Category: Lincoln Tunnel, The
Motif Magazine reviews The Lincoln Tunnel Phone This One In
The Lincoln Tunnel – Phone This One In
On their sophomore record, Phone This One In, The Lincoln Tunnel return with a digital box of left-of-the-dial toe tappers. Singer/Guitarist Christian Caldarone and the boys serve up a triple shot of the shake appeal stomp of “Bangkok,” the ’90s indie supersonic grind “Bedroom Eyes,” and the brooding “Kennedy Plaza” alone shows how the band can now expand its palette without sucking. Although I can’t help thinking when listening to the opening “Time’s Wasting,” yeah Caldarone, mine, the rest of the album grooves like the suburbs getting lit on a Friday night. They successfully nail meshing a hillbilly twang with a grunge chorus on “Interstate Interior,” and even their downer Christmas tune isn’t bad. I could have done without the closing “Start a Fire” where I don’t know if Caldarone is lyrically inspired by ’90s techno kings The Prodigy or trying to write another verse to the Billy Joel classic, but the rest of Phone This One In is pretty sweet.
The Lincoln Tunnel’s ‘Phone This One In’ review in ‘The Newp’
The Lincoln Tunnel’s ‘Phone This One In’ review in ‘The Newp’
Alternative rock’s essence is capturing an emotion that doesn’t need fancy production or flashy sounds. Just a guitar, a bass, and a rhythm section will do along with the proper amount of amplification. The Lincoln Tunnel out of Providence achieves that with their sophomore album Phone This One In, which was put out via the Warren-based label 75orLess Records on December 7. Christian Caldarone leads the cavalry with his crooning voice and raw strums on the guitar. There’s also a powerpop sheen that’s adorned within the album from start to finish.
John Menard backs up Caldarone on lead guitar while his brother Keith blends his skills on bass with Mike Tomasso’s drumming. The musical tightness exhibited throughout Phone This One In is genuinely impressive. Caldarone’s lyrics are hard-hitting and honest to the point where there’s no confusion on what he’s really singing about. It’s an unapologetic and old-school take on a style that’s been continuously evolving since the early ‘80s. The Lincoln Tunnel’s new album can be enjoyed by music lovers both young and old.
Starting the album off is “Time’s Wasting” with Caldarone shouting at the top of his lungs. “Bedroom Eyes” has a pop-rock aesthetic while also having a consistent breakbeat. It echoes the songwriting of Paul Westerberg and Robert Pollard and it also maintains a bit of originality. Fitting for the holiday season, “Stay In Bed (This Christmas)” is a conflict of nostalgia and reality. John Menard has a sweet guitar solo that shines through too.
This rad band has a show coming up at Alchemy in Providence on December 28 with Boston rock act If We Go At All and fellow locals Nate Cozzolino & The Lost Arts and The Ghosts Of Industry. While you’re at the show, get a copy of Phone This One In. It’s real rock music with a lot of heart.
Lincoln Tunnel Phone This One In
75OL-267 The Lincoln Tunnel – Phone This One In
$9.00 S&H Included
Digital download and streaming available here
Track Listing
1. Time’s Wasting
2. Bangkok Debutante
3. Bedroom Eyes
4. Kennedy Plaza
5. Change
6. Phone This One In
7. Interstate Interior
8. Stay in Bed (This Christmas)
9. Who You Gonna Believe?
10. Start a Fire
Since the release of the band’s debut record Today 2.0 in 2015, the band has played throughout Rhode Island and
Massachusetts while morphing their sound into something new and fresh yet still familiar. This is all captured on the new
record, a diverse set of songs, both aggressive and delicate, abrasive and melodic.
The Lincoln Tunnel is Christian Caldarone, John Menard, Keith Menard, and Mike Tomasso
The debut release from the Lincoln Tunnel is a mess of indie rock, Americana and mariachi horns thrown together
like a Jackson Pollock painting where against all odds, it somehow works. – M. Clarkin, Motif
“Damn, I Wear It Well” begins this epic collection of brilliant songs with a circus-like romp, replete with a
bass played like a trombone, an attenuated oompah rhythm, and some scorching guitar….“Ordinary Sky” is
elevated psyche interspersed with an irresistible cascading guitar riff…“Line My Pockets” is a mysterious
and spacy yet upbeat and surly love song… the songs are smart and the band uses instrumentals like a
good painter mixes colors for effect. Definitely a band to watch. – Francis DiMenno, The Noise New England
The Lincoln Tunnel in studio performance of ‘Phone This One In’
The Lincoln Tunnel video for ‘Friend of the Roses’
Limelight Magazine 8th Annual Online Readers Poll Now Out
Limelight Magazine has announced their 8th Annual Online Readers Poll. 75orLess nominees include Jets Can’t Land, The Lincoln Tunnel, and Outlaw in Peru (who are all competing against each other.)
Boston’s The Noise reviews The Lincoln Tunnel, Jets Can’t Land, Radio Carbon, and Gavage
RADIO CARBON – Caveman Ballads
7 tracks 75orless Records
There are no ballads on this record, although there might be some cavemen. The Troggs have influenced all punk and rock in a way, but that’s about it. This Providence band can destroy you, literally, if they want to. (The singer is a big man.) Based on my experience of seeing Radio Carbon live a few times, the only thing they want to hurt is your ears. The volume and energy is intense, and the songs and musicianship are polished but gritty. A solid release with one good song after another. It’s punk with elements of stoner and noise rock, and all that’s still good in this world.
THE LINCOLN TUNNEL – Today 2.0
75 Or Less Records
10 tracks
Christian Calderone is a smart songwriter and lyricist; one of the best around, judging from this debut effort. “Damn, I Wear It Well” begins this epic collection of brilliant songs with a circus-like romp, replete with a bass played like a trombone, an attenuated oompah rhythm, and some scorching guitar. “Big Decision” has a preening and brittle punk guitar rhythm and world-weary trailing vocals. “All Together Wrong” is lively, frantic indie rock bravado in the vein of the DBs; eminently hit-worthy. “Friend of the Roses” is a tuneful romp with an electrifying guitar-bass-drum hook and wistful trumpet filigrees courtesy of Ellen Block. “Makin’ Cents and Takin’ Vows” features liquescent guitar and is otherwise an inoffensive ballad. “Elemental Sun” features slapping drums and ingenious harmony vocals in the lead-up to the chorus. “Our Mother’s Sons” combines twangy guitar and echoey glad-making vocals with a lonesome trumpet melody. A surprisingly touching song, and Best of Show. “Ordinary Sky” is elevated psyche interspersed with an irresistible cascading guitar riff; it comes to a climax which is short and sweet. “Memphis” is a straight-ahead, paint-peeling, numinously buzzing rocker. “Line My Pockets” is a mysterious and spacy yet upbeat and surly love song. This is mostly excellent all the way through; the songs are smart and the band uses instrumentals like a good painter mixes colors for effect. Definitely a band to watch.
JETS CAN’T LAND – You Can’t Linger On
6 tracks
Some tasty retro ’9’s alt-pop from Rhode Island that you could probably seduce middle-aged chicks with, especially if you were slumming it in Providence. Very lightly psychedelic and jangly (in a non-’80s way), You Can’t Linger On will remind you of whatever obscure local indie-rock sensation you were into in 1994. Plus the lyrics are good, with MASH and ELO references and bummer lines like “Here I am watching things go bad again.” I’m not sure that I would personally listen to this regularly – I hate the ’90s except for that one song by Matthew Sweet – but if you’re still laboring under the delusion that everything was swell back when we were young and eating ramen for dinner six times a week, then this is your new favorite band.
GAVAGE – self titled
10 tracks
Gavage is a Providence punk rock group. There are catchy parts, heavy parts, and sax from Adrienne from one of the town’s best bands Downtown Boys that adds a slight undercurrent of avant garde to the rock ’n’ roll. I like that the CD comes with a lyric sheet, not many bands bother with this anymore. This is a good album to listen to as you stroll drunkenly down a dark alley, just before something crazy happens. If you make it out of that alley, you’ll want to listen to this album over and over again.
The Lincoln Tunnel – Today 2.0
75OL-212 The Lincoln Tunnel – Today 2.0
$9.00 S&H Included
Digital download is available here
1 Damn, I Wear It Well
2 Big Decision
3 All Together Wrong
4 Friend of the Roses
5 Making Cents and Taking Vows
6 Elemental Sun
7 Our Mother’s Sons
8 Ordinary Sky
9 Memphis
10 Line My Pockets
The Lincoln Tunnel is proud to announce the release of their debut record. Comprised of former members of Maria Monk, Garage Sale Picasso, and The Benedictions, The Lincoln Tunnel take their cue from the likes of The Replacements, Wilco, The Flaming Lips, and Modest Mouse. Full of big hooks, loud guitars, and a compelling songwriting, Today 2.0 is the introduction to this versatile rock and roll band.
The Lincoln Tunnel is Christian Caldarone, John Menard, Keith Menard, and Mike Tomasso.
“The debut release from the Lincoln Tunnel is a mess of indie rock, Americana and
mariachi horns thrown together like a Jackson Pollock painting where against all odds,
it somehow works.” – M. Clarkin, Motif
Motif Magazine reviews The Funcrushers and The Lincoln Tunnel
Alt-Nation: Handsome Pete and Lincoln Tunnel
Handsome Pete’s Birthday Shitshow – The Funcrushers – Self-Titled CD Release (75orLessRecords)
Longtime local music fixture Handsome Pete Lima’s annual birthday never fails to live up to its billing. This year will be no exception as it includes a self titled CD Release for Lima’s surf rock band, The Funcrushers, who no longer exist. His new surf rock band, The Anchorites, will play instead. That’s a little confusing so I contacted Handsome Pete to get the lowdown. As far as The Funcrushers CD, I’ve heard bits of the album over the years, but it was always around 4am in a practice space in Olneyville so those memories are sketchy. I feared the record was lost forever in a warehouse next to Dr. Dre’s Detox album. Happily, the lost Funcrushers record has resurfaced and is even better than I remembered. The all instrumental record is very much in the style of Man or Astro-Man? as far as spacey surf punk. Highlight tracks include the sprawling “Rampart,” “Seamantics” and the soothing “Fond Farewell.” The whole album is something one can listen to on repeat because it just has a great chill atmosphere for sunny days.
Marc Clarkin: There are a lot urban legends surrounding The Funcrushers. Who is in the band and how long have they been together?
Handsome Pete Lima: The Funcrushers are myself and Jesse Roy, who I’ve known since the 5th grade. We recorded the record in November 2008, and we only played together for maybe 6 months before that. There were never any plans for it to be an active project; initially we just wanted to document what we had written and I wanted to try my hand at recording and mixing. The entire process was kind of a nightmare up until this past year or so, when I finally learned the “right” way to approach mixing. Somehow a rough mix leaked and since then there has been great speculation that this was the greatest unreleased surf album ever created by two guys from Seekonk.
MC: Some call this record a very political instrumental record. Did it start out that way?
HPL: If you listen closely to the lyrics on this album you would be hard pressed to disagree with any of our political leanings. We are all things to all people
MC: I believe it was Cream magazine that likened the record as the surf rock answer to Dr. Dre’s Detox and GnR’s Chinese Democracy. Do you think that’s fair?
HPL: During the 6+ years it took to finish the record, I can totally relate. The only thing I can say for sure is that it’s better than Chinese Democracy, and I’ve never even heard it.
MC: Oh it was the best thing GnR ever put out! Who is in The Anchorites and how would you describe the sound?
HPL: The Anchorites are myself and Kevin Bowden on guitars, Bobby Gregory on drums, and Chris Monti on bass. The sound is based on the traditional surf rock style, but it’s a definitely a little rough around the edges. Man or Astro-Man? is obviously a huge influence along with Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet and maybe some of the twang of the Flat Duo Jets thrown in there.
MC: What are The Anchorites’ upcoming plans? And what is it about the band that has publications like The Source magazine saying that The Anchorites are far superior to any band today?
HPL: We’ve already started working on writing tracks for our debut EP. I’m hoping to have it out sometime before 2022. We just wanna show people that it takes a little more than reverb to have a “surf” sound. After such high praises, I’m really hoping they invite us to the Source awards. I wanna take a selfie with Diddy.
Handsome Pete’s Birthday Shitshow featuring performances by Teazer and The Anchorites will rock The Met Café on August 21. The show will also be your first chance to get the new CD by The Funcrushers.
The Lincoln Tunnel – Today 2.0 (75orLess Records)
The debut release from the Lincoln Tunnel is a mess of indie rock, Americana and mariachi horns thrown together like a Jackson Pollock painting where against all odds, it somehow works. On Today 2.0, Lincoln Tunnel come out swinging like Mike Tyson with the frenetic “Damn, I Wear It Well,” which has the gall to sound like a cross between The Gun Club and the Jim Carroll Band. “Big Decision” and “All Together Wrong” are rockers that get bailed out by big infectious choruses, but otherwise would have no redeeming value. The horns on “Friend of the Roses” invoke bands like Mariachi El Bronx, but I can’t picture singer/guitarist Christian Caldarone being able to pull off a sombrero. On “Memphis” they have the nerve to sound like pre-sober Replacements — think “Left of the Dial” on meth. “Makin’ Cents & Takin’ Vows” and “Line My Pockets” turn to Americana folk. Begrudgingly, I’ll admit to really liking the lyrics on the latter. “Ordinary Sun” was probably a mistake because it is just an all around good tune with a soaring skyscraper hook.
75orLess Records presents a triple CD release show featuring new biscuits and performances by Lincoln Tunnel, Karma Rocket, and Groundhawgs. As an added bonus, Jets Can’t Land will also rock the house and it all goes down at The Parlour on August 29.
– See more at: http://motifri.com/handsomepete2015/#sthash.wNDamMc8.wf5RMH6g.dpuf