Today, Asbury Park's raucous and rowdy punk four-piece, The Vansaders, are sharing their video for the raucous and rowdy "Siren's Song." The track is part of an upcoming split 7" with Asbury paisanos, latewaves. The Quixote x Broken Bird 7" is due at the end of this month.
The Vansaders once again worked with producer Pete Steinkopf at his Little Eden Studios for "Siren's Song." The song is a familiar story in which our narrator is unable to resist his lover's charms even though he knows it will probably lead to his demise. Appropriately, "Siren's Song" adopts kind of a seafaring vibe embellished by The Vansaders' trademark harmonies, huge drums, and a blistering guitar solo. The Chris Shashaty-directed clip features Sara McDermott.
The Vansaders and latewaves will celebrate the release of their split Quixote x Broken Bird 7" on February 29th at The Wonder Bar in Asbury Park along with special guests kqhyt kqhyt. $3 from each ticket and $2 from each record sold at that show will benefit animal rescue organization Wag On Inn. "Siren's Song" will also appear on The Vansaders' next full-length, scheduled for this summer.
There's been a lot of "stuff" going around town this past week. We finally heard the plans for what's going to happen to the building that used to house Asbury Lanes, and it's caused some... ...conversation. Much of that conversation has centered on what it was that made Asbury Lanes special; and, while Asbury Lanes no longer exists, some of that spirit still flickers around town at shows like the one Aftermath Collective and House of Independents threw at Asbury Park Brewery last night.
Lauren Denitzio of Worriers returned to Asbury Park for an intimate solo set and headlined a bill that also included Natalie Newbold (Well Wisher), Emily Bornemann (Dentist), and Mikey Pellegrino (latewaves). It was a special evening. Each performer usually plays as part of a full band; and, naturally, there had to be some nerves. But everyone playing was in the same boat; and I think that gave everything a nice, communal feel. At any rate, if there were any nerves, they didn't hurt a single performance.
Mikey Pellegrino
One of the great things about hearing the songs stripped of their full-band arrangements, guitar solos, drum fills, is that you really notice what good songs they are. Natalie Newbold and I discussed this with reference to Emily Bornemann and Dentist following Newbold's set, but it was true across the board. latewaves, Dentist, Well Wisher, and Worriers can all get pretty loud in their own way; but, last night, everyone's songs held up -- shone even -- in the more intimate setting.
Emily Bornemann
And the interactions with the audience -- from Pellegrino's pointing out where the band would come in, to Bornemann's revealing that this was her first solo set in a decade, to Newbold's forgetting the opening line to one of her earliest songs, to Denitzio's admitting that they liked to be able to do shows like this whenever the rest of the band was unavailable -- felt natural, like a shared experience among friends.
Natalie Newbold
Just a sweet, sweet night. I could go on about it, but I just wanted to acknowledge that there are still plenty of chances to support cool things in and around Asbury Park. It's easy to get down on the way things are trending, and I forget that sometimes. Last night was a nice reminder of what we can still do.
I've got an inbox full of new EPs, LPs, videos, songs -- many from friends of the site and artists we discuss here often. I've got 100s of pictures to edit from last night's release show for High Waisted and The Coax. Taking the easy way out as I begin to comb through over a week's worth of new and interesting material by calling your attention to a few bite-size morsels from some of our Garden State neighbors.
LKFFCT, "Hatchling"
Montclair indie rock quartet, LKFFCT, just released the first single from their upcoming Dawn Chorus. "Hatchling" sounds like it's about growing up, specifically as it pertains to an increasing willingness to listen to and be educated by others. It's kind of swirling, kind of psychedelic and goes out on a bit of a freakout that probably makes for some wild moments during a LKFFCT live set.
latewaves, "Face Down"
I've been kind of behind on Asbury Park's latewaves ("late" you might say). I see them in the listings all the time and have never managed to catch one of their shows. That changes tomorrow when they play a set at the third annual Bond St. Block Party in their hometown.
The trio recently signed to Panic State Records; and their debut EP, Partied Out, is due on 9/22. Earlier this week, latewaves released a video for single "Face Down."
The Chris Shashaty-directed video depicts a ghost and the Grim Reaper moving aimlessly through life until they ultimately find each other. The song is big and bruising with stylistic callbacks to 90s alt rock and more recent post-hardcore.
I'm pretty excited to see latewaves tomorrow.
Lunch Ladies, "Pick Yourself Up"
Back in March, when Jersey Shore-based Lunch Ladies released Down on Sunset Strip, CDM contributor Stephen Stec had this to say about "Pick Yourself Up:"
"It sounds like what your Real Estate LP sounds like played at double time; an absolute bopper that's probably the most fun and light-hearted sounding tune off the album. It just might be the most heavily resonating, a song that feels like waking up and opening your window to a morning so sweet, you've got to take a walk or go running and just do something generally weird to better yourself while appreciating the little things in life."
I liked that then; and, now that Lunch Ladies have released a new video for the track, I like it even more. Director Ed Hellman captures the fun, retro vibe of the song as he documents the band doing band things like playing and eating at diners.
Down on Sunset Strip is out now on Good Eye Records and is quite awesome.
Bobby Mahoney and The Seventh Son, "Another Deadbeat Summer"
Remember Neon Indian's seminal chillwave track, "Deadbeat Summer?" Yeah. This isn't that. Bobby Mahoney and The Seventh Son are Jersey rockers through and through with a sound that draws from Springsteen, The Gaslight Anthem, and the brashness of our home state.
Originally recorded for the band's Friends in Low Places, the song has become a (if not the) highlight of the band's live set. Having grown up with the song, the band decided to re-record it and release it as part of a single to close out Summer of 2017, release details of which are forthcoming.
...OK. That's it for now. I'll get to more stuff in the coming days.
