Photo by Jamie Valencour

Love Lake started as a one-man band, with singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Anders Carlson helming the process of producing its 2010 self-titled debut from start to near finish, having just a little help from his friends on drums, ukelele, and mastering. The heart and love of melody present on that project is not lost on his second album, Beachmaster, as he's added three bandmates to the mix -- Clay Sollenburger, Riley Walker, and Shaughn McCurdy, who all share vocal duties with Carlson. The big difference with this new project? It most definitely takes Love Lake out of the territory of navel-gazing solo act, and into the domain of true rock band.

It may not have been their intention, but they've stumbled onto a sound with this record that seems it could've been recorded in a garage belonging to one of the Wilson brothers or that of cousin Love... at some point between when it was all surfboards and girls, and when too many drugs, drownings, Stamos, and an egomaniacal Mike Love had to go and ruin everything. In advance of their record release show this Sunday at the 7th Street Entry, Gimme Noise caught up with Carlson to discuss the transition from solo act to four-piece, the magic of live-take recording and breakfast burritos, and recording under heavy influence of Coke -- the kind that comes in a red can, mind you.

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Photo courtesy of the artist

Since its premature demise 20-some years ago, the television series Twin Peaks has found new fans too young to remember the show's brief broadcast run. Devoted viewers now host festivals and write fan fiction, but one thing that's been relatively static is Angelo Badalamenti's evocative score. From Laura Palmer's memorable theme to hours of moody incidental moments, the score set the tone for the surreal series.

Now, local jazz trio Bookhouse have turned the songs into one of the Twin Cities' best jazz albums in recent memory. The double LP, 45rpm Ghostwood explores Badalamenti's score -- and several themes from the 1992 prequel, Fire Walk with Me -- from several angles, including cool jazz, a retro Mad Men approach, and the free forms of '70s ECM jazz albums by artists like Paul Motian and Dave Holland.

Gimme Noise spoke to Bookhouse bassist Josh Granowski, drummer/keyboardist Chris Hepola, and multi-instrumentalist Paul Fonfara -- who have ties with Painted Saints, Jack Klatt's Cat Swingers, and the Poor Nobodys -- to find out if there would be pie at Friday's release show, and how the project came together.

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Photo by Jeremiah Satterthwaite

Deleter is that enigma that can't be categorized. The Minneapolis group has released a single each week during the month of March for their EP A/B Series. The new album constantly keeps the listener on their toes, incorporating slivers of sound that come and go, recognizable, yet mutating before they are heard again. In short: brilliant and inventive.

Gimme Noise spoke with the band midway through their release month and before their show at Hell's Kitchen on Friday to touch on what's it's like to be an artist in the new age of the music industry and how they are adapting to it.  
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Total Trash

The name Total Trash breeds expectations that a band's output will be loud, gnarly, and ugly. Verily, these Minneapolis punks scream and thrash their way through 60-second train-wrecks about slutty girls and blowjobs. It's not music for the squeamish -- and that's meant as a compliment.

"I really like playing with feedback, that's the whole thing," says Total Trash's guitarist, Dustin McChesney. He's in an art studio with his bandmates, making screen prints of posters for their upcoming tour, which kicks off after they release their new tape, You Don't Try, Thursday at the 7th Street Entry. "I have this fucking huge amp that I can get super loud, and I got this crappy guitar that just squeals." He reaches his hands out to his sides, then makes a rocking motion to imitate playing his guitar.

"A lot of people want a nice guitar that sounds great, but I like fighting my shit," he adds. "It's more fun, and it's more physical."

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It's almost closing time at the Roller Garden in St. Louis Park. A disco ball overhead spins, flashing colors around the room, where banners with snowflakes and valentines on them hang from the high, arched ceiling. There's a big, green dinosaur standing in the far corner, and as the DJ switches through songs by Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift, young girls and boys and their parents all flood out into the rink for one last go around.

Haley Bonar, sitting at a table littered with empty plates and pizza and wrapping paper, quickly laces up her roller skates. She looks at Jeremy Ylvisaker, who sits with his son on his lap, and gives a quick shrug before skating off to join the crowd. Each time Bonar comes past the table, arms outstretched, she waves and giggles.

After all, for the members of Gramma's Boyfriend, this is just your typical Sunday afternoon.

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Courtesy of Facebook

There's a certain bond between music and a listener. We can all relate to it, but everyone has a different way of expressing it. For Matt Latterell and Chuck Terhark, that way of expression is through a massive cover album.

Absolutely Cuckoo is a statewide ode to the quick-witted, New York band, the Magnetic Fields' 1999 album 69 Love Songs. (The title is self-explanatory.) Compiling a nifty spreadsheet of their friends and favorite local artists, these guys managed to acquire a cover of each love song to create their own tribute, which is available for download today. 
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Photo by Nick Olson

It's always a little jarring to hear music that expresses an emotion you've been trying to put into words for so long. Minneapolis band Southside Desire's new album Songs to Love and Die To, does just that. It is a reflection of life, introspective in the sense that it projects one thing and makes you feel another. The songs manage to be endearingly emotional, yet measured in portions by someone who is cautious to let others in.
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