Author Archive
Review: Reading Rainbow - Prism Eyes
Tuesday, December 21st, 2010
Need to Know: Every kid of the 80’s and 90’s grew up watching LeVar Burton’s educational television series on PBS, Reading Rainbow, but Phildelphian husband-and-wife duo Sarah Everton and Rob Garcia loved it enough to name their band after it. Forming in March 2008 after the drummer of their former band, Forensic Teens, bailed on a tour, Everton taught herself how to play the drums, spawning the birth of Reading Rainbow. With 2009’s debut LP Mystical Participation, a few singles and a split 7″ with Eternal Summers, all of which was recorded out of their basement, the pair has cultivated a brand of psychedelic garage pop that is nostalgic just like their name.
In 100 Words Or So: Reading Rainbow’s enthusiastic sophomore album Prism Eyes is conspicuous in the generic sea of lo-fi bands emerging right now. Their dreamy unison vocals and heavy distortion as a staple on each of Prism Eyes’ tracks, promotes the 60’s psychedelic pop influences, stemming from their love for Velvet Underground. While the album as a whole lacks some variety with few tracks that stand out from the rest, that doesn’t mean they aren’t all impressive. In fact, it’s difficult to even come to a conclusion on which is the best track. Instead I will leave it at a tie between “Always On My Mind”, an effervescent track with catchy keyboards and the album opener “Wasting Time”, an energetic anthem for doing nothing.
Best Track: Always On My Mind
RIYL: Dum Dum Girls, Women, Zola Jesus, Holy Shit, Ganglians, Best Coast
Rating: 7.5/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Download
Tags: Reading Rainbow, Reviews
Posted in Reviews, The New Music | No Comments »
Review: Girls - Broken Dreams Club EP
Monday, November 29th, 2010
Need to Know: Despite my bias against Girls for being the most un-google-able band ever, I have decided to put it aside in order to revere in their genius. Painstaking research has seemed to pay off however, because the biography of frontman Christopher Owens has lead me to infer that the immediate success of Girls is a reflection of the chaotic nature of Owens’ own life. He grew up around the world in the Children of God cult with his single mother who had to prostitute herself and allowed her eldest son to die in infancy because the cult was against medicine. Later, Owens was coined a “problem child” and subsequently ran away to the States to become a gutter punk, soon finding himself at a famous artist’s ranch in Texas, until eventually joining Holy Shit with Ariel Pink. Suffice to say, the dramatic turn of events of Girls’ stardom after their critically acclaimed album ‘Album’, only seems fitting.
In 100 Words Or So: In a handwritten letter, Christopher Owens refers to ‘Broken Dreams Club’ as a “a snapshot of the horizon”. Indeed, the six track EP is assurance of the positive direction in which Girls are heading. ‘Broken Dreams Club’ is a clear indication of their talent for creating sincere tracks like 50’s opener “The Oh So Protective One” with its Costello-esque vocals. Despite the unfortunate likeness to Conor Oberst in the title track “Broken Dreams Club”, the EP is saved by the upbeat yet melancholic “Alright” and the seven-minute long instrumental closer “Carolina”. Though there is no equivalent for “Lust for Life”, the EP’s single is easily “Heartbreaker”, a hybrid of “Summertime” and “Laura” off ‘Album’, which lends a tone of familiarity.
Best Track: Heartbreaker
RIYL: Elvis Costello, Smith Westerns, Best Coast, Wavves, No Age, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
Rating: 9/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Buy
Tags: Album, Broken Dreams Club EP, Girls, Review
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Review: Avey Tare - Down There
Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010
Need to Know: Though the very name Animal Collective suggests a thoroughly collaborative affair, its members have been illustriously successful in their independent efforts. From Panda Bear to Deakin to Geologist, the band’s solo endeavors have resulted in Animal Collective becoming a sort of modern supergroup. Avey Tare, the alias of David Portner, is the latest to prove himself. His career separate from the group has included two different collaborative albums and more recently, the EP Pullhair Rubeye with his then-wife Kría Brekkan. Now Avey Tare has his own autonomous claim to fame with his debut album Down There. Despite it being his first solo project, Down There was released under the Animal Collective founded label Paw Tracks, recorded with the help of bandmate Josh Dibbs (under the guise of Deakin), and the album artwork and the video for Lucky 1 created by his sister, Abby Portner.
In 100 Words Or So: The soon-to-be iconographic image of Avey Tare’s career, a lone crocodile head as seen on the album artwork, reflects the murkiness of Down There. Like the swamp where the crocodile lives, enveloped in muddy waters yet with traces of wildlife peeking through, the album pairs whimsical psychedelic pop with a haunting undertone of dejection and lassitude. It seems like the release of Down There coincides perfectly with Halloween with tracks like “Ghost of Books” and “3 Umbrellas”, which feature sinister child-like wailings. The languor of the album can perhaps be attributed to the lamentable state of Avey Tare’s life, citing that the album was influenced by a series of unfortunate events, including the death of his grandmother, followed by his sister’s cancer diagnosis, as well as separating from his wife.
Best Track: Lucky 1
RIYL: Animal Collective, Panda Bear, Deerhunter, No Age, Twin Shadow, Women, Wavves
Rating: 7/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Download
Sample: Lucky 1
Website: alligatorland.net
Tags: Avey Tare
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Review: Antony & The Johnsons - Swanlights
Tuesday, October 26th, 2010
Need to know: For an individual to be described as unique in the realm of experimental music indicates someone exceptional. The very nature of the genre refers to music that departs from traditional norms, pushing boundaries in an unorthodox or distinctive way. Antony Hegarty is one such individual. Forming Antony and the Johnsons in 1998, Antony made an impression with his striking falsetto vocals against melancholic chamber pop. British born but NYC based, the androgynous singer-songwriter has had the appraisal of notable musicians from early on in his career. In fact, his widely-acclaimed 2005 album I Am A Bird Now, features appearances by Lou Reed, Rufus Wainwright, Boy George and Devendra Banhart.
100 words or so: In every Antony and the Johnsons album to date there have been discernible leitmotifs. Varying grim themes of duality, transformation, the dying natural world, the future and the role of the artist have been explored in previous albums, making the ambiguity of an apparent theme in Swanlights a bit alarming. While his fourth studio album’s beautiful composition, master musicianship and sound production are undeniable, Swanlights as an album has it’s minor shortcomings, particularly in its inconsistent and shifting tone. That isn’t to say the album is devoid of merit in its independent songs. The most exciting moment is the duet with Icelandic darling Björk for the track Flétta, featuring the two idiosyncratic voices side by side. The most celebrated tracks, including Everything is New and Thank You For Your Love, linger with sadness at Antony’s quivering, ghostly vocals, evoking an ethereal sense of disembodiment, permanently one step displaced from reality.
Best track: Everything is New
RIYL: Coco Rosie, Hercules and Love Affair, Bjork, Patrick Wolf, Fever Ray, Joanna Newsom
Rating: 7.5/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Buy, along with the 144 page art-book filled with collages, photography, writing, painting and sketches by Antony.
Sample: Thank You For Your Love
Tags: Antony & The Johnsons
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Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
Friday, October 15th, 2010
Need to know: Deerhunter is a four piece consisting of Bradford Cox, Moses Archuleta, Josh Fauver, and Lockett Pundt. Subsequent to forming in Atlanta, Georgia, they released their first album in 2005 called Turn It Up Faggot. Throughout many changes in the roster, Deerhunter have continued to produce a steady flow of albums, EPs and rarities, though it wasn’t until 2008, with the release of the accomplished Microcastle, along with it’s bonus disc Weird Era Contd, that Deerhunter began to receive serious critical acclaim. Having begun their career with the intent to induce hypnotic states livened with the forcefulness of punk, they have since evolved their style into the ambient shoegaze genre heard in it’s perfected form on Halcyon Digest. The album gained pre-release buzz with their guerilla marketing, urging fans to download a promotional poster created by Cox to put around neighborhoods with the reward being a leak of the tracklist and album artwork.
100 words of less: Deerhunter’s fourth studio album sounds exactly as the title suggests. As Cox has cited, Halcyon Digest “is a reference to a collection of fond memories and even invented ones. [...] The way that we write and rewrite and edit our memories to be a digest version of what we want to remember, and how that’s kind of sad.” Indeed, it’s a compilation of songs that harkens the intimacy of an idyllic time in the past, climaxing in the first single, “Revival”. However, the somber tone conveys an underlying sadness that results from applying this selective process to cope with something as intricately interdependent as memories. This antithesis of happiness and sadness comes to life in the second single, “Helicopter”, boasting a fluid synthesis of these oppositions. Deerhunter’s tribute to the late Jay Reatard in “He Would Have Laughed” at just over seven minutes long, abruptly polishes off Halcyon Digest, leaving listeners feeling similar to how they perceived Jay Reatard’s short life, that it has ended too soon.
Best track: Revival
RIYL: Atlas Sound, No Age, Wavves, Women, Panda Bear
Rating: 9/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Buy
Sample: Helicopter
Website: http://halcyondigest.com
Tags: Deerhunter
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Review: Summer Camp - Young
Monday, September 20th, 2010
Need to know: I became utterly consumed with finding any concrete information whatsoever about the elusive Summer Camp after hearing a track featuring the voice of Heather Chandler of the 80’s cult flick The Heathers, but was unsuccessful for months. The online music publication Gorilla Vs. Bear teased the disguise of a group of seven pals from Sweden, but divulged no other specifics. Evidently I was not the only one enthralled by the group’s anonymity, as they have quickly become a hype-machine. Alas, now that a debut EP has been released their true identity has been revealed: Summer Camp is a couple from London comprising of Jeremy Warmsley and Elizabeth Sankey.
100 words of less: Although the Young EP remains a work in progress in terms of Summer Camp establishing themselves as successful group, it does remarkably well considering the amount of pressure weighted on their first release. It’s six tracks are an absolute embodiment of the simultaneous nostalgia and melancholia of another era, particularly conveyed through allusions to 80’s youth culture. With another Heathers reference in ‘Veronica Sawyer’, titled after Winona Ryder’s character, it resonates closely with memorable Veronica quotes like, “Dear diary, I want to kill and you have to believe it’s for more than just selfish reasons, more than just a spoke in my menstrual cycle”. Following in this trend of teenage angst is ‘Jake Ryan’, whose namesake derives from John Hughes’ Sixteen Candles, as well as a sample from Cameron Crowe’s Say Anything in ‘Ghost Train’. The highlight, aside from these high school film samplings, is the opener, ‘Round The Moon’, dominated by Warmseley’s retro vocals. Overall, Summer Camp’s romantic indie pop will make you long to be a seventeen-year-old in hot pants and a peasant blouse, riding your banana bike with your flower crown on during summer break in 1976.
Best track: Ghost Train
RIYL: Suckers, Active Child, Best Coast, The Sandwitches, Twin Sister, Happy Birthday
Rating: 7.5/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Buy on vinyl
Sample: Round The Moon
Website: http://summercampband.blogspot.com
Tags: Review, Summer Camp
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Review: Gucci Mane - Jewelry Selection Mixtape
Friday, September 10th, 2010
Need to know: Gucci Mane, the rapper behind the “Free Gucci” campaign is in all likelihood just as famed for his disregard of the law as he is for his music. From being arrested on cocaine charges, to serving six months for assault, to being charged with murder, to violating probation, Gucci Mane has warranted all the attention. Nevertheless, with each nefarious act comes another crude masterpiece in mixtape form. Beginning with his 2005 debut “Trap House”, Gucci has released a steady flow of impressive mixtapes and albums, and now that is a free man, he is likely to keep producing more.
In a 100 words or so: In the subsequent months following his release from prison in May, Gucci Mane hasn’t lived up to expectations. At last, “Jewelry Selection”, Gucci’s first post-prison success, suggests that he just had to get back into the swing of things. Teaming with DJ Holiday, the mixtape embodies Gucci’s offbeat eccentricities that constantly contrast with his tough-guy persona. The mix has a handful of gems, all of which retain the inventive and sometimes absurd lyricism that makes Gucci so appealing. Notable tracks are ‘Making Love To The Money’, ‘Trap Talk’, ‘Gross’ and ‘Cleopatra’. His Swizz Beatz-produced single ‘Gucci Time’ featuring a Justice sampling, is also set to become the single on the next album, “The Appeal: Georgia’s Most Wanted”, due September 28th. With a track like that and alleged collaborations with Nicki Minaj, Ciara and Estelle, it seems “The Appeal” will be a fine follow-up to “Jewelry Selection”.
Best track: “Block Party”
RIYL: Young Jeezy, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, Cam’ron, OJ Da Juiceman
Rating: 8/10
Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Download
Sample: “Gucci Time”
Website: http://www.guccimaneonline.com/
Tags: Cam'ron, Ciara, DJ Holiday, Estelle, Gucci Mane, Lil' Wayne, Nicki Minaj, OJ Da Juiceman, Swizz Beatz, Young Jeezy
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Review: Sufjan Stevens - All Delighted People
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010
Sufjan Stevens is finally back and this time with an unexpected, 60-minute EP entitled All Delighted People. On August 20th the EP was released digitally by Asthmatic Kitty Records for a modest price of $5 and is also streamed online on Bandcamp. It was released, as stated on the website, as a “homage to the apocalypse existential ennui, and Paul Simon’s Sounds of Silence.”
All Delighted People revolves around two versions of the album-titled track, both extremely distinguished from one another. The first is the original version, which opens the album. The solo artists couldn’t have written a more distinctive “Sufjan Steven’s” song. In its 11 minutes, it’s clear that the track is instrumentally rich. The songs is charged with strings, trumpets, dreamy vocals and even choral sections similar to Stevens hit Chicago. I’m sure after listening there are “many delighted people raising their hand”. The second version, referred to as the classic rock version, sounds less like the indie folk ballads we are generally accustomed to hearing from Stevens. With the banjo, electric guitar solos, and electronica influences, the song is very upbeat.
The EP carries on with tracks like The Owl and the Tanager, Enchanting Ghost and Heirloom, none of which are particularly standout tracks. To redeem this however is Djohariah, which finishes All Delighted People on an exceptional note. A whopping 17-minute long track, it is the highlight of the EP. A doppelgänger to the song Sister off of Seven Swans, it is as Asthmatic Kitty’s website proclaims, “a guitar jam-for-single mothers.” It still amazes me that in spite of the length, Djohariah only progresses into a more beautiful song as time goes on.
Despite the vast differences in these tracks, surely a Sufjan Stevens fan would not find this surprising. Essentially every album in his extensive discography has varied greatly in styles, ranging from folk, to electronic, to symphonic, to Christmas carols. Consequently, one should expect his latest effort to be no different.
What is surprising, however, is the absence of a clear theme throughout the EP. Not that this detracts from the quality of the songs, but a defined characteristic of Stevens’ previous work is that they have coherent concepts, often spiritual, which All Delighted People seemingly lacks. This could potentially be why, despite its eight track and 60-minute long length, the album was released as an EP rather than an LP, but coming from an artist with such musical ambition, it seems unlikely. After all, we are talking about a man who set to embark on the “Fifty States Project”.
Perhaps at the ripe age of 35 he has simply lost his zeal. It seems possible when you consider that the only material released since 2005’s wildly acclaimed Illinois is a Christmas album, a few re-releases and some b-sides. It seems even more plausible after the singer’s statement last year, “What is the point of making music anymore?” Regardless, I refuse to jump the gun, especially when it comes to the musical Shaman that is Sufjan Stevens. Still, whether or not he really is back as a force to be reckoned with, I haven’t yet decided. The free single I Walked, which was released mere days after All Delighted People, leads me to believe he has it in him, but only time will tell with the release of the full length The Age Of Adz on October 12th.
Tags: Album Review, All The Delighted People, sufjan stevens
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Les Savy Fav are all Root, no Ruin
Monday, August 23rd, 2010
“Root For Ruin”, which was set to be released September 14th, was released digitally on August 3rd due to the album leaking online in late July. As cheesed as the band was over the leak, (for proof, refer to their Twitter @lessavyfav) it has been great news for Les Savy Fav’s fans. And for a band whose success is entirely fan driven, that can’t totally be a bad thing. Since forming in Providence, Rhode Island over a dozen years ago, Les Savy Fav has managed to evade mass appeal and maintain their independence. They have accomplished something that most indie musicians strive for; staying out of the mainstream, but still selling out every show.
“Root For Ruin” was released through bassist Syd Butler’s record label Frenchkiss Records and is Les Savy Fav’s fifth studio album. Having been a band since 1995, the now Brooklyn-based five-piece, as expected, has delivered a focused and memorable album. Thank goodness, because they have quite the reputation to live up to, with a superb previous album, “Let’s Stay Friends” (2007) and being known for backing up their tracks with wildly entertaining live performances. In fact lead singer, Tim Harrington, makes the band with his borderline-extreme on stage antics. Luckily, the caliber of their new songs should make for interesting material for Harrington’s live shows. The new tracks are beyond catchy and are characteristically abrasive.
To some extent, however, it follows the Les Savy Fav mold a little too closely. Not much in the album’s 11 tracks is very surprising. Each song adheres to the same aesthetics that their very first album did. Despite the slightly recycled sound, the familiarities of the songs which are reminiscent to old hits like “Patty Lee” off “Let’s Stay Friends”, is somewhat comforting.
The highest point of the album occurs right off the bat with a strong opener, “Appetites”. Exuding sexually charged emotions and self-confidence with lyrics like, “show us your teeth and show us your tits and show us the scars from the shit that you did,” the track serves a fantastic introduction. The track “Let’s Get Out Of Here” is a close second to “Appetites”. As their first single, it is an immediate reassurance that “Root For Ruin” can compete with previous material. The energetic track “Dirty Knails” is another highlight. The album ends with yet another hit in the form of “Clear Spirits”, leaving listeners with a feeling of satisfaction.
If there’s anything that “Root For Ruin” proves, it’s that without altering themselves, Les Savy Fav have the ability to remain relevant, even throughout years of shifting trends and fads. With powerful hooks, solid melodies and an aggressive attitude, their straightforward art-punk music has the potential to become timeless. It definitely is an album to download (legally, that is). Plus, once the album was leaked, the band themselves said, “Pay extra and you’re also forgiven for sex, sins and stuff AND we’ll tell Jesus to send you cookies.” Now that’s a deal.
Tags: Les Savy Fan, Review
Posted in Reviews | 1 Comment »
Das Racist rap about Taco Bell and other social causes
Monday, July 12th, 2010
It’s pretty hard to take a band seriously when their hit song repeats “I’m at the combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell” throughout the entire track. But, if you dig a bit deeper, Brooklyn based rap group Das Racist is actually more than just dudes goofing off. An entertaining and sometimes provocative social commentary, their first mixtape, Shut Up, Dude, simultaneously destroys and celebrates hip hop.
Group members Himanshu Suri and Victor Vazquez released the mix-tape as a free download in March of 2010. The pair parody themselves, deconstructing aspects of rap and hip hop without being too pretentious about it. Standout tracks like “You Oughta Know” and “Fake Patois” stand on their own as good songs, despite the wisecracks.
Even so, seemingly ridiculous songs are abundant throughout. Other hits feature hard-pressing issues such as White Castle (“Rainbow in the Dark”), people eating bacon all across the nation (“Chicken and Meat”) and drinking beer (“Ek Shaneesh”). Elaborate pop culture references and jokes aside, the subject matter isn’t exactly trivial. Shut Up, Dude holds some artistic merit when you look past the Hannah Montana and Google Chat references. “Nutmeg”, for example, sounds like it could be a Lil Wayne or Jay-Z song at points. And for a little street cred, Death & Taxes magazine describe the recursive “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell” as “an existential meditation on consumer identity in corporate America.”
It’s possible that Das Racist is fooling every one. Maybe the tracks on Shut Up Dude are sharp social satire or maybe it is just plain college humor. At this point, it seems irrelevant when it sounds this good. Shut Up Dude has got catchy and memorable rhymes and danceable beats, and that’s enough for me.
Tags: Das Racist, Jay-Z, Lil' Wayne
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