Album Review: WZRD: WZRD (2012)

By Scott Jeffrey

Kid Cudi and Dot Da Genius collaborated to form WZRD.  In their debut album these lonely stoners decide to throw caution to the wind and make basically a rock record. Sampling from classics and creating some sweet jams is what WZRD does best, starting off spring with a great record.

It’s so hard to classify this album, it’s not quite a rock and roll album, or a hip hop album or even an electronic album. But it is something that is powerful that much is for certain.

The single Teleport 2 me, Jamie is sampled from a track from the drive soundtrack by the band Desire called Under Your Spell. WZRD takes this theme and sort of builds off of it, telling a tale of absolute lustful desire and how hard distance can be when put between a loved one. I loved the track on the Drive soundtrack and this version and its sampling seems to be even better still.

The opening Track The Arrival is an instrumental that sounds very similar to something Trent Reznor might throw onto an album. If you were expecting to pick up a hip hop album, this is your first indication that WZRD is a very different entity indeed.

Brake is somewhat similar in the louder pounding drums which sound borderline industrial rock. There is a weird sort of alien synth that weaves its way in and out of a heavy guitar fading in and out.

Dr. Pill is probably one of the most dance friendly tracks on the album. It’s a dark song but the chorus is very catchy and has Cudi singing in almost a punk style, and being answered by harmonizing voices. A deep bass synth and a driving kick work with a maniacal synth to build almost a drugged up club punk vibe in this track. It is like just about every other song on this album, hard to get out of your head.

There is also a very unexpected Leadbelly cover on this album. WZRD takes a crack at Where Did you Sleep Last Night and does it justice close to as well as Nirvana unplugged. This is high praise, but it really is a great cover. For the most part I thought this song untouchable but somehow listening to this the first time gave me chills.

This is a great album, I was really not sure what to expect but what I ended up with really stuck with me. Where WZRD may not find a ton of radio play because its genre ambiguity, it will receive a lot of plays from me. I would fill in the blanks and simply call these gentleman WIZARDS.

10/10

Take Away Thoughts: The very first perfect score I have ever given. The reason for this, I have other tracks to review and other music I could listen to but I can’t. Even the new shins album has been placed on the backburner because I can’t stop listening to WZRD. Pick this up, it comes highly recommended. 

Music Review: The Shins: Port Of Morrow (2012)

By Scott Jeffrey

“Here take a listen to this, it will change your life.” This is the moment in Garden State whereby many were introduced to The Shins. Now it has been a good many years since that film, and The Shins are still at it, albeit  at a careful pace. Port of Morrow is the first release from The Shins in 5 years. It has got a back to basic sound that rings of Chutes Too Narrow, and the radio appeal of a few really great singles. This thing could also “Change Lives”.

September is the single that I first heard off of this album. It has got a sound that I associate completely with The Shins with James Mercer’s voice really being the main instrument. The mixing on this track is fantastic, it’s got a great hopalong chorus and a style of chord progression that reminds me quite a bit of the Broken Bells album, mercer’s side project with Danger Mouse.

Simple Song, has been getting some quality radio play even on some stations that would typically play some harder stuff. This song has a way of crossing genres, because of the harder sounding guitars. I would imagine this would absolutely rock an arena show or outdoor venue that The Shins played (Such as the one coming up this summer where they are supporting The Black Keys in Toronto).

The opening track is surprising; it sounds like a typical Shins acoustic number but is buried in a deep fuzz and has strange synth and a fairly loud bass line. This really kicks the album into an open. It is certainly something a bit different from the shins and it shows they’ve really worked hard to make this album a standout, and to have something for just about everyone on it.

40 Mark Strasse, is a great pop song, with a strange ghostly whistling syth that pops up in the bridge. The harmonies are great and I can’t help but just call this a toe tapper.

I could probably dissect each song, but I would recommend just taking a listen to this album, It is well worth your time.

Honestly it’s rare that I hear an indie rock/pop album that is this polished. The mixing is just spectacular and James Mercer sounds like an angel. Each song is well crafted both lyrically and musically. So many bands just seem to poot out material, and quite often with albums that are spaced 5 years apart you kind of expect to be disappointed. With Port Of Morrow, I simply cannot feel disappointed in the least. The Shins are back and they are ready to change lives again.

9/10

Take Away thought: Just listen to it through itunes here, it may be another 5 years before they make more.  The album is available for purchase March 20^th!

Album Review: Plants and Animals: The End of That (2012)

By Scott Jeffrey

The Montréal-based band Plants and Animals, have come out with another sexy rock LP, this one entitled The End of That. These guys fall somewhere between a dirty rock jam band and indie rock champions. The new disc stacked up as follows:

2010, the opening track is not without its share of epic rock sound. It’s a really tight classic rock sound, heavy guitars that sound like they should be in a zeppelin song, and powerful vocals. It is a great track.

Were some of Plants and Animals, earlier releases featured a more pop sound was trying to come out this one seems to be all rock. It seems like they’ve finally captured their sound on this, their third record.

Song For Love, this has a really deep rock ballad feel to it and sounds partially like David Bowie and the wallflowers in one song. I think a lot of bowie sound comes from the harmony parts. Where is Jacob Dylan qualities shine through during the cleverly constructed verses.

The title track is sort of a roots rock. It’s a happy tune and it just bleeds of summer love and wrangler jeans. A country sounding guitar and female backing vocals give it a folky swoon.

A track that  is getting a lot of talk is Crisis! Most of this I would say comes from the really cool blues riff that keeps on throughout the song. It’s rare to hear a song done in this style. It’s sort of an old spoken word blues. It’s dirty and it’s gritty a truly unique track on this album, and stacked up against some other stuff out there today.

I really enjoyed Lightshow. It reminded me quite a bit of Ben Harper and the relentless seven. Really bluesy guitar bridges, and great vocals on this track. I really like how they mixed it in so many layers as the track builds, you can tell that there is a lot of thought put into each part.

7.5/10

Take away thought: I was unsure of what to expect out of this. I was certainly not expecting such a rock/blues sound. These guys are actually really talented and definitely worth a look.

Album Review: The Mars Volta: Noctourniquet (2012)

By Scott Jeffrey

When I think of The Mars Volta, I think of them as a band which seems to stick with some but be completely lost and hated by others. A good interpretation of their sound is to watch the segment of Get Him to The Greek where Jonah Hill dances along with one of their tracks briefly. The EL Peso Texas,  band draws on many different influences across multiple genres to create psychedelic, experimental, progressive rock operas. Now it’s been three years since Octahedron, and I for one am anxious to see just how weird the band’s new release Noctourniquet, can be.

The Whip Hand, the opening track, starts off on sort of a down note. Where you would expect blasting guitars and really punchy number to start the album, there are barely any to be found. Track uses some really unusual drum patterns and some industrial electronic sounds. Where squealing guitars would normally lie, a synthesizer drones.

Dyslexicon carries more of the older Mars Volta sound. It doesn’t really seem to rock too hard until near the end of the song but it does sound closer to the older stuff and some of the opening tracks throwing away a lot of the electronic sounds for actual guitars.

Empty Vessels Make The Loudest Sound is a ballad of sorts. Starting with a very traditional style and then trading back and forth with the maniacal electronic mess during the choruses.

Molochwalker is probably the closest thing to the old Mars Volta sound that is on this album. With the wicked fast drum line, heavily distorted guitars, and squealing vocals. I would expect this to be guaranteed radio single. It’s catchy and the breakdown is pure and classic, bad ass psychedelic rock.

Vedamalady uses a classical guitar and a synth that sounds like it belongs in a haunted house And it’s not particularly where did all. It’s got a fairly regular chord progression, and the drum line doesn’t go all crazy. It’s basically just a slow rock tune and a catchy one at that. All in all a song like this is quite unexpected on a Mars Volta album.

5.5/10

Take away thought: Although a few songs impressed me, I really like the sound of the crazy drums and crazy guitars and crazy vocals that the Mars Volta usually has. Bringing in a bunch of electronics leaves an interesting new sound but I found it kind of hard to get into. It’s good that they are trying to branch out, but I think it might leave a lot of fans disappointed.

Column: So Maybe I am a Hipster

By Scott Jeffrey

Myself and I’m sure others like myself have probably experienced the issue of what happens when one of your favorite bands of whom you followed since their inception finally “makes it”.

This is not something to be bitter about it simply stands to reason that people have finally followed your advice and taken a shine to that indie band that once was. The unfortunate side effect of this popularity is it becomes exponentially more expensive to share live moment with these performers as it has been in the past.

Now I’m all for a band getting some radio play. I’m all for a band getting enough radio play to kill the single for me before the album has come out. Hell, I’m all for seeing an indie band from my hometown, or even some gents that I grew up with, gracing the cover of Rolling Stone. 

What really sours my apple is when the cost to go and see a show, which I’m sure has improved dramatically from the garage or dive bar in which I saw the band in originally, rises nearly tenfold.

I’ll admit it, I am a thrifty concertgoer it’s rare that I’ll spend over $60 on a ticket unless I know that the band will guarantee results. Even in some cases if I do know I will hum and haw my way out of buying that ticket just to save my pocketbook.

Recently I’ve been placed in this humming and hawing position for a Black Keys and Shins concert. Now I love both bands and I can attest The Black Keys are quite a live spectacle. The problem I’m having is the first time I went to see The Black Keys, I spent a grand total of $20 with a beer included. Now, The Black Keys are touring in large stadiums, they were up for a Grammy this year and they’re actually taking the press a bit seriously for once. Because of these factors and more, the ticket price for the cheap seats has risen to over 4 times what I originally paid.

I will say this, I am guaranteed an excellent concert. An excellent view, maybe not.

Part of me is truly kicking myself for not going to see The Black Keys, at least one more time before the album “Brothers” dropped. This is when ticket prices remained in my “no thinking” zone. I would also like to support both artists. I’ve been a fan of The Shins for quite some time and never had the pleasure of seeing them live.

Something inside of me still takes some gradual convincing to actually go out and purchase the ticket. Not in a been there done that sense, but in a way where I feel that the mysticism I’ve associated with the act, and the special connection that I forged in a small club environment, will be somehow tarnished by seeing them in the 500 section and paying top dollar to do so.

Maybe I’m cheap. Maybe I’m bitter. Or maybe, just maybe, there is a bit of dirty, flannel wearing, Pabst blue ribbon swishing, hipster inside of me, that I just can’t seem to silence. 

Only in the days to follow, as the date of the ticket sale grows closer, we shall see if I can at least quiet it long enough to hit a purchase button. 

Album Review: Say Anything: Anarchy, My Dear (2012)

By Scott Jeffrey

Get your boom box ready John Cusack, Say Anything has a new album out. For those of you who had not heard of this indie-punk band from Los Angeles, one listen of 2006’s Alive With The Glory of Love should bring you back.

Does the new album Anarchy, My Dear, sound as the name would suggest?

Burn A Miracle begins with simple claps, which give way to a classic Say Anything sound. Lead singer Max Bemis comes in bitter as ever. Just the way the guitars sound and the way the "Burn America" message rings throughout the song, it seems to really remind me of Rise Against.

Nights Song shows the band is done some real maturing. It actually has lyrics! Not to say that they didn’t have lyrics before these just seem more well thought out then an average pop song. With the very puzzling open line of: “Stumble onto the pavement; they’re strapped tight to bed, they’ve got a fetish for sheep, but I’ve got Randy Newman in my head. With a blistering guitar solo Say Anything shows are not just a one trick pony.

Admit it was a very good song before so it was fairly excited to see Admit It Again which is sort of a sequel to the track. Both are nearly spoken word and express a general fuck you to everyone. It’s an ongoing critique against hipsters and pop-culture. It’s a pretty amusing listen.

Peace Out is like something completely different than the first half of the album. It starts off with just a mandolin so it sounds like the history lesson mixed with maybe a Dashboard Confessional album. I’m pretty impressed that they used sound like this, it sounds really strange to hear classical acoustic instruments with the voice you’re used to hearing screaming. It shows real growth from the band.

I find it really strange that the album seems to have two different sounds. The first half seems to have very heavy electric guitars and just in angrier sound in general. The second half is sort of the poppy side of Say Anything. You could get this to appeal to a wide audience or play it on many different radio stations, but for me the contrast between going from the track Say Anything to the track Overbiter, is sort of a joke. I enjoy the louder side of Say Anything so I was disappointed by that second half with the exception of, The Steven Hawking.



6/10



Take Away Thought: It has a few good tracks, and shows the band is really growing and evolving. I really like the sound on Peace Out, and the first half of the album I do know that Say Anything has always had some pop songs, they just seemed to hit me the wrong way after such an energetic start to the album.

Album Review: Perfume Genius: Put Your Back N 2 It (2012)

By: Scott Jeffrey

Perfume Genius is a Seattle chamber pop solo act from the mind of Mike Hadreas his second release Put Your Back N 2 It, came out in just this past week and has been generating a fair amount of blogger buzz.

When I gave it a listen I didn’t quite know what to expect. This is the first time I had really listened to Perfume Genius. Hadreas seems to have patented a very unique and emotional sound. The vocals on this album are downplayed a bit, almost with a filtered sound. Where some heavily produced studio albums really have vocals that push to the front of every song, Perfume Genius allows the vocals to echo and become just like another instrument. It’s an older sounding record and I like that.

Awol Marine fades in from nothing. I had to make sure that my speakers were on when I started the album. Twinkling keys seem to hesitate as if they are holding back emotion as well. The instrumentals sound like a cleverly thought out Casiotone For The Painfully Alone arrangement only with Sufjan Stevens singing the lyrics. Synth and a classical piano work with the spacey vocals to make this track sound like the next great sad sack anthem.

Take Me Home reminds me a bit of Dead Man’s Bones. It has older swing style vocals and the lyrics that seem to be plucked right out of a graveyard love story. The guitars added in have a very cool ghostly reverb effect and make this song very spooky sounding.

Dark Parts is an ongoing piano roll and stands as one of the more uplifting songs on the album. While other tracks have a down in the dumps feel this one is a bit more happy. With Celtic sounding drums and a very faint sound of a heavily distorted guitar in the background this track builds and suddenly stops into a beautiful freeze-frame moment where Hadreas comes in clear as day. “I will take the dark part of your heart into my heart.”

The title track Put Your Back N 2 It couldn’t be much more of a confusing "getting it on" song. The main chorus is “Let me be the one to turn you on.” But the delivery of this line is done in a way like someone just died. I don’t know whether to lay someone down by the fire or burst into tears. This is probably one of the least interesting tracks on the album.

Sister Song sounds like it could be in a movie soundtrack. The lyrics are delivered so softly over one of the quietest piano tracks on the album. The whole thing sounds as traditional and familiar as an old folk song. It is the perfect track to finish off this album.



8.5/10

Take Away Thought: I really enjoyed this album. Though I recommend you are prepared for one of the saddest sounding albums to come out in some time. I found a bit of a similar sound among a few of the tracks and the album is fairly short at only 32 minutes. The sound quality and emotion put into this album make it worth a listen. If you are a fan of getting a bit emo with your indie pop, give this one a go.