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Cosmik Debris
August 2001

THE GRAVEL PIT
Mass Avenue Freeze Out (Q-Division)
Reviewed by Melanie Campbell

From Boston, via New Haven, CT to you, comes The
Gravel Pit! This rockin' quartet, who have been together
since 1994 or so, give new meaning to the phrase
"power-pop crunch." Mass Avenue Freeze Out pumps
out some of the catchiest tunes in this genre this side of
Elvis Costello, XTC, or even the Beatles. The bands'
third release is further testament to why these guys
were voted "Best Band" at this years' Independent
Music Awards. And if that doesn't convince you, keep
in mind that they've also walked away regularly with
top honors at the Boston Music Awards and are in
regular rotation at mega-FM station WBCN. With just
one listen to Mass Avenue Freeze Out, you too will
come to understand why this is.

The only real difference between this release and the bands' last outing, 1999's outstanding
effort, Silver Gorilla, is that they turned down their Vox and Farfisas just a bit, and cranked up
the guitars. Mind you, the endearingly cheesy organ sound is somewhat of a signature for these
guys, and it's still in use here. But producer Scott Riebling (Letters To Cleo, The Sheila Divine)
has toned it down in favor of some perfectly placed axe licks, courtesy of Lucky Jackson.
Some, like the ones in the raucous pair of tunes, "Unit Three" and "The Ballad Of The Gravel
Pit," are real down and dirty (think AC/DC or Aerosmith, even!). Others, like the tasty fills in
the aptly-named ('cause it's a perfect cruising tune) "Race Car" and happy-go-lucky "Best
Friend," are clean as a whistle.

Meanwhile, the ever-sharp leader of this Fab Four, the one and only Jedediah Parish, has
polished up his delivery, sounding better than ever with his vocal stylings. This guy has a range
that staggers the imagination, ranging from the lowdown snarling grit of "Enemy" to the
plaintive falsetto on "Loved One." And the backbone rhythm section of The Pit, Ed Valauskas
and Pete Caldes, surely share one brain as they roll merrily along in a toe-tapping mélange of
beats - especially on the sure-fire single release, "Baby Gap." All in all, Mass Avenue Freeze Out
is the best offering yet by one of the country's most criminally overlooked bands. And don't be
surprised if it turns up on a few "Best Of 2001" lists. Just remember that you read that here
first...

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CMJ
July 2, 2001

Gravel Pit
Mass Avenue Freeze-Out
(Q Division)

Although the Gravel Pit has been making power-pop since the early '90s, the Boston quartet still delivers its sound with the exuberance of a much younger band. Its experiences have brought it to a point where the group can skillfully appropriate bits of its chief influences (Elvis Costello and Cheap Trick among them) into its fourth album, the cheeky Mass Avenue Freeze-Out. It's clear from melodically sophisticated songs like "Loved One" that the Pit cares about the craft of its songs, but there seems to be equal time spent ensuring that these tunes have some amplified bite as well. "The Ballad Of The Gravel Pit" pumps it up, showing off the band's ability to roar and reel off memorable hooks at the same time. Some may enjoy the stylistic variety of this record's tour through power-pop, while others might sense a band still in search of a defining sound. Regardless, at least they go at it full throttle.

- Steve Ciabattoni

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Yoursound.com

This is everything a power pop album should be: ironic, literate, passionate, and above all, fun. If a record doesn't make you act like enough of an idiot to provoke stares at stoplights when you've got it cranked up while cruisin' down Mass Ave with the windows rolled down in your bitchin' Ford Escort, then it's just not worth listening to- but I can tell already that the new one from Gravel Pit is sure to earn me a few traffic tickets before the summer's over. Every song is an anthem and meant to be played LOUD, and I'm more than willing to oblige. The album is a pure, smart-ass good time that's chock full of references for the would-be music critic to pretentiously point out to his friends (see the album's title-c'mon now, this is an easy one). Mass Avenue Freeze-Out is Weezer on steroids, and is sure to be heard in heavy rotation once the Abercrombie-wearing masses get tired of being spoon fed songs about breaking stuff.

- Michael Baldino,YourSound.com, Inc.
(c)2001 Michael Baldino

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Northeast Performer July 2001

The Gravel Pit - Mass Avenue Freeze-Out

Reviewer -Kevin S. Hoskins

The suits are back! After their longest break (two years) between albums since
the band's inception in 1995, Boston's Gravel Pit returns with a collection of
twelve punchy songs that they reel off in thirty-seven quick minutes. Taking as
its title a nod to Bruce Springsteen's "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", you might
expect a collection of urban folk ballads. But then you would not know The
Gravel Pit. These four transplants from Connecticut are extremely successful
in their ability to straddle that precocious place where rock and roll becomes
pop (see: Superdrag, The Figgs, or Chisel for further reference), where your
head starts nodding and your feet start moving. Starting with a tender
acoustic-goes-electric tune, "Loved One," they turn up the power-pop jets
with "The Ballad of the Gravel Pit," "Unit Three," and "Baby Gap" which are all
on par with the catchy should-a-been-a-hit single "Favorite" from 1999's Silver
Gorilla. The middle portion of the album is anchored by "Get Rough" and
"Why," lighter-flavored pop tunes. The latter-half of the record is highlighted
by a tough-sounding trio of rockers "Star Treatment," "Curious," and "Race
Car," which, along with "The Ballad of the Gravel Pit", features the back-up
vocals of long-time friends The Figgs' Pete Donnelly and Mike Gent (who
plays with The Gravel Pit's Ed Valauskas, Lucky Jackson, and Pete Caldes in
The Gentlemen and also plays guitar on three tracks). The album winds down
with "Short Western Film," which could be the soundtrack to part of the film
where the hero rides away. The album is loaded with nice harmonies, which
only augment the vocals of singer/organ player Jed Parish. Parish sounds like
he's hit his stride and has reached a point where he is secure enough to do
what he wants with his voice. Add to the combination a solid back-line in
bassist Valauskas and drummer Caldes and the mix of clean and warm, fuzzy
tones by guitarist Jackson. The album is also marked by the crisp production
of ex-Letters to Cleo bassist Scott Riebling (American Hi-Fi, The Sheila Divine,
The Gentlemen). Riebling has succeeded in giving some of these songs a
vintage sound quality (including the sound of a Hammond C-2 organ from the
1940s), much like Everclear's "70's Pop Album" of last year.

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Titan 6/01

**** The Gravel Pit - Mass Avenue Freeze-Out

If you have any taste in music whatsoever, you'll fall in love with Mass Avenue Freeze-Out upon first listening. The first song, "Loved One," sounds like Weezer, with a sprinkling of John, Paul, George, and Ringo (always a good thing). Unlike a lot of bands, "The Gravel Pit isn't afraid to serve up an eclectic mix, as opposed to weaving in and out of songs without ever straying off the beaten path. Song two, "The Ballad of the Gravel Pit," takes you in the exact opposite direction as "Loved One," and almost has a grungy, Nirvana kind of sound to it. "Baby Gap" is about as catchy a song - with the exception of "Who Let the Dog Out?" - as you're going to find. You'll notice that your foot involuntarily bounces up and down while this song is playing. Don't try to stop it; it's impossible. The power-pop Boston quartet offers a soothing, relaxed sound that can change gears into a rocking, hear-bopping jam in the blink of an eye. The songs are all pretty short, but oh so sweet.
The album was produced by Scott Reibling (Letters to Cleo, The Sheila Divine, Bob's Day Off, Something Ira) and can be found at www.qdivions.com/gravelpit or at any Newbury Comics' location. Highly, highly recommended.

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The Boston Globe CD REVIEW

The Gravel Pit offers top tunes to dig
By Joan Anderman, Globe Staff, 6/22/2001

''Mass Ave Freeze-Out'' was not supposed to be a great album. It was going to be the proverbial musical quickie, a down-and-dirty little CD recorded in spare time on a shoestring at depressing but affordable studios.

''All I can say is, considering what a task it was to make, considering the fractured, odd assembly line, the record sounds so relaxed and so bandlike,'' says Jed Parish - singer, songwriter, and organist for Boston indie-pop band the Gravel Pit. ''I'm extremely happy with it.''

As he should be. ''Mass Ave Freeze-Out,'' produced by former Letters to Cleo bassist Scott Riebling for the local Q Division label, is a cogent, spirited collection of raucous pop-rock gems. Pride is tempered with circumspection, however, as the 10-year-old band - which celebrates the release of its fifth CD tonight and tomorrow at T.T. the Bear's Place in Cambridge - finds itself at something of a crossroads. For the first time since moving from New Haven to Boston in 1993, the Gravel Pit is retreating from its nonstop, no-holds-barred stream of live gigs.

''We'll do regional dates,'' says bassist Ed Valauskas. ''But we've done the whole touring-the-country, playing-to-nobody thing. It doesn't sell records; it just wears everybody down.''

The record that didn't sell - and spawned the tour that wore everybody down - was 1999's ''Silver Gorilla,'' the Gravel Pit's big-budget project and big-time push for national exposure. The album produced a local hit with the single ''Favorite,'' one of the rare songs by an indie band to be put into regular rotation by both WBCN-FM (104.1) and WFNX-FM (101.7). The band launched a national tour and major labels did come calling; they lost interest, predictably enough, as the single faded from the airwaves. Despite its masterful blend of complicated pop songcraft and rock muscle, ''Silver Gorilla'' didn't accomplish what the band hoped it would.

''We're not an angry group of folks,'' says Valauskas. ''We're proud of what we've done, and we have a core of fans around the country. But we're not metal. We're not rap-core. There are no hot chicks in our band. I think we're all a lot more realistic.'' Adds Parish: ''We're in the stage where we're just going to put this out and see if it's fun. We've always been good at entertaining ourselves.''

Meanwhile, all the members are involved in side projects. Parish is putting the finishing touches on his second solo album. Valauskas is a busy sideman; he plays bass with Kay Hanley, Cr eme Brulee, and Bill Janovitz's band Crown Victoria. Guitarist Lucky Jackson and drummer Pete Caldes, along with Valauskas and Mike Gent from the Figgs, formed the hard-rocking power-pop group the Gentlemen last year.

But the shift to new projects doesn't signal a slow phasing out of the band. The Gravel Pit is the priority, says Valauskus. At least for now. ''I do think this is our best-sounding record. No, I don't get why we're not signed, but I don't care anymore. These guys have been my best friends for 10 years. I want to spend my summer doing as much music as possible.''

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The Boston Phoenix 6/22/01
Cellars By Starlight
by Brett Milano

Grand Funk had "We're an American Band." Bachman-Turner Overdrive had "Takin' Care of Business." And the Gravel Pit have "The Ballad of the Gravel Pit," their own contribution to the annals of songs about the wild life of a rock-and-roll band on the road.

Featured early on their new Mass. Avenue Freeze-Out (on Q Division), the "Ballad" is one of their catchiest songs yet and definitely their funniest. And it turns out that the Gravel Pit's road life is a good deal less glamorous than Grand Funk's or BTO's were. There are verses
about singer Jed Parish trying (and failing) to pick up chicks backstage; about bassist Ed
Valauskas selling the T-shirts; about drummer Pete Caldes being the cool one. Then there's guitarist Lucky Jackson's initial meeting with Figgs leader Mike Gent (sung roughly to the tune of "Sweet Emotion"): "Some long-poem writer with a name like a Gent/Asked Mr. Jackson for 25 cents." It's proof that you can't go wrong with a good Aerosmith joke.

Listening to that song, you might think the Gravel Pit - who play a two-night release party at T.T. the Bear's Place this weekend - are proud to join the tradition of all-for-one road-dog
rock bands. But that hasn't been the case, at least not over the past year. For the first time since 1993, when they moved here from New Haven, the well-liked quartet haven't been playing out wherever and whenever possible."When we made Silver Gorilla, we were coming off 52 gigs in the past year," Parish explains when we all sit down at the Middle East. "This time we were only coming off 15. So I was a little nervous that we weren't the crack tour band we've been in the past decade."

In fact they've been more visible lately with side projects. Parish played a bunch of solo gigs, started a Web site (www.jedediahparish.com), and released an album (Bloodsucker Blues) with all the songs that were too dark or weird for the band. Following up on that meeting with Gent, the other three members joined with him to form the hard-rockin' Gentlemen. And Valauskas is playing with five bands at last count; the other three are Kay Hanley, Crème Brûlée and Bill Janovitz's Crown Victoria - all of which he's had time to join since his day job at a local dot-com fell through. "They're all good bands, and it's fun to have something to do."

So are the Gravel Pit on the verge of being phased out? No, but they don't plan to go back to doing it full-tilt, either. They did all the touring and the shmoozing two years ago, when Silver Gorilla was a local hit and "Favorite" was virtually the only local song by an indie band to be in regular rotation at both WFNX and WBCN. But the roadwork wasn't fun, and it didn't get them a record deal, so the hell with it.

"My main issue with the last tour is that some of the shows weren't that good," Parish explains. "If we could go on the road and the shows would either make us money or be great rock-and-roll nights, then great. But we had a lot of gigs that didn't make us a better band, lost us money, and pissed us off." It didn't help, he adds, that the band would show up in suits, their chosen stage garb, and get questions like, "Are you guys the Mighty Mighty Bosstones?" Even some of the local shows proved less than memorable, like the WBCN River Rave gig at the Tweeter Center last year. "I was miserable at that show," says Valauskas. "I remember that you could see people running down the hill when we played 'Favorite' and then going away again afterward."

They're equally jaded with the major labels, who made overtures when "Favorite" was a hit but beat a predictable retreat afterward. "If your band is called Anal Aggression, everybody knows what that's going to sound like," Parish notes. "But if you have to say, 'Well, our band rocks, but it's also kinda poppy, and there are some slow songs' - where are they supposed to put that?"

For those who know these guys, that's an easy one: you call them a rock-and-roll band. Especially on Mass. Avenue Freeze-Out, which makes good on their promise to deliver a louder, between-the-eyes set after Silver Gorilla, which was their most textured pop effort. They changed producers - from Mike Denneen, himself a keyboard player, to former Letters to Cleo bassist Scott Riebling - and the sound has shifted quite a bit. In the past it's always relied on the guitar and keyboard (usually the garage-model Vox organ) playing in tandem, but this time Jackson's guitars leave the keyboard in the dust. With Mike Gent adding a second guitar on some tracks (and Parish occasionally picking up one himself), it's tempting - but still accurate - to say it sounds like a Gentlemen album with Parish doing the singing.

"That's inevitable," Parish says. "And I definitely like the Gentlemen, but I can't say I've been influenced by them. It just happens that the new songs we had were more rock. I mean, one of the songs has a breakdown that was already on the first Gravel Pit record, the second Figgs record, and the fourth AC/DC record. I can see that conspiracy theorists might hear my solo album and hear the Gentlemen and say, 'Well, Jed doesn't rock unless he has the other guys behind him' - that definitely isn't the case. But one difference is that the Gentlemen have a strict no-ballad rule, and I always insist on there being ballads on the records and in the shows."

Not to mention that the Gravel Pit are a little harder to pin down. One of Parish's darker songs, "Short Western Film," gives the album an unsettling epilogue, much the way "Night Rally" did on Elvis Costello's This Year's Model (at least if you own the UK version). And though Mass. Avenue Freeze-Out generally comes across as an upbeat and fun-loving record, it does have a handful of bitter songs about ex-friends and ex-lovers. There are in fact more relationship-themed songs than usual for the Gravel Pit - but don't look for any personal clues there, because as usual the band picked the songs from Parish's long-term catalogue. Some of the songs on Freeze-Out are new; others go back as far as 1992.

Parish thinks hard when asked how he'd distinguish his newer songs from the older ones. "I probably don't dispense the wisdom as much as I used to. The main difference would be lyrical - when I write a song now, it's usually politics, sex, death, relationships. But when I was 18, it was all about how the whole world was stupider than I was."

Boston Herald
June 22, 2001

Gravel Pit's 'Freeze-Out' is Hot Stuff
By Sarah Rodman

From the Boss-inspired title to the Kiss album titles used as song lyrics, Boston rockers The Gravel Pit provide big fun on their new album "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out."
Of course, Springsteen and Kiss are purely sublimated influences on the quartet's fourth release. From the languid guitar of "Get Rough" to the jaunty "Baby Gap," smarter, more garage pop-oriented artists come to mind: the Zombies, Elvis Costello and Matthew Sweet to name a few.
Led by the emphatic wail and funky organ of Jed Parish, The Gravel Pit jump from breezily swinging pop ("Loved One") to butt-kicking guitar rock ("The Ballad of the Gravel Pit") to gauzy harmonies ("Best Friend").
And that's just three of 12 tracks crammed with serious pop hooks, shimmering guitars and a rhythm section as crisp as a new $100 bill. My advice: Get frozen. (Tonight and tomorrow at T.T. the Bear's Place, Cambridge.)

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The Weekly Dig 6/20/01

The first track of the Gravel Pit's latest is quite possibly the only track that harkens back to their XTC-fueled Silver Gorilla record. It would seem that since the formation of the Figgs/Gravel Pit ultragroup The Gentlemen, The Gravel Pit have found the power of the obnoxiously loud guitar. Not that they've completely left out Partridge-y vocals, which can be found paired with a strangely heavy metal sounding bass solo on "Unit Three," a song about putting up with noisy neighbors. (I suspect many Bostonians can relate to that...) For the most part, I found Mass Avenue...to be a more coherent record than Silver Gorilla, which had some great moments but floundered near the end. Mass avenue... takes the best bits of the last album and combines it with a darker rawk & roll feel, creating a sort of barroom power pop. Lucky Jackson's guitar shimmers, crunches and outright howls while Jed Parish's might voice forces you to pay attention. A few songs like "Baby Gap" and "Enemy" show off a little of the band's fondness for irony; "Do ya think we oughta stick around?" they ask on "The Ballad of the Gravel Pit." We'd all be missing out if the answer were anything other than hell, yeah.

-Amanda Nichols

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Worcester Telegram & Gazette 6/14/01

Gravel Pit digs out some golden oldies

Seeing Bruce Springsteen belt out songs as though he was trying to wow a club audience -- even though the superstar rocker was in a 19,000-seat arena -- left a good impression on Jed Parish of The Gravel Pit.
So much so that the Pit's new album is titled "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out," the first of many classic-rock references sprinkled through the disc's dozen songs.
"Part of the reason I like the Springsteen reference is that he stands for the idea that you always have to work it. I think it's good if bands have to work harder for less money," Parish said, explaining his displeasure with the way record companies have watered-down the rock 'n' roll product with too many mediocre bands.
Not that he was puffing up his group, but ask anyone who has seen these guys over the years and chances are they rank up there with the top live acts the Northeast has to offer. Various nods from the Boston Music Awards and this year's Independent Music awards, where The Gravel Pit was voted best band, further attest to the group's appeal.
And nothing about "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out" will change any of that. It's more of the hip 'n' heavy stylings The Gravel Pit has been cleverly mining for the better part of 10 years. Rippling organ fills, boisterous guitar blasts, layered productions a la The Beatles' "Rubber Soul" and "Revolver" combine for a potent 37 minutes of pure-pop pleasure.
The Gravel Pit celebrates the release of "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out" with a show Saturday at Ralph's Chadwick Square Diner, 95 Prescott St., Worcester.
While the jolt is immediate on "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out," the fun lasts for a long time as you try to pick out little references from Chuck Better ("Maybelline" in "Baby Gap") to Kiss ("Hotter Than Hell" and "Dressed To Kill" are in the opening verse to "The Ballad of the Gravel Pit") peppered throughout the project.
Speaking of pepper, Parish said it all comes back to The Beatles.
"Rather than wanting to make 'Back in Black,' like we used to when we started out, now we're shooting for 'The White Album' or 'Revolver,'" Parish said. "A lot of people still do the fun little production things, but most do it with wimpier music than we do. We used to think The Beatles didn't rock as hard as AC/DC, but they did rock hard for their day."
Even the airy "Loved One," which opens the new Gravel Pit record, can't resist a lapse into some thundering drums and sneering vocals, suggesting that AC/DC's "Back in Black" is still in the group's playbook.
The Gravel Pit consists of Parish on vocals and organ, Luck Jackson on guitars, Ed Valauskas on bass and Pete Caldes on drums. The band started out in New Haven before migrating to Boston about the time it made the powerful "Manifesto" CD in 1996, a disc that proved pop music can be as tough as metal.
While wilder acclaim has eluded The Gravel Pit, the band does have a loyal following that stretches coast-to-coast, thanks to an aggressive touring regimen now supplemented by a national distribution deal for its records. Parish said the internet has also helped the band stay connected to its fans, who can get the latest a www.thegravelpitband.com.
"I'd love to end up like the Dead Kennedy's, a band that was never on the radio but everyone knew them anyway," Parish said.
The group's last full-length disc was the more experimental "Silver Gorilla" in 1999. Where that effort strolled off into more rural setting, "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out" brings The Gravel Pit back to the streets, at least metaphorically and sonically with its tightly wound tunes.
Things get a bit expansive on the closing number, "Short Western Film," a song Parish said may be signaling the next direction The Gravel Pit is headed.
"That song is what I'm into these days, the literary ballad," he said.

- Scott McLennan

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Sentinel & Enterprise 6/14/01

The Gravel Pit hits paydirt at Ralph's

The Gravel Pit has been mining nuggets of American rock for 10 years.
But it's only been in the last five years, since relocating from New Haven, Conn., to the Boston area, that the band gained regional and national exposure.
The group - keyboardist and vocalist Jedediah Parish, bassist Ed Valauskas, guitarist Lucky Jackson and drummer Pete Caldes - arrived in Beantown in 1995 and within a year won Boston Music Awards (Best New Band, Best Indie Album) for its release "The Gravel Pit Manifesto."
As the band gained a solid following it landed decent club gigs and opening slots for such noted performers as Morphine, Cheap Trick, and Graham Parker. The Gravel Pit's 1999 album "Silver Gorilla" received favorable reviews in the national press and contributed to the growing buzz about the band. They landed a supporting act slot with They Might Be Giants. Things seemed to be looking up.
"It was that kind of thing where the record came out, got reviewed (favorably) in Entertainment Weekly, and people started calling," said Valauskas by phone earlier this week. "WFNX" and 'BCN were both playing the single 'Favorite,' but that just all went away.
"Our high point was getting on tour with They Might Be Giants and every show was sold out," said Valauskas. "When you're on a tour supporting someone else, or have a hit on the radio, it's great. But if you're four guys in a van, sleeping on people's floors, after six weeks it can get pretty rough."
"Touring on your own and playing to eight people in Tuscaloosa, Alabama (stinks)," he adds wryly.
But the band is far from being in the pits.
The Gravel Pit were named Best Band at the 2001 Independent Music Awards and on Friday night members will unearth their latest CD, "Mass Avenue Freeze Out," at Ralph's Diner, Chadwick Square, Worcester. The Pit's set is scheduled for 11 p.m. - presuming Parish gets to Wormtown from a solo set in Boston earlier in the night.
"Jed's playing a solo show at The Lizard Lounge in Boston that night. Then he's heading out to Ralph's. If he gets out by 10 and to Ralph's by 11, we'll be in good shape," said Valauskas, noting that the Boston CD release is set for June 22 and 23 at T.T. the Bear's in Cambridge.
"If you like rock music, you'll like our record," sums up Valauskas.

- Shaun Suhoski

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Timeout.com

Music: Rock
The Gravel Pit

For most of the past-decade, the once New Haven-based rock foursome the Gravel Pit have been one of the more consistently popular club acts on the Boston rock scene. And over the course of that decade they've made Boston their home. So it's no surprise that the band's new fourth CD has a title that references a major Boston landmark (as well as an allusion to a Bruce Springsteen album title). 'Mass Avenue Freeze Out,' which was produced by former Letters to Cleo bassist Scott Reibling, came out last week and the band celebrates with a two night stand at TT the Bear's Place.

 

Town Online

June 18, 2001

The Gravel Pit; "Mass. Avenue Freeze-Out" (Q Division)

 

In a music world where Weezer is suddenly a
commercial juggernaut, mustn't it surely be
time for a national breakthrough for Boston's
the Gravel Pit? The band has spent years on
the local club circuit perfecting their
power-pop sound, and it pays off on their new
album with songs like " Baby Gap " and " Star
Treatment " - neither of which are going to
change the world, but they'll be bopping
through your head for days anyway. The band,
led by vocalist-organist Jed Parish, turn out
melodies that are infectious and quirky,
without resembling the roving comedy troupe
that spiritual forefathers the Barenaked Ladies
have become. Anyone who loves quick, catchy
guitar pop should dig the Gravel Pit.

- Josh B. Wardrop

 

House of Blues web site

The Gravel Pit
"Mass Avenue Freeze-Out"
Q Division/ Co-op Pop
Review By: Mike Magnuson
June 18, 2001

Some records are just made to be played loud; and this is definitely one of them. It's not that The Gravel Pit are heavy in any traditional sense. The opening sounds of Mass Avenue Freeze-Out are an acoustic guitar and falsetto voice. But as anyone who's caught their live show can attest, this four-piece rocks harder than a hundred guys with cheap distortion pedals.

The formula seems simple enough. Guitar hero Lucky Jackson supplies monstrous riffs and squealing solos in a timbre that's more dirty than distorted. Bandleader Jed Parish adds splashes of Farfisa organ (and a variety of other vintage organs), and belts out vocals that would sound more everyman than trained and tempered ?x2014; if only everyman had a pair of lungs the size of a small dirigible. They sound like a garage band in need of a much bigger garage.

That chemistry and mastery of a familiar sound might be enough for most bands (it would be a vast improvement for many), but The Gravel Pit are smart enough to know that rules are made to be broken. Just when you think you've figured out the straight ahead power pop of "Unit Three," the song slips into a brief but grimy jam that would fit just as well in the middle of The Stooges "Down On The Street." And where others' imaginations would limit the use of classic organ tones to making every song sound like The Monkees' "I'm A Believer," the Gravel Pit do anything but ?x2014; using the organ to transform "Short Western Film" from a ballad to a dirge, or to make the already tough "Race Car" into something downright nasty.

These are all small things, and better illustrate the band's broad musical literacy than an earth-shattering new sound. But by neither simply regurgitating their many influences nor churning out disposable songs for unthinking audiences, The Gravel Pit offer as good a reason as any to permanently tune out "modern rock" radio and head to the record store.

 

Meriden Record-Journal 6/14/01
Gravel Pit Comes Back Home, for a Night
By Ralph Hohman

The members of the Gravel Pit liked living in New Haven, hanging out at Rudy's on Elm Street, playing Toad's Place and the other local clubs. But to take the next musical step, the band felt it had to get away to something bigger. In 1995, the Gravel Pit -- singer/keyboardist Jedediah Parish, guitarist Lucky Jackson, bass player Ed Valauskas and drummer Pete Caldes -- all moved to Boston, where they've become a well known part of the local music scene. "It's pretty much because there was a better music scene here," Valauskas, the band's bass player, said from Boston. "There's just more places to play, and there's more of a community. There are just more people who live here." But the band hasn't forgotten Connecticut, and on Friday they'll return for a show at Rudy's to push their new CD "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out." "We used to play there a lot back in the day," Valauskas said. He lived in Southington until he was 11, and later hooked up with Parish and Jackson (both from Durham) as founding members of the band. Caldes is from Middletown. Parish, 32, writes the songs, something he's been doing since he was a teen-ager. And like other band members, he's been involved with a number of side projects, including a solo album, "Bloodsucker Blues," released in 1999. The Gravel Pit has released a handful of CDs and EPs, dating back to 1993. Their most recent, before "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out" was 1999's "Silver Gorilla." The new offering is a punchy collection of pop tunes, the kind that gained the band a steady following around Boston. "We tend to just kind of record the best songs," said Valauskas, "as opposed to taking a concept or a direction for a record. Sonically it's a little different from the last record. That was more of an esoteric batch of songs, where this is more straight-ahead rock." "There's always been some surplus stuff, left over from previous recording sessions," Parish said. "Half the record is what we've been playing at the clubs, and a couple are brand new songs." The Gravel Pit sells discs on the Internet and at gigs, but landing a major-label contract isn't a top priority, Valauskas said. "I think people in our boat always want to see (a new CD) do a little better than the last one. But in terms of wanting to be signed to a major, I think we lost that a while ago. It became less and less important to us as time went on. We don't really fit in with what's on the radio." But even the airwaves are a little easier to ride in Boston than New Haven, he said. "Commercial radio will actually play local bands here."

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The Gravel Pit - Mass Avenue Freeze-Out

We liked a CD we heard a few years back by The Gravel Pit...and we also like this, the band's fourth full-length. Since we last heard them, these four Massachusetts gentlemen's sound has gotten a bit louder and harsher...but they have certainly retained the
poppy elements of their music. Unlike most underground pop bands, these guys manage to come up with tunes that are distinctly different from one another. Lots of cool rockers with strong melodies like "Loved One," "Best Friend," and "Race Car" make Mass Avenue Freeze-Out a fun listen...

New Haven Register
June 15th, 2001
by Fran Fried

 

BACK IN THE PIT: Speaking of Boston acts, there was reason to wonder whether New Haven's favorite exports, The Gravel Pit, were going their own ways. After all, last year, singer/songwriter Jed Parish went on to record a solo album ("Bloodsucker Blues") and do solo gigs, while the rest
of the band (guitarist Jeff "Lucky Jackson" Juhase, bassist Ed Valauskas and drummer Pete Caldes) teamed with Figgs frontman Mike Gent to form The Gentlemen, do some songwriting and gigging and cut their own album ("Ladies and Gentlemen ? The Gentlemen!").

But no. The band, in their own fragmented way, reconvened (sort of) to record the newly minted "Mass Avenue Freeze-Out," the follow-up to the acclaimed 1999 disc "Silver Gorilla" - which, despite rave reviews (a comparison in Entertainment Weekly to "Elvis Costello & the Attractions
on steroids"; the Register's top-10 album list for '99), didn't break them nationally.

Chances are they'll play a good chunk of the new disc when they return to Rudy's (372 Elm St.; no phone) tonight (with Dryer, fellow Q Division Records act, opening).

When asked if they were splitting, "No, no," said Jed, though he added, "We never know what's going to happen. We have to make sure we have a balance of fun and satisfaction, and bull&*@#.

"Compared to our old work ethic, which was so intense, we chilled a little," he explained; he asked for a break from the constant touring that drained their meager bank accounts in the late summer of '99. Besides, he said, he wanted to see what he could do on his own.

"I've been playing solo shows since the mid-'90s," he said. "Putting out the record was what I call band therapy. I can go from Point A to Z without the inherent compromises you have in a band."

But the Pit, which has been together more or less since 1989 (though Parish and Juhase go back to 1984 and their teen band in Durham, Ground Zero), got back together, more or less. Because of work schedules and other factors, to hear Parish explain it, the way the album came
together was about as fragmented as The Beatles' White Album.

"Each record we made sounded more and more disjointed, so I'm amazed at how cohesive we sound," he said. "Pete was living in New York City; he did his drums pretty quickly. Jeff stretched out on guitar. Ed would play some bass. Me, I'd play backups, whatever we needed to finish. It was the first time it was more like an assembly line, done in waves.

"It was a toughie to make," he continued. "We were definitely somewhat strained on the heels of '99 and touring and going broke. It wasn't a super pleasant record to make. I'd say there was friction, but there's been friction between me and Jeff since we were 15."

Still, now, he said, "Everyone's the most relaxed we've been. It is that feeling, when I put the record on, that it's everyone's best performances. Everyone sounds great. Even Ed, who wasn't that pleased with his bass playing. I thought it was his best work."...

...Q: Who is the most underappreciated musician in Boston?
A: Jed Parish and the Gravel Pit. I'm surprised they haven't caught on in a bigger way...

Figgs, Gravel Pit Rock Providence
Two of the Northeast Corridor's more resilient touring units met Friday night in Providence, RI: New York's Figgs, playing their first show since a New Year's Eve appearance in Boston, and Boston (by way of New Haven) hometown heroes, The Gravel Pit. And given that both bands have spent nearly a decade together, there was no shortage of material to draw from, yet impressively, both bands continue to churn out brand new quality-assured rock songs. Luckily they chose this night to focus their sets in that direction.

Taking the stage first, The Gravel Pit immediately busted into "Baby Gap," providing the close-to-capacity crowd with its first taste of the harder edges to come on the band's forthcoming album, Mass Avenue Freezeout. The Pit ditched its usually natty threads for a more bohemian cool this evening, and, the new material showcased (including the rousing, "Unit Three") seemed to indicate that time spent in side project, The Gentlemen, has served the participants well. Bassist Ed Valauskas and drummer Pete Caldes' rhythm work took on a new muscular intensity, which seemed to inspire a playful performance from frontman Jed Parish, while Lucky Jackson's guitar work continues to move enthusiastically between Angus Young and Elvis Costello reference points.

The productivity of The Figgs has never been in doubt. After forming in Saratoga Springs, NY, in 1987, the band did the on again/off again major label dance and released both an EP, For EP Fans Only, and a full length, Sucking In Stereo, last year. And if this weren't sufficient proof of the band's creativity, the three members (who are now spread between New York, Philadelphia and Boston) worked up four new songs for the crowd during a rehearsal the previous evening. Mike Gent's "Metal Detector," a clever double entendre about a parent with the ability to sniff out evil music, was a standout, as was Pete Donnelly's gorgeous "Please, One More Time." And, as if to prove his bandmates were not alone in Figgs collaborations, Parish (the sole member of The Gravel Pit who does not participate in The Gentlemen) relieved drummer Pete Hayes at the drum kit so the latter could sing an enthusiastic "Do The Bounce."

The Figgs officially embark on a national tour on Thursday at Boston's Paradise. For information on an appearance in your town visit: http://www.geocities.com/yanceyure/FIGGS-GIGGS.html

For news on the Gravel Pit and their upcoming release, Mass Avenue Freezeout, visit: http://www.thegravelpitband.com/

By Tom Kielty (remedy@ici.net) Top

INDEPENDENT MUSIC AWARDS-2001

The Gravel Pit could almost be construed as time travelers from the British Invasion, with their smart-looking suits, agile melodies and penchant for hand claps and playful organ lines. But the Boston-based quartet is an American band at heart, offering its appealing pop tunes in a sturdy casing of garage rock ideals.

CMJ calls the group "one of the most infectious and polished rock quartets not recording for a major label," and Entertainment Weekly praises the "smart, concise tune-smithing." The Gravel Pit has also won acclaim in Billboard, Raygun, The Boston Globe and other publications. The band has opened for such acts as Cheap Trick, Superdrag and They Might Be Giants.

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