IT’S A FAMILY AFFAIR MADISEN WARD AND THE MAMA BEAR Are A Musical Mother And Child Reunion
HEX ENDUCTION INSIDE: SLOAN • SPEEDY ORTIZ • “WEIRD AL”
BEN CHASNY Uses Playing Cards To Write Songs – And Shows You How, Too
HAIL TO THE DEL DELMAR RECORDS Reps St. Louis To The World splish splash
>>
ELEVEN MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 5
COMPLIMENTARY
elevenmusicmag.com | ELEVEN | 1
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DEPT. OF
PERIODICAL LITERATURE ST. LOUIS, MO
Volume 11, Issue No. 5
June 2015
ELEVEN’S MUSICALENDAR Recommended Shows 24
FRONT OF THE BOOK 5 Editor’s Note 6 Where Is My Mind?
Sloan
BRING ON THE NIGHT
COLUMNS
Show Previews and Reviews226
8 Puzzles by PATRICK BLINDAUER
Speedy Ortiz, Best Coast, White Lung, The Melvins, Lindsey Stirling, “Weird Al” Yankovic
Crossword and MusiCryptogram
9 Watcherr by CURTIS TINSLEY
Blue Beat 27 by JEREMY SEGEL-MOSS .
Chad VanGaalen’s Black Mold
10 Close Encounters by REV. DANIEL W. WRIGHT
HOT ROCKS Album Reviews2 30
Mercy Mercy
FEATURES 12 Grin and Bear It: Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear Find Success Not Too Hot, Not Too Cold by SEAN KELLY
Richard Thompson, The Ex-Bombers, Beth Bombara, Tanlines, Bully, Family Affair, SOAK, Waxahatchee, Holly Miranda, DMA’s, Hop Along, Eternal Summers, Porcelain Raft
14 S tanding on the Edge: Beth Bombara Readies for the Plunge by GRANT BARNUM 18 Delmar Records: Exporting STL by DUCKY HINES 20 Free Your Mind: Six Organs Of Admittance’s Ben Chasny on His New Songwriting Tool by JEREMY KANNAPELL ON THE COVER: Beth Bombara. Photo by Nate Burrell (BeforeTheBlink.com), styling by Casey Miller.
Mean Scene by SUZIE GILB
.
THE WAY BACK PAGE Bargain Bin 34 by JACK PROBST . Oh No Oh My
.
ds! Bring Your Frien the Public. Free and Open to od & More! Raffle Prizes, Fo
CHEROKEE AT NIGHT. PHOTO BY JARRED GASTREICH.
Thursday, June 11, 5:30-8pm
Eleven Magazine Volume 11 | Issue 5 | June 2015 PUBLISHER Hugh Scott
800 N. Third St. | St. Louis, MO 63102 314-657-4400 | eibynelly.com
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Evan Sult SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR Paige Brubeck WEB EDITOR Hugh Scott PHOTO EDITOR Angela Vincent ART DIRECTOR Evan Sult CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Grant Barnum, Caitlin Bladt, Patrick Blindauer, Paige Brubeck, Ryan Boyle, Sam Clapp, Raymond Code, Melinda Cooper, Jenn DeRose, Ira Gamerman, Suzie Gilb, JJ Hamon, Jordan Heimburger, Ducky Hines, Jake Jones, James Kane, Gabe Karabell, Sean Kelly, Nelda Kerr, Chris Keith, Denmark Laine, Josh Levi, Rob Levy, K.E. Luther, Geoff Naunheim, Jack Probst, Jason Robinson, Jeremy Segel-Moss, Robert Severson, Alex Tebeleff, Michele Ulsohn, Robin Wheeler, Rev. Daniel W. Wright PHOTOGRAPHERS Nate Burrell, Duane Clawson, Seth Donnelly, Jarred Gastreich, Jon Gitchoff, Kelly Glueck, Jess Luther, Adam Robinson, Adam Schicker, Bill Streeter, Ismael Valenzuela, Angela Vincent, Theo Welling, Carrie Zukoski
ILLUSTRATORS Paige Brubeck, Sean Dove, Tyler Gross, Lyndsey Lesh, Curtis Tinsley PROOFREADER Tracy Brubeck PROMOTIONS & DISTRIBUTION Suzie Gilb Ann Scott CONSULTATION Clifford Holekamp Derek Filcoff Cady Seabaugh Hugh Scott III FOUNDED in 2006 by a group including Jonathan Fritz, Josh Petersel and Matthew Strรถm ELEVEN MAGAZINE 3407 S. Jefferson St. Louis, MO 63118 FOR ADVERTISING INQUIRIES Hugh Scott advertising@elevenmusicmag.com CALENDAR LISTINGS listings@elevenmusicmag.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR deareleven@elevenmusicmag.com We welcome your comments. Please let us know if you do not want your letter published.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR US? info@elevenmusicmag.com ONLINE elevenmusicmag.com twitter.com/elevenmag facebook.com/ElevenMagazine COPYRIGHT 2015 SCOTTY SCOTT MEDIA, LLC
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Editor’s Note by Evan Sult
Summer City
EVERY SUNDAY FOR the last dozen or so years, there have been only three things I’ve needed: a cup of coffee, a pencil, and the New York Times crossword puzzle. It’s a simple pleasure but a profound one. That’s why I’m very pleased to introduce to you the new Puzzles page in this issue. It’s not just that it’s a crossword, or even that it’s a I’M SITTING a cafe called Birch in midtown Manhattan, music theme.IN The crossword’s author, Patrick Blindauer, is ajust wordoff Madison Avenue. Thewho city has beckons, and the weather outside trickery freak of nature published over 50 puzzles in that couldn’t bepublication called anything less than ideal. need to rest my eyes for very same where I go to get myIfix. I mean, I don’t want a so Iaway, look up the screen stretch. tomoment, get carried butfrom the man’s a starand in my book.My unfocused gaze lingers the t-shirt collar of the guy sitting nextSleepy to me,Kitty and it He’s alsoon a friend. We met recently when my band takes a second why: the shirt says Rime “STyLe” white on gray. was working ontoa realize theatrical version of “The ofin the Ancient Mariner” It turns out themonth’s shirt is Ed repping KDHX, and surethat; enough, the it (see last Note for more about in short, couple sitting there are St.aLouisans themselves, town cast for aand was a huge challenge and bigger thrill), and thatinwhole wedding. Brandon Lucy are friendly and conversational, of crew turned out toand be nothing but a pleasure to know. course, andthe we’re soon talking about Street City That’s thing about making artCherokee and music for a and living: it’s a Museum, andset which upcoming shows eachin beeach going to. skills, very intense of relationships, builtwe’ll on faith other’s and This is one the you many ways I’ve been loving all St. of Louis respect forof what each make. Essentially my this strongest month. It helps that the weather hastogether been a dream of spring, so that friendships were forged by working in bands, publications, it’s almost impossible to spend the evenings inside — all patios or art projects (I’ll admit, the theatrical presentation wasthose a first). and porches that had to live without during the winter been That’s also thewe way I met Death Cab For Cutie, way backhave when. I returned to us. Everyone’s in a great mood, and there’s a real sense was playing music and writing and designing for a music magazine, of ease innow, the city. Even as weacross continue grapple the complex a lot like and stumbled theirtovery firstwith demo cassette, past and of race relations in our personally before it present was actually even released. We city, met, I’ve talked (I think seen I wrote more racial diversity and interaction in South City summer the very first story about them), and eventually mythis band took them than ever before. And though the news keeps telling mefine howsince the out on their very first tour, and they’ve been doing just national economy is still stumbling, my personal experience is that then, thankyouverymuch. everyone who wants art to or be music or dance or theater or hula It’s a funny kind to of make pleasure editing a different music hoop, or get business is in later, the middle of doing it. still magazine inaasmall different city,started, many years and find myself spreading It’s always invigorating tofriends, visit New York, where the ambition the word about my still happy for their accomhas to be bigand enough keep uptowith the rent. But — it’s alsoeighth exciting plishments, still to listening their new album their to know that St. Louis maintaining itsshow capacity asPageant. a city full of now, amazingly. I lookis forward to their at the promise and potential. This summer is ours make the most of. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to goto find a pencil.
elevenmusicmag.com | ELEVEN | 5
WHERE IS MY MIND? This Month in the History of Now
THANK YOU AND GOOD NIGHT
GO GET WET
How many times have you wished south St. Louis had a free pool for you and everyone you know to escape the summer heat blast? Congratulations: your prayers have been answered. Check out the calendar on page 24 for more details on the pool party of the year!
AFTER 33 YEARS, DAVID LETTERMAN signed off from his late night show for the final time last month. Over the years, the biggest and best musicians of the era graced his stage both at the Ed Sullivan Theater for CBS, and before that in Studio 6A at NBC. Over the years, more than a few musicians with strong St. Louis ties were a part of that great legacy. Eleven’s own Evan Sult appeared with his old band, Harvey Danger, back in 1998. Kristeen Young appeared with Morrissey (and — ahem! — she was wearing a bubble dress that pre-dated Lady Gaga’s by at least a year) in 2007. Pokey LaFarge, along with the original South City Three, Adam Hoskins, Ryan Koenig, and Joey Glynn, got Dave so excited in 2013 that Dave offered to drive their van for the rest of the tour. STL ex-pat Angel Olsen played her song “Hi-Five” just about a year ago on the show. Even more recently, back in February, Kansas City’s Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear (see page 13 for more on them! - Ed.) made their debut on the show. And of course Wilco appeared a number of times. In fact, they followed up their final appearance with an additional short set for the “Live on Letterman” web-based concert series. Nelly performed a great version of “Hot
in Herre” with a full band and the rest of the St. Lunatics in 2002. Nor is the East Side left out either: brothers Todd and Tory Dahlhoff, from Belleville, IL, played with Electric Guest in 2012, and Alton’s most famous native, Miles Davis, appeared on the old NBC show alongside Kirkwood’s own David Sanborn on a 1987 Christmas episode. Another St. Louis legend, Tina Turner, made a number of guest spots, once famously grinding fish up with the “Tuna Turner” salad maker. Chuck Berry also performed multiple times. His most notable appearance had to be on May 2, 1997, when the entire audience in the Ed Sullivan Theater was made up of St. Louisans, and Dave was introduced as “Mr. Show-Me himself.” For that broadcast, the background behind Dave’s desk was changed from the iconic New York City skyline to the iconic Gateway Arch and St. Louis skyline, and the monologue was full of references to our fair city, including former Ram running back/convict Lawrence Phillips, Purina dog food and Sally Jesse Raphael. In fact, at the end of his monologue that night, he swore: “When I get enough money, I’m gonna open my own theater in Branson.” Congratulations, Dave, see you down this way soon! HUGH SCOTT
LUSH LIFE IF YOU’VE GOT a hunger for real jazz happening in real time, there’s a place for you: every Wednesday at the Kranzberg Arts Center (501 n. grand), Bob Deboo hosts a JAZZ JAM in the studio space. It’s good natured and relaxed in tone, but it’s plenty ambitious once the music gets flowing. For those who have only seen jazz happen at night in expensive rooms with big names attached, Deboo’s jam is a revelation: the chops fly, the musical spirit assembles, surges, subsides; players sometimes laugh in appreciation as a piece of music finds its end. This is jazz as recreation and invention rather than as showcase — which is especially fine because the guests that join Deboo are a range of accomplished players from St. Louis and beyond. ES
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KULT COBAIN I CAME OF AGE in the midst of the early ‘90s “alternative” explosion. One of my first concerts was the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the American Theater in December of ‘91, with Pearl Jam and Smashing Pumpkins serving as the warm up acts. Those two openers were still about six months away from absolutely exploding into the American mainstream, but there was a groundswell coming from the Northwest corner of the country, and the racket being made in (and about) Seattle was about to take over the world. In line as we waited, my friend Sarah mentioned that she heard a rumor that Nirvana was also a surprise act on the bill. In the days before the Internet, rumors like these were always believable, so as unlikely as it was to be true, it was easy to believe and even easier to hope for. Needless to say, Nirvana didn’t play, but that kind of excitement was new to
me. Led by charismatic, enigmatic Kurt Cobain, Nirvana crashed into mainstream America like a comet — and like a comet, the trail that Cobain left behind was long and fiery. April 5 of this year marked the 20th anniversary of Cobain’s suicide, and for the occasion, director and writer Brett Morgan has released Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, airing on HBO. Executive-produced by Kurt’s daughter Frances Bean Cobain, the documentary tells the story of Nirvana and Cobain, through his closest friends, bandmates, relatives, and Cobain himself. It’s the rare documentary that has interviews with all the major people in a musician’s life, but this one scoops up most of them. Courtney Love is there, declaiming her disdain for the media and how much it hurt her husband. Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl talk about the pressures that fame had on their bandleader. Kimberly Cobain is there to give
insight into her brother’s general nature — quiet and withdrawn at times, angry and rebellious at others, all from a young age. (Tobi Vail, who briefly dated Curt Kobain but more importantly had a huge influence on the growth of his feminist side, is not there, unfortunately.) For someone my age, it’s a fascinating look into a man that, while certainly overly deified, no doubt defined the so-called “slacker generation.” He fought authority, but was anything won or lost? The film doesn’t make any judgments, nor does it touch on any of the more salacious conspiracy theories about Cobain’s death, but it does juxtapose with surprising intimacy the experience of the musician and star with the actual person underneath all that — a person who became profoundly, suicidally at odds with the position he found himself in. HUGH SCOTT
POD PEOPLE LAST MONTH, KDHX announced that the station’s few remaining talk shows would be moving to a podcast format and no longer be heard over the airwaves. It was met with disappointment by fans of the shows Collector’s Edition, Earthworms, Collateral Damage, and Literature for the Halibut, and we will have to stay tuned, as it were, to see whether this change ultimately benefits both the station and its listeners. In an unrelated but serendipitous development, last month also brought the introduction of STL Vernacular (stlvernacular. com), a one-stop clearinghouse for all things podcast emanating from St. Louis. Founded by Adam Frick, STL Vernacular’s goal is to establish a spot on the web where one can go to find any and all podcasts related to the Gateway City. Some are produced in-house and some are linked from other sources, and there is something
for everyone — music, business, arts, politics, movies — just about anything you can think of , discussed by St. Louisans. Hopefully all four of the former KDHX talk shows will be accessible through STL Vernacular soon. One podcast worth focusing on is Married with Music, the darling and highly entertaining collaboration of Steve and Cat Pick. Both have active shows on KDHX (Steve’s is “Sound Salvation,” Cat’s is “Emotional Rescue”), but there’s plenty more to say. It’s a delightfully informal peek into the brains of two of the city’s most dedicated music fans, and this long-married couple shares their favorite bits of trivia and opinions and favorite passages and carefully considered musical readings like they’re still flirting with each other. It’s worth listening to just to hear the love and respect in action, and there’s plenty to be learned about music history as well. HS & ES
Model: Tama Superstar Year: 2005 Owner: Kevin Insinna AKA Kiki Insomnia It’s just now dawning on me that this month is my tenth anniversary with this kit played in STL (super trendy fucks) God Fodder, Sack Lunch and Bug Chaser. Tama Superstar 2005. Kick 22 x18. Rack 12x9 floor, 16x16 birch shells. Yamaha 14x7 bell brass MIJ snare. Roland SPD-SX pad. All Zildjian cymbals: 14.25 K Custom hybrid hats, 16” A Custom crash, 21” K Custom hybrid ride. 16” K Custom Fast Crash over 16” Z Custom rock crash as hi hat. Crack 21” Sweet Ride over a cracked 22” K dark medium ride as stack.
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Puzzles
Music, Man by Patrick Blindauer ACROSS
60 They multiply by dividing
1 It’ll melt in your mouth
61 “That sounds about right”
4 Charged particle 7 Some milk cartons: Abbr.
65 N ot the fanciest of eating utensils
10 “ What Kind of Fool ___” (1962 hit)
67 Bay of pigs?
13 Battery terminal
68 Vitamin bottle abbr.
1
25 Summer hrs. in Albany 26 “Maggie May” singer Stewart 27 Portly president 29 “Adios!” 31 Zing 33 Like some graduate tests 35 Hazy air pollution 39 W orkers at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW 42 Spreadsheet figures 43 Track postings 44 2 010 Wimbledon winner Rafael 45 Missouri airport abbr. 47 Raison d’___ (reason for being) 49 Turkish title of respect 50 Indian title of respect 53 Judge, as a case 55 Cycling accessory 57 2400, on the SAT
6
7
21
DOWN 1 French for “here” 2 When doubled, a dance
22
12
27
37
38
63
64
25
28
32
29
33
30
34
35 41
42
43
44
45
57
9 Like a stringbean
24
40
5 1969 Bee Gees album
11
16
39
50
8 Actual
10
20
23
31
4 G ilbert and Sullivan operetta
7 Woodworking tool
9
18
3 Sci-fi space voyagers
6 Robert Stack role
8
15
19
69 Suffix with violin or guitar 26
24 Prussian denial
5
14
66 Starts to cry
70 Do-over at Wimbledon
21 “Alice in ___”
4
17
17 Pump pads 19 Secretive classroom activity
3
13
15 Large depression for water 18 Work on, as a Pixar film
2
51
52
46
47
53
48
54
56
59
60
61
65
66
67
49
55
58
36
68
62
69
70
10 Back off ©2015 BY PATRICK BLINDAUER
11 Doled out 12 That is, in Latin 14 Western Indian
32 Frequent fund-raising gps.
51 Make a payment
16 M usic style of Jimmy Eat World
34 Helper, shortly
52 Swift literary device
36 Irving Berlin’s “Call Me ___”
54 Clueless
20 Housebreakers, e.g.
37 21, e.g.
21 Assemblage
38 F sharp, enharmonically
56 “Good Times” producer Norman
22 Kerfuffle
40 Stud poker item
58 Not many
23 Fess up (to)
41 Derides
59 Field opening?
28 Course requirement?
46 It may be raised or passed
62 Chic initials
30 “ ¿Cómo ___ usted?” (Spanish greeting)
48 Scholarship creator
63 “A Boy Named ___”
50 Mr. Peanut’s footwear
64 Select, with “for”
MusiCrytogram by Patrick Blindauer
SOLUTION
LAST MONTH’S ANSWERS Decode this lyric by Speedy Ortiz, in which every letter has been substituted for a different letter. The title of the song that the lyric is from is also given.
_ ’ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ’ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ... _ _ __ __ _ , M ’ R H Z B S Z W W K M ’ R B N D S Z W W. W N Z Z B D X , H Z B B N D W N Z B . . . O I Q B I M H , _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ H Z B I O X Z H K . W Z M L K Z V U I H H I X Z U K Z V S D B B D X N I J D I H I U LV T T K S M E ____ . — “ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ” SZIB. —“XIMWMHE BND WGIBD” Answers to both puzzles will appear in next month’s issue of Eleven.
8 | ELEVEN | elevenmusicmag.com
G I B B S
A T R I U M
S I E N N A
N O T E
O R E S
T A N S
A F T D I S DR A
U P S N A M A DMA M I R B E AM R S I E L ME N E A R T E S E E NC E J OE Y E RNO C T R T S E
A T E OHR K E R S AON P RO T E S R G I N BO T OR T E T O HOO A D S ON SO E K L R S E
L I N E N
A Z Y C E T E E D
O N U I S T E U S P E R C I I E A S
U N D O
N E O N
O N B A S E
D I L L S
I wish the world was flat like the old days. Then I could travel just by folding a map. – “The New Year”
Futurism
elevenmusicmag.com | ELEVEN | 9
PHOTO BY SETH DONNELLY & KAYLEE GOINS
Close Encounters Band life in real time by Rev. Daniel W. Wright
Mercyful fate Just because they haven’t played a show yet doesn’t mean MERCY MERCY aren’t hard at work TUESDAYS ARE NOT OFTEN a day I think I’ll have to deal with kids out of their element. But after accepting an invitation by a new band who call themselves Mercy Mercy to visit their practice space and hear the songs they’re working on, I quickly find myself a stranger in Utopia Studios’ strange land, surrounded by the future juggalos and deadheads of America. This place is Lord of the Flies on molly, meth and Adderall — I’d horsewhip these kids if I had a horse! Adrift in the hallway, Mercy Mercy guitarist/singer Mike Lasater finds me as some dude repeatedly asks me if I can see God in his hands. The band is busy trying to make some light in their darkened studio practice space, which seems to lack a lightswitch. As bassist Joe Zydiak offers me a beer,
10 | ELEVEN | elevenmusicmag.com
Lasater finds an outlet to plug a lamp into, giving off just enough light for everyone to see each other and create a chill ambiance. Lasater and Zydiak, along with drummer Seth Donnelly, do a runthrough of a song called “Bread and Circuses,” a riff-heavy blues number with a Peter Green/Fleet-
wood Mac feel. Zydiak and Donnelly played together for years in the band Media Ghost, and there’s a definite polish to both the song and the performance. As they finish, there’s a frantic knocking at the door to catch our attention, and more friends of the band amble into the dark. After greetings and pleasantries, a moment of silence falls as we all turn to consider the one kid we don’t recognize. Turns out he was tripping balls, heard the music, and came to see what was up. Lasater shows him back out, and we lock the door behind him. I’ve got nothing against altered states of consciousness, in fact I encourage them — “Turn off your mind, relax and float downstream,” as it were. But I do prefer exploring those states with people who are at least old enough to remember when Clinton was in the White House.
With this intimate crowd gathered, the band gets to it, starting off with the loose, Mexican shuffle of “Meanta.” Lasater’s girlfriend, Kayla Frick, sits next to me and helps me keep track of song titles and such — I tell you, it’s little things that count. After “Meanta” they return to “Bread and Circuses” for the new audience, which is warmly received, then swing into the song that Lasater says they’re considering as their lead single, “The Strangest of Strange Times.” I’ve seen Lasater perform this song solo at a few open mics and always thought it was nice but nothing special. Hearing it with a full band, though, makes me appreciate its true poptastic magic, leaning into its own madness like a slightly less psychedelic Syd Barrett song. “Inches” is next, and its moody atmosphere is a playground for Donnelly’s drums and Zydiak’s bass. Lasater is sparing with his guitar, carefully choosing the moments to make its distorted crunch count. Their final song, “A Tale of Two Bottles,” is their newest, and leaves the least amount of impact on me… but that’s like saying a brick has less impact than a sledgehammer. All of the songs are impressive. The sound resists category, though I find myself reaching for the phrase “modern rock,” a broad label some musicians run from. But this seems to be the only modern rock I’ve liked in the last ten to fifteen years that wasn’t predetermined for me by the radio. After the songs, the band inquires of their little focus group what we think, and which song they should put forth as a single — a pretty smart move for a new band, in my opinion. To me, the answer is clear: the heavy but nimble “Bread and Circuses” is where it’s at. I find it promising that, as we talk, Lasater messes around absently with a loose cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Oh Well Part 1.” Opinions and excitement are equally shared in the wake of the band’s display, and we make the most of the night, polishing off the case of beer before steeling ourselves to face the army of Walking Deadheads just beyond the safety of the locked studio door. A few weeks after the Utopia Studios experience, I sat down with the band for a brief interview. How did Mercy Mercy form? Joe Zydiak: Seth and I played in a band called Media Ghost for about three and a half years, and we’ve always had a fun rhythmic connection that kept us going. And we knew Mike was always crazy good at what he did. Mike Lasater: Well, and that’s the funny thing — JZ: Didn’t we just talk about that not talking over people, shit, the other day? ML: Oh I’m not talking over, I’m just straight up cutting you off. [Group laughter]
ML: So after the first time Media Ghost broke up, Joe joined a band I was in. Seth Donnelly: I thought it was the third time. ML: You’re right, third time. So Media Ghost broke up, and Joe was looking for a band. He joined up a band I was in, then left to go rejoin Media Ghost. SD: And then Media Ghost broke up and Joe and I didn’t play together for about six months or so. JZ: There was an awkward period where we didn’t play together for a while. Then I wanted to start a studio project with Mike and after a while it was like, “Why don’t we get Seth to play with us?” ML: When he came on board it made so much sense, Joe and I wondered why we didn’t ask him six months earlier. Since a lot of the music you guys are making is very blues based, how important is having as tight a rhythm section as you all have? ML: I’ve never worked with a tight rhythm section before. Not knocking them, but they always followed me. And having a tight, confident rhythm section in Joe and Seth gives me confidence as a guitarist, to where I don’t feel like I have to hold anybody’s hand and I actually find myself playing less, and making what I do play count more within the song. It’s weird, in a way; most of my songs I’ll write standard on an acoustic or an electric, but then I’ll bring it in to practice and find they bring so much out of it that I didn’t even know was there. JZ: Any good rhythm player should accent what’s going on. As long as Seth and I are locked in, there’s so much room for whatever else. ML: That may be how it starts, but I always feel like it sort of becomes its own — even though one of us might write it, we three really make it what it should be. With the way the St. Louis music scene has exploded over the past few years, how do you mean to stand out from the crowd? JZ: We want to put a lot more into planning our shows. Clothes, lighting, everything, right down to the last note. We don’t want to have a sort of “wing-it” factor. We want to take our time, we don’t want to rush it. Any project any of us have been in before, we rushed things. ML: Absolutely JZ: We’ve always just been excited to play out, and we want to do this right. We want to first put out a single with a press kit, and pay attention to minor details. ML: I also feel like there’s not too much genre diversity right now.
now. ML: It’s mostly either folk or jazz, and there’s a lot of great musicians who do that. Or on the other end the really heavy metal bands that are sort of left over from ten years ago, who I’m sure we all played opening shows for. It’s funny because I’ve never been in a metal band in my life but I’ve opened for a lot of them. But it’s so oversaturated on both ends. You stated you want to record a single before having a live show. Do you think that might be jumping the gun a bit? SD: Well, with the day and age we live in, we have the luxury of taking a single and showing it to as many people as possible. You can build a following before you even play a show. If you go in blind, which we’ve all done before, you wind up easily getting discouraged, so we want to build that fanbase before we play out. ML: Also, just from experience, even if you start out and play shows to however many people, there’s going to be people coming up to you asking if you have anything recorded. When you say you don’t you feel like you just lost that person’s interest. When do you want to start doing live shows? SD: About a year. JZ: Well… about eight to twelve months. Why the delay? JZ: For us, patience is a virtue. It’s like any other job: if you do it right, not rush into it, then there should be no stopping you. Instead of just falling in line and doing a lot of smaller gigs, do less shows, make it worthwhile to people. Don’t skip any steps. SD: You can’t keep playing the same show twice a month anymore. ML: If people are going to be charged at the door, they better get their fucking money’s worth. JZ: I want to give people a great show. Even if they don’t like the music, I want them to leave thinking their time and money was well spent that night. ML: Right. Instead of getting into a show where you pay for three-dollar PBRs and just hear shittier live versions of the songs you may or may not already have on CD. What other local bands do you think you’d mesh well with on a show? ML: Brother Lee And The Leather Jackals and Bruiser Queen are the first ones that come to mind. SD: I’d love to play a show with Tok! JZ: Also Umbrella Boulevard. ML: There’s honestly too many bands to list, but those are the first ones we think of.
SD: Not many heavy rock n’ roll bands right
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Grin and bear it MADISEN WARD AND THE MAMA BEAR on building a band and maintaining a family
PHOTO BY DANNY CLINCH
By Sean Kelly SKELETON CREW, THE debut album by Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear, is a 4.65”-diameter disc of compressed summer nights. Though the topics and tempos of the dozen songs cover a lot of ground, there is an intimacy in the Kansas City duo’s stripped-down acoustic blues that usually only comes from being in the moment, hearing friends and family jam together in someone’s backyard while the screen door swings and a rusty firepit keeps the bugs away. There is a good reason for this feeling: the songs may have been crafted around a dining-room table rather than a back porch, but Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear are real-life family. Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear is that rarest of bands, a novelty that is not by
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Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear Opening for Rodrigo Y Gabriela Wednesday, June 24 THE PAGEANT
any stretch of the definition a novelty act. On paper, the setup – Madisen, 26, plays his acoustic folk-blues songs while accompanied on vocals and guitar by his mom, 63-year-old Ruth – sounds as gimmicky as Alvin And The Chipmunks or those dogs that bark Christmas carols. But Bill Streeter, the St. Louis filmmaker famed for his Lo-Fi Cherokee series, resolves this paradox firmly. “There’s a novelty to who they are and where they came from,” he
says, “but none of that would matter if they weren’t good.” He would know. Having known the band for a while, Streeter can make the claim that any serious music fan loves to be able to make – that he liked them before it was cool. And Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear are about to get very, very cool. IN 2013, MADISEN and Ruth were playing the Kansas City coffeehouse circuit, something that Ruth had been doing since long before Madisen was born. Originally, Madisen says, “Music wasn’t a pursuit of mine, because I thought of it as my mom’s thing. I started playing when I was 19. I’m 26 now, so clearly it was a later ambition. But it’s grown into a serious passion.” Playing together happened almost by accident. Ruth and Madisen were both
singing and playing coffeehouses — sometimes the same one, sometimes not. In true coffeehouse style, they would sometimes jump in on each other’s songs — Ruth playing lead across Madisen’s tune or vice versa. Eventually they realized that the open-mic crowd got a kick out of watching mother and son play together, and they realized they had a project together if they wanted it. It was something Madisen and Ruth both enjoyed doing, their local fanbase started to grow, and things began taking a turn toward the serious. “We played in coffeehouses all the time, and people started requesting our original stuff,” Madisen says. “We started getting people who knew all the words to what we were singing.” Fans started asking if they had an album they could buy, so in 2012 Madisen and Ruth put together a five-song EP. They needed a name for the front cover, and that was when Madisen came up with Ruth’s Mama Bear nickname. “I know the story would be much better if she was always Mama Bear,” Madisen says sheepishly, “but I made that up for the EP. I thought it had a sort of a storybook feel.” In the summer of 2013, Bill Streeter got a message telling him there was something he needed to see. “A friend of mine sent me a really bad cellphone video of them playing a living room concert in Kansas City, and I was kinda blown away by Madisen’s voice and the song,” Streeter said. He found them on Facebook and invited them to drop by Hydraulic Pictures, the video production house he co-founded on Cherokee Street, so he could shoot some real video of them playing. Just before Christmas 2013, they took him up on it. “They came to STL to see [Pokey LaFarge’s] Christmas show at Casa Loma,” Streeter says. “The next morning they came to our studio, and I shot them performing three songs and a little interview.” “He did such an amazing job with them,” Madisen says of Streeter. “The subtlety, and he had us mic’d up really nice. Those were the videos that we would use to send to different venues to see if we could get on the bill. Anytime we sent those videos, we would get a response.” Buoyed by Streeter’s videos and personal recommendation, St. Louis was quick to embrace the Wards. Steve Smith booked them for the Royale’s big Derby Day party, and KDHX snagged them to play Midwest Mayhem later that spring. From there, they ended up booked on the Americana Music Fest in Nashville, where they received absolutely gushing
praise from Rolling Stone, which said they’d created something “handmade and beautiful.” And Joseph Gordon-Levitt, through his HitRECord venture, sent one of those early videos viral. The rise, since then, has been meteoric. Over the past year, Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear have played at SXSW, inked a record deal with the prestigious Glassnote Records — home to such varied artists as Phoenix, CHVRCHES, Childish Gambino, and Mumford & Sons — and appeared as musical guests on the historic final season of the Late Show with David Letterman, where they played the same track, “Silent Movies,” that so captivated Streeter in a pixelated cellphone video. Possibly more momentous than any of those, however, was the opportunity to open for one of the more powerful figures of the guitar-God pantheon, B.B. King, just a scant few months before he passed away. “The first big show that Madisen and I ever played was opening for B.B. King, and it was such an honor,” Ruth says. “I didn’t know he was that sick. We knew there were some
made them resonate in the first place. “With this album we wanted to contribute some really stripped-down, organic music that stayed true to what we do in the coffeehouse,” Madisen says. The result is the sort of music that can feel both brand new and like an old standard at the same time, fresh music that nevertheless has the weighty feel of something traditional. Part of that is Madisen’s voice, which comes out in a booming warble that doesn’t seem like it should belong to a guy who is only bare months older than Taylor Swift. Part of it is Ruth’s vocals, which alternate between elevating harmonies and the sort of call-and-response playfulness that seems to come from a simpler time. In many ways, the album’s second track, “Silent Movies,” tells you everything you need to know about the album, a bouncy, joyous piece that can practically arm-bar you into a good mood against your will. They’re not all happy songs — “Dead Daffodils,” about a lonely man at the end of his life, is particularly rife with heartbreaking imagery — but they’re all imbued with the same love of music and the joy of creation. It’s an accomplishment made all the more interesting because of the nature of their collaboration. When so many families have trouble doing simple tasks like shopping and yardwork together, how can the Wards put together such a tight, unified album? “Because this is not yardwork,” Madisen laughs. “This is something that we both love dearly. When you find two people that have a passion for something, and they pursue that together, you put away any sort of ego, or any mentality that could get in the way of pursuing something that you really love. So, we go out there, and we share music. At the end of the day we’re individuals that do our own thing. Onstage we view each other as bandmates, and when we come off we go back to being mother and son.” Despite Ruth’s long history with music, and all their recent successes, the Wards aren’t really a musical family. Madisen, the youngest of three, is the only one who plays – his siblings are in real estate. And Ruth’s husband of 35 years works in commercial lighting. Despite that discrepancy, however, they are all in this together. “Madisen and I are the only ones who sing,” Ruth says, “but other than that, they really support us, they’re in our corner every step of the way.” Though he’s still young, Madisen does foresee himself playing Papa Bear to a family of his own one day, with one very important caveat: “If they ask me to play in a band, I’ll tell ’em ‘No, I already did that.’”
“ Onstage we view each other as bandmates. When we come off we go back to mother and son.” – Madisen Ward problems, but the people were there, and they gave him a lot of respect. He couldn’t really follow through some of the songs, and he made a lot of mistakes… We knew it could be his last time playing, and it was an honor to be playing for a legend.” When asked how they cope with this sudden influx of fame and attention, both Wards strike a rather Zen tone about the whole thing. “It’s just a normal day, a normal workday,” Madisen says dryly, and laughs. “We’re handling it one day at a time, it’s been good. A lot of people are really supportive, and kind of going at our pace. With all the support we have, it’s been really easy. “Well, I don’t want to say easy,” he corrects himself, “but more comfortable.” “Of course, you’ve got a lot more people out there,” Ruth concedes, “and they’re excited. When I get out onstage, I just kind of draw everything back to my dining room table, where we practice and write songs. You just take it back to where it all started, and it keeps you grounded, and keeps you from getting overanxious and overwhelmed.” WITH SKELETON CREW, Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear intentionally eschewed anything too fancy, and instead tried to distill their music into the essence of what
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Standing on the edge BETH BOMBARA has been a familiar sight in the St. Louis music scene for years. Is now the time for our city’s signature songbird to spread her wings? 14 | ELEVEN | elevenmusicmag.com
by Grant Barnum THE EAST SIDE OF Cherokee Street is a collection of friendly dualities. Among the springtime trees and colorful gardens, you can still hear the traffic of nearby highways and business districts. Faded bricks and vintage art beckon the patrons of The Mud House looking for free wi-fi. And just outside, Beth Bombara sits with fair skin and dark hair, excitedly discussing the modern Americana that is her eponymous new album. “I think the diversity of the songs will surprise people,” she says. “Something I run into a lot is people have this idea of me, that I just sit around and play acoustic guitar all the time. I am a singer/songwriter; some people have seen me do that. But I like to think of [the new album] as an amalgamation of everything that I’ve done. So a little rock, a little country, and even introducing some element of Latin jazz a little bit. But it’s all those things together. The main feel of it still has Americana roots. I feel like I’ve been able to refine all those other styles I’ve explored, bring them all together. I don’t think any song seems out of place.” It’s fair for Bombara to be dodging pigeonholes at this stage of her career. She’s been a mainstay in the city’s music world for going on eight years now, having played practically every venue, event, festival, private party, patio and street corner in St. Louis. Her smooth alto voice is a familiar one on KDHX, where her music slips into the setlists of a host of DJs. But her sound, her songwriting, and her approach to her musical career, has been subtly shifting over the years. Beth Bombara is an electric player in an acoustic realm. She doesn’t call herself a prolific songwriter, despite a consistent catalog over a relatively short period of years. Her intimidating talent howls through a welcoming smile, in a city where banjos and mandolins are as celebrated as Marshall half-stacks, and in the same venues. Bombara is aided in the new album’s quietly ambitious production by a growing crew of collaborators: JJ Hamon on lap steel, horns, and mandolin; Karl Eggers on banjo and guitar, Corey Woodruff on subdued percussion, Ryan Spearman on violin, and most especially Kit Hamon, Bombara’s husband, on string bass, violin, and sweetly blended harmony vocals. The songs have an unassuming, organic texture that keeps them at a conversational tone even as the instruments weave down to meet the often dark lyrical imagery. Hamon is equally comfortable singing high harmonies or low, his voice lending body and character almost invisibly.
Since her debut eight years ago, the Abandon Ship EP, she’s managed to put out four albums and pick up two Riverfront Times awards. Along the way, aided by a regular touring schedule, her following has grown from local KDHX listeners to fans across the nation. Though all these accomplishments have most certainly earned her the status of a hardworking musician, she believes she has now reached a turning point – music has become a calling that cannot be ignored. “It takes a while for an artist to figure out their art and feel like they’ve settled into a comfortable place creatively,” she says. “You
Beth Bombara, The Loot Rock Gang, The River Kittens Saturday, June 27 OFF BROADWAY
have to play a lot just for fun to explore all of that, and figure out what you’re doing, what you want to do, and what works. This year will be the most touring I’ve done. Coast to coast, cross-country. We’ll go out to the West Coast, then we’ll loop back around, sticking to the north. It’ll be hot, and I don’t want to go to Arizona in the summer. I know what happens when you do that from personal experience, when my guitar melted! When it cools down a little bit then we’ll go south and try to hit everywhere.” So what sparked this new ambition? If you were in St. Louis for Independence Day weekend two years ago, you may have seen the moment: Bombara headlined the Whitaker Music Festival at the Botanical Gardens, where she performed for a crowd of over 10,000 people. “I’ve always known that I love music, and writing, and playing with other people,” she says of her career before that event. “But I think playing in front of so many people and having that be such a great experience gave
me the confidence to say ‘OK, now I think it’s time, and I think I’m ready to take things to the next level.’” So began Bombara’s methodical approach to the future. After a winter of reflection, she started a concerted effort to write last April. For this album, the recording process would be different in many ways. Kit Hamon played a part in every song on the album, contributing a critical ear and jumping in to write parts of the music and lyrics for the album. And there was a change of goals: the two decided that the new album needed to come together at a much quicker pace, and receive some professional promotional help when it was completed so that Bombara could focus on the creative aspects of her music instead of the hustle. They reached out to a Detroit-based PR firm for help making this happen, and the engine revved from there. “The hardest thing for me was deciding to do it, and then doing it,” she admits. “Because before, when I’d put together albums, I just let the songs happen when they happen. And that might take two or three years to get enough songs that I feel good about to actually release. But this time I decided ‘OK, I’m going to actually write a whole album in six months and then we’re going to go into the studio and record it.’ So deciding to do that was a big commitment, but I think I needed to do that.” Hamon was confident enough in Bombara’s plan that he booked recording time for them at Jettison Studios in New Athens, IL, when she was only two songs deep into the writing process. “We recorded in September,” Bombara says. “I feel like it could have taken less time, but I really wanted to work with other people to get on board to promote it. Finding those people took a while. I’m a pretty do-it-yourself person, and I’ve done it like that up until this point, so I feel like now it makes sense to bring on people to help. It’s stuff that I could do on my own, it just takes time.” Bombara considers her songwriting experiment a success, having written most of it quickly, in a time of transition and uncertainty. The melodies she’s crafted weave an intensely personal story of journeying through the unknown, and feeling content in the end. There’s a certain sort of breath about the album, as tracks like “Promised Land” and “In My Head” are deeply layered with a variety of folk instruments. Others are bared, as in “Heavy Heart,” where she strips the song down to her lone voice, an acoustic guitar, and a harmonica’s tasteful complement. This album isn’t just an evolution of
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A LONG TIME COMING: The new album is Beth Bombara’s fifth in eight years. From left to right: Abandon Ship EP (2007); Beth Bombara and the Robotic Foundation (2009); Wish I Were You (2010); Raise Your Flag (2013); and the new self-titled album, out this month. shows, wherever it’s at — if we have to fly to with random people. Food truck, drinks, direction and thought; the textures are get there, if we have to drive to get there — selfies! And we’ll see about some sort of unlike anything we’ve heard from her just to be open to it,” she says. collaboration, maybe have all the bands before. Most of the guitar tones – which Every touring musician knows the diffiplaying on a song or two.” Bombara describes as “warm, a little bit culty of influencing audiences on the road Beyond this, of course, will be the tour. twangy, but not too bright” — were recorded into feeling the way local fans do. Bombara’s The album is richly layered, but that sound using a Harmony Stratotone from the ’60s creative vision has impacted St. Louis, but will isn’t necessarily the optimal way for Bombara through amplifiers that Hamon, a most her new material translate across state lines? to hit the road: for coast-to-coast touring, a multi-talented bandmate, had specifically “A lot of the time I feel like a misfit,” musical couple is about as efficient as it gets. designed for her sound. There are even she says, “like I don’t belong anywhere. The And Hamon is a resourceful partner. After passages when hers is not the loudest voice folkies don’t like me because I’m not folk some test runs last year, the two found that in the mix. “Those songs leave some space enough, the rockers don’t like me because they could extrapolate the sounds in another for the band to do their thing and jam out a I’m not edgy enough, little bit. It’s fun to be a et cetera. I finally rhythm background of decided to be okay all that. Fun to see how with that. I’m just the band plays with going to keep on doing each other.” my thing; it doesn’t All this radical stick to one genre. I’m focus and preparation not sure I’d even know has been paying off. how to do that.” Last month Bombara Bombara’s demure threw a party to eclecticism may yet celebrate the release prove a strength. “I of the video for “In the think the elements Water,” a beautifully that make Americana textured animation are watered down created by Parker and through growing in Preston Gibson that popularity in maintranslates the song’s stream,” she says. “It is rattlesnake shakers, a realness, an honesty, sun-bleached banjo, rather than pop lyrics and sleepy Mexicali which are about horns into a desert having fun and partylandscape through Previous page: A still from the new video for Beth Bombara’s “In the Water” by Parker and Preston Gibson. Above: Beth Bombara and band at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. Left to right: JJ Hamon, Kit Hamon, Beth ing. What’s going on which Bombara strides Bombara, Karl Eggers, and Seth Porter in your life, and connectwith confidence. The ing with that. It’s for the album’s consummation working people.” This perspective is one of direction. “Kit’s going with me, playing upright will finally come on June 23, when Beth the biggest reasons other St. Louis musicians bass mostly, and violin,” she says. We’ve been Bombara will be officially released online call on her as often as they do. Collaborations experimenting, trying to translate these and in record stores. The release party will with bands like Old Lights, Union Electric, songs for a two-piece. Make them sound good, be later that week on June 27 at Off Broadand Bruiser Queen frequently show her work make them engaging. So he’s added a suitcase way with guests The Loot Rock Gang and ethic and versatility outside of the genre kick drum and I’ll have a foot tambourine. The River Kittens. Where some musicians she’s become known for. It’s no wonder so Then he decided well, it would be really cool might treat their album release like the many struggling artists around the city think if we could add more, so he’s got a little synth concert of the century, Bombara has a more of her as a mentor, leading by example. bass. Crazy! We’ve played some shows out of relaxed affair in mind. “The first thing I ever put out there was town in that format and people have walked “I feel like any album release is special an EP I recorded in a bedroom on a laptop,” in and thought that we were a full band. It’s just kind of by default,” she says. “I want she says. “It’s just a starting point. There’s a been a lot of work, but it’s been fun work to people to have fun! We’re going to have a period when it’s really hard, and you have to figure it out.” photo booth there so people can be silly, know you’ve got to bust your ass, maybe eat Their main goal is to just commit, full take photos, and have something to take a lot of peanut butter. Put in the work and it on, to making music. “I feel like this is the with them to remember the night. I’m going gets better.” year when, if opportunities happen to play to try to see how many photos I can get in
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Delmar Records brings STL to the USA and beyond by Ducky Hines THERE IS A MUSIC scene and community that has breathed life into St. Louis for over twenty years. Before Country Grammar, there was Silk Smoov’s Trick wit a Good Rap. There was Black Pearl Mafia. Then there was Taylor Made, creators of 2002’s local classic “Whirlwind.” However, over the last ten years things done changed, as the great Biggie Smalls professed. Hip hop in St. Louis on a worldwide scale was presented by members of the St. Lunatics, Chingy, Jibbs and J-Kwon through major music labels. Those artists on major labels brought gold (500,000 sold), platinum (1,000,000) and even diamond (10,000,000) plaques home. Then in 2007 it changed. The club-ripping dance tunes from St. Louis were eschewed by the major labels, as they tightened their belts to ride out the terrible economy. St. Louis’s pipeline to the hit parade appeared to be closed. But appearances were deceiving when it came to the demise of St. Louis hip hop. At the Hi-Pointe on Monday nights from the late ’90s to mid ’00s, emcees were sharpening their skills. Underground shows took place most Friday nights at the Red Sea and Blueberry Hill. At Vintage Vinyl, there were records and mixtapes being sold by Bits N Pieces (Jia and his brother, the immortal Katt Davis), Black Spade and DJ Trackstar aka Trackstar The DJ. And at the time, Streetside Records was going strong.
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Except for the Hi-Pointe shows, all this was going down on Delmar Boulevard, which has now become the namesake of the new hip hop label Delmar Records, established in the fall of 2014. “I think the sound is going to be elite, aggressive and heartfelt,” predicts Finsta, co-founder and head of marketing and promotion for the label. Finsta, who has headed his company Authentic Marketing and Promotions with business partner Brandon Hinkle since 2007, is a maven in presenting music in St. Louis. Along with Finsta, Delmar Records counts on Jay Stretch for management, and music producer/graphic artist/deejay Tech Supreme for creative and imaging control. Longtime artist, multiple award winner, and attention-grabbing social activist Tef Poe serves as president. “We’re putting pen to the pad, where everybody’s movement on the label is on the same accord,” says Jay Stretch. “Someone has to take the initiative to grow the music scene here in St. Louis. This is why we created this opportunity.” Artist-wise, Delmar Records’ roster currently consists of duo Legend Camp (see last month’s issue of Eleven for more on them — Ed.), emcee T-Dubb O, singer James K, producer/emcee Indiana Rome, and of course Tef Poe himself. Producer Average Jo, whose sinister soundscapes are gathering a following, has been enlisted to the label as well. Indiana Rome is an Indianapolis native
who traveled back and forth to St. Louis as a child, and he has become a fan favorite of the St. Louis hip-hop world through hard work and constantly showing up. He has performed on various stages around the area, including 2014’s Hot 104.1’s Summer Jam at Chaifetz Arena with songs like “Keep Dreaming” featuring singer Theresa Payne, “Prime Time” with Vega Heartbreak (who you probably know from the Cards-pumping “The Rally Song”) and most recently “Master P.” The video for “Master P” recently got featured both on hiphopdx.com and Def Jam founder Russell Simmons’s YouTube page “All Def Digital.” “It’s so much talent in the city now,” Rome says. “It’s uncanny. It feels like a CrockPot that’s about to bubble over with talent.” T-Dubb O, from St. Louis’s North Side, is an impeccable emcee. There are those who can rap, and then there are those who can combine words with genuine mastery. T-Dubb O is certainly the latter. He has a skill for combining a nuclear algorithm in a battle rap with Shakespearean storytelling ability and making it cohesive. “I feel Tef and I are workhorses of the label,” Dubb says. “I don’t see a limit, and I don’t believe in ceilings.” Dubb’s first mixtape, Mobstar Maniac Vol 1 (aka MM1) was a staple in the streets of St. Louis in 2011-12. Followed by Mobstar Maniac Vol 2, featuring the single “Dirty Tecs,” Dubb made the listener see his life through audio. “I had no idea what I was doing,” Dubb says of his first project. “I just knew how
The Delmar Records crew, from left: Indiana Rome, T-Dubb-O, Fresh Voice and Luger of Legend Camp; James K; and Tef Poe.
to rap. I knew business from previous endeavors, but I didn’t know the music business.” On 2014’s Mobstar Maniac 3, featuring singles and videos for “Out the Way” and “U Mad,” Dubb’s musical growth was undeniable. As much as Dubb’s music has garnered attention, his battle-rap beginnings with well-respected and star-making battle-rap league Street Status still call him. Mainstream audiences may have first been introduced to Detroit’s battle-rap stages via the Eminem star vehicle 8 Mile, but most are unaware of St. Louis’s own Street Status, which has spawned battle-rap superstars B-Magic, Aye Verb, Yung Ill and Hitman Holla. “It made me better as a lyricist,” Dubb says of Street Status. “You have to spit three to four to five minutes straight with no beat in a packed house with smoke in the air. Battle rap conditioned me for a live show.” “Most of the guys came up off real rapping, whether it be the Hi-Pointe era or battle rapping,” says Finsta. “A lot of that has instilled integrity into the artists’ music.” Delmar Records’ artists have wellestablished followings, some even worldwide. T-Dubb O’s MM3 project is heard in Europe and Australia. Legend Camp’s songs are played on quite a few independent radio shows. Indiana Rome’s videos garner thousands of organic views. James K (performing as James Irwin) went rounds on NBC’s The Voice, and was in fact the first contestant on the show to have all four celebrity coaches — Christina Aguilera, Cee-Lo, Blake Shelton and Adam Levine — vie for his talent after not being initially selected. His rendition of REM’s “Losing My Religion” is a must-see.
PHOTOS COURTESY DELMAR RECORDS
working on Mobstar Maniac 4. Indiana Rome is working on Dope Dealer 2 due this summer. The album’s title is a metaphor, he says, “for making dope music and creating dope visuals. The word ‘dope’ has been in hip hop forever, as in someone has on a dope pair of shoes.” Legend Camp is looking to surpass the success of their last single, “Champion Sound,” with their upcoming project The CAMP-Aign. And James K is hard at work on his next project as well. “When people in St. Louis find out the song they like is by an artist in St. Louis,” Finsta says, “the bar is set high.” Jay Stretch agrees. “Our longterm goal for Delmar Records is that an artist from anywhere would feel like they need to move here to St. Louis to be a part of what we’ve built,” he says. Besides the raft of upcoming music from their established artists, the label is also organizing a talent search of – Jay Stretch all musical genres. The details are set to be posted on their website Delmar-Records.com, but the timeline is coming right up: July 2015. “We want to find artists Tef Poe, Corey Black and Rockwell Knuckwe feel we really have to have to be a part of les broke ground performing at venues our label,” says Finsta. in the Grove like the Gramophone, the Legend Camp’s Fresh Voice is glad to have Demo, and Bootleg with their packed live the label at his back. “Delmar Records has shows. Regional hits “Show Stealers,” “Out given us an outlet where we don’t have to the Kitchen,” “Work,” and “Coming Outta do everything ourselves,” he says. “We’ve all Missouri” are beloved staples. known each other a long time. It’s family.” Poe is currently working on his next two The world has heard St. Louis on a grand projects: War Machine 3, and a joint album scale before. Trends change. Great music with his older brother, the aforementioned with substance is always welcomed. What’s Black Spade, titled Preacher in the Trap. been consistently excellent and sonically T-Dubb O — who has also been covered for appealing in St. Louis is now ready to be his civil-rights work in The Source, Rolling heard. World, please get ready for Delmar Stone, BET’s 106 & Park and other media Records. outlets alongside Tef Poe — is currently As both president of the label and arguably its best-known artist, Tef Poe wears many hats. He is a social activist who feeds disenfranchised children with his monthly Books and Breakfast program. He has appeared on Revolt TV, CNN, British Broadcasting Company, MSNBC and BET regarding civil rights, not only in St. Louis but internationally, in front of the United Nations. He has been quoted and discussed and given space to speak in news and culture publications the world over, from The Guardian UK to the New Yorker to Time magazine. Still, Poe’s heart and passion is music.
“ Our longterm goal for Delmar Records is that an artist from anywhere would feel they need to move here to St. Louis to be a part of what we’ve built.”
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Hexercise your mind Six Organs Of Admittance’s BEN CHASNY has never been a linear kind of musician. Jeremy Kannapell spoke with him recently about his new book, THE HEXADIC SYSTEM, which introduces a set of playing card-based parameters to radically reshape one’s whole relationship to the guitar BEN CHASNY’S MUSICAL M.O. is all over the place. Best known for voluminous output under his long-running project, Six Organs Of Admittance, Chasny has also lent his talents to Current 93, Comets On Fire, Magick Markers, and long-term collaborations with experimental instrumentalists like Richard Bishop and Chris Corsano. Active since 1996, Chasny’s guitar playing and compositional endeavors stretch lengths: from reflective solo guitar musings to groups that channel blown-out psychedelia overdrive. Over the past several years Chasny has worked on the Hexadic System, a compositional system that serves as a catalyst for new composition methods and is a way “of applying algorithmic thinking to creating art.” After collecting notes, sketches, scores, and referencing ideas from (French philosoLeft: A Hexadic figure example from The Hexadic System.
pher) Gaston Bachelard and (20th century composer) Morton Feldman, Chasny has produced a book, playing cards, and recording that all document the Hexadic process. The book, published this month by Drag City, is essentially an instruction manual, detailing how to use common poker cards in a complex arrangement to arrive at new compositional techniques. It is not a casual read by any means, and the system is clearly intended for musicians with both a solid understanding of theory and an interest in pushing music in new and unexpected directions. The Hexadic cards are simply illustrated playing cards — the System is meant to be available to any musician with a guitar and a deck of cards — but there is a satisfying symmetry in having a deck dedicated to the Hexadic cause. Hexadic 1, the album, is the sound of Six Organs Of Admittance applying the Hexadic System to their own music.It’s a very
distorted, heavy album, using common rock instrumentation and including vocals and lyrics. It is a composition, but also a concrete example of the System at work. And, significantly, it can be listened to and enjoyed without any knowldge of the System or the compositions’ origins, which speaks well for the System to be applied by future musicians who have studied Chasny’s work. Eleven: Throughout the history of music, there are experiments in tuning systems, types of instrumentation, different types of performers — however, the composer is him- or herself rarely dealt with. Or at least, the process of the composer making “compositions” has not changed that much. So for starters, this seems like a way to meet that head on. I can think of only a few other instances where the composition deals directly with a means to override the composer. Ben Chasny: That’s a good point. I did try
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to blur the lines between composer and performer. Sometimes in the book itself it will refer to a “composer/perfomer” — because I conceived this whole process as something that happens in different stages. So the early stages you get a sort of pre-composition, and I don’t consider the composition to be completed until the performer actually performs it…and that’s what solidifies it into an actual composition. So would you describe it as an “emergence” of a composition through the Hexadic process? I think so. I think because I tend towards improvisation in the first place. There are different ways to do it. With the record, because it was recorded, that really solidified how these pre-compositions become compositions… which we ended up actually using on this current tour. One could also use these basic structures in a more improvisational manner, in which case the performances themselves become a loose composition.
PHOTO OF BEN CHASNY BY ELISA AMBROGIO. PHOTO OF CARDS AND BOOK BY BEN CHASNY. DIAGRAM EXCERPTS COURTESY DRAG CITY.
So back to the record, can you describe how the Hexadic System worked in the recording process? We went into the studio, and I had these pieces sort of charted out, so the band worked on them for about an hour each. The question really became, “How does this piece present itself to us to be played?”. That’s the best way to put it...the pieces present themselves as wanting to be played in certain ways. That shaped the contours and dynamics of the record. But I always consider working in a studio as just a snapshot of whatever’s happening at the time. I never work on anything for a long time just to say, “Now it’s ready to be recorded!” Every record I’ve done has been more conceptual and more of a snapshot. The album ended up being quite heavy. At least the sound…
Yeah, specifically Gaston Bachelard. He was a really big influence on the Floodplain record we did — one of his last books is about reveries, and the ways that imagination works through reveries and how we know the world through them. For this record, many of his ideas were influential. One in particular — something you don’t hear so much on the record, but moreso in the book — is the visual component and graphic patterns that he developed. He split the imagination into three different types: the formal, the material, and
flower is a flower which is a snapshot of blooming, or for our purposes, movement. So I took some of those ideas and tried to work them into the graphic scores, using the dynamic imagination as a reference for a type of “dynamic score”. Trailing back to my initial question, this all seems to work towards pushing a nontraditional entryway for music to form… Yeah, totally. That’s yet another way Bachelard was influential: he had this idea of science having an “epistemological break,” an idea that science proceeds up to a certain point until it is no longer progressive, and it has to take a leap in some weird way. So for me personally that idea is useful, in the sense that maybe you’re going along creatively, but you can’t think of that as a pure progression. So you need something like a jump or rupture to take the work to another place, and let something you are creatively unfamiliar with enter into the equation.
“ I love when you go to a bookstore and stumble across a strange book and say, ‘What the hell is this?,’ and it ends up being something useful to you.”
Right. A lot of that came out of the production techniques, which didn’t necessarily have to be the way that those songs sounded. I’m actually recording a Hexadic 2 which is using all the same basic precompositional structures…and making it a more acoustic-oriented album. So I’m using these precompositional means to get different words and notes. But in terms of the tone of Hexadic 1, we were really going for a specific thing on the vibe of this Japanese label, PSF, who released groups such as High Rise, which has always been an influence. I gather that another influence to the Hexadic process might be a more philosophical side.
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the dynamic. The formal imagination would be what we consider almost “traditional” in nature… how we visualize things through images. The material imagination would be how humans interact with the world, and how they have syntheses for particular elements of the earth. Dynamic imagination is the one that I think really works (or influences) with the Hexadic System…that is the ways in that we participate in the dynamism of a particular image. For instance, a flower blooming — we can participate in the dynamism of a universe of things just moving, through the image of a flower. Because a
What was the process like in putting this book and card set together? Drag City was really encouraging and enabled the book. It all came from notebooks which I began working on two or three years ago. Even when I was working on the record I only had my notebooks. Once they knew I was working on these ideas they suggested that I try to extend it into a book and cards. Turning the notes into the book was a totally new experience for me…
something I was not familiar with, so I tried to systemize all these ideas and notes into something cohesive that could be used by others. The book and cards were a result of doing the record. So, going backwards, when doing the record I wasn’t sure if the system would work 100%… The goal was to put all the ideas into motion. Prior to the recording there were small experiments with acoustic instruments to try the system out, like, “What happens when you pair this with this?” And before those experiments, all I had were loose notes and sketches of ideas. It was a bit scientific and a bit nonscientific, because I didn’t know until we made the record that it would work. The book itself ended up being really cool because it was an aesthetic project. Because it’s not critical theory, it’s really fun and doesn’t have to defend itself, as ultimately the book and cards are just a set of loose instructions. Also, that way I could bring in scientific ideas and philosophical ideas in a more poetic sense. It’s not supposed to be straight instruction manual, it’s not supposed to be straight theory, but more like an assemblage of a bunch of different ideas…I mean, I love books, like when you go to a bookstore and you stumble across a strange book and say, “What the hell is this?” and it ends up being something useful to you. In regards to the playing cards, other musicians who’ve worked with cards use them in a way that’s more suggestive rather than systematized. At least the
names that I have seen referenced, like Zorn, Eno, etc... Yeah, the similarity is that they all use cards, but mine are just poker cards. For mine, each card equals a note, so you’re receiving possible notes…in that way it’s real different. Eno developed his strategies as a way to expedite creative process in a studio. Mine is opposite in that sense, because it takes a long time. People ask if you can throw down these cards and just play it, which you could if you understand it really well, but it’s not so much the point. The point is to look at what is in front of you as a universe of possibilities and make charts and think about tones, and use
From left: A chart titled “Aligning Cards to the Fretboard of a Guitar”; the cover of the album that Six Organs Of Admittance composed using the Hexadic System, their nineteenth release; Ben Chasny; a tonal diagram example from Chapter 11 of The Hexadic System; the book and a selection of cards.
it as a more contemplative exercise to think about music differently. In that way it takes much longer. All that to say, I love Eno and am a big fan! Playing cards are a common object, and made for informal settings, like the living room. That was a big part of it. Anyone can go to a corner store and pick up a pack of cards. I wanted to make use of a tool that was accessible and everywhere. The word “system” is how you describe it. I haven’t really had another word for it. I also like calling it an “open system,” because so many of the parts are malleable. In the way that Umberto Eco talks about an “open work,” which is open in the way that it is put together, and the way it can be interpreted.
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YOU ME & EVERYONE WE KNOW, Daisyhead, Future Crooks at Fubar
SPEEDY ORTIZ, Alex G, Palehound at Firebird
TUESDAY, JUNE 2
JACKSON SCOTT at The Demo
TAME IMPALA, Kuroma at The Pageant
MONDAY, JUNE 1
and beats with unpredictably soulful keys, highly flexible drumming and weirdo sound palettes — all stuff that the world is just catching up to now. Sure seems like they could rule the roost at any moment... but they’ve probably been feeling that “any moment now” sensation long enough. Former tourmates So Many Dynamos should at least give them the STL send-off they deserve. Come out and wish these muchachos a fond farewell — though you’ll
RECOMMENDED SHOWS
SLOAN
JUNE 2015
ELLE KING at Old Rock House
THE MELVINS, Le Butcherettes at Firebird
MONDAY, JUNE 15
The legend of 7 Shot Screamers’ unbeatable,
TORTUGA, Old Scratch’s Burnpile, Jack Grelle & Ryan Koenig at Foam
AT THE DUCK ROOM | THURSDAY, JUNE 25 “And the joke is / When he awoke his / body was covered in Coke fizz!” With these lines from “Money City Maniacs,” Toronto’s Sloan knocked the glam-pop crown from Cheap Trick’s forehead and onto their own. If you haven’t heard Sloan’s evolution of the Ziggy/ T. Rex/Big Star paradigm you may be surprised to discover your new favorite band at this late date. And they do it all without the theatrics and hairspray — these guys are thoroughly Canadian, letting the songs do the swaggering so they can be funny, relaxed and charming guys onstage. They’ve released 13 albums over the last 21 years, including two double albums. All four members write their own songs in their own styles, swapping instruments freely, then combine beautifully on harmonies. For diehard Sloan fans — of which there are many — a venue as intimate as the Duck Room is a dream come true. If you have ever loved power pop, one listen will convince you that this is a must-go show. EVAN SULT
MUSICALENDAR
It’s strange that Pattern Is Movement is calling it quits now, of all times. For 13 years this Philly-based duo has been well ahead of the curve, combining indie beards
PATTERN IS MOVEMENT farewell tour, So Many Dynamos at Firebird
TUESDAY, JUNE 9
ELECTRIC SIX, White Reaper, Tok at Firebird
SUNDAY, JUNE 7
WANDA JACKSON, Miss Molly Simms Band at Off Broadway
PIGEON, Hardbody, Skin Tags at Schlafly Tap Room
VIA DOVE farewell show, The Feed, Hidden Lakes at Firebird
Foam’s got some killer one-two punches lined up, most def including this one. Pree is pure pop adventurism; May Tabol leads the band through complex and satisfying song arrangements while delivering sweet vocals hiding barbed tips. Whoa Thunder, especially with the new lineup, is a fitting STL response. Meanwhile the late show includes Bort’s first show, a very promising collision of talents from members of The Brainstems, Dad Jr, and Posture. Arrive early, stay late — fuggit, it’s Saturday!
DIGITAL LEATHER, Shitstorm, Bort (10pm late show) at Foam
PREE, Whoa Thunder (8pm early show) at Foam
SATURDAY, JUNE 6
HANDS AND FEET, Golden Curls at Heavy Anchor
CODY JAMES (CD release), Maness Brothers at Foam
SETH MEYERS at Peabody Opera House
FRIDAY, JUNE 5
MME at the Luminary
CONTROL, Willis at Foam
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
TWANGFEST 19: THE BOTTLE ROCKETS, Eric Ambel, Jim Malthus at Off Broadway
NNEKA at the Duck Room
Did you even know South City has a free pool?! Well, it didn’t for a while — but it will now, thanks to new alderman Cara Spencer! The impressively large pool at Marquette Park is reopening, and free to all. The party is from 2-6pm and there’ll be a stage with live music and DJs, free hot dogs, food trucks, ice cream, kids running around — and cool, clean, clear water for all the swimming, sunning, and relaxed foot-dangling you could desire. Bust out your swimwear finery cos it’s a SOUTHSIDE POOL PARTY Y’ALL!
POOL PARTY!: Sleepy Kitty, Blank Generation at Marquette Park, corner of Osage and Compton
SATURDAY, JUNE 13
THE GROWLERS at Old Rock House
IMAGINE DRAGONS, Metric at Scottrade Center
TWANGFEST 19: NADINE, Lydia Loveless, The Trio Project at Off Broadway
FRIDAY, JUNE 12
TWANGFEST 19: MATTHEW SWEET, Lilly Hiatt, Spectator at Off Broadway
THURSDAY, JUNE 11
KYLE & THE SOWASHES, Town Cars, Matt Harnish’s Pink Guitar, Shut In at Foam
TWANGFEST 19: CRACKER, Marah, Grace Basement at Off Broadway
WHITE LUNG, Obliterations at The Demo
BEST COAST, Bully at The Ready Room
UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA, J Fernandez at Firebird
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10
PHOX, Bo And The Locomotive at Old Rock House
find yourself wishing it weren’t so.
ACID KAT FEST III yardsale / fundraiser 12-6 at Foam
SUNDAY, JUNE 28
SUNDAY, JUNE 21 MITSKI, Elvis Depressedly, Eskimeaux at The Demo
THE SMASHING PUMPKINS: In Plainsong Electro-Acoustic Tour at The Pageant
TUESDAY, JUNE 23
NEON TREES, Alex Winston, Yes You Are at The Ready Room
TRISTEN, Big Harp, Animal Children at Off Broadway
Scan this QR Code, or go to ElevenMusicMag.com for a listing of club addresses. Check out our expanded calendar of events at calendar.elevenmusicmag.com, powered by
Discussed this issue Comedy show
LEGEND
MUSICALENDAR
“WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC at the Peabody
MATES OF STATE, Hey Marseilles, Good Graeff at Firebird
RFT MUSIC FESTIVAL all up and down Manchester in the Grove
MONDAY, JUNE 22
BETH BOMBARA, The Loot Rock Gang, The River Kittens at Off Broadway
SATURDAY, JUNE 27
SOMEONE STILL LOVES YOU BORIS YELTSIN at Off Broadway
FRIDAY, JUNE 26
EN ESCH at Crack Fox
SLOAN at the Duck Room
THURSDAY, JUNE 25
RODRIGO Y GABRIELA, Madisen Ward And The Mama Bear at The Pageant
LINDSEY STIRLING at the Fox
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24
unbelievable sets reaches well beyond the city borders, and now at last 7SS’s Mike Leahy is back with new project Tortuga. The band features Tom Heath, Mat Wilson, Leo Jalipa, Ryan Koenig, Joey Glynn, and maybe even some Baricevic Bros, so you know it’ll be hot enough to scorch the club walls. This show is their debut record release on Big Muddy. Bonus cred: the new single “When I Go” was co-written with Exene Cervenka of X, and will be released this month. Pull on your best spaghetti Western spurs and check ‘em out!
TYLER, THE CREATOR, Taco at The Pageant
SATURDAY, JUNE 20
KC-by-way-of-NYC duo Schwervon! make some of the most endearing music you’ll ever hear, and their live show is even better. Every song has a hook for you to sing along with, and they’re natural storytellers. In fact, when they jump into a poem by guitarist Matt Roth and interpretive dance by drummer Nan Turner, not even the Grinch could fail to smile and cheer. Then Whoa Thunder — whoa. Then Fast Money Music, the super badass DJ collaboration of Matty Coonfield and Eric Damhorst. Your Friday night just got booked up!
FAST MONEY MUSIC DJ set (10pm late show) at Foam
SCHWERVON!, Whoa Thunder (8pm early show) at Foam
FRIDAY, JUNE 19
JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION at Old Rock House
THURSDAY, JUNE 18
THE ADOLESCENTS, The Weirdos at Fubar
THE CAVE SINGERS at The Demo
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17
Live Music
BRING ON THE NIGHT
San Fermin’s eight-member assault shook the Luminary Center for the Arts to its roots on Thursday, May 14. Rebekah Durham, above, is their not-so-secret weapon, melding voice with violin to stunning effect. PHOTO BY JARRED GASTREICH
>>PREVIEW
Speedy Ortiz, Alex G, Palehound Tuesday, June 2
FIREBIRD With the rise of the mp3 and the fall of major labels, the fantasy of a career in rock and roll has taken a real beating lately. But you couldn’t tell that to Speedy Ortiz, who went from just another brilliant and underrated western Massachusetts band to globetrotting indie stars. Their new album, Foil Deer, is a real accomplishment. The obvious and excellent single “Raising the Skate” feels like it has already been hanging around as a favorite song for a couple of decades, so naturally does it absorb the best elements of Pavement, The Breeders, Liz Phair, and the collected guitar tones of the MergeMatador ‘90s. But the palette grows as it goes. Singer/guitarist Sadie Dupuis leads the band through a series of slippery mood shifts that serve her storytelling mode: intimate but obscure, personal but never confessional. It’s always been a bit baffling how completely the band is able to conjure the sounds of old-school indie rock guitars and drums, but on this album they are aided by Nicholas Vernhes, who was responsible for creating some of those sounds in the first place with such varied acts as Silver
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Jews, Les Savy Fav, and Guv’ner. There is substantially more use of keyboards and harmony vocals throughout, it feels like the band didn’t let their slacker inflections infect their ambitions — you can hear them fully going for it on every track. The chorus of “My Dead Girl” is a natural singalong, and on “Puffer” they even find common ground with Britney Spears’ “Toxic” period. Their first time through St. Louis, Speedy Ortiz played CBGBs to a crowd of a couple dozen; their second gig was in the Blank Space basement a week after their lifechanging Pitchfork “Best New Music” review — and oh what a show! Now they’re in the whirl of their big breakout moment, touring the world and generally getting toasted by the indie world community. And good for them: from their first self-released EP, Sports, they’ve always had the goods, and it’s a testament to the rock and roll dream that they’re getting rewarded for it now. Here’s to making the most of it. EVAN SULT >>PREVIEW
Best Coast, Bully
Wednesday, June 10
THE READY ROOM If you’re reading this magazine, chances are you are a loud-and-proud St. Louisan, wearing our landlocked, humid, swelter-
Live Music ing summers and wind-swept, blistering winters as a badge of honor. Yeah, you understand the draw of the coasts, but really, you think St. Louis is the place to be. If anyone could convince a born-andbred St. Louisan to abandon their homeland, it’s California-natives and all-around West Coast cheerleaders, Best Coast. The duo, Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno, have spent the last six years as the bannermen for California. When on 2012’s The Only Place they ask, “Why would you live anywhere else? / We’ve got the ocean, got the babes / Got the sun, we’ve got the waves,” you’re left thinking “Shit, I have no idea!” Best Coast’s California is the one of ‘60s surfers and punk kids skateboarding on sun-drenched boardwalks. It’s idyllic as fuck. Listening to a Best Coast song, the fact that California is running out of water starts to seem like a pernicious lie told by greedy Californians eager to hide their paradise from the rest of us. The band’s last few albums seemed firmly based in the garage. Sparse, grungy guitar melodies, straightforward drums and Cosentino’s unpolished voice combined to create pop-punk tunes that were catchy as hell. On their latest album, California Nights, the duo has created a much more lush sound. Their guitars are more melodic, Cosentino’s singing is slicker, and synths fill in the gaps in the tracks. Where their previous albums got drunk in the blazing LA sun, California Nights is for just that — driving to parties in the dewy cool of the evening. The title track is a slow burning, trippy ode to getting high: “California nights, make me feel so happy I could die, but I try to stay alive,” Cosentino sings, “I never want to get so high that I can’t come back down to real life and look you in the eyes, and say baby you’re mine,” She enunciates with the slow-
motion sincerity of your favorite stoner friend. So while we’re gearing up for yet another sweaty, icky St. Louis summer, Best Coast is rolling into town to tell us about the cool of the ocean air and the quality of their California weed. Why would we live anywhere else again? CAITLIN BLADT >>PREVIEW
White Lung, The Obliterations Wednesday, June 10 THE DEMO White Lung manages to hone in on that ever-evasive sweet spot between dark punk and pop sensibility, so it should come as no surprise that they will spend May and June touring in support of the gods of crossover, Refused. Sadly, St. Louis won’t be catching any of those shows. Instead, White Lung will headline the Demo with spastic, punked-out metal act The Obliterations in tow. Despite being fresh off a giant-venue tour — they’re playing LA’s legendary Roxy at the end of May — White Lung is the kind of act that would kill (and has killed) in a Cherokee street basement. Alas, this time through they’ll be playing one of St. Louis’ taller stages. Formed in 2006, the Vancouver natives have three full lengths and six 7”s under their belts. Their most recent, and slickest, effort, Deep Fantasy, was released almost exactly a year ago on Domino Records. Deep Fantasy highlights a successful evolution, polishing and perfecting the raw moodiness that the band put forward on early releases. Guitarist Kenneth Williams seamlessly moves between screaming highs and tremolo picked lows, creating a huge delayridden sound, while imposing frontwoman Mish Way contrasts addictive melodies with harsh shouts. Way’s cult of personality extends beyond the band as well: she is a contributor to Vice’s music blog Noisey,
BLUE BEAT BY JEREMY SEGEL-MOSS
The National Blues Museum
The National Blues Museum took another step towards becoming a reality in June. Dion Brown will be taking over as the inaugural Executive Director. Up until now, the fundraising, construction and development has all fallen on the shoulders of the Board of Directors, lead by Rob Endicott. Brown, who has been the Executive Director of the BB King Museum since 2011, will be the first employee of the National Blues Museum, and will really be the driving force for the direction as opening day (which is still unannounced) arrives. “In museums, depending which museum, you are either called the President or the Executive Director,” Brown explains. “The E.D. is responsible for the overall operation of the museum. Every aspect ranging from ‘friendraising,’ booking entertainment, educational programs, et cetera. The key to being a great E.D. is to have a great staff, great programming and be tuned into the community.” What’s exciting about the newly announced leadership is Brown’s vocal desire to engage and work directly with St. Louis’
and has a column in Vancouver’s Westender titled “Sex with Mish Way.” With only three full-time members, including Anne-Marie Vassiliou on drums, Heather Fortune of Wax Idols had been filling in the bass spot for White Lung. She recently departed to focus on her own band and will be replaced by Lindsey Troy of Deap Vally for this tour. When White Lung takes the stage at the Demo this month, it won’t be the same as their legendary last show in town, in the basement of the now defunct Apop. That time is gone, and anyway, with Mish Way and crew in full form this should still prove a memorable evening. What else are you going to do with that $10 bill? GEOFFREY NAUNHEIM >>PREVIEW
The Melvins, Le Butcherettes Monday, June 15 FIREBIRD The Melvins are without question one the most prolific and influential punk/metal bands of all time. They have either wholly invented or made huge contributions to anything labeled “grunge,” “sludge,” or “doom,” while somehow slipping the bonds of classification themselves. Their sound is always evolving yet distinctly their own, giving the best parts of My War-era Black Flag and slower ’80s hardcore acts like Flipper the over-the-top flair of ’70s metal. This is always accomplished with their own bizarre sense of humor, with some releases treated essentially like practical jokes. This time through, Buzz Osborne and Dale Crover will be switching out of their longstanding four-piece/two-drummer format, featuring Big Business as their backing band, and into a three-piece “Melvins Lite” lineup. Jeff Pinkus of legendary punk weirdos the Butthole Surfers will be on bass for this string of shows. Pinkus
local blues musicians and organizations. It has been very clear thus far that this is the National Blues Museum, not the St. Louis Blues Museum. However, St. Louis has played more than a pivotal role in the creation of the art form, and it is reassuring to hear that the NBM is looking to collaborate with the one of the best local music scenes in the country. “When I think about the National Blues Museum, I see being able to recognize all the blues musicians as an opportunity,” says Brown. “You know how the great migration worked — so did the blues. It traveled, and depending on where you are you get a different vibe on the blues. I’m often told about Dixie Blues, St. Louis Blues, Chicago Blues, etc. To explore and educate the world and bring light to all the nuances is an incredible opportunity.” Brown sees the museum as a place to center resources and appreciation for the blues, and our city as the center of new attention. “The potential amount of blues fans national and international that will travel to St. Louis to see the museum is incredible,” Brown declares. “I see the museum adding another top-notch destination spot for the downtown area.” As long as that destination recognizes and nurtures blues in its home base, the National Blues Museum should make St. Louis a better place for musicians.
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Live Music and Surfers guitarist Paul Leary appeared as the Melvins’ backing band on their most recent release, 2014’s even-more-thanusually eccentric Hold It In. This tour syncs up with Ipecac Recordings’ dual reissue of their 2012 album The Bulls and The Bees and 2001’s Electroretard, so it’s appropriate that Mexican pop-garage-punk labelmates Le Butcherettes are in tow. Not many bands are capable of holding it together after 30-plus years, but the Melvins haven’t missed a beat. The volume and intensity of their live shows alone puts most younger bands to shame, and the vigor with which these men tour is legendary — in 2012, they played 51 shows in 51 days in 50 states plus DC — and the setlists span their entire 32-year, 22-album catalog. Punks, metalheads, freaks: be there. GEOFFREY NAUNHEIM >>PREVIEW
Lindsey Stirling
Wednesday, June 24 THE FOX Lindsey Stirling sits at the intersection between a lot of different, possibly conflicting avenues – classical music, EDM, video game soundtracks, dance, performance art, and adorableness. Balancing all these disparate influences effectively has virtually made her a genre unto herself, with over a billion views on YouTube. On June 24, the America’s Got Talent quarter-finalist takes her signature blend to the stage of
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the Fabulous Fox as part of the tour for her latest album, Shatter Me. One can’t really sing with a violin tucked under one’s chin, so expect special guests popping in to lend a hand throughout the evening. If it occasionally seems like Stirling is doing so much at once that the individual portions of the act seem to suffer, that’s only because she is attempting to provide a multimedia experience unlike anything most acts are doing these days. If the phrase “dubstep violin” doesn’t send you running for the hills, then this is something you might want to check out. SEAN KELLY >>PREVIEW
“Weird Al” Yankovic Sunday, June 28
PEABODY OPERA HOUSE With the release of last July’s Mandatory Fun, “Weird Al” Yankovic had his first-ever #1 album on the Billboard Pop Charts for just one precious week. His peers who’ve held that same spot time and again have been the target of his lampooning for three and a half decades. Alongside Michael Jackson and Madonna (primary among said targets), he is the only artist with a Top 40 hit in every decade since, and including the 1980s. Eight new music videos in a wide variety of styles for a wide variety of songs were released alongside Fun, each on a different media outlet, from FunnyOrDie to the Wall Street Journal. His tragically
solitary venture into major motion pictures, UHF, turned 25 last year, and the long out-of-print masterpiece was commemorated with a brand-new DVD and Blu-Ray home-video release (not to mention a silver anniversary screening I myself planned and curated at the Moolah Theatre & Lounge). The other day someone told me he felt weird about “Weird Al” “blowing up” last year. For my part, I’ve always counted him among my chief influences in music, style, attitude, and life, and he’s never dipped below absolute superstar status in all the time I’ve been acquainted with his work. Anyway, what better way to feel about a man whose very adopted stage name has the word right in it? What’s strange indeed, however, is simply the thought that “Weird Al,” icon of the 1980s though he’s been to many, and for so long, is in a bizarre way actually more relevant in the first half of the second decade of the twenty-first century than he ever has been. Talk to any longtime St. Louis fan of Yankovic and you’ll hear them tell you about the time(s) they saw him at Six Flags or The Fox Theatre or someplace you’ll think is made up because it doesn’t exist anymore. By my count, Yankovic’s last handful of shows “in town” have been at the St. Charles Family Arena (with half of the arena sectioned off), so a visit to the better-sized and more conveniently located Peabody Opera House is a welcome change. ROBERT SEVERSON
Album Reviews
HOT ROCKS = STL band (current and/or honorary)
Richard Thompson Still
Fantasy Records
Mean Scene The very latest releases from all around St. Louis, assembled by SUZIE GILB. To get your upcoming release on the list, email suzie@elevenmusicmag.com. LP = vinyl album | CS = cassette DL = download | CD = CD (duh)
CATCHING UP: APRIL Smooth Talkin’ Perverts Show Me CD Brandon Creath And The Rest Time Passes By EP, DL
CATCHING UP: MAY Death And Taxes All the Wrong Things Got Me Where I Am CD The Incorporated Roger’s Routine CD White Mule To the River and Back CD
JUNE Kevin Bilchik Thirteen Stories Tall CD Release showFriday, June 5 at Stone Spiral
Cody James Illusions CD Release show Friday, June 5 at Foam with The Maness Brothers and MusicEmbryo
Al Bundie’s Army CD Release show Saturday, June 6 at No Coast
Tasi Brand New EP CD Release show Saturday, June 6 at The Bootleg with Joel Castillo
Beth Bombara Beth Bombara CD, LP, DL Release show Saturday, June 27 at Off Broadway with The Loot Rock Gang and The River Kittens
In the 2003 BBC documentary A Solitary Life, Richard Thompson reveals his surprisingly conventional work schedule: rather than waiting on inspiration to strike, he wakes up early every day, clocks in at the writer’s desk, and clocks out in the early evening, not unlike an accountant — or maybe more fitting, a construction worker. While the work ethic is admirable, the potential trap in the creative process is a temptation to nudge songs over to the “done” pile through sheer IQ and cleverness, rather than magical discovery. The result can be smart, and certainly complete, but also a little flat and frustratingly pleasant. Thompson’s latest album, Still, starts off strong; over intricate guitars hard-panned atop lightly driving drums, Thompson evokes familiar folk terrain with refrains like “She never could resist a winding road,” and “hand me down my walking shoes.” Although this is well-traveled territory, the melodies are compelling, and it feels like this could be the right grassy field for a couple of homerun Thompson ballads further down the tracklist. As a fan of his records, I’m used to sifting through an album’s worth of good music to stumble upon a handful of timeless masterpieces that only Richard Thompson is equipped to write. Unfortunately, each time I sit with Still’s 12 tracks, I find myself getting antsy through side B, resisting the urge to pull out more familiar albums like Rumor and Sigh or Electric. No doubt, Still feels sophisticated, but the curiosity that builds in the first act gets left hanging. Thompson fills out the album’s second half by returning to old-hat country western shuffles and a syncopated
The Ex-Bombers
Five Star Night Cavetone Records
Footsteps on wooden floorboards, the
Celtic ditty that even the freest spirit on the festival circuit would have trouble coming up with a dance for. He’s had moments of brilliance in both of those settings on previous records, but here I’m left wishing that Thompson had been coached in a newer direction. I’m hesitant to comment on Jeff Tweedy’s role as producer of Still, because it’s too easy to make assumptions about celebrity producers. He certainly proved to be talented in the producer’s chair for You Are Not Alone, Mavis Staples’ excellent 2010 release. But Tweedy wrote a third of those tunes himself, and handpicked a selection of covers for Staples, so I’d imagine he had quite a bit more control in that room than he did directing Thompson and his stacks of handwritten sheet music. With no way to know how the conversations went between them, or what alternate songs got sidelined, I’ll just say to Tweedy’s credit that, sonically, Still sounds great. The tones and mixes that come out of Wilco’s Chicago loft consistently deliver, and I’m pleased to hear Thompson’s songs this way. Some high points break though: “Broken Doll,” a dark electric number filled with distant and eerie textures, and “All Buttoned Up,” a driving roots rocker in which you can almost hear Thompson grin after wrapping up each line of wordplay before belting into the relief of his harmonized moan in the chorus. The low point, unfortunately, is sevenminute closer “Guitar Heroes.” Thompson has a penchant for the occasional musical dad joke, and this one is straight-up socks with sandals. In the lyric, Thompson takes us back through his formative years as a guitarist, namedropping each guitar hero in the verse as the band abruptly shifts styles to accommodate guitar impersonations from Django Reinhardt to James Burton to Chuck Berry. While I’m sure it must be hard to say no to a living legend, this would be the one spot I wished Tweedy could’ve gently convinced the honorable Thompson — who has already earned his own place in any guitar pantheon — that “Guitar Heroes” might be better suited as a cheeky finale during a clinic at Guitar Center rather than the last impression on an Americana record. If you’re just starting out on Richard Thompson, dig around on a few previous albums to get that experience of striking gold, then make your way to Still when there’s room left in your pan for songs that are a little less shiny. JOSH SIEGEL unmistakable click of a record player starting up: these are the first sounds on the Ex-Bombers’ second record, Five Star Night. It is a continuation of the paranoid narrative set in their 2012 debut The Tightwire, though their focus has tightened from the world at large losing its humanity, to a coy
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Album Reviews examination of the music scene in which we envelop ourselves, forever chasing that white whale ghost of that perfect five star night. While this follow-up is not a straight better record in any traditional barometric sense, it is a more intriguing album that has a sort of Watchmen-type sense of layered meaning, as you find yourself uncovering more within the album upon each listen. Both members of the two-piece trade the spotlight in roughly equal shares, and the band feels like it has defined itself more clearly in the time since The Tightwire. Their sleazy dirtbag spy jazz is a disorienting mash-up, a kind of beatnik punk that makse you feel like you should be dressed as one of the Sex Pistols trying to solve the mystery of the Maltese Falcon. Their critiques of the world at large have grown more subtle but are still as tongue in cheek as ever — Side B kicks off with an anti-promotion of their 2013 anti-single, “Kissing Hands, Shaking Babies.” The one element I miss on this album is a familiar one for fans who first learn about a band from their stage show: having heard these songs live, there isn’t that same intensity to these songs as when they’re live. Which is good, in a sense, because it gives the uninitiated a chance to see a truly great show after listening to a great record. But for those of us who have been following the band for some time, it only leaves us our memories, and the hope that one day the band will produce a live record. Five Star Night will definitely prove its worth in the long run. It’ll be one of those records that anyone else will wish they’d written. REV. DANIEL W. WRIGHT
Beth Bombara Beth Bombara All the Right Pills
STL-based Americana hard-hitter Beth Bombara releases her eponymous album this month, which is anything but a solo effort. As usual, Bombara has a cast of accompanists that kill throughout the record — her studio album arrangements are always full and expertly executed. Horns usually make at least a subtle appearance somewhere on each record, and this one is no exception, courtesy of JJ Hamon (who along with tenor and soprano trombone, also plays electric guitar, lap steel and mandolin on this album) on songs like “Thunder and Rain” and the Latin-infused “In the Water.” Bombara’s other familiar cohorts, Kit Hamon and Karl Eggers, are present as well, joined this time by Corey Woodruff (Town Cars) on drums and percussion, Aaron Stovall (So Many Dynamos) on string synth, and the multi-talented Ryan
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Spearman, who does some fine fiddlin’ on optimistic toe-tapper “Greet the Day.” Opener “Found Your Way” sucks you in immediately with its slow-burn, fade-in intro, Eggers’ subtle banjo rhythms, and Kit’s uncanny ability to perfectly blend his vocals with Bombara. It’s followed by the tune “Give Me Something,” a radio-friendly song with late-’90s pop sensibilities buried under the surface, à la Beth Orton’s “Stolen Car,” while still retaining Bombara’s modern Americana vibe. The final song (with the exception of the instrumental reprise to “Greet the Day,” which might fairly be considered an epilogue) is a gut-wrenching tear-jerker called “Heavy Heart,” featuring Bombara on acoustic guitar and vocals. I’m not too proud to admit I cried the first few listens. Bombara is a deft painter of scenes, and this song intertwines two stories of loss and death that could not come from a more intimate, personal place: the first of the loss of a friend, the second a family member. As if this song’s lyrics didn’t already bring a catch to the throat, I got the distinct pleasure of catching Bombara’s set at the Sheldon in May, where she dedicated the song to the recently departed, much-missed musician Anne Tkach, and made me and the rest of the audience just break down into tears. The emotion in the room was palpable after that song, and in case you’re wondering, it’s really hard to blow your nose subtly in a room with such phenomenal acoustics. (Believe me, I tried.) Bombara has made another fantastic album, even better than 2013’s thoroughly pleasurable Raise Your Flag. If you can catch her album release on June 27 at Off Broadway, you absolutely should. Beth Bombara is one of the treasures of St. Louis. SUZIE GILB
Tanlines
Highlights True Panther Sounds
Summer is finally here and it’s time to warm up the dancefloor. This year Tanlines are bringing the heat on Highlights, the follow up to 2012’s Mixed Emotions. Much like their peers Holy Ghost!, these Brooklyn dance-rockers combine the sounds of ’80s pop with contemporary indie rock to make songs that sound instantly familiar. This time the writing process came about a bit differently than for their initial releases. As the duo started to write what would become this record, their computer literally blew up, and the lack of samples and synth sent them back to the Stone Age, so to speak. Ever resilient, singer/guitarist Eric Emm and multi-instrumentalist Jesse Cohen didn’t let this stop them. They
grabbed a guitar and drum kick and started doing things like a more traditional band. It seems like these events helped the band get their groove back and evolve into a tightly run machine. After a few listens to Highlights, the change really shows. This isn’t a sophomore slump. A producer can be one of the most important parts of making a record, and while they did some of the mixing themselves, Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor handled a lot of it. He’s the one who suggested the band try recording in an old church. The reverb on Emm’s voice isn’t just an effect this time; his vocal performances were recorded high up in the church balcony. Highlights needs no buildup or introduction — “Pieces” instantly drops you deep into thumping synth. It’s a simple concept of falling to pieces when you’re away from the one you love, and the guys make it really bounce. If it was still 1985, “Slipping Away” would be on the top of the charts. Almost every sound on this album sounds like it’s coming straight from a Delorean’s gullwing-door speakers. Previous album Mixed Emotions was an indiepop masterpiece, and Highlights slides right next to it in terms of sheer magnitude. Tanlines feel like they’re truly in their element. All the ingredients are the same, but a bunch of professional beat chefs are cooking in this kitchen. JACK PROBST Tanlines plays Firebird on Wednesday, July 1.
Bully
Feels Like StarTime
Feels Like may be Bully’s official debut album, but sharpeared listeners in St. Louis have been tracking their progress for a couple of years now. Multi-instrumentalist Stewart Copeland (nope, not that Stewart Copeland) raised a devoted following in town for his band The Lake and their clever, Pavementflavored pop, only to disappear for a couple years and reappear in Murfreesboro, TN, with his band King Arthur, featuring the voice of one Alicia Bognanno. Copeland and Bognanno moved to Nashville and started the band Bully, which started at the bottom of that city’s very deep, very advanced basement-rock scene and worked their way up step by step. Meanwhile, they kept in touch with St. Louis with regular shows here so we could track the band’s increasing confidence center stage. Now comes Feels Like, on Columbia imprint StarTime, which combines the ’90s-inflected songs from their earliest days with their current high-energy Nashville underground blast. While they’ve always had a knack for a great guitar hook, recent touring with Those Darlins and Diarrhea
Album Reviews
Bridie Mons-Watson, aka SOAK.
Planet has toughened up their sound, bringing more distortion into both the guitars and vocal tones. Early songs like “Brainfreeze” and “Sharktooth” revel in the Superchunk-style intertwined melodic leads; newer tracks like lead-off “Remember” or “Six” are tougher, with Bognanno hollering the verses like a punk dervish. On songs like “Trying,” the addition of backing vocals — the occasional harmony or “la la la la” — adds a little extra pop heft to phrases that might otherwise slip by unnoticed. But she doesn’t lean too heavily on them, mostly reaching for choruses with a forward-leaning shout. The palette of “Too Tough,” from plodding four-note bassline to the rising feedback whine that opens into heavy guitar distortion is classic ‘90s underground, cut through by Bognanno’s unplaceable and endearing accent — perhaps she grew up in the same town as Cowboy Junkies’ Hope Sandoval. The thing that separates Bully from the growing pack of female-fronted rockers, though, is the character in Bognanno’s voice. She’s able to go from ragged shout to near whisper in an instant, so that each song has a chance to show off multiple facets of her experience, from angry blast to melancholy memory. And the guitars, while distorted, add atmosphere and texture without a lot of unnecessary muscle and fuss. Bully plays indie pop as if it’s basement punk, and manages to strike the best of both postures. Bognanno sounds so young and small in some passages, so fearsome and fearless in others. That’s the crush factor in these songs — she creates a character that contains both pull and shove, while the band scores little movies around her. All guitar music these days seems to lean back towards the ‘90s (and why not?), and Bully does a great job of curating
their own influences while putting forth a whole new, very contemporary character in Bognanno’s powerful delivery. Now that they’re riding the wings of a major label, it will be most interesting to see what kind of space they can carve for themselves in the music landscape. EVAN SULT Bully plays The Ready Room on Wednesday, June 10 with Best Coast.
Family Affair Family Affair Self release
QB and Mr. R.E.P. are melodic savants. The twin brothers known as Family Affair are not like any entertainers out. They have a rhythmic sound that draws the listener in immediately. The duo first appeared on DJ Trackstar mixtapes, which birthed the hardhitting “Love the Family,” and they have other songs like “Murda Muzik,” “Rotation,” and “One Night” that audiences clamor for at their live shows. Their latest, self-titled album is a delight to listen to. It opens with “Succa Free,” produced by Trifeckta, in which psychedelic beats pull your ears to not just listen, but feel the music. “The Places We Go” and “Lime Light,” produced by Indiana Rome of Delmar Records, are true gems of this album. And “Suite 105” featuring Teresa Jenee is very easy to ride to. The duo’s video for “What It Do” covers recent protests against systematic injustice. The video is featured on HipHopSince1987. com. Among Family Affairs accolades are working with Platinum Project Pat and appearing on tour with Killer Mike and El-P
PHOTO COURTESY ROUGH TRADE
(Run The Jewels) in 2014. Family Affair’s latest offering is to be enjoyed from beginning to end. It is truly an album where there’s not one song to be skipped. It can be found on datpiff.com for free download, though this is a truly priceless album. DUCKY HINES
SOAK
Before We Forgot How to Dream Rough Trade
Most teenagers spend their formidable years worrying about trivial things, staring at their phones, and whatever else kids do these days. (Drugs? Sex? Drama club?) An insurgence of incredibly talented teenage singer/songwriters have been appearing all over the world. Lorde was the big thing a couple of years ago. For 2015, the newest kid on the block, so to speak, is Bridie Monds-Watson, otherwise known as SOAK. This 18 year old from Derry, Ireland, writes sophisticated lyrics that seem like they come from someone who’s lived for a thousand years and has faced tremendous heartache. They can also be interpreted as a view of the world from youth, and what it means to grow up to become a part of it. SOAK’s songs are acoustically based, though most songs feature larger instrumentation that add to the dark and stormy atmosphere around her lyrics. Before We Forgot How to Dream might actually give you faith in today’s youth again. SOAK seems like she knows what it truly means to be different. She sounds like a loner, maybe not the most popular, but someone wise beyond her years. “Be a
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Album Reviews noBody” is the new anthem for all the kids that go unnoticed all throughout their teenage years: “Come on come on / be just like me / come on come on / be a noBody.” SOAK understands you, kid, and it gets better at some point if you can hold on. Find a way to express yourself; take your sadness and hopelessness and turn it into art like she did. It’s hard to figure out your place in the world. Hell, some of us still don’t know where we fit, but it’s important to just be yourself. “Wait” is a beautiful song about how you shouldn’t waste your time waiting for someone to be miserable with you. Things get a little twee on “Garden,” the closest thing to a happy love song this record gives. SOAK’s voice, both verbally and lyrically, is so genuine that you never doubt that she actually knows all of these feelings despite her age. JACK PROBST
Waxahatchee Ivy Tripp Merge
Two teenage twin sisters started a band in Birmingham, Alabama in 2007 called P.S. Eliot. For those who were there, far from the cultural centers of rock ‘n’ roll, they were likely the greatest band in the entire world for a few years, though they didn’t gain much traction nationally. When the girls, Allison and Katie Crutchfield, split up, it was hard to know then it was because they’d simply outgrown P.S. Eliot’s fun, quirky, joyful pop/punk. They moved first to Brooklyn, then Philadelphia, as Allison started the rip-roaring Swearin’ (check them out too!), and Katie went full folk as Waxahatchee. Her debut, the lo-fi home-recorded American Weekend, was one of the most heartbreaking, beautiful, and honest albums of 2012. It was followed quickly by the expanded palette of Cerulean Salt, which brought her to national attention. If American Weekend introduced Crutchfield as a young songwriter of startling depth, Ivy Tripp finds her becoming one of surprising breadth. The album is a sometimes brilliant work from a young musician whose power, confidence, and imagination seem to be expanding at an almost exponential rate. “Breathless” introduces the album on its bravest foot, nearly five minutes of drumless and droning distorting organ — its mood of stasis and dark timbre recall nothing such as the joyful early days of the Microphones. From there, the album blasts into “Under a Rock,” which would have fit perfectly with Cerulean Salt’s wistful pop, and “Poison,” the grungy guitars of which could almost double for a song from
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Swearin’. “La Loose” is perhaps the most surprising and rewarding turn, introducing a kind of handmade lo-fi synth-pop to her lexicon of tricks—a tinny drum machine, cheap keyboards, and infectious melody reminiscent of the long-missed Russian Futurists and especially Mirah’s “After You Left” and “Recommendation” from Advisory Committee. Mirah is a real touchstone, as the lyrical acuity and stylistic eclecticism of her early albums — produced by Microphones/Mount Eerie mastermind Phil Elverum — carved out a space that Ivy Tripp gladly fills. But where that was a creative partnership between equally talented songwriters, Ivy Tripp is entirely Crutchfield’s creation, self-produced with help from members of Swearin’, who also serve as her backing band on many tracks. “<” contrasts a slow guitar and vocal performance with a crazy off-rhythm avant-drum meltdown, taking a page from Nina Nastasia and Jim White’s brilliant collaboration You Follow Me. “Grey Hair,” the shortest song on the album, seems to also be something of its emotional heart, as Crutchfield comes to grips with her life as a musician. “Maybe you’ll learn to live onstage … maybe American kids will start a craze,” she says, and then reveals what could amount to her personal mantra: “I get short of breath, ’cause I can’t slow down.” It’s certainly a more fun, less melancholy record than we’ve come to expect from her. Unfortunately, the expanding sonic palette and compositional adventurousness isn’t met by her lyrics. The striking specificity of American Weekend and Cerulean Salt’s words have been traded for more vague universal (though still wellwritten) sentiments. Though this makes Ivy Tripp a less affecting album, it also lends it a broader mood and listenability. This is not an album to throw on when you want to just feel sad as hell. It’s about the messy aimlessness of life in your post-college mid-20s, looking for work, looking for love, looking for a home, and wondering how to get anywhere at all. RYAN BOYLE
Holly Miranda Holly Miranda Dangerbird Records
In the 2000s, Holly Miranda formed the band The Jealous Girlfriends with some friends she’d made after moving to New York. She was a high school dropout from Detroit who had big ideas for her future. Miranda had been a talented musician since childhood, and managed to score a deal with a major label by the time she turned 17. The experience didn’t go well, and luckily for us she moved
on to pursue music on her own terms. The Jealous Girlfriends released two albums and a couple of EPs before going on a seemingly permanent hiatus in 2008. That’s when Miranda decided to record a solo record, The Magician’s Private Library, with TV On The Radio’s David Sitek behind the board. His influence on the record’s sound bled through, with some of the tracks sounding perhaps a little too much like his own band. In 2010, Miranda toured opening for Tegan & Sara at The Pageant with a kickass rock band backing her up. It was a high energy set, as they blazed through different arrangements of songs from her very tame record. Her new self-titled record is still deep and mellow, but it sounds like Miranda has a much better handle on the composure of her solo effort. “Mark My Words” starts the album off with a slow build to highlight Miranda’s lovely voice and harmonies. When the rhythm section comes in at the halfway point, her rock side bursts in with buzzy guitars. Things get really poppy on “Whatever You Want,” a sad song that is oh so danceable and upbeat. The dreamy “Come On” has a repetitious chorus about being “in too deep” and giving up; but it’s such a happy-sounding tune that it feels more like a triumph over a minor setback than a prelude to the absolute end. The album ends with Miranda’s solo voice over piano on “Hymnal,” harking back to her time in the church choir as a child. The album is certainly some of her best work to date, and an apt showcase of the different musical transitions in her career. If you’re ever going to get acquainted with her work, now is the time. JACK PROBST
The DMA’s
The DMA’s EP Mom + Pop Music
The DMA’s, from Sydney Australia, are a product of producer/guitarist Johnny Took, guitarist Matt Mason and vocalist Tommy O’Dell. Their self-titled debut EP starts off with the jangle pop echo of “Laced,” and here as throughout, it becomes clear that while certain lines in songs fall flat, the gorgeous melodies can always carry things to a crescendo where things get tied together almost too perfectly. It’s clear right from the get go, while the band is clearly technically proficient at what they do, that doesn’t always equate to greatness. While lead single / Internet / YouTube sensation (does that distinction even mean anything anymore?) “Delete” might sound like a leftover from a 21st century Beatles for Sale. But it leaves no lasting imprint, just like many other YouTube sensations.
Album Reviews In fact, upon first listen, before knowing it was a single, I could have sworn this track was filler. On a personal note, I noticed more than a little similarity between “Delete” and “Harlots for Hope” by Little Brazil. The band has certainly figured out the algorithms of Britpop by listening to enough Oasis, Blur and Pulp CDs. However, they lack the heart and/or inventiveness that made those bands memorable. In fact, from what I’ve seen of the band, they seem more concerned about how they look in their Adidas track suits during shows than the music they’re playing for an audience. O’Dell does fully nail the vocal approach of a young Liam Gallagher, but he lacks the identity needed to convey his hopes, dreams and whatever else in these songs to stake his claim in the music world. While some songs, such as closer “So We Know,” sound like regret smoked away in a cigarette only to arrive at a resigned “fuck it,” the rest seem like stock footage, something trendy and current to be played on the closing credits of Showtime original programming. Which reminds me of a line from another of their prominent influences, Arctic Monkeys: “There’s only music so that there’s new ringtones.” The DMA’s seem like a band you should be excited about, you would want to hear, that could become one of the greats. But those woulds, coulds, and shoulds are only well-orchestrated illusions that leave another bland band exposed when the smoke and mirrors are cleared away. REV. DANIEL W. WRIGHT
Hop Along
Painted Shut Saddle Creek
Hop Along storm in like giants on “The Knock,” the opening of their new album Painted Shut. They tear down whole blocks of buildings with the sheer force of their rockage! Much like the mythical phoenix, the band rose from the ashes of lead vocalist/guitarist Frances Quinlan’s solo high school folk outings as Hop Along, Queen Ansleis. The name was shortened for the new grouping, and two EPs and an inconsistent yet well-received full length followed over the course of the next few years. As a band, Hop Along now shares a similar sound, as well as label, with Canada’s Land Of Talk — though Quinlan’s vocals tear things up more than Elizabeth Powell’s (her guitar shreds more than make up for that). Once you embrace the tones and breaks that Quinlan’s voice makes, you won’t be able to put this record down. Painted Shut is not easy to swallow at first. Quinlan has one of the most unique voices you’ll hear this year, but it goes
places you aren’t used to hearing. She pushes it past every boundary: at one moment it is sweet and innocent like a child, and in another second it’s a gravel road. Quinlan calls to mind some iconic voices, with touches of Lucinda Williams, Courtney Love, and even Janis Joplin. Trust yourself in her embrace, and you’ll get caught up in fun tracks like “Buddy in the Parade” and “Texas Funeral” that are just so catchy it hurts. The mostly acoustic “Happy to See Me” is stark and minimalistic, a stunning representation of the power not only in Quinlan’s lungs, but her lyrical compositions. She makes a line where she sings “father gets up at 4am / to post motivational videos on YouTube again” sound like poetry, when someone else might take a less serious or obnoxious turn. The most magical moment on a very magical album may be the small one that happens on the penultimate track, “Welldressed.” It starts with Quinlan singing alone to an acoustic guitar, letting her voice go ragged then whispery, and drifts into a low register for five brief syllables. It’s the one place her voice had yet to travel on the album, and this withheld power is a final gem in the album’s crown. As the song unfolds, the rest of the band arrives to build the rocking crescendo, then plateaus into a chorus of heartfelt “doo doo doo”s. It is much more stunning than I can put into words, so pick up this record and hear it for yourself. JACK PROBST
Eternal Summers
Gold and Stone Kanine Records
Gold and Stone, the fourth studio album from Roanoke noisepop trio Eternal Summers, displays both lyrical maturation and multiple strata of lush melodies. But the dream-pop vocal approach of singer Nicole Yum has become detached and forlorn, marking a break from the intimacy of last year’s The Drop Beneath, and the band wears its influences more brazenly than ever. The result is a seemingly effortless transition into new territory. Their ethereal take on shoegaze remains intact, albeit with some jazzier and rougher textures. Recorded in Austin, the album soaks in the indie spirit of its surroundings, igniting sparks of emotion deeply layered in anthemic eddies and bolstered by power chords and snarls. From opener “Unassigned” it’s clear that Yum’s newly relaxed vocal approach works on many levels, steering much of the album’s emotional core. The driving lead single “Together Alone” finds the trio in a tight textural connection, and a screaming interlude from Yum adds some muscle.
Meanwhile the title track’s swishing guitars explore the depths of their sound in refreshing ways, and “Come Alive” sparkles with torrents of radiance reminiscent of The Cocteau Twins, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, and Galaxie 500. Guided by a more focused sound, Eternal Summers has crafted the perfect spring listen. Shimmering and stylish in all the right places and sprinkled with just enough hot spice for seasoning, Gold and Stone is the trio’s crispest record to date. ROB LEVY
Porcelain Raft Half Awake EP Volcanic Field
It’s hard to believe it’s already been four years since the wife and I headed to the Firebird to see Yuck. She wasn’t too excited for them, but it was my favorite record at the time. We were lucky to get there early to catch a magical set by one Mauro Remiddi, a.k.a. Porcelain Raft. He stood onstage with a guitar and some electronics set up next to him, creating elaborate soundscapes to go along with programmed beats, as he sang and strummed across it all. His voice was heavenly and precious, a stark contrast to the ’90s grunge sound of the band we had all come to see. We were both mesmerized by the waves of atmosphere drifting out into the dark of the venue, and we knew we had to hear more. I made my way straight to the merch table after the set to purchase the two self-released EPs that were for sale. The gal working the booth said, “Oh, he’s going to be so happy! It’s the first time he’s had merch to sell on this tour and he didn’t think anyone would buy them!” This time Remiddi is going back to his roots, so to speak, and releasing his new EP Half Awake on cassette. He started recording music on cassette when he was a kid, and with the warm buzz of his recordings it only seems fitting for him to reach back to them for his first release on his own label. The songs harken back to those early EPs, with Remiddi sounding confident throughout and singing out stronger than ever. “Leave Yourself Alone” settles you into Remiddi’s world, as he creates a feverish chaos of sound. He’s mastered composing songs that feel like the soundtrack to a dream, heard most acutely on the title track. And “All in My Head” and “Love Chain” are the best of the bunch, as he shows off his poppy side. The calm guitar and piano on closer “Something Is After Me” feels like a cold breeze on the back of the neck. The music of Porcelain Raft is about conjuring up an atmosphere in which to be enveloped. Slip on your headphones and see where these songs take you. JACK PROBST
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THE WAY BACK PAGE While enjoying all the latest offerings the indie world has to offer, I often find amazing records buzzing around my brain months and years later. A tragic truth gained while working at a record store: it doesn’t matter how incredible you think a band is, they won’t sell as much as they should. Eventually all these gems will get marked down and sent to
The Bargain Bin Memories of long-forgotten records by Jack Probst
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Oh No Oh My Oh No Oh My Self release, 2006
I’D MADE MY friend Jewels a mix, and the third track on it, “I Have No Sister” by Oh No Oh My, really caught her ear. It sounds like a dream, as the narrator proposes, “let’s ride bikes into the sea / and catch a bus outside the reef,” and even manages to compare the subject to Audrey Hepburn. “I have seen all your movies / because Audrey’s a stone fox.” They’re a band solidified in my life by a friendship I formed, and their record that contains as much energy and youthful fun as I had back then. Around this time I had been surfing a lot of music blogs daily, and bought a lot of stuff by unsigned bands straight from their websites (this included CDs by Colourmusic, Beirut, About, and The Kite Flying Society). Oh No Oh My were straight out of the weird world of Austin, TX, and their debut was an indie popper’s dream. They were strange and maybe a bit awkward at times, though only in the sweetest way possible. Theirs are songs born from adolescent love and uncomfortable fumblings in the backseats of cars. Oh No Oh My is that quiet boy who writes funny little songs about a girl and never asks her for her number. Jewels and I met on MySpace, which I don’t mind admitting to. She read a blog I wrote about some girl and thought it was sweet. She’s always been supportive of the talents in others, even when they don’t see it themselves. Jewels was just a nickname given to her in high school after a boy asked her to prom and tried to woo her by saying her eyes were like priceless jewels. She’s a Keane painting in the flesh, though without all the kitsch and creep factor. She’s one of the kindest people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing, and always finds the beauty in anyone she meets. We spent our nights driving around Belleville for hours, talking and listening to music. Sometimes her best friend Janae would tag along and the three of us would
sing along to Tegan and Sara’s So Jealous. We’d spend hours at Hi-Ho, a little dive diner that we’d fill with smoke after our meals. Jewels once sneaked me into a bar downtown and we closed that place down! (I was extremely worried about getting caught the entire time, since neither of us were 21). I drug her to see Silent Hill when it came out in theaters, and it scared us both so bad we went back to see it again the next weekend. This is our friendship in a nutshell. The most vivid memory from those times was when they took me to an abandoned barn in the middle of nowhere just before midnight. They recounted a local legend: a father died in his truck during an accident while searching for his missing daughter. It turned out she had been strung up in this very barn where we were parked. At midnight, Jewels quickly backed out of the driveway, flashed her headlights three times down the long narrow gravel road, switched off the engine, and left us in total darkness waiting. Nothing happened. “It’s still midnight! Do it again, Jewelsy!” Janae shouted. Jewels pulled back and repeated the ritual, and as soon as we were back in total darkness I saw it: far, far in the distance two headlights, truck height, flicked on as they seemed to move down the road toward us. Now, I have to stop and say that I don’t believe in ghosts. They are fiction. That said: I saw a fucking ghost that night. It was invigorating! We screamed and I sat with my head in my hands saying “ohgodohgodohgod” over and over. Oh No Oh My sings “swing your arms into a ghost” on “In the Backseat,” which is exactly where I was when this happened. Coincidence? Probably. Months later, Jewels ran out of money and was going to have to retreat back to her hometown. I had no problem lending her the money if it meant that she would still be living fairly close. I didn’t have any major financial obligations at the time, so if I hadn’t gifted it to her, I probably would have just spent it on bags of weed. We ended up not seeing each other over the course of that month, but it gave her more time to tie up lose ends. I listened to “Farewell to All My Friends” and thought about how it felt like she would be gone for good. Oh No Oh My called it quits back 2013, but not before putting out another fantastic record called People Problems. It was a lot more serious than that debut, which probably comes from all the experiences they had and ways they grew. Jewels and I have grown a bit apart from those days, but we’ve never quit our friendship. Adulthood just keeps creeping in, but every time we hang out it feels like we’re back in the car, driving around Belleville with the windows down, flicking cigarettes and singing at the top of our lungs.
NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH FLOWERS TO THE PEOPLE
STRANDS
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Cherokee Street 2317 Cherokee St (63118) 762-0422 | flowerstothepeople.biz
Demun 730 Demun Ave (63105) 725-1717 | strands-HAIR.COM
SASHA’S ON SHAW
MELT
Great wines, the best cheeses, always served late! The Shaw Neighborhood’s best bar in the shadow of the garden.
Melt is a funky & eclectic waffle bar offering waffles, cocktails, beer & coffee. Patrons can enjoy live music, pinball, skeeball & more. Gluten free, vegan & vegetarian options available
Shaw 4069 Shaw Blvd 771-7274 | sashaswinebar.com
Cherokee 2712 Cherokee St (63118) 771-6358
CITY DINER AT THE FOX LATE NIGHT CLUB
THE MUD HOUSE
Complete with food and drink, the Club hosts a variety of unique DJs spinning reggae, ska, soul, ’60s garage, surf and rockabilly every Saturday night from 10:30pm until 3am! Midtown 541 North Grand Blvd (63103) 533-7500
There is not a better patio in St. Louis to enjoy our tasty sandwiches and salads or a better place to get out and work outside of the office.
Cherokee Street 2101 Cherokee St (63118) 776-6599 | themudhousestl.com
FOAM
STL STYLEHOUSE
An all-ages music venue with full bar, impressive coffee options, free Wi-Fi, & a great vibe. Catch amazing bands before they’re too big to see in a small room. New hours! M-F 5pm-12am, Sat 9am-12am
St. Louis-inspired wearables, custom screen printing and graphic design. You can’t spell STYLE without STL!
Cherokee Street 3359 S. Jefferson Ave (63118) 772-2100 | foamvenue.com
Cherokee Street 3159 Cherokee St (63118) 494-7763 | stl-style.com
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