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Chain and His Gang of Happy Jailbirds

Published

on May 18, 2009

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l_463fcbe80df94de9b40dd113752007eb Chain and His Gang of Happy Jailbirds

Although probably more recognizable now as the host of his VBS show Soft Focus, conducting interviews that often teeter between the profound and the painfully awkward, Ian Svenonius would probably rather be remembered for his self-described “Gospel Yeh-Yeh” genre of soul and garage rock realized by his former band The Make Up [Editor's Note: ...and Nation of Ulysses and Weird War]. The newest incarnation of this notion, faux prison-gospel outfit Chain and the Gang, is his least polarizing persona thus far.

The gang’s debut album Down with Liberty…Up With Chains is built from campy takes on Fun House rhythms, neurotic folk ballads, and archetypal melodies contorted with an off-beat sense of humor. Largely sung in a conversational manner, Svenonius tackles subjects from the value of a dollar to conspiracy theories: “I faked the moon landing, I saved Hitler’s brain. Yeah, it’s in Argentina, but it controls the USA.”

Alright, so Svenonius Monk he is not, but one things for sure, dude knows what it takes to resuscitate rock n roll, and with K Records behind him, including fellow perpetual teenager Calvin Johnson, the de facto good times spill out in full. Like a non-obnoxious version of The Moldy Peaches, the Gang tap into the irreverent energy of anti-folk to try and make their point. What is their point? Couldn’t tell you, but it’s a lot more fun than listening to NPR.

Down with Liberty…Up with Chains is available on K Records now.

MP3 :::
Chain and the Gang – Deathbed Confession
Chain and the Gang – Interview with the Chain Gang

Marmoset… More Badass Than a Rhesus Monkey

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on May 8, 2009

in MP3 and News

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l_55278c3651ea125f8618a356cb1cde24 Marmoset... More Badass Than a Rhesus Monkey

Me, I’m cool with bands like Times New Viking and Psychedelic Horseshit. But the whole experimental no-fi garage sound known these days as “shitgaze” has long been claimed and championed by Indianapolis fuzz engineers Marmoset (to be fair, Creation Records group Meat Whiplash also helped to build this sound, and countless ’60s era bands before them – but for the sake of this conversation I feel that it’s just plain treachery that Marmoset have not received their due lauding). Anyway, they’ve been doin’ the damn thing since 1995, and their long player Record in Red is essential listening in the sludgey atmospheric pop realm. With great excitement, it looks like Marmoset is back like a mac attack, as Tea Tornado, their first record after their split with Secretly Canadian a couple years back, is set to drop.

Though originally slated to be released this month, I just received word from Karl at Joyful Noise, Marmoset’s new home, that Tea Tornado has been pushed back but finally given a definitive release date – August 4. You had the privilege of hearing “I Love My Things” last week, and judging from that as well as “Peach Cobbler” below, Marmoset is still the same old smokey, dark, swagger-saturated AM pop purveyor, and Tea Tornado looks to be just as intriguing as classics Record In Red and Today It’s You.

It’s also worth noting that Marmoset is hitting Louisville in September. Stoked. More details on that as they become available.

jnr35 Marmoset... More Badass Than a Rhesus Monkey

Tracklisting:
1. Written Today
2. Empty Room
3. Strawberry Shortcakes
4. He’s Been Napping
5. Come With Me
6. Toy
7. Hallway
8. Peach Cobbler
9. Musing
10. Gretchen
11. Run Away, Teri
12. You, Blueberry Muffin
13. I Love My Things
14. Oh’ Dear Handlebars

MP3 :::
Marmoset – Peach Cobbler

The Gories and Oblivians Reunite This Summer

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on May 7, 2009

in MP3 and News

. Comments

Gories The Gories and Oblivians Reunite This Summer

In what’s probably the only good news coming out of Detroit lately, ‘80s garage gods, The Gories, are planning a summer reunion tour along with Memphis cohorts, Oblivians. The Gories broke up back in 1993 – the same year the Ford Taurus was America’s best selling automobile – as front man Mick Collins made the permanent transition to his side project, The Dirtbombs. With only three US dates scheduled, this ticket is hotter than a GTO’s clutch at the dragstrip (RIP Pontiac):

June 19, 2009 – Hi Tone, Memphis TN
June 20, 2009 – Hi Tone, Memphis TN
June 27, 2009 – Majestic Theater, Detroit MI

The remaining dates are scattered throughout Europe where American garage bands seem to always get a better reception than they do here in the US. Jack Oblivian played SXSW earlier this year with his latest band The Tennessee Tearjerkers but his namesake band, Oblivians, hasn’t been heard from since its final ’97 opus Play 9 Songs with New Orleans keyboard provocateur, Mr. Quintron.

For the uninitiated, The Gories repertoire is best exemplified by 1990’s I Know You Fine, But How You Doin’ which shows a bit more polish than previous efforts while maintaining a decidedly lo-fi sound. Berklee School grads they ain’t – think of Dead Moon but with rhythm.

Oblivians’ collaboration with Mr. Quintron feels like the soundtrack to a tent revival complete with baptisms and an afternoon barbeque. Popular Favorites spawned the quasi-hit “Guitar Shop Asshole” which paraphrases Chris Rock’s memorable performance in I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (‘how much for just one string?’).

If you happen to be within driving distance of Memphis or Detroit you’ve been warned that this will be the most raucous show you’re likely to see until Elvis and Lux Interior resurrect for a double bill in Vegas.

MP3:::
The Gories – Hey, Hey We’re The Gories
Oblivians – Feel All Right

Protect Yourself from the Swine Flu

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on April 30, 2009

in General Communique and MP3

. Comments

n12901847_35378230_48 Protect Yourself from the Swine Flu

I’ve got my gas mask ready. What about you?

In the interest of preparedness in these uncertain times, the incomparable @NotNotoriousBIG on Twitter has procured a mask for you all to wear. The graphic below is a PNG file with transparent background, so all you gots to do is take your profile picture from your preferred social network, open it in the graphics program of your choice, and paste that lil’ dude about the mouth and nose regions. Can’t be too careful when it keeps looking like some 28 Days Later shit’s gettin’ ready to go down.

zOMG ZOMBIES!!!1 THUNDERKISS 65 ASTROCREEPZ 2000!!

cover_large Protect Yourself from the Swine Flu

Get prepared, ya’llz. Swine flu/Bird flu/West Nile/SARS/terrorism/E. Coli ain’t nothin’ to fuck with:

mask Protect Yourself from the Swine Flu

MP3 :::
Nothing People – Sickness
The N.E.C. – Old Medicine
Medicine – Till I Die
Disturbed – The Sickness (J/K LOL)

Monoshock – Walk to the Fire

Published

Norwood Derr

on March 30, 2009

in Noise Consultations

. Comments

333 Monoshock - Walk to the Fire

[Editor's Note: This is Norwood's first article for the Decibel Tolls. Welcome him, and let's avoid the normal flaming we have here on this fine music blog, nerds. Don't scare him off too soon, now.]

Last week, I was editing a chapter on garage rock for Piero Scaruffi’s revised rock catalog when I stumbled upon a band that begged me for my curiosity. One of the few reviews about this outhouse-rock group was written by Julian Cope (for one of his album of the month pieces). I skimmed through his review, finding the nihilistic mumbo-jumbo of rock gold more and more appetizing. The more I researched, the quicker I found out that my dear uncle Scott Derr was one of the contributing madmen. It’s a small world after all! Cope surely did a good job selling the band on paper, and now I had a blood connection. I thoroughly scanned the world wide web before finally unveiling the 24-karat cacophony that is Monoshock’s first, last and only LP, “Walk to the Fire.”

monoshock_band Monoshock - Walk to the Fire

“Walk to the Fire” shows off the raw power of the Stooges, the improvisational debauchery of the Velvet Underground, and the schizophrenic swagger of Pere Ubu; all finely minced, thrown into a blender, and garnished with a bit of apocalyptic satisfaction. There’s just something about the amateurish indecency of “Walk to the Fire” that sounds strikingly original. This feeling of sordid wonder juxtaposed with frontman Grady Runyan’s aesthetic framework makes “Walk to the Fire” one of rock music’s most fascinating “Jekyll and Hyde” records. You could enjoy it because of its “no-fi” garage-punk sound, or because of its potent expeditions into the psychedelic avant-garde.

The record as a whole will blow your sails due south; whether your heading there or not. Made up of college buddies Grady Runyan (vocals, guitar, e-bow, violin), Scott Derr (vocals, bass, guitar, brass, blender), Rubin Fiberglass (drums, percussion, vocals) and Aluminum Queen (saxophone), Monoshock mixes sloppy proto-punk with sophisticated free-form experimentation. “Walk to the Fire” is simply another example of punk rock’s “Fuck it, I’m a teenager” ethos gone horribly right. Everything seems to go wrong on this record, and that’s the provocative beauty of Monoshock’s design. The chaotic mess of guitars, drums and orchestral instruments proves to be much more prophetic than ignorant. More singular than homogenous. And more honest than fraudulent. When listening, I often forget that running saxophones through oscillators, and aimlessly howlin’ away on brass isn’t the norm in rock music, but Monoshock does it with an unwavering conviction.

The opening track “Crypto-Zoological Disaster,” begins with a head bobbin’ Pere Ubu riff that steadily marches until it abruptly decomposes into a degenerative, DNA-like, orgy of half-conscious noise. After getting lost in the masochistic crescendo, Runyan and company come full-circle, bringing back the riff in a final tour de force.

“I Took You to it Baby,” Monoshock’s destructive ballad, features the group’s most conventionally catchy instrumentation. Fortunately for us, Runyan’s apathetic wailing combined with a belligerent, yet hummable, guitar melody makes you want to turn up the volume, pound the gas with your lead foot and flip the bird to the next copper you see on the open highway.

The almost primitivist “Astral Plane” sways back and forth like a drunk seaman, soon to be hanging over the ship’s railing in a sickening stupor. This uncanny, vaguely psychedelic sound appears all over “Walk to the Fire,” contributing to the record’s subtle hallucinogenic mystique. The track’s climax is marked by Derr’s disastrously fulfilling brass solo.

Monoshock’s “Walk to the Fire” will likely grab you by the neck, and wring you for every last penny. Sometimes being wrong feels oh so right.

MP3 :::
Monoshock – Astral Plane (Take Me)
Monoshock – I Took You To It, Baby
Monoshock – Leesa

Get Wasted

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on March 17, 2009

in Super Swingin' Mix

. Comments

happygreenday Get Wasted

I think full contact St. Patrick’s Day would me more interesting, don’t you? Rather than simply pinching someone who wasn’t wearing green, you mow them down with your car. Because wearing green is so important, you see. It’s a good style.

Speaking of good styles, here’s a quick and dirty mix of music that traces the general trajectory of slamming car bombs all night – from the good time to the sickness. The picture above is, indeed, the Chicago River. I definitely recommend going to Chicago for St. Patty’s Day and also, surprisingly, Savannah, Georgia. Savannah’s celebration is huge and amazing (with better weather), and if you can avoid pockets of brodeo, you’ll have a really good time.

MP3 :::
Roxy Music – A Really Good Time
West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band – Endless Night
Times New Viking – My Head
Nothing People – Sickness
My Bloody Valentine – Swallow (band formed in Ireland – see what I did there?)

Veto – Sorta Happy Songs for Very Happy People

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on March 13, 2009

in MP3

. Comments

veto Veto - Sorta Happy Songs for Very Happy People

With little fanfare, the Danish Music Awards were held in sunny Copenhagen earlier this month to recognize the country’s best musical talent. While this may seem like a trivial event in the global scheme, it’s probably worth checking out the listening preferences of inhabitants of the world’s happiest country.

Band of the year honors went to VETO which manages to put out largely electronic music without sounding sterile, bored or excessively “euro”. Front man Troels Abrahamsen delivers vocals with an uncharacteristic Scandinavian soul and imbues songs with a dark broodiness which defies any adjective approaching ‘world’s happiest.’

Despite a slot at SXSW a few years ago [Editor's Note: Still waitin' for my free SXSW badge, DUDES] , VETO hasn’t garnered much acclaim on this side of the pond. Their latest release, Crushing Digits (Tabu Records), is set for release in the UK next week but no word on a US release date. Until then, it’s one more reason the Danes are happier than you are.

MP3 :::
VETO – From A to B
VETO – You Say Yes, I Say Yes

Two Bands I Dig Who Spell Their Names Incorrectly

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on February 26, 2009

in MP3

. Comments

Wavves Two Bands I Dig Who Spell Their Names Incorrectly

Wavves is the one-man project of distortion architect Nathan Williams, or as I call him, No Age Jr. No Age is a good reference point for Wavves, as both groups consist of skateboarding SoCal dudes who appreciate noise-damaged pop. Williams’ eponymous debut comes replete with Brian Wilson vocal harmonies, seriously hummable melodies, and swells of screaming, treble-saturated feedback. Sure, that recipe sounds like Psychocandy, but since the Jesus and Mary Chain could never follow that album up themselves, I’m cool with other bands trying to do that. And Williams knows exactly what he’s doing, as all the song titles almost exclusively featuring the words “beach,” “demons,” “goth,” and “girls.”

Despite the shtick, Wavves demonstrates solid songwriting on the askew sunshine pop of “No Hope Kids,” as well as an appreciation for ambient exploration on “Beach Goth.” Wavves is a great listen, especially with the weather warming up. However, I would also urge you to check Indianapolis’ excellent Marmoset. They mastered the psychedelic no-fi garage thing long before the term “shitgaze” was coined.

Wavves is out March 17th on Fat Possum (strangely enough).

51i8BU1DrSL._SS500_ Two Bands I Dig Who Spell Their Names Incorrectly

This was originally released in November ‘08 and flew under my radar. Like the mighty Os Mutantes before them who rocket-launched Brazillian pop into extraterrestrial territories, Coconot, a trio that includes Pablo Díaz-Reixa (a.k.a. El Guincho), introduces tropicalia and calypso sounds to west coast psychedelia, kraut, dub, and a smorgasbord of other off-kilter genres. The result is fresh and fantastic.

Masterfully weaving lush, sample-based textures with traditional Latin soundscapes, Cosa Astral is smart and mercurial. Vocal yelps, interstellar melodies, cascading drums, and structures that collapse and rebuild set the stage for this carnivale of light. At only three minutes, the ornate “Miles de Ojos” summons a rather epic, brain-burning crescendo equal parts playfulness and intensity. “Tao” cultivates a colorful Caribbean flavor as-informed-by Spacemen 3 and Lee Scratch Perry.

Though heavily rooted in traditional Latin and Caribbean sounds, Cosa Astral would fit perfect in your collection between Panda Bear and High Places – due in part to Coconot’s relentless experimentation, but also in part because the indie rock world is beginning to celebrate rich international sounds.

OH, and hey, you can hear these songs and more on my radio show Technicolor Underground, which airs tonight on WXBH-LP. You can hear it in online stream form here, or on 92.7 FM if you’re in east Louisville.

- Kenny Bloggins

MP3 :::
Wavves – No Hope Kids
Wavves – Beach Goth
Coconot – Polen Muchacha!
Coconot – Tao
Coconot – Miles De Ojos

Things are touch and go for Touch and Go

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on February 24, 2009

in Noise Consultations

. Comments

logo2 Things are touch and go for Touch and Go

First Muzak and now this news; Touch and Go Records is shuttering its distribution arm and laying off staff in response to that economic crisis thing. Perhaps it’s not surprising given that most labels have been absolutely decimated not only by the economy but by the sea change in music consumers’ purchasing behavior.

The major labels have long operated based on a ’swing for the fences’ business model with the presumption that pouring enough money into a release can somehow strongarm it into being a hit. But despite the deep pockets, majors have historically released 9 losers for every winner. Touch and Go, on the other hand, relied on shoe-string budgets and word-of-mouth promotion to goose its releases. Needless to say, its downfall doesn’t bode well for the state of less robust indie labels.

With that backdrop, let me wax on ya about the sheer volume of music available and the effect it’s having on listening habits. The other night I found myself on Last.fm until I had to prop my eyelids open with pencils. It was like diving into a swimming pool full of Oreos with a pint of milk in hand. Sheer bliss for a while as I reveled in the limitless pleasures available, but ultimately disappointing as I realized the limits to my physical capabilities.

mix-tape Things are touch and go for Touch and Go At some point in the past 10 years I stopped listening to albums and started listening to songs. It began innocently enough with mix tapes. These were purely labors of love with hours spent winding and rewinding tape, scattering CDs across the floor and avoiding the ultimate mix tape sin – having the tape run out in the middle of a song. But with the constant evolution from CD changers to MP3 players, the ability to instantly call up an obscure cut from your library of thousands of files (formerly known as “songs”) became universally available.

It used to be that buying CDs was a near-religious experience. Bringing it home, dropping it in the tray and scouring the liner notes while relaxing on the sofa. It was an event. More recently I sit at the laptop with earbuds and skim through a limitless amount of streams, samples and downloads. We’ve gone from a fine dining experience to the Golden Corral buffet.

There’s an upside here. As consumers we can easily access a massive variety of music from our homes. Buying music used to mean taking a risk and, at $12 a pop, not a cheap one. One way of separating the wheat from the shit used to be trust in labels. SST, Sub Pop, Touch and Go, Creation, what-have-you. Labels established reputations and reputations created allegiances. I can’t help but wonder whether the decline of label relevancy has hurt the established names in the biz.

So what say you all? Is the online distribution and sampling of music making labels less relevant? Rather than plunking down $12 on a Touch and Go release do you spread your dollars around?

The average listener who consumes major label hits probably isn’t going to stray into Touch and Go territory. But the avid music fan – Touch and Go’s core audience – is likely to stray elsewhere if given the opportunity at no risk.

Regardless of what precipitated the decline, Touch and Go is an icon in the indie world and its releases will live on long after the label. Here’s a few gems just to jog your memory a bit (and maybe even spur you to purchase the entire album).

MP3 :::
Brainiac – Kiss Me, You Jacked Up Jerk
The Black Heart Procession – The Old Kind of Summer
Bad Livers – Jesus is on the Mainline

A Meeting of the Vibes

Published

Michael Hansen

on February 23, 2009

in MP3

. Comments

Vibes-You God It

Not Not Fun may have to consider a name change, because on Vibes’ debut release, You God It, Pocahaunted chanteuse Amanda leads the label’s first super-group into psychedelic garage-funk territory.

We could tell the girls of Pocahaunted were getting antsy when they started injecting dub and dance hall elements into their trademark campfire drone sessions on last year’s Island Diamonds. To remedy this, they’ve teamed up with members of Sun Araw, Robedoor, Magic Lantern, and Fantastic Ego to ditch the delay pedals in favor of some wah-wah.

“Honeycomb,” and, “Understand This,” are two head-bobbin’ choice cuts from the tape’s A-side, confidently beaming with a little warped swagger to boot. No moccasins required this time. I’ve been told this is the perfect addition to anyone’s makin’ breakfast mix, so try starting your day with You God It when you’re throwin’ on some pancakes (hold the Nanerpuss) and see if you don’t come back to thank me.

Unfortunately, this release was limited to 100 initial copies, so you’ll have to wait until they re-stock to get one of your own. But in the mean time, your best shot at hearing these jams live is to check out the Not Not Fun Records Showcase, March 20th at the Hideout in Austin, TX. Confirmed guests include: Pocahaunted, Magic Lantern, Ducktails, Barn Owl, Sun Araw, and Mythical Beast.

MP3 :::
Vibes – Honeycomb
Vibes – Understand This