I wrote about 2012 video games over at Giant Bomb.
Their blog system is easier to use, and they have a picture library and stuff.
Here is a link to it.
12/30/12
12/29/12
album of the week: 12.4
Weeeeeeeeee!!!
(2012)
why you'll love it: fast and unpredictable technopop that never lets up
why you'll hate it: sometimes too much pop, shit's for babies
In an ironic twist of fate, I now find myself confronted by the limits of my taste at the hands of Polysics. Traditionally, they've been a band I cite when complaining people are too uptight about music, and only prefer the overdrive when it's their genre. "XCT" is my forever go-to jam, I've wanted more "Kaja-Kaja-Goo" from the day I first heard it, and even get this smug "punking the punkers" satisfaction out of their overdrive pop songs like "Catch on Everywhere". But I think "Weeeeeeeeee!!!" is where I draw the line. Not the album as a whole, or even the title track as a whole, but that phrase itself. Has any adult said "Weeee" without irony? The first thing I think of is Anakin Skywalker saying it, and being compared to the Star Wars prequels is DEFINITELY not a good thing.
So while I play out this internal struggle with my taste in music, and ponder if admitting to enjoying it means I don't have a fully formed brain; Polysics is firing away at what is no doubt their wildest album since National P (2003). The band has seemed to complete its assimilation with the sequencer, since their keyboardist left in 2010. The songs are WAY faster than they've been on the last two releases, as well as a lot of different electronic sounds at different tones and modulations.
Another thing I love that has come with the new era of Polysics is that they are generally a tighter band now. They mess with complicated interplay between the instruments, lots of well trained stop-and-start sequences, choruses that come out of nowhere, and spotlight moments for every member of the band. Becoming more technically proficient is something I've been hoping to see out of the band for almost half a decade now. It may be the sequencer that forced them to do it, but regardless, they've finally conquered that last piece of uncharted territory, in my opinion.
Now that Polysics has done everything I've ever wanted them to, maybe I shouldn't bitch so much about "Weeeeeeeeee!!!" It's just that… god dammit, ok. There are songs on here like the title track and "Round The World" that are amazing, but have awful choruses that almost ruin the songs for me. It wouldn't bother me so much if this album wasn't so expressive and crazy. Ten years go, the way Polysics did crazy was in this abrasive "BACK OFF, THIS SHIT IS DANGEROUS" way. Polysics still does a lot of mental stuff, but the edges are all smoothed. It's more of a "Hey, come be crazy with us, it's fun!" sort of thing. Stuff like "Weeeeeeeeee!!!" and "la-la-lala" choruses just wouldn't fly back then. It was total nonsense like "PippikkippippiP" and whatever the hell this is.
Now I feel self conscious again, because I'm totally being that whiny fan who only complains "they were better before" without realizing the awesome things in front of me. "Sparking Water" is a totally mental intro. Their best since "Watson". "Ice Tights, Mike" BLAZES! "Distortion" should have been this album's lead single. It's adventurous and fun. "Why" is a jam and a half, and really shows off how creative they've become with performing around sequencers. "Lightning Express" is a type of song they've been doing a while now, but this is one of the better attempts. "Everybody Say No" sounded tepid as a single, but after all the madness, it feels refreshing in the second half of this album; much like "LED" and "Cars" on National P.
ahhhhh, National P, how I wish there were more albums like you. Polysics is a tighter band now; they're still coming up with fresh material, and anyone hearing them for the first time will still be shocked, yet here I am, pining for the past. Thing is, I wouldn't be if this album wasn't so good. The high-energy of this album came so close to that bygone era of sheer lunacy, that I bummed myself out. This isn't a band that stays still. They move on and find new ways to offend the senses. So, I'll take the trolling in stride this time, but secretly hope that on the next album, their antics won't sound as childish.
12/21/12
album of the week: 12.3
Grace/Confusion
(2012)
why you'll love it: Lots of captivating grooves, like if Ratatat was a dream pop band
why you'll hate it: Too much downtime in songs, lacks the tightness and urgency of pervious works
If you need a smooth chillax album to keep you mind of holiday stress, just pump Memory Tapes straight into your bloodstream. This third release from the Jersey/PA area indie-trance artist goes down a slightly different path than previous albums. Grace/Confusion stays true to the title by being both his most euphoric and ambient release yet; but at random times, will with these tense stinging synth-splosions.
At quiet moments, the songs are foggy and abstract. Almost coma-like. Then out of nowhere, almost in every song, come these sharp blows. It's like a war raging on inside your own subconscious. Although the whole thing is a bit too vague to get a real grip of what the point of it all is. The vocals are buried in the mix, and what can be made out don't reveal a whole lot. The "explosion" parts I refer to are still in line with the kind of groove Memory Tapes has. They aren't abrasive at all, just chaotic by comparison.
I like that I am able to discern every Memory Tapes album easily. The toolset and pace is usually the same, but the mood on each album is very different. It takes a lot of skill to have such control of subtleties. This is still a very easy on the ears experience. I like the sounds it makes. There are a lot of crazy effects, but none that are abrasive and distracting. It's good background music. I think it has a lot more ambition and color than last year's release, Player Piano.
I wish it didn't feel as aloof though. The downtime ambient parts don't have anything interesting going on in them. It's easy to drift away while this album is on, only to be brought back when a song kicks in. Then you are left going "woah, what - is this the same song? Oh hey it isn't." I think all of the songs here could have been tightened up to be a minute shorter. Then again, the aimless wandering could be the whole brilliant point of this thing. Worth a listen on a long drive.
album of the week: 12.2
The Odds
(2012)
why you'll love it: Unique style that is both comforting and stimulating.
why you'll hate it: Too samey-samey. The overly political lyrics aren't very memorable
No, you see, I was drawing a comparison. My review this week is late because now you waited longer just to get the same thing you've gotten before. The Evens are a DC punk duo, most notable for featuring Ian Mackaye (of Minor Threat and Fugazi). Their coffeehouse lo-volume approach is something that really sticks out. Their ability to create something rousing and invigorating without actually screaming or using distortion is something special. Maybe a six year gap between this and the last Evens album is a good thing, because it made me kinda forget all their songs sound the same.
Hey, I'm used to a band doing the same thing every album. I get a new Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra album every year and love it. Also, The Evens do something only they do, so I'm not gonna hold it against them. Just saying, The Evens in a nutshell is: serious social-economical lyrics (most seem to go over my head), and this really cool mellow sound that sounds like a poetry slam meets Spaghetti Western. This is The Odds, and every other Evens album that preceded it.
I like this album quite a bit. Most of the songs wash over me as if they are all one big song, but I enjoy the flow and pace of it all, and even catch myself bobbing along to it when not paying attention. There is a driving force that only lets up in order to set in place another big moment. The instrumental, "Wonder Why" is my favorite on here. I don't know if that is a bad thing thing it entirely dismisses the political message of the band, but clearly the sound is the big thing about this duo. What they do with such a simple set up is a real triumph.
12/8/12
album of the week: 12.1
Koi No Yokan
(2012)
why you'll love it: Strong second half, "Tempest" is one of their best songs
why you'll hate it: dull and uninspired first half. No evolution.
The usually on fire Deftones run warm on yet another 2012 release that I had high hopes for. This isn't to say this band has forgotten how to make eye-widening epic songs. It just starts off on the wrong foot. There seems to be two perceptions of what Deftones is. Many people who are only somewhat familiar with the group see them as a holdover from the laughable nu-metal scene of the late 90's. I see them as an intelligent group of musicians that use metal and hardcore influences with shoegaze and ambience to create big emotionally driven songs.
Songs on this album like "Swerve CIty" and "Poltergeist" are an example of that first perception. They're little more than a generic heavy riff; with dull sound and fury signifying nothing. "Romantic Dreams" and "Entombed" sound more like the "secret love song band" that I see them as, but with some eye-rolling clichéd and on-the-nose lyrics that sour the whole deal. Of the first half of the album, "Leathers" is the only song I like, and even that feels a bit like the band is just going through the motions.
"Graphic Nature" is where Koi No Yokan truly begins for me. It's got that strange off-kilter alternative riff and time signature that I loved in songs off their 2003 self-titled album; and the strange and somewhat dangerous metaphors for love and sex found in the album that put them on the map, White Pony (2000). Followed immediately by that is one of my favorite songs of the year, "Tempest". This right here is Deftones at their best. They use their strengths to build, and suppress, until they deliver a swell that cracks the heavens and makes you want to raise your arms into the air as if possessed.
Songs just like "Tempest" are what populated my favorite Deftones album, Saturday Night Wrist (2006). After the mostly concrete hardened Diamond Eyes (2010), I was really expecting the band to return to a more euphoric sound. Instead, Koi No Yokan kinda feels neither here nor there. The second (good) half of this album only seems to test the waters that Saturday Night Wrist dove right into. The last four songs are good. I enjoy "Rosemary" most of all, and the humble closer "What Happened To You?" It's just not as jaw-dropping and it all once was. Maybe Chino's work with ††† has drank Deftones' milkshake, as far as experimental electronic and ambiance goes.
Forgiving the rough start, Deftones is still a band that must be given a chance by everyone. A true example of "Don't judge a book by its cover." Even when the songs are a bit lackluster, the compositions are admirable. And Chino's voice, still after all these years, is a marvel. To use every last molecule of air in your body pouring out a yell, then sound utterly angelic in the next minute… I just don't know how he does it. Even with a middle of the road album, that is what I keep coming back for. And I'm still glad they do it, after all their hardships. Hey, if you don't buy this album, maybe leave a holiday donation for Chi Cheng or something?
12/4/12
album of the week: 11.4
Your Friend, The Atom
(2012)
why you'll love it: hectic bounce off the wall fun, with great lyrics
why you'll hate it: The band struggles outside of their own niche
With bias and hype tampered as much as possible, I still can say that Your Friend, The Atom is one of this year's best albums. Probably the only release this year to live up to its hype. For as high-powered and spastic We Are The Physics may sound in performance, their work output is slower than a 56k modem. Their 2008 "debut" LP (We Are The Physics Are OK At Music) was mostly comprised of singles from the two preceding years; and there's hardly been anything since. In comparison, their clones in the far-east, Polysics, have released two EPs and two albums in the very same four year span; and in the midst of a major lineup change!
Comparisons to other new wave / post punk bands seems to be the heaviest burden this band carries. With Your Friend, The Atom finally out of cryostasis, We Are The Physics hasn't exactly stepped out of Polysics' shadow, the sun has just changed position. WATP has maintained its high volume, head exploding spaz rock, where Polysics has fallen further down the technopop rabbit hole.
One shadow they have stepped out of is Devo's. Now let me preface this by saying I really enjoyed Devo's reunion album in 2010, Something For Everybody. It wasn't amazing, but was good (and even that exceeded my expectations). Songs on this LP, though, like "Dildonics" and "All My Friends Are Jpegs" are volatile concoctions of crudeness, counter-culture, and societal relevance that Gerald Casale WISHES he could write today.
And finally, a shadow they have appeared to step further into with this release is one of the not-so-well-known spazoids from the 80's, Cardiacs. Of course their UK accents only make comparisons more obvious, but there is no doubt these songs are erratic and unpredictable from moment to moment, just like when Cardiacs were in their prime. "Cluedo" and "(e.g. Apollo 11)" are delightfully mad, and two of the best on here.
They may be stuck with em, but at least it's good company to be in; and slowly, We Are The Physics are carving out their own new-wave punk niche. Ping-ponging harmonies, singing in rounds, and unpredictable cadences almost seem iconic to them by now. The aggressive chanting and clapping in "Napoleon Loves Josaphine" and "Goran Ivanisavic" almost sound like what would happen if football hooligans did a ton of blow and raided an arcade. And it isn't just frantic yelps and stutters. WATP add a little bit more studio synthesizers into the mix, as well as a tiny bit of vocoding, and even at one point… chowing down on a bag of crisps?
Once the comparison game runs thin, this is still a TOTALLY FUN album, with little to slow it down. They step out of their comfort zone a bit, and it shows in "And So Now We're Wrestling With The Body Politic" and "Olivia Newton Bomb", but when they are doing what they do best, nobody can touch them. I haven't heard the new Polysics yet, and Man or Astro-Man? has a release next year; but for the first time, it feels like those bands have a challenge to meet, rather than the other way around.
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