Grateful Dead - American Beauty (6.26.13 - 7.10.13)

So you probably think that the Grateful Dead are just another hippy, tripped out band that has little to no song writing ability.

The Dead's first four albums would leave you to believe just that -- that while the band could pull off a raging show and bring the heat night in and night out, they lacked the ability to enter the studio and lay down tracks that could evoke emotion and translate well to tape. The back-to-back albums released in 1970 obliterated this notion, as the Dead came out with two powerhouse works: Workingman's Dead -- consisting of country, blues and americana roots, and American Beauty -- building off of Workingman's with music showcasing the Dead's song writing ability coupled with masterful sound engineering. 

Simply put, American Beauty, from start to finish, is a work of art, and perhaps my favorite album of all time. Starting with the opening chords of "Box of Rain" the listener is led on a truly American folk rock journey propelled by bluegrass, country western, pop and rock as it defines the band's brand of folk-rock. With assistance from Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia's landmark songwriting skills hit their apex with broadened subjects of love, loss, consolidation, determination and love. Brokedown Palace, Candyman, Ripple and Attics of My Life are all indicative of these themes. Jerry's voice is soothing and evokes emotion that is true and powerful. What makes the album particularily interesting is it gave the music world two Top Ten hits in Sugar Magnolia and Truckin' while pop and radio were most definatley an afterthought in the recording process. The album (glued firmly by beautiful smoky cabin country rock) is one that will most certainly stand the test of time.

-- No No

Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City (6.13.13 - 6.27.13)

I've always admired Vampire Weekend and their jolly, buoyant tunes. Their third album, Modern Vampires of the City, is a revelation; it makes me LOVE them. With this release, they tread into darker, more sophisticated territory without losing any of their charm. They don't shed the sound of their past efforts but experiment and subvert, announcing their arrival as serious musicians here to stay for a good long while. It's the perfect album for the impending coastal summer. You'll feel it in your bones.

Best tracks: "Step" and "Hudson."

Dale Earnhart Jr. Jr. - Patterns (6.6.13 - 6.13.13)

Thank you Micah for kicking off the blog. I hope everyone had the chance to listen to Optica, a delicious Swedish serenade. We hope v2 of ACTW is easier to get into and stay on top of – really ride it hard.

They say, give enough monkeys typewriters and you’ll end up with a Shakespeare play. Well, give a NASCAR driver enough left turns and generational suffixes and you’ll end up with some smashing music, baby. 

Frankly, I am unaware of how many minutes there are of actual enjoyment and excitement in a NASCAR race (I doubt it is the full 3.5-5.5 hours) – I would guess it would be closer to 13 minutes and 43 seconds. Coincidentally, that is the same length of time as the EP Patterns by Dale Earnhart Jr. Jr., my selection for week two of ‘don’t call this a comeback’* ACTW. 

This short, but righteous, collection of songs from a Detroit duo, are a blend of indie rock, some r&b rhythms and electro –pop. The only pattern present in this EP is that all the songs are fantastic. Summer is here, which means dance parties outside, driving with the windows down and the end of being/having SAD. This EP is the perfect pill to jump-start the season.

Please, enjoy.

*lyrics from an older Shout Out Louds song. Bonus points for those that identify it.

Shout Out Louds - Optica 5.30.13-6.6.13

It seemed all too fitting that the Shout Out Louds would release Optica while I was here -- 

For years, I dreamt about what adventures in Europe would sound like, look like, feel like, smell like, be like. And for years, the Shout Out Louds informed my imagination about what it could be like to get drunk at a music hall in Switzerland or how the smoke from Belgian cigarettes would dance along the highway or how the morning smells in the French countryside while friends are still warm in their beds.

I live in Brussels now, but not for much longer.

One of the best aspects of everyday life here is that people will say things in English that you've never heard, some combination of words that makes perfect sense in their native tongue but poetically refreshing in your own. It'll sound odd (for sure), but simultaneously filled with some sort of sincere gorgeousness:

Just two men sharing a coffee-- nothing more.

I will be taking flesh for dinner tonight, I think.

Please. Please. Thank you, well. Thank you, well.

When I listen to the Shout Out Louds album Optica, this is what I think about: their lyrical phrasing, their whimsical ballads, their "lets-get-lost-on-a-getaway" tone, the sincerity of sound.

here, my apartment is small. I live in Asia Town. On our small street, a drunkard finds himself crooning at the moon. When the snow traces down on Belgium, I'm drawing at night. I've always worked best at night. The Shout Out Louds are on. I'm living somewhere I shouldn't be, and this is very pleasant.

Micah

Clipse - Hell Hath No Fury 11.30.11-12.6.11

I came across this album years after its 2006 release. Originally, it didn’t even occur to me to give it a chance (“Who’s Clipse?”) until I browsed through some “Best Albums of the Year/Decade” lists in a search for new music. This album was consistently near the top, and after a few weeks of not being able to put it down, I can see why.

Clipse is the duo of Pusha T and Malice, two brothers from Virginia who apparently sold a lot of cocaine before hitting the studio. I’m not talking like pseudo thugs who went to art school (e.g. like Mobb Deep). The authenticity of the lyrics adds to the overall chilling vibe of the record. Pusha and Malice’s straightforward flows are surprisingly captivating and a lot of the word play is downright clever. A choice lyric: “I make All-of-her Twist like Dickens.” The track “Keys Open Doors” is all about how selling “keys” of cocaine opens “doors” to upward social mobility. Neat.

However, the real standout performance on the album goes to The Neptunes, producers extraordinaire. Pharrell’s handiwork provides a perfectly eerie backdrop for Clipse’s rhymes. Unlike so much other rap/hip-hop out there today, it isn’t overproduced; while there’s a lot going on in each track, the beats retain a sparse sound. In this way, the style shares some similarities to early 90’s hip-hop, but with much more variety. The individual parts on Pharrell’s compositions are all weird and very intriguing. To see what I mean by this, check out the chimes on “Ride Around Shining” or the high-pitched steel-drum on “Ain’t Cha.”

Overall, the combination of the dark production and the boastful lyrical content exudes cockiness and brashness that makes this hip-hop album fun to listen to. And it’s so good that I feel like an irreverent badass even when I’m listening to it on my i-pod while wearing business casual attire and walking down Newbury Street.

Hell Hath No Fury is a lean record with no filler, which is refreshing for this genre. No dumb intro and interlude “skits” of gunfights and answering machine messages that stretch the album length to 20+ tracks; no spotlight-stealing features of big name stars. Just a really solid hip-hop record that should go down as a classic.

Apple Juice Kid - Louis Armstrong Remixed 11.23.11 - 11.29.11

This album is an excellent choice for anyone who loves to re-imagine a classic. It can be dangerous territory remixing the greats, and Apple Juice Kid makes a bold choice attempting this with Louis Armstrong, inarguably one of the most influential American musicians of all time. However, he does it with class, refusing a cheap hijacking of someone else’s genius and instead creates a seamless tribute to jazz and a genuine effort to keep it relevant.

Apple Juice Kid never takes too much credit and Armstrong’s gritty voice shines through the mellow electronic layering. You’ll never forget who the real star of the show is, and you’ll appreciate AJK all the more for realizing it. A great album for fans who want to re-experience a favorite, it can also provide a beautiful translation to those whose ears haven’t been opened to the cadence of jazz and still need the right middleman to tune them in. It’s the perfect background music for long conversation.

Florence + The Machine - Ceremonials 11.16.11 - 11.23.11

I am taking a risk with posting this album.  I think it might be a bit too girl-angsty for your taste, but as this is my first post, and I feel like (or am at least guessing) that  you are an ecclectic, willing-to-try-anything-once bunch, here we go...

I really like Florence + The Machine.  As a lover of Alanis, Tori Amos, Fiona Apple, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, in a time of Lady Gaga, Kesha, and Beyonce (who are great, given the right time and place), I thought this type of music was dead.  Florence + The Machine have pieced together an album that is both morbid and uplifting.  Better yet, its not a debut album (which, for many artists contains the greatest songs they can come up with, which is followed by a shit second album, for the purposes of staying relevant, but I digress...).  I like it.

"No Light, No Light"-  In my opinion, the best song on the album because the hook is so friggin' catchy and it appeals to my love of dramatic, over-the-top lyrics.

"Seven Devils"- This song lands smack dab in the middle of the album and breaks things up nicely because it gives us something to think about.  For whatever reason, I link this song directly with "Leave My Body", a ghostly gospel ballad.

"Remain Nameless"-  Well-placed and unique.

"Only If for a Night"-  Great opener- pretty much the gist of the album.

"Lover to Lover"- Poppy, upbeat, dare I say fun?

The rest of the album is comprised of shades of the songs mentioned above.  I am curious to see what everyone else thinks.  Thanks for reading!  Love you forever.

-EZ

Wiz Khalifa - Rolling Papers 11.2.11 - 11.9.11

I'm going to do something that hurts me, something that on a primal level makes me feel unsophisticated, stupid, thoughtless and sophomoric and above all uncomfortable. Here I go.

Some pop music today actually sounds good to me. Ya. And I think it's gotten better. And I listen to it sometimes. I listen to it a lot these days actually because it makes me feel good; it makes me feel like a star. It balloons my ego. Like all the girls in the club are staring at me, like I'm just reeling on the edge of awesome, like I'm more important than I actually am. It reminds me of my younger brother and the way that he parties: like everything and everyone is stupendous.

And you know what? I don't care. I don't care if I know that's an artificial feeling sold in the guise of a song. Because I think today, if you can identify something that you like for whatever reason, you should cling to it. Teen years are for being reckless, reckless about the internal anguish you can feel over the way people think about you. Most of the continuing process of getting older is anesthetizing discomfort by identifying resources that you truly like and then utilizing those resources to improve your daily life. Whether they be gourmet lollipops, the "Lion King" game for Super Nintendo or Wiz Khalifa, using those resources is a way to make life better.

So, ya. I like Wiz Khalifa's "Rolling Papers". Because it sounds good to me and it's catchy and makes me feel like the shit and I'm a person and I can do whatever I want. All we can do is hoard the things to like.