After years of homemade tapes and EPs, Brooklyn mainstays Fixtures have finally dropped a full length album, and it packs a punch. Hollywood Dog was recorded and mixed at a combination of Greenpoint’s Studio G (Jeff Berner), Black Dirt Studios (Jason Meager), and Ardent Studios (Mike Wilson), and mastered by Sarah Register.
It begins with horn laden “21/1,” birthed from a dream visit from the late Sam Jayne who named the track himself, about which lead singer K. Liakos has said “I wanted to give the pretty song to him.” The record is out the gate rather quickly with “Jimmy Needs the Money” and “Bull of Heaven,” setting the tone at chaotic and darkly fun. “No One Calls Me Al” was re-mixed for this record after its previous life as a secret track; kind of New Order if it was on a speeding train careening towards a bottomless ravine.
All that momentum builds into “Song of Last Summer” which is now technically Song of Last Last Last Summer, a callback to protests of 2020 that will get stuck in your head for several reasons. The autobiographical “I Keep Getting Murdered in My Sleep” has one of the catchiest refrains I’ve heard in a while, with bass player Jason McGuire holding down a bomb riff throughout. Hollywood Dog rounds itself out with “21/1 (Reprise),” bookending a tribute to friends loved and lost.
Now a six-piece, Fixtures has expanded sonically, but the clever songwriting has remained at the forefront, sharp edged but sincere. It’s deep but uncomplicated (you can sing along to the title track the first time you hear it!); dark, but fun as hell. A co-release on Bobo Integral and Naturally Records, go give it a listen and feel less alone.
Brooklyn mainstays Fixtures played the outdoor show at Mama Tried this past Saturday, closing out the summer with unapologetic indie rock.
Ben “Baby” Copperhead and the Horned Serpents opened the evening joined by Joseph Allan Johnson on sax, Emanuel Ruffler on keys and David Berger on drums. Copperhead played a grander set with a little extra grit than his usual banjo and guitar folk, occasionally adding a pedal laden growl to his vocals.
Two piece 999999999 (pronounced “All 9s”… we think) followed up, with Anthony Macbain on guitar and vocals and Ted McGrath on drums. Bringing some surfy skuzz pop to the backyard, 999999999 kept the energy building in a packed Mama Tried backyard.
Fixtures filled the stage on Saturday as a six piece: K Liakos on guitar and vocals, Jay McGuire on bass, Robin Fowler on drums, and new additions Riley Cooke on trumpet, Jules Block on baritone sax, and Don Meehleis on guitar. Self described as vampire elevator music, Fixtures brings frenetic energy and volume—and catchy as fuck riffs. “The Great Tequila Flood of 2000-2018” built the same kind of momentum you’d expect from the semi autobiographical content it’s named after. In addition to poignantly clever lyricism, Fixtures also has a knack for the deeply sad slipped into driving, upbeat melodies. “21/1” began with a gentle horn section that leads into a dedicated jam about driving around trying to find Love as Laughter/Lync frontman and friend to many, the late Sam Jayne, who had gone missing in December 2020. Their set was capped off with a new banger, “Rats on Broadway the Musical on Broadway” (not a typo). Got your next great New York anthem right here.
Grab a beer or six and go see all three of these bands—you won’t be sorry.
Fixtures’ new record Hollywood Dog is out next February.
Tuesday 3/22 marked the NYC debut for Horsegirl, an indie rock trio out of Chicago. Market Hotel was packed with a welcoming and adoring crowd, whose energy built throughout a night of Midwest meets East Coast rock. The night began with Brooklyn locals S.C.A.B. (an anagram of band members’ names: Sean, Cory, Alec, and Brandon) for some pop tinged post punk. A perfect balance of pop melodies with pedal laden edge, this band got people moving, and quickly. Next up were Hotline TNT, an indie rock outfit bringing Minneapolis volume to Market Hotel.
Horsegirl looked and felt immediately at home in Brooklyn, as Nora Cheng, Penelope Lowenstein, and Gigi Reece took their places on the stage. An impressive show from the first note, this band plays off one another expertly, while never being too polished. Vocally interweaving, Cheng and Lowenstein create a soundscape that is instantly captivating, and Reece’s drums tie it creatively and tightly together. Shoegazey, scuzzy, textural, post punk noisy: all the right stuff.
With a sound that owes a lot to its six string bass, Horsegirl’s catchy riffs got an enraptured crowd dancing and singing along from the get go. You can tell that this band not only listens to one another, they get exactly what they’re going for. The only thing that we could have asked for was that their set had been even longer. Horsegirl, please come back to New York. And stay a while.
Horsegirl’s first full length record, Versions of Modern Performance, comes out June 3rd via Matador Records.
Scroll down for pics of the show (photos by Brianna DiGioia)
