shiv, i've liked a handful of ariel pink songs sure but not enough to keep any material

Emeralds - Does It Look Like I'm Here?

You gotta give Emeralds credit for being a huge part of the revival of cassette culture, innovative drone music and making Tangerine Dream cool again. With seemingly countless releases over the past few years (as a duo), as well as many solo works under different names, the guys behind Emeralds have to be considered among the busiest in music.

I don't follow the group religiously like some people. I like this kind of music, I love to chill out with my headphones and be transported to the crystal palace of Neverending Story, but it's not something I put on too often. I have to be in the mood for most of Emeralds music because it's not quite ambient, it's not quite drone and it's not quite synth-based electronic space music. It straddles the line between a bunch of our favorite different experimental genres, some songs and releases a whole lot more successful than others.

"Does It Look Like I'm Here?" is probably the band's most high-profile release to date. It's the first that I've found in record stores and the one I've seen talked about in more publications than anything else they've done. Even as Emeralds brand of synth and guitar new age revivalism is slowly starting to fade away, they remain the go to name for this genre and with pretty good reason.

Myself, I'm more a fan of the Mark McGuire-led tracks. I love his guitar playing. As gentle as a Vini Reilly work, but without as much of the echo. If Vini was making music to reach the stars, McGuire's guitars are more centered around us, bringing to mind walking through the city at night, riding the subway, great atmospheric 70s and 80s crime movies. The most notable thing about this release is the number of tracks on it. On previous releases, Emeralds would typically have anywhere from 2-5 tracks, at least one of them reaching the 20-minute mark. Here, nothing is over 12 minutes and most are much shorter. This is an effort to reach more audiences, I imagine, and to try more ideas over the course of the album. The tracks still unfold and have multiple movements, but too often I feel that they close too suddenly. I'll wait 5 minutes for a track to really open up, the guitars and synths bouncing off one another and then it just ends. Part of the reason I didn't listen to Emeralds that much before was because of the length of their tracks and my inability to restrain myself from changing tracks - now I'm finding myself wanting these pieces to have a chance to unfold more, over a longer period of time.

Emeralds still do this music as good as anyone doing it today. A nice blending of atmosphere, creepiness, and beauty. It's interesting to see their sound continue to evolve little by little, but like most of their releases I've heard prior to this - it's not something I'm going to fall in love with. But I'll enjoy it from time to time, maybe I'm just drifting away from experimental music.

In Summary: Definitely their most accessible release to date but still not that thrilling for me. I think I'm moving away from this type of music

Nice way of putting it.

I think we pretty much agree on this. And Ariel Pink, too.

Julian Lynch - Mare

When it comes to experimental/drone music, I tend to like the more relaxing stuff a bit more than the heavy, loud, distorted brand. It's not a one or the other type preferences, but if I was forced to choose one, well, I'd rather listen to music that reminded me of walking through a lush forest than something that reminded me of walking through a haunted house. For every Campbell Keane, there is a Richard Skelton, for every Nadja there is a Thuja.

I had seen Julian Lynch's name in a couple of random places here and there over the last year, but never paid it no mind. He wasn't really getting the type of praise for me to think that he was any different than the hundreds of other experimental musicians putting out CD-R's and I already have enough Julian's in my collection of music to want to take another one on. But when Pitchfork gave this virtually unknown and little-hyped artist the coveted "Best New Music", I (and I'm sure many many others) decided to give the dude a shot, when we probably never would have before.

And I'm glad I did that because "Mare" is a pleasant listen. It's clear that Lynch is a skilled musician, who has an ear for a lot of different styles of music, both familiar and unfamiliar to the common ear and he's able to blend these styles adeptly, while still retaining an overall lo-fi, easy, natural theme that allows the record to work. Even the clarinet on this album, which at first seems terribly out of place (as it does on virtually ANY record), ends up working in the long run.

It's a gentle album for the most part (though their are definitely moments of rocking) and one that I'm sure I'll enjoy further in the future. I can't say that it's something that I'm in love with now, but it's still opening up to me. It's not genius, but it does the thing that the best experimental records do: straddles the line between background music and truly engaging music tight. This is something I can just throw on when it's quiet time in the house or put on my headphones when I just want something to sort of drift while I'm walking around town. I like this record because it sounds the way music should: familiar and effortless.

In Summary: Pretty good stuff. Nothing groundbreaking, but definitely worth a shot.

Yeah, I like that as well.

Wavves - King of the Beach

I'm glad that I never got suckered into have a strong opinion in regards to Wavves over the last couple of years. When his debut came out, it was equally praised as one of the best releases of the year and the victim of insatiable derision from the backlash brigade. It wasn't impossible to be indifferent to Wavves, but it sure was hard to avoid contact with people who were up in arms over this dude. I enjoyed that first record a bit, enjoyed a couple of tracks off the second and thought the guy was fun overall, but could not understand people who hated him and definitely couldn't understand why other camps put him at the forefront of the burgeoning and often amazing lo-fi punk movement. He was clearly a victim of the press, but then he went and made it worse for himself with a string of apparently Ryan Adams-esque stage antics and backstage fights.

You would expect Wavves to basically disappear or release a total mess of a record, but instead we get "King of the Beach" which is undoubtedly the strongest, most focused record he has put out.

The general aesthetic is still loud, snotty and fun, the sound is still "lo-fi" though more akin to studio wizards like No Age than actual scratchy sounds ala cassette culture and some Siltbreeze bands. Most of this record works because it reminds me of the type of punk rock I enjoyed as a youth. On songs like "Post Acid" its not hard to hear the influence of your favorite mall punk bands from the 90s, from lyrics to chorus structure to volume, it's nostalgic and it's great. But elsewhere, the record veers into totally new territory. There are drum machines, echoed vocals, acoustic guitar here and there, just an overall expansion over much of this record. It makes the experience more enjoyable with the loud songs being broken up by great tracks like "Mickey Mouse" here and there, which doesn't sound far off from a "Strawberry Jam" Animal Collective song recorded back during the "Here Comes the Indian" days. He's mixing pop, noise and punk as well as anyone out there with this record and it shows.

I'm hoping that Wavves can further progress the pop aesthetic in future releases because I don't doubt that he has a truly great record in him, because while this is really enjoyable, it's not truly something that's going to turn the music world upside down. I'm surprised the direction this record went it and am very pleased with the results. Definitely a great sunny-day, driving with the windows down record. And it might finally be appropriate to truly call this beach punk.

MIGHT.

In Summary: Totally enjoyable pop record. Really glad the direction this record went from his earlier stuff, but it's nothing that's going to be remembered as a classic, though I definitely see this guy capable of making one in the future.

Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty

It's rare than album actually delivers as much as you were anticipating in the build-up to it's eventual release. What's amazing about Big Boi's true proper first solo LP is that despite the innumerable delays, leaked tracks (that didn't even make the album), label troubles, guest appearances, it delivers. Despite it being likely one of my most hotly anticipated albums of all time, it delivers. I mean it's good. It's really really good.

Unless you've been living completely off the grid, you've seen this album mentioned and praised in just about every publication, blog, review site, everywhere. It might very well be the most universally loved record of the year and it probably deserves to be. What Big Boi has done here is taken his southern rap sound, stripped off the bullshit from the last couple of Outkast things we know, made it funky as hell, mixed in tracks that can work in the club, the car, the bbq and the house and makes it work. This album is Big Boi's through and through and the first time we can truly see his personality and skill as a rapper since well...since maybe even ATLiens. As someone who is always overshadowed by the more flashy Andre3000, Big Boi had everything to prove and with "Sir Lucious...", I demand they be treated as equals.

I sincerely think that is a landmark record in commecial rap music, in the same way that the best Outkast albums are. It's southern gangster shit that can fit alongside your favorite UGK album, it has enough pop elements to it to be played on the radio, and to top it off: Big Boi's flow is quite possibly at the highest level it's ever been at; and that's saying a whole fucking lot.

"Feel Me" is funky as hell, sounds like you have a giant blunt all wrapped up and ready to go. "Daddy Fat Stax" is the traditional Outkast 2nd song, loud, fast and awesome. "Turns Me On" reminds me of the Outkast that was making waves in the early 2000s, when Sleepy Brown was on every song but no one really knew who he was. "Follow Us" has a terrible chorus sung by what seems to be a terrible emo band but also features a totally killer beat and really adept rapping. "Shutterbugg" is clearly one of the best singles of the entire year and no one can disagree. "General Patton" is hard a fuck. "Tangerine" should be a dark horse pop hit, but it's probably a bit too grimey. "You Ain't No DJ" sounds like murder. "Hustle Blood" is probably the best Jamie Foxx song that I've heard. "Be Still" is a perfect r&b track and would fit among the very best of Monae's stuff from her album. "Fo Yo Sorrows" was one of my favorite tracks of '09 and it hasn't lost it's charm. Reminds me of being a kid, totally awesome. I feel like this song is hugely responsible for smoking for the first time in almost a decade. "Night Night" sounds like Stankonia-era Outkast and is pretty good, but B.O.B is pretty annoying. "Shine Blockas" might be the best song of all time. "The Train" sounds like a 90s film I want to watch. "Back-Up Plan" and "Theme Song" are both mediocre and forgettable, but who cares because they're at the end.

This is great stuff.

In Summary: Not only probably the best rap album of 2010, but one of the best of the last decade too

The-Dream - Love King

Last year, The-Dream released "Love Vs. Money" which I will proudly tout as the best r&b album since probably "Thriller". In a genre where albums don't really matter, and all money is made on single and radio play, it takes a lot of balls for The-Dream (who already makes a shit-ton of cash writing/producing every single hit on the radio) to go into the studio to create actual albums. Sometimes he overreaches, sure, but the audacity of creating a cohesive album is really astounding, especially considering how good that very album was.

So with "Love King", Terius Nash had a lot to live up to. "Love Vs. Money" an album that was played on the radio, was enjoyed by kids who only listened to really hard shit and perhaps strangest of all: had crossed over to be one of the most praised albums in the hipster community. So is "Love King" as good as "Love Vs. Money"? No, it's not. But it's still better than basically any other pop music being created.

There is a story here, of Nash bragging about his sexual prowess, losing a girl he cares about because of that, getting her back, letting her know he's the best, having an emotional breakdown remembering his ex, getting with another groupie, getting his own heart broken, showing a soft side and eventually saying "fuck it" and proceeding with his sexual escapades. Let me get this out of the way: the subject matter isn't original, lots of his lyrics are totally ridiculous (seems to be attempting to out R. Kelly R. Kelly), and a couple moments can even be uncomfortable. He definitely exposes himself on a lot of these tracks, but manages to continue his skill of deftly creating hilarious, outrageous lines you want to sing and laugh to as well.

"Love King" "Make Up Bag" and "F.I.L.A." open the album on a really strong note and each one could be found on The-Dream's previous two albums. He's not exactly exploring new sonic possibilities here, but why mess with a good thing? The songs are still great, "F.I.L.A." being one of my very favorite songs of the year, and just incredibly catchy.

When he mixes things up with the downtrodden "Sex Intelligent" and the accompanying remix, he's showing his bizarre artistic side. The songs fit together perfectly and are about as far from those first 3 songs as The-Dream can get. Slow, fitting a lot of words in, a laughable rap attempt, but they work. They break up the sound, they're still good and most importantly they lead into the next suite of songs - which might very well be at the top of The-Dream's accomplishments.
"Yamaha" sounds so much like Prince, it shouldn't work. What's more is that I hardly even know what the song is about, but it's just great. "Purple Rain" is one of my all time favorite albums for a reason and Dream does a great job copping that sound. That track fades seamlessly into "Nikki Pt. 2" - about his ex Nivea. The song is sad, slow, but has this underlying anger in it. And this leads into "Abyss" which is a total slow burner, the song on this album that took the longest to grow on me, but is now one of my favorites. These 3 songs just show why The-Dream is great. He's create real song cycles here, pretty spectacular.

"Panties To The Side" is a creepy track and I wish it wasn't on here. I understand why it's here, but I don't like it and it almost makes me uncomfortable. Total club/sex jam.

There's also a bunch of bonus tracks tacked onto the deluxe version of this album, which don't really fit the theme (which is why they're bonus cuts) but all are servicable songs. It's a great album, but not on the level of his last one. A couple duds and his lyrics are going a bit too far, but it's still a blast to listen to.

So here's what you need to know: if this is the last Dream album, then he's left us with 3 pop masterpieces. If he comes out with an album on 6-7-2011, then we have something to look forward to for sure.

In Summary: I imagine Borg and Splates would be the only people even interested in this, so I'm not trying to sell it to y'all, but it's pretty great.

Best Coast - Crazy For You

It's easy to see why Best Coast is one of the most talked about new bands of the year: they're music is catchy while reminding you of classic pop you've heard a thousand times, it's noisy enough to sound sort of arty and cool when played loud, and maybe most importantly - it has a vague beach theme.

It seems like just yesterday that Bethany Cosentino was 1/2 of Pocahaunted, the band from the wave of dubby, lo-fi cassette music that was probably going to break through. This was 2 years ago, when it seemed like this non-music was really about the best music and coolest trend happening in the indie world. Fast-forward to now, and not only do we have chillwave, but one of the biggest bands in music is called Beach House, another one is called Beach Fossils, another is called Surfer Blood, there's one called Sun Airway there's blah blah blah. If lo-fi music was heading the way of haunting, tribal-influenced stuff a couple years ago - it's clear now that we want it to remind us of waves crashing on the shore, of driving down the strip in a fuckin Miata. And Best Coast fits the bill perfect and they've really catapulted into near rock-stardrom.

And they are fun. They are really quite fun. It's simple music, you know almost all the words after hearing the album only like 2 times, you want to play it loud, you want to forget everything and just enjoy yourself and sing the lyrics as if you're listening to a Marvelettes song, totally enjoyable and well executed. But here's the thing, even though most of the songs are about 2-3 minutes and the album is only 30 minutes - it starts to really wear thin by the end (even though the overplayed, though great "When I'm With You" closes out the album).

The songs just wear thin. I see what they are trying to do, but the lyrics almost get to the point where they're so simple or silly or the themes are all the same that it begins to get grating. Switch it up a little, stop paying so much homage to a particular style of music and expand a bit, switch up the tempos here and there or add some sort of new instrument or I don't know. It's charming, it's cute, but not cute enough that I want to listen to it for 30 straight minutes.

In Summary: I like most of the songs, even though they are silly. It gets to be a bit much for longer than a few songs though

Love King RULES.

didnt expect that! awesome.

Yeah I like Love King, too.

This kind of sucks now because I feel like I'm going to be more or less repeating the same sentiments when I finally get around to doing a lot of these.

i'd been meaning to do it for awhile but finally downloaded Love King last night.

i doubt it drinky, besides you have done a bunch of albums i probably won't and I'm almost done with the pitchfork albums and then I'll go do other things that you likely won't.

I haven't heard even one note of any of those bands. I think I'd like to hear this one and Beach House though.

Curren$y - Pilot Talk

I really didn't expect a lot out of this album, which was a mistake. I only knew Curren$y from a handful of Lil' Wayne songs and the whole event of him leaving Young Money. I hadn't been downloading his mixtapes over the years, I hadn't been following the movement and was totally late to the party. I downloaded "Pilot Talk" on a whim and what greeted me was a total surprise. I expected some more boring southern hip hop, but out came the blunted sounds that this album is full of.

Let's get things straight right out the gate: Curren$y is a fun rapper to listen to, but this album belongs to Ski Beatz. Previously known for his production work on "Reasonable Doubt" and "Uptown Saturday Night" - I hadn't heard from this producer in a long time and actually totally forgotten about him. But what he's done with "Pilot Talk" is a huge step forward for hip hop in my mind. The album has this clear mid-90s east coast feel to the production, though the touches of guitar and some tropical sounds are bit more modern, but the idea of paring this sparse boom-bap production with a down south dude is a total mindfuck for me. I'm sure it's not the first time it's happened, but these throwback beats match Curren$y's laid back drawl so well, it's a perfect match. I mean I basically want Ski Beatz to produce everything this year. The tracks just sound like chilling in the backyard, lighting up and drinking a beer. Great combo of 90s and 2000s rap, I love this current blunted sound.

And this combination of producer and rapper is what makes this album work. There's nothing too high-reaching here - it's just hip hop. Curren$y isn't the most impressive lyricist in the world - some of his work is totally goofy, most of it is just ok and every now and then he sneaks in some awesome lines - but his delivery is where he's tops. For the most part, he's monotone, laid-back and not that charismatic. I mean he literally sounds high in all his rhymes, but he is able to time things just right to make even those goofy lyrics work. His voice rides every beat the right way, nothing is jarring. It reminds you of your favorite hip hop albums growing up.

It's short, there's no skits, and it's to the point. I can't ask for more from a hip hop album. The rhymes are blunted, the production is maybe my favorite stuff of the year and it just speaks for sunny days without much on your mind. This is one of those rap albums that might not jump out at you at first (it did for me), but it definitely has the feeling of being one you'll enjoy for a long time. It's not pretentious, it's not extravagant and it's the perfect blending of a multitude of styles. Good hip hop done right, light one up and listen.

In Summary: One of my favorite rap albums of the year and recent memory.

Yes indeed. Nothing is ever going to top Love vs. Money, but the centerpiece triology Yahama/Nikki 2/Abyss, Turnt Out and All Black Everything (bonus track) rank among some of his best work to date.

I'm just kind of kidding, anyway.

And hey, I've still got a couple of non-Pitchfork things lined up, too.

Oh, and that Curren$y album is OK. I think I like the cover art better than the album itself.

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

It's pretty exciting to have been there for the Arcade Fire's meteoric rise to superstardom. There have been other bands that have risen from indie darlings to rock superstars: Modest Mouse, Death Cab For Cutie/The Postal Service, Kings of Leon - but for whatever reason the Arcade Fire is the one you want to root for. They are one of those bands that seems like they could sell millions of records, but will always remain a quintessential favorite for those in the know. And it's not as though their sound is difficult, if anything it's accessible in the same way that Springsteen is accessible; sure the music is dense, but holy shit are they writing a lot of anthems.

Arcade Fire has never been my favorite band. I mean, I jumped on the "Funeral" hype machine for a little when it came out, this being pretty early into my real obsession in independent music, but my love for that album was more a product of that very machine than an actual appreciation for what the band was doing. I would hear "Neighborhood #1" or "Crown Of Love" or whatever and think "ok, I understand why this band is popular, this is real good" - but I still didn't understand the messianic, saviors of rock label that was thrust upon them. There were lots of sounds but it was cacophonic like Broken Social Scene and it was corny like The Polyphonic Spree. It was moody, literate indie rock and it shook the world.

I didn't really pay "Neon Bible" any attention. I think that it reached #1 on the Billboard chart, but I can't be sure if it actually did or not. I had the album, I listened to it, I thought most of it was pretty bad but the good songs were really good and that's still basically my opinion of that album. I've maybe listened to it once or twice since 2007 and I don't really find that I have a reason to keep that record around any longer.

But what about "The Suburbs"? This loose concept album might very well be the most divisive Arcade Fire album yet, which I don't understand at all. Big fans of the previous two albums find that this album lacks what makes Arcade Fire special: that big, bombastic sound. Things are scaled down here, marginally. Others are praising this as their best work - getting rid of some of the orchestration that especially bogged down "Neon Bible" and just making wonderfully catchy, meaningful rock music. The truth is that "The Suburbs" finds itself in both of these camps: it's the easiest Arcade Fire album to listen to, but the huge "FUCK YA" moments are interspersed with tracks that might be well produced, but ultimately are nothing special.

I complain about album length a lot, but I'm a strong believer in their being a correct amount of time that an album should last. If you're experimenting with a ton of different sounds and each song sounds different from the last - an hour is totally acceptable. If you are more or less sticking with the same formula track to track, well, you should probably scale back to 40-45 minutes. "The Suburbs" is a bit over the hour mark, but it feels a lot longer. Many of the best songs reach the 5:00 minute mark, but don't seem that long, but it's the shorter tracks that make this a bit to slog through at times. There are definitely songs that could be cut (even at the expense of the narrative), but I don't want to say that the highest points of this record are that much higher than the low points of this record. Everything on here is good to a fault: by the end (except for the near electro-pop "Sprawl II") you feel like you've listened to the same song over and over. They're all different, sure - but if the band just cut like 3-4 tracks that have that building, anthemic rock sound that explodes towards the end, the album would be better off.

But don't get me wrong - the album is still good. I thought it was really boring at first because I basically wanted to hear a My Chemical Romance-esque absurd statement, but it's been growing on me. I just can tell very few songs apart from each other. They've simplified their sound slightly (not by much), and it helps. It sounds like indie rock done right. Like they're not trying to blow your mind with every track, but trying to blow your mind with every 1-2 punch. If anything, Arcade Fire have proven that they have what it takes to be long-term rock stars with this album - they can pace themselves, they just still need to work on that editing ear.

In Summary: Good, not great. Some real strong moments, but overly long.

I just saw your Curren$y review on the main page of RYM.

my 3rd one from this thread!

The Walkmen - Lisbon

I don't know what it says about me that the Walkmen album I've listened to more than any other is their bizarre and unnecessary remake of Nilsson and Lennon's "Pussycats", but it's probably nothing good. I mean The Walkmen are the definition of an indie rock band that everyone should root for. They should be your favorite rock band's favorite rock band, because they are always really fucking good.

And that might be why I very rarely ever listen to them.

I feel like The Walkmen are the modern Yo La Tengo or even Sonic Youth for me. I'm going to have everything they release, I'm going to enjoy it, but I'm never going to obsess over it. I already know they're more capable than just about everyone else out there making music, so what, move on. Yeah, it's unfair, I mean The Walkmen have produced a bunch of the best rock n roll songs of the past 10 years, and their new album "Lisbon" continues that stretch - you only have to listen to the first two songs "Juveniles" and "Angela Surf City" to know just how damn good these guys are. It's like second nature.

Hamilton has to have the best drunk-as-fuck warbly vocals on the planet. Slurred words, stretched out syllables, everything he sings, you believe. It doesn't necessarily make you sad as much as it makes you want to pump a fist and sing along with him. Anthemic misery with your buddies? It's like a whole to take on "Living on a Prayer".

"Lisbon" is 11 songs long and all 11 songs are good, some are really great. There are some drunken spanish influenced horns, some rhythms that chug along like an old Carl Perkins song and enough tempo changes to keep things interested. It's indie rock done the right way, much like Titus Andronicus and The National have also done this year, but where all 3 bands are going for broke on their releases, really exposing themselves and expanding their sound, I still can't seem to fall in love with The Walkmen in the same way as those bands. Titus and The National are bands are drunk bands for the sober mind. Everyone is sad, everyone is pissed off, but they want you to think. The Walkmen write more than capable lyrics, but their songs sound as though they should always be accompanying you on a drunk stumble home. Listen to "Stranded" and tell me I'm wrong.

This is definitely an album that is still growing on me and is maybe the Walkmen album I enjoy the most. It's probably time to start considering this band one of my favorites and listen to them a lot more, because it's been quite a few years since I recognized that they already are one of the best. Hop on my own bandwagon and give the band their props, this is about as good as rock n roll gets.

In Summay: Probably my favorite Walkmen album, really growing on me with each day too.

The rap albums u love, I love. Have u tried Das Rascist?

yeah i don't like it.

Listening to Lisbon and then going back and listening to You & Me has pretty much had me feeling the same way about The Walkmen. Just a great band.

I still haven't heard Pussycats, but I think I probably have it on my computer at home.