complete

This week I am listening to “Everyday Robots” by Damon Albarn

Nature-vs-technology. It has some tired cliches in the lyrics but it isn’t too bad.

I hear The Gorillaz. Am I missing something?

 

This week I am listening to “Black Metal” by Dean Blunt

Orchestral.

Eccentric.

Not what I was expecting at all.

Fragmented.

Abrasive.

“Heavy” was grating. And I had to take three stabs at listening to that track. “Grade” was harsh too, but at least listenable.

At first I thought the digital download was screwed up. But no, that’s how it was recorded.

I think the artist may have had too much creative control on that track.

Not an album I will be coming back to.

 

This week I am listening to “Morning Phase” by Beck

Really strong album by an artist at the height of a solo career.

Versatile.

Different from what he has pursued before.

“Morning Phase” is just this awesome, slow mood piece you can have on the in background.

“Heart is a Drum” and “Don’t Let It Go” are both just so soulful.

“Say Goodbye” is wonderfully instrumental without trying to say anything at all.

Just overall a strong album by an artist that I under-appreciate.

 

This week I am listening to “Xen” by Venezuela Arca

Not to my tastes.

I turn out this kind of noise filled crap on my DAW just by mashing random keys on my Yamaha S90.

I’m trying to decide if the artist has any kind of musical talent at all or really is just mashing random buttons in Logic Pro or ACID.

Okay, honest review: It’s shit and the semi-shock factor of the album artwork is just first year art student nonsense.

 

This week I am listening to “Lost In The Dream” by The War On Drugs

Under the pressure.

Eyes to the wind.

Lost in the dream.

These are absolutely classic tracks and I think the entire album is going to be under-appreciated for decades to come.

Dylan, Denver, really early U2, Pink Floyd (very definitely), Dire Straits even Vangelis. You can just hear the influence and the homage to these greats.

This entire album just evolves the entire genre. I think it is going to be wasted on this generation.

One of my new favourite bands. Just stunning.

This week I am listening to “Indie Cindy” by Pixies

Hit and miss. “Bagboy” and “Indie Cindy” are just outright annoying. “Greens and Blues” and “What goes boom” are strong tracks that capture classic Pixies sound.

Santiago is as impressive as ever, strong drumming, but the song writing isn’t there anymore.

What happened?

It’s like half the band was on holiday when this was being recorded or something.

 

This week I am listening to “48:13” by Kasabian

If Kasabian had released at the end of the ’80s or early ’90s I would have be completely in to this album.

Stylistically its a bit all over the place but is an incredibly strong creative work. The album offers some short interludes along with some deeply insightful tracks such as “Clouds” and “Bow.”

I can hear influences of Kraftwerk, U2, late ’80s pop-synth, Duran Duran comeback (“Bow” reminds somewhat tangentially of “Reach Up For The Sunrise”) and even R.E.M. in places.

I do think there are a couple of tracks that could have been cut by 30 seconds and would have been better for it. But that’s just opinion of someone with no musical talent.

This week I am listening to “The Joy Of Motion” by Animals As Leaders

Technically sound, fast drums and guitars, strong mixture of electronica influences but Animals As Leaders do engage in musical masturbation with their cleverness at times and I wonder if they are just being too formulaic.

I can pick out individual tracks, e.g. Kas$cade or Tooth and Claw, after repeated listens but I couldn’t tell you “oh, this is that particular track by Animals as Leaders.”

You’ve shown me your one trick pony, now show me what else you got. But most importantly show me you can evolve stylistically or you’ll be consigned to the trash heap of history.

This week I am listening to “The Pinkprint” by Nicki Minaj

I have to own up to not being a fan of Minaj’s music at all.

The album has it’s moments, but those moments are lost in the mediocre tracks that she has compiled on her third album.

This sounds like it is a very personal album to the artist, but at the same time, I get the feeling that she is just phoning in her performance on many of the tracks. A lot of to say, but sort of mumbling her way through everything as she tries to emulate Lady Gaga perhaps?

This week I am listening to “Loud City Song” by Julia Holter.

 

Original. Different. Orchestral with an unusually deep musical texture.

A cross between Kate Bush and Bjork without the splash of crazy.

An album to listen to in solitude. Not something you crank the volume up on.

Reminds me of early Judy Tzuke. Not to my tastes these days though it is still a good album.

I think Julia’s best work is ahead of her, which is to say, I think she has a bright musical future and this is a good album, but I don’t like this personally.

This week I am listening to “Some Great Reward” by Depeche Mode

Observations after listening: Dark. Very dark. Industrial sounding, good tracks in the form of “Master and Servant” and “People are People.”

Starting in January 1985 I am making a concerted effort to listen (really “listen”) to one new LP each week.

 

This week I am listening to “Reckoning” by R.E.M.

Observations after listening: This is a very “live” sound they have captured for what is effectively a studio album.

I wonder if it has anything to do with Don Dixon and Michael Stripe as it seems to carry over a lot from their previous album and sounds different to their live tracks.

Starting in January 1985 I am making a concerted effort to listen (really “listen”) to one new LP each week.

This week I am listening to “Ocean Rain” by Echo & The Bunnymen

Observations after listening: Very orchestral. I like it but I don’t know if it is a sound I would like carried in to their future albums. This is definitely a new sound for them as they experiment.

Starting in January 1985 I am making a concerted effort to listen (really “listen”) to one new LP each week.

This week I am listening to “The Unforgettable Fire” by U2

Observations after listening: This is U2’s fourth studio album featuring a new sound for them. More ambient and atmospheric in direction. I wonder how much of the new sound is attributable to producers Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno.

Starting in January 1985 I am making a concerted effort to listen (really “listen”) to one new LP each week.

This week I am listening to “The Smiths” by The Smiths

Observations after listening: This is The Smiths debut LP working with John Porter as producer having thrown out their original sessions recorded and produced with Troy Tate. It is a markedly different sound from the BBC live sessions I’ve heard being played.

Starting in January 1985 I am making a concerted effort to listen (really “listen”) to one new LP each week.