Saturday, October 11, 2014

Vol. 5 Episode 42



OK Go will be appearing on Wits in St. Paul on November 14th. I will not be able to go as I will be getting into the busy season of my job. If you’re interested check it out at Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul

The Postal Service are putting out a documentary about the last tour that the group put on. You can preorder the DVD at Sub Pop Records.

Surfer Blood have put up a remix of Twin Peaks that sounds really cool. I didn’t see a way to actually download the track but you can listen to it at SoundCloud.

If you want to hear the new OK Go album before its release date head over to Hype Machine to hear the whole thing now.

You can get the White Laces record now from Happenin’ Records but it seems that the web site has crashed again. 

Here we go...



This is the second solo album from Yorke. It was released via Bit Torrent in late September 2014. The album was produced by longtime producer to Radiohead, Nigel Godrich. The album was made available in Wav, MP3, and Flak digital formats and on white vinyl deluxe edition with an anti-static bag. The albums release was an experiment to see how the pay-gate model would fair. The album was downloaded over a million times in the first six days of its release. Like his first solo effort the album is filled with electronic beats and sounds underneath Yokes’ vocals. Most critics are in agreement about the album being good with flashes of brilliance. Also the album as a whole being something that Yorke quickly put together before Radiohead got together for recording. I can’t say that I disagree but at the same time to have something so polished had to have taken some dedicated time to accomplish.

The first single from the new album is called A Brain In A Bottle. The song starts off with a sign wave sound that reminds me of the 70s experimentations from Pink Floyd or some other band like that. The drums kick in after a short bit and completely change the feel of the song with their sharp edges. Yorkes’ vocals are nearly 100% falsetto but soft and warm sounding. This is welcome with all of the electronic sounds that are going on that have sharp sounds.

The other single from the album is There Is No Ice (For My Drink). This song starts off again with some nice round sine wave bass patterns. A strange sample from Yorke’s vocals is patterned in over it with other ringing sounds over that. The drums are short clicks from a high had and toms. The song doesn’t seem to go anywhere after that though. Is it creative, yes. Do I want to hear the song over and over, not at all.

The album as a whole is good but I would not elect to hear this one over and over. I like Thom York and his music a lot. I especially like the work he has done with Radiohead but his solo work is still interesting for me. Unless you are a big fan this may be a pass for most people or at the very least a cheap download from Bit Torrent.


This is the second solo album from Radiohead drummer Philip Selway. It was released on October 7th, 2014. The album continues in the smooth, quiet ways that the first album went but with a peppier step than the first album. The album came to me on black vinyl with a CD in a clear plastic sleeve, very simple. I have never been happy with adding a CD to a record. I have always felt it was dangerous because if the record gets hot it could take the impression of the CD and make the record unplayable then. I have never had this happen to those records that I have that have come with a CD but it is always a possibility. Just give me a download code.

There have already been two singles released from this album. The first being the song Coming Up For Air. Selway had this to say about the song, “It's very much about taking stock of my life. I wanted to convey a sense of release and affirmation," he also said. "This was the first song that we recorded. Immediately it felt in a very different space from [the album] Familial.” I like this track a lot with its electronic wall of sound at the beginning to its affirming line, “I’m not alone.” It is positive for me to hear this song. He is showing me that I am not alone even if I feel like I am. The drums feel very earthy, the electric guitar is clear and sweet and the keys fill in the holes that are left behind. It is a very strong first single and first track on the album.

The second single from the album is called It Will End In Tears. My assumption on this track was something darker than it actually is. The song seems to be about the ending of a relationship or something like that. He is really saying don’t take it so hard, life will go on and something better will come along. He is also saying that he may be back as well. Either way, don’t take it so hard. It is a good song but I think I like the first single better.

Over all the album is very good and pretty. It is very down to earth and not many artists have the ability to make something like this sound so good. I recommend both his solo albums to anyone who enjoys emotional but down to earth music.



This is a digital only release of B-side tracks from studio sessions on the albums Let Go, The Weight Is A Gift and The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy. About half of the album is acoustic versions of the singles and the other half were songs that were released through the vinyl box set download. Although there were only 1000 released of the box set so I guess I could say that 1000 people got a preview of what the rest of the world would have access to in the future, at least that is for half of the album. I bought the B-sides album because I like their acoustic versions of the songs and I didn’t yet have the acoustic versions of the songs from the last album so I was actually gaining something from getting this album. I am a bit disappointed that the album did not come in a physical format though. I would have liked at least the option to get the album in a card sleeve from the bands web page or something. With that being said, there isn’t really any new music here for me, acoustic versions of songs that I have already heard and, because I got the box set which includes a special download, a bunch of B-sides that I already have digitally. For everyone else that doesn’t have the vinyl box set this will be a great addition to your Nada Surf collection with out having to spend an arm and a leg to get these B-side tracks.
 
That's it for now...


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