Top 5 Albums of 2011 to Still Look Forward To

We're about half way through 2011, and so far there's been some pretty good stuff! PJ Harvey, Radiohead, Destroyer,  Cults, Fleet Foxes, Cut Copy, Tune Yards, and plenty of other acts have made our last year before the apocalypse well worth our while. But what have we to look forward to heading into summer and fall? Well quite a bit actually! Read on if you dare! Or something.

5. Bjork- Biophillia- release date TBA

Over the past few years and couple releases, Bjork has ejected much of the slightly tragic innocence and cultural naivety from her persona. She's transitioned into something of a more matriarchal, even monarchical role. Between tracks like “Oceania” and “Declare Independence” she has become downright domineering. While this new role has grown increasingly divisive among fans- Volta was not as universally well received as past offerings- I really like it! Bjork's been by no means absent from the industry, as she's been involved in multiple collaborative efforts, but it it's been too long since a full LP. The announcement of Biophillia- cryptically dubbed as some sort of multi media project, now appears to be just what we need to fill the gap. Biophillia goes far beyond just another collection of songs, as every track will also be released with a corresponding ipad app. The functionality and connectivity of the songs and the apps so far has yet to be fully disclosed, all though one appears to be some sort of space invaders style mini game, with the catch being if you win, the song ends prematurely. Judging by the slightly bewildering but undeniably cool new website Bjork's put up, where you can hear some of her insight on the process, Biophillia will be nothing if not interesting. Remember back when people thought it was weird when she made an album without instruments?

Check out the first track “Crystalline”

Sleigh Bells at the Vogue

Wednesday, May 25 2011

I once mistakenly thought the minimalist and rapid fire lyrics of “A/B Machines” by Sleigh Bells went, “Got my A machines on the table, got my B machines on tour”. Of course I am now more informed and aware that is not how the song goes- there's a point to this, I assure you. Right before I took the trip to the Vogue to see Sleigh Bells, easily one of my most eagerly anticipated shows of the year, I got to thinking about an interview I recently saw with Alexis Krauss and Derek Miller, discussing the group, the new album (!) and touring. They both agreed while touring had its merits, it was a gruelling endeavour that forced them out of the studio for too long, keeping new ideas and songs mostly on the back burner much to their lament. I was thinking about these two things on the way to the show, for the first time, and only for a brief moment, worried that maybe they wouldn't put their all into it, that the visceral and intimidating energy they exude would be at least in part absent from the stage. Such fears were unwarranted; Sleigh Bells was absolutely incredible. To use their own referential and slightly obnoxious tour branding- they slayed it

Song of the Week: "Sail Away" by The Rapture

One of my most anticipated albums of 2011 has got to be The Rapture's upcoming 3rd LP, The Grace of Your Love. It's been an agonizing 5 years since their last effort, the brilliant but criminally underrated Pieces of the People We Love. As the release date slowly draws near information about the album is starting to trickle out including track lists and producers- Phillipe Zdar, namely. The biggest bombshell however is that the Rapture are back on the DFA; so I'm pretty excited. To get others excited here's a clip of The Rapture performing a track from the new album called "Sail Away". It's not officially released yet as they only occasionally play it at shows so far, so the video quality could be better. But that doesn't stop it from being a damn good song. Hurry up September 6!

Review: Tune Yards- Who Kill

Listening to Who Kill, the new LP from UK artist Tune Yards, headed up by Meryl Garbus, really makes me want to employ one of those “What do you get when you cross 'this' with 'that'” kind of equations. Unfortunately, as fun and helpful as those measurements often are, in this case they proved ill equipped to define Tune Yards, leaving the listener equally ill prepared. Preparation is necessary when listening to Who Kill. While light hearted in demeanour, it is not to be taken so, as it's confoundedly condensed and chaotic structures will potentially leave you overwhelmed and maybe even annoyed. After some time, the web seems to untangle however, and one can discern strands of mostly interesting and at times dazzling music.

Garbus' voice can prove at times challenging to get a grasp on and grow accustomed to. Her range of verbosity, volume and output, pacing, and even style is constantly shifting and modulating. It does so at seemingly random and unpredictable intervals. She'll go from a traditionally linear pathway of vocal utterances, to hyperactive and frenetic tantrums of singing. In the opening track “My Country” a silky smooth and relaxed pace sharply diverts into a lighting fast spoken word section and then jumps right back. Her decibels bounce disorientingly from restrained and seductive whispers to erupting and escalating wails, as in “You Yes You”, leaving your volume setting completely helpless. Her vocal aesthetic is sometimes set to wispy tremors like in “Riotriot”, then transitions to something much more brash and bellicose in songs like “Buisnezz”. At times her voice is akin to a cross between Amy Whinehouse and Missy Elliot. She spends most of the songs brazenly and at times violently switching back and forth. Despite the many bodies and conceits she seems to occupy she always does so from a position of either serene calm or strict confidence. The result being, while it seems alien at times, her voice always seems within her control and firmly grasped by at least some kind of logic and intent, as opposed to her just screwing around with no regard for what works and what doesn't.

Playlist: Feel Good Hit Summer

Pay no attention to the currently abysmal May weather here in Vancouver. I assure you summer is coming. It just... it just has to. Any day now, right? In what is hopefully not too premature preparation for the coming sun, we're all gonna need some appropriate listening music. Of course, if you're at the beach, you're not likely to have a computer with you; so you won't be reading this, and this playlist will be of no good to you... I didn't really plan this out. I suppose you could always listen to it at home during these frustratingly common torrential down pours and pretend it's nice out. You're welcome?

Music below, with track listings underneath

1. Broken Social Scene- (7/4) Shoreline 

2. The Knife- Heart Beats

3. Vampire Weekend- White Sky

4. Kid Cudi, Best Coast, & Rostam- All Summer

5. Caribou- Sundialing

6. Delorean- Seasun

7. Modest Mouse- Gravity Rides Everything

8. Little Dragon- Runabout

9. Mark Mothersbaugh- Let Me Tell You About My Boat

10. Animal Collective- Summertime Clothes

11. Miike Snow- Cult Logic

12. Arcade Fire- Haiti

13. Ween- Ocean Man

14. M.I.A.- Amazon

15. The Russian Futurists- Paul Simon

16. Metric- Waves (B side)

17. Panda Bear- Alsatian Darn

18. Wavves- King of the Beach

19. Broken Social Scene- Pacific Theme

Fleet Foxes at the Vogue

Friday, April 29

After something as monumental and landmark as the final LCD Soundsystem show, seeing Fleet Foxes at the Vogue seemed a little underwhelming. I feel hesitant opening with such a descriptor, and while it's certainly not my thesis on the matter (if I even need one), it was and is an opinion that stubbornly refuses to yield to other much more positive thoughts. Rest assured, this is merely comparative analysis and should not be used to infer that the show was in any way disappointing- it was quite good. Not every show needs to be a superlative spectacle- a grand finale as James Murphy and company just put on. Nevertheless, I couldn't help but shrug the feeling. Part of the issue is that Fleet Foxes' particular brand of pop folk is a partly subdued and mostly intimate offering; a smaller venue like the Media Club seems more appropriate for their stylings. But the Fleet Foxes brand has expanded beyond the diminutive proportions of such tiny environments resulting in something of an unsolvable paradox for the group. Their songs as constructions and intentions are not designed for larger venues, but tell that to their ever growing legion of followers and fans.

Top 10 Albums of 2010- Part 2

Yes, yes the second part of this list is very late; part one was posted way back in February. I initially had every intention of posting part two a week or so later, but school- finals, papers- got in the way for the last few months. Anyway it's done now. Better late than never? Ya, sorry.

5- Beach House- Teen Dream

Victoria Legrand understands the communicative capabilities of a song better than many. In Teen Dream, she shows her mastery of the medium. Speaking in terms of vague memories and personal metaphors, she has crafted a dazzlingly written and performed collection of songs. Her voice and words are deeply imbedded with meaning, intent, reminiscence, and heartbreak. But what makes Teen Dream such a stunning thing to listen to is she doesn't over sentimentalize the past or remember things through the hazy cloak of nostalgia. It's a refreshingly rationale and balanced memorializing of her past experiences; all of the good, and all of the bad. She speaks of a boy she new better than any one in “Zebra”. She realized as good as he seemed, it was all a deception. Not an oasis as she sings, but a mirage. It's a eloquent metaphor that warns us to acknowledge all the blemishes and excruciating truths of the past, not to gloss over them with some fictional history- or teen dream if you will. The point of this album isn't some starry eyed half remembered journey down memory lane. Rather it's a difficult, at times agonizing endeavour to confront all of the awful memories that linger in her mind. In “Norway” she attempts to recall a past love, confidently revealing it for what it was, “The beast he comes for you, the hunter of a lonely heart”. It's a far cry from something more analogous to a fairy tale romance. While Legrand shines a penetrating and revealing light on her past, she romanticizes it as well. She acknowledges the devastating events for what they were, but also aware, at times blissfully, of the character these events have forged her into. Not a jaded, cynical shell of a person, but someone fully in tune with her own self. Capable of absorbing the depths of misery but also experiencing pure elation. This mixture of opposites swirl together in a surprisingly harmonious fashion in both her voice and words. In “Walk in the Park” she boldly states “In a matter of time, you will slip from my mind”; despite the damaging implications of such, she sings in an almost triumphant manner. Listening to her purge herself of these demons conveys a wonderful sense of catharsis, and only after she spends most of the album doing this, can she once again give herself over to the hopeless romantic in her. The final tracks, “Real Love” and “Take Care” are about as reassuring and comforting as a song would ever need to be. It's all the more endearing in the context of the harrowing path she had to follow to get there. It's funny that she calls the album Teen Dream, as it is much more seasoned and devoid of immature hormonal myopia that taints so many other ballads and dreamy offerings of less weathered musicians.

Song of the Week: "Lotus Flower" by Radiohead

We all know that Thom Yorke is something of a musical genius, with a talent for intuitive melodic creations and exploratory lyrics. But who knew he could dance? Watching the video for the new single "Lotus Flower" has me wondering if this is a career he overlooked- the guy's got moves. Aside from that, "Lotus Flower", from the surprise release of King of Limbs, is pretty terrific. With what seems like an improvisational mix of blues and dubstep- the beat moves along in a less than linear fashion. Yorke's voice is full of bold ideas that slowly swell from him, but the music doesn't seem to match his words. However the somewhat amorphous and less than fully formed structure of the melody keeps it from being too rigid, so it manages to accompany Yorke's voice quite nicely. It's sort of like a ballad- but only in terms of a post Kid A kind of way. Give it a listen!

Watch the Muppets dance along to LCD Soundsystem

File this under, "you're a cold heartless bastard if you don't love this" The always relevant cadre of Muppets are back. This time they're rocking out to my 4th favorite song of last year, "Dance Yrself Clean" by LCD Soundsystem. Playing on top of a roof top to a delighted crowd in England, Kermit shows himself to be a suitable substitute for James Murphy. After that the Muppets head off to the club for their particular brand of freak out. The whole thing is hilariously charming, especially with the crew getting drunk at the beach, and Kermit still not quite sure how to master the art of seduction. But when you're trying to seduce Miss Piggy, I suppose there's no rush. Watch the clip.

Wavves and Best Coast at the Rickshaw

The Rickshaw is a favoured venue among several people I know. I get it, I suppose; It's small enough to provide a reasonable sense of intimacy, yet large enough and sporting the proper dimensions to move and thrash around, should one so choose. They sell beer, right there next to the stage- it certainly has thing's going for it. Yet I feel like I can't quite get behind the place. Perhaps it seems a little too analogous to the conveyance with which it shares its name. Aging, rickety, constantly at risk of falling apart- the celling was leaking after all. It might be a combination of seasonal and geographic issues. Being in Chinatown, it's a little beyond the realm of super fast public transportation that I'm used to, and is a venue more booked in the fall and winter, as opposed to places like the Malkin Bowl, which gain in primacy during the summer. In other words, I'm often walking to the Rickshaw or waiting for a bus to get there in shit weather, putting me in a less than stellar mood upon my arrival. On the other hand, I usually see a pretty decent light show there, something I would be reminded of when I saw Wavves and Best Coast. I have to express a touch of regret and disappointment that I couldn't see these groups on a warmer summer night, outdoors- these groups are growing more and more synonymous with my favourite season. Nevertheless, this was the date and location, so I dutifully went.

Review: Cut Copy- Zonoscope

After multiple listenings of Zonoscope, by Aussie elctro-wavers Cut Copy, I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on what it is I'm listening to. The only lingering question that frustratingly seems unsolvable is just what exactly a zonoscope, if anything, is. Alas any attempts at googling merely yields results for the album, which either spawned the term, or is more interestingly, its namesake. I really want to know. The album cover itself reveals some potential insight. An image of an impossibly beautifully, yet logically realized landscape framed through a circular, perhaps ocular lens; a scope if you will. My fixation on the issue is not random and superficial, not entirely at least. I am compelled to explore the meaning behind a zonoscope because for all of this album's compelling qualities and soothingly catchy hooks, what has me most interested is the way it looks back on and surveys the trends and styles of pop music's past. While this endeavour is not always fully realized or articulated, Cut Copy makes up for this short coming by proving their own stylings capable of filling in the gaps with incredibly catchy and palatable offerings.

Top 10 Albums of 2010- Part 1

10- Gorillaz- Plastic Beach

Think of Plastic Beach as an experiment gone horribly wrong, and then wonderfully right. Originally conceived as a sort of mix tape featuring various artists with Damon Albarn and Gorillaz acting as producers only, the whole thing sort of devolved into an incoherent mess of misdirection. So Albarn stepped in with a much more direct and patriarchal role; scraped what didn't work, and repurposed what did, inserting parts of prior recordings into their own songs and reconstituting the roles of the various contributing artists. The end result is a widely varied and engrossing album loosely centred around the concept of climate change (as if the album's title wasn't obvious enough). What makes the album so compelling is that although the narrative is fairly consistent throughout, the tone and source of narration is constantly shifting, creating a densely layered and challenging album to fully decipher. The central message is inserted in most of the tracks, but done so in multitude of ways, based on the stylings and mannerisms of whichever artist is prominently featured. In several cases, the topic is approached by taking the better and most adored aspects of our culture and mixing them together with the subtle metaphors related to the detriments of our planet. Lou Reed at one point goes on about the beauty of person, he wants to preserve it... by wrapping it in plastic. Part of the fun of Plastic Beach is rummaging through it, looking for such examples. The genre spanning and, at times genre defying body of work takes so many different types of music and packages them in Gorillaz' characteristic blend of goofiness and subtle insight. Gangster rap from Snoop at his most relaxed, playful hip hop in the form of “Super Fast” and the utterly engaging “Sweepstakes”, deathly serious funk in the form of “Stylo”, illicit club freak outs like “Glitter Freeze”, and mammoth works of pop art like “Empire Ants”- there's a lot to Plastic Beach. Some of it's just reasonably fine, but so much of it is terrific- like nothing else this year.

Song(s) of the Week: "Painted Eyes" by Hercules and Love Affair and "Helplessness Blues" by Fleet Foxes

There's just too much good stuff coming out lately. With the recent release  of Zonoscope, the new Strokes album finally lurching forward, and the advent of a new TV on the Radio release that is tantalizingly close, things don't seem likely to change any time soon. That being the case, I am forced to throw two songs of the week at you. The first is a track off the new Hercules and Love Affair album, Blue Songs. Many fans of the last album were concerned by the departure of producer Tim Goldsworthy and contributing lyricist Antony Hegarty. While the album definitely is a departure, "Painted Eyes" seems to be somewhat alleviating as it is the most familiar, carrying that seemingly trade mark disco and funk heavy bass. Does it remind you of their earlier work, or is "Painted Eyes" even too much of a change?

The second song of the week is "Helplessness Blues" by Fleet Foxes. After making a huge splash in 2008 with their terrific self titled album, the group kind of fell off the map. Upon learning of a new album and tour, I was surprised that all I could muster was mild enthusiasm. After hearing this new single, I'm excited again. I forgot how grand and affecting these guys can make simple folk music sound. They're playing two shows in Vancouver at the end of April. The first show sold out pretty quickly, but if you hurry you might still be able to grab ticket for the second one.

Das Racist at Fortune

Pop Pete promised us all completely naked women. It did not happen. Truth be told, I was reluctant to believe such an exuberant claim, but it's fun to dream. He proceeded to ask the audience who among us was gonna do some e and than cheat on their girlfriend; preferably with a fat chick? Pop Pete, the front man from Hot Sex and High Finance does not mince words. He is blunt, and conducts him self in a slightly vulgar and grotesque manner. Yet he also seems rhetorically ironic in a reassuring sort of away. If I for second thought he actually believed his egotistical bullshit, I'd be put off; but he puts on a hyperbolic facade to mock those in the electro/progressive/hip hop scene that take themselves too seriously. Just to make sure no one mistook him for the persona he intimidated, he made sure you know how ridiculous the names of the group's songs were. “Patrick Bateman”, “Black Gretzky”- “Death Star”? More like Super Death Star. At the end of the set Pete demands that we download his album- for free! No one callously attempting to live the gangster Gordon Gekko life would issue such a proclamation.

Review: Destroyer- Kaputt

After listening to Kaputt by Destroyer, one may wonder why the creative force behind the act, Dan Bejer, refers to it as Destroyer. It's a pretty harsh moniker for music that is anything but, at least as far as Kaputt is concerned. Admittedly the career of Destroyer has seen many twists and turns and delved, at times rekclessly and aimlessly into many aesthetics and tones. The musical make up of Kaputt, while not the first time adventured by Bejer, is a recent development. It is breed from familarity, yet at the same time crafted in away that seems positively unique. Bejer, with the help of vocalist Sibel Thrasher, have made an expertly constructed and beautifully performed piece of work here; one that is refreshingly devoid of the cynicism that has crystallized like an impenetrable husk over the genres and stylings that Bejer draws inspiration from.

Part of why Kaputt works so well is it is propelled by a very clear sense of direction and well defined structure. At its core Kaputt employs a contemporary version of inoffensive smooth jazz that was more or less rendered obsolete by the early 90s. It's really a shock to hear it resurrected so casually and successfully in this collection. However the peripheries, or casing of these songs are comprised of modern hi fidelity indie pop and slightly dreary 80s new wave. Much of the bass is reminiscent of The Cure and Joy Division. Each element is applied pretty liberally on top of the aforementioned jazz center, maybe even heavy handedly at times. But both aspects are balanced admirably so the album manages to avoid any blase synth malaise that tarnished the 80s somewhat, nor does it seem to fall between the cracks of countless other fusion upstart groups. But then why would it?- as Destroyer, this is Bejer's 9^th album; he was honing his craft when the barren existentilism of the 80s was still considered modern and inovative in the early 90s. Again, these facets really are just ancillary to the core of Kaputt which is constructed from more orchestral and classical instruments. Flute, clarinet, saxophone, and trumpet, and bass- in it's diminutive way- make up the backbone here. But they aren't all employed in tandem or conjunction, rather sprinkled sporadically throughout the songs, with only occasional intermingling of all the instruments. “Suicide Note for Kara...” provides a perfect example of this as throughout the 8 minute track the central instrument keeps shifting; kind of like Mike Oldfield only not as jarringly mind bending and alienating. The shifting in arrangements here seem much more natural and unobtrusive. As a result, while the overall aesthetic is consistently orchestral jazz, the specifics and details are varied and even spontaneous. The music carries a sort of aged and eloquent wisdom to it, developing into a reassuring sense of warmth and comfort. For someone who was recently trumpeting the merits of the bizarre and slightly unsettling stylings of acts like Caribou, it's nice to be reminded of the joys one finds at the opposite end of the spectrum.

Song of the Week: "Chinatown" by Destroyer

What happens when you combine mid 80s cocaine fulled existentialism, early 90s smooth jazz, and modern day production sensibilities? This, apparently. The first track of Destroyer's new album Kaputt, "Chinatown" is relaxing if nothing else. Dan Bejer's voice is a tad aristocratic, but it's complimented nicely by sporadic pop ins from back up vocalist Sibel Thrasher. The various musical elements are pretty disparate, but the jazz stylings act like a molasses, naturally binding everything together. In other words, it works. Give it a listen and keep your eyes peeled for a full album review in the next couple days.

Watch Sleigh Bells' New Video for "Rill Rill"

Also known as "the one song from the album that won't make your ears bleed", Rill Rill is one of many  stand out tracks from Sleigh Bell's debut album Treats. Directed by Jon Watts, the clip seems to pay homage to a number of iconic American cinema templates- the road trip, the high school romance, you get the idea. Here however, there a few twists thrown in, from blood letting telephones and other flavors of horror, to Derek Miller getting thrown from a speeding car. That part is awesome.

Top 40 Songs of 2010: Part 4

10- Beach House- “Real Love”

This is a song that, due to its deceptive simplicity, defies standard descriptors. It has nothing to do with the Victoria Legrand's voice, haunting as it may be. The lyrics are so deeply imbedded with meaning and intent, but shrouded by her own history making it somewhat impenetrable. To say that you could fall in love with minimalist piano beat is so highly normative, that it does you no good. It's entirely plausible you could hate how it sounds- albeit unlikely. At times like this you could throw out the “more than the sum of its parts” line; with “Real Love” that seems like a cop out. Attributing its content to some sort of sentimentality or factor of nostalgia again seems to be skirting along the periphery of the issue. Perhaps its just vague and benin enough in terms of content and aesthetics that whatever it is she is trying to convey seems cathartically applicable to whatever horrible or wonderful event of your own life you find yourself dwelling on. Is it something of pure adulation or an agonizing reminder? It's tricky this one- but its damn good.

Top 40 Songs of 2010: Part 3

20- Shit Robot- “Take em Up”

If Nancy Whang is singing, it will be on my year end list. On this matter, I will accept no arguments. Her voice engages you through a weird blend of sterilizing monotony and genuine emotion. She has this robotic digitized way of singing at times but segues beautifully into more melodic wave form deliveries, like when she sings “but he said it's all right, and he said it's all right, and you know it's all right, now there's just no reason not to say no”. Musically “Take em Up” is like an 8 bit bedroom beat cracked up on melodramatic overture, sketchy guitar strings and obtuse synth base notes. The whole thing is salacious and scandalous, only cynically encased in aristocratic yet soulless shell. But as Whang memorializes the exploits, mishaps and mysteries of her nights that casing is splayed open. By growing slightly more jittery, with a carful blending of euphonic soft notes from the key board and increasingly elongated, ephemeral echos of Whang's voice, the rhythm becomes more organic. As the end approaches, the beat slows down, giving way to a broken down speech from Whang. She tries to convey the futility of desire, and our unwillingness to grow beyond its depleting effects on us. While she seems to have reached her limit from these tribulations, she's got one more round in her still. She ends it on a high note.

2010 in pictures

What good is listening to the ramblings of someone droning on and on about concerts without any pictures to accompany them. To address this egregious oversight I offer a brief compilations of shots from some of the shows I attended in the previous year. I can't tell you how much I regret not getting any shots from the LCD Soundsystem show. Anyways, let's do this.

Julian Casablancas at The Commodore