Phil Aiken played a couple of tunes during the early part of Chris Toppin’s Birthday Bash. He even had the birthday girl join him on backing vocals.
Phil Aiken @ Midway Cafe 11.9.2012
Pat McDonald @ Midway Cafe 11.9.2012
There was a sold out crowd at the Midway to help Chris Toppin celebrate her 50th birthday. Pat McDonald got the evening started with a fine finger-picked blues number.
Eddie Japan – Modern Desperation, Part 1 (2012)
Eddie Japan
Modern Desperation, Part 1
2012
Eddie Japan have a new EP out. It’s wonderful. Modern Desperation, Part 1 puts the band’s flair for genre-bending front and center. This stellar release opens with the power pop of “You Will Find Me Dead In My Comfort Zone” and “Let Me Bleed,” a pair of songs that showcase the sextet’s ability to write straight-up tunes with the best of ’em. “The Bridges I Have Burned” and “This Married Life” follow, with Eddie Japan layering on the more adventurous colors of their sonic palette. The horns and strings come to the forefront with the insightful lyrics. These guys have an unbelievable collection of textures at their disposal. More impressively, they know exactly when to use each one. Nowhere is this more evident than on the mesmerizing closing track. Infused with drama, intrigue and a spaghetti western arrangement, “A Town Called Nowhere” is as good as it gets. What an exceptional release.
Full Disclosure: The lovely and talented Nicole Anguish of Daykamp Creative did the artwork for this remarkable EP. It looks as good as it sounds.
Where to get it:
Walter Sickert And The Army Of Broken Toys @ Brighton Music Hall 10.31.2012
Walter Sickert And The Army Of Broken Toys turned Brighton Music Hall into their own personal SquidHouse Of Horror for Halloween. The night featured a wild menagerie of music, burlesque and dark humor, capped off by Walter and the gang delivering a healthy dose of all three.
Parks – “Sweater Weather” (2012)
Parks
“Sweater Weather”
2012
The King of Pop Mountain has returned. Parks is the new outfit from Oranjuly mastermind Brian E. King. “Sweater Weather” is the band’s first single. It proves that I may have been premature in my prediction that Mr. King may soon be battling dragons, bees and broken glass. Apparently there is no bottom to the well from which he draws some of the city’s best power pop. Jangly guitars, bouncing bass, a snappy beat and the perfect tambourine part keep the groove buzzing along under the pitch perfect hooktastic harmonies. Every facet of this gem has been polished to perfection. All the pieces work together, unlike the hodgepodge of words I’ve thrown together in this post. I should have just told you to listen to the song.
Where to get it:
Moe Pope @ Brighton Music Hall 10.31.2012
Moe Pope tore it up at Brighton Music Hall with his creative cast of conspirators.
Darling Pet Munkee @ Brighton Music Hall 10.31.2012
Darling Pet Munkee released their new EP, You Better Believe It!, on Halloween. That seems appropriate, doesn’t it? The band celebrated with a show at Brighton Music Hall that showcased their comic-book-ad-inspired-sonic-freakout sound. My only complaint? They should have turned up Bonesy Darling’s backing vocals.
The Lights Out as Queen @ Church 10.27.2012
Well, this was certainly one of the most ambitious sets I’ve seen all year. For their annual Halloween* bash at Church, The Lights Out decided to tackle the Queen catalog. Yes, they did “Bohemian Rhapsody.” All of “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Very impressive, gentlemen.
* Dubbed Hallo’Queen for this year’s event.
Sidewalk Driver as Spinal Tap @ Church 10.27.2012
Sidewalk Driver performed as Spinal Tap for Halloween. Chocolate and peanut butter ain’t got nothing on this combo.
The Field Effect as Weezer @ Church 10.27.2012
Here are some pictures of one of my favorite live bands covering a band I used to love but disowned after they put out a record so bad it ruined my perception of the band forever. Or so I thought.
You see, Weezer and I were estranged. After Make Believe came out, I stopped listening to them altogether. I had such a distaste for that album that I couldn’t even bring myself to listen to Pinkerton. Everything seemed off. Then The Field Effect came along and reminded me how much I love some of those old Weezer tunes. I was hearing them through someone else’s ears. Sometimes you need a little distance from a bad breakup to appreciate what you had and move on.
A few days later my six year old grabbed The Blue Album off the shelf and asked me what band it was. I told him. We listened. We both liked it.
