Have you heard American Princes?

"auditorium"


American Princes might be one of the most unsung bands out there right now. these guys actually moved out of Brooklyn to live in Little Rock, Arkansas. that might help you figure out how careerist they are. what i love about this band is that they aren't part of any scene or riding any wave of hype like most bands we read about every day, they seem to exist only for me... don't laugh!

whenever i play these records for people in my car, they comment on how they think they have heard it before, which means that of course they have never heard it before, it's just really really good.

anyway, these two records are up there with my favorites released the last few years. the main reason is that this band knows how to write songs, not just sounds, but songs that are there in your head when you wake up in the morning. i don't see why anyone who is a fan of The Replacements, Pixies, and antiquated genre tags like "college rock" would not like this band. that's the thing here, they have this sound, this strange and romantic sound that reminds me of growing up safe and sound in the south suburbs and watching 120 Minutes on a Sunday nite in the basement when you should have been studying. but this isn't some new nostalgia show for today's 30 something crowd, believe me, they still manage to sound contemporary and new.

listen to these records, they go deep for me, great listens all the way through... especially Less and Less.

American Princes - Other People (Yep Roc 2008)

"watch as they go"

"don't ever promise"



Other People is their 80's record and they will fully admit it. the band decided to build on the edgy guitar drama of Less and Less and hired hip-hop producer Chuck Brody to accentuate the pop hooks written into these tunes, plus the low end sounds amazing. i hear The Cure, Paul Westerberg, and even a little Wall Of Voodoo on this album. ha. not sure i've ever typed out "Wall Of Voodoo" before...

grab it here

American Princes - Less And Less (Yep Roc 2006)

"never grow old"


"stolen blues"


this is my favorite of the two records i'm posting. it has higher highs and lower lows, at times noisier and more aggressive than Other People, but also has a few Westerberg style acoustic ballads thrown in for balance. they have three guitar players and i love the layers of guitar lines running throughout these songs. this one reminds me of all those Fort Appache bands in the early 90's and early good Soul Asylum.

grab it here