My Rating: 8/10 Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Noise Rock, Psychedelic
Good afternoon everybody. As you may remember, a few weeks back I had received a couple of 7″ singles from Matt Beck of SHDWPLY Records. The first single that we covered was the “Haunted House” 7″ by Brooklyn’s own Florida, and today we have the second single.
It’s by a band called The Super Vacations who hail from Virginia. They have a noisy, lo-fi pop sound that’s also a bit on the psychedelic side, but never do they let one of these elements overcome the rest in their music – it’s all their all the time, which may be why this 7″ is such an interesting listen. The opening track “Henry” is a fast and noisy pop song that seems like it’s over just as soon as it starts. If you’re having a rough day, this song might just be able to put a smile on your face. You may not necessarily be able to understand what they’re singing about, but the combination of the noisy lead guitar and reassuring vocals are enough to tell you that everything is cool. The following track “The Void” takes a step back from where “Henry” was. They slow everything down on “The Void”, making things a bit more eerie and alarming. Those spaced out guitar chords definitely work to make this song have a menacing feel to it. Moving on to the next track “Ten Second Freak Out”, this would be the longest track featured on the 7″. It kicks off with an unusual sounding guitar riff that’s shortly replaced by a high pitched distortion, which goes to show that these songs don’t follow any predetermined song writing formulas. The last track “The Paradise” is another one that could get you smiling, with it’s extensive lead guitar that guides the band through the rest of the fast paced action, which once again ends before you know it. With that being said, it seems like “The Paradise” ends a bit too soon, but I guess you can only fit so much music onto a 7″ record.
Who?: Real Estate w/ Family Portrait Where?:The Barbary, Philadelphia, PA When?: April 18th, 2010
Hello all! So this past Sunday night was a very special night. Not only did the Philadelphia Flyers conquer the New Jersey Devils, but Real Estate and their hometown friends Family Portrait came to Philadelphia to play a show for us. Believe it or not, the show almost didn’t even happen due to some van trouble. Both bands showed up rather late, but they still put on a tremendous show. The third band The Beets never even made it – not too sure what happened there, but the show went on regardless. Family Portrait took the stage first, and they didn’t waste any more time.
Family Portrait – This was their first song of the night. I’m not too sure of it’s name, so if anybody can shed some light, that would be fantastic. Towards the end there is some very nice guitar work, and he makes it look so simple!
Family Portrait – Dentist – Lead singer Evan Brody sings about being a dentist without a high school diploma. He gives us fair warning that we may not have many teeth left after he’s finished either. Probably a good idea to steer clear of Brody’s Dentistry.
Family Portrait – Mega Secrets – This would be one of the many tracks featured on the Underwater Peoples Summertime Showcase CD that was released in Summer ’09. It’s also one of the tracks that’s on their spilt 7″ with Andrew Cedermark. You can find both of these releases for a very reasonable price over at the Underwater Peoples Store. “Mega Secrets” marked the end of Family Portraits set, but there was still much more to come.
Real Estate – Beach Comber – They appropriately start their set off with the opening track “Beach Comber” from their first LP. That LP was put out by Woodsist in 2009. These guys look like they’re having such a great time up on stage…
Real Estate – Pool Swimmers – The second song of their set was the more laid back and chilled out song “Pool Swimmers”. This song can be found originally as the b-side on their now out-of-print “Fake Blues” 7″ that was put out by Woodsist in 2009.
Real Estate – Untitled New Song – They introduce this song as being the “newest of the new” and that it’s only their third time performing the song live. What a treat! After the show ended I couldn’t help but ask Martin Courtney if there was a name to the new song they had played. Unfortunately the track doesn’t have a name at this point, but Courtney went on to say that we could be seeing it released on a new 7″ record sometime in the future. Exciting! Definitely looking forward to that one.
Real Estate – Green River & Suburban Beverage – “Green River” was by far the loudest and most hard hitting song they played on Sunday. It’s just what their set needed too. They quickly change the momentum by playing “Suburban Beverage” immediately after, which probably left many concert-goers yearning for more of that hard hitting action. Parts of “Suburban Beverage” do deliver quite nicely, but not nearly as well as “Green River” did.
Real Estate – Atlantic City – The jangly guitars and easy-going bass line in this one make it irresistibly catchy. Evoking a hot and hazy summer day, this song is bound to leave you smiling. At the end Matt Mondanile quickly tells us that this song is about Atlantic City.
Real Estate – Fake Blues – This video would bring us to the final song of their set, and what a great way to end the night. Judging by the screaming at the beginning, I’m going to guess that this is the song most people wanted to hear. It just so happens to be their most played song on Last.fm, so it’s probably a good call that they played this one.
Now, I must depart. Nocturnal Skate Shop is releasing a brand new pair of Nike’s at noon, and apparently people camped out over night to get them. They’re called “Skunks”, and I’m sure you can figure out why considering what day it is. If that’s not a big enough hint, then just look at the picture of them below.
If that doesn’t help, then I don’t know what to tell you.
My Rating: 9/10 Genre/ Tags: Instrumental, Noise Rock, Surf
Hello! I hope everybody’s Record Store Day went well and you all got the releases you wanted! Now, I’ve started posts off like this in the past, but doesn’t everybody like to be surprised at some point in their day? That’s just what this album “Pizza Hero” did to me. Other than knowing that these guys were an instrumental band, I can’t say I knew much else before listening. With that being said, I absolutely love being completely caught off guard when listening to music, and it’s not an everyday thing that happens either, but “Pizza Hero” certainly does the trick.
The first track “Sparks” wastes no time getting things started. Before you know it you’re in the midst of a full on musical assault with pulsating bass lines and relentless guitar hooks, all while you’re still trying to figure out “Where the hell did this band come from?” Well, believe it or not, they come from Brooklyn, New York, but as far as bands go these days, that’s old news. The next track on the album, “Bio Hassle”, is surely worth your time, with it’s quick stop/start action, grimy sounding bass lines, and electrically charged guitar solos. The best way to hear this song would probably be through their ridiculously fun music video, where they play in a van full of balloons, smash guitars, and eat watermelon. Towards the end they have an all-out party in the back of the van complete with cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer and pizza that seems to be flying anywhere but the eaters mouths. Watch the debauchery below.
Moving on from “Bio Hassle” gets you into the “Pig Pile” two-part suite that play into each other almost perfectly. The first slower half ends with some awesome descending guitar hooks, while during the second half is when things start to get fast and crazy. They turn up the intensity about a minute in, where you can definitely hear the use of some vocal harmonies, which adds a nice touch to the song.
Just like the two “Pig Pile” tracks, other highlights include “Bummers Begin”, “Little Giants”, and the epic closing track “USRA”. All in all, “Pizza Hero” clocks in at just about 30 minutes of time, and if you’re looking for a very enjoyable half-hour of your day, then “Pizza Hero” is the way to go. Thanks for reading, and check back soon – Real Estate is tonight.
Pizza Hero: Tracklist
1.) Sparks
2.) Bio Hassle
3.) Pig Pile Part I
4.) Pig Pile Part II
5.) Bummers Begin
6.) Little Giants
7.) Dirty Gary
8.) USRA
Now, as many of you may already know, today is the 3rd annual Record Store Day. Record labels around the world release new, limited edition records that you can’t find anywhere else, besides on Record Store Day…and probably eBay. So if you got up early enough this morning, why not head on over to your local music store and purchase a few things? If you’re interested, you can check out a comprehensive list of everything they’re releasing, which includes the new Hold Steady album “Heaven is Whenever” that’s not supposed to drop until May 4th. So be sure to get up this morning, and see what your local record store has to offer!
And I want to thank every single person who came to the Styrofoam Drone in the past 24 hours, because yesterday was the most traffic the Styrofoam Drone has seen since it’s birth into the blogosphere on December 17th, 2009. Most of that is due to our shout out on Pitchfork on Friday afternoon, where they featured the video from the Titus Andronicus show the other night where they covered Weezers “Undone – The Sweater Song”. Also, thanks for the love from the Alternative blog, Weallwantsomeone.org and Daybowbow.net.
None of this would have happened if it wasn’t for the actions of my good pal Joe either, so once again Joe, I thank you. And I thank all of you viewers for visiting and nearly giving me a heart attack! Except that Mike Hunt asshole guy…
Who?: Titus Andronicus w/ the Babies Where?:The Barbary, Philadelphia, PA When?:April 15th, 2010
“I’m so glad I stage dived. I think I’m officially too old for that now,”
said Joe Gallagher, friend and operator of the wonderful “Pizza Prospects” blog. He too, just like everyone in attendance last night, had been waiting a long, long time for Titus Andronicus to come to town. They didn’t just “come to town” either. They showed up and put on a grand display of what music should sound like, leaving anyone who had never seen Titus Andronicus before breathless and dying for more. To anyone who saw Titus Andronicus for the first time last night, I wish I could have been in your shoes.
First up were Brooklyn, NY band “The Babies”, who almost didn’t see any set time at all. They were a bit late to the show, so they almost completely missed their time slot. Sure enough, they showed up with enough time to play, and sure enough, I was there to capture part of the action.
The Babies – All Things Come to Pass – They rushed right into the Barbary and wasted no time setting up before playing. This was the song they started off with, and if anybody knows the name of it, please send me a message! Or leave a comment! Or something! Thanks again Sandy!
The Babies – Caroline – This was their last song of the set, and I am very glad I captured this one. We get a front row seat to watch all of Kevin Morbys guitar playing, which is quite stunning. This song is like one long build up before they break it all down within the last minute. Definitely a fun song and a fun band. They played an awesome set and did a fantastic job warming up the crowd for the main event, even with being pretty late for the show. Once again, if anybody knows the names to these two Babies songs, please enlighten me. Next up were Titus Andronicus, and this time around we have a completely different line-up of songs as compared to the last show we covered.
Titus Andronicus – Joset of Nazareth’s Blues – This was their second song of the night, and also the first song they played from their sprawling first full length album “The Airing of Grievances”. It makes me happy that they don’t forget to play these songs from this album. I really hope they never do.
Titus Andronicus – Fear and Loathing in Mahwah, NJ – “SHUT THE FUCK UP!” are the first words that you can make out in this video, thanks to another good friend who also goes by the name Joe (last name excluded). Again we get to hear another song from “Grievances”, and this one is more or less of a live staple for a Titus Andronicus show if you’re asking me. What really makes it an essential live song is the rapturous and anthemic ending that’s always sure to dismantle any crowd. Pay close attention as Pat Stickles moves towards the crowd as he shreds away on his guitar in the midst of everything. Thank you for this one.
Titus Andronicus w/ Cassie Ramone cover Weezer’s “Undone – The Sweater Song” – Now here is what may have been the highlight of the night, because absolutely nobody saw this coming. And who doesn’t love the Sweater Song? I’m sure many of you don’t, but either way this was quite a surprise. They played the entire song, and they even covered the chit-chat found at the beginning (and throughout) of the original Sweater Song. How awesome is that? Not only do they have the chatter down, but Pat Stickles plays through the guitar solos without breaking a sweat (but not literally). This one was quite a treat.
Titus Andronicus – Four Score and Seven – “This is neat. We sold all the tickets today, how wonderful!” Something they had never done in Philadelphia before last night. You’re very welcome Titus Andronicus. This was their last song of the night, and what better way to close it than with their single “Four Score and Seven” from “The Monitor”? I said earlier in the post that no songs overlap from the Fords, NJ show, but now you can call me a liar.
Titus Andronicus – This is in-between two of the songs at some point in their set. I uploaded this for no specific reason; I guess it’s kind of funny. While bassist Ian Graetzer was experiencing some technical difficulties during the set, Pat Stickles kept the crowd going simply by making everyone laugh. He plays the Charlie Brown theme pretty well too! Once again, thanks for viewing, and be sure to check back for more very, very soon. Please keep in mind that tomorrow is the 3rd annual Record Store Day, so make sure you get up and go support your local music store. Thanks again.
Today’s record comes from three piece band Happy Birthday. They hail from the hilariously named town of Brattleboro, Vermont, and if it wasn’t for this band, I don’t know how else you would have heard of Brattleboro. The band is comprised of Kyle Thomas on lead guitar and vocals, Chris Weisman on “inverted-tuning” guitar/bass/vocals, and drummer Ruth Garbus. And if anybody can shed some light on what exactly “inverted-tuning” guitar would be, please do!
The Sub Pop description of the album says that the songs are mostly the work of Kyle Thomas, while the rest of the band helps arrange and put the finishing touches on them. Apparently when Kyle Thomas originally wrote the songs, he was a bit “too scared” to play the songs alone, so he went out and recruited band members to play with him. They played one show together, and they enjoyed it so much that they continued to be a band together! How awesome! We’re so lucky they enjoyed it. If they hadn’t, I probably wouldn’t be writing this right now.
The material on the album could most easily be described as pop music, and I don’t think many would argue. The album kicks off with the wonderful first track “Girls FM”, complete with gorgeous choruses, fuzzy bass lines, jangly bells, and the power to put a huge smile on your face. Kyle Thomas sings “I’m always on the frequency – Girls FM, Girls FM” talking about none other than the opposite sex, which becomes clear immediately after hearing the song for the first time. It’s probably a good idea to let you know now that these songs have the power to seep into your brain and linger around for days. I’m not kidding. I listened to “Girls FM” at least 30 times last week, just check my Last.fm charts. The worst part of it all is that “Girls FM” is only the first track on the album, which means you have another 10 tracks to become addicted to once you finally take “Girls FM” off repeat.
Other tracks sure to get stuck in your brain are “2 Shy”, and “Perverted Girl” which includes some awesome guitar soloing and some great little licks throughout. “In a perfect world I’d be perverted girl!” screeches Thomas towards the end of the song, suggesting that our world isn’t quite what he’d like it to be. The following track on the record “Subliminal Message” is a love song of sorts, with Thomas again speaking to the opposite sex. This time he’s attempting to send his loved one a subliminal message in hopes that she will want to be his girl – “You say you don’t wanna be my girl, but will you just be anyway?” says Thomas. About halfway through the track you’ll find a nice guitar lick too, all while Thomas claims “Without you I just go mad.”
This album definitely caught me off guard, and I think it will do the same for you. If the mp3’s below decide to work, then you should listen to them right away. If you like the mp3’s, why not buy the record? Not only will you own the songs, but you’ll have that wonderful record sleeve featuring their all-to-awesome minimalistic album cover – it’s just a bent music note, but it’s so cool! I think I know what I want my first tattoo to be! Just kidding Mom.
My Rating: 7/10 Genre/ Tags: Garage Rock, Folk Rock, Italian
Hey friends, how’s it going? It’s raining right now in Philadelphia. That doesn’t make me happy. Hopefully the weather is better in your town.
So who remembers the Vermillion Sands? They’re a folky, gritty female-fronted band that come all the way from a place called Treviso in Northern Italy. And I’m sure it’s a beautiful place, unlike where I am today. So we have been following a handful of the releases from the Vermillion Sands, including their latest “Miss My Gun” EP, and one of their earlier efforts, the “Mary” 7″ that was put out on Rijapov Records. Now in 2010, we finally have a full length release from these Italian garage rockers, and you can find it over at ALIEN SNATCH! Records. My guess is that the full-length is a culmination of all of these smaller releases from the band, but I only recognize two songs on the tracklist. Either way, I’m sure the record will still be overflowing with the folky-garage pop sound that is the Vermillion Sands, along with the nasally voice of lead singer Anna Barattin…
…Just like this “In the Wood” 7″ that I have been neglecting to comment on. It has three new songs that you may or may not have heard up til now, with one of them being the opening track on the forthcoming full-length we were just talking about. That song is simply called “In the Wood”, and it kicks off quickly with a fuzzy synthesizer. It almost gives you that feeling that you’re actually in the woods somewhere, but that’s up for you to decide. Whenever I try to host an mp3 on the blog, it usually fails miserably, so I’m going to point you in the direction of their MySpace so you can hear “In the Wood”, just click that last link. It’s one of the first songs they have on their for your listening pleasure, so please do yourself a favor and check it out.
In the Wood 7″: Tracklist
1.) In the Wood
2.) May
3.) Trouble in My Way
Vermillion Sands on MySpace BUY In the Wood directly from Fat Possum BUY the Vermillion Sands latest full-length LP from ALIEN SNATCH! Records
So as you already know, we have been following all of the latest Hold Steady news in order to keep up with the release of their new album “Heaven is Whenever”. And if you’ve been waiting for even more news, than today would be your lucky day – A fourth song from the album has been unveiled, and it’s called “Barely Breathing”. You can check it out over on StereoGum simply by following the link in this sentence.
This latest song has a menacing, almost villainous sound to it that I don’t think we have heard in many of the Hold Steady’s other pieces (Cattle and the Creeping Things?), especially not any of the other new tracks that have recently popped up – including “The Weekenders”, “Rock Problems”, and “Hurricane J”. Up to this point we’ve heard just about one-half of the album, and I’m still not entirely sure what we should be expecting for the record as a whole. You can either sit around and wait until the May 4th release date from Vagrant (lame), or you can get up off your ass next Saturday morning (April 17th) and grab the release they’re putting out for Record Store Day 2010 (awesome). Either way, I’m sure you will be happy, but if you go with the Record Store Day release, you will have the album waaaaay before anyone else will. And it’s got a screen-printed cover. And it’s limited to 600 copies. Just putting that out there. Enjoy!
Hey guys. Remember last week when I posted the write-up of the Japandroids, Love is All, and The G show at the Barbary? Well after doing so, I sent an e-mail over to Matt Beck of SHDWPLY Records to let him know I had some footage of one of SHDWPLY’s bands, The G. Through talking to Matt, he mentioned that he had some singles that he wanted to send my way, so I graciously obliged his offer and sent him my address. Thanks to Matt, we now have some new music to check out! The first 7″ I am going to cover from SHDWPLY is by a band who call themselves “Florida” (not to be confused with the rapper “Flo Rida” as Last.fm does) who come from the highly-populated-by-bands-city of Brooklyn, New York.
The Florida single includes two tracks from the band, and it is their most recent release to come from SHDWPLY. The A-side begins with the eerie track titled “Haunted House”, and the B-side is a track titled “Love Inside of You”. “Haunted House” starts off with a slower, almost demonic intro that is certainly nothing short of creepy. Shortly after we’re met with the howling vocals of lead singer Daniel Rineer. Not long after the vocals came into play did the band Pontiak come to my mind, but just before the 3-minute point of the song they change things up with an extremely heavy guitar solo that is sure to please any listener. Throughout the length of the song you can hear the use of brass instruments, which works wonders for that spooky element of their music, not to mention that ominous chiming sound heard throughout also. You can check out the B-side of the record “Love Inside of You” over on their Myspace, along with a few other tracks from the band that you may or may not have already heard. If you decide you like these songs, you should do yourself a big favor and buy the records, for multiple reasons. If you like the music, that’s one thing, but the best part is the vinyl itself. It’s transparent gold in color, and as far as I know it’s a limited edition release, so it won’t be around forever! Thanks for reading, and be sure to check back for some more soon!
BUY the Haunted House 7″ directly from SHDWPLY Records
FLORIDA on Myspace
Who?: Smith Westerns w/ the Enchantments Where?:The Olde Club @ Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, PA When?: April 2nd, 2010
Hello, hello. Sorry for the gap between this and my last post. Between the holiday weekend and working I haven’t been able to make this post until right now. So last weekend, a friend and I decided to make the trip out to Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, PA to check out the Smith Westerns. We showed up very early, met some cool people, and then to kill some time we walked around the enormous campus before it was time for the show to start. While walking around we ran into singer/guitarist Andrew Ashbrook from the opening band The Enchantments, who was riding around on a Razor Scooter he found somewhere on campus. We found out a little information on the band after running into Andrew. He revealed to us that it was only their 3rd show as the Enchantments, and that they came from Brooklyn, NY on a cheaper-than-dirt Megabus to play the show that night, amongst other things. Pretty cool. So up first were The Enchantments: Continue reading “Smith Westerns w/ the Enchantments Live in Swarthmore, PA (4/2/10)”→
Styrofoam Drone 