Grandhorse: Portraiturefolio [Album]

Just as I thought I was losing touch with the sound of my favorite musical city, to what should my wandering ears should I hear, but the latest band of merry PDXers to emerge from the land of fugitives and refugees, Grandhorse!  I most begin by clearly stating that I absolutely love this band and already have a preconceived bit of bias towards this wonderful group of guys.  But, that is not to say that Grandhorse and their debut album Portraiturefolio is not without merit of their own.  This is beautiful spaced out pop music that is driven my powerful chords and stimulating lyrical madness.  It’s not insanity, but this is a band that definitely pushes the pedal to the floor when steering through the often mellow dramatic world of Portland indie rock.

Grandhorse is a four piece band of wonderful folks who have, in some form or another, made their way through the grungy streets of PDX in their own ways before bonding together through mutual pairings to develop the wonderful product they have today.  Portraiturefolio is a beautiful example of what can happen when like-minded artists with the same goals in mind come together to create some modern magic.  Each of the 9 songs on this album speak almost directly for themselves, and are all equally powerful.  Although I do find myself skipping back to “Washington” during any given setting.  But, again, this is one of those rare gems that is a truly solid work of art.

Like many of the Grandhorse’s successors, it is easy to listen to them on a record and just know that to truly grasp the beauty they create, you have to see them live.  Because if the electricity the create on a record can be this magnetizing, one could only imagine how much fun it would be to see these cats spewing sad and/or uplifting lyrics right in front of your face.  That being said, it still behooves me to state that Portraiturefolio is an obvious last minute addition to the forthcoming lists of the best albums of 2013.  Without a shadow of a doubt.

Live in the Portland area?  Then be sure you have yourself down to The Press Club for a FREE show on November 2nd (that’s tomorrow)!  Grandhorse will be joined by Dedere (another fine band you will soon hear about here at TWS) and Reaver Drop for their official release of Portraiturefolio.  Find out more details HERE.

George Glass: Welcome Home [Album]

Do you ever have those moments when you hear an upbeat indie band start to strum their hearts out…..and you really want a beer.  Maybe not so much the urge to get drunk, but just nice cold god damned beer.  I’m sure there is some psychological analysis that could prove this is the hearing and taste elements of ourselves working in unison, but we don’t have time for that.  We are sitting at a bar in L.A. listening to the tenaciously beautiful vibes of George Glass as they strum along to witty songs about travel and triumph and all those wonderful things.  Or, we are sitting in a dark room in a far away land sitting behind a MacBook listening to their recently released album Welcome Home.  Either way, one thing is for certain:  This is music that goes down great with a deliciously cold beer.

The fact that George Glass was originally formed by some friends in a bar in Los Angeles should not be at all surprising.  This is music made to have fun with, and to simply be merry.  Sure, some tracks are bit slower and more heartfelt, but the overall appeasement of the album is one of sheer joy and bittersweet happiness.  If it were necessary to pick out a star track from Welcome Home, “Side Effects May Include” could be a safe bet.  It’s pure “indie” rock, dating back to the times when that meant something entirely different.  Probably around the time most of these guys were born.  And who can pass up a gem like “One Liner” that is a prime example of just how great harmonized western rock/folk music can truly be.

Welcome Home is an album that draws you in like a japanese horror flick with its oh so appealing, beer yearning charisma.  But one of the greatest assets of this album, and probably George Glass as a whole, has to be the bitterness you feel when the album ends, and you simply want more.  Of course you can always rinse, wash, repeat.  But, there is no beating the lost feeling you may get when you have taken a stroll through the

Blitzen Trapper: VII [Album]

Oh yes, the boys are definitely back in town on their latest album which is aptly titled, VII to mark their seventh album since they broke out over ten years ago.  And it is suffice to say that Blitzen Trapper knocks it out of the park once again on the record that some people are calling their best work to date.  But, as an avid listener, fan, and digital stalker of the band, I know that people say this every time they put out a new record.  Hell, I have covered their last 4 records, and I think I did say that as well.  And I am not certain that it is constantly about BT always doing even better each time, I think it is that they just continue to impress us when we the fans are anticipating the release with so much zeal and excitement and we have yet to be let down.

Is VII  Blitzen Trapper’s best album to date?  I honestly don’t feel it is the right thing to say yes.  Is it a beautiful addition to one of the finest catalogs of music in recent years?  Oh hell yeah!  The album has every element we have grown to love from them over the last decade.  Their obvious lead off singer “Ever Loved Once” could have been called “Track 13” on American Goldwing, and “Don’t Be A Stranger” is another beautiful little folk ditty on par with anything from Furr or Destroyer of the Void.  And then there is the experimental, fuzz rock sound that was more predominate in their earlier work spread out throughout this album as well, more so than we had really heard of the years.  And of course, it just works so damn well.

They are a bit more modern on this record than we have heard in the past, which is definitely not a bad thing.  Of course, for me, Blitzen Trapper can track shit stained boots all across my living room carpet and I would save it as a memento.  So, I am a bit impartial.  But with good reason, as Blitzen Trapper has proven over and over again that they are one of the finest and hardest working bands out there working today.  Their music is overtly timeless, no matter how much modernism they attempt to convey.

Get your copy of VII from the band’s WEBSITE.  You will not want to miss this one!

Joseph Demaree and the Square Tires: Sunbeams [Album]

Dear fans of soft, somewhat morbid, but ultimately pretty ballads and storytelling, do I have a treat for you!  I would like to introduce the reincarnation of Leonard Cohen.  Of course, I know LC is still alive, kicking, and kicking ass, but it still has to be said.  Much as I deem Blitzen Trapper’s Eric Earley to be the son Bob Dylan wished he would have had, I am certain that Sir Cohen would wickedly approve of Demaree’s sultry new age twang and simple melodies about the sun and so much more.  For readers old enough to remember the first time they heard the first of the Songs series, listening to this cat with his band The Square Tires on their new album Sunbeams has to have a similar appeal.  It simply has to!

There is simply too much to love on here.  Demaree’s northern/western drawl might be off-putting at first, or the entire time if you are only used to straight edge, high school a capella turned folk singer style.  But for those who can find the beauty in his demeanor, which I am sure there are many of us out there, this will be something you will truly enjoy.  This especially goes for the infectious 8 1/2 minute long cut “Catch A Sunbeam” that I still believe can go on forever, and become the background music for the earth.  And despite the implication by the title “Shouting In The Street”, this other gem of a track is as mellow as rainy day in Demaree’s home base of Portland, Oregon.  Just smooth sort-of-folk-but-mostly-blues melodies about breaking out and down altogether.

I really can’t say enough good things about Sunbeams.  This is album is simply delightful in so many ways.  Storytelling has always been a very important factor for me personally, and Demaree does it absolutely perfectly on this album.  It has to be stated once again:  When we are doomed to have Mr. Cohen absent from this earth, we will likely still have Demaree.  Which I believe is a very fair trade.

Pick up a copy of Sunbeams right HERE, from the finest independent record labels around today, Idiomism Records.

Lonely & The Socialites: Connections [Album]

I can not convey just how happy it makes me to know that country-esque rockabilly music is still a vital asset in the musical world.  It is just a simple and beautiful way of creating some of the finest art imaginable.  It is heartfelt, crazy, and supplies and ample about of depression and/or fun with just a few strums of a steel guitar or banging around on the ole piano.  And I have to say, after one listen to Lonely & The Socialites on their recently released album Connections, I have faith in musicians once again.  These guys know what the hell I am talking about.

Connections is an album with a play list that is absolutely reminiscent of days past.  Days that most of us more than likely didn’t even have parents capable of producing the right amount of sperm to create another human being, let alone lived through.  But, of course we can be inspired by the times of then.  And Lonely & The Socialites definitely seem to garner influence from the glory days.  For straight up country and/or western vibes, “All I Have Is The Ring” is about as perfect as you will ever find.  And for the Springsteen style rock and roll, “She F****d Me Up” and “You Can’t Hide Behind Your Wild Hair” will leave your heart yearning to be rocked!  But, as the title might suggest, the rockingest moment of this album definitely occurs on the cut “Good Thing At the Party”.

Lonely & The Socialites is a good time have, good vibe creating, whimsical batch of very talented folks from across the U.S. who have managed to have their souls collide, and created an amazing new record that is as heartfelt as it is wildly entertaining.  Connections is definitely one of the years finest, and is not to be missed!

Get a copy of Connections for yourself right HERE.  You will not be disappointed!

Sleep: Lockland 95 (The Story of Us) [Album]

I’m not going to lie to all of you.  When I caught wind of Sleep, 1/2 of rap duo 2 Man Cypher, and his solo album Lockland 95, I had never ever heard of a place claled Lockland, Ohio.  I couldn’t even come up with a correct assumption as to where in the hell it might be, and what happens in a place such as this.  But after 11 tracks profiling 12 different and strangely fascinating characters who resided in the area circa 1995, it became extremely clear what Lockland was all about, and it almost brought a damn tear to my eye.

Whether it is tales of drug dealers & addicts, 10 year old prostitutes, junior high rebellion, what have you, Sleep’s Lockland 95 is not only a perfectly saddening collection of tales of missing out on “kisses and hugs” and “selling drugs”, this is the perfect definition of the idealism of being sad because it’s true.  While the lyrical madness that Sleep provides on any given track on this album are absolutely superb in their own right (I will go in to that later), one fascinating aspect of this album are the stories told just prior to the madness.  Each track is a name, and on each track the name is aptly represented in prose and lyrics.  Sometimes with a familiar 2pac tracks playing subtly in the background, Sleep tells one sad terrible tale after another before breaking in to prose.  And riddle me this:  If the subject matter of Lockland 95 seems “typical” and “obvious”….maybe it is time to analyze why the hell such violent subject matter can become such easy go to subject matter?  That seems like the real problem here.

I was honestly scared that, despite the realism behind the concept of this album, this was going to be a disaster for one simple fact:  these are stories set in 1995, is it going to sound like 2013?  Well, the answer is no.  And yes.  Actually, it sounds timeless.  There are many aspects of Sleep’s raps that do sound very 90’s beef rap-esque era, a very moderately based middle American in distress sort of artist, but in the end, his words are very timeless.  It is actually quite possible that the only thing in his lyrical status is the violence and pain in his words, something we don’t seem to hear articulated so well these days.  In this day and age of bullshit rappers just saying whatever they feel like over a 1/2 million dollar beat and having dumbass white kids flooding their Pandora playlists with their nonsense, being an artists doesn’t seem to matter to the hip hop world these days.  Of course, true hip hop listeners know there are plenty of really wonderful artists out there who do their work for the love of hip hop, and for the love of telling a beautiful story.  And I say with full confidence that Sleep is on the same tip.  Lockland 95 is poetry in motion, this is a collection of beautiful tales of ghetto fortitude and an ultimate profile of American tragedy.

Download Lockland 95 at a Pay As You Want scale right HERE.  I definitely recommend throwing at least a couple dollars down for such a great album.  As Sleep says himself, any money will just towards more studio time anyway.  So we can all win!

Greetings From Spektor Island: Music From the Film “Ten” [Album]

So, there has been this great little project known as Ten that has been floating around our little blog here for a few months.  There has also been the mentions of artists such as Darling Pet Munkee, Catherine Capozzi, The Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library, and, to a sort of related extent, Do Not For Sake Me Oh My Darling.  And for the minorities out there who don’t already see the coalition, just understand that they are all simultaneously combined in one form or another, and that they are also simultaneously excellent as well.  This is why I am so pleased to feature this wonderful new soundtrack, Greetings From Spektor Island: Music From the Film “Ten” that combines so many of my favorite musicians, and now actors as well, into 41 beautiful cuts.

Catherine Capozzi, lead guitarist for the brilliant Axemunkee and crucial member to the collaborative effort that is Darling Pet Munkee, is without a doubt the key to this whole album, and the tantalizing composure of the film Ten she has created.  (Note: I have indeed watched an un-edited version of the film, and it really does kill me not to scream out loud, well as loud as you can be on the internet, I have to refrain for the moment.  But, trust me, it is coming!).  But what truly matters here is making damn sure you the fine readers understand that Capozzi has created something absolutely frightening yet hysterically fun as the composer of Ten, all without being too campy,

Composer, Catherine Capozzi

which I had always considered a very real and even scarier possibility.  But alas, my faith in Catherine to do right was positive, and she proved to be as ever immensely talented as I could have ever imagined.  She managed to draw from the sort of freakscape of her work with Darling Pet Munkee, as well as occasionally pulling out the beautiful acid jazz/blues riffs I have come to love in listening to her main project, Axemunkee (I can still hum “Acid Django” for days on end).  So many props have to be given to Catherine for creating something so just so beautifully dark and delightful.

But of course, I did say this was a group project as well.  And scattered throughout Welcome To Spektor Island, are some other great little ditties as well.  Including two equally frightening versions of one of the film’s centerpieces “Hush Little Piggies”.  There is the freak show at the carnival-esque version by the great and powerful and previously mentioned Darling Pet Munkee, as well as Sophia Cacciola’s (Do Not For Sake Me, MJME, everything she can get her beautiful vocals on, etc.) solo version that seriously conjured up images I wish I would have never had to see, imaginary or not.  There is also a fun little techno based cut entitled “Roe Deer”, which features some of the best dialogue from the film itself, and composed by the very talented Joel Edinberg.  And at what seems to be another show of great talent and good faith, A couple of very nice Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library tracks show up as Bonus Tracks, rounding out a very beautiful experience of listening overall.  And if it really needed to be pointed out even further for the virgin eyes and ears out there, Epstein just happens to be the film’s director, the curator of a billion projects all happening at once, and a hell of a musician, and as it turns out, a very insightful filmmaker as well!

In the end, the results of delightful this album was definitely should have, and was, to be expected.  With so many great artists, actors, overall great people, it is truly no surprise that the film Ten, and this amazing soundtrack turned out just so damn wonderful.  It is fun, it is playful, and all the while being absolutely terrifying.

Pick up a copy of the soundtrack for yourself HERE.  And be sure to stay in touch to learn more about the official release of Ten, coming soon(ish).  Get on the e-mail list, that always helps.

Cubbiebear: Force Back To Sleep [Album]

It only takes a few moments in to a Cubbiebear track before you start to realize….  this is not music.  This is not exactly hip hop.  This is not exactly poetry.  What is this?  Obviously it is something beyond any sort of bullshit generalization.  But, what exactly?  What is this beautiful organized madness?  I don’t think there is an answer.  The best I can come up with whilst listening to this man’s latest album, Force Back To Sleep, that the in working of this man’s brain is being laid out right in front of you for the taking.  While it has been established that it is  impossible to generalize what you hear, it still can be safely stated that this is entirely fucking personal.

“I Don’t Care”, a stand out track on Force Back To Sleep, is Cubbiebear’s prime example of a being an excellent MC, with rhythm and story to tell.  It is a track that runs a bit smoother than the others, although it has a life and personalized style all on its own.  And on the flip side, a track like “Adam” brings out the poetic effects on a tale that seems so filled with so much pain and/or love that it almost feels as though some privacy is being invaded.  “Tame” is another cut that brings upon those great feelings of invasion to the psyche of a madman who found a microphone.

There are probably dozens of “Recommended If You Like” artists that I could name here to try to make you understand what this man sounds like.  But, in all reality, it would all be bullshit.  Cubbiebear sounds exactly as Cubbiebear wants himself to sound.  This is an artist who wants to have his voice heard, and he is the only one who can tell these stories, and with his very own fashion.  And Force Back To Sleep is an amazing biographical display of the pain, misery, and love of being this one man.  This is personal.  This is great stuff.

Check out Force Back To Sleep for yourself HERE.

Nathan Angelo: Out of the Blue [Album]

It is (or at least should be) a fact that nostalgia is a hell of a drug.  It’s like cocaine to the soul.  At some point in your life you are probably going to utter the phrase; “Today’s music is just….(insert derogatory comment)”.  Our love for the past is a disease in which there is no cure.  And frankly, I find this to be a good thing.  And with that being said, insert Nathan Angelo and his infectious new album Out of the Blue, an amazing tribute to the days of yesteryear.  This album is an incredible ode to not only the days of Motown, but to the time when R&B actually meant Rhythm & Blues, as compared to whatever it is suppose to be today.

Right from the jump, Angelo makes his goal perfectly clear with the jump up and go track “Get Back”.  He whole heartedly informs us that Out of the Blue is going to be a journey back to the music that he is obviously very passionate about.  And then the journey begins.  Whether it’s the funk driven “You Could Be My Girl”, or the cool, collective, and oh so smooth love ballad “Thank You”, this is an album for the true believers of what it used to mean to be a genuine soul machine.  And with just a touch of doo wop, this is an album that is fuel for the nostalgia in all of us.

With a voice as smooth as expensive cognac, Nathan Angelo is one of the finest artists to emerge in the world of R&B in many many years.  Out of the Blue will definitely prove to be the best album in its class to come out this year.  Whether you want to dance, love, or simply groove by yourself in your living room with a glass of wine and a good feelings, this is the album you are going to want to hear.

Out of the Blue will be released on September 10th.  Head on over to his WEBSITE to pick up a copy for yourself, and be sure to catch Nathan in a city near you on his cross country tour in support of the new album.

Nathan Angelo’s Tour Dates 

09.12 Tin Roof, Columbia, SC

09.13 The Windjammer, Isle of Palms, SC

09.14 Smith’s Ode Bar, Atlanta, GA

09.18 40 Watt Club, Athens, GA

09.20 The Channel, Greenville, SC

09.21 Evening Muse, Charlotte, NC

09.22 Pour House Music Hall, Raleigh, NC

09.24 Jammin’ Java, Vienna, VA

09.25 The Middle East – Upstairs, Cambridge, MA

09.27 The Living Room, New York, NY

09.28 Club Cafe, Pittsburgh, PA

09.30 Skully’s Music Diner, Columbus, OH

10.01 Birdy’s, Indianapolis, IN

10.02 The Elbo Room, Chicago, IL

10.24 Rhythm & Brews, Chattanooga, TN

10.25 3rd & Lindsley, Nashville, TN

11.01 Lestats, San Diego, CA

11.03 Hotel Utah, San Francisco, CA

Sweet Felony: Split Ends Mend [Album]

I have found myself dancing around with myself listening to Split Ends Mend for quite a while now, and am sourly disappointed in myself for only getting around to letting you all know about it until now.  But dammit if Sweet Felony isn’t one of the sweetest female fronted groups since the likes of Seattle’s Tacocat or Portland’s own Forever.  And they have created an amazing punk rock/americana/doo wop/what have you album that is just such a delight.

The tracklist for Split Ends Mend is absolutely a collection of songs that will send you on an emotional rollercoaster.  Just after the americana infused “Truckstop” is wrapping up, we are thrown in to a imaginable 80’s mystique with the apologetically correct track “Love On”, and then slings you off in to a doo wop and electric guitar driven sing along state of mind with “Surrender”, and the trends continue on.  The trend being that there really is no trend to the beautiful madness that is Sweet Felony.

Sweet Felony’s front women Christa DiBiase and Amanda Guilbeaux are definitely a stand out sensation which is a great feat considering they reside in the legendary Bay Area, where so many legends have thrived.  And the spirit is obviously continuing on as Christa and Amanda pour their heart and soul in to the beautiful tunes they will soon be known world-wide for.  This is some seriously pretty and mesmerizing stuff here!

Split Ends Mend is currently available HERE. The band will support the release with their new drummer Jefferson Marshall (Assembly Head of the Sunburst Sound). They’re currently writing songs for a full-length album, with a release planned for sometime in late 2013.