The Midnight Callers

Rattled Humming Heart

Jem Records

This New York band with real power in their pop, and punk attitude, makes for a real pick me up, especially on “New York Tramp.”

What is also striking is their kindness and respect toward women. Even when they're chasing someone, as in the really good, Tom Petty-esque “Girl On The Run,” they’re daring the woman in question to dump them. With “Tramp” it’s a tribute, not a put down. “Maggie" is a nice tribute to a dear friend who passed away.

There is also some social commentary. On the thought provoking “What Goes Around” the stoner kid gets the prom queen pregnant, Mr. Pretty sneers over everything, and all will get theirs in the end. It’s good to hear adults rocking out without nostalgia.

So if you like what you read here and want to check out some truly adult rock that draws from Petty as much as, say, the Strokes, and is women friendly too, this is the band to go for.

Andrea Weiss

 The Midnight Callers rock, and roll. Their nicely adult relationship songs are women friendly, and, on “Maggie,” feminist, making this an exciting new find for me.

The band -- Chris Paine (vocals/rhythm guitar), Martin Stubbs (vocals/lead guitar), Julien Budrino (vocals/drums) and Marley Myrianthopoulos (vocals/bass) – were kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: How did the band form?

Julien Budrino: Chris and I were in another band together and Chris had some original music he wanted to try out that didn’t really fit with their vibe. The two of us went looking for a lead guitarist and bassist to try out some of those tunes, that project became Red Letter Glow, and the rest is history!

AW: Who are your influences?

Marley Myrianthopoulos: We all love all of the classic 60s and 70s power pop acts, like Big Star, The Raspberries, The Knack, The Who, The Beatles, and so on. Everyone kind of brings their own personal tastes into the mix as well -- Chris was raised on early rock 'n' roll, Martin is a huge glam fan, Julien loves 80s rock, and I can’t get enough Motown.

AW: I like that your music is aimed at adults. Is that one of your aims?

Chris Paine: It’s not a particular goal of ours, but I think our musical style is heavily influenced by our musical experiences growing up. We’re all from the iPod generation, where all the best classic rock songs spanning 50 years were on shuffle every morning on the school bus, so it’s not surprising that our sound reflects that particular experience and speaks to people in our age group.

AW: “Girl on the Run” sounds like early Tom Petty. Is he one of your influences?

Marley: Yes, we’re all big fans of Tom Petty. I think with that song, rather than trying to sound like Tom Petty, we were trying to sound like The Byrds or The Beatles…which of course meant we wound up sounding like early Tom Petty, who was trying to do the same thing!

AW: “Maggie” sounds feminist, which is great. Was that your intention?

Martin Stubbs: Maggie is a proxy for a close friend of mine who passed away a few years ago. Creating a character was an easier way to express the emotions I was feeling in lyrics. 

AW: “Without Ya” mourns some who isn’t there. Is it a breakup song or something more? 

Martin: I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “rock 'n' roll saved my soul.” “Without Ya” is written about a character who owes his everything to the godfathers of glam, specifically Marc Bolan and David Bowie. He laments that they’re gone and he’ll never get to tell them how much they mean to him. So in a way, a feeling of mourning is part of it. 

AW: I like that you rock so hard and are so positive. Is that your outlook in general?

Chris: People play music for a lot of reasons, but I think one reason the four of us gel so well together is that for all of us the act of creating music is a joyous experience. We’re all having a good time basically every minute that we’re on stage or in the studio together, and I’m glad that comes through.

AW: Are you planning to tour?

Chris: We’ll be at The C Note in Hull, MA on June 24th, then the Roscoe Beer Company in Roscoe, NY on July 22nd. We’re teaming up for a show in Ringwood, NJ with our good friends and label-mates the Anderson Council on July 29th, and then August 27th we’ll be at Cisco Brewery in New Bedford, MA. If you follow us on Instagram or check out our website you’ll be sure to keep up with any additional dates that we add in the next few weeks!

https://www.themidnightcallers.com

 Shadwick Wilde

Easy Rider (Single/Video)

Sofaburn Records

Not a clip from the 1969 Peter Fonda/Dennis Hopper film of the same name, this video, directed by Scott Carney, showcases an old-fashioned, good, and quiet time spent with family, and taking a joy ride.

The lyrics hint, though, at depression, where everything isn’t as good, so maybe riding around in a 1963 Chevrolet Corvair, courtesy of Vinnie Lafronza, in a video shot on 16mm Kodak Vision3 50D film on a Bolex H16 camera, is not what it seems.

But the overall effect is very good, with the film making the colors glow brightly. It’s a folk/ Americana sound, and very gentle. The actresses are Wilde’s actual family, and they all seem to be having a good time. So this clip can be taken both at face value, and for the deeper meaning of the lyrics. Either way, it’s great.

Andrea Weiss

 R. Ring

Embers On A Sleepwalk (Video)

Don Giovanni Records

This quiet, subtle, trippy, animated video, directed by Joe Jack Talcum, captures the song perfectly. Line drawings and textured backgrounds move and ripple, creating a soundscape that will stay with you after the video is over. Another good video from the duo of Kelley Deal and Mike Montgomery, from their album War Poems, We Rested.

Andrea Weiss

 The Anderson Council are new to me, but have actually been around for 20 years. They are very good and well worth the time to get into.

Peter Horvath, the leader of the band, was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: For everyone who knows who you are, there is someone who doesn't, so could you give us a brief history of the band?

Peter Horvath: I started the band in 1999 after my last band disintegrated(which was my doing…) The whole point of it was to celebrate my love for 60s pop music, just as psychedelic music was turning from a fun thing(with short concise songs that featured all kinds of kitchen sink craziness stuffed into two and a half minutes) into a spaced out, meandering thing that didn’t really interest me.

AW: Who are your influences?

PH: All those bands that put out two really great singles that didn’t hit the charts, never to be heard from again, at least until they turned in their purple corduroy pants and frilly shirts, bought some denim, and tried their hand at playing blues numbers. Oh, and the greats of the period and afterwards.

AW: There are a lot of English places and things mentioned in your songs. Are you anglophiles, or just people who like England?

PH: Amusingly, I have never stepped foot off of the North American continent, but damn if I don’t watch a lot of English TV shows and movies, and read period books! I suppose I need to get there at some point!

AW: Your songs are so positive and happy, which I like. They also sound effortless. Is that easy to do?

PH: I’ve written my share of sad and/or angry songs, but when I started writing these songs, I knew that they would be for an entirely different band. I suppose the songs sound effortless, as you say, because we rehearse a lot! It also helps that I tend to have a clear cut idea of what the song should sound like when I write it (or co-write it, in the case of all the songs on the new album). The guys in the band put their magic in there as well, of course. We are a band, after all!

AW: How would you describe your sound? Your songs rock with guitars. Would you say that’s an alternative to the current mainstream?

PH: I call us Psychpowerpop. I don’t really know what constitutes the term, but we like hooks, we like weird twists and turns, and we like songs, most of all. I don’t necessarily listen to a lot of current music, but if there’s a song in there, I’m in, whatever genre it happens to be.

AW: I like your adult take on love, like in “Buying A House.” Would you also say that’s an alternative?

PH: An alternative to what? Ha. I guess as you get older, you think less about sex, and more about doing laundry and the dishes? Ha again.

AW: Any plans to tour?

PH: We play shows whenever and wherever we can. Unfortunately, touring isn’t exactly feasible and/or practical at this juncture, so the shows we get are the ones we play. Don’t get me wrong, if you’re paying, we’re touring!

 The Anderson Council

The Devil, The Tower, The Star, The Moon

Jem Records

The new album from this long-running band is very good music for adults--that is, mature and grounded, where one is past dating, married, and, as their song says, “Buying A House.”

But if you are dating, then it’s “Alone With You,” the fun initial single from the album, in which the singer wants to be alone with his girlfriend.

The music is guitar-based rock/power pop, played just the way I like it--noisy, crunchy, melodic, and not sedate. The band calls it psychpowerpop. This is who plays what: Peter Horvath on vocals and guitar, Simon Burke on bass, Michael Potenza on guitar, and Scott Jones on drums.

So if you want some good, interesting rock, and something different, this is the band to get into. You’ll be glad you did.

Andrea Weiss

 Graham Parker & The Goldtops

Them Bugs/The Ologist Song (Single)

Big Stir

The A Side is good, pretty much a novelty song about not wanting bugs around. It’s fun, it’s cute, and cool by the end of it.

But the B-side, “The Ologist Song,” is the gem. Sounding like “Heat Treatment,” the title song from his second album, it brings to mind his best 70s work in a slightly mellower fashion. It’s a sincere tribute to doctors and scientists, really anyone with a “gist” in their job title. If you’ve never heard him, one of the original UK punks, this single is where to start. Ditto if you have and wondered what happened to him. If you’re a fan, you’ll love this. I am, and do, very much.

Andrea Weiss