29th Mar2010

NW Reviews: She & Him – Volume Two

by nickwan

I’ve been hyped off of the idea that this indie-surf-pop thing is going to take off this year. Promising first track, She & Him gets my hopes up. The scenester super combo of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward can safely produce mediocre music together and sell more songs than Zooey did for “The Fabric of Our Lives”.

Aside from partial commercial successes, how is Volume Two? And does is topic the mostly “meh” efforts of Volume One?

The first few songs do strike decent, however nothing special. Oh yeah, after the first track, “Thieves”, the surf vibe leaves and comes back in with what M. Ward would probably make up on his indie-pop spare time. I prefer Zooey and M. Ward’s combo over just M. Ward on his own mainly because Zooey can sing. M. Ward has some abilities himself, but I feel that if you haven’t been shot with the M. Ward arrow, it’s hard to just pick up a recent album and get into it (especially with that awkward voice of his). Zooey lightens this music a lot.

In fact, this album reminds me much of one of my more favorite albums by Saturday Looks Good to Me, Every Night. Zooey definitely bests out the pretty Betty Marie Barnes, but in the same vain I believe M. Ward and Fred Thomas from SLGtM share a similar taste in this indie-pop dig. With that, did Zooey and M. Ward best the efforts of SLGtM? I would say so. But that isn’t saying that much is it? How did it fair compared to some of the better albums of this year?

It’s hard not to start picking up the lyrics for this album and start belting. It’s so catchy! What the heck?! It also makes me want to buy a leather jacket and a Chevy Bel-Air and say yes to the first poodle-skirted girl who asks me to the Sadie Hawkins dance. I imagine I’d be listening to this on a jukebox that has Volume Two on vinyl. Maybe Potsy, Ralph, and Richie Cunningham will meet me at Arthur’s and I can be the new Fonz. You can’t replace the Fonz, but at least She & Him can replace high school dance music from the 60s. Is that really a pro?

Somewhere between the lines of catchy music and infectious lyrics is something a little more plain. The song writing itself seems lacking. Sure, your head is bobbing and you want to slow dance with your best friend to this, but KC and JoJo made you want to do that too. You don’t want me to compare Zooey and M. Ward to KC and JoJo do you? No, you don’t. Another con to this album is maybe the freshness versus the inventiveness. Freshness value: not so high. We have this music in tons of different forms. I mentioned SLGtM already. Best Coast and Real Estate touch on bases that She & Him touch on as well. So, with low freshness, you want a much higher inventiveness. Unfortunately, there isn’t much there as far as pushing themselves to a brink. I find myself liking the songs but not loving the songs. I’m not blown away by inventiveness. It’s not like a Owen Pallett Heartland or a self-titled album from Fang Island. It’s more like what American Dollar Atlas brought to post-rock this year. It tastes new but isn’t impressing an image on my mind as much as I want it to.

–

People who would like this: people who like indie-pop. It’s hard to go wrong with this album as far as indie-pop is concerned. It’s maybe closer to the prototypical indie-pop sound than I want to believe. Others who would like this: people who like Happy Days.

I don’t see this album chiming in against any other bands at the midseason in June. This means that I’m not going to see this album competing for an album of the year position. Maybe a little more magic and less magic tricks next time, scene-team? Mediocre isn’t great, but it isn’t bad. So I guess…

p.s. Here’s a bonus video of my favorite She & Him song from this album. Enjoy!

Category : Music, Record Reviews
Tags : , ,
37 Comm
29th Mar2010

An Interview: Efterklang

by nickwan

Efterklang is on tour in the US right now in support of their newest album Magic Chairs. Shahin Kalantari and crew caught up with them at the San Francisco show at Bottom of the Hill. Check out the video interview below (it’s in two parts). If not video-savvy, read the transcript!


–

Shahin Kalantari: First thing is first: I’m going to say something and tell me how you react to this. “Rødgrød med fløde”?

Casper Clausen: (laughs) Pretty good.

SK: (laughs) Pretty good?

Rasmus Stolberg: (laughs) Pretty solid!

SK: Alright, how do I say this?

CC: It’s a classic trick sentence in Danish. So it’s pronounced “rødgrød med fløde”, if you pronounce it right.

SK: So, one more time?

CC: Rød

SK: Rød…

CC: The hard this about Danish is the “r”s and soft “e”s. So the “r”s are with the throat.

SK: Rød…

CC: It’s hard (smiles)

SK: Yes!

CC: But the “d” is easier. That’s like a “th-”. Like when you say “the”.

SK: Well I just wanted to ask, you know.

CC: Classic.

SK: It’s your third time here, what are you expecting out of this tour that was different from last tour? With the new album?

RS: Yes, we have a new album out. It’s a new experience because when we did Parades we toured over here [in the US] seven months after the release. Maybe more; maybe eight months after the release? The record [Magic Chairs] just came out when we started this tour so it’s all new and interesting to play the new songs for the first time.

SK: How is the audience receiving the new songs?

RS: They seem to like it.

SK: How about you guys? It’s the first time to play these songs right after the release of the record to play it live.

CC: Yeah, we played a lot of the songs last year on tour. The idea behind Magic Chairs was to be able to play the songs before we got to the studio, so we took six to eight songs with us last year on the US tour and just tried to play them live and try different things with them. And a lot of those songs ended up on the record. We’re ending up playing a little over half of the album, plus the b-sides and things like that. So it’s like the songs we’ve been playing in 2009 and songs we haven’t played yet.

SK: So where do you guys see yourselves after this? Do you have anything in the works right now?

RS: No, it’s mainly just touring. Maybe we’ll start talking about it later, but then someone will say, “let’s wait for that.” Right now, the main focus is [touring]. We have a long tour ahead. the US tour is about to end and then we’ll tour Europe until about end of May. So maybe on the other side of the Summer we’ll have plans.

SK: What about Rumraket? How does that play in when you guys are touring and recording?

RS: It’s working really well. It’s becoming more and more about what are label is. It’s becoming more “our” base. Right now we don’t have other releases. Because if we release another band, then I do a lot of things around that. Luckily there’s no other band producing a record right now. So all we’re doing is Efterklang and touring and things. So that makes it easier. And it works very nice because the record label is such a small territory so the people who put out records and people who help us promote it are close friends and collaborators. So we usually don’t have to worry about it because they take care of it.

SK: So have you toured with any of them [Rumraket bands]?

RS: Usually when we bring a support band it’s either one of the live band members’ side project or one of the Rumraket bands. This tour it was suppose to be a completely different band called Balmorhea but they had to cancel due to family matters so it’s all local bands this time around.

SK: How has it been with the local bands?

CC: It’s been great. I mean, you never really know. It’s always a surprise. There’s been some good acts. We were last in Portland where Heather, that’s her hometown. So she put together a good program with Helios and Dragging an Ox. So that was really cool. So there are the good things and also not so good things. (Enter guy stocking beer)

SK: So I heard that one of you or two of you are classically trained?

CC: That’s not true. (laughs)

RS: Where do you hear those… lies! (laughs)

CC: No, that’s not true. The only music educated member of Efterklang is Rasmus and he’s “classically” trained in music management.

SK: So how is it being classically trained as a music manager?

RS: I don’t really know (laughs). I just have a bachelor’s degree.  And it’s nice because I do the management for Efterklang and I run the record label too so I can use all those things for that. So it’s nice but it’s hard because I was doing Efterklang before I got into that school so I was in school doing it and doing this. But it’s really nice because I have a piece of paper that says I’m good at something.

CC: We have a school teacher. He’s an educated school teacher. Mads and I, we’ve been working and doing music. So we’re educated in Efterklang!

RS: It’s a very basic education but we take in new students every year.

SK: Nice! Where do you sign up?

CC: You can sign up at Efterklang.net

RS: Just send us an email and tell us how much money you got

CC: You have to put away at least ten years of your life.

SK: How about playing with the Danish National Orchestra? That was real?

CC: (laughs) Yeah, that is true. It’s documented on an album, so it’s for sure true. It was a project we did in 2008. It was both incredibly amazing and… hearing an orchestra yourself but then hearing your own music is an amazing experience but it’s also a logistical nightmare.

SK: Is it the transposing the songs for all the instruments?

RS: Just everything. Planning when to rehearse, how to rehearse, how long, and what to play. When you’re on stage with 50 other people playing your own music, it’s an unbelievable experience. It’s like a one hour long masturbation. It’s a pretty good feeling (laughs).

Nick Wan: One more question Shane.

RS: It better be good!

SK: Well, yes… global warming….

RS: (laughs) I actually bought a thermos. And in two days I’ve saved five cups of coffee on the road. In a couple of years of touring, it’ll be a whole forest!

SK: Well, thank you. This is usually my last question. If at any time you need a back up assistant triangle player or a back up dancer to your music video

CC: Would we consider you?

RS: Is that the question?

SK: Yes, if you would consider me.

CC: We can definitely consider you.

RS: You would have to sign up for that education…

SK: That’s right, ten years.

–

And as a bonus, here’s a video from this show of Efterklang performing “Modern Drift” off of their newest album Magic Chairs


Category : Interviews/Misc., Music
Tags : , , , , , , , ,
44 Comm
22nd Mar2010

An Interview: Red Sparowes

by nickwan

Red Sparowes

About to hit the road in support of their newest album, Red Sparowes are amped to release their best work yet. Although, many questions do arise in terms of new works: how was it written? How will it be live? And the most important question to many fans, when is the next album after the April 6th release of The Fear is Excruciating, But Therein Lies the Answer? Bassist Greg Burns of Red Sparowes helps us answer these questions and more.

—–

Nick Wan: Aphorisms does have the song entitled, “The Fear is Excruciating, But Therein Lies the Answer”, which is the name of the upcoming album. Was this always intended? Did the song come before the album, or was the album themed after the ideas of the song?

Greg Burns: The song came first and was part of what spawned the concept for the album. The Aphorisms E.P. was written as three distinct pieces and we liked the idea of taking the last song and using it as a transition into the full length.

NW: What are some differences between The Fear is Excruciating, But Therein Lies the Answer and Every Red Heart Shines Toward the Red Sun? Was the production, writing process, conceptualization, or anything else any different from how you approached creating The Fear is Excruciating?

GB: There are a lot of differences.  We had a bigger budget for the The Fear… and had the previous experience of working with Toshi Kasai on Aphorisms, so we were able to get a lot done in a relatively small amount of time.  The Fear… was also recorded using Pro-Tools, as opposed to 2″ tape with Tim Green.  While I love what Tim did with Every Red Heart…, it was nice to work digitally and really experiment with sonic layers in ways we couldn’t really do before. We also had a new approach to song writing which, while always democratic, took a much needed turn in terms of scope.  With the lineup change we really focused on writing songs that we were excited by, and not so much what we thought people might want or expect from us.

NW: How many songs did Red Sparowes have going into the studio to record The Fear is Excruciating…? Of course, only eight of those songs made the album. But for the other tracks, will they ever be released in some form? Maybe re-written for the next record?

GB: We recorded 9 and a half songs.  The 9th song will definitely be used in the future, probably for a split or a compilation.  The other half song will be added to a list of unfinished songs that may or may not make the cut.

NW: With the addition of Emma Rundle (guitar) to the band, what does she bring that is different than what Josh Graham (former guitar) brought to the band? Between the release of Aphorisms to the recording of The Fear is Excruciating…, how much of a role did Emma have in the song writing process?

GB: Emma definitely has a different musical voice, but one that is much more consistent with the direction we’ve been wanting to go.  She’s extremely talented and, perhaps most importantly, very open to experimenting and trying new things.  Before Emma was in the band things felt very limited in terms of scope.  Obviously her personality is very different too.  Emma is a pleasure to work with and is very patient and fun to be around.  Having her in the band has changed the dynamic in many ways, and I think it’s safe to say we’re all feeling reinvigorated.

NW: We grew up here around the Bay Area, so Neurosis isn’t a stranger to us. This new album, we’re all seeing a change from your old record label Neurot Recordings (founded by members of Neurosis, amongst others) to Sargent House. What was the motivation(s) behind the change in label?

GB: After meeting Cathy at Sargent House I was really interested in her approach to running a label.  It’s not so much a label as a company that encompasses many more aspects to putting out a record.  SH hasn’t been at all afraid to take chances and has a really fresh and relevant approach to running a label in the current environment.  At first she just worked with us as our manager, but after seeing her incredible work ethic and dedication, as well as getting a better understanding into how Sargent House works, we were excited to be a part of that.

NW: There is some pretty intricate layering of instruments on this new album. After recording an album like The Fear is Excruciating…, how hard is it to imagine the studio version of a song being played live? Are there any adjustments as far as personnel or instrumentation is concerned when trying to perform these tracks live, or are you all just awesome enough to make it sound as if your live show is a doppelganger of your studio recordings?

GB: Actually there really weren’t that many layers of instrumentation added.  Sure, we doubled some tracks and played around a bit, but these songs live will definitely be an accurate representation of the studio versions.  In the past, our live shows have always been heavier; having not played these songs live much it’s hard to say, but I’d imagine the dynamics might change a bit – but not in a major way.

We also always try to leave room for some variation and improvisation in our live set, so it’s safe to say we’ll be taking some creative liberties, but that’s more to keep things fresh and interesting, and doesn’t come out of any inability to play the songs as they were recorded.

So, yeah.  We’re that awesome.

NW: After listening to the new album a few times I can imagine some of these songs, like “Giving Birth to Imagined Saviors”, to be pretty epic to witness live. What live elements will Red Sparowes introduce with their songs to make the live show more of an experience?

GB: We’ll definitely have projections, as we always have.  I’m excited to say that the projections definitely tie into the songs more; we really wanted the visuals as well as the artwork for the album to help express our own interpretation of the songs and related concept.

NW: The album is set to release in April and Red Sparowes is dated to tour for over a month straight starting at the end of March. How much more touring will there be this coming Summer? Any festival plans?

GB: We’re definitely going to Europe in the Fall, and hopefully Japan and Australia.  That’s as far as we’ve planned currently, although I’d imagine we’ll do the US again early next year and start playing festivals in the US and Europe.

NW: What bands out there right now do you believe will be getting more attention this year? What are some new albums Red Sparowes have been listening to as of late?

GB: As far as some newer bands; AA Bondy, Fang Island – I’m really excited to be touring with them in April.  I love that recent Karen O and the Kids soundtrack for “Where the Wild Things Are”.  I haven’t been paying that much attention lately; I’ve kind of immersed myself in old country as I’ve started to study traditional pedal steel guitar.

NW: I know that this new album is still in its infancy (technically unborn until April 6th), but your last full length album came out in 2006. Will Red Sparowes fans have to wait another four years for another full length?

GB: Definitely not.  We’re already working on songs for a new record and it won’t be long until we’re in the studio again!

—–

Red Sparowes’ album, The Fear is Excruciating, But Therein Lies the Answer, is out April 6th. You can check out Red Sparowes at their website, their MySpace, or their Twitter. Also, don’t be afraid to check out the other Sargent House bands via their website or their tweets as well. And last but not least, you can always check out 402 Productions on Twitter for news, reviews, and whatnot.

Category : Interviews/Misc., Music
Tags : , , , , ,
47 Comm
11th Mar2010

NW Reviews: Podcast #7

by nickwan

[powerpress]NWReviews-07-March11th.mp3[/powerpress]

Check us out on iTunes, yo. (Opens in a new window, and then opens iTunes.)

In this: News, Fang Island interview, Red Sparowes, Local Natives, This is Our Fight, and jj

Errors: I think I mistake This is Our Fight’s song “Easy AM” for the song “Across the Sky”.

Music by:

Alvin Pingol

Angels and Airwaves

Ceremony

Minus the Bear

The Fall of Troy

The Pixies

Fang Island

Red Sparowes

Local Natives

This is Our Fight

jj

The xx

Category : Interviews/Misc., Music
Tags : , , , , , , ,
5 Comm
09th Mar2010

NW Reviews: jj – nº 3

by nickwan

Pronounced “Number 3″, jj’s newest nº 3 is a mixed bag. Although there is one bright light at the end of the tunnel: jj is a zillion times better than The xx.

Their freshman album, nº 2, was a major hit with many. At first, I couldn’t sit through it. But soon thereafter it grew on me and is a nice playlist buffer alongside Efterklang and Sigur Ros. After being fashioned into jj’s sound, this new album of theirs was definitely easy to digest. The plus side to the album isn’t that it was easily nice to listen to for a listener like myself but rather it’s just a nice album to listen to regardless.

The album itself seems more of a positive step for jj in various ways. Firstly, the album itself is a very soon-thereafter release, as their first album only debuted last July. Not even a year later, jj has submitted a completely new set of songs. Many times this happens, the band wants to get out of some sort of label contract… but in this case, their sophomore album in nº 3 is actually a great set of songs. Their selection of songs on this album is more along the lines of “Things will never be the same again” rather than their cult club hit in “Ecstacy”.

It’s better than The xx. All joking aside, I really have no idea how The xx had a better showing than jj. In fact, I believe that The xx, if they released an albums worth of songs today, would be a let down. Unlike jj, I don’t believe The xx will be relevant. jj’s feel seems more fresh. It’s like the indie-Swedish version of the 90s Enya. The xx is just the indie-British version of 90s sadness. To jj’s advantage, they will best many of the experimental indie-pop this year with this album.

As I started this review off, the album is a mixed bag. At times, brilliant. At other times, lacking. The words “experimental” never seemed more true than this album… the thoughts of song writing seemed to be along the lines of, “Hm, will this work? I guess other people will have to be the judge of that.” In other words, they really seemed to include things in their songs, may it be melodies or harmonies, that were off. That’s the experimental jamb though. A work in progress in song form. In my opinion, this album will be a great staple in the ever-growing experimental pop community, but as far as the big picture of the entire scene goes, this might be overshadowed by the fast-growing renaissance of post-rock. I guess the competition is on.

–

People who will like this album: people who want something that sounds like The xx but doesn’t suck, people who want the indie version of Enya. Others who would like this: people who hate post-rock’s 2010 revival and want something that will counter it.

Although a mix of good and bad, it’s generally good. However, that’s where the recommendation ends. Enjoy this album, but the potential of overplaying it and/or getting sick of it is somewhat higher than others. But until then, enjoy it.

p.s. for those interested in what “Ecstacy” sounds like… here’s a video of it!

Category : Music, Record Reviews
Tags : , , ,
41 Comm
08th Mar2010

An Interview: Fang Island

by nickwan

The current pride of Brooklyn, Fang Island, has had many ups and downs in the past few weeks. I don’t even know if you could write it like it has happened: Fang Island got a new van, released their first full length album,  began preparing for their upcoming national support tour… then had their van stolen, found again, and are still on track to make it to their shows on time, all the while gaining universal praise for their album. Our interviewing machine Shane “Dufus” Kalantari sheds some light on the friends that compose Fang Island.

–

Dufus: First off, how is the land of “Philayorkadence?”

Fang Island: It was a difficult land, now we all live in Brooklyn.


D: When you guys initially assembled to form this dancegasmic-high-fiving band, what were the initial ideas; aside from the uplifting intensity that seems to lay the foundation for most of your corpus?

FI: The band started off as an art project at school. It was a way of cutting classes, smoking weed, and still getting college credit. Then we realized that our musical collaboration was more important/enjoyable to us than learning lithography.


D: Would you care to map out your guy’s creation process? How do you arrive at a song like Dreams of Dreams? Or rather, when do you all know “this is it”?

FI: Someone we will write a riff, then we add other riffs, then someone else adds a solo, then its done.


D: What were some of the fundamental elements “Curaga?”

FI: Cure and Cura combined.


D: “Fang Island Go To Kindergarten” was an awesome concept. Aside from Matt Pryor’s The Terrible Twos, it’s fairly unexplored field (bands of any flavor playing directly to children). Was there any underlying goal behind this show, or merely just rock out with some awesome 6 year olds?

FI: We tried to talk to the kids about the power of rock and roll and friendship, but it was way over their heads. So ultimately it was about rocking out with kids.



D: How has Philayorkadence influenced your music, if at all?

FI: It helped give our music a colonial/bicentenial vibe.


D: Very recently, the horrible news of your van being stolen has been shot around. It definitely is inopportune, as your album-supporting tour is about to begin and the van itself was new to Fang Island (by way of label mate, Daughters). How has your fan base, friends, management, and/or record label responded? What positives have been confirmed or realized through this event?

FI: True story, we were about to buy a new van when our Visualizer man, Sam, decided to take a nap, and during this nap he went into the dreamscape, found our van and when he woke up we received a call that our van was at the 78th street precinct in Brooklyn and had been there all along…or was it? The lesson we learned was never underestimate the power of positive thinking and astral projection, but we would like to thank everybody that supported us. There was a huge outpouring of support that we are extremely grateful for.

D: Who was the first person in the band to realize the van had been stolen? What were the first reactions?

FI: Nick and Jason. Instant acceptance.


D: I know your self-titled album was just released, and you’re all about to head out on tour, but…I must ask, what new concoctions are a-brewin’ over on Fang Island?

FI: We have a few new songs in the works and a couple top secret ideas. We are also trying to get a sponsorship with Coca Cola and Pepsi.


D: So yes, the big tour is approaching, what are you all looking forward to, what do you hope to accomplish this tour?

FI: We are looking forward to getting out on the road in and of itself.  With the exception of Nick, none of us have ever been out on the road before for long periods of time.  Also, our bassist is an excellent chef and he’s going to buy a hibachi.


D: What are the sounds Fang Island enjoys when they’re not fashioning their own? Any new bands out there that you think the people are missing out on?
FI: Anything involving Roky Erickson is amazing. His new album is beautiful.

D: How’s the industry treating you guys thus far in your career? Any horror stories? Any delightfully surprising stories?

FI: Napster has really been marshing my mallow.

D: Any pre-show rituals? Any post-show rituals?

FI: Before any show we set off fireworks and watch the Who’s “The Kids Are Alright.” Afterwards, we set off fireworks and watch Smashing Pumpkins “Vieuphoria.”


D: What’s something people should know about a Fang Island concert?

FI: Three guitars a-wailin’, a bass a-thumpin, and our drummer has cornrows

D: If you had to theme your next show (e.g. “under the sea” and everyone who attended would have to dress up accordingly) what would the theme be?

FI: The theme would be Under the Sea, November 12, 1955. It seems appropriate considering that’s when and the setting where Marty McFly invented rock n roll and penned the hit “Johnny B Goode.”


D: Finally, the most significant question of all… can I be your back up assistant auxiliary guy?  If yes, when can we jam, I got coke bottles, brandy sniffers, and bamboo shoots. If not, can I be a dancer in your videos?
FI: No and no: HIGH-FIVE!

–

If you haven’t checked out Fang Island’s newest video for “Life Coach” then go ahead and hit play below here… also, if you haven’t checked out our review yet, or even the album, then go ahead and treat yourself tonight. You’re worth it.

Don’t forget to follow 402 Productions on Twitter!!

Category : Interviews/Misc., Music
Tags : , , ,
50 Comm
08th Mar2010

NW Reviews: This is Our Fight – Don’t Hold Your Breath

by nickwan

When someone recommends me an album, or I get sent some EPK from some small label/no label band or artist, I really try my best to give them credit where credit is due. But sometimes… I have to play the devil. Judge and jury indeed.

This is Our Fight, from Gaitherburg, MD, is in the category of “uh?” and “um… no”. If this came out in 2005, back when Set Your Goals and a zillion copycats from Northern California flooded Gilman’s, I’m sure this band would end up on a tour with one of these bands, if not signed to some hardcore label of some sort. Unfortunately for that entire era of hardcore-pop-punk, it has been tossed to the way side. Some bands are still scratching for a chance, while others are just unchanging because… well, that’s what they are. Then there are these types who are too late for recognition past a local scene and not enough wow to make a splash past a self-promoted tour. Maybe somewhere, at a festival or something, they’ll make some friends and maybe land a bigger tour and possibly sign and get some recognition like You Me at Six has in the recent times. Until that big break, here is some notes on their first official release.

I would like to start by saying naming your first song “Get Pwned!” not only is slightly embarrassing but makes me think “our fight” is more like a Mortal Kombat fight rather than an alley way brawl. Also, the song itself talks about not getting in your way and if you do you should watch your back or else a gang of kids who wear slim fit jeans and love Underoath will come and fight you. As much as I love hardcore and most things surrounding hardcore, as far as production goes… forced one-liner shout outs are now up there with auto-tune with me. If some band came out with an album like this with primarily auto-tune vocals and double the shout outs, I might crap myself laughing. Unfortunately this time around, I’m just embarrassingly looking around to see if anyone can overhear what’s coming out of my headphones.

But not all is lost. Like how stereotypical punk music has the overly-amazing bassist who can shred, stereotypical hardcore pop punk has the randomly out of place awesomely-technical guitarist. Although there is a major difference at times. Rancid’s Matt Freeman is clearly the prototypical bassist, and most bassist’s favorite bassist who plays with a pick, but for all the Matt Freeman copycats in the world, there are infinitely many more sound players who just are out of place playing in a punk band. Such as This is Our Fight. Although every hardcore pop punk band would love that hybrid guitarist who has a strong hardcore backbone and an eclectic guitar style with staples in punk and metal, only few sprinkle around and have a touch of tasteful riffing. Take in account the “hit” song from This is Our Fight, “Easy AM”. Pinch harmonics wailing in the beginning at first is surprising, but then… over played. Although your homage to the late Dimebag Darrell is well received, please remain tasteful. The effect is there, and it caught me by surprise. The song itself, not as much. And the repetitive nature of each riff only embeds more ill-feelings, I feel.

Every musician in this band would be a star in a separate band suited to their talent. The drummer seems dynamic enough to play in some straight up hc punk band. The guitarists seem to jive well together to form their own metal band of some sort. The bassist is just a straight up bassist, nothing exceptional. The vocalist has a good range and can fit into something less… well, less this. And that’s the pros.

The music choice is the con. If this band was just a straight up run-of-the-mill hardcore punk or hardcore metal band then there would just be a mediocre review for a mediocre band. This band decided to throw in a style that isn’t really fitting, nor does the music elude to a new or fresh style of the not-so-fitting music created. For example: you have a room of classical composers. They are all musically intelligent and know all sorts of things about their instrument of choice, techniques, and even all sorts of different styles. They all, however, levitate towards some sort of classical style… let’s just say it’s baroque. So, you have a room of baroque musicians and then they all listen to acid jazz and think it’s the coolest thing ever. Will they be the best acid jazz musicians? No. Will they even be good? That’s up to interpretation. But they definitely will be mimicking the acid jazz style for a while. As goes This is Our Fight. Mimicking, not innovating. Painters trying to become sculptors.

–

People who would like this: people who love You Me at Six, people who wish You Me at Six and New Found Glory had a bandgasm together, people who wish Set Your Goals turned into a hybrid version of You Me at Six.

As far as this album overall goes, it’s not great on the ears for people looking for new music. Also, when you have two songs start with the same note (“Brutallity of the Balto Bear” and “Pandas” both start on G) it’s a producing no-no, as well as a tracklisting no-no. Avoid at all cost. But there were a lot of things seemingly to avoid with this band… sorry to say, lads.

Category : Music, Record Reviews
Tags : , ,
1 Comm
03rd Mar2010

NW Reviews: Local Natives – Gorilla Manor

by nickwan

There is a type of music that I feel never really caught on in this scene. Did you people ever listen to Colour Revolt? Some people relate them more to Manchester Orchestra (they toured together), but I feel that Colour Revolt had something more sinister about them than the bearded epics of Andy Hull and team. Not to begin this review with an overshadowing tone, but rather a very nice appeal to Local Native’s new release, Gorilla Manor.

Now, if you view the video above, you will note that there are some amazing things this band has on lock down: vocally, the entire band can support each other. Musically, they aren’t forcing anything jarring on their audience, and that’s always a plus. Lately, the music scene has been lacking vocally and forcing arrangements that don’t really work out too well. This experimental pop trash that’s out there right now is upsetting. If I had to choose what the “in” thing should be, it’d be something along the lines of Local Native. These guys have all these correlations with what’s going on right now that should be promoted: great vocals, interesting music, and that touch of hipster vibe that makes you want to buy out a vintage store. And I’m very glad it’s just a touch… because this review would have gone a different way had it been over-the-top.

This might be obvious, but… the music. Have you listened to this before? If not, LISTEN TO WHAT IS GOING ON IN THAT VIDEO!!! Also, if not, here’s another clip:

Doesn’t this just make you feel better? It really puts me in a good mood. Not just because it’s great music, but because it is different. I’ve heard these guys compared to bands like Arcade Fire and Vampire Weekend but I think they are doing something more. They aren’t in line for any hit singles to be heard or for any of their songs to be turned into car commercial music. Rather, they are just doing something that should be the crux of any musical effort: making good music that makes you feel good when you write it. Not making songs for anyone else but yourself first, then the audience. Good music, especially like this, will always attract a crowd. It’s the honesty behind the good that makes it great.

At times, the album gets vocal-heavy. This is just a preference, possibly, but I feel that the band itself can do even more instrumentally. Their sound at times does revert back to that Arcade Fire type sound… but I’m not listening to this album because it sounds like The Arcade Fire. I want to listen to this album because it sounds like Local Natives. Some more instrumentation elaboration could potentially give Local Natives even more of an identity of their own. This is their freshman album, and it’s a very very strong stab at the world in my opinion. Their sound seems to be prototypical, as in it involves a very vast amount of sounds from the current music scene, and they are trying to make an effort towards maybe more of a vocal effort rather than the ambient, jam-rock-ish indie-pop attempts that have entered the scene as of late. I’m interested to see what’s next for these guys; to see which direction they want to push their sound towards. Although my wanting more begs the question, “how will they surprise me next?” I’m pretty happy with what they have to offer as far as this album as of right now.

–

People who would like this album: people into good singing, people who enjoy singing along to songs with a twist of dancing involved, people who want to find their next favorite album. Others who would be interested: people who are surprised to find dollar bills in their pockets before they do laundry, people who like walking home after a good night, people who sometimes spend their time sitting back and just thinking.

A note: this album was released in the UK last year, but has been released in the US this year.

Category : Music, Record Reviews
Tags : , ,
35 Comm