Wounded Lion 'Friendly' on In The Red Records

Here's the latest Wounded Lion from In The Red Records I picked up at Academy a little while back and I've been meaning to give it a spin. Had a hell of a time figuring out at exactly what speed to play this at. you know with crazy effects, pitch shifting and the like, I actually played this according to instruction (45) and was convinced for a while they were going in a new direction...oh, In The Red...you confuse me, the A-Side is 33 and the B-Side is 45...sheesh guys.
So now I got that sorted out, I'm onto 'Friendly?' Lyrically, as usual, it kills.
Some people are friendly / that's because they're crazy
...and all lyric variations on that rhyme, that's a good way to look at it...so true guys. It's their slow, dredged out dirty persistent 'post-garage' (myspace category) sound all lead by Brad's narrative sung drawn out syllable talk/statement vocals.
Then comes the Wild Man Fischer cover 'Big Boots', it's perfect content for Wounded Lion, they give it a sort of blues explosion sound, howling vocals and fuzz guitar.
The lyrics are of course about boots, a real nice pair the narrator just got, Janet Jackson's got boots, no jacket required. Brad's really blues talking about these boots, pure John Spencer. Turns out this Wild Man Fischer was a Wesley Willis kind of character from LA, who suffers from ROCK 'N ROLL PNEUMONIA! (-Mark Prindle) and wrote this sometime in the 70's before or after his stint with Zappa...he's had a pretty insane, literally, life, and I think is still releasing albums on Rhino records...of course. It's a perfect fit, Wounded Lion would have written this sooner or later, maybe he's a direct influence on Brad's lyrics, it would make perfect sense.

Then the highly anticipated B-Side, CCR's Bad Moon Rising... it's freaking priceless, huge echo on the vocals, standing on the edge of a canyon, wind machines, blasting this sinister take out into the echo. When the chorus hits there's a little octave changer or something to just give it a real off note deep crunch. There's screeching guitars, delay, echo, it's a great swirling mess, like a classic rock vortex swallowing the garage band...It never sounded so evil.
It's a success..he's changed it for me, if you can take an overplayed song like this and give CCR CPR, well that is just plain talent. Just when you think 'Oh Pony People was great, but maybe that was some kind of fluke?' They take a classic cannon in classic rock and wounded lionize it. Wow.


From In the Red Records:

WOUNDED LION Friendly?, Big Boots / Bad Moon Rising 7" single Los Angeles' favorite sons latest single appears on their new home, ITR. One incredible original, one Wild Man Fischer cover and one from CCR. One of the best live bands in the world today. Equal parts VU, Mary Chain, New Creation, Modern Lovers, The Clean and just great music in general. Debut album coming on ITR soon! - In the red

Here's their powerpoint video for 'Friendly?':

Blank Dogs waiting on in the red records

Been hearing about this single and double LP coming out on In the Red for a while and I must have checked the site out a couple times a week. That's the nice thing about an online store, I don't feel like too much of a nut, completely out of control impatient, waiting for the new Blank Dogs. There was some kind of delay....who knows, with the amount of records being pressed these days, it has to be inevitable.

Waiting
I think for me Blank Dogs can get away with a pretty big range of style and emotion, he hasn't pinned himself down with one effect or vocal style. It can be pretty pop styled or deadpan, but with all the effects used, that adds another layer of anti-emotion, so he has to make up for it somewhere.
It's just pure weird. He has a definitive style. He leaves his mark on everything obviously, but if I were going to make a band come up with a new Blank Dogs album, I have to say there's really nothing I could easily point to, to give them some direction. He's a great creator of simple melody that works, that's one. There has to be a lot of layers, it's low-fi, but not necessarily tape hiss or piling up bouncing tracks. The sounds are clean, but it's a process of adding and adding. Multiple vocals, with a hint of distortion and vibrato.
I will say that there are a lot more live drums on this track, which isn't bothering me, I have to go back and listen if this is the first single with that? Or I just never really noticed before....again it's just one of those things...there is no cut and dry formula for this.

Splitting (the inner label says spitting...oops) really goes nuts again with the glitch darkwave electronics and drum machine. I think he's going for some kind of transition period...easing us into his live drum period, or a less electronic direction...at least that's what I got from the live show. He wants to evolve and not get hemmed into a particular home recorded no-fi electronic style. I always wonder if this is the artist, always wanting to evolve? You don't want to do the same things over and over, or is it an evolution because of the success? He realized standing over a laptop wasn't going to work on tour, so recruits a band to learn the material and rock live. That in turn influences what happens the next time he goes to record.
But then again you listen to Splitting, and we're right back where we started with this guy....perfect.

In the red has it and says:
BLANK DOGS: Waiting / Splitting 7" single

To coincide with the new album we are releasing this companion single featuring two songs not found on the album or anywhere else.

Cheap Time on in the red

Cheap Time has a new one from In the Red, but don't try to find it there... i don't know if the places I saw it listed even have it for sale yet? It's a bit of a mystery. But the tracks are on their myspace, so I think this actually is available from the places below.

Woodland Drive is really classic punk rock, it's recorded really clean, with all snotty punk chorus vocals. It sounds a little slower tempo for these guys. A song about this street they know. They are just recreating the best part of late 70's punk rock, like the Dictators. Really punchy crafted pop punk. It's purely a good time. I was listening to the Ramones today and they just had that same party unpretentiousness. They weren't super creative musicians...it just existed to rock...it's that pure songwriting that's audience driven...they have to have a good time. It's meant to be performed live.

The B-Side is Penny and Jenny...I swear I heard this when I saw them live...it has this distinctive crazy vocal up and down melody punctuated by guitar chords and snare hits. I love this sound...they just create this out of love for rock...I can see how this came out of Be Your Own Pet. They took a step back to pay homage to all the great pop rock that existed. These two tracks are really cleanly recorded there isn't a hint of distortion in the vocals anywhere. Less garage and more studio...but it makes sense with what they are doing here....like Jay Reatard...you use the shitty room sound if it makes sense for the song, not because you have to.
Anything they put out will get played when you don't know what else to listen to...when you are sick and tired of fighting to understand everything else out there.


From Parasol:
Cheap Time Woodland Drive b/w Penny & Jenny PS, US 2 brand new tracks from Nashville's favorite pop-punk-glam-bubblegum band. Snotty, catchy ditties informed by Sparks, The Quick, Milk 'n' Cookies, & early Kinks. Limited to 1,000 in a handsome, Fontana-esque picture sleeve InTheRed 45 $5.25

and interpunk... has it too.....don't know them, but there it is...

If anyone cares, I'm reviewing the Animal Collective Crackbox vinly side by side in the forums....

Vivian Gils (!!???) on In the Red

I'm going to assume this is the Vivian Girls and maybe this was just misspelled on the In the Red website for some reason...but neither of these tracks are on the full length that was released a little bit ago, that I was hoping was out on In the Red already so I could put the two together...but still not yet...and I check a lot. Can't wait to hear this full length on vinyl.

I still like the full length a lot, you can hear the work to capture this echo guitar, drums harmony sound...I completely love it. It's in the same ballpark as the shitgaze stuff, but only in the way that the sound isn't normal...it's distant...you strain to hear a little bit for the melody that keeps coming around. I was listening to The Yips and then Times New Viking...and it's like no time passed at all...it's literally the same hiss tones...amazing.
This is something that can honestly be listened to over an over because you can think of it as the cutting edge of a new scene or a long lost album from the late 90's that no one but you knows about.
Why are they getting so much attention? I think they weren't following anything happening around them, they just went whole heartedly for a sound they adored. You can hear how much they were in love with these influences. It's genuinely good..catchy, worth repeated listening without maybe not being in the mood for feedback and noise assault or underwater distortion.
It's kind of mysterious...who are these girls? What were they listening to when they took this direction? They still would be a touchstone if you heard it driving by or blasting from a window and smile...they aren't so supersaturated yet.

I have no doubt they will be because they are great for all these reasons. Will that ruin it? I guess...is Jay Reatard ruined yet? I don't think Blood Visions can ever be quite frankly. It's going to take a lot.

I'm afraid they might breakup before a sophomore album even, and it will just live as a perfect piece of timeless genius.

This is what keeps me up at night...jesus.


VIVIAN GILS - I Can't Stay / Blind Spoto 7” single

The first release by Brooklyn's Vivian Girls has arrived in the form of this handsome two song seven inch single featuring two incredible brand new songs exclusive to this release. By now their praises have been sung from Terminal Boredom to Pitchfork to the New York Times. This is one case where you can believe the hype - this is GREAT stuff.