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photosIncendiary Magazine (NL) www.incendiarymag.com (Queens Live In Caskets)
"A fabbo album title I think you’d agree. And The Coronation is also a fabulous opener; replete with a synth sound that replicates a police siren. For some reason it reminds me of Mag Earwhig–era Guided by Voices. It must be that growling guitar and plodding drum combination. The next track Space Station starts off sounding like (and here I must apologise to the great Anthony Powell) a lot of owls squabbling in a bicycle factory, but settles down to become an affecting acoustic observation replete with the odd guitar effect. Lightspeed follows on very quickly, various synth effects - and that siren call again - create a strangely open environment for a whimsical acoustic ballad. A strange track indeed.
The next three tracks see Mr Stout adopting the mantle of acid-folk troubadour; Talk out of Turn, To Prague and Back and First Song for Jaclyn are all slightly bucolic ballads albeit with strange sonic twists and turns and the odd Buckley-ism thrown in for good measure. It’s all good stuff and very much of the alt-folk canon.
All undoubtedly good stuff so far, but there are two tracks on this LP that merit your attention more than most; Fountain of Youth is another ballad in the folk tradition but this song sees a totally different approach than previous numbers. A female backing vocal helps matters, as does a doleful whistler. A sense of crystalline space is created that is very affecting indeed. The other track to listen out for is Story of My Life; a strange amalgamation of sample beats and Roxy-esque synths. The word “partly” is used, which is always a good thing. Stout’s life-story is sung in a deadpan, bucolic manner, rather like a modern, youthful Silenus recounting his wanderings.
Well, what to say in conclusion? If you like acid troubadours, you’ll like this. Mercifully the styles are mixed up track by track, bringing a sense of freshness and inventiveness to the work. It’s just enough. Sprout keeps a light enough hand on the tiller, preventing the inherent identity of each track being swamped.
Good stuff.
"
Americana UK www.americana-uk.com (Queens Live In Caskets)
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The home- made recording, wearing its DIY ethos as a badge of honour has been pretty much de rigueur for a while now. As is often the way with such seeming effortlessness, it is kind of hard to pull off – to sound this spontaneous takes a lot of work.
‘Queens Live in Caskets’, written, produced and performed by Brooklynite Aaron Stout, still only in his early twenties, carries this style of album making off perfectly.
Many of the vocal and guitar tracks sound like early takes, chosen for the integrity of the performance rather than the perfection of the rendition. It is around these basics that Stout expertly weaves drum machines, all manner of percussion and various ‘found’ noises. The results sit somewhere between M.Ward, Bright Eyes and (the more wilfully obscure) Tom Waits.
Self- producing a record in this style usually proves a step too far for many without the intuitive ear of the above named artists, but Stout has retained room within the songs, allowing them to breathe. Any augmentation is both tasteful and within the context of the track. The result is a beautiful collection of songs.
Anyone unsure of what exactly this all means should beg, borrow or download while no-one is looking, the track ‘First Song For Jaclyn’ – all will become clear. 8/10"
Pete Gow
One World, Radio 1 (Queens Live In Caskets)
"Aaron Stout is absolutely amazing and reminds us of early Medicine Head material. Well worth checking out if you like your psychedelic folk music."
The Crack (Queens Live In Caskets)
"From the opening line of stunning album opener The Coronation, Aaron Stout absolutely blows you away with his worldly rich vocal not unlike that of Arcade Fire's frontman Win Butler. Except Aaron was 23 when he penned this captivating psychedelic folk debut which reveals not only his amazing vocal but a huge talent for songwriting. An absolute must-hear."
Tasty Fanzine (Queens Live In Caskets)
"I've had the privilege of having had a copy of Aaron Stouts debut record Queens Live In Caskets on CDR now for quite some time and now thanks to the wonderful folk at Monotreme this little gem will now be readily available to all mankind.
Queens Live In Caskets is a fragile and varied wonder by young singer-songwriter Stout, a man with a rich and distinctive voice like treacle laced with arsenic. It begins with the slow, march-like rhythm of The Coronation, which is reminiscent of early Bowie pop, before slowly fading into the simple beauty of Space Station, a song that showcases Stouts ease at understated beauty.
However it is in the two of final tracks of the record that his finest work is left to shine. The ghostly and haunting Fountain Of Youth complete with its eerie whistled backing proves to be the records most beguiling number and is followed by the Papa M like splendour of The Ballad Of Curtis Jones, both of which are songs that demonstrate Stouts ability to create much out of little.
Queens Live In Caskets is a record full of understated wonder as well as hidden treats and layers, ones that are only really revealed as you become more familiar with the record. A bit like finding a gracious new friend with a wealth of stories to tell."
Luke Drozd
Comes with a Smile (Queens Live In Caskets)
"Having bagged hometown slots with M.Ward and Fruit Bats amongst similar peers, young American Aaron Stout is certainly heading towards the right audience. With an equally apt, lengthy tour support with one of the adored, plus the discovery of ‘Queens Live In Caskets’, his captivating debut, his profile should deservedly rise a few notches further.
There is no escaping the fact that the torrent of singer-songwriters we have been presented with in the last half dozen years is overwhelming, and it seems now set that thousands more will follow. An increased appreciation of acoustic and rootsier sounds has propelled the awful likes of James Blunt and, God forbid, Jack Johnson to the top of the heap, but at the very least such a situation provides a platform for artists such as Aaron Stout. He sounds nothing at all like these clowns, but there are far more acceptable touchstones that should arouse enough curiosity to track down this peach.
Vocally, think of Cass McCombs, Jim James and Stuart Staples with occasional inflections of Neil Young and the whooping-at-the-end-of-a word histrionics of David Eugene Edwards (as displayed particularly on the fabulous First Song For Jaclyn). But Stout is no dreary indie whinger: he labels his music folk-rock, and that’s a fair enough tag.
Apart from the slow metallic pop of opener The Coronation, this is pretty much an introspective, acoustic, and earthily folky affair, but there are unexpected twists that elevate ‘Queens’ far above standard singer-songwriter fare. There is all manner of oddness present, existing independently behind songs to hint at a restless compositional mind attempting to create atmospherics beyond words and music. The sounds of malfunctioning machines, messy feedback, random pops and clanks drop in and out, not distracting from the song, but adding condiments and herbs to an already tasty soup. The best instance of this is what appears to be the yap of a terrier, totally off-the-beat amidst the downbeat beauty of the blissful Fountain of Youth. The uncanny thing is, that if you were to not expect the yap of a terrier at any point in this song, it’s dropped in the perfect place to have the desired effect – if you get my drift.
The most obvious comparison is (again) M.Ward’s ‘End of Amnesia’, and it is a joy to report that some of the numbers here are as good as anything on that album, albeit interpreted with a smaller budget. This is very much a lo-fi presentation, also reminiscent of Drowsy or Mugison at times, but it never detracts from the high quality melodies on show. The dubby Talk Out of Turn in particular is a grand and elegant example, signalling that in this leftfield roots performer we have a name to watch that could be as revered as those he has shared stages with if he continues to produce music of such quality."
Tom Sheriff