All About The Ladies...

Yes, back from the dead once again. Have to enjoy my weekends, which I surely did. Anyway, with my return I am extremely excited about posting about this album finally after hearing about it for about a month and a half.

One of the busiest men in all things indie rock/pop has once again presented us with another project. The busy man I speak of happens to be Rob Crow from the likes from his mainstay Pinback and his other numerous outfits, including the outrageously titled doom/stoner venture Goblin Cock. However, this project dubbed The Ladies, has Crow teamed up with Hella drummer Zach Hill to release their debut album They Mean Us on Temporary Residence. Now the possibilities with such a combination are almost endless right? Yes, but the thing is with The Ladies is that the simplest coming together of two different sounds by each member is actually one of the most rewarding listens I've heard so far this year. What I mean by saying simple, is that the band is nothing more than the combination of Rob Crow's pop sensibilities from his time spent in Pinback and Zach Hill's obvious spastic mathematic drumming. It's honestly as cut and dry as that, good strong pop songs played alongside some of the most amazing drumming you'll ever hear produced by one person. Definitely recommended to those that are fans of either contributing members bands. You can pick it up from their label Temporary Residence.

The Ladies - Empathy on a Stick [MP3]
The Ladies - Non-threatening [MP3]

Now while one portion of Hella is off doing The Ladies, the other of Spencer Seim has just currently released the second album, Elf Titled, from his equally impressive Nintendo cover band, The Advantage. If you haven't heard The Advantage and you are looking for a bit of 8 bit nostalgia from your hardcore gaming days, this is your best bet. Driven by Seim's guitar picking mastery, they bust out numbers from some of the most classic NES games that most will remember enjoying as a kid. On top of that you'll be equally amazed by the sheer skill involved at pulling these songs off perfectly. My personal favorites happen to be their tune from Marble Madness, which can be found on their self-titled debut, and their song from Bomberman 2 found on Elf-Titled. All the songs found on both albums are amazing however and are worth hearing, so go out and buy yourself either one of these albums and let the good memories begin. You can do that by visiting 5RC.

The Advantage - Marble Madness [MP3]
The Advantage - Bomberman 2-Wiggy [MP3]

Kayo Dot...

I haven't gotten on the topic of many albums to come out this year yet, so I figure this is a good time to mention one album that has genuinely caught my attention thus far into 2006. The avant metal band Kayo Dot has just released their second album titled Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue. Formed from members of maudlin of the Well along with some new faces as well, Kayo Dot is merely a continuation of the direction that maudlin of the Well would of probably taken. The music isn't to terribly different if compared next to each other. However, Kayo Dot have added something to the mix with this album. On Dowsing Anemone With Copper Tongue, Kayo Dot spans across many genres of music, mostly meddling in post-rock, metal, jazz, and some classical. The album consists of 5 songs, most rolling over the 10 minute mark with ease. The most appealing thing to me about this album is the fact that at moments it is incredibly soothing and the guitar work is so beautiful. However, in mere minutes it can turn from slumber to devastation and become something incredibly different, a Jekyll and Hyde of sorts. The combination pays off though, as the music is very well crafted and will easily keep you listening for the 70 or so minutes this puppy runs. This the first album of 2006 that has truly impressed me, so take note! I would also highly suggest picking up their first album Choirs of the Eye if interested.

Kayo Dot - Gemini Becoming the Tripod [MP3]

You can either pick up Kayo Dot albums directly from their website or hit up Amazon if they are sold out.

Space Travel, Rock and Roll...

I ignored Swervedriver up until after I was out of high school. Yes, I am ashamed and yes they are now one of my favorite bands to ever exist. I, like many people I imagine, was thrown off by the many kinds of wrong labels that pinned Swervedriver as some other band. The most obscene was that Swervedriver was a "hard rock" or even possibly a metal band? Even from that point on I just thought of them as that band that had that one song on the Road Rash game. Until finally listening to Mezcal Head just three or four years ago, I realized I had the most skewed and wrong perception of this bands sound. It was amazing. If it hadn't been for the constant name dropping when shoegaze was mentioned, then I wouldn't of even thought of listening to them. Cause yet again, they are that band that had that one song on Road Rash, right?

With all that said, I love Swervedriver and you probably should too, at least if you like good old fashioned alternative rock/shoegaze. The album Mezcal Head ranks somewhere up there in my top 10 albums of all time. I think I listened to it constantly in my car to and from work for about 2 or 3 months. It never left. However, despite that album being as great as it is and the amazing songs it contains, it still doesn't include two of my favorite Swervedriver songs on it. Actually when it comes down to it, none of the albums do and even with a 2 disc retrospective of the bands output, these two songs still are missing. Not that it matters, cause it kind of makes them all the more special knowing that they are somehow hid beneath all the other gems.

The first song is "Flawed", which can only be found on the Sandblasted promo 12" or the CD single. It is not available on the 7" version. Hearing this song driving along on a cool spring day is almost perfect, as that is the memory I have while listening to it actually. I absolutely can't get enough of the guitar effect used off and on throughout the song that just churns out the ear splitting feedback. Such a great song and unfortunate that it's destined to remain some exclusive track on a CD single.

Swervedriver - Flawed [MP3]

The second song is "Year of the Girl", which if the US version of Mezcal Head had included this song, it would be hands down the greatest album ever to me. However, as usual, the Japanese are the lucky ones that got it as an LP track and not just some obscure track that you have to track down on the Duel CDS/12", like the rest of us. Despite that, this song just gets better as it goes on. Near the end of the song where it is solely in instrumental mode, the guitars seem to just keep getting louder and pounding until the it eventually comes to a halt. Such a good song, that I just can't understand why sometimes these types of songs are left in the dust while other rarities are saved from total obscurity.

Swervedriver - Year of the Girl [MP3]

Do yourself a favor and download both of these songs and then go buy Mezcal Head used off Amazon or wherever else you possibly can...

Buy Swervedriver - Mezcal Head

Some Random Small Treats...

Boy I wish this song would been released a lot sooner or had been used on possibly Jupiter? I ask that because I have no clue as to when this song was actually recorded, however it sounds like it could of went along with the Jupiter era Cave In pretty easily. It could also be recently recorded too, like I said, I have no clue. However, finally finding it's way to the good old Internet is the long time unreleased song "Inflatable Dream" from genre hoppers Cave In. The song is excellent and begs the question, why not sooner? However, I am sure there is a good reason. The guitars are something reminiscent to the bombastic qualities that were found on Jupiter and at times dwells into space rock/prog territory. Despite that, It's still hard to tell when this song was written and even recorded. If anyone knows, it would be awesome to know. Anyway, check out the song. It's one of their better post Until Your Heart Stops tracks if you ask me.

Cave In - Inflatable Dream [MP3]

In between the time when Helmet was on hiatus and then reformed with a bunch of new people, Page Hamilton had started a little project dubbed Gandhi. Hearing about that made me all sorts of excited, due to me being such a nerdy Helmet fan boy. However Gandhi would probably only make it a few months and a handful of shows before being scrapped in favor of a Helmet reunion of sorts. I am still not sold on that. However, during that time some Gandhi tracks trickled out here and there and in time would see them as re-worked Helmet songs for their album Size Matters. Some time afterwards I stumbled across two or three more recorded songs from Gandhi that I had never heard before, which I found interesting. One of those songs was titled "All the Accidents", which was the best of the group. The rest were fairly disposable, but this one wasn't to bad. So in turn, here is that track, which finds Hamilton once again messing around with a bit of a more ambient electronic touch.

Gandhi/Page Hamilton - All the Accidents [MP3]

We Have a Bright Channel...

Discovering gems like Bright Channel is one of the main reasons I love the Internet so much. Without it, I doubt I would of ever run across this great band any other way. Thankfully though the Internet is much alive and is keeping me quite busy. I found Bright Channel in 2004, the same year they released their self-titled album through their own label Flight Approved Records. There you can find a few of their other past and current projects including Pteranodon and the now defunct Volplane. Among those though, Bright Channel remains the focal point, as their 2004 album ended up in my best of list with ease.

Other than having the word "bright" in the name, that's about as close as they get to being bright and/or uplifting. The music played by Bright Channel is a very moody set of cascading guitars and echoing feedback. At times the music can feel very dark and brooding, however it seems fitted best for those times you're on a late night drive with no real destination or reason for even being out. The guitars are constantly wandering from sound to sound, spicing things up with a bit of a psychedelic touch and adding to the seemingly drifting feeling the music gives off.

Bright Channel - Night Eyes (Demo Version) [MP3]
Bright Channel - Icefield [MP3]

Their debut self-titled album was recorded by none other than Steve Albini (Shellac, Big Black, etc), so it's a given the album is going to be rough. However, the production for this album is perfect for the music they play, the dense lo-fi textures play into Bright Channel's court perfectly, blending in with the low bass driven feedback and giving the album even a more eerie vibe than it would of originally. In the end the music Bright Channel creates and what is featured on their album is the perfect soundtrack for all the seedy little things that may go on in the night. Do yourself a favor and pick this up from either their website or the CD Baby link below.

Buy Bright Channel - Self Titled

The Fleeting Joys...

Hitting my radar in late 2005 were The Fleeting Joys. I owe a big thanks to the folks that post over at the shoegaze.uk.co forum for pointing me in their direction. When listening to the three songs they have up for sample, both on their website and MySpace, it's quite apparent that this duo doesn't shy away from their love of My Bloody Valentine. However, that's all right with me because in all honesty it's done quite well and somehow still remains to be fresh sounding. From what I understand the band has an album due out soon, which hopefully more information will surface on that soon so I can at least pick it up and hopefully everyone else can too. I would suggest for the time being though, if you're into a bit noiser MBV influenced shoegaze, then head on over to their MySpace and check out the snippets they have up from their forthcoming LP. You can also check them out at http://www.fleetingjoys.com.

The Fleeting Joys - IWantMoreLifeFKR [MP3]
The Fleeting Joys - Satellite [MP3]
The Fleeting Joys - theBreakup [MP3]

In the Key of Devastation...

Right up until their break-up, Breach played a ferocious brand of noisy metal that was pretty much done in almost complete obscurity to most people. This applied to me too, as I didn't run across Breach until sometime late in their tenure with Relapse records where they saw the release of one of their albums, Venom. The first album I heard from the band was probably the same as most, that being 2001's Kollapse. I am not sure if it was the right way to get into the band as I've found over the years that Breach was undoubtedly a band that only got better with each release. Going back and finding their earlier releases wasn't as rewarding for me as I imagine it would of been to start with this band and see them progress as they did. However, either way they were still a great band to get into and follow for the short time that I could before their demise shortly after the release of Kollapse.

Breach was most notable for their ferociously dense thrashy sound that got them comparisons to bands like Neurosis, Unsane, or Isis. However, Breach was a bit different and unique in the sense that they played a much darker chaotic style of music that was way more pummeling and felt as if it could engulf the listener at any moment under it's own weight. The distorted vocals from singer Tomas when maniacally screamed alongside a wall of guitar noise was an absolutely devastating sound that really I've only heard a band like Breach make so harshly realized. Breach was one of those bands, as lame and cliche as it may sound, was able to take a ton of it's influences and make it a all work flawlessly. Starting from their earlier post-hardcore sound on Friction adding elements of noise and post-rock into their abrasive sound all the way up until their break up. If you're interested in more information on the band, some can be found here.

Breach - Deadheads [MP3] (It's Me God)
Breach - Helldrivers [MP3] (Venom)
Breach - Diablo [MP3] (Venom)
Breach - Murder Kings and Killer Queens [MP3] (Kollapse)

Most of their albums can be found on major sites like Amazon, but you'll find that they are either expensive imports or out of print. So finding them used might be your best bet. However, if you're looking for a cheap and easy intro to the band, you can lay down 5 bucks over at Amazon or probably any other online retailer for their full length album Venom. Don't let the price mislead you, it's a great album at an even better price.

Buy Breach albums here!

Quicksand, Schreifels, and so on...

I suppose it's only fitting that the first post for this weblog should be about the band for which it is essentially named after. So yeah, welcome to Built on a Weak Spot...

I was in middle school when I first heard the band Quicksand. I remember it cause oddly enough I discovered them by watching a shortened video of "Dine Alone" on Beavis and Butthead and thinking it was such an awesome song, which it is...possibly my favorite song ever. I later went out and bought the album Slip at some crappy chain record store in the mall. Upon arriving home with it and playing it in my tiny piece of shit Aiwa mini system, I was instantly floored by the whole album. Ever since that day my obsession and fascination with music has been partly due to Quicksand and their album Slip. Formed out of the remnants of various New York hardcore acts in the late eighties, Walter Schreifels, Tom Capone, Sergio Vega, and Alan Cage emerged as Quicksand in 1990 with their self-titled EP on Revelation Records before being signed to Polygram/Island shortly thereafter. In 1993 the group would release Slip, which in my opinion is the single greatest post-hardcore release to this day. Despite having the backing of a major label, the sound on Slip is every bit as raw and energetic as you could hope, being able to make their early punk/hardcore beginnings shine through easily. Every song is backed with amazing hooks, melodies, and riffs along with some great lyrics from Schreifels. To put it simply, Slip is a post-hardcore masterpiece and entirely relevant today being quite influential to many of todays current groups.

Two years later in 1995 was when Quicksand would release their second and final album as a group, titled Manic Compression. The album didn't stray to far from what Slip had treaded on, however...the production was sort of lackluster and the drums sounded almost as if someone were hitting the tops trash can lids. I never could get over that. Regardless, it still didn't hide the fact Quicksand wrote great songs for this album and it's not to be missed despite it's botched production. A bit more "metal" at times than Slip had ever reached to be, spitting out blazing songs like "Blister" and "Divorce", which clock in at or under 2 minutes a piece. I never realized why they didn't include the song "Shovel" on the album, as it is probably one of their better songs. Unfortunately it was only used as a B-side for the "Thorn in My Side" single and on a compilation titled Metallurgy. In the end though, Manic Compression is a solid final release from the band. A good note to go out on if you ask me. However, in 1998 Quicksand would reunite for a small time and tour with the Deftones. During that time, they were said to be recording material for a new album, however they split up before any of that could come to light. There are plenty of demos and rough recordings of material that was recorded in 1998 by the band if you look hard enough on the Internet.

Quicksand - "Dine Alone" [MP3] (Slip)
Quicksand - "Unfulfilled" [MP3] (Slip)
Quicksand - "Shovel" [MP3] (B-Side "Thorn in My Side" Single)
Quicksand - "Brown Gargantuan" [MP3] (Manic Compression)

After Quicksand disbanded all of the members eventually ended up in different projects. Walter Schreifels would work on a band dubbed Worlds Fastest Car, however nothing was released before the idea was scrapped in favor for the brief Quicksand reunion that took place in 1998. However, some of the material written during that time would eventually be used in a later Schriefels band called Rival Schools. They managed to release one album and a couple EP's, one being a split with indie/emo favorites Onelinedrawing, before splitting up sometime in 2003 or so. Schreifels now plays in his band Walking Concert, featuring a softer more jangly indie rock sound than any of his past work. For more info on that visit their website here.

Tom Capone would later appear in the post-hardcore super group of sorts, called Handsome. They will eventually get their own write up on here, as they were great in their own right. Capone then played in many short lived bands like Nympho, Adharma, and Instruction. Alan Cage played drums in yet another post-hardcore favorite Seaweed off and on a few times after the split. Sergio Vega went on to release two solo EP's, one under the moniker of Fully and the other as his actual name.

You can find their albums fairly easily through most online retailers or even used at a bunch of places...

Buy Quicksand - Slip
Buy Quicksand - Manic Compression