spOOOnful.com » Classic Rock

Titus Andronicus

stacyamos — Tue, 04 May 2010 10:00:58 +0000

Artist: Titus Andronicus

Hails From: Glen Rock, NJ

Musical Style: Rock, Punk, Classic Rock

For Fans of: The Clash, The Replacements, Neutral Milk Hotel, Bruce Springsteen

Why you should check them out:

Titus Andronicus is a band that comes fully prepared. Armed with a raucous collection of sprawling barroom brawling punk rock and the shout-out-loud mentality to go with it, these New Jersey boys are the hardest working band this side of Ashbury park.

Background Check:

Formed in 2005, the assembly of guitarist Amy Klein, drummer Eric Harm, keyboardist David Robbins, and vocalist/guitarist Patrick Stickles took their moniker from Shakespeare’s most brutal tragedy, Titus Andronicus. Their heavy distortions and loud presence caught the attention of XL Recordings, who picked up their debut LP, The Airing of Grievances, in 2009. The record displayed a ferocious raw energy and quizzical pop culture references (from Batman to Seinfeld), adding another dimension to the group’s prowess, a metaphoric and lyrical maze accompanying the fiery rhythms.

Titus Andronicus then set about an ambitious sophomore effort, upping the productions and enlisting the help of a small army of collaborators, including members of Vivian Girls and The Hold Steady. The result is the universally acclaimed The Monitor. With many of the lo-fi constraints of their previous efforts abandoned, the group delved into deeper musical waters, simultaneously reviving the bar band ethos of the likes of The Pogues, and encompassing the hard working pathos of the Boss himself, Springsteen. Already hailed as one of this year’s standout records, The Monitor is a uniquely skewed work that encompasses a recurring theme of the Civil War, eschews pretension, and resonates in its honesty long after it’s heard.

Where you can find them in cyberspace:

MySpace

titusandronicus.net

On Tour:

JamBase

Similar Artists:

Avi Buffalo

stacyamos — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:00:57 +0000

Artist: Avi Buffalo

Hails from: Long Beach CA

Musical Style: Indie, Alternative

For fans of: The Shins, Devendra Banhart, Neutral Milk Hotel

Why you should check them out:

This Southern California folk rock quartet is young… high school young, and yet they write songs that are filled with such maturity and wit, it’s hard not to label them as prodigies. They’ve just signed to Sub Pop and are working on their debut record.

Background Check:

Avi Buffalo revolves around one person, the singer, songwriter and guitar player of the group, Avigdor Zahner-Isenber. This 18 year old Long Beach Native was introduced to the professional music world at the age of 13, when he fell under the tutelage of a local seasoned blues man, Joel Weinberg… think Lisa Simpson meets Bleeding Gums Murphy. After three years of showing the tween Avigodor how to play and perform, the young upstart began recording at home. He mined the traumas of high school romance to fuel his songwriting, and eventually collected an ensemble of like-minded musicians to fill out the sound.

They’ve only been on one tour, up to Seattle and back; however they’ve garnered a lot of attention with their remarkably catchy songs and virtuoso playing. There will undoubtedly be backlash against their hype, as a result of their age; however, once you give the music an honest listen it’s going to be hard to refute that this is a talented and capable band. If you want to get in on a good investment early, check out Avi Buffalo and watch how they grow.

Where you can find them in Cyberspace:

MySpace

Avi Buffalo Website

On Tour:

JamBase

Avi Buffalo plays the Noise Pop Festival on February 27th at the Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco. Tickets are on sale here

Similar Artists:

Cymbals Eat Guitars

stacyamos — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:00:33 +0000

Artist: Cymbals Eat Guitars

Hails from: Staten Island, NY

Musical Style: Indie/ Experimental/ Rock

For Fans of: Pavement, Modest Mouse, Weezer

Why you should check them out:

Whatever you’re into, Staten Island’s Cymbals Eat Guitars is probably into as well. Too experimental to be called pop, but too pop to be called Animal Collective, CEG is like a four man amalgamation of the last twenty five years of indie rock progression.

Background Check:

When I first heard the name Cymbals Eat Guitars, my instinct was to wince. Images of violent hardcore rock flooded, thinking of the sound surely made when a guitar is consumed by the shrill jaws of a cymbal. Hearing that front man Joseph D’Agostino went by the alias Joseph Ferocious only further drove my fantastical visions of black metal and bloody stage shows.

Turns out I am terrible at predictions, since Cymbals Eat Guitars is one of the most dynamic, eclectic, and accessible sounding bands around today. Just listening to “And the Hazy Sea,” the opening track off CEG’s self released 2009 debut album Why There Are Mountains, paints an epic and artful picture of a young band (D’Agostino is barely in his 20’s) wasting no time in dominating the indie stratosphere.

Building on an early 90’s indie rock base, and launching off with exceptional and experimental flourishes, CEG leave no stone unturned in the canon of modern music. D’Agostino himself is like the love child of Isaac Brock’s yelping and Stephen Malkmus’s ultra hip swagger. The music sways back and forth, often within the same song, from softly crooning piano rock to all out rolling drums and horns backed intensity as the volume and pitch rise higher and higher. Songs like “Some Trees” are down right poppy, reflecting the not so distant past of CEG’s high school incarnation as a Weezer cover band. Though enormous strides have been made musically for the four piece, the essence of that early and pure enjoyment in music still dominates the group. Few bands today sound like they’re having as much fun doing what they do as Cymbals Eat Guitars. And that makes them all the more infectious.

Where you can find them in cyberspace:

Cymbalseatguitars.com

MySpace

Wikipedia

On Tour:

JamBase