The Orion Songbook

This month marks the release of The Orion Songbook, the debut LP from Metro Detroit's Frontier Ruckus, one of a handful of bands on the Quite Scientific label (and thus far my favorite of the bunch, with Chris Bathgate a close second). I caught their set last night at The Ark's last Take-A-Chance Tuesday of the year, and it was truly excellent. I can certainly say that I was witness to some of the finest saw-playing I have ever seen (courtesy of multi-instrumentalist Zachary Nichols).

At any given time there were between two and nine musicians on stage, playing any combination of banjo, guitar, bass, drums, trumpet, trombone, harmonica, and the aforementioned saw, and that's not to mention the lyrical content provided by lead singer/guitarist, Matthew Milia, with added harmony by Anna Burch. But still, when the stage seemed completely filled, the music was not overcomplicated or messy; it was perfectly balanced -- appropriately contrived.

I've spent a little less than 24 hours with the album, so a review is probably premature, but I will say that the band has pulled off a feat of which most veteran bands are incapable; that is, they sound as fun and interesting coming through my stereo as they did in their live act. It's absolutely a cut above the rest in the current indie market, where songwriters are spending a little too much time trying to sound like Sufjan Stevens.

You can download a full track from the album and watch a few videos here.

If you dig Frontier Ruckus, check out some of the other artists on Quite Scientific and Asthmatic Kitty.

And have a happy Thanksgiving.