Young Things - 'Hello Love / Goodbye Sexual' CD Review

After having recently slogged through too many releases where I either couldn't figure out what the band was trying to accomplish or was simply being bored by the release, Brooklyn's Young Things' debut disc Hello Love // Goodbye Sexual goes a long way toward re-establishing my faith that there is still exciting music out there. Young Things seem to take vocal queues from Queen but combine this with soaring melodic hooks and garage-rock riffs that fall somewhere between The Killers and The Bravery and add a slice of Beatles-era McCartney on top of all this. It is a crazily compelling mix that will likely get a cooler-than-thou crowd at Mercury Lounge swaying a bit, if not dancing.



The 11-track disc (30 minutes) starts out somewhat similarly to The Bravery's The Sun and The Moon as the first track, "No One Taught You How to Fall in Love Alone", is a minute-long intro to the dark and anthemic track "All Human Life". While the intro track has a glam/Queen vibe, "All Human Life" is a fist-in-the air chant-along number with hypnotic, tribal drumming and grimy guitar riffs. Switching complete gears, the band goes from here into the urgent rock tale of suburban bliss gone awry, "Lucy Bloody Tuesday", which seems to capture elements from both The Beatles and Beck. Keeping the dance party going and never letting the listener get complacent, "Golly Gee" is a loping Brit-Pop number with clear ringing vocals from Mikey accompanied by some stiff-backed drumming. "Talking Too Loud" has a two-tone/dancehall feel and you can quickly hear the McCartney vibe being channeled on "Hello Love" and "Easy Lie". "Goodbye Sexual" is the big alt/punk-rock dance floor number with edgy, angular guitar riffs and Mikey trading off vocals with Har Mar Superstar. The disc ends with the chill-out number "A Long Time Ago Tomorrow Morning" which starts with Mikey singing out someone bottoming out backed with just an acoustic guitar.

It doesn't look like Young Things have any upcoming shows but - for anyone who needs additional music - the band has posted the Holiday EP ("Modern Christmas Music for Tomorrow's Men & Women") they recorded last year as a free download on their website.

Links:
Young Things

Empires Releases Third Digital Single "Strangers" From Forthcoming CD "Bang"

Empires, Chicago's answer to The Killers, have a new CD Bang coming out on March 9th. The band has just released the third digital single, "Strangers", from this forthcoming disc.

Empires made their NYC debut last year at CMJ with shows at Union Hall and Fat Baby. MTV describes the band's sound as "all ethereal and doomy like the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club or the Black Angels, but with a little bit of My Chemical Romance snarl thrown in for good measure.” Here is a live video of Empires' "Under the Bright Lights" (from 2008's Howl) from the Union Hall show so you can judge for yourself.



Bang was written, produced and mixed by Empires and will be available through the band's webstore starting on March 9th.

Links:
Empires

FranKo - Live Video + Interview, Kenny's Castaway, NYC 7/23/09 (First US Show)

DOWNLOAD: FranKo - "Night Time" Acoustic BritSounds Session (MP3)

UK buzz band FranKo were in NYC in late July for a brief promo tour. For anyone who hasn't heard the band, their sound falls somewhere between Franz Ferdinand and The Killers. I had the chance to catch up with the band at their first US show, which was at Kenny's Castaway, and filmed the first two songs of their set.

FranKo just released their debut single "Night Time" which is available on iTunes (click on the picture of FranKo for a direct link). The band is currently working on their first full length with producer Jim Lowe (The Stereophonics), which is due out in March 2010.



FranKo is playing a couple of shows in the UK next month (dates below) and will also be back in NYC for CMJ Festival.

Upcoming tour dates:
Oct. 03, 2009, 7:00PM, The Basement Door - Oxjam, Richmond
Oct. 31, 2009, 12:00PM, Freestyle Festival w/ MxPx, CKY, London

Links:
FranKo's MySpace Profile

Electric Touch - Pre-Show Interview from Crash Mansion / Early Show Tonight at Piano's

Electric Touch is playing the final night of a three-show NYC residency tonight at Piano's. This is an early show and the Electric Touch goes on at 7PM.

The band puts on a great live show and has been playing a lot of major festival (including All Points West this Saturday) so I would expect Piano's to be packed; Get there early!



Links:
Electric Touch's Website

Electric Touch Play the Second of Three NYC Shows Tonight at Crash Mansion / Play All Points West on Saturday

Austin, TX post-punk band Electric Touch is in town for a three-night run of shows prior to their appearance at All Points West on Saturday (3:05PM set time). The band played Piano's last night and is back at Piano's on Thursday for a free show. This is an early show and the band is going on at 7PM.

Tonight's show is at Crash Mansion; Electric Touch has a 10PM set time and they are playing with BB Gun, Freedomhead, The Embracers, Electric Chariot and The Slant. Tickets are $12 @ the door.



Links:
Electric Touch's MySpace Profile

Electric Touch: Review of Self-Titled Debut CD (Justice Records)

Coming across like a less-mopey version of The Killers or The Bravery, Electric Touch has spent a lot this year on the road playing high-profile festivals and creating a lot of buzz. The band formed just over a year ago and spent this year playing SxSW, ACL, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo Music Festival, V Festival in addition to touring with The Fratellis. The band's self-titled debut came out at the end of the summer on Justice Records.

Electric Touch's CD is a solid piece of 80's new-wave crossed with 90's indie-rock. The band is composed of three Texans (guitarist Christopher Leigh, bassist Ross Dubois, and drummer Louis Messina) and a British transplant (frontman/guitarist Sane Lawlor). The band has a distinctive sound as Lawlor has a tendency to sound a bit like late-period John Lenon (thinking specifically of Lenon's work with Cheap Trick) and the band's rhythm section falls somewhere between Cheap Trick and a more aggressive version of Duran Duran. Producer Chris Smith (Meat Puppets, Built To Spill, The Dandy Warhols) adds a clean feel to the band's sound where the vocals and instruments are equally highlighted and he also gives the disc a "big rock/arena" sound.

This is one of those CD where, if you like one of the cuts, you'll likely enjoy the whole disc. While the band's sound is consistent across the disc's ten tracks, none of the tunes are repetitive and Electric Touch's debut is engaging from end-to-end.

Six of the disc's ten tracks are streaming on the band's MySpace page (link below) and here is the promo video for "Live In Our Hearts".


Electric Touch just finished an East Coast tour and are currently playing a few shows around Texas. Upcoming tour dates are:

Dec 8 2008 8:00PM, Scout Bar, Beaumont, Texas
Dec 9 2008 8:00PM, Scout Bar San Antonio, Texas
Dec 10 2008 8:00PM, Dos Amigos, Odessa, Texas
Dec 12 2008 8:00PM, Warehouse Live w/ The Secret Machines & Perry Farrell, Houston, Texas

Links:
Electric Touch's MySpace Profile