This is the longest three minutes 27 seconds of my life. This song is so packed full that I am exhausted after just one Perhaps Contraption song. And that’s a good thing because this eight-piece marching band conveys an excitement that will blow you away.

One part early XTC for the quirky songwriting — “Cousin/Dad/Cousin, Cousin, Cousin/Dad/Cousin/Grandma!” —and one part Fishbone for its energetic ferocity, you can see why my brain is swimming.

I got to see Fishbone during their heyday. Live, the stage was as playful as the audience with crowd surfing, religious-like convulsions, pit churning, and plain old dancing. Liters of sweat lay on the concert hall floor. I feel the same sentiment to Perhaps Contraption’s “Cousin/Grandma.”

Unfortunately, I missed March Fourth Marching Band when they came into the city. I was seeing another show across the road from the venue they were performing. The doors were sprung open and upon exiting the show I attended, I could see horn players perched on top of tables, trombones bobbing, and people all over frantically dancing. It’s an image that is burned into my brain and like a street party you weren’t invited to, a missed opportunity.

You don’t have to miss that opportunity with “Cousin/Grandma.” There is a lot of gypsy power-street celebration to the song. The horns blare with a force to get you off your seat and dancing to the rhythms. And when they are off and running, expect nothing but insanity. Unlike the other indie marching band groups out there, I believe Perhaps Contraption would be the only one Frank Zappa is looking down on and smiling at. It’s a perfect modern take to the frantic style of composing Zappa was accustomed to.

[Article by Andrew Duncan]

I admit that I was one of those people who geeked out over the 11.11.11 time rarity. I had it all planned from my waking moments not to miss that magical celebration when the clock turned over not once but twice. It was my own personal New Year’s Eve just for one minute. Like when I streamed the final shuttle launch, I knew I will never experience this moment again in my lifetime. My office became the center of the universe as I picked a specific song to help celebrate 11:11 a.m.; it was AC/DC’s “For Those About To Rock (We Salute You).” I felt that to be an appropriate departure from the morning, although a somewhat traditional rock song that bodes a simple call and response. For those about to rock, we salute you! It was Friday, a lovely post-autumn day, and a day filled with anticipation for the night to come. Thank you, I will accept that salute. Not that I was going to rock out in the traditional rock and roll sense of being, but it was going to be a night to remember with arrays of traditionalism meets indie modernism.

I have always wanted to see Beirut. It’s a moment I never thought I would get to experience and maybe never will again in my lifetime. It’s been flowing through my veins since seeing the Take Away Show videos online with them doing “Nantes” and “The Penalty.” It led me to the even more amazing “St. Apollonia,” This video has meant so much to me and perfect in every sense. The way the video starts so simple and organic, built around a mysterious backdrop. How beautiful and delicate the song develops is entrancing. And when the band communicates as a whole and the camera pans around each member, it reminds me of the way Orson Wells used natural sound to filter in and out of clubs in the beginning shot of Touch Of Evil. By the end of “St. Apollonia,” you feel like it was all just a dream.

And maybe that was what Bogarts was to me, just a dream. With a club that is primarily geared to the hard rockers and the rowdy, Beirut was a calm surprise to be listed to perform in Cincinnati’s Clifton area.

I have not been to Bogarts in about a decade. The last time I experienced the club was Mr. Bungle performing their California album. Times have changed. No more is there a Sudsy Malone’s across the street taunting those to come for a late night rendezvous of drink, underground music, and a chance to get caught up on your laundry. A lot of the shops surrounding the club lies vacant. It’s like Bogarts survived the war and they are the lone soldiers of musical justice left standing, a beacon to one of the great rock clubs in the Midwest. And as many concerts I have attended shows at Bogarts have stuck with me as being the most memorable. This night is no different.

A sold out show, Beirut had every open space in the club filled. Despite the sea of people stretching across the floor, it was a kinder, gentler crowd. And when Zachary Francis Condon and his band took the stage, physical space no longer mattered.

The stage set up was simple: scattered instruments were propped within reach of the musician, the band spread across the stage in a traditional manner. Horns on one side, rhythm on the other. Strands of lights trailed from the stage out into the audience, like a charming Old World festival accentuating the group’s song and celebration.

Cheers upon cheers were met by Perrin Cloutier’s accordion as he broke the crowd noise and the band launched into “Scenic World.” As the song developed, you immediately got a feel for the mystic and charm the night would behold. When the horns came together for that chorus, their exuberance was felt by all and waves of approval echoed across the room.

By the time the band went into “Elephant Gun,” the crowd swooned, sang along and swooned again. Beirut sounded great and in true form. You could hear any point of the band from any angle of the song, be it a full blast of horns or the intimate introduction on “A Sunday Smile” from The Flying Club Cup, that ended in the band’s bravado blowing fan’s minds and opening hearts. The dedicated were truly dedicated.

Something surprised me. When the band went into the songs “Sante Fe” and “East Harlem,” both from their recent venture The Rip Tide, the crowd went crazy, dancing and singing along like they were songs that have been with the band for years. It was a true feeling of gratitude that could be felt from the audience, to the band and back again.

The hour plus set gracefully bounced around their three album. And with an encore that featured four more morsels (“The Penalty,” “My Night With The Prostitute From Marseille,” “The Gulag Orkestar,” and “Servian Cocek”), we got one more dose of true musicianship that included a wicked tuba solo transitioning into one horn solo to another in true jazz fashion.

Hoping to fulfill the other side of the 11:11 time orbit with sounds of Beirut echoing into the night, the show ended well before 11 p.m. The only thing I could think about in that one minute of the 11th hour was not just how I wanted more from this band, but how memorable this show was to not just myself but hundreds of other people.

Link: http://talkdemonic.com/

Talkdemonics’ Ruins was not pleasing to begin with. I thought the raw format mixing to the opening songs were brazen and scruffed out so much that it was not an effect done right.

But then it hit me. Actually, it was Lisa Molinaro’s strings that made me change my mind about Ruins.

Don’t get me wrong. What Kevin O’Connor does to blend in percussive experimentation — sometimes bordering on free jazz while other times based on simple angularity — with analog and organic instrumental features done really well. A song like “Revival” is the foundation for what O’Connor can churn out. What’s cool about this song is that there is a playful exchange of hands as to who is holding the rhythm and who is carrying the melody. I find they do it better than a band like Explosions in the Sky with that respect.

Their more intimate songs are also a highlight. It helps the strings reach out further in the song. “Midcentury Motion” may not show off the soft side to this duo, but it does showcase how expansive these two can be in the context of musician limitations. Nowhere on this album will you feel that only two people are creating music of this expanse.

And as much as I love to be challenged as a listener, much of the experimental values from this album do not go far, except maybe “Violet.” Also do not expect anything long-winded from this band, their average song length is around two-and-a half minutes. Setting these constraints, it forces them to work within a very short time and fill every nook and cranny with sound. And that is what I would find the most impressive with O’Connor and Molinaro.

Afrobeta
Under the Streets
Do IT Entertainment
4.5555 and ½ out of 5

Links:
Official Site: http://afrobeta.com/
Twitter: @afrobeta
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/afrobetafan

Every once in a while a band makes an EP that leaves you thirsting for more, and Afrobeta’s Do You Party? did just that. The Miami duo’s debut album Under the Streets is the complete package of satisfying electro-pop mixed with pumping a few dub step beats in just the right places and a pinch of 80’s synth-pop.

The album has you hooked from opening to finish while singer Cuci Amador fills your mind with lyrics of love gained, love lost, raw emotion, sex and dance floor culture. After listening to the whole album, there is no doubt that in a music world where auto-tune rules the airways, Cuci can belt out the real deal. The other side of Afrobeta, Tony Smurphio, energizes the album with thumping bass lines, synthesized backbeats and the occasional guitar lick.

The album begins with two previously released tracks, and both are quality; however, the third track “Nighttime” adds more substance to the album by offering not only a catchy hook but also a feeling of the afterhours dance scene.

The first single off the album is “Play House” which was released in single format as a teaser to the full length.  This tune is reminiscent of a Peaches track without all the raunchiness, which bodes well for the whole flavor of the album.

The one glowing gem of the album is the last track “Love is Magic”, where they truly lets their artistic style flow. The song has a Jack Johnson vibe with acoustic guitar, hand claps and sultry vocals. Being so different from the rest of the album, it feels more like a hidden track that came out to play with big boys.

Towards the end Cuci shows her love of the Pee Wee Herman show by spitting out quotes from the Great Jambi “Mekka-lekka-hi, mekka-hiney-ho!”

This album is one you can listen anywhere, whether it be in the car, the club or simply relaxing at the crib. Afrobeta is currently on tour with IDentity Festival and are spectacular live performers.

“Long Live Afrobeta.”  – The Great Jambi