Vol. 6 Issue 71 September 2011
Time to get ready for back to school! BRM is ready with several new pairs of jeggings and a fantastic new back pack with a pony on it! In the meantime we are also up on all the latest new releases from Wild Flag and Bon Iver and even The Rapture! It is more than enough to keep us awake during our first class of the day! Now will it help us not hate gym? Well I don't know about that.....
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Current Releases
- Click to see:
- Merge
- Jagjaguwar
- AmbleDown
- Thrill Jockey
Merge
www.mergerecords.com
WIld Flag
"Wild Flag"
Much like Voltron, Wild Flag is a band whose individual members are powerhouses unto themselves, but once merged (pun intended), are unstoppable. If Janet Weiss, Mary Timony, Rebecca Cole and Carrie Brownstein’s names don’t ring a bell, you aren’t paying attention (and I warned you there would be a quiz! Your parents are gonna hear about this...). Having played with Sleater-Kinney, Quasi, Helium, The Minders and Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, none of these ladies have anything to prove, and yet their new self-titled album (Merge) proves just how amazing they are. A rollocking, garage-tinged, rock ‘n’ roll album filled with the kind of immediate tunes that make kids want to be in a band. Check out “Romance.”
Stephin Merritt
"Obscurities"
When a band or musician is around long enough, chances are they will release an “Odds & Sods” collection. Clean out the closet if you will. Stephin Meritt has done just such a thing with his latest release, Obscurities (Merge). The thing is, this doesn’t sound as disjointed as most rarities and unreleased collections. This might be because Stephin Meritt made his name by releasing Magnetic Fields’ 69 Love Songs. So perhaps since we are used to all of his songs being so varied, this album sits nicely alongside his other brilliant releases. If you can get past the uncomfortable octopi tentacle explosion that is the album cover, baritone crooned beauty awaits the listener. Check out the Bauhaus creep of “Yet Another Girl.”
Jagjaguwar
www.jagjaguwar.com
Bon Iver
"Bon Iver"
Justin Vernon has been like the Superman of music for the last few years. His solo cabin recording origin story is legendary. After he found himself in the limelight, every musician was calling him for help, and he was only too happy to do it, culminating in adding vocals to Kayne West tracks. Well, if his much loved debut was Superman: The Movie, Bon Iver’s second self titled album (Jagjaguwar) is definitely the darker, moodier General Zod–featuring sequel. No longer content to simply feature an acoustic guitar and his chilling voice, he moves his virtuosic vocals over chilling musical beds created by him and members of Collections of Colonies of Bees (with whom he has been working lately). Of course, no one can discuss this album without mention- ing the rather odd album closer “Beth/Rest,” which sounds an awful lot like Peter Cetera or anything else Delilah would be playing during the afternoon. But, frankly, Mr. Vernon has earned the right to do whatever he wants. The song works because it is so completely genuine, without a hint of irony. For a track more indicative of Bon Iver, check out “Calgary.”
AmbleDown
www.ambledown.com/
Halloween, Alaska
"All Night the Calls Came In"
As a result of the lengthy process of recording their prior albums, Halloween, Alaska decided to lay this one down in less than a week. It was recorded in one small room, with all the members of the band playing simultaneously. As a reaction to members of the band leaving, they...um...replaced them. What we have here is a band that has slightly moved away from the keyboard-heavy, indie-pop they are known for. All Night the Calls Came In (AmbleDown) is their most satisfying effort to date. Sure, there are keyboards, but it’s about the entire band now. All the pieces fit together better than ever before, sounding less like The Postal Service and more like The Police. Really. Check out the slightly flanged “Empire Waist.”
Thrill Jockey
www.thrilljockey.com
Glenn Jones
"The Wanting"
Minus the last song, The Wanting (Thrill Jockey) finds guitarist Glenn Jones playing stringed instrument alone in his Boston suburb apartment (get those images of Esteban and his Slash-lite look out of your head right now, this is nothing like that!). A guitarist since the age of 14, he hasn’t used a standard guitar tuning for over 25 years. He is constantly creating tunings, and perhaps it’s the strange open tunings that add to the haunting ring of his guitar (or banjo on a few tracks). Each song feels like we are being allowed into a highly personal, meditative exercise in acoustic beauty. Songs ring out like far more sensitive renderings of Adrian Legg’s solo pieces. Mr. Jones sites John Fahey as a major influence, and that fact is quite apparent on album standout “Of It’s Own Kind.” This album screams out to be listened to in the autumn.
- Click to see:
- DFA
- Barsuk
- Hometapes
- 8-Track Mind
DFA
dfarecords.com/
The Rapture
"In the Grace Of Your Love"
From the very first moments of The Rapture’s third full-length album In The Grace Of Your Love (DFA), you know you have some joyous listening ahead of you, which is exactly what they were hoping for. While recording their second album in 2009, tensions were running a little high between the band. The result was a happy sounding album that they hated making, as well as the departure of bassist and vocalist Mattie Safer. So this time around the band decided to have fun in the studio and hope that the results would be a reflection of the process. What they ended up with is an amalgamation of genres resulting in a disco-punk hoe-down that is sure to get heads nodding and toes tapping. Check out the spiritual crooning and guitar alarms of “How Deep Is Your Love.”
Barsuk
barsuk.com
Cymbals Eat Guitars
"Lenses Alien"
Cymbals Eat Guitars’ breakout LP, Why There Are Mountains, met with huge critical acclaim back in 2009. Since then—and after a lineup change—the Staten Island band has been putting together material for a second album. On Lenses Alien (Barsuk), instead of attempting to clone their previous efforts, Cymbals Eat Guitars took an opportunity to redefine themselves. They had already made their mark by being good at ‘doing indie,’ but their new style delves into a sweet mix of complexities. Big rock-n-roll tracks like, “Keep Me Waiting” and “Tunguska,” run head-on into the darker, slower-moving tracks like “Plainclothes” and “Wavelengths.” On this album, the band finds its center. Check out, “Wavelengths.”
Mathieu Santos
"Massachusetts 2010"
Watch out Sufjan! Ra Ra Riot’s bassist, Mathieu Santos is edging in on your territory and taking over one of your fifty states. Last year, Santos spent some time in Massachusetts—away from his main band—to focus on writing this sharp set of songs titled, get ready, Massachusetts 2010 (Barsuk). He breaks loose on this album, pulling from a wide array of musical influences. “I’d Go” has a slow, sexy, Sergio Leone style build, and “Wait To Get Up” is straight up channeling Sting’s Police days. At first, “I Can Hear The Trains Coming” kind of sounds like Peter, Bjorn and John covering The Kinks, but when the drums come in, and the song explodes with an energy that only the Bay State can offer, you’ll start rocking the headphones off your own face. Check it out.
Hometapes
hometapes.tumblr.com/
Megafaun
"Megafaun"
Psych rock with soul? Check. Gorgeous vocal harmonies? Check. Honest vulnerability that warms the ears and heart? Check. Megafaun’s eponymously titled fourth album has the unmistakable sound of a band settling into its skin while simultaneously stretching the boundaries of said skin. That might sound kinda gross, but I assure you, it is not. Megafaun (Hometapes) is, quite simply, a beautiful record that speaks with a kind of directness that is hard to ignore. Dig in to “Second Friend” to see what I mean.
8-Track Mind
sallycrewe.com/
Sally Crewe & The Sudden Moves
"Transmit/Receive"
Sally Crewe & The Sudden Moves have been flirting with making the perfect power pop record since their 2003 debut Drive It Like You Stole It. Perfect, that is, if you receive your pop in heavy doses from early releases by The Cars, Joe Jackson and even Pat Benatar. Well, if this rings true, then they may have attained their goal with their newest release, a five song EP titled Transmit/Receive (8-Track Mind). It has everything working in its favor. Sally Crewe and her crew (sorry, couldn’t help it) are in full rock ‘n’ roll mode here; confident, a little snarly and full of attitude. Plus, this time around 4 out of the 5 tunes were co-penned by guitar/vocalist Doug Gillard of Guided By Voices fame. Check out EP opener, “Make Me Stay.”