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Sufjan Stevens with Laura Viers
Wednesday · Southgate House
Sufjan Stevens has a lot to say. His latest long player, Illinois, puts forth 22 songs in 74 minutes and 13 seconds. And by Illinois, he means all of it. The 30-year-old Detroit native (he currently calls Brooklyn home) had this to say in a recent interview: “In general, the Illinois record gives an overarching survey of the history of civilization in that particular region.” Uh, OK, Sufjan. Of course, those familiar with the hyper-literate Stevens shouldn’t be surprised at such ambition — he intends to cut a concept album for each state in the union, the first of which was 2003’s Greetings from Michigan: The Great Lakes State, a Folk/Pop extravaganza that brought to mind Elliott Smith on a Stereolab kick. The state thing is a ludicrously over-the-top conceit, but it’s foolish to dismiss a guy as talented as Stevens. Sonically, Illinois is all over the place, from the lush, beautifully-rendered Reich-esque “The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out to Get Us!” to “The Seer’s Tower,” a moody piano-laden meditation that strongly nods to its creator’s religious background. The most intriguing song of the batch is “John Wayne Gacy, Jr.,” a somewhat sympathetic inhabitation of the serial killer’s psyche that, music-wise, hearkens back to last year’s spare, Folk-fortified Seven Swans (yes, he put out a record in-between his state-centric efforts). Amid a faint piano line and lightly plucked acoustic guitar, Stevens’ modest, gentle voice conveys a strange kind of power.
By the final stanza, he reverses his gaze: “And in my best behavior/I am really just like him/Look beneath the floorboards/For the secrets I have hid.” Not to be outdone by his eclectic, melody-infested arrangements and lyrical dexterity, Stevens plays a little of everything on Illinois: guitar, triangle, shakers, banjo, flute, piano, oboe, accordion, sleigh bells, bass, saxophone, vibraphone, tambourine, a Casiotone MT-70. His band, the Illinoise Makers, takes care of the rest. If all that’s not enough, one song title (“Come On! Feel the Illinoise!”) seems to have taken inspiration from Quiet Riot (by way of Slade). To which I say: “Count me in!” (Jason Gargano)
Summer Lawns with The Hinges, The Sinners and Model A
Wednesday · The Viper Room
Since their formation in 2003, NYC quartet Summer Lawns has been captivating local audiences with a spellbinding combination of Rock atmospherics and chamber Pop intimacy. On the heels of last year’s three-song EP, Your Now is My Surroundings, Summer Lawns offers a number of fascinating points of departure on their recently released debut full-length album, First We Waited … Then It Started. The foursome creates a dynamic stillness in their chamber-like setting, with two guitars, cello and drums (and occasional keyboards) providing the minimalist soundtrack to the band’s sparse but richly executed songs of contemporary alienation and ennui. Sonic parallels abound on First We Waited, from the Pop ambience of Brian Eno on “Concrete and Wood” to the muffled Indie Rock roar of Radiohead on “Jack the Ripper” to the exquisitely shimmering claustrophobia of Low on “Transmission” to the baroque romanticism of Jeff Buckley peppered throughout the album’s nine tracks. The comparisons of Summer Lawns to Buckley are not merely an exercise in promotional hyperbole; lead vocalist/guitarist Jeremy Linzee was invited to perform a pair of acoustic songs at last year’s seventh annual Jeff Buckley tribute in Chicago, and Buckley’s official Web site recently endorsed First We Waited with an appropriately positive review. The album’s initial single release, “Piano Song,” was a strong finalist in last year’s International Songwriting Competition in the Rock category. Combining Linzee’s delicate yet powerful vocals, Linzee and Andrew Landry’s quietly emotive guitars, Laurel Birkey’s sonorous cello and Kieran Kelly’s brush-to-hammer drumming, Summer Lawns exudes a quiet passion with a compelling musical and emotional undercurrent in the controlled atmosphere of the studio as well as in the more unpredictable and spontaneous live setting. The results are so mesmerizing, you might have to remind yourself to applaud. And breathe. The band will also perform an in-studio live set on woxy.com, Thursday at 2 p.m. (Brian Baker)
Richard Swift with The Walkmen
Sunday · Southgate House
When is a debut album not a debut album? When it’s Richard Swift’s first two lauded albums — The Novelist and Walking Without Effort — repackaged as a double disc to inaugurate his recent signing with Secretly Canadian, the Bloomington, Indiana-based label whose penchant for seeking out accessible sonic oddballs is legendary. Swift has been plying his eclectic/eccentric musical trade in L.A. since the ’90s when he began releasing singles and then his first pair of albums in limited runs on obscure labels. The Novelist finds him utilizing the studio as an additional performer and crafting an album of baroque Pop that sounds like it could have been recorded on a shellac 78 disc in the ’30s. Clocking in at a brisk 19 minutes, The Novelist is an impressive display of Swift’s talents, blending Randy Newman’s cockeyed cynicism, Van Dyke Parks’ heartfelt period arrangements and Rufus Wainwright’s vaudevillian sense of entertainment. On Walking Without Effort, Swift abandons the affected vocal treatments and updates his style into the confessional Folk tone of the ’70s without altering the basic architecture of his songwriting. Swift’s independent releases garnered plenty of under-the-radar press and fan attention and he entertained a good number of major label offers as a result, ultimately walking away from all of them in favor of Secretly Canadian, a label that mirrors Swift’s DIY recording and distribution ethic. Swift is reportedly already at work on his latest studio effort, which will likely see release next year and serve as his true first album for Secretly Canadian. Until then, Swift is taking his act on the road as a strangely appropriate opening act for the likes of the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Earlimart and The Walkmen (who headline the bill here at the Southgate House). Prepare yourself for entertainment and amazement. (BB)
Tilly and the Wall with Orenda Fink, Neva Dinova and David Dondero
Monday · Southgate House
Drummers have tried pretty much everything to get attention. The list is long and humiliating, but Tilly and the Wall’s Jaime Williams has them all out-foxed with her fresh approach to percussion: tap shoes. While her dancing does provide the rhythmic backbone of their songs, it’s not really fair to call her a drummer (the former grade school teacher has “tapped” for several bands), and it’s definitely a mistake to let her clogging eclipse a fantastic Indie Pop quintet. Tilly and the Wall have been gaining momentum for several years supporting increasingly popular headliners, all the while perfecting a quirky style with surprising depth. Acoustic guitar, keyboard, co-ed choruses and an endless miscellany of add-on instruments form a cheerful foundation. But behind the safe, kiddie-friendly facade lies dark, damaged songwriting that lurks like a carnie waiting behind the flashing lights to steal a rube’s innocence and whatever else he can get his hands on. Soft, girl-heavy vocals lull you just enough to make their coarse, gothic lyrics jarring. This mischievous bait-and-switch highlights their subversive side, also evident in their decision to offer their catalog free via download. What else would you expect from cohorts of Bright Eyes’ leader Conor Oberst? The fellow Omaha native recorded the band’s demo, 2002’s Woo!, and released their latest, Wild Like Children, on his Team Love label. This relationship has netted the band Saddle Creek satellite status, which they have to thank for their spot on this tour with Orenda Fink (Azure Ray) as well as earlier gigs with Rilo Kiley and (of course) Bright Eyes. Folks who have seen them before will definitely be returning for another helping Monday, as should anyone who enjoyed Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen’s post-left-arm career. When Williams steps onto her amplified wooden platform, her hands-free performance is sure to impress the hell out of you. (Ezra Waller)
This article appears in Sep 14-20, 2005.