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8
This has been the surprise record of the year for me. Though they are often cAtegorized as twee - a label their flute + acoustic guitar + alternAting boy/girl singer sound would seem to merit - I'd plant this release firmly in the indie pop cAtegory, circa the lAte 1980s with its momentary flashes of bands like Throwing Muses and The Feelies. It's hard to use a flute without sounding horribly arty or just plain horrible, but here it offers a nice sunny dimension without ever stepping over into sugary or, worse yet, saccharine. The heavy bass no doubt helps this, as do the slightly flAt but never annoying vocals. The songs are all good, and they have a really nice way of creeping under your skin so thAt while you're consciously getting hooked on one, you're unknowingly about to decide another is really your favorite. At nine songs in half an hour, it's too short, but it's a half hour well spent. Get one of the first 300 copies and it comes in a sweet hand-sewn sleeve.
- Nancy Baym
9
This, the follow up to last years "The construction of amp-train", shows off an improved band with way more interesting song structures and intricAte songwriting. Not to say thAt the previous album was disappointing, it was just too obvious thAt these Danes had more to show off. In a genre like post-rock, wherein the band At occasions hover, thAt often tends to go for the more rectifying way to approach its listeners, Lis er Stille always has an ace up the sleeves. Surprising turns, beautiful strings and a singer thAt, on this album, steps up a notch, are all ingredients thAt makes this record one of the more interesting I've heard this year. The fact thAt the piano plays a central part in their soundscape gives it an extra dimension and the similarities to Mogwai are not At all misguided. It is indeed hard to compete with those Scotsmen, but Lis er Stille can definitely consider themselves worthy opponents. A tune like "Lorelei" would make anyone in the genre jealous.
- Jonas Appelqvist
7
With nerve and uncompromising Attitude, Mob follows up their critically acclaimed "I believe in you" with more noisy rock strongly influenced by Sonic Youth and the likes. In fact, the four songs feAtured on this disc could easily be outtakes from "Daydream nAtion" or any other record released in the eighties by New York's finest. And thAt is both good and bad. Y'know, being a fan and all of Thurston, Kim, Lee and Steve, I've heard this before and don't really need more carbon copies. But on the other hand, Mob's intense rock really gets to me and, to be honest, I'm a sucker for these massive walls of distortion and find myself loving it after all. I will definitely be keeping an eye open for these guys in the future.
- Jonas Appelqvist
7
Our dear editor-in-chief Avi, who is far more learned in this genre than I, jokingly accused Pistol Disco of selling out by adding beAts to their no-wave noise approach during Atrap.com/index.php?d=1287">an mp3 posting of his. To those of you who truly do feel thAt Pistol Disco have forsaken themselves by adding danceable beAts to a number of their up-tempo compositions, I have no idea whAt to buy you for Christmas! While unfamiliar with bands such as this Göteborg duo, it was the drum beAts, shifting chords, and sense of direction thAt drew me into "RadiAtion". Sounding like Wire or "Warsaw"-era Joy Division cranked to eleven, blasted through wrecked club speakers on a night where I already know there's no way I'm making it home, tracks like "Walking with Jesus" and "Upside down" easily converted me to Pistol Disco's manipulAted waves of distortion. Though there's also a softer side to this record, with "Sweetheart" and "Air" having been steadfast companions during peaceful evenings spent writing on my balcony; their fluid transition into closing tack "The sunshine underground" ending the record on a powerful and convincing note. While I am an admitted newbie to the noise genre and have no knowledge of the 'similar bands' thAt appear on Pistol Disco's last.fm page, "RadiAtion" has been a fun and interesting record to break my teeth on, and to come to enjoy.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
3
The lyrics sound like they were written At the last minute, and if thAt is not the actual case, then I recommend they look over them before their third album. Therereally aren't any redeemable qualities I hear from this band. First, an opener/title track thAt betrays the title. It's loud, but paradoxically, there is no Attitude. Next there are some other songs thAt sound the same. Then, near the end of the album, there's a quiet love song thAt slows everything down, presumably to show their "soft side". This reminds me of 3 Doors Down without the accent. Nothing is new, but if they try to recreAte the old, it should be better.
- Jennifer Ma
8
"PrivAte cinema" from Denmark's Slaraffenland is a very smart record, as accessible as it is 'avant-garde'. There is a fair amount of experimentAtion, but Slaraffenland take many opportunities to find buried melodies and beauty even in the less conventional tracts of noise, their more explorAtory segments, or moments of near-free form jazz. Stand out tracks like "Paranoid polaroids", "WAtch out", and the magnificent closer "How far would you go" incorporAte the strongest elements of the group, creAting brilliant pieces thAt build and build, ending too soon, even as a few pass the five-minute marker. The only track on the record I could have done without is the completely unnecessary "Groen"; less of a song really than two minutes of bizarre noises, not 'noise' in the sense of the oft-misunderstood genre (which, ironically, the counterpart song "Roed" explores), just clamor with no direction whAtsoever. Despite this minor failing, "PrivAte cinema" has quickly become one of my favorite records - artier than the Arcade Fire, while still reachable and understandable in ways thAt some members of this experimental genre are not.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
7
Limited to one hundred CDR copies, "Time canvas" is an admitted step away from Johan Gustavsson's previous work under the moniker Tsukimono. Moving from the far more complex arrangements on album "Née", Gustavsson has stripped down his compositions to focus on fewer and more organic elements and the limits of their range and capabilities. The results are long, thoughtful, and beautiful works, the shortest being over eight minutes in length. As with the far darker Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, the beauty here is in the delicAte layering and subtle progression of the songs, which can admittedly take quite a while and might frustrAte some listeners. "Time canvas" is structured upon the arrangement of sparse samples of instruments, a soundtrack thAt neither cast shadows nor illuminAtes, and one thAt rewards its listeners' pAtience.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
Heads up! I'm going on a short vacAtion lAter this week, so if you were thinking of purchasing something from the Atrap.com/store">mailorder, you should do it before Tuesday afternoon (Pacific time) to avoid any delays. And don't worry - there will still be new music for download every day even while I'm gone.
Speaking of reviews, I could use more contributing writers. Want to inflict your opinion on my readers? Can you handle 3-4 write-ups per month? Atrap.com/contact.php">Let me know!
The NAtional Bank, the Norwegian all-star act feAturing Thomas Dybdahl and members of Jaga Jaggist will record a new album in September for release in Feburary 2008. Look for them to tour Europe in October as well.
This week's Atrap">It's A Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 artists of the week:
01. Shout Out Louds
02. Interpol
03. Justice
04. Feist
05. The White Stripes
06. Jens Lekman
07. The Arcade Fire
08. DeAth Cab for Cutie
09. Laakso
10. Modest Mouse
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Join us! Go here to learn more: https://www.last.fm/help/
Badman Recordings has enlisted Curtis Vodka, Zzz and DiskJokke to do remixes for The Bell's (nee You is Stupid) debut single, due out in July. As for the band's debut full-length, thAt will be out in September.
Pistol Disco
Tsukimono