Localized Bethany Larson and Al Church: Lovelorn lamentations and Weezerian riffage

Bethany Larson & The Bee's Knees, Sticks And Stones
(Self-released)

More a promising set of rough-hewn demos than a proper album, Bethany Larson’s 7-track EP is nonetheless an auspicious debut, marking the arrival of a young songwriting talent worth keeping an eye on, and a possible heiress to Haley Bonar’s throne as the Cities’ finest alt-country cowgirl, should Bonar decide to make her relocation to Oregon permanent. Larson's lovelorn lamentations are sparsely adorned with little more than acoustic strumming, which means her low-key twang must do most of the heavy lifting—a task she proves more than up to on ukelele-and-kick-drum ditties like “But I Love Him.” Although the spare sound doesn’t make for much in the way of rewarding repeated listening, Sticks And Stones truly shines when Larson opens up her sound by letting backing unit The Bee's Knees kick up some dust and inject a bit of sass into her sorrow, as on the album’s two high points, the title track and “Domino Men.”

Grade: B
Upcoming show: Friday, Dec. 11, Turf Club

Al Church And State, Secret One
(Draw Fire Records)

By about the one-minute mark of Al Church And State’s debut album—right when the group’s adenoidal harmonies kick in atop some arena-ready crunchy riffage—it’s pretty clear that Al Church is one big Weezer fan (so much so, he apparently used to front a tribute band to the group). Thankfully, Church’s Rivers Cuomo fixation extends only to the band’s formative adolescent-angst-anthem and sweater-destroying era—no Raditude-styled b.s. here—and doesn’t dominate the entire album. More than mere power-pop geeks, Church and his highly capable band, which includes former Aneuretical frontman Matthew Sandstedt, also make convincing stabs at shimmering balladry (“She’s Okay”), and sinewy Spoon-styled post-punk (“Stick Up”) and keep the music briskly moving throughout the album. If only Weezer itself showed this much range.

Grade: A-
Upcoming show: Saturday, Dec. 12, Sauce Soundbar