Album: Sightings - City of Straw

Album: City of Straw
Brah, 2010
Rating: ******** (8/10)

I'm not one to put up with inaccessible crap that poses as art so from the start, I had my doubts about Sightings. The band's music is based on melodiless drones, harsh guitar noise and fragmented pulses. However, in the several live shows I've seen, Sightings prove their noise and drone is crafted and focused, smart, emotive and riveting. City of Straw is my first taste of Sightings on record and it's as much a controlled burn as the live show.

City of Straw opens with a crackling, shallow rhythm that seems to encrypt sheer horror in a broken morse code. A minute into the track, the popping and clicking is supplemented by heavy, relentless thud that has all of the inhuman finality of gunshots. A guitar scrapes hissing sheets of noise. Mark Morgan's vocals sound traumatized, their unemotional monotone a hinting at melody. Not that there is potential for melody but rather that there still stand some charred ruins where a melody once was.

The more challenging "Jabber Queens" follows, shuddering to life with a bass positively vomiting notes - far more notes than could fit comfortably in the space - while Morgan's rant slurs, consonants stretched unnaturally over pealing guitar like the vocal track had been jumbled by slow-attack and delay effects (but I don't think there are any effects on the vocals here).

The tightness established in the first track, however, doesn't completely unravel until the title track, a sprawling nine minutes of stuttering noise and murk with erratic, muttering vocal narration and metallic guitar effects that devolve into a sound like post-apocalyptic bowed strings. But just when the album risks losing us, it crashes back into focus with the concise rage of "Saccharine Traps." Morgan actually yells here, his voice laden with distortion and mixed far too low to permit any attempt to decipher lyrics. A short, asymmetrical beat loops as feedbacking guitar lines careen and clash in mid air. The bass knots into itself, a quiet, restless, cold-blooded rumble.

"We All Amplify" follows in the vein of the title track but with somewhat less success. While "City of Straw" seems pointed and controlled, "We All Amplify" becomes unspooled to the extent that it really does border on monotonous. Like "Saccharine Traps," "Weehawken" takes a more direct approach, but again falls short of the earlier track. Its noise fails to find its rhythmic underpinning, looping through a short circuit that is clearly not random, but honestly might as well be.

Unfortunately, the album never quite recovers. "Hush" does not have the urgency of earlier tracks while "Sky Above Mud Below" lacks emotional depth. That's not to say they are bad tracks - they aren't - but the opening half of the album sets a high bar, making the weaker points glaringly disappointing.

However, despite these shortcomings, City of Straw is richly satisfying and heck of a lot better than most of what's getting put on record today. Bold and original, engaging and masterful, City of Straw is what experimental music should be. There's no bullshit here. Every sound serves a purpose. Taken as a whole, City of Straw is the kind of record that should be remembered ten and twenty years from now. Born not only of sincerity but also necessity and crafted with artistic intelligence, it tastes like fresh air in the stale indie world. [myspace]

Upcoming Shows: Bellmer Dolls LAST SHOWS EVER! + more

Tonight! Wednesday, March 17

The Bellmer Dolls @ The Studio at Webster Hall | East Village, Manhattan | $10
Horrible news, friends. The Bellmer Dolls, one of NYC's great undiscovered bands, is calling it quits. They've got a few more shows before they throw in the towel, including this one tonight. The Dolls' garage goth is demonic and intense and their live show has the wild spontaneity that can only come from a legitimate disturbed genius. This is the real thing. [myspace]


TOMORROW! Thursday, March 18

Mahogany + Autodrone @ The Studio at Webster Hall | East Village, Manhattan | $10
Mahogany one of the greatest dream-pop bands ever. Unlike most bands of the genre, however, Mahogany doesn't rely on blurred, amorphous noise. Instead, a hundred distinct moving pieces weave together to create a thick blanket of sound. The whole thing is held together by sweet slow-pop melodies. And this show is all new songs, previewed from their forthcoming EP, so it will be exciting even to old fans. Autodrone play something similar, but with harder edge. Their raging lead guitar draws from proggy metal as much as shoegaze, but it never becomes burdensome. It just gives a sharp alt-rock edge to their dark, dense pop songs. [mahogany myspace] [autodrone myspace]


Friday, March 19

Oneida, Sightings @ Knitting Factory | Williamsburg, Brooklyn | $10-12
I'm never quite sure how to describe Oneida, given they don't fit into a genre and given how many different directions they've explored in the last decade. They draw on krautrock and industrial, concentrating on rhythm and repetition. They tend to be heavy, but their latest LP showed as much world and club influence as metal. It's trancy, cold, loud, aggressive and wholly original. Sightings is even more out-there. They draw on noise, avant garde and no wave to create an unforgiving, skull-shattering noise. [oneida myspace] [sightings myspace]



[Upcoming Shows Playlist]
Saturday, March 20

Ain't shit going on. Everyone is in Texas, I guess. No SXSW for me this year...alas.


Sunday, March 21

Bellmer Dolls @ Coco 66 | Greenpoint, Brooklyn | $7
See above. This is their last show. Ever.


Tuesday, March 23

Black Lips @ Brooklyn Bowl | Williamsburg, Brooklyn | $17
Black Lips play decent garage punk but I don't like Brooklyn Bowl or paying $17 for a show. Still, I thought I'd mention it, especially since there's nothing else worthwhile going on on Monday or Tuesday. [myspace]


[Upcoming Shows Playlist]
The long view...

March
24
Black Lips @ Bowery Ballroom

25
Nada Surf play Let Go + surprise guest @ Bowery Ballroom
Jello Biafra and Guantanamo Schools of Medicine @ Brooklyn Masonic Temple

26
Nada Surf play The Weight Is a Gift + surprise guest @ Bell House
Spoon, Deerhunter @ Radio City Music Hall

27
Nada Surf play Lucky + surprise guest @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

30
Big Pink, A Place to Bury Strangers @ Webster Hall

April
1
Bonnie Prince Billy @ Monster Island Basement

2
The Bronx, Japanther @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Captured Tracks Showcase: Blank Dogs, Wet Dog + more @ Glasslands
Bonnie Prince Billy @ Monster Island Basement

3
Soft Pack, Nodzzz, Male Bonding @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

6
The Bronx, Japanther @ Bowery Ballroom

8
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ Webster Hall

9
Pissed Jeans + Himalaya @ Knitting Factory
Xiu-Xiu, Tune-Yards @ Bowery Ballroom

10
Washed Out, Small Black @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

15
Liars @ Bowery Ballroom

17
Trans Am @ Santos Party House

18
Liars @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Trans Am @ Market Hotel

20
The Thermals @ Brooklyn Bowl

21
Apples in Stereo @ Bowery Ballroom

22
Quasi, Let's Wrestle @ Bowery Ballroom

25
Shellshag, Noun (Marissa Paternoster of Screaming Females), Black Wine, Pregnant @ Mercury Lounge

May
3
Chapterhouse @ Bell House


[Upcoming Shows Playlist]

Live: Drunkdriver + Blues Control

When: 1/9/10
Where: Death By Audio

It was a confusing night for me at Death By Audio, seeing bands I thought I knew and discovering they were not who I thought. First up, Blues Control. This duo uses synthesizers and guitar, but more of the former, which is certainly not what I expect from a band on the lo-fi, "shitgaze" label Siltbreeze. The band clearly has talent but their songs, which have no vocals, didn't really hold my attention - Blues Control's skills lie in sound-making and certainly not in composition. Their image was also off - I don't like when bands dress up all fancypants for gigs, but the baseball cap gave me the feeling the band would rather be home eating potato chips or something than playing a show. Maybe I was the only person to have that reaction, but it certainly threw off my enjoyment of the set.

"Jasper" thought the line-up pick didn't make sense, but I understood it to an extent. Blues Control may not be a guitar-based band or a punk band, but they have a similar aggressive artiness. Unfortunately, the band didn't live up to their potential or their reputation, instead meandering aimlessly through their way-too-long set. [myspace]

Now, I also thought I had seen Drunkdriver earlier this year but when they took the stage, I was pretty sure I'd never seen them before in my life. The three members are much younger than I thought and their music much more straightforward hardcore. Frontman ("singer" is not appropriate) Michael Berdan clearly follows in the tradition of great hardcore vocalists like Henry Rollins. Heavily tatooed, he paced the stage like a caged tiger, yelling "FUCK YOU" to hecklers (and some non-hecklers) and stage diving early and often. The audience seemed to know the routine, shouting insults between songs.


Drunkdriver
(photos from Parts Unknown Records myspace, not from this show)
And while Berdan is definitely the showman of the band, Kristy Greene (guitar) and Jeremy Villalobos (drums) are musicians. Greene's guitar was positively brutal, with sick, weighty riffs that your parents would hate. She and Villalobos locked in tightly, taking cues from noise, math rock, post hardcore and industrial music in their sheer sheet-metal sound and relentless complexity.

I like a band with a vocal melody, so I can't count Drunkdriver as a personal favorite. But they are masters at what they do and put on a classic live show for all your moshing needs. [myspace]

Live: Pterodactyl & Oneida

When: 4/25
Where: Secret Project Robot

To celebrate the release of their new LP Worldwild, Brooklyn-based Pterodactyl threw a major bash at DIY space Secret Project Robot, headlined by the longtime NYC rockers Oneida. The combination makes sense because the record was released by Brah Records, the label owned and run by the members of Oneida. But it also makes sense because of the striking musical parallels between the two groups.

Pterodactyl plays a skittering experimental rock, built around the extensive repetition of rhythmic, tense riffs. Despite all the repetition (which is a red-flag word for me when I see a review), the music is crammed full of twisted pop hooks and astonishing harmonies. The rhythmic interplay of major-key guitars is reminiscent of the best of Television – cutting distortion on nimble, interlocking arpeggios. At other times, they ring or snarl, hum or clang.


Pterodactyl
The multi-part vocal arrangements are creative collages of hollers and chants. The band’s willful disregard of key signature makes their music deliciously dissonant and makes the resolution into harmony all the more stunning. Holding up the foundation is a frantic clatter of drums, careening though jolting shifts in time signature at 100 mph. And though it’s sometimes buried under discord, distortion and fury, the band keeps afloat a thread of bright pop melody.

And true to the music’s joyous rage, the band members deliver with passion and heart, screaming, contorting and strangling their guitars into submission. At this show, the band performed behind thin veiling curtains (on which video was projected). It was somewhat of a needless gesture, but the band were active and visible enough that it did not detract, just added a slight air of mystery. And all the setup is irrelevant when the music is that good. [MySpace]

Oneida has been around the area for about a dozen years, but though far longer established, they are a natural fit for Pterodactyl; the two bands aim for the same thing – rhythmic, repetitive, loud music adorned with a tangle of pop hooks.

However, they start in two completely different places. While both give hints of krautrock influence, Pterodactyl’s approach seems to have its roots in punk and indie rock, most clearly through the shrieking delivery and math-rock-esque rhythm section. Oneida’s music, in contrast, shows more hints of prog metal and industrial. Their guitars have more weight and the use of electronics makes their music colder and rather more ominous than that of their younger counterparts.

I prefer Pterodactyl’s approach to Oneida’s, but I think that’s a matter of personal preference. Oneida doesn’t have the hints of jubilant melody that Pterodactyl does. Their live songs wore on rather longer and the repetitions extended beyond their life, with changes coming too slowly and too subtly for someone with my attention span. With far more and longer instrumental sections, Oneida offered little for me to hold on to.

However, the band has a dedicated following of fans who filled art-house space with genuine excitement. Looking around, it seemed to that when Oneida hit home with someone, they really hit home. The expressions on the bobbing heads indicated this wasn’t just a “liked” band, it was a favorite band.

If you’re not great with a heavy repetition-to-melody ratio, Oneida might not be the band for you. But if you enjoy the longer trances of Suicide, Can or Neu!, if you like to lose yourself in psychedelic trance-dance and rock out, Oneida is sure to please. [MySpace]

Upcoming Shows: MDC, Mecca Normal + more

This is the most old school week ever, especially for punk rockers. (And if that's your thing, also check out Dead Milkmen and Meatmen tour schedules this week.)


TOMORROW, Tuesday, April 14

Wye Oak @ Bell House | Gowanus, Brooklyn | $12
Wye Oak are a really amazing noise-folk band from Baltimore who alternately make nice sweet songs and a really lot of noise. And sometimes they do both at the same time. Consisting of two amazingly gifted musicians, Wye Oak was rightfully the buzz of last year's CMJ Music Marathon. Check out my last live review of them for more information. [Website] [MySpace]


Wednesday, April 15

Nada Surf @ Bell House | Gowanus, Brooklyn | $15
Bell House has it going on this week! Nada Surf have been around forever. I know this, because many years ago, my very first band did a cover of their classic song "Popular." (However, we hesitated to perform it live since our vocalist would kind of go nuts and start screaming names of specific people we went to school with. But I digress.) With their slightly punky indie rock, Nada Surf have only improved since their initial hit (yup, "Popular"), with their quality steadily on the rise for at least 15 years now. [Website] [MySpace]


Thursday, April 16

Throbbing Gristle @ Brooklyn Masonic Temple | Fort Greene, Brooklyn | $35 (Sold Out??)
I would be remiss not to tell you that classic industrial band Throbbing Gristle is doing their first East Coast show in ages this Thursday at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple. An offshoot of Krautrock and its unhuman electronic beats, industrial music was largely defined by Throbbing Gristle in the mid-70's. Without them, you'd have no Big Black, no Nine Inch Nails, probably even no Depeche Mode. And they have a reputation as an amazing live act, far exceeding their recorded material. Still, thirty-five bucks ain't cheap. [Website] [MySpace]

?? Rumanian Buck @ Southpaw | Park Slope, Brooklyn | $8 ??
I can't figure out whether or not this show has been cancelled. I think it has, but it's worth looking into further, because Rumanian Buck features members of Big Sleep and the late Beat the Devil, two of NYC's best edgy, hard-rockin' bands.


Friday, April 17

Of Montreal, Janelle Monae, The Ladybug Transistor @ Music Hall of Williamsburg | Williamsburg, Brooklyn | SOLD OUT
Wow, this is a monster of a line-up. Honestly, I stopped liking Of Montreal when they stopped being a creepy little twee band, but they do know how to incorporate a trumpet into a pop song, so they're clearly doing something right. The worst thing about them nowadays is that their stage performance is super gimmicky and lame - but they've kind of made up for that this time around by inviting two killer openers. Janelle Monae is a richly-talented singer who I've been rooting for way back before any of y'all knew her name. Her southern roots mixed with funk mixed with indie rock sensibility make her sound pretty hard to describe but pretty awesome to listen to. And the Ladybug Transistor, well, they're NYC's quintessential indie pop band and nothing short of irresistible. Together, the three acts have a lot of variety but a lot of great pop moments that make surfing craigslist for a ticket worth your while. [OM Website] [OM MySpace] || [Monae Website] [Monae MySpace] || [Ladybug Website] [Ladybug MySpace]


Saturday, April 18

MDC (unplugged) @ ABC No Rio | LES, Manhattan | $7 | 3 PM
MDC @ Cake Shop | LES, Manhattan | $10 | 8 PM
MDC are one of the great classics of American punk, a West Coast hardcore outfit who were contemporaries and equals of fellow San Franciscans the Dead Kennedys. You have two chances to see them Saturday, both in intimate environments. True to hardcore tradition, both shows are ALL AGES. [MySpace]

Asa Ransom @ Cameo | Williamsburg, Brooklyn | $?
It's been a long time since I last checked in with my pals Asa Ransom, whose keyboard-driven, aggressive, experimental punk is comparable to Pere Ubu in no small way. Their live show is outstanding and their music is cutting edge. [Website] [MySpace]


Monday, April 20

Mecca Normal (K Records) @ Cake Shop | LES, Manhattan | $8
Mecca Normal is a classic K Records band, and while K Records is most famous for its wussy twee pop, Mecca Normal are far more badass than their label would imply. Though formed in 1981, the band didn't hit their stride until the late 80's and early 90's, when they combined the sounds of their scene - indie pop and early riot grrrl - with the more experimental sounds of noise rock, post punk and no wave. Check it. [MySpace]

The Bronx @ Bowery Ballroom | LES, Manhattan | $15
The Bronx are the leading hardcore band of the moment, so if the K Records crowd is too pansy for you, stop by here instead. [Website] [MySpace]