We're Gonna Try Something New

I'm so fucking tired from driving for 8 hours today, so this is going to be a test: Shorter reviews.
McLusky - McLusky Do Dallas (2002)


This album will kick your ass and rock your face off. This is your review:




Recommended Tracks: Lightsaber Cocksucking Blues, Collagen Rock, To Hell With Good Intentions, The World Love Us And Is Our Bitch
Genres: Rock, Experimental, Metal, Awesomeawesome
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?tyztazig2rk

The Weakerthans Make Me Weakintheknees

So that Mountain Goats cd down there is really just so so so good. You guys should pick it up. It's got hardly any downloads yet and it really bums me out.

Also, you may have noticed a decline in postings (you probably didn't), and that's because, well, I don't want to run out of albums. This blog will only be active 3-4 days a week now, instead of 5. Sorry. Onto the album!!

A lot of people downloaded that other Weakerthans album (But I Can't Remember The Sound), so I figured I would put another one of their albums up for everyone. Again, you guys, this is my all time favorite band. They're just fantastic.



The Weakerthans - Left And Leaving (2000)

This is the album that changed everything for me; I remember it very well, when I finally decided to listen to it (I had been listening to Reunion Tour on repeat and figured it was time to put something new in). I was in the car, riding from some town in Pennsylvania back home, and put the headphones in. By the title track, I was completely unable to contain myself anymore. Their lyrics were always spot on, their music was always fun and enjoyable, and the mixture of the punk ethic with the indie sound comes out as beautiful as I would hope. This is more than just a collection of songs.

Between the fast pop-punk of Watermark, to the practically spoken-word Without Mythologies, even leaving room for some country twang in My Favorite Chords (probably one of the best songs ever written), The Weakerthans always do it exactly right. Literally every single track on here is emotionally charged, perfectly worded, and musically coherent to the song. One moment that really stuck out for me is the chorus of Aside ("Leaning on this broken fence, between past and present tense") and how it related to the album title. Just genius and just beautiful. The album ends with "neon lights and slinking purple skies," and [left and] leaves you with a need to put it on repeat. Honestly, this is just a fantastic album and I couldn't recommend it higher. They're seriously my favorite band for a reason, and I guarantee that, eventually, I'll have all of their albums up, and you should get them all!

Recommended tracks: Aside, Watermark, This Is A Fire Door Never Leave Open, Left And Leaving, Exiles Among You, My Favorite Chords (okay, yeah, I know. They're seriously all awesome)
Genres: Indie, Punk, Folk, Rock
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?ymymjq5q14t

To Love Or Die In Tallahassee

When people ask how you can get into a band like The Mountain Goats, it's not too difficult to come up with a quick answer. John Darnielle has written and recorded over 500 songs, some recorded on a primitive boombox in one take, just so he wouldn't forget how to play it. However, in 2002, after the beautiful All Hail West Texas (to be uploaded later), some genius decided to give Mr. Darnielle and his Mountain Goats a record deal on 4ad, and this is the stunningly good album that came out, this is the album I recommend first.


The Mountain Goats - Tallahassee (2002)

If you were to ask someone about the Mountain Goats, they'd probably say "he writes a lot of songs about traveling and a lot of songs about a couple that is married but hates each other and wants to kill each other." The cd Tallahassee is entirely about that couple. Every song seems to outline bitter hatred that exists between them, but the explanations are out of, well, love. Darnielle doesn't mourn this couple's hatred, instead, he celebrates them; he created them so that they couldn't help but beat up on each other, get drunk, beat up on each other more, have make up sex, and then hate each other. It's their way of loving each other, it's the way they live.

What makes this album so great is the fact that life literally flows from each song. Between the scathingly powerful "No Children," the beautifully soft-spoken "International Small Arms Traffic Blues," and the cathartic power of "See America Right," Tallahassee is one of the most beautiful and enjoyable records I've ever heard and is the cd that got me into The Mountain Goats altogether. Honestly, if you can, reading the lyrics alongside the record gives a nearly literary value to the cd; it plays out like a book and it is just awesome. Again, this is easily one of the best bands making music today and one of the best records I have ever heard.

Recommended Tracks: No Children, See America Right, International Small Arms Traffic Blues, Have To Explode, Oceanographer's Choice
Genres: Indie, Rock, Folk
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?jayzmtvcyod

True Colors

I downloaded this cd on a whim a few months ago, knowing only two songs by the band. Every time I hear it, I just get a huge smile on my face. They sound like three dudes in a recording studio, having a lot of fun as they wrote and recorded some fantastic songs.

Born Ruffians - Red, Yellow & Blue (2008)

Luke Lalonde, Mitch Derosier, and Steven Hamelin are a power trio in the most fun way. Yeah, they play guitar, bass, and drums, respectively, with Lalonde taking on lead vocals, but they also incorporate pianos, accordians, and more backing vocals than necessary. The music is catchy and nearly dancy, but very minimalist, relying more on syncopated and truncated rhythms and virtuosic playing than wall-of-sound production. The instruments, when played in headphones, nearly sound like they're spaced apart by the producer, and that's part of the charm; it makes what I declare a Sonic Sandwich: The drums and bass are spaced far to the sides, the guitar is right in the middle, leaving the area in between for vocals. Okay, you guys don't care.

So the songs bounce around; the drums are tom and cymbal heavy, the basslines walk up and down the fretboard, and the guitar is jangly as a set of car keys in a blender. The voices yell and stomp and croon beautifully with backing vocals often taking on a call-and-response form or simply harmonizing with Lalonde's playful vocals. Overall, this album is just a lot of fun and it's what I want to listen to over the summer just to have a good time.

Recommended Tracks: Barnacle Goose, Hummingbird, Hedonistic Me, Kurt Vonnegut
Genres: Indie, Folk, Pop, Rock
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?yutyyz5mjnn

Tom Waits For Everyone

For those who didn't figure it out before, Tom Waits is my hero. Like, honestly. He's my all time favorite musician and this album is another testament to his pure genius. I can not recommend his music any higher than this. He is absolutely brilliant.

Tom Waits - Small Change (1976)

Okay, so a bunch of people got the other Tom Waits album I uploaded, Rain Dogs (isn't it AWESOME?), and I figured the natural progression would be my other favorite Tom Waits album and probably the most inviting out of all of them. Yeah, I know, the album cover features Mr. Waits himself... with a stripper... both looking sullen and lonely... That's... that's what this album feels like, to be honest. It's a jazz album at its heart, with Waits wailing in a lighter, younger version of his trademark growl, but with beautiful, beautiful backing music.

Songs are melodramatic and touching, with lyrics like "the large print giveth and the small print taketh away," "the piano has been drinking, not me," and "I don't have a drinking problem unless I can't get a drink," Waits' light humor really makes him sound like a down-on-his-luck bum from the 20's, just singin' a little song for you. I guess the real charm is how HONEST the whole cd is. Waits croons about lost love, strippers, advertisements, drinking, getting drunk, needing a drink, being drunk, and pretty much everything else. His song titles complete the image, with tracks like "Bad Liver And A Broken Heart," and "I Can't Wait To Get Off Work (So I Can See My Baby)," you know what you're in for. Tom Waits seems like a timeless character, and this album is what really established him as the genius that he is.

Oh yeah, and Tom Traubert's Blues is probably one of the greatest songs ever written by anyone. It's so unbelievably good.

Recommended Tracks: Step Right Up, The Piano Has Been Drinking, The One That Got Away, Tom Traubert's Blues
Genres: Jazz, Rock, Blues
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?dqwyyyyniwm

Woo! Thanks, Josh!

Tonight, Josh saved me. It's 3:30 AM and I woke up feeling shitty for not having a guest album for you guys, but then I checked my facebook and, unexpectedly, Josh not only reviewed a FUCKING COOL cd, but he also uploaded it! Thank you, homeboy!

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - Of Natural History (2004)

The album opens with a foreboding ambience. A low hum with accents of distant scratching and growls. Louder and closer, all approaching until a strangely quaint chorus interjects. Lead by the deep and sometimes frightening voice of Nils Frykdahl. If the first 3 minutes of this album are any indication, you will be in for an experience that is varied at best and neurotic at it's delightful worst.

"Of Natural History" is staged as a debate between The Futurist movement and The Freedom Club. With all the pomp and circumstance of esoteric metaphor the album intends to elaborate on the ideas of anti-humanism and what it means for us. Yes...this is kind of artsy heavy-handed pretentiousness. Sleepytime Gorilla Museum (SGM) have a surprising ability to make that sort of thing work. Without getting into the backstory (that you can certainly find on your own) this is a band of very familiar people that have worked extensively in theatre and music, and it shows. There is a kind of theatrical quality to their music, it isn't so much a passing ditty or song to explain a feeling. Their music has a narrative quality to it, building climaxes, sudden twists and all sorts of interesting moments which keep any one track from being repetitive.

Of course if nothing else the elephant in the room is the fact that this is not everyones' cup of tea. Or even your glass of scotch, if you will. This is some hard music to swallow at first and I admit that it took me a while to get into. Like wine, coffee or anything with a really strong flavor you will need to get used to the taste of SGM, for their lyrics and writing as much as the music itself. They admit to the ironic tone of their music but claim their hypocritical use of electric instruments is of the most sincere intentions. I suppose if they are truly humorists that would be the bigger joke. It's hard to say. The only obvious thing to mention is that there is scarcely a major chord to be found on the entire album. They delight in atonal discord and polyrhythmic passages, the type which are designed to do anything but create that fat and happy feeling. The sound jumps around from dark ambient to death metal and makes all sorts of departures in between.

This is a band I highly recommend to any serious nerd for music. Or a beginning nerd to music really. This kind of band can give you all sorts of insights in to the kind of possibilities a modern rock band has, and it completely changes your standards. This album, in my mind, is their greatest work. It has maintained to be amongst my top favorites for some time now, and for good reason. Devote the time you have to hear the entire album, don't skip around and don't do it too distracted. Perhaps listen on a long drive, or just sit quietly with some speakers (there are worse ways to spend an hour). And anyway, if you don't like it you can return it for a full refund of your purchase price.

Recommended tracks: Babydoctor, Phthisis, FC The Freedom Club, Cockroach
Genres: Rock, Experimental, Metal
Links (yeah, two of them, it's a big album!):
Pt. 1: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?yarnnzhllji
Pt. 2: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?ykd1mwhyxyy

The Band That Broke Punk's Heart

Little introduction: It's taking a lot of strength not to put the Jets To Brazil cd up for a second time; seriously, if you don't already have it, it's so worth it to get it now. I've been listening to it nonstop since I put it up last week.

Anyways!

So, I saw this band a few months ago with fellow Hallelujah-blogger, Brooks, and his younger brother, Andy. Andy was also at the Ted Leo show that I wrote about last week and he asked me to upload this album. I don't normally do requests, but this one was submitted in person, so I'll make an exception... Also, I had already uploaded it because I knew I was gonna put it up.



Los Campesinos! - Hold On Now, Youngster... (2008)

Los Campesinos are an eight piece indie-pop/punk band; their name is Spanish for The Peasants or The Famers; however, they are from Wales and do not have any songs in Spanish... Instead, their music is a sort of indie-pop that kind zig-zags between the borders of punk and total insanity. Every song sounds like it might fall apart and descend into total madness at any given point, but at the same time, each song also sounds like it could be played on some shitty top 100 radio station if the ridiculously distorted guitars, glockenspiels, or manic speed were removed. Basically, they're a punk band whose songs are so unfairly catchy and enjoyable to listen to, that you can't help but enjoy it.

The band released two FULL cds in 2008; "Hold On" being my favorite, "We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed" is also pretty good, but this one is my favorite. The guitar lines are intricately woven between violins, glockenspiels, synthesizers, gang vocals, and, of course, the hilariously off-kilter lyrics sung through Gareth's registerless voice. His excited shouts are pulled back by Aleksandra's quiet, tuneful backing vocals. The song titles are so funny, and the lyrics match perfectly; they're just great songwriters and the songs are always perfectly put together.

Altogether, this album is easily one of the best from 2008 and is so much fun to listen to. If you ever get a chance to see them live, I recommend checking them out. They're a great time and I love this album so much. Check out the recommended tracks to get an idea of what the song-titles are like. Just great.

Recommended Tracks: Death To Los Campesinos!, Don't Tell Me To Do The Math(s), This Is How You Spell "Hahaha, We Destroyed The Hopes And Dreams Of A Generation Of Faux-Romantics," You! Me! Dancing!
Genres: Indie-Pop, Punk, Rock, Experimental
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?zloeeugczdz

Concert Review Pt. 2 - Dem Pharmacists

So after Titus left the stage, there was a brief intermission before Mr. Leo himself walked out. He walked up to the microphone and thanked the crowd (" 'Anks!") before immediately kicking into "Little Dawn," one of the best songs on Shake The Sheets (available below). For those who don't already listen to him, Ted Leo is kind of an ex-punk-but-still-kind-of-punk guitarist who sings in a fairly high register. By the end of the first or second song, he already broke a string on his guitar and got out the secondary one... an identical instrument (beautiful Gibson 335, absolutely fantastic sound).

Seeing him and the Pharmacists play live is, quite literally, like having your face rocked off. They play smart, energetic punk that has about as much in common with The Clash as it does with Thin Lizzy and Okkervil River. It's nearly an amalgamation of the energy of punk, the epic power of classic rock, and the literate, forceful intelligence of indie rock.

Their set consisted of all the classics that I assume they play at every show; "Where Have All The Rude Boys Gone," "Shake The Sheets," and, of course, "Me And Mia." Every song was played passionately and the entire band seemed to be having just as much fun as the crowd. They rocked through a lot of new songs, as well. Leo noted after one song that it was the "first time we've ever played that one in front of anyone else." To balance out the really new songs, they also went through some oldies, like, "Timorous Me" from 2001's The Tyranny Of Distance.

The best part of the set, I would say, was the finale. While playing the last song of the night, Ted broke another string on his secondary guitar and decided to just give up with playing the instrument. He did straight vocals for the remainder of the song, and during the "guitar solo," he decided that he was finished with the guitar entirely. He grabbed the headstock, ripped it the rest of the way off, and began slamming the body against the stage. By the time it was destroyed enough, he thanked the crowd and left. The encore, suffice it to say, was performed on a different guitar, and was just as energetic and exciting as the beginning; they finished the whole set on "Shake The Sheets," one of the best songs from the album of the same title (uploaded below!). They really know how to put on a show, and I highly recommend stopping by, even if you've never really seen them before.

Ryan and I both left with chunks of Ted Leo's wrecked guitar and were so feeling the whole set (even though we didn't recognize a lot of the songs from his latest release).



And now the album!


Ted Leo And The Pharmacists - Shake The Sheets (2004)

Seriously, this is, like, punk's older brother. It's fiery, it's danceable, it's got provocative lyrics that make you think. It's just a good time, and I can not recommend it anymore than I do now! So GET IT!!

Recommended Tracks: Me And Mia, The Angels' Share, Little Dawn, Shake The Sheets
Genres: Indie, Punk, Rock
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?tnznzmyhoki

Wednesday Special! Longwinded concert review!

On Sunday, my friend Ryan and I drove up to The Ottobar to see Ted Leo and the Pharmacists play with Titus Andronicus. This is the review of the opener from that show along with the Titus Andronicus album! Tomorrow, I'll review Ted himself and put up my favorite Pharmacists album!

Titus Andronicus At The Ottobar (Pitchfork style, I guess, because none of this review really makes sense)

live picture from their myspace, to give you an idea of what they were lookin' like

Sunday morning, I woke up at 1 in the afternoon and saw a few texts from Ryan sitting, unread on my phone. "Yo dude, bonarroo is a no go, still up for ted leo tonight?" from 10 that morning. "Dude are you up?" from noon. Sweet. I talk to Ryan and we plan out the trip; I buy the tickets and we're good to go. At about 7:45, we're on the road, with Hearts Of Oak blasting as we roll up I-95. Conversation turns to beach plans, summer vacation, and how likely we are to do some Mardi Gras business next year (Ryan goes to Tulane, down in New Orleans).

We arrive at the Ottobar around 8:30, in time to catch the last song from Sleeper Agent. Dude looks like he's having a heart attack on stage. I give him props for that. There's about 15 people in there and one of them is Andy, Guest-Reviewer Brooks' brother. So Ryan and I talk to Andy for a while before moving up for Titus Andronicus' set. I had seen Titus twice before this show, so I knew what I was getting into, Andy had seen them a couple times as well. Ryan, however, had no idea what was slowly lurching onto the stage.

Lead singer Patrick Stickles has a beard that encompasses his face, he's wearing sweatpants, and a Ponytail t-shirt. "This is, like, our fifth time playing The Ottobar this year. We just can't keep ourselves away," he quietly speaks into the microphone before pulling out a harmonica and going directly into "Joset Of Nazareth's Blues." Yeah, dude. Then he starts yelling nearly incoherently through the song while playing guitar. It sounds just like the record! They blaze through almost all of the "hits" from their debut, The Airing Of Grievances (there's really only, like, nine songs on the cd, so playing through all of the songs except for the two slow ones is pretty much like playing the hits), including "The Enemy Is Everywhere," which I've never heard a recorded version of, but I've seen them play it every time I've seen them. They also play a new song as well as a Cock Sparrer cover. I think every single mic stand on stage fell over at least twice during the set because of their, as Ryan put it, "epileptic spazzes" while playing. So fucking awesome.

Ryan pokes me and asks how the drummer manages to do what seems to be a fairly simple sounding beat, but makes it so ridiculously intricate, playing 16th notes back and forth on different drumheads and cymbals for what must be sport. The rhythm section for Titus Andronicus... which I guess is pretty much the entire band, is so tight and spot on. They sound like they should be sloppy, they look like they should be sloppy, but everything is perfectly in time and everything has more energy than most bands today. Again, awesome.

They end on the first track of the record, probably my favorite song from the whole thing, "Fear And Loathing In Mahwah, NJ." Stickles lightly strums the guitar, singing as clearly as he has for the entire night (odd, since on the record, the first half of the song is utterly incoherent), before stopping and stepping away from the microphone. The entire band looks up and after what seems like 10 full seconds, each member chimes in: "FUCK YOU." Suddenly the song is in double time, there are tapping guitar solos, and they play through until all of the effects are on all of the guitars and then they leave the stage with just echoes permeating through the amplifiers.

Ryan looks at me and I'm afraid of what he's going to say, because this is not his type of music. "They were actually really good, you gotta hit me up with this cd!" Here you go, homeboy.

Titus Andronicus - The Airing Of Grievances (2009)
(yes, it's named after Festivus)

Titus Andronicus is... well, I guess they're a punk band. But... I mean, not really. They're just cool. I definitely recommend checking them out if you like music that sounds like it's on fire... if that makes sense. It does to me.

Recommended Tracks: Fear And Loathing In Mahwah NJ, Arms Against Atrophy, Titus Andronicus
Genres: Punk, Indie, Rock
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?1ozmzfnt4zb

I Was Herbin' Them In The Home Of The Terrapins

Thanks, Brooks! This review's been long-coming and is for an excellent album. Enjoy, you guys.



Jay-Z - The Blueprint (2001)

The Blueprint, Jay-Z’s definitive release, and one of hip-hop’s best, revolutionized the entire hip-hop world upon its release in 2001. During production, Jay-Z was held up by two separate court cases and ended up only spending two days recording. But it is through this brevity that the album finds its strength. Simple, brooding beats and powerful soul samples by producers Timbaland and, particularly, Kanye West compliment Jay’s smooth flow, creating a menacing atmosphere for the record.

On the first real track, the Kanye produced diss-track “Takeover," Jay takes out his rival Nas (Nas' album is available here) backed by pummeling Doors and David Bowie samples. He then flows flawlessly into “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)”, the hit single that threw West into the spotlight. Kanye returns later in the album to provide more haunting backing tracks, flanking the Timbaland street party highlight “Hola Hovito." On the latter, Jay-Z’s braggadocio never quite gets the best of him, brimming with deserved confidence throughout the album, despite his claim that while he “ain’t better than Big, I’m the closest one." But hey, maybe he is, maybe he’s not. It’s not a fair argument given their bodies of work—but I am positive that this is great album, something his old mentor would’ve been proud of.

Recommended Tracks: Izzo, All I Need, Renegade
Genres: Rap, Hip-Hop
Link: http://www.mediafire.com(SLASH)?wzcwyqtltw3