Decided to try a new thing on this time. TNV is a lo-fi garage band from Columbus that sounds like every other lo-fi garage band anywhere. It's being said that this is the most "produced" album of the eight they've put out, which sounds odd considering is still slipshod and muddy.
The drums are low key and mostly quiet. The guitar is a mild fuzz Fender. The vocals are doubled by guy and a chick and are always distantly echoed. Each vocal melody follows the guitar melody exactly. Prototypical, all of it. And boring. I could stand the sameness if the songs had any individual dynamics. But they don't.
One possible exception is "Try Harder". The riff here includes bending guitar strings, producing a wobbly effect. Then the rolling grunge riff moves along like a lawnmower that slightly dies, then restarts. But other than that, you won't find much to point to with any affection. (1.5 of 5 stars)
O'Death is an "alternative country" band from Brooklyn, but you should be making no comparisons to any Uncle Tupelo, or really anything branching off the rock weather vane from the Hank Williams source. O'Death - or at least this release - focuses more on a dark, murder-ballad tradition of Ralph Stanley with a booming orchestration. The traditional elements are there. Violins, mandolins. And an echo chamber and seventy-two percussion instruments. That's what I'm talking about when I say "booming". I can also draw comparisons away from the current crop of folk stars, the Avett Brothers, Mumford And Sons, etc. The tone is decidedly morose, for one. (Can't wait to hear the first romantic prom sung by O'Death) And the harmonies and pretty sounds that come from the aforementioned Grammy performers is also lacking. Not that it's a bad thing. Greg Jamie's vocals are tinny and small. I maybe even feel like it's deceptively so. As if he's constantly trying to sound like he's hiding in the woods, too close to impending danger. But the album doesn't rest in the same murky puddle throughout the entire record. "Pushing Out", for example, has all the same elements as its predecessors, but seems brighter and hopeful somehow. Like Decemberists, or even Margot & the Nuclear So and So's. There's an awkward vocal breakdown in the middle, that somehow makes the track more childish and endearing. It's not as precious as "Home", but nice nonetheless. A haunting collection that should be a part of your next child's funeral. (3 of 5 stars)
TV's latest unfortunately gets marred by tragedy as bassist Gerard Smith died soon after it's release. But the lung cancer surely did not weigh on the minds of anyone as the album was being written and recorded. This new one balances on the fence between the nation's financial frustrations and otherwise lightly dances romantically in the moonlight.
The album is bookended upbeatly by opening and closing tracks, "Second Song" and "Caffeinated Consciousness" respectively. Nothing hits as frantically as "Dancing Choose" did last time around, but they are strong tracks nonetheless.
On the other hand, I was a little disappointed at the lilting romantic tracks. In the past, TV have hit the nail on the sensual head with songs like "Wear You Out" and "Lover's Day". This time, they move to a more commercial element with "Keep Your Heart" and "You". And while I wouldn't call "Killer Crane" commercial, I am confused by its inclusion. A mellow hippie excursion about a crane crossing the sky after the rain with rainbows. Cosmic.
There are some standout tracks though. While the aforementioned "You" is decidedly commercial, it's also quite good, successful in its prom themed intentions. Also, "No Future Shock" is a scathing dance track lamenting a serious lack of hope. Still a well-rounded enough effort that's worth a spin. (3.5 of 5 stars)
At the onset of this new Polaris award nominated record from this Canadian band, I immediately think of another Indie Folk group, Indiana's Murder By Death. Both have that flavorful storytelling gene. Both employ the dark side of human nature and express with minor chords and violins/cellos and low-registered vocals. And at the end of this record, I don't mind saying that I give MbD the edge. They're a little more dynamic musically. Virtually everything included on Creep is based around lilting '50s pop kind of piano chords. So, everything has a similar flare. The exceptions are the three instrumentals. Which is a lot of instrumentals when you only have ten songs and they serve no purpose but to further along a swampy imagery. But amoung the other songs are some real standouts. Clearly (if you know me) I'm going to pick the most obnoxiously wordsmithy of the bunch to call out as a favorite. The title track kicks off it's lyrical tale with the phrase, "From your chair, my narrative tonight is your dickless cousin, brother, father, pet, friend, husband or wife" and then goes from there. On the contrary though, I'm also suprisingly enamored by the simplest tune on the record, "Woman". It's got some of that creepy romanticism of the Flamingos' "I Only Have Eyes For You" mixed with an uncharacteristically psychedelic stomp. Maybe its the filthy implications behind his description of putting the "mouth to middle", but I think that my next conquest might just say yes if my seduction followed this soundtrack. The only true throwaway is "Too Old to Die Young", which does little more than repeat that he's "givin' it all up." Sound like he gave up trying to finish a song. So I guess I'd be surprised that someone considered giving this an award... but is worth a spin. (3 of 5 stars)
As someone who quite liked In Rainbows, and... hell - basically a little bit of everything the band has put out, I was prepared for an exciting collection of songs again this time around. Plus, it's eight songs - which could mean that they've trimmed the fat and delivered the top round of their material. However...
Starting with track one, I would call "Bloom" fairly uninspiring. Thom pines on the meaning or non-meaning of life or non-life while an incandescent electronic rhythm lays underneath. Odd time signatures makes not a great song. Neither does throwing in visions of jellyfish. And then, it's track two and I'm afraid that this collection is going to be all animal references and crazy rock-less beats.
The polyrhythmiclandscapes continue throughout. Songs are non-descript trance-like electronic collages. It feels like Yorke's "The Eraser". Only the single, "Lotus Flower" feels like a fully realized song, but the rest sound like they tried to make Lotus a 15-minute song and then convinced themselves to break it apart. This half of the album gives us bastardized sons of one song.
The other half gives us a morbid piano ballad, which- and I'm sorry - could be on a Coldplay record and no one would know the difference. A lazily remixed acoustic guitar track and another quiet pop tune.
So now, instead of thinking they trimmed the fat, I feel like the band got together and rushed out the first thing that came to their collective heads. Next time, instead of aspiring to be the king of limbs; you should try being the Assistant Director to the heart, mind, body & soul. (1.5 of5 stars)
In all honesty, I have not been following the Strokes since they became hipster darlings at the onset of their debut. So what I see as progressive movement from a band of mush-mouths and muted guitars to a band way more polished and produced may actually be a more natural progression than I am otherwise willing to witness firsthand. Because I wasn't even that big a fan of the debut...
So instead of the post-punk riffage that made up "Is This It?" the sounds are more dynamic. And instead of the muddled vocal, Casablancas is way out front with a huge melodic presence. The first track has a Duran Duran vibe, another sound like a Radiohead demo. The best example is "Two Kinds Of Happiness"- which comes off like the best Cars in the verse but lets go as frantic awesomeness in the chorus. That and "Gratisfaction" are over-the-top pop goodness that should propel the group to a wider audience.
And while none of these tracks may make it on to my year end Top 10 list, I was pleasantly surprised by the growth of the Strokes and I would have to assume the band's fans are going to rave over it. (3 of 5 stars)
Someone liked the Smashing Pumpkins a whole lot growing up. Being as how that can be a polarizing comment, I'll explain. As I mean it in only one sense.
Think of that moment when the song "Today" goes from quiet guitar plinking to full on seven layers of guitar noise. The Joy Formidable do that in every song. The quiet/loud dynamic is pushed to the highest digital levels on the board. They also love to play out those monster-chords for a long time at the end of the song.
For example on the first track, "The Everchanging Spectrum Of A Lie", the proper song ends at around the 5:00 mark. But then they stretch the thing out another 2:45. When listening to that track for the first time, I thought to myself that there was no reason for this. But then around the middle of the album, this concept started to grow on me. As if the JF were getting lost in their own recording. It felt like a good live performance.
Having said that, The Big Roar is lacking the dynamics to maintain your interest for 12 songs. A lot of it comes out sounding the same. It's good, but you'll only walk away with the pieces you connect with, and the rest will seem like lesser versions of that. (3 of 5 stars)
Decided to try a new thing on this time. TNV is a lo-fi garage band from Columbus that sounds like every other lo-fi garage band anywhere. It's being said that this is the most "produced" album of the eight they've put out, which sounds odd considering is still slipshod and muddy.
