Digging Up Stupid Stags

Amongst the first bands that I remember "discovering" at the start of this blog, LA five-piece StaG's debut album Rifle Meeker is one that I have found myself travelling back to, especially when one of its tracks (usually 'Whatapity' or 'Everything Is Plaster') cold-cocks me from out of the ether of the computer playlist. I thought it was a welcome diversion down the rabbit hole that Bradford Cox, Noah Lennox and Lockett Pundt have dug for themselves - read and listen here. Since then they disappeared off my radar for a bit, but the band have just released new EP Dig Up Stupid, a five song effort that has some pretty great elements in it, especially the excellent opener 'Even If It Hurts' (a song that plays on the frenetic guitar pop dismantlings of the likes of Krill, although not as roughshod and serrated - and is more anthemic). They are clearly more upbeat in their approach. It's always nice to be reminded of a small band that keep doing their thing, and the work ends up being this rewarding.

Finding Musical Nuggets In This Denver Goldrush

This is an incredibly exciting notion - a festival run by three ace of base blogs! Pity its in Denver...too far away! The rad dudes from Tome To The Weather Machine, Magic Teepee and Speaker Snacks have united to present the first annual GOLDRUSH Music Festival, in two weeks' time, September 16th and 17th at the Hi-Dive Rock Club and Sputnik in Denver, Colorado. This two-day event will cover a wide, varied selection of musical styles from across North America, featuring rock, electronic, pop, and ambient from over 30 nationally renowned artists, headlined by Tennis, CVLTS and How To Dress Well. The Tome's Crawf and Ryan H., Magic Teepee's Ryan P., and Speaker Snacks' Jake Martin are all longtime friends and avid supporters of all things music. Each site has had a careful hand in picking out the artists performing this year, making the artist invitations/acceptances and pending performances extremely personal and sacred. These musicians have been obsessively listened to, worshipped, and then subsequently written about—and for good reason. Its a veritable who's who od SM-endorsed artists like Vitamins, Junior Low, Tjutjana, School Knights, Candy Claws, Seven Feathers Rainwater, Slow Magic, StaG, the Kevin Costner Suicide Pact, Steffaloo and Teen Daze, plus a shedload more, GOLDRUSH promises to be something special.

The guys put together this compilation to showcase the event, and its pretty spectacular. You can get tix for the event here! Its uber cheap and will be an amazing weekend, so get on board!!

StaG Meekly Floats Past The Rifle

This week you will see a few albums that I've received from small bands over the last month and, although its taken me forever to get to them, they are ace. First one of the shelf is Rifle Meeker, the debut album from Los Angeles-via-Boulder, Colorado band StaG. StaG. It shimmers with so many Panda Bear references it would be overpowering, if Panda Bear wasn't one of the greatest solo artists out there at the moment. And the thing is, it transcends the comparison (if not Panda Bear himself) with the production values. The summery haze that permeates this dream-like existential drifter is so clear and beautiful that it is incredibly easy to find yourself lost in the sound, having inexplicably strayed from the path, and never wanting to find you way back to the real world. What's even more impressive is that this cacophonous beauty has been carved out by two guys who sound like a cross between Lockett Pundtt and Noah Lennox - if that doesn't make you weak at the knees, you aren't a sonic romantic...) And also the auxiliary percussion in tracks like 'Everyone Is Plaster' is warranted, not superfluous, and helps to buoy the soaring vocals. A very effective debut, and one I hope kicks StaG into the outer consciousnesses of all of you...

In their words, Rifle Meeker is about "living in a city I didn't think was right for me. It's about missing California and feeling like I was stuck along the seventeen-hour drive between Boulder and Calabasas, CA, constantly seeing road signs for places like Rifle, CO and Meeker, CO. It's also about going through a few months of constant panic attacks about issues that were way over my head. I think overall, though, it's an album about accepting that life in my early 20s comes with a lot of transitions and that relying on the constants in my life, that I care about, will make things a bit more manageable." Lofty? Maybe, but easily achieved.

Rifle Meeker is available at their Bandcamp here.

StaG - Whatapity
StaG - Everything Is Plaster