"Western Civ has honed its brand of meandering and complex indie rock. Shower The People You Love With Gold is crisper than the band’s 2007 effort, Remington Steele Magnolia, and it certainly features more eclectic instrumentation (think children’s toys and metal folding chairs). Still, the album adheres largely to Western Civ’s original sound: rambunctious guitar melodies intertwined with spasmodic yet strangely infectious vocals."
"Western CIV is a great band with great songs...Totally entertaining stuff. Recommended. (Rating: 5+++)"
Western Civ has linked up with veteran producer Mitch Easter (R.E.M., Superchunk, Pavement) in their new home state of North Carolina. The indie foursome will commence recording their third record in May 2008 under Easter's guidance at his Fidelitorium Studios in Kernsville.
"These raucous indie rock tunes are as intricate as they are infectious"
"Good bands, like good ideas, can come out of anywhere. And this Alabama band is proof that one anywhere is as good as another anywhere when it comes to transforming good ideas into good sounds."
Floc members, Western Civ have finished laying down the tracks for their new record and will be returning to the studio to mix in June. Visit westerncivrock.com or join the Western Civ group to stay up to date. You'll want to be one of the people that can say, "I was listening to them way before they were everybody's favorite band".
"...the words are the least consequential part of "American Pines," which segues from an exuberant rocker into atmospheric moodiness..."
Western Civ - Shower the People you Love with Gold
Submitted by Damian Leslie on Mon, 03/16/2009 - 23:34
They may well express the idea that they want to shower you with expensive gifts, but really, what Western Civ want to do is create a whirlwind of noise around your head. You see, this isn’t so much the arrival of someone pulling up to your door with a truckload of precious metals, but rather the sound of a cyclone approaching your wooden shack. One listen and you could be floating off to the land where the horses are of a different colour. And, as Dorothy found out, it’s a lot more colourful on the other side.
Shower the People… is a cracking record. The fact that Western Civ are a three piece (although they get by with a little help from a couple of friends) helps as it keeps things refined some what. Sure, they wander around all over the place within their songs, with some nice extended jam sequences, but even then everything seems well controlled and focused – even when they add what sounds like somebody tapping wine glasses into the mix. What you end up with is something that fans of Yo La Tengo will find reassuring, if not as exhilarating, and there’s a hefty selection of poptastic guitar parts that reminded me a lot of early REM, and that’s not a bad thing either. Shower the People… may not set your world on fire, but it’ll create a nice, steady glow that’ll keep you coming back for more. In other words, it’s a big, hearty stew of an album. Pass the bread will you? I’m going back in for seconds.
(About LP Remington Steel Magnolia)
"...the record reveals an honesty that is missing from many of today’s up-and-comers."
The best quality of Remington Steel Magnolia is the players’ ability to come together and achieve their specific, fuzzy sound, rather than focusing on the performance of individual members. Even the lead vocal is treated as just another instrument in the mix, which usually works in the band’s favor."
(following a reference to Superchunk) "Western Civ does that Merge flagship proud, drawing heavy influence from Pavement and Archers of Loaf."
"Welcome Alabama transplants Western Civ, whose dark, chunky, post-punk churn ought to feel at home in the birthplace of Archers of Loaf and Polvo. Neither as infectious as the former nor as intricately textured as the latter, there's nonetheless a nice Wire-y insistence, characterized by the band's push and pull between jagged, staccato rhythms and ear-catching ribbons of melody. Tracks like "Secret Lives of Viceroys" move in a moody, wind-and-swoon cycle, building into satisfying, detailed tapestries."
MIDPOINT MUSIC FESTIVAL
CRITIC'S PICK: Western Civ (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Indie
Making bug-eyed, imaginative Indie Rock with wiry guitar texturing and effective, spectral melodies, Alabama-bred quartet Western Civ released its debut EP in late 2005, having spent a few years writing and recording several albums' worth of material. This past spring, the band finally leaked more material, via its debut full-length, Remington Steel Magnolia.
You'll Dig It If You Dig: Built to Spill, Modest Mouse, Pavement. (MB)
The highlight of the festival (MidPoint Music Festival in Cincinnati) was the evening's live performances. Breaking Laces, Coltrane Motion, Southeast Engine, Paper Airplane, and Western Civ were some of the standout acts.
(about Western Civ)
This band from Chapel Hill, NC, kicked off the second day of the festival in style. Combining a dual guitar attack with the versatility of a bass player and guitar player who each also play keyboards, Western Civ mixed the tonal qualities of Built To Spill and Pavement into a refined indie pop sound.
KIAC HITLINE REVIEWS 2007
A pot pourri of sound with an alterative distortion and busy confusion - While the music is on a mission to get safely through, the vocalist is much more relaxed. Most unusual indie production - JAWZ
"Western Civ Is An Undiscovered Gem You're Shocked Hasn't Been Signed Yet."..."To listen to songs from Western Civ's EP, Regent Kingfish Slumberpad, you instantly see that this is a band that's going places."
Posted on Saturday, March 04, 2006 @ 09:17:02 EST
Topic: Reviews
Artist: Western Civ
CD: Regent Kingfish Slumberpad
Home: Florence, Alabama
Style: Rock
Quote: "It might not always come out sounding civilized, but this CD is a winner -- in a strange, Pavement kind of way."
By Dan MacIntosh
Western Civ serves up plenteous disjointed rock, although its song titles might even be better than the tunes themselves. Tracks here include “There’s No 'I' in Team (But There is a 'Me'),” and the pun of “Sunday Punch.” But just what the CD title of Regent Kingfish Slumberpad means is anybody’s guess.
This disc’s sound spectrum travels from the moody guitar rock of “Stingray Blanket,” to the crazy guitar workout of “There’s No 'I' in Team,” which comes off a little bit like undisciplined Devo in some of its sections. There’s plenty of guitar feedback in various places during this six-song EP, by the way, such as during “Engine #3.”
This band may be from Alabama, but there isn’t even a hint of Southern rock here. Western Civ takes traditional rock instruments and creates experimental workouts with them. It might not always come out sounding civilized, but this CD is a winner -- in a strange, Pavement kind of way.
"Clearly, Western Civ is an Indie band that has an intriguing sound,
crafted from liberating music which conveys real emotion. Western
Civ is not afraid of introducing experimental elements into their
music which often times come across as raw, intense, and other
times, quite frankly puzzling. So if you want to investigate an
independent sound that a solid Indie band has to offer, check out
Western Civ, they are worth a listen. "
"...Next up was Western Civ. The boys from Alabama played a truly impressive set that went beyond even what we’d seen or heard from them previously. They’ve begun to work in more harmonies and moments of nuanced arrangement that build on what was already an impressive sound. And much like Gold Streets, they played some newer material that has us anxious to hear the new full-length they’re working on. Also, we were happy to learn that the band plans to move to Chapel Hill, NC after the new year, which will put them just a bit closer to New York and will hopefully make it more likely that they’ll be able to return soon."
"
They run the gambit of different grungy styles from distorted guitar, to feedback, to barely audible lyrics, but it all seems to be done intentionally, and with some merit. "Got the #" throws loads of feedback into the background, providing a backing drone for the song."
"If the EP is any indicator, their full album, "Remington Steel Magnolia," is likely to be an excellent surprise. Expect it in March/April 2007."
"Western Civ are an Indie band - and I think we're talking about deep Indie. They make music that is intriguing. ... The thing is you get such carefully thought out and crafted songs dealing with real emotion and a cathartic approach to music that it reaches you...Try reading Kafka and stop abruptly at the end of one of his long, intricate sentences - that feeling, that atmosphere, that emotional uncertainty is what Western Civ manage to reproduce in another medium."
“This track is definitely no bubble gum pop, this is real alternative rock. I would love to see these guys live. There is a raw yet well crafted quality here. I highly recommend that people check it out!”
---Khiki, indielimelightshow.com
“I highly recommend you all check out Western Civ as soon as possible, because they are amazing.”
---Tina Dacosta, posted on Combustication
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