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SHOW REVIEW! The Sea and Cake w/ Lia Ices @ The Troubadour, West Hollywood, CA, December 6th, 2011

Contributed by Chris Gedos

Considering there’s more bands than people these days, I’m afraid to say that I’d never listened to The Sea and Cake if only because I wasn’t quite sure what to make of their name. Band names with lowercase articles are highly uncommon in today’s indiedom. I still think The Sea and Cake sounds more like a collection of short stories by the most recent fiction MFA from Hunter College, but presented with the opportunity to see the Chicago collective at Doug Weston’s Troubadour on Tuesday, December 6th 2011, I partook in a 24 hour cram session and familiarized myself with their nine albums: The Sea and Cake, Nassau, The Biz, The Fawn, Oui, One Bedroom, Everybody, Car Alarm and 2011’s The Moonlight Butterfly. They are that rare one trick pony. It’s indie meets jazz, a true marriage at the left end of the dial, a highly professional Chicago sound emanating from the most (i.e. only) outwardly-looking city in the Midwest. First cousin: Tortoise. Second cousin by marriage: Wilco. Third cousin/ black sheep: Smashing Pumpkins.

The Troubadour pays homage to its singer-songwriter alumni in the bar to the left of the entrance, a classic roadhouse with a video feed to the main event in the next room. The venerable institution sports autographed pics of Harry Chapin and Joni Mitchell next to a gold Cure record and a plain OK Computer vinyl sleeve. Few venues in America have adapted to the whirlwind times so commandingly.

Opener Lia Ices played in a minimalist minor key on her red, Nord Electric 3 keyboard, with her brother providing accompaniment on a plugged in acoustic guitar which toes an interesting middle ground. Innumerable comparisons will be drawn between Lia Ices and Feist, but whereas Feist always retains her emotional vulnerability, Lia Ices also has the vocal capacity to go big like Sinead. The fact that she doesn’t speaks to an untapped potential in her music, although the minimalist ethos does provide for some lush ambiance. Her last song, a haunting ballad off her first album, was performed solo and bookended the set nicely. The unavoidable fact is that Lia Ices is very beautiful to the point where it would be purposefully oblivious to ignore it— hopefully the populace will look toward the beauty in her music that’s more than skin deep.

The crowd was older; mean, median and mode each hover around 31. The Sea and Cake are genre-benders, but they’re also a slow burn since they don’t hit you over the head with their experimentation. Therefore, their listeners are older and more mature, having come upon the band at some point during the past 15 years. In spite of their niche status, their music is accessible and conveniently packaged, generally without longer jams and solos; few of their songs stretch beyond six minutes.

The Sea and Cake took the stage and started right off with one of their more recent songs more indie than jazz. The fact that they’re a little older in Rock years, late 40s instead of early 30s, makes their more ‘mainstream’ appeal seem like a strong creative choice as opposed to a dive to the middle. What could easily be four dads from Evanston who play for the agricorp softball team, in fact is one of the more decorated bands in recent memory. What’s even more interesting is they predated the sub-genre craze we’re dealing with right now. Their versatile set spanned a careers worth of material and rang a noteworthy loudness that commanded the audiences attention. Think a little bit of Jonathan Richman next to a little bit of Charlie Haden? The Sea and Cake invites those disparate comparisons, which is precisely what makes their live show so compelling.

Set Highlight: “Afternoon Speaker” off 2000’s Oui.

The Sea and Cake (Official)

Rating 8.5

reviewed by b3

12-13-11

SHOW REVIEW! CAVEMAN w/ RACES @ the Echo, LA. December 8th, 2011

Live Show Reviews Rock

Contributed by Chris Gedos

Industry bees were buzzing Thursday Night, December 8th, for Caveman and Races at the Echo. Sponsored by Stereogum and the 2012 Chevy Sonic, there was a certain excitement for the free show w/RSVP, held on the eve of the Echo’s 10th anniversary.

Caveman capitalized on their CMJ momentum with the triumphant CoCo Beware, sure to make many a year end list, that increasingly rare LP which actually requires a wire-to-wire listen in order to uncover its nuance. By switching the set list dramatically from the album sequence, Caveman was able to create a live experience which was no less enjoyable and gave everyone in attendance a greater appreciation for the Brooklyn five piece.

With All Things Must Pass as the DJ preset, Races started their soundcheck. Their demurely rebellious style is KROQ ready with a San Fernando stamp of approval. “Can you pull the guitar out of the monitor? This vocal isn’t right.” Wade Ryff, the band’s vocalist, knows that there’s a lot of potential converts in attendance, and the LA industry contingency always lurks in the shadows. Eventually they get into their first song. It’s an instrumental with a great 60’s sensibility, not from their current EP, and possibly the opener on their upcoming LP, slated for March to coincide with the SXSW season. After about two minutes of guitar solos over bass, drums and red nord electric 3, everyone in the joint was fucking slayed by the majesty of the shredding. We applauded as the vocals commenced.

There’s a lot of buzz surrounding Races. They’re worth every droplet of it. I went in with high expectations and was still blown away by their set. They can go big and emotive like Arcade Fire (their most immediate influence), a quality that not even Arcade Fire continuously possesses. The mic for singer/percussionist Devon Lee was only at 50% capacity, but her back-up vox on “Big Broom” were magical. And I even love “All for You” and its moog filched from a still lost Pinkerton b-side. Like, love and follow Races before 2011 punches its time card, because these cats might be the ones to watch for 2012.

In between sets: I stared at the Chevy Sonic light projection on the wall and contemplated the infamous “Pink Moon” Cabrio ad, the first time a compact car married an “indie” sound and aesthetic. “Some of Them Are Old” by Brian Eno also played (no more Quiet Beatle) as a perfect prelude to Caveman’s set. However, during the second soundcheck, it was revealed by the sound guy that the backing mic would only continue to work at 50%. As a result there were mic problems later on during Caveman’s set, somewhat on “Thankful” and especially during “Great Life”, where the mic feed was especially unfortunate. Other snippets sounded grainy and distorted. So much of Caveman’s music is defined by its gentle undulations, which sounded perfect through the amps for about 87% of the set.

The fact that Caveman was able to rise above these minor sound snafus speaks miles about their innate professionalism. From the set’s first song, album opener “A Country’s King of Dreams”, one of the only songs played in order, with its “There There” hyper percussion techniques, it became apparent that Caveman‘s uniqueness is their most impressive quality. Even “My Time”, a single if there could be one, is a song driven by its uniqueness, a downbeat Feelies for the 21st C. I’d rather not rack my brain to come up with another apt comparison. CoCo Beware sounds so 2011, but it’s one of the least representative LPs of the year. They’re louder than most bands and they’re softer than most bands as well. They played the entire album and one new song with a slightly more populist vibe.

I left the venue equally impressed with both Caveman and Races. Walking out, The Kink’s “I’m Not Like Everybody Else” plays over the PA, originally the B-side to “Sunny Afternoon.”

Caveman – Thankful (Facebook)

Races – Big Broom (Facebook)

Rating 9.0

reviewed by b3

12-12-11

TICKET GIVEAWAY: CAVE w/ Sun Araw and Sean McCann @ The Satellite, Los Angeles CA. Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Rock Ticket Giveaways

Hit us up with a number between 1 and 1000 for a chance to win tickets to see psych instrumental group Cave play at The Satellite tomorrow night, November 29th. Silverlake’s premiere institution hosts the Chicago rockers who display methodical structures mixed in with killer solos, music with an inner peace much unlike da Bears’ QB conundrum at the moment. Cave’s 2011 LP, Neverendless, delivers with the same quality as 2009’s Psychic Psymmer. So get in for free, buy a pint of Newcastle and play a game of dollar eight ball. Just give us number between 1 and 1000. *Chris Gedos

Just drop us a line HERE to be entered to win a pair of tickets for the set (raffled day of performance). Get additional show details at The Satellite.

CAVE – MUJ

CAVE (Drag City)
The Satellite (Info)

reviewed by b3

11-28-11

Tree – People (ft. Shelf Nunny & Lena Kuhn)

Electronic Rock Songwriter

Contributed by Chris Gedos

It would be an understatement to say that the genre of grown up twee folk is oversaturated these days. From nihiti to Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr, the niche is ablaze with artists of various levels of acclaim, which is what makes the song “People” by SF artist Tree all the more impressive. Something about the rambling lyrics and piercing wurlitzer makes me imagine some cat on a guitar outside City Lights with a tin can and a tattered copy of Naked Lunch on the pavement. This is a rare song of great feeling which doesn’t get caught up in a pretentiously grandiose statement. I dare you to only listen once.

Tree (Facebook)

Rating 8.2

reviewed by b3

11-28-11

We Are The Grand – Do you remember the first time?

Rock Track Reviews

Contributed by Chris Gedos

Check out the new single “Do you remember the first time?” by Chilean band We Are The Grand. It’s very catchy with a nice breakdown and the entire thing pays a gentle South American homage to Rivers Cuomo, somewhat of a departure from their previous EP which is more ensconced in the English tradition. These cats are playing Lollapalooza Chile in Santiago if you happen to be in that fantastic city (I’ve had the pleasure, albeit brief) this upcoming March 31st. Say Chile and I can’t stop thinking about Roberto Bolaño, their most recent patron saint of letters, author of Los Detectives Salvages and 2666 , monster novels of a certain type of literary fiction, call it quasi-magical global realism! Much of his earlier works discuss Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and the aftermath of the coup, events Bolano may or may not have witnessed firsthand.

We Are The Grand – Do you remember the first time?

WATG (Facebook)

Rating 8

reviewed by b3

11-23-11

Coasts – Drum Song (demo)

Rock Track Reviews

Contributed by Chris Gedos

Opinion is split here at base camp re: the effect of Facebook on new music. Zuckerberg’s super-corporation has officially supplanted Myspace as the destination spot for new music discovery; however, popularity is still unfairly and inaccurately measured by the number of “likes” as opposed to “friends”. I’ll admit that I do love the ability to simultaneously connect to a band’s Wiki, Bandcamp, website etc through Facebook. As Myspace was always limited by its interface, it’s Facebook’s intuitive design which allows the listener to scroll through a band’s pertinent info with speed and facility.

I also fall prey to those fleeting advertisements which knock but once, for they often disappear when you refresh the page. Tonight I saw an ad which read (I’m paraphrasing), “Wu Lyf fan? Check out UK’s Coasts.” Since I consider myself an effin’ Wu Lyf historian by this point, I feel obliged to click through, even though I’m under the influence of the Richard Brautigan novella I just inhaled. But Brautigan or not, Brighton’s Coasts sound a lot like Wu Lyf. Here we are late-2011, and there’s this sub-genre of extremely intelligent English rock which looks to America for influence and has vocalists that sound a lot like Tom Waits. Stranger things have happened.

“Drum Song” is a demo which clocks in at 1:59. A fuzzed out radio broadcast in what sounds like Argentine Spanish (Castellano) leads into the performance. The song’s brevity reads like a reluctant invitation from a band which I imagine, like Wu Lyf, is highly protective of their talents. The release date is set for 2013, so Coasts will have over a year to distinguish themselves from the Mancunians’ shadow. But until then, enjoy “Drum Song”. Kinda reminds me of the first time I heard “Tulips”.

Coasts – Drum Song (demo)

Coasts (Facebook)

Rating 8.47

reviewed by b3

11-18-11

TRAILS AND WAYS – No Wisdom

Rock Track Reviews

Contributed by Chris Gedos

Oakland’s Trails And Ways seems like a fusion band which hasn’t fully fused yet, but there’s so much talent here they get a free pass for any genre-picking they may be guilty of. Their new EP, Temporal, has some of the grooviest album art I’ve seen in a while— a true homage to art deco with the abstract lettering and Mayan color palette. “Chills” descends into muzak for a few seconds, but they more than make up for it with the Joao Gilberto inspired “One Note” and a lushly produced cover of M83’s “Midnight City”. However, “No Wisdom” is the star of this EP, featuring one of the most thoughtful arrangments I’ve heard in awhile. And the syncopated vocal is totally boss. A little more time in the kiln and these cats will be a band to watch for in 2k12.

TRAILS AND WAYS – No Wisdom

TRAILS AND WAYS (Bandcamp)

Rating 7.9

reviewed by b3

11-17-11

Jhameel – White Lie

Electronic Pop Track Reviews

Contributed by Chris Gedos

Now here’s a cool coffee club banger from blogosphere fav Jhameel. “White Lie” has a great chorus and extended bridge which almost becomes a hidden song-within-a-song. A true polyglot (speaks Arabic, Spanish, Russian and Korean), Jhameel’s music has a cosmopolitan flair which is loved among the echo boomers. This is the sort of song I would play for a jaded hip-hop or indie rock junkie to get them to venture away from their comfort zone and into the other genre’s territory. With so many flashes in the pan, Jhameel has quietly become a familiar face. Get it get it get it.

Jhameel – White Lie

Jhameel (Facebook)

Rating 8.25

reviewed by b3

11-16-11

THROWBACK TUESDAYS: 1910 Fruitgum Company – Simon Says

In the Mix Throwback Saturdays

By Chris Gedos

The New Jersey bubblegum band oh-so-ironically named 1910 Fruitgum Company was not a one hit wonder. “Simon Says” made it to #4 in March, 1968; “1,2,3, Red Light” and “Indian Giver” both reached #5 in ‘68 and ‘69, respectively. So why are all three songs so scarcely heard on OBG stations today? All three records sold over a million copies upon release, so where’s the love? My only thesis is that overtly saccharine songs associated with the period between The Summer of Love and the devastation of ’68 are seen as historical aberrations and therefore discarded as irrelevant. (Examples supporting this theory are “Green Tamborine” by The Lemon Pipers and, to a lesser extent, “Incense and Peppermints” by Strawberry Alarm Clock. Both of these songs made it to #1.) “Simon Says” is a bit gimmicky, but it’s also important to remember that the Milton Bradley game Simon wasn’t released until 1978. The saying Simon says can be traced to Simon de Montfort, who led the barons against Henry III of England during the Second Barons’ War, way back in the 1260’s! I think all this culturally and historically juicy information is enough to give 1910 Fruitgum Co. some much deserved airplay.

1910 Fruitgum Company – Simon Says

1910 Fruitgum Company (Official)

reviewed by b3

11-14-11

LIVE SHOW REVIEWS: araabMUZIK @ The Mondrian, Los Angeles 11/11/11

Electronic Hip Hop Live Show Reviews

By: Chris Gedos

Rhode Island native Abraham Orellana performed under his moniker araabMUZIK on Friday night, 11/11/11, as part of The Mondrian Sessions at the hotel of the same name on the Sunset Strip. Although the LA scene has long since moved to Silverlake and Echo Park, The Mondrian Sessions are making The Strip relevant for lovers of independent MUZIK.

AraabMUZIK’s highly regarded Electronic Dream was released over the summer. It shocked and even upset some of his admirers, for on his LP the producer oftentimes sits back and allows the original song to play through for seconds at a time. However, araabMUZIK’s previous beats for Cam’ron and others are more heavily spliced, which I view as a simple issue of producing a single song vs. an entire LP, a transition which araab handled with ease. These are big boy beats but also stand alone songs, not an easy feat for a producer barely of drinking age.

The set was performed inside, to the left of the main entrance of the hotel. It would’ve been cool to see it outside by the pool (where I saw Dirty Beaches back in August), but ten foot ceilings and a tiny bar add to the house party vibe. The crowd (50% hip-hop, 50% hipster) wilds out- the same people that sway gently at concerts in Echo Park are losing themselves in a way they’d make fun of in a different environment. The music weaves its way through several genres in several seconds, too pop for hip-hop and vice versa, infectious music flaunting conventions. It’s so packed I can only catch glimpses of his fingers furiously tapping at the MPC which he’s wholly dependent on. My friend asked, “Where is the musicianship?” He wasn’t a fan. Oh well, beauty is in the ear of the beholder.

My main fault with the experience is more of a misgiving regarding the culture that has proved fertile ground for this current DJ/Dubstep/MPC/Protools (one big umbrella) revolution: it epitomizes self aggrandizement at its most unadulterated. To believe one is the purveyor of a musical revolution is dangerous naiveté. I ran home to put on the second side of Bringing It All Back Home, as I craved a slice of Dylan’s master social commentary:

Advertising signs they con
You into thinking you’re the one
That can do what’s never been done
That can win what’s never been won
Meantime life outside goes on
All around you

(From It’s Alright Ma, I’m Only Bleeding)

araabMUZIK – Let It Go

araabMUZIK $$$ (Twitter) (Facebook)

RATING: 8.4

reviewed by b3

11-13-11

GRMLN – Relax Yourself (Dolphin Cry)

Pop Rock Track Reviews

GRMLN, a project by an Orange County college student named Yoodoo, is the perfect music to pass that interminable afternoon in the library or cubicle. These sunny melodies will be most assuredly stuck in your head at the end of a brief listening session. The breathy vocals are more atmospheric than anything, but I do hear a catchy line or two steal the music’s soft thunder. It would be cool to have some elaborate beats counter the melodies- it’s really the only thing keeping me from going gaga. But fans of Seapony through Beach House now have a new love for the weekend. Contributed by Chris Gedos

GRMLN – Relax Yourself (Dolphin Cry)

GRMLN (Bandcamp)

RATING: 7.88

reviewed by b3

11-11-11

Spector – Grey Shirt & Tie

Rock Track Reviews

Spector drops a very electro beat on their new single, “Grey Shirt & Tie”. Church bells and synth layers create a 2011 wall-of-sound aesthetic. The layering increases throughout the track, which isolates Fred Macpherson’s vocal and makes it shine. Spector is doing radio ready rock (that dying genre) better than just about anyone in the UK right now. Now it’s time to show USA some love with a few tour dates! Contributed by Chris Gedos

Spector (Facebook)

Rating: 8.24

reviewed by b3

11-05-11