of Holiday Shores- “Columbus’d the Whim,”

The opening lines of Holiday Shore’s new album, “Columbus’d the Whim,” bring to mind a poor man’s Chris Martin with a tinge of King’s of Leon’s Caleb; soulful yet down to earth and bluesy. Talahasse natives Holiday Shores have created an album that is extremely listenable and jubilant. The first song, Reruns, is a standout track that starts inauspiciously then delves into clangy, quick drums, ukulele & tambourine and then trails off (as do many of the tracks) into slurred and seemingly heartfelt lyrics. From there, “Phones Don’t Fued” picks things up with a 50’s surfer style peppy beat and walking bass-line. The vocals sounds like they were recorded in a far-off, sun lit garage by the beach, while the drummer plugs away along with the discordant guitar licks. The lyrics are unintelligible at times, but the energy, pathos and overall creativity more than make up for this obscurity The creativity only spirals on from there, with “Dens” starting off with chords from an organ layered under another peppy drumbeat. The trippy, far off vocals combine with the instruments to evoke a sense of being on a trip to an outer space church. The album delves further into an update, bluesy beat with “Edge of our Lives,” a tune which you can’t help but bob your head and tap your feet to. Definitely an album that gets better with each listen, Columbus’d the Whim sounds like someone put Modest Mouse, the Pixies & Kings of Leon in a blender and then handed the results over to a bunch of surfer kids from North Florida. In a good way. This is the band’s debut LP and definitely deserves a good listen. You can check out more at their myspace page, http://www.myspace.com/holidayshoresmusic, featuring current tour dates as well. The album, “Columbus’d the Whim,” drops on August 4th on Twosyllable Records and currently have a new video out for their single, “Phones Don’t Feud,” which you can check out on the label website, http://twosyllablerecords.com. Review by: Vivien Treacy

Heavy Glow

You ever go pub crawling and just run into one of those fantastic bands that is just pure and straight up rock and roll? Something you’re not really looking for but just by pure happenstance run into and fall in love with? Well that’s what the guys from Heavy Glow are; just pure and simple rock music. Catching them at the Radio Room the other day, playing to a rather undeservingly small crowd for a Saturday night, still managed to blow me away while I was sipping my traditional rum with a dash of coke. They managed to be one of those bands that just makes you want to tip the brim of your hat way down low and bob your head as the guitarist, Jared, fingers away and his mates Joe (bass) and Dave (drums) keep a steady driving hard beat. Now there are a lot of bands in San Diego. A lot of great bands, a lot of solid tight sounding bands but Heavy Glow is one of the few that you really want to keep an eye out for. Their six track self titled EP is simply amazing is transitions into a fantastic live performance. You know how some bands are great on the tracks and are kind of “so so” in the live aspect, or vice versa? Well these guys managed to capture some of that live attitude to their recordings. And no wonder, having recorded and produced their EP with local guitar great Stevie Salas, if you don’t know him look him up kids. A little deeper into the bands style, if you listen closely you’ll find a literal hodge podge of sounds and influence, as reflected on their myspace page (www.mypsace.com/heavyglowmusic). You’ve got a guitarist/singer (Jared Mullins) who captures a late 90s alt rock spirit but plays like a literal bat out of hell. You’ve got one of the quickest drummers (Dave Rollans) I’ve seen who brings a very funky yet heavy side to the mix and a basest (Joe Brooks) who just brings it all together in a progressive stream. Honestly an impressive lineup of talent that has yet to be recognized in the state, but apparently the mates down under have taken notice, having signed to an Australian distribution label, Stockxchange Music. Go figure that one out. To put it bluntly in the end though Heavy Glow is pretty much everything you look for in a solid rock band. A dynamic driving force of riffs both old school and progressive, a dash of experimental and over all straight up soul. It’s a band you have to check out, a CD you have to pick up and just a sound you have to love.

Eulogies- here anonymous

As I drove up to Los Angeles, Eulogies hometown, I could not help but ponder why the band had chosen a name with such strong implications and then made their album title “Here Anonymous.” I instantly saw myself giving a Eulogy with a paper bag over my head…I’m here giving one of the most important speeches of my life, but not really…then I realized that I needed to start the album over and actually listen. This was when the album and band name actually started to make perfect sense and became an allegory alluding to the bands style. Walking the borderline between indie rock and emo music, the album has a moody upbeat tempo with cathartic, melancholy lyrics. What makes this album work though, is its honest attempt to capture an untainted portrayal of the human condition. I felt like I had time warped back into my junior year of high school when I was too hormonal to put my feelings anywhere but out in the open. This is why I could totally relate when singer Peter Walker says, “Eulogies for me is not about talking about someone who’s dead. It’s saying those things that someone would say only at that moment but wish they had said right now. That’s what I’m preaching to myself-don’t be quiet. I can’t survive down that road.” The first few songs on the album set the stylistic tone, upbeat pop rock with weighted heartfelt gloomy lyrics. Of this more common style of song I found “The Fight (I’ve Come To Like)” the most enjoyable and the most danceable. I could see myself waiving my arm around at the upcoming show on May 22nd at San Diego’s own Casbah. Some surprising tracks that strayed a bit from the stylistic norm included “Two Can Play” which features Nikki Monninger from the recent Coachella playing Silversun Pickups. The song has a soft dreamy sound that brings a sweet downbeat change to the albums more upbeat instrumentals. My personal favorite song, also the most experimental on the album, comes towards the end of the LP with “Stranger Calliope.” This song features a Casiotone keyboard over a live flute player, which creates an ethereal sound that brought me images of riding a candy colored carousel on a cloud. The album definitely grew on me the more I listened and deserves a couple spins through before you make your judgments. I appreciate the honesty of the album, which does a great job of remaining simple and direct. Sometimes an easy to listen to album becomes the perfect cure for being caught in LA traffic. Review by: Tara Rose Gladstone

Yeah Yeah Yeahs- It's Blitz!

The trio from that tiny town of New York have done it again alright. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs latest work, “It’s Blitz!” has to be their most progressive work to date. But then again what did you expect? “It’s Blitz!” is simply a 4-4 beat synth rock dance party from start to finish, something that even the scenestery of kids will enjoy, while still pleasing those who have been faithful fans from 2002 and beyond. So break out your white V neck undershirts, tight jeans, leather jacket and get on the dance floor. But honestly “It’s Blitz!” is a fantastic album, with heavy influence from its producers David Sitek (who did work on the last two albums but is also a member of TVOTR) and the legendary Nick Launay. Also with some of the contributors of the album, saxophonist Stuart Bogie (of TVOTR), YYY’s touring mate Imaad Wasif and Greg Kurstin of the Birds and the Bees; All in all very much so an excellent contributing force in the studio. When you listen to the album a few times and then shoulder it up to the latest work from TV on the Radio, you get sense that maybe there’s a bit too much of that outside influence, but then you hear Karen O. ring out and forget all about it. All in all this newer sound is a progressive step from what we’ve heard from in the past two albums from the YYYs. It truly is one of the better produced albums I’ve heard in a long time. The band is currently on tour out across the pond in the land of Europe, only coming state side for Coachella and All Points West festivals, no word that we’ve heard of yet when they’ll land state side to blow our minds, but hold fast and steady and start putting money in the ticket fund jar. And in the mean time go out and buy the album, you won’t be disappointed.

Franz Ferdinand- Tonight: Franz Ferdinand

So if you didn’t know Franz Ferdinand is back and, after about a four year hiatus, has finally put out a new album entitled: “Tonight: Franz Ferdinand.” Now back in the day, if any of you remember 2004/5 that is, I really liked Franz Ferdinand. They were another Brit Pop invasion band (well technically Scottish, but who keeps track of that stuff) with attitude and style with that high and tight twangy sound that the kids loved back then. This was the era of reformed garage bands like The Hives and Kaiser Chiefs and others. But it’s a new age of music and has Franz kept up?

The answer would probably be yes, another case of an older band growing up with the times. The base of their new album is, well, very Franz but they sprinkled a little of what the kids like these days. Like a lil keyboard electro-dance rock. But when you peal that away and actually listen to the band you realize that they haven’t lost a step in their time off. It’s poppy and aggressive, and swinging and shouty, and raw on some tracks. Everything you like to find in a UK band really. I was afraid at first when I popped into the ol’ CD player that it would come out over produced, or fake. Something that Simon Cowell would invent in his basement. I was worried that since they’ve been underground for so long that they would need some hot shot producer to come in and mix it all up turning them into a band that they just weren’t. But again I was presently surprised and very pleased with the results. I mean, I better be good considering they’ve been working on it since 2007.

The band hits the states this year on April 13th up in Seattle and the closest they’ll get to San Diego is this year’s Coachella Valley music and Arts Festival on the 17th of April. I do believe that Franz Ferdinand will return to the lime light with great success. I mean come one, they’re featured on an iPod commercial, and we all know what that can do for your musical career.

Local Band- The Old In Out.

Ok. The Old In Out. They are…..a band. A band of the rock punkish variety. They have a singer, a couple guitarists, drummer and bassist. The songs are….ok, they’ve got some click………ok The Old In Out sound like every other San Diego dive bar punk band around. Yes they can get the kids hopping around after they’ve had a few but is there really anything special about them? If there is I just can’t find it. I guess if you had to put it some way they’re a bunch of really nice guys who play in a band and gig around the city. They’ve got a fan base of lil indie punk rock kids with they’re tattoos showing and nerd glasses on with they’re thick beards or "Vintage" garb on.

After getting a hold of their music I gave it a good listen for a few weeks. At first I liked them, they seemed to have a pretty good vibe around the, but then I was poking around myspace and switching out some other local band CDs and realized it’s the same. And that kind of made me a bit depressed. When I look for a good local band to get my feet off the ground I’m looking for their signature, the little thing in the music that makes you say, “F**k Yeah Man!” But I couldn’t find it in this particular instance. If you stack them to some of the really good local punkers and rockers that are blowing up or have already made local rock gods status you can probably see what I’m talking about. Bands like The Creepy Creeps, Wild Weekend, Scarlet Symphony and so forth. They’ve all got an act, they’ve all got a sound, and they’ve got something memorable about them. Something that keep you from saying “yeah there was a band playing that night, who were they again?” Vice “Yeah man, *insert band name* were freaking crazy.”

But I digress and to sum it up The Old In Out are decent. They may even have potential if they pull together and find something to help them stand apart. Again they aren’t bad, they have a pretty decent live performance they just have some room to grow and soul searching to do in my opinion. And as we like to say around the office, we know someone out there’s gotta like em.

The Deadly Syndrome- The Ortolan

Innocent. Really innocent sounding. At least that’s what comes to mind when I listen to The Deadly Syndrome’s debut album, “The Ortolan.” Starting out with the ping of a small piano sound the likes of a children’s song and breaking in with some whiny yet soothing vocals is all something just so pleasant. It’s weird because you can compare them to other sounds from other bands but at the same time you can’t because they’ve got such a “put together-ness” about them that you’d swear they were the original. Not quite that California country happy sound like The Elected, but not quite the acoustic mellow yet happily depressing sounds of Death Cab and all mixed with other accent sounds and melodies. It really is fantastic. All this coming off Dim Mak Records, the guys who brought you Foreign Born, Sean Na Na, Whitey and others.

Consisting of Christopher Richard with vocals, William Etling on guitar, Jesse Hoy on drums and Michael Hughes on keys the four of these guys apparently put on quite the rock show for their style of music. Granted it’s not all melodic soothing music, a few of the tracks are very much the head banger sway back and forth genre. The album all in all is well rounded and progressively phenomenal, starting out like stated, something out of a children’s book read with piano in the background and ending with an all out keys and noise big sound boom at the temple of some 1980s video game. It really is outstanding and definitely something you and your children and your children’s children should check out. Keep a look out for these guys. Oh and keep an eye out for Mustachio.