PopMatters Music Short Takes

Head Like a Kite, There Is Loud Laughter Everywhere (Mush)

Again produced and mixed by Brian Deck of Modest Mouse and Iron & Wine fame, the sophomore album from Head Like a Kite continues the found sound and Super 8 home movie sampling as filtered through LCD Soundsystem style electro pop. Like the debut, Sushirobo founder Dave Einmo’s guitar sound still apes late ‘90s, but the synth programming has clearly evolved. Tossing in the odd bit of string and street noise, the compositions on There Is Loud Laughter Everywhere seem more confident and developed across the board. “We Were So Entangled” sounds like the DFA producing a new Capitol K track, with a raunchy synth lead, repeating megaphone vocals, pounding drums, funky electric guitar, and a touch of brass and glitch. It is a born single. “Big FM Radio Hit” probably won’t be as it says, but as a straight-ahead rocker with a memorable “alright” rock chorus, it deserves a lot of indie play. All that adds up to about the most widely accessible record released by Mush in recent memory. [Amazon]

Extra Life, Secular Works (Planaria)

Charlie Looker, the instrumental force behind Extra Life, is also known for his work as a member of ZS, Ocrilim and the Dirty Projectors. And while his previous projects are known for their intricacies and powerful guitar spasms Looker dwells heavily into his Wesleyan education with Secular Works, an album heavily influenced by the art of Gregorian Chant and something called “monophonic song”. “Blackmail Blues” has Looker’s operatic voice wavering over a syncopated bass-and-string combo. “I Don’t Feel That Way” has a disjointed rhythm structure and vacillating harmonies which bears a slight resemblance to work of the Dirty Projectors. “Burn” stretches out as Looker goes into a full-out chant mode with his bleak lyrics. Extra Life certainly shows the depth of Looker’s extensive musical talents, but without the adrenaline-fueled guitars it’s hard to predict how many people will be interested in an album so deeply immersed in the artist’s classical training. Secular Works may very likely alienate some of its potential fans, but Looker is probably not concerned with them anyways. [Amazon]

A Kiss Could Be Deadly, A Kiss Could Be Deadly (Metropolis)

California synth-rock band A Kiss Could Be Deadly is the cousin of Shiny Toy Guns, complete with the catchy, tight, and retro dance-pop driving “The Exit”. Led by singer Lauren Baird, the group nails some of these songs out of the park, including “Just Another Mystery”, which could have been found on any K-Tel ‘80s compilation album. The group also comes off with panache during the hi-hat heavy “Broken Music” and the up-tempo, passionate “Posion IV” (get it, Poison I-V?). The only difference between A Kiss Could Be Deadly and Shiny Toy Guns is that the former rely more on the keyboards, while the latter use heaps of guitar to get the message home. As a result, this album seems a bit lightweight at times, making songs like “Damage Control” strong but not as stellar as it could be. Thankfully, the lightness is gone with the rather urgent “The Sequel” and the punk-ish “I Wrote You a Love Song” with Baird displaying her pipes. There’s some oomph on the record and “The Book, Not the Feeling” is a perfect example of that. If there was a tad more, it would be a great album, but it’s worth many listens regardless. [Amazon]

The Contents Are, Through You (Shadoks)

The wheels on the “big, blue” hippy bus went round and round as the Contents Are weaved their merry way across Iowa spreading the word of paisley protest. For four years during the ‘60s, the Quad Cities-based quartet created a heady brew of subdued blues beats, catchy psych-pop and tripped-out folk that sugar-coated the hardcore messages which lurked beneath the 13 original tunes on 1967’s Through You. The Contents Are’s songs weren’t all filled with cotton candy clouds floating in a marshmallow sky but dealt with more serious issues including a very bleak view of modern democracy ("Peace At Last") set to a tune that borrows from the Beatles “Dr. Robert”, a hook-laden wake-up call to the U.S. government ("In Trouble") that, some would say, is still relevant today, and the ever-present nuclear threat ("If You’re Relaxing"). This previously hard-to-find (only 100 copies were pressed and sold at gigs) regional gem is bolstered by the band’s two excellent, and not quite so hard-to-find, singles. The best of these sides, “Future Days”, is a piece of moody, early psych-blues that sounds like it hails from the dark side of Haight-Ashbury and, even with the poor audio quality, is alone worth the price of admission to this particular band’s garage. [Amazon]

Andre Obin, Colorwheel (Moodgadget)

For such an abbreviated serving, Andre Obin’s Colorwheel is so drunk with emotion and synth swells that its not-quite-nine minutes are positively exhausting. Obin has deviously fashioned his techno as a side project—he has a Boston-based ambient electro/rock act called Matters & Dunaway and took producer credit on their 2004 full-length, Hightech. On his own, though, Obin’s calculations are of the room-shaking brand, owing more to a bedroom-honed sense of dancefloor artistry rather than to an affinity for rock shows.

Colorwheel‘s energy reveals a taste for synthpop as well as for Ulrich Schnauss-styled hesitance—hard kicks back layered, wiry synth riffs on the title track while fractured vocal snippets drift to and fro in the crowded background. A short bridge on “Colorwheel” allows for Obin to dial back the track’s brawny grit and, with a few spreading chords and delay treatment, let a little sun in. His “Angel Dust” is just as inspired, but the melody (and clipped vocal bits) seems secondary to the barrage of percussion, which gets a jolt in sporadic snare rolls against the central pulse. This “side project” of driving rhythms and boiling temperatures eventually constitutes an aural overload—any LP plans from Obin should be considered a threat worth seeking cover for. [Amazon]

The Grouch, Show You the World (Legendary)

The Grouch is easily one of the hardest working men in hip-hop. Whether he’s producing and rapping with fellow Living Legends, making beats for someone else, or crafting his own efforts, the Grouch has graced more albums than you could care to count. The California-based rapper/producer has also been busy in his personal life with a marriage and a new child. With all these distractions, you can almost understand why his latest, Show You the World, is plagued by 55 minutes worth of tracks both weak and clumsy.

Unlike other rap albums, this one isn’t short on subject matter. He dishes out battle rhymes on “Clones” while also serving up a critical look at capitalism on the topnotch “Mom & Pop Killer”. Where the Grouch does fall short, however, is in his actual rapping. His sometimes awkward lyrics cause his flow to stumble. And his avant-garde approach is hit or miss. Yet, there is something wholesome about it all. The genuine sound of his voice allows him to capture the listener, even when he’s outshined by fellow Living Legend Murs on “The Bay to L.A.”, one of the album’s best tracks. The Grouch also doesn’t seem to take himself too seriously, a quality lost on a lot of artists, particularly rappers. Just listen to “Artsy” and try not to laugh.

Show You The World‘s major downfall is that it hits its stride towards the end. And those stronger songs still do not make up for the lacking openers. For every “Never Die” and its strong beat and lyricism, there’s a “Yardwork” to balance it out. While you can commend him for his die-hard approach to his craft, this album shows that the Grouch is spreading himself too thin. [Amazon]

Soda Fountain Rag, It’s Rag Time! (Yesboyicecream)

Is this becoming a sudden, random subgenre? Single women armed with keyboards and keen avant-pop sensibilities suddenly going out and claiming 2008 as their own? It started off with Tickley Feather and is now moving on to Norway’s Soda Fountain Rag (aka Rahnhild Hogstad Jordahl). With her snappy debut album (barely crossing the half-hour mark), Jordahl has lo-fi programmed beats serve as the basis for her ever-so-simple synth pluckings. The problem? They’re too simple: this album pretends to have the secret spousal angst that belies every Mates of State recording, but the whole thing feels like forced digital sugar rush: an album for kids to dance around to while wearing off their sugar rushes. Though a majority of the songs are instantly forgettable, there are some genuinely fantastic tracks to be found, primarily with the sunny indie-pop of “Monkey Boy” and the juicy, ‘80s synth workout “The Saddest Boy Again”. Beyond that, however, there’s not a whole lot to recommend, making this subgenre feel like a passing fad more than anything else. [Amazon]

We Were the States, Believe the Thieves (Chicken Ranch)

Labeled as “post-punk” to some, We Were the States present a plethora of polished pop punk. Whether the band offers up “Up Your Sleeve”—which sounds like a cross of The Walkmen and Mooney Suzuki—the band nails “Red Lion” with a tightness and precision that brings to mind early Von Bondies. Put the real payoff is the foot-stomping “Till Morning Comes” led by the fun, sing-along chorus vocalist Justin Webb leads. We Were the States slow the record down somewhat with a stellar, slow-building “See If I Care” that could have been culled from The Killers songbook. Following the lengthy, groove-tinged “Girl, You’re Not a Thief”, the band opts for a leaner, garage rock gem entitled “Been Done Wrong” which is quite alright. Even a throwaway track such as “Hard” is alluring with its slow, breezy feel after nearly 10 songs of intensity. And if they haven’t won you over yet, the two-minute blazing “Please Be Quiet” should leave you talking about this group. [Amazon]