Blog/Rest

“Hurry Up With My Damn Croissants” - The Yeezus Review

Kanye West - Yeezus

9.7

Okay I’m back out my coma. It’s been a few months since I’ve written anything about music, first because I got busy with school and then because I got busy with other stuff. But what I’ve been busy with the past five days is listening to Yeezus nonstop, and I feel compelled to write some words about my favorite album of the year. If any of you know me personally, you know there is some bias because Kanye has been my favorite rapper ever since I bought Late Registration the month I began high school. It may have been the censored version, but it was my gateway into rap music, especially the dizzying genius of Kanye West.

While it’s been close to three year since the near perfect My Beautiful Twisted Dark Fantasy, it’s not as if Yeezy has been absent since then. Between Watch The Throne and Cruel Summer, we’ve gotten our regular dose of Ye for the past two summers, but it’s taken him until now to release the official follow up to the album that blew us all away. The only similarities to that album on Yeezus are the “Dark” and “Twisted” part, as Yeezus is a sickening, lurching piece of music that seems to bring us into Kanye’s reality.

A writer for Pitchfork named Jamsion Cox that I follow on Twitter said just the other day that Kanye is like Bowser and then compared the collaborators on Yeezus with Bowser’s minions. I laughed at first but the more I thought about it, the more I realized how apt that was. Kanye West has, in a sense, embraced his role as the villain of hip-hop, creating an ugly yet incredible album that delves into his psyche. There’s a reason he used American Psycho as the inspiration for the promotional video he just put out. A quick glance through the lyrics will show some of the most brutal, misogynistic, yet vividly self-aware rhymes you will read all year. Kanye exposes himself bare, lays forth all his faults, and doesn’t ask for forgiveness or acceptance. “Soon as they like you make em unlike you” he says early in his already controversial single “I Am A God”. In the elaborate interview with the New York Times, Kanye admitted to making some concessions on his last album, but there are none to be found on Yeezus. Pretty much nothing here could fit on the radio, no singles were released, and the album packaging is starkly blank for a man who created his own fashion line and is so image-obsessed. With Yeezus, there is nothing here but the music.

You’ve already heard the countless stories of how Rick Rubin helped Kanye assemble the album and strip pieces to make it have a minimalist sound, and you will notice the lack of beats and grandiose horns and production you’ve grown used to from Kanye albums. This becomes apparent in the opening ten seconds of On Sight, a song produced by Daft Punk that is so full of screeches and halts that you’d be hard to point that out without reading the credits. When, a minute in, the song stops and a gospel choir fills your headphones for ten seconds, you’ll realize that Yeezus is unlike anything Ye has done so far. Yeezus is an industrial record, a dance record, a reggae record, and an experimental dance record. “I Am A God” features some of the harshest screams of the year outside of the amazing Pharmakon record that came out last May. Yeezus is a huge left-turn for Kanye, and partly because of the people he chooses to work with.

Three years ago, the indie community freaked out when they found out Justin Vernon of Bon Iver was singing on the new Kanye album. Now, Vernon is the only other artist besides Kanye whose voice is featured on MBDTF, Watch The Throne, and Yeezus. The three songs that he sings on don’t so much use his voice to add beauty to the track as they distort his image and persona and add an eerie companion on Kanye’s dark journey. Kanye embraces the dancehall part of reggae by featuring Beenie Man’s voice alongside other reggae artists (okay, I don’t know a lot about reggae). He reps Chicago by featuring the young troubled voices of Chief Keef and King Louie to draw attention to the youth engulfed in violence in “Chiraq”. You know that Daft Punk helped with three tracks that have way more energy than anything from their latest record, but the most exciting collaborators are the young electronic artists he works with including Evian Christ, Arca, and Hudson Mohawke of TNGHT. Evian Christ and Arca are two of the most innovative, experimental, and underrated new producers, and they add a real sense of turmoil, unrest, and unexpected energy to this bleak record that will hopefully garner them some well-deserved attention. Hudson Mohawke’s contributions are impressive as well, especially his work on the standout “Blood On The Leaves”.

Now some people have criticized Kanye for what he does with “Blood On The Leaves”, and it’s hard to argue their points. He interpolates a sample of “Strange Fruit” by Nina Simone, a song written in 1939 about lynching that compares a black man hanging to “strange fruit hanging from the poplar tree”. Critics argue the fact that Kanye uses that line in a song that is essentially a sequel to his popular “Gold Digger” is insensitive and reckless. I don’t think he is trying to compare extreme prejudice and murder to being forced to pay alimony, but rather just portraying an extension of his increasingly fractured mindset. His mind races, and his musical thoughts race so that he still brings up the ugly ideas of racism before moving on to an entirely different topic altogether. But Kanye has always been a master of samples, and the way Nina Simone’s voice fits into the track is hauntingly majestic, and for the first minute it seems as if Kanye has perfected the formula he created on 808s and Heartbreaks. Then, Hudson Mohawke’s beat from TNGHT’s “R U Ready” drops in as Kanye wails out “We could have been somebody” and damn if it isn’t the most powerful moment in music I’ve felt all year. No the lyrics aren’t perfect and the symbolism is off, but the song makes you feel something in a way you don’t get too much from other musicians.

These moments come on other parts of the album too, from the incredible throwback “Bound 2” to the wildly invigorating “New Slaves”. Both those songs feature the only soul on the album, a departure for a rapper who built his career around old soul samples. Both moments come as refreshing interludes, and accent two incredibly different tracks and mindsets. “Bound 2” is the closest thing Kanye can write to a love song, a four minute track about craving love, forgetting important details, infidelity, sex, god, and references to 80s television shows, which shows Kanye writing a love song the only way he knows how to. On the other end is “New Slaves”, the most overtly angry and political song he’s written in years, a black punk anthem that takes on wealth, racism, the prison system, and consumerism in one dirty fell swoop. It’s a triumphant moment on an album full of them. Kanye nastily confronts the world, not caring what the repercussions will be.  No wonder he avoided the traditional marketing style of a pre-album release. His newly found anti-corporation stance now seems to be a stark reaction to Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake’s extensive campaigns with Samsung and Target to release their new albums. Kanye doesn’t want to play by anybody’s rules anymore, as he sees himself as “the only rapper compared to Michael”. For fans of the rapper, it’s a pretty exciting point to see Kanye free from limits.

Not everything about this album is perfect. There are some clunkers in the lyrics, and a few overt cases of racism and sexism that in a way also serve to underline Kanye’s new villainous role. However, many things about Yeezus are done perfectly, from the sequencing to the fact that at 40 minutes, the album begs to be listened to over and over again. I could spend pages typing up every great line from the record, but I might end up listing 85% of the lyrics. A friend asked me if it was better than MBTDF and I wasn’t sure how to answer. It isn’t as grand or expansive or lush. There are only ten tracks that clock in at a brief 40 minutes. Compared to the Good Fridays experiment he worked on a few years ago, Yeezus seemed to come out of nowhere and hit me like a ton of bricks. Twenty listens later and I’m still not fully able to parse through every aspect of it. Yeezus also does the remarkable job of making you pity Kim Kardashian for having to put up with this man, who truly seems like a monster in real life. As a musician, he is a genius and has done the unthinkable by following up a near-perfect album with another masterpiece. To answer my friend, I thought My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was the best album of the decade, the best Kanye album, and one of my favorite albums of all time. I’m not sure yet whether I like Yeezus better or not. That’s how good it is. The only thing as expansive as Kanye’s ego is his talent. No, he isn’t a god, but he is a sinner, a black skinhead, a loner, and a monster. He is Yeezus. This album is his crowning achievement.  

- David Sackllah

ALBUM REVIEW: CAKES DA KILLA – THE EULOGY

 

Cakes Da Killa- The Eulogy

8.6

“The Eulogy”, by New York rapper Cakes Da Killa, is the album Nikki Minaj would have made last year if she weren’t such a pussy. “The most clinically insane cunt bitch up in the game” raps his off as the pitch of his voice warps over hyped up vocal samples and claps. Speaking of the beats, they compete with Cakes himself as the highlight of the tape. The tracks all flow together quite nicely ( I was very surprised to see a different producer on each track) and are never too long. Songs like “Snow Bunnies” and “Goodie Goodies” use repetitive snares and big bass drops under high-pitched looped keys and vocals while the title track, “Da Good Book” , “Break “Em Off” hit hard with sub bass and fast hi-hat at a slightly slower tempo. “Break ‘Em Off” also features a bridge where Cakes takes it upon himself to sing a…uhh…lovely version of Frank Ocean’s “Thinkin’ Bout You” except replacing you with a male body part.  It’s super goofy and pretty funny honestly, showing Cake has no problem expressing his homosexuality and having fun doing it.

Vulgar lines about sexual acts with other men are littered through out the tape, especially on “Fuck Ya Boifriend” where they take over and are less clever and more pointless, leaving one of the only subpar songs on the album.  Over all however, this album is a solid, fun listen and is probably my favorite rap release this year. “The Eulogy” contains multiple standout tracks and doesn’t suffer from the usual mix tape problem of being way too long. On it, Cakes flows very confidently over each fantastic beat, creating a character that isn’t afraid to be openly flamboyant, yet still sound like you can kick your ass. And with lines like “treat these bitches like they muthafuckin’ muggles” you can tell he is having a fun time doing it.

-Jay Dilick 

SXSRumors

SXSRumors

In case you haven’t heard yet, the internet is blowing up today with rumors of who is playing SXSW this year, and so far it’s been crazy. Here’s a rundown of everyone’s been talking about today.

• The Perez HIlton party is going to have a special guest who is a Grammy winning artist that is likely to be Alicia Keys. 
• Lil Wayne is rumored to be playing the Vevo stage Wednesday night at 3am. 
• Prince has been pretty much confirmed to play a show at La Zona Rosa on Saturday night. It’s unclear who is opening for him but reports have ran from Bruno Mars to A Tribe Called Quest. He’s also supposed to be playing some sort of awards show, which could be the MTVU Woodies or maybe the Austin Music Awards, I’m not really sure.
• Myspace has announced that they are going to have three surprise shows on Thursday, Friday, & Saturday. The time, location, and performers of each show won’t be announced until the day before. They said that the shows will be first come, first serve, apparently. Artists that are supposed to be there are Kid Cudi on Thursday, Sleigh Bells/Diplo on Friday, and Justin Timberlake on Saturday
• Finally, the big surprise show is that Daft Punk is rumored to play the Capitol on Wednesday night for free. Supposedly, members of Daft Punk have been spotted at clubs in the city, although that could really be any French guy with a robot helmet. There are posters all around town with the official Daft Punk logo though, so that would be amazing if they actually played

Hope everything works out so we can see some crazy shows y’all.

- David Sackllah

#Southie: Blog/Rest Comprehensive Guide to SXSW 2013

#Southie: Blog/Rest’s Comprehensive Guide to SXSW 2013 

As y’all know, the annual mayhem that is SXSW (or Southie, as the locals apparently call it) has begun. While there are negatives to that such as extreme traffic, long lines, and huge crowds, it also means that there is the opportunity to see pretty much every musician that gets talked about on the internet these days. There’s literally thousands of bands playing hundred of shows over the week, and it can get very overwhelming. To help you, I’ve made a spreadsheet on Excel that you can read right here with schedules of who is playing where. Read it here

SXSW Schedule

Spreadsheet Tips:

Everything is subject to change. For some of these shows the times are correct but for others, I just looked at the lineup and what time the show was running from and made educated guesses on who is playing when.

For the most part, day parties are free and the night events are showcases. However, there are some night parties that are free with RSVP

I have never tried to get into a showcase, but people have told me that many places often sell tickets at the door. This all depends on the size of the venue, how big the bands playing it are, and how many people show up.

I haven’t posted RSVP links because that takes forever, but if you have any questions about specific shows, send me a message or comment on the FB post and I’ll track down the link for you.

Make sure you scroll pretty far to the right, because I tried to keep the same venues in the same column, so there is a show all the way at the end on Monday even though in between is a bunch of blanks.

Some of these parties are 21+. Most events at Mohawk are all-ages, the Pitchfork parties are all ages, Auditorium Shores is all-ages, and I’m not sure about the rest. If you have questions about specific ones, let me know.

Finally, I just wanted to give you a heads up that there are some shows that haven’t been announced yet. The Fader Fort has some pretty sick acts but they haven’t confirmed who is playing which day. The RSVP has filled up already though. I’ve heard a lot of rumors of Justin Timberlake playing a secret show, and there are also reports of Myspace putting on secret shows all week that they won’t announce until the day before. Due to the fact that JT has a large ownership stake in the company that would probably be the best bet of getting a chance to see him. I only imagine that his show will be near-impossible to get into. 

Here is a Spotify playlist of a bunch of acts you should check out, and over the past few weeks I’ve been writing articles for Do512 showcasing 15 artists that I think are must-sees. Read them all below:

Savages, CHVRCHES, & Disclosure

Merchandise, Rhye, & Waxahatchee

White Lung, Autre Ne Veut, & Angel Haze

Metz, Andy Stott, & Torres

FIDLAR, Delorean, & Rustie

Show Recommendations:

With so many bands playing SXSW, it can be daunting to try to figure out which acts to catch. Now you’re probably not going to be able to see Vampire Weekend, Green Day, Nick Cave, Dave Grohl, or The Yeah Yeah Yeahs without a wristband, but there will be a chance to see so many great artists next week. Now if you want to waste your week standing in line for chances to see Mackemore or Alt-J, I can’t save you, but below are a bunch of great performers you should see instead. Keep in mind that the BV day parties and Fader Fort parties will likely be recommended as well.

Monday 3/11:

Surfer Blood & Divine Fits at Mohawk – If you’re in town, this is a great chance to catch two really good indie rock bands for free at my favorite venue. Surfer Blood are a great indie rock band in the vein of The Pixies, and Divine Fits feature the singers from Spoon and Handsome Furs in a pretty sweet electronic supergroup that you should check out.

Tuesday 3/12:

Delorean, Chelsea Light Moving, & Beach Fossils at Mohawk – Here’s a sweet day party that I recommend. I caught Delorean at Fun Fun Fun Fest in 2010 and the Spanish dance band absolutely killed it. They’re super fun live and a must see act during the week. Chelsea Light Moving is the new band of Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore and their debut album was strong. Beach Fossils are a great lo-fi indie rock group too.

Pitchfork Interactive Party at Mohawk – Tuesday night you have to go back to the Mohawk for a really great free party. Icona Pop, Cloud Nothings, John Talabot, Marnie Stern, Torres, Blue Hawaii, and Hundred Waters are all playing. All those acts are awesome, and I have good reason to believe the “special guests” will be DIIV, so this is one must-see event.

Wednesday 3/13:

Day

Pitchfork Show No Mercy at Mohawk – Fans of punk and metal should check out this party. The big names at this event are the LA hardcore group Trash Talk who put on a crazy live show and the Alabama doom metal act Pallbearer, who’s debut album last year Sorrow & Extinction was the best metal album of last year. Other acts include Pinkish Black, Vattnet Viskar, and Skeletonwitch.

KGSR Morning Showcase at the W Hotel – if you go in the early morning to the W Hotel, you can walk up the outside stairs, pay $5, and get food and live acoustic music. I’d advise getting there really early if you want to catch the bands, and Wednesday morning they have Iron & Wine, The Dixie Chicks side project Courtyard Hounds, and Bob Schnieder. If you’re a morning person, it’s not a bad way to wake up.

Paste Party At the Stage on Sixth – Paste has put together four days of indie and folk acts, but their lineup for the first day party is the best. Marnie Stern, Matthew E White, Mac Demarco, Foxygen, and the almighty Dawes will all be there.

Gorilla Vs. Bear Party at the Hype Hotel – I’ve heard that the Hype Hotel isn’t the best venue, but this lineup of great electronic and indie acts is pretty sweet. Disclosure, Shlomo, Ryan Hemsworth, & John Talabot will get you dancing, and Charli XcX, Fear Of Men, and Antwon will also be pretty sweet.

Consequence of Sound Party at the Parish – Fans of garage rock might enjoy this one more, as you get another chance to see Chelsea Light Moving and Mac Demarco alongside great garage acts like Ex-Cops, Wampire, The Thermals, or the great White Lung.

Urban Outfitters – UO have a pretty nice lineup all four days, and the first one kicks off with performances by Icona Pop & White Lung.

Night:

Vans Showcase at Mohawk – This one will be super hard to get in, but the website said Badges/Wristbands priority, not only, so that’s a good sign. If you get a chance to go inside and watch Japandroids, Iggy Pop & The Stooges, Sky Ferreira, & Ghostface Killah, take it. You won’t regret it.

Showcase at Holy Mountain – Here’s a kickass showcase with some standouts from Don Giovanni and Sacred Bones featuring White Lung, California X, Nu Sensae, Antwon, Laura Stevenson, psych rockers The Holy Drug Couple, and my personal favorite Waxahatchee. Katie Crutchfield’s band is the best new act of 2013, and you need to see her at least once.

Kendrick Lamar at Spotify House at 1100 Warehouse – This one’s a free one instead of a showcase, but you do have to RSVP beforehand. There are some openers, but the main draw here is Kendrick. He’s playing a ton of shows this week, but this one might be one of the easier chances to see him. You have to catch him at least once. Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City is one of the best albums of the last decade, and his live shows are super fun.

Showcase at Scoot Inn – I’m not sure who’s putting this on or if there will be tickets at the door, but the lineup is sweet. Wavves, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Trash Talk, and Earl Sweatshirt are all slated to play this one.

Thursday 3/14

Day:

Pitchfork Party at 1100 Warehouse – Pitchfork, like always, has put together the best day party of the festival. Featuring Toro Y Moi, Youth Lagoon, Foxygen, Andy Stott, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Delorean, Mac Demarco, White Lung, Mikal Cronin, Parquet Courts, Merchandise, Autre Ne Veut, Rhye, Waxahatchee, and California X, this is the best lineup I’ve seen the whole festival. Go there.

Fool’s Gold Super Party at Emo’s East – If you’re not gonna listen to me and go to the Pitchfork Party, check out this one. I believe tickets are $10 (it was free last year though), and it’s stacked with !!!, Andrew W.K, Mykki Blanco, Trash Talk, Wavves, Pictureplane, Kitty Pryde, Zebra Katz, Hundred Waters, The Very Best, Antwon, Ryan Hemsworth, Riff Raff, Icona Pop, and many more. It’s a super sweet lineup and lasts all night.

Thrasher/Converse Death Match at Scoot Inn – Here’s another sweet party full of awesome punk and garage music featuring Chelsea Light Moving, Mac Demarco, Merchandise, King Tuff, Bleached, White Lung, and The Black Angels. It’s pretty much an ideal indie-punk lineup, but most of my favorite acts on that list are going to be at the Pitchfork Party too.

KVRX Party at Spiderhouse – UT’s campus radio station has got a sweet party full of awesome garage acts that is going to last all day and night. Destruction Unit, Ex-Cult, Naomi Punk, Dog Bite, Dustin Wong, The Coathangers, and Homeshake will all be playing.

Night:

Pitchfork Showcase at 1100 Warehouse – This one’s an official showcase, but with the fact that the venue is large, none of the acts are huge, and that they sold tickets to showcases last year there, you might be able to get in. With a lineup that’s got Rustie, Disclosure, Ryan Hemsworth, Zebra Katz, Savages, Sky Ferreira, Pissed Jeans, FIDLAR, and Doldrums, this is the one I’m going to try and go to.

Viceland – Not sure about how easy it is to get into this one, but here’s your shot at seeing Snoop Lion and Major Lazer.

Friday 3/15

Day:

KUT at the Four Seasons – Similar to what KGSR is doing at the W, KUT has bands playing at the Four Seasons in the early morning for $10. All four days have good bands, but Friday’s is the best with Frightened Rabbit and Josh Ritter.

Steregogum Party at The Hype Hotel – Here’s another Hype Hotel one with a great lineup. With Sky Ferreira, Youth Lagoon, Kitty Pryde, Metz, Hundred Waters, & Bleeding Rainbow, this might be the one to check out on Friday.

After The Gold Rush Party at The Red Eyed Fly – Pretty similar to the one above, this party has Youth Lagoon, Surfer Blood, Metz, and Phosphorescent.

Urban Outfiiters – The lineup for Friday is really stacked as well, with Charli XcX, Autre Ne Veut, Doldrums, Houses, Majical Cloudz, and Mister Lies. This would be a good one to catch.

Pure Volume Party at Easy Tiger – This is the Pains of Being Pure At Heart’s only SXSW appearance, and it also has Wavves and Marnie Stern, so this might be a sweet one to check.

Night:

The Flaming Lips at Auditorium Shores – This is the biggest show you should check out. The Flaming Lips always put on an incredible live show, and them headlining the night in the same slot where The Shins were last year will be like watching a great festival headliner. It doesn’t hurt that Jim James & Divine Fits are opening up. This is the place where you’ll meet up with all your friends. Completely free entry.

Ground Control Showcase at Mohawk – This one’s an official showcase, but would be sweet to go to. With Trash Talk, DIIV, Chelsea Light Moving, Parquet Courts, Ducktails, and Dawes, here’s a good place to get a rock fix.

Arbitus Showcase at Swan Dive – Arbitus Records have been putting out one of the best electronic pop records of the past few years, and have put together an all-star lineup of Braids, Doldrums, Blue Hawaii, Majical Cloudz, and Sean Nicholas Savage to check out.

Mass Appeal Party at Austin Music Hall – Not sure exactly how easy it is to get into this one, but there is an RSVP link. With Kendrick Lamar, Danny Brown, Bun B, Joey Bada$$, and Pusha T, this might be the best rap show of the fest.

Saturday 3/16

Day:

AV Club Party at Mohawk – This one is a pretty good mix of genres, with Frightened Rabbit, Baths, Fear Of Men, Houses, Metz, and Balmorhea. Not a bad one to check out.

Pop Montreal at 1618 East 6^th – This is a eclectic mix with Sinkane and Mozart’s Sister later in the day, but the big draw is that Waxahatchee and Sean Nicholas Savage open the day here.

Do512’s The Big One – Here’s where I’ll be, as Do512 always puts on super fun shows. This year we have The Polphonic Spree and Big Freedia headlining with Girl In a Coma and others opening. There will be so much AZZ.

Brooklyn Vegan Party at the Old Emo’s on 6^th – This is the only day lineup they’ve announced so far, but it has an awesome lineup. Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Austra, King Tuff, Autre Ne Veut, White Lung, Doldrums, and Foxygen will all be at this one.

Spin House at Easy Tiger – Not sure how hard it will be to get into this one, but it’s got Savages, Cloud Nothings, and Bleached. Savages are one of the must-see acts this year for sure.

Night:

Viceland – Still not sure about how to get into this one, but it’s got Kendrick Lamar, Action Bronson, Baauer, Trinidad James, Black Lips, and Parquet Courts. Not bad.

Relapse Showcase at Red 7 – Here’s a pretty sweet showcase with Parquet Courts, Merchandise, Antwon, and Big Freedia. Expect a lot of dancing and Azz.

Rayban/Boiler Room Party at 1100 Warehouse – This is the one party that you absolutely have to be at Saturday night. You have to RSVP and get there early, because the warehouse will fill up. Death Grips, Chief Keef, Mount Kimbie, Lunice, Baauer, and Shlomo will all be playing, and for many of those artists it will be their only show. This party might be the best single event of the whole week. There are special guests who will show up, and given the fac that Lunice is going to be there, it’s not that outlandish to speculate Hudson Mohawke might show up for a TNGHT show. Either way, here’s your only chance to see Death Grips.

Justin Timberlake???? – If he shows up and plays a show you can see, this is the night you’ll be able to go.

Well, phew. If you made it this far, thanks for reading. I’ve spent a lot of time on the spreadsheet, and can’t wait to see all the bands at SXSW. Feel free to ask me any questions and I’ll be posting updates to Facebook and Twitter over the week. Also text me so we can meet up and party at the festival. See you all at Southie! 

Update 3/10: Fader Fort & BV Announcements

Anyone who was able to RSVP for the Fader Fort shows should check out the full schedule right here, because it’s dope. Each day’s lineup gets really great around 6. Wednesday night not only gives you the chance to see Ducktails and Sky Ferreira, but you get the Black Hippy combo of both Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q. With Kendrick playing the warehouse across the street later that night, I wouldn’t be surprised if he shows up. 

Thursday night gives you Small Black and DIIV for the indie kids and Trinidad James and Solange for the hip/hop crowd. Solange’s latest EP was amazing and I highly recommend you catching her if it fits into your schedule. Friday night features some treats as you get Disclosure and Future right before The Afghan Whigs. I didn’t know the last band was coming, but expect a lot of older 90s fans there. Future should be a blast live, as his album and mixtape from the past year are two of my favorites. The real treat of Fader Fort comes the final night, before Delorean and French Montana go on. Not only do you get to see Earl Sweatshirt, but Flying Lotus’s alter ego Captain Murphy will be performing with him as well. This will probably be one of the can’t miss sets of the fest

Finally, Brooklyn Vegan announced that Death will be playing a special midday set on Thursday at the old Emo’s location. Any fan of classic punk should check this out, as this Detroit trio is one of the most influential punk bands of all time who also inspired a lot of dance musicians such as LCD Soundsystem. If you’re interested in classic punk, you should check it out. BV also updated the lineup for all four days and added Savages and Delorean to the Wednesday afternoon lineup, which might be worth checking out too.  Expect more updates to come. 

- David Sackllah

ALBUM REVIEW: JOHNNY MARR

Album Review- Johnny Marr: The Messenger

 7

This album has been available for listen for about a month now, so I’m a little late on this review…Or am I? Maybe I did it as a metaphor for the fact that Johnny Marr’s solo album came out a little late. Like a good 15 years. Mr. Marr has been around the music scene post- Smiths for while now, working with different artists here and there. His former partner, Morrissey, has been making this type of Alt-Brit-Pop music Marr’s solo LP contains since ’88. So “The Messenger” doesn’t stand out nearly as much as his past amazing works with the Smiths or even Modest Mouse really, and pretty big cause of that is the timing. Songs too. But timing also.

Music wise, Smith’s fans won’t be disappointed. The songs contain that classic Marr guitar work that I, and I know many others, love. This guy can really play and this album is a great showcase of that. The guitar parts on the jam of “Generate! Generate!” are spectacular, and the solo (Main riff, too) bites you in the face on the closing track “Word Starts Attack”. Unfortunately, Marr’s low British moan doesn’t pair as nicely as Morrisey’s beautiful wail and some of the songs, like “European Me”(which is a great song in it’s own right) make me wish strongly for a Smith’s Reunion. Some songs don’t stand on their own that well either, whether it be because of Marr’s vocals or, in some cases, the cloudiness of the production. Overall, however, this album was a nice listen and anyone who is a fan of The British Alt-pop sound will find this album a fun listen as well.

-Jay Dilick 

 

ALBUM REVIEW: ATOMS FOR PEACE

Atoms For Peace- AMOK

7.8

“’Atoms for Peace’ was the title of a speech delivered by U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower to the UN General Assembly in New York City on December 8, 1953.

‘I feel impelled to speak today in a language that in a sense is new-‘”

 

Oh wait, wrong Wikipedia article. Here you go:

 

 “Atoms For Peace is an supergroup formed in late 2009…The group consists of Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar and piano), Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea (bass), longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich (keyboards, synths), Joey Waronker ofBeck & R.E.M. (drums) and Brazilian instrumentalist Mauro Refosco (percussion).”

                                                                                                                                                -Wikipedia

 Naming your solo project after something like a Presidential speech used to promote a plan to warn the American public about “nuclear future” and use “emotion containment” carries over some pretty grandiose expectations of the quality and originality of the content. The name would be more fitting for Radiohead than Yorke’s solo project/band. Which there lies the underlying flaw that stops this record from being great: the feeling of yearning or disappointment from the missing, possible greatness. It doesn’t overshadow the great music throughout but it lingers enough to leave a taste.

The music on this LP isn’t “…a language that in a sense is new” by any means but it sure is cool sounding. Heavily electronic and percussive, “AMOK” sounds very similar to Yorke’s solo effort “The Eraser” but the presence of a full band is noticeable and welcome when compared to his first LP. The strongest point on the record is definitely Flea’s bass. He drives every song with simple, electronic, low-end bass lines (Judge, Jury, and Executioner, Ingenue) and anytime he gets a chance to shine is a standout part of the song. Sonically, the weakest parts of most tracks are the drums/ and percussion, a little to often for my liking they choose a glitch-like stumble, instead of swag-filled drive under the music, when the latter seems appropriate. Godrich and Yorke’s keys and, especially, guitars are nice touches in the songs and the second half of “Reverse Running” sounds awesome and jazzy. The longer songs could all be about a minute/30 seconds shorter and I was surprised how much I missed/ noticed the absence of the rest of the Radioheadz. Yorke alone, or with a band even, is good. And Sometimes, like on this LP, it’s pretty fantastic. But knowing how good he can be, and hearing how good the band can be the moments when they hit the target, leaves a feeling that this LP falls a little flat.

 -Jay Dilick

Album Reviews: Psychic Ills & Hilly Eye

Psychic Ills – One Track Mind

6.7

One Track Mind, the fourth record from Brooklyn psych-rock stalwarts is an enjoyable listen. It’s best described as 8 songs of unassuming background psych-rock for a lazy day. These are definitely stoner jams, nice to listen to with a few catchy hooks but ultimately not a ton going on. Some of the best psych-rock incorporates ultra-catchy hooks or large amounts of fuzz and garage rock, but other times the genre is good at giving nice sounds to zone out to. It’s not really a bad thing, but when the stakes and ambition on a record are this low, there’s not a lot of room for improvement or discovery. When you set the bar low, you don’t have to try as hard to reach it.

I don’t want to fall back on the slacker stereotype, but One Track Mind actually sounds pretty good, with some enjoyable psych cuts and catchy hooks that could have benefited from some energy and fine-tuning. Tracks like “Despot” or single “One More Time” are actually pretty catchy and fun. They do a good enough job on these straightforward psych songs that you wonder how good they could sound if they pushed themselves to go outside of the box on their next time around.

Hilly Eye – Reasons To Live

5.7

Amy Klein left the amazing indie-punk group Titus Andronicus last year to focus her talents as the lead singer of the indie-rock group Hilly Eye, a move that resulted in a shift in sound for both groups. It’s a noble move, but it doesn’t result in a terribly engrossing album. Reasons To Live has some pretty moments and technically sound music, but the songs just don’t come together to be very entertaining. There’s the awkward refrain quoting a popular Guns & Roses album title in the sprawl of “Jersey City” that sort of feels lost early on, and that’s kind of a theme that goes throughout the album. It’s not bad really, but with slow tempos and not a ton of interesting ideas going on, the album feels like a very long 42 minutes.

There are good moments like the dramatic conclusion of “American Rail” or the experimental opening to the heavy and intense “Double Dutch”, but for the most part, the album just kind of drifts along.  Most songs just use about three minutes of so-so buildup before they lead to a conclusion that is sometimes rousing. Reasons To Live sounds like the work of an opening band that starts off with some decent moments but gets old after about three songs.

- David Sackllah 

EP Reviews: Fear of Men & Screaming Females

Fear Of Men – Early Fragments

6.9

Early Fragments is a solid collection of singles from the indie-pop group that has come out of England over the past year or so. These 8 songs are all good tracks of 80s inspired indie-pop in a similar fashion to Veronica Falls or Allo Darlin, but is simply not as memorable as either of those groups. Fear Of Men draws upon the dreamier elements of indie-pop with the spacious textures and jangly guitars they use, dipping into aspects of shoegaze level distortion occasionally. The album is organized in reverse chronological order, which make for an interesting listen.

There are moments of interesting experimentation, such as a spoken-word rant to serve as the backdrop for the standout track “Mosaic”, one that benefits greatly from the energy and drive that anchor the track. There is a definite wistful and nostalgic quality to these tracks as well. In fact, the softer songs seem to find the band kind of standing in place whereas tracks that are more upbeat such as “Born” find the band landing on a good mix of the dreamier side of indie-pop. Early Fragments gets better as you go towards the end, which is a bit of a negative sign given that it’s the earlier material that is the strongest. This EP is a good indication of a band with a lot of talent working to develop their strengths. Fear Of Men will probably come out with a really good debut album, hopefully Early Fragments will serve in hindsight as a progression of ideas to a more fully-formed band.

Screaming Females - Chalk Tape

7.6

I want to start off by saying that after about 9 months, I realize that I gave Screaming Female’s last album, Ugly, too low of a score the last time around. The blistering blast of garage-punk did last a bit too long, but I found myself coming back to it much more throughout the year than I anticipated. That’s why I found myself excited by the prospect of a new release by the band, a transitory collection of 8 songs that finds the band exploring new ideas. Chalk Tape was designed by the band writing out a bunch of ideas on the board, and then trying them out and recording it on the first take. This allows for many different ideas and sounds to come through, such as doom-folk, pop-punk, and the more hardcore ideas you’ve grown to expect from the band. Coming in at 15 minutes, Chalk Tape is one of those “blink-and-you’ll-miss” listens, yet not one that lacks substance.

 All of the ideas they explore turn out successful from the slow doom folk of “Sick Bed” to the metal inspired “Crushing The Kingdom” and the acoustic jam of “Bad Men”. The band finds time to create short bursts of creative songwriting in a relaxed setting, making for some wonderful sketches. The band still shows their hard side off on the blistering hardcore-noise rock anthem “Wrecking Ball”, but finds time for some funk on “Into The Sun”. It all comes together on the wonderful “Green Vapors”, a fun punk collaboration with labelmates Shellshag to close out the album. The song is perfect 90s indie pop-punk, and one of the best songs the band has ever made. Screaming Females use this tape to show off a lot of range and potential, and for the cheap price, you should definitely get a listen to this EP.

The physical release was limited to only 100 copies, but you can find a digital version of the EP on ITunes or at the record label Don Giovanni’s website. 

- David Sackllah