AWmusic

Next in the series:
Part 4: #1-25
#26 Teen Creeps by No Age (myspace/live)
I’m feeling regretful of not including Nouns in my list.
#27 Eraser by No Age (video/live)
Can be #26 (tied), both are equally good.
#28 Feel The Love by Cut Copy (myspace/live)
“All the girls I’ve known are crying” Conceited but catchy.
#29 Bare Feet On Wet Grip Tape by Chad VanGaalen (myspace)
Soft Airplane’s most accessible song.
#30 God? By The Dodos (myspace)
“Oh God, where’d you go?” Agnosticism at its finest?
#31 Ottoman by Vampire Weekend (myspace)
At least we got this song from a shitty movie.
#32 Beat (Health, Life and Fire) by Thao Nguyen With The Get Down Stay Down (myspace/live)
Upon listening to this track, I’ve become a big fan.
#33 Heart of Chambers by Beach House (myspace/video)
My favorite song off Devotion.
#34 Dying Is Fine by Ra Ra Riot (myspace/video-ep version)
Sounds emo without reference to this poem.
#35 Hitten by Those Dancing Days (myspace/video)
All girl indie pop bands ftw.
#36 Let’s All Sleep Together by Team Genius (myspace)
Orgies ftw. (All girl orgies ftw?)
#37 For Emma by Bon Iver (myspace/live)
This song is simple but captures the atmosphere of loneliness.
#38 The Modern Leper by Frightened Rabbit (myspace/live)
“You must be a masochist, to love a modern leper”
#39 Rabid Bits of Time by Chad Van Gaalen
Beautifully sung.
#40 Winter ’05 by Ra Ra Riot
This song makes Winter depressing. Sad in general.
#41 Agoraphobia by Deerhunter (myspace)
“Cover me, comfort me” is stuck in my head.
#42 Skeleton Man by The Evangelicals (myspace/live)
“When someone loves you very much, you’re fucked”
#43 Why Do You You Let Me Stay Here? By She and Him (myspace/video)
Fuck you Ben Gibbard!…oh I meant congrats.
#44 Move by Cansei De Ser Sexy (myspace/video)
Another catchy CSS track.
#45 Another World by Antony and The Johnsons (myspace/video)
Antony apparently doesn’t think much of us. Still beautiful though.
#46 Uncalibrated by Bridges and Powerlines (myspace/video)
This song puts the power into powerpop.
#47 Shut Up And Let Me Go by The Ting Tings (myspace/video)
The Ting Tings are a guilty pleasure.
#48 Poison Dart by The Bug ft. Warrior Queen (myspace/video)
My introduction to The Bug. I was amazed.
#49 My Year in Lists by Los Campesinos (myspace/video)
“Send me stationery to make me horny” Mail-sex ftw?
#50 I Hate Dell by Oldfolks Home (myspace)
Dell pissed off the wrong guy.

“Best song to play on a road trip”
#91 Constructive Summer by Hold Steady (myspace)
Me and my friends are like “constructive summer”?
#92 Ghosts by Ladytron (myspace/video)
Schizophrenia?
#93 House Music by Cadence Weapon (myspace)
Best song on Afterparty Babies.
#94 Creeper by Islands (myspace/video)
Video is odd.
#95 The Old Days by Dr. Dog (myspace)
“Let go of the old ones, we’ve got new ones.”
#96 Jodi by The Dodos (myspace)
Jodi my dear, this is a song you must hear.
#97 Battle Royale by Does It Offend You Yeah? (myspace/video)
A catchy instrumental for one of my favorite movies.
#98 I Wasn’t Made For Fighting by Woodhands (myspace/video)
They were actually made for dancing.
#99 Heaven (Narctrax Remix) by Health (myspace)
Health’s Disco has amazing remixes.
#100 Dawn Of The Dead by Does It Offend You Yeah? (video)
Critics hated on the wrong album.

I was a little surprised to see that only track they used of the EP was “Sing Song”, a fun little sing-along.

The album starts off with, my favorite track “Take Me Home”. Mainly the courageous Drew Hermiller whose vocals are probably an acquired taste shows off a style that he can sing at very high octaves that is reminiscent of Michael Jackson, though they said they took influences from Prince. The vocals are definitely refreshing from his regular Spencer Krug-style voice. That being said, I think Hermiller’s vocals are a big draw for me, I think it’s add into the carelessness and it’s a unique style that not many people can pull off.

I think a little bit of let down in this album, is that his voice is too clean and protected by their female band mates. The females sing wonderful but it makes it all that more unnecessary to have Drew be a mediocre singer rather then a unique, raspy and coarse vocalist.

The album is also less chaotic then their previous release. I’m not sure if this is the best thing but it does make them different from any other large-number group bands (see Ra Ra Riot or Los Campesinos!). Instead of making a beautiful mess, Team Genius has concentrated in tweaking everything, giving a cleaner and smoother sound. I think for me, I want to hear those flaws and more of that “indie” feel.

The album still has its bright moments. While it’s certainly flawed, it’s another example (in my mind) of band putting out a great EP and struggling to put out an equivalent album.

All the songs are overall solid, with great back up vocals by Emma Firth and the use of a wide variety of instruments. With 8 members, here’s a list of other things they use: harmonica, trumpet, accordion, mandolin, bells, cello and sax. They do try different things vocally and musically which is a welcome sight…anywhere.

I do also like this album more and more. It has a grower feel to it since there are subtle things you miss, like on “ABC” where there is random fast keyboard playing. A lot of the songs, aren’t as “out there” as the EP so I just was forced to take a different approach when it was all said and done. I don’t like having to adjust my expectations but there album is still good. The use of Firth’s vocals on “Take What You Can’t Make” gives the band a whole new dynamic. It’s clear she’s a strong vocalist and it sounds like an entirely different band.

To me the album is above average, Team Genius is capable of MUCH MUCH more but it’s just their first album and there is always room for improvement.
Rating: 3.75 out of 5

Take Me Home by Team Genius
ABC by Team Genius
Take What You Can’t Make by Team Genius

Team Genius is sextet (they might put sex in sextet, not this sex though ) out of the centre of the indie rock universe (seemingly) Brooklyn, New York. They were introduced me by the great Fanatic Promotion. Though the press release, I found rather funny; “comparable to the energy of The National”! The National is great in their own right but when it’s a band that’s more pop…you couldn’t be more wrong.

I think a proper comparison would have been Wolf Parade but more importantly lead singer Drew Hermiller is in so many ways like Spencer Krug (Sunset Rubdown/Wolf Parade/a bajillion other projects). Drew shows off his various vocal range with yelping and sometimes rough unperfected vocals that ultimately give Team Genius it’s charm as being silly/fun and almost uncaring.

With only 5 songs of the EP. Team Genius show some range while keeping it simple. While Drew’s vocals change drastically throughout each track so does the band, sometimes with an interesting, other times taking over with some upbeat keyboarding. They even change it a bit with their last tune which is rather slow moving and ultimately rewarding. A comparison I’d like to make that hasn’t been thrown out there is that they are really similar to Los Campesinos! providing punk elements with great lyrical content.

Let’s do a run down of all 5 songs to organize my thoughts.

1. Let’s All Sleep Together
This is a fun pop gem lasting a mere 2:15 but it has some of the funniest lines that I would love to quote or just sing in my head. Clearly it’s talking about orgies and the line “I’m so beautiful, you’re so beautiful, let’s all sleep together!” is stuck in my head like that that “is your bed made…etc” from Vampire Weekend’s Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa.

2. Sing Song
This is THE track that I believe Drew sounds 100% like Spencer Krug. It’s actually the first track I liked by them. The lyrics seem inaudible at times even when this is supposed to be a song for you to sing sing sing along. It almost sounds like a drunken anthem at times. It’s a pretty catchy track though at this point I give up trying to figure out any deeper moments as I can’t keep up with vocally… after awhile I just hear “we’re sorry”.

3. Hand Claps in E Major
This song utilizes the keyboard for a lot of the track, giving off the good old new wave sound. Like the title says you get hand claps in E Major… though I find the title as an interesting choice. Lyrically this track is rather simple and its simplicity complements the full-out sing song and I’m Just An Idiot.

4. I’m Just An Idiot
This track is extremely fun, fast paced and having a good time. This song is more complex to the ear and while the mixing/production isn’t top notch, it’s probably their best track. The 2:26 of this track is quite dense. I love the line “I guess, you guessed I’m Just An Idiot”.

5. Must
I was going to say I didn’t like this track…but it’s probably one of the deeper songs on here. It’s not so much of a pop song to me and it’s a strange way to end of EP with all the high-paced pop.

This band may be unheralded until they release a full release but I see this band coming up with great things. Comparisons aside on their own, this band rocks and they aren’t as geeky as they want to make themselves out to be.

Rating: 5 out of 5! – After much thought, it is the perfect EP.
You can buy the EP here.

I’m Just An Idiot by Team Genius

Let’s All Sleep Together by Team Genius

Must by Team Genius