New England

Show review – Freezepop at Cafe 939 – 3/27

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freezpop

Freezepop has made a name for themselves by proving that pop song structures applied to infectious dance rhythms and video game inspired synth melodies produces phenomenal music. And the crowd at their sold-out matinee show on Saturday, March 27th at Café 939 is proof that the system is working splendidly well.

Café 939, a small performance space at Berklee, supplied a great atmosphere for the rare all-ages show. The high-ceilinged, open space housed the band’s background screens which flashed pop-art logos and minimalist graphics throughout the show. Even before the band began to play, members Liz Enthusiasm, Robert John “Bananas” Foster, The Other Sean T. and Christmas Disco Marie Sagan joked and bantered with the audience. The band is known for their close connection to fans and even responded to an audience member who called out, “Freezepop rules!” that that should be the name of their new album.

The show itself was nothing short of spectacular. Freezepop brings an effortless energy to all of their songs: The music is loud and intense without ever losing the wry innocence and playfulness characteristic of the band’s sound and personalities. The 14 song set featured fan favorites like “Plastic Stars,” “Frontload,” and the indomitable dance opus “Less Talk More Rokk,” as well as new songs like “Magnetic” and “Lose That Boy” from their forthcoming untitled album.

Liz’s vocals were strong throughout, switching effortlessly from soft soprano melodies that faded into synth effects (notably in “Lose That Boy” and the mischievous nursery rhyme tone of “Stakeout”) to the more forceful crescendos needed for “Frontload” and “Lady Spider,” darker vocals evocative of the crooning malaise of Depeche Mode. The instrumentals were near perfection with Robert John “Bananas” Foster’s keytar playing functioning as that impeccable balance between showcasing his musical prowess and genuinely enjoying the experience of playing the music. Sean T’s guitar was spot on, especially in the rock-heavy “Brainpower” and “Get Ready to Rokk” where the solos evoked the F-Zero series’ race soundtracks. Christmas Disco Marie’s work on vocoder and synth, which she used to provide trance-esque distortion to Liz’s vocals, is a testament to her skills and seamless integration into the band.

Freezepop’s music is always a playful montage of sound, evoking video game music, infectious dance songs, 80s synth-rock and pop songs to create a sonic mélange that’s as appealing to the indie crowd as it is to electronica fans. Freezepop is set to tour the Northeast in April, so check their website for dates.

–Meghan Guidry

NYC

Javelin tours with Yeasayer (wearing leopard skin tights)

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Quirky experimental Brooklyn group Javelin are about to spread their good vibrations beyond New York’s borders as they kicked off a nationwide tour last week at the Alfred University. The duo of George Langford Tom Van Buskirk cites acts as wide-ranging as Kraftwork to Smokey Robinson as influences and this eclectic nature is easy to spot, using everything from 8 bit blips, muted drums and spray painted boom boxes to create a collage of sounds. Teamed up with indie it-boys Yeasayer for their April tour, the group seem set to spread their unique brand of tropical pop as well as their unique fashion sense, since the band are known to perform wearing nothing but leopard skin tights. – Dean Van Nguyen

Philadelphia

The Deli’s April CD of the Month: People Songs – Power Animal

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When I first reviewed Female Wrestler by Power Animal (a.k.a. Keith Hampson) in December 2009, I remember thinking where are those amazing tunes with the ridiculously long names that were on his MySpace. I actually felt bad that more people might not get to hear them. Well, I’m happy to see/hear that those tracks have re-emerged on Power Animal’s official debut full length People Songs released on Waaga Records, an offshoot of indie label Lefse (Neon Indian, Tape Deck Mountain). These bedroom recordings have returned more polished, but certainly have not lost any of their experimental pop goodness that makes People Songs its own unique animal among the herds of lo-fi artists grazing on the landscape of the indie music scene. The album puts you in a dream-like state where there are plenty of moments that you find yourself happily grooving out to the strangest mixtures of polyrhythmic beats and harmonies mixed with samples, handclaps, xylophones, banjoes and anything else that might make noise. The highlight of the album for me is (take a breath) “Dear My Body, I’m Not That Body. Dear Keith Hampson I’m Not Your Name. You Are A Shaky Boat With A Curse Upon It, But I Need You To Get To The Other Side Of The Lake.”, but with other favorites like “Money/Pocket”, “All I Can Hear Are The Bees”, “Birds Have Worries Too!”, “Copernicus”, “Sometimes” – actually just hit Play Repeat All and enjoy. Fun drugs definitely recommended while listening. myspace.com/poweranimalpa – Q.D. Tran

Philadelphia

Artist(s) Who Deserve Your Friendship: Creepoid

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So I’ve been gravitating toward the debut tracks from Creepoid, a new local lo-fi psych dream pop outfit. They’ll have 30 test press 7” records available for their EP Yellow Life Giver out on Phonographic Arts tonight when they open for lo-fi California dreamin’ Best Coast and West Philly 1-2-knockout-punch combination Reading Rainbow at The Barbary. I liked Creepoid’s description of themselves from our Open Blog (yes, we do read and check them out whenever we get a chance) so I thought that I’d share it with you below, but with tracks like “My Rotten Tooth”, I think that the ghost of Kurt Cobain joined their beer-drinking and acid-taking hang with his acoustic guitar. Count me in too!

“Creepoid has a sad, dark sound that would definitely make your third eye cry. Think Beck and Lou Reed drinking beer at The Modern Lovers practice space listening to Mazzy Star on acid.”

myspace.com/creepoidphiladelphia

– Q.D. Tran

Portland

Hosannas Leaks Track from “Then & Now & Then”

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Hosannas, formerly known as Church, are only a little over a month away from seeing the release of their Hush Records full-length Then & Now & Then. Cursory listening sessions with the advance of the album reveal a lush, melodic soundscape full of acoustic guitars, lots of echoed vocals, and layered keys, specifically in opener "The Sea."

Subsequent spins have uncovered even more sonic noodling from the Portland quartet. There’s an innocence employed here, with tempered digs into early ’00s Merge motifs, as well as a (hopefully) prevalent sense of purpose. It’s all pretty intoxicating stuff, even if its oft-lauded tag of psych-pop doesn’t really fit.

But be warned: The first leaked track, "Happiness," is the least indicative tune for the purposes of considering listening to this album, but is still a decent listen. Give it a whirl below…

Take our word for it, and get your hands on the full disc or download when it’s released on May 11th.

The band will hold what’s likely to be one of the most anticipated Portland album releases of the year on May 9th at Mississippi Studios. Opening will be the amazing Tu Fawning, and Ah Holly Fam’ly. $6, 9 p.m.

– Ryan J. Prado

Philadelphia

The Swimmers Can Do More Than the Doggy Paddle at JB’s April 3

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Philly quartet The Swimmers’ upbeat pop debut, Fighting Trees, was enough to warrant some local fame. With last November’s People Are Soft, singer-songwriter Steve Yutzy-Burkey and fellow bandmates changed directions and crafted a laid back LP heavily influenced by 80’s New Wave. From the echoed and uttered intro of “Save Me (From the Brightness)” to the atmospheric swell of “The Bells,” The Swimmers songs are magnetically sweeping and equally moving. The energized handclaps of “Give Me Sun” drips with undertones of early Spoon (circa Girls Can Tell) with vocals fashioned after New Wavers like Toni Basil and Gary Newman with a splash of Arcade Fire’s Win Butler. A terribly fun track, “Give Me Sun” competes with the buzzing shred of “Drug Party”, making the most of humming riffs and quintessential tambourine. As catchy as Girls’ Lust For Life but with a higher grade of maturity and skill, The Swimmers’ sound, much like our current weather, is warm, exciting, and rare.  Catch ‘em tonight with BC Camplight, whom you maybe seeing for the last time, and Le Fits at Johnny Brenda’s tonight. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave, 9pm, $10, 21+ myspace.com/helloswimmers – Dianca Potts

 

Chicago

Cast Spells Go Vinyl

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Cast Spells has been everywhere lately and on May 4th Dovecote Records will release their debut ep, Bright Works and Baton on clear vinyl. There will only be 500 copies pressed so you should preorder your copy today. This 12” edition will include an additional track “All Brass” which was not included on the Sargent House release.

NYC

The Press CD release party at Matchless + tour

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The Press celebrate the launch of their new album “INTEOTWIJTEOAE” by playing a set at Matchless this Saturday 04.03. The show comes just days before the band set off on a national tour to promote the record. After five years releasing a stack of well received EP’s and 7” singles, “INTEOTWIJTEOAE” feels like a real artist statement from the Brooklyn group. Combining flamboyant pop exuberance, punk melodies and the occasional moment of delicate beauty, they step out from the crowd of recent baroque pop bands who have emerged in this city and others, giving every track a distinctly Press-like feel. Take the album’s single ‘Master’. Built around a scuzzy guitar riff, heavy cymbal crashes and howling vocals, it’s outrageously busy for a pop song, but still incites manic arm-waving and fist-clenching joy on every listen. It even proved to be ripe for a dubstep remix, provided by Nate Mars. – Dean Van Nguyen