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CD reviews: Amy Speace & the Tearjerks; Limbeck; The Format; Murderland; Trigger Renegade; The Dear Hunter

By Paul Maldonado
Friday, July 27, 2007

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Amy Speace & the Tearjerks, "Songs for Bright Street" (Wildflower Records)

Signed to folk/pop icon Judy Collins' label, this New York City singer/songwriter proffers her musical variations on country (the poppy "Step Out of the Shade" and the twangy "The Real Thing") and Americana ("Two" a duet with Gary Louris of the Jayhawks) on her debut.

She has a big, booming voice that can express dulcet hushed tones, and she often sounds like Lucinda Williams but without the lived-in feel. Just give her time.

Speace is a storyteller of the first order (the clichéd "traditional" lament "Double Wide Trailer") and a wordsmith par excellence:

The blues dirge "Shed This Skin": "Tell me your story, see what I think / How I make sense of Time versus Truth"

"Make Me Lonely Again": "I feel like I'm dying, and I'm always crying / If this is what love is, make me lonely again."

The kiss-off song "Not the Heartless Kind" has a melody very similar to U2's "The Fly," but it's slowed to a crawl, as she tells her soon-to-be ex: "I built this house with my own hands. I can tear it down, crush these bricks to sand. You'd sit there on the sofa as the roof fell from the sky. I could leave you in the rubble, but I'm not the heartless kind."

There's even a twangy, two-step version of Blondie's "Dreaming" that's driven by pedal steel guitar.

Amy Speace brings her Tearjerks to the City Different for an all-ages show at the Santa Fe Brewing Co., 35 Fire Place, at 7:30 p.m. on July 30. MiGGs opens. $8. (505) 424-3333 or visit Santa Fe Brewing.

Limbeck, "Limbeck" (Doghouse Records)

This y'all-ternative four-piece combo from Southern California dishes a potent stew of rock, Americana, country and pop on its third studio album.

Grounded by a chorus of "ooh la la las," the grudgingly poppish "Trouble" ("I'm in trouble/I've been here for a while") offers a pessimistic optimism, as does the country pop-rock of "Big Drag."

After life on the road, the country rocker "Let Me Come Home" is about adjusting to domestic tranquility, while "Keepin' Busy" chronicles that home life.

A pedal steel guitar informs the languid country tune "Reading the Street Signs," about a bus trip (in more ways then one) around town. Hand claps and a recurring bass line progression propel the rollicking pop of "Let's Get Crazy," a song about girl trouble, the good kind.

Ebullient vocal harmonies shine throughout, and the vocal delivery has an almost spoken-word quality about it.

The Format, "Dog Problems" (Nettwerk America/Vanity Label)

On its sophomore disc, this Phoenix fivesome shows a penchant for orchestral power pop.

The opening couplet — "Matches" and "I'm Actual" — has a show-tuney cabaret feel done in waltz time. "Time Bomb" is a Beach Boys-like pop confection that's sticky sweet: "Tick-tock, you're not a clock; you're a time bomb, baby."

The guys show off one of their musical influences on the brass band rhapsody "Dog Problems" that sounds like a toned-down Queen. They get topical on "She Doesn't Get It," a poppy rant about MySpace romance, while love (and hand claps) also figures in the anthemic "Oceans."

After a nasty split from Atlantic Records, they get personal on "The Compromise," poppish dance rock that's a diatribe against the music biz and selling out.

The Format brings its problems, and Limbeck, for an all-ages show on July 29 at the Sunshine Theater, 120 Central Ave. S.W. The Honorary Title, Steel Train and British magician Ollie Wilde share the stage, starting at 6 p.m. Tickets are $13, plus service charges, at Ticketmaster outlets. Call 883-7800 or go to Ticketmaster. Smoking and alcohol service in segregated areas only.

Murderland, "Lights Out" (Pirish Records)

Taking inspiration from classic splatter movies and 1950s comics, this L.A. five-piece delivers cartoonish, horror pop punk ("Die Screaming," which opens with the revving sounds of a chain saw) and speedy psychobilly on its debut seven-song EP. The vocals are catchy and clear, and the music is quite melodic.

The two standout tracks are the punk-rock love song "Lisa's Grave" and "Mausoleum Girl," an ode to a ghoulish girlfriend.

These are mostly themes of love, albeit with a horror-centric bent. However, one could easily argue they're all love songs, to one extent or another.

Murderland will try to spook you on July 28 at Burt's Tiki Lounge, 313 Gold Ave. S.W. The Gracchi, Conspirocity and the Unemploid share the bill at 10 p.m. Free. 21 and over only. 247-2878.

Trigger Renegade, "Destroy Your Mind" (Black Top Fade Records)

The Gibson Flying V guitar should've been a dead giveaway to this Santa Cruz, Calif., quintet's sound - classic '70s and '80s hard rock/metal in the vein of Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden.

There's a twin-guitar attack, a double-bass drum kit and echoey vocals that often sound as if recorded in a tunnel. The results are very melodic and hooky.

However, there's macho bravado, sexist sentiments and decidedly non-PC attitude throughout ("Nothing But Trouble"; "We're Not Over").

Among the better tunes are the hard-rocking "Damage" and "Straight Shooter"; the heavy-metal dirge "Anthem for the Dead"; and the apocalyptic visions of the title track. They also do a hard-rock/metal version of Morcheeba's "Part of the Process."

Trigger Renegade is part of a metalfest at Burt's Tiki Lounge on July 31. Sharing the stage at 10 p.m. are Devil Riding Shotgun and TGMB. Free. 21 and over only.

The Dear Hunter, "Act II: The Meaning of, & All Things Regarding Ms. Leading" (Triple Crown Records/ East West)

Led by Casey Crescenzo, former singer/guitarist of the Receiving End of Sirens, this Boston five-piece is ambitious in its reach and execution (and mostly succeeds) on the follow-up to last year's EP "Act I: The Lake South, the River North."

This 15-song suite is a concept album of orchestral emo; it's a rock opera of darkly beautiful music as songs segue from one to the next. It's the story of a boy (The Dear Hunter) from conception to birth and his awakening from a purposeful, if not deliberate, naiveté to, ultimately, his spiritual, if not mortal, death. Whew!

"The Death and the Berth" gives way to "The Procession," which documents his mother's death at childbirth. By Chapter Five — "The Church and the Dime" — he has discovered his girlfriend's call girl profession (accompanied by a screamo chorus). But from "The Bitter Suite," he doesn't seem to mind, yet.

From then on, it's a downward spiral. He's losing his soul ("Evicted") as he confronts questions of fidelity ("Red Hands"), and he realizes it's the beginning of the end ("Where the Road Parts"), which culminates on breakup rocker "Dear Ms. Leading" — "I've fallen out of lust" — and its screamo chorus. The pain and arrogance are palpable on "Vital Vessle Vindicates."

Musically, it's all over the map, from the show-tune stomper "The Oracle on the Delphi Express" to the trumpet and violin driven "Blood of the Rose," which has a verse in Spanish. The tale may be convoluted, but it's fascinating all the same.

Members of the Dear Hunter may be looking to be misled at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 2 at the Sunshine Theater. Scary Kids Scaring Kids headline, with support from Boys Night Out, Pierce the Veil and Four Letter Lie. $15 for the all-ages show.