El El – 40 Watt

Posted Mon May 19, 2014

Rising from the ashes of Heypenny comes the latest from El El. Just as energetic but less frantic and, for me, more digestable. Love the cover art and am now officially curious to hear more.

David Leone – Horn | Harpsichord | Vibraphone + Electronics

Posted Mon May 19, 2014

The biggest complaint about the Nashville music scene when viewed from the outside looking in is that there is a surprising amount of diversity of musical offerings. For those inside the “scene” that’s a huge No Duh statement. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t take a step back and recognize that sometimes there really are astounding creations being made in musical realms that you would never expect.

David Leone’s compositions are longform aural journeys combining different instruments and various manipulations. You could call it ambient. You could call it experimental nu-form classic. You could call it tinkering. But you wouldn’t knee jerk to call it Nashville. It’s a little something different and it’s worth sitting with.

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Posted Fri May 16, 2014

PUJOL - Kludge (AV Club Full Album Preview)

I do not know Daniel Pujol personally. However, from all the reviews and interviews I’ve read he’s always struck me as the intellectual type. A reader. A thinker. A rabbit owner. Not exactly personality traits that I associate with sometimes aggressive rock music. His first record, United States of Being, seemed at odds with these assumptions I’d made about his personality. Maybe that’s unfair because I don’t know anything about him and, let’s be real, personality and musical expression are allowed to be at odds with each other.

Long story short, I went into listening to Kludge a little hesitant. Would it be another high energy rock attack, devoid of the thinking man’s insight that I wanted from it? Well, I can honestly say that it’s very high energy, very catchy and very inspiring to swell a crowd into a frenzy. Fortunately, it also shows, for lack of a better word, a gentler side.

“Manufactured Crisis Control” is as frantic as you could imagine but there’s something to the lyrics that underlie that energy. Self doubt and personal growth are not elements you might expect in this setting. “Spooky Scary” feels downright sweet and “Small World” seems like an anthem for figuring out your place in the world.

This is far more words than I typically pay any album but Pujol fascinates me in some weird way. Kludge is available May 20th and he plays the East Room this weekend – Saturday, May 17th to celebrate it.

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Posted Thu May 15, 2014

Wild Cub – “Thunder Clatter” Live on CONAN

Very happy to see the success Wild Cub has been having as of late but I’ll never get over this drumming + guitar technique.

Self – “Stranger Than Strange”

Posted Wed May 14, 2014

As a former employee of Spongebath Records and current person-in-charge of their official website, I should mention that Self has a new track, “Stranger Than Strange” available on this Autism Awareness compilation Songs for Blake. I don’t mention this out of obligation but, rather, out of fandom. The track sits alongside offerings from Ladyhawke, Digital Noise Academy and a long slew of others. It’s a solid track and hopefully a glimpse of more original songs coming from the Mahaffey compound.

Cumbres Carrascosa – Silenced No

Posted Tue May 13, 2014

I’m just stepping into it but this EP from Cumbres Carrascosa (potentially a transplant from the Canary Islands) but what I’m hearing so far is an oddly entrancing mixture of lo-fi, drum machine, drone and pop sensibilities. Certainly not a combination you encounter too often. And even rarer that it would work. Start with “Human Graves” and work your way out.

Primitive Prison – “Chainshot” 7"

Posted Fri May 9, 2014

Admittedly, “Less Than a Minute” speedy punk songs are not for everyone. That being said, the kind of wild abandon and ferocious energy that comes with these songs has an undeniable appeal. Listening to this you can easily imagine a crowd of onlookers being whipped into a frenzy, I’d say that’s doing something right.

save/quit – “inside”

Posted Tue May 6, 2014

Anytime I see a band tagged “Alternative Rock” on Bandcamp I immediately suspect that the music will be solid and the vocals will absolutely ruin it. Call me a pessimist but that’s been my experience 9 times out of 10. Fortunately, this new track from “save/quit” is an outlier. A lazy journalist (such as myself) might make comparisons to The Strokes in terms of languid vocal delivery but that’s a disservice to the original work these guys are doing.

Looking forward to more, one song is not enough.

Majestico – When Kingdom Come

Posted Mon May 5, 2014

I’ve been enjoying the musical undertakings of Majestico for some time but their full energetic vision hadn’t really come to fruition until hearing this record. Their live show was always a visual treat – especially when the insane headdresses were involved – but When Kingdom Come really brings home the combination of drugged out, somewhat manic, energy or languid, drugged out, storytelling. It’s a wonderful pairing and I hope they’re able to get the word out far and wide about it’s goodness.

Forest of Tygers – Bruises

Posted Thu May 1, 2014

I’ve been following the musical undertakings of Jim and Rachel Valosik since my time at the illustrious Middle Tennessee State University. Both have been involved in a number of great bands (Serotonin, Lotushalo) and never seem to disappoint, even when they’re making music that I would not typically contemplate listening to. 

Bruises is brutal. An absolute onslaught in every respect. Dark guitars, thrashing drums and anguished, screaming vocals. Even the cover art puts a fear in your heart – who is this weeping, naked, woman? Is that even an answer you want to know? 

I know very little about the world of this level of dark metal but I know these two are killing it.