2.17.2011

These Arms Are Snakes


These Arms Are Snakes
Tail Swallower and Dove
Suicide Squeeze, 2008

I'm going back a few years on this one. I always have a hard time deciding whether Tail Swallower or Oxeneers is my favorite TAAS record. I'm going to post Tail Swallower though because it's easily the most (gasp) accessible. This is way more straight forward than their other records as far as song structure and overall songwriting. For those who are not acquainted with TAAS, they were essentially a super group of Seattle post-hardcore juggernauts including former members of Botch, Kill Sadie and Minus the Bear. Since they disbanded in late 2009, members have continued to garner respect and remain more than merely relevant by going on to play in projects like Narrows and Russian Circles.
It's really hard to describe TAAS' spastic, aggressive, yet melodic sound to anyone who has never heard them. And they sound nothing like the respective bands from which they came from. Sometimes I think that TAAS sounds like what Nirvana would have sounded like if they had kept evolving towards the heavier more experimental songs off In Utero. TAAS is way more precise musically and utilize keyboards at just the right times to blow your f**king mind though. Tail Swallower is the place to start if you want to check these guys out. You will not be disappointed. Then check out Botch, Kill Sadie, Narrows, Nineironspitfire, Russian Circles...
presented by

2.15.2011

Alcest


Alcest
Ecailles de Lune
Prophecy Productions, 2010

Shoegaze post-black metal. Yes, that is one of the many descriptions heaped on Alcest, the project of French musician Neige. Yeah, if pressed, I would definitely categorize his other work as black metal. But it's so much.. prettier. Just like Ecailles de Lune (Scales of the Moon). I would hesitate to call it shoegaze. To me, it's more Sunny Day Real Estate than Ride. But then the black metal kicks in and the machine gun snare and strained vocals take over, and yadda yadda yadda. Which is fine. Hey, I like black metal as much as the next guy. But Alcest is already stepping way outside the black metal box, so to speak, by making a record that sounds like Diary, so why try to throw in aspects of black metal that are so predictable? I like this record. It sounds like the soundtrack to a movie adaptation of a graphic novel, which might be slightly lame but the fact that it's all in French totally makes up for it. If you like catchy pop riffs, 10 minute songs and don't mind a little bit of evil, this is your s**t.
presented by

1.22.2011

Helms Alee


Helms Alee
Night Terror
Hydra Head, 2008

What the f**k. Is it really 2011? Ridiculousness. It feels like this record just came out. I'm a huge Harkonen fan so naturally I picked up this record because of Ben Verellen. I'm also a huge fan of Hydra Head as a whole, so how could I go wrong? Fortunately, I did not go wrong. Night Terror is very good. Not quite Harkonen good, but good. Imagine Harkonen mixed with the Pixies being played at half speed. I had no idea at first that they were a three-piece. I also had no idea that the bassist was a female, which was a pleasant surprise because Dana James' vocals blend perfectly with the total assault of such songs as "New Roll". I also knew that the drumming was absolutely brutal, so imagine my surprise when I found out that, yes, the drummer too is a woman. For some reason this makes me like Helms Alee more than if they were all guys. Is that sexist? Whatever.
presented by

12.22.2010

Lil Wayne


Lil Wayne
I Am Not a Human Being
Cash Money, 2010

I've never been a huge fan of Lil Wayne and even less a fan of Cash Money. I always felt like Lil Wayne was kind of a douche and Cash Money is known for not paying royalties to producers. Double douchey. I like the fact that he attempts to come across as being absolutely out of his mind and will readily admit that he has some great tracks. I still bump "A Milli" because it's a fantastic track, but that's mostly because of Bangladesh's otherworldly production skills (most recently the work he put in on Nicki Minaj's "Did It on 'Em"). But on the whole, I've never been that impressed. I also find it laughable that some critics are quick to call him "the greatest rapper alive." But most people know that's total garbage. I think. Anyway, Lil Wayne's rhymes are clever, but that's about it. Album sales don't dictate lyrical ability.
I Am Not a Human Being has some decent tracks. The opener "Gonorrhea" had me thinking "okay, maybe this will be at least as good as Tha Carter III. " Unfortunately, it all quickly began to sound the same. It's not terrible, but not memorable either. It's good music to listen to when I don't want to think about anything. Kind of like Gucci. For mainstream hip hop it's alright, but I'll take Wiz Khalifa over Wayne any day. Turns out this is nowhere near as good as III but INFINITELY better than Rebirth, which I'm not even going to touch here. So in the end, I wasn't that surprised. It's pretty much what I would expect from Tunechi. Mediocrity.


presented by

11.22.2010

N.A.S.A.


N.A.S.A.
The Big Bang
Spectrophonic, 2010

This is essentially a remix of 2009's Spirit of Apollo. I didn't really like that record, so I don't like this one. The only exceptions would be the Boombotz remix of "Whachadoin?" and the Treasure Fingers Epicwave remix of "Gifted". So basically, I listen to track five and six and then turn this s**t off. It's more of that hipster club stuff which, I'll admit, can be done well in the right hands (Spank Rock, Justice, LCD Soundsystem) and is atrocious when done poorly (N.A.S.A., Sleigh Bells, Diplo). It just feels.. dated. I mean, didn't Santigold's record drop in early '08? I would skip this one if I were you.
presented by
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)