Cleveland's Suitor announce new album

Cleveland's Suitor announce new album

We come to you now in the aftermath of a class 5 kill-storm: of Snowpocalypse, of Snowmageddon, of the End of (Snow) Days. But here at Feel It HQ we fear not nature’s wrath, for the fluffy white death descends from the sky regardless and ultimately without malice, and so we continue to toil away. The result of those toils, delayed by neither man nor nature, comes to us in the form of the first Feel It release of 2026: Saw You Out with the Weeds by Cleveland's Suitor. Recorded by our friends Caufield and Lira of Sweeping Promises, the record deftly blends elements of pop, post-punk, and indie into a sound larger than its components. Stream the first single below and preorder now.
Additionally we have three shows at the shop this month: a trio of area heavy hitters on 2/6 as Hueston Woods, Rachel's Papers, and Maystay take the stage. 2/20 we welcome Columbus rockers Neil with hefty local indie rock support. Then on 2/27 the Sex Mex phenomenon comes back to Cincy, backed by local ne'er-do-wells Eatt, and Gremlin.
Suitor - Saw You Out with the Weeds
Artwork: Bianca Fields | Photo: @zoe.hun

Bandcamp

"Factory" premiere at Post-Trash

Preorder LP direct from Feel It
(Natural/Pink Swirl or Black - shipping around the street date of March 20)
After their debut release, Communion, Suitor’s efforts went into sculpting a different sound with their newly expanded lineup.  A pared down selection of songs they wrote during this period would ultimately become Saw You Out with the Weeds. In the spring of 2024, the songs were recorded live in Lawrence, Kansas by Caufield Schnug and Lira Mondal of Sweeping Promises. Suitor’s wide range of influences and exploratory ethos are on full display in this concise yet diverse set of tracks. The record is a push and pull between elements of noise pop, post-punk, and indie rock, balanced by densely worded vocal melodies and strong, captivating hooks.  Embracing a larger wall-of-sound approach for the mix, Saw You Out with the Weeds is filled with sharp, layered guitars and driving rhythms that course through all of its shimmering textures.
Suitor - Factory (Official Video)
Upcoming gigs at the shop
Home listening
Hey folks, Sam here. It's been a while since you've heard from me in in this newsletter. Ben has done a wonderful job of carrying the editorial torch. I've finally found a nice balance between work and home, so without further ado...I present my new contribution to the newsletter, home listening.
 
Free jazz has been my drug of choice lately. Anything free expression, really. So here's a rather interesting one that colors outside the lines, though the players on here are of strong Jazz lineage. Let's set the scene, we're in St. Louis, where the Human Arts Ensemble has been a true musical melting pot since its establishment in '71. The Ensemble shared members with Black Artists Group, which promoted both free jazz and experimental theatre. Charles Bobo Shaw was right in the middle of the action, associated with both the Ensemble and BAG. He knew all the key players on the scene and brought a mighty sextet together for Çonceré Ntasiah.

There are four pieces here, two per side - and how could you go wrong by starting with Steam Away Kool 500 ? This kicks in very-unlike most 70s jazz records with a rumbling electric bassline from Alex Blake (whose credits include everything from Sun Ra Arkestra to Ryo Kawasaki to uhh...Jimmy Buffett) that lays the rhythm foundation along with BoBo Shaw's drumming. There's some muted electric guitar in the mix, bursts of trombone and sax, kind of reminiscent of what was happening in Cleveland's proto-punk scene (Mirrors, Ubu) around the same time. It's essentially just a fun Hendrix-indebted jam that the Ensemble warms with. Then comes the entrancing title track, rooted around the acoustic guitar progression of Nyomo Mantuila, a Congolese-born player who also has many interesting credits to his name. The floor then opens up for the two horn players to enter the mix. Julius Hemphill on soprano sax and Joseph Bowie on trombone. At nearly eleven minutes, the Ensemble stretches every note to perfection to end side A.

Jacki B Tee begins the flip side with some textural similarities to Çonceré Ntasiah, though it features a decidedly flamenco-esque guitar progression as its compass. Yet another wildcard in the sequence that defies expectation. Shaw gets really locked in on short splashes of the ride cymbal while we finally begin to detect more of Abdul Wadud's cello in the mix. The Cleveland-born cellist was truly one-of-a-kind and made some highly collectable records well worth investigating. On the final tune, Be Bo Bo Be, we're treated to exceptional bursts of Wadud's bow. The guitars largely drop out on this tune, a post-bop composition that gradually veers more free and avant over time, allowing Hemphill and Bowie to really drive at it before Mr. Shaw goes absolutely wild behind the kit. The fact that he only takes a credit for "percussion" is ridiculously humble.

The Koolest thing about this record is that all the players have these great portraits on the back cover - just some simple head shots in front of a 70s checkerboard blanket backdrop. The Ensemble all look quite happy, stoned, or both. Shaw is definitely blazed on the front cover, his dreads nearly entangled in some potted plants behind him. Fantastic stuff. Well, to make this record even MORE great / confusing, it gets re-released on Universal Justice in 1978 with a different sequence (likely to even the side lengths out) and then gets picked up by the great Muse label in '81, retitled as P'nk J'zz with bad 80's graphic re-design. Punk Jazz? Pink Jizz? Who knows what the angle (or lack thereof) was. Either way, I wanted to highlight this relatively under-appreciated gem that's perhaps too eclectic for genre purists but is a MAGICAL group of players doing something that still sounds as new and different as it did upon release fifty years ago. Still quite affordable, with the P'nk J'zz version being attainable for $20 or less...don't hit snooze on this one!

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