Music Review - American Stories

Assuming American Stories is a an Americana band would far too one-dimensional. An Americana/punk-influenced/Adult Alternative band might be something closer to the mark...though it still falls short of what they've offered up on the latest.

The new album, Where the Grass is Green is their first as a full band. There are some songs rehashed from their previous effort, Prelude but the new arrangements do nothing to detract from the sound of the songs. If anything, the addition of a second guitar and a full time bassist, as well the exploration of other instruments like ukelele, keyboards, and mandolins, brings a fuller sound to the stories previously told.

Stand out songs on this album include "Sing Along with me California (Interlude 1)", a song that matches vocals to music succinctly and shows a bit of that feel of "we used to be punk rockers, but we are quieter now, yet still a bit pissed off". Many of these songs seem to be observations on the transitions that occur for many musicians and their styles change and their lives start to break in on the music itself. "City of Angels" is another song that strikes a chord with traveling musicians. It shows the expansiveness of the band and the rekindling of songs with new sounds. "Halfmast", originally recorded on Prelude is still probably the best piece of story telling on the album and probably the most radio ready track.

At the end of the day, this isn't just americana and it isn't just an album for musicians to enjoy. This is a great group of musicians showing the level of their craftsmanship at this stage of the game. A different stage than their roots, but a good place to be.

Where to find them

• Spotify
• Rdio
• Amazon

RIYL: 10 Cent Howl, The Dirty River Boys, Paul Westerberg

Music Review - Ten Cent Howl

Seems every trumped up pop-band playing acoustically with a little bit of banjo or mandolin are calling themselves Americana these days. Ten Cent Howl is an exception to this rule. These folks are rocking hard, but the feel is definitely what Americana is all about. Like the Osmonds, Ten Cent Howl is a little bit country and a little bit Rock-n-Roll.

Continuing to push their latest music independently, Ten Cent Howl has brought another 11 songs to the modern vision of American splendor in a modern world. The first eleven songs featured in the widget on their home page represent their "new album". What a modern world we live in, indeed.

With brooding vocals to match the dark chord strumming of an acoustic guitar, TCH is driven by the melodies of the words and the music, where the attention to detail shines through. A steady bass carries that low-end and ties in the drums and percussion. These two pieces form a pocket the guitar and vocals feel free to build on. Add to that a number of extra instruments brought in to round out the sound and you have a finely played album.

Kicking off with "Bourbon Sea", this collection of songs is often deceivingly upbeat. That is, until you listen to the lyrics. Each song has a fecundity of ennui as experienced in a straight forward life. The protagonists found in these songs are striving for a sense of perfection without accepting that perfection is so far away. This is re-enforced in songs like "End of the World" and "Downtime". These are songs that remind us of love lost, love never tried for, and the feeling of the open road, the back-handed compliment it makes of being for everyone and utterly lonely all at once. That's, what Americana should be. That's what Ten Cent Howl is.

Where to find them:

• Their home page
• Their ReverbNation Page

RIYL: The Dirty River Boys, John Fogerty, Johnny Cash>/p>

Music Review - TTNG - 13.0.0.0.0

With lots of lineup changes and even a change in name (kinda, going from This Town Needs Guns to TTNG), consistency is not what the math rock (now) power trio from Oxford would be known for. With a melodic and percussive sound underscored by lamenting (dare I say emo?) vocals, the one thing TTNG proves on their latest release 13.0.0.0.0 is they can consistently deliver solid tunes.

There were concerns that the move from a quartet to a trio with the main vocalist leaving might lead to a drastic change. As the one remaining original member, Tim Collis, is still the driving force behind the writing, the sound of the band itself still contains the expected percussive tap-on sound. The drums on this album seem a bit more pedestrian and reigned-in compared to earlier drummers on earlier albums. Whether this was a production choice or an individual style is unclear but the frenetic, raw emotion seen on Animals is noticeably missing. The vocals are a bit less persistent on this album and leave a bit of a filling in the blanks feeling compared to the urgency of earlier vocalists.

Stand out tunes on this album are without doubt "Cat Fantastic", which leads off the album with a transition from the previous album seemingly. The quietness of "Nice Riff, Clichard" brings a solemn note into the mix and it's a good mid-album resting point, though and "Triptych" is a call back to previous work from TTNG.

When all is said and done, 13.0.0.0.0 is good follow-up for a long awaited band that some thought we might not hear from. The important word here is good not great.

Where to find them:

• the entire album is streaming on YouTube
• iTunes
• SoundCloud

RIYL:American Football, Toe, City and Colour

MUSIC REVIEW - Doctor Dirty Sanchez

It's hard to believe it's been 10 years (at least) since Dr. Dirty Sanchez have graced a stage together. Part of Buffalo's punk and hardcore resurgence in the early 2000's, DDS have given us one last gem to sit back and enjoy. After years sitting unfinished, Greg, Tim, Phil, and Jesse have released Prepare for the Worse - a misnomer if ever there was one.

Let's start by looking at the instrumentation. Greg and Tim keep the guitars super tight, with a guttural growl over Phil's clean and clear basslines that hold down every song. Then comes, Jesse: one of Buffalo's most accomplished and versatile (and bloody fast) drummers. These guys were tight. Every line is followed and every beat is rock solid. There is some datedness in the sound on the recording. The drums are often too far in the background with the bass holding up the rhythm section's weight by being up front. Vocals are well placed and clear regardless of who's singing or providing the oohs and aahs.

It's easy to see how this album will be a fun trip down memory lane for folks into pop-punk and hardcore in their youth. (FULL DISCLOSURE: I remember having tons of fun playing shows with these whack-jobs. If only this could be a DVD). Songs like "Make Up My Mind" and "Missing Nuns" are fun, the type of fun that makes you want to run around and light things on fire...you know, like you did when you were a kid and the punk show didn't start until the sun went down. The title track shows a bit more of the hardcore roots of the band and the scene that spawned them.

The only drawbacks of this album is that (a) there will be no more albums after this and (b) there will be no shows to go to in order to see the songs performed live. Alas...Dr. Dirty Sanchez is in fact a blast from the past. But we should all be thankful, they gave us one last backflip off the amp stacks to enjoy.

Where to get it:

• BandCamp(name your price!!)

RIYL: Seaweed, The Descendents, Snapcase

Music Review - Bad Religion

Bad Religion is easily one of the longest running bands in history. Technically, only one member has been in the band since it's inception in 1979 (singer, Greg Graffin), but there are six current members and they continue to make music that remains against the grain.

Their latest, True North remains in the vein of there albums since about 2000. The songs are all good, solid guitars (they should be as there are 3 guitarists now), killer beats courtesy of Brooks Wackerman, and always foundational bass lines from Jay Bentley. Vocals, both the lead vocals and the "oohs and ahs" Bad Religion is so well known for, are all right as expected.

The concern here is that, as they get older, will they slow down? Thus far, it doesn't seem to be the case. Songs like "Robin Hood" and "Land of Endless Greed" show there is still a stance against the oligarchy and consumerism of corporatized American life. And they are still punk rock enough to have a song called "Fuck You".

The problem here is that album seems to get a bit flatter around the middle. This has been the case with the last few Bad Religion albums: as if the songs were written well, but half way through they become just filler (see "Dharma and The Bomb" and "Hello Cruel World"). Perhaps it would be better if they released EPs instead of full albums.

That said, all in all, the world of music, and in general, is a better place for Bad Religion being in it.

Where to find True North:

• in true punk fashion, the full album is streaming for free on YouTube
• Available for pre-order from the Bad Religion Store

RIYL: NoFX, Offspring, Rancid

Music Review - Float the Witch

The mid-90's was really an epic time for the female fronted alt-rock band. Blake Babies, Belly, Juliana Hatfield, Liz Phair...the list goes on. Float the Witch seem to very much want to carry on in this vein and their self-titled EP really sets the tone.

The immediate grab starts on the first track, "Meridian" with a lilting, almost celtic voice that wouldn't be too far from many of the vocal performances heard on the radio program Thistle and Shamrock. That all changes as you realize this band can actually rock out. It's not all simple acoustic ditties. The energy (and guitars and bass and full kit drums) are whipped out right in the next track, "The Abyss Gazes Back". This is a straightforward rocker, compared to "Le Miroir" a french inspired (and vocalized) surf rock song.

If there is one drawback to Float the Witch it is the seeming lack of direction. The music is eclectic, which is not bad, but can seem scatter-brained, even within the structure of a single song. The production value is decent for a first recording and the sincerity is apparent in every song.

This being a valiant effort, hopefully we will see a full length soon from Float the Witch.

Where to find them:

• Bandcamp
• Their Website

RIYL: Juliana Hatfield, Decemberists, Swans

Music Review - Coheed and Cambria

It's tough to go back to something that was once so great. Remembering the first listen through of The Second Stage Turbine Blade or In Keeping Secrets of the Silent Earth 3 and the jolt of originality and fresh ideas, this is what was hoped for in Coheed and Cambria's latest release The Afterman: Ascension.

For those of us keeping score on the storyline, Afterman is the first part of a two-part album (the second half is promised in February 2013) and is the prequel to the story of the characters Coheed and Cambria and their children. I know Year of the Black Rainbow was also a prequel, but the story has a definite end...so apparently now we must find the true beginning.

It's seems as time has passed, Coheed has become overly polished. The story is definitely more concise, and the playing is on point, although it seems we've moved further from roaring guitars with keyboard accents to more of a keyboard focus. It would be a good sacrifice to lose some continuity in order to get some edge back. After going through the tunes of Afterman it seems these albums have become formula. Starting with a somewhat instrumental tune ("Hollow", parallel to "Keeping the Blade" on Good Apollo or "One" on Black Rainbow), followed by the big anthemic song ("Key Entity Extraction I: Domino the Destitute", parallel to "Welcome Home" on Good Apollo or "The Broken" on Black Rainbow), and the obligatory slow jam ("Subtraction", parallel to "Wake Up" on Good Apollo or "Pearl of the Stars" on Black Rainbow)...we begin to see that there is a pattern. This may be the intent of the story teller, but if so, we are losing out on better music in order to ensure a pocket pattern is formed.

Unfortunately, this is not the triumphant return of Coheed we may have hoped for...but hope still shines...perhaps they can break the chain in February with the second part, The Afterman: Descension.

Where to find them:

• Their Website
• iTunes

RIYL: The Protomen, The Used, Rush

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