I had my taxes done today. It did not come out as good as past years. I had plans for that tax money but I guess my plans have changed. I was feeling a bid down because of it so I started with The Posies tonight.
The Posies – Frosting On The Beater
This album was released on the upswing of the grunge movement. They were kind of under the radar for most folks. They are still making music and are still under the radar. I only have this album from them and haven’t heard anything since this album. The album is more on the slower side than the popular albums of this era. It is just slow enough that I can understand the words so I can sing along with the vocalist. It is just out of my high range so I sing it an octave lower. I really like this album because it mellows me out, especially when I sing along in that lower register. I can feel the vibrations from my own voice in my chest. I remember watching the video on MTV, back when they had great shows that would showcase videos for bands that were a little bit under the radar. One show in particular, 120 Min., would specifically showcase these underground artists. I found out about many bands from this show. This album is a very down album. Not only is it mostly slow songs or steady rockers but it does come off a little depressing. This is probably why I get so mellow after listening to it. I would recommend this album to anybody looking for some great melodic chill out rock.
I listened to the following album because I did not want to be down in the dumps the whole night. This was a level up in my emotions. It was what I needed a gradual step up from sad to normal.
Sigur Rós - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
Don’t ask me to pronounce it. It means in English, “With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly.” The group has been around since the late 90s. They started out making ambient rock. This hasn't really changed much except they have gotten better at it. This album is more playful than any of their previous works including Takk… The rhythms on this album are to die for. They are so simple but yet so complex, an absolute joy for a critical listener. I did not pre-order this album. I was still lucky enough to have gotten a copy of it on vinyl. They released it in a strange way. You could only pre-order the album directly from the band. I could not find anything about the release anywhere until I ran across the album at a local record shop. I also went to see the band play live in the city. I took my father-in-law and my wife to see them. It was very grandiose, so much fun. They even popped the confetti over the crowd just like they do in the video for the first single. It was so much fun. The only thing that I was disappointed in was the sound of the bass. The bassist, I am sure, uses the actual bass used in each recording. In the older songs that the band recorded he uses a low quality bass. You can’t tell on the recordings but when played live I could hear the difference in an instant. On the newer tracks that they played he used a better bass guitar. It may just be my ear and the fact that I play bass too but I could defiantly hear the difference. I still enjoyed the concert very much and this fact did not take me out of the music enough to be annoyed by it. I am hoping to go to see the lead singer, Jonsi, perform in the next coming months as well.
Silversun Pickups - Swoon
This is their second album. I call the style that this band has, and many others in recent years, NU-gazer. They have picked up on the dream-pop and noise-pop that the Shoe-gazer movement had and made it in a new light. It is really quite enjoyable. There is not as much noise as those artists had in the shoe-gazer movement had. At least that is the way it is with this group. I was not sure about the first single. It doesn’t match with the way that the previous album was. But, it fits in with the album as a whole and it does grab the listener’s attention on its own. It got my attention when I saw the video. I decided to take a chance with this album because I liked the first full length so much. I was not disappointed at all. I bought it on vinyl and found that it was a double vinyl. This information is only relevant if you are into vinyl pressings. It is supposed to give the songs more room on the record. It is also supposed to provide more depth of sound since there is more room on the record with so few tracks per side. There is only about 3 or 4 songs per side. Either way the album is heavy but mellow with grand sweeping sounds. If you are into that shoe-gazer movement and have not given them a listen I recommend it. I like them so much that I also picked up the first EP when it was released on vinyl. There was a hidden track on the CD version that I think is also included on this vinyl version (if you’re interested in that kind of thing).
Spoken – Spoken
This is a hardcore group. There is a lot of screaming done by the vocalist. That being said, they are a great Christian alternative rock group. The vocalist probably has been taking some voice lessons since his vocals have improved over the last 3 albums. There is even a slow song where he sings instead of screams. It is really quite an amazing transformation for him. It is also in invited change for the group and shows that they have a softer side and the potential for a wider range audience. The lyrics are Christian lyrics. What I mean is that they sing about their desires to be better Christians and their beliefs as Christians. In the screaming tracks, most of the album, you can’t really understand what he is saying. Someone who is not a Christian may not even be able to tell that they are singing about God and Christianity. I see this as a benefit because I can introduce my friends who are not Christians to some really great rock and usually they don’t mind that the lyrics are Christian themed. It is a lot of fun if you like the screaming hard rock/metal sounds.
Signing off
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