Mouth Reader

Mouth Reader est un groupe originaire du Tennessee qui fait d'ores et déjà partie de ces groupes qui semblent incapables de produire quelque chose de moyen, un peu comme notre nouveau chouchou interplanataire Paul Jacobs.

Le premier EP du groupe, self-titled, est paru en janvier dernier. "Inside You" nous injecte très vite la "giclée d'adrénaline" à laquelle Bret Easton tient tant. On trouve un peu de surf sur "Cult", le parfait amuse bouche avant "Crystalline Skies". Celui-ci est du genre que l'on croise rarement. Sans avoir besoin de pousser la vitesse d'exécution, Mouth Reader séduit par sa voix à la Blue Cheer. Enfin, c'est un "Alright" plus psyché qui vient apporter la touche finale : cet EP est définitivement génial.

On avait ensuite trouvé dans les deux singles de mars, "Slave" et "Uncontrollable Urge", un certain réconfort à se plonger dans un quasi stoner psychédélique. Le deuxième est particulièrement bon en ce qu'il intègre un rythme très Punk Rock. Et puis, dans un split avec le groupe Private Lives paru en septembre, Mouth Reader a passé un cap. Sur "I'm Not Me", il délivre un excellent set qui devrait ravir tous les fans des MC5. A dominante instrumentale, Mouth Reader en a fini sa mutation psychédélique à la Sultan Bathery. "Reap", achève de nous convaincre de la puissance Surf-ish du groupe. Son dernier single en date, "The Widow", se tourne vers la Pop, tout en conservant une incroyable sensation de facilité notamment avec un superbe solo. Du Garage-stoner au Psych Rock jusqu’à la Psych Pop, voilà le parcours initiatique de Mouth Reader. Et toujours, le groupe continue d'exceller dans ce qu'il produit. A ne pas en douter, Mouth Reader fera partie des révélations de l'année. Du Garage simple et efficace, tout ce qu'il devrait être. No fish all batter. - Still in Rock

Back in July, Scene contributor Lance Conzett filed an installment in our "Label Makers" series, an ongoing set of features in which we profile local independent record labels. The subject of this particular LM write-up was Ethan Rose and his Funky Frankenstein Records, the label via which Rose released Murfreesboro outfit Mouth Reader's mouth-shaped 7-inch Record Store Day single. Pretty rad, right? So what's the band's deal? What does Mouth Reader sound like?

Good question. The answer? Blown-out, lo-fi fuzz-punk with plenty of thrashing, squalling and shredding. As you can see above, Mouth Reader — a duo featuring Rose and his pal Kyle Frary — has a brand-new video for their tune "Inside You." The whole thing clocks in at just over two minutes, and the clip, which was directed by occasional Cream contributor Seth Graves, features Story Rae as a young lady who gets zapped by a UFO and, after blowing chunks, develops some pretty psychedelic powers. Graves also plays the role of a junkie with much aplomb. Enjoy, and if the spirit moves you, stream or purchase some more Mouth Reader tracks over at their Bandcamp page. - The Nashville Scene (Nashville Cream)

Looking for some hard, fast, fuzzy garage rock? Look no further, because Mouth Reader is here, and they’re ready to jam! The band recently released their stellar self-titled debut album, showing listeners how reverb-heavy surf is meant to be done. The album kicks off with “Inside You,” a track that brings a near impossible amount of energy, and certainly starts the record off right. “Try” comes next, and showcases the band’s ability to cross surf rock with rough, edgy DIY. “Try” is the shortest tune on the album, and zooms out as fast as it came – but it’s one hell of a ride. Following “Try” is “Cult,” with Sex Pistols-esque vocals intertwined between steady riffs and occasional instrumental breaks.

“Crystalline Skies” goes in a almost thrash direction, with combative chords and ready-to-pounce percussion. “Crystalline Skies” is a standout track, sounding like it’s nearly at war with itself about how to feel. Tripped-out lyrics read like drug-induced poetry, “you are the one who wades in the floor, you kept your eyes on the golden shore. Whispering skies on the ocean floor…open up your doors…” “Dark Dreams” takes it down a hair, with Mouth Reader shifting their focus from lyrics to warbling guitars. The album wraps up with “Alright,” throwing back to the 60′s with a mid-tempo, beachy vibe. The longest song on the album at 4:05, “Alright” shows that Mouth Reader is not just quick dance songs, but tunes with substance, and could not have been a better track to conclude the record. You can download Mouth Reader for free on BandCamp here! - Jamspreader

This record looks tasty!

It is a lathe cut, mouth shaped single of Mouth Reader's new song "Cult." There is only two ways to get one too so pay attention! You can get one at their in-store appearance tomorrow at The Groove in Nashville or you can buy one HERE, but after tomorrow the sale is over! Give it a digital spin below and then try and resist the lips lure. - Dailyvinyl.net

We bounced over to The Groove for a change in scenery just in time to catch Murfreesboro psychedelic punks Mouth Reader, whose hand-cut, mouth-shaped single Cult easily beat out the competition for coolest-looking record of the day, and White Reaper, a Louisville-based trio of post-punks that recently signed to Polyvinyl. Both were unknowns, but won us over quickly — with a noisy cover of Devo's “Uncontrollable Urge” and a Jay Reatard-inspired set of hook-laden rock 'n' roll jams, respectively. Bonnaroo-bound locals Blank Range followed shortly after, with more of the roots-inspired rock that we've come to expect. The gravelly ballad “Roommate's Girlfriend” capped off the set and reasserted itself as a perennial fave. - The Nashville Scene

Out of the hundreds of limited-edition vinyl records up for grabs on Record Store Day this year, it would’ve been easy for a little-known band from Murfreesboro to get lost in the shadow of butt-rock reissues and $14 emo revival singles. Not Mouth Reader, who sold mouth-shaped, hand-cut singles to the masses at The Groove and Fond Object via tiny indie label Funky Frankenstein. Not only does the record look cool, it sounds gritty and righteous — a total DIY surf party. - The Nashville Scene