Bibio - Mind Bokeh

Check out Bibio's new LP
I'm diggin it.

Oneohtrix Point Never - Rifts

"Daniel Lopatin has just set a new standard for electronic music in the 21st century" - Glowing Raw

In the world of electronic music there is a spectrum. On one side of that world is a place where hook filled dance pop techno lives and thrives....but, the other side of the world, is a strange place filled with even stranger characters who will fill your head with harsh experimental shredding,and glitchy, droning mayhem that will swallow you alive.

Oneohtrix Point Never lives for the most part, in the latter place. OPN is the recording name of Brooklyn based musician/producer Daniel Lopatin. I found out about him from this blog called Glowing Raw. Their unrelenting praise for his music convinced me to check it out. The album 'Rifts' is a compilation of three other albums he released over the last few years, with some odds and ends thrown in. It clocks in at nearly two and a half hours and to be honest, I don't think I have ever listened to it all in one sitting. So let's start with the the first third of the album, previously released as 'Betrayed in The Octagon.' Here is the cover.

Because this music is so dense, and because there is so much of it, I have been listening to it for months and I keep hearing new things, or things I forgot about. Lopatin is a masterful sound craftsman who knows how to construct a sonic world around a listener, if they are patient enough to wait for it. This is how he describes his own process.

"The goal is to make music with the same intensity as Michelangelo's sculptures — like beautiful, seamless figures, carved almost violently out of gigantic blocks of super heavy, solid marble. The process of stripping away towards something elemental or burying something elemental within a vast world of sound is something that I'm into." -Daniel Lopatin (OPN)

Lopatin is standing on the shoulders of giants (Harmonia, Eno etc). The giants who pioneered spacey synth music back in the 60s and 70s and even 80s. His sound is a smooth blend of kosmiche, ambient, drone, but it is also entirely futuristic and electronic. Photo break.

It's a fascinating idea. The world looks to the future and tries to imagine all the possibilities. There is hope for all the things one can't even begin to imagine. An aesthetic is born out of that, and becomes the prevalent view of what the future can and will be. Inevitably, time passes and the future is nothing like what it was expected to be. Standing there in that moment, one gains great perspective. Being able to observe the uninhibited dreams of the people of the past, and how their hopes didn't come to fruition. It's the paradox of lost futures. It seems so clear now. It is always the present, and things will change, but it will never be the future. A seemingly obvious observation, but its a trap that we are all constantly falling into. Turn on the TV at any moment, and you won't have to wait long before you learn that the "future is now" and that "things will never be the same." You are being sold the nostalgia for lost futures. It's this puzzling paradox that Daniel Lopatin understands. He takes it and folds it in on itself countless times and embeds it into his vast soundscapes, until you are lost in space-time. Alright, enough of that. Check out the covers to 'Zones Without People' and 'Russian Mind' (in that order).

I highly encourage you to check out this sound-scape space-epic. After a while you will sink right in, and you'll never be able to find your way out. I may add to this later, but for now, here is the cover to 'Rifts' the compilation, and you'll find the link below, along with some other stuff including a super interesting interview.



Oneohtrix Point Never - Rifts pt. 1

Oneohtrix Point Never - Rifts pt. 2

Oneohtrix Point Never MySpace

Interview with Daniel Lopatin of Oneohtrix Point Never

Arms and Sleepers - Matador

So it's been like two months since I posted something, but an album has come to my attention that simply must be shared. The band is a duo called Arms and Sleepers and they have been making music since 2006. They have released around half a dozen various items, EPs, or LPs or demos or split albums. Matador is the band's most recent full length album and may be the crown jewel of their catalog. Here is the cover:

I found out about this band very much by accident, and oh what a great accident it was. I saw the album on this blog that I sometimes visit, and downloaded it for no reason. Curiosity is enough sometimes. And it sat on my computer for a little while, getting dusty. Then, in preparation for my trip to Europe over winter break, I looked at what bands would be playing in the cities I would be in. I saw Arms and Sleepers was going to be at a Tavern in East London and the name rung and bell, so I went and found the album and put it on. On my trip I planned on seeing Wavves and the XX and maybe some others, but the only band I actually ended up seeing was Arms and Sleepers.

From what I have heard of their other music, this album stands out as their best work. That might just be organic artistic growth but there is a distinct shift in the form of the song structure. They are so carefully put together. The layers creep in slowly, and change the tone of the song, keeping things fresh and interesting. Another big change are the vocals, which are almost not present in their other music, but have an important role in this album. Song that seem to be instrumental, break out half-way through with fuzzed out vocal lines, backed my sunny harmonies. The touching element of this music is hard to put a finger on, but ill try. It's focus. The songs build and grow and stretch and might be very different by the end, but the songs never forget where they are going and what they are trying to do. The point is never lost. Take a look and listen at this smokey video.



This album became the anthem of Europe for me. Being cold and seeing beauty has a soundtrack, and this is it. For me at least. The two members of Arms and Sleepers are Max Lewis and Mizra Ramic, and when I saw them, I didn't realize that they weren't vocalists. It was in fact Ben Shepard of the opening band Uzi and Ari that did the vocals live. The live show was quite an experience. It was in a small Pub called The George Tavern, and there were maybe 25-30 people attending. It wasn't a proper venue, but they hold concerts frequently, by pushing some chairs and tables aside, and setting up equipment. My friend and I took asylum from the below freezing temperatures and sat in a booth and watched the group recreate the vibrant and haunting atmosphere found on Matador. It was so different from most of the concerts I have been to. The place was almost totally candle lit, giving it an automatic +100 for mood and tone, and the concert goers were quietly sipping on drinks and just watching. There is no doubt Arms and Sleepers makes electronic music, but they were not just sitting behind a laptop or drum machine. They recreated a lot of the instrumentation on the album. Keyboards, a xylephone of some sort, drums, melodica, and even that playing-guitar-with-bow thing. It was loud as hell too. This is the only quality video I found of the group performing live, so check it out.



There is a part two if you are interested.

Arms and sleepers sits on the fence between genres and so its hard to boil down what their music is, but I think it is safest to say ambient electronica, but there are traces of trip-hop and post-rock. I have read lots of comparisons to Boards of Canada, Portishead and The Album Leaf, but this band has something else, something intangible that evades my description. I was reading this and the author of the review seemed to have to same problem I do in summing up their enormous sound. "Calling Arms and Sleepers sophomore release, Matador, atmospheric is like calling the sky big or the ocean deep. It’s technically true, but means nothing, gives you no sense of scope. Calling it brooding gives it unnecessary baggage as it is beautiful in equal measures; still, the term would be accurate. Whatever you call it, you would, in some sense be doing it an injustice, as words are only signposts in the cloudy haze of music that is echoed in the vaguely V23 cloudy haze that adorns the cover."

I guess that's enough for now. Below are some more vids and links to the album, MySpace etc. Enjoy.

Interview:


Arms and Sleepers MySpace

Arms and Sleepers Blog

Arms and Sleepers - Matador

Popol Vuh - Cœur de verre/Herz aus Glas & Einsjäger und Siebenjäger

For me to want to write about something on this blog, it has to resonate with me in a particular way. To me it is a sort of recommendation list, and I don't want my endorsements to be anything besides the best. To really get an album I have to spend a decent amount of time with it. I have to keep coming back to it and hear new things every time.

Despite this, I am posting about an album that as of this moment I haven't heard all the way through. By the middle of the album I had resolved to post it!





Popol Vuh is a German band that has released 20 albums between 1970-1999. It seems that their best run was in the 70's with at least one album out every year. Their music is a blend of sounds, from Krautrock, to psychedelic, to electronic, to world music. I discovered them from a great blog called Glowing Raw and I have a feeling there is not much I will be listening to for a while. Their style is so succinct that it's hard to put my finger on. There are clearly some improvisational elements, and eastern influences (from the occasional sitar and pentatonic infusions), and there is also the presence of blues in the guitar work. There is a "jam" quality that reminds me of the Grateful Dead (in a good way). Songs like "würfelspiel" take off with a driving tempo, and never turn back. "Einsjäger und Siebenjäger" is (originally) the last tack on the album of the same name, and its full 20 minutes are as grandiose and regal as anything I have heard in a while. (Also, it is the only stuff I've heard of theirs with vocals) I'm not gonna say too much more, but the production value is also excellent. I recommend these guys to anyone with a love of psychedelic and prog rock.



Florian Fricke of Popol Vuh was one of the first people to use the Moog synthesizer and it was a prominent component of their music. Below is a video of Fricke and another band member improving with the synth. It was only a few years later that Fricke gave his synth away and renounced electronic music. Strange, but true.



Popol Vuh's head man Florian Fricke was interested in film and even made a few short films before his music career started, so it makes sense that the band would be interested in scoring films. at least half a dozen of their studio albums were soundtracks for film maker Werner Herzog, including the first one listed below. Along with original music, they did an album of Mozart variations. I have only heard the one below but I'll be checking the others out soon enough.



FFO: Can, Neu!, Faust, Kraftwerk, Grateful Dead, kinda world music, Gentle Giant

Ok below we have two albums and their respective links. Enjoy!



Popol Vuh - Cœur de verre / Herz aus Glas



Popol Vuh - Einsjäger und Siebenjäger

Here We Go Magic - Here We Go Magic

Here We Go Magic is a Brooklyn band headed by Luke Temple. Their eponymous debut album is somewhat of a departure from Temple's solo music, but still has his signature songwriting style and gorgeous voice. The band is pretty new, and there isn't too much information on them, but they created a bit of buzz by touring with Grizzly Bear and then signing to Secretly Canadian. This album is a bit short, coming in at about 38 minutes, but it packs a punch. I have at no point been overwhelmed or completely blown away by their music, because it isn't groundbreaking. It's just good. My former roommate recommended I check this band out over the summer, and I was happy I did. I have found myself coming back to their music over and over, and I haven't gotten bored with it. The album, pictured below, is pretty strange as far as style. It takes some turns that I certainly didnt expect going into it the first time. I think it is best to go song by song on this one. (There are only nine). But first!



"Only Pieces" starts the album off with a really cool mix of real percussion and electronic blips, that could be Blue Man Group interlude. "What's the use in dyin', dyin', if I don't know when?" Temple's existential quandary is the first thing we hear from him. A bit later an acoustic guitar tinkles over everything, and the harmonies grow and build. I'll stop counting the layers there, but this continues a bit with repeated variations of his original question. It seems to grow and grow and speed up, but the tempo is constant. In a way it is a song fragment that is just stretched out, but its nice to hear music that isn't trying too hard.
Next we hear "Fangela," the first single and a great song. Again, simple but satisfying. It sounds like it was recorded down long empty hallway. The instruments (especially drums/hand claps) are echoey and spacious. This is again complimented with lite synths.
Around this time I felt like I had the band figured out. I pigeonholed them as sort of indie rock with dreamy, poppy sensibilities. But they had more up their sleeves (pardon the magic pun).
"Ahab" is next. Bass riff starts us off followed by a constant drum rhythm, which both persist through the entire song. A few brief almost indiscernible lyrics, as is Temple's style, but by the end there are so many layered drones that you don't really know where they came from. Not my favorite track, but the next one is.
"Tunnelvision" is a dreamy chugging track that gets in your head for days at a time. Again it is kinda the same thing for 4 minutes but it really doesn't matter to me. The fuzzy, hissy, deamy, sunny, warm, blissed-out song is a joy to listen to. And with this track, I realized that this band and album kinda belong to the Ducktails/Washed Out/Neon Indian/Memory Tapes trend of 4-track, distorted 80's synth, atmospheric songs that are everywhere these days. One difference is that they didn't go the dance music route. They are like folky indie rock with a Ducktails atmosphere. (If you don't believe me, or just don't hear it, listen to Here We Go Magic all the way through, and then listen to "Horizon" and "Beach Point Pleasant" by Ducktails).
Ok. Photo Break.



"Ghost List" is really a change from the first half of the album. It is really an ambient track. I love it. Loud, full and fuuuuuzzzzzy. At the 1:25 mark the song breaks into the distortion and hiss that is behind many Deerhunter and Atlas Sound songs. And at the 2:05 mark it sounds like the heart of a huge industrial beast pumping.
"I Just Want To See You Underwater" is my second favorite track on the album. It gets stuck in my head a lot too. Same format as far as rhythmic backing and atmosphere with repetitive lyrics. Ya know, there isn't a ton for me to say about this song. Just listen.
"Babyohbabyijustcantstanditanymore" is the shortest track, and more like an intro to "Nat's Alien" but its pretty cool as well. Its just sound really...noise maybe? Ambient.
"Nat's Alien" is also ambient a really cool looped sound that sounds like the tractor beam from an alien spacecraft. It is punctured with distorted feedback.
"Everything's Big" is the unexpected ending to Here We Go Magic's album. It is back to simple indie. But not for long. The innocence and playfulness build over 5 and a half minutes ending in epicness reminicent of The National. The accordion and whimsical farm animal talk are traded in for some jazzy drumming and Temple's most moving and heartfelt vocals of the album. This is a stripped down track, and isn't like the others, but fits somehow.



I really think everyone should check this out. Like I said the music is revolutionary, but I still listen to it and enjoy it, so it does have longevity. There is just something about the songwriting that is so touching and strong. Temple's voice is really great, and it wasn't only me who noticed.

"Luke Temple has one of the most beautiful voices in pop music." - Sufjan Stevens

"His voice alone is so damn good -- one of the prettiest voices in all of indie rock, hands down." - Ben Gibbard



Ok. Below there is a link to their MySpace, official videos for two songs, a live video, an NPR article, and the album itself.





Official MySpace

Live Sessions

NPR article

Here We Go Magic - Self Titled (Try it)

Here We Go Magic - Self Titled (Buy it)

Son Lux - At War With Walls & Mazes

Son Lux is the moniker of New York based musician, Ryan Lott. By day he writes music for tv/radio ads as well as dance companies, but he has more than that up his sleeve. Lott's debut album, At War With Walls & Mazes, took four years to birth, and was well worth the wait. It was essentially all recorded by him in his apartment. His classical training blends seamlessly with his love for hip hop production and beats.




The album is 11 tracks and travels to so many places in that time. There is a narrative arc in the structure, but no real story to my knowledge. Lott's voice is soft and tender while managing to stay evocative. His stylistic preferences are quite a mix. There are strong classical elements with the frequent inclusion of strings, woodwinds and piano (see the last half of "Stay"). There is a definite hip-hop undertone in the beats, rhythms and production style (see the first minute of "Break," who's spastic, splintering drum beats sound like DJ Shadow's "The Number Song"). There are the clear signs of electronica in the glitches of "Wither" or "Raise" (either of which could easily be tracks from Thom Yorke's The Eraser). There are jazzy and soulful moments (see the 1:08 mark in "Stay" where a fractured tinny organ sweeps in). There are even ambient moments (see "Tell"). Despite all these styles and influences, the record is never bloated or boring. His style is unmistakable and this album is one of the best debut albums I have ever heard. Lott's obviously knew exactly what he wanted to create, and he made no compromises in making it happen. I am posting his beautiful music videos:






Everything I have seen or heard with his name on it is of the highest quality. Music videos for the songs are visually stunning and perfect companions to the tracks.



Below there are links to Son Lux's official blog and MySpace. The blog has a whole ton of free extra tracks from his album as well as tons of excellent remixes including Beirut and Radiohead. But before we get to that (and a link to the album) I am posting a live acoustic and very jazzy version of "Stay." It is a gorgeous performance, and vastly different imagining of the song than the album version. I didn't realize that his voice really sounds like this. After the song he stands up and hugs Yoni Wolf of Why? Enjoy.





Son Lux - At War With Walls & Mazes - Try it
Son Lux At War With Walls & Mazes - Buy it
Son Lux Blog
Son Lux MySpace

J Dilla - Donuts

February 7th, 2006 saw the release of Donuts, J Dilla's magnum opus. February 10th, 2006, just three days later, J Dilla was dead. He was barely 32. Hip-Hop lost one of its most promising young talents. Dilla had a rare blood disease called TTP that has a low survival rate. What he left was an excellent body of finished and unfinished work. Donuts, a sprawling 31 track record, is probably the best instrumental hip-hop album since Endtroducing..... And like DJ Shadow's masterpiece, Donuts redefined the standards of hip-hop music production. All of his released and unreleased material is constantly taken by rappers, DJs and other producers. Check out Dilla's posthumous appearance on "Lightworks" from (MF) DOOM's most recent release Born Like This. This is one of the two covers of Donuts.



Donuts is a collection of well formed beats and samples, compiled at Dilla's creative peak during his worst physical state. Dilla assembled a moody album full of longing, nostalgic and fearful tracks. Comprised of varied eclectic textures and moods, the samples are pulled heavily from the harmonies of old motown and the cheesy tv soundtracks of the 70s. The songs are really just, brief, flowing ideas, like snapshots of inspiration. Only one song passes the two minute mark. Here is the other cover.



His already large underground following became even more extensive after he died. This is a real gem for everyone who loves instrumental or even cinematic hip-hop production. Here are a few more pictures.

FFO: Madlib, Flying Lotus? old school hip-hop, innovative production.
Here is a link to this thumping honey dipped soul music.

Recommended tracks: "The New," "The Diff'rence," "Gobstopper" and "Walkinonit"

J Dilla - Donuts - Try it
J Dilla - Donuts - Buy it
J Dilla Official MySpace