All posts by G. Gordon Gritty

Classic CD Review, Music

Classic CD Review: Cuts [2005]

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Band: Toy Love
Label: Flying Nun

1. “Squeeze” – A
2. “Rebel” – A+
3. “Don’t Ask Me” – A
4. “Sheep” – A
5. “I Don’t Mind” – B+
6. “Swimming Pool” – A-
7. “Death Rehearsal” – B+
8. “Bride of Frankenstein” – B+
9. “Toy Love Song” – B+
10. “Photographs of Naked Ladies” – A
11. “Bedroom” – A-
12. “The Crunch” – A
13. “Ain’t It Nice” – A
14. “Cold Meat” – B+
15. “Don’t Catch Fire” – A-
16. “Green Walls” – A-
17. “Pull Down the Shades – A++
18. “Frogs” – B
19. “Fast Ostrich” – A-
20. “Amputee Song” – A-
21. “Good Old Joe” – A-

Comments: Toy Love was an extremely short lived (’78-’79) band from New Zealand. Their legacy proved more lasting as Flying Nun decided to re-master the band’s first LP and include unreleased tracks in a greatest hits compilation called Cuts. The first disc in that set called The Authorized Version is a journey in new wave and punk rock. A song like “Squeeze” is a “Shout To The Top” before “Shout To The Top.” It’s one very rooted in New Wave before most of the world even knew of New Wave.  Speaking of that kind of stuff, “Rebel” sounds like a reaction to the Mod Revival that was occurring around the time of Toy Love’s inception. Choice lyrics: “Credit cards and a maserati/Don’t go to films/Less he knows they’re arty/Likes Women’s Lib/And the Values Party/He’s a Rasta, he’s New Wave/Don’t do nothing/Less he’s told exactly/How to behave.” “Don’t Ask Me” takes a sojourn back to the days of the Velvets/early early punk rock ‘n roll. A catchy chorus “I don’t know where I’m going to” followed by a lush organ equals a neat song in “Sheep.” I’m not so sure I can really grasp how well constructed most of these songs are. Kiwi rock was functioning on a different plane than most of its genre counterparts, taking aim at a bunch of thriving sub-genres from outside the island nation. The transition from “Green Walls” to “Pull Down The Shades” might be the most brilliant of its kind that I’ve heard. I first heard “Pull” when Jay Reatard covered it for Stroke, a Chris Knox tribute album. I prefer the one on this album, with its absolute raw energy and hooky as hell vibe. It’s one of my favorite songs (in general). As a whole, I’d say this record is on the very good end of things. Only a few tracks truly standout, but the rest of them are worthy of some merit. It’s easy to see the influence that this may have had on ’80s alt-rock and ’90s and beyond post-punk/power-pop.

Grade: A-

business, Music, Record Labels

Artists As Businesses

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I posted a short clip a few days back that involved Black Lips drummer Joe Bradley briefly discussing the band’s record label situation. The full discussion on the topic is entitled “Artists As Businesses” and involves a panel additionally including DJ/Fool’s Gold Records founder A-Trak and Greg Anderson, guitarist of the drone metal band Sunn O))) and Southern Lord Records co-founder. All three offer insights on how they got started, the transition from being a band to a ‘professional entity’, the division of labor within bands and their ‘team’, and other functions that go beyond just playing music. Once a band crosses the professional threshold, things naturally become more complicated and there are more worries than merely worrying about dividing the check up amongst band members after playing a show. Lawyers, accountants, business managers, booking agents, and publicists enter the fray, requiring bands to divvy up their gross income amongst these persons. I find this to be very interesting and am eager to check out the other panel discussions that occurred during this Music Conference. A skeptic or a purist might wonder why a car company is involving themselves with underground music and will probably even scoff at the title of this post, but I never got a sense that any of this particular discussion was ‘corporate’ or brand enabling.

Link To Watch: http://www.scionav.com/music/musicconference/index.html#general3

CD Review, Music

CD Review: Cape Dory [2011]

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Band: Tennis
Release: 01/2010
Label: Fat Possum

1. “Take Me Somewhere” – A
2. “Long Boat Pass” – A
3. “Cape Dory” – B
4. “Marathon” – B+
5. “Bimini Bay” – A-
6. “South Carolina” – A-
7. “Pigeon” – A-
8. “Seafarer” – A
9. “Baltimore” – A-
10. “Waterbirds” – A-

Comments: This band’s back story has been blogged about and blogged about and blogged about some more. Their music has been written about just as much, too. So how is the music, since that’s all we care about?…well pretty good.  It’s kind of like Best Coast if Best Coast was folkier and surfier. Cape Dory is pretty all-around surfy. Minimal surf, though, not hectic. That should be noted. The girl singer (what’s her face!) in Tennis can do some fine stretching of her vocal cords. The first song on here isn’t illustrious in the sense of musical creativity/expansion, but it’s merely a light pop song to be enjoyed. Her voice is like that of trad/mod pop singer, but she really packs the punches better and possesses that innocent-but-really-pretty quality. I’m a sucker for the drum beat on “Long Boat Pass” and the surf guitar twang. Don’t twang and surf go well together? That said, how much shore line can we take, damn it?! Not all is awesome (rarely is everything); some of the techniques are pretty tired a la “sha la la sha la la” on “Cape Dory” for instance. On “Bimini Bay,” Tennis brings to mind the stripped down, laid-back nature of label-mates Walkmen’s 2010 LP Lisbon. This aesthetic carries on deep into the second half of the record. Another album I’d compare this to purely based on the metric of ambition is Teen Dream. ‘Course that was one of the best things that I heard last year and this does not match up to that record, BUT compositionally and sonically Cape Dory similarly sounds so natural and free-flowing. I can’t really praise it enough for that. At the end of the day, the hype that Tennis has received seems well warranted. Their take on girl group/oldies revivalism is unique nowadays and will probably stay around for a while.

Grade: A- (90)
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Tennis plays Great Scott on February 28.

Jay Reatard, Random

An Experience With ‘Tard

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My infamous video with comments that run the gamut from “oh my god fuck you” to “what a fucking sincere video mate”. Looking back, I’m kind of ashamed that I made such a video. I kind of whispered so as no one in the hallway or room next door could hear me talk to a computer about ‘tard.

From the moment I heard “My Shadow” on MLB 2k8, I was hooked. I can’t remember what made me want to see Jay in July of 2009. Whatever the reason, I’m so glad I kept up as a fan…as cheesy as it sounds. He was inspiring.

Classic Album Review, Music

Classic Album Review: It Came From Here [1982]

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Band: Boys Life
Label: SECO

Side One
1. “It Came From Here” – A
2. “Water” – A
3. “From A To Z” – A

Side Two
1. “Happy People” – A
2. “True Believers” – A
3. “Person I Want To Be” – A

Comments: Boys Life rose to prominence in the early ’80s. You must be thinking well who’s Boys Life?  They were (technically are since according to their Myspace they’ve recently reformed) a group from Malden, Massachusetts, just a few few miles from where many of us here at KLYAM call home. According to a local magazine at the time, “their rock ‘n’ roll is inspired by the 1976-1977 generation of British punkers – most specifically the recently broken up Jam.” The Jam influence is ultra apparent on this, their debut EP. Singer John Surette’s vocals recall any number of British singers. They also bear a decent similarity to Mission of Burma and comparable post-punk rockers from the area. In fact, they caught the eye of Paul Weller, who has proclaimed himself a fan of the band. They ended up opening for The Jam a few times. Props to my dad for buying this record at one of those shows. Perhaps the band’s strength was in its saxophonist Neal Sugarman. Sugarman’s sax playing served as both a source of steady rhythm and creativity, complimenting the pulsing bass guitar. Sugarman’s fine musicianship did not go unnoticed as he has played tenor for the likes of Amy Winehouse. For a short-lived band, they did get a decent amount of notice in there. This record (I’m guessing) is a rarity but it looks like they’ve made a MySpace page where you can listen to some of their older stuff. This is a local classic.

Grade: A

Classic Album Review, Music

Classic Album Review: Survival [1979]

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Band: Bob Marley & The Wailers
Label: Island

Side One
1. “Wake Up and Live” – A
2. “Africa Unite” – A
3. “One Drop” – A
4. “Ride Natty Ride” –  A-
5. “Ambush” – A

Side Two
1. “So Much Trouble in the World” – A
2. “Zimbabwe” – A
3. “Top Rankin” – A-
4. “Babylon System” – B
5. “Survival” – B+

Comments: This isn’t Marley’s most recognizable album by any stretch, but it is ripe with politically charged and rhythmic songs. Basic, easily communicated dissident sentiments came from the mouth of Marley from “Ambush” (they say what we know is just what they teach us) to “Zimbabwe” (no more internal power struggle; we come together, to overcome the little trouble) and that’s what made the man such a legend. Survival didn’t need a “Stir It Up” or a “Could You Be Loved” to achieve greatness. There’s hardly a low point to be found on here, even “Babylon System” keeps up the groove just fine, despite being less of an immediate catch.

Grade: A-