there are two nice ones on this track. The chorus is bouncy in a "Stuck in the Middle" kind of fashion, and the bridge out is sunny, melodic rock. Well done, for sure. Yet, this shouldn't be one of the best crafted songs on the disc. The approach is even more light hearted on "Backseat", which may make you think that it's all so beautiful, in an itchykoo kinda way.

These are good pop songs, but they don't sound like hit singles. Not that The Sights could have a hit single in this era. Still, I wish they could take that approach. It certainly seemed they hit the heights more the last time around.
The peaks of the album come in the middle. "Last Chance" is a stinging rocker that sounds like Paul McCartney at his most ballsy. This would stand up well next to Wings songs like "Jet" and "Junior's Farm". This is followed by the loping "Waiting on a Friend". It almost sounds like stitching together songs from The Small Faces and Faces.

Speaking of Faces, the band does a cover of that band's biggest hit, "Stay With Me". It kind of sums up what's good and bad about The Sights. They rock, they swing, they sound really credible doing this great song. Yet, as well as they acquit themselves, they still don't touch the original. I don't want to sound like I'm totally down on The Sights -- this is still a lot better than most of the albums coming out nowadays. But they seem to be satisficing, when they should be aiming higher.

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The Redwalls
De Nova

(Capitol)

hollywoodandvine.com

This is the second album for a band from the northern suburbs of Chicago, who started out as young high schoolers slavishly paying tribute to The Beatles. The band, then called The Pages, got regular bookings at Nevin's in Evanston, Illinois, and a buzz built. Initially, it was premised on the fact that they were so precious and adorable, and the fact that they were pretty decent at what they did. As the band kept playing, their vocal and instrumental competence grew, and they started looking beyond the confines of the Fab Four, going so far as to play Velvet Underground songs and pen originals.

The Beatles are still the predominant influence on The Redwalls, though they have moved beyond the Merseybeat-era, into the latter day Beatles, making for a bluesier sound. The band's major label debut spotlights their talent and promise, while clearly showing that they have a ways to go. There is no doubt that The Redwalls are a swell rock and roll band. The songwriting is a weak spot. At this point, the band is still emulating a lot more than expressing itself. Moreover, they haven't figured out how to translate their great sound into highly memorable songs.

These students of rock do come up with a nifty wrinkle from time to time. My favorite is the pithy Television-style lead guitar part that starts off "Falling Down", which is otherwise a blues-rock-pop rant. This song finds The Redwalls taking a firm stance against FCC censorship, and while it's lyrically ham-fisted, it is probably the most passionate track on the album. Here, the band is speaking for themselves, rather than through other personas.

The band invokes a Dylan-ish sound on their other protest number, "Glory of War". I could dismiss this song as a simplistic anti-war diatribe, something that has been done before and better. That would be true, but this song is pretty effective, as the old sentiments are fresh coming from some lads in their early twenties.

These songs aren't typical of the album as a whole. However, they demonstrate how The Redwalls could turn into a great band, when they become more personally expressive. More often, the songs are just good times in retro clothing. The opener, "Robinson Crusoe", is a blend of rock and rolling McCartney with a horn part that sounds like it was inspired by Exile On Main Street era Rolling Stones. It's good, but it doesn't hold a candle to the best rocker on the album, called, appropriately enough, "Rock & Roll". In a tick less than two minutes, as the band heads back to 1963 with such a lack of irony or self-consciousness that I just have to love it.

I'm also pretty enamored with the mid-tempo proto-power pop of "Love Her", which is a giddy showcase for Logan Baren's lead vocals and has some great lead guitar work. The single is "Thank You", which might be the most ‘70s-centric number, coming off like a bluesier take on America's "I Need You". If things break right, The Redwalls may have written themselves a prom theme.
Meanwhile, I certainly can appreciate the attempt at a meaningful extended slow number on "Front Page", an exercise in Lennon homage that unfortunately lacks gravitas. The sound is there, the heart is there, but there's no real substance. This also afflicts the can't we get along (and why don't we verge into Black Crowes territory) soul shouter "Build a Bridge". More grit, less Up With People please.

In a different era, The Redwalls would have been thrown into the studio with a name producer. Preferably a producer who could draw out the best songs from these young lads. There's no way to take the rock and roll past out of The Redwalls, and that would be a bad idea, since it's the essence of what they do. However, they need to put more of their stamp on the material and develop a Redwalls identity. I just hope Capitol is patient with them.

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