Early thoughts on 2015

Wow, this year is shaping up to be pretty stellar in terms of music. January isn't even over and I've already heard a ridiculous amount of good stuff. I doubt this will continue through the next 11 months, but I'm definitely going to enjoy it while it lasts.

Artists I'm loving:
1. Belle and Sebatian. I'm having trouble conveying exactly how great this album is. I don't know if it's my favorite album of theirs, but it's definitely their most diverse and ambitious, encompassing a wide range of styles and showing a huge leap in terms of their overall sound. The lyrics are still classic B&S, but the songs seem so much bigger. There's eurovision dance-pop and clubbish electronica to go along with their peculiar brand of brit-pop and folk-rock. They've dabbled in these styles before, but have always seemed reluctant to go full-bore into that end of the pool.

2. Sleater-Kinney. Another solid contender for the 2015 top-ten. Honestly, S-K kinda fell off my radar after All Hands on the Bad One. Their albums have always had their moments, but never really congealed for me. No Cities to Love is pretty amazing. It definitely evokes their earlier material, but at the same time, they've upped the musical complexity. The melodies are stronger and the interplay between Carrie and Corin's guitar playing is more intricate. At times, they sound like a primal and more ferocious Television.

3. Ryan Bingham. This is a rootsy, raspy chronicle of weariness that wears its emotions on its sleeve. I don't know much about Ryan Bingham but he certainly sounds like he's lived a life that is hard and fast. Even when he gets optimistic, there's an undercurrent of hurt in the songs. It's as if he's forever trying to catch a break in his songs. It's powerful stuff and his voice has an edge that gives the lyrics extra weight.

Music Book Review – The Ramones by Nicholas Rombes (part of the 33 1/3 series)

I’m not entirely sure what audience this book is intended for, but it’s clearly not me. Apparently, Dr. Rombes is a cultural studies professor at University of Detroit-Mercy, and it shows in his writing. The book is a fairly dry and quasi-academic attempt to document the cultural context surrounding the genesis and recording of the Ramones debut album. It’s likely too dry to appeal much to casual listeners or those with only a passing familiarity with either the Ramones or the early punk movement. On the other hand, those who are somewhat well-versed in the topic are likely to find fault with Rombes’s characterization of the band and time period, along with the scant attention he pays to the Ramones’ actual musical influences.

On a more basic level, this book is a veritable hodge-podge of poorly organized, repetitive information. Frankly, whoever edited this mess (if it even had an editor) deserves to have their computer dragged into the street and beaten until broken circuits and stray keys litter the roadway. The main division in the book is:

                Part 1: An examination of the cultural context that spawned the Ramones.

                Part 2: An examination of the Ramones’ debut album.

Unfortunately, “cultural context” encompasses a LOT of different things. Mid-1970s New York was a throbbing, pulsating entity that was pushing the boundaries of art in many forms (books, movies, journalism, visual arts, and especially music). There was a sense that the traditional approaches to art were lacking and all of these people were trying to redefine what art could be.

It was also a time of massive social upheaval, crippling economic conditions, and rampant crime. All of these topics are touched on briefly, but there’s no coherent thesis that ties these disparate factors together. This lack of organization leads Rombes to make passing references without ever engaging in critical analysis. Mostly, he rehashes what others have said without providing any commentary on the value or validity of what’s being postulated.

For instance, he touches on the relative affluence of the Ramones’ suburban upbringing, but never engages in any discussion of how this might have influenced their music. I’ve often thought of most American punk as the product of suburban disaffection. British punk seemed to be steeped in the class distinctions that envelope much of British society. Across the pond, the rise of punk was a rebellion based on differences in power, and the songs had a decidedly political tone. American punk was more of a rebellion based on boredom and the rejection of social striving. In effect, it was a state of prolonged adolescence. Hence, the emphasis on pop culture, shock, and the strong influence of early rock and roll. Somehow, Rombes tries to frame this as reflective of a politically conservative mindset fused with a heavy dollop of irony, and it’s not clear what his basis for this interpretation is, apart from some vague remark that Joey Ramone once made about George W. Bush.

The whole book reads like an overcomplication of a premise that should be relatively simple. If you look across all of the bands involved in the early NYC punk movement, the common thread is a rejection of the pomp, grandiosity, self-importance, and attention-seeking virtuosity of the music that dominated the airwaves. There is a minimalism, a sense of “getting back to the basics,” and a turning away from overproduction. That’s not to say that music couldn’t be intricate or complex, but you weren’t going to see guys with 30-piece drum kits or racks and racks of synthesizers. At the same time, bands were pushing against the limits imposed by earlier forms of rock and roll and expanding on the efforts of their immediate predecessors in the garage and glam scenes.

In the end, the book offers a modicum of interesting facts or ideas, but these are few and far between. To get to them, you have to slog through text that is, at best, perfunctory. Discussion of the actual music, unfortunately, takes a back seat to academic digressions on the definition of “punk” and rhapsodizing about the changing state of rock journalism and the emergence of alternative media. Throughout it all, Rombes comes off as someone bent on trying to justify his mythologizing of the era through faux profundity and academic jargon.

Assessment: 1.5 stars out of 5

2015 albums I'm looking forward to...at least in the first 3 months...

There's a bunch of new stuff coming out from bands I love. In fact, the first 3 months of the year are pretty stacked in terms of anticipated releases.

Jan 20:
Belle & Sebastian - Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance
Sleater-Kinney - No Cities to Love
The Decemberists - What A Terrible World, What A Beautiful World

Jan 27:
The Lone Bellow - Then Came the Morning

Feb 3:
Robert Pollard - Ricked Wicky: I Sell the Circus

Feb 17:
Kate Pierson - Guitars and Microphones
Pops Staples - Don't Lose This
The Juliana Hatfield Three - Whatever, My Love

Mar 3:
Modest Mouse - Strangers to Ourselves
Of Montreal - Aureate Gloom
Swervedriver - I Wasn't Born to Lose You

Mar 31:
Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell
Death Cab for Cutie - Kintsugi

Undoubtedly, I'm missing some albums and I'm sure that some new stuff will cross my radar. We'll see if I can get around to posting some thoughts on these.

Favorites of 2014: Number 1

1. Beck - Morning Phase

If there was a better album released in 2014, I didn’t hear it. In practically any other year, Brill Bruisers would probably have taken the top spot, but this album was really something special. Beck has proven himself adept at so many different styles of music, but I think he shines best on the slower, folkier material. Case in point, Mutations has long been my favorite Beck record. Morning Phase treads in similar territory, with better backing musicand his tongue considerably less in cheek. Truth be told, it’s probably most similar to Sea Change, but whereas that album left me cold, this one just enveloped me in its sound.

Stylistically, the music has an opulent, pastoral quality. There’s a lushness to the songs that provides a solid foundation for the vocals. Musically, the album has a strong 70s folk-rock quality. At various times, Beck evokes Dylan, Neil Young, Simon and Garfunkel, Gordon Lightfoot, Gram Parsons, as well as Crosby, Stills, and Nash. The songs are pretty and simultaneously weighty. It’s not dark and bleak, but it is emotional and feels like a substantial work. Turn Away might be the most haunting song I’ve heard this year. It’s not particularly complicated, but its sparseness of the music and the phrasing of his vocals provides the necessary space for the lyrics to resonate.

This is Beck the craftsman showcasing his ability to create stirring melodies and establish a tone of longing and reflection. The pace is slow but the album is never boring, and it rewards your attention. It’s an album that almost begs for contemplation, one that provides an immersive experience if you let yourself be swept away.

Favorites of 2014: Number 2

2. The New Pornographers - Brill Bruisers

In case you didn’t know, I am a shameless lover of classic pop. Early Beatles, Beach Boys, Big Star, Cheap Trick, Paul Westerberg…I just absolutely eat that stuff up. In the past 10-15 years, though, I can’t think of a better pop songwriter than Carl Newman. His sonic palette has expanded with each release and his songs have continually grown more expansive. I wouldn’t necessarily say that this release is a throwback to earlier times, but it has more in common with Twin Cinema than either Challengers or Together, at least in terms of feel. When it comes to the arrangement and sound of each song, though, Brill Bruisers has a complexity that surpasses those earlier efforts. The rhythms and interplay between the instruments are more intricate and layered here.

It’s almost unfair when you consider the ridiculous amount of talent assembled here. Not only are Newman and Bejar great (albeit very different) songwriters, but they also have Kathryn Calder and the incomparable Neko Case contributing vocals. Their voices are all distinct and deployed for maximum effect. At the same time, they have an amazing ability to harmonize and play off of one another. Oh, there are also 2 keyboardists adding layer upon layer of sound to each track. Finally, Kurt Dahle is probably one of the most underrated drummers in rock. It’s an embarrassment of riches, and each of those parts comes together and contributes something to the final product.

In many ways, Newman seems to be channeling Jeff Lynne in the way he’s structured a lot of these songs. The production is bright and shiny with a bunch of sonic embellishments popping in and out. It’s power pop with a slightly futuristic air, classicist and modern at the same time. It helps that the tempo and tone remain largely upbeat. There are a few “slow” tracks, but the overwhelming sensation is joy and exuberance. The album explodes in Technicolor on the opening track and maintains its high throughout the entire running length.

Favorites of 2014: Number 3

3. Erasure - The Violet Flame

The best descriptor I can use for this album is rejuvenated. There’s a spirit and vitality that’s been missing on Erasure’s last few albums. To be fair, every Erasure album brings a few highlights. They’re too good a band to release a totally lackluster album. The ratio of hits-to-misses, though, hasn’t always been consistent. This is a STRONG album from start to finish. It sounds modern while being unmistakably Erasure. In a year where so manyartists have been trying to recreate an 80s sound, it’s nice to see that Erasure isn’t reaching quite that far back. There are reminders of Chorus, I say I say I say, and Cowboy, but it never seems like they’re just repeating themselves.

Much of the success of this album rests on Andy Bell’s vocals. He’s always been capable of belting one out with the best of them, but there’s a restrained quality to his singing that highlights the vulnerability inherent in many of the lyrics. By toning down some of the dramatics (e.g. modulating himself instead of going for the big note), the songs take on added weight. They seem so much more personal, as if he’s singing directly to you instead of playing to the crowd.

The other half of the equation is the production constructed by Vince Clark and Richard X. The songs are both straightforward and highly layered. There aren’t any odd tempos or difficult rhythms, but there’s a textural quality to the music as different elements come to the fore and recede into the background. Each song seems to build in sonic complexity. A song that starts with a simple beat and a few synth melodies can end with a wild mélange of sounds stacked upon one another. This is an album that demands to be listened to on a quality system rather than crummy earbuds or laptop speakers. There are so many nuances that add depth to the music, and being able to hear them is critical to a full appreciation of this album.

Favorites of 2014: Number 4

4. Andrew Bird - Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of...

Take note all you Mumfords & Lumineers & others of that ilk, this is how you do a modern take on “old timey” music. Don’t get me wrong, I like those bands, but there is more emotion and depth of feeling on one of these songs than on some entire albums by those other guys. There’s an authenticity here that’s noticeably absent on a lot of revivalist folk albums. I’m sure that Marcus Mumford & Jeremiah Fraites have a deep affection for rootsy Americana, but it’s hard to revisit those albums and not hear them as imitators of a style rather than as practitioners of one. Maybe it’s the fact that Bird has such strong source material to work with (all the songs were originally written and recorded by the Handsome Family, though Bird has modified the arrangements). Maybe it’s the stripped-down production style (it feels more like a live album than a studio creation). Maybe Andrew Bird just understands Americana folk better. Or maybe he’s just more adept at using his voice to convey the yearning and heartbreak lying at the center of this music. Whatever it is, it works in spades.

That’s not to say, however, that this album is some kind of feel-good, foot-stompy revival-in-a-tent. A lot of these songs are dark, even pitch black in a couple instances, but they have such vivid imagery that they can’t help but jump to life. Bird has largely abandoned his trademark whimsy in the service of finding beauty and poignancy in this set of mini tragedies. That’s where Bird has a leg up over the Handsome Family’s recordings. Many of the original versions reach the point of pounding you over the head with bleakness. Bird, on the other hand, uses lilting harmonies and a soulful violin to create an atmosphere of mournful fragility. It’s an interesting take and Bird’s versions have an emotional impact that the originals don’t. I had this album slotted in at number 10, but with each subsequent listen, it moved higher and higher. I think that 4 seems like a good landing spot, and I suspect this will be a constant companion throughout the winter and spring.