The Aluminum Group "Morehappyness" (Kenan to thread, natch)

I think it's pretty good, but it's not grabbing me quite as much as Happyness did. And I wouldn't necessarily agree with you re: Minty Fresh and post-Minty Fresh. Happyness may be their most focused album, as far as I'm concerned, but there's too much on Pedals and Plano that I absolutely adore.

"Motorcycles" was the song that hooked me on this record, and then everything else fell into place. Nothing drew me into Happyness like that, yet I still thought it was nice as a whole. This one just seems more "compact," for lack of a better term.

on "MoreHappyness": "wheat and tare" is ever-so-slightly cloying, but it is the most recent song in memory that a) i've played a million times in a row b) that's made me actually sad. also, Johnny is at his sultriest on "Biplane Serpentine."

"Oxygen" is the best drink song of the millennium so far.

Mark, where'd you read about Littlehappyness? Will that come later this year?

"little happyness??? oh my friend, and still we go further into debt to produce yet another money soaker/pit. it's just dreamy this business and thanks for caring, but at this point, honestly, we simply don't have the funds to proceed any further although littlehappyness is off to a great start."

So everybody go buy their record, okay? If you don't buy this one, there may not be a next one.

Yikes, I'd hate for it to remain unfinished. Sales on Morehappyness might pick up once it starts getting reviewed (maybe).

but it's true what I said; it's very difficult for frankie and I. will little happyness come out? of course, we finish no matter what. we're only 2/3rd's through. and once we begin something, for all our crazy reasons, which very few understand or care about, we will seek to finish. that's important to frank and I.

for me, and for frank, though I shouldn't speak for him, and I dare not quote him (kenan!), morehappyness is darker and less "pop" than happyness. but it's all in the family, isn't it? these were the songs which we felt worked better together. what I love, too about morehappyness as opposed to happyness and previous efforts, is that a number of the songs are just frank, john mcentire and I. for better or worse, that's unique about it. I love that. I just wish I played guitar better, but working with just two other artists forces you to concentrate more and step to the plate. doug mccombs scolded me and said, "you need to get back to your roots!" meaning, I'm a lazy bum.

I felt happyness had more sheer pop bliss moments. I was so proud of tiny decision, when we finished it. a gem of frank's inspired so deeply by pre-fab sprout, one of our favorite bands of yore. morehappyness has nothing like that on it. it's more internal, less looking out for inspirations.

two of my songs are very quiet and simple, colored town and beast in the nursery. it's funny, because I wrote them when we had just begun the trilogy. so they're from that time, but less "pop" than "pop", "two lights" and "kid".

maybe that's what you all are feeling? the scale leans a little in that direction, for morehappyness? nothing, with the exception of 'motorcycles" strikes you as so "pop". motorcycles was the first track we mixed, and I remember feeling we had really captured a mood, a percusive element which seemed to carry the song along like, well, like a motorcycle really.

it's funny because as I was quoted as saying somewhere, little happyness is already so much popier than either happyness or morehappyness. "milligram of happiness" is this mind blowing idea with all the stops and whistles. we haven't written a song so unabashedly proud of being sumptuous and full of flair I think.

If we're lucky campers, you'll all be around to examine and discuss that when the time arrives.

"familiar", "cloying", "classic" and "fixtures" in your lives are all the nicest phrases for an artist to read about their work. I would say also that they are different records, these two, but part of the same concept. for me, morehappyness seems more rock, which pleased me to no end. mcentire rocks on drums and is even freer on little happyness. consider "w/o the erte", "snowflake" and the bridges in "biplane serpentine" (my homage to proust and the age of flight, the excitement of sex and the longing for love as well). but nobody hears rock and roll in the aluminum group. nobody but me.

kenan is a good boy (man-child) and will be punished. but his heart is in the right place because he cared enough to cheer me, to root me on, and for that I'll punish him GOOD!

sorry for taking up to much of your time on this site. here's to this debate society. I was the nerd who paced the halls of my highschool with index cards and never got very far.

your friend, johnny navin

but addressing something mark cunningham wrote, which is very interesting to me and something I think about all the time. because our work is our work and are we just the same person producing the same work, over and over again?

I'll add, mark, and I had to walk away from my computer for a minute (or two) and look outside the window to really think about it.

I guess my philosophy of art is best illustrated by your equation:

tom of finland=erte as (and this is a big "as"), as "as I lay dying=light in august"; as "the may-pole of merry mount=young goodman brown"; as "confessions of an ugly stepsister=wicked"; as chapter=chapter in "the immense journey", as poem=poem in dickinson.

I inhabit a tiny universe where stories are repeated again and again in my mind, and though their titles change and the words are scrambled together in various, new-fangled ways, the ultimate message is best expressed as an "equals" sign.

but also, there are an infinite number of subtlies and sentiments and perspectives and emotions. perhaps, this is what I am striving for in my work.

good analogy that equal sign because you're right in a lot of ways.

I live too far from SF and teach too early the next morning to make the Cafe du Nord show. But they're also slated for an in-store appearance at Amoeba at 6pm the same day; will try to catch them there.

The second installment of The Aluminum Group’s trilogy, More Happyness, is now available in stores nationwide as well as online - Order your copy now. MoreHappyness, the sixth album from Chicago’s very own John and Frank Navin contains ten new songs filled with contributions from some familiar favorites including members of Tortoise and The Sea And Cake, and a special guest appearance by Cynthia Plaster Caster. Order a copy of Happyness and More Happyness together and we'll ship two Aluminum Group posters with your order.

The Aluminum Group will be touring major cities in the U.S. as well as Europe beginning at the end of the month. Catch a show near you!

2/26/04 - San Francisco, CA, Amoeba Music (6PM in-store)

2/26/04 - San Francisco, CA, Cafe Du Nord (Noise Pop)

2/27/04 - Los Angeles, CA, The Knitting Factory

3/19/04 - Boston, MA, TT the Bears

3/20/04 - New York, NY, The Knitting Factory

04/9/04 - Milano, Italia - Cox 18

04/10/04 - Schio, Italia - Centro Stabile di Cultura

04/13/04 - Roma, Italia - Akab

04/14/04 - Prugia, Italia - TBC

04/15/04 - Genova - TBC

04/16/04 - Prugia, Italia - TBC

04/17/04 - Messina (Sicily)

04/18/04 - Rovereto, Italia - Romis

05/08/04 - Chicago, IL - Old Town School of Folk "An Evening With The Aluminum Group CD release party"

06/25/04 - Minneapolis, MN - Third annual GLBT Pride Block Party in downtown Minneapolis. with: Sandra Bernhardt, Psychedelic Furs

***More tour dates to follow!!***

In addition, Wishing Tree will be offering FREE TICKETS to the San Francisco, L.A., and Boston shows to a few lucky fans as a token of appreciation for supporting the release of More Happyness. To be eligible for this contest, please send an e-mail containing your name and mailing address to [email protected] with “Free Tickets” in the subject. Hurry, dates are approaching quickly.

Visit the band’s website at www.thealuminumgroup.net to view the new “Mr. Butterfly” video, listen to MP3’s from the new album, and keep up to date with the brothers Navin.

MORE HAPPYNESS REVIEW:
Two years ago, this Chicago-based pop group—helmed by brothers Frank and John Navin—released the critically acclaimed "Happyness." Now, the Aluminum Group returns with "MoreHappyness," its sixth album and second installment of the Happyness trilogy. The Navin brothers—both gay and in their 40s—were very likely weaned on the sounds of Burt Bacharach, Elvis Costello, the Beach Boys and the Carpenters. At the same time, they probably own every recording by French electronic duo Air. Futuristic as well as retro, "MoreHappyness" seamlessly melds atmospheric electronics and luxurious orchestration with easy-listening pop and soul. With contributions from members of Tortoise and the Sea and Cake, the Aluminum Group delivers a collection of songs high on smart lyrics and intoxicating melodies (witness "Biplane Serpentine," "Mister Butterfly" and "Motorcycles"). More happiness, for sure.— BILLBOARD



MORE HAPPYNESS BIO:

The Aluminum Group's More Happyness
Part Two of a Trilogy

I was born into a world that still took light music seriously.
Noel Coward

Music (and the world into which it's born) has changed since Coward's time and will continue to change--again and again. Now, it's all relentless, quickening transition. Cultural trends--high and low--come on like storms and are left in the dust before we can take them in, the opening act at a state fair becoming landfill overnight. Disposable.

With the Happyness trilogy, The Aluminum Group aims to create a more intricate and slowly moving storm cycle, unspooled over the course of three years. Beginning with Happyness (2002) the CDs form a linear series, each created about a year apart. More Happyness, with 10 new songs, is the transition piece, the hybrid. Little Happyness is in production as you read this. The series is intended to work as a whole, with each piece also standing on its own.

There's another Noel Coward line that comes to mind when you listen to More Happyness, the one about "the potency of cheap music". Would Chicago brothers John and Frank Navin, famously unsqueamish when it comes to defining their music, object to having their 6th CD called "cheap"? Remember buying one of those old vinyls for 5 bucks and listening to it until it ate your needle? Why did it eat your needle? Was it because you heard something new every time you played it? Was it because the lyrics opened a little more each time?

The Navins might just smile if they heard More Happyness described as "cheap music". And maybe you'll find it’s not cheap-sounding at all.

You can listen to "Motorcycles", the first single from "More Happyness", on our WishingTree Radio at wishingtreerecords.com now.

because although we say, "the luck of the irish", I think we really mean, "italians make the best lovers!". and so we go where we are most wanted and enjoyed. and I do love how I've been enjoyed (by more than a few italians) over the years. also, italy is a magic place; one of the few really magical places on the globe. why, I recently demanded of our italian booking agent, "STROMBOLI! we simply must perform in stromboli, under the volcano, beside the volcano, whatev, make it so!" and he kind of does. our shows in italia are always in old theaters, by someone's swimming pool, a seasonal club (tutti frutti, hyper, etc.), a meat-locker outside verona, a cinima vecchio run by communist kids near turino, a milanese discoteque, a penthouse flat, every place, every odd little place; all the places frankie and I love to find.

I wish we could come to england and play more. gosh! I really do, but we just don't seem to get the chance. if there were a booking agent we could rely on there, well, I would gladly say, "BARBICAN, get us there! to the place where concrete is beautiful. or bath! beside the waters, poolside or even in a roman bath at Bath! aluminum group water aerobics or hadrian's wall! find us an aristocrat to cough up some dough in northumberland, we're not that particular"..."I was born in the wagon of a traveling show"

thanks for buying plano. oh, it's so-o-o-o old just like me. I would like to reinterpret some of those old songs on grand piano and just frankie and I singing along, like at a party. maybe we'll do that at the Old Town School of Folk in may.

only strange fruit was so kind to ask us to your homeland, only those sweet and wonderful kids. and gail o'hara, but she drags us everywhere like a cool sister having her two nerd, older brothers tagging along.

let's just say, we'll see you soon, someday soon, tim. come to italy! you need a holiday! we do, too. all the best,

johnny navin/the aluminum group

I forgot to say, ple-e-e-a-s-e come and visit us at our website:

thealuminumgroup.net

frankie and I are now archiving, curating video features, which we hope you will enjoy. there's "mister butterfly" and "stonewall" (hey tim, a plano video! hah!).

we've been given permission by this incredible estonia artist named ki wa to use his film "oasis" for "stroke". oh my god, this is one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen, and ki wa agreed this week; it does kind of work perfectly with stroke. It's a birdeye's shot of ki wa having his mouth planted with a flowering plant. It's so soft and dark, and stroke alongside it, gives an even darker edge.

jenny reeder, a fabulous chicago filmmaker, is finishing up the final touches on a film she shot for "motorcycles". supposedly, although I haven't seen it yet, it is a movement study of her manly, handsome husband (god!), shane, who is a dreamboat first (swimmer second). and the nicest kid! he once offered to (and did) take out the trash at a babyshower I threw for johnny herndon and his wife kathryn. as I mentioned shane is an amateur swimmer, and I remember, the only specification I had for jenny (or wish). let's see, how shall I put this? I asked her, I said, "jenny, does shane own a green speedo? I will gladly purchase him one if he doesn't."

and also, deborah johnson (candystations, designer of our website) and I are collaborating on a new piece for a song off of "little happyness". It will explore another magical world north of san francisco, called the sea ranch, a very important place this ranch. I took a million pics and we're doing it as a kind of travelog study, well, study of the place. god is in every detail! CHARLES MOORE is who we're honoring here. charles and real romance, adult romantic adventures, this kind of thing.

stay tuned, but come and see us.

just me bothering you again

Bah. I suppose I'll have to continue to badger Ms. O'Hara.

tim...have a great holiday stateside, and yes, keep hassling ms. o'hara! I do!

joan...thanks for keeping what's personal, personal!

jaymc...sorry if I thought you were a girl! I don't know why I thought that. are you though?

man, tomorrow, we head to san francisco and I'm a ball of nerves for some reason. silly! we're having lunch with a friend at a cafe called zuni. oysters for me, then? although the thought kind of makes me want to spew. a record in-store and a show. we'll sleep like babies tomorrow night. who knows what awaits us in los angeles? good times...

john john

pretty mouth and green my eyes...

thanks

"you are very popular, swing along with your p-o-p-u-l-a-r-i-t-y..." ari singing in her rasta voice, you know the group?

mully, you're a genius! that's it. why couldn't I remember that? I loved that group so much. thanks, man!

hah! hah! for $4.75, mully. let's talk about it.

$4.74 australian? no postage?

you must be so proud of mel, your countryman, from road warrior to this... eh?

ps. that's bullshit when that happens, records going out, on loan, and not returned, which is the polite thing. damn that! we've lost a million records, mully, in just the same way.

hey do you know a band called "architecture in helsinki"? they're from down-under...

the architects are touring the states soon and they're staying at my house, all 9 of them. I told the leader, whom I call bird, that they better bring sleeping bags, cuz I don't have that many clean sheets.

fey? yeah, maybe, but nice to listen to in the car when you're driving through the city, suburbs and then the woods.

*checks watch*

architecture in helsinki (or acupuncture in carnegie as i like to call them) are an interesting tweepop/vaguely electro combo with lots of members. they have some lovely tunes and some really irritating tunes. they are often really really awful live

we did it our way, which isn't fey, isn't really gay, what it is, I really won't say, except, that you should buy our cd, today! that's morehappyness man. wonderboy plus is fey, but hey, we were 24 years old when we did it.

start with veuve, move on the morehappyness! It will mess with your mind, brother. hic up! I need another glass of shampoo!

sorry it's raining, but maybe you need the rain, for trees and bushes the kangaroo eat. yeah, we'll be okay, just frankie (my bro) and me tomorrow night. our girl (she's like little edie from gray gardens) is picking us up at the airport. we'll have a great day. she's taking us to some special places. a little chinese lady who makes these strange, tiny, little plastic beaded animals, which we love and of course will buy. "$5 dollah, please..." I'll fill a paper bag full, I will. and then some lunch, and maybe a walk on the presidio to see the pet cemetary under the golden gate bridge. It's our favorite spot in all the city. you have to go when you visit. maybe even diane arbus if we have time and if her show is still there. but we do have that in-store at 6 pm! goodness me!

I just started doing my laundry so I'll have clean underwear at least.

los angeles is going to be a riot, too. our other girl (she's like that actress from american grafitti, the blond who hooks up with ron howard's brother in real life; her name's candy sometthing, right?) is picking us up and we're having dinner with friends (a moviestar is supposed to come, but that's ridiculous to report until said moviestar shows, but kind of fun even if he does a no-show, but we got business to discuss).

and during the day the knitting factory (los angeles) is supposed to be showing underground gay films. please let them show "pie in the sky" featuring brigid berlin, oh please, do! I want to see that one: "it's all about weight".

anyway, nightie-night, or has your day just begun? what is it, then? goodnight mully, and austrailia, you big, beautiful people on earth. we're coming to you, someday. I hope!

our tour is kind of american idol right now. my favorite musical movement of the moment.

first of all, be careful and take care of yourself. eat right and avoid hydrogenated (sic) fats. don't smoke or drink like me! also, you're an interesting looking sculptor. you look like a brit from one of my favorite books of all time, "private view". keep working in clay; art will lower your cholesteral, it will! It will never cure you, in fact, it will probably kill you, but not before the fat in your bloodstream does. here's to health, then! take care!

I see what you mean about that thread, and I adored your "dear santa" epistle. from whom and where? but we know why this kid gets off, how he must cry (every night into his pillow). poor little guy.

all is vanity; all is vanity, then? for people like me, and where do we get off?

Anyway, the more I think about it, the more I realize that maybe it's something best experienced on CD first. It was a great show for me because it was the first time in several years they played with a live band (a lot of their recent shows are the Navin Brothers and a backing track played on iPod) -- and it was interesting to hear some of their old songs (the set was, with the exception of one song, all from their 1998 and '99 albums) reinterpreted for a piano-bass-drums jazz trio. This gave it a nice kick that I've missed from recent shows.

i forget who raised the spectre of that "are you being sarcastic?"/"i don't even know anymore, man" simpsons joke, but it seemed appropriate.

"Poking fun": Well, Nick said he thought John Navin was openly mocking the Glass/Ware presentation. I'm not sure what he's referring to. I can only think of the comments John made about loving the Dirksen Federal Building (referenced in the song "Jinxed" as "three Miesian boxes"), despite the TAL interviewee's disdain for it. So he's referencing the interviewee, and humorously disagreeing with him: I have trouble understanding that as anything more harsh than "poking fun."

I pull out the Aluminum Group when the weather gets warm. It goes great with alfresco eating. Those e-mails are delightful. Wish I'd caught this thread the first time around.