5/12/16

"Moving on
Is moving in slow motion
To keep the pain to a minimal
Weightless, only wait for a fall."
~How
Daughter, Not to Disappear

The ethereal elegance of Daughter is back and better than ever. I know that is a cliche thing to say, but it is true.

"Not to Disappear," their 2016 release, is one of the most smoothing, stunning and haunting collections I've heard in months. Not only is Elena Tonra an incredible vocalist, with a delicate and haunting soprano, but she writes these passionate, stirring lyrics, ones that are so very affected by emotional states of being. On "Not to Disappear," she tackles loneliness, aging, her own melancholic thoughts, and she does it in such a brash manner, unafraid of admitting her own failings and vulnerabilites without coming across as too apologetic for them. 

But on this record I hear so much more than Torna's thoughts and feelings, in a good way. The percussive echoes and delayed, climatic guitar parts prove a precise vision; the other musicians are not simply her backing band. As beautiful and moving as her poetic lyrics are in their own right, the choices made in regard to space and rhythm. Guitar breaks walk a line between atmospheric shoegaze and chord-contained punk rock, for the most part holding back aggression and letting it seep out around the edges. 

There's so many beautiful, moving moments here, the bust before the first verse in "How," the hypnotic hums filling out the outro of "Fossa," and the seemingly dance-inspired beats behind "Alone/With You." Daughter does an excellent job at blending genres and sounds, creating something that is not rock, is not folk, is not emo, but draws on all of the above. Mostly I think they just represent solid, inspired songwriting, showing what it means to take and idea and a motif and keeping coloring around them. Each of these songs feels like lungs holding too much air and hearts beating out of their chests, with a profound sense of tension and emotion. 

It's weird how songs that deal with madness and sadness and self-doubt and turmoil can be this stunning, in a way. Shouldn't those topics be uncomfortable? But I've always kind of believed that songs, like stories, don't say much of anything if they don't have a happening of some kind to speak of, and those happenings are often conflicts, either with lovers or the world or oneself. On "Not to Disappear," Daughter tackles all those relationships with a mature curiosity, and a reckless abandon, but holds onto their emotional, meditative, core.

"Chemically enlaced faces
Black out nights and tight spaces
We'll feel distant embraces
Scratching hands 'round my waist, yeah
I'll wash my mouth but still taste you

I feel numb
I feel numb in this kingdom
I feel numb
I feel numb in this kingdom
You better, you better, you better
You better make me
Me better, me better
You better make me better."

~Numbers 

Daughter, Not to Disappear

5/11/16

"Make me feel alive

Make me believe that I don't have to die

Fawn, doe, light snow

Spots on brown of white

make me believe that there's a God sometimes."
~Soft Animal
The Hotelier, Goodness

The Hotelier's "Home, Like No Place There Is" was one of 2014's biggest rock masterpieces, rocketing a relatively unknown band from Massachusetts into a scene-specific spotlight and elevating the bar for what little-bands-that-could can do. To me, it was one of the most original, emotional albums I'd heard in what felt like ages, something that ripped open my chest and found the most secret thoughts to expose in all their pathos on a stage. I can't think about my first spring and summer in Pittsburgh without thinking about the mournful chorale of "An Introduction to the Album," or the agonizing shame of "Your Deep Rest."

This year we get a new Hotelier LP. The songs released so far are nothing short of epic promises, hinting at an album that's slightly more optimistic but nonetheless emotionally motivated, full and relevant. "Goodness" is going to be good. Great, even. But until that arrives and I get the chance to memorize another 13 tracks of riveting self-reflection at the hands of Christian Holden, there's these two great singles to chew on (AND this fantastic cover of The Cure's "Doing the Unstuck").

It's hard for me to pin down just what it is that makes this band so good - is it the lyrics themselves, these strong metaphors and perfectly metered phrases sung in a soulful, stretching baritone? Is it the guitars, with distortion aplenty and moody, melodic chords? Maybe it's just talent. I can't say just what it is, but it's woven into "Piano Player" and its crashing, thrashing, peripatetic motion, and in "Soft Animal" yearning, pleading hooks. I'm so sold on this band, and I'm confident they won't fall into that same familiar pattern of a band who broke through and broke down. Songs this deep and rich will always find an audience. Songs this exploratory, this well-versed and composed, will always need to be written so they can be heard.

5/3/16

"Aligning stars that you wait for
Always know if you're holding back
Don't slow yourself down anymore

We watch the days fly
While all the years try
Telling us something
Don't waste a whole life
On just a half try
It's all or nothing."

~All Or Nothing 

Mutemath, Odd SOul

Whenever I tell people I'm into music, I have to do it somewhat sheepishly, bracing for what comes next. The natural follow-up question is usually some variant of "Well, who are your favorite artists?" and I think this is one of the most difficult questions to answer. My favorite today? My favorite who are active in this decade? My favorites from all-time? It all depends, and I cannot be asked to choose, out of fear of leaving out some great influence. Should it be favorite as defined as who you listen to the most in times of aimless soundtracking??

If we're going by the latter definition, I'd unquestionably have to say Mutemath, as well as recommend them to any listener of rock music who has not yet uncovered them. I've listened to this band for close to a decade now (dammit, time!!!) and have only grown more attached to and impressed by their sound. The newest LP "Vitals" is a significant addition to their discography, reaching the top five of the alternative and rock charts, meaning any music fan who pays attention to new, big and happening bands ought to have come across them in some manner by now. 

I've spent enough time with them to issue this decree: "Odd Soul" is their best record. It's the most eccentric. It's their most assertive. It's the record where they take risks as musicians, as a band and as writers, unafraid to be aggressive and loud and weird. It is a one-way, non-stop train to Groove City, no matter what kind of mood I'm in when I choose to play it.

When it debuted in 2011, I devoured it from start to finish, and it's never gotten old. It's never gotten tired, and the older I get, the more familiar its themes start to feel. It has an over-arching narrative of being yourself and pushing yourself to the limits, denying the doubts and scrubbing the haters from your mind, buoyed by the best drumming Darren King ever laid down and these proggy, spacey guitar riffs that just hammer on and on and on. From the off-beat senses of the intro into the discoesque "Prytania," through the moody melodic "Cavalries," this is an album where you can press play and let it go, riding it out until those gorgeous echoing synths closing "In No Time" fade out.

It's become one of my go-to pick-me-ups for when I am feeling down on myself, or when the general malaise of a workday or life sets in. Because those moments are going to happen, those feelings are going to be unavoidable in the constant reviewing conducted by the emotional mind, but they do not need to rule the day. Instead of running from what hurts, what lurks, what is dark, we can can explore and wonder about and even celebrate the odd soul. We all have one.



"I was once a son, now I'm on my own
Wade through everyone and I've got myself to show
The trials and tribulations seem to always track me down
I'll ride off into the sunset and try me another town

I'm an odd soul
Ah, yes an odd soul,
Walking side roads
'Cause that's the only way I know."

~Odd Soul 

Mutemath, Odd Soul

4/27/16

Wowowow the new Blink-182 single is great. Love that this band (Tom DeLonge departure aside) has been chugging along for more than two decades, continuing to deliver this radio-friendly pop punk rock. I'll admit I haven't been much of a fan of their catalogue since their "I Miss You" days, which is about the same time I started to pay attention to other genres like indie, alt-country and all other sounds of interest that crossed my path, but a stream of incessant buzz on Twitter today made it impossible to avoid "Bored to Death." And why would you want to?

It's a great single, from the catchy bridge to the fist-pump chorus, and gang vocal harmonies where new addition Matt Skiba shines (His solo project. Matt Skiba and the Sekrets, converted me to a total fan last year). It's grown-up rock-and-roll from a band that once thrived in the immature underground, and I love the melodic influences that Skiba's identifiable vocals bring on board. 

Who knew that it would be 2016 and Blink-182 would still be such a huge band? Maybe I'm wrong here, and maybe this single won't catch on, but I'd be damn surprised if their album didn't top what is left of the charts and dominate the mainstream scene for the months to come. Long live the bands that refused to stop in their tracks, and those that found a way to keep their signature sound alive.

"There's a stranger staring at the ceiling
Rescuing a tiger from a tree
The pictures in her head are always dreaming
Each of them means everything to me

And it's a long way back from seventeen
The whispers turn into a scream,
And I'm not coming home.

Save your breathe, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast.
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth I'm broken,
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long..."
~Bored to Death
Blink-182, California

4/24/16

"Biting my clothes to keep from screaming
Taking pills to keep from dreaming
I want to break something important
I want to kick my dad in the shins

I was referring to the present in past tense
It was the only way that I could survive it
I want to close my head in the car door
I want to sing this song like I'm dying
Heavy boots on my throat, I need
I need somethin soon, I need somethin soon
I can't talk to my folks, I need
I need somethin soon, I need somethin soon
All of my fingers are froze, I need
I need somethin soon, I need somethin soon
Only one change of clothes, I need
I need somethin soon, I need somethin soon
My head is, my head is, my head is..."
~Something Soon
Car Seat Headrest, Teens of Style

It's easy to find good music - and it's easy to be impressed, or enjoy something you hear for the first time. I don't buy it when people say music too homogenized and prepackaged and overproduced these days -- so many new releases are these intricate blends of modern sounds, and it's an adventure to see what trends feed of the last. Somewhere in all that, the real authentic stuff is there, and occasionally you'll make the rare find of an artist who continues to wow you to that same level over and over again, where you keep listening and discover layer upon layer and layer of who they are, and where these songs are coming from.

For me, Car Seat Headrest is becoming one of those artists. Every song I hear from this guy I like more than the last, every performance I watch leaves me wanting more. Will Toledo's songs are more confessional rock than folk, but they have a storytelling narrative nonetheless. Musically, there's a lo-fi, grungy vibe, but his chord choices are poppy and melodic enough to carry the occasional hook (no better exemplified than his biggest single, "Something Soon"), and these surf-rock style solos.

I love Toledo's emphasis on his anxieties and insanities. For this, I will listen over and over again, because he's smart and observing without whining. He's carrying indie rock's torch in its natural direction, and in the process divulging so much of himself with these little details about his self-image ("If I could split me in two/I would just take my fists/So I could beat up the rest of me") and inner monologues. His songs have a way of driving forward without getting bogged down in the depressive, though, due mostly to these wailing guitar parts and pop rock rhythms.

I think Toledo's songs, notably on "Teens of Style", are pretty solid reflections of the early 21st century, teen or 20-something experience. While some artists are direct about this, referencing texts and selfies to the point of making it a gimmick, Toledo cuts to the chase of loneliness and the longing that this time produces, and the unending, seemingly inescapable cycle of dreaming and flailing and failing that's supposed to provide whatever happiness there is to be achieved in this great wide world of ours. It is one of the best rock albums I have discovered in my recent memory, perfectly weird and wistful and wandering.

I'm so excited for the upcoming "Teens of Denial" to get a fresh taste of an album approach. Car Seat Headrest has a discography that dates back three years and shows a real maturation -- there plenty to choose from and each release has its own style, whether its production room tweaks or scratchy-record style harmonies. You can tell Toledo just grinds out songwriting, toying with new techniques along the way. I've spent a fair amount of time with the recent single, called "Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales," and I think Toledo is pushing himself in a bigger musical direction and better off for it. I think this is a sound worth paying attention to.



"All of my friends are getting married
All of my friends are right with God
All of my friends are making money
But art gets what it wants and art gets what it deserves
I think I’m gonna build a giant hotel
Lest we be scattered, I’ll stack it sky-high
It’s not symbolic, it’s just human nature
Under the foundations, there is a graveyard

We’ve all had better times to die
We’ve all seen better times to die
We’ve all had better times to die
We all had better times to die."
~Time to Die
Car Seat Headrest, Teens of Style