DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI – Page 29

DESERT WIZARDS: RAVENS

(BLACK WIDOW RECORDS; Italian import; 2013)

I am not enamored with this band’s name. I find it rather odd, kinda like Justin Bieber. Fortunately, unlike the Bieb, the music of Desert Wizards is highly listenable and, ultimately, RAVENS is one of the more enjoyable genre records of the recent past. The Italian quartet (Marco Mambelli, Anna Fabbri, Marco Goti and Silvio Dalla Valle) excel at a style of early 1970s hard rock that is best exemplified by Alice Cooper (when they were a band). Primary singer Mambelli’s vocals are heavily accented, something that may put some off but, may I remind you of a guy named Klaus Meine? For a short period of time in the early ’90s, his band, Scorpions, was one of – if not THE – biggest hard rock bands on the planet. Don’t miss out on some really good music for something that is a minor barrier to overcome.

“Freedom Ride” kicks things off in fine style, with riff-heavy psychedelic guitars and a beefy organ sound. The bridge builds from Mambelli’s bass before Fabbri’s churchy organ and Valle’s charging drums lead into the two wildly careening guitarists (Goti and Mambelli) who are seemingly soloing against each other. As the drums slow to a martial beat, the organ and guitars seem to swirl as Mambelli’s spoken word, Jim Morrison trance-like vocal trails to the end of the nearly eight minute track. The next tune, “Babylonia,” starts with a nice guitar part, with single notes. The pace picks up at about the 2:10 mark before exploding into a great solo a half minute later. The male/female vocals seem to break into dark angel/Holy angel parts. It’s kinda hard to tell for sure, though, as some of the lyrics don’t really translate well to English: “Between rivers, there’s a Holy river/Beyond grey and purple sky/Babylonia is so much dizzy/For your heart and for your mind.” Thankfully, the lyrical oddities don’t really detract from the song. There is what sounds like humming voices throughout “Back To Blue,” which seem to be very much at odds with the music. This creates a jarringly discordant dichotomy that is, no doubt, purposeful, as it is not entirely displeasing. The track is a slow burn until almost three minutes in, when everything comes into synch with a muscular guitar solo. A little over two minutes later, the whole thing tries to fall in upon itself. As for the vocals, they a quite dreamy and buried deep in the mix; in this instance, the tune probably would have worked better as an instrumental. “Blackbird” sounds like a continuation of the previous number, though maybe more fully realized. The piano at the beginning reminds me of Alice Cooper’s “Ballad of Dwight Fry” and this is certainly a better attempt at a ballad than “Back To Blue,” though the lyrics are very dark. In fact, the “Ballad of Dwight Fry” comparison continues in the lyrics: “I hear someone screaming/Confusion in my mind.” Fabbri takes the lead on organ during the instrumental before another cool guitar solo. This is probably the most progressive sounding tune on the album.

Desert Wizards (photo credit: PINO PINTABONA)

“Dick Allen Blues” is the track where everything gels into a perfect miasma of rock ‘n’ roll bliss. The psychedelia-laced hard rock’s heavy organ is very much in the vein of early (Mach I, in fact) Deep Purple. There’s a strong Native American vibe on “Electric Sunshine,” both melodically and lyrically (minimal though they are): “Feed your head/Look at the sunrise/Feed your eyes.” The song also has a hint of Uriah Heep’s Ken Hensley with the slightly hypnotic organ, chord progressions and vocals. “Burn Into the Sky” features more forceful vocals, though they’re still muddied in the mix, which has me wondering if this is a compensation for the accent. The chunky riffing turns into a Sabbath-like bass heavy dirge somewhere around 2:50 – a very cool, atmospheric sound. There are also some very impressive wah-wah drenched solos before the song kicks back in at about 5:10. With a Gothic/Damned feel, “Vampire’s Queen” displays what may be the best lyrics on the record during the chorus: “Oh wake up, Lady Vampira/I need your poison as you need my blood/Take me down to the river of madness/Drag me to Hell, give me your bite.” The break comes along at about the three-and-a-half minute mark and, with a grand touch of menace, is head and shoulders above anything else on the album. Quite possibly the most fully realized song here. The Gothic theme continues with “Bad Dreams.” The piece starts with a fever-dream guitar signature, a lot like Alice’s “Halo of Flies.” A buzzing guitar, soloing throughout, adds to the swirling dementia. A cacophony of noise houses Vincent Price’s recitation of Poe’s “The Raven” before a more pastoral bridge that breaks down into a driving, frenzied terminus.

The CD version of the album features a bonus track, a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Childhood’s End” from the ONE OF MY TURNS tribute record. It’s a fairly faithful version that, while enjoyable, seems rather out of place here. Desert Wizards is a good band that could elevate their game – as Scorpions did – by hiring someone to help with English lyrics. You can pick up the CD version of RAVENS (as well as the band’s self-titled debut) from Amazon or from the Italian record company at www.blackwidow.it, but.. it ain’t gonna be cheap!

ROMAN REMAINS: ZEAL

(HOT RECORDS; 2014)

Roman Remains is the electro-industrial pop side project of Leila Moss and Toby Butler of the Duke Spirit. With a sound that draws from the vanguard of the multiple genres that form the basis of their music, Butler and Moss weave an elegant and mysterious veil throughout their eleven track debut, ZEAL. The duo uses an old-school industrial base of such groups as Gravity Kills and God Lives Underwater (both bands that are much-loved and much missed by this scribe), augmenting that with an updated electronic sound that leans heavily on the pop sensibilities of (recent tour mate) Gary Numan and a voice that isn’t too dissimilar to Siouxsie Sioux. Mixing everything together, the result is something new, relevant and distinctly original.

The first track, “This Stone Is Starting To Bleed,” has that Gravity Kills vibe, while also reminding me somewhat – and I really hate to make this comparison – of the pop tendencies of Brian Warner, minus his “shock-for-shock’s-sake” lyrics and persona. The song also introduces an Arabic theme to the music, which is repeated throughout the album, adding to the mysterious feel. The poppier side of the music drives “Tachycardia,” a song whose melody wouldn’t seem out of place on a tune by Britney or Shakira, even if the lyrical nuances would be lost on either (well, maybe not Shakira… she seems to be fairly intelligent but, you get my drift). “Nest In Your Room” features an ominous, slightly ghoulish lyric (“Hold a thousand mirrors up to your nose/Comb your hair with the scent of a rose”) as the guitars and synthesizers buzz into a hive-like drone. This one definitely has the underlying menace that has always been present in Numan’s music. A dark, Gothic ballad, “Agrimony,” features uncharacteristically gauzy vocals from Moss amidst a minimalist backdrop, the various parts morphing into a very creepy whole.

“Apoidea” ups the machine quotient, with more bleeps and wheezes and a heavily synthesized percussive track. With everything kind of going off at once, the tune sounds very disjointed but, a closer listen shows it to be a calculated risk amongst the other, more “standard” tracks. The next track, “Thirsty As a Truck,” has a calliope-like rhythm alongside an odd guitar signature and lyrics to match. “Gazebo” is a slow burning, taut ballad. The beautiful vocals and chiming guitar adds to the mesmerizing tension of the track. The Arabic influences are more prominent on “Influence and Atlas,” which features strong Middle Eastern percussion. The guitars and vocals also evoke the sound and feel of the region’s music. The occasional odd (as in, out-of-place) synth bloop actually distracts from the potential power of the track. A minor complaint for an album of such musical and lyrical depth.

There’s a sort of sexy menace that permeates “Animals.” The track is a fairly solid mash-up of Creatures-era Siouxsie vocals (not to mention the Budgie-style berating of several percussion instruments), some “clanging” guitar chords and a strange, modernistic take on traditional Hip-Hop. “Vulture Bird” starts with a serious horror movie minor key introduction and things just get weirder and more violently ominous as it moves along. Along with “Nest In Your Room,” this is probably my favorite (at least, as I’m writing this). A throbbing synthesized bass line and a pumping-heart drum beat, again, takes “It End In Other Ways” to a dark, dark place, a modern equivalent of the Gothic Darkwave music that all the hip young ghouls danced to in the graveyard a few years back. There are a lot of comparisons to be made but, in the end, ZEAL is emphatically, above anything else, a Roman Remains album. I, for one, can’t wait to hear their next progression.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews Streaming Video | Darren Tracy | April 8, 2014 | Electronic Music Industrial Music Leila Moss Music Roman Remains Streaming Video The Duke Spirit Toby Butler

LAKE STREET DIVE: BAD SELF PORTRAITS

(SIGNATURE SOUNDS; 2014)

The four-piece Lake Street Dive would be as comfortable on-stage at a big Country show as they would be at a small Jazz club; they would fit in equally well with old-school Soul or Rock ‘n’ Roll and would even find (or gain) ardent fans on a Warped Tour stage. On their latest release, BAD SELF PORTRAITS, the immediate point of distinction – as with everything that has come before – is the voice of Rachel Price. While Price is the obvious focal point, the musicians behind her are responsible for putting words in her mouth: drummer Mike Calabrese; guitarist, trumpeter and founding member Mike “McDuck” Olson; bassist and primary songwriter (at least on this album) Bridget Kearney. The diverse sound of Lake Street Dive can most easily be traced by the geographical history of the four members: Olson hails from Minneapolis (home of Prince and Husker Du); Calabrese calls Philadelphia home (Philly Soul, anyone?); Kearney is from Iowa (as was/is Big Band leader Glenn Miller and metal extremists Slipknot); Price comes from just outside Nashville (the one in Tennessee… you know… “Music City”). This huddled mass melted into the New England Conservatory pot in Boston.

Lake Street Dive (Mike Calabrese, Bridget Kearney, Rachel Price, Mike Olson) (publicity photo)

BAD SELF PORTRAITS kicks of with the title track, a very cool Motown vibe and vocals that have a throwback appeal – think Norah Jones channeling Ronnie Specter… kinda thick and sultry. “Stop Your Crying” is very much in the same vein: girl group pop for the next century with backing vocals that are best described as… uh-hum!… “Supreme.” The next tune, “Better Than,” has a distinct Buckingham-Nicks/Fleetwood Mac groove, with a syncopated percussion pattern, a medley line and backing vocals that are quite Stevie-esque (Nicks not Wonder, in case you didn’t get the previous reference), and a very churchy sounding organ. Bridget Kearney (who wrote this one, the equally infectious title track and three more of the 11 songs here) also adds a very nice acoustic bass line. “Rabid Animal” is a wicked girl group/Carole King-Brill Building tune with a punchy rhythm and a tack piano driving toward its abrupt end.

Lake Street Dive (Mike Calabrese, Rachel Price, Bridget Kearney, Mike Olson) (photo credit: JARROD MCCABE)

“You Go Down Smooth” is a kind of dirty blues, featuring a standard George Thorogood guitar riff. There’s a great horn chart that gives the number a grand, Big Band feel, which is accentuated by some jazzy, charging drums and excellent backing vocals on the chorus. The funky soul of “Use Me Up” features a snappy percussion pattern but, it’s the slapping bass line, with just enough resonance, bounce and spring in the strings to give it a nifty ’30s Jazz vibe. “Bobby Tanqueray” is a cool mix of modern alternative rock guitar parts, loopy, out-of-left-field bizarro stage production lyrics and an odd sci-fi/fantasy siren (the mythological chicks, not the noisey, wailing warning devices) sound (is it a synthesizer thingy… is it a theremin… is it a human voice?) that really kicks this one up a notch on my “like-o-meter.” Believe it or not, “Just Ask,” reminds me of something from Paice Ashton Lord (a Deep Purple off-shoot), with a heavy organ sound, a beefy guitar sound and a funky groove.

Lake Street Dive (Bridget Kearney, Mike Calabrese, Mike Olson, Rachel Price) (publicity photo)

“Seventeen” is probably the rockin’est track, with a driving, crisp Southern Rock guitar sound and almost tribal drumming from Calabrese. The male/female duet vocals adds another dimension, reminiscent of the sound Dale Krantz and Barry Harwood brought to their duets with the Rossington-Collins Band. The chorus and the rhythm of the track are of the variety that gets stuck in your head, on perpetual rewind. A loose, random feel permeates the percussion heavy “What About Me,” giving it a funky, rollicking late ’60s feel. The church choir chorus and New Orleans-style guitar and drums adds to the almost sloppy party atmosphere, kinda like a Big Easy funeral procession during Mardi Gras. The final track, “Rental Love,” clocking in at just over two-and-a-half minutes, is as close as this record gets to a ballad. The instrumentation is – once again – crisp and imaginative but, Price’s vocal performance raises the track to another level… something more than a standard Rock/Pop/whatever ballad.

BAD SELF PORTRAITS is short by today’s standards, a few seconds shy of 40 minutes. You get so lost, however, in the little nuances (lyrically, vocally and instrumentally) of the album that you don’t realize the brevity… you just know you want to hear more. I’m well aware that we’re barely a quarter of the way through the year, but I’m gonna be hard pressed to find many more deserving releases for a spot in my “Best of 2014” list.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Darren Tracy | April 4, 2014 | Bridget Kearney Jazz Lake Street Dive Mike Calabrese Mike Olson Music Pop Music Rachel Price Rhythm and Blues Rock and Roll

BIG HEAD TODD AND THE MONSTERS

(March 8, 2014; THE PAGEANT, Saint Louis, MO)

In the mid-to-late 1990s, Big Head Todd and the Monsters recorded some of the most memorable music of the “alternative rock era.” A lot – “Bittersweet,” “Circle,” “Resignation Superman” – are still personal favorites from that time. And, yet, somehow, this March night in Saint Louis, is the first time I’ve seen them play live. What can I say, except… “Wow!” This is one of the tightest bands it has ever been my pleasure to see play live. And, their fans? Some would call them “rabid,” but that really isn’t right… sounds too animalistic. However, the word “loyal” does come to mind… and, not in a puppy dog kind of way. Speaking to a couple of young ladies before the show, I discovered that one had been following the guys around the country, through some truly horrible weather, like that ancient tribe known as the “Dead-Heads.” The other – even though she, like myself, was attending her first BHTM show – talked about how excited she was because this is the music that got her through some very hard times.

The night was billed as “An Evening With Big Head Todd and the Monsters,” which meant – obviously – no opening act. But, the quartet (Todd Park Mohr, Rob Squires, Brian Nevin and Jeremy Lawton) did bring along a couple of friends to join in on the fun: Guitarist Ronnie Baker Brooks (son of legendary Chicago Bluesman, Lonnie Brooks) and vocalist (and former full-time member of the band) Hazel Miller. It was apparent that all six came to play! Todd and the Monsters kicked things off with one of their biggest hits, “Bittersweet,” following that with another, “Resignation Superman.” You just know that you’re in for a special night when the band starts with two of their biggest achievements, chart-wise. A couple of early songs, “Vincent of Jersey” and “The Leaving Song” (the first two tracks from the group’s second album, 1990’s MIDNIGHT RADIO) brought us to the first new tune, the beautifully rendered “Josephina,” which reminds me of some of Phil Lynott’s best Thin Lizzy balladry. Ronnie Baker Brooks joined the band for a fun version of “Twine Time,” a 1964 hit for Saint Louis natives, Alvin Cash and the Crawlers. At the time, I had no idea who the guy playing the mean blues guitar was, but I knew that he had a familiar style. After speaking to him during the break and learning his heritage, that style and sound made perfect sense: His father, Lonnie, was a leading light in bringing the Chicago style of the Blues to prominence in the ’70s. Mohr and Brooks are certainly a formidable guitar tandem. Hazel Miller joined in the fun a few songs later, delivering a mesmerizing “ICU In Everything.” The sextet ended the set with a funky, roiling “Beautiful World” and a great version of “It’s Alright.”

The second set kicked off with another pair of hits, “Broken Hearted Savior” and “Circle,” before moving into “Please Don’t Tell Her” – a song that prominently features the organ-work of Jeremy Lawton – and its BEAUTIFUL WORLD album-mate, “Caroline.” The next several songs were from the group’s latest, BLACK BEEHIVE: “Everything About You,” “I Get Smooth,” which is sort of a Fats Domino-type stroll with a nice upright bass line from Rob Squires, and the funky slide workout of “Seven State Lines.” “Dirty Juice,” another – harder edged – slide extravaganza breaks up the new music set before the title track ballad, “Black Beehive.” A honkin’, funky take of “Yes We Can” kicked things back up a notch before a solemn “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” which was ingeniously coupled with the Staple Singers’ fantastic 1971 hit, “Respect Yourself.” A Brooks song, “Love Me Baby,” from his album, THE TORCH, led into the set closer, the muscular “We Won’t Go Back,” another BLACK BEEHIVE track. The encore featured a rocking cover of LMFAO’s “Sexy and I Know It” sandwiched between another pair of new songs, the hauntingly beautiful, acoustic “Travelin’ Light” and the heavy, chugging funk of “Hey Delilah.”

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this evening. What I got were great performances – guitarists Brooks and Mohr and drummer Brian Nevin in particular; a healthy dose of the BLACK BEEHIVE album, as well as classic BHTM tracks and some well-chosen (if occasionally odd) covers. As mentioned at the beginning of this review, this was my first BHTM live experience. It will not be my last!

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Live Music Reviews | Darren Tracy | March 16, 2014 | Alternative Rock Big Head Todd and the Monsters Hazel Miller Live Music Music Rhythm and Blues Rock and Roll Ronnie Baker Brooks Saint Louis The Pageant Todd Park Mohr

OUR LAST ENEMY: PARIAH

(ECLIPSE RECORDS; 2014)

I gotta be honest here, boys and girls: I have not listened to industrial metal since… oh… the late 1990s or there-abouts, when Fear Factory was tearing it up, in the studio and on the road. Having said that, I gotta be honest about something else: I absolutely love Our Last Enemy’s new album! Now, I don’t know how much this has to do with my liking the record so much, but it is produced by former Fear Factory bassist Christian Olde Wolbers. There are FF references and head-nods (head-bangs?) aplenty, alongside healthy dollops of Type O Negative, Black Sabbath, Ministry, Korn, Alice Cooper and Zakk Wylde’s Black Label Society. That, of course, means that aside from the full-throated growls of Oliver Fogwell (how apt a name is that?) and Matt Heywood and the down-tuned guitars of Bizz Bernius (of Genitorturers fame), there is plenty of metal, hard rock and just plain ol’ rock tossed into the mix to make things truly interesting.

PARIAH is a loose fitting concept album. The “Pariah” is a poor soul who somehow finds himself reborn at the center of great upheavals throughout history, sometimes as a mere witness, other times as the epicenter of whatever crisis happens to be unfolding. This chaotic theme is played out very well – musically and lyrically – by the apocalyptic Australians. For 13 tracks (and three remixes… of which, more later) the often crushing musical feel compounds the sense of misery (and hope for redemption) related in the lyrics. So, let’s take a look at the high points of a very fulfilling album, shall we? The first few tracks are standard industrial metal, but gain points for a few things. “Devour the Sun” is basic pummel-you-into-submission metal with some very cool “horror movie” keyboard accents. The glass-gargling vocals take some getting used to but, by the end of the track, you can tell that they are a major asset to the ongoing success of this band. By the second tune, “Wolves of Perigord,” the concept emerges, full-blown. This song, in particular, showcases the percussive side of Our Last Enemy. Seemingly every instrument – including the guitars – is used as a percussion instrument. Drummer Zot Cillia thunders his way through the track, as he does throughout the disc. The music kinda takes a back seat as the vocals move the story along on the lyric heavy “10.000 Headless Horses.” A creepy, atmospheric video for the tune has been produced by the Blackley Brothers (check it out below). Some biting guitar jabs open up the instrumentation on “Internus Diablos Verni,” giving the song the feel of a heavier Guns ‘n’ Roses. The whole vibe, however, is sorta reminiscent of Black Sabbath… without sounding anything like them. A kinda stun guitar sound (rather like Zakk Wylde) gives “Low” an odd hair band air to it. As always, the vocals and keyboards (provided by Jeff Ritchie) are exceptionally spot on. “Carrion” has a funky sort of Red Hot Chili Peppers thing happening at the start and introduces a synth pattern that wouldn’t have been out of place in Gary Numan’s “Cars.” The pace, quality, and diversity of the music continues to pick up.

The Fear Factory factor comes into play on “Pariah BC,” which also features a disjointed vocal melody that reminds one of Alice Cooper’s late ’80s/early ’90s work (“Poison,” anyone?). There’s more Fear Factory comparisons on “Don’t Look Now,” as Fogwell vocally channels Burton C Bell. The rest of the band adopt a cool Deftones stance. “Pariah AD” is all Type O Negative/Black Sabbath gloomy, doomy stuff… which is awesome! An added bonus is the guitar solo, with a lot of single, bent notes that sounds a lot like “The Ballad of Dwight Fry” from the Coops. “Decoy” is, quite simply, heavy, abusive and stifling. There’s an awesome groove to “What You Say,” with synched melodies from guitar and voice. It also has that big, chanting monks sound that Sabbath used to great effect on more than one occasion. “Ants In the Farm” starts with a nifty, spongy sounding bass line and evolves (de-evolves?) into another FF-like song, with heavy doses of Korn tossed in. The boys saved the best for last. “Into the Light,” with its atmospheric, mostly whispered lyrics (’til at least mid-song). It also features a great, reverb-drenched guitar coda, adding to the funeral dirge menace. Bizz’ guitar takes an exceptionally cool hard rock turn toward the end of the song, echoing to a great sounding piano outro (as these types of songs often do).

And, there you have it… a feast for metal-heads and industrialists the world over. Well… except for… the three “bonus” tracks. Anybody who has ever read one of my reviews over the last 20 years will know that I am not a fan of remixes. Especially remixes of brand new songs. I’m one of those hard-headed people who thinks that if you liked the original version well enough to release it, why mess with it? Anyway, the remixes are for “Internus Diablos Verni” (by Mortiis… I actually kinda like it), “Devour the Sun” (by Angel from Dope Team Cybergeist… uh… yeah… not so much) and “Pariah AD” (by Divine Heresy’s Travis Neal, it’s called a “Karloff Mix” and plays up the horror movie keyboards… I guess it’s okay but… it’s still a remix, right?). For me, that makes 13 (the originals) up and three down (the remixes) but, I guess, if you are into remixes, then that truly is a bonus for you.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews Streaming Video | Darren Tracy | March 8, 2014 | Bizz Bernius Blackley Brothers Christian Olde Wolbers Concept Album Divine Heresy Dope Team Cybergeist Fear Factory Genitorturers Heavy Metal Industrial Music Mortiis Music Our Last Enemy Streaming Video

THOUGHT CHAMBER: PSYKERION

(INSIDE OUT MUSIC; 2013)

Guitarist Michael Harris and vocalist Ted Leonard (of Spock’s Beard, Enchant and Affector fame) are big-brain, virtuoso musicians. Leonard and Harris asked other big-brain, virtuoso musicians (Mike Haid, who has played with David Chastain and with Harris on his solo projects; Bill Jenkins, Leonard’s bandmate in Enchant; Jeff Plant, session musician extraordinaire) to join them for this, their second album under the Thought Chamber banner. The album, PSYKERION, is what happens when big-brain, virtuoso musicians get together. A word of advice: I suggest you don protective gear before entering into this piece of sonic sci-fi bliss. This just may be the single most enjoyable piece of progressive rock to come along in the past year!

Obviously, in a genre steeped in legendary performances and performers, there are going to be comparisons. Likewise, studying the pedigrees of the players here, we cannot help but compare Thought Chamber to their other projects – especially Spock’s Beard. Those comparisons come fast and furious from the first few seconds of the first track but, they are only comparisons, as this music is utterly unique to this group of musicians. The first thing you’ll notice, as with all great prog rock bands and concept albums, the songs seem to meld into each other (in fact, of the 16 tracks on PSYKERION, only one is a stand-alone piece). The first three tracks are kinda like the overture, introducing themes and concepts that will repeat throughout the record. “Inceptus” sounds like a more progressive Deep Purple, with definite similarities to Ritchie Blackmore’s fleet-fingered fretboard work, as well as Jon Lord’s keyboard mastery. Flipping a coin, so to speak, it’s also rather reminiscent of a heavier Kansas or UK, with its jazzier elements and powerful Terry Bozzio like drumming. The track morphs into “Exodus,” a moody interlude with beefy power chords, lightning-quick soloing and the odd computer “blip.” Ted Leonard makes his first vocal appearance on “Psykerion: The Question.” His voice is what you’d expect – smooth and confident, with a definite touch of Steve Walsh. Harris offers up some cool Zappa-like guitar runs, while an acoustic rhythm part cuts through occasionally. “In the Words of Avakus,” a gentle, Steve Howe type of guitar piece with beautiful keyboard washes and strings, serves as an intro to “Light Year Time,” which turns into full-on Yes overload. The vocal melody and overall vibe is closer to something off the woefully overlooked DRAMA album, with Leonard’s vocals coming off as a cross between Trevor Horn (Yes vocalist during the DRAMA period), Jon Anderson (THE… ) and the schlock-meister general of pomp rock, Dennis DeYoung. Mike Haid’s percussion on the piece is an interesting Bill Bruford style jazz workout, while Haid’s rhythm section co-hort Jeff Plant lays down an equally intriguing bass line. Even though Bill Jenkins drops a few unfortunate DeYoung-like synth farts, the song is still a strong rocker. The single “stand-alone” tune, “Kerakryps,” starts as a funky kinda “Doctor Feelgood” thing before kicking into a jazzy workout, bordering on Emerson, Lake and Palmer style bombast. A closer listen reveals a dollop of Rush influence, as well. A very interesting piece, indeed.

“The Black Hole Lounge” is a kind of fusion thing, sounding a lot like something that you’d here from Joe Zawinul’s Weather Report if George Benson were playing guitar. It works as the intro to “Circuits of ODD,” a continuation of the fusion feel, but heavier. Haid’s powerful drumming certainly adds to the cool feel of this one. “Behind the Eyes of Ikk” is a big time metal beat down, kicking off the next triptych. It’s like a heavier “Children of the Sun,” with an awesome piano-driven break before a guitar versus keyboard stand off (shoot out?). Harris doesn’t pull any punches on this tune. Another gentle Yes type song, of the Howe/Anderson variety, “Isle of Bizen,” features yet another blistering Harris solo and Plant doing his best (and that’s pretty darn good!) Jaco Pastorius imitation. The final piece of the medley, the instrumental “Xyrethius II” has a title that would suggest a Rush vibe. It really reminds me of a keyboard driven something that Gregg Giuffria might have produced with one of his mid-’80s-early-’90s groups (Giuffria and House of Lords). Much like the very best Dream Theater, “Recoil” is almost suffocatingly heavy and leads into “Breath of Life,” which finds us returning to the Kansas comparisons, with a solid organ riff and slightly religious/metaphysical overtones. Those overtones continue with “Transcend.” There’s more Steve Howe comparisons, though maybe from his Asia work, while Plant ups his Jaco imitation to a solid Chris Squire sound. There are two separate break-downs, the first is jazzy and a little bit funky; the second is heavy and more progressive sounding. From “Transcend,” we move to “Planet Qwinkle,” which sounds like Keith Emerson and Robert Fripp dueling for supremacy in the Prog Rock Olympics, as Jenkins and Harris push each other to ever greater heights. Leonard brings another Steve Walsh-worthy performance on the album closer, “Inner Peace.” Jeff Plant finishes strong with a great, upfront bass performance.

Now, I know that I may get grief for the continual comparisons to other groups but, when you’re working with five decades of great music, it is really hard not to find those similarities. That in no way diminishes the talents of the five gentlemen of Thought Chamber and the powerful performances found on PSYKERION, which may, in fact, be the best progressive records in the past year.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Darren Tracy | March 6, 2014 | Bill Jenkins Concept Album Jeff Plant Michael Harris Mike Haid Music Progressive Rock Spock's Beard Ted Leonard Thought Chamber

156: TAKING A LOOK AT A MOMENT LOST

(CHONDRITIC SOUND CASSETTE EP; 2013)

So… ya say that you were the only guy on your block (in your town?… in your state?) that bought Lou Reed’s METAL MACHINE MUSIC and actually played it more than once and – above all else – understood it? Okay, tough guy, have I got a release for you – the latest in minimalist metal from Adel Souto, a self-described “writer, musician and troublemaker,” whose musical nom de plume is 156. TAKING A LOOK AT A MOMENT LOST has a pots and pans, anvils and chains, everything-in kind of sound, very percussive in the best possible all-metallic way. This is the heaviest metal I’ve heard since “Weapon Training,” the opening track on Throbbing Gristle’s THEE PSYCHICK SACRIFICE in 1982!

156 mastermind Adel Souto (uncredited photo)

Souto’s web-site (www.adelsouto.com) calls his 156 alter ego an “industrial junkyard outfit.” Okay… works for me. Whatever you wanna call it, TAKING A LOOK… is totally abrasive and gratingly beautiful. “Fading Images” starts things off with tinkling chimes, reverberated and phased into a ringing background drone, with a creep-inducing disembodied chant that may keep you up way past your bedtime. On “And the Crowd Calls For His Head,” the drone takes on the wail of a ship’s call horn, while the percussive impetus seems to be coming from finger cymbals and the hinges of large metal doors. “Expand and Contract” takes the previous track and ratchets the noise up to 11 before morphing into “Leaving Without Dinner,” a more sedate track, with chimes, gongs, cymbals and what appears to be rattling bones. For only the second time, the sound barrier is broken on “Blasting Away,” with what sounds like a kettle drum or large trash barrel crashing through the less-than-two-minute piece. “Compression” could be the same instrument but, as the name implies, run through a (possibly analog) sound compressor. The dynamics of the track lay within the silences. The final tracks work as sort of triptych of loud/soft/softer blasts of droning background noises and clangorous percussion. “The Midnight Hour (May Day)” sounds like metal-on-metal, run through that compressor with echo effects seemingly melting the “beats” together in a hypnotic dissonance. “About To Kowtow” is quieter and sounds very much like an anvil, a dishwasher and a metal sander vying for attention under an incessant headache-inducing whistle. “The Midnight Hour (All Souls Day)” is, perhaps, the quietest track here, starting with the sounds of what could be religious censers being lit by matches before erupting into a dive-bombing white noise cacophony of cicadas.

So, if you’ve got the guts for this kind of music (or if you’re an adventurous soul), you’d better get your order in fast… TAKING A LOOK AT A MOMENT LOST is released in a limited edition of 100 here: store.chondriticsound.com. Don’t dawdle!

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Darren Tracy | March 3, 2014 | 156 Adel Souto Cassette Only Release EP Experimental Music Industrial Music Limited Edition Minimalist Music

FROM LIVERPOOL TO MEMPHIS: THE JOEY MOLLAND INTERVIEW

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

Joey Molland , circa 2013 (uncredited photo)

Joey Molland has known the highs and lows that comes from a life in music. He’s experienced those same highs and lows in his personal life, as well. Born in 1947, by the early 1960s, a teenage Molland was performing in bands around his hometown of Liverpool. Playing with the Assassins and the Profiles led to Joey joining a group called the Masterminds in 1965. Members of the Rolling Stones and their manager/producer, Andrew Loog Oldham, heard the group play at a club. Oldham was impressed enough to produce and release a single on his Immediate label. From the Masterminds, Joey became part of a backing band for the Merseys (Tony Crane and Bill Kinsley, formerly of the Merseybeats) called the Fruit Eating Bears. A stint in the Cryin’ Shames led to an opportunity for Molland to show off his songwriting abilities with Gary Wilson and the Rain.

When the Rain washed away, he was offered a spot with a group called the Iveys. The band had been recording music for a movie soundtrack, to be released on the Beatles’ Apple Records. Before the album MAGIC CHRISTIAN MUSIC was released, the Iveys became Badfinger and, though Joey’s name appears in the album credits, he didn’t appear on any of the tracks. The band, including Molland, however, had already begun working on the follow-up, a more proper album from Badfinger. Guitarist/singer Pete Ham, bassist Tome Evans and Joey played on various sessions for solo Beatles projects aside from their work in Badfinger. However, the guitarist/songwriter’s time in Badfinger was, to say the least, tumultuous. Things finally came to head in 1974 when, after the release of WISH YOU WERE HERE, their third album in 12 months, Joey walked away from the band. The decision was based on problems with management. These problems continued and were a factor in Pete Ham’s suicide in April, 1975.

Natural Gas (Mark Clarke, Joey Molland, Peter Wood and Jerry Shirley) (publicity photo)

After an album and successful tours with his new band, Natural Gas, Joey reconnected with bassist Tom Evans in 1979 for a couple of albums under the Badfinger banner (AIRWAVES and the hugely under-rated SAY NO MORE). That relationship fell apart, leading to both musicians touring their own versions of Badfinger. Evans, unable to shake the lingering effects of the gross mismanagement of the band’s early ’70s career, hung himself in September 1983. Drummer Mike Gibbins died in October, 2005, leaving Molland as the only surviving member of the once promising Badfinger. Though he still tours with a version of the band, called Joey Molland’s Badfinger, his recorded output since 1981’s SAY NO MORE have been released under his own name. The Molland discography is short: Before the release of RETURN TO MEMPHIS, Joey released his debut solo outing, AFTER THE PEARL, in 1983 with THE PILGRIM following hot on the heels… in 1993. THIS WAY UP, released in 2001, has been called “one of the best solo discs that ex-members of the Beatles never made.” An album of demos called BASIL was offered on Joey’s web-site in 1999.

Joey Molland onstage with Tom Evans, 1979 (uncredited photo)

PART TWO: RETURN TO MEMPHIS

On the new RETURN TO MEMPHIS (released on GONZO MULTIMEDIA), Joey’s voice has grown into a pleasant Mark Knopfler laid-back delivery, with just a hint of the young Zimmerman. Continuing the Beatles comparisons, I would liken the album to the John Lennon comeback, DOUBLE FANTASY, simply because – after an extended lay-off between releases – every song and each performance is so strong that it’s impossible to imagine that he’d ever been away.

“Walk Out In the Rain” is a heartfelt, world-weary mid-tempo track enhanced by the female vocal backing and a Memphis style, Sunday-go-to-meeting organ. “A Ship To Mars” recalls Badfinger’s gentler moments, featuring a nice bass line and some excellent guitar work. More great guitar work highlights “Only When It Rains,” while “Got a Feeling” takes you back to those early Memphis rhythm and blues/rockabilly sides by Elvis Presley… one of the best songs here. Not the Paul McCartney song, “Yesterday” may be the most “modern” sounding tune here, delving into a kinda Gothic shoe-gazing vibe before heading off into more direct pop sound, sprinkled with a little Middle Eastern flavor. “All I Ever Dreamed” offers a more prominent Knopfler vocal resemblance and features some really tasty guitar work from Joey. The song, again, benefits from strong backing vocals, bass and organ. The laconic Knopfler sound is on display once more on the lyrical masterpiece, “Hero.” :All I Need Is Love” is a funky response to the Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love,” maybe taking a little bit of the wind out of the whole hippie love-fest of the late ’60s. The song is another back to the roots Memphis soul track, with some great, pounding piano. One of the things that gave Badfinger such a unique sound was Molland’s slide work. That slide work is elegantly displayed on “Is It Any Wonder,” another favorite of yours truly. The final track, “Still I Love You” is a hypnotic, Cajun voodoo kinda thing, with some awesome, fuzzed out guitar. Whether you were ever a fan of Badfinger or any of Joey’s other work (or were even aware of it), this album is a fantastic introduction to the man and his music.

PART THREE: THE INTERVIEW

THE MULE: Joey, you’re solo output is small but quite impressive. Is the length between releases by design or is it dictated by your creative process? How much does your practice/touring schedule with Joey Molland’s Badfinger have to do with your release schedule?

JOEY: My experience with Badfinger left me a little jaded and pretty broke. Our name, even though we had some success, was never a strong draw in the live concert world, so it has never been easy to make a regular living as a performer. I’ve always written what came to mind, commercial or not. Making records costs money, so I’ve had to wait for opportunities to present themselves.

THE MULE: I really enjoyed RETURN TO MEMPHIS. The album stands well as a cohesive whole, but seems to fall into two distinct styles. There’s plenty of old Memphis/Stax soul groove, while other tracks have a definite Badfinger feel. Are all of the compositions new or are some of the more “rocking” tunes older things that may not have fit (either due to time constraints or stylistic differences) on earlier projects? How did your love for Memphis soul play into the music you’ve created in the past 40 plus years?

JOEY: I always have plenty of material to use. When I was going to Memphis to make the record, I sent Carl Wise, the producer, 30 songs, written over the past 5 or 6 years. If some of them sound Badfingery, it’s probably because I wrote and sang over half the songs we – Badfinger – recorded and I played guitar on all of them. I think my songs all have a certain rhythmic element and I think that’s the Memphis/soul element. At the same time, I’ve never tried to sing like I was from Memphis, but I could never hide the influence.

THE MULE: All of these questions, obviously, lead up to this: Can you give us a bit of insight into the creative process – writing and recording – that led to the album, RETURN TO MEMPHIS? Who played on the album? Do you plan to tour in support of this release or to incorporate any of the tunes into Badfinger’s live sets?

JOEY: A long while ago some friends of mine in Minneapolis, the Echo Boys, told me they had access to a studio in town on Tuesday nights and, if I would bring a song to do, we could record it on those nights for free. Well, I said, “OK, great,” and we started. I think “Hero” was the first, but I’m not really sure. Anyway, we recorded every week and soon, come Friday or Saturday night, I’d get an idea and we’d work it the next Tuesday night and, voila, out of nowhere, a tune would come. All sorts of tunes. So, most of the …MEMPHIS CD came out of those nights with the Echo Boys.

The Memphis players were Lester Snells (piano, B3, Wurlitzer and Rhodes), Steve Potts (drums and percussion) and Dave Smith (bass) – all full grown musos. Carl and I recorded 12 demos, some acoustic and some from the Echo Boys sessions and gave them to Lester. He wrote charts as guides for everybody – all of us – and we went into Royal Studios and recorded the tracks. I played acoustic on all the basics. When we had the tracks done, I overdubbed my electric bits, did my vocals and was finished. I should say, of course, Carl directed the whole thing. He got what he needed and sent me home. He’s great to work with and understood what I was doing there. That’s why the CD sounds so natural. It was scary at first, but when I heard those girls, I lost my fear. It was a great experience for me and I’ll never forget it. It would be great to do some roadwork with them all. I do a couple of the tunes onstage now, in both my acoustic “storyteller” type shows and in the Joey Molland’s Badfinger concerts.

THE MULE: Backtracking, historically, you joined the Iveys (the band that was re-named Badfinger) after the recording of MAGIC CHRISTIAN MUSIC, a piecemeal offering that featured a few new “Badfinger” songs, including “Come and Get It.” What memories do you have of coming in under that situation… basically learning and playing those songs live, songs that you had no input, creatively?

Joey Molland onstage, circa 1971 (uncredited photo)

JOEY: When I joined the band, they had already recorded “Come and Get It” and the three other songs for the movie and were looking for a new name. They fired the bass player and, because Tommy Evans took over on bass, they started looking for a new guitar player and I came along. They gave me the job and changed their name to Badfinger. I’d been playing cover songs all my life, although I’d written some songs in 1968 for the Gary Walker and the Rain album, so it was no big deal to learn and play those songs. The ones we played were “Come and Get It,” “Crimson Ship,” “Carry On ’til Tomorrow” and “Rock of All Ages.”

THE MULE: With the live appearances behind you and the chance to gel with the other three guys, were things easier for you going into writing and recording the next album? Obviously, with the group now featuring four strong songwriters, the decision process to decide which songs actually made it to the final cut must have been fairly difficult. What was that process like?

JOEY: We started recording before we went on the road. The process was simple: we played the ideas we had and worked them for a while; we may have demoed them, but usually we’d never heard the songs before. It would become obvious which songs would work and we’d develop those into what became our records. There was no formula. That’s clear from the different styles of songs we recorded – Folk, Rock, Pop, R and B. As long as we liked the idea, we did the song. Of course, the producers put their two cents in, too.

Badfinger, STRAIGHT UP photo shoot (Tom Evans, Pete Ham, Mike Gibbins and Joey Molland) (photo credit: Richard DiLello)

THE MULE: I know that you’re probably sick of being asked questions like this, but I know a lot of our readers will be interested. Please indulge us for just a couple of questions about your relationship with the Beatles. First, while the Beatles were all a few years older than you, did you ever run into any of the guys growing up in Liverpool?

JOEY: I never met the Beatles in Liverpool. I still haven’t met Paul… probably never will.

THE MULE: In Greg Kihn’s novel, RUBBER SOUL, the main character traded certain “services” to sailors coming in to port at Liverpool from the United States for American 45s. You’ve mentioned that, at an early age, you were learning Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley tunes on guitar. How did you get those American singles to learn from? If they were available at all, they must have been very expensive as imports.

JOEY: I’ve never read the book. I got most of my records from my older brother, Chris, and learned on his guitar. I was 11 at the time. Later, I would go and search the used 45s in the Liverpool stores. Friends had records, too, so one way or another, I heard the stuff. Musn’t forget Radio Luxembourg.

THE MULE: When Badfinger came to the States, I know that most journalists seemed more interested in your relationship with the Beatles and Apple Records. In retrospect, do you feel that the group’s connection to the biggest band in the world and being on their record label helped or hindered your artistic development? Did you ever get the feeling that there was a backlash against Badfinger that the band was “riding the coattails” of the Beatles? How difficult was it to handle a press rabid for information about another act?

JOEY: I’ve been thinking about this Beatles/Badfinger relationship thing a bit lately and the way it affected Badfinger’s reputation and the band’s career. Initially, we didn’t think too much about it. We were aware of people’s attitudes about the comparison to the Beatles and after “Come and Get It” was such a big hit and the teeny bop image was in cement, it made us very paranoid about our music. We knew nobody would believe we weren’t copying them, singing like them and even dressing like them. It got worse after the big rock papers said we were more together and our songs were just as good and maybe we weren’t quite as teeny bop as they first thought. We couldn’t get any gigs in the UK or America at first. Actually, in the UK, that’s never changed, Some people expected George or Paul to be with us. We took ourselves seriously but, of course, we started to doubt ourselves and each other. Why couldn’t we get gigs? Why didn’t the record label put more singles out? Were the songs too crappy, too stupid or something? We had no idea so we just stopped thinking about it and blamed ourselves: we must be crap on stage and the songs couldn’t have been that good after all. In the end, it wasn’t a band anymore – just four blokes doing what they’d always done and, when people asked us about what it’s like being compared to the Beatles, we’d laugh it off. You know, we all thought we were very lucky. There were loads of bands like us, weren’t there? Good singers and players who wrote songs, had ideas… so, we were lucky, weren’t we? From our perspective, the press and music business weren’t interested in us; they had the real Beatles, we supposed.

THE MULE: Finally, Joey, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Before we finish, can you let us know what’s next for Joey Molland?

JOEY: The next thing I’m planning is a book about our managers, agents, roadies and friends, but the best laid plans… I keep getting ideas for songs, so I guess I’ll keep making music. Still don’t know where the ideas come from. Maybe they’re the ones the big guys throw back.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Features/Interviews | Darren Tracy | February 27, 2014 | Artist Interview Badfinger Carl Wise Classic Rock Joey Molland Liverpool Memphis Soul Mike Gibbins Music Natural Gas Pete Ham Rhythm and Blues Rock The Beatles The Iveys Tom Evans

THOSE DARLINS/DIAHREA PLANET/SPEEDBOATS

(22 February, 2014; OFF BROADWAY, Saint Louis, MO)

Those Darlins (photo credit: DARREN TRACY)

When reviewing a band live, sometimes things work out, sometimes there are a couple of bumps in the road, sometimes things completely fall apart. This review kinda falls into the “bumps in the road” category. Nothing serious, just a matter of… timing. Planning to meet up with some friends, I was at the venue early. It was then that I found out that not only was the door time an hour later than expected, but there was one more band on the bill than anticipated. All of this meant that – besides a 9:10 starting time – I had time to kill… a lot of time to kill! But… you don’t really care about that, do you? You just wanna know about the show. So…

The “extra” band was Speedboats, a newish hometown group whose sound is borderline pop punk, leaning heavier toward a cool California skater punk/stoner rock vibe. The five-piece has a great sense of self-deprecating humor and energy to burn. There was also a huge case of the nerves on display, as singer Greg Crittenden had some problems with his control. Now, how, you may ask, do I know it was “nerves” and not something else? Well… I watched the boys’ sound-check and he didn’t crack at all. There’s actually so much to like about these guys and this is such a minor complaint that, truthfully, besides the guys on stage, I may have been the only other one to notice. The guitar duo of Sean Gartner (stage right) and Karl Stefanski (stage left… where else?) elevated the music to something way past standard pop punk, particularly on a song so new that it didn’t even have an official name yet. The working title is “Roller SK8 or Die,” which as far as I can tell (what lyrics there were weren’t totally clear to these ears), had absolutely nothing to do with rollerskating or death. Speedboats got the crowd into things early on and set up the evening nicely. I seriously expect great things from these guys in the not too distant future.

Diarrhea Planet (photo credit: DARREN TRACY)

Up next was Diarrhea Planet, a band hand-picked by fellow Nashvillains (?) and headliners, Those Darlins. Truthfully, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but what I got absolutely blew me away. Imagine… oh, let’s say, Dead Kennedys… with… let’s go with Eddie Van Halen and then multiply him by four. That’s right: old school California punk with four guitar players continually soloing, shredding and finger-tapping like mad scientists. Founding member Jordan Smith handles most of the vocals, but the other guitarists (Emmett Miller, Brent Toler and Evan Bird) all have their moments. With the rhythm section (drummer Casey Weissbuch and bassist Mike Boyle) holding everything together – in the very loosest sense – the four front line guys were allowed to entertain the fans (and, occasionally, each other) with some of the hottest playing I’ve ever seen, including two of the guys finger-tapping in harmony. Absolutely amazing! This band managed to do something that I haven’t seen for quite some time: They had the crowd moshing, bouncing and bringing back that old school punk pit vibe. At one point, they brought the “least punk person” to the stage to prove that “anyone can be a punk.” They gave Ty the mic and 35 seconds to rant, vent and be punk. He started out with a truly epic scream, but was soon lost in the swirling guitar overload. What a fun show! However – and, please, don’t hold this against me guys – Diarrhea Planet may just be the fourth worst band name ever – right behind Panic! At the Disco, Vampire Weekend and Justin Bieber. Since I have absolutely no idea where the name came from, I’m gonna go with this: It’s a geo-political statement aimed at the leaders of the world. Thankfully, the band elevates the music to a level that transcends the horrible noises of the Disco Vampire Bieber. There latest release is called I’M RICH BEYOND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS and is available at all of the usual places. Don’t let the name scare you!

In Nashville, Those Darlins (as well as Diarrhea Planet) are godlike. In fact, they had a large contingent of their hometown fans front and center at the intimate Off Broadway stage. There were also quite a few folk from upstate Illinois: Chicago and, if I heard right, a suburb called Berwyn. People absolutely love the Darlins… with good reason. The quartet took the stage and the crowd by storm, with the kind of rock ‘n’ roll that has people making five hour drives to see them onstage. Jessi Zazu (who handles most of the vocals) and Nikki Kvarnes continued the guitar showcase, with their own brand of sweet leads and tasty solos. Things seemed to kick into a higher gear with the set’s third song, “Red Light Love,” which – even if you had no idea who Those Darlins are – is a tune that you’re gonna recognize, as it was featured in several commercials for Kia Motors over the past couple of years. Unfortunately, this is where the whole time thing came in to bite me on the posterior: About the time that the band was finishing “Red Light Love,” I received a call telling me that I was needed at home. I love the Darlins, but – and I’m sure they’ll agree – family comes first. I am really sorry that I didn’t have the chance to hear the entire set from Those Darlins. If the rest of the set was as hot as the first three or four songs, I certainly missed a great one!

Before I go, I’ve gotta say something about the venue. Off Broadway is currently one of the best sounding rooms in Saint Louis. The vibe is awesome and laid back, as are the people who work there. Even though Off Broadway is smaller, the closest comparison I can come up with is the late, lamented Mississippi Nights. If you have the chance, get out to Off Broadway for some live music. Check out their schedule here: www.offbroadwaystl.com.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Live Music Reviews | Darren Tracy | February 26, 2014 | Diarrhea Planet Jessi Zazu Live Music Nikki Kvarnes Off Broadway Pop Punk Punk Rock Rock and Roll Saint Louis Skater Punk Speedboats Those Darlins

JESSICA HERNANDEZ AND THE DELTAS: DEMONS

(INSTANT RECORDS EP; 2013)

The music of Detroit’s Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas is a mash-up of styles and musical references that leaves you wanting more. The five tracks on DEMONS has definitely whetted my appetite for a full-length (coming later this year, if things go as planned). Like its predecessor, 2010’s WEIRD LOOKING WOMEN IN TOO MANY CLOTHES, the EP shows that the 20-something singer is a vocal force to be reckoned with. The songs, also, exhibit an ability to write: the lyrical content is at once, witty, sexy and – on a deeper level – somewhat subversive, while the music and melodies are memorable, stick-in-your-head cool. There are many artists out there making a lot of money with a whole lot less talent! The Deltas (guitarists Mike Krygier and Gordon Smith, bassist Ben Sturley, drummer Steve Stetson and keyboardist Taylor Pierson) and guests (a horn section including Daniel Zlotnik, John Rahleeh and Yoanni Pino) prove they are no slouches, either, offering a muscular, elastic underpinning for Jessica’s voice.

Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas (publicity photo)

The title tune has a kind of Squirrel Nut Zippers, old school hot jazz feel to it, which really suits the ample vocal skills of Ms Hernandez well. Not to be pigeonholed in one genre, the band also proves adept at a more conventional pop/rock sound on “Caught Up,” while a cover of Conway Twitty’s “Big Town” adds a bit of a bossa nova feel to the country twang. “Shadow Boy” is an atmospheric, slow simmering and moody ballad, bringing a touch of the Gothic to the mix. “Picture Me With You (Carnie Threesome)” closes the short set. It’s an odd, circus midway/ska kind of thing with a creepy Farfisa running throughout and lyrics to match: “I’ve been sleeping with your boyfriend/I’ve been sleeping in his bed/Picture me dead/Picture me with you.” Anyone exhibiting the scope and musical breadth found on DEMONS deserves to be huge! You can do your part by visiting jessicahernandez.merchtable.com to get your copy (along with WEIRD WOMEN… and other goodies). You won’t be sorry.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Darren Tracy | February 25, 2014 | EP Hot Jazz Jessica Hernandez Music Pop Rock Ska The Deltas

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI - 29. page