Thursday, July 29, 2010

Memes "Awww Shucks!"


Download Awww Shucks!

I wanted to call a band "Memes". That's how this all began. I thought it was original and clever, and had a lot of staying power in today's post (present?) YouTube/Digg/4Chan world. Most of all, I thought it would inspire me to get a hip, scene oriented "indie" band together...and perhaps even get laid.

But it was not to be. Myspace graciously informed me that there were at least 200 other bands with some variation on the word "Memes" in their name. Myspace also graciously led me to the page of San Francisco breakbeat/IDM band, also called Memes.

All I can say is this band is worthy of the name. They can have it, and I won't complain. In fact, all other bands calling themselves "Memes" should immediately find new band names. Memes' album Awww Shucks! is (according to Bandcamp) a collection of tracks recorded between 2004 and 2006, finally mastered in 2010. If this is true, and this is the music they were making back 4 -6 years ago, then Memes are already ahead of the curve, miles beyond their musical peers, forging exciting new paths in the electronic/sample-driven music landscape.

Awww Shucks! features some of the most sonically diverse, chill-inducing instrumental music. Most of what you hear (about 90%) are sounds sampled from old vinyl jazz, funk and soul records, which gives the album an instantly timeless vibe and makes what I'm hearing all the more impressive. The artists Memes borrows from aren't rolling over in their graves (if they're even deceased), they're bobbing their heads!

From start to finish, this record is thoroughly enjoyable, stimulating and relaxing. I'm not going to go into any more specifics, you just need to hear it for yourself. I only wish this awesome LP had more eye-grabbing artwork. - Matt

Listen to "Pinochle Sandwich"

Antioquia "My Piano Ate the Front Page of the San Francisco Chronicle"



It's not every day one discovers an album this solid and unique by complete accident, but that's pretty much what happened to me late one night whilst sleeplessly browsing Bandcamp's list of California artists. Intrigued by its lengthy title, I decided to give Antioquia's album a spin (hmm...in the age of digital distribution, is that term even appropriate anymore?).

However, this album may not be for everyone. First of all, it's pretty long (clocking in at just over 76 minutes). Secondly, with songs about the inherent evil and greedy nature of the human species ("Humans Do") and how "The Oakland police budget consumes 43% of the city's general funds" (actual lyrics, "Police Brutality"), Antioqia make no qualms about wearing their sociopolitical badges on their sleeves. In this way, they seem right at home in the Bay Area.

However, the message (however important it may be) is never heavy-handed and never gets in the way of the music, which is EXACTLY what reeled me in here. MPAtFPotSFC is, in short, a whole lot of fun to listen to. The eclectic instrumentation straddles the lines between indie/experimental, Afro beat and jam rock. On many of these tracks, guitars, bass, piano, and percussion join forces in such a way to provide an angular-yet-funky backdrop for singer "Mana" Maddy Streicek's impassioned, soulful wails.

With music so exciting and loose, it's apparent that Antioquia is best experienced shoes off, dancing in the grass at an outdoor summer music festival. I felt strangely out of place, listening to this album on my shitty laptop, sitting alone in my uncomfortably humid bedroom. I kept considering pausing iTunes and relocating myself and my laptop into my back yard and smoking a bowl (using solar beams via magnifying lens, naturally). Perhaps I still will. - Matt

Listen to "High-End Logistics"

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Classics Revisited: Nirvana "MTV Unplugged in N.Y."


Revisiting Nirvana's Unplugged in New York album is not like going back and listening to any ordinary old mp3 playlist on iTunes. It's like reviewing a super sad suicide note on iTunes. And this suicide note gets an F... mostly because of the deplorable and shameful way Mr. Cobain conducted his everyday life (he told MTV on multiple occasions that he "hated to feel" and that all grown-ups "should probably die"). This also sucks because the sound(s) to be found on this collection of mp3s are truly horrible and seem to be ripped at an inferior bit-rate.

But it is not without its discreet charm…

Cobain often used production technology to his advantage. Unplugged in New York is the perfect display of how to use the perfect microphone perfectly, for the motive of perfection. His face is neither too close to the microphone or too far away. What's ironic, however, (and I think you'll agree with me on this) is that that same face would be blown off, like, a month later by Courtney Love. Oh yeah, also, me and my girlfriend (who knows very little about music OR politics, sadly enough) agree that the production on this is really good.

On Nirvana's previous effort, Steve Albini made sure that all the negative songs stayed really negative and that most of the songs with sucky parts had at least one part that sounds like a cool Aerosmith song… yeah, this "good Aerosmith part" usually manifests itself at the end of the mp3 so you kinda have to suffer through the incredibly slow-witted and insulting ramblings of Kurt "Look At Me Ya'll" Cobain first. I usually text old friends from Purdue University during these shitty parts because I lost the remote to my iPod dock so I can't fast forward that fucking shit, plus I'm just sort of lethargic in general (I'm still kinda dealing with 9/11, for what it's worth).

I wonder if a lot of people got bored and started texting each other hilarious one-liners at the taping of Unplugged in New York. I wonder if any of the people that went to the show are still alive? I wonder if Nirvana bummed out the audience so much, everyone went straight home to their loved ones to tell them cryptic and grim stuff like, "Sorry dude. I just wasn't made for these times"??

On the flipside of that unsavory thought is the more positive prospect that maybe a cool bro with a Dinosaur Jr shirt met a cool babe with green hair and they did music but never made it big (because they don't give a fuck) but maybe their sound(s) influenced Kimya Dawson and the Juno soundtrack makers, so their sonic fingerprint kinda lives on (as sonic fingerprints are wont to do). Do you think everyone in the audience did drugs with Courtney Love on top of the Empire State Building after the show? Think Love ever felt "the presence of God" when she was high? Why or why not?

So what else is good? I think he covers a couple songs that are probably done by Wire or the Afghan Whigs or the Jayhawks or some shit. That's cool. Oh, and he does an old slavery song, presumably because this was recorded before Vice magazine and horrible Internet humor blogs made it "uncool" to have white guilt.

And those are the "soaring highs" of this vile and disreputable coiled loaf of audio turd. What else happened on this CD? Oh… I dunno. He does a song about how being happy is stupid and it's better to be a degenerate snob that dedicates 75% of his time in the spotlight championing worthless metal bands with diabetic lumberjacks like Tad ("Dumb"). He rips off the general idea of 'Sex Type Thing' by Stone Temple Pilots and makes it a complete snooze-fest ("Polly"). He makes fun of Tonya Harding and the Challenger explosion ("Pennyroyal Tea"). He does a pro-death penalty song ("Lake of Fire"). And he does a song that the worst, most creatively bankrupt and cliche people you could ever imagine would declare as "Kurt Cobain's final goodbye to a stupid world that don't mean shit" ("All Apologies"). That's about it. Bring a book!

There's a reason that groundbreaking and envelope-pushing chillwave artists like Neon Indian don't make retarded unplugged mp3 collections. In fact, if people stopped spazzing out about the burgeoning chillwave/beachslut movement and got back into grunge, I would be seriously bummed… I'd probably get a really short temper and treat my friends with the sort of smug disdain that can only come with the feeling that pop culture has betrayed you (somehow). And you should be similarly appalled, too. Hypothetically. -Willwave


Planet Booty "Planet Booty"


Download Planet Booty

The members of Planet Booty are destined for fame. Whether or not they can handle the pressures of teeming fans and endless praise (see: Nirvana) is irrelevant at this point. The internet has already been infected with their groove. Now it's only a matter of time.

The brainchild of Bay-Area-brothers Dylan and Nathan Germick, Germart Presents: Planet Booty is an imaginative and emotional journey into the heart and souls of... booty. No really. If you're looking for the last word on booty, you've reached it by the time you stumble upon the album's titular (teehee) track.

Honestly, this album should come with a warning: May Cause Booty Poisoning. I mean, how much booty can one stand? Booty aside, the beats and production on this thing are spectacular! The Germick brothers accomplish what some pop stars waste millions trying to produce.

Like their more successful peers and predecessors (MIA, Lady Gaga and Captain Ahab come to mind), Planet Booty is stylistically all over the map. The strains that tie the album together are the dance beats, booty, soaring vocals, booty, catchy hooks, and booty. And a weird little high pitched voice that shouts things like "My booty's different from yours" (in "Ride that Booty").

Don't pass up the chance to catch these guys live while they're young and hungry (for that booty) and in the meantime be sure to download Germart Presents: Planet Booty! -Adam

Listen to "Ride That Booty"

Prism Riot "Prism Riot"


Download Prism Riot

Oh wow...I'm lost in a digital jungle full of lurking neon animals and OH SHIT HERE COMES A FUCKING CYBER-WOLF-MONSTER TO RIP MY EARS WIDE OPEN but it's OK...because now I'm floating peacefully in a frosted glass orb through space with my trusty and totally sexy supermodel girlfriend WHEN SUDDENLY A GIANT MUTANT DRAGONFLY APPEARS AND BEGINS TO RAPE MY BRAIN WITH A SWORD COVERED IN POISONOUS SPIDERS...

Perhaps I should explain...Prism Riot is one of the most surprising albums I've heard in a long time. This is one of those rarities that presents the listener with genuine sonic surprises at every turn, and leaves you (at least me) absolutely befuddled as to HOW the hell these two guys managed to produce some of these downright outlandish sounds.

Prism Riot is, from what I gather, a collaborative recording project between Sacramento guitarist/keyboardist/sonic wizard Nick Stanifer (Order of the Golden Mirror) and Michigan drummer/demolitionist Travis Siegfried (Forest Feeling). I'm not sure if these guys have ever played a live show together...and while I would normally argue that they SHOULD, I also have to wonder how the hell they'd pull it off. Honestly, you could take this as a sort of backhanded compliment to the complex sonic structures of these eleven pieces.

When recommending this band to others, allusions to Hella, another well known Sac band, are at times obvious/unavoidable, especially due to Siegfried's hyper-bombastic drumming style. But you know what? I like Siegfried's playing better. In fact, I like Prism Riot's debut a lot more than anything I've heard from previously-mentioned-band.

I know I've avoided talking about any "songs" in particular...but this 28-minute long (short?) LP is best experienced in one sitting. Do yourself a favor and download it. Albums this good aren't often free. -Matt

Listen to "Pirate Utopias"

Sunday, July 25, 2010

The Snails "Snail Not Sloth"



Something slimy has been lurking beneath the rotted tree trunks and flower pots of San Francisco, slithering out in the dead of night to nibble on all we hold precious.

When Horace Raymond and the Gnarly Cactus dropped their acoustic guitars and sold their souls to the devil something magical happened: The Snails were born. I had the good fortune of being able to catch their first live performance. It was in a small cafe in the Inner Richmond and they were asked to cut it out after like the third song. Considering the sappy sad puppy folk acts they were following, this almost seemed like a compliment - okay guys, we're just trying to bore ourselves to death, can you take your fun, and lively music somewhere else please?

I had no idea they'd even released any recorded material until I stumbled across "snail not sloth" on the interweb. The record opens with "Money", tape hiss Stooge-punk at it's shambling best. Afterward comes the unassumingly titled "Banana". This song is all about getting the most out of 2 chords. This song is all about pummeling your brain into sludge. This song is literally all about "going down the street/to get a banana." Genius. Next, "Cupid's Arrow", an ode to infatuation whose chorus rattles around the brain for weeks after listening.

Shit just gets better and better (listen to "Evil", what a fucking wicked track!) until the record's closer "Please Please Please" sends you back on down the road to that lonely place called your apartment. -Adam


Tony Bonanza "Rockabilly People"


I awoke... and you were there... behind a veil of blue smoke...

Sacramento's Tony Bonanza feels like the man you wind up with in the hot tub after you realize that all your friends have left. Looks like it's just you and... him. The listening-to-your-neighbors'-music-through-the-walls groove of Rockabilly People's opener, "Santa Ana Nicole" arrives as quickly as it leaves, at this point Tony Bonanza's got the hot tub jets working in overtime as the opening synth washes of "Be My Toy" melt through your speakers.

But Bonanza knows when he's coming on too strong and quickly retreats to that air of mysticism that attracted you in the first place with "Lucky Charms." Help me, Tony! I can't navigate your universe alone. Then he holds your hand, as if out of nowhere, firmly, but relaxed (but not), and gives you a tour of all that could have been in "Threw it Away."

Rockabilly People
screams for a tape or vinyl release. The beats are mellow and reassuring; the guitars are Pure Guava-era Ween, heavy on the jazz, and heavy synthage rounds out the mix into one big AM radio mushroom trip. What we have here is a pleasant collection of songs caramelized in phaser and drizzled with enough reverb to fill a concert hall. Excellent work, Tony, now drive me home cause I gotta work at 7 in the morning and if I wake up next to one more sweaty Italian with a lazy eye I'm going to have to recommit myself to Christ. -Adam

Listen to "Threw It Away"

Saturday, July 24, 2010

The Myonics "O Africa, Brave Africa!"

When listening to The Myonics on my laptop one evening, I was overcome with the urge to write to songwriter/bandleader Jasper Leach (also formerly of Symbolick Jews) and ask "Have I ever told you how much your voice sounds like John Linnell?" Annoyed, I can only assume, he said "Yeah, you've mentioned that a couple times before".

However, the comparisons between Oakland's The Myonics and Brooklyn's They Might Be Giants end here. Perhaps it's something about familiarity? O Africa, Brave Africa! is, at once, one of the most familiar albums you'll hear this year, as well as one of the freshest.

Musically, The Myonics are a bit scatterbrained here...but in this case, it works really well! The album begins with a slow, growling prelude of sorts with "Cloud Is Lifted", featuring a beautiful melody over minimalist instrumentation (in this case, a lone guitar and viola). "Sweatshop" is a fun, rollicking number that reminds me a bit of Gibby Haynes' solo stuff. "Visibly Wasted" is loud, violent and reckless...the kind of song I'm always hoping doesn't come up next on my iPod playlist when I'm trying to go to sleep.

Then we get to "Matter", which is one of my favorite songs anybody has ever written. Here, Leach's songwriting creeps eerily close to Linnell's, particularly in the song's bridge. This song encapsulates everything that was cool about 90's alternative riff-rock. "Public Death", one of the later tracks, is another great one. It starts with driving guitars and fist-pumping chants from the band...and then everything falls apart in perfect unison, like an old truck falling apart as it drives down the highway. Highly effective musical imagery, whether it was intentional or not.

The Myonics are apparently starting to get some good press, and they put on a really fun show, so don't miss a chance to see them (when I saw them they had two great drummers). Definitely a band to keep an eye on these next couple years...but don't take my word for it. (Apologies to LeVar Burton.) -Matt

Listen to "Matter"

The Symbolick Jews "Confession Time"


The Symbolick Jews are a constantly morphing ensemble of unique musicians, based in San Francisco and fronted by Adam Healton (RMF, Madam Im Adam). Regardless (or perhaps because) of the revolving cast, the Jews have cranked out one hell of a debut album here with Confession Time, and they have been touring up and down the West coast in support of it for good reason!

Simply put, Confession Time rocks. The titular track kicks off the album with a bang. Dual guitars moan and snarl like junkyard dogs, and distorted cymbals crash all around your head like ocean waves. Adam has a lot to say here, and at times it's easy to get caught up in the cacophony of it all and take for granted this man laying out all his insecurities in under two minutes.

The song "Banana" is a fun take on 50's doo-wop, with bassist Alexi Belchere on lead vocals. At times, her voice is a bit too "cute" to effectively sound as angst-y as I assume she meant it to sound, but she brings a fresh angle to the couple songs she sings on this record, and "Banana" is one of the catchier, more unforgettable tracks because of it.

Other songs, "The Book of Love" and "What Does It Mean?" bring things down a notch, but in volume and tempo only. Both are slow but intense pieces that stand out as personal favorites on the album. The former sucks you into a void of undulating static and amp buzz, gently lulling you into a false sense of serenity. The latter brings to mind walking through Golden Gate park on a warm summer evening at sunset, the guitars buzzing around like lazy flies.

This is only beginning to scratch the surface of Confession Time, and I hope you'll download it and listen for yourselves. Fans of shoegaze, garage-rock, psychedelic noise, Velvet Underground, early Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine should definitely check it out! -Matt


Listen to "What Does It Mean?"