Red Mass/Quichenight/ Cocorosie/ Jay Reatard Tribute/ UUBBUURRUU
Red Mass : A Hopless Noise
Red Mass’ A Hopeless Noise has finally slipped its way into the zeitgeist, displaying a document of vision, perseverance, blood, sweat and tears. An exercise in patience and tenacity by all those involved, that surely would have decimated a less experienced band. The time, energy and effort exuded during the writing, recording, deconstruction and reconstruction of these eleven songs if harnessed, could probably serve as an alternative fuel source, one that burns clean and bright, no matter the darkness that surrounds you. Collaborating with an endless list of local talent as well as stuffed to the brim with special guests featuring King Khan, Rick Froberg, Mike Watt, Martin Bisi, Evan Dando, John Kastner, Hugo Mudie, Jered Gummere, Mac Demarco and the ever-elusive Drug Train. A Hopeless Noise successfully presents the intensity of Red Mass’ live performance, which for many years was the only access you had to these songs, with consistency and clarity in the production that really befits the album’s beautiful chaos. On To Fall From Grace, King Khan and Vucino exchange vocal duties while guitars burn hot and raw alongside the delicate plinking of a Xylophone. Life Is A Cabaret, the rawest of the lot recalls Mongrel Zine era singles displaying a rattled and loose knot of drum battery and skittish guitars, while Vucino’s vocal echoes over and over between the ears long after the track is done. Young Lovers is irresistible, a punk rock mantra suspended over Pouf Ze Cloun’s rapid-fire drumming and Vucino and Bisi’s dizzying guitar interplay and tightrope bass. Call and response vocals between Jered Gummere, Hannah and Roy are only outmatched by the surprise addition of piano, an unexpected layer that raises the song beyond euphoric. Howl utilizes the brilliant chemistry between Hannah and Roy that makes this band so special, Hannah’s delivery is juxtaposed by Roy’s desperate, brutal vocal exorcism, a combination as cathartic as watching a flame melt wax. So cruel, is a song I have carried in the back of my mind since first hearing it performed at a rather raucous New Years eve many years back, it’s been a favourite of mine for some time and the new freedom of being able to listen to it whenever I want is a gift. A defiantly thunderous track, a confluence of brutality, anger and beauty that vaporizes the static and stress around you. Vucino and Hugo Mudie’s vocals crawl out from the gutter, while Vucino’s guitar unpredictably thrashes like a downed electrical wire, scratching and searching, anchored and countered by Hannah’s soothing croon.
Quichenight: Dork In The Dark
Nashville’s Brett Rosenberg and his musical tour de force Quichenight released Dork In The Dark in October of 2019 and although it initially slipped through my radar, stars aligned and by December became an escape from the seemingly endless task writing up year-end lists and the sonic cocoon I had been hibernating in. By the time The Go-Go Radio Magic Show’s Favourites of 2019 list was published, Quichenight’s Dork In The Dark was on that list. It’s the kind of album that exudes an intangible spiri, one that rings throughout these rock n’ roll nuggets. The recording’s authenticity lies in the energy captured during the recording, it radiates through every track, lending the album a live-off-the-floor sound, bolstered by great songwriting and musicianship, Dork In The Dark hits the sweet spots. Whether it’s the irresistible surf instrumental Big Noise from Rayon City, soaked in liquid reverb and longing or Magical Thing an ear-worm of psych-lite build-ups and funky breakdowns replete with scorching guitar solo and combustible drumming. Always A Car motors forward with sixties swagger, while Ots slowly builds into a dizzying breakdown boiling over the spilling point. With a generous catalogue behind Quichenight, it’s time to look back once again.
Cocorosie : Put A Shine On It
Ever since catching Cocorosie supporting Bright Eyes many moons ago, it was an instant love affair. Well, it wasn’t instant. I was completely perplexed by Sierra and Bianca’s songs and performance and the experience left an impression that led to fixation. Even in this digital age, with information readily available, the Cassady sisters still manage to exude a mystery, their catalogue and career the equivalent of a page-turner that you can’t put down, one where every chapter completely alters course, the characters, the colours, the costumes, the smells, the environment… Since 2004’s bathroom recording opus Maison De Ma Reve, where the long distant sisters met in a Paris apartment and start a most curious musical project, incorporating both sister’s completely different vocal approaches, Bianca’s unique spoken-word delivery is hip hop / R&B infused while Sierra’s is operatic. Musically, Cocorosie inhabits a childlike approach with their experimentation, utilizing toys and found objects into the mix along with harp and Tez, the human beatbox. The Cassady sisters are well immersed in various art projects as well as theatre and dance outside their music career which, so Cocorosie albums and tours are usually something you need to be patient for. Good news then, that Put The Shine On, the duo’s eighth studio album has been announced and the first three singles sound unmistakenly Cocorosie while once again pushing their sound into new endless possibilities. Truly unique.
Jay Reatard : A Canadian Tribute
Ten Years have passed since the death of Jay Reatard, and despite leaving us with the many fruits of his prolific and rapid burst career, the sting in thinking what more we could have heard from such a unique and tremendously talented artist still lingers. With his last album Watch Me Fall, Jay Reatard seemed to be on the cusp of pushing further away from the angst and fury that dominated much of his work. What sometimes gets forgotten was Jay’s playful knack for melody and simplicity, rendering his songs almost childlike, anchored through riffs and repetition.
It’s nice to know that younger generations of musicians and fans alike, continue to dig into Jay’s work whether it’s The Reatards, Angry Angles, Lost Sounds or his solo output. Such is the case with a roster of Canadian musicians who have put down twelve of Reatard’s tracks through Retard Records, paying tribute to one of punk underground’s greats, with an eclectic collection of approaches and sounds.
Hood Rats who by all accounts bring the volume and menace on their own release 40oz Of Fury, turn it slightly down, faithfully tackling Angry Angles’ Things Are Moving. They keep the sonic thread bare enough to the bone to still risk causing fractures. Mickey Dagger’s take on Night Of Broken Glass reimagines the song as a gothic new wave track to great success. Drum machines and synths wrap around Dagger’s croon, offering a glimpse at the potential for Reatard’s catalogue to be turned on its head and painted with eye shadow. Jyraph implements acoustic guitar and sparse percussion making Reatard’s song haunting, delicate meditative. Paul Jacobs takes on two versions of the Reatard’s You Fucked Up My Dreams, the first weaves a dreamy interpretation, like a late-night phone call after the last spliff over a muted guitar and minimal synth. The alternate version is drenched in Jacob’s trademark sonic imprint and is a gone- before- you- know -it delight. Alex Cyprine’s version of D.O.A. remains faithful to the original, a blast of frenetic punk rock, covering a lot in very little time. Closing out the tribute is Vernon LeCraw’s simple and utilitarian acoustic rendition of Reatrd’’s classic track from Blood Visions, My Shadow. The original, a song that could accurately describe Jay Reatard’s sound, part adrenaline and part menace is turned into a bedroom recording, one voice and one guitar. It ends the proceedings in a somewhat poetic way, that was perhaps the start for all the musicians involved including Jay Reatard, alone with a guitar, in a bedroom with music hanging in the air.
With so many more great songs in Jay Reatard’s catalogue, I anxiously await the next installment.
UUBBUURRUU
UUBBUURRUU rise from the mists of time once again, five years on from 2015’s Swamp Ritual EP with a new self-titled LP, thanks to the good folks at Mothland. The album is rife with smoke and cinders blowing through your headphones. Drawing a blurred dotted line between seventies stoner rock and some of today’s purveyors of psychedelia, UUBBUURRU sound as authentically old as they do new. Ice Head hurdles forward, whah-whah’s kick up dust devils and a mesmerizing organ solo ascend like cobras. The songs drip golden with a sonic warmth, as though wood panelling and shag carpet were embedded into each song. There is no jockeying between elements, letting each instrument be heard, an indication as to how UUBBUURRUU operates as a band, resulting in a fluidity that is easy to get lost in. Chaos Riders wraps a wall of guitar over a centred sputtering beat, and it’s as dreamy as it is menacing. Expending Forces will have you reaching for that roach as you exit off the highway, in search of more isolated environments to conjure and exorcise your demons. I look forward to hazy days ahead with UUBBUURRUU hanging in the air.