Archive for January, 2008
Goot – Asleep At The Wheel
Alex Goot, or simply Goot, is a one man brigade located just south of the border in Poughkeepsie, New York. Known for his frantic power-pop style, Goot has the talent to become a huge success, especially given his relative youth. Though a seemingly young artist at only 19 years of age, he has created a sound that can be compared to other power-pop sensations, such as The Rocket Summer and Jack’s Mannequin. Using his multiple musical talents, his passion, and his wits, Goot has produced a vibrant, energetic, uplifting, pop-influenced album in, Asleep At The Wheel.
Asleep At The Wheel is Goots most recent album, and although only 7 tracks long, is a great listen from start to finish, and reason enough to check it out. The first song She’s Got Dementia, is a little more aggressive, attributed to the long guitar riffs on constant overdrive, and is a relatively simple pop-punk ballad. There isn’t much to the song that stands out, except for his soft welcoming voice, which really plays a role in the upbeat nature of his music. Goot’s sound in the first few tracks can be likened to Something Corporate, in that they convey the upbeat stylings of power-pop mixed with the typical aggressive tones of pop-punk. Although very likeable songs, the first few tracks come off a little boring and lack a certain charm compared to the rest of the album.
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, keyboards really steal the show for me, I think they are one of the most underrated instruments in all of music. We Could Love is one of the songs off the album that really throw Goot up there with other main stay artists like Andrew McMahon, of Something Corporate/Jack’s Mannequin. This song has a heavy use of keys, and combined with the simple melodies of the other instruments, creates that uplifting feel that I’m so accustomed to hearing from some of my favourite artists. The rest of the album has this more pop-influenced style, which is definitely the winning formula to Goots success. Compared to tracks one and two, that last four songs off the album have a certain passion about them, and shows that Goot puts forth a sincere effort. The emotion in Goots voice and songs, translates to that of the listeners, and makes this relatively short album, a solid one.
Asleep At The Wheel, starts off slow, but never terrible, however it really kicks in after We Could Love, and goes on to rock until the very end. This 7-track gem is a great sample of what we can expect from Goot, and there’s no doubt I’ll be waiting for a fuller more complete album in the future. If Goot can produce 10 or so solid songs, whilst retaining the originality and charisma seen in this album, Goot will be an exciting addition to a rather competitive genre.
Be sure to check out their Myspace and their online store.
Miwa Gemini – This Is How I Found You
Miwa Gemini is another female singer/song writer to get my attention (I seem to be easily swayed). She represents New York but has been touring across Ontario and her album “This Is How I Found You” has been out here for some time. This album actually hits the US + Europe on March 18 so while there is some time there’s a chance to give some pre-release hype.
Going with my occasional unknown type of artist, I was a bit mixed upon hearing Miwa Gemini’s stuff. Some folk based music doesn’t usually reel me in right away but given time it can win me over. With Miwa Gemini, I’m not quite sure how to explain how her voice sounds. She has a deep voice that feels rather soulful/blues influenced but I really don’t have any experience so I’ll spare the name-dropping. I really like her voice and instrumental wise you get instruments on the banjo, mandolin, acoustic and others. It’s very mellow so I would say it really depends on your mood. At times I find myself aching for something harder but I do end up coming back to Miwa’s stuff in time.
I don’t really feel like doing a review today, so just know it’s some pretty good stuff that I found it worth posting about and you can see if you can agree or not by checking out these tracks:
Something Ordinary by Miwa Gemini
P.S. if you really want her album go here.
Other Miwa Gemini blog posts (since she’s a seldom known artist at this time): Rock SellOut + Large Hearted Boy
The Magnetic Fields – Distortion Review
Do the Magnetic Fields need an introduction? They are very well known in indie circles but if this the first time you’ve heard about them then here’s a brief summary: The Magnetic Fields are an indie pop band who’ve been around since 1990 who are known for their love songs, Stephin Merritt’s deep voice and some pretty good writing. Merritt is known as being openly gay and sometimes isn’t afraid to express it in his lyrics. I never bothered to care that he’s gay but if you didn’t know then now you do.The Magnetic Fields are known for their release of 69 Love Songs a number I would probably choose myself (because I’m apparently a perv). Anyway I’ll admit I’ve only listened to a handful of songs by the Magnetic Fields but almost every song I’ve heard and have been able to acquire, I’ve really dug.
Distortion starts off with some pretty fun tracks. I laughed when I heard “Three Way” as all it contained were some entertaining instrumentals and Three Way! repeated 3 times. The Magnetic Fields exchanged vocals between Merritt and Shirley Simms on each track. California Girls is a fun song with the tune of “I hate California girls” quiet a catchy song yet meaningful. Simms sings this and I actually had a hard time believing these vocals were of a man’s…. (I should probably omit this). Simms made me miss Merritt’s deep baritone voice as I kind of expected his voice all the way throughout. Either way the tracks are great and whoever is singing it doesn’t matter.
This album has been garnering comparisons to the Jesus and Mary Chain style which has been emulated numerous times by other bands and usually has an addictive quality. I would say though that this album is more of a grower then a instant hit. I found myself not being able to get past “Three Way” and “California Girls” at one point but eventually I put on Distortion and fell asleep to it, allowing me to discover the rest of the album. I really enjoyed the lyrics and while I didn’t enjoy the “distortion” as much as I thought I would’ve this album is still great.
Maybe not that great of an album but very very solid and I enjoyed this album though there were some misses. If you give it time, I’m sure you can get to like it. I give it a 4.1 out of 5.
Since California Girls has been posted a ton, you can find it here, there and everywhere.
Here are 2 other tracks that I really dig:
The Nun’s Litany by The Magnetic Fields
Too Drunk To Dream by The Magnetic Fields
Buy Distortion @ Insound
Buy Distortion @ CD Universe
Buy Distortion @ Amazon
Rivers Cuomo – Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo Review
I go back and forth on putting out bad reviews here and there. It’s actually good for blogging to put something out negative (riles people up). I could do it for the sake of being an ass, and insulting popular things or bring to light how I didn’t really like In Rainbows all that much. It’s really about being honest (and yeah so what I still believe In Rainbows was an average effort and doesn’t match Sunset Rubdown’s Random Spirit lover) and while I should bypass being a dick for a day, usually what follows is a drought and I’ve got nothing else to write about.
Anyway Rivers Cuomo is the lead singer/guitarist of Weezer. His name probably rings a bell and Weezer is a pretty popular band with tons of mainstream success. I would say I’m a casual fan of them, loved almost all of their singles and usually whatever I picked up I dug but I was in no way a serious fan.
This is a compilation album of recordings that Cuomo made in 15 years from 92-07 with 18 tracks. This post was meant to be done on Tuesday but I was kind of annoyed by it that I HAD to listen to The Bell. One of things that annoyed me the most were the tracks under 1 minute long. I don’t really get the placement of these short “songs” and with 4 on the record that’s at least 3 too many. The you have another 3 tracks barely 2 minutes long. There’s quantity in track numbers but going back and forth proves to be more annoying.
Carrying on with the nitpicking, I know it’s intentional to leave the under produced songs up there so that it has a more raw sound and some may call it that it’s more important in seeing Cuomo’s influences, I really don’t believe I would’ve liked to hear a static-y version of Buddy Holly. It just doesn’t add anything to my musical experience other then trying to cover my ears on the new version.
I know this review has it’s clear negative tone but it’s NOT all bad. It does have its moments when you get past the filler of songs and poor track to track sequencing (imo). There are some good tracks on here, either on the soft variety when Cuomo on the acoustic and are times where the underproduction actually works when it comes to simplicity. I only really noticed that this was a better album when I started deleting some tracks.
My expectation when picking up this album was that he would set himself apart from Weezer but he really doesn’t do that at all. I’m actually starting to despise compilation albums as they don’t seem to work for me. I’ll give it a 2.75 out of 5. Better that what I originally pegged it (was feeling a 2 out of 5 or worse) before writing this post.
From a personal experience. I don’t expect to replay this album much if at all. It may be you’re thing if you’re a huge Weezer fan but Weezer did go from cool to kind of sucky (or emo as they would describe on their own website) over the years so I’m not sure how a Weezer fan would like his.
I Was Made For You by Rivers Cuomo
Buy it at CD Universe (I’m too lazy to type the full name, spare me)
Pre-order the LP version @ Insound for just $9.99
Buy the solo effort of Rivers Cuomo @ Amazon
Ben Marwood
My friend recently recommended Ben Marwood to me, and knowing her good tastes, I wasn’t surprised that I would enjoy his music immensely. Marwood, hailing from the UK, is an indie folk rock/acoustic artist. His music features catchy guitar riffs and sweet folksy vocals a la Ben Folds.
I was able to get my hands on his EP, Give Up (2005), which I found to have elements of pop rock comparable to his former work, but that may be due to his former EP being produced entirely lo fi, and Give Up being recorded in a studio. Not to mention the track “X Ways,” probably the most “rock” Marwood has gotten, with distorted electric guitar and heavier drum beats, almost reminiscent of the pop punk scene of the late nineties. Although I haven’t heard much outside Give Up and what’s available on his myspace and official website, you can definitely hear his influences. However, he makes an original sound of his own by blending his voice with guitar that it’s almost so hard to define it (minimalist-antifolk-acoustic-angst-pop rock?). Marwood definitely puts in a lot of emotion into his music, holding a sensitivity that intrigued me, as proven with “Hold Your Breath,” “Fake It Till You Make It,” and “Oh My Days!” This emotion treads not just for the sake of having emotion; lyrically I find Marwood to be a passive aggressive covered in good humour. “Oh My Days!” would be an accurate depiction of his lyrical style: And I know something’s wrong/But I don’t know what/And I may not be alone/But it’s still life whether you like it or not/and I may give it up for fortune and for fame/But I will still be this cynical when I get paid/And I’ll be this way until I get laid/And all this is why I’m going so grey. I’m not sure whether to chuckle or to just bat an empathetic eye at the sad truth behind his humour, which is what gets to me so deeply.
Admittedly, I owe most of my appreciation of Marwood’s music to his lyrical genius. Although quite depressive, he lightens the emotional load with dry humour in some of his tracks. I don’t like to be comparative—but I obviously am—but I can definitely sense some Elliott Smith influence in Marwood’s writing. Not that that’s a bad thing; Elliott Smith was one of the most brilliant but underappreciated songwriters in history. I definitely see Marwood has a good backbone of psychology and sociology, and this is proven with songs such as “Mr Fogg’s Question Marks” and “More Good Propaganda.” It gives me a nice feeling inside to find artists who are keen to their personal self and the world around them as Ben Marwood is.
Ben Marwood – Fake It Till You Make It
Click here to download some of Ben’s tunes and his EP Give Up for free!
If you’d like to purchase some of his stuff, there are some directions on how to do so in the above link.
Check out this YouTube video of Ben covering Elliott Smith’s “No Name #1.”
The Bell – Make Some Quiet Review
The Bell is an indie Swedish band with influences such as Echo & The Bunny Men and Joy Division. You could argue many newer bands use this influence in the post-punk revival genre BUT The Bell stays true to their influences that it feels nostalgic and if you told me this band was from the 80s I’d believe you.
Usually when I think of Swedish bands, either you think of Scandinavian metal or indie pop (from the likes of Peter, Bjorn and John + Shout Out Louds). It was definitely refreshing hearing a small band like The Bell. This band is basically the 2000’s version of Echo & The Bunnymen using a drum a machine and I swear Mathias Stromberg sounds like Ian McCulloch which I find more of a great thing. The only other thing is probably the mix of poppy sounds used by synthesizers which give a Joy Division feel.
“Make Some Quiet” hits the US on February 12, 2008 and luckily for me I was given a review copy. I wouldn’t instinctively call The Bell a pop band but a lot of their songs do deal with love and a lot of the songs do end up being catchy. However there’s just so much to each song that makes The Bell so kick-ass (I was going to say wonderful but I needed something strong). Genre wise, classifying them as post-punk revival seems kind poor on my side of things. Make Some Quiet musically can be whatever it wants to be as each song shows something different from awesome guitar riffs to catchy bass lines. Stromberg has a rather a deep voice but it’s not the type that bores you as he knows when to bring his voice higher when he sings “On and On It Breaks My Heart” on the song On and On. With the numerous guitar riffs throughout each song, great lyrics/singing and overall the diversity that The Bell displays on Make Some Quiet, this is an amazing album to listen to.
I should probably digress on on the band comparisons as this band sets itself apart by being incredibly diverse. You’d think as an album it would be tiresome but this one is just so entertaining and it keeps getting better and better as I keep playing it with new favorites emerging.
The Bell currently stands as a smaller band with only 11,000 myspace hits, they definitely deserve a lot more respect. At this time, I would say a review is not important, rather if you like this band, support them any way you can. If you care I would say it’s a 4.5 out of 5.
Here are some of my favorites off this album:
The Cab
In a little over a week I’ll be seeing recently signed Fueled By Ramen sensation, The Cab, at The Mod Club Theatre in downtown Toronto. They have been staying out of the lime light over the past year, which is uncharacteristic of Fueled By Ramen bands. Not releasing much material beyond I’ll Run, their only official single, they have been keeping busy in the studio preparing for their debut album and have most recently gone on tour with Cobra Starship. However, with the help of the internet, I was able to stream many of their older demos, not likely to be on their album, but good material to garner an idea of what to expect from them as they make their splash in early 2008.
The band from Las Vegas Nevada, has become a little known secret for many listeners, but they are expected to make a huge push this year as their album is slated for a first quarter 2008 release. Backed by Fueled By Ramen, I am extremely excited to hear their new material and what their final sound will be. With only a handful of songs to base my judgement, I am still certain this band will be a smash because they encompass a lot of great things that other bands lack. Don’t be ‘fuelled’, The Cab do not have the typical FBR style, although they definitely fit into the family.
What makes The Cab really great is that they put a little bit of soul back into the pop-rock scene. The instrumentals are a little more dramatic than the usual pop-rock sound, the rhythms are a little faster paced and gutsy, and the vocals remain soulful and honest. What that does is create music that becomes a little more memorable and meaningful, while still being catchy and fun. The Cab by all means remains a pop-rock band, much like many of the bands I’ve reviewed, but their approach to the genre has hints of various other styles which keep them fresh and ahead of the competition.
I’ll Run, their most recent and only release (at least from their myspace/purevolume), is really the epitome of what I hope to expect from them. The vocals are really distinct and soulful, the lyrics are meaningful, and the instruments are emotionally driven with the aid of my favourite, the keyboard. Overall it’s a brilliantly produced song that is really ear catching from beginning to end but still has the feeling of importance, as if somehow this song or this band matters. Much of the same can be said of other songs I found including Take My Hand and Whisper Something Fragile. At the end of the day, the feeling I get from listening to The Cab, is what makes me a fan of theirs above all else, and even more of a fan of the “dreaded” pop-punk scene.
The Cab is awesome, simple put, and perhaps their secrecy from the public is all part of the Fueled By Ramen marketing scheme. FBR is known to really push their recently signed bands, and I can guarantee that once The Cab’s debut album rolls around, they will be THE FBR band to watch out for. I’m getting on their bandwagon early in hopes that it won’t be too full when 2009 rolls around.
Check out their Myspace for official tour dates and album info.
The Killers – Sawdust Review
One could argue that I was a big fan of the the Killers, I actually planned to see them in the summer but decided I was better off just selling the tickets. I really liked Hot Fuss and even thought Sam’s Town was a great effort, maybe even a better effort (not from a mainstream standpoint).
Anyway when Sawdust was released, I wasn’t too ecstatic about a compilation album because it usually means subpar stuff and with the Killers, if it’s not great I probably can’t step out and admit I like it (saying I like them is hard enough!). Sawdust includes 19 tracks (including the 2 bonus tracks) and it features the track Tranquilize featuring Lou Reed, a cover of Joy Divisions’ Shadowplay, some recognizable tracks that you would find on P2P networks and some unreleased stuff.
For a compilation album, you have to be a pretty big fan to shell out money for it. With The Killer’s mainstream success it isn’t surprising to see this album do quite well but with 15 tracks either re-released off singles or re-worked it is still leaves a lot left to be desired when it comes to new material. I think it begs the question of what big fan would pay for songs that have circulated around on the internet when a real fan would’ve acquired it by either paying for it on itunes or downloading it on some program already.
As for an album, The Killers do display some diversity with their sound but it feels like an album that was just thrown together just for the sake of it. So while the critics didn’t like Sam’s Town much, and not so much Sawdust, I can’t help but kind of hate this album. Singles wise, I think each song can stand on it’s own and it did remind me why I do like the Killers. I just can’t see myself ever dishing out the dough for this album or should anyone else really. I’ll just wait for their 3rd official release and secretly enjoy the Killers.
The album gets a 2.75 out of 5. Kind of a below average album, passable based on individual songs and at least it’s not entirely garbage.
I’ll post two older tracks that I stumbled across from before that I really liked and not due to being on Sawdust:
Change Your Mind by The Killers
Buy Sawdust @ CD Universe for $13.35
Buy Sawdust @ Insound for $15.99
Buy Sawdust @ Amazon for $12.96
Headlights, Hello Blue Roses, Hot Chip and Why?
I love doing reviews for this blog and all as I get to hype what I really like and I feel better putting in my two cents on something. Anyway, I think this blog has another role to play and it’s to hype albums before they come out. If I could do a review before the release date I would but a lot of the time I’m not hooked up and a review will prob ably be a week or two after the release date or whenever I get the album in hand.
Anyway, I think hyping upcoming releases is a great way to put out singles you really like. I don’t expect to do this often but maybe once a month to keep up on what’s hot with the music blogosphere. I actually planned this post to be on Hello, Blue Roses only but I figured I had more artists/albums to hype and I would never get done nor would I have much content left when I actually do reviews. I’ll do this about once a month I guess. I also will check out upcoming releases by the Magnetic Fields, Cat Power, Chris Walla and Jack Jonson. The ones I’m posting about are ones I am excited about.
Headlights – Some Racing, Some Stopping
Release date: February 19, 2008.
This is a pop band from Champaign, Illinois and while they had a previous release Kill Them W/ Kindness, I haven’t heard before them before receiving a promo-email. I was offered Cherry Tulips as the mp3, skipping it I went directly to their myspace and really dug their stuff. I finally decided to download Cherry Tulips and wow…what an amazing song. I’ve seen big blogs already discuss Headlights and including this track and you can’t blame them. This song is absolutely beautiful and dream pop at it’s very finest. It is literally about dreaming the best dream of your life and I can relate to it perfectly with sleeping in the middle of the night with the light on. This is one of my current songs of the year if 2008 ended just in 11 days. You can bet I’ll be listening this until February 19th and will be impatient for the album.
Cherry Tulips by Headlights
Pre-order @ CD Universe $11.18
Pre-order @ Amazon.ca for $13.99
Hello, Blue Roses – The Portrait Is Finished And I Have Failed To Capture Your Beauty
Release Date: January 22, 2008
Hello Blue Roses is comprised of Dan Bejar (Destroyer, New Pornographers, Swan Lake) and his wife, Sydney Vermont. This group has been making some noise with the blogs and I can’t blame them. I told myself I would to listen to their album before but I got impatient. Presented with Shadow Falls, you can fall in love with Sydney Vermont’s heavenly choir type voice. Just listen to Shadow Falls and the mix of beautiful vocals between this husband and wife. I’ve listened to 4 or so tracks and they are all great.
Shadow Falls by Hello, Blue Roses
Pre-order @ CD Universe $11.74
Pre-order it @ Insound for
Pre-order @ Amazon.ca for $17.99
Hot Chip – Made in The Dark
Release date: February 4/5, 2008
If you came from Elbo.ws or Hype you probably don’t need an introduction to Hot Chip, this electropop band out of the UK. Some really catchy stuff and they’re HUGE with the blogs. Ready For The Floor has really dominated my computer though I’ll be honest about not liking the other stuff so much. Usually liking just one song is just enough to get me into something.
Ready For The Floor by Hot Chip
Pre-order at CD Universe for $14.55
Pre-order the Deluxe version @ Insound for $17.99
Pre-order @ Amazon.ca for $17.99
Why? – Alopecia
Release Date: March 11, 2008
When reading up on Why? and their genre of including rap, new wave and a slew of other genres, this band definitely stands out from other bands. They have a nice mix of rap and rock that makes it cool when that genre was killed and exploited by the mainstream with bands like Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit, Why? isn’t metal at all so the rap is definitely more subtle and left to more of an artistic nature both instrumentally and lyrically.
The Hollows by Why?
Pre-order at CD Universe for $14.55
Pre-order @ Amazon.ca for $17.99
Yndi Halda
So a couple of months ago, I stumbled upon Yndi Halda, a post rock indie band from Canterbury, UK. One thing I want to know: why the hell are they not touring in Canada yet? Grr. Yndi Halda’s EP Enjoy Eternal Bliss (which is the English translation of “Yndi Halda” from Old Norse) was released online in 2006, and sold in stores by 2007. It’s funny, Enjoy Eternal Bliss is about 70 minutes long, but still considered an EP. But I digress.
One could argue Yndi Halda fulfills the elements of post rock so well that their sound becomes all too conventional. The thing about post rock is sometimes you have a hard time matching bands to their tunes, unless they have some featured element that stands them out (e.g. Sigur Ros’ frontman’s falsetto, Mogwai’s unintelligible vocals…oh wait, they’re all pretty unintelligible…). I have to commend Yndi Halda, though, for some excellent riffs and ability to control the instrumentation without going overboard.
Their tunes usually feature a mellow start of soft violin or guitar picking that slowly progresses into a full-blown orchestra of drums, strings, piano, and distorted guitars, and then ends of with more mellow strings and such (crescendo-decrescendo). The only vocals you hear are chambered la-la-laings to support the instrumentation. All of their tunes are more than 11 minutes long, their longest song lasting 20 minutes. You’ll probably not realize the length of each song as Yndi Halda plays through them smoothly, like a soundtrack of your life on a cool summer day just minutes before sunset (but you’re really just sitting on your ass with headphones on, scratching your belly, having a couple of beers, and possibly typing a music review). No awkward funny business here, Yndi Halda can definitely play meditative pieces.
The band plans to tour North America (and by North America, they really mean the US) this year. Hopefully with a lot of response to their EP from Canadian fans, they’ll make it up here, too.
As their songs are pretty long, I recommend visiting their myspace to listen to two of their tracks, one of which is my favourite, “Dash and Blast.”
Visit the band’s webstore to purchase their album.
More reading: Read Drowned In Sound’s Review of Enjoy Eternal Bliss
Buy This CD on Amazon
Buy This CD on CD Universe
Buy This CD on InSound
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