Lunatic Soul - II

Artist: Lunatic Soul

Album: II

Release: 2010

“… Banished to everlasting wanderings ”

Ever get the feeling you’re being watched? Like, you are walking down the sidewalk and you feel eyes on you but when you look around there’s no one to be seen? Being the superstitious person that I am, two options run through my head. One: the fairies are here to get their revenge on me for taking a stone from Newgrange over the summer. Two: Some kindly spirit is passing through the area revisiting important places in his or her life before moving on. Lunatic Souls second release amply titled II is a grand representation of the latter. II is the musical continuation of the themes Lunatic Souls mastermind and Riverside front man Mariusz Duda started back in 2008 with the first release under this name. The idea of Lunatic Soul is one of life and death. The first record centered around a man’s passing and his spirit coming to terms with this fact. So in II, the spirit is wandering and searching for a purpose. If you haven’t guessed already, this is quite the haunting little record. It’s a soft and moody listen that takes awhile to settle in your mind. For how simple the melodies and how melancholic the mood is, it’s surprising how calming this record can be. It’s like Peter Gabriel met Steven Wilson in the early 90’s and decided to record something together. Hidden in all the songs are homage’s to Porcupine Tree when they were still exploring the depths of space and Mr. Gabriel’s straight-to-the-point style lyrics of his solo works. One song specifically, Transition, is one of the best pieces of music I’ve ever heard. But even with a statement like that, it doesn’t overshadow the other songs on II. What we have here is a rare kind of inward thinking album that doesn’t get caught up in the over ambitiousness other concept albums do. It’s simple and that’s what astounds me. There’s no electric guitar here – only acoustic. This stylistic approach to the music adds so much to the albums overall mood that I can’t imagine this project with electric instruments. It may sound strange, but electric instruments would take away the pureness of the record. This motif of simplicity is also present the albums cover. Both Lunatic Soul records have the same image for their covers but one is the polar negative of the other. Death and life – black and white – yin and yang. II transports us to a world of mist and memories so vivid and inspiring that it’s a sort of tragedy when the album ends. I can only hope there will be more Lunatic Soul releases in the future. One of these days I’ll have to listen to I and II back to back and see what happens. I have a feeling whatever occurs will be magical. Here’s hoping Mr. Duda continues producing high quality work like this because Lunatic Soul is truly brilliance realized in musical form.

Shearwater - The Golden Archipelago

Artist: Shearwater

Album: The Golden Archipelago

Release: 2010

“Gone from the house to the snow like a wandering light”

Rain is a very interesting phenomena. It can stir up a myriad of emotions including but not limited to sadness, tranquility, and peace. And for an Oregonian such as myself – it’s a welcome change from the dull and predictable sun. For me, rain is nature attempting to clean up all the filth we dump on our earth. But emotionally, it’s an opportunity to wander around in the recesses of my mind. I find rain storms to be a calming experience. These kind of mixed feelings are what Austin’s own Shearwater deliver to us on their latest release The Golden Archipelago. Just like the cover suggests, the listener is drifting aimlessly along in the ocean through a warm rainstorm. We are taken on a sonic journey through a chain of islands with only the wind as our guide. Sounding like if Nick Drake decided to record a post-rock album, The Golden Archipelago is quite the unique little record. Its captivating mix of 70’s folk rock and modern progressive influences make for quite an amazing listening experience. I can confidently say that I’ve never heard anything like it. The magic captured here with little more than keys, drums, and guitars is nothing short of inspiring. Add in vocalist Jonathan Meiburg’s sullen and relaxing croon to the mix and we are left with something that sounds like it doesn’t belong in this world. Yet with all the subtle and soft music featured here, Shearwater isn’t afraid to throw in the mild tempest or two just to keep the listener on their toes. Its during these sections that drummer Thor, (yep, his name is freaking Thor), Harris shines. His ability to keep me interested in a simple beat is astounding. There’s just so much heart put into his instrument. I’m reminded a bit of Neil Peart’s solo work and that’s never a bad thing. Another comparison I could make is with Eluvium’s latest album Similes. Both works are so steeped in atmosphere that it becomes almost impossible not to be taken somewhere. If one were to listen to both these records back to back, I have no doubt they would transcend this life into something far better. This album being my first experience with Shearwater, I had no idea what to expect. But by the time The Golden Archipelago ended I was lost in this world. I didn’t want it to end. In a rarity for me, I listened to the record again immediately after my first listen just to stay lost in this world Shearwater have created. And it is truly a beautiful world.

Oceansize - Self Preserved while the Bodies Float Up

Artist: Oceansize

Album: Self Preserved while the Bodies Float Up

Release: 2010

“This is how the wars get started”

Let it be known – with this record, I have reached a personal milestone. Drum roll please… I now own an album with a pair of breasts on the cover. Now at the time when I purchased Oceansize’s latest opus, I had no idea of this fact. It was only when I had the album in my hand that it dawned on me as to what I was looking at – and only when I flipped through the flipbook-style inlay of the record featuring a rotating naked headless manikin. The image itself is a beautiful way to showcase what the Manchester, England five-piece is aiming to achieve with Self Preserved while the Bodies Float Up. I am reminded of the classic Joy Division cover of Unknown Pleasures and the music itself only adds to this idea. Oceansize takes a bit of a departure from the mellower sound they developed on their last record and replace it with a kind of Mastodon-meets-Joy Division-esk wall of sound with some Nirvana thrown in for good measure. There’s not a single moment on Self Preserved while the Bodies Float Up that lets you relax. It’s a powerful record that can swallow you whole if you let it and aims to leave its listener guessing what will be coming next. We have shifts that vary from Robert Fripp-esk soundscapes to mind crushing guitar riffs. Not even I could have predicted the inclusion of a female vocalist on A Penny’s Weight. The guitar work on Self Preserved while the Bodies Float Up deserves a special mention as well. Oceansize have managed to capture some of the most apocalyptic doomy riffs I have ever heard. Complemented with a the sounds of an orchestral style piano and vocalist Mike Vennart’s calm yet powerful style of singing make this album something special. One gets a sense of swimming through concrete when listening to Self Preserved while the Bodies Float Up. All its sharp cutting gravel will scratch you and the tar will stain you but when all is said and done, you were glad you took the dive. But with how bloated with sound this record is, I wouldn’t recommend starting with Oceansize’s latest. If you are new to the band, take their 2007 release Frames for a spin and ease yourself into their unique style of chaos. It’s the calmer complement to this unrelenting record. But really you can’t do wrong with this band. Oceansize is one of the rising stars of the progressive world and should not be ignored.

Eluvium - Similes

Artist: Eluvium

Album: Similes

Release: 2010

“Appended to the breeze, talking amongst the trees”

Portland is an interesting city. The majority of the time it’s raining yet the city’s inhabitants are some of the friendliest people you can ever meet. Normally those two things could never coexist. But Portlanders can often be seen smiling while they walk down Burnside or Hawthorne in the rain. This is my ideal listening experience for Eluviums new release Similes. I find it appropriate not only because Matthew Cooper, aka Eluvium, resides in the rose city, but because all of Eluviums music just seems to make more sense on a rainy day. His music manages to both capture the beauty of the city and subdue the listener into a rather submissive state. One feels at ease like you’re floating above the clouds, above the storms below. It’s as though the paintings of life around us are melting away before our eyes and what we are left with is the primal beauty of our natural world. One can't help but smile while experiencing this album. Musically, this is Eluviums most groundbreaking release yet. The soft piano keys create an atmosphere of relaxation and no sound ever overstays its welcome. The soundscapes captured here are an ever rotating door of audible clarity. As one sound exits, another enters to take its place. Like players on a stage, each instrument plays its part to perfection until the final curtain falls. But this is not the biggest thing about Similes. The most shocking part of this recording is the fact that it has lyrics! Until now, all five of his records have been entirely instrumental with the occasional sound clip. It’s natural for musicians to try and expand their sound in interesting ways. So adding lyrics into the mix was the next logical step for Eluvium. I view this decision in the same way I view Steven Wilson’s choices lyrically on Insurgentes. The lyrics are meant to complement the music, not the other way around. So the addition of lyrics helps the record by adding a whole new level of sound that could never exist on his previous releases. It’s not often I come across music that can take my breath away. But with Similes, Mr. Eluvium has created something magical. I can’t wait till the next rainy day!

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach

Artist: Gorillaz

Album: Plastic Beach

Release: 2010

“Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach”

I loved Gorillaz. They were the first band I got “into”. Their self titled 2001 debut was the first album I ever bought. It was a brilliant idea. A real life cartoon band lead by a Satanist for a bassist, a possessed hip-hop historian as a drummer, a ten year old Chinese girl as a guitarist, and a blue haired pretty-boy with no eyes as lead singer. These oddballs were the center of my pre-teen life. Then they disappeared off the map, and I forgot about them. Then in 2005, the band returned with Demon Days and so did my interest. And now, five years later, Gorillaz give us their final (?) release Plastic Beach and I’m not sure about it. I used to be really into Hip-Hop and rap. Even though I’ve moved onto better things I still find both of their previous records to be a refreshing change of pace. But maybe it’s been too long… I can’t seem to wrap my head around this eccentric little record. This really isn’t a new Gorillaz record but rather a Gorillaz fronted collaboration album. There’s soooooooooo many people on this record that the actual band get lost in the mix. It doesn’t have the easy-listenable aesthetic the first album had and it doesn’t have the apocalyptic soundtrack feel to it that Demon Days had. I found that throughout all three of the bands releases, the tracks where singer 2-D croons into the mike are my favorites, but those are few and far between on Plastic Beach. I’m not saying that the guests tracks aren’t interesting – it’s actually quite the contrary. I think Mos Def’s contributions to this record are some of the most enjoyable hip-hop I’ve ever heard. Also, Snoop Dogg’s track is a beautiful hybrid of 70’s synth and old school rap. But the biggest surprise on Plastic Beach is inclusion of unknown gem by the name of Little Dragon. The vocalist provides a nice calming change to the rest of the albums over-produced, lets-hit-every-button-on-the-sound-board style of rap. I get the feeling this is a really deep album. I would love to get to the core of this record some day but the music is just so thick that the overall message doesn’t ring as loud as it should be. But overall, the impression Plastic Beach gives me is this – this is a pop record with pop sensibilities. While this is a concept album deserving of a full listen to understand and let the music sink in, that’s just not going to happen. It will be promoted like any other run-of-the-mill forgettable record and all the overexposure will ultimately hurt and taint the album as a whole. But what really bothers me is there’s a chance that the videos from this album have a possibility to be aired before or after MTV’s newest artist-of-the-moment. As a result I fear that Plastic Beach will be completely forgotten like all the other cannon fodder MTV airs. But I do have hope… Maybe one day Plastic Beach will speak to me the same way Gorillaz other releases do. But until then I’m content with what could be Gorillaz last release. Maybe I’m too old for cartoons…

(I have a feeling that I will feel completely different about this record in a year’s time. Setting alarm clock… NOW)

Ihsahn - After

Artist: Ihsahn

Album: After

Release: 2010

“And this is the after. The ending of ends.”

If King Crimson decided to play death metal in 1970, this is what Lizard would have sounded like. After being Vegard Tveitan, AKA Ihsahn’s third solo release after disbanding Emperor, he has had the time needed to develop a sound all his own. While his previous releases had a tendency to lean towards a heavier sound, on After he has finally managed to balance death and progressive metal into something beautiful. The man’s guitar work has been improving steadily and this record sees Ihsahn at the top of his game. It almost sounds like it came from another world. I am reminded of Opeth’s Morningrise during the transitions from acoustics to heavy metal. Not a bad record to be compared to in my opinion. It’s also a plus that After was produced by Jens Bogren who also worked on Opeth’s last two records. But the really surprising this about this album is the inclusion of a Saxophone. This addition lets me know that Ihsahn is serious about expanding his musical horizons on this record. The instrument is used sparingly but when it is, it provides a large amount of texture and gives the album as a whole a much more desolate feel. The whole album sounds like it could have just been a jam session between the musicians and that’s a nice refreshing change from all the large scale releases that came out last year. But a word to the music-savvy. This is a challenging listen. Don’t expect to make it through After in one sitting. I tried and it wore me out. Ihshan has delivered one monolith of a record and I loved every minute of it. After is starting 2010 off to a good start and I’d expect nothing less from this genius.