Ball of Wax 33 Songs: Gibraltar – “Gibraltar”

Seattle’s own Gibraltar brings the dark, clangy pop with their contribution to Ball of Wax 33. The song, also named “Gibraltar,” is moody, tightly wound and reminiscent of bands like the Afghan Whigs and Clinic. There’s some cool, percussive piano that carries “Gibraltar” that adds to the tension of Aaron Starkey’s pinched, Thurston Moore-ish vocals. The refrain “you shouldn’t take these words too far” reads like advice but sounds like a warning. It’s a dramatic, and impressively well-produced, track. Praised by the likes of John Richards at KEXP and the Seattle Weekly, Gibraltar is making their first appearance on the old Ball of Wax, and a welcome one at that. If you can somehow bend the space/time continuum, definitely check them out back in June at the Lo Fi with local luminaries Ever So Android, Jupe Jupe and Black Nite Crash. If not, like them on Facebook and dig them on Ball of Wax 33.

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Ball of Wax 33 Songs: Matt Lynott – “Stitch”

San Diego’s Matt Lynott sent me a link to his self-titled debut album a while back, and I am very pleased that he did.  Whether on  instrumentals or songs with vocals, his arrangements – the textures, instrumentation, dynamics, and melodies he employs – show great sophistication and sensitivity, but there’s also an infectious sense of fun and experimentation present on much of the album. It doesn’t hurt that I hear echoes here of  many of my favorite artists, including Calexico, Califone, and Elliott Smith.  Matt probably just wanted me to write about him on the blog, but I immediately had to ask whether I could consider this a submission for BoW 33. I had a hard time picking one song, but the undeniable groove of “Stitch” seemed to combine with Territory & Hombre’s “Autry” for just the one-two punch I needed to kick off this volume. Like “Autry,” “Stitch” has already been released as part of an album, which you should go listen to now.

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Ball of Wax 33 Songs: Territory & Hombre – “Autry”

As you might remember, for Ball of Wax 31 my esteemed colleague Jon and I wrote a blog post for each of the original versions of the songs that were covered for that volume. Jon had the brilliant idea that we should go ahead and write posts featuring each of the songs on each new volume as they come, so we’re going to go ahead and do that right now (with apologies to everyone on Volume 32 for not thinking of it then). Ready? Here we go:

It’s been quite some time since we’ve heard new music from the man behind Territory & Hombre (not since BoW 16, in fact). In the intervening years he has moved from Seattle to Arizona. I don’t know what he’s been up to apart from writing and recording excellent songs, but he’s certainly been doing that, and has finally released the fruits of his labors. You can purchase Territory & Hombre’s Precious Moments on Bandcamp for zero dollars or more (I suggest more). You can also hear the song “Autry,” which appears to be a song about a baby named Autry (perhaps this is a hint at what he’s been up to?), at the very front of the newest volume of Ball of Wax. The fact that this beautifully sculpted beauty of a tune is buried at track 14 of Precious Moments should give you hint as to how ludicrously gifted Mr. Hombre is. Go listen to the whole thing now, and send him a few bucks if you can.

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Ball of Wax 33: 9/7 at Conor Byrne!

Bow-33-2013-09-07Ball of Wax Volume 33 Release Show
The Luna Moth | Lowmen Markos
Sun Tunnels | Michael Wohl
Saturday, September 7th, 9pm
Conor Byrne Pub
21+ / $7 (includes a free copy of Ball of Wax 33 CD)

Ball of Wax 33, which kicks off year 9 (3 x 3) of the Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly endeavor, is an interesting beast – partially themed (the number 33 finds its way into several tunes), partially unthemed, a little more rockin’ right out the gate than usual, fairly heavy on out-of-towners but still bringing plenty of fine local music – but ultimately its 18 (3 x 3 + 3 x 3) tracks comprise a delightful collection of new music that I’m very proud to have the Ball of Wax name on.

And I’m proud to have this particular group of artists representing BoW 33 at the release show. The night begins with two solo sets – one from acoustic guitar master Michael Wohl and one from songwriting genius Louis O’Callaghan, aka Sun Tunnels – and concludes with two variations on instrumental rock – the stripped-down drone of The Luna Moth (which, full disclosure, I play bass in) and the sprawling, dynamic soundscapes provided by Lowmen Markos. By the end of the night hearts will be pounding, ears will be aching, and everyone will go home with a hot-off-the-presses copy of Ball of Wax 33 to remember it all by.

All of which is to say: Come out to Conor Byrne on Saturday, September 7th! You’ll be glad you did.

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Submit to Ball of Wax 33!

33The next volume of Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly will be number 33; an evocative and compelling number indeed, I think you’ll agree. I’m a big fan of the number 33 (have been for a long time), but I couldn’t come up with a theme for this one that satisfied me (or that I could afford; I ruled out a 33 rpm vinyl LP as soon as the thought crossed my mind, sad to say).

So I have no specific theme in mind, but think your 33-iest thoughts as you write, record, or select a song, and maybe we will converge on some kind of unintentional theme. Stranger things have happened.

The submission deadline is August 1, but early submissions are appreciated (and sometimes I run out of room by the deadline). Get cookin’!

Submission guidelines here. Please share far and wide and encourage friends and strangers to send me their music.

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Corespondents: “Weltschmertz”

Sometimes I love the internet.

Longtime Ball of Wax favorites Corespondents just posted the following on Facebook, with a link to a brand new song on Soundcloud: “Todd wasn’t feeling well last night so the 3 of us in lieu of practicing made a song that is ‘acoustic.’ That is, no amplifiers, no reverb, no delay, etc. This is the result.”

Enjoy!

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Bill Horist’s Got Talent

HP_BillPhotoLocal guitar genius (and national treasure) Bill Horist has a new web site! I’ve often had a hard time when referring to him on the internet, not knowing whether to link to this  out of date label page, or that fallow Myspace page, or what. Far too few musicians have their very own urls in this Facebook/Reverbnation/Bandcamp age, so it’s great to see that an artist as important as Bill has his own home on the web. Go sign up for his mailing list so you can find out what he’s up to – like, say, releasing an album of solo prepared guitar improvisations called Guitar Weirdo.

While you’re checking out the site, be sure to read his tale of auditioning for NBC’s reality/talent/shit show America’s Got Talent. It’s a long read, but well worth it – thoughtful, detailed, and hilarious, as I would expect from Bill. I commend him for making this journey into America’s entertainment heart of darkness and surviving to share the tale with us (and man, I really hope he makes it on the air in some form).

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Ball of Wax 32 Is Out Now!

32After a wonderful night of live music at Conor Byrne featuring The Foghorns, Black Swedes, Pampa, GreenhornBluehorn, and Robert Deeble  – oh, and me and my band – Ball of Wax Volume 32 is now officially out and available for purchase. I hope to have copies at Sonic Boom in Ballard soon (I should have gotten them there on Saturday, but there was some kind of insane bicycle race going on as we were loading in that totally threw me off my game), but in the meantime you can listen and purchase over on Bandcamp.

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I’m very proud of this collection of music and the way it flows together. Part of that is due, if I may pat myself on the back just a little bit, to my own labors as a compiler, but there were also some wonderful sonic and conceptual confluences that I couldn’t have predicted or imposed. Virgin of the Birds and Jim of Seattle bring us a wonderful pair of witchy songs with “Make Me a Witch” and “Starting a Witch Hunt,” and there are two very different love similes going on between Ken Cormier‘s delightfully New Englandish “Love like a Quahog” and midnorth‘s “Loved like Fall.” There’s more, too; but as LeVar Burton would say, don’t take my word for it. Listen for yourself, and please consider purchasing to support Ball of Wax‘s efforts.

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Tele Novella

Once there was a band I liked very much called Agent Ribbons, from Austin by way of Sacramento. After years of relentless touring and several records they are recently no more (I believe the drummer may have been tired of not having things real people do, luxuries like health insurance, food, etc).

But wait, cease your sobs! Natalie Gordon of said band has hit the ground running with a brand new one called Tele Novella. Natalie’s tasty telecasting, expressive alto and songs I wish I’d written were all major highlights of AR, and they’re all there in TN. I know little else (price you pay for being on the cutting edge right?!), so no need to babble on. From what I can tell they’re making some really excellent pop music. Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 32: 6/8 at Conor Byrne, and Online Now!

BoW-32-posterBall of Wax Volume 32 CD Release show
Saturday, June 8th, 8:30pm
Conor Byrne Pub
The Foghorns / Black Swedes / Levi Fuller & the Library / Pampa / GreenhornBluehorn / Robert Deeble
$7 / includes free copy of Ball of Wax 32 CD

The time has come to celebrate the release of yet another volume of Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly into the world. Come on out to Conor Byrne next Saturday, June 8th to hear live performances from six of the artists featured on the newest installment, and receive a free copy of Ball of Wax 32 as you walk in the door!

And it’s a good one, I tell you. There’s a great range of stuff on here, from hooky pop to melancholy acoustic tracks to strange experiments both sonic and linguistic. Don’t believe me? Dig in right here:

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If you can’t make it to the show, you can pre-order your copy right now (and download it instantly) through the magic of Bandcamp.

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