Category Archives: CD Review

CD Review, Entertainment, Music

CD Review: The Suburbs [2010]

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Band: Arcade Fire
Release: 8/2010
Label: Merge

1. “The Suburbs” – (A) – This tune is really likable. It does suffer from length issues, but this is Arcade Fire we’re talking about.

2. “Ready to Start” – (B) – The instrumentation is really great, but the vocals weaken it for a while. It does get a little bit better, but the whole Interpol/Peter Bjorn and John dark thing makes this random.

3. “Modern Man” – (A) – This has an old feel to it. It’s really good! The bass is awesome!

4. “Rococo” – (B+) – This doesn’t stand out, but is humorously okay.

5. “Empty Room” – (B-) – Sounds like Sonic Youth meets ABBA.

6. “City With No Children” – (B+) – Private prisons aren’t cool.

7. “Half Light I” – (B+) – Sort of epic.

8. “Half Light II” – (A) – A bit more than sort of epic. Reminds me of Girls.

9. “Suburban War” – (B+)

10. “Month of May” – (A) – I like the drumming.

11. “Wasted Hours” – (B+) – Kind of slow, kind of so-so. Interesting, though.

12. “Deep Blue” – (B)

13. “We Used to Wait” – (B-) – A bit like Spoon.

14. “Sprawl (Flatland)” – (C+) – Probably the worst thing on here.

15. “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)” – (B+) – A strange dancey number.

16. “The Suburbs (Continued)” – (B) – Okay, we get it.

Final Comments: This will probably end up being one of the more disappointing records of the year for me. It’s pretty forgettable save a few numbers. A good five or six songs could have been cut out, but I must say the band’s foray into a bunch of different styles is refreshing as a listener. If they cut it short after “Month of May,” I’m not so sure the album would be any better, but it’d save us from a few less than stellar tunes.

Grade: B+ (87)

Art, CD Review, Classic CD Review, Entertainment, Films, Music, pictures, Punk, Video

Classic Album Review: Beat Happening

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Artist: Beat Happening
Full Title: Beat Happening
Year: 1985
Label: K
Track List
1) Our Secret– 8/9
2) What’s Important– 9
3) Down At the Sea– 9
4) I Love You- 8
5) Fourteen- 8
6) Run Down the Stairs– 9
7) Bad Seeds (Live)- 5
8) In My Memory-8/9
9) Honey Pot- 8
10) The Fall- 7/8
11) Youth- 8
12) Don’t Mix the Colors- 8
13) Foggy Eyes- 8
14) Bad Seeds– 9
15) I Let Him Get to Me- 8
16) I Spy– 9
17) Run Down the Stairs– 9
18) Christmas- 7/8
19) Fourteen- 8
20) Let’s Kiss– 9
21) 1, 2, 3- 7
22) In Love With You Thing- 7/8
23) Look Around- 8
24) Untitled- Ungraded

Comments: This is the unflinching, incredible debut from the seminal “twee pop” group Beat Happening. You can call it twee, lo-fi, noise, etc. but ultimately it is Punk Rock- at its finest. In this record, BH, known for their amateur quality/attitude, are at their most primitive; the production is about as lo-fi as it gets before it becomes simply rubbish. On this LP, most songs are astonishingly decent pop tunes, with passion taking the front seat over musicianship. One can hear a lot of 60s surf rock influence as well as the outsider feel of The Shaggs and Half Japanese. Lyrically, most numbers are innocent in nature- “Down at the Sea,” ” Run Down the Stairs,” etc. There are also more than a fair share of love ballads- “Our Secret,” “I Love You,” “Honey Pot,” and the classic “Let’s Kiss.” Admittedly, not every track is good and some do suffer from the lack of “quality” recording and perhaps would have sounded better with a finer studio. My two favorite tracks are definitely “Bad Seeds” ( the guitar riff reminds me of the music in the James Bond Films; a very bad ass song!) and “I Spy.” All in all, this is a pretty nice debut from Beat Happening and it certainly is amongst the annals of “YOU CAN DO IT TOO!” records.

Grade: B+

“Bad Seeds” with clips from Over the Edge (1979)

Classic CD Review, Entertainment, Music

Classic Review: You’re Living All Over Me [1987]

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Band: Dinosaur Jr.
Label: SST

1. “Little Fury Things” – (A+) – A long-time favorite, I love the smothering of distortion and pop at the beginning of the tune. Of course, the rest of the tune is just as amazing; the solo toward the middle really stands out.

2. “Kracked” – (A-) – Interesting solos, but rather dull verses. I do like the proto-grunge chorus.

3. “Sludgefeast” – (B+) – Another heavy battering of noise! Of course, a little teaser of a slowdown leads to an even more massive outbreak of…sludge. Mascis’ vocals fit snug on here.

4. “The Lung” – (B+) – A tiny bit toned down from the two tracks before it, this is a more relaxed interpretation of distortion.

5. “Raisans” – (A-) – Unfortunately not really note-worthy, but it’s still quite listenable. The final long shred is impressive. The best of its kind on here so far, I’d wager.

6. “Tarpit” – (A) – Would probably work best as an album closer because it’s just that great and has that whirlpool of noise that gives me a sense of closure.

7. “In a Jar” – (A-) – Reminiscent of Pavement in its clean, yet lo-fi ways — at least at first.

8. “Lose” – (B+) – A little bit of a hassle to appreciate, but Barlow meant well.

9. “Poledo” – (C-) – An unnecessary “sound collage” as Wikipedia dubs it. Really not necessary. For throw-aways in the grand scheme of throw-aways, I guess this isn’t terrible.

10. “Show Me the Way” – (A+) – Awesome! An instant favorite!

GRADE: A-/B+

CD Review, Entertainment, Music, Rap

CD Review: How I Got Over [2010]

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Band: The Roots
Release: 6/2010
Label: Def Jam

1. “A Peace of Light” – C-
2. “Walk Alone” – B+
3. “Dear God 2.0” – A
4. “Radio Daze” – A-
5. “Now Or Never” – B
6. “How I Got Over” – B
7. “DillaTUDE: The Flight of Titus” – C
8. “The Day” – B+
9. “Right On” – B+
10. “Doin’ It Again” – B
11. “The Fire” – B
12. “Tunnel Vision” – C-
13. “Web 20/20” – B-
14. “Hustla” – B+

Comments: I liked “Walk Alone” for the most part, but “Dear God” is where it’s at. The verses are top shelf hip-hop. My gripe with a lot of this album is the amount of half-ass tunes. What I mean is that The Roots seem to have a consistent focus on the way these songs are structured. That might appeal to a lot of folks who like a good amount of rap, but also don’t mind a soulful or R&B flavored chorus. I get bored with that. Also, does this record really need short interludes every five or six songs? OK so this isn’t that great in the whole scheme of hip hop records. It might be one of the best of its kind this year, though.

Grade: B- (83)

CD Review, Entertainment, Music

CD Review: Raw Pie [2010]

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Band: Personal and the Pizzas
Release: 3/2010
Label: Burger Records [CASSETTE]/ 1234GO! [VINYL]

1. “I Don’t Wanna Be No Personal Pizza” – B
2. “I Don’t Feel So Happy Now No More” – B+
3. “I Can Read” – B+
4. “I Ain’t Takin’ You Out” – A-
5. “Brass Knuckles” – B+
6. “Nobody Makes My Girl Cry But Me” – B
7. “Knuckles #2” – B+
8. “Pizza Army” – B
9. “Tearjerker” – B+
10. “Never Find Me” – B
11. “7.99 For Love” – B-
12. “Pepperoni Eyes” – B
13. “Don’t You Go In That Ground” – A-
14. “Toss That Pie” – C+

Comments: Wait a second while I figure out a brief survey.
DO YOU LIKE THE STOOGES? A LITTLE
DO YOU LIKE THE RAMONES? YEAH
DO YOU LIKE WEIRD AL? YEAH

So I’m supposed to like these guys. These greasy pepperoni pisans sound like textbook novelties. This is a live record of sorts recorded with, presumably, a tape recorder in an empty bar. It’s nice to know they can read. Their songwriting style resembles that of the late Bobby Ubangi and the present day Nobunny circa Raw Romance (see “I Ain’t” for reference). They obviously take cues from The Ramones, but who in the Burger in-crowd doesn’t? Personal and crew don’t really mobilize me all that much. Like, ya know, I’m not blown or anything. You have to possess a sense of humor and a degree of patience in conforming your ears to this piece of vinyl. If you aren’t paying much attention while listening or if you are like me and trying to hear this album while reading about Howard Zinn, you might mistake the first half of “Don’t You” as a mockery of mentally challenged individuals. It clicked, though! They’re talking about Jay Jay. “Reatard, Reatard, such a little Reatard, you’re dead, what did you do?”

Grade: B (85)

CD Review, Entertainment, Femmes, Music

CD Review: Crazy For You [2010]

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Band: Best Coast
Release: 7/2010
Label: Mexican Summer

1. “Boyfriend” – A
2. “Crazy for You” – A
3. “The End” – A-
4. “Goodbye” – A-
5. “Summer Mood” – A-
6. “Our Deal” – A-
7. “I Want To” – A
8. “When the Sun Don’t Shine” – A-
9. “Bratty B” – A
10. “Honey” – B+
11. “Happy” – B+
12. “Each and Every Day” – B+
13. “When I’m With You” – B+

Comments: Ahhhhh I wrote a lot about this album here but then I guess it never saved! Ahhhh! I’ll revisit it soon.

Grade: A- (90)

CD Review, Entertainment, Music

CD Review: /\/\ /\ Y /\ [2010]

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Artist: M.I.A.
Release: 7/2010
Label: XL Recordings

1. “The Message” – N/A
2. “Steppin Up” – C
3. “XXXO” – C-
4. “Teqkilla” – C+
5. “Lovalot” – C-
6. “Story To Be Told” – C+
7. “It Takes a Muscle” – B
8. “It Iz What It Iz” – C
9. “Born Free” – C-
10. “Meds and Feds” – D+
11. “Tell Me Why” – C+
12. “Space” – C

Comments: “Carried away” in studio. That’s truth. For the most part this album is an experimental mess. Not totally experimental, though. It’s like an electronica album (2/3 of it, at least) with vocals. Some of the more stripped down tracks like the dub/reggae cover “It Takes a Muscle” and the mellow “Space” are easier to digest. Unless, of course, schizophrenic beats are your thing. The repetition and hectic flavor of most of the tunes on here are discomfiting aspects of the listening experience. I honestly haven’t struggled with as many albums as this one.

Grade: C (75)

CD Review, Entertainment, Music, Rap

CD Review: Sir Lucious Left Foot [2010]

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Rapper: Big Boi
Release: 7/2010
Label: Def Jam

1. “Feel Me (Intro)” – N/A
2. “Daddy Fat Sax” – B
3. “Turns Me On” – C+
4. “Follow Us” – B-
5. “Shutterbugg” – A-
6. “General Patton” – C-
7. “Tangerine” – B-
8. “You Ain’t No DJ” – B-
9. “Hustle Blood” – C
10. “Be Still” – C+
11. “Fo Yo Sorrows” – B-
12. “Night Night” – B-
13. “Shine Blockas” – A-
14. “The Train Part II” – B
15. “Back Up Plan” – B-

Comments: This album is too confusing for a guy like me. The choruses on “Turns Me On” and “Follow Us” are pretty stale and generic. “General Patton” is just shy of terrible. “Shutterbugg” is the first song on here that flows wonderfully, a throwback to late ’90s hip-hop. Unfortunately, not one other song makes such an impact as that one. “Shine Blockas” reminds me of a song that I heard a while back (5+ years ago) that is just realistically chill and comforting. It’s not overdone at all. It’s real. Overall, I’d recommend this to people who are more into hip-hop than I am.

Grade: B- (80)

CD Review, Entertainment, Music

CD Review: Never Grow Up [2010]

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Band: The Crusaders of Love
Release: 2010
Label: Douchemaster

1. “Better When I’m Gone” – B+
2. “Shot to the Heart” – B-
3. “Good Time All the Time” – B+
4. “Little Mind” – B+
5. “Braving Hell” – A-
6. “Can’t Get Enough” – A-
7. “It Doesn’t Change a Thing” – A-
8. “Time” – A
9. “If You Want to Try” – A-
10. “Looking For Us” – B
11. “Looking For a Heart” – A-

Comments: Crusaders of Love have the power-pop thing down pat. There’s not much changing up of things, so I can’t find too many stand-out tracks among the first four tracks. I do dig the punk-lite naivete, which really comes out on the rest of the album. It’s hard not to like the perceived care-free aesthetic of a young band just jamming out and having fun. They’ve got a release on Die Slaughterhaus so if I say they have a similar energy/MO of early Black Lips I don’t think I’d be too far off. Also, I never would have guessed these guys were from France.

Grade: B+ (88)

CD Review, Entertainment, Music, Punk

CD Review: Radical Sabbatical [2010]

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Band: APACHE
Release: 6/2010
Label: Burger Records

1. “Bad Kids” – A-
2. “Heaven Can Wait” – A-
3. “Finger Banger” – A
4. “Pint Size Punker” – A
5. “Bloody Knuckles” – B+
6. “Outside” – A
7. “Jam Pusher” – A-
8. “Beat Myself” – B
9. “Faster Louder” – B
10. “Hospital Bed” – A
11. “OMC” – A
12. “Boomtown Gems” – A
13. “Kitty” – B+

Comments: “Bad Kids” is not quite “Bad Kids,” but it rock and rolls. Most of these song rock and roll. This is a punk record through and through if you couldn’t already tell from the titles. You’d think they were talking about you Chris on “Pint Size Punker,” but nah, she’s only 17. SHE. Anyway, the music itself is catchier than most punk records I’ve listened to this year. APACHE likes heavy doses of sensible freestyle guitaring, especially on “Outside,” the most memorable jam on this disc. The fast fast fast (FASTER. LOUDER) ones aren’t as fun as the more rhythmic power-poppers, but that’s just my preference. As far as 2010 lowbrow independent record label releases go, this LP definitely has to be near the top of that lit.

Grade: A- (91)