BLK JKS

You’ve heard of Brooklyn bands copping their sound from African music, but BLK JKS is a band from Johannesburg, South Africa that are clearly influenced by US indie rock. The band connected with the American audience earlier this year when they played SXSW and have since signed to indie label, Secretly Canadian. Their EP Mystery has been very well received and they are preparing to release their debut After Robots this month. The end result is a sound that is mixes tight, rhythmic instrumentation with complex structure and vast soundscapes.

No song better captures the joyous, overwhelming sound that the band produces then their debut album’s first single “Molalatladi”. The music is an explosion of harmonic vocal chanting, blues-rock guitar, dynamic horns, and tribal drumming. The face-melting guitar solo that takes up much of the latter half of the song is one of the most searing, intense pieces of music that I’ve heard this year. Also noteworthy is the trippy, TV on the Radio-like track from the EP, “Lakeside”, which provides a more melodic spin on their sound before spiraling out of control with a furious head-spinning climax.

MP3 Molalatladi
MP3 Lakeside

BLK JKS are playing Pygmalion Festival this year and if there live show is anything like the record, I imagine they’ll be the talk of the town.

The Flaming Lips – Live @ Pitchfork

If ever you need a reminder of the life-affirming power of a great concert, go see The Flaming Lips.  If you know anything about Oklahoma psych-pop legends, you know they put on one of the most crazy, visually spectacular, musically overwhelming live shows of any band out there.  This performance was particularly exciting because the band was playing as a part of Pitchfork’s “Write The Night”, where the fans chose the setlist.  Wayne Conyne made it pretty clear from the get-go though, that the setlist votes wer basically the same list of songs they play every night anyway (heavy on classics, Yoshimi songs). The band did deviate quite a bit from the list playing by some obscure tracks like “Enthusiasm for Life Defeats Internal Existential Fear” and playing a few songs from their upcoming album, Embryonic.

The visual aspect of the show was just as I remembered it, absolutely spectacular, whether it was Coyne surfing over the crowd inside his giant space bubble hamster ball during “Race For The Prize”, the two huge cannons that shot TONS of confetti into the crowd, or the dozens of oversized balloons that were projected from the stage and bounced around during the set’s entirety.  The visual extravanganza is an absolute joy to watch and the band provides the perfect soundtrack to go along with the fantastic visuals. I think many fans (including myself) would have loved to hear more from The Soft Bulletin and anything from Clouds Taste Metallic, but it’s hard to argue with amazing songs like “Fight Test”, “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, Pt. 1”, and “She Don’t Use Jelly”.

The setlist ended with the number one requested song (and recently named “official rock song of Oklahoma“), “Do You Realize”. Predictable as the selection was, the song really is one of the most beautiful anthems of our generation and I couldn’t imagine any other song ending the night.  You can not deny the awesomeness of thousands of people singing along to the song’s euphoric, optimistic lyrics. Being in that moment is one of the best experiences I’ve had at a concert and it closed out the entire festival on the highest note possible. I could spend hours describing the overwhelming, jubilant experience of a Flaming Lips show, but nothing compares to actually witnessing it. If you ever get the chance, see the band live, I can guarantee that you’ll never forget it.

MP3 Race For The Prize (Remix)
MP3 Do You Realize??

Follow the jump for more Flaming Lips pictures. Click here to see the full set.

Music Go Music

One of the records I’m looking forward to in the coming months is Music Go Music‘s Expressions. The band has popped up on blogs here and there with a new song, and technically the album is already available as a series of 12″ singles, but I still don’t feel like people are excited enough. Maybe that’s because the music is so damn infectious that it is just unacceptable for people not to be jumping on their beds and dancing like idiots to these straight up jams.

Music Go Music have already earned more than a few comparisons to groups like ABBA* and ELO, and it’s not hard to understand why. They sound exactly like those bands. Music Go Music don’t just rip off their predecessors though, they wrestle them all together and emerge with something similar but wholly their own. It’s clear they have a deep appreciation for the styles they trade in, but don’t want to be limited by them. That attitude is evidenced on “Warm in the Shadows,” a nearly 10-minute disco/prog workout, complete with fuzzed-out guitar solo. It’s more pop-y than ELO, dirtier than ABBA, and totally great.

But maybe I’m reading too much into this. All of the talk about influences and intentions ignores the fact that Music Go Music are just plain fun. It’s not hard to imagine Olivia Newton John rollerskating along to the larger-than-life “Light of Love.” It’s pop music in the truest sense of the word; you can practically see the day-glo bubbles coming out of the speakers. My only complaint is that these songs may just be too much, and an album full of them might wear pretty easily. But for right now, I’m content to just blast Music Go Music with a big, stupid grin on my face.

Also: GvB premiered the “Just Me” video earlier today. It’s good.

MP3 Music Go Music – Warm in the Shadows
MP3 Music Go Music – Light of Love

*Can we all stop pretending we don’t like ABBA and just embrace them as the perfect pop behemoth they were? Go listen to “Gimmie! Gimmie! Gimmie (A Man After Midnight).”

Grand Hallway

I should take an entry or two to address how absolutely thick the music scene is here in the Northwest. Whether it’s an annual festival like, Sasquatch, Bumbershoot, or even the Capitol Hill Block Party, the centrality of the city alone continues to make Seattle a stop on countless tours… and while the web of venues within these hills seems to attract musicians from across the globe, we’ve got a plethora of local artists who truly give our city character.

Which brings me to the subject of, Grand Hallway, an eight-piece orchestral pop-band, founded in 2005 by Tomo Nakayama, former member of Asahi, and Jen Wood. After releasing their debut album, Yes Is The Answer, in 2007 on Sideout Records (home to Bright Eyes, Cursive, and Nada Surf), the band toured the West Coast and Japan with Arthur Yu, and Japanese singer/songwriter, Shugo Tokumaru. Their travels really seemed to inspire the sound of their EP, We Flew Ephemera, in 2008.

The band lost two members shortly after (bassist Erik Numann and drummer Bob Roberts), but by the faith of their success, were blessed with three more, Joel Harmon, Kevin Large, and multi-instrumentalist Chris Zasche. They quickly returned to the studio to produce their sophomore album, Promenade: an absolute gem. This masterpiece, a little more dramatic than its precedent, is filled with glorifying build-ups that stimulate the mind with another story-told; a tainted novel tempered by delicate orchestration, perhaps a child of Beirut. Tomo’s vocals momentarily strike that of Matthew Hales (Aqualung), while in others, latch along to the harmonies in a fashion that I can only recall to The Beatles – but if not that, everything else blinds in comparison. Each track starts off troubled and ends completely celebrated, I can almost taste relief as they near the last chorus. Grand Hallway turns their audience into a therapist of sorts, being graceful in ways that can only be understood by a listening ear and open heart.

MP3 Elinor with The Golden Hair (Tsukimi)
MP3 Raindrops (Matsuri)

M83 – Live @ PItchfork

While I’m a fan of Saturdays=Youth, I’m not as familiar with the M83‘s earlier albums so I was taken a bit by surprise when their live show was more of a dance rave than the 80’s-inspired guitar-heavy shoegaze of which I was accustomed. Although this made the brilliance of songs like “Graveyard Girl” and “Kim & Jessie” lose something in translation, their prior work which consisted of more club-friendly dance tracks, sounded fantastic and it was obvious that the crowd was enamored the party-feel of the set. If anything, the performance made me want to pick up some early M83 albums. Any suggestions where to start?

MP3 We Own The Sky

Follow the jump for more M83 pictures. Click here to see the full set.

Four years and counting…

My first post ever was on August 21, 2005, which was four years from today. I guess you could say this is my blogiversary (or my blograduation from Blog High). Anyway, in the spirit of wistful remembrance, I have a few images of what the site looked like in it’s different iterations. For example, the shot above is the first header I used (it only lasted about two weeks thankfully).

I’ll warn you now, a lot of these are not pretty, but hopefully you’ve all forgiven me for some of the more crappy designs I’ve had over the years. The screenshots (or at least most of them) come courtesy of The Wayback Machine. I’d like to thank all the readers out there for sticking with me for these last four years. It’s been a crazy ride, but I hope you’ve discovered some music you like along the way and I’m looking forward to many more years!

Circa August 2005 (musicforants.blogspot.com)

MP3 Voxtrot – The Start of Something

Circa January 2006

MP3 The Lodger – The Good Old Days

Circa November 2006 (moved to musicforants.com)

MP3 Jeremy Enigk – A New Beginning

Circa September 2007

MP3 The Beatles – Getting Better

Circa November 2008 (Current)

MP3 Elliott Smith – Pretty (Ugly Before)

Japandroids – Live @ Pitchfork

I didn’t know too much about Japandroids going into the show but from what I had heard about the live incarnation of the Canadian garage rock duo they were a must-see act. What I had heard though, in no way prepared me for the face-melting awesomeness that these two guys provided.  Their set-up was as simple as can be: one dude on guitar, one on drums, both sang, but I can not overstate how much they tore the place the hell up.

The guys spent very little time chatting (which they jokingly apologized for saying “our banter is usually hilarious”) and focused on rocketing through the songs at a relentless pace.  Their high-octane, turned-up-to-11, fuzzy rock anthems like “Young Hearts Spark Fire” and “The Boys Are Back In Town” sounded amazing and their ridiculously energetic performance had me grinning like an idiot the entire time.

For Brian King, the guitarist, the show consisting of leaping from the guitar onto the drum kit multiple times per song and rocking out in front of a big fan that blew his hair all around. David Prowse, the drummer, seemed like he was pushing himself to see how fast and loud he could make the drums sound all while screaming harmonies into the mic (he joked at one point “this is my best Phil Collins impression”).

I’ve heard Japandroids say that they are a “a two piece band trying to sound like a five piece band” and they definitely backed that statement up with the massive wall-of-sound that they produced that Sunday afternoon. Easily one of the most explosive and captivating sets I’ve seen, not just at Pitchfork Festival, but all year.

MP3 Young Hearts Spark Fire

Follow the jump for more Japandroids pictures. Click here to see the full set.

Track Reviews: Headlights, Kings of Convenience, Raveonettes

MP3 Headlights – Get Going

Headlights continue to mix dream pop with summery folk with their leadoff single for their third LP, Wildlife. The band achieve a very light, organic sound on “Get Going”, building the track over a blanket of acoustic guitars and wistful humming. Tristan sings lead on this track and continues to sound more and more like Elliot Smith while Erin provides breathy harmonies during the chorus. The highlight of the song for me is the lead guitar, which switches from bouncy and playful at the beginning to a more feedback-heavy sound midway that harks back to the bands earlier shoegazy music.

MP3 Kings of Convenience – Mrs Cold

Kings of Convenience quickly became one of my favorite bands in 2005 when the duo released the fantastic Riot On an Empty Street and then quickly they disappeared into obscurity afterwards.  Sure Erlend Oye had his electronica solo projects, but none compared in my mind to the eclectic collection of gorgeous, introspective neo-folk that KoC provided.  My wish for a new album is finally coming true this year with Declaration of Dependence. The first single is “Mrs. Cold” and it has a very relaxed, almost lounge-like groove, with Erlend singing lead over a stylish guitar line and dashes of violin with Erik adding his subtle harmonies throughout. It’s an alarmingly pretty song and one that definitely bodes well for the rest of album.

MP3 Raveonettes – Suicide

Last year, Raveonettes released Lust Lust Lust, their most melodic and hazy album yet. “Suicide” continues in that direction with a bit of a darker edge. The chorus is one of the most poppy and explosive that the band has made and the song, in general, seems more upbeat while still retaining that dreamy, moody vibe. Sharin’s reverb-drenched vocals are a highlight, as always. The track certainly raises my interest level for In and Out of Control which drops in October.

Grizzly Bear- Live @ Pitchfork

Brooklyn quartet Grizzly Bear’s music has been labeled everything from “pastoral” to “fussy” to “precious”, and I can’t say the group was undeserving of any of these qualifiers after witnessing their Sunday evening set this year at Pitchfork Festival. As with The National, Grizzly Bear got an upgrade in both set time and attendance relative to the last time they played this particular fest, mostly due to the slow build of internet hype that’s been gently whirring about these neo-folksters since the release of their expansive and (at times) downright proggy 2006 album Yellow House.

As beautiful and harmonic as most of their recorded work is, and as surprisingly bombastic as their 2007 set was, I still had trouble quelling some doubts about the band as I jockeyed for position amongst the masses: Would the ever-so-subtle flourishes of reverb-drenched flutes and oboes get lost in the already overstuffed mix of vocal harmonies and spindly guitar riffs? Would the songs crumble under their own weight without the rigorous studio sheen their recorded counterparts can thank for propping them up during their most anal-retentive moments? More importantly, would my urge to sit down and give my aching back a rest be overpowered by the desire to rock out to music this baroque and, well, wimpy?

I wish there was an easy answer for this matter, but just like the Grizz’ themselves, it’s not that simple. From the ominous piano plunking that chases the bridge away from the second chorus right down to the acoustic guitar breakdown that guitarist Daniel Rossen clearly aped from 70’s smoothcore powerhouse America, opener “Southern Point” sounded right on in terms of fidelity to the version on wax. Little Brother”, on the other hand, was the reworked arena-friendly rendition from the groups 2007 stopgap EP Friend, as opposed to its original incarnation as a strummy acoustic number that anchored the first half of Yellow House. And thank god for that- the updated version is so ripe with stop/start dynamics and hooks that I even caught grey-haired dude in a Black Flag t-shirt banging his head a mere ten feet away.

And then everything went to shit. At some point during “Little Brother”, Rossen shot the stinkeye over to the sound booth at stage left for what was clearly an egregious technical flaw with the sound system that may as well have been an inside joke between himself and the now-panicking soundguy he clearly wanted to strangle. It shortly seemed as if Rossen realized he had to quickly get back to his job of, ya know, playing music for thousands of adoring fans that paid good money to see him, but Rossen persisted by flitting back and forth between the sound booth to resolve what ended up being a ground loop in the groups monitors. A faint “bzzzzzzzzzzz” seems like the kind of thing most other bands on the bill would’ve played through, but when you make chamber music that’s equally adored by librarians and Williamsburg’s trust-fundiest elite, it can never be that easy.

After an onstage powwow that ended in what looked like a collective “fuck it, dude” shrug, the show went on. Grizzly Bear was finally able to find their bearings with “Ready, Able”, a track from Veckatimest replete with woozy organs and pulsing bass notes that best represents the groups ability to lead you on with as little as possible until everything comes together in a cataclysm of sprawling harmony. The thundering staccato of “We Live Together” further exemplified this skill, while “Fix It”, another track from singer Ed Droste’s lo-fi bedroom effort Horn of Plenty, blossomed from a spare and mysterious beat-driven vehicle for Droste’s dour tenor to one of the most captivating melodies of the evening.

For all of their bloated sonics and prissy perfectionism, the feeling I got after witnessing such a flawed yet ambitious and outsized set from Grizzly Bear was still one of overwhelming satisfaction. While the gestalt of indie rock continues to lean on the fuzzed out nihilism and damaged hooks of lo-fi groups like Wavves and No Age, it’s good to know that musically as shamelessly hi-fi as Grizzly Bear still has its place, even if that place may be on a shelf next to your dad’s Steely Dan and ELO records.

MP3 Two Weeks
MP3 Ready, Able

Live Review by Pete Cottell. Follow Pete on Twitter.

Follow the jump for more Grizzly Bear pictures. Click here to see the full set.

These Long Roads (Or Tracks)

Roma Termini (Train Station) – Lacio, Italy

As some of you may know, I spent the last month with my girl friend traveling to every Piazza of Italy. And as some of you might know, that kind of traveling involves bus/train rides that map-out hours-long. And as some of you might know–OK, I’ll stop with the tomfoolery and get to the point. I decided to break away from the original format and bridge the gaps between those brighter moments of my iPod’s shuffle-mode, particularly during these lengthy commutes.

This is a mix of songs that I feel, created sense of familiarity for me within a completely foreign country. The hollowing acoustics and choir-like vocals, eased every anxiety I faced moving from one city to the next – if not, cradled me fast asleep (something I often gauge perfect “traveling music” with). It could easily be the most English I’ve heard in one sitting… but that’s relative. Enjoy!

MP3 White Antelope – Silver Dagger
MP3 J. Tillman – Vessels
MP3 Peter Broderick – Below It
MP3 Rue Royale – These Long Roads
MP3 M. Ward – Undertaker
MP3 Tobias Hellkvist – Step Aside (Efterklang Cover)
MP3 Iron & Wine – Love Vigilantes (New Order Cover)
MP3 Winterpills – Weary Heart
MP3 Wye Oak – Regret
MP3 Great Lake Swimmers – Merge, A Vessel, A Harbour
MP3 The Decemberists – Of Angels and Angles
MP3 The Wooden Birds – Believe In Love
MP3 The Last Shadow Puppets – The Time Has Come Again

Download complete mix here: zShare (63.0 MB)