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Oh Seanathan Taylor Thomas, how I like to abuse you on the internet.

Yet an another overdue review.

Yet another Lame-O records backed band.

Hey did you guys know there are members of Modern Baseball in this group? I didn’t know that. Thanks random Launch Music Conference Attendee, the more you know right? There are also members of W.C. Lindsay, Shmns, and some dude named Andrew. So Supergroup? Supergroup! Moving on.

So this record is cool for a bunch of awesome first things going on for me (this blog) as well. This is the first legitimate follow-up record I’ve reviewed, the next Steady Hands record should be here like next week or so I believe. This is also the first record where I got to sit in on some of the recording sessions so I have a little more insight to the actual production. Still not making money from any of this though.

Hey, daddy needs booze, make me famous internet.

Actually don’t do that. I’m not that self serving, but my liver isn’t gonna kill itself.

Music, let’s talk about that shall we? Sounds good.

Try really good. Oh hey another first for me, the first review of a Dr. Rock production here at Undergroundalliance.org. We need a party for this, bring a keg.

Anyways music.

I gotta say this record is Sean Huber’s (aka “Dad,” “Steady Hands,” “Steadydad,”) foray into a full band sound and recording. The first record had some additional instrumental trimmings but it was few, scattered, and inconsistent in terms of a defined sound outside of the folk punk leanings that was Sean’s musical focus. Don’t get me wrong Not Many of Us Left got the message across but what The Libertines does is hammer it home.

Sean has grown largely as a songwriter as well as singer. This record feels entirely more personal and emotive than his previous effort. Both of these aspects, the songwriting and singing, contribute heavily to this improvement. Where earlier songs were fun and energized, what The Libertines adds to the catalog is much more heart and soul that has been filtering it’s way into the older songs as evident in the much more frenetic live sets.

Now Sean has been quite the singer but the quality of vocals on The Libertines is beautiful. Dude was pushing it to the point of being voiceless while in the studio. (Honey shots anyone?) I don’t know if it was the sickness or the passion but the performance is what I could only describe as what a whiskey soaked heaven would sound like. Give this man all the trophies.

I believe the band has a done great deal to bring about these improvements.

Ah the Libertines, Steady Hands and the Libertines, you are totally not getting sued for any of this. That’s because you have two Lawyers in the band, sort of… Lawyertines?

Sean’s backing band is called the Libertines. From what I’ve seen live, I don’t have the CD in front of me because it’s in Sean’s merch box so I don’t know who was actually on the record. The Libertines includes Jake Ewald on other guitar and William Charles Lindsay on other, other guitar. George Legatos on bass, Andrew Kirnan on the keys, and Richard “Never Been Kissed” Straub drumming. Occasionally it includes Isaac Louis, or is it Zack Weinstein? I seriously don’t know which is his real name. Okay so we were drinking when we met and he introduced himself as Zack so that’s what I was calling him all night. Then the next day after being done drinking and sober again, I saw he added me on Facebook but his profile says Isaac Louis. Well after that I felt like an asshole because I thought I had been drunkenly calling him the wrong name all night. I still refer to him as Zack, sometimes Isaac. Anyways he plays Sax on the record. This one time Eric Osman played melodica. That’s just the usual live band. It has from time to time included Lucy Stone, Brendan Lukens, Brandon Bost, Ian Farmer, John Sepa, Paul Impellizeri, and Sean Donaghy. The band has more members than Slipknot.

As Backing bands go I usually don’t pay much mind to them on records simply because I’ve always kinda of seen them as hired guns. Play the part, get paid, then do it again when you need to. However The Libertines makes The Libertines. I’ve heard many of the tracks on this record live while Sean played them solo. They were great, they sounded fantastic. The tracks with the full band however are full fledged, start bar fights, commit arson, kill your parents to sacrifice them to Satan, bangers. Actually, wait… Don’t do all that stuff. Well maybe some of them, like maybe 1/3rd….?

The band fleshes out everything. It brings a metric fuck ton of intricacies, melody, and solid rock and roll. However the band doesn’t take away from what made Steady Hands great in the first place. It’s still a lot of about life, it’s songs written by that kid that grew up with Warped Tour and is now an Adult chasing dreams. That’s the fucking spark, that’s what music should be about. It’s the perfect formula, live and deal with the shit anyway you know how. Sean digs deep, he grabs a hold of his own history and he shares that so intimately. I want to cry about it sometimes but I usually have a sixer of Peebs tall ones to accompany me so I end up screaming at very audible volumes. These songs have very intense feelings behind them. I believe Sound, Phase, and Fury has a track by track available. You should read it to learn more, he did threw up he tweeted about it. Don’t lie about it Sean it’s not punk. You’re a punk, accept it.

About now I write my actual criticism. I only have one thing to say about the record. It’s about the Sax in song for Rosemary. I love Sax, I used to play a little bit of Sax in 4th grade. I love that’s included, you are getting so close to having a horn section. ZaIsaac’s part is great. It’s a production issue really. I don’t like how the part is implemented into the track. I feel it could’ve been better weaved in. It feels too separate from the bridge it resides in. Also all the music around it feels a little dead. There, that’s it, the only criticism I have for The Libertines.

Now go buy it before I sacrifice you Satan.

Love,
Jacob P. Overholt


TL;DR I’m pretty sure Richie has kissed girls. Undergroundalliance.org does not condone Arson. Sean can you edit our Senior Project please?

Launch weekend, just the hits.

Thanks for another great weekend in Amish country guys. I love you all, I can’t wait to hang with you all again.

-Jake

Things you can do to help us make it to June:

Never post our address online publicly. If someone asks for it make sure you know who this person actually is. Police aren’t always laughably bad at posing as a punk or college kids. Fake profiles are still pretty easy to spot. If something seems fishy don’t send the address.

Show up to shows on time. Shows that run late cause noise violations. Very simple.

Be quiet/don’t make a mess outside. A lot of times the commotion caused by the crowd smoking is a lot more detrimental than the actual music being played. When we trash the block it makes us look really bad and really upsets the neighbors.

There are a lot of very cool houses around the country getting shut down recently and we do not want to be one of them. To make matters worse our neighbors will be opening up their windows soon (if spring ever comes). Let’s not make their lives hell. Let’s keep the cops out of spaces we enjoy. Let’s keep the cops out of our house.

Thanks.

This is our community and it is ours to maintain. It is punk to care about something.

-Jake

Spread the word.

You ever rage so hard that you hate mosh out of fridge?

#Shitjustgotmetal

-Jake

(Source: my-heaven-in-the-making, via rootsandwill)

“In Case You Haven’t Noticed” | Heart to Heart

The Changing Light, live 3/23/13.

iwouldvestolenyouawholeorchestra:

This is how bored I am. Don’t make me do this with all of my records.

This is how you know your friends have hit the big time.

-Jake

(via nudebloggerswithrecords)

“Road Warrior” | Carousel Kings

Hometown boys, hometown rager. It’s up on Absolutepunk.net right now, (Watch it there, then watch it again here) but I’m posting it here cause I was sore for a good week post show. I’ll do what I want.

-Jake

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Do I have to like actually review this record?

Fine, I’ll do it.

I wanted to review the Modern Wiffleball album, but they have a restraining order that prevents me from writing anything about their luscious, sensual music. Guess Modern Baseball will have to do.

Can we talk about band names real quick. What’s with all the sports references? Title Fight, The Starting Line, Major League, Post-Season, State Champs, Sidelined, and Hockey. This is a problem, stop it. It was clever but now I’m just constantly reminded how my football scholarship didn’t pan out. Do you think I like saying things on the internet? No! I want to be banging bitches and scoring touchdowns for Michigan U. Remember when bands were called Led Zeppelin, The Who, Van Halen, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, fucking Slayer. I miss that. Consider this your warning young bands of the world. I’m done.

No more sports shout outs.

I’ll shit on your chest.

I know what you’re thinking, “Get the fuck on with it.”

I’ve put this review off for a while for many reasons.

1. College is no picnic and I hate it.
2. These kids worked really hard on this record and I see that and respect it. I don’t want to post an opinion and crush their souls in anyway. (Not saying what you’re about to read is soul crushing.)
3. Their sound is not something I really get into that I often and I feel too ignorant of certain genres to provide an effective opinion that says something other people haven’t.

So now that I have effectively funneled enough PBR’s to engage my pretentious hipster mode (not a factory setting) let the bloodshed begin.

How do I begin talking about this record. It’s a lot of things for me. It’s the full length debut of both my friends’ band and another friend’s independent label, Lame-O Records. While the band is now signed to Run for Cover Records the band re-pressed the record in a joint release with Lame-O and RFC.

As friends putting out records goes I love them, I support them, I digest their music to the point of absolutely hating the music but raging my face off regardless at their shows. Because that’s what friends do. So as I go jokes made at their expense are completely unprofessional and made out of love so I hope they laugh and enjoy. If not well maybe we can still be friends?

Probably not.

The record is nostalgic, it reminds me of who I was when I came to Philly. It reminds me of high school and the stupid things I felt and did for people who I realize weren’t good for me. It’s also a poetic depiction of my life in the present, feeling distant from the kids I grew up around and realizing that where I am is so far away from where they stayed both mentally and physically. It’s smart lyrical content hits it out of the park in term of emotional impact at times. It’s crazy stupid how often I find myself chewing on how bitter   and cynical of kids I know growing up in manners I find ignorant or unadvisable and this record is a testament to that mentality. Finding comfort in knowing someone feels the same way is a sure fire way to ingrain a record into someone’s heart. So in that aspect the record has found a place on my short list of recommended albums.

Jake and Brendan have voices that must have be handcrafted golden pipes forged in the high mountains by buddhist monks before the births of these boys. They complement each other so well to the point I believe they are the same voice. Only a few noticeable differences between the two guitarists. I’m picky when it comes to vocals I like them to have an honest clear sound that’s in the moment of the music. Two words for you, Fucking nailed it. Yeah it’s three words but that’s because I do what I want.

Musically the album is all over the board with me. There are plenty of tracks that get me fired up or really connected to the boys’ wavelength. Re-done being my stand out favorite followed closely by The Weekend and Tears over Beers and finally See Ya Sucker. The Indie-emo-pop vibe the record has works most of the times but it’s not a sound that I actively seek out. Still the record is an incredible first full length effort. I personally feel it could have used some trimming. Honestly, the record feels built around these bigger songs and sometimes that’s nice and sometimes I’m just over it. I think after about the half way point the record begins to stumble for me. It slows down, gets a little more reserved but it’s not always the intimate approach that their previous releases did so well. I am not criticizing their musical ability as much I am the execution. I’ll recap this real quick so you get the picture I’m painting. Side A, full of bangers; Side B starts strong but feels like it tapers off to feeling flat.

The problem might be that I prefer big raw sound on my records. The record’s production to me is about two important things, reservation and polishing. Not that there’s anything wrong with that cause the record sounds fantastic. I can’t help but feel that if their live sound was left unhindered in the studio I’d be super into it. Maybe I’m  beating off a dead horse but seriously these kids can fucking jam live and I love them for that.

I recommend this record for a few reasons. It has an honest lyrical approach that isn’t a revolving door of recycled cliches. Vocals are tight, clean, and shine real hard on this record. When the record jams it jams like a New York City intersection, in your face and rage worthy. While I don’t feel some of the tracks play as intimately as the band would have hoped they are a treat every once and while in an era when some records sound ripped off or are a copy pasted series of chords track after track. Buy this record because I see the next releases building off of this one immensely. I can’t wait to see this bols grow and take over the world like I know they will.

Love,
Jacob P. Overholt

TL;DR Why wasn’t Modern Wiffleball considered for the band name? And why isn’t Sean playing drums on Sports? You got docked points for that.

Call me an Ignorant slut on twitter @UG_Alliance