Dec 12 2008

Free Music Friday

Category: Music In My Ears — dryvetyme @ 12:00

Yes yes - I realize that this month’s edition comes two weeks early, but after the release of my Best Music of 2008 list on Monday, December 15th, this here site will be quiet until Monday, January 5th. Think of it as a Christmas Break for Dryvetyme Onlyne. Don’t fret - we will return! Here’s some music to tide you over until then:

If You Could Get Over Me (complete EP) - One Small Step For Landmines
“The Long Way Home” (Prins Thomas edit) - Lindstrøm
“Call And Response” - Or, The Whale
“Everything With You” - The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
“Creation Myth” - Lanterns
“So Bored” - Wavves
“Meet Me In The Garden” - Dent May
“Feel.Love.Thinking.Of” - Faunts
“Went Walking” - Bosque Brown
“The Believers” & “The Believers” (Clifford Lidell Remix) - Fol Chen

Dec 12 2008

La Dispute - Somewhere At The Bottom Of The River Between Vega And Altair

Category: Music In My Ears — dryvetyme @ 09:00

La Dispute
Somewhere At The Bottom Of The River Between Vega And Altair
No Sleep; 2008

Music has been powered by emotion for much of its existence. Yes, you should take time to revel in the technical prowess of the composer and musician, because without someone first arranging the notes on the page and a collection of someones artfully play those notes on their instruments, the actual aural aspects that define something as music would be absent. However, it is possible to write intricate scores, play one’s instrument, and sing any accompanying lyrics without any emotion, without feeling the intense sensations that quality music has evinced for centuries. Humans want to be moved by the music they enjoy: they want to hum the melody, sing the lyrics loudly and proudly, and possibly even reach for their favorite air guitar in order to immerse themselves in the magic of the moment.

This is what makes La Dispute and their debut full-length, Somewhere At The Bottom Of The River Between Vega And Altair, so powerful. Calling to mind the aggressively poetic post-punk sounds of At The Drive In and mewithoutYou, this hard-hitting quintet from Grand Rapids, MI follows in the footsteps of those two modern icons with verve and intense heart. The band willfully and unapologetically projects their impassioned, angst-ridden lyrics and dual guitar onslaught at their listeners, shaking them awake from their slumber so that they might feel again, even if those feelings are quite excruciating.

Admittedly, there are times when one wishes that the lead singer would stop, take a breath, and talk to a therapist about the severe separation issues he seems to have with this one certain person that he sings/screams about so stridently. On the other hand, love, loss, and heartbreak have driven the mediums of poetry and pop music for quite some time, creating the intense emotional content that many people find so attractive and compelling. Then again, La Dispute isn’t really treading on any new territory – romantics the world over need to hear other people singing about their hurts and pain – but they do so with a fervor that should shame the wussy emo bands that only feigns at being emotive and heart-rending.

Dec 11 2008

Only Thunder - Lower Bounds

Category: Music In My Ears — dryvetyme @ 09:00

Only Thunder
Lower Bounds
Bermuda Mohawk; 2008

For all intents and purposes, I would describe myself as a fan of punk and hardcore music, mostly because I can relate to the emotional intensity that drives such music. However, my affection for these genres is not because the band is speaking to me with their words and their passion, but because the fervor of the music provides me the headspace to work through my own issues, troubles, and concerns. There are certain bands and certain sounds that will win me over every time, like the musical version of comfort food, and it needs to be both familiar in construction and aggressive in tone. Specifically, I don’t want the band to be angry just for the sake of being angry; the emotions must directed at a specific target in order for it to have any real impact and the music must be high-quality, yet not so hyper-technical that it distracts from the lyrics.

What allows Lower Bounds, the new album from Denver, CO punk mavens Only Thunder, to work on those levels is that this excellent quintet has allows their music to breathe deeply and fully. They accomplish this by channeling their ardor through hardcore and indie rock lenses, creating songs that have instrumental places and spaces where the intensity can be ratcheted up at a steady pace, as opposed to vomiting it all out at once. Tracks like “Computer Says No” and “Splatterhouse” pulse with strength in the face of dark trials, while “Back And Forth” and “Airwolf” are premier examples of a band that takes a ninety-second punk motif and stretches it into a soaring anthems. Admittedly, there are occasions where the album lags, primarily on “Her Vs. The Triceramom” and “Fence Fight,” both of which are prototypical rock songs that merely chug along at a steady pace, but offer nothing truly exciting to the listener. Nevertheless, Only Thunder knows how to make engaging, and intelligent punk music laden with enough metal and rock tinges to help them stand out from other similar-sounding acts. Lower Bounds is an album that I can use to help channel my thoughts and pump my fist into the air with heartfelt fury.

Dec 10 2008

Grieves (with Budo) - 88 Keys & Counting

Category: Music In My Ears — dryvetyme @ 09:00

Grieves (with Budo)
88 Keys and Counting
Black Clover; 2008

I’ve talked in other reviews about how, despite growing up with and listening to the medium in Port Arthur, TX, I feel somewhat inadequate when writing about rap and hip-hop music. Sure, I listen to it somewhat frequently and I’ve really dived back into the scene in the past two-three years, but I’m still an overweight white rock critic who calls the sounds of The Smiths, R.E.M., and U2 as having the greatest impact upon my musical tastes. Nevertheless, maybe it’s my wide ranging of sonic proclivities mixed with my relative disconnection from the seedier intricacies of the rap/hip-hop world that allow me to truly ingest the rhythms and absorb an MC’s lyrical content. Or maybe it’s just because I love a really excellent sample and a supremely kicking beat, no matter what the genre of music.

So, when I first approached 88 Keys and Counting, the new record from Grieves (with Budo), I was instantly impressed with the variety of the kick-and-snare patterns driving each song, much less the eerie synthesizer patches and the thick keyboard and organ swells that fill out the spaces. The creators of this record seem to be severely aware of the wide shoulders on which they stand, and widely decided to pay some due homage to the great soul, funk, and hip-hop producers before them. Over and over again, from Budo’s beats and supporting instrumentation to Grieves’ vocal delivery, there are hints, waves, nods, and deep bows directed to influences as wide-ranging as Motown, Stax, Sly, De La Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest, all while the duo remains forward-thinking with the push of their songs.

All of that musical goodness aside, it’s Grieves’ lyrics that carry the day, as he takes immense pride in crafting a flow that is both classic and progressive. He’s not interested in impressing you with some vain recollection of exploits and indulgences; he seems to prefer is being upfront with his trials, troubles, and the day-to-day struggles of being a man in the 21st Century. In that respect, he’s keeping it more “real” than many other MC’s out there spouting off about how allegedly “hard” they might be. He tackles the same conceptual material – guns, girls, and glitz – with a fresh and breathtaking maturity: guns aren’t toys to be loosely wielded, girls are actually women who are complex creatures that he has yet to understand, and glitz is quite often tarnished fool’s gold that never provides the answers it promises. In the end, 88 Keys And Counting is a remarkable record from an MC and producer who are definitely on the rise and, whether it’s through relentless touring or a nonstop work ethic, Grieves and Budo are doing it with street-level style.

Download “Guenevieve”
Download “Cloud Man”
Download “Twisted”

Dec 09 2008

Moby - Last Night: Remixed

Category: Music In My Ears — dryvetyme @ 12:00

Moby
Last Night: Remixed
Mute; 2008

Remix albums are a notoriously iffy musical proposition. Starting from the DJ’s and producers chosen to do the remixing, continuing on through the songs selected, and ending with the track arrangement, the whole scenario is a dubious one, laden with a host of unwanted expectations. In this reviewer’s mind, the real concern is whether or not an album needed to remixed in the first place – oh sure, you can take a track and pass it around to a few DJ friends and let them rework the song in question, but remixing an entire album is just inviting severe overkill into the equation. If the original artist is happy with his/her creation, why run the risk of poisoning those songs in the ears of your fans?

Well, Moby obviously possesses none of those fears, as he recently handpicked some hot DJ’s free range to toy with the standout tracks from his Spring 2008 release Last Night. The project was originally designed as a concept album chronicling a hypothetical night out on the town with his friends, but since Moby is no stranger to remixing the works of iconic acts himself, it seems that he concocted a follow-up record with those same club-going friends in mind. The result is Last Night: Remixed, which subjects the following songs to a wide variety of upbeat house-heavy treatments: “I Love To Move In Here,” “Ooh Yeah,” “Live For Tomorrow,” “I’m In Love,” “Disco Lies,” “Alice,” and “The Stars.”

The truly great cuts here include The Holy Ghost!’s version of “I Love To Move In Here,” Spencer & Hill’s take on “Disco Lies,” the Heavy Bass remix of “Alice” by Drop The Lime, and D.Ramirez’s Haunted Playground Remix of “Ooh Yeah,” because these DJ’s are able to take the source material and call it their own, while still honoring Moby’s intentions for the original. Also included as notable moments are “Live For Tomorrow” from Tocadisco and Mason’s Glowsticks Remix of “I’m In Love,” because, while they might be slightly formulaic, they are still fun and engaging. What threatens to sink the entire ship is the three-song selection that drops right in the middle of the album: Seamus Haji, General Midi, and AC Slater’s remixes of “I Love To Move In Here,” “Alice,” and “The Stars” (respectively) are rather boring, derivative, and much too safe. Sure, they might be bouncy, bubbly, and engaging for the non-discerning club-goer, but they do a grave disservice compared to the better remixes and to the original version.

In the end, the verdict for Last Night: Remixed is a hung jury; half the album is far superior to the other, creating a fractured listening experience. Each solid-to-excellent song has a bland-to-sad counterpart, leaving this reviewer to wonder whether an EP of the best material would have been preferable to an entire LP that comes across as merely average. Moreover, since the record was dubbed a “remix” album, would it not have been correct and/or proper to remix every song from Last Night in its original order? Maybe there’s a gap in this reviewer’s knowledge regarding DJ/club culture, but having purchased more than a few remix tracks of his favorite songs, quality is always preferable to quantity.

« Previous Page — Next Page »