Artist: Sun Stone Revolvers
Song: She Gets Back
Recorded at El Mocambo, September 14, 2013.
Sun Stone Revolvers - She Gets BackFull review to follow. With their name recently expanded (from plain ol' Revolvers) and their sophomore album finally being released, the band had time to celebrate in a stretched-out headlining set. It's also no surprise that the band has yet more material up their sleeves, with a third of their set composed of songs newer than the ones on their long-simmering album.
Artist: Sun Stone Revolvers
Song: Born Again
Recorded at The Horseshoe Tavern, August 31, 2013.
Sun Stone Revolvers - Born AgainFull review to follow. Familiar to local garage-psych heads for a while now, Revolvers have recently extended their name to the more distinctive Sun Stone Revolvers, and their long-awaited second album is now about to drop. They'll be celebrating its release with a party at El Mocambo on Saturday, September 14th.
Artist: Revolvers
Song: Postcards [The Hoa Hoa's cover]
Recorded at The Silver Dollar Room (Psych-Pop Toronto Release Party – Night 2), November 9, 2012.
Revolvers - PostcardsFull review to follow. One band that was missing from the two nights of celebration at the release of the recent Optical Sounds compilation was the much-missed Hoa Hoa's. Revolvers helped remedy that by invoking their memory with this reinterpretation that puts their own spin on an old fave, instead of trying to slavishly copy the original. Beyond this, there was a whole lot of tasty new stuff from the band that we'll be hearing more of soon.
Sunday Grab-This!
In lieu of a Sunday Playlist this week, here's something even better that you can stream/download for gratis!
I've made no secret 'round these parts for my love of local label Optical Sounds. The bands affiliated with the label put on great live shows and have put out some essential records over the past few years. Now, you can get a sense of all that goodness squeezed into one package, with a new label compilation featuring a tracklist selected by Will Carruthers (Spacemen 3, Spiritualized, Brian Jonestown Massacre). Those very same bands tend to be a shared love of everyone in the OS family, so even if there's a terrific variety here, there is something holding it all together.
You can download or stream the album over at Optical Sounds' bandcamp, or also via the label website, where you can read a bit more about each of the bands involved. This is essential T.O.!
Plus, to celebrate the compilation, OS is throwing a two-night celebration at The Silver Dollar, with many of these bands playing. Be there on Thursday, November 8th (live sets from Ostrich Tuning, The Disraelis, Flowers of Hell, The Auras, Planet Creature) and Friday, November 9th (live sets from B-17, Revolvers, Volcano Playground, The BB Guns, Persian Rugs). Both nights are $8 at the door. Facebook event here.
Artist: Revolvers
Song: unknown*
Recorded at The Piston, July 12, 2012.
Revolvers - unknownFull review to follow. Though billed as a "triple headliner" night, there was no doubt that the biggest crowd came out to see Revolvers play. Taking the stage in a new (at least to me) trio configuration, the band played a lot of new material, including this "brand new" track. Always noted for their restraint, I like the spaciousness they allow here. Keep an eye out for their new album to drop — there should be more chances to see 'em in action forthcoming.
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
Artist: Revolvers
Song: Apocalypse Surfin'
Recorded at The Garrison, May 27, 2011.
Revolvers - Apocalypse Surfin'My notes for this set can be found here.
The Davey Parker Radio Sound (Revolvers / Broken Bricks)
The Garrison. Friday, May 27, 2011.
Classic rock skirts in and out of style to some degree. As the 60's and 70's recede further into the past, I think that younger bands can appropriate this stuff with a lot less baggage than there would have been fifteen or twenty years ago. So what's the difference he he classic rock-referencing bands playing, say, The Garrison and the ones playing at the Hard Rock Café? Well, it's unjust, but who your friends are and where you play are themselves have a lot to do with how bands are perceived. Plus, I think bands like the ones at this show are going a little deeper than just the most obvious rehashing — the night's headliners, for one, are indebted to the psych and blues traditions, but also exist in a universe where Nuggets is equally influential.
And while Broken Bricks wear their influences on the sleeves of their Mod jackets, the youthful energy they infuse in their music lets you know that they know that punk has happened. It was that energy that marked them as a band I'd been meaning to check up on again for awhile. And I was glad to see it was still in place, co-existing nicely with a rehearsed professionalism.
On the stage, an elaborately striped stand for Luke Kuplowsky's keyboard drew the eye. He fronts the band with guitarist Marlon Chaplin, and the pair switch pretty freely back and forth on vocals. They've had a rotating rhythm section behind them, though right now drummer Matt Duncan is listed as the third permanent member.
The started out bang-bang-bang with three quick songs, leading with statement-of-purpose "Pop Song" before letting things stretch out a little with a little bit of excitability and wheeling around that ended with a mic stand getting knocked down. (In my notepad: "good finish!") From there, focusing on songs from their Little Fugitives EP1, they mixed spiky rockers with more laidback balladry on tunes like "Jigsaw". They also threw in a couple from their previous Pasquale and even a couple new ones.
Everything was delivered with that energetic kick, and there's quite a lot here to like. Not every song of theirs nails it for me, but they come off as such an accomplished young band it's hard not to want to project where they'll be if they can maintain their development. The set finished with a rollicking combo run through "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Within You Without You", which they tore into with even more gusto then they showed for their own stuff. They also showed a bit more of a penchant for psychedelic skew in these that hopefully will rub off on their songs.
Listen to a couple tracks from this set here.
I suppose it's continuing a trajectory that I've noted before (and maybe the sheer volume of The Garrison's sound system helped), but Revolvers hit with the most muscular wallop I'd ever heard from the band. The fact that the music's increased crunch is being carefully integrated so as to not flatten out the band's attention to sonic detail is a testament to drummer Lavien Lee, who alongside bassist Gabi Mezzetti keep a litheness underneath the guitars up front.
Revolvers' second full-length is getting closer — a recent dispatch indicates it's been sent off for mastering — and there was a lot of that newer material being played here. Of eight songs, there were only a couple from Apocalypse Surfin', including a nice take of the title track that nicely illustrated how they've toughened up their sound without undercutting what is, at its heart, an earnest little ballad. There were a couple songs that were brand new to me, but some of this second-album material has been kicking around their setlists for awhile.
Another sign of a a band that'd clearly stepped it up: some of the songs that I'd thought were a little trite and undercooked before — like closer "I Love You" — now got over on virtue of a slide and a swagger. That's a useful tool for a rock'n'roll band to have at hand, and I'm looking forward to see how things are sounding when that new album comes out.2
Listen to a track from this set here.
I have a pet theory that states that album release shows are often not the bands' best gigs. Celebrating the culmination of a lot of hard work, they're an "event" and often saddle the band with having to deal with a lot of tangential issues, from (hopefully) dealing with a little more press than usual to making sure parents are on the guest list. And while this was a noteworthy occasion for The Davey Parker Radio Sound, celebrating the release of their first full-length In A Land Of Wolves And Thieves3, it was an un-glam sort of night — well-befitting a band with a blue-collar, no-frills approach.
At first, it looked like some of those tangential complications might undermine their release show, with Ben Quinn fighting a balky bass amp for the first couple songs. But once that was sorted out, the band was in a good groove, pumping out a series quick songs — and in fine album-celebratin' fashion, they started off by reeling off Wolves' first half-dozen songs in order.
That gave a chance for the quartet to show off their main elements: the sound features guitar lines and vocals bouncing back and forth between Jason Fitzpatrick and Graeme Jonez, powering their old-school garage rock with a hint of nugget-y psychedelia and a taste of the blues. Separating them from a lot of similar bands, they also have a hard rockin' undertone that suggests they come from a lineage that includes, say, Steppenwolf and Deep Purple more than some more fashionable antecedents. Those classic rock tropes are especially up front when they stretch out a bit on the likes of "Downtown Night Owl", but there's still a fuzzy stomp that drives the songs forward.
The band broke from the track-by-track presentation of album to introduce the brand-new "Gypsy Ring", which was one of the best of the set — a good sign they've got songs aplenty in 'em yet. The endgame was a little muddled, and for a moment it looked like the set was sort of just going to stumble to a halt with the band suddenly declaring they were done — mostly out a egalitarian desire to get final band Speaking Tongues up on the stage. But the crowd made sure they stayed up for a couple more and that allowed them the shot at the Big Rock Finish, concluding with a triumphant take of "The Living City".4
I had previously posted a track from this set here, but you can also check out another one here.
1 It was recorded with John Critchley — and it makes me feel particularly superannuated these days when I see him identified with reference to a bunch of production credits instead of merely saying "... of 13 Engines".
2 Revolvers will be playing with Two Green Cats at The Piston on Thursday May 24th. No word yet on when that album will be coming out.
3 "We released an album," the band announced from the stage. "It's for sale and it's for free." And, indeed, it's still available as a free download on their bandcamp — but I'm sure it'd be appreciated if you could kick something in to support the band's DIY efforts.
4 The DPRS will be playing a Pop with Brains showcase on July 20 at The Rivoli.
1000 Songs: Robert Gibson
I have now posted one thousand songs from my live recordings to this blog. My introductory thoughts on that landmark can be found here, but long story short: I asked some folks to pick some of their favourites to help me celebrate.
Today's list is from Robert Gibson of Toronto's Optical Sounds label (twitter: @OpticalSounds)
The Hoa Hoa's - Grew Up on The Seeds
Ostrich Tuning - Gender Trouble (Bodies That Matter)
Your 33 Black Angels - Psycho On Your Side
I promise this started out differently. I love Mechanical Forest Sound's premise as a blog and fully intended to select some great tracks without it turning into an Optical Sounds festival. BUT, how could I include some bands from the label my brother and I founded and maintain and not all of them? So, OUT ya go J Mascis, Love Is All, The Radio Dept, Simply Saucer, etc and IN with our friends and their amazing bands. Joe, you've managed to record every band on our label except Magic Shoppe. This is understandable tho - they've never been to Canada. :)
We're throwing a party on Saturday Mar 10 at Double Double Land in Kensington Market. It's in celebration of Your 33 Black Angels' latest release, "Moon and Morning Star".
You can always click on the tags below to read more about the shows these songs came from. Have there been four or five songs posted here that made an impact on you? If you'd like to get in on the action and make a list, feel free to send me an email: mechanicalforestsound@gmail.com.
Artist: Revolvers
Song: Break it Loose
Recorded at Sonic Boom Records, November 26, 2010.
Revolvers - Break it LooseMy notes for this set can be found here.
Revolvers
Sonic Boom Records. Friday, November 26, 2010.
In-stores at Sonic Boom can be a malleable thing. Sometimes they're just a quick taster before a band heads to their main gig of the night. In this case, though, Revolvers' set counted pretty much as a gig in its own right, celebrating the re-release of their debut album Apocalypse Surfin' on the local Optical Sounds imprint, with the label helping the band get out a handsome vinyl version. So with no other show to get to, the band could not only stay a little longer, but also get going a little later, with a scheduled eight o'clock start time.
Things were still a little thin on the ground as the hour rolled by, but as more friends and curiosity-seekers came down the stairs there was a respectable crowd on hand as the band got started fashionably late, in true rock'n'roll style. And speaking of rock'n'roll style, the band was also looking the part — especially guitarist/vocalist Sebastian Molaro sporting some oversized sunglasses and a bit of Jagger-ish frontman swagger.
Over the course of their set, the band featured several tracks from the album, starting with the ace opening cut "Break it Loose". Tasty stuff, and I got the impression the band is feeling more settled in their music and confident enough to sit in a groove a bit more than previously. The rhythms were hitting a little heavier, and not just metaphorically: I note that drummer Lavien Lee, who did a lot of work with brushes when I first saw the band, is now on sticks almost full-time.
And though the band was celebrating the wider availability of their album, it has to be noted it's also a snapshot from a while back. It's good to note that there's several songs newer than the album that show that the band's style is still evolving. On some of the more recent songs the sound is more psych/less blues, which works pretty well — not that there still isn't some boogie in their beat, such as on the choogle-ized "Cadillac 21". And showing one more tool at their disposal the did a "brand new one" called "I Love You", which slowed sown the tempo without sacrificing the groove — even if it demonstrated that the band are still not all the way there as imaginative lyricists.
A good set, showing the solid base from which the band is presumably going to keep expanding. The album is worth hearing, but the band's greatest strength remains its live show, so check them out when you get a chance.1
Listen to a track from this set here.
1 You can catch the band playing the Drake Underground on Friday, April 29, 2011 with Trap Tiger plus Snake and Crane.
Artist: Revolvers
Song: unknown*
Recorded at Rancho Relaxo, June 18, 2010. (NXNE 2010)
Revolvers - unknownMy notes for this set can be found here.
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
NXNE — North by Northeast Festival, Toronto, 2010.
Friday, June 18, 2010. Featuring: The Soft Pack, Revolvers, The Schomberg Fair
Midnight: The Soft Pack @ The Garrison
Walked up to the The Garrison from Queen, and got there just a couple minutes past midnight. I'd been vaguely worried about capacity/lineup problems — this was another buzz-y band — but although the room was pretty full (and quite sauna-like), I still managed to get in and work my away up the far edge of the room to get a decent vantage point.
I'd been hearing good things about The Soft Pack, out of San Diego, for a couple years now, stretching back to when they were known as The Muslims, but in the band overload environment we're in, I'd never really investigated them. As I settled in, they were just starting up with opener "Pull Out", stand-up drummer Brian Hill's straightahead Mo Tucker beats driving things along. Added to those crazy rhythms were the Feelies-like textures of "More or Less", which was pressing all the right buttons for me. I'm a total sucker for anything third-handedly Velvetish — and, hell, this might even be genuinely second-handedly Velvetish. The band quickly settled into some propulsive, guitar-driven garage rock, more concerned with rhythmic interaction than flash or noise. One is tempted to call Matt Lamkin's vocal delivery a bit pedestrian, but I think that would miss the point, as the pleasure of the band's music is textural in a I-can-dance-to-this-some kinda way. Which also excuses a sound that some might find a bit too consistent.
There were, however, a few songs that mixed up the formula enough to keep things from getting too same-y, like the mid-tempo "Mexico", with slide guitar and a melodic bassline from David Lantzman, which felt like a ballad after the rollicking songs before it. And the highly satisfying "Bright Side" (from one of their early singles) had a big singalong hook, bringing to the fore an overt poppish side that is pushed aside in some of the other tunes. Otherwise, there was a lot from their self-titled debut album.1 With one song left, the band made the best of it, stretching out for a nine-minutes rave-up run through new single "Gagdad" (with a catchy refrain of "I Can Tell") that sent them out in style.2 Not a flashy band, but very worthy for those who like that steady rhythm sound and a beat you can dance to.
Listen to a track from this set here.
circa 1:25 a.m.: Revolvers @ Rancho Relaxo
And that took care of my list of "must sees" on the night. With no particular rush to get anywhere, walked up towards the College/Spadina nexus, figuring I'd make up my mind on the fly once I was closer to some options. Walked past the El Mo, where Golden Dogs were playing, and looking in from the street, it looked like a big crowd having a sweaty fun time, but I didn't feel like trying to squeeze in up front to catch the end of it. I kept moving and ended up at Rancho, where things must have been running a bit behind schedule, as I ended catching about twenty minutes from Revolvers. Unplanned, but a good result — I hadn't caught them since last summer when they were celebrating the release of Apocalypse Surfin', their promising debut album.3
As I came up the stairs to the venue, the band were playing "Break it Loose", the album's opening track and and possibly their best — a proper little Nugget of garage-psych goodness. Which might make them sound like just another band in a pretty crowded field, although Revolvers do have their own distinct niche. They play with a controlled restraint that some similar bands plow right past — even though their live attack is a bit rawer than the presentation on the album, these guys aren't kicking over microphone stands or bathing their songs in random feedback bursts. Plus, their rawk attack contains no small does of the blues. It works well when they get the balance right, such as on an extended ramble through "Cadillac 21", which fuses the Velvets' "Run Run Run" with something like a Chess sound. There were also a couple songs that aren't on the album, so it sounds like the band is still working on new twists to their sound.
Listen to a track from this set here.
2:10 a.m.: The Schomberg Fair @ Rancho Relaxo
Stuck around to catch another local act, one that I've been meaning to check out for awhile but had never crossed paths with. The Schomberg Fair, with a couple albums under their belts, are well-loved in some corners of this town and have a rep for a blistering live show. They're not the first to attack traditional song-forms (and traditional songs) with energy and velocity, but they do so with such zeal that the tag "speed gospel" has stuck with them. The songs operated like a cart careening down a steep hill — a giddy ride that feels dangerously fast at times.
Vocalist Matt Bahen (switching off between banjo and guitar) was backed by the bullfrog roar of bassist Nathan Sidon (his croak is one of the band's more distinctive elements, and might be a bit of a deal-breaker for some), with drummer Pete Garthside holding it all together. The switching off of lead instruments gave the songs different characters — "Poor Me" had some roaring guitar power. "Take Me to The Water" had a menacing throb that didn't offer any of the redemption promised in Nina Simone's song of the same name, but the the theme was continued with the following song, the traditional "Wade in the Water". Mixed in with their original tunes (including a new one called "Orphan Bones"), the band kept mixing in covers like Blind Willie Johnson's "Trouble Will Soon Be Over".
Sometimes the fast stuff was a bit too much of a clattering rush for my taste — I liked it better when they slowed down on "Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down" (familiar to some from Uncle Tupelo's version), with stomping gospel intensity and howls of feedback. But the uptempo stuff was well-received by the heaving, sweaty crowd in front of the stage. Entertaining, but for a band that's so concerned with redemption (or its opposite), I felt somewhat agnostic — though not unwilling to wade back into the river on another occasion.
Listen to a track from this set here.
1 I subsequently picked this up on the strength of this set and have been enjoying it quite a lot. Recommended.
2 This one is available as a free download over at RCRD LBL.
3 Word on the street is that the album will soon be getting a vinyl re-up on Optical Sounds.
Artist: Revolvers
Song: Unknown*
Recorded at the Silver Dollar, August 15, 2009.
Revolvers - unknownMy notes for this gig can be found here.
* Does anyone know the title of this song? Please leave a comment!
Revolvers / The Caraways
The Silver Dollar. Saturday, August 15, 2009.
With a little more lag time between plans than'd be perfectly elegant, I had time after leaving Cinematheque (confused all to hell by the Cocteau-y weirdness of Les Enfants Terribles) for a relaxed walk over to the Silver Dollar. Still got there mildly early, as witnessed by the fact that the last of the evening's blues bands were breaking down their gear as I settled in. A chance to witness the venue in transition as the last scraps of the older crowd out for the early show finished off their drinks before the late-night denizens began to take over.
Hadn't heard of The Caraways, the night's opener, though I had seen it mentioned that the band's membership included John Sutton (ex-Weakerthans). While they were setting up, that seemed less striking than the cocktail dresses and exotic instruments that were taking the stage, and indeed, the real motor of the band turned out to be vocalist Laura Keightley, complemented on harmonies, french horn and melodica by a possibly newer member of the band, as yet unnamed in their info. The five-piece turned out to be working in a sophisticated, textured vein that left them looking classier than the crowd they were playing to. If the Blake Babies played downcast, west-coast pop it might sound something like this, albeit cut with a 90's alternative sensibility.1 But the dominant vibe was a smoky ambiance driven by Nikos Kougias' "Out on the Weekend"-styled drums. The band wasn't putting across a dominating stage presence, but that gave the impression that they were folding themselves into the environment rather than shrinking into the woodwork. Quietly impressive and solidly professional — keep your eye out for 'em.
Listen to a track from this set here.
The main attraction for me on the night was Revolvers, a local quartet broadly in the two-guitar psych-garage genre, celebrating the release of their first album with a gig. Although the style of the day is to amp up yr nuggets with extra layers of noise and slop, the most unique element of Revolvers' sound was the restraint they applied to their songs. At the places where most bands of their ilk would pile on more chaos, Revolvers held back, making it sound like a sort of contained fury than a psychotic reaction.2 In theory, this means that the band has room to shift up, if they ever decide to kick their songs up a notch, but it implies they're finding the most rewarding territory in their songs' melodic centres, and kudos to them for that.
It's not all there yet — the songwriting might feel a tad undercooked, for example — but this was an enjoyable set from a young band that has some elements tantalizingly in place. Were I offering advice to the band on where they could take this implied psychedelic explosion, I would suggest less blues, more Galaxie 500. If they're not looking to explode, they should consider learning how to shimmer.3 The band played for thirty-five minutes, and the crowd on hand would have been happy to hear some more.
There was more rock action on tap from Drunk Woman, who I have heard kick up a righteous fuss, but the time I'd spent tromping around in the hot afternoon's sun was catching up with me and I was feeling well exhausted. Stopping to grab a copy of Revolvers' CD, I made my way out to the street.
Listen to a track from this set here.
1 The latter quality was especially apparent on a song with Sutton on vox.
2 Another sign of their restraint: drummer Lavien Lee played with brushes for the duration of the set.
3 Of course, what I recommend for my aesthetic edification and what would get this band filling up rooms with happy, beer-drinking patrons are probably two different things, so, like, consider the source there.
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