New Music: Akron/Family, Hot Snakes, Jab Mica Och El, Nicolay

Akron/Family - Gone Beyond - Meek Warrior (Young God 2006)


Akron/Family – Meek Warrior / Young God

The bi-polar freak folk quartet Akron/Family took a break during their relentless touring, well more so, fit a few recording dates in between shows, to put together what label-head and frequent collaborator Michael Gira calls a “special” album. With 7 songs the time in at about 30-minutes, “special” probably refers to an elongated EP featuring the Family’s usual two-sided indie-folk that will harmonize and swoon one second (see tracks 2-5 and 7) and skronk you out of your chair the next (see track 1 and 6). With the help of the amazing Chicago free-jazz percussionist Hamid Drake along with members of Do Make Say Think and Broken Social Scene, the Akron/Family continue to bring some of the most creative and surprising music to the recent freak-folk wave owing as much to Pharoah Sanders as it does to Brian Wilson. I would have to agree with Gira’s definition of Meek Warrior as a “special” album because it, as the Akron/Family has always done, defies classification and expectations with envious ease.




Hot Snakes - Plenty for All (live) - Thunder Down Under (Swami 2006)


Hot Snakes – Thunder Down Under / Swami

The surprise break-up of San Diego’s best rock outfit in as many years as I can remember, Hot Snakes was severely disappointing especially their incredible 3rd album Audit in Progress still ringing in our ears. As what may be a final closure for the energetic quartet, Thunder Down Under is a live album recorded in-studio at Australia’s JJJ Radio midway through their tour supporting Audit on May 10, 2005 not too long before announcing their breakout. The punk revivalists sound in top form, eagerly yelping through cuts from their 3 album catalogue, though concentrating on their latest. The recording is decent, with the dual electric guitars taking command over the drums and almost non-existent bass while Rick Froberg’s vocals find a nice mid-ground and are increasingly effective. Just like all Hot Snakes material, this is excellent and displays their ridiculously efficient live show. In 20 years, I have a feeling we will still be commenting on how awesome Hot Snakes was, live and recorded.





Jab Mica Och El - U.F.O. Tofu - ABC Hej Im Cola (Ache 2006)


Jab Mica Och El – ABC Hej I’m Cola / Ache

So next time you are looking for a CD to listen to while riding your Scooty Puff Junior over the sugary, multi-colored hills of Mars enjoying the playful dances of the little green Martians clad in bright orange spandex, racing the flying rainbowed seahorses to the third pineapple tree past kool-ade lake and basking among the giant tulips with a 64-ounce margarita as miniature orangutans cartwheel in complicated spirals all around you… I suggest the Danish duo Jab Mica Och El. The aptly titled ABC Hej I’m Cola is a microfractured joy of elastic instruments, bouncing blips and bobbing bloops meticulously programmed into structures that would make Frank Lloyd Wright proud. Like The Books on a mammoth sugar rush or the pop side of Mouse on Mars, Jab Mich Och El tweak and bend their instrumentation to its brink before letting it snap back to familiarity evoking infinite grins from the listener. ABC Hej I’m Cola is a fun, light-hearted listen whose musical complication is masked by its caffeinated playfulness.





Nicolay - I Am the Man feat Black Spade - Here (BBE 2006)


Nicolay – Here / BBE

Dutch producer Nicolay is an interesting study in the current state of hip-hop. The proficient multi-instrumentalist finds a niche in between the straight-forward, accessibly and club-ready tracks of mainstream producers and the creative, shape-shifting producers of the underground. His first proper solo outing, after the immense attention of his collaboration with Little Brother, The Foreign Exchange, is a primed and polished album that could break the mainstream if it featured popular guest artists. Instead, it features under-the-radar emcees like Black Spade, who is decent, but sounds a lot like a water-downed version of Black Thought. Nicolay’s tracks are creative but molded in the typical hip-hop structure; he brings his talents in perfecting within than attempting to push out the boundaries. Like The Foreign Exchange, it is well-produced and written, but too over-polished for the underground, but not bangin enough for the mainstream.

New Music: Tortoise, Adem, Junior Boys, Frequency

Tortoise - Madison Area - A Lazarus Taxon (Thrill Jockey 2006)


Adem - Something's Going to Come - Love and Other Planets (Domino 2006)


Junior Boys - Count Souvenirs - So This is Goodbye (Domino 2006)


Frequency - Take Refuge - Frequency (Thrill Jockey 2006)




Tortoise – A Lazarus Taxon / Thrill Jockey

In the late 60s, Miles Davis bravely crossed a clearly defined line infusing his wailing free-jazz with rock into the then unthinkable genre we now call fusion; in the early 90s (the heyday of pure grunge remember), Tortoise once again stepped across this line blending their textural post-rock with free jazz (not to mention drum n bass, Brazilian music of all kinds, ambient, dub, IDM, etc etc) into a genre dubbed fringe-rock. Evoking a similar wave as Miles, Tortoise somewhat reluctantly led the new breed of rock musicians specializing in a textural, challenging and hypnotic clash of rhythm and melody; a much needed cerebral escape from the predictable cock rock of the day. A Lazarus Taxon (the paleontological term for a reappearing species) is not an anthology, but more of an ode to the band’s ideal of never concluding with a finished product, that there were always more possibilities to be realized. Made up of rarities, remixes and compilation tracks, it is a 3-disc (and 1 DVD) ark of ambition, experimentation and wonderful creativity.



Adem – Love and Other Planets / Domino

Love and Other Planets is an immensely sexy album. Not the well-endowed, stage-pole performing sexy, but the lightly kissing the full length of the female body sexy, the lying close with your significant other on a brisk, complacent fall night with windows open and covers pulled way up sexy. Adem Ilhan has an amazing talent of patch working endearing and meandering folk songs with unconventional percussive patterns, burbling glockenspiels, teasing acoustic, textured synths and cooing samples. Co-mixed with Fridge bandmate Kieran Hebden (Four Tet), a welcomed, like-minded and frequent collaborator, Love picks up where Homesongs left off while letting Adem take another step closer to perfecting his pastoral, lovesick folk. His unobtrusive and instantly warming voice is still center-stage with lyrics dripping in optimistic humanism, but I constantly find myself losing his voice in the mix and embracing the song as a whole thanks to the inventive musical palette provided. Love is a wonderful and intimate record that is undeniably sexy, in the sensual sense.



Junior Boys – So This is Goodbye / Domino

The amazing electro-synth-pop of 2004’s ‘Last Exit’ from Ontario’s Junior Boys took a lot of people by surprise, including me. Owing as much to Sctritti Politti as it does Timbaland, Johnny Greenspan’s infectious dance-pop is as sexual as it is vulnerable… basically the antithesis of The Postal Service using the same set of materials. Picking up right where ‘Last Exit’ left off matching minimal techno with arty synth-pop and Greenspan’s endearing croon, the Junior Boys, now with sound engineer Matthew Didemus replacing former rhythmic architect Johnny Dark, evoke the best components of the 80s synth-pop hysteria all while laying down just enough cheese to make it endearing rather than embarrassing. The arrangements in rhythm and melody are top tier, especially the syths which bring back the same feeling that inspired neon lights, and Greenspan’s vocals are quickly become a force. This is an album that forces you to fall in love with it.



Frequency – Frequency / Thrill Jockey

Proving once again that the modern jazz scene is centered in the heart of Chicago is Frequency, a quartet of local jazz luminaries harking back to the late 60s/early 70s Impulse “spritiual jazz” releases of Pharoah Sanders, Alice Coltrane and Albert Ayler. Featuring the AACM co-president and flutist Nicole Mitchell (who is also the daughter of the Art Ensemble’s Roscoe Mitchell), percussionist and AACM alumnus Avreeayl Ra and 8 Bold Souls members Edward Wilkerson on tenor sax and contra bassist Harrison Bankhead, Frequency does not as much make atmospheric as environmental jazz (if you will) specializing in earthy tones and natural improvisation. Most fascinating, the quartet continually heads into the cacophonous realms of avant-garde, but always seems to pull back at the very last second, opting for a more contemplative affair. The musicianship and interaction is astonishing and, for a debut, Frequency sounds supremely aged and refined.

New Music: TV on the Radio, Mountaineer, Instrumental Quarter

TV on the Radio - Hours (El-P Remix) - Return to Cookie Mountain (Interscope US Edition 2006)


Mountaineer - A Town Called Ivanhoe - When the Air is Bright They Shine (Type 2006)


Instrumental Quarter - A Beautiful Shopping Day - Traffic (Sick Room 2006)



TV on the Radio – Return to Cookie Mountain / Interscope

With OK Calculator, TV on the Radio raised many a curious eyebrow with their 4-track antics, with Young Liars they emerged as an amazingly innovative band with infinite potential, with Desperate Youth, they began to realize their musical prowess with intriguing experimentation and finally, with Cookie Mountain, they blossom as the most inventive, interesting and indefinable band in quite possibly the entire music industry. In retrospect, the biggest void in early TotR was the restrictions set in by using a mechanical drum machine, but a void no more as Jaleel Bunton finally gives the band a human enough backbeat, whether it be in the style of marching bands or mile-a-minute prog, to complete the textural centrifuge already stirring between Adibimpe and Malone’s swirling vocals, Sitek’s embankment of sound and the barrage of instrumentation that encompasses each song. And to appease the delayed U.S. release, three bonus tracks that include a decisive remix of Hours by Def Jukie El-P and the amazing afro-pop influenced Things You Can Do.



Mountaineer – When the Air is Bright They Shine / Type

When the Air is Bright They Shine opens with delectable dub-inspired groove of melodica, lightly picked acoustic, a shallow cymbal ride and Henning Wandhoff’s hushed coos; just from these opening seconds, you know that you’re in for a treat. The Hamburg-based singer/songwriter who goes by the moniker Mountaineer decided to flesh out his sound after his well-received debut, Sunny Day. Collaborating with a new quartet of like-minded musicians, Wandhoff set out to achieve that hard to define pop aesthetic of late ‘60s, early ‘70s wispy folk records that subtly complicated a simple genre with outside influences. He does an amazing job embodying this spirit without flat out mimicking with his leftfield folksy pop songs crafted from meandering tropicalia, tweaked americana and quiet flares of southwestern sunspots. A hushed record of slyly complicated arrangements, if I had stumbled across a used unmarked vinyl copy of When the Air in some dingy record shop, it would quickly become my most cherished find.



Instrumental Quarter – Traffic Jam / Sick Room

Italy’s Instrumental Quarter, obviously an instrumental quartet (so much for a mysterious moniker), combines influences from the traditional music and mountainous backdrops of their hometown in Saluzzo with the experimental post-rock and urban sprawl of their second home in Chicago. Featuring three of the four members of the late 90s alternative pop/rock ground Kash, who teamed with Steve Albini for a 2001 release, IQ finds a comfortable niche between the acoustic guitar driven Pele, the meandering and dramatic Six Parts Seven and the liberal violin usage of the Dirty Three. Their most appealing aspect is the ability to accentuate straightforward rock arrangements with jazzy avant-garde and fusion experimentation without straying too much from either genre. Traffic Jam is a solid album from start to finish, but I doubt it will emerge from the shadows of the sensational Midwestern post-rock scene; nonetheless IQ puts together an enjoyable album of innovative instrumental warmth.

New Music: J Dilla, Pinback, Boom Pam

J Dilla - Won't Do - The Shining (BBE 2006)


Pinback - Avignon - Nautical Antiques (Ace Fu 2006)


Boom Pam - Wedding Song - Boom Pam (Essay 2006)


Boom Pam - Let Me Touch - Boom Pam (Essay 2006)



J Dilla – The Shining / BBE

The late J Dilla didn’t make beats; he crafted a central nervous system for a song, using back and break-beats as the spinal cord, lacing together melodic samples as interweaving nerves, agonizing over each second of awkward timing that his and the song’s brain became one in the same and he could sense every twitch of sound so much so that he would react as if it was his own motor output. For his second post-mortem album, following the exceptional instrumental mixtape Donuts, Dilla’s beats are fleshed out and rhymed over by some of his favorite and most used emcees and crooners. In the waning moments of his life, Dilla was still hard at work making this album from his hospital bed with the help of long-time collaborator Karriem Riggins, and though his energy was depleting, the music is as creative and potent as ever. Most of the guest artists bring their A-game, save the long lost Busta, and compliment Dilla’s beats fittingly. Hopefully Dilla mirrors Tupac in his after-death career with album after album of lost tapes and tributes, or at least as a hefty influence for the beat-makers to come.



Pinback – Nautical Antiques / Ace Fu

Pinback seemingly has been rising through the indie ranks since their delayed eponymous debut dropped in early 1999 unleashing their intriguing brand of angular, canonic and rhythmic indie-pop. Established by the core duo of Armistead Burwell Smith IV (3 Mile Pilot) and Rob Crow (The Ladies, Thingy, Heavy Vegetable, whatever else he can get his hands on), Pinback have made a living off bedroom and garage recording with a continually rotating cast of supporting characters to flesh out their melodic sound. In the wake of the acclaim brought on by the exceptional Summer in Abaddon, Ace Fu have compiled a collection of rare b-sides, European cuts, internet exclusives and unreleased tracks crafted between 1998-2001 to please hardcore fans and flesh out their catalogue. Most of the tracks are up to the quality of their full-length releases, save a few quiet plodders, and feature the duo in lo-fi environments with drum machines or some guy named Tom on the drums. This will be a pleasant surprise for fans, but will not keep the attention of passing inquiries who should be reaching for a full-length.



Boom Pam – Boom Pam / Essay

Don’t front… you know you’ve spent many a sleepless night staring at the ceiling trying to imagine what Dick Dale would have sounded like if he was originally from Tel Aviv rather than California. “Gosh…” you say to yourself, “what if Dick’s rambling surf guitar was trained in traditional klezmer music and backed by… I don’t know, a complimentary guitar player, maybe a tuba for a round brassy bass sound and why not some minimalist percussion to make it a quartet… I’ve always liked quartets more than trios.” Well sleep easy my like-minded friend! Because Tel Aviv’s Boom Pam does just that blending Mediterranean, Balkan and Greek styles with traditional Jewish melodies and gypsy circus music why not? With a Middle Eastern cult following already, Boom Pam is quickly gaining fans in Europe with America in the corner of their eye. With the popularity of bands like Devotchka and Beirut, that doesn’t seem so impossible.

New Music: Extra Golden, Cursive, Lee Baby Simms

Extra Golden - Ok-Oyot System - Ok-Oyot System (Thrill Jockey 2006)


Cursive - Dorothy Dreams of Tornados - Happy Hollow (Saddle Creek 2006)


Lee Baby Simms - Swimmer - Mystery Loves Company (Family Business 2006)



Extra Golden – Ok-Oyot System / Thrill Jockey

Quality cross-cultural collaborative endeavors like the one contained in the microscopic grooves of this CD are few and far between, so when an unassuming but immensely intriguing product like this one surfaces, you need to take notice. The four-piece band dubbed Extra Golden is made up of two pairs of musicians separated by 7000 miles of earth, water and culture, but when brought together in a musical context sound as if they grew up jamming in a garage with each other. Ian Eaglson (DC’s Golden), Alex Minoff (Golden, Weird War), Otieno Jagwasi and Onyango Wuod Omari (both of Kenya’s Orchestra Extra Solar Africa) team American boogie blues with Kenya’s popular guitar-heavy dance music, benga, for a groove-heavy album of amazingly toned, interweaving guitars dancing over a traditional benga beat and life-worn lyrics (Ok-oyot translates to “it’s not easy”) sung in both English and Luo. Recorded mostly in one afternoon in a crudely constructed Kenyan club, Ok-Oyot System is an once-in-a-lifetime album, especially singe Jagwasi passed away in May 2005.



Cursive – Happy Hollow / Saddle Creek

I’ll be honest, it’s hard to get used to Cursive minus cellist Gretta Cohn again… maybe because it now reminds me more of The Good Life, or that ‘The Ugly Organ’ was such a strong artistic expression that it really summed up what Cursive had been striving for since their inception in 1995 (which is no knock on the excellent ‘Domestica’). Whether you can accept it or not, the forgettable emo scene’s best product returns to their original line-up but with a whole trunkload of new musical toys. With Happy Hollow, the Omaha 4-piece sound like The Good Life with a more abrasive attitude fleshed out with plenty of horns and nods toward gospel and mutated blues. Kashner seems to have finally gotten over his relationship woes and now concentrates on bigger life concerns like religion and the unattainable American dreams. Like every Cursive album since Storms of Early Summer, this one sounds completely different but awkwardly familiar from the previous outings. It’s not immediately striking, but a quality album and seems a bit better with every listen.



Lee Baby Simms – Mystery Loves Company / Family Business

The one-man-studio-band known as Lee Baby Simms builds on his debut album of mysterious soundtracks to non-existent films with ‘Mystery Loves Company.’ Simms, who wrote, performed and recorded the entire album on his own (including all instrumentation) once again steamrolls down the path of shimmering instrumental tracks the would make the perfect background music to the closing minutes your next hazy loft party. Ambitious, but never overbearing, Simms finds influences in the great soundtrack composers like John Barry and Lalo Schifrin as well as artists like Ry Cooder and Calexico who have penchants for Latin and southwestern leanings. Most of the tracks are built around reverb-soaked electric guitar, sweltering keyboards and light drum loops, and he really excels during the more laid-back tracks. Simms is definitely on his way to being a solid composer; at the helm of an actual film, he could turn out to be the next Jon Brion.

New Music: The Mountain Goats, Broadcast, Pajo

The Mountain Goats - Woke Up New - Get Lonely (4AD 2006)



Broadcast - DDL - The Future Crayon (WARP 2006)


Pajo - Wrong Turn - 1968 (Drag City 2006)



In the future, expect more entries in this format previewing brand new albums. At first, I was looking to keep this seperate from my Music Director work for WLUW-FM Chicago, but that doesn't really make much sense seeing as I can give you insights into new music on a regular basis. So look forward to more posts from new albums along with the other theme based entries.


The Mountain Goats – Get Lonely / 4AD

Prolific songwriter John Darnielle returns with his 4th full-length since leaving the analog 4-track behind and stepping to the big stage with 4AD. Get Lonely finds Darnielle seemingly drained from the gloves-off autobiographical struggle that was The Sunset Tree, and in a much calmer, reflective mood… almost as if he is still lying spread-eagle on the boxing-ring floor exhausted and sporting a wicked black eye. Obviously, the hyper-literate lyrics are still center-stage, but the accompaniment is stripped way back, typically just Darnielle’s feisty acoustic and a radiant piano with additional appearances by cello, shuffling drums, vibraphone and even a few horns. Producer and studio-wizard Scott Solter does a good job matching the somber lyrical tones with an appropriate musical backdrop that is just as subtly distressing as Darnielle himself. Get Lonely is yet another fascinating clue into the enigmatic personality that envelopes every Darnielle release and will no doubt please fans of latter day Mountain Goats.



Broadcast – Future Crayon / WARP

Birmingham, England’s Broadcast has been lulling the ears of WARP-heads for nearly 10 years now with their fuzzy dream-pop and space-age lullabies. Future Crayon is a compilation of b-sides and rarities from their early days as a Stereolab mimicking quintet to the electro-fuzz drenched latter day albums with the line-up stripped down to the lush vocalist Trish Keenan and bassist turned studio wizard James Cargill. The album is daringly varied, collecting awkward instrumentals side-by-side with classic Broadcast dreamscapes, oft-requested live favorites, 7-inch b-sides and compilation tracks. This will be a welcomed addition for any Broadcast diehards and fleshes out the in-between album space in which the group continually evolved.




Pajo – 1968 / Drag City

To say David Pajo has been around the indie-rock block would be a gross understatement. Not only has he contributed to or been a member of Slint, Tortoise, Stereolab, Royal Trux, King Kong, the Palace Brothers, Zwan, the For Carnation and Squirrel Bait, he has recorded solo material under the monikers M is the Thirteenth, M, Aerial M, Papa M and now this is his second solo full-length under Pajo. The melancholy 1968 is pure Pajo as he recorded and played every instrument on the album. Inspired by the love poetry of Hafiz, a 14th century Iranian Muslim who memorized the Koran in 14 different ways, and apparently the highly creative Canadian death metal band Gorguts, though you would never be able to tell, Pajo arranges 10 songs of atmospheric indie-folk-rock using diverse elements that lie quietly just below the surface. For such an innovative mind, I would like to hear a bit more studio creativity, but the subtlety may be the most ingenious aspect to the album. Overall, this is an enjoyable listen that encompasses all of his past collaborations into a singer/songwriter format.

New Quality Hip-Hop

(don't click there for more details, click link below)

Darc Mind - Visions of a Blur - Symptomatic Of A Greater Ill (Anticon 2006)


Oh No - T. Biggums feat. Dudley Perkins and Georgia Anne Muldrow - Exodus into Unheard Rhythms (Stones Throw 2006)


Dr. Who Dat? - Brazilliant Thought - Beat Journey (Lex 2006)



The more I've gotten into, the less of enjoyed new releases in the genre. But in the last few weeks I've come across a number of new quality rap albums and it has rekindled my hope that the best for hip-hop is yet to come. Here are three that a worth picking up.


Darc Mind – Symptomatic of a Greater Ill / Anticon

Slated for a ’97 release date, emcee Kevroc and DJ/producer GM Webb D aka X-Ray finally finished their 2-year in the making hip-hop opus that embraced the 15-year existence of NYC rap right down to the rawest snare clap as well as keeping a steady eye on the future of the game, insisting on pushing the genre forward. Already jaded by the business end of the music industry, the duo known as Darc Mind took a career ending blow as their label, Loud(/RCA) folded and Symptomatic of a Greater Ill would seemingly never see the light of day. Nearly 10 years later, avant-hop crew Anticon steps in and finally gives the album a chance to see the light of day. Falling somewhere between the near-perfect Illmatic and Cannibal Ox’s The Cold Vein, Symptomatic teams Kevroc’s feisty baritone and top-tier phrasing with X-Ray’s simple but effective production and snare-steady beats. You have to wonder if the album would have had any influence on late-90s rap, but as it is, it’s certainly an eye-opening artifact in the evolution of NYC rap.


Oh No – Exodus into Unheard Rhythms / Stones Throw

By now, most everyone is aware of Oxnard, CA’s most prominent musical family, the Jackson’s (and no, not those Jackson’s). Heavily influenced by their soul-singing father Otis Jackson and jazz trumpeting uncle, Jon Faddis, Otis and Michael Jackson, who are now much better known as Madlib and Oh No respectively, are two of the most innovative hip-hop producers to date. For his second full-length, the younger Oh No clears away some of the cluttered haziness that plagued his promising debut to focus down on exceptional sampling and production with heavy guest emcee use. Granted full access to heralded composer/arranger Galt MacDermot’s gigantic back-catalogue by the man himself, Oh No passed out 70+ beats to his favorite emcees and then whittled down the responses to the best 19 for the album. From veterans like De La Soul’s Posdnous and DITC’s AG to unheralded underground rappers like Wordsworth and Frank N Dank, ‘Exodus’ gives a wide-range of styles all held down by Oh No’s tight production. For just his second full-length, this is a phenomenal and heavily enjoyable rap album.


Dr. Who Dat? – Beat Journey / Lex

So Dilla and Madlib are the uncontested champions of the beat conducting circuits no doubt, but being seated on top of the boom-bap hierarchy means constantly fending off eager producers who want to uncrown the demigods and tend to cop their style and flip it all their own (just like they had to do when Premiere and Pete Rock ruled the land). Dr. Who Dat?, Lex’s next superstar producer in grooming (following in the steps of Dangermouse), may be the most promising beatsmith to emerge in the last few years and with time could someday climb Mt. Olympus of hip-hop. Influenced by his extended stays in Philly, NYC and Houston, Jneiro Jarel flips beats with creativity and gusto easily servicing the title of a poor man’s Dilla. His instrumental songs tend to derive from jazz and Brazilian samples while doing a good of job of not becoming redundant by trailing off at the 3-minute mark. An extremely promising producer, Jarel is already receiving praise from the likes of Q Tip, Spinna and more while working on some new Pharcyde tracks.

Consciously Streaming #1

Jorge Dalto - Theme in Berlin - Chevere (United Artists 1976)


Steve Reich - IV. Full Orchestra - The Four Sections: Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Organ (1973)


Cougars - Close to Fast, Loud & Big - Nice, Nice (Go Kart 2003)


Consciously Streaming is a occasional stream-of-conscious commentary influenced by the shuffle of my full 60gig Ipod. The songs appear in parenthesis (artist - song - album) at the exact point they started as I was writing. No editing is done to the article.

Shuffle starts… (Jorge Dalto – Theme in Berlin – Chevere) graces my tiny speakers… I work in a small office in the southern most part of the Loop in Chicago among the bustling brokers and business people of the Board of Trades. Though I work in the same building, I have absolutely no idea what that entails except they have to wear these colorful mesh vests with large cards in their front breast pocket. I’m sure it’s pretty boring, but not having a vest really makes me want to be part of their clique. So on the 7th floor, in my cramped half-cubicle I watch them come racing in and out of the mysterious room across the hall with a sense of amazement… those damn vests are so awesome. They always return my glances (Pit Er Pat – Nick Those Prawns and Burn Them – Emergency) partly because I am staring at them with such awe and partly because an unidentified and eclectic stream of music swirls out of the room evoking the occasional intriguing glance but mostly just hollow looks that say “poor unambitious college grad, he’s too wrapped up in his music to find a real job like me and my hot broker self.” (Sonny Boy Williamson – Good Morning, School Girl – Worried Life Blues). And to that I say “pshhthh” with emphasis on the psh. I spend just about every waking hour listening, researching, writing, thinking about and loving music; you leave your job after 8 hours of 5 days of week and leave most every thought about it with your precious vests hung on the back of your desk chair. My music follows me everywhere commanding every second of my attention. Now who’s unambitious. (The Coup – Head (of State) – Pick a Bigger Weapon) One of the three co-workers that work in my unassuming office begins to giggle at Boots Riley’s chorus “Bush and Hussain together in bed giving each other head…” mostly because I have the edited version (a product of working in independent broadcast radio, damn FCC) and it’s more a reversed slur than anything. (Medeski, Martin & Wood – Note Bleu – The Dropper) Leave it to Boots, who I happily experienced performing the Wicker Park Street Festival a couple weeks ago though I did not care too much for his rap-rock tendencies, to combine humor, politics and feel good hip-hop jams. I’m curious why the neu-hippy-jam band crowd embraced MMW so much but never seemed to explore their free jazz-funk roots; their following turned me off from the band for a while, even though I enjoyed their music… that’s weak but a part of life. (Steve Reich – Full Orchestra – The Four Sections: Music for Mallet Instruments…) Yes! I just got the Reich via Seattle Public Library care of my west coast friend, and it is something that I have been looking forward to for a while. I’m very big into the more textured, laid-back instrumental bands like The Dylan Group, HiM and Four Tet among many others that are so obviously influenced by Reich and his amazingly progressive classical compositions, and I make it a point to always dig up a favorite band’s influences because I should obviously like them as well. This album, as well as Music for 18 Musicians did not let me down one bit. I am curious if my acceptance for classical music comes from listening to it every night at dinner growing up or that I recorded so much of it in college. It almost seems like a lost art these days. (Cougars – Close to Fast, Loud & Big – Nice, Nice). On the complete opposite side of the spectrum is the large and raucous rock collective that is Chicago’s Cougars. 2003’s Nice, Nice was one of my favorite albums that year and it still is a wonderful listen every time flypod shuffle throws it into the mix. So beautifully crunchy and abrasive, but the melodic yelps of horns always keep it grounded… it’s everything skacore wanted to be but was not ballsy enough to achieve. (Cody Chesnutt – If We Don’t Disagree – The Headphone Masterpiece) Whatever happened to Cody? He was everywhere in 2002, then completely fell off… maybe The Headphone Masterpiece was too deliciously weird for The Strokes clique that embraced him for his retro Sly Stone look. It’s a shame, his off-the-wall humor and sloppy soul-rock was truly and individual voice and a DIY success if you ask me. It’s Monday, I need sleep and still have 3 hours of work left… oh shit! That guy has a bright green vest! No fair.

Radiodread

Easy Star All-Stars - Let Down feat Toots & The Maytals - Radiodread (Easy Star 2006)


Easy Star All-Stars - Exit Music (for a Dub) - Radiodread (Easy Star 2006)


When I walked into my office yesterday there was a cd place in front of my computer, obviously in an attempt to grab my attention. My office is covered with stacks of cds that I will never get around to even previewing due to sheer volume and my limited hours, so the album artwork is a huge selling point for me. I sit down, running a bit late and eager to get through my ‘to do’ list before my office hours are up, quickly glance at the cover which looks like any forgettable modern reggae/dancehall cd (it’s sad how little decent reggae is made today) with ‘Radiodread’ in bold white letters, shrug it off and toss it into one of the many stacks of cds I may or may not get to at any time in the future. I proceed along checking my email and getting organized before beginning the hour or two long process of going through the day’s mail, and then it hits me… Radiodread? As in Radiohead? I quickly relocate the disc and give it a closer look: “A track-for-track reggae re-imagining of Radiohead’s OK Computer that has received Radiohead’s blessing.” Gasp… double gasp! Reggae and Radiohead? Could two of my beloved musical interests be somehow molded into one album of aural splendor? Never… must be kitsch. But wait! Toots & The Maytals??? The Meditations??? Morgan Heritage??? Horace Andy??? These aren’t no-name reggae clones trying anything for exposure; these are big, legendary names of the genre. Seconds later the disc is deplasticed, popped open and flipped into the cd player and the electric guitar splatter of Airbag is being played over the upstrummed familiarness of a reggae backing track.

This could be easily a recipe for disaster… and in actuality, if this is not a complete disaster (track #3 is pretty damned disastrous), it should be genuinely heralded for creativity and bravado. Crossing-over something a band like Radiohead who makes their living on experimentation into a genre that thrives on tradition is not something that can be easily accomplished, but the Easy Star All-Stars, aka Michael G. and Tiklah, do so with confidence and grace. The NYC production duo with the help of their mostly legendary friends (since when was Citizen Cope a reggae artist?) are able to give both sides of the equation respect without overstepping either side, which is a success in itself. Now, there are a few missteps along the way, like the almost unlistenable ‘Subterranean Homesick Alien’ featuring Junior Jazz, but for the most part, this is a solid, well put together album. I’m not sure if the credit should be given to the production talents and imaginations of the Easy Stars and their friends or to Radiohead for creating such amazing music that it can transcend genres with such ease (not to mention the infinite respect they deserve for brining truly challenging music to the mass, mainstream audience who typically like their music spoon-fed in mouthfuls of redundant rip-offs). I’m going to give a quick track-by-track to give you an idea of what to expect… which of course is hours of guilty-pleasure and fun.

1. Airbag feat. Horace Andy – Teaming the skittering drums and electric guitar of the original with the typical roots reggae backdrop and dub echoes, Airbag is a fitting introduction. Tag on the inclusion of one of Jamaica’s most beloved vocalists, Horace Andy, and you will be hooked from the outset (which is a good thing, since it dips a bit before the strong second half).

2. Paranoid Android feat. Kristy Rock – Not surprisingly the vocal talents of Kristy Rock, a female singer which I have no background info on, would come closest to Yorke’s actual feminine croon, though without his individualisms. It begins to falter a bit when she attempts the urgent vocals halfway through the song, but quickly regains momentum with the horn interchange. From there it settles into an enjoyable haze of Kristy’s echoing voice and rootsy percussion before the horns once again steel the spotlight (a motif that will run throughout the disc).

3. Subterranean Homesick Alien feat. Junior Jazz – I have no idea who Junior Jazz is, but he certainly doesn’t sound like a Reggae vocalist, more adult contemporary than anything. Stripped of the vocals, this track would be a very cool mixture of dubbed percussion and dancing melodica; but alas the vocals are front-and-center, making it the worst cut, and essentially a mandatory skip.

4. Exit Music (For a Film) feat. Sugar Minott – The dancehall pioneer Sugar Minott gives a soulful performance of OK Computers most emotional track with much success. Easy Star concocts a quality dub of the music, which stands very well on it’s own (see track #13), but Minott’s performance is definitely worth a listen.

5. Let Down feat. Toots & The Maytals – Holy balls, if this doesn’t sell you, then take your boring ass out of my sight, because I want nothing to do with you. Rocksteady’s finest transform the somewhat melancholy Let Down into a bouncy, 2nd wave ska track that sounds like it belongs on their greatest hits album. Add in the fine trombone and sax solos of the bridge and Toots unmistakable Jamaican-gospel voice, and you have a modern classic… ridiculous.

6. Karma Police feat. Citizen Cope – This is a bit of a mystery to me… Citizen Cope? What does he have to do with reggae? The mainstream darling/flop (who probably flopped because he was a mainstream darling; he could have been amazing backed by a creative system like Okay Player or someone similar). To his credit, Greenwood does a decent job of the track (more of a straight cover than re-imagining), but, to me at least, it feels out of place.

7. Fitter Happier feat. Menny Mare – I’m happy they included this track, which features a strong Jamaican voice with the melody faintly played in the background hidden behind simmering electronics and almost a drum march. This could have been easily left off, and it should be a credit to Easy Star’s commitment to truly recreating the album.

8. Electioneering feat. Morgan Heritage – The contemporary reggae collective produce what is probably the second best track on the disc, though it is a heated race. The various voices from Heritage give the song a rebirth into what is essentially an anthem. The musical backdrop is a bit overproduced, but what in contemporary reggae is not?

9. Climbing Up the Walls feat. Tamar-kali – I’m torn on this track; it’s definitely an interesting take on the song, but it seems to lack the experimentation in the first half to really make it stand out. The androgynous vocals of Tamar-kali do a good job of mimicking Yorke’s, but are a bit boring. The song takes off during the second half when the horns weave and skronk as if Ornette Coleman got a hold of them, but I’m not sure if it’s enough to carry the entire track.

10. No Surprises feat. The Meditations – Now this is what an album like this is made for; a re-imagining that turns the song in a completely different direction. The earthy roots reggae trio are able to embrace the original emotion, and with their thick accents and creative sampling, make the track sound like it was a late 70s political statement. A very cool and simple track.

11. Lucky feat. Frankie Paul – The Jamaican Stevie Wonder, Frankie Paul, does a wonderful job with this track, adding a heavy dose of rasta soul to Lucky, succeeding in the same way The Meditations did. The song takes an anthemic turn, again utilizing creative sampling and typical roots reggae rhythm, flipping the song into new, more soulful territory.

12. The Tourist feat. Israel Vibration – The long-lived reggae trio, Israel Vibration, take a meditative stand on The Tourist, letting the song evolve in their own laid-back style. The electric guitar echoes in the background, as a strong rhythm section underpins the calmed vocals. A proper conclusion.

13. & 14. Exit Music (for a Dub) & An Airbag Saved My Dub – These two bonus dub tracks are spectacular in their own right, and at some points eclipse a majority of the main section’s songs. This is further proof of Easy Star’s production skills and my theory that everything sounds better in a dub.

Shufflings #3

Shufflings is a series in which I select the first 3 songs that appear on my randomly selected Party Shuffle and write about them.

Tito Puente & His Latin Ensemble - Guajira for Cal - Sensacion (Concord Picante 1987)


Manu Dibango - New Bell - Giles Peterson in Africa (Ether 2005)


Leroy Hutson - Cool Out - Hutson (Curtom 1975)


Tito Puente & His Latin Ensemble – Guajira for Cal – Sensacion (Concord Picante 1987)

How can you not love Tito Puente? The flamboyant and seemingly personable timbale master was a thing of beauty when in the public spotlight, where he always wore a large, infectious smile and eyes the size of Puerto Rico, the island of his descent. The Spanish Harlem staple was a prodigy on Latin percussion, including the aforementioned timbales as well as being remarkably skilled with the congas and bongos, not to mention being a prodigious vibraphonist and saxophonist. This song, from the amazing 1987 album, Sensacion, is the perfect example of Puente’s vibraphone skills, and the way he used them almost lyrically over his deceptively simple arrangements. Guajira is a style of Cuban folk music from the 17 & 1800s, which focuses on the lyrics, hence Puente’s vibraphone style. Cal is referring to Cal Tjader, the foremost non-Latino Latin Jazz band leader, and Puente contemporary and friend, who died a few years prior to this album. Sensacion is a prime example of the amazing Afro-Cuban jazz Puente was producing in the 80s, a decade in which jazz had gone the way of overproduction and post-fusion, pre-smooth nonsense.

Manu Dibango – New Bell – Giles Peterson in Africa (Ether 2005)

During the 60s and 70s, Africa had a slew of prodigious saxophone players largely thanks to Fela Kuti’s induction of jazz with traditional African music, as well as the sax being a key figure in funk which took the continent by storm after James Brown planted the seed. None of which gained quite the following that Cameroon’s Manu Dibango did though, who established himself throughout Africa as well as France, Belgium and Jamaica where he lived and performed. Dibango’s best asset was his ability to adopt to any genre he attempted, which resulted in his collaborations with artists as diverse as Kuti, Don Cherry, the Fania All-Stars, Sly Dunbar and even English rapper MC Mello as he ventured into early 90s hip-hop. This track from the late 80s previews his later move into contemporary rap and dance as his still potent sax dance over African rhythms that seem primed for the club. It can be found on some African dance compilations as well as the wonderful Giles Peterson in Africa comp.

Leroy Hutson – Cool Out – Hutson (Curtom 1975)

Leroy Hutson never became a household name like two of his good friends and collaborators, his Howard University roommate Donny Hathaway and Curtis Mayfield, whom he would later replace as the leader singer of The Impressions when Mayfield went solo. The soul producer could do it all, including singing, songwriting and a formidable piano player, but always seemed to remain under the radar. His songwriting career was launched after co-writing the amazing Hathaway single ‘The Ghetto,’ and became a collaborator with the similar-minded Mayfield, even following in his footsteps by taking later leavin The Impression and going solo with Mayfield’s label Curtom backing him. More of a cult-artist, Hutson penned soul music similar to Hathaway and Mayfield, but always opted for more straight-ahead love songs rather than turning to politics and social commentary. Cool Out is a typical smooth-soul instrumental that you can expect from Hutson, which is quality, but lacks individualism, and can be found on his 1975 solo full-length, Hutson, as well as Zero 7’s 2002 contribution to the AnotherLateNight series.

Dream Evokers

Nobody & Mystic Chords of Memory - Decisions, Decisions - Tree Colored See (Mush 2006)


Of Montreal - Lysergic Bliss - Satanic Panic in the Attic (Polyvinyl 2004)


All Night Radio - Sky Bicycle (You've Been Ringing) - Stereo Spirit Frequency (Sub Pop 2004)


It’s hot here in Chicago. It’s very, very hot. Unbearably hot, and I don’t have air conditioning. While I can’t be completely sure, I’m pretty sure the heat is fucking with me at night and I am having extremely ridiculous, vivid dreams. This is really nothing new, because my imagination seems to be pretty active and my dreams are entertaining to say the least; but rarely am I having 6 of these a night, which is exactly what’s happening. According to most theories, we have dozens of dreams a night, but remember only the ones that occur immediately before we awake. So the fact that I wake up every two hours in a pool of sweat (from the heat not the dreams) has got to be the reason for my nightly metaphysical playhouse. I can’t really complain though because the majority of the time I wake up laughing or shaking my head at the ridiculousness my imagination just unleashed on me. I have made it a habit lately of listening to a variety of pop and psychedelic music before I go to sleep to instigate this further and have had a significant amount of success, so I’ll give you a head’s up on what I have been using. A long, uninterrupted night of dreamless sleep is pretty appealing at this point, but with out a.c. I’m stuck eagerly awaiting the crisp, cool fall.

Nobody & Mystic Chords of Memory – Tree Colored See / Mush

As far as collaborations are concerned, the pairing of Elvin Estella aka Nobody, beat-driven psychedelia producer/DJ and typical Guillermo Scott Herren (Prefuse 73) touring mate/collaborator, and Mystic Chords of Memory, bedroom indie-pop duo, Chris Gunst (Beachwood Sparks) and Jen Cohen (the Aislers Set), is about intriguing as it gets. As their repertoires predict, the resulting sound is a mix of late 60s psychedelia, subtle, fractured beats, sunny folk-rock and hushed bedroom pop… what else could you ask for? Nobody paints colorful backdrops using his steady drum patterns and hazy samples while Gunst and Cohen add their respected musicianship and wistful vocals. The album is sure to swivel, bob or relax the heads of stoners, indie-hoppers and hipsters alike.

Of Montreal – Satanic Panic in the Attic / Polyvinyl

Kevin Barnes may make the most whimsical and fun-loving pop music today. The main man behind Athens, GA’s Of Montreal writes schizophrenic and freewheeling psychedelic pop songs with his band of merry men (and women) with ambitious and appreciation for everything sunshine pop can be. A product of Elephant 6’s second wave, Barnes hit his stride with Satanic Panic in the Attic, crafting infectious chamber-psych that reaches with great effort at each and every moment. Just about every song is a burst of effervescing colors and melodies that mirror Roman candle explosions. He is able to span numerous genres ranging from Afro-pop to acoustic singer/songwriter with ease and precision, but in a manner of cohesiveness. If listening to this album doesn’t evoke smiles or whimsical daydreams, then you have no soul.

All Night Radio – Spirit Stereo Frequency / Sub Pop

The appropriately named (especially for this topic) duo of former Beachwood Sparks members Dave Scher and Jimi Hey concoct maybe the best late-night music in the current psych-pop scene. Their shape-shifting sound shuffles in and out of songs with the use of seemingly archaic recording equipment and effects along with a trunkload of springy instruments. Scher and Hey’s pop sensibilities often prevail even in the more noisy section of the album, evoking acid dream backlashes, stupefied smiles and unrhythmic hippy dancing. Overall, it is an incredibly rewarding listen that should only be experienced in the dead of night; extraneous drugs are not required, but are recommended.