Good music is like floating a sweet patch of powder on your snowboard. It's so good it makes you smile and drool. It's the reason we exist ... or at least the reason I exist. This month we feature reviews by the esteemed Senior Music Reviewers on this here website. Jason and Mark will go down in FrictionMagazine history as the only ones who could tell it like it is. Between the two, their critic years number more than my breathing years and the two are apt and capable to comment on ... well, anything at all having to do with good music. Herein you will find their praise, constructive criticism, and complete dislike for bad music. Take their advice, they know what they are talking about. Jason and Mark would want you to buy you music at Insound.com.
May.15th.2003
Bedford Spaceships, Sex and Jealousy: The Singles 1995-2000
One thing about putting words to established if not defunct bands that release a collection of singles is that no matter what I do or say their sound and "legacy" will remain and die hard fans will pick this up no matter how I wheeze and choke about it. Never the less, Bedford was a band out of Wilkes-Barre, Penn. that made angst fun in a sort of retro coalescence kind of meter. Included on this disc were standouts such as "A Million Ways to Spend My Time", "Year One", and "A Pleasant Delay". The rest rocked as well so there you go. Fans of Bedford ... duh! Um, get this. For those who have been loosing sleep wondering what the hell these guys used to sound like, this is your golden chance. Take the moment and run, RUN to the record shed. It's under B section in the "rock" area. One would believe. Microcosm Publishing MW
The Blinding Light Glass Bullet EP
This might have been passable metalcore with a Swedish thrash influence if not for the wretched vocals. It's hard to believe the band, producer, or anyone within a mile radius of the recording studio didn't notice how bad these vocals sound! The only excuse for the inclusion of Brian Lovro's frog-scream is that he muscled his way into the band and no one was brave enough to tell him to fuck off. "Hey guys, I can sing! No, really, I can!" If The Blinding Light want to take their semi-interesting metalcore groove (by way of Entombed) anywhere past this EP, they had better cut this fucker loose. He'll be the death of them. Deathwish, Inc. JS
Noam Chomsky The New War on Terrorism: Fact or Fiction
Anyone curious about what Chomsky had to say post-9/11 need look no further than this spoken word disc recorded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in October of 2001. As per his normal genius, the elderly scholar looks at the war on terrorism from the direct opposite perspective of the mainstream media. He examines how the US and Europe have been the real terrorists for hundreds of years, explaining that the Twin Towers attack was one of few isolated incidents where the attack was reversed and the terrorists were no longer us. It's a brilliant set-up to a lengthy and involved speech that sticks to the regular Chomsky style of delivering the facts in a dry, pointed style. It's always amazing to listen to Chomsky select his words; his linguistic background is hard at work here as he carefully plucks the perfect vocabulary combos to explain why the US is so hated in the rest of the world. Sure, there's a lot of info here, and a lot of depressing, horrible incidents of genocide and terror to be exposed to, but it's a learning experience of the tallest order. Folks who are still having a hard time understanding how the world has become so fucked in the past few years will find a thorough explanation here. Alternative Tentacles/AK Press JS
The Control The Forgotten
In all vanities of the word, "hardcore" exists under the pleasure that kids in suburbia are way bored, way confused, and so full of aggression from the listless track housing landscape that the music scene will never go away. It had its heyday in the mid-'80s, maybe even just the early '80s, but the term still goes on. ... The Control have this vicinity and fist thrust the angst we all know and love in such a degree that the speakers turn white hot and sort of bend from the scream-core power noise these kids provide. Not for the weak-willed or just plain lame, The Forgotten is an EP (full length coming soon) brimming with meat and blood, back alley beatdowns, and full rage that can only emanate from the teen dream of getting the hell OUTTA HERE!!! Life becomes even more complex afterward but at least you have that choice to remain in light or not. The Control makes this apparent even with their name. The scene itself is still obvious if not so much squalor in its division of antics. But those crazy kids will still be crazy kids and I say fucking go for it man. It's your only and last chance. Have fun! Go Kart Records MW
Count the Stars Never Be Taken Alive
For every almost passable Victory band, there are at least three others that suck a big knob. Count the Stars are of the sucking variety. Limp, lame emo-pop in the vein of, fuck, you know, all those shitty bands on TV right now. Again and again, this label proves they care more about money than signing bands with integrity (although they did, in fact, sign Integrity). Sure, there's a couple of head-bopping moments on Never Be Taken Alive, but I can turn on any shitty modern rock radio station and get the same result. Victory Records JS
Dearly Departed The Remains of Marianne Mayweather
Well, in a genius marketing ploy, the record label even describes this as "cliché" and, ultimately, so do I. The five songs on this "mini-CD" (or EP, if you prefer) all have that familiar sound perfected by Mineral or Sunny Day Real Estate almost a decade ago. It's safe to say the swelling, soft/loud emo sound has had its day and the time to move on has long since passed. For that reason foremost, but also because Long Island's Dearly Departed just don't, well, rock, I cannot recommend this EP. Ya, ya, good vocals and pleasant sounds but, come on, this is yawn inducing at best. One Day Savior JS
End on End Why Evolve When We Can Go Sideways?
It's always nice to know that there are hardcore bands out there that still care. End on End is one of them. At a point in the mid-'90s, it was trendy to be political and wear your heart on your sleeve. These days it's only cool to not care, grease your hair, and wear your cock on the outside of your pants (or so I hear). Quite frankly, I've stopped paying attention to hardcore because of how cheesy it has gotten in the past few years. Bands like End on End remind me (actually, slap me in the face) that hardcore is still an exciting, exhilarating genre of music that can make the blood and fists pump, if you just let it. End on End have chops, talent and spunk. They can play the hell out of their instruments and never let themselves become too repetitive or grating. Even the vocals don't slip into that wounded chipmunk zone so many bands of this ilk are guilty of entering. If a song like "All Hail the New Esperanto" doesn't get you moving, nothing will. Substandard Records JS
The Forms Icarus
Perhaps it is just plain stupidity, but sometimes when music that comes forth -- whom everyone is pleased and erect over -- goes over my head, I feel as if I should like the band and sound but then have to wrestle with that jungle beast deep inside and cry out: "No! This album was only okay to me! Not genius! I ... am ... an ... idiot!" But that's just me you see? So many critics and fans have claimed The Forms as a #1 piece of masterwork, a trial by flame and noise power to which enigmatic tunesmithing and lyrical one-handed juggle make for a soundtrack you and your tight jeans wearing crew will swoon over again and again. ... I, as the long-time metal maniac and writer of vast unpublished works thought it was fine but the clang and bang and short fuse wanderings made me purse up and go "yeah ... fine, whatever." Yet don't get me wrong dear fan of The Forms and like-minded outfits such as June Of 44 and Sunny Day Real Estate, I enjoyed Icarus as much as I could, but given the fact that ol' Steve Albini rendered his lead-putter mitts on this project, the whole thing came out much like a power auger from that wimpy kid in homeroom's bottom. See, the brainiacs and the soul mongers are always at war. It's a bitter yet peaceful war, but nonetheless, there is a division that is rarely crossed. The Forms are on a side that you must decide in which to be a part of. I'll be in the ice cream shop, listening to Sabbath and watching the sun go down. Where will you be? Threespheres Media MW
Garrison The Model EP
Fans of Garrison's last full-length, Be a Criminal (Revelation), will be a little taken aback by the subdued nature of their new EP. The five songs on The Model take a slightly less rockin' path than anything from their last album, opting for a more mainstream, Jimmy Eat World-ish feel. The Garrison hooks are still loud and clear, front and center, but these songs have a little more resonance and introspection. They do get a little wimpy at times, but, hey, there's nothing wrong with that if you're in the right mood. Iodine Recordings JS
The Jazz June Better Off Without Air
The Jazz June's fifth album is pretty neat stuff, riding the wave of various influences and sounds, from reggae to free jazz. Bass lines thump and plunk, drums tickle and bop, guitars noodle and pluck and the vocals are pleasantly sparse. I hear a bit of Karate in The Jazz June, but I'm sure it's more a point of reference to these ears than a conscious decision by the band. Still, fans of Karate will enjoy, as will those of Fugazi's janglier stuff. Like Fugazi, The Jazz June haven't abandoned the scratchier sounds of their past, as is evident on the freak-out bop of "These Pills Won't Calm Your Nerves." One complaint about Better Off Without Air is it tends to drag along in a lot of places, and those with short attention spans will be tempted by the song-skip button on a regular basis. Initial Records JS
Jett Brando Jagged Junktion
I totally got into this band man. No foolin'. Way fun in a thick gravy amplification kind of way. Actually, Jett Brando is one guy, Jeremy Winter, and he delivers the goods like that stoned pizza man at 2am. What I dug most about this album and this guy is its/his no fear approach to just making music and screw all with expectancies or even formats. Jagged Junktion goes all over the place and it makes perfect sense in the end. The first time I laid ears on this beast I wasn't too sure what was going on or how I could even tell the splintered tale of this extricating release. But then after a song or two later, I understood. Then I popped it in for a second and third time and, whammo!, the prevalent rock 'em sock 'em joy came forth and cheers and beers to you Jeremy ... or Jett or ... whatever. Don't matter. If you are a fan of moody rock gone beach front condo then I highly suggest checking this guy and this gift out. If not you're all tense and hate the fact that cool people make cool music sometime. But I don't think you're like that. Are you? Go Kart Records MW
The Microphones Mount Eerie
I'm not sure what to think of this. Over 40 minutes of drum beats, static and muffled acoustic folk in a punishing, pointless listen. Unlistenable. Okay, there, I do know what to think of it. K Records JS
The Milwaukees This Is a Stickup
New Jersey's The Milwaukees might have just made the first great rock record of this decade. There's no bullshit or strings attached to This Is a Stickup; only solid, emotional rock that could be filed with ease alongside the classic albums of the post-punk era. Play this and The Replacement's Let It Be or Nirvana's Nevermind back-to-back and The Milwaukees will fit in seamlessly. No shit. There's 11 songs of pure rock here with excellent lyrics and an understated beauty that 99 percent of bands never attain. The best thing about This Is a Stickup is they don't try to do too much; instead they let nature take its course and the music pours out, untainted by thinking about things too much. It's a jam room where nobody says, "Hey, let's sound like so-and-so," or, "How about we stick a [insert genre name] riff in here?" They just let it flow and it works wonders. Does Everyone Stare? JS
Moreland Audio Turbogold
It becomes very apparent that the boys here in Moreland Audio are engineers or math whizzes or something. The clangy instrumentals they create and objectify come across in a singular motion, one that instills eras of chalkboard manipulations and tiered seats in dull-lit classrooms. Overall, the tunes themselves are not bad at all and I highly suggest checking this out if you enjoy such other acts like Drive Like Jehu, Faraquet, and Spatula. It all has it's place and time and more often than not I can enjoy a bit of this trickle effect and time signatured mugwump. Best part is -- and this is one that I always love about cool bands of three nerdy dudes that are probably sweet as cake and smart enough to make you feel all stupid holding that filled red cup at the party as they waver from reference point to reference
point -- the songs do rock in a sense and they are not short. No radio friendly hits or demises here dear reader! Take it all and take it on ... Moreland Audio scrape the beaker and take us all on an aural exploration of sounds and disturbances. Kind of like the guys in Muppet Lab. Yeah! 54 40 or Fight MW
Nakatomi Plaza Private Property
Nakatomi Plaza are from New York, but without the benefit of liner notes it would be easy to peg them as a Florida band. An essence of Hot Water Music and the always-shifting crop of screamier No Idea bands is more than evident on Private Property. Amidst songs like the melodic "Bike Rock Revolution" and spastic "Consider This a Hostile Takeover," Nakatomi Plaza deliver a fairly impressive range of emotional hardcore. And while they often side with the poppier sounds, these songs have lots of chaotic moments as well. Poetic lyrics and soft-spoken vocals, interspersed with those of the screaming chipmunk variety, push Nakatomi Plaza into a more respectable category than the glut of screamier emo bands that often have zilch for range. Immigrant Sun JS
Piedmont Charisma Self-Titled
I hate music like this. Annoying, sappy, geeky songs that mosquito into your head and never stop that incessant, high-pitched buzzing. It starts with the horn-rimmed glasses with no lenses in the band photos, leading into foolish sounding vocals from prepubescent boys (or reasonable facsimile) and keyboards that just don't let up. I guess I could try comparing this to other new-wavey bands, but then I'd have to rustle up more names that would only bother my head further. Slave Audio Documents JS
Premonitions of War The True Face of Panic
Fuck yeah! 18 minutes of raging aggro grind. When it comes to punishing metalcore, I doubt many can top Premonitions of War. The best thing about this Toledo, Ohio band is they are never content to stick to the thoroughly beaten metalcore path, instead opting to incorporate different elements of extreme music, including thrash, grind, death, mathcore, sludge, and other forms of audio carnage. Song lengths range from one minute to upward of seven, and the intensity never lets up for a single moment. Wow! I can't imagine how many necks a full length could snap. Goodfellow Records JS
Rainer Maria Ears Ring EP
I don't remember Rainer Maria being this upbeat and catchy. Then again, I always thought their name was Rainer MARINA, so that shows you how much I know about this band. This three-songer collects one track from their latest full-length, Long Knives Drawn, and two unreleased songs. Vocalist Caithlin De Marrais' sweet voice carries the band, but the peppy guitars and bouncy rhythm section only help matters along. I would love to hear the full album after perusing this. Polyvinyl Records JS
The Rutabega / Owen Split EP
Booooring. Rutabega and Owen serve up interchangeable indie rock/acoustic meanderings. One minute into the CD, Rutabega (also known as Josh Hensley) gives us this ditty: "I remember when great grandma died/ You tried to make me touch her face," and it's over for anyone with even the highest tolerance for cheese. Owen is Mike Kensella and his songs are slightly better, if not only for the absence of any lyrics about his great grandma kicking the bucket, but still dry, slow, and dull. Sorry, but I expect something a bit more dynamic from a guy who used to be in Cap'n Jazz. Backroad Records JS
Since By Man We Sing the Body Electric
Ya, there's a certain sassiness here, and the Nation of Ulysses send-off has to go. They even steal "A Kid Who Tells on Another Kid Is a Dead Kid" as one of their song titles. Despite the obvious reference points to their sound, Since By Man manage to eke out a strong album of Refused-style hardcore. The sounds of bands like Killsadie and The Blood Brothers also rear their ugly little mop-heads on occasion, but not enough to rustle too many feathers for those who prefer music made by grown-ups. Mainly, this Milwaukee five-piece deliver a jazzed-up skronk akin to Converge with a lisp. Revelation Records JS
Small Brown Bike and The Casket Lottery
Now here's an idea! Fear not because this ain't a split CD. Rather it is a combination of Small Brown Bike and The Casket Lottery on a totally collaborative EP with many variations on who does what. It's kind of confusing but, as far as I can tell, the two bands team up on four songs (one band will sing to other's music, or both bands will play together) and each band provides a new original of their own. The result is excellent as each band shows off their brand of emo-rock, and together they warp and fiddle with their sound to create something new. Neither Small Brown Bike nor The Casket Lottery has really elevated themselves to a higher echelon until now. I wish more bands would stick their necks out and try different things with split CDs, which (along with compilations) are usually the bane of my existence. Also, I'm so pleased this wasn't one of those "let's cover each other's songs and mutilate them" splits as I initially thought it was. This is a great EP. Even a combination cover of Queen's "Under Pressure" (potentially a disaster) comes across with charm and class. Second Nature Recordings JS
Somehow Hollow
Three members of the revolving door that was Ontario's Grade have continued on in Somehow Hollow, a band they played in before their tour of duty with the "worst hair in hardcore" band. Thankfully, vocalist/guitarist Brad Cassarin and his brother, bassist/vocalist Mike, have written a record almost entirely devoid of the faux-metal Grade shamelessly flirted with. Instead, we get the straight deal; catchy pop-punk/hardcore with clean, easy-listening vocals. Warning: Just don't look at the band photo on the back cover because the hair is still somewhat intact. Not sure what happened to Kyle Bishop, that Grade screamer/sideburns farmer that always seemed to ruin their songs with his incessant howls, but, then again, who cares because he's not in this band. Somehow Hollow are a different band than Grade and, in most ways, a better one. Victory Records JS
A Static Lullaby ... And Don't Forget To Breathe
So there's this area of semi-new music that I both admire and misunderstand. It's like emo kids gone metal but with the sense of noise and indie yet accessible to so many heads that I'm not really sure where to put them. Maybe that's the whole idea. OK ... I'll shut up. Basically, A Static Lullaby rock out with their socks, um ... on, and come across as a group of sad kids all done up with a confused air about them. Plus man ... the screaming really gets to me. Okay, okay ... we get it! You're pissed and injured. Gotcha! Now why don't you try and chill while the band does a fine job making floorstaring nu rawk and pieces the intricacies of being young and repressed to tonal beefsteak. Thanks. Ferret Music MW
There Were Wires Self-Titled
For once in my lengthy term at Schreurs review central, a band manages to include a bonus live set on their CD without pissing me off with horrible sound and repeated songs ad nauseam. Boston's There Were Wires end their self-titled, nine-song disc with a live set from local college radio station WERS. It's an impassioned, powerful set from a band who must have been bouncing off the studio walls. The album songs are even better, combining the metallic chaos of Deadguy and Botch with the epic emotion of Yage or You and I. "Bigger and Better Things" even provides an acoustic send-off that shows the melody these songs have hidden deep beneath the hellish sounds. Okay, the lyrics are only one step above notebook-scrawled, bus trip meanderings, but, hey, sometimes simplicity can be refreshing, and it certainly is here. When singer Jaime Mason sends a blood curdle of, "We're all so fake," he sounds anything but. Besides, the focus here is not on the literary relevance of the lyrics, but on the screaming and the noise. Both are pure music to the ears. Iodine Recordings JS
Travoltas Endless Summer
Dude ... great name but not what I expected in a band. I don't know why but I was looking for maybe one of them new fangled trash-rock bands or some surf thing or ... something. What I got and what you will get as well is a piece of almost standard punk. But I like that. I mean, the whole Ramones thing comes across pretty easy and the tunes themselves are rather glittery and fun, but not enough to mainstay the title they gave themselves. Mind you, there is that sense of absolute humor that tends to become ample once the record needle scrapes the vinyl enough and after a listen or two they grow on ya. Kinda like that thing down there after that one summer you spent making out with the rebel kid from the co-ed camp across the lake. Even the cover of the album resists all temptations of stodgy classification what with the teen scene doing the hula bop on the sweet, sweet sands of Rockaway Beach. Oops ... there goes the Ramones identification again. But I can't help it. Neither can you. Plus I think John Travolta now is dull and makes crappy movies. Dude, "Battleship: Earth"? Are you kidding me? Fastmusic Records MW
Wow & Flutter Names
The new faction of instrumental indie rock heads both amuses and peaks interest. At one point, bands like Wow & Flutter come across as chimed musicians who take an idea and fold it till it comes out a weave of styles and ideals and makes a whole out of almost not much. The tunes themselves here on Names blend guitars with cello (not unusual these days) and slow methodical rhythms to cleanse the ear from standards and expectancies. I almost gathered a hint of gothic under/overtones with the guitar work and the cello adds flair of classics mixed with fanned heat of those who seek out the ordinary guitar/bass/drums bit we so are used to. The moods here will delight fans of Low and I even caught a glimpse of some Pink Floyd-esque swoons to which will heave the chest of many a space rock/bong blaster follower. All in all, the band has been around for almost a decade and hopefully will keep it up. If not, how will we properly serenade that wilting rose? Jealous Butcher Records MW
