An Atlanta Mp3 Trilogy: Parade, Gold Standard, Backseat Dreamer
Parade @ Criminal Records (6/17/07)
Parade was one of the first discoveries I made when I seriously started looking into the Atlanta music scene. From the beginning, they had this amazing command of pop sensibilities combined with a deep avant-garde streak, a duality I cherish in all of my favourite artists. I’ve always associated them with the most positive connotations of the word “potential”, and getting to watch them mature between albums and the many house shows they had done for me was almost like watching a child grow into adulthood. They may have not achieved the level of popularity they deserved before breaking up earlier this year, but their final album is a testament to the brilliance of what I consider to be one of Atlanta’s best bands to emerge this decade. Ghosts is available for free on their myspace, so go get it:
Another ATL group that met their demise too soon was Blame Game. Luckily former members who still live here have been active with about a bajillion other projects. The newest I have learned about is called Gold Standard featuring ex-Blame Gamers George Asimakos and Chris Ware teamed up with Lee Corum (Lay Down Mains, Some Soviet Station). They will be releasing a full-length album and doing shows next year, but for now they just posted two songs on their myspace page recorded off one mic. They sound really good, and here is one of them:
Gold Standard : Motor Skills Are Hard To Control
Finally, no matter how many great bands call it quits, there will always be new blood eager to take up the mantle. Backseat Dreamer, aka Sean Neuse, entered the game last month with his debut EP, Love Not Found. The almost seventeen minute release from Stickfigure feels like a sketch book full of works that aim somewhere between Aphex Twin and My Bloody Valentine. This first glimpse of what Backseat Dreamer can achieve is so successful and compelling, and I’m excited about the prospects of a full-length heading our way early next year. Pick it up:
Backseat Dreamer : I Don’t Feel It
- Posted by Davy Minor on November 17, 2008 at 5:57 am
