BOMB TRACK THURSDAY! (Episode - The Revenge)

Bomb track Thursday! BOMB TRACK THURSDAY! It's like regular Thurusdaassssy! Only with traaaaaaacks! *music fades out* Ah, yes I have missed thee. For those who are new to the game, I go around on the internet scouring for fresh downloads and put them all on here as a virtual sound menu of sorts. Go on, take a bite. You won't get fat I promise. And for everyone else who's been missing these, I'm hoping that now that I finally got my Albums You Might Have Missed edition for August 12th up, I can finally get caught up and get back to a regularly scheduled program around here. Thanks for being patient :) And now without further ado..B-b-BOMB TRACKS!


A$AP Ferg - "Reynolds" (fet. Danny Brown): Hailing from the A$AP Mob (known for kick starting the career of the more prolific A$AP Rocky) , Ferg proves he's no slouch when it comes to serving up his own dope lines. The lackadaisical delivery paired up with the lazy summery beat and guest verses by Danny Brown (who effects a dead ringer Cypress Hill impression), all just come together to make this feel like a perfect slice of forgotten 90's. (Hip Hop)


Body/Head - "Actress": Former Pixies bassists has returned with a brand new band a a popping new track for their upcoming debut, Coming Apart (due out September 13 on Matador). KG's voice and bass take the forefront on this minimalist experiment, sounding decidedly more avante garde then anything she's done before. Her bass plods along beneath an eerie guitar whine, with chanting and pipped in sonic dissonance. (No Wave/Nosie Rock)

Cage The Elephant - "Come A Little Closer": New track from the boys from Bowling Green from their upcoming album, Melophobia due out 10/8 through RCA. While their early album had them ridding to the top of the charts with a decidedly more "southern rock meets garage revile" sound, this song is no "Ain't No rest For The Wicked". "Come A Little Closer" is less on the heavy and more on the angst, and sounds more like a continuation of that  post-punk sound they were chasing on Thank You, Happy Birthday. It's a depressing, haunting melody held down by tight drumming under a more chaotic style of guitar. (Post Punk Revival)

Crystal Stilts - "Future Folklore": New cut from Crystal Stilts third upcoming album, Nature Noir, due out September 17th through Scared Bones. "Future Folklore" is probably the best way to describe the song, which pays equal homage to early American psychedelic folk and the Crystal Stilts minimalist approach to garage rock revival. . (Garage Rock Revival/Folk)

Drumgasam - Drumgasam: What do you get when you place Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron, Wild Flag drummer Janet Weiss, and Death Grips drummer Zach Hill on the same album? A better question would be, what would you get if you had an album that was simply NOTHING BUT those three drummers drumming. You'd get what could be described as nothing else but a Drumgasam, thus making the band name and the name of their first album, perfectly sensible. The entire albums is available for streaming on Spin.com, and suffice to say it sounds like nothing else you can imagine. Unless you're good at imaging what 3 proficient drummers would sound like if they were invited to the world's most awesome drum circle. . (Experiemntnal)

Forest Swords - Engravings: Forest Swords is the stage name of Liverpool native Matthew Barnes, who set the blogosphere alight with his relatively quite release, Dagger Paths, back in 2010. On his first full length, available for streaming through Pitchfork and due out August 26 through Tri Angle Records, he hones in those same composer skills that made his EP such a underground treasure. It's difficult to lump him in with other EDM musicians because he blends in a number of influences ranging, from post rock to film scores, complete with creative sampling, to create a very different sounding album. (Experimental/R&B/Post Rock)

Of Montreal - "She Ain't Speaking Now": New Of Montreal, sounds like the Athens outfit simply chasing their Flaming Lips influences at first. It starts off as a light psychedelic pop tune, before catching the listener by surprise with the crunch of bluesy guitar riffs. Of Montreal switch back and forth between playful psch pop and foot stampin swamp rock and somehow make it work. "Speaking Now" is off Lousy With Sylvianbrair due out 10/8 through Polyvinal. (Pyshdeilc Pop/Garage Rock)

Parquet Courts - "You Got Me Wondering Now": After being the DIY heroes of the 2012 with the surprise success of their debut album Light Up Gold, it's great to here Parquet Courts weren't merely one hit wonders. Beneath the lackadaisical chaos that is their beer soaked, fuzz drenched, lo-fi garage rampaging, lie some pretty damn crafty musicians. "You Got Me Wondering Now" is the teaser from their upcoming EP Tally All The Things That You Broke, due out 10/8 through What's Your Rapture. The song itself sounds like what would have happened if Stephen Malkmus from Pavement took over the vocal duties for The Stooges. (Gargare Punk)

Phoneix - "Trying To Be Cool" (fet. R. Kelly): "Trying To Be Cool" is the track from Phoenix's Bankrupt! album from earlier this year. And by all accounts it was just perfect the way it was; a seriously cool bit of modern disco with a tight-club ready swing in the choruses. So, how to make it better? Why not add R. Kelly to contribute some of his own guest verses? Say what you will about R. Kelly, the man has cool to spare when he sings and he brings "Cool" to a whole new level of it. (Nu-Disco/R&B)

YACTH - "Party At The NSA": This new YATCH song sounds like an old forgotten relic of 80's synthrock. The choruse is practically begging to have a post-ironc music video featuring the band dancing in a wasteland from Mad Max before bumping into those other guys who had to put on shades. All the bells and whistles, synths and computer modulators, are out on full force daring you to not dance. But its fun filled melody and retro goodness hides a pretty dark message if the song title didn't give it away, and it's one that the normally fun loving YATCH are serious about. The song was not released as a teaser for an upcoming album but as a download for sale in which all proceeds will go to "to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who will defend us all from living in a total surveillance state". (Synthpop/Synthrock)

Yuck - "Middle Sea": After having such a warmly received debut back in 2011 and a successful bit of touring, fans were dealt a sudden rough blow with the leaving of band founder and front man  Daniel Bloomberg back in April of this year. It seemed to be the kind of move that would kill a band dead just as it was starting to gain momentum, but Yuck still pushed forward, announcing a new album, Glow & Behold, due out September 30th. New singer "Max Bloom" doesn't quite have Bloomberg's youthful sounding wail, but manages to bring something new with his own daydream, dead-pan delivery. And those same sun soaked, Dinosaur Jr. riffs that made their debut so nostalgic show no signs of going anywhere anytime soon. (Noise Rock/Power Pop)

Album You (And Subsequently Me) Really REALLY Might Have Missed (August 12 - August 18)

If that nifty little hint provided by my weird wording of this week's edition of "Might Have Missed" didn't tip you off, I've been dare we say it, AWOL for the past couple of weeks (since mid July if my internet history's anything to go by). After cracking my laptop screen into what has to be something like a million pieces thanks to a faulty backpack strap, wet pavement, and what some would argue, the massive amount of negligence that comes from assuming a backpack that's over 6 years old will continue to function...I've been laptop-less for what feels like almost a month.

BUT! Extra shifts of dish washing, weeks of replacing blown tires, and the selling of one box of childhood memories (vauled at $10), has returned my laptop to me! Just in time to save myself from going completely mad :) One of my only links to grabbing any kind of music and doing any kind of writing has always been my laptop. The 20 minute computer rentals at the public library don't quite cut it. And after catching up on all the gratuitous amounts of porn music that I've missed out on, it please me to bring you the albums of last week that you (and most definitely me) might have missed.


Bloc Party

The Nextwave Sessions (EP)
(Frenckiss Records)
August 12, 2013


Didn't Bloc Party JUST get of hiatus? Did I just imagine all those shows they started doing about a year back, the rumors about a follow up to their comeback album Four, and all those interviews where they said they were "really excited" to be back together making music? Imagined or not, After a brief whole year of being back together and touring North America to tease new material for their EP, The Nextwave Sessions, Bloc Party has announced yet another indefinite hiatus. Odds are pretty good that it's safe to stop holding your breath for a comeback. But before they parted ways, they did live a pretty nice going away present in the for of 5 new songs. Rerecorded as part of a completely separate recording session from Four, Nextwave's hints at a new sound the lads of Bloc Party might have been perusing before shelving the whole thing. While "Ratchet" roars right out the gate with that oh so familiar and irresistible, groovy ball-room blitz the boys are usually know for, things take a decided turn for the more "R&B" flavored on the reaming tracks. "Obscene" has an slowed down, icy beat and features Kele Okereke doing his best Prince impression on the vocals. While "Montreal" opts to go for a more experimental atmospheric feel. There's no doubt this could be anything but Bloc Party on the cusp of trying something new, and while it's certainly something different then what the fans are use to, it's an actually pretty cool turn. At the very least, it sounds like the band wasn't content with merely re-recording "Helicopter" and "Hunting For Witches" for the rest of their career. However short that career in question turned out to be.



Don Cavalii 

Temperamental
(Everloving Inc)
August 13, 2013

Don Cavalii may very well be a textbook case for why you shouldn't give up. Long after most humans would surely have found something else to do that was less soul crushing, Don Cavalii has trucked on since the 80's in a number of rockabilly outfits, slowly expanding his repertoire to include power pop, swamp rock, blues, and a little bit of soul along the way. Finally finding the success he was long since overdue with his 2007 solo album, Cryland, Cavalii went on to enjoy the fruits of success for a bit, play in what has to be every hole-in the wall club ever, before returning for a follow up 5 years later. Anything worth doing well is worth taking your time on, is apparently his ethic. But the quality shows. Keeping up with that delicious, southern fried blend of swampy, poppy, garage tunes, Cavalii manages to successful integrate different sounds across different decades. From the funky grooves of the 70's on the title track, to the lazy guitar pop of the 60's on "Garden of Love", to gospel by the way of The Beatles on, "Gonna Love You". Time is nothing but a number to a man who's been at listening to and playing with more bands than I'll ever know.



Deltron 3030 

City Rising From The Ashes
(Bulk Recording Inc.)
August 13, 2013

A sticking point that I've always had with rap is the unwillingness to peruse more fantastical concepts on their albums. I mean real concept albums, in the sense of I dunno, say "this is the story of how I became the God Osiris and declared war on an alien planet in the far flung future 3030". Something like that. But lucky for me, my man Del The Funky Homosapien (better known to most as the ghost Del, who posses the drummer Russel in the fictional band Gorillaz, featured famously on their song "Clint Eastwood"), gets me and has returned with the project Deltron 3030 to record a brand spanking new follow up to their debut back in 2000. It's 13 years overdue but all is forgiven with this leaked EP debuting 3 new tracks from their upcoming Deltron Event II (due out in October), because the concept of said album is percsisley what I just described. Did I mention the title track of this EP features guest vocals by Mike Patton? And you still haven't downloaded it yet?



Jagwar Ma 

Howlin'
(Mom + Pop Music)
Agust 13, 2013

The Tame Impala comparisons I figure are damn near unavoidable, even IF Jagwar Ma didn't also happen to come form them same continent of Australia. But what you have here is another psychedelic rock group ,hailing from Sydney as opposed to Perth, that manage to succeed in dragging out the sounds of funky British influences from decades past. But whilst Tame Impala were content to borrow the playbook from the Beatles and add their own weird noodling to it, Jagwar Ma seek the tap into the crazy "blink and you'll have missed it" decade of decadence that was Madchester on their debut album, Howlin'. Invoking the trippy dance rock sound of  Happy Mondays and the fuzzy haze of acid-house, Jagwar Ma bring something to music scene that frankly hasn't really been heard for about twenty years. And, provided you've never actually heard of Happy Mondays, it'll be new to you as well.


Moondoggies 

Adios, I'm A Ghost
(Hardly Art)
Agust 13, 2013

Seatle outfit, The Moondoggies have been enjoying their comfortable niche of paying homage to the LA band sound of the 60's; blending the harmonies of The Byrds, the country vibes of The Flying Burrito Brothers, and the swirling guitar rhythms of Buffalo Springfield, with exactly NO homages to "the fucking Eagles" (statistically speaking, you read that in the Dude's voice). Their third album, they show no signs of changing that formula too much here. Adios, I'm A Ghost finds the Moondoggies pushing themselves to have a more varied sounding, and subsequently longer album. The 6 minute long "A Lot To Give" features psych heavy swirls of guitar complete with keyboard. But "Red Eye" comes in as a jaunty, country-romp that channels the Grateful Dead at their most playful. There's even the incredibly depressing "Pride" , and "Back To The Beginning" that wouldn't have sounded out of place on Neil Young's After The Gold Rush. The mood across the album is an ever changing one, and the boys of Moondoggies manipulate it well.


Scott and Charlene's Wedding 

Any Port In A Storm
(Fire Records)

Scott and Charlene's Wedding is the awkward name of the music project by one Australasian Craig Dermody, who's since taken residence in New York City. (and by he sounds of the no less dozens of references, it's safe to say he's taken to it quite nicely) But clumsy name aside (evidently it comes from the name of an old sitcom), Dermody's Port In A Storm is a pleasantly, enjoyable slice of lo-fi garage rock goodness under the awkward band name. The album is not a thrashing one, and opts for a wall of playful guitar harmonies as opposed to fuzzy revereb drenching every note; but it's stronger for it. Rather then try to beat you over the head with overt aggressiveness, Any Port In The Storm eases you in with a pretty wall of guitars, simply drumming, and Dremody's sentimental croon. Think early garage rock meets the sonic melodies Pavement by way of Dinosaur Jr.

BOMB TRACK THURSDAY! (Episode - In 3D)

You know the drill. Pipping hot tracks that internet has served up for your listening pleasure. Also, this feel like the perfect platform to air out social grievances. The Lone Ranger is garbage, but thankfully not too terribly racist garbage as I had feared. Merely long, plodding, uninteresting, disjointed, poorly written garbage.


AlunaGeorge - "Bad Idea" (Relatively young, UK electro duo AlunaGeorgia, preimer a new track from their upcoming album, Body Musi,c out July 29th. George Resies provides the cool as ice, synth beats, while Aluna Francis serenades with that sweet as honey voice.) Electronic/Trip Hop


Beck - "I Won't Be Long" (These days Beck finds himself in the awesome position of being able to do whatever the hell he wants. For instance, where most artists would be testing the waters with a new single as per some record label obligation in order to build anticipation for an upcoming album, as far as I can tell, Beck has made no such announcement; other then hinting at a possible two albums in the future with no title or release date. And on top of that he's mum about whether this single is even on either of them. That being said, you'd be crazy to think he'd make a whole album sound like anyone song. Which is sort of a bummer, because "I Won't Be Long" is a nice ambient blending of a simple, hypnotic guitar line with some fuzzy dream pop synth layered over for good measure. But then, knowing Beck, he'll probaly find a way to surprise with something better anyway.) Alternative/Indie Rock/Dream Pop


Andrew Cedermark - Home Life (When Andrew Cedermark's not banging out almost interesting garage rock with his band Family Portrait, he's banging out almost interesting music while going solo. Andrew Cedermark's just still too new to the scene to have an established identity yet, and hasn't done enough to make himself stand out; other then play in a band that frankly, sounds like a family friendly garage rock band. The fact that his voice is dull as dirt is just more salt in the wounds. On the bright side, Home Life does display him sounding more interesting, using some slightly more creative sonic techniques beyond "hit these three chords while I wail over them". So there's that tentative step in the right direction. Also it's free till July 19th on NPR, so there's that to.) Lo-Fi


The Chills - "Molten Gold" (Early 80's power pop band from New Zealand, that was on the verge of making it but never quite did. At least in America. By all means they've always been very popular in their home country and have never not been popualr-ish. "Molten Gold" is the first new song The Chills have put out since 1996, in commemoration of their front man, Martin Phillipps's celebrating his 50th birthday. It's a light, breezy, summery bit of flawless sounding guitar pop.) Indie Pop


Holograms - "Meditations" (The teased single released by from the thrashy Swedish post-punk outfit. Their sophomore album, Forever, is due out on September 3rd through Captured Tracks.) Noise Rock/Post Punk


Torche - "Leather Feather" (Torche are the band that are probably best known for having the term "thunderpop" coined to describe them. They're sludgy, they';re poppy, they're aggressive, they're melodic, and they seem to be incapable of making a bad song. "Leather Feather" is a little more on the sludge metal side of things then some of their earlier work, and finds them channeling the aggressive riffs of The Jesus Lizard with the soloing of Tommy Iommi respectively. The track is a B-side to their song "Keep Up". Now both available for purchase as a single 7'') Sludge Metal/Stoner Metal

Really Pixies? Really? Did You Have To Go And Ruin An Average Song With An Awful Video?

Okay, so my initial repose to The Pixies releasing their first new song in over 9 years? Elation. Hyper elation. Elation so great it may have even been enough for me to shove out annoyingly naggy thoughts like "not really that great of a song" and "Kim Deal left the band for this?". Dammit, I was in the mood for Pixies and I was completely willing to overlook the fact that I wasn't in high school anymore, and hadn't really listened to the Pixies as religiously as I use to for...well about 9 years actually. "Bagboy" sounded pretty awesome and it hinted at a possible new Pixies album in the the future; The Pixie having missed the "everything old is cool again! I think the kids call it retro" bandwagon, that everyone from Soundgarden (semi-successful) to Alice In Chains (arguable successful), to Pavement (No new music for you! But an enjoyable short-lived reunion? Sure!) to The Offspring (the exact opposite of successful or enjoyable) had managed to jump onto a few years back.

Not that I mean that to sound bitter. With plenty of new acts since 2000 rising in prominence, filling the void those phenomenal late 80's early 90's groups left, those same groups returning for another shot at glory  through big name festival appearances and a couple of new tracks here and there, doesn't quite reek of desperation or the equivalent of the big kids returning to the playground to take back their ball. So by all means, I was thrilled to hear that the new Pixies track on their website. (it served as a nice bowl of ice cream to get over the heartache of Kim Deal announcing she'd was leaving the band just days prior).

What I'm not so thrilled with is the god awful video the band decided to put their seal of approval on. The video for "Bagboy" depicts an annoying asshat of a kid who NEVER wipes that shit eating grin of his face. Though, the fact that I found the kid off putting at first may have more to do with my irrational prejudices (such as classifying people's faces by how punchable they are. In his case it hovered somewhere between "very" and "desirably so") then anything else. Fair enough. What becomes troubling is that as the video proceeds to show this kid grabbing a credit card to make a grocery run for way to much milk, their's this slight bubbling feeling of dread that you can't quite shake. As if something's kinda wrong but you can't quite put your finger on what it is. That eerie feeling gets juxtaposed with the deliriously silly chorus and Francis's tongue-in-cheek vocal delivery. It's like he wants you to enjoy the song but something just feels off.

The video concludes with the boy vandalizing his own home with a combination of whipped cream, spilled milk and cheerios (which he bathes in at one point) and smashing objects to death with a baseball bat. So far, so very punk rock with a spot of ol' David Lynch.

Then you get to the last 5 seconds and TADAH! The revel is that that annoying little glasses wearing punk didn't own the home! The camera pans away as he leaves the home to revel the real owner to be a frightened black women, tied up on her bed. See, turns out he just broke into her house, presumably subdued her with violence before tying her up, stole her credit car, made a shit ton of purchases, vandalized her home, then rode off into the sunset on his bicycle without freeing her, with an air that implies he's done this before and to others. Oh, you silly kids you! What kind of  adventures will you think up next?

So yeah, for now damn reason. NO DAMN REASON the video decides to simultaneously offend African Americans, women, and African American women (all who actually do live in threat of this "charmingly" decapitated violence) with an ending that just drops of a black women being tied up to have her home and  sense of security vandalized by a young white man, like it's no big thing. It's just the careless of this that gets me worked up. I understand artistic creative and the whole artistic license thing. I get it. Really I do. But what was the point? What was the friggin point of just contributing another casual image of racial violence and violence against women in a rare double whammy? I can't shake the feeling that Kim Deal wouldn't have put her name anywhere near this abomination of video. Not on her watch.

Hey maybe I'm barking. But the videos bellow. Feel free to think whatever you'd like. But their was no reason this video couldn't have done anything, literally anything else. Oh and by the way Francis? Turns out, having an awful video helps your audience to take the first steps in realizing that your first new song in 9 years may not be as awesome as you think it is. And once the aging hipsters have stopped jerking you off and the new age hipsters have finished blogging your praises to high heaven (reminding you no doubt for the 50th time how influential you were), you can enjoy that quite lull that comes just before you realize you might not have it anymore. That the creative well may really be finally dry and Kim Deal leaving just confirmed it. And your instances on an awful video calculated to be "shocking" without giving a damn whom it might possibly be offensive to or what kind of message you might be sending, was just the first nail in the coffin.

Franz Ferdinand debut "Right Action" music video.

I mentioned something about it a little earlier last week, but it seems that Franz Ferdinand have finally put out a proper music video for that deliriously jazzy single, "Right Action". It's a title track of sorts (the full album name is technically Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action but now I'm just being a stickler), and anyone with a passing familiarity of the oddity Franz Ferdinand like to get into with their hyper trippy music videos, knows exactly what to expect. In a hyper minimalist, bizarrely busy, music video, Franz Ferdinand manage to somehow capture the EXACT sensation of falling asleep on your open Chemistry textbook during a particular boring class. In hindsight, that's a terrible way to sell a music video let alone describe it. But I'm also pretty sure that's the only way to possibly describe what you're seeing. You know that feeling you get in your skull when you can't quite describe what's happening but it feels kinda awesome? Franz Ferdinand have been finding a way to get balls deep in there since 2002.

Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action is due out August 26 via Domino

BOMB TRACK THURSDAY! (Episode - Through The Portal of Time)

Bomb track Thursday!..After being somewhat delayed thanks to sleeping of a 4th of July hangover. Happy Freedom day by the way yall! So while my sense are still with me and the sleep medication hasn't kicked in it, downloads of the week to behold!


Blondes - Swisher (full album available for streaming on YouTube right now, but due out 8/6. Chill, mellow, surprisingly adequate for either a summer day or a spacewalk) - Deep House/Electronic


Action Bronson - "Heel Toe" (a  leftover track from Actin Bronson and Harry Fraud's collaboration album SAAAB Stories. I can't for the life of me figure why it wasn't included. It is quite simply a tight hip hop flow over Journey's bass line in "Who's Crying Now?" with the jazziest damn sax ever. - Hip Hop


Dan Deacon - "Why Am I On This Cloud?" (Adultswims sexy summer singles program delivers again. Dan Deacon's always been an experimental bloke who seems to get off on juxtaposing expectations. But combing the sounds of a pulsing street riot with an icy synth line before morphing it into what can only be described as a "Transformers rave party" is pretty bold.) - Experimental/Electronic/Avant-Garde 


The Dodos - "Substance" (A fresh cut form The Dodo's upcoming album Carrier, due out 8/27. From the sound of things, they're not quite nixing their folk niche anytime soon, but The Dodo's show a surprising amount of new found muscle on this track) - Indie Folk/Indie Pop


Franz Ferdinand - "Love Illumination" and "Right Action" (A double whammy of new tracks from Franz Ferdinand's new album, Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action, due out 8/26. Dancy, groovy, with those enjoyable peppering of early 200's nostalgia kick in quite nicely) Indie Rock/Post-Punk Revival


Maps - Viccisitude (Maps new album will only be up and available to stream on NPR till it's July 9th release date) Electronic/Dream Pop


Zola Jesus - "Avalanches" (New track from Zola Jesus's album Versions, out 8/28. Beautiful, haunting, could be adequately described as "Like Florence Welch for goth kids"? Zola Jesus.) Lo-fi/Noise Pop

Albums You Might Have Missed (June 24 - June 30)

One of these days. ONE OF THESE DAYS! Bam! Pow! STRAIGHT TO SUNDAY NIGHT! Or if this pattern continues I may end up just having an edition of "Might Have Missed" go up on Tuesday. Hmm, weird. Keeping a tight if sorta inconvenient schedule is not normally how procrastination works. Damn it procrastination! You take the fun out of procrastinating!



Bass Drum Of Death 

Bass Drum Of Death
(Innovated Leisure)
June 25, 2013


I really dug these guy's debut album, GB City back in 2011. It was criminally underrated then and they were a criminally underrated band. After it seemed like everyone was getting into the stripped down, rock n' roll, two-piece free love (and the little fact that The Black Keys were ridding really high about that time), Bass Drum Of Death just seemed like another flash in the pan trying to catch some of the sweet, sweet critical acclaim before their descent into obscurity. But GB City didn't sound like every other wannabe trying to sound like Ty Segall. The reverb soaked production was there, but if you removed all that fuzz you got the feeling you'd still get some tight songs; the kidna songs that actually hearkened back to the early days of 60's  garage rock (The Sonics, The Kingsmen, The Trashmen. Lots of The _'s) as opposed to sounding like some 20 somethings who heard the word "garage" and assumed that was indie for "NEEDS MORE REVERB."  That proto punk swagger of The Stooges mixed in with the bluesy swing of the Mississippi Delta is still present on Bass Drum Of Death, and Josh Barret's only gotten better as song writer and arranger. Since moving to Innovated Leisure and getting more of a paycheck this time, it's safe to say his days of recording entire albums in his basement with shitty equipment are behind him. That's not to say that the allure of a paycheck has tamed the blistering furry that is Bass Drum Of Death. No, you still get the half hour of foot stammpin', hook heavy, fuzzy, shake rattle' n' roll, you got last time around. Just a lot more of it with cleaner sounding production on top as a bonus.



Bosnian Rainbows 

Bosnian Rainbows
(Sargent House/Rodriguez-Lopez Productions)
June 28, 2013


Omar Rodriguez-Lopez has returned with yet another brand spankin' new band. After The Mars Volta ran it's course (Omar got bored) and he announced that new At The Drive In material was never going to happen and he'd like to move on (after being informed that a majority of people actually LIKED At The Drive In more then Mars Volta), he retreated back to his home in El Paso, and reemerged with a new band and sound, Bosnian Rainbows. While I still hold reservations of Omar being the exact kind of person anyone thinks of when the word pretentious gets thrown around, I will say that Mars Volta actually sounded like a pretty good idea for a few albums before he got so far up his own ass and it became a pointless 8 minute long, jerk-off session. But Bosnian Rainbows restores my faith in believing Omar CAN still make cool music when he acknowledges that maybe his ideas are a little much. With Bosnian Rainbows, the band is much more of a think tank trading ideas, and it finds the balance between pushing creative boundaries while still being accessible. The prog rock rhythms of Mars Volta have been traded out for some gorgeous electronic soaked experimental rock trappings. There are grooves, there are melodies, There are even honest to god enjoyable lyrics. And the crooning, seductive vocals of Teri Gender Bender (presumably her stage name), complements the music nicely.



India.Arie 

Songversation
(Motown)
June 25, 2013


India.Arie's an Atlanta girl and because of this, I've got a knee jerk reaction to spotlight the accomplishments of the talent of my city. But man, if you haven't heard of India.Arie, her latest is as good a place as any to get on board. This girl for the lack of a better word can "siiiing". Her voice might be considered a bit weaker if you compare her to titans like Alicia Keys and Christina Aguilera; But rather then letting her voice be a weakness she turns it to a strength. The production on Songerversation complements her well, highlighting her whisperer, soft croon with some creative song arranging. From the more in your face, hook heavy up-tempo numbers to the slower piano and guitar ballads (instruments which she plays on by the way), to dazzling in some jamming bossa nova tunes on one practical song, India.Arie's not afraid to experiment with the neo sou/R&B format to make something that stands out. Her creativity as producer shines through, even when her lyrics are a bit lacking.



Lighting Dust 

Fantasy
(Jagjaguwar)
June 25, 2013


Lighting Dust is something of an enigma to properly describe and it's existence is even harder to explain. The duo of Amber Webber and Joshua Wells from the Vancouver based heavy rock/psychedelic band Black Mountain, decided to nurse a side project that started off as a showcase for their sparse, sad acoustic songs that didn't fit in with Black Moutain. Then Lighting Dust evolved to include hazy electronic elements, drone, and some flirtatations with goth rappings. Now on their latest album, the stripped down effect is still present, but where its usually been stripped down guitars up to this point, Fantasy showcases stripped down synths that sound lifted right out of an 80's Casio. The result is a confusing but enjoyable mix of slowcore, ambient electro grooves that, if left on in your car, might make you feel like you've suddenly woken up in time for the final act of Drive. 



Palms 

Palms
(Ipecac Recordings)
June 25, 2013

After Isis decided to formal dissolve with dignity back in 2010, the music world has been somewhat curious as to what they would do next. Their latest project, Palms, has been in the works for a little over a year now ,but when rumors had began circulating that they were going to try something different from Isis, with Chino Moreno of Deftones contributing vocals, my initial response was.......I kinda would have liked it  if you COULD just be Isis with Chino on vocals because that sounds kinda kickass. But after hearing their debut album as Palms, I can say that it kicks ass in a different sort of way. The heavy stoner-riff sound of Isis is traded in for a more atmospheric, post-metal feel that just sounds beautiful. The gentle sonic swells sudden shifts into chaotic crescendos are just the kind of patterns that Chino's voice seem made for. But that's not to say Palms don't bring any of their Isis past with them. The jazz-tastic guitar noodlings, the crashing highs followed by quite lulls, and the creative sound exploration are inherent to Isis's indentity after all. But it's nice to hear them be gung-ho about trying to use those Isis powers on something new and enjoyable.



Rose Windows 

The Sun Dogs
(Sub Pop Records)
June 25, 2013


Continuing our trend of debut album from a new band we have Rose Windows from Seattle, who tentatively describe themselves as hard hitting hippies. That's the kind of phrase that's so perfect at describing their sound, I wish I had thought it up. Rose Window sure don't sound like they're just recording their first album, and for having a band of 7 members, they manage to balance everyone out so it doesn't all sound like so much aimless cacophony. Their sound easily invokes the flue playing antics of Jethero Tull, the spaced out heavy hitting keyboards of The Doors, the guitar soloings of Led Zeppelin, the other worldly feel of Genesis (The Peter Gabriel one), and the vocal stylings of Jefferson Airplane courtesy of Rose Window's primary vocalist, Rabi Qazi.


Smith Westerns 

Soft Will
(Mom + Pop Music)
June 25, 2013


The Smith Westerns are very much still a band that's growing up trying to figure out ultimately what they're going to end up sounding like. While their debut album was the sound of a bunch of teens banging together instruments in a flurry of lo-fi, garage rock goodness, you got the sense that there wasn't a lot of depth behind the noise. Sure it sounded good but kinda disposable. But then their follow up album, Dye It Blonde in 2010 showed some surprising new variety. Smith Westerns toyed around with a lot less fuzz and a lot more crafty song writing to make a creative throw-back, power pop record. Now with Soft Will it seems they're still trotting in that direction of "less in your face guitars" and more" attention to gentle melodies"; but while Dye It Blonde felt like a strong step forward, Soft Will sounds a lot less sure of itself. The power pop hooks are toned down for an almost alternative country twang, and there are far fewer uptempo rolickers. The word boring would be an adequate word to throw around in describing this album, but I prefer the term "slow burner". True it doesn't sound as fun as their debut or as compelling as their follow up. But  if your in the mood for a more introspective sounding album, Soft Will fits that description nicely.


Transplants 

Warzone
(Epithath)
June 25, 2013

This band was sold to me as Travis Barker from blink-182 on drums (yes he looks docuhey but he's much MUCH better then everyone gives him credit for) and Tim Armstrong of Rancid on vocals. Surprisingly enough, an idea that awesome has only put out three records and Warzone is by far the strongest yet. After nixing that hokey rap-rock format of their's, Warzone cuts right into what you'd wanna here from a union like this; tight, hooky punk rock lifted right out of the sun drenched early 90's with Armstrong's growl and Barker's drum fills. It's fun, it's catchy, and a dream come true for anyone raised on Solcal neo punk.


Wale 

The Gifted
(Maybach Music Group)
June 25, 2013


Wale has certainly grown bigger in the rap game, and The Gifted may be his most ambitious album to date; featuring collaborations from Ne-Yo, Nikki Minaj, CeeLo Green, 2-Chainz, and Jerry Seinfeld (that last one's not a typo). Not a bad place to be in for a guy who essentially started out by being good at spitting out club anthems who's lyrics really didn't matter as long as you had someone or something to bump n' grind too. But here Wale uses that husky deliver of his to actually put out some heavier lyrics dealing with some pretty depressing subjects; loneliness, isolation, the futility of wealth and fame, crushed dreams, and failed heroes.... So yeah! Probably not going to be featured at any club anytime soon. But Wale's flow is still incredible and the outro featuring Jerry Seinfeld has to be heard to be believed.