album REVIEW
by Austin Kaus
Amidon Affair – 30,000 Feet Above the Sea The first thing this band made me want to do was clean my bedroom. That’s a tribute to the nostalgia for fuzzy indie rock evoked by The Amidon Affair’s debut album “30,000 Feet Above the Sea.” As a younger and substantially lessbearded man, my crap stereo once blasted music that wrapped the same focused, twangy squinting with heartfelt vocals and fuzzy guitar blankets that don’t necessarily want to be folded. The four-piece Sioux Falls group began as a simple recording project led by local experienced musicians John “Slap” Meyers (the Stallones, Tempora, il Lust, Derek Post, Roman Ships and current member of Pasque) and Matt Gedney (Fear of the Living, solo acoustic shows), morphed into a band comfortably offering solid grooves and a range of nodding opportunities. What these four indie-ns have produced are 10 distinct strings of floss that display the occasional matted thorn. Opening with the focused, yet soothing “30k,” the album stays easy to stick with, even when airy vocals often encourage the mind to get outside and stare at the sky. Some of the tracks, like “Summer’s Going to Miss You,” evoke such a feeling of sweater-gazing from the previous decade that I actually considered looking for someone to buy beer for me. On “The Amidon Song” - likely a musical essay on the 100-plusyear-old mysterious death of two early local settlers that is the
band’s namesake - I couldn’t help but long for the crackle and pop of a well-worn piece of vinyl. If the fuzz of some of the songs became literal, there are some moments that would show the Amidon animal transforming into a wet porcupine. I admit that my initial notes on “Tendency” started with “Lags,” but I was corrected minutes later when the song blasted into a tempo upshift that made me throw the pen across the room in celebration. The spacey vocals and guitar lines don’t mean that the appeal will be universal. People who don’t long for more Smashing Pumpkins-esque material might not be able to handle the sometimes Corgan-esque vocals. The group isn’t necessarily breaking new ground with this album, but the foundation and first floor of the Amidon headquarters appear to be solid. Bassist and vocalist Meyers said there’s nothing really like making music with your friends. It’s comfortable, the chemistry is there, and, most importantly, it’s not work. The attitude shows. The difference between what The Amidon Affair has done with “30,000 Feet Above the Sea” and what your silly neighbors do in their garage with Sublime covers is that the collaboration between the Amidon audio allies works. What began as a recording project has turned into a fine debut album that leaves me ready to see what comes next from the foursome. I like the fuzz, I like the feeling, and I like the future of this band. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some tidying up to do. “30,000 Feet Above the Sea” is available at Ernie November, Last Stop CD Shop, iTunes and Amazon.
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Favorites tracks: “Quit On Me” and “One Reason”.
Favorite tracks: “Polymers Are Forever,” “New Adventures”.
Favorite tracks: “Making Friends (acoustic),” “Laymen’s Terms,” and “Black Eyes (acoustic).” 20 | January 2012