Yo La Tengo Will Kick Your Ass

Yo La Tengo does not get enough credit.  Sure, they have been indie rock darlings for years, but to me they should be bona fide rock stars.  They have been around forever, dating back to 1984; they have released 12 studio albums, 4 compilation albums, 12 EPs, etc.  Unfortunately, they have never really achieved much commercial success and are what most people call “critics’ band” for writing excellent songs.  They do have quite the cult following, though, which is why they have been able to sustain for so long.

The band is primarily three members:  Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley (drums, piano, vocals), and James McNew (bass, vocals).  The trio has been in place since McNew took over bass duties in 1993.  Their writing style has continued to evolve as they have grown older, from garage rock in the early days to folk rock to experimental rock now.  They have even written songs for soundtracks, mostly in the last decade, which helped lay the groundwork for the record I am reviewing.

# 188 – Yo La Tengo, I Am not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass  (Metascore = 85)

“Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind”, the opening track, is an experimental rock sound with distorted bass and guitars jamming on a straight-from-the-catalog-of-Velvet-Underground hook.  Mostly this is a jam song, because there are few lyrics over the 10:47 it takes.  “Beanbag Chair” couldn’t be more different from “Pass the Hatchet”.  Outside of the guitar pyrotechnics of “Hatchet”, “Beanbag Chair” features pounding piano chords while Kaplan quietly sings about personal reflections.  “I Feel Like Going Home” continues this quiet section of the album (sung by Hubley).

“Mr. Tough” is a bouncy tune that sounds like it would be right at home in the Spoon catalog or performed by Huey Lewis.  For some reason I envision Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head arguing on the Toy Story films when I hear this song.  “The Race Is on Again” brings us back to the pacing from “Pass the Hatchet”.  “The Room Got Heavy” sounds like a precursor to music performed by the Jack White vehicle the Dead Weather (great example would be “60 Feet Tall” or anything off of Horehound) with its droning guitar motif and screeching organ blasts.  Then the band does another 180 with “Sometimes I Don’t Get You”, a piano-driven song of sadness in one’s inability to understand his companion.

After the long instrumental “Daphnia”, the band swerves into ‘60’s pop “I Should Have Known Better”, a rambunctious song about knowing there are better ways to do things than the way the character does (getting into fights on trains, giving the finger to people driving cars).  The fun continues with “Watch Out for Me Ronnie”, which I recently heard on Sirius XMU (great channel by the way).  They switch gears again with the country rock swing of “The Weakest Part”.

My biggest issue with this record is there’s a start-stop-start again-stop again thing going on.  While the songs themselves are interesting, the critics’ assessment that the band is dipping back into their song catalog to explore seems accurate since the sounds bounce around like they do.  The New Music Express critic felt like the band was on autopilot, and this seems true, too.  The 85 Metascore seems a stretch here despite the strength of the songs individually; as a whole, the album is not.

The Strangeness of a Band Makes for the Strangeness of an Album Name

Dave Longstreth is the bones behind the band the Dirty Projectors.  The lineup for the band has changed from its humble beginnings back in 2002 to the lineup there today.  Longstreth experiments with the sounds he wants to achieve in his songs.  The themes on the albums have been all over the place, from creating a concept album built around musician Don Henley (you remember him—“Boys of Summer” and the Eagles) to doing an album of Black Flag covers.  The band has been prolific in releasing material—seven full-length albums in as many years.

Longstreth and company started developing their characteristic sound on the EP New Attitude (2006).  On there they started to incorporate the vocal interplays and guitar interplay that would expand in later albums.  The band currently features multiple vocalists, two guitarists, a bassist, a drummer, and a multi-instrumentalist.  Longstreth will modify the band makeup whenever a certain muse affects him.  The Dirty Projectors album Bitte Orca (2009) received strong reviews at its release and is the topic of this entry.

#190 – Dirty Projectors, Bitte Orca (Metascore = 85)

“Cannibal Resource” is such a sweet song to start the album.  What I find most appealing is that it is a simple rock song yet features dense harmonies supported by harps and choppy guitars.  Longstreth weaves the lyrics through the harmonies and guitars in a way that reminds me a little of the Flaming Lips’ The Soft Bulletin.  “Temecula Sunrise” opens with a folksy guitar riff.  Listening to and reading the lyrics I almost feel like Longstreth is going stream-of-consciousness (“Definitely you can come and live with us/I know there’s a space for you in the basement, yeah/All you gotta do is help out with the chores and dishes.”) on us.  The music is so unorthodox in how it’s performed, with stops and just random restarts.

A few songs into this album and you really can’t pin the music to any specific type of rock.  At moments the guitars sound folk Led Zeppelin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_Zeppelin_III), but at other times the band sounds like Animal Collective (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merriweather_Post_Pavilion_(album)). And I haven’t felt turned off by any of the sounds because they all seem to gel so well.  There is an element of the baroque in all of the songs being fused with rock, particularly “Two Doves” and “The Bride”.  The album is as pleasing to hear the music as it is to listen to the lyrics.

I’m really kind of blown away by this album.  Perhaps lyrically it’s not as interesting as a Hold Steady record, but musically this is a well put-together record that meshes different elements into a unique way.  There really aren’t any songs that I didn’t like, which is rare considering I usually find something I don’t like.  Ok, perhaps the last three songs are not as good as the first six, but they’re not bad songs.  “Fluorescent Half Dome” is too slow for the rest of the album, like Longstreth is meandering along to a finale.  But really that’s a small quibble.

The Bug

The Bug is one of the incarnations of British musician, record producer and journalist Kevin Martin.  He has used many different monikers to release music that he has created.  Usually each moniker is a different style of music that he’s doing, whether it be dub, jazzcore, industrial hip hop or dubstep.  Martin plays a multitude of instruments, including the saxophone and synthesizer, and is also a turntablist.

For the Bug, Martin gets his musical influence from dancehall, noise, grime, and hip hop (think more like Dizzee Rascal).  Martin first started using the Bug moniker in 1997 when he released Tapping the Conversation, an alternative soundtrack to the Francis Ford Coppola film The Conversation.  London Zoo is the third album to be released under the Bug moniker and is the subject of this writing.

#24 – The Bug, London Zoo (Metascore = 90)

I wasn’t immediately turned on to Dizzee Rascal until I gave his album Boy in Da Corner a second chance.  This will be probably the third time I have heard this record, though the first in probably a year.  “Angry” features reggae artist Tippa Irie; the track mixes the reggae rapping of Irie over a club beat, giving the song what I call a “head nod” effect.  This is the dancehall sound I mentioned earlier.  “Murder We” features Ricky Ranking and continues the dancehall sound that was used in “Angry”.  “Murder We” is a statement song if you listen to the lyrics, with Ranking rapping about people dying and how political despots make him want to lead a rebellion.

Deep down this record is rooted in political and social turmoil around the world.  The singers/rappers reflect on war, bloodshed, inner-city issues, and topics that are as relevant today as they were when this record was released in 2008.  “Insane”, featuring Warrior Queen, sounds like it would fit just as well on an M.I.A. record.  Flow Dan pummels in “Jah War”; the theme of this song should go without saying.

Martin puts together a mixed palette of sounds to complement his singers/rappers.  The sounds range from sledgehammer-to-the-head dance to paced dubstep to atmospheric trance.  The sequencing of the record helps balance the sound so that the listener doesn’t feel overwhelmed and can understand the true meanings behind the tracks.  The final tracks tend to be drawn out, but “Judgement” does feature some interesting atmospheric sounds as the track closes out.

Overall I was more impressed by this record during this listen than I was other times.  I don’t think this record was worthy of a 90 Metascore, but I do believe it is a great record worthy of a higher score.  If you are interested in dub or dancehall or have an interest in post-rave music, this might be up your alley.

Chutes Too Narrow

The Shins are a band driven primarily by the musings of James Mercer.  Mercer grew up in a military family (his father was in the United States Air Force) who moved around frequently (he attended high school in England and Germany).  Mercer originally formed the Shins out of another band that he was a member, Flake Music, which was based out of New Mexico.  The Shins differed from Flake Music in that Mercer wanted to work on primarily three-minute pop songs with conventional chord structures.

Most of the original members have left or been replaced since they began back in 1997 with the exception of Mercer and bassist Dave Hernandez.  The Shins relocated to Portland, Oregon, and joined Sub Pop in 2001 and recorded three albums with Sub Pop—Oh, Inverted World (2001), Chutes Too Narrow (2003), and Wincing the Night Away (2007).  Chutes Too Narrow earned the band critical praise and also commercial success due to effects added to what they had done on Oh, Inverted World, including multi-layered lyrics and exploration into different song structures from the conventional ones previously used.  Chutes Too Narrow is the subject of this entry.

#43 – The Shins, Chutes Too Narrow (Metascore = 88)

Chutes Too Narrow opens with the poppy “Kissing the Lipless”, and right away you can tell the production is stronger than the Shins’ previous recordings.  All of the instruments are mixed very well; each instrument, from guitars to xylophone, is featured effectively throughout the tracks.  The album is filled with pop rock that ventures from driving acoustics to country-tinged guitar solos to pumping organ notes.

“So Says I” is an interesting song, with Mercer envisioning a world where the people are bound to the duty of living a boring life.  He sees the flaws in this system and tries to encourage his friends to rebel, only to realize that the “big ones eat all the little ones” and this exercise of rebellion is a boring idea.  “Young Pilgrim” provides us with the album’s title (“I fell into a winter slide/and ended up the kind of kid who goes down chutes too narrow/just eking out my measly pies.”

“Saint Simon” is my favorite track.  The song features strings and a steady guitar riff while Mercer and the band sing lyrics that cascade over the music.  This is followed by the catchy single “Fighting in a Sack”.  The pacing throughout the album for the most part follows the quick tempos of songs like “Fighting in a Sack”.  There are a few slower songs (“Simon”, “Pink Bullets”), but even they are at least moderately paced.

I have heard this album a few times but never really appreciated its sound, pacing, or lyrics like I have this time.  In the past I didn’t really pay enough attention to the lyrics, but this time I have a better appreciation of what Mercer sings about.  Sticking in the pop rock realm (as he mostly has) seems to fit him and his writings the best.

H.O.V.A.

Shawn Carter, aka Jay-Z, has been a titan in the rap community for well over a decade.  Since his record debut on Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z has enjoyed tremendous critical and commercial success.  He has also parlayed his music career to a very successful business career, having started his own record label (Roc-a-Fella Records), clothing line (Rocawear), and bar/restaurants.  But he could not have achieved this without having success as a rapper.

Jay-Z is known not only for his rhymes but his delivery.  Like many of the better MCs, he had to earn his keep through rap battles and guest spots before getting his own career off the ground.  His career took off towards the end of fierce divisions between East Coast and West Coast rappers with the death of his friend the Notorious B.I.G., who guested on “Brooklyn’s Finest” off Jay-Z’s album Reasonable Doubt (I suppose the division still exists, but after Biggie and Tupac died, that whole thing seemed to back off considerably).

Jay has released eleven studio albums during his career, and though he has “retired” to pursue more business interests, many people believe he could never really give up on his music and will ultimately be back.  His sixth album, The Blueprint (2001), is considered a modern hip hop classic.  The Blueprint is the focus of my next blog entry.

#59 – Jay-Z, The Blueprint (Metascore = 88)

I really did not become aware of Jay-Z until his third record, Vol. 2…Hard Knock Life, which is a classic itself.  There were hits galore on that record.  His following two were equally as popular though critically not as strong.  The Blueprint changed all that.  With The Blueprint Jay-Z took his raw emotions and poured them into his lyrics, responding to fellow rappers that had dissed him and critics who thought he was essentially pandering to one type of listener (mainstream listeners) over other listeners.  Probably the biggest motivation came from the rapper Nas, who first criticized Jay-Z with his song “We Will Survive”.  Jay-Z responded, and this fueled a feud that carried for a few years before the two resolved it in 2005.

The opening track, “The Ruler’s Back”, announces his return and his dominance in the rap game, smacking back at his detractors.  Backed by the Doors’ track “Five to One”, “Takeover” is a tour de force that openly blasts Nas and Prodigy from Mobb Deep.  He belittles Mobb Deep to the point of obsolescence while blasting Nas for his inconsistent albums after his own classic Illmatic.  To me any criticisms of Jay-Z going mainstream would be squashed by these two tracks because (a) he won’t back down and (b) his rhymes (references, style, etc) are just that good.

The next three tracks—“Izzo (H.O.V.A.)”, “Girls, Girls, Girls”, and “Jigga That Nigga”—are three of his most famous tracks, so I won’t bore you all with discussion on these other than to say the rhymes continue his lyrical excellence.  I will say, though, that The Blueprint features several popular producers who brought their own unique stamp to his sound.  Kanye West (the “everyman” of the time), Just Blaze, and Timbaland are just a few of the producers on the album.  Kanye West’s tracks in particular are very good, as are Just Blaze’s.  And the majority of the rhymes on the album are strictly from him, but he is joined on the track “Renegade” by Eminem.

Jay mostly focuses on life on the streets, but sometimes he reflects on relationships in the past and other issues going on.  “Song Cry” is a touching, autobiographical (?) song.  He raps on past relationships, having to hustle to survive, and how those relationships have come and gone.  “Song Cry” was the final single off of The Blueprint.  “Renegade” with Eminem has two rappers focusing on different issues; while Jay is rapping about the father that wasn’t there for him and the means he had to take to live, Eminem is rapping about how the public and critics perceive his music and lyrics.  Each perspective is unique yet intertwines if you think about it, because ultimately they refer to survival via means that are counter to what the public expects (hence “renegade”).

The Blueprint seemed to focus Jay-Z for his future success.  Why he ever retired is beyond me because is an incredible talent with interesting things to say.  If you are into rap, this record is a great listen.  The beats are all good and the rhymes are all very good.  It is tied together very well thematically.

Blues from Another Continent

The name Ali Farka Touré probably does not ring a bell with many people.  Until a few months ago, I had honestly never heard of him but saw his name appear twice on my album review list.  Internationally Touré is widely known for his musical contributions and collaborations.  He has received awards across several continents for his musical works.

He was born on Halloween in 1939 in Mali and passed away in March 2006.  His given name was Ali Ibrahim Touré and was the tenth son of his parents but first to survive infancy.  His parents gave him the nickname “Farka”, which means “donkey” in Malian, and this seemed to fit his demeanor musically—the donkey is admired for its strength, stubbornness and tenacity, all characteristics he employed in his everyday life.  He grew up as a farmer but was drawn to music at an early age despite his family not having any musical background.  The drawing power of music was so great that he persisted in learning to play despite his family urging him to seek better work.  His first instrument was a homemade djerkel guitar (one-stringed guitar).

As Touré got older, he mastered other native instruments and learned several different Malian languages while working various jobs and performing for different Malian ceremonies.  He began learning the guitar (the six-stringed version we all know) after seeing a guitarist performing with the National Ballet of Guinea.  He employed and modified the techniques he had learned in playing the other instruments to his playing.  All of this musical education he had attained helped him in writing original compositions for himself as well as for larger groups.  He even was able to work for the government in helping to develop Mali’s arts and cultural program after Mali gained independence from France in 1960.

In 1968 Touré along with two other Malian musicians was selected to represent Mali in an international festival to be held in Bulgaria.  It was around that time that a friend of Touré introduced American music, particularly James Brown, Otis Redding, John Lee Hooker and Albert King, to Touré.  Touré especially latched onto John Lee Hooker and the blues because he felt the music was the closest to his own music.  He linked Malian music to the blues and realized how strong and important that connection was (and still is).  In subsequent years he released his own records and pioneered three different styles of guitar techniques (Sonraï, Peul, and Tamascheq).  He stayed firmly rooted in the music that had influenced him during his life, choosing to ignore fame.

(I realize I’m giving a book report here, but bear with me.)

Though Touré had been writing music for years, he didn’t record his first album until 1976, and his recording career really didn’t accelerate until the early 1990’s, when he released four albums in a four-year span.  Overall he has recorded 19 albums, won two Grammys (the only African to have one two of these awards), and became more popular after his retirement and subsequent passing.  His album with Toumani Diabate, Ali and Toumani, was released after his passing and is next on my list.

# 41 – Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabate, Ali and Toumani (Metascore = 89)

Touré’s primary backup is Toumani Diabate on the kora, a 21-stringed bridge harp used primarily in West Africa.  Playing the kora sounds a lot like listening to a flamenco guitarist play.  Immediately upon starting the record, you can hear the cousin of the blues in the way Touré and Diabate play on “Ruby”.  The rollicking acoustic playing of Touré sounds reminiscent of the traditional blues music of John Lee Hooker or Muddy Waters (minus the singing).  “Sabu Yerkoy”, on the other hand, sounds more like island music, meaning Jamaican or Caribbean music, with its more pleasant tones.  “Samba Geladio” sounds similar to “Born Under a Bad Sign” by Albert King.

Throughout the record the musicianship is first class.  Both Diabate and Touré are masters of their instrument, and that mastery shows throughout.  There are few tracks with vocals, meaning the artists have to cover a lot of ground.  Even with both musicians splitting up in exploring their instruments’ sounds, neither loses sight of the direction the song is moving nor alters the sound that the artists are trying to achieve.  This is truly a pleasing record to listen to from beginning to end.

For some people, a mostly-instrumental album will probably not appeal.  But I urge anyone to give this one a try.  The record is just a pleasant listen all the way through and will introduce you to a new world of music that enriched our own part of the world.

Live Power

I have been on the fence about Nirvana since Cobain’s death back in 1994.  I was a freshman in high school when Kurt Cobain committed suicide.  At the time I was a big time Nirvana fan.  Nirvana’s music, along with Pearl Jam’s and countless other bands at the time, were very influential on me, helping shape the music I listen to and play.  I lived and breathed that music—not necessarily wanting to endure any emotional or physical pains, but I somehow related to it, got some energy from it.

But when Cobain died and the way he died, my attitude shifted.  I already knew about the drug addictions, the crazy wife, and other issues that had littered his life, but the fact that he took the cowardly way out has always bothered me.  Here was someone on top of the world but having a difficult time coping with it, and he could have just walked away or gone into hiding.  That I recall he never sought out any type of addiction rehabilitation or medical treatment for his physical woes.  Why not?  I guess that’s something we’ll never know.

I could go on for a while about this, but I’ll spare you all in this blog.  Since then, DGC Records has released a few compilations of live and studio material.  Some of that has been stalled due to legal battles between Courtney Love and the surviving members of the band, but fortunately some stuff has at least trickled out.  One of the best of the bunch is on my list to hear.

# 7 – Nirvana, Live at Reading (Metascore = 93)

I will say right off the bat that of all of the albums I have heard since starting this blog, this is one of my favorites and one of the best.  Part of this is personal bias (see above).  But really the recording is in great shape and contains some of the best known material of the band’s career.  You have crowd noise throughout, but it doesn’t impede the overall feel.  Speaking of the crowd, this recording comes from Nirvana’s performance at the 1992 Reading Festival in Reading, England, United Kingdom.  This would be at the height of Nevermind and the b-sides release Incesticide.

Musically, the band sounds unbelievable.  I cannot mention enough how great David Grohl is as a drummer.  Sometimes I’m disappointed he plays primarily guitars on the Foo Fighters’ records, because he is a ridiculous drummer!  I have always thought this and will continue to think this.  Krist Novoselic thumps the bass guitar with authority, providing Cobain with the necessary support to fuel the songs.  Cobain’s guitar work is also very strong here, though at times his solos meander and frequently seem off kilter.  And his voice at this point is scratchy and harsh, but you never have a problem really understanding him.  The wear and tear of the road has certainly taken its toll on him.

As I mentioned earlier, this album pulls together some of their best known songs in their live form.  Super hits such as “In Bloom”, “Come As You Are”, “Aneurysm” and “Smells Like Teen Spirit” are all here.  They also include a few album sides here—“Drain You”, “Been a Son”, and “Lounge Act”, to name a few.  The listener also gets early live takes on songs that would come out with their release In Utero—“tourette’s”, “All Apologies”, and “Dumb”.  Of all of the songs here, my personal favorites were “Aneurysm”, “School”, “Lithium”, and “On a Plain”.  But the focus of this set is primarily Nevermind (I failed to mention that songs from Bleach are also here).

For diehard fans of Nirvana, this record is right up your alley.  The recording is so clear for a live album and really presents the band in an amazing light.  For newer listeners, the album presents many of their best known songs in one place.  For someone like me, this is a reminder of how powerful this band was in its heyday.