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Classic Album Review: Dreamy

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Artist: Beat Happening
Full Title: Dreamy
Label: K/Sub Pop
Year: 1991

Track List:
1) Me Untamed- 8
2) Left Behind- 8
3) Hot Chocolate Boy– 10!
4) I’ve Lost You- 8
5) Cry For a Shadow– 9
6) Collide- 6
7) Nancy Sin- 8
8) Fortune Cookie Prize- 8
9) Revolution Come and Gone- 8
10) Red Head Walking– 9

Comments:
Beat Happening strikes again with their fourth album, Dreamy, their most polished sounding record yet. But, don’t worry it’s still the same minimalist, amatuer sounding Beat Happening you know and love. With this release, it seems like BH matured a bit in their subject matter, especially with tunes like “Me Untamed,” (a far cry from Johnson’s usual coy, lovey dovey lyrics) “Cry For a Shadow,” and “Revolution Come and Gone” (as Michael Azzerad cites, a clear reference to the sudden, apparent, demise of the underground movement). With that being said, there’s plenty of fun, adventerous (at least lyrically), creative, and ultimately joyful numbers. Chiefly, “Hot Chocolate Boy” fits this category; it is by far my favorite in their catalog and one of my all time beloved songs! Just, simple, but enthusiastic playing. If I had to choose one BH number to show to newbies, it would absolutely be HCB; it has nearly everything that made BH excellent. I really dig the line “He’s a sensation, Hot Chocolate Nation.” Overall, I like this album, but I do not favor every track. “Collide” is too repetitive and I often like repetitive songs, even for BH, but this time it’s just annoying. This album is filled with good songs, but only a few great ones. The higher quality production ameliorates the recording, but clearly isn’t the most important ingrediant in audio magic. As I said before, this is a good album, it just lacks an album feel to it, but all in all it is certainly KLYAM Recommended.

Grade B/ B+

P.S. if you go bonkers for Calvin Johnson’s deep, baritone voice, then you will most likely love his vocals here, as they are baritone as fuck…. or you will think he has a stomach ache like my mother says.

Entertainment, Music, rant

Annoying Trends In Today’s Pop Music

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#1: Songs that compare drugs to emotions or status. Example: “Your love is like a drug” AND “The only drug I need is being with you.” Wow, can this get anymore annoying?!

#2: Male singers of cowardly pop songs. There’s not much worse than a man singing a hip-pop number, but this applies to basically every man on pop radio. I feel bad that they actually agree to do this.

Entertainment, Music, No Age, Nobunny

Song Reviews: No Age/Nobunny

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Band: No Age
Label: Sub Pop
7″: Glitter

“Glitter” (A/A-) – No Age has always liked themselves some samples and atmosphere. Weirdo Rippers was ripe with what critics have termed “experimental” sounds. Nouns had a fair share of these tunes as well, but was more “punk” oriented, espesically on the album’s very best tunes: “Teen Creeps,” “Eraser,” and “Ripped Knees” just to name a few. 2009’s Losing Feeling was a mix of atmospheric sounds and straight up rock, but pretty much involved a heavy appetite of samples on every song. If “Glitter” is any indication of the direction of Everything in Between, No Age is aiming at a continuance of their Losing Feeling vibe. I don’t think this recording does too much in terms of how great this song could be. The sample in the background can be a little much at some times, but actually I really like how everything comes together on the latter part of the song.

“Inflorescence” – (A) This one is neat. It reminds of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart kind of twee pop plus, of course, an extra sample or two. Good stuff.
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Band: Nobunny
Label: Goner Records
Album: First Blood

“Motorhead With Me” – (A+) – This one’s been kicking around for over a year and will make its LP debut on…this LP! It is chaotic powerpop/punk genius.

“Blow Dumb” – (A+) – What a stellar song this one is, too. Fucking A! It’s got cowbell, a stellar rhythym and high energy written all over it.

Entertainment, Music, News, Nobunny

New Nobunny LP: “First Blood” !!!

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Previously Known As: ONO

Track Listing:

1 Ain’t It a Shame
2 (Do the) Fuck Yourself
3 Blow Dumb
4 Gone For Good
5 Pretty Please Me
6 Breathe
7 Live It Up
8 Motorhead With Me
9 Never Been Kissed
10 Pretty Little Trouble
11 I Was On (the Bozo Show)

Release: September 21, 2010

Label: Goner Records

Midheaven Description: Hail! Hail! America’s favorite loopily leporine rock ‘n’ roller, Nobunny, is back with a new album, First Blood, and it’s his catchiest batch of tunes yet. The melodious masked man kicks it off with “Ain’t It a Shame,” a bittersweet tale of a rocky romance in which Nobunny’s lover has no choice but to endure his frequent indiscretions. He’s just that damned charming. “Blow Dumb” is a Velvet-y tribute to all the things that make life worth livin’–“smokin’ Copenhagen,” make-out sessions and “burger breaks.” In fact, First Blood never overstays its welcome and lasts about as long as a particularly adventurous mid-party burger run.  “(Do the) Fuck Yourself” immediately jumps to the top of the list of onanistic rock songs along with the Who’s “Pictures of Lily,” Devo’s “Praying Hands” and the Gizmos’ “Pumpin’ to Playboy.” Have fun trying not to sing this infectious little number in inappropriate situations. Sure, we all know that Nobunny can deliver a raunchy, good-times number like no one else, but can our floppy-eared fop get sophisticated? Let the contemplative vibe and beautiful strings on “Breathe” answer that. “Live It Up” is the most optimistic of a collection of upbeat songs. Nobunny is so happy, he makes the 1910 Fruitgum Co. sound like Joy Division. On “I Was On (The Bozo Show),” Nobunny dreamily recalls a moment from his childhood where he actually shared the stage with the late, great clown-god Larry Harmon. In under half an hour, Nobunny goes through every worthy rock ‘n’ roll subgenre–bubblegum pop, garage, rockabilly and psych–and still beautifully articulates every single human emotion with ease.

Art, Culture Jamming, Entertainment, Film Review, Films, Health/Science, humor, Music, pictures, Psychology, religion, reviews, Video

Classic Film Review: The Devil and Daniel Johnston

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Full Title: The Devil and Daniel Johnston
Director: Jeff Feuerzeig
Year: 2005
Comments:
Before I go any further, I must warn you if you are planning on watching this documentary, then you will be possessed by the Devil… Did you hear me?! I said the DEVIL. SAYTUNNN!!! Now, if you think I should be locked up in the looney bin before I harm others and myself, then you are probably right, but this is not about me (The Devil and Chris DeCarlo will hit theaters in years to come) this is about the one and only Daniel Johnston. In this gentle, affectionate, film we see how Dan is an enthusiastic, earnest, artist, in spite or because of his various mental and/or social problems. Initially, he is simply a slacker, eshewing work and school for his art, much to the chagrin of his family; his parents in particular are objects of his animostity. Alas, as he grows older his mental capacity deteriates (hence his obsession with the Devil) and he is diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder causing him to be in and out of mental institutions and a serious threat to himself and those around him. I’ll stop here before I give away anything else, unless of course you know Dan’s bio… What I really like about this documentary is the fact that it stays personal via old home movies, tape recorded interviews, animation (coming straight outta Dan’s drawings, literally!), and of course interviews with his family, friends, and collaborators. The doc never strays off into a Michael Moore performance art sorta thang or a hidden agenda drenched picture. The agenda is clear: Daniel Johnston, love him or hate him, was and still is an incredible, gifted man with more passion in his art than most other artists one cares to name. Overall, this is a rollercoaster of emotions ranging from sad, humorous, fascinating, disturbing, entertaining, and ultimately touching- fans and non-fans unlike should see one of the finest documentaries of the last ten years.

P.S. excuse the “rollercoaster of emotions” cliche, but since Dan worked at an amusement park, I think it fits.

Grade: A-

Black Lips, Entertainment, Music, The Ponys

This Show Actually Happened #1

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Random new feature that tells of shows that happened in Boston (because that’s what we’re familiar with) that look highly unusual or unbelievable in hindsight.

#1 – BLACK LIPS Opening for THE PONYS @ TT THE BEARS – MARCH 27, 2007

There are a few oddities in this one! Obviously, Black Lips opening for The Ponys just wouldn’t sound right today. Since this gig, they’ve played a show at the Bank of America Pavilion opening for Raconteurs (reasonable) and three at the Middle East Downstairs. As for the Ponys, they’ve only been back here once and that was later in 2007 opening for Spoon. The Ponys did “breakthrough” before Black Lips with their March 2007 release of Turn the Lights Out on Matador. Black Lips would get their big break in September with their Vice studio debut Good Bad Not Evil. And finally…this was at TT The Bears, the little venue for national bands just starting to make the rounds across the country! Black Lips were doing their thing for 7 years before this show and The Ponys for at least 6!