Indie Music Chatter

Jose Gonzalez‘ Veneer was arguably one of the best albums to come out last year. The Swedish-born singer-songwriter released one of the most powerful debuts in recent years. His sparse, almost brutally bare songs evoke the melancholy sadness of Nick Drake coupled with Elliott Smith’s knack for killer melodies.

The recent announcement of the imminent release of Jose Gonzalez’ sophomore effort Our Nature is definitely great news for his growing legion of fans. What’s even better though is that Gonzalez is going to tour this fall in support of the album’s release. The US tour will begin on September 27, two days after the release of Our Nature. James Blackshaw and Savath & Savalas have been announced as the opening acts in some of the tour dates.

I am looking forward to this tour. Jose Gonzalez is a powerful presence on stage and I am hoping that he’d get to play his cover of Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart — one of the best covers I’ve heard of that song.

Jose Gonzalez, Veneer, Our Nature, Joy Division, James Blackshaw, Savath & Savalas

Pinback, to my mind, is one of the best kept secrets in the indie music scene. The duo of Rob Crow and Armistead Burwell Smith IV have, for over the course of three albums, made the kind of intense layered pop that are staggering works of ethereal beauty. Their first album This is a Pinback CD (also known simply as Pinback) is on my list of highly recommended albums for anyone who wants to get into indie music.

The great news is that Pinback is about to release a new album on September this year entitled Autumn of The Seraphs. This is their first album of original works since 2004’s critically acclaimed Summer in Abbadon (note to self, imperative to get a copy of this album ASAP before the new one drops into stores).

I am waiting with bated breath for the new album. Summer in Abbadon saw the duo approach their trademark sound from a new direction. I’d love to see if the progression to change their sound will carry on with the new one. Whatever they decide to do though I’ll be there to support the band. They are one of the few artists that have proven to have a very strong consistent body of work in terms of excellence. Any music fan should really check this band out because they are really missing out on a lot.

Former Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell is one cool cat. The artist extraordinaire has always loved to shake things up and his entire body of work as well as the many causes that he supports can attest to this.

Back in 2005, Farrell formed his new band Satellite Party. I’ve always been intrigued with how the album will sound especially with all of the rumors and small tidbits of news that I was hearing about his new project.

Well, the wait is now over. Satellite Party’s album [b]Ultra Payloaded[/b] will drop on to record stores on May 29. But for those who can’t wait, the whole album is being streamed at Satellite Party’s MySpace page. Go check it out!

Perry Farrell, Satellite Party, MySpace

I’ve been a big fan of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club since day one and have been a willing passenger in their awesome music journey. The first two albums – BRMC and Take Them On, On Your Own – established the band’s sonic template of 70’s garage rock melded with the psychedelic rock and noise of The Jesus and Mary Chain.

What really threw fans for a loop was the release of Howl, their third album. The band effectively left the bombast of the first two albums and came out with an album that can best be described as blues and folk with rock overtones. There were some fans who actually hated the album. As for me, I completely loved it. This is the kind of courage and self confidence that I look for in artists. They are not afraid to alienate an established fanbase. They make music for music’s sake, which is a true mark of the indie attitude.

With Baby 81, BRMC has returned to their more familiar rock sound but this time, they have rounded it out with the experimentations they made in Howl. This makes for a far more satisfying record for me. Baby 81 offers a more mature sound that fully encompasses what the band sonically represents.

The lead off track Took Out a Loan is like a comforting tap on the shoulder for fans who were left with their jaws hanging when they popped their Howl CDs on their players. It was a reassuring “Hey, we’re back to rock your socks off!” But alongside the rockers, BRMC has deftly included Howl-like blues/folk/hybrids like 666 Conductor. Of course, the band also put in some surprising inclusions like the 9 minute epic American X that is so full of power and swagger you won’t notice the track time.

Overall, Baby 81 is another notable effort from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. They are now 4 - 0 in delivering a quality release. I hope this streak continues because they are one of the few American rock bands out there that still hasn’t lost the real essence of rock.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Baby 81, Howl