Janus 4-14

This Mount Airy, NC foursome hooked me in three ways on this first LP. One, I recognized their name, being an early Woody Allen fan—it’s the fastidious service robot in 1973’s futuristic farce Sleeper!—so I figured they’d be wittily funny (correct—see the snide, snickering “Cover Band”); two, they’re produced by Carolina legend Mitch Easter, who regularly records good bands beyond R.E.M., Moose, and Velvet Crush; and three, their crazy ass guitar rock reminds me of the late ‘70s, when innumerable bands weren’t thick enough to be punk but weren’t sparse enough to be new wave, yet whose spastic, quick, coffee ’n’ uppers vigor fused both, somehow. OK, the unruly “Great Escape” and “Alright?!” have lots of ‘90s indie rock, too, like little brothers of Polvo and Archers of Loaf gone haywire. Call it crazy; call it wild good. (janus414.com) - The Big Takeover

In a climate not at all adverse to risk-taking in music, sometimes it’s advisable to fill the spaces between the challenging with the familiar. On Janus 4-14’s self-titled debut EP, the Mt. Airy indie pop band doesn’t exactly take a lot of chances in its willingness to please, but the five-song offering is a like a warm cup of tomato soup on a rainy day; uncomplicated and not entirely filling, but comforting nonetheless. Opener “Unsure Hands” is like Pavement stripped of its fuzz; bright and sunny tunes with simple themes that’s nostalgic of pre-grunge college radio pop. At their core, all five songs feel the same, but its subtle variations in instrumentation that define them. The gentle synth that permeates “It’s Too Late” floats underneath zig-zagging power chords as a dotty banjo layer is introduced. “Would You Be Home?” plays with a hard hi-hat and beachy guitar riffs, but its cheeky verbal wit stands out the most. Other times, however, the songwriting can be a bit tedious. Credit EP ender “Just Like a Movie Screen” for its innocent sincerity and the affecting, hopeful ideas it conveys, but it straddles itself atop mid-’90s teen rom-com clichés like its mantra, “You just gotta breathe.” Not that Janus 4-14 isn’t completely cognizant of the importance of such built-in tropes in paying homage to another era; they even go as far as to acknowledge them earlier in the album
during “It’s Too Late.” It’s the second song and they’re bracing the listener with the line “Rome wasn’t built in a day/ and other clichés/ are being thrown at you,” almost as if to absolve whatever foibles they might unconsciously impart into the mix in the effort to make an accessible album. What’s missing though, is the one dominating component that propelled their influences into significance: the vocal idiosyncrasies of Guided By Voices or the casual irony of Pavement, for instance. The potential seems to be there, and while this debut EP hits on its audience’s most immediate needs, sometimes that tomato soup is better with a little grilled cheese.

68/100 - Yes Weekly!

The internet is full of bands. Some days it feels like that’s all it is. Bands. Bands. Bands. And porn. Or maybe that’s just an insight into my own closeted life. If it wasn’t for the internet, what would musicians do with themselves? How would they get their music across? How did they do it in the old days? I kinda long for the days where it wasn’t as simple as digitising a recording and attaching it to an email. This is how Webcuts first encountered Janus 4-14. Their tag is ‘indie pop that won’t make you cringe’, but they fail to recognise that statement itself is cringeworthy. Putting it out in the open like that… well, that just makes me a little suspicious. Let the music do the talking.

Despite being presumptious of their own sound, Janus 4-14 do make for great music. Their sound comes from a time that some would regard as the golden age of song, that mid-90's alternative scene when American bands owned their airwaves and captured the imagination of kids who really didn’t fancy throwing money at another light-weight Cure or Depeche Mode album. These bands took their influences from the UK, as well as their own country, and put together something that sounded like The Ramones meets The Buzzcocks, that in itself was almost a new breed of rock n’ roll — fast or slow, these were raging guitar-driven, melody-led slices of imperfect perfection that made your ears want to do an inner high five.

“Unsure Hands” , the lead track from Janus 4-14 debut EP does just that. A roaring waltz-time all-in singalong, the song tells you exactly where they’re coming from and who their influences are. It’s like sitting down to watch Reality Bites with a cup of coffee in a ‘Central Perk’ mug in your hand. You want to be like R.E.M. when they were good. You want to write songs that will sound good on the radio. It’s not ‘indie pop that doesn’t make you cringe’, it’s indie pop that makes you pay attention. The songs are well-crafted, harmony-rich treats, almost as if years were spent studying the classics (nailed in their five favourite albums below) to a fine art, and that’s what made Janus 4-14 shine in those first few seconds. They listened, they paid attention and now they’re doing it themselves. - Webcutsmusic.com

Janus 4-14
To/From
Label: Charlotte Court Records
If you like: The Magnetic Fields, The Walker Brothers
Song to download: “Unsure Hands”

A stream of music continues to flow from the hills of Surry County, a place hospitable to both the fiddle and the Fender. Janus 4-14, a Mount Airy band, has emerged from this friendly clime with the debut EP To/From.

Chad Barnard, Shane Mauck, Ben Swanson and Derick Mauck champion the pop formula. They have crafted five short songs comprised of simple themes, pleasant melodies and memorable hooks. Rich vocal harmonies add to the texture.

Each composition features custom-built instrumentation. Nothing seems out of place. No single player dominates. Although the interaction between rhythm and lead guitars is seamless, each little performance can be discerned and enjoyed. Similarly, the percussion that keeps these songs in time can be appreciated for its subtle quality.

Smooth vocals, like those on “Just Like a Movie Screen,” complete the sound.

Lyrically, the songs are introspective — up to a point. “Unsure Hands,” “Said It Now” and “Would You Be Home?” look at the uncertainty of romance. “It’s Too Late” examines a failed relationship. But these songs, though sincerely rendered, aim to charm. They leave no bitter aftertaste. Those searching for expressions of deep angst or indignation might do well to look elsewhere.

To/From is at times playful — even quirky. There’s no need to take it too seriously. As one track puts it: “Slow down, take a breath.”

Janus 4-14 and Minor Conspiracy will play at Elliott’s Revue, 701 Trade St., beginning at 10 p.m. Friday. For more information, visit www.janus414.com.
— Craig Rhyne - Winston-Salem Journal (Relish)

Think of thick, stifling humidity;
An overbearing harshness to the sun.
Beads of sweat collecting to puddle
Before sloping down your back in a slow trickle.

Then you feel it.

A quiet, rejuvenating breeze dances across your brow,
Flirting with your skirt,
Shimmying up your blouse.
A welcome respite -
Allowing subtle pleasures to linger.

Light, meandering
Playful, thoughtful
Attentive ambiance gives 'way
To the precisive choreography
Of musical fingers.

Such is like the experience of Janus 4-14.

Actually an acoustic soloist, Chad Barnard performing as Janus 4-14, has been writing songs and playing guitar for 16 yrs - exactly half his life - though he "went into a self-imposed exile" (from the stage) for the last decade. Other instruments he plays: bass, drums, with varying levels of proficiency with mandolin, piano, harmonica, and banjo.

Maybe it was the conflicting commitments of love and music that gave him pause. Perhaps made him second guess how he could be good at one if he had to prioritize the other.

He opens up that "due to misunderstanding Leary's creed "Kill your ego!" I've never had the guts to let other people listen to any of my songs. I finally stopped shaking in the corner, out of fear of what others might say, and decided to release some of my music. My hope is that it affects others emotionally in some way and brings them comfort. Good or bad, I'm interested to hear what you think."

Most all of us come face to face with our own demons at some point in our lives. You know, the false prophet of paranoia that warns you never to take your eye off the prize.

It's easy to forget the need for balance in the fight of "survival of the fittest." It's easy to overlook the obvious that if we can choose one or the other, we are also capable of accommodating both. The trick to it is tossing out societal expectations, and while very much considering others, you still go at it your own way.

Forget admiration and idolization, strive for expression - and in the philosophy of Janus 4-14, the song will take care of itself.

Reflecting on the process of songwriting, Janus 4-14 elaborates, "I practice my songs and learning more techniques daily. As a songwriter though, it's a 24/7 thing. Everything I listen to, read, experience goes into my writing."

When asked what, if any, sacrifices he's made for the sake of music, he reveals, "In my late teens/early 20s, I thought that you had to make sacrifices in your personal life to work on your craft. In my opinion, that only leaves you alone. I'll never sacrifice anything anymore. Music is an insanely huge part of my life, but the way I go about things and prioritize is probably not the accepted way to go about things."

Then again, that freedom is the beautiful thing about being an indie musician and podcaster, isn't it?

Chad delves further, "There are some artists (Spiritualized, Nick Cave, etc.) that look at songwriting as a job. They approach it like an 8-hour work day and hammer the songs out. The thought of that, for me, drains all of the life out of what should be an amazing creative experience. I'll let a song sit a decade before finishing it. If I'm at a creative impasse, I'll play with the idea from time to time, but I don't set anything in stone until it meets the concept that I'm going for."

Although he claims that self-doubt is his kryptonite, and that "people have told me that I remind them of over acoustic-based artists like Bright Eyes and Wilco," he knights John Lennon of The Beatles as his most notable influence. "With The Beatles, he helped change the face of music. With his solo career, he was one of the first people to focus on extremely personal songwriting. Also, in his life away from music, he never stopped searching and was continually trying to know himself." This too, defines Chad Barnard.

His musical style he describes as being "heavily influenced by the lo-fi trinity of Pavement-Guided by Voices - Sebadoh, but I don't think I particularly sound like them. Although, there's aspects/techniques that people could point to. Especially Guided by Voices' concept of "when a song has said what it needs to, it's done" whether it's a traditional 3.5 minutes or 10 seconds. Everything is secondary to the needs of the song."

He lives in a small, rural Applachian town, but optimizes on the opportunities of the World Wide Web - whether it's spreading show schedules and music via social networks like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and Bebo, or even taking his dream a step further by podcasting his own radio talk show, "Me & the Bean," in an on-air partnership with his wife, Amanda. He also happens to be stoked about his brand-spanking-new 24 inch IMac, simply stating, "Time to record some music."

Janus 4-14 live makes for the perfect date night. Blind date, 3rd date, double date, or parent escape -- regardless, the soft melodies compliment rather than hijack conversation. Think mellow...yellow, with Jim Beam -- smooth, but bubbly. - Charlotte Indie Music Examiner