Album review: Lissie tames the pop tiger on her full-length debut

Lissie - Catching a Tiger

Lissie
Catching a Tiger
Fat Possum, 2010

Lissie is no country sweetheart. The blonde-haired, blue-eyed Rock Island, Ill. native gained recognition with her rustic, yet beautifully serene voice that put an unusual spin on a number of covers from Lady Gaga, Kid Cudi and Metallica. Her debut album, Catching a Tiger, however, offers an interesting mixture of less immediately commercial tunes.

Elisabeth “Lissie” Maurus was musically inspired by her grandfather, a former international barbershop quartet champion. Despite defiant behavior that resulted in expulsion from high school, Lissie’s hard work and musical talent gained her fans such as Lenny Kravitz and DJ Morgan Page.

She later released two EPs, before debuting Tiger this August. The album demonstrates Lissie’s organic talent; however, it tends to swing from one genre to another, and often plays it safe and traditional.

Many of the songs on Tiger are calm numbers that highlight acoustic-guitar-based folk music. One such track, “Record Collector,” contains some unusual but appealing instrumentation. As Lissie lightly yodels and belts out the thoughtful lyrics, her voice elicits chills, striking to the core.

The guitars turn more electric on songs like “In Sleep,” bringing a bluesy edge to this track detailing the end of a relationship.

Towards the middle, the album unexpectedly takes on a poppy, radio-friendly sound. The song “Cuckoo” is a soft rock tune with a summery “Let’s hit the town” feel. The musicianship doesn’t diminish with the pop moves, but Lissie is at her best with the slower, raw music that showcases her vocal chops.

Lissie ends Tiger with “Oh Mississippi,” a country-inspired piano ballad paying homage to the great river bordering her hometown. Though it’s a solid closer, “Oh Mississippi” keeps to the straight and narrow and offers little innovation. But taken as a whole, Catching a Tiger is a notable debut from a young, laid-back rebel with a powerful voice and an eclectic musical vision.

Posted by Candice Norwood | September 2, 2010 | Album Reviews | Comment

Photostream: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Telekinesis and Union Tree Review at the Firebird, August 31

All photos by Kate McDaniel.

Posted by Kate McDaniel | September 1, 2010 | Concerts, Photos | Comment

Discovery: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin’s pop sway

myspace.com/boris / Sophie Parker

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin is a few months late for the Summer Jam of 2010 sweepstakes, but I’d like to take this opportunity to retroactively nominate the Springfield, Mo. indie rockers.

“Sink / Let it Sway,” from the new album Let it Sway is a flawless (OK, the slash in the title makes it hard to announce on air), 3-minute flare from the heart of the power pop sun: From the kick drum bomp and toned-up guitar (if that’s not a Jaguar through a Fender Deluxe, I don’t know what could be), to the attention to detail (hear those intricate harmonies in the first 10 seconds?) and the bah-bah-bah at 1:40, the tambourine to the minimalist keyboard grind, the handclap-and-hard-driven-guitar outre to the lyrical hooks. I never believe pop fans who say they don’t listen to lyrics. Do they really think “MMMBop” would be “MMMBop” without Mmm-bop? And no, SSLYBY hasn’t gone bubblegum, but from the witty opening lines — “Pretty girls don’t just park where they want to / They gotta go around in circles like we all do” — to the recognition that “everything is not OK,” the band gets the simple but necessary psychological insight of pop therapy: “No miracle is gonna happen when you feel that way — Hang low but you gotta let it sway. Come on now!”

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin will be at the Firebird tonight, August 31.

SSLYBY on Myspace

“Sink / Let it Sway” – Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin

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Posted by Roy Kasten | August 31, 2010 | Music | 1 Comment

Concert review: LouFest closes out the St. Louis summer, Sunday, August 29

She & Him at LouFest / photo by Dana Plonka

For those of you who don’t know, Sunday was Jeff Tweedy day in St. Louis. Local devotees gathered in Forest Park to mark the momentous occasion and celebrate with a day full of diverse music and good beer. Judging from reports of the first day at LouFest the crowd and vibe seemed fairly equivalent for day two — even if festival-goers were looking a wee bit more sunburned and stiff from all the time spent rocking in the park. It was an interesting scene to be sure. Hipsters mingled with hippies and there were plenty of adorable little kids on hand to twirl ecstatically to the raucous sounds of the Carolina Chocolate Drops and back up Jeff Tweedy on the harmonica.

A big part of the pleasure came simply from taking advantage of one of our most important community resources, Forest Park. There’s something about the shared experience of soaking up sun and music in equal measure to create a nice feeling of camaraderie, however tentative. Obviously this isn’t a new concept, but it’s always refreshing to encounter the phenomenon personally.

Sadly, I missed all but the last five minutes of Kim Massie. She seemed to be getting a good response from the small crowd who were happy to make requests when needed. Magnolia Summer followed Massie with a nice set tailored to the hometown crowd. Although lead singer Chris Grabau’s voice was eclipsed at times by the large backing band, the group was able to find a steady groove on the faster songs. The Funky Butt Brass Band made another appearance at LouFest – the band backed up So Many Dynamos on Saturday — joining Magnolia Summer at the end of its set.

Carolina Chocolate Drops offered up their gifts as virtuoso musicians and storytellers/music historians. Perhaps the most fascinating piece of information shared was a brief discussion tracing the musical through lines from early string band styles to current forms of hip hop and rap, a proto hip hop as it were. Beyond their extensive knowledge and obvious love for their musical niche, the Carolina Chocolate Drops know how to play a wicked jam. I’m now a believer that nothing elicits such a happy response as the sight and sound of a well-played jug. Other highlights include, Rhiannon Giddens fiddle-heavy cover of Blu Cantrell’s “Hit ‘Em Up Style.”

Posted by Liz Taylor | August 30, 2010 | Concerts | 1 Comment

LouFest 2010 Sunday, August 29: In pictures

Photos from the second day of LouFest by Dana Plonka.

Posted by KDHX | August 30, 2010 | Concerts, Photos | 2 Comments

Concert review: LouFest wins in Central Field, Saturday, August 28

Broken Social Scene at LouFest / photo by Roy Kasten

It’s 8:35 a.m. the morning after the first day of LouFest. I’m a bit sore. 11 hours in Central Field at Forest Park best belongs to the dragonflies, burrowed rabbits and the significantly younger.

As it turned out, LouFest, despite a good first-year crowd — could there have been more than 3000 through the gates? correct me if I’m wrong — seemed dominated by the 35-and-up, though the starting lineup was the most youthful of the first two days. And most of my aging cohorts stuck it out to see the 7/8 moon rise over the east and an epic closing set by definitive indie rock collective, the Broken Social Scene.

Mostly the day raced by, with astonishingly few snafus. The only line in sight was for the free water refill, and the only regular complaint I heard was directed at the Bud Light monopoly, though not even sun stroke could explain why anyone would choose that over the plentiful Schlafly ales. Sure, it was hot, but I felt a day-long breeze, and a high of 91 is nothing to wilt over. I looked in vain for a cloud in the endless blue sky, but only saw the white underbelly of a jet heading somewhere less awesome.

How do I know that? By definition: Everywhere was less awesome on such a freaking gorgeous day.

The Bottle Rockets started at noon sharp with “Lucky Break,” an inside joke for those who knew the band almost didn’t make the bill. The Northwoods pulled out, and we should all thank that band for breaking up. The Rockets took the slot and cruised through some of their best but under-appreciated rock songs, including “Every Kind of Everything,” “Done It All Before,” and “Give Me Room,” as well as the essential closing suite of “Indianapolis,” “Radar Gun,” “Welfare Music” and “The Long Way.” The band seemed to have a blast, sounded crisp and spunky, and I only wish more people could have seen the set.

Stephaniesid, from Asheville, N.C. followed just 30 yards away at the Orange Stage, doing a bit of Bjork meets the voice of Joanna Newsom and the moves of pole-dancing Liz Phair, which actually sounded OK, even if the lack of songs was palpable. She managed a singalong with an unfamiliar crowd, no small feat, so props for that, and for a cover of “Life in a Northern Town.”

STL band #2, So Many Dynamos, demonstrated why they are the math fuzz funk kings of the cowbell, even when the set halts two songs in because of crackling cables. The Funky Butt Brass Band joined in for two final songs, including a grand skronkfest to close out one of the most accessible, danceable sets I’ve heard from the band.

Adam Reichmann and his new band, the Ghosts of Electricity, played next, with a strong but under-attended set of songs, some from Nadine, including a fast, power poppy “Twilight,” as well as the relatively new gorgeous opener “Georgia Summer” and perhaps the best rocker Reichmann has written: “Sixes and Sevens.”

Next, Titus Andronicus blasted out their Springsteen-meets-Fugazi-punk, and while one never expects this band to sound good, they did, with violin licks, and some ragged and wonderful solos from Patrick Stickles. Pretty spectacular, and one of the biggest surprises of the day.

Lucero faired less well, starting 10 minutes late, due to Ben Nichols looking for a compost bin to puke in. The singer looked like hell on the half shell, and though he tried to make it through 4 songs, he ultimately staggered off stage, hurled, came back and finished “Drink ‘Till We’re Gone.” “Sorry,” he apologized. “That’s all I can do. I have a date with an IV.” He promised to come back soon. No riots or cat fights ensued.

Posted by Roy Kasten | August 29, 2010 | Concerts | 5 Comments

Album review: Lissie tames the pop tiger on her full-length debut

Photostream: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Telekinesis and Union Tree Review at the Firebird, August 31

Discovery: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin’s pop sway

Concert review: LouFest closes out the St. Louis summer, Sunday, August 29

LouFest 2010 Sunday, August 29: In pictures

Concert review: LouFest wins in Central Field, Saturday, August 28

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