The mark of an exceptionally visual film director is that every frame
could stand alone as a great photograph, poster or post card. With the
exception of 'Lost Highway', David Lynch has seemingly held on to this
skill. In the style of his most popular films, he sets up this story as
a mystery, wrapped inside an enigma. Set in the Hollywood Hills, a
woman is the only survivor of a car accident but is left wandering with
amnesia. By chance she happens upon a vacant apartment (as the renter
is vacating) and hides out until she's discovered by a wholesome
passenger who gets sucked into the rollercoaster ride. Lynch has an
undeniable mastery of all elements as the score, sound effects,
characters and camera shots all play into a twisted story of the
hyperphysical underground of a shallow business: filmmaking! Popular
Lynch elements also come into play: the use of coffee, unexplained
objects, the name Diane, red stage curtains, death and light, invented
(as opposed to strategically placed for advertisement purposes)
products, off-camera people answering on-camera phones knowing who the
other caller is when they pick up, and of course Roy Orbison. (Rebekah
Del Rio's a'capella Spanish rendition of "Crying" has got to be one of
the most captivating moments of the film.) Betty and Rita are the
innocents playing detective, selflessly trying to help each other out
and uncover the mystery, yet Diane and Camilla are the alter-egos,
guilty as sin and driven by selfish desires. As complex as the plot
seems, this film is basically about deceit, but on many levels however.
Not only are the characters deceiving each other, they are deceiving
themselves while David Lynch is completely deceiving the audience into
believing which part of this film is reality and which part is fantasy.
At the end it's up to you to decide which is which.
Imagine being lost in some 1950's sitcom, except when the lights and
cameras go off and the phony smiles disappear there is a dark lifeless
world of crime and murder. The lead character Betty seems almost
perfect with her conservative appearance and charming personality, but
by night she seems like a different person, often naughty and
dangerous. In Lynch's Hollywood, the night is extra dark and the day
seems excessively bright. The sounds of the night are often dark and
disturbing while the sounds of the day are perky and happy. The other
lead, Rita, is introduced on a darkened stretch of Mulholland Drive
where a murder is about to take place, her own. A horrific accident
causes her to escape but with no recollection of who she is. The
mystery begins when Betty and Rita meet up and try to figure out who
Rita is. As they come closer and closer to the Rita's identity, they
fall in love. Their love seems so perfect, yet it doesn't seem real.
Like that 50's sitcom it seems to be all a dream. When will this dream
end? It doesn't. Mulholland Drive remains a dream, remains a mystery.
As we come closer to discovering the truth, Lynch switches characters
around and Rita becomes Camilla Rhodes, an actress in love with a
director and Betty becomes Diane Selwyn another actress in love with
Camilla. Just when you think you've figured everything out the plot
thickens. The dream goes on forever. At this point, however, you simply
have to sit back and enjoy the dream. Don't try to figure it out or it
will end up haunting you and leave you wandering down Mulholland Drive
forever.
Last week I was lucky enough to hear one of the most energetic, unique
and exciting rock bands on the planet perform what can be inadequately
described as experimental hardcore punk at the three best gigs I've
been to this year. Melt Banana of Tokyo are on tour in Europe and
making an exhilarating manic noise everywhere they go. Their surgically
masked guitarist Agata, sends all kinds of unlikely sounds roaring from
his six strings via his big rack of effects pedals; breaking glass,
machine gun fire and emergency sirens all augment his frantic slide
antics. Singer Yako sounds utterly unlike any other singer, yelping
like a small puppy or letting loose a helium barrage of unintelligible
invectice as she does a surf dance through the thick waves of Banana
mosh fodder. Tiny bassist Rika and American drummer Dave, formerly of
Discordance Axis and now of internet noisemongers Atomsmasher, keep up
the breathtakingly fast rhythm. The band have been playing and touring
long enough to perfect their art attack and show everyone else how rock
music can still blast ecstatically into the future. They played mostly
songs from their recent and best albums 'Charlie' and 'Teeny Shiny',
and as usual did one of their legendary cover songs, this time a
traditional Italian tune 'Tintarella di Luna'. The Liverpool gig was
especially sweaty and chaotic, with Agata grabbing a table a few songs
in to keep people from falling on his pedals.
In Leeds and Liverpool, support bands John Holmes, Narcosis and
Voorhees were of the angry hardcore variety. Dave likened John Holmes
to Prong although they seemed slower. Manchester supports were
experimental noisemongers Magic City and Triclops and the comedy laptop
processed shouting swearing racket of Speedranch^Jansky Noise.
Speedranch was gutted not to be able to hire a bouncy Castle for the
occasion, so made do with jumping off the PA into the crowd where
someone emptied a beer can over his head. If you're in France, Germany,
Austria, Switzerland or Italy over the next two months or so, you might
be able to catch Melt Banana before they go back to Japan. Check out
the tour dates at www.splatterpromotion.com.
The "entertainment industry" often becomes the target for politicians
trying to win brownie points for a voting segment or parents who need a
scape goat other than themselves. The lifestyles of those who chose to
be in this field are often frowned upon — the pay is shit and it's an
expensive trade to be in. "Why don't you want to be a doctor or lawyer
like your cousin?" There's even that pathetic amount of ridicule that
goes on when people tend to disagree on something as personal as
preference. Over the last week, amongst many things on my mind is how
important entertainment really is.
When I woke on September 11th, one of the World Trade Towers was on
fire — nobody could confirm whether it was a bomb or fire. Minutes
later, I, along with millions of others witnessed live an airplane
crashing into the second tower, shortly thereafter a plane crashed into
the Pentagon. What the fuck is going on in our world? What is next? Is
this armageddon? It was the most terrifying day I have ever lived
through. It didn't help that in these very tense hours, our selected
leader was nowhere to be found, flying all over the country, in what
seemed like a surreal chess game where the king is the most protected
yet comparitively helpless piece.
Panic was taking over where shock was giving way. I tried to phone
friends in NY and one in Washington who works for the government but
all lines were overloaded, jammed. Soon, the towers crumbled, and the
feeling of panic and everything just sunk into an indescribable feeling
of void, sadness and emptiness. The pictures had clearly shown loads of
rescue workers and volunteers scrambling to save thousands of people,
many of them didn't have enough chance to make it out to safety.
Towards the end of the day, contacts were made, all friends and family
I knew who were in these places were safe. Contacts were made later
with close friends and family just to say hi and how much we care for
and love each other.
Over the next few days, the news reports were filled with much sadness
and despair. The loss is catastrophic and the amount of love and
support shown across the world was comforting in a time of great pain.
(Heck, I even cried when the Brits played our national anthem.)
However, tensions were high everywhere. From my own personal
experience, many people on music-related electronic forums I either
read or subscribe to engaged in heated arguments, finger pointing and
name calling. If anything, these experiences have reinforced my
feelings in the necessity for people to listen and try their hardest to
exercise a bit of understanding. This goes for -ALL- sides: I'm hurt,
sad and angry when I hear about people spouting their mouths off about
killing people of various nations as well as when I hear people
automatically assume my government is about to take part in the murder
of innocent civilians. I have spoken my mind, but have been accused of
being a bully, a stupid yank, intolerable, and siding with the opposing
side of whoever I'm disagreeing with. All because I probably have not
properly communicated that I wish people would try to be more
understanding, considerate and less bigoted. Maybe Greater Than One
were really profound when they wrote back in 1988, "Ignorance is the
Agent of Fear"; "Fear is the Agent of Violence."
There comes a time where you feel that you can't take it any more. The
TV shows you images nearly everybody has seen over and over and over
again, the arguments get so fierce and personal that you begin to lose
ability to focus properly on work, life, personal interactions, etc,...
Now, more than ever, I'm finding how important music is in my life. To
have the luxury of turning everything off for a bit of introspection,
whether it be for the new Lali Puna, a comforting old Cocteau Twins,
Beatles, Pixies, Nurse With Wound or Bjorn Again, is truly magical.
Some may consider it escape, some may consider it solace, some may
consider it spiritual or inspirational, but it is yours for
consideration.
With that, I'm proud to have such a minimal part of "this industry" and
an important role in a team who is helpful and sharing, caring and
listening. We need this. We need to continue on. We need music and we
need to continue sharing and listening.
I might dog them on their recorded releases, but boy can these guys put
on a great show. It's seemingly a simple formula - three folks with
analogue synths and an occasional bass plus a live drummer. The feel
however is far more punk rock than they have ever expressed on any
record. Sure they play all the hits and new songs, but they also end
the night with a cover of the Stooges, "I Wanna Be Your Dog." It's
furious, sexual and powerful, and don't miss them if they're in your
town.
He might not be a household name but the world is sadly one honorable
person less this week. Ellis (along with fellow Duke University
graduate Tom Truscott) invented the concept of Usenet back in 1979. A
year later, the program was written and two computers in remote
locations were allowed to share information between each other. By
1993, there were over a thousand Usenet newsgroups, and at the close of
the century, nearly 40,000. Their efforts helped create the spread of
information which became the foundation of what the web has done
graphically, all without ever making a penny. I may have never known
the guy, but without him, you wouldn't be reading brainwashed right now
- I probably wouldn't have known Chris Miller, Greg Clow or Alan Ezust.
On top of that, I probably wouldn't have held on to my beliefs and
experiences from the early days that the exchange of this information
should be free of charge, advertisements and corporate sponsorship.
Thanks Jim, wherever you are, you were a visionary, a pioneer and man
of principles.
No matter what I say about Timothy McVeigh, I'm going to get hell, but
I feel that I want to share my personal opinion, as a US citizen, as
somebody who opposed the actions of my government.
First off I want to say how sick I am of being flooded with overused
terminology and the majority of reasons for both justification or
disapproval. People on one side use the term "closure" - which makes no
sense to me as friends and family members have been removed permanently
from the earth prematurely. On the other side, the argument "two wrongs
don't make a right" is often spoken, but that's a pretty empty
statement when just tossed around like the tired old proverb it is.
The death penalty is wrong: as we owe an intangible knowledge our
families, our children and future generations, to closely examine
people who have been produced by our own society. We need to be
responsible for our own products, our own actions, our own people, and
find out what needs to change in order to raise our children to benefit
the world they are a part of. It's a shame sociologists, psychologists,
biologists and other scientists will not have McVeigh as a specimen to
poke, prod, pick at for years, use for research and learn from. The man
was willing to die from the beginning, knowing full well what he was in
for. He met the fate he chose six years ago this past Monday. He chose
his destiny and they gave him what he wanted. He was not punished, we
all were.
It was a good 45 minut drive to Gloucester on Thursday evening but it
was well worth the trip. A relatively out-of the way place called The
Fishtown Artspace had a night of some very stylish rock music.
Unfortunately I showed up too late to catch Tigersaw, but I do like the
members and their CD is pretty sweet. 27 was playing when I walked in,
also a local Boston-based group, rocking out with a strange blend of
Louisville-influenced rock combined with pre-programmed electronics to
accent the mix. Chris Brokaw of Come, Pullman and the New Year got up
to do a short set of guitar and voice, but what knocked me off my socks
was the performance from Austin-based Explosions in the Sky.
The group
of four begun quiet with shimmering three-guitar melodies which cut
through the night. This is one of those bands any musician just sits
back and watches with their lower jaw on the floor wondering "why can't
I come up with melodies like this?" The group continued and with a
style not entirely unlike Mogwai or Godspeed, the levels and energy
built, higher and higher and higher. Taking steps back between songs,
the motion of the night never ceased, with a blaring ending as their
drummer loses his sticks, uses his fists and collapses over the entire
set.
Baltimore-based Sonna headlined the night and in a similar fashion
was a instrumental act with four amazingly skilled musicians who
observedly have an uncanny ability to pay perfect attention to
everybody else. The writing style of Sonna could very well be much more
skilled and original than Explosions but the energy and drive of the
Austin boys more than made up for any of those differences. Fans of
godspeed, Mogwai or Tarentel shouldn't avoid this show - tour dates are
posted at www.temporaryresidence.com.
It makes me want to run screaming in primitive joy, detonating nuclear
bombs, tearing down the city of Manchester and makes the perfect
soundtrack to watching the sun go down as I walk the fifty minute trek
through park, wastelands and dingy back streets, across the concrete
divide to Planet K. It's a tape of early Killing Joke demos and live
things and the wired conviction of that tribal drumming, barbarically
electrifying distorted synth and lyrical visions of armageddon are
still very potent, and show up much of the 'rock music' that has come
along since as the vapid piffle it is.
Amazingly in Planet K things were even more perfectly apocalyptic. The
stage is bare, as if swept clean of life, but there's a massive
headcleaning electric crackle resonating across the space as blue white
rectangles flicker where performers are missing. The hum seems a
logical stripping of Killing Joke to its essential wired core -
Coleman's overloading synth. Occasional deep bass pulses shake the
foundations at too slow a pace to register timing. Kevin Drumm is
perched behind a laptop at the sound desk and is responsible for this
overpowering purging noise.
This being Manchester, home of Buzzcocks, it could've been time to
crack a bad Boredom pun about the Drumm hum but Mike Ladd wasn't
allowing us any downtime. The band ambled on and launched as the Drumm
fizzled out.
Was this the new dawn after the nuclear storm?
After Drumm's precise tones the sound was relatively muddy for the full
on four piece with drums, raps, guitar/computer and turntables. Mike
Ladd has a T-shirt emblazoned with the legend Afro Punk and gives us
some spiel about his inspirations Bad Brains, Black Flag and Fishbone.
Why do Americans in Europe eat at Pizza Hut? There are bigger questions
but this between song joke exemplified the imperialist cloak of the
'free' market before Ladd scratched and funked his mark as an
infesticon (opposed to majesticon).
It was a shame that Drumm didn't get another set before Tortoise did
their thing. They did a professional set with much instrument swapping
and it didn't really take off until the second half. I think they
launched into what seemed like a freeform jam in the middle of TNT (or
was it another track its hard to tell with all this lack of words) and
Herndon was really giving it some at the drums. It was neat the way
they almost seemed to lose control there...
The last trio of songs nailed it. A silence still at their instruments
then BLAM! Senceca unleashed that dual guitar duel and the fire and
fury was in their eyes and hearts. If only they could make a whole
album like that first two minutes of free falling two turning
pluck'n'strum'n'drum! Then the much requested Djed was an eye opener
that faded like the setting sun as McEntire and Herndon decelerated
their vibraphone runs.
Where Drumm had sparked off a cleansing fire and Ladd had the diatribes
and plans and notions to free nations, Tortoise were embracing visions
of post-apocalyptic utopianism - a new dawn after the flood that will
wash away the masters and leave the servants what is left of the world.
Ladd was back with a vision to take into the night as the final bars of
the Tortoise European leg faded into the smoke.
The meek shall inherit the mirth.
Don't burn the flag, lets burn the Bush.
Sadly enough, many people have arrived at brainwashed or are now Warp
Records fans because Coil, Meat Beat Manifesto and Aphex Twin have
crept into their collection through NIN remixes. What most average NIN
listener doesn't realize yet is that Reznor's entire act is derivative
from Cabaret Voltaire, Front 242, Kiss, 'With Sympathy'-era Ministry
and above all, Gary Numan. Watching this man step on stage to a large
club packed with about 600 die hard fans is a rather messianic
experience. The man has a career half way through its third decade, a
fresh and energetic young band and he looks incredible for his age.
Numan has always toyed with the part man/part machine persona, so it
comes as no surprise his backing group is a talented array of cyber
rivetheads, and while his music over the years has straddled genres, it
has never lost its anthemic fervor. The crowd went nuts for every song,
singing along with every word, reminding me once again that I need to
hear more of his post-1984 material. Of course, when suggested, most
people will turn away, lumping Numan into a category with one-hit
wonders and nostalgic retrospective collections including Culture Club
and Kajagoogoo. So he might play "Cars" live, so what? Listen to me:
it's good for you (things really only started making sense to me after
seeing his live incarnate, I'll never miss a show of his now). There's
nothing cheesy, aging or dated about the killer show and those who
doubt are only displaying their ignorance. Live dates are posted at www.numan.co.uk.
By now the group has returned to their quiet Scottish countryside
homes, no doubt suffering some hearing loss after this most recent US
tour. Tuesday night's stop was their second to last on this brief tour,
the band played at the classical-style balcony-equipped Somerville
Theatre in Boston to a nearly sold-out crowd. The performance began as
most of their music does: calm, quiet, melodic and pretty. Selections
included music off their recent EP and LP and their forthcoming "Rock:
Action" album, due for imminent release. But be warned, since their
last visit the group has gained weight, lost hair and collected
distortion pedals along the way. Yes, they're fucking angry this time
with a wall of sound lounder than anything I've heard in years.
Exercising their volume muscles half way through the show every song
began to end on a very loud note, with humming feedback dragging on
while the members stood in front of amplifiers just to get -that- much
more umph. But wait, just when you thought it was loud enough, the
keyboardist emerges towards the front of the stage, guitar in hand, he
clicks it on slams a floor pedal and BOOM! The noise suddenly becomes
even more multi-dimensional. Much like many of these songs, the show
itself ended with a long barrage of distortion stretching at least
twenty minutes. Now, while many fans in attendance there were entirely
blown away by the experience, I found it rather excessive. People were
leaving the show with only one thing on their mind "that was loud!"
Indeed it was, but it sort of masked the musical portion of the show.
Nobody at this point could remember the keyboardist's flute-playing
bits or delicate piano playing, unfamiliar melodies of a forthcoming
album or a beautiful cellist that sat on stage right adding a charming
color nearly half the night. It was indeed Rock Action - a bunch of
teenagers nodding and agreeing with their buddies about how much that
show "kicked ass." Are Mogwai to become the Motley Crue of this decade?
ESG, "SOUTH BRONX STORY" Between the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, the 'No Wave' movement surfaced, combining art-funk, punk and dance music into a mix which was not a commercial breakthrough, but was revered by many in the music community to be of great influence. One of the acts, ESG was comprised of four sisters from South Bronx, NY, and through many shows including gigs with The Clash, Public Image and Grandmaster Flash the group gained some attention across the water. Soon the group had a single produced by Martin Hannett, released on Factory Records, a gig at the opening night for legendary Manchester club, The Hacienda and more gigs with groups like A Certain Ratio and Gang of Four. Songs like "Moody" went on to become popular favorites in various night clubs while the b-side, a very 'Unknown Pleasures' Joy Division-sounding "UFO" went on to be sampled by rap acts including Public Enemy, Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J and Doug E. Fresh. After a few singles and years of playing out a full-length album was released in 1983, but the interest waned, hip-hop was in and nobody was paying for the samples. The group still plays around occasionally and even released a track in 1993, "Sample Credits Don't Pay Our Bills." This collection, from a division of Soul Jazz Records (UK) reintroduces to the public songs from their album and singles along with some other early tracks. Listening to the music, their influence on early Beastie Boys, Luscious Jackson and early Salt -N- Pepa can clearly be heard. While it's arguably primitive in parts, the soul and energy is present throughout the entire disc, songs like "Erase You" are feverishly catchy while the Spaced-Out album version of "Moody" are hypnotizing.
Metro Boston residents were fortunate to be treated to two area performances including the first from Pan American and the latest incarnation of Hrvatski. On Thursday night at Brandeis University's Rose Gallery Museum, Keith Fullerton Whitman (known to the world as Hrvatski) began the three-act show, sitting behind his laptop, guitar in hand, creating a film score-like experience.
TORTOISE, "STANDARDS" Nearly everybody reading this weekly electronic magazine has heard Tortoise by now and has already made up their mind one way or another on Tortoise's music. It's almost pointless to review the disc here as fans will most likely buy it and non-fans will most likely pass. If there was one rule to always believe in when it came to Tortoise's music is that the rules change every time. This time around the group pulled almost a complete 180° from 1998's TNT. While TNT took several months to record and loads of post-production perfectioning time, Standards was perfected live on the road (while the band opened for The Eternals as 'Woodcult') and recorded within a couple weeks. TNT was a cold-calculated exercise in recording technology while Standards is the result of a true rock band in action, bringing many influences and backgrounds to the easel and almost spitting them up on to the canvas without lengthy hesitation. The album explodes at the start with much louder than expected teeth-gnashing rock riffs, beefy drums, chunky bass and a nasty organ. Thus the concept is established - a simple rock concept of ten songs, five to each side of the record, almost the anti-concept of 'Millions' and even 'TNT' to some extent. The rest of the songs bounce around from slow to mid-tempo numbers balancing a somewhat familiar mix, as the group hasn't really changed. It's still the same people - the same paintbrushes are being used but the painting is of a rather new style. Familiar sounds include the counterpoint between low guitar and vibes, grumbling basslines, colorful percussion and a perfect amount of electronic manipulation. Perhaps this is the album which will unite fans of the old debut with the fans of TNT. Look out for the proverbial overpriced Japanese edition. This one's got 2 bonus tracks which total about 11 minutes.
THE NEW YEAR, "NEWNESS ENDS" After much anticipation, the first release from the group formed from the ashes of Bedhead has finally materialized. While it quite clearly sounds like the Kadane brothers playing together, this indeed is a new group that almost follows a sort of progression built from the last full-length Bedhead album, 1998's 'Transaction De Novo'. The songwriting core of the Kadane brothers have become more experimental in both time and key signature, whilst surprisingly at the same time being more direct. Unlike the frequent Bedhead appearance of lengthy intros, the New Year takes little to no time getting right to the point, resulting in an album of ten solid songs totalling under 35 minutes. This is a great example on how important the mixture of musicians can change a sound despite the writing core remaining the same. Included in the group is former Come, Codeine and cuurent Pullman guitarist Chris Brokaw on the drums, who does a remarkably impressive job keeping up with weird time signatures and subtle changes which take place on the entire record. It starts off with a kick and ends with a bang as well, the quiet moments are kept in the middle — almost the exact opposite of Transaction. I must admit that at first listen I was rather caught off-guard as it wasn't that next Bedhead record I had been so longing for, but it changed for me. What began as catchy tunes became songs stuck in my head all day long, shortly after that I found myself singing along. Can't wait to finally see the show.
PAPA M, "SINGS" David Pajo is quite arguably the indie scene's most versatile musician and artist. His guitar work has been integral parts of Slint and Tortoise while guest appearance and accessory roles have been filled for Matmos, Stereolab, Royal Trux and Will Oldham's Palace. Those close to him can also attest to his brilliance as a visual artist as well, but we will just have to take their words for now. 'Papa M Sings' is quite an unexpected trip, but not completely foreign given his geographic location on the planet. David Pajo exercises his vocal chords for every song on this 20-minute six-tracker. For the first time I think I can actually hear the Kentuckian guy behind his music, as the style is heavily soaked in a midwestern country influence. Absent are the looping melodies, electronic processing, lengthy delays and electronic percussion. It's all been replaced by Dave's acoustic guitar, slide guitar, bass, drums and banjo. Vocally, he's got a heartfelt delivery of somewhat comical lyrics, dropping references to his record label and Bob Dylan in "Pissing in the Wind," and longing for his home, (probably written on one of his many trips through the UK) in "London Homesick Blues." The disc is amusing and should appeal to most Will Oldham and Molasses fans, but I doubt many Europeans would quite fully 'get it' having not grown up over here.
Here's another seemingly pointless review as the Pan Sonic fans will have already ordered this so as not to have missed out on the limited run while the others would have passed.
MOUNT FLORIDA, "ARRIVED PHOENIX" So I've been staring at this disc for months despite its release being in late January. This Glaswegian duo has released three EPs over the past year, none of which I have mentioned, but I feel the urge to write about this, their debut full-lengther. I'm really enjoying their tackling of various genres and styles of instrumental rock and electronics, their style jumps around from spacey techno dub bits through abrasive rock chords, but it seems rather unfocused, bipolar and somewhat lacking. The group seems to rely on their production almost entirely as they're clearly 'building songs' (as opposed to 'creating artwork' or 'making a statement' or 'sending a message') which need more compelling hooks. They've got a clean sound and execute with a certain degree of professionalism, however it doesn't really have the bite of other genre-crossing instrumentalists like Tortoise nor the emotion of groups like Fridge or Mogwai. Not that the music sounds like any of those, but for an instrumental record within a generally accepted definition of electronic/rock, it comes up rather bland. Worth mentioning is the fact that I have found good uses for this on the radio and with guests over at the house. Songs like the guitar-punchy "Postal" and the tripped out blissful "Space, echoes" have drummed up some interest from curious listeners but I simply don't get what's so special about it. While this is nothing I would personally recommend dropping everything for and running out to get, Matador does have a track record of releasing music which similarly does not speak loud to me yet reaches many others in its path. Boards of Canada, Console and Wisdom of Harry immediately come to mind — while I generally think of these as fair, average, and vanilla-esque, they seem to have gained a lot of interest with others. Anyhow it's up to you, there should be some sound samples here soon! I really need to sleep now.
FREEZEPOP, "FOREVER" This young, well-coiffed fashion savvy Boston trio reminds me why I prefer why Pizzicato Five sings in Japanese, as it's far easier to enjoy superficial lyrics when they're in an incomprehensible language. The music is simple, full of predictable progressions, pre-programmed sounds and beats, with a flat vocal delivery derived from overdosing on Laurie Anderson, Kraftwerk and Liz Phair. Melodies aren't complex and harmony isn't in their vocabulary. Don't be fooled by catch phrases like "80s Retro" or "Electro Lounge" however as the tunes closely resemble those of many a teenager's terrible demos sitting in the trash buckets at Mute Records. "Kinder-pop" might be more appropriate, however, as I've heard of 5 year olds with a better sense of composition. To their credit, there's a lot of local support for the group, and I personally feel they have the potential to become something of note. One song on this disc jumps out, their Japanese-titled song (which appeared on the Arch Enemy 'Know Your Enemy' comp) shines head and shoulders above the rest of the tracks, with an actual effort placed on writing a multi-part song. These trust fund babies obviously have access to the equipment and recording facilities, now it's time to work on those writing skills, fellas.
The mark of an exceptionally visual film director is that every frame
could stand alone as a great photograph, poster or post card. With the
exception of 'Lost Highway', David Lynch has seemingly held on to this
skill. In the style of his most popular films, he sets up this story as
a mystery, wrapped inside an enigma. Set in the Hollywood Hills, a
woman is the only survivor of a car accident but is left wandering with
amnesia. By chance she happens upon a vacant apartment (as the renter
is vacating) and hides out until she's discovered by a wholesome
passenger who gets sucked into the rollercoaster ride. Lynch has an
undeniable mastery of all elements as the score, sound effects,
characters and camera shots all play into a twisted story of the
hyperphysical underground of a shallow business: filmmaking! Popular
Lynch elements also come into play: the use of coffee, unexplained
objects, the name Diane, red stage curtains, death and light, invented
(as opposed to strategically placed for advertisement purposes)
products, off-camera people answering on-camera phones knowing who the
other caller is when they pick up, and of course Roy Orbison. (Rebekah
Del Rio's a'capella Spanish rendition of "Crying" has got to be one of
the most captivating moments of the film.) Betty and Rita are the
innocents playing detective, selflessly trying to help each other out
and uncover the mystery, yet Diane and Camilla are the alter-egos,
guilty as sin and driven by selfish desires. As complex as the plot
seems, this film is basically about deceit, but on many levels however.
Not only are the characters deceiving each other, they are deceiving
themselves while David Lynch is completely deceiving the audience into
believing which part of this film is reality and which part is fantasy.
At the end it's up to you to decide which is which.
Between the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, the 'No Wave' movement surfaced, combining art-funk, punk and dance music into a mix which was not a commercial breakthrough, but was revered by many in the music community to be of great influence. One of the acts, ESG was comprised of four sisters from South Bronx, NY, and through many shows including gigs with The Clash, Public Image and Grandmaster Flash the group gained some attention across the water. Soon the group had a single produced by Martin Hannett, released on Factory Records, a gig at the opening night for legendary Manchester club, The Hacienda and more gigs with groups like A Certain Ratio and Gang of Four. Songs like "Moody" went on to become popular favorites in various night clubs while the b-side, a very 'Unknown Pleasures' Joy Division-sounding "UFO" went on to be sampled by rap acts including Public Enemy, Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J and Doug E. Fresh. After a few singles and years of playing out a full-length album was released in 1983, but the interest waned, hip-hop was in and nobody was paying for the samples. The group still plays around occasionally and even released a track in 1993, "Sample Credits Don't Pay Our Bills." This collection, from a division of Soul Jazz Records (UK) reintroduces to the public songs from their album and singles along with some other early tracks. Listening to the music, their influence on early Beastie Boys, Luscious Jackson and early Salt -N- Pepa can clearly be heard. While it's arguably primitive in parts, the soul and energy is present throughout the entire disc, songs like "Erase You" are feverishly catchy while the Spaced-Out album version of "Moody" are hypnotizing. 
Nearly everybody reading this weekly electronic magazine has heard Tortoise by now and has already made up their mind one way or another on Tortoise's music. It's almost pointless to review the disc here as fans will most likely buy it and non-fans will most likely pass. If there was one rule to always believe in when it came to Tortoise's music is that the rules change every time. This time around the group pulled almost a complete 180° from 1998's TNT. While TNT took several months to record and loads of post-production perfectioning time, Standards was perfected live on the road (while the band opened for The Eternals as 'Woodcult') and recorded within a couple weeks. TNT was a cold-calculated exercise in recording technology while Standards is the result of a true rock band in action, bringing many influences and backgrounds to the easel and almost spitting them up on to the canvas without lengthy hesitation. The album explodes at the start with much louder than expected teeth-gnashing rock riffs, beefy drums, chunky bass and a nasty organ. Thus the concept is established - a simple rock concept of ten songs, five to each side of the record, almost the anti-concept of 'Millions' and even 'TNT' to some extent. The rest of the songs bounce around from slow to mid-tempo numbers balancing a somewhat familiar mix, as the group hasn't really changed. It's still the same people - the same paintbrushes are being used but the painting is of a rather new style. Familiar sounds include the counterpoint between low guitar and vibes, grumbling basslines, colorful percussion and a perfect amount of electronic manipulation. Perhaps this is the album which will unite fans of the old debut with the fans of TNT. Look out for the proverbial overpriced Japanese edition. This one's got 2 bonus tracks which total about 11 minutes.
After much anticipation, the first release from the group formed from the ashes of Bedhead has finally materialized. While it quite clearly sounds like the Kadane brothers playing together, this indeed is a new group that almost follows a sort of progression built from the last full-length Bedhead album, 1998's 'Transaction De Novo'. The songwriting core of the Kadane brothers have become more experimental in both time and key signature, whilst surprisingly at the same time being more direct. Unlike the frequent Bedhead appearance of lengthy intros, the New Year takes little to no time getting right to the point, resulting in an album of ten solid songs totalling under 35 minutes. This is a great example on how important the mixture of musicians can change a sound despite the writing core remaining the same. Included in the group is former Come, Codeine and cuurent Pullman guitarist Chris Brokaw on the drums, who does a remarkably impressive job keeping up with weird time signatures and subtle changes which take place on the entire record. It starts off with a kick and ends with a bang as well, the quiet moments are kept in the middle — almost the exact opposite of Transaction. I must admit that at first listen I was rather caught off-guard as it wasn't that next Bedhead record I had been so longing for, but it changed for me. What began as catchy tunes became songs stuck in my head all day long, shortly after that I found myself singing along. Can't wait to finally see the show. 
David Pajo is quite arguably the indie scene's most versatile musician and artist. His guitar work has been integral parts of Slint and Tortoise while guest appearance and accessory roles have been filled for Matmos, Stereolab, Royal Trux and Will Oldham's Palace. Those close to him can also attest to his brilliance as a visual artist as well, but we will just have to take their words for now. 'Papa M Sings' is quite an unexpected trip, but not completely foreign given his geographic location on the planet. David Pajo exercises his vocal chords for every song on this 20-minute six-tracker. For the first time I think I can actually hear the Kentuckian guy behind his music, as the style is heavily soaked in a midwestern country influence. Absent are the looping melodies, electronic processing, lengthy delays and electronic percussion. It's all been replaced by Dave's acoustic guitar, slide guitar, bass, drums and banjo. Vocally, he's got a heartfelt delivery of somewhat comical lyrics, dropping references to his record label and Bob Dylan in "Pissing in the Wind," and longing for his home, (probably written on one of his many trips through the UK) in "London Homesick Blues." The disc is amusing and should appeal to most Will Oldham and Molasses fans, but I doubt many Europeans would quite fully 'get it' having not grown up over here. 
So I've been staring at this disc for months despite its release being in late January. This Glaswegian duo has released three EPs over the past year, none of which I have mentioned, but I feel the urge to write about this, their debut full-lengther. I'm really enjoying their tackling of various genres and styles of instrumental rock and electronics, their style jumps around from spacey techno dub bits through abrasive rock chords, but it seems rather unfocused, bipolar and somewhat lacking. The group seems to rely on their production almost entirely as they're clearly 'building songs' (as opposed to 'creating artwork' or 'making a statement' or 'sending a message') which need more compelling hooks. They've got a clean sound and execute with a certain degree of professionalism, however it doesn't really have the bite of other genre-crossing instrumentalists like Tortoise nor the emotion of groups like Fridge or Mogwai. Not that the music sounds like any of those, but for an instrumental record within a generally accepted definition of electronic/rock, it comes up rather bland. Worth mentioning is the fact that I have found good uses for this on the radio and with guests over at the house. Songs like the guitar-punchy "Postal" and the tripped out blissful "Space, echoes" have drummed up some interest from curious listeners but I simply don't get what's so special about it. While this is nothing I would personally recommend dropping everything for and running out to get, Matador does have a track record of releasing music which similarly does not speak loud to me yet reaches many others in its path. Boards of Canada, Console and Wisdom of Harry immediately come to mind — while I generally think of these as fair, average, and vanilla-esque, they seem to have gained a lot of interest with others. Anyhow it's up to you, there should be some sound samples here soon! I really need to sleep now. 
This young, well-coiffed fashion savvy Boston trio reminds me why I prefer why Pizzicato Five sings in Japanese, as it's far easier to enjoy superficial lyrics when they're in an incomprehensible language. The music is simple, full of predictable progressions, pre-programmed sounds and beats, with a flat vocal delivery derived from overdosing on Laurie Anderson, Kraftwerk and Liz Phair. Melodies aren't complex and harmony isn't in their vocabulary. Don't be fooled by catch phrases like "80s Retro" or "Electro Lounge" however as the tunes closely resemble those of many a teenager's terrible demos sitting in the trash buckets at Mute Records. "Kinder-pop" might be more appropriate, however, as I've heard of 5 year olds with a better sense of composition. To their credit, there's a lot of local support for the group, and I personally feel they have the potential to become something of note. One song on this disc jumps out, their Japanese-titled song (which appeared on the Arch Enemy 'Know Your Enemy' comp) shines head and shoulders above the rest of the tracks, with an actual effort placed on writing a multi-part song. These trust fund babies obviously have access to the equipment and recording facilities, now it's time to work on those writing skills, fellas. 
