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Boris

As I mentioned last time I posted Boris tracks, what little I know about modern metal I learned from the Aquarius Records newsletter. I thank their metal-obsessive staff for putting me on to Boris all those years ago. At the same time, classifying Boris as “metal” is like calling Beastie Boys “rap” – while technically accurate for the most part, it’s underselling to a point of deception. So when Boris drops not one but two albums at once, it’s cause to celebrate. Heavy Rocks, not to be confused with their 2002 album of the same name (and cover art, except for the color), evolves the raw sound of its predecessor while nonetheless rocking your face off. Attention Please showcases guitarist Wata’s heavenly voice which until now has taken a backseat to her violent riffs. These two representative singles give you a sense of the results, and of Boris’ vast range: “Hope” is an urgent shoegazer beauty while “Riot Sugar” is as gentle as a charging rhino. Enjoy.

Hope from Attention Please (2011)
Riot Sugar from Heavy Rocks (2011)

http://sargenthouse.com/
www.borisheavyrocks.com
www.myspace.com/borisdronevil

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Japandroids

Japandroids are singer/guitarist Brian King and drummer/singer David Prowse of Vancouver, BC. We all know how big a drum kit and guitar can sound (thanks to godheadSilo and some duo from Detroit). So I won’t belabor that aspect of the Japandroids story. What I will say is that their songs burst with youth – all earnest, raw, wistful – and just the right dose of self-deprecation. In fact, if “Younger Us” doesn’t get you screaming along at the top of your lungs and drumming on your steering wheel you may want to check your pulse.

Younger Us from Younger Us 7-inch (2010)
Art Czars from Art Czar 7-inch (2010)
Darkness on the Edge of Gastown from Lullaby Death Jams (2008)

polyvinylrecords.com
www.myspace.com/japandroids
japandroids.com

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Black Lips

The Black Lips are releasing a new album titled Arabia Mountain with Vice Records on June 7. The new songs they have made available (below) seem a bit more polished than previous releases. Now don’t go and have a heart attack, or start calling them “sell outs” just yet, the cleaned up sound is definitely not a bad thing. They still rock, and sound like they are still having a blast doing it.

Black Lips – Modern Art

Black Lips – New Direction

 

Shan’s original post from 01.05.2007:

Lester Bangs’ favorite song was “96 Tears” the Mysterians. John Peel’s favorite was “Teenage Kicks” by the Undertones. Both were love songs by garage bands that could barely play chords and likely couldn’t read music any better than I can. The message is clear: for the most vaunted of audiophiles, “bad” is the best kind of rock music because the whole point is that it’s supposed to sound bad to somebody, hopefully your parents and/or local law enforcement officials and church leaders. By those standards, the Atlanta group Black Lips is pretty damned good. Granted, their really-old garage sound is slightly more preening than authentic, but that seems to be purely a matter of birthdates. You don’t get the sense that they’re being anything but their goofy-ass selves when they sing about having a bad day or set off on some epic live shows of Brian-Jonestown-Massacre proportions. For that, we salute them.

 

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Seapony

Seapony is a three-piece band from Seattle, WA. Their music is pretty simple, mostly three chords with all drum beats coming from a drum machine. The guitars are fuzzy and have that “surf-rock” sound, while the vocals are breathy, and sound like they are being sung through a pay phone. I’m really digging both of the songs included below, they have a very chill summer time feel to them. I hope you enjoy them as well.

Seapony – Blue Star

Seapony – Dreaming

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Pearly Gate Music

Spring showed up and left in a matter of a few days. Anyone who lives or has lived in Utah knows that the weather here changes at a moments notice, and as we had a beautiful clear day yesterday, today is gray and wet. This change in the weather will not get me down though, I have found Pearly Gate Music.

The band is Zach Tillman and, according to Barsuk, “he records and usually plays live with a stylistic variety of full-band options”. The folk music he creates is warm and sunny, just like the weather we had in Utah yesterday. The song “Bad Nostalgia” sounds like it could have been recorded at a religious revival. The songs below are perfect for any summer mixtape, but also excellent for the rainy days when there is nothing better to do than lay around the house and listen to music. Enjoy.

Pearly Gate Music – Big Escape

Pearly Gate Music – Bad Nostalgia

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The Cave Singers

The Cave Singers

The Cave Singers is a three-piece folk band from Seattle, Washington. The band consists of guitarist Derek Fudesco (former Pretty Girls Make Graves bassist), along with drummer Marty Lund (formerly of Cobra High), and vocalist Pete Quirk (formerly of Hint Hint). They formed in 2007 just after the demise of PGMG. They have released three outstanding albums to date. No Witch, their third release and first on Jagjaguwar, is a departure from their two previous releases in that most of the songs are now electric.

The two songs below are a great illustration of the transition they have made from their past acoustic sound to their new electric sound. “Swim Club”, with it’s sweet and warm acoustic roll, conjures the feelings of working out in the yard on a nice summer day while the kids ride their bikes up and down the street. While “Black Leaf” brings the rock, and brings it good. The hand claps, tambourine and chunky guitar really make this song move. These songs are so good, when you have finished listening to them, you will immediately go out and buy this album. It may even become THE soundtrack to your upcoming summer. Enjoy.

The Cave Singers – Swim Club

The Cave Singers – Black Leaf

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Suedehead

One of the off-shoots of British Mod music is a branch known as Northern Soul which took its cues from little known American soul bands. Now a little known band out of Costa Mesa, California is doing its darndest to revive the sound here on U.S. shores. That band, as you probably already guessed, is Suedehead and they have quite the pedigree. Singer and guitarist Davey Warsop used to sing with a British punk band called Beat Union. Chris Bradley (guitars) ran a small punk rock label called Unity Squad Records, and keyboardist Greg Kuehn did the same for punk rock legends T.S.O.L.

While Suedehead definitely has a punk rock energy and aesthetic about them, they’d be more fit at the head of dance floor than a mosh pit. They wear their affinity for Paul Weller and all things Jam on their sleeves, and that’s a good thing. Rocking out to their new EP, I’ve been asked several times if I was sure this isn’t Elvis Costello. And I’m sure, but it’s a good comparison if we went back in time and Costello was 27 again. The two treats we’re including from the band represent the second, darker half of their EP: the crowd favorite “Young & In Love,” and the video for the oh-so-danceable “Can’t Stop.” Tune in!

Suedehead – Young & In Love

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Velocity Girl

I have this tendency to get addicted to songs to the point that the people around me begin throwing heavy objects at my throat and knee-caps. The detox process consists of playing the song over and over while I write a little narrative of my relationship with that song. Lately, I haven’t detoxed; it’s hard to get back into that habit once you’ve abandoned it. After today I promise not to discuss my lingering absence.

My latest awakening is due to one of my all time favorite roadtrip songs, “Go Coastal”by a forgotten favorite: Velocity Girl. I rolled the song over, along with a gaggle more, in a recent refresh of my exercise playlist (I only listen to that about once a week by the way…) and now I can’t live without it. It took me about 10 listens to re-memorize the lyrics, I’m slow like that, and now I’ll enjoy singing along to it for another 50 or so.

I talked a lot about Velocity Girl in my Sarah Shannon review, and now I’ll reciprocate. After Velocity Girl broke up in ’96 (the same year I brought a child into the world, man, those 14 years flew by), Sarah reappeared with a couple of the velocity boys in Starry Eyes, put out two solo records in ’02 and ’06, sang on a Free Design cover with Styrofoam, brought a couple of children into the world herself, and is now writing and performing songs inspired, I imagine, by those children. I’m gonna call my friends at Yo Gabba Gabba and see what I can do about getting Sarah’s voice stuck in the head of cool kids and parents worldwide!

Forgotten Favorite [MP3]
Go Coastal [MP3]

Velocity Girl at subpop.com
thenot-its.com

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3hive Rewinds and Fast Forwards

Let’s face it, 2010 was less than stellar at this url. The principals and our reviewers all dropped out of ear-shot simultaneously and for months 3hive has been out of commission. No particular reason really. Life unplugged us, and once unplugged it’s hard to get back into gear, back into the groove.

Twenty-eleven’s gonna be different. I can only speak for myself, but I’m back on the wagon. I’m good for a couple posts a week, maybe even three. I’ll likely drop in the readings I’m obsessed with on occassion, like this, this , and this.

3hive’s Most Popular Posts from 2010:

11. Jaga Jazzist
10. Inlets
09. Let’s Say We Did
08. Happy Birthday
07. The Royal Chains
06. Bonobo
05. Junk Science
04. Cap’n Jazz [re-issue]
03. Galactic
02. Phantogram
01. Tycho

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Happy Birthday

Today is my youngest son’s 6th birthday. Happy Birthday Jasper! What more can a six year old ever want on his birthday than a review on 3hive dedicated to him? Maybe he’ll appreciate it more in ten years. When he wakes up he’s gonna be appreciating the chocolate chip muffin I bought him from our local donut shop.

Back to Happy Birthday the band: the fine purveyors of music, Sub Pop, fell in love with Kyle Thomas’ work as King Tuff. He brought on Chris Weisman and Ruth Garbus about a year and a half ago to back him up on a bunch of new song’s he’d written. Sub Pop picked them up after they’d played five shows. And this wonderful album is the happy ending to chapter one of Happy Birthday’s hopefully epic journey. The skewed musical note sketched out on the cover together with their label’s name describe the band’s music to a tee. If I had to make up a genre name for Happy Birthday, I’d call it hand-clap doodle rock. They don’t actually use hand-claps on the album, but most of their songs are so fun that you wanna hand-clap your way through them. RIYL: Let’s Active, Daniel Pinkwater.

Continue reading “Happy Birthday”