Wiretree and The Moorelands Project EP

Wiretree “Make Up”
After two great albums, Wiretree have continued to dazzle with Make Up. In a departure from their previous efforts, the album was recorded with very few overdubs, capturing a “live” performance feel. The music moves towards a more earnest and raw rock approach, with less indie-pop elements.

With Kevin Peroni’s solid vocal performance on the opening title track, it immediately puts you into a “the zone,”with an equal blends of solid guitar melody and harmony. On “Broken Foot,” the fast paced guitar riffs and a excellent drum beat through the chorus “You better run…” raises the bar again. The band reaches its pop apex with “Tiny Hearts” and “Tonight” will make many feel that the band is the heir to indie rock legacy of The New Pornographers. “The Shore” is a pop gem that channels Green Day and Iggy Pop in equal doses here. The atmospheric and solid songwriting puts “MTH” on the next level of greatness, and at this point I think the band is just too good to remain a “best kept secret” in Austin, TX.

The album ends with the soothing ballad “Josephine,” parts Pernice Brothers and Wilco crooning harmony with nice lap guitar accents.  Overall a brilliant and immensely satisfying album that should not be missed. One of the contenders for power pop album of the year easily!

Moorelands Project “The Trip” EP
The Moorelands Project is the brainchild of production duo Mike “Kraz” Krasnowski and Mike “Greener” Greenwood. The duo describe their sound as Rock Hop and Roll, with a complex melodic spin. This certainly is different, as “The Trip” boasts pastoral elements of XTC or Martin Newell. But the band goes all over the place with tracks like “A Song For P” and the bluesy “Few More Times” and unfortunately the rapping elements on other tracks are practically unlistenable. Pick and choose here, and with an e-mail the album is free, so you can’t really go wrong.