Hearts of Oak

A few years back, Jack White (White Stripes) signed Whirlwind Heat of Grand Rapids, MI as the first band on his Third Man record label. Of course, the local hype on the band was justifiably huge.

I remember the first time I saw them play Detroit. Drums, bass, keyboard, and three very spastic guys onstage. That was sometime in 1999. Keep in mind this was before spaz-tastic bands like the Blood Brothers were getting big.

Their first album, "Do Rabbits Wonder?" was a hyper yet glorious mess. The songs were all named after colors. Hearing the album, and seeing the band live, it quickly becomes obvious that they are trying to challenge us. Then in 2004, they put out an EP called "Flamingo Honey." Recorded with Brendan Benson at his Grand Studio, there are ten songs each one minute long. Does that sound like an annoying concept? It is. Especially because all of the songs have so much promise and you can hear how much the band evolved from "Rabbits."

I first heard "Flamingo Honey" just about a month ago. A friend mentioned one track in particular. I found it cheap, so I picked it up, not knowing all the tracks are only a minute long. It's a seriously good record for being so brief. That's why I got so excited when I realized there was a new one coming out.

As the band says in the bio on their site, if you can't take The Heat, get your ass out the kitchen. We on a mission.

It's true! The hyper spastic (yet glorious) mess that was their first album has been refined to something rather funky. On "Types of Wood" the basslines are slippery, the drums are tight, the Moog is funky. Okay, so maybe this is funk music. I didn't want to say that, but it fits. No, it really isn't funk, but the elements are there. Better yet, think of earlier Beck. Not the folk stuff, but the funky stuff. In fact, The Heat toured with Beck just before releasing this album. Quite appropriate. Click here to check out the first single, "Reagan."

And, they're on tour soon with Be Your Own Pet:

05/20-Neighborhood Festival w/ Moving Units-Long Beach, CA
06/01-Southgate House-Newport, KY
06/02-Subterranean-Chicago, IL
06/03-Beechland Ballroom-Cleveland, OH
06/04-Little Brother's-Columbus, OH
06/06-Magic Stick-Detroit, MI
06/09-Pioneer Arts Center-Easthampton, MA
06/10-Maxwell's-Hoboken, NJ
06/12-Knitting Factory-New York, NY
06/21-Walter's-Houston
06/22-Emo's-Austin
06/24-The Brick House-Phoenix, AZ
06/25-The Glass House-Pomona, CA
06/27-Troubadour-Los Angeles
06/28-Bottom Of The Hill-San Francisco
06/30-El Corazon-Seattle, WA