Recent Albums Reviews

Clinic - So I guess that after "Distortions", which really only affected me upon first listen (and upon each additional listen) Clinic became the same band each song, but that doesnt seem to faze them. I'll still download their albums, but I probably won't consider treasuring any of their songs again. 6/10.

The Thermals - There's too much of the same-as-other-bands guitar bravado and not enough of the same-as-The-Thermals energy that made me love two of their songs (one from each of their previous albums) in this album. Whatever if there's a message somewhere; write it on a toilet wall for somebody drunk enough to care. If I was at one of their shows (depending on who else was there of course,) I might care enough to care, but this ain't enough, Thermals. 6/10.

Matthew Friedberger - I like a few of the songs on Winter Women enough, but Holy Ghost Language School has so far almost completely escept me. I have a certain part of my heart at any given point of the day reserved for the siblings Friedberger, but I'm not about to blindly devote it so that he snaps his fingers and writes gobbeldygook for fortysome minutes and I fall into place; listen, I've got opinions too somewhere deep in me and I don't care if everybody else hates it, I hate it too. 3/10.

The Mountain Goats - I'm afraid enough of this album to not listen too close because I'm afraid of what might happen to me. I downloaded a song off of a music blog the other day and listened to it and it almost did that thing that I was afraid of to me (I'm in a vulneurable spot, you see) and so had to hold back a little bit. I've not been afraid of a contemporary album in such a while. I might give some more depthy listens to this, but only if I want to devestate myself. I trust John Darnielle enough with a concept to truly follow through with something like "loneliness" that I know it will probably be encapsulated sufficiently within the album's time (and its constant) that I don't commit to truly engaging with it in fear of it becoming one of these 'lying on my bed and not being able to move albums' that I knew so well in Spring of this year. 8/10.

Dirty on Purpose - Its the same motions as everybody else, if I saw this in concert I would probably dry heave mean comments to any friends at the show if they were there with me. But they wouldn't be because we'd be having fun doing something spectacular and worthwhile somewhere else. 2/10.

Andrew WK - My first hearing of this album was full of astonished gasps at the brain audacity of such a character as I'd known exists in WK this whole time! Since the year 2001 I think when my brother and I were first baffled by Party Hard! The album has more twists and turns than a Texas Tornader! But not all of them are exciting, some just twisting. There are a few songs that are gaspy enough for me to want to return to them often, but not enough songs that I'd want to listen to it like a family member. 7/10.

I'm From Barcelona - If I were a pettier man I would complain why are these people getting any attention is it because there are so many of them. But no, I'm just going to say that their sound is not for me because it is too much by the books and not anything abrasive or caustic or anything that I expect from EurPop. Also the songs seem unimportant and even though a few are a little catchy, they seem slightly punchworthy. 3/10.

Basement Jaxx - Previous Jaxx albums have astounded and floored and kept me singing along all night long, but this one seems to have the same sound throughout (despite its theme of being some sort of a radio station) I like the Orkestar sound for a song in there but there was another song where I thought they were saying a racial slur (though that one does contain the catchiest hook - even though it is not truly catchy). I feel like the overture is a good example of where they go with this album, it isn't quite as unworldly as their other work it just sticks to an over the top reimagining of radio koncepts and so is just like watery parody that I don't like as much as the Pussycat Dolls, for example. 4/10.

Sorry this is mostly on the negative side, I'll write something good when I hear it.

She Comes On Like Atomic Bombs

Colossusses is almost done! Kind of! There's only a few more things here and there to record, we're to do the group vocals Monday hopefully, some call and response tomorrow, a touch up and smatter of extra zazz here and there. Things are sounding really good to me. This album so far has been more solutions than problems, things are sound more like I'd want them to sound than I knew I wanted them to sound. I think this album is truly going to be treasured by the masses. There are so many different and funky sounds that we'd all be fools not to want to own at least one copy (maybe another one for back-up because surely the first one will get scratched beyond playability from being handled so much).

The next step is teaching my friends these songs so maybe we can play these around houses around town once everything gets together. A few times my brother and I have jammed it out in the front room on bongos and uke, but we'll need maybe keyboards and some kind of bass or guitar or extra percussion in addition to this. And everybody will sing. Jamie has been tossing around the idea of video accompaniment to performances. It may turn out to be very exciting or it likely will turn out to be one of these things where we get together everybody in a room and I screw it up. Anyway, I'll probably book like fifty shows starting any minute now. Look for us all over the bay area and all over your skull!

Cleave the Cliffs, The Sheriff's Waves

Colossusses is rolling! I've solvt the problem of nosy noise-annoyed neighbors by curving inward. I have about six of ten songs done! I'm going on some walks to write other songs in my head, yesterday I did and came up with the most exciting song yet, but I've got to go on another walk to get the parts that come before the part that I've written. Everything is sounding different from albums previous and from the other songs on the album. I'm thrilled that I'm able to switch around groups of instruments for each song and not have anything sound thin. For example in one song I can have a bass guitar playing the bass part and in another song I will have a synthesizer playing the bass part and in another song I will have an organ playing the bass part and in another song I will have a rubber band playing the bass part. I'm using a lot more non-instruments as instruments. I'm also ignoring the fact that I can't play certain instruments. If I continue at an inspired pace I may be done by September fourth, which will be the two month point of having started and I can get cooking on the next album.

Antarctica Takes It! are playing some shows coming up in San Francisco I think, and/or in San Jose. James Rabbit might be playing some shows someday, Conner and I practiced a few of our songs in our living room the other day. We also played "Coast to Coast and Heart to Heart" (which may be Colossusses first single) for our grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary. We hit chairs and a ukelele and jumped on cue. My work schedule is really time-intensive and doesn't allow for friends, so having a band is unrealistic.

Cavalier, our most recent release, is still available and still free by e-mailing me. I think it's great.

Zim Zam Red River Rum

I'm recording an album right now named Colossusses. The people that I live with seem to agree with me that it's fantastic so far. The best comment that I've received so far is that Jamie has said it's 'fresh'. The poor ladies downstairs have a different opinion however, where Jamie's experience with the songs has been me walking through the house humming them and asking him to listen to final mixes, their experience has been trombone-wake-up from naps at 4 pm (but seriously, naps?! those aren't even good for you).

Recording the album has been a mix of navigating the straits of nap time and 'I've got a headache' and computer issues (for example, EVERY SINGLE track I record I have to manually realign because it is automatically out of sync). We also don't have any time to record drums, so its just been a bit of snare here, a bit of floor tom there. I feel bad that Conner has no place to drum, but this is the reality we deal with. But I Colossuses on! Because its a really good album so far and because its only going to get better! And another album I'm trying my hardest not to write, but its tough! Sometimes these songs just roll out of my mouth!

Work is off-the-charts.