]]>
Jon Lindsay – “The Sideman” (MP3)
]]>The Houston Brothers
The Archer
January 26
Two brothers with a shared love for home-spun indie rock songs and multi-instrumentation – topped with production from legendary Mitch Easter. More than another EP, this six-track album packed more Americana-laced pop than most full-lengths. RIYL: Sparklehorse, the Avett Brothers, Monroe Mustang
- “Wasted Youth” MP3 featured on UTNE Reader Music Sampler
- “What sounds like a quartet is bashing out Indian summer indie pop with mercurial crescendos and transcendent middle eights, you better take a look-see because it could just be the Houston Brothers – both of ‘em.” – Blurt Magazine
- “Imagine if the prodigious talent of Colin Meloy and The Decemberists decided to drop their grandiose attempts at crafting prog-folk and chose instead to re-interpret the smooth, but emotional ’70s pop of artists like Billy Joel, Simon and Garfunkel, and Hall and Oates.” – Dryvetyme Online
Motion Turns It On
Kaleidoscopic Equinox
February 16
Jazzy post-rockers, Motion Turns It On released their debut studio full-length, drawing tons of critical praise for their deft maneuvering of sonic landscapes. RIYL: Maserati, Explosions in the Sky, Mono
www.myspace.com/motionturnsiton
- “Like a fireworks display – explosive, unpredictable, electrifying and over far too soon.” – Houston Press
- “Motion Turns It On’s schizophrenic, frenetic energy leaves you teetering precariously on the wall of sanity.“- Redefine
- “It’s jazz-rock, it’s dance, it’s post-rock…it’s simply a joyous juggernaut that you’ll never want to run out of steam.” – [sic] Magazine
Jon Lindsay
Escape From Plaza-Midwood
August 17
Jon Lindsay’s debut full-length came out of Charlotte, NC with a bullet this summer shattering all expectations for the son-of-a-preacher-man with a croon like silk. Equal parts indie rock, ’70s pop and singer-songwriter. RIYL: Rufus Wainwright, Elliott Smith, Sufjan
www.myspace.com/jonlindsaymusic
- MP3 premieres at Magnet, Fuse and AOL Spinner
- “What Sufjan Stevens did for Chicago, Jon Lindsay just might pull off for Charlotte.” – Charlotte Magazine
- “Hints of John Lennon, the Beach Boys against a modern musical backdrop. Lyrically, he writes beyond his years.” – Charlotte Observer
- “Jon Lindsay arranges like a wizened master.” – Grayson Currin / Indy Weekly
Tour Dates:
11/13 – Wilmington, NC @ Gravity Records (in-store)
11/13 – Wilmington, NC @ The Soapbox Upstairs
11/16 – Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall (Presented by Sunsetintherearview.com)
11/17 – Dover, DE @ The Golden Fleece Tavern
11/18 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fire w/ Everyday Rockets
11/19 – New York, NY @ Piano’s
11/20 – Columbus, OH @ Cafe Bourbon Street
11/21 – Chicago, IL @ Reggies’s w/ tintincan
11/22 – Daytrotter Session
11/23 – Nashville, TN @ The 5 Spot w/ The Suicide Hearts
12/3 – Plaza-Midwood, NC @ Snug Harbor, w/ Stephanie’s id
Chocolate Lab Records – “We’re bringing 1992 back!”
]]>Jon Lindsay
(Chocolate Lab)
Plaza-Midwood is a residential area located in proximity to the business district of Charlotte, NC; as such, with its broad mix of working class and bohemian, across multiple ethnicities and shifting demographics, it has experienced wild swings of decline and gentrification over the years. As one might imagine – and as I experienced during my own decade-long Charlotte tenure – it’s also long been a fertile petri dish for artistic types. Multiinstrumentalist Jon Lindsay is the latest Queen City musician to represent that legacy, and he represents in fine fashion. A veteran of numerous power pop outfits (among them the Young Sons and the Catch Fire) as well as a notable collaborator with the likes of Benji Hughes and Nicole Atkins, Lindsay’s got all the classic influences, from Beatles, Beach Boys and Zombies to Posies, Guided By Voices and Elliott Smith, and he’s also got the chops to mine those influences for pop gold.
Chief among the nuggets are opening track “These Are the End Times,” which slowly grows from a wistful acoustic strum/harmonica motif into a subtly Spectorian neo-orchestral wall of sound, complete with gospellish harmonies and – no lie – sleigh bells; and “The Launch Codes,” which comes near the end, and, with its gentle R&B lope, horn charts and falsetto vocals, suggests a Squeeze-Beach Boys musical fantasy summit come true. In between are plenty of other blissed-out moments no student of pop will be able to resist, from the exultant romp that is “My Blue Angels” to the chugging, synth-strafed “Bring the Old You Back.” Throughout, Lindsay demonstrates both an eye for sonic nuance (a lot of little flourishes prompt a “did I just hear him do that?” flash of recognition on the listener’s part) and lyric detail (very few of life’s vicissitudes seem to escape that eye, in fact, with Lindsay consistently finding fodder wherever he looks).
Lindsay may intend his solo debut’s title to be either ironic or literal; after all, since the dawn of time, it’s been a prime directive of rock ‘n’ rollers to get out and get away. But purely based on the aural evidence offered by these 15 tunes, there’s something in the titular Plaza-Midwood water he should bottle up and carry with him regardless of where his muse ultimately takes him. His future looks bright.
DOWNLOAD: “Bring the Old You Back,” “These Are the End Times,” “Launch Codes” FRED MILLS
]]>
We’re also excited to announce that the Charlotte Observer just did a huge feature on Jon Lindsay in Sunday’s A&E section (read here).
UPCOMING US TOUR DATES
10/8 – Charlotte, NC @ Petra’s Piano Bar and Cabaret w/ Justin Faircloth & Stephen Warwick
10/9 – Charlotte, NC @ Petra’s Piano Bar and Cabaret w/ Dylan Gilbert
10/17 – Brooklyn, NY @ Pete’s Candy Store (solo)
10/18 – New York, NY @ The Delancey (solo)
10/26 – Plaza-Midwood, NC @ Snug Harbor (JL’s The Catch Fire) w/ Futurebirds
11/5 – Atlanta, GA @ Star Bar
11/6 – Boone, NC @ Boone Saloon w/ Stephanie’s id
11/13 – Wilmington, NC @ Gravity Records (in-store)
11/13 – Wilmington, NC @ The Soapbox Upstairs
11/16 – Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall (Presented by Sunsetintherearview.com)
11/17 – Dover, DE @ The Golden Fleece Tavern
11/18 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fire w/ Everyday Rockets
11/19 – New York, NY @ Piano’s
11/20 – Columbus, OH @ Cafe Bourbon Street
11/21 – Chicago, IL @ Reggies’s w/ tintincan
11/22 – Daytrotter Session
11/23 – Nashville, TN @ The 5 Spot w/ The Suicide Hearts
12/3 – Plaza-Midwood, NC @ Snug Harbor, w/ Stephanie’s id
RT this message for a double entry:
“Follow @jonlindsaymusic for a chance to win CDs/Tickets to his release show in Charlotte on 8/28. For details: http://tinyurl.com/2d7g5tz”
Jon’s debut full-length, Escape From Plaza-Midwood is out August 17th digitally and in stores worldwide. The first 200 store orders come with a free copy of the 7″!
August 28th – Jon Lindsay with Modern Skirts and Small Ponds
Visulite Theatre, Charlotte, NC
If you don’t live in the Charlotte area you’re still eligible to win the CD/7″.
]]>
Here’s the deal. If you post the following message to your Twitter account we will send you a secret link to download a free unreleased Jon Lindsay song. When we hit certain milestones we’ll be giving away prizes to random JL followers, new and old. First the Tweet:
“@jonlindsaymusic Follow Jon Lindsay to be eligible for prizes incl. a customized iPod. Visit http://tinyurl.com/28r7x9t for details.”
Just tweet that message and we’ll send you a free JL MP3.
Here are the milestones and prizes:
500 followers: Ten (10) Escape From Plaza-Midwood album downloads.
1000 followers: Ten (10) Escape From Plaza-Midwood album downloads, five (5) Escape From Plaza-Midwood CDs & One (1) autographed test pressing of the Coping Strategies 7″. There are only test pressings in existence!
2500 followers: Ten (10) Escape From Plaza-Midwood album downloads, five (5) Escape From Plaza-Midwood CDs & five (5) Coping Strategies 7″ records. BONUS: If we hit this goal by August 17 we will give away a custom engraved iPod Nano 8 gig preloaded with Escape From Plaza-Midwood and a 20 song playlist hand picked by Jon Lindsay.
We’ll announce future contests and giveaways via @jonlindsaymusic and here, so subscribe to our RSS feed and follow Jon’s twitter and blog.
]]>
This was Evan’s Facebook picture.
]]>
If your band would like to submit tracks for possible inclusion, please email info@chocolatelabrecords.com with links to Myspace and or MP3s (no email attachments please). There is no fee of any kind for bands to be involved. In fact, bands will split the proceeds for the album sales.
]]>