All this music; My first trip to Seattle's Easy Street Records.

I hopped my first Seattle bus for a trip to Seattle's Easy Street Records. With all of my records and CD's sitting in storage until my wife and me find a permanent home here. I've been experiencing some separation anxiety when it comes to my obsession with vinyl. Having heard the news of Chris Cornell's passing just before our morning flight to visit Seattle. I was left with the feeling that the copy pf Soundgarden's 'Screaming Life" I ordered from RevHq the week before may have sold out.
True to form, it did not arrive with my order a few days after my return to New Jersey.

My first impressions of Easy Street Records were lasting. Two floors of vinyl records, CD's, movies, books and apparel. I spent a good hour navigating the aisles and familiarizing myself with the stores abundant stock. The staff is both friendly and helpful. People who really know their stuff and are more than happy to pass on their knowledge. Easy Street features the ginormous stock you'd find in a big box music store. Yet they manage to keep the prices down. All while maintaining the intimacy and charm of a mom and pop type business.

As for the records and more importantly, the music. 1987's Debut SST records release "Screaming Life" and 1989's A&M records label "Louder than Love" perfectly bookmark 1988's sophomore release "Ultramega OK". The two releases I picked up on vinyl were the albums that originally introduced to the band and incredibly gifted singer / front man Chris Cornell. While I will be without a turntable for a good month or so. The download cards included will help me to further damage my hearing while listening on my headphones.

Soundgarden World

 

Low Fat Getting High - S/T LP

While I won't kid you in saying
I have any idea what the name Low Fat Getting High eludes to. I will say that this is some of the best stuff I had the privilege to get a hold of as year 2014 came to a close. Having heard so much praise thrown upon this Brooklyn band in the last year or two. I was beginning to wonder if the hype machine had gone into overdrive. That was until I managed to get hold of a copy of the band's previous release 'Bad Yoga'. Those four songs were all the convincing I would need.

So when the band offered to send me a copy of their new LP.  I was more than willing to accept.
Raw, heavy and flat out noisy. This record makes me regret not posting a best of 2014 list on the blog this year. The self titled LP, which features twelve sonic tracks of post noise grunge rock validate all of the buzz that's been building around this band. While comparisons to grunge pioneers such as the U-men, Green River and Mudhoney can easily made. Perhaps a nod to Queens of the Stone age might suit those with short term memories or ones without music history degrees. Regardless of any genre specifications or trappings. I wouldn't go suiting up this Brooklyn trio in matching flannel attire anytime soon. Low Fat Getting High are perfect for what they are. Loud, raw and honest sounding. Overall, some of the best stuff out there. James Damion

Low Fat Getting High Get it Here

Those Mockingbirds - Penny The Dreadful

Penny The Dreadful marks a turning point for Those Mockingbirds, who have spent the last few years carving a steady path to the forefront of New Jersey's sea of rock bands on the strength of exceptional live performances and promising EP Fa So La. It was difficult to predict the sound of long-form Mockingbirds, as this is a band whose devotion to the hook always belied a deep, varied pool of influences among its five participants and a knack for arranging them super-creatively. Penny captures this band successfully satisfying either impulse, meeting their potential, and injecting life into a style that some seem to think is approaching anachronism status.

Above all, because it plays so well from front to back, I'm really pleased with Penny as an obstinate defender of the album format. The first three tracks carry the feel of singles, with "A Ballad From Hell" standing out for its chilly vocal-violin combo and the steady build to the tempo boost halfway through, totally cinematic and terrifying. Loud mode then kicks in on

"How To Rob A Bank" and "Teenage Fantasies," which hit quite directly and leave me feeling divided. These songs overflow with grimy riffing and thick textures, flaunt finely-tuned choruses, and benefit greatly from the big production. All the same, once
"Loose Leather" unfolds next,
 it gives the sense that this band is looking toward bigger things than just a carefully-trimmed single or two for summer rock playlists.
Its Cave In-sized chunk, slick leads, and beyond-catchy vocal interplay between singers
Adam Bird and Tory Anne Daines bring me much closer to my alt-rock happy place.

The absurdly-catchy chorus of the pumping "Bodies on the Road" is probably my favorite on Penny, with the runner-up going to bittersweet pop-rocker "The Reckoning" and its declaration,"I don't wanna know what it's like to be happier." Elsewhere, where it'd have been easy to succumb to filler, the band toss us track after track with fresh flavors and elegant arrangements. "Destroy My Love" recalls the eerie indie-rock saunter of some of their
pre-Fa So La jaunts for a song packed with interesting contrast: The bass's stomp in the verse against Bird's feathery falsetto in the chorus; the timbres of the guitar and plucked violin as they both play the hook; the meditative bridge giving way to an embittered, explosive climax. "S.A.L.T." switches to downtempo shuffle with a gorgeous, mourning violin melody and layers of soaked guitar. Penultimate ballad "Model Myself" and closer
"I Feel Like I Died" turn toward a pensive mood with great effect, especially on the latter as Bird gives a crushingly frank morning-after reflection that creates an odd peace together with gently-fingerpicked acoustic.

Clearly a labor of love, Penny The Dreadful covers a lot of ground, and deftly so. Simultaneously blunt and subtle, simple and nuanced, Those Mockingbirds have struck a careful balance without sacrificing an ounce of passion. Like every strong debut, the feeling of satisfaction comes with imagining what they might try next. Penny doesn't provide any obvious answers, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Darrel Norrell

Hounds Basket - Delusions of Grandeur EP

It's never a good sign when your half way into a records first song before you realize you're listening to a Doors cover. What's just as bad, if not worse, is finally realizing that it's actually not a cover. Brooklyn's Hounds Basket self described mix of alternative, grunge, stoner metal come together rather nicely.

This seven song EP opens with 'Melatonin' and 'Master Plan'. Two sludgy stoners that would best serve as the closers.
It's not until the cleverly titled 'She's a Nihilist' riffs kick in 'til the ears perk up and wake me from my slumber.
'Dazed and Amused'
and 'Delusions of Grandeur' follow with similar results. Excellent metal rippers that really highlight the bands ability and promise. Strangely though, 'it's When in Rome' the records closer that is by far the EP's strongest song. Though it shares the sludgy stoner influences of the opening tracks. It's mammoth sound and grinding power have an incredible effect on the ears. There's some serious Alice in Chains love going on here. Though I'm not sold on 'Delusions of Grandeur'. I'm glad I stayed long enough to here the entire package. I'm cautiously optimistic about the bands future. James Damion

Hound Basket  Bandcamp

 

Low Fat Getting High - Bad Yoga

Gritty and emotive post core that hits you like a rush of adrenaline into the blood stream. Four songs of thoroughly impressive rock that experiments with influences and sounds ranging from metal to post hardcore and grunge. The opener "Better, Better, Worse"  offers blazing guitars and pounding rhythms that bring to mind a fuzzed out power of Queens of the Stone Age and/or "Bleach" era Nirvana. "Childhood Friend" follows with similar speed and precision, while "The Claw" speeds things up. It's the closing track "My Hate", which is the longest song on Bad Yoga, and my personal favorite that brings the EP to a crashing, pummeling and titanic end.
"Bad Yoga" never lets up and never lets the listener down. Thus serving as an excellent introduction to a band with a less than inspiring name. I can't wait to hear more. James Damion

Death By Steamship - Facetious

Seattle Washington's
Death By Steamship is yet another stellar band on the
Whoa Boat  Records roster.
As I'm listening to this three song teaser I find myself hearing influences ranging from Fugazi's experimental sound,
Murder City Devils and perhaps a louder, dirtier Modest Mouse. All of it served up with a heavy dose of grungy bombast and Post Hardcore swagger.
The kind of band that would bring a chainsaw to a knife fight.
The record opens up with the anthemic "Smoke and Sweat". Excellent riffs and carnage which is slightly overmatched by it's drunken chorus. All coming together to conjure up the image of a whiskey soaked singalong in the back of a dark, dirty bar. "Dirty Venetian Blinds" follows with a similar vibe.
"You Need A Special, Specialized, Specialist" brings the record to a close with it's  manic ride. There's a lot of cool elements here that make this my favorite song on the record. Twisting guitars and sludgy drums take center stage here. All in all, it's nice brooding record that's worth checking out. James Damion


Get it Here

Seaweed - Service Desk 7 inch

Seaweed was always one of those bands that lived outside the shadow of its genre.
Their sound was a mix of post core, punk, indie and what was yet to be copt as grunge. While allowing them to sit comfortably at the table with bands from any of the aforementioned formats. It was their music that set them apart and made them stand out.

On their new single Service Deck/The Weight
(Their first in thirteen years) Seaweed delivers the same hooks, tension and riffage fans are used to while keeping it fresh and not relying on nostalgia or old tricks.
The addition of keyboards on the last thirty-seconds of Service Deck add a new twist that surprisingly works.
The records B-side The Weight carries also has a driving rock sound that carries that classic Seaweed formula while adding a look into what hopes to be more music in the near future. No matter how you approach it this is one hell of a way to cap off the Summer.
James Damion

No Idea Records Buy Here