Artists Who Have Submitted Music: Check Your Submissions Here

I had to revive the original Band Over Boston library computer.  I've transferred over the music and have the library ready to go live at In House Cafe once more.  Only thing is, I'm not sure everything transferred, as my computer kept telling me something was corrupt but wouldn't say what.  (I think the Dell was just crossing its arms at transferring data to an Apple.)

Spotlight: The Highway's "Forest People"

(Originally written for the Deli New England)

Psychedelic swirling lures, introducing Forest People with atmospheric effects, slide guitar and nebulous, distant vocals, building softly before finally dropping into one crunchy, snarled-lip guitar lick.  The band kicks it aside with the verse, Daniel Tortoledo's vocals immediately in the high-register, the rhythm guitar jiving like 70's funk.  It's as hypnotizing an opener as this listener has encountered in a very long time.  But The Highway, much as the name suggests, isn't content to idle in one place.

Spring(ing)

Well, the patio door is open and the breeze says winter is dwindling away.

Submissions have continued through the heavy winter months, but BOB’s been hibernating.  A long fling with a web programmer who ultimately had to leave the project made me want to step back, reevaluate, and fund-raise a little bit.  (Okay, a very little bit – but seeds are small.)  Plus, everyone’s busy (as is always the case), but in the face of long-building expectations for a website that didn’t work out, it was just easier to wait until the time was right once more.

Two computers just came in the mail and I’ve come up with a plan.  Here’s to shaking the snow from the eyes and budding once more.

Recently Added (from the archives)

 

DEAF COUNTRY

EP: “Ultra Mega Gold”

From the opening drum loop of “Full Spectrum Bulbs,” soaked in reverb and grand enough to move mountains, it’s apparent that this is an immersion-minded album, whether it’s right in your ears or blanketing the dance floor.  Infectious synths slide and cascade down over sawtooth basslines; other production choices range from tinkling piano to chunky, power guitar, and give each song its own character.  There’s even a little spoken word, right out of the 80′s, and the bonus Broken Social Scene cover brings indie rock right into Deaf Country’s bubbling, shimmering world. “Ultra Mega Gold” wants you to dance, but if you must listen sitting, it will settle for a smile.

Recently Added 2 (from the archives)

 

JOE TURNER & THE SEVEN LEVELS

LP: “Between Two Seconds,” EP: “Triplets EP,” Single: “Tuesday Afternoon”

I always love a good drummer turned frontman story, so I was eager to check out Joe Turner & the Seven Levels. 15 tracks of vintage psychedelic rock later, and I’m still holding out hope for every guy sweating behind the kit and harboring lead singer ambitions. Lush orchestration complete with swirling organ and synth beds definitely give these songs a trippy 1960s vibe, which, like the music of that era, make this a great album to listen to alone with the headphones on.

Recently Added 3 (from the archives)

 

RICHARD JAMES

LP: “Along the Way”

Richard James gives Along The Way the full band treatment with ten lush, dreamy psych pop tunes. Introspective piano ballads are interspersed with swirling upbeat numbers like “Maybe I’m Crazy” and “Wicked Island”. James’ vintage tinged tracks have a massive sound that is reminiscent of 70s-era George Harrison, Donovan, and, at their most epic, ELO.

Recently Added 4 (from the archives)

 

CALL IT THE TRUTH

EP: “Fight for Your Life”

There’s a nice, funky swing and jazzy bed to this music, even when they’re laying into swooping rock choruses; the guitarist jives and the drummer fills against pulsing bass, giving the songs, even at their biggest, that danceability.  Call It the Truth seems to be defining their own line between funk, sing-along jam, pop, and rock, and they’re at their most memorable when the whole band lands together on kicks that make you want to sing along with them.

Recently Added 5 (from the archives)

This blog is about the website’s creation, evolution; the process of the ideas that will, at last, serve as Band Over Boston’s inner workings.  Given the blog’s amorphous and process-oriented stance, then, I hope you’ll forgive the shockingly sterile working title for a new weekly column I’m starting right this very minute:  “Recently Added!”  (fireworks)
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WALTER SICKERT & THE ARMY OF BROKEN TOYS

LP’s:  “SteamShipKillers” ; “Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys”

An intensely vivid trip through an ash-gray landscape.  The music rolls in the muck and howls at the sky; it’s dirty and raw and resonates with jangling strings, various acoustic percussion, wilting orchestrals and horns, and, above all, Walter Sickert’s lyrics – growled, slanted, chanted, chugged, belted, and, yes, sung. And when he sings, he means it.

A Note to Rex

I shared the stage with you once when you were based in Boston, but on Saturday, I attended as a fan as you made landing in Boston once again.  You’ve recently moved to Brooklyn, and I smelled lozenge on your breath when I greeted you.  I wondered if I’d be seeing the same Rex Complex that I knew and loved.

Day Sleeper - Wonderland Kid

Day Sleeper's "Wonderland Kid"

There’s a line in the second song of this EP that stuck with me throughout subsequent spins of the disc.  In the middle of “Maggie May I,” Cas Kaplan speaks through a swirling build:  “As long as you live, you will never be right about anything, ever.”  The cyclonic bridge comes to an abrupt halt on Kaplan’s command, and the rest of the song rides out on a group chant:  “This is real.”

A Note to Musicians On the Library

Hello good sirs and madams,

take a few minutes and forward the information requested below to me, whenever you have time.  no rush, but I’m trying to get band bios, etc. together sooner than later.  danke!