MARK BURGESS – HENNESSEY’S (BOSTON, MA) – JULY 21, 2009
by Tim Bugbee
24 July 2009

Sometimes it pays to be in the right place at the right time, to witness something singular. Fifteen years ago by happenstance I saw JOHN VALENTIN of the Boston Red Sox turn the tenth unassisted triple play ever in major league baseball. Three days ago I was part of a select few to see a wholly unexpected gig, with an additional jaw-dropper thrown in at the end (more on that later). Most readers of The Big Takeover are more than familiar with THE CHAMELEONS, and with good reason. Of the dark, moody, guitar-driven bands which came from the UK in the late ’70s and early ’80s, they are easily near or at the top (in a self-deprecating manner, Mark rated his band as barely being in the top ten best bands of Manchester). Strong songwriting, passionate performances, intricate soundscapes…they excelled at all of these. Only cruel twists of fate prevented them to reach the full potential of their listeners. Such is the roadside litter of the recording industry, as fickle and cruel a taskmaster there is.

photo: Tinnitus Photography

Fast forward to last Thursday (July 16th), when I learned of an improbable and one-off appearance of MARK BURGESS, with THE CURTAIN SOCIETY filling the role of his band. This was like hearing that JAMIE OLIVER just nipped off to the grocer and would be by my house in an hour to cook dinner while NIGELLA gives me a back massage. Incredible! Without question my wife and I purchase advance tickets within minutes of hearing the news.

Without as much as a soundcheck or practice session, the band launches straight into “Swamp Thing,” a signature track if there ever was one. The ante was high, and the band delivered straight out of the gate, with Mark on sole vocal duties (he would play a 12 string guitar for “Less Than Human”). Aside from some early jitters, the band played a most solid backdrop to Mark’s moving vocals, which found him reaching deep within to release the inner demons. Guitarist ROGER LAVALLEE in particular had a difficult job to recreate the sound of both Reg and Dave, and did so quite well, deftly using a delay pedal when needed and ripping off leads with abandon.

photo: Tinnutus Photography

Perhaps also playing into that decision was the sculpting of the set list, which was heavy towards the early, nervy, post-punk material. “The Fan and the Bellows” and “In Shreds” were magnificent beasts, jaws red and shiny from a fresh kill. And on the slower numbers, like the aforementioned “Less Than Human” and especially on “Soul In Isolation,” Mark’s lyrics are nothing short of brilliant…quoting snippets is a bit of an overdone approach to rock criticism and wouldn’t yield an entirely accurate picture, so please check out the absolute poetry of it, it’s staggering.

As the crowded room was basking in the collective glow of a rock show with real energy and emotion, it took a marked uptick when Mark introduced an old friend of his to the stage, none other than MARTY WILLSON-PIPER of THE CHURCH. Having seen their excellent show less than three weeks ago, I was delighted to see him again as he tore into the cover of “Splitting In Two” by ALTERNATIVE TV, a live staple from Chameleon shows in the past. The night has now edged from incredible to deliciously surreal in its excellence.

photo: Tinnitus Photography

Seemingly spent, the crowd rallied Mark and the band to finish the evening with a reading of THE BEATLES‘ most psychedelic song, “Tomorrow Never Knows.” I’ve seen a lot of shows in my ~25 years of active gig-going, and this was among the most fun, heartfelt and satisfying. I’m still buzzing about it.

photos and video here http://www.bigtakeover.com/reviews/mark-burgess-hennessey-s-boston-ma-july-21-2009

Yeah, you know me by now. I get in a shoegaze feedback loop and cycle endlessly amid droning guitars. I can’t help it, I really can’t. Which leads me to The Curtain Society. Maybe shoegaze isn’t the right description but The Curtain Society definitely have been influenced by that genre and grew up in the late 80′s (1988 to be exact). And as you know, that was the time (late 80′s, early 90′s) where Shoegaze ruled the world (JAMC, MBV, Ride….). So, TCS was a baby then, their sound bordering on shoegaze with heavier leanings towards power dream pop (is there such a genre?). Well, they are back with their 2005 release (I know I am late) ‘Every Corner Of The Room’. A dream pop ride with snippets of shoegaze thrown in, quite a nice palate of music indeed. Oh, and did I mention that TCS are from Worcester, Mass.? Makes them all the better, for sure.

www.marsneedsguitars.com

The Curtain Society hale from Worcester, MA, just 45 minutes west of Boston, yet somehow in the middle of nowhere. The inspiration for Paul Simon’s “My Little Town” has needed its champions over the years, and few have done as much to promote wormtown’s music as producer Roger Lavallee. Apparently all the work he’s done with other bands, as well as his naturally world class ears, has helped broaden the pallette of The Curtain Society. Tracks such as “Diver” and “Feather” are leaps and bounds beyond anything they’ve done before. In lieu of their trademark typhoon of guitars, we find baroque pop influences, chiming Byrds-like arpeggios, New Zealand pop sparkle, and the best singing Lavallee has ever done.

(Corin Ashley, The Big Takeover magazine, Issue 58, summer 2006)

www.thebigtakeover.com

I am so pleased to be telling you that there is a new record available from The Curtain Society. I fell in love with this band many years ago, and after an EP and an amazing full length album, the band seemed to disappear. Their early works were full-on dark shoegazer brilliance; wall of sound guitars and crisp drumming that perfectly underpinned the vocals, which – amazingly – were not buried in the sonic haze. The band wrote good songs, and just happened to play them in all their noisy fury… exactly the way that bands like Ride did so long ago.

On the new release, Every Corner Of The Room, The Curtain Society boys have progressed to a more open pop sound, but have maintained the sonic edge that set them apart from so many of their contemporaries eight or so years ago. Duncan Arsenault‘s drumming is still as splendid as ever, not only moving the songs forward at each beat, but managing to sound fresh and vibrant on every song. Ron Mominee lays down solid bass grooves that help to accomplish the solid foundation on which all of these songs are built, while Roger Lavallee plays all the tricks with his guitar that recall the glory days of early ‘gazer rock. The perfect example is “Two Wonderful Stars”, with its amazingly sonic guitars and captivating loops all afloat upon a bed of rocksteady rhythm, and some of the finest use of the ride cymbal I’ve heard in ages. This is the kind of song that Swervedriver was turning out in their heyday, only a bit cleaner around the edges.

On tracks like “Chemical”, the band develops a tight groove and offsets the rhythm with interesting keyboard bits and tremeloed guitars that build tension, while the vocal production keeps the ear focused, waiting for that next important bit of information. A completely different sound comes out on “Diver”, a beautiful acoustic track that finds Lavallee’s vocals sounding much more like the old days, hitting falsetto notes effortlessly and carrying the emotion of the words to their full. The title track has a bit of a jangle-pop sound, with cleaner guitars scrubbing away underneath a more open sound that breathes a bit more relaxedly than much of the record. Getting a bit trashy near the end of the record the band pulls out all stops on the excellently produced rock track “Motorcycle Baby”. This song sits somewhere between middle era Love And Rockets and early Sparklehorse, but with a decidedly keyboard-heavy groove that moves the song along nicely. The final track, “Anchor”, could be lifted from any number of Brian Wilson productions, as the melody lines are light and airy, while the sound is definitely that of a shoegaze band gone a bit more acoustic and opening up the spectrum of sounds at their disposal.

This record breaks enough musical ground to be accessible to all but the most fickle of musical tastes, but the focus of the songs remains a somewhat slowed sonic hullabaloo that would really appeal to fans of Ride, Slowdive, The Autumns, Starflyer 59, Swervedriver, and the like. If you’re new to The Curtain Society, then here’s your plan of action: Hunt down your own copies of the band’s earlier releases, 1995′s Inertia and 1996′s Life Is Long, Still. Then you can make an able comparison on your own and begin to realize exactly the type of talent that has lain hidden from so many for so long. But know that you’ve read this review, you have no reason to not find this new record, at the very least, and get a glimpse of what is still possible outside the sphere of top 40 rock.

-Embo Blake

www.hybridmagazine.com

Curtain rises again with new CD
By Scott McLennan T&G Entertainment Columnist

The Curtain Society is easily one of the more familiar names to those who follow music coming out of Worcester, and nothing physically has changed about the band since early 1994 when Duncan Arsenault signed on as drummer alongside bass player Ron Mominee and guitarist Roger Lavallee, who charts the birth of the band back to some songs he wrote in 1988.

“We haven’t changed our name or our members,” Arsenault said during a recent sit-down with the band to discuss the group’s new album, “Every Corner of the Room.” “But this album is not by that same band.”

How could it be? About 10 years have passed since The Curtain Society released its last full-length, “Life is Long, Still,” during which time each member of the band grew musically, personally and professionally. Yet rather than outgrow the boundaries of a rock band with sharp pop sensibilities and progressive sonics, it seems the members simply let the band grow along with them.

“We’ve been together so long that being in this band is just part of who I am. Every new thing that happens to us redefines what we are as a band. This record doesn’t have as much to do with the last album as it does with all the things we’ve been through since the last album,” Lavallee said. “I suppose you don’t stay around as long as we have without reinventing yourself.”

And reinvention began immediately after The Curtain Society saw “Life is Long, Still” fail to live up to the members’ expectations. When that record came out in the headier days of alternative rock and new sounds were supplanting grunge’s lock on modern rock, many saw The Curtain Society as the naturals to break out of Worcester and onto the national scene.

Yet when that promise did not pan out, The Curtain Society did not undergo radical revision, instead raising its own standards, convinced that its progressive pop leanings held appeal beyond indie-rock obsessives and local followers. “We are convinced that this is something for normal people if they get exposed to it. The trick is how to get it to them without the backing of a major (record) label,” Lavallee explained.

So the band has been hitting creative Web sites that promote independent music, and through its publisher in New York City landed a couple of songs in the daytime soap opera “Days of Our Lives.” It’s all forward motion, according to the band.

But the band is not forgoing the good ol’ fashioned record release show. The Curtain Society celebrates the release of “Every Corner of the Room” Saturday at the Lucky Dog Music Hall, 89 Green St., Worcester. Feathermerchants, Dirty Ticket and Gutta are also on the bill.

“Every Corner of the Room” is The Curtain Society’s most assured record yet. A few songs, particularly the Brian Wilson-invoking “Diver,” strip the band’s craft to pop essentials. And the closing run of “Not Very Long,” “Motorcycle Baby” and “Anchor” form an atmospheric suite of sparse, ruminative tunes.

Yet without jarring the flow of the 13-track disc, The Curtain Society also lets loose the guitar squalls, bass rumbles and rhythmic soundscapes essential to the album’s freshness. The album’s oldest tunes — “Beautiful Song” and “Two Wonderful Stars” — remain its catchiest and both are tight, perfectly paced numbers that fill a listener’s head without overwhelming the senses.

“Beautiful Song,” which dates back to a 1999 recording circulated locally, was the first song Lavallee wrote after the “Life Is Long, Still” disappointment started to fade. He was driving to a gig in Cambridge when he came up with the melody. He scribbled down what he could and taught Arsenault and Mominee the basics backstage at TT the Bear’s nightclub. The three hammered out the details and opened that night’s show with the song.

All agreed that the bar was set high for the ensuing album. But one of the complaints The Curtain Society had with the way “Life Is Long, Still” unfolded had to do with its being rushed to completion. So for “Every Corner of the Room,” the band lifted all deadline pressures and let the project move at its own pace.

With Lavallee having free reign at Tremolo Lounge recording studio in West Boylston as its chief recording engineer and producer, and all three members of the band pretty solid multi-instrumentalists, plus a decade’s worth of song sketches to play with, the removal of deadlines practically ensured that “Every Corner of the Room” would be a long time in the making. Oddly enough, some of the songs that made it to the album were first-take recordings. The spacey “Feather,” for example, is pretty much the demo version of the song that Arsenault posted on the Web for curious fans long before the album was completed.

Yet one of the benefits of being a band for so long is that the intuition among the members of The Curtain Society is as sharply honed as the musical skills, so when Mominee and Arsenault told Lavallee that “Feather” was finished, he was smart enough to listen.

That bond was ever so apparent during a recent gig by the band at the Grafton Inn. Though the audience was stacked with musicians who are friends and frequent side-project collaborators with The Curtain Society, nobody joined the band on stage during its riveting set. An additional person would have been a trespasser, toppling the delicate balance achieved among the players.

“We know what it takes to make the songs sound good,” Lavallee said. “Ron is more than the bass player. Duncan is more than the drummer. I am more than the guitar player and the singer.”

Arsenault elaborated.

“The fourth member of the band is the song,” Arsenault said. “And we don’t want to piss him off.”

telegram.com

Northeast Performer
March 2006

The Curtain Society — Every Corner Of The Room
Recorded by the Curtain Society at Tremolo Lounge

Worcester’s Curtain Society have returned to demonstrate that their hometown scene has more to offer than over-the-top hard rock and metal. Every Corner Of The Room is the band’s third full-length, and their first in almost ten years. The three-piece band crafts well-orchestrated, spacious rock songs that display a maturity and attention to detail that comes from years and years of playing together.

The 13 songs rely on textured guitars, understated yet melodic bass and tasteful drumming, overlayed with swirling electronic flourishes and plenty of studio effects. The band’s sound falls squarely within the context of mid-tempo modern rock, relying primarily on standard verse/chorus structures and plenty of vocal harmonies to carry the melodic hooks. There are also a handful of tracks that consist of only one or two parts, and serve more to enhance the mood of the album, rather than really standing on their own. The Curtain Society is strongest when they rock out a little, as on “Cave In” and “Slowberry,” the album’s highlights. While they pull off the slow-and-sad vibe, sometimes their ballads tend to meander. Though not always thrilling, the album is consistently melodic, and the band is unafraid to be adventurous on occasion.

Vocalist/guitarist Roger Lavallee is also a notable engineer, spending much of his time and effort recording other bands at Tremolo Lounge, and this record serves as a showcase for the sort of sounds he can capture when time and money aren’t obstacles. Displaying an intimate understanding of the subtleties of these songs, he handles his recording console like an additional instrument, adding filters and vocal effects that enhance, rather than distract from, the relatively straightforward songs. Coupled with the strikingly clean and appealing artwork, the Curtain Society’s comeback album speaks highly of Worcester’s modern rock scene.

-Josh Hoey

www.performermag.com

“On this album The Curtain Society figure out a way to accentuate the best parts of their sound and managed to reign in the over lengthiness of past record’s songs. That’s definitely something worth celebrating.

” THE CURTAIN SOCIETY – “EVERY CORNER OF THE ROOM”
(Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by The Curtain Society at Tremolo Lounge West Boylston, MA; Mastered by Jonathan Wyner at M Works Studios Cambridge, MA)

The Curtain Society work at their own pace, whether it’s the speed at which they play their songs or release their albums. In this case they’ve waited almost a decade between albums. Much of this album sounds familiar because a few of these songs were released as singles or on compilations. That’s the case with the opener “No Wonder.” With its clanging guitars, reverb heavy drums, and distorted vocals it’s unique, but familiar enough that it could be called The Curtain Society’s signature sound. A listen to the rest of the album shows that it’s just one of their many moods. “Cave In” drifts in to a slow moving ambient groove. It’s the song with the greatest contrast between the lyrics and music as it’s the mellowest song about throwing a temper tantrum that I’ve ever heard. The production stands out on it, with guitar sounding backwards for a psychedelic effect and the vocals at times sounding close up and at others sounding many rooms away.

“Beautiful Song” and “Two Wonderful Stars” are both familiar tunes, both having been on local compilation record in the past few years. “Beautiful Song” is one of their most accessible and catchy tunes, progressing at a head nodding pace and full of spiraling guitars. Teenage Fan Club comes to mind a little. “Slowberry” has a pace that matches it’s name, and a mellow feel to it. Cerebral bands like Swervedriver come to mind, sort of like psychedelic music for people that don’t do drugs; although it works for people who do. “Two Wonderful Stars” has similar swirly guitar effects and psychedelic effects along with propulsive drums and a gleefully floating baseline , but it’s the lyrics that set it apart from the rest of the record. Though I’m overly familiar with the song it excites me every time I here it. The lyrics are of nostalgia and lamenting past dreams, but still come across as so optimistic.

“Chemical” is about as close as the Curtain Society gets to a Radiohead mindset. The beginning of it is filled with hollow hip hop sounding percussion. The high pitched guitar almost imitates a piano and lead singer Roger Lavallee’s voice sounds like it’s running through a bullhorn. “Marigold Girl” is another familiar sounding tunes that’s been around for a few years. Along with “Two Wonderful Stars” it’s the standout love song on the record. The squalling guitar and driving drums combine to make a groove you won’t be able to avoid dancing to. It’s a song that stresses the urgency of love as Lavallee reminds you to “Kiss someone, while you’re still young.”

The acoustic based “Diver” slows things down as Lavallee pulls out a falsetto voice for this sing along love song. “Feather” stands out in it’s starkness as the short tune lamenting love lost sounds like it’s backed by a sparse keyboard sound and nothing else. They bury the captivating title cut at the tale end of this record. Angular guitars kick off the tune that some how has as much an alt-country feel to it as an alt-rock one. The spacey effects are all there, but Ron Monimee’s lackadaisical bass lines and Duncan Arsenault laid back, but captivating drumming style conjures visions of Midwestern plains as much as urban angst. It drifts seamlessly into “Not Very Long,” a soft acoustic tune that’s backed with violins and orchestral sounding horns.

The Curtain Society hit the home stretch with “Motorcycle Baby,” kicking off the tune with oddly recorded hip hop break beats and a wash of guitars that soar into other worldly noises. Lavallee’s echoing vocals bring the ’90s Manchester scene to mind without sounding like any one vocalist in particular. While the Curtain Society occasionally run in to the problem of lingering on a little too long, when “Motorcycle…” ends I’m left saying, “Hey – what happened, I wanted to hear more of that?” “Anchor” makes for a pleasant finale and while it goes on over five minutes, on the last song it’s allowed. “Who’s rule is that?,” you may ask. I don’t know, I just figured that if someone keeps listening to the very end, they’re true blue fans who will be OK with however it ends. On this album The Curtain Society figure out a way to accentuate the best parts of their sound and managed to reign in the over lengthiness of past record’s songs. That’s definitely something worth celebrating.

www.wormtown.org

The Curtain Society’s newest disc, Every Corner Of The Room is solid end to end, and is a work that plays best when listened to as such. The songs are woven together so tightly, with sounds so perfectly and subtly varied, that it is nearly impossible to skip a single track as you meander through the entire work. Indie pop rock at it’s best with catchy hooks and shades of Radiohead at times, Every Corner Of The Room will take over your CD player for weeks on end.

Stand Out Tracks: Two Wonderful Stars, Every Corner Of The Room, Feather

mixtapedaily.com

By: Joseph McCombs

I’ve got high hopes for the Worcester, MA-based Curtain Society, a threesome channeling the spirits of ‘80s modern rock. With chiming guitar strums and hummable falsettos decorating their backdrop, they sound like far more than three people at any given time — always a welcome attribute. “Restorationist,” a friend described their sound, and I can’t think of a more apt term: they’re restoring the sound of the Golden Age of modern rock (Church, Cure et al) and sounding delightful in the process. The drum fills and lead axe flourishes are designed but not mechanized, the lines and themes are accessible but not simplistic, and the vocals are refreshingly free of whining and growling. I’d be even more enamored if they wrote actual refrains for their songs, but I’m quite satisfied with what I hear here.

www.starpolish.com

Northeast Performer Magazine April 2002
-Adam Crepeau

The Curtain Society was formed during the period of time we have come to refer as the “late 80′s and early 90′s.” The British noise rock scene had been fully integrated with the college radio scene. The Jesus & Mary Chain had released Psychocandy a few years earlier and the genre known as Shoegazing was gaining steam. The Curtain Society was born in 1988 during this tumultuous period. Fans were eager to gobble up the wall of noise and watch their musical heroes stand stock-still while hammering out love song after love song underneath layers of guitars and feedback. As it stands, the Society has retained much of it’s love for noise but has organized the music, stripped off a few layers, and geared the music toward today’s college radio listener. “Two Wonderful Stars” begins with a guitar loop and launches into a smooth rhythm of guitars reminiscent of early Hum. “Beautiful Song” is essentially more crazy guitar and feedback held together with a catchy chord progression and a solid bassline. “Marigold Girl” uses The Curtain Society’s indoor voice and focuses on nice vocal harmonies and is content with sounding like pop band infused with a desire to get noisy. “Motorcycle Baby” has a unique flavor to it. It loops a fuzzed-to-hell drumbeat, drops in a few guitar drones and leaves you with a musical progression to the mid-90′s when everyone felt the need to get a little funky.

This four-song sampler was circulated as what-to-expect piece while the Society puts the finishing touches on their third full-length LP. It’s hard to figure out where the Curtain Society is going with the selections they chose on this EP. If they have more songs in the vein of “Motorcycle Baby,” the forthcoming long-player could be an instant classic.