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Spring
1997 | The Noise
The toy piano tinkering that starts off the first track, "Dynamite Hairshirt",
made me suspect this was going to be a fun CD. My suspicions were correct.
Piewackit have perfected the retro-pop sound and sprinkled it with some
of their own o riginal flavor crystals. The handclaps, tambourine, and
organ (which is used so sparingly, or else buried so way down in the mix,
you have to listen real hard to hear it) lend a very swingin' '60's sound
to the songs. My favorite track, "Down", wi th its quasi-psychedelic guitar
jangle and musical arrangement, sounds like it jumped off some old Mickie
Most compilation. (For all you "youngsters " out there who weren't aware,
Most was a well-known British record producer who brought Herman's Hermits
and The Animals to the attention of the world.) All the tunes on this
disc are catchier that a cold virus with hook-laden, upbeat melodies and
sing-a-long harmonies. Call it neo-flower power pop with a delicious bite.
This tasty nugget was recorded at Ft. Apache with no less than three different
producers (Tim O'Heir, David Cook, and Mathew Ellard) and mixed at Studio
.45 in Hartford by Michael Deming, who did a dandy job fine-tuning this
skillfully-crafted platter.
May
1997 | NorthEast Performer
Wow. Marykate. Where did you come from? A mind for constructing thoughtful
pop songs and an angelic voice to drive straight through them. And she
even painted the cover artwork. On piewackit's first full-length release,
the band flings catchy tune after catchy tune at the listener like Oreo
cookies - here comes "Dynamite Hairshirt", Marykate's exploration of her
security-blanket attachment to that piece of clothing. Like that? How
about Peter Riccio's "Down" which expounds, "this world's a wile ride
/ you better hold on tight". Look out, here comes the lighthearted "Sunny
Day" , with Marykate floating over pleasant guitar strumming. I chose
Oreo's as a comparative food item specifically because of their consumability.
You finish your twelve Oreo's, and you realize you aren't sick of them
yet. So you eat some more. That is what Sockmonkee does. You hear the
twelve songs through one time and you feel the need to hear more, to figure
why the songs linger in the mind the way they do. Each song has a tasty
little hook, like the offbeat breaks and disturbing harmony of "So Fun"
. My favorite treat is "Insomnia", with Marykate singing sweetly about
the deception of a loved one. It starts our plodding, then goes double
time at the chorus, suddenly stops altogether for a few bars, then returns
to plodding. I can't seem to get the stain of that one off of my memory.
Whenever I hear a band like this, I think of the other guys, the ones
who don't appear in the press clippings. Mike Conklin (bass), John Pratt
(guitar), Yale Thompson (drums on Marykate songs), Peter Riccio (drums
and vocals on non-Marykate songs and composer of several), Mike Deming
(organ), and Zoe (manual percussion), play appropriately and supportively,
letting Marykate be her musica l self. This is true of the production
as well; great arrangements, a variety of tempos and guitar sound from
song to song, all instruments pronounced in the mix but still dirty enough
to suit the material. This album is a pu nky hook fest. Marykate is a
pip. Piewackit satisfies.
May
1997 | The Noise
CHEESEBALL
First of all, if you call a record after a sock monkey, I'm going to listen
to it -- and I am glad I did. The opening track Dynamite Hairshirt pulls
all of the band's positives together. Marykate O'Neil's vocal harmonizes
disoriently (think of the broken up Boston band The Story) giving a folk
flavor to this jangle pop. Mixed by Mike Deming, the positive is accentuated.
The guitar contributions of the other members keep her song style in an
indie perspective taking coffeehouse songs like So Fun and pumping them
up with electric life. Tilt-A-Whirl musically takes the challenge of the
title and spins and swings delightfully. The songs with male vocals lack
the contradictory styles that make thei r best songs click (try Psychic
Crush with Marykate and see the difference). An extra plus that is ambiently
fun is Theme Song, and don't worry piewackit, you've done something dreadfully
fine! (ed. - Happy yellow CD tray is a nice touch) I predict that people
will start hailing singer/guitarist/songwriter Marykate O'Neil as the
scene's new indiepop goddess! She possesses the perfect mix of bookish
nerdiness and a knack for crafting short-n-simple pop tunes. Some may
not want to enjoy the fun, or understand the subtelty of the songwriting,
but mark my words, dear readers, Piewackit are about to conquer these
dirty waters bell, book, and candle!
Spring
1997 | The Internet Herald
POPWATCH
Piewackit it an indiepop piece out of Boston centering around the talents
of singer/guitarist/songwriter Marykate O'Neil. O'Neil is a truly amazing
songwriter. Her gift lies in the fact that her songs can be enjoyed at
a superficial level as fun pop tunes with catchy hooks but can also be
analyzed to show a much deeper meaing that is anything but "pop". Recorded
in part at ft. apache by David Cook (of Natalie Merchant fame) this is
a good sampling of solid indierock chops in the context of well written
songs
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