There are many musicians that can forge a great band. Stephen Brodsky has created four. Each offering something slightly different than the next, Brodsky has shown his versatility in the rock world to be unmatched by most. Influenced by Failure, Snapcase, Jawbox, and others, he began his career as the mighty Cave In guitarist and main songwriter. Brodsky was recognized with his band as the premiere hardcore artists. With intense, brooding, skull cracking ferociousness, Cave In left no stone unturned in their heavy approach of alternative metal. In 2000 however, Cave In would switch their signature style drastically. Imagine Oasis becoming a metal band, and you get an idea for just how great a change the band made. Gone were all the trashing, chugging guitar riffs Brodsky was becoming so well known for, and in their place was a space rock psychedelic emotion. Brodsky took over vocal duties for bassist Caleb Scofield, and the band had a new sound more obvious of their influences. Picture the end result of melting together Failure, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Converge, and Radiohead, and then you will begin to understand Cave In's incredible sound. Their 2000 release "Jupiter" was truly groundbreaking. The music was still ever so calculated and precise, but add a harmonic beauty into the mix with melodic vocals, and you have the new and improved Cave In. Brodsky developed the band into one of the best rock bands of the beginning of this century. Billed as the best album of the year by many critics and fans alike, they didn't stop there. They went on to release the equally impressive "Tides of Tomorrow," before signing with a major label in 2003 to release "Antenna". In 2005 they went back to Hydra Head Records to drop "Perfect Pitch Black," a strong attempt at mixing their earlier sound with their new one. It worked well and left a question of what direction the band would go to next. That direction unfortunately was onto an indefinite hiatus to explore other musical projects.
Brodsky has not disappointed since however, releasing great albums with whomever it is he's working with. Always one to keep busy, he had been tinkering with other bands and solo projects even while very much in the thick of Cave In's career. Playing as occasional bassist for hardcore act Converge as well as Indie pop rockers New Idea Society. These acts were not all though, somehow between recording Cave In's certifiable masterpieces, Stephen Brodsky was able to record two solo albums. The first, "Expose Your Overdubs," was released in 2000, and certainly shocked all those that listened to it. Almost entirely acoustic, this album is heavily influenced by Guided by Voices, as Brodsky sings short melodic pop songs for the college radio crowd. The ten track album is only 25 minutes long, and most of the songs are not given the proper time to reel you in as a listener before moving on to the next strange pop themed track. Soft and quiet, Brodsky showed a side that even his most alternative rock sounding Cave In material hadn't even hinted at. On his second solo effort, "Ole' Sunday," Brodsky shows a stronger pop rock sensibility more akin to the Beatles this time around. This album makes up for what his first solo effort lacked, with stronger hooks and an overall more complete sound. While it can seem very minimalistic in comparison to the thick, dense swirls of Cave In's spaced out progressiveness, there is a great singer songwriter quality to his second solo attempt, and in my opinion released a complete and satisfying record, with every track holding strongly on its own.
Opening with the feel good jangle pop tones of "Get Out," Brodsky sings through a bit of effects to pay tribute to true old fashioned rock and roll that would make Bob Dylan proud. A call to arms lyrically included the advice, "Get out of your band when it starts to suck." Truer things are rarely said on record. The album then continues with the great acoustic "Imagination Diet". Meaningful lyrics run rampant over this album, and this track is a great example. He then continues into a slow Beatles inspired 60s sounding love song, "Gap Girl," about the corporate takeover. Following this is my favorite track of his solo career, "Sunday Free," another great singer/songwriter type acoustic track. Containing an infectious melody that will stick in your head for days on end, this song shows Brodsky really has mastered the pop song craft ability. The album continues with the piano based lullaby sounding track, "Stolen Echoes Won't Return". "Prepare for Landing," comes across as a somewhat more stripped down version of a track that could have been featured on Jupiter with a great subsonic bass tone. "Big Deal," is a short acoustic explosion of a rocker. Great vocal melodies to accompany the rapid fast guitar picking. "Just Married" is another great track and could easily be played at a dance from the 1950s. "Notes to Self" and "Lupine Menagerie" round out the album with a slow beauty followed by a creeping sonic distortion filled drift to the end.
In 2005 when Cave In announced their hiatus, it took less than a year for Brodsky to emerge with his next band, The Octave Museum. Formed from Boston's rock underground, Brodsky handled vocals and guitar, while Thee Electric Bastard's Johnny Coolbreeze played bass, and Scissorfight's Kevin Shurtleff took over on drums. If Brodsky's solo albums seemed destined for pop stardom, listen to The Octave Museum. 100% psychedelic pop rock, this is another gem of an album that is truly a must listen for all fans of rock. Trippy sounds mesh together on the opening "Voice Electric," appropriately named as Brodsky sings through a synthesized voice. It is good to hear him playing with a band again, as they deliver a great constant marching band drum beat to mainline Brodsky's wild blues like soloing. The album then continues with the bouncy pop jangle of "Sentimental Case". With bright lyrics and warped sounding breakdowns, this is one of those pop rock songs you could see in the 60s with the girls all screaming at the concert. Mixing the Beatles, old Weezer styled pop, and Brodsky's trademark naisely voice, they create a surefire hit if wanted. As far as I know they released no singles, and there was tiny, if any, promotion put into the album. Does this speak on the quality of the music? No, it's just Brodsky making his music, without concern of national fame and notoriety. "Kid Defender," is another spacey pop anthem, sounding like a mix of the Beatles and early Pink Floyd effects. Great strange comic book like cartoon imagery in the lyrics with jangly distorted guitars. Brodsky sings his own back-up in his fairly common falsetto for added textures. Lots of great Hendrix meets space rock ramblings all over the album. Imagine Failure with pop hooks and a strong love for simple pop melodies. "Prove Myself" is a nice quirky love song begging for pop greatness. This could be the most syrupy sounding pop song I actually like, but I do love this song, as it combines an extreme LSD soaked sunshine appeal. Included in the mix is a nice tambourine and great rhythm section, that all drops out into Brodsky and his guitar alone in the mix. "Bluebell" follows and is an instrumental piece similar to early 90's Flaming Lips records. "Red Headed Butterflies," is another acoustic track, with amazing lyrics that recall some of the early space rock from David Bowie. The fat electric bass sound kicks in after the first chorus with the subtle groove created by the drums. A great track that like the chorus suggests is, "exploding in sound." The next track, "Kill the Queen," strays from the pop, and focuses more on the psychedelic aspects of the band. With tribal hypnotic drumming, and a rolling wave of distortion that creates an almost drone to push it along, this is another great example of Brodsky's ability to take you lyrically and atmospherically far beyond the usual alternative rock subject matters. "Swinging in the Sky" is just that, swinging. With a rockabilly like acoustic guitar jangle, Brodsky delivers his best acid soaked hoe down. "Spirals in Her Eyes" is a great track, that really delivers a trip that seems wild and uncontrollable. As the title would leave you to believe, the track is a spiraling ride of guitars and heavy snare hits to keep your head spinning. The cymbals are loud and encompassing, creating a storm of sound. "Ploo" ends the album with more Beatles like sensibility mixed with Syd Barret like vocals. Octave Museum toured for about a year and a half with this album, and then as they reported on their myspace page, the museum closed.
I was fairly disappointed by this news, but that only lasted about a week, as Brodsky was quick to announce his next musical venture, Pet Genius. I was able to attend the final Octave Museum show, and the very first ever Pet Genius show within one week of each other at the same venue! Living in Boston for five years certainly had its unique benefit of being able to see solo Brodsky shows, as well as Pet Genius on a monthly basis. Pet Genius were comprised of Brodsky and two former band members, Cave In's J.R. Conners on drums, and Octave Museum's Johnny Coolbreeze playing bass. The sound is similar because of Brodsky's vocals, but the music has changed again. Keep the psychedelic pop overtones, but replace the Beatles pop jangle with over driven grunge guitars and Led Zeppelin riffs. The album is a modern day grunge masterpiece that deserves major attention. Again little to no promotion has taken place, but could do wonders. The heavy grunge feel to the opener, "Doomsday," comes complete with garage like quality lo-fi amplification and fuzz. In complete contrast, "The Visiting Dynamiter" follows as a head trip in falsetto with reversing guitar feeds and an unforgettable melody that will have you singing along. The trip then picks up pace with the static stoner rocker, "The Walls of Etiquette". Hazy chugging mixed with psychedelic folk urges provide a great unique sound. "Man of the Mountain," is my favorite track of theirs with a dynamic bending heavy to soft sound that goes from stoner sludge to garage rocker pop. Using the heavy riff as a chorus between verses creates a great contrast that works the grunge meets psychedelic influences together seamlessly. "Float my Boat" is a track that has grown on me with each listen. Heavily entrenched in the fuzz on this, even Brodsky's vocals come out with the trademark 70s stoner rock fuzz. The next two tracks "Emit Fo Deeps Eht Esare" and "Erase The Speed of Time" serve as one longer track, with the first a reversed, both in name and sound, preview of what's to come. The actual track is a stop-and-go creation with great hypnotic drums and very precision like guitars. The band are not trying to be the next greatest band to take over the world, but rather are having fun with various styles and their attempt to blend it all together. "Cosmic Erosion" has a cool grunge in space feel to it, before "Trash Heap Swing" emerges with its noise and sound that could very well be played on things found in a trash heap. What sounds like a kazoo is the main focus in this short introduction track. It effectively leads the way for the power chord tale of the chromatic scale variations of "Chromatic Blues". The final track, and the first one to clock in at over four minutes, "Scrapyard King," contains more heavily LSD induced imagery filled lyrics, with a simple rock and roll vibe to keep the record wholesome and memorable. Pet Genius have created a real simple, power chord heavy, grunge inspired, fuzzy, psychedelic vibe that they can easily deliver with extreme intensity live. Another great project from Brodsky that hopefully continues to grow, but if not, I'm sure he'll succeed yet again.
Only about a week ago, Stephen Brodsky announced that he will release his third solo album, "The Black Ribbon Award" sometime in 2008. Who knows where he'll go with the sound, but I would be willing to put my money on the fact that it's amazing.
Check out all these bands...here are some easy links to their music...
-Cave In
-Stephen Brodsky (solo)
-The Octave Museum
-Pet Genius
ENJOY
P.S. - I took the photo I'm using myself at an incredible live solo show in which Brodsky asked the audience to call out songs for him to perform. He played songs from each of his albums/bands as well as various covers including Failure's "Magnified".
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