The Automatik

“Honesty,” a wise man once said, “is such a lonely word.” I don’t really know where I’m going with this one; I just thought it would be a clever intro to this piece.

Chris Ryan and The Noise make quite a bit of noise for a three-piece. In fact, they should just call themselves The Noise and let everyone speculate on how many people there actually are in the band. The first track, “Big Love,” has a nice, meaty rock riff that leaves you feeling satisfied, but not stuffed. The band’s sound recalls the glory days of early 90s rock, which can sometimes be a disadvantage, like in “You’ve Gone Too Far,” when Pearl Jam’s “Evenflow” keeps knocking on my brain’s back door. “Fly” shows that these guys can pare it down, but you’re still not going to start calling them The Quiet anytime soon (Say, that’s not a bad name for a band?but I’ve got dibs on it). There’s no doubt that The Noise are good musicians, perhaps even great ones, and “Big Love” is just aching to get radio play. But sometimes, being too polished on a demo can have its disadvantages, like the beg of those questions, “Where do you go from here?” or “Does the heart of rock ?n’ roll truly beat in their chests, or do they just wanna be rock stars?” Guess we’ll have to wait for their upcoming 5-song EP to find out if they’re more than just noise.

Fantasie, on the other hand, have an obvious love of trashy glam rock; their four-song EP could be the soundtrack to the 70s remake of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. Both the guitar and the vocals rock ?n’ raunch with a sneer and a leer and a dash of pharmaceutical psychedelia. Their attitude and sound remind me of The Runaways filtered through mid 80s Redd Kross, which is not a sound that gluts indie rock radio these days, but which would be a welcome change. Like The Noise, they’re all accomplished players, but unlike The Noise, they don’t have any discernible hooks, and I’m a sucker for a good hook. They prance around some bits that sound like they want to be hooks, or even bridges, but they never quite commit. They’re definitely talented enough to keep your interest though, and from what I’ve seen of their stage show, they’ve got enough feathers and glitter to send the late Jobriath into a paroxysm of gender-bender envy. I’ll be intrigued to see what they come up with next.

Every true rock writer dreams of discovering some diamond in the rough, some bright, shining star amidst the endless mounds of crap that swell the walls of their post office boxes. When you find it, it’s damn near impossible to explain how you can see so much potential in the missed beats or slightly hesitant vocals, except to say that it just makes you feel good. And so it is with The Foxx, a cleverly titled four piece from New Mexico, three guys and a girl who remind us that rock ?n’ roll was the bastard son of blues after all. Now don’t go getting all hot and bothered with visions of the next White Stripes; this band is way cooler than that. They don’t really sound like anyone except themselves, although you can see snippets of their influences in the Teenage Rampage of “Landslide” or the Dusty Springfield-esque “Sad Desperation.”

The Foxx have a lot going for them: the wonderful irony of Isaac’s flat vocals and Juliet’s soulful wail; the awesome rhythm section; surprisingly complex song structures; and intriguing lyrics. If there was anything to complain about it would be that they seem almost tentative about everything, which they certainly should not be, because they have got IT, their own unique sound that sticks in your head and your heart long after the CD’s out of the stereo.

Lester Bangs once complained that the problem with most music was that people mistakenly believed that technical excellence had anything whatsoever to do with rock ?n’ roll, that it was about “emotion delivered in its most powerful and direct in whatever form”. Apparently, The Foxx gets it, and for that we can all breathe sighs of relief and thanks.

Contact Information

Chris Ryan and The Noise

http://www.chrisryanandthenoise.com

Booking/Press: (917) 435-3575 or (917) 435-2191

Fantasie
Email: madampussypants@msn.com
Info: (407) 895-0158

The Foxx

http://www.the-foxx.com

Info: (505) 228-9999