Bits (2008, Sub Pop) Oxford Collapse's fourth studio album. ***
While portraying themselves as an indie rock band, Oxford Collapse seems to be far more rooted in post-punk. Yes, all the late-nineties influences are plentiful in Bits, but it's impossible to deny that there are also hints of Against Me! hidden sporadically. Bits isn't a brilliant album and through its course it accomplishes very little, and while there are not many moments that are as brilliant as "The Birthday Wars," there are even fewer that are as painstakingly awful as "Young Love Delivers," riddled with obnoxious and bratty "Whoa"s that are intentionally delivered that way (a subconscious attempt to drive people away). Oxford Collapse have done much better, but they need to mature a little bit, as their shtick is getting tired fast. A little bit of a new direction may be in order.
Into the Galaxy (2008, Siberia) Midnight Juggernauts' third studio EP. **1/2
Last year we were lucky enough to experience Dystopia, the debut album of this very talented Australian trio. Of all of their material, "Into the Galaxy" was one of the top songs, featuring a dreamy, almost video-game-like synth lead-in, and wonderfully strange falsetto during the chorus. The EP of the same name features the radio cut of the title track as well as three remixes. It's not fair to blame Midnight Juggernauts for some rather low-quality material resulting from their work. And it's even strange, as Grandmaster Flash doesn't create an adequate remix. Perhaps the band should take the crummy remakes as a compliment; "Into the Galaxy" is a great song, and nothing here really can hold a candle to the original.
Midnight Man (2008, Mute) Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' seventh studio EP. ***
Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! has been one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the year. And All Music Guide has been kind to nearly their entire catalogue, which is racked with four-to-five star albums. Midnight Man is interesting only, not actually something completely worthwhile. Bascially, the early versions of "More News From Nowhere" and "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!" are the most engaging to listen to, but purely for the fact of wondering how they took form to their completed counterparts on the main album. In the end, though, it's only truly notable for die-hard fans.
Here are a handful of albums that hardly deserve a full-length review. Duds consist of albums that have received a rating of two stars or less.
12 Steps (2008, Defend) Tittsworth's first studio album. **
Tired beats interspersed with bits of untalented rappers being unbelievably cliche and stereotypical. Dance/rap that only nerds will identify with once the cool kids get tired of it.
Waiting for the Sun (2008, Secretly Canadian) David Vendervelde's second studio album. **
Unfortunately for Vandervelde, he can't sing worth shit. Some will find his voice intriguiging, but it's almost as annoying as Geddy Lee's. His songwriting isn't bad, but there's certainly nothing memorable about it, either.
The Old Days Feeling (2008, Modern Radio) Mirah's ninth studio album. **
Mirah's brand of anti-folk isn't nearly as clever or interesting as Regina Spektor's, and her unorthodox song structure and length aren't original in the way she thinks they are; she's different for the sake of it, not because she actually is.
Look at Life Again Soon (2008, Take Root) The Ettes' third studio album. ***
The Ettes instantly conjure up images of their obvious influences - the White Stripes, the Black Keys, the Kills, and early the Go (from their first LP, Whatcha' Doin'). They're far more than knee-deep in the garage and punk rock sound, though they've almost completely abandoned the blues. And that's okay, they don't want to be a cheap imitation. At the same time, though, the Ettes aren't nearly as explosive as any of their predecessors, and it's not like the lost energy is made up in sex appeal, as Lindsay Hames' voice is high pitched and tinny, only appearing less so because of the thin layer of distortion that haunts her performance throughout the album. Look at Life Again Soon is truly hit-and-miss, as tunes like "Crown of Age" don't hold a candle to undeniably catchy ones like "I Heard Tell."
After a long period of people completely disowning disco - not just the music, but everything that it touched - it seems as if it has finally managed to creep back into modern music. Disco isn't necessarily something that will see a revival; perhaps Saturday Night Fever will get more playtime on cable TV, but things like males wearing platform shoes are most definitely gone. Although disco may not have the power that it had in the late 70's, modern spins on it now offer people an alternative to cruddy rap that you can hear at any nightclub. So how did this even happen? How can something that has been readily mocked for twenty years suddenly be cool again? The evolution isn't all that surprising.
When disco seemingly died in the 80's, it actually just split itself into two factions; house and hip-hop. The hip-hop side of it was still danceable, and its own evolution into various incarnations of rap music is another story in itself. Although a branch of rap itself, hip-hop has always been more music-oriented than rap-oriented, and its danceability eventually turned a certain genre of rap to appeal to clubs the way house did; deep, heavy beats, loud bass, and a catchy - albeit in most cases mindless - chorus. House was far less popular in the mainstream than hip-hop, as it was purely made for dancing, not the radio. It was characterized by its constant beat and random placement of other instruments, sometimes accompanied by vocals (which, in most cases, was not only rare, but when it did happen, was completely repetitive). It, too, branched off into various genres, and it was artists in the late 90's who varied its sound that made it popular to wider audiences.
Among those artists were the French duo Daft Punk, whose revelatory 1997 album Homework redefined techno. By breaking into the mainstream, their influence was direct on countless artists and spun incalculable experimental techno and electronica artists, and in many cases even rock artists who were interested in incorporating electronic elements in their music. And then, in the early 2000's, plenty of artists began to pay attention to what was driving the electronica movement, and blending of moods came together. For instance, Daft Punk and Moby were moreso on the techno side, known for thick beats and, in the case of DP, harsh, robotic vocals. On the other side of the coin was ambient electronica, and arguably the most influential among modern artists is Boards of Canada. The only thing that their music held to electronica was that it was made with computers, as it was completely and utterly removed from dance elements. Their classic 1998 album Music Has the Right to Children helped to seal what would come.
A great (unknown) example of mixing ambience and harsh techno was Royksopp's 2001 debut Melody A.M., categorized as downbeat electronica. No, it wasn't the first of its kind, but it was an exceptional album that, while not energetic enough to be dance music, kept the warm nature of ambience while adding toe-tapping beats. Soon after, James Murphy created the identity of LCD Soundsystem, a force that would majorly influential in the return of disco. He - unknowingly or not - upped what bands like Royksopp were doing; he made the beats a little louder, the music more intense and intricate, yet shyed away from the easy and overused tempoes that characterized house. His 2007 masterpiece Sound of Silver introduced songs like "Get Innocuous!" that were heavily influenced by disco. And even before then, random bits were found sporadically. Even Feist covered a Bee Gees' song on her 2004 debut Let It Die.
2008, however, has proven a powerhouse for true disco to stage a comeback. While some artists only dabble in it (MGMT's "Electric Feel," for example), other artists are engulfing themselves. Hot Chip's release earlier this year, Made in the Dark, is characterized by its lead single "Ready for the Floor," a heavily disco-inspired groove. And while other artists last year like Midnight Juggernauts flaunted with it on tracks like "Into the Galaxy," bands like Hercules and Love Affair are blatantly calling their music disco. And it's not like this stuff is being disowned, critics are eating it up. Why? It may have been labeled as stupid shortly after it went out of style, but the truth of the matter is that while its lyrics may be coded to mean dirty things, it is in no way as outwardly trashy as club rap today. Disco is good dance music, infectious and entertaining, and it will up the experimentation for electronica in the twenty-first century.
SIDE ARTICLE:Blondie's "Heart of Glass" Vs. Feist's "Inside and Out"
Although it's possible that it is completely unintentional, Feist's video of the disco song "Inside and Out" by the Bee Gees contains many similarities to the video for Blondie's 1979 hit "Heart of Glass." Yes, they may seem arbitrary, but it is noteworthy.
Blondie - Heart of Glass
Feist - Inside and Out
Blondie's video is characterized by simplicity; it's almost completely focused on her, and she keeps her attention solely focused on the camera. Also, her movement is slight but important; although I wouldn't call it dancing, you can see that she is moving to the music, bouncing up and down. Feist's video isn't all that different. No, she's not with her band performing the song, but she is the target of the video. Most of the shots are of Feist up close, and she, too, is only looking at the camera. This is interesting because unlike in the late 70's, many videos today feature idiotic side stories and/or intersperse shots with the artist. Feist's video, whenever focused on her, always shows her lip syncing, just like Blondie does in her video. And Feist's movement, simple walking, gives her the same slight bounce that Blondie has.
Feist's other music videos also tend to focus on her, but if you look at her two most popular, "1234" and "Mushaboom," they contain hordes of extras, but "Inside and Out" does not. However, it should be noted that "Inside and Out" was not directed by Patrick Daughters, the director who Feist usually works with and who directed "1234" and "Mushaboom" among others.
Human Destination (2008, Beat the World Records) The Upsidedown's second studio album. **1/2
The Upsidedown should be commended for writing decent songs, and some might even think to congradulate them on their 'sound.' Thing is, the Upsidedown don't really have one. They dabble in Velvet Underground neo-psychedelia, Stooges garage rock, and early 2000's post-punk. And from song to song they're wildly unpredictable, completely morphing their assumed persona from the preceding track. Human Destination can only truly be described as mind-boggling, as even the band doesn't seem completely sure in what they're doing to the point that they recycle different formats throughout the album; psychedlia, garage, post-punk, in that order, again and again. It's not that the material is bad, it's just that Jsun Atoms' Lou Reed impression works only sometimes, and Human Destination is so disjointed that it functions more as a collection of songs by a band struggling with direction rather than a comprehensive album. If at any point they figure out how to focus, they could be formidable.
From the Mountain to the Sea (2008, Faded Label) Birdmonster's second studio album. ***1/2
Birdmonster make simple, straight-ahead, good and honest alternative folk rock. They don't try to be overly complex and they aren't trying to channel any one specific sound. That might come off as Birdmonster not having a unique voice, because in all honesty, the instrumentation of the album isn't what defines the band in the slightest. It's vocalist Peter Arcuni that makes Birdmonster, and in particular From the Mountain to the Sea, magical. Arcuni sounds like a young Stephen Stills, specifically from his time with Buffalo Springfield (and a cover of "For What It's Worth" wouldn't have been out of line).
"My Love For You" opens things softly and introduces Arcuni near naked, as there's not much instrumentation behind him. "Lost at Sea" comes next, and sets the general attitude of most of the songs, as they tend to be in the vein of up-tempo folk numbers, and "Lost at Sea" is the best of those. But when they mood is more mellow, there are jewels like "Concrete Lights," an acoustic ballad that evolves with an electric guitar. But it is Arcuni's vocals that make the song, which is fairly monotone and only ever seems to go up, never descending as the listener so deperately predicts. It happens again on "The Only One," which features the entire band coming into full swing over time, but its message is simple if not beautiful: "I was young/and you were the only one." And later, "But there was the only truth/Could have been anyone/Just so happened that it was you."
Ear-pleasing to say the least, most of From the Mountain to the Sea is filled with catchy numbers. Arcuni and company would have no trouble going unplugged with these; really, an acoustic guitar and piano might suit most of these tracks better than the full-electric approach they've given it. A never-pretentious, always enjoyable and smooth effort. (My Love For You, Born to Be Your Man, Concrete Lights, The Only One)
All We Could Do Was Sing (2008) Port O'Brien's second studio album. ***
The California residents Port O'Brien have churned out an interesting sophomore effort. It's an indie-folk blast reminiscent of the Avett Brothers, Bon Iver, Broken Social Scene, and even Arcade Fire. And although it starts off with intensity and harsh focus, it slowly loses its way (intentionally or not) and crawls towards an end. The anthemic title track sets a great mood of freedom, and the following two cuts establish the album's theme of a yearning soul being trapped by illusionary obligations. But things slip up a bit starting with "Pigeonhold," which seemingly criticizes today's young quasi-hippie crowd, accusing them of stealing the past phenomenon of the 60's and not being as original and free-thinking as they claim to be. An interesting concept, but the band itself sounds like hippies, and thus lines up the hypocritical "I do that, but anyone else who does it is stupid." It may not be true, the members of Port O'Brien might be straight edge, but it's a message not suiting them. After that brief head-turner All We Could Do Was Sing quickly heads downhill into a cycle of pointless jams and boring guitar progressions, and scurries in the last two to three songs to re-vamp the album's themes. While it isn't close to being perfect, Port O'Brien are capable of expressing their ideas eloquently when they aren't thinking too hard.
Author's Note: Information on distribution label was not found.
A Little Bit Longer (2008, Disney) The Jonas Brothers' third studio album. **1/2
I was extremely disappointed in Rolling Stone's award of "excellence" to this album. It's not that the Jonas Brothers are awful or that they will never become anything, but Rolling Stone's reasoning is beyond ridiculous. Jody Rosen's first line in her review of four Disney-released albums is "History teaches us not to dismiss kiddie pop." I would actually say the exact opposite. Why? Rosen claims that we have to thank teen pop for results such as Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, and all associated wannabes. But let's look at this fact; of the teen pop sensations Spice Girls, Backstreet Boys, N*Sync, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Justin Timberlake (solo), and a combined twenty-two albums between them all, only two have not been met with middling or poor critical reaction (Back to Basics by Aguilera and Blackout by Spears, the latter of which did receive a few mixed and poor reviews). And don't get me started on Katy Perry.
So if that's the logic you want to use, Jody, then we need to be wary of Vanessa Hudgens, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers. But that's actually the opposite, because like Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers aren't bad. Is there album great? Not by any stretch of the veritably screwed-up imagination. Teen pop is useless, but they use it the correct way. They aren't going out of their way to try and be cool; basically, there's no mention of partying, sex, or the like. These guys are responsible to their fan base, and that's great. As far as the music is concerned, it's fairly bleak. Yeah, Nick and Kevin can play the guitar pretty damn well for their age. But Joe's vocals are so horribly predictable - complete with lines of "Tonight!" and forced voice straining - that they help fulfill all the cliches one can expect. There are two moments where the brothers get it right; the first is "Shelf," a genuinely straightforward rocker that loses the excess of traditional generic pop. Switch the vocalist and you could believe it was any trapped-in-the-late-90's band. Another is the gentle ballad "Lovebug," a simple acoustic number that turns radically electric as it progresses. Beyond that, the boys fail to be as adventurous or clever as their female counterpart. But that's okay, if they ever adopt a respectable genre they could transpose their skills. It's easy-going and honestly harmless music, because their full commital to Christianity doesn't seep in anywhere for an unwarranted and unwanted moral lecture. For fans it's their best yet. For anyone else, that last sentence doesn't mean a whole lot.
Preteen Weaponry (2008, Jagjaguwar) Oneida's ninth studio album. ***
The unfortunate part of Oneida's latest album is that it makes the following statement even more true; you need to experience them live to be able to enjoy the album. Not only that, but you'd have to be a fan. And since more than 95% of Preteen Weaponry is instrumental, it's a bit difficult to sit through. Is it boring? Not quite. Oneida are able to keep you interested for a certain period, but once you get past the fact that the first part of this three track album is basically a fourteen-minute buildup which leads into another long sequence of a buildup that ultimately goes nowhere, you wonder what Oneida are trying to get at. I can't recommend it, but at the same time I'm wary of saying that they're not onto anything. For fans and the ultra-curious.
Fasciinatiion (2008, Blank. Wave) The Faint's sixth studio album. **1/2
Glitch electronica is so often one of those rare and criminally underrated things; that is, of course, when it's done correctly. The Faint have opened up a barrage of problems on their latest LP, Fasciinatiion. One is that they don't really know what they want to do; all the songs are very glitch-heavy, with blips and bleeps like you wouldn't believe, but at the same time they introduce an electric guitar and hip-hop elements. Experimentation is great, but it doesn't go with anything they've put out here. Not only that, but the electronica beats they do have are far too harsh; the beeps are loud and obnoxious, trying to act as a facade of intricacy. It's too muddled and in the middle, for Fasciinatiion isn't soft like The Eraser or fluent like Sound of Silver, yet at the same time it holds itself back from being as violent as You Have No Idea What You're Getting Yourself Into. And at that point the album is drab, with Todd Fink's vocals being a poor version of Phil Collins. In fact, Fink is a major problem for the album, as his growling baritone and virtual nonexistant range make him boring to listen to. Had they a vocalist like Alexis Taylor, the album's strong points like "Get Seduced" and "Forever Growing Centipedes" would be a qualifying apology for the rest of it. But alas, even the better moments - "Forever Growing Centipedes especially, as grooves don't get much crunchier than that - are only slightly above mediocre. Not to mention that their lyrics are beyond ridiculous, and even though they develop an interesting dystopian theme, it's laughable when you listen closely to tracks like "A Battle Hymn For Children."
Bits (2008, Sub Pop) Oxford Collapse's fourth studio album. ***
Waiting for the Sun (2008, Secretly Canadian) David Vendervelde's second studio album. **
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