Wednesday, March 31, 2010

REVIEW: Valgeir Sigurðsson - Draumalandið

7.5 out of 10

Valgeir Sigurðsson is one of the staple acts on Bedroom Community, Ben Frost's label. The music he creates is Classical music meshed with crunchy electronic samples (much like Ben Frost's music, only a little more organic/Classical). He's worked with Bjork, Mum, Kronos Quartet, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, and Nico Muhly to name a few. And for his latest release (2nd full length) he was asked to score an Icelandic film titled "Draumalandið", which is a documentary about the exploitation of Iceland's natural resources. Yes, his resume is indeed quite impressive, but he is only just beginning.

The overall mood for the film seems to be dreary, and somewhat "dream like" as the title suggests however "Draumalandið" is more than just a score, it is warning to future/parallel societies. For the film's score Valgeir Sigurðsson has chosen the path of abase, dark, and ominous sounds accompanied by strings, horns, piano, minimal electronics, and a few drum pieces that sort of bring to mind Steve Reich. The whole composition is very forward moving, with a "slowly melting" feel to it. Is it contradictory to be fast and slow at the same time? Maybe. But I think that is the point Mr. Sigurðsson is trying to make with this piece.. All of our forward/fast thinking decisions are slowly corrupting and decaying environments around us. We never take a moment to look at our surroundings because we are so focused on our monetary goals. And it's because of these decisions that are world may be doomed. Classical music can be a hard thing to review/explain. There are so many sounds/moods/ambiances within that will give each listener their own personal experience. I do feel with this piece the message seems pretty obvious and it's something we should all take a moment to sit back and think about. I love the music, I love the message, and I love that Valgeir Sigurðsson was chosen to create such a dramatic "environment" as only he could. If you're at all a fan of the genre consider this a must.

If you're a sucker for serene/quiet string pieces that swell and buckle over and under forward thinking electronic atmospheres you're in for a treat. Recommended.

Standout Tracks: Dreamland, Laxness, Hot Ground Cold, Draumaland (love the piano on this track -- kind of reminds me of Philip Glass), Nowhere Land, Helter Smelter

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Cool Video Funtime #152 - Every Week Ends

New CocoRosie track..!


From the upcoming "Grey Oceans" album, which comes out May 11th via Sub Pop


May seems too far away..

Finally the new LCD album has a title/cover..

LCD Soundsystem "This Is Happening" comes out May 18th via DFA

I think by "This" they mean poor cover art.. Either way I hope this isn't the last LCD album, that would be sort of devastating..

Below is the first single, "Drunk Girls"

REVIEW: These New Puritans - Hidden

8.25 out of 10

For a band that only formed 4 years ago having two full length albums, both with massive amounts of praise, is pretty exceptional. These New Puritans consists of twin brothers Jack (guitar/laptop) & George (drums) Barnett, Sophie Sliegh-Johnson (keyboards), and Thomas Hein (main sampler dude). When they started this project it was in the band's full intentions to play off the sounds of The Fall or Public Image Ltd. with a few electronic eccentricities added to the mix. I would say that if that was indeed their intention they succeeded and then some. "Hidden" is the band's second full length, and oh my f^%*ing god is bloody brilliant! Seriously! How can this only be the band's second full length? "Hidden" has such a developed sound. There were no shortcuts taken with this album, the amount of production (co-produced by Graham Sutton of Bark Psychosis) and instruments (taiko drums the size of a compact car, brass and wind orchestrations, children's choirs, etc.) used to create this opus is truly inspiring.

The thing that may catch you off guard when first listening to "Hidden" is the terrific use of Jazz and Classical compositions used in between each experimental "Industrial World-Punk" track. Actually it's hard to believe that really any instrument was forgotten when recording this album, it's THAT full and rich sounding. The moments where the children's choir poke their frightened little heads out to expand the melody even more gives me goosebumps. If Nothing Records was still around this album would fit perfectly on that label. I mean to call it an"Industrial" album may be cutting it a little short, but there are definitely moments through out that remind me of Einsturzende Neubauten as well as Pop Will Eat Itself. I can't find a single thing wrong with this album for the most part. I love the use of angsty Punk vocals speaking their way through epic walls of orchestrations and monster sized drumming, I love the use of wind instruments, I like that it's sometimes Jazzy, and I really can't say this enough THE DRUMMING is soooo good. Either you're being too picky, you're not in the mood, or you just don't like good music if you can't get into this.

One of my favorites of 2010, look for it on my year-end list. I seriously can't get enough of this right now. HIHIHIHIHIGHLY RECOMMMMENDED..

Standout Tracks: We Want War, Three Thousand, Attack Music, Fire-Power (reminds me of Liars), Drum Courts - Where Corals Lie

Monday, March 29, 2010

EIC'S10Q'S w/Parenthetical Girls

"..Zac Pennington's vibrato has the ability to swoon you under the right circumstances. His voice is truly unique, as well passionate and over zealous. You can hear/feel every emotion with every dip, swell, and quiver of his voice. The music behind the curtain is also quite unique. It could probably be best classified as "Left Field Indie Pop". Quirky electronics (minimal to the rest of the sound) fill in the voids between string arrangements and horn sections that sound seriously just like something you would hear from an old time Spector production mixed with a few other Indie Pop niches.."


Parenthetical Girls
Understated Jangle Pop Eminence

Parenthetical Girls Bio:
A group that has cautiously moved from the bedroom recording studio to the stage, Parenthetical Girls began as an amateur recording project by two longtime friends, rock writer Zac Pennington and part-time musician Jeremy Cooper. Indulging in a shared fondness for British post-punk, Brian Eno, and Phil Spector, the two began creating eccentric but playful indie rock tunes in 2002 on a lo-fi eight-track recording setup dominated by glockenspiel, a cheap synthesizer, and a guitar that refused to stay in tune. Calling their collaboration "Swastika Girls" (after a tune from Brian Eno and Robert Fripp's No Pussyfooting), Cooper and Pennington were initially unimpressed with their results and set the tapes aside until Pennington gave some of the material another listen in 2003 and decided to resurrect the project. Pennington handed the original session tapes over to two different musicians he knew and admired -- Jherek Bischoff of the Dead Science and Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu -- and asked each to mix the seven selections he'd unearthed. Cooper and Pennington were impressed enough with the results that they decided to release an album of the material; embracing the less-controversial handle Parenthetical Girls, their self-titled debut featured Bischoff's mixes on the "X" side of a vinyl LP, with Stewart's versions appearing in the same sequence on the other "O" side. A brief tour followed, with Cooper staying home and Pennington joined by Bischoff and Sam Mickens, also of the Dead Science, followed by another road trip featuring Pennington and Mickens. By the time the debut album was reissued on CD in 2006, Cooper had dropped out of active service within the Parenthetical Girls, and the second album from the "group," Safe as Houses, was primarily created by Pennington and Bischoff, and released in mid-2006. The group's lineup finally solidified around Pennington and multi-instrumentalists Matt Carlson, Eddy Crichton, and Rachael Jensen, with Bischoff continuing as a studio collaborator. This version of the group collaborated with 25 classically trained musicians on Parenthetical Girls' third album Entanglements, which took their music in an ambitious, orchestral direction. Tomlab released Entanglements in 2008.



Hello, how are you?
I’ve certainly been worse. Thank you for asking.

What are you currently listening to?
I’m presently listening to the purr of the space heater at my feet—I can’t really type and listen to music at the same time. But I’ve spent the last seven days listening pretty much exclusively to The Fall.

Where does the name Parenthetical Girls come from?
The name Parenthetical Girls is an awkward play on/heavy handed allusion to the group Theoretical Girls—a No Wave-era band featuring Glenn Branca. It was chosen after our previous name—Swastika Girls—became a cross none of us was interested in bearing any longer, and was decided upon for mostly phonetic reasons.

What is the title of your next full length album? Is there a theme?
The title of our next album is Privilege. It is being release over the next year and a half or so as a series of five 12” EPs—the first will be issued on February 23, and is subtitled “On Death & Endearments.” The album is still being written, but for the most part, the themes seem to be a lot less direct than on our previous records. In general terms: Death & Endearments, Fame & Delusion, Failure.

You find a time machine and it works, what year do you go to and why?
How functional is this time machine? Is it so dubious that I only get one go of it? For safety’s sake, I think I’d go for some nominal leap forward, for fear that things might get all Butterfly Effect or whatever. The space-time continuum is a fickle mistress, and she probably has the clap.

What’s the strangest thing that has ever happened to you at a live show?
I’ve been involved in several minor scuffles at a number of shows, but that’s not particularly notable. I don’t think that any of us will ever forget the show that we played in a disused highway tunnel on the side of a mountain is Northern Italy—mostly because the gas generator that we were using to power the stage nearly destroyed all of our equipment on the second day of our European tour. I literally prayed to God for the first time since prepubescence to fix our keyboards—God granted us only half-divinity that evening.

What’s your least favorite genre of music?
While I can’t imagine having the gall to write off an entire genre per se, I can safely say that I have yet to hear anything self-described as “Gypsy Punk” that hasn’t made my skin crawl. I also have a fairly marked distaste of the recent C-86 revival movement.

You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?
My head says Van Dyke Parks’ "Song Cycle", while my heart yearns for "Astral Weeks". The eternal struggle of Ego and Id. Astral Weeks is slightly longer—I’ll go with the numbers.

Are you living your dream?
My actual dreams are filled with disappointment and looming dread—and are almost all entirely mundane. So in this sense, yes—I suppose I am living my dream.

Thanx Zac!

Parenthetical Girls are in the middle of releasing a bunch of new 12" records, look for those at your local record store...

REVIEW: Parenthetical Girls - Privilege, Pt. 1

6.5 out of 10

I first became aware of Parenthetical Girls with their wonderfully glorious 2008 release "Entanglements". I listened to the album quite a bit when I first got it (almost addictively for a couple weeks). The music Parenthetical Girls creates is a pleasing mix of Indie/Jangle Pop fused with Classical arrangements, Folkloric tales, and unique/acquired vocals. Any-who, for those of you that are unaware; Parenthetical Girls are a group of Ex-Bedroom Pop stars turned Abstract Indie Pop stars who have been noticed by many reviewers and pop stars a-like as being one of "the next big acts". Mix the experimental pop side/early recordings of Brian Eno with the orchestral arrangements of Phil Spector, add a dash of Xiu Xiu's or maybe even Patrick Wolf's "playful side" and there you have it. "Privilege, Pt. 1" is somewhat of a concept album, the idea is to release a slew of EP's rather than one full length and have them all tie in with each other. So far, so good..

Zac Pennington's vibrato has the ability to swoon you under the right circumstances. His voice is truly unique, as well passionate and over zealous. You can hear/feel every emotion with every dip, swell, and quiver of his voice. The music behind the curtain is also quite unique. It could probably be best classified as "Left Field Indie Pop". Quirky electronics (minimal to the rest of the sound) fill in the voids between string arrangements and horn sections that sound seriously just like something you would hear from an old time Spector production mixed with a few other Indie Pop niches. A pleasing experience the first time around with a few more surprises each listen, Parentheical Girls should impress even the hardest to impress critics with ease.

Parenthetical Girls may not be for all, but for those of you that take your Indie Pop with a side order of ambitious and anomalous this could be your calling. If you're just now checking out this band I strongly recommend starting with "Entanglements" and then going on to this release, I do like this, but it's not quite as ardent as the "Entanglements", still though it's pretty great.

Standout Tracks: Found Drama 1, On Death & Endearments

Cool Video Funtime #151 - Aviva Pastoral

REVIEW: Full Crate & Mar - Conversations With Her

7.5 out of 10

Full Crate & Mar are a couple of dudes from Amsterdam who mix electronic music reminiscent of Flying Lotus with a little bit of French ambiance (think Air), Jazz, and Neo Soul. "Conversations With Her" is one of those albums that will have you bobbin' your head (oh so slowly) from beginning to end note. The music on this EP is so damn smooth and sexy that it has the ability create an earphone baby while listening to it (that's love-makin' between your ears and the music).

I don't know a lot about R n' B, but I do know this, if it all sounded like this it would be hard to listen to anything else (especially while gettin' it on). Just check this out, trust me.

Daaaaaamn smoooooth. Recommended, especially if you're in the mood to chill.. Wrrrrrrd.

Standout Tracks: It's Allllll good.

REVIEW: Tanlines - Settings

7.25 out of 10

Tanlines is new duo from the Brooklyn area that consist of Jesse Cohen (Professor Murder) and Eric Emm (Brothers). "Settings" is the their first release and hopefully not their last. Fans of Tropical-Electronic music, Chill Wave, or just plain ol' fashioned catchy Indie Electronic/Dance music should consider this a must own.

"Settings" starts off with a deep sub-kick sound mixed with tropical keyboard fx, and a few bongo drums, underneath that lays an array of sun washed guitar sounds. After that the band continues to bring the dance music into full swing. Certain points I am reminded of Tough Alliance, sometimes Fool's Gold, and most of the time Yeasayer (with a sunnier disposition). Chances are if you've heard of those bands (really who hasn't by now?) you will most likely love this release. I've been listening to this release the past couple weeks on repeat, especially the track "Three Trees" (ear crack). Synths, guitars, fun bass-lines, and lots of nicely laid out drum sounds make this album a true delight. Me likey Tropical Dance music, me likey..

Great album from beginning to end, the smile on your face may fade once the music goes away but that's OK! Just hit repeat (like I did) and listen to it all over again (you'll want to trust me). To put it simply this is Pop music done right. Recommended.

Standout Tracks: Real Life, Three Trees (one of the BEST TRACKS OF '10), Z

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Thursday, March 25, 2010

REVIEW: Judgement Day - Peackocks / Pink Monsters

8.5 out of 10

I was raised around some pretty damn good metal music, so in that aspect I was spoiled from day one. The bar for truly amazing metal to fit my meticulous criteria was raised extremely high very early on, so very few bands wet my whistle through the years. Don't get me wrong though, I'm not completely let down by the genre. There are tons of mediocre metal bands that I'll always be able to find little gems in. But then there are a small handful of metal bands that (in my ears) are damn near flawless, the most recent being, San Francisco-based trio, Judgement Day. You won't find any electric guitars or basses here. Created by brothers Anton and Lewis Patzner, they don only a violin and a cello. Rounded off with the precision madman drumming of Jon Bush, they create an unconventional yet full-force take on Stringed Metal.

Upon my first listening of Judgement Day's 2nd release "Peacocks/Pink Monsters", my initial thought was that this album must have been recorded after an isolated bender consisting of nothing but Meshuggah, Tool, Explosions In The Sky, 16 Horsepower and maybe even a little Clint Mansell. The first track, "Cobra Strike" is an instant epic metal eye opener. The Slayer-like thrash tempo and melodic interludes set an accurate tone for the rest of the album. It's immediately followed by the hard hitting, odd time signature'd "Zombie Rodeo Clown". On the more post-rocky tracks like "Prelude", "Death March", and "The Constant", the musical maturity really shines through. It's these tracks that really satisfy the neo-classical/post-rock lover in me and can easily be compared to some of my all time favorite film scores.

One thing that ruins alot of metal bands for me; the vocals. Judgement Day have that covered by having no vocals at all. A formula I only wish will catch on with more metal bands. These guys are hardly new-bee's, Lewis was accepted into the prestigious Peabody Institute, a conservatory where he studied performance technique, perfection and advanced music theory. Anton was recruited to join Omaha's own indie-folk troupe Bright Eyes where he learned about improvisation and collaboration.

A handful of genre's are strongly represented within these twelve tracks. Whether your a post-rock lover who yearns for something a little heavier, or an old-school metal head who completely gets off at the sound of no-holds-barred, hyper drive 'jubby' math metal with strings (like me), you will NOT be let down. "Peacocks/Pink Monsters" will be releasing independently on April 13, 2010, I strongly suggest you mark this day on you calender.

Standout Tracks: ALL OF THEM. But especially Cobra Strike, Peacocks/Pink Monsters, The Constant

Good (free) music laying around the interwebs..

Emeralds - Geode

Cool Video Funtime #150 - Ego Death

If only I lived here..

My god, it's like someone tapped into my inner-psyche and asked what would make me happiest..

New Ólafur Arnalds on the way..

Ólafur Arnalds "...And They Have Escaped The Weight Of Darkenss" comes out May 7th via Erased Tapes.

Gonna be gorgeous, I know it..
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Wednesday, March 24, 2010

REVIEW: Clogs - The Creatures In The Garden Of Lady Walton

8.25 out of 10

Clogs are a sort of super group featuring members of The National, Sufjan Stevens, My Brightest Diamond, and a few others. "The Creatures In The Garden Of Lady Walton" is the group's fifth full length album, as well as their first where there is more of a focus on vocals. The First time I listened to Clogs was when I heard of a concept album they did for a "silent" film titled "Lantern", to say it took my breathe away would be an understatement (seriously listen to this). Needless to say I was very excited to hear about the next album of theirs, how could they possibly develop their sound even more than what they did with "Lantern"? They did, and then some. Within the floral tropospheres of "The Creatures In The Garden.." Clogs have not only expanded their sound ten-fold, but they have also pushed the envelope for Folk music in general.

Right off the bat when the music begins playing you will be reminded of Nico Muhly's latest magnum opus "Mother Tongue". Sampled vocals are looped and layered over other melodic vocals creating a "sort of" abstract heavenly encounter. After that the band goes to an instrumental track that is both precious and heavy-hearted. Nearly every track after that contains vocals that remind me of either Vashti Bunyan or Simon (maybe Garfunkel), seriously gorgeous harmonizing awaits you.. Speaking of "betwixt my heart" folk music, Vashti released one of the last truly great folk records of the new era, right after that release (maybe before??) would be this album. The songs are Classically structured, but they also have a contemporary edge which is unmatched by nearly all other Folk musicians out there today. The music was composed during a residency at Giardini La Mortella, which is a botanical paradise created by Lady Walton (the widow of the late British composer Sir William Walton) on the island of Ischia, which is near Italy. As for the sounds you will hear; strings (a full quartet's worth) are present on every track, precisely plucked guitars that sound both dainty and resolute, lingering horns, mischievous xylophones, and any/all other whimsical sounds you can come to expect from a truly masterful Folk record. I'm really smitten with this music, it makes me feel warm and it puts me in the mood to be closest with the one I love most (you know who you are;p). Music/art like this is rare, it's way better than you anticipated, and it leaves you wanting more.

This is one of the best Folk albums Ive ever heard. On top of that, it is one of the best releases 2010 will see. Get this now if Folk or organic music is your thing, I'm glad that Spring/Summer is upon us "The Creatures In The Garden Of Lady Walton" will likely make for a great soundtrack to the lazy afternoon hangouts on the porch with your closest friends/loved ones. Highly Recommended.

Standout Tracks: S-O-L-I-D from beginning to end. Cocodrillo, On The Edge, The Owl Of Love (nice track), Last Song, To Hugo (kind of reminds me of Coil), Raise The Flag (the strings remind me of Nick Cave and Warren Ellis' recent soundtrack works), We Were Here

Monday, March 22, 2010

EIC'S10Q'S w/Health

"..like a rock refurbished Throbbing Gristle with a few more spazzed moments and louder tendencies. If piercing noise, crazy & sporadic rock, and experimental fanaticism is your thing you NEED to hear this band.."


Health
Obstreperous Abrasion Association

Health Bio:
HEALTH are the new frontier of noise rock. Formed in 2005, HEALTH self-recorded their debut album over the course of 9 months at Los Angeles D.I.Y. venue The Smell, birthing an urgent and extraordinary album which seethed with ghostly, epic pop and spurts of chaotic noise. Their shows grew wilder, kids danced & moshed, blogs freaked out, critics raved, and everyone wondered how in God's name HEALTH was going to follow it up. While the anticipation continued to build, HEALTH released a critically-acclaimed remix record HEALTH//DISCO, toured with the likes of Crystal Castles, Nine Inch Nails, and Of Montreal and played over 420 shows!

In April, HEALTH emerged with their first new single since 2007: "DIE SLOW" received immediate accolades from Pitchfork & NME, with the effects rippling across their DIE SLOW THROUGH EUROPE tour, resulting in a near-riot in Eastern Europe. The song's infectious fusion of noise and dance was the most fully-formed and undeniably rad piece of music from HEALTH yet. And it only served to rile up their fans more. The new full-length was desperately needed.

On September 8th 2009, HEALTH answer the call and release their second album GET COLOR. Recorded in an especially gnarly part of Lincoln Heights, L.A, GET COLOR is an exuberant proclamation of noise, rock and electronic splendor. It's a celebration of sound; pretty, harsh, soft and basked in a blanket of ethereal vocals. GET COLOR is the manifesto HEALTH have been promising since their inception. HEALTH are the band. GET COLOR is the record. NOW is the time.



Hello, how are you?
Very well, thank you

What are you currently listening to?

Science lectures, dying for some new music at the moment...

What are you guys up to these days? Any talks on the next album?
The next album and the remix album are all we are talking about at the moment. We are also trying to get other non musical things off the ground, more HEALTH video content, and more FASHION clothing stuff.

Who are your main influences when it comes to creating your signature noise?
At this point, ourselves, our equipment more specifically.

What/where was your craziest live show experience?
We played a mostly empty room in North Carolina, two kids came on acid and beat the shit out of each other during the show until they were covered in blood. The bouncer tried to kick em out, but after he realized they were doing it for fun, he let em stay. After the show they were mad we didn't play certain songs (which we did). Love those kids.

What do your parents think of your music?
My mom doesn't understand a thing. I could be playing a recording or cars crashing and she wouldn't know the difference. The other guys parents are fans.

If you could do the score to any existing movie out there which would you chose?
Planet Earth

You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?
Fuck that sounds like torture. Black Sabbath "Master of Reality"? Actually thinking of what might stick around the best afteryears and years of repeated listen and being totally sick of it. ABBA "Gold", or Brian Eno "Apollo"

Are you living your dream?

Yes, it could always be better of course, but yes.

Thanx Jake!

Health are about to wrap up their next remix album, and then onto their next full length...

REVIEW: Serena Maneesh - No 2: Abyss In B Minor

8 out of 10
Find it here.

It's only been about 4 years since the last full length Serena Maneesh album came out but that's a few years too many if you ask me. When S-M's debut self-titled LP came out I was a little late on the ball (otherwise they would've been on my year-end list), but once I finally had the chance to wrap my headphones around them I found it nearly impossible to stop playing the album back to back (to back). Serena Maneesh, for all of you that haven't checked them out yet, are a true delight for fans of Psych Rock/Shoegaze music or even Smashing Pumpkins, had SP focused more on loud noise and a little less on pop. Since the first release S-M have toured all across the globe, released a "B-Sides" album -- which was more of a reissue of older material but still great for the type of buyer that doesn't like paying import prices (I did, but I'm a sucker for bands I become addicted to), and they have developed their sound enough to, in my opinion, make them one of the stronger Gaze bands of all time. For their second album (first for 4AD) Serena Maneesh decide to push the noise envelope even further and even add a few elements of Jazz into the mix. The end result being one of the loudest/most abrasive, yet somehow melancholy Shoegaze albums I've heard since My Bloody Valentine's "Loveless".

"No 2: Abyss In B Minor" is full of LOUD soaring guitar riffs, sustained keyboard notes, clamoring drum beats, dispassionate vocals, and PLENTY of filler noise. Chances are you won't be able to pick up/hear/focus on each individual sound within the albums monolithic walls til not the second listening or even the third, but many listens later. On top of strong production, terrific/abstract compositions, and just being a damn solid Rock experience you will also get a moment to chill out with hazed out fuzzy moments like "Melody For Janna". This album reminds me a lot of "Loveless" had it been composed by Coltrane. Every exquisite noise & note on this album will keep you coming back until you have the chance to really soak in all of it's majestic atmospheres. Maybe it's harsh you're looking for, maybe it's laid back, maybe a little left field rock? Given the right mind-set you will be able to appreciate this masterpiece for all of it's blaring vibrations. Again, this is another one of those albums where there just aren't enough kind words out there to describe how truly great it really is. If this album isn't looked at as one of "the shining moments" in the history of Shoegaze there is something seriously wrong with this world.

Fans of Serenea Maneesh will love this, "No 2: Abyss In B Minor" is in no way a let down, a little more abstract and noisy, but just as enjoyable as the self-titled release. Fans of Shoegaze/Psych Rock should also love this. Seriously, if you don't like this go back to your Kenny G (he's cool right?) and stop reading this blog, this is the kind of music I live for. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Standout Tracks: Oh god, I can't pick a favorite, I love 'em ALL

Jónsi covers MGMT..


Never thought I would've heard this, but I'm definitely not complaining..

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Cool Video Funtime #149 - Seaww

New Ghostly comp coming out soon..

From Ghostly:

Ghostly International has spent its first decade in constant motion, building a catalog of category-defying music that pushes forever forward, forging new stylistic connections and breaking new artistic ground at every juncture. The Horizon Line / Ghostly By Night compilation is a state-of-the-label address featuring ten remixes and reinterpretations of Ghostly classics and ten new, forthcoming, and unreleased songs.

Part two, evocatively titled Ghostly By Night, takes a peek at the label’s future with ten tracks of new and unreleased material: Matthew Dear previews his new direction on the oil-slick dada funk of “Rally Rasser Good” and Deastro does the same on the chanting, echo-drenched “Mowgli the Lynx”; Shigeto’s “Sky of the Revolution” comes off like the cooing child of Aphex Twin’s “Windowlicker”; and Justin K. Broadrick (aka Jesu) debuts his Pale Sketcher alias, offering the lumbering ambient crunch of “Plans That Fade (Faded Dub)”.

Ghostly International continues to evolve and expand. Horizon Line / Ghostly By Night encapsulates the Ghostly universe—from its consistently quality music to its dashing Michael Cina-designed cover art—while providing a gripping front-to-back listen in the process. Horizon Line / Ghostly By Night is dedicated to two of Ghostly’s lost friends.

Tracklisting:
1. Lusine - Operation Costs (Disassembled Mix)
2. Deastro - Mowgli The Linx
3. Matthew Dear - Rally Rasser Good
4. Shigeto - Sky Of The Revolution
5. Mux Mool - 1st And 4th
6. Richard Devine & Telefon Tel Aviv - CWCIII
7. Pale Sketcher - Plans That Fade (Faded Dub)
8. Michna - No Back Seat
9. Solvent - Life-Size Image
10. The Sight Below - Unforetold

Mmmmmmm Richard Devine with Telefon Tel Aviv?? ;p "Ghostly By Night" comes out April 13th via (you guessed it) Ghostly.

Good (free) music laying around the interwebs..

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

EverythingIsChemical Presents: Dosh + White Hinderland Live

The bands + EIC would like to thank you ahead of time for attending.
Please come to the show and enjoy some amazing Indie Electronic/good company..
Dosh
White Hinderland
Look forward to seeing you there..
~njoy.

REVIEW: Peter Gabriel - Scratch My Back

7 out of 10
Find it here.

After almost a decade in the shadows, Peter Gabriel wanted to do something different for his fourteenth album. "Scratch My Back" is a dual cover album concept reinventing songs from some of Gabriel's most favorite artists that rides parallel to those artists in turn reinventing Gabriel's own songs for the album "I'll Scratch Yours". Beginning on March 2nd, both albums have begun and will continue to simultaneously release singles for both albums on consecutive full moons.

With the help of The London Scratch Orchestra, "Scratch My Back" is pleasingly stripped of all progressive showmanship that Gabriel has displayed throughout his career. No guitar, no bass, no theatrics. Just pure orchestra. Piano and various strings and woodwinds is all that is used to accompany his voice in this hauntingly vivid opus. It begins with a heart wrenching rendition of Bowie/Eno's "Heroes". Gabriel holds nothing back on this track with moments of increasingly swelling strings and cello plucks infused with his lightly quivering vocals sound as if he is two seconds away from completely breaking down and molding the track into the proverbial fish hook that sells you instantly. However, I feel he bit off a bit more than he could chew on his spin on Arcade Fire's "My Body Is A Cage". The epic, organ based original was about as mighty as they come. Therefore Gabriel's effort falls a little short. In addition to tackling those monsters, he also takes a crack at Radiohead's "Street Spirit (Fade Out)", Regina Spektor's "Après Moi", and The Magnetic Fields' "The Book Of Love" featuring backing vocals by daughter Melanie Gabriel. The album is beautifully rounded out with other songs by Paul Simon, Bon Iver, Talking Heads, Elbow, Lou Reed, Randy Newman, and Neil Young.

Overall, "Scratch My Back" has proved to be a permanent fixture in my current music rotation. Evoking atmospheric chasms and honest emotions, these are the types of albums that make me wonder why it wasn't done years ago.

Standout Tracks: Heroes, Mirrorball, Flume, I Think It's Going To Rain Today

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

EIC'S10Q'S w/Roll The Dice

"..The formula is pretty straight forward, piano + synths + nothing else (no computers) = a minimalists fan's dream come true. Like John Carpenter, maybe Laurie Anderson or Terry Riley mixed with a little bit of Arvo Part.."


Roll The Dice
Synthetic Microcosmic Progressions

Roll The Dice Bio:
On top of Peder Mannerfelt's other moniker, "The Subliminal Kid", he also produces for and tours with Fever Ray. Malcolm Pardon composes scores for film and television. Mr. Mannerfelt & Mr. Pardon shared studio space in Stockholm for several years, so it only seemed natural that they would finally decided to join forces and release something together. Every track started and ended in the same way with their debut release, there were no pre-conceived notions/ideas, but they had to complete a track by the end of each day, a kind of "free-for-all jam session" with a goal in mind. Earlier this year the duo released their official debut album. They continue to work together in as many mediums as possible.



Hello, how are you?
Peder: Just fine thank you, starting Monday morning with coffee in the studio.
Malcolm: VERY WELL THANKS. ENDING THE DAY IN THE STUDIO ,WITH A COFFEE.

What are you currently listening to?
Peder: Black Math Horseman, I missed the album when it came out last year but it´s been on constant repeat since I found it last week. I also just got the new record with the music from The Knifes opera "Tomorrow In A Year". It´absolutely amazing, it will blow your mind!
MALCOLM:TO BE HONEST AT THE MOMENT MUSIC HAS BEEN TOTALLY SURPASSED BY BBC DOCUMENTARIES AND NEWS PODCASTS...KEEPS YOU UP TO DATE, AND ALSO IT GIVES MY EARS A BREAK FROM THE MUSIC ...

I read online somewhere that you are connected to Fever Ray, care to explain that?

MALCOLM: I'M NOT, BUT:
Peder: Well i produced half of the album together with my studio partner Henrik (Van Rivers). We where also part of the live shows that took place last year. Me and Henrik work really close together doing production work and remixes. We also have a techno label called F and we are in the process of putting together our second release.

When you began writing music for RTD did you have a specific style/genre in mind?
Peder: No.
MALCOLM:THE IDEA WAS TO AVOID HAVING ANY SPECIFIC GENRES OR STYLES IN MIND, AND TO NOT HAVE ANY PRE-CONCEICVED IDEAS BEFORE EVERY SESSION. ALMOST LIKE A DOGMA, IT WAS IMPORTANT THAT THE APPROACH TO EVERY SONG WAS TO GO ABOUT IN IN A WAY THAT NONE OF US HAD TRIED BEFORE...

Who does all of you visuals live? Is there a theme involved?
Peder: Our friend Ruben Broman has done all the live visuals for us. It involved us going out in my boat at 5 a.m in the Stockholm archipelagos to get background footage to our first live show at the Norberg festival. We got some pretty grand plans for the future with a lot of old television sets, 70s TV cameras and video loops. It´s all a part of the process of Roll The Dice, having big dreams about stuff trying to accomplish them and ending up with something completely different.
Malcolm: AS WITH THE MUSIC,THERE ISN'T REALLY A THEME HERE, ITS MORE OF AN IMPROVISATION, FROM THE ACTUAL VISUALS AND ARTWORK, TO WHOM WE ACTUALLY CHOOSE TO WORK WITH...WORKING WITH PEOPLE WE HAVEN'T WORKED WITH BEFORE, GOES ALONG THE LINE OF AESTHETICS WE HAVE FOR OURSELVES, TO KEEP GETTING SURPRISED BY THE OUTCOME.
Peder: We just got a video for The New Black that our friends Frode & Marcus did. I have done some music for there art films in the past and they really liked the idea of doing something for us. We have also worked very close with our friend Gustaf non Arbin to create the artwork for the records (the CD version will have different artwork). It´s been really fun to work with just friends and let everybody contribute there ideas to the whole process.

Will you please play some US shows?
Peder: We already have :)
Malcolm: WE DID ONE SHOW IN NY LAST SEPTEMBER, AND WE WOULD OBVIOUSLY LOVE TO DO MORE.

If you could score any existing movie out there which one would it be and why?
Peder: Fantastic Planet. It´s actually an idea I had for a long time to do a new soundtrack together with all of the sound effects to that film. The original sounds are really really inspiring in it´s simplicity and it would be really cool to do a interpretation with the Roll The Dice mindset.

You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?

Peder: Aphex Twin "Selected Ambient Works Vol 2"
MALCOLM: PEDER,WHAT ARE YOU SAYING!!...ROLL THE DICE,OF COURSE.

Are you living your dream?
MALCOLM: I'M DREAMING MY LIFE THROUGH.
Peder: Hell yes.

Thanx Peder!

Roll The Dice are currently putting together work they did for a their friend Gustaf, look for that in the future...

EIC EXCLUSIVE: Roll The Dice - For Gustaf

Roll The Dice - For Gustaf

Please ~njoy this unreleased track, an installation piece RTD did for a movie. (Thanx again Peder!)

Check into Rotten Tropics..

Rotten Tropics - Bukowski Single

Sounds like "Gothic Chill Wave", fans of Cold Cave and/or Silk Flowers will love this..

Cool Video Funtime #148 - Kill Me

Bjork & Michel Gondry to do a "Scientific Musical"..

Earlier this year it was revealed that Michel Gondry & Bjork were going to reunite for a "mysterious, secret film" project that was described by the director as "very undefined, so it’s hard to give more precision.

Recently in a new interview Mr. Gondry gave out a few more details on said project..
"We have a very ambitious project, a sort of scientific musical," Gondry explained. "[It's a movie], but maybe more for museums. Like a 40 minute IMAX project in 3D."

Hmm, Gondry with Bjork can you imagine the possibilities? Oh wait! You CAN!

REVIEW: Bullets In Madison - We Became Your Family When You Died

7.75 out of 10
Find it here.

Bullets In Madison are a (relatively) newer group hailing from Chicago, the kind of music they create is lush & cinematic Post-Rocky Shoegaze. "We Became Your Family When You Died" is their latest offering (2nd LP) of terrific "should have been more popular by now music". Imagine a meshing of Broken Social Scene, Mogwai, Labradford, Radiohead, and maybe a little Sigur Ros. If you're reading this and you already know about this project chances are you know that this whole album is free.. If you have haven't heard of this group by now chances are you will download the album and spread the word like wildfire (trust me, this IS up your alley).

Within the walls of "We Became Your Family When You Died" lays gorgeous strings swelling and drowning underneath a plethora of washed out guitar plucks & reverberations, epic drumming, alluring sprinkles of piano, and vocals that are melancholy, romantic, and somewhat relaxing. Each song on this ridiculously under priced album is somewhat of an epic adventure from start to beginning. The tracks just build, build, and build, what they unleash can sometimes come as a surprise. I can guarantee you this, if you're a fan of Post Rock with vocals you will LOVE this band. If you're a fan of extremely polished Indie Rock records or Nu Gaze music you will also love this. IF YOU'RE A FAN OF MUSIC AT ALL YOU SHOULD LOVE THIS. Is there any reason your still reading this? Go, go download NOW.

This is the kind of music you want to play live if you're in a band. The kind of music that you can REALLY connect to on an emotional level. Every note, every sound, every lyric puts this deep seeded feeling inside of your ear heart that just won't let go till it explodes causing your body to quiver from buoyant rhapsody (kind of orgasmic I suppose). How often has the word "F-R-E-E" let you down? Highly Recommended.

Standout Tracks: Animals, Joel Found His Angel Cowering In The Garden (love this track), Riots (should be called "Sigur Social Scene"), St. Jude (mmmmmmhmmm), Crimes

Monday, March 15, 2010

EIC'S10Q'S w/Dorias Baracca

"..equal parts Slowdive, Ride, Interpol, Mogwai, and any other project that derives it's sound from soaring guitar transmissions with layers (upon layers) of sustained metagalactic noise. The only difference between this group and previous mentioned groups is that those bands had years to develop their sound. I firmly believe that most people aren't born with the kind of ears it takes to develop these kind of "Rock" sounds. The unimaginable amounts of layers/filler noise/walls of sounds within this band's debut EP are more than enough to make any veteran rocker jealous. Which is, precisely why it's so important to keep mentioning these guys are only teenagers.."


Dorias Baracca
Blossoming Cosmonauts

Dorias Baracca Bio:
Hailing from Odense in Denmark, Dorias Baracca are almost too young to be making the intense, yet beautiful shoegazing music that they do.

Growing up on a diet of Slowdive, Chapterhouse, Cocteau Twins and Ride have given them a musical maturity that belies their 17 years. The EP manages to encompass the swathing walls of noise that Slowdive created with their early EPs, as well as the driving guitar wizardry of Ride and Swervedriver.

Following their debut London shows back in October, the Hands At Melting Point EP is their debut release, produced by Jonas Munk (Manual). On stage they are a blisteringly loud maelstrom of swirling feedback and melodic chaos that rivals other self-confessed noise masters like A Place To Bury Strangers.



Hello, how are you?
We’re fine, how about you?

What are you currently listening to?

Buster: Stars of the Lid
Aske: Slowdive
Jeppe: Cat Power
Simon: Ride

How long has your band been together?
Since Spring 2007 and Jeppe joined Spring 2009

Was there a particular band/album that inspired you to create the music
that you currently write?

"Loveless", "Isn’t Anything", "You Made Me Realise", "Souvlaki", a lot of fuckin’ Sonic Youth, some M83 and some Leonard Cohen and Mogwai and Loop and Lush and Low and Adorable and Dinosaur Jr. and Echo and the Bunnymen and Earth..

How did Club AC30 find you?
One of our good friends’ big brother is Jonas Munk (better known as Manual) and he mixed our EP and he later on sent it out to some different labels, where AC30 were one of them and he recommended us to go with Club AC30

Is there a title/tentative release date for your debut full length album?
Well we haven’t really talked about it, but we are soon ready to go to the studio once again, for a full length album

Any international tour dates in the works?
We’re trying to work out a tour through Hamburg, Berlin, France and the UK

If you could do the score to any existing movie out there which would you
chose?

Buster: Lost in Translation
Aske: Dead Man
Jeppe: The Crow
Simon: Pi

You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life… which
album would it be?

Buster: "Henry's Dream"
Aske: "Just For A Day"
Jeppe: "Raw Power"
Simon: "Loveless"

Are you living your dream?
We are living the daydream nation

Thanx Robin!

Dorias Baracca are currently touring here and there in Europe, pray that they will one day visit the US...

Sleigh Bells debut album finally gets a date..

From Mom and Pop:

Brooklyn duo Sleigh Bells – comprised of Derek Miller (guitars/production) and Alexis Krauss (vocals) – will be releasing their debut album, "Treats", on May 11th, 2010 with a special partnership from M.I.A.’s NEET Recordings.

This is taking waaay too long, I needs me some more ear crack post haste..

A more clear Iamamiwhoami video..


Nothing to decode, no animal (other than the multiplying black cat), and still ..no answer.

REVIEW: Roll The Dice - Roll The Dice

6 out of 10
Find it here.

A little while ago while looking at one of my favorite sites for great "underground Electronic" music I came across a band called Roll The Dice. The review for RTD stated that they were a Fever Ray off-shoot of some sort, so I immediately became intrigued and double-clicked my little heart out. Upon further listening I came to the conclusion that although the artist may have helped in the studio, Roll The Dice sound nothing like Fever Ray. Instead RTD sound more like John Carpenter, maybe Laurie Anderson or Terry Riley mixed with a little bit of Arvo Part.

This is the official debut recording from Swedish duo Malcolm Pardon and Peder Mannerfelt, but they are not new to the scene. On top of Mannerfelt's other moniker, "The Subliminal Kid", he also produces for and tours with Fever Ray. Pardon composes scores for film and television. Mr. Mannerfelt & Mr. Pardon shared studio space in Stockholm for several years, so it only seemed natural that they would finally decided to join forces and release something together. Every track started and ended in the same way with this release, there were no pre-conceived notions/ideas, but they had to complete a track by the end of each day, a kind of "free-for-all jam session" with a goal in mind. The synthesizer seems to be the main instrument that sticks out, but there are also other elements like odd white noise samples of some sort, a few mid-tempo pulsations, and of course the beautifully sparse piano compositions. I would definitely recommend this album to all Emeralds fans or people that really like to dissect sound while listening to it. The formula for Roll The Dice is pretty straight forward, piano + synths + nothing else (no computers) = a minimalists fan's dream come true.

Fans of synthesizer and/or piano work will be intrigued. If you are not a fan of either instrument this may be a difficult album for you to except, but given a little patience it may grow on you. Minimalism is definitely the key note on this one.

Standout Tracks: They all have a flow to them, I don't really have a "favorite" track per say, I like the album as a whole more..