Music Review – 2D-Music

Slow and Euphonious #5

December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 jdshoLeave a comment

A happy December to you! This is more than overdue, the only thing stronger than my procrastination is my will to talk about music apparently.
Thankfully some beautiful things have come in the past couple of months. Let’s have a look.

#1. Lankum. “The Livelong Day”

This may come as a surprise or no to some of you but ever since I first stumbled upon the magnificence that is Luke Kelly and the Dubliners I’ve had a love for traditional Irish music. To the point that I even have a selection of records that are purely Uilleann pipe reels for hours. So when a friend of mine said that there’s a band in Ireland who have taken the folk elements of trad’ music and have mixed it with dark as molasses sound themes I was already taken.

lankum-livelong-day — Lankum “The Livelong Day”

Whilst having a tumultuous history of formations and reformations Lankum have for some time been operating as a 4 piece with a varying collection of instruments. I understand that traditional Irish songs may not be for everybody, but you haven’t head them like this before. The band somehow maintains a reverential approach to the material while also bringing in a whole other world of influences to the table. Things like: post-punk, shoegaze, drone, and even some psychedelic folk. While there are some bright moments the record as a whole is dark, brooding, and primally atmospheric.

Some of the performances on this album will have you wondering if you’ve accidentally stumbled onto some form of ancient bardic ritual. I recommend listening to this near an ablaze fireplace with a bottle of something strong next to you.

Personal Highlights:
“Ode to Lullaby“, “Katie Cruel” & “The Pride of Petravore”

#2. Bjéar “August (feat. Ella Ion)”

Screen Shot 2019-12-07 at 2.42.13 PM — Bjéar “August”

The most recent offering from the one man operation that is Bjéar is ever as tantalizing and satisfying. While sonically it continues from his other release this year the “All Roads” ep. The mood of this single is much more grounded. Foregoing synths, drums, and bombastic melodies, “August” offers layers of acoustic guitars, piano keys, atmospheric reverb, and some beautiful harmonies.

Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that this music is made in Australia because it feels so much like what the darker months of the pacific northwest. This song is melancholy backdrop to cold nights or rainy days. Time after time I am impressed by the music produced by Bjéar and cannot wait for another full release one day.

Have a listen:
“August”

#3. Leif Vollebekk. “New Ways”

It’s relatively safe to say at this point in his career Leif Vollebekk is somewhat of an indie music darling in Canada, and it’s not hard to see why. After receiving numerous accolades and a Juno award this record is very much a welcome addition to the Canadian musical landscape.

There is a certain earnest quality within this album that is so familiar to Vollebekk’s songwriting, but it isn’t stale. Where his previous “Twin Solitude” had spacious melodies and a reclined attitude “New Ways” pushes his vocal performances and song structures a beat further. The accomplishment of exploring his own unique style of new-pop/soul piano infused ballads has made “New Ways” a standalone record, wreathed in intense emotionalism and canny musicality.

This is the kind of record that will both make your shoulders shimmy and maybe have you even a little misty eyed. Rest assured this album is very very good, and worth your time to listen to, and if you’re like me listen to it multiple times weekly.

Personal Highlights:

“Blood Brother“, “Hot Tears” & “Transatlantic Flight”

#4. Angie McMahon “Salt”

Last and certainly not least is the debut release from Aussie singer songwriter Angie McMahon. After being brought on as the opening act for Bon Jovi’s Australian tour a number of years ago McMahon began making serious waves with her unique songwriting style.

Angie-Mcmahon-salt-300 — Angie McMahon “Salt”

While at first glance the album could present itself as a meagre offering of early 2000’s singer songwriter folk, that would be a wild misinterpretation. This album is raw, introspective, and often angry. Carrying the same swagger as Dylan going electric “Salt” is 50 minutes of guitar driven poetry fuelled by fractured relationships and husky vocal work.

This album is draped heavily in the uncomfortable restless apprehension that besets so many people in their 20’s these days. It’s perfect for anyone who is having trouble expressing or pushing past the malaise of the day possibly best shown in the chorus of “Pasta” “I’ve been lost I’ve been lost for a while And I’m feeling tired”. This record is something special and deserves your attention.

Personal Highlights:

“Slow Mover“, “Soon” & “Pasta”

I hope that you enjoy these recommendations as I have been absolutely devouring these releases myself.

Thanks for stopping by
J.

Slow and Euphonious #4

October 9, 2019October 10, 2019 jdshoLeave a comment

The steam train of excellent music has no breaks, and even fewer stops. Here’s some things I reckon you should give a listen to!

#1. Wilco. “Ode to Joy”

This is the latest release from long term indie/rock/folk/alternative/neuvo-americana musical chameleons Wilco. Since the addition of legendary free jazz guitarist Nels Cline Wilco has been putting out very intriguing albums. Somehow hanging on to their measured musical style and downtrodden Tweedy-esque melodies with the addition of perplexingly clever guitar work. My own personal measure is that the more the front man / song writer Jeff Tweedy looks like a dishevelled mess the better the album will be.

I have yet to see any photo evidence but I suspect that somewhere is a very unkempt Jeff Tweedy because this album is excellent.
It has the privilege of 10 previous records of songwriting experience. The songs have a certain spacial quality to them. The band is in no rush or urgency but still somehow manages to get their musical point across to you from the get go. This may not be the most welcoming Wilco album to kick off with, but if you have been a fan of theirs before you will not be disappointed.

Personal Highlights:

“Bright Leaves“, “Everyone Hides“, & “Love is Everywhere (Beware)“.

#2. Slaughter Beach, Dog. “Safe and Also no Fear”

In keeping with the very blue theme this third album release from Philly’s own is up next. Departing mood wise from his 2017 release “Birdie” Jake Ewald has both lyrically and musically matured on this record. The tone is probably best encapsulated it the opening track “One Down”. A warm melancholy story of ennui and modernistic anxiety. This album is less about past joys and nostalgia as per precious releases, but about present reflections.

I’ve been a longterm fan of Elwald since his days in Emo-Punk outfit Modern Baseball and “Safe and Also no Fear” was a very welcome offering in late summer this year. This album has a charm behind it, despite what could be seen as lyrical indifference. Slaughter Beach, Dog has in my opinion continued on its excellent path as a band with potentially the most referential Delaware based beach name that makes heavily experiential Gen Z music. This release shares the pattern of catching me off guard with how comfortable it makes me feel when I listen to it.

Personal Highlights:

“One Down“, “Black Oak“, & “Map of the Stars”

#3. “Tiny Changes”

Last but certainly not least is a collaboration of roughly 17 different musicians. A tribute album celebrating the all too short life of Frightened Rabbit front man and song writer Scott Hutchison. Last year was the 10th anniversary of one of my most listened and favourite albums ever made “Midnight Organ Fight.” In honour of this milestone before his death Scott spent months organizing some of his friends to cover the entirety of the album and then some. After his tragic suicide the rest of the band continued his work of putting this together.

VariousArtists_TInyChanges — Tiny Changes

I find the ideas of covers fascinating and romantically difficult. I have even though about writing a whole essay on this topic. There are a number of ways one can go with covering someone else’s work. Whilst listening to this record I have devised some version of a personal rule 3 circled Venn diagram for covers. I shall spare you the long version but this album of covers is exceedingly faithful thematically to the core of Frightened Rabbit.

Screen Shot 2019-10-09 at 5.20.00 PM — Why yes I am a huge musical nerd, how could you tell?

This album is a beautiful project, much closer to the spirit now of a Harrison-esque memorial concert than an album of unrelated musicians covering songs. And the star is still very much Hutchinson’s lyrical earnestness and heart wrenching song writing. If you have not listened to the original do so. If you have not listened to the cover album do so. There is even a 30 minute bio-pic/interview with the artists who worked on this project.

Also and probably more importantly if you are struggling with mental health please talk to someone about it. In honour of Scott the band set up a charity http://www.tinychanges.com/ please feel free to read more about it or to donate. It is an issue worth supporting.

Personal favourites: (this is more like choosing a favourite child)

“The Modern Leper (Biffy Clyro Version)“, “The Twist (Wintersleep Version)“, “The Modern Leper (Julien Baker Version)“, & “Backwards Walk (Machester Orchestra Version)“.

Thanks for stopping by!
J.

Slow and Euphonious #3

April 24, 2019April 24, 2019 jdsho2 Comments

Hi! Hey! How are ya? Sorry its been a little bit since the last post my brain space has been pre-occupied with all kinds of less fun things. This does not mean however that the world of music has slowed down in the slightest!

So, lets get into it!

#1. Julia Jacklin. “Crushing”

I first came across this brilliant musician while doing my bi-yearly trawl through the Triple J musical archives. I was shocked that I’d never managed to find her cover performance of the Strokes’ “Someday” before now, because it’s such a fantastic rendition of an already fantastic song. I’m not entirely sure how to genre-fy her music, it’s two parts 50’s pop soul and one part 90’s depressive angst, with a sprinkling of unique yet beautiful vocal work.

Needless to say the bucolic spring months here in Vancouver have added to an increase in my ambient infatuation with her music, and just in time for her new record to come out.

As the sun has continued to emerge I have been very appreciative of Ms. Jacklin’s latest offerings and strongly recommend if you have some time to check out some of her live performances such as NPR.

Personal highlights:

“Pressure to Party“, “Leadlight“, & “Motherland”

#2 The National. “You Had Your Soul with You”

It would be fair to say that I am a National fan. I own multiple copies of their records, digitally, on cd and vinyl, I have a few band shirts, and a tour poster. I first fell in love with this band while watching an obscure music segment that used to air on MTV Fridays at midnight called “The Wedge”. Instantly as the sounds of “Mistaken for Strangers” hit my earholes I was enraptured.

maxresdefault — You Had Your Soul With You.

So when the the boys from Cincinnati decided to air drop a brand new song and news of a new album I was a happy camper. The rhythmic feel of the song is very much a return to complex form of older National records but still maintains a similarly mature melodic approach as with their more recent releases.

Needless to say I am more than a little excited to see what the whole album entails when it releases. My musical tastes still haven’t fully recovered from the pioneering heights of “High Violet” So here’s hoping “I Am Easy to Find” can give us a little taste.

Give the song a listen and let me know what you think.

“You Had Your Soul With You.”

#3. Flume. “Hi This is Flume (Mixtape)”

This offering is a little bit different then I normally recommend but what else is this place for than for exploring the edges of music you may not normally discover.
Flume is a Electronica producer from Australia who gained acclaim with his release self titled album and follow up collaboration with Chet Faker.

This mixtape is a 42 minute sonic and visual journey. At its core it feels more of a complete musical idea than a lot of current mainstream pop offerings. Though most of the songs are just about 1 and a half minutes long execution of a concept done well makes up for the slapdash potential nature of a mixtape.

maxresdefault-1 — Rich Visuals and Richer Music.

The music on this cut is experimental, jagged and sometimes off-putting but it is something very fresh. I highly highly recommend if you have any interest in EDM to give the full 42 minute album video a watch, it’s stunning. Would that other producers take such outlandish approaches to making tapes and albums. Give it a shot, the glitch hop may pleasantly surprise you.

Personal highlights:

“Jewel“, “Dreamtime“, & “Is it Cold in the Water?”

Hopefully you find some good listening in these recommendations, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed what April has offered so far!

Thanks for stopping by
J.

Fast and Loud #2

March 7, 2019 jdshoLeave a comment

There are some exciting releases coming up in 2019 so here’s a little speed and fuzz for your week of listening.

#1. The Spielbergs.

First on the docket is the 3 piece from Oslo, the new sound out of Norway. The indie fuzz pop group just recently celebrated their first full album release in February, and they don’t seem to be slowing down.

FTY-UJfR_400x400 — Tell you what, it wasn’t easy to find a picture related to Spielbergs that wasn’t of Steven.

The Speilbergs manage a sound that harkens to me memories of early Japandriods, Against Me!, or even some Gaslight Anthem records. Very anthemic and well constructed songs that belong in stadiums or small sweaty clubs. There is a joyous amount of noise layered on top of a standalone confidence that Indie bands seem to propagate these days. As the Spielbergs tour through cities I cant even hope to pronounce properly I hope they get some of the popularity they deserve and maybe make it to Canada one day.

It’s been a hot minute since any nordic bands had any airtime on the Canadian charts, not since the Hives or even the Hellacopters. Having some Scandinavian flair would be a welcome addition.

Personal highlights:

“Five on It“, & “We’re All Going to Die”

#2. Dear Seattle.

Next up are some boys from Aus. Keeping the home fires burning with some very reminiscent mid 2000s pop punk. The band started gathering some buzz in mid 2017 with their first self titled release and soon became members of the Domestic La La record label. Now taking their next big step into the Aus music scene Dear Seattle are looking to make a bigger name for themselves.

If you miss some of the hay-days of Emo-punk and want to add an Australian twinge to it then Dear Seattle has something special for you. Give them a shot, maybe you’ll find yourself busting out your old Fallout Boy graphic T-shirt without even realising it.

Personal highlights:

“Daytime TV” & “Try”

#3. Fontaines D.C. “Too Real”

Last up is the surrealist working class offerings from Irish band Fontaines D.C. Im still not overly sure what a Fonatine is but their music and pedestrian verse make me slightly uncomfortable to listen to and overly hopeful for the future of Irish music. Like Joy division and early Fall records the Fontaines D.C. maintain a heavy beat and groove while sinking lower into thematically dark lyrics.

a3774076881_10 — In the bands own words “Dogrel is a crude, traditionally Irish working-class form of verse, historically looked down upon by literary critics.”

There’s a lot of murmurs going around about their upcoming release “Dogrel” out in early April. Generally speaking albums that garner this much attention have glitz, glamour, and a good deal of industry flavoured audio production. So far the Fontaines D.C. deride all these things for a raw and emotive approach to making music. These boys are probably making Mark E. Smith very proud.

Give them a shot if you feel like thinking and analyzing when you listen to something rather than just have more background noise to satiate your senses. It took me more than a few tries to get completely on board with what the Fontaines D.C. are doing. But, it will for sure be interesting to see the mark they make in April.

Personal highlight:

“Too Real”

There’s some exciting things out and about, keep your eyes peeled and your ears to the ground.

Thanks for stopping by
J.

Slow and Euphonious #2

February 17, 2019February 17, 2019 jdshoLeave a comment

Hopefully 2019 is treating you well so far. Musically I couldn’t be more excited. Here are some great things I’ve been hoarding.

Enjoy!

#1. Pedro the Lion. “Phoenix”

Following a 15 year dry-spell this Seattle Indie band has decided to grace us with a new album. The hand of frontman and creative force Dave Bazan could not be more present or more welcome in this piece. Known for his meticulous and dark lyrics with a somewhat cheeky emotion Bazan shows off his talent in spades. Listening to this record will give you a burst of nostalgia, but not in a cheap Disney way only remaking old things that you used to enjoy.

Much of the focus of the songs are towards things like childhood, teenage ennui, and a burgeoning emotional and spiritual apathy. I can’t fully express why I’m so excited to see the return of Pedro the Lion to the indie scene, but as a Canadian it would be akin to the Constantines or the Stills making a musical comeback which would put my maple syrup over the moon.

Bazan brings a much needed emotionally mature venerability with a beautiful blend of distorted guitars to a glitzy and self possessed music world. Give it a listen.

Personal highlights:

“Yellow Bike“, “Quietest Friend“, & “Model Homes“.

#2. Broken Social Scene. “Let’s Try the After (Vol. 1)” l.p.

Canada’s resident indie super-group/ front runners for most members in a band award have decided it’s time to huddle round the creative bonfire yet again and give us a short 5 song tease.

Screen Shot 2019-02-17 at 12.47.11 AM — Not a joke, this is their “members” section from Wikipedia

Much of their familiar flair for multi guitar soundscapes and clever rhythms is present. Good signs for any potential plans of a longer full album release from this cabal of musicians. Who knows what exactly volume 2 will entail, but one thing for sure it’ll be a curiously appealing melodic ensemble.

Personal highlights:

“1972“, & “All I Want“.

91Z8v-m4+sL._SS500_ — Let’s Try the After (Vol.1)

#3. Body Type. “Body Type EP”

Last up is a four piece hailing from Sydney. Body Type are a fresh face making what I would describe as pop shoe-gaze but you can actually hear what the singer is doing. Hoping to take the Australian music scene by storm their release EP isn’t a bad place to start.

Featuring catchy guitar lines, some fast bass work, and steady drums to hold everything together. Body Type are here to plant a tune in your head and not let it escape easily. Hopefully they keep up the pace and continue to refine pop music for the better.

Personal highlights:

“Palms“, & “Ludlow“.

Keep up the awesome pace 2019!

Thanks for stopping by
J.