Friday, April 1st, 2011
By Carlos Cisneros
Official Site: http://sistercrayon.net
Facebook: http://fb.com/sistercrayon
Twitter: http://twitter.com/sistercrayon
Tumblr: http://sistercrayon.tumblr.com
Bandcamp: http://sistercrayon.bandcamp.com
Rating: 5/5
If you have not heard about Sister Crayon by now, it’s time to start listening. Born out of the vibrant indie music scene in Sacramento, they have been featured on Pitchfork, have played San Francisco’s annual music festival Noise Pop, SXSW in Texas, and have released their highly anticipated debut album “Bellow” through LA-based Manimal Vinyl. After a successful Kickstarter campaign which saw their fans fully supporting them on the purchase of a touring van, Sister Crayon are poised to take on a national following. They have a show on May 5th at Bottom of the Hill, opening for Dessa and Sims of Doomtree.
I first heard Sister Crayon on Myspace back in 2009, and was instantly hooked on one of their early recordings, “Lavender Liars”. I heard a beautiful and soulful voice singing (and practically rapping at times) thoughtful lyrics over a loop of an accordion and Dani Fernandez playing a simple yet catchy beat on a drum machine. It was genius. It’s hard to pinpoint a genre for Sister Crayon and I hate to limit them to one genre anyway. Its trip hop, hip hop, soul, electronic, ambient, atmospheric. They even have a song that could be considered dance. Vocalist Terra Lopez probably describes it best: manic. And it is manic, as their musical structure explores many different sounds. The addition of a drummer in Nicholas Suhr and Jeffrey LaTour on guitar/keys has added new depth to the unique music they will continue to create.
“Here We Never Die” is a good example in this regard. Beginning with a looped sample, the beat drops on the drum machine, vocals and keys kick in, followed by some drumming to carry the song through to the end. Also present are the though provoking lyrics “We are like strangers or ancient gods/ Here we never die”. Their current single “(In) Reverse” keeps a steady pace until two minutes into the song some strings really take the song to a new level. Terra sings “Years upon years/And arms upon arms/I hold my blood to keep it warm/And the sun never rested on my carpet floor/I yelled in silence”. (In) Reverse is easily one of their best. However, I believe “Every Third Hour” to be their best song to date. Emotional, raw and somewhat of a slow ballad, it contains some of the best vocal harmony and drumming on the album. This song also showcases Terra’s incredible vocal range. It builds up as Terra sings over and over “My god, if you knew”. Some other highlights include some turntable scratching on Anti-Psalm. This song also showcases Nicholas Suhr’s drumming rather well. “Stem” includes a great ending in the form of layered vocals as “Your blood is our blood is my blood is our blood” is repeated until the end. “Ixchel, the lady rainbow” contains lovely keys, and finally “Souls of Gold” changes the pace and is easily the band’s most danceable song.
All in all, a fantastic, unique debut album for the Sacramento quartet. Sister Crayon, from their early beginnings have carved their own musical path, and will continue to do so as they grow musically. Be sure to catch them if they are playing in your area, and you can find them on Facebook ,Twitter, Tumblr, Youtube, and Bandcamp and their official site.
Tuesday, September 7th, 2010
By Alex Waage
The turritopsis nutricula is a genus of jellyfish that has been proclaimed by the experts to be “immortal”. It achieves its seemingly perpetual existence by riding a life cycle in which it grows to maturity, shrinks down to a polyp, and then burgeons back into adulthood only to revert to the start of the cycle again and again and so on and so forth.
Like the immortal jellyfish, Weezer seem to have been on the alternative rock scene forever, fluctuating between being a band capable of brilliance and being a band capable of making a great punch line. After the release of their self-titled 1994 debut and their sophomore album, the cult-classic Pinkerton, Weezer became wedged between a proverbial rock and hard place. While The Green Album, Maladroit and Make Believe were too bland and uninspired, The Red Album and Raditude were too bold for their own good, experimenting wildly with styles untouched by the band and resulting in some of the lowest points in their career. With each album, Rivers Cuomo and company were trying their hand at the futile balancing act of appeasing calloused critics, a cynical fan base, the general public, and themselves. However, it seems that the unabashedly nerdy quartet has come as close as possible to achieving such a feat with their newest record, Hurley.
While a pleasant surprise for die-hard fans and casual observers alike, Hurley is anything but a return to form for the band. It serves more as a summation of their career, flaunting the band’s strengths while blending in the kind of sonic curve balls that have baffled the masses for the past decade, albeit in a way far more successful than before. Throughout the ten tracks that make up the album, a plethora of sounds are tinkered with, but never once do they feel forced. The result is a surprisingly cohesive album that recalls moments and textures from the Weezer back catalogue. Songs like “Smart Girls” and “Ruling Me” are chugging pop sing-alongs in the vein of The Green Album while “Run Away” and “Hang On” are reminiscent of Make Believe-era balladry. Even the meat-headed riffs featured on “Where’s My Sex?” and “Brave New World” are not unlike those on Maladroit.
Despite the vague likenesses that they bear to songs from Weezer’s past, the tunes on Hurley are far better than their predecessors on the aforementioned albums. For instance, “Hang On” is a poppy ballad, but that in no way prevents the band from experimenting with the instrumentation featured within. In fact, Michael Cera of Arrested Development and Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World plays mandolin on the track.
This is not to say that the entire album is as perfect and inspired as one might hope. Sprinkled throughout the album are awkwardly constructed couplets like “And if you take this away from me/I’ll never forgive you can’t you see” from the otherwise-brilliant “Unspoken”. Still, no song is as lyrically insipid as “Where’s My Sex?”. The song is the album’s undeniable low point in every way and its awkwardly placed bridge certainly doesn’t help. Seriously, it’s completely shoehorned in.
Listening to Hurley again, I feel about as satisfied as a Weezer fan can expect to feel. Rivers, Pat, Brian, and Scott are finally heading in a creative direction that feels natural and appropriate for the band at this point. It’s no Pinkerton, but Hurley is a quirky, imaginative record that the band can be truly proud of. Fans of the band can expect even more solid music in the future, considering that November sees the release of the two-disc Pinkerton: Deluxe Edition and Death To False Metal, a compilation of unheard and unreleased songs from the band’s recording history. With Hurley released and these gems on the way, 2010 is a good year to be a Weezer fan.
Monday, August 30th, 2010
Orbs hit up Bottom of the Hill last night along with Junius and Disastroid. I love Bottom of The Hill in SF because for one it is a really small venue so you are able to get up close and can see the band clearly from practically anywhere in the room.
Along the walls you will see calendar after calendar of past shows, and you can’t help but be amazed when thinking of all the bands that have rolled through within the past ten years. The likes of Cat Power, Metric, Iron & Wine, Queens of the Stone Age to name a few.
The crowd gathered near the front of the stage, faces melted after each set. All in all it was a great show with some great bands and I can’t wait to go to Bottom of the Hill again!
Orbs – Video of Orbs can be found at http://youtube.com/thebayareanative
Junius
Disastroid
Friday, August 27th, 2010
By Alex W. Graham
Orbs’ first album looks and feels like a concept album, and it’s no surprise that the group displays an ambition for the unusual. Among it’s five members, the band contains two parts “Fear Before” and one part “Between the Buried and Me.” Those familiar with the aforementioned know to expect something strange and progressive to spring forth, and “Asleep Next To Science” is no exception.
Still, this doesn’t mean Orbs is just what you’d expect. Quite the contrary. Keyboardist Ashley Ellyllon holds a significant and crucial presence on the album, providing gorgeous classical piano interludes- or wielding a more electronic and distorted synth sound, adding substance and complexity where power chords might grow stale. “A Man Of Science” showcases several sides of her playing and stands out as one of the album’s best tracks. On the next track, “Megaloblastic Madness,” Holyoak’s status as one of my favorite drummers is in full effect. His booming drums are coupled with a clever and melodic bass line that will hook listeners instantly, and the rest of the song doesn’t disappoint. Fisher’s vocals and eerie lyrics work with the song perfectly, and the overall result is – dare I say it – epic.
The songs on Asleep Next To Science are well-arranged, and several are connected by interludes or soft ambient melodies. The album flows together and retains it’s cohesion. This is one of those albums you’re just better off to take in as a whole and not in bits and pieces. With lengthy tracks like “Eclipsical”, it rewards a patient listener, the way any good progressive or concept album should. Patience, you will need though, as almost every song is more than five minutes long, with “People Will Read Again” clocking in at over ten minutes and “Eclipsical” at around fourteen.
Although it has it’s heavy sections, the album is at it’s best when it dwells in the realm of the weirdly melodic and flirts with spacier textures. A valiant first effort by a band populated of diverse members, I say anyone should give this album a listen with an open-mind, because it’s ambitious and original enough that it deserves a go.
Tuesday, August 17th, 2010
By Brittany Coleman
After listening to the Arcade Fire’s new album The Suburbs I must admit I was moved. And not just because I’m naturally an emotional person, but because the album’s smooth rhythms and proverbial lyrics left me in an amazing place.
Lead singer Win Butler’s haunting voice set the mood for the whole album. Butler’s delivery in “Rococo,” was especially fantastic. To me, rococo has always been a particular art form. But in this epic tale of mayhem, rococo is somehow a “horrible sound,” brought to fruition by the strings of the violin. Butler’s voice truly brought depth and funky substance to the tracks such as “Deep Blue,” “Ready to Start,” and “The Suburbs.” “The Suburbs” definitely offers a snappy 80′s pop-beat that’s new to the AF’s repertoire. Led by front-woman Régine Chassagne, the ladies of the Arcade Fire are dually represented with the tracks “Empty Room,” “The Spraw II (Mountains Beyond Mountains),” and “Half Light I.”
Not lost is the perfect harmony between all the instruments that I love the Arcade Fire for. And you can hear each and every instrument, right down to the dramatic synth. So simple and pure, the lyrics meld together perfectly with the guitar, base, cello, violins and keyboards. I’m sure I’ve left some instruments out, seeing as how the AF plays up to 16 different instruments. What other bands can boast of playing 16 different instruments, playing them well, and being able to create the most modern, yet unique music? Very few. And debuting a third album can sometimes be a daunting challenge for a band. Sometimes artists can lose their musical caliber. Some even try so hard to make “fresh” tunes that the new album falls completely out of their artistic zone, causing confusion and heartbreak to eager fans. But the Arcade Fire found a happy medium between fresh new tunes and brilliant lyrics. Some of my favorite lines include “All the kids have always known that the emperor wears no clothes but they bow to down to him anyway, it’s better than being alone” (from Ready to Start), or “So can you understand? Why I want a daughter while I’m still young, I wanna hold her hand and show her some beauty before this damage is done, but if it’s too much to ask, it’s too much to ask then send me a son,” (from The Suburbs).
The same old chemistry and continuity the Arcade Fire had before is definitely present on this new album. The nostalgic lyrics will certainly leave you thinking of home, the street you played on, that summer you spent with your friends, the ex you never want to see again, or even the person you’re secretly in love with now. True artistic expertise at its best, The Suburbs will leave you feeling as if everything really will be okay after all.
