Friday, May 06, 2005

The Lovers' Album of the Week


The Russian Futurists Our Thickness

So that there isn't any confusion, written plainly on the back cover of Our Thickness is the confession, "The Russian Futurists is Matthew Adam Hart." Might as well give credit where credit is due. And while we are throwing around acknowledgments, let me also give Hart recognition for constructing one of the best pop records of 2005. Our Thickness is a blissful pop album that echoes Phil Spector's vast sound despite the fact that it was recorded in Hart's own bedroom. Far from low-fi, The Russian Futurists create highly energized music that is built on layers upon layers of good ideas with surprising introspective lyrics (for such a feel good record) in which Hart delivers multiple choruses with... well, himself. Some of the highlights include the album's opener "Paul Simon," which has nothing do with the 60's singer/songwriter but a lot to do with one hell of a catchy beat, blasting horns, and vocals that seem to be having too much fun to be piping lines like "We're so burnt out; we're a shell now. It's the worst of lows." On the song "These Seven Notes," a sample from a birthday wish being left on an answering machine progresses into a joyful sing-a-long (with Liane DeLotbiniere, one of the few guest artist on the record) about a crumbling relationship ("All you've got's apologies, and take me back phone calls from me"). With other song titles such as "It's Over, It's Nothing," "Hurtin' 4 Certain," and "Why You Gotta Do That Thang?" you start to get the idea of the themes surrounding Our Thickness. However, I guarantee you won't be leaving this record with your head hanging low. On the contrary, I can clearly see your head bobbing back and forth.

Thursday, May 05, 2005

The Music Lovers playlist for 5/5/05

1. While Walking - Blair Combest from Prettier Than Ugly - LIVE PERFORMANCE FROM BLAIR COMBEST - Dreams, The Blavier's Lament (Little Woman), The Interrogatory (Do You Want Me?) 2. Every Once In A While - Blair Combest from Prettier Than Ugly - LIVE PERFORMANCE FROM BLAIR COMBEST (con't) - Tonite, Rock N' Roll 3. Twin Cinema - The New Pornographers from Twin Cinema 4. Episodes (Diphenhydramine) - Pela from All In Time 5. I Am The Mountain - Damien Jurado from On My Way To Absence 6. The Pretender - Dr. Dog from Easy Beat 7. Pink and Brown - Headphones from Headphones 8. Walking Away - Chris Hickey from Release 9. From Sky To Core - Channing Cope from Sugar In Our Blood 10. Casimir Pulaski Day - Sufjan Stevens from Illinois 11. August Morning Haze - Oneida from The Wedding 12. O Honey We're Ridiculous - PAS/CAL from LP Demo 13. Our Pen's Out Of Ink - The Russian Futurists from Our Thickness 14. And Then Patterns - Four Tet from Everything Ecstatic 15. Great Day (remix) - Four Tet from Madvillian Remixes 16. Pinball - Stereolab from Oscillons from the Anti-Sun 17. Darla Come Down From Jackson - Charlie McAclister from Mississippi Luau 18. U and I - Vitalic from OK Cowboy 19. The Two Sides of Monsieur Valentine - Spoon from Gimmie Fiction 20. What Are You? - Bonnie Prince Billy and Matt Sweeny from Superwolf 21. Love Love Love - The Mountain Goats from The Sunset Tree 22. Free Fallin' (live) - King of Convenience from Failure EP 23. Sixteen and the Sea - Doxies from Weight of Gold 24. Battle Brigades - The Foundry Field Recordings from Battle Brigades 7" 25. True Bright Blossom - Bright Black from Ala.cali.tucky

Wednesday, May 04, 2005

This Week on the Lovers - Special Guest Blair Combest


Make sure to tune in this Thursday (5/5) for a very special edition of The Lovers when local singer/songwriter Blair Combest stops by the WEVL Studios to perform his unique blend of folk/country/rock balladry.

Also new releases from: The New Pornographers, Stereolab, Four Tet, Spoon, The Mountain Goats, Oneida, Bright Black, Vitalic, Sufjan Stevens, and many more...

Monday, May 02, 2005

Easley Studios - Another Follow Up

Here is an update story from the Memphis Flyer's "Music Issue" concerning the fire that broke out at the Easley-McCain Studio. Includes interviews with partners Doug Easley and Davis McCain as well as engineer extraordinaire, Kevin Cubbins. Story by Andrew Earles.

Damage Done
Sorting through aftermath of the Easley-McCain Studio fire.

The birthplace of several important alt-rock records (most recently the White Stripes' White Blood Cells) and a key component in the creative matrix that drives Memphis' Midtown-based indie-rock scene, Easley-McCain Recording Studio, located at 2272 Deadrick Avenue, was dealt a horrible blow when a blaze wiped out the studio's control room, waiting area, and sections of the second floor, which was being used for storage and a smaller studio area.

The March 2nd fire, discovered by engineer Kevin Cubbins, spared the tracking room (or "big room"). The door was closed, and the wall that separates this room from the remainder of the studio acted as a firewall. The cause of the fire hasn't been determined, but investigators have narrowed its origin to the area of a wastebasket and electrical outlet. "I don't know, and I don't think they really know yet," says studio owner Doug Easley. "It wasn't arson. Use that as your big quote. It wasn't arson."

Little compares to the despair of watching something close to you burn uncontrollably, but an adage holds true: It could have been worse. "It's only equipment. People aren't replaceable. I'd much rather go to a storage unit than go to a bunch of funerals," Easley says.

"We're sorting out what was burned and destroyed and what was burned and can be cleaned or salvaged," says Davis McCain, Easley's longtime partner. "Unfortunately, the destroyed pile is getting bigger."

But six weeks later, Easley and McCain aren't just sorting through the damage. They're also sorting through the ramifications of insurance negotiations.

"It's amazing how little communication goes on [with insurance companies]. As long as they can hold onto their money, they're happy," Easley says.

The process isn't helped by the enormous amount of work required to catalog the damage, a process that has required equipment dealers to help value some of the studio's more esoteric items.

"Every piece is a line on a form, then there is a value that you have to give it, and then [the insurance company] wants to know where you got that number," Easley says.

"We're just digging out from under this incredible mound of charred stuff. If the process seemed slow at the beginning, it's really slow now," McCain adds.

Despite the damage, work continues for Easley-McCain. Some remote work is taking place. For instance, Cubbins headed up to a rented cabin in Arkansas last week to finish an album with local band the Glass, a project that began at Easley-McCain. And Easley makes clear that, whatever the impact on the studio itself, the fire has also had an impact on local musicians now short a recording outlet.

"People are always saying, 'Let's do benefits.' It's a nice gesture, but there's no way to know right now what they would be funding," McCain says.

"I thought we should have a reverse benefit. Everybody who ever came to the studio, they'd come to a show, and they'd get $5 at the door and free beer," Easley adds. "We always tried to make it an all-inclusive thing, where people went to have a good time and where a lot of great things emanated from. In retrospect, it's been a great run for us, but we didn't do it by ourselves."

The studio's future is still in flux, pending the slow process of sorting out damages and insurance claims. At present, Easley and McCain are pricing rooms for temporary rental and ferreting out locations for in-progress projects. "I've been looking for places to continue some projects I had going," Easley says. "Though it's premature to say exactly what, we are continuing in one form or another. I'm not retiring."

• By Andrew Earles