The Informations again

Ok, sorta coming out of retirement for a post. Just feel as if people should listen to this band. Don't really know any info other than what is on their myspace and this video, but I still like what I hear. They've also added a new song to their myspace since I last mentioned them. The version of Strange Habits in the video seems to be a little touched up, there's some harmonies at the end that I'm not sure were there before.

I'm finished.

I think I'm done with the music blog. I'm not entirely sure what I set out to do when I created it, but I'm generally pleased with what it came out to be. And it's not really that I'm axing the blog, I just don't think you can expect any regular updates for awhile.

I started this blog with the idea that I would post everyday, but I realized that I ended up just spewing a jumble of words onto here. Updating whenever I felt like writing about music didn't really work too well either. You can really see how the number of posts each month has really dwindled. I'm sure part of it is the fact that I'm simply not digesting the amount of music I did at this point last year.

But I think at points this blog got done what I wanted it to. I never really expected a huge reader base, just to introduce a few artists to a few people. And I've done that. I think.

But for now, it's done. Unless the mood strikes, I probably won't post on here. But if you're in need of a recommendation, you can always drop me a line at my email.



I'll tell you what though. If Pitchfork ever enables comments on their album reviews, I'll start posting again.


Thanks for reading.



-Charlie

The Tiny

The Tiny have seem to have a new album coming out and you should be paying attention. I honestly just got into their last release from hearing the new song they've posted on myspace. But the difference between the two is astounding.

Their new song is simply amazing. I don't think I've been caught off guard by simple, stark emotion like this since seeing Karen O breaking down in her music video (a complete jolt to the then 16 year old me). The first time I listened to The Tiny's song it really dampened my mood. Even the breaths between sentences sound distressed. On the last chorus you can hear her voice strain, that threat of breaking pitch, and it just completely flattens you. You know that feeling when you're going really fast (car, bike, running) and you suddenly wreck? There's that first moment when every thing slides back into place and you're just left sitting there, taking it all in. Wait 'till you're 2/3 of the way through the song and you'll see what I mean.

I don't think any of their songs off Starring; Someone Like You had quite the punch power as this song. But that's excusable when compared to this song. Hell, if emo kids got a hold of this song they would bring back the practice of putting soot on your face when mourning (were the people who did this the equivalent of emo kids in Jesus' day?).

Are there still emo kids (I'll just assume it's still cool to make fun of them)? Or did they all just grow up into hipsters?



As usual, I'm completely off topic.

The Tiny - Dirty Frames

(you can listen to the song I talked about on their myspace)

Back!

I'm back! I know, it's been over a month, but I should be back to posting regularly now. Regular meaning more than two times a week. Ideally five times a week, but I'm making no promises.

The reason I haven't been around isn't because of a summer job, summer classes, vacation, lack of motivation, plummeting torrent share ratios, or anything that might even sound somewhat reasonable. I kinda promised that I would "get" Fuck Buttons before I listened to any more music.

It's likely that I might have never succeeded at that task. In fact, it was my parents telling me to get out of the basement (to get some sun) that brought me out of my music induced stupor. And I still don't get it.

Though I think I can kinda see the appeal now . But I'm telling any of you who like this band that you're completely twisted and sick. They repeat a batch of sound over until that snippet of noise is as close as that conjoined twin that you can't remove because the doctors said you might lose your liver in the operation. But then they just completely axe that snippet. You, of course, are left feeling like someone has just taken big ice cream scooper chunks out of you. You might have found that bit of music annoying(like the conjoined twin), but it served its purpose (liver). The moment they changed (or let die) that bit of music you're left completely off balance (just as if you finally had that twin removed just to find that you still compensate for its weight).

You're all a bunch of weird masochists. I may be weird (see above), but I'm no masochist.

The Informations

Usually when making a post I have some concrete idea why I enjoy a song. Usually I just hope I back up my enjoyment enough that someone will go out and listen to it.

So I might just be going out on a limb by asking you to just take my word for it. Yes, I am turning into that homeless guy who makes a random declaration for you and runs off. It's usually something along the lines of, "The war is here!" but if you're lucky you get a guy babbling about his lucky third shoe.

But not everything the homeless say is a lie (insert politician joke here).I mean, I would take a homeless man's word on where the nearest soup kitchen is.

Essentially what I'm trying to say is that there's a soup kitchen down the block and to the right.





Or something.


The Informations - strange habits


(more tracks up for download on their myspace)











I have nothing against the homeless. They're just an easy minority to exploit. I just dread the day they have access to the internet.

No, I haven't heard it all

There's a fine line between craziness and noise in music. Some of my favorite bands really flirt with that line. They manage to "keep it fresh" as the kids are saying, and at the same time manage to be listenable. Yet the band Ponytail has left me a bit confused. If that fine line was a door they would be playing door bell ditch and answering the door at the same time. The vocals of course* are on the left end of the spectrum (the left end being where Carey Mercer and the like sit). Everything in me wants to say that no, this shouldn't be listenable. But dear lord it is. I definitely wouldn't call it poppy, and yet for all its wildness the music contains numerous hooks.

I realize I'm getting in the bad habit of not mentioning the band I'm talking about 'til the end of my post. Sorry. The band is called Ponytail and the album is named Ice Cream Spiritual. Like the music it shouldn't make sense, but it does. Definitely the most fun I've had listening to an album this year.

Ponytail - 7 Souls
Ponytail - Celebrate the Body Electric (It Came from an Angel)

They'll be in Pittsburgh July 26. I don't see how it could be a boring show.


*You'll realize why the "of course" once you listen

Jonquil

This song caught me at first by the sheer scale of its vocals. These vocals share a podium with Efterklang; a vocal sound that I don't hear enough of. It's hard to imagine this track being recorded in a studio. Everything about it says this is something you need to experience in the flesh. I feel as if the first time you hear this song you shouldn't be on your computer (browsing myspace), but drawn into a tavern by the somewhat drunken chorus. And everyone realizes this song, this chant, is just begging for a beat. Percussion is improvised: feet are stomped, mugs are slammed, hands are slapped against tables. Voices strain to be heard over the clatter, and the clatter likewise seeks to drown out. The only wrong thing with this moment is that there's no good way to end it. Just like a show where the crowd and band are both giving it their all, there's that knowledge that the song has to end. It's a sad moment when it does, but you count yourself lucky just to have taken part.

But taverns like this don't exist where I live (and I'm underage) so I'll just have to settle for YouTube.

Jonquil - Lions

Jonquil is one of those music acts at Glastonbury this year that isn't Jay-Z.







Maybe it's showing, but I wish I was still in Tennessee two weeks ago. While this post really has nothing to do with the festival, I feel as if that week was a string of moments like these just waiting to happen.

Love Rhombus?

There's nothing more frustrating than Googling a band name and finding that Urban Dictionary is in one of the top five results. Even more frustrating when Urban Dictionary is really one of the only relevant results next to the band's myspace. Urban Dictionary defines a love rhombus as an "amorous involvement of two couples- one straight the other gay." Which make little sense to me since the band's myspace says there are three members in the band.

Maybe the key is that they're looking for a fourth member? But then there would be two love rhombuses. Rhombi? Whatever. Would they combine to make a love octagon? Can you even make an octagon out of a rhombus? And what's to keep the two who are gay from running off with each other? Unless they were of opposite genders. But that might open the door for the two who were straight? And that's just assuming each rhombus is a male and female pair.

Is the lesson of this story is that complicated love rhombuses/rhombi have nothing to do with geometry, or even this band? I don't know, they make music I like and that's all that matters, no?

Right?


Love Rhombus - Frostbite Heart
Love Rhombus - Come on in to the Love Rhombus

I think I asked more questions in the last post than I made statements.

Abutting, Dismantling

I'll get minus creativity points for the title of today's post, but the song title was achieving a lot more than anything I was thinking of.

Gregor Samsa's (band not person) album Rest doesn't contain driving melodies or huge sounds but it still manages to knock me off my feet each time. Most groups scream themselves hoarse trying to do what this band has done at the lightest whisper. Where some bands would get you by taking the rug from under your feet, Gregor Samsa switches the carpet in the room without you noticing. Songs change so effortlessly and flow so naturally you don't realize the gears have shifted until you're headed in the complete opposite direction. The actual changes are so minute that you'll be hard pressed to put your finger on what is different, you just know that suddenly this song has turned. These songs may not stick a catchy riff in your head for the rest of the day, but they will project on mood onto you that is hard to shake.

Gregor Samsa - Abutting Dismantling

The album Rest has been out for two months, you should have it already.

Back!

I'm back! Both to post and from Bonnaroo. What a festival. I'm just going to give a "quick" wrap up.

Thursday:

MGMT was a good kick off for the festival. I had heard mixed reviews of their live set before and while I can kinda see where this comes from, it wasn't too much a problem. The crowd favorites were among some of the festival's best performances, and the other songs held their own well. There were points where I thought they were dragging on a little, but in the next moment the song would swing and everything would be well.

Battles followed MGMT and it was one of the best shows I've seen despite some sound problems. Ty's vocals weren't really coming through too well and the band at times looked a little frustrated to me. Despite this they put on an awesome performance. This is one band that you don't want to miss if they're coming to your town.

After that Vampire Weekend was on stage, but I left to see Zach Galifianakis. Some might call me an idiot for this, but I'll stand by my decision. I really wanted to see Zach do some standup, but all his shows conflicted with my schedule. It was between missing Vampire Weekend, The Swell Season, and MSTRKRFT. Swell Season and MSTRKRFT turned out to be among the best shows, so I think I made the right choice. Besides the line was right by This Tent anyhow. Tip: check out Reggie Watts. He's what Danger Mouse would be if he did stand up with a looping station.

Friday:

The Swell Season was a lot better than what I had been expecting. Hansard seems to very comfortable onstage and is pretty charismatic. Highlight of the show was when there was a jam (considering it was Bonnaroo) and they invited people in the crowd to come up and read poetry. This had the potential to fail spectacularly when the drunk idiot behind me (the same one who decided it would be a good idea to stick a lit cigarette into my shoulder) decided he wanted to go on stage. Glen demonstrated foresight here by saying, "You're not a poet." I'm not sure what tipped him off, the fact that the guy was just yelling incoreantly and didn't realize Glen was talking to him, or stench of the guy's breath from 10+ rows back (yes, I'm still pissed about him sticking a cigarette in my back).

I feel as if I should have a lot to say about M.I.A.'s possible "last gig" but I wasn't really in the crowd (I was watching from outside the tent). But the crowd energy was really high and loving every minute, especially when invited up on stage.

MSTRKRFT ended up being one of my favorite shows of the festival. It was pretty much a huge dance party, but that's what I expected. There was a lot of energy up towards the front of the crowd and when they played part's of "D.A.N.C.E " the crowd went nuts. This wouldn't be the last show where the artists seemed surprised (in a positive way) by the crowd's energy.

Saturday:

This was the day that I had been waiting for. Sigur Ros was one of the main reasons I decided to get a ticket and I did not intent to miss that show for anything. However, going to the Gogol Bordello show almost killed me (which would have made making the Sigur Ros show kinda hard). They're a great live band but I wasn't really prepared for the crowd. You're looking at someone who has gone to shows full of hipsters perfectly content with nodding away the show. So when a guy wearing a gas mask almost took my face off with an elbow I was a little surprised.

I showed up to the Sigur Ros tent only five hours early. I say only because I still didn't get front row (second row). I figured showing up during another artist's show before the encore would have been enough, but I was mistaken. I did meet some really cool people though which only made the gig better. Be warned: all of Sigur Ros' new material is jaw droppingly good live. It isn't that their stuff isn't good, but there's something incredibly driving in Gobbledigook's percussion.

Now the part everyone's been waiting for: Kanye. I'll set the stage first. Kanye was originally slated for 8:15-9:45pm. Not sure if it was Bonnaroo that decided to move him or if he had it moved. But he ended up being put at the late night slot starting at 2:45am. Well I figure his show would just be starting by the time I had got to the stage from the Sigur Ros show. This didn't turn out to be true, nor was it true after I had slept in the field for an hour. By then it was around 4:00am so I gave up and went to my tent. He didn't end up going on for at least another half hour, and in the end only played an hour long set. The booing he received was deserved in my opionion. I did hear that people were throwing glowsticks and bottles at Kanye and the stage equipment which isn't deserved. I don't really care what an artist does, unless they're throwing things at you you shouldn't throw things at them.

Sunday:

Other than Broken Social Scene there wasn't a whole lot this day that I was looking forward to. And Broken Social Scene ended up being the only thing worth mentioning. Kevin Drew seemed a bit agitated about a keyboard onstage at one point, but other than that it was a great gig. Best show of the festival next to Sigur Ros and Battles. It also seems that Arcade Fire aren't the only band out there that seem determined to have Obama in office (video proof here).


SoooooOoOooo...

Good things at 'Roo:
Sigur Ros being one of the best live bands I've ever seen
Most of the people
Canadians more worried about our politics than we are
Poetry recitations during The Swell Season

Bad things at 'Roo:
Drunk people with cigarettes in your shoulder
Some of the people
Canadians more worried about our politics than we are
Kanye (two plus hours is pretty lame, especially when no reason is given)
The stage names (they're confusing as a certain Abbott and Costello skit)

BACK

Yeah, I was gone longer than expected. I've been done with finals for a bit now but went a few days without internet access. But now it's summer and Bonnaroo is 20ish days away! The schedule has been released and while there are some conflicts, there's no conflicts that really have me worried.

I should have a real post up soon. In the meantime, did anyone else think some of the Son Lux record sounded scarily like Frank from Donnie Darko? Someone else has to of made this comparison, but I saw/listened to the two for the first time within a day so it was pretty unsettling. Ok, it's really only in the first song, but it still freaked me out.

lol brb

I'll be back once these last few weeks of class are over.

Guess where

It isn't even funny anymore. The number of good bands from Brooklyn is become ridiculous. Do they sell instruments in grocery stores? Are you forced to go to rehearsal instead of church on Sundays? Is their population around 2.5 million?

I'm liking this song by Amazing Baby for a lot of the same reasons I fell in love with Yeasayer. This song seems to lack the huge sound of their other songs I've heard (all 3), yet is just as easy to get lost in. The melody doesn't really deviate much once the song starts, yet I can't seem to keep from hitting the back button once it's over.

Amazing Baby - The Narwhal

Split Lips, Winning Hips, a Shiner

Now that the fun of undermining my blog is over, it's back to the normal posts. But first thing's first. To the person who was referred here by the google search "spoon in my butt" perhaps you were looking for this.*

But we move away from inappropriately placed kitchenware to music. They're from Victoria but now transmit out of Montreal (note to self: another band to add to the ever growing list of good Montreal bands). The songs flit between the wild and rambunctious to the soft and sweet but they're great at both. It's easy to find those bands that are good at the fast moving songs, but it seems as if the breaks between those songs are little more than an afterthought. There's a lot of diversity in this music, a bit more to be discovered with each listen.

Shapes and Sizes - Alone/Alive
Shapes and Sizes - The Taste in My Mouth

le myspace


*Let it be known that while I enjoy a good prank way too much, I'm not a complete jerk. I'm a helpful guy.

Future Islands

I love all those quiet voiced poppy singers just as much as the next person. But sometimes I tire of hearing perfect pitch singers capable of making a castrato envious. And all those wavering soft voiced songs seem to lack conviction after a certain point. Don't get me wrong, I still am awed by the likes of Beirut, but a lot of it seems to lack to quality to offend*.

Which is why Future Islands is my new best friend (Myspace friend request still pending). At points it sounds like a more erratic Elvis skipped a few steps in the progression of music and started playing synth pop. However, it isn't all throaty sing-yourself-hoarse vocals. Just compare the two tracks:

Future Islands - Follow You
Future Islands - Little Dreamer

Check out their Myspace for album ordering details and dates with Dan Deacon.





*Turns out this is a good way to establish a fan base. Don't alienate.**



**A fact usually learned well after high school.