The Ramblers; Bryan Dunn @ Mercury Lounge; Patrick Thomas @ Rockwood Music Hall

The Ramblers; Bryan Dunn; Bucky Hayes
@ Mercury Lounge
New York, NY - July 3, 2010

Patrick Thomas
@ Rockwood Music Hall
New York, NY - July 2, 2010

It was a July 4th weekend for the singers and songwriters in New York City, particularly down on the Lower East Side which last I checked still managed to churn out a snifter of class or two in a sea of clubbers and Sex and the City types.

At Rockwood on Friday, Patrick Thomas played less than an hour but handed out a set to be remembered. He proved to be an adept bar rocker the first time I saw him but this time he displayed some very deliberative, very gut-punching ballads. It must be said folks: he's a keeper.

The Ramblers have that thing. You know the thing in which a band reminds of you this and that but you can't quite name this and that because they sound like a thing all their own. Yeah that thing. Name the greats in country and rock and these guys know it but they have their own graceful spin on what's come before and it makes for a smiley time variety hour.

Alright by now you know if you read this blog you know the work of Mr. Dunn. It was another inspiring set on a New York stage that while it is not the biggest, it is the best (some say the Bowery Ballroom stage is the best and you know what? Bryan's played there too, so there). There's a new record coming. Spread the word. It's gonna be gangbusters.

Bucky Hayes can be a reminder of all things good that must come to pass. But in addition to the roots that make rock what it is, there's also in the Bucky Hayes milieu a desire for the big guitar pop solo, the wailing kind, that has bettered power pop balladry for the last 20 years. I'm a sucker for that stuff.

The Sonic Parthenon Playlist: Early 2010

Acrylics - "All of the Fire"

Right as 2009 wound down, the last new jingle I heard that I responded to was this local act that I thought was a pure Deli Magazine discovery but turned out was a Stereogum-prepped hit-to-be (ain't that a modern music phrasing). Reminds me of Fleetwood Mac but likable. There's also this band out there from Los Angeles called Music Go Music who sound like Abba. What is going on?

The Bravery - "Slow Poison"

Big cheese mainstream modern pop-rock...in a good way. I would never sell this to your grandkids as gold but it sure beats the heck out of whatever else is really popular these days. Who is that anyway? What's her name? The blond girl with the grammys that Kanye hated on? Whoseits...

Basia Bulat - Heart of My Own

The LP is not dead! Basia Bulat has constructed another, maybe even stronger, full length album of songs for a winter's night. Particularly listen to "The Shore". Good lord.

Dawes - "When My Time Comes"

The full album listening is hours away but it can no longer wait. The word must be spread - with harmonies as pristine as some thing in nature to fulfill this analogy, and with more than a friendly helping of inspiration from the likes of The Band, here are Dawes and one of those laid back but effervescently powerful numbers. You'd so expect them to be another beard-and-plaid band but they ain't. How about that?

Editors - "Papillon"

Everyone I hear or read in regards to the new Editors record say they sound very different. I don't hear the difference. In fact I continue to hear the band that does Interpol better than Interpol. They put out something good each time, and they do it again with, at the very least, this Factory Records tribute which should not be confused with the Airborne Toxic Event song of the same name.

Hot Chip - One Life Stand

See? Again. Rumors of the album's demise were exaggerated - though not greatly and admittedly eventually will be true...maybe. The resilient boys in the Hot Chip will not give up on the ol' complete documentation of efforts and why should they? Clubbing, by all accounts, would be a dead art form if not for these Brits. The title track alone is enough to merit the love.

The Low Anthem - "Charlie Darwin"

It took a better part of a year to finally give a solid listen to just this one song after hearing show after show via the interweb of this very stark, crisp band. By the end of the year I'll have the whole record down (it took 8 months to finally listen to the entire Fanfarlo record and that turned out delayed gangbusters). As deeply intellectual and heartfelt without pretension as it can get.

Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "Higher Than the Stars"

Not quite ready for another album, the Pains couldn't let this one wait or slip by. A good old fashioned single! It still remains to be seen if this band is a continuous sound or a more varied enterprise but this indicates some consistency and that's very fine for them.

Patrick Thomas - Build Me A City

After catching this chap at Rockwood, I was mightily impressed. The record is fine, especially something called "Spring Street Baby" which is like Randy Newman down in the Big Easy on a Saturday Night.

Willowz - "Destruction"

I've seen Willowz twice. I saw the goods but I was underwhelmed. Something wasn't gelling. Lo and behold, some years on, they are still going. And not only are they going, they have ARRIVED. "Destruction" is a no-fooling-around rock song, just a few minutes in the mess o' glory. Good work kids. You won me.

Yeasayer - "Ambling Alp"

Didn't loathe that first Yeasayer album but I wasn't exactly all over it like the vast majority of the Indie rock world. They were the thinking man's answer to Vampire Weekend (bill buddies once upon a time FYI) but that didn't necessarily mean they were better. Well hold the phone Charlie. Check this out. While large chunks of the accompanying album leave much to be desired, take this song, wrap it up, and send it to everyone you know because already I can't see a better song coming out this year. This is something else. What a wallop. It sounds like the best of their Brooklyn cohorts in MGMT, with whiffs of the Flaming Lips and the previous album's sound to boot. Just a perfect song. Stick up for yourself, son!

Honorable Mentions:

ALO - "Man of the World"
Cute Lepers - "Smart Accessories"
Lightspeed Champion - "Marlene"
Two Door Cinema Club - "Eat That Up, It's Good for You"

Tim Blaine; Patrick Thomas @ Rockwood Music Hall

Tim Blaine; Patrick Thomas
@ Rockwood Music Hall
New York, NY - October 4, 2009

Tim Blaine's brashness comes in his devotion to a pop-Jazz sound that could so easily be processed candy but instead comes out as pitch perfect musical craftsmanship. His backing band is an evident treasure trove of talent and it makes for a refreshing change of pace from all the static that is increasingly blasting from across the river in northern Brooklyn.

On a similar note, Patrick Thomas is keeping the light going in the singer-songwriter genre, infusing his songs with countrified and reggage-ish workings. He also has a fine stage presence which places the music on a bigger pedestal than it may otherwise be.