Pop Rocks!: Episode 3.5: FLYING NUN RECORDS
September 15th
YES! This was the most fun I've had all semester. The night before, I covered the Punk Rock show and got my bearings with KJHK. Bearings that I thought I'd lost in the slew of exec staff responsibilities. Initially I wanted to do a show focusing on both Australia and New Zealand after a set in last week's show, but when it came down to putting the thing together, I figured it would be best to just do Flying Nun, one of the finest record labels in the history of the world. KJHK actually has most of the albums I played on either CD or vinyl, which warmed my heart. Also warming my heart was Love Garden, who had a used copy of the Able Tasman's "A Cuppa Tea and a Lie Down," which I desperately tried to find on the internet and pulled out of the used Alt. vinyl for ten bucks. Sweet!
Able Tasmans - What Was that Thing (A Cuppa Tea and a Lie Down)
The Bats - Made Up in Blue (Compiletely Bats)
The Verlaines - Crisis After Crisis (Dunedin Double EP)
Look Blue Go Purple - Cactus Cat (In Love With These Times comp)
The 3Ds - Hey Seuss (Topless Women Talk About Their Lives comp)
Chris Knox - The Split (Polyfoto, Duck Shaped Pain, & "Gum")
The Chills - Rolling Moon (Kaleidoscope World)
Straightjacket Fits - Down in Splendour (Melt)
The Clean - Flowers (Compilation)
The 3Ds - Animal (Topless Women Talk About Their Lives comp)
The Bats - Boogeyman (Fear of God)
Dave Kilgour & the Heavy Eights - Seemingly Stranded (S/T)
Tall Dwarfs - What Goes Up (Tall Dwarfs)
Children's Hour - Looking For the Sun (Tuatara comp)
Chris Knox - Not Given Lightly (Topless Women Talk About Their Lives comp) Note: You can actually e-mail Chris Knox and for a fee (or barter), he will record a personalized version of this song for your wedding according to Flying Nun's website)
The Cat's Miaow - The Phoebe I Know (The Long Secret comp)
The Clean - Getting Older (Anthology)
The Chills - I Love My Leather Jacket (Kaleidoscope World)
Bailter Space - Zero Return (Thermos)
Look Blue Go Purple - Safety in Crosswords (Compilation)
The Bats - Mad on You (Compiletely Bats)
The Clean - Hold Onto the Rail (live) (Compilation)
The Jean-Paul Sarte Experience - Flex (S/T)
The Chills - Never, Never Go (Kaleidoscope World)
The Stones - Down and Around (Dunedin Double EP)
Able Tasmans - Evil Barbecue (A Cuppa Tea and a Lie Down)
The Clean - Oddity (Anthology)
The Verlaines - Death and the Maiden (Tuatara comp)
The Chills - Heavenly Pop Hit (Submarine Bells)
The Clean - Tally Ho! (Compilation)
The Clean - Whatever I Do It's Right (Anthology)
Reviews
Jason Anderson – Tonight (ECA Records)
Review: 3/10
So after doing a little research, yes, this is the new album from Wolf Colonel’s Jason Anderson. The absence of a shielded K on the back made me wary, and I thought it might be an imposter but I was wrong. It’s him. He’s back after 2005’s The Wreath… And he’s doing his best Springsteen impression (which is to be expected if you read the label on the front). While this would normally irk me (despite my being a huge Hold Steady fan) I think he has just enough Wolf Colonel in there to make this slightly tolerable. The problem, however, is that only half of the songs are under six minutes (ironically, the longest song on the album (8 minutes) is called “So Long.” Sadly, it’s the best song on the album, but probably wouldn’t make for compelling radio.), and for a guy who’s made his living on 1-2 minute long pop songs, it’s a tough transition. It’s especially trying when the Springsteen influence becomes Springsteen aping (ex. When the sax comes in and it gets really repetitive at the end of “Tonight,” although that song is strangely compelling most of the way through). Overall, this feels like a genre exercise and it sounds like Jason Anderson is having fun with it. Too bad that anyone who listens to this probably won’t. The Hold Steady has this shtick covered…and they do it about a hundred times better.
Suggested: 8, 7, 2
DNP: Clean.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
Sea Wolf – Leaves in the River (Dangerbird)
Review: 3/10
In the words of Fred Willard’s character in A Mighty Wind, “Wha’ happened!” Earlier this year Sea Wolf released a terrific EP and all of the subtlety that he (this is the project of one Alex Brown Church) possessed has seemingly turned into a blunt and forgettable (if well produced) full length. The production doesn’t help. The EP’s more lo-fi production was able to make any potentially irksome lyrics charming and it gave their sound a more cohesive quality. Now, every instrument sounds isolated and the lyrics are recorded with such perfect clarity that every uninspired line and intentional, forced rhyme is glaring. On top of that, they put their best song from the EP, “You’re a Wolf” on the album which, in my opinion, unless you re-record and improve on it, it’s a total cop out to put it on the LP. It’s like padding. Like I said, the production makes everything more clear, and it’s really apparent that there isn’t really anything that interesting going on and instead of just letting the songs form organically, Church puts each one together like a paint by numbers. It’s sad, but Sea Wolf has become just another wolf band…and a below mediocre one at that.
RIYL: The Good Life, Bright Eyes
Suggested: 4, 9, 10.
DNP: None.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
Taken by Trees – Open Field (Rough Trade)
Review: 7/10
If you haven’t gotten sick of that Peter, Bjorn, and John song (for anyone who could potentially be reading this five or better yet, one or two years from now, the song was called “Young Folks” and you literally couldn’t walk down the street without hearing it) yet, then you might really like this! For it is the solo project of Victoria Bergsman, who will sadly be most known as “that girl that sings on that one song.” I know Victoria Bergsman as the former (as of last year) front woman of the absolutely delightful Swedish pop group The Concretes. And as great as she is in that band, I am actually really excited that she decided to put out this album. I can only assume that she grew bored with the confines of pop music and really wanted to make something different. Taken by Trees can still be easily filed under indie pop; the music is still structured around pretty melodies, Bergsman’s gorgeous classy yet girl-next-door voice, and a myriad of harmonies. It’s just much more subdued. More suited for the onset of fall than the late spring. Fall just started a week ago it’s chilly and gray outside and I just want to curl up in my bed and listen. Note: This record features contributions from Camera Obscura’s Tracyanne Campbell (not surprising, since her and Bergsman have incredibly similar vocal stylings) who wrote the song “Lost and Found,” Electrelane’s Verity Susman who plays piano and sings some back-up, and it was produced by Bjorn himself!
RIYL: Camera Obscura, The Concretes, Emily Haines
Suggested: 5, 2, 9, 1, 6 (instrumental), any
DNP: No.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
Le Loup – The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations’ Millennium General Assembly
(Hardly Art)
Review: 7.5/10
The new Sub Pop subsidiary Hardly Art is already batting 2 for 2. Earlier this year they put out the lovely debut LP from the dreamy Arthur & Yu and now they’ve got the debut album from D.C. avant indie rockers Le Loup. Now that the “write this review like an allmusic.com review or something” part is out of the way, let’s talk about Le Loup, whose name (which means “The Wolf” in French) may or may not be a clever play on the whole “wolf band” phenomena of 2005 or whenever that was. The music is an interesting mix between Danielson (frontman Sam Simkoff’s main musical contribution comes from his utilization of the banjo (often looped)), Animal Collective (because c’mon, it’s A.) really easy to compare a band to Animal Collective because B.) A lot of bands sound like Animal Collective nowadays (just listen to track 10!), and insert-name-of-some-laptop-electronic-artist here. It’s a little weird but give it a shot!
Suggested: 6, 2, 8, 12 (fade out at 4:00), 7
Avoid: 5, 9
DNP: None.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
YES! This was the most fun I've had all semester. The night before, I covered the Punk Rock show and got my bearings with KJHK. Bearings that I thought I'd lost in the slew of exec staff responsibilities. Initially I wanted to do a show focusing on both Australia and New Zealand after a set in last week's show, but when it came down to putting the thing together, I figured it would be best to just do Flying Nun, one of the finest record labels in the history of the world. KJHK actually has most of the albums I played on either CD or vinyl, which warmed my heart. Also warming my heart was Love Garden, who had a used copy of the Able Tasman's "A Cuppa Tea and a Lie Down," which I desperately tried to find on the internet and pulled out of the used Alt. vinyl for ten bucks. Sweet!
Able Tasmans - What Was that Thing (A Cuppa Tea and a Lie Down)
The Bats - Made Up in Blue (Compiletely Bats)
The Verlaines - Crisis After Crisis (Dunedin Double EP)
Look Blue Go Purple - Cactus Cat (In Love With These Times comp)
The 3Ds - Hey Seuss (Topless Women Talk About Their Lives comp)
Chris Knox - The Split (Polyfoto, Duck Shaped Pain, & "Gum")
The Chills - Rolling Moon (Kaleidoscope World)
Straightjacket Fits - Down in Splendour (Melt)
The Clean - Flowers (Compilation)
The 3Ds - Animal (Topless Women Talk About Their Lives comp)
The Bats - Boogeyman (Fear of God)
Dave Kilgour & the Heavy Eights - Seemingly Stranded (S/T)
Tall Dwarfs - What Goes Up (Tall Dwarfs)
Children's Hour - Looking For the Sun (Tuatara comp)
Chris Knox - Not Given Lightly (Topless Women Talk About Their Lives comp) Note: You can actually e-mail Chris Knox and for a fee (or barter), he will record a personalized version of this song for your wedding according to Flying Nun's website)
The Cat's Miaow - The Phoebe I Know (The Long Secret comp)
The Clean - Getting Older (Anthology)
The Chills - I Love My Leather Jacket (Kaleidoscope World)
Bailter Space - Zero Return (Thermos)
Look Blue Go Purple - Safety in Crosswords (Compilation)
The Bats - Mad on You (Compiletely Bats)
The Clean - Hold Onto the Rail (live) (Compilation)
The Jean-Paul Sarte Experience - Flex (S/T)
The Chills - Never, Never Go (Kaleidoscope World)
The Stones - Down and Around (Dunedin Double EP)
Able Tasmans - Evil Barbecue (A Cuppa Tea and a Lie Down)
The Clean - Oddity (Anthology)
The Verlaines - Death and the Maiden (Tuatara comp)
The Chills - Heavenly Pop Hit (Submarine Bells)
The Clean - Tally Ho! (Compilation)
The Clean - Whatever I Do It's Right (Anthology)
Reviews
Jason Anderson – Tonight (ECA Records)
Review: 3/10
So after doing a little research, yes, this is the new album from Wolf Colonel’s Jason Anderson. The absence of a shielded K on the back made me wary, and I thought it might be an imposter but I was wrong. It’s him. He’s back after 2005’s The Wreath… And he’s doing his best Springsteen impression (which is to be expected if you read the label on the front). While this would normally irk me (despite my being a huge Hold Steady fan) I think he has just enough Wolf Colonel in there to make this slightly tolerable. The problem, however, is that only half of the songs are under six minutes (ironically, the longest song on the album (8 minutes) is called “So Long.” Sadly, it’s the best song on the album, but probably wouldn’t make for compelling radio.), and for a guy who’s made his living on 1-2 minute long pop songs, it’s a tough transition. It’s especially trying when the Springsteen influence becomes Springsteen aping (ex. When the sax comes in and it gets really repetitive at the end of “Tonight,” although that song is strangely compelling most of the way through). Overall, this feels like a genre exercise and it sounds like Jason Anderson is having fun with it. Too bad that anyone who listens to this probably won’t. The Hold Steady has this shtick covered…and they do it about a hundred times better.
Suggested: 8, 7, 2
DNP: Clean.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
Sea Wolf – Leaves in the River (Dangerbird)
Review: 3/10
In the words of Fred Willard’s character in A Mighty Wind, “Wha’ happened!” Earlier this year Sea Wolf released a terrific EP and all of the subtlety that he (this is the project of one Alex Brown Church) possessed has seemingly turned into a blunt and forgettable (if well produced) full length. The production doesn’t help. The EP’s more lo-fi production was able to make any potentially irksome lyrics charming and it gave their sound a more cohesive quality. Now, every instrument sounds isolated and the lyrics are recorded with such perfect clarity that every uninspired line and intentional, forced rhyme is glaring. On top of that, they put their best song from the EP, “You’re a Wolf” on the album which, in my opinion, unless you re-record and improve on it, it’s a total cop out to put it on the LP. It’s like padding. Like I said, the production makes everything more clear, and it’s really apparent that there isn’t really anything that interesting going on and instead of just letting the songs form organically, Church puts each one together like a paint by numbers. It’s sad, but Sea Wolf has become just another wolf band…and a below mediocre one at that.
RIYL: The Good Life, Bright Eyes
Suggested: 4, 9, 10.
DNP: None.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
Taken by Trees – Open Field (Rough Trade)
Review: 7/10
If you haven’t gotten sick of that Peter, Bjorn, and John song (for anyone who could potentially be reading this five or better yet, one or two years from now, the song was called “Young Folks” and you literally couldn’t walk down the street without hearing it) yet, then you might really like this! For it is the solo project of Victoria Bergsman, who will sadly be most known as “that girl that sings on that one song.” I know Victoria Bergsman as the former (as of last year) front woman of the absolutely delightful Swedish pop group The Concretes. And as great as she is in that band, I am actually really excited that she decided to put out this album. I can only assume that she grew bored with the confines of pop music and really wanted to make something different. Taken by Trees can still be easily filed under indie pop; the music is still structured around pretty melodies, Bergsman’s gorgeous classy yet girl-next-door voice, and a myriad of harmonies. It’s just much more subdued. More suited for the onset of fall than the late spring. Fall just started a week ago it’s chilly and gray outside and I just want to curl up in my bed and listen. Note: This record features contributions from Camera Obscura’s Tracyanne Campbell (not surprising, since her and Bergsman have incredibly similar vocal stylings) who wrote the song “Lost and Found,” Electrelane’s Verity Susman who plays piano and sings some back-up, and it was produced by Bjorn himself!
RIYL: Camera Obscura, The Concretes, Emily Haines
Suggested: 5, 2, 9, 1, 6 (instrumental), any
DNP: No.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
Le Loup – The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations’ Millennium General Assembly
(Hardly Art)
Review: 7.5/10
The new Sub Pop subsidiary Hardly Art is already batting 2 for 2. Earlier this year they put out the lovely debut LP from the dreamy Arthur & Yu and now they’ve got the debut album from D.C. avant indie rockers Le Loup. Now that the “write this review like an allmusic.com review or something” part is out of the way, let’s talk about Le Loup, whose name (which means “The Wolf” in French) may or may not be a clever play on the whole “wolf band” phenomena of 2005 or whenever that was. The music is an interesting mix between Danielson (frontman Sam Simkoff’s main musical contribution comes from his utilization of the banjo (often looped)), Animal Collective (because c’mon, it’s A.) really easy to compare a band to Animal Collective because B.) A lot of bands sound like Animal Collective nowadays (just listen to track 10!), and insert-name-of-some-laptop-electronic-artist here. It’s a little weird but give it a shot!
Suggested: 6, 2, 8, 12 (fade out at 4:00), 7
Avoid: 5, 9
DNP: None.
-Ian Hrabe, September 17th, 2007
posted by Ian at 4:06 PM
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