Weekly Release Spotlight
Weekly Release Spotlight: Phantogram
Posted on 2/08/2010
Phantogram
[Barsuk]
In the early 1990s, the burgeoning urban art scene of Bristol, England gave rise to the trip hop and drum and bass movements. Twenty years later, Saratoga Springs may not necessarily seem at first glance to be another hotbed of brilliant beats and electronic innovation. But considering that in the last few years both Ratatat and Phantogram have emerged from this upstate New York college town, beats and samples in tow, perhaps it makes sense to say that trip hop’s influence reached further than anyone had originally thought. Not since Bristol’s heyday has a band so seamlessly and interestingly fused hip hop elements and samples with haunting melodies and psych-pop catchiness. And like Portishead and Massive Attack before them, Phantogram’s collaboration is more than just a sum of its members’ musical parts; it’s a pairing that can’t be replicated.
Keyboardist Sarah Barthel and guitarist Josh Carter formed Phantogram in 2007. With their first two EPs, both released in 2009, they quickly gained national attention as harbingers of a new era of electronic pop. Eyelid Movies, the band’s first full-length, has been highly anticipated – and with good reason. “Running from the Cops,” one of Eyelid Movies’ standout tracks, puts a modern spin on Massive Attack-era trip hop. Barthel’s vocals and synth on “All Dried Up” and “As Far as I Can See” respectively recall the bittersweet balladry and the feel-good dance anthems of Goldfrapp and Chromatics. Carter also sings on several tracks (including hypnotic slow jam “You are the Ocean”), which ensures the record never gets boring - not that it was ever in any danger of that. Barthel and Carter have also made public their adulation for French pop provacateur Serge Gainsbourg, and Eyelid Movies’ more upbeat moments (“Let Me Go”) prove they’ve done their homework.
Tossing aside the stereotype of “girl plays keyboards and sings breathily while boy plays the ‘real’ instruments and writes all the music,” the very core of the band’s success – arguably, the depth of its layers - is a product of Barthel and Carter’s combined musical repertoires and songwriting talent, making an album that is both compelling and irresistible. From the first five seconds of the opening track, “Mouthful of Diamonds,” each song is so layered and journeys to such unexpected yet satisfying directions that you can’t help but want more.
Phantogram performed instudio at our live broadcast from the CMJ Festival in New York City last October. Check out the session here!Stream: Phantogram - When I'm Small
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Owen Pallett
Posted on 2/01/2010
Weekly Release Spotlight: Retribution Gospel Choir
Posted on 1/24/2010
Retribution Gospel Choir
2
[Sub Pop]
The members of Low have long been praised (however reluctantly) as the grand architects of the slowcore movement. Starting in the early '90s, Low put snowy little Duluth, Minnesota on the map - and helped put Radio K on the map as well - with its glacially paced and artfully restrained songs. But with his side project Retribution Gospel Choir's newest album, 2, singer/guitarist Alan Sparhawk once again shatters (literally, by the looks of the cover art) any assumptions about his songwriting. Like he's done with Black Eyed Snakes and Los Besos, Sparhawk has again proven he is more than just the king of minimalism – he can get a little wild and crazy, too.
2 has a rawness and a heaviness only hinted at on the band's self-titled 2008 album and on Low's 2005 release, The Great Destroyer. Starting with the anthemic "Hide it Away," the record keeps the harmonies, drama and moodiness of Low. But where Low is measured and deliberate, the songs on 2 don't hold anything back. Retribution Gospel Choir (which also includes Low bassist Steve Garrington) crams even the 45-second interlude "68 Comeback" with riffs similar to Sparhawk's blues-rock group Black Eyed Snakes before giving way to the earnest and catchy "Workin' Hard." "Poor Man's Daughter" is perhaps the most reminiscent of Low, yet quickly dissolves into chaotic, epic swells that recall psych-rockers Black Mountain.
With Retribution Gospel Choir, Sparhawk has found yet another outlet for his superbly theatrical songwriting. His credibility may already be established, but it's still nice to see artists challenge themselves and their fans by venturing into new territory. We Minnesotans love it when a home-state hero succeeds, and with the band's move to Sub Pop (also home to Low), hopefully Sparhawk's wild side can now be shared with, and appreciated by, a wider audience.
Stream: Retribution Gospel Choir - Hide It Away
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Ghana Special
Posted on 1/18/2010
Various Artists
Ghana Special: Modern Highlife, Afro Sounds, Ghanaian Blues 1968 – 1981
[Soundway]
As Craig Finn once put it, most people are DJs. In this digital age, anyone can access almost any kind of music and share it with anyone else. Music is now a collectible item, not an experience or a meaningful exchange. With such a saturation of the music market, it’s rare to find someone who is a DJ in the true sense of the term – a tastemaker who doesn’t just care about matching a beat or showing off obscure records, but who genuinely cares about sharing truly great music with people who wouldn’t ever come across it on their own. Miles Cleret is one of those DJs and, lucky for us, not only does he love to share - he owns a record label.
Cleret and his label, Soundway, are behind Ghana Special and the Nigeria Special, Ghana Soundz and Panama! collections, among many others. Concentrating on the 1960s through ‘80s, the compilations showcase music from oft neglected, albeit culturally important, areas of the world. More blues, pop and soul-tinged than the guitar-oriented Nigeria Special and the funky Ghana Soundz, Ghana Special highlights the West African country’s ‘70s, a time when it experienced multiple political coups and when traditional Ghanaian highlife fused with danceable rock, pop, soul and reggae imported from Jamaica, Nigeria, Europe, the UK and the United States. Every song on the two-disc set (two of the most notable are The Ogyatanaa Show Band’s “You Monopolise Me” and Christy Azuma and Uppers International’s “Din Ya Sugri”) does an excellent job of proving that there’s more to West African music than Fela Kuti and Afrobeat, and that great ‘70s rock does not have to automatically mean Zeppelin or the Stones.
Cleret has made a reputation for himself by going way beyond the idea of the compilation as a rough guide. The tracks are painstakingly selected and extremely rare (Cleret, when unable to track down a recording, reportedly just knocks on the musician’s door). He’s meticulously remastered the songs, and the album’s liner notes show that he’s done his homework. Ghana Special may be a labor of love for Miles Cleret and a fun and educational glimpse into Ghanaian history for us, but for the musicians who created these distinctive sounds, it’s a chance to finally get the credit they deserve.
Stream: The Big Beats - Mi Nsumoo Bo Donn
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Dam-Funk
Posted on 1/11/2010
Dam-Funk
Toeachizown
[Stones Throw]
With his pressed, slicked-back ponytail, neon sunglasses and bright sneakers, it's no surprise that Dam-Funk (né Damon Riddick) is from Los Angeles. And just like L.A., Riddick's music is a sprawling collection of distinctive but cohesive elements. His official debut full-length, Toeachizown, literally sprawls at 139 minutes (it's available on two CDs or five LPs). It's music that doesn't just recall the City of Angels; Dam-Funk and L.A. are one and the same, an inseparable pair.
First and foremost a DJ, Riddick made a name for himself through his weekly "Funkmosphere" parties, where he spins the finest and rarest in boogie and electro-funk records. He was "discovered" and brought into the Stones Throw fold by none other than label founder Peanut Butter Wolf (who, after his discoveries of Madlib, Dam-Funk and Mayer Hawthorne may soon become the independent electronic and hip hop scene's Dr. Dre equivalent). Toeachizown, which is largely instrumental, seems to be just as influenced by the California air Riddick breathes as it is by the records he spins every Monday night. Songs like "Mirrors" and "Keep Lookin 2 The Sky" audibly shimmer with Riddick's layers of vintage synth and sly drum machine goodness.
Riddick now sits comfortably - with Animal Collective as die-hard fans - as Stone Throw's newest master of musical mise-en-scene, creating downtempo, expansive songs influenced not just by boogie and funk, but by house and hip hop (Riddick has said he's highly influenced by another L.A. tradition, gangsta rap) that enter your brain via your ears and whisk you away to ocean breezes, sunshine and endless miles of beaches and pavement. Whether that's Riddick's intention or not, listening to Toeachizown is a mini-vacation that we all could use.
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Anders Ponders
Posted on 1/04/2010
Anders Ponders
Nodes of Overtones
[Self-released]
The conflict between style and substance isn't a modern concept. In 17th century Europe, Baroque art maintained a respectable balance between function and form. Baroque paintings were realistic enough that they effectively told the important stories of the era (mostly biblical or mythological at that time) in an easily comprehensible way, but they were beautiful and dramatic enough that they could be appreciated on an aesthetic level. The art engaged the viewer by being more than the sum of its prettiness and its practicality. Soon though, the Rococo movement came along and, as any art historian will tell you, basically ruined everything. Over-the-top, self-indulgent and frivolous, Rococo artists and designers set aside content altogether. The pieces were pure fluff - giant swirls of pastel and gaudy depictions with absolutely no meaning behind them. Feel free to draw your own conclusions as to what constitutes a modern-day musical equivalent of Rococo, but local musician Anders Mattson may be the most sonically Baroque artist the Twin Cities music scene has ever heard.
Mattson's debut as Anders Ponders, Nodes of Overtones, is both high art and day in the life of a normal dude. Mattson, also a member of Bouncer Fighter, is a talented multi-instrumentalist who started performing as a child. He complements his viola arrangements with loops, effects, acoustic guitars and stripped-down, organic percussion to make music that is slightly more down-to-earth than fellow string enthusiasts Andrew Bird and Owen Pallett. "I don't mean to be the type to moralize/I just want a veggie burger with some cheesy fries," he sings on the unique coming-of-age ballad "Icarus." The intensity and excitement of "How We’ve Grown" is complemented by pain over a lost love in "Mr. Butterfly," a song that recalls the best and most tragic moments of Elliott Smith more than it does Bird or Pallett.
Nodes of Overtones may be approachable, but that doesn't stop it from reaching complex and theatrical heights that are extremely pretty, but not garish. Just like the best Baroque art, each song is more than the sum of its parts. And Mattson is more than just a guy with a viola singing about veggie burgers or a creator of opulent symphonies – he's a true artist.
Stream: Anders Ponders - The Discuss Incident
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Animal Collective
Posted on 12/28/2009
![Animal Collective - Fall Be Kind [EP]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2625/4222612020_d07866a305_m.jpg)
Animal Collective
Fall Be Kind [EP]
[Domino]
To the casual listener, Animal Collective's music can seem like a nebulous jungle of samples, droning and distorted vocals. Yet over the band's decade-long career, these young men from Baltimore have somehow managed to infiltrate the collective psyche of a generation of music fans, making them some of the most important and relevant artists of the era. So what is it about these hazy, dreamlike songs that resonates so well with hipsters, misfits and frat boys alike? Maybe it's that when you listen and really pay attention to Animal Collective, it's like hearing your own heartbeat. The music is rhythmic and reliable, yet at the same time a purely emotional, primal, almost out-of-body experience. You don't have to be cool or artsy to "get it" – you just have to be human. Given this effect, it's no surprise that iTunes describes Fall Be Kind's genre as "unclassifiable."
The last few years have marked a new direction in the band's career. Guitarist Deakin went on hiatus after 2007's Strawberry Jam and subsequent releases have been written for a mostly guitarless lineup and are driven mainly by samplers. The result is layers of melodic sculpture coupled with the band's signature candid commentary on everyday life. "What Would I Want? Sky," a live staple, finally gets a proper release on Fall Be Kind and serves as an anchor to the EP (it also includes the first-ever legal Grateful Dead sample). The most experimental track on the record, "Bleed," gives way to the excellent "On a Highway," a song suggestive of Syd Barrett or the more organic moments of Brian Eno.
While only five songs long, Fall Be Kind still strengthens the argument that a few high school friends fooling around with samplers can change the musical landscape forever. The band's long-awaited visual album, ODDSAC, will premiere at Sundance this year and can only serve to expand the band's impression on minds and hearts around the world. Other artists may attempt such depths, but no one in recent history has mastered the art like Animal Collective.
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Themselves
Posted on 12/21/2009
Themselves
CrownsDown
[anticon.]
There's no mistaking an Anticon label release. As In The Red instantly suggests dirty garage-pop and Bloodshot Records is synonymous with alt-country and roots music, Anticon not only brings to mind unconventional hip hop and electronic music; it has become its own genre. The label encompasses artists from all over the electronic spectrum, ranging from the low-fi bedroom beats of Dosh and Bracken to the frenzied synth cyclones of Tobacco and disturbing vignettes of Why?, yet is always recognizable. Anticon collective members Doseone (Adam Drucker) and Jel (Jeffrey Logan), the duo that comprise Themselves, have been creating anxious, angular hip hop on and off for the label since the late 1990s. And just like Yoni Wolf's creepy, nasal voice is soothing to Why? fans, Themselves' schizophrenic masterpieces can at first come off as insane, but it's an insanity that will intrigue rather than deter.
While Wolf has always been a poster boy of sorts for this distinctive label, even the casual Anticon listener would instantly recognize Doseone's voice. Along with Jel, he is a member of the non-Anticon band Subtle, and both collaborate frequently with just about everyone in the San Francisco Bay area. Their collaboration as Themselves is a rare one, where it almost seems as if the two forget they are on the same team and decide to battle each other – yet both somehow win. Doseone's high-pitched, robotic vocals (be warned – I'm pretty sure there's a little Auto-Tune on at least one song) sprint to keep pace with Jel's frenetic beats. Or maybe it's the other way around. From the opening tracks, "Back II Burn" and "Oversleeping," Doseone and Jel pull the listener into the ring with them, only pausing to rest on the slower, more thoughtful "Roman is as Roman Does" and "Deadcatclear II."
While Themselves may never be the slick hip hop that everyone can like and nobody has to think about, what else would you expect from a label that has made a name for itself releasing innovative and sometimes challenging artists? Doseone's striking voice and Jel's hollow-yet-emotive beats (often evoking DJ Shadow's work with UNKLE) are confrontational and sometimes hard to swallow, but put them together and it makes perfect sense.
Stream: Themselves - Roman is as Roman Does
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Kings of Convenience
Posted on 12/14/2009
Kings of Convenience
Declaration of Dependence
[Astralwerks]
The public's musical evaluation of so-called "originality" seems to be in the dangerous midst of eclipsing the arguably more valuable notion of sustainability. Case in point: the whisper which saw the recent release of Norwegian duo Kings of Convenience's third album. Commenting on the new collection of timid folk-pop's title, Erlend Øye (also of The Whitest Boy Alive) suggests, "all the freedom we have enjoyed in the last few decades has left us with almost too many options." Thus, latching on to someone or something that provides stability is not necessarily a bad thing. In a day and age where we're clamoring to create new options for ourselves, whether "glo-fi" or "West Side Soweto", we tend to forget about the things that felt good in the first place, and if we just reminded ourselves a little bit, would still feel good again today.
Perhaps 2004's release of the two-piece's sophomore effort Riot on an Empty Street (which, by the way, finally gets its title track on the 2009 follow-up) continued to advance the Kings' reputation for soft guitar-led pop composers because it featured embellishments of the percussive, orchestral, and vocal (a then-relatively-unknown Leslie Feist) variety. After all, at that time Øye was wowing ears globally with his electronic music fetish, including an entrancing solo album and a refreshingly warm and pop-friendly reinvention of the DJ mix album. Fast-forward five years and instead of heading into some grand concept album territory or genre-fusing experiment, Øye has returned to the very elemental roots that made his and bandmate Erik Bøe's 2001 debut Quiet is the New Loud skyrocket to indie fame at the start of it all.
With nary a drumbeat or production flourish present on the album, the subtle cyclical effect Declaration has on the listener is clearly purposeful – so much so it's downright masterful in places. Opening number "24-25" contains the powerful lyric "what we build is bigger than the sum of two" and harks back to a time when something so sparse could create something so rich, without flashy aesthetics or big ideas. "Peacetime Resistance" adds a welcome layer of strings to keep the dual-guitar action engaging and the closer "Scars on Land" contains the single most hypnotic acoustic guitar lick heard on a pop album this year. So when it comes down to whether or not to let an album that doesn't fit into any indie trend or doesn't try to leap out in front of traffic to get your attention lull you into a state of reliable reflection, all one must decide is whether or not it’s nice to depend on an old friend in an era that bombards us with excess. The answer shouldn't just be obvious; it should resound like a declaration eight years in the making.
Written by Chris Polley, Radio K volunteer
Weekly Release Spotlight: Sunset
Posted on 12/07/2009
Sunset
Gold Dissolves to Gray
[Autobus]
Austin-based Sunset have accomplished more musically in a few short years than many bands can hope to in a lifetime. In 2008 alone, frontman Bill Baird, a former member of Sound Team, released Songs the Sound of Myself, as Written by Others while Sunset released the Pink Clouds cassette, Bright Blue Dream and The Glowing City – not to mention the “Loveshines II” 7-inch, a gem of a song that effectively converted anyone who was still on the fence about post-Sound Team Baird. The merch table at shows can be downright confusing as any number of homemade cassettes, drone recordings and other trappings can be found, many of them one of a kind, as Baird and the band write and record at a dizzying pace. But perhaps Sunset’s greatest achievement is that all this musical output is both continually evolving and consistently good. Sunset doesn’t need hype or a label bidding war to prove itself – the music, along with the band’s genuinely humble attitude, stands on its own. Sunset is proof that not only can you simultaneously achieve massive quantity and superb quality, but you don’t have to be some aloof, tortured jerk to do it.
Baird and company have developed a craft for writing songs that are completely grounded, yet unearthly. Transcending genre (the closest descriptor you could find would be something like psych-pop-DIY-synth-country-shoegaze-lo-fi-folk) and the politics of the independent music scene (these friendly anti-scenesters have a true work ethic and have stuck with small Austin label Autobus for years), Sunset also transcends traditional songwriting and instrumentation. Antiquated analog electronics, haunting harmonies and unusual recording techniques (plus the oft-neglected handclap or whistle) tie Gold Dissolves to Gray’s widely-varying songs together. “Fishtown” and “Hill Country Smog” are straightforward folk-pop songs with an undercurrent of twang, while “Our Dreams Did Weave a Shade” reaches toward the spookier, effects-heavy earlier Sunset releases and “Sunshine Hair” sounds a lot like Baird’s solo work. “Garden of Eden” and “Civil War” are ballads exploring one of Baird’s favorite lyrical subjects: the folly of human beings.
If Gold Dissolves to Gray is any indication, we can expect a long, fruitful career from Sunset. And if the band’s work ethic, hand-drawn artwork and endearing lyrics don’t draw you in, its gorgeous songwriting – always evolving, but never forgetting its roots - surely will.
Check out two in-studio sessions from Sunset: live from Radio K's SXSW 2009 broadcast, and June 2009.
Stream: Sunset - Bones
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: The King Khan & BBQ Show
Posted on 11/30/2009
The King Khan & BBQ Show
Invisible Girl
[In The Red]
The last couple years have seen a surge of interest in garage-rock throwbacks. But Montreal’s King Khan and BBQ had already been around the block a few times before ‘60s adulation made its way to the forefront of the musical consciousness. As bandmates in the Spaceshits during the ‘90s, Arish Khan (King Khan) and Mark Sultan (BBQ) forged not only a friendship, but a mutual reverence for stripped-down percussion, jangly guitar and doo-wop vocals. Their relationship has withstood Khan’s relocation to Germany, a veritable saturation of the garage-rock market in the States, and more recently, their arrest for drug possession in Kentucky. More than just a marriage of musical convenience, Sultan and Khan seem to have something enviable and inimitable (especially where the music industry is concerned): a stable and genuine relationship.
From their first record, released in 2004 on In The Red, The King Khan and BBQ Show was a well-kept secret, although the project’s audience covered a wide spectrum. The band was revered among punks, indie kids, ‘60s girl group fans and garage enthusiasts alike. Even those people you know who collect vintage records and only listen to music recorded before 1980 were probably sort of into it. The catchiness of all the band’s records, including Invisible Girl, is undeniable. Even if songs like “I’ll Be Loving You” seem slightly inane at first, make no mistake – they will be stuck in your head for days. “Animal Party” is pure sophomoric, King Khan and BBQ fun – complete with animal sound effects and a sing-along chorus. “Tastebuds” is also sophomoric, although more so for its subject matter (as hard as you might try, you won’t be able to get that one out of your head either).
Khan may get carried away with the horns, pompom girls and wild showmanship of King Khan and the Shrines. And Sultan, who fronted Les Sexareenos and releases solo material, has Sultan records to keep him busy. But the duo always comes back to each other. At live shows, they bicker like an old married couple, and when Black Lips fled India after their early-2009 tour shenanigans, they sought shelter with Sultan and Khan in Berlin - a stay that resulted in the first Almighty Defenders record. The King Khan and BBQ Show continues to be Khan and Sultan’s (and their friends’) home away from home, and it’s a bond that will hopefully last for years to come.
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: El Perro Del Mar
Posted on 11/22/2009
El Perro Del Mar
Love Is Not Pop
[The Control Group]
As recently as 15 years ago, there were not very many choices for those seeking new music coming out of Sweden - you had upbeat pop and you had sinister metal, with not much in between. Most likely due to the advent of the internet and the subsequent globalization of the music community, the electronic, psych-rock and low-fi twee artists who have toiled in the Scandinavian darkness for years have become Sweden’s new niche exports. And it’s from Gothenburg, the home of two of the country’s musical touchstones (death metal and Ace of Base) that El Perro del Mar and a host of other innovators hail.
The woman behind the El Perro del Mar name, Sarah Assbring, is a prolific young songwriter with a penchant for sad but immediately catchy songs. Though she started performing under the moniker in late 2003, it was her 2006 self-titled album that introduced Assbring to the rest of the world. The rest of the world promptly fell in love with her (Radio K included). Her frank, self-deprecating lyrics, similar to those of fellow Swede Jens Lekman, added a new dimension to the downbeat and sparse arrangements of songs like “Dog” and “Party.” After self-producing and recording From the Valley to the Stars in 2008, for Love Is Not Pop she decided to collaborate with Rasmus Hagg of Studio, a self-described "afrobeat-dub-disco-indie-pop” band also from Gothenburg. Hagg’s influence can especially be heard on “Let Me In” and “Change of Heart,” which layers Assbring’s soft voice (Lykke Li has probably learned a thing or two from El Perro del Mar) over mesmerizing drum fills, piano and bass. Hagg hasn’t necessarily changed Assbring’s sound though – “A Better Love” and “It Is Something (To Have Wept)” will be familiar to those who loved her earlier releases.
Now that Sweden is known as a musical microcosm to the rest of the world (Gothenburg alone boasts the Tough Alliance, Lekman, Sally Shapiro, Love Is All and Jose Gonzalez as natives), it will be interesting to see what shape the music from this country takes. If Love Is Not Pop’s seamless fusion of new elements into El Perro del Mar's low-fi sound is any indication, we can expect hybrid after hybrid of great, new Swedish sounds for years to come.
Stream: El Perro Del Mar - Change Of Heart
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: The xx
Posted on 11/16/2009
The xx
xx
[Young Turks]
Teenage hormones have always been great fodder for pop music. Somewhere between angsty (Romeo and Juliet) and cheesy (Gossip Girl) lies an elusive space where adults can still revel in the trials and tribulations of young love and loathing without feeling self-conscious. The xx might tip toward the angsty side of the scale, but this band of English adolescents’ debut album, xx, is truly a grown-up affair.
With achingly emo lyrics (for the most part about sex and love) and simple song structure, xx hearkens back to Glass Candy’s dancey minimalism as well as the coolness and the somber, yet heartfelt, subject matter of Black Celebration-era Depeche Mode. “Shelter” is a quietly epic gloom-fest that evokes the band’s hometown of dreary London. This song is presumably what it must feel like to slowly, poetically drown in a dark ocean (or perhaps to shoot heroin?) with the repeated line “Can I make it better with the lights turned on?” Simple guitar work, languid bass and a drum machine mark more upbeat (relatively speaking) songs like “Basic Space,” “Crystalised” and “Islands.” Guitarist Romy Madley Croft and bassist Oliver Sim’s subdued boy-girl vocals are a sadder, less bratty brand of the cheeky storytelling that bands like Black Kids, Magic Wands or The Blow are known for - in fact, Croft’s voice is eerily reminiscent of The Blow’s Mikhaela Maricich.
Even though xx was just released in August (October in the U.S.), several of the songs have already been licensed to TV. The band has figured out how to make those familiar adolescent feelings palatable and commercially viable, which isn’t such a big deal in and of itself. The bigger challenge lies in doing that without being boxed into the vapid gobbledygook we all know as The Pop Song About Love. Leave it to three early 20-somethings to figure that one out.
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Kurt Vile
Posted on 11/09/2009
Kurt Vile
Childish Prodigy
[Matador]
With his long hair, down-home sound and ever-present plaid shirt, Kurt Vile seems like he could easily be a transplant from the 1970s era of American FM rock. But Vile is a thoroughly modern troubadour. Where Springsteen and Petty have made livings delving into the factories, the dive bars and the psyche of middle America in an attempt to be the voice of Everyman, Vile is content just to play some rock 'n roll songs about hunchbacks and picking blackberries. If you like them, that’s great. If not, well, that’s cool too.
The Phildelphia-based singer and guitarist is also a contributing member of The War on Drugs and has released other solo albums, but largely flew under the radar until his 2008 album, The Constant Hitmaker. That record and his self-released 2009 Hunchback EP only further validated Vile as a familiar, yet innovative, songwriter. His first full-length for Matador, Childish Prodigy ranges from low-fi bedroom ballads (“Blackberry Song,” “Amplifier”) to bittersweet, Big Star-esque pop (“Monkey”) to psych-rock jams (“Freak Train” and “Hunchback” – a much grittier version than the one that appears on the EP).
Artists like Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and Neil Young might be easy reference points to describe Vile’s music, but it would insult his inventiveness to leave it at that. His music encompasses not only the '70s FM rock sound, but the luster of someone who's listened to a lot of My Bloody Valentine, the intimacy of someone who is just as OK recording in a bedroom as he is in a studio, and the relevance of someone who has lived a life similar to yours. The long hair, the jangly guitar and the plaid shirts might still be there, but Vile is reinventing the idea of the blue-collar troubadour.
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
Weekly Release Spotlight: Atlas Sound
Posted on 11/01/2009
Atlas Sound
Logos
[Kranky]
Bradford Cox is the shapeshifter of the modern music scene. He's considered elusive rock royalty by the most influential hipsters, but he's one of the nicest, most genuine and humble people you'll ever meet. He's worshipped by fans and other musicians as the genius mastermind behind Deerhunter and Atlas Sound, yet he's blundered by accidentally leaking demos onto the internet and for a while used Deerhunter's blog mainly as a medium for discussing the band's bodily functions. Not only can he write an upbeat rock song that will stick in your head for days, he excels at creating inescapably haunting melodies that are ethereal at best and unsettling at worst. With Deerhunter and with his solo project, Atlas Sound, Cox has made a career out of getting under people's skin and staying there, whatever way he can.
Cox started using the Atlas Sound name as a teenager in Georgia for the songs he recorded in his bedroom. For years it's remained a way for him to give life to the songs that don't quite work with Deerhunter. Logos is technically Atlas Sound's second full-length record, however quite a few EPs and split releases have come out over the last few years. While Atlas Sound isn't quite freak folk, Logos recalls the freakier moments of artists like Bill Callahan and Animal Collective member Noah Lennox (aka Panda Bear). There are definitely pop songs on the album - "Criminals," "Shelia" and "Quick Canal" (featuring Stereolab's Laetitia Sadier) could easily fit in on any Deerhunter record - but the rest of the album evokes exactly what Atlas Sound is: an eccentric guy alone in his room, writing and recording songs about his life. While Logos might wander into idiosyncratic territory, that is balanced by the comforting control in Cox's voice and his cool, deliberate delivery. From the first few seconds of "The Light That Failed," alien-sounding noises propel the album toward the darker side of Cox's musical spectrum. But by the third song, "Walkabout" (which features Lennox), he's brought us back safely to familiar territory.
That he's managed to hang on to this part of his musical personality through Atlas Sound while turning indie rock upside-down with Deerhunter is a testament both to Cox's shapeshifting nature and to the idea that it's important to remember where you came from. Even at its most peculiar moments, Logos reminds us that no matter where we end up in life or how hip we get, we've all been that eccentric guy or girl alone in our room, and part of us always will be. And if Bradford Cox says that's OK, it must be.
Stream: Atlas Sound - Walkabout (feat. Noah Lennox)
Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.
