I think the world of Seattle's Recess Monkey, and so does Seattle local television. One station recently featured the band on its nightly newscast, and it's notable for clips of the band in concert and (teaching individually) in the classroom. It's also notable for the anchor saying at the end of the clip, "They even have CDs and t-shirts," as if the idea that a band playing for kids might actually record some of their songs is a bunch of insanity. Crazy!
Review in Brief: Best Friends - Ellen and Matt
Sometimes a record just gets away from you. I can't pinpoint any particular reason why I never reviewed Best Friends, the 2006 debut album from the Los Angeles wife-and-husband team of Ellen and Matt. And I can't pinpoint the reason why I felt compelled to go back and re-listen to the CD more than a year after I first received it. But I'm glad I did.
To a great extent my initial thoughts on the CD hadn't changed much. On the plus side, the musical melodies and harmonies here are among the more sophisticated in the kids' new wave, sounding a little like Matthew Sweet on "Go To Bed," a little more like Pete Townshend on "Bounce." Leading off the album "Eat My Dinner" and "Side by Side" have a very sunny beat to them, while their follow-up, the album's title track, is a surprisingly complex waltz.
On the other hand, I sometimes wondered if the songs weren't aimed at 7-year-olds with subject matter of greater concern to 4-year-olds. That's why I think the album's best songs are the simplest -- the movement-oriented "Bounce" and "Juice Box Rock" and the sweet "The Goodbye Song." (And I also thought the production could've pushed the vocals a bit closer to the front, aiding the 4-year-old listener who's really the target audience here.) I think the songs here will appeal most to listeners ages 3 through 6. You can hear samples from the 31-minute album at its CDBaby page.
The reason I'm glad that I gave the CD another spin or two (OK, five), though, is that I was reminded of the solid songwriting chops on display here. The kids music genre is one in which second albums are often better than the first because the artists road-test their music and figure out what works and what doesn't with audiences of all ages. So if Best Friends sometimes feels a little bit like going around with training wheels, I've got a pretty good feeling that with their next album (production starts in early 2008), Ellen and Matt will be cruising around on their own two wheels.New Music from the Hollow Trees v. 2.0
Many months ago, I exchanged e-mails with Gregory Hollow Tree of the L.A.-based the Hollow Trees -- known to his kin as Greg McIlvaine -- about what lay ahead for the band. He said what lay ahead was "the Hollow Trees v. 2.0."
He wasn't kidding. What used to be a pretty small band has now morphed into the kids' music equivalent of the Polyphonic Spree or We're From Barcelona -- I'd checked out their new lineup 3 or 4 weeks ago and was shocked to see all the names listed there.
Well, since I last visited their website they've announced their new CD -- Welcome to Nelsonville -- and posted 3 mp3s: go here to listen to the fun traditional "Ain't Gonna Rain No More" (a sequel in spirit to their first album's "Jack Was Every Inch a Sailor"), a shuffling Hollow Tree original "Hootenanny", and a zippity cover of "Skoodle Um Skoo." All three tracks just sound good. The band may have swelled to indie-pop size, but they're still making a great Americana roots and folk sound. (Hat tip to Gwyneth for the heads up.)
Video: "It's A Big World" - Renee and Jeremy
If your family at all liked the title track from Renee and Jeremy's fine album "It's A Big World" or the album's cover art by illustrator Hsinping Pan, you will love this video, in which two very good things combine to make something...
Gorgeous.
Review: Family Favorites - The Biscuit Brothers
Austin's Biscuit Brothers are best seen on TV or live. There's a definite theatrical sensibility in the episodes you can watch on selected PBS stations or on DVD, and they've been performing live even longer. (The live shows were the inspiration for the TV show, in fact.)
As good as those shows are, though, trying to capture the essential Biscuit nature on CD is a little tougher. Their previous disk, Old MacDonald's EIEI Radio, sounded a little bit like a (long) TV episode, with a little emphasis on the educational component of the TV show. It usually worked OK, but there were points where it seemed like there were some visuals missing and it wasn't as entertaining as watching the show.
Now, with their just-released Family Favorites, they're taking a slightly different approach, essentially forgoing attempts at direct education and an episodic structure, and putting together an album of fun songs, some of which were originally recorded for the TV show, some of which are new for this album. While the result is definitely not like the show in its overall structure, the album does a fine job of capturing the Biscuit Brothers spirit, energy, and humor.
The album starts off with a great version of the "Wabash Cannonball" -- its soaring chorus is a high point of the album -- and proceeds to wander through some time-tested tunes. Irving Berlin ("Alexander's Ragtime Band) and George M. Cohan ("Grand Old Flag" and "Yankee Doodle Scarecrow" -- OK, that last one has been modified a bit from the original) help the 20th century make an appearance, while "Old Dan Tucker" gets a smooth, polished performance from the band. Indeed, one of the pleasures of the CD is listening to the Brothers' fine voices and Allen Robertson's musical arrangements in song after song. And while the Biscuit Brothers' primary musical approach is renditions of folk songs, they're talented enough to make the alphabet song sound a bit like the Fifth Dimension on "Alphabet!"
And, yeah, Tiny Scarecrow, one of my favorite kids' show characters of all time (and one who gets high marks from my kids, too), gets his share of air time -- he's appropriately goofy on the "World's Shortest Dance Break," he negotiates the rapid-fire lyrics on "Tiger Rag" -- so that pleased me. In the let's-make-a-silly-rhyme "Schnitzelbank," he makes a Rene Magritte reference about floating apples -- high and low in the same song.
These songs are really an all-ages setlist, but given a couple of the titles, let's put the target range at kids ages 2 through 9. You can hear clips from the 34-minute album at its CDBaby page.
If you're already a Biscuit Brothers fan, you've probably picked up Family Favorites by now -- and if you haven't, you should. For those of you who aren't sure about the Brothers, I think this is a fun album you can enjoy even if you've never seen the show -- it's the best audio introduction to the Biscuit Brothers. Recommended.Elizabeth Mitchell, Dog on Fleas, MMW on Benefit CD
I hear about a bunch of benefit albums. And a benefit album with tracks from Elizabeth Mitchell, Dog on Fleas, and Medeski Martin & Wood definitely piques my interest.
But any benefit album which includes songs like "True True Friend" from Dog on Fleas collaborator Debbie Lan with this description -- "This song was written for our musical last year (a collaborative piece, interpreted and adapted by Allison Uzzle and the 7th/ 8th graders – the challenge was to take the epic poem ‘Beouwolf’ and make it into a musical comedy!) and we needed a sweet song for four of our sweet girls, and so I wrote this for them. They did a sterling job. Thanks girls!! (Isabelle Lacedonia, Rebekah Underhill-Hval, Corin Mosack and Zoe Saridakis.)" -- well, I'm well beyond piqued.
Proceeds from High Meadow Songs benefits High Meadow Arts, Inc. a Hudson Valley non-profit organization "dedicated to providing excellent arts education to local children and families." Listen to 3 tracks -- Debbie Lan's soulful "I'm On Your Side," Dog on Fleas' typically Fleasian (that is, eclectic and fun) "Buffalo Gals," and the nifty "Hudson River Girl" from Abby Hollander, Lilly Morganstern & the Hudson River Girls -- here. The record release party is Sunday, Dec. 2 at 6 PM.
