Scout Niblett - This Fool Can Die Now

Download: Scout Niblett - "Kiss"
Download: Scout Niblett - "Let Thine Heart Be Warmed"
Download: Scout Niblett - "Dinosaur Egg"

Scout Niblett
This Fool Can Die Now (Beggars/Too Pure, 2007)
Grade: B+

Scout Niblett is a hobo.

I'm sure of it. I'd be sure of it even if I didn't see her open for St. Vincent wearing a straight-jacket like most people wear hoodies. Now, I've only recently become schooled in the ways of the hobo, due to my exhaustive reading of John Hodgeman's The Areas Of My Expertise. But I think I that, in listening to Scout Niblett's fourth album, I've determined that the only way for Niblett to capture the kind of slow-burn wanderlust and aching solitude (moods which permeate Fool to a great degree) seemingly inherent in the hobo lifestyle would be if you actually spent your time riding in the back of locomotive trains with no one to talk to but a can of beans.

If you don't believe me, then listen to the weariness in Niblett's voice as she delivers the line "And how the hell did I live so long/without you by my side?" in album opener "Do You Want To Be Buried With My People?", her duet with collaborator Bonnie "Prince" Billy. The only way you can feel that desperation is if you're colloquially known as "Stewbulder Dennis."

Another reason why I believe Scout Niblett is a hobo is because in This Fool Can Die Now's quieter moments--moments where the music is disarmingly quiet, as if Kurt Cobain reinvented himself after hearing What Would The Community Think?--you feel as if she is singing right beside you. The timbre of Niblett's voice simply sends shivers down the spine, and she puts that unique talent to great use on songs such as "Kiss", "Elizabeth (Black Hearted Queen)" and "Dinosaur Egg". That last song in particular is an album highlight because of how it is humorous--the absurd image of a dinosaur serving drinks on a Friday night is worth the lyrical price of admission alone.

If there's anything to complain about This Fool Can Die Now, it's that there aren't many moments of levity like that. The album becomes a bit monotonous, though still engaging, around the middle, where a series of more introspective songs dominate the section. However, tracks like "Let Thine Heart Be Warned" make sure that the guitars are plenty heavy.

One doesn't have to carve their own currency into already-existing currency to know that Scout Niblett has a value all her own, and she lets it show on this praiseworthy album.

One last hobo reference:

Marge: Oh, Homer you're not going as a hobo again?
Homer: Going where?

MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

Bear Claw "Embrace" Angular Post-Punk

Download: Bear Claw - "Embrace"

Bear Claw, a Chicago-based trio with a sharp, jabbing brand of smartly dissonant, yet melodic post-punk - fans of Fugazi and Shellac should eat this stuff up on a spoon - will release its latest album, which is entitled Slow Speed: Deep Owls on Sept. 25h, 2007, through Sickroom Records.

What makes Bear Claw so distinctive is that there are absolutely no guitars in the band's sound. The group consists of three members - Rich Fessler, bass, vocals; Rob Raspolich, bass; and Scott Picco, drums - who have been playing together since 2003. They put out their Steve Albini-produced first album, Find the Sun out on Sickroom in 2004. That album was selected by then-WLUW DJ Mike Gibson (who hosted as this fine program).

If "Embrace" - a crunchy number that combines the suspenseful push-pull of a group like the aforementioned Shellac with the heart-on-sleeve punk melodicism of Jawbreaker - is any indication of what kind of record Slow Speed: Deep Owls (also produced by Steve Albini, in addition to being mixed by Albini's Shellac co-hort Bob Weston) will be, then you should expect the accolades for Bear Claw to continue.

So far, the band has no scheduled dates for Minneapolis, but we'll let you know when they do.

In the meantime, when 9/25 comes, purchase the album here, Below, you can listen to two additional MP3s from Slow Speed: Deep Owls and two more from Find the Sun, respectively.

Slow Speed: Deep Owls

Download: Bear Claw - "By Popular Demand"
Download: Bear Claw - "From Point A To Point B"

Find the Sun

Download: Bear Claw - "Chameleon"
Download: Bear Claw - "Jigsaw"

MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)