A SIMPLE LIFE IN A QUIET TOWN: If you were among the lucky ones, then you caught The Lanes opening for the Drive-By Truckers last week. Even if you weren’t, though, you should still know that the band’s brand-new debut album just got released. It’s self-titled, runs 10 tracks long, and features some well known local folks (namely, the Lanes themselves—Matt and Kevin—but also Richard Milkulka and Chuck Bradburn). The album was mastered with the loving attention of Jason NeSmith at Chase Park Transduction. The Lanes excel in speaking a multi-dialect version of the language we call rock and roll. Which is to say, its influences run so deep and wide, it’s a fool’s errand to chase them all down. I was surprised, though, to find most of this record being solidly in the mid- or slow-tempo arena. Sometimes this works to great impact, though, such as on the Beach Boys/Jesus & Mary Chain-reminiscent “It’s Only You.” The Big Star-ish “I Won’t Say Anything” is another highlight. Basically, take some time to enjoy this without rushing through, as the band certainly didn’t. Find it at thelanesathensga.bandcamp.com.
THREE-PEAT FRIDAY: On Friday, Feb. 20 you can catch a sweet triple bill at the newly christened Dead Beat Club (formerly Buvez). Punters in attendance will see Immaterial Possession, Telemarket and Nicholas Mallis. This night will also serve as a celebration for the newly released single by Mallis (which comes out on the 18th) named “A Program To Invest In.” Musically, it’s a clever spaghetti Western-styled tune, but with a sharp jazzy saxophone interlude courtesy of Jeff Webber towards its middle-end. The song is a sharp take on loneliness, muti-level marketing schemes and snake oil of all kinds. Once released, you should be able to find it at nicholasmallis.bandcamp.com and, of course, for all other information, please see facebook.com/nicholasmallis.
WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS NOW: The three-day passes for the upcoming Cracker Camp-In #12 at the 40 Watt Club appear to be moving quickly. The event runs Thursday through Saturday, March 12–14. The three-day passes run $177.82 (inclusive of fees but not sales tax), but you also get a signed poster and meet-n-greet, so take that into consideration. Individual night tickets are $39.84 (inclusive of fees but not sales tax). The first night is a seated show featuring a songwriter’s circle with David Lowery, Johnny Hickman, Kevn Kinney and Megan Slankard. Friday night features David Lowery, Greg Lisher and friends playing Camper Van Beethoven and more, with Cicada Rhythm opening. Saturday night is Cracker playing The Golden Age album in its entirety and more, with Thayer Sarrano opening. For tickets, please see 40watt.com, and for all other information, see crackersoul.com.
EBAY’S GREATEST HITS: Here’s another slice of news of which the actual impact is still a little ways off, but should still be of interest to y’all. Propeller Sound Recordings has announced it will release the 13-track album Boogie On Your Head! by Flat Duo Jets as a stand-alone LP for this year’s Record Store Day. It was originally released as part of a boxed set in 2017, but it has been out of print since. This new version is on rose-splatter colored vinyl and limited to 1,500 copies. Recorded in 1989 at the same time as the sessions for the band’s debut album, this set of tunes cooks just as hot. Record Store Day is Apr. 18, and more information can be found at recordstoreday.com and propellersoundrecordings.com.
FREEDOM OF CHOICE: The Flagpole cover star from a couple of weeks ago, Bayou Princess, has now officially released its album. It’s titled Burger In My Mouth, which is basically the only way I want to live, and runs a tight eight tracks. At first, I cringed at the description of the band as “egg punk,” a term only really known to the terminally online, but it’s actually pretty damn accurate, even if not necessarily embraced by the group itself, which tags its own music as “swamp rock” and “proto-punk.” It’s not terribly lo-fi, but it is terribly tuneful and packed to its gills with earworms. The peak example of this is likely “Internet Narcissist” which fulfils its duty of presenting riffy guitars and frenetic keyboard fills. Honestly, it took me a few trips through this for it to grab me, but I was glad when it finally did. I can’t speak to what any of these songs are actually about, but for a quick slice of catchy DIY pop energy, you could do a lot worse, and I speak from experience. Find this at bayouprincess.bandcamp.com.
KEEP IT LOUD:Those punks in Glance Of Dismissal released the band’s full-length Them Or Us late last month. Nearly every bit of press attention the band has garnered makes a big deal out of its declaration of being a “hardcore band aspiring to incubate an ‘80s revival within the Athens, Georgia community” by then misinterpreting this as “‘80s Hardcore Revival.” While there are definitely 1980s touchstones here (the Black Flag guitar tones on “Nightmare” come to mind, as well as the bass walk-down in “This One’s Political”), this mostly sounds more ‘90s than ‘80s. This is, admittedly, a distinction that matters less and less as the years pass by, and was probably always a stupid demarcation anyway. It’s got loads of garage rock chunkiness and a couple of cool choruses, notably there’s one in the title song. For me, this exists somewhere at or near the intersection of Naked Aggression and Blanks ‘77. Find it at glanceofdismissal.bandcamp.com, and follow along at instagram.com/glanceofdismissalband.
THREE-WAY TIE FOR LAST: Right on the heels of the previously mentioned split release with Obscurity, here comes Ixian on another split. This time it’s with Ohio’s Disposal Unit and Pennsylvania’s Beauty. Only Ixian’s tracks are available to preview right now, but if you drop a few bucks for the digital download, you’ll get the others as well. And, of course, if you buy the cassette tape you’ll get everything. Ixian has four tracks on this, and they open with the bombastic “Amen” which, more than any other particular Ixian tracks, reminds me of Swans in a big way. “Pyongyang Traffic Lady (Summer Uniform)” functions more as a sonic placeholder than anything truly compelling, but this is resolved by the next track, “Metaverse Real Estate Mogul.” Ixian’s contributions end with “Gwabbit,” which also doesn’t really move the needle very much. All this said, I could still use some more. Find this at ixian.bandcamp.com.
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