Itty-Bitty Review: Introducing: Jelly of the Month Club - Jelly of the Month Club

Another day, another album by a collection of artists best known for their music for adults.

Yes, it's possible to be a kids music reviewer jaded by news that members of Southern California-area bands like Sublime, the Ziggens, and more came together to record as Jelly of the Month Club.  Been there, done that, right?

But as I am constantly reminded in this neck of the musical woods, it's possible to be surprised by people, and their debut album Introducing: Jelly of the Month Club is a blast of energy from beginning to end.  There's a ska-punk feeling to a lot of the songs, of course (Exhibit A: "The English Language," which is Schoolhouse Rock by way of the Clash perhaps), but there are more diverse sounds, such as the mellower album opener, the strumming "Brand New Friend."  Some songs like "Tell Someone" contain lessons of a sort, but that's a song that namechecks Cheryl Ladd and Chaka Khan, to name a few, so clearly there's a playfulness that cuts through any overt "Learn. This." approach.   There are points at which I wondered who the songs were for (I sort of feel sorry for any kid who understands the CSNY reference on "Gone Squatchin'"), so it's possible that some kids might not care. On the other hand, I don't know if "Girlfriend" is really a kids' song (it was originally recorded by the Ziggens), but there's such gleeful joy, especially in the chorus, that kids'll probably hook into it immediately.  And there's a fart song, too ("Timmy Turtle Head"), so it's got that.

The album is probably most appropriate for kids ages 3 through 9.  You can stream some of the songs from the 35-minute album here.  Introducing: Jelly of the Month Club won't be for every family -- it all depends on how energetic and inner-7-year-old boy your family likes their music.  But there's a lot here to enjoy and dance along with.  Definitely recommended.

Itty-Bitty Review: Color This Album: Chris Doud, Willy Tea Taylor, and More

Saying that Color This Album came out of nowhere is an insult to Oakdale, California (east of the Bay Area), but it's also sort of true.  One doesn't usually receive music as good as this from folks entirely removed from kids music hotspots.

But here we are anyway.  The album is 19 tracks of Americana goodness from the Heckabad record label, home to Chris Doud, (his band) The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Willy Tea Taylor, and Joey No Knows.  There's the country bluegrass of "Larry the Frog," the Woody Guthrie absurdity of "Hop in the Car," and the bluesy lament "Lullaby to Stellaouise."  Or perhaps you'd prefer Bob Dylan-in-silly-mode "Crayons," the bluegrass raveup "Thirteen Bears" (it's the number of bears on the shirt, in case you're wondering), and the stone-cold classic of parental frustration/unconditional love "Take You Into My Arms."  If the 58-minute album runs a bit long and features a couple story-like tracks ("Elf Outta Work" and "The Ballad of Scruffers the Circus Dog") that bring the album to a halt, I guess that's what the fast-forward button is for.

Color This Album is most appropriate for kids ages 3 through 8.  (Listen to the whole album here.)  It's a romp through a world of animals and imagination, and the long-awaited (spiritual) sequel to the classic Bloodshot Records album The Bottle Let Me Down.  Here's to continued surprises (and hoping that these guys get a few gigs in the Bay Area if they want 'em.  Definitely recommended.

Itty-Bitty Review: Fun Food Songs - Raffi

It has been too long since Raffi gave us a whole album of original music for kids (2002 was the last time, with Let's Play ).  But even though the Canadian kids music legend still has an incredible voice and delights listeners in concert, he's more interested in tweeting and writing than recording new music.  And with a back catalog stretching back 25+ years and more than 10 albums, there's plenty of opportunity for his label to repackage his output in new ways for a new generation.  (See here an example from more than 7 years ago.)

This week sees the release of Fun Food Songs, a collection of songs associated (to varying degrees) with food.  Ranking high on the food association (and enjoyability) scale are Raffi classics like "Peanut Butter Sandwich" and "The Corner Grocery Store."  More of a stretch for the collection (but no less enjoyable) are songs like "Down By the Bay" and "Brush Your Teeth."  These songs are, for the most part, fun, in part because few of them were written or recorded with the idea of Making Food Fun.

The 15-song,  30-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 2 through 6.  Because I consider a lot of Raffi's work essential, collections of previously-recorded such as these aren't.  But it's a solid collection of songs from a wide range of his albums, and if you don't have any Raffi songs, or if you're looking for an instantaneous food-themed CD for a classroom or daycare setting, this'll be great.  Recommended.

Note: I was provided an advance stream of the album for poss

Reviews from Portland, Kindie Capitol of the World

You heard me.  Portland, Oregon is the kindie capitol of the world.  So much music is coming out that city that I can't keep up with it all.  I realized that even though I'd semi-recently reviewed new albums from Cat Doorman and Lori Henriques, there were a whole bunch of other albums from that city that I hadn't yet reviewed, and every time I was getting close to writing a Portland-based review, another album would be released.  Aaaargh. You're killin' me, PDX.  (But in a good way.)

And here's the thing, not only are there are a ton of artists emerging from Portland right now, they're all incredibly supportive of one another.  They definitely have each others' backs.

Here, then, are six from the past 18 months or so that are worth your time -- they're all recommended.  It's not the full list of Portland albums I've received over that time, and there are more on the way.  But it's a great place to start, and you're bound to find at least one album to meet your family's needs.  They're ordered roughly from most "traditional" sounding to least so.

While I am reluctant to do comparisons between albums in a single post, if I had to direct your attention to just one or two albums, it would be Red Yarn's The Deep Woods and the Pointed Man Band's Swordfish Tango -- they're two debuts that stretch the notion of what kids music can be even as they draw on songs and sounds that are 50, 100, or even 500 years old.  Swordfish Tango  is definitely recommended and The Deep Woods  is highly recommended.

Without further ado, then, here are the reviews... 

Songs for Johnson Creek: Various Artists - This benefit album for the Johnson Creek Watershed Council is coordinated by JCWC Executive Director Matt Clark (himself a kindie musician with a few albums under his belt).  It features mostly-previously unreleased songs from a bunch of Portland-area artists (Aaron Nigel Smith, Laura Veirs, Lori Henriques, Cat Doorman, and some folks noted below) and, as you might expect, has a nature theme.  In terms of the new tracks, I really liked the Alphabeticians' "Roe Together," Red Yarn's "Big Blue Dome," and Lori Henriques' "Let's Go Take a Peek at the Creek."  The album is roughly split between songs that more explicitly encourage a conservation/eco-conscious approach and those that just celebrate nature.  The album will be especially appropriate for those in a outdoors-y mood.  This album has a mix of songs and age ranges that makes a target age range difficult to peg, but you can stream the 36-minute album here to check for yourself.

 Be Alive: Johnny & Jason - Fuzzed-out rock mixed with a bit of British Invasion mostly for toddlers and preschoolers.  The second album from duo Johnny Keener and Jason Greene features short, sharp rock tunes written mostly for bouncing around, with very kid-simple subjects.  Leadoff track "Up Up Up" is definitely on the toddler end of thing while the country-folk "Lollipop Trees" is far more fanciful and for your daydreaming kindergartner.  I also dig the swirly organ on "Let's Play"   You can stream the 23-minute album here. 

Monster Suit: Mo Phillips -- Lo-fi Bakersfield-tinged indie rock with a side of goofiness and dollop of tenderness on top.  "The Princess and The Cowboy," on which Phillips duets with Little Sue, sits on the tenderness side of the equation ("It doesn't matter what you do just how you do it / Make sure it's full of happiness and heart") while "Rollerskate Banana Peels," well, you can guess where that sits.  Song topics sit squarely in the field of kid-centered topics (the zoo, messy hair, trucks).  Best for ages 3 through 6, you can stream some of the songs from the 34-minute album at Phillips' website.

Junior: The Alphabeticians - The duo of Eric Levine (Mr. E) and Jeff Inlay (Mr. Hoo) proudly represent the TMBG/BNL wing of PDX kindie rock, and not just because I used a lot of alphabetical letters there.  I mean, it's not everyday that you get to hear the word "sycophant" in a kids' song (appropriately rhymed in "Elephant"), right?  This album continues the brainy wordplay of their previous albums (see "General Relativity" for an explanation of how you're specifically related to your distant relatives) and multiple alphabet-inspired songs (natch) with a slight expansion of their sound (banjo! cello!).  Best for ages 4 through 8, you can stream the 37-minute album here.

The Deep Woods: Red Yarn - The most ambitious album in the bunch is from Andy Furgeson, AKA Red Yarn, who uses ten musicians and 150 friends and neighbors ("The Community Singers") to give 11 traditional songs (plus one original, the title track) the folk treatment in the old meaning of the term.  "Bob the Rabbit" is a driving rock melding of "John the Rabbit" and "Rabbit Soup," while "Old Blue" with its yelps might remind you young whippersnappers of the Lumineers.  (I personally had an early Arcade Fire feel throughout.)  "Mr. Rabbit" has an almost desperate urgency while "The Fox," which brings together "The Fox," "Midnight Special," and "Go Tell Aunty Rhody," is absolutely gorgeous.  This is a folk revival, in all the many meanings of the word "revival."  Best for ages 3 through 10, you can stream the 36-minute album here.

Swordfish Tango : Pointed Man Band - The oddest-sounding album of the bunch is from Pointed Man Band.  A combination of Tom Waits and Shel Silverstein, the Beatles and Parisian cafes, the music smells of hardwood floors and flannel and wood construction blocks.  Let's put it this way - it's an album that besides featuring a song about an invisible duck and Western Washington witches, it includes a song about dancing without pants -- in French.  (Plus, of course, the title song, in 3 parts.)  If this sounds all a bit too precious, perhaps it comes close to that line, but I don't think ever crosses it -- it's fun, earnest, and delightfully weird.  Best for ages 5 through 10, you can stream the 34-minute album here. 

Itty-Bitty Review: Back in Blue - Imagination Movers

The Imagination Movers were essentially kindie before kindie became cool.  Created in the early 2000s, the Lousiana-based band independently released 3 albums of kids' pop-rock before being recruited by Disney for their eponymous TV show on Playhouse Disney (now Disney Junior).

Their latest album Back in Blue  is released by Disney and features songs from the third season of the TV show, along with unreleased tracks written for the show.  For the most part, the tracks hew closely to the rock-pop formula that served them so well on the show (and live).  Given their origins as music written for the show, the songs have more of an educational/plot-driven feel (not to mention an ever-so-slightly younger age focus and an average sub-2-minute-per-song length).  But the Movers take pride in writing and playing all their own material, and it's clear they haven't sacrificed their love of the rock of their own youth (you'll have to ask the band whether "On Your Marks" is just an homage to Tom Petty's "Don't Do Me Like That"; you won't need to ask at all what "Gotta Get Your Work Done" is an homage to).

The 26-track, 47-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 3 through 6.  I preferred their previous album, the post-Disney Rock-O-Matic, to this one, as it felt freer, sillier, and less plot-driven, and if you're not familiar with the band or the show, that might be the better entry point.  (I'm pretty that that album was written after this one.)  But if you liked that album and -- especially -- if you're a fan of the show, then you should try this one, too.  Recommended.

Note: I was provided a copy of the album for possible review. 

Review: Kingdom Animalia - The Short Films

When you receive as many kids music albums -- and press releases -- as I do, you tend to discount claims from newcomers to the kindie world that some album brings something new to the kids music.  (The guaranteed surefire best way to get an experienced kids music reviewer to listen to a kids music album with an unpromising attitude? Have them introduce it to the reviewer with the phrase "Finally, a kids music album the whole family can enjoy.")

So given that I was introduced to Canadian band The Short Films via this April article which suggested that there wasn't a lot of complex kids music out there, this could all have gone very poorly.  But before I dismissed them out of hand, I listened to one of the tracks, "Mr. Wolf," and realized that, whatever the band's familiarity with current kindie music notwithstanding, their album Kingdom Animalia (released a couple weeks ago) could very well offer a distinctive sound.

Calling that song a reworking of the Three Little Pigs story only scratches the surface of its oddity -- Tessa Jennison's powerful and distinctive voice struttingly gives a different perspective on the pig-wolf interaction while husband Russell Jennison and drummer Ryan Dugal create an atmospheric background that perfectly matches the slight sense of unease of the lyrics ("So don't misunderstand them / When they ask you in for tea, / 'Cause they always have a crazing / For a wolf between the teeth").

The entire album has a dream-like effect -- "Pegafox" is about a make-believe animal, for example, the body of a red fox with the wings of a red-tailed hawk.  "The Mysterious Okapi" is the kids song we never knew Portishead had written about an animal almost none of us know.   Even songs about relatively common animals like "Cat," which features a vigorous piano accompaniment from Jennison herself, outlines the (accurately) complex feelings we often have with our pets ("I'm a cumbersome burden who sits at your door / Like a cat who won't stay away, / "Who is eating her way through your shoes and into your heart.").  These are Studied Songs for the Very Young, Raffi as interpreted by Fiona Apple.

The 34-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 5 through 9.  (It's an album not so much for dancing as for listening, so it might not work for every audience.)  Besides the single track linked above, you can listen via Spotify.  For the moment, it's a digital-only release, though plans are in the works to have an accompanying book featuring the distinctive artwork made in conjunction with the album.

I can't say that Kingdom Animalia is completely unique-- heck, there's already one excellent album about animals that doesn't employ pop-rock as its musical foundation -- but it is lovely and, at times, mesmerizing.  If you've read this far, then I think you have a pretty good idea if your family will love love love this album.  There's room for all sorts in the kindie world -- Raffi and more -- and I'd like to welcome The Short Films to this world.  Please make 'em feel at home.  Highly recommended.