#dan album review

[zinphandel]

hellllllo phannie nation 🫡🫡🫡 its time for:

dan howell’s albums of the year listen through and rating with kate @zinphandel: 2016 edition!

The albums this year are:

1. Frank Ocean- Blonde

2. Radiohead- A Moon Shaped Pool

3. Kanye West- The Life of Pablo

4. Solange- A Seat at the Table

5. Danny Brown- Atrocity Exhibition

BONUS ALBUMS!!!

Bon Iver- 22, A Million

Beyoncé- Lemonade

Death Grips- Bottomless Pit

What an unreal selection of albums we’ve got for this year! I will listening through and reviewing each album, and would love to hear your opinions as well!

[vinyl-connection]

THE NATURE OF DAN

It was no secret. Steely Dan fans knew the 1980 LP Gaucho was the last offering from studio perfectionists Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. They’d reached a pinnacle of consummate musicianship with their penultimate album Aja and were done with Dan. In fact, they were done with each other. So the buzz of excitement around a mid-90s Steely Dan tour was intense. When the inevitable live album came…

[sinceileftyoublog]

Olivia Rodrigo Album Review: GUTS

(Geffen)

BY JORDAN MAINZER

Olivia Rodrigo had wanted to title her second album "GUTS" since she was making her debut, SOUR, because she was interested in the various colloquial contexts in which we use the word. No, you're not going to find the singer-songwriter's second album on the shelf next to Exhumed's back catalog--referring to entrails is about the only meaning Rodrigo doesn't conjure from the word. She mentions "spill your guts," and the album certainly has the same diaristic quality as her first record. She also brings up the phrase "hate your guts;" lo and behold, at times on GUTS, Rodrigo foregoes the sarcasm and facetiousness of SOUR for full-on diatribes and revenge fantasies. But the connotation that stands out most to me, listening to the record for months after it's now come out, is one of courage. Simply, it takes a lot of guts to make an album like this.

From the start, Rodrigo sets up the unrealistic expectations she's under, physical and behavioral, both as a young woman and as a celebrity. On the Joan Didion-inspired, dynamic and choral "all-american bitch", she sings "I'm grateful all the time / I'm sexy, and I'm kind / I'm pretty when I cry," fully aware that she's encapsulating a caricature more than a real character. Appropriately, she spends the rest of the album contradicting the idea of the ideal feminine. Knowingly regretful, she hooks up with an ex on the stuttering power pop jam "bad idea right?" She's jealous of a "dazzling starlet, Bardot reincarnate" on the layered and ghostly "lacy", her vocals and producer Dan Nigro's synthesizer skyward before they come crashing to a painful, realized whisper. On piano and strings ballad "the grudge", she posits that while "It takes strength to forgive...I don't feel strong." Rodrigo swims in imperfection.

Rodrigo's deep dive into her own humanity, though, sets her up for longer lasting strength. For every lambast of "bloodsucker" and "fame fucker," iconic as they are, there's a line like on "logical" where she sings, "I know I'm half responsible / And that makes me feel horrible." Synth rock standout "love is embarrassing" is especially impressive, as Rodrigo collates all the cringiest things she's ever done--the type that would keep most people up at night--and turns them into a singular anthem of teenage awkwardness. On "making the bed", she realizes that as much as she's resentful of certain aspects of her life, from the toxicity of the music industry to her penchant for social errors due to homeschooling, she has the ultimate agency to change things. She's stated the song was the hardest on the album to write, and the delicate balance between blame and acceptance is palpable. There are even multiple layers to "get him back!" Sure, Rodrigo wants "to meet his mom and tell her her son sucks," but she also wants to reconnect. Otherwise, why would she care?

Ultimately, GUTS has proved to be one of the most rewarding pop records of the year due to its sheer humanism. You can find solidarity in a song like "pretty isn't pretty", a shimmering dream pop standout instrumentally wedged between "1979" and Alvvays, one that decries the extent to which capitalism promotes unrealistic standards, beauty or otherwise. But it's closer "teenage dream" that ensures the album ends not on a bang, but on a relatable wince. Small moments, like the pseudo "you're not from around here" record scratch after the first chorus, build up the unease to emphasize Rodrigo's final moment of self doubt: "They say it gets better / But what if I don't?" Kudos to Rodrigo for putting to words and music what we're all thinking all the time.

[dicerollsix]

Aja by Steely Dan

Released September 23, 1977

Superlatives are a dangerous thing to tack on to music, or any broad subject for that matter, but Steely Dan’s Aja is perhaps one of the closest things to perfection that the industry has ever seen. Of course this isn’t exactly a new or surprising opinion to hold as many (if not most) Steely fans are in agreeance with it, but since this album holds a good amount of significance in not only the history of music but also my own life, I feel as if it’s a very valid one – though my judgment may be a bit biased on the personal end.

As I discovered the Dan for myself at 16 years old and fell deeply in love with their discography – most notably with Aja and 1975’s Katy Lied at that time – I had formulated a belief that I still keep and occasionally repeat in conversation to this day. If one were to look at the development of Steely Dan’s musical style through the years, and I mean really look at it – it’s no wonder that Aja came to fruition. Every album before it was a catalyst for the next, making moves toward something so desirable and so cognac-smooth until reaching the final destination of their long sonic journey with 1980’s Gaucho, as founders Donald Fagen and Walter Becker called a hiatus in June of the next year. 

The aforementioned journey would most clearly be seen if you were to place Katy Lied through Gaucho in particular under a microscope. Katy Lied, with its polished and cynical Fagen/Becker songwriting plus increasingly interesting rhythm-driven tracks could most definitely transform itself into 1976’s The Royal Scam. Then The Royal Scam took part in scattering traces of Aja everywhere with the greater presence of horns, more cynicism, a Fender Rhodes piano, and Bernard Purdie emerging through the forefront. The pieces were scooped up and put together in a way that was less rough around the edges, produced and engineered to the nines, and sent off proudly boasting a large roster of musicians – with many more never making the cut.

As soon as you start to believe that the group couldn’t advance further, Gaucho bursts on the scene with new technology and songs that were put together even more meticulously than its predecessor, with the créme de la créme of meticulousness being the introduction of Wendel the drum machine after Fagen and Becker were repeatedly unsatisfied with the human drummers that tried their hand at what the two had given them. Gaucho amped up the cocaine-era sleaze by 10 and was a culmination of everything that the Dan had been leading up to, perhaps making Fagen and Becker masters of slow-burn foreshadowing.

But at 16, my biggest focus was Aja. It was unlike anything I’d ever heard before, and upon first listen I was captivated from the beginning groove of Black Cow to the fade-out of Josie. I listened to the album obsessively from that point on, gaining a top favorite Steely Dan song with Deacon Blues, feeling an emotion I still can’t fully place during the entirety of Aja (the title track), and losing myself in the velvet scenes of Home At Last. To this very day I still find myself with the same pit in my stomach as I indulge myself in the world of Aja, overwhelmed with its greatness and feeling every last bit of its swirling atmosphere and imagery as if it was my first listen all over again.

As an opening track, Black Cow is as fitting as you could get. Oftentimes the power of the first track on an album goes overlooked, but in reality it sets the tone for the listener, depending on their reaction to it. The overall crisp sound coupled with extremely pleasing chord progressions, backing vocals, and a well-placed solo on the keys are nothing short of impressive. Impressiveness, in fact, carries over through the entirety of the first side – the sophisticated Aja spotlighting Steve Gadd and his masterful drum solo and the gloomy tale of a washed-up musician intertwined with the seamless musicianship in Deacon Blues leave nothing and everything to the imagination. The tracks lay everything out for you to consume while keeping a simultaneous open air of interpretation within its lyrics. 

Peg, a radio and live staple, begins the second side to continue the tradition of impressiveness. Its acclaim doesn’t come for no reason – featuring none other than Michael McDonald on backing vocals and a guitar solo by Jay Graydon, a solo that has now become known for being the product of long labor after Fagen and Becker were unhappy with seven different guitarists’ take on said solo. The silky chords through the keys and peppy rhythm section are other notable points, most of all, the bassline – having the story of Chuck Rainey and the duo’s rule for “no slapping”, which Rainey broke, ultimately creating one of the catchiest basslines of all time.

The Purdie shuffle and perfectly mixed layers of horns accent every corner of Home At Last. The nautical themes of the chorus had always stuck with me, with vivid images of rough seas being spread across my mind. To me this is perhaps the most underappreciated track on the album – it bursts with life and could easily become a jazz rock standard. I Got The News could be seen as a masterclass of its own in every instrument that is featured on it. There’s phases of slight sparseness within its sound where the drums, bass, and piano could only be heard, until horns and guitar swell through like billowing smoke, keeping the listener swaying and on their toes simultaneously.

Finally we end with Josie, being thick yet not overwhelming in the slightest in terms of sound. Josie’s lyrics are amongst some of my favorite in Steely Dan’s entire catalogue, and the extremely unique opening riff that carries you away into the 4 and a half minute escapade makes Josie equal yet opposite to Black Cow in that in terms of a closing song, Josie is as fitting as you could get, leaving you grasping for more as the needle reaches the end of the album, the sound fading away almost exactly how it started, with the pointed slightly disco-esque guitar that becomes a mainstay of the track. 

In short, only a handful of albums are crafted as finely as Aja, and very few make me feel the same way that it does. It has been part of the core soundtrack of my life since I was 16. I always come back for more, wanting to experience the scene at Rudy’s that was described in Black Cow, to witness the double helix in the sky in Aja myself, to break out the hats and hooters with Josie. The closest taste I could have to such a thing is through listening to the portraits that Steely Dan have painted, and with their clever expertise I never find myself feeling left out.

The word “timeless” is often placed upon works of art just as superlatives are, but with this album it’s more accurate than ever, along with “perfection” and “best”. Aja is an album where I could comfortably make an exception to the anti-superlative rule. Aja is a seismic wave, a tsunami of feel and proficiency, and its aftershock is still being felt in the wake of its 45th mighty year of reign amongst the greatest and most acclaimed collections of music of all time.

DR6

[greensparty]

Album Review: Mudhoney “Plastic Eternity”

Seattle’s Mudhoney are now like elder statesmen of alt-rock! The band formed in 1988 and their sound was highly influential on what came to be known as Grunge. The band’s song “Touch Me I’m Sick” was referenced in Cameron Crowe’s Seattle-set film Singles, with the fictional band Citizen Dick’s song “Touch Me I’m Dick”. The band members intersect with several other WA bands of that era: Singer/guitarist Mark Arm and guitarist Steve Turner had previously been in Green River (read my album review of their 2019 reissue here) with Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard, later of Mother Love Bone and Pearl Jam. Longtime drummer Dan Peters was briefly in Nirvana in 1990. The band’s contribution to Singles “Overblown” was a crazy surf rock punk stomper of their response to Seattle’s popularity. Unlike many of Mudhoney’s peers, the band never had a big huge hit on radio or MTV, but they got serious respect from musicians and from critics. I never got heavy into Mudhoney, but I always dug their stuff. The fact that they are named after Russ Meyer’s 1965 cult film Mudhoney got my attention. The band’s song “Acetone” is one of my favorites of the 90s after it was featured in the 1996 college comedy Glory Daze. The band had some pop culture moments like when they appeared in the Chris Farley / David Spade movie Black Sheep! After some time on a major label in the 90s, they returned to Sub Pop and are still on the label today. In Oct. 2019, I saw them in concert at Brighton Music Hall and they rocked (read my review here). This week Sub Pop is releasing the band’s eleventh studio album Plastic Eternity.

album cover

Much of this album is about trying to make sense of a world gone crazy. It’s not just the Pandemic, even though the band had some time to prep these songs during lockdown. It’s Mark Arm’s sharp and funny lyrics about the craziness he’s observing. Case in point, “Cry Me an Atmospheric River” about climate change and asking what it would be like if the climate could play like Hendrix.

Mudhoney live at Brighton Music Hall on 10/5/2019

I can’t say this album blew me away in the way that, say, Pearl Jam’s Gigaton truly felt like their best album in over 1.5 decades. But it is a fun album. The more you listen, the more the album gets better. Dan Peters is someone I’ve always had deep respect for, going back to his brief time in Nirvana in 1990 just before Dave Grohl joined. “Sliver” is definitely one of the 25 Best Nirvana Songs Ever and his playing in Mudhoney has always been an anchoring point. While there might not be a “Touch Me I’m Sick” or “Suck You Dry” level of a banger here, there are some fun tracks.

For info on Mudhoney: https://mudhoney.org/collections/music/products/mudhoney_plastic-eternity

3 out of 5 stars

[musicftmisfits]

Album: Dan Miraldi - Ulysses

A powerful collection of alternative rock track was released by Dan Miraldi in the form of his latest album 'Ulysses'. Ten tracks thunder on introducing the musical talent Miraldi posesses.

A powerful collection of alternative rock track was released by Dan Miraldi in the form of his latest album ‘Ulysses’. Ten tracks thunder on introducing the musical talent Miraldi posesses. This thirty minute tour de force Dan Miraldi just released upon us does what he does best; delivering an unbridled love of rock and roll, unapologetically. Its title track is also the perfect opener of this…

[theindyreview]

Album Review: Jon Muq - Flying Away

#AlbumReview: @JonMuq - Flying Away #Ugandan #singersongwriter mines classic #pop for a collection of sweet and swooning tracks @BigFeatPR @danauerbach @EasyEyeSound #newmusic #review #folk #JonMuq #classicpop #Uganda #Afropop @TheBlackKeys #soul #rock

Ugandan guitarist and singer/songwriter Jon Muq has already lived more in his life than some would do in ten. His story is one for a future memoir; growing up in Uganda, obsessively learning “We are the World”, busking for homeless children, playing on a cruise ship, making his way to Austin, TX, opening for The Black Keys, Billy Joel, Norah Jones and a number of other noteworthy artists, and…

[piqueconcentration]

(Some) Albums I Currently Adore

Originally posted January 1, 2023

The title to this post was originally "Albums You May Enjoy," but I remembered after writing a bit under that phrase that I kind of hate it when the title of a piece addresses me directly like: "Things You Didn't Know About ___" or "If You Like ____, You Should Check Out ____" or "Four Things You Absolutely Need if You Don't Want to Look Like a Troglodyte to your Houseguests" -for whatever reason it feels manipulative. Like, chill- you don't know me and don't assume that your opinion has any bearing on me as a human being at all.

Whatever, here are albums I like right now, whether or not you choose to check them out, and if you disagree with me, that's great! Genuinely! Leave a comment and tell me your thoughts, if you like.

Also! I fucking despise numerical album ratings, if you're looking for those, you won't find any here.

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New Music and Big Pop - Another Michael

Genres Indie Folk, Folk, Indie Pop

Time 35:01

Recommended Songs "New Music" "Big Pop" "What Gives?"

Though it may be a relaxing, acoustic listen, New Music and Big Pop has a quality to it that makes me stop what I'm doing in favor of experiencing the music on a deeper level. Comforting melodies, complex structures, and beautifully layered vocals, these songs give the impression of being produced to perfection- no aspect of them sticks out jarringly or feels out of place, the composition feels wonderfully aligned to a steady vision of the completed work. To me, the songs give a feeling of pensive calm but with a stylistic spin that is somehow evocative of garage rock or even punk. Also- listen to the whole thing.

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Growl Pop - Dan & Drum

Genres Alternative, Indie, Experimental

Time 41:48

Recommended Songs "Wanna Ride" "Interlude, Pt. 2" "Mona Lisa"

This one I was confused by when I found it. Dan & Drum make music that, while entirely entertaining and often melodically masterful, could really belong to a genre of its own just called 'Confusing.' Generally acoustically supported with some digital effects and various production quirks, the songs on Growl Pop can vary melodically so far within each song that it can be genuinely difficult to pin down what the main carrying melody may be, if there is one at all. The odd vocals and really cool harmonies also give each tune a very variable feeling.

Some of my favorite lyrics:

"I know better, it's mind over matter, yeah, it's mind if it's matter, it's a matter of time" - "Wanna Ride"

______________________________________________________________

Decide - Djo

Genres Synth, Synth-Pop, Pop, Alternative, Hypnotic, Aggressive, Dance

Time 36:03

Recommended Songs "End of Beginning" "On and On" "Slither"

This is one of those albums where the "Recommended Songs" section above is pretty much irrelevant. I think the entirety of this one absolutely rocks. Reminiscent of Daft Punk, reminding me of STRFKR and Video Age and Hall & Oates and even David Bowie or the Talking Heads, it feels like Djo has listened to all of my favorite music and taken all of that as influence, and then confidently produced the most powerful possible usage of elements from all of the above. This album is appealing to me to the greatest degree- sometimes dark, sometimes passionate, sometimes bouncy, sometimes explosive, I absolutely love it. Honestly it's so appealing that it makes me wish Djo kind of went a little weirder with the songs here- the potential for something groundbreaking is present, but for now it's just rad in all the right, if familiar ways.

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Digital Spool - Jazz Emu

Genres Comedy, Funk, Synth-Funk, Lyrical

Time 38:20

Recommended Songs "Still Waiting" "You Would Never" "Tonally Inconsistent?"

Comedy music can be a difficult genre for many to enjoy, especially when the current musical consumption climate makes each individual's music taste a point of scrutiny and something to base one's ego around- when any song you listen to has its main value in someone else hearing you listening to it and thinking highly of you, you tend not to want your sense of humor dissected as well. If you can't relate to that, congratulations and I'm happy for you. In any case, Jazz Emu has blessed us with a treasure trove of songs absolutely spine-tinglily funktastic, with lyrics that get me smiling every time. Emu has this way of weaving the comedy into the music as well as the lyrics, which is more than most others braving the genre are able to do, and I commend him heavily for that, as well as how this album deftly and ridiculously satirizes modern internet culture, even delving into issues of contemporary masculinity, insecurity, and the odd state of being a "content creator." The rare moment of sincerity is made even more powerful after you've heard the song that has a whole section of fart noises.

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From 2 to 3 - Peach Pit

Genres Alternative, Indie Rock, Acoustic, Indie Folk

Time 37:54

Recommended Songs "Up Granville" "Look Out!" "Everything About You"

Peach Pit returns, in this album, with a pretty folk-y feel, much more than previous albums. It feels like if the songs from 2018's Being So Normal were teenagers, the songs from From 2 to 3 are adults. That parallel may just be me projecting, as the former album came out and had a great impact on me when I was, in fact, a teenager, and the latter arrives with similar importance in my burgeoning adulthood, but It's not totally without base. The songwriting in question has much less garage-rock angst (not that angst is a bad thing), the metaphors are much more refined, it really feels like Peach Pit's style has settled into a very comfortable era where nothing feels forced and the style is solid without being monotonous. An album like this could, in a very personal way, frame my decade.

Let it be known- almost every review of this album that I have seen has described it as Peach Pit's most "mature."

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Color Theory - Soccer Mommy

Genres Alternative, Indie, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Rock, Dark

Time 44:13

Recommended Songs "lucy" "circle the drain" "royal screw up"

Dark and brooding, powerful and brooding, heartfelt and brooding, you get the idea- Color Theory falls in line with the movement in modern music of seemingly very sad, wonderful women, singing their hearts out in gut-wrenching rock and roll irreverence. Artistically, Soccer Mommy very regularly knocks it out of the park for me, I envy the raw ability that she has to convey feeling directly through the medium of sound, and this album is no exception. Many of the hits here were previously released as singles, but when put together in an arrangement like this, they are made all the more powerful.

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Modern Johnny Sings (Songs in the Age of Live) - Theo Katzman

Genres Rock, Indie Rock, Pop Rock, Funk, Indie Funk, Jazz

Time 1hr 25min

Recommended Songs "My Heart is Dead (Live)" "The Death of Us (Live)" "Lily of Casablanca (Live)"

Modern Johnny Sings: Songs in the Age of Vibe, the 2020 studio album, is a masterpiece in its own right. In fact, I do even like some of the songs on it more than their versions in this Live album, but the reason that the latter is featured here is that to miss the back and forth of Katzman and the audience, the absolutely incredible keyboard solos, the times where the vocals match up perfectly to what would otherwise be called instrumental improvisation if it hadn't been immaculately practiced, and the absolutely vivid joy of performing would be a disservice to no one but yourself. A Live album like this, that makes the listener feel as though they can see the action in front of them, is a gift. There are a few too many vocal embellishments for my taste, but regardless this work is one you shouldn't pass up.

Not sure if anyone's still reading, but here's hoping I keep writing.

[musiccatalogue]

Lovage: Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By

This album by boasts some pretty big names, Dan The Automator and Mike Patton are joined by (the criminally underrated) Jennifer Charles of Elysian Fields. There's even a little spoken cameo from Damon Albarn in the intermission track: "Lovage - Love that Lovage, Baby", except, rather strangely, he's credited under the pseudonym of Sir Damien Thorn VII Of The Cockfoster's Clan.

These artists from wildly different genres come together to create a cohesive and sexy downtempo album that'll leave you begging for more. Unfortunately though, you won't be getting any more. 'Lovage' was just a one-off collaboration. Sad!

This album certainly delivers on its title. On the nose sex-fuelled lyrics, a cover of "Sex (I'm a...)" by Berlin, awkward moaning, Jennifer Charles' sultry contralto vocals contrasted with Mike Patton's gruff crooning, the commitment to the bit is definitely there. I'm not sure if this would be a good replacement for "CBAT" though.

Some of the songs sound like a soundtrack to a bad porno, so it's nice that instrumental versions have been provided so you can still listen to some well-produced downtempo in god-fearing households.

Eventually, these songs do seem to merge into one - crooning, moaning, similar instrumentals. It doesn't detract from the quality of the songs themselves - but it can make the album feel a little more like "background music". But, considering the title, maybe that's the point!

[citizenhullabaloo]

Smash, Pass, Trash: SOUR by Olivia Rodrigo

Disclaimer: Completely subjective opinion! Remember that before you bully me 😦

Pros?

A great great debut by a teenager with honest feelings and a good collaboration with Dan Nigro. Love how it resonated with the younger folk and a rejuvenation of rock amongst my younger family members! If she came out when I was in middle school, I would be a fan of her just like I was with all the other Disney stars back in the late 2000s. (My age reveal? When? ._.). The singles are strong, and the deep cuts still stand out in some way, albeit all ballads.

Cons?

A bit too repetitive regarding the heartbreak and love tropes throughout the entire album. How much damage did this ONE guy did? Goddamn! There’s really nothing bad else besides the ballads being too much if you’re not in the mood for them. This is one of those records that require you to be in a state of mind before choosing to listen. Only the singles stand out as stuff to listen to whenever.

Afterthoughts?

Singles are strong, ballads are strong… Olivia mentioned having Alanis Morissette as an influence, who I love as well, and can hear it in the lyricism.

Rating Scale: Smash, Pass, or Trash

Rating: (A light) Smash!

Great debut! 😀

4 / 5 (Based off my The Music Checklist)

[midnight-star-world]

#CountryMusic

Dan + Shay - Bigger Houses

So today on the MSR (Midnight Star Review), I would like to talk about the latest album from Country Music Duo Dan + Shay. The new album is titled "Bigger Houses" and was released on Friday September 15th, 2023. But before we dive into the new project, let's talk about the careers of Dan + Shay first.

Dan + Shay have released such hits like "10,000 hours" with Justin Bieber, "Glad you exist", & "From the ground up". And other hits include "Speechless", "Tequila", & "All to myself". Dan + Shay have earned number ones and even a spot on my year-end Artist of the year list in the past. But before we dive too far off track, we need to talk about the 12 track CD.

Dan + Shay's current single is called "Save me the trouble", and I believe their tour will be called "Heartbreak on the map". Some songs you should check out are "Then again", "Missing someone", & "Neon cowgirl". The title track is "Bigger houses", and the stand out singles in my opinion are "Always gonna be", & "For the both of us". Dan + Shay had a hand in co-writting 11 out of the 12 tracks. Here is the rest of the track list now.

Track list.

Breakin' up with a broken heart.

Save me the trouble.

Heartbreak on the map.

Always gonna be.

For the both of us.

Then again.

Heaven + back.

What took you so long.

Missing someone.

We should get married.

Neon cowgirl.

Bigger houses.

And that's a wrap for the track list. And on the MSR (Midnight Star Review), I would give this album a 4 out of 5 stars. I am a fan of more songs on albums. So it is a good well-rounded cd. But overall I felt like it was a good album, and if you are a fan of Dan + Shay. You would probably already got this album anyway. Thanks for taking the time to read this review. See ya all next time

[zinphandel]

M3LL155X- FKA twigs

Initial thoughts?

I am not familiar with the tracks on this EP and i cannot wait to hear them! i have listened to some twigs before, but have found a few of her tunes a bit too poppy for my taste, but big fan of her more experimental stuff.

First time full album listen through?

Yes!!!! i’ve never listened to this ep before, very excited to get into it!! dan having this on his favourite albums of 2015 is a fantastic pick.

Thoughts?

holy shit! 1 track in and i’m already blown away. the production on this album is absolutely next level.

it’s glitchy, ethereal, dark and sexy. listening to this loud as fuck with good quality headphones is an otherworldly experience.

obsessed with the ep title (m3ll155x) VERY aphex twin!

speaking of aphex twin, the soundscapes within the album feel so inspired by him, i looked up the producer and he cited him as an inspiration! obsessed!

need to hear this mixed into a set at a sweaty queer rave literally as soon as possible.

this ep sits within one of my favourite places in music, bridging the gap between big dub electronic and experimental hip hop/rnb

twigs voice is ethereal!

the production on this album is my favourite thing about it, it’s dark, dubby and bassy

i just listened through a second time whilst watching the accompanying visuals (a 16 minute long music video for the first 4 songs on the ep) and it elevated the tracks so much! if you are going to listen PLS also watch the music video it’s weird and fantastic

Favourite song(s)?

in time, glass and patron

Least favourite song?

maybe i’m your doll? it’s still a fantastic song just maybe my least favourite

Would i listen again?

holy shit yes. this has been added straight into my liked songs, and multiple of my playlists. i much prefer this to her more poppier stuff. i cannot wait to relisten

Do i recommend?

YES!!!!!! especially if you are into queer experimental electronic, uk bass or art/hyperpop, this is an immediate recommendation from me

What would I rank it out of 10?

9/10

what a fantastic pick today!! thanks dan :) see you tomorrow for the next album!

read my other reviews from 2015

[vinyl-connection]

ON A MISSION FROM GOD

When they first wrote and performed comedy sketches on the US television show Saturday Night Live, it is unlikely that John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd had any inkling their alter egos—“Juliet” Jake Blues and his brother Elwood—would take on a life of their own. With crumpled thrift-store suits, ever-present sunglasses and a briefcase of harmonicas handcuffed to Elwood’s wrist, The Blues Brothers…

[sinceileftyoublog]

Heartworms EP Review: A Comforting Notion

(Speedy Wunderground)

BY JORDAN MAINZER

A Comforting Notion, the debut EP from Jojo Orme’s dark dance project Heartworms, is the platonic artist’s statement. That is, the four tracks that make up the South London artist’s release are uniform in their aesthetic, cohesive in their themes, and provocative in their visualized form. Released on Speedy Wunderground (and produced by label founder Dan Carey), the record is classic goth-punk: wiry guitars, metronomic drum loops, vocals that elevate from whispered sprechgesang to shouted chants. “Ugly is the man, he’ll chew his eyes,” Orme sings, sinister and foreboding. On word workout “Retributions of an Awful Life”, she bounces back and forth over harmonic bass wobbles, glassy synths, and propulsive percussion, reciting lines like, “Very stressed, unimpressed / This is fun / In fact, it’s keeping me awake,” like she’s going down a checklist, yet fully knowing that moods are anything but simple, often multitudinous.

Best, Orme is aware of the genre’s history and what came before her. Her interest in military and aviation imagery is legit, having started volunteering at The Royal Air Force Museum, and she appropriates it without succumbing to the genre’s dabbling in fascism. In essence, she ironically finds a sense of individuality in donning uniforms while performing, something distinct from the all-black palate of her forebears. Taken in context of a song like “24 Hours”, a dissociative track about Orme not fitting in at school, Heartworms’ at-times monochromatic vocalization and percussion is a powerful push-pull between conformity and individuality. Orme named the band after the 2017 album from The Shins, whose sunny melancholy is as far a cry as possible from Heartworms’ grey soundscapes. Funny enough, James Mercer’s father was in the U.S. Air Force, and while that has never really made it into the New Mexico band’s music, the factoid is the cherry on top of Heartworms’ mood board, unexpectedly deep and wide.

[doomanddead]

Mairu’s Sol Cultus Sizzles

The dog days of summer are uncertain times. It’s hard to concentrate when Sirius rises and the world is sizzling. Even my cozy little canyon feels unnaturally humid and still. The newest offering from Liverpool quartet Mairu feels like the perfect soundtrack to get us through these torpid days. Their album Sol Cultus is packed with languorous post-metal instrumentals and slow, doomy riffs. It’s too fucking hot to mince words, so let’s get into it.

The album opens on Torch Bearer. This track toys with tension— sometimes laid back and ponderous, and sometimes taught with nervous strumming. The hammering heartbeat of the drums keeps things moving forward. The shining, ecstatic crescendo is a brain freeze in the Sahara. 

Perihelion is a pensive beast. It manages to sound simultaneously cavernous and warm. The song is grim but oddly buoyant, and makes for some damn good metal.

Still and fragile interludes like Inter Alia give the longer pieces on this album room to breathe.

The band’s 2019 single Wild Darkened Eyes sounds better than ever here. The track is furious and haunting with a groove that pounds its way to the finish. 

Drummer Ben Davis rattles our brains with a hypnotic performance on The Scattering Dust. Heavy, wandering baselines and acrid riffs give this track a perilous undertone. 

Atar is built from imposing slabs of percussion, and grouted with heaping globs of intensity. Cave-man beats lead the way; the rest of the band crashes in after, like the Kool-Aid man on roids. 

Where Atar was pounding and insistent, Rites of Ember is ethereal and melancholy. Clocking in at nearly ten and a half minutes, this behemoth moves at its own pace. Fervor creeps in like the tide until we’re up to our necks in a frothing mass. Just as we’re in danger of being overtaken, the tide turns and washes out again. 

Mairu seems right at home in the doldrums of summer, deftly manipulating tone and mood to glide through the thick atmosphere. Pick up Sol Cultus, and slip into the thrall of post-doom oblivion. 

[jamminonthegrass]

ALBUM REVIEW: DAN TYMINSKI "GOD FEARING HEATHEN"

Dan Tyminski of Alison Kraus' Union Station has been a committed and tenured contributor to the Bluegrass and traditional scene, and has gained recognition even beyond his genre. Dan and his bluegrass band are no stranger to success, and his latest release "God Fearing Heathen" lives up, with ease, to his past accomplishments. This album includes 10 tracks flush with tight arrangements, clever lyricism, and, of course, euphonious harmonies. Dan and his band do well in mixing a balanced piece, with a number of tracks exploring the space of lost love ("Never comin' Home") and others celebrating his immense love for bluegrass ("No Song to Sing") and Martin guitars("ode to Jimmy"). Dan performs his international cross genre collaborative piece "Hey Brother" however this time, it sits squarely in the traditional space. The album weaves a number of philosophical ideas together, but the take home message partly shares the albums namesake; There's a place in heaven for the God Fearing Heathen. Tracks such as "Silence in the Brandy" tell a somber tale of a battle hardened soldier accepting his troubled past but also simultaneously finding some value in himself and his role in this world. No album is complete without a story of an unlikely hero persevering against the odds and generally leading the hero to success yet in the track "G.O.A.T." Dan departs from the better known stories with the interesting angle of "The best flat picker no one knows". In this case we truly are left with an unsung hero and the song does well to imply one of life's greatest truisms: Sometimes the greatest among us receive no recognition, yet they continue to do what they love for the sake of it. Clever lyricism takes center stage in the tune "Occam's Razor" and showcases a true ability to wake up the listener with a mix of poignant philosophy mixed with a cautionary story about falling deeply in love with a dishonest and deceitful muse. The album in its entirety features everything that we've come to know and love from Dan and his contemporaries. If succinct and well placed harmonies are what you're looking for, look no further. All in All this album is an outstanding example of where modern bluegrass music is, was, and likely will be in foreseeable future, this album belongs in your library, for both its adept musical arrangements and also for its ability to communicate a meaningful spiritualism.