Thursday, November 7, 2013

album shorts

Swell Maps - A Trip to Marineville (1979)

Artsy punk that starts to transform into punky art around track 8, and by track 12 it delves into some sort of other undeclared realm of sound. A post-punk album that collects all that is chaotic, noisy, humorous and dark; where slammed piano keys, popping balloons, blowing bubbles and vacuum cleaners are all welcome.






Earl Sweatshirt - EARL (2010)

If nothing else, this makes me remember high-schoolers CAN matter. Matter of fact, this makes me even MISS high school. It perfectly captures that feeling of weirdo-homemade-Eminem worship, with tons of original character and standout lyrics that are equal parts complex, smart, 'uber-offensive' and memorable. Given their age groups, all that 'uber-offensive' stuff is most likely just natural instinct.






Sunny Day Real Estate - LP2 (1995)

This album has this big, mysterious, whatever/nonchalant thing going for it - the songs, the song titles, the (lack of) album title, the artwork, the liner notes - especially noticeable when compared to their more focused first album, Diary. It works both good and bad - while it may not be the big gamechanger that is their first album, it's obviously not supposed to be - LP2 does a good job showing the band being looser, but not slacking.




Ancient Chinese Secret - Caveat Emptor (1999)

Sounds like the culmination of a woman who, fed up after a long day at a customer service-oriented job, comes home and makes music with a couple powerviolence legends. A little oddball project with innocent/inexperienced female vocalist charm and an instrumental limitation of bass/drums/keyboards, refreshingly unique for the genre. For those who sometimes like their thrash domestic and experimental.




Yes - The Yes Album (1971)

Proudly boasts the essence of the era like a badge of honor, and it certainly adds charm here - the long, proggy songs with multiple sections, out of nowhere transitions, production somewhere between shoddy and trippy - but above all, this is simply a very fun, enjoyable listen.

No comments:

Post a Comment