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 Click for music events The Story of a Band Flameshovel band The Narrator takes it to the wall
Funny description of Chicago's The Narrator on its MySpace site:
"They're like a sadder Tool."
Yet, as off as that description actually is, it does give you a
sense of the band and its members (at least their sense of humor) and
how a lackadaisical, near slacker-style of presenting music--coupled
with a fine talent, of course-- can produce something worthy of an ear,
as the band did with 2005's "Such Triumph." And then, in the end, how
an album like that can come together so fluidly, a clash of math-rock
riffs and half-sung, half-howled vocals that, at times, even borderlined
hardcore. A sadder hardcore.
"All That to the Wall" is the band's follow-up, a smart,
infectious dueling match between the band's original sound and a
newfound take on classic indie rock--the songs a bit shorter and tighter
than on the previous full-length, each of the album's songs swirl around
your head, jabbing at your brain, until, unexpectedly, one by one,
they're gone, and you're off to the next. Just when a song seems too
loose to hold together, an intricate guitar riff will tear through and
glue the seams. It's unquestionably the best The Narrator's done so
far--and while it's certainly not a perfect record, it offers its own
share of beauty, from great songs like "Speeding Up the Gang,"
"Breaking the Turtle" and "A Decade in Kentucky." And while it
doesn't get its official release until mid-May, expect to hear a good
portion during the shows leading up to it.
"I guess I feel with this one, in a weird way it's more cohesive,"
vocalist and guitarist Jesse Woghin says. "The record makes a lot of
sense to me. `Such Triumph,' at the time we made it, was the best we
could make when we were that band. In a lot of ways, with this record,
it's the first thing I've really ever been a part of that I'm really
stoked about, happy with as a whole." He adds: "There's definitely
more of an emphasis on melody and hooks."
"It wasn't anything super thought-out," says the other guitarist
and vocalist, Sam Axelrod. "We definitely wanted to make it better than
the last one. I think the songs work better together, which was a
conscious decision. I think on this record we definitely mellow
out--there's a lot less rocking for rocking's sake. The earlier stuff
was noisy, heavier--this one is more about the song, and there's some
heavier stuff, but it's a little more neat."
Woghin and Axelrod credit their two friends Dave Turncrantz and Dan
Fetherston, who both played drums on the record, for bringing a tighter
approach to the instrument, which inevitably provided a solid foundation
for many songs (Kevin Vlack takes over duties for the tour). Axelrod
says a heavy-duty editing process was done while the band was preparing
the album. "We were pretty heavy on editing songs," he says. "I think
every song we've written on this record started longer, and we narrowed
it down, trimmed the fat off, got things smaller and shorter to the
point where their wasn't more that could come off."
Both Woghin and Axelrod acknowledge that The Narrator is an
inconsistent live band, which could mean you could catch the band at any
time on an off night and it'll be terrible. "We know none of us are the
greatest musicians on Earth or anything," Woghin says. "We're never
gonna be super tight. We're definitely tighter than we've ever been--we
tend to focus a lot more on energy and the sort of vibe, making that the
mark of a good show for us, how it feels and how we play. We know
inevitably one of us is gonna fuck up, so there's no reason to get down
about that. A lot of bands we really like fit that model--The
Replacements, [it's the] same when everyone always talks about them, and
none of us ever saw them, but that you see them one night and it's
totally great, and then on another totally awful."
Local label Flameshovel, which will release "All That to the
Wall," is co-owned by Woghin, so he has to pull double-duty, even when
out on tour. "It's really a lot of patience on James' [Kenler, the
other owner] part," Woghin says. "We get to the point [on tour] when
I'm on the laptop in the van for a good chunk of the day, responding to
emails and calls. It's definitely the roughest thing about touring.
Trying to be responsible. For a lot of people it's the opportunity to
let go of responsibility. I long for it to some regard, but I don't mind
it. I'm the type of person, most of the time, who likes being busy. If
for no other reason it keeps me out of my head."
The Narrator plays April 7 at Empty Bottle, 1035 North Western,
(773)276-3600, at 10pm. $10.
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