Gym Class Heroes
Chris Chinchilla sends another postcard home
Voxtrot - Voxtrot
I think my main problem with this release is its press release, it's
almost as if it's describing the wrong band, I find it very hard to
hear a lot of the supposed comparisons and descriptions. I know it's
the job of a PR to ensure a band sounds good, but this one makes them
sound like the best band on the planet. It's a fine album and Voxtrot
are a perfectly competent Indie-Rock band, but fairly generic jangly
American Indie, the clean type, very sharp, clear and precise, full
of carefully constructed and catchy melodies and hooks, the sort that
would sound ideal on American College radio, and prove very popular
on it, but personally the album floats somewhat into the background
after a few tracks, good but not groundbreaking. http://www.myspace.com/voxtrot
Jeff Strong - Jeff Strong
Jeff describe his music as "City and Western" which is the
best description for the genre of Americana tinged mellow rock that
Jeff Strong purveys, so I'm going to stick with it and probably borrow
the phrase, if he doesn't mind. The album is home recorded with a lovely
warm and familiar feel, which suits Jeff's, comforting and gentle voice
down to the ground. Some tracks are pure Jeff, strumming his acoustic
guitar, others feature additional instrumentation, and all ten tracks
are calming influences on a crazy modern world. http://www.myspace.com/jeffreystrong
Tilly and The Wall, Toff in the Town
It's hard to mention Tilly and the Wall without mentioning Tap Dancing,
they have no drummer, the tapping of toes and heels on a specially constructed
"Tap Board" produces the only percussive rhythm, and generally
only one pair of lithe and active ankles is doing all the work. The
lack of solid beats reduces the potential drive and danceability of
their songs, there are a lot of bad jokes about extraneous drummers,
but as the adage goes, "You don't know what you've got 'til it's
gone." However the missing skin basher at the back doesn't phase
tonight's crowd and after a little encouragement the area in front of
the stage is cleared of tables and chairs and a small but gentle group
of dancers emerges, resulting in an ordered and well mannered stage
invasion towards the end of the set.
Tilly and the Wall's music is aimed squarely at the fey Indie kid, the
bullied, struggling against oppression kid, who shyly stands in the
corner turning the other cheek, either disappearing into the cracks
of society or one day deciding that enough is enough, following their
dream and becoming successful. Tilly and The Wall are trying to turn
the former into the later; it's just a shame that for the most part
their songs are rather bland, they even make a Rage Against the Machine
cover (seriously!) sound like Bright Eyes with girls and Tap Dancing.
Because beneath the swearing and the shouting and the rallying calls
Tilly and the Wall are a band that America excels at producing, a Coffee
House band. A band that sits nicely in the Background without being
to intrusive whilst the cast of the OC or Buffy sit around with Cappuccinos
or mysterious drinks in coloured plastic cups discussing their emotional
and relationship problems. Of course to some people this kind of music
is the idea of heaven, and it obviously is to the throng at the front
of the stage, to the people in the room mouthing along to every word
of every song. A lot of happy, smiling people leave the Toff tonight,
it may not be your kind of music but you can't fault artists that have
that effect on people. http://www.myspace.com/officialtillyandthewall
Institut Polaire - City Walls and Empires
It's always hard to review one track single samplers, especially if
you like what you hear and want to hear more! "City Walls and Empires"
is a jaunty and radio friendly ditty, the 9 members of the band creating
a complex interweaving of melodies and counter melodies, complete with
a rousing unison of vocals in the chorus. Radio friendly, upbeat, a
good tune, what more could you want from a single?
http://www.myspace.com/institutpolaire
Ninetynine - Worlds Of Space, Worlds Of Population,
Worlds Of Robots
Ninetynine's live show is a stupendous feat of intense musicianship
and song writing craft, so how a band takes such a show, commit it to
record and lose none of the live buzz is a challenge. "Worlds Of
Space, Worlds Of Population, Worlds Of Robots" makes a determined
effort, and is twelve tracks of finely constructed, arranged and played
songs of epic proportions, some beautiful, some inspiring, some fast
and frantic, others slower and brooding. The production of the album
lacks some sparkle that would have really brought out the songs in their
entirety, Laura MacFarlane's vocal sometimes not quite possessing the
punch and clarity they deserve and a general desire for a little more
'oomph'. Slight niggles with production quality aside the band's energy
and passion for what they play still shines through, with tracks like
"Monster" grabbing you and hurling your ears against the wall
and the sincere, heartfelt strains of "At the Backdoor" pulling
you into a melancholic world and bringing the slightest tear to your
eye. A fine album from a fine band, it sounds cheesy, but it's not just
an album, it's an experience.
http://www.myspace.com/ninetynine99
Gym Class Heroes, Billboard
Gym Class Heroes are perhaps one of the oddest, biggest bundle of contradictions,
confusions and concerns you may ever witness in a music venue, which
is a bold statement considering how screwed up a lot of Hip Hop generally
is. The 'backing band' is a bunch of highly proficient musicians with
very decent equipment, which always smacks of 'manufactured' session
musicians, despite what the bands biography might tell you. Travis on
vocals bounds around the stage attempting to perfect a sort of cutesy
little boy lost image, whilst simultaneously churning out lyrics about
women and how much he wants to have 'relations' with them. This same
desire also applies to the female members of the audience, bearing in
mind that most of the audience are under 18, you can't help but feel
that encouraging them to all make out with each other (and him) is slightly
in bad taste. He also goes out of his way to inform the audience that
a song containing the lyrics "Glamorous White Girl" and "Razor"
is not about an (rumoured) addiction to Cocaine, but an addiction to
music. Frankly the whole set up is all a little perverse, but the kids
love the big marketing machine behind the band and aimed squarely at
them, infiltrating their media sources and ways of thinking (i.e. MySpace,
the band have a song called "Friend Request"), whooping in
the right places, dancing throughout and playing along with all the
bizarre and vaguely obscene games thrown at them, e.g. "Hands up
who's not here with their Boyfriends?" receives a worrying response.
The music is generally in the minor key so prevalent in modern Hip Hop,
giving the songs that slightly sinister and ominous feel that again
contrasts with the lyrical content, creating yet another concerning
contradiction. However the music isn't bad, the songs are funky, tight
and live which is a nice novelty in the genre, providing a good solid
musical bed for the lyrical tomfoolery and for the kids in their best
frocks and oversized tracksuits to shake their booties to, hopefully
without quite thinking about why they are.
http://www.myspace.com/gymclassheroes
Eddie Current Suppression Ring, Dead Farmers, Roxanne Parlour
Eddie Current Suppression Ring (Henceforth ECSR or this review will
go on for ever) do things their own way. Despite rising to the heady
heights of 'buzz band' status, they book their own gigs, promote their
own gigs, manage themselves and still find the time to write some damn
good material. Roxanne's is packed tonight with a crowd biting at the
bit and raring to go, Dead Farmers, resplendent in checked lumberjack
shirts (Grunge dead? Never!) don't quite seem to ever get going, stopping
and starting and making adjustments to gear and when they're finally
getting into the swing of things and the set is beginning to take form
and take shape, they have to finish. However the crowd are up for anything
that's thrown at them and love it. http://www.myspace.com/deadfarmers
After a brief changeover with the room and the crowd bustling ECSR take
to the stage with an unceremonious and unassuming manner, just sort
of slowly appearing there and starting as opposed to any great entry.
No sooner have they emitted the first note of the first song does the
crowd starts jumping, dancing, smiling and flying about the room, eventually
some security appear, and as usual for venues such as Roxanne's, don't
really know what to do apart from stand there and look imposing, but
no one cares anyway. Brendan Suppression (vocals) paces the stage in
a pair of curious fingerless black gloves, looking almost awkward to
be there, Eddy Current on guitar just sort of hovers on stage looking
equally out of place thwacking out jangly, garage riffs over Rob Solid's
massive bass sound and Danny Current's frantic drumming. It doesn't
make any sense, ECSR are a great band, but the music isn't that fast
and danceable, at times it's even a little slow, and yet the crowd go
wild for the band's entire set, never relenting. The band look somewhat
uncomfortable on stage, rarely making eye contact with the crowd and
even discouraging them from becoming too raucous, but the crowd is hanging
off their every word and action, ready to fly off into a frenzy at any
given moment. How do the band do it? Do they even know themselves? ECSR
are a band for the rejects and the outsiders of the music scene who
have somehow managed to trick the cool kids into thinking that they're
part of them, they don't look right, they shouldn't be, but are, the
best sort of Rock stars. http://www.myspace.com/eddycurrentsuppressionring
Chris Chinchilla
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