Review: Beehives and Bedheads - Duke Otherwise

Duke Otherwise Beehives and Bedheads album cover

If you're going to give yourself a stage name of "Duke Otherwise," you'd better not go halfway. No, I expect the full arch distance of royalty, mixed up with an oddity that recollects Bowie (David) and Burton (Tim).

Thankfully, Duke Otherwise, AKA Noah Reimer, gives each song on his brand new Beehives and Bedheads the full flourish, and then some. Looking for an album that provides guidance on moving through early childhood life transitions? Move along, then, because this album kicks off with a song called “Dancing Pig” that answers the question, “What would a Tom Waits song about a prancing porcine sound like?,” and never really gets any less weird from there. The zippy “What Kind of Hairdo Do You Do?” crams in at least dozen hair-related cultural references ranging from Medusa to Kid and Play. “Nose and Ears” uses a jazzy clarinet tune to accompany a consideration of the implications of living to the age of one thousand while your nose and ears never stop growing.

I could go on describing odd scenarios out of Shel Silverstein and or perhaps Roald Dahl in gentler moments, or waste many electrons jotting down the nifty wordplay on many tracks. If it sounds a bit like Zak Morgan, then that may be a case of affinity as Morgan makes appearances on a handful of tracks. On and on the album careens, winding up with the next-to-last track “Kitty Wampus,” about a bus driver with an exceedingly poor sense of direction and featuring at the end a chorus of kids pleading, “Are we there yet, are we there yet?...” And, then after all the flights of fancy, the album gently lands with “Whistle Like Bird,” an ode to musician and well-known whistler Andrew Bird (with Morgan doing his best Andrew Bird whistling impersonation).

The album will most tickle the fancies of kids ages 5 through 9. Clocking in at about 32 minutes in length, the twelve tracks breeze by.

I am all for a broad range of kids music -- straight-ahead celebratory pop, songs that explore emotional depths, and even though I don’t always talk about it, even music that helps literally learn things. But part of that should also include imagination and skewed viewpoints that take the young listener out of the everyday. Beehives and Bedheads does that nearly perfectly. Highly recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.

Review: Simpatico - Renee and Friends

When I think of kids' music duets, the very first duo that comes to my mind is Renee Stahl and Jeremy Toback, AKA Renee and Jeremy.

In fact, they're about the first five duos that come to mind. Sure, there are other duos -- The Okee Dokee Brothers, Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke, Molly Ledford & Billy Kelly, to name three I particularly like -- but the artistic talent they share with the world is not primarily derived from their vocal harmonies the way R&J's is. Their three full-length albums do such a wonderful job highlighting their blended voices that, well, like I said, no other duo in kids' music comes close for me.

What should I make, then, of Stahl's new effort, Simpatico? She recorded this album with fellow Los Angeles singer/songwriter Rich Jacques and a bunch of musicians and friends -- and friends who are musicians -- and dubbed the group Renee and Friends. It's not a completely new approach from the R&J work -- this is not an album of death metal polka -- but it branches out in some different directions. At its most puzzling, those directions include a solo spoken-word piece by Colin Hay (best known Stateside for being the lead singer of Men at Work) and the chestnut "Happiness" from the musical You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, sung solo by actress/performer (and friend of Stahl's dating back to high school) Molly Shannon. Neither are bad, just feel out of place on an album that at its best uses Stahl's warm voice as both lead voice and harmonic partner.

Those stronger tracks include the opening track "Gather Round," with Lisa Loeb, an ode to gathering over food with friends and family, which should be on any future Thanksgiving kindie playlist, however rare that occurrence. Her duet with Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket on "You Were Meant to Be" is particularly gorgeous. For me, while her duets with Maya Rudolph (on Prince's "Starfish and Coffee") and Caspar Babypants and Rolfe Kent (on "I Am Not Afraid") are enjoyable, the heart of the album is really the last four tracks. That's where the feeling of enveloping love and support that's animated the Renee and Jeremy work is paired with vocal arrangements that best showcase Stahl's voice as lead and harmony.

The 35-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 2 through 7, though with the exception of two or maybe three tracks, this is easily an album you could play for yourself with no kids around at all. You can hear 3 of the album's tracks here.

I've considered Renee and Jeremy's albums to be the sonic equivalent of comfort food warming the heart served by two very talented chefs. If Simpatico doesn't reach quite those heights, perhaps that's just because I've become so accustomed to those two particular cooks. But this album features enough dishes worth enjoying with the family to be worth trying something new. Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.

Review: Songs, Stories and Friends 2: Where the Path Will Wind - Charlie Hope

Charlie Hope Where the Path Will Wind album cover

I think highly of Charlie Hope. When you've compared Hope (favorably) with Raffi, you've clearly set a high bar for any artist, right?

So let's drain this review of Hope's latest album, Songs, Stories and Friends 2: Where the Path Will Wind of any tension whatsoever and say that I like it lot, but that your family's enjoyment of it will depend on what you expect from your audio entertainment.

This new album, Hope's fifth, takes a slightly different path (pun unintended, I swear) than her previous album, the delightful Sing As We Go! and instead echoes that album's predecessor, Songs, Stories and Friends: Let's Go Play!. Unlike the more song-focused Sing, this album throws more stories and friends into the mix, all in service of an overall nature theme. There are a couple audio games of "I Spy," some spoken word poems, and -- as always -- Hope's mother, who gives "The Three Little Pigs" a far less confrontational telling.

Now I'm always the biggest fan of Hope's voice and songwriting, so my favorite selections on the album are the songs, especially the traditional folk song "Barges," the sweet original "Like an Evergreen," and another original, "If I Were a Bird," which somehow manages to combine both flute and a soaring chorus. Producer Michael Langford surrounds Hope's lovely-as-ever voice with tasteful arrangements, folk-y but not stuffy.

The 46-minute album will be of most interest to kids ages 2 through 6 -- you can listen to a medley of songs here.

Where the Path Will Wind is essentially an audio magazine, an aural equivalent, perhaps, to her Sing As We Go! video series. If you're looking for a purely musical experience, therefore, this may not fit those expectations. But will it engage your favorite preschooler or kindergartener? You bet. Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.

Itty-Bitty Review: We All Shine - Play Date

For whatever reason, kindie pop-punk has tended not to be nearly as boundary-pushing as its adult counterpart. I'm not expecting every song to be about challenging or countercultural notions, but more of this subgenre covers familiar topics than I'd expect.

Play Date, the duo of Greg Attonito and Shanti Wintergate, is no different. On their new album We All Shine, they tackle a song about colors (er, "Colors") and four variations of public service announcements for "Fruits & Vegetables." The musical packaging is novel (it's a PSA as delivered by circus barker), but the notions are common fare. More intriguing to me, then, are the songs that break those familiar molds to varying degrees. "Ninja Pajamas" is about, well, stealthy pajamas, but brings in Minneapolis hip-hop artist P.O.S to rap some of the lyrics. "Cardboard Box" rocks hardest, and follow the "show, don't tell" dictum -- by listing all the different things the box can be, it more effectively demonstrates the power of imagination. And sometimes all you need is a simple story song, like the grunge-pop of "Stevie the Fox," which kicks off the album.

The 41-minute album will have most appeal to kids ages 3 through 7. We All Shine fits the kindie pop-punk mold quite nicely, with an ear for crunchy melody. Come for the songs about fruits and vegetables, stay for the songs about ninja pajamas.

Note: I received a copy of the album for possible review.

Review: Rocksteady - Josh and the Jamtones

Josh and the Jamtones Rocksteady album cover

Kids music is generally not a field for the low-energy musician. Maybe it's the coffee right before the 10 AM gig, maybe it's the bright morning sunlight, maybe it's the incredible bundles of energy that are your favorite 4- or 7-year-old, but whatever the reason, artists with calm approaches like Elizabeth Mitchell or Raffi stand out for their comparative rarity.

Still, in a field of high energy performers, Boston's Josh and the Jamtones stand out. Live, they bring it on like few kids' musicians do, mixed with a lot of stage banter and interplay between leader Josh Shriber, drummer Patrick Hanlin, and the rest of the band. On record, their music had captured some of the energy and some of the humor, but hadn't fully translated their live concert experience to the home listener.

Until now.

The band's new album Rocksteady takes that energy and humor, wraps it in a ska-pop package, and sends it out into the world, ready to sweep up everyone in its path and deposit them gently on the living room rug, worn out from forty minutes of dancing (with occasional comedic skit breaks). This is an album, after all, whose first full song, "Race U," almost literally ends with the singers pantomiming that they're out of breath. There are a dozen or so songs here, mostly revved up ska tracks, with very little purpose other than to move the feet and bodies of whoever can hear the music. Sure, there's some call-and-response on the title track and some shouts-out to classic tracks like "Sloop John B" and Toots and the Maytals' "Monkeyman" (both of them featuring Jesse Wagner from the Aggrolites). But really this is just a straight-ahead piece of entertainment, no learning necessary. (Other songs of note: Secret Agent 23 Skidoo joining in on the AutoTune-d "I Love You" and the totally rocking "Tailfeather.")

The album will be most appropriate for kids ages 4 through 8. You watch videos for a number of their songs at the band's YouTube channel.

Have I made it clear enough that Rocksteady is a party, through and through? Because it is, enough so that your kids probably won't even need that lullaby album to fall asleep to after dancing like crazy. Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.

Itty-Bitty Review: On the Bright Side - The Bazillions

The Bazillions - On the Bright Side album cover

Minneapolis band The Bazillions have an ear for power-pop hooks. Or, like, 23 ears, because each album of theirs has more hooks than one ear could possibly handle -- even one of those punks' ears with safety pins all over.

Their third album, the recently-released On the Bright Side, does not stint on the hooks. "Superhero Rock Band," which kicks off the album, is like one of those movie pitches ("They're superheroes from DC and Marvel... but they play in a band!") that is so high-concept that song quality would scarcely seem to matter, but luckily for the power-pop enthusiast in the family, it's got crunchy guitars and a catchy singalong chorus, too. That's followed by "Family Tree," a roots-pop song celebrating, well, family -- along with the album closer "Sons and Daughters," it's the first I've really heard the band try for something more emotional.

Of course, at this point, it wouldn't be a Bazillions album without several educational songs, including the jangly "Use a Contraction," the shimmering "Ed (Been There, Done That)," and their first science-related tune, "Water Cycle." Longtime readers will know my general antipathy towards songs that have such an explicit educational bias unless the melodies and lyrics are really tight, but listen to the chorus for "Favorite Book," which is really just a reading-positive song, and tell me it isn't precisely constructed for maximum earworm.

The 37-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 5 through 10; you can hear three of the tracks from the album here. As with their previous albums, On the Bright Side includes a number of power-pop and jangle-pop melodies that stand up to repeated spins, regardless of whether you need to learn some 2nd grade concept. Whatever educational value they have (and is enhanced by their catchiness) is just a nice bonus. Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of the album for possible review.