Hey look! It's Lilak, yet another fantastic band that remains cruelly unsigned. It's uncanny, especially considering the easy appeal of gentle boy/girl vocal harmonies. That stuff sells itself, especially when layered over well-orchestrated, melancholy pop. If you can't get into this, there's something wrong with you.
Listen to more here: https://www.myspace.com/tintinnidy
Lilak - Fight
Time once again for a week of mp3 posts showcasing up-and-coming and/or unsigned bands. Up first: Paper, the band of Peter Backebo from Audionom, Calle Olsson from The Bear Quartet/Paddington DC and drummer Tobias Rask. Musically, Paper fits in perfectly with my recent postpunk obsession - cyclical, repetitive riffs, mantra-like vocals and a heightened state of anxiety. It's that anxious tension that I love - the band is so tightly wound, I feel like they could explode and lose it at any time and I keep waiting for it to happen. It comes close to the edge, but never crosses over. Within the realms of postrock, I need that that kind of cathartic release to feel satisfied, but that's the point here. There is no destination, no nirvana. Just an endless burning sensation that mirrors the frustrations of life. "My life is going under" is not pessimistic as much as it is nihilistic. It's going under, but yeah - it's always going under. That's life.
Hard to believe this band isn't signed yet. Listen to more here: https://www.myspace.com/paperstockholm
Paper - My life is going under
For as angry a song as "Placard" is, it sure doesn't sound like. I don't think I'll ever get used to hearing a bitter fight song with acoustic guitars and sweet, harmonized vocals. I love the juxtaposition, but it always catches me off-guard. "Now is payback time / Get up stand up don't put up with all / Their half truths and their lies" Perhaps I should add more Billy Bragg to my listening diet.
The Bear Quartet - Placard
Robert Burås, guitarist for My Midnight Creeps and Madrugada, was found dead at his home in Oslo last night, July 12. He was 31 years old. MMC were scheduled to play at Stavernfestivalen in Vestfold tonight and the festival organizers have announced they will simply leave the stage black at 19:30, the time that the band would have gone on. Read a statement from his bandmates: https://www.emi.no/madrugada/
Like a lot of people, my first introduction to Robert's work was through Madrugada's landmark debut "Industrial silence", easily one of the best Norwegian rock albums ever released. Naturally, the first thing that drew me in was Sivert Høyem's unmistakable croon, but it was Robert's tremendous and understated guitar playing that kept my attention. He will be missed. RIP.
Madrugada - Quite emotional (live)
Mob frontman Morten Haaber strikes me as the kind of person that could do nothing except music or some other artistic endeavor. I can hear it in the anguish of his voice and the intensity of his performance. I've known plenty of people like that and they don't function well in an office environment. The rest of the band steps up as well, matching Morten all the way with equal fury. In a live setting, I bet they obliterate the stage. It reminds me of seeing emo bands back in the early/mid-90s (before emo became such a bad word) get completely unhinged, falling over themselves and losing themselves in their art. It takes something special to pull it off without seeming contrived and I think Mob manages to capture some of that in their recording. Please note that I use 'emo' only as a point of reference for the power of their performance, not as a musical analogy. This is epic noiserock, far more in line with the likes of Aerial, Sonic Youth or maybe Mono. There are echoes of Portraits of Past or Heroin, but it's more in feeling than in sound.
Mob - Wait for me
I don't know about where you are, but it's gonna be mighty hot here today in Olympia. Yesterday peaked at 94°F/35°C and today's supposed to be worse. These are the times when I miss working in an office, specifically one with AC. Today's soundtrack: feel-good rock'n'roll; whatever it takes to get my mind off the heat. Norway's Moving Oos feature members from hype act New Violators, but instead of mining the 80s for inspiration, they go back to the late 60s/early 70s. I was immediately reminded of The Black Crowes when I first heard them, mostly due to similarities between vocalist Frankie Castello and Chris Robinson. Naturally, as fellow classic rock acts, they draw upon the same influences, though I'd say Moving Oos are more boogie-woogie/r&b than straight up blues-rock. It certainly helps that they give backing ladies Norma Lee and Lynn Gordon (the namesake Oos) such prominence as I think that's the most important ingredient to elevate them over bar-rock status. It's not original, but that hardly matters. I listen to quality rock to make me feel good, not to stimulate deep thought. Not that I can think much with this heat, but that's kind of the point.
Moving Oos - Never let you down
Outside of the lead track "King of men", the new Alog record "Amateur" is pretty darn disappointing. It's sonically interesting, as expected, but not compelling. So let's just stick to the song at hand then: "Son of king" is a pastiche of words and notes, cut and pasted together to form a cohesive piece of music. I find the narrative hard to follow without the subtitles of the video, but even then, I'm more interested in the sound and cadence of the words than what they are saying. As for the instrumentation, everything is percussive: xylophones, bells, chimes, wood block, maybe even some thumb piano. The spliced-together nature of the arrangement creates a stuttering, jittery effect, but it still flows fairly smoothly despite its ricky-ticky nature. The best part however, comes around minute three when the voices drop out and the music breaks down to nothing but alarm clock. Slowly the piece builds up again with disparate melodies being carried by the wooden and metallic elements. The backing rhythm remains stable from there on out and the voices become more insistent, eventually running along just as steadily. It's an amazing piece of work, not just technically (I can only imagine the hours spent putting each tiny sample together), but also quite pleasing to listen to.
Alog - Son of king
The Process kicks off their debut EP "Taste the knife" with their best Refused impression. Jagged rhythms, screaming vokills, yadda yadda. Considering it's been nine years since "The shape of punk to come", it's finally safe to start resurrecting that style. When bands like Crazy Town are covering them, you know the shit is way played out. Wait a more years though and it's okay again.
The Process aren't totally by the book, but they aren't really all that progressive either. They make up for a lack of precision with increased anger. Elsewhere on the disc, they play it more straight, fast and furious, throwing the odd little breakdown in here and there. As much as I'm nostalgic for (bad) mid-90s moshcore (such as early Refused), I'm glad The Process has evolved beyond and does not venture even come remotely close to that territory. For a debut EP, this is a fine start. It's not my idea of the future of hardcore, but it's decent, well-played and well-recorded. Good enough!
The Process - Mot Sverige i tiden
"Ask me don't axe me" is one of those songs that gives me a Beavis & Butthead level of glee every time I hear the rumble of doublebass on the chorus. And then there's the all-Jejo video that has absolute no bearing at all as to what the song is about. "Yeah, I've got problems up to here, but they're not for you to share." Talking about it just makes it worse. "Ask me don't axe me again, be friends." All I wanted was a Pepsi?
The Bear Quartet - Ask me don't axe me
Hard to believe that I've never done a Hanoi Rocks post in the (almost) five years I've been doing this site. It's ridiculous, though I must admit I'm barely a casual fan. Like most folks, I first heard of the band via Guns n' Roses who cited them as huge influence. They didn't make much of an impression at that time, but having revisited them since, I've discovered quite a bit more to like and "Malibu Beach nightmare" definitely ranks way up there. Coming off of "Strange boys play weird openings" from the "Back to Mystery City" album, this is an awesome way to kick things off in a big way. You get bits of the Ramones (that beat!) and the Sex Pistols (that riff!) as well as plenty of good old-fashioned rock'n'roll. A Michael Monroe sax solo? Why not! This is perfect Friday party music.
Hanoi Rocks - Malibu Beach nightmare
This Ultralyd track reminds me a lot of God, the short-lived Kevin Martin/Justin Broadrick project from back in the 90s. Take the relentless, crushing groove of the Swans and layer it with avant noise. There's no screaming sax here though, just wailing feedback, though that does turn up elsewhere on the record, more often on the spacier tracks. However, since I'm a guy who loves tracks that bludgeon the listener into submission, this is the one piece that stands out the most for me. While I generally appreciate the thought and talent that goes into every single Rune Grammofon release, it's only the more cohesive, rhythmically consistent albums that can hold my attention. When Ultralyd is steady on-point like this, I'm all about it. When they start mining more ambient/abstract territory, they lose me.
Ultralyd - Low waist
Like Denmark's The Alpine, Norwegian act Superfamily is the kind of band that could be huge if promoted correctly. Great modern pop/rock played with a strong sense of humor and a healthy dose of 80s-ness. It's not in a retro/nostalgia trip way either, it's more about maintaining an unselfconscious attitude and an optimistic worldview. Superfamily also one-ups The Alpine by having an amazing visual presence. "The radio has expressed concerns about what you did last night" (posted today) was the first single from the band's new album "Warszawa" and it's a fantastic lead track. I always love songs with that sort of epic, yearning quality. That neediness is very inviting and appealing. Current single "I could be a real winner" has a bit more of a Hall & Oates vibe and it's pretty good too, but it's definitely the lesser of the two. "It's on the radio, channels made of tears." Who hasn't been affected by the perfect song coming on at just the right time? Great stuff.
Superfamily - The radio has expressed concerns about what you did last night
The debut solo album "Single engine" from Norwegian saxophonist Håkon Kornstad is exactly that - a solo album. There's a few tracks that feature minimal accompaniment, but for the most part, it's all Kornstad and nothing else. There's also a few pieces where he employs a sampler to accompany himself, but even that is used sparingly. I'm often skeptical of records like this since I'm concerned with whether or not they'll hold my attention with a single instrument. In this case however, Kornstad is such a masterful player that my fears are instantly allayed. It was simply listening to the streaming player on his website that first grabbed my attention and I was sold. The track I've decided to share today is "Sweden", one of the more playful and straightforward compositions from the record (note: the musician credits on site are wrong. The Hammond and double bass are actually on "B", track #4). I just love the way he nonchalantly tosses in licks while playing the main riff, totally changing his tone for each. Not just a beautiful piece of music, but fun too.
Kornstad - Sweden
July's Record Club selection is the self-titled debut from Mixtapes & Cellmates. On backup: the new EP collection "A retrospective". Young, smart and oblivious to lame trends, Mixtapes are easily one of my favorite indiepop bands right now. That is, if you could label their music as merely that - there's so much else going on, from glitchy electronic beats to fuzzy shoegazer textures and more. For a debut album, this is incredibly well-composed and self-assured and probably just the very start of what I imagine will be a long and fruitful career. "The better half of cynical boys" builds off a clever acoustic guitar figure that frames a simple, frail vocal. The chorus introduces string textures and the guitar gets busier, but they never overwhelm the main vocal melody. It's a delicate balancing act as there's quite a bit going on, but they pull it off without a problem, without ever getting too self-indulgent.
Mixtapes & Cellmates - The better half of cynical boys
"Weakling keep blinking" is 3rd-world rock'n'roll. Imagine a band that has never actually heard rock'n'roll, but has only read about it - that's what this sounds like. The basic idioms are there, but there's something not quite right about it. You get the classic bluesy power-chord fifth-to-sixth riffing, the steady handclaps on the twos and fours. These are the basic elements of early rock, but The Bear Quartet has managed to make them sound awkward and perverted. The sound effects give it a totally creepy vibe and the instrument tones are all weird, misguided presets. I'm reminded of Stravinksy's "L'histoire du soldat" which incorporates jazz voicings despite the famed composer having never heard the stuff before. It is suggested that perhaps he had seen it written on paper, but never performed. Once again, you get many of the basic idioms of the genre, but the feel is off. Naturally, The Bear Quartet are well-versed in the ways of rock, but they manage to capture that same strange, uneasy feeling. And then they blow it up.
The Bear Quartet - Weakling keep blinking