All Over The Place: Pop Goes the World!

I’m back again with some more music reviews! All of the artists reviewed will be featured for the next few weeks on All Over The Place's This Decade, which runs from 5 to 7 p.m. Check out the YouTube videos linked above, the Spotify playlist and All Over The PatchCast on Mixcloud if you’re curious about these artists. Forwards, not backwards!

Snow Patrol started out in 1997 as a small-time indie rock band from Northern Ireland, releasing two albums on the small UK indie label Jeepster (which was also responsible for the launch of famed indie band Belle & Sebastian). After being dropped by Jeepster in 2001, the band eventually found their way to the big time via major label Polydor, which released their excellent Final Straw album in 2003. 

Here we are, nine years later, and Snow Patrol has made its mark in the music industry, thanks to anthems like “Run” and “Chasing Cars.” The band's new album, Fallen Empires (Island/Fiction), mixes those anthems (such as “New York”) with more thoughtful tracks (“The President”) with personal lyrics, as if singer Gary Lightbody were giving advice to a friend.

The anthemic sound and career arc of Snow Patrol brings to my mind another band from an earlier era: Simple Minds. They were just so much more than “Don’t You (Forget About Me).” Still active to this day, the band has recently released three live albums recorded last year, Live 2011: Hampton Court Palace (two separate albums from two different nights) and Live 2011: Northern Meeting Park. Additionally, the group's original label, Virgin Records, has released a box set called X5 which traces the band's journey from arty punkers to stadium-ready rockers. The box set goes for about $30 and contains about six hours of music. By the end of this era, they were just starting to break on college radio. Within three years, everyone would know who Simple Minds was. This reasonably-priced set will show you how they got there.

Speaking of bands who struggled early in their careers, Nada Surf started out at the top of the pile with the MTV hit “Popular” in 1996. Despite the success of their first album High/Low, Elektra, the band's label at the time, chose not to release its follow-up album, The Proximity Effect. Eventually, the band found a home on the indie label Barsuk where it has remained ever since, releasing a string of excellent albums. The new album is called The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy. It’s a great slice of tuneful indie pop, heavy on the guitars with a touch of keyboard and Matthew Caws’ winsome vocals on top. Try “Clear Eye Clouded Mind” or “The Future” for a start.

Kathleen Edwards is a Canadian singer/songwriter who has been around since 2003. Her fourth album is called Voyageur (Zoe/Rounder) and it’s a solid one. It was co-produced by her boyfriend, Justin Vernon (who you may know better as America’s favorite substitute teacher, Bon Iver). The album shifts back and forth between rock and folk as the lyrics veer from hope to despair, delivered in Edwards’ weary voice. Try “Empty Threat” or “Chameleon/Comedian” and you’ll see what I mean.

Field Music is a British duo, brothers David and Peter Brewis. Plumb (out now on Memphis Industries) is their fourth full-length album. It’s a tightly wound piece of art-pop featuring 15 songs in just 35 minutes. The men of Field Music can do straight-up pop, as they do with the first single “(I Keep Thinking About) A New Thing,” but they are just as capable of producing multi-sectional compositions (“Start The Day Right,” “Choosing Sides”). Prime examples of this type of songwriting would include “Good Vibrations” by the Beach Boys or Yes’ “I’ve Seen All Good People.” Plumb straddles a line between progressive and indie rock.

Finally, I want to introduce you to a folk-rock trio from San Francisco, Rin Tin Tiger. I was introduced to their self-titled, self-released EP via the interactive DJ site turntable.fm. (A great place to learn about new music, by the way.) The song was called “Ghost Door” and it certainly kicked down my door. Rin Tin Tiger calls its music ”alt-folk” and that’s a pretty good description. The EP features acoustic guitars mixed with the spirit of punk on songs like “Greedy Traveler.” Vocalist Kevin Sullivan has a nasal vocal delivery that reminds me a little of Bob Dylan. Rin Tin Tiger is currently working on its next release, funding it via Kickstarter.