To all the Muse fans concerned that the band was set to take their sound in a new, dubstep-inspired direction: feel free to breathe a sigh of relief because that’s not happening. Well, at least not yet. Yes, the first track to leak from Muse’s new one The 2nd Law was the track “The 2nd Law: Unsustainable,” and it absolutely falls under the dubstep genre. Interviews with band members about the change in sound yielded quotes about how inspired they were to see dubstep artists sending crowds into a frenzy with wires, drum pads and turntables. It turns out you can rock a crowd without the need for a guitar or drums or piano. If they truly took that message to heart though, they’d have made an entire album’s worth of crazy drops and frenzied dial-up internet noises. Instead, it’s just the one song. For most of The 2nd Law, it’s business as usual for Muse. Here is a band that has become more and more bombastic and arena-forged with each new release, apparently seeking to claim the crown that Queen left behind with fist-pumping anthems and tracks with titles like “Exogenesis: Symphony, Parts 1-3.” On the new record, songs like “Survival” and the opening number “Supremacy” are layered with huge orchestral swells that create a grandeur and excess the likes of which deserve to be the soundtrack to some big summer blockbuster popcorn flick. In fact, “Survival” was the official theme of the 2012 Summer Olympics, and it sounds every bit like it belongs as such. This is the Muse we met on the last album, 2009’s The Resistance. On the band’s 2006 record Black Holes and Revelations, they dabbled in synths and electronic textures more than they ever had before, and those sounds once again make themselves evident on this new full length thanks to the pulsations of first single “Madness” and “Follow Me,” the latter of which truly feels like a slowed down, less guitar-heavy remix of “Map of the Problematique” with nods towards U2’s “Where the Streets Have No Name.” Whether or not that’s a good thing is your decision, but it’s somewhat nice to hear a few stylistic nods back to their earlier material. It’s a real shame then that The 2nd Law suffers from such a saggy midsection. “Animals,” “Explorers” and “Big Freeze” all strip away the excess to remind you that this is still a relatively simple rock band that made great records like Showbiz and Origin of Symmetry not too long ago. The problem is that they fail to capitalize on the opportunity to do something interesting with these songs. They don’t need to go big to be great, they just need to remember that the smaller moments are of equal importance to everything else. Things do take a decidedly random turn towards the end of the record, when bassist Chris Wostenholme takes over lead vocals for the first time on “Save Me” and “Liquid State.” The former track comes across as a little jarring at first for two reasons: the switch in vocals and the very measured and delicate instrumental work. It’s the only song on the entire album that would function well as an Explosions in the Sky-esque post-rock adventure, if only those pesky vocals didn’t get in the way. Wostenholme doesn’t have a bad voice, it’s just for that particular track his singing hurts more than helps. Bellamy’s falsetto would have done a bit better with it, but really what that song needs is room to breathe. The crunchy metal-lite feel of “Liquid State” suits Wostenholme a lot more, though with the “Hysteria” or “Plug In Baby”-like aggression almost deserves an equally visceral vocal that’s not fully landing in this case. You could say he’s off to a decent start, but could use a bit more practice to equal the many fine other things Muse has done over the last decade. The 2nd Law closes with “The 2nd Law: Unsustainable” and “The 2nd Law: Isolated System,” the first of which is the aforementioned dubstep attack, which really comes out of the blue when you consider everything that’s happened leading up to it. The other track is a calmer and lightly pulsating piano and strings instrumental mixed with more sound clips of announcers and news reporters all talking over one another about problems around the world. Working in tandem with “Unsustainable,” the two peas in a pod make a great statement about what this entire record could have sounded like. It’s progressive and interesting and completely unlike anything Muse have ever done before. For a band that likes to continually push the envelope and keep their fans guessing, this record is strikingly safe and overly sincere. The Resistance at least sounded like a band having fun by going completely over-the-top with excess. Interesting as it might be at times, The 2nd Law sounds like it was made by a band trying to find focus while going more and more blind each day. There are moments of clarity amidst their fumbling, but mostly you just hope they get some glasses and keep making engaging music for years to come.
Author: Faronheit Page 122 of 192
It’s a surprisingly strong week for new albums, but then again when we get into the fall like this, almost every week is strong. Be on the lookout for new stuff from AC Newman, Black Marble, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Callers, Can, Caviare Days, Chrome Canyon, Citizens!, Coheed and Cambria, Converge, Dana Falconberry, Django Django, Electric Six, Ellie Goulding, Freelance Whales, Kaki King, John Cale, Letting Up Despite Great Faults, Lord Huron, Mark Mallman, Martin Eden, Matt and Kim, Metz, Paws, Portugal. The Man, Royal Trux, Tame Impala, Trash Talk, Ty Segall and The Wallflowers. If that’s not good enough for you, or perhaps you’re in the mood for something a little bit different or fresher, enjoy the mp3s in today’s Pick Your Poison. Good stuff I’ll advise you to check out from Bear Colony, Daymoths, Departures, Fat Goth, How to destroy angels, Left Boy and Silkies. In the Soundcloud section, don’t miss streaming songs from Generationals, Mac DeMarco, MØ and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart.
Adele – Skyfall (Theatre of Delays Remix)
Bronx Science – The Light Behind Your Light Is Changing
Crash and the ‘Coot – Brian Fury Wins! (Alternate Version)
Fat Goth – Debbie’s Dirty Harry
How to destroy angels – Keep it together
Little Dragon – Little Man (Clancy’s Deep Haze Remix)
SOUNDCLOUD
Morgan D – Feel Like Singin (The La La Song)
Happy Columbus Day to you and yours. I hope you got the day off work to celebrate. If not, just know that Christopher Columbus wasn’t exactly the greatest of people. He basically discovered America by accident, then proceeded to drive out the Native Americans that already lived there. If such a thing were to happen today, the media would relentlessly criticize such a move. Instead we call the man enough of a hero to get a holiday named after him. If he wouldn’t have gotten lost on his way to India, somebody else would have discovered North America, and from there who knows what direction the country might have taken. I’m happy about the freedoms I have today, and hope that in spite of his shady deeds it was the right move for the country. Okay, let’s do some Monday edition of Pick Your Poison. Don’t miss some good tracks today from Jenee Halstead, King of Spain, Letting Up Despite Great Faults, Peculiar Pretzelmen, Qurious, and Village. Remixes from DISCOFORGIA and Justin K. Broadrick also make for some excellent work. In the Soundcloud section, stream good stuff from Girls Names, Martin Eden (aka Eluvium) and SURES.
Bon Iver – Minnesota, WI (Lovely Extended Remix)
Caveman the Wise – Harold of the Moon
David Guetta ft. Taped Rai – Just One Last Time (Fareoh Remix)
Gallons to Ounces – It Kills Me
Jenee Halstead – Rodeo of Sadness
Letting Up Despite Great Faults – Bulletproof Girl
Mogwai – George Square Thatcher Death Party (Justin K. Broadrick Reshape)
Neil Nathan – Sweep the Nation
Peculiar Pretzelmen – Hammer/Nails
Tame Impala – Elephant (DISCOFORGIA Remix)
SOUNDCLOUD
Arkells – Thinkin Bout You (Frank Ocean Cover)
It’s Friday, I’m out of town for the weekend, so I’m going to keep this very short and very sweet. Have fun and try not to do anything I wouldn’t do. What wouldn’t I do? The short answer is not much. I think my upcoming weekend away will more than prove that. But in my stead, please enjoy this Friday edition of Pick Your Poison. Good stuff today from David Bronson, La Chansons, The Modern Airline, Pretty & Nice and Sunglasses. In the Soundcloud section there’s delightful tracks to stream from Those Darlins, Vitalic, The Walkmen and Joe Goddard’s (of Hot Chip) remix of Jessie Ware. Have a great weekend!
Buffalo Killers – It’s a Shame (Live)
The Cast of Cheers – Human Elevator (Errors Remix)
Misfits ft. Lazy Habits – Coda
Coves – Wicked Game (Chris Isaak cover)
Danny Brown – Grown Up (Nubbz Remix)
Danny Switchblade – Ordinary Neighborhood SuperStar
The Modern Airline – Vee Haf Veys (of Making You Rock)
Starkey ft. Trim – Solar Flare (Freestyle)
The Trashed Romeos – I Sit and Cry
Wiz Khalifa ft. The Weeknd – Remember You (VOODOO FARM Club Remix)
SOUNDCLOUD
Jessie Ware – Night Light (Joe Goddard Remix)
How to Dress Well, aka Tom Krell, doesn’t make music that’s easy to listen to or enjoy by any stretch of the imagination. That can also be considered part of his charm though, that he doesn’t bow to anyone’s standards. There are influences, that’s to be sure, and you could hear flashes of Bobby Brown or Michael Jackson in some of the tracks on HTDW’s 2010 debut album Love Remains. Those influences were filtered through Krell’s unique lens, and there was such a lo-fi, effect-laden treatment to everything that it often felt like you were listening to an R&B record underwater. Krell’s falsetto vocals also tended to sound like they were recorded from the opposite side of a room, the distance providing a chasm of disconnection against the intimacy of the lyrics. It was a symbolic gesture more than anything else, as we’d later come to find out that his struggles with depression have often kept his family and friends at arm’s length. That more or less informs how the new HTDW record Total Loss functions, although this time the production work has become more polished and easier to listen to. Krell is also much more up-front and personal this time too, and it makes for an open wound of a record that’s an emotional wrecking ball with a heavy dose of beautiful composition. The R&B flavor is still present on this album, but it’s a little more scaled back and minimalist in terms of composition. There are plenty more icy textures that glide and drift past instead of big beats and vocal posturing. If you’re expecting a bunch of “Ready for the World” clones to create clear highlights across this album, you will probably end up sorely disappointed. There are tracks like “Cold Nites” and “& It Was You” that are some of the most fascinating and complex pieces Krell has ever put together, and while their melodies affixed with accoutrements like finger snaps and intense vocal harmonies may have a lighthearted air to them, the lyrics are anything but. Where this record truly excels though are in the moments when atmosphere truly takes over and beauty shines through. There are post rock symphonic bits like “World I Need You, Won’t Be Without You (Proem)” and “Talking to You” that cut so deeply while saying so little that you halfway expect Krell to turn into Sigur Ros at times. That’s a very good thing, and it shows plenty of promise for his future records. Then again, those same sorts of elements were all over last year’s Just Once EP, and they’re only minimally represented on Total Loss. In a sense, the mixture of different styles on this record can make it seem less than cohesive at times, and the lack of important benchmarks across the whole thing can leave it feeling a little front-loaded. This isn’t a perfect album, nor does it quite accomplish the great things Love Remains was able to do. What truly holds this record together in spite of everything are the lyrics, which tend to devastate at every turn. But while this record weaves its way through darkness, the end starts to shine some light through in a powerful and meaningful way. “Set It Right,” in which Krell names the many friends and family members both living and dead that he’s loved and cared for in spite of everything, is probably the most important track on the entire record. “As far as love goes, it’s one step at a time,” he sings like somebody hoping to rebuild a long dead or dormant connection. With any luck, this album marks yet another step in the right direction for How to Dress Well.
How to Dress Well – Ocean Floor for Everything
How to Dress Well – Cold Nites (Pete Swanson Remix)
Okay, let me point out something that’s really weird and really cool. So “magician” David Blaine is never one to avoid a publicity stunt for the sake of doing something dangerous, which is why he’s now choosing to spend three days and three nights inside a metal suit where he will endure constant metal shocks. You’ll be able to watch the whole thing online, and I’m sure curious people will check in on him to see how things are going. Where this whole thing gets weirder and cooler though is with the involvement of Mr. Andrew W.K. See, the man who gave us “Party Hard” and plenty of other party anthems will be stepping in front of a keyboard this Sunday at 7:30pm EST and using it to hit Blaine with one million volts of electricity. The keyboard will be powered by a Tesla coil, which is how the electrical charge will be delivered to Blaine. That’s going to be one shocking (and probably painful) keyboard solo. Will you tune in? Will you be amused? Here is the spot on YouTube where you can watch it. I’ll be out of town, but somebody let me know how it goes. Equally electrifying is today’s edition of Pick Your Poison, which features some great songs from Bambi Lee Savage, Dawn Hunger, Rain Over St. Ambrose, Wooden Wand and Young Fathers. In the Soundcloud section there’s great stuff to stream from Black Moth Super Rainbow, Electric Guest and Saturday Looks Good to Me as well.
A.Chal – Roses on Your Silhouette
Bambi Lee Savage – Oh Loneliness
Frank Ocean – Pyramids (DJ Apt One Disco Dub)
Rain Over St. Ambrose – Walking Home
Southern Shores – New Love (Beat Connection Remix)
Victor Talking Machine – Penny Arcade (Live)
Wooden Wand – Southern Colorado Song
SOUNDCLOUD
Okay, let’s do our usual thing on Wednesdays and talk about a couple upcoming shows happening in Chicago soon. The first I’d like to get to today is The Dig, who will be playing at The Tonic Room next Friday, October 12th. By the way, if you’ve never been to The Tonic Room, let me say that it’s one of the cooler small venues in town. Great place to see a show. But as for The Dig, they’ve been making a name for themselves these last few years, playing shows around the country with bands like The Walkmen and The Antlers. Their 2010 debut album Electric Toys earned them early respect, but their new album Midnight Flowers really brought them into their own. Stream the whole record here. They’ve got just the right mixture a good modern indie rock band should have these days, from guitars to synths and strong vocal harmonies. The energy is there too, which the band channels into their dynamic live performances. Don’t miss seeing them if you’ve got the chance. Tickets are $10 for this 21+ show and are available for purchase here.
Next up, if you enjoy a good piano rock band now and then (who doesn’t?), you might want to be aware of the Jacob Jefferies Band. While the piano does play a big part in their sound, guitars play a large role too, hence the descriptors of both piano and rock. Think of them sort of like if Ben Folds had a musical baby with Tom Petty. Their latest single “Suffocate My Heart” earned them Buzzworthy status at MTV, which between you and me doesn’t mean that much these days, but any praise is a good thing. They have a tendency to be poppy and fun, which makes it seem like only a matter of time before they’ll be playing large venues and have multiple songs on the radio. Until they get there though, they’ve got a show at the Elbo Room on Thursday, October 11th. It starts at 8pm, is a 21+ show, and you can get tickets here.
Okay, now it’s onto today’s Pick Your Poison. Great set of tunes today to help you get over the hump that is mid-week. Don’t miss tracks from A.C. Newman (ft. Neko Case), Brainstorm, Ceremony, Mardeen, Steffaloo and WRITER’s cover of Santigold.
A.C. Newman – Encyclopedia of Classic Takedowns (ft. Neko Case)
Atlas Genius – Symptoms (Wild Cub Remix)
Fenster – Oh Canyon (Slow Steve Remix)
Silent Redemption – Chariots of Fire
Telephoned – Last Time (Krystal Klear Remix)
WRITER – Disparate Youth (Santigold cover)
SOUNDCLOUD
Daft Punk – Superheroes (Solidisco Remix)
It’s Tuesday, which means it’s new album release day. I’m pleased to bring you a list of artists that have new stuff out this week, so feel free to check some of these out if you’re so inclined: Balmorhea, Beth Orton, Dark Dark Dark, ERAAS, Flying Lotus, Frank Turner, How to Dress Well, Immigrant Union, John Cale, Joseph Arthur, Lightning Bolt, Maserati, Matt and Kim, Moon Duo, The Mountain Goats, Muse, Sun Airway, Taken By Trees, Tift Merritt, Tilly and the Wall, Tori Amos, Ultraista, The Vaccines and Why? I’m not going to say what I recommend out of that bunch, but there are definitely a few gems in that pile. There are also a few gems in this pile of mp3s below, all part of today’s Pick Your Poison. Don’t miss downloading tracks from Damon Moon and the Whispering Drifters, Elliott BROOD (covering David Bowie), JAN, Kuky Tala, Lord HUron, Prince Rama and T.H. White. RAC’s remix of Mayer Hawthorne is pretty good too. In the Soundcloud section I’ll advise streaming tracks from The Joy Formidable, Lust for Youth, Madrid and WIN WIN.
Beacon – Feeling’s Gone (Fort Romeau’s Shibuya Edit)
Damon Moon and the Whispering Drifters – We Make Our Own Traditions, Homesick Blues
D.O.E. C.I.G.A.P.O.M. – Summertime Stroll
Elliott BROOD – Ziggy Stardust (David Bowie cover)
Los Jardines de Bruselas – On the Moon (Together)
Mayer Hawthorne – No Strings (RAC Remix)
My Radio – Life is a Bitch Slap
Prince Rama – Those Who Live for Love Will Live Forever
The Tom Fun Orchestra – Animal Mask
SOUNDCLOUD
The Joy Formidable – This Ladder Is Ours
Lips – We Don’t Have Much Time
Scott Lucas is something of a film buff. In 2004, he titled Local H’s fifth studio album Whatever Happened to P.J. Soles?, which referenced the actress known for her roles in films like Carrie, Halloween, Rock and Roll High School and Stripes. His 2010 record with his “solo” project Scott Lucas and the Married Men was called George Lassos the Moon, a call back to It’s a Wonderful Life. Local H has been playing shows in Chicago on New Year’s Eve for over a decade now, and they always have themes to them with movie connotations. 2001 was their tribute to Stanley Kubrick, for example. Here are the intro videos the band showed before their themed NYE sets in 2010 and 2011, the former which pulls from 1930s musicals and the latter which is a mixture of a Rush concert film and Terence Malick’s The Tree of Life. So yes, it should come as little surprise that Local H named their new long player Hallelujah! I’m a Bum!, inspired by the 1933 Al Jolson musical of the same name. The plot of that film essentially glamorizes and satirizes the hobo lifestyle during the Great Depression. Considering the current state of our economy and that we’ve got a big election coming up, these are the topics that Lucas and drummer Brian St. Clair have chosen to focus on for this record. Like almost every Local H album, the unifying theme makes it a concept record, complete with seamless song transitions and reprises of melodies and lyrics at various points throughout. Listening to the whole 60+ minute, 17 track affair from start to finish in one sitting is pretty important to grasp all that’s being done, however there are a handful of songs worth focusing on if you don’t have the time or fortitude to take on the whole enchilada each and every time.
The first half of Hallelujah! I’m a Bum! is largely focused on how we’ve been trained and indoctrinated to believe lies perpetuated by authority figures, designed to keep us calm, complacent and to hold us back from achieving our full potential. “Cold Manor” is about how our education system lets us down in that regard, feeding us with the wrong information when we’re kids so we don’t ever know better. “They Saved Reagan’s Brain” is an indictment of the GOP and Wall Street greed, attacking the idea of trickle down economics and using the aforementioned President’s own words against him in sound clips from his 1983 Evil Empire speech. The focus shifts to Chicago for “Blue Line” and “Another February,” both songs about trying to survive the city’s harsh winters when you don’t have a warm bed to sleep in or a car that will start. The former track actually uses both El train sounds and a clip of a homeless person riding the rails, explaining he does it to avoid freezing to death at night. There is a clear divide in this album via “Cold and Mannered,” which reprises “Cold Manor” in a slower, more resigned lo-fi fashion. The band originally said they were going to make this a double album, and while press releases along with the extensive track listing certainly promote that idea, if you buy it on CD you’re still getting one disc or if you buy the mp3s in bulk it won’t cost you more than any other single album. Call it Local H taking the politics of this to the next level by keeping costs down in a tough economy.
When the second half of Hallelujah! I’m a Bum! kicks off with the 75 second guitar-and-horns stomp of “Trash Fire Bummers,” things feel a little different. Okay, so the introduction of horns is something new for the band and make for a nice touch, but there’s also a shift in perspective that permeates the rest of the album. Now that we’ve learned how the government, politicians and the economy have led us astray in our formative years, it’s time to examine the further damage we’re unknowingly causing ourselves and others in the present because nobody told us otherwise. “Get it out of neutral/ Make yourself useful,” Lucas demands amid frenzied guitars and staccato horns on “Here Come Ol’ Laptop.” He’s trying to slap people out of their fevered delusions and back to reality. “Ruling Kind” gives a rather fair and calm assessment of how we need to get rid of politicians that don’t have our best interests at heart. But then the Republican party gets hit with more barbs on “Limit Your Change” and “Paddy Considine.” The first predominantly features sound bites from people like Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin with their famous quotes like, “I like being able to fire people” and “How’s that hopey-changey stuff workin’ out for ya?” All of it is intended to expose their supposed hypocrisy, that in a quest to destroy President Obama they’re actually harming our country too. Following that is an indictment of the conspiracy theorist middle-aged white man, both believing and spreading misinformation about how the President is a “secret Muslim” or that only people of color are allowed to have a say in government.
If these sorts of topics sound a bit depressing and unpleasant to deal with, remember that the last Local H record 12 Angry Months was a very personal look at the crippling issues dealt with in the year following the end of a long-term relationship. Lucas and St. Clair also aren’t Japandroids, the similarly loud duo working hard to make rock and roll a celebration. The slog through this dark take on American living in 2012 is intended to get people angry about our failings and equally inspired to fight for actual change in our system. In other words, this is Local H’s pseudo take on Rage Against the Machine, and perhaps surprisingly, they wear that hat well. After looking inwards for so many records, it’s refreshing to hear them make music that truly speaks to millions of disenfranchised Americans. They become the voice of the middle class, deeply unsatisfied with both political parties (it’s worth noting there are a few criticisms aimed at President Obama on this album too) and frightened at the idea that we’ve been lost as a nation for so long we might never find our way back. Hallelujah! I’m a Bum! is an essential record to listen to as we prepare to vote this November, but its intentions and aspirations expand beyond that expiration date. Whether we hit another recession or not, America will likely remain in turmoil for many years to come. It’ll be good to have this around to remind us why and help vent some of that anger. Or you could completely ignore the lyrics and bang your head to some heavy garage rock for an hour. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.
Click here to watch the video for “Cold Manor”
Click here to watch a video of “Night Flight to Paris” being performed live in the studio
What a start to the week! I don’t know about you, but I’m not the biggest fan of Mondays. Today though, was pretty spectacular music-wise. First, Death Grips got into a fight with their label, Epic Records. See, they promised their fans they’d be releasing two records this year. The first was The Money Store, which came out in April. They completed their second record, “No Love Deep Web” a few days ago, and it was slated for an October 23rd release. Epic backed out of that release date though, and told the group they’d now like to release it “sometime in 2013.” Well, one of the things you probably shouldn’t do is piss off guys that call themselves Death Grips. In a series of angry tweets last night, they said they were just going to put the record up on their website starting at midnight PST on October 1st (today). As they said, the label people will be hearing the album at the same time as everyone else. Well, not only did it go up on the site for streaming, it was up for free download too. Of course since then their site has crashed and will probably take a few days to repair. In the meantime though, feel free to stream/download No Love Deep Web from Soundcloud, or just download the whole thing via Mediafire or DepositFiles. Nobody’s trying to stop them from giving it away, at least not yet. Once that genie is out of the bottle, there’s not really any way to put it back in anyways. The cover art, by the way, features the album title written in marker on an erect penis. I’m not going to link to that, and if you want to find it, do a search for it. So yeah, a new Death Grips album (which may or may not be your thing) being given away for free is great and worth it, in my opinion. Also great news: Godspeed You! Black Emperor have announced they will be releasing their first record of new material since 2002. Not only that, but it’ll be available for purchase in two weeks (Oct. 16th). The title of the new album is ‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!. If you’re a fan of the post-rock collective, then start getting excited now. For more information on that, and to preorder, simply go here. Okay, now let’s do today’s Pick Your Poison. Don’t miss tracks from Beaten By Them, Broke For Free, Guards, Jemez Mountain Hawkz, Marine Electric and Peace. The Canyons Wooly Mammoth Remix of Tame Impala is worth a download too. In the Soundcloud section, stream new and interesting stuff from Example, Star Slinger, Teen Daze and Tennis (covering Television).
Broke For Free – The Gold Lining
Frank Rabeyrolles – Listening to Tago Mago (Franklin Edit)
The Growl – With the Sharp End of a Trowel
How to Dress Well – Cold Nites (Pete Swanson Remix)
Jemez Mountain Hawkz – California Sound
Kim Fai – Good Life (Paul Thomas Remix)
Tame Impala – Elephant (Canyons Wooly Mammoth Remix)
SOUNDCLOUD
Jozef Van Wissem & Jim Jarmusch – Etimasia
Happy Friday! Remember when that Rebecca Black song was popular because of how excruciatingly bad it was? I despised those that took the song seriously and used it as their theme song for days like today. These days we’ve got a far better option to get us pumped for the weekend. It’s far better, and best appreciated in video form, though only listening to the audio provides some inspiration if only because you recall the images and dancing while doing so. But this trend too shall pass. I’m reveling in the moment though, and am starting to wonder if there is a quintessential song that we can call the all-time weekend-starter. Like, if you had to pick a single song to listen to on Friday afternoon for the rest of your life, what would that song be? I don’t know if I could make that sort of commitment, though if I did it’d probably have to be something classic I’ve loved for years and wouldn’t ever get tired of. It’s a tough choice. Chew on that while you’re relaxing in front of the TV or something this weekend. In the meantime, please enjoy these fresh from the harvest mp3s in today’s Pick Your Poison. Highlights include tracks from Autumn Owls, Crystal Castles, Cultfever, dEUS, Dracula Lewis, The Glitch Mob, Midnight Magic, Naytronix, and Parade of Lights. In the Soundcloud section please keep an eye on streams from The 1975, Dinosaur Jr, Milano Sun and PAWS. Have a great weekend!
Army of Freshmen – America, You’re Breaking My Heart
Cave Painting – So Calm (Vondelpark Remix)
Crystal Castles – Wrath of God
The Glitch Mob – We Can Make the World Stop
Kodaline – All I Want (Everything Everything Remix)
Matt Bauer – Tonight We Get to Sing Our Songs
Parade of Lights – Just Give It Up
Red Clover Ghost – Cowboy Killer (Days Fade Away)
TJ Kong and the Atomic Bomb – Eyewitness On the Run
Two Door Cinema Club – Sleep Alone (The Golden Pony Remix)
SOUNDCLOUD
Bastille – Free Love (Original Mix)
Dinosaur Jr – Pierce The Morning Rain
Hammock – (Tonight) We Burn Like Stars That Never Die
I am what you would call a Beach Boys fan. The reason I word it that way is because I’m a bit selective in my fandom of the band. If you want to talk about Pet Sounds or Surfin’ USAr or even a greatest hits record, I’m on board. Most of the other stuff I could care less about, save for a handful of songs. I respect their legacy, but don’t really like some of the inter-band drama they’ve had over the years. To me, Brian Wilson’s return to the Beach Boys in the last couple years was a bit of a triumph, especially after his personal difficulties. For much of 2012, the band has been celebrating their 50th anniversary by reissuing some of their classic albums, recording a new one and touring around the world. I happened to see them when the tour came through Chicago last May, and it was a great time. They played all the hits, and to see all the remaining members together on stage was a genuine treat. Unfortunately all is not well with the Beach Boys. Mike Love, who owns the Beach Boys name, announced a couple days ago that following the band’s final UK tour dates coming up he was kicking Brian Wilson, Al Jardine and David Marks to the curb. Basically Love said he only got everyone back together to make a ton of money surrounding the 50th anniversary of the band, and now that they’re done with that he doesn’t want them around anymore. On the other end, Wilson said in an interview that he, Jardine and Marks had so much fun during this tour and can’t understand why Love wants them gone. Jardine has backed an online petition to try and keep the original Beach Boys intact. What’s ironic to me is that a guy with the last name Love could be so heartless. I’m just glad I got to see them together before this whole thing blew up. I wish them all the best and hope they can find a way to settle any differences there might be. Okay, let’s talk Pick Your Poison for today. Recommended tracks come from Cardio, Dazzletine, Immigrant Union, KOPPS, Night Moves, Paper Diamond and Undesirable People. In the Soundcloud section don’t miss streaming songs from Andrew Bird, The Weeknd and Woods.
Birds & Batteries – I Want You (DOOMbird Remix)
Eleni Mandell – Bun in the Oven
Idea the Artist – Sheep Jumping Fences
Immigrant Union – My Heart’s A Joke
NEØV – Windvane
NEØV – Windvane (Korallreven Remix)
Paper Diamond – The 40 Thieves
Parker & the Numberman – Farmer’s Heart
Silver Medallion – Money Can’t Buy
Tusks – In the Beginning / Give It Time
Two Door Cinema Club – What You Know (E-603 Remix)
Ungdomskulen – Facemask (Stockhaus Horse Face Remix)
Zucchini Drive – Gospel Oak (ft. Elissa P)
SOUNDCLOUD
Andrew Bird – Three White Horses
People Get Ready – Windy Cindy
I have a certain admiration for Prince, and it’s not just because of his basketball skills. I’d like to think that almost everyone in the world has at one point or another in their lives enjoyed a Prince song. Whether it’s the millennial staple “1999” or classics like “Let’s Go Crazy” and “Little Red Corvette,” the man has a catalogue most other artists would envy. More unfortunate is that the Purple One hasn’t had a legitimate hit in over a decade. People still love the guy, even if they don’t particularly care for what he’s been doing more recently. In that respect he’s more like a David Bowie, whose last few albums were mere footnotes. Prince has gotten a bit smarter these last couple years, and instead of going around trying to record and push new material, he’s simply touring because that’s one area of his life that’s still very lucrative. People still flock to see Prince in concert, and they’ll pay high prices for it too. Over the last few months he’s been playing around with touring structures too, holding down residencies in several U.S. cities. His biggest residency so far has been in Los Angeles, where he played 21 dates over the course of a month. Now he likes to claim that every show is unique, but I find it hard to believe that you’re not going to run into some similarities when you play 21 shows in the same place. Anyways, it got me really excited when at the start of this month, Prince announced a Chicago residency. No specifics were given, except that there was one show scheduled for September 24th at the United Center. Second and third shows would later be added as well, for the two days immediately after that. Now that they’re finally here, it seems like tonight will be Prince’s last show in Chicago for the foreseeable future. So L.A. gets 21 shows, and Chicago only gets 3? Unless he’s going to announce more Chicago shows, I’m upset. Here I avoided buying tickets to those shows, figuring that with at least 5-10 shows that still might be scheduled, it’d be easier to get tickets later on. Now on this last night, I’m kicking myself. Then again, reviews for the Prince shows in Chicago haven’t exactly been stellar, with most saying his band does most of the hard work, that he barely picks up a guitar, and when he does it’s only for a minute and doesn’t include an extended solo. Also, at the first show there was a debacle involving a second encore. Fans were left waiting for 30 minutes, then the house lights came up and most left. About 15 minutes after those house lights went up, Prince came back out and played a couple more songs. Almost everybody was gone by that point. Waiting 5 minutes for an encore is excruciating, so I can only imagine what 45 minutes feels like. I haven’t checked to see if he pulled the same stunt on Night 2. We’ll see about Night 3 later. Anyways, if Prince announces any more Chicago shows, I’ll be sure to let you know, as I’ll probably be getting tickets myself. So let’s tackle today’s Pick Your Poison. Recommended tracks come from Cold Showers, Communist Daughter, Departures, One Finger Riot, Sons of the West and Triad God. In the Soundcloud section, stream Passion Pit’s remix of Crystal Fighters, The Knocks remixing Two Door Cinema Club, and a brand new Tegan and Sara single.
Angels Heart – Under the Black Light
Crystal Shipsss – Burning Kingdom (Universal Fight Mix)
Echoes de Luxe – Hold On
Echoes de Luxe – Don’t Change
Freelance Whales – Spitting Image (Little Daylight Remix)
Master Shortie ft. The Cataracts & Leaf – Thank You
Miike Snow – Pretender (Dem Slackers Remix)
Milk3y Microphone – Know You Love Me
The Ocean Floor – Big Screen TV
Privet – Don’t Chew With Your Mouth Full
Scott & Charlene’s Wedding – Footscray Station
Sons of the West – Call You Home
SOUNDCLOUD
Crystal Fighters – At Home (Passion Pit Remix)
Johnny And The Giros – I Don’t Need A Lover
Neneh Cherry & The Thing – What Reason Could I Give (Kim Hiorthoy remix)
Have you heard Efterklang’s 2004 debut album Tripper? If not, now’s as good of a time as any to look it up. Spotify can help you out on that one if needed. Anyways, back then the Danish band had about 10 members and created atmospheric post-rock soundscapes that effectively brought to mind Sigur Ros with a little more electronic undercurrent. Fast forward to the present, and Efterklang is now a three-piece band that more or less creates beautiful and heartfelt pop songs. The difference is pretty huge, though it helps that they retain small pieces of their earlier selves. You can’t quite blame the band for wanting to find true success, but the way they’ve gone about it sometimes feels like too huge of a sacrifice. A lot of the elements that made them distinctively great have been washed away to make melodies easier to digest and remember. That’s largely what sabotaged their last album, 2010’s Magic Chairs. In preparation for the release of their new album Piramida, the band released a trailer that shows some of the lengths they went to in generating audio samples for it. In short, they traveled to Spitsbergen, Russia, located on the edge of the North Pole and home to Pyramiden, a town that was abandoned in the ’90s and remains as a decaying ruin today. They climbed inside huge, hollow tanks and recorded vocals and noises with the impressive echoes. They ran down boardwalks and plinked glass bottles with the microphones capturing it all – over 1,000 samples used across the album. Such effort is more than admirable, as not many artists would go to such lengths to add such unique charms to their records.
If you give a really close listen to the entire record, the little effects become that much more apparent and make what you’re hearing immensely more impressive. The only percussion on “Dreams Today” is the sound of footsteps across wooden planks. “Told to Be Fine” has a large hollow metal object being struck by something that sounds like but probably isn’t a basketball, while “The Living Layer” makes use of the many ways glass transforms sound when tapped at different angles and levels. Charming and well placed as all these elements might be, if you didn’t know to listen for them you probably wouldn’t notice or care where they came from. Efterklang might well be amateur foley artists, adding sound effects to movies after the fact because camera microphones didn’t pick them up properly. The point being, almost all of it could have been recreated in the studio without the need to go to an abandoned ghost town near the North Pole. That shouldn’t lessen or cheapen the experience of listening to Piramida because clearly the band was inspired by their trip in the right ways, but you are left wondering if they could have done something more or different with what they collected during their journey. For example, to make an atmospheric, post rock record like their earlier work using these sounds would be inventive and set them apart from their peers. Sadly, they didn’t do that. What they did do was create a smart and beautiful pop record that will impress you the more time you spend with it. The intricacies of opening track “Hollow Mountain” begin to reveal themselves once you realize it stacks upon itself by starting with a slow music box-like churn and not even launching into the first verse until two minutes have passed. From there, strings and horns all show up and eventually vanish amid icy synths, martial percussion and Casper Clausen’s relaxed vocal. The song makes for a decent single, but “Apples” which follows it is probably just a touch catchier and more upbeat.
There’s nothing on Piramida that’s intensely happy or toe-tappingly fun, but no matter what mood or shape the songs seem to take, they’re almost all compelling in one aspect or another. “The Ghost” starts innocently enough, but builds with unique percussion and harmonized vocals before entering a hornet’s nest of brass that eerily and enviously recalls Radiohead’s classic “The National Anthem” at its most frenetic point. Ballads like “Sedna” and closer “Monument” stand as particularly strong examples of how measured and carefully plotted arrangements can exude passion and elegance with lyrics that just as equally inspire. If this album has one unabashed highlight though, it comes from the 6.5 minute “Black Summer,” which transforms itself over its run time via intense build ups and releases aided along the way by stark piano work, the South Denmark Girls Choir and a jazzy little saxophone solo at the end. It’s exactly the sort of song you wish was the blueprint for the entire record, best blending the band’s earlier work with their more recent stuff. Alas, they don’t all operate at such a high level even if they’re all successful in one aspect or another.
It’s both a help and a hindrance to Piramida that despite their common elements each track could stand up well on its own. On the one hand, you want each individual track to be as strong as possible so you can drop in anywhere on the album and enjoy it. On the other hand, you also want that sense of wholeness in a record, where the entire thing goes down effortlessly in one 45 minute chunk. Efterklang aren’t quite able to strike the right balance here, which ultimately weakens the album’s overall impact just a touch. A bigger issue is the band’s indecisive nature when it comes to their sound. The atmospherics they’re creating are undoubtedly gorgeous, but they often feel taken down a notch when paired with more standard choruses. If they just surrendered to the melody instead of shoehorning differing structures in, the album would lose a lot of commercial viability but gain a greater sense of exploration and originality. Sometimes it’s more about the risks you don’t take than the ones you do, which is absolutely the case here. Still, what we do get from this record is largely quality, and a marked improvement over their last couple efforts. Let’s hope it’ll only get better from here, and that they won’t have to go to the other side of the world to make that happen.
It’s Tuesday, which means it’s time for me to run down the list of artists releasing new material this week. Be on the look out for fresh music from Ben Sollee, Bettye LaVette, Chris Cohen, deadmau5, Dragonette, Dum Dum Girls, Efterklang, Green Day, Hauschka, Jason Collett, John Zorn, Joseph Arthur, The Killers, Lavender Diamond, Levek, The M’s, Machine Birds, Melody’s Echo Chamber, Mumford & Sons, Murder By Death, No Doubt, Patrick Wolf, Ringo Deathstarr, The Soft Pack, Talib Kweli, Unnatural Helpers, and Yoko Ono with Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore. There’s some interesting stuff in there, just as there’s some interesting stuff below in today’s edition of Pick Your Poison. Don’t miss tracks from Crime and the City Solution, Eight Belles, Cadence Weapon’s remix of Liars, Maybeshewill, Sea of Bees, Tweak Bird and Your Youth. In the Soundcloud section, stream some good stuff like Lissvik’s remix of a great new Chad Valley track (ft. Glasser), along with something from Clubfeet.
Crime and the City Solution – I Have the Gun
Escort – Starlight (RAC Remix)
G-Eazy – Plastic Dreams (ft. Johanna Fay)
Liars – Brats (Cadence Weapon Remix)
Maybeshewill – Red Paper Lanterns
Olivia Broadfield – You’re Not Mine
Pony Boy – Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings (Father John Misty cover)
Radiohead – Creep (Bomb Coltrane Remix)
RTB2 – God Will Be the One to Blame
Sea of Bees – Gone (Live in London)
Swedish House Mafia – Don’t You Worry Child (Landis Remix)
Your Youth – Thick Gold (Bodied)
SOUNDCLOUD
Arto Vaun – Heart Wrapped In Cellophane
Chad Valley ft. Glasser – Fall 4 U (Lissvik Remix)
Clubfeet – Heartbreak (feat. Chela)
