Dig ‘in: Sleaford Mods, Flyying Colours, Physique, The Eyelids
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
Sleaford Mods - UK Grim (Rough Trade LP)
The most entertaining duo in music is in top form with their latest album, and expanding yet again into new musical terrain as Andrew Fearn, resident beat maker and musical architect of the group, provides a clever and expanding canvas for Jason Williamson’s verbal shenanigans, still bilious and frequently hilarious. Florence Shaw from Dry Cleaning adds a great counterpoint to JW’s vocal in highlight “Force 10 from Navarone,” while Perry Farrell mimics Williamson ably in “So Trendy” with fellow Jane’s Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro adds Gang of Four-like guitar. Pretty cool. In fact, there’s more of a live band feel with what sounds like live drums on a few tracks. Interestingly, two of the most affecting tracks are “Smash Each Other Up” and “I, Claudius,” which both have a wistful feel and may be some of the mellowest tunes the Mods have ever done. A look at Williamson’s Insta feed reveals an affection for street fashion and in “Pit to Pit” he barks “Pit to pit / Cause I know how to wear it / Pit to pit / I look better than you!” Two live experiences of the Mods; first at Metro, second at Thalia, both great—but unfortunately their US spring tour is a select few dates on the east and west coasts with two dates at Coachella. Good for them. -Wade Iverson
Flyying Colours - You Never Know (Poison City LP)
Some bands conjure up bold, new sounds; others take an existing blueprint and breathe fresh life into it. Melbourne, Australia’s Flyying Colours is the latter, blending buzzing axes with sighing, heavily reverbed vocals pushed low in the mix. That combination emits powerful echoes of past acts like early Ride, My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive and even neighboring New Zealanders Snapper. But as the quartet’s infectious new record, You Never Know, demonstrates, Flyying Colours’ hook-heavy songwriting compensates for the familiarity in their sonic template. Album opener “Lost Then Found” spins cycling guitar arpeggios beneath the paired vocals of Brodie J Brümmer and Gemma O’Connor before bursting into a sizzling chorus that flashes you back to the British indie bands of the late-’80s-early ‘90s. A bit derivative? Yeah, but the hook is so damn catchy you just don’t care. That’s the vibe that suffuses the whole record. “I Live in a Small Town” and “Do You Feel the Same?” whoosh by in a blur of high-watt chords, double-time tempos and feathery vocal harmonies that pull you into their vortex. But there’s also refreshing variation in Flyying Colours’ approach. The song “Bright Lights” takes you on a more relaxed stroll amid sparkling guitar jangle and silky synth lines, while the easygoing “Hit the Road” and “Goodbye to Music” ride sumptuously tuneful guitar riffs and fetching vocal lines into the land of pure pop bliss. You Never Know is like driving on familiar roads but in a swell new ride. -Rick Reger
Physique - Again (Iron Lung LP)
If there’s a category labeled punk/hardcore/metal, Physique should be the poster child. I first became aware of them with their second LP Punk Life Is Shit from 2018. Brutal and ferocious, this is protest music, and there’s no let up on Again, their fourth record. War, oppression, and the “soul crushing realities of everyday life” provide the inspiration for “Rhythm Of Brutality,” “Hell Is Real” and “Yesterday’s Anguish, Tomorrow’s Despair.” 14 songs in 23 minutes that say more than most bands ever do. The last song “Again (Reprise)” brings the album to a close at the 30 minute mark. The album is “name your price” on bandcamp. So thank you Riley Chaos, Bouncing Bee, Victim Of, and World Bastard. The cassette sounds great. -Wade Iverson
The Eyelids - A Colossal Waste of Light (Jealous Butcher LP)
If it’s possible for a bunch of people you may not have heard of to constitute a “supergroup,” well, Portland, Oregon’s the Eyelids are exactly that. Band members John Moen and Chris Slusarenko, (guitarists/main songwriters), Victor Krummenacher (bass), Jonathan Drews (guitar) and Paulie Pulvirenti (drums) boast current and past stints in indie-rock luminaries such as the Decemberists, Camper Van Beethoven, the Dharma Bums, Guided By Voices, Monks of Doom, the Minus 5, etc. The band’s fourth album, A Colossal Waste of Light somehow captures the most savory elements of all those influences and whips them into a melodically rich rock smoothie that tingles your taste buds start-to-finish. “Swinging in the Circus” is a mid-tempo rocker that channels the Posies, the Records and prime era Cheap Trick into a propulsive, hooky delight. In contrast, the gently pulsing, minor key “Only So Much” is swathed in shimmering, tremolo guitars and rich vocal harmonies that evoke a summer night gazing at the stars. Throughout the disc, the Eyelids expertly balance introspection and ebullient rocking, contrasting the gorgeous, ‘60s-saturated, nocturnal lilt of “Lyin’ in Your Tomb” with the torridly hooky rock of album closer “I Can’t Be Told.” A Colossal Waste of Light is a gigantic joy to listen to and an easy-to-overlook gem. So don’t let it slip by! -Rick Reger
UPCOMING
The Murder Capital
Where: Lincoln Hall / Directions
When: April 3, 6:30 PM
A three month pandemic hiatus changed the trajectory of Dublin’s The Murder Capital. Coming off their impressive 2019 debut, When I Have Fears—a record shaped by the overwhelming grief of a close friend’s suicide—the band vowed to “look to the future by owing the past.” Vocalist James McGovern no longer felt authentic in summoning the emotional resonance needed to carry the band’s older songs on a nightly basis. Committing to the credo that “the evolution will not be comprised,” Murder Capital let their new material develop organically—focusing on instrumentation before pursuing any lyrical themes. The resulting record, Gigi’s Recovery, exhibits greater range and melody, settling in with more introspection than gut reaction. Producer Jon Congleton captured the band in starker terms; cutting back on their previous cavernous atmospherics to the satisfaction of McGovern who calls reverb “the botox of music.” A broader setlist provides more dimensionality to their performances and has helped re-energize the group, whose commitment to maximum effort needn’t be called into question. -Bruce Novak
Sam Prekop
Where: Constellation / Directions
When: April 7, 7:00 PM
Sam Prekop is Chicago through and through, having sung and played guitar in the seminal Chicago late ’80s early ’90s band Shrimp Boat. Shrimp Boat was an early precursor to the post-rock that would come to define ’90s Chicago music. Following the dissolution of Shrimp Boat, Sam went on to form another truly Chicago band—The Sea and Cake with The Coctails guitarist and singer Archer Prewitt, and Tortoise drummer John McEntire. The Sea and Cake continued Prekop’s exploration of jazzy post-rock but didn’t curtail his exploration of what music could be. Prekop developed an affinity for modular synthesizers, exploring the power of what synth music could be over his last three solo albums and his collaborative album, Sons Of, with fellow The Sea and Cake member John McEntire. Prekop’s solo work uses synths to bring the listener along on a journey into rhythm and melody that is still open enough for the listener to draw their own conclusions. His approach to the modular synthesizer is a perfect fit for Chicago’s improvisational, jazz, experimental event space, Constellation, which celebrates its tenth anniversary April 7th and 8th with two showcases. Friday night features Sam Prekop, Bitchin Bajas, Wadada Leo Smith, Josephine Foster, and Natural Information Society. Constellation’s unique space offers the ideal setting for Prekop’s textured compositions and is sure to be a perfect night for experimental music. -Mark Joyner
Ron Gallo
Where: Schubas Tavern / Directions
When: April 12, 7:30 PM
Ron Gallo has always commandeered a finely-tuned bullshit detector. “All The Punks Are Domesticated,” from his 2017 breakthrough, Heavy Meta, portrays how that rebellious movement assimilated into mainstream culture—not so much from co-optation as from benign co-operation. Since that time Gallo has remained an iconoclast, bringing an outsider perspective to question conventional social mores. His Kill Rock Stars debut, Foreground Music, just dropped in March and offers the broadest spectrum of songwriting that he has posited to date. The high-octane outrage remains, but there’s also more effort on his part to understand the human condition then to vilify it. Gallo’s anxiety manifests itself into a nervous energy that produces a stage show that’s exhilarating and endlessly entertaining. -Bruce Novak
UNCOVERED
Pete Townshend & Ronnie Lane - Rough Mix (MCA Records LP)
Word has it—down on his luck after blowing through much of his money—Ronnie Lane hit up Townshend for a loan but Pete suggested making a record together instead that also would fulfill a pre-existing album obligation that Lane had to Atlantic from a failed Small Faces reunification. Lane had departed the ensuing Faces after their final studio album, Ooh La La, in 1973 and solo success had proved elusive for him, while Townshend sought a break after a relentless touring grind with The Who.
Lane pitched a songwriting collaboration but that wasn’t in keeping with Townshend’s mode of creation and the instrumental title track was the only shared credit among the eleven tracks. Needless to say, the pair didn’t always see eye to eye as Townshend revealed in the liner notes: “Ron and Pete play various Acoustic & Electric guitars, mandolins & bass guitars, banjos, ukuleles & very involved mind games.” Nevertheless, the dichotomy between their approaches eventually coalesced; Townshend leaning more spartan in this setting and Lane playing the part of a folk troubadour.
Townshend’s jaunty “My Baby Gives It Away” (with an uncredited Charlie Watts on drums) received some commercial airplay, but the record peaked out in the mid 40s on both the US and UK charts. Lane had developed a friendship with Eric Clapton, who played on some of the tracks, including a striking dobro part to Lane’s touching “April Fool.” “Street In The City” is the album’s outlier with an orchestral score from Townshend’s father-in-law Edwin Astley. “Heart To Hang Onto” fittingly has a shared vocal lead and provides ballast for the two artists who had experienced their share of turmoil at that stage in their careers. Lane was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis during the recording session, which curtailed his future output and contributed to his death in 1997. Townshend’s penance remained perpetually living down his “My Generation” proclamation and the inevitable trappings of The Who juggernaut. In hindsight Rough Mix provided a welcome respite from two artists heading in different directions and a treat for a listening audience that was fortunate to bear the fruits of their labor. -Bruce Novak
We recommend listening along over at our Spotify page. Here’s this week’s content: