[Repost from StarNews Online; by John Staton, November 3, 2020]
A ton of compilation albums featuring Wilmington bands have been released over the years and, if we're being honest, they've been largely forgettable and of widely varying quality. The latest effort in the venerable comp tradition, however, is also one of the more notable. In fact, it's one of the better local comps in recent memory, maybe even the best ever, a mix of solid song craft, rockin' vibes and excellent production values.
Born of this summer's Black Lives Matter protests, the album "GROW: A Compilation in Solidarity with Black Lives Matter," was released Oct. 30 by Wilmington-based indie label Fort Lowell Records. It was masterminded by label founder James Tritten, who said the project was spurred by his desire to show support for the #BLM movement. Proceeds go to the Wilmington chapter of the NAACP, hence the title.
"GROW" is currently available on vinyl at Wilmington shops including Gravity Records, Yellow Dog Discs, The Record Bar and Modern Legend, as well as for streaming or purchaseonSpotify, iTunes, Bandcamp, Amazon Music and other online platforms.
Usually, compilations seek to the capture the zeitgeist of a town's music scene, kind of an aural snapshot of a moment in time. "GROW" is a little different, partly because there's not really a scene at the moment since live shows are on on hold due to COVID, but also because the bands represented are a mix of current and former acts. A couple of had their heydays in the mid-2000s and others haven't been based out of Wilmington for more than a decade.
Lyrically, not much stands out as being explicitly themed to the #BLM movement, and indeed many, if not most of the songs either predate the movement or seem to have been written with other subjects in mind. At any rate, "GROW" does showcase a good mix of styles, from classic and retro rock to dreamy pop and even some old-school skate punk.
The album leads off with the lilting drone of Tracy Shedd's "Holding Space," with its mantra-like lyrics hitting the album's theme and exhorting us to "make it a better world."
"Come on Over" from Pinky Verde -- aka Wilmington songwriter Heather Jensen -- slinks in with low-slung cool before breaking out into a sublimely noisy, blissed-out finale. Kicking Bird's "What Would All the Other Girls Say (If They Knew What I Was Doing)" is a fantastic, garage-y nod to the early '60s girl-group sound. And the newest band on the comp, Neon Belly, kicks things into high gear with the propulsive "The Boys Are Alright" and its disdainful lyrics about being "never man enough."
The veterans of Wilmington's rock scene are well-represented. The Love Language, who started out here before going on sign with Durham's Merge Records, deliver one of frontman Stu McLamb's trademark melodies buried under a wall of pounding cool. Summer Set, who hit their Wilmington peak around 2004 or 2005, offer the soft banger "Comfortable Town," which calls to mind the pleasures and pitfalls of living in a comfy burg like the Port City.
Ironically, for an inherently political record, the remix of The Rosebuds song "Get Up Get Out" from their 2007 album "Night of the Furies" -- this is the band's first new release since breaking up a few years back -- is the most direct call to action on "GROW." Wrapped inside an effervescent, celebratory melody, Ivan Howard sings of joining together to fight for light: "Get up get out, and fill the streets/ Let's dance in the ash of the big chimneys/ I know it's late, but meet us there/ We need our friends everywhere."
Sean Thomas Gerard of Wilmington band Onward, Soldiers captures the sublime folk rock he's known for on "Strange & Electrifying," a song driven by acoustic strums that amps up unto into a throbbing classic rock chorus.
Longtime Wilmington musician Kenyata Sullivan (Pandora's Lunchbox) has a delightful little track in the goofily bombastic yet endearing "Amphibious," using an electronic vibe to riff on an otherworldly tryst of some kind.
One of Wilmington's best and most seldom-seen acts is Life of Saturdays -- led by lyricist/vocalist John Jeremiah Sullivan and musician Nick Laudadio, I don't think they've ever played a live show in town -- and their pulsing rocker "That Kind of Love" cuts a deep, dark groove.
"GROW" also highlights up-and-coming Wilmington bands, including Lauds, whose remastered song "Don't Mind" is a driving dream pop gem. Team Player, among the kings of the local scene when the pandemic hit, bring the album out on an anthemic note with the Beatles-esque "Wake for You."
On the whole "GROW" is a fine record that both documents Wilmington's past and present indie rock awesomeness and supports one of the most important causes of our time.
