11-03-2012, 12:35
online listen
late night show appearance peaked an interest
didn't pan out
damn close though, just missing the mark for the list
vocals sort of remind me of that Gotye guy
the clip, what a stupid video
1.6 from me and a converted 2.4 from the pros at allmusic
from the album - Heavy Metal
White Rabbits - Heavy Metal - Official Video - YouTube
released Mar 6th, 2012
![[Image: r70173fvg7p.jpg]](http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drr700/r701/r70173fvg7p.jpg)
Bio - from allmusic
At first, it's easy to mistake the White Rabbits for just another set of New York City dance-rock hipsters in the
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah tradition, but a second look reveals a quirkier and more rewarding aesthetic. A sextet
featuring two drummers and a piano player, the White Rabbits refer to their music as "honky tonk calypso," and
their cheerful blend of calypso, reggae and ska rhythms, plus secondhand music hall influences and big pop hooks,
strongly recalls vintage Madness circa "Our House" and the moodier, more experimental side of the Specials and Fun
Boy Three, via Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. The White Rabbits began in Columbia, MO, in 2004, when college students
Greg Roberts and Stephen Patterson bonded while working at a local record store. Moving to New York in 2005,
Roberts (vocals and guitar) and Patterson (vocals, piano and percussion) fleshed out the White Rabbits with
guitarist Alex Even, bassist Adam Russell and dual drummers Matt Clark and Jamie Levinson. Signing with Say Hey
Records in the U.S. and Young Turks Records in Great Britain, the White Rabbits connected with hot New York indie
producer Chris Zane (Asobi Seksu, Les Savy Fav) to record their debut album Fort Nightly. Preceded by the dramatic
first single "The Plot," Fort Nightly was released in the summer of 2007. For their second album, the band teamed
up with Spoon's Britt Daniel as producer; after recording in early 2009, It's Frightening was released that spring.
White Rabbits worked with frequent Spoon collaborator Mike McCarthy on 2012's Milk Famous, who helped the band take
its sound in a darker, heavier direction.
Album Review - from allmusic
When White Rabbits wanted to move away from the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink sound of their debut Fortnightly,
they recruited Spoon's Britt Daniel to streamline their music, and the results, It's Frightening, sometimes
followed a little too closely in Daniel's footsteps. This time, the band ventures out a bit farther, working with
frequent Spoon producer Mike McCarthy on Milk Famous, which does a more convincing job of putting the band's own
stamp on these songs. Unsurprisingly, some of Spoon and McCarthy's favorite touches -- driving pianos, double-
tracked vocals, and rockabilly-tinged reverb -- are present and accounted for here, but the overall sound is
slicker and somehow subtler than before, with a new wave sheen to songs like the sleek "Temporary" that leans more
toward the likes of the French Kicks, Phoenix, or Two Door Cinema Club than the unexpected curves and raw edges
that Daniel and company throw at their listeners. Thanks to McCarthy's collaboration, Milk Famous' songs boast
interesting flourishes everywhere, especially on the deceptively named opening track "Heavy Metal," which guides
the ear from a swirling keyboard loop to manicured feedback to the busy bassline and back again. At times, the
sonic details threaten to overwhelm the actual songs; it takes a few listens for the band's clever songwriting to
stake an equal place in listeners' memories, but once it's in there, White Rabbits' moody, paranoid pop is hard to
shake. "I'm Not Me," "Everyone Can't Be Confused," and "I Had It Coming" are particularly pithy highlights, while
"It's Frightening," an abstract ballad adrift on oceans of rippling pianos, is moving because of what it doesn't
say. Though It's Frightening might have had a few more immediately accessible moments than Milk Famous, the sonic
growth and confidence White Rabbits display here prove they're moving in the right direction.
Track Listing
1. Heavy Metal
2. I'm Not Me
3. Hold It to the Fire
4. Everyone Can't Be Confused
5. Temporary
6. Are You Free
7. It's Frightening
8. Danny Come Inside
9. Back for More
10. The Day You Won the War
11. I Had It Coming
late night show appearance peaked an interest
didn't pan out
damn close though, just missing the mark for the list
vocals sort of remind me of that Gotye guy
the clip, what a stupid video
1.6 from me and a converted 2.4 from the pros at allmusic
from the album - Heavy Metal
White Rabbits - Heavy Metal - Official Video - YouTube
released Mar 6th, 2012
Bio - from allmusic
At first, it's easy to mistake the White Rabbits for just another set of New York City dance-rock hipsters in the
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah tradition, but a second look reveals a quirkier and more rewarding aesthetic. A sextet
featuring two drummers and a piano player, the White Rabbits refer to their music as "honky tonk calypso," and
their cheerful blend of calypso, reggae and ska rhythms, plus secondhand music hall influences and big pop hooks,
strongly recalls vintage Madness circa "Our House" and the moodier, more experimental side of the Specials and Fun
Boy Three, via Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. The White Rabbits began in Columbia, MO, in 2004, when college students
Greg Roberts and Stephen Patterson bonded while working at a local record store. Moving to New York in 2005,
Roberts (vocals and guitar) and Patterson (vocals, piano and percussion) fleshed out the White Rabbits with
guitarist Alex Even, bassist Adam Russell and dual drummers Matt Clark and Jamie Levinson. Signing with Say Hey
Records in the U.S. and Young Turks Records in Great Britain, the White Rabbits connected with hot New York indie
producer Chris Zane (Asobi Seksu, Les Savy Fav) to record their debut album Fort Nightly. Preceded by the dramatic
first single "The Plot," Fort Nightly was released in the summer of 2007. For their second album, the band teamed
up with Spoon's Britt Daniel as producer; after recording in early 2009, It's Frightening was released that spring.
White Rabbits worked with frequent Spoon collaborator Mike McCarthy on 2012's Milk Famous, who helped the band take
its sound in a darker, heavier direction.
Album Review - from allmusic
When White Rabbits wanted to move away from the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink sound of their debut Fortnightly,
they recruited Spoon's Britt Daniel to streamline their music, and the results, It's Frightening, sometimes
followed a little too closely in Daniel's footsteps. This time, the band ventures out a bit farther, working with
frequent Spoon producer Mike McCarthy on Milk Famous, which does a more convincing job of putting the band's own
stamp on these songs. Unsurprisingly, some of Spoon and McCarthy's favorite touches -- driving pianos, double-
tracked vocals, and rockabilly-tinged reverb -- are present and accounted for here, but the overall sound is
slicker and somehow subtler than before, with a new wave sheen to songs like the sleek "Temporary" that leans more
toward the likes of the French Kicks, Phoenix, or Two Door Cinema Club than the unexpected curves and raw edges
that Daniel and company throw at their listeners. Thanks to McCarthy's collaboration, Milk Famous' songs boast
interesting flourishes everywhere, especially on the deceptively named opening track "Heavy Metal," which guides
the ear from a swirling keyboard loop to manicured feedback to the busy bassline and back again. At times, the
sonic details threaten to overwhelm the actual songs; it takes a few listens for the band's clever songwriting to
stake an equal place in listeners' memories, but once it's in there, White Rabbits' moody, paranoid pop is hard to
shake. "I'm Not Me," "Everyone Can't Be Confused," and "I Had It Coming" are particularly pithy highlights, while
"It's Frightening," an abstract ballad adrift on oceans of rippling pianos, is moving because of what it doesn't
say. Though It's Frightening might have had a few more immediately accessible moments than Milk Famous, the sonic
growth and confidence White Rabbits display here prove they're moving in the right direction.
Track Listing
1. Heavy Metal
2. I'm Not Me
3. Hold It to the Fire
4. Everyone Can't Be Confused
5. Temporary
6. Are You Free
7. It's Frightening
8. Danny Come Inside
9. Back for More
10. The Day You Won the War
11. I Had It Coming
