Monday XXXIII

Music: yes.

Holagrams: no.

2049 - Torches (2010)

2049 was a screamo band from Cleveland, Ohio that experimented with La Dispute story-telling vox and sporadic keyboard action. Torches, is a little all over the place with ideas but they all seem to be things people like and have heard before. I'm not too sure how much of the direction they had on this one they continued on with in Old Phyrexia (just a two song EP) but all came to an end in summer 2010 when they called it quits, so we'll never know what else they had in store for us.

Shit happens.

RIP Dead Man's Clothes.

Last.fm

Diving - Places And The Objects You Find There (2010)

Their name is Diving and they have a duck on their cover. What's there to hate?

Definitely not the fact that they also play twinkly math rock, of course...

Last.fm

Listener - Wooden Heart Poems (2010)

Since it's the last day of April, which is national poetry month, here is Listener's poetic masterpiece, Wooden Heart. This time though, it's the more stripped down and even more "talk music" version that does include some acoustic guitar here and there but is mostly just Dan Smith reciting his little spoken word numbers from the original Wooden Heart with no instrumental accompaniment. Definitely a must have for anyone who likes Listener or poetry! Hope you guys had a good April by the way.

Last.fm

Various Artists - Making Music's For Pussies #001 (2012)

Girlfriends, one of the various artists on this compilation by Big Scary Monsters, tipped me off to this super sick thing of super sick awesomeness on his Facebook page. It's a compilation that you can get free when you buy a shirt with that very same cover art like the one up there on it! Being the impulse buyer/secret wrestling fan, I instantly started marking out and bought the thing as fast as I could find the add to cart button. Forgetting that Euros are less than American dollars and things shipped overseas is a little more expensive, I was a little put back by what I had done when I finished my order and saw the receipt but it's really not that bad, considering I was so pumped about the shirt I forgot about the music, and in the end it comes out to be no more than the price of a brand new, vinyl LP. So yeah, it's totally worth it.

For the compilation and the music itself, I haven't gotten the package yet at this time of typing and usually don't like to give away the surprise of a new CD (or in this case, digital download), so I haven't listen to it yet. But, I can say that Tall Ships, Socks And Shoes Off, Crash of Rhinos, Girlfriends (just "Untitled #3", so no surprise there), and Oh No! Yoko will be on it along with some other new names I've have previously not heard of like, Killington Fall, Bear Cavalry, Delta/Alaska, Doctrines, and Adults, The Elderly And Children.

I may have not listened to it yet, but feel free to give it a try yourself. While you are at it, buy the shirt! See if I care... You'll surely have the honor of owning the same shirt as the writer and creator of this blog. Cheers!

Buy the 10 track comp and pink and blue Ultimate Warrior/Making Music's For Pussies T-shirt here.

PS: can't wait to see what they got in store for the #002!

PSS: did I mention I'm fucking pumped!!!

Insert crazy Warrior ramblings here.

Mogli - I Miss You

Mogli (David) is a singer/songer from Halifax who makes some very interesting folk music in a punk ethic/DIY sense that is drenched in accordion and acoustic guitar. I listened to Mogli, yes, kind of like the Jungle Book character but without the 'w', a lot when my friend, Martin died last December and it definitely holds a very emotional value to me. I wanted to show him this or ask him if he's ever heard of them but I never got the chance. This is now however, my chance to tell someone else.

Mogli - I Miss You EP (2009)

My favorite track from her 2009 release, 'I Miss You' is, "Back To You" hands down. Track 5, "Snowstorm" is also a Wintersleep cover. And along with the really anti-twee sounding vocals, I really like all that accordion. It's so good.

Love me some singing saw as well.

Mogli is also apart of the Nova Scotian bands, Ants & Anchors, Snail Party and Jackfish. Or at least friends with them.

Similar acts/sounds: fairy boy, Snail Party, Squinch Owl, byron., Mistake Makers, Jellybean!, Jackfish, Rosa, Foot Ox and more or less bands I could name that either have a female singer, an accordion, or are DIY folk, but not Mogli. Only Mogli is Mogli.

Last.fm

Kolya

Kolya were a late 90's emo band from the midwest that featured narrative type vox and slint like instrumentation. The band has since broken up but their spirit still lives on in mediafire links, lucky fans who have had the chance to grab up their physical copies and music forums, blogs and Last.fm. After breaking up, members went on to form the short lived band, The Union Ares and I'm not sure what happened to them after that. I will say though, that with only two 7inches and self-titled LP they released, this band and their music is something to not forget about or let get lost in the ends of time and space somewhere. I mean it.

Kolya 7" (AKA 'Iditarod 7"') (1998)

Kolya 7" (2000)

Kolya LP (2001)

Kolya is just one of those bands that you need to hear everything by because, well, there really isn't a lot that exists and all the stuff that does exist is amazing. Their discography only consists of 13 or so songs. A Shame, I know, but it is what it is and what it is, is super good music, especially for fans of Slint, June of 44, Sun Pelt, 90's emo in general and/or narrative spoken word music. Take a listen to the first track I heard from these guys called "Still Life With Candle" from their first 7" released by One Week Records with another song called "Iditarod" below.

The lyrics (and delivery of the lyrics), like the ones in the very beginning, "Are you going to bed yet? I hadn't decided/I might have to go to the bathroom/And I had planned on eating something...", remind me of the song "To A Husband At War" by a slightly different emo band, I Hate Myself except, in Kolya's case, the music and energy builds and builds but doesn't become chaotic. The noise just settles and we never hear Todd Giles (the singer/guitarist) lose his cool. There's no change in the tone. It's really not him who is giving off the full emotion for this "emo" band but the sounds from the instruments on and around him that are giving off this feeling of (emotional) content. A sense of somberness but not sadness. It's that subtleness about them that makes them stand out and goes to show you just how different these guys where than other "emo" bands of their time and the ones now.

Similar sounds/acts: Slint, Native Nod, The Union Ares, June of 44, Bells on Trike, Storm and Stress, Rodan, I Hate Myself, Plunger, and a few other 90's math rock or 90's emo pioneers or influenced acts.

PS: Sorry for the little/bad quality cover art of the 2000 7". It's the best I could find... If you have a better one, please send it my way! Thanks!

Fun (with Wikipedia) facts: Kolya is the nickname for the Russian name, Nikolay as well as a 1996 Czech film.

Myspace
Last.fm

NFT's Got You Covered! With Vestiges & Caulfield

Vestiges / Caulfield - Split (2012)

This little split featuring the metallic hardcore bands Vestiges and Caulfield is just a little taste of what my forthcoming NFT's Got You Covered! post will be about. I'm having a hard time finishing it up though because of the great size of this certain thing.

For now though, this is Vestiges and Caulfield's 2012 split featuring two whole tracks. Both tracks though are covers and both tracks stomp mud-holes in the original piece by its respected artist. The respected artists at hand are The Cranberries and Nirvana. That being said, it is quite a treat to hear such a lovely little 90's throwback like "Zombie" turned into what sounds more like a Goldar from The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers black metal tribute band. Caulfield's "Dive" by Nirvana interpretation is a little more straight forward in that it is just straight-up sludging on Cobain's little forgettable number which one may argue isn't even a cover anymore but just another song with the same name. I'm pretty sure it's a cover though.

Dramatic visualization.  

Being a fan of "Zombie" by The Cranberries already, it was pretty obvious from when I noticed the cover that I would love it, especially since last year I was tricked by Andrew Jackson Jihad's track "Zombie By The Cranberries By Andrew Jackson Jihad" that wasn't a cover of "Zombie" at all. The split itself is only two tracks with a combined weight of 12 minutes, 6 minutes tops for both bands to butcher their track of choice. I don't mean that in a Tori Amos butchers every song she has ever covered sense but in a double homicide but got away with and looked like a hero ten years later kind of deal. Anyways, enjoy and stay tuned for what's to come.

Bandcamp
Vestiges' Last.fm
Caulfield's Last.fm

Monday XXXII

That's life. 

Pneu - Highway to Health (2011)

Pneu are a french math rock two-piecer from Framce. Along with the math rock business, these guys also have got some gnarly  hardcore, or post hardcore I guess it would be, tendencies going on. The energy and heavy/fast-passed intensity is certainly a treat for me. Recently, I've felt like all the math rock acts that I've been finding have just been going through the motions so to speak; they really haven't struck me with any significance interest or emotional trigger to a point were I'm not just like, 'eh screw this, I'll go listen to some Don Cab instead'. Pneu on the other hand have not only woken me up from a run-of-the-mill math rock coma but opened my eyes (and ears) to something new and refreshing. It also helps that they add that little kick to their music whether it be a hardcore influence of just a bit more of noise than those other bands I've ran into lately, but either way, it definitely keeps me interested and coming back for more listens. 

Highway to Health is Pneu's latest effort. It's really pretty neat. Pneu also has an album called Pince Monseigneur which is also really really pretty neat but I haven't gotten a hold of it yet. They also have a split with Nervous Kids which was released in 2010. It all sounds great!

Bandcamp

Last.fm

Weird Korea - No Art // No Trade (2010)

Lo-fi indie rock. Guess you could also call it "garage punk" or something hip like that, I don't know. Just something I've been listening to on again/off again since last year or so. My favorite track has to be "Youth Cult". It's definitely the anchor track of No Art // No Trade but that doesn't stop me from telling you to listen to it all. 

I also just noticed that this album was recorded by Cameron Wisch and Weird Korea. Cameron Wisch is a one man math rock project as well as the drummer for Zona Mexicana and before that was in Ra Ra Riot, The Medics, and Le Rug. His stuff is really good as well and can be checked out on the internet somewhere. 

Last.fm (that mediafire link doesn't work anymore... trust me.)

Dikembe - Chicago Bowls (1969)

Dikembe are an "indiemo" band as it's called these days. I don't know if I like that term very much but it is emo and it is 'indie' and those two words do make a cute little word together, so why not, it's better than emocore. Anyways, Dikembe are the decedents of another indie emo band, Wavelets and consist of a drummer, a singer/guitarer, a basser, and a pianoer. They're from Florida.

To be honest, I liked this album even before I heard the full band kick in after the intro. See, this band hit a soft spot with me by not only using sampled dialogue from Freaks and Geeks but also ones by Nick (Jason Segal's character) and about his drumset. Not only do I have a boyish crush on/for Freaks and Geeks, I've been known to resemble the young man Segal character by quite a few who have also witnessed this superb pre-Superbad Judd Apatow production. Ladies ;) . Samples of Nick can be heard in the very beginning on the first track, "Scottie Spliffen" and at the very end on the last track, "Tony Kukush". So, even if I ended up hating this album, I would still have to listen to it from beginning to end just to hear the samples. Smart thinking, Dikembe. Smart thinking. 

Despite finding this on 4/20, I didn't catch the drug puns in the track names until the day after. I did feel like the most clever hip cat on the internet when I remembered I posted "Scottie Spliffen" on my Facebook that day, though. 

Dikembe's full-length album 'Broad Shoulders' is due out for release sometime this year. 

Bandcamp

Last.fm

Vestiges - The Descent Of Man (2010)**

Vestiges are a bag of heavy and dark goodies. Like the left-over Easter candy you just found behind your night stand or the Scottie Spliffen you forgot about from last friday night. What I'm trying to say, is that Vestiges and their album 'The Descent Of Man' is full of awesome things all jam-packed in to one album and, well, I guess forgotten about until now. The awesome things? Oh you know, just a dash of descending post-rock/screamo guitars made of steam and grit here, a dash of black metal vocals and hardcore approaches there, and a kicking and stomping crusty d-beat after-taste everywhere. Still don't understand? Guess you'll just have to take a listen for yourself. 

The Descent Of Man itself is an album that deals with the complicated relationship between man and nature. It's pretty epic and should fill everyone's needs whether they are a metal fan or a hardcore fan. 

"There will be horrifying consequences for what we have done."

Stay tuned for more Vestiges posts in the future. *Hint* Because of The Cranberries cover they have *Hint*

Bandcamp

Last.fm 

**Mediafire link starts DLing immediately. Watch out!

Happy Earth Day!

Earth - Pentastar: In The Style of Demons (1996)

This the stoner drone doom band, Earth's third studio album. It is the one with the Jimi Hendrix cover and the car on the front.

It's their rock 'n' roll album.

Similar acts/sounds: Boris, Sunn O))), Sleep, Khanate, Nirvana, Weedeater, KK Null, and the rest of the similar artists listed on Last.fm.

Happy Earth day.

PS: 'Sunn Amps and Smashed Guitars' is the one with Kurt Cobain and 'Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light (parts 1 & 2)' is the one with a cello.

Last.fm

Grass is Green - Chibimoon

Grass is Green - Chibimoon (2011)

Basement noise post-punk from Boston. Chibimoon is their second release. It's really dirty.

I know these guys are going to be having a good time tonight.

These guys also have their new album, 'Ronson' on sale now at their Bandcamp site, along with this bad boy and Yeddo.

Similar acts/sounds: The Dirty Dishes, Dogs Without Borders, Huak, The Waldoes, olvov, Vending Machetes, Grass Widow, Screaming Females,

Bandcamp (seriously check it out)
Fbook
Last.fm

It's always 4/20 somewhere, right?

BATS - Red in Tooth & Claw

BATS - Red in Tooth & Claw (2009)

BATS are another Irish math rock band. That's not all they sound like though. And what do they sound like? They sound like well, catchy dance math post-punk with post-hardcore influences alla These Arms Are Snakes or We Versus The Shark. But they don't really sound all too much like those guys either. Maybe it has to do with the unique vocal arrangement by the frontman's speek/shout mouth spasms. Whatever it is or whatever they sound like, it's pretty damn fun. Especially for, and not exclusive to, fans of math rock, heavy post-punk or post-hardcore.

Definite starters would have to be tracks 1 and 2. Once those are over listen to tracks 3 and 4, and then 5,6,7,8 and 9. After that you should probably keep listening on for track 10 and, well, track 11 since that's the last song. So yeah, listen to everything I guess.

Also: BATS is STAB spelled backwards.

Similar acts/sounds: These Arms Are Snakes, Adebisi Shank, Enemies, Time Columns, Q and Not U, Huak, A Voice Like Rhetoric, Faraquet and HORSE the Band. LOL jk.

Party.

Bandcamp
Last.fm

Tax Day!

Today's the last day to get taxes in to the feds for some folks here in America...

But have no fear, for this album is free of charge:

The Taxpayers - To Risk So Much For One Damn Meal (2010)

It's super fitting.

This is The Taxpayers' 2010 release right after A Rhythm In A Cage. It's not as aggressive sounding but very much a worth-it release for anyone into clean 7-piece folk punk. Don't let that fool you though, it's still got the DIY stamp of approval. Especially since it's free. No tax included!

Fuck Tax.

Cash rules everything around me, greed is a country on a planet under constant rotation at the bank.

Quote Unquote (I know... more from this place) (Be sure to read the explanations, though!)

Last.fm

Monday XXXI

Happy Emancipation Day, Washington, D.C.

How about some music..

Two Knights - Quilt Chamberlain (2011)

Two Knights are a twinkly math rock two piecer from Texas. Along with their super addictive tapping and fun for everyone drumming, the singer/guitarist has some splendid singing chops that I personally think are begging to be heard. You might disagree, I don't know. Whatever, it's what makes them stand out amongst the rest of the emo/twinkle toes playing around these days.

The members of Two Knights are also in a screamo band with a member of Innards. They are called Father Figure and are pretty swell as well.

Bandcamp
Last.fm

Crywank - Narcissist On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown (2012)

James Clayton himself tipped me off to his new album the other day and I couldn't have been more interested in hearing it (and more from him all together), especially since his last album was called, 'James Is Going To Die Soon'. Narcissist On The Verge OF A Nervous Breakdown is the name of the new release by James's moniker, Crywank and is very much a vehicle of coping with his sadness, hence the name - a play on the words of the expression 'tearjerker'. I'm not sure if I could ever say this release tops his last but that may in part be due to the number of short songs it holds. I have no problem with simple little songs, I just wish I could hear more out of them.

Soon after learning about Narcissist On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown, I found out about a little gem that James and his friend(s) recorded that not only features some early takes of tracks on Narcissist like "Thomas Saunders Lloyd Webber" and "Little Creepy" but also some silly covers and a goofy rendition of "Welcome To Castle Irwell" which is probably my favorite song by 'wank. The recordings I'm talking about are called, 'I Daren't Call This Stoner' and the genre of music is called "Gettin' blazed in Ric's Room". I can't say I condone such actions here but the results are pretty entertaining. It'll probably make its way on to NFT's Got You Covered some day. If I ever get my act together and stop forgetting to put up those posts.

Anyways, if you liked what you heard from Crywank last time I posted his work or even a little interested in this depressed singer-songwriter: download this one and give it a listen. It won't hurt and that's all he really wants anyways.

Tumblr
Last.fm

Isaïah - Ils Consomment, tuent et prient, mais ne pensent pas (2009)

A couple weeks back I posted about a band called Terraformer who where from Belgium, played math rock instrumental music and featured members from the screamo band, Isaïah. Well, this is Isaïah. They rock hard and are pretty brutal. They're also pretty epic. There's some epic bits here and there on this release that lead to spoken word. Presumably french spoken word. It's pretty, well... pretty. Fucking intense pretty.

Though Isaïah is from Belgium, they do speak French (or at least write their stuff with French) and therefore I would still consider them 'French screamo'.  I guess you could still call it Belgian screamo but who are we kidding... call it what it is: heavy-ass emotionally violent music!

From Belgium.

In French.

Bandcamp (free but probably not for long)
Last.fm

Rosetta - The Cleansing Undertones of Wake/Lift (2007)

I stumbled across this EP today while looking for things to post and remembered that I had forgotten about it. I forgot to remember that this was Rosetta's four track ambient noise piece that was released around the time of Wake/Lift. According to Wikipedia it is not meant to be synced up with its companion album despite what I have heard in the past. Either way though, Cleansing Undertones is still a really interesting listen and not just good for putting on right before bed to help you fall asleep. No, it actually has enough substance in it that you can actually sit down for a listen and it'll tell a story. What that story is... is up to you the listener.

Twelve minutes in we hear a male voice that comes in and out of the static that dares you to keep listening. Soon you start to wonder what will happen and where the music will take you. You try to hold on to the sound or that voice but it eventually dies out and all you are left with is a feeling of contentment and pressure. Once all noise has dissipated, the pressure is lifted. You are free.

You can also listen to The Cleansing Undertones of Wake/Lift in its interiority here on the youtubes.

I'm glad I remembered this one finally.

Enjoy.

Last.fm

Bomb the Music Industry! - Vacation

Since I'm on vacation and I'm being really lazy, here's Bomb the Music Industry's 2011 release, Vacation. It almost made the cut as an honorable mention best album of the year and it's probably my favorite release by Jeff Rosenstock to date.

Bomb the Music Industry! - Vacation (2011)

Vacation is a lot more stripped down and straight forward than your usual BtMI! dish. It is also the least ska thing from BtMI! I have heard. I like that. There's nothing wrong with the other stuff. It's not like it just sounds like Kudrow, Jeff's more punk driven project, either... it's still very BtMI!-esque. You know, just not super fast, electronic, ska punk BtMI!.

Vacation also features Ginger Alford (track 4, I believe) among others. Ginger and her gang of losers winners, Good Luck have just announced their tour with Spoonboy this week and unfortunately for me, they are not making their way up to Maine. At least, not yet...

Similar sounds/acts: Good Luck, Kudrow, The Arrogant Sons of Bitches, Laura Stevenson and The Cans, O Pioneers!!!, The Wild, Shinobu, The Max Levine Ensemble, and no one and everyone.

The shit that you hate don't make you special.

Like most releases by BtMI!, Vacation is free on Quote Unquote Records. I'm starting to see a pattern here. Maybe Jeff and Quote Unquote are related? Maybe Jeff is Quote Unquote?

Quote Unquote
Last.fm

Monday XXX

More action than xXx.

Hope everybody had a good Easter.

Anybody want my jellybeans?

Shapes Like Dinosaurs - Rarities (2012)

Shapes Like Dinosaurs just released some new material on their Bandcamp that generally consists of demos, unfinished jams and improv. It's got some good ideas and I would really enjoy hearing what "Fingers 5000" will evolve into. If nothing, that's okay too.

Last.fm

By Surprise - Mountain Smashers (2011)

Once I learned that By Surprise isn't Boy Problems, for some reason I had the impression they were the same band and what I was listening to on my ipod, I felt like this should have been one of my favorite albums of last year. It might not be 2011 anymore but I'm still going to listen to this album like it was. 2011 listens as a whole is my goal for this album and I don't think it will be that hard.

By Surprise is a super slick indie rock/twinkly/69th revival emo punk band from Jersey. They also have a split with Hightide Hotel, an EP called 478, and are currently on tour with Into It. Over It. I think they sound like an emo-y version of the rad punk band, Big Kids. That's really really rad.

Nothing against Boy Problems. If they had gotten back to together and released a new album: that would be on here too.

Bandcamp
Last.fm

Astronomer - Heavy Air (2010)

Very Cursed-"Friends in the Music Business"-hardcore from Boston. These guys opened up for KYOTY a couple weeks back when I went to the CD release party in Boston and I wasn't disappointed at all. They definitely pack a punch without having to look really tough or scary. Hell, I didn't even know they were a hardcore band... I just thought it was that whole seven flights or stairs/two hour wait period stuff. 

Jokes.

Last.fm

Boy Crisis - Tulipomania (2009)

Boy Crisis was a short-lived (or maybe still alive?) pop group that featured Victor Vazquez AKA Kool A.D of Das Racist fame. Due to "internal problems with the record label", Tulipomania was never released officially and Boy Crisis never blew up like MGMT or Foster the People or whoever is really popular with a capital POP these days. It's only as serious as Kool A.D. can be (so not very much), but if you take it seriously you might end up getting the wrong impression. It's still a goofy think, especially now, hearing Kool A.D. sing, well.. actually really good and not about random things he sees around the office that he can rap about. Not that we don't like such things, of course (I love it).

Also, I'd keep this band away from your girlfriend, sister, or sister's little friends. It's pretty intoxicating and you know how those fan girls get... 

I saw the Kids Choice Awards. 

Official site

Last.fm

Also:

David Liebe Hart AKA that guy from Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! with the puppets (do I have to say more?), is looking to make a punk rock album and he needs our help! I'm not sure how genuine it is but he needs $8,000 (the price of punk) to complete his dream album featuring songs from the Tim & Eric tour and I sure as hell wanna see this happen and exist. So yeah, donate to his Kickstarter page and check back in 22 days from now to see if his goal is reached! I know whatever comes of this will be pure gold. Just look at that Trash Talk T-shirt! 

Seriously though, my friend's girlfriend met David once and HE IS JUST LIKE THIS IN REAL LIFE.

I'm serious.

Salame. 

Happy Easter!

And...

Happy April 8th, Jeff!

O Pioneers!!! - Neon Creeps

Man, I've been listening to this album all day and all I can think about is: how could I have forgotten how cool it was when I first heard shit a few years back? I was just going to throw it on to the Monday post this week but I figured that I could just write about it now instead of waiting a couple of days. Plus, I probably won't keep forgetting about it if it's right out here in the open and all.

O Pioneers!!! - Neon Creeps (2009)

O Pioneers!!! played their instruments loud and sang like they had to get a few things off their chest. Their sound could always seem to be connected to the oldies like Against Me!, Hot Water Music and (insert another band like Leatherface or The Broadways here), and while I'm usually a stickler about just comparing another band to something else instead of saying what they themselves sound like, I would have to agree with these comparisons. Do I have a problem with this? Nah, it's chill. All these bands had it going on and brought something really honest and emotional to the punk game. O Pioneers!!! just stayed true until the very end, unlike most of those other bands. True to their sound at least.

Neon Creeps has a lot of awesome things and sounds going for it despite almost everybody quitting on frontman Eric Solomon (including Chris Ryan who is the Chris Ryan from the song title, "Chris Ryan Added Me on Facebook") and initially becoming the last full length we would hear from them.

My favorite tracks would have to be: "Stressing the Fuck Out", "Cool Kid City", and "Saved By the Bell was a Super Good Show", you know, because it was! All the other tracks are super good too! Don't worry!!

O Pioneers!!! has since called it quits on existing but pretty much their whole discography is archived and free for everyone to enjoy.

Similar sounds/acts: Against Me!, Hot Water Music, Kudrow, Bomb the Music Industry!, Hard Girls, The Hold Steady if they went orgcore, Off With Their Heads and more Asian Man Records label mates.

Discography
Asian Man Records
Last.fm

Friday Streaming!

The past couple of weeks I've been holding on to some  really splendid finds that are too interesting to just ignore. To counter this and to post some stuff with no DLs, here's another friday streaming. On free friday no less...

On good friday no less.

Mental Architects - Celebrations (2012)

Celebrations by Mental Architects is a post rock/math rock album that is simple but complex. It's nothing new by a long shot but still everything you would expect and want from such an album. Joseph Andreoli, the guitarist for Giraffes? Giraffes! plays on "When Sound Turns You Into A Person He Becomes One Of Us, a track that is currently free on their Bandcamp. Giraffes? Giraffes! actually posted this on their F-book page so that's how I found it. If they are touring together or anything like that, they should come on up here to Maine sometime. ;)

Last.fm 

AWAAS - AWAAS EP (2012)

AWAAS (or Awaas) are a group made up of the now defunct Conifer and Ocean which I guess you could argue makes them a mini-super-group from Portland, Maine (since they come from two of the most important local bands in Maine's music history). I saw these gentleman back in december and asked them if they had any plans for releasing material. They informed me that they were sooner or later going to release a demo with the track "Burial Ground" on it. I also asked them which members were from Conifer and which were from Ocean but I now I forget. Anyways, this is the demo they told me about and it's pretty chill. You can really tell just from the first track that 'AWAAS' is more on the direction of the members past exist as Confier than it is the heavy and doom and groom metal onslaught of Ocean. The band does more to receptively pound a jamming riff or groove into your brain than cast you into the ring of hell where there's a lot of pitting. I also more recently saw another band made up of ex-members of Ocean and learned first heard that not only were these guys still raising hell but are still getting the tough kids excited as well. I'm totally not 100% behind AWAAS's vocal choices but it definitely makes more sense on this s/t EP then it did at the show when the lead singer was "sicker than a dog". 

Enjoy this three song demo/EP and be sure to check in from time to time for anything else AWAAS related if you like what you hear. 

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If These Trees Could Talk - Red Forest (2012)

If These Trees Could Talk have a new album out called Red Forest. It will probably be somewhere on here again on a best of the year end list or something but I'll just leave it here for now so I don't forget and don't have to wait until then. 

Red Forest is by no means a departure from any of the other releases ITTCT has dropped, but like I've said before, if I want to listen to some post rock then I would turn to these guys... which I can now do even harder since there's a third album to choose from. By turning to ITTCT, I'm also getting the chance to a none run-of-the-mill post rock band but a band that plays post rock with depth, musically sound structures and fun-ass spiraling and storytelling guitar. I will also say that the track "They Speak With Knives" has to be my new favorite track for it's clever drum work that to me sounds a bit like Russian Circles' kind of stuff . I just wish it was "They WOULD Speak With Knives". That's what the trees would say. 

Bad joke, I know.

It was also really cool to find this new release the day after my KYOTY/Boston adventure. It was a very post-whatever morning afternoon that day.

Science of Silence Records 

Last.fm

Lastly,

Time Columns - Mana (2012)

This is another (but slightly different) post rock/math rock band that has just released their debut full-length for the world to hear. And by the world, I mean: who ever is willing to listen. This is Time Columns' debut album, Mana and it is pretty neat. 

I'd say as a rule, if any album starts out with the sounds of an ocean or a beach, I'm probably going to like it. Since this whole blog is really just a vehicle for me to express the things I love and obsesses over, and I'm not even talking about the music here, I think it is safe to say that Time Columns easily hit a soft spot for me when they decided to mix math rock (and all that other stuff) with the ocean. I wish the whole album had that sample of the beach that is in the opening track! I would eat that shit up like it was bread. Don't get me wrong, I'm going to talk about how cool and experimentally this album gets after getting over the 11 minute snoozer that is track 2 but first I have to make my love for such things very clear with all of you. You know, since this is the read New Keith getting excited about things that don't even really have anything to do with music show. 

Anyways, that's enough of that. Mana starts with that unexpected beach math rock opener, turns a corner to a more straight forward post rock look at things, turns around again and throws a curve ball at you with a acoustic sounding loopy jam with a few "dings", follows that up with something we hadn't heard before from Times Columns which is them singing and it works out great and sounds acceptable especially since it's still full of lots twists and turns, and then ends with a nice little oriental math rock jingle (if I'm aloud to say that) with gongs and plucked strings that slowly builds into nothing... this is until... We hear the beach again!! But this time only for a few seconds until a acoustic guitar comes in and a group of people show up to the party you weren't invited to! Who are these people and why are they inaudibly talking over that beautiful sound of waves crashing into the shore while crickets chirp the night away?! This is Mana.

Oh well, it still sounds good to me and to be honest, the album does end with the water coming in and all the people going home. 

Mana is definitely an all over the place kind of album. I wouldn't say that is really a bad thing, it's much more entertaining than a constant up and down post rock album and much much more entertaining than a down and out post rock album. I'd ask that people go check this album out and study it for themselves, it's got a lot of good in it. These guys might seem like cheaters for using all this looping and live instrument sampling, but this is 2012... look at what we can do with all that technology now. Look!

Mana is out now and can be found on their Bandcamp for 500 doll hairs. 

I'm also very interested to know what Mana is about...

Bandcamp 

Last.fm

NFT's Got You Covered! With Bomb the Music Industry!

Bomb the Music Industry! - Others! Others! (Volume 1: 2005-2008)

Do I like ska? No. Do I like Bomb the Music Industry!? Yes. Do I like what Bomb the Music Industry has done to ska? Hell yes.

Others! Others! by BtMI! is a grab bag of goodies that Jeff Rosenstock and the gang have created for and as 7 inches, unofficial releases, original versions, demos and other rarities. The concept of this "Others! Others!" project was originally going to be as a release of covers from every band BtMI! has toured with. They scrapped this idea due to the fact that it would get pretty annoying for the other bands. I don't know why they would get annoyed. I wouldn't be annoyed in the least bit. I'm not everybody though and therefore this collection of extras is not full of covers.

The release still features five solid covers of bands BtMI! may or may not have toured with. "This Graceless Planet" (We Versus the Shark), "4 Inches" (Rick Johnson Rock and Roll Machine), "If Assholes Got Awards, I'd Have a Trophy Case" (Infamous Jake and the Pinstripe Mafia), "Little Brother" (Andrew Jackson Jihad), and "Gold Soundz" (Pavement) are the covers amongst the other goodies featured on Others! Others! Vol. 1.

Even though Bomb the Music Industry! has a bit of a ska influence and many things become driven my the off-beats; the covers, demos, original versions and bonus tracks are still supreme. BtMI! even takes the two ska bands Rick Johnson Rock and Roll Machine and Infamous Jake and the Pinstripe Mafia's (who aren't super terrible ska bands) tracks and makes them even less ska. Just because these guys are tagged as ska, doesn't mean they torment you with fedoras and jazz history (damn, that brings terrible images of my past to mind) . BtMI! are still looking out for the common good of punk music and are above all that bullshit that mainstream ska bands stand for. What do they stand for? Being lame, of course.

It's also really cool to see We Versus the Sharks on the other end of the covering process. It's pretty cool to see that these cover posts have gone full circle as well; We Versus the Shark and their cover album were the first band featured on NFT's Got You Covered and now they are the ones getting covered. With Bomb the Music Industry!'s whack at "This Graceless Planet", we see what was once a spastic but controlled math punk anthem becomes a spastic out of control vomiting computer made up of electronic keyboards and percussion instruments. The cover is actually really well done despite none of it sounding like live instruments and the difficulty of the piece. Bomb the Music Industry! are no strangers to crazy meters and looping in their own work either.

Other key elements and cool features of Others! Others! Vol. 1 has to be the demo version of "All Alone in My Big Empty Apartment", a track that was later released on Goodbye Cool World, this time with ukulele (I think that's a ukulele) instead of acoustic guitar. I personally like the demo version better and so does Jeff. Gosh, I'm slowly beginning to hate the ukulele (especially electric uke), but I will always love whistling and luckily for me, both versions of "All Alone in My Big Empty Apartment" still have the whistling, which is nice. The track "D13 4 YR GOV3RNM3NT" is a "megamix" for Anti-Flag. BtMI! made it for them to come out to as an introduction song while the two bands were on a little three day tour together. According to jeff after a short and funny story later, it never got played for them. Lastly, the track "This Year For President's Day, I'm Giving Up on Rock and Roll" sounds a lot like a Christmas song, well that's because it was going to a Christmas song. The track was for BtMI!'s split with Rick Johnson Rock and Roll Machine along with their cover of his track, "4 Inches". The split was scheduled to be released around Christmas time but it took too long and ended up getting released a few days after President's Day. So, they just changed "This Year For Christmas" to "This Year For President's Day". On the same BtMI!/Rick Johnson split, Rick Johnson Rock and Roll Machine cover BtMI!'s track, "Funcoland Vs. the Southern Electorate" off their first album, Album Minus Band (2005) (which also features a cover).

Most of my knowledge about this collection is from Quote Unquote (the first ever donation based record label) where Bomb the Music Industry! and other rad bands post their music (for free!) and sometimes write cool stuff. In the case of Other! Other! Vol. 1 on Quote Unquote, there is every song listed with the lyrics and some sweet stories and notes from Jeff himself (I'm guessing)!  Quote Unquote is an awesome site like If You Make It and everyone should check out all the cool stuff they have to offer! Now!

Bomb the Music Industry also released a new album last year called Vacation. It's pretty chill. Check that out too!

Official site
Last.fm

Monday XXIX

April Fools.

Terraformer - Terraformer EP (2010)

Terraformer are a tip tap toeing through the tulips progressive/math/instrumental guitar rock three piece from Belgium. Certain members of the band were in the Belgium screamo band, Isaïah.

They also get a bit heavy at times which is a nice touch.

Lots o' cheesin'.

Lots o' steezin'.

Last.fm

John Galm - 11/22

(not the artwork)

John Galm is the lead singer of emo band, Snowing. He was also once the singer of Audio Recording Club and Street Smart Cyclist. Though I have respect for Snowing, I've never really been able to get into them or their sound. John Galm alone however, is something I can really get in to.

John Galm's solo acoustic release, 11/22 is just that; solo acoustic John Galm. It's just John and a guitar and simplistic lyrics that make sense. It's a little scratchy on the ends production-wise but that really isn't anything I would judge down about. It's the sincerity that I look for and John Galm has it on this one for sure. I just wish that his other stuff came more naturally to me then 11/22 did.

It might help his case that 11/22 features a cover of "Be My Baby" by The Ronettes. That's not even my favorite part of 11/22 though. The definitive stand-out track has to be the closing track "Buffalo", a track that begs the question, "who will make me tea when you are gone?". I could not help but think about Jordaan Mason's track "race-horse: get married!" the first time I heard it and I don't even really know why...

If you like Crywank, Toby Foster, Toy Boats, Jordaan Mason, Street Smart Cyclist's acoustic EP, have heard of any of those people or like anything by John Galm, I think you'll enjoy John Galm's 11/22.

Last.fm

Confidon - Four Song(s) EP (2010)

I'm not sure if I'm totally digging everything these guys have put out so far but I am quite impressed with this four song EP. Maybe it's just because I really like the first song, "Omnia Vanitas", a song I think I'd even like it if it didn't have Jim from The Office sampled in the beginning to explain how they came up with the name 'Confidon'. Maybe not. I don't know, I just like it.

Confidon are another three piece from New Hampshire, a place where they live and play 90's emo and twinkly music in the 2010's.

Bandcamp
Last.fm

Fort Lean - Fort Lean EP (2011)

"Fort Lean is about getting too drunk at you own picnic. Fort Lean is about leaving the city. Fort Lean is a place where you can still see the skyline but you can't hear any cars and you can put all your stolen wine in the stream to keep it cool and when the fire dies out you can see some stars and not too many airplanes." - Last.fm

If all goes well, I'll probably end up going to see these gentlemen on the 25th with We Were Promised Jetpacks, just over the bridge. From what I've heard from the four tracks on this EP and a couple more on their single, they sound pretty legitimate to me. They remind me of the first time I heard Modest Mouse (again, I'm not sure if that means anything), but yeah, some catchy rock 'n' roll right here, no doubt.

It's pretty cool that their s/t EP is free on Bandcamp as well. For now.

Check out "Beach Holiday" down below:

Last.fm

And I guess that's it.

Charles Manson - LIE

Charles Manson was a tragically misunderstood outsider musician who not only revolutionized stoner music but the indie rock beard.

Manson started his music career while surfing around in Los Angeles where he met Dennis Wilson, the drummer for The Beach Boys, who was riding a dolphin at the time. Soon after their first meeting, Manson and Wilson started up a local stankcore band with Johnny The Bull Stambolli and Asher Roth. The band, known as the Healter Skelters, went on a small tour with Set Your Goals, Four Year Strong and Lostprophets. Well together, the band only released a single called, "I am the Devil, and the Devil always has a bold head" and a split with Three Six Mafia before Manson left the group to pursue a solo career. The others went on to form the super inflectional 90's metal rap horrorcore band, Stuck Mojo.

After leaving the band and Los Angeles all together, Charles Manson moved in to a cabin in Alaska isolated from the rest of the world to record his first album. It wasn't until four years later that people would notice his amazingly stunning and subtle indie rock bliss. Why was he finally figured? Why did it take so long? Some say it was his astonishing one song collaboration with Kanye West, others say it was the great reception he received from indie god websites such as pitchpork,  NPR, Gorilla Vs. Bear, Last.fm, AOL.com, and MTV Music.com (now known as MTV Hive because they forgot that "Music" was already in their name).

Whether it had to do with the phantastic praise Manson was receiving on the internet or his astonishing Kids Choice Awards performance in 1969, Manson was blowing up just like I thought he would.  Everybody knew this men was killing it on the mic. Just a straight up killer musician.

To date, Lie: The Love and Terror Cult is one of his best selling albums with other 300 copies sold worldwide and in China. It was once reissued on Awareness Records, a record company that donates money to those victims of crimes. The cover art is Manson on the cover of LIE magazine, a boy band magazine sold to overly devoted fan girls.

Charles Manson - Lie: The Love and Terror Cult (1970)

The album itself is about society as a whole and what we can do to stop The Lorax from coming.

Manson's music has been covered and sampled by many musicians such as GG Allin, The Lemonheads, The Beach Boys, Front Line Assembly, Marilyn Manson, Devendra Banhart, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Guns N Roses, and Clay Aiken.

Similar sounds/acts: GG Allin, Tiny Tim, Jeff Mangum, Radiohead, Memoryhouse, Kraftwerk, Fozzy, ODB, and Phil Spector.

Despite popular legend, Charles Manson did not addition for a role in The Monkees. He was in the Philippines at this time helping children to read and write science.

Unofficial site
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