Worlds Worst is a Salt Lake City-based punk band with a very misleading name. They’re not actually the world’s worst.
They’re not even bad. In fact, the only thing they seem genuinely awful at is sucking. Which is generally a good problem for a band to have.
Worlds Worst have been busy during the pandemic, releasing a solid EP in April of 2020 and now following it up with a sequel, frilllessly adorn as EP2.
On this new release, Worlds Worst continues to meld spinny pop-punk and maturely introspective emo- scuffed and scratched for a character with a rash of pedal effects and balmed with a warm reverb that envelopes these tracks in a layer of emotional security, similar to the way a thunder vest can help your dog feel more chill when you have company over. These songs, especially “Balloons,” can feel like one long hug, is what I’m trying to say.
Patient caresses and intimate brushes don’t, necessarily, make for a well-rounded punk record, though. There are also a number of assertive and self-assuredly defiant tracks as well. “Twins” rides a net of highwire guitars above a river of tumbling grooves to find catharsis on the opposite end of a pounding polemic about the theft that occurs at the core of wage labor, and the dreary sonic slosh of “Postal” which feels like space-gaze of Hum collapsing into a current of granite-chipping, hard-tipped Braid riffs.
Worlds Worst is almost certain to improve your day if you give them a chance. And it being a Friday and all, why wouldn’t you? If you’re at work now, go home. If you’re working from home, log off. There will always be more work, but let that be someone else’s problem for a little while. You only have one life, so you might as well enjoy it. Which, as I hope I’ve convinced you here, Worlds Worst can help you luxuriate in if you let them.
The post EP Review: Worlds Worst – EP2 appeared first on New Noise Magazine.
Astoria Legend’s self-titled album is bursting with glowing light, aching with melancholy nostalgia but still exuberant, full of life,/wp and touched by an irrepressible sense of hope. There are elements of synth pop integrated with synthwave, tinged by other influences to create a cohesive musical whole that I find quite engaging for my ears.
The first element to mention on this album is the excellent vocal work. The lead singer has a voice that can whisper or soar, caress or emote strongly. He has a quality of earnestness and passion that comes pouring out and suffuses the whole album with expression and sincerity.
Another strong part of Astoria Legend’s album is the lyrical content. The lyrics are full of intense imagery and pure emotional expression, and each song unfolds its own unique story. I get the sense that the words mattered as much as the music, so I am glad that this album can showcase them.
The way that Astoria Legend integrates the musical elements of the track has been well done. There are rich melodies that often contrast wistful emotions with hopeful, positive sensations. Those melodies are carried on synths that can leap and flash or caress with delicacy, while solid drums drive on and the music brims with emotion and surges with energy.
Track-by-Track Analysis
“Astoria Legend”
“Astoria Legend” sweeps into existence on a rising breath of wind while sparkling synth glows through it. Full, rich chords add support to the other musical elements. I enjoy the swell of choral sound that fills the sonic spaces of the track.
There’s something passionate about the vocal sounds as they soar over the high, glittering chimes and the weight of bass below. Clouds of synth sound swell and grow before slowly fading away again.
“The Door”
Solid, shifting bass leaps into “The Door” to start it off before the softness and emotional expression of the lead singer’s voice carries a gentle vocal melody over the unique, bursting drums. The chorus rises in a bright arc over the sunlight of flashing synth and the exuberant beat.
I am drawn to the impassioned guitar that whirls out in shimmering lines while the beat explodes forward again. Ripples of shiny sound are accented by a hollow, metallic series of notes. Trumpeting bursts of positive feeling synth cry out while the massive drums burst forward and the chorus rises above it all.
A new relationship can be like a portal to a new dimension of experiences and emotions. The lyrics of this song convey the feeling of a transformational connection. Our narrator begins as he is “uncovering the door” that he’s been chasing. He muses about whether he is reaching “in or outward” and asks, “Can you see yourself in my reflection?”
The chorus talks about how they’ll break the rules with ”spacetime in motion.” He promises that “tonight you can’t imagine, discover the word in absolute.” He says that she’ll experience magic “unfolding into action.”
Now he talks about how he’ll be waiting “another day alone” and he’ll listen for something calling to him. There’s a sense of despair as he talks of “seeing the dark in our dimension, the light burnt out.”
He extends an invitation to travel to “a world out of this world tonight” where they’ll ride “pure emotion” and paint ecstasy. I especially enjoy the image of “neon bleeding from the trees” while a vivid illustration is created.
“Hailey”
“Hailey” comes to life as rising, flowing synth chords are joined by a steady bass pulse. A full, round synth with a brassy glow carries a gently shadowed melody. I am a big fan of the lead singer’s expressive, caressing vocals as they move over the flashes of shining synth and the drum throb shapes the music.
The chorus is full of dreamy, wistful emotions while the bass and drum pulse easily propel the track forward. Glistening skeins of elevated synth weave in between the words, the deep bass heartbeat and the solid drums.
The yearning feeling in the vocals is now joined by dancing, whirling, medium high arpeggios before the track breaks into a half time pulse. Twinkling lines of synth shimmer through before the vocals rise in a powerful tide of expression.
The narrator talks about laying “on the moon one last time” because with “foresight we’d be livin’, counting on a wish to survive.” Even as the words leave his lips, he sees that “she’s getting closer, blaze illuminating, devouring.” He adds that “she’s taking over.”
There’s a sense of pleading I the lines, “Hailey bring me back to Earth. Coming down we seek forgiveness” as we’ve forgotten “our place among the stars.” He talks of her “shattering heat…burning bluer than her eyes in summer.” I also enjoy the imagery of her exploding into the ocean through a canopy of trees to create a “raging tidal wave’ that will wash everything away.
After all of this destruction, there will be a return of new life that will erase all the toxic elements. Hailey will leave “scars of gratitude” as she creates “what’s intended for.” The song ends as he begs her to “bring me back to Earth.”
“Surrender”
There’s an eruption of dynamic motion as “Surrender” comes to life. A bouncing line of synth volleys as smooth, warm synths fly into the track along with the emotive vocals. The weighty drums add propulsion and the bass supports the energetic, passionate vocal melody.
A compelling mixture of hope, anticipation and love fills the vocals and the drums explode forward again. The chorus cries out and rises in glittering clouds and the relentless beat pushes on. A segment in which shimmering synths drift in ethereal waves gives way to the song’s dynamic energy. Before the track ends, there’s a drift into sparkling chimes and flowing air before the chorus launches over the heartbeat of drums.
A feeling of escape and a sense of boundaries pushed fills the lyrics of this song. As we begin, a sense of danger and collapse touches the song with images of a loaded gun and a basket-case. The narrator says, “We’re on the run. Who could’ve known what’s right or wrong?”
He insists that “this one exception can’t be fatal to manage” but they soon realize that their cover has been blown and it’s a “blinding light, we should have known.” As everything falls apart, he adds that “the rain won’t even make a sound.”
The narrator promises “when she’s running, on fire, I’ll take the heat.” He talks of a spotlight burning through him and speaks of being “so fragile and desperate.” Now he asks, “Is this our surrender?” as he adds, “they’re calling for our surrender.”
A sense of defiance echoes through the line, “She said it’s time. Tear down the walls and we’ll be fine.” She adds, “Let’s not mistake adventure for romantics.” Now the narrator talks about raising a flag as “they’re taking aim” while the everything “crashes down” they are fighting to hold steady.
Now the “fires burn and burn out” as whispers call that it’s time to go. As the narrator is “wrapped in her arms, the undertow pulling me in” there’s an inner voice that speaks. It talks about “a world that’s even closer than we imagined” and ends with the line, “it’s just us two forever. Still I’m here with you.”
“The Weekend”
“The Weekend” opens with lush, slowly evolving synth chords and a charging beat. The vocals exude upbeat energy while rapid arpeggios glimmer over the drive of the drums. I am drawn to the earnest expression of the vocalist on this song.
Medium-low synth pulses cascade while the drums push the song ahead. There’s a mixture of summery hope and darker shadings of times that won’t come again in this song. Chiming stars of synth glitter and the vocal melody softly caresses the ears before the drums leap into action.
There’s a feeling of warmth shot through with loss in this song. The narrator talks bout how they’re on a “soiree, craving the taste of sugar” and they’re getting all dressed up. The narrator asks, “Will you promise me we’re going to lose our way?” since it is their getaway. I enjoy the imagery in the line, “a summer fading into the city breeze” as the narrator speaks of uncovering treasure underneath “every corner.”
The chorus is a soaring tribute to a road trip in which they “hit the back roads, to the highway with the throttle up.” He talks about how they’ll embrace “the bright lights…until the weekend ends.”
Power and speed are well reflected in the line “we’re breathing the redline” as he talks about jumping off and blacking out the morning. He says, “We really need the sunrise to keep us alive” and says he can feel the wind swirling around adding, “It’s such a pleasure to see.”
Their need to escape is strong otherwise they’ll “strip the city of the glamor, the allure” and lose “the power just to pretend.”
“Keep Running”
Delicately sparkling synth floats across the open soundscape of “Keep Running” as the drums leap in underneath the shining chimes and a deeper synth that doubles them. I enjoy the way the glistening synth melody moves with the dancing vocal melody. The song drifts into a gentle section in which light-filled synths glow and the beat keeps pushing forward.
The synths have a metallic shimmer to them as the melody arcs and skips over the drums.A segment with flowing air, and the cascading, massive feeling drums as a more delicate section quickly leaps back into the chorus and the drums propel the track while the warm, positive melody buoys up the song.
I am drawn to the nautical imagery and the sense of trying to break free in the lyrics of the song. As we begin, we see the song’s subject “sailing into the night, splitting faces to decide if he’s still alive.” The sense of asserting oneself is expressed in the line, “It doesn’t matter if there’s room, he shouted out, I’m making my own.”
There’s strong imagery created in the line, “Push it down until the moon calls, howling out.” He speaks of the tide breaking to bring him home, but he doesn’t want to return. The sense of his footsteps being dogged is well-expressed in the line, “Shadows following at midnight follow closely ’til morn or I’ll slip away” still he keeps on “running away from you.”
Now he’ll make the cliffs as “the clouds align, flash of a silhouette.” There’s something raw and elemental in the verse, “Feel the slack, the line. The swell will eat you alive.” The feeling of pressing on regardless comes through as he talks about the roof being shattered and the rain coming in, but still he’s going to “push it up until the flood comes rushing out.”
He talks about how he’s hiding in the light and “holding on to what remains.” He is called but “still I keep running away from you” as there’s a “sinking surround” and a reckoning while he’s running out.
“Evolve”
“Evolve” opens with fragile, airy piano lightly brushing into the music as the track begins to crescendo before the throbbing, solid drums move with the glinting synths. The vocal melody is full of gentleness and ease while indistinct voices murmur in the background.
Arpeggiating patterns of notes are carried on a full, sunny synth and the beat adds a bounce to the song. The vocals yearn and rise, full of power and expression while the increasing energy of the music reaches ever higher. There is light pouring out of every musical element in this song.
A palpable sense of deep love and fear of losing it fills the lyrics of this song. One of the two characters n the song shows outward calm but he’s “beating on the in.” The other is “clutching at her arms, she seems unsure” while they draw closer.
The chorus asks, “How could I live without your love?” and adds “all that I have can’t be enough.” The song expresses it in terms of a dance. The question of living without the other person’s love is posed again and worry fills the line, “It’s been a lifetime. Shadows in the sunset they’ve grown.”
There’s wonderful imagery in the lines, “She’s wild as ever, skipping through the flame grass” and in the idea that she breathes for him. With the closure, “come closer” in life and emotion. The narrator speaks of “love driving us out of the dark” as they wait for “the first to come enlighten you.”
The song ends on the idea of “a love so pure it pierces through, tailored to you.”
“It’s Our Time, Down Here”
Slightly shadowed chords move with a very high, shimmering chime that ever so delicately brushes the music to start “It’s Our Time, Down Here.” Waves of lower sound move under the bell-like synths that move with melodic grace over the thumping kick drum pulse. The drums come in with full power and the caressing vocals call out.
An elevated synth carries a hopeful melody that doubles the vocal melody. I enjoy the earnest, emotive vocals that are full of honesty. Synths flicker like shafts of sunlight and the vocals soar over the drum and bass pulse. There’s an intricate guitar solo that trips lightly over the notes, cartwheeling and crying out with passion over the beat’s pulse.
Nostalgia is often a complex mixture of emotions that are examined well in this song’s lyrics. There’s a feeling of unreality as the narrator talks about how, “I first saw it in a movie, she’s stretched out in front of me, spinning under the sunset.”
He talks about how it was easy the last time and adds “take in the ocean breeze, I could never forget that.” The good days are “calling my name and lately I can’t find myself” he says. There are flashbacks that might drive him “crazy dreaming of the days we tried to outrun the sunset.”
Memories of the excitement of taking “the long way with the top down” as they were chased around the lake shore by the police” make him want to return to those days. I especially enjoy the image in the words, “a hot pink Lamborghini pressed on a white t-shirt, I could never forget that” and again he aches to return to those times.
Conclusion
Astoria Legend’s debut album comes on strong with emotive vocals, explosive energy and a rich sonic palette that allows for lush synth sounds to give full expression to the earnest passion that fills each part of it.
The Holy Family recently released their debut album via Rocket Recordings. Simon Tucker takes the sugar cube and joins the journey.
The Holy Family is a band led chiefly by David J Smith and whose membership includes the likes of Kavus Torabi, Emmett Elvin, Sam Warren, and Michael J York. Borne out of improvisations which took place in an old country house, the album was then molded into shape by Smith and engineer/mixer Antti Uuismaki, for approval and final overdubs from the rest of the collective. Inspired by everything from magical realism, children’s folk tales, and the surrealist art of Dorothea Tanning, The Holy Family finds itself perfectly placed to soundtrack imagined journeys both outer and inner and seeing as most of us have not been able to travel far these last eighteen months then its timing could not have been better.
Geographically, The Holy Family is impossible to pin down. It is a nomadic work that seems to travel through borders from the stark white of industrial Europe to the rolling sands of the Sahara. It is an album that is in perpetual motion – even when at its calmest, as the cyclical nature of the music allows for vivid imagery to permeate the mind’s eye.
Sometimes you are traveling deeper into your own self and sometimes you are staring at the world through the window of a bus never feeling anything else other than complete contentment and whilst there are no genre-specific labels you could give it, The Holy Family is a definite relative of ambient music with its whole aura surrounded in a trance-like serenity, scattered in the dust and ash of many who have worked in this realm before.
Musically you can find glimpses of explorers that have gone before whether that be on the Another Green World-era Eno (Skulls The…) Pompeii rattling Pink Floyd (Stones To Water) and even the impressionistic soundscapes of Sigur Rós (I Have Seen The Lion Walking) only The Holy Family cover their sound in fire instead of ice.
The Holy Family also has a strong gift for drama and sequencing which helps the album flow in a cohesive narrative arc allowing for ups and downs, twists and turns. This means you are allowed the deeper and unsettling moments like Inner Edge of Outer Mind and See, Hear, Smell, Taste, and the glorious hypno-groove of A New Euphoria which is a piece of music that loops beautifully like a prime Jah Wobble bass mantra. There’s even room for a dark twist on the Laurel Canyon Sixties and Seventies sound with St. Anthony’s Fire.
This is an exciting debut from a very promising band. It is an album that you will want to keep revisiting as its unsettled nature allows for many interpretations. The Holy Family allows you to see the potential in a cohesive and progressive unified front and its explorations are worth every penny of the ticket price. Get onboard…you would not want to be left behind.
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The post The Holy Family: The Holy Family – album review appeared first on Louder Than War. (Only a few punctuation and spelling corrections made)
Emanuel is an R&B artist with a gorgeous sound and the goal of sharing his music with the world. This artist has a sound that goes past being enjoyable and digs deep into your soul. Alt Therapy is comprised of twelve songs that each breathe their own kind of life into the listeners. Emanuel’s music is cinematic while still feeling personal and raw. It is truly something unique.
Listening to Alt Therapy brings all kinds of emotions to the foreground. The melodies are breathtaking and sweet while the lyricism is hard hitting and vulnerable. Emanuel’s vocals are flawless in a real and seemingly unedited kind of way. Each track on this album finds its way into your soul in a way that allows you to relate and feel truly at home.
Emanuel describes his music as a “renaissance of beautiful black art in the world” and he seems to have hit the nail on the head. His music is real and beautiful and an amazing representation of black artistry. His voice and skill are simply amazing in this project as well as all of his other works.
If you haven’t checked out Emanuel’s Alt Therapy, then you are missing out. This is not an artist or an album to miss out on. His music is truly gorgeous and absolutely anything he does is sure to be simply brilliant.
The post Emanuel brings a new level to artistry with album Alt Therapy appeared first on Upstream Indie.
A world without music is unimaginable. Celebrate a playlist of songs with music genres in the title.
Every individual’s taste in music differs. Although every music genre has something special to offer, not every genre may appeal to listeners. While the majority of listeners prefer mainstream music, non-mainstream genres are popular with music buffs and music purists. A number of songs actually mention music genres in their song titles. You may find this surprising, but if you scrutinize closely you will be astonished at what you come across.
What Is the Purpose of Mentioning Music Genres in Song Titles?
While certain musicians may have intent and purpose of mentioning a musical style in their song title, most times words that make up a music genre convey an entirely different meaning. Musicians may express their joy and gratitude towards a certain kind of music with a unique title that includes the music genre. Usually, it is one word in a title that morphs multiple meanings. Words may have the same spelling or pronunciation, but convey a wide-range of meanings; these words are termed as homonyms.
Certain genres may be mentioned in songs to showcase the passion and intensity associated with the type of music. The impact a certain kind of music has had on musicians or listeners, is sometimes poetically expressed as a tribute. Singers and songwriters may also mention a music genre to figuratively convey a deeper understanding of a concept or idea. Sometimes musicians may use specific words in a title as a catchy hook for the verse or chorus.
What Do Musical Styles Symbolize in Songs?
Musical styles in songs may symbolize a wide spectrum of attributes that are generic or personal. Different types of music may represent a celebratory aspect of life associated with people from different walks of life. Genres and subgenres may also be mentioned to showcase the culturally diversity of musical forms in different parts of the world. Different musical styles may harvest comparative forms to explain drastic differences or similarities.
A number of singers and songwriters like to creatively portray the emotions associated with the music genres they love. Certain musicians tell heartwarming stories of how the music they listened to, or the music they played helped them cope with difficult times. Musicians may also promote non-mainstream musical styles through their songs to ensure certain genres reach a wider audience and in the process attain popularity. Although music genres may denote a wide-range of expressions in songs, often they may signify or symbolize
Happiness
Dedication
Hope
Sadness
Integrity
Difficulties
Sarcasm
Celebration
Energy
Insecurity
Positivity
Gratitude
Honesty
Sincerity
The list below showcases a diverse collection of songs that mention rock, pop, country, R&B, folk, rock n roll, hip hop, indie, heavy metal, reggae, soul, funk, disco, reggaeton, trap, jazz, and blues genres in songs. If you have a view, opinion, or song suggestion, let us know in the comments section.
Top 10 Best Songs With Music Genres in the Title
“Uptown Funk”—Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
“God’s Country”—Blake Shelton
“Pop That”—French Montana
“It’s Only Rock ‘N’ Roll”—The Rolling Stones
“Party Rock Anthem”—LMFAO featuring Luren Bennett and GoonRock
“Disco Inferno”—50 Cent
“Roadhouse Blues”—The Doors
“A-Punk”—Vampire Weekend
“Rap Devil”—Machine Gun Kelly
“Who Will Save Your Soul”—Jewel
#11—20
11. “Rock That Body”—The Black Eyed Peas
12. “Trap Queen”—Fetty Wap
13. “Disco Tits”—Tove Lo
14. “Hip-Hop Is Dead”—Nas
15. “Country Again”—Thomas Rhett
16. “We Will Rock You”—Queen
17. “Pop Out”—Polo G featuring Lil Tjay
18. “Soul Survivor”—Young Jeezy featuring Akon
19. “Rock And Roll Music”—Chuck Berry
20. “Sheena Is A Punk Rocker”—Ramones
#21—40
21. “Still Got the Blues for You”—Gary Moore
22. “Rock and Roll”—Led Zeppelin
23. “Get the Funk Out”—Extreme
24. “Jailhouse Rock”—Elvis Presley
25. “Pop”—NSYNC
26. “Sultans of Swing”—Dire Straits
27. “Soul Man”—Sam & Dave
28. “Girl in a Country Song”—Maddie & Tae
29. “Electropop”—Jupiter Rising
30. “Metal Health”—Quiet Riot
31. “Boogie On Reggae Woman”—Stevie Wonder
32. “Pop Style”—Drake featuring The Throne
33. “Rock You Like a Hurricane”—Scorpions
34. “Lean wit it, Rock wit It”—Dem Franchize Boyz
35. “Rock the Casbah”—The Clash
36. “That’s the Way I Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll”—AC/DC
37. “Pop, Lock, & Drop It”—Huey
38. “Raised on Country”—Chris Young
39. “Soul to Squeeze”—Red Hot Chilli Peppers
40. “Funk Pop a Roll”—XTC
#41—60
41. “Pop Singer”—John Cougar Mellencamp
42. “Let it Rock”—Kevin Rudolf featuring Lil Wayne
43. “Rock Yo Hips”—Crime Mob and Lil’ Scrappy
44. “You Rock My World”—Michael Jackson
45. “I Wanna Rock”—Twisted Sister
46. “Reggaeton Lento (Bailemos)”—CNCO
47. “Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll”—The Killers
48. “Trap”—Shakira featuring Maluma
49. “Pretty Girl Rock”—Keri Hilson
50. “Rock Me Amadeus”—Falco
51. “Make My Head Go Pop”—Roxette
52. “Bossa Nova Baby”—Elvis Presley
53. “Ragga Bomb”—Skrillex featuring Raga Twins
54. “Metal Metldown”—Judas Priest
55. “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)”—AC/DC
56. “Disco Lies”—Moby
57. “Beautiful Soul”—Jesse McCartney
58. “Rock the Bat”—Aaliyah
59. “Take Me Home, Country Roads”—John Denver
60. “Rock Around The Clock”—Bill Haley & His Comets
#61—80
61. “Punk Rock Girl”—The Dead Milkmen
62. “(Love Is) a Tender Trap”—Frank Sinatra
63. “Rock and Roll All Nite”—Kiss
64. “Deacon Blues”—Steely Dan
65. “Club Can’t Handle Me”—Flo Rida featuring David Guetta
66. “Heavy Metal (Takin’ a Ride)”—Don Felder
67. “Rock Your Body”—Justin Timberlake
68. “Soul Singing”—The Black Crowes
69. “Boogie Oogie Oogie”—A Taste of Honey
70. “Gone Country”—Alan Jackson
71. “Dance Hall Days”—Wang Chung
72. “The House of the Rising Sun”—The Animals
73. “Crocodile Rock”—Elton John
74. “Let There Be Rock”—AC/DC
75. “Red House”—Jimi Hendrix
76. “Dub Be Good To Me”—Beats International
77. “Rock And Roll Dreams Come Through”—Meat Loaf
78. “Smuggler’s Blues”—Glenn Frey
79. “Kind Hearted Woman Blues”—Robert Johnson
80. “Raised On Rock”—Elvis Presley
#81—100
81. “You Had Your Soul with You”—The National
82. “Punk Rock 101”—Bowling for Soup
83. “Rock of Ages”—Def Leppard
84. “Bell Bottom Blues”—Derek & the Dominos
85. “I Got the Blues”—The Rolling Stones
86. “Rock n Roll”—Avril Lavigne
87. “The Rock Show”—blink-182
88. “God Gave Rock and Roll to You”—Argent
89. “One Big Country Song”—LoCash
90. “Love in This Club”—Usher featuring Jeezy
91. “Detroit Rock City”—Kiss
92. “I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)”—Sandi Thom
93. “Planet Rock”—Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force
94. “Stick That in Your Country Song”—Eric Church
95. “Acapella”—Karmin
96. “Heavy Metal and Reflective”—Azealia Banks
97. “Our House”—Madness
98. “Hip Hop Hooray”—Naughty by Nature
99. “Mr. Rock and Roll”—Amy MacDonald
100. “Old Time Rock And Roll”—Bob Seger
Other Notable Songs With Music Genres in the Title
“Heart Full of Soul”—The Yardbirds
“Pop a Top”—Alan Jackson
“Show Me Your Soul”—Red Hot Chilli Peppers
“Pop That Thang”—The Isley Brothers
“The Heart of Rock & Roll”—Huey Lewis & the News
“Cowboy Blues”—Kesha
“Nihilist Blues”—Bring Me the Horizon
“This is Pop”—XTC
“Statesboro Blues”—The Allman Brothers Band
“Soul Bossa Nova”—Quincy Jones
“Rock with the Caveman”—Tommy Steele
“It’s Still Rock And Roll to Me”—Billy Joel
“Integrity Blues”—Jimmy Eat World
“Metal Thrashing Mad”—Anthrax
“Indie Cindy”—Pixies
“Kill Rock N’ Roll”—System of A Down
“Singing the Blues”—Guy Mitchell
“Black Country Rock”—David Bowie
“300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues”—The White Stripes
“Rock and Roll Girls”—John Fogerty
“Swing”—Quavo featuring Normani and Davido
“Why I Sing the Blues”—B.B. King
“Rock and Roll Is Dead”—Lenny Kravitz
“If You Can’t Rock Me”—The Rolling Stones
“Pop Thrash Movie”—Duran Duran
“Metal on Metal”—Anvil
“Shaman’s Blues”—The Doors
“Oi Oi Oi”—Cockney Rejects
“The Boy That Invented Rock & Roll”—The Psychedelic Furs
“It Don’t Mean a Thing (If it Ain’t Got that Swing)”—Duke Ellington
“Save Rock and Roll”—Fall Out Boy featuring Elton John
“American Country Love Song”—Jake Owen
“Rock with You”—Michael Jackson
“Boogie Chillen’”—John Lee Hooker
“Rock the Boat”—Aaliyah
“The Celtic Soul Brothers”—Dexys Midnight Runners
“Revolution Blues”—Neil Young
“I Was Not a Nazi Polka”—Chad Mitchell Trio
“Funana”—Madonna
“God and Country Music”—George Strait
“The Metal”—Tenacious D
“I Love Rock And Roll”—Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
“King of Rock”—Run-D.M.C.
“Rock and Roll Shoes”—Johnny Cash
“Jazz (Delicious Hot, Disgusting Cold)”—Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band
“Forever Pop”—Lil Tjay
“I Love the Nightlife (Disco ‘Round)”—Alicia Bridges
“This Is Heavy Metal”—Lordi
“Punk Rock Classic”—Red Hot Chili Peppers
“U.S. Blues”—Grateful Dead
“Death Disco”—Public Image Ltd.
“House Every Weekend”—David Zowie
“Trenchtown Rock”—Bob Marley & the Wailers
“Rock N’ Roll Is Free”—Ben Harper
“We Sold Our Souls to Metal”—Soulfly
“Black Mountain Blues”—Bessie Smith
“Da Funk”—Daft Punk
“Rock And Roll Is Here To Stay”—Danny & the Juniors
“Sugar Blues”—Clyde McCoy
“Deep Blues”—Kano featuring Damon Albarn
“Omomo Punk”—Warren Hue
“Rock And Roll Heaven”—The Righteous Brothers
“The Last Waltz”—Engelbert Humperdnick
“Roots Reggae Music”—Rebelution
“Disco 2000”—Pulp
“Blues for Allah”—Grateful Dead
“Hop Scotch Polka (Scotch-Hot)”—Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
“Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof off the Sucker)”—Parliament
“Rock wit U (Awww Baby)”—Ashanti
“Billy’s Blues”—Laura Nyro
“Hard Time Killing Floor Blues”—Skip James
“Kicked Outta Country”—George Strait
“Rock Me Tonite”—Billy Squier
“Jazz at the Bookstore”—Ron Sexsmith
“Abattoir Blues”—Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
“Basin Street Blues”—Louis Armstrong
“Country Must Be Country Wide”—Brantley Gilbert
“Livin’ My Life Like a Country Song”—Theory of A Deadman
“Psychobilly Freakout”—The Reverend Horton Heat
“The Dada Polka”—Magnetic Fields
“Almost Like The Blues”—Leonard Cohen
“Dress Blues”—Zac Brown Band
“Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy”—Bad Company
“Boogie With Stu”—Led Zeppelin
“New Wave”—Islander
“Ladies Love Country Boys”—Trace Adkins
“Country on the Radio”—Blake Shelton
“Fort Worth Blues”—Steve Earle
“Rock And Roll Deserves To Die”—The Darkness
“Emo Kid”—Adam and Andrew
“Rock the Night”—Europe
“Higgs Boson Blues”—Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
“Just Wanna Rock ‘N Roll”—Rodney Atkins
“Long Live Rock”—The Who
“Country Girl Blues”—Brother Yusef
“Helplessness Blues”—Fleet Foxes
“Blame It on the Bossa Nova”—Eydie Gorme
“Country”—Angaleena Presley
“Don’t Play your Rock ‘n’ Roll to Me”—Smokie
“Rock Your Heart Out”—AC/DC
“Deranged for Rock & Roll”—Chelsea Wolfe
“Memphis Blues”—W.C. Handy
“Rock ‘N Roll Train”—AC/DC
“Loves Me Like a Rock”—Paul Simon
“Cosmic Jazz”—Wishbone Ash
“Ambulance Blues”—Neil Young
“Do You Wanna Funk”—Sylvester and Patrick Cowley
“Let There Be Rock”—Drive-By Truckers
“Rock N’ Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution”—AC/DC
“Tupelo Blues”—John Lee Hooker
“Handyman Blues”—Billy Bragg
“Slam Dunk (Da Funk)”—Five
“Rock Me”—ABBA
“What Makes You Country”—Luke Bryan
“Jelly Roll Blues”—Jelly Roll Morton
“Old Country Soul”—The Reklaws
“Wedding Bell Blues”—The 5th Dimension
“Loose Rap”—Aaliyah
“Damn Country Music”—Tim McGraw
“Rock ‘n’ Roll is Cold”—Matthew E. White
“All Country on You”—Austin Webb
“Mr. Johnson’s Blues”—Lonnie Johnson
“I Need to Hear a Country Song”—Toby Keith
“So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star”—The Byrds
“Country Girls”—John Schneider
“No Better Blues”—Chance the Rapper
“Rock Lobster”—The B-52’s
“Country Boy”—Alan Jackson
“Funk Box”—Sugarhill Gang
“Big Bill Blues”—Big Bill Broonzy
“Pop Muzik”—Robin Scott
“Dime Store Rock”—Slash’s Snakepit
“Buried Alive In the Blues”—Janis Joplin
“Metal Heart”—Accept
“Got a Little Country”—Blake Shelton
“All Disco”—Elbow
“Elimination Blues”—Primal Scream
“Bubble Pop Electric”—Gwen Steffani
“Rock and Roll, Hoochie Ko”—Johnny Winter And
“New Speedway Boogie”—Grateful Dead
“Rock the Joint”—Jimmy Preston & His Prestonians
“Barstool Blues”—Neil Young
“Rock and Roll”—Eric Hutchinson
“Disco Duck”—Rick Dees & His Cast of Idiots
“City Boy Blues”—Action Bronson
“Rock and Roll Lullaby”—B.J. Thomas
“And the Cradle Will Rock”—Van Halen
“Boxing Day Blues”—Courtney Barnett
“Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)”—Def Leppard
“Filthy Blues”—Orianthi
“Jungle Boogie”—Kool & the Gang
“Beer Barrel Polka (Roll Out The Barrel)”—Will Glahe
“Rock On”—David Essex
“Coward of the Country”—Kenny Rogers
“Buckskin Stallion Blues”—Townes Van Zandt
“Long Live Rock & Roll”—Daughtry
“She Likes Rock N Roll”—AC/DC
“Ventilator Blues”—The Rolling Stones
“Country”—Mo Pitney
“Dead Shrimp Blues”—Robert Johnson
“Rock ‘N’ Roll Widow”—Wishbone Ash
“Acid Jazz Singer”—The Fratellis
“Rock & Roll Found Me”—Eric Church
“She’s Country”—Jason Aldean
“Rock And Roll Band”—Boston
“Country Death Song”—Violent Femmes
“Fisherman’s Blues”—The Waterboys
“Death By Rock And Roll”—The Pretty Reckless
“Country Music Has the Blues”—Billy Ray Cyrus
“A Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy”—The Kinks
“Jimmy Jazz”—The Clash
“A Little Bit Country, A Little Bit Rock ‘N Roll”—Donny & Marie
“Pop That Lock”—Adam Lambert
“Heavy Metal”—Bring Me the Horizon
“Astrobiology Rap”—Jonathan Chase
“Rock ‘N Me”—Steve Miller Band
“Country Side of Heaven”—Eric Paslay
“Halloween Blues”—The Fratellis
“Call Me Country”—Jon Pardi
“This Is What Rock N’ Roll Looks Like”—Porcelain Black
Disco Men From Mars’ Invasion is a tribute to all of the richness and complexity of synth-based music. It combines a fascinating profusion of different synth sounds with a wide variety of stylistic influences to create lush, textured music. There is also strong melodic writing and a sense of fun added to the mix on the album.
Let’s talk about those synth sounds. Disco Men From Mars explore the full range of timbres, tones, and emotions that can be extracted from synthesizers on Invasion. They interlock high glittering sparkles, saw-toothed growling, and lambent warmth in a sonic tapestry that is rich but doesn’t create complexity for complexity’s sake. Each synth is clear and distinct, but together they produce a coherent whole.
I enjoy the way in which Invasion travels from cool jazz to chiptune and from a reggae groove to the pumping beat of disco. There’s an enjoyable cocktail of different genres that are joyfully mixed to produce an engaging and fun musical journey on which Disco Men From Mars takes the listener’s ears. When the samples from various movies and other sources are added in, they only add to the playful nature of the album.
The melodic writing on display by Disco Men From Mars is engaging. They are able to craft melodies that are catchy without being overbearing. The melodies on this album also have two qualities which I especially enjoy. The first quality is a timeless feeling that makes some of the melodies seem as if they might have existed forever. The second quality is the way in which they combine melancholy and more positive feelings in one tidy package.
My Favourite Tracks Analyzed
“Invasion” starts off with a deep, hollow rush of air flowing through the track and a rattling twist of sound. A burst of dark bass rumble is joined by a well-chosen vocal sample from Orson Welles’ “War of the Worlds.”
A line of high piano notes glitters over a well of rising, deep sound and now a dark pulse of constant bass throbs out over the open space around it and a high, chiming sound briefly touches before a shadowed, tense sweep of medium-low synth cuts over the constant bass pulse and the big drums.
Descending bass chords rise and fall over driving, massive drums to open “Midnight Surfer” and a jazz-inflected melody carried on an organ. High, bright, nasal synth carries the groovy melody that whirls and dances up above that big beat, spinning and cascading. A disco beat moves under raised, glockenspiel-like notes while full synth carries a drifting melody that is touched by warm haze.
I find the glow of the melody quite compelling on this track. A hard-hitting, gritty bass pulse contrasts with an ultra high synth carrying a melodic pattern, crying out over the strong disco beat. There’s an ear-grabbing hollow drum sound that moves under a glowing, tightly dancing high line of synth that slides over the beat’s pulse while full, shimmering notes sparkle over the drums and into silence.
“Voulez-Vous Danser Avec Moi?” comes to life with a slow, low, oscillating bass pulse below the steady drums and medium-low, hollow synth swirls over the beat’s steady throb. The pipe-like synth carries a shifting pattern of notes while long sweeps of sound grow in a circular motion. I enjoy the mixture of aching emotion and energy in the melody of this track. The active bass line climbs and falls as glimmering synth drifts in starry clouds over it.
A series of warm, full synth chords blossoms in delicate sound over the throbbing beat. Unique percussion breaks into the track before the intertwined hope and melancholy of the lead melody comes in again. The ear teasing percussion sounds move with another vocal sample and the hollow oscillation of synth. A computerized, angular-sounding synth repeats a bouncing melodic pattern and then silence.
Oscillating waves of rough-edged low synth throb into the music to kick off “Interstellar Overpass.” The drumbeat hits hard below a warm, nasal synth carrying shifting chords below a higher, more crystalline synth playing a melodic pattern. The nasal, whirling lead synth melody soars triumphantly but is leavened with a little melancholy.
I am drawn to the extremely high secondary melody as it reaches for the stars, glistening high over the drums. Ultra-high synth cries out before the lead melody calls majestically over the steady insistence of the beat. A steady percussive pattern throbs out before the dark, distorted voice of the lead synth sings a more shadowed, lost feeling melody.
“Detour Alley” comes into being with a metallic, uneven pulse that’s joined by reverberating chimes that move delicately as the beat softly taps below them. Quick, nasal-sounding arpeggio move with a glow behind a pipe-like, wandering lead synth. There’s an ancient feeling to the mode of the main melody, something that transcends modernity to speak to more primal emotions which I quite enjoy.
Piano notes move over a throbbing beat that is now joined by 8-bit sounds that carry a roaming melody over the insistent bass pulse. The melody sings out, speaking of journeys and adventures, its voice reminiscent of a Japanese roleplaying game score. Quick arpeggios move over the throbbing beat and a line of rising and abruptly dropping synth.
Glistening chimes sparkle over deep, reverberating blocks of synth sound to open “DJ Hal 9000 Beach Blanket Bebop” before dynamic beat throbs below a distorted, full synth carrying the lead melody. There’s a sensation of progress and hope that radiates from the main melody as a buzzing synth adds support, while the drums pulsate and the bass adds weight to the music. Appropriately this track uses samples from “2001: A Space Odyssey.”
I am drawn to the segment of this track that launches into a full-blown reggae jam. It adds an element of fun to the music that I find so enjoyable. The “A” section launches into life again as the steady, energizing beat throbs under it. There’s another reggae breakdown followed by a drum fill, after which rapid arpeggios tremble over battering drums. One more dose of sunny reggae vibes comes in before the track fades out.
“Downtown Dystopia, 3 AM” comes into being with harsh, buzzing synth and massive, militaristic drums thundering below piano-based jazz chords. A sawtoothed, elevated synth contrasts with the smooth flow of the cool, easy-going piano notes as the steady bass pulse moves below. It’s a contrast that I enjoy a great deal. The beat has an easy-flowing throb to it as the jazz piano writhes and slides over top it.
The oscillating, shadowy pulse is pierced by technological noises and a wash of piano notes that dance through over it. A driving bass pulse and computerized lead synth come in carrying a wandering melody that bends and wriggles over the pulsating bass, making a twisty and establishing a hypnotic pattern of notes over that beat. The notes slowly and then more rapidly cascade, the brittle brightness of the computer like sound descending into space in which massive drums batter before fading
The unique sound of a Moog synth playing chords that flow out in floating waves starts off “Moog Sunset.” The lead melody arcs out, wandering and twisting, shivering through the track with a dreamy, warm voice that I quite enjoy. A shuddering, bright synth sound trickles through and begins to establish quick, arpeggiating patterns that add texture to the music as they rise and fall.
The beat bursts and dances while bass descends under the arpeggios before the beat changes character again. Minor key chords climb and grow warmer as they rise while the roaming lead synth melody weaves in and out, feeling a bit mournful and melancholy. Sparkling stars of synth move over the slower drums and into silence.
“Mission Accomplished” springs to life with a popping synth that bounces back and forth with the smoothly flowing beat. The nasal-sounding lead synth cries out with fuzzy, caressing warmth in a rising melody while piano shines and flutters behind it. The melody is full of a dreamy sense of hope and yearning by which I am compelled. There’s a rich, all-encompassing feeling that spreads throughout the track from the main melody.
Glistening synth lead cries out over the piano’s shimmer and the wistful ache of the melody. Patterns of cascading, climbing notes move as the beat shapes the music before the track breaks to an arcing, wandering line of computerized synth over the oscillating bass line. Angular, slow patterns of 8-bit notes arpeggiate and add more motion to the track. Reverent choral sounds move along with percussion into open space and then silence.
Conclusion
Invasion is a synth album that takes me on a journey. It uses the complexity and variety of synthesizers to create strong imagery while having a good time doing so. I am drawn to the sense of fun and engaging musical elements that Disco Men From Mars weave together on the album.
Kaktus Einarsson’s solo debut album, Kick The Ladder, is breathtaking and unpredictable, imaginative and stunningly beautiful. Just like his native Iceland, in fact. Diamond geyser Gordon Rutherford reviews for Louder Than War.
Lying slap bang on the divergent boundary between the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate, Iceland has a totally unique geology. Like silver screen icons, Burton and Taylor, those tectonic plates simply cannot help rubbing up against each other and creating all kinds of friction, quite literally on a volcanic scale. Invariably, music emerges from the culture and landscape that spawns it and Iceland’s musical output generally mirrors that distinctive geology. Take, for example, the grandiose majesty of Sigur Ros, the unpredictable and cascading melodies of Bjork, or the sepulchral, elegiac drama of Jóhann Jóhannsson’s scores. We should now add this sparkling and shimmering debut from Kaktus Einarsson to that list.
Kick The Ladder is an extremely mature body of work; one that doesn’t quite sound like the output of a twenty-eight year old. Then again, Kaktus Einarsson has more work experience than most twenty-eight year olds, by virtue of the fact that his rock n’ roll career began at an unfeasibly tender age. When us ordinary kids were busy playing with our Action Man or Barbie, Einarsson was appearing as part of experimental electronic act Ghostigital. He was ten years old. Kids today, huh? From there, he moved on to become frontman of post-punk combo Fufanu, opening for Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers and performing as part of the bill at Blur’s Hyde Park gig. That’s a very decent CV and, like one of those sponges that flourish in Iceland’s hydrothermal chimneys, he has absorbed it all, allowing him to pour every drop of experience into the creation of this dazzling solo debut album.
Those experiences, combined with his new found parental responsibilities, have resulted in a melodic, clever and incredibly catchy record, with a sound that is expansive enough to fill a glacier. Credit to Swiss composer Kurt Uenala (Depeche Mode, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Kills) who shared production duties with Einarsson, because together they have created something sonically special. Close listening reveals the admirable attention to detail on this album. Moreover, Einarsson has demonstrated extraordinary levels of innovation in crafting this collection. Collaborating with the French prepared piano experimentalist, Thibault Gomez, a decision was taken to eschew electronics on the album. “We replaced synths with acoustic sounds that are familiar, but unfamiliar”, Einarsson explains, rather cryptically. In essence, all of the effects were created purely by leveraging the unimagined capabilities of one familiar instrument, the grand piano. Working in a similar way to German maestro Nils Frahm (but maybe without toilet brushes), Einarsson and Gomez would lift the lid and get into the guts of this most magnificent of instruments. They would scratch, bow and e-bow the instrument’s strings, eliciting otherworldly sounds. Brooms would be rattled off the underside to create deep percussive rhythms. Few artists can have gone to such lengths to create their sound this year. However, the way these effects are utilised is incredibly smart. Instead of showily plastering the sounds garishly across the tracks, Einarsson ensures that they are subtly deployed. They serve the songs, rather than becoming them, and that’s precisely how it should be when you have such a brilliant catalogue.
If Kick The Ladder were a 1500 metre runner, it would be on course to shatter the world record at the moment it hits the bell for the last lap. Those first few laps are quite breathtaking. However, having pushed it so intensely in the earlier stages, it does flag a little bit as it approaches the finishing line. It makes it home, just not quite at the same pace as it started. The album opens with the brooding, atmospheric title track. Those opening couple of minutes before the voice kicks in are wonderfully moody, showcasing that innovative use of the piano I highlighted earlier and augmented by the sumptuous cello of Hjörtur Eggertsson. And then we are introduced to that incredible voice, which, cloaked in beautifully warm reverb, sounds quite magnificent. By the time we hit the chorus, the song has become splendidly luxurious. It’s big like a Bond theme, propelling this album explosively out of the blocks. The title track is followed by the bass-driven, super-catchy accessibility of Oceans Heart. Any song about the joys of flying a kite is bound to be pleasurable and this one doesn’t disappoint.
It gets even better. Hypnotized has a feel that is a throwback to the intelligent pop of the nineteen-eighties. It’s catchy and bubbly, but never lightweight. The structure and chord movements are simply genius, providing a tremendous platform for Einarsson’s soaring and melodic voice. Yet, despite the pop leanings, this is a piece awash with gravitas. Like so much of the album, it draws heavily on how we relate societally to our surroundings and, in this case, Einarsson’s focus is on the persecution and deportation of immigrants from Iceland. So, it’s not just here, huh? Einarsson asks “are the children scared/do they belong with us here?”. It’s incredibly powerful songwriting, fusing a lighter, more accessible touch musically with a powerful lyrical statement.
Thematically, No Runaway carries on the torch and prompts me to conclude that there probably isn’t enough reverb in music these days. A darker tune, with the uplifting major chords of the earlier songs replaced by more sombre minors, No Runaway is possibly the edgiest song on the album, one that brings to mind Douglas Dare in the way that the artist teases us about what may or may not be going on under the surface. “I know that sometimes I keep things to myself”, he sings. That’s okay, Kaktus. Artists are meant to be mysterious. But, generously, he does allow us a fleeting glimpse of his soul, just enough to intrigue us. Another two bangers follow. Daydream Echo is layers and layers of lush sound and an infectious call-and-response chorus whilst Gone To Bed is just a quite beautifully structured composition that Burt Bacharach would be proud of. Later on, the dreamy and atmospheric 45rpm ups the reverb ante even further. If there was such a thing as a Twin Peaks house band, this might just be how they sound. And that can never be a bad thing.
With Kick The Ladder, Kaktus Einarsson has created a body of work not dissimilar to the work of Perfume Genius or John Grant (who he will be touring with across Europe – but, unfortunately, not the UK – next summer). It is incredibly intelligent pop music of the very highest standard, smarter than a magpie with a first in economics from Oxford. There are so many great songs on this album with a plethora of musical highs. It’s just a shame about that final lap. It’s not that the last four tracks are turkeys. They are not, nor did they ruin the overall vibe. It’s simply that Einarsson has set the bar so high in the eight tracks preceding them. Notwithstanding that, Kick The Ladder is a very, very good album and it’s one that I have no hesitation in throwing my weight behind. It will certainly remain a fixture on my turntable for a wee while to come.
The post Kaktus Einarsson: Kick The Ladder – album review appeared first on Louder Than War.
Watch sand form into geometric patterns based solely on frequency.
This is amazing, and hard to really decipher. There are secrets, or ‘mysteries’, of the universe that we humans do not understand, and many of them involve sound: energy, frequencies, and vibrations.
Tesla, the master of energy, once said: “If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.”
This first experiment is more specifically called UV Sand Resonance.
As this experiment cymatics demonstrates – and one which has been replicated many times; even by the skeptical – placing sand on a plate, and using a tone generator, will create perfect geometric shapes.
Why the sand reacts geometrically perfect in response to the frequencies – where vibrations emulate, and where they do not – is a mystery in the larger calculation. A secret of the universe.
From the experimentors: “So this experiment is the Chladni plate experiment. I used a tone generator, a wave driver (speaker), and a metal plate attached to the speaker. First, add sand to the plate then begin playing a tone. Certain frequencies vibrate the metal plate in such a way that it creates areas where there is no vibration. The sand “falls” into those areas, creating beautiful geometric patterns. As the frequency increases in pitch, the patterns become more complex.”
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Is anything more 90s than a movie where Tara Jane O’Neil plays the sister of Ian Svenonius, steals his van and equipment, goes on tour with her friends and learns how to be in a functioning indie rock band? Bear in mind, this movie features a Matador-released soundtrack that features the likes of Unwound, Slant 6, Versus, Smog, Kicking Giant, Codeine, Polvo, the list goes on. As you might guess, it’s not a big movie. It’s not a blockbuster. It’s Half-Cocked.
Released in 1994, Half-Cocked is a funny and sweet little black-and-white feature about wanting to escape your dead-end town. It’s an ode to rock n’ roll, a means with which you can find freedom, explore the world and even express yourself. Appropriately enough, it’s filled with professional musicians and Louisville, KY scenesters — meaning, non-professional actors. Tara Jane O’Neil (credited as “Rhonda” in the film) and her friends are members of Rodan, a brief shooting star of an honest-to-goodness band that released one six-song LP called Rusty, on Quarterstick Records, in 1994 before imploding. Oddly enough, the movie almost plays this story out in miniature. Over a few days, the band is born, the band plays, the band breaks apart.
It goes something like this: After driving off in the stolen van, only to end up broke in Tennessee, they decide to call themselves Truckstop and play a gig that will maybe earn enough money for some gas and something better to eat than shoplifted Slim Jims. The only problem is, they don’t know how to play music. But when has that stopped people with a real desire to leave a mark? At their first show, a wall of clanging noise and feedback turns into an inspired performance piece where O’Neil throws empty bottles into a metal garbage can, with the band loudly backing her with every toss.
It’s enough to get them some attention from the club owner and the band ends up earning the full door. Inspired, they begin to learn a few chords, how to hold a beat, and write a song. The rest of the movie is an honest look at what it was like for the average touring, small-label rock band in 1994. In other words, it’s a lot of hanging out, talking, drinking beer, smoking cigarettes, finding a place to crash, arguing in the van, and making t-shirts with stencils and markers to sell at shows. It’s anything but glamorous, but you can feel the camaraderie and the support system that comes with being part of a community. It still feels cool.
Authenticity is oozing from this film. Thanks in part to it being loaded with real people from said community. The Grifters show up as themselves, as do members of The Rachels and Shipping News. Slint’s David Pajo appears, lurking in the background as one of the members in Svenonius’s band, hilariously called The Guilloteens.
According the credits, there’s even a moment involving an unseen young man in a car by the name of James Murphy, who also served as the live music producer on the film. Now, while you can tell that most of the movie is scripted and not just an improvised lark, one of the musicians they cross paths with delivers something like a personal true-to-life monologue about the tedium of touring. The long hours on the road, the bad food, the uncertainty. This story seems to reach the members of Truckstop at a moment when they’re already starting to grate on each others nerves. Instead of throwing in the towel, they decide to keep going, keep getting better, and maybe, just maybe, play an honest to goodness kickass show — something that might sound a lot like Rodan. They’ll have their moment, even if it is just that. A moment.
So, yeah, Half-Cocked is chockablock with vintage indie rock credentials. But what’s surprising is that despite the wealth of non-actors, the movie is extremely well-made and at times genuinely funny and charming. The scene where Ian Svenonius tries to convince his bandmates that his mini trampoline gimmick is a good idea for their encore is priceless. Made by the wife-and-husband team of Suki Hawley and Michael Galinsky, it’s a beautifully shot film, made up of well-composed, well-edited shots that give off some serious early Alexandre Rockwell, Tom DiCillo, Jim Jarmusch-type vibes. Like Larry Clark’s Kids, which came out a year later, Hawley and Galinsky made a film that feels fully embedded in a culture (it’s no wonder that the filmmakers went on to a thriving career making documentaries). And with it’s grainy, boxy-framed, B&W, low-key aesthetic, they’ve made something that perfectly suits the environment they’re in. Better yet, unlike Kids, Half-Cocked feels strangely timeless. It’s of the 90s and yet doesn’t feel dated at all.
Upon its release, it was easy to regard the film as another B&W, low-budget, Sundancean, proto-mumblecore effort — albeit one with an exceedingly killer soundtrack. Now it plays like a minor masterpiece; a lost gem that so perfectly captures a time, place and essential music scene that it should be granted certified landmark status.
The post Videodrome :: Half-Cocked was written by Sean Erickson on Aquarium Drunkard
If, at any point during the recent crisis, you found yourself thinking, ‘What would Billy Gibbons do?’ – and there are probably worse role models – you might have pictured the ZZ Top frontman lighting out for some cactus-pocked desert redoubt in one of his garageful of hot rods. A scarlet coupe, perhaps, flames painted along the bonnet, packed with some of Gibbons’ legendarily vast guitar collection, and sufficient provisions to ride out lockdown.
Breaking News: ZZ Top Bassist Dusty Hill, 72, has died
Read our post about the long-time, iconic bassist, Dusty Hill.
You wouldn’t have been too far wrong. Hardware was recorded in the rocky mesas of California’s Mojave, Gibbons teaming up with drummer Matt Sorum (Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver, The Cult) and guitarist Austin Hanks; Rebecca and Megan Lovell of Larkin Poe contribute backing vocals. The single West Coast Junkie (“I’m a West Coast junkie from a Texas town/And when I get to Cali it’s going down”) serves, in this context, as a Southern surf-rock mission statement, Gibbons channelling Dick Dale over a pulsing go-go beat, the drums quoting The Surfari’s Wipeout before the guitar solo.
Gibbons’ two previous solo albums have been obvious departures from ZZ Top. 2015’s Perfectamundo was a joyous excursion into Latin-rhythmed rock, and 2018’s Big Bad Blues was what its title said it was. But Hardware, whether part of some planned cycle or not, is Gibbons going back to where he came in: were it presented to a focus group of ardent ZZ Top fans as a new ZZ Top album, it would be surprising if anyone spotted the imposture.
Certainly, there is little chance of mistaking Billy Gibbons’ guitar: that smooth swagger along the frontier between the blues and Southern rock (the latter genre being one that Gibbons can claim to have helped invent). The first notes on Hardware are the opening riff of My Lucky Card, a characteristic Gibbons motif: an insistent guitar fusillade with which you can hear him placating some rumbustious early 1970s Texas honky-tonk as the empties start hitting the chicken wire.
There are, thereafter, few subtleties. Musically, Hardware is substantially comprised of barely reconstructed boogie. Lyrically, it is almost exclusively concerned with women, whiskey, cars, highways and so forth. Given, however, that this a palette Gibbons did more to define than most, and still draws from more deftly than many, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this, still less so given that Gibbons’ 72-year-old fingers have lost none of their way around a fretboard. So while Shuffle, Step & Slide, for example, sounds exactly how a song called Shuffle, Step & Slide by Billy Gibbons might be expected to sound, its glorious solos are another entry in Gibbons’ hefty catalogue of elegant illustrations of the overlap between blues and Southern rock.
The ZZ Top period that Hardware most recalls is the one spanning 1981’s El Loco, 1983’s umpty-selling Eliminator and 1985’s Afterburner, as the group added synthesisers and sequencers to their primal rock trio setup. While Hardware doesn’t venture nearly as far into full-fledged Southern rock disco as some of the aforementioned, there are many instinctive or deliberate tips of the ten-gallon to this period – Larkin Poe’s glossy backing vocals on Stackin’ Bones, the turbocharged production of S-G-L-M-B-B-R, the distorted lead vocal on More-More-More, also punctuated with a growled Yeaaaahhh, which sounds copy/pasted from Sharp Dressed Man.
There are one or two more obviously outré moments, of the kind Gibbons might not have felt able to indulge under the ZZ Top marque. Vagabond Man is a sweet electric piano-drenched ballad, like Steve Miller fronting Drive-By Truckers. Spanish Fly is a gruff rap over clattering percussion and sparse, squealing guitar. Closer Desert High is more minimalist still, a sombre spoken-word narration of the view across the Mojave and what it conjures, in this instance the spectres of Jim Morrison and Gram Parsons.
Overall, the songs on Hardware fly in direct proportion to the degree to which they can be imagined being played on a fur-trimmed guitar mounted on a spindle. I Was A Highway is one such, underpinning the unsubtle metaphor (“You’d think I was a highway/The way she hit the road”) with a climactic post-guitar solo gear change from effortless cruise control to foot-down roar towards the horizon. She’s On Fire is another, a glorious headlong tear-up which could have graced any ZZ Top album of this last half-century or so. For all Gibbons’ often intriguing meandering from his usual path, on Hardware and elsewhere in his solo career, there remains little doubt about what he does best.
The post Billy F Gibbons – Hardware appeared first on UNCUT.
Within the opening moments of Flood, the debut EP from Bristol foursome (fivesome if you include their visuals guy) SCALPING, there seem to be a melange of different styles happening at once, and it’s not clear which one they might follow – be it the techno synth pulse, the acidic drums or the harshly wining guitar. Truthfully, they never really opt for one or the other across the EP – in fact, they throw more spices into the mix as they thumb their nose to the genre and powerfully display the foolishness of anyone who tries to compartmentalize music (or the world in general) in such rigid boxes.
If you’ve heard any of SCALPING’s early singles or seen them live, then Flood will come as no great surprise; it doesn’t offer any reinventions of their sound, but this early in their career they don’t need to – their breathless combination has not yet worn out its welcome by any means. The title Flood is appropriate, as it feels like they’re throwing open the gates and letting all their molten synth tones, curdling guitars and boiling beats come rushing out heedlessly in one epic deluge. There are no pauses for breath here.
Really, there are no words to describe the sounds, other than trying to pluck the amorphous images that they provoke in your imagination – which are wild and gone in an instant, swept along with SCALPING’s ceaselessly moving songs. The lack of a lead vocalist helps ignite the imagination, and also means that SCALPING can alternate between which instrument takes the ‘lead’ at any given moment. The opening “Monolithium” does exactly what the title suggests; takes something monolithic and then adds to it, until it sounds like a stampede of elephants getting swept away in a wave of lava. “The Perimeter” focuses on the guitar, which drifts across the sky like cobwebs of lightning, the drums, bass and synth plodding below like a mechanical army trudging through the muddy terrain – then, they pivot, putting the synth bass to the fore and shifting into a techno-forward track.
“Cloudburst” picks up this baton and surges dead ahead on billowing black synths as tactile sounds rattle around the outskirts. From their time spent workshopping these songs live, they are already masters of tension-and-release, able to toy with their listeners in the same way as a master DJ ruling a dancefloor – but with a much deadlier clang when they do drop the hammer. Flood finishes with “Empty Cascade”, a relatively stately track as they drop the BPMs a smidge, but still keep the song burning like acid rain as they continue to drop excoriating guitar on top of tinkling adornment on top of rapid-fire drums in a never-ending torrent, adding momentum until they conclude the EP as a scorched husk of spent energy.
These songs were born out of improvisation, which seems obvious as they push right up against the boundaries set down by the rigid beats, throwing in as much as each song can carry until they are practically overflowing with ideas – and it’s thrilling to witness. That they manage to keep it all contained and on track is mightily impressive – but could be one area where SCALPING look to evolve; what would happen if they let the beat go haywire just devolved into utter chaos? They’re certainly going to have to figure out more ways to ensure their sound remains gripping without overwhelming by the time they attempt a full-length, but for Flood’s four tracks and 20 minutes, full-steam-ahead carnage works perfectly.
78%
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