Record of the Week: The Resonars - Lunar Kit

Matt Rendon, from Tucson, Arizona has been recording under the name The Resonars for quite a few years. I believe there was a full functioning band at one time but eventually the band became largely a vehicle for Matt's 60s inspired, melodic pop gems.  While I chose this record as the "Record of the Week", it was actually released in 2002 on Get Hip Records out of Pittsburgh, PA.

I recently obtained a copy of this record since I missed it when it originally came out but when I listened to for the first time it sounded so good that I felt that I need to tell the world about it.  By the way, thanks Amazon! One thing to note, if you pick up this record and like it, you will love their entire catalog.  The Resonars sound has not changed much over the years but that is a good thing. The consistency of the song writing has been incredible over the years. Every record has at least one song that is worth the price of admission alone. This record may actually have a couple. For example, check out the pretty She's In Love With Her, or the more gritty but no less melodic Funny Old World.  Finally, here is my favorite song on this album...if I had written this I would retire...Way Way Way Way Out  The Resonars..one of Arizona's finest...and criminally ignored.

For those that are interested in the band, check out this brief 7 minute video on Matt and his studio and recording career.

The Vagrants - I Can't Make a Friend 1965 -1968

What a nice surprise.  Garage band from Forest Hills, NY.  This is not the snarling garage punk rock variety but is instead more melody based with a few elements of folk rock.

For a taste of how melodic these guys could be, take a listen to this gorgeous song called, Your Hasty Heart.  Also, check out, You're Too Young.  Here is a final song, And When It's Over.  If this is your bag, you will like the Vagrants.

Record of the Week: Newtown Neurotics - Punk Collection

When I first started working at Off The Record in San Diego when I was a freshman in college, I was still pretty new to "punk" music. I was aware and into bands like The Clash, The Jam, The Sex Pistols, etc, but I did not really know much about the thousands of other punk bands from that era; bands that were as good as the bands that were famous.  However, at Off The Record, I was able to explore LPSs and 45s to my heart's content.  My first exposure to the Newtown Neurotics came in the way of import of 45s from the UK.  I can't remember what order I bought them in but I remember that I picked up 3 pretty much right in a row.  The time frame? 1981/82?  For the longest time, all that was available were these three (or four?) killer singles with these great, melodic punk riffs and Steve Drewett's impassioned vocals. Check out Kick Out the Tories, or Mindless Violence. 

Eventually, the Newtown Neurotics LP finally came out and we all rejoiced because we had a full album of this tremendous three piece band with new songs that were just as good as those on the early 45s.  On this debut LP, we were introduced other classic Neurotics songs like No Respect and Newtown People. Here is a live version of Newtown People. 

This collection, which I highly recommend, contains all the Newtown Neurotics 45s (both A and B sides) and the full debut LP on one CD. The CD comes with Steve's notes and comments on each song in this collection. If you like any of the songs I have posted above, I think you will enjoy the rest of this CD.

A tremendous band.

Various Artists: Buried Alive!! Demented Teenage Fuzz From Down Under 1965-1970

6 CD box set with 150 rare and previously unreleased R&B, Psyche, Punk, Garage, and Freakbeat music from Australia! The period covered is 1965-1970.  This box set comes with a tremendous, fully packed booklet inside.  Unfortunately, it hard to read due to the background coloring. It is a little bit of a chore but if you get it under the correct light it can be done (why did they make it hard to read?).

I listened to these CDs over time since trying to absorb all this music at one time would be overwhelming.  If you love garage rock, it is a must. It is not terribly expensive given the amount of music you get and I think you will find enough on here to make it worth your while. Enjoy

Record of the Week: Haim - Something To Tell You

Ok. I have a soft spot for these three sisters from Los Angeles. Their brand of modern, techno, dance pop is not my normal cup of tea but there is something about the fact that they ARE three sisters that really enjoy making music together and, it seems that they really love hanging out with each other. The bond seems very real. How can anyone hate that?

Aside from the above, Haim can write some really nice pop songs. Their first album was full of hidden pop gems. This new one also has some nice tracks. I am currently listening to Little of Your Love, and it is a perfect example of what these sisters do best.  Also, I love Danielle's phrasing when she sings.  She has this vocal tic in that she uses a beat-keeping device during her singing. See if you can pick up the number of times you hear her saying "heh" during a vocal performance.

Honestly, I was a little worried about the single that they released before the album came out.  When I first heard, Want You Back, I was a little sad.  I have heard that song numerous times now and I keep waiting for the hook and the melody to take me some place. Unfortunately, the hook never arrives.  So, I did buy this album thinking that maybe they had run out songs after just one album.  I was clearly WRONG. The new songs are definitely there and all you have to do is buy the album and listen. By the way, Something to Tell You and You Never Knew are excellent. This is now my 4th listen and I love the melodies. In a more pure-dance vain, Walking Away, is slow and moody, stone-cold killer track. I even find myself moving to the slow groove of this song while I am typing this sentence. Someone could remix this and make it a club hit.

You know what I would love to hear? Haim taken a more rock'n'roll approach. Wouldn't it  be great to have the Haim girls produced by Grohl (as an example)?  Let's do it Girls! By the way, I love your albums.

Record of the Week: Chastity Belt - I Used To Spend So Much Time Alone

This is the second Chastity Belt album that has really impressed me.  The first album that I heard was the previous album, Time To Go Home.  I really liked the song Cool Slut.  I didn't know much about the band at the time that I bought the CD (and I still don't) but the moody melodies, the sound of the guitars, and the overall vibe of the record to me was outstanding.  Mix all that with some female vocals and it was a potent mix of pleasure.  I recommend that album highly.

This new album hits all the same chords for me as the first one and to my surprise, it is even more melodic than the last one.  Again, the songs are moody and they create just the right background for a Friday night in the house listening to music. For a sense of what you are getting, listen to What the Hell or check out the video for Different Now.

I like this band. I like them because they hit a mood that I can relate to and they do it in a real catchy way.

Record of the Week: Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - The Nashville Sound

Jason first made an impression on me when he was with the Drive By Truckers.  His songs stood out.  Even surrounded by two other very good songwriters in that band, Jason songs still painted an image that was a bit sharper than of his colleagues.  When Jason left the band and went solo I made a point to follow him as best I could.  Since then I have purchased most, if not all, of Jason's output and each time his songwriting stood out. 

Right before I left Houston, Texas on my long drive to Los Angeles, California, I picked up two of Jason's latest CDs for the trip. The albums Southeastern and Something More Than Free found Jason, without his band, in a more traditional singer-songwriter format that helped to highlight his lyrics.  Both of those CDs were played more than a few times as I cut across the Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona deserts in my car.  The songs somehow fit really well during that trip and it was almost as if I was supposed to listen to them during that time.  A person has a lot of time to think when he is crossing half the country by himself in a car and the music you listen to burn harder in your brain. If you have not heard these two albums, go buy them.

Having that experience, I was excited to go out and buy this new release by Jason.  On this record he is back with a full band that includes his talented and beautiful wife Amanda Shires.  The band is solid and the electric guitars fill out the melodies nicely. 

Jason is a story-teller that uses music as his medium to express himself. The musical backdrop he uses is often called Americana.  Put differently, there is definitely some twang in his music and lyrics. The reason that I bring up the twang element of his music is that there are two other American songwriters that are able to paint similar vivid images using this backdrop: Jay Farrar (Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt); and Gary Louris (Jayhawks).  Jason fits nicely next to those two giants.

Check out Molotov and a live version Last of My Kind

Record of the Week: Chaz Bundick Meets The Mattson 2 - Star Suff

I enjoyed shopping at Freakbeat Records in Los Angeles on Sundays because usually Ric Menck of Velvet Crush worked there.  Aside from drumming with Velvet Crush, Ric is also Matthew Sweet's drummer of choice on albums and tours (actually, along with other Velvet Crush members at times). 

Ric is about a year older than me and since he plays in bands that I love, it is not surprising that our musical tastes are similar. So, I am always keen to hear what Ric's latest recommendations are or, as in this case, what he decides to play in the store when he is working.  The last time I was there, Ric played this CD while I was shopping and it definitely got my attention.

The band is essentially The Mattson 2 and Chaz Bundick is a prominent guest of the band on this CD. I don't know much about either The Mattson 2 or Chaz Bundick.  According to Discogs, the Mattson 2 appear to be two brothers (Jared and Jonathan), while Chaz Bundick appears to be a U.S. producer.  Ric mentioned that the brothers may be from San Diego, or at least the general SoCal region. 

When I mentioned to Ric that I wanted to know what he was playing in the store that day, he told me that every time he plays a Mattson 2 record in the shop someone always come up and asks him who is the band that is playing.  So, I guess I am not alone in thinking that this band is on to something.

In trying to think about the music that The Mattson 2 plays it may be better to try and let you know what images came to my head while I played them on my home stereo.  Honestly, the first band that came to my head was Tame Impala from Australia.  This record has that modern psychedelic feel to it but it also contains some jazzy and progressive elements to it.  I use the term "prog" on purpose because certain of their songs reminded me of Yes albums, especially Relayer and Going for the One.  I am not claiming that the band is a prog band but I did hear a little Yes in some of the passages. I think it is the mixture of jass, rock and psychedelic music that really carries this record for me and the songs never really meander since the melodies of the various songs are all quite nice.

In order to get a sense of what I am talking about here is a video from the album for the song Star Stuff.  Here is another taste of the band performing live a song from the album called JBS. JBS has more of that jazzy sound that I discussed above but so melodic. I need to find the rest of their albums.

Record of the Week - Artful Dodger - The Complete Columbia Recordings (CD)

Those that follow power-pop closely, especially mid 70s power pop, are probably already familiar with this band from Virginia.  Their great song, Wayside, was included in a key various artists compilation, DIY: Come Out and Play - American Power Pop 1 (1975-1978), that was quite popular amongst the rabid pop fans of the early 90s. 

In order to listen to Artful Dodger records today, one usually has to search used record bins. I found at least one that way and have seen their other releases in various shape around Los Angeles.  This CD is then a welcome addition to my collection because it gathers their three albums for Columbia Records on 2 CDs in a nice package.  So, less time digging through used bins for Artful Dodger albums (at least momentarily).  In addition, the liner notes are excellent and are penned by Jeremy Cargill- so you know they will be good.

The first album, for my taste, is the best one of the bunch. Aside from opening with Wayside, there are other great songs like, It's Over, that are both melodic and have a bit of bite to them. The bite, in part, comes from the throaty vocals of Billy Paliselli.  Most of the songs on the first LP are written by guitarist Gary Herrewig and Paliselli and they make a nice songwriting combo. They seem to carry much of the first album and their songs are excellent.  The other songwriter in the band was Gary Cox, who is no slouch by any means, but his songwriting tended to be a more pure pop sound; a sound with less bite but more polish.  In fact, on the third album (Babes on Broadway), Cox carries more of the songwriting credits and actually pens a song that could easily be mistaken for an mid-era Bee Gees composition (Who in the World).  Not surprising, as Cox wrote more songs, Artful Dodger became a little less crunchy and a bit more polished. Becoming a bit more polished is not a bad thing if the melodies are still there and luckily for us Artful Dodger was always melodic.

Artful Dodger was a good band and based on some of the live videos that you can find on YouTube, a pretty good live band.  While they never quite reached the high standards of their first LP, the next two albums had enough good songs on them for it to make it worth while to buy this CD. Yes, you should still hunt those used bins for the vinyl copies as well!

Records of the Week: Last of the Garage Punk Unkowns Volume 1 and Volume 2

I cheated. Instead of one "Record of the Week", I decided to go with two. I actually listened to Volume 1 a while ago but only was able to listen to Volume 2 within the last week. I initially thought about just posting about Volume 2 by itself but that did not really make any sense. Also, I figured if you like Volume 1 you are also going to like Volume 2 so I might as well discuss both at the same time.

Now to the record

Tim Warren is a legend in 60s garage punk rock circles and deservedly so.  His Crypt Records label has been putting out some of the finest 60s garage punk compilations, including the greatness found in:

• Back From the Grave
• Garage Punk Unkowns
• Teenage Shutdown
• Sin Alley
• Strummin' Mental

The story about these two volumes is that Tim had enough new material to put out some new Teenage Shutdown volumes but the stamper was lost or thrown away by the LP manufacturer. So, based on the material that Tim had, and the sparse information he had on the bands, a decision was made to put out this series: Last of the Garage Punk Unknowns since it was similar to the previous series Garage Punk Unknowns. Got it?

Not much information is known about most of the bands on these records so the liner notes are limited but the liner notes still carry that Tim Warren humor and charm! In fact, so little is known about the bands on these records that Tim admits in the liner notes that many of the pictures of the bands on the jacket are not even of the bands on the record!

Trust me, it does not matter. You will love the pictures and you will love the music on these compilations.  These records are on the Crypt label so it carries that seal of quality.  Highly Recommended.  By the way, as of this writing, I think they are up to Volume 8 or so. I just ordered the LPs and CDs of Volume 3, 4, and 5! I am behind!

If you want to taste a little, try this link

Velvet Crush - Pre-Teen Symphonies (CD) 2016

Velvet Crush, in part, was the soundtrack to my graduate school days at Berkeley.  When in graduate school, one often has to think a lot and I found that long walks with my Walkman was a good way to think.  So, Velvet Crush albums would make it to a cassette and then I could walk around the streets of Berkeley listening to their music.  One of the albums I listened to a lot was Teenage Symphonies To God.  I memorized that album, front and back.  This release is a set of demos made prior to that album being recorded.  This release also contains some live recordings of the band from the era.  A soundtrack to my life. 

The Knight Brothers - Temptation (CD)

The first time I heard the song "Temptation "Bout To Get Me" on a soul music compilation that I have, I was floored.  The combination and the back and forth vocal delivery of these two gentleman (who are not brothers) was just breathtaking and is exactly why I love about this era of soul music. 

When I decided I need to hear more from the Knight Brothers, I found quickly through Amazon that a compilation CD was available on SHOUT, a division of Cherry Records out of the U.K. (of course!).  Unfortunately, the CD was no longer available and used copies were going for hefty prices.  I decided to write the CD down in my music book and maybe, someday in the future, I would be able to find it cheaper. I just need to remember that it existed.

Over this last Christmas I received a nice Amazon gift card from my sister and I decided to buy some records. As I thumbed through my music book, the Knight Brothers CD came up so I looked for it again. Luckily for me, there was now a copy available for a reasonable price from a trader in Germany. Needless to say I ordered and waited eagerly for its arrival. Yesterday, January 20 was the day it arrived! If you enjoy this song by the Carltons, I'm A Man, an offshoot of the Knight Brothers whose tracks are also included on this compilation, then you will really enjoy the rest of the CD. If you are into 6Ts soul music, you probably should have this in your collection.  One last one, enjoy the passion of this song. If you enjoy this then you will love the Knight Brothers.