Light Bearer - Silver Tongue

Light Bearer - Aggressor & Usurper

Runs for: 16:49

Possibly the best song on the album, but only on it's own. You'll see what I mean.

Look, I want to like this album, and in many ways there’s a lot to like – but there are some gaping flaws in it which I can’t believe the band oversighted. We’ll break this down into a good and bad review. Let’s start with the good.

Firstly, it’s very ambitious. On top of the use of your standard band instruments, there’s use of violin, horns and clever effects in order to create a big, opera-like sound at moments on the album. The quieter parts of the songs are really impressive with delicate, entrancing guitar being employed, and the drumming is exceptional at transforming the song into a hard-hitting, head-banging whirlwind of rhythmically interesting beats.

Unfortunately, it falls flat in places. A lot of the time, the main guitar riffs get monotonous and aren’t adventurous, with repetitive and simple chugging being employed without anything clever to support it – be this guitar solos, drum riffs or even anything from their orchestral arsenal. This detracts from the rest of almost every song, as parts where the violin plays start to stand out, not to actually support the song but rather shift the focus to the orchestral segments. This comes off as if to say ‘look at us! We have a violin!’ which is horribly pretentious. Each song sounds far too similar, every song follows a formula which is horribly obvious - going from ‘HARD PART! SOFT PART! CLIMAX! MAYBE A SOFT PART AGAIN!’ and even on the best track, Aggressor & Usurper, this is so prevalent that it makes me ill. The whole experience is like trying to kiss a girl who has awful breath – all very exciting at first but you feel a bit dirty once you realise what’s wrong. The worst part about it is that with a bit of attention, this would be super obvious to her and easily fixed. C’est la vie I suppose.

Reccomended for: Anyone who's into progressive sludge. Think Rosetta, Isis, Neurosis, that sort of thing.

Download it for free (or hell, pay if you like it) here: http://lightbearer.bandcamp.com/

Giles Corey - Hinterkaifeck EP

Giles Corey - Hinterkaifeck

(All the songs are playable/purchasable through the bandcamp, linked below.)

Once again, Dan Barrett's 'Giles Corey' project emotionally conflicts fans by giving them a reason to be happy about something that will leave them in a wet heap of tears. The Release of Hinterkaifeck is to coincide with a tour that he’s doing in the states, and is a pretty decent release of his Giles Corey signature style of dark and sad experimental folk music. It’s a short, three song EP that you can buy off the bandcamp for $3 (Gee golly mister that’s a dollar a track!) and is well worth the purchase as he continues to prove that you can record great music from the safety of your house. Here’s a track-by-track rundown for your reading displeasure.

Winter’s house – This is probably my favourite song on the EP. It introduces itself in a slow and brooding manner, then kicks in with a lengthy and somewhat beautiful strumming progression that starts normal but soon turns dark. Dan sings over it in an airy fashion, and by the end of the song the lyrics pull you apart like tissue paper. It's pretty moving stuff. Just wish he’d thrown in another verse though.

Guilt Is My Boyfriend – It starts off brooding, lyrically forceful. The introduction of the crashing fuzz and subtle drums behind it work out well - maybe closer to what I’d expect from Dan’s music in terms of the use of effects and experimentation so I wouldn’t go as far to say it’s anything hugely ‘new’. It also works out vocally with clever lyrical wordplay and a decent use of change in vocal range, but all in all it’s not as good as Winter’s House in my eyes.

Wounded Wolf – This track really goes for minimalism, but I believe it could have been stronger. It relies a bit too strongly on what isn’t there rather than what is. The instrumentals and effects are good, but I’ve definitely heard examples of better use/creation on the self titled. Lyrically it’s pretty simple compared to the rest of the EP as well, and it seems like the track is hoping to hit home with the final line ‘somebody’s got to be the death of me’, but it doesn’t sink in. Usually the thing that hits home with the Giles Corey project is that it’ll either sting me lyrically or instrumentally, sometimes both ways. This failed to do either with me unfortunately. Strange because I know that he’s capable of it…

I’d pay 3 bucks for Winter’s House alone. That is a REALLY good track.

You can listen to the whole thing and read the lyrics before you buy it on their bandcamp. Here’s the link: http://gilescorey.bandcamp.com/album/hinterkaifeck

Fun fact – The album is named after a farmstead in Germany where, in the early 1900s, 6 people were murdered with a pickaxe. The murder remains unsolved. Have a read about it on the wikipeepeea page.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinterkaifeck

Dinosaur Jr are touring Australia early March!

And here are the dates. I'm going to try get to the sydney gig with my dad.
If you're unfamilar with Dinosaur Jr, you've wasted the nineties. Congratulations. They were one of the best grunge acts of the time, and whilst they didn't score as much fame as it's contemporaries, J Mascis' guitar work is nothing short of insane, choosing to combine both metal and country together to create one of my personal favourite rock acts. If you've got a bit of cash lying around, or are actually a fan, check them out! 

7/3/13 Melbourne @ Corner Hotel - Sold Out
8/3/13 Melbourne @ The Espy - $50
9/3/13 Meredith, VIC @ Meredith Supernatural Ampitheatre - Sold Out
10/3/13 Adelaide, SA @ The Gov - $48
12/3/13 Perth, WA @ Astor Theatre - $63
14/3/13 Brisbane @ The Hi-Fi - $58
15/3/13 Coolangatta @ Coolangatta Hotel - #48

16/3/13 Sydney @ The Hi Fi - $60

Here's probably their best known song. Great clip! always remember watching it on old rage tapes.

Low - I Could Live In Hope

Low - Cut

Runs for: 5:48

Like I'll be saying, it's minimalistic. Pretty eerie stuff.

Here’s a throwback to 1994, Low’s album ‘I Could Live In Hope’. This is my first proper experience with the ‘slowcore’ genre (ironically a tag disapproved of by the band), and it’s surprisingly pleasing -  Minimalistic, slow tracks which are driven by voice harmonies, low tempos and bass guitar. It’s a shining example as to how less can be more in music, so even if thematically you don’t enjoy it, the instrumental aspect is pretty interesting from a musician’s point of view.

The tracks come off as a bit sad. They’re slow and there’s a lot of reverb, creating the effect as if you were listening to this music at the bottom of a well. The low tempo leaves a lot of room to soak up everything that’s going on, leading me to call this good music to ‘think’ to. The vocals are slow and drawn out too, and thematically seems to be almost tortured. Some of the lyrics revolve around destitution, fear, loneliness and mental instability. It’s all quite sinister and hands the listener a feeling that the vocalists are subtly oppressed by their own anxieties. The instrumentals get pretty interesting at times – outside of the parts where it leaves you with that space to soak up what’s going on, there’s hints of interesting riff work that picks up in the spaces between drum beats, resulting in some light yet melancholy guitar solos.

Something to remind yourself before you start listening, is that musically, bands like this were created in opposition to bands of the grunge era. If you’re looking for something to listen to which will get you pumped as you’re taking a bat to anything that moves in Grand Theft Auto, or to impress girls who say they listen to ‘everything’ - maybe don’t pick this. If you’re looking for something you can slowly learn to appreciate for its merits, or just listen to on those hangovers where you ask ‘why do I do this to myself?’ – this is the ticket. Minimalism at its finest.

Reccomended for: Fans of folk music, namely Damien Rice and Giles Corey. Anyone who’s chillout playlist is looking pretty bare would greatly benefit from a few tracks on this too.

My Bloody Valentine - m b v

My Bloody Valentine - Who Sees You

Runs for: 6:12

That slow groove! That wailing slow riff! Them drums! Dream done right.

After 22 long years of waiting, My Bloody Valentine decided to reclaim the shoegaze throne and release ‘m b v’. The album is covered in 90s juice. Literally drenched in this rich retro wall-of-noise sound that is not only bearable, but hugely addictive too. There’s a lot of hype surrounding the album, and yeah, while I’m on board the hype train to hypseville – It’s completely worthy of it. Hear me out.

The general sound on most tracks is layered with so much noise and fuzz that the instrumentals become difficult to decipher, creating this wicked wall of sound. Half the fun in tuning in to the tracks lies in hearing when various instruments change what they’re doing, meaning every spin of the album acts like I-spy for the ears. Some tracks will have a great rolling rhythm on the drums, other tracks will be brought together with a unison of guitar riffs and keyboard work, but overall the tempo of the songs really seems to bring it all together with subtle hints of 90s song structuring – everything is crafted perfectly around all this which is an incredibly rare thing to find in music. Listening closely, the only other bands I can find who are pulling off the 90s vibe well in this day and age would be Dinosaur Jr and of course, the loveable 90s revivalists Yuck.

I think the one thing this album does exceptionally lies in its musical contradiction. The tone and mixing of tracks comes off as damp, or even soft – yet it is still very loud and listenable without blasting treble to a point where your ears explode. By this I mean that other shoegaze/dream bands will either suffer from grindy or tinny noise as is the problem with New York band ‘A Place To Bury Strangers’or most dream music (I find) gets boring after three songs such as with dream-pop wank cultivators, ‘Beach House’. Save for about one or two tracks around the middle, m b v isn’t a boring album. It makes you want to crank the volume up to a point of self harm, and yet the beauty of it lies in flawless delivery of dream style music with a dash of 90s rock on top – AND it gets better every listen. Get. On. It.

My Bloody Valentine - In Another Way

Runs for: 5:30

Diggin the drum rolls and the general energy of this one. 

Weird thing for me is that some people are saying this is one of their lesser favourites on the album?

Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway

Sun Kil Moon - Carry me, Ohio

Runs for: 6:21

Really mellow track. Nice vocals and instrumentals and good for just listening to when you need to relax.

Sun Kil Moon’s ‘Ghosts of the Great Highway’ was sold to me as one of the greater contemporaries in terms of singer/songwriter based folk music, which I’ve been on quite a kick for after developing an unhealthy addiction to The Microphones ‘The Glow, pt 2.”. ‘Ghosts’ comes off as a lighter album, and while it isn’t as adventurous as other bands in its realm, it knows it’s strengths and puts them to good use.

The vocal work is very relaxing. Singer Mark Kozelek holds a great vocal range with a drawn-out and nearly otherworldly voice. He performs a style that isn’t so much a howl or a wail, but rather like a long, soft and bittersweet sigh. Thematically, he works with sorrowful and poetic lyrics, choosing to base songs on the lives of deceased boxers to a strong effect. The guitar work tends to involve a repetitive riff running continuously as the rest of the song forms around it through use of chimes, bells, other guitars and the variation in vocal tone.

Compared to other singer/songwriters, he has the instrumental mixture that lacks The Microphones/Mount Eerie’s experimental nature but makes up for it by complementing the tracks in a more traditional fashion.  I’d say that the airiness and pacing of his voice isn’t too far off from José González’s style either.

However, all in all I wouldn’t say that there’s anything genre defying or wildly out there on this album, but that’s not a bad thing. It’s got this familiar calmness to it that washes over you like bath water. The instrumentals have a subtle complexity, the vocals are relaxing with a decent range, and the music is - without a doubt - very well constructed. All in all, ‘Ghosts of the Great Highway’ knows it’s limits and works within them to create a solid album that’s well worth a listen.

Reccomended for: Lighter folk heads. Anyone who’s into Damien Rice or José González really.

Sun Kil Moon - Glenn Tipton

Runs for: 4:16

Another pretty decent track. I think the stand-out here is in the lyrics.