It's been some time since I have (or anyone else has) written anything here. So here we are.
Anyway, in recent news- Spoon is kind of a good band. Or at least the last album, Transference, was good. I bought it, I think, in January, and only listened to it once until about a week ago. It's got chops.
Also, I will be attending a Black Keys concert shortly, and will certainly bring word on that happening. In related news, sometime later in August I will be at a Local Natives show in the Middle East (which is in Boston, not the Eurasian land mass).
So, yeah.
The Dude abides
Monday, July 26, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
damn right we got the blues
today the esteemed mr. marino and i convened at his lovely abode in the private drive of west newbury to record three songs. two currently grace our facebook and inspire an album project that we will likely never complete.
"damn right we got the blues" was inspired by the fact that one of today's output vehicles was a basic blues jam. dave played the rhythm guitar, while i added maracas, tambourine, and the guitar solo. unable to decide on just one set of lyrics, we recorded both "when the levee breaks" and "been down so long." dave sang the former, while i exercised my pipes on the latter. they came out decently.
we also debated "ice cream man" and "crossroads," but neither came to fruition. but since we had this basic 12-bar blues instrumental recorded, we decided to put it to use. we may or may not record about 20 sets of famous and unattributable blues lyrics to the same instrumental track, post them all to itunes, and pray to make a hefty profit. let's hope so.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Tightened Up
This is my review of the latest Black Keys album, and I'm hoping that Chris (who is also planning on picking it up) will share his thoughts on it later, for the purposes of comparison. Here goes.
The Black Keys are great. Let's get that out of the way first. They may very well be my favorite current band, and are definitely top five for me. In my opinion, Chulahoma, The Big Come Up, and Rubber Factory are just about as good as music has been over the last decade or so. And that's why I feel like the latest album, Brothers, represents a crisis for Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney.
Don't get me wrong- I like the album. It's good fun, most of the time, and will likely be one of the best releases this year. But this is hardly the same Black Keys that made their best records in a basement and in an abandoned industrial building. There was a marked change in the album preceding this one, Attack & Release, a change which has only become more pronounced in the latest offering. Like Brothers, Attack was a much more highly processed album than the norm for these guys, with most of their blues base replaced by R&B and soul- but, given that it was purportedly written to be made alongside Ike Turner (who died before it could be made), that made sense to me. But this album has gone ahead with the same aesthetic, splicing the blues-garage rock of the early records with disco and studio tricks.
I had been worried after Attack that maybe the Keys were exhausted. A straight up riff-rock band can only go so far, particularly with only two members: it is a self-limiting genre. The sparseness of the sound, which makes those first few records so appealing, cannot be sustained indefinitely without lapsing into production of songs too similar to be memorable. When Attack was followed up by a solo effort from Auerbach and a record put out by Carney's side-project, Drummer, I thought they might either split or stop recording new material. What I didn't expect was a trip even deeper into the world of digital effects and slick editing.
For the purposes of comparison, here are videos of "Tighten Up" from the new album, and "Heavy Soul" from the debut, The Big Come Up.
To be fair to them, the Keys are stilling producing interesting sounds, sometimes even compelling sounds. But the difference is that the later products tend to aim at being "interesting." Early on- on Big Come Up, Magic Potion, and so on- they took the inherent limitations of a two-man band and used them like negative space in a painting. They accepted that they would have to be based around staggering, jittery rhythms on the drums, monolithic guitar parts, and the sheer, unaltered perfection of Dan Auerbach's blues voice (like gravel, blood, and barbed wire). They forced themselves to be creative to compensate for the stripped-down methodology, and they came up with some of the best rock and roll this generation has produced.
But Attack introduced them to shortcuts: overdubbing, digital alteration, the use of many different instruments instead of the basic guitar-drum dynamic. They started being creative in the editing instead of the composing. They gave up craftiness and invention for technology. It's noteworthy that most of Attack's tracks sound better performed live, without the benefit of backing musicians and Danger Mouse's production. But the band stands now at a crossroads: they can essentially pick two things that will keep them alive, and one that might kill them.
They can fully commit to a shift in aesthetic, embracing the weird indie idiosyncrasy they seem to be toying with (especially with the disco elements, which groups like MGMT seem to be doing their best to resurrect). If they do this, they will cut ties to their original sound, which would be disappointing but viable.
They can expand the band roster and return to their bluesy roots. They have quite a following among musicians, and Robert Plant, at the very least, once expressed interest in playing bass for them. With a full three-piece sound, they could elaborate on their early bare-bones thump. I think Magic Potion and Rubber Factory each hinted at their potential in this direction. Songs like "The Flame," "10 A.M. Automatic," and "Stack Shot Billy" could incorporate a fuller sound without losing the essential flavor. All things considered, I think this is the best possible option, at least for fans of the band's original M.O.
But if they do neither of these things, and simply continue on in their current direction, I think they're going to fizzle. They cannot sustain this hybridized blues-soul-pop thing for long, especially if they insist on involved production like they have lately. Brothers sounds almost like it's coming apart at the seams. As I see it, "Tighten Up" is one of the best songs on the record. But that's just the problem: they've tightened up. The looseness, the simplicity, and the sheer enthusiasm of the early stuff is missing. They've become too polished, and, as a result, the sound of Brothers seems bloated and tense. I just hope they figure it out before it bursts.
Dave T
The Black Keys are great. Let's get that out of the way first. They may very well be my favorite current band, and are definitely top five for me. In my opinion, Chulahoma, The Big Come Up, and Rubber Factory are just about as good as music has been over the last decade or so. And that's why I feel like the latest album, Brothers, represents a crisis for Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney.
Don't get me wrong- I like the album. It's good fun, most of the time, and will likely be one of the best releases this year. But this is hardly the same Black Keys that made their best records in a basement and in an abandoned industrial building. There was a marked change in the album preceding this one, Attack & Release, a change which has only become more pronounced in the latest offering. Like Brothers, Attack was a much more highly processed album than the norm for these guys, with most of their blues base replaced by R&B and soul- but, given that it was purportedly written to be made alongside Ike Turner (who died before it could be made), that made sense to me. But this album has gone ahead with the same aesthetic, splicing the blues-garage rock of the early records with disco and studio tricks.
I had been worried after Attack that maybe the Keys were exhausted. A straight up riff-rock band can only go so far, particularly with only two members: it is a self-limiting genre. The sparseness of the sound, which makes those first few records so appealing, cannot be sustained indefinitely without lapsing into production of songs too similar to be memorable. When Attack was followed up by a solo effort from Auerbach and a record put out by Carney's side-project, Drummer, I thought they might either split or stop recording new material. What I didn't expect was a trip even deeper into the world of digital effects and slick editing.
For the purposes of comparison, here are videos of "Tighten Up" from the new album, and "Heavy Soul" from the debut, The Big Come Up.
To be fair to them, the Keys are stilling producing interesting sounds, sometimes even compelling sounds. But the difference is that the later products tend to aim at being "interesting." Early on- on Big Come Up, Magic Potion, and so on- they took the inherent limitations of a two-man band and used them like negative space in a painting. They accepted that they would have to be based around staggering, jittery rhythms on the drums, monolithic guitar parts, and the sheer, unaltered perfection of Dan Auerbach's blues voice (like gravel, blood, and barbed wire). They forced themselves to be creative to compensate for the stripped-down methodology, and they came up with some of the best rock and roll this generation has produced.
But Attack introduced them to shortcuts: overdubbing, digital alteration, the use of many different instruments instead of the basic guitar-drum dynamic. They started being creative in the editing instead of the composing. They gave up craftiness and invention for technology. It's noteworthy that most of Attack's tracks sound better performed live, without the benefit of backing musicians and Danger Mouse's production. But the band stands now at a crossroads: they can essentially pick two things that will keep them alive, and one that might kill them.
They can fully commit to a shift in aesthetic, embracing the weird indie idiosyncrasy they seem to be toying with (especially with the disco elements, which groups like MGMT seem to be doing their best to resurrect). If they do this, they will cut ties to their original sound, which would be disappointing but viable.
They can expand the band roster and return to their bluesy roots. They have quite a following among musicians, and Robert Plant, at the very least, once expressed interest in playing bass for them. With a full three-piece sound, they could elaborate on their early bare-bones thump. I think Magic Potion and Rubber Factory each hinted at their potential in this direction. Songs like "The Flame," "10 A.M. Automatic," and "Stack Shot Billy" could incorporate a fuller sound without losing the essential flavor. All things considered, I think this is the best possible option, at least for fans of the band's original M.O.
But if they do neither of these things, and simply continue on in their current direction, I think they're going to fizzle. They cannot sustain this hybridized blues-soul-pop thing for long, especially if they insist on involved production like they have lately. Brothers sounds almost like it's coming apart at the seams. As I see it, "Tighten Up" is one of the best songs on the record. But that's just the problem: they've tightened up. The looseness, the simplicity, and the sheer enthusiasm of the early stuff is missing. They've become too polished, and, as a result, the sound of Brothers seems bloated and tense. I just hope they figure it out before it bursts.
Dave T
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Procrastination
Instead of doing actual course work (that's for suckers, and also people who intend to become productive members of society), I've decided to post some random Youtube videos that I have lately enjoyed.
From the early days of UFC, we present to you Harold Howard, be-mulleted Canadian master of jiu-jitsu and "kara-te." I hope that you will particularly enjoy the reverse-David-Caruso he pulls off with those sunglasses. I feel compelled to mention that this guy was recently arrested for attacking people with a hammer.
A video of the previously mentioned Dinosaur Jr. cover of "Just Like Heaven."
And, lastly, bear hockey. Which is the world's last true sport.
Incidentally, another way to tell my posts apart from everyone else's (apart from my certain je ne sais quoi and general elegance of expression) will be my blogger name, which is "Chocolate Bear," in reference to Donald Faison on Scrubs.
Dave T
From the early days of UFC, we present to you Harold Howard, be-mulleted Canadian master of jiu-jitsu and "kara-te." I hope that you will particularly enjoy the reverse-David-Caruso he pulls off with those sunglasses. I feel compelled to mention that this guy was recently arrested for attacking people with a hammer.
A video of the previously mentioned Dinosaur Jr. cover of "Just Like Heaven."
And, lastly, bear hockey. Which is the world's last true sport.
Incidentally, another way to tell my posts apart from everyone else's (apart from my certain je ne sais quoi and general elegance of expression) will be my blogger name, which is "Chocolate Bear," in reference to Donald Faison on Scrubs.
Dave T
Just Discovered Rock'N'Roll
I'd like to, first and foremost, congratulate Chris on an excellent post title. If anyone reading doesn't recognize his reference, or the one in my title, I'd strongly recommend purchasing and listening to Art Brut's debut album, Bang Bang Rock & Roll.
Secondly, I'd like to start today off with a list of recommended listening, just because I'm bored and it seemed like the thing to do. Let's break this down by category.
Indie
Blues
Dave Sheet Cake, signing off.
Secondly, I'd like to start today off with a list of recommended listening, just because I'm bored and it seemed like the thing to do. Let's break this down by category.
Indie
- Gorilla Manor by Local Natives. It was just suggested to me by my brother, and it's pretty much fantastic. It's available on Groove Shark, and I don't currently own it, but I would if I had any money at all.
- At the moment, I cannot stop listening to Dinosaur Jr. material from the '80s, particularly You're Living All Over Me. Specifically, the tracks "The Lung," "Sludgefest," "Raisans," "Tarpit," and their cover of The Cure's "Just Like Heaven." Of course, any and all of the Dino discography is well worth listening to, even the much maligned Without a Sound.
Blues
- Junior Kimbrough is required listening, plain and simple.
- Current garage-rock, blues-based group The Black Keys, who have a new album coming out in about two weeks, should also be heard. Since I'm calling this blues instead of rock, let's go with the excellent set of Kimbrough covers Chulahoma. Besides that, I'd start out with Rubber Factory or The Big Come Up.
- Tim by The Replacements. The expanded edition is recommended, especially for outtakes of "Kiss Me On the Bus," "Waitress In the Sky," and "Can't Hardly Wait."
- Nirvana Live at Reading. I don't know if it's cool to like Nirvana anymore, but this is a pretty excellent live show. I particularly recommend "Aneurysm."
Dave Sheet Cake, signing off.
wrote a blog. we wrote a blog. wrote a blog. we wrote a blog!
because the most important thing when it comes to starting a band is obviously the establishment of its cornerstone blog. that's what this bad boy is. yup.
here you will find entertaining things from the domain of grumbledonia... or something... hopefully from all of us: dave "california here we come" marino, dave "sheet cake made of victory" truschel, and christopher "it was the heat of the moment" leone.
you'll be able to tell who's posting, most likely by signatures at the bottom of the post. or, in my case, the fact that i will never, ever use capital letters. EVER. except like that.
enjoy the failure!
chris
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