As if they ever left, Horse Shoes the prodigious band out of Brooklyn is set to release their Imperial School EP very soon, and the EP is a twinkling nastolgia dance party. The band (Composed of Drew Diver and Jacob Graham) lets all of their influences show featuring some songs that emulate the Smiths self deprecating intelligence and others emulate New Orders restless longing. Throw in a bit of twangy surf guitar and some gentle vocals and you’ve got the overall flavor of Horse Shoes new EP. Surely a delieght for the ears.
September 11, 2009
Horse Shoes Come Back!
September 1, 2008
Horse Shoes
Horse Shoes is a band out of Orlando Florida that features brothers Jacob and Caleb Graham as well as Drew Driver. If you’re as obsessive compulsive as I am you might remember Jacob Graham from Goat Explosion, the Jon Pierce fronted band that was created in the wake of Upstate New York New Wave revival group Elkland being “Shot in the face” so to speak.
Horse Shoes is an indie pop group that draws inspiration from 80′s alternative pop bands like The Smiths, New Order, and more contemporary groups like Starflyer 59. The culmination of these influences is sublime chiming pop music with a smidge of the irony and emotion of Morrissey and all of the gentle ringing melodies and fragile vocals one might find similar to early New Order. They are currently working on their debut EP.
June 10, 2008
Flannel
Flannel is a one man indie-pop unit hailing from japan. The influences of which range from shoe gaze to new wave. At times it sounds like what a collaboration between the Jesus & Mary Chain’s instrumentation and production style channeled through Pet Shop Boy’s pop song structure. On another track the Cure and the Smiths’ melodic pop springs to mind. If you’re down for some buoyant indie-pop, Flannel is worth a listen.
Flannel – Spill
Flannel – Drops
August 12, 2007
Go, Go Motion!
I am a sucker for electro/post-punk music when it’s done well. Others may get tired of the trend and the new bands churning out every couple months, but as long as they remain as quality as White Rose Movement, Editors, and the Cinematics I say bring ‘em on. One such band that I have been anxious to write about and have been listening to all day is Go! Motion. They may sound like they’re from Manchester England but the jittery post-punk quartet are from Omaha Nebraska. So if a band is quality post-punk and is from the same home town as one of my favorite bands (The Faint) it seems like fate has decreed “Thou shalt like this band”, and you know what? I do.
As for the actual sound of the band, you can hear clear influences from Bloc Party, The Smiths, The Cure, U2, and even a little Bauhaus. All chopped, minced and brought to a boil in songs that are urgent and contemporary as well as carrying an echo of the past. The beats are frantic, the guitars chime and churn and explode into contagious choruses. “Different in Time” utilizes enigmatic synths to build up a mountain of sound before shifting gears and jumping off, without a parachute. “Somewhere Nowhere” is a song reminiscent of U2′s epic ballads mixed with the current dance-punk revival that creates a song that I would dance to at a wedding. Although I doubt anyone exists who would be hip enough to play this at their wedding. Perhaps the biggest standout would be the Cure-esque “Charm is Harmless” where Albert does his best to channel a snotty Robert Smith vocal to compliment the melodic plucks and swirling keyboards. Go! Motion doesn’t revolutionize the post-punk genre, but they do have a solid album that hits the sweet spot for a devoted post-punker like myself.
MP3 – Somwhere Nowhere – GO! Motion
MP3 – Different in Time – GO! Motion
Kill the Love Live:
July 28, 2007
Ready, Set, Go! Motion
The Omaha Nebraskan quartet Go! Motion, hearkens back to the early propulsive wailing of the Cure combined with the stop and go mayhem of Bloc Party’s dance rock aesthetic. Fans of White Rose Movement, Editors, and Interpol will find something to like here. Their take on the whole atmospheric urgent dance music is more linear and they’re not afraid to bust out homages to both The Smiths and The Cure in the same song, “Charm is Harmless”, which sounds surprisingly fresh for all of it’s Marr guitar and Cure plucks. The sustained notes of “Somewhere Nowhere” show that they didn’t need to find inspiration from U2 on their second album, like Bloc Party, they were ready out of the gates to emulate the edge while still retaining their own sound. The influences are easily deciphered on each track of Go! Motions’ debut “Kill the Love” but don’t let that distract you from the raw energy and the passion of the music.
June 17, 2007
Join the Lodger
The Lodger are an energetic boy-boy-girl three-piece that hail from the bustling scene in North England that spawned both the Kaiser Chiefs and the Arctic Monkeys. Their new album “Grown Ups” sounds like a modern day Buzzcocks with the lyrical style of incorporating social/relationship commentary into pop songs that bands like Maximo Park, and to a greater extent The Smiths, have made their trademark. While their songs are poppy and fun, after repeated listenings they reveal themselves to be more than fun freak outs. There is significant substance underneath their shimmery surface. For example, the song “Kicking Sand” buzzes along with a clean sound that is immediately dance-able, but the song itself is about not taking those little trip ups that happen to us all too seriously and getting back at it, whatever it is. The band uses a carefully calculated variety of instrumentation that includes guitars, bass, drums and the occasional nudge from a synthesizer or piano. The Lodger provide perhaps the best example of unruly punk fun that possesses a dignified stateliness at the same time. This is due to the uniquely calm and composed vocals of Ben and the consistently fun inventive beats from Katie. I usually take hyped up bands from England with a grain of salt, but these guys really have that special spark, that heart, that makes them more than just another British rock band. Their drummer is cute too, so that’s also a plus.
MP3 – The Lodger – Kicking Sand
MP3 – The Lodger – Many Thanks for Your Honest Opinion
“Let Her Go” Video:
April 24, 2007
Parks and Pleasures
If anything the overall feel of the album is that the sensitivity factor has been played up big this time. Many songs recount incidents of relationships that ignite and fall apart and are told with such emotion and intelligence that they will surely burrow themselves into your consciousness. One such tune is “Books from Boxes” (3), that is clearly inspired by Johnny Marr’s guitar work, but it’s the lyrics again that steal the spotlight. The lyrics present Mr. Smith as a romantic growing ever more cynical; “Well this is something new/ but it turns out it was borrowed too/ Why does every let down have to be so thin? / Rain explodes at the moment that the cab door closed/ I feel the weight upon your kiss ambiguous”. You can feel the frustration and disappointment as the chords gently fade and he decides “just to write, after all.”
Not to worry though full on fun tunes are still here, most notably with the keyboard driven flagship single “Our Velocity” (2) that explodes with the urge to run and jump around as much as possible at breakneck speeds as you mull over the concept of love; “love is a lie, which means I’ve been lied to, which means I’ve been lying too.” The neurotic theme of
Maximo Park Myspace
MP3 – Books from Boxes – Maximo Park
MP3 – A Fortnight’s Time – Maximo Park
MP3 – Our Velocity – Maximo Park
