Review: "Rise Ye Sunken Ships" by We Are Augustines

We Are Augstines' "Rise Ye Sunken Ships" receives
a physical release August 23rd on Oxcart Records.
Click above to listen (requires Spotify).

Deriving its name from the birth months of members Billy McCarthy and Eric Sanderson, We Are Augustines have crafted a sonically rich and emotionally dense record for their sophomore effort. We Are Augustines were formed from the ashes of the band Pela, whose album Anytown Graffiti wound up on more than 30 "Best Of" lists back in '07, including Yahoo! and indie mainstays KEXP out of Portland. KEXP even placed it at #112 of the best 903 albums of all time. Two of the primary members of Pela (the Augustines) moved on to form this band after some fairly intense professional and personal struggles, audible now in the straight-forward intensity of We Are Augustines' "Rise Ye Sunken Ships."


This album will grab you, immediately, and not request, but demand your attention. The quick build of "Chapel Song" with its persistent beat and urgent, dysphoric vocals draws you in to the record and to the stories contained within. This song sets the tone of the album in a large way: disquieting, intense, personal, well-orchestrated and executed to perfection. On the flip side of the coin, this song (as the album) languishes lyrically at points, but not to the level that would leave you unable to fall in love with it. In fact, sometimes when the language and rhyming schemes are at their simplest, you are able to hear the core of the song, and find that its simplicity has a positive correlation with its ardor.

Myxem Picks 'Em: Week of 08/22/11

This week's Myxem Picks 'Em features another diverse array of the tracks that've been in heavy rotation here at Myxem, from North Carolina's Carolina Chocolate Drops and their homespun bluegrass "Cornbread and Butterbeans" to the glitchy mellow electronica of Baths' "Lovely Bloodflow." Some of the newer tracks include We Are Augustines' "Strange Days" and Unknown Mortal Orchestra's "FFunny FFriends" and "Strangers Are Strange." Click the banner above to listen to this week's playlist, only on Spotify.

Other artists:
The War on Drugs | Radiohead | Nightlands | Generationals | Darwin Deez | The Rosebuds | The Extra Lens | The Rural Alberta Advantage | Wesley Wolfe

Editor's note: The last five tracks, from The Extra Lens to The Rosebuds are Terry's picks for the week. Due to unavoidable technical issues, Kyle had to upload his picks.