Woelv - Tout Seul dans la Foret en Plein Jour, Aves-Vous Peur?

Woelv
Tout Seul dans la Foret en Plein Jour, Aves-Vous Peur?
(12.2007, K Records)
Verdict: wonderful

The art book packed alongside Woelv's brilliant new album features pictures of a girl being set on fire, kids knifing each other, a man who has just stepped onto a landmine, a ghost forcing a girl to cut her wrists and other not so pleasant visual treats. These pictures are basically what the music sounds like. Despair seems to be the theme Geneviève has chosen to represent the world we live in as she tells the tales of oppression, war, rape, and other discomforting aspects of life. Geneviève's Bjork-esque layered vocals have a very human and honest quality which gives the otherwise heavy themed album a distinct sense of hope. The music generally consists of simple acoustic guitars, with the occasional bass or piano being backed by Microphones' inspired percussion (She is married to Phil Elverum after all). It's a pretty gloomy album, so those looking for feel good Juno soundtrack indie pop should look elsewhere. But for those that appreciate honest music that's beautiful in its own right, this is for you.

-Wooly Mammal

Stream the album HERE

Birchville Cat Motel - Seventh Ruined Hex

Birchville Cat Motel
Seventh Ruined Hex
(11.2007, Important)
Verdict = Above Average Mind Essplode!

I have recently began an infatuation with the game Guitar Hero (I am still waiting to give Rock Star a try) and ever since rocking that plastic key-tar have gone about imagining how cool it would be to have an indie version of the game rife with songs from Black Mountain, Deerhoof, Sunset Rubdown and the like. Surely if your any fan of the game and this blog you have thought the same thing. Well, after listening to Birchville Cat Motel’s Seventh Ruined Hex, I am convinced that this would be the final track, if conceivably translatable to those color coated keys, the most difficult track on the game – the track provided in the duel with the devil. On Seventh Ruined Hex, Birchville Cat Motel is an avant gardist’s guitar hero. Secondary to that, BCM maintains my favourite band name ever…yep, I’m pretty sure it is my very favourite, so, I suppose that counts for something. If you are unfamiliar with BCM, the New Zealand sound annihilator is beyond prolific (Seventh Ruined Hex is his third full length CD released in 2007) and while not as well known on these shores, is incredibly versatile and consistent. Seventh Ruined Hex is not for the faint of heart, this is the type of screeching guitar/noise that kids have always wanted to blast to infuriate their Puritan parents. Still, deep in the squall there is a definite soul infused with tremendous fortitude of control over his careening isle of sound. A perfect long form rock album for those who need it turned up past 11.

- Mr. Thistle

Birchville Cat Motel - "Bee" sample

Axolotl - Trade Ye No Mere Moneyed Art

Axolotl
Trade Ye No Mere Moneyed Art
(2007, Self Release)
Verdict = Jawesome!

Axolotl did this to me last year. Right after I just start to feel comfortable with my year end list and the clock turns 2008 I find out that (my now favourite) avantgardist droner has released a couple records the previous year which would have undoubtedly shaken my list up in the top ten category. Well here is round two of the late blooming Axolotl phenomenon. I suppose I don’t feel too bad concerning this release since it was a European tour only CDr, but that won’t keep me from enjoying it now. The recording quality here seems a slight bit lower than previous production Axolotl monstrosities. Fortunately, in the vein of music that Bauer dabbles in, that can actually be a plus. It is definitely no deterrent here as Trade Ye No Mere Moneyed Art crackles and creeks through six tracks of engorged blissful swells of cranky electro disintegration. The reason Bauer’s gilded psych scorchers are my favourite in the heavily treaded and often monotonous genre of drone is his ability to spark heavenly rays of light through his clouds of billowing electro destruction. He always finds that perfect area between the overly brooding and deafening and the gorgeous and life affirming. Even as a one off CDr, Trade Ye No Mere Moneyed Art is yet another testament to Axolotl’s prowess as the king of drizzling noise that can be counted as beauty.

-Mr. Thistle

Axolotl - "Trade Ye No Mere Moneyed Art"

Magnetic Fields - Distortion

The Magnetic Fields
Distortion
(01.2008, Nonesuch)
Verdict: marvelously magnetic indeed

I don’t remember much about 1999, but I do remember going to the record store to check out The Magnetic Fields album 69 Love Songs. I had heard good things about it, and fully expected to purchase it, but one fact about the album had somehow eluded me until I got to the record store; the fact that 69 Love Songs was in fact a three disc set of 69 songs! Feeling a bit intimidated, I decided against purchasing it, and until now hadn’t returned to The Magnetic Fields. A decision I now regret. The Magnetic Fields newest album Distortion has since made me return and revisit those 69 songs I had passed over in 1999. As with their 1999 album, Distortion is as much a description as it is an album title. The first track is mainly instrumental, and each instrument is laden with distortion. The album meanders pleasantly but rather unremarkably through a few tunes, with alternating vocalists. However, on "Please Stop Dancing," the album begins its ascent into a beautifully clever and melodic climax. It isn’t often that songs about lost love can come across as anything less than pitiful. Such songs often turn into an overly sentimentally mushy mess, but Stephin Merritt manages to write pop songs that feel honest, and fun at the same time. Lines like "Drive on, Driver’s" ‘take me to the airport, I need to be extremely far away; so I might forget about her someday’ don’t come across like a lame cliché as they normally might. And maybe it’s because I had a dream about a girl I wish I still had the day I first listened to this album, but "Too Drunk to Dream" is a marvelous ode to the benefits of alcohol on a troubled mind. On Distortion, The Magnetic Fields effectively turn the typically mushy into a masterful album, and that is quite an accomplishment.

-Spruce Lee

Magnetic Fields on Myspace

Alaska In Winter - Dance Party In The Balkans

Alaska In Winter
Dance Party In The Balkans
(08. 2007, Regular Beat)
Verdict: The Balkans are so hott right now.

I've been meaning to highlight this album for quite some time now. I've been cementing my views into place after extreme repeat upon repeat listen. Dance Party In The Balkans was labeled as a "Beirut side-project" by many when it first came out. I won't lie, that is why I picked up the album. Then, as I listened to it I realized that Zach Condon only lends his talents to the album occasionally and Dance Party In The Balkans really has little to do with him. I was instantly enthralled in the calm of the album and intrigued by how different it was than I was expecting it to be from reading reviews over hyping Condon and Trost's participation. Alaska In Winter is Brandon Bethancourt, an Arizona native and long time friend of both Zach Condon and his other collaberator, Heather Trost of A Hawk and a Hacksaw. Brandon recorded the bulk of the album in Alaska, in the winter before bringing it home to Arizona to perfect, and you can tell. Throughout the album is a lacy chill, cold, downtempo, and remote feel. It's isolated gypsy electro with often manipulated soft and subdued vocals over layers of simple loops and catchy melodies. Break beat percussion is the backbone to the flighty sinews that make up the thirteen tracks. All these ingredients combine to be an absolutely mesmerizing and aesthetically solid sound. Let us not forget Bethancourt is the sole genious behind this gorgeous album.

-Sassigrass

Shows This Week

Tuesday (1/15), Local folk troubadours David Williams and Glade, among others including The Black Hens’ CD release, will warm the chilly Kilby night air along with the fire pit. What better night to head out there and see some of the new renovations taking place with the venue’s change of ownership?

David Williams Myspace
Glade Myspace
Black Hens Myspace

Thursday (1/17), Sea Wolf will provide their conservative indie musings along with local Americana upstarts, Atherton at Kilby Court.



Friday (1/18), participating in City Weekly's Slammys, Club Vegas will host an evening of "Hard Rock" with a blistering lineup of Accidente, Loom, Glacial and the superb Black Hole. I think I am pulling for Black Hole as far as voting goes, but Loom has been courting my vote in this category - See the entire list of performances along with the balot and cast your own vote here.

Saturday (1/19), Slowtrain will be hosting Forest Gospel’s live pick of the week featuring the anticipated debut cd from experimental indie blues star, Aye Aye, along with an equally anticipated release from elusive avant garde noister, Hew Mun, and these performances sandwiching the always amazing live set of FG favourite Navigator! Three incredible musicians, two debut releases, one night you will hate yourself for missing.

Aye Aye on Virb
Hew Mun on Virb
Navigator on Virb

1/25 – Seve VS Evan, The Future of the Ghost, Kid Theodore – Velour
1/26 – Cavedoll, Let’s Become Actors, The Lionelle – Urban Lounge
1/26 – Tenants of Balthazar’s Castle, Palace of Buddies, Agape, Ether, Ih86335 – Red Light Books
1/31 – French Quarter - Slowtrain
1/31 – The Lionelle, Dead Horse Point, Patterstats – Kilby Court
1/31 – Liars, No Age, Tolchok Trio – Urban Lounge
2/01 – Aye Aye, Ether Orchestra, Coyote Hoods, Calico - Woodshed
2/02 – Blood On The Wall, Will Sartain cd release – Kilby Court
2/03 – Yeasayer, MGMT – Kilby Court
2/06 – Navigator, Aye Aye, Stag Hare, Grizzly P. – Kilby Court
2/27 – Mahjongg, Calvin Johnson – Kilby Court
2/27 – Sole, Telephone Jim Jesus, Sinthesis – Urban Lounge
2/27 – Built To Spill, Meat Puppets – The Depot
2/28 – The Future of the Ghost, Band of Annuals – Kilby Court
3/06 – A Place To Bury Strangers – Urban Lounge
3/08 – Panther – Slowtrain
3/10 – Xiu Xiu – Urban Lounge
3/14 – Leslie & The Ly’s – Kilby Court
3/09 – Living Legends – Kilby Court
3/21 – Beach House, Papercuts – Kilby Court
3/22 – Jose Gonzalez – Union Ballroom
3/24 – Explosions in the Sky, Lichens, Black Moth Super Rainbow – In the Venue
3/24 – Aloha, Georgie James (formerly of Q & Not U) – Urban Lounge
3/26 – Headlights, Evangelicals – Kilby Court
4/06 – Dirty Projectors – Kilby Court
4/12 – Why? – Urban Lounge
4/14 – RJD2 – Urban Lounge
4/15 – Blitzen Trapper, Calico – Urban Lounge
4/16 – Enon – Urgan Lounge

Sightings - Through The Panama

Sightings

Through The Panama

(10.2007, Load)

Verdict = Superb Sound But No Heart

Sightings previous excursions in free form no wave have been destructive to say the least, however, on Through The Panama the band has pulled out all the stops delivering their most coarse material to date. Completely drowning out contemporaries like Clipd Beaks and Liars in the noise category, Sightings take their version dance punk deep into the vast swamps of their grinding past. In doing so Through The Panama makes some gains as well as takes some losses. The gains are obvious; for sheer tonal aggression Sightings are untouchable, scorching the grounds on which their transmissions flow like blasts of napalm. With Through The Panama, Sightings are waging war on the ear drum. The loss accompanying such a greedy audio display is that of the soul. Now that may not be a loss for some; I mean this was most surely the plan from the beginning for the gruesome hipsters and the ends to which most of their fans seek them out. Maybe I just have a soft spot for a bit of humanity in my noise, despite the monstrosity that the music embodies. Here, underneath the monstrous exterior, everything seems cold and robotic. Again, just depends on what you are looking for. The album is absolutely thrilling; there is no doubt about that. It is just not very often that I feel that I’ll need such a dose of horror bustling through my speakers. This of course is meant as much as a compliment as it is a potential deterrent.

- Mr. Thistle

Sightings - Perforated

Vibracathedral Orchestra - Wisdom Thunderbolt

Vibracathedral Orchestra
Wisdom Thunderbolt
(04.2007, VHF)
Verdict = Satisfying Jangly Confusion

Vibracathedral Orchestra create a more playful and hospitable noise than most, but it is still noise. If you like noise, that’s great; if you don’t, Vibracathedral Orchestra really won’t do anything to change your mind. Their music is really for those who openly indulge avant music but are selective with their listens. Wisdom Thuderbolt, the latest from the veritable supergroup (Mick Flower, Neil Campbell, Peter Nolan) continues in the path of their psych drone anomaly. So, in describing their “drone”, let me share the standard calling cards that that title usually embodies of which VO steers clear. They don’t tread any particularly mournful or pretty areas and they also are not involved with any of the devastating, doomy, soul stealing audio destruction that is all the rage these days. Vibracathedral Orchestra are decidedly more jangly, rock infused and psychedelic. They are definitely paving their own roads in this drone/free noise field. Wisdom Thunderbolt is an evocative, tripped out journey that is packed to the brim with a zoo of instruments. And through some backwoods voodoo, no doubt, the finished product is actually listenable despite holding the trappings of what could easily be heard as a nursery of toddlers let loose in Guitar Center. A profitable listen for anyone seeking a more odd transmission.

- Mr. Thistle

Vibracathedral Orchestra - A Natural Fact

Robert Wyatt - Comicopera

Robert Wyatt
Comicorpera
(10.2007, Domino)
Verdict = Interesting but not fully satisfying.

Robert Wyatt is one of those enigmatic, overly productive and oddly enduring figures in the rock community that can be absolutely daunting to engage. When your solo discography starts in 1970 and moves forward steadily from thereon to the present, you’re bound to encounter those problems. This happened to me earlier in 2007 with Vic Chesnutt. Well, again, bowing to the forefathers of indie songwriting, I have taken my first step into the weird world of Robert Wyatt. Comicorpera is his umpteenth record (I’m not going to bother myself with release stats) and is quaint oddity to be sure (as I understand the majority of his releases are). Wyatt has an outsider voice similar to Scott Walker and on Comicorpera drifts (no Scott walker pun intended) jazzily through an array of difficult peaks and morose valleys. The whole of the record is oddly claustrophobic but still ekes out slithering, entrancing beauty. However, to these ears, even though admittedly enjoyable and of its fare share of redeeming value, the album just seems to chug along a bit too slowly and is too tiring. In small doses though, Wyatt can lay down some shazam!

- Mr. Thistle

Robert Wyatt on Mypace

Wooden Wand - James & The Quiet

Wooden Wand
James & The Quiet
(06.2007, Ecstatic Peace)
Verdict = Grand

Further separating his solo material from that of his free jazz/folk/psych musings with The Vanishing Voice, James Toth, AKA Wooden Wand, has released an engaging follow up to last year’s Second Attention release with The Sky High Band. Removing the bands aesthetic all together, Toth has stripped his songs straight to the bone leaving a gritty core of damaged, folkish Americana. Paraded vulnerably, James & The Quiet emerges as a glorious collection of ultimately affecting songs. The left field lyricism and dusty guitar are really all that’s needed (and mostly all that’s there) to carry the album. The dusty skeleton of the work finds Toth with some of his most beautiful and definitely most catchy tunes to date. It isn’t a secret (if you check my 2007 album rankings) that I have a deep affection for this album. It is just one of those classic, solid collections of songs that garner references with histories songwriting elite. I just can’t seem to elaborate more on it. It is just solid.

- Mr. Thistle

Wooden Wand - "Spitting At The Camaras"

Dust From 1000 Years - Buzzard

Dust From 1000 Years
Buzzard
(2007, So Hard Young Boy)
Verdict = Grood (good and great)

I don't know how I forgot about Dust From 1000 Years, and to be honest, I don’t know how I randomly remembered to see what they were up to. It was kind of out of nowhere, I was like "I wonder if Dust From 1000 Years has released anything in 2007," and lo and behold they had! I first found out about them from Cokemachineglow's review of their first self titled album. After listening to the MP3’s they hosted I was smitten. The band plays no-fi folk of the darkish, fractured variety. Really, the album was one the most endearing gems of its year. Now on their third full length, the band has marginally improved their production values without squandering the charm of their previous bedroom recordings. The music seems to be following a natural progression on Buzzard, further confirming that their first record wasn’t simply a fluke. The band still sells all their albums primarily through their Myspace page, and they arrive as CDr's in slim plastic sleeves with color copied covers. It is a physical testament to the bands DIY approach. Cheap packaging aside, Buzzard and its predecessors are worth every one of the five-hundred postage paid pennies that stand to purchase them by providing top tier songwriting with a tender dash of lo-fi magic.

-Mr. Thistle

Dust From 1000 Years on Myspace

Shows This Week

Thursday (1/10) - As far as local shows go, this is not one to miss. Kilby Court is showcasing the incomprabable six string talents of Chaz Prymek aong with the year end list achieving Stag Hare whose live show we caught at Kilby Court Last year should have been a part of that little live show year end list thing below. Must be seen to be believed. Both these fellas along with the always consistent folk cronner The Grizzly Prospector. Go to this show.

Chaz Prymek on Myspace
Stag Hare on Virb
Grizzly Prospector on Myspace

1/15 – David Williams, Glade – Kilby Court
1/17 – Akon – HarryO’s for $100
1/17 – Sea Wolf, Atherton – Kilby Court
1/19 – Aye Aye, Hew Mun, Navigator - Slowtrain
1/25 – The Future of the Ghost – Kilby Court
1/31 – The Lionelle, Dead Horse Point, Patterstats – Kilby Court
1/31 – Liars, No Age, Tolchok Trio – Urban Lounge
2/02 – Blood On The Wall, Will Sartain cd release – Kilby Court
2/03 – Yeasayer, MGMT – Kilby Court
2/06 – Navigator, Aye Aye, Stag Hare, Grizzly P. – Kilby Court
2/27 – Mahjongg, Calvin Johnson – Kilby Court
2/27 – Sole, Telephone Jim Jesus, Sinthesis – Urban Lounge
2/27 – Built To Spill, Meat Puppets – The Depot
2/28 – The Future of the Ghost, Band of Annuals – Kilby Court
3/06 – A Place To Bury Strangers – Urban Lounge
3/08 – Panther – Slowtrain
3/10 – Xiu Xiu – Urban Lounge
3/14 – Leslie & The Ly’s – Kilby Court
3/09 – Living Legends – Kilby Court
3/21 – Beach House, Papercuts – Kilby Court
3/22 – Jose Gonzalez – Union Ballroom
3/24 – Explosions in the Sky, Lichens, Black Moth Super Rainbow – In the Venue
3/24 – Aloha, Georgie James (formerly of Q & Not U) – Urban Lounge
3/26 – Headlights, Evangelicals – Kilby Court
4/06 – Dirty Projectors – Kilby Court
4/12 – Why? – Urban Lounge
4/14 – RJD2 – Urban Lounge
4/15 – Blitzen Trapper, Calico – Urban Lounge
4/16 – Enon – Urgan Lounge