Category: Alternative (Page 79 of 155)

The Little Ones: Morning Tide

October 10, 2008 / Mike Farley

The Little Ones are one of those indie pop bands that are able to create music that transcends the makeup of each member. And even then, that describes so many bands that you have to be very special to stand out. Well, what the Little Ones do on their debut, Morning Tide (on Alexandra Patsavas’ Chop Shop label), is create catchy, witty and well-arranged music that is equal parts modern cool (think the Shins) and retro bounce (think a more guitar-driven Erasure). It’s the kind of album that sticks in your head and makes you pay attention without even realizing you’re paying attention, deeming the Little Ones the kind of act that should have staying power in a messed up music industry. But that’s not to say Morning Tide is anything more than very good. Let’s face it, the high tenor, almost-falsetto vocal thing of Ed Reyes and others is getting old (the Shins’ James Mercer and Radiohead’s Thom Yorke receive a pass here). That, and some of these tracks are riveting (the title track, “Rise and Shine” or “Like a Spoke on a Wheel”) while others are just bland and derivative (“All Your Modern Boxes” or “Gregory’s Chant”). See what the fuss is about, and temper your expectations just a bit. But the Little Ones will likely be around for a while. (Chop Shop)

The Little Ones MySpace Page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Indie Labels, Pop, Rock

CD quicktake CD review Morning Tide the Little Ones The Little Ones review

Two Dog Garage: Pinboy

October 10, 2008 / Mike Farley

Culver City, California’s Alex Kimmell is a one-man band, and his band is called Two Dog Garage. So as not to confuse matters, let’s call the project TDG, and let’s call TDG’s debut, Pinboy, a rousing success. There are so many flavors of music at work here, as TDG uses paints from the palettes of classic rock, modern rock, and just about everything in between. And he does it with what seems like relative ease. The songs are not just catchy and well recorded; they have the potential to stand up to just about any commercial recording. TDG is unsigned, but that just means you may have to look in the nooks and crannies of the online music world, but you won’t regret anything once you get there. The title track might evoke thoughts of Toad the Wet Sprocket, and “You’ll Go Blind” may remind one of ‘80’s MTV icons the Buggles (yes, the music is that varied). And then there is the utter beauty of “Everything Happens to Me” and “This Beautiful Life.” Oh, and the instrumental “Anesthesia” sounds like what is probably what your body hears when it’s under, well, you know. So go find Mr. Kimmell, errrr, TDG. Tell him I sent you. (self-released)

Two Dog Garage MySpace Page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Rock

System and Station: A Nation of Actors

October 10, 2008 / Josh Preston

With bursting swirls of perfectly fuzzed-out electric guitars, System and Station’s fourth full-length album A Nation of Actors is not subtle when it comes to flaunting their influences. On the album’s opener, “The Magnetic North,” Built to Spill and mid 90’s alt- rock band Dig instantly come to mind. But their recognizable influences fade as quickly as they appear, and System and Station claim their own musical territory. It’s abundantly clear that these guys aren’t looking to be the “next big thing,” which is honestly very refreshing. It’s also apparent that these guys would be a lot of fun to hang out with after their set, and it sounds like that is why they do this in the first place. The band’s main songwriter, Ryan “RFK” Heise, delivers songs that are catchy in the way Pavement songs are catchy; you can’t really sing along on the first few listens, but you feel as though you know every out-of-the-way stop along the route. With Gestalt-esque arrangements and vocal layering, the sum of these songs truly are greater than their individual parts which, at the end of the day, is what rock is really all about. (Latest Flame 2008)

System and Station MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Do You Remember The First Time?

October 6, 2008 / Will Harris

The conversation usually starts late at night, you and your new college friends in someone’s dorm room with a 12-pack, dishing about the lives you lived before they knew you. An old song comes on, and someone says, “This was the first rock concert I ever saw.” This claim is usually met with a “They suck!,” followed by a “Hey, I was 12, I didn’t know any better!” From there, the conversation turns into a can-you-top-this game of who saw the most “embarrassing” band as their first concert. Twenty years later, of course, the shame turns back into pride, as you realize the band was better than you once gave them credit for, but you wouldn’t have convinced the 18-year-old version of yourself of that at the time. Being cool is hard, you know.

And so, over the course of nearly a hundred emails, the Bullz-Eye staff racked their booze-addled brains to recall the first time they heard the roar of the crowd as the lights went down, and the magic that followed. This is our chronological history of the staff’s first shows. Not surprisingly, most of us were baptized by arena rock fire, but as it turned out, one of us was fortunate enough to see the birth of one of the greatest bands of all time.

Curious which one it was…? Just click the graphic below…and when you’re finished with the piece, don’t be afraid to pop back ’round and let us know about your first time!

Alternative, Artists, Concerts, External Music, Metal, Pop, Rock

first concert memories first concerts KISS concert

House of Badger: Death Birds

October 3, 2008 / James B. Eldred

House of Badger describes themselves as a pop/electronica/experimental band, and as vague as that categorization is, it actually sounds about right. This is a weird band that writes weird songs and performs using weird instruments. However, they still have one foot (barely) in the pop realm; they’re the Talking Heads by way of Portland, Oregon. I mentioned the weird instruments, right? In addition to guitar and keyboards, singer Amanda Kelly also plays mandolin and Turkish saz (another plucked string instrument – thanks Wikipedia). Bass player Charlie Gallipeau rocks out old-school electronic sounds thanks to his Moog and theremin skills, while drummer Liam McNamara puts down his sticks on occasion to play the guiro as well as “the pans,” which I can only assume is a pan flute. How an unsigned indie-rock band can afford all these instruments is a mystery, but they certainly know how to use their unique instrumental capabilities to craft beautifully odd pop songs. “Vultures” and “Away” combine stark riffs with subtle ambient electronic effects to stunning effect, while the more upbeat “You Give Yourself Away” and “Into the Sun” crank up the rock and focus on the spectacular voice of Amanda Kelly, who has the ethereal quality of Siouxsie Sioux with the power of Amanda Palmer from the Dresden Dolls. Clocking in at only 30 minutes with seven songs, the only fault of Death Birds is that it leaves you wanting much more. (Self Released 2008)

House of Badger MySpace Page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Electronica