Posts Tagged ‘disc’
Local Licks 10/31/07
October 31st, 2007 | 
Author: Elliot Randall, Emily Jane White, Pinched Nerve, Minipop, and Project Greenfield
Reviews originally published in the East Bay Express on 10/31/07.
Minipop A New Hope (Take Root Records). Don’t let the name fool you: Minipop’s music can be vast. The quartet is at its best on songs like “Ask Me a Question,” where conventional pop spills over its walls like a river cresting a levee.
Elliot Randall Take the Fall (self released). Close your eyes and forget you’re near the coast — Randall’s roots, rock, and country numbers come straight from the heartland. Keep ‘em shut and never realize he’s only 25 years old.
Emily Jane White Dark Undercoat (Double Negative Records). Folk music can be haunting in the hands of White, whose sparse songs — featuring only her balanced voice over guitar or piano — are as beautiful as they are troubled, especially the reverb-drenched “Dagger.”
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Tempo No Tempo
MySpace (listen to “Static,” “A Different Weapon”)
Hometown: Berkeley
Next local show: 3/2, Oakland Metro
Recent release: The Get Down, 2006
Believe us, we’d be the first to say we’re done with the whole dance-punk thing. On principle alone, we’re just tired of it. Because face it, most of the bands suck. We get it: You discovered Gang of Four. You have a stylish haircut. You think it’s cute to coerce indie rockers to dance. Done yet? Tempo No Tempo don’t escape the latter trap, needlessly bragging on their MySpace page that they sound like “the first time you danced in public and felt okay about it.” But what makes Tempo No Tempo different from the Rapture et al is that TNT are from Berkeley and obviously not interested in assimilating into the dying dance-punk masses.
The May Fire
MySpace (listen to “Red Eye,” “Right and Wrong”)
Official site
Hometown: San Francisco
Next local show: None planned
Recent release: Right and Wrong, 2006
Is that a cowbell we hear? The leadoff track on the May Fire’s debut disc is loaded with it — bangin’ out the quarter notes a la “Don’t Fear the Reaper” through every verse. Many purport to love the cowbell, but few have the guts to feature it in their official “Hello” to the world.
Fans of Elastica may appreciate the verse bassline and rhythm in the next track, “Nothing Today.” The song wraps up with a guitar solo that screams White Stripes. This is good, mind you — as they say, sometimes innovation is overrated. And if you’re looking for something unique, try their backstory. Singer/guitarist Catty Tasso hails from Chile, while drummer El Pipe is from Colombia. The two met in Los Angeles in 2004, then moved to San Francisco. Needless to say, they have a strong Latino following.