The Sapiens - Good to Lose

The Sapiens are trying really hard. Really, really hard.

Don't get me wrong. These are some talented Chicago boys. Equal parts Mighty Mighty Boss Tones, Killers, Smashmouth and Rolling Stones. Sound like a bizarre mashup? It could be, but it isn't. Instead, it's ineffectual and drab. Uninspired.

My first instinct was to recoil from the Sapiens. To denounce them outright. But something made me listen to their stuff a few more times. And again. And again.

Finally, it clicked what it was. Whomever was producing them was entirely dumbing them down. Their dynamic range seems really 'radio compressed' and the vocals are so forward that they not only drown out the music, but seem to emotionally suppress it as well. The arrangements are such that the songs sound like they are built for maximum broad spectrum 'alternative' appeal.

So do I like the Sapiens? The answer is...I might. I'd like to see them live. I have a feeling it's an entirely different experience. But I have a feeling this album doesn't represent the real Sapiens.

Take a listen for yourself and let me know if you hear what I'm hearing.

Oh, and if you're in the Chicago area and get a chance to see them, let me know what you think. I'm really curious to see if there's a huge dichotomy between their live sound and their tracks.

MP3: The Sapiens - Good To Lose

Purchase through Amazon - Rind EP

The Sapiens

Love Motel - Mind the Void remixes

Remixes are a tricky thing. I'm really picky about which ones I like. There's so many ways to ruin a really good song and so few to do it justice. After all, the goal, in theory, is to create a track that keeps the essence of the song while emphasizing it's dancefloor aspects and making it easier for a DJ to work it into a set. It's not a simple task.

That means that any given remix needs the following: 1) A good intro that allows for the DJ to work it in from the previous song. 2) An easily recognizable and danceable beat (especially if your crowd is predominately white) 3) It needs to be repetitive without being monotonous. This is the 'dancier than the original' concept. 4) In my opinion, it should also contain most or all of the lyrics.

Which brings me to today's tunes. These are two remixes of Switzerland based, Love Motel, from their new album "Mind the Void". If you haven't heard the band, take a minute and check them out on their myspace page. With influences like Moroder, T-Rex and Goldfrapp they have a firm grasp of the dance floor. The remixes from Anderson Vila Nova and Baxter Beez do a nice job of taking that core material and simply ramping it up to the next level. All those elements I listed in the second paragraph are here, making these great tracks for a DJ. Best of all, Love Motel's songs span so many genre's (glam, electro, house, etc) that these make excellent crossover tracks for when you want to start changing the vibe a bit.

Even if you don't DJ, these will put a smile on your face and a twitch in your ass.

MP3: Love Motel - Cosmic Love (Anderson Vila Nova Mix)
MP3: Love Motel - Mind the Void (Baxter Beez Edit)
Purchase through Amazon - Mind the Void
Love Motel

Video of the Day...no wait, of the Week

Sorry I've been MIA people. I'm kind of in a screenwriting mindset and my energies have been in that department. Nevertheless, the need for new and non-crappy music must be sated. On that note, I give you the newest from one of the most badass bands on the planet - Electric Six !!!

This is "Formula 409".




I wonder if they got permission to use the name and logo? Formula 409, please don't sue Electric Six. I'm sure they can't afford it. Just look at those production values!

Stereogum = Sad, Courtney Love = Pathetic

So, when I blog, I get my news from wherever I can. I like reporting on music, and the events that affect the bands. I try really hard to keep things relevant, yet impersonal. I really don't care about fights (Kele vs. Lydon, etc) or marriages, or kids, or partying. I want to know when I can hear the new Faint album and how much it rocks.

There are a few websites out there that I consistently peruse for useful and exciting tidbits. I certainly won't be getting anything from Rolling Stone. Stereogum on the other hand is a different story. Even if I don't agree with all of their reviews, at least they are current, lively, and generally informative.

That changed for me today when I clicked on a link, entitled: Courtney Talks About Trent Reznor, Blog Hiatus (Warning: Please read the rest of my post before you click!) Being an ardent NIN supporter, I decided to click and see what Stereogum had to say.

Well, Stereogum didn't really have anything to say. They weren't really reporting anything, just passing on a link to Courtney Love's Myspace page. Let me repeat that: A 'news agency' posted an article that was nothing more than a link to a Myspace blog. I had no idea that Stereogum was made up of 15 year old girls. How very very sad.

Of course, I didn't know this until I clicked on the link and discovered....What? You thought it would take me to the blog entry? No, No. It takes you to the Myspace homepage. Where you have to log in. How's that for news? We won't give you anything, we'll make you log into another site to get it.

By this point, I felt like I was rubber necking on the freeway and I had to see what was actually going on. I signed in and read the first paragraph intently. The second one, I whipped through. The third I scanned for something, anything that might be coherent. Finally, I just began scrolling and occasionally stopping to let my jaw slip a little further open at the amazing, completely unstable ramblings of this woman and all of her commenters (actually, some of her commenters outdid her on the crazy-o-meter).

Her writing is full of disjointed thoughts and half-conceived ideas. She rants, rambles, digresses, shifts gears, and verbally jabs at the air at all of the invisible ghosts haunting her. And like a crazy person with a loud voice who has escaped from an asylum, all of the other crazies, her commenters, follow along gleefully.

It really is like reading Burroughs if he were an infantile, self-absorbed has been.

The world is a bleaker place for Courtney Love. Thanks for calling that news Stereogum.

Video of the Day

I realized that I haven't given much love to the Smiths since I started this blog. I went back and dug through some old videos and realized that most of the Smiths videos are remarkably poor. Sad to say, but true. In any case, "There Is Light That Never Goes Out" is an exception.

It's a great example of how simple can be better. The shots don't rush, the transitions are easy. It lets the song do most of the talking, without being boring.

Waking up with David Lynch

Every day, on my way to work, I turn on the radio and there's David Lynch. He tells me the day and date, tells me temperature and weather and then leaves me with a thought for the day. Today's was: "She rolls the dice". What a great way to start the day.

Where do I hear this? On Indie 103.1. I've blogged about this before on my personal blog but I thought it deserved a full outing. I know there are lots of diehards out there who remember the heyday of KROQ and all the good it did, and yes, Indie has a few chinks in its armor. Sometimes they act too cool for their own good. I know a few of you Angelinos actually despise the station (shooting a quick glance at Liz).

While I do see plenty of room for improvement, I also think that the people lucky enough to pick up the station are getting something really rare and special. For a quick history on the station, including a list of some of the really great shows they have check out this link.

I guess I'm grateful because I lived in New Orleans for 10 years where the only thing alternative was Clear Channels version of alternative. And only one station. Everything else was jazz, RnB, blues, country, gospel, classic rock, etc. It can be hard to sometimes appreciate what's right in your face. But every morning, David Lynch reminds me to be thankful.

Overlooked - Speak and Spell

In these heady days of 80s nostalgia, bordering on worship, there are lots of names thrown around: Gang of Four, Kraftwerk, PiL, the Pixies. The list goes on. In my book however, there's a holy quad of 80's bands that stand above the rest. Their influence resonates throughout the sonic landscape, even today. Even tiny school children, not born until after 9/11 know their songs. New Order. The Cure. Duran Duran. And Depeche Mode.

DM are one of the few bands out there that were relevant in '81 and still sound relevant in '08. It might seem like I'm heaping an overly generous portion of praise on them, but go back and listen to their singles collections. Then look me in the eye and try to deny that every band that uses a synthesizer since the 80s hasn't been influenced by them. They set the standards.

Going all the way back to their first album, Speak and Spell, we can see the roots of the band that is to come, but we can also a see a band that might have been. Martin Gore and Dave Gahan have become the heart of DM over the years (not to diminish Mr. Fletcher). But their first outing also had Dave Clarke, who would go onto Yazoo and Erasure fame. His lighter sensibilities were at lead when it came to writing the songs for Speak and Spell and it shows. Tracks like "Just Can't Get Enough" and "Dreaming of Me" have more in common with many Erasure tracks then they do with "Personal Jesus" or "Barrel of a Gun". Who knows where the band would have gone had Clarke stayed with them.

But that doesn't eclipse the importance of this album. Speak and Spell is quite possibly the first real introduction of entirely synthesized music into the pop genre. That's not to say they pioneered anything, but they certainly refined synth-based music in a way that made it palatable to the dancefloor masses for the first time.

Almost every track on Speak and Spell is a gem. Not many debuts can claim that kind triumph. And as good as it was, Clarke's leaving didn't kill DM, it freed them up. Once Gore took over writing duties the band took a darker turn and began forging what would become one of the most iconic bands the post-arena rock world had ever seen. Violator seems to be, for many people, a turning point for the band. Going from underground scenesters to pop megastars. But the band didn't soften their sound, or broaden it. They just kept evolving, kept getting better (and kept going into rehab). They moved from being a great synthpop band, to just being a great band.

Speak and Spell often gets over shadowed by Black Celebration or Music for the Masses, or the aforementioned Violator. But listen to "Photographic" from S&S. It's still a fantastic track today - 27 years after it's release. I might get called on this one, but I doubt anyone will be listening to Vampire Weekend and crying their genius in 2035.

MP3 - Depeche Mode - Photographic

Purchase through Amazon - Speak and Spell

Depeche Mode

Infadels - Universe in Reverse

I stumbled upon the Infadels awhile back while listening to Last.fm. I'm pretty sure it was "Love Like Semtex" from their first album, We Are Not The Infadels. I was immediately hooked and soaked up the rest of that album.

Now, two years after that first release, I've got my hands on Universe in Reverse, the Infadels latest. Considering how much I liked their last one, I was understandably excited to hear the new material.

If you haven't heard them, the Infadels are a London-based rock outfit that surfs the edge of post-punk, disco-punk and mainstream rock 'n roll. If I was describing their first album I might compare them with bands like Radio 4.

This new album though is a strong departure from their danceable roots. Right off the bat "Circus of the Mad" says this is a band that has turned a page. Heavy funk bass lines have given way to a fuller, richer, guitar-led sound. There are more chorus-style vocals, tempo and chord changes, and less obvious melodies. It all leads to a more 'epic' sound. There are more nuanced synthesizers here. They surf near Kaiser Chiefs and Franz Ferdinand territory.

It's a gamble, making a move of this sort. You risk alienating your initial fan base for one you may not attract. Unfortunately, I think this is what will happen here. Their songs are well-produced, complex and full of intent and purpose. The problem is that few of them leave any real impression once they are done. As you listen to them, you can hear plenty of elements to appreciate but nothing really sticks.

There are exceptions to this. "How To Disappear" seems to have some of the urgency of their first album. "Code 1" has energy to spare, launching itself up and out from the rest of the album. It's fun keyboards and driving drums immediately reminded me of We Are Not.

All in all, this comes off as a tactical error on the part of the band. If anything, it's now obvious that band is extremely talented and can play a wide range of sounds. The mistake here was to try to push the band into a more generic, 'rock' sound that would play to a broader audience. It comes off like a dog that loves to run, who's been put on a really short leash. You can see the Infadels straining at it - they want to run. A note to whomever produces their next album: Let them.

MP3: The Infadels - Code 1

Purchase through Amazon - Universe in Reverse

The Infadels

The Prids had a serious car accident

The Prids, a great Portland-based band, apparently got into a major accident yesterday on the way to Los Angeles. A tire blew, their van flipped. No fatalities, but serious injuries resulted and at least one member is in dire shape.

If you are a fan of the band, you can donate here

Also, now's a great time to go buy some music from them at their website: The Prids

Video of the Day

Today's video is a great one. It's hard not to like Johnny Cash. And this track from American Recordings is so damn dark and bleak. The video is just as grim.

Is it just me?

Or is this one of the more stupid things we've seen lately? I wasn't a big fan of the Vampire Weekend in the first place, but now I think they've moved on to 'grating'.

This picture from their latest video says it all:

Video of the Day

Things are a little slow this week, so I'm taking some time off to do some other writing (finally getting into my feature length script). But I do have a jucy VOD for you all.

There are puppets, which are evil. And not good evil. Bad evil. But then there are Muppets. Which rock. Go ahead, try to deny it. Muppets rock.

The new Futurehead videos doesn't exactly feature "Muppets" - more like 'muppets'. But close enough. This video is great - and the song is a lot of fun as well. You have to appreciate a band that has enough self-deprication and sense of humor to allow themselves not only to be portrayed as muppets, but to not appear anywhere in the video. It's a cute 'behind the scenes' style shoot and it works really well.

Enjoy "Walking Backwards", by the Futureheads. It's a brand new track from the bands new album.

Overlooked - Love is The Slug

Imagine if the Go-Go's had gone to prison and come out as broken bottle swingin' bar bitches who didn't take shit from anyone. That's pretty much what Fuzzbox sounds like. An all-girl rock band from the 80's(they're actual full name was We've Got a Fuzzbox and We're Gonna Use It), they were a flash in the pan, here and gone kinda thing. In fact, even as an 80s DJ, I managed to miss this song for years, until my wonderful girlfriend introduced me to it. It stuck immediately.


It's one of those tracks where you go, 'this is over 20 years old? No Way!' . It's definitely got an 80s vibe, but it's still chock full of attitude and style. Fuzzy danceable guitars, synthesizers that aren't over the top, and half-sung, half-shouted vocals from Vickie Perk. This is one of those rare tracks that makes me actually miss my high school years.




*Although...upon watching the video, maybe 'bottle swingin' bitches' is overstating their street cred.*


MP3: Fuzzbox - Love is the Slug
Purchase through Amazon - Fuzzbox

Video of the Day

Today we have the new Cure video, "Sleep When I'm Dead". It's an interesting tune and a sonic departure for the band. I think I actually like it. While 'sleep when I'm dead' does get repeated quite a bit, it's nice to hear a real change in guitar work. Gone are the clean jangles of the typical Smith track. Instead we have upfront aggressive stuff reminiscent of The Edge's work.

As for the video. Blech. Robert's already looking his age. Washing out all the color and leaving us with nothing but shades of dingy blue is rough. Not to mention, this is another video that, besides hearing the song, does nothing except say, "Look at me for four minutes, I'm Robert Smith." A little creativity here could have gone a long way.

Video of the Day

"True Faith" from New Order. I loved this video as a teenager. As an adult, I look back on it and I can see that there was a label douchebag that stuck his big fat stupid nose into the process here and said 'this is all too weird, we need to intersperse all this weird shit with the band pretending to play'. The director then says, 'but we've already finished! We don't have any footage of the band!'. The label douche follows up with 'Well, just use some live footage from somewhere, I don't care. I just don't want to see all that weird stuff!'.

Douchebags.

Still a great song, and a mostly great video.

She Wants Revenge - Save Your Soul EP

I did a review of SWR's single "Save Your Soul" last month, but it's taken me awhile to really be able to sit down and take in the entire EP.

First off, kudos to the guys for making the daring leap into the world of self-production. They managed to get out from under Geffen/Interscope and are now on their own label, Perfect Kiss (Which I really hope is a New Order reference). I'm hoping that this means that one of my favorite L.A. bands will flourish both creatively and financially.

I've said in the past that SWR is an out of the closet picaroon. They lift from their influences so overtly that they often get slammed for it by reviewers. I have two counters to that. One, it's only obvious because their influences are so unique sounding: Depeche Mode, New Order, The Cure, Bauhaus, Joy Division, Sisters of Mercy, etc. If you are influenced by those bands, there is no way to hide it my friends. Secondly, it doesn't really matter, because they not only sound great, they still sound like they're in the present not floundering in the past. SWR might take from some 80s icons, but they sound like a 21st century band through and through.

Okay, all that said, what do I think of the new EP? Not bad. In fact, it feels like an appetizer to something much bigger. This Is Forever, while a compelling album, felt somewhat constrained, which I suspect had to do with label control. This collection of four tracks isn't a huge departure and yet there is a difference. All of their ingredients are the same, but there is a loose feeling that wasn't present in past work. Maybe it's that Adam and Justin are just more comfortable with their own work and they're having more fun with it.

Regardless, this shows in the music. "Sleep" recalls some of the best work of the Psychedelic Furs and guitar-era New Order. "A Hundred Kisses", with it's light acoustic guitar and chamber hall vocals lives somewhere between Love and Rockets and Echo and the Bunnymen. "Sugar" is classic Cure. I've already written about "Save Your Soul".

I think the last step for the band is to let Justin expand his vocal range. While I love his Peter Murphy/Ian Curtis style, I think in the end, he doesn't need to stay with it so tightly. There are plenty of other good 80s post-punk frontmen out there to emulate and work in.

If Save Your Soul is a signpost for things to come for She Wants Revenge, then I couldn't be happier.

"Save Your Soul" would get played around 1:30am right between some Depeche Mode and some Sisters of Mercy.

MP3: She Wants Revenge - Save Your Soul

Purchase through iTunes - Save Your Soul

She Wants Revenge

Video of the Day

Best. Commercial. Ever.

Portishead - Third

I can't say that I've always been a huge fan of Portishead, but I certainly respect their work. While they often get labeled as trip-hop, I don't think that's very accurate, especially their latest album, Third.

There are artists out there that transcend genres; Johnny Cash, Sigur Ros, Leonard Cohen come to mind. Certainly Portishead have moved beyond 'trip-hop' and into just being 'Portishead' minus any genre.

Third is the culmination of that movement. Here, Portishead strip away all conventions, beat back any attempts at categorization and create something almost entirely fresh. I say 'almost' because there is one thread, one small bread crumb trail to be found on this new adventure. It's Beth Gibbons haunting voice. In previous works, it was used to add to the power and mood of a track. But on Third, her voice is put to a much better use. It's a guide, a small beacon of comforting familiarity on the bizarre and surreal odyssey that this album takes you on.

The album opens with "Silence". It's one of the more beat and melody driven pieces on the album. But lyrically, it sets the tone. "Empty in our hearts, Crying out in silence, Wandered out of reach, too far to speak, Drifting, unable," Beth laments.

"Hunter" drifts from ultra-delicate, distant vocals and light strings to heavy dirge-like synthesizers. There's a sense of travel in many of their songs, of motion. "I stand on the edge of a broken sky, And I'm looking down, don't know why. And if I should fall, would you hold me?", she queries.

No instrument goes unturned. Everything is laid out like a strange garden, where every sound is a new exotic plant or flower. Beth takes you by the hand and leads you through this beautiful but dangerous sylvan. Nowhere is this more apparent than on "Machine Gun". Brutal staccato synthesized drums punch erratically throughout the song, jarring and unnerving. You find yourself clinging to Gibbon's vocals for a sense of reprieve, although she gives none. Drifting analog synthesizers come in (That oddly remind me of Vangelis' work) near the end, only adding to the sense of discordance and chaos. It's a signature piece of work on an already singular album.

Which brings me around to labels again. I think many of the fans of Dummy will be disappointed with Third. In fact, I'm not sure if the public in general will know what to do with this. It's much like the film Apocalypse Now. It's a fantastic film, an amazingly well done piece of art. But it's also gruelling. It takes a toll on you emotionally, and although you might have it in your collection, it's not something you put on casually. Third is a journey not for the faint of heart, nor for the top 40.

MP3: Portishead - Magic Doors Removed as per label request
Purchase through Amazon - Third
Portishead

Video of the Day

I'm ingesting the new She Wants Revenge EP right now. I'll have a review shortly. In the meantime, here's a video off their first album. "Tear You Apart" is on a short list of my favorite all-time videos (It's also directed by Joaquin Phoenix).

Black Ghosts - Remixes and B-Sides

I always feel bad when I have to give an album a bad review. Call me a softy, but since I'm often getting music from labels who are out there working hard to promote their band, it's difficult to turn around and tell them that something sucks.

I had to do that last week when I reviewed the Black Ghosts debut album. The fantastic folks over at Musebox were totally cool with it though. They've also given me a set of remixes and b-sides to review from the Ghosts. They're really good people over there at Musebox.

Sigh.

There's a remix from BG of The Gossip's "Listen" . There are two remixes of "Face"(the Teenagers Mix, and the Switch Mix), two remixes of "Anyway You Choose To Give It"(Boy 8 Bit Mix and Fake Blood Mix)and one of "Some Way Through This"(The Replicants Mix)all from the debut album, as well as a cover from the Ghosts of Olivia Newton Johns' "Let's Get Physical".

The Ghosts remix of "Listen" is passable. Nothing too exciting here, but a decent dance floor version of the track. If you like the Gossip, then you probably won't mind this remix.

The remixes from Black Ghosts range from 'not as irritating as the original' to 'Jesus, please make it stop'. Part of the problem is that the original material is not much to work (as I said in my original review). The Boy 8 Bit Mix of "Anyway" is actually a good dancey electro piece of work that goes well with the original, but the Fake Blood Mix is so glitched and re-sampled it sounds like an epileptic on two turntables. The Teenagers failed to strip out the annoying repetitions in "Face". On "Some Way Through This" Simon Lord's vocals are so awful it's painful. I don't think I realized until I listened to this track just how strained and limited his voice is. He spends an amazing amount of time sounding off key.

The capper here though is the cover. From across my house, my girlfriend piped up "Oh my god, is that someone covering Olivia Newton John?", when she heard "Let's Get Physical" coming from my laptop.

It's funny. In my previous review, I accused the Black Ghosts of trying to sound like the 80s without having listened to the 80s. This track hammers that point home. Taking one of the most slapstick disco pieces from the 80s and covering it without any sense of irony or humor is just sad. John's original track was fun, light, and done with a wink. Trying to make this into some dark, modern piece just sounds wretched. If it weren't "Let's Get Physical", it would be a decent little dance tune, but it is. Listen at your own peril.

MP3: Black Ghosts - Let's Get Physical
Purchase through Amazon - Black Ghosts
Black Ghosts

Video of the Day

Oops. Guess I forgot the VOD yesterday. I was riled up about the whole Fratellis thing and it totally slipped.

Today we've got a good one. This is one of my favorite tracks of the last few years. When I saw the video I couldn't help but think how much these guys looked like little adorable bri'ish lads with their sweaters and bad teeth. I can just picture them playing in their mums ga-rage.

This is "Tendency" by Battle.

Pity The Bands On Major Labels

I knew this day would come. Just a few posts down, you'll notice that two Fratellis tracks have been removed from my review. Maybe I should take it as a sign that my blog's getting big enough to be noticed. Yay! Or maybe I should take it as a sign that the labels don't think I'm important enough to let me offer MP3's like some other blogs do. Boo!

MP3's are the lifeblood of the modern band. How much music out there would we have missed entirely if it weren't for MP3's? Not only do they allow us access to new bands, they give us a freedom and portability to listen to music much more often than we used to. I have a co-worker in my office who walks around with an iPod attached to his hip, one ear bud in his ear, the other dangling. Not really possible with a CD player.

To make things worse, Interscope didn't contact me about the MP3's, they contacted my host, Box.net. Why? After all, I've put up a message right at the top of my blog that clearly states that if you want MP3's removed, just ask. Instead, by asking Box.net, Interscope has jeopardized my relationship with Box.net. If I were to lose that account, all of the bands and labels who do want their music to be exposed on my blog all get the rug pulled out from under them. Interscope punishes everyone else.

I'm not making any money on my blog. I spend an hour or so a day on it, not counting all the time I dedicate to listening to new music and reading other blogs. There's no profit here for me, and certainly not much glory. I write this blog because I love music and it's a great feeling to have someone say 'thanks for turning me on to that band, I love them'. It's why I DJ and it's why I blog.

So who loses the most in all this? The Fratellis do. I gave their album a lukewarm review, but I love the band. I offered MP3's so that people could decide for themselves if they wanted to run out and get it. Now that the MP3's are down, how does that make the band look? Perhaps like they have something to hide? Certainly Interscope has something to hide. My first thought is that Interscope is ashamed of the music and that they think they only way they'll sell albums is by duping people into buying something that their customers can't hear first. Not exactly a friendly way to treat the Fratellis' Fans.

At this point, I'm really confused as to why anyone who isn't only interested in being famous would sign to a major label. We all know the labels make the majority of the artists money, they maintain a lot of creative control, they become the voice of the band. Worse, they take what is, at it's heart, an artistic endeavor and turn it into a business model.

What are labels good for at this point? They might (temporarily) still serve a purpose as distributors, but as management and promoters, they are nothing more than a giant leech on the artists back, sucking the vitae from the music and the fans.

Let me be clear that I'm talking about the major labels here. There are plenty of small labels out there busting their asses for their bands, and I have nothing but respect for them. The smaller labels understand that community, word of mouth, and MP3's all go hand in hand to help get a band heard.

So let's take a moment and feel bad for all of the Fratelli's out there. They've got a ball and chain dragging behind them.

Oh, and for a refresher on the whole scheme, here's a classic rant from Steve Albini on the labels. It's a little out of date, but still really applicable.

MGMT - Oracular Spectacular

I wasn't sure what to expect from MGMT. I'd heard the name mentioned in conjunction with other bands that I liked and it had certainly gotten around on the blog circuit. But I avoided reading reviews for fear of contaminating my opinion. I thought what I would be hearing would be some sort of electro/punk style band.

That wasn't totally off-base, and yet, it totally was. There isn't anything trendy sounding in MGMT's debut, Oracular Spectacular. At the same time there are lots of recognizable sounds and ideas here. The first track I listened to, "Kids", made me think of the Scissor Sisters (I realized I had my iTunes on shuffle - it didn't feel like a first track). "Time To Pretend" still felt a little like Scissor Sisters, but I also felt like I was hearing some Arcade Fire there. There's a strong psychadelia component to the songs.

All of the songwriting here is really solid. None of the songs seems to be in a hurry to get anywhere, and at the same time, there isn't really any filler here. Strong back beats, light easy melodies, and high, sometimes falsetto, vocals carry you through the album with one foot in the 70s and one foot in 2008. The tinkling piano and the swanky singing of "Weekend Wars" is right out of Elton John's playbook. "The Youth" sails smoothly into Stardust-era Bowie. There's plenty of funk/disco to go around as well, especially on tracks like "Electric Feel". "Pieces of What" sounds oddly like a Violent Femmes song, yet still works in the greater whole of the album somehow.

Nothing in this album grabbed me and made me want to hit replay over and over. On the otherhand, I find myself grooving along to almost every track here. Each has its own charms, its own little world. Oracular Spectacular never seems like it's trying to overshadow it's influences either, rather MGMT come across as genuine devotees and audiophiles sharing their passion with us.

I'm looking forward to hearing some remixes as well. I have a feeling they'd tear up the dancefloor.

MP3: MGMT - Electric Feel Removed as per label request
MP3: MGMT - Kids Removed as per label request
Purchase through Amazon: Oracular Spectacular
MGMT

The Fratellis - Here We Stand

It's really hard to write about Here We Stand without discussing the Fratellis' first album, Costello Music, a raucous, snarky affair. Being a popular indie-rock band is a much easier feat than it used to be, so when tunes like "Chelsea Dagger" hit the airwaves a couple of years ago, it was nice to see someone stand out from the crowd.

Fast forward to Here We Stand. The band, made up from three actual brothers named Fratelli, have taken a lot more care and thought on this outing. That might not be a good thing. Much of their swanky glam-influenced, off-the-cuff sounding britpop has given way to slickly produced arena style rock. There's plenty of well-done music here, but the question is, does it suit the Fratellis that we loved from Costello?

The answer, unfortunately, is only moderately. Tracks like "Acid Jazz Singer" and "Jesus Stole My Baby" seem to capture some of their past vibe. But tracks like "Lupe Brown" sound more like Cheap Trick, especially in their guitar work. Again, it's not necessarily bad to sound like Cheap Trick, but I'm not sure it works for this band.

Like Costello Music, this album seems to have been written with the idea of singing along with them in a bar, all of your friends hoisting pints in the air. The vocals are all clean, front and center, and full of fun.

But with almost every track I found myself thinking of another band from the 70s. "A Heady Tale" instantly recalls Paul Simon or Billy Joel. "Shameless" again, recalls Cheap Trick. There are various country, surf and rock swipes. But none to any real effect.

In the end, this isn't a bad album, they just seem to have chosen a direction that has swapped post-punk edge for 70s arena rock indulgences. You could do worse on a sophomore album. But I think what was lost on Here We Stand was the sense of playful immediacy that made Costello Music so fun.

Here We Stand will keep me around at least long enough to hear their third album though.

MP3: The Fratellis - Jesus Stole My Baby Removed at request of label

MP3: The Fratellis - Babydoll Removed at request of label

Purchase through Amazon: Here We Stand

The Fratellis

Video of the Day

This song recently came up in conversation between my girlfriend and I and we ended up doing our 'Night at the Roxbury' style laugh off in the car to it. Then, serendipitously it came up on Stereogum and I laughed myself to the point of peeing at the video. I've never seen a mainstream video so funny and so pornographic simultaneously.

This is Eric Prydz's remix of Steve Winwood's "Valerie", titled "Call on Me". Let the laughter begin.

Video of the Day

This is from the Infadel's first album. The track is "Can't Get Enough". I've been really digging on this track lately.

But the video...is it just me or does it seem vaguely, unintentionally homoerotic? And is that some sort of trendy bib he's wearing? All in all, a pretty funny video, even if that isn't what they were going for.

Louis XIV - Slick Dogs and Ponies

Yes, I realize that this album was released almost 8 months ago. I admittedly didn't get it till just a couple of months ago. It got less than stellar reception initially, and my enthusiasm waned.

It ended up on a play list I brought to work with me though, and I've had the chance to really absorb it. Make no mistake, there's nothing original on Slick Dogs and Ponies, the bands sophomore effort. But then, there wasn't on their first album either. The band, from the beginning, has taken the attitude of 'it's all tongue-in-cheek'. They make their music the way the Muppet's Swedish Chef cooks. Influences fly haphazardly like distraught chickens, while the band gleefully stirs its pot. Bowie, AC/DC, the Beatles, T-Rex, and a host of others are all pulled from, not to make some new fancy dish, but comfort food, something familiar.

This new album is much darker than their last however. Sure, most of the songs are still about sex, drugs and rock n' roll, but this time, they've taken a more cynical attitude. Adding string sections, complex choruses and relying less on their straight forward rock sound from their debut, Slick Dogs sounds much more epic and well thought out.

It's strange, all of the things I thought of as positives in this album seem to be listed as negatives in most of the reviews from the major mags. It's like Louis XIV handed us this album, and then slyly winked at us, but the big guys missed the wink. I'm sure that Jason Hill knows he sounds exactly like Bon Scott. I'm sure they know they are totally copying T-Rex chords. That's the point.

The more I listen to Slick Dogs and Ponies, the more I like it. From the ballads ("Hopesick and "Air Traffic Control") to the juicy glam rock bits like "Tina" and "Guilt By Association", there are some very memorable songs here. No, Louis XIV are not re-inventing rock n' roll. They're just in the kitchen having fun.

Wink.

MP3: Louis XIV - Tina
Purchase through Amazon - Slick Dogs and Ponies
Louis XIV

Video of the Day

Today's video comes from a fun, straight up rock and roll band, the Subways. I love this video for a few reasons. One, the kinetic camera action suits the band so well. Two, I love the fact that the girl is far more aggro than the guy - she's jumpin all over the place. Three, you have to love pissed off girls in skirts and rollerskates. What's not to love? This is "Oh, Yeah" by the Subways.

The Black Ghosts - The Black Ghosts

"The repetition kills you, so bring it on, bring it on." The Black Ghosts sing this line over and over on the track aptly titled, "Repetition". This sentiment pretty much sums up the entire album, The Black Ghosts, unfortunately.

The opening track, "Anyway You Choose To Give It", is a glorious bit of synth-disco. Smartly done lyrics, a catchy beat and that oh-so popular electro sound. I'm sure it's going to be a smash on the dance floor.

From there on, however, the entire album vacillates between bland mediocrity and nails-on-the-chalkboard irritating. There are basically three main influences in each of the tracks: 80s Duran Duran, 80s synthpop and 80s top 40 RnB. But rather than coming up with a fresh sound, every one of these tracks sounds like something El DeBarge left on the studio floor. It's cheesy in all the wrong places (I swear that's an actual Casio they're trying to play off non-ironically in "Repetition"), seems to lack any direction or gravitas, and often gets sickeningly repetitive ("You've got to face the music, face the music, face the music, face the music" gets chanted about a hundred more times on "Face").

What the entire thing sounds like is a band that never actually listened to anything from the 80s, but instead listened to '00 revival bands and tried to guess what music from the actual decade sounded like. The Black Ghosts want desperately to get into the niche that Cut Copy have carved for themselves. Instead, they've just highlighted why Cut Copy have it right. Cut Copy understand the elements they are ..well, copying from. But they have the right mix of new and old and their song writing is tight, hook filled and catchy. The Black Ghosts got it right with the first track and then just fell flat on their faces.

On the bright side, this duo comprised from fellas from The Wiseguys and Simian might be able to save themselves with a set of remixes. I haven't listened to them yet, and I'll be reviewing these separately. But maybe, just maybe, they won't completely suck.

MP3: The Black Ghosts - Anyway You Chose To Give It

Purchase through Amazon - The Black Ghosts (released July 8, 2008)

The Black Ghosts

Video of the Day - Locals

The video of the day is about as near and dear to me as it gets. After all, I directed and edited it. It's the promo video for the pilot episode of my series, "Locals".

Why is it the video of the day? Well, the version you are looking at below is on the Independent Televsion Festival YouTube site(which is also why the aspect ratio is wrong, sorry). The show is an official selection this year and they've put up trailers for all of the festival shows.

Please, if you get a minute, watch the trailer, leave a comment here. Even better, if you live in L.A. come out to the festival in August. You can learn more about ITVFest here.



You can also come to the show's website: Locals

Tom Petty at the Hollywood Bowl

The Hollywood Bowl is a mystical place. There are few venues in this world where, once inside, the rest of the world seems to fade away. Surrounded by hills, trees and a gorgeous Summer night sky, it seems like the Bowl is like a focal instrument for the Universe to speak through. Whomever steps on that stage has the whole of humanity listening. Or so it seems.

Anyway, I've been a Tom Petty fan since I was a wee one, so it was with something like awe that I responded when I found out that my lovely fiance's mother had gotten us all tickets to see Tom at the Bowl last Wednesday.

I spent most of my time during opener Steve Winwood's set in the beer and popcorn lines, which was fine by me. He never was my style. I noticed, in line for my absurdly priced Corona, that the crowd was about as diverse as I'd ever seen. Rednecks, hipsters, geriatrics, teenagers, and everything in between.

It struck me then that there are few American rockers that fall into Petty's category. Most of them (Springsteen, Aerosmith, etc) have all had careers that have waxed and waned. Moments of popularity due to particularly good albums and have then moved on to more subdued careers. They might still pack their shows, but it's with their fans from two decades past.

Petty seems to be one of very few who've avoided this. His songs seem to connect with everyone. Yet he never seems to be 'popular' or 'hot'. Just always there, below the roar. If you stop paying attention to the 'album of the minute' you can always turn around and find a good solid Tom Petty album right there.

He writes the songs that you can sing along to, that you can relate to, that you can drive fast to, that you can shout at your ex, that you can finish a beer with a friend to. He's always been a rebel, but never felt the need to prove it. He's the kind of guy who'd have you laughing your ass off to endless road tales, without ever seeming like he was boasting.

It's also nice that he has a love of L.A. Not so much because I'm in love with L.A, but like a begrudging relative, I understand the city, and know her and 'get' her. So when he sings song "Free Fallin'" and you can hear the whole crowd chanting along, it has an extra significance.

When Petty finally came on, he launched right into classics: "You Wreck Me", "Listen to Her Heart", "I Won’t Back Down", "Even the Losers", "Free Fallin’", and "Mary Jane’s Last Dance".

He followed with a B-side, and some rarities, before inviting Winwood back for a couple of his openers old tracks.

This was the only problem with the show for me. If you've ever played Guitar Hero III, you know there's this spot where the game is loading a song and the screen displays little bits of rock and roll advice. One that often comes up is: 20 minute free form jazz solos are NOT okay. Someone in the Petty/Winwood camp needed to remind them that that is a mighty fine bit of wisdom.

These 'extended' versions ate up much of the Bowl's allowable time limits on shows, which is a shame, because otherwise, Petty sounded amazing. The man has a ton of energy and doesn't sound tired even doing his oldest material.

The set picked up again with "Saving Grace", "Honey Bee", "A Face in the Crowd", "You Don’t Know How It Feels", "Learning to Fly", "Don’t Come Around Here No More", and "Refugee". After a brief break he encored with "Running Down a Dream", "Gloria", and "American Girl". All done, not only gorgeously, but with a packed house of fans that new every lyric.

My only complaint was that the 'free form jazz solo's' might have caused him to cut out a few classics that I would have loved to have heard, especially, "You Got Lucky". All said though, a fantastic experience.

Thanks to The Spaghetti Incident for posting the set list that I was too dumb to write down. And thanks to Stiletto Lawyer over at Flckr for posting pics. I couldn't get my giant camera in through security.

MP3: Tom Petty - You Got Lucky

Purchase through Amazon: Tom Petty

Tom Petty