CD Review: Dum Dum Girls - Only In Dreams

Photo from the Dum Dum Girls website.

Only In Dreams once again finds the California-based Dum Dum Girls adding sharp edges to the 1960s girl group sound. While they may not have invented the approach (Blondie and The Go-Go’s were there first) they certainly have mastered it. Each track on their second effort yields an irresistible melody, embellished with twanging guitars and adventurous harmonies.

Several songs deal with heartache, whether it be the loss of a loved one or the end of a romance. When lead vocalist-guitarist Dee Dee sings, “Where can I go where the sorrow will not find me?” on “Heartbeat (Take It Away),” her voice is full of melancholy. Like Chrissie Hynde, she can easily switch from vulnerable to vicious, as she spits out a series of put-downs on “Just A Creep.” The energetic tracks, like “Always Looking” and “Wasted Away” are particularly engaging, but Only In Dreams is a pleasure from start to finish.

CD Review: The Luck Of Eden Hall - Belladonna Marmalade

I reviewed Butterfly Revolutions Vol. 1 by Chicago psychedelic rockers The Luck Of Eden Hall for the Illinois Entertainer in the Fall of 2011 and later posted it here. But I haven’t come across the recently released Butterfly Revolutions Vol. 2 yet.

In the meantime, here’s a look at how it all started for The Luck Of Eden Hall. I wrote this review of their debut CD, Belladonna Marmalade for the Illinois Entertainer in 1993.

When Luck Of Eden Hall vocalist Gregory Curvey sings, “You can take a trip with me” on “Take A Trip,” it’s an invitation to join him in a whole new dimension. Listeners are transformed to miniature size and frolic among berries, walnuts, and dandelions while being serenaded by crickets and honeybees. As the day-glo graphics for Belladonna Marmalade suggest, this Chicago-based band has a lot of psychedelic influences.

“Darling Dear” gets the album off to a hard-hitting start before evolving into a more ornate arrangement. The title track travels a similar route and flows into the captivating maritime yarn, “Siren.” On the guitar-driven “Lilywhite,” a man strolling down a path spies maidens bathing in a stream and decides to join them. “Reel To Reel,” which sets fanciful imagery to a steady beat, is a prime example of The Luck Of Eden Hall’s potent blend of magic and muscle.

CD Review: The Good Natured - Skeleton

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer.

The Good Natured pretty much live up to their name on Skeleton, a seven-song EP with an obvious debt to 1980s synth rock. Unfortunately, cheerfulness isn’t always the appropriate attitude as this English trio veers from potential hit singles to more complex tracks. The highly polished arrangements and 20-year old lead vocalist Sarah McIntosh’s fetching accent ensure nothing misfires on this stateside debut, but it’s hard not to long for a few rougher edges.

“Be My Animal,” with McIntosh’s perky calls of “whoa uh oh” could be the least provocative invitation to wild abandonment on record, and the title track likewise suffers from a bit too much saccharine. The Good Natured have better luck on the melodic “Wolves,” which taps into past synth rock masters like Lush or Siouxsie & The Banshees. The more expansive keyboards and soaring vocals on “Hourglass” and “Your Body Is A Machine” also prove this band has a lot of potential.

Favorite CDs Of 2011

Trying to determine the Best CDs of 2011 reminds me of a scene from the annual Christmas special, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town. Santa ponders his list of boys and girls, and finally decides they’ve all been pretty good.

I’ve come across a number of worthy releases during the past year, but protocol dictates that I pick a Top 10. So, here in no particular order, are my 10 favorites: Note: Technically, some of these were released in late 2010.

The Disciplines - Virgins Of Menace

Bad Examples - Smash Record

Starry Saints - Serenade

Mimi Betinis - All That Glitters

Beady Eye - Different Gear - Still Speeding

Phil Angotti - People And Places

Smithereens - 2011

The Handcuffs - Waiting For The Robot

Bangles - Sweetheart Of The Sun

Trolley - Things That Shine And Glow

And here are some other CDs that hit the mark in 2011.

Lannie Flowers - Circles

Smoking Popes - This Is Only A Test

Fountains Of Wayne - Sky Full Of Holes

The Laureates - Spells

Tina Sparkle - Welcome To The No Fun Home

Rachel Goodrich - Self-Titled

The Demilos - The Demilos

Ultraviolet Eye - Wake Up And Dream

Go Time! - Hit It!

The Webstirs - Smirk Reissue

Cast - All Change Deluxe

The Coathangers - Larceny & Old Lace

Gary Ritchie - Hum, Sing ... Repeat!

Three Hour Tour - Looking For Tomorrow

The Wrong Words - Self-titled

The Head - Hang On

The Crawpuppies World’s Much Bigger

Various Artists - Rave On Buddy Holly

Mordecai Smyth

The Wandas - Self -titled

Matthew Sweet - Modern Art

The Kooks - Junk Of The Heart

Ivy - All Hours

Givers - Light

Peggy Sue - Acrobats

The Mobbs - It’s The Mobbs

The Perms - Sofia Nights

Tammar - Visits

Gringo Star - Count Your Lucky Stars

Luck Of Eden Hall - Butterfly Revolutions Vol. 1

Team Band - Vodka Thieves

Save The Clocktower - Drip

Slumgullion #95

Photo From The Neverly Brothers Facebook page.

The Neverly Brothers are performing at Cutting Hall tonight in my home town of Palatine at 8:00 PM. The trio’s entertaining rock history lesson/live performance is well-suited to this classy little venue, which frequently presents concerts, stage productions, and independent films. Tickets are $20, $15 for seniors or students.

Speaking of flicks at Cutting Hall, Blue Whiskey Cinema presents its next monthly screening of award-winning indie films on January 16th, at 7:30 PM. The once a month series continues on February 15th, March 7th, April 17th, May 16th, and June 13th. Each of those dates is a Wednesday. See the Blue Whiskey website for more details.

Energetic indie rockers Magatha Trysty will be part of a quadruple bill at Martyrs’ tonight, along with Parts Per Million, Geoff Dolce, and Kerosene Stars. Show time is 9:30 PM.

Secret Colours, a Chicago band whose self-titled 2010 CD deftly tapped into 1990s shoegazer music will be performing tomorrow night at The Empty Bottle. Chances are they’ll be playing songs from their new five-song release, EP3. Apteka is also on the bill. Secret Colours’ dark and ambitious video for “Faust,” the lead-off track from EP3, can be viewed on the band’s website.

The Demilos, whose self-produced documentary, Revolving Doors chronicled the various members who have come and gone over the years, have now broken up. However, they will be releasing a covers CD sometime this year. Filmmaker/band member Mike Snyder doesn’t rule out a reunion at some point, and given the band’s history, that seems entirely possible.

On a sad note, Sean Bonniwell, the deep-voiced lead singer of the 1960s band Music Machine has passed away due to lung cancer.

Expo 76, the eclectic covers band whose members include veterans of Chicago’s indie rock scene, have a gig at The Beat Kitchen tomorrow night. Expo 76 vocalist-guitarist Dag Juhlin, who also performs with The Slugs, Poi Dog Pondering, The Greenwoods, and 80 other bands, decided to partake in a recent Facebook trend of posting a song that was Number 1 in the charts the day you were born. Ever the kidder, he picked “Gregorian Chant - Deum verum.”

The Chicago band, Metropolly, will have a new EP out sometime in 2012. Singer-guitarist Holly Senchak made quite an impression portraying Courtney Love when Metropolly covered Hole as part of a tribute show last Halloween at The Abbey Pub. She also sang back-up during John Aselin’s Rolling Stones tribute that same night.

The Smithereens will have veteran keyboards player Andy Burton on board when they perform in Annapolis, MD, Falls Church, VA, Philadelphia, and New York City this month. Burton has logged stage time with Ian Hunter, Southside Johnny, and Robert Plant. Also, on The Smithereens front, the song “Sorry,” from Smithereens 2011, took the number 8 slot in the Little Steven's Underground Garage Coolest Song In The World 2011 Listeners Poll.

It’s always fun to check out Scotland’s music scene via The Pop Cop blog site. A January post gives a preview of the upcoming festival season over there, and some of the event names are pretty imaginative. A few examples: King Tut’s New Year’s Revolution; The Electric Frog; Beatdoon Festival; The Big Stooshie; Rockness; and Doune The Rabbit Hole.

Tickets are now on sale for Dot Dot Dot’s House Of Blues show along with AM Taxi, State and Madison, and The Scissors on February 3rd.

According to The Second Disc online newsletter, Grace Potter of Grace Potter & The Nocturnals offers her take on the classic lounge tune, “Fly Me To The Moon” on a soundtrack for the Pan Am TV show coming out January 17th. Other songs on Pan Am: Music From And Inspired By The Original Series include a new version of The Beatles’ “Do You Want To Know A Secret” by Nikki Jean; and the original versions of Bobby Darin’s “Call Me Irresponsible,” Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66’s “Mas Que Nada,” and Brenda Lee’s “Break It To Me Gently.”

CD Review: Caithlin de Marrais - Red Coats

Palatine Alert: The Neverly Brothers are coming to Cutting Hall tomorrow (January 6th) for a performance at 8:00 PM. The trio covers songs from the birth of rock and roll through the British Invasion, and is a lot of fun.

And now, here’s a review that I originally wrote for the Illinois Entertainer.

Red Coats is the second solo effort from former Rainer Maria frontwoman Caithlin de Marrais since the indie rock band broke up in 2007. Marrais initially recorded these songs as a series of demos in her basement, and the final product retains that intimate setting. It’s well suited to her lilting vocals and poetic observations.

Most of Red Coats breezes by with bubbling synthesizer arrangements to help set the mood. “Lovers Light” captures the exhilaration of a moonlit dance, while “Rose Wallpaper,” with its “da da da da” scat singing, and the more rock-oriented “Hot Day” are sexy and fun. The mood darkens a bit on “Belong,” and “Sorry” has a wistful sadness about it, but these songs, along with the overly sentimental “City Girl” hardly dampen the overall lighthearted spirit of Red Coats.

The Hollies: Look Through Any Window 1963 -1975

Note: This DVD review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer.

The Hollies appeared on countless TV shows back in their heyday but only a few of those performances have surfaced in more recent years, primarily on VH1. The recently released The Hollies: Look Through Any Window 1963 - 1975, which is being billed as the first official documentary on the band, offers 22 songs, along with running commentary from original members Graham Nash, Tony Hicks, Allan Clarke, and Bobby Elliott. This is the fifth installment in the critically acclaimed British Invasion series from Eagle Vision/Reelin’ In The Years, with re-transferred, re-mastered footage of the original performances.

All of The Hollies’ biggest hits are included, and the musicians offer some interesting background as to how they were recorded. Elton John was paid £12 to play piano on “He Aint Heavy, He’s My Brother;” “Carrie Anne” was a thinly veiled tribute to Marianne Faithful; and “Jennifer Eccles,” with that cloying wolf whistle all The Hollies came to hate, was an overtly commercial reaction to the failure of Nash’s ambitious “King Midas In Reverse” to crack the UK’s Top Ten singles chart. Clarke explains that the delicate ballad, “Wings” was inspired by Neil Young’s “Expecting To Fly.”

At the heart of The Hollies: Look Through Any Window 1963 - 1975 is a ten-minute film created by famed producer George Martin that shows the band recording “On A Carousel” at Abbey Road. It’s bird’s eye view of Nash, Clarke, and Hicks crafting the impeccable three-part harmonies that would eventually earn them a place in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.