Bloc Party
A Weekend In The City
@@@1/2
What makes Bloc Party good is also what makes them difficult. Rather than the catchy, guitar-driven Britpop I tend to favor, their music is angular and oblique, with random drumbeats, slow to develop melodies and a decided lack of instant accessibility. But with patience, you discover that there is a lot of quality to their music, which is infused with more melody than anything I've yet to latch onto from TV on the Radio, an increasingly popular yet somewhat similarly obtuse American band. Bloc Party's first album, Silent Alarm, had a number of eventually highly enjoyable songs, and only a few weeks into this one, it's continuing to grow on me. A @@@@ review wouldn't be inconceivable, especially over time, but @@@1/2 seems about right. This isn't music that's going to pump you up or make you want to dance, but it is certainly better than a lot of what passes for popular these days, and I even favor it over the more traditional but less inspired new Kaiser Chiefs album (see review below).
Monday, March 12, 2007
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Concert Review: Smoking Popes
Smoking Popes
March 9, 2007
Champs Rock Room
Burbank, IL
@@@@ (out of 5)
OK, so the Smoking Popes aren't British. But other than some acclaim across Chicagoland -- they hail from northwest suburban Lake In The Hills -- they probably could be considered "Hidden." After releasing two near perfect albums of power pop gems in the mid-'90s, they disbanded as lead singer and songwriter Josh Caterer wanted to explore his Christianity (and formed a band called Duvall, like the Popes accompanied by his brother Eli). Now they've reunited and I caught them for the first time since in a smoky room full of Bud Light drinkers in the lovely burg of Burbank, IL. A couple of opening bands called The Arrivals and Dead Town Revival were listenable but nothing exceptional, but the Popes made the excursion to the southwest burbs quite worthwhile. The stuff from the aforementioned albums -- Born To Quit and Destination Failure -- sounded wonderful, while some songs they played from an upcoming album didn't completely "wow" me. But though I enjoyed the show throughout, I was blown away by a show closing cover of Springsteen's "Born To Run." I'm not sure if the entire crowd loved it as much as I did, but I'd never heard anyone cover it before and I got a kick out of it.
March 9, 2007
Champs Rock Room
Burbank, IL
@@@@ (out of 5)
OK, so the Smoking Popes aren't British. But other than some acclaim across Chicagoland -- they hail from northwest suburban Lake In The Hills -- they probably could be considered "Hidden." After releasing two near perfect albums of power pop gems in the mid-'90s, they disbanded as lead singer and songwriter Josh Caterer wanted to explore his Christianity (and formed a band called Duvall, like the Popes accompanied by his brother Eli). Now they've reunited and I caught them for the first time since in a smoky room full of Bud Light drinkers in the lovely burg of Burbank, IL. A couple of opening bands called The Arrivals and Dead Town Revival were listenable but nothing exceptional, but the Popes made the excursion to the southwest burbs quite worthwhile. The stuff from the aforementioned albums -- Born To Quit and Destination Failure -- sounded wonderful, while some songs they played from an upcoming album didn't completely "wow" me. But though I enjoyed the show throughout, I was blown away by a show closing cover of Springsteen's "Born To Run." I'm not sure if the entire crowd loved it as much as I did, but I'd never heard anyone cover it before and I got a kick out of it.
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Album Review: Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs
Yours Truly, Angry Mob
@@@ (out of 5)
When I was in London in May 2005, I asked a record store clerk to cite some popular new bands in Britain that I may not have heard of in America. He mentioned Kaiser Chiefs, Kasabian and Razorlight and I bought the current albums from the first two right then and there. Employment, the 2005 album by Kaiser Chiefs, was quite enjoyable, with a few really good songs, including I Predict A Riot and Everyday I Love You Less and Less. They would go on to get some press and airplay in America, play Live 8 in Philadelphia, not London and open a co-headlining tour by Foo Fighters and Weezer. But they won multiple Brit Awards (England's answer to the Grammy's) and their new album and its lead single, Ruby, went straight to #1 in Great Britain. In America, they're still playing small venues, such as the Vic in Chicago. Based on the new album, their entire output to date and even my own discovery of numerous current Brit-famous bands that I like better, I think both America and Britain are about half-right. The Chiefs deserve a bit more acclaim and success in the states, but cannot yet be considered a great band worthy of all the love heaped on them at home. Yours Truly, Angry Mob is listenable, even enjoyable, but certainly not brilliant, revelatory nor especially interesting. Ruby is fine, but there are dozens of better recent Britpop singles. And even after several listenings, none of the other songs stand out and seem to fall short of the top songs from Employment. So as Britpop ignored in America goes, this is a band and album worth knowing about, but doubtfully one that will change your life.
Yours Truly, Angry Mob
@@@ (out of 5)
When I was in London in May 2005, I asked a record store clerk to cite some popular new bands in Britain that I may not have heard of in America. He mentioned Kaiser Chiefs, Kasabian and Razorlight and I bought the current albums from the first two right then and there. Employment, the 2005 album by Kaiser Chiefs, was quite enjoyable, with a few really good songs, including I Predict A Riot and Everyday I Love You Less and Less. They would go on to get some press and airplay in America, play Live 8 in Philadelphia, not London and open a co-headlining tour by Foo Fighters and Weezer. But they won multiple Brit Awards (England's answer to the Grammy's) and their new album and its lead single, Ruby, went straight to #1 in Great Britain. In America, they're still playing small venues, such as the Vic in Chicago. Based on the new album, their entire output to date and even my own discovery of numerous current Brit-famous bands that I like better, I think both America and Britain are about half-right. The Chiefs deserve a bit more acclaim and success in the states, but cannot yet be considered a great band worthy of all the love heaped on them at home. Yours Truly, Angry Mob is listenable, even enjoyable, but certainly not brilliant, revelatory nor especially interesting. Ruby is fine, but there are dozens of better recent Britpop singles. And even after several listenings, none of the other songs stand out and seem to fall short of the top songs from Employment. So as Britpop ignored in America goes, this is a band and album worth knowing about, but doubtfully one that will change your life.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Concert Review: Razorlight, with Mohair
Saturday, March 3, 2007
Martyrs Pub - Chicago
Razorlight: @@@@ (out of 5)
Mohair: @@@@1/2
In their native England, Razorlight plays 15,000+ seat arenas; in Chicago, they played a bar with a capacity of 200-300. I was about 10 feet away from them. They are not among my very favorite current British bands, but they are pretty good and showed some nice growth from their first to second (and current) album. I was supposed to see them in September, opening for Keane, but that show and a rescheduled one in December were canceled due to Keane's lead singer going into rehab. I did not hear about this show when it was announced, and I guess it sold out pretty quickly, largely to British expats based on the crowd. I would've taken a pass, but I became curious about the opening act, Mohair, when I saw the concert listing. Mohair's 2006 debut album was strongly reviewed on AllMusic.com, so I downloaded it. It is really, really good (probably @@@@1/2). So I went to Martyrs without a ticket and was fortunate to get one outside, albeit for a good bit over face value, but that had only been $13 so it wasn't too bad. Mohair was really enjoyable, young guys who were quite personable and obviously enjoying what is likely their first American tour. The crowd really loved Razorlight, and I enjoyed them too, but with only two albums in the can, there is a disparity between their 4-5 really good songs and the rest. It also didn't help that they didn't play my favorite tune of theirs: Rock 'n Roll Lies. On this night, they certainly merited their headlining status, and I can see why England loves them, but I can even more promising things for Mohair, at least musically if not in stateside popularity.
Martyrs Pub - Chicago
Razorlight: @@@@ (out of 5)
Mohair: @@@@1/2
In their native England, Razorlight plays 15,000+ seat arenas; in Chicago, they played a bar with a capacity of 200-300. I was about 10 feet away from them. They are not among my very favorite current British bands, but they are pretty good and showed some nice growth from their first to second (and current) album. I was supposed to see them in September, opening for Keane, but that show and a rescheduled one in December were canceled due to Keane's lead singer going into rehab. I did not hear about this show when it was announced, and I guess it sold out pretty quickly, largely to British expats based on the crowd. I would've taken a pass, but I became curious about the opening act, Mohair, when I saw the concert listing. Mohair's 2006 debut album was strongly reviewed on AllMusic.com, so I downloaded it. It is really, really good (probably @@@@1/2). So I went to Martyrs without a ticket and was fortunate to get one outside, albeit for a good bit over face value, but that had only been $13 so it wasn't too bad. Mohair was really enjoyable, young guys who were quite personable and obviously enjoying what is likely their first American tour. The crowd really loved Razorlight, and I enjoyed them too, but with only two albums in the can, there is a disparity between their 4-5 really good songs and the rest. It also didn't help that they didn't play my favorite tune of theirs: Rock 'n Roll Lies. On this night, they certainly merited their headlining status, and I can see why England loves them, but I can even more promising things for Mohair, at least musically if not in stateside popularity.
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