Issue #8
June
'99 As we welcome June and the unofficial start of Summer, we are excited to be
bringing more music your way. Here to tell you about the disc Unraveled
by The OutSkirts is our Guest Reviewer Matt Springer. Matt is the
Co-editor/Writer/Jack of all Parades over at Pop-Culture-Corn
- THE online e-zine that covers the culture of the millennium as it happens. Matt is going
to be lending us his ears and insight every now and then as he helps us to burrow further
into the ever expanding Indie field.
With that, I turn the page over to Matt Springer;
Try to imagine the sound--smooth
maple syrup cascading over warm pancakes. A cold sip of lemonade sliding down your throat
on a hot August day. The Andrews Sisters meet R.E.M. with some Allman Brothers mixed in.
Gorgeous harmonies, inspired instrumentation and a smooth, occasionally sinister vibe.
The OutSkirts are all
these things and more. A quintet of musicians based out of Bowling Green, Kentucky, Unraveled
is their second album and it will immediately draw you in and keep you there for the long
haul. Finding this band is like discovering a delicate tea cup amidst the edgy, rough
ruins of indie rock--they're almost too beautiful for their own good.
This record is a lazy Sunday afternoon in
the middle of July. You know the kind of day I'm talking about. Occasionally you're
inspired to engage in some witty banter, or even take a walk around the neighborhood, but
most of the day is wasted away on the couch in front of the TV. Hell, you've worked hard
all week--you've earned a blissfully evaporated day. And you've definitely earned "Too Much Like Sunday," a sexy meditation on the
aimlessness of wasted afternoons and the ambiguity of faith, and "Family Romance,"
a perky (and I mean that in the best possible way) commentary on the randomness of love
and familial connections.
Unraveled also displays
the OutSkirts' amazing capacity for balancing perfectly packaged pop gems
with longer jam-based tunes--and making both work equally well. When they do get into a
jam, such as on "All Over Town," the solos actually have a beginning,
middle and end, unlike most jam bands who aimlessly wander all over the song until they
have to take another drag of their joint. I've never been a fan of excessive guitar
noodling, but Alice Templeton's licks had me captivated throughout.
Trust me on this one, folks: this isn't
one of those "three great songs and they're out" indie releases. It's a solid
gold gem from top to bottom-- songwriting, performance, vocals, vibe. The
OutSkirts are as precious as a lazy Sunday afternoon, and listening to Unraveled
is a just about perfect way to waste one away.
Unraveled
by The OutSkirts
is available now for: $10.98 +s/h*
$7.98 + s/h*
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*Shipping & Handling charges:
USA - $3.00 for the first 2 CDs
ordered,
Add $1.50 per each CD after.
Canada - $5.00 for the first CD ordered,
Add $2.00 per each CD after.
Everywhere else -$7.00 for the first CD ordered,
Add $3.00 per each CD after. |