Dig ‘in: Tony Molina, Pink Frost, Pet Needs, No Age
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
Tony Molina - In The Fade (Run For Cover Records LP)
While most musicians strive to reach the largest possible listenership, it seems Tony Molina can take it or leave it. Since his first recordings in the mid-aughts with his former band Ovens, few have maintained as low a profile as Molina. He releases his music on tiny Bay Area labels, sometimes on cassette only; apparently Slumberland, with three of his releases during the 2010s, were too big a label for him. He has barely toured, and only occasionally plays live locally.
This is a shame, as Tony has been one of my favorites for over a decade now. In The Fade is his 7th studio solo release, but all of his LPs are EP length. This is his longest album so far, 14 songs in 19 minutes. It contains the same elements present in all of his records since his days with Ovens--brief songs with memorable melodies and catchy hooks, simple but sincere lyrics beautifully sung (with the occasional British accent), and guitar sounds ranging widely between overdriven, emotionally cathartic guitar solos to quiet acoustic gems with dreamy guitar picking. I'm often thinking Beatles (obvious Beatle and George Harrison homages abound), Zombies (mellotron that summons up Odessey and Oracle every time), and Thin Lizzy (those '70s style twin-lead solos).
The hard rock side is mostly sidelined on this album, with a mellower vibe that feels like a continuation of earlier releases like Kill the Lights. He pulls out two Ovens songs to re-do, but they don't sound much different from when he first recorded them. There are minor variations and nuances from record to record, like a little more piano this time, but he's extremely consistent. There's still distortion, but it's not foregrounded against a wall of feedback like on Dissed and Dismissed. While I admit I miss this and would vote for Dissed as his best record, the brevity of the songs here, and that feeling of incompleteness, will keep me going back for more, just like all of his other releases. -Jon Ginoli
Pink Frost - Until the Summer Comes (Under Road Records LP)
A key, relevant element of rock ’n’ roll is its immediacy—the ability to capture the here and now. The pandemic has critically tested that attribute with in-person live performances ceasing for a time and record releases forestalled by supply chain logistics. Pink Frost were poised to introduce Until the Summer Comes after recording wrapped at Chicago’s Electrical Audio with their mainstay engineer Gregoire Yeche. Plans to reconvene to mix the record with Yeche in France during the Spring of 2020 fell by the wayside with newly enforced travel restrictions. Initially discouraged by the delay, the band refocused its efforts to scrutinize the tracks to arrive at what vocalist/guitarist Adam Lukas describes as their “dream record.” Yeche’s return to the States in 2021 restarted the process and the results proved worth the wait. Until the Summer Comes finds the group at their sonic zenith, exhibiting varied dynamics infused with full-throttle psych rock, shoegaze glaze and a judicious pop veneer. Welcome back to the fold, Pink Frost, your dream is our reward. -Bruce Novak
Pet Needs - Primetime Entertainment (Xtra Mile Recording LP)
Very excited to see this new one, Primetime Entertainment, from Pet Needs. When I saw them opening for Frank Turner this summer, they were only playing one of the new songs live—“Get on the Roof” which is a great sing-along high-energy rocker. Now we’ve got the entire record of 12 songs. And they do indeed (punk) rock. Singer Johnny Marriott leads the charge here—pleading, screaming, cajoling with a steady word stream. Brother George is a talented guitarist and cuts loose on songs like “Spirals,”“Thanks for the Invite” and “Ibiza in Winter.” Drummer Jack Lock and bassist Rich Gutierrez hold down the driving beat. Two songs feature guest vocals, with Micah Schnabel joining in on “Only Happy” and Bridget igniting “The Argument.” Behind the full frontal sonic assault, this group of songs features very introspective, personal lyrics—Johnny had to give his mother a warning in advance. This one’s produced by Frank Turner and he does a nice job of bringing out the best in Pet Needs. -Tom Novak
No Age - People Helping People (Drag City LP)
Randy Randall and Dean Spunt have never had an issue generating ample sound despite functioning primarily as a guitar & drums duo. On People Helping People, their third LP with revered locals Drag City, they’re more discerning in picking their spots to rev up the amplification. Whereas previously, ambient textures were primarily utilized as preludes to ensuing noise outbursts, on this release most of those constructs exist on their own. While undoubtedly more conceptual, the work remains cohesive; a journey with off the path detours that serve to break up a lengthy road trip. Left to their own devices this time out in Randall’s home studio, the pair embrace expanded instrumentation and varied tempos. While that may strike some as an “everything but the kitchen sink” approach, rest assured that No Age’s DIY ethos remains firmly intact. People Helping People reflects an improvisational nature—following an impulse without prior regard to where it may lead. -Bruce Novak
UPCOMING
Tortoise w/ Dead Rider
Where: Thalia Hall / Directions
When: October 3, 7:30 PM
In 1994 Tortoise splashed up onto the musical beach of alternative music, and were promptly labeled “post-rock” for their instrumental smorgasboard of groove based sonics. As grunge was in full flower, it’s interesting to listen back to their first records and imagine just how unique a voice they possessed. Since then, they’ve released 6 additional records, the latest of which is The Catastrophist (2016), and a reissue of Rhythm’s, Resolutions & Clusters, a remix record originally released in 1995. Always a little too abstract for the jam band crowd, Tortoise has nonetheless built a sizable fan base and to my mind, provided the space for a band like Khruangbin to flourish, and achieve a somewhat remarkable, and deserved, popularity. Always engaging live, this is one of only five shows the band is playing in 2022.
The real excitement here may be in openers Dead Rider, who have been gestating since 2009, when ex US Maple leader Todd Rittman decided to expand further afield. A blues & soul-based singer, and deceptively facile guitarist, Rittman and Dead Rider somehow occupy a fluid space between Captain Beefheart and Sly & the Family Stone, with a healthy dose of humor and absurdity to keep it all honest. Mysterious, weird, and inexhaustibly authentic, I’ve witnessed their live show 3x and had my mind blown at each—having never come away less than astonished and wondering why they’re not bigger and hosting a late afternoon set at Pitchfork, which they mightily deserve. See “When I was Frankenstein’s” and “The Floating Dagger” from Crew Licks (2017); “Blank Screen” from Chills on Glass (2014); and anything from Dead Rider Trio featuring Mr. Paul Williams (2018)---yes, that Paul Williams the 70’s crooner. Word. -Wade Iverson
Broken Social Scene
Where: Thalia Hall / Directions
When: October 9 &10, 7:00 PM
This tour is being promoted as a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the release of You Forgot It In People, which was the band’s second release following Feel Good Lost. About half of their current set is devoted to YFIIP, but those chosen songs are interspersed throughout the set rather than performed sequentially. There was a time about a decade ago that founders Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning felt that the group had run its course, but the Paris terrorist attacks in 2015 provided motivation to reclaim their place on stage. Broken Social Scene have always operated with unbridled joy, and the circumstances for communal cleansing have never been greater than now. Functioning more as a collective than a structured group, BSS has a shape-shifting ability to adapt to present circumstances regardless of changes in personnel. Drew often speaks of being in the moment and the healing power of music. Fear not, immersion therapy of this sort is as entertaining as it is instructive. -Bruce Novak
FACS
Where: Metro / Directions
When: October 12, 7:00 PM
FACS’ sound emanates with the rhythm section of bassist Alianna Kalaba and drummer Noah Leger. Kalaba previously drummed in We Ragazzi and the Dishes, and had never played bass before joining the band. Brian Case switched over to guitar after the departure of Jonathan Van Herik, and he and Leger felt Kalaba was the best fit for the direction they were envisioning. Having not played guitar since the early stages of his prior outfit Disappears, Case adopted a minimalist approach—using Leger’s and Kalaba’s interplay as a canvas to layer upon. The result is a cacophony of dense textures, low-end subterranean exploration and anguished vocals. There’s an element of existential dread that pervades the music of FACS, but there’s also a survivor’s mentality to keep pushing on and fight like hell for another day. -Bruce Novak
UNCOVERED
Dog Faced Hermans - Those Deep Buds (Alternative Tenacles LP)
Dog Faced Hermans were spawned out of Edinburgh in 1986 and then relocated to Amsterdam in 1990 after befriending the Dutch outfit The Ex. Both groups trafficked in a shared aesthetic of leftist politics delivered in a post-punk amalgam of abrasive fretwork, horn skronk, and Middle Eastern folk stylings. Marion Coutts made for a riveting front person with a distinct voice and an unhinged trumpeter persona. When the group debuted at Lounge Ax in the Spring of ’93, the tenacity of Coutts, guitarists And Moor & Colin McLean and drummer Wilf Plum was astonishing with a physicality that brought their message home with authority. For their fourth and final album, These Deep Buds, the group signed on with Jello Biafra for the wider reach of his Alternative Tenancles label. By this time, Dog Faced Hermans were at the peak of their powers and the record reflects the ambitious and edgy sound that they had cultivated. “Keep Your Laws / Off My Body” is relevant as ever with the observation: “Clear as glass is my decision / What I have I’ll not return / I will fight this territory / It’s mine to fight.” Those Deep Buds captures the divisions of a post-industrial society with unblinking candor and is a precursor of our modern day dilemmas. The faces have changed, but the oppression remains all too familiar. -Bruce Novak
We recommend listening along over at our Spotify page. Here’s this week’s content: