The Spirit of the Stairway

Flesh for Frankenstein

2009-10-24T14:55:00.002-05:00

Just finished something utterly goofball. Hopefully I'll do another as, it was lame, but fun.
http://spoilers.podbean.com/

The Price For Nostalgia.

2009-08-31T20:44:00.009-05:00

Doing the obligatory relistening to an album I've been through inside and out...
I came into my formative years right after he offed himself. I remember where I was when the DJ announced it. Waiting in the parking lot in my father's car, alone so I could listen to any station I wanted. At the time it meant precious little to me. The name was familiar, how could it not be, the biggest rock star on the planet despite all he could do to rebuke it.
Let's extrapolate that. I know not a single artist today that doesn't suffer from American Idol syndrome. Every single whore who grabs a mic or straps on a guitar, lives and dies by the spotlight. I grew up having a hero who publicly announced disdain for everything status quo. He denounced a clean cut America. His greatest shame was his vast popularity. He hated his most successful album, and made mockery of his greatest claim to fame. He was punk rock until his image was robbed and homogenized by the main stream. This is how I learned that anything society does not like, it will co-opt and dilute until it becomes fodder for the middle class.
Elvis was public enemy #1 till he started singing surf rock in a Hawaiien shirt. So why would anyone be surprised by the Radio Disney turn rap took in our lifetime.
I came late to the game and fell in love with a ghost. His voice haunting the next few years of my life. This was right before the internet killed music. As much as I might to bullshit myself into believing that Pandora's box opened for the good of the art form, that couldn't be further from truth. Back before Napster picked the lock, we weren't able to hear new artists every day. I couldn't download more music than I even listen to. By necessity, I had to absorb every new record, every single song for all I could. It was an Oliver Twist life, but you were appreciative for each table scrap.
Music has never meant so much since and I'll never love a song as much I had then. (I want to cry.)
To qoute Bob Dylan, "It must have been the weather, or something like that", but something hooked me and never let go. I was recording songs off the radio, and I caught the last couple verses of Lithium. It sounded cool. Real cool. So much so I repeated those 2 minutes over and over again till I had to tell someone at school or have my head explode.
Don Mutthart lent me tape he had made of Brian Marensic's Nevermind album, as well as a couple songs off of In Utero, and the ironic "I Hate Myself, I Want to Die" track.
When I got to my grandparents house later that day, I waited till I was alone in the house, and I played that tape as loud as I could. What I heard that day transcended music, obliterated melody, and transformed my concept of what I had always thought a song was. I never heard a single note that afternoon... I felt emotion, raw, unbridled, and unapologetic.
Truth be told, I find myself seeking that same high that I experienced once back in grade school. Moments come and go, some better, most worse, and feelings like flavors, have never been duplicated in quite the same way.
I'm playing Nirvana's Nevermind on loop, and honestly, it kind of sucks. Lithium surprisingly holds up after all these years. It's simple. Stupid simple. Verse Chorus Verse Chorus other Chorus. The lyrics I once thought deep and profound, are scattered tangents, peppering the scenery his music makes. As a lyricist, his body of work remains best as a whole. It's an autobiography told as a fevered dream, punctuated by night terrors and waking screams. The kind of bad sleep you get when you dream of your own death.
Polly breaks the mold, seeing as it is based on a macabre story that captured his imagination and took this notorious introvert outside himself, only to give him a new way to view himself.
On A Plain can't help but be nonsensical brilliance. It borders the line of being too damn pop to be of any importance, other than a petty grunge footnote, but his growl that closes the song is the reminder one needs to remember why he could never have been, just average.
Underneath the Bridge... it's the only song Butch Vig got right. Almost impossible to record, but worth every ounce of the challenge.
It's nothing new to sully a beloved namesake. Most people seem to struggle to become the monetary embodiment of themselves, doing so post-mortem seems a logical next step. Seeing an intimate hero of mine in an upcoming video game, has me thinking once again of those days of my misspent youth. They've digitized his memory, a dancing monkey for ignorant fools, clacking elementary colored keys, hoping to unlock more hollow, soulless songs.
That afternoon I met with a spirit, in a near biblical sense. Despite my feelings of the money changers who set up shop in the fond memories of my youth, that afternoon I learned that art and life sans passion is practice for dieing. That one vivid memory of enlightenment, that day I realized I must put childish things behind, that moment I lost the bliss of ignorance, that moment I bit the apple and knew of good and evil... that one memory is mine to keep.
Kurt Cobain 1967-1994

Endless, Nameless. Butch Vig mastered a throw away track, better than the entire album.

Black Dice get 7 sided

2009-04-13T21:25:00.004-05:00

The new album Repo by the Black Dice is a return of the DJ influenced dance and break beats inspired electronica, laced with a steady helping of modern experimental rock. Admittedly they have a sound not treaded lightly, as their MetaCritic score has me at odds here with the populace, but I am no stranger to having tastes against the grain.

The majority, especially at the front end, is quite fun, and has had me doing my stationary dance all week long. This is the same dance I reserve for live concerts where I bob my head slightly and pat my upper thigh to, what I believe to be, the beat. The later half of Repo seems to lose momentum, and grow stale.

Tracks like Nite Creme, and Ten Inches are laden with short interjections of Industrial riffs reminiscent of old Ministry albums, but with hooks I can groove to. La Cucaracha reminds me a bit of The Avalanches with the interjections of spliced sound clips, and looped randomness.

Most songs show growth and, although the tend to wander aimlessly, never stagnate too long for my ADD. Like the weather, if you don’t like it, wait. Most Black Dice fans may hear a lot of the “same old”, needless to say I am accepting the good with the bad on this album. Although Repo doesn’t answer any questions, or fill any holes in my collection, I have no problem disagreeing with the mass consensus if it means enjoying a new album.

The Pleasures I’m Guilty Of

2009-04-07T22:28:00.001-05:00

For me Lady Sovereign has been a very guilty pleasure of mine, and her latest Jigsaw, is no different. As an (amateur) music critic, I should be demanding more from a sub 4 minute pop artist, and wondering when more Grime scene collaborations, ala The Battle from Vertically Challenged, make their way to a new album. But I digress, or rather regress, as I’ve found Lady S-O-V! to be an artist where you must leave your reservations, as well as your criticisms at the door, if you’re to ever enjoy a single moment of her style, or as some may assess, shtick.

I’m going to put the downside of the album out of the way up front. For instance I haven’t found anything on this album to be truly new or shocking, even against the grain for a typical S-O-V album. That said, the title track comes off a tad darker and more serious, perhaps an attempt in taking a more adult approach to her song smithing, but it’s the rare sunspot of soul bearing found on this outing in which she makes a subtle attempt at singing.

Also, I’d be doing a disfavor to many a music fan if I were to omit mention of So Human that hits you second track out of the gates. It utilizes a sample from Rob Smith’s Close to Me, as in the Cure catalogue. Let’s put my impressions of the song aside and just say, every time I hear a sample, or even a cover for that matter, it always leaves me wanting to stop half track in and listen to the original. So, not a fan.

Where this album shines, is oddly where it falters, with by the numbers tracks like I Got You Dancing… and I Got The Goods. Of course many of Lady Sov’s songs tend to be hit and miss with me, and Jigsaw follows queue. I will say that the production is seemingly superior from what I have come expect from this artist, in fact I’m starting to hear a bit more Western style hip-hop influence this time around.

Again, playing good against the bad, Jigsaw feels short, being only 10 tracks unless you get the iTunes bonus track, with all but one track at radio play length. It’s short, sweet, and to the point. Expect another release heavy on the fun factor and light on anything to be taken seriously.

We discuss this album as well as Mirah, and Dan Deacon, in episode 14 of the KNMS podcast

The Sad State We’re In

2009-04-07T22:17:00.002-05:00

(click links for the full stories) From The Jonas Brothers, to Tiffany, to Bobby Darin, if trends have taught us anything, it’s that there is simply no underestimating the buying power of the Teen Youth Market. In a society where people vote with their dollar, it’s always a disturbing sight to see were the public’s passion lies, yet one recent study has shown that overall youth consumerism is on a decline. Not surprisingly, CD sales are down, but even more startling, Piracy is on a decline as well.

What then does that say about your industry then RIAA, when even the temptation of having your product for free yields no takers? In fact much has been said of pushing new budget conscious business models based around the music industry. Take Google for instance, starting an ad revenue based free music site in China, a country where an overwhelming number of people get there music (and movies) pirated anyway.

But don’t get overexcited folks, this may be decades away from happening over here. Ads will never generate enough cash to satiate the RIAA’s greed. This is the same organization that chose to spend millions on frivolous law suits, that forced file trading to only become more efficient, and more community based, rather than figure out a “Cloud” business model that would satisfy everyone.

New innovations are must to promote a sense of acceptance that file traders never had till now as their community centered exuberance becomes acknowledged. Enter the ill fated MySpace, buzz word of the early 2000’s. I never understood the popularity of this site, nor the Face book counterpart. I never found a single one of those web pages to ever be informative, or useful in the least. I consider them the anti-wiki (ironically it can be seen that wiki is also the anti-wiki). I don’t want to see pictures of my stupid friends posing in front of mirrors, or be forced to listen to a Rascal Flatts song against my will, or see the quiz you took that proves you are a “Quagmire”, and I’m a “Cleveland”. In fact the only thing that seems to be growing steadily is the popularity of MySpace Music, which again is only useful to get the link of the bands “actual” webpage, unless of course that link just redirects you back to the same MySpace page.

They really need to rework the page format, and just plain remove the mile long nature of the comment crap, and make it a resource to inform fans as to the ongoing endeavors of that particular act, as in upcoming events, latest singles, and album release dates. Just stop bombarding me with crap I don’t want and never asked for, and it will become a much needed hub for small groups who need the word spread quickly and easily.

Ticket Alternative is also breaking waves for the little guy. Many artist are being turned off by the way large labels handle small acts, and are opting for personalized servicing in smaller companies where they can be treated as an individual, and not just lumped by genre and demographic. There’s nothing worse than being misrepresented, or poorly handled as Amanda Palmer knows well.

I mentioned in Ep 12 of our podcast that, while it’s wonderful a few lone acts are accepting the digital medium, and embracing the file sharing community, it’ll take real names to garner the attention and acceptance to push the industry to a new standard. It will take the Bruce Springsteen’s, the U2’s, and the Tobey Keith’s of the world who can make all their coin from touring, and could charge a nominal fee for a full album, with the option of ordering a physical disc. That’s why I’m so surprised to see the group Celebration announce via manifesto, that they will release their music free of charge, and if you wish, you can donate to the cause. I did BTW.

Despite the hippy-dippy nature of their ideals, and the tarot theme flash nature of the site, I find comfort in the ambition of those who choose their own destiny, and opt not to be lead, but to live and die by the decisions they make. Godspeed!

New episode of the KNMS podcast (ep 14) now available. Covered are these headlines and more, check the next blog for more info.

A Gondola Ride For Two

2009-04-07T22:14:00.001-05:00

I’ve recently had my senses accosted, mostly at my own request, by groups that have thrown everything and the dirty dish filled sink at me. I wonder how actual critics do this, of course monetary reimbursement for my endeavors would ease the pain. But to ease the nature of my efforts sans hazard pay, I am rewarded with the goose down pillow for my weary head that is Venice is Sinking.

That’s a good way to introduce my current muse, and their recent release Azar. This was another I was skeptical about, as I’ve been seemingly bombarded by a glut of noise rock affairs, with the obligatory disenchanted shoegaze vocals. One wiff of their sound and I thought I was in for another chore of a listen, as the song Azar One starts in a typical experimental phase, with traditional electrical buzzes and hums, followed by monotone synths, and a creeping paced allegro build. Within the span of a couple songs, such as Ryan’s Song ands Okay, the album swings the bow quickly starboard side, and ventures into a pop friendly area that I found both intriguing and inviting.

The more I listened, the more I drew conscious similarities between the vocals of Daniel Lawson and Karolyn Troupe, as well as the scattered orchestration of accompanying horns, to one of my all time favorite albums in Belle and Sebastian’s, Dear Catastrophe waitress. While most of this album seems a bit more haunted than the aforementioned album, and perhaps resembles better the mood of their earlier works, I feel Belle had reached a pinnacle of blending pop music while maintaining a keen level of depth, accompanied by the observational and introspective lyricism they have proven mainstay.

I hear other influences as well as in some of the more ballady attempts of Coyne with the Flaming Lips, but over all, Venice is banking hard on a sound subtle, soothing, and warm like a glass of milk. I wouldn’t classify this an album drenched in sadness, nor dark foreshadowing, with songs like Young Master Sunshine, this is a laid back disc that’ll wrap you like blanket, and make any chair a recliner.

Buy some better headphones, and listen to this album!

We reviewed this album as well as Fever Ray and Soundtrack of Our Lives this week in Ep 13.

Just because your genre’s drone, doesn’t mean you have to be.

2009-03-28T14:09:00.003-05:00

I admit I am not a huge fan of Drone and Shoegazer rock, because quite frankly, I just don’t get it. Enter the Crystal Stilts album, Alight of Night. This is their debut album, and I wanted to preview it and mention their new 2 track single, Love is a Wave.

Here’s the problem, I think musically it’s a fun dirty (unpolished) album, with inspired moments speckled throughout. The problem I have is the polarizing vocalist Brad Hargett. I feel like an old man, and I just want to sit this guy down and have a long talk with him. Damn it, if you can’t get excited about your own music, how the hell do expect me to!?

I getting tired of albums that almost dare you to like them. Listening to this was like Indie jazz; I had to imagine another (good) vocalist in order to enjoy it. I chose to use Jello Biafra’s smarmy charm and satirical edge to see me through this ordeal. What I really think this album needs is a Banjo. No one can continuously mope and mumble with a banjo about.

Ultimately, this album is defiantly enjoyable, but only in short bursts. Upon relistening and further in depth review, I found plenty more to like. I even noticed at times the Crystal Stilts making an attempt to cheer the lead singer up by adding a tamborine on The Sinking, which is like a banjo on an installment plan. Also, overuse of the echo machine gets tiresome after a while, especially after just re-listening to Fleet Foxes last week.

I highly recommend checking out the track, Love is a Wave from their new single of the same name, downloadable courtesy of Slumberland Records. Brad sounds like he starting to come around. We’ll keep him in our prayers.

The Importance of Being Relevant

2009-03-25T00:25:00.002-05:00

If you haven’t listened to our past few podcasts, we’ve started pre-empting our album reviews with the reading and discussion of a few music related articles. Last two weeks I’ve addressed the fact that there are just too many damn artists giving their two cents, although they haven’t been relevant for over a decade.

Look, I get being a fan of the Smashing Pumpkins, or U2. If I didn’t put the time and effort to seek out new artists and roll the die on new, and sometimes awful (see next post) music, I’d live in the past too. The point is, Bono might be a humanitarian, but there’s a lot of road and tumble weeds between Joshua Tree, and this Get On Your Boots garbage. They jumped the shark on Pop. Since then it’s all been Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me- Crappy!

Move on to their Batman OST mate, Billy “There Shall Be Only One” Corgan. Yes, he’s the last one standing. I always thought it’d James Iha left alone on stage because no one told him the gig was over. Like the MTv Movie Awards where Stevie Wonder guested with Will Smith on the craptacular ~~rip-off~~ sampling on Wild Wild West, and everyone left the stage, lights went down, next nominee was announced, and Stevie’s still at his piano waiting for a stage hand to put him back in the box till someone else needs to dive back into the Motown riff well. (note: Who’da thunk DJ Jazzy Jeff would be the one with any Street Cred left?). Jimmy Chamberlin left last week, and not a moment too soon, seeing as Billy’s been sucking Satan’s Cock (see: Bill Hicks), endorsing anti-trust and all around greediness.

In the meantime, Courtney Love is selling away Kurt’s memory because she sucks at life, and needs a bail-out. You remember her, the hose beast that killed Kurt, stole his music, released one good album post mortem even though her music sucked prior to Live Through This, only to follow up with the mediocre Celebrity Skin that Corgan had to sue because he insisted he had written twice the amount of songs he was actually credited for? Once she ran out of ATM’s to give ATM, she coincidentally ran out of material again. Yep, you know she did, in your heart of hearts, you know it, and now she’s dragging Frances Bean down with her.

But there is a hero. There is a champion in fishnet. Trent Reznor will save us, or at very least give us free shit and call a spade a spade. Yep, he called Billy on his crap, then turned around and release an EP called NINJA (well, NIN/JA), after Nine Inch Nails, and Janes Addiction, who are touring, and opened by Street Sweeper who also appears on the EP. I guess naming it NINJA “SS” would have just been too cool for school him.

Trent, you rock… hard! I used to think, like many, you were a weird little Emo bitch, who’da thunk you’d still be relevant after all these years. You’re now networking and getting your buddies to bit torrent with you. How Web 2.0! And with Mr.. Lollapalooza himself, Perry Ferrell none the less. Let’s hope this trickles down my friend.

Trent, this one’s on me.

For being a shining beacon in a world of tarnished memories, stagnant “Artists”, and an industry that’s trying to devoid the passion and purity from Music:

Thanks for all the years of Relevance!!!

I Got a Fever...

2009-03-15T15:51:00.005-05:00

Karin Dreijer Andersson, the XX chromosomed half of The Knife, released her self-titled Fever Ray debut available via digital DL earlier this year on Amazon. 3/23 this album goes from magic medium to physical form, and after giving this plenty of time to grow on me, I felt it time to do a review/preview.
Atmospherically drenched in psychotropic ennui, the first few tracks titillate and draw the listener further into an eerie and anxious setting. Influences of the aforementioned Knife collaboration seep in and out, but fail to penetrate the core of this project. I feel her presence upon relistenings of Silent Shout, and it's interesting clamoring through an artists solo work to determine exactly what he or she brings to the table.
While the album fails to disappoint even the truest of blue fans, I can't help but find a monotony that saturates the tracks upon repeated listenings. The overutilization of the creepy voice machine, leaves a bitter taste of qualude inspired vocals, where her natural (albeit quirky) vocals would suffice. The percussion as well, while initially engaging and inspired, end up a mix of recycled haunting tom toms, and mystic xylophones.
Where this album wins out is the inherent Gothic undertones, the nightmare dreamscapes, and the lucid dream tones this release perpetuates throughout. The flow is constant, and nothing seems out of place. The masterful use of soundstage found in The Knife's - Silent Shout is minimal at best on this solo effort, but few albums do such a good job taking full advantage of my home audio setup that costs more than I'd like to admit. The mastering is adequate, but most of the tricks suffer from overexposure.
This may be easily one of the best releases to come out of the 1st quarter of '09, and is well worth the purchase in any of it's digital formats.

And fun times where had by Al.

2009-03-05T00:45:00.001-06:00

Well, in preparation for our favorite season, I dug up some drinkin’ pics, among which has some pony pooper. Tag this as raw!

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Woodpigeon: a little known songbird.

2009-03-02T20:09:00.001-06:00

Finally got around to listening to my latest Amazon Music download. (love their service BTW) I admit, I found out about Woodpigeon through one of my favorite blogs “Obscure Sound”, who have been turning me on something fierce to some really hot bands. My Google calendar is littered with release dates because of it.

I feel pretty good about myself, because after trolling my favorite torrent sites, only to come up empty handed, all the while listening to the 3 free tracks. I felt that I had to have this album, and immediately proceeded to the all too convenient one-“click checkout”. I saved a buck buying the “old” version (same tracks) of the Songbook album. It was re-released Jan. 19 ‘09, so they just added a new release for a buck more???

For indie pop fans this is a laid back must! Shins comparisons are obvious, but deep underneath you’ll find clinging the soul of latter New Pornographer’s efforts. Add a dash of Belle and Sebastian and I’m in coffee-shop pop heaven.

I’ve gotten what I asked for as late; Dan Auerbach’s solo project was like getting to catch the second performance of the Fantastipotomas, and The Black Lips rocked my socks off with 200 Million Thousand’s uncouth, free for all noise explosion. When I wanted something to just chill and blog with, this fabulous young band came along an set me free.

Check out Woodpigeon: Treasury Library Canada & Houndstooth Europa released stateside from these wiley Canucks, released Feb. 3 ‘09. This one’s one my wish list…

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Technorati Tags: indie,music,woodpigeon,songbook

Dan the man Auerbach, rides again.

2009-02-27T20:00:00.005-06:00

After a very enjoyable, albeit lost weekend, I came back home to my girlfriend’s busted up computer, and my own riddled with viruses. Needless to say I've been less than eager to sit and do a review. Luckily, I've found just album to come home to.

Dan Auerbach, of Black Keys fame, comes through this effort in a blaze of gritty rock glory, sporting a fancy new Yusaf Islam look to boot. Musically, we travel no road not previously Google mapped before. Difference being, this time he goes not alone, or at least sans drummer producer Patrick Carney. The result, a fully fleshed out, and truly realized album. Not unlike when Jack White broke away to do the Raconteurs, but without the feeling there was a lot of ego stroking behind the scenes. This is one man's fully realized vision, with the proper accompaniment to ease him along.

It rocks, it grooves, and it swaddles me all the while, unfortunately setting the bar for the Keys on their next outing. I'd go as far as to pose the question, who's the real side project here.

Well, just wanted to get a quickie out of the way to shake the rust from my fingers. Have a couple more coming, including Woodpigeon, and the Black Lips.

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Grading the Lily.

2009-02-16T20:53:00.006-06:00

Lily Allen- It's not me, it's you:

Is a follow up to, Alright, Still, released in Dec. '06, and album I found myself liking more than I like to admit. I still wonder how much that has to do with the creepy old man factor, when I thought she was only a 17 or 18 (at best) year old girl. In actuality she's only a few years younger than I. She blends dry catty Briticisms, powder-puff power pop, and pseudo introspective lyricism, to create a facade of vunerability with a girl interrupted wild streak.

Musically, very little of this album I would listen to on my own volition. I typically hate heavily processed studio albums. Last week we covered the Bird and the Bee which straddled that thin line, and came out, for the most part, for the better because of it. I try not to come into a review with a predetermined criticism, but sometimes it's the elephant in the room when evaluating my criticisms.

I found Lily's last album to be fun and cheeky, and at the times, I thought her lyrics to be quite adult and risque for a young girl, but seeing how she's 23 now, I'm not sure how lenient I can be when the chorus to one of her songs is simply "Fuck you, very, very much".

A few exceptions throughout were several stripped down tracks. Musically simplified, drum machines at half capacity, and she just sits and bares her soul, dropping the former pretension, found at the front of the album.

I'm curious how much concern she truly has for the issues she addresses. That is to say, if she truly has any real concern over the Sierra Leone blood diamond trade, or if she's just singing to hear her own voice. While I can't pretend to see into her heart on this, I typically frown on preachy artists, no matter what the issue. I don't even like when Bono does it, and he's won Humanitarian awards. Saul Williams, yes. Kanye West, maybe. Lily Allen giving her 2 cent's on God, not gonna happen.

Truth is, her bread and butter are the smash and grab relationship tracks. When she starts to get preachy about the seedy nature of things, I have to tune out.

Bottom line: I surprised to find this album so well reviewed. That's why I chose it before even listening to it. That and I liked her first LP. I feel this is really aimed to a much more easily impressed audience. I heard it all already last time, and she adds very little new on this effort. Aside from a few stellar tracks peppered throughout, I feel it to be a mediocre follow up at best.

Letterman shines!

2009-02-12T12:47:00.003-06:00

I'll probably comment later, currently at work, but I just laughed my balls off. Please watch the late great Joaquin Pheonix make a dick of himself on national TV. That's what he gets for trying to rap.

I love David's last remark. If you don't get the reference, google Farah/Letterman.

Rock royalty have rubbed him for luck.

2009-02-11T19:41:00.007-06:00

Thanks to Timeout NY (link above).

Just when I began to think I was was reading too many music blogs, and getting too revolved around the indie scene for my own nerdy good, I was blessed with this post.

Matt Pinfield's personals ad.

I can't even make fun of this. It's just damn funny. Rock's own Uncle Fester is on the prowl. Think of how much tail he's gonna get from college drop outs who want top slip him their demo tapes. They would have to subject themselves into being Pinphiled... Yuckers!

Kind of felt bad there for a second, almost forgot Matt Pinfield was a real person. Fuck it, he worked for Mtv, the station that has done everything to bastardize aural art and retard pop culture for the masses, diabolically imaginable.

Also, new Podcast out. I did what may be my last audio segment. I realized halfway through that if I felt bored talking about my hobby, it must be shit. Feel free to shut it off after the 2 album reviews.

Blue's the new red.

2009-02-11T01:30:00.007-06:00

Hate linking to a MSN post (click title), but I had to jump on the Autotune hate wagon.

Death Cab For Cutie decided to wear blue ribbons to promote hack musician awareness. Well, they phrased it better.

I love these dorks. I like their music, love the fact I'm sure I can take any one, of not all of them at once in a fight, and now the fact that they're doing something completely insensitive towards real causes.

This is the kind of bad joke I would do, and I'll defend it like it's my idea. It was funny at the time, and anyone promoting awareness thinking a stupid ribbon is really help their cause, is usually lazy and conceded. And it's a joke!!!

When you look at me like that, it's a joke!

Dear John gets a letter.

2009-02-06T22:28:00.010-06:00

Loney, Dear- Dear John

I wasn't surprised to find out he's touring with Andrew Bird, as I found lot of similarities between the album last week and this. In fact the album starts quite intensely and amusing with a very pop friendly sound, much like that Of Montreal before the went all trippy synth Prince style a couple albums back. Then the material starts to slow down into a modern folk routine much like Andrew Bird, or Bon Iver without the haunting vocals.

In fact this album, more than any in recent memory, had me scratching my head thinking what each song reminded me of. I found similarities to Wolf Parade, Death Cab, Gomez, and the one that I kept trying to think of, sat at stuck in my memory like a caraway seed, or popcorn shell caught between molars, and the more I tried to think of it the further it sank, and I even started singing original soundalike song, but it continued to elude me. I finally placed it though, it was the track “Summers” that reminded me of “I Made a Resolution” by Sea wolf off their Get to the River Before it Runs Too Low EP.

That's why I have to pass on recommending this album, although I did feel this was a competent release, I couldn't pass the feeling I've been down this road before. Originality is paramount for me, and while I wouldn't accuse them of plagiarism, I couldn't help but think how everything reminded me of something else, with little new material. It's one thing to have a completely uninspired sound, It's another to just do something I had liked better the first time I heard it. Can't say I hated this release because it has some good tracks, but I quickly got indifferent to it, which artistically is a fate worse than fail.

John working solo, 'cus it's his bar and can't no one say "boo"!

2009-02-06T20:54:00.009-06:00

Well, Finally talked to the man himself. John Condron okayed my posting of his performance last week.

I was treated Thursday to another solo performance, laced with his best originals, and quite a few covers. Check the video feeds below and you'll know why this is a guy my gf asks for nights off whenever he's performing. All she wanted was his CD's for her birthday, which he obligingly signed for us.

Here's what I love about John, other than the fact he has yet to kick me out of my favorite Pub: When he performs, I can see the love, passion, energy, and enthusiasm for his craft. Those things I can only write about, he can express in the ways I will never know first hand. Luckily he has been so kind to not only let us get first crack at his new album (tba), but to answer a small Q&A for the site and podcast (will submit and post ASAP).

While I live in a small town in Il. I'm lucky enough to live stumbling distance from my favorite watering hole. Not only do they have a killer selection at reasonable prices, and know how to pour a perfect pint, but somehow they manage to bring in some fun and wonderful acts. I don't get a chance to make many concerts these days, so it's a real treat to make it out and see the likes of Brendan Loughry, Allison Moroni, The Righteous Hillbillies, Lupe Carroll, Deconstructing Jim, Chicago Farmer, etc... That's why it's a pleasure to introduce you all to John, a man who's even more excited and supportive of local music than I. The hallmark I've come to identify him with, is his enthused mantra shouted at the beginning and end of each of his performances, "Support Local Music!". A moniker I've proudly stolen, and incorporated with my podcast page.

These are only 2 flicks, a brief sample of what the guy is capable of. I seen him perform many times, but only once was I treated to Hallelujah, originally Leonard Cohen, but covered a million times since then, and I kid you not when I say I feel he knocks all the others out of the water. I'm not even trying to sound ass kissy either, not like I need to. If you think I'm blowing smoke, check out his cover of Dear Prudence, courtesy of his homepage.

Quite frankly, I don't need to toot anyone's horn. I podcast about music with a couple friends for the fun of it. I started a little blog to give myself the opportunity to talk even more about my favorite subject. We've been dieing to start doing little interviews with local artists, to bring a better insight to to artform we love, and can only critique and stand in awe of. (More to come, as next week I hope to nail down Lupe Carroll, he mentioned working on some demos, and I hope he has an idea when he will finally release an album.)

Without further ado, here is, what I hope is to be the first, of John doing what he does best.

Hopefully the next time we'll get the whole band! I'll have more to come btw, so stay tuned. In fact add my RSS feed so you don't miss a thing!

P.S. Here's links to the original files (right click, save as, etc.) for the Quicktime downloadable version, with "slightly" better audio. It was taken from a camera phone, so don't expect magic!

VID 1 VID 2

Also trying to get some fishing in, but have some album reviews to come.

Not local news famous, rush to change Wiki famous.

2009-02-04T19:15:00.006-06:00

Ex... No! Eternal Cramps frontman, Lux Interior has passed. I have little to say about this other than the smart ass title above (click it to read whole story).
But I do have a Bill Hicks, qoute: "Sing from you fucking HEART!!!" -By doing so, he's granted a seat in heaven.
Thanks to The Daily Swarm.

Why we don't review the raps.

2009-02-03T23:08:00.005-06:00

I usually thank the original source for breaking a story, but fuck you Pitchfork. First they said this was a rock song? These guys work in and around the industry? They know musicians? They run a music festival?!
This is about the suckiest suck to ever suck. This guy managed to rhyme the word nigga' with nigga' about 15 fucking times in a row. If, you're offended I used that word, so am I. He insulted my intelligence, that's personnal, race is general.
Listen to Saul Williams, and come back to me, anyone who would defend this song.
And we are reviewing a rap cd this week BTWays. Dalek -Gutter Tactics.
I refuse to offer a link to the youtube of this song based on principle (I'd rather be Rick Rolled), click the post title above to see the original article, and the video from there.
And as for you Waynely, You're a grown ass man, drop the Lil. And I'm not calling you Weezy, grow the fuck up, and stop aiming for the lowest common denominator. If your fans ran out of shit to listen to, they might read a book. Alright, that's a lie, but still, cut the shit.

Sometimes you wake up with a good story.

2009-02-03T21:33:00.005-06:00

Well, I've been meaning to add John to the to main site for a while, but he mentioned working on some new material so I held off. Well, I caught some of his performance the other night, and just realized I had caught some of the performance on my gay LG enV, you know the kind that flips up to text so I look like a 16 year old girl.
So put the vids on my main site (above link) for all to enjoy. Just click the pics of John. There are two. I swear it's not Antony and the Johnsons... Shaun.

Does it have bluetooth so I can order Chinese?

2009-02-03T13:49:00.006-06:00

Thanks to Reg Hardware UK for this (click title link above for the article).
So I saw these, let's call them Fuck Fones, and the horny geek in me said put them on the gold card, there's points to be earned.
They're headphones that motivate your sin making (hard to believe you could love someone and look them in the eye while wearing these), based on heart rate monitoring. With musical and vocal motivation and correctional responses, not to mention they come in iPod white. Love to see that energetic two tone commercial.
Look for The Love Tutor at your local BB and Apple store, next to the Bose, and Dr. Dre Beats demo booths. It'll be the one with a "ballot box" curtain to draw.

Once you do a commercial, you're off the artistic role call.

2009-02-02T19:53:00.007-06:00

Reference to a Bill Hicks line. We rushed this week's show cause we all had Super Bowl plans, luckily I missed the BobDylan/whore commercial. The good news is he's past his relevance now, so the fact he decided to suck the devils cock only hurts my once fond memories.
Cus' I felt I skipped around in my review to condense for time, so I'll just post my write ups over the course of the week.
Franz Ferdinand- Tonight: Franz Ferdinand:

A follow up to '04's Self Titled, and the quick turn around sophomore release in '05 You Could Have It So Much Better. Leaving a nearly 4 year gap in between always builds up ? marks. Expectations can become cumbersome when reviewing, either you never live up to them when they're too high, or you are so pleasantly surprised it doesn't suck, a mediocre release comes off as an excellent outing.

After the 4 year drought of new material, the first things that are clear and apparent is all the standard FF fair has made a welcome return. Dance floor rock stomp, plainly suggestive innuendo, and a continuous string of pick-up line lyrics that are notch less brazen than Louis the XIV, are all still there. Then again I wasn't hoping "Ulysses" was the start of a concept album based upon the James Joyce classic here.

New to the affair is the addition of electro fuzz that layers several tracks (Tom, and Dan decribed it as a glam rock rock revival, my words, their thoughts). Recording with the Hot Chip producer makes for an updated sound that tweaks but doesn't break the mold.

This leads me to my main concern, lack of originality and ingenuity. My key expectation and concern coming into this album was that they would exploit the bend but don't break method of songwriting and not add enough new elements to make this a worthy follow up to their previous success.

Upon first listen I found myself biting my nails in fear they'd disappoint, as I found the few tracks very cookie cutter. The high point of the A-side being their single Ulysses (or Ulis-eez, as it's pronounced in Franz Ferdinese), which most prominently, yet briefly, shows off their attempt at a twist to their well established sound. Think dark disco beats. I found myself digging the sound, then it would stop. I really wanted to hear it explored further. I finally got my wish on the B-side, namely the sub 8 min Lucid dreams.

Final verdict: entertaining, but not overly impressive. I think fans who haven't moved on may really enjoy this. The biggest hurdle it had against it, is that in the 2 weeks I've been listening to this, I've also heard quite a few excellent albums that have proven more inspired. That being said, I have in fact listened to this album a bunch of times, and have really enjoyed it, despite the fact that there's not much depth to explore, it's still damn fun.

I found my hero

2009-02-01T15:24:00.004-06:00

Pitchfork media is showing the film Desperate Man Blues, only a few minutes at a time. Catch ep 1 as it's only up for a week.
Old dude as over 25,000 records. All vinyl. Kinda' makes your MP3 player full of pirated music look like a purse don't it?
Click post title for link

I hate hearing myself, almost as much as the other 2

2009-01-30T17:43:00.002-06:00

Listening to the cast today, a few things. Talked about my review process. I like the fact we disagree now. Conflict is the foundation of all entertainment. I mentioned my method to evaluate an album to find the good and bad. I use this not to qualify an album, but to analyze minutiae I may overlook upon initial examination.
Tom made the faux paux of using a rating scale (7 out of 10). We had early on opted against ratings, as they're completely asinine. In fact calling it the Know Nothing Music Show was intentionally contrary to our "critic" credentials.
Reason this even comes up, I've been reading lots of reviews lately, trying to educate myself preshow, so I don't come off as a complete ass. I've learned something after reading some of these articles. Music critics are self righteous, self indulged assholes. To assume anyone can attribute value to art is ridiculous. They're arbitrarily rating something on fictitious merit.
To rebel I cut my facial hair like Tony Stark, which makes just as much sense. It has no constructive bearing on the complaints I have, but it's a form of masterbation I can drag around town that won't get me kicked out of Troupe 32. Our nerdcast is a circle jerk.
All opinions are self indulgent, and that's your bottom line.

Good morning

2009-01-30T09:52:00.007-06:00

Inspired by my two current favorite sites. Shaun's blog, and Failblog, I made this up this morning.
It's a reference to Rod's self inferred martyrdom. I meant to do it several days ago when the joke was apt, but fuck it. It's done.

Ass, gas, or grass

2009-01-30T08:57:00.005-06:00

Well, Coachella line up looks to be the bee's knees this year. Therefore I have a proposition to the interweb, I'm gonna need a ride, tickets, and a place to crash. I'll bath regularly, and keep mostly to myself, but I warn you I have night terrors unless held at night, then again in the afternoon.
Thanks to Sky Report for the jpeg.
And yes, I will give bone marrow, hold hands, slow dance during Antony and the Johnsons, make out hardcore during Fleet Foxes, everything except pretend to give a damn for Glasvegas.

I wouldn't apologize unless I was afraid of invasion.

2009-01-29T21:37:00.005-06:00

This week's show was one I'm proud of for a few reasons, not the least of which is I get the to make nice with the Highland warriors I've felt hot on my heels since since our GlasVegas review in Ep. 2, and my literal translation of Swift's Modest Proposal (yes, I know it's Irish babies, but I don't do literate humour well).
So after giving the boggy marshes the "shove off" for a less than impressive outing from the Scottish up and comers (Glasvegas-Self titled), we geek out over The 3 Ep's, the Beta Bands first full length LP(Wiki). This album is among the first to spin up every time I do an audio upgrade.
Having aurally scoured this disc up and down, I've been over every inch of sound scape imaginable. From the first track, when you press play and close your eyes you're guided by the hand and sat center stage to an exploration of trip hop's then premier artists, sowing oats and throwing seeds, to till and wait for their future releases (hindsight: eww) to finally see come to fruition.
Being a collection of, yep, their first 3 EP's, drives home a constant I feel when referring to this album. You see, the precedent this this holds for me is clear: It defines the meaning of potential, promise, raw talent, and a collaborative effort to explore the road less traveled around the next musical bend.
Now defunct, I still have memories and the privilege of seeing them call it quits on the top of their game.

Episode 4, I'm still not happy

2009-01-29T18:51:00.003-06:00

All an opinion needs to be validated, is for the originator to believe it. Keep that in mind.

We do a music podcast for fun, and while conflicting opinions is the bread and butter of our appeal, I just wanted a place where my opinion can go unhindered, and any after thought can be touched upon and examined in full light. This week...

Antony & the Johnsons- The Crying Light
Gorilla in the room: Antony is a it a bit odd. All the songs make use of his distinct falsetto voice, and it sets the eerie tone for the rest of the album as you will notice. The Crying Light musically takes a minimalist approach to it's arrangements, putting his voice in top seed. In particular the track Aeon utilizes a new trend I've notice in modern indie, the dual self harmonies. A vocal trick in part pioneered and possibly bastardized by Of Montreal, luckily used in moderation here, is a stand out track along with Epilepsy in dancing, which appears early in the batting order, and of course the title track, the Crying light.

The other party stopper is the cover artwork which is off putting to say the least. A geriatric Asian man, a withered shell in drag. Antony, having dealt with inter sex and trans gender themes, is no stranger to less than ideal subjects, as starting points for hidden beauty. That makes the use of Kazuo Ohno- a celbrated Butoh performer and respected artist for Antony, a likely inspiration. Butoh,is a form of interpretive dance, intentionally slow paced and methodic, deliberate and punctuating. He draws from his muse continuously throughout... Visual imagery, and keen sense of making the macabre sensational and endearing, is probably the best aspect of Antony and the Johnsons, new album. Epilepsy is Dancing, for instance, is taken for it's literal translation, with lyrics that that reach the core about trying to find his rhythm as he shakes in the snow. Bold imagery about taking a horrifying experiences such as uncontrollable convulsions and drawing the relationship to artistic expression flow flawlessly in this particular album.

Lyrically top notch. Emotionally up and down, the entire album finally culminates, and musically blossoms and blooms with a complete marrying of raw vocal talent, and a bittersweet lullaby.

Why you'll hate it and fight me to the bitter end on this? It's sad sap music at it's most pungent. From verbrato to crescendo, it drips it's sticky resin, and unless willing, may leave a bad taste in your mouth.

When reviewed this week, I was pleased to find we all disagreed on aspects of this album. I'd rather polarization than indifference. Art's sole responsibilty is to invoke emotion and opinion. A good artist knows that and braves criticism to find the passion that sits untapped in all of us.