Helms Alee: "New Roll"

With fresh sea legs, Seattle’s Helms Alee has not only put out a spectacular debut album, Night Terror, but also forged a sound all its own — part metal, part post-punk, part melody-driven rock, and all abandon.

“We started playing about October of 2006,” says guitarist/vocalist Ben Verellen. “We thought we’d get together and just jam around, play our thing. It quickly grew into doing a band.”

Shortly after these initial sessions, drummer Hozoji Matheson-Margullis joined up. “I was just talking to Annie — oh, Annie’s real name is Hozoji — and she said, ‘Well, I’m a drummer,’” Verellen says. “I got embarrassed because I hadn’t already asked her [to play with us]. We figured out pretty quickly that she worked well. We try not to be too calculated about anything. That might be an easier way to define something that’s a little more…something that sounds less contrived. We just stick it all together and it’s…it’s just a lot of drinking and smoking grass in the practice space.”

If that appears to be a crap-shoot of sorts, its sound is, in fact, unapologetically so. “[Bassist] Dana [James] and I laugh about it because we have no idea, but we both decided to say that it’s just a rock band,” Verellen says. “I mean, we take stuff from the heavier side, the metal, but we also have our other things going on. There is no ‘A’ part, ‘B’ part, ‘C’ part; everything is in kind of its own weird place.”
 

"There is no ‘A’ part, ‘B’ part, ‘C’ part; everything is in kind of its own weird place.”

Think of Neurosis joining up with The Breeders for a quick outing into the wilderness. If the music isn’t striking enough, the name Helms Alee is even a bit mysterious. “It’s a sailing thing,” Verellen explains. “About four years ago, one of my buddies and I bought an old, beat-up sailboat and tried to learn how to sail. We got really into the strange terminology, and that was one of the terms that you’re supposed to yell. ‘Helms alee’ means to watch out when you’re swinging the boat around, because the boom swinging overhead could knock you into the water. I thought that it was pretty neat and that it fit the band pretty well.”
 

Photo: Faith Coloccia

The band took a short West Coast tour in November of 2008 with Verellen’s old pals Minus the Bear. “[We were driving] across the state of California and ended up right in the middle of all those forest fires and lightning storms,” Verellen says of an old trip. “We were going on this mountain, and there’s fucking smoke everywhere, in our faces, and…sorry, this isn’t very interesting. I don’t do interviews. I have no quirky stories to tell."

The Thermals – I Don't Believe You

We asked The Thermals, the Portland pop-punk power trio, to name a few of its favorite recent releases. The band's drummer, Westin Glass, responded with a list of five records that ranges from radio-friendly pop to an independent artist that calls himself the "black Bob Dylan." Whether or not you share Glass' taste, you can appreciate his sentiment that some music exists to help you laugh and get laid.

1. Jason DeRulo: s/t (Beluga Heights [Warner Brothers], 2010)

This one may be hard to swallow for you indie-rock fans — but I assure you, it's worth it. Definitely a "singles" record, with three mega smash hits on Top 40 radio. I first heard Jason DeRulo's track "Whatcha Say" blasting on the one working speaker in my friend's car last year and immediately loved it. The digitally distressed Imogen Heap sample in that song makes for the most memorable hook of 2009.

I also love "Ridin' Solo," a great post-breakup, self-psych-up song. Jason DeRulo knows how to make a fucking hit — a bubble-gummy blast of ear sugar that will lighten your mood and get stuck in your head. Speaking of which, his track "In My Head" is stuck in my head right now.

2. Obits:  I Blame You (Sub Pop, 2009)

Rick Froberg formed Obits after the demise of Hot Snakes, and he continues to blow minds and speakers with his rough, tense songwriting. This record has all the energy and sophistication of Hot Snakes but feels even more stripped down to the bare essentials. If Hot Snakes was a NASCAR car, Obits is a mean little dune buggy in the desert. Froberg's lyrics are hilarious and sharp. "Fake Kinkade" is my favorite track. It's a great album to help you laugh at the world while also preparing to get right up in its face and take what's yours.

3. Minus The Bear: OMNI (Dangerbird, 2010)

An underrated record by this excellent band. As with Jason DeRulo, MTB are just trying to make music that is fun and enjoyable. They aren't trying to redefine art or any pretentious shit like that; they understand that music is entertainment, and one of its most important functions is to help people get laid.

OMNI is smooth and clever, with twists and turns to keep your ears guessing. Beautifully produced by Joe Chicarelli and performed with those super-precise MTB chops we know and love, this one is great for chillaxin' at your house and maybe romancing that special someone.

4. Abner Jay: Folk Song Stylist (Mississippi Records, 2010)

This is the second vinyl reissue of Abner Jay's incredible work by Portland record store / label Mississippi Records. Kathy loves this record so much that she bought Hutch and me copies! Thanks, Kathy!

Abner was a really interesting character who apparently called himself "the black Bob Dylan." This dude can sing! He has a powerful, soulful voice, and his songs run the gamut from blues to soul to populist folk. He carries the songs with his voice and guitar, accompanied by some mysterious percussion parts. Very highly recommended.

5. Past Lives: Tapestry of Webs (Suicide Squeeze, 2009)

These four Seattle fellows (ex-Blood Brothers) are leagues ahead of everyone else in this music thing. Seriously. They are making music that sounds like nothing else — it's the future, but with that all-important nostalgic twinge that really makes their songs memorable. I don't know how they do it.

It's an oversimplification to say that they pick up where Fugazi left off, but that gives you the rough idea. Angular counterpoint riffs in weird tunings, heavy + killer drums, and coyly aggressive vocals. The next generation of post-hardcore/punk bands will be looking to these guys for inspiration.

The Sword’s third full-length album, Warp Riders, is blown open by a deep, thunderous chug. It’s a hefty, bowel-distressing rumble, one almost better fit for the avant-garde drone of Sunn O))) rather than Austin, Texas’ resident titans of stoner metal. But in less than a minute’s time, this uneasy intro gives way to a fireworks display of furious riffs, courtesy of the band’s dueling axe men, J.D. Cronise and Kyle Shutt. In no time flat, the nebulous red herring that kicks off the roaring, high-speed instrumental is but a forgotten memory.

The Sword: Warp Riders

Following the intense yet melodic works of its first two albums, Age of Winters in 2006 and Gods of the Earth in 2008, The Sword stays true to its heavy, hook-laden aesthetic, delivering its most accessible album in Warp Riders (Kemado). More of a rock-’n’-roll band blessed with a superhuman heaviness passed down from Valhalla than a strictly defined metal band, The Sword bolsters each of the album’s 10 songs with infectious melodies, from the fist-pumping chorus of “Tres Brujas” to the exotic riffs that kick off “Arrows in the Dark.”

“I’m sick of bands with no good melodies,” Shutt says, citing bands like Queen and Thin Lizzy as the biggest influences on his band’s sound. “You can be shredding solos all day, but if there’s no melody, there’s nothing for people to latch onto.”

Deft fretwork is an essential part of The Sword’s makeup, but never at the expense of a complete package. After having taken more of a raw approach to their prior two albums, Shutt, Cronise, bassist Bryan Richie, and drummer Trivett Wingo spent more time fleshing out their songs before entering the studio, ensuring that they had worked out any kinks and tied up every loose end before the first click of the “record” button.

“J.D. will bring in a song, or I’ll bring in a song, and then we let Brian and Trivett come in, and we just play it over and over again until we’re comfortable with it,” Shutt says. “We’ve gotten a lot better at songwriting; it just takes one or two practices for us to come out with a song. We just spent more time shaping things, so it was more polished and ready to go.”

The resultant album is the band’s most polished and most focused to date, flowing seamlessly from the Holy Diver-influenced heavy groove of “Lawless Lands,” to the tempo-shifting dynamics of “Astraea’s Dream,” to the streamlined power-chord punch of “Night City.” Though the songwriting reveals that the band has grown creatively since its 2006 debut, much of the sonic clarity and texture comes courtesy of producer Matt Bayles (Isis, Mastodon, Minus the Bear), making Warp Riders the first Sword release not produced by the band.

“He brought out the best in us,” Shutt says. “We would let ourselves get away with things that he wouldn’t. He would really crack the whip. But it took a lot of pressure off of us. In the past, we would spend 12 hours a day, for three weeks straight, just mixing the record. And at the end, I would want to bang my head against the wall.”

Shutt says that the band had a simple goal for the album: “We just wanted to make a 10-track, 45-minute rock-’n’-roll record.” With Warp Riders, The Sword has succeeded on that front, and then some. Contained within those 45 minutes are some of the most dazzling intersections of tunefulness and beastly metal dynamics in recent memory , yielding the rare album that can appeal to both head-bangers and rock traditionalists alike.

Early last decade, iconic vocalist Mike Patton moved to Italy and did his best to blend with the locals. He picked up Italian, fell in love with Bologna, and, at some point, realized that he needed to add something else to his never-ending list of projects.

That addition turned into Mondo Cane, a full-scale orchestral homage to Italian cantautori (singer/songwriter) tunes of the 1960s and '70s.

Originally planned only for live performances, the covered oldies — roughly two dozen — are now being released from carefully assembled pieces of three separate concert recordings. Mondo Cane is the first of two such installments, and it presents mostly faithful recreations — with certain new flavors and tinges — of powerful pop songs.

Cantautori crooners Gino Paoli, Luigi Tenco, and Fred Bongusto are honored with potent and colorful renditions of "Il Cielo in Una Stanza," "Quello Che Conta" and "Ore D'Amore." Film-scoring guru Ennio Morricone is recognized with one of his pop numbers, the theme for Danger Diabolik, which barely edges out "Il Cielo…" as the most stirring of the disc's first half.

Patton's comprehensive range isn't tested too much, but his vocal intensity is on display in "Urlo Negro," a poppy psych-rock track seemingly about a former slave's grief. "L’Uomo Che Non Sapeva Amare," Nico Fidenco's version of the theme to The Carpetbaggers, soon follows, and Patton delivers one of the album's most beautiful covers.

Fans of Patton's wild exploits may be disappointed if they're expecting something akin to the Fantômas Director's Cut album, but lovers of emotion-packed ballads will embrace this disc of orchestral pop.

Mike Patton: "Il Cielo in una Stanza"
Mike Patton: \"Il Cielo in una Stanza\"

Flying Lotus: Cosmogramma (Warp)

Electronic producer Steven Ellison, known as Flying Lotus, made waves two years ago with his Warp debut full-length, Los Angeles, an atmospheric psych-hop affair that was augmented with white noise, blippy sci-fi scales, and a deep bass underpinning.

Its immersive sound was built around endless samples and a love of texture. That MO holds true for Cosmogramma, Ellison's brilliant new collage, but the endowments of Los Angeles have been surpassed by an ever-burgeoning skill for composition.

Beautiful and wild runs of harp, bass, and classical guitar are present from the start, contrasting but not conflicting with cuts of sharply buzzing guitars, train whistles, and deep-space synths. String swells and chopped vocals slide in and out of the mix, layering atop glitch, dance, and drum-and-bass beats; rubbery dance-floor passages disappear into symphonic swaths.

A guest spot by Thom Yorke will garner some appropriate attention, but make no mistake: Cosmogramma marks Ellison's ascension to being one of the top minds in electronic production.

Flying Lotus: "Computer Face / Pure Being"
Flying Lotus: \"Computer Face / Pure Being\"

The Austerity Program: Backsliders and Apostates Will Burn EP (Hydra Head)

Two guys and a drum machine — The Austerity Program proves that it doesn't take more to power out brawny alt-rock with brainy rhythms.

Though the duo has operated under this moniker for more than a decade, it didn't release its first full-length until Black Madonna in 2007. Everything else since that time has appeared on an EP or compilation, generally titled "Song [insert number here]."

Backsliders and Apostates Will Burn follows the same tried-and-true Austerity formula: distorted, down-tuned bass guitar teams with the drum machine's deep kick hits and rapid-fire triplets, forming a muscular frame for guitarist Justin Foley's high-register riffs, feedback squeals, and Steve Albini-esque vocals.

The band's basic premise hasn't changed, but its skills are being honed to realize its full potential. Backsliders… is another firm step in that direction.

The Austerity Program: "Song 26"
The Austerity Program: \"Song 26\"

Rudi Zygadlo: Great Western Laymen (Planet Mu)

One of Planet Mu's latest signings, Rudi Zygadlo is a young Scottish songwriter who fuses electronic music with pop structures and classical aspirations. Raised by artist parents who helped nurture an early interest in music, Zygadlo has created a brilliant debut album that touches, however lightly, on themes of church and religion.

Great Western Laymen takes the mid-tempo lurch and chunky bass lines of dubstep and marries them to glossy, mutating pop songs. Zygadlo sings on almost every track, and his voice, which he claims is "there more for its instrumental value rather than its poetic value," features prominently as a lead instrument.

The vocals are omnipresent, panning everywhere, usually multitracked, pitch-shifted, timestretched, vocoded, and tweaked beyond intelligibility. They fight with wonky basslines for supremacy in a crowded (but never cluttered) midrange. Though many of the tracks would play well in a club setting, Great Western Laymen also makes for excellent headphone dubstep.

Most dubstep albums don't have half as many hooks, and most pop albums don't have this level of head-nodding funk. Zygadlo set forth to combine what he loved about dubstep and IDM with song structures that borrowed from jazz, pop, and classical, and he's succeeded marvelously.

Rudi Zygadlo: "Manuscripts Don't Burn"
Rudi Zygadlo: \"Manuscripts Don\'t Burn\"

Broken Social Scene: Forgiveness Rock Record (Arts & Crafts)

Somewhere over the past decade, Toronto's Broken Social Scene became a shining example of both indie-rock success and excess.

With its diversity of sound and buoyant energy, 2002 album You Forgot It In People was a slow-building breakthrough, and tracks such as "KC Accidental," "Stars and Sons," "Almost Crimes," and "Pacific Theme" have made countless cameos ever since.

But all the band's creative input, whether from its main songwriting sources or from contributors, has led to greater interest in or commercial viability of side projects, and Forgiveness Rock Record is its first album in nearly five years.

Co-produced by Tortoise’s John McEntire at Soma Studios in Chicago, the album is one of the band's most vocally driven recordings. Album opener "World Sick" sounds right at home in the BSS catalog, but the next track, "Chase Scene," expands its reach with a vintage synth sound evocative of Goblin's gentler moments. The song adds a wafting violin line, wah-pedal guitar chords, and a driving high-hat cadence — recalling, fittingly, a chase sequence from an '80s film.

There are plenty of other highlights over 14 tracks, including "Forced to Love" with its churning electric bass, sparkling electronics, and pizzicato and strings, or "All to All" with its mounting effects and vocal harmonies. Fans will have no reason to be disappointed, and even though they may refer the uninitiated to You Forgot It In People, this is a fine introduction to an acclaimed catalog.

Broken Social Scene: "Chase Scene"
Broken Social Scene: \"Chase Scene\"

Honorable Mentions

Ben Goldberg Quartet: Baal: Book of Angels vol. 15 (Tzadik)

Dimlite: Prismic Tops (Now-Again / Stones Throw)

Jason Ajemian’s Daydream Full Lifestyles: Protest Heaven (482 Music)

Marching Band: Pop Cycle (U&L Records)

Minus the Bear: Omni (Dangerbird)

Ufomammut: Eve (Supernatural Cat)

Bill Frisell

Jazz guitarist Bill Frisell has left an indelible mark on the genre since the early 1980s, and in the process, crossed into Americana, country, blues, experimental rock, classical and more.

He has worked with artists as diametrically different as drummer Paul Motian and doom-drone group Earth, and this release finds him scoring the 2007 film All Hat with a beautiful country-Western soundtrack that leans on pedal steel, harmonica, and Frisell's sublime melodies.

Skeletonbreath: Eagle's Nest, Devil's Cave (Ernest Jenning)

The fiery fiddle of O'Death violinist Robert Pycior leads Skeletonbreath, a trio that combines Pycior's strings with the low-end rumble and punishing, straightforward rhythms of mid-'90s alt-rock.

Pycior's violin work combines progressive rock leads with discordant keys, neoclassical melodies, and worldly flavor.  Andrew Platt's bass rumbles with the force of Shellac or The Jesus Lizard, and Tris Palazzolo's drums thud with urgent ferocity.  The trio's mixture is unlike almost anything else, and this comes highly recommended.

Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Strings: Renegades (Delmark)

Composer/flutist Nicole Mitchell holds rare talents, composing her own brilliant works and contributing to many masterful discs that include works from Exploding Star Orchestra, Frequency, Indigo Trio, and more.

As a smaller incarnation of her Black Earth Ensemble, Black Earth Strings combines modern jazz sounds and African rhythms via an acoustic quartet.  This, the group's first commercial release, is a compelling mixture of percussion-less themes that capture with melodies and hooks and rivet with adroit improvisations.

Upsilon Acrux: Radian Futura (Cuneiform)

With heaping doses of melodicism, the über-precise rhythms of math/prog quintet Upsilon Acrux should appeal to adventurous music fans who enjoy old-school Hella, Tera Melos, or other likeminded musicians.

The band's swirling finger-tapped guitar action, Moog harmonies, dirty riffs, and clean-channel harmonics layer atop beats that alternate between chaotic and playful.  The style also recalls old Nintendo scores (on crack) with melodies similar to those of Minus the Bear. Fans of virtuosic guitarists will get their money's worth.

Upsilon Acrux: "Landscape"
Upsilon Acrux: \"Landscape\"

In this DVD, everyday vocal enthusiasts can learn where the "scream/growl" is made and practice their power, range, and tone from their own living rooms.

- Brittany Julious

The Art of Screaming!: Total Training for Vocalists on the Edge
Susan M. Carr
DVD, 90 Minutes
www.theartofscreaming.com

The Sword

Friday, November 7

The Sword @ Bottom Lounge

Chicago's new version of the Bottom Lounge includes two bars (one with a tiki theme), an eating area, a large performance area, and a second-floor deck. The recently reopened venue might need every square foot to contain the massive stoner metal sound of The Sword, which hits the Windy City between tour dates with Metallica and Down.

Umbrella Music Festival w/ Bik Bent Braam @ Elastic Vision Gallery

Dutch pianist Michiel Braam convenes a Chicago version of his Bik Bent Braam orchestra, a localized edition of the 13-piece group that he began more than 20 years ago. On record, the group's sound is one of jumpy, horn-heavy jazz that mixes old-time foundations with freak-out solos.

Saturday, November 8

O'death @ The Empty Bottle

Touring in support of its new album, alt-country five-piece O'death stops in Chicago for a pair of shows. That new album, Broken Hymns, Limbs, and Skin, covers diverse stylistic swaths that range from punkish bluegrass to bittersweet ballads and droning Pentecostal chants. The group also plays at Chicago's Hideout on Sunday.

David Boykin Expanse; David Boykin Microcosmic Sound Orchestra @ The Velvet Lounge

Interstellar jazz saxophonist David Boykin pulls double duty at the Velvet Lounge, where he lays freewheeling grooves and solos in a pair of sets with his eponymous Expanse and Microcosmic Sound Orchestra. The Expanse combines free passages with hard bop, over which Boykin spouts unorthodox rhymes; the Microcosmic Sound Orchestra provides inspired improvisation.

Fun Fun Fun Fest (Austin) @ Waterloo Park

How many huge music festivals can Austin hold? Chicago has its share of major festivals, but Austin keeps cranking out the multi-day madness with the Fun Fun Fun Fest.

The lineup includes festival regulars but strong ones at that; if you're in Texas, head down to see Bad Brains, The National, Atmosphere, Young Widows, Trash Talk, Deerhoof, …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, The Black Heart Procession, Dr. Octagon, Dan Deacon, Tim Fite, Bishop Allen, Dengue Fever, Cro-Mags, Parts and Labor, Minus the Bear, and more.

Shining (Norway)

Thursday, October 23

Pillars and Tongues, Remindring @ The Hideout

Somber vocal harmonies emanate from aptly named Pillars and Tongues, an experimental trio whose creations exhibit mystical influences. As Remindring, multi-talented bassist Josh Abrams (Town & Country, Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble) lays out looped soundscapes with Emmett Kelly and Frank Rosaly.

Fucked Up @ Reggie's Rock Club

Punk-rock misdirection artists Fucked Up hit Chicago two weeks after the release of The Chemistry of Common Life, the group's follow-up full-length to Hidden World. This time around, Fucked Up's material moves through more variety of atmosphere than your standard punk/hardcore, with peaceful, otherworldly intros and layers and layers of guitar. There's less stop-start fury than Hidden World-more sheets of sound-so it will be interesting to see how this vigorous live act performs.

Coliseum starts North American and Japanese tour dates

Louisville hardcore staples Coliseum begin five weeks of performances today, hitting many cities in the USA as well as a few in Canada and Japan. The group doesn't hit Chicago until Nov. 15, but there's a good chance that it will be your city in the near future.

Friday, October 24

Ears & Eyes Festival @ The Hideout

With three outstanding weekend shows at The Hideout, independent jazz/avant-garde label Ears & Eyes Records celebrates its third annual Ears & Eyes Festival. The performances feature groups on the Ears & Eyes roster as well as other local standouts and friends of the label, and one such outside artist, Brooklyn's Parts & Labor, headlines this first night with a catchy mix of indie rock and electronics.

The six-artist, six-hour show also includes bass-and-drums rock duo Black Ladies and free-rock guitarist Tobin Summerfield, but the biggest highlight might be the collaboration between Sunfish Ensemble guitarist David Daniell and Tortoise cofounder/bassist Doug McCombs.

Voodoo Experience begins @ New Orleans' City Park

With a massive three-day lineup that can only really be explored at thetenthritual.com, New Orleans' Voodoo Experience celebrates its 10^th anniversary. If you're in the Big Easy on Friday, the fest's first day, be sure to catch DeVotchKa, Reverend Horton Heat, The Gutter Twins, Man Man, Extra Action Marching Band, and Andre Williams.

Shining (and other picks) at CMJ Music Marathon & Film Festival

There are hundreds of bands playing at the dozens of CMJ venues on Friday, the festival's second-to-last day, but we had to single out Norway's Shining at Cake Shop (and again at Knitting Factor on Saturday). The post-prog jazz-rock experimentalists return to New York, one of three cities on their first US tour earlier this year, and it might be a while before they return. If you're in NYC, do yourself a favor and check them out (and pick up Grindstone on Rune Grammofon).

The night's other highlights include sBACH, An Albatross, Akimbo, Phosphorescent, Sole and the Skyrider Band, and Broken Social Scene.

Keep reading…