Cue & Suburban Kids With Biblical Names Reviewed

on Thursday, 30 August 2007

Cue – Wedding Song (Thirty Ghosts)
I only recently discovered quite how much decent post rock there was out there, everyone is familiar with the Godspeed’s the Explosions in the Sky, The 65 Days of Static, the Dirty Three’s and although I had long been ignorant perhaps Mono were not so deep in the underground as I imagined. Thanks to Jordan Voldz Silent Ballet and particularly their top 50 Instrumental albums of each year since 2005 I’ve unearthed a number of great bands not least the Ascent of Everest, Laura, The Pirate Ship Quintet and Souvenirs Young America, still what I’ve found is that all too many whilst undoubtedly being excellent have often followed the straight forward formula that Explosions in the Sky do so well. As I say, it’s not that its bad, it just lacks depth, much like with a “pop” band I get bored of seeing guitar, bass and drums, at the very least bring in a keyboard, so it is with post rock that the piano and violin can add that extra depth that allows the band to take on a new level, to dig deeper and express a dictionary full of new and unknown feelings. It’s refreshing to hear a band like Texas, Austin’s Cue, that are described rather nicely on last.fm as a four-piece progressive instrumental/chamber noise rock band. Although one of the things that draws me to post rock is the slightly doomy outlook most bands have, the darkness and apocalyptic direction most take, its again refreshing to hear such an upbeat instrumental band.
It comes as no surprise to discover that guitarist Colin Swietek is an occasional member of Graveface Records outfit the Octopus Project (perhaps best known for their collaboration with the also fantastic Black Moth Super Rainbow. Wedding Song for Living Things and Dead Things, YROKROLSUKKDN2002, Can You See My Skeleton? And Fleur de Lis stand out, though as whole this is a great upbeat album that could quite welcomely be my wedding song.
Thirty Ghosts Records

Suburban Kids With Biblical Names - #3 (Labrador)

I was first drawn to the Surbaban Kids by their excellent name, I don’t know how many times I have been disappointed with this theory yet this time I was far from disappointed, their first EP bragging the instantly classic Rent a Wreck and Trumpets & Violins. This was followed with #2 boasting the instantly loveable Funeral Face as lead song and now #3 a classic collection of songs sung in the style of Jonathan Richman and generally accompanied with handclaps, drum machines, whistles, and ba-ba-ba’s, unsurprisingly as they to quote ”want turn all the dance floors into a burnings inferno of Ba-ba-ba”
The majority of the album is excellent but really peaks at track 9 with the trio, S_____y Weekend (take those silly shoes off and go back to summer camp/ and don’t ever come back/ you look like you live in a tent…), Rent a Wreck and Seems to be on my Mind (love seems to be on my mind/ seems to be all the time/ oh what a lovely way to spend your life/ not needing anything…I’m a young boy with a lot of things on my mind) which’ll all have you singing along before you finished hearing them for the first time. Suburban Kids With Biblical Names, not just kids with great names after all.

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