If you’ve been in the Springfield music scene at all between 2005 and present day, you’re most likely familiar with Cory King, Christopher Bivens, and/or the members of Nicholas Cagematch.
If you’re NEW to the area, congratulations, you’ve just stumbled upon on of the most fun bands, full of some of the coolest and active guys in the scene. That’s not me just doing lip service, either.
When I was younger and needed a lead guitar player, Cory jumped in there and gave my own project some tasty lead guitar and euphonium parts, on top of being a music major and in like 3 other bands at the time.
Chris gave me my start in running live sound professionally by mentoring me and giving me the opportunity to take on responsibilities in the local community.
While I have the MOTIVATION to fluff up this album, I think that even a cursory listen will show that I’m being honest about the music contained here.
I was really super stoked to hear that these guys have re-released new recordings of classis Cory King songs in the form of this album.
Throughout the years, Cory has written a fairly huge repertoire of fun indie rock (Alt Country?) songs in the same vein as bands like Wilco but with his own (often humorous) flair. I think that this album showcases the thought, humor, and wit that was put into each song.
The album Greatest Hits Vol. I & II starts out with the (I’d call it a party) song “Too Drunk To Vote“. This is a classic Cory King song that long time fans will recognize and sing along to. New listeners will quickly be chanting the chorus right along with the band; this song and virtually every other song on this album is catchy, singable, and dynamic.
Speaking of dynamic songs, listeners will want to pay extra attention to the song “The Writer and the King“, which begins with a somber mood-setting verse, followed by a dynamic song with a beautifully and tastefully produced rock crescendo.
With a forward leaning drum beat and palm muted guitar riffs, the very next song “Buzz” has every bit of songwriting pop prowess as any of the offerings given by older Fountains of Wayne, The Replacements, and similar 90’s alternative college radio. The chorus of which is one of my favorite progressions on the album.
Songs like “Bear” will have you wanting to go for a drive in the country, singing along and bobbing your head with the music.
Another fun dynamic song is “Brakeman Blues” which pulls from that classic fast-blues-rock style that gave us the hit song Ballroom Blitz and it does it very well, in a genuine and fun way. The dual guitar solo is a tasty facemelting snippet that gives way to a dynamic break that turns back round to the driving rhythm that carries the tune through.
Fans of air drumming are going to have a hard time sitting still for songs like “Get It Right” which has a very relatable chorus line of “one of these days I’m gonna get it right…”
“Ten Years” is another classic pop rock song with a building dynamic that pics up through the song’s catchy chord progressions and choruses. This song leaves the taste of OkGo on my palette in a nice way.
Without describing every single song on this album in detail, I’ll say that this album sounds exactly like the sum of the years of playing with various musicians and influences that Cory and the guys have had throughout the years.
To many people in the scene, you may notice that this album sounds like home as these songs have been played MANY nights where friends gathered for fun and fellowship.
That may sound cheesy to you but if you get a chance to come out and actually EXPERIENCE a Nicholas Cagematch show, you’ll see that there’s a definite vibe. This album gives only a fraction of the experience, however vivid of a fraction it is.
The band’s next show is Feb 10 at Lindbergs Bar on Commercial and Campbell with ShapeEater and Toxic Teeth!
IndieMO 