Sound Salvation Army

In today’s installment of our feature on vinyl-only releases, we touch once again on a cover song.

Hawks and Doves is the latest project from Gared O’Donnell, a guy who spent a lot of years as the creative force behind Planes Mistake For Stars. That band serves as a master class in all things heavy, running the gamut from soaring post-hardcore to guttural-vocal’d hardcore to near-metal riffing. The decade the band was in existence saw the release of five more-or-less full-length albums and as many singles and EPs. The highlights were many; I personally have purchased three copies of the flawless Knife In The Marathon EP, two of the Fuck With Fire LP, and at least one of all the rest, including the extremely hard to find CD version of the Fucking Fight EP. So yeah, they’re a great band.

But they broke up a few years ago after the varied and heart-stoppingly good Mercy. Sad, but Gared isn’t the kind to sit still. He’s actually been working on his new project for several years, his backing band constantly changing based apparently on whoever is in the room at the time. Essentially a solo project, it consists mostly of him and an acoustic guitar playing what No Idea calls, “blue-eyed soul played through a belt sander.” Trust me, its not as generic or bland as that makes it sound.

The vinyl release in question is the single for the song “Hush Money.” The title-track on the a-side is something of a transitional piece for fans of his previous work, opening with start/stop dynamics and some electric guitar vaguely reminiscent of PMFS’ harder rock. But the tone is far more muted and clean than anything found on those records, the rock guitar serving only to beef up the acoustic leads. The song ebbs and flows in O’Donnell’s characteristic style, building through the song’s final third only to come to an abrupt stop. The vocal is surprisingly clean, with only a few traces of his long-standing harshness bubbling to the surface. During the coda, when O’Donnell pleads “What would you have me do?” his voice melds with the other elements to form a hypnotic tapestry. Its a great introduction.

But the b-side just might make you forget all about what you’ve just heard.

Originally written by Bruce Springsteen for the grossly popular 1984 album Born In The USA, “I’m On Fire” was one of 10 singles released to promote the album. As I’ve previously stated, I fucking hate Springsteen’s cheesy 80’s because of some of the dated instrumentation and production techniques that were in vogue at the time. But that doesn’t mean he wasn’t still writing decent songs.

“I’m On Fire” succeeds in O’Donnell’s hands partly because he stays true to the original. He does exactly what I would have done by keeping the building blocks of the song in place and stripping away the waste, namely the unnecessary synths. He embraces simplicity, letting his acoustic guitar and some choice reverb create an incredibly appropriate atmosphere; that tone and his delivery of the titular lyric sound more like a lonely man in an empty room languishing in his desire than one pleading with a lover to ease his troubles. Some subtle shifts to the song’s structure also help flesh out the arrangement, pushing the climax further towards the end and extending the outro to add some tension.

The mix pushes O’Donnell’s vocal to the forefront despite its feigned fragility, much like the Springsteen original did. But its here that you witness the full range of his vocal capabilities, the raspy hush he delivers most of the song betrayed by his subtle inflections and the ascending notes of the coda. When his voice nearly breaks during the ghostly falsetto that signals the beginning of the song’s outro, the song truly becomes his own. Its a hypnotic and affecting performance.

Of course, because it hews quite closely to the original in many ways there are those that might fail to see some of those subtle differences. But I’ve always maintained that a well-written songs doesn’t necessarily translate into a good cover. As evidence I include as well the absolute horror-show of a cover done by Johnny Cash for the Nebraska tribute that came out in 2000. I know its anathema to speak ill of Johnny Cash in the 00’s but nobody bats a thousand, not even the man in black. Gatsby’s American Dream (a band I love) proved that a well-written song doesn’t translate into an engaging cover when they butchered one of the greatest songs of all time. Just hear how horrible that went.

Way off topic. The point, I suppose, is that this 7″ is remarkable and Gared O’Donnell is an incredibly capable manipulator and creator of (semi-) popular song. I eagerly anticipate a full-length release from Hawks and Doves and its already been too long coming.

 

 Hawks and Doves - I'm On Fire: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Bruce Springsteen - I'm On Fire [2:42m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Johnny Cash - I'm On Fire [3:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Gatsby's American Dream - Don't Think Twice, I'm Alright: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Planes Mistaken For Stars - Little Death [3:22m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Check out the No Idea Records website and buy the hell out of this record. Do it for love.

Pat entries acoustic, Bruce Springsteen, covers, Gatsby's American Dream, hardcore, Hawks and Doves, Johnny Cash, No Idea Records, Planes Mistaken For Stars, rock, vinyl

2. Gaslight Anthem - the ‘59 Sound
I tried to listen to this album through new ears today, imaging what it would be like to hear it again for the first time. I couldn’t do it.

I think that might be the most complimentary thing I can say about the 59 Sound; that every time I hear it I remember every note, every chord, every backing vocal, every melody, every drum fill even. And I want to. I want to sing every note at the top of my lungs and have someone next to me singing the harmonies. It’s joy incarnate as far as I’m concerned. It’s overall the most enjoyable album of the year, by far.

3. Glass and Ashes - Glass and Ashes
It’s kind of a rare occasion when I find myself willfully putting on really, really noisy music. As much as I like punk, hardcore, and a small number of metal bands I’ve never really gotten on board with the whole noise scene. I like loud, angry music but I like it with purpose; at least, with more purpose than being difficult for the sake of being difficult.

I bought a special, limited-edition pressing of the Glass and Ashes self-titled LP on a whim when No Idea Records put up some copies of a pressing meant only to be sold at the Fest, their annual music festival in Gainseville. Something like 250 copies were made with pretty much no artwork and it is absolutely okay because the songs completely stand on their own.

The beginning track is an appropriately-titled hardcore blast. “From The Moment The Floor Dropped Out” is among the fastest, most brutal tracks on the album, a constant barrage of near-indecipherable lyrics spat with ferocity by a vocalist that sounds somehow melodic and impossibly harsh all at once. What follows is forty-five minutes of brutal music that is also at times brooding, ominous, violent, and deranged.

But it really is amazing how listenable it is when you get right down to it. There is an accessibility, a melodicism that makes the music surprisingly palatable. It’s noise, but it’s adventurous noise. As is usually the case, that stems from the fact that no matter what style of music these songs are performed in, they’re just exceedingly well-written. These guys have the potential to be huge.

Well, at least as huge as dudes in noise bands get.

 

 Glass and Ashes - Seconds Before The Floor Drops Out: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The ‘59 Sound is doing very well on iTunes and can be boughten physically from the label.
Glass and Ashes albums and other paraphernalia is made available through Steve Jobs;  and Var and the gang at No Idea Records, one of the most legit independent record labels ever.

Pat entries Best of, Gaslight Anthem, Glass and Ashes, hardcore, No Idea Records, noise, pop rock, punk rock, Side One Dummy, the Fest