Posts Tagged ‘Saint Paul’

RYAN and PONY – ” Moshi Moshi “

Posted: August 7, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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When Soul Asylum needed a new lead guitarist in 2016, Ryan Smith answered the call, indefinitely delaying the Ryan and Pony show in the process. Freed to work on side projects, having fulfilled his duties with the mangy Twin Cities alternative-rock curs on their strong 2020 knockout Hurry Up and Wait, Smith hooked up again with Pony, aka Kathie Hixon-Smith, for the sleek, fast-paced indie rock of Moshi Moshi, their debut LP.

Stuffed with tight hooks and bristling with propulsive, cyber-punk energy, it’s still an emotionally resonant, human record that’s timely and insightful, as the dark pulse of “First Night” races, the thumping, squeaky clean “Start Making Sense” lives with modern tension and “Starry Eyes” glazes over in a rushing dream-pop reverie. Slick, infectious EDM moves “Cinematic” and “Fast As I Can” glide along and groove, as Ryan and Pony take Prince’s “I Would Die 4 You” on a guitar-oriented, rock ‘n roll joy ride. Ryan And Pony is a brand-new project from two indie-rockers who have been kicking around the much-vaunted Minneapolis music scene for years. Their debut album Moshi Moshi was recorded at a variety of Minneapolis studios including Flight Simulator, Flowers, Master Mix, and The Kill Room with Ryan producing. 

Ryan is a workaholic multi-instrumentalist who has been playing lead guitar in Soul Asylum since 2016. Pony is a flamboyant performer and artist raised by deaf parents. Together they have made numerous albums and toured internationally leading The Melismatics. On Moshi Moshi they fuse Dream-Pop, post-Punk, Brit-rock, EDM, and good ol’ fashioned Rock ‘n’ Roll into a sound all their own; irony, weirdness, and melody are at its heart. Peter Anderson (The Ocean Blue, Run Westy Run, The Honeydogs) adds his killer drum skills to the mix.

It’s even easier to fall for the sweet jangle-pop sparkler “Trouble in Mind” – song of the year candidate? – and the moonstruck, ’60s girl-group swoon of “Be Still My Baby.” Moshi Moshi doesn’t play hard to get.

Band Members:
Ryan-singing and stuff
Pony-singing and stuff
Featuring Peter Anderson on drums

HALEY BONAR – ” Last War “

Posted: June 5, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Haley Bonar was first discovered by Low’s Alan Sparhawk who spotted her at a local open mic club in Duluth, Minnesota and was so impressed he immediately invited her to join t hem on tour. Which is how, a week later, the nineteen year old Haley Bonar, was transformed from college student to ambitious dropout, crammed into a Honda Civic with a guitar and a drummer for company, touring the US opening for Low.

But there is more to this story. In the decade since Haley has released a succession of recordings, each of which have garnered more praise the last, and has seen her collaborate with the likes of Andrew Bird (with whom Haley occasionally plays live) and Justin Vernon (who features on her new album). That’s not to mention the company she keeps in a rotating cast of premium band members including Jeremy Hanson (Tapes ‘n Tapes), Luke Anderson (Rogue Valley), Jeremy Ylvisaker (Andrew Bird, Alpha Consumer) and Mike Lewis (Bon Iver, Alpha Consumer). Now, with her new album ‘Last War’ Haley looks set to find a wider audience.

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Much of the joy of Bonar’s songwriting is in the tension between her sparkling melodic sensibility and her deeply ambivalent lyrics. Album opener ‘Kill the Fun’ positively crackles with traces of the Cure at their most pop, as Bonar chronicles her travels with a lover, taking some moments to reveal the nature of the relationship: “You’ll be here till morning / You will get back on the plane / Go back to work / where you never knew my name.” On ‘No Sensitive Man’ (which features the most Clem Burke drums outside of a Blondie record), she claims “I don’t want no sensitive man / I don’t want to talk.” While on the captivating ‘Heaven’s Made For Two’ Bonar’s daydreaming vocal drifts ethereally as the instrumentation builds from stripped-back beginnings into a country-meets-shoegaze wall of sound crescendo.

On ‘Last War’, the complexities hit as hard as the hooks, a smart, careful balance achieved through equal doses of mystery and charm.

Originally released September 29th, 2014

HALEY – ” Pleasureland “

Posted: October 20, 2018 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Everybody wants a story. Something to sell. I’m here to tell you that there isn’t one with this album, at least in the traditional sense, but ten. Perhaps each of them contain more stories, sitting inside each other like nesting dolls. I could sit here and tell you that some of the songs are about growing up in the Black Hills. Some of the songs are about my parents. Some of the songs are about sexuality. Some of the songs are about loss of youth, teenage parenthood, the lines of social disorder for women, or the terror of jealousy and suspicion. But what I write is borne of my own set of memories and ideas, and once they are released into the world, they do not belong to me anymore. The interpretation is all yours, therefore these stories are yours. What I can tell you is this: My name is Haley Bonar (rhymes with “honor”). I’m 33 years old, a Taurus, and I live in Saint Paul, MN with my daughter Clementine. I also sing in a band called Gramma’s Boyfriend.

“People are complicated, and I am no exception!” This was the crux of multi-instrumentalist Haley McCallum’s statement in regards to her latest album, Pleasureland an expectation-bucking, all-instrumental release she felt moved to do after the success of 2016’s Impossible Dream. A composer, producer, writer, guitarist, keyboard player, pianist, teacher, and mother, McCallum—formerly known to the music world as Haley Bonar—decided to shine a light on other aspects of her artistry, leaving the power-pop and barbed, lyrical observations she has become known for, behind.

Taken from HALEY’s new album ‘Pleasureland’