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Aural States Fest II: Spotlights – Pontiak, Caleb Stine, NARC

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MP3: Pontiak – Life and Coral from Sea Voids (2009)

The prolific Pontiak released two stellar albums in 2009: Maker and Sea Voids, and look to have a new release this Spring. Both albums have garnered considerable critical praise, and they’ve ridden a steadily rising wave of internet popularity. Their live show is captivating and loud…catch them close out Sonar’s Club stage at Aural States Fest II on January 30th.

AS: Before releasing Sea Voids you moved back to the Shenandoah Mountains and (from what I’ve heard) lost your beards. Was this a conscious shift? Identity crisis?

Lain Carney: We all moved back to VA from Baltimore at roughly the same time, about three years ago. The beards? Those come and go pretty frequently and without much thought. The move was definitely a conscious shift but more for personal reasons than anything else.

AS: The band gets tagged as stoner metal a lot but the new album explores a wide array of song styles, from the acoustic “Life and Coral” to the more traditional indie fare of “World Wide Prince.” Did you deliberately think “let’s mix it up a bit”…is this your “experimental” album or is there more to come?

LC: We never thought of Sea Voids as our experimental album. I feel as though its as varied as our other albums.

AS: This isn’t a question, but Sea Voids seems a lot more melodically dissonant as well–especially say, the lead on the title track juxtaposed with the brighter, more shimmering distortion is pretty brilliant.

LC: Thanks Man!

AS: The first couple times I listened to “Suzerain” I thought my internet connection was failing (which I suppose is the modern equivalent of your CD skipping). What’s the story on that intro? You also played with the tape on the intro to “Laywayed” I believe.

LC: When I was mixing “Suzerain” I just had the idea to cut up the beginning. As soon as I started doing it, it immediately started to sound cool so I went with it. After I finished I said to Van and Jennings, “people are going to think the song is fucked up, not unlike ‘Laywayed’”.

AS: You must be downtuning your guitars to get them so rumbly. What do you tune them to, what gear do you use to achieve that signature pontiak growl?

LC: Yes, the guitars are tuned down to B. The sound we get is a direct result of one very key practice: turn the amps up. Once an amp is turned up, they all sound different and add their own color. Van always plays through at least two amps at once. That really helps to give the guitar a full sound.

AS: The press for Sea Voids that I’m looking at says you recorded the album in three weeks. Is that the most time you’ve spent in the studio? Some folks have suggested Maker was a one-take cut-and-run kind of recording session.

LC: We definitely try to not overwrite songs, and once we have an idea we try to record it while it’s fresh and loose. With Maker, as with our other records, we usually just did one or two takes for each song. It feels good to do one take and not become so concerned with “nailing it.” When I was younger I used to be really concerned with that stuff, but it’s way too micro.

Sea Voids was similar in that way. Just one take, maybe two. We wrote AND recorded it in three weeks which is the quickest we’ve ever done an album. It takes us about two weeks to record an album but the writing behind it can go back months, depending on how much we’ve been touring and things like that.

AS: You just had a European tour. How was the band received in Europe?

LC: Really well. We got tons of love in Europe and are about to head back actually in March. Can’t wait!

AS: Say I’ve never been to a Pontiak show…how’s it going to be different from your studio recordings? What can i expect?

LC: Our shows are usually pretty high energy. I’d say that it probably sounds like that album but louder.

AS: Tell us about your 2010 plans

LC: We’ll be in Europe in March, a new album in early spring and US shows in May. Summer and winter are going to be busy but things aren’t in stone yet. I’d like to have a new record by late summer.

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Caleb Stine is the soul of Baltimore music. His straightforward, honest, storytelling is what Baltimore is at its core – hardworking, genuine, and unafraid to tell it like it is. As Baltimore’s music scene has taken on a larger national profile, much of it for noise driven noise-rock such as Animal Collective, Beach House, and Dan Deacon, it is Stine who always seems to best reflect the people of the city. His timeless style and deeply personal songwriting evokes images of a classic generation of outlaw-country songwriters like Kris Kristofferson, Townes Van Zandt, and Willie Nelson. His power comes not from overwhelming volume or violent guitars, but from simple strums and carefully measured words that together carry an army of unmatched strength.

Stine who has recently returned from a short tour with Andy Friedman, is energized from his time on the road. A time he spent discovering new music with Friedman as they drove from show to show, “Now I’m pulsing with great music in my veins and can’t put the guitar down.”

Saturday night, those simple strums and mighty words that he delivers his songs with will be given even more power and more life, as Stine has recruited an all-star band of local Baltimore musicians (Dave Hadley and Nick Sjostrom (the Brakemen), Andy Stack (Wye Oak), Jason Butcher (Among Wolves), Tiffany DeFoe (The Bellevedeers), MC Saleem (Saleem and the Music Lovers), Jordan Leitner (Mad Sweet Pangs) and Sam Guthridge (Chester River Runoff), to play with him. The combination of Stine’s music and his roster of all-stars will serve to deliver a set of unparalleled emotion that at the same time will be a reflection of his hometown. As Stine simply says, “Its gonna be a special set.”

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MP3: NARC – Cuped (demo)

I’ll be frank: I was never fully on-board with the teen sampler and noisenik duo of Engine. But since their split, NO Smith has followed a frequency that resonates with me much more in the form of his one-man guitar & electronics act NARC.

He presents something more curious and soaring, while not forsaking his noisier roots. According to Smith, “there will probably be an EP in the nearish future, maybe spring/summer, and hopefully a full-length called SLY by the end of the year.” NARC opens the Talking Head Stage on Saturday.

Live Review: Kenny Liner & Caleb Stine @ The 8×10 (2009.12.08)

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It was a “blink and you’ll miss it” kind of collaboration, a mid week set by two friends.  It was a collaboration of two of Baltimore’s most genuine songwriters, playing together without the safety of their bands.  A couple of stools, a mandolin, an acoustic guitar, two songwriters, and a list of songs were the only things needed this evening.

Read the rest…

Preview: Aural States Fest II @ Sonar Club Stage/the Talking Head (2010.01.30)

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  1. MP3: Pontiak – Suzerain from Sea Voids (2009)
  2. MP3: Vincent Black Shadow – Flash Roll from More Deeper (2008)
  3. MP3: Leprechaun Catering – Night In Amnesia from Kumquats, Lychees (2004)
  4. MP3: Caleb Stine – Two Mantras (Small Sur cover) from Baltimore Does Baltimore (2009)
  5. MP3: Benjy Ferree – Dog Killers! from Leaving the Nest (2006)
  6. MP3: Sick Sick Birds – Buildings from Heavy Manners (2009)
  7. MP3: Noble Lake – Ladies and Gentlemen from Heyday (2008)
  8. MP3: Height With Friends – Swiss Chard from Swiss Chard Vol. 1 (2009)
  9. MP3: Thrushes – Crystals from the forthcoming LP Night Falls (2010)
  10. MP3: True Womanhood – Magic Child from the Magic Child Single (2009)
  11. MP3: Lands & Peoples – Bad Habits

web Aural States Fest 2 new

Teaser image to the right, proper flyer art coming from Nolen Strals of Post Typography/Double Dagger fame.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Aural States announces line-up, details for Aural States Fest II

December 11 2009 – Baltimore, MD – Baltimore-based music website Aural States (auralstates.com) is proud to announce Aural States Fest II, our second anniversary blow-out at Sonar Club Stage & the Talking Head on Saturday January 30th in Baltimore, MD. This will likely be the final year for Aural States to be based in Baltimore, and hence, the final Aural States Fest.

The line-up for this year includes a wide variety of acts from Baltimore and DC, crossing generational and genre boundaries:

Pontiak (www.myspace.com/pontiak)

Leprechaun Catering (www.myspace.com/leprechauncatering)

Vincent Black Shadow (www.myspace.com/vbskicksoutthejams)

Sick Weapons (www.myspace.com/sickweapons)

Office of Future Plans (J Robbins of Jawbox | www.myspace.com/officeoffutureplans)

Caleb Stine (www.myspace.com/calebstine)

Benjy Ferree (www.myspace.com/benjyferree)

Sick Sick Birds (www.myspace.com/sicksickbirds)

Noble Lake (www.myspace.com/noblelake)

Dustin Wong (www.myspace.com/dustinclarence)

Height With Friends (www.myspace.com/height)

Thrushes (www.myspace.com/thrushes)

True Womanhood (www.myspace.com/truewomanhood)

Lands & Peoples (www.myspace.com/landsandpeoples)

Ami Dang (www.myspace.com/amritakd)

Liveshitbingepurge (Newagehillbilly, Decapitated Hed, and Pawly Walnutz | mt6records.com)

NARC (www.myspace.com/iamthenarc)

Stay tuned for additional line-up announcements in the coming weeks.

Like last year, early arrivals with ticket stubs will be rewarded with a limited-supply of generous grab-bags filled with CDs and merchandise from (mostly) local artists and businesses, including Atomic Books, Video Americain, Baltimore Jazz Alliance, Thrill Jockey, Natty Paint, and many more.

This year we are proud to team up with our younger regional cousin Bmore Musically Informed (bmoremusic.net) to present our festival as Night 2 of the “Blogtimore PWNS” weekend. Night 1 takes place Friday January 29th, when a combination of Aural States Fest alums (Arbouretum, Wye Oak, Sri Aurobindo) and fresh local talent (Weekends, the Violet Hour) will play the last show ever at the G-Spot.

Tickets for Night 1 are $10ADV/$12DOS and available through missiontix.com. Tickets for Night 2 are $15 and available through sonarbaltimore.com. A limited supply of 50 double-header tickets are available for a discounted rate of $20 through (sonarbaltimore.com and missiontix), and will guarantee access to both nights.

Exclusive Audio Leak: “One That Got Away” (The Anomoanon cover) – Ari Schenck

baltimore does baltimore cover

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MP3: Ari Schenck – One That Got Away (The Anomoanon cover)

For all you night owls, we’ve got a little surprise for you tonight. Many thanks to friend Zach Kaufmann over at local webzine Splice Today for this leak of the first track from their Baltimore Does Baltimore compilation album of original covers (I think you can probably guess the running theme across the 10 tracks).  The free download drops tomorrow, but we’ve got a track from Ari Schenck right here: a cover of “One That Got Away” from Anomoanon’s Asleep Many Years in the Woods (2002).  The Anomoanon was a project from Baltimore transplant Ned Oldham (his slightly more famous, younger brother Will you may know is Bonnie “Prince” Billy) that also included Dave Heumann of Arbouretum.

While there aren’t any artists on the compilation who will be unfamiliar or surprising to current Baltimore music aficionados (nobody’s history really starts much before the aughties), there are some unexpected collisions of styles and genres that make for interesting twists and turns. Some of those include a Wye Oak cover of a Bmore Club standard by scene fixture Rod Lee, two very different takes on a big-hearted Future Islands ballad, and Caleb Stine finally putting to record one of my favorite live covers ever. Recording was done by each individual artist, and mastering by the Leffler-Schulmans’ Mobtown Studios.  Album artwork by the ever great Kathy Fahey.

It seems like Zach and Splice, like us at Aural States, have started yearning to do more than just write about music. There are tons of sites and blogs that do so now to varying degrees of depth and competency.  What few do is take that extra step and generate original content that adds to the greater pool of art.  Hopefully this is a sign of many such efforts to come from Splice (their first effort The Old Lonesome Sound already proving their passion for such endeavors).  We certainly have some fun plans for the very near future here.

Album Review: Caleb Stine – Eyes So Strong And Clean

caleb stineIn addition to the Stoop Storytelling Series, you can catch Caleb live at the Golden West this Sunday Jul 26th with DC’s These United States.

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MP3: Caleb Stine – Welcome to Rock and Roll

Country artists generally fall into two easily distinguished categories: the dominant is radio-fried country which is potentially more derivative than Top 40 pop in its most egregious recycling of predictable elements into formula.  Then you have the others, who remember that at one point in its history, country derived from true rural traditions of folk and Old Time music.  Generally speaking, it’s clear from the first note whether you are dealing with mere contrivance or something natural and organic.

With Caleb Stine, you never question his sincerity.  Every word and note feels like a naked, soul-bared moment. Caleb’s music is something like an oasis here in Baltimore, intensely warm and personal moments amidst the stark cold and disaffection of fast-paced urban life.  Instead of focusing outward on bewildering experimentalism, he focuses inward on stellar, precise and intimate songwriting.  From the piercing gaze Caleb shoots from the cover down to his steady cadence and tempo, his unfaltering vocals, everything about Eyes So Strong And Clean (his first solo outing, though many Brakemen make appearances) compels you to take pause, to contemplate and reflect.  And this time, packing a bit more punch thanks to a brand-new electric Epiphone.

Read the rest…

Video: Thank You, Mi Ami @ Floristree (2009.03.09)

Welcome newest contributor, audio-visual wizard Guy Werner!  Guy will be providing us with video and audio from shows around town.  His first volley: clips from the Thank You/Mi Ami show at Floristree a few weeks ago.  Check after the jump for videos from Katherine Fahey’s The Birdwatcher’s Companion opening at the Metro Gallery, Jenn  and Andy of Wye Oak and Caleb Stine.

Clip from Mi Ami’s Set (click here for longer, higher-res)

Clip from Thank You’s Set (click here for longer, higher-res)

< Read the rest…

Aural States Fest 2009: Photos (Shantel)

Wye Oak is already posted, and over the next 11 days we’ll be posting the rest of the live audio and tons more coverage from our first annual Aural States Fest! Thanks for coming out!

All photos: Shantel Mitchell

OK, I am sure I am not alone in thinking that this was one of the best shows that I’ve been to in awhile. Not only did this show run so smoothly with both stages in action at all times, but it was also a night filled with some of the best bands from Baltimore and DC. I mean, 12 bands on two club stages over a period of about 6 hours – for only $10 bucks: who could want for more? Well, there was also free coffee (thanks to Zeke’s Coffee in Parkville) and door gifts for those who came early – filled with vinyl, CDs, books, and other goodies (thanks to Soundgarden, Atomic Books and a slew of record labels).

This was the perfect event. If you were there, I am sure you are agreeing with me and if you weren’t, well then you missed an awesome show! Here are my photos from the evening. I was able to get all of the bands but two: Title Tracks and Hollywood (so sorry!). I picked out a few from each band. If you want to check out everything, you can see them here.

Andy Abelow

Andy Abelow, a solo artist who also performs in Small Sur started the evening, featuring accompaniment by Austin and Bob from Small Sur, Caleb Stine, John Varrone and Bethany Dinsick.

img_9087 Read the rest…

Holiday Eclecticism 2k8 Mix

Here’s my shotgun approach to the holidaze, a hand-picked selection of tracks from albums that have been facilitating my aural merriment and mirth.  And as a special treat, The Chipmunks’ “Christmas Song” mix by Jason Willett is an Aural States exclusive.

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MP3: Béla Fleck and the Flecktones – Linus and Lucy from Jingle All the Way (2008)

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MP3: Caleb Stine – Peace on Earth from Peace on Earth: Christmas (2007)

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MP3: Reverend Horton Heat – Santa Bring My Baby Back from We Three Kings: Christmas Favorites (2005)

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MP3: My Morning Jacket – X-mas Curtain (Live) from Okonokos (2008)

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MP3: Au – I’ll Be Home For Christmas from I’ll Stay ‘Til After Christmas (2008)

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MP3: The Chipmunks – The Dark Truth Behind the Chipmunks (‘The Chipmunk Song,’ Jason Willett mix)

Check out the vanilla Chipmunks version with original video, after the jump! Read the rest…

Photos / Review: Caleb Stine, Small Sur, Stephen Strohmeier, Andy Abelow @ the Talking Head (2008.12.04)

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Photo credit: Greg Szeto

Baltimore has once again served up a night of fantastic folk-inspired live music along with a cozy sense of brotherhood and community between the artists and the audience, and between the artists themselves.

Andy Abelow headed off the night with probably the best set I’ve ever seen him play.  Read the rest…

Hope Night feat. Wye Oak & Caleb Stine (w/ Andy Stack)

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this interview are highly political and solely my own, which is why I have identified the interviewer as myself and not the whole of Aural States.  Aural States as an entity is politically neutral…like Sweden.

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MP3: Wye Oak – Remember, Above from Daytrotter Sessions

As I walked into El Rancho Grande, that lovely community-invoking coffee-house on Falls Road in Hampden, I see strewn across the table lots of construction paper.  Surrounded by people cutting furiously and laughing.  The cutting is for hand-crafted posters advertising Hope Night, an Obama benefit night of music, community and activism.  It is an immediate realization of the ideas inspiring the night.

And they’re just getting started…

I took some time out last night to chat with Andy about this Sunday’s event, how it developed, and more specific reflections on the nature of politics and music…

Greg Szeto- So…what happened exactly? Read the rest…