The Movies

Item: Nothin's On Its Way
Author: Jeremy Choi

Nothin's On Its Way

(1996)

Reviewed by Jeremy Choi

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Music

Label Gambit RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth1999

acoustic rock folk rock pop rock

This is without a doubt one of the more refreshing and innovative records this writer has heard in the last year. The duo of Mike Larson and Pete Tellijohn (now a trio with Jason Tako) from Minnesota have put together ten catchy melodies that conjure up memories of some John Hughes' movie from yesteryear. As a heavily acoustic pop/rock act with folk, jazz and R&B influences, The Movies (formerly the Moviegoers) will indeed appeal to fans of Toad The Wet Sprocket, Life in General and The Gin Blossoms, though fans of the Wallflowers, the Waterboys and Counting Crows will also appreciate, enjoy, and be delighted by this album.

Before listening to this record, consider the following about the key players: Larson is an award-winning poet with the National Endowment for the Arts and has a degree in creative writing. Tellijohn was a music major at university, and has a musical background in jazz, blues, and folk. Tako is an honors graduate from the state musical technical institute, and has a similar musical background to Tellijohn. Even from a casual listen, it is obvious these folks are serious musicians.

Fans of Two Pound Planet, rejoice. "Nothin's on the Way's" opening track, "There She Goes" begins this album with a gentle mix of electric and acoustic guitars, set to easily remembered choruses such as,

There she goes right now
Up the airport stairs
The sweat is on her brow
Visions of the air
The engines are so loud
But she don't seem to care
She's creasing through the crowd
Leave them all down there.

Following the initial track is the more subdued "You'd Rather Have Love," a song describing choosing love over materialism. The acoustic guitar once again takes center stage, while a piano is played softly in the background, bringing to mind some of the more somber moments of Billy Penn and the Telephone Church. The choruses and their variations dominate the song, making it quite memorable. Songs like "What I Want" are quite suitable for dancing (though not the clubby, gyrating hips variety). "I Can't Stay" has the piano as the main instrumentation, and reveals Larson's creative writing background:

Sometimes I find
The body and the mind
Huddled together
Like two questions with
The same answer

Meanwhile, tracks like this writer's favourite, "I Let it Ring," have a 50s rock and roll feel to it, complete with a deep bass sound and twangy guitars. Guest artist and co-producer Bob DeMaa plays organs on several tracks on this album, including the title track. "Ghosts in the Rain" is a sadder, all-acoustic guitar song which, like a number of other Movies' songs, is a personal introspection into questions of meaning. Larson's vocals provide the character many of the songs demand. He can adjust his vocal delivery to bear similarities with Evan Dando, while at other times, he can pick it up a notch and give Jakob Dylan a run for his money. Nothin's on its Way is definitely worth any music listener's consideration. The songs will hook even the most ardent music critic, while the words will allow the listener to use his/her imagination to find personal, relevant meaning. Look for a new Movies record to be released in the near future which will showcase Tako's talents on both fretted and fretless basses.

4 tocks