Because I don't get time to review all the new music I hear in depth, I have decided to start doing some smaller reviews, rounding up the best (and worst) releases of each month!
ALBUM OF THE MONTH:
ALBUM OF THE MONTH:
RADIOHEAD - A MOON SHAPED POOL
Art Rock, Alternative Rock. XL Recordings.
Kind of an unsurprising choice for my album of the month. Radiohead are one of the first bands I ever remember listening to and being interested in as a kid and I've grown up with them as "OK Computer" verges on 20 years old. Whilst I don't find Radiohead compulsive listening like I did when I was a teenager, they still hold a heavy place in my heart. Their 9th full length, "A Moon Shaped Pool" is in layman's terms, Radiohead's acoustic album! Though not strictly acoustic or anything, it is by far their mellowest and most stripped down album yet. Though there are still elements of Rock and Electronica, certainly don't expect any of "Paranoid Android"'s distorted riffs or any of "Idioteque"'s heavy electronic beats either. On this album, natural sounds dominate, with guitarist Johnny Greenwood's explorations into film scores certainly having an influence on the sound of this album.
This isn't Radiohead's most innovative or groundbreaking release by any means, but it is one of their most expressive and straight up beautiful records yet, something that previous album "The King of Limbs" had a lack of. The moods of songs like "Pyramid Song" and "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" are definitely captured here with a mixture of heartfelt ballads and introspective songs that remind you that it can okay to be lonely, heartbroken or afraid. Opener "Burn the Witch" is a huge highlight and one of the more upbeat numbers. The swirling string sections really lift the spirits of the listener. My favourite track "Daydreaming" soon follows with a beautiful stripped down piano arpeggio that feels like it could have been played by Max Richter. Closing track "True Love Waits" is a real treat for die hard fans. A Thom Yorke acoustic solo version appeared on 2001's "I Might Be Wrong" live EP, and it has been slightly rejigged as a lovely piano ballad (though I have to stay I still prefer the live version). Radiohead ultimately have proved they are still the masters of sonic exploration and that they can take away core elements of their sound and still create fantastic results. I'm giving this a solid 8/10 for now, but I still feel like this album is growing on me and more!
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LAURA MVULA - THE DREAMING ROOM
Art Pop, Neo Soul. Sony RCA.
Laura Mvula sounds like she is caught somewhere between 90s Bjork and Erykah Badu, with an interesting and off kilter sound that combines some elements of R&B and Neo Soul, yet also some quirker Art Pop elements not worlds away from the ethereal realms of Kate Bush. "The Dreaming Room" presents a fantastic alternative if you aren't really bothered about Beyonce and Rihanna's latest efforts. Mvula is more forward thinking than her obvious peers, and presents a wider flavoured pallet here. I think her sound can appeal to fans of Pop music as well as more leftfield music fans, through the use of innovative production. Her songs are full of varying moods and textures, and the whole album is a real trip. There are some decent collabs with Nile Rogers and Wretch32, but Mvula is pretty much running the show here and I think this time they hype has been justified! 8/10.
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LET'S EAT GRANDMA - I GEMINI
Art Pop. Transgressive Records.
Let's Eat Grandma (yeah really, try telling someone they're your new favourite band!) are a duo consisting of two 16 year old girls. The fact they have built up a solid reputation and written and recorded their own album by this age is a heart warming achievement. Though I respect them, I don't quite think I like them. In terms of musical ability, this is very accomplished. However, the album is absolutely all over the place and lacks any real cohesion or direction. It's not often you hear elements of Synth Pop, Hip Hop and Folk music all on one album! I can get on with the music and arrangement's here, but the vocals absolutely kill it for me! It was a complete nails on a chalkboard kind of cringe to my ears. One of the tracks sounded like Kate Nash trying to cover The Streets! And shouty vocals singing "my father beat me" become hard to listen to. If you thought Joanna Newsom's vocals on her debut album were testing, you ain't heard nothing yet! I wanted to like this album more, and to be fair I did like bits of it, but there is far too much drama and far too little clear direction here, which is certainly justifiable for two teenage girls. There is certainly some interesting potential here, but it feels too soon to get excited yet. 6/10.
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DJ SHADOW - THE MOUNTAIN WILL FALL
Electronica, IDM, Hip Hop. Mass Appeal.
DJ Shadow came out in 1996 with one of the most groundbreaking debut albums in not just Hip Hop, but the whole of music, holding a Guinness World Record for the first commercial album made entirely of samples! He has perhaps undeservedly struggled to follow it up ever since, but maybe fan expectations have been too high. Attempts to do something completely different, such as his third album "The Outsider" lead to him being eaten alive by critics, but this time around stepping even further out of his comfort zone may have actually paid off at last. I saw DJ Shadow play Manchester's "Warehouse Project" Electronic music festival a couple of years back. He did a DJ set consisting of a lot of IDM, Electronic and Dubstep and not very much Hip Hop at all. The same can be said for "The Mountain Will Fall". Apart from a pretty solid Hip Hop track with Run the Jewels, the sound of this album is definitely a nod to Warp Records and the innovative IDM sound that took over the 90s. Whilst nothing here is particularly groundbreaking or current, you have to admit that DJ Shadow has done a pretty good job at attempting to sound a bit like Squarepusher and Aphex Twin here. He sounds really inspired and like he is having fun too! It's no "Endtroducing..." but I enjoyed it! 7/10.
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SWANS - THE GLOWING MAN
Drone Rock. Young Gods.
Swans have proved themselves to be one of the most interesting and successful reunion acts, practically reinventing themselves and having a critically acclaimed second wind. This is their 4th album since their reunion at the start of this decade, and their 3rd double album in a row (or triple if you buy wax). "The Glowing Man" isn't particular different to the last two. It's slow, meandering, noisy, atmospheric and has multiple songs that run over 20 minutes. Other bands can try and release albums with lots of 20 minute tracks and stumble, but Swans seem to make it sound effortless, momentous and damn right apocalyptic! "The Glowing Man" demands your patience and full attention, but it is easy to get lost and swept away within the dense journeys of sound. Even without that much progression, those 20 minutes seem to fly by. If you liked any of the previous two albums there is certainly more to love here, even without being that drastically different in approach. Swans have created something genuinely hypnotic and almost unexplainable. No rating as I feel I still need to spend more time with this record. Ask me again in a year! ???/10.
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PLAID - THE DIGGING REMEDY
Electronic, IDM. Warp Records.
Depending on how you pronounce it, Plaid to me has always sounded like "Played", and I feel that is fitting because they are a very playful band. They can often hit the same abstract heights of label mates Autechre, Aphex Twin and Boards of Canada. Yet Plaid quite often sounded much happier and more melodic. The aforementioned have quite often reveled in doom and darkness. On "The Digging Remedy", Plaid sound a lot more serious and darker than usual, yet still very much sound like Plaid. Their beats and syncopated melodies always move at a swift pace and keep your brain twitching. But with these slightly darker and more abstract moods presented here, Plaid come closer to sounding like their aforementioned label mates ("Dilatone" could have come straight off Autechre's "Tri Repetae"). "The Digging Remedy" is a very solid and interesting 45 minutes that proves they are still one of Warp's top tier artists. There is nothing particularly new or fresh here, but there is nothing remotely disappointing either. 8/10.
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MINOR VICTORIES - MINOR VICTORIES
Dream Pop, Post Rock. Fat Possum Records.
Minor Victories contains band members of Mogwai, Editors and Slowdive and if you can imagine what a mixture of all three would sound like, then you will definitely have this album sussed already! It really does sound like a cross between all three. Minor Victories have a very cinematic sound verging on symphonic, with some songs that like to build gradually and climax loudly. You also have some dreamy, shoegazey tracks and some darker tones Post Punk ones. Everything here is certainly well done and the combinations in sound are mostly more invigorating than they are jarring. The guest lead vocal from Mark Kozelek on "For You Always" was the big highlight of the album for me, and I kind of wonder why this wasn't on a Sun Kil Moon album instead! Minor Victories sounds great for what it is, but the individual acts Mogwai, Slowdive and Editors just sound better, I'm not sure this project will have much longevity. 7/10.
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DAM FUNK - DJ KICKS
Funk, Electro-Pop, DJ Mix. !K7.
I really love it when an artist creates a mixtape of other artists, yet manages to make it sound like it could be one of their own albums! Jon Hopkins did it last with his stunning "LateNightTales" mixtape, and Dam-Funk has done it here. Dam-Funk takes us on a journey of the more obscure gems of 80s Synth Funk as well as some modern day nostalgia, and immediately you can hear the kind of sounds he has soaked up into his own innovative style of writing and playing. And even if you haven't heard much Dam Funk, this is an extremely solid collection of some of the funkiest, grooviest and most playful Soul and Funk tunes from after the 70s heyday. I dare you not to dance! 8/10.
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ROLO TOMASSI - BBC SESSIONS
Mathcore, Post Hardcore. Holy Roar Records.
This beautiful 10" record on green vinyl collects 2 separate BBC session recordings by one of the most exciting Mathcore bands going today! Side A collects 4 songs from a 2013 session, showcasing their evolution into a less intense, more ethereal act. Side B has a 2008 session which is much more rawkus and mental! The recording quality seems to be a little muddy on this release, but long time fans of the band will probably be more than happy to hear these alternative versions. The stop/start mayhem of "Digital History" is the standout for me! A showcase of Rolo Tomassi's two different sides makes this perfect for the vinyl format! 7/10.
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WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM - DIADEM OF 12 STARS [REISSUE]
Black Metal. Artemisia Records.
The Americans were pretty late to the Black Metal party, which took a while to transcend the pond from Scandinavia, but the actions of Varg Vikernes and Mayhem certainly helped speed up the process. One of the first American Black Metal bands to make a landmark album was a band called Weakling, who dropped the hard to find classic "Dead As Dreams" and then broke up. The album took influences of Emperor and Burzum for sure, but found something new to say with their epic, Sludgy 20 minute + songs.Though Weakling had split up by the time the album came out... Their producer and collaborator Tim Green (also of The Fucking Champs) basically called upon Wolves In the Throne Room to carry on their legacy. He also produced "Diadem..." and got them to record in the exact same studio as Weakling did...
Naturally, "Diadem of 12 Stars" garnered the nickname "Dead As Dreams Part II". The album consists of 3 very lengthy 15+ minute compositions that have a very similar sound. The use of thick Sludge toned guitars and synthesisers was certainly reminiscent of Weakling as well as the blood curdling screams. "Diadem" works perfectly as a sequel, but it would be unfair to suggest that Wolves In the Throne Room were leaching off the influence of Weakling. After this album they very much evolved and grew their own sound, following it up with the masterpiece that is "Two Hunters". In particular, "Queen of the Borrowed Light" is one of the greatest songs Wolves ever wrote, which opens up this album. I recommend the vinyl release of this album, which boasts a beautiful gatefold sleeve. The vinyl master adds more hiss and white noise, giving it a more vintage Black Metal rawness, whilst the Sludgy parts really hit you with a punch. No extras unfortunately, but this an essential purchase for any Black Metal collection! 8/10.
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CONVERGE - YOU FAIL ME REDUX [REISSUE]
Hardcore Punk, Mathcore. Deathwish Inc.
In 2001, Converge released their seminal classic album "Jane Doe", which is still seen as one of the most important albums in the Mathcore genre. It also happens to be one of the most brutal and unrelenting albums ever to punish my ears! 2004's follow up "You Fail Me" received mixed feelings at the time. The playing isn't as crazy technical, the recording is much more stripped down and it isn't quite the headfuck that "Jane Doe" was. With "You Fail Me", Converge arguably made a much more emotionally and lyrically heavy and intense album though. The album very much goes back to their Hardcore roots and in particular went on to influence the emotional/melodic Hardcore sound that gave birth to acts such as Touche Amore and La Dispute. Looking back 12 years later, I'm tempted to say that "You Fail Me" is actually Converge's second best album. They didn't necessarily take a step forward from "Jane Doe" when they made it, but they walked up an entirely different staircase.
The Redux is only a subtle overhaul in sound. In particular the drums sound a bit more prominent in the mix and pack slightly more punch. The best part is, a missing track, "Wolves At My Door" is included in the running order after highlight "Eagles Become Vultures". It's an absolute belter and very much fits the mood and sequencing of the album. "Last Light" is one of Converge's ultimate songs that has closed their concerts on recent tours. "Black Cloud" and "Eagles Become Vultures" are the closest we get to the brutality of "Jane Doe". The title track is a beautiful Sludge epic that builds gradually, working like a blueprint for their monumental "Grim Heart/Black Rose" on their following album. Pick up the vinyl edition which boasts a truly beautiful fold out sleeve with artwork by vocalist Jacob Bannon. 9/10.
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LET'S EAT GRANDMA - I GEMINI
Art Pop. Transgressive Records.
Let's Eat Grandma (yeah really, try telling someone they're your new favourite band!) are a duo consisting of two 16 year old girls. The fact they have built up a solid reputation and written and recorded their own album by this age is a heart warming achievement. Though I respect them, I don't quite think I like them. In terms of musical ability, this is very accomplished. However, the album is absolutely all over the place and lacks any real cohesion or direction. It's not often you hear elements of Synth Pop, Hip Hop and Folk music all on one album! I can get on with the music and arrangement's here, but the vocals absolutely kill it for me! It was a complete nails on a chalkboard kind of cringe to my ears. One of the tracks sounded like Kate Nash trying to cover The Streets! And shouty vocals singing "my father beat me" become hard to listen to. If you thought Joanna Newsom's vocals on her debut album were testing, you ain't heard nothing yet! I wanted to like this album more, and to be fair I did like bits of it, but there is far too much drama and far too little clear direction here, which is certainly justifiable for two teenage girls. There is certainly some interesting potential here, but it feels too soon to get excited yet. 6/10.
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DJ SHADOW - THE MOUNTAIN WILL FALL
Electronica, IDM, Hip Hop. Mass Appeal.
DJ Shadow came out in 1996 with one of the most groundbreaking debut albums in not just Hip Hop, but the whole of music, holding a Guinness World Record for the first commercial album made entirely of samples! He has perhaps undeservedly struggled to follow it up ever since, but maybe fan expectations have been too high. Attempts to do something completely different, such as his third album "The Outsider" lead to him being eaten alive by critics, but this time around stepping even further out of his comfort zone may have actually paid off at last. I saw DJ Shadow play Manchester's "Warehouse Project" Electronic music festival a couple of years back. He did a DJ set consisting of a lot of IDM, Electronic and Dubstep and not very much Hip Hop at all. The same can be said for "The Mountain Will Fall". Apart from a pretty solid Hip Hop track with Run the Jewels, the sound of this album is definitely a nod to Warp Records and the innovative IDM sound that took over the 90s. Whilst nothing here is particularly groundbreaking or current, you have to admit that DJ Shadow has done a pretty good job at attempting to sound a bit like Squarepusher and Aphex Twin here. He sounds really inspired and like he is having fun too! It's no "Endtroducing..." but I enjoyed it! 7/10.
_______________
SWANS - THE GLOWING MAN
Drone Rock. Young Gods.
Swans have proved themselves to be one of the most interesting and successful reunion acts, practically reinventing themselves and having a critically acclaimed second wind. This is their 4th album since their reunion at the start of this decade, and their 3rd double album in a row (or triple if you buy wax). "The Glowing Man" isn't particular different to the last two. It's slow, meandering, noisy, atmospheric and has multiple songs that run over 20 minutes. Other bands can try and release albums with lots of 20 minute tracks and stumble, but Swans seem to make it sound effortless, momentous and damn right apocalyptic! "The Glowing Man" demands your patience and full attention, but it is easy to get lost and swept away within the dense journeys of sound. Even without that much progression, those 20 minutes seem to fly by. If you liked any of the previous two albums there is certainly more to love here, even without being that drastically different in approach. Swans have created something genuinely hypnotic and almost unexplainable. No rating as I feel I still need to spend more time with this record. Ask me again in a year! ???/10.
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PLAID - THE DIGGING REMEDY
Electronic, IDM. Warp Records.
Depending on how you pronounce it, Plaid to me has always sounded like "Played", and I feel that is fitting because they are a very playful band. They can often hit the same abstract heights of label mates Autechre, Aphex Twin and Boards of Canada. Yet Plaid quite often sounded much happier and more melodic. The aforementioned have quite often reveled in doom and darkness. On "The Digging Remedy", Plaid sound a lot more serious and darker than usual, yet still very much sound like Plaid. Their beats and syncopated melodies always move at a swift pace and keep your brain twitching. But with these slightly darker and more abstract moods presented here, Plaid come closer to sounding like their aforementioned label mates ("Dilatone" could have come straight off Autechre's "Tri Repetae"). "The Digging Remedy" is a very solid and interesting 45 minutes that proves they are still one of Warp's top tier artists. There is nothing particularly new or fresh here, but there is nothing remotely disappointing either. 8/10.
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MINOR VICTORIES - MINOR VICTORIES
Dream Pop, Post Rock. Fat Possum Records.
Minor Victories contains band members of Mogwai, Editors and Slowdive and if you can imagine what a mixture of all three would sound like, then you will definitely have this album sussed already! It really does sound like a cross between all three. Minor Victories have a very cinematic sound verging on symphonic, with some songs that like to build gradually and climax loudly. You also have some dreamy, shoegazey tracks and some darker tones Post Punk ones. Everything here is certainly well done and the combinations in sound are mostly more invigorating than they are jarring. The guest lead vocal from Mark Kozelek on "For You Always" was the big highlight of the album for me, and I kind of wonder why this wasn't on a Sun Kil Moon album instead! Minor Victories sounds great for what it is, but the individual acts Mogwai, Slowdive and Editors just sound better, I'm not sure this project will have much longevity. 7/10.
_______________
DAM FUNK - DJ KICKS
Funk, Electro-Pop, DJ Mix. !K7.
I really love it when an artist creates a mixtape of other artists, yet manages to make it sound like it could be one of their own albums! Jon Hopkins did it last with his stunning "LateNightTales" mixtape, and Dam-Funk has done it here. Dam-Funk takes us on a journey of the more obscure gems of 80s Synth Funk as well as some modern day nostalgia, and immediately you can hear the kind of sounds he has soaked up into his own innovative style of writing and playing. And even if you haven't heard much Dam Funk, this is an extremely solid collection of some of the funkiest, grooviest and most playful Soul and Funk tunes from after the 70s heyday. I dare you not to dance! 8/10.
_______________
ROLO TOMASSI - BBC SESSIONS
Mathcore, Post Hardcore. Holy Roar Records.
This beautiful 10" record on green vinyl collects 2 separate BBC session recordings by one of the most exciting Mathcore bands going today! Side A collects 4 songs from a 2013 session, showcasing their evolution into a less intense, more ethereal act. Side B has a 2008 session which is much more rawkus and mental! The recording quality seems to be a little muddy on this release, but long time fans of the band will probably be more than happy to hear these alternative versions. The stop/start mayhem of "Digital History" is the standout for me! A showcase of Rolo Tomassi's two different sides makes this perfect for the vinyl format! 7/10.
_______________
WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM - DIADEM OF 12 STARS [REISSUE]
Black Metal. Artemisia Records.
The Americans were pretty late to the Black Metal party, which took a while to transcend the pond from Scandinavia, but the actions of Varg Vikernes and Mayhem certainly helped speed up the process. One of the first American Black Metal bands to make a landmark album was a band called Weakling, who dropped the hard to find classic "Dead As Dreams" and then broke up. The album took influences of Emperor and Burzum for sure, but found something new to say with their epic, Sludgy 20 minute + songs.Though Weakling had split up by the time the album came out... Their producer and collaborator Tim Green (also of The Fucking Champs) basically called upon Wolves In the Throne Room to carry on their legacy. He also produced "Diadem..." and got them to record in the exact same studio as Weakling did...
Naturally, "Diadem of 12 Stars" garnered the nickname "Dead As Dreams Part II". The album consists of 3 very lengthy 15+ minute compositions that have a very similar sound. The use of thick Sludge toned guitars and synthesisers was certainly reminiscent of Weakling as well as the blood curdling screams. "Diadem" works perfectly as a sequel, but it would be unfair to suggest that Wolves In the Throne Room were leaching off the influence of Weakling. After this album they very much evolved and grew their own sound, following it up with the masterpiece that is "Two Hunters". In particular, "Queen of the Borrowed Light" is one of the greatest songs Wolves ever wrote, which opens up this album. I recommend the vinyl release of this album, which boasts a beautiful gatefold sleeve. The vinyl master adds more hiss and white noise, giving it a more vintage Black Metal rawness, whilst the Sludgy parts really hit you with a punch. No extras unfortunately, but this an essential purchase for any Black Metal collection! 8/10.
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CONVERGE - YOU FAIL ME REDUX [REISSUE]
Hardcore Punk, Mathcore. Deathwish Inc.
In 2001, Converge released their seminal classic album "Jane Doe", which is still seen as one of the most important albums in the Mathcore genre. It also happens to be one of the most brutal and unrelenting albums ever to punish my ears! 2004's follow up "You Fail Me" received mixed feelings at the time. The playing isn't as crazy technical, the recording is much more stripped down and it isn't quite the headfuck that "Jane Doe" was. With "You Fail Me", Converge arguably made a much more emotionally and lyrically heavy and intense album though. The album very much goes back to their Hardcore roots and in particular went on to influence the emotional/melodic Hardcore sound that gave birth to acts such as Touche Amore and La Dispute. Looking back 12 years later, I'm tempted to say that "You Fail Me" is actually Converge's second best album. They didn't necessarily take a step forward from "Jane Doe" when they made it, but they walked up an entirely different staircase.
The Redux is only a subtle overhaul in sound. In particular the drums sound a bit more prominent in the mix and pack slightly more punch. The best part is, a missing track, "Wolves At My Door" is included in the running order after highlight "Eagles Become Vultures". It's an absolute belter and very much fits the mood and sequencing of the album. "Last Light" is one of Converge's ultimate songs that has closed their concerts on recent tours. "Black Cloud" and "Eagles Become Vultures" are the closest we get to the brutality of "Jane Doe". The title track is a beautiful Sludge epic that builds gradually, working like a blueprint for their monumental "Grim Heart/Black Rose" on their following album. Pick up the vinyl edition which boasts a truly beautiful fold out sleeve with artwork by vocalist Jacob Bannon. 9/10.
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