Category: Album Reviews

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Glassjaw

Glassjaw
Our Color Green (The Singles)
Self-Released

So most of these tracks have been unveiled under some guise or another already. Generous free downloads and innovative pizza-accompanied 7″s (available exclusively at a Long Island pizzeria and only announced on the day of release) show that the fairly recently reunited band are certainly determined to have fun with their craft these days. Despite playing shows again for a couple of years now, this release comprises the band’s first new recorded material in almost a decade. That’s a long time to keep your uber-fans guessing, especially whilst hinting at a third album constantly.

‘Our Color Green‘ may not be the full-length many people were waiting on tenterhooks for but the sheer quality and immense weight of every track on this release makes up for its brevity. Five tracks is just enough to sate the Glassjaw appetite until they decide to step it up a notch and finally get round to that long fabled album. It’ a cathartic onslaught from the outset with the grating guitars and spitting lyrics barely letting up throughout. For the most part, the brutality almost overrides the melody. But not quite. There is something about the way Glassjaw layer surges of sound that means an undercurrent of melodic content is always present. The riffs, no matter how heavy, carry an enormous amount of the melody as vocalist Daryl Palumbo shifts from empassioned singing to voracious catterwauling. Dynamics are paced expertly with oases of calm interspersed amongst the violence. You Think You’re (Fucking John Lennon) begins with a very steady yet unsettling drumbeat which makes up the entire first 90 seconds of the song completely on its own before the full band let rip with their usual finesse.

Winey Joe

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Kids & Explosions

Kids & Explosions
Shit Computer
Self-Released

First of all, and before you hear the inevitable comparisons from journalists that are somehow lazier than I am, Kids & Explosions does not sound like Girl Talk. The art of making music using the pastiche method of combining elements from existing pieces of music with other elements of existing pieces of music has become such common practice that people tend to confuse regular producers with mash-up artists, or worse, all of the above with Girl Talk. Rather than utilising nostalgic references and ADHD post-ironic pop culture twisters for the benefit of a party (like the Gregg Gillis’ frequently mentioned fraternity project, or 2manydjs), Josh Raskin has sat and watched that Four Loko-fuelled bandwagon roll away while piecing together ADD jams that favour melancholic glitches with expertly placed vocal samples that manage to evoke shoegaze textures and even post-rock build-ups every so often. The end result is a collection of songs that are at once listenable, memorable, bittersweet, quietly arousing and head-nodding.

Whether it’s when the layers of ‘Babies Of The Future‘ collide as RZA ‘brings the motherfucking…’ crescendo that refuses to conclude in a ruckus, or when ‘Swear Words‘ works as a comprehensive guide to exactly what the song title suggests over twee guitars we’re continuously presented with an oxymoron so obvious it would sound terrible if anyone else was making it. But it’s anything but terrible, and when album highlight ‘Use Your Words‘ builds from gentle piano and soft female vocal sampling to Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s ‘oh baby I like it raw’ line, recontextualised into one of the most beautiful, heart-wrenching things you could ever hear, you’ll be hitting the replay button more frequently than Josh has hit ctrl+v making the damn thing.

The album can be downloaded at whatever price you decree at Josh’s website. You can – and should – stream the album in its entirety there too, alongside suitably looped gifs.

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Ghostface Killah

Ghostface Killah
Apollo Kids
Def Jam

As if to make a mockery of the music press’ overzealous list making in recent years, Ghostface Killah has released new album Apollo Kids this week (December 21st), long after all major music publications have published their albums of the year. Far and away the most consistent Wu member, it’s no surprise that Apollo Kids packs a punch, but nobody could have expected this near flawless collection of classic Ghostface material. A November release date would have surely seen Apollo Kids ranking well in end of year polls, but this is typical of the casual approach Wu Tang seem to be taking to releasing albums these days. Besides, who’s going to tell Mr. Tony Starks that he needs to move his release date?

Lists aside, from the word go Apollo Kids adopts a no nonsense approach, free of skits and coming in at a lean 40 minutes in length. Yes, there are no instrumental filler tracks or martial arts outtakes to wade through this time, and I’m left wishing more Wu Tang albums had this sense of discipline. Guest spots come from the usual suspects, with Raekwon popping up on the last two tracks, while elsewhere the likes of GZA, Jim Jones, Black Thought and Busta Rhymes appear with some style. Busta in particular shines brightly on ‘Superstar’, always good for a guest spot yet rarely anything more.

Lead single ‘2getha Baby‘ seems to follow on from the bizarre production job on Wu Massacre’s single ‘Our Dreams‘, although the sharp transition between verse and soul sampling chorus seems to actually work here. Meanwhile the pick ‘n’ mix selection of producers includes Pete Rock on ‘How You Like Me Baby’, while the always brilliant Jake One steps behind the desk on album closer ‘Troublemakers’. For the most part the production borrows much from classic cuts of soul and funk, a style which Ghostface clearly feels comfortable rapping over.

Despite all the guest rappers and producers, though, it’s undoubtedly Ghostface’s album. Always lively and with a sharp turn of phrase, he effortlessly manages to light up each track with his own inimitable sense of humour. Seamlessly moving from Jimmy Neutron to hard drugs references, he has an extremely likeable personality that shines through even when rapping on a song called ‘Handcuffin’ Them Hoes’. Yup, Ghostface is back, and this is perhaps his best album since Supreme Clientele.

Sleekly Lion

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Forest Swords

Dagger Paths
No Pain in Pop

While Forest Sword’s ‘Dagger Paths’ might seem like old news now given its February release on US imprint Olde English Spelling Bee, only now has it been made available in the UK. This CD package released through No Pain in Pop not only features all six tracks from the initial vinyl release, but also both tracks from the Rattling Cage 7”, as well as remixes and rarities. Basically, if you like what you’ve heard so far from this talented new artist; this is your essential collection to the beguiling sounds of Forest Swords.

For the unacquainted, Forest Swords is the one man project of Matt Barnes from Wirral, UK. Although perhaps inspired by the evolution of dubstep in the last few years, his otherworldly music has a sound of its own that is equally influenced by post-punk and psych-rock. Barnes twists and combines all these varying styles of music until they are unrecognisable, bringing them into his own truly idiosyncratic vision.

One of Barnes’ best qualities is his great spatial awareness, avoiding the clutter of modern electronic productions in favour of exploring the potent grooves and melodies within Dagger Path’s many layers. Opening track ‘Mirarches’, for example, focuses on a meandering guitar part which leads the listener through the song’s various sonic delights. Whether it be the bursts of reverb laden guitar that drift in and out of the track, or the haunting female backing vocal that lurks in the background, there’s always plenty going on yet the music never feels congested.

With such a dynamic and unusual songwriting craft, it’s difficult to pinpoint who are the contemporaries of Forest Swords. While Dagger Paths has the darkness of artists like Balam Acab and Salem, its approach is more organic, perhaps inspired by the rugged landscapes of Wirral itself. Either way, it’s a fascinating and hypnotic record that grows with every listen, hinting at a bright future ahead for Forest Swords.

Sleekly Lion

Miarches by Forest Swords

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Shy FX

Raver
Digital Soundboy

Shy FX is a legend, pure and simple. Having driven the D&B and Jungle scenes for years, he still remains as important and fresh as he ever was and with this new single, out on December 6th, he’s dropped another golden banger. Enlisting the vocal talents of Kano, Donae’o and Roses Gabor, the chorus line of “When I was a yout I used to blow my horn like a raver” immediately grabs you by the scruff of the neck and demands you shock out as the drums spins all around.

With four remixes on the release, there really is something for everyone. MJ Cole comes in with a hugely fuzzy bassline, Benny Page‘s “dancefloor remix” serves up a serious slab of instant D&B and Shy himself provides a “Guinness Punch remix” which concentrates on bringing some vibed out dub to the plate, showing the producer’s versatility with consummate ease.

The stand-out remix on the release however comes from Breakage, who has had one hell of a year with his Foundation album. His “Pattern Moschino remix” combines reverbed vocal hooks with an old school jungle beat which is a perfect example of everything a high-energy dancefloor banger should be.

Shy and his label have rubber-stamped another biggun. Get on it and check out the video to the original below and see how many cameos you can spot!

Abjekt.

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Starkey

Space Traitor – Vol. 1
Civil Music

Starkey is always difficult to define with his innovative mix of grime, dubstep, hip hop and everything inbetween and with his new EP, Space Traitor – Vol. 1, he doesn’t make it any easier. Not that this is a bad thing, as opening track Robot Hands slams its way into the ether with his trademark heavy duty bass interspersed with moments of calm before the storm.

Playing With Fire sees no let-up with a crashing drum introducing the track, laying the foundations for  the crescendo of sound that follows, combining skittering hi-hats and empowering synths. The almost Hitchcockian film-score like strings of Holodeck again bleed into a bassline that demands full attention before showing his ability to switch styles with the much more relaxed Paradise with Anneka, who appeared on his album Ear Drums And Black Holes of this year.

Starkey’s production ends with the almost Joker-esque Lenses before unleashing a torrent of remixes from the likes of Ital Tek, Rudi Zygadlo [with a brilliantly understated remix of Paradise] and Egyptrixx amongst others. Fans of Starkey will lap this up and certainly there are tracks on here that would have lifted his album to higher levels. As ever, he is fresh and worth space on anyone’s iPod.

Abjekt.

Space Traitor Vol 1 (preview) by starkey

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Submerse

Submerse
Gundam EP
Maltine Records

Over the past few years, 2-step and garage have came back in a big way. As what the mainstream considered to be dubstep wobbled off in the direction of stadium sized speakers and producers with stadium sized egos, the underground club and pirate radio scenes found solace in an increasing amount of producers who favoured a little swing, a little shuffle, a little atmosphere and lots of processed vocals. Though the change in sonic climate was arguably slight, it gave birth to a wealth of forward-thinking electronica with personality to match. Amongst them, Submerse began crafting a sound that carried influences ranging from the obvious (Burial, Todd Edwards, Wookie) to the not so obvious (Bjork, Ayumi Hamasaki, M83, Tenmon) leading him to not only become one of the most prolific producers in the UK this year, but easily one of the most innovative and original producers in an absolutely massive cloud of sound.

He concludes an overwhelming year of making mixes for everyone (including us!), playing shows and spearheading an eastern take on 2-step (that he dubs J-Garage) with a five track EP that could well be the inaugural release for a genuinely exciting sub-genre to emerge in recent years. Appropriately released on the Japanese net label Maltine Records, Gundam is a bipolar mecha-cum-human slice of inward looking otaku-step. The title track picks up where another popular track Mecha left off, with a pulsating hook led boldly with a 4-to-the-floor beat, adding yet another layer of expertise to an already impressive resumé. The EP exclusive Kashoku takes a down-tempo route through an Okinawan blend of afrobeat, lounge and dub served alongside the producer’s own recipe for swiftly recoiling beats. Even with bias-inducing samples from one of my favourite films (Makoto Shinkai’s fittingly slow-paced and atmospheric 5cm Per Second), the song is not defined by intertextual references as many tracks tend to do, but by the music that really does speak for itself.

The EP continues with what could be my favourite track of the decade so far, OVA. At once uplifting and melancholic, OVA sees wonderful piano melodies and strings paired gorgeously with an expertly recontextualised Morning Musume acapella and the usual 2-step perfection. Passion is driven by clicks, hat hits and classic Todd Edwards-esque vocal weaving, before the EP concludes with Full Metal: a seminal rework of Yui’s Again that helped pave the way for J-Garage to become less of a 4am bedroom experiment and rather something of a full blown dance music movement.

The Gundam EP is Submerse’s most personal and accomplished release to date, leading the way to an optimistic and thoughtful area of music my own otaku tendencies and music taste always wished for. I have been saying for ages that if Submerse released an EP it would be my record of the year. Guess what? It is.

Stanley

You can download the EP for free now from Maltine Records.

Gundam (Maltine Records) by submerse

OVA (Maltine Records) by submerse

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Fantastic Mr Fox

Evelyn EP
Black Acre

Fantastic Mr Fox has had a hell of year, gaining praise across the board as well as getting know to a wider audience through touring with the XX. With his Sketches EP still delivering the goods, the Wolverhampton-born producer has released Evelyn, a four track EP that showcases a more bouncy sound, ramping up the tempo and sounding more like his Jackal Youth alter-ego than ever before.

Understated beats coarse throughout the four tracks, yet the chopped vocals of opening track Evelyn instantly draw you in alongside the woodblock percussion, kicking off the EP in perfect vibesy fashion. Fool Me starts with a much more laid back introduction before getting into its stride moving into the delightfully steppy Over, with its throbbing fuzz of bassline and R&B tinged vocal samples. Sepia Song, the strongest track on the release, brings everything to a close with Kimbie-esque synths and an almost tropic drum beat at the end.

With the current state of electronic music coming out of the UK gaining strength with every passing day, it would be easy to fall down the sides without being noticed. With this release however, Fantastic Mr Fox has marked himself out as a star to watch. 2011 is definitely his time.

Abjekt.

Fantastic Mr Fox – Evelyn EP by Black Acre Records

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Torche

Torche
Songs For Singles
(Hydrahead)

Torche Songs For Singles Cover“It’s just a bunch of radio rock bullshit”. A slightly harsh one-sentence review there, courtesy of none other than Torche drummer Rick Smith, as quoted from the sticker on the front of the CD. Clearly, there’s some kind of sarcastic sense of humour at work here; not least in the album’s title, as Torche are hardly likely to be bothering mainstream radio anytime in the foreseeable future.

That said, ‘Songs For Singles‘ is an unashamedly melodic beast, from a band that are better known for their arsenal of bowel-loosening riffs (as displayed to dazzling effect on 2008’s ‘Meanderthal’ album). Intended as a stop-gap release (as opposed to a full-length album), it’s also surprisingly short, with the first six tracks zipping by in roughly twelve minutes combined; a melée of ultra-fuzzy guitars, stop-start rhythms and Steve Brooks’ signature beer-drenched howl.

Enjoyable enough, but Torche are far better when they give those aforementioned riffs time to breathe and develop – which they do on the last two tracks. ‘Face The Wall’ is an atmospheric slice of post-rock, with Brooks crooning plaintively over a funereal beat and a sea of jet-engine guitar noise. Meanwhile, the closing ‘Out Again’ is a largely instrumental work out set to a driving beat, but proves eerily hypnotic over its six-minute course.

‘Songs For Singles’ may not scale the dizzy heights of ‘Meanderthal’, but it does prove that the Torche of 2010 are still very much a force to be reckoned with. Be sure to play it LOUD.

Alex Gosman

Torche – “U.F.O.” by Hydra Head Records

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The Bug

The Bug
Infected EP
Ninja Tune

A lot has happened since The Bug released his critically acclaimed third album London Zoo. Although it’s been just two short years since that release, its influence and the rise of bass orientated music has meant Kevin Martin’s return to The Bug takes on a whole new context. Martin has always been a pioneer, whichever alias he is writing for, so his next moves shall understandably be watched very closely.

New single ‘Catch A Fire’ is a low key, but exceptional comeback song. Its throbbing bassline and reverb laden snare hits are typical of The Bug, but Hitomi’s softer vocal approach keeps things fresh. If this is a sign of what to expect from a new full length, then it’s likely that Martin will once again deliver something special.

Padding out the Infected EP are remixes from Autechre and Scratcha, and a reworking of Poison Dart with vocals from Roots Manuva.  Unfortunately ‘padding out’, is exactly how the rest of this EP feels, with remixes of London Zoo tracks feeling like a needless revisiting of old ground. Surely remixes of ‘Catch a Fire’ would have made more sense here, rather than run the danger of continued association to the likes of ‘Poison Dart’, as big as that track undoubtedly is.

Still, in terms of ‘new’ material from The Bug, ‘Catch a Fire’ is typically promising. Here’s hoping for a full length from Kevin Martin next year, as a proper showcase of the man’s unique talent.

Sleekly Lion