Artist of the Week: Grrrips

These days lo-fi is a big deal. Wavves, Vivian Girls, Crocodiles; if you're recordings are lo fidelity and your songs are reticent of surf, noise, goth, new wave, or some combination of the four you'll probably get noticed to a certain degree. As I've stated before I am not against this tide of lo fi bands getting their due. I'm a fan of a lot these bands. My only gripe about this trend is that it's a trend. It's style over substance. This will eventually die out and only the ones whose music really stood first and foremost before the style will be left standing. Bands like Deep Sht and this weeks artist, Grrrips.

Grrrips version of lo fi is more calculated than a lack of recording means. When Ryan Seymour performs his music live his recordings make more sense. With other bands its usually the other way around. Utilizing a contact mic inside a breathing mask, his haunted howling of vocals convey a gothic tendency while underneath it all the guitar, acoustic mind you, is sonically hypnotizing all the while maintaining a pop sensibility that carries the songs from beginning to end.

Currently he's working on more material for Grrrips as well as a new project with good friend Cris Cichocki called State Recreation.

Check out his music at myspace.com/grrrips

Weekly Fliers (10/1/09)

We all want to find our way in life. We lose our way sometimes. But that bond to what we want out of our lives should be strong enough to pull you back to where you need to be. Unfortunately we lose hope sometimes. It's problem we all face, it's only human. Yet hope is never truly lost. Real hope can be found in the smallest things, the littlest of gestures, the tiniest of events, the quietest of spoken words. I've always had a strong bond to music. I truly feel that music has been my saving grace. Ever heard of the song "Last Night a DJ Saved My Life"? I've never listened to the original by Indeep but there was a band called 90 Day Men who used that same title for one of their songs and the video for the songs is a montage of people showing off their favorite albums.

You're never stuck. It may not be a DJ that saves your life. You may not even feel like your life needs any saving. Yet we all do need something that can lift our spirits. One show that I'm excited about is the upcoming show the Crocodiles, Dum Dum Girls, Best Coast, and Pearl Harbor show on October 2nd at the Che Cafe in San Diego. I've been waiting to see the live incarnation of Dum Dum Girls ever since I first found out about them a few months ago and made them my first artist of the week. Another show that I'm excited for is the 2nd annual Longhair Illuminati Festival in Pamona featuring Mother Hips, Abe Vigoda, Moonrats, and Jesus Makes the Shotgun Sound. I've said time and time again, if you have the opportunity, don't miss out on seeing Jesus Makes the Shotgun Sound. They are one of the best bands around. Period.

That's all for this week. I'll try to be a little less sporadic with my updates. Take care and remember to check with venue for any schedule changes or cancellations.

Wavves - Hula Hoop

I'm a bit on the fence about the lo-fi craze going on. On one hand, most of the bands that are attached to this scene (Blank Dogs, Vivian Girls, Dum Dum Girls, Crocodiles, Christmas Island) are just simple pop music recorded under lo-fi circumstances. Then again, I've never had anything against pop songs. I love a well written pop song. Recently, my favorite drummer of all time, Zach Hill, also of Hella, is drumming for one of these bands that is attached to the lo-fi craze, Wavves. The video does no justice to how amazing this guy is and, at least for myself, how much better he makes Wavves. Some call his drumming excessive. Well, I've seen video of Wavves without Zach Hill and I dug it. I didn't love it but it was entertaining. Yet when I saw Wavves at the Casbah with Zach Hill, let me tell you, I was a little reluctant at first, thinking that his drumming would be toned down. Yet when they exploded into "So Bored" I was blown away. His drumming really fills in the gaps that I was ready to nitpick at. Certainly, this version of Wavves is an argument "for" the lo-fi mania.

Wavves from TERROREYES.TV on Vimeo.

Zach Hill, Carson Mcwhirter, Studio Jams from TERROREYES.TV on Vimeo.

Zach Hill - Dark Art - Music Video from Scott Cramer on Vimeo.

Artist of the Week: Not The Government

I met the guys in Not The Government a few months ago when a show that I booked with their friends, Cardio Pulmonary, they had to back out last minute. Isaac, of Cardio Pulmonary, hit up the San Antonio transplants to take their place at the show and NTG obliged.

Not The Government's music is a rarity in the LA music scene, especially at The Smell, in the sense that most bands out there are more experimental and less pop music sensibility. Their hardcore, post-punk roots have lead them to the brand of music that they have created today, less of the contrived experimentation seen in some of the music in the scene in which they exist. Yet, none of the overly hyped, lo-fi, pop music. They're not the "in" crowd of today although they aren't necessarily on the out skirts of what can breakthrough. Evidence of this is here in their music video directed by one of my favorite directors, legend of the b-movie genre and Troma Founder, Llyod Kaufman. Who else but Lloyd Kaufman can understand Not The Government's place in the world as coolest of the uncool. Lloyd Kaufman got his due respect and hopefully the day will come when Not The Government will get their day in the sun.

Come see them play J Dee's Landing in Palm Springs on September 22nd along with Sol District, Moment Trigger, Deracine (Tokyo), and Mikki & the Mauses





Check out their music at myspace.com/notthegovernment or at their official site notthegovernment.com

Weekly Fliers (9/3/09)

Hey guys, I'm back after a long stint of being M.I.A. Like Tim Kinsella said "I know what I have to do and do it, but don't know what it is until it's done". It's been a while but here I go with a new week and some new articles. Go check them out as well.

This week we've got some cool show happening this Labor day weekend. On Friday, September 4th, Halloween Swim Team returns to the desert along with Th Girl With Violent Arms, Motel Monster, Narwhal Party, Total Bros, and Orca Team. That's a big show AND it's free! Also this weekend is FYF Fest lots of really great bands and comedians. Kind of wish I was going because Tim and Eric will be there and they're hilarious. And on that same day is the unofficial (I think) after party of FYF Fest at the House on Vermont hosted by How to Be a Microwave. That is their 2nd annual What Job Festival taking place on September 5th and 6th. One more show that I want to mention is on September 5th with a new favorite band of mine, Norse Horse, consisting of members from the Family Time Records fold. Go check them out.

Well that's it for now. as always check with the venue for any schedule changes or cancellations. Take care.

Artist of the week: Wife

What is my ideal wife? A question all hetero males and lesbian women should pose to themselves sometime if they wish to find anything close to what they want out of a spouse. What do I want out of my ideal wife? Something I would look for is someone who is soothing and comforting in nature and yet is willing to navigate the rough seas of life when deemed necessary. Someone who, with patience and an open mind, yields great reward. Someone much like the band "Wife".

Wife is a two piece consisting of Andrew Thomas and Nick Steinhardt. I didn't discover Wife, on my own, they discovered me on Myspace. I think they asked me if I was going to be booking any shows with any ambient bands. After listening to their music, I regrettably said no. I liked their music so much that I wished that I had a show that I could book them on. Their music reminds me of driving through the forests in Oregon, majestic, vast, and seemingly unending. Sometimes stark and lonely but powerful enough where you realize how useless it is to fight how tiny it makes you feel. That you through it all, all you can really do is just take it in.

Go check out their music at www.myspace.com/wiferepetitive

Review: Technicolor Wolves - Ventricles EP

When I was 17 I was in a band called Roswell. We played covers of mostly power pop bands. We tried to write music with a power pop influence. I learned quickly that writing a good pop song was much more difficult than it seems. Especially a good hook. To this day I still appreciate a well written pop song with a catchy hook. One of my all-time favorite albums to this day is Weezer's vastly underrated Pinkerton. One of my favorite bands of all time is The Promise Ring, of whom, a couple members have gone on to form another favorite of mine, a band called Maritime. As of now I am really digging the Los Angeles based power pop band known as Clark 8 and the current hype machine, yet deservedly, Wavves.

Within the past year, a band from here in the desert, Palm Desert specifically, has been playing and writing music with a power pop influence. I first heard of The Technicolor Wolves through the Coachella Valley Art Scene blog. I liked their name, although there have been a lot of "Wolf" band names lately, but that's nitpicking. Sara, of the CVAS blog, emailed me their latest EP entitled Ventricles. She asked me to review it and I obliged.

First and foremost, I think this album suffers from the Yngwie Malmsteem complex, meaning that good musicianship doesn't always translate to good songwriting. It's not to say that this EP is terrible, it's just unmemorable. A good pop song should stay stuck in your head like a broken record and this never had any moments like that. I was bored halfway into each song. Writing this review its difficult to even recall any specific moments as examples. A good pop song should instantly take you somewhere, recalling a favorite lyric at the drop of a dime, almost instinctively it should make you want to sing.

Secondly, Lincoln Jesser's vocals, although talented, seem almost out of place set against the backdrop of syrupy sweet power pop guitar lines and synth melodies. He reminds me of someone trying to conjure up their inner Zach Condon of Beirut fame, which just makes me want to listen to Beirut. His vocals almost clash with the instruments. Also, the lyrics are to wordy, as if there is some sort of identity crisis. Does he want to write a sonnet or does he want to write catchy song?

Personally, one of the things missing in their music is a kind of rough edge. I can equate this kind of lack of emotion to watching a live band with zero charisma. This is not a question of their passion, it's a question of being able to convey true emotion through song. Pop music needs to make me feel compelled and a band this young should have a raw, hungry feel. This makes me feel like I'm listening to Jack Johnson with synth and electric guitars.

Yet I can see why lots of their fellow high school classmates would have been able enjoy this music. In a live setting, this music would be fun and dancey. It's good, clean, fun that your parents would approve of.

Technicolor Wolves - Ventricles EP
Available through iTunes