Julian Never
>> Julian Never is the recording project of long-time Sacramento CA underground players Julian Elorduy (formerly of Fine Steps) and Mark Kaiser (formerly of Male Gaze, 3 albums on Castle Face Records), both of noise-punk legends Mayyors. A melting pot of influences ranging from 70s-80s U.K./Aussie/Kiwi D.I.Y. & post-punk to American power-pop of the same era colliding to form a punchy, layered web of sound anchored by Elorduy's dreamy tenor.
“Been a while since I’ve heard rumblings from Mayyors’ camp, but this new project from the band’s Julian Elorduy and Mark Kaiser embraces a less gritty vision of pop, setting their sights on the sun-warped jangle of ‘80s Flying Nun this time around. Backed by ethereal synths and beset with jangles, the title track to this single is a bittersweet gem that would fit in well with the acolytes of the Nun that have currently cropped up all over Australia in the last few years. Elorduy and Kaiser have worked out a pretty solid handle on pop here, shedding some of their raucous punk past (Kaiser was also in Male Gaze), and it all comes crashing to a head on “Silver One.” On the flip, the band postures in am more tender vein, opening with the somber strains of piano, given a slight nod to their more lo-fi past before swapping the keys for strums that, like new works from The Tubs, rope in some of the more tender side of the Creation catalog to the mix with touches of Felt and The Sneetches sneaking in. A solid single from the new band and one that gives cause to keep an eye on them. Hoping that this works itself out into something longterm. “ - Raven Sings The Blues
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Spires
>>Every so often the Spires send me a record, and every so often I put the rest of the day away and let that Spires record do what must be done. Each one is the same, cuz they know just how their voices and guitars and conditions of the heart, but each one is different, too, as time and life and the long view from Ventura change what Spires songs are going to be. Curved Space in 2010 was a rowdy one—in a Galaxie 500 kinda way, not a G.G. Allin kinda way, so don’t worry—and now Eternal Yeah is a thoughtful and considered and persistent one. The guitars don’t shimmer, they flash—like when sun hits metal far off in the sky—and when they don’t flash, it’s cuz they take flight on their own. (Like the beautiful Television-style outro at the end of “Flames (You And I),” recorded by L.A.’s Joel Jerome.) For politics, they’re like Robyn Hitchcock, who wrote “Positive Vibrations” as Soviet tanks rolled into Afghanistan, and for personality they’re like the Go-Betweens, who wrote, “When I hear you saying / That we stood no chance / I’ll dive for your memory / We stood that chance.” Grab for a variation on Television, Soft Boys, More Than A Witness-era Feelies—particularly on the stand-outs “Everyone Went Home” and “Response To An Inquiry”—as well Chills and Triffids vibes. Like their song says, it’s a “cracked mirror stare, all jumble and glare.” That’s the Spires perspective, where breaking something gives you a hundred new ways to look at yourself. - L.A. Record