Tuesday, August 18, 2009
National Skyline The Features Are Paste's Band of the Week
Posted by D Patrick Rodgers on Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 1:46 PM
Sure, we could have thrown this item in with our last post about The Features, but it's neither particularly golden nor is it especially a nugget. It's just a bit of deserved national praise for our hometown faves. While I don't especially agree with Paste's list of similar artists--Franz Ferdinand, The Whigs and Kings of Leon--it's a nice little write-up with loads of props to Smyrna:
"I grew up listening to mostly British music, to be honest. The Kinks, The Beatles, that type of stuff," says guitarist Matt Pelham. "And Rollum, the drummer, learned to play drums [by listening to] Duran Duran, so I guess musically we kind of come from a more British background."It's this blend of influences that give The Features their dynamic sound (caught somewhere between the pure rock 'n' roll of the British Invasion and the electronic, synth-happy beats that characterized 80's pop), and it's that sound that has launched them to the top of Nashville's indie rock scene. A little help from Kings of Leon hasn't hurt, either. The Features' sophomore album, Some Kind of Salvation, was released in July on the Kings' imprint on label Bug Music.
That Bug Music thing sure is earning The Features more and more attention. Paste's bands of the week in recent months have included everyone from Merge's Wye Oak to reigning kings of lo-fi Wavves to Atlanta's punk and throwback outfits (respectively) The Coathangers and Howlies. The Features post also includes an embedded MP3 of "Lions," but I recommend you have a listen to "Temporary Blues"--also from Some Kind of Salvation--as well.
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I've known the Features since 1996 and even used to be on a certain M'boro record label with them back then.
So, I'm not talking out of my a$$, but I just think the Features' music is so boring and predictable at this point in their career. Is that why everyone is so geeked about them? Because there's nothing threatening or dangerous about them? They play REALLY well (when they had Jason, Don, and Parrish they played well, too), but they suffer from a lack of imagination. And honestly to my ears a lot of their music has a minor I-V klezmer thing. Just boring, not repulsive, but boring. Best of success to them, b/c they're nice guys, and they've been at it a long time (they started when some of the writers on this blog were freshmen in high school or younger), but their music needs some overhauling...
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