Strong Debut From Philly's Own

Artist: Clean Guns
Album: Sometimes There Is T.R.O.U.B.L.E
Website: http://www.myspace.com/cleanguns

Comments: Sometimes There is T.R.O.U.B.L.E by underground hip hop duo Clean Guns ranks as one of the most difficult albums I’ve tried to review in a long time, and until tonight, I couldn’t for the life of me explain why.

From the production, which is mostly done in-house by the group and has an interesting electronica element to it, to the wordplay and lyrical content, which is intricate, descriptive, and referential (like much indie hip hop), there was a lot to like about Sometimes. It had all kinds of things going for it, but that wasn’t the reason I liked it. Or rather, that wasn’t the reason it was hard to review.

Even its style is to my liking. The album is straight up hip hop. There is no snap music or big rhythm dance tracks on this record. There are no R&B singers laying down 3rd rate croons over nickel and dime jazz samples. There are no callout tracks to big name performers in an attempt to further a career. That isn’t what Clean Guns are about. Sometimes is what hip hop aspired to be when it was created. It’s not showy or preachy, and there isn’t necessarily a life changing lesson to it, but it’s expressive and descriptive and maybe, just maybe, it can communicate better the intricate details of city living better than actual conversation ever could.

Still, there are hundreds of records that accomplish this and sound better than Sometimes. While thematically on the same page as classics like Illmatic and Labor Days, Clean Guns lacks the same all-or-nothing punch of these records. Their delivery isn’t as developed as Nas, and their flow isn’t as rewarding as Aesop Rock. But still, there was something about Clean Guns that made me pause and thing that they could develop into something like those two.

It wasn’t their hard edge, which shows through excellently on the album opener “Blast Off”, and it wasn’t their willingness to reflect on tracks like “Beautiful You” and “These Words I Write”. What set Clean Guns apart is a much more visceral and intangible thing; Clean Guns sounds legitimate.

Listening to Sometimes There is T.R.O.U.B.L.E is like listen to the heartbeat of the city. And even though they hail from Philadelphia, it is a much more universal appeal. Clean Guns could be from anywhere and anywhere and still sound like the authentic mark of urban life. It’s in their lyrics, their delivery, and their production. Everything from dirty streets at 2am in West Philly to a cloudless sunny day downtown lives and breaths in this music. Clean Guns doesn’t describe the street; they are the street, and they embody all of the successes and failures that dwell there.

You may never hear Clean Guns. Right now, they get by on local buzz and college radio. But in a hip hop landscape that is dominated by flash-in-the-pan imitators who attempt to manufacture a demographic sound for profits; Sometimes There is T.R.O.U.B.L.E is a dirty, dusty, exhausted filled breath of fresh air.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Key Tracks: “Blast Off” “These Words I Write” “Knives on Trains” “Good Clean Fun, Good Clean Guns”

Worth The Money: Yes

Worst Nightmare Isn't Brits' Best Stuff - By Joe Gilson

Artist: Arctic Monkeys
Album: Favourite Worst Nightmare

Let me say one thing straight off: I like the Arctic Monkeys. I really do. I was one of those people pushing them on my friends when they came onto the American scene. You see, I was in Ireland when they blew up so I got to witness the British explosion firsthand. It is for these reasons that I feel a little bad about what I am going to do.

Jack Johnson was new for me when I first heard him. I had never heard anything quite like what he was doing in the context of a major album release. For that reason, every song off of his debut album is memorable for me. Then his second album came out and, frankly, it was more of the same. Ask me how any song off the first album goes and I’ll know it instantly. Second album? Not so much. Because essentially they are the same album with only a few differences. For this reason, if you ask someone what their favorite Jack Johnson album is, it is going to be the one they heard first. Unfortunately, the Arctic Monkeys have fallen into this trap for me.

The Monkeys’ 2006 debut Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not was an immediately memorable listen. It was visceral, grating and laid-back, accessible and exclusive at the same time. Listening to that album made you feel “in” on some kind of idea, but an idea that you knew people would be getting behind in the near future. Which makes sense; Favourite Worst Nightmare is pretty much everyone getting in on the idea, after its become slightly worn down and a bit more universal.

I know why Whatever never took off in America. It was simply TOO British. I got it because of the time I spent immersed in the culture. Nightmare, on the other hand, is far more general in it’s language. Songs from Whatever like “Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secured” and “A Certain Romance” which specifically detailed British pub culture have been forgone for songs and lyrics which detail handling fame and being looked at as an icon, something these 21-year-old kids from Sheffield cleary have trouble dealing with. The problem is, a lot of people in the position of the Monkeys have dealt with fame. Not many have been so good at detailing the like of a 21 y.o. in Sheffield.

Does this mean that Favourite Worst Nightmare has no redeeming value? Absolutely not. “Teddy Picker” ranks up there among the best on Whatever and the song “Flourescent Adolescent” is a very catchy, very memorable tune. At the same time, there is a lack of consistency. Their debut was reliable from track to track for a few good hooks in each song, from “View From The Afternoon” to “A Certain Romance.” Even the singles were excellent. Which brings us to Favourite Worst Nightmare in a nutshell. I was waiting with baited breath to hear the new single, “Brianstorm.” I played it on my computer, then had to play it again, and again, and again. Not because I liked it so much. Because each time it came on, it finished without me ever really getting sucked into it. I realized that there was nothing grabbing, nothing instinctive that pulled at my guts and made me remember it. That is the real problem.

Is it a bad album? Definitely not. Is it as good as Whatever? Definitely not. Is it fair to compare the two? Maybe. But lead singer Alex Turner says it himself on the first album: “Anticipation has a habit to set you up for disappointment.”

Plus, when you have a band so new and so different, who else can you compare them to?

Worth it to buy: Eh, probably. Try to find it online though.
Stars: 6.5
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Thanks to Joe Gilson for the review, and for implementing a new rating system here at LOTD (6.5 stars? Yowza!). Updates continue tomorrow.

Wilco's Latest Lacks Teeth, Isn't There

Artist: Wilco
Album: Sky Blue Sky

Comments: Ever since the decompression pop of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Wilco’s critically acclaimed 2001 release, the band has been unwilling or unable to recapture their edgy experimental sprit. Their follow-up, A Ghost is Born was an underrated album of guitar driven, country kissed poetry mixing the country / folk twang with a 80s guitar hero bigness, but it couldn’t match the grand opus that was YHF. Still, the band should be given credit for not willing to settle. After all, it was Wilco’s ability to turn themselves from an alt-country band into a phycadelic pop band that made them such critical darlings and fan favorites in 2001. Fans looking for Sky Blue Sky to rival YHF will have to keep looking. Despite (or perhaps because of) a return to their rootys country ways, this is a flat record, and, despite the consistency of the music, their worst since A.M.

The record plays out like A Ghost is Born recorded for adult contemporary stations. It starts off with the charming but mild “Either Way”. The song starts with a nice little guitar riff and piano melody, but never really takes off. It sets a precedent for the record, because a lot of songs on this record are like that; they never take off. Songs like “Sky Blue Sky”, “Please be Patient With Me” , “Hate It Here”, and “Leave Me(Like You Found Me) are all nice little songs but they are soft, reserved numbers that never explore, never develop, and just play like b sides and filler. It’s hard to believe that this is the best Wilco could do.

The guitar work from voodoo witch doctor Nels Cline is as good as it has ever been, and local genius Tweedy still has got an ear for pop and a pen for songwriting, but the band can never really find a balance between the two. In other words, it seems like the songs with the best guitar work have the worst lyrics, and the ones with the best one lines and turns-of-phrase feature crummy song development. Everyone just sounds asleep on this record.

Thankfully, the band does wake up from time to time. The silly honky-tonk of “Walken” is one of the few times on the record where everyone sounds like they’re paying attention (or awake). The song itself isn’t anything special, but compared to the rest of the album, it sounds fresh and alive. “What Light” is the best soft song on the record, reaching back to Wilco’s early days as an alt country band. It’s a soft pop number but, like “Walken”, its got an edge to it, as if there is more under the surface than just poppy gloss and studio-like musicianship. Elsewhere on the record, “You Are My Face” and “Side with the Seeds” feature some really excellent breakdowns, and some truly superior guitar work from Cline, and both are worth a listen just for that. Cline always seems to be trying to push himself forward, and the rest of the band just seems content to listen. Hard to blame them though.

With the exception of a few songs on the album, Sky Blue Sky sounds empty, like it’s missing something. It’s hard to define what exactly; all the songs feature some sharp musicianship and good singing on the part of Tweedy (his voice sounds fantastic on this record). Despite Tweedy’s emoting, the album sounds like it lacks emotion, almost as if Wilco just phoned something in. Tweedy said in a recent interview that this record was the most civil and easy Wilco record ever made in the bands ever-changing lineup. Sky Blue Sky sounds like a comfortable, easy, safe record. Perhaps that’s the problem. Perhaps Wilco has just become too comfortable together. Sky Blue Sky may sound pretty, but it is the sound of a band losing its edge.

Rating: 5.5 out 10

Key Tracks: “You Are My Face” “Walkin” “What Light”

Worth The Money: Only for die hards.

Amy Winehouse Might Get Drunk and Sleep With You

Artist: Amy Winehouse
Album: Back to Black

Comments: Amy Winehouse is a paradox.

On the one hand, she is very modern. Winehouse is very much in control of her own music. Her strong voice commands every song with the confidence of someone who knows she can belt it out with the best of them. Her subject matter, getting drunk, getting heartbroken, and looking for comfort in the earthly garden of physical pleasures (and ultimately, finding those pleasures to be hollow), is normally reserved for the men of rock and roll, not the women of pop. It’s very feminist in her brash self-damaging empowerment.

On the flip side, Winehouse can’t get herself out of the 50s. The backdrop for her stories of low self esteem and booze fueled mistakes is the golden era Motown sound. Despite some very modern hip hop influenced drumming, the horns, bass lines, and keyboards are all classic soul. These two things, the modern stories of morning after regrets coupled with the classic sound of the Supremes or Aretha Franklin, is the main appeal of Back to Black; she makes music for the modern fuckup with classic tastes.

I have to confess, I didn’t like Winehouse when I first heard her, and I had no intention of giving this record a good review. The reason for this is the video for her lead single and thematic mission statement “You Know I’m No Good”, which features Winehouse in a bathtub, at a b, and drinking on the floor of a kitchen. I have no problem with this, but I do have a problem with her poor choice in facial accessories; she’s got this big ass lip stud, and for reasons I cannot fathom, it bothers the fuck out of me.

But once I got over my own absurdity and listened to the album, I was pleasantly surprised. Winehouse has got some really good pipes, so much so that she is able to pull off what many pop stars have tried and failed to do; she is able to pay a fitting tribute to the pop stars of the past. A big complaint about modern pop is that the people who make it can’t really sing. This is not the case with Winehouse, her voice is as strong and unique as the ones she pays tribute to. On tracks like “Rehab” she belts out with defiance and confidence, while on “Love is a Losing Game” and the excellent “Back to Black” she is able to show restraint and emotion in her singing. Her vocal control is impressive.

The album is not without its limitations, however. Winehouse is a lovesick puppy, and that is really all she sings about, giving the record a definite theme at best, and a one track mind at worst. And there is a really shitty use of the song Ike and Tina Turner made famous (Ain’t no Mountain High Enough). Also, because Amy is mining classic production, songs tend to run together, and there really isn’t much room for musical growth. In other words, I don’t think Winehouse has got enough to talk about, or enough to back her up, for a second album. But that’s a bridge she’ll have to cross some other time. For right now, for what it is, Back to Black is a better-than-average pop record with a darker-than-average subject matter that is both refreshing and charming in its direct nostalgia.

Forget tomorrow, put on some soul, and make some mistakes.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Key Tracks: You Know I’m No Good, Back to Black,

Worth The Money: Yes, but be aware of what you are getting; an album of modern songs that sound classic by design, not through their own merit.

Tom Morello Quietly Rages Against The Machine

Artist: The Nightwatchman
Album: The Nightwatchman

Comments: I find the timing of this album rather dubious. Perhaps it is just coincidence that Tom Morello’s solo project gets released within days of a Rage Against The Machine reunion at the Coachella festival in California, but I suspect that it is not. Now, whether this is a ploy of the record company, a move masterminded by Morello himself, or just one big happy coincidence, I will never be sure. However, I will say that Morello has always struck me as an activist with a mind for marketing, and it doesn’t surprise me in the least that a big time reunion and a solo album involving the same man both take place in the same week.

But this is a record review, not a conspiracy theory essay. And all money making schemes aside, The Nightwatchman is a throwback to a now defunct style of protest music, which is the everyman folk song.

This kind of guitar based story telling was best used by the flower loving, poorly kept hippies of the 60s. Say what you will about the peace loving, drug addicted children of the greatest generation, but it cannot be ignored that they got shit done, and acoustic folk music was the soundtrack to their peaceful, noisy revolution. 40 years later, those kids all have mortgages and mini-van’s, and the protest music of today wedged between flaccid, shallow hip-hop and flaccid, shallow rock music.

Because of this social situation, The Nightwatchman is good in the context of our times, but not in the context of history. In other (less pretentious) words, this album is a fitting tribute to a time when protest music meant something, and people actually believed things could get done.

People familiar with Morello’s guitar work in Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave might be surprised to hear his songs on The Nightwatchman; the entire CD is acoustic, and features none of the over-the-top, synthetic guitar screams that made him a cultural icon. Instead, The Nightwatchman is a stripped down and intimate record where most tracks only feature Morello’s baritone voice and lonesome guitar chords.

The songs on the record seem to fall into one of three categories; there are the faster paced “angry” tracks, the slower, more poetic “sad” tracks, and there are the anthems. “Angry” tracks, like the steady thump of album opener “California’s Dark” or the violent call-to-arms of “One Man Revolution” preach violent rebellion and civilian upheaval. The “Sad” tracks, like “No One Left” are sung like dirges to fallen friends, slain by an oppressive fascist state. The anthems like “The Road I Must Travel” play like campfire sing-alongs to inspire revolution.

If the subject matter sounds repetitive, that’s because it is. The album is one dimensional in it’s smashing of the state and lamenting the oppression of the proletariat. Morello is over the top at every turn; through The Nightwatchman’s eyes, we are living in the end of times, and there is almost no hope for any of us. This is the biggest problem I have with The Nightwatchman; there is an undertone of hopelessness that lies under every song. It’s almost as if Morello doesn’t think we can win, no matter how many of us rise up.

There is a lot to dislike about this record. I’m sure Ann Coulter’s head would explode if she heard this CD. Still, this is great protest music in a style that few artists dare use today. And, even with it’s one track mind, it’s nice to hear someone speak so boldly about what he believes, with no waffling or compromise. Morello has his vision of right and wrong, and if you’re not part of the solution, then you’re part of the problem. At the end of the day, that is what makes this CD worth a listen; The Nightwatchman actually gives a shit, and its good to hear that someone, somewhere does.

Raiting: 6.5 out of 10

Key Tracks: The Road I Must Travel, Union Song, No One Left

Worth The Money: Yes, for all you godless liberals

Latterman: Making Sure Punk is Still Alive - By John Adams

Artist: Latterman
Album: We Are Still Alive

Comments: For a band with such silly song names, Latterman might be one of punks best kept secrets. Their most recent release, We Are Still Alive, is defiantly their best album to date.

The CD starts off with bells that explode into a monstrous bang and never looks back. “Water Manes at the Block’s End” starts with a guitar/drum intro that is reminiscent of Whippersnapper and breaks into a catchy pop-punk anthem and the reoccurring theme on the album (“searching for a home where we won’t die alone”). The next 3 songs keep the same energy and desperation that “Water Manes” started and runs right into “Dr. Sudholt and His Double Glasses”, which is almost a reprise of the introduction to “Water Manes”.

In the second half of We Are Still Alive, you can really start to hear the Jawbreaker influence. Things are slowed down a little bit, but just because things slow down doesn’t mean that Latterman lose their edge. The guitar and vocals are still sharp and the music is more challenging, but the songs have a little more poppy and feel to them. Latterman finishes the cd just as big as they started it. “Will This Be on The Test?” brings the closure that you need on this cd with a chorus of people singing “If today the ground gives in/hope we won’t fall alone.” We Are Still Alive is really is an album full of anthems that Latterman never intended to sing alone. Few punk bands still have the same sense of community and friendship that Latterman has, and is trying to rebuild in the punk scene.

Bands like this just don’t exist anymore, and weather you like the band or not it’s refreshing to hear music that makes you feel like you belong. Now this cd isn’t perfect by any means. While in places there are flashes of brilliance most of the lyrics seem a little childish and forced, and the music could probably be tighter. Another draw back people might have from Latterman is that the music sounds like it could be written by the Lawrence Arms and the vocals sound like they’ve been listening to Smoke or Fire’s “Above the City” for a little too long. Latterman is far from reinventing punk rock, but on We Are Still Alive, they’re on the cusp of breathing life back into it.


Rating: 8 out of 10

Key Tracks: Water Manes at Block’s End/ Goodmorning, Here is Jan/ and Will This Be on the Test?

Worth The Money: Most Definitely
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(oh man, another 8 out of 10? We're really dealing out the feel-goods here at Left of The Dial this month. See you monday.)

Quick Hits - Cold War Kids, Silversun Pickups, The Fratellis, Panda Bear

LET'S DO THIS!



Artist: Cold War Kids
Album: Robbers and Thieves

Comments: Earlier in the year, this band got the entire blogosphere’s gears a-turnin’ with rumors of their bananas live performances. Since then, they’ve come to town twice. Based on the opinions of people I trust, the rumors about these guys ruling a stage are true. Plus, I saw them on a late night show, and they were rocking the house (which is very rare for those late night shows; the performances are often stale as hell). And to the band’s credit, this really carries over into the music. They are playing the hell out of their songs, loving every second for it, and what Robbers and Thieves lacks in tightness it makes up for in exuberance.

Still, a good live performance does not an album make, and most of this album is flat, recycled indie pop rock. The single “Hang Me Out to Dry” and album opener “We Used to Vacation” are both good, but the album can’t hold up. Songwriting is hit or miss; there are a lot of good one liners here and there, but no standout songs besides the two mentioned in the last sentence. Same goes for the music itself. It’s a start, and I feel like this band could really be something in time. But for right now, they’re nothing to get excited about. Unless they’re coming to your town.

Rating: 5.5 out of 10
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Artist: Silversun Pickups
Album: Caravans

Comments: Another band that, like the Cold War Kids, built up their reputation on live performances and underground buzz. Though they had less internet frenzy upon their release of Caravans, Silversun Pickups are similar to CWK in that their record is good, but not great.

Their sound harkens back to the early days of the Smashing Pumpkins, but with less angst and more melody. The lead singer even sounds like ol’ Billy C. at times. First listen does not yield too many rewards, but repeats highlight things like the professionalism of the band, and the power in the lead singer’s voice (the guy sounds like a woman, but goddamn can he belt that shit out if he wants). Songwriting is alright, and I think it is only going to get better with time. Songs like “Lazy Eye”, “Melatonin”, and “Well Thought Out Twinkies”, with their grunge thump and solid lyrics suggest that maybe, just maybe, this band could be the next big thing.

But not yet.

Rating: 5.5 out of 10
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Artist: The Fratellis
Album: Costello Music

Comments: Are you sick of euro pop yet? I’m sick of euro pop. This mini-invasion from bands like Bloc Party, Franz Ferdinand, and the 10,000 other bands that can be described by comparing them to the first two has more than outstayed its welcome. Still, it’s time to make some room on the bandwagon, because the Fratellis refuse to be denied.

Sure, this record is tight. And sure, it sounds like all the other brit-pop that is flooding the radio right now. But there is something different about these lads. Maybe it’s that they borrow more from The Sex Pistols than they do Wire or Joy Division. Maybe it’s the sing songy chorus to lead single and Ipod commercial jingle “Fathead”, or the 90s sunshine guitar in “The Gutterati?”, but something about these young snots is damn exciting. The Costello Music on this record is fun, fast, brash, and a fun listen. Throw this on and have a drink with some friends. Then let’s crash this bandwagon into the barging bin.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10
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Artist: Panda Bear
Album: Person Pitch

Comments: I had no intention of listening to Person Pitch. I don’t listen to Animal Collective (Panda Bear is the drummer’s side project), and I’m not really all about psychedelic music. Plus, Pitchfork loved it and nothing against Pitchfork, but I don’t want their tastes to be my tastes; they like some awful shit in those Chicago offices. No, Panda Bear and I never should have crossed paths. Imagine my surprise when I not only listened to Person Pitch, but liked it.

Person Pitch is a psychedelic trip of sincerity and confidence, and Panda Bear is able to lead us through his foggy swap of ethereal, ambient nonsense with a tender hand. The entire album is about making music for the sake of making it, with nothing else in mind. There is no motive behind this album, other than love of creation, but the subject and the act of. “Comfy in Nautica” eases the listener in with it’s repetitious chorus “try to remember always / just to have a good time”, and it’s chorus of angels urging us to “Try!” The titanic “Bros” starts out at Beach Boy style trip-pop before melting into an explosion of sampling and relaxed urgency that would make the Arcade Fire jealous. The only misstep on the 7 song album is the stumbling thump of “Good Girl / Carrots”.

Somewhere, Brian Wilson is listening to this record with a smile on his face. Panda Bear is able to take the torch of the cracked genius and carry his memory on into a new millennium on the strength of sincerity and joy. Great sampling. Great songwriting. Great anthems. Great album.

Rating: 8 out of 10

The Good Time Are Killing Me

Update coming later this afternoon. Chill

Three Easy Steps

Step 1) Go buy the newest Don Caballero album, World Class Listening Problem.

Step 2) Listen to the last 1:39 seconds of the song "Railroad Cancellation."

Step 3) Joy.


Reviews tomorrow.

May Notes

Hey All,
It was just around this time last year (Christ, this site has been up long enough for me to say that?) that I went into the woods of upstate NY to grow a beard, eat nuts, and do a vision quest. None of that nonsense this year; updates will continue throughout the summer as often as I can put them up. And seeing as I have already had one unannounced leave of absences (i.e - the entire month of April), updates will be coming soon. Here's the list for this week:

Wednesday - Indie Rock Quick Hits
Friday - The Nightwatchman
Monday - Arctic Monkeys

As usual, any comments, questions, or guest submissions can be sent to Mrdogg45@yahoo.com

Get Ready To Feel The Illinois

Artist: Illinois
Album: What The Hell Do I Know?

Comments: Who the fuck has ever heard of Bucks County, PA? Unless you’re from the county in question, chances are you’ve never heard of the suburban / rural-ish area of PA (if you’re from Philadelphia, you might know the name as nothing more than a coffee company). Indie rock four-piece Illinois is hoping to change that, and put their little know hometown on the map. And with the buzz they’re starting to generate amongst the internet tastemakers, not to mention some good career breaks (singing with Ace Fu Records, opening for the Hold Steady, playing Lollapalooza this summer, ect.) it looks like they might not be too far off from doing that. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that their first professional release, What The Hell Do I Know, is a catchy, smart, and sweet little pop record.

It’s a good thing that this record is as tight as it is. With only seven tracks and total runtime of just over 20 minutes, it can’t afford to be sloppy. Then again, tight doesn’t mean there can’t be a little life in the music. Take for example the banjo plucking, hip hop pop of “Nosebleed”. This is a messy little track with distorted bluesy vocals, a catchy as hell rhythm and some pretty sharp lyrics. Front-man Chris Archibald croons “I know what you need/ and it’s a good nosebleed” like an grandfather on his porch yelling at those damn kids to get off his lawn and turn that damn rock music down, but with a wry smile and a charming air to him. The bluesy backwater feel returns again on the catchy “Screendoor”. “Screendoor” is the kind of songs the Kinks would have written if they came from backwater Louisiana instead of suburban UK. And the borrowing / covering of Soup Dragon’s “Bad Day” is an under-produced, over drummed mess of a song that tells the charming narrative of a slacker protagonist who is every post grad in the country.

The rest of the album is less unique and more polished pop, but it is no less personal and inspired. “What Can I Do For You” plays like a Ben Folds song without the self satisfaction, or Keane with more sincerity. “Alone Again” sounds like something we would hear from The Fray, but without all the screaming girls and cliché. Of these glossy pop tracks, the one that works best is “Headphones”, which is about escape through music. It follows the quiet-LOUD-quiet dynamic of late 80s-mid90s rock, but with a tender and restrained touch. Archibald tells us the he “feels so lonely when I talk / can’t I just put the headphones on?” It’s a very personal and modern twist on a very public and widespread emotion, which is feeling lonely even when surrounded by people.

This seven song LP is a good start for this promising young band. Time will tell if they can keep the balance of smooth pop and down-home country electro-rock, but as things stand, this is a very strong release from the next big thing. If they can keep this up, Illinois just might put Bucks County on the map.


Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Key Tracks: Headphones, Screen Door, Alone Again, Bad Day

Worth The Money: Yes. Get on this train before it leaves the station to Hype-Ville.

An Overdue (and Overblown) Review of Modest Mouse

Artist: Modest Mouse
Album: We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank

Comments: This record has been out for well over a month. It’s gotten tons of press from all sorts of publications, and no one needs to hear more about it. However, as a Modest Mouse superfan in the making, I feel compelled to give my two cents about the album. Still, I do so with trepidation; from the day I started this site, my goal has always been to present music as honestly as possible. Considering how much I worship the notes that Isaac Brock and his band of merry men create, this seems especially challenging to me. Never the less, I will press on with a track by track breakdown of the titanic record that is We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank.

If there is one thing that listeners can always count on from Modest Mouse, its kick ass opening tracks. "March into the Sea"maintains this trend with an accordion driven harmony and fierce, snarling vocals from the Brock, the drunk captain of this cursed pirate ship. It’s defeatist, powerful, raw, and undeniably addictive. Not to mention, it’s one of the most rocking songs MM has recorded since “What People Are Made Of”. And what’s more, the quiet-LOUD structure of the end of the song is the perfect segue into the first single…

…which is the horn sprinkled disco groove of “Dashboard”. Pitchfork called this song the Las Vegas version of “Float On”, and that is about as good a description as can be given. Like it’s poppy brother, the song features unusually upbeat lyrics and a dance-y melody that will be stuck in the brain for days. I wasn’t too keen on this song at first, but it’s definitely a grower song, and the perfect glass of milk to the spicy chicken wing that is March into the Sea.

The first two songs are followed by the disappointing “Fire it Up”. This song really doesn’t have too much going for it, other than a goofy quasi-stoner title. It is the first misstep on the record; it’s instantly forgettable. The instrumentation offers nothing outstanding, and it’s missing those painfully obvious but starkly brilliant life observations from Brock. Still, it’s unmistakably Mouse in its layered vocals. This is the first song on the record where Johnny Marr’s influence can really be felt

"Florida" – Now this song has a few interesting points to it. It starts in an angry flourish of synth effects and angular guitar, before transforming into longing pop, and then into a quiet, beautiful, and listless chorus. This song travels more ground 3 and a half minutes than some bands’ entire cataloge. Also, this song features vocals from Shins lead singer (and Brock’s next door neighbor) James Mercer.

"Parting of the Sensory" is the crown jewel of the record. Up until this point in the record, Brock had been nothing more than a howling madman; none of his drunken observations on the futility of life or red neck poetry were really present. "Parting" is classic Brock in that every line in the song can have double and triple meanings, making even the most mundane and commonplace palpable with depressing meaning. The song is a slow funeral march, starting out with only an acoustic guitar and base drum before finally exploding into a wall of sound, fulled by guitars, drums, mandolins, and Brock’s triple vocal attack. Brock screams “someday you will die/ and somehow something’s going to steal your carbon” like a man tearing his chest and howling into his own grave. It’s powerful, emotionally draining, and damn near perfect.

After the workout that is “Parting”, “Missed the Boat” is a natural song to come down to. It’s sweet, catchy, and easy on the ears, once again bringing in Mercer to bring the pretty. It still features more of Brock’s poetry, only it is a little less dramatic and apocalyptic here than it was on “Parting”; this song is more micro than macro (“Our ideas the held no water / but we used the like a damn.”). This song works both in the context of the record and as a track on its own. This is a strong candidate for second single, since it is on the softer, more poppy end of the Modest Mouse spectrum.

The second half of the record has more filler, after the mostly excellent A side. Songs like “We’ve Got Everything” and “Education” have nothing wrong per-say, but just don’t stick, either because Brock’s lines just don’t work, or the sound like other, better Mouse songs. “Fly Trapped in a Jar” is a standout. It starts of with a herky-jerky mocking tone before melting into a Farnz Ferdinand / disco dance groove (honest to god, Modest Mouse is making disco dance grooves now). The song works largely because of Marr’s more focused and accomplished guitar, which is a good match for Brock’s drunken kung-fu style of playing.

"Little Motel" is at the same time one of Modest Mouse most soft and personal songs, and one of the biggest departures from their established sound. Ever since “Lonesome Crowded West”, MM has been evolving from a spastic, lo-fi three piece into a multi-layered, pop minded, orchestral collective that is more concerned with the flaws in beauty than strengths in being angular, and no song better embodies this growth better than "Little Motel". Soft, inviting, and personal, this song will be a tough sell to old mouse fans. Hopefully, the jumpy distortion of "Steam Engenius" or the throbbing eight minutes of "Spiting Venom" will appease them.

The album that came in as a lion becomes a lamb again crossing the finish line, with the sloppy and uninspired "People as Places as People", before trying to make up for it with the soft explosion of "Invisible". "Invisible" is a good track, full of forceful vocals and jaunty guitar. The rhythm section is especially tight on this song. Still, it’s got the same tricks as the other hard tracks (like "March" or "Florida") and by the time this song comes along, the album has already run it’s course, so it feels like an afterthought.

So what the hell are you supposed to make of all this nonsense text I just layed down? After a song-by-song breakdown, what have we learned? We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank is both exactly like every other Modest Mouse album, and like no other before it. Like every other album, it has got it’s standout tracks, but it doesn’t hold up as an album. However, Brock’s observations and vocal styling are beginning to sound a little too similar, it’s almost like he’s running out of material. Still, this album is a hell of a grower if you let it hang around, and it serves to show that Modest Mouse might be one of the last great American rock bands.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Key Tracks: March into the Sea, Florida, Parting of the Sensory, Little Motel

Worth the Money: Yes

Mims Tells Us Why He's Hot

Artist: Mims
Album: Music is my Savior

Comments: It doesn’t take much to get a song to number one on the charts. A minimal snap-drum, a keyboard melody, some boastful lyrics and viola, you’ve got yourself a platinum single. Just so long as the people can dance to it, it doesn’t matter what you say, what you put into it or even if it makes sense. No one knows this better than NYC rapper Mims, and the fact that he is willing to embrace this makes him both the smartest and most polarizing rapper to emerge in 2007.

On his debut record, Music is my Savior, Mims has got a lot going for him. Instead of putting down the money for big name producers for his first record, Mims opted to use unknown street producers from his area in NYC. This, to me, is extremely commendable. The fact that Mims is able to achieve success and bring along some of his friends says a lot about his character, and gives him credibility. The man is keeping it real. And, love it or hate it, it has the powerhouse single “This is Why I’m Hot”. No one hates this song more than I do, but it’s a smart single because it showcases that Mims can play the game as well as anyone else. He knows that his song is shallow, under-produced nonsense, but he also knows that it’s going to make him a household name, not to mention boatloads of money. It may not be the most intergritous move of all time, but a job is a job, and we all gots to get paid.

Most of the tracks on this CD are just the normal, boastful sort of self promoting that chokes the life out of most mainstream, single based hip hop CDs. In other words, much of this album sounds like filler lumped around a few singles to make some extra money. Besides “This is Why I’m Hot”, which is the front-runner for my coveted “most played out song of 07”, “Big Black Train” and “They Don’t Want to Play” would make pretty good singles. The former is a catchy, proud song about, well, how hot Mims is, while the latter is the typical, “don’t mess with me” track, although the production is pretty sharp.

Much of the album follows these two motifs; either Mims is the best MC on the planet who might take you girl, or he’s the MC that will knock you out. While these themes break no new ground, for the most part Mims’ confidence makes you believe that maybe, just maybe, he might be the best. And there are a few songs on the album that suggest that there may be something deeper to Mims than money and women. Cuts like “Where I Belong” and “Don’t Cry” are able to touch on social consciousness personal turmoil, while still maintaining the sincerity and confidence that runs thought the record.

Music is my Savior is an uneven release by an artist who needs a lot of work to be anything more than a flash in the pain. At the same time, if anyone this year has the chance to establish themselves as an actual force in hip hop, its Mims. However, he’s going to have to learn how to rhyme better, tap into his more reflective and intelligent side, and he has to keep up his confidence. A lot of rappers claim to be the best; Mims’s strength lies in the fact that he actually believes it. And he’s no where near the best yet, but he could get there.

Rating: 4.5 out of 10

Key Tracks: It's Alright, "Where I Belong" "Big Black Train"

Worth The Money: No
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Check back tomorrow for more updates! I'm going to make up for the recent lag in reviews in a big way.

Ted and The Pharmacists Have The Medicine For Modern Times

Artist: Ted Leo and The Pharmacists
Album: Living With The Living

Comments: Indie rockers are a pretentious bunch, what with their beards and their sweaters and their high-falluting attitudes. They like to sit in their ivory towers and throw out musical influences, not as a marker to define their sound, but as some sort of resume of how awesome their taste in music is. These scoundrels are so busy showing how complex their tastes are that they’ve forgotten that they are even in rock bands. This is why Ted Leo and the Pharmacists are such a breath of fresh air in the indie rock scene; they know how, and are not afraid to rock.

I’ve never met Ted Leo, but I am under the impression that he is the least pretentious person in a very, very pretentious music scene. His music, which is punctuated by his Thin Lizzy meets Cheap Trick guitar styling and his high falsetto voice, has always had a very inviting feel to it; I am confident that if Leo were to give up on his punk rock, independent ethic and sign himself to a major label, he’d be a smash. He’s the kind of guy who you could get a beer with and talk about the newest Jet album, or how much you secretly love the new Fergie song. On his fifth studio album, Living With The Living, Leo and Co. maintain their everyman rock swagger and gain a little political perspective, for better or for worse.

While it is by no means a downer of a record, there are a few less songs to inspire beer glasses in the air. Some tracks on this record carry with them a little less tongue-in-cheek and a little more realization, inspired by the tumultuous times in which we live. The best examples of this are the two most political songs on the record; the unfortunate “Bomb, Repeat” and the most excellent “The Lost Brigade”. “Bomb, Repeat” is a real stinker of a song; Ted tries a little too hard to let us know that he is against war, and as a result, we get some 5th grade protest lyrics on top of what can best be described as a System of a Down B-side music backing. “The Lost Brigade” fairs better because of the restraint shown by Leo; he hints, but never gives away his feelings. The song is a seven and a half minute long blast of guitar and choral call and response lyrics. It’s good stuff.

Where Ted and his pals really succeed on this record is when they stay in their wheelhouse, which is stadium sized rock guitar and solid, pounding pop rhythm. The album kicks off with “Sons of Cain”, “Army Bound”, and “Who Do You Love”, which are all as strong as any song in the Ted Leo Catalogue. “Sons of Cain” is textbook Leo, down to the breakdown in the bridge and the Leo screams at the end of the song. “Army Bound” is more politically minded music, but the message is dwarfed by the Clash-esque guitar riffing and bass drum thump. “Who Do You Love” is the standout of the three; Ted Leo is doing his best Bruce Springsteen impression, giving the people a pop song to help them “work for the cities and live for the beach”. Any one of these songs could be stuck in your head at the drop of a hat.

One of Leo’s biggest complaints is that his songs suffer from too much similarity; the standouts stand out, but the rest all runs together. It’s a valid complaint as tracks do tend to run together at times. “Colleen” is nothing special, which is a shame because of the seriously bitchin’ solo in the middle of the song, and tracks like “La Costa Brava” and “The Unwanted Things” are good, but nothing special. But then, out of nowhere, comes the Celtic groove “Bottle of Buckie”. With its groovy fife soloing, mid 90s rock riff, and green isle inspired lyrics, it is a little out of place on the album, but a welcome break in pace.

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists are many things. Not only are they the friendliest indie rockers around, and one of the only bands around today that are not afraid to rock the hell out (If Ted Leo ever went on tour with the Hold Steady, the world would probably end on account of the massive riffs throwing our earth out of its orbit), but they consistently put out good rock music. Whether you want to get drunk with some friends, or sit and contemplate your life, Living With The Living has got what you need.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Key Tracks: Sons of Cain, Who Do You Love, Bottle of Buckie, The Lost Brigade

Worth The Money: Yes

The End Never Sounded So Good

Artist: El-P
Album: I'll Sleep When You're Dead

Comments: El-P’s I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead is a lot of things. It’s dark, both in mood and in concept. It’s challenging, both in its lyrical flow and in its production. It’s, at times, abrasive and harsh; some tracks on this album are difficult to listen to without serious focus at what it being play. It’s also innovative. It’s rich in layers and subject matter. And, it’s the best hip hop album of 2007, no question.

Before getting in to the album itself, let me first try to dissect hip hop a little bit. For the purposes of this discussion, lets break hip hop down into ying and yang. One half of hip hop is the kind of thing one hears on the radio; this is hip hop for the masses. This hip hop has got beats that people can dance to, and the kind of catchy hooks that have a way of burrowing themselves into brainstems. Let’s call this Mainstream Hip Hop. You heard that song “This is Why I’m Hot”? That’s Mainstream Hip Hop.

The other half, the darker half of hip hop isn’t really much for dancing or hooks, and you won’t hear a lot of songs about the club, or dropping it like its hot, or any of that. This second brand of hip hop puts more of its emphasis on flow; artists of this second brand like to play with words and internal rhyme schemes to see what they can come up with, the more complex the better. The production is not so much about groove and beat as much as it is about creating a landscape in which for the lyrics to exist; sometimes subdued, sometimes over the top, this production is never happy with stasis, and instead always tries to push itself forward. This is Underground Hip Hop.

I’m not here to say which is better than the other, because both have got their pluses and minuses. I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead is, without question, in the second category. So if that kind of hip hop doesn’t sound that good to you, if you just want to dance, then this is not the record for you. However, if Underground Hip Hop sounds like something you’d be into, then you need to get your hands on El-P’s latest.

Let’s ignore lyrics and production for a minute, and let’s focus solely on the atmosphere of this record. If the world were to end tomorrow, I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead would be the soundtrack to the aftermath (so, yeah, this isn’t really a cheerful album). El-P’s sophomore release is full of dystopian paranoia against the government, his fellow citizens, and anyone who isn’t him. This is a lonely, angry, and fearful record that is focused at the times in which we live; the album supports the idea that something very big, and very bad, is going to happen very soon.

El-P works best on this album as a story teller. On the excellent opening track “Tasmanian Pain Coaster”, El-P takes on the roll of himself and a nameless, faceless wanderer who has been abused by the system and has seen the rust in the gears, and deals with it through substance abuse (umm, yeah, once again, NOT a happy album). Later on in the album, the one-two punch of “Habeas Corpses (Draconian Love Story” and “The Overly Dramatic Truth” both focus on love, one painting El-P as a potential savior for a doomed love, the other showing him as broken, flawed Harttigan trying to protect his love by pushing her away, lest she be corrupted by his flaws. El-P is also in prime battle mode, lashing out against war in “Dear Sirs”, an anonymous character who has crossed him “Poisinville”, and driving in NYC traffic on the aptly named “Drive”. And while he is never too concerned about sticking to the beat or making himself totally clear, there is a subtle brilliance in his lyrics, not to mention some seriously good one lines peppered throughout the album (the surface that gave birth to the style is NY/ the jihad recipient sky is too fly).

The production on this album is top notch; a combination of Public Enemy’s Bomb Squad and RZA’s ADD style. El-P handles the bulk of the production himself, but he does get some guest help from Trent Reznor, (ok, that makes sense, what with Nine Inch Nails and all) The Mars Volta (who contribute the excellent “Tasmanian Pain Coaster”, making it the best thing they’ve ever done) and Cat Power (What?! Cat Power? Indie folk bands can produce?). Each of the guests bring their own unique style to the record, and it fits with the doomed feel of the album. Each song starts and ends in different places, constantly pushing the beat to its limits with the subtle addition and subtraction of new elements. This kind of innovative production is what makes this album so good, yet so challenging. Because of the original and constantly shifting production, there is not much in the way of catchy melody. This, in the end, is my only complaint against the album; after two listens it is unbelievable, but getting through that first listen can be a struggle.

El-P has made more than just an album. It is a snapshot of the world in which we live; where celebrities believe in aliens, the world seems pretty angry at us, and people way up every day fearing the worst. I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead is, hands down, the best hip hop record of the year, underground or mainstream, and maybe one of the top 10 best of the last 10 years.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Key Tracks: Tasmanina Pain Coaster, Drive, EMG, Run The Numbers, Habeus Corpses, The Overly Dramatic Truth, Poisonville No Kids Win

Worth The Money: Yes
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NOTE: I know I've been pretty M.I.A the last two weeks. I'm working on getting back on track. Look for two Modest Mouse reviews, and a review of Ted Leo's latest. Holla.

Arcade Fire Sets The World Ablaze

Artist: Arcade Fire
Album: Neon Bible

Comments: Was it worth the wait?

In 2004, a band from Canada released an album about personal loss. It was an album bursting with intensely personal confessions that were oh so well crafted around tender songs. It was almost uncomfortable; listening to the record was like eavesdropping on the kind of personal conversations that are saved for late nights and hushed voices. But, this was more than a glimpse into a journal; this was a tragic beauty of a pop record, with moments of tender tension and cathartic exuberance. That album was Funeral by the Arcade Fire.

Three, almost four years passed. No new music. No leaked mp3s. Only whispers of progress on a new record. The band that set the indie world on fire and seduced critics across the board with its tortured début had fallen off the grid. Until now. The Arcade Fire’s second album, Neon Bible, is out.

Was it worth the wait?

For all of its success and all of its accolades, Funeral was not a flawless work. Like a lot of albums praised in the indie world, it had its throw away tracks, its moments of bloated grandeur, and its self important feeling persistent throughout. It was a very impressive record, but it was not always a good record. Neon Bible addresses these problems, and stands apart from its older brother right away; it is both an impressive record, and a very, very good record.

It is not perfect. Opening statement “Black Mirror” is too repetitive to reach the grand heights set by the chorus; it’s a song in need of a chord change. The collaborative effort on “Black Waves / Bad Vibrations” is charming, but neither of the half-songs is developed enough. It’s good that the two structures were combined into two songs though; the pieces wouldn’t be able to remotely hold up on their own.

The songwriting has changed. Funeral was an album about struggling with death, and finding not only peace, but personal salvation for the surviving. It was a sad album, but it had hope. Neon Bible moves away from such introspection, and turns its highly focused lens on the world at large. War, murder, destruction, violence, fear, and paranoia. These are the things this record is about. These are the songs of men and women who are afraid and scattered; these are the songs of the common man in a violent and war stricken world. If anything, this album stands as a testament to the abilities of the Arcade Fire. It proves that they can perfectly capture and articulate not only personal tragedy, but world-wide sentiment. This skill cannot be overstated or overlooked; it is the core of what makes the Arcade Fire so good.

But still, the question remains. Neon Bible isn’t as unified of a work thematically as Funeral (and, not for nothing, but I think “Neon Bible” is an absolutely awful name for an album).

Was it worth the wait?

Listen to the slow build of “Keep The Car Running”. With a tight, steady rhythm and harmonious strings, it is a top notch pop song, and is the rare breed of song with no climax; the song slowly swells, only to burst without fanfare and still work. The same can be said for the equally excellent “(Antichrist Architect Blues)”. Listen to the calm subdue of “Neon Bible”. It’s quiet and simple song structure is a defiant shout in the face of larger than life hymns of the rest of the album; it speaks the loudest by barely speaking. Listen to the almost psychedelic beach boy groove on “Ocean of Noise”. Not so much a song title as it is a description of the song; it is a work of Atlantic relaxation punctuated by slow, relaxing piano work that crests so tenderly that when it does crash, it comes as a shock. Listen to the crown jewel of the record, the mammoth “Intervention”. Strings, woodwinds, keys, drums, bass, guitars, and vocals are all introduced and layered on top of a massive pipe organ that provides the bedrock for this war-time anthem. On a record full of big pop ballads, this is the one that dwarfs all others, the kind of song that would even feel restricted in a stadium. It is so large of a song, that it makes me feel small to listen to it. All that can be done is to take in as much as possible, then listen again once it’s over. It will leave you breathless.

While not as unified thematically, Neon Bible is a better collection of songs. Neon Bible is a better album.

It was worth the wait.

Halleluiah, Amen. It was worth the wait.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Key Tracks: Keep The Car Running, Neon Bible, Intervention, Ocean of Noise, No Cars Go, (Antichrist Television Blues)

Worth The Money: I buy a lot of records online through emusic or itunes. Go to the record store and buy this one, packaging and all. It is worth it.

Meh

In a shocking turn of events, there is no update for Thursday either!

Here's the deal. I haven't had a good time to sit and write up any reviews. I considered doing a quick hit of the albums I wanted to do, but they're both worth taking a good look at. So, I guess I'll just get to them when I have more time next week. I'll probably go on some kind of review rampage. Maybe. Maybe? Okay, probably not. Whatever, reviews next week.

Here's how it MIGHT go down

Sunday: Do Make Say Think/Arcade Fire
Monday: Do Make Say Think/Arcade Fire
Tuesday: Modest Mouse
Thursday: Iggy Pop/Moe.
Saturday: Iggy Pop/ Moe./ Reliant K/ Mr Dogg Classic

Snags!

Technical difficulties. Updates will resume on Thursday.

-Mr. Dogg

Smoke or Fire VS The Sophomore Slump

Artist: Smoke or Fire

Album: This Sinking Ship

Comments: I’ve always had a problem with the term “sophomore slump”. How pretentious are we to say that a group is slumping, to write a group off altogether, just because their second album might not have been as good as their first? For average bands, there really is no way to win. If they make the exact same album twice, then they get slammed for being repetitive, uncreative, and are basically reduced to one-trick-pony status in the eyes of critics. However, if a band tries to change their sound up too much on their second record, they get slammed for tweaking with the formula that made them good in the first place (I made this point in my review of Clay Your Hands Say Yeah, but I feel it bears repeating). It’s such a catch-22 that I don’t even like to use the term if I can help it.

I even have a problem with the word “slump”. I’m no word-smith, but my understanding of the term is that it is saved for people who are in a consistent funk after pre-achieved excellence. Well, who the fuck are we to say that a group is slumping after only two records? Give me one great record, then 4 bad ones, and then I’ll say someone is slumping. I think the big problem with sophomore albums is this; you have your whole life to write your first album, and only 18 months to write your second one. If you give an average man a lifetime, he will write something magnificent. If you give an average man 18 months, you’ll get something, well, average. In my eyes, that is exactly what happened to Smoke or Fire.

Smoke or Fire is a good punk band. They aren’t great, and they aren’t awful. They’re good. And in 2005, this good band made a very good record called Above The City. At the time, it was one of the only good titles on the once powerful, now aged Fat Wreck label. Above the City was a refreshing release of early 90s influenced So-Cal punk. It established Smoke or Fire as a band that possessed pop sense with an underlying layer of something more harsh; they had an edge to their quick pop anthems. SoF returns with their second effort, This Sinking Ship, and while it does have a lot in common with its predecessor, it is not as strong of an effort.

Smoke or Fire doesn’t stray too far from their formula on this album, which is fast, so-cal punk. However, where they used to have a gritty, hard, and almost ugly edge, there is now a smooth pop sheen that doesn’t match the sound Sof established on their first release. The songs are a little bit too polished and sound almost neutered under a clean and practiced production. These are not things you want to say about a punk record; punk should be raw and natural, not practiced and clean. The vocals are more finely produced, giving the singer less edge to his voice; his screams are a little bit softer, his harmonies more mainstream. It doesn’t sound as tough it once did. The clean production on the album also forces the songs rest more on the lyrics, which often cannot hold the weight of entire songs. Punk is, at its core, youthful and immature. These things, in the wrong hands, can sound empty and ignorant, as they do at times on this record. However, when those two things are used properly and with the right control from a band, it can sound real good, as it does at on this record.

The first half of the album is more pop gloss than punk grit. Songs like “What Separate us All” and “Irish Handcuffs” bring more bark than bite; it has the same buzz saw guitar and sincere scream/sing vocals, but with that pop tweak that really takes the teeth out of the music. A lot of these songs sound like they could use some editing; they would sound great as minute and a half songs, but they just go on without having anything to say, especially “I’ll Be Gone”. The only real standouts from this first half of the album are the first single ,“The Patty Hearst Syndrome”, which is as good a pop punk song as any released this year, and “This Sinking Ship”, which retains some of the grit and grime of Smoke or Fire’s previous work, while still maintain a newer, cleaner pop focus.

Starting with “Shine”, the album starts to get a little tougher, a little less polished, a little more sloppy, and, in my opinion, a little better. “Shine” starts off with a harsh minute and a half instrumental blast before launching into the actual song. It’s got some weight and some real feeling when they scream “Given the chance, we would shine!”, and it’s almost worth the time it took to get there, but not quite. "Shine" is another example of a song that could use some editing. “Art Imitating Life” is able to blend the pop sensibility with their harder edge in a very appealing way. This song reminds me of old Rise Against and what made them so good. The roughness continues with “Cars” and “Breadwinner”, and these songs make good on some of the promises made on their first record.

This album limps out of the gate and stumbles along before finally falling into place on the last four songs on the record. All in all, like I said in the second paragraph, this is a good record. Smoke or Fire is proof that an average band can make truly above average music, but they are also proof that this is by no means a guarantee. That being said, this is a good record for them, and for all its faults, I hear good things in their sound. It won’t be the success that Above the City was, but This Sinking Ship is by no means a slump.

Rating: 6.5 out 10

Key Tracks: The Patty Hearst Syndrome, This Sinking Ship, Art Imitating Life

Worth The Money: Yes for fans, maybe for average Joes.

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Here's the schedule for the next week of reviews

Tuesday - Do Make Say Think

Thursday - Arcade Fire

Saturday - The Stooges or Moe.

Yoko Ono Gets a Face Lift

Artist: Yoko Ono
Album: Yes, I’m a Witch

Comments: Here are the facts.

1) There once was this band back in the 60s named The Beatles. They were from England.

2) They came to America and took shit over. To use the parlance of our times, they were kind of a big deal.

3) This guy in The Beatles, John, met this girl named Yoko and they fell in love. She was an artist.

4) A little bit later, The Beatles broke up, and John and Yoko made an album called “Plastic Ono Band”. People hated Yoko, and later, John died.

I don’t really have an opinion on weather or not Yoko Ono had anything to do with The Beatles breaking up. In my mind, most of it is probably just outrage at such a widely loved act splitting up and the need for a reason. However, there’s always the chance that Yoko cast some sort of spell on John that hypnotized him. Yoko always kind of struck me a fruit loop, and I wouldn’t put hypnotism past her. Regardless, 37 years after John Lennon turned Yoko from some nut-bar, post-modernist into a recording artist, we are given “Yes, I’m a Witch”.

Feelings on Yoko Ono aside, I really have to give her some points. For this record, she did something that is undeniably cool. See, this isn’t a new record of songs from Yoko; it’s more of a career spanning compilation that is meant to bring her into the 21st century, and maybe even get her some young, new, scarf wearing, coffee house hoping fans. But this isn’t the usual mass collection of pre-recorded songs. Allow me to explain; 17 different acts signed on to do a reworking of some Ono songs. This album brings together a mix of indie darlings (The Flaming Lips, Cat Power), dance DJs (Peaches, Le Tigre), a bunch of cats I’ve never even heard of (who the fuck is Shitake Monkey??), and Sleepy Jackson. Ono opened her entire catalogue of songs to these people, and told them to take whatever they wanted. As a result, most songs just feature her original vocals, while the music itself is completely reworked. This is a pretty excellent way to make a compilation in my opinion, and I give Ono credit for giving these acts access to all her work, warts and all.

I’m not going to sit here and pretend that I know a damn thing about anything Yoko Ono has ever recorded. I think I have “Plastic Ono Band” somewhere on my computer, but I’ve never listened to it. So I can’t provide any sort of commentary on how these new remixes stack up next to Yoko’s actual work. The only context I have to work with is what I’ve heard, and what I hear is a pretty good remix album that may not gain a whole lot of new fans, but has a few nice songs on it.

First, the goodness. “No One Can See Me Like You Do”, which is reworked by The Apples in Stereo, lays Ono’s vocals on top of a tender love song layered with strings, bells, and minimal drums. The song works really well, and creates a real emotional response. This song would sound good in a movie soundtrack somewhere, when two lovers are pining over each other; likewise with Cat Power’s “Revelations”. DJ Spooky reworks “Rising” into a trippy electronica track, using synth and background howls to create some pretty good tension, only to relieve it with scratching as the song breaks down. “Yes, I’m a Witch” , which appears to be Ono’s career manifesto, is reworked with surprising skill by the Blood Brothers. Considering how abrasive and absurd the Blood Brother’s albums usually are, this is a surprisingly accessible remix that sticks to traditional rock and serves as a reminded that maybe rap rock COULD work, if done in the right hands.

The rest of the album is pretty good, if not nessisarily standout. There are a few miss-steps. “Cambridge 1969/2007” is just a straight up Flaming Lips song; it has their usual “wall of joyful noise” style of play, and, unlike the other tracks on the album, I cannot really tell where Ono is being used on this song. It’s not bad; it just doesn’t fit with the album. Peaches’ rendition of “Kiss Kiss Kiss” is pretty awful; it not only features some really shaky minimal production, but it also features the erectile-dysfunction-triggering sound of Yoko Ono having an orgasm, which is about number 4 on the “top ten things I’ve never wanted to hear” list. And Sleepy Jackson’s disco soul rendition of “I’m Moving On” just falls on its face.

Maybe to you, Yoko Ono is the evil, twisted bitch who ruined one of rock music’s most important groups. Or maybe, she’s just a misunderstood artist who will forever have to deal with the public opinion that she ruined her dead husband’s life. Regardless, “Yes, I’m a Witch” won’t change your opinion of her either way, but it may start a conversation about her with a whole new generation. If nothing else, it’s a pretty good electronic record.

Rating: 6 out of 10

Key Tracks: Rising, No one can see me Like You Do, Yes, I’m a Witch.

Worth The Money: Only for some, not a must have

A Band from New Jersey That Doesn't Suck!!!

Artist: Lifetime
Album: Lifetime

Comments: When Lifetime broke up in 1997, they stepped away at the top of their game. Lifetime gained cult status in the early 90s with their positive and uplifting lyrics, which was in stark contrast with other hardcore acts of the 90s. Throughout the decade, Lifetime moved away from the hardcore scene, focusing more on pop punk, but keeping their music energized, upbeat, and tight as hell. 10 years later, New Jersey’s best dancers are back to remind you that, yes, it is going to be alright. And they are going to do it by punching you in the face.

A lot of albums can be described as a blast, but this is one that actually backs it up. The entire self titled album clocks in at just under 25 minutes, but more gets done in that time than some bands can do in an entire double album. The album opens up with “Northbound Breakdown” which sets the pace of the record, which is fast. Despite the 10 year break, Lifetime sounds tight as they ever did; they never miss a beat, even at their breakneck pace. This record is pure pop punk, full of songs about breaking hearts, being heart broken, girls who love boys, and boys who love girls. However, unlike the current emo acts, which seem to only paint bloody pictures of girls violently ripping out the innocent hearts of guys with bad hair cuts, Lifetime prefer to imagine a world where the boy gets the girl, and everyone goes home happy.

With an album this fast and tight, it’s sometimes hard to pick standout tracks. However, there are some songs on here that seem to stand a cut above the rest. Besides the aforementioned “Northbound Breakdown”, “Just a Quiet Evening”, “Haircuts and T-Shirts” and “Yeems Song for Nothing” sound good not just in the context of the album, but as stand alone tracks.

The album isn’t without its flaws; any record that goes as fast as this one runs the risk of becoming repetitive and just sounding like one big long song. This happens a little bit toward the end of the record. And as it plays, I can see how some might want one slow track, just for a break. Lifetime could benefit from at least one break in stride. However, to their credit, Lifetime sticks to the only speed they know, and that speed is “ROCK!”. The only noticeably weak track on the record is the mercifully short “Song for Mel”. By the time the record is over, you’ll just want to listen to it one more time.

The real triumph of this record his how the band is able to walk away and come back a “lifetime” later (ba bud bum) and pick up right where they left off. There is no rust, no kinks, and no growing pains. They’ve matured, but they are able to let that maturity work for them and help them sound as fresh as ever. Lifetime by Lifetime is as good a pop punk record as any, but it’s not really universal. Fans of pop punk would do well to pick this up, but the general speed at which the album is played can be off-putting for casual fans.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Key Tracks: Northbound Breakdown, Yeems Song for Nothing, Just a Quiet Evening

Worth The Money: Yes


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NOTE: There's gonna be a new scheduel for reviews here at Left of The Dial. It's gonna go like this. Every Thursday, Sunday, and Tuesday, there will be new updates. So....check them out, if you want to, I-I guess.

Lineup for this week is as follows:

Thursday: Yoko Ono
Sunday: Smoke or Fire
Tuesday: Do Make Say Think

Explosions in the Sky Suddenly Miss Everyone

Artist: Explosions in the Sky
Album: All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone

Comments: How exactly do I go about reviewing a post rock album, especially one like an Explosion in the Sky album? Going song by song is out the window, because each song is part of a larger theme, like movements in a symphony. And I can’t comment on the song writing, because there are no words. No, all I can really say about this new album is that it’s good music to compress to, it’s good music to write to, and it follows the same formula that all Explosions in the sky records follow.

For the uninitiated, let my try to explain the genre of post rock. On the surface, the simplest explanation is that it is rock songs without words. However, that is not really accurate as it paints a picture of 3 and a half minute rock songs with no words, like a Foo Fighters song with the words removed, and who would want to listen to that? So post rock is more than just wordless choruses. Good old Wikipedia claims that post rock is characterized by the “use of rock instrumentation for non-rock purposes”. I suppose that is true. However, I think that it is more accurate to say that post rock that works to convey emotion without the use of words; to make someone feel something without having to tell them what to feel. And for music that is based on catharsis, no band creates that landscape better than Explosion in the Sky.

More than anything else, Explosions in the Sky arrange their albums in an almost orchestral manner. As I said in the first paragraph, each song could be taken on it’s own, but the album is more effective not as a collection of songs, but as a series of movements in a much larger work. The album is almost a narrative; each song independently creates some tension, often with repetitious guitar work and minimal rhythm, before exploding into a climactic and cathartic chorus and coming back down, just in time to start the next chapter of the same story. The only way to really get the full experiences is to listen to the album in one sitting, and let the story wash over you. Then, the crescendos and climaxes, the risings and fallings really get a chance to set in.

I don’t want to try to categorize what one should be feeling when listening to this album, but I get a sense of tragic beauty. Explosions in the Sky have always made records that focus on harmony melodies to create very beautiful musical landscapes, but this record has a much darker edge to it. It is hard to explain in print without lyrics to back it up, but the use of more drums and electronic fuzz give the album a very dark beauty. This is normal for Explosions in the Sky; their focus has always been to craft songs that songs that can sound like melancholy works of art; they use their instruments to tell you that it’s dark right now, but don’t worry, because the sun is coming up tomorrow.

The only problem with this album, this band, and this genre in general is that it is based on a formula or creating and relieving tension. And while it may sound nice, it’s still a formula, and even the best formulas get old after a while. If this album is not creating the emotion that it intents, there is no way that it will hold the listeners attention; if you are not drawn in by the catharsis of the album, it just sounds long and repetitious. Another problem I have with this record is that it sounds almost exactly like one of their previous albums, “The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place”. It’s not a huge problem because both albums are beautiful sounding works, but it just seems to show that Explosions in the Sky might be running out of ideas.

More conventional bands will tell you what their message is. They will explain it in very plain terms, and they will tell you how you should feel about it. Explosions in the Sky don’t do this; they give you only the idea of emotion, then leave you to figure out the message yourself. And as a musical guide through a journey of our own emotions, “All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone” is a success. It’s not something you can really just throw on and listen to, but when the time is right, this will be an album that you will fall in love with.

Rating: I don’t have one

Key Tracks: It’s pointless to try to isolate a single track.

Worth The Money: Yeah, this is an album that I would recommend.

Mr. Dogg Can't Understand A Weekend in the City

Artist: Bloc Party
Album: Weekend in the City

Comments: This album has been, without a doubt, the hardest to write a review for in the one year history of Left of the Dial.

And really, there is no reason why it should be so hard. Bloc Party’s “Weekend in the City” is a good record.

When “Silent Alarm” came out in 2005, it was a breakout success, and not only in independent circles. The album received praise from critics all across the board, and even got some significant press from MTV; the band was featured on their “10 Spot Drop” (and fuck if I know that that is), and many of their songs are used as background music on their various “Whore my Children” type shows. “Silent Alarm” was a declaration of Bloc Party’s unique sound, which blends Cure influence with Wire-style brit punk. On “Weekend in the City” Bloc Party returns with more of their angular polish and rhythmic ferocity that made “Silent Alarm” such a good listen.

For me, Bloc Party tracks have always been broken up into two subgroups; the rockers and the swooners. Bloc Party has never been afraid to rock out, and that is no different on this album. Tracks like “The Prayer” and “Song for Clay (Disappear Here)” are full of fiercely jangled guitars and the driving, steady drum work that has always been the backbone of the band. While these songs are good, they sounds almost a little too polished, a little too planned. They lack the sense of feeling that comes through on tracks like “She’s Hearing Voices” and “Luno”.

While the rockers are good, it’s the softer numbers where Bloc Party have really shined in the past. The crooners are also here on the album, but not without flaws. The best example I can give of this is the paradox of “Waiting for the7.18”. The song starts out sounding almost exactly like “This Modern Love” or “Blue Light” with the delayed guitars and high keyboard notes. The song features a very mature production; I can almost see the band in the studio, hunched over a sound board, playing parts over and over again, tweaking every frequency and layering every note. It shows love, but it’s the kind of love an overprotective parent might give to a pre-mature child. The song is so planned, so polished, so loved, that I has no room to grow, and threatens to be suffocated under the weight of its own design. But then the chorus kicks in, and the band launches into the kind of cathartic hooks and harmonies that make Bloc Party so good. The song is full of longing, hope, love, loss, and pure character. Then it snaps back into the sterile production. It’s a confusing song, but a good one none the less.

My favorite track on this album is the first single “I Still Remember”. It has more of the mature production and painstaking analysis, but still sounds lively.

I guess the reason that I’ve been having so much trouble reviewing this album is that there isn’t anything wrong with it, and yet it is not as good as “Silent Alarm”. I don’t know if that is because the post-punk European wave has crested, or if the production is too stifling, or if the tightness of the band is just too oppressive to allow the songs to take a life of their own. But at the end of the day, this is a good record with good songs. Maybe that should be enough, and I should leave my personal feelings at the door. At the same time, how good can this album be if I never play it again?

Bottom line: This is a good record, but I don't feel good about it.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Key Tracks: Waiting for the 7.18, I Still Remember, The Prayer

Worth the Money: I honestly don’t know.

Alkaline Trio Keep Their Remains Fresh

Artist: The Alkaline Trio
Album: Remains

Comments: Seeing as tomorrow is St. Valentine’s Day, I’m going to offer a tip out there to all the ladies: Don’t date the Alkaline Trio. Oh sure, their songs about heartbreak and wounded souls might make you swoon and pine for their ruined livers and bald heads, but you’re just going to end up dead with your body hacked to pieces and buried under floor boards. But by all means, listen to their newest collection of B-sides (yes, this is their second helping).

The album opens with the one two punch of “Hell Yes” and “My Standard Break From Life”; two excellent, if not more common B sides. The former features the usual from Skiba (which is blasphemy, betrayal, and badass yelling) and the latter is classic Andriano (full of self depreciating woe and baldness). These songs serve as more than a good introduction to the album, they are a microcosm for the Alkaline Trio as a group. Their music has always been fueled by heartbreak, an interest with the occult, and alcoholism. What keeps them from being the next hardcore/punk Victory records band is their song writing and their pop chops, both of which are reflected on these first two songs.

It gets better from there as the album starts to dive into more of the mid period Trio work. Despite a mis-step in the form of a cover of Berlin’s “Metro”, the first 7 or 8 songs are air tight pop punk. Standouts of this first half include the Hot Water Music cover, the excellently done “Rooftops”. The real triumph of that cover is that The Trio owned it, and what could have been a sloppy chord swap into a song that is really their own. The other big fish from this first batch of excellence is the balls out rhythm of “Naked on Green Beers”. This song is a furious punch of rolling drums and pounding bass while Skiba and Andriano scream “I hope this is goodbye” at the top of their lungs. In the hands of others, this would come off as nothing more than the whining of an angst-y teen. In the hands of the Trio, it sounds like death threat.

This album is littered with good tracks. “Warbrain”, which first appeared on the “Rock Against Bush” comp still sounds crisp three years later. “Fine Without You”, while it tends to emote a little more than others, features a great hook on the chorus and some tasty drum rolls. As the record rolls on, some later period “Crimson” B-sides pop up, which make me both wonder why they were left off of crimson, and give me comfort that the Alkaline Trio hasn’t lost a step after a near 10 year of cranking out consistently excellent pop-punk.

It’s not without its problems. Because it’s a B-side comp and not an actual record, it lacks a thematic feel to hold it all together. Also, it runs a little lone, and some of the songs toward the back of the record cannot hold up against the first two thirds of the record. Where the majority of the songs sound like they could be album material, some stuff in the back, like “Don’t Say You Won’t” and especially “Buried” play like real b-sides. They aren’t bad, but they cannot hold up to the older stuff. The live tracks are all from the most recent tour with Against Me!. They sound OK, but don’t add much. The only track that really interests me from that crop is the acoustic rendering of “Standard Break From Life”

The bottom line is this; The Alkaline Trio have released a better B-side album than most modern pop punk bands can hope to release. Much like Less Than Jake’s “B is for B Sides”, bands would kill to write songs as good as these. The real impressive thing is that this is the band’s scraps, and that alone should give you an idea of how consistent these guys have been. This album of second hand songs is a breath of fresh air among a world of lesser band’s best stuff.

But under no circumstances, ladies and gay dudes, should you ever date the Alkaline Trio. You’ve been warned.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Key Tracks: “Hell Yes” “Naked on Green Beers” “Rooftops” “Warbrain” “Fine Without You”

Worth The Money: Yes Sir

Incubus Phones in a Dud

Artist: Incubus
Album: Light Grenades

Comments: Okay, everyone. Raise your hands if you remember the band Incubus.

That’s right, ladies. You should all have your hands up. If you were between the ages of 14 and 45 in the late 90s you should remember Incubus. You gals were all over their softer, romantic ballads, like ‘Stellar” and “I Miss You”. You ladies got off on lead singer Brandon Boyd’s skinny frame and droopy earlobes. Chances are, you’ve still got a copy of “Morning View” floating around somewhere in your apartment. But you weren’t the only ones who like the band. Who else remembers Incubus? Anyone?

Ahh, don’t be shy, you metal heads and rockers out there. Incubus’ first few records were full of funk-influenced shredding and hard rocking mixed with a healthy dash of electronic and some above average DJ work. These guys were a cut above the rest of the rap-metal bands that have long since dissipated in the wake of new millennium. I’m sure some of you still put on “Fungus Amongus” and listen to “You Will be a Hot Dancer”. It’s rough, but it showed promise.

So we’ve got the romantics and the alt-rockers who admit to at one time being into this band. Well, believe it or not, you both have more in common that you think. I’m willing to bet that the reason both of you groups liked Incubus in the first place is because of something intangible. Regardless of what they were playing, be it nu-metal or California surf pop, Incubus always sounded into it. They never sounded like the were phoning it in; they loved what they were playing, and they were pouring all they had into.

Well then, you guys should stay away from this new CD, “Light Grenades”, because any inspired moments here are few and far between; separated in seas of shallow, un-ambitious, and indifferent rock. The only song on this entire LP worth listening to is the first single “Anna Molly”, and only because it is the only song on the record that sounds like the band even gives a crap about what they’re playing. There are some ok moments, but they come in flashes and drips latter on the record. This record is nothing more than filler from a band that is too stubborn to realize that they’re already in the land of irrelevance, and threatening to fall into the obscure. This one is a flop in every sense.

Rating: 3 out of 10

Key Tracks: “Anna Molly”

Worth The Money: Heavens no, download Anna Molly and forget this mess.

Clap Your Hands Say Slump?

Artist: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Album: Some Loud Thunder

Comments: It’s kind of hard for me to really put my finger on what made the first CYHSY record so good. I mean, sure, it was a fun pop record and all, but a lot of fun pop records suck. It sounded original, but originality doesn’t guarantee success, accessibility, or even quality. I’m confident that if I were to record an album of children banging on pots while I blow on a jug and read Plato’s Republic, it would be both original and awful. No, what really made Clap Your Hands Say Yeah’s self titled debut so good was how spur-of-the-moment, “come out of nowhere” it was. This was an album that was recorded, produced, mixed, edited, pressed, and sold entirely independently, with the band paying for everything. It sounded like it was recorded on some ancient 8-track in the drummer’s basement, and it was still able to sell over 100,000 copies, and not sound like garbage. It was unpredictable, and an absolute blast.

But the secret is out now, and CYHSY have either got to shit or get off the pot. So they release their sophomore effort, “Some Loud Thunder”. This is by no means a sophomore slump, but it finds the band doing the best that they can in a tough situation. I feel bad for bands like this. Their situation is one in which they will never be able to please everyone; if they make an album that is sonically and emotionally the same as the first, people will call them a one trick pony and ignore the record. If they try to move in a different direction, people will say that they’ve sold out or lost their magic, and will ignore the record. In this way, CYHSY have almost shot themselves in the foot by making a debut record that was so embraced by the people. Their only success would be to break up and be another “what could have been” band.

There are two big problems with this record, that in my mind keep it from being as good as their first effort. The first problem is sonic problem, and that is with the new production. Part of CYHSY’s appeal to me was how lo-fi the first record was. It sounded like music that was recorded with limited equipment, and the band was still able to make the songs work. The jumped out of the speakers and danced in front of you, bearing their warts and scars with a confidence and abandon that made them more attractive. On this record, however, the production is stepped up. It’s full of different layers and more textures. I guess that this isn’t really that big of a deal for most people, it still sounds good, but I think some of the charm of what CYHSY stood for to me is lost.

The second, and really the much bigger problem with this record, is that the fun is gone. Listening to their first record, everything from everything to the vaudevillian opening track to the repetition of the phrase “child stars!” on the last track was full of life and real joy for what was being done. The lead singer’s voice would warble and wail and move in spontaneous ways that some found irritating, but also had their own charm. The band would kick in together at certain times, and you could almost feel the love for what they were playing. Sadly, this love for their craft seems to be missing from this record. The best example of this is the titular track, “Some Loud Thunder”. Musically, there is nothing wrong with this song; it’s a guitar driven track that features the lead singer’s David Byrne like croon. But this time around, the jams sound forced, and the vocal fluxuations sound planned. Instead of accidental or half hearted, things sound workman-like. The spontaneity that I loved so much on their first album is all but lost on this record.

Even with these two problems, the album still delivers some really good tracks. The disco groove of the quirky “Satan Said Dance” is a personal favorite, because it is not only the most fun song on the record, but it is also the only one to benefit from the extra production. “Yankee Go Home” is another winner, with lead singer Alec Ounsworth’s polarizing croon warbling all over the place in an authentic way. The album closer “Five Easy Pieces” is an ethereal track that takes the listener on a journey that is both parts soothing and troubling. “Emily Jean Stock” is one of those rare songs that is able to build but not crest without sounding incomplete. It also features some of the awful band backup singing that is either a guilty pleasure or a deal breaker depending on your preference.

I really hope that these guys keep making records, and I hope that some day they can move out from the shadow of their first release. After recording what I consider a Lo-Fi classic in their first record, there was really only one way that this review could go. And while it doesn’t live up to the standard set by their first record, “Some Loud Thunder” ultimately has a charm all its own. Maybe someday I will be able to stop comparing a band to their best work, but until that day comes, I’ll keep listening to these guys and hoping.

Rating: 7 out of 10
Key Tracks: “Satan Said Dance” “Yankee Go Home” “Five Easy Pieces”
Worth The Money: Yeah