Album Review

Album Review: Shigeto – No Better Time Than Now

Shigeto: No Better Time Than Now

Similar Artists: Flying Lotus, Thundercat, Four Tet, Bibio

Genre: Electronica, IDM, Improvisational-Jazz, Wonky

Label: Ghostly International

Let’s all take a minute to absorb the beautiful and absorbent cover art to Shigeto’s latest full length (posted above), No Better Time Than Now. It’s the kind of bright, Asian-tinged water color painting we see frequently among album artwork — especially those of abstract-leaning electronic artists — but still, its vibrant textures and colors seem to leap out from the print and engage the viewer despite a lack of true “originality”. Here lies a notable parable within the music of Shigeto, as while his music easily recalls the kind of spacey, jazz-influenced electronic music recently popularized by Flying Lotus and his Brainfeeder label, it does so with its own individual flare for style, and at its best it even seems to exist somewhat above its contemporaries. I’m not necessarily saying that Shigeto has “perfected” the style brought upon by FlyLo, but only that he has created the next version of it, and thus it exists on a newly developed scale. And yes, I know, with a title like No Better Time Than Now, it would be easy for one to become unwarrantedly sucked into the so-called modernity of it all — and in doing so overrate the album — but title aside, this stands as an accurate representation of where we are in 2013 as far as achieving a state of perpetual chill out bliss.

Shigeto’s previous releases — most notably his criminally underrated Lineage EP — showed off Saginaw’s excellent musicianship — specifically his intricate percussive patterns — but here, he comes into his own as a true producer; one who is capable of forming a neatly contained universe of sounds, where each theme complements the last to form a piece that is larger than the sum of its parts. With that said, drumming might still be the defining aspect of these tracks, as he consistently and adeptly circles through his arsenal of percussive equipment: congos, chimes, tamborines, thumb pianos, timpani and maracas to name a few. Just listen to how busy a track like “Detroit Pt. 1” or “Ringleader” is, and how every few measures there is a clear, noticeable progression, yet the track never feels bloated or overwrought. Only on “Perfect Crime” does Saginaw perhaps become too fully indulged in percussion elements to the point where the remainder of the track becomes drowned out.

Certainly though, with an album with such an obvious jazz influence, their are plenty of space-age keyboards and woozy synths in the mix, and there are tracks which implement more traditional jazz instrumentation; one being the lounge laden “Miss You”, which is practically begging to be put on your relaxing grooves playlist. The chord progressions on tracks like the opener, “First Saturn Return” and the title track are especially notable, as they are impressive from a purely musical standpoint, while also feeling deliciously thick, saturated, and well….”new”. It’s also quite clear that many segments were built off of improvisations, which adds to the feeling of this being an authentic and honest account of who Shigeto is as a musician. Excepting the finale, there are no vocals to be heard on the album, and as far as I can tell, the only samples are those of environmental noises such as falling rain and birds chirping; both of which give the music a very naturalistic vibe. Despite the astral, spaceship conjuring themes on tracks like “Detroit Pt. 1”, when all is said and done this isn’t a bad album to go hiking with.

Unfortunately, on the second half of the album — which is slower paced, more ambient in nature, and less progressive — it turns out that there are some weaker tracks that don’t have as much going for them musically. While “Miss You” originally stands out for its soft, clean-cut guitar, during its second half the mind starts to wander, and it is here — on the 6th of 11th track — where pacing becomes problematic. The following track “Ritual Howl” is notable for its eerie atmosphere, and would have possibly worked nicely as an interlude, but with its 4:28 running time it lacks the intense musicianship featured on the rest of the album. “Soul Searching” is one of the more abstract pieces, and despite the off-kilter, clickety-clock percussion that runs through the 5 minute track, it feels ungrounded and directionless. Its easy to ignore these faults, especially at first, because the musicianship is there, and the sounds — which radiate with a comforting, effervescent warmth — are also there, so you’re not necessarily going to be looking for things to complain about. Also, since the quality jumps back to “A” on the final two tracks, it’s easy to forget that the album was only perfect 7/11ths of the time.

With its fresh, modern take on electronica, there’s a whole lot to love about No Better Time Than Now. From its loads of personality, to its seemingly endless virtuosity, you’ll be hard pressed to find an electronica album that reaches the heights of this one in 2013. I was ready to give it my highest honors after my 3rd and 4th listen; before my incessant listening had to go and ruin it all, that is. It may not have much cross over potential, and it may not be much to come back to come 2014, but as for those of us living in the here and now, this may be as spectacular as it gets.

Track Listing:

1.) First Saturn Return*

2.) Detroit Part 1*

3.) Ringleader*

4.) Perfect Crime

5.) Olivia

6.) Miss U

7.) Ritual Howl

8.) Soul Searching

9.) Safe In Here

10.) No Better Time Than Now*

11.) Silver Lining*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: No Age – An Object

by Rio Toro

No Age: An Object

Similar Artists: Deerhunter, Times New Viking, Wavves

Genre: Lo-Fi Rock, Punk, Noise Pop

Label: Sub Pop

Despite being a No Age fan ever since their ’07 to ’08 heyday, after listening to An Object on and off for about a day and a half, I really had no intention of formulating my thoughts into a review. Overall, I felt my opinion correlated with quite a few other reviews I had read, and besides restating those same facts and points, I didn’t think I had anything worthwhile to contribute to it. It’s an album that’s hard to love — with its shoddy production, murky atmosphere and absence of the hard boiled drumming the band is known for — but the more I thought of it, No Object was just as hard to hate, and despite Dean Spunt and Randy Randall’s attempts to “destroy” the record’s appeal with a whacked out presentation, it manages to survive as an enjoyable and catchy punk record all the same.

First, I’ll go over the not-so-great aspects of the record. “Muddy” is the first adjective that comes to mind when listening; both in terms of the quality of the instrumentation and Dean’s achingly sour vocals. Sure, lo-fi music is nothing new — and the limits of Dean’s voice were always apparent — but their last album Everything In Between saw the duo experimenting with a broader sound palette; in comparison, this has much more in common with their Weirdo Rippers compilation. It’s not just the edges that are rough though, as the whole of the compositions seems to have been built from roughness. By these regards, one would assume No Age are going back to their roots and perhaps following their friends Deerhunter down a path in which they aim to revitalize underground rock from the late 70’s to early 80’s. However, the production is a bit too curious for its own good, and doesn’t make a whole lot of sense in terms of a big picture. There are parts to these songs that just aren’t there, and there are other parts that will cause you to scratch your head as to why they are there at all (are those birds chirping on Defector Ed?).

For the most part, the up front vocals on songs like “Running From A Go-Go” and “Defector Ed” don’t work to the group’s advantage, and although Dean’s lyricism is basically unchanged in terms of subject matter and execution, the lack of a proper foundation on many of these songs cause it to stick out like a sore thumb; unfortunately not in the quasi-political way the duo had probably hoped for. This is especially the case when played on quality sound systems and headphones. The same can be said of the flat textures and detuned guitars that act as the foundations of these songs. I probably enjoyed listening to An Object the most when I played it on my ancient computer speakers, as they complemented the hissing static and drawn out fuzz.

While Randy Randall’s guitar patterns can still be interesting, due to the decayed production it’s harder to tell this than ever before. Even on more straightforward punk jams like “Lock Box”, everything seems weirdly distanced, like the music is being barricaded behind a wall. While I have immensely enjoyed this group’s ambient excursions in the past — such as the lovely “Keechie” from Nouns — here, instead of enticing us with melodic guitars they prefer to disorient us with a thick hazy wash that absorbs any kind of discernible pattern. It’s tempting to say that No Age have gone in a direction that embraces No Wave acts like Teenage Jesus & The Jerks and early Sonic Youth, but from a songwriting perspective these tracks are rather straightforward and traditional; creating an experience that is more confusing than abstract.

Still, An Object is never boring, and even though it’s the first No Age release in three years (at a mere 30 minutes no less), it’s nothing to get disappointed about. Even when I came upon a section that I felt didn’t come together all that well, It’s hard to say they did something wrong. The band are expressing themselves in creative and emotionally honest ways, and that is essentially what punk music is all about. It’s not a punk album that’s going to rock your socks off though, and besides the blazing opener “No Ground” there’s nothing close to a sing-along anthem. However, it does happen to be catchy more often than not (I can appropriately nod my head back and forth for 3/4 of the running time), and the best songs — “I Won’t Be Your Generator” and “C’mon Stimmung” — are among the most memorable No Age have churned out.

As I’ve said before, it’s not what one would call colorful, but the duo manage to change sounds just enough from track to track to keep us interested. For instance, “Running From A Go-Go” is a somewhat dreary ballad with weird electronic squiggling that ends with meshing keyboards and a warm, uplifting baseline. It’s perhaps the one moment on the album where the band’s true ambitions of creating music that is as off-kilter as it is beautiful rings true. More surprises come with “A Ceiling Dreams Of A Floor”, which is lead by a comparatively clean acoustic guitar strum, and “An Impression” which somehow manages to incorporate a string section without sounding kitschy.

If you don’t care for stylized production and have a penchant for music that sounds damaged, then maybe, just maybe, you can see past this album’s shortcomings and appreciate it as the artistic statement it is. Maybe it’s just because I’ve been so fully engaged with ultra-polished electronic releases through this year, but to me, An Object sounds uniquely refreshing. But whether you like how it sounds or not, this is some kind of a leap forward for the band, and it should be taken seriously. Whether they choose to return to this style on previous releases or abandon it in favor of something more holistic, An Object can rightfully stand on its own.

Track Listing:

1.) No Ground

2.) I Won’t Be Your Generator*

3.) C’mon Stimmung*

4.) Defector Ed

5.) An Impression

6.) Lock Box

7.) Running from a Go-Go*

8.) My Hands, Birch, And Steel

9.) Circling With Dizzy

10.) A Ceiling Dreams Of A Floor

11.) Commerce, Comment, Commence*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Julianna Barwick – Nepenthe

by Rio Toro

Julianna Barwick: Nepenthe

Similar Artists: Jonsi & Alex, Grouper

Genre: Ambient, Voice, Loop-Based

Label: Dead Oceans

Most could forgive me if I was initially a bit nervous to listen to Nepenthe, as I was afraid the expanded production credits (Alex Somers of Jonsi & Alex, string quartet Amiina, Mum Guitarist Robert Reynisson [and pretty much everything else “Icelandic” for that matter]) would potentially tarnish the deep, isolated solemnity of Julianna Barwick’s previous LP, The Magic Place. On that 2011 LP, Julianna came into her own as a talented and original sound sculpture with a voice so rich it could have only descended from the heavens. Through the use of her lyric-less vocals and (very) minor instrumentation, she created a soundscape that was both deeply personal and even epic. While “epic” might seem like a strange word for what is essentially ambient music, her towering vocals grow on top of one another until the composition becomes somewhat maximalist, yet remaining precisely contained and elegant.

After a slew of less admirable EP’s, The Magic Place was also the moment where Julianna broke free of any comparisons to new age music and Enya (not that there’s anything wrong with these things). Even modern vocal-loop based artists like Grouper — who has ventured closer to accessibility on albums like The Man Who Died In His Boat, and Dragging a Dead Deer Up A Hill — feel hard to compare to the angelic choir that Julianna Barwick has summoned through her work. Music this personal and emotional has rarely been this immediate and accessible.

While I usually award artists who change up their style from album to album, I think it’s safe to say not many people were begging for an artistic leap on Nepenthe. Thankfully, the enhanced production doesn’t do much to broaden the bounds of the music, as her style is more or less unchanged; her voice without a doubt remains the most captivating piece. As great as the electronic flourishes, piano snippets, and grand orchestrations are, this is music that aims to further the limits of the human voice, and she continues to find brilliant ways to do that throughout Nepenthe.

There are some noticeable differences between her two LP’s, but they deal more with color and tone rather than execution. The atmosphere seems to be much more attuned to frozen tundras and glacial mountaintops — “Pyrrhic” in particular seems to have borrowed a thing or two from Sigur Ros — but like the best ambient music, Nepenthe has a noticeable affect on the environment and almost immediately ushers in a tranquil mood. If one were to attempt to get into a fight, or an argument while this was playing, I don’t think the negativity would be able to sprout from their mouths. This is more true here than on previous releases, because Nepenthe is accompanied by brighter textures, and comes off being a happier experience when compared to The Magic Place‘s sense of distraught longing. It is for this reason that the title itself — which translates roughly to “a medicine for sorrow” — couldn’t be more perfect. It even ties the two albums together and leads one to believe that The Magic Place was a representation of Julianna’s sorrow, while Nepenthe is how she managed to get through it.

Although she remains non lyrical for the most part, “One Part” happens to be her first piece that contains clearly audible words instead of her usual monosyllabic singing. She repeats the words /I guess I was, asleep that night, was waiting far/ over and over to an overwhelming affect; you can’t help but picture her singing the refrain while standing at her window in a night gown staring into the twilight-lit night sky.

I’ve listened to a lot of Julianna Barwick over the last few years, and now, because of Nepenthe, I’m sure she will continue to dominate my playlists for the next several as well. In a way, Julianna has it easy, and while i’m sure this music couldn’t have been arranged by an amateur, she has been blessed with an immaculate voice, and as long as she is paired with a looping station it is the only instrument she will ever need. It’s immediate music, and although it doesn’t necessarily get more beautiful with repeated listens, it should be known that it never happens to become less beautiful either; I think there’s a word for that actually, oh yeah: timeless.

Track Listing:

1.) Offing

2.) The Harbinger*

3.) One Half*

4.) Look Into Your Own Mind

5.) Pyrrhic

6.) Labyrinthine*

7.) Forever*

8.) Adventurer of the Family

9.) Crystal Lake*

10.) Waving To You

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Julia Holter – Loud City Song

by Rio Toro

Julia Holter: Loud City Song

Similar Artists: Jenny Hval, Kate Bush, Nico, Julianna Barwick

Genre: Orchestral-Pop, Dream-Pop, Ambient

Label: Domino

I originally thought Loud City Song — the 3rd LP and 1st studio album from Los Angeles’ Julia Holter — was a strange title for music bearing such a quiet serenity. After all, Julia Holter’s music has always been resemblant of everything but towering skyscrapers and industrialization — although it certainly can be brash and avant-garde now and then. However, while Loud City Song impacted me from my initial listen, I don’t think I truly understood it as a piece until I experienced it while walking through the lower east side of Manhattan. It just so happened to be the most perfect, sunshiny day of the year, and since I was accompanied by a slight breeze, I was thankfully able to stroll along the streets for hours on end without so much as a direction in mind.

While I often feel cities aren’t the best places to listen to music — with their disruptive subway systems and endless array of honking motor vehicles — with Loud City Song I seemed to be transported to a more ancient decade of Manhattan, and my mind soon became focused on the more transparent beauty of the city (or at least what is seemingly transparent for those of us who live here…). from the bright green shrubbery hanging from windowpanes, to the inviting cobblestone walkways, to the variety of tiny boutiques and coffee shops; even the people — who I am often too buried in my own thoughts to notice — seemed to stand out with their unique fashions and accessories.

As it happens, Loud City Song is somewhat based off of the 1950’s MGM musical Gigi — the most apparent allusion(s) being “Maxim’s I” and “Maxim’s II” which reference the main character’s often used cafe — but the story arch and lyricism of the album are so vivid and even surreal, that you really don’t have to know a thing about musicals to understand its meaning. Similarly, despite many themes being rooted in the past, Loud City Song has a message that feels very relevant in modern day society; one being our culture’s fascination with celebrities. Although Julia Holter’s previous two LP’s, Tragedy and Ekstasis, were somewhat based off of ancient Greek texts, Loud City Song ends up being an even more ambitious accomplishment.

So now Julia Holter is working in a full studio setting, and the first thing you’ll notice about Loud City Song is how gorgeous the instrumentation is; from the strings, to the horns, to Julia’s majestic voice itself, everything glows with a pristine quality. The pieces often radiate a bright yellowish hue; especially album centerpiece “Hello Stranger”, which may or may not be a projection of heaven itself. While her previous work was excellently composed as well, the instruments themselves sounded far below studio quality, and I occasionally felt like I was listening to a recording of a high school band. That production fault managed to pull me out of her otherworldly and dreamlike compositions from time to time, and kept her music from being truly perfect. However, now Julia Holter is in the place she was meant to be all along, and there is nothing preventing her from being seen as the superb composer/multi instrumentalist that she is.

As far as the music goes, these pieces act as a combination of the more abstract, avant-garde compositions of Tragedy, with the more direct, song oriented compositions of Ekstasis. Some people felt that the more traditional songwriting on Ekstasis was a step backward for Holter, but no one is going to be saying that here; everything sounds like a clear progression from her previous material. For instance, “In The Green World” happens to be one of the more song-oriented pieces on Loud City Song, but even when she works with standard chord progressions, the album’s otherworldly presence remains in full view. While, “Maxim’s II” ends with a riotous dueling horn passage, the noise feels necessary within the context of the song; nothing about this music sounds random or meaningless, as each note is playing its part towards a grander picture. She has also added a more prominent use of field recordings — such as those from city streets — on “Horn’s Surrounding Me” as well as some double bass on “In the Green Wild”.

Holter ends up sounding experimental and eye-opening without being loud or obnoxious; quite like Kate Bush, another artist who is able to take her music in exploratory directions while maintaining rapt accessibility. While beautiful is a word that is used far too frequently in music, in the case of Julia Holter it is truly fitting; the finest bits of Loud City Song are even overwhelming in their gorgeousness. This feeling of a bustling, happy-go-lucky downtown city environment doesn’t dissipate through multiple listens either. I’m in love with this album, and it might just be opening my eyes to the beautiful world around me.

Track Listing:

1.) World

2.) Maxim’s I*

3.) Horns Surrounding Me*

4.) In the Green Wild*

5.) Hello Stranger*

6.) Maxim’s II*

7.) He’s Running Through My Eyes

8.) This Is A True Heart

9.) City Appearing*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Blondes – Swisher

by Rio Toro

Blondes: Swisher

Similar Artists: Andy Stott, Basic Channel, Surgeon, Anthony Child

Genre: Techno

Label: RVNG Intl.

It might seem at first that NYC’s Blondes are just your standard, moderately talented electronic duo with an absurdly google-proofed name — it also doesn’t help that they bear the unfortunate and misleading tag of being “Hipster House” — however, they happened to prove that they were much more than a product of the blogospheric hype machine with their excellent singles compilation last year, the self-titled Blondes. That debut LP stood out for a lot of reasons, but first and foremost, it showed that Sam Haar and Zack Steinman were two youngsters who were immensely enticed by the powers of dance music; their destiny and purpose was only to find new ways to make us move. Since neither of the members had a background in producing, they created their music largely through experimentation, and in doing so, they happened to bypass many of the common dance-floor cliches. They concocted a refreshing take on the genre, but perhaps the best part about Blondes was that it remained innately techno, and therefore appealed to the hardcore IDM crowd as well as EDM newcomers. Blondes make no-bullshit, dance till you drop, instrumental bangers; there are no ambient interludes, no extravagant genre hopping, and despite what you may have been lead to believe, no pretension.

On their 2nd album, Swisher, released by surprise a few weeks back, Blondes have matured in more ways than one. These aren’t the singles of the first album, and because this is more of a singular piece — recorded during a finite time period — some immediacy has been lost (it must be said). However, now their kosmiche influence feels more cemented, which gives many of these tracks an astronomical edge. Additionally, the music here is more difficult and less formulaic, which really helps it come into its own after a few listens. Take opener “Aeon” for example, which is far more restrained than anything off of their debut — we keep expecting the disjointed bassline to break into a tribal thrust as it did on “Lover”, but that moment never comes — instead, the glistening, ethereal synthesizers come into full view and drift along as though they are part of a living breathing organism. It doesn’t take long to realize that Blondes have become a more dense and texturally minded group than they were before. Thankfully aside from the cleansing opener, they continue to remain firmly rooted in dance music.

Second track, “Bora Bora” is where the action really kicks off; with it’s clanking steel drums, dubby bassline, and cold atmospherics, it recalls the best of Basic Channel and the Chain Reaction label without falling into copycat territory. Blondes know how to play homage to beloved genres by embarking on them from varying viewpoints and adding their own interesting twists. Like “Bora Bora”, much of the album can be considered techno of the “minimal” variety, as the transitions throughout a track are precise and often nearly imperceptible; quite the achievement seeing how many tracks run upwards of 10 minutes without once becoming the source of fatigue.

Although they have always worked with a rather broad array of sounds, their palette has expanded in some interesting new directions. “Clasp” is accompanied by comforting organ drones and “Poland” sounds like an updated version of something off of Aphex Twin’s Selected Ambient Works. The tracks contain a humanistic touch that is transcendental and meditative yet tribal and raw; I still can’t manage to decide whether Swisher is an album more suited towards a summer or winter themed environment. While we are taken on darker territory on “Wire” — a track that recalls the eerie soundscape of Andy Stott — the next song, “Elise”, happens to be just about the most ecstatic thing the duo have recorded, and the two tracks happen to work perfectly together in unison.

As I see it now, Swisher is one of the best techno releases of the year — scratch that — it’s one of the best techno releases in recent memory. While their debut may have been more accessible and party oriented, this comes off as more intelligent and more consistently interesting. It’s varied in terms of sound, yet unified in terms of approach, and it proves their early singles weren’t the fluke many thought they were. In fact, Swisher is so naturally flowing and immersive, that if anything, it sounds like making it was no sweat for the duo. If that’s true, we are sure to hear plenty more in the way of excellency from this group down the road; let’s all hope these artists turn out to be prolific ones.

Track Listing:

1.) Aeon

2.) Bora Bora*

3.) Andrew*

4.) Poland*

5.) Clasp

6.) Swisher

7.) Rei*

8.) Wire

9.) Elise*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: AlunaGeorge – Body Music

by Rio Toro

AlunaGeorge: Body Music

Similar Artists: Purity Ring, Charlie XCX, Inc.

Genre: Pop/R&B

Label: Vagrant

I was at first disheartened when I came face to face with the wave of “indie” artists who were embracing the sounds of modern radio — specifically the sounds of bubblegum pop and electronic focused R&B (the ones which nearly always contain some kind of glitchy vocal samples from the female vocalist). Don’t get me wrong, I adore pop music — I have no qualms admitting this — but I also feel that the radio has failed us when it comes to variety, or in awarding us any perceivable freedom with our choice of selection. After all, many of us entered the world of “indie” music for the sole purpose of escaping the hollow, cookie-cutter sounds that are endlessly rehashed over the FM waves. However, after further listening, it turns out that the best artists from this indie pop revolution are indeed advancing the limitations of these tainted “pop-radio” genres by approaching them with an experimental aesthetic and a keen ear for sound design.

The London duo of Aluna Francis and George Reid are the next in the wave of “hotly anticipated” acts who are said to be ushering in a new era of pop music. Granted, while there’s nothing on AlunaGeorge’s debut album that sounds miles away from the current strands of top charting radio, Body Music manages to be accessible, catchy and left of center all at the same time. You’ll immediately be reminded of groups like Purity Ring; although I would say that AlunaGeorge are less formulaic and more innately talented than them. Through the 13 tracks, the duo seem to go back and forth from maximalist, club oriented songs like those from Charli XCX, to minimalist, sensually moving tracks like those from Inc.’s debut No World. The thing is, the duo seem to not know which one of these styles they have perfected (hint: it’s the latter). It’s during the more somber, melancholically led pieces where we hear some real hard earned honest emotion from the duo. The songs that tackle these themes, such as “Outlines”, “Diver”, and “Friends to Lovers”, all contain lower BPM’s and are close to perfect in their own right, whereas the more dance oriented tracks such as “Lost & Found” and “Superstar”, are tightly sung and smartly produced, but overall unremarkable for a lack of ingenuity.

The musicianship on the album is consistently excellent, but after AlunaGeorge topped the UK charts a few months back with “White Noise”, they probably felt a lot of pressure to bring out the bangers with this release. Still, they should know that they don’t need to “go big” to make the necessary splash. The fact that major label artists are often pressured to make chart topping singles might be the main reason they are so frequently forgotten with time — as another artist is sure to outdo the last when it comes to louder drums and more radiant synths. The previously released “Your Drums, Your Love” happens to be the album’s one exception to big = forgettable, as it ends up sounding crowd pleasingly massive as well as acutely tuned emotionally — like every great single should be. Sadly, while “Best Be Believin” does its best to become the pivotal album climax — as it includes a grander array of instruments, such as acoustic guitar, piano, and a choir — in the end, it feels as if they tried too hard to make a spectacle out of it. Consequently, it doesn’t feel as honest or real as the best material here.

It’s quite ironic that the best bits off of an album called Body Music happen to be the least dance oriented ones, but it turns out the album title has more to do with the album’s lyrics — which deal with the most basic of human needs: to have physical human interaction. Aluna deals with this theme accurately lyrically, and as it turns out, the two are indeed good songwriters — although certainly not yet in the top tier. Still, although the album is far from perfect, it shows undeniable promise, especially when it’s at its most introspective. Few pop acts have the power to keep us enticed without the use of in your face bass and frenetic sampling; while AlunaGeorge certainly do bombard us with these elements a handful of times, it’s during the quietest moments where we peer into their hearts and realize their true potential.

Track Listing:

1.) Outlines*

2.) You Know You Like It

3.) Attracting Flies

4.) Your Drums, Your Love*

5.) Kaleidoscope Love

6.) Bad Idea

7.) Diver*

8.) Lost & Found

9.) Best Be Believin

10.) Superstar

11.) Just A Touch*

12.) Body Music

13.) Friends to Lovers*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Lustmord – The Word As Power

by Rio Toro

Lustmord: The Word As Power

Similar Artists: Locrian & Mamiffer, Ben Frost, Robert Rich, Steve Roach

Genre: Dark Ambient, Drone, Religious Music

Label: Blackest Ever Black

There’s a whole lot of talented (as well as highly prolific) artists who seem to be devoting their lives to making dark ambient/drone music, and despite the time and patience that goes into making this so called “drone”, a whole lot of this niche feels disposable, and honestly, far from original. As great as Sunn O))) are, we don’t need dozens of artists to prove that to us by making what is essentially a “cover” version of the blackened ambient void that was so clearly perfected by the seattle duo a decade ago. I don’t mean to sound disrespectful, for I’m in fact a huge fan of a lot of the music I seemed to have just dissed, but recently many of these releases have acted more like mood experiments to be played in your sleeping chamber rather than an album to return to time and time again.

However, if there’s one label whose interests seem to lie in broadening the horizons of this genre, it’s Blackest Ever Black, whose 2010 debut marked the release of the first Raime EP. By linking disparate strands of electronic music (industrial, techno, noise) with the accustomed droning ambience, groups such as Raime have proved that drone is a genre that is far from sterile.

Brian Williams, who has recorded as Lustmord since the 1980’s, is rightly credited as a progenitor of the dark ambient genre, so it seems appropriate that he makes his newest artistic leap on Blackest Ever Black. Still, with an overwhelming catalogue of music from the past three decades, it’s hard to really get excited about a new Lustmord release — especially when that release happens to be a two disk, 70 minute long statement based upon theological constructs.

With The Word As Power — Lustmord’s most ambitious and high profile release in years — we are treated to 7 ritualistic monstrosities that blur the line between holiness and wickedness, serenity and fearfulness. The pieces are largely led by a host of ethereal vocalists, such as Aina Olsen, Soriah, and Jarboe of Swans fame, whose voices are all largely untouched production wise — save for some slight reverb and the occasional echo. This is the first album in the artist’s 30 year career to focus so closely on vocals, so it really is astonishing that they are all executed with such dynamic precision. The second half of the album even features throat singing from a completely unrecognizable Maynard James Keenan. Due to the mostly ethereal voices, these tracks play out like ancient hymns being sung as a gift to the heavens — hence the title The Word As Power. This power is best represented during the 17 minute centerpiece “Chorazin”, in which the vocalist wavers around the same vocal line while reciting the word “holy” over and over again, such as it would be in a buddhist chant in order to obtain a higher state of being. Still, despite the presence of religion, people are going to find this music unnerving over anything else, like they are being taken through a state of divine retribution.

Even with the cast of vibrant vocalists, the album happens to be its most heart stopping when the instrumentation is at its full force. The tracks range from 5 minutes to 17, and it is during the longest pieces where the environment becomes the most frighteningly intense. Aside from quiet ambience, the instrumental landscape is made up of minimal organ chords, swirling black metal guitars tuned to abnormally low frequencies, threatening bass drops, slight percussion, and deformed ghostly howls which claw at us ominously from the distance.

It may sound like it isn’t all that different from your average dark ambient album, and although it isn’t quite groundbreaking, it does manages to stand out from the horde of followers due to the way it maintains a solid mood, while still changing up the dynamic with each track to keep things interesting. Furthermore, while it may not propel the genre into unchartered territory like other releases from the label have, it does exist as a singular statement within both the dark ambient and drone genres — which isn’t a thing that can be said very often. The Word As Power is a monolithic, expansive, and downright harrowing release from an artist working at the peak of his creativity.

Track Listing:

1.) Babel*

2.) Goetia

3.) Chorazin*

4.) Grigori*

5.) Andras Sodom

6.) Abaddon

7.) Y Gair

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Airhead – For Years

by Rio Toro

Airhead: For Years

Similar Artists: James Blake, Mount Kimbie, Nicolas Jaar, Boards of Canada

Genre: Downtempo, (Dubstep?), Organic Electronica

Label: R&S

There’s no real recipe for creating great music — things that work well for some artists don’t work at all for others, and that extra oomph that makes music tick tends to just come from something within the artist’s blood. However, in 2013, if there is some kind of trick to get an artists’ career rolling, it’s through the use of restraint. Of course, it isn’t as easy as it sounds, because knowing when to hold back and when to release is where the true talent lies. Probably the best example (within recent memory) that proved the powers of well harnessed restraint would be Nicolas Jaar’s 5 hour interdisciplinary performance at MoMa PS1. Through the holy-fuck-this-is-long running time, he only reached a handful of climactic phases, but due to his skill at building tension, the music never failed to entice — surprisingly, my worn legs never managed to fail out on me either. Using this “restraint” has become especially important for virtuosic musicians such as Nicolas Jaar or James Blake, because when they aren’t showing off, we have time to focus on other facets of their music, like their brilliant use of sound design and production techniques — when they finally do let loose as the climax arrives, the likelihood that we will be blown away is magnified tenfold.

Rob Mcandrews, AKA Airhead, is the long time collaborator and touring guitarist of James Blake, and the two have worked together for years now, starting with the “Pembroke” single released in early 2010. Before now, Mcandrews had only released a handful of singles, most notably the Karen O sampling “Wait” and the more beat driven “Pyramid Lake”, both of which are featured here. Due to his steady relationship with Blake, and his undeniably similar musical style (excepting vocals), you would imagine that his debut full length would mine similar territory: albeit of a more guitar inclined variation. While that is true in some respects, For Years is far from being 10 repeats of “Lindisfarne” (one of the two artists’ most notable collaborations). The ten tracks here are actually rather diverse, as we hear lovely acoustic guitar, off kilter vocals, big beat breakdowns, robot symphonies, and an array of ambient wash. Mcandrews manages to sound similar to his peers without quite being a rehash of them, and it is why For Years is an almost instantly likable collection of tunes.

The first thing you’ll notice about the album is how well made the tracks are. Each one almost feels like a distinct single; which in fact turns out to be both a positive and negative when you look at the album as a whole. While the beats are often big and luxurious, and the effects crackle and fizz with the necessary depth, there isn’t much holding this album together as a unified piece (possibly the idiosyncrasies of the sampling?). Secondly, while several of the tracks do contain the aspect of controlled restraint that I lauded earlier in this review, the concept doesn’t reach across tracks to build any kind of album climax. While “Fault Line” and the previously released “Pyramid Lake” do attempt to heighten our sense of ecstacy by being bolder and more quickly paced than the rest of the bunch, overall they fail because they don’t sound like a continuation off of the previous tracks. This lack of a proper beginning, middle or end left me occasionally feeling lost while listening to the album, and I often had to reassert myself into the music rather than be whisked away by it. Some albums can work by simply being a track for track compilation of an artists’ work, but with this kind of organic sounding electronic music something feels missing from the complete package.

A lot of what makes music successful is the point it is released in time. This year we have seen releases from both James Blake and Mount Kimbie — the two acts most closely related to Airhead in terms of sound. Although this music isn’t dull, it doesn’t stand out like it would have if it was released a few years back, and Infuriatingly enough, some of these tracks, such as “Wait”, have supposedly been entirely finished since 2009, so it really is unfortunate that it took so damn long for this album to come out. One can imagine that hearing this music even a year ago (a year that was quite devoid of downtempo electronic music) would have left a more ingrained impression. Airhead doesn’t seem to care about his pacing issues though; he seems quite content being indefinitely compared to James Blake as long as he gets to release his own material every once in a while. On For Years he proves that he is an intelligent producer capable of tackling various moods and styles, it’s just too bad his contemporaries have proved that twice over already.

Track Listing:

1.) Wait*

2.) Milkola Bottle

3.) Callow*

4.) Masami

5.) Pyramid Lake*

6.) Azure Race

7.) Autumn*

8.) Fault Line*

9.) Lightmeters

10.) Knives

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: William Basinski – Nocturnes

by Rio Toro

William Basinski: Nocturnes

Similar Artists: William Fowler Collins, Leyland Kirby

Genre: ambient, tape-loop, minimalist

Label: 2062

The average William Basinski track runs for about 30 minutes or so, but in actuality, his pieces are ones that are meant to be played on a constant loop, even for days or weeks at a time for the most meditative of listeners. It is through these huge lapses of time that we are able to study the art of immersion, and even explore new meaning to the word “music”. Like a good wine, the tracks of William Basinski seem to only get better with age, and seeing how Basinski has (curiously) let many of his pieces lay dormant for 30+ years — perhaps to give him the necessary time to realize their full potential — this stuff sounds pretty good in 2013. The word “timeless” isn’t thrown out too frequently in music, because as time has shown, most music doesn’t age quite as well as wine, but still, with a few decades under his belt, I think it’s safe to say that William Basinski’s music will not be dying anytime soon.

Often, it is not until the final minutes of one of his tracks where the listener comes upon the realization of complete harmonious content; it is at this moment when we realize how unknowingly immersive the experience had been, and how pleasing it would be if the track was even longer, stretching the boundaries of time itself. It’s even hard to say why, or how this magic happens, because while the pieces themselves are quite intrinsically beautiful and layered, they aren’t overly so, and there have certainly been artists who have traveled similar terrain thematically both before and after Basinski. What I believe gives this music such audacity is how the sounds are ever so slightly familiar, yet as a whole, the piece represents something that is entirely unknowable and distant. It gives off the feeling that we can learn something valuable from the sounds — like they are saying something regarding our existence or subconscious mind. The subtlety of the pieces, and how slowly they resolve gives the experience a natural kind of beauty that feels necessary to the human experience.

Nocturnes is the artists’ first release in several years, and it arrives to complement the reissue of his mega opus The Disintegration Loops, released earlier this year. For this reason, it seems the two are destined to be compared and pitted against one another as rivals — even when The Disintegration Loops really is only representative of a singular period within the artists’ discography. Nevertheless, here we find Basinski mining noticeably darker territory with slanted piano chords, ambient pitfalls, tape loop decay, and a slew of other untraceable artifacts hidden in the mix. It’s certainly not without it’s warmth though — the 40 minute long “Nocturnes” opens with a wavering analogue hum that proves to be consistently affecting throughout the track. In fact, all the sounds — even the ones which remain relatively unchanged throughout the song’s duration — have an alluring presence that fade in and out of our conscious mind as time progresses.

Compared to the first track, “Trail of Tears” has much more noticeable change, and although it is still ominous and haunting, it comes off being (slightly) more accessible. While “Nocturnes” does have different sections, is is certainly hard to tell when an element is added or taken away. With the second track, instead of sections ending or fading away, they get enveloped in dust, and within that dust a new loop emerges and grows to immense proportions. During the final 8 minutes everything drops out and a loop that is seemingly unrelated to the previous ones emerges, closing the album on an ambiguous note. It’s the shorter of the two tracks, and since it was recorded in 2011 instead of the 80’s, there are noticeable differences in sound design, but despite the updated aesthetics it’s quite amazing how well the two pieces work together.

There’s no denying that this music isn’t very accessible, and although it might not be for everyone, it’s really amazing to see just how far his music has reached into wider settings. Sigur Ros used “dlp 1.1” to open their concert at Madison Square Garden a few months back, full orchestras have performed select pieces of his, and we are beginning to hear his music in films, such as last year’s “The Comedy”. His music has even become something that people can bond over. All music is essentially art, but with these pieces we are treated to giant canvases with new realizations hidden in the corners, just waiting to be found with every subsequent play through. Although many will try, this album cannot be given a score — not because it is unique, or haunting, or beautiful — but because we don’t really know what it is.

Track Listing:

1.) Nocturnes*

2.) Trail of Tears

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Zomby – With Love

by Rio Toro

Zomby: With Love

Similar Artists: Kode9, Burial, Ikonika, Actress

Genre: Dubstep, Garage, Jungle, Dark Rave

Label: 4AD

Despite the rough draft feel, there has always been something attractive about musical sketches. Listening to these minimal tracks — ones that often contain ideas just waiting to be expanded upon in countless directions — can be an intriguing and inspiring experience. Even more so, is the fact that when a track is slimmed down to its bare essentials, the few elements that are present stand out to a much more effecting degree, creating music where every snare hit and chord change becomes inescapable.

Now i’m not saying that the 33 tracks off of With Love, the 3rd album (2nd on 4AD) from London/New York producer Zomby, are necessarily “sketches”, but since most hover around the 2 minute mark, we get the feeling that these tracks were quickly made and finished off at the moment their creator had to stop and think about where to go next. Within the first second, we are thrown into the shuffle of Zomby’s ever broadening electronic palette, and it is up to our senses to find our way through the labyrinthine maze that is With Love.

The tracks are spread across two disks (in alphabetical order no less) and although this is essentially a lumped together compilation of what the producer has been doing for the past few years, the pacing mostly keeps us on our toes. While some tracks adequately segue into the subsequent ones, others end abruptly and offer an awkward transition. This will certainly lead to a confusing experience for many, but the way I see it (and probably Zomby himself), the rough, slapdash feel we get from scurrying through a dozen or so genres is part of the fun; especially because here we see Zombie at his most precise.

With Love doesn’t make any statements, and it most certainly doesn’t tell a story — which will certainly prevent a handful from returning to this album past the first initial playthroughs. But despite the lack of any kind of overarching neatness (god knows it isn’t cohesive), individually, these are tracks that project a sleek and undeniably stylish presence, and few listeners will fail to become attached to the best of these productions; after all — there are 33 of them, so you would certainly be hard pressed to hate them all.

With that said, there is not a single track here that comes near “classic” status — keep in mind, while I do believe this album shows the producer at his overall best, there is nothing that reaches the status of something like “Natalia’s Song” off of Dedications (which, with its copyrighting issues is another story all together). Also, while I previously said that you will likely become attached with a handful of these tracks, for an album titled With Love, far too many tracks are emotionally barren, and devoid even of the gloomy atmosphere the best dubstep producers are known for. Even the far reaching vocal samples Zomby is known for are pulled back here.

While the first disk does a good job of switching musical styles from song to song (dubstep, garage, rave, jungle), the second disk lacks variety, and offers far fewer standouts. If the first disk is more entertaining and club oriented, the second disk is more cryptic, and as it recalls Actress’ early work, it’s also more hazy, and occasionally even hypnotic. Listening to both disks in unison works well enough, but the one true misstep is that, on the second disk, the drum programming from track to track is eerily (and sometimes maddeningly) similar — even causing the listener to second guess if the same track is on the album multiple times.

Even with all these complaints though, this is a world that’s easy to get sucked into — especially while traversing dark (preferably rainy) cityscapes. Maybe i’m a sucker for the beautiful black and white cover art, and maybe many of these tracks are in fact a case of style over substance, but something about Zomby’s aesthetic sticks with you, and at his best he sounds like no one else. With its ups and downs it certainly won’t be a contender for album of the year, but it sure as hell will be staying on my mp3 player for the next several.

Track Listing:

1.) As Darkness Falls
2.) Ascension
3.) Horrid*
4.) If I Will
5.) Isis*
6.) It’s Time
7.) Memories
8.) Orion*
9.) Overdose*
10.) Pray For Me
11.) Rendezvous*
12.) The Things You Do*
13.) This One
14.) Vanishment
15.) VI-XI*
16.) VXV
17.) 777
18.) Black Rose
19.) Digital Smoke
20.) Entropy Sketch
21.) Glass Ocean*
22.) How To Ascend
23.) I Saw Golden Light
24.) Pyrex Nights
25.) Quickening
26.) Reflection In Black Glass
27.) Shiva

28.) Soliloquy*
29.) Sphinx
30.) Sunshine In November*
31.) Vast Emptiness
32.) White Smoke*
33.) With Love

Album Highlight – *

Album Review

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