Lyric Of The Day

"Did you wake up today? / You find the strength to say / The world is your own / Did you look up today? / You find the words to say /The world is your own, / To be left here alone. / Your own way."

- "Believe" by Moneen on The World I Want To Leave Behind

- I am watching the Olympic closing ceremony right now and they had this god awful song as the athletes theme.  This would have been a much cooler, much better song and the band are Canadians.  Come on show the 'Neeners some love. 

January 17th - Finch by Finch

Released July 22nd, 2008.

After a two year hiatus and a plethora of side projects, we were presented with this EP in 2008. Honestly I have a hard time listening to this Socal semi-screamo band. They legitamately had a chance back in 2005 to break through to the mainstream and create some buzz and money for themselves. I mean all the backing was their, a good label at the time (Drive Thru Records), underground cred in the form of a cameo on their debut by Daryl Palumbo of Glassjaw and Head Automatica, and a cult of young fans that were at the heigth of the screamo craze. However, they decided to smoke a lot of weed, add some grooves and present themselves as a progressive band.


Now almost five years later they have completely lost the plot. The music is not aggressive, neither is it easy listening. It is in that vacuous middle area that does not allow the listener to get energetic or to just gently nod to the music. It is, honestly, just annoying. Maybe I grew out of this type of music a long time ago, which honestly I think is the case, but all the songs blend together for me. There is little differenciating them from one another as they have about the same vocals, same guitar parts, same tempo, and same lyrical content. The only track that sounds slightly different is the closer "Chinese Organ Thieves" but even then it is over shadowed by the fact that it is an inhospitable 7:28 long. Hopefully they can pick it up on their next full length, due out sometime soon, and maybe they can get back to where they were. If they do not then maybe the hiatus will be back on.

Rating - 2 out of 5
Favorite (Most Barable) Track - "Chinese Organ Thieves"

January 16th - Burst & Bloom by Cursive

Released in July 24th, 2001 by Saddle Creek Records.

To be honest I have never met anyone who has said that they hated The Ugly Organ once they had sat down and listened to it. However I have never heard anyone state that this was their favorite album in Cursive's catalogue. How I look at it is that this is Cursive winding up to give people The Ugly Organ, it has many of the same traits: songs about writing music, the cello, a winding sense of eclecticism, and mostly good mid-tempo songs. This album was a step away from the mostly guitar based indie rock of Domestica, and while the cello plays a more forward part in Organ, the electronic aspects of Cursive are much more in the fore ground of the music.

The tracks are pounding, mid tempo guitar indie rock with flourishes of what is to come for Cursive. "Sink to the Beat" and shows hints of Happy Hollow with its background blips and beats, and the vodocoded vocals at the beginning. "Mothership, Mothership, Do You Read Me?" rages with the kind of energy, in guitar, vocals, and cello, which made “Red Handed Slight of Hand” and “Art is Hard” such standards of the Cursive live assault. The lyrics are classic Tim Kasher, loads of sadness, a bit of irony, a tad of self deprecation, and finished with classic diary style emo. When he sings "4/4 / Hip Hop and you don't stop" on "Sink to the Beat" it is without a bat of an eyelid, that is the beauty of Kasher: he can say the most absurd line without losing a bit of his honesty or character.

While this album is not as classic as the full album output of Cursive, it still stands as wonderful EP, and as a live standard. Last night I saw Tim Kasher belt out "Mothership" mid set, and it still stands as loudly as the other songs in their set. If you have never heard this EP but you have heard The Ugly Organ, do yourself a favor and pick this up, it will not disappoint.

- The above photo is from Cursive's set last night in Salt Lake City at In The Venue.  Photo taken by Matthew Winters.

Rating - 4 1/2 out of 5
Favorite Tracks - "Sick to the Beat", "Mothership, Mothership, Do You Read Me?"

january 15th - Decahedron EP - Decahedron

Released in 2005 on Lovitt Records.

Some bands dazzle you with their live shows, some with their recorded output, some with the artwork, others with timing and productions, but then there are other bands that just dazzle you with their members. Decahedron are such a band, in the beginning it was Shelby Cinca and Jason Hamacher just out of the disbanding of the lauded hardcore band Frodus and Joe Lally of Fugazi. Yep, that is quite a pedigree.

However by the time this album came out, three years later, in 2005 the band had lost Lally and picked up Jake Brown of Moments in Grace to fill the huge spot. While this is a pretty heavy album, it still does not live up to much of the input on their debut full length Disconnection_Immient and it definitely does not live up the standards of their previous bands. For the most part this EP was mostly forgettable and very bland, and maybe it was just a tinge more so because I know the pedigree of the band.

There are two high spots though, the opening instrumental "Movement A" is a dazzling piece of music that runs the gambit from punk and hardcore to traditional instrumental, it really showed the chops that made their previous band so legendary. The other high point is "We are the Virus", which sounded like a rallying call to arms that the band really needed to produce. However the rest of the album, while good, was not up the standards of their previous bands.

Rating - 2 1/2 out of 5
Favorite Tracks - "Movement A", "We Are The Virus"

January 14th - About Time by Straylight Run

Released May 20th, 2009. 

When John Nolan and Shaun Cooper split from Taking Back Sunday in 2003 it was pretty sure that they were going to need to continue in music. Not only was Nolan a gifted song writer but both men were seasoned road veterans at that point. So in conjunction with Will Noon and John's sister Michelle, they created Straylight Run. Over the course of a little over three years with this line-up they managed to create two albums and two EPs worth of material including their self titled debut, The Needles, The Space, Prepare to be Wrong and a covers EP. Then Michelle split, amicably, to create her new project called Destry.


Straylight rolled on, creating a great EP with 2008's Un Mas Dos, and finally with last year's About Time. It seems sad to me that this will probably be the last new material that we hear from Straylight. It is sad for two reasons; one, it is probably the best set of songs that Straylight have ever released, and two, they announced the dreaded "indefinite hiatus" just two weeks ago.

While this EP is just four songs it is just perfect for the band. Straylight has always struck me as a group that is better perfecting single songs than whole albums, and it shows with this EP. Each song is just so consistent and well constructed, the lyrics, instruments, the vocals, and the whole feel of the album is just so balanced. It is urgent but not rushed, loving but disconnected from the needs of the audience. Opener "I'm through with the past, but the past isn't through with me" is cathartic, but beautifully loving song that runs like a pop version of "A slow descent." It touches on so many of the problems the band has faced over the years, i.e. never ending comparisons to Taking Back Sunday, the endless drama from outside media, the terrible record labels that did not understand the talent these people have, and finally the normal woes of being in a traveling band. It is just so wonderful when you understand that John Nolan really wants to be finished with all the drama and just write beautiful music.

Second track "The Great Compromise" is a cacophony of jazz time signatures, wandering bass, and driving vocals. "I got to where I am by giving up on who I was" Nolan sings, and you can understand that he really gave up on many of the pieces he wrote long ago. It is a striking song that plays well on the A side with the opener.

"Don't count me out" plays more friendly with the A sides because it is a beautiful mid tempo song that rolls through the verse and chorus in quick step, and while it is not a misstep on this album by any means, it is the song that sticks out as weird in the set.

The final track "Mile After Mile" is one of the most haunting tracks about being on tour that I have ever heard, it rolls through the acoustics like a revved up version of "Ride" by Cary Brothers, however the lyrics are much more powerful and emotion than Cary Brothers could ever do. It is a touching, poignant tribute to the power of true love on the road trying endlessly to get home.

Over the years it has been interesting to see the progression of the three Long Island songwriters that came up at the same time. John Nolan chose to write from a pop perspective, while Adam Lazarra and TBS wrote to the emo radio crowd that are slowing dying away, and Jesse Lacey is writing music that is only for his own self and people still love him for it. It is an interesting progression; however, the sad fact is that all three bands while still being talented will only live on in the shadow of the larger more radio friendly bands. They may have huge followings but it would be a rare thing to hear anything off of Daisy, Tell All Your Friends, or this album on the air of a commercial radio station. That is the sad, powerful legacy of these bands, they will live for a long time in the minds of those that saw them in the heyday or met them, but those that didn't pay attention will lose them forever.

 

 

Rating - 5 out of 5
Favorite Songs - All of them

Lyric of the Day

"We used to be gifted and persistant / Now we're bored, reminescing / We used laugh with our misery / Spoon fed our desire / We've lost our faith." 

- "Knifeman" by The Bronx on The Bronx (III).

- These LA punks are going out on tour this spring taking along Japanther and their alter egos Mariachi El Bronx.  They are hitting SLC on April 17th at Urban.  Check them out it you want to see one of the best live bands ever to play music.

Lyric Of The Day

"I've been making money off my indifference / We all pass the hat around / This is my body, this is the blood I found / on my hands after I wrote this album. / Play it off as stigmata for crossover fans / some red handed sleight of hand."

- "Some Red Handed Slight Of Hand" by Cursive on The Ugly Organ. 

- I am off right now to see the Aklaline Trio / Cursive show here in about five minutes.  I hope they play "Art is Hard" and "Mr. Chainsaw".  Oh, yeah that would be epic.

This Addiction by Alkaline Trio

Released February 23rd, 2010 by Heart & Skull / Epitaph Records.

My life with Alkaline Trio began in late 2004 with continued listening to From Here To Infirmary while working in a kitchen with some very interesting characters. Infirmary held some of my favorite to this day Trio songs including "Mr. Chainsaw", "Stupid Kid", "You're Dead" and "I'm Dying Tomorrow" and that album is the standard that I hold subsequent releases to. 2003's Good Morning was a great follow up to Infirmary, 2005's Crimson was more electronic tinged and kind of forgettable, and 2008's Agony & Irony just fell to the wayside for me due to the band playing more to the mainstream audience, and although it did have some great songs the label did not handle Alkaline Trio properly.


So how does the new full length fill out? While first of all, before this came out the band announced that they were putting it out on their own label, Heart & Skull, but then signed with indie stalwarts Epitaph. The question I, and fellow Alkaline Trio fans, have been posing is why? Maybe it was for distribution or publicity, which in that case then smart move because Epitaph are some of the best in the industry, but why not sign to former label Vagrant? So why the move? Hell if I know, but while it was smart for practical reasons, you cannot tell me that the Trio do not have the money or know how to run a label. So it remains a frustrating mystery.

Well, whatever label they are on, how is the music? It is good; not the best the Trio have put out but not their best either. I can tell now as I am listening to it that it will grow on me much like previous releases have, but as it stands the songs are forgettable. With the exception of "This Addiction" and "Lead Poisoning", which includes a wonderfully fitting horn section, many of the album is mid tempo punk songs that would be wonderful as a soundtrack to a night drive home from a bar. They have somewhat lost the energy that made them so popular but they have not lost their catchy rhythms or skillful playing; they have just slowed down a bit. There is some mid record energy on the 80's pop and punk hybrid "Eating Me Alive"; however it still is lot slower and energetic than much of their previous efforts. The real centerpiece of this album is the late album song "Dorothy", it is one of the few songs on the album that recalls the past energy while giving their new directions sufficient room to breathe and really come into their own.

While the album is not perfect, it is a highly listenable, good album. While not being a fast paced album musically, it is a very quick listen, clocking it at just under thirty five minutes. Alkaline trio are wonderful at creating pop punk with an emphasis on good lyricism and romanticism that is rarely equaled. While is release is not as amazing as Infirmary is in my mind, it was better than the past few and it is a very solid record.

 

 
Rating - 3 1/2 out of 5
Favorite Tracks - "Fine", "This Addiction", "Dorothy", "Lead Poisoning"

January 13th - Buttsweat & Tears by The Lawrence Arms

Released October 27th by Fat Wreck Chords.

This is the first output from the Chicago punks in over three years, it is based on an idea that they had over ten years ago, and it kicks so much ass. Every thing about this EP is so crisp and well played. The Lawrence Arms are the kind of band that could be playing the most complicated punk song or singing the most complicated lines and make it sound and look easy. This EP shows this mostly on "The Redness In The West" with it's acoustic folk rambling intro and gentle segue into it's punk end recalls to a certain extent "Like a Record Player", and also on "The Slowest Drink at the Saddest Bar on the Snowiest Day in the Greatest City" which recalls "Are you there Margaret? It's me God" on 2006's Oh! Calcutta! in terms of speed and lyrical content, although it is mostly filtered through the vocals of Chris McCaughan instead of Brendan Kelly.


The real beauty of this album is that although it sounds like stuff off of Oh! Calcutta! it does not mean that it is part deux of that album and neither is it a b-sides record. It is an EP full of songs that are the natural progression for the musicians in this band who have obviously spent their time doing other different projects (Sundowner, The Falcon, The Smoking Popes). It is not a leftovers album from Oh! Calcutta! and neither is it an artistic statement for the band, instead it is more of their bar ready, foot kicking anthems that would fit very well with their previous output.

Harrah for The Lawrence Arms and here is to hoping that it is not three years again before we hear another new song.

Rating - 4 1/2 out of 5
Favorite Songs - All of them, it only lasts thirteen minutes which is way too short.

January 12th - Homesick by A Day To Remember

Released February 3rd, 2009 on Victory Records.

When I was coming up through the music scene, planting roots if you will, I came through the 2003 Emo Major Label boom. This was when Thrice released Artist in the Ambulance, Thursday released War All the Time, Taking Back Sunday was getting huge, and hometown boys The Used were getting national attention. Now at the time these bands were considered to be a lot lighter than their predecessors and influencers, none of which I had heard at that point. However when Adam Lazarra screamed "Best friends means friends forever / Best friends means you get what you deserve" or Bert's throat scathing scream on most of the Used self titled release, I got the sense that this was real emotion, a real feeling from these and many other bands from the era. While many of them lacked the underground clout of a Converge or a Dillinger, or Envy, they still did what they did and you could easily believe that each band meant exactly what they said on these songs.

Something happened while I was digging around in the past for more bands like the ones I grew up on: groups developed a sense of pop while keeping their hardcore breakdowns and screams. Now this has been done before, first with Husker Du and the Replacements in the 80s, then Lifetime and the Promise Ring in the 90s and finally New Found Glory and Saves the Day in the naughts. These bands would hybrid the energy from punk and hardcore and place them in a more pop oriented sense. Now a new crop has taken the head including A Day to Remember.

Homesick is not their first record in the game, they have released two other albums: For Those That Have Heart on Victory and And Their Name Was Treason on Indianola. They have had plenty of time to perfect the mosh, sing, mosh, sing, scream, breakdown, and finish with a bang formula, what some call pop-core. They are on the top of their game along with scene header liners Set Your Goals and Four Year Strong. For as much as I enjoy their predecessors I cannot get into this new generation, particularly this album for a few reasons.

One, this album when it is being played as hardcore album songs like something Kurt Ballou came up with in his sleep and threw away when he played it. The breakdowns are repetitive and consist of many of the same time signatures and tone. Two, when not in mosh mode A Day to Remember sound like an amped up version of Angels and Airwaves. They do not have the lyrical ability that Saves the Day had to set them apart, they do not have the charm of New Found Glory, and they do not have the ambient energy that Angels and Airwaves have. Third, there are far too many songs about being on the road and/or romantic relationships on this album, that says to me that the band are letting this album be marred by the curse of the sophomore album, even though they are on their third, and that is that they cannot remember the normal things that people fear and home and they cannot relate anymore.

While this album has its flaws, I can understand why kids that are coming up now attach themselves to this. It is non-offensive while being edgy, it is relatable to some situations of teenage hood, and it is loud enough that your parents will not like it. It is a semi-enjoyable listen for someone my age, however where Converge just dropped a new album and I still have the whole Thursday back catalogue to go back to then why would I need this kind of pop-core. Give me New Found Glory, Saves the Day, or Lifetime any day.

P.S.

The biggest guff I have with this album is the closer. It does not fit to have a ballad this slow on a band like A Day to Remembers album. It just does not fit and in my opinion should have been a b-side.

Rating - 2 1/2 out of 5
Best Song - "I'm made of wax, Larry, what are you made of?

January 11th - F#A#Infinity by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

Released August 14th, 1997 on Constellation Records.

As I mentioned in my review of Final Fantasy’s Spectrum, 14th Century I have a major love for neo classical music including the Canadian monsters Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Ever since a very wonderful article was produced on Thursday's third album that never came to fruition as they wanted it, which was a double album that included many instrumental passages akin to the work of said Canadian monsters, I have been hooked on their GYBE's music. Their blend of post rock, classical music, and found, manipulated sound has provided the background for many study sessions. I even once titled a short essay "East Hastings" after a section of a suite on this album.


Honesty though there is something about this album that I never have wanted to get through it, I think it is akin to the feeling of not wanting to see it done much like Damien yesterday. It is just such a gloriously creepy, thought provoking album that leads the listener down so many paths. Somewhere along the path you will hear a homeless man talking about preaching and the end of the world, other times a man will tell you the saddest story that sounds like a post apocalyptic nightmare, and finally be presented with music that would be both great for quiet thinking and for the soundtrack to a zombie attack [which it was, part of "East Hastings" was included in 28 Days Later].

The music especially on the second track, the nearly eighteen minute epic "East Hastings" blends so well together. From the opening yelling in a foreign tongue and bagpipes to the crashing mid section "The Sad Manifoso" with it's repeated cadence in different instrumentation from vocals to guitar to drums and string instruments, the tracks just blend together with a stunning beauty that is really only fully understood when you are listening to the music on your headphones. Although the music blends together really well, the best part of the album is one segment hidden on the CD version at the very end of the final suite. After almost four minutes of silence we are presented with "J.L.H. Outro" which is a beautiful, meandering assault on the senses that just builds and builds, it is particularly startling because of the silence but it just is a monster instrumental.

Some music just has a timeless feel; it is relevant always from now in the Obama era, to the Clinton era where it was produced, to a hundred years from now when the world might look a lot like the music that was produced on this album. However, this is not for everyone. Like Nick Hornsby said in The Songbook about Suicide's "Frankie Teardrop", and I am paraphrasing, that certain music is only to be listened to once to understand the ferocity of it. GYBE are a band that fit very much into this description, they are, for some, to be experienced once and put back on the self, but for the screwed up few that see the beauty in such heartbreakingly ugly music we return to it again and again.

 

 
Rating - 5 out of 5
Favorite Track - "East Hastings"

Lyrics Of The Day

"The greatest thing that you've ever done / Live your life never felt regret / Lived your life not quitting yet / Without a set of rules, where no agenda lies / Just a followed heart and don't apologize."

- "Harem of Scorpions" by Cancer Bats on Hail Destroyer

Dead Air Radio February 22nd

1 - Eviction Article by Boysetsfire
2 - Black Gold by Espirit De Corps
3 - Honest Sleep by Touche Amore
4 - Street College by Head Wound City
5 - Lonewolves by Converge
6 - Wanderlust by Every Time I Die
7 - Deathhands by White Flight
8 - The Messenger by Thrice
9 - Thinkin' About Her by What's Eating Gilbert (Chad Gilbert Of New Found Glory)
      Download Free Here - http://www.whatseatinggilbert.com/
10 - Wake Up by Tim Armstrong
11 - (Manifest) / (Hospital Vespers) / (Past Due) by The Weakerthans
12 - Ain't No Grave by Johnny Cash
13 - Fragments by Rocky Votolato
14 - What Would It Be Like If Everyone Hated Who I Was? (The Western) by Wedroplikebombs
15 - Young London by Angels And Airwaves -
        Free Download - http://modlife.com/angelsandairwaves/lovealbumfueltv
16 - Nine by La Dispute
        Name Your Price Download Here - http://ladispute.bandcamp.com/album/here-hear-iii
17 - The Bullets by Weatherbox
        Purchase Online Here - http://weatherbox.bandcamp.com/album/christpuncher
18 - King Of The World by Shark Speed
19 - Tonight's The Night by The Dear And Departed
20 - Gentleman Caller by Cursive
21 - This Addiction by Alkaline Trio
22 - I Was Trying To Describe You To Someone by Crime In Stereo
               Queue Moderns
               Drugwolf
               Exit Halo
               Not Dead
               Odalisque
               Young
               Type One
               Republica
               I Am Everything I Am Not
              Dark City Island
              I Cannot Answer You Tonight
23 - Oh, Messy Life by Cap'n Jazz
24 - Boiled Frogs by City And Colour
25 - I'm Through With The Past But The Past Isn't Through With Me by Straylight Run
26 - Try This At Home by Frank Turner
27 - Heart Attack At Thirty by Polar Bear Club
28 - Knifeman by The Bronx
29 - Panic On The Streets Of Health Care City by Thursday
30 - 5, 6 Kids by Bear Vs. Shark
31 - Laser Life by The Blood Brothers
32 - Something by Gaza
33 - Prince Squid by These Arms Are Snakes
34 - Harem Of Scorpions by Cancer Bats
35 - Abandon Ship by Gallows
36 - Baby, I'm An Anarchist by Against Me!

January 10th - "9" by Damien Rice

Released November 3rd, 2006 on Heffa Records.

I bought my first Damien Rice record the same day that I had my medical examination to go on my mission. It was a really snowy day in Logan, Utah, and I had to walk most of the way to the appointment. After that I had some extra money and decided to hit the record store and buy that one guy who sang the song from the movie Closer. I picked it up and put it in, wait for it, my CD player. I was automatically taken away by the pained vocals, lyrics that spoke to me from a literary standpoint, and finally the simplistic nature of the music. My love for Damien has run a lot longer than the love I had to go on a mission.

Throughout my college years I made friends who loved Damien as much as I do and we eventually had the chance to meet the diminutive singer when he came through Utah right after 9 came out. He was shy when it came to the normal fan stuff, like pictures and photographs, but other things like giving me and my friend’s hugs and honestly and candidly answering our questions he did without a second thought. He was genuinely nice and respectful of us, the fans, and that really meant more to us than his wonderful performance.

It is weird that I never have gotten through this album end to end, it might have something to do with the almost twenty minutes of singing bowls and chanting at the end, but really this album came into my life when I was mid semester and I never really had the chance to absorb it like O. Nonetheless this is a beautiful, literary album that creates and exudes energy even in the slower and less intense tracks. My personal favorite track "Coconut Skins" just has an almost punk rock honesty to the lyrics and a bouncy, jovial feel that plays in contrast the sad and almost hopeless lyrical content. That is what Damien Rice excels at: juxtaposing two different things and making both seem so much better because they are together. The following track "Me, My Yoke, And I" presents a similar situation, the lyrics are obscure but vaguely about his life with religion and the music is just so straight forward, quietly strummed chords rising into pounding bass and drums; once again we see the beauty of Damien, he puts something lyrically obscure with music that is very straightforward. It is only after you know that the lyrics talk about Damien's religious upbringing and his coming age, i.e. his discovery of masturbation.

All in all this is not as good or as cohesive as O, but is still miles ahead of many singer songwriters out there in the world. It seems that in recent days that Damien has started to create a community around himself and his music with a differing cast of characters. Working with Irish songwriter Glen Hansard on The Swell Season or singing with David Gray and 50 Cent at Live Earth, and most recently announcing that he is going to work with Phillip Glass and Thom Yorke on a soundtrack for a document about Tibet. However, through all these contributions and side projects a new album as eluded us.

Even if there were no new solo material, both 9 and 0 would stand as a pinnacle that not many artists tend to break at any time in their careers, and very few do it with the humility that Damien Rice has. So here's to a new album, but even if there is none we will always have these two nearly perfect albums.

                               

Rating - 5 out of 5

Favorite Tracks - "Cocont Skins", "Me, My Yoke, And I", "Elephant"

                                                                 

Lyric Of The Day

"Better off alone together / All this getting high brings me down."

- "Drugwolf" by Crime In Stereo on I Was Trying To Describe You To Someone

Lyric Of The Day

"I'm losing sleep / I'm losing friends / I've got a love-hate love / for the city I'm in / I'll count the hours / Having just one wish / If I'm doing fine / There's no point to this."

- "Honest Sleep" by Touche Amore on Touche Amore - www.myspace.com/toucheamore

Lyric Of The Day

"I read your Gospel / It moved me to tears / But I couldn't find the hate / And I couldn't find the fear."

- "Constructive Summer" by The Hold Steady on Stay Positive - theholdsteady.net/

January 9th - A Frank Exploration of Voyuerism And Violence by Kane Hodder

Released March 23, 2004 by Suburban Home Recordings/Cowboy Versus Sailor

The past few releases I have listened to for this project I have loved and thought that they were very listenable, in fact three or four of them I thought were brilliant. Well, as with anything there has to be at least one sour grape to ruin the fun. This was said sour grape.

It was recommended to me by my friend Mason, who I think usually has good taste; he got me into The Dear Hunter and I am grateful for that. However this EP was virtually un-listenable and it was a chore to get through. It was one of the first records that I have listened to in a long time that I felt like turning off halfway through. It is considered to be post hardcore but that is an insult to the great bands in the genre like These Arms Are Snakes, Thrice, etc. The only thing that the greats have in common with this band is that they both scream. It was a completely uninspired record, but in all fairness it was their first. On subsequent releases they probably got better, they were signed to Fueled By Ramen at one point, but the recording quality, the vocal and lyrics, and the instrumentation on this EP drove me away from this band pretty much forever.



Rating - 1 and 1/5 out of 5
Favorite Track (or most tolerable) - "Aboard The Leper Colony"

January 8th - Spectrum, 14th Century by Final Fantasy

Released September 30, 2008 on Blocks Recording Company.

Orchestral music has always been a closet favorite of mine. It is something that I slowly let out of the bag to people I know, mostly you don't impress people by saying that you enjoy orchestral music or contemporary classical music; instead they usually think that you are a pretencious bastard. I have enjoyed Godspeed You! Black Emperor since I was introduced to them by an article about Thursday in which Geoff Rickley name checked them, and I have an extensive classical music vinyl collection. I was not familiar with or expectant of liking Final Fantasy's Spectrum, 14th Century, mostly because a very popular musical site loves them and usually anything they love I hate. However I thought I would give it a try considering they have a new album out (last month's "Heartland").

So, what did I find in the almost eighteen minutes: beauty. This is absolutely gorgeous. It makes Andrew Bird look uneducated and ugly. Essentially Final Fantasy is just one man, Owen Pallett, with a loop station and violin, and some help from a multi instrumentalist. The music, though brisk, is wandering and beautiful. It would fit great into a play or a dense movie, someone already had that idea, he along with Arcade Fire's Win Butler created the soundtrack to Richard Kelly's "The Box". Like Her Space Holiday, the music is all the more impressive when you realize that he created it all by himself. "Spectrum, 14th Century" is beautiful and a fully realized EP with not fat, it is a beautiful artistic statement with replay value, and in this throwaway society that is something special in and of itself. However, this is not a type of music that I would like to see preformed live, it, like Andrew Bird, depends on perfection of the artist and the instrument and sometimes live performances do not lend perfection to the artist.



Rating - 5 out of 5
Favorite Track - "The Butcher"

January 7th - XOXO, Panda And The New Kid Revival by Her Space Holiday

Released October 7th, 2008 on Mush Records.

The notes I wrote on this album states that if Amy Millan's "Blood From The Tombs" were used in an indie film it would be for the part where the two main characters break up, and Her Space Holiday's "XOXO" would be the party soundtrack in which they meet and fall in love. It is a light sounding, fun record but when you listen to the album it is much deeper than the surface beauty.

In my opinion the best recordings are full of not huge dense moments, but instead records full of light sounding moments that are dense underneath the vocals and lead instruments. Little bleeps and boops or exotic instrumentation that coalesces the album and makes the album somewhat deeper from the little nuances. "XOXO" is full of these little moments and they are scattered throughout the album. Hand claps, which my sister demands is an essential part of any great song, abound, and it makes sense looking at the band's bio and seeing that it is greatly the project of one man, Marc Bianchi, who essentially started as an electronic artist but now is working the folk into his creations. Knowing that it was the work of basically one man makes "XOXO" all that more fun, and even more impressive.



Rating - 4 and 1/2 out of 5
Favorite Track - "Sleepy Tigers"

January 6th - Honey From The Tombs by Amy Millan

Released May 30, 2006 on Arts & Crafts Records

"Honey from the Tombs" is an album that you put on some speakers in a bedroom on a winter morning when you don't really have anything to do and you really feel nostalgic. Its acoustic guitars and sweetly sung vocals just put you in a place that is hard to come by. It really is not a surprise that the woman that put this out is a contributing member of Broken Social Scene and Stars, both bands being very popular in their home country of Canada (side note - I saw the winning run by the first Canadian Gold Medalist this last week, really amazing and heartwarming that he dedicated it to his disabled brother) however these two bands have not achieved beyond indie status in the States.

Thus if the bigger bands from this label are only getting indie status then the lesser known solo efforts from Amy Millan are virtually unknown in the States. That is a shame because her music, while being unchallenging, has a twang that country fans can dig, lyrics that are beautiful, rock credentials from the artist, and vocal work that is so softly spoken it demands your attention. However, as a whole "Blood from a Tomb" is a safe record and even with a few very memorable moments, Amy Millan does not do as well as her band mates who include the pop darling Feist and indie queen Neko Case. While this is a debut and the other artists in her group didn't get famous till record number three or four we can only see what the future holds.



She did just release a new album called "Masters Of The Burial", but I have not gotten to get a chance to listen yet.

Rating - 4 out of 5
Favorite Tracks - "He Brings Out The Whiskey In Me", "Come Home Loaded Roadie", "Losin You"

January 5th - Menos El Oso by Minus The Bear

Released August 23rd, 2005 on Suicide Squeeze Records

So, first off let me reveal my biases: one, I love Dave Knudson; two, I love Matt Bayles, and third, I love Botch. So you know that part in "Complete Control" by the Clash where Joe Strummer yells over the solo "You're my guitar hero!" well for my money Dave Knudson is my guitar hero, what he does in this band and on stage is amazing. Matt Bayles has produced some of the greatest hardcore records of the past ten years including "We are the Romans" by Botch, "O God, The Aftermath" by Norma Jean, "Chasing Hamburg" by Polar Bear Club, the first two records by the Blood Brothers, the first two records from Mastodon, and a sizable chunk of Minus The Bear's output including this record. Botch does not need explaining, see previous examples.

So therefore this record was an instant classic for me, it kind of had me banging my fist against my head wondering why I hadn't taken the time before to listen to this one. From the opener "The Game Needed Me" to the cerebral lyrics on many of the songs to the beauty and despair on "Pachuca Sunrise" this album was amazing. It, like "Re-arrange Us", lends itself to a remixing, which they did with a full album remix by many guest remixers including P.O.S., a personal favorite of mine. All in all like all of Minus The Bear's albums they are inaccessible but when listened to and reflected upon and listened to again the meanings crack and the listener rewarded. It's like a good steak: this album has all the fat removed, the seasoning is just right and grilled just right.

Rating - 5 out of 5
Best Track - "The Game Needed Me"

January 4th - Oracular Spectacular by MGMT

Released January 22nd, 2008 on Columbia Records

Little known fact about this band: They opened for Paul McCartney on one of his last few tours. Knowing that makes some sense, because without that connection I don't think I would have made the connection to the Beatles. If Paul and John had kids that were as talented as they were and are, and those kids were brought up on keyboards and synths rather than guitars then the result would be MGMT. The music is just lush with Beatles like energy and weirdness, but weirdness that is not off-putting instead inviting. MGMT's sophomore full length demands that the listener get up and listen to the music, dance a little but eventually delve into the weirdness and let yourself go. The lyrics are what are most striking on this album, whether they are jamming out on today’s deposable world and even more disposable youth culture("Kids") or looking at the rock and roll dream with unflattering and unflinching realism ("Time To Pretend", they are talking about things that most bands talk about but never in the same manner. However the greatness of this album and the promise of this band, there is one key difference between MGMT and the Beatles: the Beatles produced epic amounts of material in the space of ten years (1960 to 1970) and that is part of the reason they are considered such masters. MGMT for all their talent have only produced three albums, if you include the forthcoming Congratulations, and a handful of EPs. If they are opting to be the next Beatles then they need to get writing.

Rating - 3.5 out of 5
Best Track - "Time to Pretend" - This song is colossal; I just cannot get past it.

January 3rd - Re-Arrange Us by Mates of State

Released May 12th, 2008

In 2005 I was just out of high school and working on getting into college while working at a restaurant in Logan, Utah. Up there I had a few goals that I deperately wanted to get done and one of them was to see my big four bands at the time - Thrice, Thursday, Brand New, and Taking Back Sunday. TBS was coming through on tour with Jimmy Eat World and Mates of State, an unknown band to me, so my sister and I with a group of our friend drove the three hours to the E Center in SLC. We got in and walked into Mates of State's set. It was a grinding set of organ and drums with doo-wap vocals, it was grinding because of the venue, and we did not like them at all, but I kept them in my maybe file for a long time.

That was a good move. 2008's Re-Arrange Us is one of the best albums I have listened to in awhile. While some girl/guy swap vocal groups can be a bit too saccherin for my tastes, this was a perfect blend and the lyrics definately lend themselves to the intelligence level of the audience and to the artists, they do not sugar coat the content and in this type of music that is refreshing. The music is big and beat driven with "You are free" and "The Rearranger" being the best examples of this. When I have some time free I am going to try and bury myself in their back catalouge. Also this album lends itself to a remix more than any indie album I have ever heard and they ended up doing this already, to my surprise, with 2009's Re-Arranged: The Remixes Vol.1. Check out both albums if you want something that is both a driving album and a headphones album.

Rating - 4 out of 5
Best Track - "You Are Free"

Dead Air Radio Playlist February 8th, 2010

1 - Thank God For Worker Bees by Botch
2 - Moved As Mountains, Dreamt Of By The Sea by The Ghost Of A Thousand
3 - Decay of the Delay by Cave In
4 - Pretty Lush by Glassjaw
5 - What You Call Thought Control, I Call Thought Control by The Felix Culpa
6 - Termites Hollow by Grade
7 - Shaking Like a Flame by Glossary
8 - Coney Island by Good Old War
9 - Tree House by Family Of The Year
10 - Suicide Medicine by Rocky Votolato
11 - Beggers by Thrice
12 - Drugwolf by Crime In Stereo
13 - Hyperbolia by Horse The Band
14 - Farewell Mona Lisa by Dillinger Escape Plan
15 - Wanderlust by Every Time I Die
16 - Living Saints by Polar Bear Club
17 - Beyond The Threshold by Hüsker Dü
18 - Between Minutes and Miles by Hot Cross
19 - Catameran by Bear Vs. Shark
20 - Garden by Heavens
21 - Cringe by Alkaline Trio
22 - The Optimist by P.O.S. / Sowing Season (Yeah) by Brand New - Mash-Up by Hawkins
23 - Featherlighter by Lazlo Supreme
24 - The End of the Line by Hot Water Music
25 - Sink Florida Sink (Electric) by Against Me
26 - Batmans A Dead Man by The International Superheroes Of Hardcore
27 - Try Out Your Voice by Big D & The Kids Table
28 - Constructive Summer by The Hold Steady
29 - Breathing In A New Mentality by Underoath
30 - Blood Clots And Black Holes by Thrice
31 - At This Velocity (Audio Video Edit) by Thursday
32 - 5, 6 Kids by Bear Vs. Shark
33 - In A Jar / Noro By Brand New
34 - Heart Attack American by The Bronx
35 - Suffering To Live, Scared Of Love by Verse
36 - Pink Turns To Blue By Hüsker Dü
37 - Afterworld By Tiger Army
38 - Congratulations, John, On Joining Every Time I Die by Bomb! The Music Industry
39 - Cross Out the Eyes By Thursday
40 - Substance By Haste The Day
41 - Hearing Damage By Thom Yorke
42 - Reinventing Your Exit By UnderOath
43 - Liberties by AttackInBlack

Dead Air Radio February 1st, 2010

1 - The Marvelous Slut by Every Time I Die
2 - Wild Ox Moan by Coalesce
3 - Golden Tanks by Cancer Bats
4 - Farewell Mona Lisa by Dillinger Escape Plan
5 - Heroes Get Remember, Legends Never Die by Four Year Strong
6 - Punknews Is Stoked by O Pioneers!!!
7 - Sunset on 32nd by Strike Anywhere
8 - Stop by Against Me!
9 - White Riot by The Clash
10 - Complaintor by The Color Fred
11 - Emergency! Emergency! by The Promise Ring
12 - Stay Gone by The Get-Up Kids
13 - San Dimas High School Football Rules by The Ataris
14 - A Praise Chorus by Jimmy Eat World
15 - Passing Out In America by Alexisonfire
16 - Pigs Is Pigs by Every Time I Die
17 - Knifeman by The Bronx
18 - Sorry You're Not A Winner by Enter Shikari
19 - I'm Made Of Wax, What Are You Made Of Larry - A Day To Remember
20 - Son The Father by Fucked Up
21 - Vital Signs by Frank Turner
22 - The First Single by The Format
23 - You're Not Afraid Of The Dark, Are You? - Look Mexico
24 - The Death Of Me by City & Colour
25 - Photosynthesis by Frank Turner
26 - Let Them Eat War by Bad Religion
27 - God Bless The S.O.S. by The Explosion
28 - The End Of The Line by Hot Water Music
29 - We Drink So You Don't Have To by The Black Out Pact
30 - Time To Waste by Alkaline Trio
31 - Fear Before Doesn't Listen To People Who Don't Like Them by Fear Before
32 - Six Days At The Bottom Of The Ocean by Explosions In The Sky
33 - Wanderlust by Every Time I Die
34 - Geneva by Russian Circles
35 - What You Call Mind Control, We Call Mind Control by The Felix Culpa
36 - Belt by Say Anything
37 - Lonewolves by Converge
38 - Drunks, Lovers, Sinners and Saints / This Could Be Anywhere In The World by Alexisonfire
39 - With My Own Eyes by Dario Marinelli / Vices by Brand New
40 - Purexed by P.O.S.