Cracking the Code

Certain connections may seem like some kind of cipher. Like you'll hear somebody say that such and such song sounds "exactly" like some other song, or some TV show is really a "rip off" of some movie, and it's really hard for you to see the connection? It's like there's some code, or puzzle that you're missing, right? Well, I'm all about transparency- I don't want there to be a code, just a connection. So, when I say that I'm hearing echoes of the past in some current bands, I'm going to strive to explain exactly what I mean. In particular, I think that Criminal Code sound one heck of a lot like TSOL circa "Dance With Me", and Eagulls sound a lot like Bauhaus circa "In the Flat Fields". That I think so is not important- the why is what I'm getting at.
See, in Criminal Code's case it's single coil guitars overdriving fender amps, with a large amount of chorus, the depth set high, and the rate set fast. With that set up, it'd be hard for almost anyone to avoid sounding like TSOL to me. They were the first that I heard to do that combination, so now, that's what I hear when somebody else does it. I believe that they're using different equipment around that- for example, I sincerely doubt they have a mid 1960's Firebird packing P-90's, which was Ron's primary way of pushing single coil sound into overdrive, whereas Criminal code sound more like either a pedal, or a gain stage in the amp- but the essential nature of the connection I hear is exactly that: single coil, overdrive, Fender, and chorus pedal.
Likewise, songwriting-wise, lots of folks have heard the connection between early post-punk and Eagulls. Mostly, they have mentioned Killing Joke, in that the band outright covered "Requiem"- but I'm hearing Bauhaus more than Killing Joke. Killing Joke is 10" celestions, with a massive amount of gain. Killing Joke is Gibson, all the way down the line, and rockabilly tunings ( G mostly). No, what I heard in Bauhaus, and what I hear in Eagulls is fender guitars, giant Ampeg bass cabinets, solid state amps, two types of delay ( probably digital, these days, but the shorter delay may still be analog) and a fast chorus pedal or two. The real trick, though is the two different delays- one almost a slapback short delay, and the other a giant cavernous delay- done to simulate the complexity of a really well-tuned reverb tank, but yet more huge-sounding. Later on, bands like the Cocteau Twins would add yet more delay ( sometimes as many as 6 different delays) but, when Bauhaus did it on "In the Flat Field" it was two, plus chorus. That's what I'm hearing here. Killing Joke used one delay, and two chorus pedals- and I know that sounds like esoterica- but that's part of the code- see, I don't hear music quite like some others do- I literally hear the equipment used. I know, I know- a really good song is a really good song, whether played on a busted acoustic guitar, or some state-of-the-art digital studio. I know that to be true, but I am a creature of my history, and my history is that equipment- so that's what I hear.  Maybe if I was more of a singer-songwriter type, I'd hear chord structures first and foremost, but I was a soundguy for years, so I hear equipment, first- then I can hear songwriting, and so on. So, my code for the connections I make is largely based around equipment. Make of that what you will.

Ume Monuments

I didn't see this one coming. Ume has been a decent, competent Alternative band. But on this new record, they've upped the heaviness factor, to near- sludge metal considerations. Fender into Mesa Boogie, I'm sure, probably downtuned- I'm thinking B, maybe even C. The end result is like Baroness at their more poppy moments on Yellow and Green, fronted by Emily Haines. I just have a hard time believing that noise is coming from a little southern girl and her duo sonic. If the Joy Formidable tried to rock as hard as their drummer wants to, they might sound like this. It sounds like humbuckers melting down a triple rectifier, only no palm muting, and a couple delays and reverbs to remind you that the sounds are meant to be somewhat more feminine and sensual not just full metal blast rock ( again, like Baroness on Yellow and Green) - and from photos, it looks like frontwoman Lauren Larson has converted to a tele modeled after a 1972 double humbucker, and a jaguar- probably one of the new "blacktop" models. I know, to most punters gear doesn't matter- it should, and here's exhibit "A". Ume went from a mildly entertaining hard Alternative band to full bore Rock Minotaurs with just a small change in gear. It makes so much difference. This is out on Dangerbird, but it sounds almost like it belongs on Relapse. On top of that, from what I can tell the live show is awesome. I can't wait to see them...

HOME- Bound To Gravity

Damn! If the address didn't say Austria, I'd swear we just found a new northern Midwestern Noise-sludge-stoner-math rock band. Just about recorded live, this sucker is raw, heavy, and a great mix. You need this in your life. No, really, you do. They're too metal for the noise crowd, and much too noisey for the metal crowd, which makes them damn near perfect. Heavy, and with tons of attitude- be careful operating heavy machinery with this on, unless you're into impromptu earthworks. Really, the best use is for soundtracking your underground fight club.

Coliseum- Faith and Curses

I think it's pretty obvious that Coliseum, and, by extension,  Ryan Patterson  can do very little wrong, in my opinion. I may like things with varying degrees, but I do like virtually everything the man, and band have done. My favorite of what he's done, however, is the "House with a Curse" LP, and Black God's second Ep. That's not to knock "Sister Faith" or "Parasites" or Black God 1 or 3 or Whips/Chains, etc, etc- something has to be the favorite, and those two are. However, as much as I might like the recorded output, nothing can compare to this band in full swing. I saw them on a somewhat strange night, in that they were on a good tour, but circumstances around the show, but not strictly part of the show, distracted from the show- even under those somewhat "refracted" circumstances,  there were moments when the band was just a beast, in the best sense of the idea of the term.
So, a live EP? ( It's download only, and under a half hour, so I'm calling it an EP- it's longer than most EP's but shorter than an LP)  Yes, please!. I got it when ordering the new shirt, but you can get it wherever you can.
So, to describe- Noise? Yes. Ryan's  effect pedals are always on- POG,  Clone Theory, Earthquaker Devices, you get the idea. Punk Rock? Yes. The BPM might not be in the 200's any more, but it still averages around 140-160.  Metal? Ryan actually can shred, a bit, but he's shooting for something a bit more atmospheric- so, about as Metal as Killing Joke, Fugazi, and The Wipers- meaning there is a little metal in there, but it's not really Metal. Actually, if you were to wrap Killing Joke, Bauhaus, Fugazi, The Wipers, and Girls Against Boys together, and add some Motorhead sauce on top, you'd have a Coliseum burrito. Which makes them one of my favorite bands, geddit?

I hope you like our New Direction....

First a quick programming note;
Be it hereby resolved- I now have three Blogs. This one, my personal blog ( no link. sorry) and now my "stuff" blog- I Can Save Everything . I do not expect you to be interested. Really. But, I am interested in that, more than this. Sorry if that offends, and I don't expect it to be permanent. Eventually, I'll want to talk more about music, or TV shows or books. But, right now? I'm feeling a bit like a Material Girl.
So as for music, I've been listening to the new LP "Pslip" by Sierra, "Universe" by Truckfighters, "Get the Hell" by Supersuckers and "Faith and Curses" by Coliseum. They're all really, really good. I mean some of the best stuff I've heard in weeks, and in Coliseum's case, best I've heard in months. It's not really fair to mention them, but not talk about them, but, like I said, my interests are elsewhere, right now.  Still, I'll try to talk about each sometime, soon.
As for TV, my wife has decided that she wants to binge watch a lot, lately. That's fine, but it means I've just been watching a lot of Sherlock, Dexter, and The Amazing Race, none of which I especially feel like talking about. Sherlock is an excellent, excellent show, but I feel like others have it covered. The others are fair, at best.
As for reading, really, mostly I've been re-reading stuff I've already talked about. Not much to say.

You know it's over when...

I will put this out there, first: I'm thinking about stopping this blog. No, this is not a plea for an audience to come in- I'm not Rik on "The Young Ones" - I don't think it matters if I write this, or not. But, I do know that I'm wanting to discuss different stuff. I'm getting interested in musical gear, again, which I haven't been in about 10 years. I'm interested in The BBC, and the differences between what they're doing and what HBO and AMC are doing here. I'm still interested in music, but, for example, I didn't watch the Grammys last night, and didn't even try. The only interest I had was to see if Lorde fell on her face, and to see how uncomfortable Josh might get in that "superstar" line up. I like Dave Grohl, just fine. He's created a likable public persona. A good percentage of the Foo Fighters' music is bland MOR, though, that has zero appeal to me ( and that's the important part. I've been surprised by what I would otherwise call bland MOR before) . Likewise, I really don't like Trent Reznor. Like I don't ever want to be in a room with that guy type personal disgust, and he's compounded that by easing back on a project I liked a bit, to bring out a zombie Nine Inch Nails, which was a hit-or-miss project to begin with. Lindsey Buckingham, however, pretty much personifies everything I loathe about music, and the music business. I cannot stand his music, his conveyed personality, the sound of his voice, his methods of bringing his music to people- literally top-to-bottom, if you want the "Anti-Max" as far as music goes, there's your guy. So, to trot Josh out in that sausage fest, in a cutesy matching leather jacket? Either he's still the same lizard he's been, and he'd be VERY uncomfortable, like "get me out of here, NOW! NOW! NOW!" type uncomfortable- or he's turned into the anti-christ of everything he was- both of which seem equally plausible- but how much do you really want to see those scenarios? I mean Lorde seems like a smart little girl, who might turn into something worthy of her hype, someday, but, for now, is just sounds like Brittany Spears trying to cover PJ Harvey, and not quite getting there. So, do I really want to see her fail? Maybe a little, but not really. Josh might have lost his mojo on the new record ( and yes, he did. You can like it, all day long, and in every way, but you're still just digging a mojo-less Josh Homme) but I saw his ACL performance, and there was still some fire there. Nowhere near what once was, but some fire. So, I don't really want to see him uncomfortable, other than in the hopes that it would re-ignite the fire for him, and I really don't want to see his Vegas years start up right before my eyes.
So, yes, even though discussing pop culture and music is exactly what I'm doing here, I'm starting to want to talk about something else- something that gives me a bit more hope. There are some really bright spots out there- for example, Kylesa have a record label, now- Retro Futurist and from what I've heard so far, it's really very good stuff.  So, yes, shutting down the blog is on the table, as is the thought of keeping it, and doing a new blog just to talk about music gear. Also, there is the thought of just ending all the blogging because I pretty much accomplished  all my missions, and you don't need me to do yet another music blog. I don't know, just yet. How do I know when it's over? Guess I've got to figure that out.

Checking in and TV

I don't have a whole lot to report, musically. Yes, I got a friggin' AWESOME Mark Lanegan best-of, this week, called "Has God seen my Shadow?", but do I really have to tell you to listen to Mark Lanegan? That's what mainstream guys do, because idiots are still listening to John Mayer. I'm far too cool and sarcastic for that. But I will say this- if there is a heaven, Mark Lanegan and I won't get to be there. He's got too much of the devil in his voice, and I like that devil too much.
As for the hobby, I finally bought an OCD clone.  It's great, and if I played Sludge Metal, it would be my dirt box of choice. For my guitar playing friends, if you have a spare USD 40, and you want that baritone rumble "creamy" distortion, this will get you there. The "review videos" all seem to add a fair amount of treble to what I actually hear- but it has a crap-ton of gain, with the lower mids emphasized- it's a dark beast, that can instantly dial up Eyehategod to Thou tones, and if you twiddle the knobs a bit, you can get around the same neighborhood as all the Savannah bands ( Kylesa, Baroness, BlackTusk) get, and they all use the OCD. One warning- the "high" setting adds a pretty significant boost- between 15 and 20 DB- so you can blow out effect inputs later on in your chain, if you're not careful.
But, I've been watching a lot of TV- I saw the first two seasons of Sherlock and yes, it's really good. I also am finally watching Dexter, and you'll note there's no link. That's because I don't think it's worth supporting- it's too full of cheap tricks designed to manipulate the viewer, and while I'm not all that smart, I know i'm smarter than this show. I'll watch more because I've got friends who like it, but really, I think it's crap TV with "Skinemax" sensationalism.
I also have been checking out the Portico channel. It's got some worthwhile bits.
I watched a pretty great documentary called "Machete Maidens Unleashed" - it covers all the pop culture ground you'd expect for a doc about exploitation films, but it even exposes a fair amount of the ethics ( and ethical failings) of those exploitation films, not to mention the politics of them, as well.
That plus the usual, and yes, I've been busy.

The Politics of Gear

I do understand that everything we do, say or think carries consequence. Really, I do. I understand that it matters if I drive or take the bus, and I understand that it matters if I buy my coffee at Starbucks, or my local coffee shop, and if that coffee is fair trade. I understand that carelessly using words like "bum" or "crazy" or "gay" can give license to various forms of prejudice, even if I don't mean it that way.
I don't think its possible to be aware of absolutely every ramification, however, so I'll admit I wasn't quite aware of all the issues surrounding buying guitar gear. First, there's the whole usual "green" thing. I was aware of that- some of the woods used coming from tropical locations, and endangered species, and being shipped great distances, yes, that's an issue. On top of that, there's the question of trade practices- is my distortion pedal made by sweatshop labour? Did some 8 year in Pakistan install the fretwire on my Samick guitar? ( No, I don't have a Samick, just citing a 'hypothetical')
Then, there are the consumer issues on this end- if I buy a "boutique" version of a Tubescreamer, am I being ripped off? Hey- yes, there are some folks out there who are taking cheap mass marketed equipment, and repackaging it, to appear like they made something they didn't. Likewise, even if they did wire it up themselves, are they doing good business, or are they being sneaky- an example being that there's boutique boost pedal out there that is definitely over-priced because the people who make it have deliberately created artificial scarcity to jack the price up. I mean the fine folks at Cheaper Pedals definitely have a few points. ( And I plan on writing more on the subject at a later date)
But, it even goes deeper than that- I recently came into some Danelectro pedals, as I think I mentioned- and I was confronted with this: The CEO evidently doesn't like gay folks. Now, I don't think my 20 bucks paid to friend  for two used pedals does very much, but there is that question of 'flying the flag'-somebody sees some Danelectro stuff in my rig and they could think that, at the very least, I don't care about equality. It could get more elaborate- while I personally think the "fab" line of pedals are hideous because they're too bulbous, I do like the retro aesthetics that Danelectro trades in. So, I'll probably try to get these two rehoused, but if they were different models I might not really want to- and I can see how, given my tastes for a kind of late 50's early 60's retro vibe, people might think it reflects a longing for days before Civil Rights and Feminism- something I'm sure is true for some- I think some folks think of those times as "Happy Days" precisely because they have a problem with the complexities that equality brings. I'm rendered into the same predicament as Andrew Eldritch- he once famously stated that Nazis had better fashion sense. I understand what he means. I think that Leave it to Beaver is messed up, politically- but Ricky Ricardo on I Love Lucy looked pretty suave. I think there is some separation from aesthetics and ethics, but it pays to be aware that you might not be projecting exactly the image you intend.
So, no, I don't have the politics of gear exactly all worked out, but it is worth pondering.

Sage Francis- Sick to D(EAT)H Mixtape

I'm not a Hip Hop head. No surprise there, but I am aware of hip hop in a general fashion, except in some rare cases. So, I lost track (heh) of Sage Francis awhile back- around "A Healthy Distrust", until a friend played me a track from this new mixtape- Blue  which is a stunning downtempo trip hop song that, though meant to be a talk about Gulf War veterans, is a brilliant deconstruction of the American male psyche, and honestly makes me well up everytime I hear it. So, I went to Strangefamous and bought it. A great way to spend 10 bucks, let me tell you.
I'm still not a hip hop head, but this is some great music.

Ringo Deathstarr- God's Dream

Ringo Deathstarr are different for a "shoegazer" band, in that I think they have connected back to the same well of inspiration that launched bands like My Bloody Valentine, Swervedriver and Ride, as opposed to simply being inspired by those bands. They are harder, more American, more Rocknroll than any of those bands, and  more like a psychedelic punk band, with a heavy Eno-esque love of ambient textures than a straight "shoegazer" band, even if that means the guitars end up sounding like My Bloody Valentine on "Isn't Anything". The close male female harmonies are, of course, going to recall MBV for the majority of listeners, and I can hear that, but I hear 1970 - Youngbloods, Original Caste, and above all the New Seekers- just as much. What I'm saying is that they belong more with Redd Kross, Sonic Youth, and The Butthole Surfers than they do with Asobi Seksu. Geddit?
So, it makes sense that Adam Franklin and Jeff Shroeder would show up- Ringo Deathstarr are trying to set themselves up as peers and equivalents to the late 1980's "Shoegazer/alt nation" scene as opposed to a carbon copy of that scene.
Anyway, all this is semantics- let's talk about the tunes!
For once the song titles are actually pretty descriptive, once you crack the code- first song, for example is "Bong Load"- on one level a single entendre for smoking drugs. But take it apart- A bong captures and distributes smoke, while a load is a weight- so this is something heavy made airy, made like smoke. This method works throughout. Nowhere moreso than with the lead track "Flower Power" which seesaws between blasts of uptempo noise, and pretty little bits of glissando. Geddit? Flower power? This mix of light and dark- Distortion and melody, Male and female voices, dichotomies in the titles, etc is what Ringo Deathstarr are all about musically. If you get the 9 track Japanese version ( which I did, which is why it took about 10 days to get to me) they get the balance perfectly. Really good, really innovative while at the same time really cheesy and really retrograde. Ain't that what we want from Rock music?