I think we've finally run the course of the Chuck vs [insert Morgan attribute here] string of episodes. As suspected, it's the intersect that corrupted Morgan.
What's with Captain Awesome playing stay at home daddy to the song "Raw Meat" by Black Lips? Research for that song nearly killed producer Mark Ronson, as he tried out some raw meat with the band and ended up in the hospital as a result. That's probably not the kind of backstory you want associated with infant child care. What was I talking about, anyway?
Thanks to Sasquatch! Music Festival and other pressing issues, I missed last weeks crop of new releases, headlined by My Morning Jacket and Death Cab For Cutie (and Robert Pollard, and Eddie Vedder on the ukelele, and Seapony, and...). For the past two days, I've been down with a fever, so this week's was in peril too, but I've switched my tea for coffee, propped myself up with some pillows and made a go of it. All because this is a great week for releases. Black Lips, Cults, Fucked Up, Tom Vek, Battles, Arctic Monkeys and Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr headline the week, but it goes deeper than that as well. New releases from The Rosebuds, Frank Turner, Givers, The Postelles, Sondre Lerche, Peter Murphy, Oneida, City and Colour all make it a pretty deep week for ear spins. Have at it.
When word leaked out that Black Lips were working with the Grammy award winning producer Mark Ronson, there was understandable worry that the antics and noise that the Atlanta quartet had become famous for would get lost. Ronson, however, let the band do their thing (almost killing him in the process), leaving his contributions to cleaning up the sound a bit. As a result, the drums are punchier, and the vocals front and center, and with Ronson's classic attention to 'classic' sound details. Arabia Mountain is Black Lips' best album thus far, both artistically, and likely, commercially.
They mystery behind the New York duo Cults has been built up since the gleeful "Go Outside" started making the rounds last year. With it's Shuggie Otis' glockenspiel-like intro and 60s pop sound, it had everyone asking "Who are these people?" Outside of the names Brian O'Blivion (guitar) and Madeline Follin (singer), never bothered to answer, instead laying low after signing on Columbia. Now their self-titled debut answers a few questions, like "will they be a one-hit wonder?" The easy answer there is "No." The advance second single, "Abducted" should've already answered that question, with it's driving chorus and continuation of 60s pop sensibilities. Aside from the unneeded recorded cult leaders interweaved throughout the album, the rest of the album sets up the duo nicely for a career beyond their debut, even if it loses a bit of steam in the second half.
Hardcore Canadians Fucked Up aren't just punk because Damien "Pink Eyes" Abraham screams up a lung in every song. It's also the constant defying of expectations time and time again. Since the release of their critically acclaimed last release, The Chemistry of Common Life, the band has released a series of Chinese Zodiac themed singles, played with Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig, LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy and, more unexpectedly, Nelly Furtado and actress Shenae Grimes. So when it was revealed their latest, David Comes Alive, was a rock opera, it was expected unexpected news. Telling the story of a light bulb factory worker, David, in love with an activist named Veronica (voiced on the album by Cults' Madeline Follin, conveniently enough for our purposes here), who tragically dies pretty early in the action. The story gets convoluted, as most rock opera's do, but there's incredible ambition here, and if it weren't for the rock opera aspect, the headline here would be that Fucked Up have become accessible. The need to display guitar prowess has been reined in, Pink Floydian meanderings cut almost entirely, and songs tightened to the point that you can recognize pop structures at work. Of course, nobody's going to put Pink Eye's screams on middle American radio stations anytime soon, but without his bravado, this album probably wouldn't work (you'd need another distinct voice -- in fact, throw Craig Finn in the mix and you've got a more masculine riff-heavy Hold Steady album).
Back in 2005, Tom Vek seemed to come out of nowhere with his idiosyncratic punk funk debut, We Have Sound. The one-man band then went back to nowhere for nearly six years -- nowhere being a place where he built his own studio, taught himself production techniques, and spent time writing new material. Listening to his long awaited follow up, Leisure Seizure, it's like Vek was locked up in his recording studio for the majority of the time, just trying to get the sounds in his head on recording, as the album is pretty well removed from sounds and trends that have occurred in the six years he's been absent. The difference for Vek is a more polished sound, punchier drums and less tinny guitars. Advance single "A Chore" is the perfect (re)introduction to Vek's sound, with the big ringing drums and disjointed keyboard and guitar interplay, while "Aroused" sounds a bit like Yeasayer roofied Joe Jackson into a guest vocal. But really, Vek sounds like nobody else, so comparisons are just silly. It's great to have him back, and hopefully we won't have to wait until 2017 for another release.
That's Cole Alexander of Black Lips from the Main Stage @ Capitol Hill Block Party on July 24, 2009. Still wading through some of the photos I took of Jesus Lizard, Built to Spill, Deerhunter, Micachu & the Shapes, Black Lips and Spinnerette, but here's the best of each (over at Bumpershine).
But before I do that... it's time for day 2 to commence.
Compared to last week's barrage, the current crop of new releases looks a bit anemic. It's essentially a reaction to the post-awards show shadow, where new releases tend to suffer because focus turns to already released media getting a boost from the event (look for the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack to get a bit of a boost). Even the Watchmen soundtrack was recently (and wisely) pushed to next week to allow for the shadow's affects. This week features new releases from Black Lips, Kinky, K'naan, A. Armada and Laura Gibson.
The endearing mess that is 200 Million Thousand couldn't be anything but a Black Lips release, and yet it is quite different in it's scope and feel. Take for instance the standout track "Starting Over," which sounds like the four-piece from Atlanta tried write their own version of The La's classic "There She Goes." It's the sound of pure pop that's about to fall over drunk. It seems to fulfill the (drunken) summery promise Good Bad Not Evil, along with the other highlight "Short Fuse," but the rest of the album is drenched in a dense psychedelic cloud of Mary-J. It's a fun place to hang out for awhile, as long as you step out to get some air now and then.
The problem that's haunted Kinky their entire career is that their albums never quite meet the level of their live show, so every release feels more like a fakebook you use to prepare for their live show, than something of itself. Barricuda, I imagine, continues this trend. I say 'imagine' because I've yet to see these songs live, but history has proven that on stage they'll be that much better. It's not a terrible problem to have, and owes more to their stage prowess than a large fault of their recording, but I still wish for someone to capture the 'magia' of their live setting. Highlights here include "Hasta Quemarnos" and "TachiMariPedónCocongo." Oh, I almost forgot the other thing that a Kinky release is good for besides prepping you for their live set: They're always a great workout soundtrack. The Montery, MX band has latched onto the perfect BPM to get the heart pumping, which is the key for any good dance music, claro que si, no?
While the Dirty Sexy Money premiere didn't exactly make me rethink the inevitability of me giving up on watching it, the inclusion of The Black Lips' "Veni Vidi Vici" during the episode got my attention. Black Lips? More like black eyes, huh Jeremy? The manipulative Darlings are the draw, obviously, but watching Nick blacken Jeremy's eye was a perverse thrill. They're trying hard to make Jill look more sympathetic this season, but I'm still not buying why we should care that they stay together. Queen's "Under Pressure" (with David Bowie) also makes a welcome appearance.
Chuck - Episode 2.01 (Playlist) The second season premiere brought the funny, making up for the sometimes tiring reintroduction of the series to new fans. Musically, humor took the form of Huey Lewis & the News songs ("Hip to be Square,""Power of Love,") giving us contrasting views of how the cheese of Huey Lewis can either lift spirits or annoy the hell out of you depending on your mood. Then Flight of the Conchord's french pop parody "Foux du Fafa" helped amusingly introduce Sarah's new cover at a yogurt shop (Weinerlicious will surely be missed). [More thoughts and tracklisting]
Life - Episode 2.01 (Playlist) Life, on the other hand, doesn't have as much humor to make up for all the reintroductions that it put us through, and thus is suffered as a result. I assume (hope) that the next episode (tonight) will work much better. Musically, there's at least still some of the same commitment to quality that later episodes showed last season, this time highlighted by The Heavy's "Colleen." [More thoughts and tracklisting]
Skins - Episode 2.08 (Playlist) This week's "Effy" episode might just be the best and worst example of the show. It was riveting and full of all the drama that Gossip Girl and all the other teen soaps could only dream of. Tony descends even further down the likable meter, but then Josh's twisted revenge shifts the scales a bit back in his favor. He really does love Effy, and perhaps this is his turning point. Meanwhile, once again, they've stripped every single song out from how it originally aired, and this time it's even more egregious in that there were three songs by the amazing Grizzly Bear left on the cutting room floor. Someone on their staff must have had Yellow House in heavy rotation. [More thoughts and tracklisting]
This past weekend, Austin City Limits had it's 33rd season premiere, and for it's second week, this Saturday* features the double billing of The Decemberists and Explosions In The Sky. Let me back up a minute, and re-emphasize a something in that last sentence -- this is the 33rd season. That's a lot of Willie Nelson, but really, the series has come a long way from being a Willie and friends get together. Besides this week's great lineup, this season boasts Arcade Fire, Wilco, Regina Spektor, Bloc Party, Ghostland Observatory, Kings of Leon and Texas' own Roky Erickson. Norah Jones headlined the premiere the other night -- which helps explain why I waited until this week.
Elsewhere, Atlanta's rambunctious Black Lips are bound to tear up Conan's set with their unique brand of punk garage rock. When they make their network television debut on Tuesday night, there's no question about whether they'll bring the rock, but rather whether they'll be with or without mustaches. I'm placing my bet firmly on the 'stache.
This year's cover to the official guide that The Stranger puts out every year borrows (with permission) a photo I took from last year's fest. 
Here's the rest of the photos from last year's CHBP. The photo also made my "Favorite Photos of 2009" entry here.
The endearing mess that is 200 Million Thousand couldn't be anything but a Black Lips release, and yet it is quite different in it's scope and feel. Take for instance the standout track "Starting Over," which sounds like the four-piece from Atlanta tried write their own version of The La's classic "There She Goes." It's the sound of pure pop that's about to fall over drunk. It seems to fulfill the (drunken) summery promise Good Bad Not Evil, along with the other highlight "Short Fuse," but the rest of the album is drenched in a dense psychedelic cloud of Mary-J. It's a fun place to hang out for awhile, as long as you step out to get some air now and then.
The problem that's haunted Kinky their entire career is that their albums never quite meet the level of their live show, so every release feels more like a fakebook you use to prepare for their live show, than something of itself. Barricuda, I imagine, continues this trend. I say 'imagine' because I've yet to see these songs live, but history has proven that on stage they'll be that much better. It's not a terrible problem to have, and owes more to their stage prowess than a large fault of their recording, but I still wish for someone to capture the 'magia' of their live setting. Highlights here include "Hasta Quemarnos" and "TachiMariPedónCocongo." Oh, I almost forgot the other thing that a Kinky release is good for besides prepping you for their live set: They're always a great workout soundtrack. The Montery, MX band has latched onto the perfect BPM to get the heart pumping, which is the key for any good dance music, claro que si, no?
I came, I saw... I got socked in the eye.
This past weekend, Austin City Limits had it's 33rd season premiere, and for it's second week, this Saturday* features the double billing of The Decemberists and Explosions In The Sky. Let me back up a minute, and re-emphasize a something in that last sentence -- this is the 33rd season. That's a lot of Willie Nelson, but really, the series has come a long way from being a Willie and friends get together. Besides this week's great lineup, this season boasts Arcade Fire, Wilco, Regina Spektor, Bloc Party, Ghostland Observatory, Kings of Leon and Texas' own Roky Erickson. Norah Jones headlined the premiere the other night -- which helps explain why I waited until this week.
Elsewhere, Atlanta's rambunctious Black Lips are bound to tear up Conan's set with their unique brand of punk garage rock. When they make their network television debut on Tuesday night, there's no question about whether they'll bring the rock, but rather whether they'll be with or without mustaches. I'm placing my bet firmly on the 'stache.
