Thursday, February 28th, 2008
Come Clean
I’m not a believer in the idea of “guilty pleasures” but if I were to hold the music I listen to up against an objective scale running from “cool” to “not so cool”, Eisley would almost certainly have to fall into the latter end of the curve.
And on paper, there’s a lot that about them that you could consider cred-defeating. An outfit comprised of all siblings and one cousin hailing from the Texas Bible belt and trading in earnest, major label-endorsed pop-rock would appear to have about as much edge as a rubber ball. But what they do have, and what all the studio gloss can’t obscure, is a glorious pop sensibility that guarantees at least a half-dozen melodic moments per album, delivered in the angelic voices of one of the DuPree sisters (or all three in harmony), that remind me of why I buy their records. Compared to their mostly midtempo debut Room Noises, 2007’s Combinations showcased the band’s rockier side though at the expense of some of the first record’s lyrical whimsy.
Eisley came through town a few times in support of Room Noises – I caught their first headlining show and felt old – but they’ve yet to tour through for Combinations until now. Their Spring tour still has many holes in it but their April 9 date at Lee’s Palace is on the books.
MP3: Eisley – “Golly Sandra” (live)
MP3: Eisley – “I Wasn’t Prepared” (live)
MP3: Eisley – “Just Like We Do” (live)
Video: Eisley – “Invasion”
MySpace: Eisley
As promised at his in-store last week, Kinks-man Ray Davies has booked a North American tour in support of his new solo record Working Man’s Cafe and will be at the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto on April 3. Good news for everyone who couldn’t make it to HMV to see him play or who could make it but couldn’t see him anyway.
Anglo-Gallic trio The Teenagers return to town for a show at ANTI (nee Spin Gallery out on Queen West) on May 1 – full tour dates on their site. They will be celebrating the March 18 release of their debut Reality Check.
MP3: The Teenagers – “Starlett Johansson”
Video: The Teenagers – “Starlett Johansson”
The two-thirds of Low-powered Retribution Gospel Choir makes its Toronto debut June 21 at the Rivoli. Their debut, self-titled album is due out March 18.
NOW Q&A’s Devonte Hynes of Lightspeed Champion. He’s at the Horseshoe for a free show on Tuesday night (March 4).
Chart has a feature on Super Furry Animals.
Kevin Drew has a new video he’d like to share with you.
Video: Kevin Drew – “Lucky Ones”
The Georgia Straight talks to British Sea Power about the recording process of Do You Like Rock Music?. They’re at Lee’s Palace on May 16.
Black Mountain, playing Lee’s Palace on March 5, talk to NOW, The Montreal Gazette, The Chronicle Herald and hour.ca. Also on the bill is Bon Iver, who just released For Emma, Forever Ago last week. ArtistDirect, PopMatters and MP3.com chat with Justin Vernon.
Steve Earle discusses prison and Elvis with hour.ca. He’s at Massey Hall on March 4.
If you missed NPR’s stream of Wilco’s show in DC last night, fret not – it’ll be online soon it’s online now. And the band are also going to be on Saturday Night Live this Saturday night – playing live – with guest host Ellen Page.
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2/28/08 11:31 am
Back when i first heard new San Francisco band Minipop last year the first thing I thought was "they sound like a ‘cooler’ version of Eisley."
2/28/08 12:26 pm
"Invasion" was my favorite song last year, but I won’t argue that they have room to grow. Still, definitely looking forward to a spring NYC show…
3/12/08 8:25 am
Some of Eisley’s self-released work from the early 2000’s contains my favorite songs of the time…I think they’ve paid a lot of dues.
And Torr- if I’m not mistaken, Minipop are huge Eisley fans who list them them as a main inspiration. Makes sense.