Ezra Furman & the Harpoons – Banging Down the Doors
This review has been such a long time coming because I really didn’t like this album at all at first. Primarily I think what put me off was Furman’s infernal nasal wail. It’s the sort of voice that fits his rattle-along music really well, but takes an awful, awful lot of getting used to. It’s mostly fine, but a few songs have climactic moments where he really lets it loose – to its ear-twisting best.
It’s taken me months, but I have adjusted. I got the album at about the same as our favourite Secret Squirrel, DC, judging from when Ezra appeared on The Waiting Room, and it has honestly taken me this long to really appreciate Banging Down the Doors. DC played God is a Middle-Aged Woman, if I remember, and despite being three-quarters excellent, the screeching climax of that song gets a bit much and embodies the side of this album I am still not quite on board with.
The music itself is a furiously paced clatter of the sort of acoustic troubadourism that has entirely embraced the electric guitar, turned the fucking volume up and decided to wake the audience the fuck up for a change. He bangs through his songs with a helter-skelter fury that few can match. If anything he perhaps reminds me what Frank Turner might sound like if he were American and had a fondness for allegory. Early Bob Dylan is also not a bad comparison. He was angry in his time, was Bob, and we tend to forget that when we put Tangled Up in Blue on our compilations.
Ezra Furman & the Harpoons – American Highway
Ezra Furman & the Harpoons – How Long, Diana?
These sound interesting. I do like the frenetic guitar style.
The lyrics have the occasional hint of sixth-form poetry about them but I think that just adds to their eclectic charm. There are actually some nice little couplets in there.
I’m undecided about the musical arrangement. I’m stuck between enjoying the disarming ramshackle rough-and-readiness of the current sound, and the niggling thought that a little more care and attention in the studio could have revealed a bit more light and shade in these songs.
There’s a nasty bit on American Highway between 02:06 to 02:12 where he indulges in some rather naff cod-bluesy chords finishing with a horribly misplaced G7 (I think). That bit stuck out as sounding very amateurish – but that’s the only significant blemish on a couple of otherwise refreshing sounding songs.
My verdict is, EF+tH = Violent Femmes having crack-addled fist-sex in a skip with Two Gallants.
I like them/the album, but not the overly monitor/mic fritzing grizzles & gnarling yelps; they trying too hard to be ‘cool’ on occasion.
I really do hear the Violent Femmes & Two Gallants all over this, though. One track in particular (I think it may even be God…), for the better part of it, is almost note for note a Two Gallants song. There’s really little invention or originality here, but they don’t have sound like they’re having a lot of fun.
Arch, Clattery, Senior campus-based look-at-me-i’m-in-a-band nu-cock blues? You’re better off with Two Gallants.
DC
I just got my first ever Two Gallants a few months ago, from an ageing, slightly hippy fellow here at Proper Job who has an obsession with Minis. It was The Throes and I thought it was excellent. I suppose I should really have written it up on the site, but there is a limit. Really enjoyed it though – are they worth poking into a little more then?
Yes. Definitely.
Two Gallants are superb – their brand of crackling, angry punkish blues (I’m sure there are more Pitchfork friendly terms out there for them), to my mind, is fucking excellent. Pisses the colour out of Ezra’s blue-eyed boy nonsense.
I can’t recommend them highly enough, to be honest – this is what a drummer & a guitarist should sound like (White Stripes, take note). I’m absolutely gutted I didn;t get the chance to go & see them live in Cardiff when they played the Swn Festival a few months back. Fro everyone I know I think I would have been in a very small minority who actually knew anything about them. I could have so been the bore in the corner that afternoon. Bah.
They CAN be overwhelming in large chunks because they do know how to write 8min epics — but, saying that, The Throes is superb & glad you liked it too.
There’s a great story (not so much for them) where they were playing a gig in this bar when a local cop came a-lolloping in & asked them to turn their instruments down due to a noise complaint. A few can’t quite hear you over the sound of the music misunderstandings later & said cop was mace or pepper spraying everyone in sight (including a 14/15yo kid), arresting anyone who looked vaguely human, the lead singer had fled the scene shitting himself he was going to be beaten to a pulp (he ran for miles until he was found cowering by fans who went to look for him), the cop called for emergency crowd control back-up who duly started laying into everyone & the night eneded with an antique upright bass (belongnig, I think, to someone from Langhorne Slim’s band, who were supporting) was smashed in half in a scuffle on stage.
The whole incident, including video phone footage can be found on youtube, is on the net & their myspace & website, & concluded the following day or so with the Mayor (I think it was in Austin, but I may be very wrong – Florida, even?) gave a press conference stating the cop done right (it was a situation where he was in danger) & everyone involved was lucky he was a sensible, clear headed sort & didn’t pull his hand gun instead. I believe the cop even went so far as to try & sue the band. God bless America.
I recommend you check out all their stuff, but in particular the tracks:
My Madonna; 10 Gallon Ascots; Las Cruces Jail; Seems Like Home To Me; Waves of Grain; The Hand That Held Me Down; Steady Rollin’
DC
American Highway has a few more allusions to vomit, nausea and sickness than I generally look for in my popsongs, but the guitar playing is pretty good. I definitely hear the Violent Femmes, but I’m not familiar with Two Gallants.
Check ‘em out C+B.
Well if starting with The Throes goes as well for you as it does for me, C&B, then I can certainly recommend that one. DC – any thoughts?
Sure. The sound/writing moves on a little, fattens out & becomes a tiny bit more theatric on this LP but, essentially, it’s another excellent episode in the TG saga.
The song Waves of Grain – the one that got me giddy in my knickers – is shitting brilliant though. It sounds like the recorded ti with the windows open – you can almost hear the electricity of the dodgy leads & old amps. Lyrically, a very pissed off Dylan. Astounding stuff.
Am happy to send over any tracks if you like – I have most everything but you can pick up 2 sessions oevr at Daytrotter as well.
DC
Yes, of course, about the Violent Femmes now they’ve been mentioned.
Not familiar with Two Gallants, I’ll check them out if they’re along these sort of lines…
That didn’t sound like a very pissed off Dylan.
What? Pseudo socio-political commentary (dry harvests) bundled up in a tenuous love/romance & family togetherness tale?
Actually, hang on. Maybe this is more Seven Brides for Seven Brothers Territory? With a foreskin full of thumbtacks & cocaine, obviously.
I meant the comment immediately following yours, by Dylan, did not sound like it issued from the typing fingers of an angry man.
It was a little joke, you see. Always time for comedy here at Song, by Toad.
Forgive me. The toll of the week is already playing blindspot with my mind. I’m flat out, as they say, at the moment so little lapses like that will occur every so often over the next few months.
See, it’s visiting/overseas mission season here in my Secret Squirrel Lair — I’m currently, amongst an avalanche of other things, up to my throat in e-ticket & hotel reservation references organising a visit to Geneva for last week of Jan, a 10dayer to Vegas at end of Jan/1st week Feb (huge thingy happening there, slap bang in the middle of the Superbowl *yawn*), a 10day shufty about Nuremburg (love that city) in Early March, a UN conference in NY (1st time in NY, wheee! I’ll meet up with ex-bassist from Clem Snide for a jar or many) in mid-July, a 10dayer in Friedrichshafen (German wine country) late July, a week-long shake & bake in Salt Lake (no, not the annual Mormonathon) in mid August, along with 4 or 5 more Stateside trips woven in between (Virginia, Washington DC, Austin, California). So, I’m kinda all over the place (figuratively & literally) at the moment, but determined to not let things crawl over my normal activities too much…
I’m not boasting, here, just explaining my eye is somewhat off the ball on the posting doo-dahry at the mo’ & I’ll be intermittent to say the least in the coming weeks/months as a result of a steep incline in the workload.
Weep for me, then, eh?
DC
ps wrong post, I know, but I’ll see what I can do about the Tom Waits ramble
Just listening to the slagging I got on your show. Couple of cheeky bastards!
Liked that French lady a lot though – what was her name? I had no luck with Google.
The first French lady, not Adrien Pauly (or however you spell it).
There were two… Pauline Croze kicked proceedings off + Adrienne Pauly was the 2nd lass; if you go visit our myspace space profile page (myspace.com/mindthecrack) you’ll see their links in our toppermost friends — it’s like that most weeks; we’ll add all the people we play to our myspace top friends for people to find out more about etc. We’re kinda good like that.
As for the slagging? I don’ think we were that>/i> bad… I revise my position on Meursault, by the way; I’ve listened to it again & I do like it a lot (again); same with Cats on Fire despite their obvious jangly 80’s guitar band emulation.
DC
Pauline Croze was the one – I never thought to put a ‘z’ in her name. Muppet.
I saw Meursault last night actually – they were dead good. Although you’re right about there being a dirge quality to it at times. I said something a bit like that in my original post.
The South Park gig? You mean the one where they played Creep last and the skies opened? I was at that – phenomenal gig, phenomenal downpour!
Aye, THAT gig.
I have *ahem* some friends @ Shelter & they got me free tickets (all Oxford-based Shelter staff were allocated a handful of tix each, as well as a meet & greet with the band a few days prior).
We arrived at SP slightly worse for wear (*sniff sniff*, *gargle gargle*) as Sigor Ross were crankihng up their angellic set. A more glorious, rain-soaked event I’ve not ever before or since enjoyed.
Here’s the cynical bit in me, though: I collected about 50 each of the different sized cardboard Radiohead Beer Cups at the end of the gig & stuck them in a cupboard for 2 years. Sold them on Ebay (complete with beer stickiness & grass stains etc), individually, for a fucking fortune most;ly to Americans & Germans. Not sure what that says at all.
But, my, WHAT a gig.
That aside, Mr. T, this music coninsidence game is getting to mad heights. Next you’ll be telling me you were at the Spiritualized pre-release Lazer Guided Melodies 1989 Square Club Gig in Cardiff?
DC
Where’s Cardiff?
So I’m listening to The Throes for the second time now. Dead good. Thanks DC and Matthew’s “ageing, slightly hippy” Mini-obsessed colleague for that. Beats Ezra Furman all to shit.
Oh go easy. I think Ezra is pretty good. I’ve just availed myself of Two Gallants’ latest from last year though, and am going to start on it over the weekend. New toys!
Well, perhaps I’ve been unfair to poor Ezra. I’ll go back and listen to them side by side.
Ezra + Co do have a good thing going, but I think the clattery electric bluez thing has been sewn up by the likes of Two Gallants. Be interesting to see if Ezra gets a 2nd LP out &, if so, where they’ll go with it.
Cardiff?
Far end of the Chiswick flyover, follow the sound of panpipes and you’ll find it.
Panpipes? You’re confusing us with Gloucester.
It’s the roughhouse tearing of sheep hymen & the accompanying ruminating bovid screams for mercy that you want to be listening out for as you pay your £6 to cross the Severn.