Archive for the ‘New Release’ Category
Sun Kil Moon – Admiral Fell Promises Album Review
You’d think that a band named after a Korean boxer would have a bit of an edge to it.
Well, you’d be wrong.
Sun Kil Moon, the solo project of singer-songwriter Mark Kozelek (formerly of Red House Painters), has as much edge as a tennis ball.
Admiral Fell Promises, the third album of original material from Kozelek under the Sun Kil Moon moniker, sees him continuing his tradition of taking a nylon-stringed guitar and little else and turning out gorgeously bare tunes that drip with loneliness and melancholy.
Ready to step into a time machine and get whisked back to the late Sixties/early Seventies period when energetic soul music ruled the day?
Well if so, then Eli “Paperboy” Reed has the solution – his major label debut album, Come And Get It!
If you were to listen to this album without any idea of who the artist was, you would certainly be forgiven if you thought it came straight out of Chicago in the Seventies. Actually, you’d probably be expected to think that given the relative paucity of new, young soul singers keeping the tradition alive amongst today’s listeners.
Beware all ye who despise the art of the pinch harmonics.
If you are at all familiar with Zakk Wylde’s work as the frontman for Black Label Society, you know exactly what I’m talking about – those shrieking, bent guitar notes that are slipped into every conceivable nook and cranny of the song. That’s just how Zakk rolls; it’s his signature style. Personally, I don’t have a problem with it at all, but those who simply can’t stand it should be warned up front that on BLS’ eighth studio album, nothing has changed in that regard.
In fact, Order Of The Black lacks almost any semblance of exploration from a band that is so deeply entrenched in its own sound. But, honestly, does BLS seem all that much like a band that wants to push the boundaries of its sound? They do a few things really well, and that’s no different here.
A couple of days ago I got off my arse long enough to go check out Scott Pilgrim VS The World. It totally knocked me out. It’s an absolute thrill-ride; packed with OTT battles, quotable quips and awesome tunes. I’d recommend you see the movie, as not only is it one of the year’s best, but you’ll get the full effect of the blistering soundtrack.
OSTs are a curious thing. It’s rare to find a compiled movie soundtrack that is more hit than miss. Sure, we’ve had a few good ones over the years. Juno had plenty of nerdy, too-hip-for-their-own-good acoustic numbers, whereas Death Proof provided us with the perfect bar room mix. Besides those, it’s a very short list…one that you can add Scott Pilgrim to.
The interesting thing about this soundtrack is that some of the songs – performed by reputable Canadian artists – are based off the comic book series. Bands took Bryan Lee O’Malley’s fiction and made real songs from it, remaining faithful to the feel of his work. Indie kook Beck does a stellar job of interpreting the songs of Scott Pilgrim’s own band, Sex Bob-Omb; Garbage Truck and We are Sex Bob-Omb prove to be two of the best tracks on here. Metric contribute ass-shaker Black Sheep to the mix (attributed to the mega-famous band of Pilgrim’s ex-girlfriend, The Clash at Demonhead, in the movie), adding an interesting hipster slant to compliment the raucous garage-rock of Beck’s tracks. However, the most impressive thing about this soundtrack is the eclectic work of Broken Social Scene. For over a decade this band have pushed pop boundaries, and they write the songs for Crash and the Boys, a local rival band of Sex Bob-Omb. Their barbed song titles (I am Sad, SoVery, Very Sad etc) provide some comedic heft in the movie, I am Sad… being about a second long. We Hate You Please Die is an aggressive and entertaining effort, showing a side of BSS that hasn’t really been seen before.
Broken Social Scene also contribute the best song here, their very own Anthems For A Seventeen-Year Old Girl, which provides a laid-back relief from the pounding rhythms of the other tracks. The song’s looped vocals and heavily-synthesised vibe are truly fantastic. It’s disappointing, then, that the other “real” songs are not quite up to scratch. Sure, they’re mostly fine, Plumtree’s Scott Pilgrimis a brilliant slice of Grrl Rock, but tracks by T-Rex and The Bluetones signal a dip in quality. The soundtrack’s real strength lies in its quirky catchiness, yet there are a few songs that only serve to kill the party. No matter though, because as far as movie soundtracks go, this is a winner. Check out the comics, check out the movie, then get your hands on this, because all 3 are riotously entertaining.
As mentioned before, Tom Morello is a very busy man. He is still working with Boots Riley as Street Sweeper Social Club. Their self titled debut album was released in 2009, to some mixed reactions. The album was bursting at the seams with its politically charged lyrics that everyone would have expected from The Coup or Rage Against The Machine (or even Morello’s Nightwatchman alter-ego.) being smoothly by Riley and the always impressive guitar playing that Morello is known for. It was an album that is amazing…on paper. The execution of it did leave something to be desired. That is not to say that the album is terrible by any means, but both of these artists’ styles needed a bit more blending. When the songs worked, they were amazing, but the rest needed more tweaking so that they could mix together better.
If The Ghetto Blaster EP is a sign of things to come from this duo, then all of us have something to be excited for. The 7 song EP features three new songs (”Ghetto Blaster”, “The New Fuck You”, and “Scars”), three covers (M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes” and LL Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out”, The Coup’s “Everythang”) and a remix of one of the better songs from their eponymous debut “Promenade”.
More after the jump
Die Antwoord – 5 Album Review
If your first reaction upon listening and/or seeing Die Antwoord (”The Answer” in Afrikaans) is a big “What the fucking fuck did I just bear witness to?,” don’t despair – that’s just par for the course.
Die Antwoord is something of an enigma – a South African hip-hop crew featuring a mullet-sporting pixie, a mute DJ, and a schlong-swinging frontman (seriously, you’ll never look at the cover of The Dark Side of the Moon the same again) who spits his rhymes in a blur of English and Afrikaans.
Some people have even suggested that the group may in some way be a Sacha Baron Cohen-esque outfit designed to fool you into believing there could be a group such as this that actually takes themselves seriously. Of course, you wouldn’t believe it if they didn’t have some skills to back it up, and as they show on their new EP, 5, they’ve definitely got skills – the only question is if the laughing is intentional or not.
Arcade Fire is the kind of band that doesn’t do small scale. For them, it’s always go big or go home with their arena-ready anthems for the indie crowd.
That’s a daunting task for any young band to shoulder, but it’s more or less been Arcade Fire’s ethos since day one. And whereas most bands with grand ambitions would rather gradually build towards something huge, these guys want to hit a home run every time they step to the plate.
On their third album, The Suburbs, they managed to hit a moonshot that not only cleared the park but it’s probably still yet to land.
At one point, metalcore was a fresh genre. It even managed to evolve for a while on the merits of adding melodic elements to a sound that had been predicated on the manic ethos of hardcore.
But even the bands that managed to ascend the metalcore mountain, like Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall, and Hatebreed, have recently seen their sound stagnate like so many other lesser bands. The whole situation smells of a genre that may have reached its spoiling point, with countless younger bands trying to rip off the sounds of their musical forefathers before the genre itself fades in popularity.
The result has been that the past five years has seen the metalcore genre devolve into an amorphous pool of uninspired and unexciting bands all seemingly playing the same tired songs as everyone else. Norma Jean, while not the worst of the bunch, certainly don’t manage to escape this swirling riptide with their fifth studio album, Meridional.
Avenged Sevenfold have always been a band that I felt mixed emotions about.
On the one hand, I was opposed to their whole brand of shallow, image-obsessed, machismo-drenched pap. On the other hand, their technical skills, particularly on guitar, are absolutely top-notch. Not only that, but they write undeniably catchy songs. It’s just so hard to get into a band if you think they’re a bunch of douchebags.
But the potential has always been there to rise above their collective flaws, which is why I gave this band another chance to win me over with their new album Nightmare.
And I’m glad that I did. Nightmare is the definition of everything that can be good about the genre of pop metal.
Trent Reznor has always made unequivocally masculine music. From the lyrical themes that dominate Nine Inch Nail’s discography to that band’s trademark electro-warfare and his howled barks, you were always keenly aware that you were hearing a guy pouring his angst and misery into the music.
Enter the new Mrs. Reznor – aka Mariqueen Maandig, formerly the singer of West Indian Girl. After retiring the live version of Nine Inch Nails, Reznor got married and jumped right back into the studio with his new bride (along with frequent NIN collaborator Atticus Ross) under the banner How To Destroy Angels. There is absolutely no mistaking the Reznor/Ross influence of the band’s debut self-titled EP, but Maandig’s inclusion lends a femininity to the classic NIN sound in a way that is both compelling and utterly appropriate.