‘Let’s see what feels good’ An interview with Brothers Lazaroff

facebook.com/brothers.lazaroff

It’s been a big spring for Brothers Lazaroff. They stormed South by Southwest, armed with genre-bending remixes of Austin pal Elizabeth McQueen’s retro jazz before returning to St. Louis to release their new album, “Science Won.”

Rather, they launched the new album into the world with a series of three shows: an electric gig with Cree Rider at the Gramophone, an acoustic show in the Focal Point’s Local Heroes series and a brunch set with JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound at Lola.

Recently, I shared lunch with David and Jeff Lazaroff at Market Grill to discuss the roots of their music, the making of the new album and new projects.
        
Robin Wheeler: One of my first experiences seeing you was at the Uncle Tupelo tribute in 2010. I was in the balcony with my friend, who was also at the original Uncle Tupelo shows, and we both said, “They get it. This is what Uncle Tupelo would have sounded like had they not imploded.”

David Lazaroff: Honestly, we had to learn a lot about them. We didn’t know the catalog because we’re more Wilco fans. But we love old-time music. We didn’t come at it so much from the punk angle. We came at it from the country angle. More the Dylan, folk side of the things.

RW: You did “No Depression,” right

DL: We did “Watch Me Fall.”

Jeff Lazaroff: And then we did …

DL and JL: “I Wanna be Your Dog.”

RW: You guys got it. Whether you’d done your research or came from the background.

JL: I think more than anything we are, as a band, we’re friends, and it’s not necessarily about our individual talents. It’s about the sound we all make together. I think that’s the one thing we got from them is a return to that spirit of getting into old time and folk music, but coming at it from a rock perspective. That’s how we learned playing. Learning old Stanley Brothers and all the old bluegrass. And not having to be flat pickers. Not having to be bluegrass musicians, per se. That’s why, when we found the song “No Depression,” it really was an easy transition with the style we’ve developed with this unit over the past four years. We play old fiddle tunes and make them our own.

DL: Like a lot of other musicians we like to walk our influences backwards. Here’s who we love. Who did they love? Walk it back a few generations. I got into the punkier side of things later. Like getting into Sonic Youth … I think “Sonic Nurse” was their first album I owned. It was kind of cool timing to do that thing. I had that Iggy Pop album with “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” so when we were asked to do it, we were ready.

JL: We practice every Tuesday night. We make a meal and we practice. Every time one of these KDHX tribute nights has come, it’s been a good excuse for us all to dive into that artist. We’ll be geeky about them and learn six or seven tunes, do the ones that feel good and let the band decide.

DL: You can feel the ones you should do. I think for the Dylan one we ran through 20 tunes.

RW: Last night I listened to “American Artifact” back-to-back with “Science Won.” How did you get from point A to point B? Listening to “American Artifact,” there’s the feel of this being what Uncle Tupelo might have sounded like had they not broken up, and now you’re getting into more groovy and jazzy, but there’s still slide guitar undertone. So, what happened?

DL: We used to use all Austin musicians for our recordings. That’s where I lived for 13 years.

JL: He was still living in Austin with that recording.

DL: Yeah. That recording featured Gary Newcomb on pedal steel. He played with a band called Li’l Cap’n Travis that was Wilco-derived. The drummer was a woman named Stacy Hoobler who had more of a punk thing. We put that band together for that album, specifically. And then we recorded with Jacob Detering here at Red Pill, and we asked him for some recommendations for local musicians. He turned us on to [drummer] Grover [Stewart], and then Grover helped us find [bassist] Teddy [Brookins]. We went out to see Grover play one night and we found [keyboardist] Mo [Egeston]. And this all happened within a year. This is our fourth year with a solid unit. I think with the last album, “Give ‘Em What They Need,” we tried to throw it against the wall. We had developed this new style that was a combination of the groove-based styles Grover, Teddy and Mo brought, and our Americana, psychedelic thing.

We loved “Give ‘Em What They Need,” but we felt it was a little too dense. We did a lot of overdubs. Then we wanted to do the opposite. We developed an acoustic sound for certain gigs, and people really responded to it. It was a natural thing: “Oh, we have this acoustic feel where Grover uses brushes, but still being Grover. Teddy’s playing acoustic bass, but still being Teddy. And Mo’s a piano player to start. We just went in there and had this thought of, let’s see if we can do no overdubs. It had a jazzier feel. A lot of it is the grooves. Being an acoustic instrumentation, we all played the same instrument for every song, the same miking techniques, and we didn’t do any overdubs. They’re kind of folky instrumentation, but challenging ourselves to not do standard grooves on any tune.

Read more

Posted by | May 11, 2012 | Interviews, Local, Music | Comment 

Concert review: Pretty Little Empire, Scarlet Tanager and Thankful Tree serve up impeccable three-course audio feast at Off Broadway, Saturday, May 5

Pretty Little Empire at Off Broadway in St. Louis. May 5, 2012

Pretty Little Empire. Photo by Ben Mudd.

The lone-man outfit Thankful Tree took the Off Broadway stage after 9 p.m. with looping swells of guitar and brash puffs of harmonica to build the sonic backbones.

On top of that sound he plucked away on guitar and laid down soft vocals. People dressed in attire from different time periods and cultures drifted in and out through his songs’ melodies.

Scarlet Tanager jumped up on stage shortly thereafter and kicked the show up two gears. For the uninitiated, Scarlet bring a brand of rock that inspire you to lift your wine glass in the air to good and missed fortunes while a dress or suit of white. The crowd shouted the refrains back at the band after the songs had finished. It would be hard to imagine a better stage warmer. Scarlet brought the intense energy but piped it through a completely different filter than the headliner.

Pretty Little Empire opened with the crisply-new “Out of Control.” The soft opening of the song gives way to torrents of guitar. There was no looking back from there. Joined by the masterful David Beeman, Pretty Little Empire proceeded to kill it. Then resurrect it. Then kill it again.

The usual St. Louis show protocol is to vacate the premises immediately following the last song. Despite this — and despite the fact that much of the crowd had earlier attended either Kentucky Derby or Cinco de Mayo festivities — people hung around until close basking in the glow of a stellar show. Outside on the yellow-lit veranda, beer cans were clinked and dropped well into Seis de Mayo.

Posted by | May 6, 2012 | Concerts | Comment 

Concert review: Portugal. The Man (with the Lonely Forest and Union Tree Review) psych out the Pageant, Sunday, April 29

Portugal. The Man at the Pageant. St. Louis. April 29, 2012.

Abby Gillardi

Last night, St. Louis hosted Portugal. The Man on its first major headlining tour. But this was no normal tour. Its sponsor, Jägermeister, was everywhere, complete with a DJ spinning for the set-changes and the all-important Jäger girls strutting about the Pageant in tight leather, handing out freebies and other swag.

St. Louis’s own Union Tree Review opened the evening with a studied set that featured muted trumpet, violin and a post-rock, indie feel, like Cursive with a spritz of Cymbals Eat Guitars. Union Tree Review’s interest in sweeping dynamic shifts and bombastic drops worked well with lead-singer Tawaine Noah’s vocals, which, even though a bit strained, reminded me of younger, more angsty Ben Gibbard.

From Anacortes, Wash., the Lonely Forest churned out poppy, shoe-gaze rock. Their care and precision was impressive and lent their set a certain professional feel that Union Tree Review’s performance lacked. I noted a light tinge of Jimmy Eat World during “Turn Off This Song and Go Outside,” from 2011′s “Arrows.”

Portugal. The Man appeared on a stage full of atomic-like lighting elements that were also strung up and anchored from the center of the ceiling above the pit. The strings of lights with a bobble housing LEDs looked like swimming lane buoys ripper from a J Crew advert. As the first chords of “All Your Light (Times Like These),” from 2011′s “In the Mountain in the Cloud,” the buoy-looking lights glowed with psychedelic greens and blues. John Gourley’s vocals rang out, clear and high-pitched, as they elegantly drifted from a falsetto to a chanted chorus.

“The Woods,” from 2009′s “The Satanic Santanist,” featured lilting guitar and spaced-out keys. Sadly, the stage remained dark for the majority of the set — the only light illuminating the band came from the trippy, glowing installations, which caused a bit of a disconnect, as they obscured the audience’s sightlines preventing a clear look at the band.

“Work All Day” had the audience dancing and jiving throughout venue. The tempo ran fast compared to the album version, but the song did not suffer from the faster treatment, instead, it allowed the annunciation of the rapid-fire chorus lyrics to stand out.

Read more

Posted by | April 30, 2012 | Concerts | 1 Comment 

All Aboard for Fun Times: St. Louis show highlights for 4/20-4/21

All Aboard for Fun Times Train

commons.wikimedia.org

Sorry for the lateness — putting this together took quite a while…
 
Please note that some of the bands listed below are also playing Record Store Day events (designated below with an *); if times and/or prices for the regular gigs don’t work for you, consider sampling them during the day.
 
All opportunities considered, this Saturday is quite the exercise in overkill; you may decide to not see live music this weekend, but it shouldn’t be due to not seeing anything that’s appealing! To wit:
 
Friday, April 20
 
Mucca Pazza * / The Mad Titans
Firebird  2706 Olive  9-12  $15 (+2 18-20)  Smoke-free
 
Chicago’s MP is a huge circus-punk marching band; I didn’t catch them at their previous appearances here, but heard lots of raves about them — and the videos are pretty crazy/fun. Christian Schaeffer offers an opinion on them for the RFT.
 
TMT, who (to my knowledge) have only played a few shows in many years, play surf/instrumental rock, with an occasional vocal song thrown in. 
 
If a drive to Edwardsville sounds fun, John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives — a Memphis group with appeal for fans of varied roots-rock sounds offered by acts like Webb Wilder and the Morells/Skeletons — play at the Stagger Inn Again (104 E. Vandalia St.).
 
A 9 start is listed, but I can’t find any info on cover/age restrictions/possible other acts. Smoke free.
 
Alt-country rocker Cree Rider, a local who has resided elsewhere for some time, has decided to move back, and he’s celebrating by tonight and tomorrow at the Gramophone (4243 Manchester), joined by different guests each night.
 
Tonight’s the best bet, when the Cree Rider Family Band teams with Brothers Lazaroff, who add their soulful roots rock, while the Feed * bring powerful rock with a slight blues feel. This starts at 9, with a $10 cover (2 more for 18-20). Smoke-free.
 
Cursive / Cymbals Eat Guitars / Conduits
Off Broadway  3509 Lemp  9-12:30  $10 advance/12 door (+2 under 21)  Smoke-free 
 
Omaha’s Cu offer melodic,energetic rock. Ryan Wasoba interviews Cu frontman Tim Kasher for the RFT.
 
I didn’t have time to assess NYC’s CEG or Co, who are also from Omaha.

Read more

Posted by | April 20, 2012 | Local, Music | Comment 

Concert review: The Cave Singers (with Bo and the Locomotive) preach a folk-rock revolution at the Gramophone, Wednesday, April 18

Kate McDaniel

Bo and the Locomotive started the night off at the Gramophone with a swinging, mostly instrumental tune. From song one, I realized that the tall, guitar-wielding Bo Bulawsky and his band aren’t into rushing a melody.

The band stylistically tiptoes around the edge of early 2000s indie rock and earnest Midwestern folk. Recently named number one in Paste magazine’s “Top 10 Missouri Bands You Should Know,” the St. Louis locals had a lot to live up to. True to their reputation, Bo and the Locomotive did not disappoint my first chance to catch their live set.

The power of Bo and the Locomotive comes through in the voice and songwriting of Bulawsky. His broken-heart crooning and spacious song structuring serves to bring a listener close, before breaking out of the gloom with energetically rocking outros. Atmospheric and lyrically painful, “I’m Not Your House” found Bulawsky drawling through his declaration whilst his band held him up with well-placed swells. “Darling” showed the band’s inclination towards rainy reverb pop. Stand out sing-a-long “On My Way” purveyed the band’s vocal layering, strengthened by many voices offstage joining in. The simple progression of the song served to further accentuate the ability of the band to juice every ounce of power from each chord.

After taking a shot of whiskey with the band to kick off the set closer, Bulawsky proclaimed in a new song that “if the grass is greener, I don’t see in color.” This battle for attaining hopefulness runs through Bulawksy’s lyrics and noticeably affects the mood of his songs. That doesn’t mean the music is in the least bit of a downer — it’s the opposite. Bulawksy’s attempt to free himself from past issues onstage produces an extra layer of connection with the audience. Whether that’s shown through the band’s penchant for catchy lines or hiding the pain with energetic stage personas, it works.

“We’re on a mission from God,” the Cave Singers front man Pete Quirk announced halfway through their rollicking electric folk set. Throughout the night, the Cave Singers gave off a ’60s spiritualist vibe. With Eastern instrumental sampling and the presence of plenty of alternative percussion (bongos, tambourines, and even a washboard made an appearance), their set felt more like a communal celebration than a concert.

Within that, the three Seattle music scene veterans radiated showmanship. Guitarist Derek Fudesco (formerly of Pretty Girls Make Graves and Murder City Devils) fingerpicks riffs that sound like they appeared in a vision during an all-night front-porch jam. A little bit of the blues found its way into the veins of Fudesco for “No Prosecution If We Bail.” Drummer Marty Lund provided rhythms meant for stomping along to, which is exactly what the audience did on the conveniently wooden floors of the Gramophone.

Most of the set consisted of songs off their most recent album “No Witch,” like “All Land Crabs and Divinity Ghosts” and “Clever Creatures.” A smiling Quirk danced about while preaching his lyrics: “Send me away in this evening sun/on a boat of my branches in the world’s dark hum.” “Swim Club,” in contrast, sounded like it was coming through an old radio, gracefully complimented by Quirk’s guitar work. “Seeds of Night” off 2007′s “Invitation Songs” gently rolled off of Fudesco’s hollow body guitar.

After performing a 12-song set, the Cave Singers reclaimed the stage for two more, closing with “Dancing on Our Graves.” The crowd approved, whooping, clapping and stomping to the marching beat of the closer. With the enthusiasm of those offstage and the mythical quality of the Cave Singers on stage, the performance could have easily taken place in a barn 50 years ago.

Just as Quirk had announced, the night had a spiritual quality set to music. Bo and the Locomotive’s bitter musings through fairly open folk rock contrasted the Cave Singer’s cheerful rootsy rock in the best way. While Bulawsky exorcised his demons out on stage, Quirk ran from his with a wink and a rebel yell.

Posted by | April 19, 2012 | Concerts | Comment 

Album review: Brothers Lazaroff continue their journey through Americana with ‘Science Won’

Brothers Lazaroff
“Science Won”
Self-released

Brothers Lazaroff are ever-evolving. From their Austin-inspired alt-country beginnings, they’ve added new layers of other forms of American music with each album. Their new release, “Science Won,” blends styles and genres to create something entirely new about the oldest theme in the world — family.

Album opener “Where Are You Going Now” hints at their rootsy strengths with acoustic strings, modernized with Grover Stewart’s brushed drums and minimalist jazz guitar riffs under brothers David and Jeff Lazaroff’s harmonized chorus. Combined with image-laden lyrics, the whole creates a multi-layered scene of modern domesticity that carries through the album.

Mo Egeston starts the darker “I See Her” with a fleeting moment of improvised jazz piano that morphs into Stewart’s steady percussion and Teddy Brookins’ subtle bass that roots the song. This piano-drum-bass foundation rolls through the entire album, topped with the Lazaroff’s more folk-flavored guitars, especially on “Picking Up Sticks.”

No single sound prevails. Instead, stitches of jazz, folk, country and rock create the fabric. It doesn’t make for a quick, throw-away listen. Much of the album’s appeal comes from discovering the layers. Listen one day, and the jazz influence stands out. The next day, it’s the poetic lyricism and strong visual imagery. Later, the rooted folkiness of the guitar arrangements comes through. It’s subjective to mood, setting and listener experience.

“Sometimes I feel so defined by what my ancestors said,” begins “Under the Tree,” continuing the theme of coming to terms with family, ancestry and generational expectation. “35 Summers” picks up the idea with its images of “some crazy old woman rambling on and on, talking about the kids, the ones that don’t belong.”

“Where Light Betrays Night” pairs sweet vocal harmonies with sparse instrumentation that twists into a funk riff, then straightens itself, twisting and turning to the end when it blends into “Keep it Dark”‘s catchiness that belies the lyrics.

The last quarter of the album is devoted to the more positive aspects of the theme, starting with wedding-ready love song “I Could Stay Here for the Rest of My Life,” to the tongue-in-cheek “It’s All Relative.” The climax of the album’s story, the song sums up what every family does: loves, fails, tries to do right, fights, succeeds, and keeps moving, all with no set pattern and rules.

“The Waltz of No Time” begins the album’s end. Taking a waltz meter with minimalist, modern instrumentation to set a scene of rooted timelessness that dips its toe into jazzy chaos before going silent.

The title track concludes the album with a return to the band’s folk roots. Sparkling acoustic strings shine over a quiet rhythm section, closing the album with, “She never would admit that science won.” What science? Not sure. Science of genetics, or human chemistry, perhaps. Science of evolution that fuels change and the marriage of species, be they mammal or musical.

“Under the Tree” – Brothers Lazaroff

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Posted by | April 19, 2012 | Album Reviews | Comment 

‘We really are a family’ An interview with St. Louis band Palace

facebook.com/palaceeheband / Lee

Palace plays like an indie band on their way to Broadway. With post-angst four-part harmonies and themed live shows, the St. Louis locals energetically perform pop somewhere in between Queen and Fun.

Recently I had a chance to chat with the band — who will be performing at Back to Rockville: A Tribute to R.E.M. and 88.1 KDHX Benefit on April 27 at Off Broadway — on a variety of subjects.

True to their refreshing, youthful sound, lead singer Matt Kavanagh explains why the band claims to sound like your childhood. Drummer Danny Hill relates how Palace formed as a family of musicians. Vocalists Jamie Finch and Sydney Scott discuss what goes into planning a birthday-themed CD release show, while new members Benjamin Koenig and Phil Grooms offer their own perspectives on how Palace operates.

Matt Stuttler: How did Palace form?

Danny Hill: It started with me and Matt. Basically we had several projects going on right after high school, just trying to get a start with music. You know, just learning, going through the steps of being immature musicians and not really knowing how to approach the local scene. Even the industry in general — we just didn’t really know much about it. We knew we loved music and that’s what we wanted to do, which is why [Matt] quit going to school and I didn’t go at all. That’s basically how it started. We just wouldn’t quit. We’ve gone through so many musicians changes; so many people have been involved in our projects.

Matt Kavanagh: Different genre changes. We finally got to Palace, where we’re at now. We’re sticking with this, we have a formula that works. For me, personally, I got an unbiased opinion from somebody about “Treetop Lover,” one of our songs. She had an unbiased opinion about western music and she just came up to me and said, “I love this song.” She’s Japanese. I was like “Okay, if she likes this music just for face value, then I’m going to run with this.” Ever since then, it’s kind of been like that.

I know Danny and Matt have played in bands in St. Louis in the past. Have you other guys been involved in other past bands?

Sydney Scott: I was actually in their band when it was Crash! That was three years ago. Just for a short amount of time, I guess it was around six months.

DH: We worked on one song for six months (laughs).

SS: One song. (laughs) That was my start. That’s when I met Matt and Dan.

MK: That was 2008.

Jamie Finch: Around that same time I was singing in Say Panther. That’s when I first met Danny. I remember him coming to Say Panther shows, then knowing he was playing in Crash. Kind of a funny thing, here four years later we play music together.

Phil Grooms: I come from a very different, other wing as far as bands are concerned. I came from the emo scene in St. Louis, which was really big for a while after Story of the Year and all that. So I played in a band called Farewell. Then I found these guys, and they let me in.

JF: Phil and I have had some unsuccessful attempts at projects in the past. We’ve known each other close to 10 years at this point. It’s good to finally be doing something together that works now.

PG: Definitely.

BK: This is my first major musical project, I’d say. Music has been a passion of mine for over a decade, and I’ve always like dug really deep into the instruments. There’s something instinctual to my outlook to music and I think it’s brought me to Palace. It’s been really cool.

DH: It’s been great having Phil and Ben join recently.

JF: Two new people in two months.

Read more

Posted by | April 16, 2012 | Interviews, Local, Music | Comment 

‘Break down the wall of hurting each other’s feelings’ An interview with Curtis Brewer of Kentucky Knife Fight

kentuckyknifefight.net / Joshua Black Wilkins

Kentucky Knife Fight offers up a sound full of razor-edged riffs, incendiary rhythms and enough darkly hopeless love stories to entertain even the most heartless bastards among us. Oh, and don’t forget the harmonica.

Since we last heard from the St. Louis band, KKF has been busy. With a new record in the works, extensive touring (a SXSW appearance) and a new single (replete with video), what else is there for KKF to do in 2012 but headline a show at Off Broadway on Friday night? Rest assured this won’t be a typical evening of well-crafted, boozy rock music. No, KKF will be premiering not only their new music video for the single “Love the Lonely,” but seven, count ‘em, seven new tracks off their upcoming record.

I recently interviewed KKF guitarist Curt Brewer by phone about the new record, recent touring, SXSW, the band’s new video and their upcoming Off Broadway performance.

Will Kyle: How are the new tracks coming?

Curtis Brewer: Very well. Our last record, “We’re All Nameless Here,” was recorded in about 18 hours, tracking included. Vocals, background everything — we even stomped on empty guitar cases to make extra noise. It was 12 tracks, a full-length album — that’s pretty quick for an album. In that sense, it was a documentation of KKF at the time, so there wasn’t a lot of room for experimentation. With our new record, our current goal is to put out a purposeful representation of what we feel we’re working toward.

So this time you can write in front of microphones and tinker more?

Yes and no. We haven’t ever walked into the studio not knowing what song we were going to record that day. Most of the experimentation has been technical, like playing with different amp and microphone combinations. It’s been a great process. We’re recording with David Beeman and Kit Hamon at Native Sound. Both of them are incredibly patient in helping to produce the record.

They worked with you on the Yankee Racers tracks, right?

Yeah, David was with me for the Yankee Racers stuff. He played drums on two of the tracks and sang on a third. I’ve also been playing with him in Old Lights recently. So, I have been working with David quite a bit, which has allowed us to break down the wall of hurting each other’s feelings. We’re just trying to create a really thought-out product.

Where would you guys say you are in the recording process?

I’d say about a third.

Are you going to debut some of those songs at Off Broadway on Friday?

Absolutely. So far, we’ve recorded four of the 10 or 11 tracks for the full length. We hope to have it done by summer or fall. We have three more we’re going to tackle this April. We’ll be playing all seven of those tunes on Friday. It’s really refreshing to perform the new stuff especially because we haven’t put out a record since July of 2010.

This is your first show in St. Louis in 2012. Roughly how many shows have you played since the New Year?

I’d say around thirty or so.

Hitting the Midwest pretty hard?

Yeah, we had an extended tour in February where we went through Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, all the way to Alabama, Georgia, and then back home.

Read more

Posted by | April 5, 2012 | Interviews, Local, Music | Comment 

Next Page →