I am a man on a mission. The mission: to find that elusive Flaming Lips cover Tame Impala / Tame Impala covers the Flaming Lips EP that's floating around. Originally available only at Lips/Tame Impala tour stops, it's been reported that it's also landed at random indie record stores, but as this point I'd even settle for mp3 downloads based on this freewheeling and hella trippy Flaming Lips cover of Tame Impala's "Elephant." No, I really want that EP on vinyl, especially if it's more of that handmade vinyl Wayne was fooling around with last year, like their Heady Fwends vinyl set for last year's Record Store Day (which is one of the coolest things I've ever picked up... ever). Anyway, here's "Elephant," which you probably shouldn't listen to while operating heavy machinery.
Ditto for this Flaming Lips / Tame Impala collaboration from last year's Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends double LP. On "Children Of The Moon" Parker and Steven Drozd really summon the cosmic mojo, deploying one of the spaciest guitar riffs I've ever heard. Careful with this.
I'm not going to hold forth again on the virtues of soccer and FC Buffalo considering I did that earlier in the week, and in the interest of brevity and time that I don't really have, I'm just going to offer a few suggestions for music to be played before, during (at halftime of course, we're not philistines) and after FC Buffalo home matches, the first of which happens tonight at 7:30. One of the owners, Nick Mendola, asked for suggestions, so may God have mercy on his soul. Here it goes:
Before matches:
Tame Impala - "Be Above It." I really like the sentiment, and the way that it builds to a psychedelic frenzy.
Shuggie Otis - "Special." Simply because this old school new jack jam is utterly ridiculous.
The Very Best - "Warm Heart of Africa" featuring Ezra Koenig. East meets West internationalism at it's funkiest.
Goal music:
The Heavy - "How You Like Me Now?" Propulsive, sassy, and a little nasty, the chorus to this jam says it all.
Half Time:
BLK JKS - "Zol!" I know I threw this one out there last year, but the thought of little kids playing a halftime game with this song in the background makes me smile.
Led Zeppelin - "Immigrant Song." The thought of little kids playing half time soccer to this just makes me laugh.
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - "How Long Do I Have To Wait For You?"
After matches:
Phoenix - "Second To None," for wins.
McFadden and Whitehead - "Ain't No Stopping Us Now." After losses, to keep the vibe super positive up in this house. This one is for the Boogie Nights fans out there. Also, check out this fine Soul Train action. Goddamn!
FC Buffalo's season kicks off tonight at 7:30 against Zanesville Athletic at Robert E. Rich All High Stadium. Tickets are $5.
Update:
Really, it's an addition and a prediction. The prediction is that next year could be a transformative year for American sports fans in terms of appreciating soccer because for the first time ever there will be wall to wall television coverage of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. ESPN will be able to broadcast in high definition soccer all day (and all night if they showed the replays after midnight) because for the first time in 20 years the Cup will be played in this hemisphere. And because it's in Brasil it will be a spectacle in every way possible and in the best way possible. American fans won't know what to do with themselves and sports fans will get in on the action because the games will be in primetime (plus late afternoon and dinnertime). Sooo, with a year out NOW is the time to check out FC Buffalo and soccer, so you'll know what's up next year when the world parties. Oh the conversations you will have. In this spirit here's a little something to honor next year's hosts: Os Mutantes, "Bat Macumba." It's obligatory to include Os Mutantes
Seu Jorge, "Rebel Rebel." Also obligatory to mention, for so many reasons. Fine for after match chill out/leave now music.
Swedish electronic producer The Field's brand of ambient minimal techno thrives on drawn out loops that make for a spacey, reflective take on dance music. His remix of Tame Impala's "Mind Mischief" takes the psych rock jam and turns it into a ten minute display of ambient loops and features a bassline that gives the song a downtempo feel. Check out the track below.
Well, 12 hours from now, at 4:12 Mountain Standard Time tomorrow, December 21, 2012 the clock strikes APOCALYPSE according to the Internet, so to get ready for impending doom here's a handy End of the World playlist to get you in the right frame of mind. Enjoy, and see you on the other side. Tame Impala - "Apocalypse Dreams."
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - "(I"ll Love You) Until The End Of The World."
U2 - "Until The End Of The World"
R.E.M. - "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)."
David Byrne - "Nothing But Flowers."
Please note: I think it's all bunk, as apparently the Mayans themselves are asking themselves "what's up with these gringo's?" but hey, it's all good fun. Sure I myself am keen on Evo Morales' very Alan Moore-esque theory that "according to the Mayan calendar, the 21 of December is the end of the non-time and the beginning of time.It is the end of hatred and the beginning of love, the end of lies and beginning of truth." Yes, that would definitely be cool, especially after this last week... but I ain't holding my breath.
Well, I am sitting here listing to the Charlie Brown Christmas album on repeat, which means one thing...it is the end of the year. And, with it being the end of the year, my overlords at the blog demanded an end of the year post from all of us. And, with me having sold my soul to this blog over the summer, I oblige. So, what can we say about 2012? I mean really? Mac has a gun to my head for this post so I should really say something...help? 2012 offered a lot to be enthused about with great new releases throughout the year. Whether it was already established artists like Grizzly Bear, Flying Lotus, Jens Lekman, and Spiritualized or new ones like Grimes, Tanlines, and DIIV, there was no shortage of great music. For me, this year was marked by moments where I genuinely began to feel like I was hearing something new - artists taking earlier genres and styles and recombining them in ways that felt fresher than they had in a long time, without feeling like a simple pastiche. Narrowing down a top 5 was difficult, but here are mine: [Note: This was also a great year for album art, so somehow my favorite albums musically linked well with some of my favorite albums visually.]
Cult of Youth – Love Will Prevail: This may be one of
the most underrated albums of the year and a reminder that folk music could be
something other than the nostalgia and saccharine fueled mix of recent years. Combining psychedelic elements
with darker, more ambiguous lyrics, Cult of Youth created a diverse and
challenging album that was willing to blend the discordant with the pastoral in
a very satisfying manner.
Grizzly Bear – Shields: Shields feels like the
realization of everything Grizzly Bear has been doing to date. Where Veckatimist felt like somewhat of a step
towards something, a step away from the quieter/sparser Yellow House, Shields feels
like a synthesis of the two. Grizzly Bear creates haunting and atmospheric
music, music that builds until its catharsis seems inevitable. They key may be that they often hold out that catharsis for just a little longer than you expect. This is music built around an emotional core, around anxiety, a sense of being
resigned to fail, of never being able to begin in the first place. Yet, in a
way, and through these moments of release, which hit all the more intensely because they are delayed, it offers an
almost ritualistic offering of all these feelings into something greater. There
are moments here where your hair stands on end. Seeing them live in Toronto was
a definite highlight of the year concert-wise.
Mac DeMarco – 2: While nothing on the new Mac DeMarco
would sound out of place on an early 80’s release from Postcard Records, there
was still something so undeniably great about this album that I had to include
it. It might be how effortless everything sounds; DeMarco comfortably turns out
brief, catchy, pop songs with jangly guitar and a sauntering backbeat. The
whole thing comes together unbelievably well.
Wild Nothing – Nocturne: Dream pop has been everywhere
this year and there were certainly some excellent examples of the microgenre,
but Wild Nothing transcended that label and made one of the year's strongest
albums. In fact, if I had to pick an album I enjoyed the most this year, it
would be this one. There is something so appealing to me about Wild Nothing’s
aesthetic that I found it hard not to react to this on an almost naïve level.
Each song, draped in reverb and a buzzing echo, is tightly composed and deftly
layered. It was one of several examples of acts following up an excellent debut
with an even more accomplished 2nd record. Maybe the sophomore slump
is a myth after all.
Laurel Halo -Quarantine: This had to be one of the most unique and interesting records to come out this year. Spacey and effecting, Halo composes challenging, ethereal songs that seem to take on spatial dimensions as the album progresses. The instrumentation and vocals mix in such a way that Halo's vocals become spectral, literally haunting the cut up compositions. There is definitely something new and exciting about Halo's work and I am excited to see what is next.
Honorable Mention:
Father John Misty - Fear Fun
DIIV - Oshin
Tame Impala - Lonerism
Flying Lotus - Until the Quiet Comes
Jens Lekman - I Know What Love Isn't
Sun Araw/M Geddes Gengras/The Congos - Icon Give Thank
Back in August, Concord Music Group released Just Tell Me That You Want Me, a tribute album featuring seventeen different indie acts covering Fleetwood Mac. Notable contributions included MGMT, Best Coast, Lykke Li, Washed Out, and St. Vincent. The record thrives on what all good covers come down to; reinterpreting the original artist to see a song through a different musical point of view. One of the best examples of an artist putting their own vibe on a track on the album is Tame Impala doing a rendition of "That's All For Everyone" from the band's 1979 album Tusk.
The track features the reverb soaked vocals and soaring keyboard lines the Perth psych-rock outfit has become known for and provides a spacey take on the Lindsey Buckingham gem. Sounding Lennon-esque as usual, Tame Impala singer Kevin Parker seemingly takes the track back about ten years and gives it an ambitious late sixties acid rock treatment. The band's album of the year candidate, Lonerism, shares the same sonic territory and it's clear that this track would have fit in comfortably along tracks like "Apocalypse Dreams" and "Feels Like We Only Go Backwards". As with most of this cover album, Tame Impala's reinterpretation reminds how good pop music can sound when quality songwriting isn't sacrificed at the expense of ambitious experimentation.
Whenever a band uses elements of a familiar sound from decades past, immediately, they are met with the revivalist tag. Such has been the case for Perth, Australia band Tame Impala who on their debut album Innerspeaker brought to mind late 60's psychedelia and frontman Kevin Parker's reverb soaked melodies were reminiscent of The Beatles Revolver era material. Their second LP, Lonerism, manages to transcend this label of psychedelic revival by still sounding rooted in the spirit of that era's boundary pushing soundscapes, but rather than going for recreation, the band surpasses the work of that era with colorful production that just feels bigger and more expansive than anything that could have been produced decades ago. The stunning sonic character of this record is what jumps out upon first listen more than anything. Often when a band chooses to adopt the psychedelic aesthetic they rely on maximalism to entrance their listeners in a sea of sound. Tame Impala instead rely on incredibly well selected sound and production to give their work such a blissful, hazy feel.
The albums intro track, "Be Above It" starts with a looped chant proclaiming "gotta be above it" backed by a marching drum break that works with the flanging guitar and Parkers echoed vocals to create an intriguing opener that sets the stage for the heavy psychedelia that follows on the track "Endors Toi," ironically meaning "you sleep" in French as this track opens the floodgates to the stimulating sounds that this album provides, not to mention some of the best drum sounds I've heard on a record this year. "Apocalypse Dreams," a song that is carried by a grooving bass line and piano until a breakdown where vocal and guitar harmonies are paired to build up to one of the biggest moments on the record where an expansive jam takes place that paired with the tremendous production is enough to get lost in. In addition to all this heady sonic construction that Parker is able to offer on Lonerism, tracks like "Music To Walk Home By" and "Why Won't They Talk To Me" are quick to remind that he can write a damn catchy pop melody. Perhaps the albums most memorable track, "Feels Like We Only Go Backwards" features a soaring vocal melody that drives the song and brings to mind some of the best work of John Lennon.
Much of what makes an album memorable and arguably a classic is its ability to be multi-dimensional in the sense that it can thematically deal with things that you would expect to sound one way and take them in a much more adventurous direction. As the title suggests, the songs on Lonerism are about isolation, uncertainty, and have an overwhelming sense of longing. In the context of the soundscape that the record provides, these themes seem oddly uplifting and give conviction to the feeling of being lost in your own head. This is a record that is able simultaneously look inward and outward, giving expansiveness to introspection, a modern feel to an aged aesthetic, and suggests that longing for the past while accepting the immediacy of the future is possible.
It's weird how quickly fall creeps up on you. One minute it's 90 degrees out and you can't avoid getting sunburnt and the next minute you're waking up for work and it's a crisp 45 degrees out. Even the leaves seem to change more rapidly every year; such is life, I guess. There's ways we cope with it. Watch a little football. Jump into a pile of freshly raked leaves. Consume anything and everything that tastes like a goddamn pumpkin. And of course, we check the latest music selections. Here are at least ten new releases coming out this month that you should get on board with.
10. Matt and Kim - Lightening It seems that Matt Oriente and Kim Schifino are endlessly creating music in the strand of DIY, upbeat, sing-a-longs which has more or less given them a reputation of being one-dimensional, and subsequently 'meh'. Today, as Matt and Kim release their fourth studio album Lightening, it's hard to see how the duo have changed much at all. The first single off the record, “Let’s Go” proves this at first, but as you listen it's hard not to admit that Matt and Kim may be maturing in regards to their songwriting technique. Their songs are catchy dammit, and they’re staying that way. For many fans, this is great news.
9. Times New Viking - Over & Over EP Few punk groups sound as awesomely lo-fi as the Columbus three-piece Times New Viking do. Actually...most probably do. That's not to say they don't do it well. October is a month that teeters on the necessity of noisy, garage-rock, which is all the more reason to look for their latest release, Over & Over, a 6 track EP due out October 16.
8. Andrew Bird - Hands of Glory If you liked Andrew Bird’s record that came out earlier this year, Break It Yourself, then you’ll definitely want to check out his 8-track companion record, Hands of Glory due out October 30 via Mom + Pop. Recorded with a full band around a single microphone in a barn and church, Bird’s idea on this collection is to capture the essence of “old time” live sets. The first single off the record, which is immediately downloadable when you pre-order the album, is called “Three White Horses”, a grogeous track that sounds nothing like a typical b-side. Watch the preview for the album below:
7. The Tins - Life's a Gas While local indie-pop trio The Tins made their debut album Life's a Gas obtainable at some point earlier this year, it still feels better suited that this be considered an October release. First off, I mistakenly missed it on previous lists. Secondly, it was named our Album of the Week yesterday. And third-most, their album release party is this Saturday at Nietzsche's! You can listen to and buy their new album right now over at their Bandcamp page, or wait and buy it at the show this weekend. Either way you're supporting one of the best bands to come out of Buffalo in some time.
6. Freelance Whales - Deluvia I never really got into Freelance Whales’ debut album Weathervanes. A friend played it for me at his apartment, another sent me a link to one of their songs telling me how great they were; I consistently decided they were boring. Hearing about them more and more, I recently checked out the New York trio’s website and watched the preview video for their new album Deluvia set to come out October 9. In the video, band members talk about the ideas behind the project talking about grandiose things like the "end of the world" and the "velocity of time", which sounded sophomoric at first, yet still, somehow I’m interested.
5. Ty Segall - Twins
Mr. Segall is on this countdown for the 3rd time this year. First, for his split LP with White Fence, then for the Slaughterhouse LP with his band, and now for his first solo record since last year’s awesome LP, Goodbye Bread. There's not much else to say, the guy is one of the most consistent and industrious musicians around. For those who were at Town Ballroom last Tuesday especially know this. The album is called Twins and it's out October 9 via Drag City.
4. The Mountain Goats - Transcendental Youth
I had the oportunity to see The Mountain Goats live last year and I have to say, my respect has quadrupled for John Darnielle and company since, as I saw how committed they were to performing consistently well-written music. Releasing their 14th album in the last 18 years, Transcendental Youth, it’s difficult to gauge what more to expect from Darnielle, but all the while he is still pumping out well-crafted, literary songs that we’ve come to expect, such as the latest single “Cry For Judas”. The record is out today via Merge and features cover artwork that’ll get you in the Halloween spirit.
3. Sun Airway - Soft Fall
Philadelphia musician Sun Airway, aka Jon Barthmus, has spent the past 3 years working on the follow-up to his debut album Nocturne of Exploded Chandelier, a work that hinged on sweeping melodies and bass-laden pop vocals. Think popier, more chilled-out Animal Collective. The sophomore album from Barthmus is called Soft Fall, and the latest single “Close” displays all the hints of lush dream-pop that make Sun Airway intriguing in the first place. Soft Fall is out today via Dead Oceans.
2. Flying Lotus - Until The Quiet Comes
Following-up 2010‘s Cosmogramma, Flying Lotus released his 4th studio album Until The Quiet Comes today via Warp. The record is already soaring critically, and on the track “See Thru to U” it’s not hard to see why. Erykah Badu is featured on the track with her angelic voice weaved smoothly against a jazz-like mix of percussion and bass. There’s no doubt we’ll see this record on the end of year lists come December.
1. Tame Impala - Lonerism Coming off their excellent 2010 debut Innerspeaker, Tame Impala will release their follow-up Lonerism on October 9 via Modular. Known for their psychadelic tendencies and lead singer Kevin Parker’s eerie vocal resemblance to John Lennon, the Perth quartet look to be following the same strand of awesomeness with warped songs like “Be Above It” and “Enders Toi” that play to the group’s strengths, i.e. sporadic percussion, spiralling organ, and Instagram-filtered guitar and vocals. Stream the album in it’s entirety over at The Guardian now.
There is just too much new music to digest and present to
you all. I am sorry, it has been a busy week, and I just don’t know if I can
handle all this new music. In fact, I am just going to give you 5 different
versions of Men Without Hats’ seminal song, “Safety Dance.” If you don’t like
it then you ain’t no friend of mine. I am sorry, that was a really bad joke
referencing “Safety Dance,” by Men Without Hats. Have you heard of them? Fine,
I will give you actual new music, if that is what you want. Are you sure I
cannot convince you to take the “Safety Dance?” It’s by Men Without Hats. Why
don’t they have any hats? Someone give those men some hats.
Tame Impala – “Elephant:”
When I covered Tame Impala last for their song, "Apocalypse Dreams," I had mentioned that the first single off of
their forthcoming album, Lonerism,
would be released soon (it wasn’t the earlier released track, which was still
pretty cool). Yesterday, the psychedelic Australians released their single, “Elephant.”
It is a driving rock song complete with quick tempo changes, and which opens up
in the middle with a spacey guitar solo.
Captain Murphy – “Mighty
Morphin Foreskin:” Who is this mysterious Captain Murphy? Whoever he is, he
appears on two tracks this week. Little is known about the enigmatic newcomer
(it’s probably Tyler the Creator),” but he has arrived with a great new song
reminiscent of Madvillan. “Mighty Morphin Foreskin” is a slow sample heavy
track featuring the Captain’s trippy and adept rhyming. Let’s hope we hear more
from the Captain (I mean, it’s got to be Tyler right?) soon.
Flying Lotus
featuring Earl Sweatshirt and Captain Murphy – “Between Friends:” The Odd
Future camp is quickly showing how great they can be when paired with
unexpected collaborators. Earlier this month, we had Tyler’s smooth work with
Toro Y Moi, and now, Earl Sweatshirt has teamed with Flying Lotus and my new
favorite man of mystery, Captain Murphy (who we all think is Tyler the Creator),
for this new single. Here, the two rappers trade lyrics over a tight future-past
beat in keeping with Flying Lotus’ other work. It would be awesome if Flying
Lotus did more with these artists as the resulting project could be fantastic.
Here is to wishful thinking.
Crystal Castles – “Plague:”
Finishing up their upcoming album, the duo has released a moody new song that
signals a continued move away from chiptunes and towards a fuller electronic palate.
Beginning eerily, with Alice Glass signing over white noise, the song comes
into cathartic focus with a midtempo beat over the same throbbing white noise,
and then oscillates between ambient openness and the dense nightmarish chorus.
Sean Kader – “Improve:”
This is the first time I have featured a local artist on Listener’s Digest and it is none other than Sean Kader. Sean is a
great songwriter who has been too quietly releasing EPs on bandcamp for about 2
years now. Off of his latest EP, Et cetera, “Improve” is boozey rocker
featuring Kader’s amiable voice and a catchy guitar line. Be sure to check out
the whole EP, it is great stuff.
I expected another slow week, but was pleasantly surprised to find a flood of fantastic new music. In turn, because there was so much, I had to cut some great new tracks from artists like MNDR, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, and Teengirl Fantasy. To be honest, I didn't like the new Ariel Pink too much, but what can you do.? It freed up room and gave me the opportunity to feature new artists like Dunes and Cult of Youth.
Dan Deacon - "True Thrush:" A new single off Deacon's forthcoming album, "True Thrush" represents a stylistic evolution for Deacon. While still as jubilant and cathartic as older tracks, "True Thrush" has shed some of the earlier abrasiveness, and to great effect. This is a shimmering and dreamy song with a slow build towards a raucous and celebratory end.
Cult of Youth - "Man and Man's Ruin:" Off an album to be released this fall, "Man and Man's Ruin" features the haunting, reverent vocals of songwriter Sean Ragon. Instrumentation builds as the song progresses and ends in a lush mix of bongo, guitar and horns. Please note the sick album art below.
Dunes - "Dirt:" Off a compilation that invited artists to make songs out of each line from Sol LeWitt's "Lines on Conceptual Art" (I am not sure what that entails either. In fact, if you can explain this to me, please email me at mtorsell@buffablog.com). With submerged vocals and a spooky melody that fades out slowly at the end, this a strong track. Dunes released a full length earlier this year.
Future Islands - "Cotton Flowers:" A song very much in the vein of previous releases, this is another strong release from the underrated Baltimore group. Melancholic new wave with Samuel T. Herring's raspy baritone voice, "Cotton Flowers" is an excellent nocturnal song. There is something intrinsically heartbreaking about this song, but it is still worth a listen (or 2 or 50).
Tame Impala - "Apocalypse Dreams:" The promise of a new Tame Impala record is cause for celebration. 2010's Innerspeaker, their debut, was an amazing summer psych-rock album. Preceeding the new album's first "official" single (whatever that means anymore) is "Apocalypse Dreams," a longer and looser track. Hazy and melodic, this track suggests that the band has tightened their sound while still carrying forward what worked in the past. Let's hope the first single (whatever that means anymore) is equally enjoyable.
Australian four-piece Tame Impala have released a cut from their next album Lonerism, due out in October via Modular, called "Apocalypse Dreams", which will apparently be titled "Elephant" on the actual record. The group released a psyched-out trailer for their album just a week ago, of which will follow up the group's superb 2010 debut Innerspeaker. You can watch the trailer and download "Apocalypse Dreams" below:
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