The Deal: Charlotte’s Illicitizen independently releases its debut, self-titled CD on June 4.
The Good: It’s not easy to try and categorize the music of Illicitizen – hints of ’80s rock, dark mod, indie rock, blues, punk, folk – combined with the fact no two songs sound the same musically. “Detached” reminded me of the tone of “Hurdy Gurdy Man” – though I couldn’t decide if it was closer to Donovan or Butthole Surfers interpretation. The music retains a stripped-down, garage feeling to it, without sounding cheap or “high school.” “New New One” had the vibe of a song from the 1950s with some punk riffs thrown over the top of it. “Two Eggs Any Style” uses a bit of a reggae groove in it.
The Bad: Using a programmed rhythm section can be limiting, but the band makes the best of it. There’s not a whole lot of range in singer Eric Cavanaugh’s voice – similar to David Byrne at times (see the Talking Heads vibe of “Imagine That” – which can sound a bit repetitive.
The Verdict: The band finds a way to be unique in its approach while combining familiar elements – giving them a foothold of their own on the music scene. Illicitizen will hold its CD release party at Snug Harbor on June 4, with Beloved Binge and Mumu Tutu.
This article appears in Jun 1-7, 2010.
