American Football

Sometimes, the best bands are those that spring up momentarily between more permanent outfits. Urbana, IL three-piece American Football rose from the ashes of Midwestern emo legends, Cap'n Jazz, among a series of side projects involving Mike Kinsella. Kinsella primarily played the drums in Cap'n Jazz, while his brother Tim screamed and hollered in his oft-out of key screech. After the demise of his brother's band, Kinsella decided to gather some of his fellow Chicago scenesters to form his own band, The One Up Downstairs, where he would play guitar and sing. They recorded 3 songs in 1997. However, the band broke up shortly thereafter, and the EP did not see the light of day until its digital release in 2006.

Mike Kinsella retained drummer Steve Lamos (formerly of the Firebird Band, a Braid side project) from the One Up Downstairs for a fuller version of the band, which they called American Football. Although they only existed for 2 years, yielding a self titled EP and full-length, American Football managed to single-handedly put Polyvinyl Records on the map, now home to such indie wonders as Architecture in Helsinki and Of Montreal. The EP was certainly a departure from the chaotic sound of Cap'n Jazz, focusing on chiming guitars, dynamic time signatures, and Mike's plaintive vocals, which stood in stark contrast to Tim's caustic melodies.

Although the EP introduced their fresh sound to the Chicago scene, it is the full-length that is their true masterpiece. The opening track, "Never Meant," is as close to perfect as a song can get. The first few seconds catch the band tuning up and calling out directions to each other, but right after the 4-count, it takes off running. Both guitars intertwine beautifully as Kinsella reasons with himself over a breakup in an obvious state of denial: "I just think it's best/ cause you can't miss what you forget." The rest of the album plays with this same formula, occasionally employing strings, trumpet, and even a wurlitzer, to illustrate the end of a relationship in symphonic fashion.

Despite the buzz that American Football had created for themselves, they were decidedly a studio band, and parted ways shortly after the release of the full-length. Since then, Kinsella has had a number of side projects. He has filled in on drums for his brother's band, Joan of Arc, on a number of their albums. Cap'n Jazz even reunited for one album under the name Owls. For the past 6 years, he has been playing under the moniker Owen, in which he plays all of the instruments and records the songs himself. Though these songs are good and often emotionally devastating, Kinsella has still yet to reach the classic heights of American Football. However, I suppose you can't miss what you forget.

Check out "Never Meant" here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdfhJXV5kgU

Hum

The cruelest type of failure is that which occurs after a brief taste of success. Such was the case for Hum, whose single "Stars" received a fair amount of play on college radio stations in 1995. After recording their debut album, Electra 2000, with premier indie producer Steve Albini (Nirvana's In Utero), Hum signed a deal with RCA Records. Their next release, You'd Prefer an Astronaut, is a heavy, ethereal pop record, firmly establishing the space rock genre. The driving rhythm section pulses as effects-laden guitars alternatingly soar and shred. Singer/guitarist Matt Talbot's lyrics about spaceships and supernovas are delivered with assured reserve, causing the music to feel truly extraterrestrial.

Despite the minor success that Hum enjoyed based upon the sales of this record, once "Stars" slipped into obscurity, any media attention they still had began to fade. Hum recorded a follow-up record in 1998, Downward is Heavenward. Sadly, the album only sold 30,000 copies, and the band were dropped from RCA. The real irony here is that this was by far Hum's finest work. The opening track, "Isle of the Cheetah" opens with a lush acoustic guitar that explodes into one of the hugest riffs in history. The intended single "Green to Me" sounds like what Smashing Pumpkins should have sounded like in 1998. The entire album employs a wall of sound that immerses the listener in the detached, celestial world that Hum creates.

Hum broke up in 2000, and played two reunion shows in 2003 and 2005. The song "Stars" was featured this past year in a Cadillac commercial. Matt Talbott is currently playing with his band Centaur, in which he is able to indulge his tendency to draw songs out to over 8 minutes. Bassist Jeff Dimpsey resurrected a side project from before Hum called National Skyline. Neither band has come close to the commercial success of Hum, but these bands have such infrequent output that it seems that they have resumed their day jobs.

I recommend in particular: "I'd Like Your Hair Long" from You'd Prefer an Astronaut and "Dreamboat" from Downward is Heavenward.

Check out the video for "Stars" here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rfbn3ieVUYU

Dead, But Not Forgotten

Hello everyone. Welcome to Dead Bands, a blog with the intention to resurrect great music that was never able to reach the audiences that it rightfully deserved. I will regularly present bands that have been criminally underlooked over the past few decades. Some of these groups only attained fanbases in the hundreds during their existence, and yet had tremendous influence on the state of indie rock today. Due to lack of publicity, many of these musicians simply could not endure the lifestyle of the obscure artist. My hope is that formal introductions to these bands will keep them from going unnoticed. Although these bands are no longer together, if our generation can appreciate the posthumous music of Joy Division, the Pixies, and the Smiths, surely it can appreciate other bands that did not quite find the success that they needed to survive.