THE “EUREKA” E.P. - The Nu-Sonics (Psych-O-Sonic)
The Nu-Sonics are a Brooklyn-based band fronted by Alex Sniderman, a Rawk-loving kid from Nashville, of all places, who had his first eponymous album produced by ex-MC5 guitar terrorist Wayne Kramer way back in Y2K, when Alex was all of 19.
My Dee-troit and Lou Reed-loving pal Geoff Ginsberg, who’d also pulled my coat to rootsy rockers like Eric “Roscoe” Ambel and Tim Carroll, re-released Alex’s debut on his Real O Mind label in 2002, and I reviewed it for the Fort Worth Weekly, causing editor Anthony Mariani to roll his eyes white upwards and exclaim, “Jayzus, you can’t just write about your friends’ projects!”
The “Eureka” E.P. finds Sniderman in the company of Noo Yawk sesh vets Melissa Houston (drums) and Scott Anthony (bass), with a stripped-down sound that’s reminiscent in places of the first Lou Reed solo album (which I liked). As much as he might protest that “This is a band, man,” make no mistake: this is a songwriter’s record. Luckily, Alex’s pen remains hot and, dare I say, commercial, revealing him to be more of a Nashvillian (Nashvillain?) than he’d probably care to admit, as displayed on my favorite item here, “Nice Guys,” where a disquieting similarity, vocal and groove-wise, to Counting Crows is overshadowed by the fact that Adam Duritz never wrote a line as funny as “Nice guys always finish last / ‘Til nice girls get divorced.”
“Elevation” isn’t the Television song but rather, a relationship rumination (“Mr. Right turned out Dr. Strange”) that’s more Jakob than Bob Dylan. For a witty guy with a smooth turn of phrase, it takes big stones for Alex to sing “Words are just no good / For what I have to say” (“Words No Good”). While his real destiny is making a mint off the 18th song on some blockbuster film soundtrack, it’d still be nice to stumble into these guys (‘n’ gal) playing in some sawdust-on-the-floor dive in Lower Manhattan.
Cop via www.nusonics.net. - Ken Shimamoto
ALEX
SNIDERMAN - Alex Sniderman (Real O Mind)
His label boss (rightly) makes the point that most artistes writing the
term "singer-songwriter" in the box when picking up their unemployment
benefits are a little on the lightweight side, but I'll be
damned if Alex Sniderman isn't Matthew Sweet with balls.
Confusing parallel? Consider this: Sweet has had some fucking great bands (Richard
Lloyd and Robert Quine have filled guitar duties) and some clever, moving songs
(the "Girlfriend" album, for instance, pushed his claim to mainstream
fame to the fore without fatally costing him his cred). Four tracks on this,
Alex Sniderman's first real album, boast the talents of Wayne Kramer, both as
producer and guitarist - and in our book you don't do much better than that.
Television's Billy Ficca's along on drums for four others, so Alex has no problem
attracting great players. But whereas Sweet delved deep into country ballads
before moving to the West Coast, hiring session men and fading off our radar
screens, Sniderman actually comes FROM Nashville - and does his level best to
avoid anything that even smells like hay. Hell, he hates country music so much
he moved to Brooklyn! He's also a lot grittier and vocally edgier than Mr Sweet
and, consequently, the ride's more interesting.
But this is about the music, not names, and Alex Sniderman's songs are economical,
sardonic and real. While I bought "Girlfriend" for the guitars, I'd
listen to "Alex Sniderman" for the songs (although the playing is
first class too.) They definitely grow. The opener, "She's Emotion",
boasts a (Kramer) lead break that's as taught as anything Lloyd or Quine managed
for Sweet. "I Need a Life" is lyrically sharp and musically compelling
with some nice guitar tone from Sniderman. His playing is simple but tasteful
throughout, actually.
Lyrical moments to remember - there are a few but I'll settle for this one in
"N.O. Groove": "Yeah I'm pissed off but it's better than being
pissed...on". "Barry White" sounds like it was worked up while
busking and retained all of its street smarts. "Combat Boots" is a
12-bar blues with some great imagery while the "Taxi Driver" overtones
of "Jodie" makes for the best star trib since fellow New Yorker Kevin
K's "Jennifer Love".
The "Paralyzed" here is not the Legendary Stardust Cowboy song and
it's more Garland Jeffreys than Matthew Sweet. And the "Stranded"
is not a Saints cover, although you might draw a tenuous comparison to some
of Chris Bailey's solo stuff (most of which has been done under the Saints banner).
There are four bonus tracks and while "Can't X-Plain" sounds like
a demo, "I Don't Mind" features some characteristic Billy Ficca explorations
around the kit and squalling guitar from Sniderman and Kevin Salem. "Say
Hello, No Goodbyes" gets along on the back of a classic Ficca feel and
swelling, open chords.
Can't say I'd ever heard of this talented New Yorker before (neither had Real
O Mind Records' Geoff Ginsberg before Brother Wayne's road managed
wised him up) but I have a feeling there'll be more chapters to come. This is
an album worth exploring. - The Barman
