FRESH BAKED
in NYC
Acrylics
All of the Fire
2009 | Terrible Records
C+

Acrylics are pleasant. The Brooklyn quintet’s debut EP, All of the Fire (released October 28 on Terrible Records) features clean production, charming boy-girl harmonies, and light songwriting. Characters cross county lines, sail across oceans, and miss their subway stops, all in the name of adventure and introspection. The adorably cathartic opener, “Lil Ivy,” rides a gentle guitar line, a careful drum roll, and near-spoken verses about a female protagonist who heads out to California and whose interests include “skinny dipping with a bottle of wine.” It’s sort of like that Shawn Mullins song from 1998 (please pardon the awful advertisement.)

While their lyrics may rely on tried-and-true topics, Acrylics’ (for the most part) understated delivery keeps the songs catchy. On “Lil Ivy,” guitarist/vocalist Jason Klauber rhymes “messenger sack” with “never looked back” and it actually works. But when he belts it out over a wobbly guitar and plodding drums on “Conselyea,” Klauber no longer sounds modest; he comes off as desperate and self-pitying. Listening feels like the sort of chore that Lil Ivy ran away from home to avoid.

The band’s other guitarist/vocalist, Molly Shea, sounds best when she isn’t singing backup. Her slight drawl on the title track is so confident it doesn’t matter that what she’s saying doesn’t really mean anything (“He who sails the ocean/ Is he who fails to drown”).

Acrylics do manage to move out of their comfort zone on the closing track, “Honest Aims.” The messy garage jam is a much-needed release to a pretty prim record. Not that there’s anything wrong with a band being polite; it doesn’t stop Acrylics from being enjoyable. But it does get in the way of them being memorable.

You can stream “Honest Aims” below, and read our interview with Acrylics here.

by Kyle McGovern

Acrylics – “Honest Aims”

FRESH BAKED
in NYC
Kurt Vile
Childish Prodigy
2009 | Matador Records
B-

Kurt Vile is a confident guy – with a name like that, he has to be. On his newest album, Childish Prodigy, the Philadelphia singer/songwriter (and Williamsburg/
Woodsist/Market Hotel staple) swaggers between fuzz and folk without much effort. At times the transitions seem appropriate: opening track “Hunchback” is as sexy and playful as centerpiece “Blackberry Song” is sweet and soothing. But even with the added polish, some of the softer songs feel unfinished.

Almost all of the lyrics sound improvised, which for the most part is fine. When his vocals mesh with layers of distortion Vile sounds off the cuff, but when his singing is front and center, he sounds like he doesn’t have anything to say. A line like, “I ain’t never been so insulted in my whole life/ Shit!” is easy to ignore when it’s buried under the Kraut-rock kaleidoscope of “Freak Train,” but when something as clichéd as “You better get your head re-screwed on,” is clearly repeated over and over (and over) on “Heart Attack,” it’s harder to ignore.

Childish Prodigy is cleaner than last year’s lower-fi Constant Hitmaker and 2009’s God Is Saying This To You, but that isn’t necessarily an improvement. Vile is at his most effective when he’s strutting his stuff and stumbling through a wall of sound; on the quieter tracks he sounds like he’s pacing.

None of these songs ever really progress or move forward. The same notes swirl around and around, paired with either belligerent yelping or overwhelming neuroses. On “Inside Lookin Out” Vile’s “Got the blues so BAAAAAD,” and on “Monkey” he admits, “I was so sad/ I swear I held my own hand/ Pretending it was yours.”

The whole record is like a drunken ride on a carousel: the exciting moments are dizzying and colorful, but when things slow down regret sinks in.

by Kyle McGovern

FRESH BAKED
in NYC
This Frontier Needs Heroes
This Frontier Needs Heroes
2009 | Self-Released
C

Brooklyn-based brother-sister duo This Frontier Needs Heroes do not sound like city folk. Their self-titled debut LP is all open air, broken hearts, and quaint countryside. It’s the Old West by way of Williamsburg; it’s more Bonnie and Clyde than Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger. But their outer borough address sabotages the whole thing.

Their Myspace page rattles off a list of “authentic” American influences (Townes Van Zandt, Woody Guthrie, and Roy Orbison, to name a few) but namedropping can’t stand in for sincerity.

Lead singer Brad Lauretti’s vocals are touching – his voice seems to crack at just the right moments – but his simple lyrics and predictable rhymes (“Something’s gonna strike you down/ Something’s gonna turn you around/ Something’s gonna make you feel like everyone’s around”) are just disappointing. The album’s centerpiece, “I Can’t Do It All By Myself,” suits the limp lyrics, but only because it sounds like a lullaby.

This Frontier Needs Heroes just seem a little disingenuous, like two kids playing pretend. They label themselves as outlaws and revolutionaries, but aside from occasionally featuring the flute, their songs are pretty safe. “Long Gone” tries to swagger like a lone ranger, but it’s sung by a gentleman.

Opening track “Firefly” is a fitting introduction to the album: brother Brad wonders when he’ll have a hate-free heart while sister Jessica harmonizes over simple guitar-picking and tense strings. It’s pretty, but it’s all presentation. And for one moment, Brad’s lyrics don’t need any polishing: “I’m not gonna sit here and tell you that I’m right.”

by Kyle McGovern

FRESH BAKED
in NYC
Schocholautte
Oodles of Charm
2009 | Chocolate Brontosaurus
C+

Do Brooklyn-based trio Schocholautte a favor: don’t judge their debut EP, Oodles of Charm (released this past March) by its first track, “Mercedes Benz.” Sure, the opening guitar line is catchy but “grating” would be a generous way to describe the vocals. Lead singer Michael P!’s unfortunate habit of stretching out his vowels and stumbling through rhyme schemes is as awkward as it is earnest.

Thankfully though, Michael P! (the band goes by stage names, like “Captain K” and, uh, “Artie”) tones it down as the record progresses. His singing goes from being off-putting and irritating to appropriate and endearing. He yelps “LOL!” (no, seriously) to transition from chorus to verse in the opening track, but by centerpiece “Haley, Please” Michael P! charms, even with a line as simple and sappy as “Haley Jane/ That New York moon is full/ I know you wished everything could be made so beautiful.”

Schocholautte may not necessarily have anything new to say – Oodles’ primary themes are romance and relationships – but at least the band has fun saying it. The slinky bass line on “Spin the Bottle” complements the speak-singing about American Apparel spandex. Even though “Gone” and “Swimming Out” both have pretty much the same chorus (“La, la, la” on the former, “Ba, ba, ba” on the latter) the bouncy guitar on “Gone” makes sure the cliché is too enjoyable to feel like filler, while Michael P!’s effective inflections on “Swimming Out” keep that song shuffling forward. These tunes may not be innovative, but they’re definitely energetic.

Oodles of Charm builds to a climactic finish with its closing track, “Water on the Coast.” Simple strumming, steady drumming, and soft singing are slowly washed over by tense strings, dizzying distortion, and skillful screaming. It’s an unexpected cohesion, especially from a band that five songs earlier relied on AIM-speak to act as a bridge.

by Kyle McGovern