Jake Bugg – “Shangri La”

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

Grade: B+

Key Tracks: “Slumville Sunrise” “What Doesn’t Kill You”

When Bob Dylan went electric at Newport Folk Festival, he shocked audiences and divided his fanbase. Bugg, the 19 year-old from the UK, might just be trying to do the same. His self-titled debut came out in Britain this week last year (and in April in America), but he’s already got his second album out. The leadoff single, “What Doesn’t Kill You,” is single-handedly louder than any song from “Jake Bugg,” sounding more like a 70′s garage-punk song than a 60′s rock-and-roll one. There’s more electric on this album, and there’s more balance. It’s a fun, nostalgia-driven album with no real low points.

The average length of a song from “Jake Bugg” looks to be around 2:30-2:45. On “Shangri La,” it’s closer to 3:00. It’s not much of a difference, but it shows. Bugg expands on this album. While his first album was full of enjoyable ’60′s throwbacks, it got too repetitive. “Shangri La” has a balance between quick, energetic blasts and well-developed ballads. “All Your Reasons,” the longest song across either album, even allows for a lengthy musical bridge. And while some of the album’s opening tracks are a little louder and faster than his previous songs, the album ends with some songs that are slower and softer.

Bugg’s influences are defined here – he was raised on classic rock and garage rock. It’s just as evident here as it was before, and it makes for a delightful throwback. There’s plenty of artists doing 60′s nostalgia, but with their own modern flairs. Bugg’s only real flairs are a combination of older influences, and crisper production (courtesy of the ubiquitous Rick Rubin). Otherwise, his simple and energetic music actually sounds original amidst a sea of bands trying to be more and more complex.

It’s still a little much – it’s a great listen that doesn’t take up much time, but there are still some moments that get a little repetitive. The album’s midpoint has a few tracks that are great on their own, but don’t particularly stand out on an album format. Still, that barely deters “Shangri La” from being a great and varied album. It’s an album that won’t get old fast. Pretty much everything works on “Shangri La,” and things are looking up for the young Jake Bugg.

-By Andrew McNally

Some Quick Reviews – “Other Albums”

Sometimes, I’ll listen to a new release and definitely feel ways about it, but I just can’t quite put them into words. So here’s some quick blast reviews because there’s been a number lately that have been worthy of praise but that I haven’t been able to come up with reviews of:

Swearin’ – “Surfing Strange” – B+:  It’s tough to call this album ‘punk,’ even in an era where the definition of the word differs person to person. It’s pretty, often soft and incredibly different from song to song. What it is, really, is great songwriting. The Crutchfield sisters (Allison, in this band, and Katie, the sole member of Waxahatachee) have yet to put out a remotely subpar album between them. Swearin’ is one of the best bands around today, so take note.

Haim – “Days Are Gone” – B+: As a whole, the album seems really repetitive. Every song sounds pretty similar. But when you listen to it track-by-track, you’ll realize that each song has a lot of time and effort on it, and that this trio of sisters are very talented songwriters and musicians. It almost sounds like music your parents like – and it probably is. But it’s catchy and original, give them your time.

The Naked and Famous – “In Rolling Waves” – B-:  “In Rolling Waves” isn’t a unique album, and it doesn’t try to be. It’s just a collection of largely good, dance songs. The album isn’t very memorable, but it’s easy to enjoy. “Hearts Like Ours” is one of my favorite songs of the year.

CHVRCHES – “The Bones Of What You Believe” – A-:  Much in the vain of the Naked and Famous, every song on this album is synth-driven and it all kind of sounds the same, but it’s an incredibly energetic album for something so catchy. Very great debut.

Tancred – “Tancred” – B-:  “Tancred” is a pretty great blending of emo, punk and folk influences. Everything sounds great on the album – it’s just all over a little too soon.

Best Coast – “Fade Away” – B: Being someone that’s not a big fan of the band, and given that it’s an EP, I couldn’t accurately say why I really enjoyed this release. But it’s just an entertaining listen, a good step for the band. Their songwriting has improved consistently, and they’re feeling comfortable as a weird, garage-rock/dream-pop mix.

Parquet Courts – “Tally All the Things That You Broke” – B+: This follow-up EP to their debut (which also came out this year – one of the best albums of the year) slows things down a bit and gets more detective. Even though it’s unexpected, it all works. Parquet Courts, a throwback garage band out of NYC, are a band I consider to be one of the best in American music today. This EP only bolsters that.

Chumped – “Chumped” – A-: It’s tough to stand out in pop-punk, but Chumped’s energetic and smart music make for a release much better than most of the schlock in the genre. It’s another great debut in an already pretty full year. Also, they’re great people. That always helps.

AFI – “Burials” – B-: I started writing a review for “Burials” the day it came out. It’s a few weeks later, sorry guys. What I had said so far was that AFI, for the first time in their career, sound like they have no barriers to conquer. So they’ve combined their 90’s hardcore punk with their ’00’s emo into what’s a largely entertaining album. It’s arena-rock ambitions are on an awful level similar to Muse and the Killers, but the band doesn’t always go there. When they’re just being themselves, it feels comfortable and zeitgeist-less, and it feels right. They stray away from that comfort zone too frequently, but it’s got all the gloom you expect from an AFI album, with a renewed energy.

Death Grips – “Government Plates”

(Photo Credit: Pitchfork)

Grade: B-

Key Tracks: “You might think he loves you for your money but I know what he really loves you for it’s your brand new leopard skin pillbox hat”  “Birds”

Let me say that I was one of the many people complaining that last year’s album “The Money Store” felt too conventional. Sure, it had some of the best songs the band has recorded, and it still felt like genuine Death Grips, but there was that worry that signing to a major label had influenced the band to gravitate towards more radio-friendly hip-hop. Well, we were proven wrong later that year by “No Love Deep Web,” as the band leaked the album online just to spite EMI (and the famously explicit cover image). Well “Government Plates” is the most experimental album they’ve done yet – but it goes in the other direction. For the first time, MC Ride and Zach Hill take a back seat to Flatlander. The music is the focus on this album, and while it’s still urgent and shocking, it doesn’t exactly feel necessary.

My favorite Death Grips song is “Blood Creepin’,” the last song on their original (and perfect) mixtape “Ex-Military,” pretty much because it’s their loudest song. MC Ride’s scream-rapping over Flatlander’s alternately pretty and distorted synth is just a pure assault on the ears. There’s no assaulting on this album. MC Ride is barely present on some songs. It’s all about the experimentation, and Flatlander does a decent job staying abrasive without ever treading into EDM or anything, but the band could’ve pushed a little farther. The opener, whose title is taken from Bob Dylan’s “Leopard Skin Pill-Box Hat” is so drenched in a synth rhythm that it’s impossible not to dance, with your mouth on the floor. But the next song, “Anne Bonny,” just doesn’t live up. For the first time, the album feels centered around a few songs instead of a cohesive effort. The pre-released “Birds” is certainly a stand out, subtle but the most experimental song on the album. And they end strong, with the winding “Whatever I Want (F**k Who’s Watching).” But the songs in between should be better. They’re never bad – they’re just sort of there.

The best example of how different this album is would be the song “Big House.” The song starts with a loopy, 80’s synth rhythm. Despite being under two and a half minutes, MC Ride doesn’t show up until the :52 mark. There’s a lot more music on this album, as the group further continues to question what it means to be a hip-hop band. It was inevitable that they would investigate the other side of the spectrum. MC Ride and Zach Hill being less of a presence on this album feels very intentional, because it’s just as challenging as anything they’ve done before. While it’s not challenging on the ears, it shakes the very foundations of hip-hop by having the frontman often take a backseat, and to have songs drop senses of rhythm for experimentation.

That said, I’m really not on board with the lack of Zach Hill on this album. He’s barely present. He’s easily one of the best drummers working today, and he could’ve done some very original work on this album, but there’s so little percussion.

It has yet to be announced if this is an actual Death Grips album or if this is the soundtrack they’ve allegedly been working on for Zach Hill’s film. Frankly, it could go either way. It almost feels like a soundtrack – it’s got a slight disconnect amongst the songs, with a strong beginning and end – but it’s a good listen no matter which it is. I can’t say Death Grips fans will love it on first listen, and I didn’t. But it might grow after some revisits. It’s just as different as everything they’ve done prior to now – they’re making the same statements. It isn’t quite as enjoyable, but it’s certainly not bad. They’re not songs you’ll be singing to yourself, they’re not songs that EMI would approve of, and they’re head-scratchers. And really, that what Death Grips is striving to be. The album doesn’t play out like it hopes to, and it’s more unmemorable than memorable. It’s still Death Grips, though, and by this point, I don’t think I could live without them.

Lady Gaga – “ARTPOP”

(Photo Credit: wallpaperswala)

Grade: D+

Key Tracks: “Venus” “Swine”

There’s a piece in some corner of the MoMA that’s a light, plugged in and emitting a low strobe, on top of a piece of wood and a tire. Some people might call it a true artistic endeavor. Some, including my normally artsy self, will just call it stupid and self-indulgent. That’s what Gaga’s third album intends to be – something to take in on both a superficial and an artistic level. But it’s really only enjoyable at the most superficial basis. Sure, it’s an alright listen, but to try and analyze any merit would just be a waste of time.

Gaga said she was inspired by the word “Artpop,” and felt it reflected what the project is. She also said it’s a “reverse Warhol” formula and a “celebration and poetic musical journey” with “a lack of maturity and responsibility.” I don’t exactly know what “reverse Warhol” is supposed to mean, but this isn’t it. Warhol’s work is full of immaturity. For “Empire,” he filmed the Empire State Building for eight hours, as it did nothing. “ARTPOP” is actually an embracing of everything Warhol was about – fame, loose caricatures, controversy, and a disconnect with the general audience. Except there’s no art here.

The first track, “Aura,” is one of the album’s more interesting songs. It’s about taunting the audience by promising them looks into the artist beyond the work. But it’s an EDM track, simply. Zedd and Infected Mushroom collaborated with her on it, and while they’re great at what they do, there isn’t exactly much artistic merit in it. It’s club beats. The album’s first half is full of this frustration – songs that think they’re experimental but are just club-ready doses of EDM, electronic and pop. Most of the earlier tracks are great listens. They’re booming jams, even bigger than what she’s done previously. Somewhere along the way, the music loses it’s touch. The album’s second half is almost totally forgettable. It’s not as catchy, and although it’s more the faults of the vocals, it’s completely ineffective pop. “Swine” has a spine-tingling keyboard rupture, and R. Kelly duet “Do What U Want” has some sweet R&B. But those aren’t enough to save the album’s dragging second half.

Lyrically, Gaga has fallen under whatever caused Jay-Z’s “Magna Carta Holy Grail” to be so irrepressibly bad. There’s a total disconnect to the audience. Gaga’s two previous albums have been so, so good because she created huge club songs while still sounding like someone you could call up to have lunch with. She was easy to relate to. Here, though, she’s not. Two straight songs are called “Donatella” (as in Versace) and “Fashion!” She’s fallen prey to Jay-Z’s ‘If I sing about luxury, people will respect me’ train of thought. Nearly every song is just basic club lyrics. The R. Kelly duet, an intended sexy song, is made creepy by the presence of R. Kelly. Only two songs explore any sort of topic – the decent “G.U.Y.” looks at male submission in sex, and “Mary Jane Holland” is a cliche and trite look at marijuana. “Venus,” the album’s best song, is the only really poetic track. Everything else is just simple rhymes.

I didn’t find anywhere to work this in but I still want to mention it – there’s one track called “Jewels N’ Drugs” that has a few notable rap guest spots. The last is from Twista, and I’m just really glad to see him still popping up in places; I don’t think I’ve seen him on a track in years. He hasn’t lost anything – he still raps at a world record speed.

So “ARTPOP” is really a total misstep. Not artsy, sometimes not even catchy, and unintentionally alienating. This is why I chose the image that I did for the review.  It feels experimental, but there’s nothing artistic about the album, it’s really just Gaga. Any experimentation has no real basis or reason. Some of the songs work, a lot are at least enjoyable, and some are just bland and useless. Diehards will eat it up, those looking for a dance record will be more than pleased, but those looking for the promised experimentation will only find a light on top of a stick and a tire.

-By Andrew McNally

Veenstra – “People & The Woods”

(Photo Credit: bandcamp)

Grade: B+

Key Tracks: “I’m Sorry, I’m Lost” “The Hollow Realm”

“People & The Woods” is the third album in a trilogy – you can find my review of the second album, “Six Months of Death,” here – and it largely feels like the ending to a progressing narrative. It does what any finale to a trilogy should do, it kicks it up a notch. The album, much like the two previous, is wickedly lo-fi. It was all written and recorded by Francois Veenstra, and it often has the tone of an ambitious solo project. The trilogy isn’t exactly a happy one, as this album deals with finding yourself suddenly alone. While maybe not as existential of a topic as before, it’s one that’s just as striking.

This album has more of a band feel to it, although it is still a solo act. There are full band instruments on more of the tracks than before. For a finale, Veenstra wanted to go for a more cohesive feel. The album has a great balance because of it, with shorter, more ambient pieces intersecting some more traditional tracks. And the heaviness of the album’s story gets transferred through the varying volumes. Each sound, be it guitars, vocals, bass, drums, all are elements of the story. They’re never working against each other, instead complementing each other and working to fill a story. He continues to show an ability to switch up an album before any certain idea gets too old, providing for a very satisfying listen. It’s interesting that the album has just as much of a dreamy feel, despite the added instruments. Even with the increase, the album feels more sparing, more distant than before, and it helps it to feel just as lonely as the character.

The only real criticism I can muster is a slight dissatisfaction with the final track, “Mirror Lake.” Veenstra’s longer songs have often been some of the bigger opuses of the albums, but the song is instrumental and softer. On a purely sonic level, I was a little disappointed in a more subdued track to end the trilogy. But even then, I understand it on a level dealing with the album’s dark themes. Having a lighter, more ambient finale is a little haunting when you take the tone into account. Otherwise, I think it’s another solid experimental, lo-fi album. It won’t appeal to everyone, but it’s very good for those that it will. It’s a great finale, full of existential dream-pop and lo-fi rock that’ll likely stick in your mind for a while.

The album is available here.

-By Andrew McNally

M.I.A. – “Matangi”

(Photo Credit: 514blog.com)

Grade: C

Key Tracks: “Bad Girls,” “Bring the Noize”

There’s a line between controversial art for the sake of making statements and helping causes, and controversial art just for the sake of controversy. There’s a reason we follow Banksy’s every move, and there’s a reason why we left Marilyn Manson by the wayside many years ago. This is a line M.I.A. has been straddling for years, landing on both sides. And that’s just what this album does – it falls on both sides. Some tracks are musically abrasive and/or lyrically riotous. Others fall into the “we really need to do something” type of (l)ac(k)tivism. It’s a mess, and the amount of what works to what doesn’t is probably even.

The first real song on the album (after an intro), the title track, starts with a long segment of M.I.A. just naming countries of the world. There doesn’t even seem to be any point – Canada gets included. Canada doesn’t really have any of the problems M.I.A. is usually rapping about. Many of the tracks feel less resilient, they’re not calls to action but just recognition of the world’s problems. So they seem prodding and controversial, but they have nowhere to go. Also, given some unexpected problems I’ll get to, some of her references are just outdated. “Y.A.L.A” is the biggest example – one of the better songs, a direct response to Drake’s “YOLO” phenomenon, but it’s a phenomenon that’s already dead and has already been spoofed (by the Lonely Island).

Musically, the album is ambitious, maybe even to a fault. Beats drop away, volumes and tempos fluctuate wildly. It’s abrasive, and although it suffers from too many ideas, the ideas she had on paper were definitely successful. The album’s early tracks, and “Y.A.L.A” and “Bring the Noize,” even lack rhythms at times, jumping wildly from idea to idea. And with M.I.A. rapping over all of it, it’s a glorified mess, one that’s a lot more practiced and perfected than it sounds. “Matangi” doesn’t hold the tone, though, there’s a lot of more relative conventional songs that kill any kind of flow the album has. The last few songs sputter to a mediocre finish. Two duets with The Weeknd are wasted on boring songs (the first of which, as I was also wrapped up in an article on “Better Call Saul,” I forgot I was listening to). The better songs musically are able to grab current EDM and dance trends and turn them over into very original, often loud tracks. It’s inconsistent and sometimes boring, but the tracks that work musically are quite a marvel.

The faults of the record aren’t necessarily M.I.A.’s fault – she started recording the album in 2010. It was originally supposed to be released last December, before Interscope shelved it for being too upbeat (can you imagine?). So the album’s frustrating delays don’t help the quality (and it’s something to keep in mind when listening). Also, in a moment that falls way, way on the wrong side of the controversy for a cause vs. controversy for controversy debate is M.I.A. working with Wikileaks leader/convicted molester Julian Assange. Assange helped her write the album’s dumbest song, “aTENTion.” It all feels like a plea for, ugh, attention, with no real artistic merit. And that’s reflective of the album – it’s listenable, some songs are great, but it’s so inconsistent and groan-worthy that it just can’t stand up to her earlier work.

-By Andrew McNally  (Post #100!)

Eminem – “The Marshall Mathers LP 2”

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

Grade: A-

Key Tracks: “Rap God,” “Evil Twin”

Sequels are bold claims. Sequels can seem like an easy way to grab an audience. “Hey, you liked it the first time, how about we do it all again?” But sequels demand the same quality as their predecessor, and rarely deliver. For every “Terminator 2″, there’s three “MIIB”s. You could argue that this is Em’s third sequel – “Recovery” followed “Relapse,” “The Eminem Show” was followed by “Encore.” But this one’s different, for two reasons. The first LP came out in 2000, and it’s been a long 13 years since then. Also, there’s the title – fans were expecting another messy and jaw-dropping album of Eminem rapping about himself and how he is about to fly off the rails. And, well, he delivers. In fact, he delivers almost completely consistently in what’s one of the best rap albums of the year, hands down.

What made Eminem so popular (and controversial) in the ’90′s was his mixing of humor and very, very violent lyrics. And this LP, nostalgia or not, is full of both. He comes out of the gate on a 7+ minute opening track “Bad Guy” threatening to bury two different people alive in a song where he twice gets to a screaming level. There’s a sound effect of him killing people in a skit that follows. On one of the better tracks, “Brainless,” he laments on how if he had been smarter growing up, he would’ve become a criminal (and namedrops plenty of famous ones). And in the intense and affecting finale, “Evil Twin,” he raps about growing up with his wild anger tendencies. Even at 41, his internal anger issues still sound horrifyingly believable.

But it’s not all violent – there’s humor, both dark and laughable. The deliriously enjoyable “So Far…” sees him rapping about being approached by fans when he’s trying to do remedial tasks like take out the trash (not clean his closet, unfortunately), all set over a sample of Joe Walsh’s “Life’s Been Good.” He raps like Yoda over a sample of the Zombies’ “Time of the Season” on the song “Rhyme or Reason.” And the namedrops and references are as on par as they were in the 90′s. He quotes the famous magnets line from Insane Clown Posse’s “Miracle.” There’s just an endless supply of clever lines. “I’m Lysol / I’m household” is one of my favorites.

The album is not without it’s faults – two major ones. The first is the length. This album is 16 songs and 78 minutes. I can see why it was never cut down, nearly every song is gold and not a single moment is wasted, but it still feels far too long. A premium edition of the album runs at 21 songs. This may actually warrant a double album, because none of these songs should be cut out. The other problem lies, surprisingly, in the production. It’s slick, of course, but the music behind Eminem is often just loud enough that it’s tough to actually hear the man himself. With Dr. Dre’s (still alive) and Rick Rubin’s names all over the album, it’s pretty disappointing that the balance is off so frequently.

One six-minute track on this album is called “Rap God.” That’s a boastful claim, but that’s what this album is – it’s Eminem. He’s running the show. His rapping sounds better than it ever has, even in his early years. There’s one point in the song where he’s rapping so fast that Twista is being put to shame (remember him?). Em’s name is on the album’s title for a reason. There’s only a handful of guest spots – two from Skylar Grey, one from Nate Ruess (of fun.), a forgettable re-pairing with Rihanna, and one with Kendrick Lamar. Lamar – who is seen as a rapidly rising star – is the only other rapper here, and he’s kept in place by a more wild Eminem. We may have written Em off, or even forgotten about him, but there’s no denying he’s back. And he’s still rap royalty. “The Marshall Mathers LP 2″ isn’t perfect, but as far as sequels go, it’s bordering on “Godfather Part II” in a world of “Police Academy 6″s.

If you like this, try: Kanye and Jay-Z have abandoned their throne – it’s open. Em’s return was surprising, but one of the other viable candidates, Drake, is just as moody, shocking and thought-provoking. I recommend his very recent “Nothing Was the Same.”

Arcade Fire – “Reflektor”

(Photo Credit: basedonnothing.net)

Grade: A-

Key Tracks: “Here Comes the Night” “Normal Man”

*I should clear the air about something first – Arcade Fire is my favorite band. Their music speaks more to me than almost all of the other hundreds of bands I like combined. Sorry if that’s upsetting, I know how pretentious they can be, but they could release an album of someone mowing their lawn and I’d love it. I tried not to fanboy too much in the review, I hope I did okay*

This is the divisive record. “Reflektor” is the Arcade Fire record that will separate the die-hards, the casual fans and the naysayers into their respective parties. Some longtime indie lovers are uncomfortable by Arcade Fire’s commercial success, and fans of popular music are never sure what to make of the group’s theatrical performances. But those unsure will either embrace “Reflektor,” or find it too pretentious, too overblown to be what it is. Thankfully, Arcade Fire always know when to draw the line, and we’ve received a massive, long album that covers all ground and only rarely feels unwelcome.

Throughout their first three albums, Arcade Fire kept getting related to David Bowie, although there was never any clear reason why. Lyrically and vocally, Win Butler kinda resembled him, but the very folksy album “The Suburbs” disrupted most of those comparisons. “Reflektor,” though, opens up why the connections were made in the first place – they are a multi-faceted band who approach tough topics with grace, and who aren’t afraid to get very soft, very loud, very spacey or very grounded in acoustic. “Reflektor,” produced largely by electronic demi-god James Murphy, might be the ‘Ziggy Stardust’ era for the band, down to giving Bowie himself a cameo line in the title track. It’s space-age, much more electronic than anything before. The band’s violinist, Sarah Neufeld, doesn’t even show up on the album and wasn’t used in promos. It feels science fiction-y at times, with epic lyrics and lengthy, spacey songs.

“Reflektor,” despite being 13 songs, spans 85 minutes over 2 discs. So, Disc One – hail the rhythm section! Arcade Fire’s early live shows were so riotous that the members would have to wear helmets. Years later, they’re headlining arenas instead of destroying clubs, but this album finally shows that energy. Only “Neighborhood #3″ showed that energy over their first three albums, but “Here Comes the Night,” “Normal Person” and the intro to “Joan of Arc” show a band about to bring their music off the rails.

Disc Two is less intense, with six slower songs. Not every track is necessary, as they all build up as spacey ballads. The intro and outro serve different purposes, but tracks two through five all hover around the six minute mark and, although they’re all great on their own, the disc feels bloated with each one. “Porno” has some interesting music, but is lyrically a little, uh, limp. “Afterlife” is the stand-out, the prettiest and the most harmonizing. Final track “Supersymmetry” is another slow one that’s followed by a ‘secret’ instrumental outro, but one that’s more appreciated when you pretend it’s all one eleven-minute, slowly-fading finale.

The album’s one big fault is the overly subdued second disc, but there is also a distinct lack of Regine Chassagne. She doesn’t sing lead on any tracks, and two of her appearances are in French (again, an alienating album). With continuing themes of discord and reluctance, we’d expect to hear more from her but she only makes brief back-up appearances. Win, as usual, sounds strong but confused and his storytelling lyrics are consistently engaging.

“Reflektor” is an opus. Most bands, after winning a Best Album Grammy, could take a backseat (no pun intended) and tread into safety for a little while. Instead, Arcade Fire have made one of the most ambitious albums of the year, setting out to prove a lot more than even their own previous works. It’s huge, it’s serious, it’s intense, it’s kind of fun and it certainly isn’t perfect – but it cements them as one of the leaders in alternative, and it serves to further polarize fans and critics.

If you like this, try: Some sort of homemade playlist of the Flaming Lips, LCD Soundsystem, the Joy Formidable and Interpol. Preferably all playing at once.

-By Andrew McNally

Los Campesinos! – “No Blues”

(Photo Credit: Pitchfork)

Grade: C+

Key tracks: “Cemetery Gaits” “Avocado, Baby”

Do you remember being happy? Do you remember what it feels like? On “No Blues,” the Welsh (not Spanish) indie sextet Los Campesinos! seem to have remnants of happiness. The band that once sang about Spiderman and the seductive nature of envelopes in fast, poppy songs with a double-dose of cheer and enthusiasm, ended up getting very sad very quickly. I’ll put on their 2010 album “Romance is Boring” when I feel like listening to the saddest thing in my entire music collection. And while that album is perfect, their 2011 follow-up “Hello Sadness” just wallowed in it’s own misery, permanently midtempo and self-indulgent to a too abrasive point. “No Blues” seems to be a turn-around of sorts – there’s glimpses of joy, even if they feel nostalgic. There’s still no cheery twee-pop, but there’s a diversity and a more then-and-now, complete sound that was sorely lacking on “Hello Sadness.”

The first few tracks aren’t really remarkable. They’re still wandering around in a medium tempo and hazy confusion. LC! are at their best when they’re on a mission – which always results in either intense, slow songs or quick and bouncy ones. These early meddling ones, like most of “Hello Sadness,” don’t seem to know what purpose to serve. “For Flotsam,” “What Death Leaves Behind” and the misplaced acoustic track “A Portrait of the Trequartista as a Young Man” don’t exactly start the album off on the right footing. But the repetitive and engaging synth riff on “Cemetery Gaits” is hauntingly nostalgic – like a musical equivalent of looking through old photo albums. This track, more than any other on “No Blues,” portrays the album’s theme of longing nostalgia.

Not every following track lives up, but many do – “As Lucerne / The Low” displays the same sentiment. “The Time Before the Last Time” acts as a quiet and begrudging acceptance of the present, before the rousing (if not overlong) finale of “Selling Rope (Swan Dive to Estuary).” “Avocado, Baby” even borders on fun, something we haven’t gotten from the band since the morbidly entertaining “We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed” album.

The beauty of LC!’s albums is how there’s always a few stand-out tracks that can be repeated endlessly. “You! Me! Dancing!” didn’t get old before Budweiser commercials, and it still hasn’t. “Miserabilia,” “Straight In at 101,” even “By Your Hand” from “Hello Sadness” are ones that will never get old to me. This album will probably take a few more listens to get into, but I can really only see “Cemetery Gaits” and “Avocado, Baby” being songs to listen to frequently. The album still meddles, and even when it’s being thematic, it isn’t as catchy any other LC! album before it. The metaphors and honest lyrics are all still there, as is Gareth Campesinos!’s reliant vocals. It just all feels a little too introspective; a little too personal. It’s certainly an improvement over “Hello Sadness,” thematically and musically, and the tonal shifts back towards lighter times is very welcome. This is by no means a mediocre album. And with a few more (definite) listens, the grade might get bumped up. It’s just some of the magic over the first three very, very different albums seems to have gone away, and they’re only semi-trying to get it back.

-By Andrew McNally

Pearl Jam – “Lightning Bolt”

(Photo Credit: antiquiet)

Grade: C-

Key Tracks: “Mind Your Manners” “My Father’s Son”

Just last week, I was driving when I did something I never do – I turned on the radio. One of Boston’s classic rock stations, WZLX, came on, and they were playing Pearl Jam’s “Daughter.” I can only imagine the meeting they held to determine whether or not early 90′s grunge acts now constitute as “classic rock,” but as someone who was three when that song came out, I’m uncomfortable with this progression. Now in 2013, Pearl Jam have released “Lightning Bolt,” and many critics are praising the album’s misalignment to today’s radio rock. But “classic rock” comes to mind, because it’s structured just like a classic rock album. And that’s really not a good thing.

Even bandwagon Pearl Jam fans know of Eddie Vedder’s punk attitude, much stronger than that of all his grunge peers. Their two most punk songs – 1994′s “Spin the Black Circle” and 2011′s non-album track “Ole,” have been completely upstaged by lead-off single “Mind Your Manners.” The rapid-fire song is almost like a lesson to punk bands, and serves as one of their best songs in years. But the album’s strict lack of any sort of narrative leaves the song out of place on the album. The first three tracks (including “Manners”) properly build the album up, and they’re all pretty decent songs, but the energy is completely killed by the ballad “Sirens.” Not only is the song extremely corny, but it stops the vibe the album gets into, and everything after it feels like disconnected songs. They put what they feel are the best songs at the beginning and fill the rest with the lesser tracks, with no sort of flow at all. It’s just like a classic rock album.

The band, of course, sounds great. They’re all great and diverse musicians. And Vedder’s growl-singing sounds as good now as it did in ’91. Even on the otherwise terrible “Sirens,” Vedder sounds phenomenal. One standout track is the eerily foreboding “My Father’s Son,” because of Vedder’s consistently strong lyricism. But they sound a little too comfortable. They’re not trying to prove anything, and the result is a bunch of bland and unrelated songs that aren’t anything original or memorable.

It’s actually a little tough to review this album, for two reasons. One, I’ve loved Pearl Jam for many years and I can’t stand saying anything bad about them, and two, I truly don’t remember this album even though I just listened to it two hours ago. It’s so uninspired that you come off only remembering the best and worst tracks. The first three and the ballad closer “Future Days” are worth the listen, “Sirens” is not, and everything in between is just dull and mid-tempo. It’s easy on the ears, especially for fans, but it’s instantly forgettable and dull, and its got a frustratingly  misleading name.

-By Andrew McNally