Sbarro, Intelligence, Ekkehard Ehlers and Paul Wirkus

Man, I am getting pretty bored of writing about music lately. Music is still cool…I think, but writing about it just isn’t happening for me lately. I decided that, regardless of how brief, I am just going to start nodding at the albums I am listening to that are “post-worthy” and keep the frivolous opinions and to a bare minimum. I guess the logic is this: when I visit a music blog/website am I reading much? Not really. If you are different and actually find reading my poorly constructed critiques and praises of interest then, by all means, let me know. Otherwise, just know that what I’m posting about I’m really digging and that it is worth investigating. That said here are a few mainstays of the last month or more.

Sbarro
Floating
(2009, Smooth Tapes)
RIYL = Caboladies, Axolotl, Infinity Window

More sickness from Smooth Tapes cassette label. I believe this is a Caboladies side project and if you read my review of Constellation Deformity you know that I am absolutely smitten with those guys. My favourite avant/experimental/drone type bliss I’ve heard in a good long while. Anywho, Sbarro bust it out similarly with two sides of glib anti-bliss blissfulness. It’s a contradictory weirdness that ends up just being plain ridiculawesome. I almost love it as Constellation Deformity…almost. Smooth Tapes hittin' home runs all over the place.

Check out Sbarro on the Smooth Tapes MySpace page

The Intelligence
Fake Surfers
(2009, In The Red)
RIYL = Liars, Bird Names, Starlight Mints

The other day Sassi and I were rocking the iPod on shuffle and playing “name that band”. Well, a song from Fake Surfers came on and I erroneously guessed “The Starlight Mints.” Bad guess, I know. Or was it? I reviewed Crepuscule With Pacman earlier this year and Fake Surfers marks an additional year-end-list rankable album for the experimental lo-fi pop/indie rock troupe. Of the two, Fake Surfers just edges out Crepuscule as the go to Intelligence album of 2009…heh, “Intelligence album of 2009!” I’m an idiot. These guys are sick though. Screw Wavves and all that publicity break down ridiculousness – The Intelligence is where it is really at when it comes to arty pop with a no wave edge.

Intelligence on MySpace

Ekkehard Ehlers & Paul Wirkus
Ballads
(2009, Staubgold)
RIYL = Alan Licht & Aki Onda, Jan Jelinek

I am always happy whenever a new project from experimental guitarist/electronics mastermind, Ekkehard Ehlers, drifts my way. Always happy. And even though I have never heard of Paul Wirkus before (apparently he is a drummer or something) I am equally happy with his involvement. The reason being, Ballads just may be my favourite Ehlers release to date. Ehlers and Wirkus just attack everything with oceans of depth. I don’t know what type of drumming Wirkus does but he is obviously an all-around apt experimentalist because Ballads is mostly alien electronics and mostly not ballads – at least in the traditional sense. No, scratch that, not even ballads in the distorted sense. Lots of ebbing and friction and gloating, water-bowl tones and engines and lo-fidelity bells mixed with high end shrapnel in slow motion. And probably elephants. Love this stuff. One of my favourites this year.

Stream Ballads on Boomkat

-Thistle

Intelligence - Crepuscule With Pacman

Intelligence
Crepuscule With Pacman
(2009, Born Bad Records)
RIYL = Liars, The Hospitals, the A Frames

I tell you what, I am beginning to get a little wearied by this whole lo-fi thing. It’s not that I am falling out of love with crunchy recording methods and feedback, it’s just that it feels like there is a new wave of bands that are recording terribly just to try and pass off their boring songs as part of some new art punk aesthetic or something. And, truth be told, lots of times it just comes off as flat and gimmicky. Fortunately, the Intelligence have returned to their lo-fi roots after their more polished (but still blissful) production on 2007’s Deuteronomy, just in time to show all these bandwagon riding upstarts how to really make some trashy pop songs. I for one am glad they did because I was beginning to develop a knee jerk reaction to all this misguided squalor. The beauty of the Intelligence is the discernable personality within the recordings. Headed by Lars Finberg (formerly of the A Frames), the Intelligence travel all over the pop map with a laconic swagger and a creative sweet tooth that seems sorely missing from the majority of noise-riddled pop acts. Like, I can actually distinguish one song from the next! And the Intelligence use different melodies on different songs! Novel idea huh? Seriously though, doesn’t it feel like some of these bands out there are just pressing the same effects pedal on every song before strumming the same 3 chords? Not the Intelligence. On Crepuscule With Pacman we’re treated twelve off kilter tracks that coalesce beautifully as an album, but can also can each stand on their own two legs as a testament to the Intelligence's grittily intelligent (ha!) and wonderfully varied popcraft. Oh, and did I mention that Crepuscule is just the appetizer? That’s right. The Intelligence have an additional full length (which is just as awesome if not more so) coming out later this month on In The Red. Oh, Intelligence – you shouldn’t have. I guess it’s a good time to count our many lo-fi blessings.

- Lil' Thistle

not off of Crepuscule, but still...