Not to stray from my general rule of
keeping this column “all local, all the time,” but have
you folks checked out the new Animal Collective record, Feels?
Some of the second half leaves a little to be desired, but the first
few songs feel so much like having a dance party with a little kid
that I rarely even get to the second half without first collapsing
from exhaustion. Well worth the cost of admission.
Now, then: it is the year-end issue here at The Ann Arbor Paper,
and like most dorks, I love writing lists. With that in mind, here’s
a rundown of what hit me hardest in local music these last twelve
months or so.
1. Kelly Jean Caldwell Banner of A Hundred
Hearts (Ypsilanti Records)
Not just my favorite new local record, but probably my favorite
new record by anyone anywhere this year. At turns elegant, heartbreaking,
and boiling over with pure joy, Banner’s country-tinged
simplicity struck a perfect chord in 2005 that resounded through
our fair city like honky-tonk church bells. Whatever that means.
2. Totally Awesome Fest (April 28-30, 2005)
Officially, house shows are supposed to be off the record here,
but this sprawling three-day mess, which climaxed with Hot Meat
For Young Lovers’ Patrick Elkins threatening to jump off the
roof of the (since-deceased) Totally Awesome House at the end of
his band’s set, demands mention. My personal high points:
sets by Odd Clouds, 25 Suaves, Viking Moses, The Jimes, $2 Breakfast,
Melting Moments, and the aforementioned Hot Meat.
3. Madison House
Again with the house show business, but honestly, that’s where
the real shit’s happening. If you wanted intimate, occasionally
ludicrous acoustic shows this past summer, this was the place to
be: Kelly Jean Caldwell, Fred Thomas, Jim Roll, Chris Bathgate,
Matt Jones, Emily Jane Powers, and plenty more all got drunk, flubbed
chord progressions, and/or reached new heights of hazy beauty. Now
that’s what I call summer.
4. Descent Of The Holy Ghost Church
See profile last issue... If any new band deserves your attention
in the coming year, it’s this one. Since their inception,
their live sets have grown to be positively harrowing experiences,
like speeding down a deserted country road by yourself in the middle
of the night. Recommended. Obviously. See also: solo sets by Descent
members Chris Bathgate and Matt Jones, which have been superb this
last year, not to mention guitarist Michael Beauchamp’s other
band, The Dumb And Ugly Club, who should have a new record out by
the time you read this.
5. Wolf Eyes opening for Animal Collective at The
Blind Pig, 4/25/05
For whatever reason, nearly everyone I know in Ann Arbor was at
this show, so months later I am still able to have a debate at almost
every party on whether Wolf Eyes was totally better than Animal
Collective that night. My stance: definitely. That said, have you
guys heard the new Animal Collective record? See Also: bombastic
solo sets this year by ex-Wolf Aaron Dilloway, which have maybe
proven that he was secretly the band’s most intense member
all along.
6. Ypsilanti Records' “Tuesday Series”
It didn’t last that long, but by the time this weekly CD-R
series petered out, the point had been made: this area’s well
of musical inspiration runs deep enough to put out a record worthy
of note once a week. If only it were so easy a thing to manage the
business end of such an endeavor. See Also: Ypsilanti Records head
Fred Thomas, whose own music seems to just keep getting better.
Saturday Looks Good To Me’s Ann Arbor shows are always a great
party, and Thomas’ solo shows change gears from hilarious
to heartrending so viscerally that you might get motion sickness
if you don’t strap yourself in.
7. Tasty Soil Records
This brand-new label, the brainchild of Detroit area artist/noise
musician Chris Pottinger (A.K.A. Cotton Museum) hasn’t been
as prolific as other labels of its ilk (see American Tapes, Fag
Tapes, Hanson Records, and Pottinger’s old label, I Hate To
Rock), but what the releases lack in frequency, they make up in
consistency. Releases by Cotton Museum and Jimbo Easter have been
beautifully packaged, far-out romps through the outer limits, and
that doesn’t even bring up the totebags, button sets, and
other trinkets that have trickled out. In the coming months, Pottinger
will be releasing a split EP that is half his own work and half
that of Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore. Weird hunters, don’t
miss the boat on this. (http://www.tastysoil.com)
8. Little Claw
Kilynn, the singer for this spooky Detroit band, plays guitar like
a percussion instrument and sings like she’s being chased
by ghosts. His Name Is Alive’s Warn DeFever, who produced
this band’s debut LP, is rumored to have remarked that it’s
the best thing he’s ever worked on, but no record could send
chills down your spine like this band’s live show.
9. $2 Breakfast
This Detroit duo, who play every Sunday morning at a diner in Detroit
called The Steak Hut, evoke the spirit and history of American folk
music with rare grace and power; personally, having only experienced
them in contexts outside of their regular gig, I can’t imagine
focusing on my pancakes when they’re playing, especially when
Amanda opts to demonstrate her talent for the washtub bass. If you
can make it, you might consider getting up early some Sunday morning
and making the trip to check them out.
10. Catch A Wave
Another somewhat folk-oriented duo, consisting of Patrick Elkins
(ex-Hot Meat For Young Lovers) and Aleise Barnett, who do occasionally
literate, occasionally goofy, and always endearing a cappella songs.
It takes a lot to get up in front of people and sing without the
mask of loud instruments to hide behind, but they do it, and well
at that. They even have a record out on Elkins’ label, Chew
Your Own, which you should check out, since Barnett’s jumping
town at the end of this year.
HONORABLE MENTION: MC Trashpedal, Aleise Barnett
(solo), Jib Kidder, The Big Good, Secret Mirror, Josh Redd’s
new hardcore band whose name slips my mind, and gosh, way too much
to remember. If you’re awesome and I forgot, I’m sorry.
SAD NOTES: The departure of local singer/songwriters
Emily Jane Powers, Alec Jensen, and Alexander Robbins for various
debatable greener pastures, the end of shows at The Bad Idea, the
closing of Henrietta Fahrenheit, and the rumored closing of The
Fleetwood Diner. Seriously, where will the kids go?
NATIONAL HONORABLE MENTION: Viking Moses, Mandarin
Dynasty, Castanets, Wooden Wand & Vanishing Voice, the unlikely
return of Vashti Bunyan, Bobby Birdman, and the goddamn Animal Collective.
How the hell do they do it?
That’s not all, but hey, it is all I have room for. Godspeed,
and I’ll talk at you next year.
Email partyends@annarborpaper.com
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