The Phoenix Network:
 
 
 
About  |  Advertise
 
Music
CD Reviews  |  Classical  |  Download  |  Live Reviews  |  Music Features  |  New England Music News

The Morning Benders

Talking Through Tin Cans | + 1
By DAVID BOFFA  |  May 6, 2008
3.0 3.0 Stars
bendersinside1
A cursory glance at the Morning Benders’ diminutive frontman, Chris Chu (who doesn’t look a day older than 16), could hint that this Berkeley-based indie-pop quartet are twee-pop all-stars, but that would be a mistake. The songwriting on Tin Cans, their debut LP, sounds more contemporaneous with Abbey Road–era Lennon and McCartney than fellow Berkeleyites Go Sailor: simple love songs are accompanied by tight four-chord acoustic-guitar passages, hooky electric leads, simple 4/4 beats, and the occasional backing piano riff. Chu’s vocals are more bittersweet than any Beatles love song — he confesses to crying all night on “Heavy Hearts,” a song about getting over a bad break-up, and seeing love “kick a man while he’s down” on “I Was Wrong” — but the Benders write their songs in McCartney-esque structures: “Crosseyed” shares similar chord progressions with “She Came In Through the Bathroom Window.” It’s an ageless template that works well here.
Related:
  Topics: CD Reviews , The Morning Benders , The Morning Benders , The Beatles
  • Share:
  • RSS feed Rss
  • Email this article to a friend Email
  • Print this article Print
Comments

Today's Event Picks
Plus 2 more >>
ARTICLES BY DAVID BOFFA
Share this entry with Delicious

 See all articles by: DAVID BOFFA

MOST POPULAR
RSS Feed of for the most popular articles
 Most Viewed   Most Emailed 
HOT TOPICS
 More Topics . . .
LATEST SLIDESHOWS

All Slideshows



Friday, January 09, 2009  |  Sign In  |  Register
 
thePhoenix.com:
Phoenix Media/Communications Group:
TODAY'S FEATURED ADVERTISERS
Copyright © 2009 The Phoenix Media/Communications Group