Star Anna: Go To Hell [Album]

In my humble opinion, nothing really beats a female singer/songwriter with some beautiful stories to tell.  Of course “beautiful” is all relevant.  In so many ways, the greatest bouts with misery can bring out some of the most beautiful words the English language has to offer.  Some of the sweetest love songs are merely a house built on a plot of land called pain.  So even when anger fills the heart, there is always a much kinder way to put your heart out on that metaphorical line, and release whatever demons that reside within yourself.  And no greater example of such a thing can be found than in the immaculate album Go To Hell from Seattle’s latest gem of a musician known as Star Anna.

With a voice that simply uplifts your spirit even as she tried to bring you down, Star Anna creates a delightful conjuring of what it once felt like to hear a of angel with the attitude of the devil herself.  Go To Hell has the feel of a closet being opened, and the skeletons scatter around your dirty Chuck Taylor’s.  It is a little bit country, a little bit punk, obviously Americana inspired, and all around delight.

Whether you enjoy soft-hearted love ballads like “Mean Kind of Love”, bitter keyboard filled hate speech like “For Anyone”, or the sweetest Tom Waits cover ever imaginable like “Come On Up To The House”, this is an album that is going to make yearn to love and live all over again.  Of course, a personal favorite of mine has to be “Everything You Know”, which is a perfectly orchestrated bit of mellow dramatic rage!  Anna sings with such delicacy yet with so much damn empowerment that she is an absolute thrill to listen to.  There isn’t a single disappointing aspect of this amazing album.  It’s just all there for your taking.

Go To Hell will be released on September 24th on Spark & Shine Records.  Head on over HERE to learn how you can pre-order the album TODAY!

Smooth Hound Smith: Smooth Hound Smith [Album]

Who says kids don’t know a damn thing about the old days?  Well, probably every baby boomer still kicking, but that is not the point.  Should some of these death to the new school folks actually learn this Google thing, they might be surprised what they will find.  And if we were to speak in terms of those damn young people taking over Americana and old school folk music, I am absolutely certain they would dig the sultry and satisfying sound of Smooth Hound Smith.

From within the depths of the great band of show(wo)manship known as The Dustbowl Revival, we find Caitlyn Doyle hooking up with her man Zack Smith and moving out on their own on this slightly more stripped down, less ragtime-ish, and entirely beautiful debut album of theirs.  Just as you should come to expect from any Americana artists, here you will find wonderful ditties about love, loss, and what exactly it means to have a damn good time even when you feel like doing nothing more than crying yourself to sleep.

Caitlyn Doyle’s beautiful west coast meets down south vocals pair up oh so perfectly to Zack’s smoking bar room pipes when they share lyrics.  Hearing these two sing together is an amazing contradiction that is simply a delight.  When it comes to finding the best Americana artists out there today, there simply is no contest.  Smooth Hound Smith is as good as it gets.  And the getting is pretty damned good!

Pick up a copy of Smooth Hound Smith’s debut full length album right HERE.

Jack Wilson – Spare Key [Album]

When an artist does is best to poor out his heart to you, it’s almost impossible not to fall in love.  This is especially so when an artist has a voice that is both harrowing and comforting at the same time.  Yes, a beautifully told story with a wonderful set of pipes serenading directly into your years is something to cherish.  And that is exactly what Jack Wilson is trying to give to you on his beautifully perfected album Spare Key.

Much like any great album, Spare Key really doesn’t have any stand out tracks.  Hell, there are only 9 of them, so it’s not as though there are many to choose from.  And that being of no matter when you throw in the fact that each track is blissfully beautiful in their own right and stand out all on their own.  Each track is just another example of just how passionate and talented Jack Wilson is when it comes to creating stylistic spaced out folk songs that reach right down in to the core of the human psyche, and make us smile, laugh, and cry.

Listening to this record brings on a bit of sadness in some ways.  It is a shame that smoking has been banned from almost every bar across the continent, because there a few tracks on Spare Key that belong in smokey bars, swirling around whiskey bottles and lost souls.  This is music to lose and/or find yourself to.  This is beautiful.  This is refined.  This is the soundtrack to life.  Or at least it should be.

Alela Diane: About Farewell [Album]

A few years ago, my favorite band released an album that has never left my thoughts and iTunes playlist to this very day.  That band was/is Blitzen Trapper.  I love these guys, and I have expressed this time and time again.  But, what I may have never mentioned is that the star track from their album was heavily and heavenly assisted by one woman who has become another dear favorite of mine, and is an obvious influence on, not only myself, but my favorite band.  The song was “The Tree”.  And the illustrious woman was Alela Diane.  Saying that this woman has the voice of an angel would be as insulting as saying the Pope is simply a man of God.  Alela is an Americana treasure that we should all be so lucky to have ever none.  Yes, Lady Diane is a woman who gets the human psyche better than any of us can imagine, and has the beautiful pipes to tell us about ever so sweetly.  And on her latest full length effort About Farewell, she shines brighter than one could ever imagine.

Much like my beloved Eric Earley, this is a woman who can write a song that just touches my heart in all the right places and make me feel whole at heart and completely disheartening all at the same time.  The way she speaks of the desolate smoldering on “The Way We Fall” just kicks me in the memory banks and makes me resent and retort all of the past mistakes I can manage to conjure up from the thoughts best left behind.  This is a woman who sings about life, love, and the pursuit of decency amongst broken hearted thieves.  Yes, Alela Diane is a genius with the written word, and a masterful musician.  Furthermore, she is the obviously the mastermind behind the finest album of 2013.  Hands down, this is the best album to be sent down from the heavens to us this year.

About Farewell is available now in the digital form today, and the physical world on July 25th.  Discover more details right HERE.

STRFKR: Miracle Mile [Album]

Oh sweet holy fires of hell, the new aged funky bunch is back with a vengeance with their latest disco laced, funk driven, and extremely solid album Miracle Mile.  In some senses, this is simply a continuation of the pleasure they have always provided their fans, but in so many ways it is different.  At the very least, it is an improvement from an already amazing style and sound that drives home the space shuttle of spunk and soul we have all grown accustomed to hearing from STRFKR in their continuous odyssey to get on down.

Miracle Mile‘s track list is solid in its entirety, but of course we are going to find a stand out track somewhere.  And fans and critics alike are finding “While I’m Alive” to be an obvious stand out track amongst a plethora of killer tracks.  But, who can simply look paced a track like “Say To You”, which sounds The Beach Boys, meeting The Beatles, meeting that crazy blue crystal meth from Breaking Bad.

The solidarity of Miracle Mile is what is so damn impressive.  As we have come to expect from the fuckers of stars, this is a crew that draws from the depths of sorrow to rediscover what it is that enlightens us at the exact moment we need to be revived from the depths of hell, to learn to party our way through a disruptive existence, and just let it go.  And by no stretch of anyone’s imagination, this is not only the finest work from STRFKR to date…but, it is definitely one of the finest albums you will adore in 2013.

Pick up your own copy of Miracle Mile at Polyvinyl Record Co. NOW!

And be sure to catch STRFKR live, as they are continuously on the move.  The band will be hitting the road for a cross country road trip starting at the Capital Hill Block Party in Seattle, and continuing across the great lands.  Find out more information HERE.

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.