Bald Eagle

If it weren't for Future of the Left's Curses, I might be tempted to call Bald Eagle's Hot Shoulders this year's Mcluskyist record. Thankfully, Future of the Left help remind me that Mclusky's rock was fueled by their wit whereas Bald Eagle's rock is fueled by their, well, need to rock. They just happen to pile all their killer hooks and dirty riffs around morbid words that are treated as romps. You can hear "Those Are Cobras, Man" blink and grin as it warns: "Those are cobras, man / those are cobras / Bite your fucking hand / those are cobras." As Dave Goldstein points out, how can you not dig a band that'll title a song "Sharks Are Fucked Up"? The lyrics describe a watery death scene that might be grim if not for that title and for the band's guitarists Mikey Wheeler and Danny Matteson exuberantly playing off each other, pushing towards frenzy. And if the title calls to mind "The Shark's Own Private Fuck," the angular efficacy of the dual guitar attack recalls earlier Sunny Day Real Estate, just with a big fondness for '70s rock. Or, to be entirely more accurate, this is the best Hello Sir! record not on Hello Sir!

Bald Eagle are loud plus smart plus a lot of fun. "Lemon Lime Be On Time" feels like its lyrical double-dutch image notated as visceral post-punk; the guitars are twin ropes, the drums and bass the rapid pat of those ropes hitting the pavement, complete with switch-ups in tempo and rhythm -- and there's even handclaps in the breakdown. "Trans Dyn-O-Myte" might be the best sexually confused ode to a transvestite since "Lola"; Justin McCrady's drums carry the track, guitar lines like quotation marks starting then stopping mid-measure, encasing each ragged yell of "Your face like a foot" and "Your hands on your hips" and "Tits and a dick" and "I AM A MAN." The guitars become more sinewy, weaving in long strips through the track as they're joined by Justin Nardy's juicy bass. Love is professed with the same scratchy-throat force, the album title dropped before the song unravels into a distended coda. So where "Lola" was bright for how it wormed its way into the pop canon, "Trans Dyn-O-Myte" takes its joy in collapsing somewhere far outside of that, ecstatic and exhausted by its loss of inhibition. "We. Have. You. Did." is a right fist-pumper, but it's difficult to explain how Bald Eagle can chew over lines like "If our god is true / then we are surely doomed" with such glee. So just listen to the thing.

You could call the instrumentals filler, but they're very well executed filler that give the album a couple reprieves from jamming, that have some compositional ties to each other, and in "What's All This Brew-Ha-Ha" bring the album to a post-rock peak that's a satisfying amendment to its rock-rock constitution. The closest thing to a misstep is the still musically nice "Rodents of Unusual Size," which uses Bald Eagle's curt phrasing to recap the story of, yeah, The Princess Bride. Inconceivable? I guess not.

Really, though, there isn't much surprising about Hot Shoulders beyond just how damn good it is, delivering in all the ways a record of its ilk should. It pummels and dances, barks and laughs, a fighter in a cage who wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Its movement would seem erratic if it weren't so clear that everything's motivated towards achieving a knock-out blow. For an upstart label Emergency Umbrella has made some good choices and has lovingly delivered the releases of the Foundry Field Recordings and now Bald Eagle, both bands far from revolutionary yet serving as excellent examples of their given genres. In Bald Eagle's case we have a record that's my third favorite rock album of the year (behind Curses and Rainbow by Boris with Michio Kurihara). Lips and fingers curled, Hot Shoulders is lean muscle that bounds about its stage with a strong awareness of its place, its history, and what it wants to do. Shit's a blast.

Chet Betz
November 21, 2007 - Chet Betz

BALD EAGLE- Bacon and Eggs, Dear,CD

Bald Eagle plays spastically riffilicious hard rock with a looseness and fondness for groovy breakdowns. Justin Nardy's bass rumbles like a muscle car that needs a new muffler. Guitarists Danny Matteson and Mikey Wheeler play on top of each other's guitars like caged puppies climbing on one another and clamoring for attention. Justin McCrady attacks his drums like a mutant Keith Moon with extra tentacles. "Do a Backflip, Jerk" is a 2:10 of speedy rock with fast, heavy chords that eventually emphasize string scraping, harmonics, and various other noisy guitar techniques during a instrumental break. A horn section increases the tension and adds extra dynamic oomph to "The Carl Weathers Report". In "Wind up Deap in a Camaro," horns add a little Memphis to Bald Eagle's Missouri melting pot of rock. Album closer "Sniffing Glue and Casual Sex" begins shockingly quiet and showcases guest violinist Lucas Allen. It's a strong end to an exciting album that, nonetheless, sags during a few of the middle tracks. Bald Eagle accomplishes a lot by picking and choosing elements of hardcore, hard rock, emo, soul, and even a bit of Sly Stone-style psychedelic funk for its tracks. Some of the songs feel a bit deflated, though, after repeat listens. The audacious performances-and even the song titles and artwork- on the album show that Bald Eagle can be a fun, spontaneous band. Some tracks, such as "Salute the Damned," capture a band that wants to stretch its wings but needs to stay in flight school a little bit longer. Although its a fine album, Bacon and Eggs, Dear sugests two things: First, Bald Eagle probably is more thrilling to hear when it perches on stage during a live show. And second, they're still maturing musically.

Review by Justin Marciniak. Punk Planet Issue #75 "The Revenge of Print 2"
- Justin Marciniak

By SETH ASHLEY of Tribune's staff
Published Thursday, March 30, 2006

A smelly van breaks down, a poor diet causes digestive unpleasantness, a lack of shower access makes the van smell even worse and a mind-numbingly long drive means arriving at an unfriendly venue just minutes before taking the stage to play for "no one": This is a day in the life of a young rock band on tour. Not to mention the standard encounters with bizarre or unsavory characters such as a drug-addled maniac or, say, a concert promoter.

But for the Columbia-based rock outfit Bald Eagle, all this seems to be the exception rather than the rule.

"We saw Amish people playing baseball somewhere in Iowa," said guitarist Mikey Wheeler as the band headed east across Michigan on Interstate 94 last week, en route to a show just outside of Detroit. "I wish I could say a bunch of crazy stuff has happened, but up to this point, it's been a pretty relaxing tour. A lot of unwarranted hospitality. Call us back tomorrow."

Things might have changed in the last week of their tour, which is scheduled to end tomorrow as the four band members make their way home to Columbia to perform at Eastside Tavern, but mostly, Bald Eagle seems to do things their own way.

They bought a new van for their tour to guard against mechanical failures and, perhaps, to enjoy the scent of a fresh, clean vehicle. They've played well-attended shows so far, joined by bands they already know who offer a warm welcome. They were greeted in Wisconsin by a friend's mother who got out of bed at 2 a.m. to prepare a nourishing quiche for the visiting rockers. The day before, however, the band succumbed to a tour cliche as they dined - twice - on fried cuisine at Wisconsin's appropriately named Machine Shed. "We all felt like death afterward," Wheeler said.

Of course, the real thrill of touring lies in the opportunity to take your music on the road and introduce your sound to a new, unsuspecting audience while meeting old friends along the way. As the band travels as far east as Columbus, Ohio, to play at The High Five Bar, Bald Eagle aims to expand its fan base among the surprisingly tight-knit national underground music scene.

Formed in 2003, Bald Eagle has worked for almost three years now to develop a local following that enjoys their funky riff-oriented sound, which merges hard rock, metal and punk. The band members - Danny Matteson on guitar, Justin McCrady on drums and Justin Nardy, who plays bass and sings along with Wheeler - are former members of such locally notable acts as One-Inch Punch, Amputee Set and The Carry On/KillAway.

With two self-released EPs under its members collective belt, Bald Eagle is about to celebrate the official release of its first full-length album, "Bacon and Eggs, Dear," on local record label Emergency Umbrella and the St. Louis-based Collective Records. The band will offer its new album at its April 8 CD release show at Eastside Tavern.

Recorded over just three days, "Bacon and Eggs, Dear" is loaded with songs that, in a live setting, encourage your inner 15-year-old to get as close to the stage as it can so that you're practically part of the band, bouncing and screaming along with the sounds as sweat drips down your face. Throbbing bass lines, dueling guitar melodies and drums beat with a fury make up the substance of such songs as "Wind Up Dead in a Camaro," "Christian Lazer Tag" and "Turbo Sex-O-Phonic Delight."

Bald Eagle traveled to Wisconsin last November to record the new album with Shane Hostetler and band members other friends from fellow rock outfit Call Me Lightning. The record features the members of Call Me Lightning as guest musicians on percussion, violin and horns.

"We kind of just went up there and hung out with friends like we usually do," Wheeler said. "Everyone pitched in, and it was a really comfortable process, and it turned out really good."

The noteworthy album art for "Bacon and Eggs" is an homage to The Beatles infamous "butcher cover" from the 1966 album "Yesterday and Today," which featured the Fab Four dressed like butchers, decorated with toy doll parts and raw meat. That cover never saw much exposure before Capitol Records censored it, so it made sense for Bald Eagle to do their best to bring it back.

"I believe for the time period it was considered a little risque so we took that and did our best to recreate it," Wheeler said. "We don't spend a lot of time thinking about what we're gonna do, we just kind of do it."

That generally applies to the band's songwriting process, as well.

"We jam around and goof off, and usually, songs show up on accident, and we just kind of go with it," he said. "It's an unsolved mystery. The band members are just vehicles for what comes out of us. We just go with it and hope it doesn't suck to high heaven."

Copyright & copy; 2006 The Columbia Daily Tribune. All Rights Reserved - Seth Ashley

By SCOTT BELDEN of The Maneater
Published Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Bald eagles screech, and we know this because of the only funny part of the movie Almost Heroes. A mother eagle screeches and attacks Chris Farley for trying to steal her eggs. Local band Bald Eagle also could be said to screech, though in a more human sense.

Bald Eagle has been a Columbia favorite for a couple of years now. The shows are an instant party, always sure to get the audience clapping and moving around.

I recall my first Bald Eagle show. It was a warm summer night, and I became a believer in the band when drummer Justin McCrady switched to a swing beat bridge during Black Sword.

After a couple of EPs, the band has at last released the full-length Bacon and Eggs, Dear. My copy came with stickers, buttons and a packet of beard trimmings, number 26 of 50.

The band's music has been described as a mixture of hardcore, punk, funk and metal. But I worry that a novice left to that description would misconstrue Bald Eagle to be like Linkin Park.

Please go to the Bald Eagle Web site, baldeagleband.com, and listen to a sampling of the group. Imagine loud and fast drumming, guitarists fingers shredding riffs at inhuman speeds and heavy bass action along with screaming.

The Black Eyed Peas might inquire, How'd you get all that rock, all that rock inside that album? The album is not the same as the concert experience, but it will certainly cause listeners to drive faster. Funky horns have been added to some songs, which is unique to the album. True to the concert experience, the band uses little studio manipulation.

The lyrics are difficult to understand in the form of unintelligible screaming, but the band's Web site fills us in. My favorite lyrics come from "The Carl Weathers Report." Over a thrash rhythm that switches to funk, vocalist Mikey Wheeler screams, Predator and Rocky II, Carl Weathers I love you/Fifty percent chance of rain, 100 percent chance of pain!

The songs are not political as the band name might imply but instead indulge in a variety of topics, including a drug deal gone wrong, a ghost story and even "Christian Lazer Tag." I don't fancy the two instrumental songs "Sniffing Glue and Casual Sex" and "Turbosexophonic Delight", but other than that, the album's enjoyable. These songs have been favorites for a while now, and thankfully, none of them have been tossed together.

The song titles, lyrics, album cover and limited edition beard packets attest to the goofiness of the band. But none of this is a gimmick. It's all original, creative and fun.

©2006 The Maneater

- Scott Belden

Columbia, MO's Bald Eagle is a whole lot of things. However, to their core they are a rock band: A balls to walls screaming, wailing party band. Seriously, how can you not be with song titles like: Wind Up Dead in a Camero, Turbo Sex-O-Phonic Delight, and Coming Down the Mountain, Gypsy Lover? While the party band moniker might sound like a semi-derogatory classification, Bald Eagle's brand of rawk is the type that should pull together groups of people who otherwise wouldn't give each other the fucking time of day. Not to be overtly provincial to the hometown, but in St. Louis back when, Fragile Porcelain Mice and The Urge (before they went down the major label shitter) were bands that brought punk and frat boy together in one venue. Their songs had that crossover appeal, but didn't sacrifice their music in favor of commercial mediocrity. While Bald Eagle's Bacon and Eggs, Dear does not resemble those acts in the slightest, they have that same kind of air about them. With Bald Eagle, you have a hell raising combination of Tiger Style Records-era Rye Coalition, The Jesus Lizard, and Chicago's Cougars. Bacon and Eggs, Dear is a freak out, fuck yeah, brand of record. Buy! Buy! Buy! - David Lichius (The Daily Copper, 2006)

- David Lichius

Bacon and Eggs, Dear is not your ordinary plate of hard-hitters. Au contraire, Bald Eagle serves a pre-fixe meal, with selections that will satisfy a medium to heavily seasoned palates of post-hardcore, math rock, and thrash - to name a few. Personally, I hear influences of Every Time I Die, Minus the Bear, Ink and Dagger, and a touch of Liars.

The cover-art, a Beatles reference, exudes neo-sixties-pop amalgam, but thankfully it was a misread. Soon after, I was enjoying a band that could celebrate more than one method of draining adrenaline, while diverging from the beaten path with violin or horns, not too common in the throaty-vocal scene.

The opening track, Wind Up Dead in a Camaro, drops into a funktified breather towards the end, which quickly added character to Bacon and Eggs, Dear. Ghost Jam rocks an upbeat minor theme that sounds like the Crypt Keeper became a dance-punker overnight (the bass-heavy outro works for me). Do A Backflip, Jerk is a knuckle-whirling, pit stirrer in the tradition of ETID.

These guys have live show potential and their energy promises that some more neck-cripplers are on their way.

From www.ampcamp.com review by: Raganoth The Ice Mage - Raganoth The Ice Mage

A throbbing rhythm section! Funkalicious rock n' roll riffs! Active, scratching-at-the-throat lead vocals! And a rough recording job to match it all! Woo! This is the stuff BALD EAGLE is made of and puts to use on Hot Shoulders, the band's latest release for Emergency Umbrella. Nestled in the vigorous vein of SADAHARU, HOOVER, and COUGARS (minus the horns), this Missouri-based quartet absolutely tears it up on Hot Shoulders. "Those Are Cobras, Man" gets things pumping early on with a bustling, repeated rhythm and truckloads of sick psychedelic riffing. Before the tune comes to an end, there is a brief moment of melodic greatness, and essentially, this mix of styles is what makes BALD EAGLE's sound so distinct. When the band's not performing their signature funky riff-driven tunes ("Lemon Lime Be On Time," "We. Have. You. Did," and "Shady Creepers" are of note), they opt for an unexpected, near-emo type of sound. Perhaps best heard in "Rodents Of Unusual Size," BALD EAGLE removes the propulsive energy of earlier songs in favor of a more relaxed, somewhat atmospheric tone. The same applies for the instrumental tunes "The Lunch Helicopter" and "What's All This Brew-Ha-Ha?" Even though the band's lead vocalist provides a spark whenever he is present, there is something about the simplicity of the abovementioned tracks that makes BALD EAGLE such an intriguing group. Analogies could be made to end this review, but all you need to know is Hot Shoulders is a freaking cool rock record. Dig it.

- Corey Schmidt

There's not one clear way to describe the sound of Bald Eagle. To call the local band "rock" is too simple. To peg it anything more specific would just seem inaccurate or at least unjust to the range of sounds the four-piece group puts out.

The band's second album, the curiously named "Hot Shoulders" - is it a health condition? Is it what the guys look for in a mate? Who can say? - doesn't bring the band closer to that peg either. The 11-song record has a handful of tracks of that exude typical rock sounds with its fancy guitar fingering and smashing drums. Those are all well and good, but the more interesting bass lines from the band's earlier work seem to have been sacrificed as a result. Still, the remaining tracks are a range of musical and lyrical elements, from classic rock to pop-punk. The band might not be as funky as they once were, but you can tell they're just as much fun, with the personality of the band fully shining through in tracks such as "Jammin' the Wedge" and the Princess Bride-inspired "Rodents of Unusual Size."

The spirit of the lyrics - from sharks to cobras to aforementioned ROUSes - keeps the songs light and bouncy despite screaming vocals and tearing guitar riffs. But though the range of sounds is present, it's not so apparent that you're left feeling discombobulated. Each song has its own morsel of individuality while maintaining a consistent level of energy suited for a band of unstipulated rock.

And despite the electricity of the band, both in their live show and recorded work, the band includes tracks like "What's All This Brew-Ha-Ha?" that lighten up the entire tone of the album. It's a quick change of pace, a palate cleanser, a last dance of sorts that serves as a reminder that these dudes aren't just the flaming-guitar wielding, dead-baby joke-telling, pizza-jamming guys they appear to be. They need a little quiet time, too. But mostly not.

Recommended tracks: "Jammin' the Wedge," "Rodents of Unusual Size," "We. Have. You. Did.," "What's All This Brew Ha-Ha?"

- Mary T. Nguyen

One of the signs of a genuinely talented act is that they can make a fan out of you even if you don’t necessarily like their style of music. I’ve never been that into the kind of blazing hard, riff-heavy indie punk metal that Bald Eagle plays. And yet by the second listen to this sophomore effort I was totally cranking it up, man (as the guys in Bald Eagle might say). What gives? The main reason for my enthusiasm is that this Columbia, Missouri quartet writes songs so infectious they seem to invade your central nervous system. Bald Eagle also soars through each number as if someone were holding a gun to their heads shouting “More energy! More power!” Finally, they have a hell of a sense of humor, giving their songs titles like “Those Are Cobras, Man” and “What’s All This Brew Ha-Ha?” The thrashy “Jammin’ the Wedge” consists of little more than the title being shouted repeatedly, yet its one of the best songs I’ve heard all year. Guitarists Danny Matteson and Mikey Wheeler crank out six-string harmonies that cross old metal with surf and punk, while drummer Justin McCready and bassist Justin Nardy make like early Red Hot Chili Peppers on speed. I was worried this record would court disaster. Now I’m worried it’ll earn me a noise violation, but when they drag me into court my only defense will be to shout: “Jammin’ the wedge, it gets you so up! Jammin’ the wedge, it gets you so up!”

- Tony Sclafani

BALD EAGLE is a rock band. And a very good one. The following photo attached to the "checking in with" questionnaire that bassist Justin Nardy was kind enough to answer pretty much sums up what this band is all about.

Pastepunk: When did you guys put the finishing touches on Hot Shoulders, and, in your mind, how does this record compare to the other records that make up BALD EAGLE's discography?

Justin: Hot Shoulders is diffrent to us because it is really the first recording we wrote as a entire band. With our first full-length, Bacon and Eggs, Dear, we wrote a lot of it before Mikey [Wheeler] had joined the band and some of the songs were really old. We had a diffrent singer, and a lot of the songs on it were written around bass parts that I came up with. With Hot Shoulders, we wrote all the songs together and ... the chemistry of the band was really there. I think Hot Shoulders is a better representation of BALD EAGLE and shows that we have matured a little in our songwriting . We pretty much wrote Hot Shoulders in a six month time span and recorded in a weeks time frame. We put the final touches on it in early May...so it really has been done for awhile now.

Pastepunk: Scattered amongst all the vigourous, near-psychedelic riffing and steady post-punk rhythms is a sound that brings to mind mid-90's emo pioneers more so than the San Diego bands you guys are often compared to. How do songs like "Rodents Of Unusual Size" and "The Lemon Helicopter" come to be during your writing process when paired against tunes like "Sharks Are Fucked Up?"

Justin: Well it is "The Lunch Helicopter" not 'lemon' (Ed. note: The next song on the album is called "Lemon Lime Be On Time." My bad.), but I think those songs just come from us all listening to a lot of diffrent types of music. [Justin] McCrady and I grew up listening to all that mid-90's stuff...everything from San Diego [bands like] SWING KIDS, SPANAKORZO, THE LOCUST to emo pioneers BRAID, SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE, THE PROMISE RING, CAP N' JAZZ ... McCrady and I were in bands like all of that stuff so it transfers a little bit. But now we are listening to a lot of shit from the 70's and a lot of soul and funk. So it really is as much of a surprise to us as it is to you as to what comes out when we write songs. We just practice and if someone plays something we think sounds cool we go with it.

Pastepunk: You guys have a ton of dates lined up for September and October. What are you looking forward to the most about the upcoming jaunt, and what are your touring plans following it?

Justin: We have never been out West, so I think all of us are looking forward to that trip and at very least seeing something diffrent than the boring Midwest. I think we are pretty excited about CMJ in New York as well - if we actually get in this year - because we haven't played there before. Shows in the Midwest are usually fun because we know people there and have played all those place a bunch of times, so they are fun, but really I am looking to go to new places and meet new people and see new things. Hopefully the shows don't suck.

Pastepunk: What in the hell are "hot shoulders", and how would I go about having them?

Justin: "Hot Shoulders" is basically a condition that Mikey and I came up with because we both would get this awful pain in the shoulder and back area sometimes from our jobs, and it feels like you are getting poked in the shoulders with hot poker or something, and it is this awful burning pain. So in a way I guess it is a weird medical condition we came up with and also kind of a metaphor for working hard, 'cause if you work really hard you might end up with hot shoulders. We think we worked pretty hard on this record, so there you go. Plus it just has that rock n' roll feel to it. I mean, come on, "hot shoulders" sounds like a fucking rock record!

- BALD EAGLE's latest effort is titled Hot Shoulders and is out now on Emergency Umbrella Records. - Corey Schmidt