AMERICAN CATASTROPHE - EXCERPTS FROM THE BROKEN BOY CHOIR (Oxblood Records)
What if Nick Cave had performed at the San Francisco Acid Tests? Ok, so no band could possibly be that fucking cool, but American Catastrophe try their goddamned best. The album does threaten to dive into the deep waters of melodrama, but thankfully manages to keep above the surface, making for an overall commendable disc.
RATING: THREE BIG STARS AND AN “A” FOR EFFORT. GOLD STARS ALL AROUND.
THE JENA CAMPAIGN - A PANDA FOR AMANDA (Nobodys Favorite Records)
A nice easy listen. It will gently love your ears. Oh, and \"A born-again Christian upon reading the Da Vinci Code\" is a fantastic song and title.
RATING: THREE STARS
CHASE PAGAN - OH MUSICA! (Militia Group)
It\'s a bit curious to find that this pop album, full of lush piano and falsetto vocals, comes from Arkansas. Even more surprising to see that Chase Pagan looks more Charles Manson than Rufus Wainright.
RATING: THREE STARS
SABOTEUR / THE MOCKINGBIRD NIGHTMARE / RED LIGHT GREEN LIGHT – SPLIT (Engineer Records)
Too bad for Mockingbird Nightmare to be associated with the rampant mediocrity within Saboteur and Red Light Green Light\'s contributions to this split disc. Had Mockingbird been the only ones here, I would have nothing less than a hard-on for their tunes (think of something not far off from early At The Drive In), but they’re hanging out with the wrong crowd. I\'m not mad, guys, I\'m just disappointed.
RATING: A RELUCTANT TWO STARS
VONNEGUTT - THE VICE NINE EP (Self-Released)
An open letter to Vonnegutt:
After the demise of Rap Rock, it was only a matter of time before some douche bag would combine suburban hip hop with mall emo-pop. Thus was born Gym Class Heroes. I could live with that. But this? No. No. No. I assume your band name and CD title was intended as an homage to one of the finest literary minds of the last century. Objective failed. This shit ain’t a shout out. To associate this album’s content with the memory of the late Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. is straight up legacy rape. I read Cats Cradle in sophomore English class too, assholes.
xoxo, Benny
RATING: ZERO STARS. NOTHING.