I want to make this perfectly clear, right from the get-go: The Rentals’s 1995 debut, Return of the Rentals, is a small masterpiece of power pop. It’s a record that easily stands on its own, to the point that its utterly unavoidable association with the early releases of bandleader Matt Sharp’s other band--you know, the one with the songs about Buddy Holly and sweaters and butterflies--is very much a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it’s really too bad that Return of the Rentals has never been allowed to exist by itself--you really can’t even talk about it without delving into ancient Weezer lore. On the other, its inextricability from Weezer history provides a sense of time and place in which Return can both exist and shine.
Listening to Return of the Rentals, it’s very easy to attribute Weezer’s less-than-credible current position to the absence of Matt Sharp. Whether that’s fair to say is impossible to know for anyone outside of the band. What we do know is this: Sharp was Weezer’s founding bassist, and played with them from the band’s founding in 1992 until 1998. He appears, then, on two of the band’s albums--the classics Weezer (The Blue Album) and Pinkerton. Watching some of the Pinkerton-era videos, he can be seen--usually accompanied by drummer Patrick Wilson--being kind of hilarious:
Records Are For Lovers Co-Owner and good friend Mylynda Nellermoe contacted me to write a review of Brandon Sidney’s (stage name Kid Sid) new EP Rule The World. My task is simple: listen to the EP, write about it, and be honest. I’ve been forewarned that Brandon writes R&B/Electronica fusion music. This is relevant because whenever I listen to good music intended to make people dance, regardless of how sober or alone I am I dance (badly) like nobody is watching. At the moment, I’m typing this in a library surrounded by several onlookers. So this is bound to be interesting, or at the very least embarrassing.
The EP opens with the title song “Rule The World." Immediately, a piercing guitar riff catches your attention while two background synths duel it out for harmony and rhythm dominance. Thirty seconds into the song the drum beat kicks in, and despite that I’m writing this from a laptop connected to a pair of headphones (my laptop sucks, the speakers don’t work) I can’t seem to keep myself from awkwardly chair dancing.
Fortunately for any onlookers “Rule The World” quickly leads into “Intoxicated”, a heartfelt rhythm and blues ballad about alcohol and it’s strange ability to get even the ugliest duckling laid provided said duckling drinks enough beverages with ethanol content. Now, we both know the market is saturated with songs like these, but what separates Kid Sid from the competition is instead of reveling in the hedonism of it all, he admits his faults in a way that manages to be depressing, empathetic, and masculine all at the same time: “I’m gonna chug shot after shot/so I can reach you/You’re the fuel to my addiction, hun/I’ve got to have you”. Unfortunately for my library audience (I’ve had several people stare at me already, including a cute girl I have no hope of seducing now), “Intoxicated” is just as danceable as “Rule The World”. It’s far slower though, so instead of jerking around like someone suffering from a seizure ala Thom Yorke, my audience has to suffer watching me rhythmically sway my body in that awkward way only really white people can move in perfect rhythm and still look retarded.
Normally, I don’t go to shows just to see one specific band. I like to know at least two of the bands performing on any given night just because then I feel like it was really worth the trip. However, The Dear Hunter is one of few bands that I would go see no matter who they are playing with. Hell, they could be playing a show with Insane Clown Posse for all I care, and I’d probably still attend. Alright, maybe not, but yes, yes I would. That being said, I hope The Dear Hunter never lowers themselves to playing anywhere near ICP let alone the same show. This is all irrelevant aside, TDH performed at The Bottom Lounge in Chicago on Saturday May 14th and it was far better than just about anything else I have ever been a part of.
After spending about 20 minutes driving around the venue trying to find a parking spot, my BFF and photographer, Hailey Williams, and I finally arrived at The Bottom Lounge; however, not before asking a man with a strikingly wonderful mustache where we could leave my car for the evening. We were a little late, so we only caught about the last 3-4 songs of The Trophy Fire’s set. However, I must say that what I heard was pretty impressive. The band had really solid vocals and the crowd really seemed to enjoy what they were hearing.
Balance and Composure took the stage next. It was immediately clear that a decent amount of the crowd had attended specifically to see this band. Almost everywhere I turned I saw at least one person singing their heart out. All in all I would definitely recommend checking these guys out at some point. These guys really did impress me and that’s hard to do when I’m internally bouncing off the walls waiting for The Dear Hunter to perform.
Fortunately for me, I didn’t have to wait too terribly long before The Dear Hunter began setting up. As soon as they began bringing equipment onto the stage I was taken over by anticipation. I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect, but I knew it was going to blow my mind. SPOILER ALERT: I was correct in this assumption.
TDH opened their set with “In Cauda Venemum”, the second track on their 3rd full length album, Act III: Life and Death. Upon playing just the first few notes my jaw instantly dropped. Everything about the song was flawless from beginning to end. So much so that if this had been the only song TDH performed that night, I probably would have left just as satisfied as I did.
I wasn’t really positive what to expect in terms of the set list, but I was not at all disappointed. The set continued mostly with songs from Acts II and III including, “The Procession”, “The Church and the Dime”, and “The Thief”. Each and every song was performed so remarkably well that I actually had goose bumps throughout most of the set.
One song I was particularly excited to hear was “Mustard Gas”. This song became one of my favorites very quickly when I first started listening to TDH and hearing it live just made me love it that much more. Lead singer, Casey Crescenzo, holds back absolutely nothing when he performs and his voice is just as incredible live as it is on any of their albums.
The Dear Hunter closed their far too short set with what is possibly my new favorite song, “This Body”. This song was just released a couple of weeks ago and is the 4th track on the up and coming Black EP due to release in June. “This Body” is, in my opinion, quite probably one of the best songs TDH has ever recorded and one that I was very much hoping to hear that night. This song was absolutely the perfect way to end the set. It was performed with such natural ease it was almost as though it was being played directly off of the album.
Needless to say, The Dear Hunter did not disappoint. After hearing how completely amazing they are live, I pretty much never want to hear anything else ever again. That’s a lie, obviously, but it was fantastic. The only songs I would not have minded hearing were “What it Means to Be Alone” and “Where the Road Parts”. However, I’m really not complaining because they could have played just about anything and I would have been okay with it.
The Dear Hunter will be back in Chicago sometime in July and their newest album, “The Color Spectrum”, drops on June 14th. There will be a standard version for those of you who don’t feel like sifting through 36 songs to figure out which ones you like and for us hardcore fans, there will be a deluxe edition. I have no doubt in my mind that this album is going to completely blow listeners away.
Now that I have rambled on about how great I think The Dear Hunter is for probably way too long, I should probably talk about how Dredg is pretty sweet too. Though to be honest, after TDH I wasn’t really paying much attention to anything else. Also, it seems as though the notes I did take during Dredg’s set are not even kind of helpful! I seem to have made it a point to note that the super babe standing in front of me started playing the air drums at one point and that bros seem to really enjoy Dredg. All that aside, they actually performed really well. The lead singer’s voice was very different, and I that’s something that always grabs my attention. Their songs were catchy and they were a lot of fun to watch.
In the immortal words of my favorite gay, Collin VanBuren, “They dun gewd”. Thank you Collin, your help has been greatly appreciated. All that aside, if you are ever given the chance to see The Dear Hunter live I highly recommend it. Trust me on this one, this is a band you will not regret seeing.
Today we bring a special guest blogger on over from Mezzic, Dave of In The Black Box. I originally met him while studying abroad years ago, and his electronic music knowledge astounds as evidenced by his writing and music endeavors (check his EP here). He's sharing his review of Kitsuné's latest compilation, which is released May 16th, with Radio Free Chicago. Welcome to RFC! - John
Six years after the first Kitsuné Maison Compilation the Paris based fashion and electronic music label have reached their 11th instalment of the indie inspired club music collection… or is that club inspired indie music?
This is a question which has followed the label around the past decade. They feel that this, “the Indie-Dance issue” of the series speaks for itself and sits “right at the crossroads” of the two genres which have been at the heart of their label.
Whatever the ingredients that make up this fresh musical soup, it is sure to be the perfect recipe for the Summer, as one sun drenched tune gives way to another in a 17 track barrage of the newest and most cutting edge Indie-Dance music being created on the planet right now. According to the label, these tracks have been carefully selected from artists all around the world; some are so new the band doesn’t even have a name yet. So if anything Kitsuné is providing a cross-section on the global indie-dance music scene as it exists right now… A reflection perhaps on how much the music world has been opened up by the internet, it seems that now not only music listeners, but also the labels themselves are scouring the World Wide Web for the next best thing since sliced bread.
This is certainly a compilation to bring to your next house party. There is not one downer in the bunch and every track is packed full of that ridiculous sense of optimism and positivity that one feels as they crack into their first beer, and chat busily to friends about the club, the music, the possibilities of the night ahead, and the “hottie-in-the-corner” who just keeps checking you out.
“Roman” from Housse De Racket is exactly what you need to loosen those dancing limbs, with that combination of guitar and synth that seems to be the common factor that runs through this whole collection. Polarsets’ “Sunshine Eyes” with its percussion and kalimba like melodies places you at a rooftop party, at dusk on a summer’s evening, watching the sun set behind skyscrapers and the city lights illuminate the way to the dancefloor.
It’s is clear that Kitsuné have strove to develop a soundtrack to your night out this summer. Whether you like it or not, each tune documents those specific, unforgettable moments on everyone’s night out; you will be humming along Alexander Dexter Jones’ “Phantastic Phone Call” as you pile into your wardrobe for the perfect outfit; Polarsets and Housse De Racket bring you the pre-drinks while Cosmonaut and Creep pump menacingly out of the doors of the club while you lose yourself in the collective happiness of the dancefloor. Sermon “The Touch” is for that moment when you dip deep into the groove late on in the night, pounding house grooves and chanting vocals power you through until the sunrise. Before you know it you’re halfway out of a car sunroof, feeling the wind in your hair as you breeze down empty city streets at 5am singing at the top of your lungs to Guards’ “Resolution of One”.
As a fashion label their idea must be that if you feel good listening to this music you will most certainly look good. Even at 7am as you munch on some cold pizza on the floor of some guys apartment with only one shoe and a banana skin that you acquired from some other drunken reveller only hours earlier… by this stage you are singing along to “Big Things” by Fiction and haven’t a care in the world… you feel great so you must look like a million dollars… right?
There are definitely some stand-out tracks on this compilation. I took the time to catch up with Gallops, a Welsh outfit whose killer tune “Miami Spider” has been turning heads and bending ears all around the world. After completing two cracking headline gigs this past weekend at Camden Crawl, it is clear that the band love the stage and this track reflects that with a clear live sound, a natural groove and progression that is driven through by a killer repeating guitar line. When I asked them about their live sound Mark, one of four members in the band, had this to say.
“To be fair I would say we are a live band first and foremost. That’s not to say our recordings don’t do us justice, but I do think we are best experienced in the flesh. Our music is probably best when as loud as possible.”
And on their track “Miami Spider” Mark explained
“Miami Spider was the final track on our debut EP that was released at the end of last summer through Holy Roar/Blood and Biscuits and it seems to be the most popular track from that EP. I guess it is the most catchy and immediate so we can see why. It’s quite strange and bad timing that this compilation is getting released so long after the EP, as it almost feels like we have put that track to bed and are moving on with new sounds etc. Perhaps we would of sold millions if the compilation had been released before the EP! Perhaps not. It’s definitely great to be featured though, regardless of the timing factor!”
Gallops have a distinctive sound that really stands out over the rest of the compilation, however they fit right into the overall vibe of the collection which looks set to hit home at parties and clubs when it is released on the 16th of May. It is a party album, a celebration of the best bits of indie-dance, designed to get you moving your feet and nodding your head. It is the soundtrack to your nights out, your one night stands, your drunk and disorderly-s, your early morning after parties, your sunsets and sunrises. Come September each track will have a memory, and be firmly engraved on your brain bringing back a little ray of summer sunshine every time you think of it.
