The Cerny Brothers: The Cerny Brothers [Album]

I simply pity the fool who really thinks that the spirit of creativity and originality is dead in this country, in regards to music at least.  Sure, much of the indie hippyster rock music coming out these days is similar to the latest craze you were just finding out about, but I will be damned if I don’t consider this a blessing in disguise.  When I hear a band like The Cerny Brothers break out in their beautiful folk melodies and extremely catchy and chorus driven sing alongs, I don’t think of it as hearing a redefined version of Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, no matter how close a comparison my negate.  No, I hear passion.  I heard loud love for story telling.  I hear zeal and I hear grace.  That is the beauty of the new age indie folk movement…..it’s all personal.  And being  a bad with personality is as wonderful as we can expect, and The Cerny Brothers have nothing if they don’t have personality!

The single most impressive thing about The Cerny Brothers self titled debut album is one simple emotion that it draws from one’s breath.  An emotion that you have to admit, you probably don’t feel too often.  Well, an emotion might be a bit of a stretch, but it is definitely a saying.  A saying to yourself of, “Damn, I bet this would be SO AWESOME LIVE!”.  Even in their moments of sorrow, these cats manage to be inspiring and beautifully laden with a sadness you want to see spilled in front of you like the blood from a gladiator.  Just seeing the group effort from a track like “Out of Time” would mean the world to me.  And, yes, anyone who listens to this album will recognize (if you weren’t already driven by) the beauty and catchiness of “Ohio” which, if I am to continue the Edward Sharpe references since they recorded the album in ES&TMZ’s home turf, will definitely go down as The Cerny Brother’s very own “Home”, which is definitely not a bad thing.  It is a truly tremendous track and worthy of any recognition it receives.

This is the kind of band that makes me remember why I even got into the business of writing about great music.  The Cerny Brothers are the reason that I wake up in the morning and decide that I absolutely most profile some beautiful music.  This is the type of music that makes life worth living.  This is  the type of album that leaves you with a reason to go on and gives you hope for a brighter future in a world that is plagued with chaos and misfortune.  The Cerny Brothers know how to make us smile a time when it is so easy to frown.  And what the hell else do you need from a band of emerging merry men/women.  If you need more than that, you are just selfish.  This music is life.  This music is precious.  This is exactly what we need!

Pick up your own copy of The Cerny Brothers debut album on May 28th right HERE.  You’re not going to want to miss this!

Golden Bloom: No Day Like Today [Album]

What is it that makes Golden Bloom such a fine commodity to the world of independent music?  While some of might see this as an arbitrary question that only the meek and disembodied souls of this world should ever have to ask, it might just be worth an answer.  Shawn Fogel and his newly formed band of merry men known as Golden Bloom are the perfect result in the people’s yearning to not feel like shit all of the time.  Too much of today’s indie rock is so sad that it is almost entirely impossible to enjoy.  Sure we get down at times, and we need these songs.  But, we also need an album like No Day Like Today from these fine folks to bring us back up and tell us to simply chill out.  It will all be okay, one way or another.  For this, we should be eternally thankful that a band like Golden Bloom exists today.

Now, this is not say that it is all sunshine and Mountain Dew flavored rainbows on No Day Like Today.  There is a slight sense of sorrow within the walls of this amazing album.  The difference being that a positive aura is consistently present during a single listening session.  The struggles of trying and striving are evident and extremely important to the positive factors of this EP.  There is a constant feeling in this album that simply makes you realize that even as we fail, we are constantly learning and becoming far greater people than we were yesterday.  When Fogel sings from his heart telling his that there is “no day like today”, he is simply telling us that today may very well be the day our lives change forever and we would be right to embrace it at the highest level.  Now, this may not be a literal transition to what he truly means, just my own dumbass views, but I can dig it, if you are willing to as well.

This is the third installment of Shawn Fogel’s inceptive mind put to music as Golden Bloom, and it is definitely his finest work.  ”Flying Mountain” might very well be his finest piece of work today.  He’s playing with a solid group of folks at this point, and it truly seems as though the creative side of himself has been greatly enhanced by finding a gaggle of like minded souls to make music with as a community of awesomeness.  No Day Like Today is an album that leaves you wanting more, and praying to the heavens that we will hear even more from Shawn and his merry men that are Golden Bloom.

Sadistik: Flowers For My Father [Album]

At this point, Cody Foster a.k.a. Sadistik is a household name down here at Trainwreck’d Society.  We have featured him.  We have interviewed him.  And now, we are kicking off his album review status here.  Sadistik released his first solo album since 2008, his delightfully compelling album Flowers For My Father.  And damn it as it is, Sir Cody has a whole lot to deal with over the last 5 years since his last album.  He watched his father pass, hence the name of the album.  And he also felt the loss of one of his cohorts and idols Michael Larsen, a.k.a. Eyedea.  And as sad as all of this is…. Sadistik has managed to create one of his finest works to date despite (or because of) the despair he has suffered over the last few years.

Flowers For My Father, in its entirety, is truly a wonderful showcase of a truly brilliant artist who obviously loves what he does for a living.  Each track is another story so beautifully told, it feels as though Sadistik is ripping his heart from his chest, throwing it in a pile of rose petals and carving his thoughts directly onto its surface.  Everything is so personal and bewildering it is almost hard to keep up, strategically leading a listener to give the album a couple of dozens of listens before truly feeling the album as a whole (or taking a shit eating music blogger months to do a simple write up for an album that came out months ago, sorry Cody!).

The man himself is definitely in good company on this album as well.  The friendship he has shared recently with indie songstress Anna-Lynne Williams has the internet going wild, and her cameo (as Lotte Kestner) on the utterly compelling cut “City of Amber” is definitely a combination of creativity that is an obvious highlight of the album.  Other notable cameos of the album come from Cage & Yes Alexander on “Russian Roulette”, Child Actor on “Palmreader”, and Deacon the Villain on “Kill The King”.  But it would behoove me to note that Sadistik rips it all on his lonesome on the opening cut “Petrichor”, which is a song that will surely be the short action soundtrack to this man’s already illustrious career.  This is the sort of album true hip hop fans have been waiting for.  Hip Hop as an art form is a relevant thing, and Mr. Foster, your favorite indie rockers favorite rapper, is here to smack some sense into all the naysayers out there.  And it is safe to say, he has made his point abundantly clear.

Take yourself HERE to get up to 5 copies of Flowers For My Father for FREE!  

There Is No Mountain: There Is No Mountain [Album]

About 5 years ago I discovered this little band from Portland, Oregon that I found absolutely intriguing, they were known as The Ascetic Junkies.  And over the years, they became an absolute must on playlists and mixtapes (remember those?) I would make for the rest of my days thus far.  The spawned two amazing albums, and a brilliant short fed E.P.  But, as wonderful as they may have been, times change and things have to be done.  Creative spirits move with different cross winds against the musical spectrum.  In the several years I have been doing this music writing thing, I have watched a few of my “favorite” bands simply dissolve for one reason or another.  Thankfully, I seem to fall in love with such creative spirits that I know I will hear form them again.  And sometimes they come back better than ever.  This is no exception with the dissolving of the AJ’s, and the lead into a new beautiful creation form the front man and woman known as There Is No Mountain.  In fact, this is one of the greatest offsprings of a band I love since Her Ghost debuted after The Fenbi International Superstars became a thing of the past (another story that makes me cry).

With all the sap behind, let’s get focused.  There Is No Mountain is at its worst a beautiful recreation of all of the things we once loved about Kali and Matt from The AJ’s.  At its best, it is a completely original and truly creative take on everything the duo has learned over years of performing and a perfect example of growth in the human mind.  Nothing proves this point better than the beautiful tracks “Good News” and “The Nail Salon”.  While at first listen they seem to be some sort of reincarnation of the past, they soon shift into a strange psych filled folk that we haven’t really heard from them in times past.  And it really doesn’t stop there!  The opening cut “Owl Hymn” and a latter track “I’m Not Convinced” actually – wait for it- ROCKS SO HARD!  Alright, well, maybe the tracks are still just as light hearted and pretty as you would come to expect, but, the electricity that is heard and more importantly felt in these tracks is undeniable and much harder than a trusted fan might be used to.  And I will be damned if they don’t absolutely kill it.

There Is No Mountain’s debut album is, in itself, a beautiful album.  If I hadn’t been a huge Ascetic Junkies fan in my own right, I guarantee I would have still heard this album and absolutely fell in love.  Yes, it could very well be just the continuation of Kali and Matt that keeps me so entranced, but I am sure there is something more.  It certainly feels as though the is lovely couple as realized that what they have is something very special, but it could be fun to change things up just a bit, which seems to be exactly what they have done.  And I want to put it on the record as saying that they have not only done just that, but, they have created the finest records of the year thus far!

And with that, be sure to catch There Is No Mountain in a city near you!  They are playing across the country as this is going to “press”.  They have already traveled thousands of miles from Portland, but they are still looking to double back home!  Check out their tour dates, and find yourself wherever they are to catch what is sure to be an absolutely lovely evening that will leave you with a giant smile on your face, and a swelling in your heart.

For a complete list of shows from There Is No Mountain, just stop by HERE.

Lotte Kestner: The Bluebird of Happiness [Album]

Oh Lotte Kestner.  Lotte, Lotte, Lotte.  It is incredible how you never cease to surprise your adoring fans.  For so many years you have never failed to impress us time and time again.  You continuously validate yourself as the owner of a pair of the finest vocal chords in the business today.  And you only seem to be getting better and better.  The Bluebird of Happiness is the third album that the legendary Anna-Lynne Williams has released under the pseudo name Lotte Kestner, and her second album chock filled with (mostly) original tracks.  And what a damn gem to say the least.  I can think of no better follow up to her amazing album of covers known as Stolen, than this beautiful album.

  To put it bluntly, this is such a pretty album.  It is a perfect collection of brilliantly versed, wonderfully comprised works of art.  Each track is as wonderful as the next, and at the very least is a wonderful continuation of Lotte Kestner’s debut album China Mountain.  And of course it would behoove me not to bring up that, yes, The Bluebird of Happiness contains her now praised cover of Beyonce’s “Halo”, which has received a great amount of attention on the inter webs, and deservingly so.  While I may personally choose tracks like “Cliff”, “Wrestler”, or “Turn The Wolves” as far superior tracks, it is undeniable that Anna-Lynne Williams has managed to re-create a beloved song in the pop world, and made it all her own.  But, each track on this album is absolutely brilliant and worthy of an abundance of listenings over a couple of bottles of wines and a few smiles amongst friends.

Bodi: The Fall of Atlas [Album]

The genre “Alternative Hip Hop” has been making a splash in the underworld for a long time, and has eventually moved itself onto the main stage.  But frankly, I am sick and tired of the tag, “alternative”.  It is the same bullshit brand that got stuck upon rock music in the 90′s, another genre of music that was viewed as an alternative to the main stream brand.  I am personally sick and tired of fine artists with true talent and something real to say being considering simply an alternative to something bland.  This is an absolute insult, and must be stopped, as guilty as I am for using the same terms.  Bodi is hip hop.  The Fall of Atlas is a hip hop album.  Better yet, it is a genius hip hop album.  It is an album with soul, spirit, and the guts to destroy whatever demons might try to hold its master Bodi back from achieving whatever the hell he years to achieve.

By far my favorite track from this amazingly prolific record has to be “Prologue”.  It is just so entirely honest in its content that it will make you ponder all the lies you have been telling yourself over the years, as well as the lies you may continue to spew.  And it doesn’t hurt that such an all-inclusive and testament to honesty also features the brilliant voice of the finest female vocalist in the business today.  ”Clotho” (as I have previously mentioned, here) is another perfect track that rips apart what we always thought was self recognition out of selflessness.  And it is such a joy to here Bodi rap among his peers such as Sadistik on “Pandora”, Kristoff Kane on “Epilogue”, and Cas One on “Prometheus”.  And so much thanks has to be given to Bodi for introducing, to me at least, such talented artists like Murder Dice, Jean Grae, M.anifest, and so many more that are featured on this album.  And if you have soul at all, a song like “Valkyrie” will have you choking up tears when Bodi and Dice’s verses are chased by the Ebenezer Children’s Orphanage with such valance and and a touching intensity.

If it weren’t obvious, I can’t say enough good things about The Fall of Atlas.  I have been an fan of Alexander Hallet’s work since I heard the first volume of Alexipharmic’s Good Side of Bad countless years ago.  And while I have enjoyed the likes of the “alternative” pioneers like Slug, Sage Francis, Eyedea (R.I.P.) for even longer, it was this man who made me despise what I considered to be the given truth.  The given truth that hip hop was a dead sport ran by venomous bafoons, and we were in need of an alternative.  I no longer believe this to be true.  I believe Bodi is hip hop as it was meant to be.  Bodi is a perfect example of what what we should aspire to be as people, not just what we should listen to.  This is genius.  This is gold.  This is Bodi.

Bobby Joe Ebola and The Children Macnuggits: Trainwreck To Narnia [Album]

Corbett Redford and Dan Abbott are a duo that obviously understand the power behind the laughter.  But even more so, they may be the finest songsmiths out today to understand the power of analogy and finding humor in the dereliction of human decency.  In a world that seems to be at times deprived of decency and filled with shit at its core, it’s good to know that there a fine folks like Bobby Joe Ebola & The Children Macnuggits who will be there to exploit indecency and the modern warfare against the common man in a beautifully light-hearted way.  Which is what I feel their latest, and possibly most personal, album Trainwreck To Narnia does all to well.  This is an album that is bright and beautiful, yet tells it just like it is.  You will feel love.  You will feel inspired.  Because if you don’t, you might have a whole lot of soul-searching and/or therapy in your very near future.

As the guys themselves always say, “Just because we’re laughing, doesn’t mean we’re joking.”  And these truths seem to continue to be self-evident throughout Trainwreck To Narnia, just as they did back in 2010 with their stellar comeback album that I have never stopped listening to known as F , and just as they have been proving through the last three decades.  From the hilarious goof on Ice-T known as “Cop Kisser”, to the lovely little Louden Wainwright-like ditty “My Darling Boo”, and all the way back to the analogical look at the downer parts of life known as “Blues Turn Brown”, Bobby Joe Ebola and The Children Macnuggits have created another absolutely stellar addition to their already extremely impressive catalog.  And thee shall be damned of “The Last Child Soldier” doesn’t blow thy mind with its brilliance and sass.  This is an album that will make you laugh, cry, and more importantly, simply make you feel good about yourself through the power of lyric and expressionism.  This is definitely not an album to be missed.

Trainwreck To Narnia is available now from Roof Top Comedy Productions.  Buy it.  Now!

Bike Thief: Ghost of Providence [Album]

It’s good to hear quality, organic instrumentation on a record these days, as the world becomes more saturated with electronic music such as “dub step” and “trap”. Bike Thief has released their first EP, and it’s just what you need if you love songwriting and you’re looking for a break from bass and glitches.

The six song EP, Ghost of Providence, begins by drawing you in with “Battles” as the steady acoustic guitar vamp ushers in the backing vocals, eventually giving way to the string section. It crescendos with the strings and builds some tension before letting you back down easy as it returns to the vamp. This is a great song. Febian Perez’s voice reminds you a lot of Nathan Willett from Cold War Kids. Great voice.

The most impressive thing on this record is probably the use of the string section. I can’t imagine what this album would have been without the strings. Actually, I can. Before Febian came to Portland from Austin, TX we had begun to correspond via email. I heard “Battles” and fell in love. It wasn’t what it is now, but it was more than enough to make me want to make music with Mr. Perez. And now that he and his band mates are here in Portland, Bike Thief is taking off. The band has only been in Portland for about 5 months now, and already has opened for Cherry Poppin’ Daddies at Dante’s, and you definitely get the sense that these guys are really going somewhere.

Ghost of Providence was engineered and mixed by Jim Cuda, mastered by Nick Moon, and recorded at Big Red Studios in Corbett, OR (where Pearl Jam recorded the drums for TEN) and is available now at

http://riverjonesmusic.bandcamp.com/album/ghost-of-providence

Coed Pageant: The Seasons EP, Vol. 4: The Fallout [Album]

Coed Pageant are writing some really good songs that easily strike a chord within the listener. For those of us who love three or four chord songs with simple arrangements and great lyrics, this band has it all going for them. The arrangements are perfect, with a little help from their trumpet playing friend, Nathan Fry on “Over It” and some more help from their violin playing friend Twy Bethard on “Fallout” and “Henderson”.

The rustling of leaves and a gorgeous piano part open the record on “The End is Near”. My only complaint is that it’s only 51 seconds, but feels like only 15 seconds. We the listeners could have handled at least a full minute and a half of quaint piano assisted by a few sparkling notes far off in the distance.

Immediately following the instrumental intro track is “Wake Up Alone”, a three chord, poppy jaunt about, well, waking up alone after another long night that ends uneventfully. It’s about finding who you are in those lonely times of your life, when you have nobody but yourself, and the world is there to learn from. Good stuff.

Next comes “Good Year”, a nearly a cappella song that proves this bands apparent love of what minimalism can do to make a song more poignant. The song appropriately ends with the mimicking of the proverbial ticking clock…

…And the ticking turns to clicking to start out the next track, “Fallout”, the second best song on this EP. Don’t worry, I’ll tell you what the first best song is when we get to it. Of course, you may disagree, in which case, myself, and probably also Coed Pageant, would love to have you voice what you think is the best song on this record.

“Fallout” draws you in instantly. It sounds like they closely mic’d one of those metronomes your Aunt Mildred had sitting on the piano when you were 10 and taking lessons that your mother insisted on, and then they threw in some handclaps on top of that…okay, I might be wrong, it could just be drum sticks with a little delay, but I really want to know if it’s a closely mic’d metronome. Get back at me, Coeds.

Regardless of all that, even though this song is only 1:49, I don’t care. If it were any longer it would only serve to make it less poignant.

“Over It” is the peak of this record. A catchy piano melody leads into a catchy verse, that by the second verse leads into a chorus of trumpet with the singing of “ahs” following along, which then gives way to a xylophone or glockenspiel that slows down the time and ends the song.

From the first rustling of leaves, to the darkness of “Henderson” this EP makes you feel like you’re stuck in a perpetual autumn with gray skies above you and puddles at your feet, walking through your wet town lost deep inside your own introverted thoughts. The lyrics are fantastic, my favorite line being, “And intent don’t mean a lot to the person who got shot by accident” from “Henderson”. Give this band a listen, and if you don’t like it, but you love the Avett Brothers, than there is something wrong with you. Not that the Avett Brothers are horrible, but is it possible to love checkers, but hate chess? I don’t know, maybe it is.

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Banana and Louie: Alphabet Soup [Album]

For the last few years, there has been this fantastic band that has proven to be one of the finest, and well-organized pop groups of latter days.  They were formally known as A Fine Day For Sailing, a british pop group that fits very well into what I consider the “British Indie Pop Mafia”.  I’ve been covering so many of them over the years, It’s almost confusing trying to try to remember who is who!  Simon Bish, Andy B, Falling Trees, Andy Fonda, and on and on.  From London to Brighton, Exeter to Tipton St. John, there has simply been some amazing music sprawling from across the pond.  And t seems as though a couple of the elite members in this proverbial mafia have now created one of the finest masterpieces in the collection with a whole new group called Banana & Louie.

Banana and Louie came from the offspring of A Fine Day For Sailing, created by the legendary Matthew Stead, and it is probably one of the finest examples of mellow pop music melodies I have heard in a while (possibly since the last AFDFS record).  Their debut album Alphabet Soup is an absolutely bloody brilliant and just so much damn fun.  There is no way you can feel down listening to this record.  I mean, there a song called “I Have Your Melodica, You Have My Heart”!  Seriously, how can that alone not make you smile?

Banana and Louie is simply that sort of group that you really just need sometimes.  It feels great to feel good, doesn’t it?  Well, how about checking out one of the finest indie pop albums of the year, and pick your chin up a little bit?  Let the happiness take you on a roller coaster of enjoyment.  You won’t regret it!