Town Hall: NYC Indie-Folk Release Covers EP as Free Download / Acoustic Show at Ace Hotel on July 12th

Indie-folk band Town Hall has compiled all of the cover songs they recorded on the run-up to the release of their full-length debut, Roots & Bells, and released this new 5-track EP as a free download. Town Hall Plays the Classics, Vol. 1 contains unique re-interpretations of the following songs:

* Ja Rule and Ashanti – “Always On Time”
* Frankie Marvin – “Old Man Duff”
* Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch – “Didn’t Leave Nobody but the Baby”
* R. Kelly – “Text Me”
* Jimmy Eat World – “The Middle”

In an interview with Moosick, Sefan Weiner (Vocals/Resonator Mandola) described this project as the “re-imagining songs as an attempt to bring in music from each of our influences (as well as music that is nostalgic for us) and give them the Town Hall treatment.”

I’m not familiar with Ja Rule & Ashanti so, while I can’t make any comparisons to the original, Town Hall’s cover is a delicate, perfectly crafted indie-pop song. Frankie Marvin’s “Old Man Duff” is sung by Stefan and is a cover of a ‘stomping’ folk tune that the band found on an old 78 RPM record from 1931. “Didn’t Leave Nobody but the Baby” is an Americana track, with multi-part harmonies and the prominent use of a banjo adds to the song’s rustic charm. R. Kelly’s misogynous “Text Me” takes on new life and meaning with Phoebe Ryan taking lead vocals on Town Hall’s languid cover. The disc wraps up with Phoebe and Stefan trading-off vocals on a mellow reinterpretation of Jimmy Eat World’s emo chestnut “The Middle”.





Tour Hall’s Upcoming Shows
7/12 The Ace Hotel - New York, NY (acoustic)
7/13 Bushwick Walkabout Festival - Brooklyn, NY

Town Hall is:
Vocals/Omnichord: Phoebe Ryan
Vocals/Resonator Mandola: Stefan Weiner
Guitar: Jesse Kranzler

Links:
Town Hall

Town Hall: Brooklyn Indie-Folk Band Release Cover of R. Kelly's "Text Me"

I've (almost) given up trying to predict which bands could "break out" of the local NYC scene but...Town Hall could be one of those bands.

Town Hall caught my ear with their EP "Sticky Notes and Paper Scraps" which was a mellow "late night" listen and the band recorded a series of eclectic cover between the release of the EP and their full-length debut Roots and Bells (which came out April 15th). I thought the series of cover tunes was over but the band just released their take on R. Kelly's 'Text Me'.



Upcoming Town Hall Shows:
- June 23 - Littlefield, Brooklyn, NY
- June 24 - Ace Hotel (20 W 29th St), NYC

Links:
Town Hall

Jimmy Eat World - "Invented" CD Review (Interscope)

I lost track of Jimmy Eat World over the years so I’ve been listening to Invented with not much more than the somewhat distant memory of Bleed American as a foundation for the band’s sound. I always cite the Foo Fighters as a band that can write a near-perfect alt- pop song but Jimmy Eat World needs to be on this list as well. When the band is firing on all cylinders, their hooks are memorable.

Invented is the band’s seventh disc (Interscope) and marks the return of producer Mark Trombino. This seems to be a big deal in the music press but, as I never heard the band without Trombino, I don’t have a frame of reference to comment.

Keeping fans busy, there are a couple different editions of Invented. The "deluxe" version contains the tracks "You & I" (Wilco cover), "Coffee and Cigarettes (Acoustic)", "Precision Auto" (Superchunk cover) and "Anais (Demo)". There was also an acoustic version of "Mixtape" that was included as part of an iTunes pre-order.

Invented starts out strong with “This Heart is Hard to Find” which puts a lot of life and energy into song that is driven by acoustic guitars, Jim Adkins’ vocals, hand claps and violin. This track sets the stage for the disc’s first single “My Best Theory” which is one of a handful of very strong alt-pop gems on the disc. While tempos and song structures change, the disc stays at a high-energy level through the wistful coming-of-age song “Coffee and Cigarettes” (which is powered by a memorable driving bassline and Courtney Marie Andrews sharing the vocals). Unfortunately, the band gets weighed down by slower tempo emotive baggage in the middle of the disc. The energy that opened the disc doesn’t return until the tenth track – “Action Needs an Audience” (which features guitarist/original vocalist Tom Linton on vocals). While the band slows down on the last two songs on the disc, these songs are slightly longer than the others which gives the music an opportunity to rise and fall beneath Adkins’ vocals. The musical buildup keeps these tracks engaging and differentiates them from the slower tracks in the middle of this disc. Invented ends on a strong but somber note with the final track “Mixtape”, which is a breakup song that builds to a crescendo around the chorus “You don't get to walk away now. It's too late, you can't walk away now”.



Links:
Jimmy Eat World

Jimmy Eat World Releases Sixth Disc "Invented" // Shows at Terminal 5 on Oct. 13 & 14

Jimmy Eat World's sixth studio album, Invented, is available in stores and digitally today. The album marks the reunion of the band and producer Mark Trombino who served as producer on the band's two biggest selling albums Clarity and Bleed American. The deluxe version of the album (with four additional tracks) is currently the #4 best seller on iTunes.

First single "My Best Theory" has quickly stormed up the Modern Rock charts and now is the #3 song. New York Magazine wrote: "The pounding single ["My Best Theory"] from Jimmy Eat World's forthcoming album, Invented, reminds us that emo used to actually rock, not whine." The band recently performed a blistering rendition of the song on Late Show with David Letterman this past Friday, September 24. The heavily science fiction influenced video for "My Best Theory" made its debut last Friday.





The band started a tour across the U.S. on September 21 and has been playing to packed houses. The Washington Post wrote about a stop in DC that "they sounded as fiery as ever, like classic rock power ballads ramped up to the speed of punk."

Jimmy Eat World plays Terminal 5 on October 13th and 14th and We Were Promised Jetpacks (Fatcat) is providing support each night. The show on the 14th is sold out but tickets are still available for the show on the 13th. Tickets are $32 in advance and $37 DOS.

Links:
Jimmy Eat World