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(You're So) Pretty. Cloudboy
Oh, wow! This
(video) single is 22 years old today but released to cheer up the first
ever vinyl release of Cloudboy's first album 'Down at the End of the
Garden'. The bio speaks of Dunedin's dreampop band. To me this is super
psychedelic. Slow sounds crawl around like a snake on sticky tarmac. Everything
seems to come to me through a cloudy haze of a certain kind of
cigarette. Singer Demarnia Lloyd hovers as it were over the mix of
electronic and analogue music. The only thing not floating is the drums
that are played in a firm way, making sure the rest of the music
coagulates into a song, instead of evaporating into thin air. The moment
the band comes in, I am in 1960s The Beatles territory. Then add the
modern synths, etc., that did not exist in 1966/7. I have no way of
judging the status of Cloudboy's album in New Zealand. My guess for here in NL is, it
beyond obscure, but please correct me if I'm wrong. The re-release
seems totally justified on the basis of this single.
Another
dreamy song but less overtly psychedelic. Belgium singer-songwriter
Caspar Auwerkerken returns to this blog with his fourth single. Late
August he is about to release his first EP, 'Abloom'. Untitled is a slow
song, where Auwerkerken strives to build up a close relationship with
his listeners. His voice, an electric guitar and atmospheric resonances
is what makes up Untitled. Ever so slowly the song unfolds. If there
ever was a song that was not in a hurry, it is Untitled. Do not make the
mistake to think the song is not urgent. Slowly but surely the song
builds itself out to something larger, huger, ever more present. Auwerkerken plays with
dynamics superbly before letting the listener off the hook by winding
down. As far as I can judge so far, Casper Auwerkerken is a young, new
artist worth following. There's a lot of promise in his songs.
Time
for a wake up call. Miss Georgia Peach and band mates return to the
blog on full blast. Drop The Needle is a dirty rocker only to be touched
with thick gloves on. Ms Peach sounds as dirty as the lead guitar
played by her long time partner Travis Ramin. The song is written by
rhythm guitarist Justin Staggs, to complete the band. There's no room
for any kind of subtlety on this single. The band simply goes full out
and does not stop until the very final seconds. Hearing the level of
energy that is shared here, it is almost inconceivable The Short Fuses
is around for over 25 years. This band is not giving in an inch to
ageing and goes at it like a couple of youngster bursting out of the
garage and combine the bursting part with years of experience. Travis Ramin lays the
whole foundation of the song playing bass and drums in a ferocious way.
Literally propelling the rest of the band forward. Drop that needle
again, please!
A
single from Italy is up next. We are rocking some more, and loud at
that. In between I listened to a single by Danko Jones. You do not find
it here. Why you may ask and why Mad Dogs? The difference between music
sounding forced and a bit boring and music jumping out of my speakers. Something
like that. Yes, some parts of Solitary Walker's Blues sound a bit
forced as well. It doesn't matter, as the single is simply energised. It
all starts with a great riff. Yes, of the kind you may have heard since
the start of Black Sabbath but who cares. Mad Dogs plays the real
thing. Jumping around guaranteed. The light and the shade are taken care
of and the singer's voice has the right touch. Solitary Walker's Blues
is all but a blues, it's a great hardrock song, with a little pop on the
side because of the memorable melody.
Groningen's
Avery Plains returns to WoNoBlog, after three years. Signed J.C. is a
nice dark monster of a song, that combines a whole lot of nice music from
the past and gels all that into a superb song called Signed J.C. For me
this starts with The Cure but just as easily I hear Boudewijn de Groot's
band Tower in there and Wally Tax in Jurgen Veenstra's way of singing in this
song. The Outsiders could impossibly have sounded like this but the band
is not far away here. For a more modern comparison, I'd go for Litzberg. Add
a wallop of loud rock and out comes an epic song of almost 13 minutes.
Signed J.C. / One Dead Family is a single but released on a 10" format
and with this length it has to. (You can order it here:
https://averyplains.bandcamp.com/album/signed-j-c.) Avery Plains really
goes all the way with Signed J.C. Lead guitarist John Krol gets minutes
and minutes to show what he's capable of. One Dead Family is a more
traditional song with a driving beat and an alternative form of rock and
roll lead guitar. Again The Outsiders pop up in my mind. Not exactly
the worst kind of comparison, is it? (P.S. The lead parts at the end are played by both John Krol and Jurgen Veenstra, I've been told.)
Producer
Steve Albini. That is quite some time ago I came across a record with
his name underneath it. It may be me, but circa 30 years ago he was
inescapable. Everyone and my mother-in-law seemed to be working with
him. Revert to 2023 and Boston grungers Sunshine Riot have recorded four
songs with him that in a pleasant way brings back memories of old,
including the enthusiasm needed to be relevant today. The four songs
have the rawness of, again, see above, 1960s Dutch band The Outsiders,
not to speak of The Velvet Underground,, the best of Nirvana's tricks
and a lot of bands that followed the proto-grungers. It all comes by on
Loud, Bright And Violent, a title inspired it seems by a fish taco! Why I
like Sunshine Riot is that the band has its own take on these obvious
influences. By playing with the light and the dark in exactly the right
way, the band creates a balance that not all bands are able to strike.
In Jonny Orton the band has the right kind of singer. Rough, without
having to overdo it. His voice can take on a little sharp edge and sound
"normal", a little mysterious even, like when he declares some text in opening
song 'So It Comes'. In 'Looking At The Past' Sunshine Riot shows that it
looks way beyond the early 1990s. The sixties beat and atmosphere gives
a lot away, while there are hints at a band like Oasis as well. Loud,
Bright and Violent is a very interesting EP making me curious about what
else this band has in store for the world.
Some
more hardrock in a more or less classic form. Reading that trio Howling
Giant is from Nashville in Tennessee almost rocked my very existence.
Here I am believing that I can ignore almost everything coming out of
that city, here comes Sunken City. A single with music making me
remember my introduction into hardrock with singles by Deep Purple, Led
Zeppelin and Black Sabbath and Deep Purple's late album in the mid
seventies like 'Stormbringer' and 'Come Taste The Band'. Howling Giant
is on the blog for the first time, so let me introduce the members: Tom
Polzine, guitar, vocals; Zach Wheeler, drums, vocals and Sebastian
Baltes, bass, vocals. Someone is playing a Jon Lord style
organ on Sunken City, giving the song even more of the right touch. For the rest, anyone with a little knowledge of classic rock
will recognise the style of playing. So, it's all about the quality of
the song and that is more than alright.
Time
will tell whether 'Multicolor' is that song of a life time for The Hague band Son Mieux. It was the first
one I liked by this band. So how is the follow up single? A little in
line with the huge hit propelling the band into the next level
a few times over but slightly less in quality. As is almost inevitable. Son Mieux
touches on the atmosphere of 'Multicolor' and gets away with it with
ease. Tell Me More holds a lot of great pop elements. Some do sound
eerily familiar and here I do not not point to the big hit. I also
wonder where The Netherlands had ended up had Son Mieux been playing at
the European Songcontest this week. The song seems to hold a lot that
would score there and in a positive way. Not being just a gimmick what
so many acts simply are. Tell Me More does something else as well. It
combines The Waterboys of decades ago with a modern pop sound. It makes
me like the song better and the saxophone solo tops things off nicely. A
good new single.
We
have not had our shot of punk music today. Well, here it is. What a
shot of energy this single is. Tomorrow Never Comes starts at full speed
and then goes faster and faster, just like my floor manager always used
to say in the morning when we started work in the distribution centre
of large clothes retailer. A long, long time ago. Luckily for me many other
tomorrows followed not involving loading and unloading
(boxes containing) clothes eight hours a day. Life had other things in store for me, like this single. Boy,
this is good. I don't know where Rancid has been at for the past thirty
years, but it cannot have as good as this song. To not let you in the
dark, it's only six years Rancid released it's previous records, so not
that long, counting the pandemic. (Even more) punk veteran Brett
Gurewitz is producing and it's obvious he just lets the band rage and
canalised its energy. All four members get there moment to shine on Tomorrow Never Comes. The
ferocious drumming comes out really well, the basslines are simply
fantastic and both guitarists get to play lead and rhythm. Three of the
four sing lead as well. Democracy in a band if I ever heard one. Rancid
is back with an extremely strong punk rock and roller.
The third and final single this spring of Tramhaus, the Rotterdam punkrock sensation that is slowly but surely marching forward on the stages of Europe. Minus Twenty is a minimal song. Not a lot seems to be happening. Slowly but surely the hypnotic quality of the the song comes through more and more. It's the kind of song that can bring the listener under its spell. Playing it over and over becomes mandatory, without noticing the compulsion. Live the song can serve as the breathing moment for band and audience before havoc is wreaked once again. There's a weird little guitar solo that upsets the apple cart for a few seconds. There is the chant "ahh" already again to sooth us. Had the song stopped at about 4 minutes, the illusion would have been true. It does not. After the four minutes sign the band moves in for the grand finale. Earplugs in place, folks. Erik's Song is more traditional but fully in the bare style Tramhaus is getting to be renowned for. Again the band found some lead notes that are not your average, almost beyond the edge of what the chord progression allows for. It always works though. No, this song will not be to the liking of the more sensitive ears. This music is not made for these people's ears. The (post)punk rocking crowd should be totally alright here.
Wout de Natris
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