Sunday, November 19th, 2006

Sunday Cleaning – Volume 56

Spotlight Kid / Departure (Club AC30)

Spotlight Kid is the new project of former Six By Seven drummer Chris Davis, who like all drummers, appears to have been harbouring a secret wish to get out from behind the kit, strap on a guitar and sing. Luckily for Davis (and for us), his stuff is actually pretty good in a pop-shoegaze sort of way, far less abrasive than his old outfit (though former bandmates Sam Hempton and James Flower make appearances) and cribbing styles and sounds from pretty much everyone you might expect them to cite as an influence, My Bloody Valentine in particular. No points for originality, but high grades on execution. One thing, though – “Electric Forecast” takes its lyrics and melody almost entirely from Broken Social Scene’s “Anthems For A Seventeen-Year Old Girl” with no credit given in the liner notes. I’m sure it’s just an oversight – BSS are noted in their MySpace influences so they can’t feign ignorance – but it’s a pretty glaring one.

MP3: Spotlight Kid – “Can’t Let Go (This Feeling)”
MySpace: Spotlight Kid

The Little Ones / Sing Song (Branches Recording Collective)

There’s nothing about California’s Little Ones, from the band name to album artwork, that doesn’t scream pop pop pop, so it’s just as well that that’s what they trade in. Hook- and harmony-laden and bouncy like a superball in a room of optimal size and shape for maximum superball bounciness, their debut EP draws from every era and locale where pop music was ever created and blends it into a sort of uber-pop smoothie. A welcome dose of sunshine in a dreary late November. The Little Ones are at the Horseshoe this Friday night with Small Sins, and I’m giving away passes – go here for details.

MP3: The Little Ones – “Lovers Who Uncover”
MP3: The Little Ones – “Cha Cha Cha”
MP3: The Little Ones – “High On A Hill”
MySpace: The Little Ones

The Lovely Sparrows / Pulling Up Floors, Pouring On (New) Paint (Abandoned Love)

The latest from this Austin quintet has a charming rehearsal space fidelity that enhances the casually folky vibe of the EP but the songcraft is anything but laid back. Buoyed by a wonderfully woody swirl of guitars, mandolins, pianos, strings and brass, Shawn Jones’ plaintive melodies dance overtop it all like dandelion seeds in a Summer breeze. At just five songs, Pulling Up Floors, Pouring On (New) Paint is too short but oh so sweet.

MP3: Lovely Sparrows – “Chemicals Change”
MySpace: The Lovely Sparrows
By : Frank Yang at 10:08 am
Category: Uncategorized
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  1. 11/19/06 12:12 pm

     Dan Dickinson says:

    Only the drummers with a desperate need for attention want to come out from behind the kit.

    And Dave Grohl.

  2. 11/19/06 2:18 pm

     wayne massingham says:

    lovely sparrows look promising, really sweet music

  3. 11/19/06 3:51 pm

     merzmars says:

    good catch on that spotlight kid – BSS deal!

    Also, am really loving this new redesign. Everything seems so much more accessible and the whole look is clean. It is so good that it makes me want to heap my piece of junk in the trash can. You have the best music blog out there Frank and that is the honest truth. Fantastic job!

  4. 11/19/06 5:32 pm

     Scott says:

    I’m sure the SK song has to be an un-cited cover. It’s original enough to stand on it’s own two, but the wholesale theft of the lyrics makes me thing he meant it as tribute. If you’re going to steal a song, I think you’d have to be smarter than to steal it from one of the most popular indie rock bands around.

    Now, if only someone would steal "Swimmer"….

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