What are we to make of the fact that PUJOL has a new EP called Kisses coming out on Bartertowncoop rather than Saddle Creek Records? Well, it shouldn’t be a big surprise. PUJOL is a rather prolific artist and has released stuff on multiple labels over his career. No doubt Bartertowncoop offered a release date that aligned with the upcoming Black Friday Records Store Day promotion Nov. 27 (which is when the album is slated to drop). Check out the first single from the EP below.
That’s not big news, but there hasn’t been much news going on lately.
Look for an announcement in these here online pages about a new venue opening next month. Will it be a game-changer? Maybe, maybe… I think so, considering who’s involved, but more on that latter.
I’ve been meaning to share this new video by ex-Omahan Anna McClellan (you remember her from Howard) that I first spied on the Hear Nebraska website. I rarely share new video tracks, but this one is pretty inspiring and marks a new direction for McClellan, who has a new cassette/download out on Ryan Fox’s Majestic Litter label (which you can order right here for a mere $7). This is one of my favorites so far for the third quarter ’15. I’m told McClellan is now living somewhere in New York. Anna, what happened to those gigantic glasses you used to wear?
Well, tonight I’ll be sitting with some of you at the Sufjan Stevens concert at The Orpheum Theater. Last I looked, tickets were still available for a variety of prices starting at around $41.
I suspect this could be a pretty gloomy affair. Have you heard his new album, Carrie & Lowell? It’s about as much of a downer as you’d expect from an record that’s about the death of Stevens’ mother. Based on the set list from last night’s performance at The Paramount Theater in Denver (which you can see here), we’ll be getting a performance of the new album in its entirety, plus one or two from Illinoise, The Age of Adz and Seven Swans during the encore. Bring your Kleenix.
Opening for Sufjan is LA performer Gallant.
This is listed on the Ticket Omaha website as having a 7:30 start time, which seems odd. See you there.
The weather was still pretty awesome on Day 2 of SXSW (last Thursday), so why not take a walk to the Saddle Creek / Nicodemus Showcase at Stay Gold? I mean, hey, it’s just on the other side of the freeway in east Austin, right?
Well, two miles by foot later we finally came upon Stay Gold, a new venue with a great outdoor beer garden and a sweet indoor stage where Josh Berwanger Band already was playing (Alas, we were too late for Twinsmith and Orenda Fink).
Berwanger, a former member of Lawrence band The Anniversary, is repped by Nicodemus Agency. No idea what label he’s on, but the band was pretty good in a straight-forward indie rock sort of way. Very clean, very tight and a good preview to PUJOL, who took the stage next.
I’ve never seen Daniel Pujol and his band play live. I think they’ve only played in Omaha once, despite being signed to Saddle Creek Records. I’ve had discussions with local garage-rock aficionados who say Pujol (who apparently counts Jack White among his fans) was Creek’s stab at releasing a garage rock band. I don’t believe that was their motivation at all. Pujol’s sound is too controlled, to pro to be mistaken for garage, reminding me more of Marshall Crenshaw or Graham Parker but with a bit more dirt behind the ears. My quibble: Too many of his songs sound the same, but you could make that same argument about Crenshaw and Parker’s music…
Laura Burhenn of the Mynabirds followed with a solo keyboard set that included a number of old favorites and a few from her upcoming Saddle Creek album, Lovers Know, played in a down-key style that accentuated her rather luscious voice. How will the new material sound with a full band?
Last up at Stay Gold (for me, anyway) was Icky Blossoms playing in front of a max crowd of maybe 50 people – no doubt a sharp contrast to their sold-out send-off show a few weeks earlier at Slowdown Jr. The band kicked right into some tunes off their last album before rolling out a couple new ones from Mask, including “In Folds,” which translated just OK in the live setting.
They could have beefed up the energy level, but what do you expect playing to a half-empty club on a Thursday afternoon? Icky is playing as a five-piece — didn’t recognize the drummer or bass player, but it was indeed a good rhythm section. This was easily the best vocal outing for Sarah Bohling, who continues to grow into her frontwoman role alongside Derek Pressnall, the consummate professional, while Nik Fackler is the band’s wild-card wild man.
They need to get more new songs polished and stage-ready before hitting the road. As much as I like the Creek debut, I’m crazy curious about this new record. Maybe we’ll hear more new stuff when Icky Blossoms returns to Slowdown (in the big room this time) April 14 with Reptar.
It was back to the Courtyard for evening festivities, specifically the controversially named Viet Cong. The place was even more packed than the night before — I could barely move. On stage Viet Cong’s drummer was playing hurt with a cast on his left hand. Somehow he managed to soldier through the set Rick Allen-style. The band’s sound is abrasively indie with some prog flourishes here and there. I’m not sure why they’re so hot these days, unless it’s all about the name.
Afterward I high-tailed back to Red River and the 720 Club, a tiny bar with a small indoor stage area all but vacant on this Thursday night. Under the lights warming up, Krill, a band that colleague Chris Aponick has suggested I check out. The Chicago trio also has caught the attention of such taste makers as Stereogum and Pitchfork, though you wouldn’t know it by the eight people standing in the club. I guess it was everyone else’s loss, as Krill brought their A-game to a post-punk set that recalled Protomartyr but with (much) better vocals. These are the kinds of sets I go to SXSW for — intimate, special, the feeling that you’re seeing something you’ll never see in Omaha.
Finally it was time to pluck one of the artists off my must-see list — Natalie Prass. I’ve been enjoying her debut self-titled album (on Spacebomb) for a few months — rich singer/songwriter stuff, like Jenny Lewis singing Joni Mitchell. The venue listed was Maggie Mae’s. I figured she’d probably be playing at the venue’s rather large rooftop stage.
My SXSW badge got me past the line and right up the stairs, but I didn’t recognize the band performing. Did I get the date wrong? I asked the door person, who had no idea who was playing that night. There actually are three performance spaces in Maggie Mae’s — the rooftop, the Gibson Room and the standard downstairs stage. Turned out Prass was slated downstairs.
Once again, there was no problem getting in and plenty of space right up next to the stage. By the time her set began, the floor was filled, but not uncomfortably so. There was Prass seated behind a piano, her face hidden behind her dark brown curls. Backed by a solid band, Prass performed a half-hour of the best songs from her album. It was the closest thing to a “perfect moment” I experienced at SXSW this year. Check out part of the performance (along with snippets from everyone else mentioned above) in the podcast below.
Vega just announced this morning that Prass will be playing there July 22. I might have to make a pilgrimage to Lincoln….
The final chapter of my SXSW 2015 journey tomorrow…
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Tonight, alt-rock band Born Cages (Razor & Tie) plays at Slowdown Jr.. The band apparently opened for Guns & Roses a couple times, though they sound more like an indie version of Simple Minds. Opening for them tonight is fellow New York band Dreamers and Omaha favorite The Kickback (from Chicago) and Low Long Signal. $10, 8 p.m.
No shows for me last weekend. I intended to see Digital Leather and Twinsmith, but talked myself out of both shows due to: 1) the cold, and 2) the fact that I’ll likely see them both in Austin next week.
Speaking of South by Southwest, for those of you attending (and for those of you who aren’t but want to see what you’re missing), Sched’s Unofficial Guide to SXSW 2014 is now live. Though not recognized by the powers that be at SXSW, it is somewhat definitive…
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What else…
PUJOL, Kludge (Saddle Creek, 2014)
In case you didn’t know, next up on Saddle Creek Records’ release calendar is the new full-length by PUJOL titled Kludge. The album has a street date of May 20, but you can pre-order it now from the Creek site. And you can stream or download the first single from the album, “Pitch Black,” at VICE, where Daniel Pujol talks in detail about the new album: “I wanted to make an album that sounded completely fictional. Like a cartoon nightmare. Tiny wind-up orchestra.” It goes on (and on)…
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Speaking of Saddle Creek artists, Tim Kasher is embarking on a “Living Room” Tour, and tickets to the March 24 Omaha Living Room Show are now available for $20 right here. No idea where this is being held. I guess they let you know after you buy your tickets…
It’s another big day at Saddle Creek Records (Do you think maybe that’s how they answer their phones?). Two of the label’s expansion acts, The Mynabirds and PUJOL, drop full-length releases today.
Mynabirds’ Generals is getting a favorable launch, thanks to a big 7.5 rating at Pitchfork— one of the highest ratings a Saddle Creek act has received in recent memory (with the exception, of course, of the recent Bright Eyes Fever & Mirrors reissue). The review concludes with: “Burhenn bookends the record with the plea, ‘I’d give it all, for a legacy of love,’ signaling that she’s willing to sacrifice personal gain for the broader good, instead of setting the whole thing ablaze. Maybe it’s just her voice (and god, that voice), but I believe her.” Nice, very nice. This one has received a boatload of media attention, including stream hosting at Team Coco (Conan O’Brien’s website) and a video launch at IFC (which you can view here. The video features some of the Saddle Creek Records staff in Mad Men/Matrix-Agent Smith costuming, and Burhenn backed by yet another version of The Mynabirds — this time an all-female band). Is Laura Burhenn positioned to be the next Jenny Lewis? We’ll have to wait and see.
We’re still waiting for that PUJOL Pitchfork review. Called United States of Being, this release has been on heavy rotation at K-TIM (That’s what I call my iPhone)(Yeah, I know, that’s pretty sad). Consequence of Sound gave it a 4-star review, calling it “the appropriate soundtrack to both an existential meltdown and a rowdy, beer-heavy night out-or maybe both at the same time. It’s in this precarious balance that PUJOL has hit a stride that shows no intention of slowing down.” Hear-hear! In fact, you can “hear” it streamed right here at Rolling Stone.
Saddle Creek has one more big release slated for this summer — the full-length debut by Icky Blossoms — set for July 17.
In other Saddle Creek Records-related news, one of the label’s first “expansion acts” — Two Gallants — has apparently flown the coop. The band announced today that it has signed a deal with ATO Records, who will release their fourth LP, The Bloom and the Blight, Sept. 4.
Decisions, decisions… Of the two, Real Estate was probably the hottest ticket of the night last night (from what I’ve been told, it was the bigger draw); but to be honest, their latest album (despite the raves) left me cold, and judging from their YouTube stuff, I was afraid of getting a run-of-the-mill “stand-and-play” performance.
Which is exactly what I didn’t get from Future Islands. I don’t think any of the 30 or so people at The Waiting Room expected what they got from frontman Samuel T. Herring. Never mind that the trio’s music, half of which was pre-recorded samples (including the synth-drum-percussion), is like an homage to early Factory Records / New Order dance tracks — dramatic and fun. It was Herring that was the centerpiece, an absolutely mesmerizing frontman intent on connecting with the audience eye-to-eye from the stage.
He looks like a young Streetcar Brando combined with Deliverance Burt Reynolds and Kirkian Shatner, but with the intensity of a Rollins or Morrissey. He owned the stage like a Shakespearean actor performing a spotlight soliloquy with a voice that ranged somewhere between Richard Burton, Pee Wee Herman (in la-la-la-la mode), a monster and Billy Idol. Like a caged gorilla pacing with knuckles dragging on the floor, Herring leaned down trying to glean any sort of eye contact from anyone who would look at him, shifting from one to one to one to one. Dramatic, and the stage lighting only added to the drama — colored floor-mounted flood lights (think Mercy Rule but with colored gels).
But then between songs, Herring turned into a bro’ just chilling with his roomful of new friends, laughing and talking about the road and how much he loved being on stage (despite, he said, his recent misgivings about performing). Charming. While all this was going on, keyboardist Gerrit Welmers and bass player William Cashion were stone. They never cracked a smile or changed expression. Welmers merely stared straight-faced at his battery of synth/computer equipment, poking out melodies while Brando pounded his chest and slapped himself in the face and bounced on all fours and held his hand skyward as if singing to a Hamlet skull or to an invisible moon. You can tell this guy was once an art student — or a closet thespian.
One of the best performances I’ve seen this year.
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Column 348: Third Quarter Reviews Roundup
Just like when Christmas decorations begin popping up at your local grocery store, critics know they’re on the home stretch when record labels begin sending out reminders of releases to consider in their year-end “best of” lists. Ah, but it’s still only November. We’ve two months left for records to hit the shelves (digital or otherwise). That said, I think we’ve probably already heard the best of ’11. Below are some of the third quarter releases that have been burning up my earphones. Who knows if any of them will make the “best of” final cut. By the time we find out, the labels will be lauding the first releases of 2012, and the grocery stores will be replacing those Christmas decorations with Valentine’s Day candy
A.A. Bondy,Believers (Fat Possum) — The former Verbena frontman may be best known as an opening act for Bon Iver a few years ago. Since then, Bon Iver has ascended to indie rock sainthood, while Bondy continues to toil in the clubs, waiting for the attention he deserves. With a voice strangely resembling Jackson Browne’s, Bondy’s music is a moody midnight throb headed to 3 a.m. all alone. There’s a simplicity in the music’s loneliness — both in sound and lyrics — that his fellow loners will find both familiar and comforting. Inspirational lines like “You didn’t know there was a killer inside / Won’t get to heaven tonight” from the title track are part of the reason why I like this better than Bon Iver’s latest (Sacrilege!). Who knows, maybe someday Bon Iver will open for Bondy (though he won’t be when A.A. Bondy plays at The Waiting Room this Friday night. You should go.).
Eleanor Friedberger, Last Summer (Merge) — Has the distinction of being the first album I purchased after discovering it on Spotify (Merge doesn’t send me promos, the cheap bastards). Those who expect the wonky art rock of her main gig, Fiery Furnaces, are in for a big surprise. Friedberger has left the proggy chord/key changes behind for a collection of songs that are SONGS, complete with melodies and choruses and playful lyrics that bounce atop piano chords, hand claps and the occasional sax riff. I’m reminded (strangely) of smart, laid back Hunky Dory-era David Bowie. My wife thinks she sounds like Carly Simon. She might be right (again). Has the distinction of being one of the best records of 2011.
PUJOL, Nasty, Brutish, And Short EP (Saddle Creek) — Saddle Creek surprised all of us when it announced it signed this Nashville phenom back in August. Who was PUJOL? The only thing we knew was that Jack White liked him and that Nashville Scene called him “The Socrates of the house show circuit” (whatever that means). Creek’s first stab at releasing anything resembling garage, PUJOL embraces a ’60s psych aesthetic on this slim 7-song collection that clocks in at just under 18 minutes. Its stripped down, grinding guitar rock owes a lot to early Beatles and is oh so catchy, probably the catchiest thing the Creek has released since… well, ever.
Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks, Mirror Traffic (Matador) — With all the Pavement reunion talk earlier this year, a few of us were worried that Malkmus may be leaving his solo work behind. Silly rabbits. After a couple brilliant out-there releases (’08’s Real Emotional Trash, ’05’s Face the Truth) Malkmus returns to the more straight-forward, less adventurous and more tuneful style that marked his ’01 solo debut. In fact, Malkmus always came off (to me, anyway) as a more tuneful version of Lou Reed — deceptively simple melodies that belie some of the smartest (and this time, strangest) lyrics that cynically capture a life lived in America. Now that he’s “40 with a kid / Living on the grid,” his lyrics are more obtuse than ever. You may not understand what he’s singing about, but you’ll sing along anyway.
Matthew Sweet, Modern Art (Missing Piece) — Matthew Sweet returns after… wait a minute, Sweet didn’t go anywhere. He’s been steadily releasing music on Shout! Factory since ’06, though two of the last three releases were covers albums made with Susanna Hoffs. One would think reworking all those classic hits would put the pop back into Sweet’s step. Instead, there’s a psychedelic tang and guitar-noodling quality that recall the Altered Beast years (the meandering “My Ass is Grass” and “A Little Death,” the layered, synth-symphonic title track). Still, Sweet knows his sweet spot lies in pure, sing-along tracks like the pretty “Baltimore,” and the Byrds-ish “She Walks the Night,” which he could have used more of this time ’round.
M83, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming (Mute) – Sprawling, ambitious to a fault at 74 minutes, Hurry Up takes M83’s penchant for dreamy, ghostly pop and blows it up to sonic mountains. Like any great epic, it has its perfect moments, like dance floor chestnut “Claudia Lewis,” and triumphant “Steve McQueen.” But there’s also a lot of tonal fluff designed to build cinematic Tangerine Dream-flavored drama (“Another Wave from You,” “When Will You Come Home” “Klaus I Love You”) that lie somewhere between aural interlude and filler. It’s as if M83 is trying to become a modern generation’s version of The Cure, but skipped over the Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me era and went straight for Disintegration. Or maybe they’re just reversing the order. I’m willing to wait and see.
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Tonight at House of Loom it’s Conduits with Pony Wars. I was told that Loom doesn’t really have a “stage,” so it will be interesting to see how they set up the bands. If you haven’t been down there yet (it’s in the old Goofy Foot space) this would be great time to check it out. $5, 9:30 p.m.
Where was I last weekend? Well, I didn’t make it to a single rock show, and there were some doozies, including that Cold Cave gig at The Waiting Room. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t going to happen — too much to do and not enough time to do it.
In fact, the only boozing done this past weekend was meeting an old high school pal on the balcony/beer garden of The Parliament Pub at Midtown Crossing. I drive by that place at least a couple times a day (it faces Dodge Street) and rarely see anyone outside drinking. Was it doing OK business-wise?
I got my answer Saturday night — the club was crushed. Amidst the light and noise, the only thing I remember was it being black and red and looking like an Axe Body Spray commercial featuring the cast of The Jersey Shore. And what exactly is Hollister, anyway? Is it the Britannia Jeans of this generation?
The Parliament also apparently is thee place for bachelorette parties, as there were three going on simultaneously all night — lots of sashes and cheap tiaras.
Musicwise, there was a DJ booth and your stereotypical DJ dude, with a pair of cans (one covering one ear, the other pushed up on his bald, sweaty head). Can’t say I dug his mix, but he wasn’t exactly targeting my demo, if you know what I mean. Parliament represents what became of the ’80s meat market clubs — noisy and chaotic with lots of Brut and charisma. The cover bands that were a meat-market staple are long gone, replaced with generic, thudding house music. But other than that, little has changed.
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Pujol
This morning the folks at Tell Our Your Friends PR sent out a press release heralding that Pujol has signed to Saddle Creek Records, and that a debut announcement is “coming soon.” I had not heard of Pujol prior to today. I’m listening to the single “Mayday” as I type this — very upbeat, jangling indie rock, a perfect fit for Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, who Pujol will be touring with.
According to the literature, Pujol, a.k.a. Daniel Pujol, lives in Nashville, has worked with Jack White of White Stripes fame, and has released material on Third Man and Turbo Time labels (among others). I’m sure we’ll be hearing more about this signing in the near future.
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BTW, this year’s MAHA Music Festival Aug. 13 will be the third-to-last show ever for Guided by Voices, as the “classic lineup” featuring Rob Pollard and Tobin Sprout, will be splitting after their show in Raleigh on Sept. 9. This may be your last chance to see this fantastic, influential band; and it’s happening right here in Omaha…
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There’s a benefit concert being held tonight at The Waiting Room for the folks in Joplin, Missouri, who had their lives blown apart by a massive tornado on May 22. Your $8 cover will help rebuild Joplin. Taking part in the benefit, which starts at 8 p.m., are Black On High, Moscow Mule, Knife.Fight.Justice, Clock Ticks Late and The Minnahoonies.
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