Pacifico - Facedown EP

Produced by Matthew Schwartz and Brandon Swafford at Swaff Studios in Villa Rica, GA | Mixed and mastered by Brandon Swafford at Swaff Studios in Villa Rica, GA

Pacifico is the continual gestation of singer/songwriter Matthew Schwartz. Pacifico’s new EP, Facedown, is the latest entry into an ongoing personal songbook of material. Last March, Pacifico released Anthology, a collection of work from the last five years.

Bear in mind that Pacifico is not a band but, perhaps, a state of mind; the songs akin to discovery, acceptance or confrontation. Facedown’s brevity is like an author who releases novellas or short stories about emotion and relationships versus an action-packed novel. The songs on Facedown come off indifferent – dissimilar colors or flavors, lingering long after the notes fade away. Each song stands freely against others, energetic yet frozen like a drawn out singular moment. Songs range from happy (“17th & Something”) to ethereal (“Facedown”), all brimming with sentiment.

Easily categorized as indie pop or Britpop, the notion that Schwartz is not a new distillation would tragically be taking the wrong road, betraying the vibe and clarity Schwartz creates pleasantly on Facedown. His pop songs are more than catchy melodies and choruses. The ideas are cozy, multi-fabricated quilts delivered with quaint layering.

Take the playful, childlike notes at the end of “17th & Something” or the underbelly of talking and noise on “I Fell in Love with a Ghost,” the latter of which recalls the esoteric qualities of Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here. Schwartz’s vocals sound like Elliot Smith meets Marc Bolan, with the strident climbing and falling of a Kinks song. “Ruby,” for example, is a simple happy and textured song. On it, Schwartz sounds like Stephen Duffy uttering tangential lyrics, like, “You call my name whenever everyone else seems the same,” and ending with the equally earnest, “All I ever wanted was love.”

While Schwartz is anything but happy-go-lucky, Facedown does its job, leaving the listener wanting and wondering about more from Schwartz. (Allalom Music)

www.pacificorock.com

-Brian Tucker

A Fight to the Death - A Fight to the Death

Produced by A Fight to the Death at Third World Country | Engineered by CJ Bargamian and Mark Carbone

The name of this Atlanta, Ga. band could fool listeners. While it may sound like a ferocious metal band, it’s the opposite, if not laterally different. The self-titled A Fight to the Death radiates with urgency and Western solemnity through its collection of passionate and road-weary lullabies.

A broad summation of A Fight to the Death is that the band reveals itself as a group of troubadours working on an E Street Band level. Lead vocalist CJ Bargamian sings with warmth and restraint, while the players operate with a seemingly unending palette of musical nuances. Bargamian croons and seduces, blending world flavor with Western dalliances. His singing is cool and fierce, notably on “A Call to Arms.”

Much of the material exercises mysterious tones; Americana flavor meets Moroccan romance and danger. Nathan T. Green’s accordion playing on “This Fear is Irrational” is delightful and unexpected. It works well against gentle percussion, as if the tango style of composition were done via Dust Bowl-era roots music. Again, Bargamian snakes through the song vocally, adding a touch of Ennio Morricone, as he whistles in the middle of the song, recalling the old Spaghetti Westerns. “What a Great Idea” cooks, pumping with keyboard playing that hones well a carnival vibe. It drives along like juke joint blues and shuffles like 1950s rockabilly. This song, along with the samba-laced “All My Things,” turns on the album’s slower, moody material, making for raucous fun.

The band takes American Western-influenced music far from its birthplace to craft an album that conjures images of Old World romance, bull fighting, adventure and danger. The result is something both rustic and appropriate for turning the lights down low. (Self-released)

www.afighttothedeath.com

-Brian Tucker

Valorie Miller - Autumn Eyes

Recorded and mixed by Alex Hornbake at Echo Mountain Studios in Asheville, NC | Assistant engineers Julian Dryer and Jon Ashley | Produced by Valorie Miller and Alex Hornbake | Mastered by Shelley Anderson at Georgetown Masters in Nashville, TN

Autumn Eyes is the latest release by Asheville’s Valorie Miller. The 10 songs here fit comfortably under the umbrella of Americana music, a definitive blending of many genres including folk, country, R&B and rock ‘n’ roll.

It is evident from the first song, “Autumn Eyes,” that Miller paints poignant images with her rich lyrics, such as, “Living things get more beautiful / Right before they die,” and, “Like October burning in the trees / We are crimson, we are gold.” The descriptive imagery continues in “Carolina Line,” with, “If your gold has ceased to glitter / And your honeysuckle’s bitter,” through to the last song “Old Boots,” with, “We’ve been working like old boots / Toiling through the night.”

Most of the songs here are captivating; the numerous stirring ballads are well-suited to Miller’s vocal style. “Sons-a-bitches” is more up-tempo but still within her vocal range. Only “Fire Song” tries to take on an edgier tone, in which her vocals don’t really adapt well.

As with most music in the realm of Americana, this album features arrangements of many different instruments aside from the standard guitar, bass, piano and drums. “Autumn Eyes,” “Fire Song” and “Star Town” also have mandolin, while “Sons-a-bitches” is enhanced by the accordion. The songs also feature lap steel guitar, dobro and upright bass.

This collection of songs is sure to please any fan of her previous records, as well as garner new fans with her heartfelt lyrics and beautiful guitar work. (Self-released)

www.valoriemiller.com

-Kat Coffin

Paul Reeves - Winter’s Over

Recorded and produced by Stephen Gause at Invertigo Productions in Nashville, TN

The best attribute of any talented singer/songwriter is the ability to craft personal songs that are veiled enough to leave them open to interpretation by each listener. Atlanta’s Paul Reeves’ latest recording, Winter’s Over, accomplishes that feat.

The title track begins the CD with a swirling, up-tempo beat and catchy chorus complete with a The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe quotation, “Always winter, never Christmas.” Most of the songs here are gentle ballads featuring a varying blend of piano, soft guitar, ‘cello and violin including “Mystery,” “Come to Me,” “You’ll Be the One” and “Without You.” The exceptional ‘cello accompaniment and adept description of life under too much stress make “Dust and Steam” a standout ballad. “Put Me Down” is another up-tempo song with a catchy chorus and a more alternative vibe compared to the rest of the songs.

Only with a closer listen and some research that it becomes apparent some of the songs here are deeply Christian in subject, as in “You Make Me Believe” with its lyric, “You make me believe / You give me a peek at what Heaven must be like / Now I can see / Cuz you make my eyes open up wide,” and “Come and See”: “Hold on fast to the one who gave His life / He made us whole and He will never let us go.” Even with that bit of knowledge, those songs leave enough open to interpretation by the listener, enabling them to maintain a universal appeal.

Winter’s Over is certain to appeal to any singer/songwriter fan with its powerful, insightful lyrics deftly flowing between up-tempo tunes with catchy choruses and slower ballads. (Rebuilt Records)

www.paulreevesmusic.com

-Kat Coffin

Ruby Isle - Night Shot

Mastered by Jacques Wait | Additional engineering by Sean Hoffman

Late night 1980s dance parties and high voltage disco shindigs are exactly the type of settings that invite the kind of music Ruby Isle is known for. The trio of bassist Dan Gellar (I Am the World Trade Center), guitarist and vocalist Mark Mallman (Guinness Book of Records contender for longest song) and drummer Aaron Lemay (International Espionage) prove that electropop is well and alive and ready to jive until the early morning hours.

The kinetic energy pouring from the speakers resembles a mix of Girl Talk, I Am the World Trade Center and Electric Six. High hats, kick drums, sequencers, synths, loops, vocoder and all the necessary dance instruments pervade this first full-length effort. This CD is abundant with explosive originals, including songs featuring the vocal stylings of Amy Dykes and Tay Zonday (yes, of “Chocolate Rain” fame), and the band’s notoriously twisted covers.

The standout tracks would have to be the funky rocker “So Damn High,” the fuzzed-out ‘80s ode to weekend warriors “Hey Hey Hey (That Kid’s Okay)” and the synth and keyboard-drenched cyber groove “Blow Up.” The bonus EP, which features eight cover songs by indie artists like Black Mountain and Mountain Goats, are not only cover songs, but some weird combination of original cover and mash-up. The Talking Heads’ song “Road to Nowhere” is sampled on the Headlights’ “Cherry Tulips,” for example. The guys of Ruby Isle have put together what could be the best dance CD of 2008. The only complaint here is that 20 tracks of foot-sweating melodies aren’t enough. (Kindercore Records)

www.myspace.com/rubyisle

-Charley Lee

Happy Birthday Amy - Sue

Produced and mixed by Kris White at Casa De Juan in Murfreesboro, TN | Mastered by Keller McDivitt

Referring to itself as a progressive indie pop band, Happy Birthday Amy presents its first full-length album, Sue. Happy Birthday Amy is Amy Smith (vocals, keyboard), Dillon Smith (bass, various instruments) and Miles Cramer (drums). Although a trio, the band has a rotating live and recording lineup affectionately called The Dirty Brassholes. With Nashville as its home base, Happy Birthday Amy has been playing the scene since 2006.

Sue does a good job staying loyal to its pop assertion. One characteristic immediately noticeable is Amy Smith’s refreshing vocal style, which is eager yet distinguished. The lyrical storytelling style of Smith includes the listener in each song’s story, reminiscent of Nick Cave. If anything, the vocals are a bit too present and could stand to be mixed down slightly.

Sue is very much a piano-driven album with a strong backbone of rotating instruments, such as clarinet, horns and tuba. One of the most standout songs on the album is “This Song Is About Monsters,” with dreamy arpeggios despite the darker subject of the song. “Mystery Scars,” a cabaret-style contribution, is confidently supported by toy piano and clarinet solos.

Sue is represented by fine musicianship. Although the album could have fared just fine without a drum set, the drums are instead implemented to accent a complete product. Happy Birthday Amy offers Sue as a merging of sorts. Sue contains the gloss of a high-production album merged with the quaintness of a favorite hometown band. In other words, Sue is familiar to listen to, yet serious in its demeanor.(Self-released)

www.myspace.com/amysmith

-Kristen Strezo

Folklore - Carpenter’s Falls

Recorded and mixed by Jon Croxton and Jimmy Hughes at Croxtonia and at home in Athens, GA | Additional Engineering by Will Quinnell at 80-20 Studios in Queens, NY | Mastered by Derek Almstead at Pixel Studios in Athens, GA

What started off as an ambitious five-song EP just two years ago is now an impressive and well-constructed full-length release, replete with seven brand new songs and re-recorded versions of the old ones. Though Carpenter’s Falls is a companion piece to the Athens’ band Folklore’s debut, The Ghost of H. W. Beaverman, it certainly doesn’t sound like it.

The former is now defunct of all those spiffy guest vocalists and musicians that filled out the first CD. Almost immediately, the tone of this new album is much moodier and darker than the first. Where Beaverman was light-hearted and certainly poppier, Carpenter is decidedly more psychedelic, incorporating a lot of the same instrumentation of the first album, but allowing the drums, synths and percussion to overshadow the horns this time. From the opening sounds of the menacing didgeridoo and mystical sitar, Folklore is no longer interested in having people just tell ghost stories; now the ghosts themselves will do the talking. It’s almost as though this latest effort is the same as Beaverman but told from a different, more sullen perspective.

In contrast are a few songs that lighten the mood. “The Corrections” is one such song that brings back the brass section and adds bells, while the harmony croons, “I am the ghost munchen.” “Two Cousins Camp Store” is more reminiscent of Beaverman, with a rollicking horn section and lyrics that detail country living and not dying.

Overall, Carpenter’s Falls is a departure from form, but not from function. (bumbleBear Records)

www.myspace.com/folkloreband

-Charley Lee

Owen Beverly - Shooting the Bull

Produced by David Rolfe

Owen Beverly is a singer/songwriter hailing from Jackson, Miss. He received some acclaim for the “Drunk Lover” single that was featured on HBO’s Entourage. That level of exposure can be a dream, and yet a nightmare — the challenge being, how do you follow that up?

Beverly didn’t have an immediate answer to that question. He took a brief sabbatical to paint and help hurricane victims rebuild their homes. While traveling, Beverly was inspired to write music. He decided to create an alternative country album instead: Shooting the Bull. Its nine tracks are akin to the work of Son Volt, The Jayhawks and Pete Yorn with true-to-life stories about the trials of relationships that are delivered on an album with intimate studio session quality.

“Come Rain” and “Ruined” have the strongest introductions to hook a listener. “Living in Fear” is about on-again, off-again love relationship and how both people feel the expectations of those around them. “Living in Fear” and “95” feature uncredited female backing vocals by Charleston’s own Cary Ann Hearst, along with piano, organ and drums that crescendo.

In a recent interview, Beverly confessed he’s “a hypocrite” for switching genres. The statement may be a bit harsh; fans are still getting to know him, and Beverly isn’t making an eccentric Garth Brooks-to-Chris Gaines transformation. By trying this particular genre, it further showcases his songwriting ability that has already garnered the attention of fellow singer/songwriters and equal skill in arrangements. Sometimes following an impulse is the most brilliant move a person can make. (Self-released)

www.myspace.com/owenbeverly

-Kathleen Wehle

Dancer Vs. Politician - A City Half Lost

Produced by Andy Baker, Matt Yelton and Sanni Baumgaertner | Mixed by Andy Baker in Athens, GA | Mastered by Jeff Capurso at City Mastering in Athens, GA

You may think that Georgia and Germany have little in common, but Dancer Vs. Politician proves that influences from both these geographical destinations marry quite well together. Dancer Vs. Politician is Sanni Baumgaertner, a Berlin native who has made a home for herself in Athens for the past 10 years. With both places being near and dear to her heart, it’s no wonder she chose to record A City Half Lost in both cities. In turn, what could result as a disjointed, schizophrenic album actually turns out to be a sleek and fluidly composed record.

Baumgaertner’s voice conjures up the croons of Nico with its deep breathy quality. Her songs pay homage to her home and adopted language, switching from German to English and back again as the record progresses. Don’t speak German? Don’t worry. A City Half Lost is an excellent example of how music is the universal language. You don’t need to understand the words of songs like “Hochtief” or “Keine Zeit” to comprehend the haunting loneliness that thematically surrounds them.

Categorized with sounds of the old and new, Baumgaertner music is supported by instruments ranging from the accordion and glockenspiel to synthetic samplings. They reflect elements that both her muse cities have to offer: the slow movement of old historic districts back dropped by the sprouted concrete and innovation of the present. Matt Yelton and Andy Baker’s production quality is very noticeable, with influences of previous project peaking through (The Pixies, Azure Ray), and yet they have allowed Baumgaertner to make this record truly her own. Whether intended or not, it seems to stand as a tribute to the past and the present — old hometowns intertwined with newfound Southern roots. (Self-released)

www.myspace.com/dancerversuspolitician

-Cristina Martin

Deerhunter - Microcastle

Recorded by Nicolas Verhes at Rare Book Studios in Brooklyn, NY

Though summer is long gone, you can still take a trip with Deerhunter’s latest release. Languid with slow motion strums and relaxed distorted vocals, the opening track “Cover Me (Slowly)” sets up the atmospheric journey for Microcastle. The instrumentation accompanied by Bradford Cox’s almost ghostly voice float together through different musical dimensions that are at times foreign in structure, yet familiar in sentiment. This can be found in the round-like instrumental layering of “Green Jacket” or the hollowed electric chords ringing in between artistically misplaced guitar picking in “Calvary Scars.”

Composed in true LP fashion, the musical mark is clear when the record is to be flipped onto its B-side. After the free-flowing challenge of the first eight tracks, “Nothing Ever Happened” brings the listener back down to earth for a while. Though the songs on this side are a bit less complex, they dabble more into the band’s garage/punk roots and give a nice repose to all that time spent in the dark caverns that were painted on the A-side.

The only place that the record seems to falter a bit is in its balance of Cox’s voice to the experimental instrumentations. At times, the vocals are just too soft to be understood and seem to be drowned out by the rest of the band.

Deerhunter’s Microcastle seems to reflect some sort of terrain as inspiration, only the landscape is not terrestrial. Instead it breeds psychedelic visions of outer space and things man has yet to discover. As it has in the past, the Atlanta-based band continues reaching forward, continuously grasping towards the melodic unknown. (Kranky)

www.myspace.com/deerhunter

-Cristina Martin

Pinkstone - The Ridealong

Produced by James Pinkstone, Kris Sampson and Don McCollister at Nickel and Dime Studios in Atlanta, GA | Engineered and mixed by Kris Sampson and Don McCollister at Nickel and Dime Studios in Atlanta, GA

With rootsy tempos and pop pep, James Pinkstone has produced a debut record that masterfully tiptoes between genres, waving away the all-too-often pretentious notions of the indie music scene. Completely accessible with its down home guitar strums and fun drum beats, The Ridealong offers a safe haven for its listeners — a refreshingly straight forward musical experience. There are no harmonic tricks, out of synch percussion samples, or overly dramatized string sections. Instead, Pinkstone reaches to banjos and soulful back up singers, giving each song a comforting quality, like a familiar worn-down blanket or the smell of your mother’s homemade vanilla cake.

What is most fascinating about this record is Pinkstone’s overt readiness to bring a listener into his world through his lyrics. They are unguarded and leave little room for encryptions. He talks candidly about the prospect of death and the frivolity that comes with realization of one’s imminent mortality. Due to coping with his own personal health problems, James Pinkstone imbeds his songs with hospital metaphors and scenery that he has become all too familiar with over the years. Yet he can still be tongue-in-cheek singing lines like, “I need an accident / Maybe a cut or two.” In exploring the irony and frustration of his own personal suffering, he managed to make every single track on The Ridealong a relatable piece of art in which a listener can, perhaps, even discover that he or she too has felt the same.

Still, Pinkstone has not produced a morbid record. Many times he tackles these darker themes with rich instrumentation, featuring fervent organs and textured harmonicas, camp fire guitar strums and delicate piano arrangements. All are well mixed and matched together, displaying the excellent production work of not only Pinkstone, but also Kris Sampson and Don McCollister. Even if all these elements fall away, Pinkstone’s voice is enough to keep a listener warm and full. It posses Josh Ritter’s loose grit and James Taylor’s lullaby softness. Soothing and ambitiously straight forward, The Ridealong will surely resonate in the mind, body and soul well after its final track has finished. (Pink Cloud Productions)

www.myspace.com/thepinkstone

-Cristina Martin

James Dunn - The Long Ride Home

Produced by Brian Layson and Tres Sasser at True Tone Recording in Nashville, TN | Recorded by David Henry at True Tone Recording in Nashville, TN | Mixed by Justin Tocket at House of David Studios in Nashville TN | Mastered by Richard Dodd in Nashville, TN

While listening to James Dunn’s new CD, The Long Ride Home, many questions come to mind. Does the world need yet another gruff, yet sort of sensitive, singer/songwriter armed with a batch of songs about how attractive girls are, but how difficult they can be to figure out? Is it possible to honestly enjoy another CD of serviceable, arena-friendly songs played by a solid, though faceless bar band? Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp can’t keep putting out records forever, so is there a need for someone to grab that fading torch and try to run with it without carelessly burning people or allowing the metaphorical torch to extinguish altogether?

The answers to these questions will directly affect whether or not you are a fan of James Dunn and his second full-length release, a follow-up to his 2006 debut, Lonely American Dream.

Song-wise, nothing much stands out, except perhaps the inane, adolescent lyrics of “Crush on You,” but the full-sounding production of Brian Layson and Tres Sasser is outstanding. Their use of dramatic, emotionally-building arrangements and deft musical colorings, mostly provided by keyboardist and accordionist John Deadrick, are nearly always spot on.

Dunn, who calls Raleigh, NC. home, seems likable enough and his voice is occasionally interesting and expressive, notably on the rootsy, radio-friendly “Oak Tree,” in which he sounds like a slightly rougher Jackson Browne, but the material never quite rises above the level of agreeable and bland.

If solid, meat-and-potatoes rock is one of your favorite genre dishes, then take a seat next to James Dunn and dig in on The Long Ride Home. (Self-released)

www.jamesdunnmusic.com

-Scott Roberts

Natalie Moon - Short Stories of Epic Proportion

Produced by Paul Reeves at Domus in Cumming, GA | Mixed by Andrew Osenga at Sputnik in Nashville, TN | Mastered by Vance Powell at Sputnik in Nashville, TN

Most singer/songwriters, if asked to name their influences, would probably list such usual suspects as Joni Mitchell or Bob Dylan or Randy Newman. But Birmingham, Ala. songstress Natalie Moon, instead, lists literary legends Edgar Allen Poe, Flannery O’Connor and L.M. Montgomery as her main influences, and those influences shine brightly on her new five-song EP, Short Stories of Epic Proportions.

Released by Athens label Rebuilt Records (motto: “For music, not for profit.” See our Athens news section for a label profile), Short Stories is Moon’s first release since her 2003 debut Many Waters, and it begins with the thoroughly pleasant “One Good Thing.” The tale of redemption is told with the aid of the shuffling brush drums of Chris Farney, the melodic Dobro of George Reeves and the clear, strong vocal of Moon, whose voice is comfortably reminiscent of Emmylou Harris’. The second song, however, the ominous “Cross the River” with its stark piano, subtle slide guitar and eerie cello (courtesy of Brandon Brooks), lets the listener know that Moon has many musical moods to share.

Producer (and Rebuilt label-mate) Paul Reeves does an outstanding job of coming up with an assortment of arrangements that showcase Moon’s variety of strengths while cohesively pulling the five songs on the EP together. Another outstanding aspect of the CD is its book-like packaging that includes five short stories (four written by Moon, and one written by her great-aunt and namesake Natalie Blanton) that serve as companion pieces to the five songs in lieu of a more customary lyric sheet. Short Stories is a work of uncommon musical beauty that marries lyrical intellectualism with powerful, spiritually-driven emotionalism. Natalie Moon’s optimism and talent should be heralded regardless of what medium she uses to share her message. (Rebuilt Records)

www.nataliemoon.com

-Scott Roberts

Metronome the City / I, Octopus - Metronome the City / I, Octopus Split Album

Produced by Metronome The City and I, Octopus | Recorded by Jimbo Walsh at Big Brown Studios in Henderson, LA

A dazzling effort by the combined talents of two groups from New Orleans, this split album from Metronome the City and I, Octopus paints a vivid landscape of musical colors, redefining the future of experimental rock in 2008.

These two bands create a powerful and breathtaking musical landscape, delivering solid performances close to 20 minutes each in length. The music was created from scratch, all in one take, with just a little room for contemplation and planning.

A remarkable collaborative effort, Metronome and Octopus break through to a higher stratosphere, turning on their creative afterburners with gripping instrumentation and lush soundscapes.

The bands emulate a wide range of sounds and textures, much like an experimental, prog-rock style group depicting and deciphering an Impressionist painting of Monet’s or Van Gogh’s.

I, Octopus achieves great spontaneity in the song “Craig Has a Beard Now,” complete with an array of whirling organs, echoed guitars, spine-tingling percussion and pulsating bass lines.

Metronome the City’s track compiles a group of earlier recordings, woven together in a progressive rock fashion, complete with overdubs and added noise.

Both bands find success in creating an illusion of noise and dissonance, as happier, major key qualities are also revealed.

The music is very impressionist, avant-garde and full of life, as many surprises remain in store for those genuine listeners who wish to revisit the CD again and again.

The active listener will truly appreciate the subtle qualities of the music’s dynamics, such as the howling, spooky tones at the very end of I, Octopus’s track. More haunting sounds are found at the very start of Metronome’s song, until a beautifully orchestrated guitar riff comes in, accompanied by a fervent bass. The engaging rhythm is sped up nicely by the backing percussion, and the song truly takes off into mid-flight.

The production work is stellar; the instruments golden and full of sultry tones. With captivating, uplifting highs and devastating lows, the music is soothing, calm and reflective. (Self-released)

www.ioctopusmusic.com

www.metronomethecity.com

-Shawn M. Haney