Pneu - Destination Qualité

Pneu - Destination Qualité (2015)

New Pneu!

Destination Qualité is the newest trip from the premiere French math rockers, Pneu. Still just two dudes, Pneu take on math rock in 2015 with high-octane energy and unmerciful noise. The result not only makes you dizzy but also pumps you up all at once. If you have not checked out Pneu yet and are a fan of math rock, you must listen to this right now! It's differently the bands most polished but still intriguing release to date.

The 8th track "Hinges" features guest vocals provided by Peter Simonelli of the California Post-punk band, Enablers.


Bandcamp
Last.fm

Goblin - Suspiria

Goblin - Suspiria OST (1977)

It's the spookiest time of the year again, so listen to spooky music!

Goblin were an electronic prog rock band from Italy. Originally known as Cherry Five, the band was commissioned by director and spook-master, Dario Argento to help finish compose the music for his 1975 horror masterpiece, Profondo Rosso AKA Deep Red. With the goal of creating such a beautifully goosebumped-out soundtrack, the band needed a much cooler and darker name, apparently, so they trashed the Genesis-inspired Cherry Five name and were re-born as Goblin. After Profondo Rosso, the band were then assigned to compose all of Argento's next film, a sort of ballet of horror, Suspiria!

Suspiria is both suspenseful and beautiful - a combination of traits that also appears in the soundtrack by Goblin. I'm not going to spoil the movie for you if you haven't seen it; I'm just going to say you will be in for quite a treat this Halloween season if you do see it! It's a classic and don't let the whole ballet thing fool you. A good movie can make anything watchable (plus there's really not much ballet anyways).

Here's a taste of Goblin's "Suspiria" if you haven't already familiarized yourself with this incredible track (or the rest of the soundtrack):

Get spooked!

Last.fm

Monday XCIX

Monday is back.

Lovechild - In Heaven, Everything is Fine. (2014)

Some straight-up no filter hardcore punk rock from Boston, Mass. Some of the coolest sounding hardcore I have ever laid my ears on. I'm really digging this stuff especially the track, "Perfectionist (Perfectionism)" as it features a sample of  J. Robert Oppenheimer on the first atomic bomb where he quotes a line from the Hindu Scripture, Bhagavad Gita: "Now I have become death, the destroyer of worlds". Even if the other parts of the song weren't top notch, I would still listen to it just for that sample. Luckily, Lovechild is top notch.


Lovechild includes members of Cerce and Debaser.

Last.fm

Father Figure - Jumping Off a Building (2013)

Sometimes there's releases I miss and than there's some that I really miss. This is one of those releases that I completely miss for a whole year of its existence. Well, it's here now and sounds just like what I remember Father Figure sounding like: emotional, messy, screechy, and down-right depressing.


Father Figure grows on you if you let it, like a cold that you really don't want to deal with right now but it makes you sound so much cooler now that you have it.

Innards meets Two Knights (and their side project Flesh Born).

Last.fm


Bearcubbin'! - Get Your Heavies Out (2011)

Bearcubbin'! are a loop happy math rock band from Portland, Oregon. This album in particular bares (or show I say bears?) a slight resembling sound to that of post hardcore band, These Arms are Snakes. This is no coincidence as this album, Get Your Heavies Out was the bands' effort at making a something sound like bands such as These Arms are Snakes and Young Widow. 

Bearcubbin' also have a new album called Girls With Fun Haircuts out now! I'll probably be writing up something for that album once I get a good chance to. From what I have heard so far, everyone should check it out!

Last.fm

Don Caballero - World Class Listening Problem

NFT looks back at things from before its time: the year 2006.

Don Caballero - World Class Listening Problem (2006)

It's no American Don, but Don Caballero's 2006 release, World Class Listening Problem is still a listening experience that apologizes to no one. Five years removed from American Don and only one member of the original lineup left (Mr. Don Cab himself, Damon Che), World Class Listening Problem was bound to be different.

One of the biggest differences about World Class Listening Problem was that it was released by Relapse records, a predominately metal record label. Despite the new label, Don Cab did not turn into mathcore, but they did however get heavier than ever before; not heavy to a point of it sounding too progressive or cheesy, but heavy to point where it is a bit more riff-y than just twinkly guitars over incredible drumming. There's nothing wrong with being 'twinkly', I love me some twinkle daddy music, but it's cool to hear what something would sound like with a little more beef to it. That's what's different about World Class Listening Problem: it is beefy.

Once you bulk up your music though, you do lose a little flexibility. I think that's what makes this release a little less of an essential. Without that lightness to it that early Don Cab albums have, WCLP seems to be stuck in the mud almost instead of just flowing naturally. Of course, this minor flaw that's more about taste than anything else could also be due in part by the lack of guitarist Ian Williams, who was off doing his thing in Battles by this time.

Still, World Class Listening Problem is something different, and that's what I like about it. You get to hear a deeper side of Don Caballero and you can still enjoy it. As my Personal Development teacher would say: it's a win/win situation.

Highlights: "Mmmmm Acting, I Love Me Some Good Acting", "I Agree.....No!.....I Disagree", Railroad Cancellation" (Featured on Sons of Anarchy apparently), and "Savage Composition".


Similar acts/sounds: Battles, Bellini, Stress & Storm, Pneu, Dysrhythmia, Piglet, Hella, Giraffes? Giraffes!, Tera Melos, and other straight-up instrumental "math rock" bands.

Relapse Records
Bandcamp
Last.fm

Monday XCVI

Shonen Bat - No Competition (2013)

A 3-piece from Malaga, Spain playing laid-back emo a la Braid, Sunny Day Real Estate, On The Might of Princes, and other bands that miss the 90's.

Last.fm

Divers - EP (2013)

Malaysian post hardcore. 'Nough said, right?


That's some pretty cool artwork, too.

Last.fm

Heccra - Devil-Faces VCR Session (2014)

Some more stuff from the highly combustible, blow your speakers and eardrums out simultaneously, Heccra. From what I've gathered this is more of a rough draft to Heccra's full-length, entitled The Devil-Faces of My Old Friends, Beneath Me slated for release later this year. Until then though, here's some adulterated noise for your unpure soul.


Last.fm

Monday LXXXII

Back to school edition.

Monsters of the Antipodes - Houses (2013)

Math rock meets progressive rock, complex yet melodic, with meaty bass and super addictive guitar licks for days; this is Monsters of the Antipodes.



PS: If you DL Houses (which you should at least), you get a bonus track!

Last.fm

Kilgore Trout - immemorial (2013)

Kilgore Trout is Kurt Vonnegut screamo. They are a lot more brutal than that Slaughterhouse-Five book.



Last.fm

Mononoke - Aussicht?! (2011)

German Skramz featuring violins, field recordings of beaches, and even glockenspiel. Really good stuff like that, you dig? Listen!


Last.fm

A plus to going back to school: that's when I have the most time to work on NFT stuff... so get excited for more things to come!

Happy Birthday Maine!

In honor of the grand ol' state of Maine for turning the big 193 today, I've decided to pull out some classic local albums that I used to listen to a lot (or at least that I have forgotten about until now).

Also, thank you, Maine for not splitting up into two separate states yet. Remember when that was a concern...

Confusatron - Chewbacalypse Now (2003)

Before ever hearing Hella's Hold Your Horse Is or had ever heard of such things as "math rock", "post rock", "jazz metal", "jazz punk" or any combination of those sub-sub-genres, I had only really heard of Confusatron.

I didn't know what they were, but I remembered their name from hearing it on a local radio station (it was WCYY, clearly) and would play all the music they had on their Myspace just because I loved the name (and the name of the album). And could you blame me? I was still playing with action figures when I heard about these guys, of course I was going to listen to them!

Taking a look back on this album today and I'm actually surprised how much I still enjoy it and how much it can stands up with a lot of other stuff I listen to these days. I mean it's got a mix of punk/metal and jazz, random samples, and random time-signatures - that's more than enough for me to get behind!



Through the discovery of Confusatron back in the day, I also came across a compilation by Entertainment Experiment which featured these guys along with other local bands like Pigboat, Man-Witch, Ghosthunter, and a hand full of others that I have lost track of. Confusatron had a few songs featured on the compilation (released in 2010) including the track "In The Shadow Of The Living Room" which was probably the first "post rock/metal" song I've ever heard and I didn't even know it (though it is also a mix of a bunch of other genres as well). "In The Shadow Of The Living Room" later appeared on Confusatron's 2010 release, Control Alt Destroy.

Bandcamp
Myspace
Last.fm

Covered in Bees - 24 Hour Album (2008)

Another band that was featured in the aforementioned compilation above was this kooky band. By the time the compilation came out though, I was already pretty familiar with Covered in Bees. So familiar in fact that at the time they released this album, which I will go into more detail about, I would have probably named it my favorite album of 2008.

Now why is this album called the 24 Hour Album? Because it's just that. It is an album that was written and recorded - conceived and birthed - in one day. And that was a really really cool thing to me when I first heard of it (once again, on the radio).

With the task of creating a whole album in 24 hours, Covered in Bees did not take their job too seriously and ended up with basically an album filled with random skits, quick quirky songs, genre-bending experiments, and even a song about Hobbits. But I loved it! And hell, I'll still come back to this goofy album from time to time just to get my nostalgia fix.



Covered in Bees called it quits a few years after this album was released but are back now and even playing some shows in the Portland area real soon. This is the part where I would like to tell you they are playing with Andrew WK next month (I know right!!!), but unfortunately that is not the case. Truly a shame, indeed.

Official page
Bandcamp
Myspace
Last.fm

Last Chance To Reason - Lvl. 1 (2007)

I have a theory in life that every genre of music on this planet has a good interpretation of what the genre should be and what it shouldn't. A common example of this would easily be genres like "screamo", a term most used when someone hears music with screaming in it versus "real" screamo which is a mix of emotional hardcore and "real" "emo". Bands like Poison the Well, Alexisonfire, Hawthorne Heights versus bands like Pg.99, Neil Perry, and Orchid. I don't mean to alienate anyone, but hopefully you know which ones are the "good" interpretation (or the "real" thing in this case).

What does this have to do with Last Chance To Reason,  a technical metal band from Augusta, Maine? Because LCTR has been the only band I know to be a good interpretation of technical progressive metalcore.

When I first heard these guys in 2007 or 2008, I hadn't listened to a lot of metal, but I had heard a lot of "metal" that I didn't like. LCTR though, had a lot of things going for them that were sort of like the "grindcore", "death metal", "progressive metal" bands that I had heard of and didn't enjoy, but something about the way that LCTR did it, it just made sense and I could actually listen to it without cringing. You know, that cringing feeling you get when your friends put on a Suicide Silence album to honor their fallen hero, well, LCTR didn't do that to me. Instead, I would just listen to these guys rather than force myself to get into over bands that these guys were opening up for like Unearth, Faceless, Job for a Cowboy, and Dying Fetus.



Anyways, Lvl. 1 is still an album I listen to once and a while when I'm feeling down about not forcing enough metal into my eardrums. It's not as popular as their second release, Level 2, which features a bit more of their love for electronics, softer singing vocals, and gaming - including a video game that actually goes with the album! I'm not sure how many other bands can say that they created a video game to go with their album, so that's pretty metal all by itself.

As far as I know, Last Chance To Reason are still out there somewhere getting awesome and playing video game infused technical metal! Unreal.

PS: Supposedly LCTR are also featured in a documentary called, Why You Do This - but I have yet to watch it.

Official site
Myspace
Last.fm

Monday XXXXXXV

Music soup for the chicken soul.

Slim Charles - Versus Fatso Jr. (2011)

Cattle Drums post lots of interesting bands on their Facebook page. 

This one is Slim Charles, a progressive/math rock/indie/"crunknasty" band from New York. 

Props to Cattle Drums - a totally rad band as well (check 'em out if you haven't silly).

Last.fm

Pill Friends - It's Kyle's Birthday Everyday (2012)

Pill Friends are a noisy, lo-fi garage rock/basement jingle band out of or around Philly. 

I would describe them of a much more listenable Teen Suicide (since I'm just name dropping tonight rather than saying anything about the music).

Who wants to listen to teen suicide anyway? That's horrible.

Track 5 is a cover of Elvis Depressedly's "Mickey Yr a Fuck Up".

Really though, that's horrible.

Bandcamp

Last.fm

Comadre - Comadre (2013)

Comadre are a hardcore punk from California. Even though I've been playing these guys since their split with Trainwreck from 2010 and they have released material since at least 2004, this is their first self-titled full length.

Maybe they are ready to sell out like Metallica did in 1991? Maybe they want to be Metallica?

They probably don't want to be Metallica.

Highlights include: "Cold Rain", "The Moon", "Drag Blood", "Date Night", and the other songs...

The Cold Rain single that goes along with this release is very good to my ears as well. It's also free...

Bandcamp

Last.fm

The Littlest Viking

The Littlest Viking (also spelled without the "the" capitalized, I guess) are a two piece math rock/progressive/instrumental/occasional-random-vocals/seemingly-clever-song-title act from San Pedro, California. These are their two albums:

Labor & Lust (2009)

Favorite track: "The McRib is Back!?!"




The Littlest Viking (2012)

Recorded by Jay Pellici of Dilute/Natural Dreamers/31Knots fame!

Favorite track: "The Little Brony"


There's also a song about Lumpy Space Princess from Adventure Time in there too..

Similar acts/sounds: Shapes Like Dinosaurs, Pretend, Enemies, Tenebre, Adebisi Shank, LITE, Pneu, Time Columns, The Bulletproof Tiger, Dilute, and... you get the picture...

Bandcamp
Mountain Man Records' bandcamp
Their cover of "Narcolepsy" (Third Eye Blind)
Official page
Last.fm

Friday Streamin'

Here's some new/newer stuff you can listen to.

Sirs - Sirs (2012)

The Sirs self title has been out for a little while now but I just got around to giving it a good listen for myself. I'm not sure if I like it as much as their first EP, 'Vas Deferens' (just got what they means), but it seems like it'll grow on me after a few more listens. Definitely try it out for yourself if you haven't already. It won't hurt. I swear.

Last.fm

Solos - Beast of Both Worlds (2012)

Solos is the new project of Spencer Seim of Hella/The Advantage/sBACH and Aaron Ross - that guy who sang for Hella for a while there. That being said, Solos is a lot like what would happen if There's No 666 in Outer Space-era Hella would have been like if there was no Zach Hill. I'm not saying that the drummer Solos has is not a good drummer... they're just not, well... Zach Hill. So, if you were a fan of Hella when they focused on putting Aaron Ross in the spotlight, you're really going to like Solos! If you found 'There's No 666 in Outer Space' to be Hella's weakest album, I would still say that you should give this project a listen, especially since Solos aren't Hella and clearly don't want to be.

Solos' bandcamp describes their sound to be a cross between Led Zeppelin and MGMT. "As ridiculous as this may sound".


Last.fm


Vultures of Cult - Fathoms (2012)

Vultures of Cult have a kind of shitty name. The fact that they play really nasty stoner metal out of Vermont is not as shitty. The fact that these bros probably ripped shit up in Portland last weekend with KYOTY is not shitty at all. The fact that I couldn't go to the show... is pretty effin' shitty.

If you purchase the digital downloads for 'Fathoms' on their bandcamp, you receive a bonus track entitled, "Running From the Eye".


Official site
Last.fm

14 Foot 1

14 Foot 1 - Christ Grenades (2007)

14 Foot 1 play twinkly math rock driven jingles. They are either from Massachusetts (according to their Bandcamp) or Rhode Island (according to Last.fm) and look something like this:

14 Foot 1 are signed to New Neighbor Records along with The Devil and a Penny - the band that led me to these guys. Not to get off subject, but The Devil and a Penny have a new release due out tomorrow and everyone should check it out. I say them (The Devil and a Penny) a little while back, opening for Algernon Cadwallader, and they totally killed it. 14 Foot 1 also kill it from what I'm hearing on this release entitled, 'Christ Grenades'. Very progressive stuff. Very toe tapping stuff. Very good stuff. 

Similar acts/sounds: The Devil and a Penny, Flesh Forest and The Elephant Only Zoo, Tiny Hawks, Japandi, Good Citizens, Royal Blood, The Rice Cakes, and other instrumental G-tappers. 

Bandcamp

Facebook

Last.fm (free DL's)

Monday XXXXIX

Gettin' there.

Tiger Voltage - Mobius' Strip of Gum (2012)

Tiger Voltage is an experimental act from Bangor, Maine. From the little research I have done around them, it seems this may be a solo effort by local musician, Nick Huskins. The music on 'Mobius' Strip of Gum' is mostly guitar driven and built up by using rhythmic repetition and eventually drums that come in around the 3rd or 4th track. Things soon start to pick up by the 7th track, entitled "DeltizNum" and ends with an improvised jam featuring an electric keyboard/synth type noise maker just because. All the tracks and 'jams' are instrumental and under 3 minutes with the exception of the last song, "Jamz with  XEXEXEE" which is the just under 6 minute messing around closer.

I'm actually going to be living near Bangor for a bit soon and while I won't be around the artsy music scene I am around now, I still hope to be introduced to and find some sweet local acts during my time away from home.

Facebook

Mouse On The Keys - Machinic Phylum (2012)

Speaking of messing around music-wise, experimental post-jazz-rock outfit, Mouse On The Keys of Tokyo, Japan released a new EP this summer called, 'Machinic Phylum'. As an already big listener of this band, I've been trying not to forget it came out while also waiting patiently for it to make its way onto Spotify - were I finally found it today and previewed it before perusing a DL for it. I also found out today that this EP actually has four tracks on it but sites like Spotify and other streaming devices (or iTunes which I do not wish to advertise), only have the first three tracks with the fourth track, "Memory", no where to be found. I'm not sure if the link above has the fourth track as I haven't DL'd it yet and the link is not mine. If it's not there though, it is on Youtube...

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention that this totally kills! The third track, "Clinamen" is probably the best song MOTK have released so far! If you are a fan of jazz, post rock, math rock, technical music, or music theory at all; you will surely enjoy this EP and Mouse On The Keys!

 Last.fm

David Liebe Hart Band - Violitionist Session (2012)

In other news, David Liebe Hart of Tim & Eric fame is semi on tour with his (punk rock) band that got started through the help of his fans via his Kickstarter! This is a live set from a Denton, Texas music session called, Violitionist Session where they ask the visiting band or act three questions and play three songs. This is also the first recorded material that I know of by the band and is very well suited with an extended explanation of each song beforehand by David Liebe Hart himself. Grab up all three of the tracks for free on Violitionist Session and be sure to check out other bands' sessions from this site as well as this new punk band that may be storming their way through a town near you!

More by David Liebe Hart and more
David Liebe Hart's official tour "blog"
Last.fm (David Liebe Hart)

On a sadder note though, this may be the last Monday post for a while as I have to go on a short hiatus due to school and dumb stuff like that. But hey, That's life.

Monday XXXXV

Laptop died. Laptop lived. Keyboard dead.

The End Of The Ocean - In Excelsis (MMXII)

Just some nice instrumental post rock out of Columbus, Ohio. Tracks one and three are top pops.

THE CD CAN BE PLAYED ON A TURNTABLE!
Last.fm

Babytown Frolics - Reminds You Of Drugs You've Heard Of (MMXI)

Twinkly math rock about whales, science, drugs, and keeping it real. They're from New Haven, I believe.

Last.fm

Daitro - Des cendres, je me consumme (MMIII)

An oldie by one of the best in the "screamo" business. These french lads are the reason I listen to some of the things I do now. Do yourself a favor and listen to these guys if you don't already now! For your health!

Last.fm

It's been a week since I spilled my iced tea on my laptop keyboard causing it to short circuit and go into a momentary laptop coma. The laptop finally came to the next day but the keyboard itself thinks it is in alt/Option mode... which means without this being typed out in google translator, everything looks like this: Òˆ´ ˇÓˆÍ ÂŘ˝¯ ˆˇ ‰´ÅÒÒÁ ‰´ÅÒÒÁ ͨÇÍ Å˜Î ˆÍ ∏ˆÍ͈˜˝ ´ ‰ˆ˝Óˇ ØÏÏ


I hope to have everything back in order this week, especially with August coming up and this blog's 1 year anniversary. Until I fully figure out all the bugs and kinks though, please excuse the appearance of my latest posts. I also hope to edit last week's Monday post back into its correct form that I had originally planned it to be in. Please and thank you ~ New Keith

Monday XXXIX

Ahhh, here it goes...

Faust vs. Dälek - Debre Respect, Alder (2004)

In 2004, the hip hop act with a dark side, Dälek teamed up with the German krautrock lords, Faust to create one of the most mind-bending hip hop albums of all time, Debre Respect, Alder. With both bands/acts taking great influence from electronic noise production and dark experimentation, Debre Respect, Alder makes for one hell of a listening experience. Not to mention that with most songs exceeding the 6 minute mark with long passages of disembodied beats and rhythms, this is not your everyday radio friendly hip hop. Nope. Not quite trip hop and not quite death rap... this is some krautrock induced, dark ambient inspired, hip hop right here. Give it a try!

Faust vs. Dälek's Last.fm
Faust's Last.fm
Dälek's Last.fm

Japandi - Decorative Duck (2010)

Progressively instrumental 'math rock' from San Diego featuring the all members of Mister Valentine (I believe) except The Unbreakable Brian Warren who went on to extra in the movie, Jarhead.

Reminds me of early Battles stuff but a little lighter on the instruments with some post rock tendencies thrown in there.

Bandcamp
Last.fm

Heavy Breathing - Dogbreath (2012)

A brand new one from the P-town noise punk outfit, Heavy Breathing. Features Travis from Butcher Boy among other cool things. I have yet to see them play their songs together but from what I've heard from this release, it sure sounds like something that's worth doing.

Last.fm

Houston We Have A Problem - Shipwreck

Houston We Have A Problem - Shipwreck (2006)

Houston We Have A Problem was the first ("real") "screamo" band I ever encountered and even though I would begin listening to this 2006 release, 'Shipwreck' mostly for the edgy post rock crescendos and texture it featured, I would eventually, over time, come back to it for the way that they blended the vocals and screaming into such an emotional atmosphere. Sometimes screaming is just another instrument, sometimes it's a cry for help. Houston We Have A Problem successfully used both to their advantage. And by successfully, I mean pretty freakin' well. 

Apart from manipulating the post rock to screamo, slow to choatic approach like that of City of Caterpillar and/or Men of Trees, Houston We Have A Problem (especially on 'Shipwreck') used extensive samples (obviously a big interest of mine) that open the songs up like story books and accent their instrumental work that overlaps the words. And as the album name as well as the song titles "Poseidon, Angered", "Titanic, The First Victim", "Calm Seas Become the Squall", or "Valdez, Drunk Driving is Punishable on Water Also" suggest, this is a maritime themed (and maybe conceptive) release. That may not be as cool to you as it is to me but I live for this kind of stuff. It's in my blood.  The conversations and words that were sampled in this album, self-released by the way, don't seem like they are sea themed as the rest of the album tends to lead you on about, but are actually mostly from a movie called, 'The Legend of 1900' that not only deals with life at sea but also the music of the time after World War II. I have yet to see this film but from what I know about it, it sounds right up my alley. 

Also, one of the coolest parts about the screaming that goes on in this album is that it isn't just one guy screaming his brains out non-stop, but the whole band, and with the whole band on vocal duties, it makes for quite the listen. Most notably due to all the different shrills and yelps that each member of this four piece brought to this recording... a recording that surely has some of the most original yelling I have ever heard, hands down. 

Houston We Have A Problem has since broken up, but not without releasing three self produced albums (The Sky Did Not Crack and the Stars Did Not Fall, Punk is Dead, and Shipwreck). After calling it quits, some members went on to form Who Goes There? and the others went on to form Perfect Future. If you're liking what you are hearing from HWHAP, I definitely suggest you go check those bands out as well. There's not a lot of ways to listen to them but hey, this is 2012, kid... you'll figure it out. 

Similar acts/sounds: City of Caterpillar, Gospel, Circle Takes the Square, Envy, Who Goes There?, Perfect Future, Men As Trees/Locktender, I Create, The Caution Children, We Were Skeletons, Lizards Have Personalities, and other bands not named Houston We Have A Problem. 

"Take a piano. Keys begin, keys end. You know there are 88 of them. Nobody can tell you any different. They are not infinite. You are infinite...

And on those keys, the music that you can make... is infinite. I like that. That I can live by..."

Myspace
Last.fm (it's all there! And free!)

Adam & Naive - Every Starry Night

Adam & Naive - Every Starry Night (2010)

With the rain finally clearing for one second in my neck of the woods and finals on the horizon, it really only hit me today that summer vacation is almost here. For the lucky ones reading who are already on vacation or do not have anything holding them down from enjoying the hopefully warm and end-of-spring-here-we-go-summer days ahead, this is definitely something you want to check out and listen to while I sit in a classroom filled with a bunch of people I've had to deal with since elementary school, some even from kindergarden, and finish my very last high school final. Ever. And while this might not be of any concern or care to you, I thought I would throw that out there.

To the subject at hand....

Adam & Naive, the band from NY and its music, is something. What that something is I can only describe using words and phrases like: summer, friends, funky, chill-maxing, fucking, warm, sun, Capri Sun pouches, pool parties, campfires on the beach, pizza, and stuff. I could probably take all these words and expressions and make a comprehensible well-written and well-thought-out thesis or music-to-word analysis to go along with Adam & Naive and their 2010 sunburst of an album, "Every Starry Night", a piece of work that could easily be a top contender for my summer '11 soundtrack, but I would rather just say those words. That's just how Adam & Naive's music is for me.

Feelings. Woah, deep.

Along with capturing a whole season in one album some how, "Every Starry Night" truly has a lot to offer. Whether it's the fact that it sounds just like the album cover or that someone bumped up the bass on the recording to give it a subtle math rock-ish feel while not actually being math rock, emo, or twinkly at all. The drumming is super fun-sounding is probably what I'm really trying to say, I guess, I don't know... I just like the way it sounds is all. I like the way it all sounds. It all sounds super fun. It is all super fun. Ahhhhhhhhh

To see and hear just who these fine gentlemen are, they do have goofy little documentary from 2007 that looks like someone's video production class final project (ironically, that is a final I will be doing very soon). It is however, a good look at who is in the band and just the kind of folks we are dealing with. The documentary is 5 or so years old, so I'm guessing they have grown up a bit more then when this masterpiece was conceived. For what it's worth though, These guys still played cooler music back then than any of the bands I played in at that age. Scratch that... any band I have ever played in.

 Even if their favorite artists were Picasso, Nelly, Nelly Furtado, or Click Five.

All their music is free off Practice Room Records. A record/collective started by the band to sponsor and release their work as Adam & Naive along with all the other projects they are in. There's also a video of the A&N gang a little older talking about this release up there on PRR's /Adam & Naive/ page. It features some mad pizza tricks! Check it out!

Similar acts/sounds: Animal Collective, Palmkite, Chalk Talk, Deer Leap, The World is a Beautiful Place & I am No Longer Afraid to Die, penpal, Trestin Eeling, City Museum, Glass Frog and other Practice Room acts.

Myspace
Bandcamp
Last.fm

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.

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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 

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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 

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