The Stanley Blacks – In Sight

The Stanley Blacks – Rewind to the Start

The Stanley Blacks – Caroline

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Regular readers know this by now: the aim of Obscure Sound is to expose quality artists that, for whatever reason, have yet to achieve substantial recognition despite their excellent material and prevalent talent. I believe that the music blogosphere has a positive effect on a music industry currently plagued by a money-first ideology that results in bland, repetitive, and uninspiring material. Sites like ours hope to showcase quality music that defies this. Every single site like this – ranging from amateur Blogspots to fully-staffed machines – has the potential to show someone their new favorite band, something they may carry throughout their entire life. Unlike the actual music industry, this is not a very competitive atmosphere. Many bloggers become friends and even business partners, all knowing that there is an excess of under-exposed quality in music that no single site can cover in full. Naturally, when I am presented with a project that aligns with my ideology and that of my music-oriented friends and readers, it is always worth looking into.

I have been working alongside a very promising company the past month or so that promotes the same vision that I do. While Obscure Sound helps the sales of aspiring independent artists through exposure, this particular project is even more direct in doing so. The aim of Groopease is to promote the work of overlooked and aspiring independent artists with worthwhile material, just like Obscure Sound. The fascinating thing about their route is that they work with the artists directly to offer an exclusively discounted rate on their material, in a format similar to Groupon. This pertains to the artist’s actual releases, and in the future may extend to merchandise and tickets. For all of you that just download the material for free knowing that iTunes and management would take the bulk of profit regardless, Groopease is an excellent alternative that re-routes the proceeds to more deserving ends: charity and the artists. The digital age has made it very difficult for independent artists to support themselves, mainly because listeners are strapped for cash themselves and deem it wasteful to give their hard-earned money to big companies. After all, it is so easy to obtain full-length albums for free via file sharing, so why not do just that?

Easily one of the most rewarding things for me is viewing this site’s Amazon Associates account to see which artists we have legitimately helped out. Seeing that this review alone sold 70 copies of Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs was cool, but they’re already quite popular so it’s hard to say we did much. Most of those buyers already knew who Arcade Fire were, and simply happened to buy it via the review since it was convenient to do so. That doesn’t mean much to me. It’s actually rewarding when this site sells a handful of copies of a legitimately independent album, from a band that probably has a day-job in addition to their artistic work. The fact that this site sold ten copies of Kinetic Stereokids’ excellent album Kid Moves is a lot more rewarding to me than any number of Arcade Fire albums. That makes me feel great, like we’re making a difference (albeit a small one), and is honestly the reason I will continue to do this for as long as possible.

Speaking with those in charge of Groopease, it’s clear that they get a similar sense of satisfaction from allowing truly talented independent artists to simultaneously achieve recognition and profit for their work. To make it even better, they donate a portion of the album’s proceeds to a charity. For example, you can purchase the new album from yesterday’s featured band The Filthy Violets for only $5, a whopping 50% discount from anywhere else. 5% of those sales are donated to The Empower Nepali Girls Foundation, which provides educational scholarships to neglected children of Nepal. There are several bands and charities per week. Like this site, they feature several artists per week that are pretty much unheard of. In doing so, they have already introduced me to some great new stuff! The first is a band called The Salvadors. Groopease is invitation-only, but do not fear. As a reader of this site, you get a free invite by clicking here. Feel free to tell your friends to join as well; you get $1 in Groopease credit per invite. So invite five, and you can essentially get the album for free AND support the artist! It’s an awesome program for all parties.

On to the first Groopease band that really caught my attention: The Salvadors. The Australian five-piece craft a beautiful form of indie-pop that takes enjoyable cues Afro-pop/beat. Rolling Stone and Australian radio station Triple J have already flagged The Salvadors as one of the most promising acts from Australia. But before you group them in with Vampire Weekend and the countless number of imitations, take a listen to their new album Misspent Youth. Featuring eight tracks with expansively buoyant choruses, sugary male-female harmonizing, and slick Afro-beat guitar constructions. Their music video for the excellent “Wilson” is quite effective in capturing the visions that their sound ignites; a carefree day in the sun, with your biggest worry being if your best friend catches a bigger fish than you. Catch a bunch of them for dinner, and then ride home in a pick-up as the summer breeze blows against your body. And there isn’t a cold chill in the air! Ah, many of us desperately need that feeling right about now. Just a few more months!

The Salvadors are more reminiscent of Little Joy and Surfer Blood than Vampire Weekend. There are some relaxed Latin influences in addition to the Afro-beat, but one can also expect familiar indie-pop in the sugary hook-filled vein of The New Pornographers and Mates of State. Misspent Youth is actually superior to either of those group’s most recent release. This is a debut that should give The Salvadors some international acclaim in addition to the pre-existing buzz in their native Australia. Songs destined for the charts include the exuberant “Wilson” and the soft jangly appeal of “Westfield”. Shimmering indie-pop is not the only flavor on here though. Delicate folk is echoed in “Miss Munroe”, with swaying acoustics and a slight touch of keys. The hushed use of strings during one verse is complete with a male-female duet, beautifully interwoven as the beautiful melody forms completely. There actually isn’t a weak track on the entire album.

Misspent Youth is highly recommended, and for ONLY $3 on Groopease is an absolute steal. Just join for free and give it a go.

RIYL: Little Joy, Surfer Blood, The Morning Benders, Vampire Weekend, Elbow, The New Pornographers, Mates of State, British Sea Power, Suede, Yeasayer, Arcade Fire, Los Hermanos, Marcelo Camelo, The Strokes, Mallu Magalhães

The Salvadors – Westfield

The Salvadors – Wilson

The Salvadors – Eliza Jane

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Jay Watson and Nick “Paisley Adams” Allbrook are not unfamiliar with success. They are used to it as members of Tame Impala, the group from Western Australia that released perhaps the best psychedelic-rock release of 2010 in Innerspeaker. It was a beast of an album that has drawn acclaim for a genre too familiar with criticism. Their own project, Pond, will inspire kudos for similar reasons. Many contemporary “psychedelic” artists ignore the concept and aim of the genre, which to many is the emission of music that is both invigorating and calming; the namesake alone recalls the intent, which should be receptive to a subdued and tranquil mindset without being too simplistic or over-done. It is understandably a thin line to tread, so I find the premature criticism against psychedelic-rock as “a genre for fetishists” to be a bit off, as success within the genre is renowned to the point of the style being inarguable. When you hear quality psychedelic-rock, you just know it. Innerspeaker was one of the few psychedelic-rock releases in the past few years able to accomplish that.

It is easy to throw around criticism when artists focus too much on how their pedals sound or whether a sample from an actual psychedelic track would fit, and THEN attempt to call themselves psychedelic musicians. Call it a plague brought on by our modern days, where the superfluous multitude of sub-genres dilutes the tradition of certain styles. Or you could pin it on the availability of technology, which could allow your little brother’s guitar to sound like David Gilmour if he familiarizes himself with Pirate Bay. These are absurd things to blame it on though, like blaming a McDonalds for obesity. More options should result in more creativity, not an over-dependence on substitutes for artistic expression. No one wants to hear “drone-rock” with three chords played over a Native Instruments program, just like how listeners could give a shit if you play a backwards loop of a Jefferson Airplane song over ambiance. Optimistically, hearing shameful examples like these makes Tame Impala and past psych-rock heroes sound even better. These revered groups do not need inferior comparisons to prove their selective worth though.

Watson’s history with Tame Impala goes back to their beginnings, as he performed on their 2008 self-titled debut EP. Allbrook has been touring with them for several years and was named an official member earlier this year due to his participation on Innerspeaker. Tame Impala’s head honcho/lead songwriter, Kevin Parker, has returned the favor for his friends by playing live with Pond on occasion. Their fourth studio album, Frond, was released earlier this month and is clearly their best. Chalk it up to experience perhaps, but regardless this is an album that is not a far cry from Innerspeaker, both in terms of quality and style. Pond treads in areas of garage-rock more than Tame Impala by using a sharper tone of distortion and less reverb, while sharing some electronic components that never override the psych-rock feeling. For example, the trickles of synths during “Mussels Tonight?” is not distracting or superfluous, while the vocoded bridge in the middle is simply preparation for a dizzying guitar progression that recalls the best of the genre.

Under the gauzy layers of guitar in “Cloud City” there lies a bit of funk, which in addition to the garage-rock in the self-titled cut and extensive prog-rock in “Duck and Clover” provides for Frond’s fresh perspective on psychedelia. There is not one effort on Frond that lingers away from psychedelia, but the flourishes of various stylistic attemps within concise bridges or outros is always delightful. The last four minutes of “Frond”, for instance, is a beautiful arrangement of orchestral elements and guitars that evolves with superb organization from the track’s initial pop-heavy leanings, which is led by a sprightly piano and choir-like procession. A track like “Torn Asunder”, which recalls Suede and Brett Anderson in more ways than one, contains the type of songwriting that most psych-rockers envy. Complete with delicate keys, a calming background of strings, and flourishes of woodwinds, this is the type of effort that will stun a listener making their way through the entirety of Frond. The album has so many surprises, twists, and hooks that one may question its stylistic consistency, even if it is clear. It just contains so much excitement and variation, two components that modern psychedelic-rock has been lacking.

RIYL: Tame Impala, Here We Go Magic, Suede, Beach Fossils, Midnight Juggernauts, Male Bonding, Wild Nothing, MGMT, Wavves, Friendly Fires, The Faint, Justice, The Teenagers, Late of the Pier,Phoenix, Shiny Toy Guns, VHS or Beta, Klaxons, Lotus,  Passion Pit, Wolfmother, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane, Hawkwind, Devendra Banhart

Pond – Frond

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by Jon Chapple

In the harsh light of this cynical and paranoid new millennium in which we now unfortunately find ourselves, it’s easy to forget just how massively popular Kula Shaker were. Admittedly, that popularity lasted approximately ten months (at the very most), and, of course, never quite made it across The Pond. But for a short period, the boys from Richmond’s curious melding of Hindu religious sentiment with guitar-heavy neo-psychedelia won over the hearts, minds, and souls of British music-buyers. Their début, 1996’s K, was the fastest-selling since Oasis’ monster hit Definitely Maybe.

But alas, theirs was a cautionary tale. So much of a cautionary tale, in fact, that I’m sure if you looked up the term in an encyclopedia there would be a bloody great picture of Crispian Mills’ grinning face next to it. Following some well-meant but catastrophically ill-advised remarks regarding the mystical properties of swastikas in an interview with the NME, the unlucky foursome rapidly fell out of favor with the notoriously fickle British public and faded back into the murky obscurity from whence they came. Their following effort, 1999’s Peasants, Pigs & Astronauts, limped in at number nine before quietly sliding out of the charts altogether, and the group announced their split shortly after.

And now they’re back. Well, they were back once already, but 2007’s Strangefolk was a mixed bag at best, the sound of a band trying to find their feet once more after eight long years in the musical wilderness. I mean they’re back.

Right from the outset you can tell that Pilgrims Progress is going to be a very different affair entirely. Opening with irresistibly baroque first single “Peter Pan R.I.P.” – a gorgeous, melancholic, cello-driven pop-rock ode to that most famous of lost children, provides the setting before moving on to the even more precious (and just as fantastical) chamber folk ditty “Ophelia”. The decidedly more rootsy psychedelic blues number “Modern Blues” also shapes the diverse sound. “Only Love” – a driving, insistent faux call-and-response session that boasts a healthy dose of jangling Byrds-ian Rickenbacker and some three-part harmonies to die for (the response to each call, incidentally, is that “only love will take you there”; but you already knew that) – makes it become quickly apparent that Pilgrims Progress’ infinitely-varied forty-one minutes are going to be playing host to the entire gamut of the musical spectrum of the late ’60s and beyond.

The irresistible sitar-driven country shuffle (!) “All Dressed Up (And Ready to Fall in Love)”, the near-Adam Ant/Wild West instrumental “When A Brave Needs a Maid”, and the hauntingly desolate ballad “Cavalry” – which relays the desperate tale of an outnumbered and demoralized group of soldiers (“We can’t turn back, we’re under attack / outnumbered too, I believe”) – sound like they could be out-takes from a Ennio Morricone soundtrack, whilst the smoky, romantic soul waltz “Ruby” contains a subtle nod to both Mills’ own (now noticeably less prominent) religious beliefs and original musical mystic George Harrison in the lines “Beware of darkness, don’t let it bring you down” (repeated later as “Beware of m?y?”, both direct lifts from Harrison’s “Beware of Darkness”, the opener to side three of 1970’s All Things Must Pass). “Figure it Out” is vintage Kula, mashing trippy Revolver-esque psychedelia with spoken Hindu mantras. The organ-driven curtain call “Winter’s Call” builds to a crashing crescendo that brings to mind much of the earnest, self-conscious seriousness that characterized early British progressive rock.

But the thing is, inexplicably, none of it feels like a pastiche. Not once do you feel like the band are simply exhuming the ghosts of the rock behemoths of days gone by, despite the fact that the template for the exotic, acid-fried musical nuggets contained within is clearly so deeply-rooted in that lysergically-enhanced blur that has come to be known as the “Swinging Sixties”. It’s also evident that three years that have elapsed since the release of the lackluster aforementioned Strangefolk have been productively spent. Each song feels like a meticulously-crafted and neatly-packaged mini symphony, crammed full of endless musical ideas and killer hooks; these are songs that will get inside your head, and won’t leave again in a hurry.

On paper, the template for album number four is much the same as their previous three efforts. But where Pilgrims Progress really shines is in its rare ability to present the sounds of another era in a setting that feels mature, fresh, current and progressive. It is a leap forward for both Kula Shaker and for modern rock and roll in general, with Pilgrims Progress becoming the band’s first true must-have LP.

“Retro” is no longer a dirty word.

9.0/10.0

RIYL: George Harrison, Ocean Colour Scene, Mansun, Suede, The Beatles, The Verve, The Charlatans, Blur, Oasis, The Jeevas, The Stone Roses, Shed Seven, Ash, Elastica, Cast, Manic Street Preachers, James, Gene, Stereophonics

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Kula Shaker – Ruby

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Kula Shaker – Peter Pan R.I.P.

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Kula Shaker – Cavalry

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by Mike Mineo

Neil Hannon’s talent is not to be doubted, as few artists are able to establish such a prominent solo career without prior recognition through another project. The Divine Comedy, Hannon’s only project, has produced ten albums in twenty years, not one of them faltering or even suggesting a sign of his abilities fading. The Divine Comedy’s fourth album, Casanova, made him a star in 1996 with an addictive presentation that was personable enough to be pub material, all while showing more intelligence and wit than most peers. His narrative focus, quivering tenor, and delightful array of pop-fueled hooks made his music sit well with fans at the time, especially considering that similar groups were finding rampant popularity at the time. This was especially true for British audiences. Pulp were finding even grander fame in Different Class, released just a year before Casanova, and other popular ’95 Brit-pop albums like Blur’s The Great Escape and Oasis’ (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? encouraged the lyrical playfulness and topically British demeanor of frontmen like Hannon or Blur’s Damon Albarn.

Like all the leaders of former Brit-pop phenomenons, Hannon has taken some interesting turns now that the stylistic heyday is over. In its aftermath, some artists like Albarn rose to even greater fame through stylistic transition (Gorillaz). Others, however, like Oasis fizzled to little beyond ’90s playlists. All have attempted some twist on their style, so one would expect Hannon to do the same. For the most part, while he has certainly pursued various concepts, Hannon sounds very little different from the days of Casanova. When one sees that Hannon is more in the singer/songwriter vein than Albarn, the Gallagher brothers, or even Jarvis Cocker simply by noticing the consistency in his discography, his stylistic rigidity is not that surprising at all. And while he is far from a household name beyond the UK, he packs a very deserving fanbase that still feel as if they know the world’s best secret. Hyperbolic as it may seem, I would be hard-pressed to argue with them in terms of pop songwriters. There simply have not been many as greatly consistent as Hannon.

The Divine Comedy’s tenth album, Bang Goes the Knighthood, offers no surprises for longtime fans. As usual, Hannon’s wit and playful observations are suited over a catchy variety of orchestral accompaniment, acoustic-laden folk, and other elements in a pleasant medium between folk and pop. Apart from the operatic distinction between the tears of children and men in “When a Man Cries”, the album is a generally lighthearted affair fueled by easily accessible pop songs with the twinkling choruses and orchestral flourishes one has come to expect from Hannon. “I Like” is a more typical rendering of the album’s mood. It finds Hannon literally listing the things he likes about his muse – her nose, hair, whether she’s clothed or she’s bare, her suits and her trousers, her mild political stances, her wild spontaneous dances… oh, and the way she whispers sexy things into his ear. On the lyrical end, this is like a grad student reverting to elementary school form; one would expect this impulsive list-dependent mode of songwriting to be acceptable for a rookie artist, not someone of Hannon’s experience. Apart from the dull lyrics, the music – while numbingly simplistic – is catchy enough to stymie the track’s total irrelevance.

While “I Like”, “Island Life”, and “The Lost Art of Conversation” are examples of Hannon focusing on musical content over lyrics (and often finds him just name-dropping people, items, or actions), the cheesiness of these efforts come across more gracefully when sentimentality is more prevalent, as is the case with “Have You Ever Been in Love?” Like “I Like”, the lyrics are list-dependent as Hannon lists the symptoms of love – like figuring out the meaning of life by looking in someone’s eyes, or floating freely into the sky as if the laws of physics don’t apply. That sort of stuff, with the catchy rhyming schemes and elegantly appropriate ballroom music, works better because it does not feel over-the-top. “I Like” is just an example from Songwriting 101, though, and Hannon is above that.

“Bang Goes the Knighthood” and “At the Indie Disco” both attempt the storybook-like narrative of classic examples like “Lady of a Certain Age” or “Our Mutual Friend”, deploying an urgent first-person delivery that is in contrast to most other efforts, which are more descriptive and often spoken in the past-tense. As a result, those are more observational tracks, whereas “Bang Goes the Knighthood” and “At the Indie Disco” perform as if they were live-action plays, just like an effort in the vein of “Our Mutual Friend”. The album’s self-titled effort starts out fine, but then in an ominous chorus of strings and organs it begins to sound like a song with two puzzle pieces that simply do not fit. The Medieval gothic effect that this instrumental fusion resonates is interesting, but not nearly executed to its potential. “At the Indie Disco” is an alright song, but it seems like it deserves more time on an Amazon Kindle commercial than a Divine Comedy album. What seems like a desperate attempt to connect with a “scene” comes across as neither enthralling or catchy enough to warrant its status as a single.

The failures on Bang Goes the Knighthood pretty much stop there though, the rest of the efforts stacking up with anything in Hannon’s catalog. “Assume the Perpendicular” is absolutely wonderful, its keys and brass interweaving various vocal harmonies for melodic perfection. Hannon’s vocals here are top-notch, and he seems much more comfortable in this capricious pop setting than the forced play-like setting of “Bang Goes the Knighthood”. This is not to blame on his abilities, but rather the preferential treatment of lyrical drive and the consequential abandonment of musical emphasis. “Assume the Perpendicular”, which excels in both areas, finds Hannon at his best. It reaches dizzying heights as the chorus descends from a grandiose accompaniment of keys and brass into a modest banjo revision. Its structural setup is genius and it is one of those instantly lovable pop songs that will certainly be earning some summer playtime. Opener “Down in the Street Below” packs the same punch in its flawless transitioning from piano-led balladry to an assortment of brass and keys that resemble some circus parade. This particular hook is early indication of Hannon’s craftiness for first-time listeners and should offer a suitable forewarning for those interested in his unique pop output.

“The Complete Banker” pokes fun at the selfish behavior of economical bigwigs, particularly those responsible for what many consider the “second great depression”. “If I say I’m sorry will you give me the money?” Hannon asks before his band kicks into full gear. He pokes fun at the ideology of those that drive in black Bentleys with Margaret Thatcher at their sides, with descriptions like that eliciting a chuckle and head-sway where necessary. The wit here finds the perfect medium between lyrical and musical entertainment that duds like “Bang Goes the Knighthood” and “Island Life” failed to discover. The music itself is bouncy piano-laden pop, with hooks abound in a soaring chorus that makes great use of backing vocals and guitar/bass. The next effort, “Neapolitan Girl”, succeeds in the same style of music, which finds the three opening tracks as the best stretch on the album. “Assume the Perpendicular” is the only effort on Bang Goes the Knighthood that exceeds them. While it is true that this is an album that falls short of Hannon’s best, Bang Goes the Knighthood is still an effort that warrants listening based on its bright moments alone. At the very least, Hannon’s discography is an urgent recommendation.

7.5/10.0

RIYL: Pulp, Jarvis Cocker, Suede, Oasis, Gene, The Auteurs, Luke Haines, The Lightning Seeds, Super Furry Animals, Richard Hawley, Mansun, Supergrass, The Tears, Ocean Colour Scene, Blur, Tindersticks, Manic Street Preachers, The Charlatans UK, The Verve, Ash, The Boo Radleys

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The Divine Comedy – Assume the Perpendicular

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The Divine Comedy – Down in the Street Below

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The Divine Comedy – The Complete Banker

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The Divine Comedy – Beside the Railway Tracks

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