Gary Glauber
Reviews: July, 2004
Scroll down for reviews of releases by Joe
Jackson, Chomsky, Eugene Edwards, The Shimshaws, Spymob and
The Strawmen
Joe
Jackson Band
Afterlife
(Rykodisc)
Release Date: March 16, 2004
www.joejackson.com
Sometimes
that old adage really rings true: "You're not getting
older, you're getting better." That's certainly the case
for Joe Jackson and his reunited original band entourage of
Graham Maby on bass, Gary Sanford on guitar, and Dave Houghton
on drums. The proof is in the tightness, charisma and vitality
that comprise the performances captured here.
As
one of Britpop's angry young men way back when, Jackson and
his band were known for tight live performances that fed upon
the energy of audiences very familiar with the popular songs
from the albums of the time. The original lineup stayed together
for three studio albums, then parted musical ways.
Now,
some 23 years later, the gained musical experience since has
only enhanced the talents of all concerned. Reunited for a
new studio album (Volume 4) and a supporting world
tour after so many years, this talented quartet surprisingly
has rediscovered that magical chemistry of decades past. Luckily
for fans, these precious performances have been culled from
four California dates on the tail end of the 104-date tour
and released as a live CD (with, as the album notes, "no
re-recording - spot the mistakes!").
Afterlife
and its baker's dozen of songs mix old and new seamlessly,
and there's an overriding sense of great fun. Jackson's voice
is in fine form, and this band lives up to any and all expectations.
From the opening piano strains of what turns into an abbreviated
vocal/keyboard rendition of "Steppin' Out," there's
a sense of electricity to the performance here (and the audiences
are both appreciative and overtly responsive).
Jackson
always seems comfortable on stage (there's no better proof
than the previous live albums that have been released over
the course of his career) and is the consummate performer.
When he reassembled his old buddies for the new album (on
the 25th anniversary of their start), they played several
warm-up gigs and it took Jackson by surprise.
"These
guys blew me away, they played so great," he noted (and
it's very true - all seem far improved from those early days).
Having recently reached a personal comfort level with his
past material, Jackson was ready to join up with the original
Joe Jackson Band and hit the road.
"One
More Time" sounds as powerful as ever, the rhythm section
precision-tight (and Graham Maby is superb). This efficiently
segues into two songs off the new album "Take It Like
A Man" (performed as if it were in the studio, truly),
Jackson's updated angry lament about the battle of the sexes,
and "Awkward Age," one of the new songs that rightly
deserves a place among Jackson's best, advice to a young one
that morphs into a confession that age hasn't resolved matters
much.
"Look
Sharp!" retains its smart-alecky edge, even after all
these years. It brings back memories (and the audience fills
in the blanks as it sings along). The middle bridge shifts
keys, allowing band members to show-off a wee bit, but overall
it remains a forceful anthem of disenchanted youth.
Jackson
includes one song from the now out-of-print Blaze of Glory,
"Down To London." Here the former piano ballad is
updated some, infused with the energy and backup harmonies
of the band, and treated to some fine emotive Jackson vocals
and piano finesse.
It's
a treat also to hear the oft-ignored "Beat Crazy"
after lo, these many years. This fun ska/reggae gem fits right
into the contemporary popular revival of such music, yet manages
to outdo much of what has come after.
The
reggae beat extends into the band's jam-out version of "Fools
In Love." Jackson gives his all with the vocals, and
works in a snippet of the Graham Gouldman-penned Yardbirds'
classic "For Your Love" for a little extra musical
flavor. Jackson treats us to some melodica solo, while Gary
Sanford gets to show some stylistic flair on the guitar.
Two
more from the recent release follow. The sweet ballad "Love
At First Light" features observations the day after a
night of purely physical pleasure with someone whose name
escapes him, a sad but pretty overture hoping toward love.
A hard-driving rendition of "Fairy Dust" (again
true to the studio version) sends up the modern media's ridiculous
gay stereotypes.
The
CD finishes off with three nostalgic touches. The acerbic
"Sunday Papers" retains a fairly good syncopated
punch even now, and there's even a musical guffaw in there
courtesy of Sanford. Jackson plays the organ here, but the
other three really lead the way, as they speed toward an ending.
The
lovely "Don't Wanna Be Like That" (off I'm The
Man) remains poignant and infectious, and when the audience
gladly joins in you'll be hard pressed not to smile. This
is what makes live performance so much fun - there's that
unique community spirit and it's rampant on the songs of *Afterlife*.
The
CD ends with the rave-up "Got The Time," with its
sped-up rhythm proving a challenge to Houghton and Maby, as
well as to Jackson to get out all those lyrics. They all do
superbly (especially Maby in an impressive bass solo that
extends this short song out a bit), and one is left with a
desire to flick a lighter and stand there until the music
starts up again.
While
some might express disappointment that several of the "singles"
of years past are omitted in this release (some were included
on the live bonus disc that accompanied the latest studio
release), there should be no complaints with what is here.
Every one of these songs is performed with admirable energy,
executed flawlessly and presented in a way that makes you
wish you'd been there (and glad to hear it recorded for your
vicarious pleasure).
Afterlife
is a great tribute to a band that regrouped for 104 dates
all across the globe and recaptured the energy and fun that
made them such a popular success way back when. The band assures
us this "live" performance is their absolute last
appearance together - but upon hearing how much enjoyment
this music offers, perhaps there's hope that some future reunion
or other anniversary might bring this talented foursome back
together again.
_______________________________________________________________
Eugene
Edwards
My Favorite Revolution
(Tallboy
Records)
Release
Date: July 6, 2004
www.eugeneedwards.com
When
you hear lots of music, it's easy to get jaded. Yet now and
again, something stands out as exceptional. Eugene Edwards'
My Favorite Revolution is one such surprise. Out of
Los Angeles emerges clean melodic pop that manages effectively
to capture the simple happy ebullience of the "new wave"
sound of the early 1980s, mixing in 1960s references while
still presenting something refreshing and original.
Perhaps
it's no coincidence that 1980 was when the young Eugene Edwards
first fell in love with rock music. From his bedroom in Yuma,
Arizona, Edwards would play guitar along with his stereo.
After a succession of high school bands, he journeyed east
to the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where his love
of pop didn't quite fit in with the "jazz atmosphere"
surrounding the place at the time. After one semester, Edwards
was out touring with a band again. In 1996, he landed in Los
Angeles where, after playing guitar in a couple of roots trios,
he started writing his own material.
On
this debut album, there's a healthy helping of this material
- 14 songs, in fact (and no filler). The last song is just
as engaging as the first. On the album, the talented Edwards
plays all instruments but drums (those are handled well by
Mike "Soupy" Sessa). The resulting sounds are uncluttered,
engaging and a melodic delight (thanks in part to fine production
and engineering by Dave Peterson).
The
CD opens with "Your Own Nightmare," a great up-tempo
number about a fair mess of a woman who once managed to get
by on the good graces of face and body, but now finds she
slipping away. Luckily, she's got a friend keeping tabs on
this descent's progression: "I'm keeping track of all
the things you said you'd never do / You had a dream come
true, now you behave like your own nightmare."
One
of my favorites here is "It Doesn't Get Better Than This,"
a 2:35 bit of pop perfection that recalls early Elvis Costello
(with a far smoother voice) and a hint of that sort of instantly
familiar aspect of a Nick Lowe. Like his British counterparts,
Edwards can find an infectious tune and spin it around astute
lyrics that are fun to learn and sing: "Washington detectives
have their theories / Somehow they turned a small game into
a whole series / And I'm still searching for a pop his or
miss / It doesn't get better than this." Edwards displays
an acumen for smart lyrics that is as appealing as his songwriting.
"Congratulations,
My Darling" recalls the sort of sweet friendly jangle
of Gary Lewis & The Playboys' "This Diamond Ring."
This is sweet guitar-laden advice being doled out to a young
woman in NYC, the kind of melodic, well-crafted song not heard
very often anymore.
The
pace slows for "Next Time You Go," a dulcet sort
of "noir ballad" that highlights Edwards' vocals.
Again, it has me thinking back to fine crooners from an earlier
time: Johnny Maestro, Gary Puckett, Burton Cummings, the early
Alex Chilton, etc. The swelling harmonies at the song's end
cap the fine arrangement superbly.
Providing
an instant contrast, the pace revs up considerably with "At
Your Place," a rave up about a broken relationship that
would fit well into the lineup on Costello's Get Happy.
Three verses fly by in a mere minute and a half, and clever
wordplay is all over this one: "Don't think that you're
all alone at your place / I can't get past the dial tone to
your place / I guess I should give back this key; the stupid
thing still comforts me / Are you keeping present company
at your place?"
There
is no shortage of infectious tunes at the ready here, but
"All About You" stands out as particularly catchy.
This is the proud man declaring how he'll let the world know
all about his wonderful love in a song where the harmonies
are sweet and the chorus imminently sing-able (another radio-ready
delight).
Edwards
veers off a little into mid-tempo Southern rock with "Telling
That Lie Again." With a little bit of bar rock bravado
and country flair, he not only nails it stylistically, but
does so with a really good song: "Eating my own word's
become a steady diet / And as a rule of thumb, I don't suggest
you try it, oh I've been telling that lie again."
It's
back to pretty Brit-pop, chiming guitars and new age sensibility
with "Shattered Flower," the tale of a woman lost
in wondering and quick to play the blame game. "Victim
at Bedtime" examines a woman who falls for the wrong
man time and again (thinking him sweet when he's not drinking):
"It won't be long before she finds a new creep again
/ the natives are restless, she puts them back to sleep again
/ There's a kind of man she's bound to see again / It's a
long way home from under the family tree again."
Back
in the 1960s, the radio was full of melodic gems - groups
like The Guess Who, The Grass Roots and others found hits
with tracks that clocked in at under three minutes. Eugene
Edwards is a kindred spirit to that kind of music. His pleasant
"I'd Like To Think So" is yet another winner - this
one about a man wondering about what has become of his first
true love, wishing her good things. A brief harmony-laced
coda to this song is featured later in the CD.
In
"Not That Kind of a Girl," Edwards takes a look
at one girl through the eyes of another, jealous and resentful
but incapable of acting on anything. The stutter-step ballad
"I'll Be True (Someday)" is an out-loud confession
from a guy who's gone and blown a relationship: "The
upside to all this time / The upside is I'm free / The downside
to all this pride / The downside is that I can't see what
it's done to me."
The
title track (featuring some fine Sessa drum work) is a celebration
of music (in our hearts and our dreams), a love song to vinyl
through to CDs: "So drop the needle there's a song to
be sung / When the tables turn baby, it's my favorite revolution."
The
CD closes with "Permanent One," a rocking anthem
for annoying types who stay at parties as long as the wine
holds up: "Why don't you come and harass me, the party's
getting in gear and I'm the permanent one / I feel like being
a bit nasty / I saw your boyfriend leave and now I'm the permanent
one." Here Edwards lets loose with a little extra guitar
finesse and Sessa is there with the steady cowbell egging
him on.
Eugene
Edwards lands on the scene as a talent to be reckoned with,
if we're to judge by this stellar debut. His songs are infectious,
his lyrics engaging. All told, My Favorite Revolution
is 45-minutes of sheer musical delight featuring well-crafted
songs that hearken back to a simpler, more melodic time. It's
a fair bet Mr. Edwards' abilities won't remain unknown for
very long - and I look forward to what I hope will be a long
career to come.
_______________________________________________________________
Chomsky
Let's Get To Second
(Aezra Records)
Release Date: May 18, 2004
www.chomsky.com
The
road to success in the music business is unknowable. A lucky
few manage it, whilst countless others compile tales of trying
to reach that magic goal. For the talented Dallas-bred band
of self-proclaimed computer geeks/musicians known as Chomsky,
there are hopes that the third time will be the charm.
After
two critically praised and self-funded albums on local Dallas
indie label Idol Records, the band has slimmed down to a quartet
and signed on with Arizona-based Aezra Records, a larger indie
with far better methods of distributing the music to a wider
audience. The hope is that Let's Get To Second will
indeed propel them a bit farther along in their quest.
Let's
Get To Second features four re-recorded songs from those
first two albums (three from Onward Quirky Soldiers
and one from A Few Possible Selections For The Soundtrack
of Your Life) and eight new tracks. On board to help with
production duties is Gary Katz, who was instrumental early
on in Steely Dan's career.
Katz
(and former Talking Head Jerry Harrison, who helped in the
mix as well) seems to prefer a more uniform "in-your-face"
take on the mixes. The guitars get less emphasis on some songs
this way, but the additional polish focuses more on the raw
energy of the music (making the songs perhaps a tad more commercial
radio-ready). Chomsky never lacks for vitality; indeed the
syncopated punch is their stock-in-trade.
Their
sounds remain very much an updated version of Drums And
Wires-era XTC, with traces of The Police and The Cars
thrown in for good measure. There's also a healthy bit of
Weezer geek rock influence, the anger of a young Elvis Costello,
and the pure vigor of more modern components like Blink-182
or Ultimate Fakebook.
"Light"
leads off the proceedings, a song about asking for honesty
amid deceptions and falsehoods, a cry for purity in a corrupt
world: "Give it to me all at once / hit me with your
strong full force / Pain will wash everything gone / And I'll
keep moving on rest assured / I won't slow down / I will run."
It's a more forceful and upbeat version than on their previous
record. Here is guitarist/lead vocalist Sean Halleck doing
his update on Andy Partridge, Glen Reynolds and his superb
lead guitar doing his Dave Gregory, James Driscoll doing his
Colin Moulding on bass and Matt Kellum approximating Terry
Chambers' power drumming.
"Animal"
is a direct tribute to Andy Partridge (and his song "Newtown
Animal In A Furnished Cage" off XTC's White Music),
lamenting the evils of a heartless society blinded by bling-bling's
shine that overbuilds and over-reacts without clear reason:
"Buildings fill the sky / In steel birds I'll fly / Empty
the sea, fell every tree and don't bother asking why."
The
popular Chomsky anthem "00:15:00" (a.k.a. "Fifteen
Minutes To Rock") is back again, re-recorded to better
reflect its inimitable vigor. This is a fun song (though the
band might be getting sick of it by now), driven by Halleck's
emotive vocals and Reynolds' great, often dissonant percussive
guitar work. This is rock as universal panacea, and you can't
deny a line like "I am only happy when it's possible."
"Gravitate"
is back, another re-done infectious little ditty, that builds
slowly as it plays lyrically with possible sexual metaphors:
"Get good elevation feel burn in your spark / move in
all directions laughing in the dark / What you do to me /
Sweet sharp sheen you float telepathically / overshot the
window, overshot the mark."
The
song from Chomsky's first record "Sigmund" gets
a nice overhaul here. Reynolds' does an incredible job of
using his guitar like a percussion instrument (in a very early
XTC-way) - and he drives the song just as much as Kellum does
on drums. The vocals are great, and Chomsky manages to create
the type of sound you thought was lost decades ago.
"Escape"
is a little less XTC, a little more The Police and The Cars,
with vocals up front and synth sounds contributing more to
the overall mix. "Fine" has more attitude than one
usually finds in a single, and tons more syncopated rhythm.
Halleck again sells the song with great vocals.
There's
a short Beach Boys' type harmonic lead-in to "Doves,"
one of the songs that strays a bit from the drums and wires
formula. Here the mix emphasizes the vocals and harmonies,
the guitar played down as integral part of the whole, for
a muddier yet more modern commercial rock sound. It's an interesting
departure, but it works.
Reynolds'
guitars are back in force in "Over," another song
seemingly geared toward the listening mainstream. Halleck's
vocals are very out front, more in the style of Fountains
of Wayne, and the song features more clever lyrics, infectious
melody and hooks galore.
"Whippoorwill"
brings Chomsky back to that XTC-syncopated sound (hard to
do, kudos to Kellum and Driscoll), with Halleck shouting out
his lead vocals effectively. "Clockwork" seems a
lesser song here, decent enough and geared toward being commercial,
but in comparison to the others it falls short except when
rescued by Reynolds' guitars.
"Circle"
completes the CD, an extended jam of a song that reminds me
stylistically of XTC's "Roads Girdle The Globe."
There's just enough dissonance and rhythmic swagger here -
but those who aren't fans of that sound might not stick around
for the full six minutes.
I
remain a big fan of that sound (it was the percussive guitar
work that first got me interested in XTC). Chomsky presents
an impressive updating of that sound, and does so with clever
lyrics and smart arrangements. They aren't a complete secret,
having won awards for Album of The Year and Best Rock/Pop
Act from The Dallas Observer. In fact, just recently,
the song "00:15:00" was picked up for use by the
Dallas Cowboys in their pregame television show. If indeed
they are America's team, could widespread acceptance of Chomsky
be far behind?
Halleck
knows their music is eclectic. "We're too indie for mainstream
and too mainstream for indie," he notes. Yet he and the
band seem happy located in that musical limbo. While some
fans might feel the content contains a little too much recycled
from previous efforts, Let's Get To Second remains
a solidly impressive effort toward gaining that wider audience
this talented band truly deserves.
________________________________________________________________
The
Shimshaws
Subcutaneous
(Suspect Pigeon Records)
Release Date: April 6, 2004
www.theshimshaws.com
Memorable songs can be said to get under
your skin - hence the title of this particular release. To
its credit, Subcutaneous does have a number of songs
that might qualify, though what fascinates me most about this
collection is the range displayed by the two musical brothers
that are The Shimshaws.
If this were a major label release, most
likely The Shimshaws would be asked to pick one style and
stick with it throughout. Luckily, this isn't the case here
- there's a healthy variety for the listener to choose from
with no wasted tracks - they're all well done.
Todd McCombs (vocals, organ, piano) and Scott
McCombs (vocals, guitars) have been a performing/songwriting
team for some fifteen years. In the early 1990s, they were
part of The Quesadas (and released three albums). When that
band broke up, the brothers began working on a new project,
joining forces with drummer Kevin Lehman. They formed a new
band, and set out to record an album. Those sessions would
lead to the creation of The Shimshaws, and this is their debut
album (under this name). Additional musicians include Lehman,
Paul Rogalski (bass), Jeff Cowles (mandolin) and Christin
Patterson (cello and violin).
The album leads off with "Bona Fide,"
a raunchy pub rocker with a confident Rolling Stones vibe.
The vocal harmonies are nice, the guitars even nicer, and
the song is about a man's admission about being the real deal,
and wondering whether he should commit to a relationship:
"Baby I'm not pretending for a girl like you / But baby
if I surrender, will you see me through?"
"Loathe Me" is an upbeat little
punk number rife with energy that examines sexual choices
people make in order to please another: "My little Paramour
/ Leather skin and Spanish eyes / My Latin evermore / Swallow
me and steal my pride / You're my conquistador / Tie me up,
and make me cry."
The Shimshaws shift gear into alt-country territory with "Kisses
Like Rain." This is like something you'd find on a John
Hiatt or Steve Earle album (right down to the Jeff Cowles
mandolin solo), a pleasantly sweet country ballad of a man
stuck in time, growing older, yet still chasing love: "Will
you clean my whistle, have you had enough? / Do you love my
kisses, will you call my bluff? / I'm a lot less thicker than
I used to be / If I stop my running will you marry me? / Will
you bury me?"
More alt-country fun can be found in the song "I'm On
My Way." It's a simple story type of a song, nothing
too deep or overly meaningful, and features great piano and
harmonies.
"Every Minute" returns them to the realm of infectious,
tight, guitar-driven rock (the kind of song Little Feat once
did), along with an eclectic lyric about a strange man who
spoke in riddles and ultimately flew away.
"Buried In The Sand" is a marvelous harmony-laden
upbeat rocker that should appeal to those with an affinity
for melodic power pop. "Curse The Sun" is playful,
matching sporting rhymes with a great energy that'll have
you up and moving to its radio-ready rhythms.
The brothers McCombs slow into emotional ballad mode with
"Breaking In." The harmonies are rich and the vocals
emotive of the pain expressed about someone else that has
managed to invade the life of a former love. Another emotionally
invested track is the brief "Warning Sign," a song
about failure.
Probably my favorite here is the delightful "Red, Black
& Blue." The verses feature octave-apart shared vocals
and harmonies, and it really sets this song apart. Lyrically,
it's all about the unattainable girl that everyone loves:
"She's the girl with her mind in the middle / Her aim
is true / She's the girl with a heart like a riddle / Red,
black and blue."
A close runner-up is "Should've Been Good To You,"
chock full of sweet harmonies and jangly guitars. Here, the
simple lyrics convey the nostalgic look back at a "shoulda,
woulda, coulda" kind of deal, a relationship gone awry
and wished back upon: "Into you, I want to be / Over
you, I'll never be / Over me…oh say you'll never be."
The CD closes with the somber and beautiful love song "Lost
Over You." Well-placed strings accent the feelings in
this brief, yet touching confession of not being able to help
but being so in love.
These twelve songs are endearingly well written and executed
masterfully (and split right down the middle, six by Todd
and six by Scott). The Shimshaws seem to know their stuff,
and have assembled a fun collection that strays a bit from
the straight and narrow, extending into rootsy alt-country
at times, then veering back to rock.
Subcutaneous is an auspicious debut from a brother
team that excels in harmony, hooks and melody, an affable
musical diversion for the summer months ahead. They manage
to serve up winning songs that never overstay their welcome
and ultimately leave you only wanting more.
_______________________________________________________________
Spymob
Sitting Around Keeping Score
(Ruthless Records)
Release Date: April 6, 2004
www.spymob.com
Searching for a fun and funky groove to help
you get through the hot summer times ahead? How about something
a little bit different - mixing a structured Steely Dan sensibility
with a melodic power pop edge (akin to Fastball or Blinker
The Star). If that sounds like something to wrap your ears
around, head straight out and get a copy of Sitting Around
Keeping Score from Minnesota's talented quartet Spymob.
Best known as the back-up band for Neptunes'
side project N.E.R.D. (they played on the U.S. version of
the album In Search Of… and appeared with N.E.R.D.
on Saturday Night Live, Late Night With David Letterman
and elsewhere), Spymob's debut is an unusual pop offering
from Sony's Ruthless Records.
The work with N.E.R.D. changed things in
a hurry. One day Spymob was playing hole-in-the-wall gigs
in their hometown, the next thing they were touring Europe.
The talented ensemble is comprised of John Ostby on lead vocals
and keyboards, Eric Fawcett on drums and vocals, Brent Paschke
on guitar and vocals and Christian Twigg on bass.
This first album contains several retro influences
from Todd Rundgren to Steely Dan to Prince to Stevie Wonder
to Sly Stone and beyond (maybe even Guster or Ben Folds),
yet mixes in electronic flavors, loops and samples, offering
a dozen tracks that avoid easy categorization. The band uses
vintage instruments to create a lush warm sound with their
music (John uses an old Rhodes piano, Brent a classic Fender
Strat, Christian uses a Fender Precision Bass and Eric uses
old Ludwig drums). Stephen Lironi (Black Grape, Hanson) produced
nine of these tracks, while Minneapolis-based Alex Oana produced
two others. The sound is clean, calculated, and truly fun
to behold.
As guitar chords bounce from speaker to speaker,
the CD gets underway. "2040" is a musical vision
of mundane future domesticity and nostalgia: "In 2040
I'll reminisce about the twentieth century / When we still
wrote on pads of paper / Humans still did all the cleaning."
Ostby considers camping out with his future grandsons, and
how he and his wife will compete interactively in lawn bowling
with similar couples all over the world. The harmonies are
wonderful - and rather than imagining some futuristic paradise,
the everyday aspects considered here add to the song's overall
charm.
While Ostby's vocals on the first track sound
a bit like Sting at times, he's able to offer up something
completely different on "It Gets Me Going." Starting
with a wonderful falsetto on the verse lyrics, he provides
a soulful voice on the chorus that reminds me of the blue-eyed
soul of David Palmer (the early vocalist for Steely Dan).
This song is about as genial as it gets. Driven by piano,
Hammond, electronic nuances and great guitar, bass and drums,
it's the tale told by a proud dog (my bet would be a retriever
of some sort) of how internal chemistry clicks magically and
sets him off: "Someone's laughing at the way I'll drop
anything I'm doing just to chase the things they throw into
a field / I'm going in ways that I can't explain / It gets
me going in ways that I can't explain / Never grow tired of
a routine that seldom changes."
The David Palmer/Steely Dan vibe is in full
force with "I Still Live At Home" (which fittingly
Spymob self-produced at their home studio). This is a lovely
ballad of a song, complete with lush string accompaniment,
all about honesty in computer dating: "I guess we're
supposed to meet / It said so on a print-out sheet / There's
just one thing that you should know / I still live at home."
He goes on to explain the exact situation, and how it might
be a positive ("If things did get serious, it would be
convenient to walk right up the stairs and have you meet my
folks").
The title track goes more into the musical
funk/fusion realm. It's a song about contemplation in the
midst of laziness. Paschke does some fine guitar work here,
and Ostby lends a bit of Philly soul into his keyboard mix,
but it's the three-part harmonies that really catch your attention.
The rocking "Stand Up And Win"
sounds like it could be a Fastball song (in the best radio-ready
sense). Spymob take what could have been a standard straightforward
song (offering advice on getting thicker skin en route to
success) and fill it with surprising nuances that keep it
refreshing and new.
Spymob return to a jazzy mode with "On
Pilot Mountain," an infectious tale of a party scene
and waiting for a certain someone to appear. The piano and
guitar back up a nice middle bridge of spoken lyrics, but
the real hero here is drummer Fawcett, whose syncopated beats
drive the song throughout.
Bassist Christian Twigg propels the track on "National
Holidays." Again, Ostby finds intriguing subject matter
outside the normal realm of pop fare - examining the divorced
parent's plea for civility from his ex along with regrets
about only getting to see his daughter on rare occasions:
"You get to wake her every day / and we divide up National
Holidays / This month is highlighted yellow with one box of
blue."
Driving is the focus of a few songs here. The pleasantly jazzy
"Walking Under Green Leaves" discusses the hours
of pleasure gained driving and then walking in an extended
visit to the country. The other driving opus here, the tongue-in-cheek
"German Test Drive" allows the singer to fantasize
about winding his sleek fast sports car around the Autobahn,
though he's "only supposed to have the car out for an
hour."
It's hard not to be charmed by the way Ostby's lyrics take
you to places you wouldn't ever expect to find in the realm
of rock and pop. "Thinking Of Someone Else" is an
ode to his mother, odd as that sounds. He's smashed his little
toe and is sitting in the house, watching talk shows, getting
depressed and longing for the kind of TLC he used to get from
his mother. Ultimately she does call him, expresses her concern,
and already he feels himself healing rapidly - the musical
equivalent of a happy ending.
Spymob has songs driven by unusual rhythms and harmonies,
with surprising, often mundane lyrical topics. "Fly Fly
Fishing Pole" offers all of this - an anthem dedicated
to a wonderful beltway that surrounds Des Moines and the summer
pleasures to be found in three days off hanging near the water
The CD closes with "Joe Namath," wherein Ostby puts
himself inside the mind of the football great during his season
of glory: "When someone's coming up behind me I scramble
to the right / And it's this sense that keeps my knees from
dying." As a long suffering Jets fan, I'm thankful for
the reminder of those sweet days of yore.
While these songs might remind you of past music, chances
are you'll be heartened by the fact that all this tuneful
fun is in fact new and noteworthy. Spymob's debut is a remarkably
polished affair from intelligent musicians that appear comfortable
playing across a number of genres. What's best is that these
songs will have you singing along in an instant. There's excitement
and energy in this musical mix of piano pop and unorthodox
guitar riffs, a refreshing, eclectic stew of accomplished
and diverse sounds.
Sitting Around Keeping Score is an astonishingly solid
debut collection of infectious soul-inflected danceable pop
tracks that are warm and well-produced, cover a variety of
unexpected quirky subject matter, and are fun with a capital
F. This is soft witty rock for the new millennium and a blast
of good times perfectly matched to the summer ahead.
________________________________________________________________
The Strawmen
Saving Faded Dreams
(Fools of the World)
Release Date: July 1, 2003
www.thestrawmen.com
Melodic jangle pop is hard to do well, but
The Strawmen manage that feat time and again on their latest
release Saving Faded Dreams. This trio is comprised
of accomplished musicians, and their combined skills make
for a polished and enjoyable listen all around.
Borne out of past and present members of
Christian rockers The 77s, The Strawmen are no strangers to
making good music. Lead singer/lyricist/guitarist/songwriter
Bill Harmon is an orthodox Christian and an electronic engineer
who also finds the time to pursue his pop singer/songwriter
dreams.
He's enlisted his younger brother Mark (who
plays bass for The 77s currently) to join him in The Strawmen.
Rounding out the songwriting trio is David Leonhardt (former
guitarist for The 77s), a talented keyboardist, lead guitarist,
and hook-meister extraordinaire. Also joining them are The
77s' Mike Roe (who helped produce the record and contributed
back-up vocals and additional guitars), Scott Reams (on percussion)
and Bruce Spencer (on drums).
The opening track "Runaway" gives
you a good sense of what's to come: impressive guitar-dominated
music married to intelligent lyrics and Bill Harmon's smooth
vocal delivery surrounded by the occasional harmony. The Strawmen
serve up the sound of confidence - as if they've had ten other
records before this (in truth this CD was only preceded by
various versions of a cassette-based first release entitled
At Home).
The song is a variant on advice from a friend.
Rather than talk the person out of their intentions, there's
a sense of camaraderie and understanding of the necessity
of having to runaway at times, to discover that sometimes
"you gotta cry alone."
Harmon reminds me at times of a younger Nick
Lowe, and many of the Leonhardt-penned tunes have that magical
instant familiarity to them. One of my favorites "It's
A Miracle" is chock full of pretty guitar sounds. The
lyrics ply a fairly simple metaphor, noting how the sun "falls
down and bounces back" miraculously, and links its to
bouncing back from sorrow, experience and hard times.
Mark Harmon's songs are fairly catchy as
well, as evidenced in "Cut It Loose." Here Bill's
lyrics tell the tale of another friendship/relationship affected
over time: "I didn't mean to take away the hunger in
your eyes / I'm catching up on wasted years and I apologize
/ For all the hopelessness and fantasy that settled in my
bones / You would think that after all these years / these
ghosts would leave us alone."
One of the minor quibbles I have with many
of these songs is the way they have counterpoint lyrics as
backup vocals in the choruses. The lines get sung at the same
time and many of the backing lines get lost in the mix. This
happens to a certain extent in the otherwise pleasant "Can't
Satisfy," wherein life's various and sundry challenges
are better handled when flying and dancing. It's all about
the inner struggle and the search for satisfaction: "This
arguing inside of me / why can't I get along with what I see?"
Confusion and miscommunication are popular
lyrical topics with Bill Harmon. In "Old News" he
conveys how unspoken words can be old news in relationships
that never went right: "Bound for glory on a train from
hell / jumped the track, didn't land too well / How long has
it been?" There's a plea for more intimacy and waiting
for a happy resolution in the ballad "Aggravation."
In the title track, The Strawmen show a bit
of their blues side. Starting with an acoustic verse intro,
the song builds impressively into a powerful blues-tinged
tour-de-force. Here the lyrics are about the imperfection
of words (they "escape, do their damage and float away"),
referred to as "the devil in my mouth."
Another bluesy song (this one with a bit
of a Latin flavor) is, appropriately enough, "Everything's
Turned Blue." Here there are some fine instrumental performances,
and lyrics that wax poetic: "One tree weeping like an
altar / dead center in the garden / all alone."
One of the prettier tunes here, Leonhardt's
"The Reason Why" treads the fine line of getting
preachy in relating how knowing the reason why doesn't necessarily
make it right: "Too numb to cry, too tired to sleep and
too mean to pray / Too lost to care, too scared to die and
too late to say."
Most CCM artists manage to keep their religious
references cloaked in universals that make the songs enjoyable
for all. This is the case with most of The Strawmen lyrical
offerings -and certainly the music is fine all around (though
the song "Innocent" does pull out the religious
metaphors with a somewhat heavy hand).
There are two songs written entirely by Bill
Harmon. "Find A Reason" is a wonderful song, chiming
guitars and lyrics that again examine the difficulties of
communication in a relationship, urging us to "find a
reason, it's alright that it's all wrong."
Less successful is the closer, the folksy
"Amputate," which belabors a tale of an amputated
heart in details that make it a little too harsh for my personal
tastes.
One of the nicest surprises here is the Harmon
brother collaboration "I Don't Live There Anymore."
This jazzy track builds nicely into an infectious, haunting
song and features some superb atmospheric bass work from Mark
Harmon. Bill's lyrics match the song's tone well: "She
still dances out in the rain / that streams from the eyes
of God who always takes the longer view / Who sometimes blinks
but never looks away."
While this album has been around for almost
a year, it's only now branching out to a wider pop audience
as those outside CCM circles are discovering its many charms.
Saving Faded Dreams is an exceedingly
pleasant collection of tracks, with accomplished music that
recalls a number of jangle pop predecessors at times (a la
The Byrds, REM, etc.), though influenced heavily by Nashville
twang and infused with a mellow confident vibe. The lyrics
are poignant and intelligent, yet rarely overbearing, suitably
matched to the guitar-driven pop feel of the music.
If thoughtful, tuneful jangle pop is your
thing, go to their site and give a listen. Trust me, these
musicians know their stuff. As such, the pleasant sounds of
Saving Faded Dreams just might surprise you.
________________________________________________________________
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