Tag: album review

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]

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]

The National – High Violet

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Rating: ★★★★½

When this album first came to me I must admit that it was not as immediately as enticing as I had hoped.  Steady listening rotations slowly worked this album into the expected experience that I had hoped for from The National‘s High Violet.  While I’m not coming out to say that this is the band’s best work (time will tell friends), I’ll admit that their continued growth and attention to details makes the group unstoppable, as they put out records that continue to be played on repeat at my house, and that of all my close associates.

“Terrible Love” begins rather slowly. sneaking its way to a catastrophic end of sonic force.  Matt Berninger’s vocals really are something other worldly, as demonstrated here; it’s as if you’re listening to your father or grandfather tell a story of his trials and tribulations, as demonstrated by this opening track.

Early press discussed the darker dimension of the album, and you can get that feeling, even if you went by the track titles alone.  But, songs such as “Sorrow” and “Anyone’s Ghost” indicate that something went missing in the life of the narrator, which we can assume might be Berninger himself.  It’s all very melancholic, and is increased by the baritone vocal quality, but the darkness is what makes this album so striking, like everyone’s favorite lyric from “Conversation 16,” “I was afraid I’d eat your brains/cause I’m evil.”  It’s interesting trying to decipher between singer and narrator, as clearly these are the dark times of love for one of our two heroes.

While a lot of the praise for The National‘s dynamic is always given to the Dessner duo, this album clearly demonstrates the power that Bryan Devendorf wields in the band.  Whether it be his machine gun snare hits, his cymbal work, or his precision drum fills, he is the one piece that continues to amaze as you listen to High Violet (“Mr November” anyone?).  Still, one of the strengths of the band does rely upon the Dessner’s usage of varying dynamics, even those that are most subtle.  For instance, there’s a moment in “Little Faith” where everything seems to empty out, albeit very briefly, before going back into the song.  Such attention to detail is used time and time again like the accompanying strings in “Afraid of Everyone” that eventually meet up with a little discordant guitar; all this happens before the number even sets off entirely.

You continue through this collection of songs, and each song strikes a different chord within.  “Bloodbuzz Ohio” is probably the most straightforward rock song on the album, but you can’t help but feel the alienation in the song as Berninger croons that “Ohio don’t remember me.”  Once again, the loud-soft dynamic, even used for just one phrase, makes the lyrics, and the song, hit some sort of nerve for the listener.   And you can juxtapose the rock element with a song like “Runaway” that seems to sort of ebb and flow in the middle of the song.  If it weren’t for the subtle touches and vocals, this could very well fall under some folk realm, and yet the song seemingly climbs to a climactic point that it never quite reaches, forever holding back, holding you, the listener, back.

In its closing statement, High Violet, finds Matt really pushing his vocals, yanking every bit of emotion he has left out of his larynx.  As always, the group never fails to make a grand sweeping move with their closing moments, as echoing vocals join in here, you find yourself lost in the emotive qualities of the band.  This is precisely what makes The National one of the best bands around these days, utilizing every little nuance to craft the most emotionally taxing and bewildering music you’ll find, then begging you to come back and listen all over again.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/The-National-Bloodbuzz-Ohio.mp3]

Download: The National – Bloodbuzz Ohio [MP3]

The New Pornographers – Together

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Rating: ★★★★☆

After the release of Challengers it seemed like people were ready to disregard The New Pornographers altogether.  Poor reviews for an album couldn’t keep this band down though, as they’ve returned with their fifth record, Together. It stands in the same ground as a great deal of the rest of the last record, but it pushes the rock element a little bit further, brightening the sound a bit, just making things louder overall.

Opening moments on “Move” have that shredded guitar sound you’ve come to expect from an AC Newman penned song, but with a little strings to match the top of it all.  Throw in the bounce and those pop-perfect vocals (girl harmonies thrown in for good measure) and you’ve got a great opening track.  But, you get the perfect mix when you move into the next tune, “Crash Years.”  It’s fronted by the female force this time around, though the jangly guitars and orchestral accompaniment aren’t anything to shake a stick at.  Then you find yourself at “Your Hands (Together),” finding the band employing all their old tricks.  A rolling drumbeat, guitars strumming off beat, and the combination of male/female vocals.  Together starts out great, and it doesn’t seem to slow down.

However, the band switch gears a bit by going to a Dan Bejar penned number.  He’s written three songs for this record, and each one is remarkable in its own right.  Not sure if it’s Bejar’s odd vocal delivery, or just his craftsmanship, but his songs always stand out in The New Pornographers sound.  “If You Can’t See  My Mirrors” is probably the best of the three Bejar tracks, using some brilliant swirling guitar melodies to balance out Dan’s vocals.  The light female vocal beneath his adds a perfect touch as well.  Don’t skip out on “Daughter of Sorrow” as it’s reminiscent of Dan’s work with Destroyer, but instead of him working solo, he uses the posse at hand to expand his own distinctive sound.

While the album does slow down a bit right in the middle, it’s not entirely a detractor.  Perhaps the sequencing comes as a bit of a shock, as you can find better places to fit these quieter moments, but “Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk” and “My Shepard” showcase the band’s ace in the hole.  Female vocals have long been a part of the groups dynamic, and they come into perfect play in the middle of this album.  Fans of Neko Case and Kathryn Calder will appreciate the fact that the girls get to carry their own weight for a sustained period of time.

One of the strengths of the band, and Together, is that they seem to have returned to uniting all their forces into one cohesive product.  “Up in the Dark” is a powerful song, using the dual vocal approach, and a stomping rhythm to move it along. Even when the song takes turns for the swirly pop moments, you can’t help but feel that this is the band at its best.  While “Valkyrie in the Roller Disco” might seem a bit odd, really just using the vocal approach of the band to make its point, it really is a good song, though it might not fit that well with this collection.  So they close it with “We End Up Together,” making the perfect statement for the album’s closing.  Everyone seems to play a part in this song, fitting the whole band, well, “together.”  Seeing such sentiment makes you appreciate the effort on Together all the more, and it demonstrates to us all that as long as The New Pornographers put in all the pieces, they can create great records just like the one we find here.

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

Download: New Pornographers – Your Hands Together [MP3]

Broken Social Scene – Forgiveness Rock Record

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Rating: ★★½☆☆

It’s been a good five years since we’ve heard from Canadians Broken Social Scene, and with their return, news comes that the large entourage has dwindled to a merry band of six (now with even more guests!).  How would the departure, or lack of involvement of key members, play out on the band’s new album, Forgiveness Rock Record?  Honestly, this album will be a divisive one, at least it looks that way now.  Some will find they love it from the start, while others (like myself) will be reluctant to completely disregard it due entirely to the band’s back catalogue and the ridiculous talent pool still intact.

By now you’ve all heard “World Sick,” but in contrast to the rest of the album, it feels really as if the song was sort of phoned in, for lack of better wording.  It appears as if the band, unsure of their identity as a six piece, fell upon common ground from days of old, in hopes of establishing their footing.  You’ll find the crashing percussion, though it seems a little bit cleaner, and the swelling vocals during the chorus.  Sorry, but you’ve done it better.  Similarly, the following song, “Chase Scene” has this driving electronic feel, but for some reason, it lacks that emotional release that made the band so enchanting.

Opening moments of “Texico Bitches” build great possibilities, relying upon the great guitar hook and Drew’s vocals to draw you in, and while that hook remains, it gets buried in the rest of the textural elements, such as string instruments, that are piled onto everything here. Still, this is the first song I think I really enjoyed, which is more than can be said for the following tune “Forced to Love.”   The vocal delivery is enough to turn you off every time, and all the guitar chords cutting through the song just get on my nerves.  Throw that in with the chorus, that once again seems like re-using something from the closet, and this is one of the more disappointing moments on Forgiveness Rock Record.

When I came across “Art House Director,” I wasn’t really sure where to find this song.  It’s full of horns, and it sounds a lot more like they’re channeling a bit of Guided by Voices, but as you listen to this song more, this is precisely what you wanted the group to do.  They’re throwing something entirely new into the mixture; it feels fresh immediately, yet still remains a since of smooth pop that the band tends to evoke.  Throw this in with “Ungrateful Little Father” and you have the band going places where they haven’t gone before, so you get excited.  The latter song uses Drew’s vocal as the focus, then throws in the pop instrument collage, crafting careful cacophony.

Those looking for old friends will find their joy in “Sentimental Xs” as Emily Haines of Metric makes her appearance.  Her coy little voice seems to float atop the song, as layer upon layer continues to build.  There’s electronic blips, percussion, feuding guitar lines. and despite being a good song, it doesn’t explode where you want it to, instead it remains sort of reined in to the album.  You’ll echo these exact sentiments the more you listen, waiting for the classic sound of Broken Social Scene to pop its head out.

Here’s the thing with this album: it doesn’t ever quite deliver.  I will admittedly agree that there are moments of brilliance, creativity and such all over this record, but they don’t ever seem to come together.  In the past, you always felt like no one in the band was in control, that they could release furious pop on you at any moment.  Here, Broken Social Scene seem to have gotten a bit more cohesion with the group, but in doing so, they’ve made their sound less dangerous and a little watered down.  Perhaps I’m just jaded by personal relationship with past records, but isn’t that the case with this band?  Don’t you just love that one record, that one perfect song?  You do; you know it, and I’m positive that in my world, Forgiveness Rock Record just doesn’t hold water to those moments.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/06-Art-House-Director.mp3]

Download: Broken Social Scene – Art House Director [MP3]

Avi Buffalo – s/t

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Rating: ★★★★☆

Eventually you run across something unexpected and bewildering.  Such is the case for Avi Buffalo, who have released their self-titled album on Sub Pop.  The band originated with a kid in Long Beach named Avi who gathered his friends together, creating one of those albums you vaguely remember hearing about, but are bound to come across again and again in the next few years.

You have to wait almost an entire minute before you get to meet the band on opener “Truth Sets In,” but the warm gang vocals, and the odd harmonic guitar picking create a respectable opener; it’s not entirely overbearing, just an assuming number serving as a brief introduction to the band before they kick your teeth in with elation.  And you’ll soon be blown away by “What’s In It For,” the following song.  Something about Avi’s falsetto resembles the early Shins recordings (also on Sub Pop), and as you listen, you sort of get the feeling that Avi Buffalo will be one of those albums just like Oh, Inverted World that grows and grows until you have to listen to it once a week for the rest of your life.

You can feel all sorts of influences on this record, which is not a big surprise from a young artist such as Avi. “Five Little Sluts” begins with a bit of homage to Belle and Sebastian before it ambles down its own path.  “Jessica” pulls out some vocals reminiscent of David Vandervelde.  Even with the allusions to other artists, these songs take on a life all their own, making the entirety of the album familiar, all the while establishing the band with an original sound to which only they can lay claim.

“One Last” mixes up the game, using a female vocal to add a different texture to Avi Buffalo. It’s a playful folk song utilizing a bar-room piano sound to give the song a little pace.  It’s not the only number here that shows the range of the group, as the bedroom quiet of “Can’t I Know” adds yet another approach for the group. But, just as you thought they’d get all quiet on you, the band brings out “Remember Last Time.”  This pop gem has great vocal performances and clanging guitars that will ring in your ears for hours, and that’s really all you can ask for, right?  It might drag on a bit too long in lieu of a slight jam, but you can’t take that away from the opening moments of the track.   Then it all closes again with the dual vocal approach of “Where’s Your Dirty Mind.”  Gently strummed guitars and piano create the skeletal backbone of this one, but the vocals are the most endearing element of it all.  Rebecca Coleman has an angelic voice that will stay with you even when the song (and album) end.

It’s interesting listening to this album.  It has flourishes of great beauty, as well as moments of sprawling pop, yet it all sounds like a concisely constructed album geared to let the songwriting speak for itself.  While at times Avi Buffalo seem a bit unfocused, as if they’re unsure of their identity, what you do get is a young band who have an extremely bright future ahead of them.  If this album is anything, its a breath of fresh air in a lo-fi world, and one that just might make the long haul in your record collection.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/02-Whats-In-It-For_-1.mp3]

Download: Avi Buffalo – What’s In It For [MP3]

The Lodger – Flashbacks

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Rating: ★★★★☆

Leeds’ band The Lodger have released two albums to date, those being filled with angular guitar knives and steady drum beats.  Not keen to repeat themselves, the band changed it all a bit for their new album Flashbacks.  While it certainly retains a certain sense of familiarity for fans of the group, you’ll find a bit more exploration in regards to the overall sound of the band.

With the band’s first single “Back of My Mind” you get the sense that singer Ben Sidall is, as usual, always contemplating the state of his relationships, or his life as he states “I fall to the ground and say/I’m lost in the back of my mind.”  Thematically, there’s a bit of stasis here, but the song itself is about as dense a song as the group has writtern; it’s as if the song is wearing some sort of grey (not gray since they’re British) sweater.  All in all, it’s a step to the side of minimalist pop, keeping the band’s personas while searching for new ground.

Stylistically, “Have a Little Faith in People” and “Time to Wait” return to hallowed ground, but even then the band is building their sonic palate, adding tiny flourishes that you might not pick up on, but definitely add to the sound.  Horns are used atop the hooky guitar chords in both songs, as are female backing vocals listed only as Sarah and Georgia. All these miniscule moves remove a bit of the energy, creating a layer of warmth that does indeed alter The Lodger on this record.

This album’s title track has quickly become one of my favorite tracks as I’ve listened over and over again.  It’s such an understated quiet number, utilizing the additional string elements in the beginning of the track.  While it does come off as a bit of an elegy to a loved one, the emphatic climax of the song, coming off somewhat like a Jarvis Cocker revelation, seems to show Ben moving on from this loved one.  A gorgeous closing minute and a half of the song is begun by a melancholy trickling piano just before the horns come in, as if to rejoice at life’s progress.

Whoever this girl is surely did a number on Mr. Sidall.  “Lost” tells the story of a narrator nervous about losing his girl, eventually  hoping she’ll let him go, as she’s left him lost in some confused state of mind.  Once again, string arrangements really bring this song home, adding more depth than one would normally except from this band (no offense fellas).  Still, the girl’s memory pushes on in this collection, encouraging Ben to lose himself once again in “Nothing’s Impossible,” which is probably the song that most resembles the band’s previous work.

It’s hard, as a fan, not to be in love with this record entirely, but it really is a solid piece of work.  While the jangling guitar hooks and precision percussion remain, they’ve added more to fill out the sound of Flashbacks.  Using horns, strings and female vocals to add a little contrast has created a gentle album eager to fill your days with innumerable amounts of listening pleasure.  It’s consistently good, listen after listen, making me (and you I hope) fall in love with The Lodger all over again.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/The-Lodger-The-Back-Of-My-Mind.mp3]

Download: The Lodger – The Back Of My Mind [MP3]

Inlets – Inter Arbiter

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Rating: ★★★☆☆

Sebastian Krueger has a lot of creative friends, but it’s his own talents as the creator for the Inlets project that really make the listening experience completely worthwhile.  Inter Arbiter is the newest album from the group, the first since the Vestibule EP.  While it has many traces of the last outing, it’s clear that the whole construction has only gotten more detailed, building layer upon layer of instrumentation to craft an ornately beautiful album.

“Canteen” is the first real track to demonstrate the process of Inlets, with that odd time signature guitar playing, and minimal percussive accompaniment.  While many people see the minimalism as a nod to Steve Reich, there is a much more pop-oriented structure to the writing of this record, as evidenced on “In Which, I, Robert.”  This track is by far the most accessible of the ten, with the hook being brought into play by the vocal performance, and the call-and-response vocals that jump out in the background.  It’s probably one of the shortest numbers, but it’s the one many people will go back to as their favorite.

“Bright Orange Air” was the band’s first single off Inter Arbiter, and while it carefully walks you along the cusp of Krueger’s falsetto, the musicianship is what will stick with you long afterwards.  As much as you don’t want to draw comparisons to Grizzly Bear, you can definitely sense the relationship between the two bands here, from the rim shots on the drum that keep pace to the vocal melody, all accompanied by what is surely a clarinet (or another woodwind).   It’s this interesting approach that perhaps draws people to make the Reich comparison, but really just needs to simply go in the books as superb craftsmanship.  Interestingly, it’s often the vocal performances on the most diverse songs that really grabs at the listener.  This is precisely the case on “Bells and Whistles,” which does have all that the title suggests, but I found myself holding onto the vocals, and the way they seem to rise and fall in the middle of notes.  Just beautiful.

Near the end of the album, “Famous Looks” offers more of the same, though with a bit of a faster pace. It leaves room for the next album to show continued progression, as one can’t stand in place for too long in this genre without appearing too redundant.  Perhaps it is the much more pronounced percussion breaking through, but this song is one of the more exciting, if you can even call it that.  Oddly, that’s not what Inter Arbiter is about at all.

The new album from Inlets delves into extreme craftsmanship that remains soft and gentle throughout, despite the ebbs and flows in the mood of Inter Arbiter.  For those looking for a more experimental approach to modern pop construction, this is a brilliant place to land, while others can simply bask in the warmth created by Sebastian Krueger and friends.

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

Download: Inlets – In Which I, Robert [MP3]

The Radio Dept. – Clinging to a Scheme

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Rating: ★★★★☆

Sweden’s The Radio Dept. have had a rough go of things.  They’ve lost a few members in their history as a band, taken a hiatus and barely gotten enough press to generate mass interest.  However, with the backing of Labrador Records, the group are finally releasing their third album, Clinging to a Scheme; this will be the record that should solidify the band as a mainstay across the globe.

When you get the album, you should definitely listen to opening track “Domestic Scene,” as it does serve to affect the entire listening experience, if you intend to listen end to end (as you should!). Other than that, it’s just atmospheric noise, which has its point, but isn’t necessary on repeat listens.

After that, you can’t really skip a single track on this album. “Heaven’s on Fire,” the second single, opens the real depth of the album with a slow and steady beat, as guitars strum along.  There’s sort of a coat of noise lurking in the background here, as there is in much of the album, which might throw the group into a dream-pop genre; it washes over the song as waves would wash upon the shores.  “This Time Around” uses more of a coating of noise, like a second coat of paint, while the rest of the tune is draped in synthesized beats, but it’s the distant vocals that extract every emotion from you as you listen.

Don’t be fooled by two minutes of ambient noise on “Never Follow Suit.” There’s a gem of a song lying at the end filled with such beauty and simplicity that you can’t turn it off when the lyrics cease.  And this appears to be the beautiful part of the album, not that it all isn’t so, but the intricate picking of guitars accompanied by piano on “A Token of Gratitude” is absolutely magnificent; the additional vocals, though sparse, sound as if they’re recorded on an old answering machine, making the listening experience all the more intimate.  But just as it things go pretty, they amp it up a bit.  The one-two punch of “The Video Dept.” and “Memory Loss” show that The Radio Dept aren’t intent on just letting you sleep your afternoon away.  These two tracks offer a more uplifting experience, yet they still fit snuggly into Clinging to a Scheme as a whole.

Eventually you come to the holy grail that is “David.”  Its been playing in my player for months, and while it has a resemblance to current groups like The Big Pink, the hooks here are caught in the crosshairs between pop and soft atmospheric touches.  You won’t find many songs much more perfect than this one this year, that I can promise. All this leads us to the ending “You Stopped Making Sense.”  Here you’ll find the band at their most accessible, almost coming off like Robert Pollard in a dream state.  It ends so gloriously, and goes by so quickly that you have to go back to track 2 immediately.  That’s just one of the great things that makes listening to Clinging to a Scheme so incredible; you just can’t seem to get enough, nor would you want to because The Radio Dept. is currently on a splendid roll.

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

Download: The Radio Dept – David [MP3]

The Tallest Man on Earth – The Wild Hunt

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Rating: ★★★★½

To begin, I knew very little about Kristian Matsson and his project The Tallest Man on Earth.  But, his second album, The Wild Hunt, will not only change that for me, but for many listeners across the globe.  It’s easy to place the Swede’s work in a certain genre, even under a certain association with a famed folk hero, but throughout the duration, Matsson makes this album all his own, creating a beautiful piece of work to be played over and over again.

You’ll start The Wild Hunt with the two things that will stick with you eternally: incredible finger-picking and the uncanny resemblance to a young Boy Dylan. The former is one of those things that enables Kristian to pull out every single emotion from his tunes, carefully plotting where his fingers go with ease.  The latter is something that might plague him, which is unfortunate, as every song on here stands on its own merit, creating a great collective song cycle.

A lot of folk music has the capability to seem redundant, especially when you feel as if you have heard the singer before, but a few deviations make The Wild Hunt rise above typical folk revivalists.  For one, his songs are rather short, in comparison to similar artists.  It allows him to make really succinct songs such as “Thousand Ways” or “Troubles Will Be Gone.”  These songs will breath fresh air into your listening experience, and they’ll leave before you grow tired of hearing them blend into the next number. Then there is the tiniest vocal inflections he puts into his recorded performances that make Kristian stand out in what can sometimes be branded a stale world. Every slight move up or down on the scales, or every little yelp allows the vocals to stand on their own, rather than live in a world of comparisons.

Listening to this album time and time again, I found it difficult to discover a favorite track, as each listen, each mood evoked something different for me.  At first, it was “King of Spain,” which comes off like a folk song written by a steam engine.  On top of that, the subject matter of the song wins me over with its nod to the Iberian Peninsula. But, “You’re Going Back” took me in a different direction.  It has hints, at least in the song structure of a lot of old punks who’ve turned to country, such as Chuck Ragan, with it’s throaty yell of “driver please don’t go that f**cking way” near the last minute of the tune.  Here you find The Tallest Man on Earth getting carried away with his own passion, and that definitely makes each song a winner in my book.

Fortunately for me, this album came across my desk while I was in search of something calming, yet something challenging.  The gentle moods created by songs like ‘The Drying of the Lawns” fit perfectly into what I needed at the time. Then I looked back at the whole of The Wild Hunt, and I found that each song had something to offer, and nothing to throw out the window.  The Tallest Man on Earth has made a complete record worthy of repeat listening, now and forever.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/06-King-of-Spain-1.mp3]

Download: Tallest Man on Earth – King of Spain [MP3]

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