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Tickley Feather – Hors D’oeuvres

Published

on September 11, 2009

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tickleyfeather Tickley Feather - Hors Doeuvres

I enjoyed the new Tickley Feather record the first time I sat down to listen to it on Wednesday. Then yesterday I had a nasty 24-hour flu bug (or a 24-hour H1N1 – I’m uninsured, so I didn’t have it professionally diagnosed) and got rowdy on the Nyquil and Dayquil at the same time. I was thoroughly fucked. It was at that point that the new Tickley Feather jam hive sounded real good. I tried to type out my review for the album in this state, but all that came out was thoughts like “fickley teather’s bringing the happy face grind out ya doppler radar outta control” and “annie sachs lol, reminds me of, like, ’sacks’ as in ‘i want to carry around sacks so if someone ask for a hand i can be like – no dice, got these sacks’ jack handey to the max”(true story). Better wait until I’m 100% to write this, which I’m doing right now.

So… the fuck was I talking about? Oh yes, we were discussing adorable lil’ Annie Sachs, a.k.a. Tickley Feather a.k.a. Animal Collective’s BFF 4 Life. The Feather recently described her forthcoming Hors D’oeuvres as an attempt to embrace her “Southern Gothic meets Existential Hillbilly vibe,” promising a more bucolic, joyful, accessible effort. Bucolic? Yes, and you can hear the optimism embedded within from her recent move back to her homestead of rural Virginia. But accessible? Fear not, Tickley Feather is still weird as all hell and delightfully psychotic and looking glass-esque. Different this time around, as previously alluded, is the very concise, focused songwriting. The album’s production still sounds like it was recorded underwater (as it should), but the melodies and compositions are so good. Perhaps Hors D’oeuvres will go quadruple platinum. I fucking hope so.

Tickley’s signature drum machine, melted keys, and allegiance to four-track recording still remain in the forefront as she experiments with many genres, intrepreted slight askew of course. “Sure Relaxing” combines aquatic vocals and wah-pedal to evoke a sexy, LSD-lens Cocteau Twins. “Club Rhythm 96 and Cell Phone” brings you nasty dance funk electroclash as recorded by and for the Morlocks. “Buzzy” takes a page out of Ariel Pink’s instrumental jam book, using minimal loops and altering their fidelity to change the mood and timbre of the song throughout a la William Basinki (and a gorgeous one it is). “Don’t Call, Marilyn” amalgamates a ’60s doo wop sensibility with a sort of paranoia-inducing carnival beat and remains a big highlight.

However, where Tickley really hits her stride is on “Trashy Boys” and “Roses of Romance.” Tickley has a serious sense of soaring melody that was only hinted at on earlier work like “Natural.” Despite the wash of hazy effects and otherwordly disposition, there’s a quiet intimacy a la Movietone through the songs’ resplendent warmth that’s quite refreshing in the freak folk realm (though called Tickley “freak folk” is a bit of a disservice to her rather ingenious music). Truly gorgeous stuff.

Hors D’oeuveres holds up as I listen to it now with a sober mind, and was totally fuckin’ awesome on cough meds. Without sounding cliched, it is truly a syrupy trip into strange candy-coated lands, like entering the “Dark World” in Zelda Link to the Past. Highly recommended for all ocassions, and I reckon that it will end up on the best-of list for the year.

Hors D’oeuvres will burrow a hole in your dome when it drops October 20 coutesy of Paw Tracks. The image at the top is not the cover of the new album, by the way. High-res artwork has yet to be released for it.

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating
steelydan2 Tickley Feather - Hors Doeuvres

For fans of: Ariel Pink, Bachelorette, Broadcast, Movietone

MP3 :::
Tickley Feather – Roses of Romance
Tickley Feather – Trashy Boys

Tara Jane O’Neil Makes Beautiful Desolation Look Easy

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on April 20, 2009

in News and Noise Consultations

. 0 Comments

tarajaneoneil Tara Jane ONeil Makes Beautiful Desolation Look Easy

There’s something about Louisville that produces adventurous female songwriters who completely eschew traditional (i.e. bland) folk leanings for massive, beautiful soundscapes and experimental song structures. Perhaps it’s the high grade weed that passes through here, who knows. Last week, you were introduced to the graceful Cheyenne Mize, who collaborated with Will Oldham on his Among the Gold EP. I suppose you could classify her and other similar artists as part of the New Weird America camp. But Tara Jane O’Neil, who recently relocated to Portland, is not new and not easy to pinpoint. She’s a longstanding freak folk luminary whose resume stretches far and wide, and she would stomp Joanna Newsome’s annoying ass and beat her with her own harp without a second thought.

A quick history lesson for the uninitiated. At 20, TJO tamed the low end in the legendary Louisville math rock collective Rodan, and played on their one and only album Rusty. After Rodan’s deterioration, she drfited between the likes of Ida, Mirah, Naysayer, Retsin, Jackie O Motherfucker, and good ol’ Dave Pajo as Papa M. Rodan enthusiasts will hate me for saying such, but her solo work, in my opinion, has left the most shattering impression. And the forthcoming A Ways Away is one of her best. It’s a scorcher.

51M8DKh8GvL._SS500_ Tara Jane ONeil Makes Beautiful Desolation Look Easy

While some of her recent work has adopted a more intimate and traditional folk approach in the vein of latter Fairport Convention or Townes Van Zandt, A Ways Away is lush, weird, and engrossing. Psych folk is the closest reference point, as the spinning textures and ambient flourishes are reminiscent of some of The Incredible String Band’s best stuff. Yet, TJO is also entirely something else.

In a way, A Ways Away is a return to form and a maturation. The crafty utilization of space and syrupy slow tempo is reminiscent of early Low and, of course, Rodan and her first effort Peregrine. At the same time, TJO is fully owning her sound – writing concise songs while letting the drones and riffs wander in myriad directions. The result is a beautiful and accessible work that relishes in desolate sounds and bucolic late night wandering. If you were intrigued by Grouper’s Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill last year, A Ways Away will floor you. Respect to Grouper, of course, but TJO was doin’ this thing first and, as such, deserving of your attention.

It’s important to note that you should stay very, very far away from alcohol whilst enjoying A Ways Away. It’s extremely somber and sorta creepy, notwithstanding that it’s absolutely gorgeous as well. Which reminds me, one of my best friends’ older brother had the pleasure of getting wasted with Tara at a Stereolab show in Louisville in 2002. I can’t even piece this scenario together. Stereolab played at one of the douchiest bars in town, Phoenix Hill Tavern (imagine “Parsec” amongst a sea of popped collars, ya know?). And here’s Sam, a total good times dude, taking whiskey shots with the distant TJO. I’ll have to ask him what they talked about next time I see him.

Ah, I follow tangents as they come, where was I? Oh yes, back to how and why A Ways Away rules. The tonality TJO employs on her clean electric guitar, with huge atmospheric reverberation added to great effect, is remarkable to listen to, and perfect for driving west during the storm. “Pearl Into Sand” is a beastly, rowdy drone instrumental that just handed my ass to me. This leads into the equally beastly “Beast, Go Along.” As beautiful as it is haunting, “Beast, Go Along” is the best representation of A Ways Away as a whole. Morricone-style riffs drift in and out, while light touches of steel guitar adds a slight cosmic American music slant – all of which ride delicately over thick, warm drones. It’s a delicious dirge that you can expect on my best of ‘09 list. While firmly cemented within the parameters of atmospheric folk, TJO’s A Ways Away reveals many facets that only get better with each listen.

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating
steelydan3 Wooden Shjips - Dos

A Ways Away is her first album on K Records, and is out May 5 (along with every other record I’ve covered recently – that’s a huge day).

For fans of: Grouper, Linda Perhacs, Belong

MP3 :::
Tara Jane O’Neil – Pearl Into Sand
Tara Jane O’Neil – Beast, Go Along
Tara Jane O’Neil – Dig In

Akron/Family – Set Em Wild, Set Em Free

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on March 31, 2009

in Praise and Malaise

. 0 Comments

setemwild Akron/Family - Set Em Wild, Set Em Free

Some critics tend to take issue with an artist who lacks continuity on record. They may attack the artist for having some shade of a messy identity crisis. They might feel that a body of recorded work should be a cohesive submersion into an aurally cultivated landscape. I am not that sort of critic.

Sure, there’s a lot to say about continuity. An album such as, say, Lotus Plaza’s The Floodlight Collective is a great example of a cohesive record that sticks to a particular song structure and sonic timbre, and does it in a well-crafted fashion. However, there’s a fine line between cohesion and repetition or lack of inspiration. There’s also a fine line between ecclecticity and clusterfuck. Akron/Family, with the forthcoming Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free, very intelligently carves an eclectic, surprising record that is not afraid to experiment with disparate genres – almost to an alarming level. It’s a textbook example of experimental music for people who might not like experimental music.

Akron/Family have dropped the freak from their freak folk flag, and in its place, introduced 11 remarkable tracks that explore every corner of cosmic American music – torch ballads to bucolic dirges, country rock to atmospheric anthems, sunshine pop and grating noise, Television and the Byrds, Sun City Girls and Sun Ra. Does this sound interesting to you? It should, Set Em Wild, Set Em Free is utterly imaginative.

“Everyone is Guilty,” the album’s opener, masterfully combines funk and post-punk. For a psych folk group, that’s pretty insane. From there, next track “River” provokes a sunshine-drenched subdued pop song with a twang. Eno-informed electronic flourishes swell and subside, as well as steel guitar and horn arrangements. It’s obvious that the Akron/Family loves music with no restrictions, plain and simple. What’s most surprising, aside from the genre jumping, is that fact that the group’s downsizing from a revolving roster to a trio yielded their most expansive album to date.

Now jump to “MBF” in the second half of the record. What begins as Steve Albini rock turns into a self-destructive porous membrane of sonic intensity that could fit very nicely on a Wolf Eyes or Prurient record. The structurally loose “Sun Will Shine (Warmth of the Sunship Version” is another highlight. This track is the closest resemblance to the group’s last effort Love is All, yet maintains the consistency of maturation and playfulness that makes Set Em Wild, Set Em Free so remarkable. The almost eight-minute “Gravelly Mountains of the Moon” is the real gem, though – a bombastic technicolor psychedelic anthem stocked with vast instrumentation and a pulsating over-the-horizon melodic quality. I like Akron/Family, but I didn’t see that one coming.

I can see the pure ambition of Set Em Wild, Set Em Free to possibly be a point of contention among critics and fans. I hope not. Set Em Wild, Set Em Free is smart and psychotic, almost refreshing to a fault, and showcases a band who has absolutely no comfort zone. Akron/Family have proven themselves to be pretty much fearless, and as a consequence, are propelled to a level much higher than simply another good offering from New Weird America. While some might find the record unlistenable at times, anyone with a relative appreciation of music and how it evolved should be compelled to give Set Em Wild, Set Em Free a fair shot, at least to hear an example of a truly brave and crafty collective.

Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free hits the streets on May 5 and is available for pre-order on Dead Oceans.

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating
steelydan1 Flowers of Hell, a Space Rock Symphony in 16 Parts

MP3 :::
Akron/Family – Gravelly Mountains of the Moon
Akron/Family – MBF

MV and EE’s Drone Trailer Out Today

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on January 21, 2009

in MP3

. 0 Comments

070112_INSIDE_DOWN MV and EEs Drone Trailer Out Today

There’s a few big albums dropping today, amongst other significant events today, too. Lest we forget, though, that the prolific MV & EE with The Golden Road drop a new one as well. Drone Trailer is great. The last record with The Golden Road, Gettin’ Gone, was decent enough, though spent more time exploring swampy blues and Neil Young riffs than the free flowing shattered acid folk that Matt Valentine and Erika Elder perfected with The Bummer Road’s 2007 Green Blues. “Anyway,” the opener and included below for your consideration, offers a nice throwback to Tower Recordings, albeit with a more electrified timbre.

834878567_l MV and EEs Drone Trailer Out Today As for other MV & EE goings on, they’ve packed the camper, the bong, and everything else to hit the road and party moderately. When going to see them, please note that their recognizable canine friend Zuma, pictured left, is cute, BUT NOT FRIENDLY. Do not approach. I learned this when I went to a show in support of Green Blues. Before show time, I approached the merch table, where both Matt and Erika were present, and reach down to give Zuma a lil’ rub on the dome. Matt was looking right at us for quite a while, though I don’t think it registered immediately, at which point he said “ahhh… oh, hey man… I wouldn’t… I wouldn’t pet the dog, man. She’s kinda weird around people.” So, moral of the story: don’t pet the dog, man. That’s my public service announcement for the day. Grip Drone Trailer here.

1/20 NYC, NY-Cake Shop

1/21 Brooklyn, NY-Monster Island Basement

1/22 Philadelphia, PA-Brooke’s Salon

1/23 Richmond, VA-The Triple

1/24 Asheville, NC-Harvest Records

1/25 Mount Pleasant, SC-Village Tavern

1/26 Atlanta, GA-Earl

1/27 Chattanooga, TN-JJ’s Bohemia

1/28 Memphis, TN-Odessa

1/29 Shreveport, LA-Art Space

1/30 New Orleans, LA-Saturn Bar

1/31 Houston, TX-Rudyards

2/01 Austin,TX-The Mohawk

2/02 Dallas, TX-The Lounge on Elm St

2/03 Hot Springs, AK-The Exchange

2/04 Nashville, TN-Dino’s Diner

2/05 Oberlin, OH-Fairfield Chapel

MP3 :::
MV & EE with the Golden Road – Anyway

Religious Knives’ Gnarly Magical Mystery Tour

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on October 23, 2008

in MP3

. 0 Comments

religious_knives Religious Knives Gnarly Magical Mystery Tour

Of course it’s no surprise that the new Religious Knives full-length is good. Like Smuckers, if it says Ecstatic Peace on the label, it has to be good. With that said, The Door is still a nice surprise, considering how different it sounds from Resin released earlier this year (though the latter is a collection of older material and some live renditions).

The most noticeable and significant difference between The Door and Religious Knives’ earlier drone trips is that the band, sometime between then and now, got really funky. This is established in the first few seconds of opening brain burner “Downstairs.” If the low end were of a higher tempo, you could easily lay it against a blaxploitation film score. No foolin’. Continue reading ‘Religious Knives’ Gnarly Magical Mystery Tour’

The Animal Collective Album Art is Amazing

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on October 23, 2008

in News

. 0 Comments

146724.merriweather_0 The Animal Collective Album Art is Amazing

It would take a pretty awesome album cover to get its own post. And the album cover for the forthcoming Animal Collective album Merriweather Post Pavilion gets that honor.

The Magic Eye company spent years releasing optical illusion picture books that didn’t fuckin’ work! And it only took AC one try to get the wavy surrealism tip right. Man, this rules. I can’t stop staring at it. I’m trying to get my reviews of Religious Knives and Hush Arbors written today, but all I can do is stare at this thing. You guys enjoying this? I’m enjoying this.

Man… that’s kwaa-zeee! I wonder if it glows under blacklight as well? Continue reading ‘The Animal Collective Album Art is Amazing’

No-Fi Psych with Sic Alps, US Girls, and The N.E.C.

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on October 21, 2008

in MP3

. 0 Comments

sic_alps No-Fi Psych with Sic Alps, US Girls, and The N.E.C.

I should be releasing my best of 2008 list next month at this time. As a preview, you can bet that San Francisco’s Sic Alps will be firmly planted in the northern latitudes of the list. This isn’t your father’s unwashable, filthy, no-fi psychedelic rock scuz – Sic Alps twist, creak, and thump, taking you on a cosmically damaged romp through west coast good vibes and future shock trepidation.

Why I didn’t czech out the group earlier is a mystery to me. Their debut Pleasures and Treasures was released on Animal Disguise, home to my good friends Warmer Milks. The latest, U.S. Ez, has a comfy place on the Siltbreeze roster with the likes of Charlambides, The Dead C, and hey look, U.S. Girls (see below). Sic Alps certainly drink from the same goblets as the highest in psych rock royalty, but they also bring the goods to back up their seat at the table. Continue reading ‘No-Fi Psych with Sic Alps, US Girls, and The N.E.C.’