Capsule reviews
Klaxons - “Myths of the Near Future”
(Polydor Records)
Well, goddamn… these little British bands keep makin’ you want to dance, don’t they? It seems that Klaxons have delved even deeper into the realm of booty-shaking music than Arctic Monkeys, or even the Fratellis. Granted, whereas the other two groups seem content to put a little groove in their basslines, Klaxons seem to have gone full-tilt into rave country. You feel as if you might want to break out a pacifier and glowstick, then throw on pants fifty times too big for you. You might find Myths of the Near Future a trifle shallow, but by the time the sirens kick in mid-way through “Atlantis to Interzone,” you’re too busy dancing to really care.
Download “Atlantis to Interzone” (demo) Courtesy Klaxons Music Fansite
Chasing Victory - “Fiends”
(Mono Vs. Stereo)
Christian hardcore act Chasing Victory is this close to being cool. They have the eerie, serial-killer looking dude on the cover of Fiends, and the whole album looks like it was put together by whomever does art direction for Poison the Well. The riffs on “Chemicals (King of the Carp)” fucking rip. The only thing is that the band just comes off as trying too hard. I know that calling a band out over something like this is pretty lame, and pretty much denotes a lack of effort on my part, but Fiends looks so much the part of the emocore / screamo compact disc that it verges on parody. The band could be really good, but I’d be much more likely to notice if I wasn’t snickering at the song titles with their subtitles. The vocals are also really weak. With the exception of “Chemicals,” I never even noticed this cd was playing.
Up the Empire - “Light Rides the Super Major”
(The Cougar Label)
Y’know… Up the Empire reminds me of a whole lot of bands, but none so much that I can specifically bring any of them to mind right now. They’re that band that reminds you of all sorts of stuff that you like, but not so much that they’re ripping anyone off. Light Rides the Super Major is super-poppy keyboard-powered indie rock with a light dance influence. Sure, that sounds kind of bland, but the fact that you can’t point out any specific riff, bassline, or drum fill as coming from any specific artist pretty much speaks well of the band’s originality. It’s super happy fun music that will make summer drives to the beach, pool, bbq, cookout, kegger, or what-have-you that much more happy and fun.
C.W. Stoneking – “King Hokum”
(Voodoo Rhythm)
Kitchen sink blues – as in “everything else but.” R. Crumb & His Cheap Suit Serenaders would be a good touchstone for anyone trying to figure out whence comes C.W. Stoneking. It’s sort of a ragtime meets blues meets hillbilly boogie record, and the pedigree is incredibly bizarre - born in America, raised in Australian outback, and playing blues. It’s a distinctly unique album that sounds like it was recorded 70 or 80 years ago, and only recently unearthed from a trunk in someone’s attic. Should he ever wander over Stateside, one could see him sitting down alongside the White Ghost Shivers and everyone getting along famously.
Download “Bad Luck Everywhere You Go“
Dntel – “Dumb Luck”
(Sub Pop)
Three years since the Postal Service made Jimmy Tamborello some serious cash, and six years since the last Dntel album raised some heads, we’re back with bloops and blips and various pretty sounds. The guest vocals are pretty cool, I suppose – Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley and Conor Oberst guest on a track each, and the album is pretty cohesive, despite a different singer on each track. It’s just that I could stand to see the whole Dntel thing expanded somewhat. The guy’s been making the same album for the past six or seven years, and while it’s a good one each time, Tamborello could stand to get outside his comfort zone every now and then.
Download “Dumb Luck“