Yes, we've been fortunate enough to have some really fine releases in the Triangle this year. That said, this list wasn't a terribly difficult one for me to make.
No other local release got as much play in my world -- or as much attention from the masses. Kudos to Bladen County Records' Matt Brown for making the incredibly wise decision to release Stu McLamb's lo-fi solo compositions as-is. And kudos to Stu for putting together a very fine live band to interpret those compositions.
2. The Bronzed Chorus: "I'm the Spring"
A fine release from the most compelling band I've heard, local or otherwise, in a while.
3. Lonnie Walker: "These Times, Old Times"
Listening to "These Times, Old Times" just makes me happy. And that's good enough reason to put this on my list.
4. Megafaun: "Gather, Form and Fly"
On the other hand, "Gather, Form and Fly" often makes me feel apprehensive. Even the quietest numbers have a calm-before-the-storm feel to them.
5. Polvo: "In Prisim"
Polvo returns, and isn't afraid to show their Led Zeppelin influence.
Song of the year: I Was Totally Destroying It: "Done Waiting"
Nothing made me sing at the top of my lungs like the "Whoa-ohhhhs" in this song.
I don't know what's happening, but it seems like minor disasters have been popping up all week, culminating in a daylong free-for-all of confusion on Friday.
I was one of the organizers of Friday's New Raleigh showcase at the Berkeley Cafe. After the Infamous Sugar got sick and had to drop out, we agreed to let Grayson, Brad from Megafaun and Jenks from Horseback play a "secret" set with their project, Man Blossom. I was already a little worried that the Mars Volta show would hurt us, especially after a comment war ensued on New Raleigh over whether people should go see our show or the Mars Volta.
Then, in the space of a few hours I found out that 1. Man Blossom were NOT playing. 2. Mars Volta were cancelled 3. NAPS, which is the side project with members of Lonnie Walker and Annuals, were added to the bill and 4. two bands for today's Cherry Bounce finale couldn't make it, and they needed help getting someone locally to fill in. That's how the T's ended up playing down there at 1:30 today.
During the day, I started feeling like I was coming down with something, so I knew I'd make an early night of it. I saw Colossus and thought they were great. The audience were really into them, and even started moshing, which seemed to take the band by surprise. I also purchased their new vinyl LP, "Drunk on Blood," and will give my opinion soon. Unfortunately my video of Colossus was corrupted. As I said, weird luck all night.
Having NAPS on the bill turned out to be good because it was the first time I've seen them. I only got to see one song, so I can't really give much of a review, but I did capture some video so you can see them for yourself. I heard that Rooster were great, and that The T's had some trouble when Lutie broke her bass strap.
Before the Berkeley show I checked out Mommie and Tonk at Seaboard, and I can say that Tonk's first show was no fluke. They're really good. Imagine drinking a bourbon and Coke and chatting up a peroxided woman named Lurleen in a dark, wood-paneled honky tonk bar, circa 1975. Tonk would be playing on the jukebox. Can't wait for the next show, because I have it on good authority that singer Graham "The Night Honky" Fry's next outfit will be a denim suit adorned with some sort of big-mouth bass design.
Ever since I first saw Lonnie Walker, I've been trying to describe them to myself. They tag themselves as alt-country punk, and while they have some elements of both styles, neither truly fits. The closest I could get was comparing them to Violent Femmes. Then last week I played them for my SO, who immediately hit it on the head and said, "This sounds like Camper Van Beethoven."
Having never really listened to CVB, I can't say how true his assessment is. They were just one band that never grabbed me, but now I'm thinking I should go back and listen to them again, because I love Lonnie Walker so much.
Artsplosure would seem to be a perfect venue for them, but the intermittent rains on Saturday thinned the crowd considerably, and made the crowd that was there a bit lackluster. Still, they did debut a new song, and got hilariously creative with the song "Grape Juice," turning the line "fucked up" into "yup yup" for the family-oriented audience.
(Lonnie Walker)
Friday I headed over to Local 506 for the Great 8 showcase, which actually only showcased four of the bands. And since David Menconi always makes a point of including a diverse group in each Great 8, it was a fairly diverse -- though still pop-heavy -- show.
Americana-rockers Lonnie Walker were playing when we got there, and I was immediately sorry we hadn't gotten there sooner. I've been hearing their name here and there, but so far hadn't checked them out. At least I don't think I've checked them out. For some reason I want to say I HAVE seen them before, but I just can't remember where and when. Regardless, I liked them quite a bit and will make an effort to check them out again, which shouldn't be difficult since they play in Raleigh fairly often.
Next up were Violet Vector & the Lovely Lovelies, another band I hadn't seen, but at least I was familiar with their music. if there's any word that perfectly describes VV, it's perky. There's a trio of cute, smiling girls (plus two dudes), all wearing vintage '60s frocks, singing with child-like glee and playing sweet bubblegum pop. The crowd ate it up.
But not everyone was impressed by Violet Vector(and I admit, a little of it goes a long way with me too): My companion hated every single thing about them, from the vocals to the flute to the drummer's Ringo-like head toss.
"If I do go to Hell, this is what they'll be playing," she said, crossly.
She was much more impressed by Double Negative, whose set was like chugging a bottle of rubbing alcohol after Violet Vector's cotton candy. Seriously, it was one of the weirder transitions I've ever seen. The crowd, including some suit-and-tie wearing dudes who had been getting down during VV, mostly retreated to the bar, leaving a core of about 15 really die-hard Double Negative fans at the front. Much to the band's credit, they put on a really blistering set anyway.
The final band was Hammer No More the Fingers, who are going to be world famous pretty soon. I'm already getting pitches from publicists about them, which is pretty weird. It's always weird having someone from New York e-mail me to try and get me to write about a local band. They also put on a good show, but as of yet, I don't have permission to post their video. I'll do so as soon as I hear back from them.
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