popwreckoning

The Reptilian
Kalamazoo, MI
thereptilian.blogspot.com

“We are a post-hardcore band with hardcore values. We are a screamo band with math-rock tendencies. We are an indie band with too much yelling. We are probably all of the above. But really, we’re just doing what we love to do.”

The above is on their blog, which is one of the best descriptions of a band’s music that I’ve ever heard.

Saw these guys last week in Kansas City and they killed it. Try to get in a spot where you can watch them – that’s the best part.

They’re touring down to SXSW with Empire! Empire! so make sure you see them at least once this spring. Even more than once if possible.

The Naked and Famous
Auckland, New Zealand
Alternative / Electropop
www.myspace.com/thenakedandfamous
thenakedandfamous.com

The Naked and Famous are set to explode and SXSWers are perfectly poised to see this band in some intimate settings before they really take off.

Just this week, The Naked and the Famous was awarded the Philip Hall Radar Award–an award for the band most worth to graduate from NME’s Radar pages–at the Shockwaves NME Awards 2011. Their single “Young Blood,” which you can watch below, is just starting to make impressions on US alternative radio stations. It’s kind of how I picture what Passion Pit would have sounded like with some female members in the band instead of all guys. It’s a catchy dance jam.

They’re playing several sets in Austin amid their European tour. I plan on catching them at the Windish Agency’s Party on Friday, March 18 at Emo’s.

They’ll be back to the US to tour more fully in April and May.

Sleep Bellum Sonno
Long Island, NY
Emo / Indie / Post-Punk
myspace.com/sleepbellumsonno
sleepbellumsonno.com

I love these guys. Every time they come to Kansas City, I always expect an awesome show and good hangs.

In fact, I saw them three times just last month. I also fully plan on seeing them a few times in Austin. They will be there from the 16-19th playing a few shows and parties with friends the Saddest Landscape.

On March 18th they play at Plush for the Beartrap/Giant Step Showcase. Make sure to catch them at least once.

They recently did a split with Joie De Vivre. You can get two songs here [http://beta.projectrodney.com/sleepbellumsonno] in exchange for a tweet or a post to Facebook!

I’ve been sitting at work listening to the Mother Mountain EP by Spirit Is the Spirit for the past two days trying to figure out exactly how to describe it.

It starts out with “Sing/Dance/Run/Chant.” You almost don’t even realize the song has started until you hear the horns. It’s slow and gradual, very organic feeling. At about the 1:45 mark I just want to yell CRESCENDO! as it picks up. Then my body just wants to run around a campfire, singing, dancing, and chanting.

Every song on this EP is like that. Each one brings a different, if not multiple, emotion with every measure. It’s calming, energizing, makes you jump/dance, questions nature, makes you wonder about life etc. Those are all things that can turn a person on or off about an album. It definitely turns me on to this album.

At the end of track four “Seafarer,” the gang vocals make you want to do nothing more than sing along loudly.

So if I had to pick one word to describe Mother Mountain, it would be harmonies. Harmonies. Harmonies.

Oh, and moving. I guess that’s two.

When the band sent me this album, vocalist Austen Malone told me to “either listen to it loud on a stereo or headphones. No in-between weak ass shit.”

He was completely right, and that’s exactly what I’m going to tell you. No in-between weak ass shit. The full effect is needed.

Spirit Is The Spirit is a Lawrence band formerly known as Seafarer. They have gone under three name changes, but I think this one will stick.

They will be playing an album release show on February 26 at the Bottleneck w/ Colony Collapse, Anniversaire, and Blakey Bear.

Track Listing:

1. Sing/Dance/Run/Chant

2. Little Bear/Wild Fox

3. Oh, Speckled Bird

4. Seafarer

5. We Were Only Lookin’ At The Moon

I’ll go ahead and say it just to get it out of the way. Radiohead is one of my favorite bands of all time! We don’t have a thing going on, we have a full on relationship! Going back to when I was in the fifth grade when Pablo Honey came out. I hadn’t really gotten into them as the only song I had heard was the overly played (and overly abused at Karaoke nights) “Creep.” But then again, when I was in fifth grade, my best fried Josh and I rode our bikes to school from the apartment complex we lived in, taking turns sharing the headphones of my walkman while  jamming out to “Rump Shaker” by Wreckx-n-Effect. Yes, it wasn’t until Jr. High that Grunge/Alternative would overtake my life thanks to a group of friends introducing it to me just like that first day you were introduced to smoking weed in college. Unfortunately I really didn’t get into Radiohead until high school. I had owned The Bends, but never really enjoyed it. I think that had a lot to do with the fact that my three favorite bands at the time were Bush, Oasis and Alice in Chains… And yes my aunt bought me a Jars of Clay album which ended up as a coaster for my soda on my computer desk in my room. It wasn’t till I heard Paranoid Android that changed everything for me. OK Computer was the beginning of how I listened to music and how I appreciated it for the art and not just for “a good time feeling.”

I’ll be honest, I didn’t think Radiohead was going to release a new album any time soon. Yes, I had mentioned before on my year end list, and I had heard rumors that they were in the studio. But Thom Yorke and company are very unpredictable when it comes to releasing new material… Especially being that they self release their own albums like that of Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre. This time instead of giving a release date of the new album, Radiohead decided to surprise us and announce it last week and on top of that they even released it a day early online. However, we weren’t given the “Pay what you feel” choice that was given to us for In Rainbows.

The King of Limbs starts out with “Bloom,” a piano/techno based track with Thom’s haunting vocals remixed in between. Other stand out tracks include “Morning Mr. Magpie,” which has an upbeat electronic feel to it and my personal favorite “Lotus Flower,” which has elements of “Idioteque” from Kid A. If you were expecting anything like In Rainbows you will be very disappointed, or really excited depending on what your Radiohead taste is. Radiohead decided to go back to their Kid A/Amnesiac days which isn’t a bad thing, as Kid A was masterpiece in itself. Amnesiac, on the other hand, wasn’t as great and got boring after a few listens. This album is what Amnesiac should of been.

The other problem with this album is the length. It only has eight songs and some of them are not very long, which makes you want more from this record. Could this mean we might get another album later this year like how Amnesiac was released three months after Kid A? That I don’t know. But with the way things the band is doing these days and the fact that we can’t predict when they release material, it wouldn’t surprise me. Needless to say, it’s no Kid A, OK Computer, The Bends or even Hail to the Thief. But it’s sure as hell better then Amnesiac, and to some extent, In Rainbows, which I felt was really good for what it was but left me feeling empty. (XD Note: I’m leaving Pablo Honey out of this as I get really tired of hearing “Creep” and to be honest, it was Radiohead’s weakest album to date when compared with their other releases.)

Overall, this album is very enjoyable, but very short. I can’t say it’s as great as Kid A or OK Computer (which is hard to even compare to) for an electronic/experimental based Radiohead album, but it’s a lot better than letdown Amnesiac. This makes a great chillout album for when you need one of those stress free days… Or if you’re stuck living in Laporte, IN and working at Family Video and grow tired of kids running around, you can always plug this in and zone out for the next 30-something minutes. Just don’t zone out too long, or your boss might fire you.

Track Listing:

1. Bloom

2. Morning Mr. Magpie

3. Little By Little

4. Feral

5. Lotus Flower

6. Codex

7. Give Up The Ghost

8. Separator

This collaboration might just be better than a combination Taco Bell x Pizza Hut. That’s right, BBU and Das Racist have teamed up. Their new collaboration is called “Please, No Pictures” and it was produced by Chicago’s The Hood Internet.

BBU and Das Racist met playing CMJ 2009 and quickly became friends. In July, Das Racist joined BBU for their monthly party and while in Chicago together, the two jumped into the study to make “Please, No Pictures.

Clapping, snapping and characteristic rapping, “Please, No Pictures” is available for streaming below and free download at www.itsbbu.com.

Get Up Kids‘ new video for “Automatic” shakes things up at the car wash.

The video features a sleeping child in a driverless car going through an automatic car wash. Reality’s lines get blurred and wavy in the wash and suddenly the child’s eyes burst open to a wave of colors and oils swirling on the windshield.

Unlike most music videos, the band doesn’t appear in this video and in another twist from the norm, this song features Jim Suptic on lead vocals rather than Matt Pryor.

You can check out the full video below. The band is currently on tour and will be returning to their hometown on March 13 at the Bottleneck. Full dates can be found here.

Get excited–City and Colour has announced its 3rd studio album, Little Hell.

Little Hell is expected June 2011 on Vagrant Records. It’s the follow-up to 2008′s Bring Me Your Love from the acclaimed Dallas Green. Now, if you’re a fan of Green’s band Alexisonfire, be forewarned – City and Colour is a horse of a different color–or at least another shade of Green. City and Colour follows the emotive singer-songwriter style and is more acoustic and open.

Green made fans swoon with “The Girl,” and perfectly captured the dark, worrisome self-thoughts that keep one up at night with “Sleeping Sickness.” He’s poetic and brutally honest. Seriously, this troubadour’s music is not stuff to miss.

Green is playing a series of US shows, most of which have already sold out. He’s also appearing out some of the year’s hottest fests including the upcoming SXSW and the sold out Sasquatch and Coachella.

Tour Dates:
02-26 Halifax, NS – Celebration Square (2011 Canada Winter Games)
03-16 Austin, TX @ SXSW
03-17 Austin, TX @ St. David’s Historical Sanctuary
03-18 Austin, TX @ Stubb’s
03-19 Austin, TX @ SXSW
03-22 Los Angeles, LA – El Rey Theatre (SOLD OUT)
03-29 Chicago, IL – Park West (SOLD OUT)
03-31 New York, NY – Webster Hall (SOLD OUT)
04.05 Sydney, AUS – Enmore (SOLD OUT)
04.06 Sydney, AUS – Enmore- (SOLD OUT)
04.07 Melbourne, AUS – The Palace (SOLD OUT)
04.08 Brisbane, AUS – The Tivoli (SOLD OUT)
04.10 Adelaide, AUS – HQ (SOLD OUT)
04.11 Perth, AUS – Astor Theatre (SOLD OUT)
04.17 Indio, CA – COACHELLA
04.25 London, UK – Royal Albert Hall (SOLD OUT)
05-29 George, WA @ SASQUATCH (SOLD OUT)

Find more from City and Colour at www.cityandcolour.ca.

There were two show options for Kansas Citians this past Sunday: Ke$ha or Pete Yorn with Ben Kweller & the Wellspring. While an absurd amount of KC kids chose glitter autotune fest 2011, I opted for the latter show where the performances were intimate and authentic. I think I made the right musical choice (Not to mention my parking was free. Take that Ke$ha folk.).

The Voodoo Lounge wasn’t packed when The Wellspring took to the stage, which was the stragglers loss. The small group that was there right at the show’s start was treated to some amazing harmonies from Dov and Talia. Seriously: a-m-a-z-i-n-g. I hadn’t heard even heard about this band until their publicist reached out, but I’m glad they’re finally on my radar.

They started their set with “Uncertainty,” which could be about the big risk they took in pursuing the band. Dov left a band and Talia quit a successful film production career to take on a risk/uncertainty with The Wellspring, but again–worth it.

Their songs are Americana folk and though the recorded versions have a few more instruments backing from the studio, the live versions really put the duo in the spotlight. They were only backed by a friend on drums- though he did have an impressive bag of percussion tricks. Talia and Dov stuck to guitar for most of their set, but a few songs did prominently feature piano. The sparse use of instruments throughout their set worked to their advantage, because live, their talent really is in their vocal harmonies.

I also really enjoyed “Oh New York,” a song about both of them leaving behind their well-known city and giving LA a try instead. I had the pleasure of chatting with The Wellspring before the show, so look for an interview on PopWreckoning soon.

Next was the energetic and convivial Ben Kweller. The last time I saw Kweller, he had a band backing him. For this tour, it’s all Ben. But the Ben show is actually more entertaining then the Ben Kweller with band show (sorry, other guys, but it’s true). With the freedom of an empty stage, Kweller was free to kick his feat and dance around. His songs are upbeat and they tread a line between serious and silly, but he treads that line well. I especially love when he kicked on the effects pedal to turn his acoustic guitar into sounding-electric for some of his riffs. It was a fun surprise.

Not only were his songs rambunctious fun, but so was his banter with the crowd.

“I named my dog after you!” shouted one fan.

“Ben or Kweller?” asked Ben.

“Kwella.”

“Nice feminization. You know, I had an Australian woman tell me they named their baby after me. But a dog’s nice. Name your baby after me, though,” Kweller joked.

Kweller ended his set with the popular, “Penny on a Train Track,” put his fist in the air and gave a one-armed hug to a roadie as he left the stage. This man is just pure fun – without the effects and tricks that so many modern m

For you KCers that missed his set, he promises he’ll be back more as he really loves our town–he even dedicated one song to the Boulevard Brewery. So don’t miss him!

Finally, Pete Yorn rounded out the night. After the more singer-songwriter style performances of the opening acts, I kind of expected Yorn to be flying solo as well, but he performed as a traditional alt-rock band. This wasn’t a bad thing, mind you, just a surprise.

The bluesy rock songs of his set were solo filled and not only did the bandmates twist their bodies toward whomever was letting their fingers fly on their instrument, but the dark stage lights switched spotlights swiftly on and off. Also backing Yorn was a video projector. Images of powerlines and fields played behind the band as they covered their four song catalog. Yorn’s performance was more subdued than Kweller’s set, but fitting for the darker lyrical matter of his songs.

So Ke$ha-goers, I hope you enjoyed your glitter, because you sure missed one hell of a night of straight up musicality.

Twenty-four hours after their March 1 release of their seventh studio album Going Out In Style, Dropkick Murphys will bring their Celtic punk sound to the stage of Kansas City’s Beaumont Club. Set to burn the place down with cohorts in crime, Rise Against, this March 2 show is simply not to be missed.

PopWreckoning is offering you and a friend the chance to attend this show free of charge. In addition, we will throw in an autographed cd booklet to sweeten the deal.

Winning is simple – just comment on the site, answering the following question: If you were a leprechaun what would you leave at the end of your rainbow?

PopWreckoning staff will choose the most creative answer on March 1, 2011 at 1 p.m. CST. Winner must be present at the show in order to receive their autographed booklet, as PopWreckoning will not be responsible for mailing the prize to contest winners. Please make sure to leave both your full name and working email address in the comment so we know where and whom to contact.

Okay, enough said. Go, comment, dance, mosh! Also, read more about the Dropkick Murphys on their website here.