music reviews – Mossback, Swandive, Arcs, The Black Beauties

Mossback: “Mishmash” (Self-released)
Mossback is a new, fresh face in town. Their debut, “Mishmash”, gives one pause and then moves along at a steady pace. The music is a melancholy, guitar-laden, gritty rock & roll. It is not unlike “Jar of Flies”-era Alice in Chains, that same kind of mellow, acoustic, rock with an undercurrent of nihilism, just waiting to bust through the surface. “Mishmash” starts out with a 30 second beautiful acoustic intro and then starts off with a slow, but hypnotizing tune, “Cold Wind”. The music gets a little harder and a little edgier as the songs wear on, “Junkie Town” is a lament about the past and things one regrets. “Uninvited” speeds things up a little, but still with that same plaintiveness that pervades the rest of this very good CD. Each song averages at about five minutes each, no zip-through quickie pop-songs here.
Mossback have this really cool vibe, which just somehow really had a fluid continuity, within the songs and between them. I don’t know how exactly to describe it, but they just have this “feel” that sounded so right, that just played like something aurally sweet to my senses. They put out “Mishmash” by themselves, with no label support, something I find myself saying more and more lately. So, if you’d like to learn more you have to go to: (http://www.mossback.us) – KM.

Swandive: “Something to Melt the Silence” / “In the Fire” (EP) (Self-released)
Some fresh musical candy that will melt in your eardrums: Swandive have dipped into my consciousness recently. I threw in their new CD, “Something to Melt the Silence” the other day and I was electrocuted by a beautiful pop opus that shimmers and gleams. At the same time there is an EP out, called “In the Fire”, with four new, unreleased tracks.
“Something to Melt the Silence” is a romantic, tuneful romp that made me swoon. From the breezy opener, “And You Are” this CD piqued my interest; no, more than that, “Something…” grabbed me by the lapels, shook me awake and said ‘I will not be ignored’, even in that nice, dreamy pop way that those Brits can pull off so nicely. The lush melodies and cool, subtle hooks pulled me in and kept me listening. I was captivated by each song, which was individualistic; the CD is not fifteen cuts, all variations on the same theme; no, Swandive created 12 unique numbers here, which is why you can listen to something like this over and over again and not get sick of it.
But, if you’re not sure you want to make the commitment to a full-length CD, you can pick up “In the Fire” which picks up where “Something…” leaves off or vice versa. Then when you’ve fallen in love with the sound, you can go back and buy “Something to Melt the Silence”. Swandive will fit in well with those that dig bands like Coldplay, Radiohead or David Gray; they have that English, moody, introverted vibe down so well.
I looked and looked but I could not find any mention of a record label. I thought for sure this would be a semi-major-label-release. But alas, I saw nothing of the kind. Is this a DIY CD? Don’t tell me Swandive are not backed by somebody, they have a luscious moodiness that makes one feel nostalgic about depression-days and that can be addictive; habit forming. When it goes away you feel like you’re missing something special in your life. You’ll probably have to go to http://www.swandive.us to get one or the other CDs or to at least find out where to get them. –KM

Arcs [self-released]
A fresh wind blows down from Toronto, Ontario and with it come Arcs. If you are a fan of Jimmy Eat World, you’ll love Arcs, a new band from the great white north. The first cut on their eponymous debut really made me think of J.E.W. (whoa, I just realized what their initials spell out…); beyond that there is a diverse sound, the whole CD doesn’t just sound like one big Jimmy rip-off, but rather, they go their own way, making beautiful moosic.
I thought it was a pretty decent pop record, nothing earth-shaking, but crafted well with slick production, catchy hooks and brooding lyrics about youthful angst.
But it’s pretty cool that they pulled all this off on their own without any label support. That seems to becoming a trend lately. I’ve been noticing more and more a lot of self-produced, self-released CDs coming around and they are increasingly of higher and higher quality, from the production and sound to the artwork and packaging. Sometimes I’m surprised that there isn’t a label name stamped somewhere on the sleeve or the disc.
This is a pretty short CD, though, it clocks in at about 30 minutes and so I suppose one could consider it an EP. But no matter, it will perk up your day and bring out your youthful side and if you’re already youthful then you’ll just be ecstatic.
They have such whimsical titles for their songs: titles like “Ghosts of Shopping Malls”, “Oral Hygiene Combat Force” and “Pleasantries on the Fire Escape” to name a few. But underneath the cleverness lie some interesting melodies and moods and lyrics. I think they’ve earned the right to be “funny”. Let’s just hope the joke doesn’t stay the same forever. Anything gets stale after a while. (http://www.arcsmusic.com) – KM.

The Black Beauties: “Catch a Beat” (Full Breach Kicks)
If you’re old enough to remember the 70s and you were into punk you remember such bands as The Germs, Stiff Little Fingers and Buzzcocks. If you saw that Bill Friedkin flick with Pacino, “Cruising” you heard a bitchin’ soundtrack full of that kind of punk rock and even saw the Germs playing in a freaky S&M leather bar.
The Black Beauties have recaptured that sound with their debut, “Catch a Beat” – maybe not all the depravity and bacchanalia that went with those days, but they pulled off a CD with 12 bitching songs that rocked full-throttle from the get-go.
How cool is it to compare your toxic relationship to angel dust (“PCP to Me”)? Some other highlights include “Taken for a Ride”, “Shoulda Known Better” and “New Relations” – like I said, it evokes the aforementioned punk scene but at the same time the Beauts have a distinct sound that, today anyway, no one else has.
In fact, the farther I got into the album the more I liked it; “Catch a Beat” never got stale or static, but rolled along nicely with some interesting twists and turns.
Featured in this Chicago quintet is one Canderson on vocals- he used to be the head rock-photog for the now-defunct Horizontal Action magazine; Eric & Zack play guitar, Chris plays bass and Al Axe is on drums.
No doubt, The Black Beauties put on an intense, exciting live show; I can just imagine seeing them in a dive bar downtown, playing before a bunch of excited and inebriated kids. Rock on… http://www.theblackbeauties.net or http://www.fullbreach77.com – KM.