Swans - My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky

Swans
My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky
(2010, Young God)
RIYL = Angels of Light, Evangelista

Oh Michael Gira, you dog! Resurrecting Swans, dehydrated, out of the apocalyptic dust. Can we not sit up straight and stare wet-eyed into the oncoming train lights, like a freshly noosed victim slung swinging in front of the tunnel entrance, dangling just feet above the tracks, choking and that blaring horn, that incessant chugga chugga, the rhythmic pulse growing louder, spelling out our ultimate end, as if the rope wasn’t tight enough around our necks? It spells a beautiful collision, for sure. And, as far as resurrected bands go (if Mr. Gira will allow me to describe Swans as such), this one’s a growling mess of doom and destruction – the way it should be. I’ve been a bit more of an Angels of Light fan myself, having mostly missed the heyday of Swans (unless we can rightfully describe today as that heyday, which is certainly arguable with My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky) but this here record is perhaps the album which tips the scales in the other direction with all the mussy tangles of Gira injected with an added umph of looming destruction (added, of course, to the already present destructive tendencies that Mr. Gira always maintains). What more can be said? This is dust-ridden doom-slop-country at its finest and most frighteningly angelic (albeit the angel of death). What a corrupted ride! What a fantastic execution! What a beautiful, soaring wall of grit and sand and wind and ghosts! Oh Michael Gira, you dog - one of the very best of the new decade!

-Thistle

13.

Akron/Family & Angels of Light
Akron/Family & Angels of Light
(Young God, 2005)

When Akron/Family created the first half of this split CD they must’ve been aware of the impact it would have on thousands of listeners around the world. I mean how could you listen to it and not immediately mark Akron/Family as your new favourite band of all time? In seven songs, Akron/Family crammed in more creativity, energy and sheer musical bravado than could be heard in 5o full albums from all the RIYL bands that you could throw at them. Bursts of uncontrolled imagination spill all over the band's contribution to this split effort. Angels of Light’s half of the split hangs over Akron/Family like a wise parent, tempering it and revealing some of my favourite songs Michael Gira has put out. The combination is sheer glory and jewels...sheer glory and jewels.

-Thistle

James Blackshaw - The Glass Bead Game

James Blackshaw
The Glass Bead Game
(05.2009, Young God)
RIYL = Jack Rose, Steve Reich, Glenn Jones

Last year James Blackshaw released Litany of Echoes, an album which saw the UK’s premier guitar genius moving away from the John Fahey comparisons and towards a more minimalist, compositional arena that harkened Steve Reich and Philip Glass. The progression was a dynamic one to say the least, but certainly just a stepping stone to bigger and better things. Prior to this most recent album which I'm reviewing, The Cloud of Unknowing was far and away my favourite album. Just preceeding Litany of Echoes, The Cloud of Unknowing was certainly Blackshaw’s most focused and beautiful album, displaying what I thought then was the pinnacle instrumental guitar. Well, it only fits that Blackshaw be the one to prove me wrong. Somehow (surely by tapping into the long history of the UK’s ties to magic) Mr. Blackshaw has combined his newfound compositional fortitude as developed with Litany of Echoes and infused it with the placid beauty he had been developing for years in The Cloud of Unknowning. The result is by and large Blackshaw’s most incredible album to date; a pristine mark not only in the realm of contemporary instrumental guitar, but in the field of music as whole, regardless of generation or genre. I’ve been browsing through the list of albums that I’ve listened to this year and last year and I can’t find anything that comes close to the sweeping beauty of The Glass Bead Game. It’s that good. Blackshaw’s guitar work has never felt stronger or more assured than on this release. His flurry of guitar plucking simply melds together like some granular drone that pulses melodically with every subtle shift in key. Previous Blackshaw albums have held one or two gems amongst their tracklisting or, if they only held longer compositions, one or two moments that jumped out and really knocked your socks off. On The Glass Bead Game, every track is as beautiful and breath taking as the last. Blackshaw’s measured use of accompanying strings and piano instrumentation are placed perfectly and serve only to improve Blackshaw’s momentum. In fact, Blackshaw's piano work has become the focus of two of the five tracks on The Glass Bead Game and succeed in a way I would have never expected. The album is just pitch perfect. There isn’t a missed note amongst the literal thousands of notes that fill the album. From what I understand, The Glass Bead Game even brought Young God label creator and leader Angels of Light, Michael Gira to tears. Considering his musical background, that probably isn’t something that happens everyday. The Glass Bead Game is a career definer. When you apply that statement to James Blackshaw, someone who has already quite a few marvelous albums under his belt, the sentiment is even more resonant. Unmissable.

-Thistle

Angels of Light - We Are Him

Angels of Light
We Are Him
(08.2007, Young God)
9.0/10

On Michael Gira's fifth release as Angels of Light the apocalypse is still imminent. The former Swans front man hardened voice breathes devastating gothic Americana to continued success with We Are Him. Maintaining his Akron/Family backing band that he acquired with as a result of their 2005 split album, Gira has focused the bands primal energy, seemingly capturing their true essence and molding it to his sinister purposes. We Are Him contains some of the Angels of Light projects most rollicking songs to date with perpetual scorchers like "Black River Song" and the title track, "We Are Him". Gira drives his Angels in a similar style to past releases, thriving on repetitive apocalyptic verses that rarely breaks into a chorus. The form of his songs seems to squirm uncomfortably because of their unfamiliar structure; however, repeated listens reveal that this is really the only structure that suits Angels of Light as the repetition and mid-song U turns empower Gira's dark sermons. We Are Him might not contain any drastic changes from past Angels of Light releases yet Gira seems to be continually picking up speed with each successive release, building an increasingly powerful set of songs set at the dawn of Judgment Day. We Are Him is a complex, repeatedly rewarding album that may be the best Angels of Light release to date; a must hear for 2007

-Mr Thistle

Angels of Light - "We Are Him"

Akron Family - Love Is Simple

Akron/Family
Love Is Simple
(09.2007, Young God)
8.5/10

Akron/Family has set a ridiculously high bar for themselves. In 2005 Akron/Family released their debut self-titled full length album; a beautiful blend of gorgeous outsider folk with light prog/electronic tendencies that instantly proved their ability to craft timeless songs. Shortly thereafter, in that same year, Akron/Family dropped what is for me the defining moment of their career so far: split full length with Michael Gira of Angels of Light. The seven songs that the band contributed to the first half of this split are flawless, careening through, possibly, the most imaginative and energetic set of songs I have ever heard. Akron/Family juggled so many different styles with such an imaginative reckless abandon and were so successful doing so that they instantly earned themselves a permanent spot in my heart and have become a band that I have continually watched since. 2006 saw the "not bad" release of Meek Warrior, an EP length disc that failed to approach the consistency or vision of the bands' previous releases, but still provided undeniable evidence of their talent. It is not hard to see why Love Is Simple, the true follow up to their debut and the possible realization of what they accomplished on their Angels of Light split, has been such an anticipated event for me. However, with anticipation comes the almost inevitable let down – whatever the degree. It has happened plenty this year with similarly adored musicians like Arcade Fire, Andrew Bird and Liars. Each produced albums that are well above the average but undeniably lesser accomplishments to the release that directly proceeded it, creating an unfortunate yet unavoidable slight let down. Oh Akron/Family, my sweet sweet Akron/Family, I’m sorry, I just can’t help but listen to Love Is Simple with the same disposition. It just has to be said. Beyond this point there is much to rejoice about in Akron/Family's most recent opus. Akron/Family has always had too many ideas for their own good and Love Is Simple is no different, scattering itself in all directions and exploring every possible option. Somehow, on Love Is Simple, Akron/Family has become even more rooted in the already evident hippie leanings of their past releases. For honest listeners this should be a refreshing and slightly humorous twist on the largely cynical lyrics of the most modern indie music. Love Is Simple is still one of the top albums of this year and is just as good an entry point to the bands gloriously indefinable musical aesthetic as anything. A must listen for every spectrum of the indie world. (oh yeah, and you get an excellent Akron/Family DVD to boot!)

-Mr. Thistle

Akron/Family - "Don't Be Afraid, You're Already Dead"