Midwest Soundclash - Green Room Rockers/The Pinstripes

Midwest Soundclash
Green Room Rockers/The Pinstripes

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Released: Aug. 11, 2009
Label: Dashiki Clout Records

Review by: Bill Jones

Dashiki Clout, the small indie label of Mustard Plug front man Dave Kirchgessner, has been around since 1991, but has only previously issued 10 releases since that time. Kirchgessner gets things moving again with Midwest Soundclash, a 10-inch split between Layfayette, Indiana’s The Green Room Rockers and Cincinnati, Ohio’s The Pinstripes, designed to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Specials/Selector 7-inch.

The vinyl features three tracks from each band. Half of just more than 500 records pressed feature translucent vinyl, while the other half are white. The split also comes with two different options of artwork, both hand-screened and hand-numbered by The Pinstripes’ guitarist Matt Kursmark. One design, the better one, features two towers of speakers with cords winding through them symmetrically on the cover, with microphones facing one another at the bottom, all on the baby blue background. The other forms the states of Indiana and Ohio with the album title, Midwest Soundclash. Both come with a large card with lyrics and album credits. It is quite nice packaging for the vinyl collectors.

The music is not bad, either. Both Green Room Rockers and The Pinstripes play a combination of reggae, ska and a touch of American soul music that leans more toward the sound of bands like The Aggrolites and Westbound Train than Mustard Plug. The rhythms are laid back with heavy bass grooves, but full of energy throughout.

Green Room Rockers kick things off with “Revival,” a tune about people of the world finding something to make their lives better in reggae music. It starts with a heavy horn line and then a slow skankin’ rhythm.

“There was a granny in her bed, barely livin’ almost dead / She didn’t want to move at all / she was afraid she’d take a fall / then she turned on her radio / it played a sound she did not know / this sound excited her so / made her strength grow and grow”

“Irony” slows things down a bit to talk about how crazy life can be, highlighted by a soulful trumpet solo. “Stay With Him” closes out the side, and is the grooviest of the bunch, bringing back the prominent organ from the first track, telling a story of being left for someone else.

The Pinstripes continue the vibe on their half with “Come On In,” “Cool Whip/Hot Sauce” and “Rest My Head.” The highlight of the first track is vocalist Mike Sarason, who takes a traditional reggae approach to some of his lyrics and does it well, marking the best track of the effort. The band knows how to build a tune with big horns and some back and forth vocal work, as well as a great instrumental outro to the track.

“Cool Whip/Hot Sauce” contains only those words, and simply creates a smooth vibe with a few moments of spice in the otherwise instrumental track. “Rest My Head” serves as a decent closer, but doesn’t quite have the same punch as the rest of the songs on Midwest Soundclash.

Overall, Midwest Soundclash sounds at times a bit too much like its influences for its own good, and fans hoping for variety will find none of the faster ska-punk sound. But for fans of the genres harnessed by these bands, both Green Room Rockers and The Pinstripes have the energy and musicianship to pull it off and keep it exciting. Both bands boast incredibly full sounds, likely in part due to the production work of The Slackers’ Dave Hillyard on Green Room Rockers half, Chris Grannen for The Pinstripes, and the split mastering of Mass Giorgini at Sonic Iguana Studio. Midwest Soundclash should please the ska community looking for something more laid back, and vinyl collectors will appreciate the effort put into the release.

Good Views, Bad News - Broadway Calls

Good Views, Bad News
Broadway Calls

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Released: Aug. 18, 2009
Label: SideOneDummy

Review by: Bill Jones

For Broadway Calls’ latest full-length and SideOneDummy debut, the boys hit the famed Blasting Room studio with Bill Stevenson, and come out swinging with a more polished version of their usual throwback to late 1990s pop-punk, producing their best effort yet in Good Views, Bad News.

For fans of the band’s self-titled effort, Good Views, Bad News isn’t quite as diverse as the band’s previous work, but Broadway Calls has polished a sense of great melody working to perfect a style of music this reviewer grew up loving – taking influences from bands like Green Day, New Found Glory and maybe even a touch of Lit in songs like “Basement Royalty.” The lack of diversity, instead of hurting the band, actually adds a bit of stability to Broadway Calls’ latest.

Every song is filled with a variety of sounds, included some slight harmonized vocals between guitarist Ty Vaughn and bassist Matt Koenig, with a tight drum performance by Josh Baird. Toss in some poignant and well-sung lyrics about everything from being in a band (“To the Sheets”), to a blast of military recruiters (“Be All That You Can’t Be”), to an anti-self-pity self-pity song (“Give Up the Ghost”), and Broadway Calls has a great album on their hands. If the album cover – a girl flying a burning kite in an industrialized area as the sun goes down – is any indication, there are some intelligent, dark themes to be found in these subtle and catchy hooks.

Good Views, Bad News doesn’t necessarily evolve the genre or the Broadway Calls sound. It is the most focused effort they’ve put together, however, and rather than hopping trends, finds the band honing in a particular sound that the band and its fans can enjoy. Another great album from Broadway Calls.

Quickies 1 - Gatorface, Shook Ones, The Takers, Fastball, Crisis in Hollywood, Anarbor

Some albums beg for 1,000-word reviews. Others can be summed up fairly in a single paragraph. The latter aren't necessarily worse; it's just that everything album doesn't require an essay. For those reviews that just come out on the short end, I've created this "Quickies" series - brief reviews on a series of albums, good and bad, sharing a post. All reviews by Bill Jones.

Free Your Mind
Anarbor

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Stars
Released: March 10, 2009
Label: Hopeless

Free Your Mind, the latest EP from the Phoenix foursome Anarbor, starts with a cool dance-rock vibe, featuring a heavy bass groove and straightforward guitars. It gives listeners the feeling that they might be in for something fun and exciting. Instead, vocalist Slade Echeverria enters the mix with a Fallout Boy sense of phrasing, a Hot Topic sensibility toward lyrics and too much self-indulgence in high-pitched tangents giving way to choruses that can’t be told apart from thousands of other songs just like them. Anarbor is catchy, sure, but the super-polished production makes it feels like a manufactured set of hooks without heart, ultimately making for some decent mindless entertainment, but nothing for the discerning music fan.

Safe and Sound
Crisis in Hollywood

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars
Released: May 12, 2009
Label: Financial Records

From the very first second of Safe and Sound’s opening title track, Crisis in Hollywood will remind listeners of the glory days of New Found Glory and company. In 12 tracks, the Orlando four-piece cements itself as a quality pop-punk act in the vain of the best, rather than the new breed of bastardized time structures and sloppy performances. Safe and Sound is super-smooth in its production, and while the band’s songwriting formula doesn’t break the mold of the oldies but goodies in the scene, Crisis in Hollywood has a knack for writing catchy hooks and four-part harmonies that are guaranteed to attract the ladies in the crowd without dropping the guys to “boy band” status. These guys know how to turn teen relationship angst into decent pop-punk tunes, with enough variety within the album to keep it interesting throughout.

Sick and Stupid (Digital)
Gatorface

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Released: Nov. 25, 2008
Label: Paper + Plastick

The third project to rise from the ashes of New Mexican Disaster Squad is Gatorface, bringing over the pop-punk sensibilities meets hardcore vibe, falling more in line with NMDS than the other post-disbanding spin-off Virgins. All six of the tracks comprising the band’s debut, Sick and Stupid, are designed lyrically and vocally to virtually rip off the listeners' face, while the music still lends itself to a good dance in the pit. “Flak Jacket” hits the war protest strong with lyrics attacking those who still support the war, while “Frogging” touches on a feeling of defenselessness. And while the disgust in lyrics keep things thematically on the same level, the down-home guitar work of songs on the first half like “Crash/Grab” keeps the mood in a slightly better place. As with most EPs, the first impression of Gatorface is brief, but if it’s a sign of things to come, bearded, PBR-drinking, No Idea-loving punks should take notice.

Little White Lies
Fastball

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Released: April 14, 2009
Label: DIY

Fastball never really disappeared, but with four-year album intervals the band has faded from the mainstream attention earned on 1998’s All The Pain Money Can Buy. More than a decade after “The Way” hit MTV, the band’s sound is still hard to peg to any particular genre. It’s a bit indie with its airy vocals, a touch of reserved Beatles-esque rock, slightly experimental, a tinge of folk, but power-pop-oriented lyrics about love, such as the opener of Little White Lies, “All I Was Looking For Was You.” The repetitive and shallow lyrics make it hard for the music to resonate, but the band still has a knack for writing strangely understated catchy tunes in interesting keys. While there is nothing that really stands out on Little White Lies, music fans could do worse for a summer cruising album.

The Unquotable A.M.H.
Shook Ones

Rating: 4 out of 5
Released: June 15, 2009
Label: Paper + Plastick

The third full-length to be released by Shook Ones, The Unquotable A.M.H., finds the band in a familiar place, belting out gravely punk tunes with absolutely everything they have put into them. Scott Freeman puts every inch of his throat into each word, while the band seems intent on tearing up a stage wherever they go, while still finding time to sneak in a strolling pace or two in the tunes. The Unquotable A.M.H. is a melodic hardcore album that works both ends, at times brutal and other times catchy as all hell, though its hooks are never obvious. It’s the kind of album that first kicks the listener’s ass, then starts to grow on him as the quality songwriting works its way though to the top. For anyone not quite sold on Shook Ones up until now, this might be the album that does it.

Taker Easy
The Takers

Rating: 5 out of 5
Released: July 21, 2009
Label: Suburban Home

The Takers are a little bit country, and a little punk rock n’ roll. With folk influences pervading the Gainesville scene for years, it was only a matter of time that a label like Suburban Home release a record this incredibly country. One look at the cover art for Taker Easy and fans will know exactly what they’re getting. The Takers are outlaw country at its modern best, writing great stories into their songs in the vein of the great Johnny Cash, and both musically and vocally they’ve got the proverbial chops to pull it off. “Social Smoker” is the standout track of the album, a bittersweet reflection of better times when the character could still “steal the show.” But if The Takers can keep writing tunes this good, and performing and producing them this well, those times are just getting started for the Gainesville sextet. And for listeners, this is the perfect album to pop in the stereo during the summer, ideally out on the porch with cheap beer and a dog.

Collapser - Banner Pilot

Collapser
Banner Pilot

Rating: 4 out of 5
Stars Released: Sept. 1, 2009
Label: Fat Wreck Chords

Review by: Bill Jones

Every once in a great while, a packaging image truly sums up what listeners can expect to find on that album. Banner Pilot’s sophomore full-length effort, Collapser, happens to be one of those albums. It is not the cover art, but the image on the back of the CD case that does it for this one. Amplifiers and speakers are plugged in next to a campfire that seems to be burning in an urban setting, maybe under a viaduct. Atop one of the speakers rests a plastic cup of beer, probably warm.

Somehow that strange image exemplifies the latest Midwestern punk gem from Minneapolis, Minnesota’s Banner Pilot. Collapser is an album that has a gritty sound reminiscent of The Lawrence Arms, combined with a wealth of pop-punk bands this reviewer grew up liking before they “matured” their sounds, with a tinge of sped-up Jawbreaker and of course the band’s Minneapolis punk cohorts, Dillinger Four. Add to that a touch of Off With Their Heads, and it gets close to describing the sound of Collapser.

From the opening guitars and then drums of “Central Standard,” to the fade out of the final track, “Write it Down,” Collapser is an infectious album full of energy and punch. To go with the music, Nick Johnson provides some of his best lyrics yet, striking a just-poetic-enough-but-not-too-pretentious-to-be-punk tone. Take, for instance, the chorus of "Northern Skyline."

“To hell with red light, driving on / An open cage, this bird is gone / But I can’t leave this town if you’re not with me / I’ve been fighting boredom and routine / I’ll trade the white for forest green / But I can’t leave this town if you’re not with me I’m lost”

For those already fans of Banner Pilot, Collapser is a lot more of tracks like “Defender” than the whiplash, circle pit-inducing tunes like “Sun Belt Scars.” That raw aggression gives way a bit on Collapser, but it’s a good trade for some of the best songwriting from the band yet, with one catchy tune after another.

Gold Country - Chuck Ragan

Gold Country
Chuck Ragan

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
Released: Sept. 1, 2009
Label: SideOneDummy

Review by: Bill Jones

After the initial Hot Water Music break-up, singer/songwriter/guitarist Chuck Ragan set out on his own with great results. But while his first solo effort, a live album called Los Feliz, did an incredible job of harnessing his powerfully captivating live performance (let’s see those noisy, trendy bastards try to talk though an acoustic performance like his), it fell a bit short in truly feeling like an album. To be fair, it was more of a compilation of solo songs and HWM tracks. Its follow-up, Feast or Famine, took Ragan to the studio to properly record an album, but while he got the album feel correct; it didn’t quite capture his performance.

Gold Country, the songwriter’s third release with SideOneDummy, finally gets every piece of the puzzle right, and gives Chuck Ragan fans everything they could hope for in an album. Gold Country is the kind of album that defines a musical career, crosses genres seamlessly, truly earns the overused descriptor of “timeless” and most importantly tells a story in a way only music, and a great songwriter like Chuck Ragan, can.

From the very first track, “For Goodness Sake,” it is evident that while Ragan’s music is still founded on simple themes, melodies and backbeats (as actually noted in the lyrics) in a manner that hearkens back to Johnny Cash, Gold Country is a dynamic and mature effort, accented by the violin of Jon Gaunt and the drums of Hot Water Music drummer George Revelo.

The second cut, “Glory,” features a rolling rhythm that brings to mind an old mining scene, and highlights the power of Ragan’s vocals, with a beautiful violin solo mid-song. Later, listeners get a classic Ragan rock n’ roll sing-a-long mover in “Done and Done,” the chorus of which takes center stage.

“Oh let it go / cut loose and roll / rock steady soul / get up stand up. Throw your hands up / ah let it go / cut loose and roll / rock steady soul / get up stand up until you’re done and done”

It is followed by “The Trench,” an old-school grassroots folk song. Then there is the slow and moody “Don’t Say a Word,” following by another mover in “10 West,” with background chants of “Ohh! Haa!” that remind of Against Me! In each song, Ragan tells a story, but the album as a whole also tells a story, and he is as good at arranging the effort as he is each song.

Gold Country is an album perfect for a road trip through the national parks of the American West, but works just as well in the car on the way to work, at a campfire with friends, or while sitting at a computer and writing reviews. It has the power to run the gamut from rollicking to haunting and back again without fear. Ragan’s effort opens its arms to anyone who will listen, but doesn’t cheapen itself for one second of its 12 tracks. It is 100 percent Chuck Ragan, cutting loose and letting it roll. This is an album that this reviewer’s grandmother is as likely to listen to as the guy who remembers being in the pit at a Hot Water show. With Gold Country, Ragan resets the bar for his musical career, with songwriting as close to flawless as one can get in something as subjective as music. It is an American folk gem, and one of the best albums to be written, of any kind, in a long time.

Chicago Public Libraray announces "Sound Off" competition

The Chicago Public Library announced last week a competition to help support local musicians and draw attention to its updated catalog of CDs, music downloads, sheet music and concerts. The contest asks Chicago musicians to submit compositions inspired by their city. The winners will play at the CHIPUBLIB Sound Off Concert, a free public concert to be held in late October at Pritzker Park, near the Harold Washington Library Center.

The contest will be judged by Chris Force of Alarm Magazine, and The Girls' Guide to Rocking author Jessica Hopper. Submission guidelines are as follows...

The judges will choose winners based on song creativity, quality of performance, and original expression embodying the essence of the City of Chicago. All entries must comply with submission criteria posted at www.chipublib.org/notwhatyouthink.

Ten (10) finalists will be selected by the official judging panel, and of those, two winning entrants will receive distinction as the Grand Prize and People’s Choice Winners.

The Grand Prize Winner, determined by the panel of judges, will headline the CHIPUBLIB Sound Off Concert in late October, where they will perform their composition as well as a set featuring their other music. In addition to their headlining status, the Grand Prize Winner will receive a studio package courtesy of Electrical Audio – founded by legendary recording engineer Steve Albini.

The People’s Choice Winner will be selected by online voters who, from September 28 to October 3, view the top 10 submissions at the CHIPUBLIB Sound Off Vimeo channel and then visit the Not What You Think tumblr blog at http://www.notwhatyouthink.tumblr.com/ for online voting. The People’s Choice Winner will open for the Grand Prize Winner at the CHIPUBLIB Sound Off Concert performing their submission as well as a small set of their other music.

For rules and submission guidelines visit www.chipublib.org/notwhatyouthink. For more help, visit your local public library, browse the music sections, or ask the librarian for tips on inspiration.

Taking Woodstock

Taking Woodstock

Directed by: Ang Lee

Written by: James Schamus

Produced by: Focus Features

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

Review by: Bill Jones

Just in time for the 40th anniversary of the famed Woodstock music festival comes Ang Lee’s first American-made directorial effort since 2005’s Brokeback Mountain. But while Taking Woodstock, does its best to create an artful film packed with humor, history, coming-of-age drama and social commentary, Lee’s latest falls more in line with the entertainment value of Hulk, and less of the powerful message of the film that garnered eight Academy Award nominations.

In Lee’s pseudo-fictional, possibly somewhat remotely historical account of Woodstock, penned by James Schamus based on the book by Elliot Tiber, viewers are treated to the story of Elliot Teichberg (Demetri Martin), an interior designer (who does so happen to fit the gay stereotype of his profession) and Bethel Chamber of Commerce president who inadvertently makes possible what has become the most defining music festival of a generation, and one of the most notable cultural events in American history.

Elliot’s parents own a shitty motel, most of the features of which serve as jokes throughout the opening credits. The decrepit property is repeatedly referred to ironically as a “resort,” while the pool remains waterless and the few customers who do stumble upon the health hazard-filled accommodations aren’t happy with their stays. Point is, the motel, which is run by Elliot and his parents, Jake (Henry Goodman) and Sonia (Imelda Staunton), is on hard times. Even harder, we find, when Elliot argues with a banker about funding for improvements to the property, which is already in debt, and his mother charges extra for just about everything to squeeze a dime out of the few customers the motel has.

Meanwhile, Elliot oversees the Bethel Chamber of Commerce, which is filled with geezers with barely enough energy to speak during the meetings, and a few middle-aged conservatives with little interest in asking the young president to sign off on permits. In the first encounter with the chamber, Elliot approves for himself a permit for a small annual music festival, which usually sees him playing vinyl for the townsfolk, but may have one local, live group this year.

Of course, protesters then push the scary hippies and the Woodstock festival out of a nearby town, and Elliot jumps to the rescue, citing Bethel’s wealth of open land. It takes some convincing of both the promoters, including some chocolate milk wining and dining by farmer Max Yasgur (Eugene Levy), and the townspeople, but Elliot takes charge with the music festival permit he approved for himself, whether it is totally legal or not. And before the town knows it, the grandest music festival of all time has been set in motion.

At the core of the film is the conflict between young and old generations, change, peace versus war, and acceptance versus intolerance, traditional versus liberal. But it seems as though Lee does not fully understand what he wants the film to be, or possibly he is confused by this iconic American experience itself. Taking Woodstock is filled with comedy actors, from Martin, to Levy, to Dan Fogler (Balls of Fury, Fanboys), who lives in the motel’s barn with a performance troupe that is much too progressive to be seen by the town. This plays out in one scene, where after a demonstration of their college-level theater skills, the entire troupe strips nude and taunts its elder audience to much outrage. Only Billy (Emile Hirsch), a shellshocked Vietnam veteran from the neighborhood, seems to enjoy it, and shows his approval by likewise stripping down and flopping about to the dismay of his father.

Liev Schreiber (X-Men) plays Vilma, a drag-queen security guard with whom Elliot’s traditional Russian father somehow finds a bond. Though Jake loves her, his wife is a penny-pinching wench, so he finds a moment of escape in Vilma and the festival. Vilma seems to be in the film as more of a joke, though, than (s)he is part of the strange versus conventional equation.

Taking Woodstock can be funny, but it also seeks serious relevance in its lighthearted undertaking, focusing not on the concert itself (viewers never get an actual glimpse of any performance, though the music of the era plays throughout), but the backstage stories surrounding Elliot, who is awakened in the midst of the movement. He is a homosexual, or at the very least bi-curious, but it is not until the festival comes around that he starts to understand these feelings and has an avenue to test the waters in his otherwise podunk town.

The problems are that anyone familiar with Martin’s stand-up career will have a difficult time picturing him outside of that role, and Lee just doesn’t have the touch to meld strong comedy with emotion the way Judd Apatow has with his "comedies with heart" like Knocked Up. The comedy doesn’t always hit its mark and the drama is sometimes hard to swallow because of the cast and the pervading humor vibe surrounding them. The two elements weaken each other, rather than enhance the film.

Lee also fails to recreate (this young reviewer can only image) what it must have felt like to be present at Woodstock, but not for lack of effort. The costume and set designs are great, enhanced by the cinematography, with all three working together to make Taking Woodstock look like it could have been cleaned-up stock footage from the era. He also includes a five-minute acid trip scene that provides an avenue to awakening Elliot, who up until this point has turned down pot all but one time (and, of course, he accepts at the wrong time). But swirling colors aren’t enough to make viewers feel like they were there.

The biggest kudos for the film, though, and where Taking Woodstock does strike the right tone, must go to Lee and cinematographer Eric Gautier (Into the Wild), who set up and brilliantly filmed a scene that follows a police motorcycle taking Elliot to the festival up a street that has become a parking lot and circus all in one. As the long shot tracks down the street, viewers see all kinds of interesting people and things along the way, essentially distilling the entire movement, event and culture onto one street and into one incredible shot.

The brilliant points are undermined, however, by the overall tone of the film, which never seems to find its footing. Taking Woodstock tries to be too much in too many areas, and ultimately lacks a clear point of view in any particular aspect to be a powerful film. And it hurts in a big way that there is a lack of focus on the music. While Lee is right to focus on a small group and particular person to show how the movement impacted real people, a big part of it was the music and he misses that point. That said, for the moments where it does shine, Taking Woodstock can be an entertaining film, enjoyable despite the disorder it creates. Viewers just shouldn’t expect it to expound on any of the glimmers of brilliance it teases.