San Francisco garage rockers The May Fire almost insist upon an air of pretension that isn’t negative in the least, despite every single connotation “pretension” denotes. Charismatic front woman Catty Tasso (vocals, guitar) sounds akin to Karen O, at times — most noticeably on closer “Mother/Father” — with a too cool for school attitude that she pulls off with ease.
The May Fire’s latest offering, The List EP, is the third and final release for a trilogy that the band last year determined to independently record and release within a year: drummer and vocalist El Pipe (“pee-pay”) produced, recorded and mixed the records. The previous releases include the La Victoria EP and the Plastic Army EP ; the quartet just make their own deadline with the August 5th release of The List EP.
Play “The Clone”
[audio http://themayfire.com/mp3/thelist/02%20No%20Clone.mp3]
The EP begins with the lyrically desperate “Burning Up,” featuring slightly whiny vocals atop a driving beat and gritty, garage rock riffs. “No Clone” (download) follows, sounding like an indifferent and half-hearted attempt rebellion as Tasso sings, “I’m on the run / Try me / Chase me / Catch me, I’m on a riot” without any of the energy that a riot demands. Pipe’s beats and Rob Gwin‘s thumping bass lines coyly display the potential for a riot, yet the song remains too low key to present the riot it promises it’s on; it’s the contradictory nature of the song that makes it one of the best on the EP, though.
Title track “The List” (download) fuzzy guitars and driving bass play behind Tasso’s sultry and muted as she wistfully sings about wanting “a taste of a perfect dream.” “Under The Wave” is poppier and more melodic with smoother vocals than the previous tracks, but still retains that gritty pretension that places The May Fire a step above the generic pop rock crowd so prevalent today.
Record labels and music fans take notice: The May Fire’s The List EP drops August 5th.
Tracklisting:
01. Burning Up
02. No Clone (download)
03. The List (download)
04. Under the Wave
05. Red Unicorn
06. Mother/Father
Tour Dates: (all w/ Monte Negro and Astra Heights)
Aug 06 – San Diego, CA @ Beauty Bar (Free Show!)
Aug 07 – Los Angeles, CA @ Knitting Factory
Aug 08 – San Clemente, CA @ OC Tavern
Aug 09 – Pomona, CA @ Glass House
Aug 11 – Phoenix, AZ @ Modified
Aug 12 – Las Vegas, NV @ Beatles Revolution Lounge @ The Mirage
Aug 13 – Tucson, AZ @ TBA
Aug 14 – El Paso, TX @ Take 2
Aug 16 Monterrey, MX @ El Kamino
Aug 18 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
Aug 19 – Houston, TX @ Wherehouse Live
Aug 22 – Chicago, IL @ The Metro
Aug 25 – St. Paul, MN @ Eclipse Records
Aug 28 – Denver, CO @ Falcon Bowl
Aug 31 – Portland, OR @ East End
Sep 02 – Seattle, WA @ High Dive
Sep 03 – Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall
Sep 04 – San Francisco, CA @ Red Devil Lounge
Sep 05 – Walnut Creek, CA @ Betty’s Rock Club
Sep 06 – Monterey, CA @ The Lounge Underground
Sep 08 – Fresno, CA @ Audies Olympic/Club Fred
Sep 10 – Oakland, CA @ The Uptown
Sep 11 – Reno, NV @ Satellite
Sep 12 – San Jose @ Blank Club
Sep 13 – Bakersfield, CA @ The Dome
Sep 14 – Victorville, CA @ Karma (5pm)
The May Fire: website | myspace | download “No Clone” | download “The List”
