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Man or Astro-Man – What Remains Inside a Black Hole

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on April 14, 2009

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manorastroman Man or Astro-Man - What Remains Inside a Black Hole

Man or Astro-man? sounded like The Ventures after being anally probed by aliens and promptly dumped behind a Radio Shack. In fact, the band claims to be from outer space but rumor has it they surfed out of the same Auburn, Alabama scene as the Immortal Lee County Killers and The Quadrajets.

Dropping science on top of surf guitars, MoAM toured the country with a wagonload of retro tech including theremins and even a homemade tesla coil which remarkably never resulted in a Spinal Tap moment of spontaneous combustion. The band also built its own supercomputer called Eeviac which is reputed to be the most powerful supercomputer ever used on stage by a rock band.

What Remains Inside a Black Hole was an Aussie import on Au-Go-Go Records which compiled many of the band’s early 7” singles. The live version of “Eric Estrotica” was originally included on Man or Astro-man? Vs. Europa while “Adios Johnny Bravo” – complete with Brady Bunch samples – was incarnated in wax on Possession by Remote Control. Estrus later released a domestic facsimile, Beyond the Black Hole, which included many but not all of the tracks on the Au-Go-Go release.

Bands with a schtick are sometimes entertaining, sometimes annoying. In the realm of entertainment, MoAM’s live shows rank at the head of the class. Certainly well above the toilet antics of GWAR though not quite as retro as The Mummies. For a little teaser check out this snippet from the YooTubes:

MP3 :::
Man… or Astro-Man? – Eric Estrotica (Live in Space)
Man… or Astro-Man? – Adios Johnny Bravo

Tropicalismo Redux – Caetano Veloso to Release Zii E Zie

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Xavier Van Zandt

on March 18, 2009

in MP3

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caetano_veloso Tropicalismo Redux - Caetano Veloso to Release Zii E Zie

Over the last few years, Brazilian Tropicalismo innovator, Caetano Veloso, has had his stateside stature escalated to near-god status after being name-dropped by the likes of David Byrne, Beck and Devendra Banhart. Well-known in his home country but far from a best-selling artist, he expressed to the New York Times his confusion over the hero-worship from English-speakers with no cultural context for his music. ”‘My popularity outside Brazil was a big mystery to me and to a certain extent remains enigmatic,” he said adding that he always thought Gilberto Gil was the better musician of the two.

I happen to have a modest command of Portuguese though not near fluent enough to follow Veloso’s nuanced narratives. Perhaps in a concerted effort to cater to his gringo audiences, he released A Foreign Sound in 2004 with English-speaking covers of Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder and Kurt Cobain among others. Unfortunately it came off contrived, scattered and soulless and probably explains why in his subsequent release, Cê, he returns to his native tongue. People listen to Sigur Rós despite having absolutely no comprehension of the lyrics so maybe the phenomenon is not really all that baffling.

It does beg the question of who originated the notion that Veloso was the Brazilian Bob Dylan. It seems to be a truism that pervades the American press despite anyone’s ability to decipher what it is he’s saying. While both singers were contemporaries, Dylan and Veloso were products of radically different environments. The American folk movement appropriated a heartland nostalgia but Tropicalismo sought to broaden the palette of Brazilian music beyond bossa nova to a more electic and worldly aesthetic. In the eyes of Brazil’s wildly nationalistic military regime, any effort to appropriate external influences was perceived as subversive and Veloso’s hippie image and diverse sounds were threatening in an increasingly insular nation. Deep in the boiler room of the interwebs you’ll find Veloso vs. Dylan debates so feel free to look them up. But furthering the argument just props up an already tired critic’s cliche.

I’m admittedly not that familiar with Veloso’s more recent work. Ironically while he’s moved on and embraced more modern sounds, legion followers have adopted his style from some 40 years ago. You can’t read a Banhart interview without hearing reference to Veloso and Tropicalismo has definitely had a revival. Os Mutantes was picked up for the Pitchfork Festival a few years ago and even back home Gilberto Gil served a brief stint as Brazil’s Minister of Culture.

Details on Veloso’s release scheduled for April are sketchy and mostly in Spanish or Portuguese. Zii e Zie is touted as being estilo “rockero” and a quote from Veloso indicates it’s similar in style to Cê. Keep in mind that what a 66 year-old thinks of as a rock album – no matter his past status – may not be what you have in mind. And the same article also references Veloso’s past collaboration with David Byrne of the “Scottish band, Talking Heads” so I’d take the musical critique with a grain of salt.

Really, take any critique of Veloso with a grain of salt and give it a listen for yourself. Checking Metacritic you’ll find scores for Cê range from 40 to 100. You get everything from the ‘Veloso is genuis so everything he does is brilliant’ to ‘this doesn’t sound like “Bat Macumba”‘ and everything in between. Through the magic of MP3s, a few select cuts are posted below. ”Cada Macaco No Seu Galho” is a collaboration with Gilberto Gil which epitomizes the sound of Tropicalismo and Minhas Lagrimas from Cê clearly shows his progression into something totally different.

MP3 :::
Caetano Veloso – Minhas Lagrimas
Caetano Veloso & Gilberto Gil – Cada Macaco No Seu Galho

Dag Nasty – Field Day

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on March 18, 2009

in Contraband

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index2002_photo Dag Nasty - Field Day

Recession blues yall and I’ve been digging through the personal back catalog to see what I can hock for food. Apparently nobody buys CDs any more so I’m back to flipping vinyl. There in the back of the closet I came across a vintage ’80s slab from Dag Nasty which has since gone out of print. Most are familiar with their Dischord releases – Can I Say and Wig Out and Denkos – but the subsequent release of Field Day had the misfortune of coming out on now defunct Giant Records and is mostly unavailable. Continue reading ‘Dag Nasty – Field Day’

Veto – Sorta Happy Songs for Very Happy People

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on March 13, 2009

in MP3

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veto Veto - Sorta Happy Songs for Very Happy People

With little fanfare, the Danish Music Awards were held in sunny Copenhagen earlier this month to recognize the country’s best musical talent. While this may seem like a trivial event in the global scheme, it’s probably worth checking out the listening preferences of inhabitants of the world’s happiest country.

Band of the year honors went to VETO which manages to put out largely electronic music without sounding sterile, bored or excessively “euro”. Front man Troels Abrahamsen delivers vocals with an uncharacteristic Scandinavian soul and imbues songs with a dark broodiness which defies any adjective approaching ‘world’s happiest.’

Despite a slot at SXSW a few years ago [Editor's Note: Still waitin' for my free SXSW badge, DUDES] , VETO hasn’t garnered much acclaim on this side of the pond. Their latest release, Crushing Digits (Tabu Records), is set for release in the UK next week but no word on a US release date. Until then, it’s one more reason the Danes are happier than you are.

MP3 :::
VETO – From A to B
VETO – You Say Yes, I Say Yes

Dumb Band Names, Vol. I – What the Fuck?

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on March 12, 2009

in Noise Consultations

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f-bombs Dumb Band Names, Vol. I - What the Fuck?

I was caught in the internet vortex the other day and ran across some old cuts by The Crucifucks. It brought back the vivid memory of when I was just a young pup and my mom found a hand-labeled cassette in my case featuring said band. Needless to say that Maxell XL90 hit the wastebin in a hurry.

Not particularly a big loss as The Crucifucks were a mediocre band hawking the same kind of marginally informed political rants typical of hardcore in the mid ’80s. But I was in junior high and listening to a band with the “F” word in the name gave me street cred. Not sure if it’s a form of arrested development or an extremely sheltered childhood which leads grown-ups to believe that use of the word “fuck” is somehow the ultimate statement. But apparently this banal formula is still intact since I’ve lately run across a fuck-ton of “fuck” bands.

Yo La Tengo cashes in with its alter ego, Condo Fucks, and a new covers CD appropriately called Fuckbook. Aside from that does anyone really think Yo La Tengo is *that* good or just a beneficiary of critical hype/having the balls to write 17 minute songs? [Editor's Note: I dunno man, Yo La Tengo is pretty fuckin' rad] Fuck Buttons – frequently referred to as F*** Buttons – join the club along with Holy Fuck, Fucked Up and an endless number of minor bands with correspondingly minor wits.

Do you remember the Ass Ponys? It was always good for a titter when you could claim them as one of your favorite bands. What about Throbbing Gristle? Alien Sex Fiend? But you can no longer get anyone’s attention by simply being suggestive. You need to ‘make a statement’ about how it’s ‘just a word’ over which people shouldn’t get so upset. And if it gets attention/endears you to critics so be it.

Dumb Band Names, Vol. I - What the Fuck? The dudes in Holy Fuck have already reaped benefits via a mini-controversy when Canada’s parliament pulled arts funding by citing them as recipients. Dutifully insulted that anyone would take issue, the band shrugged and claimed, “…really what the term ‘holy fuck’ is about—it’s a way to say ‘hooray!’” So why didn’t they name the band, “Hooray!”?

But what pisses off the man pleases the critics. The subtext is that an obscene name means you’re somehow anti-commerical and ‘all about the music.’ Accordingly, all of the “fuck” bands have earned Pitchfork praise with Fuckbook ranking an 8.3, Holy Fuck’s latest clocking a 7.9, Fuck Buttons’ Street Horrrsing hauls an 8.6 and Fucked Up’s The Chemistry of Common Life is off the charts yall with an 8.8. That’s some really fucking good music.

Of course “fuck” isn’t the only overused unoriginal moniker out there. Maybe there’s something like those baby names books but for bands. Do you really think millions of moms independently came up with Chloe, Addison or Liam?

There are the exclamation point bands which are the rough equivalent of every bullshit company with a website that rebranded itself with a “dot com” in the late ’90s. We’re cool! it says. Panic! At the Disco. Against Me! You Say Party! We Say Die! Los Campesinos! And of course the band known as !!!. Godspeed You! Black Emperor (formerly known as Godspeed You Black Emperor!) was arguably there first though some historians would go as far back as Wham! As evidence of an easing of this trend, Panic! At the Disco decided it wasn’t that excited and became Panic At the Disco.

Then there are the “go” bands; Go Panic! (bonus points for the !) OK Go. The Go! Team (more !), The Go Find, and the Go Fuck Yourselves. Actually I made up the last one so you can still use it for your band if you want. Just credit me in the liner notes dude. Etymology of “go” bands is probably The Go-Go’s or to a lesser extent The Go-Betweens.

The “wolf” bands; Wolf Parade, Guitar Wolf, Wolfmother, Sea Wolf, Peanut Butter Wolf, and AIDS Wolf. Probably derived from either Howlin’ Wolf or Peter Wolf.

The “crystal” bands; Crystal Antlers, Crystal Castles, Crystal Stilts, The Crystal Method, and Crystal Skulls. Most likely derivatives of Crystal Gayle.

If I had to go way out on a limb and predict the future of dumb band names, I’d put my money on the vampire meme. What with Vampire Weekend and that whole Twilight thing taking over the world, it won’t be long before we’re rocking to stuff like Bite My Neck Say Yeah and Vlad! The Impaler.

Here’s my favorite fuck band, Jackie O’ Motherfucker. Maybe posting an MP3 will get us some more fucking blog traffic.

MP3 :::
Jackie O’ Motherfucker – Backyard Raul’s Unisex Reprise

New Super Furry Animals Release Set to Drop

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on March 10, 2009

in News

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SFA460 New Super Furry Animals Release Set to Drop

Prolific psych popsters Super Furry Animals will release their ninth studio album, Dark Days/Light Years, on March 16^th via digital download on the band’s website. Details on the forthcoming slab have been scarce but the latest is that it will feature a guest vocal from Franz Ferdinand’s Nick McCarthy [Editor's Note: boooooooooo!] and include 12 tracks including one named “The Very Best of Neil Diamond.” Fans of “Cracklin’ Rose” are likely to be disappointed if SFA’s latest is anything like its past paeans.

superfurryanimals New Super Furry Animals Release Set to Drop The band’s last go-round was nearly two years ago with 2007’s Hey Venus! and frontman Gruff Rhys has more recently been busy with Neon Neon, his side project with Cincy native, Boom Bip [Editor's Note: yay!]. Yet another of the megabands spawned out of Creation Records’ heyday, Alan McGee plucked SFA for the label back in ‘95 and soon released Fuzzy Logic to critical acclaim. Reviewers frequently lumped them in with Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci as the torchbearers of “Welsh rock” in yet another example of why overeager attempts at categorization are often ill-advised in hindsight.

I like to now and then check out McGee’s blog over at the UK Guardian to see what the old Creation boss is listening to these days. With his keen A&R ear and provocative posts like, “Animal Collective: The New Hall & Oates?” (which predictably generated more flames than Mrs. O’Leary’s cow), he’s always a fun read. In reminiscing about his discovery of SFA, he claims that the band was intended to be the “Blur to my Oasis” referring to the top of the Brit-pop rivalry between the two bands.

Of course SFA never succumbed to the ridiculous swagger (although Mogwai couldn’t resist slagging Blur as “shite”) but has been quietly consistent and understated to the point of turning down millions from Coca Cola for the use of “Hello Sunshine” in its ads. McGee points to the band as woefully underrated but, as Carles at Hipster Runoff would say, “don’t yall h8 it when mainstreamers discover ur fave alt band?”

Hey Venus! was the band’s first of three contractual releases on Rough Trade. Response was overwhelmingly muted from fans unaccustomed to such a conventional album from a band known to twist Steely Dan samples pretzel-like into something like “The Man Don’t Give a Fuck.” Still, the album features some of their catchiest work to date including tracks like “Run-Away” which conjures up Beach Boys harmonies and a Ronettes backbeat.

The superficial reviews often compared the album to Fuzzy Logic though the two sound entirely different to me. There’s a span of over 10 years between the two releases and the nuance and maturity of Hey Venus! is apparent after repeated listens. While SFA’s albums in between have featured a daring willingness to experiment, their most recent release shows a restraint which says ‘yeah we can go there, but we won’t.’

Rhys has claimed that Hey Venus! was intended to be a “loud” album and that most of the more eclectic tracks were made part of his solo album, Candylion. There are even odds as to whether Dark Days/Light Years marks a natural progression or embarks on something entirely different. I’m sure Alan McGee is waiting with bated breath and hoping the next release transforms our planet into a “Super Furry” one.

After eight solid efforts over more than a decade it’s hard to know what would break the band into the bigtime alt rock world of, say, Miley Cyrus’ latest crush, Radiohead. “Hello Sunshine” was already floated on an episode of The OC and Zach Braff doesn’t have anything currently in production. But ask Thom Yorke what he thinks of being the new tween sensation and maybe superstardom doesn’t look all that appealing.

MP3 :::
Super Furry Animals – Run Away
Super Furry Animals – The Man Don’t Give a Fuck

Locrian is Perfect for a Sunn O)))-ny Day

Published

Xavier Van Zandt

on March 9, 2009

in Praise and Malaise

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l_0c327a4395f341f88af3036ce62a7be5 Locrian is Perfect for a Sunn O)))-ny Day

I had an opportunity to sit down with the latest release from Chicago drone duo, Locrian, but hadn’t packed my bag for the transcendental journey on which this slab of sound sent me. Drenched Lands is 6 tracks clocking in at just over an hour and thick with layers of droning synth and strings. Despite the traditional association of the locrian mode with metal, Locrian is surprisingly easy on the ears, bringing in a slow tide which eventually crescendos into a powerful swell. There’s a raw fury lurking underneath the glassy smooth sea giving you one hell of a ride without ever smashing you onto the rocks.

The opening track features a repetitive Slint-like riff backed by subterranean synth which leads seamlessly into the pulsating “Ghost Repeater.” Closing my eyes I saw Kurt Russell on the barren ice in John Carpenter’s The Thing. This is the modern-day counterpart to Morricone’s masterful score of one of the creepiest films of the last half century. Drenched Lands indeed conjures up desolate post-industrial landscapes teeming with hidden peril.

“Obsolete Elegy in Cast Concrete” punctuates the mood pieces with stabbing guitar attacks and distant howls building frantically to a reprise of the album’s melodic opening. The alternating dissonance and consonance pushes you right to the edge of discomfort before lulling you back into the fold. The 30 minute epic final track, “Greyfield Shrines”, brings the storm to shore with an unyielding torrent of feedback and noise which eventually relents so you can breathe again.

I’m not a fan of unbridled noise which feels a bit too much like each musician is off on his own personal journey. But Locrian imposes an order on the chaos and the result is a surprisingly mature effort which feels a lot more dangerous than it is. Drenched Lands is a harrowing thrill ride down a dark, remote highway but there’s no risk here of running off the road.

MP3 :::
Locrian – Epicedium
Locrian – Obsolete Elegy in Cast Concrete