Freak Scene #68: King Manzi Are Bolder Than Before on New LP
Plus, the latest from Easthampton band the Journals Kept
A Guide to Music in Western Mass. (and sometimes Connecticut)
This week in Freak Scene, we hear the latest from King Manzi, the duo project from LuxDeluxe members Ned King and Jake Manzi, while Easthampton group the Journals Kept are back with three new songs.
It’s tempting to call King Manzi a side project, but Ned King and Jake Manzi have been as active recently as a duo as they have been with their other musical pursuits: King fronts LuxDeluxe, which Manzi joined on guitar in 2017 (Freak Scene #42 covered their latest LP); while Manzi also releases albums under his own name. So, let’s just say that Bolder Than Before is the newest release from a pair of musicians who seem like they’re always working on something.
Bolder Than Before follows King Manzi’s 2023 album Not in a Shy Way, emphasizing melody on 10 tracks that land somewhere between the playful swagger of LuxDeluxe and Manzi’s sophisticated solo pop songs. There’s also something of a West Coast vibe, which makes sense: Manzi moved to Los Angeles last year, and King Manzi recorded the album there during a four-day stretch in what King calls the “insanely hot garage” of former LuxDeluxe member Gabe Bernini. The tasteful guitars and tight harmony vocals on “You Don’t Understand” summon a breezy, sunset-at-the-beach feel, while “Tell Me Something” has a country-rock sound that evokes Laurel Canyon in the early ’70s (though they clearly shot the video in Western Mass.).
Elsewhere, King Manzi pare back: acoustic guitars and piano carry “Only Girl,” which features yearning harmony vocals. “Leave With the Sun” has a desert-bossa nova feel, with a dusty rhythm and meandering violin circling King and Manzi’s voices, which yield for a tightly coiled acoustic guitar break with shades of flamenco. They sing together with natural ease, and though they’ve clearly worked out arrangements and parts, they most often sound like they’re harmonizing for fun, as if that’s what they would be doing anyway, even if they weren’t sealed up in a two-car sweatbox in L.A.
The Journals Kept Light Up on ‘Strike the Match’
After building momentum with Campfire in January (as seen in Freak Scene #48), the Journals Kept are, um, keeping at it with Strike the Match, a new three-song EP.
Now including Walker Lee (of Toxic Friends) on bass, the Easthampton group jumps right back in on the title track. The tune pairs Paul Vittum and Faith Vittum’s lockstep vocals with an angular ’90s-punk guitar lick and surging, overdriven rhythm guitar. “October” has an yearning feel, underscored by a jangly guitar lick and lyrics that juxtapose the autumnal imagery of apples and football games with nuggets of hard-won experience.
There’s a wistful sensibility on “Late at Night,” too, which wraps up Strike the Match. Backed by a thick curtain of electric guitars and a taut beat from drummer Paul Pelis, Faith Vittum sings in an echo of Paul, who sounds as if he is ruminating on life choices, good and bad, from the depths of insomnia. The musicians describes these songs as “the stylistic culmination of the band to date,” but the EP is also a bridge: “It’s definitely a lead-in to the next LP,” Paul Vittum says.
Upcoming Concerts
Summer on Strong returns with live music in Northampton, starting this weekend with Tom Walz tonight, Friday, Avery Joi Quartet Saturday and the Green Street Trio Sunday — every Sunday throughout June, in fact. Also performing: Adelaide Fay June 5, Sarah Clay & the Starcats June 6, Masala Jazz June 7, Vernon David & Rob Fontana June 12, Ryan Hollander June 13, Dan Thomas Trio June 14, Tobey Sol LaRoche June 19, Bailey Hayes June 20, Ian Herstock Trio June 21, Nate Martel June 26, a Tom Walz return engagement June 27 and Jimmy Gavagan Trio June 28. All shows are free.
The Drake hosts Jake Klar, Arden Lloyd and Nora Meier June 7 (tickets); a test screening of the locally produced short film Thickly Settled June 13, paired with a performance by Taylor Van Cleave (tickets); and Las Cafeteras Aug. 7 (tickets).
Melanie A. Davis & the Madness and Signature Dish headline the Marigold Theater in Easthampton June 13.
Ben Folds performs with the Hartford Symphony July 25 at the Simsbury Performing Arts Center (tickets).
California indie-pop singer Cuco comes to College Street Music Hall in New Haven Oct. 28 (tickets).
Shaun Cassidy plays Infinity Music Hall in Norfolk, Conn., Oct. 25 (tickets).
The Space Ballroom in Hamden hosts Mansionair July 19 (tickets), Sumac Aug. 8 (tickets) and Crowbar with Eyehategod Aug. 18 (tickets).
That’s it for this week, but Freak Scene is always seeking submissions. You can send music for coverage consideration to erdanton at gmail or reply to this email. Check out these guidelines first.
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