Sam's Top 10 of 2017 #4

4.Heroin and Automobiles-Vigil and Thieves

You know I've gotten it pretty fucking well some times and if there's ever something that proved just how good life can be some times it'd probably be my birthday week because I got to see some performances that I'll never be able to truly comprehend and of all the songs I got the pleasure of not only getting to see played live and molded into something I actually got to have it played right in front of my face in my house which is fucking mind blowing.

(Yeah Yeah I know pics or it didn't happen so in that case HA here ya go fuckers!)

Vigils and Thieves are a band that I've covered over the past year plus and in that time I've seen them put on a multitude of great performances and seen the beginnings of a proper full length that I'm sure will be great and this song the first official piece of that project in comparison to their Never Land project is a real leap forward for them overall as a group with Sarah Storm giving a more restrained but effective vocal performance that effectively carries what's a fairly depressing tune about an individual who's life was tragically cut short.

“I Tried My BEST!” it's a line I very much screamed along with the second I finally knew what was being said and it's a thing I tell myself all the time just an simple sentence with a bunch of weight behind it because when you think about it that's all we can really do and that's what every local act that I cover on here and hope for the best is doing and in all honesty these guy's are one of the one's I really wish the best to come to because they're not only a great act they're also the best people who've really done things for me that I can't ever properly show my appreciation for.

This song is just fucking excellent bar none.

I was able to get with Sarah Storm of Vigil and Thieves to answer a few questions about this song and 2017 and this is what she had to say...

So what is the inspirations behind Heroin and Automobiles?

The loss of Anthony Saluto and Sam Watson kinda sunk me into a death obsessed spiral, and it was all I was writing about for awhile, still kind of do. I wanted to create something hopeful from it. I've known quite a few people who have passed from drug related causes or suicide and many of them were really young. It's hard to swallow reality sometimes and that song is about accepting yourself and carrying on despite the shitty way the world is.

What made you chose it as the first single for your upcoming album?

It has a relatable message, that you are worth something, and it's okay not to have it all together. Setting the tone for the mood and direction is important to us.

How was 2017 for you as a band in terms of the music you wrote, released, and the performances you gave?

Fucking rad! We got to play Midcoast Takeover at South by Southwest, we played Middle of the Map for the first time, did a tour, we played all the venues! It has been an awkward year considering we've been in limbo bass player wise. But we've written so many songs and really developed our tone. We've gotten a lot more political and a lot more passionate. I'm in love with where this album is going and

I can't wait to share it with everyone!

-Sarah Storm

On this hallows eve

It's a cold dark night as I sit alone pondering to myself what it is that goes creeping in the night and as I take a second to check my surroundings in the silence of the night I'm reminded of the various tunes I listen to yearly and the post of Halloween past I've made and my excitement at the thought of the delightfully festive and haunting tunes I've posted in years past the punk fueled goth tinged tunes that I've worn down and still enjoy and I wonder if I've covered it all?

What a scary thought to think of the idea that it's all been done that there's no reason to exist because anything and everything you could ever want is gone and will never come back? Your life is nothing more than chilling in a cold dark room with the glow of a computer monitor keeping you company and a blank screen ever present like the ever present state of being just a small glowing bit of nothing in an ever expansive and blank world that has no use for your very existence?

It's a cold dark world full of nothing and your very existence is nothing more than fuel for that psychopathic serial killer creeping up right behind you right now.

Don't worry that was all a joke everyone knows this former pagan celebration of the harvest is nothing more than a day to overload on sweets, get drunk dressed as your favorite bit of pop culture, and have an excuse to enjoy all things creepy without the fear of being judged by the world around you and while I'm still taking some time for a future article I figured I'd take the time to post a tune to add to your yearly playlist of ghoulish grooves and since I covered a local act last year around this time I figured I'd share another delightfully festive tune in the form of my good friends Vigil and Thieves and this 2016 cut, "Haunting," which gives off these eerie vibes with some wonderfully echoing guitar tones and lyrics that are as bleak as the title.

Happy Halloween folks stay tuned for sometime around Thanksgiving when I finally announce what's going on but until then BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

The KC Showcase: Vigil and Thieves, "Heroin and Automobiles"

AH YEAH SON one of my favorite bands from this little city of mine has released a new song today and I am incredibly pumped because I remember seeing them debut this a few months back at a show they were having and have seen it grown and morph as they continue to get more and more comfortable with the track and now it's finally here so I can 1. Quit having one line of it stuck in my head and 2. Finally know what the Drummer is screaming near the end of the song so I can possibly maybe sorta most likely one of these day's scream along with him.

Rambling thoughts aside what exactly do we have here with this new tune well this song is dedicated to the memory of one Anthony Saluto a Kansas City native who was tragically killed last year and lyrically this song is loaded with very introspective lyrics that are performed in a surprisingly contained manor which is different of Sarah Storm which is quite different in a pleasant way because she's seemed to really put forth a performance that showcases a lot more maturity and self control to help her echoing cry's of, "I keep counting the day's I've wasted," really ring true at least to this listener I really can feel every ounce of agony and emotion she delivers.

This song is quite an excellent little cut and I very much advise all of you go out and buy it now because this band is not only one of the nicest group of people I've ever meet they also are some truly talented musicians that put on an excellent live show and really make some quality music for emotionally distraught people and for the low low price of a dollar this song is a steal go buy it yesterday OH and also if you're in the Chicago, Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Kansas City area this week you owe it to yourself to make a trip to see these guy's live you will be as hooked as I was the first time I saw them.

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Sam's Show Recap 1/28/17

The Midwest Music Foundation decided to throw a show in order to help raise money to help out a group of local Kansas City acts in their attempts to go to South by Southwest and being that this show not only featured two of my favorite bands in this fine city of ours but it happen to be at the new Record Bar which by all accounts is pretty much the cream of the crop in terms of awesome fucking venues to see a show in this city it's pretty fucking obvious that sickness be damned I may have missed one bad ass showcase but I sure as hell was gonna chug that medicine and make this show and god damn it's a good thing I did because the heat was fucking brought tonight mother fuckers.

The bands showcased in this show were Vigils and Thieves, Momma's Boy, Jessica Paige, and the Phantastics which is quite a varied bill in all honesty but with that in mind let's get to the bad pictures and thoughts on these sets.

Vigils and Thieves

These guy's are so fucking great and this show after having a member change recently was a retreading of the waters of sorts and their first show at the new Record Bar and they did quite good if I say so. The first few songs admittedly were a bit rushed with Vicious Ears being a great way to pump up the crowd if not a bit faster than normal and after a few heavier more energetic tunes the songs eventually started getting smoother and things were sounding right and these guy's delivered yet another great set especially Haunting which was pretty fucking spot on vocally Sarah Storm just fucking knocked it out of the park here and gave an incredibly angry and awesome performance of People are Parasites following it somehow being one of the few vocalist I've ever heard actually get better as the set goes on.

If you haven't given their EP Neverland a listen go do so because this band is awesome and their shows even after some line up changes are still solidly fucking good and will most certainly hook you.

Momma's Boy

This time with all members included and well if I were to be blunt people........HOLY FUCKING JESUS CHRIST ALLMIGHTY THEY BROUGHT THE FUCKING FIIIIIIIIIIIIIAR TONIGHT!

For fucking real this set was just one great big ball of fucking awesome from their odd but awesome choice to start with the epic Make Believe to track after track of straight up bad ass fucking surf rock tinged power pop indie rock goodness this band was focused, tight, and firing on all fucking cylinders and delivered a set that just was pure proof that they are the best god damn band in the land and tracks like Sweet Girl, R&R, and Be A Good Boy can't come out soon enough because legit the year plus of working on these songs has become a set of pure non stop great and with an upcoming EP that will most likely be better than anything anyone else is going to put out I get the feeling that 2017 will be the year of the Momma's Boy just you wait.

Fuck it's going to be hard to see a show this god damn good now thanks.

Jessica Paige

So yeah after picking my jaw up and re-adjusting to reality I managed to catch this set kind of in stride and from what I heard she's a very talented vocalist with a lot of charisma on stage that knew how to get the crowd into her blend of kind of Country tinged kind of doo-whop pop tunes and her set was a solid set of tracks with my favorite being a very bad ass Zutons cover.

Upon getting to talk to her for a bit after her set and getting a complimentary copy of her album which you can go download at her bandcamp which is provided in the link above that I was listening to on my drive home I can say that if you got the time and want to listen to something on the lighter side this set of 8 songs is quite a good listen and I'll be keeping her on my radar.

Phantastics

I can't lie I didn't stay for their whole set because I just kind of couldn't do a whole show tonight but I will say these guy's brought the fucking funk like for real their just a non stop whirling ball of energy that had the whole house a moving and really if you were to properly appreciate this very tight group of  musicians I'd advise you get a DD or Uber knock back all the fine beverages and get on that god damn dance floor because they make music to dance to and they know how to make a crowd want to dance.

Tight funky grooves, a stage show just overflowing with charisma, and some very well rounded songs this band did a damn fine job this night and really proved why I keep tabs on when they're next shows are because this night was quite good to them and anyone willing to go out and give them a view that's for damn sure.

So yeah this was yet another excellent time at the wonderful Record Bar with plenty of acts that I hope impress all the important people up there at SXSW and this night was pretty simply one great big pile of fuck yeah.

Look what I found....it's a mother fucking starboy!

Sam's Top 20 of 2016: #7

7.Vigil and Thieves-Vicious Ears

I'm just going to say that these have to be some of the nicest fucking people I've gotten the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with and that I legitimately hope that the best is to come to these guy's sooner than later because they deserve it.

OK now that I've said that it's time to talk about how fucking bad ass this song is, Vicious Ears is a very kind of punk tinged alternative rock tune that starts out with some very jumpy guitar work and is followed by Sarah Storm singing with a voice that's equal parts playful and dynamic in a lot of ways especially the chorus and it's long sustained notes and the delivery of the line, “This may be more,” which just crawls it's way deep into your mind and perfectly balances along with some verses that have a bit of a staccato feel to them and lyrics like, “Monsters with guns and a limited one on these city streets, Monsters in Armani suits who say they know what's best for you,” you get a song that's very VERY catchy and easy to sing along with but is also hiding more meaningful lyrics than your average radio fair and manages to not be up it's own ass in a lot of ways.

These well delivered lines and it's dreamy guitar work along with all the individual members talents as musicians showcase how to make a song that blends just enough pop sensibilities with all the grit of alternative rock to form a very simple dancey post punk tune that I just fucking love and have yet to have a disappointing time when seeing them perform it live. 

Sam Suggest a band: Vigil and Thieves

SO first off I'd like to say that these guy's are honestly some of the nicest fucking people I've had the pleasure of getting to talk to in quite some time.

When it comes to their music there's a very mesmerizing quality to them that's incredibly hard for me to put my finger on because at the surface you have some very well written and performed tracks that range from this very delightfully punky Vicious Ears, the kind of gothy Haunting, and a very bad ass bass driven post punk number Hate that when performed in a live environment end up taking on a life of their own and showcase what really is a talented group of performers that craft some REALLY damn catchy tunes.

Their current release Neverland is quite a bad ass little offering which you can download on their bandcamp and give a listen to down below although just because you can get it for free doesn't mean that it wouldn't be worth your time to throw down some hard earned cash for the download or at the very least wait for the physical pressings to come so you can appreciate the bad ass album art a little more.

I'd also like to make note that their lead singer Sarah Storm has a very hypnotic fashion to how she sings that kind of lures you in and doesn't quite feel the need to explain why you'll think she's so fucking alluring but leave you knowing that you're hooked by a voice that's an odd combination of both confidence and vulnerability.

Also I'd have to say that their song Vicious Ears is my personal favorite of theirs because it's very fast paced song that has a very bouncy punky tone to it that I just fucking love and lyrically it's a little more playful then the rest of Neverland but still maintains something interesting to bite into and maybe it's simplistic nature is why they seem to enjoy using it as an opening track to their set list.

So yeah this band kicks ass and I'm glad I decided to take the time to go see them live because they're pretty fucking cool people and we can all use that in this world of ours.