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TonyDoug's CD Reviews: Barbaro, Pale Sunday, Respira

by tonydoug wright

Barbaro, Nolte (Dopamine Records, 2002)

THE BAND: Mike Ushinski, Meaghan McLaughlin and Andrew Schneider.

THE HISTORY: Barbaro was a band from Boston, MA, which included members of Slughog and Bloodletter. Nolte was the band's last album.

THE REVIEW: I'm down with the whole "We're a noisy experimental band and we are not going to bow down to corporate labels" philosophy, but I'm not down with Nolte. My biggest complaint is that the first six tracks left me bored while the seventh track "Paper Thin" finally caught my attention. Unfortunately, "Paper Thin" is the only standout track on Nolte.

TO CONTACT THE BAND: www.dopamine-records.com

Pale Sunday, A Weekend With Jane (Matinee Recordings, 2003)

THE BAND: Luiz Gustavo (Lead vocals and bass guitar), Sineval (guitars) and Fabricio Cantoni (guitars, keys, drums and backings).

THE HISTORY: Luiz Gustavo and Sineval formed Pale Sunday in Brazil in 1999. The band released their first EP in 2002 titled Everything Starts When You Smile.

THE REVIEW: Pale Sunday may hail from Brazil but their musical style is nothing short of pure British indie-pop. A Weekend with Jane is acoustic guitar-driven goodness that only lasts for thirteen minutes and thirty-four seconds. This release will certainly earn the band comparisons to Belle and Sebastian. Definitely buzz-worthy.

TO CONTACT THE BAND: www.palesunday.tk, www.indiepages.com/matinee

Respira, A Still Silhouette (Exotic Fever, 2003)

THE BAND: Marc Rickenbach (drums), Tim Wilson (bass), J.D. Knotts (guitar, vocals and bass) and Jesse Anatole (guitar).

THE HISTORY: Respira is a So-Cal band that formed during the fall of 2000. Exotic Fever Records released A Still Silhouette in 2003. Mike Russell recently joined the band as the new bassist.

THE REVIEW: My first impression of A Still Silhouette was pretty lukewarm. Nothing caught my attention, so I put the disc on the shelf for a week with the intention of listening to it again. A week went buy and I gave Respira another chance. The lukewarm feelings went away as I bobbed my head to the opening track, "Bent Like a Piece of Machinery". Some of the songs are very emo and I will admit that I am not the biggest emo fan in the world, but "Fit to Panic", "Into the Dust" and "Streetlight to Streetlight" are great tunes.

TO CONTACT THE BAND: www.respirarock.com

ATTENTION: If you want me to review your band's material, please e-mail me at ironman2525@yahoo.com.

Issue 16, October 2003


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