Although  yesterday was supposed to be my prescribed day to select the Synthesis Band You’ve Never Heard Of…OF THE DAY!!111, I waited until today because the band in question, the pop savages known as We Shot The Moon actually have their debut record, Fear and Love, in stores, TODAY! Though you might not have heard of We Shot The Moon, chances are you’ve heard of the guys in it: Jonathan Jones, former frontman of Waking Ashland and Joe Greenetz and Dan Koch of Sherwood. Though Greenetz and Koch are too busy touring with Sherwood to hit the road to promote Fear and Love, Jones and a few friends will be making the rounds of the US over the next few months, touring the shit out of the record, which, as you might expect sounds a lot like Waking Ashland and Sherwood, so in other words: poppy as F, but in a good way. Check out some of the tracks on the band’s Myspace or just buy that shit today. Tour dates after the jiggity-jizzump.

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So our music inbox has been stuffed with bands, may of whom are now overdue for a writeup, or at least a semi-friendly rejection letter. I hate being behind on things, so in an effort to get through the clutter, here’s a great big super-post of about seven or eight band of the day bands.

Here’s the deal. Each and every one of these bands deserves my undivided attention to truly get a good idea of what they are about. But they’re not going to get that. Nope, I will be listening to them for the exact amount of time it takes me to write a paragraph about them. Some will fare better than others. Some will be treated unjustly. Some will not even get a chance. Life’s tough, time’s short, and I got other blogs to blog. On today’s Band of the Day Menu:
James Sudakow
Rider Jones
Margot Blanche
Dan Weintraub
Lansdale Station
Jump Back Heart Attack!
Front Row for the Meltdown
Lawrence Blatt

James Sudakow
A little electronic with heavy bass, fronted by an electric violin. I always though electric violins were the shit:

Yeah Brad Neely, you’re right. Life DOES rule, especially if you’re James Sudakow and play heavy instrumental electric violin electronica.

See? Totally! You know those people who bought the Tool String Quartet album? I bet they would rock Mr. Sudakow while playing World of Warcraft and fucking rule over all the other internerds. They’d be like head of the Theif’s Guild or whatever. Me? I can’t get into this. It’s like Yanni with a distortion pedal and drummer who can’t get enough Taiko. NEXT

Rider Jones

Well, I see from their MySpace page’s headline that Rider Jones is no more. “RIDER JONES 2005 - 2008 R.I.P” I assume that they are already done…either that, or by the end of the year they will be done. Or maybe they just changed their web site and are terrible at conveying that info.

Oh, the perils of being in a band. NOW we get to reviewing you and your band is already broken up. If only I had gotten to them back in January, perhaps I could have provided the shot in the arm they needed to continue. Oh well. Too bad, because they don’t sound half bad. They don’t sound half good either. Wussy acoustic finger-picking pop does nothing for me, but at least their lyrics aren’t as cliche as the music… Oh wait, never mind…they just sang “star light, star bright, first star i see tonight…” without a hint of irony. Yeesh. Get me out of here. NEXT

I will praise the rest of the bands’ deeds or fuck their shit up after the JUMP: it will be worth it, dear reader. Trust me. Would I lie to you? (more…)

On their Sonic Bids page bio, Lords and Barons simply write, “We make noise.” And they do. And it’s good.

This trio of Los Angelean rockers keep it simple with their sound, too. It’s just sloppy-good rock ‘n’ roll without excess tricks or gimmicks. The lineup is simple guitar, vocals and drums, though it sounds like they had someone playing bass on the recordings. “Sidewalks” is a fun dose of ballsy guitar-heavy pop/rock, but I really like their dirge-y, plaintive anthem “Prelude” the best so far.

Their MySpace page is pretty light on the details, but all you need to know is that they’re pretty rocking. Save all the thinking for something more important and just enjoy yourself.

Generally speaking a band comprised of dudes, some of which sport beards, is a good sign. As in the case of North Michigan’s Bear Lake, it totally works. From their look I was expecting a kind of Broken Social Scene shoegaze rock, but Bear lake take it in a much more peppy, upbeat direction, more akin to the Shins or Heatmiser-era Elliott Smith on the happy meds. The group’s beenfriends since kindergarten, and listening to their entwining noises, the chemistry is palpable. The band’s multiple singers and (presumably) multiple songwriters makes for pleasantly divergent, yet complimentary indie-pop-rock. Mixing electronic drums with standard kit and layering multiple electric and acoustic guitars and keyboards with well-placed backup vocals and effects results in a real wall of sound that tickles the ears just right.

Instrumentation:
Keith May (Bass/Vox; 26), Steve Stetson (Drums; 25), Matt Hines (Lead Vox; 26), Jon Rice (Rhythm Guitar/Vox; 26), Brian Kwasnik (Piano/Vox; 26)

Discography
“Catch the Sun” Copyright Bear Lake Music 2007

From the sounds on their MySpace Page, you should definitely investigate Bear Lake and consider picking up a copy of Catch The Sun. And for the record, me selecting Bear Lake as our Band of the Day has almost nothing to do with similar nomenclature to a certain band dear to our heart.

Usually my entries into the hallowed halls of the Synthesis Band You’ve Never Heard Of…OF THE DAY!!111 archive have some sort of clever plot device or other thematic tie together. But today’s selection, the Simi Valley based Fire On the Plains is just an honest to God badass band that I you more than likely have never heard of. The band recently completed a West Coast tour, stopping through Chico this past weekend. And though I had heard the songs streaming on their Myspace, which featured the typically pissed vocals and skronking guitars found in most modern thrashy metal bands, the recordings do no justice to the band live. The vocals were heavier, the drums were unflinchingly on point, and the band’s seasoned stage presence belied their youthful exuberance. The band currently has a self-released EP available, and will be playing around Southern California over the next couple of months, including a show with metal upstarts Carnifex. LEARN ABOUT IT!

Want to listen to some whacked out, two-piece mania? Look no further than Napa, CA’s Planets. There’s not much I can say descriptively in a short burst, other than Planets indulge to the fullest in odd times and dissonance. Both members are savage beasts, and bass player Paul used to rep SWIMS. Some tour dates: