The Birthday Cakes - Romper Room

You can call me a tyrannical snob of the biological hierarchy if you wish, but I really enjoy being a human being. For while it's true that we may not be particularly strong (with the possible exceptions of Phil Pfister & Carrot Top) or agile; and that we don't have any ass-jets with which to weave geometrically perfect designs out of silk; and that, unlike snakes, we can't perceive infrared light with special eyes in the roofs of our mouths, we do possess a number of qualities that I, as a sentient being, would be unable to do without.

One of these very special qualities is the ability to create, seemingly out of nothing, truly novel things. Now, this doesn't happen quite as much as perhaps it should, but it is my firm belief that most, if not all reasonably clear-headed (and quite a few not-so-clear-headed) people are capable of this feat. And so it is refreshing, and re-affirming of my belief that humans are a special bunch, that Sudbury, Ontario's The Birthday Cakes have dedicated their young lives to producing such novel, refreshing and imaginative rock.

The album is called Romper Room, and it's not particularly new at this point in time--in fact the band have produced a number of recordings since RR came out way back in 2008, but I think that as their only extent full-length to date, it's a good place to start with introducing this kooky three-piece.

The band consists of three brothers: Cameron, Clayton and Carter, but rest assured, this isn't The Moffats. I was first introduced to the band back in August, when my band was billed to open for them on their cross-Canada summer tour. I gobbled up all of their available recordings as soon as I heard about them, and by the time the show rolled around I was quite familiar with much of their material. I was excited to play with them, knowing that I was in for something out of the ordinary, and it's always an honour to be associated with something truly unique.

It's difficult to really describe TBCs' music without detracting from what I feel is its true intent: it's true, it is post-pop; it's also true that it doesn't take itself too seriously and that the lyrical content of many of the songs will have you smiling at their absurd nature, but there's something else going on here as well. Though Romper Room is really a record made by not overly-skilled musicians in the nadir of their development, both as writers and performers, it's already tapping into a raw creativity that is so absent in much of the underground or indie music of today. A lot of bands try very hard to be different, and well they should; but, unfortunately, a lot of bands are not nearly as willing to be as frank and honest with themselves as TBC are in their songwriting, and so the attempt at true creativity comes off as contrived.

Not so here, where a 40-second song about a peanut butter factory makes no apologies for its own existence. Nor does the song about the ineffectual assault of a ghost bear upon an unsuspecting victim (its claws go right through him, natch). They simply are.

Don't get me wrong: this isn't the secret, long-lost definitive album of the last decade. There has been greater genius in the world, for sure. But where so many bands try with limp wrists to be different, to be quirky while maintaining artistic viability, and fail, The Birthday Cakes are succeeding. To be honest, I think a lot of it can be chalked up to simple naiveite; there's every indication that they may, in fact, be apeing some existing sound (who isn't?). But they do so in such a way that makes me feel like I'm really listening to something that doesn't come around every day.

As the three lads develop as musicians, there's no saying what will become of their band. Quite a lot of the charm of this album exists in its lack of spit & polish, and its complete absence of anything that would provide a trained musician for than a moment's difficulty in playing. Speaking from personal experience, it can be a real dilemma in the songwriting process to resist the idea that "more complex=better." There's a real feeling that as these guys grow up, learn more chords, and discover that Jimi Hendrix really was that good, the honesty of this type of output will be lost, or will simply become somehow inappropriate.

For now, though, it's a sonic treat to sit down to a record that's so earnestly playful, and can exist without pretense or apology. As I said before, I have listened to later output from these guys, and while this review is not about those recordings, I can assure the reader that this is a band that is developing and further refining their songwriting as they go. So rest assured: if you invest yourself into this band, it will be an investment that will continue, I think, to pay dividends in the coming years.

Victoria Underground - Reaver - Corvus

As we approach the end of 2010, we see that more than 30 years into its history, the musicians' appetite for heavy metal continues on undiminished. One can see why so many are drawn to this genre: the technical proficiency required to be a good metal band is unparalleled in most rock genres. So, if you'e an ace drummer or a true shredder on guitar, what else are you going to play? If you like your guitars distorted, then only metal can really offer you the challenge that you seek.



Victoria and Vancouver have produced quite a few promising metal acts in recent years, from bands like Unleash the Archers and Archon Legion to this week's featured group, Reaver. There's absolutely nothing about this sleepy little colonial town that I would think would inspire metal, but nonetheless, excellent bands are emerging.

Reaver's debut LP, "Corvus" is extraordinarily well-produced. Recorded at Prodigal Studios in Victoria by David Fraelic, the album sounds like a world-class recording. The drums sit nicely in the mix and have that classic heavy metal grandeur, guitars are bright and sparkling when they need to be, razor-sharp at other times such as in solos.

Think what you want about death metal as a genre: there's no denying that its practitioners are serious musicians, and Reaver is no exception. Everything about the performances on this record scream "chops," from the dizzying guitar solos to the machine-gun drumlines. The band takes up the challenge of its predecessors and succeeds ably.

Brandon Reynolds' scream is deep and gutteral. There is absolutely no singing on this album, in keeping with true death metal, which can lead to a bit of vocal monotony. Perhaps if there was some alteration to the delivery it would help to break things up a bit; as it stands, while I hear a lot of different things going on in each song musically, the vocals tend to mush things together into a degree of sameness. Perhaps this is just a trapping of the genre, and I'm sure there are many purists that would applaud this approach.

This is definitely a progressive death metal act, with elements such as acoustic guitar interludes and piano melodies thrown in to add depth to the album. At times this seems a little corny, but I applaud the effort to add some dynamics to the music. Some of the softer passages seem to harken to late 80s Metallica (One, Fade to Black), which is never a bad thing in my books.

It's always nice to see a truly well-produced, well-performed and well-executed album come out of your hometown, and Reaver's Corvus is assuredly all of those things. It may not be my cup of tea stylistically, but I can fully appreciate the considerable artistry that has gone into making this album. For the true metal fan, I would say that this record is a must-have, regardless of where you call home.

Victoria Underground - Black Hat Villain - My Generation (EP)

If Black Hat Villain's debut EP, "My Generation," showed up at your house to fix your washing machine, it would do so without taking off its work boots, asking you how your day is going, or stopping to use your washroom. It's a record that doesn't take a lot of risks, but is business-like and efficient in its approach.

The record gets down to work quickly and without pretension, with the eponymous first track more or less setting the tone of the record. Scotty Tuesday's vocals are rich and tasteful, and the band employs backing vocals to good effect. It's clear that these boys have taken queues from other hard rock bands of the last decade, and they've learned their lessons well. Choruses are big and full, guitar textures sit nicely on top of each other without muddiness, and the aforementioned rich vocals drive the music along without overpowering it.

The EP plays out nicely, at least in the order that I listened to it on their MySpace page (I can't say whether or not the physical CD has this tracklisting). The relentless rock of "My Generation" and "All My Friends Are Dead" is tempered by moodier tracks such as "Rain or Shine" and "One Way Street." There are plenty of quality head-banging moments in all of the tracks, but there's definitely an attention to ebb and flow that is refreshing from a band in this vein.

Maybe it isn't the most original rock I've ever heard in my life, but based on what I've heard here, I'll take a BHV record over a 3 Day's Grace one any day. The band have managed to straddle the fine line between being commercially viable and maintaining artistic credibility. I didn't find myself cringing at any of the sort of boneheaded party-rock lyrics that I might find on offer from a band like, say, Nickelback, though some lines could use some fleshing out: the closing track, "Country," for example, suffers from some of this awkwardness.

There's a real earnestness to this record, as if the band members really are pouring all of themselves into the songs. That's a good thing, because that's what making music is all about.
There's no denying that this is a band with a bright future, loaded with talent at all instruments, with good songwriting instincts and, from what I've been told, an extremely solid live set. All the ingredients are there, all BHV need is a bit more exposure, a bit of luck, and a lot more elbow grease to get there. It wouldn't hurt for them to experiment a bit more on the next record, try out some different sounds and get out of the 'hard rock bubble' that seems to predominate the genre. Still, they know what they're doing, and they do it well. I hope very much that it continues to find them success.