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VEHICLE BLUES: Punks on Transit
Here’s another one from Bridgetown Records, which is slowly but surely becoming one of the best places to turn to when you’re in need of some fuzzy, lo-fi, stoner jams.
Vehicle Blues is Gabe Holcombe from Chicago. I can see this guy recording himself in a basement, or tucked into a corner behind a couch with a ratty and worn hand-knit blanket thrown over it, covering up the tatters and ripped edges. That’s what this music sounds like, existential, get me through, i’m gonna make it type noise jams.
“Punks on Transit” is the prettiest and most melodic of the songs i’ve heard. A simple drum machine loop anchors Holcombe’s pretty voice, which leads you through the short song like you’re in a dream. Be sure to check his Myspace for more droned-out tracks.
Holcombe has an itch that I think he needs to scratch. It’s wanderlust. Get outta the midwest, dude. But then, maybe, his songs wouldn’t be so spooked out and inspired.
“Punks on Transit” is out now. Get it here either alone, or bundled with other awesome winter releases from Cloud Nothings, Nicole Kidman, etc.
I both love and hate Brooklyn Bowl. Here’s a breakdown:
LOVE
Cajun fried chicken with honey, big and luxurious leather couches, “Planet Earth” on multiple screens, absinthe cocktails, free shows.
HATE
Everything related to the stage and sound of bands that play there.
INDIFFERENT TO
Sounds of bowling pins being struck
There are clearly more items in the LOVE category. But the band is what really matters, especially when the band is Real Estate, which pretty much owns a large chunk of my head right now.
The band was really tight last night, (they could play these songs in their sleep), but I think the large room and the unbelievably large crowd may have been startling. Maybe. I mean, 3/4 of the band played Bruar Falls the night before backing up Julian Lynch. That place was packed too, but it’s maybe 1/50th the size of Brooklyn Bowl. Either way, the fire that i’ve seen these guys play with, most recently at the Market Hotel, wasn’t there last night. Or maybe it was, I just couldn’t feel it because it was gobbled up by the 30 foot ceilings.
The show was good, of course it was, but the room and the magnitude of the space stifled the sound.
The band debuted the track “Dumb Luck,” which is a melodic and enchanting song. I feel that the more Real Estate dig into those soft jam spots the better they sound. These guys get lost in extended soundscapes, and you can see it on their faces.
The Babies opened the night with pop garage rock. It was fun and clean– this band could be great.
Watch the twitvid, with bad sound, of what Martin ( @realyrealestate ) calls “Wonder Years.”
TONIGHT
The Babies, Real Estate and Salem at Brooklyn Bowl, 9:30
WEDNESDAY
The Babies, Total Slacker and Beach Fossils at Glasslands, 8ish
THURSDAY
Levon Helm Band and Okkervil River at Terminal 5, 8ish
Drink Up Buttercup, Alex Bleeker and the Freaks at Studio at Webster Hall, 8ish
Fluffy Lumbers, Bonus Eventus, Shark? at Silent Barn, 8ish (hosted by Pelly Twins and PopTartsSuckToasted!)
FRIDAY
Teengirl Fantasy at Monster Island Basement, 8ish
SUNDAY
The So So Glos and The Beets, kiddie show at The Living Room, 1 pm
If bands are still figuring out their sound, or are fairly new to playing live, they are often booked on bills that provide a sampling, nay, a splattering of genres. If the booker is good, they know how to attempt seamless crossovers. Last night, Rachel (PopJew) did just that. From Queening to Big Troubles to Pop. 1280 to the headliner, Julian Lynch, it was a variety show that made sense.
Julian Lynch plays his baby-blue Telecaster semi-hollow body through a wah-wah pedal like if he didn’t, he wouldn’t be able to breathe, or something. He nurses his songs like they were babies or puppies, lovingly moving them along, cooing and singing all the while. Yes, the music of Julian Lynch is pleasurable. While his solo stuff is more intricate, nuanced and maybe even a bit harsh sonically, last night’s live show with a full band was beautiful and smooth.
Lynch told me after the show it was the first time he played with a full band, and that they had only practiced that afternoon. Seeing as the band members were all his best friends at Underwater Peoples Records, it makes sense that they could so easily accompany their bro. The band featured Alex Bleeker (The Freaks) on bass, Matt Mondanile (Ducktails) on drums, Martin Courtney (Real Estate) on bass (I love when he wears his thick frames, what a guy) and Evan Brody (Family Portrait) on keys.
The band didn’t play long unfortunately, but I now have a taste in my mouth that I don’t want to get rid of.
Pop. 1280 is kind of a post hardcore noise band. The lead singer screams, dramatically whirls around the crowd and throws his microphone to the ground. It’s an old trick, one that, in my opinion, is boring if it’s not either completely scary or if the music isn’t totally demanding and dominating. I guess the band’s synth wasn’t working, which i’m sure had a huge affect on their sound, but besides guitarist Ian Campbell’s noisy Thurston Moore inspired strumming, there wasn’t much to tweet about.
Big Troubles has big potential. Another Underwater Peoples/New Jersey band, they play shoegaze inspired pop. While their one song that’s been around the internets, “Freudian Slips,” is really fun and well structured, the majority of the rest of their songs feel a bit undeveloped. The wall of sound effect that their fuzzy guitars make is good at times, but can also be overwhelming. That said, inspiring moments were prevalent, and these guys have lots of room to grow.
Queening is just one woman on guitar and a guy on a kit. Tia Vincent reminds me a bit of Kim Deal, Breeders-era, mostly in the way she carries herself. Big vocals and unapologetic guitar riffs is what she’s going for. It works. Drummer Jon Garcia added a lot with his off-beat drumming.
It was a time.
UPDATE: Check out the Bob (Chocolate Bobka) Blog for video of Julian Lynch last night.
Live on New Years Eve
by David Chiu
A couple of years ago I saw the band Luna perform at the Mercury Lounge on New Year’s Eve. In what may be considered perfect symmetry, this year I saw Dean and Britta, which is former Luna band mates (and now husband-and-wife act) Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips. Guitarist Wareham and bassist Phillips performed a satisfying set of songs to a large crowd at Southpaw, including some from their albums L’Aventurra and Back Numbers.
Joined by a keyboardist-guitarist and a drummer, the couple ran through an eclectic mix of rock and retro-styled pop including the dreamy and loungey “Singers Sing” and the romantic-sounding “Words You Used To Say.” The two traded on lead vocals and sang together on the disco-funk track “Ginger Snaps.” A couple of Luna numbers were also performed, including the uptempo “Malibu Love Nest,” “Moon Palace” and “Chinatown” from the Penthouse album, and “23 Minutes in Brussels.”
One reason why people should always seize an opportunity see Wareham live onstage, aside from his deadpan singing, is because he’s an amazing guitar player. Taking a page from the sound championed by the Velvet Underground and Television, Wareham plays mesmerizing solos, most notably on “Chinatown” and “White Horses.” For her part, Phillips provided the counterpoint to Wareham’s world-weary vocals with her sultry lead and harmony singing.
Reminiscent of when Luna performed George McCrae’s “Rock Your Baby” at the Mercury Lounge New Year’s Eve show, Wareham and Phillips played two covers at their Southpaw concert. The first was Bob Dylan’s “I’ll Keep It With Mine,” sung with love by Phillips. The other, which at first I thought was a Luna song, was actually New Order’s “Ceremony,” according to my friend Ben. Influenced much?
Though things have certainly changed for Wareham and Phillips in the years between the two New Year’s Eve shows, the impact of the performances were similar: I couldn’t be happier about the way both new years began.
Check out a 2003 interview with Britta Phillips.
As I emerge from hiding and re-enter not only a new decade and year but also the coldness that is January in New York, I’m eagerly looking, no searching, for sounds to get me through it all. Jeff Walls, CAMPFIRES, is from Chicago, which I think may actually be colder than NYC right now. You know the wind off Lake Michigan and all. His most recent release, a tape for Leftist Nautical Antiques, is like an antidote. This fucking freezing morning, after walking the half-time dog and taking a few short breaths of cold air, I put it on. Suddenly, hello life!
I’ve been a fan for awhile, read more about Walls and his other releases here and here.
Campfires music is fuzzy and jangly- shuffling drums and reverb-y guitars and Walls dedicated voice: “…I’ll see you again.” The album is called “Burning Rivers, TV Flickers, Drifting Off to Bed.” Buy it here (won’t ship til February) and while you wait get the song the album is named after below and a couple of others at Get Off The Coast.
