Grass Widow - Past Time

Grass Widow
Past Time
(2010, Kill Rock Stars)
RIYL = Sleater Kinney, Vivian Girls, meh

At first glance, Grass Widow looks like just another retro-pop girl group in the vein of Vivian Girls, Dum Dum Girls, etc. However, on tape, Grass Widow is a tangled, wiry mess of arty post-punk that melds all the cutesy bandwagon-hopping blah-ness of the afore mentioned bands with something much rougher. If you’re looking for reference points, Sleater Kinney is probably a bit more accurate, but not wholly. I don’t know – comparisons are lame anyway. Grass Widow are a harmonic, multi-voiced, un-harmonic throat gripper of a band. And a worthy one to be chiming out tunes in this landscape of quick fixes and indie one-hit-wonders. Past Time, similar to their debut, grows on you with repeated listens. Like weeds. It chokes you out of your meh-music daze with a taste of what real indie rock ought to be sounding like these days. Really an awesome indie-pop rock record.

-Thistle

Thao Nguyen - We Brave Bee Stings and All

Thao Nguyen and the Get Down Stay Down
We Brave Bee Stings and All
1.2008 Kill Rock Stars
Verdict: Super charming western infused pop.

Halloween, it's pretty cool. You dress up like Donatello, arm yourself with a pillowcase and get hoards of candy from strangers. That night you eat about three fourths of your candy, get sick and forget about the rest of it till you find the stash under your bed around Easter. And so it is with loads of sugary sweet pop music. It's so delightful that you overplay it than end up hating it and or forgetting about it. Thao Nguyen and the Get Down Stay Down play this type of sugary sweet pop music with a western flair. So it is to my surprise that I've been popping' this album down like a bag of peanut butter M&M's for a month now and there's not a tummy ache in site. Thao's sophomore album is full of catchy hooks, folk strums, banjo runs, and the occasional horn ensemble. Her song writing brings to mind an early Laura Veirs. However, to my ears Thao is far more consistent and far more rewarding. Lyrically, Thao tackles the feelings of becoming an adult while hanging on to the wonder of bright eyed youth. Crooning the lines "We brave bee stings and all, and we don't dive we cannonball, and we splash our eyes full of chemicals, just so there's none left for little girls." Occasionally these types of lyrics can seem a bit cheesy, but her voice is so captivating that it doesn't really matter. We Brave Bee Stings and All is the most pleasant surprise of the year thus far and the album is sure to find a secure spot on my year end list. It's super cute.

-Wooly Mammal

Thao Nguyen and the Get Down Stay Down - "Swimming Pools"

Xiu Xiu - Women As Lovers

Xiu Xiu
Women as Lovers
(01.2008, Kill Rock Stars)
Verdict = Best Xiu Xiu Yet

I have always wanted to love Xiu Xiu on record. Live they are absolutely stunning, possibly one of the most consistently incredible live acts I have ever seen. However, on record I have always had a difficult time. Perhaps it is the extremeness of the vocals on record as opposed to how they are more a layer of the clouded mix of noise live, or perhaps it’s that their intense live sound simply can’t fit within the confines of a plastic disc. Either way, each album has left me wanting just a little bit more than was offered. This time around Xiu Xiu has managed the record that I have constantly hoped for: an accessible, consistent record. Don’t get me wrong here – this is still Xiu Xiu and if you felt that there was no way that you would ever enjoy the band, Woman As Lovers probably won’t convert you. However, for those on the sidelines, Xiu Xiu’s continually expanding roster (including the most recent addition of bassist Devin Hoff) works wonders. Ches Smith continues to provide incredibly inventive drumming and, thankfully, Caralee McElroy continues to add her wonderful vocals to the mix. Surrounding himself with tremendous talent, Jamie Stewart’s brainchild has moved from being a band that you can’t ignore to the band that you don’t want to ignore. It seems that the band has hit its stride, upping the accessibility while retaining the signature sound that can only be attributed to Xiu Xiu; and it’s their best yet. After five records that have continually pushed the envelope, “their best” is a considerable accomplishment.

-Mr. Thistle

Xiu Xiu - "I Do What I Want When I Want"