Album Review: Bell X1 - Chop Chop

Album Rating: B+

Folk has gone big. The roots of bands like Mumford & Sons may be humble, but try looking me in the eyes and telling me that something like “Little Lion Man” won’t get a crowd of twenty-thousand fans roaring. Over the past few years, the genre has experienced a popular rebirth with artists reinventing the genre from a variety of new perspectives, bringing it to an unprecedented mass audience. Swept up in this bravado is Bell X1, who rides the wave to success on its LP Chop Chop.

Best Of The Year 2013: First Half Update

Welcome to MuzikDizcovery's quarterly article on our favorite releases of the year to date. Each of our staff members has posted a list of our five favorite albums of the year to date, with a little blurb showing why we love each one so much. Every album released in 2013 that we have heard was eligible, even if the album has not been released to the public just yet. As always, there's a wide variety of music on these lists, and every release on here is worth checking out. Owel, The World Is A Beautiful Place, Kanye West, Captain, We're Sinking, Rare Monk, Justin Timberlake, Sigur Ros, The Knife, Tegan And Sara, Youth Lagoon, The Wonder Years and Lights and Motion all take prominent spots in multiple lists, and represent some of the best that 2013 has to offer. Check out of all of our lists below, and click on any links in the album names for our reviews.

Artist of the Day- Charli XCX

Chances are you've heard Icona Pop's surprise hit "I Don't Care" if you've ventured to the club or flipped the radio on in the past month. Forgotten in the furor over the Swedish duo's success is the featured artist and writer of the anthem, Charlotte Aitchison, better known as Charli XCX. Ahead of her time as a member of the new British assault on American pop radio led by Adele, Jessie J (who also wrote a hit single for another artist, Miley Cyrus' "Party in the USA" before finding success of her own with "Domino" and "Price Tag") and Cher Lloyd, Charli was signed as 14-year-old on the strength of her MySpace hits "Art Bitch" and "iFranchesckaar!" Since then, she has gone basically dormant. Potential debut 14 was never released and although she released two EPs in 2011, neither of them was received with much fanfare or promotional material. She's certainly a different breed of starlet- her vocals sound like a laryngitic Ellie Goulding, her choice in style is hard to identify (although the picture provided a cross between Helena Bonham Carter and Marina Diamandis, another UK import who hasn't made big waves on the pop charts)- but she still calls rising star Sky Ferreira among her close friends and released 2013's True Romance on Atlantic Records. The five promotional singles from her debut failed to generate the same amount of buzz combined as "I Don't Care" has, but this seems par for the course for Charli XCX. Her album was delayed for a full year, has been in production since 2010 and she still can't justify the Next Big Thing label Atlantic certainly placed over her head six years ago when they took a chance on the precocious teen. None of her music may be radio-ready yet, but she has such a distinct persona and ability to nail her interpretation of 80's synth-pop, it seems inconceivable that she will remain an insider secret for much longer. The worst thing that could happen is she becomes Ester Dean, clandestinely writing all your favorite Top 40 songs, quietly hoping one day she will be the one scoring your backseat singalongs.

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Interview With Fake Problems (6/10/13)

Fake Problems may have felt pretty inactive over the past year or so, but the band has actually been busier than ever. The band has been working on a brand new album, and while the process has taken longer than expected, the band hasn't kept us in the dark. To prepare us for what should be a phenomenal follow-up to the fantastic Real Ghosts Caught On Tape, they recently released a split 7" with Florida buddies You Blew It!, and showcased a number of new songs on a big tour supporting The Menzingers. We caught up with the band on the DC date of that tour, and talked about topics such as the new album, the end of their partnership with SideOneDummy, Taco Bell commercials, the band's love for covers, and far more that you can read below.

Artist Of The Day: dep

Imagine yourself running through the forest, shoes flung into the bushes. The fog of the dawn is thick, so thick you can barely see your hands. It’s soft earth under your feet, though—must have rained last night—and it kisses your heels every time they touch the ground. All you have with you is the misty hope of something waiting for you at the other end of the path and the murmurs of the birds to guide you there. These are not exercises in visualizing: these are the last known surroundings of one Danny Peck, though he’d prefer it if you called him dep. Quite literally. The song’s name is “Last Known Surroundings.”

He’s a wanderer, dep: from the throes of his bedroom, he’s written 19 albums, dabbling in everything from acoustic folk to electronica. Yet it’s on Ever Looming, his twentieth release, that he asserts he’s really found himself—in all honesty, the music speaks for itself. Say hello to thundering walls of percussion, distant but ever-so-slightly morose vocal chants, dazzling toybox keys, and soulful strings adding up to what feels like the soundtrack for the Inception sequel Christopher Nolan never wrote. Ever Looming is a fitting opus for a bedroom producer, a blanket for troubled souls, capturing a sense of exhaustive wandering but balancing it with aesthetic beauty and a soothing peace. It’s hard to see in the fog, but dep promises you that you are not alone. And he has the musical chops to make you believe it.

Ever Looming is available for free now, and you can also find plenty of info on dep (not to mention downloads!) on his official page.

Artist Of The Day: The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die

Can you ever really beat jumping off a high rock into a lake on a really hot day? Sure, that game console you reserve special veneration for and that tablet which your eyes ignore even pretty girls for are both great, but once you slip outside the confines of the increasingly technological age and look outside your window, there is some serious excitement and beauty out there. Can a ‘like’ on a social networking site or a comment on your blog ever really provide the same lasting satisfaction that plunging head-first into a cool body of water from above can? No, you’re damn right it can’t.

Artist of the Day: Four Tet

Four Tet's announcement of a new album, and one which according to him is the best he's made, has caused more than a stir last week. To try and give an explanation as to why: his two releases in the last 12 months have been critically acclaimed despite one being a selection of old, unreleased material and the other a collection of singles previously released on Soundcloud. To give another explanation: everyone likes Four Tet, and his signature blend of live percussion, guitar and electronic tomfoolery casts a wide net for anyone exploring music to fall into.

2013 is an exciting year for Four Tet in more ways than a new album, as it marks the 10 year anniversary of his most popular release Rounds. Commemorated with a special 10 year anniversary edition, fans now have access to previously released live performances which see Four Tet playfully tweak around with classic tracks. He distorts moods and keeps anyone familiar with the original recordings guessing, injecting a completely new mischievous flow into old classics. The album itself is still sounding as fresh as ever, so if the new album really is as good as he suggests then it is something worth clenching the edges of our seats for.

Four Tet is on Facebook, where everyone is convinced he's Burial.

Album Review: Melt Yourself Down - Melt Yourself Down

Album Rating: A-

Plenty of artists have received their big break on Later... with Jools Holland, but few over the past two decades have come near to making the impression Melt Yourself Down did upon their appearance last month. They may never touch the sales figures of Adele, Seasick Steve or Jessie J, whose careers all experienced liftoff following stints on the BBC's flagship music programme, but it's fair to say this collective's performance transcended all of them, particularly within the context of a largely disappointing series. Perhaps more than anything, it evoked At The Drive-In's infamous farce back in 2000, albeit minus the carnage and with a significant hike in musical value. Sound-wise they bear little resemblance, but the sight of vocalist Kushal Gava tearing around the stage amid a backing of unhinged sonic chaos was more or less in the same mould, and quickly made a name of what until then had been one of the nation's great up-and-coming secrets.

Artist Of The Day: Cherry Coke

It's no secret that I'm not a huge fan of most of the popular progressive house that's produced on a weekly basis nowadays. Much of the material that shoots up the Beatport charts sticks to the "clean vocal intro, anthemic chorus, massive buildup, another anthemic section, repeat" formula that's become rather popular with the so-called "EDM Revolution" in America. Cherry Coke does not fit in with the stuff I dislike. Sure, his remix of Pendulum's "The Island" follows this strategy. However, his clean Swedish-house synths and buildup are unlike the drivel that most producers stick to. The contrast between Rob Swire's vocals and the "anthemic chorus" instrumentation is good enough to bypass the fact that it's somewhat formulaic, and the tune is one of my favorite progressive house releases of the past few years. "Milky Way" is even better - it's easy to picture even music fans worth their salt losing it when the massive, euphoric synth buildup plays out. Cherry Coke is still a relatively young producer, and it'll be interesting to see what happens in the future.

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Jukebox: Typhoon - "Young Fathers"

Oregon-based folk supergroup Typhoon often concerns itself with the passage of time, a theme that it continues to take in haunting, emotional directions with its latest single, "Young Fathers." As always, the band shows off its sun-kissed charm with soft ooohs, a hearty serving of choral camaraderie, and rich, jovial instrumentation (including horns, harmonica, lounge guitar, and maybe even a touch of trip-hop). For such a joyful display, though, the song's twistier than a strawberry Twizzler: a grizzled Spiderman, it swings from cobweb to cobweb picking at the pictures of a parent/child relationship long gone. Long-time listeners will know, however, that this is hardly music for moping, as Typhoon approaches this introspection with irresistible energy and a sincere, untarnished sense of wonder.

Sometimes, I worry that becoming an adult will mean letting go of happiness and hope and barren love, all those matters of the heart that we're warned will shrivel in the glare of the world. Why I love Typhoon--and why "Young Fathers" moves me so--is because it always reminds me that sometimes when you grow up, your heart grows a little bit too.



Typhoon's upcoming LP White Lighter is out August 20 on Roll Call Records.

Artist Of The Day: Captain, We're Sinking

Last year, The Menzingers released their highly anticipated record On The Impossible Past. The record ended up exceeding all expectations, winning them over a wider fanbase and helped position themselves to sell out quite a few dates on their recently completed headlining tour. Captain, We're Sinking opened that tour, and the release of their debut full length record The Future Is Cancelled may put them on the path that The Menzingers has travelled in the past year. The comparisons to The Menzingers continue on past just the shared tour, as both bands play lyrically powerful, dual vocal led melodic punk. The similar influences aren't surprising once you hear that guitarist/vocalist Bob Barnett is related to Menzingers's member Greg Barnett. However, The Future Is Cancelled definitely wins the diversity aspect of the comparison. "Adultery" is one of the strongest openers of the year with its dark, chaotic verses where you can feel the whole band losing their sanity. The shouts of "you're in my head" relate perfectly to the mood created by the verses and show how powerful the songwriting is for such a young group. The Future Is Cancelled moves beyond just simple, fast punk songs and shows off a band creating music far beyond its years, only signaling more greatness to come in the future. You can stream The Future Is Cancelled on Bandcamp, and be sure to follow the band on Facebook.

Artist of the Day: These New Puritans

Okay maybe it’s because I’m one of those useless music dweebs who’s, like, worried about the future of rock and stuff, but the most exciting thing for me about Field of Reeds, the latest outing by London-based art-rockers These New Puritans, is what comes next. TV’s golden number is 100. The rare show that reaches the 100 episode mark has earned its place in the cannon. If you’re asking me, music’s number is four, but the algorithm isn’t so simple. A degree of subjectivity must be applied, along with that testy and oft overused descriptor: great. One great album can, by itself, alter the course of rock’s evolution, but may just be lightning in a bottle. Four great albums means a great band. The Velvet Underground, Dylan, Talking Heads, the ‘Mats, the Stones, the Beatles, Sonic Youth — these are the pillars of rock, and they’ve all done it. These New Puritans have one more to go.

Live Review: The Front Bottoms, Black Cat (6/2/13)

I have been lucky enough to see The Front Bottoms five times now, and there's been quite a noticeable progression for them in their live performance. Only a year and a half ago they performed as a two piece, using a macbook to fill in the horns and synth parts. They soon added a bassist and became a three piece, and for this album cycle they finally are a full four piece band that can play electric guitar, bass, keys, and trumpet to go with the group's two core instruments of acoustic guitar and drums. Even while the live lineup and arrangement has been in flux, the one constant for their sets is an intense outpouring of energy. Their fans feed off it and create an environment surprising for the music they play, forming a chaotic storm of kids jumping, dancing, and screaming their lungs out.

Artist Of The Day: Iron & Wine

Sam Beam has had a large hand in the popularization of indie folk. Along with folks such as The Mountain Goats, Fleet Foxes and of course, the band that comes to everyone's mind for the genre, Mumford & Sons. As far as staying to a particular sound goes, though, Beam has a particularly simple time due to being a solo project, and the biggest perk that comes with being an individual in the music industry is room for creativity. For example, he began with a solely folk-central sound, with a Neil Young sort of style, purely acoustic strings and a fresh sound in the new millennium that we hadn't been accustomed to for quite a while. As he wrote more and more, Beam added other tastes and colors into his music, including electric guitars and brass instruments. He's also explored different types of sounds, delving into traditional Mexican music, pop, jazz and R&B, while keeping the core of Iron & Wine at the base of everything. His most recent effort, April's Ghost On Ghost, expands the pop sounds featured on his previous album, Kiss Each Other Clean, but including some of the experimental jazz style and of course, his folk roots.

Beam will be touring for Ghost On Ghost more extensively in the fall, so take a look for tour dates and locations on his site.

Album Review: Her Royal Harness - The Hunting Room

Album Rating: B

It's a shame that Her Royal Harness's The Hunting Room almost inevitably won't find popularity easily. The album and its genre - self-professed "alternative pop" — are caught in an unfortunate chasm between (and maybe even nowhere near) the two markets of radio pop and radio-friendly alternative and indie rock. I don't see the bare-bones instrumentation of "Bear In A Trap" fitting in on the Hot 97s of the world, nor do I think the dark and driving "Blood + Fire" would do well on the alternative stations around the globe. This isn't a dig at the album itself, of course - plenty of good music won't show up anywhere near the radio. It's just a little frustrating to see an album as sullenly entrancing as this without much chance of appeal to the larger audience it deserves, barring a Pitchfork review or something of its ilk.

Album Review: Night Verses - Lift Your Existence

Album Rating: A-

Rising from the ashes of post-hardcore band The Sleeping, vocalist Doug Robinson wasted little time lamenting his old project before forming Night Verses. Leaving a successful project to initiate a new one is a risk which sometimes sees artists fall off the musical map, but when such boldness is channelled correctly and substantiated with the skill to execute it then success stories are born - and it hasn't taken Robinson and Night Verses long to establish themselves as one such story. After testing the waters in 2012 with debut EP Out Of The Sky, the reaction was such that a full length album has surfaced little more than a year later. Lift Your Existence sees all the seeds which were sewn on Out Of The Sky nurtured and in full bloom, and the finest qualities of their debut have been exorbitantly expanded on.

Event Preview: The NINES Festival (Devens, MA, USA)

Prior to this year, it was tough for New England music fans to get out to all-day festivals. Lolla was in Chicago, Bonnaroo was in Tennessee, Coachella was in California. However, this year two excellent festivals have been added. First, the Boston Calling festival (showcasing some of the world's best alternative and indie rock) has been such a major success that the festival's organizers have added a second date after its May premiere in September. Second, and less publicized, The NINES has been created as a way of promoting music in Central Massachusetts. Showcasing artists from all across the musical spectrum (Explosions In The Sky, Delta Spirit, Kid Koala - all the way from post-rock to electronic to more "accessible" music), the festival is sure to impress anyone who plans on going thanks to the wide swath of styles and the quality of all the music which will be there. The festival's introductory press release is below:

Artist Of The Day: Wolf Down

European hardcore outfit Wolf Down really know how to bring the mosh. The currently four-piece vegan straight-edge outfit play a straight forward style of relentless hardcore. The riff-based, breakdown style and atypical three-minute song lengths give Wolf Down a new dynamic in a scene where start-stop tempo shifts and one-minute songs are the norm.

Live Review: Tame Impala, The National (6/18/13)

Photo by Caroline Creasey

I encountered a strange and disheartening paradox as I sat in the balcony of Richmond’s National last Tuesday, letting palpable gushes of fuzz wash over me from Tame Impala’s medium-sized amp rig in a haze of wet, flanged heat something like the heavenly twin of the hellish humidity that lay in wait outside the venue’s doors. Just by writing this review, I’m squandering your chances of being quite as blown away by the band as I was. See, I had heard some things about their live show a little bit after the militantly chill Lonerism dropped. Apparently, they were bad. I remember quite specifically the words “worst show I’ve ever seen.” It must have been the gambling rush that took me down to the box office back in April (fuck an online fee) to secure my spot in the crowd of curiously diverse concertgoers. I guess that sexy-swampy production works for everyone.

Interview With A Little Orchestra (6/10/2013)

Members of A Little Orchestra

Not every up-and-coming ensemble can attract talent from almost a dozen different bands; yet that's exactly how A Little Orchestra came to be. Centered in England, the group has just released its debut: Clocks, a free-spirited collage cobbled together from whispers of indie pop, film scores, and folk and featuring performances from artists all across the musical spectrum. I contacted members Monster Bobby (sadly, that is not his real name) and Natalie Hudson via email to ask a few questions about their origin story, the namesake of their band's debut, and what's in the cards for the future.