Who are the Fleet Foxes?

While browsing the Craigslist tickets section, as I am prone to in pursuit of what's what this week for shows in the Bay, I happened upon the burgeoning indie powerhouse that is the Fleet Foxes. Everybody and they stepmama seemingly wants a ticket to tonight's show at the Bottom of the Hill. I've seen offers of $77 for what was originally a $10 ticket; beer, food, joke punchlines, virginity (really!) for the chance to catch this show. And in most of these postings, wannabe ticket buyers express the sentiment that this will be the last chance to watch Fleet Foxes play this intimate a venue, as they seem destined for a path of gargantuan theaters and arenas. So, my non-feathered friends, just who are the Fleet Foxes? Well to start, five musicians from Seattle who just released their self-titled debut album on Sub Pop on June 3. They describe their music as "baroque harmonic pop jams," a blend Pitchfork appears to approve of seeing as how they rated the record a 9.0, putting Fleet Foxes in great company as far as debuts go (Wolf Parade, anyone?). And based on a few MySpace samples, like "White Winter Hymnal," which carries a dreamy, laid back Beach Boys type of groove with lots of oohs and acapella sprinklings, and "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song," a plaintive acoustic folk ballad that channels old-school '60s haunted Mamas and the Papas, their sound is certainly clean, catchy and compelling. Not quite rock 'n' roll enough to be deemed awesome in my book, but they've got something. And I betcha much of Fleet Foxes' appeal is that their live presence is as endearing as their MySpace personality -- check out a sampling of their tour schedule:

Aug 18 2008 8:00P	RED BUTTE GARDEN W/ WILCO !!!!! (WTF?????)	SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
Aug 20 2008 8:00P	EAGLE KNOLL WINERY w/ WILCO (How did we get here, seriously, what is going on)	BOISE, ID
Aug 21 2008 8:00P	INB ARTS CENTER W/ WILCO !!! (Still flabbergasted)	SPOKANE, WA
Aug 23 2008 8:00P	LES SCHWAB AMPHITHEATER W / WILCO !!!! (Shock, disbelief)	BEND, OREGON

Fleet Foxes appear genuinely appreciative of their recent success as openers for huge acts like Wilco. Sounds like cool peeps. So good luck to ticket seekers for tonight's mega sold out BOTH show. Or just wait until September when they play the Treasure Island Festival. Fleet Foxes' "White Winter Hymnal":

Rant: "I wah wah wah wah wonder": The corrosive torture that is Del Shannon's "Runaway"

Honey children, I think we've got a Patrick Bateman in our midst. You know, the serial killing type whose penchant for pop music almost disguises a love for penetrating viscera with steak knives, but not really.

I bring this up because here I sit working studiously in a room on the sixth floor of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. library in San Jose, and what is it that's providing the soundtrack to my noble pursuit of rock music news?

Why none other than Del Shannon's 1961 number one Billboard hit "Runaway," on repeat, seven times and counting.

I guess the guy in the next room likes that song. A lot. Sample lyrics:
"And I wonder--
I wah-wah-wah-wah-wonder,
Why,
Why, why, why, why, why she ran away,
Yes, and I wonder"

Coupled with high-pitched staccato keyboard stylings a la "dooo doo doo doo/ dooo doo doo doo / doo doo doo / doodoo doodoo doodoo doodoo doodoo doodoo doodoo doodoo / dooo doo doo doo / dooo doo doo doo / doo doo doo doooooooooooooo," this has got to be the most annoying two minutes of music ever written.

And surprisingly, the guy next door so enamored with Mr. Shannon's ode to love woe is young, clean cut and wearing glasses -- so not visibly insane. I don't know, are people who wear glasses capable of murder?

On the eighth "Runaway" go 'round, library security dropped by to deter the transgressor from a ninth spin, but dude keeps playing it.

Maybe I should offer up my relationship counseling services.

Family, friends: If I don't pick up my cell, 911 ain't no joke.

Sigur Ros to play Greek Theatre Oct. 3, presale Friday

artist website :: myspace :: youtube	Sigur Rós The Greek Theatre Berkeley, CA Friday, October 3rd presale begins friday at 10am! (password = naked)

Radiohead covers Portishead, debuts new song

To further cement Radiohead's standing as the best band around (aren't they the best?), they've gone ahead and covered a song from the best album released this year: "The Rip" from Portishead's Third. They soundchecked this track before a couple U.S. shows in May but never actually played it live. But loverly them, Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood recently recorded the song in a backstage green room, and Colin Greenwood kindly posted it on Waste Central for us Webheads. And oh, it's a strawberry ice cream sundae: The band --well, Thom Yorke on solo piano -- also debuted a new new track, which fans are dubbing "Super Collider," at the Dublin show last week. Raw footage, yum:

Spaceship Mogwai to land in San Francisco on 9/8

How's about a Scottish post-rock postlude to the summer of '08? Glasgow's most honorable pack of parka wearers Mogwai announced plans today for a summer North American tour that includes a San Francisco stop scheduled Sept. 8 at the Grand Ballroom. Last time Mogwai traversed 'round these parts was for a kickass show at the Fillmore on May 27, 2006, just a couple of days after an incendiary performance on the outdoor stage at Coachella. Kickass, incendiary - do you see a pattern here? Mogwai's sixth album, The Hawk is Howling, is also due Sept. 29 on Matador. In a recent blog on their Web site, guitarist/guy who plays a lot of instruments Barry Burns described the album as such: "It's got it all, dreamy ballads about forbidden love gone awry, one minute pointless instrumentals and even some spoken word about the future of the music industry in India. If and when you allow yourself to hear these bitching jams you're going to want to buy some seriously good crystal meth just to take the edge off." Sounds sweet to me. And preceding the album, on Sept. 9 the Batcat EP will be released, also a worthy purchase if for nothing more than track 2, titled (seriously) "Stupid Prick Gets Chased By The Police And Loses His Slut Girlfriend." Sounds like a quality batch of drugs circulates through those there Scottish highlands, boys. Incidentally, a word to the wise for Americans who want more info on the band: Don't go gettin' all intuitive and type www.mogwai.com as the supposed URL for Mogwai's Web site. That is, unless you're trying to beef up on your Himalayan cat breeding skills. (Pssst: www.mogwai.co.uk) Mogwai: "Auto Rock" Photo: www.myspace.com/mogwai

Word abuse: muzzy

I appreciate obscure words as much as the next budding linguist, ahem, but not when these words are thrown into writing at the expense of clarity. I'm sick of reading about new bands and come across some totally random word that doesn't help me discern a genre or general sound to the music. Take "muzzy" for instance. What the hell does "muzzy" mean? Is it something like "fuzzy"? Merriam-Webster's says muzzy means dull, gloomy and "lacking in clarity and precision" - kinda like its etymology: "perhaps blend of muddled and fuzzy." And peep M-W's definition for fuzzy: "lacking in clarity and definition." Ah, I see the distinction. Not. In need of counseling: "This glow, though, did not outshine the two nostalgia-tinged openers, Citay and The Botticellis, the latter soothing the scanty crowd with their swathes of muzzy organ, plucked right out of the Paisley era and placed on their debut album, Old Home Movies." "So, initially, I was pleased that Winning Days was such a digestible and dreamy ride, full of somnambulant harmonies (Amnesia), muzzy monster guitars (TV Pro) and killer hooks (She's Got Something To Say)." "The key success to the band’s genre-borrowing being that, whether in country, punk or retro mode, The Black Lips have the skills to imitate while retaining individuality, their spit-and-all performances and muzzy production always at the heart of the material." However, I did stumble upon an excellent use of muzzy: "It will take a lot of listening as the production is too muzzy, with too much guitar and not enough words coming through." It works because a context is provided. It makes a point. Point taken?

CD review: Oh My! Michael Scott Parker - Naked

Michael Scott Parker must have toddled around the house sans clothes just a bit more often than the average child. Everything about her latest album, Naked, from soul-exposing lyrics to emotive melodies, reveals a free spirit unafraid to strip for artistic expression.

Recently relocated to liberal bastion San Francisco — but seemingly risen from the sea — Parker, AKA Oh My!, proves a new goddess is in town, poised to join the female singer/songwriter elite. Vocally, Parker evokes both Tori Amos’ sultry-smooth rasp and angelic moan, as on the stark chamber ballad “Toy Piano,” and Albini-era PJ Harvey on the title track and “Mi Ute,” where she wields not much more than an electric guitar and a spitting banshee shriek.

Lyrically, Parker comes off as a bona fide muse set to plant the seed of self-expression into all of Earth’s creatures. “Let’s make crazy / it’s time to play,” she beckons enticingly on the rollicking album opener, “Let’s Make Crazy,” luring listeners to join in the fun of breaking loose from life’s cages. Overt feminism permeates other tracks, most notably on the resolute acoustic star “Natural to Me” as Parker asserts, “I’m gonna be the woman to change everyone’s mind ... I’m not sure if they’re ready for women like us.”

Parker’s renaissance tendencies — she wrote, performed, produced and designed much of Naked — mostly get the job done. But the handful of guest musicians dropping in with sax, violin or synth, among other instruments, occasionally fail to meld with the staple guitars, creating a disjointed effect. And with such fervent honesty and genre-hopping, from alt-country to folk pop to raw rock, Parker could have trouble tracking down her audience.

But listener beware: though no lions or tigers or bears pop up on Oh My!’s Naked, her charismatic wizardry can grow scary-infectious to even the most unsuspecting ears. Originally published in West Coast Performer, June 2008

CD review: The Mission Orange - Seasick

Grunge may be dead in the Pacific Northwest but it sounds like teen angst is still kicking. On The Mission Orange's debut full length, Seasick, for burgeoning Bellingham label Murder Mountain, the Mount Vernon teenage garage duo declares that the best way to battle confusion, loneliness and indecision is with explosive distortion, cathartic shouts and the volume knob cranked to 20. It’s easy to see how vocalist/guitarist Marcus Nevitt and drummer Sam Hutchens could draw devout legions of early-Nirvana fans. They construct ear-catching towers of melodious noise coated in pop hooks but cemented on a punk base. The fade-in opening title track serves up the duo’s best representative: as distant and unrelenting guitar crunches loom closer, Hutchens striking a fury of cymbals behind, Nevitt coos reassuringly, “I feel fine,” before unleashing a corrosive Cobain wail and deciding, “I can’t make up my mind.” Combining sweet melodies with sour rock dissonance yields a delectably hypnotic dichotomy. Feedback and fuzz steer much of Seasick, and though loud-fast does rule, it isn’t The Mission Orange’s only M.O. The twisted folk ballad “Sister” adopts lingering acoustic strums and Jeff Mangum harmonies, while sheer joy saturates the playground romance on “I’m a Germ, You’re a Germ” (“I saw you swinging on the swingset / swinging with your feet all covered in mud”) until its inexplicably disastrous end where Nevitt exclaims, “I’m losing my desire!” This shows a few lyrical loose ends need tying, along with occasionally repetitive riffs craving more evolution. They have the right components — ample melodic sensibility, compelling energy and an album as cohesive as it is endearing. On the closer, “Homesick,” which plays like a continuation of the opener, Nevitt bellows, “I am alone!” With records like Seasick, The Mission Orange should find plenty of friends to keep them company. Originally published in West Coast Performer, June 2008