What's cool? Mastodon, "Asleep in the Deep"

What a long, strange trip

Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds may have slipped his leash recently when he ranted about his hatred of heavy metal in an interview with Guitar Player. He's evidently been trying to overthrow the band from the inside for years, to make them into something "not such a heavy metal band." A quick listen to their latest single, "Asleep in the Deep" from last year's Once More 'Round the Sun shows that he's still got his work cut out for him.

The song has a fair amount of progressive rock influence, with rhythmic shifts, an interesting harmonic flow, and a trippy bridge interlude, but the band's metal credibility remains intact with offset guitar grind, restless bass throb, and a thickly shadowed vocal atmosphere.The lyrics paint a paranoid picture of threat, but ultimately seem to find victory against the dark miasma of fear. Maybe so, but the feeling is anything but joyful or confident.

As enjoyable as it is to settle into the Gothic embrace of "Asleep in the Deep", this showed up on my radar because of Mastodon's new surreal video for the tune, directed by the artist, Skinner. Think of it as the psychedelic response to the GoPro cat channel on YouTube. With his owner passed out on the couch, our feline hero splits in search of adventure. Almost immediately, he finds himself in a strange black-light zone, surrounded by a pack of bizarro cat-monkey puppets. And that's before the cat is dosed with some psychoactive milk. Then it gets a little strange...

This is definitely a treat, so sit back and enjoy:

What's cool? Martin Gore, Europa Hymn

Unscripted reflection

When I was a kid, I loved to go to the natural science museum and look at the dinosaurs. There was something cool about seeing the articulated skeletal fossils next to artists' renditions of how they might have appeared in life. It was a while before I realized that those sketches were basically just guesswork, but that epiphany opened up possibilities in my mind as I imagined alternatives to what had been put before me. Even now, I prefernot to have everything all spelled out. The best books, movies, or music leave a bit of mystery that pushes some of the work onto the audience.



That's exactly why Martin Gore's new single, "Europa Hymn" is so enjoyable, It's more like a gesture drawing than a fully developed song. Even though it's barely more than three minutes, Gore takes his time to place a small set of elements -- synthesizer swells and electronic beats -- and he lets them just reverberate within the sonic space. The track is moody and reflective, but the sparse arrangement doesn't provide much additional narrative direction. It rises from the synthesizer waves, builds up some rhythm to suggest a kind of down-tempo electro-pop, and then sinks back under the lonely surface, leaving room for a world of interpretations: it could represent the arc of a relationship, the ebb and flow of life, or even the sense of a sculptor finding the shape that hides within a block of marble.

Gore is best known as one of the founding members of Depeche Mode, and it's easy to hear the connection between this and his band work. But while the palette is familiar, this song distills synth-pop down to its electronic essence, discarding the urgency and tension to focus on an ethereal sense Zen purity, where the listener project their own meaning.

"Europa Hymn" is one of 16 tracks from Gore's new album, MG, which came out at the end of last month.

What's cool? Ovenizer, "Satan's Washing Machine"

Campy goodness, but solid post-metal delivery

Scratch the surface on most stuff and it's all the same, whether it's the latest tween girl pop fluff or a technically accomplished bluegrass banjo picker. What you see is what you get, and either you already like it or you don't. Like everyone else, I have my share of simple tastes, but I really love music with some layers to it, where you can dig in and find something unexpected. It's why I love bands like Too Much Joy, with tight-rocking, smart ass songs that often turn out to be more serious than they seemed at first.

With all the bands that I come across, it's always pleasant when something surprises me, and that's what caught my attention with the Finnish post-metal band Ovenizer and their new single, "Satan's Washing Machine". The title alone is powerful in its ridiculousness: how deep in the barrel of metal imagery did they have to scrape to come up with the idea of Lucifer's home appliances? Before I even listened to it, I was ready for either the most pathetic metal band ever, or some group trying to pull a Spinal Tap.



The opening lines recall Spinal Tap's "Stonehenge", suggesting it's more likely a parody play: "Spark flew from the tree/ Spawned in Satan's Washing Machine." But I've watched the video a few times and they treat it pretty seriously, avoiding any sly, subtle winks. Regardless of how offbeat the theme is, though, the song is well made. The opening imports some folky acoustic guitar to give the tune some roots while the lead singer's husky voice adds the visceral punch. The open, airy arrangement quickly fills up with solid drumming and a tight guitar riff. The chorus expansively edges into post-rock with thick walls of cymbal, guitar, and bass The double pedal kick drum work gets more impressive as the song builds, hitting a climax during the bridge.

The video adds its own perspective. It may have been shot on a budget, but it's lovingly constructed. The band plays on packed snow, surrounded a stand of tall trees with a torch burning in the background. In a nod to the inspiration, the set also includes the titular washing machine. You can tell it's Satan's because it's been eviscerated and it's conveniently labeled with "666". To match the rising intensity of the song, members of Flamma Fire Group add some pyro excitement with spinning torches and spitting flames. Eventually, everything is on fire, including the instruments. By the end, the camera tracks through the snow to find the smoking, demonspawn Kenmore and then cuts back to the instrument pyre, merrily burning.

The video may revel in campy goodness, but the band plays it straight. If you don't pay too much attention to the lyrics, it's a solid post-metal outing. Maybe it's less Spinal Tap than Frank Zappa. Zappa was happy to entertain his audience with silliness like "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow", but that was the sugar to get them to swallow his musical ideas. Ovenizer certainly isn't the metal Mothers of Invention, but their growling tribute to Hell's laundry room is weightier than the first glance.

"Satan's Washing Machine" is from Ovenizer's latest album, SWM, on Norwegian Pope Records.

What's cool? The Very Best with Mafilika, "Hear Me"

Roots come together from opposite worlds 

Sometimes, you can travel to the ends of the earth and still find yourself back at home. Esau Mwamwaya was an experienced singer when he left his home in Malawi and moved to London in 1999. A serendipitous meeting led to an unlikely partnership with the production team of Radioclit to form The Very Best. Their electronic production complemented his soulful singing to create an intriguing mixtape that featured some surprising contributions from acts like Santigold and samples from a variety of pop and indie bands.

Fast forward a half decade and The Very Best was centered on Mwamwaya and DJ Johan Hugo. The pair had temporarily relocated back to Lilongwe, Malawi in 2013. They left the capital for village life in M'dala Chikowa to work on their new album in earnest, which edged their sound to away from its electronic foundations to develop a more band-oriented focus. The resulting project, Makes a King, just came out this month. It still ties back to their earlier work, but it's looser and more vibrant.

"Hear Me" is the first single off the new album, and that version features bass work from Chris Baio (Vampire Weekend). The glitchy production adds a brittle quality that emphasizes the fragility of Mwamwaya's voice. It straddles synthpop reminiscent of Tears For Fears along with a deep African heart. While the studio take is pretty nice, this live version, recorded with Malawi Afrojazz band Mafilika, has a more organic feel.



Mafilika mixes in live drums to go with the drum machine beat, which softens the stark edge of the studio recording. Hugo's production touches are still there to maintain the modernity of the song, but the sadness and resignation of the vocals comes through even stronger than before. Listening to the two perspectives side by side, it's easy to hear how the live version taps into the soul of the song as it first entered the world, before the studio production added a veneer of complexity to shade the tune.

Both takes are strong signs that Makes A King is worth digging into to hear how roots from opposite ends of the earth can intertwine.

What's Cool - Young Guv, Crawling Back to You

Never judge a book by its cover (or the publisher's hype)

I never saw it coming. Digging through the pile of promo emails to find a gem to share, I came across the most over-the-top, hyperbolic sell job on behalf of Young Guv's new album, Ripe 4 Luv. The last paragraph reels through some crazy comparisons: Cheap Trick produced by Jimmy Jam,  Drake's producter 40 engineering Hall and Oates...it was obviously tongue in cheek, but the hype was so thick that I almost blew it off. Not only that, but the title, "Crawling Back to You", promised a sad whine about unrequited love, which is seldom worth the trouble. For some reason, though, I decided to give it a minute's listen.

Thirty minutes later, I had replayed it a half dozen times, because Young Guv had me hooked. The opening anarchy of scraping strings collapses into a strong indie rock groove worthy of Big Star or Too Much Joy. It builds up before receding behind tightly harmonized vocals reminiscent of the Byrds. The tune is packed with familiar sounding DNA, but somehow transcends any of its inspirations. The jangly walls of guitar and the slick pop vocals combine to form a hook almost as big as the hype from their label. The off-kilter lyrics are also a pleasant surprise, comparing the bygone relationship to the womb. I can honestly say I've never heard the phrase "Placenta sleeping bags for two," before, but I was fairly amused when I teased that line out from the opening verse.

The back story offers its own surprise. Young Guv aka Young Governor aka Ben Cook had his start with hardcore punkers No Warning and then played guitar with the progressive punk Fucked Up. Along the way, he wrote  "We're All To Blame" for Sum 41, That paints a relatively clear picture, but he also claims to have ghostwritten songs for Taylor Swift and Kelly Clarkson and he's celebrated '80s style pop with a side project, Yacht Club. Maybe that makes Young Guv a nice median persona for Cook. In any case, Ripe 4 Luv is due to release on March 10.

What's cool - Pussy Riot, "I Can't Breathe"

Power games

Vladimir Putin probably isn't the only one wishing that protest artists Pussy Power would just shut up and go away. The group has just released a new video that will likely have the right wing American rant-o-sphere joining him in decrying the group. What brings together these ideological opposites? Their spiritual brotherhood in hating dissent and feigning outrage. Not content with speaking out against Putin's dictatorship, Pussy Riot uses their latest video, "I Can't Breathe", to draw a direct connection between the leader's state sponsored terrorism against his political opposition and the recent American cases of police overreaction and lethal violence against people of color.

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, who spent 21 month in prison for Pussy Riot's church protest in 2012, partnered with Russian bands Jack Wood and Scofferlane to create the song and video. As the two women are buried in shallow graves while wearing Russian riot police uniforms, the lyrics refer to Eric Garner, who was choked to death by NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo last year. After the opening lines that describe Garner as a martyr, they go on to say "If it's unfair my friend/ Make up your mind./ It's getting dark in New York City." At the end of the song, famed punk icon Richard Hell reads the transcript of Garner's last words on the police video of the incident, inflecting them with frustration and, finally, panic.



Unlike most of Pussy Riot's guerrilla protests, "I Can't Breathe" is actually a very polished and moving piece. While their raw anger and direct confrontations of the past have made their point, this video will probably reach a larger audience and make a deeper impression. The music is stark and powerful and Sasha Klokova's vocals are haunting. The simplicity reminds me of Sinead O'Connor's "Black Boys on Mopeds", which dealt with a similar topic. The video imagery is not all that subtle, nor is their accompanying press statement, but none of that detracts from the song. They draw a clear link between Russia's actions in the Ukraine, Putin's riot police assaulting protesters and the police violence and protests here.

Plenty of people here will say it's an unfair comparison that's disrespectful of police officers just trying to do their job, But just as anyone ambivalent about Russian imperialism would be leery speaking up too loudly, it shouldn't be surprising that people of color, especially young men, have trouble thinking of the police as public servants. It's too much to expect this song to effect a real change on its own, but it can certainly help keep up the pressure.

What's cool - They Might Be Giants, Erase

Not yet available on wax cylinders

In my mental map of musical genres, They Might Be Giants is almost alone in the category of "alternative steampunk". That is to say, their music has a kind of temporal dissonance that is hard to pin down to a real era, they are unselfconsciously nerd-core, and ultimately, they take their amusement extremely seriously. John Linnel and John Flansburgh struck a nerve for two big reasons: their quirky songs offer a delightful novelty and they manage to convey a sincerity that touches their audiences.

Starting back in the early '80s, they shared a wild mix of unreleased music through their Dial-A-Song service, which got its start as a bizarre way to promote the band. The service migrated to the web at dialasong.com back in 2000 and the original number was disconnected in 2006 or so. The idea of making a long distance call to get a random bit of music was strange enough when it started, but now seems completely quaint. But after years of relying on more normal online channels to connect with their fans, TMBG has resurrected the Dial-A-Song service, promising a new song a week for all of 2015. Drop by the website to listen, or you can call (844) 387-6962 for the classic, lo fi experience. This has already garnered new attention for the band, but it's just the kind of oddball move that fits in with their aesthetic.



The inaugural song is "Erase", which has that classic TMBG sound. It's a solid alt-rocker, with off-beat guitar stabs that contrast against the solid driving beat. They deliver the dark lyrical theme with bravado, happily contemplating a world where the unpleasant past can be casually erased, "When your heartbreak overrides the very thing you cannot face." Of course, it's the inevitable collateral damage that underlies that comforting thought.

Fresh single - Meatbodies, "Mountain"

Neo-psychedelia with a hit of a Adderall

One of the best things about punk music is that the short song format encourages a kind of focus, especially for the bass. A jazz bassist can meander along and surf the chord changes, but punk forces him to lock into the drive, ignoring all distraction. The dark throbbing insistence at the start of "Mountain" lives up to that ideal. When the drums and guitar kick in a dozen seconds later, it doesn't matter that they take us off into a neo-psychedelic groove, that bass has made it clear that this is serious shit and you'd better be buckled in. The vocals add a poppy lilt, but they float over the top without detracting from the murky grind.



Band leader Chad Ubovich has been out there working the sidelines of the garage rock scene for a while, playing with Ty Segall and Mikal Cronin among others. The Meatbodies' self-titled album is a respectable step into the spotlight for him. This track dips into thick tone of Black Sabbath and other classic acid-rockers, but sampling some of the others from the album, you can hear a great mix of trippy head music and over-driven garage rock. But that punk energy pervades the tracks and keeps them nice and taut. 

Fresh single: Jarabe de Palo, "Vecina"

Hoping that the summer never ends

The first taste of "Vecina" is rootsy and sincere. Calling the vibe "Americana" hardly seems appropriate for Barcelona's Jarabe de Palo, but this band has a great ear for setting up a simple rhythm and letting it flow. Imagine The Rolling Stones' "Beast of Burden" without Mick Jagger's pouty strut. The groove is as comfortable as a perfect pair of Levi's and well-worn boots. The organ and sax accompaniment provide soulful touches. This is a song that captures an end-of-summer feel that seems just right for a chilly Autumn day with damper weather.



The lyrics capitalize on that feel; after spending a summer admiring his beautiful neighbor as she soaks in the sun, lead singer Pau Donés finally works up the nerve to make his move: "Soy ese chico que ves desde tu jardín/ Solo quería algún día invitarte a salir." (tr. "I'm the guy you see from your garden/ I only wanted to ask you out someday") Don't let the voyeuristic story line color your impressions; "Vecina" is fairly innocent and wholesome, with more metaphor than sly innuendo.

Jarabe de Palo are on tour here in the US throughout October, wrapping up November 1 in San Francisco. If they pass through your town, immerse yourself in some continental Latin music. It's also worth checking out their latest release, Somos. In the meantime, I'll settle into the sunny sway of "Vecina" and, just like Donés sings, "Este verano que espero no tenga fin."

Fresh single - The Electric Mess, Better to be Lucky Than Good

Hi-fidelity thrash

There's retro and then there's living  in the past. On first listen, The Electric Mess' old school roots are obvious: Velvet Underground, Radio Birdman, Patty Smith, and early Pretenders. But where most bands just settle for low-fi derivation and the occasional homage to lost gods, The Electric Mess are vibrant throwbacks to back when the raw energy of those bands was fresh. It's like the difference between sepia toned photos or saturated Polaroids and a crisp digital photo; when we think of the past, we confuse our perspective with how it really was. So, it's easy to think that the world was more monochrome 75 years ago, because we're used to black and white pictures. But life was just a colorful then. A chunk of the fascination with low-fi, muddy sound is that those old records were over-saturated and never captured the crisp edge.

Two years ago, I locked onto Falling Off the Face of the Earth by The Electric Mess, in part for the clean fidelity they brought to garage rock. It's been a long wait, but this year, they've followed up with a new album, House on Fire. I haven't heard it yet, but the first taste is definitely more-ish.



Their latest video (written and directed by bass player Derek Davidson) is Warhol-esque mini-film with broad stroke characters, graphic novel jump cuts, and stylized violence. As a film, it's entertaining, although I would have liked an instrumental intro behind the first fifty-odd seconds of scene setting. Once the first thrashy chords slap your face, though, the frantic energy kicks in like shot of adrenaline. Lead singer Chip Fontaine/Esther Crow summons Patti Smith's hoarse sneer, but the lyrics could easily be a lost Lou Reed classic.

Bands constantly reinvent themselves or get caught up in new shiny sounds, so it's refreshing to hear The Electric Mess digging deeper into their core strengths. Craig Rogers' rapid-fire drum work is still solid and his fills slip into overdrive for the chorus bumps. The bass is just as relentless as it slips between throbbing root notes and snaking melodic riff. Both instruments stand out clearly, without being eclipsed by Dan Crow's speedball lead guitar. His ragged tone matches Crow's rough singing like a jab paired with an uppercut. The clarity of the mix is key. Instead of a cheap sonic Instagram filter providing the illusion of rawness, it's easy to abandon your ears to the driving energy of the music.

What do they say, "The first taste is free?" Well, I'm hooked and now I've got to hear the rest of  House on Fire.

February singles

It's time again to sample the new music drifting around the scene. Enjoy!

Keep Shelly in Athens - "Madmen Love" (from their upcoming album on Cascine, due fall 2013)

An ominous throb eases in, raising some hackles with each pulsation. Even on your guard, the reluctant drag beat catches you by surprise. Sarah P's lazy singing taunts you from the shadows. The lazy sway of the song is accented with shiny flecks and hazy shadows. The bridge breakdown flickers as it spirals down into a more insistent beat. The vocals echo like rueful memories and the chillwave jam falls back into its beginnings.

Keep Shelly in Athens have created a moody masterpiece. RΠЯ's production is richly evocative of depressants laced with Adderall: he creates an extremely focused trance like state. After a busy day of distractions, "Madmen Love" just took the edge off for me.

If you can't wait for this fall, you can buy "Madmen Love" here.

Warm Soda - "Waiting For Your Call" (from Someone For You, due March 26)



"Waiting For Your Call" jumps forward like a teenage driver in their first race, dragging us in their wake. Once the verse kicks in, they sound more like a cheery pop band playing a manic cover of "Creep" by Radiohead. Okay, maybe it's only the shared run of chords that evoke that song, because Warm Soda don't have time to mope. Instead, they lay down an infectious retro pop groove that has just the right amount of choppy post punk to give it some edge.

Honestly, it's fluff, but it's prime quality fluff. And I can't get it out of my head. They'll be making the rounds at SXSW this year, so I'll have to key an eye out for them.


Friend Slash Lover – “As Seen On TV” (from The Grey Area)



There’s a wispy wash of backmasked notes and then “As Seen On TV” elbows it aside. The driving guitars blend with a retro synth-pop vibe and Friend Slash Lover packs the song with all the overwrought tension they can fit. Josh Mintz’s vocals are full of emo angst, but the dynamic range lets him shift between strangled repression and theatrical suffering. Last year’s The Grey Area was shrouded in darkness and the impotent frustration and “As Seen On TV” fit well as the opening track.

Mintz’s iPhone music video has a DIY appeal, although the cartoon violence is overdone. But the track would be more at home behind a scene of betrayal, ideally ending when the bitter truth becomes clear.

Jim James - "A New Life" (from Regions of Light and Sound of God)



Nostalgia is in the air. Just as My Morning Jacket seemed to reach back to their roots on their last album, Circuital (2011), front man Jim James takes that even further on "A New Life". Circuital's "Wonderful (The Way I Feel)" turns out to be a harbinger of the simplicity that James embraces on his new single. Like that MMJ track, "A New Life" relies on simple, folky chords and James' rich tenor. The track doesn't just channel the sound of retro rock, every reverbed note turns the clock back.

When the song picks up its pace, it evokes a brief second of Johnny Cash, but Buddy Holly and Roy Orbison are the true inspiration. James strips himself of irony and just sings. It's rare to find purity in a showy vibrato, but it shines.

Music news - Not quite his "Golden Years"

David Bowie makes his own rules. After reinventing himself countless times -- glam Monster, blue-eyed soul man, rave channeler, character actor -- he seemed to be on track for retirement. But turning the tables again, he chose to celebrate his birthday this year by offering his own gift: announcing his first new album in 10 years paired with a video of the first single. The new album, The Next Day, is due in March.

"Where Are We Now?" mixes elements of Bowie's pop-soul sound with Berlin-era synthesizer touches, in a lush arrangement . His casual, detached vocals give the track a blurry haze of nostalgic melancholy. The tentative, emotional feel shows another side of Bowie. Vulnerable, he seems to recognize that his relevance is not guaranteed.



Tony Oursler's odd little video positions the track to match that reflective mood. With silent film clips projected on a screen, the focus is an odd conjoined doll with Bowie's face mapped onto one head and his wife Iman on the other. Bowie's lyrics focus on his time in Berlin as well as the city's postwar history, providing a virtual tour of remembered places. The relaxed flow gives the song a movie soundtrack quality; just as Oursler matches it with vintage shots of Berlin, it could accent almost any wistful memory montage.

The uplifting finish is a promise, "as long as there's me, as long as there's you." It's a well-played, low-key card. As long as we're all here, Bowie will still find a voice to fit the times.

December Singles

Let's wrap up the year with an old friend and a small collection of newer bands.

They Might Be Giants - "Call You Mom" (from Nanobots, due March 2013)


They Might Be Giants are promising a lot with their upcoming album, Nanobots: namely a full serving of bass clarinet. Regardless of whether they have their pulse on the market demand,"Call You Mom" delivers that classic TMBG aesthetic. Quirky yet compelling, the lyrics follow a Freudian Slip 'n' Slide of Oedipal images. The solid retro rock music adds the perfect frantic energy.

FIDLAR - "Gimme Something" (from FIDLAR, due January 2013)



Speaking of retro, über-ironic FIDLAR brings a house party atmosphere laced with healthy sense of humor. Their video for "Gimme Something" claims, "Our friend found this video of us playing a couple years back. Back when cocaine was good for you." While the band pounds their way through the jangly rocker, the video splices footage of Credence Clearwater Revival (circa 1970) to match FIDLAR's track. It's a clever joke, but there's an ounce of truth as the band's guitar sound borrows a fair amount of Fogerty's tone.

Wax Idols - "Sound of a Void" (from Discipline & Desire, due March 2013)


We'll continue the retro run with a great, high energy post-punk jam on "Sound of a Void". The thick wave of rhythm guitar and bass packs the dynamic space as Hether Fortune's accusatory tone channels '80s angst amidst shards of angular fills. "Let's turn down the static world" -- Wax Idols build a delicious dark tension with echoes of Siouxsie Sioux and Romeo Void.

A. Chal - "Dirty Mouth" (from Ballroom Riots)


Back to the present - Our last single for the month is a tripped out electronic groove from A. Chal. He sets up "Dirty Mouth" with a sparse drum machine beat and shimmery washes of synth. The heart of the tune is a chopped and processed vocal line:

Dirty mouth and she just can't
Get it good to be on that
Daddy issues and cognac 

It's hard to tell if I got that second line right, but the moody chill of the mix implies that things probably won't end well. This is wonderfully evocative track, but it fades out way too soon to fully satisfy.
 

Random notes

It's always interesting to see what Gods of Shuffle put together. This time I sensed a Beatles theme running through a couple of the songs.

"You Can't Do That" - The Bobs (Songs for Tomorrow Morning)

Back in the '80s, long before the whole Glee thing built up a capella music into a big thing, there were the Bobs. Everybody in the band was named "Bob", like Gunnar "Bob" Madsen. Aside from their off-kilter originals, they arranged a host of covers. Their versions of "Psycho Killer" and "Purple Haze" are my favorites, but this Beatles cover is another strong version. The verses are fairly straight forward, with the band emphasizing a doo-wop groove. But the solo section features Janie "Bob" Scott riffing off the melody of "Within You Without You" before drifting into spacier realms.

"Get Ready" - Rare Earth (single)

Rare Earth stood out at Motown, in part because they were the biggest blue-eyed soul band out there. They stirred up funk, soul, and rock and had a number of hits in the early '70s: ""(I Know) I'm Losin' You", "Born to Wander", and "I Just Want to Celebrate". But their biggest hit was their cover of Smoky Robinson's classic, "Get Ready". A staple of their live shows, the album version took up a whole record side where 21+ minutes gave everyone in the band their chance to solo. The single version edits that down to a tight, three minute, radio-friendly gem. The tempo steamrolls over the pace of the original, with a solid rhythm section anchored by the instantly recognizable bass line.

"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" - The Beatles (Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band)

Ahh, the classics. The opening punch of the guitar riff, the orchestral embellishments, and the role-playing conceit -- it's a great piece of experimental music that blends a live rock sound with studio trickery, while offering a broad wink to the audience. It's hard for anyone today to hear it in historical context, so a lot of the revolutionary craziness is lost in translation. The weirdest aspect of having it turn up in my shuffle is the frustrating cut as the song sets up the flow to "With a Little Help From My Friends". Still, it brings a smile to my face.

"Revolverlution" - The Kleptones (From Detroit To J.A.)

I've covered the Kleptones, reviewing their amazing mashup album 24 Hours (review here). "Revolverlution" is less of a straight ahead mashup than a pastiche. It's a parody of Gil Scot-Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", backed with music from Michael Jackson's "Ben". The vocals get Scot-Heron's cadence down as they twist his assertions:

The revolution will always come with fries
Because the revolution will be televised

 Producer Eric Kleptone manages to make a similar social commentary as his target material. His inclusion of Neo's closing monologue from The Matrix extends the point, but I'm still confused by the Italian version of "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
 
"Tomorrow Never Knows" - 801 (801 Live)
Phil Manzanera's side project from Roxy Music was organized to cover a small number of live shows. With Brian Eno and a number of other progressive rock musicians, 801 pulled material from several members' back catalogs as well as a couple of interesting covers. Their version of the Kinks' "You Really Got Me" shows a lot of Eno influence, but their jam on "Tomorrow Never Knows" takes a lesser known Beatles track into new territory. Synthesizers mutate the song away from some of its Indian roots, while maintaining the core psychedelic feel. Bill MacCormick's bass playing is phenomenal.

"Take Care of Yourself" - The Posies (Blood/Candy)

Finally, a more recent track. Compared to the other selections this time, 2010 is almost yesterday. The Posies deliver the alt-rock/power pop punch of their earlier material on "Take Care of Yourself", leaving little gap between their heyday of the late '90s and their new work. The loud-soft-loud shifts, sweet harmonies, and wordy lyrics all sound familiar. The drums stand out in particular: on the verses, Darius Minwalla leaves a couple of sweet holes that make the song stumble forward and the ending builds up just to collapse into resolution.

November singles

From solid roots to heady washes of sound, enjoy November's singles.

Prezident Brown - "Teach the Youths Dem (Meditation)" (from I Sound is From Creation)

"Teach the Youths Dem (Meditation)" offers a sweet taste of roots reggae, from the solid one drop beat and snaking bassline to Brown's chanting delivery. Brown's conscious-style message encourages strength and discipline in response to the destructive forces around us. The chank, fills, and beat mesh calmly, grounding the track with an uplifting vibe. That's the power in classic reggae: acknowledging adversity, but retaining hope.

Even though this is the second single off the new album, I couldn't find a public link of it. Drop by Amazon and get a small taste.

DaVinci - "In My City" (from The Moena Lisa)


Straight outta Fillmore - San Francisco rapper DaVinci (AKA John DeVore) lays down a low key anthem to the whole Bay area, letting everyone represent. The chilled out electronica groove and mellow beat match DaVinci's easy delivery. His quiet, raspy voice flashes back to Tone Loc, but without the playfulness. The relaxed vibe keeps "In My Cty" from building up too much bluster.

The Moena Lisa is his followup to last year's debut, The Day the Turf Stood Still.

Neil Davidge - "Green and Blue" (from Halo 4 original soundtrack)


Soundtracks are one of the prominent sources of interesting modern orchestral music. While film scores can be quite amazing, it's a rarer to come across remarkable game soundtracks. "Green and Blue" is a wonderful composition that develops some strong ideas and retains a rich sense of dynamics. I wouldn't expect a game like Halo to offer this kind of depth.

Composer Neil Davidge (Massive Attack) did a fine job here of creating an epic sense of triumph, colored with losses and growth. The soundtrack is paired with a remix album, too, which brings in a number of respected electronica producers to expand on Davidge's themes.

Maus Haus - "No More Girls" (from Light Noise)



The droning undertone and gritty, low-fi production on "No More Girls" mash up electronica and  garage psych. The driving beat and repetitive lyrics set up a hypnotic Kraut rock vibe. The heavy echo pushes the track slightly underwater and the rippling surface distorts the tune into music that needs to be absorbed rather than interpreted.

Drop by their Bandcamp page to check out more music from Light Noise.

Random notes

Mostly older tracks came up in the mix this time. Still, it's an interesting selection.

Thunk - Jefferson Airplane (Bark)



Bark was not one of Jefferson Airplane's  most respected albums. Marty Balin left the band and they were at loose ends. One more album would follow this incarnation of the band before they transformed into Jefferson Starship. That said, Bark has plenty of fine songs on it, like Pretty As You Feel and When the Earth Moves Again, but there were some weaker moments like Thunk. It's an interesting sketch of a song with some nice harmonies. But it took itself much too seriously. Even so, I remember being amused when I was younger.

For Your Attention - Boxing Ghandis (Boxing Gandhis)

Another blast from the past, this one from 1994. For Your Attention kicks  off with a low key funk groove. David Darling does his best to channel Sly Stone as he lists all the feats he's performed just to get the girl. The production is crispy clean, with all the perfect touches: sweet horn punches, envelope-follower bass line, tight guitar fills, and soulful backing vocals. If anything, it's too polished, but it's still a solid funk jam.

Tonight's the Night - Neil Young (Tonight's the Night)



This song was Neil Young's eulogy to his friend Bruce Berry. The song begins with a few directionless notes before Young starts chanting the single line chorus. The stripped down accompaniment adds the right solemn feel. Young explains it all in the verses, sharing who Berry was and and how he overdosed. The piano solo starts to inject a bit more energy into the tune. The repetition of the lyrics is a grieving meditation. It's a moving song, as Young proves yet again the power of simplicity.

The Holdup - David Bromberg (Wanted Dead or Alive)



Frequent session player David Bromberg wrote The Holdup with George Harrison. The rollicking adventure kicks off with a badly tuned piano riff, quickly overtaken by paired guitars. Bromberg whips through the vocals with nasal goofiness, which works with the arch lyrics:

When we get your money, we'll ride towards the sunset
At Rosa's Cantina, we'll stop at the door
We'll spend all your money, just getting the nose wet
Tomorrow evening we'll be back for more

Bromberg's eponymous first album had his first take of the song, featuring Harrison and some sweet slide guitar. This version has the looser feel of a party in the studio. The track is full of great instrumental contributions from members of the Dead, including Jerry Garcia.

Would Be Killer - Gnarls Barkley (The Odd Couple)



"I've got a secret/ Something I thought maybe I could do." This creepy track is off the duo's second album. The sociopathic lyrics on Would Be Killer mesh perfectly with the spooky loop backing track. It's hard to believe that that's the same Cee Lo Green that would later dress up and sing with the Muppets, but it's a strange world, isn't it? The production is full of sweet details, like the way the drum sample is spliced to add a wicked little stutter beat just often enough to catch the ear.

Green and Danger Mouse never quite reproduced the chart success of Crazy (St. Elsewhere), but The Odd Couple has a number of good moments, including this track and Who's Gonna Save My Soul.

Punk Rock Heaven - Mary Prankster (Mata Hari EP)

You'll have to settle for the Roulette Girl version

I don't even remember how I got turned on to Mary Prankster, but her smart ass attitude and biting sense of humor made me fall in love. She often used profanity for the cheap shock on songs like Tits and Whiskey or Mercyfuck, but the tunes were tight and you could harvest enough sarcasm to fuel a couple of teenage lives from every song. Punk Rock Heaven is a wonderful bit of retro railing against punk posers ("Hippie Hell awaits you, Jack/ Unless you take that tye-dye off your back"). She name checks punk greats like the Sex Pistols and G.G. Allin and waxes ecstatic over the "authentic" scene to come. Of course, like most of her music, it's fairly tongue in cheek.

October singles

 From Denver all the way to Brooklyn and beyond, there's a world of music to find. Here's a small taste.

Air Dubai - All Day (from Be Calm, due November 13)



It's been almost two years since I caught Denver band Air Dubai opening for the Flobots. At the time, I was impressed with their solid hip hop grooves backed by a full band with solid chops. All Day kicks off with shimmery electro pop and a simple beat behind the smooth vocal flow. A touch of guitar fill sneaks in at the edge. The chorus slides into a lightly auto-tuned R&B refrain: "I don't care what they say/ We could do this all day."

All Day doesn't rock it out like their 2010 hit, Lasers. But the R&B hop groove is true to their earlier live sound, too. I'll be checking out Be Calm when it drops next month. Then we'll see what other flavors they offer.

John The Conqueror – Time To Go (from John the Conqueror)



Like a grainy, saturated film image of Otis Redding, John The Conqueror ooze a classic soul vibe. The retro blues beginning on Time To Go is stripped down to the essentials of voice, guitar and light harmonies. Half way through, the rest of the band jumps in. The track opens up and kicks ass. There’s not quite enough Mick Jagger strut to pass it off as a Rolling Stones rocker, but you can hear the band’s aspirations. John The Conqueror may not be quite as polished as the Alabama Shakes, but their raw energy is promising.

Their self-titled album dropped yesterday.

Childhood - Blue Velvet (single releases November 17)



British band Childhood offers their own grainy, saturated film image of the past. Blue Velvet conjures up a the distant memory of a warm summer afternoon winding down into twilight, cocktails on the patio as the stars start to poke out. The flashback production throws a thick layer of echo and lo-fi haze, like a vaselined camera lens. The underlying pop groove sounds like XTC, but the frantic energy has been defused and crossed with a more recent shoe-gazer vibe.The harmonies are sweet and nostalgic.

Childhood is releasing Blue Velvet next month as a 7" single on House Anxiety, backed with Bond Girls.

Bad Powers - Electricity Should Be Free (from Bad Powers)

What's in a name? Noisy aggro punkers Made Out of Babies called it quits earlier this year. Now, they've been reborn as Bad Powers, swapping out singer Julie Christmas for Megan Tweed. Judging from Electricity Should Be Free and New Bruises, the band has shifted their approach to find a more accessible sound. Rather than a sell out, the new tracks seethe with a dark energy that melds post punk and grunge.

Where Made Out of Babies offered cathartic release with inarticulate noise, Bad Powers satisfies like poking a bad tooth to make sure it's still there. Electricity Should Be Free has the tribal drive and vocals of Siouxsie and the Banshees, but the bridge has a dirty guitar grind and twinned bass line like Soundgarden on a down day.


You can hear Electricity Should Be Free along with New Bruises on Brooklyn Vegan.

September Singles

From dark to light, September offers several cool tracks.

JIP - Shudder (from Sparks, Flames, and Names)



Jim Gwynne and his band JIP just released their latest EP, Sparks, Flame, and Names. The running theme is about breaking up, but the band took an interesting approach and made each song a collaboration with a different featured artist. This gives the EP an eclectic feel.

My favorite track, Shudder has a delicious dark tension. Joanna Stanielun (Half Moon Mad) has a languid tone that promises trouble and excitement in equal measure. She sounds like a cross between Alannah Myles (Black Velvet) and Exene Cervenka. The interplay between Gwynne and Stanielun is powerful. "Every time I relapse / You leave me to shudder."

Drop by JIB's audio page to hear more.

Pony Boy - Not In This Town



With her smoky alt-Western sound, Pony Boy (Marchelle Bradanini) saunters through the darkness. Twangy, jarring, and low-fi, the music for Not In This Town is compelling. The metallic taste of Tom Waits' skewed musical aesthetic and the discordant guitar solo are warning signs, but Pony Boy's breathy whisper in my ear is confident that she'll pull us all in.


The Luyas - Fifty Fifty (from Animator, due October 16)

Photo credit: Richard Lam

Moving away from this month's dark side, The Luyas have a new single, Fifty Fifty. It's too uptempo to qualify as dreamy, but Jessie Stein's vocals have an ethereal tone. The song begins as a solid danceable pop. The guitars and keys are thickly varnished with reverb, taking away some of the edge. Near the end, the drums drop out and then the song drifts into an ambient haze, reaching towards the atmospheric sound the band loves.

The Luyas new album, Animator is due out next month on Dead Oceans.

The Orb (ft. Lee Scratch Perry) - Golden Clouds (from The Orbserver in the Star House)



The Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds was a beautiful, trippy groove. Designed for the dance floor with a solid groove, it channeled the directed spaciness of Krautrock. Golden Clouds is not so much a remix, but a reinvention. The Orb's Alex Paterson and Thomas Fehlmann connected with reggae statesman Lee Scratch Perry. Perry's vocals, rhythms, and sense of dub served as an inspiration for a whole album of material, The Orbserver in the Star House.

Golden Clouds is more focused than its parent, but no less hypnotic. Where Ricki Lee Jones' vocal sample in the original was spacy, Perry's voice is like a trip sitter, guiding the flow of the song.

After you enjoy this, you should check out Golden Clouds 81 Neutronz Mix on PopMatters. With heavier electronic processing to take the track into dubstep territory, it's yet another ripple from the Orb.

Random notes

Let's get random again, like we did last summer, Baby.

Interstellar Overdrive - Pink Floyd (Piper at the Gates of Dawn)

This is possibly my favorite Pink Floyd instrumental. The first time I heard that slipped-hand opening guitar chord followed by the throbbing repetition of bass and guitar setting up the motif, I got chills, waiting to see where it would take me. The opening section that just explores the main theme is plenty interesting. But the magic comes as the song develops into a free flowing jam. I had been playing guitar for four or five years when I heard this, but I couldn't conceive of how one creates this kind of loose energy that evolves from section to section, transforming the sound radically away from that start. Still, each part reverberates with the space theme to create a narrative feel. When the song eventually comes back to the original motif, it's a revelation.

Clap Your Hands - Greyhounds (¡No Mas!)

Years ago, I caught the Greyhounds when they opened for the Eric McFadden Trio. I liked them well enough to pick up their CD. After Interstellar Overdrive, the loose funky soul of Clap Your Hands is heavily grounded in a more human groove. The organ adds a retro touch that recalls old school bands like Sir Douglas Quintet. The choppy guitar repetition, drum syncopation, and testifying vocals slide together like a carefully constructed puzzle.

Randy Newman's "Theme From 'Sea Buiscuit'" - Paul and Storm (Opening Band)

Paul and Storm are a musical comedy duo that started with the a capella band DaVinci's Notebook. They've contributed a lot of songs to The Bob and Tom Show (among others) and they regularly tour with Jonathan Coulton. This particular track is one of a series of Randy Newman parodies on the album. The running joke is that all of Randy Newman's soundtrack songs sound more or less the same. The music is a great tip of the hat to Newman's Short People and the vocal parody is spot on. The idea of Randy Newman writing themes for Sea Biscuit, The Passion of the Christ, Scarface, and others is pretty funny. Especially since the tune is the same for each of these songs.


Reunion - Collective Soul (Collective Soul)

Collective Soul hit the mainstream with Shine and the rough demo album that spawned it (Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid). Their eponymous second album was a better produced follow up. Reunion has a sweet simplicity as the guitar line gradually accrues accompaniment from keys, backing vocals, and a rhythm section. It's a short track, but I like the sweet harmonies and reflective sound that provides a good soundtrack for a homecoming. The slide solo promises that everything is going to work out just fine.

Hot Meat - The Sugarcubes (Here Today, Tomorrow Next Week!)

Ahh, Björk before her solo career. The Sugarcubes had such a cool, outsider vibe that I really enjoyed back in the late '80s. Björk and Einar Örn Benediktsson's chemistry in the Sugarcubes was like the B-52s filtered through warped, tinted glass. Hot Meat is a slower, vaguely country Western rework of Cold Sweat from their first album, Life's Too Good. After the post punk, heavy darkness of the original, this is a whimsical reinvention.

August singles

Three completely different flavors of dance friendly music for your enjoyment.

The Wallflowers - Reboot the Mission (from Glad All Over, due October 2012)



It's been a long break between releases for Jakob Dylan's band, the Wallflowers. After big sales and heavy attention in the '90s, the band never seemed to match the popularity of their first two records.

The band is enthusiastic about the new songs, though. Reboot the Mission is the first single off their upcoming album, Glad All Over. The Wallflowers are showing a cool change in direction with this track. They partnered with Mick Jones, who brings a strong sense of his old band, Big Audio Dynamite. The ska tinged rock groove is plenty danceable. I hope the rest of the new album shows a similar kind of reinvention.

Drop by The Wallflowers' site to download your own copy.

Kinky - Despues Del After (from Sueño De La Maquina)



The steady funk bass groove is a wicked hook, baited with a counterpoint of guitar. Kinky's melding of electro-pop, funk, and hip hop on Despues Del After is infectiously fun. My Spanish is a little rusty, but the lyrical flow is ultra-smooth. The video is worth checking out, just to see the light suit guy work his popping moves.

Kinky is one of those bands that may have slipped your radar, but they've placed their songs in commercials, TV shows, and games for years. Their early track, Cornman was the first time I heard the band, but that was ten years ago. They're still going strong and creating compelling jams.

The Mynabirds - Disarm (from Generals)

The Mynabirds - Disarm from Saddle Creek on Vimeo.

Laura Burhenn and the Mynabirds have turned away from the sweet soulful grooves of What We Lose In The Fire We Gain In The Flood, which may disappoint some of their fans. On Generals, the Mynabirds are making a political statement and reaching for a completely different sonic palette. Disarm is a bouncy synth-pop romp. Between the dance beat and Burhenn's voice, I keep hearing ABBA, but there's a stronger lyrical foundation. The black and white video is artsy and nicely edited.

Generals is Burhenn's counterpoint to Richard Avendon's portrait of The Generals of the Daughters of the American Revolution. That indignation may slip out more on some of the other tracks, but Disarm is more of an earnest entreaty.