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| Smaller Servings - Apr 2008 |
| by Steve Scully | |
| Fri:11-Apr-08 | |
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Smashing Pumpkins – American Gothic Mr Corgan is back from what was perhaps the worst side project in history – the ridiculous Zwan – and some terrible solo work (not to mention his efforts at poetry), and playing again in his ‘band’. I say ‘band’ so cynically because, to be honest, are the Smashing Pumpkins anything but a poorly-disguised vehicle for Corgan’s solo work anyway? Old Corgie’s vocals have always been a bit testing on the ears, a bit nasal (a euphemism: at worst, it’s like sitting through an episode of The Nanny), but lovably so. On American Gothic, however, he’s lost his twang to an extent and has become, well, far too easy to listen to. The tracks are as by-the-numbers as many would fear. ‘The Rose March’ is retro-90s depressed alt-rock, full of irritatingly overdone vocal layers and achingly trite acoustic guitar strumming. It’s all very lovely… but it’s just not Smashing Pumpkins. At least, it’s not the Smashing Pumpkins I know. Even more strikingly sensible is ‘Again, Again, Again (The Crux)’, a country-esque ballad. Watered-down, diluted and crass in its palatability, this new Smashing Pumpkins sounds stupid, it sounds boring, it sounds predictable and Mr Corgan sounds out of place. It sounds like Zwan. Yves Klein Blue – Draw Attention to Themselves I don’t like Alex Turner’s voice. It really limits your opportunities to enjoy music when everyone in the world tries to sound like someone you don’t appreciate. Prejudice aside, however, this EP is extremely well-produced, and seems as shiny a product as Brisbane has seen in a while. The piano and brushed drums make ‘19’ definitely the sonic highlight, while the aptly-named ‘Polka’ is as infectious as it comes. The Brisbane quartet are unashamed fans of classic rock ‘n’ roll, but the ‘roll’ side of the coin is where they fit most effectively. The smoothness of the ‘Polka’ rhythm is sublime, the guitars build perfectly to a huge swell of distortion; opener ‘Blasphemy’ shows off their penchant for The Strokes, and their ability to contain themselves to dynamic shifts and clever, succinct guitar-work. Although I always feel a little dirty listening to any music from Queensland (Brisbane’s just a little too close to Surfers Paradise for my liking), the existence of bands like this suggest they’re finally getting it right up there. Hip, crisp and right on the money, Yves Klein Blue should expect two things: hoards of screaming, underage girls, and flocks of blokes trying to look like/be friends with them. If they were from Melbourne, they’d be regulars at Streetparty nights – Pogo, Click-Click and the like. They’re just that sort of band. Surf City – Surf City EP Together with Cut Off Your Hands, Surf City are making sure the New Zealand music scene sounds as much like Britain as possible. Part surfie music, part New Wave, part shoegazer, the band also have a decent crack at the psych-rock feel, with distorted guitars in a tumult over the barely-audible vocals. Each track is heavy on the rhythms, but decidedly light on the hooky melodies. It’s jangly, it’s fun, but by the time the sixth jangly fun track rolls by, and the song titles become laughably reminiscent of Metallica’s last effort (‘Mt Kill’ and ‘Dickshakers Union’ are two pearlers), it’s a tiresome little affair (…not unlike my first wife). Slim Twig – Derelict Dialect About 20 minutes ago, I could have been quoted as saying: “I really like Canada’s music scene.” Slim Twig has supplied me with a caveat of sorts. Toronto might be the home of Broken Social Scene, and might be held up and praised alongside Montreal as one of the world’s top indie music towns, but to think Slim Twig also drinks from the town reservoir makes it a whole lot less attractive a destination. The pretentious atonal drone, the unlikable, bullshit lyricism (take ‘An Austere Gentleman’, for example: “I will slit-suck, blue and black/ Hammer-out-a-wolf-pack/ Thrashin’ in a gash-stack/ Fuck my way/ To the top of your list”), the faux-theatricality of the delivery… I could go on and on. Obviously, Twig is operating on a different, perhaps higher plane: a plane where the product of his morning wank is worth recording.
… and the best of the bunch this month is
Hercules in New York – Nightlight/Long Time Coming  A double-edged sword from the Schwarzenegger-portrayed demi-god, Nightlight/Long Time Coming is an electro-rock offensive of pincer-like nous from a well-travelled, well-worn crew of Melbourne indie-rock musos. The band members’ variety of musical backgrounds is the ace that renders this a cut above the majority of the current indie-electro pack: Martin O’Donnell’s cleverly-constructed beats are there – the vocoder and synthesisers reminiscent of electronica’s pioneers – but sitting at the base of HINY’s work is a solid rock ‘n’ roll sensibility. The synth-laden ‘Long Time Coming’ may sound eerily like Phoenix (the band, not the mythical creature… myths don’t sound), but it is concise and unflinchingly earnest, as the band sticks to what they know: melodies and riffs that, whilst not being as bone-shattering as one of Hercules’ own sucker-punches, burrow their way into your subconscious inconspicuously, almost accidentally. ‘Nightlight’ is the band at their most esoteric: Mark D’Angelo’s cryptic lyrics (for some reason a ‘nightlight’ is the one saviour from the ‘bullfight’…) are offset by the simple melodic touches. The song is, however, at once accessible pop and a tightly-wound slinky of well-honed musicality: Antonio Sanciolo proving chubbiness of finger can live side-by-side with deftness of touch, Simon Lawrie’s bass hurtling us through the song with innovation and gall, and D’Angelo crooning his way through with in a Morrissey/David Sylvian edge. The subtleties, such as the quiet vocoder harmonies that propel us back to Kraftwerk-era faux-space age flourishes, are what make this track the perfect foil for the deceptively simple ‘Long Time Coming’. They may not be the only band doing the indie-electro mix, but there’s enough of a cerebral element to HINY’s work to suggest they may just prove different enough to carve out their own niche. |
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