Various Artists - The State Of Music: Volume 3 (Compilation Album Review)
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
Written by Sadie Walton
It’s not often I see a compilation album that doesn’t have the word NOW! in its title. Non pop compilation albums seem to be a little sparse on the ground at the moment, which is a shame as they can be a fantastic way of introducing the listener to potential new band-crushes. So upon hearing about Choose My Music Records, which is compiling five albums featuring unsigned or underground bands from different states of the USA I jumped to download Volumes 1 and 2 (which were released in January and March 2012 respectively), prior to Volume 3 dropping.
Choose My Music is no ordinary record label. The project, State of Music, was established in 2011 to find one talented and underrated band from each American state to feature on a series of compilation albums. These would then be released one by one to raise money for the charity Camden Calling (read more about that here). It’s a project with heart, and a credit to the founder of Choose My Music, Dominik Paczco, who has been the driving force behind this. CMM has also attracted some pretty credible attention, with Cerys Matthews debuting some of the tracks on her BBC 6Music show, and the label being asked to present a showcase of its artists at the incredibly respected SWSX 2012 in Austin, Texas.
Volumes 1 and 2 featured mainly indie/folk/Americana bands and Volume 3 continues on that vein. There are some gentle acoustic tracks, such as Hotfox’s Mountain Tiger, (Hotfox hail from Indiana, in case you were wondering) which is a cheery and beautifully sung tune, with a catchy chorus that you will be humming all day. Then there is the equally bright and upbeat Fear and Fallacy… by Quiet Company (Texas), which will appeal to fans of The Feeling, having the same rocky riffs and delicately placed lyrics. Opening track Changes by They Have Hooks For Hands (South Dakota) will have fans of the Ting Tings bouncing along with this girl fronted band’s guitar based pop punk rock.
However, the stand-out tracks are those which leave the Americana theme well and truly alone. Top track, in my opinion, is Intimidated By Silence by Cars and Trains (from Oregon), with its clever use of simple percussion alongside brooding vocals .Cars and Trains, incidentally, head up their own artist run label, Circle Into Square (www.circleintosquare.com), which itself is a haven of independent musicians. Coming a close second is the delicate, subtle crooning of L’Anarchiste’s Iron , which delivers a mutely gothic experimental folk saga eight minutes in length, every second of which will leave you spellbound.
Generally, the tone of the album is pretty cheery, with L’Anarchiste cleverly placed in the middle of the album, creating an interlude between the otherwise easy listening artists. Volume 3, like Volume 1 and 2, is a well thought out, well produced and hugely enjoyable listening experience from start to finish – with just enough variety to hold the listeners interest, whilst offering an album which is bound to appeal to pop rock, indie, folk, Americana and acoustic fans alike.
And, even better, buying it counts as your good deed for the day. What’s not to like?
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
Choose My Music is no ordinary record label. The project, State of Music, was established in 2011 to find one talented and underrated band from each American state to feature on a series of compilation albums. These would then be released one by one to raise money for the charity Camden Calling (read more about that 
