Molly Picture Club

The full-length debut from this local trio is heavy on dark-wave electronica and shirt-sopping disco grooves — a little like Depeche Mode, the B-52s and LCD Soundsystem having a boozy threesome that produced a music baby. Across 13 tracks, the band hits varying degrees of danceability, with opener "Idears (You Don't Dance Enough)" setting the tone. "Candy Girls" introduces noir camp into the dance-y festivities, while "Take Take Take" speaks to lust and loss in a small-big town. Lyrics teeter between thoughtful and cheesy (usually good cheesy). The mix of violin, guitars and programming sounds effortless, and the back-and-forth, male-female vocals from Aniko Adany and Michael Tipton give the proceedings a charming oomph. Some bubble gum, some brains — a worthy debut. - Pitch Weekly

Molly Picture Club possesses a clear mission for its music: getting heads to bob and butts to shake and doing it with a sense of artistic integrity.

Take a huge helping of ‘80s new wave, mix it with a ton of enthusiasm, a dash of passion, a pinch of dark disco, pour over some pumping dance beats and you’ve got the band’s new self-titled full-length album.

“Molly Picture Club” is the follow-up to the band’s late 2010 debut EP “Four on the Floor.” With radio play on college stations throughout the country, the post-new wave trio garnered a loyal following with the EP’s dance-inducing songs. This full-length debut includes the EP’s four tracks and contains nine more tunes, each just as infectious, catchy and toe-tapping as the last.

The tone and character of Molly Picture Club can be summed up immediately in the introductory track, “Idears (You Don’t Dance Enough).” Multilayered synthesizers, aggressive guitar riffs, hand claps and driving percussions identify a group full of energy and determination. Throughout the album, a rhythmic backdrop from drummer Matthew Hayden provides a sense of vitality, coalescing with a punchy synth attack, guitar hooks and crisp, assertive vocal deliveries from Michael Tipton and Aniko Adany.

With the superior mixing and mastering assistance of Duane Trower at Weights and Measures Soundlab, every track on the album feels precise, calculated, clean and powerful. But the trio deserves a substantial amount of credit in its delivery of upbeat dance music.

In “Euro So Photogenic,” the band takes a darker approach to its music but still maintains its distinctive fervor. Tipton channels his inner Dave Gahan with deep vocal melodies, while Adany’s subtle vocal harmonies add a small but significant layer to the song. Thick, heavy synth progressions lay overtop chunky guitar riffs that crescendo in screaming guitar licks, creating an opaque sonic tapestry. All the while, Hayden holds the song together with forceful and precise sixteenth-note hi-hat beats.

With the close interplay among these tight melodies, harmonies and rhythm, Molly Picture Club finds a formula for success. The band’s songs also take cues from the Talking Heads, being influenced by experimental new wave and Afrobeat rhythms, but still managing to channel these influences into an enthusiastic radio-friendly format.

Read more here: http://www.inkkc.com/content/new-local-music-molly-picture-club/#storylink=cpy - Ink

Some lovely news from Molly Picture Club:

The Kansas City band recently started working with Tinderbox Music, a music promotions and distribution company out of Minneapolis, to get the Club's music on college and community-radio stations. At the first of last month, the band officially had rotations on almost 100 stations nationwide.

"We got news last week that they hooked us up with licensing agreements for 17 TV shows to use our music. We will be placed on MTV, VH1, E, the Discovery Channel, A&E, and some other ones I can’t remember right now. We’re pretty excited that we're doing this without help from a label or management company," says Michael Tipton (vocals, guitar, bass).

Catch the new wave-y trio at RecordBar Halloween night. The band will cover early B-52s music. Support from Everyday/Everynight and Parts of Speech. Doors open at 9 p.m. It's 21-plus and costs $7. - ThePitch.com

Welcome to What I Like, our weekly chat with local musicians about their favorite things.

Locals Molly Picture Club make crisp, post-punk dance rock. You can buy the band's EP four on the floor on the band's website. It's a fine soundtrack for your pre-going-out ritual or for a post-show party, and there's promise of a full-length release this fall. Catch Molly Picture Show tonight at Press Bar (above Crosstown Station). The band will open for Dream Wolf and the Delighted. Doors 8:30 p.m. 21-plus. $7.

What does Molly Picture Club's Michael Tipton like? Let's see.

Favorite local band: Parts of Speech currently
Favorite non-local band: Tune-Yards currently
All-time fave songs: Wow. Hard one. Today it's "Saturday Morning" by the Eels, "So Lonely" by the Police, "The Cissy Strut" by The Meters.
Best recent film I’ve seen: The Future
Best recent book I’ve read: Bicycle Diaries by David Byrne
Favorite TV show: Freaks and Geeks
Favorite Podcast: Amplify KC
Favorite venue: RecordBar
Favorite place to eat in Kansas City: Gennesee Royale
Favorite neighborhood in Kansas City: 39th St.Â
Favorite bar in Kansas City: Dave's Stagecoach
Favorite drink: Baileys and Coffee
Favorite article of clothing: Silver jacket! - Pitch Weekly

Review: Molly Picture Club - Four on the Floor
Eighties Redux
Review by Pete Dulin.
Published: Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Molly Picture Club’s self-released 4-song EP Four on the Floor came out in November 2010. As a self-description, post-New Wave accurately sums up the band’s music.

“Candy Girl” skims on a tick-tock beat by Matthew Hayden backed by drum sequencing. The bass line and synth bops straight out of the 80s. Singer Michael Tipton channels Iggy Pop’s brooding voice. Aniko Adany’s backing vocal adds a note of urgency to the stylized sound. Sounding slightly dated, the music brings to mind the Thompson Twins and Bananarama.

Up-tempo with light handclaps, “Bleed On It” zips and bounces with the verve of a jaded teen in his bedroom with the door closed and the stereo cranked. The wah-oh-oh-oh backing vocals make this a fun sing-a-long and the keys keep the vibe sufficiently New Wave-y.

Hayden’s accelerated beats and punchy drumming makes “Satellites” scurry like a centipede on ice, distinguishing the song from the others. Adany’s nimble keyboard work and lead vocals are highlights. Tipton’s guitar adds edge to keep the song from getting too formulaic.



The final track “Blue Print” builds on a slow tempo and dark evocative guitar opening. Adany’s vocal takes the lead initially and Tipton’s vocal adds gravitas later.

Four on the Floor is an impressive debut that should easily appeal to anyone that appreciates 80s New Wave. Without outright copying Berlin, The Cars, or artists on the soundtrack from a John Hughes film (Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club), Molly Picture Club creates an updated interpretation of sounds from that era. Bonus - these songs are danceable. Look for this band at a local club and invite like-minded fashionistas to gyrate in their Vans in a two-foot square space.
- Present Magazine

Relatively new to the local scene is Molly Picture Club, which debuts with its "Four on the Floor EP." The three-piece band exudes confidence, sexiness, and craft in four quick tracks that range from upbeat to haunting yet share a "dark disco" feel.

Although the band is new, synth player Aniko Adany and guitarist/bassist Mike Tipton have worked together on other musical projects for more than three years. Their chemistry shines through in "Four on the Floor." The two share vocal duties, creating melodic contrasts but converging at each song's core. Drummer Matt Hayden rounds out the trio by capturing each song's dance-y tone with punchy and low-key rhythms.

Kicking off the EP is "Satellites," arguably the album's catchiest song. A constantly propelling beat takes center stage on this track, past Adany's easygoing vocals and Tipton's minimal and well-placed guitar riffs. The album moves into a heavier, darker mood with "Candy Girls," where Tipton sings lead vocal.

This song exudes the same synth-y new wave touch as the others, but here, Tipton's guitar and vocals create an eerie but sexy undertone. "Blue Print" and "Bleed on It" are driven by rhythm, but also by the complementary combo of Adany's and Tipton's voices.

Molly Picture Club's unusual sound comes from its ability to combine each member's styles and talents. "Four on the Floor" melds these abilities to form a fun, dance-worthy collective. - INK Magazine

Molly Picture Club is a relatively new band knocking around town. They've got kind of an icy post-punk vibe goin', and a song called "Bleed On It" that I like.

Apparently they also have obscure European connections, because the video they just released for their song "Satellites" (from their recent Four on the Floor EP) was made by a German filmmaker with the incredible name of Knut Holst. (Story checks out.) It's a black-and-white zombie noir tale of...actually I don't really understand it. It looks cool, though.
-David Hudnall - Pitch Weekly