Three Imaginary Girls - Plan B

Who Needs Action When You Got Words?

Erik Gonzalez — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 03:18:08 +0000

6.6

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000GJ0NPC/wwwthreeimagi-20

I tend to fall prey to all sorts of hype from the British press. They apparently know a sucker when they see one, so Americans go tripping over themselves to hear any UK import that has gotten written up in NME or the like, and Plan B joins the cavalcade of English musicians that are supposed to be the “next big thing. Plan B has been praised as the next coming of Eminem (that is supposed to be a good thing) or a darker version of Mike Skinner and the Streets. However, there is just something that doesn’t click with me and his debut Who Needs Action When You Got Words?

Plan B has that same style of rapping as a lot of British hip-hop stars such as Dizzee Rascal, Wiley, and Mike Skinner. It has much more of a speaking tone that what most American hip-hop fans might be used to and it might just be the trickle down effect of these Brits being influenced by folks like Slick Rick. Plan B himself (aka Ben Drew) is kind of a hip-hop prodigy, recording his first hits at the age of 19, but he isn’t as singularly a rapper like Mike Skinner. Instead, he seems to flit back and forth from both rhyming and actually carrying a tune as he creates vignettes on the characters he’s created. Although the albums starts off with the promising “Kidz,” one of Plan B’s first hits, it just can’t keep up the pace. “Kidz” has the same productive style of Dizzee Rascal’s latest Maths & English and Plan B keeps the song buzzing along from start to finish, although some of the lyrics are a little, well, odd (”and I’ll just stick my ding-a-ling in her snatch”). “Sick 2 Def” is similar, with a lot of rather disturbing imagery set to more of an Eminem like slow jam, but here is where we start to see that although Plan B obviously has lyrical skills, something about his delivery just doesn’t mesh with the music.

The other Achilles Heel for Who Needs Music When You Got Words is the dated production that dominates the disc. “Dead & Buried” tells the tale of a fellow who dabbled with the wrong type of women but the backing music to Plan B’s lyrics sound like something from the late 90’s. This is just appalling, especially for a UK rapper surrounded by so many great DJs and producers. This is a recurrent theme on the album and renders a lot of it just painful to hear (see also “Charmaine,” a song that might show some of the lack of maturity in Plan B’s lyrics). “Missing Links” suffers from the lack of the Radiohead sample that propelled the original (and subsequently changed, thanks to the lawyers) version – if you can track down the bootleg version of the song, it's well worth your time.

You do get some good turns on the album, like “No Good” or “I Don’t Hate You.” The latter is especially satisfying, with dark strings backing Plan B and his guitar – it adds a little variety to the production. This is combination is expanded on “Everyday,” a song that could very easily for an odd hip-hop influenced solo/monologue from a modern musical. The paranoia that Plan B creates in the song shows that he has a deep well of talent from which to draw. “Where Ya From” takes a little more interesting musical turn, combining a backing track that has a bit of an Aphex Twin feel with Plan B’s rhymes.

Who Needs Action When You Got Words might be a similar listening experience to the Streets first album Original Pirate Material in the sense that it takes a long to time fully comprehend what is contained on the album. You can tell that Plan B has talent and vision, but the album overall does not put his best foot forward. Instead, it feels a little scattershot and disjointed as he grasps for his true sound. Plan B is clearly a hot prospect on the British music scene, now we just have to wait to see if he can live up to the hype.

Who Needs Action When You Got Words feels a little scattershot and disjointed as Plan B grasps for his true sound.

Touchdown Eagle to the Divorce: Bands vs. Bush

three imaginary girls — Sat, 11 Oct 2003 07:00:00 +0000

10 Oct 2003

How often does igDana get to a show by 6:35pm on a Friday to catch an opening band? Answer: never. That is, the answer was never until the Bands Against Bush show, and then the answer changed because Touchdown Eagle was playing second of the ten bands in the lineup.

What motivated me to leave my day-job early and get mine-self to a club before the sun had fully set? Why, it was Stacy from Touchdown Eagle, who wrote to TIG to promote the show as follows:

"We know that Bush was a pretty mediocre band and all, but it seems like people have been really down on them lately. Do they have a new album coming out or something?"

Wit, she is a powerful seducer. If Touchdown Eagle was going on at 6:35p, we would be there at 6:35p. And down on Bush!!

I am still not sure where it falls on the rock and roll scale to go directly from fumbling with work spreadsheets to indie-pop rocking out... but regardless, my stressed-out-work-mindset was quickly lightened once Touchdown Eagle hit their first high scoring chord progression.

Their mix of Aislers Set retro soda fountain goodiness with the Lois lo-fi production, and simplistic yet infectous Small Factory melodies deleted all thoughts related to columns or formulas.

And they were so sweet, I wanted to eat their heads. If I were to {eat their heads}, I think it would taste like a Caramel. With their ultra-spiffy grandfather-esque cardigans and ties... I would say it would specifically be of the Werther's Original® variety. It tastes so good, gives you a bit of a sugar-rush, and with a vintage aesthetic.

I think Tootsie Pops®?

How many tasty licks did it take to get to the center of the Touchdown Eagle indie-pop?

On the crunchy outside, they were adorable; think vintage old man sweater, ties, and Converse; think three of the four band members were chicks, though you might question which ones at first glance; think they were all so cute and talented gender felt superfluous, so cute that I coined a new term just for them: indie-rock androgyny.

Musically, I wanted to impulsively bite their sweet, nostalgically-melodic shell in order to get to the chewy, cleverly-crafted pop-rock confection core — and yet, I didn't want to lose the sweet satisfaction of the hard candy on the outside either.

We were hooked on their euphonics. They've got 50's pop purity, an all-girl rhythm section, and a baby blue guitar! They get gold stars.

I found them exquisitely unrefined, exceedingly charming, with understated male vocals and dulcet female harmonies. They had a strong intensity, but a sweet underlying softness throughout.

I wanted to know more. So I wrote back to Stacy Touchdown bass player, my favorite e-penpal and indie-rock androgyny queen, to solicit further information. Here's what I learned.

igDana: Stacy, do you have a web site where fans could learn more about Touchdown Eagle?
Stacy Touchdown: No, we do not have a web site. We are simply not smart enough. Maybe in the future.

igDana: When is Touchdown Eagle playing next?
Stacy Touchdown: We are playing at the Northwest Center Halloween party on Oct. 31 from 11am - 2pm. This celebration will be for clients, home staff and family members. don't forget to wear a costume!

We're also playing November 19th at 2nd Ave Pizza with Aisjump from Iowa.

igDana: Do you have a CD available that fans and readers could purchase?
Stacy Touchdown: We only have free CDs that we give to people upon request at the moment. We are working on a CD right now with a very nice man named Josh that is going to be WHITE FUCKING HOT!!

Of note, their debut self-released EP ROCKS THE HOUSE as well. Read what imaginary boy Chilly C thought about it in this month's AstroPOP!

And Touchdown Eagle were just the second in the impeccable 10 band lineup for the evening. We had every good intention of watching and reviewing these bands — but we got distracted by our need for dinner {yummy Cafe Venus pumpkin ravioli!!} and by the rules of engagement for Graceland all-ages shows: namely, the separation of music and alcohol into two separate rooms.

Post-Touchdown-Eaglers in the line-up included Anna Oxygen, Plan B, Yeek Yak Airforce (frontman Ollie Byrd was the organizer for tonight's event), the Fitness, and headliners the Divorce.

And don't forget about the hot-chick arm wrestling...

Ooh — are we gonna talk about that?

Um, YAH we are!

We turned our back for a moment, and next thing we knew, several of our imaginary boy friends were arm-wrestling with strong hot chicks at the bar, including Janie, drummer for the Preons, her fab friend Erika, and Carly, frontwoman for the Catch who stepped in late to become the bad-ass victor of the arm wrestling tournament. In fact, the girls took it, time and time again. Eventually, strangers flocked to our table to take the hot-chick arm-wresting challenge, with varying results.

Who says you can't meet new {strong, hot} friends at rock shows?

The arm-wrestling was such a fascinating distraction that we ended up missing most of the bands... but we couldn't miss the Divorce, what with frontman Shane looking so handsome in his suit and guitar-slaying Jimmy looking so positively dapper in his Navy duds.

{imaginary boy photographer Ryan Schierling fact tidbit: "Jimmy was actually wearing a Navy dress blue uniform top... that of a first-class petty officer, and a yeoman at that — the navy's version of a secretary. The two red stripes on his sleeve cuff indicated that he's been in the navy for more than eight years.

He should keep an eye open for a Navy band first-class petty officer."}

And then there was new-since-the-release-of-the-album fellow {Garrett}. He added a nice dimension to their live sound but I wonder if Jimmy, as a more senior member of the ensemble, makes Garrett do pushups and swab the practice space/deck with his toothbrush?

The Divorce's debut full-length album (There Will Be Blood Tonight) is an undeniable forerunner in the TIG top 5 albums of the year... which makes my next statement nearly obscene.

This is the first time I've seen an entire Divorce set.

Me too! I love that album with all my heart AND I've never seen a full Divorce set either.

Is there a 10 step program for underpriviledged folks like us?

If not, there should be...

But, can you believe our luck? We were able to support a meaningful cause, be front row for hot-chick arm-wrestling and FINALLY see the Divorce perform... all in one night! Three things checked off the to-do list.

I loved it all... the Garrett guitar rifts, the intermittent Jimmy screams, Kyle keeping it real and in-line, and the dizzifying poetic webs of Shane. They have got their own trademark-able precise yet unaffected style... musically and visually.

I feel lucky to have caught them in the intimate and charged Graceland this evening. The Divorce is an incredibly talented local foursome who appears perched on the very-verge of super-stardom.

Their recorded stuff has the intensity of a sweaty sold-out show and their live show has the flawless musicianship of session veterans. Their rock- "cool record store clerk" -gone- punk- cum- 1990s-"have the house for the weekend while my parents are out of town" is all their own. And they know exactly what to do with it.

I hope they are storing memorabilia at their Moms' houses for the Divorce exhibit at the EMP.

They'd better!

AND — for you politically-minded, leftward-leaning imaginary folks, Ollie Byrd {the organizer of this Bands Against Bush event, remember?} is a fantastic resource for political activism and horrifying news about what's going in the world. He's an avid emailer of all-things-political, and helps me keep in touch with what's going on in the world deeper than the news delves. Want to get his email updates? Email him!

An anti-Bush fundraiser at Graceland, featuring Touchdown Eagle, The Divorce, The Fitness, Yeek Yak Airforce, Plan Be, Anna Oxygen, and more.... plus, women's arm-wrestling!

Plan B

Jake Barnes — Sun, 10 Aug 2003 07:00:00 +0000

8 Aug 2003

I had decided to go to the FourthCity event in Fremont so that I could finally catch Plan B play, but also because I'd never seen a show in Fremont before. The event was at the M: Café that had been opened up to include some studio space and a large outdoor patio with a cool red brick wall. M is across the street from the Triangle Lounge and around 10pm there was a light crowd trying to get in the door. Once I had made it up to the front I was rewarded with a big, six-inch stamp 'M:Pulse' that went halfway up my arm-arteries and all.

The first room was where the café normally exists and there was DJ spinning everything from electronica to Bowie's 'Let's Dance'. The crowd was primarily young and cool--made up of the young 25-30 year old hipsters that are the core of Seattle's scene. I had got there early but by 11pm it was pretty packed for the space and it was really hot in the multimedia back room where most of the techno and band action happened. One particularly nice thing about the setup was that there was always something going on. With DJs in the front room and the patio you could wander smoothly from one event to the next or even go chat outside.

I didn't really know much about Fourth City but it appears to be a rather fluid group of artists and performers that release music, promote events and provide a basis for a group of artists across all mediums (graphic designers, painters). FourthCity has a really technological feel about it which was refreshing considering the very entrenched presence that rock bands have around town. They have also put out a number of complications including the recent a lot of local djs and techno 'groups' that I hadn't heard of before.

After talking to some friends I wandered into the back room and had a piece of cake and listened to a bunch of great 'techno' including Zapan. After a while I wandered back through the main room on the way to the patio and saw the circle of people around a group of breakdancers. All I could see above the heads of the crowd were red sneakers spinning high in the air. Yes, definitely a nice change from the Crocodile the night before where I saw Fancey and I love you but I've chosen darkness.

I waited in the courtyard with the tall dark red brick wall and people watched with some friends until Plan B started playing.

I had been wanted to see Plan B for a while but had missed them at The Block Party and thought that this would be a good chance considering it wasn't the middle of the day and there was no hot sun burning down on me. I didn't know much about Plan B other than that they used a computer in the band, improvised a lot on stage, and that violinist Sarah Standard from Carissa's Wierd had recently been playing a lot of shows with them. Checking out Plan B on the web I noticed that they had played at this year's SXSW and have actually been around for a while.

Plan B--I was pleasantly surprised. The music was very sophisticated in a post-shoegazer era and I begin to slowly see their resemblance to the Icelandic band MuM. Plan B does a great job striking the balance between the laptop beats, classical instruments (like the standup bass, violin) and ethereal vocals. This creates a dreamlike sound that feels like it could be found on the Lost in Translation soundtrack (right after the My Bloody Valentine track).

Plan B is the creature of James Leroy van Leuvan (formerly of Automaton) and is the techno sided mastermind behind the band. The foundation of the music starts with James recording things on his laptop (e.g. drums, guitar) and modifies them to drive the beat via his laptop in live performances. Samples seem to be used sparingly such as a small child saying "I don't mind" softly in the distance on the song 'Latchkey Kid'. This works well in the music because it is non-intrusive and blends in with the exquisiteness of the sound. Again, credit needs to be given for the fine balance obtained between the beats, classical instruments, guitar and soft vocals of the diminutive Krista Warden (who may have recently served you a pot of Keemun tea at Victrola).

The band played through several tracks that can be found on their Keepsake EP & Like A Ship Sailing LP. I am actually rather stunned that they aren't headlining the Baltic Room or Chop Suey on a regular basis. Regardless, they seem to be on the rise because I hear their name around town more and more but the challenge will be to see where exactly they fit in. While they are perfect to be teamed up with bands like Halou-they don't seem to kind fall into the DJ world or the indie R&R dominated venues of the Crocodile and Graceland.

Plan B is clearly one of the underappreciated bands around town and hopefully everyone will get out to see them instead of staying at home listening to old My Bloody Valentine and Portishead records...

I had decided to go to the FourthCity event in Fremont so that I could finally catch Plan B play, but also because I'd never seen a show in Fremont before.