Kenyata Sullivan of the Majestic Twelve: 2006 In Review

Here are four things I’m truly enthusiastic about, and perhaps they might not all have been created this year, but they were all new to me in ’06. So, in no particular order:

Four Volts “Triple Your Work Force” There are tons of bands trying to inherit a forward-thinking mantle while building off the Pixies, the Buzzcocks, Gang Of Four, etc, but I think this is the only one I’ve heard that feels like a completely genuine pseudo-surf-explosivo-apocalypse. Fucking love it. Start with “Heartworm” (truly one of the great singles of the past few years, the cd sounds so much better than the MySpace, buy it), and work your way in.

Josè González “Stay In The Shade” Hipsters, don’t be dissuaded by this guy being so damn visible. This guy is for real. Think Elliot Smith, Nick Drake, and if you’re fucking superhip, Arthur Russell’s late night 8-track recordings from when he came home from the bars half-drunk and barely half-alive. This is beautiful, private, patient, passionate music. Embrace it, it deserves it.

Hero Pattern “Don’t Even Miss Me” One of the great modern rock songs of the last decade from one of the great New Jersey rock bands of the last decade. Hero Pattern are to New Jersey what The Suburbs were to Minneapolis twenty years ago, and I really hope that one day they get the shot they deserve.

Keith John Adams “Pip” Holy shit! Real songwriting, genuinely interesting instrumentation, fantastic arrangements, all of which make for a disc I can listen to over and over again, and still repeatedly smile like a grinning idiot. Very British, very enunciated, hell, even very Teardrop Explodes at times! A pulsating heartfelt recommendation from me, indeed.

Purchase | Official | MySpace

Also: The Majestic Twelve “Schizophrenology” Review