Wednesday, August 5, 2009

[The Record Crate] Melterrrs… Who ees Melterrrs?


This ees Melterrrrs....

Hey! Welcome back, Elsah. After a sojourn in the wild and too much "thinkin' 'bout the highway," Elsah returned lean and hardened in an abbreviated lineup at Red Star this past weekend: urgent, funny and turbulent as always. The full alt-country onslaught will be in effect on Saturday when they play with Denton Hatcher & the Spa Box Country Blues at North Gate Tavern.

On that same bill was the duo of Erin Miley and Matt Herron & Atomic Hearts, a band slightly less explosive than their name might imply, but catchy as hell. Whip-smart pop that recalled each Beatle's solo style channeled through guitar and upright bass. More of this, please. Even when I can't hear a singer-songwriter as clearly as I'd like, I like being in the presence of those who have something of their own to sing.

I ran into a couple of members of the Melters, who are playing Spanish Moon this Saturday, and was reminded of a bit that got cut from my review of their EP Indeed in the current issue of 225. A friend of mine and I found ourselves with a young traveling French couple in the practice room that a number of bands in town share. The woman of the couple looked at the schedule posted on the wall and said in her mesmerizing accent, "Melterrrs… Who ees Melterrrs?" My friend and I stumbled around trying to describe their brand of insistent power pop, but all I could think was that I wish I had a recording of her saying "Who ees Melterrrrs?" just so the band could build another EP around it.

A movie/music event you would be remiss not to attend is the screening of the swamp pop documentary The Promised Land at the Manship Theatre, followed by a live performance by the stars of the film, Lil Band O' Gold. The trailer for this film, a favorite at the SXSW 2009 Film Festival, Cannes and Tribeca film festivals, is available here.

Word around the campfire is Justinbailey's Tuesday night show at the Spanish Moon will be their last, so if you haven't had the pleasure of their high-octane company, this might be your last chance. On a personal note, best of luck to Rebecca, who among other duties had the distinct honor of editing this blog and dealing with my loose interpretation of deadlines for a couple of years now. She's now seeking adventure in New York. We'll miss you.

Link to original with local events calendar

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