An Interview with The Black Swedes - Tempest

The Black Swedes are a relatively new band to the Indie rock scene in Seattle, WA, and Tempest is their first full length release. The band is composed of two full time members (Ian Bell (lead vocals-guitar) and Matt Benham (guitar - backing vocals) and a cast of supporting performers that help flesh out their sound.

The Black Swedes New Album - Tempest - is all about atmosphere --- death, melancholy, subtle joy, and love all play parts on the album as well. Even though the album first appears thematically dark, the flourishes of strings and gentle guitar parts of Matt Benham help soften 'Tempest' into a moody yet beautifully introspective work.

The album begins with a lush guitar and string arrangement titled 'One' which settles the album nicely into the first full song in track 2 - 'Angel'. The song, with the help of Katie Freeze's tasteful string quartet orchestration creates a veritable pop-folk gem with Ian Bell's vocals gently pushing over the strings and wistful guitars.

'Please Let Me Down Slowly' is a gentle moment of reflection where the song slowly builds in intensity to a cathartic ending, while "I Would Only Love you More"

The only cover on the album, "Asleep" by the Smiths, is a moody rendition of the original, which captures the darkness which Morrissey embued in the track with lots of reverb. Bell's vocals help capture the quiet despair in the lines: "Sing me to sleep Sing me to sleep Im tired and i I want to go to bed Sing me to sleep Sing me to sleep And then leave me alone Dont try to wake me in the ..." The track almost seems to be whispering to you from a deep well. The Black Swedes version also includes the melody of Auld Lang Syne in the end with some bells which acts as a strange bittersweet moment on Tempest, where the narrator is comtemplating suicide while the joyful tune heralding New Years Eve echoes in the background.

Both 'One' and 'Six' are the only pure instrumental tracks on the album, and they help divide the album between the first 5 tracks and the last more diverse collection of songs at the end of the album. Six helps lighten the load a bit after the heavy, and emotional 'Asleep', however nothing really prepares the listener for the next track.

The darkest song on the album by far is "I Once Loved A Girl," which depicts the twisted imaginings of a scorned lover killing his ex-lover and her new boyfriend. Katie Freeze's string arrangement only help to increase the creepiness of track with screechy strings, and dark cello lines. Even after I spoke with Ian about this track, he admitted that it is particularly dark, and he even had a fan request that he never play it live because of its tone and message. The song has a certain tinge of Portishead to it as well.

Thankfully, the next track 'Power in the Union' is by far the most driving, rocking track of the album, even though like the rest of the album, it lacks a solid drum part. 'Mikayla' sounds nicely like Elliot Smith, and 'Peace' settles out Tempest gently with a solo by Ian Bell. The last line of 'Peace' seems like a quiet epiphany after the storm of the rest of the album, with all of its tempestous love, thoughts of suicide, anger, confusion, anguish... "If Peace is what you want from me, than Peace is what I'll be...."


Even though the album tends to drag into the depths of sorrow with 'Asleep' and 'I Once Loved a Girl' - the album is a solid, cohensive presentation, and is nicely balanced out with such tracks as 'Angel', 'I would Only Love you More,' and 'Mikayla'. Overall, Tempest, is a wonderful debut album for Black Swedes, and shows great potential for their music in the future.

I had the good fortune to be able to set up an interview with Matt Benham and Ian Bell and what follows is my conversation with them regarding Tempest:

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1.) When we initially spoke over the phone, you described the album as being an emotional journey in the process of getting over a girl -- do you mind elaborating a little bit more on this?

Ian: So I had been in a very close relationship with the same woman for roughly four years. As we began to fall apart I had just finished the last Sea.Mine release and began working on a new set of tunes. They were originally meant for my previous band to record but we fell apart at almost the same time that my relationship did. I went into the studio with a bunch of musicians that I really respected to record some of these songs. These session did not result in "Tempest" but it did solidify me and Matt as the Black Swedes. Those songs will actually come out later this winter as two EPs. Any who, the record is layered out at first in a reverse chronology of the death of that relationship. It starts with the good feeling of the instrumental. It then goes to Angel, which comes from a revelation I had after we had broken up. This angel spoke to me about how great things will get as long as I can learn to let go. The next song is more of a plead. The feeling was that since we had been together for so long I needed her to do me one last favor. That was to let me down as slow as possible. To be as gentle to my heart as she could be. These things are never what you hope them to be though in the end. Then track four is about the time before we broke up. It was going so poorly between the two of us but I would have stayed in it until my last breath. I felt that no matter how bad it could have gotten I would have only loved her more.

Matt: The same thing happened to me at roughly the same time as Ian. Both my relationship and my band Argo broke up simultaneously. My breakup wasn't as drawn out, but it definitely informed the feeling of letting go that I think is represented on the record. The song Mikayla was something I started for my ex, and then had Ian help, because we were basically telling the same story.



2.) So Ian - as far as I can tell, you are a nice, light hearted guy -- however a lot of these songs are so inwardly thoughtful and deal with notions of death, suicide, and forlorn love - to a degree they seem to be at odds with your outward demeanor -- what is your take on this?

Ian: I am relatively light hearted and for the most part I love to have a good time, but I have to deal with a few speed bumps. The songs are my way a processing the things in my life that I have very little control over. When I keep it all in I do become fairly morose, but as long as I can get it out and onto a record I am able to deal with the bad that life inevitably puts on your plate. I have also seen a lot of failed attempts at love through my close friends and family. I think that I have yet to see love out weigh the loss that I have seen. Kind of shitty.








3.) So one thing that is hugely apparent in the album is a lack of a rhythm section - no bass or drums. Are you guys planning on fleshing out your sound more in the future with bass and drums, or are you looking at keeping it to a more stripped down sound with two guitars and vocals? What are the reasons for your choice regarding this? Any personal animosity towards rhythm sections? :P hehe-

Ian: Yes I do have a bit of a love hate relationship with the rhythm section. Both of our band, sea.mine and Argo, broke up primarily due to the loss of drummers. Matt and I wanted to do something small, intimate and quiet. The rhythm section will be back soon though. We have already finished the sessions that will be our late winter EPs. Both of which will feature the drumming of Kaanan Tupper. He is a magnificent Portland based drummer who was last heard as a part of the Intelligence live set and on Jeremy Enigks record, World Waits. We are now working on getting our live band together for the EP releases. I believe we will end up being at least a nine piece; string quartet, bass, drums, piano, matt and I.





4.) How did you and Matt meet up, and how did the Black Swedes form? Furthermore, how did the name come about?

Ian: Matt and I met up through our previous groups. Sea.mine and Argo played two or three shows together over the years. At the end we were sharing a manager. I had booked a few days in teh studio to get a recording of other musicians first impressions of some of my new songs. I asked Matt to come in as the lead guitar player for those sessions. After both days went well I asked him to join the project officially. The name is from a lie I told myself as a child. I didn't know my father growing up, so I had no idea that his family background was of Jewish/Prussian descent. So growing up in a an all Scandinavian family I was confused about why I had olive skin. I told myself this story that my mom had said I was from a rare tribe of Black Swedes, just like there are black Irish and Russians. But the Black Swedes are rare and that is why no one knows about them. This lie probably was designed to counter act the idea that I was actually adopted, which was the story my brother was trying to get me to buy into.








5.)What influences did you guys have while working on the album? Any particular artists or bands which helped inspire you for the album?

Ian: I've personally found that the album sometimes has a sound like Elliott Smith, and Jeff Buckley. Matt and I both love Simon and Garfunkle, along with Elliot Smith and Wilco. I think that the most prominent influence for me at least was The Smiths and Nick Drake.





6.) As you mentioned previously, Track 5 - Asleep is a Smith's cover song from the album 'Louder than Bombs' - did you consider any other songs to cover for the album, and what reasons did you pick 'Asleep' as the cover to use on this album?

Ian:I have been a fan of the smiths for most of my life. Being the youngest of many many children, music was pushed on me at an early age. The smiths are what I clung to the quickest and I guess I never let go. Our producer Josh Evans had been making the case for us to try and pull off this cover some time by the time the tempest sessions were about to wrap up. Matt came up with an amazing guitar arrangement and I guess it just felt perfect to all three of us.

Matt: i struggled with this choice, as the piano version is very difficult to translate to guitar, especially for intuitive musicians like Ian and I. We started recording probably eight or nine times before we slowed it down to the tempo you hear on the record. I hadn't been swinging it as much and when we recorded it live, it didn't work. I think it turned out great, and can't imagine having to record it again. It was a little torturous for me.






7.) Goals for the future? With Black Swedes, what kind of a direction are you looking for with the band --- more players? musical direction?

Ian: We are very excited about this record. I think that it is the best album that I have been apart of since I first started playing. Our goal over the next season or so is to give those listening a sense of what we plan of doing over the next few years. We want everyone to see what styles and sounds we are interested in, what forms we call home. To do this we will be releasing albums fairly close together. This album is obviously a quiet, folk orchestral recording, but the next two EPs will be nothing like that. Those two recording were done with 6 piece bands and are done with an sense of improvisation. The songs venture a bit closer to the loud and fast but never fully reach that end. The records that we will begin recording in February will be a mix of the previous releases with the addition of quicker songs. We plan on using the same string quartet sound but will flush it out with the 6 piece used for the EPs. I think I will be a really good recording. After that release We will stay a full band for sometime. In the end Matt and I see ourselves as more a project than a band. We love Wilco and Radiohead but relate better to Tears for Fears when it comes to group function. We want to be flexible in our band make up to best serve each song and record.

Matt: Just a quick addition to this idea of a project rather than a band. We both were heartbroken when our previous bands broke up, and just realized how hard it was to rely on so many people. I think that's why I wanted to do a Simon and Garfunkel type thing where there were only two people in the whole friggin' thing, and it would be easier to play shows and tour once we got up and running.

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~Andrew D.B. Joslyn


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Kings of Leon - Only By the Night

I remember back in 2005 when Kings of Leon opened up for U2 at the GM Place Stadium during U2's North American Leg of their 'Vertigo' Tour, and I had the fortune to be back stage while Kings of Leon performed their opening slot.

At the time, I was completely unaware of who they were, and to be honest, disappointed and disturbed that they were opening up for such a huge international act as U2. It seemed like the band was misplaced and out of their league. After the show back in 2005, I researched the band more in depth and was seriously surprised to find out how big they actually were, and how much international recognition they had achieved. Even to this day, I think that same underlying notion hangs in my head - I'm still surprised how big they are.

Rolling Stone described the background of the Kings as, "the epitome of a mythological rock & roll story. The Followill brothers are sons of a preacher man who were raised on the road throughout the South, traveling from one Pentecostal church service to the next. They were shattered by a divorce, transformed by illicit substances and the stoner music of Led Zeppelin and rewarded with a Nashville record deal for their grinding garage-boogie sound and raw, Southern gothic lyrics. "

The Kings of Leon have a sound that derives from teenage angst, southern, garage, and hard rock blues. The sound that is produced is an off shoot of anthemic U2 vocals, mixed with lo-fi crunchy guitars, and driving drums. Dirty Rock and Roll in a nutshell. Their newest album - Only By the Night - opens up with a creepy and dark atmospheric rock track 'Closer' which then moves into a Radiohead-esque track 'Crawl' complete with lots of fuzzed out guitars.

The first released single of the album - "Sex on Fire" - is the first really catchy and solid gem on the album, and the Kings pushed it as such. This track definitely showcases the bands descent into over produced commericialized sound, and somewhat contrived - which they have been criticized for lately regarding this latest album.

Chris Jones of BBC Radio states that: "The one thing that really shows the band's confidence is their willingness to slow down and really attack these songs. Caleb claims that medication's effects influenced the writing and indeed, the droning insistence can be almost hallucinatory. Interestingly the first single, Sex On Fire - returning them to the fire and brimstone, gothic territory of their peripatetic father's preacher roots - is the one track that comes closest to the Strokes-aping sound that held them back in the past. But Caleb's muzzy, straining voice pushes them beyond arch post-modern irony from the big city. In interviews Caleb's talked about the boys tackling their ''roots'' again, and this album wears its colours proudly."

This is where things get interesting though - as Holden Caulfield in Cathcer in the Rye pointed out, "He's so good, he's almost corny, in fact. I don't exactly know what I mean by that, but I mean it. I certainly like to hear him play, but sometimes you feel like turning the goddam piano over. I think it's because sometimes when he plays, he sounds like the kind of guy that won't talk to you unless you're a big shot. If you do something too good, then, after a while, if you don’t watch it, you start showing off." With the Kings, it almost seems like with this album they fall prey to their own mythology and think of themselves as bigger than they actually are, and with negative results.

Taking into consideration that the band is ultimately huge in the UK, Australia and Europe, they play to fads and try and epitomize the juggernaut sound of U2 - and the comparisons between the two bands goes on and on and on. The song 'Use Somebody' sounds exactly like a U2 turnaround with thunderous cymbals, ohh's and ahh's and screeching guitars..... on 'Be Somebody' it sounds like yet another Edge guitar riff rip-off..... I don't need to go on. So are the Kings of Leon trying to be the Kings of Leon, or U2??? The album just seems to be a testament to the possible compositional erosion which the Kings of Leon might be facing... and it doesn't pose well that this is the first album which the band co-produced themselves.

"Speaking of unoriginal song writing, “Use Somebody” is another run-of-the-mill mainstream indie amalgam that subtly rips off a “Where the Streets Have No Name” lick for its supporting guitar line while Caleb squeaks about wanting to bone a random face in the crowd." - Filmore Holmes (Pop Matters)

Towards the middle of the album, the drive of the album falls short, and falls into a sonic lull between 'Manhattan' through 'I want you' - which makes it all-too-easy to just skip through to the driving 'Be Somebody' (track 10).

Filmore Holmes of Pop Matters further echoes my sentiments of the band: "They exist on and believe in their own hype, an intangible juggernaut stunningly and consistently supported by the UK and Australian media while soundly denounced by the North American bastion of indie taste Pitchfork, now for the fourth time in as many full-lengths with their lowest ever rating. Yet the many devoted street teams and pocketed critics always seem to drown out the few authorities willing to put the effort in to point out how average they truly are. Lucky for us, Only by the Night is the CD that will turn the tide on that cesspool."

http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/kings-of-leon-only-by-the-night

The real issue with the album is it becomes a matter of presentation, not the song writing. Their previous releases have all been good; the raw, edgy sound which they drew from their previous release 'Because of the Times' was an honest album, full of real emotion of not a bunch of hokum. What is scary to see with this album is after listening to it a couple of times, there isn't much to take away from it - stuff which emotionally sticks with you, or moves you.... it just seems like more formulaic tricks to expand their fan base and just sell more CD's.

Even though it has taken almost four years to grow on me, I can accept Kings of Leon as the hype juggernaut they are now; but even when they opened up for U2 years ago, I think my first impressions about them was not unfounded.

The Airborne Toxic Event

Recently a friend of mine, told me that she saw this band at 107.7 End Fest in Seattle, WA, and thought I would be into them. After grabbing a CD and listening to their tracks, I found that I enjoyed them.... but it wasn't because they were unique, but because they sounded like so many other groups which I enjoy.


The Airborne Toxic Event is an American indie rock band from the Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz that consists of singer/song writer and guitarist Mikel Jollett, guitarist and keyboardist Steven Chen, bassist Noah Harmon, drummer Daren Taylor, and keyboardist and violist Anna Bulbrook. Named after a section of the book White Noise, by Don DeLillo, the group brings in string instruments and keyboards, along with a standard rock lineup of guitar, drums, and bass guitar which has a baroque indie rock sound at times.

As I mentioned previously, the album itself lends itself to many contemporary popular artists. The themes and stories of the songs presented by Mikel and the Airborne Toxic Event are not new or significantly radical - however Mikel's lyrics have an ability to come across as articulate and poetic, and not vapid or pretentious as can be the case with many indie rock groups... unfortunately they aren't perfect by any means, and sometimes fall into the trap of trying to be way more deep than they actually are.

The lyrics and writing have Mikel Jollett to thank, the groups frontman, and band founder. Previously Jollett's forte was fiction writing, and he had also earned additional income as a freelance writer, contributing to organizations such as NPR, Los Angeles Times, Filter Magazine and Men’s Health.

The first song on the album, Wishing Well is unfortunately pretty predictable. Mikel Jollett has a whiny, angsty voice, which is precariously balanced between being way too emo and annoying, or dark, brooding and appealing. What always stands out to me in this album, the whole time is the lyrics. Mikel isn't a classically trained opera singer, however ONLY his voice can bring depth, and meaning to his words. Check this out:
"You wanna run away, run away
Just get on the fucking train and leave today
And it doesn't matter where you spend the night
You just might end up somewhere in a fight, in a fight
Or caught in your room on a concrete shelf
Fighting all alone, with yourself, with yourself
And you just wanna feel like a coin that's been tossed
In a wishing well, a wishing well." (excerpt Wishing Well - Mikel Jollett)

His sarcasm is apparent, and a lot of these songs on the album almost sound autobiographical.

As I stated before, even though the sound of the band, and the presentation are nothing new - (you can compare these guys to the Baroque indie sound of Arcade Fire; the minimalistic pop rock of the Strokes; the alternative sound of the Killers; and also the extravagantly emotional vibes of Conor Oberst and Bright Eyes) - the lyrics are where this album gains some ground.

Jollet's vocals are almost a little too low during the second song of the album - 'Papillon'. Furthermore, the lyrics in this song were a little too predictable and formulaic. If you broke it down into a poem, all the lines are pretty much AABB, AABB, etc. etc. etc. - with cute little rhyming ends to make the song flow musically and rhythmically.

"Then we're out the door in an hour more (A)
We stumble down from the second floor (A)
And we're swaying, braying (B)
We don't know what we're saying" (B)

And I wish I had the guts to scream (A)
You know, things aren't always what they seem (A)
When you walk away, I want to stay (B)
Don't leave me here to pace and pray (B)

Etc. Etc. - this is stuff you would learn in a Poetry 101 course, and I would have expected more from a seasoned writer like Mikel Jollett. However, I don't hate the song, and even though I can pick out a lot of stuff to criticize - it doesn't mean this is a bad album. The song is almost remarkably like The Strokes (Barely Legal anyone??)

Stand out tracks for me on 'The Airborne Toxic Event' were the single, 'Sometime Around Midnight', and the tracks 'Does This Mean You're Moving On?' and 'Something New.' Sometime Around Midnight, starts off with a moody string quartet which then drops off to a whispering guitar - with Jollett's sensitive vocals reaching out over the top. The song gradually builds through various musical tiers - complete with increasingly more emotional vocals and sweeping strings to make the song more significant. It's a great formula for getting people to feel that your music is more deep - and honestly it works for Airborne Toxic Event in this song. The whole song is about a night out turned sour when an ex squeeze walks into the room. It is an easily recognizable and relateable situation. Even though I've laid out the formulas and gimmicks they used in a negative tone, I really enjoyed the track and the lyrical journey which Jollett took me on throughout it.

By far, the jangly pop rock feel of 'Does This Mean You're Moving On?' is my favorite track on the album. The Drive and the almost self-mockery of the lyrics make it a worth while listen.

The song 'Something New' is a nice little interlude track in the latter part of the album, and Jollet's vocals with violist Anna Bulbrook are a beautiful mix.

Other songs on the album, 'This is Nowhere'(sounds a bit like the Killers), 'Missy' (Sounds like Conor Oberst, and Bright Eyes), 'Innocense' (sounds like Arcade Fire, Funeral)... are all predictable, but enjoyable.

Pitchfork Media's Ian Cohen gave a scathing review of Airborne Toxic Events album: "Throughout, the Airborne Toxic Event show a surface-level familiarity with early 00s critics lists, but aren't able to convey what made those much-lauded recods emotionally resonant. Can't convert unthinkable tragedy into cathartic, absolutely alive music like Arcade Fire? Just steal the drum pattern from "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)"? Can't connect with the listener with the same fourth-wall busting intimacy as Bright Eyes? That's when you trot out the run-on sentences and get all tremulous when you mean it, man. And that's just the first song."

He goes on to say:

"In a way, The Airborne Toxic Event is something of a landmark record....- often sounding more inspired by market research than actual inspiration. Congrats, Pitchfork reader-- the Airborne Toxic Event thinks you're a demographic."

Look here to check out the whole review: http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/145326-the-airborne-toxic-event-the-airborne-toxic-event

Even though I felt that Ian Cohen's depiction of this album was more of Cohen flexing his 'Critic Muscles' and bashing the LA Scene more than objectively looking at the album as a separate piece of art, Cohen makes some important points. Airborne Toxic event are nothing new. They can become quite formuliac, and play it really safe at times - pandering to previously established popular music. (as I mentioned previously, Conor Oberst, Killers, Arcade Fire, Strokes, etc.)

However this isn't a reason to hate them, or dislike the album. In fact, I listened to this album for a week straight and it never left my record player. I guess what really matters about this album is expectations:

The Airborne Toxic Event may not be as deep as they may want you to believe, and their sound might not be as unique as their publicists may want you to believe, but the Airborne Toxic Event are a good group. I would recommend this album to anyone who enjoyed any of the previously named groups which A.T.E sound like. It is almost certainly guaranteed that you will enjoy this group, and dig their sound.

On a side note - there Myspace is also a great place to visit. They have acoustic versions of all the songs from their current release, except 'The Winning Side' - all they all sound great. I almost wish that they would release a separate acoustic album with these tracks since I enjoyed them so much. Once the major label production and gimmicks have been stripped away, the band is solid, and has some real serious value to them. It just sucks that the label probably got carried away with making the album more 'marketable....'



I'm actually looking forward to their next release whenever that may be.

Ra Ra Riotous!

It has been an interesting phenomenon to see the emergence of the popularity of alternative instruments in the typical rock band format - not just as a novelty act, and mere ear candy like you get in studio albums and such - but alternative instruments becoming solid members of the band. For example, with groups like Arcade Fire, DeVotchka, Matt Pond PA, and the Decemberists, instruments like harps, violins, cellos, accordions, etc. are helping to expand on the archetypal rock sound.

A group out of Syracuse, NY, and contemporaries of the popular group Vampire Weekend, Ra Ra Riot is the newest Chamber Pop Rock group to hit the mainstream market. The upstate New York sextet recently released their first full length album 'The Rhumb Line' on August 19, 2008 to a generally welcoming reception. The album is full of nautical and dark themes such as death and water, but never gets too bogged down in depression, and has some light upbeat moments to help balance out the album.

I personally have to admit that I'm a sucker for groups which incorporate strings into their ranks, and as for Ra Ra Riot, the co-ed band has a cellist (Alexandra Lawn) and violinist (Rebecca Zeller). This supplementation adds a darker, more lush layer of sound to the group, which proves to be their secret weapon to their success. The song 'Too Too Too Fast' on the album strangely enough doesn't feature Rebecca or Alexandra playing prominently, and proves to be the dullest, and weakest track on the album. Without the prominence of the strings, the track begins to sound like a poor 80's covers, laden too thick with synthesizers to help cover up the lack of the strings.

One of my personal favorite tracks on the album is the song 'Ghost Under Rocks', which begins with a moody cello and bass line which helps introduce the album. The Chorus embodies the nautical death theme prevalent on the album with the lyrics:

"Here you are you are breathing life into
Ghosts under rocks like notes found
In pocket coats of your fathers
Lost and forgotten
All all all your soaking wet dreams
You've spent them
You have gone and dreamt them
Dry, now you ask your babies why, why, why"

The song was actually on the bands EP which they released before the death of their old drummer John Ryan Pike (who co-wrote a majority of the songs on the Rhumb Line Album.)The eerie thing about this track is that it seems to foreshadow the recent tragic death of John Ryan Pike who was found drowned early last summer after a show in Providence, Rhode Island. Even after the death of a founding member of the group, Ra Ra Riot soldiered on.

Other tracks such "Each Year" (with images of cemetery flowers) 'Winter 05,' and 'Dying is Fine' continue the darker motifs of the album. Dying is Fine, (the first single promoted for the album), pulls some of its lyrics from the e.e.cummings poem by the same name - and even though it appears macabre, it never falls too much into darker pessimism, and remains pretty optisimistic with the strings being upbeat and the lead singer Wes Miles vocals gently singing the lyrics.

Winter 05' written by the groups new lead vocalist Wes Miles is regal and has a tinge of 'Eleanor Rigby' in it as the violin and cello compose a wonderful baroque melody. Once again, the music helps disguise the darker meaning of the lyrics:

'If you were here/Winter wouldn't pass quite so slow/And if you were here/Then i'd have a choice to live not be alone/But instead I sit atop the crest/Looking down on the valley where the dead rest/And every morning I wake beside myself'

The lighter tracks on the album, like 'Can you Tell','St. Peter's Day Festival', 'Oh, La', 'Suspended in Gaffa' (Kate Bush cover) are a nice change of pace from the deeper songs of the album. The song St. Peter's Day Festival has a similar drive and beat like Vampire Weekend's M79, and this proves to be one of the shortcomings of Ra Ra Riot- they are too overshadowed by Vampire Weekend's previous success, and their lead singer Wes Miles, sounds way too much like Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend.

To sum up- Ra Ra Riots album is a nice little gem of chamber pop melodies - their supplementation of the strings in their arrangements helps set the band apart from other Indie Rock groups. Song wise, the album never becomes too dark or too bright and poppy to make it feel unbalanced - however I would be worried about this group becoming too 80's synthesizer, discotheque driven like their tracks (Too Too Fast, and 'Can You Tell' {Epochs Remix}) in future albums they put out.

~Andrew Joslyn

Summer Meltdown 08' - Part 2

Later on August 9, 2008 at the Summer Meltdown up in Darrington, Flowmotion headlined the entire festival Saturday night.


I've seen Flowmotion a number of times live before hand, and they always have a nice mix of original material as well as cover songs. Their set started off with a cover of "Sergeant Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band" right into "With a Little Help from My Friends." At first I was a little thrown off to hear covers beginning a set immediately.... however the effect on the audience was palpable since everyone was instantly electrified and dancing, even though the constant downpour in Darrington that night had not let up.

The epic moment of the set was when Flowmotion had the artist 'That 1 Guy' come out and jam with them during on of their songs. If you've never heard of That 1 Guy, I urge you to check him out online or on Youtube. I was honestly blown away by his presentation! Originally, That 1 Guy (aka Mike Silverman) was a bass player with extensive knowledge of electronics. Over time, he hand created his own instrument which looks like a giant metal question mark. It is a series of tubes, a bass string, and joints, with kick drum pedals all linked up by analog triggers... so whenever he hits, strikes, rubs or touches the pipe- depending on the location- it will trigger a digital signal which will create some bizarre sound, or drum sample. He lovingly calls it his 'Magic Pipe.' The concept of the 'one man orchestra' has never come so close to being a complete reality until I saw That 1 Guy.

Watching his solo was a totally different experience. Unfortunately since I was unable to come to Darrington until Saturday, I was unable to see his own solo performance which was Friday night... I hear it was incredible, and a sight to see! However, when he jammed with Flowmotion, it was odd to hear the band rocking out and than these bizarre noises, pops, grindings, stand up bass bowings all emanating from his 'Magic Pipe.' That 1 Guy is another one of those incredible musicians which has an eccentric marketing image - like Buckethead... which is strange to mention since they have been doing joint shows lately this past summer. That 1 Guys songs range from Weird Al Yankovic-esque parodies like 'Butt Machine', to unearthly sound scapes like "The Moon is Disgusting - because it is made out of Cheese." All in all, I feel the bizarre presentation is trivial and gets in the way of the music- but once again it is all highly memorable.



After That 1 Guy had left the stage, Flowmotion rocked the end of the set and the crowd exploded into applause -- Flowmotion were in their element, and this was their moment.

As the audience began to disperse yet another hidden gem of the Northwests music scene came out - AriSawkaDoria. Honestly I've heard about the band in passing a number of times during shows around town, but nothing could have prepared me for their set. AriSawkaDoria is essentially three extremely talented local artists that banded together for this group - KJ Sawka (the incredible Jungle Beat, Drum Machine); Joe Doria (one of the best Hammond B3 organists on the West Coast) and Ari Zucker (Guitarist and sampler.) Between the three of them, they created an acid jazz, techno, surreal sound. Their musicianship was flawless - however I had to admit that by this point the night, and the rain had began to take its toll - it was well after midnight, and I began to loose interest in AriSawkaDoria. Nothing against their sound, but at that point, it began to all blur together and I found I just wasn't in the mood for their set. I had wandered off at this point, however I instantly regretted my decision when I was informed that Blake Lewis had taken the stage and was singing lead vocals for the group on top of their powerhouse of sound. At this point, I gave up and wandered around the Meltdown during the late night before planning on falling asleep.



The very last planned performance of the evening was the All Star Jam - which grabbed up artists from a variety of different bands that had been performing at Summer Meltdown, and threw them together for a late night event. I stumbled into the tent where they were performing, trying to keep myself awake. The show featured members of McTuff (who performed Friday); That 1 Guy, Discs of Fury (who were performing Sunday Night); Viking from Delta Nove, Flowmotion, AriSawkaDoria, etc. to name a few. I was hoping for Buckethead to come out a do some face melting solo some time during the night.... but that never happened. At this point, I was seriously tired and out of it, but the real stand out moments were when Lee Oskar of the classic rock band War came out and did a cover of 'Low Rider' with the assembled performers. Also another highlight was when RL Heyer (the newest member of Flowmotion) came out a did a cover of Dear Prudence, and a rousing version of Hot for Teacher by Van Halen. The Beatles cover which the group did was touching and captivating - and emotionally raw. I talked to Heyer the next day about the performance and he admitted that he had two margaritas right before he went on stage. (well done) - He seriously kept my attention for that song with his guitar and vocals.

During the last song of the All Star Jam - I retired to my tent and passed out, lulled to sleep by the driving bass and reverberating screech of a guitar.


For over the last decade, Flowmotion have hosted this camping and music festival annually, and with each year the quality increases. Even though this year was my first year attending the festival, I thoroughly enjoyed the event. As a festival overall, Summer Meltdown is underrated by all means. The caliber of musicians which it brings in, Tea Leaf Green, AriSawkaDoria, Blake Lewis, Flowmotion, Buckethead, attests to the quality of the musicians which it invites. Between how the festival treats its audience with plenty of food, activities, events... etc. and how they treat their artists (and I can personally vouch for this)- the Summer Meltdown is a great Northwestern live music treasure which I hope continues to thrive moving forward.

When Sunday rolled around, it was time for me to pack up and leave Darrington and head back to Seattle -- I missed a couple of other great acts and to name a few, On the One, Blue Turtle Seduction, Discs of Fury, and Panda Conspiracy. Next year at Summer Meltdown, I sincerely plan on staying the full three days so I can experience the whole festival fully.


~Andrew Joslyn

Summer Meltdown 08' - Part 1

I had the pleasure of coming out to Darrington, WA for Flowmotion's Summer Meltdown 2008, which is a large northwestern festival crammed full of great musical acts from all over, especially drawing from the Northwest and West Coast rock/folk/jazz/jam band/world music scenes.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to get into Darrington until mid Saturday Afternoon (so I regrettably missed some of the great acts which the festival had on Friday including, McTuff, Tea Leaf Green, That 1 Guy, and Blake Lewis.) After my band had played I enjoyed the laid back set of multi-instrumentalist Dave Brogan, the drummer/occasional lead singer for Animal Liberation Orchestra (ALO) signed to the Indie Label Brushfire Records - Jack Johnson's label. He mostly sang lead vocals and played guitar during the entire set -- and it was nice and relaxing. To be honest, not a lot of it stood out to me though based on preliminary impressions- nothing against Dave Brogan, but his style of music, the 'jam bandy', Phish style, takes more than just a single listen to really appreciate, and it also can get pretty boring since it all starts sounding the same after 3-4 songs. I would recommend the ALO releases on Brushfire for sure, I just recently picked them up after coming home.

Moving onward, I caught only a part of the next band's set, Delta Nove, but was instantly impressed. With a combination of funk and World music, they got a hold of the audiences attention- unfortunately as I had mentioned earlier, I was unable to catch their whole set- and had to run set up my tent for the evening. In retrospect, and after having reviewed more of their music online, they are worth the listen! They have a huge roster of major bands they have opened for and have shared the stage with such acts as Michael Franti and Spearhead, G. Love and Special Sauce, Trey Anastasio (Phish), and a veritable who's who in the Jam Band scene around the country.

One of the main acts which I was really excited to see was Buckethead. The Man, The Myth, and the Chicken Coop. Interesting thing about Buckethead is that he has the most amazing chops when it comes to psychedelic 80's shredder guitar, but he has the most backwater, bizarre presentation on the stage and publicly. For those who don't know, Buckethead comes out on stage wearing a white porcelain looking mask and a KFC bucket - hence Buckethead. On his website he has some clandestine story about being raised by chickens in a coop etc. and he never speaks in interviews, except through a rubber hand puppet. I feel that all the eccentric presentation is unnecessary, and trivial, but then again it makes him completely memorable in the end.

His set, regardless of my impressions about his presentation and his image, was amazing! He came out and played solo on his guitar along with a band sampler which included pre-recorded bass and drum arrangements for his songs. Buckethead is undoubtedly one of the best 80's guitar shredders out there, and his live performance was fun to watch, even though a bit weird at times. At one point, he had an interlude where he did a nun chucks and robot dance routine for the audience... like I said, his sets are unconventional. However his skill is unquestioned with his face melting guitar riffs- even Guitar One voted him number 8 on a list of the "Top 10 Greatest Guitar Shredders of All Time". If you've ever seen him live, you'll know why!

After Buckethead's set, the weather had turned for the worse, and the whole Whitehorse Mountain Amphitheatre was drenched in rain. Jason Webley, a local folk-punk artist out of Seattle, kept the energy high and grabbed the attention of Buckethead's departing audience. Webley's set was choked full of accordion, gypsy craze, and plenty of crowd participation. I would have to say that Jason Webley, over the whole weekend was the king of crowd participation and keeping the audience involved with his onstage antics. At one point, he threw out bags of plastic bottles full of pocket change, which became rattles and shakers for everyone there. The staff at the Meltdown were probably having a freak out about all the plastic bottles, and having to clean up after the show -- but that didn't stop Webley. With the shakers rattling he got everyone to chat out, "TOMATO!" over and over -- and at the peak of this pseudo religious fervor a giant paper machee tomato was brought out into the crowd as an icon to stop the down pour. Funny thing, it actually worked for about ten minutes!

My favorite moment of the night with Webley was when he did his song 'Ways to Love,' when he got everyone to become his 'vocalized orchestra.' I've seen him perform once before Summer Meltdown, and as I mentioned before he doesn't cease to amaze me at how well he can get any room riled up with excitement and make them into his musical puppets. Always a good time. I haven't been able to hear his studio albums yet, but I'm looking forward to reviewing them in the near future.

My Morning Jacket - Their 'Urge' to Branch Out Falls Short

My Morning Jacket, which formed in 1998 in Louisville, Kentucky, has become a popular live performance over the last couple of years at such festivals as Bonnaroo, & Coachella. Stylistically the band draws on alternative country, southern rock (such as .38 Special), and indie folk rock influences.

Their recent album "Evil Urges" (fifth studio album) released in a firestorm of media hype, was supposed to be a branch out album for the group. Jim James, the front man for MMJ stated that the band wanted to get away from "normal rock and roll sounds" and emulate more of the band's live sound. Even though I respect bands that try and branch out, there still needs to be an element of cohesion with previous albums which allow new and old fans something to grasp onto. Unfortunately their new album seems to go into uncharted territory too much.

The album comes across as a risky attempt by the band, which doesn't serve to impress me much, especially after all the hype surrounding them with Bonnaroo and their terrific live performances at the Red Rocks, South by Southwest (and all the other huge live music festivals.) Rolling Stone had even given the album rave reviews as well, and I had picked up the album on their recommendation, however I found a lot of the praise misplaced with this particular album. Just listen to the song 'Highly Suspicious' and its incredibly annoying chorus and you'll see what I mean.

The album itself starts off with very surreal, spacey pop rock songs with the first three tracks: "Evil Urges", "Touch Me I'm Going To Scream Pt.1", "Highly Suspicious." Which leads me to the abrasive antics of the latter track which sounds almost like a bad Prince cover, and seems incredibly misplaced on the album as a whole. I am not a fan of Prince personally either so that didn't help. Jim James' uncharacteristically high vocals in the song, plus creepy laughter make 'Highly Suspicious' a highly undesirable track to listen to. Will Hermes of Rolling Stone pointed out: "nothing in their discography could anticipate a song like "Highly Suspicious," Evil Urges' biggest WTF moment. Squeaking out rhymes like "Home alone dotting your i's/Peanut-butter-pudding surprise!" in helium falsetto over boogie-rock guitar outbursts, drill-sergeant backing vocals and clipped drum spasms, it's better suited to an I Love the '80s! mix, set between "Little Red Corvette" and Devo's "Whip It," than to a My Morning Jacket album. (And, dude, I don't even want to know what a "peanut-butter-pudding surprise" is.) It's both hilarious and badass." I would like to agree with Will Hermes, but I don't. The track seems to drag down the album overall in my opinion, and would hate to hear it live, and with the audience chanting along the 'highly suspicious!' vocal line.

Thankfully the next couple of tracks, "I'm Amazed", "Thank You too", and "Sec Walkin" find the band tranversing more familiar ground with the Southern Rock infused jam band sound which made them famous on previous albums. Unfortunately they are not exactly strong songs either - with 'Sec Walkin' sounding like a 70's soul song with thick blatantly poppy choruses.

The track the 'Librarian', is a nice comtemplative moment on the album, which was one of my favorite tracks on the album. When the slide guitars laden with reverb and the string sections break in at about half way through the song, it is a nice relaxing listen. I found many opportunities to compare Jim James' vocals in this song to Robin Pecknold's of Fleet Foxes.

Another track which is nice and is reminscent of their earlier work is "Smokin' From Shootin' " the 12th track on the album, right before the long reprise of "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Pt.2." The 8:12 minute reprise track is actually my favorite on the album - it first starts off with fairy like keyboards, and synthesizers, which then break into a disco drum beat, and then into a reverby vocal line with Jim James and thick choruses with plenty of back up vocals. It grooves along nicely with driving bass and settles out the album nicely to its end, even though the majority of the tracks prior to "Touch Me I'm Going To Scream Pt. 2" were quite laborious.

Overall the album was hard to salvage any songs which would be worthy of more than a single listen. There was even songs on the album which aren't even worth a single listen, which I know is harsh, but 'Highly Suspicious' was a very grating song. "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Pt. 2", "Librarian", and "I'm Amazed" would be the only real songs worth taking away from this album - I would suggest just downloading these on iTunes and pitching the rest of the album, it was just too tedious to get through.

Fleet Foxes - Not of This Time

I just recently picked up the new album from Fleet Foxes, which I got as a recommendation from a friend.
The sound of Seattle's newest breakthrough act (recently signed to Sub Pop Records) is difficult to describe to younger generations without referring to the glowing sounds of the 1960's with such bands as The Beach Boys, The Zombies, and Crosby, Stills & Nash.

The Fleet Foxes, all Washington Natives (Robin Pecknold,Casey Wescott, Christian Wargo, Nick Peterson, and Skye Skjelset) describe their own sound as "baroque harmonic pop jam." The baroque part of their description stands out most to me. Even though they are a Seattle band, the group draws on influences as far ranging as the baby boomer record collections of their parents, classical baroque choral traditions, Appalachian folk, gospel, and old english folk songs. In the end the mixture is both different, and unique, however recognizable and seems timeless. The group almost seems anachronistic in the sense that it is difficult to grasp how such lush vocal harmonies and folk melodies could be spawned from Seattle, in 2008.

The frontman, Robin Pecknold has a vocal quality like their Seattle contemporaries 'Band of Horses' lead singer Ben Birdwell, and Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys mixed together. With respect to the songs themselves, and the new album, the lyrics are not necessarily deep or meaningful - however they don't need to be. The vocal lines (with amazing 3-4 part harmonies) draw a listener in and lull you into a rustic, pastoral landscape, of golden colors, and haunting melodies. Sound like an acid trip? Well, not quite, but their is something to be said for great vocal harmonies.

One of the songs that stood out strongest on the album was Blue Ridge Mountains (which has a wonderful vocal harmony beginning very remeniscent of Beach Boys - Pet Sounds), and the buildup to 2:03 when the drums break in fully into the song is beautiful. Another personal favorite was Tiger Mountain Peasant Song which is like an old renaissance baroque lullaby (L'homme armé esque); performed as a solo by Robin Pecknold.

The cover of their self titled debut album is a Pieter Bruegel painting from 1559 - called Netherlandish Proverbs. At first, the usage of the painting seems odd, and misplaced but after seeing the detail and colors of the painting, it almost seems like a nice visual representation of the sound which Fleet Foxes is able to evoke.

Still with all the rustic, pastoral references, and old 60's throw back stylings which this album produces... it is surprising that Fleet Foxes came out of Seattle and not some sunlit grove in the middle of the Appalachian mountains performing sunshine pop masterpieces.

-Andrew Joslyn

Viva or Death for Coldplay

Coldplay's fourth and highly anticipated album, "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends" comes at a crucial point in their career as well as the business future of their label EMI/Capitol.

During this day and age we have watched the gradual fall of the mega juggernauts of the music business industry as music becomes an increasingly digital media based enterprise, and the major labels are just slowly curling up and dying away as artists go independent or join up with indie labels.

EMI/Capitol, Coldplay's major label keeper, are treading on precarious ground right now. They are in the middle of restructuring - company bought out by a private equity firm Terra Firma - new CEO Guy Hands is on board - A&R department cut by 1/3, and also with the dramatic departure and huge success of Radiohead and their subsequent 'free content' download offering back in 2007 with 'In Rainbows', the music industry world has been topsy-turvy. Now here comes Coldplay, super star success and carrying all of EMI/Capitol's hopes and dreams for a future. So it looks like EMI will not be looking for new bands, but rather be holding on dearly to its successes and saturate the market with them.

That is a lot of pressure to carry, even for a Rock Giant such as Coldplay.

Back in 2005 - with the release of their previous album X&Y - Chris Martin (the frontman of Coldplay) had said that "Shareholders are the great evil of this Modern World." Back then, Capitol had taken great lengths to ensure that the album X&Y would have heavy sales to keep the business afloat, and once again, we find the band in the exact same predicament, unfortunately at this point the critics are leering on the side lines just waiting to pounce since many sophisticates were disgusted with Coldplay's last record. (NY Times, 'The Case Against Coldplay', June 5, 2005, by Jon Pareles) Pareles pointed out that, "It's supposed to be compassionate, empathetic, magnanimous, inspirational. But when the music swells up once more with tremolo guitars and chiming keyboards, and Mr. Martin's voice breaks for the umpteenth time, it sounds like hokum to me. " Even though, the sophisicates were repulsed, the rest of the world revelled in the album which sold over 10,500,000+ worldwide.

Furthermore we find that after the commerical success of X&Y, Coldplay was almost near the end of being a band as well. Chris Martin in an interview with Brian Boyd (Columnist for the Irish Times) stated: "After the last album we weren't really talking to each other, we were falling apart. We didn't own ourselves: there were too many swanky dinners, too many award ceremonies. We could almost just have phoned in the songs for the new album from our holiday homes. I wanted to burn all the awards, erase the past."

So now we have, EMI's business at risk here, Coldplay's need to please both their existing fans and the naysayers, and now the very future of the band at risk with the potential of falling apart at its seams. With so much pressure riding on their success with this album, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, the title almost seems befitting. Is this the death throes of the band, or the 'Achtung Baby' of their careers?

The band has been compared considerably to U2 and their arena rock greatness; they have even compared themselves to U2 a number of times; so for them to enlist Brian Eno in the production of the album - the ambient music genius - was a wise decision. Brian Eno is closely related to U2's fantastic soundscapes, and helped develop the band throughout their albums Unforgettable Fire, Joshua Tree, and Achtung Baby to name of few. 'Achtung Baby' for U2 was a grand departure from their earlier sound and proved a huge success, and now with Coldplay's Viva La Vida it proves to be a comparable counterpart since it has been labeled as an 'experimental' album for them.

With Brian Eno onboard (who dislikes chords, and clever progressions), the album pushes more towards textures and rhythms... essentially more primal and less heady. The album overall musically, and presentation wise is a solid cohesive album. The influence of Eno is palpable (with world music galore) in tracks like Life in Technicolor (which uses a hammer dulchimer at one point), Lost! (which reeks of U2 with church organs and soaring Edge-like guitars); Reign of Love (Martin's classic piano with shimmering, humming ambient noises in the back); Yes/Chinese Sleep Chant (lots of middle eastern flourishes care of Davide Rossi and his violin arranging); Death and All His Friends and The Escapist (Life In Technicolor with Martin's wistful vocals.)

Of the album my personal favorites are Strawberry Swing which is a great upbeat song filled with delayed guitars and anthemic choruses, and also Viva La Vida. I hate to admit it but the album's title track - string sections bursting, and the trademark anthems screaming- is infectiously catchy.... this track is almost a guilty pleasure since it is so blatantly poppy. Thanks to EMI/Capitol this song is going to be hounding the airwaves for at least the next two years - as well as TV with their Apple iTunes commercial spot.

Martin's lyrics are as awkward and vapid as ever, but still catchy nonetheless. He is no Bob Dylan or great revolutionary song writer - but he has a knack for great hooks, and anthemic chants which could get any stadium full of thousands of fans roaring in response.

So in the end - it looks like Coldplay came out of this career knot unscathed. After the initial sales of the album, the pre-orders on iTunes, and purchases since the albums release in June (316,000 copies sold on the first day of release), Viva La Vida sat in the no. 1 slot in the U.K., Japan, Australia, Canada, France, and Germany back in late June right after its release, so now at least EMI/Capitol will be happy for the next year or less.... until the inevitable threat of the future of the music industry knocks on their doors again.

The problem with the album is that it tries too hard to please way too many people - by enlisting Eno they tried to give it an artsy edge to satisfy the critics (which sort of does, but not really, because you still have the same band as before); they try really hard to please the huge fanbase they already have (by including signature anthems and Chris Martin heart on the sleeve vocals), but it seems to still be over used; and they also need to please their major label masters by ensuring that the tracks have plenty of 'pop' to them for radio play and tv spots.

So the album might not quite be an 'Achtung Baby' of artistic success and development, but they sure gave a valiant effort on their newest release.

-Andrew D.B. Joslyn

reference:

Brian Boyd, "Chris Martin: 'Coldplay will never be cool'"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/06/06/bmcoldplay106.xml

NY Times Article, Case Against Coldplay by Jon Pareles.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/05/arts/music/05pare.html?pagewanted=2&ei=5088&en=cbaa2f1d6333a5fd&ex=1275624000&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Rolling Stone

http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/coldplay/albums/album/21236751/review/21256424/viva_la_vida_or_death_and_all_his_friends

LA Times:

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-etw-coldplay14-2008jun14,0,6175535.story

White Stripes - Ickythumped

I wanted to write an article about the White Stripes since their release last year 2007, Ickythump, but didn't have the inspiration until now.

The White Stripes, Meg and Jack White are a Alternative rock group out of Detroit Michigan, which formed back in 1997. They originally portrayed themselves as a sister and brother duo, when in fact they were married for a period of time at the beginning of their careers. Even after their divorce, the band has remarkably still stayed together.

The White Stripes use a do-it-yourself, low fidelity approach to recording songs, using a very raw, minimalist simplicity of composition and arrangement primarily inspired by early punk rock, and blues. Personally as a newer fan of White Stripes, I have grown to appreciate their stripped down, Lo-Fi primal sound. Furthermore, their playfulness and general quirkiness make the albums never too heavy or too bizarre for mainstream listeners. With their newest album Ickythump, the Stripes have returned to this analog, scratchy, Detroit garage rock sound after their experimental departure with their 2005 release 'Get Behind Me Satan,' and its piano based pop. However even though Ickythump is a return to earlier styles, it seems more over produced then previous recordings since this is their first and only release with Warner Bros.

Lidia pointed out to me that Jack White has an obssession with the number three with his recordings, and live performances. As stated on Wikipedia: "Jack has emphasized the significance that the number three holds for the band, citing it as inspiration not only for their tri-colored uniforms (red, white, black), but their pared-down approach to what he considers the three elements of song: storytelling, melody and rhythm. The number three also frequently appears in White Stripes' album artwork, and texts written by Jack, such as liner notes or messages written on the band's website, are often signed with "Jack White III" or simply "III". There are also only three sounds--drums, guitar and vocals--in most of their songs; sometimes keyboard or piano is substituted for guitar." The one thing which I found interesting in Ickythump is that his supposed rule of Three wasn't as honored as previously in other albums. In songs such as 'St. Andrew(The Battle is in the Air)' the recording has bagpipes, raging guitar, drums, and Meg White all churning together at the same time - the additional layers which lend to making the track sound more lush and full also detracts from the White Stripes' strict regimented style of three-is-best.

After writing an article about Death Cab for Cutie and the lyrical genius of Ben Gibbard, it is a bit of let down to come to Jack White's lyrics. Jack White's lyrics are not profound or deep, however they do showcase the playful, ramshackle style that the White Stripes have become so famous and loved for. Lyrcially the songs that stood out strongest for me were the albums title track 'Ickythump' and the folksy 'Effect and Cause.' The song Ickythump deals with the topic of immigration, and criticized America's current stance on immigration policy, as such the song is the first political song which the White Stripes have put out since "The Big Three Killed My Baby," off The White Stripes (1999), the bands debut album. The defining point of the song comes when Jack White states:
"White Americans What? Nothin' better to do?"
"Why don't you kick yourself out? You're an immigrant too."
"Who's using who? What should we do?"
"Well you can't be a pimp And a prostitute too."

The whole song with its abrasive guitars leaves the whole question of the immigration debate uncomfortably unresolved; lyrically and musically.

With Jack's marriage to British model Karen Elson and in a dedication to his own Scottish heritage, the White Stripes showcase a mini-suite with 'Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn', and 'St. Andrew(The Battle is in the Air)'. The two tracks on the album are a a nice homage to his roots with soaring bag pipes, and raucous drums, which sounds strangely like Led Zeppelin and 'The Battle of Evermore.' Unfortunately, to a lot of hard core White Stripes fans these tracks may come across as alien and a radical change from their previous song stylings, but I found them entertaining and to be strong tracks in the middle of the album.

Another stand out track was their rendition of Patti Page's 1950's song 'Conquest' which was originally written by Corky Robbins. The song originally was a 50's song jump blues tune about the battle of the sexes, which the White Stripes turn into a raging garage rock bullfight, complete with dramatic mexican trumpets, and malaguena guitar riffs. Their new rendition takes the tune to a more darker place than the original.

Even though I am not an over the top fan for the White Stripes, I can appreciate and respect their spontaneous tempo shifts, their song dynamics, and their prog rock influences - which abound on this album. People have pointed out that this is easily the White Stripes loudest, in your face album, and at first it was hard to digest, but after a few listens it does grow on you.

The Inconvenient Truths of Ben Gibbard - Death Cab for Cuties "Narrow Stairs"

Death Cab for Cutie, at exactly one month ago on May 12, 2008 released their newest album Narrow Stairs which within the course of this last month has peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 Charts.

The album marks a significant departure from the older strictly indie recordings of 'Something about Airplanes', and 'We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes,' but also is a mature step forward for them since their recent 2002, 2005 releases of 'Transatlanticism', and 'Plans'(respectively.)

Death Cab For Cutie, was originally out of Western Washington Universtiy up in Bellingham, WA, where both myself and the lead singer of my band met as well. DCFC are Ben Gibbard (the lead singer/guitarist), Chris Walla (guitar/producer), Nicholas Harmer (bass guitar) and Jason McGerr (drums).

The main thing that gripped me throughout researching and reviewing their newest album, was Ben Gibbard's lyrics and his inspirations. In an article which Ben Gibbard wrote for Paste Magazine (Apr 10, 2008, Issue 42), he describes his experience with Narrow Stairs as: "The first line of the first song I wrote here is, 'I descended a dusty gravel ridge'—it’s like the whole album is a descent." Even the albums producer and lead guitarist, Christopher Walla described the album as 'weird, creepy and with lots of blood.' Gibbards lyrics and the general vibe of the album reflects these darker descriptions.

In this past month, many critics have pointed out that Gibbard's song writing in Narrow Stairs is more simplistic and direct, and thus less profound as his previous lyrics. Ben Gibbard on his new revised writing style described that there is, "no need to veil what's happening in the song the way I used to." Instead of making the lyrics even more dense and convoluted, which can come off as being snobbish and esoteric, Gibbard as opted out to more genuinely communicate his songs to his audience. Personally I agree with Gibbards decision, and can appreciate the level of honesty he now wants to exhibit in his writing.

From Bixby Canyon Bridge (with Gibbard opening the album with his personal relections on Jack Kerouac and his stay at Big Sur, CA); the album almost moves like a dark stream of consciousness in the style of a Kerouac beat poem as Gibbard recalls and expounds on topics such as loss of innocence and disillusionment (No Sunlight, Your New Twin Sized Bed, The Ice is Getting Thinner); the inevitability of death and how we cope with it(Cath..., Grapevine Fires, You Can Do Better Than Me), and other topics ranging from love and obsession(I will Possess Your Heart, Long Division, Pity & Fear), to feelings of inadequency (Talking Bird.) Gibbard tackles a wide array of issues and delivers to his audience a clear thoughtful, yet always somber voice.

The music itself is a wonderful counterpart to Gibbards reflections on his broken idealism- even as the lyrics are dark, the music is driving, and somewhat upbeat (in DCFC typical fashion). Strangely enough, DCFC also gets experimental with tracks such as I Will Possess Your Heart (an 8 minute long song, with 5 minutes of constant instrumental buildup); the Eastern sounding Pity and Fear, and the exhuberant fanfare of You Can Do Better Than Me. Even though the experimental tracks are new and some first time listeners may appreciate the branching out, the new tracks are very risky. Personally 'You Can Do Better Than Me' served as a great transistional song from the ponderously slow 'Talking Bird' to the bitter-sweet reflections of 'Grapevine Fires,' however 'You Can Do Better Than Me' is a weak stand alone song. Furthermore, the first single which DCFC released in promotion of the album was I Will Possess Your Heart, which in my opinion was a bad decision. Even though the flow of the song reflects the absurdity of obessessive love, with 5 minutes of continual monotony with the same D chord over and over, it is a pretty weak single, and also a poor song to have be the second track on the album. Perhaps if the track was placed later on during the album such as the epic "Transatlanticism" on their 2002 release, it might have had more of an impact for me and for the cohesion of the album in its entirety.

Overall as an album, it lacks the cohesive presentation of Transatlanticism, however continues the momentum which the band has been gathering over the years with their major label releases. Narrow Stairs is a good music album, but an even better look at the inner workings of Ben Gibbard. To be honest, I am pleased to see that this album has reached the No.1 slot of the Top 200 Billboard, it gives DCFC more worldwide recognition which they deserve, but it is strange that this would be the album to get them there.

-Andrew D.B. Joslyn



References:
www.rockhall.com/thecraft/ben-gibbard-interview/
www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/7074/feature/music/the_meaning_of_life

Gravelled and Green - The Best Album Never to Have Happened

'Gravelled and Green' the ambitious debut album of Seattle's own Actual Tigers should have been a smash hit when it was released back in 2001; however it was strangely unnoticed by the general public, and never received the recognition it deserved.

The Actual Tigers were originally named 'Willis' and were all natives to Seattle, and most went to Bishop Blanchett Highschool, where the singer of my band attended. They built a devoted following in the local seattle scene throughout the 90's, and were eventually signed to Capitol Records.

Actual Tigers/Willis comprised of Tim Seely (singer/songwriter), John Low (keys), Max Perry (bass), Diarmuid Cullens (drums), Joe Seely, and Eric Gardner. I am unfamiliar with the line ups for each of the bands and how they ultimately changed when they adopted the name Actual Tigers when they signed to a major label.

The album itself is a veritable pop masterpiece. The songs that stand out strongest for me are 'Yardwork in November' the first track on the album, and 'On a Roll,' which are both upbeat, thoughtful and driving. Great vocal harmonies and chord changes are prevalent in a varied melting pot of slide guitars, horns, accordions, electric pianos, and exotic percussion rhythms. (Reminiscent of world influences like Paul Simon, and Sting's earlier solo works)

My friend Jake is old friends with Diarmuid Cullens (the old drummer), and told me the other day that apparently the debut album cost over $400,000.00 to create, over a year in production, and mulitple Producers were credited for assisting with the engineering and development of the record. Capitol records switched CEOs shortly before it was to be released and the new one didn't "hear enough singles" on it. They shelved it to be released a while later on a subsidiary label (Nettwerk, the indie Canadian label) to no promotion or any kind of support whatsoever. Diarmuid had left the band before the album hit the market, and he now currently plays with the local Seattle band Mooncalf.

Even though the Actual Tigers have been accused of being great imitators (Simon & Garfunkel rip offs; Beatles-esque) the fact remains that the musical potential to be entirely unique and formidable was there. You could argue that many debut albums of bands aren't necessarily ground breaking or different; sometimes having some sort of recognizable quality or stlyings allow a band to reach a pre-existing fan base and give them something to build on- with the Actual Tigers, if they had only been able to stick around for a couple of more years, they would have been able to create some seriously stellar albums together.

Even after the demise of the Actual Tigers, there is still a shining spark of hope, in the artistic stylings of Tim Seely (the former frontman of Actual Tigers). I've yet to see him live in Seattle, but I'm definitely looking forward to the opportunity.

Andrew Bird - Live at Bumbershoot

I've been meaning to write about Andrew Bird for a while - as a violinist who uses loop playbacks myself, I find that I look up to, and find lots of inspiration from his artistic meanderings.

I had the pleasure of checking him out at the Mural stage at last years Bumbershoot in Seattle... and I found myself both lost in his endless loops, and intrigued by his onstage presence. Lidia got bored towards the middle of the set after each song became a tidal wave of cacophonous sound--- I even had to agree.. it became too much.

That is the problem that you get with loops... they tend to take on a mind of their own. Once you add layer after layer after layer, you run the risk of losing yourself, and your melodic direction. One thing I can say is, Andrew Bird is one of the few... well only individual that I know of currently that can pull off a show and not let the loop station become too much. Even though I'm evidently contradicting my previous comments, I've seen many youtube videos where Andrew Bird is able to fully control the loops he creates and allows them enough breathing room so they don't get too hectic.

However, at Bumbershoot I was strangely disappointed. Of all the live shows he did during his North American tour, I wish Seattle would have been a better live show -- granted the crowd loved and adored the crazy socks, spinning stereo speaker, his fantastic onstage demeanor, as well as Martin Dosh's alternative electronic drumming- the whole experience became too much -- almost like Pink Floyds the Wall being played on eight different stereo's all at once starting at different times... just way too much atmospheric sound.

I walked away from the concert about 2/3 into the show - so I'm not sure how he ended it-- I had other engagements elsewhere that evening, and was both conflicted about leaving Mr. Bird's show, but also awkwardly relieved to be away from the musical turmoil.

To be honest, I will come to any of his shows he plays in Seattle - I'm not sure if the show at Bumbershoot was an isolated incident (Mr. Bird getting a little too carried away, or maybe a little tired, etc. etc. etc.) - I understand that tons of shows have an uncanning ability of robbing a musician of some of their musical innocence -- but I'm hoping that his next show in Seattle is less loop and more Andrew Bird.