Currently Listening To...

[Inseu]

篠原ともえ クルクルミラクル

Ponponpon from 1996?

edited old post by mistake...

[Superficial Fan]

Listening to Boris's 2011 Heavy Rocks and liking it more than I did before, but I think that's mostly because of the mood I'm in. I'm not exactly in a bad or angry mood, but a little tired this morning and at the same time just feeling like LET'S GO!!! About life, about everything.

[deadgrandma]

I find Heavy Rocks 2011 has 3 MASSIVE songs that I love that really outshadow the rest: Riot Sugar, Missing Pieces and Aileron. This seems to be the case with all the 2011 albums actually.

Anyway, the Solomon boxset has shipped, can't wait to hear the 4th disc of new/unreleased drone awesomeness. (And finally hear Solomon series as a non-shitty vinyl rip)

[Inseu]

Suede's Bloodsports turns out to be a pile of mediocre cliches. Took them a decade to come up with it.

[Inseu]

ミラーボールズ／夜の仔

What do you guys think about this band?

[Tokyo Jihad]

I dig it. Reminds me of Woods or Quilt with their earthy, bonfire feels.

Sorry for the EMF-vacation everybody. I'll try to get back to threadshitting at my usual clip. I'm a bit rusty at coming up with post topics (hrmm.. Uki or Hirama?...) but I came up with something vaguely passable in one of my favorite aspects to 2013 music so far. 2013 has been a great year for comebacks, a quarter in. My Bloody Valentine, The Knife, Binary Star, but my favorite comeback has been that of the "chick-rock" genre.

In recent years, female singer-songwriters have been leaning on soft, folky, feminine sounds. Not to say the scene was bereft of things worth listening to, but much of it felt so passive. A month or two ago we were driving and Lisa Loeb's "Stay" came on the radio. After I slipped in to my Lilith Fair groove, I turned to my then-fiance and noted, "Why don't they make music like this anymore?" Sure the concrete sounds are still prevalent, but "Stay" is so earnest and direct in comparison to much of what I heard in recent years.

In early 2013, that coffee-shop-Lilith-Fair-singer-songwriter aesthetic made a resurgence with three albums worth checking out.

The first of which is Torres' self titled debut. Torres (Mackenzie Scott) is the smokiest and most textured of the three artists. I sat with this album for weeks as it developed and bloomed in my head. She comes across like a darker, heavier Beth Orton. Vocally, they are pretty similar with their reedy hushed vocals that carries a gallon of character with each line. Early in the record is the mega single "Honey" which, while delicious is a bit of a misdirection for the rest of the album. While "Honey" is bouncy, ear grabbing, and rises and falls time and again, the rest of the album is very moody and climaxes much more subtly than "Honey." Like the song, "Chains" intensifies as Scott's teeth grind in front of every word rather than any musical explosion. The tender "Don't Run Away, Emilie" lends itself so reservedly, it really struck me weeks later, and like a brick. Scott shifts from ache and listlessness to nostalgia and yearning so smoothly and elegantly, Emilie is an outstanding track. Love this record.


Lady Lamb and the Beekeeper is the next stage name for a single female singer-songwriter (this time, Aly Spaltro.) Lady Lamb has a similar bluesy sound to Torres that can reach great sonic heights, but more often aims for emotion than decibels. The most striking thing about Spaltro's music on her debut, Ripely Pine, which can be a hurtle for some, is that her songs are very simple, with maybe one or two (tops) vocal melodies throughout the whole song --mantras practically. These melodies get repeated over and over, but each time they grow and pick up steam. Sometimes I get lost and forget how the song lead up to such points. Each song has it's own character and feeling which is impressive for a (studio) debut (even considering Lady Lamb and the Beekeeper has existed as a project for a few years now.) The centerpiece of the album, "You are the Apple" is simply one of the best recordings of the year. Though genre-wise it couldn't be further, it's climax feels reminds me so much of the striking climax in La Dispute's 2011 song "King Park". Though, Spaltro is much more graceful and exciting. "I still need your teeth 'round my organs" is so masterfully evocative, yet you can't quite wrap your head around the line concretely. (At least I can't.)


Waxahatchee is the easiest of the three artists in this post. She (Katie Crutchfield) is also the one who seems to have won the hype game, and also the most "Lisa Loeb"ish. The focus in her sophomore record Cerulean Salt is catchy and punchy. Crutchfield's songs are more narrative focused as well. "Peace and Quiet" sounds like it came straight from a 1996 radio. In a way, this is maybe the most in the spirit of that "chick rock" sound I get so nostalgic for.


Damn work, keeps me from typing these long walls of texts lately

[deadgrandma]

I like the first one, it sounds like oldschool PJ Harvey.
The second one has those style of vocals that irk me.
The third one is like early Liz Phair.

3 new bands that sound like music from 20 years ago. Guess it's better than dubstep.

[Scribble R]

I can't watch/listen to any youtube clips at the moment, but what is current music supposed to sound like? And isn't Ringo/Jihen particularly retro?

[deadgrandma]

Well... Jihen/Ringo still have a sound that's unique to them... you can tell instantly what it is. They also manage to (on the most part) mix their own elements into it to keep it sounding like them.

These bands above, while nothing particularly wrong with any of them, just make me wanna listen to the music they are getting obvious inspiration from. I can understand people yearning for that 90s alt-rock sound, it's much better than most music any time ever/over half of us on here grew up on it (not to mention it's at least less predictable and groan-worthy than being inspired by 80s dance music- I'm looking at you It's Blitz and Head First), but why compromise when you already have the best it's ever gonna get?

[TurtleFu]

Less retro, more derivative. Obviously derivative music is awful. Jet doesn't make me want to listen to Jet, it makes me want to listen to Iggy Pop.

But White Stripes wear retro influences on their sleeves but aren't directly derivative.