The Chatty Cathys – Cradle Rock

Sometimes I like to play a little game where I try immediately to guess who someone sounds like.  While people are, or course, making original music all time, they aren’t doing it without also listening to other artists, just like I am not writing this without also being influenced by what others have written.  Some of the best artists in the world carry their influences out in front of them, and others are a little more hidden, but you can still see them.

The Chatty Cathys are a band who sound like a lot of other bands, but not in the ways that you would think.  The young band released their new album, Cradle Rock, just recently and it is very enjoyable. They are a band who have a grasp on their sound and make wonderful, old school rock music, while also having a lot of experimentation and glimpses of future greatness mixed in with their current greatness.  They are a rock and roll band, which can mean a lot of things to a lot of people, but I also think they are a band just beginning to tap into their potential.

There are times when they sound like a 60’s garage rock band (think The Animals) which really shines through on a track like “Marta Won’t”.  The guitar work and the keyboard harkens back to a different era, but their youth also shines through on this song as well.  While musically they sound like a band like The Animals, vocally they sound a little bit newer school.  I wasn’t really able to place it at first, but it actually reminds me of The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas.  I think the combination of a newer sound like Casablancas mixed with a classic rock sound really makes for a unique combo.

The classic rock sound shines through on most of the tracks, but there are other times where I see a notable local influence.  There are points on the track “Messianic May (Salmonella Falls)” where their garage rock sound subsides and allows the piano to shine through.  It is at that point where I think you can see the influence of local act Christopher the Conquered.  The opening of the song sounds a lot like a Christopher the Conquered track where it is just Chris Ford and a piano.  I suppose you could then infer that they sound a bit like Randy Newman, but I thought it sounded a lot more like a Christopher the Conquered track.  Although, once the song begins proper, it goes back to the more classic rock twinge that rest of the album is on.

Also, I should mention the last track, “Jai”, which I think is awesome in both a musical way and also a bit of a campy way.  It reminds me of some of the best 70’s rock ballads that I imagine got a lot of play at proms when they wanted to slow things down without going straight into disco slow dance or AM radio.

This is a really good album, and I enjoyed it a lot.  I think it works well as both a showcase of talent and also a a showcase of what will undoubtedly come in the future.

Try Not To Miss Shows – 1/19 – 1/25

Fetal Pig w/ Love Songs For Lonely Monsters – 1/20 House of Bricks 930pm

Holy White Hounds w/ Bright Giant, Brave Youth and Esoteric – Vaudeville Mews 1/20 8pm

I have mentioned these bands plenty, so you know the drill.  Go, listen to loud rock music, drive home safely.

The Lemonheads- Vaudeville Mews 1/24 8pm

Legendary 90’s act are back on tour after a fairly lengthy absence.  Should be both a good show, but a nostalgic callback for 30-somethings such as myself.

Hot Dog Skeletons- Gas Lamp 1/21 9pm

A fun roots rock band.  They’re a bit of alt-country in an increasingly pop-country world.