Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line

I live in a city affectionately called La-La Land. It's a fitting moniker for a number of reasons. Having been born and raised in a northern Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C. (which according to John McCain's adviser Nancy Pfotenhauer isn't "real" Virginia) I have seen and experienced things (sometimes) ridiculously out of my definition of ordinary that I'm still compelled to write many of them down. (For the record, as stupid as it was for Pfothjzsdkjbsjer to characterize Virginia as 2 different states - not counting WEST Virginia - she was merely speaking the truth. If you drive more than an 90 minutes in any southern direction from Fairfax County I promise you will see what "real" Virginia is made of....lots of horses, hicks, Cracker Barrels, etc.) For instance, everyone knows that in L.A. you are required to drive everywhere. This is mostly true. I honestly don't mind the amount (miles) I drive on a weekly basis. The aggravating part is the time spent in the car. At home, 5 miles is about a 15-20min. drive. In L.A. those same 5 miles take at least twice that much time if you're lucky. I also had to quickly learn that there is no end to "rush hour". In order to understand this, you also have to know that no one works in L.A. Meaning, there are so many out of work actors or people whose job it is to shuttle things around town there is always traffic. Certain times are heavier and the only times to get on the freeways are between 10pm and 6am. All of this free time has to be put to good use. I don't recommend texting or using your BlackBerry because you will rear-end someone (not to mention the Govenator signed legislature outlawing it beginning in 2009). I use the time to listen to new music. Depending on the commute I can almost listen to an entire album on one leg, and have a repeat listen on the way home. Most recently I've been "spinning" Ra Ra Riot's debut album The Rhumb Line on my iPod. This is somewhat of a weird coincidence because the band was formed at Syracuse University, and many of my friends out here also went there. Incidentally, they either knew people in the band, saw them play at someone's house party, or some facsimile thereof.

Ra Ra Riot (in my mind) is a thinking-man's Vampire Weekend. It's probably because some lyrical content is inspired by e.e. cummings and not ruminations on oxford commas. But it's also due to the strings of cellist Alexandra Lawn and violinist Rebecca Zeller who artfully alternate between staccato (short) and legato (long) lines depending on the mood and nature of the song. There debut album comes at a perfect time after Vampire Weekend's rapid ascent and subsequent backlash among the snotty tastemakers. The reason for the "delay" is actually a tragic one. The band's original drummer John Pike died tragically in June of 2007 after disappearing one night after a show in Providence, RI. His body was found later in nearby Buzzard's Bay. No one would have blamed the mourning bandmates for calling it quits there and then, but the resilient group issued a statement saying they would continue. Honoring their friend, many of the The Rhumb Line's songwriting credits go in their entirety or partially to Pike. The 10 tracks take up about 37 minutes. It's another one of those albums without any weaknesses and can be listened to front to back. The backstory with the band and the adversity they've managed to get through is inspiring and lends even more emotional weight to songs like "Dying is Fine" and "Ghost Under Rocks." Having listened to the band's 2007 EP as well, this debut album is much more polished and focused than that EP. With some songs crossing over from the EP to the album you can hear the effects of having time in a studio and a good producer. It's an album that makes me forget about sitting in crappy traffic for an hour trying to go (ostensibly) down the street.

"Can You Tell"

NEW Alan Wilkis song in Hutchinson Urban Tires Video

Thought this was good enough to share with more people. Alan Wilkis has a new song that is used in a video for urban bike tires made by Hutchinson. Granted, I know nothing about bike tires but Alan's track fits really well against this cool video. Again, Alan has produced a track that has multiple layers that have a funky feel together but work really well as a whole. After emailing him congrats, he let me know there will be a new EP of material in the coming months! Come for the cool video, but stay for the kickass track. Enjoy.

Of Montreal - Skeletal Lamping

Of Montreal is the musical baby of singer/guitarist Kevin Barnes from Athens, GA. It's hard to perfectly describe their style or even musical tastes because they often change from album to album. With that being said, if you want to know about the early history and formation of the band I suggest reading this. Of Montreal came onto my musical radar only a couple years ago when their album Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? became a hit with the indie blogosphere and magazines. That praise was warranted, and is still a great album. The best way to describe the sound of the most recent music from the band is electro-pop-funk-psychedelia...or something.

With all that being said, Of Montreal released their newest album Skeletal Lamping yesterday (10/21) in a litany of formats: "including conventional CD and vinyl, as well as t-shirts, button sets, wall decals, tote bags and a paper lantern, the latter formats replete with a digital download code for the album itself." This fact, is really beside the point. The newest album continues the style and feel of the previous album but with less cohesion. It was sometimes difficult to know when certain songs began and ended on the previous album. It was really meant to be listened to all the way through, but this newest album is very choppy. It's not out of the ordinary for tracks to shift multiple times in the span of a couple minutes. It makes for a headache if you're not prepared for the ride. There are a couple bright spots, but overall it's not as complete an album as its predecessor. It's really a love it or hate it album. While I fall more in the middle, I would probably not recommend it over Hissing Fauna. The album is incredibly ambitious, but tends to cross the line between ambitious and pretentious. I generally give the benefit of the doubt to the musician, but I just think Barnes missed the mark on this. On the flip side, some musicians could never begin to be this ambitious...so take it for what it is; an okay album from an entertaining artist.

"For Our Elegant Caste"

The Foreign Exchange - Leave It All Behind

The Foreign Exchange is the perfect name for the R&B/hip-hop duo of rapper Phonte and Dutch producer Nicolay. Their story is one made for the Internet Age. As a member of Little Brother, Phonte heard a beat by Nicolay on okayplayer.com and contacted him to ask if he could lay a rap over it. Nicolay agreed and soon the track ("Light It Up") was a b-side to "Whatever You Say" off Little Brother's 2003 album, The Listening. An intercontinental relationship was born. They began emailing and instant messaging back and forth. Nicolay would send finished beats and Phonte would then record the vocal tracks and send back the finished track. They did this enough to complete a full-length debut title Connected (2004). I heard that album way back when, and really really enjoyed it. It's a pretty mellow R&B/hip-hop album that doesn't just sound like two guys collaborating because it would be cool. Connected had a few tracks that had great production, with equally impressive lyrical content.

Today (10/14) The Foreign Exchange release their follow-up titled Leave It All Behind. Be warned that this album has a very different feel than its predecessor. The debut album had a few R&B (singing) tracks sprinkled throughout whereas this new album really focuses on Phonte's singing. This is distincly a R&B album. With that being said, it's probably one of the best R&B albums I've heard in a long time. Much of the R&B I hear is really fake and kinda schmaltzy (excuse the Yiddish). It just sounds fake, forced, and something out of a cliche bedroom scene from a movie. Leave It All Behind is different. It has at least an undercurrent of hip-hop production which makes the tracks more interesting and distinguishable. It's a production style that mixes influences from traditional hip-hop, to some elements of break beat, and even some things that are hard to categorize. Upon my first listen to the the album I was confused and kinda upset because I was expecting the album to be more of the same and a step forward. This album is a step forward, but maybe diagonally. Meaning, in a slightly different direction but still a progression. If you know that the album is - at its core - an R&B effort you will probably really really enjoy this album. If you think this is more like Connected you are going to be a bit disappointed, but if you have the patience to listen through you'll still hear great production and Phonte sing the best way he knows how.

"Daykeeper"

Ray LaMontagne - Gossip In The Grain

The last time I wrote about Ray LaMontagne I wasn't very generous, and begged for more from the budding blues-folk star. Known as a bit of a recluse, Ray lives someplace in the depths of Maine. It is probably someplace far from the "Real World" where people don't know who he is, and everyone calls each other by their first names...if there is anyone else around at all. He began his journey into the music world after hearing a Stephen Stills song ("Tree Top Flyer") on the radio as he was getting up to go to work. He heard the song and decided to stop working in a show factory and pursue a music career. Thank goodness. The music world owes him a huge thank you note. Ray LaMontagne is an artist that doesn't come along very often. He's talented, has a unique perspective, and his sound is distinctly his own. His voice is a raspier/huskier version of Van Morrison and Tim Buckley. His music most often is compared to his genre compatriot Iron & Wine for their folk/rock/blues similarities.

Gossip In The Grain (2008) (being released 10/14/08) is as different from Till the Sun Turns Black (2006), as it was from its predecessor Trouble (2004). Each album has seen a progression for Ray, which is quite a thing to say considering his debut album was quite good. At his heart LaMontagne is a storyteller. His way of telling stories through his lyrics is unquestionably one of the things listeners are drawn to during every listen. He usually sings about loneliness and romantic longing. These topics have been "done before" but rarely have they been sung with such drama and authenticity. He expresses his emotion with a depth and realness that would make grown men cry and women sigh. The bare-bones structures and initmacy of Till the Sun Turns Black isn't totally gone, but it has been replaced with more varied tunes that show a wide range of styles. The opener "You Are The Best Thing" is a rousing Memphis soul tune, followed by "Let It Be" with its folksier lilting soul groove (a song John Mayer will probably wish he wrote), then comes the intimate tune "Sarah" with a melody played on mandolin. Within the first three songs you can already tell that this is going to be a diverse and rich album. The use of strings, acoustic and electric guitars, horns, backing vocals, harmonica, and banjo are just more examples of the diversity employed by Ray and his exceptional producer Ethan Johns. There is even a song that could have been written by the Rolling Stones with its free-form blues riffs called "Henry Nearly Killed Me (It's a Shame)." This is really the record I had wanted to hear from LaMontagne. While I did end up enjoying Till the Sun Turns Black the more and more I listened to it, I think this album is going to have a higher place on the mantle, per se. It's a really great collection of songs that will satisfy all commers.

"You Are The Best Thing"

BSS Presents: Brendan Canning - Something For All of Us...

The members of Broken Social Scene are numerous. Many of their names are now known outside of the band collective: Kevin Drew, Jason Collett, Leslie Feist, and Emily Haines. The founding members were Drew and Brendan Canning. After recording a few albums and touring with whoever was available (tour line ups) Kevin Drew wanted to record a solo album but still keep things close to BSS material. Thus began the Broken Social Scene Presents series. First in line was Kevin Drew (reviewed by me last year), and now it is Brendan Canning's turn. Being the lead vocalist for BSS, his crooning will sound familiar (if you know the band). He's usually very hushed, laid back, and can't always decipher his lyrics but he creates an extra layer to an already textured sound.

Something For All of Us... was released back at the end of July without a whole lof of fanfare, but it's a pretty solid album. I'm not sure what each of these members are trying to achieve by releasing "solo" albums. Maybe they feel more passionate about these songs that they could write without the help of the band setting. Maybe they just wanted different packaging. Maybe it's none of these things. A full-fledged BSS album has a distinctive sound, whereas these two "Presents" album do feel the same but different. On BSS studio releases there is a usually a large feeling of the collective. Whereas on these two individualized releases it feels only collaborative when they're playing together, and the songwriting came from the solo artists' vault. Brendan Canning does a sufficient job utilizing the various skills of his bandmates but doesn't really explore anything new or discover new uncharted territory. To be blunt, it's a pretty safe album. But, when you're good a safe album is better than many many things. I would have been a little interested to hear some new thoughts or experimentation, but that doesn't happen on this record. I still think seeing BSS live is the best way to go. I haven't had that luxury, but I imagine it would be quite a show. You never know who's going to show up, but it would probably be a great experience. The first single is "Hit the Wall" and is the best song on the album. Enjoy.

"Hit the Wall"

The Pretenders - Break Up the Concrete

The Pretenders have been around since before I was born. Now that that's out of the way, I can tell you that if you haven't at least heard of them or their mainstay lead singer Chrissie Hynde you've probably been living under a rock. For a quick low-down on their history you can read the bio at AllMusic. What you need to know is that this new album is the first studio album since 2002. It continues a trend that has seen the personnel change through the years but it's said to be only for the studio recording. The current roster for the studio is comprised of Hynde, guitarist James Walbourne, pedal steel player Eric Heywood, bassist Nick Wilkinson and session drummer Jim Keltner. The usual drummer Martin Chambers will retake his position behind the drum kit for the upcoming tour.

Break Up the Concrete is out today (10/7) via Shangri-La Music and clocks in at 36.5 minutes with 11 songs ranging from 2:14 to 4:48 in length. Top to bottom it's a solid album. It's groovy with crunchy guitars, some great percussion rhythms, and of course Hynde's signature voice. She's truly a rock 'n roll woman whose music can stand up against the men, and crush many of them. There are straight out rockers, slower ballads, and a few songs in between. This release is special not only because Hynde doesn't go into the studio all that often, but this is only the 2nd album to bear The Pretenders name in the past 10 years. Clearly, Hynde is standing firmly behind this music and wanted to put the ultimate stamp of approval on the album. For having been singing for 20+ years it's amazing that Hynde's voice still sounds fresh, dynamic, and full of verve. Musically speaking, this album is a return to form for Hynde and The Pretenders name. Not that they were gone and forgotten, but this is a rebirth. It's not as rough and hard-rock tinged as early efforts. The hard rock swagger has been substituted with a rockabilly bounce and country-rock sensibility (on the ballads). Overall, this Pretenders album feels like that old sweatshirt I have in the back of my closet that hasn't been worn in a while (because I live in SoCal): it's familiar, comfortable, and makes me wonder how I could have gone so long without it.

"Break Up the Concrete"

UPDATE:
Love's A Mystery (LIVE on The Today Show)