Bowie, T. Rex, Velvet Underground, Phil Spector, girl groups of the 60's, Blondie, Pulp, Spoon and the Zombies.
Sounds Like
"MEandJOANCOLLINS spit the kind of bravado-oozing, glam inflected Britpoppy rawk you’d expect to have spawned in London circa 1995, only it’s coming from four Cambridge(that’s Mass) rockers circa right now."
Boston Phoenix
“We can't remember a glam-rock sound that included two vocalists as such, so their updated big sound just seems that much more newfangled ….a full-blown rock & roll spectacle” Boston's Weekly Dig
"Love. Trust. Faith. Lust., the band’s debut album, is one of the best discs of 2009 – local, national, or anywhere. Standout tracks include the unbelievably catchy “That’s Not What Want,” modern breakup classic “Crime of the Century (So Far…),” breezy pop gem “Typical Asshole,” and brooding set closer “Strangest Thing.” Those tracks get an A+; the rest of the album gets an A. Their sound is an accessible mix of garage, glam, and British popular music (Bowie, T. Rex, Pulp, the Velvets, the Zombies, Spoon, Of Montreal – you get the idea) with hand claps, sleazy boy/girl vocals, and face-melting riffage courtesy of Barringer (his guitar work is featured even more heavily in the band’s excellent new material – a looser, more expansive crop of tunes, many written by Grygiel)." thelimitsofscience.wordpress.com/
"MEandJOANCOLLINS sounds kinda like a garage band that would have surely been monumental in the ‘80s, and you’d never have expected such strutting, clap-along music to emerge from Cambridge. "
Boston Metro
"gracefully glam…a foot planted in British pop culture, MEandJOANCOLLINS's inaugural album, Love. Trust. Faith. Lust., even sounds like the title of a '80s prime-time soap opera. And like any worthwhile soap, it's chock-a-block with visceral sleaze, occasional uproariousness, and heart-on-sleeve vulnerability"
Barry Thompson - Boston Phoenix
"...a group that sounds like a mix of Debbie Harry and David Bowie".
Meredith Goldstein - Boston Globe
"Like the finest glam rock of yore, the Cambridge, MA outfit MEandJOANCOLLINS specialize in a sweaty fusion of sexual perversion and hard rockin’ bombast. But unlike the genre’s forefathers (T. Rex, Roxy Music) this indie-minded foursome steers clear of any campy theatricality and fantastical preoccupations with grandeur. The group’s debut LP shows more grit than you might expect from a band that readily admits to the influence of David Bowie and Marc Bolan….achieves an impressive balance of indie tenderness, garage rock cacophony, and punk rock …And with their roots firmly planted in the glam and indie scenes, the unpretentious music of Love. Trust. Faith. Lust. might just be the remedy for the self-serious hipster who needs to lighten up a bit..."
Adam Costa Adequacy.net
"From the couple times I’ve seen MEandJOANCOLLINS, I’m beginning to think they might be the best band from Boston right now … M&JC has a compelling package of music and charisma that’s hard to deny.” ."
Rob V cheapthrillsboston.blogspot.com
"...a loud, well-dressed quintet from Cambridge...a high-energy combination of garage and glam rock..."
Brett Cromwell Northeast Performer
“catchy, riff-laden Bowie/Stones school of dynamic him-and-her harmony vocals…clever lyrics and superior production values…sophisticated melodicism with traces of Beatles… epic instrumental and vocal theatrics… exciting and dynamic…full of good feelings and hope”
Francis DiMenno The Noise-Boston
Please VOTE for us before June 26th in the Boston Phoenix Best Music Poll-We're nominated for BEST NEW ACT!
Back in 2007, as MEandJOANCOLLINS singer/guitarist Bo Barringer was playing a few new songs for his girlfriend, she gave him some advice, “you’re a great songwriter, but you seem to be holding back, stop posturing and write from real experience…don’t be afraid to show some vulnerability.” Although this advice was infusing the songwriting of what was to become M&JC’s debut album, ironically, their relationship (and the band’s initial lineup) was unfurling thanks to an affair Barringer was having with a (now former) bandmate. He spent next year and a half trying to repair damages to the relationship and the band’s debut album, “Love. Trust. Faith. Lust.” (lead track, “Crime of the Century,” in particular) tells the story.
In the process, Barringer and co-singer/guitarist Jen Grygiel’s relationship grew and solidified, and a real chemistry emerged (as evidenced by their harmonies and complementary two-guitar attack.) They realized that through all of the personal turmoil and band member musical chairs that they were the two constants keeping the band together. And that’s when they decided to “make it legal” (UN-lawfully, of course, since Jen is a lesbian and Bo got the girl back). Jen and Bo booked their wedding in June of 2008 at The Abbey Lounge and asked fellow bandmate/bassist Jim Collins to perform the “ceremony” (she wore the tux, he wore the dress). Drummer Jason Marchionna played the wedding march, followed by a note for note version of Motley Crue’s “Home Sweet Home”. “Sure, it was a publicity stunt, but the wedding kinda sealed our union as a band...”, Barringer says. Not unlike that of their namesake Joan Collins (star of “Dynasty”, major tabloid queen, appeared nude in Playboy at 50 and married almost as many times as Liz Taylor…), MEandJOANCOLLINS’ short history has had its share of drama and matrimony.
Realizing the album tells the story of the breakdown and subsequent rebuilding of a relationship, the band decided to name the album after a line in one of the songs (“Typical Asshole”). The album title, “Love. Trust. Faith. Lust.” sums up the story and subject matter rather aptly. Full of 60’s-pop-by-way-of-80’s-college-rock hooks (“ That’s Not What I Want”), their album also betrays a love for prickly post-punk (“All The Cowards in Her Path,” “Auditorium”), seedy glam rock riffing (“All the Men That Failed You”), and even a little pseudo-shoegazing grandeur (the six-and-a-half-minute “Strangest Thing”). These tendencies are sweetened by Bo and Jen’s boy/girl harmonies (her Kim Deal to his Black Francis, if you will).
Already in pre-production for a second LP with touring plans to support the album, the band now features in their live set several songs written by Grygiel, “Reckless Woman” and “Stay the Fuck Away From Me” (“I don’t want this girl back”, says Grygiel), as well as a cover of Sparks’ new wave-era classic, “Angst in My Pants.”
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Just stopping by to say hello and give you some news. The new album 'Coolgilly and the Freakshow' from Centascope is now available worldwide from CD Baby and directly from the merchandise page of the official website. You can also get the album from Apple iTunes, MSN Music, Rhapsody, Napster, Amazon and many more.
HOLY SHIT Next weekend we're playing a show with Whole Wheat Bread in Boston!
You won't want to miss this one.
Click on the flyer to get your tickets and support Whole Wheat Bread as they tour all the way from Florida.
Brick By Brick Productions Presents:
July 5 @ Middle East Upstairs
472 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge MA
1pm, $10, All Ages
Whole Wheat Bread
SmartBomb
Scars Like Ours
SBT
Hope the show went great last night. I was actually at Paradise for drinks before another show last night, saw you guys were on the bill, and was like, "hey, we played with these guys at the Abbey!"
Anyway, you guys actually stopped me dead in my tracks while I was loading out my gear that night. I think I just like handed my guitar to someone and walked toward the stage. I hope to see and to play with you guys again.
i THINK i may have moved in right next to one of you guys.....I won't name the street but lets say if i were to put it in a sentence and i was talking about a hospital it would say "have you been to "blank" Farber, they totally cured me!"
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