Dig ‘in: Real Estate, Mannequin Pussy, Verity Den
Check out what the No Wristbands team is listening to and what’s in our show calendars this month on our latest Dig ‘in.
INCOMING
Real Estate - Daniel (Domino LP)
In today’s pop music landscape, where bold, assertive lyrics are drenched in high tech production and drama-heavy emoting, Brooklyn’s Real Estate is like a semi-bucolic, countryside getaway where you can hear burbling streams and chirping birds. The band has long demonstrated a mastery of chiming guitar-pop supporting heart-on-the-sleeve, often introspective lyrics. And its new, sixth album, Daniel, doesn’t mess with that approach. The album’s first three tracks, “Somebody New,” “Haunted World” and “Water Underground” all glide by on gently lyrical vocal lines, flawlessly tasteful acoustic-electric guitar accompaniment and easy-going tempos. The production is a bit slicker than on the band’s early records but not in a bad or cloying way. If Real Estate’s early records reminded me somewhat of Felt, new track “Flowers,” with its snowflake-fall vocal lines and fireside strumming can evoke slightly more pop-forward bands like Teenage Fanclub or the Cosmic Rough Riders. But the band does mix things up a bit on Daniel. “Freeze Brain,” “Say No More” and “Airdrop” undergird their tuneful hooks with more muscular drum grooves, sparkling keyboard textures and even a touch of wah-wah guitar. In sum, if you’re already on the Real Estate bandwagon, Daniel gives you plenty of what you’re looking for. If you’re new to the band, its beguiling, understated yet melodious tunes may provide a refreshing tonic from the modern world’s clatter. -Rick Reger
Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven (Epitaph LP)
In the fashion world, mannequins are presented to represent a body type ideal despite the unrealistic standard of measurement. On I Got Heaven, Mannequin Pussy examine the constructs of desire and the societal shame that is imposed by existing outside the margins. Vocalist/guitarist Marisa Dabice delves beneath the surface level to search for greater truths that emerge through self-solitude. On the opening title track she rejects dogmatic ideology with self empowerment when she sings “I am spiteful like a god / I seek vengeance like the rest / For what they did to you / I will never lay to rest.” Despite the turmoil, I Got Heaven presents some of the most nuanced singing that Dabice has ever laid down. Awash in Maxine Steen’s percolating synth refrain and Kaleen Reading’s snare brushwork, “I Don’t Know You” provides a soft underlay that is simpatico with the wistfulness that Dabice projects about a regretful missed connection. When Steen kicks in with a crushing guitar riff for the chorus of “Sometimes,” Dabice contrasts it with a soaring counter melody that becomes entangled with her impassioned pleas. Come the closer, “Split Me Open,” Dabice is at her most vulnerable; prepared to offer herself up for possibility of a deep connection. I Got Heaven dispenses with living life on a wish and a prayer, its risk-taking in self-derived by a spirit within rather than one up above. -Bruce Novak
Verity Den - S/T (Amish Records LP)
When Haruspex Palace musician Casey Proctor approached Trevor Reece and Mike Wallace about joining their North Carolina group Drag Sounds, the pair decided to bring her in, not as a new member, but as the start of a new project. Reece had already tracked some songs on the side that become fodder for Verity Den’s jumping off point. Proctor used her record engineering and mixing experience to add layering and depth, turning the tracks into distinct sound collages. Her vocals linger just below the surface on opening tracks “washer dryer” and “priest boss,” that are bathed in shoegaze splendor. That changes on the more plaintive “prudence,” where her dreamy tone emerges notably out from the reverb-laden backing. On “other friends,” Proctor and Reese trade off vocals, maintaining a casual pace with the motorik beat before falling silent when the song drifts off pleasantly with a swirling synth matched with a sparse guitar outro. Three instrumental tracks among the seven titles showcase the band’s proclivity for shaping sound by utilizing acoustic strumming, ambient textures and noise elements. Verity Den exist outside conventional genre boundaries; their music doesn’t immediately come into focus, but is not to be overlooked. -Bruce Novak
UPCOMING
Codeine
Where: Empty Bottle / Directions
When: March 26, 9:00 PM
When Codeine commenced recording their second album at Harold Dessau Recording studio out of New York City in 1992, there was already a sense that it would be their final record. Previously accustomed to recording out of the basement of producer Mike McMackin’s Brooklyn apartment, the shift to a professional studio seemed to play against their free-flowing tendencies. Drummer Chris Brokaw jettisoned the attempted utilization of a click track and when vocal takes were done, bassist Stephen Immerwahr rejected their quality and had second thoughts about the band’s overall execution. When he decided to shelve the recording it hastened Brokaw’s departure, who was already finding it difficult to balance trips to New York with his new band project, Come, based in Boston. A couple of songs written for the album turned up on their Barely Real EP later in the year and more still resurfaced for The White Birch LP, Codeine’s 1994 swan song, that was recorded with Doug Scharin on drums.
A comprehensive catalog reissue by Numero Group in 2012 led to the reformation of Immerwahr, Brokaw and guitarist John Engle for a slate of shows through that summer. Eventually in 2022, the master recordings for their abandoned album were resuscitated by the band and Numero Group under the new title Dessau. More shows followed last year and have continued since. Heralded as pioneers of the slowcore sound, Codeine merely set their tempos to best serve Immerwahr’s sparse and introspective songwriting. Immerwahr, himself, felt that at times his songs were on the verge of collapsing with just enough inertia to propel them forward. It’s a singular and distinct sound that rewards the patience of Codeine’s audience, who are no doubt ecstatic to have the band return to the stage yet once more. -Bruce Novak
Wild Pink
Where: Empty Bottle / Directions
When: March 28, 9:00 PM
In the midst of preparation for what would become Wild Pink’s 2022 ILYSM album, bandleader John Ross received a stunning cancer diagnosis. With an impending surgery to remove some affected lymph nodes, Ross became determined to finish recording, doing so a mere week before the scheduled operation. The record’s title is shorthand for “I love you so much,” and it is indeed an profound love letter to family, friends, caretakers and life itself. An accounting of ILYSM’s guest artists—including Julien Baker and Julia Steiner (Ratboys) on vocals, and J Mascis, Ryley Walker and Yasmin Williams contributing on guitar—is testament to how beloved Ross truly is. That sort of ambitious outreach presented its own challenges, as all the guest contributions were recorded remotely in deference to Ross’ comprised immune status. The resulting album is Wild Pink’s most diverse and focused effort to date. A return to Chicago for the band, who last visited in the fall of 2022, portends to be a love fest of the highest order. -Bruce Novak
This Will Destroy You
Where: Lincoln Hall / Directions
When: March 23, 7:00 PM
Despite having what seems like a very heavy metal name, This Will Destroy You makes instrumental post-rock. Odds are, you've heard TWDY even if you didn't know it was them. The scene in Moneyball where everything is falling into place for the Oakland A's, and they win their 20th game on a walk-off home run? Yep, that's TWDY. The music at the end credits of ESPN's 30 for 30 on The Fab Five? Yep, that's TWDY. TWDY build instrumental post-rock that builds to an anthemic crescendo, and the catharsis that you feel when you get there is worth the price of admission to one of their shows in and of itself. What I've always enjoyed about them is that it isn't strictly guitar, bass, and drums, there are keys in there, there's piano in there. There are ambient soundscapes in there. It is complex! I've been lucky enough to see them on the 10 year anniversary tour of their first EP "Young Mountain" and first LP "S/T" and it was an epic evening, hearing all these songs live, you rode the wave of momentum and emotions throughout the show in a truly beautiful way. They ripped off a killer wall of sound and blistering solos on a song like "The World is Our__" and then they built to an epic crescendo on a song like "The Mighty Rio Grande", and then they brought it back down with a glitchy almost Radiohead like song like "Grandfather Clock". All this is to say that if you have the chance to see them live (and you do on March 23rd at Lincoln Hall!) you should absolutely do so. -Mark Joyner
UNCOVERED
Peter Gutteridge: Pure (Superior Viaduct LP)
Peter Gutteridge was a seminal and tragic figure in the New Zealand indie music scene. Along with David and Hamish Kilgour, he was a founding member of The Clean and also part of the original Chills. Looking to move beyond a pop song realm, Gutteridge pursued a more eclectic direction which is captured on the 4-track home studio recordings that comprise Pure, originally release in cassette format by Bruce Russell’s Xpressway label in 1989 and reissued last December by Superior Viaduct.
While largely a solo endeavor, Gutteridge did receive some playing support from then Snapper bandmates Alan Haig, Dominic Stones and Christine Voice. A couple of demo versions of tracks (“Hang On” and “Cause of You”) from Snapper’s Flying Nun debut EP turn up here. The dissonance and drone that characterized Snapper is also in evidence on the opener “Lonely” and the instrumental snippet “Fifty-Seven Seconds.” Another instrumental, “Suicide,” might be a tip of the cap to that pioneering band led by Alan Vega and Martin Rev who were a significant influence. The lovely “Planet Phrom” and grand guitar workout on “Rubout” go to prove that Gutteridge’s pop DNA remained intact.
On the back of a licensing deal of Pure by 540 Records in 2014, Gutteridge was finally able to come to the US for the first time to play a gig in New York City. Coming off recent addiction therapy, he seemed to spiral out of control when the visit didn’t lead to further opportunities. His condition became so dire that he was admitted to Middlemore Hospital on his return to Auckland due to concerns for his own safety. In a profound state of depression, Gutteridge ended his life the following day. Warts and all, Pure is a fascinating document of an artist pursuing a path that was visionary, yet largely seen or heard. -Bruce Novak
We recommend listening along over at our Spotify page. Here’s this week’s content: