The Top 60 Bands (Ryan Saw) At CMJ 2006

[part 3 of 6]

#31 Figurines - The vocals of Figurine’s lead singer Christian Hjelm are of the high-pitched, somewhat nasal variety which I normally don’t love. However, in this case I think it fits the music perfectly. Most songs on their album “Skeleton” are faster and more anxious than the following track, which they used to close both their album and their set at CMJ. If you look them up on myspace make sure you get these guys and not these guys.

Figurines - Release Me On The Floor (live at Mercury Lounge)

#32 Archie Bronson Outfit - In addition to high-pitched, nasal vocals, I also don’t typically go for vocals that are all vibrato-like and shaky. Once again, I’ve been won over by a strong performance. Archie Bronson brought the RAWK to Mercury Lounge. His songs have a very simple chordal structure and they are a bit bluesy for my taste, but the dude can sing. This is exactly the type of show you want to see towards the end of a long day, unless you’re actually trying to fall asleep.

Archie Bronson Outfit - [unknown] (live at Mercury Lounge)

Archie Bronson Outfit - Dart For My Sweetheart (live at Mercury Lounge)

#33 What Made Milwaukee Famous - These guys started to get popular on the interweb about a year ago, then sort of dropped off of the blog radar. Their album may not be rife with hits, but I still think they’re better than some of the other “indie rock” bands who have recently gotten mainstream exposure, e.g. Cold War Kids.

What Made Milwaukee Famous - Mercy Me (live at Bowery Ballroom)

What Made Milwaukee Famous - Sweet Lady (live at Bowery Ballroom)

#34 Eliot Lipp - One of my favorite electronic artists, Eliot Lipp uses his computer and a variety of synths to create some great melodies and beats. The sounds he creates are in the 8-bit music realm in that they are composed of simple waveforms, but they all fit together perfectly to create a unique sounding whole.

Eliot Lipp - [unknown] (live at The Annex)

#35 The Undisputed Heavyweights - This recording comes from a short acoustic set that the Heavyweights played upstairs at Pianos. They will be playing at Mercury Lounge on February 22nd to celebrate their first official release - a live album which was culled from one of my own bootleg recordings.

The Undisputed Heavyweights - Mr. Murphy (live at Pianos)

#36 Frida Hyvönen - I first saw Ms. Hyvönen when she was opening for Jens Lekman during his New York City stint last summer. Compared to the Mercury Lounge and Bowery Ballroom, the Skirball Center at NYU felt like a huge room for her to be playing, but the crowd was attentive, the sound was fantastic and Frida played a great set. The recordings are surprisingly intimate for a 879 seat room.

Frida Hyvönen - Once I Was A Serene Teenage Child (live at Skirball Center)

Frida Hyvönen - Straight Thin Line (live at Skirball Center)

Frida Hyvönen - Oh Shanghai (live at Skirball Center)

#37 Cold War Kids - I don’t like many of the Kids’ songs besides “Hang Me Out To Dry”, but that song is damn good. It almost got people to shut up at this show. The Annex is one of those venues at which people never seem to be there for the music. Sorry for all the crowd noise. Actually… I’m not. I wasn’t talking.

Cold War Kids - Every Valley Is Not A Lake (live at The Annex)

Cold War Kids - Hang Me Out To Dry (live at The Annex)

#38 Slowlands - This is one of my favorite local bands and I hope that 2007 turns out to be a big year for them. During CMJ they were in the midst of some lineup changes and this 1am performance was not the best I’ve seen them give, but still quite impressive. I’ll be sure to let you know when they are playing in New York again.

Slowlands - Crooked Crown (live at Pianos)

#39 The Changes - I wish I had caught more of this Chicago band’s set. I’m sitting here thinking about comparing them to Bound Stems and it hits me. Maybe there really is a “Chicago” sound. At least when the label is applied to indie rock. I can’t put my finger on it, but I like it, especially the energy in the lead singer’s voice. I also really like that the chorus of this song consists of a chord progression so awesome it doesn’t need any words.

The Changes - Modern Love

#40 Tokyo Police Club - I rarely let audible commentary leak onto my mp3s, but in this clip you’ll hear me and my friends laughing about how surprisingly curt TPC’s songs are:

Tokyo Police Club - Box (live at The Annex)

Tokyo Police Club - Shoulders And Arms (live at The Annex)

Whoo! Halfway done.