Charlemagne is still very much Carl Johns. But since his last release (and SideCho debut), 2005 s Detour Allure, things have changed significantly in the musician s camp. No longer are albums pieced together in a Madison, WI-based home studio in between day jobs and life s obligations. And no longer is Charlemagne a revolving door of sidemen and artistic hands. He has since relocated to Brooklyn and has established a backing ensemble with his East Coast-based bandmates Matt Ricchini and Michael Heinzer (also of Soft People). He has also reverted to his days of recording as a live unit (as he did in Noahjohn several years earlier), by imple- menting the same techniques with Charlemagne s latest album, We Can Build An Island. This year s Charlemagne model finds Johns with a better sense of musical permanency. With the album wrapped, Johns looks forward to the future with his new bandmates. I just wanted a consistent variable, he says. I liked the idea of playing with the same people over and over. Things are no longer on a short-term ... It s time for us to tighten things up a little bit. With a melding of influences, including The Velvet Underground, The Queen, The Kinks and the Pixies, Charlemagne s latest effort finds the act squarely in the realm of dirty pop songs, tinged with a bit of folk and psychedelia proving that once again Johns is here to stay.
R**D
NoahMagne
I have long been a fan of Carl John's projects. I love the NoahJohn recordings, and love the first two Charlemagne release, but I am disappointed in this release.What attracted me to the first to C'magne CDs was the wide-eyed, naivete...the sense of innocence...the faux flower-power stylings that were mixed in with slightly off-kilter, slightly cheezy-sounding keyboards, handclaps, and other unexpected noises. Everything here is pretty rudimentary, basic indie sounding pop. It's more NoahJohn than Charlemagne, but without the anarchy. It's not awful, but nothing stands out.According to the Amazon comments above Johns says he wants to work with the same musicians on a regular basis. So why does he keep changing his lineup?
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