Cameron McGill & What Army, Eyedea & Abilities, Fruit Bats, Sondre Lerche

CAMERON MCGILL & WHAT ARMY
Imagine a young, tall, scruffy bearded man wearing a Woody Guthrie hat and a battered jacket, toting an acoustic guitar adorned with peeling stickers while wandering the brown, icy streets of Chicago. Then image that man escaping the brutal white skies by tracking snow and mud all over your house. At first you might be pissed, but it’s a pretty safe bet that the man’s piercing eyes and smooth croon will deter you from doing any scolding. I first saw Chicago’s Cameron McGill with his band, a unified engine of folk-pop/singer-songwriter rock, playing at Lollapalooza in 2006. Shortly afterward I discovered that McGill had been working at local café/venue Uncommon Ground as a host, but was taking a break to tour and record. Cameron McGill & What Army’s excellent new 10-song indie/folk eargasm, warm songs for cold shoulders, was released this April on Parasol Records. (Appearing at Space on September 24) –text: Katie Knaub

EYEDEA AND ABILITIES
Minneapolis duo Eyedea and Abilities is a hip-hop battle supergroup. MC Eyedea (born Michael Larsen) is known for freestyling skills that have won him rap battles from Scribble Jam to Blaze Battle, while battle scratcher DJ Abilities has DMC DJ victories under his belt. The two teamed up and released First Born on Minneapolis hip-hop label Rhymesayers Entertainment in 2001. Bridging the 5-year gap from their last album, E&A have been heavily involved with other musical projects. Larsen has released solo music under the moniker Oliver Hart, has played with freestyle/jazz group Face Candy, and even formed the alt-rock band Carbon Carousel (which is signed to Larsen’s own Crushkill Recordings). Gregory Keltgen (a.k.a. Abilities) also DJs in Semi.Official with another Twin Cities rapper, I Self Divine. Since reuniting, E&A have released By The Throat, which features complex turntable work, guitars and keyboard, as well as Larsen’s typically philosophical and science-themed narrative lyrics. (Appearing at Reggie’s Rock Club on September 23) –text: Ariel Sundel–photo: Darien Chin

FRUIT BATS
Even in our over-digitized, over-computerized, and technologically terrorized society, the nostalgia and simplicity of antiquated recording techniques have not entirely been forgotten. While old-school reel to reel recordings and 4-tracks may be stale and dusty, they still warm the heart of any track with their sepia-tinged, stripped-down sound. This is how Eric D. Johnson (and many other musicians) got their start: the 4-track. Johnson’s band Fruit Bats was formed during his stint in Califone, which acted as a creative catalyst that would later emerge and morph into his own project. Sub Pop’s Johnson-led folk-rock 5-piece Fruit Bats has been chugging out albums since 2005, morphing old and new sounds by combining a little bit of The Band and a little more of Vetiver. Rolling guitars and carefully crafted songs construct this underrated band’s recently released record, The Ruminent Band. (Appearing with Iran at Schubas on September 20 & 21) –text: Katie Knaub–photo: Annie Beedy

SONDRE LERCHE
It may be the start of fall, but that doesn’t mean we’ve tired of summery and cheery rock to carry on the happiness of the swimming pool season. Sondre Lerche is the king of chilled out, romantic and warm music — and he both looks and sings the part. Lerche looks young and kind of dorkily handsome in a romantic comedy kind of way, wears Converse Allstars and shakes his foot incessantly while straining into the microphone. Throughout it all, he seems hopelessly hopeful. His music is largely the same and is overlaid with mostly goofy, nonsensical lyrics that appear endlessly charming when matched with the simple acoustic strumming popularized by Jack Johnson. Lerche has certainly made this type of music work for him, as his latest outing in Chicago is to showcase his fifth studio album, Heartbeat Radio. (Appearing with JBM for two shows at Schubas on September 19) –text: Diana Novak

Sondre Lerche

A lot of people call music pop and it’s not about creative activities – it’s finding a song that fits the video of someone who can’t sing and can’t perform. That’s really making it hard for people who are creative to call their music pop music.

story by Trish Bendix
photo by Mick Rock

Sondre Lerche is a heartbreaker – a Norwegian dream with shaggy blonde locks, bashful blue eyes and a guitar around his waist. His accent adds even more charm to his appealing personality that is full of youthful excitement. His music is sincere, romantic and smart, with lyrical metaphors like “everyone’s a winner if the stadium is right / but rarely anything good comes out.”

Lerche is a self-proclaimed pop artist. Every piece written about him thus far has proclaimed him this generation’s Burt Bacharach and Norway’s next A-Ha, though in comparison with the latter, he’s had more success this side of the Atlantic.

“I think my music, it is pop music, but it’s different kinds of pop music blended together,” Lerche says. “Pop is like modern-day folk music. In the good old days, pop music was Burt Bacharach, jazz songs like Cole Porter and that stuff. That’s the real pop music, and I want to continue bringing new influences into it.”

On Lerche’s sophomore release, Two Way Monologue, he continues to create intelligent pop tunes that are not only catchy and melody-driven but offer generational influences. “I learn a lot from Brazilian music,” Lerche explains. “And from the ’60s and ’70s, blending all kinds of stuff from the Western world with our own folk music and cool jazz.

Learning from the Rolling Stones and Beatles, too; bringing that kind of rhythm and melody feeling into their own folk music. All these great artists came about like Milton Nascimento. They had such a great spirit, crazy arrangements, catchy refrains, complicated production, all this blend of the difficult and accessible. What pop should be is a mix between these things.”

In a decade where calling a musician’s music ‘pop’ can carry a negative stigma, Lerche holds strong to the genre. “Creativity is the biggest problem,” he says. “A lot of people call music pop and it’s not about creative activities – it’s finding a song that fits the video of someone who can’t sing and can’t perform. That’s really making it hard for people who are creative to call their music pop music. They’re afraid of being put in that category. My music is pop music.”

As an unconventional pop star, Lerche is a mere 21 years with two albums under his belt and successful tours opening for both Ed Harcourt and Nada Surf. Lerche is now able to hold his own, headlining tours internationally. “I did all these opening tours last year and they were really great, great opportunities to introduce myself to the American audience,” he says. “I’m really proud that I can now run my own show. I think it’s really cool [to tour with others, and if the] offer comes I’ll always do another support tour. It’s cool to not always bear the total responsibility of the night.”

One noticeable change from Lerche’s first album, Faces Down, to Two Way Monologue is the additional instruments that layer each simplistic tune with counter-melodies and harmonic intervals. His tour will reflect the change, as he will have a full band to accompany his small stature and acoustic guitar.

“I’m really excited to do the band stuff now because I did 100 solo gigs last year, so I’m really psyched about finally having people to play with on stage,” Lerche says. “It’s going to be great to present something else. It’s a different thing. On good nights, the magic that can happen when three or four people play together is even stronger than a good night with a solo show. I always hope for a good night out.”

As Lerche’s boyish face stares coyly out from the new album’s cover, it’s easy to imagine that he creates a fan frenzy, especially in America where the teens who used to fawn over choreographed singing groups are delving back into manufactured forms of “rock” music.

“The fans in America are really exciting, and cool,” he declares. “They’re very special because they make you gifts and give them to you after shows. They know lyrics, are really well behaved and are not making fools out of themselves. They have style, they have grace – it’s fantastic! It’s like nowhere else. I don’t get fans like this in Norway.”
Lerche may be a foreign figure, but he writes universally. “I want people to listen to my music and have a good time – dance and fall in love or whatever. It’s great if music means something to people on a deeper level, if you can relate to lyrics and feel special. That’s what I want to do when I hear music or see a movie. I want the music to be special to me, in someway made specially for me and fitting my personality.”

After international success and now being legally able to have a drink in the American venues that he plays, Lerche is prepared for further progress. “If suddenly I got to do a tour on Mars and discovered that I have a huge audience there, that would make my day,” Lerche jokes. “I just want to continue introducing my music to new people. There are a lot of people I want to meet and perform for that haven’t heard of me and don’t know how to pronounce my name. I want to continue playing and showing people what I do.”

Sondre Lerche will play at Martyrs’ May 19.