Named after our only Vice President forced to resign in disgrace, guitar and synth duo Spiro Agnew explore dark, politically charged social commentary through their new experimental rock album OH What Model Citizens We Be. The album is both compelling and inconsistent, with undeniably forceful moments but songs that vary wildly in quality. Some aspects of Spiro Agnew’s sound are better developed than others.

OH What Model Citizens We Be is angsty and nostalgic. Many tracks are introduced by (and sometimes layered over) audio clips from political rallies and interviews from the 70’s, mostly consisting of diatribes against hippy culture by political figures. Vocals are sung over electronic beats, simple keys, and distorted guitar. The album is at its best when these elements come together in ways that grab the listener’s attention and subsequently expand into emotional payoff. “John Kennedy’s Dead” has compelling tempo changes in-between verses and a more complex beat, and the following track “Guns in Town” has some of the best singing on the album, strangely muted and in contrast to the sharp, swelling sounds of the guitar and keyboard.

However, the album suffers from a lack of cohesiveness. The vocals range from compelling to bland, as do the lyrics. I found myself sometimes unable to tell if the vocalist’s under-emotional performance was thematic or an inability on his part to flow with the crescendo and climax of his songs – tracks like “Waste My Time” and “Fly With Me” attempt to draw out feelings like frustration and consolation respectively, but both just come off as lyrically juvenile. I found the keyboards overly repetitive and not very interesting throughout most of the album, which was detrimental to the composition of many of their songs.

Spiro Agnew’s eschewing of emotional crescendo in general could be purposeful, but if that’s the case it isn’t done well enough to hold my attention all the way through the album. In contrast, the title track is probably one of their best songs partly because the lyrics have some real feeling behind them while still managing to flow with the rest of Spiro’s sound. By the end, I found that I had enjoyed OH What Model Citizens We Be, but the inconsistent elements in performance and song quality keep Spiro Agnew’s first album from being great.

Oh What Model Citizens We Be by Spiro Agnew

–Kyle Wheat

OH What Model Citizens We Be can be purchased here.

It has been a while since The Deli SF has done an interview so, in an effort to bring you something a little different this week, The Deli sat down with Jerrod from Stomacher to discuss their development as a band, the state of the music industry and their plans for the coming year.

Deli: So this may be old news for you and your fans but I (and perhaps many Deli readers) are somewhat in the dark about this: What inspired the name change from In Reverent Fear to Stomacher and does Stomacher have some special meaning or does i just sound interesting?

We were tired of it. Stomacher was the name of our last album. It does everything a name should; its snappy and is easy to use in design

Deli: I seem to recall seeing somewhere that In Reverent Fear dabbled more in the metal end of things. Is that the case, and if so was there an active push towards this newer sound or did it just evolve naturally?

Natural. We were 16 year old kids freaking out on coca cola and girls. we wanted to be freaking out constantly, thus metal. We got older, wanted to refine our music and make something good for once.

Deli: Can you describe in your own words what Stomacher’s sound is, and what your goals are for the type of music you’re looking to create?

We like to create moods and force those moods into good songs. We tend to feel best in the dark haze we conjure up.

Deli: What does Stomacher’s typical process for songwriting look like? Is it an organic evolution with songs growing out of sessions as a group or do members arrive with songs written in search of composition?

It works in several ways. Sometimes tunes are brought in, sometimes they are born out of playing together. Sometimes made in the studio, sometimes live. There is no way that works best for us. Sentimental Education was made virtually every way a song could be made. It was tedious shit. It made us completely crazy and made the group tense constantly. We don’t want to do that again.

Deli: As the paths to success rapidly change in this evolving modern music industry,being an independent artist can be trying. There was a time relentless touring in pursuit of a record contract was perceived as the easy avenue to notoriety, but in this time of responsible rock stars with firm day jobs and increasingly irrelevant record labels those waters seem muddier then ever. What do you define as success for your band in today’s industry? What do you see as the best possible strategy to obtain that?

We have no fucking clue. To be honest, it never really feels like we get anywhere. We want to be playing music constantly, but don’t want to trash the integrity of the group to do so. As much as we love straight pop music, we don’t gravitate towards it naturally. We want to make sure that what we are doing means something to the five of us first. That seems to help me sleep at night at least.

Deli: I’ve observed that in the past few years there has been a change in audience attitudes. It seems more and more people only show up for the band they know,neglecting the others and forsaking the opportunity to discover something new. Is this something you’ve noticed as well and if so what do you think has caused this and how do you try to get audiences to stay for your set?

I think we all have resigned ourselves to the fact that people could give a shit about the live experience nowadays. Especially in a music scene where the live experience is secondary. I couldnt say what the cause is; maybe bad live bands souring everyone on seeing something live. Who knows. For me, its because its too fucking loud. I can’t have a chat without screaming. As far as keeping people around during our sets who have not come to see us, we just try to present the music and hope for the best. I don’t expect people to stay. Everyone is trying to get laid and that is probably more important in the scheme of things.

Deli: Getting back to your specifics, 2010 saw you with a gig in Noise Pop and several other prominent shows around town. Is there much slated for the remaining portion of the year and what are you plans and hopes for the coming one?

The rest of the year is up in the air. I get married in October, so I’m out of the country until the beginning of November. I think we are looking to do some gigs in December, and maybe release some singles. We want to do another record next year and quickly. The hope is to record that shit live and be a little more reckless. It gets me off to play in a room with these guys, so I’m ready for that. We’ve also thrown around heading overseas, so we will see.

–Ada Lann