Category: Reviews

Beach Fossils – s/t

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Rating: ★★★½☆

During SXSW we were treated to an amazing live show by Beach Fossils, and we finally have their self-titled debut to back up all that hype.  The record is full of surf-infused jangling guitars and simplistic drum beats, all which make this the perfect album to listen to while you’re being active around the house, or just looking for something great to jam out to with your friends.

As soon as “Sometimes” comes in through your stereo you’re introduced to the band’s sound.  Guitar chords jangle and snake their way through the song, while the drumming provides a bit of an extra kick to the song, giving it just an extra hint of spring.  Vocals wash over the song, while more vocals wash over the vocals.  “Youth” doesn’t do too much to distance itself from its predecessor, though you’ll find that the second track does have a bit more sway, mostly due to the pacing of the percussive element.

“Lazy Day” is the first song on the record that takes a different bent, although none of these songs sounds exactly the same.  Here, you’ll find a bit more of a hollow sounding vocal, which actually sounds perfect with the way that the guitar seems to ring in the foreground.  The echo-y vocal effect is used again on “Daydream,” though a slower delivery affects the listener in a different manner. You’ll have to listen to the battle between the feuding guitar lines, and its only then that the drums will make themselves evident, as they seem so low in the mix here that you almost miss them.

However much this album does seem to run together with its similar sounds, Beach Fossils do just enough to differentiate between the tracks.  “Window View” carries on the themes of observation and dreaming that are present throughout the record, but a slower pace entirely seems to actually have the listener looking out the window as this track plays in your house.  You can still feel the roots of the band’s sonic pallet here, but it’s just a bit left of that, giving the record a bit of room to breathe.  Then you go right back to the band’s bread and butter with “The Horse.”  It’s got a ringing guitar, a coated vocal, and a bit of a bounce to it.  It would be interesting to see where the band’s sound could go if they had the addition of legitimate percussion.  Not saying the drums don’t serve a purpose on Beach Fossils, but the creative notches could be turned up a bit, pushing the band’s sound even further.

Listening to Beach Fossils over and over again might get a little bit tiresome, but they’ve lived up to the promise they created this year with their live shows.  They’ve crafted an album full of charm and melody, presented in their own distinctive fashion, which inevitably will find their way into your daily listening rotation.  A few key ingredients missing keep this album from being incredible, but don’t hold that against Beach Fossils, as it’s a record worthy of your summer listening parties.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/beachfossilsyouth.mp3]

Download: Beach Fossils – Youth [MP3]

Jeremy Jay – Splash

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Rating: ★★★★☆

2010 is going to be a busy year for Jeremy Jay.  His first album of the year, Splash, is just being released, while there is another album slated for release later in the year, not to mention his work on the movie Belle Epine.  Will all the work distract his natural knack for writing amazingly introspective pop numbers?  By the sounds of this album, Jeremy is still going strong, and he shows no signs of slowing down.

JJ begins the album with “As You Look Over the City,” which one can assume is his own personal narrative about his recent move to London, demonstrating his ability to approach the subject matter from third-person.  His guitar never seems over-bearing, and the accompaniment by his band always seems perfectly fitting to his deep croon.

While many will accuse Jeremy of staying in the same vein as his last two albums, there are definitely differences.  Point of evidence one: “It Happened Before Our Time.”  This is the first time he’s really messing with his vocal delivery, changing the pitch and the tone, both going a long way to evoke the mood of the song.  When his voice lightly echos in the background of the song, you can tell that he’s really pushing the boundaries of what he can do.  Then you have the second piece of evidence, ” Splash,” which has a quicker paced guitar line, sort of reminiscent of a more nostalgic version of The Thermals.  All the while his voice lands quietly atop his music, as it always seems to do.

One of the best things about Jeremy Jay is that while he sounds so familiar, he definitely has a taste all his own.  You can see his constant form of wondering, especially in the way that he writes his lyrics.  Take, for example, “Someday Somewhere,” where the chorus itself evokes that sense of search, or that sense of longing for something. He’s often in his own world, dancing around, using that speak-sing approach that was made known by his mentor of sorts, Calvin Johnson.  You combine that approach with his lyrics and you are left wondering, but in an involved sort of way, as listeners should be.

Everything about Splash really does sound familiar, but as the album takes a turn near the end, starting with “Why is This Feeling So Strong,” you get the feeling that Jeremy Jay is about to make his move; at times it almost feels as if he’s about to let loose a power chord to just blow you away, yet as always, he refrains.   He’s got one more album coming out this year, and the way he’s pushing his sound, who knows exactly where that record will end up, but we can only hope that he continues to put out consistently enjoyable collections of songs such as this.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/01-As-You-Look-Over-The-City.mp3]

Download: Jeremy Jay – As You Look Over The City [MP3]

Cats on Fire – Dealing in Antiques

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Rating: ★★★★★

Just a disclaimer, this is a collection album, including rarities, B-Sides, covers and a new track, all of which date as far back as 2002.  That being said, Cats on Fire is probably the one band that deserves your attention that you’ve possibly overlooked (mistake!).  If this is the case, then Dealing in Antiques is a great starting point, a place to find your footing as your obsession begins to grow.  For those of you already in the know, you have to be ecstatic to have access to these wondrous tunes.

You’ll know immediately that this group is willing to go out on a limb, as the being this collection with “Your Woman,” a cover of the hit by White Town. Still, keeping true to their form, there is a bit more of a jangle in the chorus guitar chord, giving more of a smooth bounce than the original provided with its club-banger tendencies.  They then lead you into 19 more tracks, each one worthy of your careful listening ear.

“Poor Students Dream of Marx” establishes the band’s sound as far back as 2004, and we’re lucky that they had such foresight to see their own greatness, even so early on in their career.  Personally, the way the guitar is played throughout the entire song just really gets me, especially when it picks up speed and difficulty.  Steady percussion keeps pace, allowing the guitar to cut in and out of the song, all of which accompany Mattias Bjorkas voice (imagine Morrissey-mixed with Jarvis Cocker, except more of a warmth tone as opposed to blatant sexuality).

However, not a band to be pigeon-holed, the group offers tracks like “Something Happened.”  There’s a bit of a gentle strumming along the guitar here, yet it all has a more country feel, almost folk-ish, showing that the band isn’t all about pristine jangle pop (though they knock that genre out of the park).  They immediately follow that with “On His Right Side,” which is one of those tracks that exhibits the beauty of this collection, as understated piano walks quietly in the background of Bjorkas and a heavily strummed guitar.  As Bjorkas reaches for that falsetto, you can’t help but to tingle just a bit; these are the sorts of moments that create cult followings.

As much as you’d liked to ignore the Morrissey similarity between Bjorkas and the man himself, a song like “You Will Find Me Where You Left Me” does definitely bring the aged crooner to mind.  Yet, there is a certain solemnity to the way Mattias sings throughout this song, as if he’s not seeking your understanding, merely evoking his own personal sentiment.  “Honey Your Baby” probably doesn’t do much either to distance Cats on Fire from The Smiths either, yet you have to really leave all that aside, as the sharpness of Marr is not quite as present here, instead replaced by a warmer, gentler guitar.   If you ask me, this is where the band achieves their bread and butter, asking you to fall in love alongside the record, rather than to merely listening to a story of another man falling in love.

Really, if you want a perfect record, this is probably as close as you can come.  You’ve got your jangle pop tunes, as previously mentioned, yet you’ve got slow burners such as “They Produced a Girl,” one of the band’s earliest songs on this collection.  The vocal quality is a bit dense, but its the perfect juxtaposition to the rest of the record, showing how what was rough merely needed a bit of polishing before creating gem after gem.  And to close out the record, they offer a new track, “The Hague.”  One listen to this track will make you salivate immediately for the next album, as this one surely isn’t enough.

If it weren’t for great little labels like Matinee Recordings, many people would probably not have the access to Cats on Fire, which would be tragic.  Listening to Dealing in Antiques gives the aura of a band beginning an enduring cult following.  You want all your friends to love this album, yet at the same time, you feel as if you’ll lock these tunes away forever.  Such is the way a quiet legacy is built, and such is the one you have before you after looking through the closet of this wonderful band from Finland.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/cats04.mp3]

Download: Cats on Fire – The Hague [MP3]

The Depreciation Guild – Spirit Youth

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Rating: ★★★☆☆

While many of the indie rock followers will surely be all about The Depreciation Guild due to the main gig of its two core members, that being The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, that’s about the only similarity.  Sure, the mood of the music, and a bit of the texturing due share a close proximity to their other band, Spirit Youth steps out of the shadows and into its own space.

Electronic beats open the album on “My Chariot,” which is just an indicator that Kurt and Christoph (PoBPA touring guitarist) have a map all their own to follow.  Musically, it has a lot more of a bedroom aesthetic to the vocal quality than one would come to expect.  It’s really reminiscent of the same sort of vocals you heard on many of the more pop friendly albums of the early 90s.  It’s the same ground they’ll live in on “Crucify You,” and the dynamic doesn’t do much to distance itself.

But, in a sense, they mix it up on “Blue Lily” by opening up with a more prominent guitar piece.  Then almost immediately they bring in the warmth by adding the vocal texture.  Here you might see that often the vocals are a tool, never really stepping out from the instrumentation.  But, the guitar definitely serves its purpose in the background of the song, and that might remind some of Republic-era New Order, though a heavier atmosphere hangs over these songs.  This is the sort of place that it seems The Depreciation Guild hangs their hats.

Almost every song from here on out fuses a little bit of careful programming with guitars that ring out through the far off horizon of the song.  At times, such as in  “Trace,” those little parts really hang there, creating a dense electro-guitar collage of atmospherics, but without the vocals to brighten the moment, these songs really just seem to hang in air for the most part, almost like a pop-oriented fog. Don’t get me wrong, however, there are a few moments when the beats really do the song justice, like in “A Key Turns.”  A calm mood established itself early, and every noise on the song, including the vocals, is accented by the beats (the most creative on the album thus far).  It makes the perfect song for sitting outside as a storm drives itself into your town.

Oddly, there are a few heavy moments, or at least heavy in regards to the general sound of Spirit Youth.  The albums title track and “Through the Snow” have the benefit of harder hitting guitar pieces.  While the band manages to keep that quiet sensibility here, the chords of the guitar bring in a heavier punch, changing the overall quality of the tunes, and in fact, making them rising above the rest.  It would have been nice to see those numbers placed randomly earlier on in the album, rather than slotted in near the end.

All in all, Spirit Youth is an enjoyable listen, albeit one that does tax the listener a bit.  You’re caught in a world, unsure of whether or not you want to try and unravel the key to the lyrics (which are quite good) or just immerse yourself in the depth of sound that The Depreciation Guild have presented you with here. It’s not an easy choice, and that’s probably the biggest fault with the album: you have to make a choice on which instrument is the most important to follow, music or vocals.  Still, stepping out of from The Pains of Being Pure at Heart is never a bad thing entirely, especially when you can craft generally heartfelt songs that will keep you glowing inside.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/02-crucify-you.mp3]

Download: Depreciation Guild – Crucify You [MP3]

Band of Horses – Infinite Arms

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Rating: ★★½☆☆

The week of May 16th features several artists, long considered favorites by many indie rock fans, returning to the fold with new albums.  Not only is Band of Horses coming back with their new album, Infinite Arms, but they are also coming in with a new record label, having completed their agreement for Sub Pop.  Would the change signify a distinctive shift in sound, or would we get more of the same?

On the opening track, “Factory,” you get the since that things haven’t changed too drastically since the last album, Cease to Begin.  It’s got that slow paced Americana, expanded by the addition of string arrangements, and accompanied by Ben Birdwell’s exquisite vocals.  He’s got something in the way his voice seems to fall off with just the tiniest vocal inflection, and it always gets me.  Similarly, one of the other singles, “Laredo,” approaches the most-rocking moments of the album, with a steady percussion beat creating the backbone of the tune.  Oddly, the melody and the structure seem super-connected to “No One’s Gonna Love You” off their last record, but then again, even with Birdwell’s strong vocals, the band does have a tendency to blend into itself.  Still, this is a bit of re-hash in these eyes.

From here Infinite Arms takes a jump into a more folk-driven sound.  Pace is slowed down a bit for numbers like “Blue Beard” and “Infinite Arms.” Each song has some gentle strumming, and the latter sound has some recording effects that give you the feeling that it was all recorded in some backwoods area.  Don’t get me wrong, these songs have some strengths, particularly the recording of “Infinite Arms,” but there just isn’t some grand statement that is being made.  In the past, there was always a Band of Horses track that made you wonder why this band wasn’t absolutely huge.  Everything comes off really mild-mannered, and for some that will be a bit disheartening.

Give or take two tracks (“Dilly” and “Northwest Apartment”) the record really kind of stays in the vein of slow-core Americana.  Honestly, this is probably the disappointing element.  Yes, they always dabbled in folk elements, but nothing quite like the woodsy “Trudy.” It lacks lyrical depth as well, but that’s sort of par for the course with this collection of songs.   Where is the balance of swirling melodies that raise into the heavens, only to crash down in some sense of quiet?  It’s not there at all, and in fact, the most rocking you get on the latter half of the album is “Northwest Apartement,” aptly named for its blatant Built to Spill sonic allusions.

Don’t get me wrong, as Infinite Arms is a pleasant enough record.  There are a few moving tracks that will still do enough to satisfy old fans, but then the rest of the record really feels like the group is just sort of treading water. Band of Horses seems to have run out of ideas, or in changing directions, the group doesn’t seem quite as confident as they once did.  All this make for an uneven record that suffers from a general enthusiasm, but that could just be my own lackluster thoughts after going through this album hoping to find one more great gem.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/01-Factory-1.mp3]

Download: Band of Horses – Factory [MP3]

The Black Keys – Brothers

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Rating: ★★★★☆

Though they may not be related, the relationship between Akron’s Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach is as close a bond as you will find.  When they link up, things just seem to fall into place; even here on their latest, following a 2 year hiatus from ‘The Black Keys’ proper. In the time following the polarizing Attack and Release in 2008, Auerbach has released his critically acclaimed Keep It Hid, Carney released an album with his side project Drummer, and the group collaborated with many high profile rappers for yet another critically acclaimed release 2009’s, BlakRoc.  While some may be lead in different directions following a break or may show signs of rust, The Black Keys engine is running like a finely tuned motor. Their latest Brothers, continues in their latest music trend, to build on their more refined sound, for better or worse.

Brothers is another heavily produced album, but this time it is mostly all self-produced in several sessions. The effect is again clean and polished, proving that they have learned a lot of tricks in 2 years. While (it seems) they desire to keep a ‘broke ass’, stripped down blues-rock anthem, they are discovering new recording methods after working with producer Danger Mouse, who pushed them in the opposite direction. Luckily for the listener, they seem to have struck a balance.  Many listeners will enjoy the latest over-production on the past 2 studio albums, but I for one am always relieved that Dan and Pat continue to tour without the extras.  The question for many will be whether or not they will tour with an additional member, as many tracks here carry bass lines. During SXSW this year, they were still only a duo; so that gives me hope. There’s something romantic about blues music in its simplicity and when surrounded by fancy recording contraptions it’s easy to get carried away. Here, for the most part, it’s back to the roots and these ‘Brothers’ continue to be one of the best touring acts around and continue to grow their brand based on this simple, rare talent.

The album begins with a foray into new vocal territory for Auerbach with ‘Everlasting Light’, as he utilizes a falsetto voice. If the Black Keys are known for one thing, it has become Auerbach’s raspy voice. For most listeners, this opener doesn’t sound like a typical Black Keys song, especially as the entry point into the new material, though it is catchy. However, ‘Next Girl’ is much more traditional for the duo, though after hanging with the likes of Q-Tip and Raekwon, they seem to have picked up a hip hop influence or two, expecting Mos Def to chime in after the first verse and chorus. Similarly, ‘Too Afraid to Love You’ holds the same vibe very effectively. The first single on the album is the lone Danger Mouse produced track, ‘Tighten Up’ and by now, most of you have should have heard it.  No doubt this track is a Danger Mouse special and continues to get better with time. Another new venture for the duo is the instrumental track ‘Black Mud’ with a 60’s vibe pipe organ and heavy feedback.  The frist half of the record is solid, but the duo really hits their stride with the great three track combo of ‘Ten Cent Pistol’, ‘Sinister Kid’, and ‘The Go Getter’, highlighting some of the best songwriting for Auerbach, which is becoming old-hat.

In general, the record is lengthy and carries much more subdued blues ballads than energetic numbers apart from ‘Howlin’ For You’ and ‘She’s Long Gone’.  However, this overall slower tempo doesn’t mean the potency is not there. The question for many fans will be do they come across better with the new tricks or rather without the added production gimmicks; essentially back to the roots of simple Kimbrough-era instrumentation. The tunes are great and Auerbach’s songwriting is as solid as ever.  The lone detractor for me is Carney’s percussive style is so restrained throughout that his power and energy is long gone from the Thickfreakness days.  In most tracks, I could see a drum machine being used in his place and no one would notice (maybe even with him on bass). I don’t want to condone a band not evolve, and I feel this album is one of their most polished, complete, and accessible/ genre-bending. It will most certainly grasp a new audience and appease the masses that are growing used to this newer sound. I just hope the boys travel back to Akron and revisit Pat’s basement soon. That said, Brothers still one of the best albums of the year so far and their best since Rubber Factory.  If Austin gets lucky enough to have the boys back for ACL, they will no doubt dominate the massive crowd they are likely to receive.

[audio: https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/The-Black-Keys-Tighten-Up-WR.mp3]

Download: The Black Keys – Tighten Up [MP3]

LCD Soundsystem – This Is Happening

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Rating: ★★½☆☆

It’s really hard to imagine the 00s without James Murphy.  Whether he was bringing Daft Punk to your house, or whether he was manning the boards for someone else, it seems like Murphy was always around.  Now we come to what he is calling the swan song for LCD Soundsystem, This Is Happening.  Will it be enough to leave us with lasting memories of fondness, or will we turn towards indifference as his star begins to fade on the horizon.

“Dance Yrself Clean” begins the record, and while it could be a whole lot stronger, this isn’t the worst way to begin the new album. It begins with just some minimal percussive elements, which go on for what seems like an eternity, while lyrics are sort of spoken, as opposed to sung.  At the 3 minute mark, the song turns into a club banger.  While you can appreciate the development of sonic textures that Murphy has placed emphasis on with his last two album, one can’t help but feel that getting straight to the point would have left the record to start with one of his best complete tracks.

You jump right into the single from there with “Drunk Girls,” which sort of seems like a haphazard song.  The beats seem reminiscent of songs past, while the lyrics don’t really offer too much, no matter how many drunk girls you claim to know.   And from there you go on to “One Touch;” yet another song that doesn’t do a whole lot to further Murphy’s credentials in the musical annals of time.  Sure, showing the masses you can make a dance song go for 8 minutes is something to tip your hat to, if the song doesn’t do too much, it all seems irrelevant, and such is the case here.

But, then LCD Soundsystem takes you for an entirely different ride.  “All I Want” doesn’t seem to far of a stretch from some of the more exploratory tracks on Sound of Silver, and you can really find yourself sliding inside this song despite a the length and a touch of redundancy. “I Can Change” follows suit with a bit more exploration, and even pushes the dancier side of the things.  Murphy’s vocals don’t come off in that shouting chant he’s usually known to release, and it creates a joyous song that brings back the nostalgia of bands like Depeche Mode and OMD.

Then, he takes a U-turn, and sort of goes back on the promise of the last two tracks.  “You Wanted a Hit” has some redeeming qualities towards the middle of the song, and while I appreciate his stance on not trying to make hits, choosing instead to follow his own path, I’m not sure he always chooses the best options, especially when he has such quality tracks to offer, as he did in the middle of the This Is Happening. Don’t even get me started on “Pow Pow;” I think I’m owed an extra amount of time in my life just for listening to this track.  Ugh.  “Somebody’s Calling Me” just continues the downward slide from there.  It just seems like he could have done so more, and at time, the song just sounds like even James himself was bored with writing it.  Then again, that just might be personal taste.

Then he comes back with “Home” to close out the album.  It has a bit more of a singing vocal here, and the beat has this underlying hook that sucks you back into the album.  If you add the length of the song, you can clearly see what kind of dance party ensues here, and that’s precisely what you wanted from This Is Happening.  Unfortunately, the brightest spots on this record don’t really break through the inadequacies of the rest of the tracks.  Personally, it seems like such a shame, as the last decade wouldn’t have been nearly as much fun without having LCD Soundsystem in our lives, and perhaps this is why he’s walking away, as James Murphy hasn’t convinced anyone with this effort that his heart is still in it.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/LCD-Soundsystem-I-Can-Change.mp3]

Download: LCD Soundsystem – I Can Change [MP3]

Thee Oh Sees – Warm Slime

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Rating: ★★★☆☆

San Franciscos’ Thee Oh Sees (formerly a dozen different names) just can’t seem to stop putting out recording after recording.  Lately, the psychedelic stylings have garnered continuous praise, allowing the band to increase their stake in the market share.  While they maintain the sound of Nuggets-era rock on their new album Warm Slime, they still do just enough to keep things relevant to today’s musical world.

When you open with a title track, like “Warm Slime” its really making a statement. Sure, the song is fueled by feedback and echoing vocals that sort of put you into a trance, but what really encourages the trance mentality here is that the song goes on for close to fourteen minutes.  At times, it seems as if you’re stuck in some sort of mind-warp, looping back and back and back again.  Had they kept it close to three or four minutes, most people would agree that this is a pretty solid track, but going on and on just seems like the band, and listener, just can’t escape.

Once you get past that epic little bit, you’ll find that you can have quite a bit of fun with Warm Slime.  Bouncing along to the swinging “I Was Denied” is highly recommended, and why not sing a long with the “la la la la” chorus that bangs with the crashing of the cymbals.  This is where this band was supposed to be, bringing a little sun-tinged psychedelia.  The fun doesn’t stop here either, as “Everything Went Black” has this sort of stomp to it that you usually associate with your dad’s obscure classic rock collection.  Yet, the delivery of the vocals does bring it into the present, even though such gentle shouting can surely be traced back to rock n’ roll ancestry.

Thee Oh Sees seem to be at their best when their rushing to fit everything into under three minutes. “Castiatic Tackle” just runs along like something straight out of The Cramps catalog, which really isn’t a bad thing, though with the speed, that rock-a-billy beat is a touch more disguised.  “Mega-feast” is probably my favorite track on Warm Slime.  It’s got all sorts of musical allusions: surf-rock, psychedelia, punk, rock-a-billy, and garage.  Toss it all in a blender and you end up with one killer hodgepodge song.  Then it all comes to a quick close with “MT Work,” and it’s here where you start to find things you could consider a detractor from this album.

Well, the detractors are all over this album, but you only really focus on them when the album comes to its close.  You’re left to wonder where all the time went, when it really feels like you breezed through everything in a matter of minutes. The vocals were shaky, but while you were having fun, you didn’t seem to notice.  Still, it doesn’t sit entirely well to have a lopsided album; you can almost take the first track and say its longer than the first.  These are all mild complaints, as fans of Thee Oh Sees already know what they’re in for, but if you’re not, you might want to preview Warm Slime for just a bit before you end up feeling like you’ve been duped.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Thee-Oh-Sees-I-Was-Denied.mp3]

Download: Thee Oh Sees – I Was Denied [MP3]

The Dead Weather – Sea Of Cowards

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Rating: ★★★☆☆

Jack White is on a mission of late. Between three bands touring extensively in recent years, a new White Stripes’ DVD, a marriage to his model wife, Karen Elson, and 2 albums in 10 months with his latest project, there’s no shortage of insatiable, swampy blues guitar riffs in his bag of tricks (or drum licks in this particular case).  Following up 2009’s Horehound is their latest Sea of Cowards. Right away the differences between the two albums are apparent, on the vocal front, there’s more Jack White’s smarmy howl, which was primarily the Kill’s lead singer Allison Mosshart’s forte; and secondly, there’s more secure percussive stylings from White, which steadies the record as a whole from start to finish. If there was a question about their last release, it was not focused on intent or motivation, but in the execution.

At first spin of the vinyl, the bass lines and kick drum rumbled my speakers. From the first few lines of ‘Blue Blood Bones’ it’s obvious that White has been practicing. He is no doubt one of the hardest working musicians in the game nowadays, but he manages not to over-extend himself. That may be in part to surrounding himself with like-minded uber-talented musicians which push towards high quality in every collaboration. With the afore mentioned Mosshart approaching rock goddess status, Queens of the Stone Age guitarist Dean Fertita and Raconteurs‘ bassist Jack Lawrence are by no means pushed into the shadows. Even though it may seem that way with White’s growing influence and Mosshart larger than life personality. In only 10 months the group seems to have hit their stride and are thriving in the new found confidence which translates to one of the best live shows in the world, though the creativity for song-writing is still lacking. As with the last, the intent is solid and the execution is much stronger, but the tunes just don’t carry as well on the turntable as well as they do on stage. For some, that’s not a bad thing; and I just happen to be one of those people. If you caught the group’s last stop through Austin at Stubb’s, you know exactly what I mean. These songs just can’t be contained in a formal studio release, though try as they might.

Sea of Cowards is much angrier than their former, allowing the band to show their angst and fierce nature, letting loose on tracks like ‘Hustle and Cuss’ and ‘I’m Mad’. ‘The Difference Between Us’ is the first track which solely highlights Alison Mosshart’s full potency as she dominates the track.  The first single, ‘Die By The Drop’ is no doubt one of the highlights of the album with Mosshart and White each taking turns howling alongside strong performances from Fertita and Lawrence. During ‘Looking At the Invisible Man’, White it seems to be making a symbolic gesture of his desire to step out of the spotlight and to let his accompaniment shine, and the realization that it is no use. He exclaims that he is the invisible man, though his presence is always felt. On the final track ‘Old Mary’, White recites last rites with a simple piano accompaniment before the band pounds out the finale in style. Something tells me this however is not the last breath of this rendition of White (and Company). In fact with White’s steadier percussive talent, I feel the best may be yet to come. This is by no means the best album of the year, but it is a worthy successor to Horehound.

Foals – Total Life Forever

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Rating: ★★★★☆

When Foals first came around the United States they barely made waves over here with their debut Antidotes, but having a few more years of growth has allowed them to push their sound in a much more confident manner, creating a wonderfully unassuming pop record.  Total Life Forever never really hits you in the face, but that doesn’t seem to be the band’s point of emphasis here, choosing instead to relax and let the good times come as they please.

When the opening moments of “Blue Blood,” the distinctive vocals of Yannis immediately bring to mind bands like Frightened Rabbit, but as you hear building percussion and guitar in the mixture the song quickly breaks into a rhythmic piece of pop.  Ringing guitar chords give it a bit of a shimmy, but as mentioned before, it never just comes out and hits you over the head with power chords, nor jangly guitars.

Perhaps some might be averse to submerging themselves in the rhythmic vibe of this record, but if you’re only searching for something that gives a swing to your step, then this might not be the album for you. “Miami” has a slow paced groove with a simple structured chorus, but there’s definitely a groove lying beneath it all.   And sure, “Total Life Forever utilizes angular guitar work throughout to accompany the gang vocals, but Foals seem more willing to focus on slowing things down just a bit, as they do near the end of the song.  In a sense, it allows for a much better energetic release for listeners, as you’re not spent after listening to the first three tracks, as you are with other similarly categorized groups.

One of the greatest things about Total Life Forever seems to be that these five lads just aren’t too interested in meeting expectations.  This album carries three songs over the six minute mark, which isn’t odd, unless you consider their last effort didn’t have a single song meeting that mark.  “Spanish Sahara” creates a sort of a really quiet bedroom pop number, the sort my older sister jammed too in the late 80s.  It’s full of nothing at points, which is a remarkable feat considering that most bands love the excessive layering nowadays. Very similarly, “After Glow” lives in sort of an art-punk dance pop realm, and while it resembles the other six minute numbers, it pushes things in a bit of a different direction with some cacophony and a quicker pace.

Don’t get me wrong, I, too, enjoy an upbeat number, much like the single “This Orient,” though in contrast to a lot of stuff out there, its probably not an over-the-top pop track.  Steady drumming, and awkward chanting vocals in the background create an odd effect, but that swirling hook in the chorus is really sublime.  This is probably as close, however, as you’ll get to really straight ahead pop tunes.  Even with that in mind, there are some minor missteps, like “Fugue,” which is only 49 seconds, and doesn’t add a single thing.

Everything about this record is quiet, and yet it’s really vibrant at the same time. The rhythmic elements slowly unfold when you least expect them to, and you’ll find yourself exploring for various levels of hook and texture while listening to Total Life Forever. In sitting back to construct this record, rather than pushing their sound in your face, Foals have created a far more meaningful second album than any had come to expect, but expectations will only get higher from here lads. Cheers to that.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/06-This-Orient-1.mp3]

Download: Foals – This Orient [MP3]

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