By Cory Casciato. Friday, May 15, 2009

Seems like just yesterday I was writing about the influence of horror movies on my musical taste (okay, it was two days ago) when along comes a flier sporting an image of the kind of thing I'd expect to see chasing some hapless victim in the next Silent Hill movie. Or maybe an exceprt from a book of the most bizarre medical aberattions ever. Supporting this groovy image is some nice, stark typography conveying just the minimum set of info needed to get you out to the show -- which I really appreciate, since I find a lot of great fliers ruined by too much text. And if you look closely, you might notice that hand has six fingers -- one for each month to live for the titular band. Deep, man. Real deep. And, as always, if you click on that image you'll get a bigger version in a popup window.

Six Months to Live

A Better Place
Sparky the Dog Records
May 06, 2009

By Cory Casciato

Perhaps having a short time to live makes you reach for everything you hoped to accomplish in a longer lifetime. That could explain why A Better Place is so crammed full of ideas, influences and styles over the course of its fourteen tracks. Gregory Hill and his cohorts channel the Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev, Brit pop, Elvis Costello, Neutral Milk Hotel and more. The results aren't always great, but they hit more often than not. Unfortunately, the last third of the disc is fairly weak, dragging the average down a bit. If the whole disc lived up to the strength of its best tracks, such as the bizarre and macabre "Vampires Killed Our Parents" or the insanely catchy "Spin a Top," it would be a minor classic.

Freaky Friday: "Falconry" and the Ides of March Party

By Cory Casciato in Freaky Friday - Friday, Mar. 20 2009

I do so love it when I come across something local that's freaky enough to make the cut on Freaky Friday. And let me tell you lovers of weird shit, I cut no corners on today's entry. To the contrary, this actually bounced a great entry from the '70s that I'm now saving for next week! Today's freak out comes courtesy of the Sparky the Dog project STD for the Holidays. This year, they chose the sorely overlooked Ides of March to celebrate with a compilation of themed songs. Apparently, St. Patrick's Day and Valentine's Day were briefly considered but finally rejected, "Because there are already too many goddamned songs about love and booze, " as project lead Soapy Argyle explains. The criteria for inclusion were simple: anyone who submitted was included. The results include some fun, let-your-hair-down moments from bands such as the Hollyfelds and deadbubbles, but the real gems come from, as Argyle explains, "Humans who you'd never expect to record anything ever," such as Professor Falcon, a PhDed archaelogist who contributes the mind-bending puppet-metal clip found after the jump. Watch it, then grab the whole comp, for free!, by going to the STD for the Holidays homepage.

How to write a feature on DeVotchKa:

1) Explain how unique the band's sound is.

2) Offer your own insightful description of that unique sound.

3) Give a thumbnail sketch of the son-of-New-York-Sicilians-moves-to-Boulder-and-assembles-unorthodox-band story.

4) Quote some lyrics.

5) Mention Little Miss Sunshine.

6) Explain that the latest record is absolutely wonderful. (Extra points if you equate listening to it with a religious experience.)

7) End with an inspirational quote from Nick.

I dunno. Dave Herrera's piece is a fine article, but it doesn't say anything that hasn't already appeared in the 2,743 other DeVotchKa articles that have come out in the last five years.

As Denver's best source for in-depth underground investigative reporting, I would hope that Westword could find a more gripping angle for a front-page feature on this fascinating group of musicians.

Gregory Hill

April 2008 - " "With the release of their new album, A Better Place, Six Months to Live is gearing up for the inevitable onslaught of media attention and groupie love that will follow. Judging by their beautiful, playful singing and songwriting they had better start getting used to the bright flashing lights of fame."
--This Week In Denver

Six Months to Live: An Affordable Alternative to Psychotherapy

"...Six Months to Live forge the history of rock styles into a modern psychosocial amalgam that includes harmonic surprises, time changes, and bridges that never return to the verse, but will instead launch into a crescendo coda...Six Months to Live often seem like they are balanced precariously over a pit of destruction. And yet, at the conclusion of a show, the audience inevitably has the wide-eyed look of those who have undergone an intensive--and remarkably affordable--session of group therapy."--Enfuse Magazine

On Honey Bucket , Soapy Argyle solo disc: “… I'm absolutely floored. [Honey Bucket] is very cool, extremely clever, creative, melodic pop music,with terrific harmonies and hooks galore. Great vocals and playing complete the picture. You're all over the place musically, and thank God for that: this is some of the most inventive stuff I've heard in ages, with real variety that makes for a fantastic listening experience” – Alan Haber, host of the Pure Pop radio show, WEBR

Matt Shupe The Combined Effects of Caffeine and Alcohol (Sparky the Dog Records). Mixing uppers and downers is risky business. But in the hands of multi-instrumentalist Matt Shupe (who enlists pals from Mr. Tree & the Wingnuts and the Denver Gentlemen), humor and heartache make for compatible bedfellows. Easygoing vocals complement clever tunes about lonely pear-shaped girls, Django Reinhardt and a devious dog named Henry Kissinger. -- John La Briola Westword

Soapy Argyle Sycamore (Sparky the Dog Records). Soapy Argyle (Greg Hill) describes himself as an "inventor of the binary logic box and writer of quirk" -- which almost explains his approach to music. Argyle digs flowers and Tiny Tim, rides his bike in the snow, raps, and has no problem donning the goat horns of a confused lounge singer. But underneath that chameleonic exterior beats the heart of a charmingly experimental goofball. -- John La Briola Westword

Soapy Argyle MacAlaster (Sparky the Dog Records)
Soapy Argyle realized that the magic of digital technology is the very thing that would allow him to piece together a simple mock opera that condemns the digital age… A good-natured mix of rural tones, jazzbo narration, psychedelia and sea chanteys, MacAlaster (pronounced "mackle-astor") even comes with a swell cartoon booklet by Starving Magpie progenitor Lucas Richards. Arrrrr! – John La Briola Westword

Best Compilation Dedicated to a Demonic Dachshund
Halloweiner Dog Forget vampires, mummies and werewolves. Last Halloween's most frightening spectacle was an evil dachshund flying on oversized bat wings, shooting death rays from a pair of black, lifeless eyes, transforming the Front Range into a smoking crater. Amusing cover art aside, Sparky the Dog's spooktastic holiday compilation was a fun, apple-bobbing affair cobbled together by Soapy Argyle, Matt Shupe, Brett Duesing, Andy Gross, Jeff Cohen and others from the homespun collective. Boasting fourteen tracks that range from "Booty Pirate" to "Decomposing Beethoven," Halloweiner Dog has a bark worse than its bite -- but don't ever look it in the eye if you want to live to see another footlong.
Best of Denver, Westword

"After landing on Skull Island, George W. Bush challenges a group of curious stegosauruses and T. rexes to a fistfight before hightailing it back to Air Force One. The twelve-page comic comes with a 'handy metaphoric guide' ('Air Force One equals Penis') and alludes to everything from nuclear proliferation to cultural imperialism. The reader is, of course, meant to root for the dinosaurs." Westword Off Limits, 2004

Captain Missiletoe: the First Collection : Best Indie Comic Collection: "[There is absolutely nothing worth quoting from this article]" - Westword

"Cops in Hi-Tops" from Now Bring That Here, by Skinner (Sparky the Dog Records)
If they're not bumped down to vice squad for violating dress code, the lawmen depicted in this amusing back-porch ditty from pro-femme songstress Hilary Skinner could probably moonlight as semi-approachable bouncers. There's something about a man in uniform. Westword

Mr. Tree and the Wingnuts: On a Wing and a Prayer- Westword , 2001 Music Showcase- Westword ,2000 Best of Nutritious Release - Westword