Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks leading the Flaming Lips? Hehehe, that silly description apparently comes courtesy of Rolling Stone, at least according to the review blurbs for the Augie March
Strange Bird album at amazon.com. Just got this one on Christmas Day but I've been listening to it a
lot and it really is very nice. I've been championing it with comparisons to my much beloved, charming and insightful chroniclers of life in the village green, the Kinks. A comparison that doesn't really do it justice since it doesn't sound at all like an imitation, but that's just what comes to my mind when I hear it since it does have much of the same charm and that uniquely British sound, even though in this case from a different continent and hemisphere. This one is very likely gonna cost me some money to explore how they got to this point, especially since at least one person here told me that this isn't even their best work.
Of course, a band that takes its name from the great American novel by Saul Bellows would be expected to have a literary bent, and they do, I guess. But the words never get in the way of the music, they work together as they should, both supporting each other. Apparently it was released in their native Australia way back in 2002 on BMG and received a great deal of critical acclaim, but spinART just recently released it here in the US, also to a bit of critical acclaim. So what to call it, a 2002 or 2004 release? Well, my copy says 2004 on the back and so that's what it is. A song or two remind me a bit of David Kilgour from New Zealand's Clean, but moreso from his recent solo work with both Lambchop and the Heavy Eights backing on the excellent
Frozen Orange. Some of it is on the precious side, like that BW/VDP connection mentioned above. It has a lush sound that could almost be described as ornate. Reminds me a bit of the experimental pop side of Robert Wyatt, fragile but not as quite soft and feathery like Wyatt. Lots of piano and strings. Comes with a couple videos that you can also watch at their site.
Here is the first song from the album called "The Vineyard". Enjoy (or not ). That first song is indicative of the quieter side of the album, but they do also amp it up a little at times , although not too much.
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - Shake The Sheets
- Jim White: Drill a Hole in That Substrate and Tell Me What You See
