Wow. Just… wow. Let me pose a question to you. It may be a bit baffling at first, at least superficially anyway. But, here goes. How often do you see a band release a full album of B-Side material that is actually arguably better than the A-Side they cut? Not all that often, I’d be imagining. However, that was the case with this release, an album of B-Sides from the “Anthem” sessions.
For anyone familiar with Less Than Jake’s body of work for any period of time that came into Anthem was more than likely disappointed in the album, due to a huge departure from their “normal” sound, and at least, a huge step away from their regular writing style. While it didn’t make for a bad album musically, it did make for a “bad” Less Than Jake album. That’s where B Is For B-Sides steps in to clean up the trash and kick some ass as it does so.
Where “Anthem” was primarily a less “punk” sound and a more “rock” sound, B-Sides is a pretty big step back to their more commonly heard sound, with just a little mix of the new format thrown in for good measure. We’ve still got all the old songwriting gimmies (drugs, alcohol, depression, alienation, et al) that they’ve mastered over the years, and we’ve still got the occasional horn interlude of old, however not quite enough to push them from “punk rock” into the “punkska” category. It sounds quite reminiscent of the “Borders & Boundaries” release in a lot of respects, but still maintains the new edge to keep you interested.
One of the pleasant inclusions of this album is a lot more vocalwork from Roger Manganelli, sharing a heavy portion of the singing work with Chris Demakes, and providing us with absolute gems like “Showbiz? Science? Who Cares?”, and “Robots One, Humans Zero”. We first saw this trend on “Anthem”, and evidently the general shift of the sound has been towards this. That’s a good thing.
Another great thing here is the lyrics. In the true fashion of Less Than Jake songs, they generally attack social constructs and ideologies, as well as romanticise the teenage society we’ve been thrust into. They tackle topics like alcoholism and depression with a wonderful finesse, and pose a lot of interesting philosophical questions for our consumption. This isn’t done in a preachy manner however, it’s served up in palatable doses that you don’t even realise until 5 minutes or so after you’ve listened to the song, by which point you’ve inadvertently sat there the entire time ruminating over the questions that’ve been posed and attempting to answer their rhetoric in your own internal dialogue. From a band who fit snugly into the “punk” side of music, that’s a rare thing; not a whole lot of the modern bands from that pigeon-hole say a whole lot worth actually listening to sadly.
It’s a perfect day in our perfect little lives
Just as long as we have commericals and things to hide behind
It’s a life so real you only watch it
On a movie screen getting so close you can almost touch itLess Than Jake - Robots One, Humans Zero
Absolute standouts here are “Showbiz? Science? Who Cares?”, a great social commentary on what can only be assumed is blind-faith religious nuts; “Goodbye In Gasoline”, probably the most “Anthem”-esque track on the album, featuring a quite depressing message depicting a guy leaving town on what is described as “the coldest day”, similar in sound to “Escape From The A-Bomb House”, or “Look What Happened (The Last Time)”; and of course, “Robots One, Humans Zero”, an absolutely stunning social commentary depicting the plastic life trend ever-present in modern society.
For those who’ve not heard Less Than Jake before, this is a wonderful album to get you interested. It’s still got their normal sound, but it’s matured a lot musically that makes it possible to listen without a heavy disdain. If you are familiar with their work however, you won’t be disappointed at any length by this release.
Balls to the walls rock, and beautifully combined messages all packaged in a clean little guitar-driven package. Definitely one of their best releases, and one of the best B-Side compilations by anyone so far.
hellogoodbye (notice the lowercase h?) came somewhat out of left field in honesty, they snuck up out of seeming obscurity, and delivered what I’m considering to be one of the best new sounds of what proved to be quite an interesting year in music. And not only, but they did so convincingly, producing sales figures of 40,057 units in the first week after release, as well as reaching #1 on the Independent Record Charts with this release. But what makes it so special? That’s what I’m about to tell you.
While some bands opt for the sad “emo” (I use this term loosely, socially-acceptable “emo”, not real emo) songs to get them popular amongst kids, a formula proven to be like shooting fish in a barrel, hellogoodbye provide us with a wonderful power-pop sound that oftentimes verges over into humourously written instrumentations. They steer well clear of the songwriting pattern, “heartbreak -> sadness -> songwriting -> money”, proving that you can write songs successfully based on happiness, rather than despair and tragedy. The entire album has a wonderful cheerfulness to it, and really energizes the listener with a newfound happy outlook on life and love. This is especially true on tracks like, “Oh, It Is Love”, a cheerful Mandolin-based jaunt chronicling love and passion in a beautifully cheerful way. It’s hard to listen to and not crack a smile because it is just that cheerful.
Forrest Kline’s vocalwork is a standout on this release, it really provides a beautiful cornerstone for the rest of the band’s work, as well as some pretty impressive lyrics which’ve obviously had some care provided. Kline’s vocals sound quite similar to what I’d call a Brendon Urie (head goon for Panic! At The Disco) with some resonant strength about it, providing wonderful parallels to the awesome sounds the rest of the band hit us with. Also, the inclusion of a Mandolin on a lot of the tracks to contrast with the guitar-driven sound for the rest is peculiar, however, it absolutely pays dividends here.
That said, some of the songs are slightly awkward, “Touchdown Turnaround (Don’t Give Up On Me)” being a prime example. What had the potential to be an incredible song was downgraded heavily by the use of weird instrumentation and post-effects, possibly the only real miss on the entire album in terms of any real quantitative measure. Post-processing is a good thing when done in moderation, however, that pushes the envelope beyond the realms of what would be considered reasonable.
Really, there’s not much you can fault these guys on in terms of the album as an album, especially citing that it is their first full-length release. Aside from that minor indiscretion I mentioned just before, this thing is definitely worth giving some heavy rotation, especially if you just happen to be in love at the time. If there’s one thing I can say of them, it’s pay attention. They’re going to go places in the future if this release is anything to go by.
What can be said about this delicious EP offering by a bunch of guys from the US? Well, quite a lot really. Anyone familiar with the work of The June Spirit will absolutely adore this record, as it builds on their basis and matures the sound into a more hard-biting one driven on emotive lyrics and sounds. Combine that sound with the sound of A Life Once Lost and you’re getting close to the sound they offer.
I came into this recording with high expectations of what sound would be offered, after having listened to the constituent bands (predominately The June Spirit) for quite a while, so I expected it to be a very similar sort of softish-emo-rock sound. When I played the first track, “Clark and Rightwoodâ€, I was pleasantly surprised by the similarities between the two, especially Ian Musgrove’s powerful voicings.. but completely blown away by the hard-hitting edge they carry along with it. Kind of like throwing Finch into a blender with Dashboard Confessional, only involving a lot less tears. The lyrics crescendo beautifully around the catchy drum breaks and the well-balanced mix of distortion and melody offered from the guitar end of things.
The next track we’re offered, “Reputation Outlives Application†is balls-to-the-wall from the word go, with barking vocals, and surprisingly compared to the vocal effort, quite a restrained effort from the rest of the band. The juxtaposition between the normal heavy/soft aspect you’d expect from these guys is a nice breath of fresh air, it shows that they really are mixing things up a bit.
“We Ride On Sunbeams†is probably the soft track of the album, offering the most thoughtfully quiet mix of the four, and telling a pretty nice story to match. Really, not much can describe it except, “lovelyâ€. Definitely a winner in my eyes.
“Smoke And Mirrors†is quite an epic tale, featuring the trademark Musgrove vocals we’ve grown to love over the years. This sounds a lot like The June Spirit in many ways, especially the actual lyrical content we’re offered. The rest of the musicians do a brilliant job of adding to this virtual emulation, and ultimately build a track that works well to contrast to the majority of what else is offered on it.
All in all, weighing in at quite a modest 15min 50sec in length, this record wets your appetite for what is possible to come. In the same manner Jeff Buckley illustrated with his “Grace†release, and Art Brut with their “Bang Bang Rock And Roll†offering, a band who can produce such astounding results right from the start is surely capable of so much more. I’m definitely expectant to hear what is in store from Fire Divine, if they do choose to pursue another record. Let’s hope so.
This album here is one of the most incredibly special ones to me, one of the ones that will always hold a special place in my heart not only based on what it means to me personally, but what it means to me musically as well. There are albums that you can hear and like, and there are albums you can hear and they chill you to the core so much that they stick with you forever. This album is one of the greatest examples of the latter type.
What makes Jeff Buckley so astounding is the four-octave vocal range he sported before his untimely demise at the height of his popularity, (the greatest range ever by a male is six octaves held by Tim Storms of the USA to illustrate), and his ability to render incredibly vivid vocalscapes ranging from brooding low Baritoneesque howls and wails to effeminately high Sopranoesque sustained notes. At points in his recordings it’s not uncommon to actually question who is singing, whether it is in fact Buckley or a female backing singer.
From the introductory wails of, “Mojo Pin†on the first disc (the original “Grace†release), you can already tell that you’re in store for a very, very soulful album, and one that features one of the greatest male voices at any point in history. That’s definitely something to be sure of, the utter power and skill Jeff had in his voice is second-to-none in a very long time. Grace features that, but then… it goes one step further and combines it with luscious soundscapes filled with beautifully orchestrated instrumentations (Matt Johnson’s percussion is one of the highlights), stepping a fine line between “Soul†and “Rock†the entire way, and doing so in a manner that is a one-of-a-kind. No-one will ever repeat it as convincingly or beautifully as Jeff and co. did on this release.
Some Rock albums rely heavily on grinding guitars and blindingly fast bass riffs to carry their sound into what most listeners consider reasonable… this is not one of those albums. The majority of it features lightly distorted guitars and predominately-percussion driven backing sounds, layered wonderfully behind Jeff’s incredible vocals. What makes it even more a treat is the occasional inclusion of strings to thicken the sound out even further. The entire band plays in such harmony it’s hard to even remotely attempt to fault it on any level, even on the second disc (made up of B-sides, covers, and alternate takes) of material. And even if you could, it’d be a futile activity; the chance a band is going to get this close to musical perfection anytime soon is almost non-existent.
The album itself focuses primarily on tails of the heart and of painful tribulation, most of the time bringing forward a melancholy softness and discord to the listener’s ears. But what makes it special is the way it’s presented: fluently and expressly, powerfully and lovingly. There’s something from this album you can actually feel when you listen, and that’s the sheer passion Buckley put into everything he played. This is also confirmed by the DVD content, by not only footage of the studio during recording, but by his producer and various other people who worked with him over the duration.
The highlights of this album are almost impossible to pick, but, the cover of “Hallelujah†(a Leonard Cohen song originally), “Last Goodbye†(his most well-known work), and “Grace†are standouts on the first disc, with the standout on disc 2 being “Forget Herâ€. That’s not to say it isn’t all brilliant, because it is nothing but; but those tracks strike a chord in the heart that make them particularly special to enjoy.
It’s hard to find a musician who loves music for the love of music, and Jeff was one of those people. The potential he embodied was boundless, and this album is just the start of that. If there is one album you listen to over and over, this is going to be it. Perfect for snuggling up with someone special to, or just about any other situation. This is a must have for any complete album collection, not having it in there somewhere is doing yourself a horrible disservice.
Deltron is a pretty cool name, no? It’s also a name that represents one of the strongest collaborative hip-hop collectives ever compiled, touting names such as Dan “The Automator†Nakamura (Handsome Boy Modeling School; Lovage; Bombay The Hard Way; Peeping Tom), Del Tha Funkee Homosapien (Gorillaz; Handsome Boy Modeling School; Gorillaz), Kid Koala (Peeping Tom; Lovage), and cameos from Damon Albarn (Blur; Gorillaz), Prince Paul (Handsome Boy Modeling School; Producer for De La Soul) and MC Paul Barman. Just looking at that list it gives you a strong sense of just how powerful this album is, and that they did not set out on creating something lightly. In some ways it serves as a continuation from the first Handsome Boy Modeling School outing, “So… How’s Your Girl?†in that it features both of the major colllaborators (Nakamura and Prince Paul), and as a precurser to the later Lovage release, “Nathaniel Merriweather presents: Music To Make Love To Your Old Lady By†(featuring Nakamura and Kid Koala).
“Deltron 3030″ is a futuristic scape of beats set in the year 3030, featuring a barrage of intergalactic themes taken directly from the handbook of outer-space and futuristic clichés and just a little sense of comedy at points (notably “The Fantabulous Rap Extravaganza (Parts I and II)†and “Meet Cleofis Randalph The Patriarchâ€). The rhymes are typical of those which made Del Tha Funkee Homosapien famous, employing intelligent rhyme schemes and intricate beat timings, as well as a creative use of alliteration at just the right times. This fact is evident throughout the entire album, just one of the things that makes it a wonderful listen. His persona Deltron Zero plays a huge role in the lyrics, and functions well throughout a large amount of character and scene building.
The beats of the album are excellent, deep and brooding, and just a little sparkle. When you combine them with the lyrics they create a heavily brooding atmosphere, alluding to a seemingly dire and apocalyptic future in the 31st century. Kid Koala’s infamous restrained breaks play a large part in creating the soundscape for this album, crescendoing through the rhymes with precision and grace. While the beats are a lot darker than those featured on his solo productions, and indeed, on his work with Lovage, they still hold the trademark scratches inter-weaved in the at times self-replicating beats. Another major feature of all of this is his marvelous sense of beat timing, throwing in the occasional complex timing and off-beat fills just to confuse your brain a bit.
An album full of pop-culture references, including the likes of Microsoft and Coke, and even an entire track devoted to the comic genius of Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas, aka Bob and Doug McKenzie. It relies heavily on the concept of technology and computers, as well as space travel and survival on other planets. At some points it can be almost tedious for those of us who’re technically-inclined, but those are very few and far between (probably once or twice on the album) and the overall tone remains interesting and inviting.
Really, this album can’t be faulted much at all. I’ve not stopped listening to it for quite a long time, it serves well as one of my soundtracks for going to sleep currently. If you can, give it a spin. It really highlights some of the individual collaborators’ best works.
Anyone familiar with the work of Richard D. James, aka. Aphex Twin is familiar with the incredible range of sounds the man has, and not only that, the range of styles he can cover within the space of an album with those sounds. Prime example of this point is the “drukqs†release, of which the range of sounds explored is far from those which would contemporarily be associated with a dance musician (most predominately IDM, a sound which himself and a number of other artists crafted) in the modern sense of the word. The “Analord†series is a return to his roots creating Acid and Ambient beats from analogue-driven devices.
The special thing about these releases is not only that he’s branched out into new (old) territory using a range of devices, but the fact that he custom-programmed the majority of them himself to respond in just that way. The releases feature a huge number of historically-revered devices such as Roland TR-series drum machines (TR-606, TR-808, TR-909) and polysynths (including the TB-303, one of the most sought-after synths these days) and sounds draw directly from the early 1990s Ambient and Acid scenes, both of which Richard D. James was known for making during that time. It also features a heavy tendency towards funky drum breaks and melodies to bring it into the new millennium, a lovely conjoining of the two which Richard is able to do with massive skill. The major key to the sound here is the analogue part; there’s something digital just can’t hope to imitate anytime soon.
Released as an 11-part series on 12″ Vinyl by Rephlex Records (Richard’s co-owned label), the collection is definitely one of the more unique ones of Richard’s career (of all of his pseudonyms). The sounds are somewhat similar to those explored on his early works (to some extent, “Selected Ambient Works, ‘85-’92″, though it never really gets there), though the tempo and feel tends to stay close to that which he has became known for since the height of his success in the 1990’s. Really, there is no huge grounds for comparison to any other sound, because the series sees each release is quite unique from the others.
The pick of the bunch for me personally would most likely be either “Analord 6″, or “Analord 10″ (the first released, under Richard’s more known Aphex Twin moniker), both of which feature strong melodylines and heavy feature from the oldschool analogue synths as opposed to the more modern-sounding multilayer drums featured on the other releases in the series. “Analord 6″ in particular has a wonderful use of melody to create song structure, something that, realistically, seldom gets seen to anywhere near the same level on any of his other releases. Basically, pure Acid with that lovely jagged edge that makes the analogue sound so wonderful to listen to. Some of the tracks even step into the sound of the 8-bit game systems of the era, sounding almost like a “Nintendo on Crack†as I like to describe it.
An interesting note is that the tracks on “Analord 8″, “Analord 9″, and “Analord 11″ are all named after strains of computer viruses, which some say discourages the open trading of the songs through the internet. What the motivations for the titlingscheme were for is unknown, though, the majority of other titles throughout the series are quite asinine for the most part. The seeming disdain for titling is yet another thing he has became widely known for, probably peaking around the time “druqks†was released.
If you’ve got a record player and the cash to splash, get ahold of these releases. They truly are Richard doing it for the fuck of it, oldschool style. It’s a refreshing break from some of the more hardcore stuff he’s released through the ’90s until now.
Full title: When the Pawn Hits the Conflicts He Thinks Like a King What He Knows Throws the Blows When He Goes to the Fight And He’ll Win the Whole Thing ‘Fore He Enters the Ring There’s No Body To Batter When Your Mind is Your Might So When You Go Solo, You Hold Your Own Hand And Remember That Depth is the Greatest of Heights And If You Know Where You Stand, Then You Know Where to Land And If You Fall It Won’t Matter, Cuz You’ll Know That You’re Right
No, I’m not just reviewing this album because I am obsessed with the obnoxiously long title Fiona opted for on this release. Rather, because it really does strike a chord as being an album you can sit back to and appreciate.
Whether or not you’re a fan of her work, this is really an album you can get into and appreciate the musical talents she has become famous over the years for. One thing that sticks out about this particular work is the blending of genres that’ve been incorporated right from the word go, and the fusion of modern styles present in the majority of this album. From the mild Jazz-like inklings of “To Your Love†to the prodominately piano and percussion-driven masterpeice that is “Fast As You Can†(arguably the best piece on the album) and the slower, more lyrical (and even at some points verging on Tribal) “Limpâ€, this album is packed with things for the majority of musical tastes. The best thing is, all of these styles are blended in a way that not only invites you to listen deeper to each of the songs, but also challanges you to accept new sounds as being comfortable in an almost juxtapositioning of sound and thought process.
A particularly standout sound throughout the album is that of Fiona’s own piano work, the majority of which is well-timed and beautifully voiced. That combined with her jazz-divaesque voice and the orchestration provided behind her by a number of wonderful musicians (Matt Chamberlain, Greg Cohen, Jim Keltner to name a few) really push this to the Platinum-certified release it became.
An interesting draw factor to the album is definitely the title, which is currently one of the longest name for an album ever released (if not, the single longest). Normally it recieves the modest title, “When The Pawn…â€, but the full-length one is almost a song in its own right. It really steps away from the majority of the musical content of the album however, which only further adds to the intrigue the name alone builds. Another interesting draw factor is the sultry Red-toned cover, displaying Fiona’s smiling face with the title superimposed over the top, all in delicious Tuscan Reds. Realistically, it’s hard to build a much better combination of title and cover than this one.. simplicity on one end, absolute overzealousness on the other.
If you only get to hear one song off of this album, make sure it’s “Fast As You Canâ€. The musical balance on it is probably as close to perfect as one would care to go, and really highlights the funky, beat-driven sound the majority of the album holds.
All in all, I’d say this is probably her best release to date. Definitely worth a listen, so get to it.