Definitive Jux
"Fantastic Damage" is a perfect description for this album of denselylayered beats that serve as a soundtrack for El-P's tour through adystopian urbanscape. Almost every beat on the album is so rich andevocative it seems a shame that El-P has to bark over almost every oneof them. Some of his lyrical concepts work well, as on the track"Stepfather Factory" where he effectively constructs and deconstructs acompany that churns out indistinguishable, abusive father figures. Thisis one of the few tracks where he takes his vocals down to aconversational level and it works really well. On too much of the albumthough, his vocals come off as monotonous yelling which undermines thepower of his intelligent lyrics. El-P has an uncommon problem for anMC—so much he needs to say that he is unable to fit all of his lyricsinto his allotted lines of verse. This problem of too many words to goaround is particularly noticeable on the verses of "Truancy". When heslows the rhymes down during the chorus, each lyric becomes more potentand fits well into the rhythm. He also uses an interesting approach atthe beginning of "Dead Disnee" where he adjusts his cadence and rhymescheme to mimic that of the early De La Soul single "Plug Tunin'".While paying respect to an earlier, more creative era of hip-hop, healso demonstrates how a varied rhyme style can compliment a song.Unfortunately, the rest of the song falls into his same abrasivelymonotonous pattern. Most of the album's lyrical content falls into the"conscious lyrics" category—which makes some of the slips into standardhip-hop homophobia all the more frustrating.
But all M.C. criticism aside, the beats are consistently varied and noloop is repeated long enough to wear out its welcome. El-P shows hisstrongest talent lies in production by introducing many experimentalsounds and effects rarely added to the hip-hop mix. He uses lots ofdistorted synths and electric guitar samples and mixes them overprogrammed, organic sounding drums to head-nodding affect. My favoritemoments in the album all occur when he turns off the vocals for astretch and lets his instrumentals shine. DJ Abilities compliments thelayered beats successfully by adding texture without showing off hisspeed. His best contribution is in the middle of "Delorian" where heuses his scratches as one of the instruments in the band rather than asa solo spotlight.
I will certainly be looking out for a future version of "FantasticDamage" instrumentals because the beats are innovative and I would liketo hear how each one sounds on its own. If you can get through 70minutes worth of severe vocals, the album does go out on one of itsstrongest notes with the grandly cinematic final track, "Blood". And besure to listen for that tight instrumental at the end that kicks intohigh gear after the vocals have faded away.
"Fantastic Damage" is a perfect description for this album of denselylayered beats that serve as a soundtrack for El-P's tour through adystopian urbanscape. Almost every beat on the album is so rich andevocative it seems a shame that El-P has to bark over almost every oneof them. Some of his lyrical concepts work well, as on the track"Stepfather Factory" where he effectively constructs and deconstructs acompany that churns out indistinguishable, abusive father figures. Thisis one of the few tracks where he takes his vocals down to aconversational level and it works really well. On too much of the albumthough, his vocals come off as monotonous yelling which undermines thepower of his intelligent lyrics. El-P has an uncommon problem for anMC—so much he needs to say that he is unable to fit all of his lyricsinto his allotted lines of verse. This problem of too many words to goaround is particularly noticeable on the verses of "Truancy". When heslows the rhymes down during the chorus, each lyric becomes more potentand fits well into the rhythm. He also uses an interesting approach atthe beginning of "Dead Disnee" where he adjusts his cadence and rhymescheme to mimic that of the early De La Soul single "Plug Tunin'".While paying respect to an earlier, more creative era of hip-hop, healso demonstrates how a varied rhyme style can compliment a song.Unfortunately, the rest of the song falls into his same abrasivelymonotonous pattern. Most of the album's lyrical content falls into the"conscious lyrics" category—which makes some of the slips into standardhip-hop homophobia all the more frustrating. But all M.C. criticism aside, the beats are consistently varied and noloop is repeated long enough to wear out its welcome. El-P shows hisstrongest talent lies in production by introducing many experimentalsounds and effects rarely added to the hip-hop mix. He uses lots ofdistorted synths and electric guitar samples and mixes them overprogrammed, organic sounding drums to head-nodding affect. My favoritemoments in the album all occur when he turns off the vocals for astretch and lets his instrumentals shine. DJ Abilities compliments thelayered beats successfully by adding texture without showing off hisspeed. His best contribution is in the middle of "Delorian" where heuses his scratches as one of the instruments in the band rather than asa solo spotlight.
I will certainly be looking out for a future version of "FantasticDamage" instrumentals because the beats are innovative and I would liketo hear how each one sounds on its own. If you can get through 70minutes worth of severe vocals, the album does go out on one of itsstrongest notes with the grandly cinematic final track, "Blood". And besure to listen for that tight instrumental at the end that kicks intohigh gear after the vocals have faded away.
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Chris Brokaw should be familiar as guitarist from Come and Pullman and drummer for the New Year, Codeine and Consonant, not to mention all the other groups and collectives he's been playing out with recently - check out www.chrisbrokaw.com for the lowdown. And if his name isn't familiar then you have got some serious record buying to do! 'Red Cities' is his first solo album following a split single with Spanish band Viva Las Vegas.
Deviating from their usual medium of on-demand CD-Rs, the Burning Shedonline label debuts their first Red Book disc in a good old fashionedjewel case. Peter Chilvers (Alias Grace) and Tim Bowness (No-Man,Centrozoon) also collaborate in Samuel Smiles and Henry Fool.'California, Norfolk' is a sort of extension of the former's 'World OfBright Futures' album, the title track in particular. Bowness'ruminations on lost love and fading memories are fairly simple, but hisrich tone and breathy delivery brings the inherent sadness and mutedjoys within them to life. The vocals are very forward in the mix butdeftly framed by minor beats, sampled auras and tender piano, keyboard,guitar and bass melodies and textures. It's beautifully stark - partballadry, part ambient, part soundscape - think of Nick Drake's 'PinkMoon' spirit as processed by Brian Eno. It's strange how quickly thisalbum floats by despite its 45 minute running time. And although goodbeginning to end and back again, "Hostage" and "Winter With You" are mypersonal favorites. For the former, sweeping orchestral synth andbackground giggling help tell the short story of "the girl you neverforgot, was never happy with her lot ... walked around a hostage to herfright". And in the latter, the crunch of trodden snow drifts in andout of its 10 plus minutes. Chilvers subtlety steals the limelight bybreaking up an instrumental passage with a delicate piano refrain.'California, Norfolk' is another great addition to the ever growingChilvers and Bowness related pile.
Oh, how far the Lambchop has come. This Nashville-based band, oncebelieved to be another alt-country creation, has created a fine summeralbum for you to listen to on those hot days when you just want to siton your porch and sip some lemonade. Except that it really doesn'tbelong in that setting. The country is further away from their soundnow than it's ever been. "Is a Woman" is actually a fine neo-loungetype album, where singer and main songwriter Kurt Wagner has embracedthe piano as the main instrument. His voice hasn't changed, still likea higher pitched Leonard Cohen blended with Belle and Sebastian'sStuart Murdoch. This is lazy music, where you can listen without anyreal commitment or strain. Even the song titles evoke summer -"Caterpillar," "Bugs," "The Old Matchbook Trick," and "The New CobwebSummer," for example - and the lyrics tell tales of old friends, dogs,and the mischief of youth. Lambchop is born anew in this sound, asthere's more energy in this release, more groove, more feeling, andmore beauty than they've ever produced. Pretty amazing considering thatthe majority of songs are over the five-minute mark and of a slowertemp. Wagner's lyrics conjure fantastic images - "Once I had afriend/who had the knack of tossing/his mind around geography/boy youthink you have problems?/The hunter is asleep/at least that's what Icall him" on "The New Cobweb of Summer" - and the instumentation isplayful with gently strummed guitar, faded organ, and flashes of hornshere and there joining the piano. The only complaint is that it's not a"whole listen" record. I cannot, after listening to it once, listen toit straight through again. It causes the sound to be near montonous, aseach song has a similar structure. Perhaps that's actually a backhandedcompliment, however. It's a complete work, and if you allow it to, itwill suck you in. Lambchop sound like this is finally fun for them, andthe listener is encouraged to join the festivities. What are youwaiting for? Let's go catch some lightning bugs...
Yves Beupré beavers away in his workshop building a hundred harpsichords. As he hammers and strings and flexes the things he records the sounds of the instruments' birth pangs. Lucky for our ears, he stitches the recordings into acousmatic soundscapes that are mysterious, evocative and plain beautiful.
And I still have chills up and down my spine over this one. NinaNastasia makes music that compromises nothing. It is aggressive in itspursuit of your soul, it is passionate in its creation, it isunforgiving and somewhat brutal. But it is rather lovely. This is musicthat combines the hoedowns of the early part of the 20th century withelements of a modern rock orchestra, a little Dylan influence, and allpiped through the voice of a true chanteuse. Nastasia's voice is clear,distinct, gorgeous. With a basis of acoustic guitar and her voice,there's nowhere to go but up. And it certainly does, with littleholding it back. Steel guitar haunts the tracks in places, gentle andcompetent drumming providing a solid backbone. The strings soar, withcello and viola vying for attention, but never outdoing one another.There's even accordion, which adds atmosphere as well as anauthenticity that cannot be denied. Things move along at a nice pace,with occasional jarring moments that could easily give you a heartattack - the moment on the first track, 'Run, All You...', where thefull band comes in almost killed me. And ultimately, everything seemsto be destined to remain in your dreams and nightmares for years tocome. Luckily, Nastasia's lyrics are those of a poet, so these songsalso have a lot to say without sounding highfalutin or cheap. Theycreate the backdrop of a barren wasteland, a dirt town where none areforgiven for their transgressions, and suffering is king. "Someone toldme that I should visit you in the graveyard/pull out all the weeds; butI'm still lonely and I'm not ready/You scared me when you hid behindthe trees" says it all, and that's just one example. Most songs lastaround two minutes, and normally I'd feel cheated. Sometimes here, Istill do, wanting the songs to continue. But who knows what mighthappen then? It might get old, lose it's lustre. It might changedirection, morph into something else. But it's best just as NinaNastasia left it. Trust her: she knows what she's doing.
According to the liner notes, Brombron is "a joint project by extrapooland staalplaat and receives financial support from mondriaanstichting." Quite what all that means, I don't know, but apparently theboys got some studio time to work on this record specifically. And itwas money well spent for their patrons because this is an excellentexposition of the more musical end of microsound-style laptopcomposition, a subgenre put decisively on the map by ChristianFennesz's low-bitrate eye-opener 'Endless Summer.' 
It sounds like a joke for indie music hipsters: what do you get whenyou mix The Melvins, Fantomas and a crowd for a live show? This liverecording from December 31st, 2000 is the best answer, and it's notbad. Despite the fact that all seven musicians from the two bands arecredited, the songs don't often demand that all of them bang away atonce, but when the all of them come down and pound the music out, theydo a really good job of staying out of each other's way and keeping therecording relatively unmuddled. For the most part, Patton does thevocals, although Melvins' Dale Crover and King Buzzo are also creditedwith vocals. A lot of the music sounds -- not surprisingly -- like amelding between the recent Melvins' buzzing sludginess and the moreethereal moments of Fantomas' vignettes. If you've heard the recentofferings from Melvins or fantomas, there's no big surprises here, justmore quality noise. Some pieces are clearly derived from one or theother groups (Fantomas' cover of the themes from the films "The Omen"and "Cape Fear" or "Ol' Black Stooges" an assaulting drum jam whichappears in a much more abbreviated form on the Melvins' new album Hostile Ambient Takeover"as that album's opener.) A few pieces and moments throughout can beisolated to one musician -- like Patton's signature squeals and screamsfrom Fantomas' albums, or Dunn's bass pluckings in "Terpulative Guns& Drugs", but in general, the music and musicians complement eachother well enough that it stops being about one or the other andbecomes an entity in it's own right. Some of the more ambient noisepieces remind me nothing so much as the early noise of Nurse WithWound, and "Skin Horse" features a hysterical Ween-esque vocal linethat's a real treat, but not representative of the rest of the album.So if you're a fan of NWW's older noise pieces or a fan of eitherFantomas or the Melvins' recent output, you shouldn't be disappointedwith this 40 minute set (even if it isn't the full show,) from theMelvins and Fantomas.
After the brief 30-second drum intro of "black stooges", Melvins' new album starts off with a barrage of guitar riffing and drum accents on the untitled second track. The title of this record is a bit misleading especially if you're a stoned raver, since it's not what people usually mean when they say "ambient" nowawadays: don't expect any soothing synth pads or mellow chill-out beats, the key word in the title is "Hostile" not "Ambient".
A Small Good Thing have unveiled the follow up to an 'imaginarysoundtrack' for a movie we're supposed to run in our heads for theadventurous benefit of fictional outlaw Gerry Melody. Not having heardthe first part, originally released in 1994, I can't compare, but ifyou rush out and buy the limited edition it's included as a double CDor triple album. 'Slim Westerns' are very much in a spaghetti style andalthough there's a relaxing dust swept ambience and some good ol'cowboy guitar twang that Calexico might be at home with, a certainBritishness peaks through and mars the illusion. Dogs barking on thelast track just sound like English dogs (not the old 'punk' band) andthe repeated vocal refrain, "Hey Mister, is this train headin' south?"sounds so put on and false it muddies up the widescreen desert feel themusic effectively evokes. These are perhaps minor quibbles with anotherwise enjoyable but inessential recording that mixes up slow dustyguitar twang with creeping dusk ambience. May this trio of former OYuki Conjugaters sleep well undisturbed by English dogs (punk orcanine).
Chicago's Ribbon Effect released their debut album, "Slip", last year,and now this EP of the band's first recordings is one of two debutreleases from False Walls Recordings. The group is a three-piece whosemusic is based largely on group improvisation and a mix of theelectronic and the organic. Keyboards and synthesizers mix with thedrums and accordion to make a truly interesting sound. It sounds oddlylike the soundtrack to robots in factories, welding cars together. Infact, if those robots liked music, I bet they'd like Ribbon Effect. Thesongs have a very simple structure, and move right along with a fewfills and breaks. Over time, it's easy for the listener to loseinterest, though not entirely. It's just that the use of theinstruments is so consistent, so unmoving, that tracks seem to go onfar longer than they should. That and the fact that the music isinstrumental in nature adds up to a good first listen, but noveltydoesn't make you return to the well for more. The first two trackssuffer from this affliction, but the third and fourth tracks, "CastAway" and "Sweet William's Catchfly", are just plain good. Beeps thatecho, harmonics and programmed beats mix and meld, moving towards aclimax at the end of the former that eventually you are begging for.Finally, real drums come in, and the track melds into the latter,building with accordion to the big finish. It was enough to make mewant to hear more from Ribbon Effect and this label, so as an initialrelease it serves its purpose. I, however, hope that Ribbon Effect havelearned some lessons from this first release and have more substance ontheir full-length.
With the aid of co-producer Mercan Dede and a small cadre of Easternand Western musicians, Peter Murphy has immersed himself within a newsound. 'Dust' picks up where 2000's stripped down "Just For Love" tourleft off by retaining classically trained violinist Hugh Marsh. Thenthe sound is fleshed out with the ancient ones of and near Murphy'sadopted homeland of Turkey - percussion, kanun, ud, cumbus, etc. - plusadditional programming and keyboard and guitar atmospheres. Themajority of the nine songs are sprawled out between seven and nineminutes, thus flowing like molasses and/or indulging in instrumentalpassages. To these Western ears there is a perfectly tasteful balancebetween East and West, old and new, electronic and acoustic, in agenuinely spiritual way. The environment lends itself to the voice andvice versa (certainly far better than the KMFDM backed 'Recall' EP) andthe voice and lyrics are as strong as ever. This is the album thatshould have been entitled 'Deep'. If you're looking for upbeat pop likepast gems "Cuts You Up" and "The Scarlet Thing In You" you won't findanything remotely like that here. You also won't find any obvioussingles as the album is undoubtedly meant for listening to in itsentirety. Murphy's message is poetic but clear, reminding us to "loveanything", that "there is no place like just for love" and "let lovebegin". The midsection of "Just For Love" and "Girlchild Aglow" is theapex. The next couple songs slightly dip in quality but are rescued bythe striking vocal of "My Last Two Weeks" and then 1995's "Subway" isrevisited, extended and successfully 'Dust'-ed off. This is a reallylovely album. By my third listen it all made perfect sense. Murphy iscurrently on tour in North America through June.
In the course of just over a year's time, Múm has captured theattention of music fans worldwide, through a debut full-length album,two albums of various mixes, and more than a handful of collaborativework and compilation appearances. (Their adorable looks and theirambiguous song titles probably didn't hurt by adding to their appealeither.) Perhaps the most often associated words concerning a sophomorealbum after such a large success are both anticipation and expectation.This album could very well possibly be one of this year's mostanticipated releases, but the amount of expectations it exceeds isunmeasurable. I have to admit that at first, I was rather taken abackwith the amount of vocals on the disc, but there's also a much largerpresence of non-synthetic instruments on the whole, includingaccordion, guitar, bass, strings, horns, melodica, percussion andorganic effects. The quartet use everything wisely, never saturatingany song with an abundance of instruments which would render thesesongs impossible to recreate live. Thomas Brinkmann may have beenplaying his records' inside grooves but not until the sounds of thoselock grooves combined with Múm's signature wistful lullabye sound onthe third track, "We Have a Map of the Piano" do those groove soundsfeel like they have been properly harnessed. Múm's years of experiencewith improvisation and collaboration have undoubtedly given them anecessary unique approach in taking that necessary step to bring morehuman elements back into electronic music. It's probably why they havegained so much recognition by both the electronic music and indie rockcrowds. Fear not the evolution, however, as there are a number ofpretty, instrumental, digital songs which could please any fan of theirprevious work. Any fanatic lucky enough to order their CD-R and otherobscure releases will indeed recognize a few melodies contained herein.They make it seem so damned easy, with the glitchy beats retired to theback of the mix underneath organ, accordion and string counterpoint ontruly jaw-dropping climactic songs like "I Can't Feel My Hand Any More,It's Allright, Sleep Still" just before the masterpiece title track,which could easily be the 'nod' to 'Yesterday Was Dramatic...'. If youdidn't fall in love with the twin girls with their photo on the Belleand Sebastian cover ('Fold Your Hands Child...') their voices on the11-minute album closer, "The Land Between Solar Systems" will mostcertainly win your heart. [Hopefully since their first band was aPixies cover, they'll be enthusiastic about playing Boston. In whichcase, I'd be more than happy being a tour guide for a few days. Howabout it?] Fanatics of the Icelandic language and Múm die-hards shouldnote that there's a super limited edition with the vocal songs inIcelandic available only from 
Occasionally that CD comes along that is almost bizarrely unique, practically defying description due to its out-of-the-ordinary construction and hard to quantify affect on you. The Epidemic is certainly not a band that belongs on decidedly punk Ache Records, but that seems to be the point. The solo side project for Andy Dixon of d.b.s., and he's chosen a peculiar sonic path. "I Am Compltely Oprationa l" is a quirky debut release, combining an indie rock sensibility with vague electronic flashes and jilting experimentation with arrangements.
Two of Germany's renowned rhythmists unite. 'Secret Rhythms' is verymuch in line with Burnt Friedman's usual repertoire and Liebezeit'sbeats fit right in. So much so it's difficult to discern who does whatwhere. Not that it matters. Each of the 10 tracks fuses percussion,bass, keys, vibraphones by Copenhagen's Morten Grønvad and strains ofJosef Suchy's electric guitar into a gravity defying sort of ambientelectro jazz. Friedman foregoes samples, such as the many spoken onesfound on last year's 'Plays Love Songs', to keep the mix instrumentaland minimal but also very open and very comfortable. Track four beginsan all too brief dub deviation. "Shades of Soddin Orion" and"Rastafahndung" are stunning examples of what happens when Friedmanapplies his musical physics to, and thus redefines, dub. "Shades.." isthe album highlight, a gorgeous deep space journey of slippery bass andguitar notes and microscopic sound soup. The disc concludes with threeversions of "Obscured by 5" - short, Nonplace (Friedman's label) remixand 13 plus minute extended. The finale is the most satisfying with alengthy stretch of little more than gentle steel drums and the hustleand bustle of an unidentifiable inner city. Perhaps this is the secretrhythm Friedman and Liebezeit have found and wish to expose to the restof the world.
That is until last Tuesday, when Waits simultaneously released "Alice"and "Blood Money" on the Epitaph imprint. This dual release representsWaits' best work since the seminal "Rain Dogs" and contain morememorable songs and amazing composition than seems possible for anartist who should be well past his prime by now. The gravelly graveyardblues that dominated "Mule Variations" has been replaced with anatmospheric combination of dark lounge, Dixieland jazz, ragtime andtouches of dreamlike, surrealistic sound production worthy of a DavidLynch soundtrack.
"Blood Money" is the more pessimistic of the pair. The dirty,claustrophobic sound atmosphere is punched up with abrasive rhythms andnegative-as-hell lyrics. Waits alternately assures us that we are allgoing to hell, that we are all fools when we are in love, and that lifeis a sad riddle, filled with misery, that will never grow or change.There are two transitional instrumental tracks here that work verywell; it is almost a relief to hear the subtle instrumentals withoutbeing bludgeoned by Waits' raspy crooning. On the heartbreaking closer"A Good Man is Hard to Find", Waits' voice intones: "Go out to themeadow, scare off all the crows/It does nothing but rain here, andnothing ever grows." 
