That Was The Show That Was: Bottomless Pit, Kadane Brothers

The Kadane Brothers, perhaps better known as principal members of sublime flagship slow-core act Bedhead and its successor The New Year, have written so many great songs but released records so infrequently that last night's performance was something of a constant surprise. Several songs into a quiet set during which Matt and Bubba Kadane played guitars and sang sans rhythm section the brothers reached deep back into its catalog to unearth the frankly sublime track "Crushing," released on Bedhead's 1994 stunning full-length debut WhatFunLifeWas. We had hoped against hope that the duo would perform the title track to 1996's The Dark Ages EP, but this treat definitely sufficed. Mssrs. Kadane and Kadane did open their set accompanied by journeyman guitarist Chris Brokaw on the track "The End's Not Near" [for which a video was recently released; watch it here]. The penultimate song of the set was "18," our favorite New Year track -- except for perhaps "Gasoline," which was also performed. The New Year will issue its third full-length, and first since 2004's The End Is Near, September 9. The set features drumming by Mr. Brokaw and bass courtesy of Saturnine's Mike Donofrio; a fellow named Peter Schmidt, whose name is not familiar to us, also plays guitar on the album. It appears the new set is self-titled; you can review the track listing at Touch And Go's web site right here.

Bottomless Pit's set, which sprung directly out of a well-choreographed musical segue that closed The Kadanes' set, was powerful. We hadn't seen the band fronters Tim Midgett and Andy Cohen perform since a Silkworm show in Philadelphia in 1995 or so. Mr. Cohen's guitar work floored us, and fortunately we were standing directly in front of him for the entire set as he let loose with tense, taut, slashing leads and flourishes with his Telecaster. More than anything else, the artfulness of the veteran musicians' performance impressed us -- the lion's share of the live bands we see each year are up-and-coming, and may never develop the poise and chops possessed by the chaps in Bottomless Pit. If they do, they are usually playing rooms that are so large that we can't enjoy the spectacle of their excellent playing. And while we certainly believe Bottomless Pit deserves to be playing arenas and theaters -- we were actually surprised when we realized last night's performance was in the 200-capacity Middle East Upstairs and not in the larger downstairs room -- we felt very grateful to be awash in the blare at a range of a half-dozen feet. The band played much, if not all of the excellent full-length Hammer Of The Gods, then delivered some of the goods from the recently issued Congress EP, and then thrilled the crowd with a new song during what was apparently a very rare encore.

Mr. Brokaw, whose guitar work has been a huge influence on our own playing (despite our relative ineptitude), opened the show last night with a set of his own tunes, including a mile-wide instrumental and a number of tracks from his recently released set Incredible Love. I And Ear Records, which you may recall issued Mazarin's excellent final record We're Already There, issued June 30 fat vinyl version of Incredible Love which you can purchase at his web site here. He also played guitar on the forthcoming Lemonheads record that is due this fall. Located at his web site, Brokaw's touring schedule reads like a Who's Who in indie rock: he'll tour with The New Year in the US in early October and in Europe in November; in August he'll be playing guitar alongside Matador [thanks Jon!] artist Jennifer O'Connor; and like everyone else in North America besides us he will be at All Tomorrow's Parties NY, playing with Thurston Moore.

Bottomless Pit and The Kadane Brothers continue their tour through the 19th of July, and we've posted the remaining dates below; the band's play Montreal tonight. We shot our usual battery of lackluster photos last night and you can check them out here. We stood next to Mr. 'Nac as he recorded the show, and we expect once he gets through his substantial backlog he will post recordings of the excellent show. In the meantime, here's an MP3 from Bottomless Pit's Congress EP, which has been released digitally by Comedy Minus One.

Bottomless Pit -- "Fish Eyes" -- Congress EP
[right click and save as]
[buy Bottomless Pit music from Comedy Minus One right here]

Bottomless Pit: Internerds | MySpace | YouTube | Flickr

The New Year: Internets | MySpace | YouTube | Flickr

07.13 -- Divan Orange -- Montreal, Quebec
07.14 -- Sneaky Dee’s -- Toronto, Ontario
07.17 -- Schuba’s -- Chicago, Illinois
07.18 -- High Noon Saloon -- Madison, Wisconsin
07.19 -- 7th Street Entry -- Minneapolis, Minnesota

Muxtape No. 7: Talked Myself To Sleep

[IMAGE: Kasimir Malevich "Landscape With Yellow House," courtesy Wikimedia Commons] We're back on the allergy medicine this week, so we are sort of floating in space, which we think this mix suggests. Which begs the question: why we didn't include anything from Spiritualized's Ladies And Gentlemen, We Are Floating In Space? Alas, hindsight is 20/20. Here is the link to our weekly Muxtape.

1. Frightened Rabbit -- "The Twist (Demo)"
(A kool kat out there in musicland sent us a bunch of demos that Frightened Rabbit had recorded for the excellent set The Midnight Organ Fight, which was released in April. Or was supposed to be issued in April, the date was pushed back, but we're fairly certain the record is finally out now. The band plays Great Scott in Boston Monday night, which normally would be an ideal time for us, but sadly the show conflicts with a visit from Clicky Clicky Mom, so we are going to pass as much as it pains us. We've already heard rumors of the band's return to town for another date, so we'll just have to redouble our efforts then. Anyway, about the demo: we love the little piano twitter laid over the thrumming rhythm.)

2. Mantissa -- "Modesto" -- Building A Working Model
(We wanted to include this jam here because there is a chord change in the chorus similar to one in the Frightened Rabbit tune. Also it is an under-rated track from an under-rated album made by one of the most recognizable singers in indie rock. Chicagoland indie rock fans may recall Brian McGrath's rasp from the excellent and similarly under-known trio Wendyfix. "Modesto" is not one of the "hits" from Working Model, but placed in a new context it is a surprisingly vital indie rock number.)

3. The Halo Benders -- "Bomb Shelter Part 1" -- Don't Tell Me Now
(Time was we thought this pairing of Beat Happening's Calvin Johnson and Built To Spill's Doug Martsch was too much of a clash. But Don't Tell Me Now collects so many irresistible tracks we've come back to it regularly over the last decade. As an added bonus, in the second chorus that woman with the heavenly voice from, ummm, Heavenly chimes in.)

4. The Royal We -- "All The Rage" -- Single
(Delicious single released last September from a Glaswegian septet whose story we think goes a little like this: band forms, agrees to break up after releasing a record, band garners fans with single and charisma, band releases record and breaks up, true to their word. This number has sass, pep and hand-claps to spare, and there is actually an entertaining video for it to which you can watch here).

5. Haywood -- "Come On Tell The Truth" -- We Are Amateurs, You And I
(One of the many fine moments recorded by Haywood Mach II on its first posthumous release. We remember one of the guys deeming this track as having the "classic Haywood" composition and vibe, and perhaps that's true. Although we don't hear any of the cute half-smiles in the lyric here that Mr. Pauly often uses to shade the emotion of a song. So in a sense this song is an unflinching hard stare at a disappointing situation. Which fits, considering the song's quiet demand for an answer.)

6. Swearing At Motorists -- "Being In Love"
(If memory serves, at one point Swearing At Motorists' Dave Doughman moved to Berlin, Germany and started recording songs in the Weinmeisterstrasse Ubahnhof rail station after it shut down for the night. And we have to believe that this track is a result of one such recording session (although the track wasn't on Exile On Gipsatrasse -- link), what with the amazing reverb and ambient noise. A fairly harrowing take on being consumed by love, but beautiful as well. Well, we just actually did the research and apparently the track is a cover of a song by Songs:Ohia and was issued on a comp. Who knew?)

7. Hurl -- "Dual Showman" -- "Madison Earful" single
(Devastating slowcore. Noisy bookends. Seems to recast the emotions of the Swearing At Motorists track as bold, quasi-Suprematist slashes of melody. Single released on My Pal God, one of the few labels that makes its vinyl singles from the '90s available digitally.)

8. Bottomless Pit -- "Human Out Of Me" -- Hammer Of The Gods
(The pop-and-lock layers of guitar and bass in "Dual Showman" suggested this number to us. Except there is an ease to the rhythm that injects substantially more levity into the proceedings. Bottomless Pit tours this summer and is about to released an EP titled Congress. The extended player will contain the tracks "Red Pen," "Fish Eyes," "Pitch" and "Angry Swan." It is available for pre-order now, will be issued digitally by Comedy Minus One June 1, and will be available on vinyl (with CD included) July 16 directly from the band. If you pre-order prior to June 1 you get the vinyl and CD and shipping for $9.50 total. More info here.)

9. Bloc Party -- "Like Eating Glass" -- Silent Alarm
(This one's a rocker, and we figured we needed to throw a rocker in right here.)

10. Slicker -- "FrustRache" -- The Latest
(Exquisite minimal electronic jam from the son of the guy who made all your favorite '80s movies. One of those records we first heard on the hi-fi at a record store (the erstwhile Harvard Square location of Other Music) and purchased on the spot. The Latest captured the zeitgeist of the times as far as electronic music goes, although we've never claimed to have more than a cursory mastery of what's going on in the scene. Recommended if you like Bruno Pronsato and vice versa.)

11. Benge -- "Eve's Escape Valve" -- Meme Tunes
(More minimal, yet more lush and with more melody. A good allergy medicine anthem. Again something in the rhythm and chimes suggested the next song to us.)

12. Althea And Donna -- "Uptown Top Ranking"
(A sunshiney pop reggae gem apparently cut by two teenage girls in the late '70s. The pair was the youngest duo to ever reach the top of the British pop charts, which they did in 1978. There seems to be a fair amount of disagreement about whether the one woman's name is spelled with an "i" or an "e," although this very informative Wikipedia entry claims that the dual spellings were a mistake that somehow didn't stop the record from charting.)

Today's Hotness: Comedy Minus One and Karl Hendricks Trio

During the last six weeks we didn't have the time to impart a number of things. One such thing is the launch of the new indie label Comedy Minus One, which is helmed by WPRB radio personality and My Pal God Records honcho Jon Solomon. The maiden releases of Comedy Minus One are the CD version of Bottomless Pit's solemn debut Hammer Of The Gods [EMusic/ITunes] and digital versions of Karl Hendricks Trio's Buick Electrica [E/I] and Karl Hendricks Rock Band's The World Says [E/I]. You may recall we reviewed the latter record here.

But what brings us together today is our love for the piccolo snare-packed recording Buick Electra, released in 1992 and supported with touring in 1993. One of those tour dates was at Princeton University's Terrace Club, where we first saw Mr. Hendricks and band, and they were awesome. Now that we think about it, this was likely the first real "indie rock show" we ever saw. The savvy Mr. Solomon has since noted that there was no digital version of Buick Electra available in the marketplace, and sensing a not insignificant amount of pent-up KHT demand, he's put his money where his mouth is to make the set available in conveniently ordered and decodable ones and zeroes via the aforementioned digital music storefronts.

Now you might be asking, if you are one of the thousand people or so cool enough to already own Buick Electra: hey, is this the same record that I've had on CD for a decade, or has it been remastered and rendered into quadrophonic sound for enjoyment in boogie vans the world over? We can report that in fact it is the very same record -- or we should say the very same CD, as the CD includes a handful of bonus tracks not included on the original vinyl. There are more than a few highlights to Buick Electra, but one of the highest is album opener "Dead Flowers." This is not a cover of the Rolling Stones number of the same name, although the Stones' underrated '80s rocker "She Was Hot" gets a brisk workout by Hendricks and crew. We highly recommend Buick Electra on the strength of the aforementioned cuts, as well as the tracks "Stupidhead," "F*ck Sh*t Up" and "I Don't Want To Be In Love."

Fans in and around Ohio and Pennsylvania have the opportunity to see the latest iteration of Mr. Hendricks' rock ensemble, The Karl Hendricks Rock Band, perform a couple rare live dates next month supporting the aforementioned Bottomless Pit. Dates are below. In the meantime, Mr. Solomon is permitting us to offer "Dead Flowers" for your downloading pleasure for a limited time. Download and revel at will. As for Comedy Minus One sister label My Pal God, Mr. Solomon intends to release before the year is out via that imprint the debut long-player from the amazing rapping punkers Yah Mos Def, an act which you may recall issued the insanely good West Philly punk-and-Fugazi-referencing, Archie Bunker-sampling demo "The Beat That Makes The Natives Nod" in 2005.

Karl Hendricks Trio -- "Dead Flowers" -- Buick Electra
[right click and save as]
[buy Karl Hendricks Trio recordings from EMusic here]

11/02 -- Andyman's Treehouse -- Columbus, OH
11/03 -- Brillobox -- Pittsburgh, PA

Prior Karl Hendricks Coverage:
Review: Karl Hendricks Rock Band | The World Says
Misery, Women And Karl Hendricks Trio In The Early '90s
Review: Karl Hendricks Trio | The Jerks Win Again

Today's Hotness: Maps & Atlases, Bottomless Pit, Hurl

>> Our man Stengelero now and again turns us onto a hot rock 'n' roll act, and recently he emphasized to us that noodly post-rockers Maps & Atlases were the real deal. So we got our hands on the Chicago-based quartet's 2006 self-recorded and self-released record Trees, Swallows, Houses a couple months back. We've been smitten ever since with its maelstrom of melody and guitar spasms that somehow bridges the space between freak-folk and hardcore. In the '90s when we didn't know any better we'd probably refer to this as jazz-core; here we'll just say that if you've yearned for a band that seemingly gives equal credence to its love of Fugazi and Bob Wills And His Texas Playboys, stop your yearning. We were surprised to get an email this evening that Trees, Swallows, Houses is already getting reissued; Sargent House will release the set Aug. 7. Wanna stream the whole record for nada, gratis, free-like? Here it is below inside one of those funky fresh Imeem players. And here above the player is a link to an MP3 of the stunning album opener "Every Place Is A House."

Maps & Atlases -- "Every Place Is A House" -- Trees, Swallows, Houses
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>> The 'Nac reports here that Bottomless Pit, the act featuring the surviving members of late-lamented indie rock stars Silkworm, will soon issue an impressive debut. Hammer Of The Gods will be issued as a double album; the razzmatazz is that the records are 45 RPM discs and all four sides contain two songs each. Pretty darn cool. Bottomless Pit features Silworm's Tim Midgett and Andy Cohen along with Seam drummer Chris Manfrin and 27's Brian Orchard on bass. Silkworm drummer Michael Dahlquist was senselessly killed in 2005 by a mentally disturbed vehicle operator. There is no release date yet for Hammer Of The Gods; for educated guesses on its track listing, hit the link to The 'Nac in the first sentence. Finally, let's not forget that IODA's Promonet has a classic Silkwork cut ripe for the downloading. Here's "Punch Drunk Five," from the excellent 1994 set In The West.

Download "Punch Drunk Five" (mp3)
from "In The West"
by Silkworm
C/Z

• Buy at eMusic
• Stream from Rhapsody

>> Built On A Weak Spot here continues a hot streak today with a short survey of erstwhile Pittsburgh math rockers Hurl. Make certain you download the excellent track "Dual Showmen," which features a lyric that always use to get us right in the gut: "and I wouldn't have talked myself to sleep, for good..." We saw Hurl live a couple times around 1995 and they were a hot ticket. We also seem to recall that one of the fellows from Hurl was quoted in an MTV News story about one of the Lollapaloozas saying that Guided By Voices possessed "the ancient Chinese secret to indie rock." Or maybe we dreamed that. Sometimes we have trouble differentiating our real memories from our fake ones. Anyway, Hurl was a stupendous band who did the LOUDquietLOUD thing as well as anyone in the mid-'90s. So make certain to check out all the MP3s at BOAWS.