Spirit Fingers

Kent Odessa describes his music as a mix of Sade, George Michael and Prince, but the Detroit Echo Boomer definitely has more of his own spirit floating skyward. Far more removed than his influences suggest, his music is less accessible and more ambitious in the instrumental department. This is 21st century indie R ‘n’ B, not ’80s hit-making pop music. His claim to Prince is fair enough – his soul styled R ‘n’ B is similarly eclectic and flows through an electronic discourse that displays his skills as a producer as well as a talented vocalist.  There’s also a nod to Toro Y  Moi, and the post-Motown sound that is flooding through into indie R ‘n’ B.

Kent Odessa is currently working on his debut album ‘Silverdome’ and has placed a couple of tracks, ‘Cruise N’ Kidman’ and ‘Bo Jackson’, up on his Soundcloud page for free streaming. Below you can listen and download his new single ‘Getaway’.

Kent Odessa – Getaway: MP3

Kent Odessa on Facebook

Posted by Nick Fulton under Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A
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Feast On My Wounded Body

Michigan has a proud punk history and throughout the last decade Child Bite has been keeping that odyssey alive. The state is famous for it’s shabby, rebellious past, birthing the MC5, The Stooges, Alice Cooper and The White Stripes. Child Bite is as equally progressive and original, sticking a more recent ‘fuck you’ finger in the face of Detroit’s industrial elite, where closures and lookouts continue to put pressure on the states blue-collar economy. It’s a city that inspires punk rock and Child Bite confronts the issues and proudly wear the tag of one of the hardest working punk bands in America.

Since we last featured them on EMJ (in 2008), raving about their excellent sophomore album Fantastic Gusts Of Blood, the band has released three split 7″s with This Moment In Black History, Big Bear and dd/mm/yyyy. Joyful Noise Recordings today announced the release of Child Bite’s third album titled The Living Breathing Organ Summer, out June 15. They also released the album’s first single ‘Odd Inn’.

Child Bite’s last album was ferocious and bursting with angular punk energy. The organ and guitars twisted themselves into a fury and chiselled out an aggressive attacking sound that shook and rebounded like a tennis ball full of carcinogenic mayonnaise. They adopted avant-garde time signatures and abrasive piercing guitar riffs to fire their point across and it resulted in one the best records out of Michigan in years. Following it up with something equally aggressive and original is going to be difficult, but the band has focused themselves and the first single displays a newly discovered power that’s more kinetic and rhythmic than anything on FGOB. There’s a hint of LA band HEALTH in the concrete sounding electronic intro and they seem to be syncing their guitar and vocal arrangements to create more of a melody. It’s seems like an obvious choice for a single, but it does break away from some the more spastic, jittery, disjointed elements of their past work. Hopefully when we get the whole album we’ll be able to assess just how much Child Bite has evolved.

Child Bite- Odd Inn: MP3

 Child Bite- Myspace

Posted by Nick Fulton under Michigan, U.S.A
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Under A Microscope

Last night we watched The White Stripes Under Great White Northern Lights, a film by Emmett Malloy documenting the Detroit duo’s extensive escapades in Canada in 2007. The incredibly detailed documentary intersperses live footage with intimate interview sequences with the band, mainly Jack, whose upfront character is brought to light in a particular scene where he basically forces Meg to say his outspokenness doesn’t cause her to be mute. Meg laughs awkwardly and says, “It has nothing to do with you, Jack.” The glaring light Malloy casts on his subjects brings out their true qualities. Here, Jack comes across as a Dylan-esque figure, spewing forth a constant rambling narrative; he’s both consistently composed and spontaneously fiery. Meg, meanwhile, is her typical diminutive self, arching her back and tilting her head to the side, there are brief moments where she opens up, but largely she is overshadowed by the huge personality that is Jack, the firecracker, true blues performer, abruptly poetic and unapologetically abrupt. The music itself, on DVD and CD, boasts the breadth and depth of their catalog, featuring outstanding performances of the ramshackle jig ‘Little Ghost’, the fiery garage rock of ‘Black Math’, the downward blues of ‘I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself’, the wickedly rambling ‘The Union Forever’; their best songs, basically. Of course there’s the live staple, too: the cover of Dolly Parton’s ‘Jolene’. On CD, UGWNL swiftly and succinctly moves through these highlights from their various live shows, but it’s on DVD that the material really comes alive. The pair, still doggedly insisting (well, Jack anyway) their brother-sister status, traverse the great North, visiting Inuits in a retirement home to trade performances of traditional songs, playing major shows in beautiful theatres and, best of all, odd little side shows in such un-tread turf as a tiny square, a school, a bowling alley and a fishing boat. Malloy’s camera work is dignified and clear, reminiscent of old school film making. The recording and editing is brilliant, rekindling the love of a band who left an immeasurable impression on the last decade of music.

 The White Stripes- Ball And Biscuit (Live, Under Great White Northern Lights): MP3

The White Stripes- Website

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A
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