Album Review: Hampshire - Ocean State Stories

Album Rating: B

Allow me to preface this review by saying that I am falling out of love with the younger, more accessible side of the pop punk spectrum.  Perhaps my inability to connect with the usual, humorless lyrical themes (girls, personal relationships, hating town, etc.) is what repels me from the genre and a lot of its popular acts (The Story So Far, Man Overboard, and Handguns, to name a few), or maybe the sheer redundancy of pop punk is finally getting to me.  That being said, Providence, RI’s Hampshire proves that there are still bands of the sort that are capable of catching my attention.  Hampshire’s debut full-band EP, Ocean State Stories, revives the sound from pop punk’s glory days in the late 90s and early 2000s, paying homage to all of the right influences.

Album Review: Pelican - Ataraxia/Taraxis

Album Rating: B-

Post-metal icon Pelican has been in a bit of a downward spiral since 2005's The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw, with the band struggling to remain relevant in a genre that has since stagnated.  To be fair, the last two outings were not expressly bad, but rather, tepid displays of lacking ingenuity.  The announcement of a brand new EP was welcome news, as Pelican has always flourished under the extended play format.  After all, 2009's Ephemeral was the last "great" release by the band; a truly fun and energetic piece of music that saw the band return to its roots.

Artist of the Day: Maps & Atlases

Of the criticisms lobbed at Beware and Be Grateful, the one that sticks out the most to me is that Maps & Atlases’ mathy sensibilities have fallen by the wayside in favour of a poppier sound. Well, it’s kind of inescapable; Beware & Be Grateful does sound like a pop album, but it’s still incredibly nuanced and technical - much more so than people are going to give it credit for. Besides, it’s the band they were destined to evolve into; small glimpses of this poppy, care-free nature are found when tracing their older material (even 2010’s Perch Patchwork). Even in their cerebral nature, a lot of the songs on Perch Patchwork actually seemed incredibly warm and undeniably catchy, so why then are so many surprised by the direction of their musical progression?

Beware & Be Grateful is a peppy album full of songs soaked in gorgeous rhythm guitars, jubilant electronics, and funky choruses that beg to be sung along to, and like I said, it’s still technical. See, I like to compare Maps & Atlases’ approach to music to prog rock aficionados Rush. Think about it, Rush is a band able to keep broad appeal without compromising their technical integrity. Their music is accessible and fun, but also convoluted and nuanced. Beware & Be Grateful is much the same: easy on the ears but difficult to wrap one’s head around. So even though Beware & Be Grateful has the unfair disadvantage of people not favouring their direction and too easily dismissing their brand of music as simple, it’ll reward those who stick with it long enough to gorge on all of the neat little quirks. Listen more attentively and it’s like hearing two bands play at once: a tamer TV on the Radio mixed with the technical prowess of a band like Rush.  
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Artist of the Day: State Lines

State Lines are no longer Long Island’s best kept secret.  Since last year’s release of Hoffman Manor, the band has been receiving praise from highly-reputable sources such as Alternative Press, AbsolutePunk.net, and PunkNews.org, being compared to acts such as Tigers Jaw, Brand New, and Saves the Day.  Calling State Lines a band with “potential” would be a severe understatement, as their debut record achieved a level of maturity that most groups require an entire career to reach.  What truly sets the band apart from other pop punk/indie contemporaries is their ability to write fantastically catchy, hook-laden music while still avoiding the clichés so often found within the genre.  Having just signed to Tiny Engines and with release of their self-titled EP around the corner, 2012 will likely mark the most exciting year of the band’s career thus far, not to mention the fact that State Lines will also be embarking on a fairly expansive US tour this summer with MA’s The Hotel Year.

The self-titled 7”, which is set to be released on May 29, features four new tracks, two of which can be streamed here and here. 

Download Hoffman Manor for free on State Lines’ Bandcamp.

Album Review: State Faults - Desolate Peaks

Album Rating: A

As a whole, hardcore has kind of stagnated.  It's true.  Even hardcore-heroes Defeater noted it, saying "There's a prevalent thing in this genre where if you're not doing what hardcore bands have been doing for the last 25 years almost verbatim, you're fucking up."  And for all the excellent releases that we have seen this past few years, there's no denying that there is some validity to Jay Maas' statement.  But every so often an album comes along that reminds us why we fell in love with the genre to begin with; a sense of  escape from a world that tells us what music should be, but not what it can be.  We are reminded that music can be angst ridden, disonant, angry, and noisy, but at the same time, starkly beautiful.  Introducing the first record under the State Faults moniker, Desolate Peaks.

Artist of the Day: Trickster Fox

If any of ou fine readers have even read one tenth of my posts, you've probably realized my undying love for female lead folk projects.  I'll admit it, it's an obsession.  Something about the lovely, dulcet tones of the female voice paired with the plucky and soulful guitar just gets me every time.  That's why I really dig Trickster Fox.  That, and it's produced by none other than Jerry Jones of Trophy Scars fame.  Interested?  You should be.

Album Review: Bersarin Quartett - II

Album Rating: A+

What does it say about our lives when music critics repeatedly reward albums with a more-than-slightly dark edge? Are we really all modern day hermits: scared to leave the house and even more so of other people; or simply eager to sink into a sea of self pity and emotional immolation? The question of “why” withstands; the question of “how” does not. Nothing moves us more than tragedy. A brief glance at the most influential musicians of the past few decades will greet you with a recurring scene of loneliness, drugs and suicide; tell-tale signs of people who occupy their own space instead of the world around them. Sometimes the music itself seems irrelevant in all the context: it doesn’t take much to grab us when we’re in the mood. Walk into the past of Bersarin Quartett and you will find no such tragedy, or at least none so openly displayed. Despite the title, Bersarin Quartett is comprised solely of one Thomas Bucker and, despite the lack of emotional context, II might just be one of the most heart-stoppingly sorrowful records of this millennia.

Album Review: Islands - A Sleep and A Forgetting

Album Rating: B+

I always thought one of the more underrated songs in the indie rock band Girls catalog was the opening song on their debut Album "Lust for Life." I always liked "Lust For Life" because to me it went beyond being the simple "my heart is broken" song, it was a song about having a broken will. With a broken heart you can still go out and get drunk, you can still have sex with the first walking thing you see, and you can still move on eventually. But a broken will means you don't have the will to fight your demons anymore, all you can do is dream about having the perfect "boyfriend" or "sun tan," all you can do is think about making things right. A broken heart means someone just has to fight to "pick up the pieces," but to me a broken will means someone ends up lusting after something as simple as the idea of having a happy life, a perfect boyfriend, or anything else that you would normally just "go out and get." The idea of lusting after something as simple as life is beyond heartbreaking, it is borderline inconceivable.

Eli's Band Shirt Collection: A Series of Retrospectives - The Sound of Animals Fighting

In cleaning out my closet, I've come to find that a startling number of my shirts are actually band shirts--who would have thought?  So, in an effort to revist the bands I once loved enough at one point to purchase a T-shirt of, I will be revisiting one album from each representative band.  And with any luck, you my dear readers will find something to love as well.

We begin with one of the stranger, more experimental bands--The Sound of Animals Fighting.  TSOAF were less an actual band, and more a collective of musicians hailing from various parts of the musical spectrum.  Most notable are Anthony Green of Circa Survive fame and Craig Owens of Chiodos infamy, and joing them are members from bands such as Rx Bandits.  Starting out as a post-hardcore act, TSOAF evolved into a bizarre and confounding experimental troupe, with their final release acting as a beautiful mixture of the two.

Artist of the Day: The Romanovs

I always find that looking into the past works of notable guest musicians of any project is a sure-fire way to be introduced to brilliant, yet relatively unknown, music. If nothing else, they would have needed to impress band X who took them on for an album or too, whilst not having a large enough fan base to proceed in their careers alone. Never has this been more true than with Morgan Kirby, now most known for her work on M83's 80's-style synth pop parade that is Saturdays = Youth, who previously headed a gothic-classical project called The Romanovs.

Artist Spotlight: Oceana

Oceana's last two years have been quite an unconventional journey. After releasing an EP, Clean Head, a progressive indie record that sounded like an entirely different band than the group that released the conceptual post-hardcore record Birth Eater, the band's been through absolute hell. They left Rise Records, had member changes that included adding and subsequently losing a female member before any material was released, and are having severe monetary issues. In order to continue their extreme creative expansion, the band has launched a Kickstarter account to raise money to release the album. While the rewards may be slightly underwhelming, the most important thing is to see where the band is going next with their new sound. Clean Head was a step in the right direction, and this next record could turn out to be absolutely brilliant. Let's make sure that this record is funded, and donate to their Kickstarter, which you can find here.

Album Review: pg.lost - Key

Album Rating: B

Oh pg. lost, the ever forgot child of the post-rock genre; always slipping under the radar with music so unassuming that it is almost painful.  A bad band?  No, not in the least.  A forgettful band?  Yes, most certainly.  You see, pg.lost jumped on that bandwagon that has since taken a toll on the genre.  You know, the twinkly, crescendo lade post-rock that reared its head around ever corner.  The very same bandwagon that allowed reviewers and music fans to attach "RIYL: Explosions in the Sky" and the ilk.  Well, that's pg. lost in a nutshell. But I digress.

Artist of the Day: The XX

With surprising frequency I find myself sitting at my desk growing tired of silence but incapable of choosing something to listen to. These moods are difficult to deal with, as doing nothing about it is frustrating but forcing myself to listen to something is often worse. A common resolution to such unfortunate situations is England’s The XX (also Jack Johnson’s On and On, but that is for another day).

Though my knowledge of the group’s history and discography is limited, I have a hard time turning down their 2009 release, xx. The group’s sound is pretty minimalistic, featuring programmed percussion, light guitar work, thick bass lines, clever orchestration and a male and female duet that is endlessly pleasing. Though occasionally edging on artsy, there is no pretentious attitude lurking to detract from the release. Anyone looking for an interesting soundtrack to their work or play will find something to value in The XX.

Definitely check out their Facebook page here.

Album Review: Dinosaur Feathers - Whistle Tips

Album Rating: C

What feels worse to me than an album that is a straight up flop is an album that you love on first listen, but fails to withstand the test of time. The first handful of listens you fall head-over-heels in love with it, and after that it starts to turn sour and you only revisit it every so often. Such is the story of Dinosaur Feather's 2010 debut, Fantasy Memorial and I. The poppier take on Sung Tongs-era Animal Collective on tracks such as "Family Waves," "Teenage Whore" and "Fantasy Memorial," grabbed my heart and didn't let go until I listened to the album enough times. After that, the record wasn't nearly as good as a listen as it used to be, although it still remained as one of my favorite albums of that year.

Album Review: Maps & Atlases - Beware and Be Grateful

Album Rating: B+

It’s fairly easy to dismiss Beware and Be Grateful as a by-the-numbers pop-centric album, one riddled with feel-good hooks and infectious choruses. Truth is, it sort of is, but it’s also so much more than that. There’s something undeniably admirable about how Dave Davison and co. write. Their music is readily accessible, emulating a tamer version of TV on the Radio, except that it’s rather intricate and surprisingly technical. That’s the thing that I love most about Maps & Atlases though: their music is technical and mathy, but not suffocatingly so. We can compare them to artists like TV on the Radio and Vampire Weekend because they’re user-friendly, and later, when we’re listening more attentively, we can pick out all of the cool little nuances. Akin (contextually, not in sound) to a band like Rush, Maps & Atlases can -and do- include subtle complexities in their music that most people won’t notice, but they’re able to retain a broad appeal while maintaining integrity, and that’s something to be commended.

Album Review: Drew Smith- The Secret Languages

Album Rating: A-

I am still fascinated by Sun Kil Moon's Modest Mouse cover album Tiny Cities. They made one of the most unique bands in the world even more unique by giving them an acoustic song, putting more emphasis on their song lyrics, and turning the goofy and sarcastic side of Modest Mouse into a beautiful and soulful side. I am probably going to end up considering that cover album a classic album because it made five "average" Modest Mouse songs into classics ("Space Travel is Boring is one of the catchiest songs I have heard in a long time, "Trucker's Atlas is so damn beautiful and even borderline romantic, "Neverending Math Equation" is one of the finest folk covers I have ever heard, "Jesus Christ Was An Only Child" is one of the albums more emotional songs, and "Ocean Breathes Salty" might end up being one of my favorite songs of all-time,) it made songs that were harsh and sarcastic beautiful and romantic, it gave a band that didn't have much of a soul another side, and it completely changed my thoughts on covers and the cover album in general.

Album Review: The Forecast - Everybody Left

Album Rating: B+

Geographic location always bleeds itself into a group's music. Many Californian bands bring up surfing and hanging at the beach, while east coast bands seem to be focused more on suburban life. But, the stereotypical midwestern band has a bit of a different behavior from the coast bands, as it seems that the midwestern bands just want to get away from that place. Using that lyrical focus as well as the geographical influence of midwestern emo, The Forecast has crafted one of the stronger efforts of the first third of 2012 in Everybody Left.

Live Review: Graham Coxon, The Sage Gateshead, 15/04/2012

With huge outdoor shows and the Olympics closing ceremony beckoning, no one could begrudge Blur guitarist Graham Coxon a few months off ahead of what promises to be a monumental summer. Not one to rest on his laurels, the 43-year-old is instead spending spring embarking on the latest leg of his solo career, a comparatively low-key venture which has slowly gathered steam and thus far yielded eight studio albums. The latest of those, A+E, arrived earlier this month, stimulating a fresh wave of goodwill in Coxon's direction and arguably making this current tour his most keenly observed to date. Hall Two of The Sage proved a suitably intimate - if slightly formal - setting in which to unleash his signature lo-fi clutter, the strength of which was proven beyond doubt over the course of this 90 minute set.

Artist Of The Day: Refused and The Weeknd Coachella Performances

I don't think there's any argument that Coachella had the best lineup of pretty much any festival announced so far for 2012. So,  when it was announced that Coachella would be live streamed again this year, it became a can't miss Internet event. While there were plenty of awesome sets played, including those by M83, SBTRKT, Bon Iver and St. Vincent, two sets stood out above the rest.

On Friday, Refused made sure everyone knew they were back. After breaking up in 1998, the band just recently reunited, and only played a couple shows before their Coachella reemergence. Even 14 years later, the members still had the youthful punky energy that allowed them to put out one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the last 20 years in The Shape Of Punk To Come. The performance was absolutely flawless, and it only leads to more excitement for the band's future plans.

On the other side of the spectrum, The Weekend played his first ever show in the US on Sunday. Playing songs off his three mixtapes from 2011 as well as "Crew Love" from Drake's latest album (a definite highlight of the night), Abel Tesfaye showcased his absolutely majestic voice, which may be even stronger live than recorded. Previously a man of mystery, Abel busted into everyone's sight with his performance, asserting himself as one of the most creative and talented artists currently making music.

You can watch "New Noise" by Refused here, as well as The Weeknd's entire Coachella set here.

Album Review: La Sera - Sees The Light

Album Rating: B+

An artist is not supposed to put out two quality albums in two years unless they are the Beatles. Releasing two quality albums in two years is like having a Summer Olympics every two years instead of every four years, like having a World Cup every three years instead of four, like electing a President every year instead of every four years, like having a big LIVE AID concert every couple of years instead of every couple of decades, and like having a new woman every two hours (which is impossible unless you are Casey Whitman.) We are programmed to believe that a good album is like a painting and the artist has to take time to mold it (write the songs for it,) work on several drafts of it (record and master it,) and then begin to share it (let some people listen to it before really releasing it.) This process in itself should take at least around 20 months, if we still want to believe that our favorite artists are still releasing "art." An artist releasing two quality albums in two years is nearly impossible because the second album would be rushed, incomplete, and inconsistent and would be a rough draft instead of a complete and beautiful painting.

Album Review: Balance and Composure - Acoustic 7"

Album Rating: B+

After trying his hand at pop punk bands and becoming jaded due to the unoriginality of the scene, singer and songwriter Jon Simmons went on to form Balance and Composure, an alternative/indie rock band from Doylestown, PA.  Since the band’s inception in 2007, they have released through No Sleep Records two EPs, a split with Tigers Jaw, a full length titled Separation, and most recently an acoustic 7”.    The acoustic EP features three songs from Separation that translate seamlessly and only further prove Balance and Composure’s competence and depth as musicians. 

Artist of The Day: Silver Swans

I have always thought that there is a pretty huge difference between having "freedom" and being "free." Having freedom means you can choose your career, your lover, your house, and even something as futile as your politics. Just because you have the ability to choose doesn't mean you have the ability to be happy, though. Freedom to me just means you have a few choices and you have the opportunity to better or worsen yourself with one of those choices. I have always thought that being free means that you could make any of those choices and still be joyful, that you could make any of those choices and still have hope, and no matter what choices you make you still have a pulse and you still have the opportunity to succeed. Freedom is the ability to choose and being free is the ability to be content with whatever good or bad decision or decisions you have made or will make.

Artist of the Day: Brian Lee O'Malley

Fans of Muzik Dizcovery, today's my birthday. And everyone loves to feel good on their birthday, right? That's why I'm featuring Bryan Lee O'Malley on today's Artist of the Day.

Who the hell is Bryan Lee O'Malley? Well, have you ever heard of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World? Yeah, he wrote those. He is also a one-man lo-fi musical project called Kupek. O'Malley makes music with Kupek whenever he's feeling low, or unwanted, or dejected, or...well, human. With a first record released in 2002, he's gone on to write five or six albums (depending on whether you count a split with Faux Photos as an album or not). And while it seems that Kupek may be on a brief pause between releases, with the most recent having been put out in 2009, I have a feeling that Kupek isn't necessarily gone. Bryan Lee O'Malley is Kupek, and Kupek is O'Malley. He pours a lot of feeling into the records, and you can tell that despite the mediocrity of audio quality, there's a lot of love that's gone into refining and polishing these records.

The musical style of Kupek is mostly acoustic. As time has progressed, though, so has the musical experimentation that's gone into Kupek. In more recent releases, there has been experimentation with synthesizer, hip-hop beats, and electric guitar, but O'Malley's voice always remains the human constant, providing a reachable and tangible connection with the listener. From songs about breakups to covers of songs about sinking ships, from headless horsemen to laying in bed with cats, O'Malley never fails to reach a certain part of us that we're never really sure is there ourselves, until it's displayed for us, plain to see, in a simple and lyrical fashion. Kupek makes me feel good, as if I should. And I do today, celebrating my life with humanizing music feels appropriate.

You can pick all of Kupek's music up for free (don't worry, it's legal!) on O'Malley's very own site.

Artist of the Day: Foxes In Fiction

In about 12 hours from the time of me writing this, I will be on my first flight ever, from New Jersey to Arizona. And of course, in the wake of such an event, there was no way that I couldn't anticipate the soundtrack to my journey. And, the first option that popped into my head was Foxes In Fiction's 2010 debut, Swung From The Branches. The lush soundscapes of Ontario resident Warren Hildebrand feel like the perfect accompanyment to watching the world fly by from the stratosphere.

Foxes In Fiction was first exposed to the world in a peculiar manner, when one of his songs "Jimi Bleachball" was retagged as a song titled "Faders", by a fictional artist named A.E. (accompanied by a cover which appeared to be a homage to Atlas Sound's Logos). After the song's true identity was revealed, the album which it hailed from, Swung From The Branches, began to garner much acclaim, and was hailed as one of the greatest ambient releases in a while.

The music of Warren Hildenbrad is extremely versatile, and has an atmosphere that could really take you somewhere else. Ambient tracks such as "Basement Window" or "Sleeping Building Unsuspecting" could put you up on a cloud and let you peacefully float thousands of feet above sea level, while poppier numbers such as "Jimi Bleachball" or "Ativan 15" could put you in the most summery of feels. Either way, I'm certainly looking forward to flying with Hildebrand.

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Artist Spotlight: The Lopez

If there's one thing that's for sure about music from The Lopez, it's the fact that your kindergarten teacher would absolutely loathe it.  Frontwoman Stephenwolf and everything-else-guy Jesse, collectively The Lopez, have failed to retain any notion of "inside voices" from their elementary school days, a move that seems to have worked out in everyone but Mrs. D'Amato's favor.  While "loud" alone can't adequately describe the noisy duo's blend of fuzz-laden garage pop and synth-punk, it's tough not to become immediately engrossed in the high volume ferocity of their craft.  Combining the acid-drowned noisiness of an act like Wavves with some true blue shoegaze a la No Age, The Lopez bring California's lazy blue waves to Rust Belt Way, USA.  Stick it to grandma's eardrums with head-spinner 'Obedience', or get lost in the unrelenting drum machine cacophony of 'Dougie' (minus the silly dance) - either way, be sure to check out the Pittsburgh duo's self-titled EP before Ma and Pa make it home from work. 

Stream and download The Lopez on BandCamp, or like them over on Facebook.

Album Review: Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light

Album Rating: B+

When Jason Pierce confirmed that the latest Spiritualized album would be directly influenced by his singular space-rock masterwork Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, the sense of anticipation among followers understandably rocketed. That excitement morphed into sheer delirium upon the unveiling of lead single 'Hey Jane,' a sprawling journey which delivered practically everything that anyone had dared hope for and effectively eclipsed any remaining misgivings regarding that direction. There were shameless odes to the past - most notably the iconic drones recycled straight from 'I Think I'm In Love' - but far from being purely derivative it also pushed Pierce and his band into new, adventurous and outright thrilling territory. At eight mind-bending minutes, it was unmistakably Spiritualized, and although a little more upbeat than we've become accustomed to, it made for one hell of a taster.

Album Review: Forrest - Before You Go

Album Rating: B

If it was not already wildly apparent, 90s emo revival is “in.”  Perhaps it was Title Fight’s exposure that triggered the formation of band after band that plays the same minor chords and croons in the same desperate manner about some life-ending tragedy.  That being said, this whole emo/punk revival is not so bad because the majority of the bands in the genre play from the heart.  South Wales newcomers, Forrest, are a prime example of the genre’s authenticity and demonstrate on Before You Go that a band does not have to reinvent the wheel to put out an enjoyable EP.

Artist Of The Day: Admiral Fallow

Over the past few years, Frightened Rabbit have deservedly established themselves as the immovable face of Scottish folk music, but peak beneath the surface and you'll discover a scene that's not only extensive but also flourishing. Having done their rounds supporting Hutchinson & co back in 2010, Glasgow collective Admiral Fallow are now gaining a foothold and beginning to establish themselves as one of the most notable names in the tartan folkesphere, no mean feat given the wealth of bearded quality that the nation has to offer. With a sophomore album imminent, they're all set to cement that glowing reputation, and with a little luck could extend it beyond the realms of their homeland and morph into an internationally recognised force.

Various Artists: The Sound Supply: Supply Drop #2

Indie music is a wonderful thing. Artists releasing albums without having to cater to the wants and desires of record labels have a step-up to those chained down to demanding producers. A big problem for indie artists, though, since they don't have the label to back up their distribution, is getting their music out to the public. They don't have a lot of press unless the listener already knows who they are, and it's difficult for them to get word out. The Sound Supply is one of those fantastic mediums that helps indie artists really spread their sound, opening a small artist up to a group of people that will take to their musical ideas with widespread arms. If you haven't heard of The Sound Supply before, it's really worth a look at their "Supply Drops", because they sell a LOT of great music for a most excellent price. They feature bands like Owen, Matt Pryor, Jeremy Enigk, TS and the Past Haunts, and other indie names to get to know and love. If you want to support indie bands but don't have a lot of income, it's definitely worth it.

You can find the second Supply Drop at Sound Supply's site here.

Artist Of The Day: Grimes

Grimes' 2012 album, Visions, is unquestionably a product of the internet age. That isn't to say it falls under the category of by-the-numbers electronica albums being pumped out nowadays. Quite the contrary; Visions is a dream-pop album worthy of every bit of praise it receives. Unlike the inconsistencies found within Grimes' other albums, Geidi Primes and Halfaxa, Visions is a wholly enjoyable, focused effort from Grimes, seeing the young female artist find a pleasing middle-ground between the resplendent child-like nature of her voice and the pulsating bass and electronics that refuse to sit still. The end result is an album that draws from several genres such as: IDM, Industrial, New-Age, Pop, etc. Highly recommended.
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Album Retrospective: Bright Eyes - Don't Be Frightened of Turning The Page

Album Rating: B+

In 2008 the greatest sportswriter of all time Bill Simmons released his Book of Basketball, a 734 page epic that dissected every player and every team from every era of professional basketball. I enjoyed reading Simmons witty takes on Wilt Chamberlain, the '96 Bulls, Rick Barry's racism, where the phrase "we better get out of dodge!" came from, and why LeBron James might end up being the greatest professional basketball player of all-time.

But what I enjoyed the most was Simmons actually having an original take on why Michael Jordan was the greatest player of all-time. Most writers would have just said that Jordan was the best player because of how many points he had, how many championships he won, how many MVP's he won, and how he only drafted Kwame Brown and Adam Morrison one time. But Simmons said that Jordan was the greatest player of all-time because his career peaked four times when most players only have one peak: he said that Jordan's first peak (MJ 1.0) was in the 1989-1990 season when he became one of the greatest scorers to ever play the game, he said that Jordan's second peak (MJ 3.0) was in the spring of the 1993 season when he learned how to be a team player instead of just a scorer, he said Jordan's third peak (MJ 3.0) came in the Winter of the 1996 season when he matched his extreme talent with his "extrememe resourcefulness," and he said Jordan's fourth peak (MJ 4.0) came in his last season with the Bulls ('97-'98) when he matched his skill and resourcefulness with a "surreal ability to command in optimum moments." Simmons said that MJ was the greatest player of all-time because he was the only player competitive and talented enough to peak four times over one single career.

Album Review: Holy Esque - Holy Esque (EP)

EP Rating: A

Imagine The National with a kick, The Walkmen loosened up or Titus Andronicus bereft of their less tolerable imperfections. It is, quite simply, a recipe for indie rock perfection, and it's also more or less what Holy Esque sound like - with the results in practice being just as good as they seem on paper. It's a fairly daunting list of proclamations to attach to a band who have been in existence for little more than a year, but with such an impressive sonic arsenal at their disposal, this Glasweigan four-piece appear custom-built to take the genre by storm. Indeed if this debut EP proves anything, it's that they're already pretty close to fulfilling those vast reserves of potential, and have generated a momentum so profound that there could be no ceiling to what they can accomplish with subsequent releases.

Album Review: Desolate - Celestial Light Beings

Album Rating: A

I can’t express to you just how exciting it is to be following our generation’s cultural revolution in music. It’s almost untrue how quickly it happened; but just like water building in pressure behind a valve, once one drop escaped the seal an entire torrent followed it. This is dubstep; the future sound of London; music for the swarms who are lost in the urban jungle and concrete trees. The branches: apartments left decrepit with neglect. The roots: clubs that come and go in the blink of an eye. This music is the lifeblood spurning up from the roots to connect all those souls who can’t help but feel alone in the largest metropolises to lay claim to the earth beneath them. Scalewise, Desolate is but a drop. In that one drop, however, there lies one very important truth: that this particular breed of urbanised music is beginning to be shared with genres far more established. Thus solidifying its claim to revolutionising what we want from music, and insuring its influence for years to come.

Artist of the Day: Night Owls

Four years ago, Make Do and Mend’s release of We’re All Just Living struck Connecticut’s Matt Banta with a realization that eventually led to the formation of his newest musical project, Night Owls.  “When I heard what this band from West Hartford was singing about, I realized that I could do this,” Matt told me outside of a show on Thursday night where the post-hardcore/punk band played alongside a slew of great acts including Code Orange Kids and Daytrader (recent Deathwish and Rise Records signees), as well as their local friends in Heavy Breath.    Playing shows with big-name artists within the current punk scene is becoming a common occurrence for Night Owls, who consist of Matt Banta (guitar, vocals), Travis and Dan Dings (bass and guitar, vocals), and Melissa Johnson (drums, vocals).  The band, having only been together since last May, has already played with names as big as Transit and Basement, and they are showing no signs of slowing down.  Dearly, the band’s debut EP, which was recorded with Chris Teti and Greg Thomas at Silver Bullet Studios in CT, has been out for a month now and has gotten great reception from local show attendees.  The four-track EP combines the aggression of punk music with heart-on-sleeve lyricism and elements of post-rock, nodding at Night Owls' wide variety of influences.


Dearly is available for free download on Night Owls' Bandcamp.

New Muzik Monday (4/9/12)

Mickey Factz - Mickey MauSe
I don't normally listen to a lot of hip-hop. So when I immediately like a record as much as Mickey Factz's newest, I know it must be something special. Factz is an absolutely monster on the mixtape, only featuring a few guest verses and even doing a lot of the production himself, doing a deed that few artists would dare doing in these ages. Factz even has a special unique theme to the record, basing the albums around three "memoirs", containing social commenting by his "character" about life as a 1980's graffiti writer kicked out by his parents for being troubled. Deadmau5 and Danger Mouse samples only sweeten the deal of one of the best hip hop releases so far this year.
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Album Review: Dr. Dog - Be The Void

Album Rating: B+

The transition from winter to spring has always been a welcome relief. Withering flowers are now blooming, girls that were covered in sweaters and jeans are now in tank tops and jorts, the cold that gave us "soft balls" has been replaced with attractive bicurious women playing softball, and the improbable story of an immaculate conception that we hear on Christmas has been replaced with the immaculate erection that a glazed Easter ham gives us. Every day in spring is a day that you should cherish while every day in winter was a day that was going to be a challenge.

Artist of the Day: Black Swan

Always on the look out for the dark and bizarre, I often find myself drawn to music like the kind Black Swan produces.  The last two albums released by the project have been confounding and eerie excursions into the world of dark ambient; terrifying, albeit beautiful in some way or another.  His latest, Aeterna, was released last week and follows the logical progression that has been displayed thus far.  Full of hollow atmosphere and the encroaching unknown, the album is Black Swan at the height of his creative prowess.  Much like The Quiet Divide before it, Aeterna features a more fleshed out ambient core, with little flourishes of electronics and such to add a bit of something else.  But the crux is truly in the form of that lush, beautiful emptiness.  While other ambient artists try to warm up their sounds with big, undulating timbre, Black Swan strips his music bare.  It's dark, empty, but in a strange way, so full of life.  For those who wish to brave the musical unknown, pick up any of Black Swan's excellent albums.  Trust me, this isn't a trip you return from, and that's precisly how it should be.

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Live Review: Exitmusic, The Black Cat, 3/26/12

Guest live review written by Alex Shem.

Transcendental, momentous, ephemeral—these are just words.  We can look them up in the Oxford English Dictionary and get definitions, but these will just grasp at the true form of the music.  They will not capture the joie de vivre found only in live shows.  From Exitmusic’s EP, I thought I knew what I was listening to, but I was wrong.

Exitmusic opened with driving bass lines and a primal beat that drove a stake straight through my soul (I am glad I forgot my earplugs!).   What the EP lacked, the live show provided.  Aleska Palladino’s vocals rung with a raw intensity and the booming drums shook the entire room.  The music filled my entire body and refused to let go—much like the panopticon of life in modern society.  Rather than trap me, however, the sound envelops my soul and I couldn’t help but find my entire body moving along.

Each song ended leaving me speechless.  What was once there, what filled my spirit with joyful ecstasy, left as soon as it came.  Grasping at the memory only provided me with suffering.  I learned to lose myself completely in the music—the moment.

When their set ended, I found a few beads of sweat dripping down my brow and sideburns.  I was entirely focused on the music and didn’t even notice myself dancing along.  My sweat dried up walking outside, but I never hope my memory will.

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Artist of the Day: Fredrik

If all things were right in this world, Fredrik would be a household name by now. But things aren't all right, so Fredik's bizarre style of dark indie-electronic goes unnoticed by most. After a slightly shaky debut both Trilogi, a collection of past EPs, and Flora have been near perfect examples of experimental, but at the same time easy listening, music. Effortlessly charismatic and infectious, they offer up some of the most memorable songs to have ever graced this writer's ears; including "Ner," a piece that dazzles the listener with an array of subtle, glitchy effects and haunting instrumentation, and "Rites of Spring," a comparatively fast-paced re-imagining of an anthematic dance song - only softer and slightly ethereal. Fredrik is absolutely essential for anyone willing to be charmed into liking something just a little bit odd, yet entirely brilliant.

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Ner

Rites of Spring

Artist of the Day: Veils

About a month ago I was lucky enough to stumble upon UK natives, Veils. The group is a four piece hardcore band fronted by a female whose performance is convincing and brings a new dimension to the group. After being sucked in by the aesthetically pleasing album art of their debut EP, I was no less satisfied with the substance of the release. Clarity starts off with a Brand New reminiscent dark and moody progression that sets the tone for the duration of the release, featuring impressive instrumentation and equally impressive production for such a small group. Driving yet sludgy at times, the sound tips its hat to larger acts in the scene such as Pianos Become the Teeth or Touché Amoré while still maintaining a definitive identity. After signing to Tangled Talk Records, I think we can expect big things from these energetic newcomers.

Check them out on their Bandcamp or Facebook page.

Album Review: Exitmusic - From Silence

Guest review written by Alex Shemon


It is only possible to make something new in the absence of limiting restrictions.  It would only make sense that Exitmusic would release their new album in 2012 (their EP was released in October of last year—close enough to 2012 for me), a year that has so far been defined by a kind of lawlessness.  Rather than decompose in the chaos and absurdity of existence, Exitmusic has created something transcendental—an ageless EP that defies all creativity-suffocating genre forms.

Exitmusic takes the generation-defining electronic elements from The Age of Adz and weaves them flawlessly inside the transcendental moments from Sigur Rós' most beautiful albums.  They merge the "weirdness" of Björk's Icelandic pedigree with the "druggy" and ethereal moments of early Portishead.  All of this is done within only four songs.

Album Review: Clark - Iradelphic

Album Rating:  B+

We all grow sombre with age. As I sit down now, with “Black Stone” ringing in my ears, I hear nothing but weariness from a not-too-old connoisseur for the kind of manic, glitch-infested braindance that sets the cogs in your head to full speed. What now exists in its place - this steady progression of minor piano chords - seems to laugh at the eagerness and futility of what came before it. Burdened with its retrospective nature, the simple beauty is almost disheartening and deeply, deeply sad. In this instance, the context of the artist’s past is what makes the album so very special. It takes a lot for an artist to simply switch styles completely between records; and in the music this is explained to us. One could jump ahead to say Clark is simply bored with his origins, but I’m compelled to suggest that it’s a little more complicated than this.

Artist of the Day: Brightside

Through the many highly anticipated but otherwise disappointing releases of the past few years, I'm always reminded of the importance of supporting a local scene.  A decent local scene, if nothing else, restores the faith in music that a handful of recent albums has challenged.  Enter a band like Brightside.  Comprised of four impassioned Pittsburgh kids, Brightside is exactly the sort of band that makes a local show a magical place to be.  With two releases under their belt so far, full-length Good Enough and more recent EP Can I Pet Your Dog? Cause I'm Gonna, Brightside conjoin the accessibility of pop-punk and the heartthrob of 90's emo to create a truly memorable sound.  Basically, you're a damn fool if you aren't yelling along to 'Coffee and Pie, oh my!' by the second listen.  Check out Brightside, grab some deucers, text your pals, and head on down to wherever the live music is playing - if your ears aren't still ringing in the morning, you need to consider living more loudly. 

Stream all of Brightside's jams over on their Bandcamp, and toss 'em a like on Facebook.

Album Review: Joyce Manor - Of All Things I Will Soon Grow Tired

Album Rating: B-

Joyce Manor really found themselves a sound with Constant Headache and their 2011 self-titled.  Both records bled with the raw embitterment of their local Southern California punk scene yet somehow grasped onto an impossible level of catchiness, affording them multiple U.S. tours and leaving a slew of hoarse-throated basement punks in their wake.  Frontman Barry Johnson summed it up pretty effectively when questioned about his tendency for sub-two minute power-tracks in an interview: "You're taking the time to listen to my band … so I'm not going to have the audacity to bore the shit out of you."  It was exactly on this compendiousness that a band like Joyce Manor is founded, this same urgency and succinct song structure being the crux of a record like Of All Things I Will Soon Grow Tired.  All of this said, 2012 Joyce Manor is a band coasting not only on brevity, but also on tradeoffs.

Artist Of The Day: This Providence

This Providence has finally returned to the game. It's been two years since they've toured and three years since they've released new music, but the This Providence camp is finally starting to heat up again. When Tonight Alive and There For Tomorrow decided to drop off Go Radio's Lucky Street Tour, This Providence finally decided to come out of their touring hiatus.

Who Are You Now? was an absolutely fantastic album, with vocalist Dan Young's unique accent leading way for pop rock gold. Songs like "Letdown" and "Waste Myself" are contagiously catchy, and Fueled By Ramen really dropped the ball by not promoting those songs further. Now, after two years and two rejected albums, Fueled By Ramen made the crucial mistake of dropping This Providence from the label. This Providence is now going the independent route for their new record, and is finally releasing a new EP next month. From what's been played at their recent shows, the new stuff contains a stronger rock edge, and it will definitely be worth hearing how these songs end up recorded.

You can see videos of three of the new songs here, here, and here, and you can also follow the band on Facebook here. Also, expect a show review of their 4/4 show with Go Radio up in the coming week or so.

Artist of The Day: Yes Nice

When I listen to Yes Nice's 2010 album Blindfolded, I think it is everything that popular music should be. It is catchy without being cliche, it is fun without being outlandish, it is experimental without being exhausting, it is spiritual without being preachy, it is indie without being pretentious, and Blindfolded flows together without ever really sounding forced. It is an album that would turn the radio into something other than a punchline and would take off the "blindfolds" and earmuffs from radio listeners and let them see and listen to some new quality music they would enjoy.

The album also has a little something for just about everyone. The opening song "Empty Space" is a song that has the energy of Rogue Wave's "Lake Michigan" combined with the pop feel of Fun.'s "We Are Young," "Water Wine" has the sound of an old "Classical Era" gospel type of composition, "Only Cause You Can't" sounds like a three minute combination of Neil Young, Jeff Buckley, and Bob Dylan and somehow doesn't sound that crazy or forced, "and the whale" has the atmospheric and ghostly feel of something off Dark Side of The Moon combined with something off of Magnet's last album, "Your Name" is the albums acoustic folky ballad that seems like a beautiful combination of Radiohead's "Give Up The Ghost" and some soft song off a Bruce Springsteen album, "Ghost or a Knife" is the albums scary song yet it is still breathtakingly beautiful, and "Horses" sounds like the albums "victory anthem."

Blindfolded blindsides the listener with its excellent instrumentation, impeccable musicianship, instant catchiness, atmospheric beauty, meaningful lyrics, and its many influences. Blindfolded might not be the perfect album for one radio station because it might be the perfect album for just about every radio station. What we can say though is that it is definitely an album worth listening to.

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Album Review: Bvdub - Serenity

Album Rating: C+

Bvdub is a machine. With three albums in just three months (and seven in 2011), there really is no other explanation; the man cannot be human. This is irrelevant in the quality of the music, of course, but it does beg the question of how good the music can actually be if it’s produced so quickly, and whether it’s stamped out mechanically or produced in a more organic fashion. In a review of the recent Ulrich Schnauss collaboration, I suggested that the missing element for his music has always been that human touch. Insofar as his very calculated and measured style produced an undeniably beautiful, though nevertheless sterile album. On learning about the sheer quantity of bvdub’s discography, I expected something quite similar. If nothing else there’s a limit on how much inspiration and vision one man can possess in such a short amount of time. As it turns out, I was completely wrong. Serenity is full to the brim with emotion and ambition, only it could use a slightly more restrained touch.

Artist of the Day: Mike Kinsella

Mike Kinsella has brought so much to both modern indie rock and emo music that it's quintessential to look at his history before really going in-depth with his current activity. Since the early 90's, Mike and his brother Tim, as well as cousin Nate, were involved in the underground music scene of Chicago, Illinois.

First, Cap'n Jazz brought an experimental taste to emo music, branching out what was considered the "second wave of emo music," and helping, along with bands like Sunny Day Real Estate and Mineral, to establish a melodic side to a previously punk-influenced genre. After Cap'n Jazz, he contributed to the still-active project of Tim Kinsella, Joan of Arc, and continues to make contributions to this addition to the indie rock / emo genre that has a habit of quickly cycling through members. Mike actually established the short-lived math-rock / emo project American Football without Tim or Nate, moving away from other indie-rock flavored projects in exchange for simple lyrics and a softer, more complex musical side.

Album Review: Dartagnan - Breadwinner

Album Rating: B+

Anticipation can make or break an album.  As a friend once told me, “The best albums are the ones that you are not expecting.”  This statement has held true in 2012, confirmed by the slew of disappointing releases from highly regarded artists.  The good news, however, is that there will always be bands like Dartagnan, sporadically putting out 10-minute long punk EPs that make life suck a little less.  Drawing influence from bands like Latterman and Iron Chic (“orgcore,” if you will), Breadwinner consists of six tracks of gruff, anthemic punk that have the ability to console and appease listeners when releases from the big guns fail to do so.

Artist of the Day: Japandroids

Being a musician, rock duos that consist of nothing more than a guitarist and a drummer really just don't seem fair. You could be in bands of up to five pieces and still not be getting as much sound as energy as a band with nothing more than a fuzzed out guitar and heavy drumming. Canadian rockers Japandroids are easily the best example of this archetype. Never before has there ever been so much catchiness, energy, and excitement from just two angry, sexually frustrated young boys.

After three years of touring with their explosive debut Post-Nothing, Japandroids are returning this June with their sophomore effort, entitled Celebration Rock. And if lead single "The House That Heaven Built" doesn't get you unbelievably excited for what I expect to be the greatest punk album in a very long time, then nothing will. The uplifting lyrics, the relentless drums, the gang vocal "oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh" choruses, all of it is just Brian King and David Prowse doing what they do best, and making their best track to date.

On Celebration Rock, the band stated that they wanted to replicate what the audience would be doing at their shows through their music. Which on "The House That Heaven Built," is a sound that they easily perfected. By just listening to it you can feel the room around you pounding along with the jumping and the dancing, and you can hear all 300 people packed in the venue screaming the "oh oh oh"s , bringing the overwhelming sensation that any good punk show should. And if the boys can keep that up for eight more tracks, then Celebration Rock is going to be one hell of an album.

Stream "The House That Heaven Built" here
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New Muzik Monday: April 2, 2012

March may have been a slow month for music, but here are three standout 2012 hardcore and punk albums that you shouldn't miss, as well as a brief preview of Daytrader's new album due to be released on May 8.

Pentimento/Young English – Split

This is a very exciting release for these two young NY emotional punk bands.  Both Pentimento’s Wrecked, and Young English’s I Hate My Friends showed promise, but left room for improvement in the future.  Simply calling the four new respective tracks from each band an “improvement” would be an understatement, and a rather large one at that.  The songwriting maturity featured on each half of the split is unrivaled by other bands in the genre.  Each side is littered with unforgettable moments, like the melodic “breakdown” (if you will), in “No Apology,” and the infectious hook in “So Long, Connecticut.”  

Stream the whole split!

Best Of The Year 2012: First Quarter Update

As we did last year, we're going to be doing quarterly updates. Every staff member will put out a top five list, allowing them to indicate their absolute favorite records of 2012. Additionally, it will be able to alert you of albums that you may not have heard of otherwise. This list does not only include albums that have been released as of March 31, as any album that we have heard so far this year is free to be included.  All the lists can be seen below the jump.

Artist Of The Day: E

ed. note: This is a new feature we're going to be doing every day. We're simply going to just be putting an artist that we think you should listen to. We're cycling through every staff member, so you'll get a wide variety of different tastes and preferences. We're still trying to work out how we're going to do this, so be patient, but check out all these artists. They are all awesome.

He's the driving force behind Eels and one of the most inspiring figures in the entire musical world, and yet many fans of Mark Oliver Everett (AKA, E) have no idea that he once had a similarly productive solo career. It was a far less extensive venture, with only a pair of albums to show, but both hold huge appeal for fans of his later, more well-known projects. The artist himself doesn't look back at this stage of his life with much fondness, and has spent much of the past two decades ignoring the existence of these releases, but those who have heard them are virtually unanimous in their positivity.

Having grown up with his mother and sister in Virginia (his father died in his presence when he was 19), Everett made the decision to move to LA in his mid-20's with the a view towards making a living as a singer-songwriter. After months of handing out demo tapes to shrugs of indifference, he eventually struck gold when Polydor offered a two-album deal. Both subsequent records were well received by critics, but while debut A Man Called E achieved moderate commercial success, follow-up Broken Toy Shop bombed, and as a result his contract with the label wasn't renewed.

This would of course prove to be a blessing in disguise, with the formation of Eels culminating in classics such as Beautiful Freak, Electro-Shock Blues and Blinking Lights & Other Revelations, but while those albums have overshadowed their maker's brief solo stint the material that he made during that period provides an intriguing and rewarding insight into his development, and as such should not be overlooked.

Head below to see our recommended album for E.