Moar (with tiny blurbs):
Download here! (17:34)
1) Gary War - Edge of Mess
This record, New Raytheonport is amongst my favorites of the hypnagogic style, and this track is my favorite off of it (second is the Alan Parsons Project cover).
2) Boredoms - Ant 10 (Remix by DJ Finger Hat)
Super Roots 10 is amazing. The entirety of the album comes off as some amazing mix of minimal techno and The Holy Mountain (the movie).
3) Bon Iver - Woods
I hate Bon Iver. Hate hate hate. But this track off of The Blood Bank ep may be the best thing he's done, thanks to the great usage of a capella auto-tune. Almost as good as T-Pain.
4) Brian Harnetty & Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - Under the Winesap Tree
Please, please please listen to their album Silent City and Harnetty's earlier album, American Winter. Very few people make music as haunting as Brian Harnetty.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Reviews, Part 4
This covers the extent of the albums I had to review for the second half of October: a grand total of three CDs. So I'm playing two off of one of the discs.
Download here (18:02)
1) Tickley Feather - Club Rhythm 96 and Cell Phone
Much has been written, on blogs and in The Wire magazine in specific, about the so called "hypnagogic" pop sound. First explored by people like Ariel Pink then developed even more by Gary War and others, the sound is so named because it explores some half-state between sleeping and being awake. Or, in terms of music, it's pop songs that are barely present, surrounded instead by lo-fi sound production. Tickley Feather, the project of Annie Sachs, hasn't been written about very much when it comes to this sound, and it may be for good reason. Her songs don't always seem too fleshed out. However, this one is seriously the jam. It's off her second album Hors D'Oeuvres, which just came out on Paw Tracks
2) Joe Morris Quartet - Animal
Our music director, Stone, said he still wanted to phase me a bit when he gave me this CD, somehow implying that I hadn't been tested fully enough in my skillz. Joe Morris is one of the best known (maybe among the best?) jazz guitar players, but I've only listened to a couple albums he's played on. Today on Earth is the second album he has recorded with his current quartet, which consists mostly of members of the group The Fully Celebrated Orchestra. In general, the album switches between two modes. Half the songs are free-bop inspired by early Ornette Coltrane, and the other half is a group of moody tracks which seem just as inspired by "rock music" as by jazz. This track falls into the second category, and may be amongst my favorite jazz pieces.
3) Lake - Gravel
4) Lake - Loose Wind
Lake are a collective of musicians from the Washington State area who've been putting together some absolutely gorgeous pop tunes. Let's Build a Roof never really fails to please. The pieces all have a very 60's feel to them, in a way that Belle & Sebastian usually does, but then the songs also have these horn arrangements (done by Karl Blau) which belie influences from elsewhere. Basically, this disc feels like the perfect autumn album, and you should listen to it.
Download here (18:02)
1) Tickley Feather - Club Rhythm 96 and Cell Phone
Much has been written, on blogs and in The Wire magazine in specific, about the so called "hypnagogic" pop sound. First explored by people like Ariel Pink then developed even more by Gary War and others, the sound is so named because it explores some half-state between sleeping and being awake. Or, in terms of music, it's pop songs that are barely present, surrounded instead by lo-fi sound production. Tickley Feather, the project of Annie Sachs, hasn't been written about very much when it comes to this sound, and it may be for good reason. Her songs don't always seem too fleshed out. However, this one is seriously the jam. It's off her second album Hors D'Oeuvres, which just came out on Paw Tracks
2) Joe Morris Quartet - Animal
Our music director, Stone, said he still wanted to phase me a bit when he gave me this CD, somehow implying that I hadn't been tested fully enough in my skillz. Joe Morris is one of the best known (maybe among the best?) jazz guitar players, but I've only listened to a couple albums he's played on. Today on Earth is the second album he has recorded with his current quartet, which consists mostly of members of the group The Fully Celebrated Orchestra. In general, the album switches between two modes. Half the songs are free-bop inspired by early Ornette Coltrane, and the other half is a group of moody tracks which seem just as inspired by "rock music" as by jazz. This track falls into the second category, and may be amongst my favorite jazz pieces.
3) Lake - Gravel
4) Lake - Loose Wind
Lake are a collective of musicians from the Washington State area who've been putting together some absolutely gorgeous pop tunes. Let's Build a Roof never really fails to please. The pieces all have a very 60's feel to them, in a way that Belle & Sebastian usually does, but then the songs also have these horn arrangements (done by Karl Blau) which belie influences from elsewhere. Basically, this disc feels like the perfect autumn album, and you should listen to it.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Best of 2009, part 7
Eep! I only just realized how closely the end of the year looms upon us. So I'll be updating this more frequently...maybe at least twice per week? Who knows.
Download Here! (22:26)
Tracklisting:
1) Kevin Blechdom - Face the Music
One of the greatest pleasures I had this year was meeting Kristin Erickson, aka Kevin Blechdom. Had I not been introduced to her by Irene Moon (another great artist that I was fortunate enough to meet) and Jonathan Dean, I probably would have never discovered either her solo work, or her collaboration with Bevin Kelley as Blectum from Blechdom. Her latest album, Gentlemania, might surprise people who were expecting some sort of electronic music. Instead, this is a break-up album, seemingly directly influenced by Tin Pan Alley. Seeing her play these tracks live (several times, actually) could definitely be included in one of my favorite experiences of the year. This song was my favorite.
2) Atlas Sound - Quick Canal
I never really understood the hype for Deerhunter; however, the solo projects that Bradford Cox and Lockett Pundt have released I absolutely adore. This is probably my favorite track on Logos, the latest Atlas Sound release. Admittedly, I haven't heard the whole album, but this song gets stuck in my head. That might sound like a bizarre statement when you listen to the song - it seems to exist in the state between sleep and awakeness. The presence of Laetitia Sadler of Stereolab only gives it a more breathy quality. Hopefully, the rest of the album is as good as this track.
3)Zu - Obsidian
I'm having trouble determining if this disc came out this year or last year...either way, Carboniferous was my first encounter with the Italian jazz-metal trio Zu. Interestingly, they don't have a guitar player - they only have a baritone sax, bass, and drums (who also will play mellotron and synths). For only about 4 or so tracks on the album, they used a guitar player, this being one of them.
4) Julie Doiron - Blue
I had to begin and end with two songs of heartbreak. This is definitely another one of the best sad songs I've heard this year, even if it wasn't written by Julie. It's off of her album I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day, which is definitely worth a listen.
Download Here! (22:26)
Tracklisting:
1) Kevin Blechdom - Face the Music
One of the greatest pleasures I had this year was meeting Kristin Erickson, aka Kevin Blechdom. Had I not been introduced to her by Irene Moon (another great artist that I was fortunate enough to meet) and Jonathan Dean, I probably would have never discovered either her solo work, or her collaboration with Bevin Kelley as Blectum from Blechdom. Her latest album, Gentlemania, might surprise people who were expecting some sort of electronic music. Instead, this is a break-up album, seemingly directly influenced by Tin Pan Alley. Seeing her play these tracks live (several times, actually) could definitely be included in one of my favorite experiences of the year. This song was my favorite.
2) Atlas Sound - Quick Canal
I never really understood the hype for Deerhunter; however, the solo projects that Bradford Cox and Lockett Pundt have released I absolutely adore. This is probably my favorite track on Logos, the latest Atlas Sound release. Admittedly, I haven't heard the whole album, but this song gets stuck in my head. That might sound like a bizarre statement when you listen to the song - it seems to exist in the state between sleep and awakeness. The presence of Laetitia Sadler of Stereolab only gives it a more breathy quality. Hopefully, the rest of the album is as good as this track.
3)Zu - Obsidian
I'm having trouble determining if this disc came out this year or last year...either way, Carboniferous was my first encounter with the Italian jazz-metal trio Zu. Interestingly, they don't have a guitar player - they only have a baritone sax, bass, and drums (who also will play mellotron and synths). For only about 4 or so tracks on the album, they used a guitar player, this being one of them.
4) Julie Doiron - Blue
I had to begin and end with two songs of heartbreak. This is definitely another one of the best sad songs I've heard this year, even if it wasn't written by Julie. It's off of her album I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day, which is definitely worth a listen.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Extended: Run Rabbit Run performed by Osso
Sufjan Stevens has long been acclaimed as the future of Americana music, and it's easy to see why. His music has always been slightly more complex than many of the other people working in his field; his influences have also extended beyond just folk music. Check out the minimalist tendencies in the arrangements for tracks like "Detroit! Lift Up Your Weary Head!" (neat time signature as well) or "The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades is Out to Get Us!"; you could also note the delicate nature of some of his piano compositions, which suggest the bedroom music of Erik Satie. It's his combination of this with basic folk/country/indie pop tropes that have brought him the audience that he has today; the fact that he's able to wrap this all up in a very pretty package proves more than anything his success as a popular composer.
So to cut to the chase, I was surprised when I was given Run Rabbit Run to review. My immediate thought was that Sufjan Stevens was trying to make what's probably his least accessible work, Enjoy Your Rabbit, more palatable for his NPR-listening audience. Enjoy Your Rabbit is easily his most eclectic and "experimental" (which I use very loosely here) disc. It is filled to the brim with complex pieces based around the Chinese Zodiac, which might better fit on Warp Records' current roster than on his own label. But I was wrong with my assumption; this disc's origins lie with Bryce Dessner of the National. He commissioned Osso (who have worked with a slew of musicians including Kanye, Antony and the Johnsons, and Alice Coltrane) to reinterpret the album; they debuted four tracks off of Enjoy Your Rabbit for the Music Now Festival in Cleveland, Ohio back in 2007. Two years later, the arrangements have been completed and released on Asthmatic Kitty.
However, with the end product, it still feels as though Sufjan's original album has been dumbed down for the NPR crowd. I can't tell if this is due to the nature of the arrangements or the limitations of the string quartet. Many times, the dissonance in some of the compositions seem completely sanded down; other times, the arrangements are much less complex than the original pieces. This isn't always true: Michael Atkinson's arrangement of "Year of the Ox" contains probably the most riveting performance on the disc; Osso violinist Olivier Manchon also contributes a relatively accurate (yet somehow more interesting) version of "Year of the Rat". But many times, the original goal of arranging these pieces relatively accurately comes up short; many times, the percussive elements aren't even approached. I wouldn't even note this failing if it wasn't present in Atkinson's "Year of the Ox", but since one arranger had done it, I would assume that the others might have attempted something similar. Instead, what we are given is a set of very similar abbreviated versions of Sufjan Stevens' album.
This doesn't necessarily mean that the album fails though. What Run Rabbit Run manages to do is indicate more clearly the characteristics (both the strengths and weaknesses) of Stevens' compositions. By removing the particular timbres/textures of the sounds on the original album (as well as the eccentricities, regrettably), the disc brings to light a similar composer: that great American Charles Ives (especially at his most populistic).
Sufjan Stevens stated that his greatest regret for his Enjoy Your Rabbit album is that there is very little human element in the disc; nearly all of the pieces are recorded using synthesizers and other electronic devices. On Run Rabbit Run, we get a good glimpse of what it may have sounded like. However, the disc might have proven stronger if he himself had performed it; especially if the broad nature of his original piece was allowed to be present.
So to cut to the chase, I was surprised when I was given Run Rabbit Run to review. My immediate thought was that Sufjan Stevens was trying to make what's probably his least accessible work, Enjoy Your Rabbit, more palatable for his NPR-listening audience. Enjoy Your Rabbit is easily his most eclectic and "experimental" (which I use very loosely here) disc. It is filled to the brim with complex pieces based around the Chinese Zodiac, which might better fit on Warp Records' current roster than on his own label. But I was wrong with my assumption; this disc's origins lie with Bryce Dessner of the National. He commissioned Osso (who have worked with a slew of musicians including Kanye, Antony and the Johnsons, and Alice Coltrane) to reinterpret the album; they debuted four tracks off of Enjoy Your Rabbit for the Music Now Festival in Cleveland, Ohio back in 2007. Two years later, the arrangements have been completed and released on Asthmatic Kitty.
However, with the end product, it still feels as though Sufjan's original album has been dumbed down for the NPR crowd. I can't tell if this is due to the nature of the arrangements or the limitations of the string quartet. Many times, the dissonance in some of the compositions seem completely sanded down; other times, the arrangements are much less complex than the original pieces. This isn't always true: Michael Atkinson's arrangement of "Year of the Ox" contains probably the most riveting performance on the disc; Osso violinist Olivier Manchon also contributes a relatively accurate (yet somehow more interesting) version of "Year of the Rat". But many times, the original goal of arranging these pieces relatively accurately comes up short; many times, the percussive elements aren't even approached. I wouldn't even note this failing if it wasn't present in Atkinson's "Year of the Ox", but since one arranger had done it, I would assume that the others might have attempted something similar. Instead, what we are given is a set of very similar abbreviated versions of Sufjan Stevens' album.
This doesn't necessarily mean that the album fails though. What Run Rabbit Run manages to do is indicate more clearly the characteristics (both the strengths and weaknesses) of Stevens' compositions. By removing the particular timbres/textures of the sounds on the original album (as well as the eccentricities, regrettably), the disc brings to light a similar composer: that great American Charles Ives (especially at his most populistic).
Sufjan Stevens stated that his greatest regret for his Enjoy Your Rabbit album is that there is very little human element in the disc; nearly all of the pieces are recorded using synthesizers and other electronic devices. On Run Rabbit Run, we get a good glimpse of what it may have sounded like. However, the disc might have proven stronger if he himself had performed it; especially if the broad nature of his original piece was allowed to be present.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Reviews, Part. 3
I made a mistake! I thought I had gone through all the material I had to review for September, but I missed one item. So I'll cover that here, as well as the first half of October. I hope you enjoy.
Download Here. (21:56)
1) Joey Casio - Artists in Times of War
This is the b-side to a K Records 7" called "Debtor's Prism". Both sides are very similar - bedroom styled acid house with post-punk styled singing on top. If you got the reference to Howard Zinn in the title of the song, then you've realized how political this guy's material is. Still, pretty fun stuff.
2) Le Loup - A Celebration
Sam Simkoff is Le Loup. Or was, rather. His first album was recorded by himself and was largely focused upon synths and banjos (an odd combination, to be sure). But when he decided to tour for that album, he needed a band...so he used Craigslist to gather together similar minded musicians. On their latest album, Family, nearly every track seems like Akron/Family doing an impersonation of Animal Collective. I don't know if that's a bad thing or not. This track might be the best example of the tribal feel that they have throughout the whole album. Out on Hardly Art.
3) Karl Blau - Apology to Pollinateurs
I've loved Karl Blau ever since I became obsessed with Phil Elverum's work as The Microphones. He seems more wholesome in general than alot of the Anacortes recording folks; taking influence from Beatnik-related Buddhism and world music, his works always have seemed really pure. His latest album, Zebra, might be among his best. Almost every instrument was played by him; and while sometimes his ideas don't come across as well as they might have if a full band was playing, the ideas in themselves are strong enough to carry the songs along. This is the only track to feature other people (Arrington de Dionyso of Old Time Relijun and the lady from Tender Forever). Out on K.
4) BK-One with Benzilla - Eighteen to Twenty-One (featuring Murs)
BK-One is best known as Brother Ali's DJ...which (to me anyway) seems more like a detriment than anything else. Brother Ali, along with almost everyone else on Rhymesayers, is a horrible MC. Fortunately, BK-One isn't as bad at producing and DJing as compared to the rest of the Rhymesayers crew. On his first "solo" album (Benzilla helps produce more than half the tracks), Radio Do Canibal, the music is entired created from samples off of Brazilian records. The Brazilian influence does not show on this track...however, Murs has one clever metaphor in this otherwise kitschy track about sex.
5) The Mountain Goats - Phillipians 3:20-21
John Darnielle has been disappointing me almost consistently after he moved into a studio. His latest album for 4AD, The Life of the World to Come, is still not that good. Despite the occasional string work by Final Fantasy, he's still slumped in his MOR-styled production, whispering what seems to be imitation Darnielle lyrics. This disc has better lyrics, but the songs themselves still seem underwritten. This track is the one of very few that has any sort of melodic hook in the actual instrumentation. And the lyrics aren't bad either.
Download Here. (21:56)
1) Joey Casio - Artists in Times of War
This is the b-side to a K Records 7" called "Debtor's Prism". Both sides are very similar - bedroom styled acid house with post-punk styled singing on top. If you got the reference to Howard Zinn in the title of the song, then you've realized how political this guy's material is. Still, pretty fun stuff.
2) Le Loup - A Celebration
Sam Simkoff is Le Loup. Or was, rather. His first album was recorded by himself and was largely focused upon synths and banjos (an odd combination, to be sure). But when he decided to tour for that album, he needed a band...so he used Craigslist to gather together similar minded musicians. On their latest album, Family, nearly every track seems like Akron/Family doing an impersonation of Animal Collective. I don't know if that's a bad thing or not. This track might be the best example of the tribal feel that they have throughout the whole album. Out on Hardly Art.
3) Karl Blau - Apology to Pollinateurs
I've loved Karl Blau ever since I became obsessed with Phil Elverum's work as The Microphones. He seems more wholesome in general than alot of the Anacortes recording folks; taking influence from Beatnik-related Buddhism and world music, his works always have seemed really pure. His latest album, Zebra, might be among his best. Almost every instrument was played by him; and while sometimes his ideas don't come across as well as they might have if a full band was playing, the ideas in themselves are strong enough to carry the songs along. This is the only track to feature other people (Arrington de Dionyso of Old Time Relijun and the lady from Tender Forever). Out on K.
4) BK-One with Benzilla - Eighteen to Twenty-One (featuring Murs)
BK-One is best known as Brother Ali's DJ...which (to me anyway) seems more like a detriment than anything else. Brother Ali, along with almost everyone else on Rhymesayers, is a horrible MC. Fortunately, BK-One isn't as bad at producing and DJing as compared to the rest of the Rhymesayers crew. On his first "solo" album (Benzilla helps produce more than half the tracks), Radio Do Canibal, the music is entired created from samples off of Brazilian records. The Brazilian influence does not show on this track...however, Murs has one clever metaphor in this otherwise kitschy track about sex.
5) The Mountain Goats - Phillipians 3:20-21
John Darnielle has been disappointing me almost consistently after he moved into a studio. His latest album for 4AD, The Life of the World to Come, is still not that good. Despite the occasional string work by Final Fantasy, he's still slumped in his MOR-styled production, whispering what seems to be imitation Darnielle lyrics. This disc has better lyrics, but the songs themselves still seem underwritten. This track is the one of very few that has any sort of melodic hook in the actual instrumentation. And the lyrics aren't bad either.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Scott Walker
I just want to remind you, all of you, of the looming presence that Scott Walker has and will have over your life if you listen to his voice. His voice, tremulous as a river, yet totally unique unlike most rivers, cannot be replaced by anyone else's when he passes on. It seems totally disembodied from the rest of his being; even he seems to refer to it as something outside of him, whose will he must submit to.
But all this talk about his voice does harm to the most unique thing about him: his music. Most people know he was involved with The Walker Brothers during the 60's, and many people know of his early solo career as some sort of orchestral pop singer. But over time, his music seems to have both devolved and evolved. Devolved, in that his music now seems to be some sort of bizarre disintegration of the orchestral pop he was once known for; and evolved in that his current style is totally unique, like the next evolution in classical music/the art song.
Here's a tour through Scott Walker's solo career via youtube videos:
Montague Terrace (In Blue) from his first solo album, Scott:
Plastic Palace People from his second solo album, Scott 2
Angels of Ashes from his fourth solo album, Scott 4
...jump forward to 1995...
The Cockfighter off of his eleventh solo album, Tilt
Jesse off of his twelfth solo album, The Drift
If you are interested by this, Jonathan Dean is hosting an artist feature on his music this Sunday on WVFS Tallahassee from 10pm to midnight. You should listen.
But all this talk about his voice does harm to the most unique thing about him: his music. Most people know he was involved with The Walker Brothers during the 60's, and many people know of his early solo career as some sort of orchestral pop singer. But over time, his music seems to have both devolved and evolved. Devolved, in that his music now seems to be some sort of bizarre disintegration of the orchestral pop he was once known for; and evolved in that his current style is totally unique, like the next evolution in classical music/the art song.
Here's a tour through Scott Walker's solo career via youtube videos:
Montague Terrace (In Blue) from his first solo album, Scott:
Plastic Palace People from his second solo album, Scott 2
Angels of Ashes from his fourth solo album, Scott 4
...jump forward to 1995...
The Cockfighter off of his eleventh solo album, Tilt
Jesse off of his twelfth solo album, The Drift
If you are interested by this, Jonathan Dean is hosting an artist feature on his music this Sunday on WVFS Tallahassee from 10pm to midnight. You should listen.
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