Ready for a crash course in Pop? The Saving
Graces are ready to give it to you. Led by singer/songwriter
Michael Slawter, this Winston-Salem, N.C.-based combo writes
shimmering and brainy tunes in the finest tradition of American
power-pop, earning them comparisons to The Plimsouls and The
Records.
A veteran of the North Carolina music scene, Slawter last
fronted the short-lived pop/punk quartet Neidermeyer. The band's
sole recorded offering, "For Those About to Pop" won
them 2001 pop-rock album of the year honors from The Winston-Salem
Journal. The newspaper praised Slawter for creating tunes as "smart
and entertaining as (the band's) name." Slawter soon decided
he wanted a band that reflected his own vision. In 2002, the
Saving Graces were born.
"I was really happy with the songs I was writing in Neidermeyer
but I felt like I had so much other stuff inside me that didn't
really fit that band." Slawter recalled.
In the fall of that year the Slawter headed into the studio
with respected Australian musician d.Henry Fenton and longtime
Winston-Salem scenester Britt "Snuzz" Uzell. The
end product, "These Stars Are For You," was released
by respected Portland, Oregon indie The Paisley Pop Label to
almost unanimous critical acclaim. Over five songs, "These
Stars Are For You" effortlessly blended 60s-vintage Britpop
("The Things that Make You Strange"), bouncy New
Wave-style rock ("Idiot Proof") and gorgeous balladry
("Sad Golden Waves Goodbye.").
Now, on their first full-length LP, Slawter upped the ante
to produce "Outside Guiding Lights ." Joined
by veteran producer Jamie Hoover (Spongetones, Van Deleckis),
the 11-song collection presents a fuller picture of Slawter's
songwriting capabilities, veering from the energetic, Buzzcocks-inflected "Giving
Up The Ghost," to the lovely sturm und jangle of "Southern
Gothic Sound," to the deeply personal meditation that
is "Why Don't You Cry."
So set the headphones on loud and the seat on recline, and
let yourself be swept away. |
