The Gifts of Happenstance
© Copyright-Motel Creeps
(837101196499)
Record Label: Motel Creeps
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"The Gifts of Happenstance," a richly sensual and reflective debut LP from NYC's Motel Creeps, is a clutch of finely crafted pop songs in the tradition of Echo and the Bunnymen, Joy Division, and other types of shoegaze infused brit-pop. With the Motel Creeps' growing reputation for energized, charismatic live shows, dreamy pop hooks, and lyric artistry, this band is quickly stepping out from the pack of pop-rock poseurs and into the Big Apple's spotlight.
Recorded at Hoboken's The Pigeon Club, "The Gifts of Happenstance" owes it's complex sound to the band's obsession with production. Each song here is carefully constructed and layered for a wonderfully spacious feel. From the first track, Greg Welch's beautifully poetic cadence and low, dark crooning voice soar around the tapestry of guitarist Eric Butler's lush, pedal drenched guitar work. John Vitelli's bass lines perfectly accent the melody, while Jim Connolly's driving brit-pop influenced drums please the ear with every satisfyingly-placed crash. All this adds up to a cohesive vision, not often captured in a debut effort.
About Motel Creeps
Motel Creeps emerged from a rundown Hoboken rehearsal studio with a New York City backdrop on the horizon. The band initially formed during the blustery winter of 2002 as a three piece with Eric Butler on vox and guitar, Jim Connolly on drums, and John Vitelli on bass. In 2004, Eric Butler sought after talented vocalist Greg Welch through a mutual friend. Welch would later try out and become a permanent member completing the quartet. With the line-up and chemistry between the band mates in check, the band pursued gigging the gamut of venues in Manhattan's lower east side such as Luna Lounge, Mercury Lounge, Pianos, Crash Mansion, and The Annex. In late 2004, ambition was fueled by many warmly received performances and the band recorded "Pleasantries in the Parlor" with producer Wayne Dorell at Pigeon Club Studios in Hoboken. Following the success and positive response of the EP, the band went back to Dorell in 2005 to record and self release their full length album "The Gifts of Happenstance." In November 2006 Motel Creeps signed a recording contract with Spectra Records. The band is currently planning a national tour for 2007 as well as writing new material for a sophomore LP.
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amateurish but mostly genius...
author: banana pc jr
i don't get the name, and the singer though really good has a dangerous amateurish quality about his vocalization and lyrics that may ultimately hamper this band's ambitions, it's hard to get these tunes out of your head and the guitar sonics are masterful. no note is wasted, so often you just hear someone rotely playing a power chord when they could be creating some cool effect or feedback. not sure the singer works, but awesome guitarist, i would go out of my way to see them live...
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The best bands are the ones that sound, more or less, like themselves.
author: Underdog Man
If you're into the current indie rock scene, you've likely got a lot of records in your collection that sound pretty similar. And you can safely categorize any new band you pick up in town or download off the web by comparing them to some other band you're already listening to.
Sure, that's a generalization — but isn't always a nice surprise when you hear something you like that doesn't really fit anywhere? The best bands are the ones that sound, more or less, like themselves. Guided by Voices sounds like Guided by Voices. The New Pornographers sounds like the New Pornographers. And I must say that the Motel Creeps, this unsigned band from the Big Apple, pretty much sounds like the Motel Creeps. Yeah, I guess I can hear the whole "shoegazer" influence and the consequent comparisons to Echo and the like, but I'm really not hearing too many bands doing anything like what the Creeps are doing right now.
And they do it quite well, especially singer Greg Welch, who is a star in the making and the centerpiece on a set of well-written and expertly-produced tracks where vocal ability actually matters. His voice is effortlessly dynamic and his delivery just about perfect on tracks like "The Florist" and "Loose Lips" (my two favorites); and his melodies are often like the yin to Eric Butler's lead guitar yang, and sometimes vice versa.
Other stand-out songs include "Leave without a Sound" (with its absolutely contagious chorus) and the album's last track, "History", in which Welch sings "We are history; we are making history". It could go either way, I suppose. But I am banking on the latter.
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