Feather Grid 5: Classic 4.5: Awesome 4: Original 3.5: Good choice 3: Uneven 2.5: Nice try 2: General mistake 1.5: A wreck 1: Makes you writhe in pain .5: Ears bleed 0: Destroy the CD
"If you want to make an imaginary animal, if you want to make a mythical creature, just take a regular animal and add wings to it. Horse becomes pegasus, lion becomes a griffin, and a hawk becomes a Double Hawk."-Demetri Martin
Known for his string arrangements and work in many bands like Beirut, Arcade Fire, Grizzly Bear, and even The Last Shadow Puppets, Owen Pallett, the man behind Final Fantasy, has made quite a name for himself in the indie genre. He is now back with his third album, Heartland, which is apparently a full fledged concept album. Knowing his previous works, this has to be good. It's being released on Domino, so hopefully that'll mean it'll be actually possible to track down at a store. It's due out January 12th, 2010 (same day as Contra by Vampire Weekend), so get ready for alot of good listening!
01. Midnight Directives 02. Keep the Dog Quiet 03. Mount Alpentine 04. Red Sun No. 5 05. Lewis Takes Action 06. The Great Elsewhere 07. Oh Heartland, Up Yours! 08. Lewis Takes Off His Shirt 09. Flare Gun 10. E Is for Estranged 11. Tryst With Mephistopheles 12. What Do You Think Will Happen Now?
I know nothing about Glasvegas. I'm not going to even pretend. The only thing I do know is that I'm in love with this song. I heard it on palladia (a music (mainly concert) tv channel) on a Glastonbury 2009 special. I thought it was perfectly performed and it was very effective at captivating the audience. I couldn't find the performance I saw, so I went with a Jools performance. It demonstrates the wonder that the song is, but it doesn't do it justice because you can't see how the audience is interacting with it, but it's good enough. I hope You enjoy (btw: I lied, Muse review out tomorrow)
Muse were recently on a television show in Italy, and they must've been told to lipsync because Dom was the singer/bassist, Chris was the keyboard/guitar, and Matt was on drums. The host of the show even referred to Dom as Matt. This video reminded me of previous 'protests' that were equally hilarious.
Change for 'Uprising'.
Slight line up change for 'New Born' on Live and Kicking, they really make no effort to disguise that it's not live.
Rumor has it, Muse were told not to curse in any of their performances here. If anyone knows Muse at all, they never use profanity in songs (only in one b-side). For the normally clean 'Feeling Good' they decide to change a verse...
Muse were asked to lip sync this performance, but apparently Matt convinced the sound person to let him sing live. Big mistake and the picture says it all.
Time to Die- The Dodos Label-Frenchkiss Records Status-Out as of 2009 3rd Studio Album Rating-4 feathers
The Dodos have always been under the radar. Their first album went virtually unnoticed by the general public and the media, their sophomore album ‘Visiter’ gained them much deserved attention. Now The Dodos, a little over a year later and with new member Keaton Snyder on vibraphone, are back with their third album ‘Time To Die’. Perhaps this will give more sustenance to a band who is unfortunately known for a miller chill commercial.
The flow of ‘Time to Die’ corresponds with the transition from summer to autumn. The first half is embodied by bright guitar riffs and happy vocals. ‘Small Deaths’ starts off the album with heavy acoustic guitar and lightly intense vocals. The drumming might be a little to overpowering for the song, but it still helps to encase a summery feel. ‘Fables’ even furthers this tone. The acoustic guitar with a touch of vibraphone help lift Meric’s already optimistic vocals to an even higher lever. The whole song just puts you in a fantastic mood, and will leave you singing “I don’t wanna go in the fire” well after it’s over. They falter a little bit with ‘This is a Business’ which is a little too urgent. I mean, the craze in his voice adds a great effect, but the guitar seems way all over the place and the drumming is too frantic. They quickly restore themselves with ‘Two Medicines’, a song that gloriously encases all that is autumn. You can easily imagine yourself listening to the song’s galloping acoustic guitar and pounding drumbeat while walking down a leaf ridden sidewalk. It’ll make you instantly forget about summer and get you psyched for fall. ‘Troll Nacht’ and ‘Acorn Factory’ further this notion with uplifting vibraphones, twangy guitar lines, and somber vocals. The primitive drumming (like what was heard in Visiter) also makes a nice appearance, adding to each songs warmth. The titletrack ‘Time to Die’ ends the album a little weirdly. It starts out calmly, with just a light guitar and drums, but then it builds suddenly. When I say build I mean they just all of sudden pile on the guitar. It goes on like that for about four minutes, calms down just a bit, and then out of nowhere they end it.
As a whole, this album was very well done. It showed that The Dodos can build upon their old sound without succumbing to the third album syndrome, but still have it feel completely new, not like you’ve heard it before. Sure, the album doesn’t affect you mentally or emotionally like Visiter did, but it successfully helps get your mind around the fact that summer is over and autumn is coming. The Dodos have a lot to show, especially with a new member they will definitely create an even better version of their sound by album number four. It’s not their time to die quite yet.
“I’m glad that we were able to keep things simple on this record because when your band gets a little popular, there’s this tendency to say things like, ‘Let’s add an orchestra on this one!’ That works for some people, but it would detract from this band.”-Meric Long
Two Medicines
Recommendations: Fables, The Strums, Two Medicines The Dodo's Official Website NOTE: Yeah, I was supposed to have this out yesterday, but I have it out today so. I will have the review for The Resistance out within the next few days, but before Friday (I hope). On that note, who else is jazzed for fall?
I was looking at random blogs, and many of them are writing alot about Beck's Record club. Beck's Record Club is this idea that he and group of fellow musicians are going to get together and record a covers of a 'classic album' in one day. For this installment, they are doing "Songs of Leonard Cohen", picked by Andrew VanWyngarden. So far they've only released two covers from the album, and this one is absolutely brilliantly performed by Beck, his crew, MGMT, Devendra Banhart, and few others. Though very different from the original, they give a really nice flair that even Leonard Cohen himself would approve of. Enjoy!
Suzanne
NOTE: I will have a review of Time to Die or The Resistance out on Saturday, stay tuned to find out which one.
Vampire Weekend have (finally) announced their 2 album entitled Contra! It's due out January 12th, 2010. So far, I'm liking the fact that their 'style' doesn't look like it's changed too much from their first album, but I think the cover is a reeking too much like Ivy League preppy. I'm stilldefinitely itching to see how this one sounds.
CONTRA 1. Horchata 2. White Sky 3. Holiday 4. California English 5. Taxi Cab 6. Run 7. Cousins 8. Giving Up the Gun 9. Diplomat's Son 10. I Think UR a Contra
Also, The Dodos's 'Time To Die' and Muse's 'The Resistance' are out today. Go get them!
I used to see this performance all the time on this channel called 'The Tube', and the first time I saw it, I thought it was beautiful. Rufus's voice gives something different to the song, and I personally love this performance because of that. They could've just had Sean sing it solo, but they didn't. The 3-part harmony by the end is just a perfect touch. It's a really great tribute to John Lennon and I hope you enjoy!
Across the Universe
(Next week 'The Resistance' by Muse and 'Time to Die' by The Dodos comes out so I'll be reviewing both of those next!)
