Wednesday 19 Jun
 
 

Kanye West — Yeezus

Try as you might, but there’s no escaping Kanye West. Turn on the TV, radio, computer — hell, take a stroll downtown and you might see his mug projected on the side of a building. It’s an undeniable fact of life in 2013: Kanye West is bigger than Buddha, Krishna and The Beatles (today, anyway) and he’ll be the first to let you know about it.
06/18/2013 | Comments 0

John Moreland — In the Throes

With the soul of a poet and the look of a Sons of Anarchy extra, Tulsa’s John Moreland has been gifted the sort of gravely, booming voice that does Bruce Springsteen proud and a similar understanding of the universal human experience. It’s made for some fantastic records — both as a solo artist and with his dissolved Black Gold Band — and In the Throes is his best yet.
06/19/2013 | Comments 0

Jumpship Astronaut — Lights Burn Out

Oklahoma has never been the haven for electronic rock music that it is for country, folk and, as of late, psychedelic pop, but from the sound of Lights Burn Out, Oklahoma City upstart Jumpship Astronaut seems intent on changing that.
06/12/2013 | Comments 0

Various artists — Reaching Out

Like so many Oklahomans, the local music scene has responded with generosity and grace in the wake of last month’s tragedy in Moore. In the weeks since, droves of local musicians have banded together for benefit concerts and radio marathons to raise funds for the relief effort, and with extraordinary results.
06/04/2013 | Comments 0

Progress in Color — Get Well

It’s been a long, bumpy ride for Glenpool’s Progress in Color, which saw a record deal with Epic evaporate before even one record could come of it, but it’s led the outfit to where it was supposed to be.
06/04/2013 | Comments 0
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Music

Soundcheck: The Wurly Birds — Turns


Joshua Boydston August 24th, 2011  

It’s obvious The Wurly Birds want to take you back, way back. The affection for The Beatles’ perfect pop-rock ballads couldn’t be more clear, and in “Turns,” the Oklahoma City five-piece does that golden standard proud.

Its self-titled debut did much of the same, but with more subtle production and a hazy, psychedelic tone, “Turns” does it all the better.

It acts like a connect-the dots between the best and brightest of that era of rock ’n’ roll, linking The Velvet Underground (“No Disguise”) to The Zombies (“We Can’t Always Agree”) and The Kinks (“It’s Love”) to Sam Cooke (“I Should Have Been Better”). One would assume some tacky monstrosity of peace signs, free love and tie-dye, but instead, “Turns” feels plucked from some humble rock club of the ’60s rather than pieced together using some “Woodstock for Dummies” guide.

Only with musicianship so honest and outstanding could an act pull off such a feat.

Singer/guitarists Taylor Johnson and Chris Anderson take turns delivering understated lines in a sonically lush tone over impeccably tight rhythm and hooks from the rest of the gang. All in all, it’s remarkably authentic, with ne’er even a moment feeling out-of-place. “Turns” is as much a time warp as it is an album — one hatched on vinyl, of course. —Joshua Boydston

Keep up with the band by following them on Twitter and like them on Facebook.

 
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