Ducktails/Twerps Review

Another day, another review....

Here's a Ducktails and Twerps concert review I did for Relix.com:

Ducktails / The Twerps

285 Kent

Brooklyn, NY

March 29

As I waited for the doors to open at 285 Kent, the empty warehouse turned DIY music venue literally next door to Brooklyn performance staple Glasslands Gallery, I struck up a conversation with some fellow concert-goers. Many of them had come to see the headliner Ducktails perform, but I did run into a few fans of the Melbourne, Australia indie-pop band The Twerps.

The band, which is a typical 4-piece setup (2 guitars, bass, and drums), took the stage just 20 minutes before midnight to warm up the crowd. Vocalist Martin Frawley shared guitar duty with Jules McFarlane and seemed to be the most excited out of the band to be playing for the group of 20-somethings that had gathered at the space. After a respectable 40 minute set, including a new song that Jules had written, The Twerps ended the night with their chilled out break-up anthem “Who Are You” that nearly had the audience singing along.

“We’re excited to play because we don’t get to play that often,” said Ducktails’ mastermind/guitarist Matthew Mondanile to the crowded audience at 285 Kent. Due to the success of Real Estate’s critic-approved sophomore album Days – on which Mondanile plays guitar – his lo-fi side-project Ducktails has been put on the back-burner, but the Ducks showed no signs of aging as they took the stage and proceeded to shower the room with their own brand of psych-tinged pop melodies.

Although Mondanile records solo as Ducktails, the set-up that night consisted of his full-on band of five members with two guitars, bass, keys/synth, and drums. Anticipation for the group was at its peak when Ducktails started playing at 12:31am. The set, which relied heavily upon Ducktails’ 2010 release Arcade Dynamics, did not disappoint. The band laid down the music’s signature vibe of repeated synth melodies and ambient noise that created a blank palette for Mondanile’s experimental guitar picking. Halfway into the set Ducktails introduced a new work-in-progress song. The as-of-yet untitled work started out with a groovy bass line before the lo-fi, fuzzed-out guitars and reverb-laden vocals fluttered on top. The show ended with the crowd favorite “Landrunner”, a minimal jam from the 2009 album Landscapes, which left the audience floating down a hazy river.

Oldies but Goodies

Once Upon A Time....

Here are some choice blog posts I did for the Free Music Archive a few years back (2009, that was so long ago!)

6.29.2009

Pandora Records: Variations on a Theme

via flickr

 

Pandora Records is one of the more recent new additions to the Free Music Archive. The label, which is now defunct, had an extensive library of classical music -- posted here under an EFF License -- that I have been rummaging through with the hopes of bringing the cream of the crop to everyone here at the FMA. So now I present to you the first of many more works recorded for the Pandora label.

I’ve chosen to start out with a piece written for two pianos. I’ve always had an affinity for piano…always wishing my parents had molded me into one of those child prodigy piano virtuosos, who play repetoire like Rachmaninoff and Prokofiev at age 8, but instead I chose to play viola and the rest is history. Anyway, what could be better than one piano but two? Pandora has a wide selection of works for two pianos by the duo pianists Neal and Nancy O’Doan. I did a quick google/wikipedia search on these two but was unable to find any dirt on them. So here is what I know from listening to their recordings: The pair are very sensitive to each other; balancing their individual sounds off of one another. One pianist will take off on a scale run while the other plays a lyrical melody all while making a seamless transitions in the music; It’s almost as if it’s one player (Liszt anyone?). Don’t believe me? Take a listen for yourself.

The first work from the duo I’ve chosen to bring to the FMA is Lutoslawski’s Variations On a Theme by Paganini. The piece is just under five minutes, but explores the theme in depth in a variety of different lights. It’s definitely worth a listen, so get to it!

Check back on the FMA in the coming weeks for more from Neal and Nancy O’Doan and the Pandora archives. Happy Listening!

7.12.2009 

Arbiter Channels Blues Roots

Reverend Gary Davis aka Blind Gary Davis

 

Some recent additions to the FMA I’ve been working on are coming from a small non-profit arts organization that goes by the name Arbiter of Cultural Traditions. This organization was created in 2002 by Allen Evans as a way to preserve the late record company Arbiter. In Evans own words, the record company specialized in “saving performances by musicians both living and from the past whose work embodies classical music at it’s height”. The website of the organization offers sample tracks from many of their featured CDs…all of which will be uploaded to the FMA for your listening pleasure!

Now to the music…

This past week I uploaded a track from World Arbiter, a sub-label of Arbiter Records, that really caught my attention.  Fast Blues in A is a toe-tapping, bluesy-folk improvisation on guitar performed by Reverend Gary Davis. This tune features Davis’ famous and influential finger-picking guitar style, which I found to be an addictive listen. The song hails from The Sun of Our Life: Solos, Songs, A Sermon, an album recorded between 1955 and 1957 that features many more of Rev. Gary Davis’ lively performances. The FMA only has this one little tidbit from the album for download, but fear not, the entirety of the album can be purchased online through Qualiton Imports!