R E V I E W S

The Big Takeover
#45 page 210
Tucker Petertil

"I had to check the CD player to see if I had inadvertently loaded the Beautiful South's latest LP, but no-this quartet is from Arizona, they just sound like a band that grew up with The Housemartins and Smiths. Singer Ansel has that sensitive English vocal style down, while guitarist/keyboardist Eddie Lebario plays all around him with beautiful melodies that we haven't heard since Vini Reilly backed Morrissey. Add the wonderful propulsion of Erris Lucas's drums and Chris Young's bass and the whole thing clicks. This is a side benefit record reviewing, having your expectations totally reversed, and finding a real gem. These guys just need to find a graphic designer equal to their great music."

Get Out
July 1-7, 1999
Music & Clubs
LocalSpins

Echo Chamber
Echo Chamber
(self-released)

Wistful songs with wistful accompaniment are the specialty of Glendale's Echo Chamber. A Smiths influence in both lyrics and sound is obvious, but that's certainly not a bad thing -- Scotland's Belle & Sebastian are milking theirs to much critical acclaim. Echo Chamber has a single-named singer in Ansel who writes melancholy songs like Last Goodbye and Empty Love for guitarist and composer Eddie Lebario to fill with the interplay of acoustic and electric guitars while Chris Young and Erris Lucas lay down the subtle rhythmic foundation on bass and drums respectively. Tunes are breezy and gentle and Ansel's fine vocal melodies glide effortlessly above them while substantive lyrics generally prevent them from wafting into cottoncandy cloudland. The production is a bit thin here, but that can't disguise the simple beauty these 10 songs are aiming for and, for the most part, hit. B+

- BY THOMAS BOND