Pala

This one’s another recommendation from a friend. This time the band is Friendly Fires, a British dance pop outfit boasting their sophomore release Pala. Upon hearing the name of the band, I must have mixed them up with the band Fleet Foxes, a band also fans of alliteration. Literary devices aside, I was expecting a soft acoustic sound from a band like fleet foxes and could not have been more surprised.

From the first song I heard “Blue Cassette” I knew that I was in different territory than I expected. The song starts out with a pulsating horn loop that seems impossible to follow but as soon as the full beat kicks in, there are no illusions about where the groove lays in the song. It immediately makes you want to stop what you’re doing and dance your face off! It’s an infectious song that is very difficult to get out of your head.

This description can be applied to almost each song on the record. At times it’s a strength and at others, a weakness. I think for the most part, it is strength. The record isn’t a tender acoustic piece that should be ripped to shreds, it’s a fun dance record that is meant to make you move, but if you stop dancing and listen to the lyrics, you might be surprised:

            Late night driving

            With every move you make

            Your head shows me the way

            And coma rising

With every move you make

            -Show Me Lights

The true strength of Pala is in its sound design and HUGENESS. The band is only made up of 3 core members but some of the songs sound ridiculously grand and big. “Pull Me Back to Earth” is the perfectly example of the grandiosity that Friendly Fires achieves on Pala.

Stand Out Tracks:

Blue Cassette

Show Me Lights

Pull Me Back to Earth

Hawaiian Air

Tedeschi Trucks Band Live in Albany

Time for some non-review blog stuff. I had the honor and pleasure to see the Tedeschi Trucks Band perform last night at The Egg in Albany. Tedeschi Trucks band is a blues and soul group led by Derek Trucks, slide guitar virtuoso with a steady gig as one of the guitarists in The Allman Brothers Band, and his wife, blues singer, Susan Tedeschi. They are backed up by a spectacular band of characters including Allman Brothers bassist, Oteil Burbridge. The band which boasts two drummers was incredibly tight and together and just generally seemed to be having a ball on stage, always a plus for a live act.

One of the amazing things about Tedeschi Trucks is the sense of being worn in; they sounded and looked as if they had been playing together for years, yet they only have one album out. I think this is partly because so many of the members in the band had played together before. There was such a cool element of family that could really be felt in the room.

They blazed through a tight set of the standout tracks from their album, Revelator, as well as a song that they wrote with Herbie Hancock called Space Captain. There were several covers and they ended the night with a knock-out rendition of Sly & The Family Stone’s Sing a simple song and I want to take you higher.

The stage at times seemed to be overflowing with talent, whether it was coming from Trucks’ soulful slide playing, Tedeschi’s incredible vocals or the incredibly animated horn section. I must’ve had chills at least 10 times throughout the set. It was such an amazing experience that I really hope to repeat soon. I’ll leave you with this video from a concert they did a couple months ago. Enjoy!

Music Video!

Non-album review post! Check out my band, Sins of the Loose Buttons' new music video, Retrobox. Shot in my neighborhood and directed by our friend and award winning film-maker, Michael Bass. Check it out and share it with your friends! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBVMbC75j1w