Scroll down for reviews of the latest from Eytan Mirsky, Supremium and Chomsky

The Andersons!
Family Secrets

(Smile Records)

Release Date: September 25, 2001

www.theandersons.com

When Chewy Marble goes to disc, Ex-Wondermint Brian Kassan is the songwriter running that show. However, bassist Derrick Anderson of Chewy Marble has ample creative talents of his own. Thankfully, we have this second disc from The Andersons! to more than prove that point.

Here, with Derrick at the helm, is a Los Angeles band that delivers power pop with crunchy guitars aplenty. The Andersons! present songs in a variety of tempos that hearken back to 1970s-style anthem rock. The tight ensemble of Anderson brothers (their fictional history speaks of a shared father who traveled far and wide, dispersing his seed) has years of experience and you hear it in the music. The knowledge of what has come before in pop/rock history is reflected in the sounds: layers of guitar and bass, strong vocals, harmonies and drums.

The personnel are no strangers to the scene either. In addition to the talented bass, keyboards and vocals of Toledo Ohio’s Derrick Anderson, you get Detroit’s own Wil O’Brien (Bill Anderson) on guitars and vocals, Downey California’s multi-band member and one-man IPO festival Robbie Rist (Rob Anderson) adding even more guitars and vocals, and Marcos De La Cruz (Marcos Anderson) on drums (who since has been replaced in the band with Marc Joseph).

If anything, perhaps the CD is too ambitious in its scope. It covers a lot of territory and might prove an A&R executive’s nightmare if one had to choose just one of this band’s many strong points. Additionally, Family Secrets is the kind of collection that gets better over time. While some of the songs are more accessible than others, the subtlety of the arrangements becomes more apparent over repeated listens (preferably through a good pair of headphones).

“Killing Me” opens the CD with a guitar’s minor riff that makes way for this tale of sad yet inevitable codependency: “It’s killing me to need you the way that I do.” This is a romantic song turned inside out, hapless and hopeful all at once as it blends into a noisy cacophony. “No One Rides For Free” turns the volume up some, showing us the more raucous hardedge side of The Andersons! “Let You Down” is a very upbeat promise of strength and reliability, a song that stays with you long after you hear it.

“Snub” is one of Derrick’s best songs, catchy pop of the highest order, well structured, melodic and even including a lyrical mention of Tolstoy - what more could one want? It tells the tale of the allure of some rich woman and its limits: “Think about you all the time but I could never love you / Throw the clout and spill the wine, Still I would never snub you.”

Another of Derrick’s winners here is “Ledonia B.,” a song with intricate layers of guitars and great “Yeah” backup choruses (a la Mamas and Papas), telling the workaday tale of a man and his dominatrix (“she makes me feel like the best dog in the world”).

Not to be outdone by Derrick’s great songwriting, Wil O’Brien serves up a few fine tunes as well. “Falling Out” offers a lush canvas of sweet jangly guitars and thick harmonies, on which is painted a lyrical story of a woman falling out of love and walking away for good. “Everybody Knows That You’re The One” is a catchy number with great driving bass and more guitars, a direct ode to his love, confessing all her attributes that everyone knows, except for her: “When things are bad you get my back / you make up for the things I lack / you are my strength when I have none / and everybody knows you are the one.”

Robbie Rist also checks in with “Apology,” a similarly confessional song co-written with Jensen Bell, this one dealing with the end of a relationship. It’s a pretty and emotional ballad, with endearingly apt poetic words: “It’s hard for me to say this but I’m really glad we’re through / I don’t know if it was the cold cruel words or the icy fears they drew / Well, my lessons were what my lessons always are / a razor line, then, over time a stronger scar / And I’m hoping in time you will be stronger too / and please just let me apologize to you.”

All told, this is plenty of talent captured in a pleasant array of intelligent styles and guitars for days. Family Secrets even includes the humorous bonus “A Million Dollars For Christmas” to give you a dozen total songs. If you want the same old thing from track to track, you should look elsewhere. The Andersons! are all about variety and aren’t afraid to explore old sounds along with the new, and honestly, if you take the time to listen carefully and often, there’s not a bad song in the bunch. I’m sure somewhere a proud father is rocking along to it now, creating new Andersons for future CDs, or perhaps just en route to his next stop.

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Supremium
Tales

(Smile Records)

Release Date: September 25, 2001

www.supremium.net

Once upon a time in a powerpop galaxy not too far away, Florida singer/guitarist/bassist Bruce Witkin headed to Hollywood with his best friend Johnny. Johnny went on to a have a pretty successful career. In fact you might have heard of him (last name Depp).

Meanwhile, Bruce (who had played in both Vanessa Paradis' and Adam Ant's bands) decided to form a new musical entity. He took good friend drummer/percussionist Rob Klonel whom he knew from the group Flux and formed the core of what would become Supremium. Bruce enlisted what he liked about the Romantics - guitarist/singer Coz Canler - and signed on keyboardist/vocalist Doug Nahory, who had worked with Alanis Morissette.

The resulting powerpop quartet mastered a hard-edged guitar-driven sound that any bar band would be proud to call its own, slick and polished and invoking familiar rock references from prior decades. Witkin is a master at creating strong 3-4 minute pop gems and he assembles a dozen strong songs here, many of them culled from the band's earlier self-release Lucky. There are hooks galore, and Witkin delivers soulful vocals that sound instantly familiar and radio-ready (if current radio itself was just as ready).

"If Not For You" opens the proceedings in wonderful fashion, with ringing guitars, soaring octave-jumping bass and nice harmonies, registering on the influence meter somewhere between Beatles, Byrds, Badfinger and Smithereens (with a middle lead that might even be Mavericks). This is out-and-out old-fashioned pop, right down to the lyrical sentiments proclaiming the hyperbole: "If not for air I cannot breather, if not for touch I cannot feel / If not for eyes I couldn't see the sky so blue / And I cannot love if not for you."

"What She Needs" unleashes Witkin's vocal strengths with a tune that could salvage the airwaves. Here he does a sort of Lou Gramm-treatment on the tale of a woman fired up by the path to her own independence: "What she needs is a place she can be alone / And leave the past behind / What she needs is a place she can call her own/ and that only she can find."

"This Time" leads in as a ballad, then rocks out. I defy you not to sing along with the ultra-catchy chorus, as Witkin promises that this time around he's making up his own mind about his feelings. The sweet softer tempo-ed "Fall Out" promises love even in the face of failure ("when I fall, I won't fall out of love with you").

"She Is Everywhere" is Witkin's testament to mentor Elvis Costello, as he does a nice vocal imitation on the verses, professing his obsession, while the chorus rocks in Supremium's own friendly style. "I Am Alive" is anthem rock of a high order, and offers up a great audience sing-along with its "I am alive and the birds are singing, na na na now."

"Her Name" is a ballad that could be Foreigner updated by a quarter century (said in respect and admiration). "Only Bring Heartache" (another gut-spilling ballad of a doomed relationship) and "Thinking Out Loud" (he desires a woman perhaps out of his league) ideally could find a radio slot beside the likes of Matchbox 20 (and recalls a little bit of bygone J.Geils Band). While "The Best of You" wraps up the CD with more of a soulful low-key side shown.

Tongue-in-cheek humor rules "The Girl I Want," as it explores the desirable attributes not of the girl he loves, only of the girl he wants: "She loves basic cable / She loves a Whopper combo meal / She loves fallin' off the wagon / She loves a Caddy Coupe DeVille." Witkin also works in mention of friends Adam Ant and Johnny Depp as well.

This is a fine collection of direct and polished tunes, and a most auspicious wider-release debut for the talented Los Angeles-based quartet. Supremium delivers the songcraft of Witkin impressively, and each song manages to work well individually as something fresh, yet reminiscent of solid music of eras gone by. Melodic, fun powerpop isn't dead by a longshot, and Supremium lets Tales prove it over and over again.

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Chomsky
Onward Quirky Soldiers

(Idol)

Release Date: October 30, 2001

www.chomsky.com

As I continue my quest to catch up with a large treasure trove of 2001 music, I’m pleased to report a happy find with the sophomore effort from the Dallas-based quintet known as Chomsky. While listening to this one, I was transported back to the late ‘70s-early ‘80s “new wave” period, most notably the work of XTC, The Jags and Devo. What Chomsky does is revive the idea of guitar as percussion instrument a la Drums And Wires-era XTC, using these electrified strings as an active component of the bass and drum combo that propels the music forward. Mix in the synthesized keyboards and upfront vocals of a Devo and stir with a very new-millennium feel to the songs themselves (think Weezer or DumDums) and you get the nice musical amalgam that is Chomsky.

Eleven strong battle dances comprise the musical march that is Onward Quirky Soldiers, a directive to stalwart fans of the group that call themselves The Chomsky Army. The quirks are catchy and there is tight execution throughout, with that very retro strength of rhythm/percussion along with strong vocals/harmonies driving the tunes into your memory and setting your toes a’ tapping.

As a diehard XTC-fan from way back, the very upbeat “Believe” is my pick for most infectious track here, though I’m not even going to take a guess at what the lyrics might mean. What Chomsky does by and large is get you to go along with the sound and feel of something, while the lyrics remain open to interpretation (or not). “Straight Razor” also manages fairly well by its catchy tune and slightly inscrutable lyrics: “And I can always treat you well/ and you won’t hear the kiss and tell / just keep on coming strong”. “Inside” explores a war with inner demons, and urges that you “listen to your good heart” even against the realization that “I’ve seen all the tapes / I’ve reread the lines / your worst enemy’s you every time / Actions show that somehow I don’t know”.

Chomsky is the incredible lead vocals and guitar of Sean Halleck, Matt Kellum pounding impressively away at drums, James Driscoll bouncing on bass, Don Centro delivering interesting complements on keyboards and Glen Reynolds contributing additional guitar and vocals. On the single “00:15:00” (a.k.a. “Fifteen Minutes To Rock”), the ensemble comes together impressively by taking what could be a mere power-punk Blink-182 type of song and elevating it into another realm entirely. This song urges one toward the fun of rock itself, away from thought and doubt, and the energy of the performance helps sell the lyrics: “I am only happy when it’s possible”. Again percussion is the key to their unique delivery, and the results will seem nostalgically familiar to some, though I’d imagine many in their target audience are hearing such sounds for the first time.

Other notable songs here include “Gravitate” and “Light”, both of which serve up more fun and emotive vocals. The group collaborates on the songwriting, and the clean production is attributed to Chomsky and Barry Poynter (Adventures of Jet).

The catchy syncopation of “Destination” examines more internal conflicts: “There’s a dark spot on my heart / tearing things apart / and I don’t know where to start / to become informed”. “Herod’s Daughter” is a close second to “Believe” in the XTC-style sweepstakes, though songs like “Laughing”, “Up”, and “Rollers” also show positive glimpses of this influence.

If you liked that type of raw energetic sound then and wondered where it disappeared to, the answer is North Texas. Who knew? If you’re unfamiliar with this type of sound, give some Chomsky song samples a listen and see if you want to enlist. For me, it was an unexpected treat - well-done musical maneuvers mixing old rock/pop with new. If you liked this sound before, you’re bound to love it anew with Onward Quirky Soldiers.

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Eytan Mirsky
Was It Something I Said?

(M-Squared Records)

Release Date: June 6, 2001

http://eytanmirsky.home.att.net

Girls are the thing, the inscrutable enemy, devious and desirable, frightening and evil and yet also beautiful and the best thing in this universe. Such is the inspirational paradox behind almost every song of Eytan Mirsky, New York's own romantic pop schlemiel on this, his third and most polished collection yet. Topic-wise, not a lot has changed since his debut CD, entitled Songs About Girls (& Other Painful Subjects). Yet with each ensuing release, Mirsky grows more comfortable and skilled in both his musical ability and his role as sad sack troubadour. Mirsky takes on a lovable loser persona of say, the musical equivalent of early Woody Allen, and does it with wit and panache that belie the "poor me" stance he presents in song.

Was It Something I Said? serves up 16 microcosms of savory melodrama defused by the skill of Mirsky's self-effacing humor and talent at harnessing bouncy and infectious pop melodies. "When Good Girls Go Bad" describes the horrors and ensuing confusion when that unexpected transformation takes place: "I'm used to seeing you as modest and pure, shy and demure as can be / so when I see you busting out of your shell / it's scaring the hell out of me."

"Just Another In A Long Long Line" is the first of several songs portraying "Eytan as Loser." Here he is the recent rejectee, sassing back to his rejecter that she is nothing special ("you're just another in a long long line, you're just another girl that won't be mine "), and that better girls than her have rejected him. Rationalization works, especially when you can sing along. In "Leaving You", the embittered Eytan at relationship's end makes it clear that he's the one leaving her (even if no one will believe him, he wants to set the record straight as to who is dumping whom).

There is comfort to be taken from some of this catchy pop. "When You're A Human Being" discusses the difficulties of existence. "Can't Make Up My Mind" tells us it's okay not to come to any immediate commitments, that he has made up his mind to make up his mind someday. Additional advice is espoused on the great track "All The Things To Do When She Says No." Here Tim Boykin and The Lolas play back up as master of rejection Mirsky dishes the real dirt on how to handle things.

"Payback" is a particular lyrical standout, turning the tables on desperation and revenge by propositioning a girl who is being ill-treated by her man as follows: "I see the way he cheats on you is getting out of hand / but you don't do a thing about it, I don't understand / don't you want a little payback / baby can't you see / you can get a little payback sleeping with a loser like me."

Mirsky's ensemble on the majority of the tracks does a masterful job: Larry Saltzman does most of the great lead and rhythm guitar work, Jon Gordon lends extra guitars, lap steel, bass and occasional organ (he also mixed, mastered and associate produced the CD) and Warren Odze does most of the drumming. Guest vocals include fellow indie pop brethren Mark Bacino and Joe Mannix. This is mature melodic pop of the highest order, easy on the ears, memorably catchy and a fun listen, as Mirsky gives Walter Clevenger a run for his money as "the American Nick Lowe".

A graduate of NYU's Film School, Mirsky has been able to get some recognition through the placement of songs on soundtracks. He wrote the title track for buddy Todd Solondz' film "Happiness" (sung by Michael Stipe), and also placed two songs in Jenniphr Goodman's "The Tao of Steve." One of those songs "(I Just Wanna Be) Your Steve McQueen" is included as a bonus track here, cleverly working McQueen film references into the lyrics.

As one roots for the persona of Mirsky to "get the girl," additionally one also hopes that Mirsky the talented singer/songwriter will get a break someday soon. One who composes such clever, catchy well-structured pop deserves a far wider audience than the devoted cult that has already discovered the fun of his music.

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