Epic, 70-minute albums have their pleasures, but there's something to be said for keeping things short and to the point. There's a distinct pleasure in a quick, compact album where every song hits its mark, and when it's over you're ready to play it again. TOURISM, from the Kansas City trio The Sexy Accident, is one of those albums: 10 songs, 30 minutes of sleek, punchy pop-rock that is infectious and fun, yet still filled with real-world emotions, stories, and settings.
A feeling of loss, wrapped up with memory and wishes and regrets and hope, runs through the album's second half, culminating with the gorgeous final track, "The More Things Stay the Same," an attempted new beginning hopeful in tone if not content. It's one of the most unique songs on the album, catchy even as it's particularly low-key and gentle. It ends an outstanding album on a high note.
- Dave Heaton, erasing clouds
There's something to be said about nerdy power pop that can poke
fun of itself, and The Sexy Accident is a shining example. One
part Cheap Trick and one part They Might Be Giants, TSA out maneuvers
all expectations by weaving geeky intelligence and humor throughout
their quirky rock opus.
Sleight of Hand comes with a small chart that diagrams the instrumentation and the "rules" used in recording the album. Kates uses one guitar per song (except for "Answerphone", which sounds like Kates reading a poem into his answering machine), feeds it through an effects pedal and a loop machine, and records the results live. On paper, these sorts of artistic rules often seem like a good idea; when an artist works within a set of artificial restrictions, he or she is often more focused on the purity of the process. However, these ideas don't always play out as well as the artists would hope -- we need look no further than cinema's Dogme 95 movement for proof. Fortunately, Sleight of Hand is much better than Von Trier's The Idiots.
Rickenbacker opens the disc with a sparsely layered sequence of heavily effected guitar lines. Kates's choice to begin his experiment with economical use of the looping machine is an interesting one; his guitar is so heavily affected that it almost sounds more like a keyboard, and the epic soundscape he creates is both meditative and spiritual. G&L is moody and rich with reverb. As on Rickenbacker, Kates is patient with his machinery, adding a new loop to his piece only when necessary, wisely letting his improvisational playing dissolve in the air instead of coming back at the listener over and over again. Stratocaster goes for a cleaner sound, and this time Kates layers his guitar generously. It's a beautiful song that any anonymous listener would enjoy, not only for its success within the "rules", but as a well crafted and interesting piece. What more could anyone hope for in this type of artistic outing?
- Philip Stone, Splendid
Accompanied by a flow chart, which was by all guesses intended to explain the process of recording his latest album Sleight of Hand, Jesse Kates debut is a bit more complex than a few sparse arrows and chintzy MS Paint diagrams. Ill do my best not to bust on the guy for flow charting his flow, so to speak, because the best part of this album has nothing to do with Kates' tendency to diligently plan a path ahead.
Kates recorded this album using certain pre-determined rules (one instrument per song, no overdubs, 50% composition/50% improv). At times, the rubric behind Sleight of Hand succeeds in slighting the rest of us. The more emotive, free-form side of Kates, as on G&L where he sounds softer and more deliciously elusive than a guitarist is allowed to be by most civilized, verse-chorus-bridge-chorus countries, reveals the beginnings of a guitarist who seems poised to put the "emote" back in "emo" if only he had a flatmate who played a mean bass and had a contact at DreamWorks. G&L, like Stratocaster, eschews structurality, allowing Kates' more amorphous tones to overlap and loop into a concerted whole.
At its most effective, Kates six-track instrumental album, recorded entirely at home, is an introduction to a raw and still blossoming guitarist whos got the pedal and effects head of a seasoned studio musician. Less frequently, Kates' work leans too heavily on repetitive compositions that do not utlize his strong ability to pick which drones cut to the bone. Still, ultimately, Kates takes us there. Now get this lad a band.
- Ryan McCarthy, Delusions of Adequacy
Being the guitar geek that I am (wow, a critic who's a frustrated musician; who would have imagined that?), I was immediately drawn in by the guitar signal chain diagram on the press sheet. It's just not something you see everyday. Kates uses only one guitar per song, running it through a series of effects pedals and loops to create some ethereal instrumentals. Even non-axe slingers can appreciate these cool, atmospheric tracks.
- Chris Lupton, Impact Press
...Kates picks, strums and occasionally wails his way through these pieces. He does a fine job of telling stories without words.
- Aiding & Abetting
