popwreckoning

For much of my adolescence, I wished I had been born years earlier so that I could have been the right age to experience – and appreciate – the 1980s, the way it had been meant to be experienced by a British new wave fan. I’ve had the opportunity to see several of my heroes of that era in concert already (including Duran Duran, Morrissey, OMD, and David Byrne [sans the rest of Talking Heads unfortunately]) but Erasure was still not checked off the list. Until this past Tuesday at the 9:30 Club, the first of 2 nights the electronic duo would be performing in the Nation’s Capital. To be fair, I was never an uberfan of the pair and really went to go hear the hits and get a preview of tracks from their new album Tomorrow’s World coming out in October on Mute Records, but that didn’t matter. There were plenty of obsessed and and terribly devoted Erasure fans at the front who had been queueing outside the venue for hours, appropriately attired in electric blue ponchos to battle the drenching rain remnants of Hurricane Lee tracking up the Eastern seaboard. I’ve never seen such soggy fans so happy.

I was so pleased when I heard Frankmusik (aka Vincent Frank to his mother) would be opening for the ’80s titans. South Londoner Frank released his debut album, Complete Me, in early 2009 and I still adore it to this day: it’s synth pop at its finest, and Frank is just the singer/songwriter to do this style. The selection of him as opener makes sense: he produced Erasure’s latest album Tomorrow’s World, and there’ s a definite respect and reverence going between the two acts. The unfortunate part: as he so cruelly pointed out at the start of his set, he said he realized that no one knew who he was and that he was going to do some old stuff, some new stuff, and some covers, no doubt to appeal to a crowd that were obviously only there for the headliner.

Personally, I would have preferred if he and his backing band (a singer/keyboardist and a drummer) had played more songs from his debut album (I wanted to hear my favorite song of his, “Confusion Girl,” but no dice), but I have to give the man his due. These fans, mostly 30 years old and up, took to him once he broke outs snippets of covers like Paul Simon‘s “You Can Call Me Al” and Stardust‘s “The Music Sounds Better With You.” He did finish with two newer songs, both with more of a r&b bent than I usually like, but I think they have a chance of doing really well here in America. The single “No ID” was just released this week and according to the Frankmusik Twitter, the track has already made it to #48 into the iTunes electronic chart, no thanks to the American mainstream radio market. “Do It in the AM,” a song Frank collaborated with Far East Movement, is the title of his forthcoming album due out on September 27, and it’s a hot tune. Check out the video for the song below.

Erasure fans from way back packed the 9:30. Was it because they were nostalgic for the music of their youth? Did they want to hear their heroes’ new music? Or maybe a little bit of both? I’ll never know for sure, but gosh, Erasure fans can be loud and unrelenting in their approval of their favorites. As mentioned in this review previously, I don’t know the band’s back catalogue as well as many of the other people in attendance that night, but it didn’t matter. Like most ’80s bands who have dutifully gone back on tour to wow their devoted and to proffer new tunes, Erasure does it with style and plenty of campy charm. This mostly has to do with frontman Andy Bell, and I apologize in advance now, but I can’t help but use his name and “flamboyant” in the same sentence. How else do you describe a man who arrives onstage with a Trojan helmet and a red sequined jacket? Once the jacket was removed, a diamond-encrusted belt and leather corset were revealed. (My good friend who went with me to this show said the first time she’d seen the band at Merriweather Post Pavilion in the late ’80s supporting Duran Duran, Bell was wearing buttless chaps, so this was a definite improvement in style.) This corset was later cut off, literally with a pair of scissors, by his bandmate Vince Clarke (programming/guitar) and replaced by Devo t-shirt shreds held together with safety pins. I mean, you can’t dream up this stuff!

But forget the “look” for a moment. Here is a band that has released 13 albums (Tomorrow’s World their 14th) and you can’t do that unless you’re incredibly talented and incredibly dedicated to the process of making music for the masses. The uberfans I mentioned earlier? They were contorting their bodies to the music, singing along to every word. Me? While I adored the live versions of their classics of “Chains of Love” and my personal favorite “A Little Respect” (a new version of this song’s video is above), I also really enjoyed songs like the flirty “Push Me Shove Me,” the attitude of “Love to Hate You,” and the majesty of “Oh L’amour.” New songs like “Fill Us With Fire” and “A Whole Lotta Love Run Riot” prove Bell and Clarke still have it, even after all these years. The two great backing singers in red and black were both visually and musically stunning additions to the performance. I’m a little confused by the gigantic gargoyles that were sitting onstage during the show, but I’m guessing it has something to do with Tomorrow’s World. That might be the album’s title, but on Tuesday night, the 9:30 Club was most definitely Erasure’s world. Fab show, guys.

Erasure Set List
Sonos Luminos (new song?)
Always
When I Start to (Break It All Down)
Blue Savannah
Fill Us With Fire
Drama!
Save Me Darling
Ship of Fools
Chorus
Breathe
Victim of Love
Alien (acoustic version)
Push Me Shove Me
Love to Hate You
I Lose Myself
A Whole Lotta Love Run Riot
Breath of Life
Chains of Love
Sometimes
A Little Respect
//
Oh L’amour
Stop!

Tour Dates
Sept 08 Philadelphia, PA. Theatre of Living Arts
Sept 10 Boston, MA. House of Blues
Sept 11 Toronto, ON. Sound Academy
Sept 13 New York, NY. Terminal 5
Sept 14 New York, NY. Terminal 5
Sept 16 Chicago, IL. Congress Theatre
Sept 17 Chicago, IL, Congress Theatre
Sept 18 Milwaukee, WI. Pabst Theater
Sept 20 Indianapolis, IN. Vogue Theatre
Sept 21 St. Louis, MO. The Pageant
Sept 23 Austin, TX. ACL Live
Sept 24 Houston, TX. Verizon Wireless Theatre
Sept 25 Dallas, TX. House of Blues
Sept 27 Denver, CO. Ogden Theater
Sept 28 Salt Lake City, UT. Kingsbury Hall
Sept 30 Las Vegas, NV. The Palms Concert Theater
Oct 01 Los Angeles, CA. Hollywood Palladium
Oct 02 San Diego, CA. House of Blues
Oct 04 Oakland, CA. Fox Theater
Oct 05 Portland, OR. Crystal Ballroom
Oct 06 Seattle, WA. Neptune

Erasure: website | myspace | Erasure eyeing October album release, touring North America this Fall
Frankmusik: website | myspace | @ 9:30 Club, 2010, on Perez Hilton Tour

Alex Frankel, one half of New York City electronic act Holy Ghost!, was kind enough to lend his typing fingers and answer some questions for me while he and his partner in crime Nick Millhiser are busy touring North America as support for LCD Soundsystem. The duo recently released their first “album” of material, the Static on the Wire EP, and they’re set for a summer full of shows and festival appearances. I ask him about how they got into recording music, his philosophy behind “good” dance music, and their recent cover of Friendly Fires‘ “On Board,” amongst other things. Have a read.

Mary Chang, PopWreckoning: I’ve read that you two met in grade school.  Did you bond immediately over music, certain bands, in band class, etc.?  How did you become friends?
Alex Frankel, Holy Ghost!: Nick was more skateboardy and I was more, sweat pantsy? We did play in a band in 5th grade (ages 9/10, respectively) that practiced in “The Cage” [a storage space in their elementary school] and was instructed by our social science teacher, Mrs. Preston, who was a very cosmic lady seemingly stuck in the late 1970s. But yeah, we always were doing some music here and there together.

MC: I’ve also read that you were members of a short-lived teen hip hop act in the ’90s called Automato. What instruments did you play, did you sing…? What happened with it?
AF: Nick played drums, I played keys. It started when we were 15 but we did it until 2005 actually. It’s how we met James [Murphy] and Tim [Goldsworthy, founders of independent label DFA Records], who produced the record. It faded out, too many cooks in the kitchen, too long spent on the same bunch of songs…we’re all still friends.

MC: How did you get involved with spinning and the making of dance music? Do you each have a personal philosophy towards dance music and what makes it great for you? Is this philosophy different when you yourselves are enjoying the beats in a club vs. when you’re DJaying or performing live?
AF: I like music that I have a pleasurable physical response to. I usually go “oooooooohhh” if I like something. And that means some wiring in my brain has been stimulated by the sounds or chords or whatever. But I guess what makes it GREAT is when the physical thing is there, but additionally there is also something emotional that I relate to on top of the music…like lyrics. Like LCD Soundsystem. Or Chic. Or David Bowie. Or Talking Heads.

MC: There are so many great clubs in New York. What are your favorites to spin at? What about when you’ve got a day off and you just want to hear good music and/or dance?
AF: This is such an interesting question because everyone asks it and here’s the deal: New York clubs rotate their musical style on a night to night basis these days. Meaning, one night the same club has techno, the next night is ska-fusion night. So, there are no clubs that are ALWAYS good. Like Paradise Garage once was. So I don’t know anyone who just “goes out to dance” and “hopes it’ll be good.” We go to places we know our friends or artists we like listening to will be at. But that venue changes every night. Places of interest are le poisson rouge, Santos Party House, Glasslands.

MC: As for dance scenes, do you each have a favorite?  London?  Ibiza?  Berlin?
AF: I’m not sure how to answer that, I guess every place is different? I really love the classic sounds of New York City and Chicago and Detroit. The grit. But I also love the clean, sharp music from Germany, starting from Kraftwerk all the way up to today. We’re pretty open-minded.

MC: Your 2008 single “Hold On” has really taken on a life of its own.  During an informal trawling of the Web, I found evidence that fans of dance music think it’s one of those tracks that will live on in dance music history forever (for one, check this link out).  Did you have any idea that “Hold On” was going to blow up as big as it did?
AF: Absolutely no idea it would go beyond our circle of friends!!

MC: When you started writing and recording music as Holy Ghost!, did you already have an idea of where you wanted to go musically? Did you / do you feel influenced by any artists past or present, dance or not?
AF: We wanted to make something that didn’t embarrass our friends, and we wanted to make something that sounded like the music we liked. We wanted to make music that people could dance to but that also was in line with our love of pop music structures.

MC: Let’s switch gears and talk about your releases for this year. In March, you put out a split single with one of PopWreckoning’s favorites, Friendly Fires. The BBC and British music media did a pretty good job of covering their side of what happened on this came about.  Is it true that the idea came up over a drunken haze at Calvi on the Rocks in Ibiza last summer?  How do you guys know each other?  Tell us more.
AF: Haha! Yeah, me and Ed [Macfarlane] met at Calvi last year during our DJ set, and I think about 30 minutes later we had agreed on a cover swap. Just clicked right off the bat. Good bloke.

MC: I really liked what you did with “On Board”, the DFA Celestial Choir was a nice touch, as was the bounce of “don’t stop, don’t stop” in the middle.  How did you choose that track, and how did you approach doing this cover?
AF: Thanks!!! It took forever. There were a bunch of huge personal and technical setbacks during the recording, and it took about 6 weeks. In the end we were really happy with it, felt like we made it our own but kept their original ideas relatively intact. Really fun project.

MC: It must have felt really different doing a full-fledged cover than a remix, being so famous for doing remixes for such high-profile friends like Moby and James Murphy / LCD Soundsystem.
AF: Eh, not really. Our “remixes” are often times covers. See the Moby remix (“I Love to Move in Here”) for evidence, where not one sound from the original was used, including vocals.

MC: Your first album-type release, the Static on the Wire EP, was released last month (May 18) on DFA Records. Only four songs but I think it’s a great taster to get people into what Holy Ghost! the recording act is all about.  How long did it take to record them? Was it quick from start to finish or have these ideas been percolating since the days of “Hold On”?
AF: I don’t know, it’s hard to distinguish things in retrospect. But we’ve been working on a batch of about 13 to 14 songs for 2 or 3 years. These are four. The rest are on the album.

MC: Last month you played your first live, non-DJ gig at Under 100 on May 15. I didn’t have the privilege of being there but some friends were there and really enjoyed the show. What was going through your mind before you went on?
AF: STAGE FRIGHT!!!! (Alex provided us with the below YouTube link)

MC: What’s it been like touring with LCD Soundsystem on your first “tour” of the continent?
AF: AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING. BEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD. BEST BAND IN THE WORLD. WE WAKE UP SO HAPPY EVERY DAY.

MC: You have some high profile appearances in Europe coming up this summer – Calvi on the Rocks to do a live set, London appearances at [the now endangered] Fabric club and the Groove Armada-founded festival Lovebox, and a festival slot at Germany’s Melt. Are there any particular shows that you are most looking forward to? I know I’m looking forward to your appearance in DC at the U Street Music Hall in less than 3 weeks.
AF: Actually, aside from Calvi, I’m most psyched for U Street. I’ve heard unbelievable things about the club! Oh, and Summerstage in Central Park because my mom and dad can walk from their houses.

MC: When will your first full-length album hit store shelves? (Or maybe “available for electronic download” is a more appropriate phrase.) Anything you can tell us about it now?
AF: It’s not dissimilar from what you’ve heard already. Some shorter, “poppier” songs, but not really. It’s funky. I hope. January [2011 release]?

MC: Some last questions. Your name Holy Ghost! with the exclamation point – who came up with it? Were you ever concerned about the obvious religious connotation?
AF: It’s from a Bar-Kays‘s song [a soul, r&b, and funk band founded in the mid-60s that had a single called "Holy Ghost Pt. I / Holy Ghost Pt. II" in 1975], we needed a name. We think it looks cool too.

Holy Ghost!‘s Static on the Wire EP is available from DFA Records now.

Tour Dates
Jun 04 – Hollywood Palladium / Los Angeles*
Jun 05 – Standard Hotel – Los Angeles
Jun 08 – Stubb’s / Austin*
Jun 09 – Palladium / Dallas*
Jun 12 – 88 Palace / New York City (DJ set)
Jun 18 – Sonar / Baltimore
Jun 19 – U Street Music Hall / Washington, DC
Jun 25 – Making Time / Philadelphia
Jun 25 – Vinyl / Denver (DJ set)
Jul 26 – 9:30 Club / Washington, DC#
Jul 27 – Trocadero / Philadelphia#
Jul 29 – Bowery Ballroom / New York City#
Jul 30 – MEG Festival / Montreal#
Aug 02 – Capital Music Hall / Ottawa#
Aug 03 – Phoenix / Toronto#
Aug 04 – Central Park SummerStage / New York City^
Aug 05 – Majestic Theater / Detroit#
Aug 06 – Lollapalooza / Chicago
Aug 07 – First Avenue / Minneapolis#
Aug 10 – Flames Central / Calgary#
Aug 11 – Commodore Ballroom / Vancouver#
Aug 12 – Showbox Market / Seattle#
Aug 13 – Roseland Ballroom / Portland#
Aug 16 – House of Blues / San Diego#
Aug 19 – Twilight Concert Series / Salt Lake City
Aug 20 – Ogden Theater / Denver#
Aug 24 – Stubb’s / Austin#
Aug 25 – Palladium / Dallas#
Aug 26 – Cannery Ballroom / Nashville#
Aug 27 – Masquerade / Atlanta#
* supporting LCD Soundsystem
^ with Hot Chip
# with Chromeo

Holy Ghost!: website | myspace | Friendly Fires / Holy Ghost! – 12” Split Single

Tuesday night shows are rough for bands traveling through Lawrence, Kan. Show times are flexible, local bands tend to get top billing, and very few folks attend. It’s a shame more people didn’t come to the Jackpot on May 5, though, because Stardeath and White Dwarfs put on a stellar show.

Dennis Coyne

I’m a new fan of the Dwarfs, so I was unable to record the names of the songs played Tuesday evening. I first heard the Dwarfs’ while researching the bands who were touring with the Flaming Lips (Dennis Coyne is Wayne Coyne‘s, of the Flaming Lips, nephew). I instantly fell in love with the band’s experimental music and exceptional psychedelic rock sound. While the listener can hear that the Dwarfs’ music is  influenced by 60s/70s bands, such as the Doors and the Blue Oyster Cult (there’s even a bit of Phil Collins thrown in for good measure), the Dwarfs’ sound is all original.

The Oklahoma natives came on stage around 10:45 p.m., somewhat hidden by a cloud of smoke. Cheesy, perhaps, but the fine dust created a mysterious atmosphere, which allowed the band’s elaborate light set-up to cascade across the wafting particles.

Dennis Coyne’s (vocals, guitar, keys) faded silhouette appeared vaguely through the smoke as the rest of the Dwarfs (Casey Joseph, Matt Duckworth and James Young) began playing the show’s opening tune. Coyne, appearing pleased with the crowd’s reaction, slightly swayed to the song, and moved his bare feet to the beat.

The Dwarfs’ song styles ranged from gritted-out garage rock tunes to funk-fused jams; quiet ballads to blow-your-brain-out-of-your-skull psych-rock. Keyboard solos were played on a bedraggled board. The band’s electronic melodies spun their soothing, soul inspired songs into frizzed, disco-dance trips.

The band finished with a crazed rock jam, and used full light effects and slow, pounding guitar riffs, which sent the small crowd into a frenzy.

Cloud Dog: I’ve renamed show openers, Cloud Dog, “the band of a thousand drums.” Lovingly, of course. Most of the fellas in the band played shirtless, lost boys style (Peter Pan, not the vampires). One drummer opted to keep his plaid shirt on, though. Shirted or not, the guys definitely had an interesting sound. Minimalist male vocals/yelling/calling, atop drums, and electronic loops. A kind of tribal Talking Heads.

The Dwarfs’ album, The Birth, will be out June 2nd. It’ll be a good one.

What is there to say about Day 2 of ACL? After such a beautiful Day 1, the rain came and stuck around for the most part of Day 2. When I realized this rain was not going to pass anytime soon, I invested in a poncho. The beautiful Zilker Park was left a muddy mess in mere hours, but festival goers embraced the rain and mud, most opting for bare foot and whatever plastic they could find to shield themselves from the elements.

Starting off my day was Deer Tick who I had heard such good things from coworkers, but I was left underwhelmed, perhaps due to the dreary weather. I made my way to the Livestrong stage to see Alberta Cross (who later received a shout out from Mr. Dave Matthews during his headlining set). The rained eased up as they made their way through their bluesy set, but I had other places to be so I made my way to the Felice Brothers to get a good spot for Grizzly Bear as well and that’s unfortunately when the skies opened and the downpour began. Grizzly Bear pushed themselves rather far back in the stage and didn’t move or interact all that much. So while I appreciate the songs, I left feeling a little mixed on their set.

With a quick jaunt to the media to load up on free snacks on my mind, I made my way back in the rain. Once I was full of Coca Cola and all natural snacks, I braved the elements to see my personal highlight of the day and that was Bon Iver. I had not heard much about his shows, but I was floored at his soulful vocals and haunting harmonies with his backing band, making the rain feel insignificant. After Vernon’s wonderful set on steel guitar, I made my way through the mud to Mos Def. While I was initially disappointed by his tardiness and hiding behind a drum kit for the first two songs, the showman Mos Def I have come to love and respect graced the front of the stage mic in hand working the rain shocked crowd into a frenzy.

After enjoying the wonderful catered BBQ in the media area, I made my way to Dave Matthews Band. Now while I’m not what I’d consider a fan, I do have an appreciation for the sheer musicianship Matthews and gang demonstrate on a nightly basis; I also have to appreciate a cover of Talking Heads “Burning Down The House” While nothing can live up to David Bryne’s vocals on the track, DMB’s version was rather lively and Dave’s dance moves worked the mud-covered fans into hysteria. After their set, I decided to call it a night and waited for my free shuttle back to my hotel to rest up, clean off my shoes (remember, ALWAYS pack more than one pair of shoes) and rest up for Day 3.

Austin City Limits: website | day 1

Welcome back, readers!  The summer is winding down and I’m still listening to danceable hip hop and R&B jams that make me want to shake my tailfeather on the dance floor.  Well, kitchen floor really.  Last week I unleashed a Sampling Edition, Part 1 to whet your musical appetites and had so much fun that I decided I’d double down on your asses with a two-parter.  Not for the A.D.D. musical aficionado, these tracks featuring a plethora of samples in unique and unlikely capacities.  Sometimes it’s fun just trying to see if you can figure out what part of the song belongs to which artist.  Either way, it’s a luscious mix of sounds and beats that make some of your favorite songs a tad more danceable.  And that’s always good.
–

.Destiny’s Child - “Bootylicious”
Sample: Stevie Nicks – “Edge of Seventeen“
Who doesn’t love that chugging guitar riff that sets the tone of the Stevie Nicks classic “Edge of Seventeen?”  Apparently, Destiny’s Child wanted to pay homage to one of the foremothers of rock n’ roll by pilfering the sound for the intro of “Bootylicious,” a cheeky video that actually features a cameo of Miss Nicks herself.  As is the case with all great art, ironically Nicks and her writing team were subconsciously channelling their inner-Sting as it’s been said that the guitar and drum parts sound eerily similar to The Police‘s “Bring On The Night” and they only realized it afterwards.  Wow, I wasn’t ready for that jelly.

.Notorious B.I.G. feat. Puff Daddy & Lil’ Kim – “Notorious B.I.G.”
Sample: Duran Duran - “Notorious“
One of my favorite hip hop artists of all time (may he rest!), Notorious B.I.G. enlisted the help of some of his Bad Boy family members to create one of the more memorable hip hop and rock mash-ups from the 1990′s that is the quintessential personal anthem of his own self-proclaimed notoriety.  Big up to Biggie for being able to make narcissistic songs so damn catchy by sampling a Duran Duran chorus and jangly guitar licks.  Or was it Puff Daddy‘s idea?  After all, he does claim to have invented the remix.

.Jay-Z feat. Memphis Bleek – “It’s Alright”
Sample: Talking Heads – “Once In A Lifetime“
Oh Jay-Z, can you ever do wrong?  It’s a  song like this that makes me wonder what the hell does Talking Heads lead singer David Byrne have to say about this?  It takes balls to sample Talking Heads for a hip hop song about maxin’, relaxin’ and chillaxin’.  Apparently Jay and Memphis Bleek borrow from a Kraftwerk song (“The Hall Of Mirrors”) here too so the musical sample is essentially an ambitious composite of the two.  Does Jay-Z really listen to new wave and synthpop?  If so, holler back, young’n.

.Puff Daddy feat. Mase – “Been Around The World”
Sample: David Bowie – “Let’s Dance”
This track may be too slow to do the Harlem shuffle, but it still does make me long for the golden days of 90′s hip hop.  With the help of then bromantic musical partner Mase, Puff Daddy had innovation on his mind when he laced this track with the inventive music of David Bowie‘s classic “Let’s Dance,” while stealing the chorus from Lisa Stansfield’s soft-rock hit “Been Around The World.”  Whatever happened to her?  Is she still looking for her baby?  Does Puff Daddy have a soft spot for the light music station?  This is another example of odd musical pairings that totally work and leave it to Puffy to pioneer the art of musical interpolation and mixing the unlikeliest songs.

.Girl Talk – “Shut The Club Down”
Sample: Aphex Twin – “Girl/Boy Song” (among 16 other song snippets)

It was hard selecting a sample of DJ Girl Talk‘s dizzying, creative as hell, genius mash-up tracks off Feed The Animals, but “Shut The Club Down” is one of my favorite tracks.  In this one song he samples everyone from Avril Lavigne, Aphex Twin, Jay-Z, Rod Stewart, Butthole Surfers and Ray J, among others.  I chose to feature the Aphex Twin track because he selects the breakdown of the incredible “Girl/Boy Song” during this track’s breakdown, while lacing in Rich Boy’s “Throw Some D’s.”  Girl Talk finds a way to satisfy any type of musical enthusiast: 80s, rock, hip hop, synthpop, and pop.  I can’t wait to finally catch a set of his at Street Scene San Diego next month.  I’m going to wear my “Engineers Do It Better” t-shirt and hope he picks me out of the audience to jump in his inflatable raft and crowd surf.  Sigh, I love me some Girl Talk.

The Ireland-based Bell X1 evolved out of the Damien Rice-fronted Juniper. After Rice quit over an argument with the band about packaging their CDs with recyclable material, drummer Paul Noonan took over front man duties and the band changed their name. Though perhaps lacking the grandeur of Coldplay and Keane, Bell X1 fit nicely into the aforementioned’s category of UK bands boasting intelligent writing and sturdy composition, but lacking the edge needed to enthrall North American listeners not yet detached enough to listen to adult-contemporary radio stations. The touches of decidedly pretty piano and singer Noonan’s calculatedly gentle vocals all further indicate the band’s target audience to be 30+ers that prefer their music subdued and unchallenging.

On the first and more interesting half of Blue Lights On The Runway, this is less apparent. The songs are crafted around beats and contain some of the “oomph” the later half fatally lacks. Opener “The Ribs Of A Broken Umbrella” starts the album off well, with a variety of euphoric electronic sounds wrapped around its basic two-chord structure. On “The Great Defector”, with only a subtle shift in intention, Noonan’s vocals takes on a David Byrne-like character. He playfully sing-speaks lyrics like, “the accountants have taken the movie,” while interesting harmonies, 8-bit keyboards and an animate bass line all flit around the soundscape. Without question, it’s the album’s best track.

The rest of Blue Lights on the Runway, however, goes downhill from there. “A Better Band” shows more of the Talking Heads influence, but completely lacks the manic element that made Byrne and company so compelling. “Breastfed”’s chorus is a valiant attempt at harder rock but fails to convince. “Light Catches Your Face” is the shmaltzer you can expect to hear on “Grey’s Anatomy”.

On Blue Lights on the Runway’s better tracks, Bell X1 show that they have the ability to write music meant for more than network drama placement. Perhaps they just choose not to because there’s simply more money to be made off the “Grey’s Anatomy” audience than hipsters who’ll download the album (without paying for it), blog about how it’s the greatest thing since OK Computer, and then forget about it the next week. If a smart band isn’t necessarily a good one, in this case, Bell X1 is a very smart band.

Blue Lights on the Runway comes out March 3 on BellyUp Records.

Tracklisting:
01. The Ribs of a Broken Umbrella
02. How Your Heart Is Wired
03. The Great Defector
04. Blow Ins
05. Amelia
06. A Better Band
07. Breastfed
08. Light Catches Your Face
09. One Stringed Harp
10. The Curtains Are Twitchin’

Bell X1: website | myspace

Indie electronica group The Chap served up an odd dish for their third studio album Mega Breakfast.

I say odd because while I applaud the The Chap for their originality, which is so unique that it was actually quite difficult to classify them, at times it gets so different and weird that they leave their listener behind as they wander into new territory. The biography on the label Ghostly International‘s website describes The Chap saying that they “have never been influenced by anyone or anything at any time, ever.” A bold statement, but for the most part true. There are vibes of other artists like the Talking Heads, but The Chap throw in so many weird twists to their music that it is hard to compare them to anyone else.

The album as a whole is very theatrical and features dance beats, big string movements and repetitive vocal chants littered with random sound effects. While you might expect to hear tracks most of the tracks in a club, others like “Fun and Interesting” have choruses that seem like they were lifted right out of a musical.

Lyrically, the album leaves something to be desired. It is ironic that on “Caution Me” the band says, “Develop a voice which is annoying,” which is exactly what happens: it gets annoying.

My recommendation is to check this out for the novelty of it, but do so in small doses. A song here and there to play at a party, but not necessarily something to have playing in your car stereo all the time. Perhaps give a few of the tracks like “Uss Wuss” and “Ethnic Instrument” a try to see if you like it.

The Chap’s Mega Breakfast was released July 1, 2008 by Ghostly International.

Tracklisting:
01. They Have a Name (download)
02. Fun and Interesting
03. Caution Me
04. Carlos Walter Wendy Stanley (download)
05. Surgery
06. Take It in the Face
07. Ethnic Instrument
08. Proper Rock
09. The Health of Nations
10. Uss Wuss
11. I Saw Them
The Chap: website | myspace
Ghostly International: website

Written by: Bethany