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Girls – Father, Son, Holy Ghost (True Panther Sounds)
I didn’t care much for Girls’ debut from 2009. I thought that Christopher Owens wrote great tunes, but didn’t care for his vocals. I like this one a whole lot more. His warbling and histrionics have been restrained and though he jumps around from one ’60s/‘70s genre to another (opener “Honey Bunny” deflty incorporates the melody from The Beach Boys hit “Fun Fun Fun” and two songs later on “Die” he’s in full-fledged Grand Funk Railroad or Mountain early ’70s hard rock territory and he also explores early ’70s glam and late ’60s baroque pop on other tracks as well while several other songs reference doo-wop and the girl-group sound), his songwriting is quite consistent here. I’m a bit of a latecomer to this record since I was initially skeptical, but I’m glad I checked it out.
Release the Sunbird – Come Back to Us (Brushfire)
After several albums with Rogue Wave that found Zach Rogue and company moving further away from his stripped-down, indie-folk, solo home recording roots, his debut solo Lp under the Release the Sunbird tag goes backwards a bit in recreating some of the vibe of early efforts like 2004’s Rogue Wave debut Out of the Shadow. Much of this Lp, is much more hushed and gentle than his main band, though fans of Rogue Wave should find plenty to like here.
Office of Future Plans – Office of Future Plans (Dischord)
This is another flat-out fantastic effort from J Robbins, who with Government Issue, Jawbox, Burning Airlines, Channels, Report Suspicious Activity and now with Office of Future Plans has never made a bad record! This time around, they improve greatly on their self-titled debut 7” from earlier this year with “Harden Your Heart” repeating from it in a superior version here. The rest of this Lp combines the DC post-hardcore chops of Robbins, drummer Darren Zentek (also of Report Suspicious Activity and Channels) and guitar/cellist (and Jawbox on Cello mastermind) Gordon Withers with a more adult-oriented sound not dissimilar to the more melodic side of later-era Guided by Voices. Get it!
Reigning Sound – Abdication: For Your Love EP (Scion/AV)
After 2009’s good but relatively lackluster Curses, The Reigning Sound are back in a BIG way with this free EP courtesy of car manufactuers Scion/AV. This is some fantastic, quality garagey rock and roll with serious ’50s and ’60s r’n‘b vibes. I love it. Stream and download it here.
The Hazey Janes – The Winter That Was (Armellodie)
Have you ever wondered what the lost third Jellyfish album might sound like if Andy Sturmer had loaded up on Sloan records and stopped listening to Queen and the Beach Boys? Me neither until I heard this because that’s what this sounds like. While a far cry from their earlier, softer, more harmony-laden sound, fans of Sloan, The Posies, Wilco circa Summerteeth and especially the aforementioned Jellyfish (due to lead vocalist Andrew Mitchell‘s vocal resemblance to Sturmer).
Nick Lowe and His Band – “Go ‘Way Hound Dog” EP (Yep Roc)
This limited-edition Black Friday release (as part of the Record Store Day series) is available on both a 7” and a 10” (78 rpm just like in the ’30s and ’40s) and features Lowe and his band tackling the titular Cliff Johnson song along with another rockabilly cover, Johnny Talley‘s “(I’ve Changed My) Wild Mind” on the B-side. As always from Nick, this is great!
Fugazi – Fugazi Live Series (Dischord)
Inni (Not Rated)
This is a fantastic Sigur Ros concert film shot during the final night of their last tour at the Alexandra Palace in London back in November 2008. If you’re a fan, simply put this is a must. If you’re not, prepare to be converted!
Katy Goodman‘s new tumblr page
This is an absolute treasure trove of material from Goodman, bassist for Big Takeover #69 cover stars Vivian Girls and also of La Sera and All Saints Day. Click here to find videos, La Sera demos and B-sides and much more! I’ve been gorging on it the past few days.
The Mid ’90s group on Facebook
I posted some old zines of mine and some flyers for shows from this time period (mainly in NJ and mainly hardcore/punk/emo/indie of the DIY variety from then) in this open Facebook group. Check it out here if you’re on Facebook, but be warned. If you were a scenester during this time period, it will be quite addictive!
