THE AUTHOR AND THE ILLUSTRATOR - LEE'S SUMMIT, MO

If you're a fan of math-rock, post-rock, punk, rock, indie-rock, emotive hardcore, or shoegazer, this band is for you. Simply put, this group hailing from Lee's Summit, MO fulfills all of the above genres and goes above the call of duty. Just when you thought labels make matters simpler, these guys show up.

Let's get into it. I was lucky enough to catch The Author and the Illustrator at Jerry's Bait Shop, in Lee's Summit, MO for a measly $3. My friend, the local, had mentioned the band occasionally but I had never gotten around to giving them a solid listen. The band gave off some good vibes as they ascended to the stage. Everything you hope for in a local show, unassuming, confident with the home turf, and shorts. All there. A reverb-y guitar tone filled the now hushed bar, groovy bass and drums join in, soon (in a post-rock like fashion) heavy distortion, speed, and blasting drums fill your ears.

On the album, Session I, "Bottles" is a great way to begin. The tune begins with an reverberating, falling guitar line. The tempo picks up and the singer's voice is heard for the first time. Desperate lyrics begin to build and the song shifts to a more hardcore, grungy chorus and he erupts: "I am not the one who can save you from this hell / Bottles, pills and guns won't be he hero..." followed by the still flowing and quiet verse. "Left" is a behemoth of a song. The first chorus is in the same styling as the verses, which makes the impending explosion in the next chorus that much more intense. Next up is "Five," which really showcases the guitarists' skill in playing, and musicianship. In fact, "Five" showcases everyone in the band as it manages to be catchy and poppy on nearly every level without losing the core sound. Skipping to the last track (not because the songs in between are not worth hearing, because they are) the CD ends on the glorious ballad of "Pale and Bright," which is a groovy, atmospheric track. A solid farewell.

I got the opportunity to speak with the drummer for a short bit after the show. He was really cool guy, and let me leave no doubts, this is a passionate group. The sole goal, as far as I can tell, is to have people listen to their music. The Author and the Illustrator was more than willing to give everyone in the bar a free CD with an optional donation. You simply can not beat that.

I'm not going to upload this album, but I will provide you with the links necessary to get your hands on it! I would definitely give The Author and the Illustrator a donation if it is at all possible in your financial situation! Spread the word.

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The Author and the Illustrator - Pale and Bright from Bret Hamilton on Vimeo.

SAUCER - TORONTO, ONTARIO

I'll just throw this out there: I know none of the inner story of this band. That being said, I was perusing eBay a while back and came across this album. The description claimed they had a Squirrel Bait sound I just can't pass that up. A Google search yields nothing for this band. Nada. I assume this is because they're from Canada. (kidding)

 Let's dig in here. Saucer DOES have that classic punk-grunge sound going on. The vocalist does a great job emulating the raspy vocals you would look for in this genre. But that's just it, the whole band seems to be trying to hard (or not hard enough). Most of the tracks on this album come off as sub-par songs from a decent 90's punk pop band. That's not to say Sin 01 is a bad album, but definitely not great. The opening track "Gun Metal Grey" is a solid song. The opening riff is searing, and the vocals are raspy and desperate. The end of the track is intense and filled with the raunchy feedback of your standard punk fare. Skipping to "Among the Colours" we see the band make an attempt at a more romantic sound. Not bad. The rest of the album sort of carries on in this way with bits of hardcore stuck in different places. I can't figure out which direction they were trying to go with this release but I digress. "Green" is a fairly solid track. The alternating tempos give a great the song a dangerous feel which is fantastic. This song seems to contain the most musicality of any track on the album and it works out well. It almost hurts them in the end though, because if they had put that much work into their other songs this would have been a better album. I'll leave you with that.

I do hope you'll enjoy this release! It isn't bad by any means, but it's not great. Leave some opinions in the comments!



Pick it up here:
Saucer - Sin01

I WILL REMOVE ANY POST AT THE REQUEST OF THE ARTIST.

IF YOU HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, BOOTLEGS, STORIES, OR RELEASES OF THIS BAND PLEASE SHARE. FEEL FREE TO POST A LINK TO YOUR OWN BLOG IF IT RELATES TO THE ARTISTS IN THIS POST. 

Getting back on track

Let's get this thing going again. Updated some download link and getting ready to post some new material. Stay tuned.