Album reviews: Three local releases to check out
Extraterrestrial Hangover
Loudness War
Fuzz worshippers Loudness War have cleaned up their lo-fi sound and picked up a couple recording tricks, delivering a sophomore album that one-ups the band’s debut. Extraterrestrial Hangover still has the snarl and inch-thick sludge of its predecessor Garbage Rock. However, this time around, it’s easier to digest and bleeds cool. “Twin” has some Stooges swagger to it. “Dessert Rock” sounds like early Queens of the Stone Age before giving drummer Ryan Welsh the floor for a small “Moby Dick”-like solo. The song then propels into a double-time tornado. It’s enough to peel back your eyelids and make you want to yell obscenities … in the best way possible. When I was in college I was constantly looking for raucous stuff like this, a soundtrack for strutting. Give me a patch of sidewalk, a pair of headphones and this record, and I’ll feel like a rock ‘n’ roller.
The Wilder Janes
The Wilder Janes
Is there such a thing as Motown chamber folk? If not, The Wilder Janes may be onto something. The group’s debut EP is full of wonder. One second, there is a lush vocal harmony. The next, there is a mandolin solo. The band comprises Becca Babin, Heather Feierabend, Rebecca Richard and Melissa Wilson, all of whom play multiple instruments per song. These women create deliciously catchy pop songs with classic instruments like the harp, mandolin and tenor banjo. It’s a sound reminiscent of a happier Fiona Apple or Aimee Mann. The song “Brazil” is begging for an R&B cover with its forbidden love themes and slick upright bass line. “Clifftop” has an impeccable Fender Rhodes organ solo and a bit of coffeehouse jazz. With any other band, all these different ingredients might not mix well. The fact that The Wilder Janes do it so well makes it even more impressive.
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To Keep from Being Lonely
Humble Kind
Relatively new to the scene, Humble Kind crafts campfire jams. On its debut EP, the band is digging in the ’60s folk record crate, mining a golden sound of its own. To Keep from Being Lonely is a short but sweet preview of a group that is steadily making waves in the city, garnering slots at The Varsity and opening for touring bands. “Sweet, Far-Off Song” shows off the group’s knack for harmonies and sing-along choruses that would go over well with the alt-country crowd. Better still is the Wilco-like feel of the closer “Blue Sky Cry.” The band has an impressive sense of arrangement and not filling each song with too many ideas. These songs give you a peaceful, easy feeling.
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