Category Archives for Rock

Beck – “Morning Phase”

(Photo Credit: http://www.spin.com)

Grade: B+

Key Tracks: “Say Goodbye” “Wave”

Since revealing that he would finally be releasing a new album, Beck has been promoting “Morning Phase” as a sequel to his 2002 album “Sea Change.” Beck’s music before that album, and most of it since, has been characterized by boundless energy, an almost unnecessary amount of instruments, samples, and verses that were often made up on the spot and never replaced. “Sea Change,” however, is a moody, acoustic work inspired by the break-up with his girlfriend of nearly a decade. “Morning Phase” is definitely a sequel – but the kind of sequel that tells a new story, not one that just rehashes what was done before.

“Morning Phase” is marked by it’s lack of instruments. “Morning,” the album’s first track (save a brief string intro), is a haunting and almost painfully-timed song, and starts with just an acoustic rhythm. It characterizes the album – it’s slower, calmer and more emotional than any of Beck’s most recent albums. But unlike “Sea Change,” which got too moody and self-indulgent (justifiably), this album has a wide range of emotions. Although the whole album sounds dry and down – it’s deceiving. There are tracks like that, certainly, but “Don’t Let It Go” and “Blackbird Chain” have a subtly popping vibe. It’s hopeful, at least. “Morning Phase” is certainly a thematic sequel to “Sea Change,” in the proper way a sequel should be.

One of the things to analyze on any Beck album is how many instruments are present, and how they’re being used. To say “Morning Phase” is a largely acoustic work does not equate to it being less interesting musically. “Say Goodbye” and “Blue Moon” are marked by unpredictable guitar strumming and rhythms, “Unforgiven” trades the guitar for a warped, piano drone, and finale “Waking Light” suddenly erupts into a full band setting, for the first time on the album. But the shining light is the album’s midpoint. “Wave” is far and away the album’s best song, and already stands up to the best songs in Beck’s discography. The song has no percussion, instead driven by a full string section, composed by Beck’s father, David Campbell. Beck’s voice flies loud and long over the strings, accompanied with almost no other music. It’s a dark song, centered around some of the album’s lighter tracks, and it’s one of the most ambitious songs Beck’s ever done.

While “Sea Change” was a relentlessly dark album, brought on by one sharp event, “Morning Phase” is a more diverse work, and seems to be inspired by years of reflection in the first album’s aftermath. It’s a rare sequel that’s better than the first. It might take a few more listens than most Beck albums to really get into, but it’ll be just as memorable as his better works. Beck fans were probably waiting for another crazy album, and we got the opposite, and it’s every bit as pleasing as hoped for. It’s been a long six years, but Beck leaves no need for an apology.

-By Andrew McNally

St. Vincent – “St. Vincent”

(Photo Credit: http://www.themusicninja.com)

Grade: A

Key Tracks: “Birth In Reverse” “Prince Johnny”

St. Vincent’s previous album, the 2012 duet with David Byrne “Love This Giant,” got a little more of a mixed reaction than her previous three albums. But I haven’t stopped listening to the record – I know the whole album by heart. On the album, Byrne takes St. Vincent, moniker for the multi-talented Annie Clark, and brings her out of her comfort zone. Her previous albums were already wholly separate from anything else happening in alternative, but with Byrne’s introduction of horns and a bigger accompaniment, he brought her out of her timidity and almost forced her to take bigger and more fearless risks. Pictured above is Annie Clark, once slightly awkward in old Youtube clips, now purple-haired, staring down at us. “St. Vincent” is bolder and more fulfilling than any of her previous albums – and that’s not exactly a small statement.

Before I get to into the album, I should say, as I have said when necessary, that I am a huge huge St. Vincent fan. I learned “Birth in Reverse” by heart within 24 hours of it’s release. This year and last, I’ve spent Feb. 14th celebrating St. Vincentines Day, an excuse to get away from any standards usually set towards that date. And as I write this, I sit anxiously knowing I’ll be seeing her in ten days. If you’re reading this in Boston, look for me at the show, screaming, singing and just generally embarrassing myself.

So, “St. Vincent” is a step in a new direction. It’s bolder, and although it technically isn’t all that different from her other works, it has a more boundless feeling to it. Without really changing her sound, she has managed to still take herself in a new direction. That’s no more apparent than on the album’s best song, “Birth In Reverse.” The rough, almost factory-machine opening is a staunch stance against most other reserved indie singers. The song’s opening lyrics: “Oh what an ordinary day / Take out the garbage, masturbate” don’t exactly hurt that stance. St. Vincent has never been one to shy away from topics that might be taboo or a little warped, but on “St. Vincent,” she sounds more confident than she ever has. And with songs like “I Prefer Your Love,” with a chorus centered around “I prefer your love / To Jesus,” confidence is a needed trait.

As a fan of every one of St. Vincent’s albums, I have felt that the latter halves often don’t hold up to the former halves – whether because they’re a little too slow, or the mix of synth and guitar does not hold up as well. But “St. Vincent” is just solid throughout. The album’s first half is definitely better – all three of the pre-released songs are in the first five – but there are few forgettable moments. As always, she combines a heavy amount of synthesizers with her underrated guitar work. It works well across the album, but might work the best on the penultimate “Every Tear Disappears.” Only the guitar-heavy “Regret” and the midtempo closer “Severed Crossed Fingers” lag behind the rest of the tracks, not quite as original or memorable.

Although a strong singer in her own right, St. Vincent’s songs usually focus more on the music and lyrics. But there’s one song on this album, “Prince Johnny,” that’s worth mentioning for the vocals. The song builds to a long climax that’s beautifully sung, and drenched in an encompassing vocal echo that’s almost bone-chilling. It’s refreshing, in a way, to hear Clark finally devote a song more towards her vocals. Clark’s voice has never sounded even close to subpar – but a song like “Prince Johnny” has been needed for a while.

This album’s eponymous naming was kind of a happy accident, but it’s very fitting. This album is what St. Vincent does best – synthy, guitar-heavy indie-pop; equally weird and beautiful, in the best ways of both. And it’s self-titled, because it’s her best album yet. Each song is unique. Some simple, some complex, all great. I know it’s only February, but I’d wager that this will go down as one of the best alternative albums of 2014.

If you like this, try: The National’s “Trouble Will Find Me.” Maybe it came to mind because Clark herself provides back-up vocals on the album’s/band’s/2013’s best song, “Sea of Love.” But the album is related in that it’s similar to everything they have done prior, but just even better.

-By Andrew McNally

††† – “†††”

(Photo Credit: crossesmusic.com)

Grade: C+

Key Tracks: “Bitches Brew” “The Epilogue”

Fans of the band properly pronounced as “Crosses” might actually be rather disappointed in their full-length debut. The band, a side project featuring Chino Moreno from Deftones, Shaun Lopez from Far, and Chuck Doom, doesn’t actually have many new songs. The album, also called †††, is fifteen songs long, and it feels like it. There’s only one track under three minutes, and six over four minutes. But it includes every song from the band’s first two EP’s. They were working on a third EP, when they decided to turn it into a full album and include the other 10 songs. They reordered the songs so they show up as tracks from EP 1, EP 2, EP 3, EP 1, and so on, but it does not hide the fact that two-thirds of the album is not new material. And one of the five new songs, “The Epilogue,” isn’t exactly unfamiliar either, as the leadoff single that’s getting decent airplay.

With a needlessly overstuffed album, it might be easy to overlook the fact that it is still a pretty decent work. The band has a dark but simple electro-dream feel to it, and it’s obvious that Moreno and Lopez are enjoying a break from the intensity of their respective primary bands. Moreno only screams in one song, and a majority of them are more mid-tempo. While Deftones and Far might be in a hurry to make a loud, electric point, the songs presented here build gradually to smoother, electro-based climaxes. Some don’t build at all, staying put in a moody but accessible base.

So the album is very conflicting – it’s good, and fans of the hyper-specific genres that Crosses fall into will likely enjoy it. It’s got all the negative emotions you’d expect from a Deftones album, and never wallows in it. It has energy, but not too much. It’s just that the album is too long. It hovers around an hour, and it starts to get a little too repetitive around the halfway point. What should be a saving grace, the original and instrumental pseudo-interlude “†,” doesn’t show up until track 13, where feels a little more wasted. On an album with a number of pre-established songs, it would’ve been better to only take some from each EP. Still, it’s a solid debut. And there is some promise – the album’s two best songs, “The Epilogue” and “Bitches Brew” – are two of the new ones. “†††” might not win over any fans to dream-pop or dark electronica, but fans of the genres should find the album to be a quality release.

Modern Baseball – “You’re Gonna Miss It All”

(Photo Credit: bandcamp)

Grade: A-

Key Tracks: “Fine, Great” “Your Graduation”

Coming in at 12 tracks over only 30 minutes, Modern Baseball’s new LP might seem like a no frills, no punches blast of energy. But it really isn’t – the band takes their time on their new album. Their previous LP, “Sports,” was already one of the better albums of the whole 4th wave emo/pop-punk movement going on right now, but “You’re Gonna Miss It All” goes far beyond it. This album has a lot of depth and clarity, cementing itself directly in between emo and pop-punk, taking the best parts of both.

The album’s opener, “Fine, Great” starts acoustic. And although it builds into an electric chorus, it states the album’s tone – emotion over energy. Sure, later tracks like “Broken Cash Machine” and “Charlie Black” up the volume and energy, but only as the band sees fit. The band switches from big choruses to slower, acoustic rhythms at the drop of a hat, but does it seamlessly. The almost contradictory natures of the songs adds a complete, succinctness to the album. Where many bands in this movement have stuck to their sound (and done it well!), Modern Baseball have gone beyond themselves and expanded into foreign territories.

“Tryin’ hard / Not to look like I’m tryin’ that hard / Failing miserably at everything including that” opens the song “Two Good Things.” There’s a lot to be said about the vocals and lyrics on the album. The lyrics on the album are appropriately honest – as poetic as the Front Bottoms, and less hazy. The band seems to have the nailed the whole ‘realistic devastation’ that is common among emo bands today. And the vocals – refreshingly – are very clear, thanks to some clean production. While bands like Dads and TWIABPAIANLATD have even more devastating lyrics, they’re often lost in the more guttural vocals.

The album encompasses both pop-punk and emo at it’s finest. It’s simple but devastating, and sounds made by some average people just sitting around, encompassed by unexplainable (or totally explainable) emotions. Personally, I have been heavily into the 4th wave emo thing happening, and while I’ve been fond of Modern Baseball, I hadn’t loved them like I do Dads, the Menzingers, or Snowing. This album will definitely change that. Let “You’re Gonna Miss It All” become a forefront in the genre. The album can build you up and knock you down in exactly 30 minutes, and it’s both diverse and coherent. The album’s only real fault is that so many of the songs end so soon – there’s only one song over three minutes. And “I want more” isn’t so much a fault of the band as it is the listener. Modern Baseball have moved themselves into the forefront of a very packed genre.

If you like this, try: You Blew It!’s new record, “Keep Doing What You’re Doing,” almost as good as this one.

-By Andrew McNally

together PANGEA – “Badillac”

(Photo Credit: stereogum)

Grade: B+

Key Tracks: “Offer” “Depress”

together PANGEA’s previous full-length, “Living Dummy,” released when the band was still known simply as PANGEA, is an album I’ve listened to more times than I can count. It’s cohesive, fun, loud, silly and has low-key production – everything you want from a garage rock album. And every song is unique enough to make a perfect listen. On “Badillac,” the band – with a new name and on a new label – aim to diversify their music, while keeping a cohesiveness. “Badillac” isn’t as good as “Living Dummy,” but it still hits that goal.

The first song on “Badillac,” called “Alive,” sounds ripped out of rock radio instead of a California garage. It’s almost a mission statement – that the band is branching out and expanding their sound. The production is upped, although the vocals are still beautifully unintelligible sometimes. The songs are, at times, louder than ever before, or softer. More acoustic elements are incorporated, as is straight rock songwriting. The band explores their own sound, ending with a collection of songs that are more diverse, while still cohesive. The songs on “Badillac” don’t feel as related as they did on “Living Dummy,” but they don’t try to. The band set out to make more well-rounded songs, and they’ve done just that.

From a lyrical standpoint, “Badillac” is not as strong as “Living Dummy.” I’ll never forget the latter half of the first verse of “Make Me Feel Weeeird”: “Let’s talk about you now / What kind of guy is he? / You say he hates fags / Well I think he’d like me / Get bent / Get bent.” I’ve always loved the bluntness of the verse, but the lyrics are vaguer this time around. Simpler song titles – “Why,” “Alive,” “River,” “Offer” – symbolize this. The songs on “Badillac” are not as instantly memorable as before because of it. Not entirely, of course. “Badillac,” “Offer” and “Cat Man” still grab pretty quickly. But the album’s one major disappointment is the move towards more conventional lyrics.

Still, “Badillac” is a great release and will hopefully propel the band onto a bigger stage. It’s fun and it’s easy to revisit many times – all of their music is. together PANGEA are making their own thing out of garage rock, going beyond all limitations without losing the spirit. They’ve made a new identity and sound, while still resembling the old PANGEA. Hopefully they’ll keep the trend up – this could be their year.

-By Andrew McNally

Against Me! – “Transgender Dysphoria Blues”

(Photo Credit: consequenceofsound)

Grade: A-

Key Tracks: “Transgender Dysphoria Blues” “Drinking With the Jocks”

In a small number of scattered homes throughout America, there are sexist Nazi punks who have to wake up every morning and draw over their Against Me! tattoos with sharpies. There is a truly despicable branch of people known as Nazi punks, who love any political punk band and can wrongfully relate the band’s liberal politics to their own hateful ones. Nazi punks have been taken on before – notably here and here – but “Transgender Dysphoria Blues” is an indirect strike. Against Me!s first five albums were sharply political and tackled political issues more directly than almost any other band. But this is their first album since singer Tom Gabel came out as transgender and announced she would be living as Laura Jane Grace. And as one of the first successful transgender singers, and certainly the most famous one in the punk community – this becomes an incredibly important album.

Grace’s transition is addressed in the majority of the album’s songs. The two opening tracks, “Transgender Dysphoria Blues” and “True Trans Soul Rebel” are the most direct. “You want them to see you like they every other girl / They just see a faggot” she sings on the title track. The album perfectly balances the line between heart and anger; each song is a lesson, an attempt to teach shitheads that don’t understand the transgender life. It borders on a shock lesson – “I want to piss on the walls of your house / I want to cut those brass rings off your fat fucking fingers” she sings on the closer, “Black Me Out.” “Drinking With the Jocks” is a pounding track about recognizing differences, and “Unconditional Love” is a brutal, self-deprecating song about loving someone with identification issues. Tracks 5 and 6 are likely to go down as two of the best titles of the year – “Osama Bin Laden as the Crucified Christ” and “FUCKMYLIFE666.” It’s shocking, even for them, but it’s necessary.

Unfortunately, some of the songs don’t hold up simply on a musical standpoint. While all good on their own, some of them blend together a little too much. The album’s middle sags under songs that have the energy of classic Against Me!, but don’t have the unique songwriting. This might be reflective of a band that has kind of fallen apart. Since “White Crosses” in 2010, two members of the band quit. Famous punk drummer Atom Willard was brought on for percussion work, and Grace just handled bass herself (except NoFX’s Fat Mike, who shows up on two tracks). Still, Gabel’s voice was always very strong, and that hasn’t changed through the transition. Grace’s vocals are strong and have a wide range.

When “White Crosses” came out, it was preceded by an exceptionally boring single, “I Was A Teenage Anarchist.” It felt like a coda; the statement of maturity felt like the band giving up. But they’re recharged on “Transgender.” They have a renewed energy and a new MO. They’re hitting territories never hit by a punk band before. This might not go down in history like the band wants it to, simply because it doesn’t have their most memorable songs, but it should still serve as an incredibly important work and stamps an intense start to 2014. Grace is nothing less than a hero, and “Transgender Dysphoria Blues” acts as a proud, invasive, angry, heartful and necessary mess.

-By Andrew McNally

Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks – “Wig Out at Jagbags”

(Photo Credit: Pitchfork)

Grade: B

Key Tracks: “Lariat” “Surreal Teenagers”

At 47, Stephen Malkmus is very much an adult. He has had nothing to prove for many years, but that doesn’t mean he can’t still play music. His last few releases have served little purpose other than establishing Malkmus as the reluctant adult he is. And that’s where “Wig Out at Jagbags” stands – it’s youthful, but definitely adult. Malkmus seems like a ‘cool dad’ that will take his kids to shows and steal the neighbors wifi. His most well-known project, Pavement, served as an antidote to to those turned off by Nirvana and Sonic Youth in the early 90′s – deceivingly catchier, while still grungy and ear-aching. But now, Malkmus is comfortable making fun and diverse alternative that’s never great, but is always an easy listen.

“Wig Out of Jigbags” has a little of everything, like a less stoned Kurt Vile. “Lariat” has keyboards. “Houston Hades” heavily features a trombone. “Rumble at the Rainbo” is a punk blast and “Surreal Teenagers” has volume shifts akin to the Pavement years. The album feels like a mission statement – Malkmus is committed to having fun in the studio. The music doesn’t have much to it, and it doesn’t have to. These are songs Malkmus wants to record, and damn if he isn’t going to.

Lyrically, too, the album reflects Malkmus’s life. Some songs, specifically “Cinnamon and Lesbians,” are steeped in poetry, but some are simply referential. “Lariat” frequently mentions listening to music from the greatest decade, without ever saying what it is, and namedrops Tennyson and the Grateful Dead in the same line. The album has plenty of songs about age – reminiscent odes to growing up, and songs about accepting it when it happens. It’s a playful record, one that accepts adulthood with the stipulation of continuing to look at life through the eyes of an inspired teen. Malkmus is only aging physically, and it’s evident in his consistent releases. “Wig Out at Jagbags” won’t gain many new fans, but the payoff is Malkmus knowing his audience.

If you like this, try: Lee Ranaldo & the Dust’s “Last Night on Earth” – Another fun and eclectic album recorded by an alt god stripped of his band.

MisterWives – “Reflections”

(Photo Credit: fistintheair)

Grade: A-

I had to choose wisely on which review should start off 2014. I couldn’t start with just anything. For a while, I’ve had a note in my phone that just says “MisterWives.” I’ll come across it occasionally and sometimes I can’t even remember what it means. But I had the pleasure of seeing MisterWives, kind of by chance. A Manhattan Fitz & the Tantrums concert was being reviewed for a paper I was writing for, and the promoter threw in tickets to see the band Pyyramids. It was a 21+ show, so I had to go in place of the usual reviewer. So it was like a bonus concert to a bonus concert. I found them inherently intriguing in a way most opening bands can only strive to be.

MisterWives, and their new EP “Reflections,” are in the same realm as Grouplove. Their music is soulful and fun, combining many influences at once. The result is a very complex sound made out of relatively easy parts. Each of the six tracks on “Reflections” is centered around easy rhythms on conventional instruments. But while one song sounds soulful, the next is more electro, and when one is vocal heavy, the next is focused on guitar. It’s a surprising balance for an EP of only six songs. They maintain a relaxed, fun and folksy sound throughout the balance.

The standout of the EP is the title track, which relies on some strong vocals. It has a resounding pop vocal harmony over a slightly funky guitar, and it sounds primed for crossover radio. Each track on the album, in it’s own way, sounds ready for radio – it’s telling that all six songs range from 3:06-3:33. But they stand out enough to make for a promising debut. I’m a little ashamed I didn’t get to see their full set now, so I’d like to highly encourage you to seek out MisterWives yourselves. “Reflections” is a fun and carefree release with some genuinely original songwriting.

If you like this, try: Grouplove, whose song “Shark Attack” was #20 on my 2013 list. (Incidentally, Pyyramids also made the list, with “Don’t Go” at #28. That was a productive concert for me.)

-By Andrew McNally

Boston – “Life, Love & Hope”

(Photo Credit: bravewords)

Grade: C+

Key Tracks: “Heaven On Earth” “Sail Away”

Bands continuing on after the death a key member is no strange thing. Queen stumbled when they added Paul Rodgers, while Alice In Chains is continuing with a surprising successful replacement singer. These things happen, and whether you want to give the band the benefit of the doubt or not is dependent on the situation. Sublime should’ve stopped, while AC/DC only got bigger. But this feels different. “Life, Love & Hope” isn’t Boston moving on, it’s them remembering the life of Brad Delp. Delp was almost unmatched in rock – his voice was meteoric, screamingly loud and high while always gorgeous. And his style worked alongside Marc Bolan is ushering in rock’s glam phase. When Delp was found dead in his car in 2007, it was a crushing blow to a band that was already fading into the limelights. This album, through all it’s faults, serves as a parting piece for those of us that loved Delp. And Boston fans will want to give it the benefit of the doubt.

So let’s focus on the negatives first. There’s eleven songs on this album – eight if you don’t count reworked versions of “Someone” “Didn’t Mean To Fall in Love” and “You Gave Up On Love.” Of those eight, three have ‘love’ in the title ( that’s 5/11). There’s a lot of downtime on the album. Ballads galore, with plenty of acoustic and piano bits. Lyrically, it’s corny, it’s really corny. It’s called “Life, Love & Hope,” and my AP style insides are screaming. The glam scene that Boston had an early cog in was a largely corny genre altogether, so it’s expected, but it’s still a little over the top. And most of the album isn’t very memorable. While it isn’t bad, it’s best suited as background music and little else.

That said, Boston had one of the most definitively unique sounds ever, and this is Boston. The opening to the first song, “Heaven On Earth,” is a quick guitar slide that promises the listener that Tom Scholz has never turned his pedals off. It doesn’t have the energy of earlier releases, and there’s few (if any) solos on the album, but they still sound the same. Vocally, the album is all over the place, but it’s alright. Delp’s voice shows up on three songs, although two are previous recordings from reworks of songs on “Corporate America.” The other singers on the album, of which there’s five, simply aren’t as strong. The clever track listing lets Delp jump in at the right moments. But the addition of other singers, which include current lead singer Tommy DeCarlo, feels like a tribute instead of a fault. The album’s rough assemblage of new and old songs acts as a strong tribute to the fallen singer.

There is one new song on the album that Delp recorded after 2002’s “Corporate America.” It’s called “Sail Away,” and it’s in response to the government’s mishandling of Hurricane Katrina. It’s easily the best song on the album. Concise and a little more intuitive than earlier songs, “Sail Away” is a great example of how a band can still be on top of things years later.

It’s hard to believe that this is only Boston’s sixth album in thirty-seven years. I was co-runner of an embarrassing Facebook page in high school called “Boston should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” (that has since been removed). My music tastes have grown and are completely removed from what they used to be, but I continue to love Boston. Maybe because they’re named after my home city, but something always draws me back to them. And while “Life, Love & Hope” has many faults, it serves as a fitting tribute to the late Brad Delp, and as a positive notch in the history of a very interesting band.

-By Andrew McNally

Human Colonies – “Demo EP”

Grade: B+

Human Colonies, a four-piece out of Bologna, Italy, have a sound that’s a healthy mix of shoegaze and dream-pop. Their Demo EP manages to showcase a few different influences over just four songs and fourteen minutes in what’s a promising debut. The band consists of Giuseppe Mazzoni on guitar and vocals, Roman Dagner on guitar, Davide Hare on drums and Sara Telesca on bass.

The EP’s first track, Sunshine Jesus, actually starts with a more traditional rock beat, courtesy of the rhythm section. The vocals are buried under a wall of fuzz in a typical shoegaze sound. But, with the driving beat and the short 2:21 length, it comes off as a unique, shoegaze/pop-punk hybrid track. Follow-up “Hey You” has a much slower tempo, with vocals just as distant. The song feels a little too restrained, although it opens up to a full band feeling in the last minute. The third song, “Falling Deeper,” might be the best of the four, taking on a more rigid, post-rock sound. It’s a tense song, and almost totally devoid of lyrics. The band instead really explores the space while confining themselves to a repetitive rhythm. The song hovers much closer to post-hardcore than to shoegaze. Finally, “Cross” is the most shoegaze-resembling song on the EP. It’s a very slow song that makes use of the non-stop guitars to build a relentless wall of sound. It’s a little draining, in the way shoegaze should be.

The band has a surprisingly polished sound, for a young band. They probably benefit from having an intentionally fuzzy and distorted sound, but the production sounds better than expected. Throughout the EP, they really explore their surroundings, bringing together a bunch of hyphenated sub-genres into a good listen. Because each song focuses in a bit of a different direction than the previous one, the flow between tracks is a little jaunting. Luckily each song engages quickly so it really isn’t a major issue. All in all, it’s a great demo, and one I’d recommend.

You can find the EP on the band’s bandcamp and soundcloud pages, and you can find them on Facebook.

If you like this, try: Pity Sex’s “Feast of Love.” They can get a little repetitive, but it’s another shoegaze crossover album.

-By Andrew McNally