Moss Icon at PopMatters

All:

Those as pleased as I was to find that Temporary Residence was/is putting out a Moss Icon discography should use this link and see your boy wax rhapsodic over at PopMatters.

R

Superchunk and Coliseum Record Store Day 7"

I can't say I ever thought I'd see Coliseum and Superchunk sharing sides of wax, but then again, JS-NYC is rapidly becoming too old to argue. I guess it makes a little more sense with it being a limited release for Record Store Day. Both parties bring Misfits covers to the table, with the Chunk finally recording Horror Business and Coliseum offering up an old recording of Bullet. I'll save my feelings on The Misfits in the interest of retaining what little scene cred I have left and report that the 7" has art by Ryan Patterson. Comes as a joint release between Merge and Temporary Residence and almost makes up for (or perhaps more accurately: is paid for by) Arcade Fire.

R

Mono with The Twilight Sad @ Bowery Ballroom 5.30.10

This show had just about dropped off my radar, but luckily it came up at rehearsal and I managed to snag a ticket. Long time sufferers of JS-NYC may remember my fondness for the discordant stylings of Aereogramme and Glasvegas (and Teenage Fanclub, The Jesus and Mary Chain and a gang of others). Combining that mood in The Twilight Sad with the soaring instrumental stylings of Mono is a fine way to spend a holiday Sunday night from where I'm sitting.

I wasn't mistaked. I got to the show in the middle of the the opening Twilight Sad number and was pretty pleased with their offering. Their quiet-loud thing gets a little transparent after a couple doses in a row, but it's a beautiful noise to behold. In other notes, there is an interesting tendency in the TS franchise to start acquiring the same haircut a couple of weeks into the tour. The prison cuts that they highlighted on their last visit, combined with their collective ghostly pallor smacked of alcoholic inspiration but I'm not sure what accounts for 3/4 of the band sporting the same Jonny Greenwood haircut. Maybe they got a deal, either way a great band that deserves much success.

Mono were up next. I found Brandon and Theresa stage right and got ready for the onslaught. These Mono shows were behind a new CD/DVD set from last year's shows with The Wordless Music Orchestra called Holy Ground: NYC Live, although they featured only conventional four piece lineup. Rather than dance too much about architecture here, suffice to say that Mono live is a pretty epic proposition. I'm pretty sure this is the set list

Ashes in the Snow / Burial at Sea / The Kidnapper Bell / Pure as Snow / Sabbath / Yearning / Follow the Map / Halcyon (Beautiful Days) / Everlasting Light

I've been slacking in getting this posted, so by this point anybody in the US has missed out on these shows. Forgive me, but that really is your loss, kids. Apologize to those that are geographically challenged. Keep track of future Mono dates here and Twilight Sad goings-on here. In the interim, consider buying the new Mono record here. Those that prefer their songs with vocals might also be interested in the new Twilight Sad single that you can get here. You're welcome.

R

Grails - Doomsdayer's Holiday

This wasn't what I expected. I guess if I had known that Grails were originally called Laurel Canyon, I would have recalibrated accordingly. I thought I'd be getting pummeled by metal, but Grails is much more aligned with stuff like Dead Can Dance or Godspeed You Black Emporer. There's a heavier world music influence than I normally hear this side of Michael Gira curated fare, but with Tod from CopShootCop resuscitating Firewater and Gogol Bordello setting Brooklyn on it's ear, I can see this getting a lot of notice.

Now I'm totally new to Grails, so maybe they are already a big deal, but the sheer volume of their releases, Doomsdayer's Holiday being the second in 2008, I'd say someone's taking notice. The band is based out of Portland, OR and has adopted some curious tendencies (only touring Europe initially, now only touring the East Coast) and kind of sounds like Isis covering DCD. It's good stuff. Grails had released material on Neurot previously, but this time around Temporary Residence has stepped up and added them to the roster. The band members are keeping busy, too as members tenure in projects with such heavy hitters as Jandek, Steve Von Till and M. Ward. Evidently one of the guys is in OM, now too. Gotta pay those bills.

Doomsdayer's Holiday is evidently one of two Grails recordings this year. Important Records has also released Take Refuge In Clean Living. After typing that, I'm pretty sure that I have a copy of that around, so look out for a companion review soon. If you are looking for some instrumental music that isn't just background white noise, you could do a lot worse than Grails.

R

Thursday/Envy split

This split on Temporary Residence had been rumored to be in the works for a while. It seemed a pretty ballsy move on Thursday's part from where I'm sitting. I had a brief intense love affair with Thursday around the time of their second record, but I got over them pretty quick. Envy I was late in getting into, but the last three or four years have featured a lot of their records on the JS-NYC hi-fi. Thursday are a decent band, but they aren't in an Envy class by a long shot.

This split is a pretty nice feather in the TRL cap. I guess Thursday kind of hold their own musically. Geoff's voice was the thing that killed the band for me. It was just a little too whiny in the wrong kinds of way. To be fair, I often wonder if I understood the Envy lyrics whether it would be the same kind of deal-breaker. Tetsuya Fukagawa has more of a guttural tone than Rickley's screech that comes off better for me. Believe me, I know how many of you (ha!) feel differently. Envy just seem to be farther ahead. On some next level shit, if you will. They are a maelstrom of sound and beauty that knows few peers. You'll need to look no farther than the cover to see it in black and white. The dove that is the Thursday logo is in the foreground, but the tornado behind is a more than apt metaphor for what you're getting from the Envy franchise and why New Jersey's finest pale in comparison.

There are seven songs on the split, three from each artist; the odd track beng a remix of one the Thursday tracks by Anthony Molina of Mercury Rev that's decent enough, but seems more like a desperate attempt to level the playing field by Thursday. Yes, I am a dick. Either way, the Thursday stuff is tolerable and the Envy is exceptional. You should buy it here from Temporary Residence. If you happen to be a collector nerd, you can get some tasty screen and colored vinyl selections as well.

Thursday can be contacted here, Envy here.

R

Young Widows - Old Wounds

So I'm interviewing Young Widows for Skyscraper in a couple days. I knew Breather Resist a bit and was familiar with other Patterson family projects, but never really had any strong feelings for any of them. For the uninitiated, Young Widows is a trio; Breather Resist without singer Steve Sindoni.

I've got a lot of respect for the Kentucky scene, but it's been since Rodan really that I had a band that drew me to Derby City. I'm still waiting for a hard copy of Old Wounds but I took the liberty of appropriating the record electronically in the interim. Listening to the record the first time, I could have sworn I heard applause, but figured that it was just studio banter. I'm wholly in favor, especially if it's real and not some sort of skit. Other tracks had obvious crowd chatter and Patterson addressing an audience, yet OW didn't seem to be a live record. A little digging revealed that Mr. Kurt Ballou recorded four shows and used some of the tracks for the record. It's a great idea if the band has enough control of their sound that they can match the two. I aim to find out if the tracks were overdubbed, but Young Widows don't seem to be the type of band to hide behind studio trickery. At the end of it all, Old Wounds in a great sounding record. It sounds very Shellac-y in the rhythm section and very AmRep in it's clear angular guitar. Patterson is also sounding great vocally. He's been in touring bands since his early teens, but only sang in the last couple of years. Helming Young Widows can't be good for the old pipes, but Patterson seems like he can take the strain. I guess we'll find out, as if there is any justice in the world, Old Wounds will be a big success for Young Widows.

Young Widows hit the road starting the end of the month. They are playing in Brooklyn on the 26th at Club Europa, a venue I believe I kinda hate, but it may just be because I think I saw Matt & Kim there. Judging by the live tracks on Old Wounds, you'd be smart to go see them. You can get the record from Temporary Residence here. Keep checking their site for word on the four split seven-inches they are releasing in the coming months. The first three artists have been confirmed and are Bonnie Prince Billy, Pelican and Melt Banana. Start saving those pennies.

R