It’s been a while since a real intelligent art punk band has emerged from the sewers of the dying underground. With the up-and-coming return of pop punk hitting the mainstream (knocking cry baby bullshit emo bands out of the tear-filled water), it’s almost hard to understand why any artist in their right mind would want to try and handle such a quickly burning torch. Enter Castevet and their debut album Summer Fences. Now we’re talking. Break out the acoustic guitars, PBR, and lack of self respect. It’s time for a good scream.

With an undeniably refreshing and original blend of every genre you can think of, Castevet rips through non-descriptive typecasts and impulsive hatred many listeners have for art punk rockers. With their lo-fi brand of chaos, Summer Fences plays out like a raging lion roaring over a batch of Soul Asylum instrumentals. It’s unlike anything you would even look for in a band if you are too afraid of the unfamiliar. They take you just outside of your limits, but not far enough to scare you back onto the subway of normalcy. Not right away, at least.

There are a good number of calm and folky instrumental sections within Summer Fences. There are also a shit load of screaming bloody murder before your step dad busts your door down with his bare hands if you don’t turn down that god damn music moments. Castevet is one of those groups that your friend from the coffee shop can tell you about in full detail and, before you know it, you’ll find yourself at one of their shows (very likely to be in a basement or apartment complex parking lot). Their originality is their most obvious appeal. But their subtle ways of destroying everything that is conventional in the world of punk rock is what sets them apart, and ablaze, from their competition.

Castevet: Plays One On TV [mp3]

Count Your Lucky Stars Records [CD, 2009]

1. Between Berwyn And Bryn Mawr
2. Beating High Schoolers At Arcade Games
3. Plays One On TV
4. I Know What A Lion Is
5. Stranger You Know
6. Space Jam (The Return)
7. Evil Robot With Swords For Hands
8. When A Movie Is Made In France It’s Called Cinemas

Annabell‘s first full-length album, Each and Everyone, is, for lack of a better word, a doozy. It might be what you’d expect from Midwestern emo kids, and it is mainly more of the same songs and sounds as heard on their self released debut EP – but it’s also got so, so much more. What is it exactly? That’s a tough one. Killer drum lines are a definite. Maybe a greater sense of self confidence, too. These things are a great start.

Each and Everyone is another one of those albums that seems to emulate the spirit today’s youth. Much like the youth of every generation, it’s something along the lines of a this is how we want to play, so fuck you if you don’t like it sort of mentality. That is the beauty of indie rock. It can be whatever the hell you want it to be. When these guys pound through tracks like “People and Places” and “Parade Rest”, they represent today’s culture in a very positive way. With so much shit being thrown at groups like All Time Low (possibly because they slung the shit first, their music that is), it’s nice to hear a young group making all the right moves.

You may think you have heard the likes of Annabell before. You may think they sound like someone you have listened to before. Well, you haven’t. And they don’t. If these guys should be praised for at least one thing it is their individualism in a genre that is overflowing with messy-haired wannabes looking to make a living outside of their parent’s basements. Each and Everyone is the bar those folks should be trying to reach.

Annabel: Sleeping Lions [mp3]

Count Your Lucky Stars Records [CD, 2009]

1. Sleeping Lions
2. People and Places
3. Castles in the Air
4. Bouquet Mines
5. As it Happened
6. In Droves
7. Adventures…
8. Parade Rest
9. You Started Thinking Again, Didn’t You?
10. Widow Party
11. (As Yet) Untold Stories

Influenced by late 90s emo, prior to its mass popularization, Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) brings back the genre’s best traits. Lacking the whiny “pity me, I’m depressed” elements of what would soon follow, this band reaches back to the greats like Appleseed Cast in their early days and, in particular, Mineral. This is all readily available information; true to the genre, they wear their influences on their sleeves. Like these influences, the instrumentation is a fairly low-key rendition of highly melodic post-shoegaze mixed with flat, dissonant vocals belted out through tired emotive lungs.

Empire! Empire! really takes you back to those days, when emo meant something; before the days when your middle school sibling thought it was cool to grow out their bangs, wear all black, and play with razor blades. It wasn’t always like that. At one time it was about something else – it was about music.

That’s the sort of nostalgia Empire! Empire! draws out: those evenings listening to albums alone while working on a term paper or finishing that busy work for Accounting or attempting to stay focused while reading the 50 pages Dr. Pinkleton assigned the week before. The tasks were always solitary and seemingly mundane, but it was the music – good music – that kept it interesting, and kept time pushing forward. Even when things were sad – say said girlfriend left or some other minor tragedy – the music was the purveyor of sanity. It was music like this that would make it all better.

Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) recently released a new album called What It Takes To Move Forward on Count Your Lucky Stars Records. Here’s a track from that LP:

Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate): What Safe Means [mp3]