[W]hen the Films (the coolest band of all-time, for the uninitiated) broke up, Mike was already back in Charleston with his soulmate, Cary Ann Hearst, working on what would become Shovels & Rope (not to mention a couple solo records). Jake took up residence at Butch Walker’s studio in LA (and released an EP as the Sinclair Bros). Adam ended up at a sweet design gig nestled in their native Rocky Mountains. But Kenny stuck it out in Brooklyn, writing for a publisher, & I’m not sure a whole lot of folks really heard much from him. Mike told me probably three years ago, “Yeah, Kenny’s working on this batch of songs that’s going to blow everyone’s minds.” And I had almost given up hope, but I’ll be damned if he wasn’t right.
The thing that made the Films so great is that they could groove so hard but it was almost as if they weren’t trying at all. They had this uncanny ability to be locked in & tuned out all at once, & so you don’t even realize that you’re being bombarded with pop hooks. It was the catchiest music you could possibly listen to without feeling like a total sucker. And Kenny’s new record captures that essence better than any post-Films release. In Viva Las Vegas, a pretty heavy nod to Memphis’ own King of Rock & Roll (“The Ghost of Graceland, who better than to take us?”), Kenny pulls out all of the stops. The casual finger snaps, the sedated vocal takes, dropping the tambourine on the floor in the outro, that arpeggio on the piano that sounds like an accident if it didn’t keep happening… it’s like every part of the song just fell from the sky & landed in the right place. “Kenny, it’s like you’re not even trying.” But then you think he MUST be in order to write this kind of dirty pop magic.
Kenny’s Brooklyn was self-released today. You can get it on iTunes.
Great Photo!! Someone is a huge fan. Success could not happen to a greater person.
Thank you so much for the introduction to The Films! Incredible. It’s like finding a beautiful, vibrant city… only after it’s already fallen. But thank God there are artifacts of their brilliantly gritty pop.
Yeah! Thats my all-time favorite band. Here’s my primer…
• Buy a copy of Don’t Dance, Rattlesnake on cd. it comes with a bonus disc called Horseforce!, which is an alternate version of the record, lots of acoustic guitar & piano… kind of alt. country-ish. In my opinion, this is the best thing they ever put out.
• The two b-sides released during the DDR era are a cover of the Ramones’ Blitzkrieg Bop (on the Belt Loops single) & the Rattlesnake version of I’m Not Gonna Call You (on the Black Shoes single).
• There was also a cover of Thank Heaven For Little Girls, the song Maurice Chevalier sings over & over again in the musical Gigi. It was never officially released & it’s not easy to find, but it’s awesome.
• They also did a cover of Donovan’s Sunshine Superman for the Superman Returns soundtrack, Sound of Superman.
• The second record, Oh, Scorpio, was recorded with Butch Walker. Jake ended up becoming Butch’s engineer & bass player. Mike also co-wrote Butch’s last record, Butch Walker & the Black Widows’ the Spade, & Mike’s wife, Cary Ann, sang some background vocals on the record.
• Butch also recorded Cary Ann’s Lions & Lambs, which was mostly the same folks… Butch, Jake, Mike…. I think Wes Flowers played some keys, & Darren Dodd from Ponderosa (also Butch’s old drummer) played drums.
• Cary Ann’s earlier record, Dust & Bones, is really good, too.
• The first thing that Cary Ann & Mike put out as Shovels & Rope was a self-pressed EP that’s hard to find. It’s got a cover of Hank Williams’ So Lonesome I Could Cry that’s ridiculously good.
• Mike has released two solo records, both are great. He also sold an EP for a while in between the two called the El Mercadito EP that’s got some demos he recorded right before his second record… Cary sings on a lot of it. Two of the songs didn’t make the record… Chicago is a real gem, the drum track is Mike playing brushes on a big old Bible.
• Jake has engineered/produced a ton of stuff. He did the Working Title’s Bone Island in 2009 with Joel Hamilton… the whole thing is just him & Joel. And I think Sadler from Leslie (I guess he’s a solo artist now) played some guitar on a track, & Owen from French Camp/Tent Revival (their stuff is totally worth looking into… esp the track Legs & Scars from Tent Revival’s demo, also Owen’s solo records) sang some backup vocals.He also produced Eulogies’ Tear the Fences Down last year, which is pretty good. And he produced Kathryn Brawley’s Bring Me A Light (I Hope You Cry from that record is killer… Wes played keys on that jam, too). And I dunno if it’s floating around at all, but Jake also recorded the Redcoats’ demos back in 2008, which I think are pretty awesome. Half of that band ended up joining the Constellations a few years back.
• Jake also released an EP last year with his brother called the Sincair Brothers EP. The track Brother is really killer.
I’m sure I’m leaving a ton out, but that’s what that comes to mind. I don’t really know what Kenny or Adam have been up to, they’ve been up in Brooklyn this whole time. Adam was drumming in a band, but I never caught the name. Mike & Cary Ann also started Shrimp Records, which is sort of a DIY collective, & they release stuff from Charleston artists. Mostly their stuff & Joel’s stuff & Bill Carson’s stuff. And Owen & Joel released a record as the Inlaws that’s really great (they sound awesome singing together. And they sold it as a burned cd in a birthday card, & you open the card & it plays a message or a song or something… I forget what it played, my copy is tucked away in a storage unit somewhere), & that was a Shrimp Records release.
Oh, & another thing. If you’re into the Films, check out Mando Diao. Ode to Ochrasy is one of my all-time favorite records. They did a US tour w/ the Films supporting, but it didn’t come down south. That’s one of my life regrets, that I didn’t have the cash to fly up to Minnesota or something to catch one of those shows. And, if you haven’t heard it, Phantom Planet’s Raise the Dead album is in the same vein, too, & is also just supremely awesome.
And here I thought I was a fan. Though Jon’s the one that turned me onto them years ago.
Seriously. That was intense. Thanks Jon! I have some exploring ahead of me.
If you’re looking to track down any of the more obscure stuff & can’t find it, let me know & I’ll hook you up.