Album Review Blitz

Hello readers! I am way behind on my record reviews but not my listening, so I am doing to do an Album Review Blitz. I am just going to give my score for each album and maybe a one or two sentence statement. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I have listened to each of these albums start to finish at least twice.

Hold Steady: Heaven is Whenever, Rating 5.9
Two mediocre albums in a row now from one of my favorite bands The Hold Steady. "Heaven is Whenever" is a slight bit better than their last effort "Stay Positive" just doesn't please start to finish like their first three albums.

Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles II, Rating 7.4

Radio Dept: Cling to a Scheme, Rating 4.3
Don't believe the hype, I found Radio Dept. Boring, and unoriginal.

Delorean: Subiza, Rating 6.8
I was a fan of Delorean's 4 song EP "Aytron Senna" and now with "Subiza" I get a whole album of songs that make me dance. This is probably all the Delorean I'll need.

Caribou : Swim, Rating 7.0

The Tallest Man on Earth: The Wild Hunt, Rating 7.3
Great singer/songwriter acoustic music. Easily comparable to Dylan. I've really been enjoying "The Wild Hunt" while driving around. I think this album will get a lot of play in the fall from me.

MGMT: Congratulations, Rating 4.1
MGMT decided to total revamp their sound and take an "Art Rock" turn on "Congratulations." Now I like me some art rock from time to time but this album feels manic and messy.

Erykah Badu: New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh, Rating 6.9

LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening, Rating 9.1
Another instant classic from James Murphy. Every track on "This is Happening" is great and "Pow Pow" will be in your head for days. One of the year's best so far.

Sleigh Bells: Treats, Rating 7.8

Holy Fuck: Latin, Rating 7.2

Male Bonding: Nothing Hurts, Rating 4.2

The Dead Weather: Sea of Cowards, Rating 6.8
A great rock record. I'm liking "Sea of Cowards" quite a bit more then then their debut album. "Sea of Cowards" holds my interest track to track.

The National: High Violet, Rating 8.1
"High Violet" continues to grow on me. This is no "Boxer" or even "Alligator" but another solid album. I am excited to see them live soon to see if these songs carry more energy on stage.

Broken Social Scene: Forgiveness Rock Record, Rating 7.5

Album Reviews

Dr. Dog: Shame, Shame, Rating 5.1

Another disappointment in 2010. “Fate” Dr. Dog’s previous album made my top 10 of 2008 leaving me very excited to hear their new effort “Shame, Shame.” I was immediately pleased with track 1 “Stranger” which was full of the Beatlesque pop vibe I loved so much about “Fate” but none of the tracks that followed kept my interest. I found my hand going to the next track button quite often on my second and third listen of this album. Sorry Dr. Dog but this album is tired.

Ghost, Meth, Rae: Wu Massacre, Rating 6.5

If Wu Tang or any member of Wu Tang puts out an album I will give it a listen. Over my 13 year relationship with the Wu I have been treated to some of the best hip hop albums of all time and some utter garbage. But there seems to always be on constant, the combo of Ghostface and Raekwon is a hip hop gold. When I heard they were releasing an album together with Method Man I was pretty excited, but for some reason it just doesn’t work. This albums has its moments like the stand out tracks “Our Dreams” and “Smooth Sailing” but the rest just falls into a “it’s just another average Wu-Tang record” category. “Wu Massacre” may be the result of too much of a good thing.

Jonsi: Go, Rating 7.2

Jonsi Birigisson, front man of Sigur Ros may be small in stature but “Go” might be the most epic sounding album of the year. Every song on “Go” is a wall of sound, filled with grandiose orchestra arrangements and synth loops. On top of all of this Jonsi’s distinct falsetto voice sweeps over every track completing the magic. Every time I listen to “Go” I see cartoon Gnomes dancing in my head, and I like it. Congrats Jonsi on creating yet another indie rock sub genre, Gnome Rock.

Sharon Jones and the Dapkings: I Learned the Hard Way, Rating 7.7

One thing I like about buying Sharon Jones albums is I know exactly what I’m going to get, amazing soul vocals backed by one of the tightest soul/funk bands in the business. “I Learned the Hard Way” is not my favorite album by Ms. Jones but it’s a great addition to her catalog. The only reason being I feel it’s a little over produced and is missing the rawness of “naturally.” If you get a chance to see these guys live don’t pass it up. It is very rare to see a band so in tune with each other.

Titus Andronicus: The Monitor, Rating 9.0

This is easily the best punk/rock anthem/civil war concept album to date. “The Monitor” is an ambitious effort from Jersey’s Titus Andronicus that succeeds it's goals. It’s full of sing-along choruses, catchy guitar riffs and rousing chants. I saw Titus do “The Monitor” in completion live a couple months ago and it made me like the album even more after seeing the passion that is behind all of these songs. This album I’m guessing will come in pretty high on my year end list. For every pus festering wound that Jersey has suffered from the show “Jersey Shore” Titus Andronicus comes in like a big bottle of Neosporin to make Jersey seem like a place I wouldn’t mind visiting.

Devotchka and Gogol Bordello @ First Ave 4/25

What did you do on your birthday? Last Sunday on my birthday I took in a great live show at First Ave with my friend Luke. I've been a fan of Gogol Bordello now for 5+ years and have never gotten around to seeing them live. Seems like every time they come to town I always have another conflict.

Before Gogol took the stage we were treated to a great set by Devotchka. I was familiar with a few of their tunes and heard they are a great live show. I couldn't agree more. The set had everything, an on stage proposal, scantly clad women twirling from the ceiling and a lady in cowboy boots playing a tuba. I would defiantly see Devotchka next time they come to town.

Now time for Gogol Bordello! Imagine you get place a treadmill set at 11 for an hour and a half and you can't get off. Energy just radiates from ever member of this band. The setlist was very heavy with songs from their new album, which I hadn't heard yet so that was a little disappointing. But the more I listened there really isn't a huge difference in their songs. They are high powered and filled with la las, oi ois, hey heys and so on. So you can sing along to parts of songs you've never heard.

It was a great way to end my birthday weekend and I'm glad Luke and I finally got around to seeing them live.

jj and The XX @ The Varsity 4/9/2010

First thing I noticed when walking into The Varsity Theater on Friday night was the diverse crowd of people. You had everyone from your typical hipsters to Jersey Shore fist pumpers. We hadn't been to The Varsity in a few months and it was nice to see all they've done with the place. It's turning into a great venue to see a show. Cool atmosphere.

We got there just in time to see jj. Now I am a pretty big fan of jj on CD but I was unsure what to expect live. jj's set up consisted of the singer, a laptop, a screen showing either nature videos or jj tour footage and a random surfer dude that kept walking up on stage to do who knows what. The singer sounded great but she looked bored as hell, which I'm sure she was just stoned out of her mind.

Time for The XX. The XX set started with a white sheet covering the stage and they were back lit projecting their silhouettes on the sheet. Extremely cool intro. The band sounded great, each song was powered by infections bass groves and sexy vocals. The light show was definitely the 4th member of that band, the lighting added a great ambiance to the evening. Mary kept joking that everyone was going to start taking off their clothes during the show, I wouldn't have been surprised if it happened. They played around 12 songs including a 1 song encore.

Titus Andronicus @ 7th Street Entry 4/5/2010

While most people were tucking themselves into bed I decided to rock. A friend and I went to the 7th Street Entry late Monday night to see Titus Andronicus, a punkish/rock anthem band (is that an oxymoron?) out of New Jersey. When Titus took the stage at 11:45 singer Patrick Stickles said "let's make this the best Monday ever" and went right in to "A More Perfect Union" the first track on their new album. Titus played every song they know not leaving anything for an encore. Titus's energy was infectious, they had me bopping and singing along the whole show. Yeah it was late, loud and hot but I'm glad I went, even if I was a zombie at work the next day. I have a feeling in a few years I might be saying, remember when we saw Titus in the entry, it was cool to see them in such a small venue. I don't know if it was the best Monday ever but it sure was fun and energetic.

Spoon @ First Ave 4/2/210

What an amazing start to start of the 2010 concert season! This was our second time seeing Spoon at First Ave and they did not disappoint. I will say it wasn't as good at the last time but I think that is because I am not completely in love with their newest album but they still put on a great show. Singer Britt Daniel has one of the coolest voices in rock and he sounded great. It was fun to see him really strain his voice on "Written in Reverse" live. They played about 25 songs which included a great cover of Wolf Parade's "Modern World." We were also treated with 2 encore performances. I hope the rest of the concert season keeps pace!

More Record Reviews

Joanna Newsom: Have One on Me, Rating 7.7

“Have One on Me” is an ambitious 3 CD release from singer songwriter Joanna Newsom. Majority of the songs on “Have One on Me” are eight or nine minutes long and demand attention. Newsom accompanies her songs with either her playing the piano or harp. I found myself engaged more with the piano based songs. The harp songs as times got a little to RenFest for me. Newsom’s voice is often compared to Kate Bush and I couldn’t agree more. All in all a really good album, a little long but really good.

Broken Bells: Broken Bells, Rating 6.7

“Broken Bells” is a collaborative effort from Danger mouse and James Mercer, front man of “The Shins.” This album is neither great, nor bad. I guess it’s exactly what I expected a more funked up spacey Shin’s album. I’ve listened to it through a few times now and I feel like I get kind of bored with it. There are a few stand out tracks the will stay on my iPod but I’m not sure this collaboration needed to happen. I am more excited for a new Shins album.

Liars: Sisterworld, Rating 4.0

So “Pitchfork” gave Liars a “Best New Music” rating so I thought I’d check it out. I’m not sure if I’m just not hip enough to get it but I was bored from start to finish. I felt the band was trying to be weird and do something new which I respect but it just wasn’t working for me. To be honest that is the same initial thought I had about “TV on the Radio” when I first heard them and now they are one of my favorite bands but I don’t see that happening with “Liars.”

Record Review

Fang Island: Fang Island, Rating 9.1

Alright get ready for a few sentences of me gushing over this band. Help me, my face just melted! Fang Island plays to all of my likes, it's like they asked me "Anton, what would you like to hear in a rock album." Lots and lots of duel guitar solos...check, finger tapping guitar licks...check, shouting choruses...check and fun...CHECK. Fang Island describes their music as "Everyone high fiving everyone." which after listening to it is pretty accurate.

Here they are playing for a kindergarden class

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUA6vWLBn8k

Record Reviews

Johnny Cash: American Recordings VI Ain’t No Grave, Rating 5.0

How can you write anything bad about Mr. Cash. The album isn’t bad but I don’t think it needed to be released. “American Recordings VI” sounds like it’s all the songs that weren’t good enough to make the cut for “American Recordings V” which were both recorded in the few months between the death of June and his own. It’s hard to listen to songs about death and dying from a guy who is actually dying. I want to remember cash as the guy who “shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.”

Peter Gabriel: Scratch My Back, Rating 5.8

“Scratch my Back” is the first part of Gabriel’s cover album project the 2nd being “I’ll Scratch Yours.” Gabriel covers the likes of Bowie, Bon Iver, Lou Reed, Radiohead, Arcade Fire and Neil Young. No guitars, no bass, no drums only piano and orchestral arrangements. “Scratch my Back” is a very pretty album but it’s almost equally as awkward. I’m not sure this really needed to be made. This album is a good one to have on while you work, doesn’t take a whole lot of concentration. However there are a couple stand out songs that just too good to glance over “Flume” by Bon Iver and “The Book of Love” by The Magnetic Fields. Let’s hope for better when the artist’s cover Gabriel’s songs on “I’ll Scratch Yours.”

These New Puritans: Hidden, Rating 7.2

Q: What do you get when you mix Gil Evan’s-esque arrangements, Kodo style drumming, Choirs and synthesizers? A: “Hidden” by These New Puritans. This honestly sounds like nothing I’ve heard before so I have nothing really to compare it to. The first couple songs sound like they could be used on a horror movie (probably vampire based, but not like that twilight junk) soundtrack, dark and ominous. Then it moves to more of the mind of a serial killer feel through the middle, a little off but always calculated. Towards the end you feel like you just took a quaalude and you’re floating on clouds. I have a feeling this will be an album I continue to come back to.

New Format

Hello Wigwam readers...All 2 of you (that might be wishful thinking). Instead of doing monthly record reviews I'm just going to post them as I write them. It will be easier for me and it creates more posts.

Are You Local? SXSW Send off @ First Ave 3/6

The night started out at Pizza Luce for a litte pre show drinks and grub. Other than a little problem getting a beer, dinner was excellent as usual. A few of us headed over to First Ave to see a few local bands perform before they head down to SXSW in Austin, TX. We walked in halfway through Romantica's set and my interest was peaked and I'd like to see a full set of theirs. Good energetic alt country. The Pines took the stage next and it was a pretty boring set. I think I like them as a band but First Ave might be too big of a venue for them right now. Next up was Jeremy Messersmith who I've seen before and was just ok but this set he had a full band and sounded really good. He tried out a few new songs on us and I dug them quite a bit. The highlight of the night though was the next band Peter Wolf Crier. 2 guys, drums, guitar and singing. Good rock energy, lots off vocal looping and a pretty kick ass cover of Helter Skelter.

We left before Lookbook took the stage because it had been a long day but I would like to see them soon.

Trivia Win @ Mac's Industrial for the Gold Medal Merkins

Mary and I met some friends at Mac's in NE for a little bar trivia. Our main mission was to beat the table of diverse nerds that have won the last four weeks in a row. We were on fire, our minds were melded as one super brain. We were fairly confident we all of our answers except for 2. Diverse nerd table = 25, Gold Medal Merkins = 29. We ended up taking 1st place with a score of 29 of 31, winning a $25 bar tab. Victory for the Merkins!

Retribution Gospel Choir @ The Triple Rock 2/20

We set out to the Triple Rock to see one of the side projects of Low's front man Alan Sparhawk. It was exactly what I expected to see, loud and just like the album. It was fun to see a good smiply old rock show. No pretentious indie rockers, no artsy fartsy stuff just pure rock and roll.

February Album Reviews

Los Campesinos!: Romance is Boring, Rating 7.1

Los Campesinos! Have grown up? And I don’t know how I feel about it. If “Romance is Boring” was the first album I heard by Los Camp I’d probably would have rated it higher but I know how zany and unpredictable they can be after listening to “Hold On Now Youngster.” The songs on this album are tighter and more structured which isn’t a bad thing it’s just different. I still really like this album and will have to just accept that it’s not more of the same.

Lil’ Wayne: Rebirth, Rating 3.2

Over the last year I’ve have become a Lil’ Wayne fan. His rhymes are tight and quite humorous at times. It’s a little overwhelming at first looking at his discography and figuring out where to start. Lil Wayne is a song producing machine but I’m starting to learn it’s not all great. “Rebirth” is Wayne’s attempt at a rock album. I found it lyrically and musically boring. It sounds like an out of the box rock record with Weezy singing auto tune all over it. I guess I just have to wait a couple months to the next release and hope its better.

Hot Chip: One Life Stand, Rating 8.0

“One Life Stand” has been getting a lot of play in the Hyundai recently and usually at very high volumes. The CD is a little front heavy but I’m starting to appreciate the 2nd half a little more with each listen. It also helps that the last song on the album is “Take It In” which could be one of the best songs of the year (I know it’s only February). I have a feeling that “One Night Stand” will get some attention this year but will probably receive more praise down the road, I think this is kind of a sleeper album.

Yeasayer: Odd Blood, Rating 4.3

“Odd Blood” could be the biggest disappointment of the year. I really enjoyed Yeasayer’s unique debut release “All Hour Cymbals” and have been waiting for new material from them for a while. I was extremely pleased with the song “Tightrope” which they provided for the CD “Dark Was The Night” and equally as pleased with the first single from “Odd Blood”, “Ambling Alp” which was release in December. “Odd Blood” (in my mind) had potential to be album of the year…then I heard it. The album has 3 maybe 4 solid songs on it and lacks the potential and feeling their earlier releases had. Having seen them live a couple times I had actually heard about half the songs on “Odd Blood” before it came out and they sounded great live, but on the album they come across boring and almost amateurish. I haven’t given up on Yeasayer in any means and I plan on seeing them live at the end of April.

Local Natives: Gorilla Manor, Rating 8.1

No surprise I love this album, it has all the things I like, great harmonies, unique percussion and good guitar work. I would describe “Gorilla Manor” as a rocked up Grizzly Bear album. Local Natives are a new band out of LA and you can really tell on the album they are having fun being a band. In no way does the album ever feel pretentious or forced. I having a feeling this band is going to become pretty big in the indie world and has some crossover success similar to Phoenix.

Mumford & Sons: Sign No More, Rating 2.8

Get ready, here they come…With the recent success of Fleet Foxes and The Avett Brothers we are starting to get a gaggle of bands trying to ride the folk rock wave while they can. I have to admit that I am a fan of their single “Little Lion Man” but unlike the other mentioned bands, “Sigh No More” ends at their single. I found the rest of the album to be boring and emotionless. So if this type of music is your thing than this will probably fit nicely in your collection but I don’t see Mumford & Sons having any staying power in this genre.

Rural Alberta Advantage @ The Cedar 1/15

Mary and I had seen RAA a few months ago at 7th Street Entry and loved the band live. So when we saw they were coming back we were excited to see one of our favorite new bands again this time at the cedar. We were a little surprised when we walked in and the show was seated. Now I've seen both seated (Ryan Adam, Happy Apple) and non-seated (Fleet Foxes, Camera Obscura) shows at the Cedar but was not expecting RAA to be seated. We found our spot and it was actually quite nice to sit for the opener Dark Dark Dark who were kind of boring. RAA took the stage and it was immediately awkward to be seated. After the first song they mentioned that this is the first seated show they've played and said "please feel free to stand up and dance." For the next couple songs people kept standing then sitting, standing then sitting. It took about 5 songs for the cedar to collectively figure out that yes this may be acoustic but it's still a fucking rock show and finally stood up. RAA's energy is infectious and I plan on seeing them every time they are in town. I am always amazed with how good their drummer is.

January Album Reviews

Vampire Weekend: Contra, Rating 8.1

Initially I was(and still am) a little underwhelmed with the first single “Horchata” which was released about a month before the release. It seemed like more of the same but more annoying vocally. But being the first big release of the year (and being a fan of their debut) I had to give the album a fair shot. First listen through I was a fan. Contra is less calculated then their debut and a better start to finish listen. The stand out song on the album in my opinion is “Giving up the Gun” which if you haven’t seen the video for yet do yourself a favor and google it.

Owen Pallett: Heartland, Rating 6.8

Heartland is defiantly a mood album for me. Pallett (formally Final Fantasy) is music arranging genius. Heartland is filled with beautiful strings loops, keyboards and airy vocals. This is not an album you’d put on in the car for your commute but more for listening to while you work or read a book. I know that is probably a huge slap in the face to say its background music but those albums are needed. I have seen him live and he is amazing, one man on stage making so much music.

Spoon: Transference, Rating 7.2

Probably my least favorite Spoon album that I own, but I really like Spoon so it’s still a good album. Transference may grow on me more though over the year. It’s a very minimal instrument wise compared to Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga which seemed to have every instrument ever made on it. Stand out tracks are “I saw the light” and the gritty “Written in Reverse” If you like Spoon it’s a must.

Surfer Blood: Astro Coast, Rating 8.3

I saw Surfer Blood open for Art Brut last year before this album was out and I was pleasantly surprised. I couldn’t wait for the album to come out and when it did I wasn’t disappointed. Surfer Blood is a guitar driven pop rock band with a surf feel. If you are a fan of bands like Weezer or Pavement you’ll dig Surfer Blood. Even though Astro Coast came out in January this could be the summer album of the year!

Four Tet: There is Love in You, Rating 7.1

Four Tet has been around in the techno world for about 10 years but this is my first encounter with him. I really like this album, it’s not fist pumping sweaty rave music and it’s not background ambient. It finds a perfect place in between to entertain your ears. The songs start minimalistic and build and then deconstruct with layers of loops and vocals. If you are into electronic music give this one a spin, it may fit your fancy.

Beach House: Teen Dream, Rating 9.1

It’s weird I always find it the hardest to write about albums I really like. I guess if I had to some Teen Dream up in one word it would have to be beautiful. Victoria Legrand's androgynous voice is truly dreamy and mixes so well with the music. Every song on his album is indie pop perfection. The worst thing about this album is the cover. Buy it.

Retribution Gospel Choir: 2, Rating 6.6

Low’s frontman Alan Sparhawk shows his rock side in his 3 piece band Retribution Gospel Choir. Sparhawk is not creating anything new with this album but he is producing some extremely catchy guitar loaded pop rock songs. Track one “Hide It Away” Was stuck in my head for weeks after one listen. It’s amazing how well Alan’s voice works for both Low and RGC. I’d say 50% of this album is solid and the other 50% is good.

Charlotte Gainsbourg: IRM, Rating 8.5

I’ll have to admit I did not fall in love with this album on first listen. I knew it was good but it took me a few listens to appreciate it. IRM is produced by Beck and you can really hear his styling come through on this record and he performs with Charlotte on “Heaven Can Wait.” Charlotte’s voice is not one that would win any singing competitions but she uses it well with the tracks she is given. I enjoy this album more and more with every listen.