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.
Sunday, January 12, 2014
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?
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?
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Pixies- EP 2
Ok, let me get this out of the way- clearly, Charles Thompson is difficult. He cannot keep bass players be they Kim Deal or Shattuck, or be they Eric Drew Feldman. I can't deny that. However, what else would you call a band featuring his voice, Joey's magnificent guitar, his songs, and that style? It's the Pixies, with or without Kim Deal. Plus, honestly, this new EP is the best I've heard from the Pixies moniker since "Bossanova". So, yes, this is the Pixies.
Four songs, no filler. "Blue Eyed Hexe" is an out of control rocker that only the Pixies could do. It starts from a grungey AC/DC style boogie riff complete with cowbell, and then takes off. Black Francis even finds a new use for that scream, making the song structure go sideways, as he builds it into ever more crazed frenzy, and then, poof! lets the whole thing drop.
Magdalena is a smooth, surfy, pop song with those off-kilter harmonies that dominated Bossanova. It's beautiful, and anyone who relegates it is just bitter they didn't get the idealized Pixies in their mind. This is the sound of the Pixies, and I'm happy with it.
Greens and Blues deliberately addresses the ghosts of Doolittle, and it's gorgeous- and so easily misunderstood. Black Francis is trying to get this across- if you're assuming who he is based upon who you think he should be you are "wasting your time"- he is only creating the Art he creates, not fitting into an injection mold we call Pixies, and if you can just take it as it comes, you are rewarded with a song that is both simply beautiful and deeply twisted.
Finally, we're back in Joey-land with the closing rocker - Snakes. He's just as vital to Pixies as Black Francis. Without his unique take on rock guitar, there is no Pixies. It's this weird mix of James Williamson meets The Ventures, and layered like Wire on 154. Simply awesome.
It's too bad that this carries the weight of unfair expectations- I haven't read all the reviews but I can guess- Pitchfork hates it, the British press likes it, but only wants to talk about the backstage drama, and talk about themselves, the reviewer. I consider the lukewarm response part of the disease of our fame culture- it's why music magazines rarely show artists with instruments, why movie magazines rarely show Actors acting, why everything has to start with a biographical paragraph. It's about creating a cult of celebrity. I'd prefer to celebrate cults. So, this is the new EP by the Pixies, and it's got damn fine rock music on it, made by people who craft their rock music in a way you don't hear anywhere else. It's done extremely well, and shows enormous talent. What more do you need?
Four songs, no filler. "Blue Eyed Hexe" is an out of control rocker that only the Pixies could do. It starts from a grungey AC/DC style boogie riff complete with cowbell, and then takes off. Black Francis even finds a new use for that scream, making the song structure go sideways, as he builds it into ever more crazed frenzy, and then, poof! lets the whole thing drop.
Magdalena is a smooth, surfy, pop song with those off-kilter harmonies that dominated Bossanova. It's beautiful, and anyone who relegates it is just bitter they didn't get the idealized Pixies in their mind. This is the sound of the Pixies, and I'm happy with it.
Greens and Blues deliberately addresses the ghosts of Doolittle, and it's gorgeous- and so easily misunderstood. Black Francis is trying to get this across- if you're assuming who he is based upon who you think he should be you are "wasting your time"- he is only creating the Art he creates, not fitting into an injection mold we call Pixies, and if you can just take it as it comes, you are rewarded with a song that is both simply beautiful and deeply twisted.
Finally, we're back in Joey-land with the closing rocker - Snakes. He's just as vital to Pixies as Black Francis. Without his unique take on rock guitar, there is no Pixies. It's this weird mix of James Williamson meets The Ventures, and layered like Wire on 154. Simply awesome.
It's too bad that this carries the weight of unfair expectations- I haven't read all the reviews but I can guess- Pitchfork hates it, the British press likes it, but only wants to talk about the backstage drama, and talk about themselves, the reviewer. I consider the lukewarm response part of the disease of our fame culture- it's why music magazines rarely show artists with instruments, why movie magazines rarely show Actors acting, why everything has to start with a biographical paragraph. It's about creating a cult of celebrity. I'd prefer to celebrate cults. So, this is the new EP by the Pixies, and it's got damn fine rock music on it, made by people who craft their rock music in a way you don't hear anywhere else. It's done extremely well, and shows enormous talent. What more do you need?
Doom- Corrupt F**ing System
I always found it funny that The UK Doom was a Discharge styled Crust band, meaning a band that fuses anarcho punk with heavy metal, whereas in the US, Doom is most certainly a punk styled traditional metal band.
Anyway, they've been silent for a long while, but not forgotten. I still love the Police Bastard EP, and the Total Doom LP, but with all the line up changes, label changes ( and slagging their former labels) I lost touch with them back in the 1990's.
However, I did pay my way into buying this new LP on Bandcamp, and well, for the most part, yeah, still Doom. Like Amebix minus the keyboards meets Discharge. It's got vocal samples, and scooped out guitars ( mids are a crime in Crust, I'm used to it) and D-beats with the drums too closely mic'ed galore. If I sound dismissive, I kind of am. I like it, but others have taken the crust torch to such better places- from Tragedy who still are more than a little crust-y, to Kylesa, who only bear vestigal bits of crust. Hearing a throwback to 1990 styled Crust seems quaint at best. I personally think it's just a way of saying "Yeah we're still here, 25 years later"
So, why slag it off? Well, I don't mean to, and I have listened to it, and heard it, and enjoyed parts of it. I still have a soft spot for Thrash, D-beat, Crust, and Grind. However, it does bring up the question- when should you hang it up? When is it done? There's still an audience, and my misgivings aside, I'd probably go see Doom if they were playing nearby this weekend. So, do I want them to stop? Hell No! But, does it carry the same level of inspiration, and artistic integrity it once did? Hell No!- so, I'm left with that question hanging- when does the show stop?
Anyway, they've been silent for a long while, but not forgotten. I still love the Police Bastard EP, and the Total Doom LP, but with all the line up changes, label changes ( and slagging their former labels) I lost touch with them back in the 1990's.
However, I did pay my way into buying this new LP on Bandcamp, and well, for the most part, yeah, still Doom. Like Amebix minus the keyboards meets Discharge. It's got vocal samples, and scooped out guitars ( mids are a crime in Crust, I'm used to it) and D-beats with the drums too closely mic'ed galore. If I sound dismissive, I kind of am. I like it, but others have taken the crust torch to such better places- from Tragedy who still are more than a little crust-y, to Kylesa, who only bear vestigal bits of crust. Hearing a throwback to 1990 styled Crust seems quaint at best. I personally think it's just a way of saying "Yeah we're still here, 25 years later"
So, why slag it off? Well, I don't mean to, and I have listened to it, and heard it, and enjoyed parts of it. I still have a soft spot for Thrash, D-beat, Crust, and Grind. However, it does bring up the question- when should you hang it up? When is it done? There's still an audience, and my misgivings aside, I'd probably go see Doom if they were playing nearby this weekend. So, do I want them to stop? Hell No! But, does it carry the same level of inspiration, and artistic integrity it once did? Hell No!- so, I'm left with that question hanging- when does the show stop?
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Held in Place
Sorry, I don't have much to report- I have lots of new music, and a few video picks to go over, but due to circumstances, both positive and negative, I haven't had much of a chance to listen or watch.
But, this is meant to be a "web log" as much as anything else, so I'll report as honestly as possible what I've seen and heard, even though I know this will be of very little interest to anyone.
Heard- Tones on Tail: Everything! - Yes, I dig Bauhaus/Tones on Tail and early Love and Rockets. Later on, they decided they were pop stars, and the music became uninteresting, but Tones on Tail was the most interesting period for these musicians. That having said, this is old and well known enough that I believe that if you would be interested, you have already heard them.
Seen- TV- Multiple seasons of The Amazing Race. No, I have no real interest in the show. But, I have interest in my wife, and she enjoys the show for the glimpses of travel destinations. Also, both seasons of The Booth at the End - which is basically a very long episode of the Twilight Zone.
Movies- All old, I'm afraid. I watched Repo Man for the two hundredth time ( that might not be an exaggeration) and I watched Kiss Me Deadly for the tenth, and Nicholas and Alexandra for the twentieth.
But, all in all, I've been held in place by a combination of the holidays, unexpected car troubles, family business, and work frenzy. Maybe next week?
But, this is meant to be a "web log" as much as anything else, so I'll report as honestly as possible what I've seen and heard, even though I know this will be of very little interest to anyone.
Heard- Tones on Tail: Everything! - Yes, I dig Bauhaus/Tones on Tail and early Love and Rockets. Later on, they decided they were pop stars, and the music became uninteresting, but Tones on Tail was the most interesting period for these musicians. That having said, this is old and well known enough that I believe that if you would be interested, you have already heard them.
Seen- TV- Multiple seasons of The Amazing Race. No, I have no real interest in the show. But, I have interest in my wife, and she enjoys the show for the glimpses of travel destinations. Also, both seasons of The Booth at the End - which is basically a very long episode of the Twilight Zone.
Movies- All old, I'm afraid. I watched Repo Man for the two hundredth time ( that might not be an exaggeration) and I watched Kiss Me Deadly for the tenth, and Nicholas and Alexandra for the twentieth.
But, all in all, I've been held in place by a combination of the holidays, unexpected car troubles, family business, and work frenzy. Maybe next week?
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Hints, Rumours and Allegations
So, my hobby is leading me into fabrication. That is- I've assembled some parts, and I'm thinking about making an effects pedal- specifically a distortion pedal- and I already have the MXR distortion + and the OS-2, and the Fuzz pedal- so why a new one? Well, partially because I can, but partially because I want something that can fill some "in-between" spaces- I want one pedal that can go from sludgey overdrive ( as opposed to crisp overdrive) to a scooped-mid crunchy distortion- as opposed to total war fuzz. Basically, with the three I've got, I can cover 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, and 10- so I want one pedal to cover 3, 5, and 7. Since this will be a one-off I can publicly say what I'm doing- I'm taking Marshall's old Shredmaster circuits, and substituting a diode and a capcitor to make it resemble a mix between a shredmaster and a Boss SD-1, then tweaking until I end up with a differently voiced Marshall Guv'Nor GV2.
So, Max, you say, why bother telling me about it? Well, I'm asking if there's any interest in seeing and/or hearing the results? I'm still debating if it's horribly self indulgent to post this kind of crap, or if folks actually have any interest in gear, like this...
So, Max, you say, why bother telling me about it? Well, I'm asking if there's any interest in seeing and/or hearing the results? I'm still debating if it's horribly self indulgent to post this kind of crap, or if folks actually have any interest in gear, like this...
Friday, December 27, 2013
Pat Todd & the Rank Outsiders
I've been a fan of Pat Todd since the 1980's. For your Thunderesque glammy, trashy rocknroll needs, his old band the Lazy Cowgirls have you covered. But, he likes Country, and he loves Punk, and he enjoys glamrock, so his new-ish band The Rank Outsiders occupy a space somewhere around The Supersuckers to The Replacements, and a Stones cover band . What I am saying is that this is about as traditional Rocknroll as there can be. Sure, I like lot of stuff more. But, I still have a place in my heart for the type of Rock music that fully embraces tradition- even though I know there are no surprises, here. This would've been considered hopelessly out of date even in 1985- that's a quarter century ago-But, I still have a soft spot for that honkytonk country-fried 3 chord rock. Stuff that cannot escape the shadow of the Rolling Stones. So, I'm not suggesting you rush right out and buy a copy of 14th & Nowhere, but I'm trying to catch up here- I have been listening to this on and off since about September. So, it's not earth shattering, but it is good for what it is.
At Devil Dirt Plan B
At Devil Dirt have blown my mind. Let's start with the basics- this is a band from Chile who combine Beatlesque Red Kross sElf styled harmonies with bottom heavy sludgey pools of instrumentation, and the lyrics are directly politically directed against the current state of Chilean affairs. Already, you're at a loss, right? It's only gonna get more psycho- The vocal harmonies mix Doom Metal screams with full bore 3 part harmonies of sweetly sung melodic vocal hooks, and the instruments are just as likely to feature a bass so fuzzed out is sounds like a runaway mining truck randomly throwing dynamite as they are a thirteen minute ambient keyboard soundtrack to a history lesson entirely in Spanish news reports from several decades back. Or a keys and acoustic dirge out.
But, back to the sludge- I don't say this often, but there's stuff on here that's heavier than the Melvins meeting early Torche. I know you don't believe me, but it's like a stoner rock version of Kowloon Walled City, in terms of the music- i.e the Molasses flood of 1919 in terms of music. But, the song structures are halfway between Kyuss and Trouble, as opposed to KWC's angled avalanches.
I mentioned Torche, and that's probably as close an analogy I can generate: Sweet pop harmonies, on a sick fudge layer of luded-out stoned blooze rock, with an unhealthy fascination with pure noise.
But, the lyrics are lucid tales from Pinochet's Chile. Yes. My mind just fried out typing that. Ye gads.
I heartily suggest you get this. This is the state of underground transnational Stoner sludge psychotronic mayhem. At Devil Dirt? Yes, please!
But, back to the sludge- I don't say this often, but there's stuff on here that's heavier than the Melvins meeting early Torche. I know you don't believe me, but it's like a stoner rock version of Kowloon Walled City, in terms of the music- i.e the Molasses flood of 1919 in terms of music. But, the song structures are halfway between Kyuss and Trouble, as opposed to KWC's angled avalanches.
I mentioned Torche, and that's probably as close an analogy I can generate: Sweet pop harmonies, on a sick fudge layer of luded-out stoned blooze rock, with an unhealthy fascination with pure noise.
But, the lyrics are lucid tales from Pinochet's Chile. Yes. My mind just fried out typing that. Ye gads.
I heartily suggest you get this. This is the state of underground transnational Stoner sludge psychotronic mayhem. At Devil Dirt? Yes, please!
In Which I catch up to Whores
I try to keep up. I don't always make it, but I try. So, I don't feel too bad that I blew off Whores until seeing them pop up in a few end-of-year lists. Well, I've heard the "Clean" Ep, and it's really good. A Sabbathy Noise rock record, it's got plenty of Am Rep bite, but retains enough classic rock songwriting that it could be compared to a grunge record. I don't know if I'd call it one of the year's best, but a good Ep, sure.... It's like Helmet meets KARP or Laughing Hyenas. Good, but not something I'd wave the flag for...
Saturday, December 21, 2013
I still can't bring myself to do a "Best of" list
I really can't. It would be like saying "Bananas are the best of all fruits"- utterly insane.
What I can say is that there was some fine stuff to enjoy this year. I can say that I had some real joys this year. I know that it's unique to each of us, so what brought me joy might be a real head scratcher for you. For example, while watching Baroness play at Ram's Head in May, it was almost life-changing to see just how happy and inspired they were to play music. It was palpable that, while they were grateful to have an audience, these guys would've played every note the same if they were alone in somebody's garage- and that conviction of doing exactly what you were meant to do, following your muse no matter what- that's why any of us is a fan of anything. We enjoy Art because it has a purity of intent and purpose. From time to time, I get asked what I think the point of everything is- what is the meaning of life? I always kind of hem and haw about it, because I don't believe that life, in and of itself, has meaning. What meaning can there be to simply breathing, and eating and sleeping? However, we each find a meaning. Each of us try to write a narrative over our experiences- even if the point of that narrative is "It's all absurd". So, I think the meaning of life is in the search for meaning. So, it brought me joy to see it so starkly as it is with Baroness- these are guys who literally are validating their choices for the meaning of life right before your eyes. See, if I explain it out, even if you disagree with me, you can see why I'd call it a highlight in my year. That's why I cannot do a top ten list, or a best of 2013; all bullet points and proper nouns. It closes off the beauty in Art to reduce it to that consumer transaction of "I bought this LP, and I love it more than the last LP I bought". I prefer finding those moments of transcendence - I might hear a song a dozen times, but then, that right combination of experiences and reception clicks into place, and for just that moment, I get a glimpse of some deeper truth, some beautiful construction of shared ideas. That would be my top pick.
All that having said, if you do read the blog, I hope I can turn you on to something that does that for you. I don't write about crap ( much) so I really do think you might be able to find that, too.
What I can say is that there was some fine stuff to enjoy this year. I can say that I had some real joys this year. I know that it's unique to each of us, so what brought me joy might be a real head scratcher for you. For example, while watching Baroness play at Ram's Head in May, it was almost life-changing to see just how happy and inspired they were to play music. It was palpable that, while they were grateful to have an audience, these guys would've played every note the same if they were alone in somebody's garage- and that conviction of doing exactly what you were meant to do, following your muse no matter what- that's why any of us is a fan of anything. We enjoy Art because it has a purity of intent and purpose. From time to time, I get asked what I think the point of everything is- what is the meaning of life? I always kind of hem and haw about it, because I don't believe that life, in and of itself, has meaning. What meaning can there be to simply breathing, and eating and sleeping? However, we each find a meaning. Each of us try to write a narrative over our experiences- even if the point of that narrative is "It's all absurd". So, I think the meaning of life is in the search for meaning. So, it brought me joy to see it so starkly as it is with Baroness- these are guys who literally are validating their choices for the meaning of life right before your eyes. See, if I explain it out, even if you disagree with me, you can see why I'd call it a highlight in my year. That's why I cannot do a top ten list, or a best of 2013; all bullet points and proper nouns. It closes off the beauty in Art to reduce it to that consumer transaction of "I bought this LP, and I love it more than the last LP I bought". I prefer finding those moments of transcendence - I might hear a song a dozen times, but then, that right combination of experiences and reception clicks into place, and for just that moment, I get a glimpse of some deeper truth, some beautiful construction of shared ideas. That would be my top pick.
All that having said, if you do read the blog, I hope I can turn you on to something that does that for you. I don't write about crap ( much) so I really do think you might be able to find that, too.
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