Why is this song so good right now? I can not stop listening, it has been propelling me through crowds of college students, bustling and uncomfortable city transportation, and keeping me company on night walks home as I walk briskly from street lamp to street lamp. It is just one of those songs that fits the "right now" so well. It appears on my ipod, I involuntarily sigh, and immediatly start feeling relief. Relief from what I am not quite sure, but I need this song to feel it.
Songs with those side effects don't come around too often and when they do, for me at least, they seem to be older ones that magically appear from the depths of my ipod waiting for the right moment to be fully appreciated. So here I am devouring this song and over playing it until the next one comes along.
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I first saw this band open up for Mystery Roar (another local band) and Delorean this summer. I was instantly impressed with the indie synth pop sounds I heard coming from the stage, and like many others around me I was asking "Who are they?". I went up to the merch table afterwards and found out for myself.
Stereo Telescope is Nikki Dessingue and Kurt Schneider who have both been involved in multiple other bands (Campaign for Real Time and This Car Up) in the Boston scene. They came together to work on this side project and ended up turning it into a two person band. They work incredibly well as a synth pop band, with Nikki's penetrating vocals and the clean layering of Atari synth card (I think), multiple (his and hers) vocal tracks, drums, guitar, and a sense of urgency.
Synth-pop bands have been really popular in the past few years with bands like MGMT going mainstream, but what I like about Stereo Telescope is that you can understand their lyrics, they are clearly featured, poignant, and make sense. There is none of that fuzziness or excessive reverb that so many synth pop bands employ and you still get the fun electronic dancey beat. This band is quickly gathering speed after being featured by Spinner and local Boston publications, The Phoenix and Stuff. People are paying attention to this band, as they should be. This song is too damn catchy to ignore. Give it a listen and you'll see what I mean.
"Geography is not to blame, it’s that all you do is the same / Pick a town propose a song, keep it simple I can hum along / Let’s tear this city down, let’s start all over…"
I have yet to listen to this album in its entirety. From what I've heard, I'm not ready to form any opinions but I'll at least say it's interesting. Now, if you haven't gotten in on the leaked album that is going around the interwebs you can legally stream it thanks to NPR. Take a listen and see what you think for yourself. Read NPR's take on it HERE.
How The Acre Came to Be. Told by the band: "In the fall of 2005, Nick Murphy and Courtney Cavanaugh started the Acre out of a small dorm room at Bridgewater State College. With the initial goal of playing a few weekly Open Mics, the two armed themselves with a couple of covers and a handful of originals. Fast forward to 2010, the duo is now joined by Steve Rice on bass, Matt Samson on percussion and Danny McNair playing keys and guitar and the Open Mics have turned into club gigs in and around Boston. And as for that fistful of songs, the group turned them into 2009’s the Red Wool."
I came across The Acre by accident, clicking on links on a concert venue website and I landed on their myspace page. I liked what I heard. There is a lot of variety and major differences between songs, some are loud songs that become suddenly subdued, others are quiet lullabies, and some play along the lines of folk/americana songs, but the common thread is the songwriting and lyrics, and that is what originally caught my attention. They certainly have talent, proven by their songs with well written lyrics that urge you to listen. Nick Murphy and Courtney Cavanaugh's voices meld nicely at the right moments reeling you in, compelling you to sing along. They are a band to watch, with a new album expected in 2011, it will be exciting to see what they come up with next.
They will be playing at B.U. Central October 2nd, opening for A.A. Bondy.
Pesky J. Nixon recently released their sophomore album, Monkey Business & Mislaid Hopes, and sent it my way for a listen. I'm so glad I got to hear their energetic americana music with adept banjo plucking and melodic harmonies that get you listening right from the start. Don't let "americana" through you off though, this is music that can appeal to a wide audience with it's pop sensibilities, well crafted songs, and subtle rock and folk influences. Their songs are a fluid piece of work with a clear voice, making for an enjoyable listen.
I thought "Breathe in Autumn" was the perfect song for last week as summer quietly became fall and the leaves began to change as if they were just waiting for September 22nd to come along. This music feels just right for the fall, whether it is soft and contemplative or more upbeat and sing-along-esque like "Who Will Love You?", there is something about the combination of an accordion, a banjo, and stories told in the form of songs that seems just right for this time of season. Be sure to check out their album, it is an absolute pleasure to listen to.
What a week, with it came the end of summer and the beginning of autumn and a whole bunch of other stuff. Thankfully it doesn't feel like autumn quite yet here in Boston. I am keeping my fingers crossed for another Indian Summer. I also need to apologize for the lack of posting. My blog was going all sorts of crazy, some html got messed up and I couldn't post anything. If you are reading this post, it means I got things working again. It also means that next week I will be doing double time to catch up so stay tuned for some great songs from bands you've never heard of before. I am really excited to share them with you and was deeply disappointed this week when I couldn't get the word out. Here is some other stuff that happened this week worthy of a mention.
John Vanderslice solidified his reputation as an all round stand up guy and awesome musician with the release of his new EP, Green Grow the Rushes. This is being offered for FREE on his website along with a bunch of other free songs. It is definitely worth listening to. I've been enjoying it and I have always loved his lyrics. "Come to me now, you are warming weather."
Justin Townes Earlon the other hand, was arrested, entered rehab and postponed the rest of his tour. He was touring in support of his latest album, Harlem River Blues, just released on September 14th. It happens to be an outstanding album from a man who is turning out to be a timeless classic, his last album Midnight at the Movies, won countless awards and is worth checking out as well. Hopefully he gets it together so he can continue making the music we love. You can get a free download via his website as well.
Then there were two big videos of the week that everyone was talking about. The first being OK GO's "White Knuckles", which received over a million hits in it's first 24 hours online (As I write this it has almost 4 million hits). It premiered on The Ellen Show and features shelter dogs doing some impressive tricks. Supposedly they did it all in one take, making it even more impressive. While I am not a huge fan of the band, no one can deny they have an extraordinary talent for making incredible videos that always bring something new to the table. Not to mention they are helping to raise money for dog shelters so they deserve a big tip of the hat for that.
And finally there was the Sleigh Bells video for "Infinity Guitars"which also features a dog but what got people talking about this video was the pile of guitars on fire. Always keeping it interesting.
And that takes care of this week's jibber jabber. Enjoy the weekend.
Just wanted to let you all know that in case you missed it elsewhere, the reviews for the concert I went to last Wednesday are up with pictures and MP3s for download. The concert was a lot of fun, with an energetic audience and even more energetic bands, it made for a great night out. The highlights were being surprised by how intense Drink Up, Buttercup was and their banging on trash cans with maracas. Jukebox the Ghost highlights were their cover songs. They played The Cure's "Close to Me" and it was amazing. They closed their show with a Donna Lewis cover of "I love you always forever" which has been stuck in my head ever since. Read the official reviews HERE.
So far I have seen 12 bands in my 100 Band Challenge which means I have 88 more bands to see within the next 343 days. There are lots of good concerts coming up in October, so stay tuned.
I am so excited to see these guys play in a few weeks. After watching their Tiny Desk Concert on NPR, I was even more excited. I wrote about them two weeks ago and have been playing their music loudly ever since. On this 16 minute set they play "All Alone in an Empty House", "Song for a Painter", and "Time Taunts Me" absolutely beautiful and oh god the instruments! Love it. Go here for the full story and video.
Kingsley Flood is emerging as the local favorite and it has been exciting to watch. I interviewed Kingsley Flood back in May, and since then they have only gotten bigger, Boston immediately decided to take ownership of this band, which was a smart decision.
I have been able to see them play a few times and they put on a great show. What I like most about them is the enthusiastic melding of city and country roots, americana and rock, and their ability to make those dualities come together so flawlessly. Not to mention they are all really gifted musicians, their sound is unique and carefully crafted. Their debut album is impressive and one that I thoroughly enjoy from start to finish. They won Best Roots Act for the Boston Phoenix Music Poll and I'm sure they will continue to win a few more awards as time goes on. Get ready for Kingsley Flood, you're going to love them. Here are two of my favorite songs. Be careful though, "Cathedral Walls" is will be stuck in your head in no time.
I want to let everyone know that I am working hard on creating a mixtape and writing blog posts that feature local Boston area bands. The culmination of this project will be a mixtape that I will be distributing to other Boston bloggers, as well as to a few bloggers outside of the local scene. The mixtape should be ready in a month, but in the meantime I will be exposing you to some of my favorite local artists as I work on getting this project together.
My goal is to help local bands achieve the recognition that they deserve on a local and hopefully national level. Boston is a musically diverse city with all sorts of different shows being played on any given night. The more time I have spent going to concerts, the more I have been impressed and surprised by the talent that is hidden among us here in Boston. Hopefully I can help showcase some of what I have experienced.
Lastly, as this project is a work in progress, (and something I am doing for free and because I love music) if you could help spread the word or if you want to help out, I would really appreciate it. You can reach me via e-mail (jessnewmusicco [at] gmail) or on Twitter.
If you are a band and would like to be a part of this please e-mail me or find me on twitter.
If you have a reccomendation for me about a band let me know
If you are a designer or artist and want to do the cover art for this, it would be a huge help.
Anybody else, comments, questions, and feedback are all greatly appreciated.
Thanks everyone, and I am very excited to be sharing this with all of you.
