Slow Burning Car - Defection (2017)

OFFICIAL: http://www.slowburningcar.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/SlowBurningCar/

Written by Raymond Burris, posted by blog admin

Slow Burning Car offers up a 10-track, hard rockin’ groove fest on their 4^th record Defection.  This twin guitar, energetic group mixes grand melodies with a rough, unpolished edge that is sure to ignite a spirited little mosh-pit at one of the band’s many concerts.  With airplay on 130 stations, this Los Angeles bred quartet has made quite an impact since their inception. 

The aesthetic Slow Burning Car settles on is as follows; not too heavy but certainly not too light.  Songs toss and turn between punk-fed melodies with a lot of pop phrasings and white knuckle guitar heroics where riff and rowdiness are king.  Lead-in number “Alpha Duplicor” is a prime example, the cut settling into a meaty, drop-D groove that allows the 2^nd guitarist to add leads and insert melodic indentations.  Bassist/vocalist Troy Spiropoulos constantly pushes the riffs into action with his bouncy, clearly felt bass lines lifting up from underneath as his voice’s well-contained anger never crushes any of the melodic intentions.  “Soul Crimes” is just as loud but ups the pacing by several clicks and weaves some harmonies into the vocals.  They’ve got a cool, breezy punk vibe that culls from goodtime punkers like Pulley or even Avail.  The mix of hard and soft mainly, not the exact dynamics of those bands; that’s one of Slow Burning Car’s biggest strengths, the fact that they really only sound like themselves. 

“The Orb” uses punk as a foundation but messes with some new wave, FX-dabbed vocal harmonies in the chorus.  It’s an unusual track from the beginning.  Drummer Adam Idell smashes out the intro solo with a syncopated, madman fill and the tune goes tumbling into down tuned riffs and angry, rhythmic vocal jabs.  They combine at least three different elements of genre and mash them up into a seamless barrage of sound.  “Devil in the Room” has got the kind of pop punk smarts that could easily land these guys a record deal with Epitaph; it’s no-nonsense and harder than the stuff that radio plays.  “The Sunday Derby” might stop for some catchy lyrical turns of phrase but this song feels like some twisted, gussied up version of really rocked-out 90s indie that is sandwiched in by another couple chord rocker, “You Can’t Stay Here.”  “Bedtime” is a fine acoustic guitar ditty, a sort of couplet alongside the equally sublime “Chrysanthemum.”  Just when you think the record is going to settle into a singular vibe, the band again pitches a curve in the form of “Polar Warden,” a psychedelic rock piece with a tapestry of loops, sound FX, molten bass riffs and sporadic vocals floating like vapor from your stereo speakers.  “Clouds” brings the album home with some epic, skyward guitar riffing, overcast drumming and stormy low-end yielding an emotionally stirring hard rocker that couldn’t have found better placement as a final number. 

Defection is really in its own league as an album.  It’s fresh, original and pretty rocking with a challenging songwriting approach that skips across several rock genres.  You can tell the band really enjoy and get down on their sound and this plays out to the listener’s advantage while listening to the record.  This album rocks hard and is a lot of fun; well-worth a buy for rock, punk, indie, grunge, and even hardcore fans. 

The Suburbs - Hey Muse! (2017)

OFFICIAL: www.TheSuburbsBand.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thesuburbsband
TWITTER:www.twitter.com/thesuburbsband

Written by Shannon Cowden, posted by blog admin

The latest album from Minneapolis New Wave/punk legends The Suburbs marks a new high point in the band’s output finding them recalling the same spirit infusing their youthful recordings rounded off with increased songwriting powers and instrumental prowess. Original members drummer Hugo Klaers and vocalist/keyboardist Chan Poling remain forces to be reckoned with – Klaers has lost none of the spring from his percussive step while Poling’s matured vocal chords enable him to completely inhabit a number of lyrical and musical perspective that might have otherwise proven an ill fit years before. The original members continue working with longtime member saxophonist Max Ray and benefit from the addition of top flight players from the indie scene to complete the current configuration. Their ten song collection Hey Muse! has a generous sampling of the gifts that brought The Suburbs to their initial notoriety while they also show the substantial advances the core members have made as musicians and songwriters over the last thirty nine years since the band first formed.

The opener and title song “Hey Muse” gets things off to a memorable start with some of the album’s best songwriting. Guitar is the predominant instrument here and develops the song in a dramatic way without ever being too heavy handed about it. Poling’s vocal is particularly affecting, but he has the experience to tailor his voice to the arrangement and works with some of the album’s best lyrical material. The second track “Lost You on the Dance Floor” is another one of the album’s highlights. It has a hard hitting and steady, unvarying beat from the outset and it gives the song a firm foundation for everything lain over top. It has a slightly raucous edge, but it’s unquestionably much more commercially minded than many of the songs on Hey Muse! “Je Suis Strange” has a mid tempo strut punctuated with slashing guitar fills and a powerful brass contribution giving the song a little extra bite and color. Despite its relatively restrained tempo, there’s exuberance to this song that immediately engages listeners.

“Lovers” starts off with a grinding stop start tempo and gradually picks up more steam along the way. The unusual percussion gives the song a lot of its flavor, but The Suburbs are willing to get a little more daring with surging horns accompanying the drums.  “Our Love” has some of the same attributes. The unconventional presentation of tempo and rhythm strips much of the melody from this song, but there are meaningful flashes of the band’s talents in that area and its such an intensely colorful and physical piece that you’ll likely forgive them any indulgence. Poling’s vocal has a nicely evocative and theatrical quality here. Poling’s keyboard playing opens the closer “When We Were Young” and a churning arrangement greets listeners when the song begins in earnest. The song receives a somewhat extended introduction before the first vocals come into frame and the arrangement restrains itself accordingly. It’s another engaging musical effort ending Hey Muse! with a resounding exclamation point.