Don’t be a stranger to the black watch

By Henry Lipput

Since the black watch released their fantastic compilation 31Years of Obscurity in 2019, this overview of their career made them many new fans (including me). (As I mentioned in my review for CoolDad Music, I was surprised it had taken me some long to join the club.) In the intervening years, there’s been an explosion of activity as John Andrew Fredrick and company have given us 3 singles, 4 EPs, 1 reissue, and four albums (not counting the Magic Johnson album which came out around the same time as 31 Years and had a few songs on that collection.)

Last year’s the neverland of spoken things EP was a taster for the new album future strangers (ATOM records) and included the title cut and two non-album tracks. It also allowed the band to release some music as they waited for the album to be available on vinyl (there’s a backlog at pressing plants if you haven’t heard).

The fuzz, crunch and – especially – melodies that have become a trademark of music by the black watch are in full form on future strangers.  Joined by continuing members the producers and musical multi-taskers Rob Campanella and Andy Creighton, Fredrick adds to the fold the vocal stylings of Lindsay Murray of Gretchen’s Wheel.

Fredrick doesn’t scream in his vocals no matter how frustrated he is with the state of things. Instead, he allows his music to do the work. For example, he uses a glorious bank of guitars on the marvelous and moody title song and on “they may be grey” he and his follow riff masters bring on the pop. And although Lindsay Murray is listed as providing backing vocals for the album, her contribution on “the neverland of spoken things” is less of a support role than a partner to Fredrick’s lead vocal.

Over the last years there’s been a give and take with songs on albums and EPs by the black watch. “julie 3,” the last song on future strangers, is obviously not the first “julie:” “julie” and “julie II” were on the brilliant failures album. All three had different arrangements and different lyrics and on “julie II” the vocals were not by Fredrick but the Nico-sounding Julie Schulte (is she the julie in question?). As for “off you go redux!” it’s also on the white EP along with (the original?) “off you go!” They chronicle the future adventures of Mrs. Robinson, Elaine, and Benjamin in an arrangement that owes more than a bit to The Lemonheads’ cover of the Simon and Garfunkel classic.

 

Help me if you can

By Henry Lipput

At some point in a band’s career, they stop being compared to other bands but instead are thought of on their own terms. As far as I’m concerned this has happened with Fallon Cush, the Australian band led by singer-songwriter Steve Smith. Yes, they still have alt-country and jangle pop sounds (along with the occasional rock influences thrown in for good measure) but have definitely made a sound that’s their own.

The band’s heart-felt new single, the country-ish “Grain of Salt” (Bandcamp and all streaming services), is the first new music from the band since their excellent 2019’s Stranger Things Have Happened album. “Grain of Salt” is mostly a solo effort with Steve Smith getting an assist from producer Josh Schuberth but can definitely be considered a band track.

The lyrics for “Grain of Salt” ask for help during a difficult time. But the request seems to be from someone who has cried wolf or misled a friend too many times in the past: “If I came straight out with it/Looked you in the eye,” sings Smith in a voice that’s aching to be taken seriously, “Said that I’m really struggling/To get by/Would you take it with a grain of salt/Or would you listen to me?”

According to Smith, there are two or three Fallon Cush tracks in the works that will be released in the coming months and then an EP or album next year.

Flying high with the 3 clubmen

 By Henry Lipput

“Aviatrix,” the mind-bending first single by The 3 Clubmen from their self-titled EP out in June (Burning Shed/Lighterthief), is a love story made up of sounds and images that might, under normal circumstances, not work together. But these aren’t normal circumstances because The 3 Clubmen is the brand-new powerhouse musical trio of Andy Partridge, Jen Olive, and Stu Rowe.

Partridge, Olive, and Rowe have been working on projects since 2008 (Rowe and Partridge worked on 2oo7's Monstrance and Olive’s 2013 album The Breaks had all three of them on separate tracks performing separate tasks).  But The 3 Clubmen is the first time they’ve recorded as a proper trio. 

As for the process of making the new EP, Partridge said: “I throw paint, Jen throws paint, Stu throws paint...and we walk away. If, when we return, something in there calls to us, we’ll move heaven and earth to get it out and let it breath.” The result with “Aviatrix” may initially appear to be two separate songs but put together they complement each other not unlike Wasp Star’s “The Wheel and The Maypole” (or going even further back “A Day in The Life”).  And the paint on the walls must have stuck because the colors are so fresh you can smell them.

From six strings to 88 keys

 By Henry Lipput

The guitar, whether acoustic or electric, has been the instrument Peter Case has been most associated with from his time with The Nerves in the ‘70s, The Plimsouls in the ‘80s, and the solo career that begun with his self-titled first solo album in 1986. So it may be surprising he’s turned to piano on Doctor Moan (Sunset Blvd Records), his first album of original songs in seven years.

When touring stopped during the pandemic Case had some time on his hands and he used that time (and his hands) to start playing the piano in his living room until the songs for Doctor Moan began to appear. It also helped that since moving back to San Francisco, he began attending the St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church and, playing there with the ensemble, greatly increased his strength as a piano player. In addition to Case on piano, harmonica, mellotron, and guitar, Doctor Moan has Jonny Flaugher on electric and acoustic bass, and Chris Joyner on B-3 organ.

All of the songs on Doctor Moan have a bluesy or boogie-woogie feel and a dark tinge. For example, the rumble of the keys on the opening track “Have You Ever Been In Trouble,” is not something you’d want to be listening to with your earbuds on a dark street in the middle of the night. Even hearing it on speakers you may be liable to occasionally take a look behind you to make sure you’re alone. The barrelhouse “Downtown Nowhere’s Blues” is a Broadway star turn and could be from an updated version of West Side Story. And although it’s not "Rhapsody In Blue" it certainly has some of the feel of that famous piece without lifting any of it.

“Wandering Days” has Case back on guitar in a song about the life of a sailor; the change in instruments allows the tune to breath and support the tale of the open seas. “Girl In Love With A Shadow” also slows things down a bit. It’s a sad story of the search for someone after an initial hookup and one of the highlights of the album.