Saturday, November 29, 2008

Oops

I didn't mean to abandon the website, but I've been home for the last couple days and our internet isn't really working...That just means that there will be plenty of backlogged content for when I return to Albany! Stick around, this week there should be a few album reviews, as well as my experiences seeing Underoath and Soasin live.

Happy belated Thanksgiving!

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Songs of the week: 11/25/08

The music is all over the board this week, sort of like my life - it's been pretty hectic, but a lot of fun. I've been packing all night to go back to Florida tomorrow, and I'm really excited.

Hope everybody has a nice Thanksgiving, stay safe!

***
songs of the week #12

1. Ghost - Gregory and the Hawk
2. Judy and the Dream of Horses (Live) - Belle and Sebastian (From the newly released BBC Sessions)
3. The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot (Acoustic) - Brand New (Even better than the final version off of Deja)
4. Stressed Technology (Justice vs. Daft Punk, Peaches) - DJ Dain (More mash-up fun!)
5. Everyday Struggle - The Notorious B.I.G. (Timeless)

Monday, November 24, 2008

Setlist: 11/24/08

As I mentioned earlier, I filled in for a DJ on WCDB earlier tonight, and played some indie/alternative music for a change. Thanks to everybody who tuned in to listen, and here's the setlist.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go pack - I's a-heading home!

***
setlist 11/24/08

1. First Breath After Coma - Explosions In The Sky
2. The Widow - The Mars Volta
3. Stake Your Claim - Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves
4. Washington Bullets - The Clash
5. Lost Symphonies - Saosin
6. Holland, 1945 - Neutral Milk Hotel
7. Medicating - Boys Night Out
8. Dead Men Tell No Tales - The Receiving End Of Sirens
9. Catamaran - Bear vs. Shark
10. You Won't Know - Brand New
11. Car - Built To Spill
12. Incredibly Drunk On Whiskey - Memphis
13. The Deaf Girl's Song - Cloud Cult
14. Carly - The Capes
15. Haligh, Haligh, A Lie, Haligh - Bright Eyes
16. Two Headed Boy, Pt. II - Neutral Milk Hotel
17. You're The Good Things - Modest Mouse
18. I Can Feel A Hot One - Manchester Orchestra
19. Always New Depths - Bloc Party
20. The Boy With The Arab Strap - Belle and Sebastian
21. Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying - Belle and Sebastian
22. Calender Girl - Stars
23. Almost Crimes - Broken Social Scene
24. In A Sweater, Poorly Knit - mewithoutYou
25. The Start Of Something - Voxtrot

Special radio show

This is pretty short notice, but I'm filling in for a DJ tonight on WCDB from 6 - 8PM Eastern time tonight. I'll be by myself, and instead of electronic music, I'll just be spinning my personal playlist. Basically, if you like the sort of music I review on here, then you'll probably enjoy my set.

If you live in the greater Capital Region of New York, then you can just tune into 90.9 FM. Otherwise, you can listen live at the WCDB website.

Thanks for listening!

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Mash-up: Stars, The Mars Volta, Rival Consoles, & mewithoutYou

Since that first mash-up I did wasn't too terrible, I decided to give it another go. This time, the victims were Stars, The Mars Volta, Rival Consoles, and mewithoutYou. Yes, you read that right.

It probably sounds like a shit-storm, just because of the disparate artists involved (and to some extent, it kind of is), but I think it flows together pretty nicely. The constituent tracks are:
  • Maintenance Hall, 4am - Stars
  • Drunkship Of Lanterns - The Mars Volta
  • Kitsch - Rival Consoles
  • In A Sweater Poorly Knit - mewithoutYou
Give it a Digg, it's not half-bad.

***

Download: A Hall, Poorly Maintained - Andy Kissner

Band of the week: Coma

I like post-rock. Do you like post-rock? Here's some post-rock.

***
band of the week #4: coma (myspace, download ep)

Questionable English aside, Malaysian band Coma have a fairly impressive MySpace page. There are no fancy graphics, no distracting layouts, just black text on a backdrop of white. Oh, and two rather beastly instrumental tracks. Coming out of left field, and with just an EP to their name, Coma is one of many bands these days rejecting the new trend of vocal-laden post-rock, and instead throwing back to the days of slow-build/furious release circa 2001. I think that they themselves say it best:
we are coma, there are two meaning of coma, 1st were a full stop, and 2nd were a deep sleep. we love to share our feeling through our music, we believe that words can only mean a certain meaning at certain times. so the greatest way to share our thought and emotion with our music. we are trying to soundtrack the horror of the world event and peoples lives event.
Good times. So check them out, download their EP, and most of all, enjoy!

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Riding Alone For Thousands Of Miles - New tracks and remasters of old ones

Another short post, but to all that are interested by slow, brooding post rock...

Riding Alone For Thousands Of Miles have some new tracks up, as well as remastered versions of tracks that appeared on this year's phenomenal A Boldogság Minden Reményét Elragadták. You can download them for free (at least for the time being) over on their Last.fm.

In case you were unaware, Riding Alone For Thousands Of Miles are an immensely talented outfit from New Jersey, who make tense instrumental rock in the vein of Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Their debut album, A Boldogság Minden Reményét Elragadták, has been a front-runner (in my book at least) for the title of "Album of the Year".

Friday, November 21, 2008

Nonstop Everything CD Release

A few weeks ago, I mentioned fun little group called Nonstop Everything, and how fucking awesome they are.

Well, I return today with news that they have released their first CD, entitled Mania. You can get it here, for the nominal price of $12. I'll be sure to grab a copy for myself, and a review is forthcoming.

Have a great weekend!

We Are Scientists - SUNY Albany Acoustic Set, 11/14/08

Last Friday, We Are Scientists stopped at my university, SUNY Albany, to play a free acoustic set in our campus center. The show was sponsored by WCDB, and I must admit, was a pretty enjoyable way to spend an hour or so.

I hadn't been intimately familiar with We Are Scientists' work before the show, having only really heard "Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt" and "After Hours", but I went in with a fairly open mind. And from my limited experience with the band, I'd have to say that their sound made a very nice transition to the acoustic format. The band was energetic and lively, and the banter between vocalist Keith Murray and bassist Chris Cain was mildly amusing.

I didn't think to write down the setlist, but I know that both "After Hours" and "Nobody Move" were featured. The whole thing was pretty last minute and spur of the moment, but given as such, was quite successful.

Here's a pretty good quality video of (part of) the set that I found on YouTube. Enjoy!

***



Thursday, November 20, 2008

Insomniac Dance Party - 11/19/08 Setlist

Due to threats of even (gasp!) MORE DMCAs!!!, I will no longer be posting the setlists as a podcast. But, if you're so inclined, you can just download (or send me an e-mail for the full thing) the tracks in blue one by one. This was a fun show, thanks to all 3 of you that listened online!

Have a nice weekend!

***
insomniac dance party setlist: 11/19/08

1. Something 2 Dance 2 - N.W.A.
2. We Are Your Friends - Justice
3. The Quiet Before (Thunderbirds Are Now! Remix) - From Monument To Masses
4. Fade To Grey - Visage
5. Thrash Waltz - 65daysofstatic
6. Fucked From Above 1985 - The Bloody Beetroots
7. Womanizer (Nick* Remix) - Britney Spears (haha, it was a request)
8. Out Of Space (Remix) - Prodigy
9. Good News For Pyro's - Ciaran Byrne
10. Mike's Mix
  • & Down - Boys Noize
  • Don't Believe The Hype - Boys Noize
  • Fancy Footwork (Laidback Luke Remix) - Chromeo
  • Easy Love - MSTRKRFT
  • Lucky Girl - DJ Mehdi
  • Paris (Live Cut) - MSTRKRFT
  • I Go Raven - Boys Noize
  • Chloe - Gater
11. To The Left (Beyonce vs. Lil' Wayne) - Andy Kissner
12. Windowlicker - Aphex Twin
13. Disco Shoes (Electrixx Remix) - Acid Jacks
14. Vemeer - Aparatec
15. Devil Stuff - Evil Nine
16. As Above, So Below (Justice Remix) - The Klaxons
17. Beat 1 - Ratatat
18. Stress (Live) - Justice
19. Heartbreak Wonderland - World's End Girlfriend
20. Frau (BN Megamix) - I-Robot
21. Mr. Brightside - PlayRadioPlay!
22. Midnight Madness - The Chemical Brothers
23. Stripped (Depeche Mode Cover) - Shiny Toy Guns
24. Electronic Renaissance - Belle and Sebastian
25. Needy Girl (Shadow Dancer Remix) - Chromeo
26. Numbers - Booka Shade
27. Rainbow Man - Busy P
28. Dead Mellotron - Neon Blonde
29. Face To Face - Daft Punk
30. Part Time Robot - Definition
31. Violin Solo - Aphex Twin
32. Gimme Freaks (The Rolling Stones vs. Moguai and Tocadisco) - DJ Earworm
33. You Make Me Like Charity - The Knife

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Songs of the week: 11/18/08

Not much new this week, just a couple vaguely interesting songs. I am pretty excited for Thanksgiving, though, because that means I'll be going home to sunny Florida for the first time in almost four months...crazy!

Also, if you missed it, check out my mash-up of Beyonce and Lil' Wayne.

***
songs of the week #11

1. Take Your Soul To Work Day - Definition
2. Something Is Not Right With Me - Cold War Kids (Old news, I know - it's been all over mtvU, but it's still a fun song)
3. Ave Maria - Beyonce (...aka Sasha Fierce! And ho-oly shit, she has a set of pipes on her)
4. If You Can Still Hear This Whispering, You Are Dying - deepset (Wow)
5. Low Lovin (Flo Rida & T-Pain vs. Chromeo & Yuksek) - DJ Earworm (Speaking of mash-ups...)

Monday, November 17, 2008

Mash-up: Beyonce vs. Lil' Wayne

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been toying around with the idea of mashing up Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" and Lil' Wayne's Comfortable, but it never went anywhere. Last night, fueled by terrible insomnia, I decided to actually do something about it. I kicked this out in about 3 hours in Audacity, so excuse me if it's a little bit rough. So, here it is for the internet to pick apart.

If you like it, tell your friends, maybe leave a comment. If not, tell your friends anyway, and feel free to leave me a nasty comment telling me as much. Also, if you are so inclined, maybe even give it a Digg?

Enjoy (or not): To The Left (Beyonce vs. Lil' Wayne)- Andy Kissner

Miscellanea

Hello all, hope everyone had a nice weekend. Just a little bit of housekeeping and updates in this post, nothing special.

First off, I'm very excited to announce that I'm going to have another writer on board here at the lost art of found sound. He's a good friend of mine named Chris Sanders, and he's a very talented writer. He should be starting in early December, and look for a post every week or so.

And, as you may know, last week was the first edition of my roommate's and my radio show "The Insomniac Dance Party" on WCDB in Albany. I had posted a setlist along with a podcast, which, as you may have noticed, is no longer up. This wasn't my doing - I officially got my first DMCA notification, and the content was removed. I guess the upside of that is it means that enough people read my blog that The Powers That Be took notice. I will be posting this week's episode as a podcast, but if that gets taken down, then I'll just call it quits on that front.

Last, but not least, tomorrow is November 18th, which means Beyonce will officially become....Sasha Fierce. Can't. Fucking. Wait.

Hope everybody has a nice week, and stick around - there's exciting things a-happenin'.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Band of the Week: Definition


I'm thinking that Sunday should be the official day for "Band Of The Week", since the last couple weeks it's gotten delayed until today anyway....meh, whatevs. Enjoy!

***
band of the week #3: Definition (myspace, last.fm)

Instrumental rap, electronica, entertaining - call it what you want, but Definition is one thing for sure, and that's extremely enjoyable. Based out of Tuscon, Arizona, Definition is the brainchild of Scott McGowan. He came out with an EP in late 2007 (In The Company Of Owls), and is expected to release a follow up full-length Sounds Anonymous sometime in the spring.

This isn't hardcore dance music - not at all - but it's chill enough to zone out to and yet captivating to the extent that you'd never want to.

For a good time, call Definition (or just add them on MySpace - after all, it's the twenty first century!)

Friday, November 14, 2008

The Slow Life - Be Not Afraid

2008

5/10

The Slow Life compose sensible, emotional, generic post-rock. And like many other contemporary bands of the genre, most of this mediocrity is due not to a lack of musical talent, but to their succumbing to the temptation to incorporate stagnant, boring vocals...(Read more at The Silent Ballet)

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Jaguar Love - Take Me To The Sea

2008
Matador
Buy (Amazon.com)

8.5/10

The Blood Brothers, Neon Blonde and now Jaguar Love: fortune doesn't smile on Johnny Whitney and Cody Votolato, it beams. Auteurs of art punk, they have cemented a reputation, both inside and out of their native Portland music scene, for making music which, for lack of a better phrase, simply fucking destroys. Suffice it to say, when they play, people listen.

After the Blood Brothers announced that their hiatus was a permanent one those many months ago, nobody was worried that the post-hardcore poster boys would quit making music - it was more a concern of what kind, and when. This summer's immensely powerful EP answered the question to a certain extent, and Jaguar Love's full-length debut Take Me To The Sea punctuates that response with an emphatic period. To borrow from the terminology of the National Enquirer, it is nothing short of a romp, traipsing across diverse and eclectic stylistic and acoustic locales and leaving no stone unturned. Soul, blues, lounge, punk, and electroclash are all given their fifteen minutes. If Young Machetes was the Pacific Northwest's Black Market Clash, then Take Me To The Sea is its Sandinista! (all that's missing is a faux-gospel Tim Curry cameo).

Anybody who has been keeping tabs on the Blood Brothers since the release of Burn, Piano Island, Burn! will probably find Take Me To The Sea a natural extension of that sound, a sort of Blood Brothers after the Blood Brothers. The lyrical content is still surrealistically macabre, and the chorus of "Bonetrees and a Broken Heart" is a dead ringer for Piano Island closer "The Shame". That being said, you're not going to be confusing this with Crimes anytime soon. For one, Whitney's blood-curdling squeals have lost their vocal counterpoint in the jaded, Strummer-esque snarl of Jordan Blilie. Another change is the lack of sudden, dynamic tempo-shifts as heard on "USA Nails"; generally speaking, Jaguar Love finds a speed and sticks with it. That isn't to say that the songs are monochromatic, not at all. The fast-paced jog on "Highways Of Gold" is juxtaposed by the leisurely saunter of "Georgia" (from whence the album derives its title), and for every "Antoine and Birdskull" sprint, there is a "My Organ Sounds Like..." stroll. Take Me To The Sea is "Peacock Skeleton With Crooked Feathers" on a macrocosmic scale: schizophrenic, energetic, unpredictable.

The only detriment to the album is something which plagued the Blood Brothers as well (at least ever since Johnny Whitney discovered the upper registers of the human vocal range), and that is the fact that his bleating whine can be highly off-putting to many listeners. An avid fan of the falsetto myself, this has never been a problem for me. But without Blilie's low-pitch response, Whitney's call can sometimes grow monotonous. To those weaned on the chaotic interplay of numbers like "Rats and Rats and Rats For Candy", his performance may feel a bit lopsided, and this is something that can only go away with time.

Nevertheless, Jaguar Love have handed in a performance that merits serious consideration. Final answer, Regis, Take Me To The Sea is one of the best albums released in 2008.


Key Tracks:
Bats Over The Pacific Ocean
Georgia
Highways of Gold
My Organ Sounds Like...


Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Tonight's the night!

In about 9 hours my radio show makes its premiere! Yay, I can't wait. I'm going to try and record it and post it as a podcast, but who knows how that'll work out. At the very least, I'll post a setlist with sendspace links on it, but hopefully I can record the whole thing, that way you get to hear my bubbling color commentary as well!

In case you didn't know, the show is from 4 til 7 AM Eastern time, and is on WCDB FM in Albany, NY (90.9). The website is here, and there are links at the top of the page for streaming (both high speed and dial-up friendly). Feel free to check it out, it's going to be electronic music on a combination of vinyl and CD, and it'll be hosted by me and my roommate Mike.

Happy listening!

Songs of the week: 11/11/08

11/11. I'm sure that date has some significance beyond being my grandmother's birthday. Anybody? Anybody? No? Guess not.

***
songs of the week #10

1. Devil Stuff - Evil Nine (Killing cats and listening to Black Sabbath - good times!)
2. Bats Over The Pacific Ocean - Jaguar Love (Hot damn, this is my fucking jam)
3. American Terrorist - Lupe Fiasco (Because it's been so long since I posted any Lupe)
4. Stone Wall Stone Fence - Gregory and the Hawk (One of the best songs off of last month's Moenie and Kitchi)
5. Blood On Our Hands (Justice Remix) - Death From Above 1979 (Old news)

Just in case you forgot...

Just in case you missed the memo, in about 24 hours or so, my radio show premieres on WCDB FM in Albany. I am joined by my roommate, Mike, and the format is electronic. Our time slot is pretty shitty (4 - 7AM EST), but if you're up (or live beyond the Eastern Seaboard of the United States), then be sure to give it a listen.

Happy Veteran's Day!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Gregory and the Hawk - Moenie and Kitchi

2008
FatCat Records
Buy (Amazon.com)

7/10

"I want to do what pleases me, but I can't."

Meredith Godreau doesn't want it to be over. She wants to remember the good times, she wants to look at your presents and your letters and maybe make things right.

But she can't. She's a mess, really, she's all over the place. Wistful, depressed, valedictory, and mournful, she runs the emotional gamut. Alongside this exploration of pathos is a tour of the complete sonic spectrum as Gregory and the Hawk jump from soft to loud like never before, making Moenie and Kitchi her most versatile (and accomplished) release to date.

Listening to "Voice Like A Bell", I can't help but think of Camera Obscura's "Country Mile". It's a bit faster, but the vocal affectations and inflections are strikingly similar. This is a good thing - Let's Get Out Of This Country was the best thing to come out of Scotland since If You're Feeling Sinister. Most of the tracks are in this vein, superficially carefree and brimming with whimsy. Look a bit closer, though, and you'll find nothing less than heartbreak.

Not all of the songs fall into this category, however. Heard on "Stone Wall Stone Fence" is the same tense brooding that there was on Gregory and the Hawk's early demos. Luckily, many of the problems which beset these older numbers are thankfully absent this time around. Where before the music would sit on a few sinister minor chords and rest on its laurels, here there is a legitimate release, a percussive outburst that is cathartic and captivating. Instead of just being "there", the song actually feels like it's building towards an end, which is refreshing.

"Ghost" represents the most radical departure in Godreau's young career, as it is more amped up than anything previously released. The crowded atmosphere draws comparisons to Broken Social Scene, while the introspective and melancholic imagery makes one think of Stars, another Arts & Crafts outfit. Lyrically speaking, the symbolic use of a bee's sting for a kiss is a bit obvious, but it is valid nonetheless; when remembering your ex-lover, it's hard not to let the harsh truth intrude on the warmth and nostalgia.

There are still a few pitfalls, chief among them being the ease with which the listener loses focus. Moenie and Kitchi has a tendency to fade into the background - a real shame, because that means these achingly beautiful sounds might go unnoticed.

Meredith Godreau wants you back, but please, I'm begging you, don't take her. If she gets what she wants - if she does what pleases her - then what will she write about?

If she gets what she wants, then what will I listen to?


Key Tracks:
Oats We Sow
Stone Wall Stone Fence
Voice Like A Bell

Lost Art Radio?

Just in case reading my ramblings and musings isn't enough, the lost art of found sound has made the leap to radio. My roommate and I just got a show on WCDB FM, my college's radio station. We're on during a pretty crazy timeslot (Wednesday mornings from 4 - 7AM), and the format of the show is electronic music.

If you're at all interested, there's a free online stream here (or, for dial-up, click here). Or, if you happen to live in the greater Albany, NY area, then just tune into to 90.9FM on your good old fashioned radio.

Hope everybody has a nice week, and wish me luck!

Saturday, November 08, 2008

Band of the week: Attention Thieves

Sorry this week's installment was a few days late, but i'm still trying to figure out which day is optimal for posting this feature. I've also been hella busy reviewing (mostly) mediocre albums for that other website, so my time's been quite in demand.

Better late than never, though.

***
band of the week #2: attention thieves (myspace)

This week's band comes at you from across the pond: Attention Thieves are a currently unsigned indie (redundancy alert!) from the UK that make catchy alternative rock music. How generic sounding. My bad.

They're really fun though, trust me. There's intricate guitar work, charmingly British vocals, and a steady rhythm section that can induce toe-tapping in the most conservative of voters.

Plus, they just posted a new song yesterday! So give them a listen, before they get scooped up by some major label, that way you can say you knew them when.

Friday, November 07, 2008

Richard Skelton - Marking Time



2008
Preservation Records

8/10

Some writers less prone to gushing might be inclined to characterize this as an accomplished debut and leave it at that. But to hear Marking Time, the first album Skelton has released under his own name, is an experience deserving of so much more, and to speak of it as merely "accomplished" would be an insult....(Read more at The Silent Ballet)

Thursday, November 06, 2008

HOWTO: Soulja Boy Bird Walk Dance

Courtesy of my good friend Chris Sanders, it's an instructional video on how to do the "Bird Walk", the most arrhythmically obnoxious "dance" since last year's "Crank Dat".

This apparently came from an instructional DVD, which implies that somebody out there would be willing to shell out $14.95 just to be the coolest kid at their 8th grade dance. Oooooh awesome! But why bother spending all of your lunch money on a fancy DVD when you can just YouTube it?

Word

***




Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Songs of the week: 11/4/08

Election day...woo. I'm so glad I moved from the swing state of Florida to good old blue New York, where neither candidate has inundated me with, well, much of anything. Regardless, I'm just excited to vote - I now have the right to bitch when things don't go my way!

Here's some fun music to help you celebrate your party's victory or, should your hopeful lose, to facilitate the dancing away of all your cares/worries/woes.

Peace.

***
songs of the week #9

1. Planisphere (Final) - Justice
2. Purgatory School - The Van Allen Belt (Contender, alongside This Is My Suitcase for "Coolest Band You've Never Heard Of")
3. Supernaut - 1000 Homo DJs (I usually avoid all things Trent Reznor like the plague, but 1. This is a fun song and 2. It's debatable whether he's even on this vesion, so I think I'm in the clear)
4. Paranoid Android (Radiohead Cover) - El Ten Eleven (Say what you will, but I personally think this is a mad good cover)
5. Shore - Richard Skelton (Just in case you need to recover, this is a pretty chill track - a breather of sorts. If you've never heard of Richard Skelton before, you have to check him out, he's phenomenal! My review of his debut album should be up on The Silent Ballet come Friday)


Monday, November 03, 2008

Nonstop Everything

Last Friday, the inaugural edition of Band of the Week featured a very talented band called The Van Allen Belt(myspace). Today, while browsing the same horrid site, I found a very interesting electronic side-project of The Van Allen Belt that goes by the name of Nonstop Everything. When I heard the music, it became quite clear why this is their nom de guerre: everything is happening all of the time. Fusing bop and electronica as if Jaga Jazzist were on ecstasy, Nonstop Everything have some interesting ideas.

For a good time, dial up the songs "Brazicalia Rebellion" and "Thistledown" on their MySpace.

Sunday, November 02, 2008

Ratatat - LP3

2008
XL Recordings
Buy (Amazon.com)

6/10

Lacking the immediacy of 9 Beats and packing more punch than Classics, this summer's LP3 finds itself in a limbo of sorts: individually accomplished but not quite out of the shadow of prior successes.

Ratatat has always been about fun, electronic music that carves itself into a nook between post-rock and dance, and tracks like "Falcon Jab" embody that attitude with gusto. At the same time, the record shows a more forward-thinking mindset, and the songs often push the envelope stylistically. The result is a mixed bag, with both extremes represented: the boring and the avant garde. "Flynn" finds the band working with a blandly minimalist palette, the high register melodic line and sparse accompaniment lacking any fleshed out bass or definitive beat. A good chunk of "Imperials" is centered around the whooshing and slurping of water, and much of "Bird Priest" lies only a few bits away from the Pokemon Red soundtrack.

While the same could be said of closer "Black Heroes", this song's saving grace lies in the way each sonic layer slowly reveals itself to keep the listener glued. And for a glimpse at what most likely lies ahead for the Brooklyn duo, look no further than "Mirando". It combines off-beat folky percussion with metallic synth and an incredibly infectious beat to seize attentions for a four-minute aural thrill ride.

Old fans need not worry though, as there are plenty of vintage Ratatat moments. Relics like "Mumtaz Khan", "Shempi", or the aforementioned "Falcon Jab" could all easily pass for cuts from the self-titled sessions. And therein lies the problem: compared to these throwbacks, the more novel moments often fail to captivate to the same degree. Ratatat can't tell if they're coming or going - they're torn between the musicians they were and the musicians they want to be, unable to commit one way or the other.

LP3 finds a band in transition - at a rest stop, per se. Here's hoping LP4 finds them at their destination.


Key Tracks:
Falcon Jab
Mirando
Black Heroes


Saturday, November 01, 2008

Super Scene Halloween!

REP YOUR LOCAL MUSIC SCENE! THEY'RE NOT CONCERTS, THEY'RE SHOWS. I'M SO FUCKING HARDCORE.

For Halloween, I decided to rep my scene, be mad hardcore, and cop a bandana and fitted - that is to say, I dressed up like a scene kid...and to celebrate, here's some songs to set the mood for wrecking shit...Hope that everybody had fun last night and stayed safe!

***


1. We Better Learn To Hotwire A Uterus - The Fall Of Troy
2. Like A Cat - The Number 12 Looks Like You
3. Baby, You Wouldn't Last A Minute On The Creek - Chiodos
4. The Robot With Human Hair Pt. II - Dance Gavin Dance
5. Ships At Distance - Oceana