Featured Artist: Mice in Cars – The Chaos and The Beauty

Chaos and beauty; these two words sincerely describe the sound of Atlanta’s experimental, post-punk trio Mice in Cars.  Their music is intense and captivates, as it transitions through heavy explosions of distorted bridges and raging cymbals into drawn out stretches of inspiring melody to zone you out and rip away at reality.  Their sound conjures up nostalgia in me, as I recall countless days of getting lost in my Fugazi, Jawbox, and Sebadoh cassette tapes.  The influence of these ground-breaking bands can be found within a listen to Mice in Cars, not to say the band doesn’t maintain their originality!  Consider their songs, “Everyone Must Find Shade In The Neverland of Tar and Paint (Disaster Relief Song For Bono To Sing)” and “All Birds are Edible,” which are not only given unique titles, but present song structures that move in juxtaposition to themselves and each other, reminiscent at times of Explosions in the Sky with ambient grooves and discord, and at other moments of the raw punk rock of Minor Threat, fulfilling the “chaos and beauty” which so aptly describes their sound.

I met up with the guys of Mice in Cars at a fancy bar with long lists of beer that didn’t include anything I’d ever tried or even heard of, so after they helped me make my beer selection, we began digging into the story behind the band.  Myke Johns (guitar, vox), Mark Parker (bass), and Nick Johns (drums/keys/laptop) are the three Mice in Cars, and not only did they reveal the secrets behind the mysterious song titles and stark lyrical style, but thoughtfully and often times, comically offered up details on how they nearly got shocked to death during a performance at The Drunken Unicorn, the three wishes they would make should a genie lamp ever cross their paths, and how an episode of The Simpsons was the catalyst behind the decision on their band’s name. This is Mice in Cars. [Read more]

Jawbox Reissues ‘For Your Own Special Sweetheart’

Dischord Records, in collaboration with Desoto, has reissued the 1994 Jawbox record, For Your Own Special Sweetheart.  The original tapes have been remastered at Chicago Mastering Service, and the album includes completely new artwork.  The CD and downloadable album feature three extra tracks from the Savory EP.  The reissue can be purchased as a 12″ LP, CD, or as MP3s from the Dischord website.

Jawbox will be performing on “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” on NBC on December 8th.

One on One with Dropsonic

Dropsonic is that spectacular underground band that can’t find their niche in the indie scene, because they’re too rock.  And while the major labels love what the band is doing, the music is just not mainstream enough to be considered.  So, how does a band that gets multiple comparisons to rock-Gods like Led Zeppelin, Radiohead, and The Jesus Lizard deal with this roadblock on the track into the DIY or corporate music industry?

I caught up with Dan Dixon, Dropsonic frontman, to get his thoughts on this and much more.  Dan offered TST expansive insight on the milieu of music today, finding their way through different labels, touring, and their place presently within the city from which they came, Atlanta.  These thoughtful, witty discernments could only come from a band with the amount of experience, talent, and longevity as that of Dropsonic.  And what other than an intriguing interview can you expect from a guy who’s working a crossword puzzle in a bar upon meeting to talk about his band? [Read more]