Bishop Allen: Grrr...

Bishop Allen have made great strides since their Modest Mousey beginnings on 2003's self-released Charm School LP. Much of that progress, the result of growing and maturing as a band, in large part came out in 2006 with an ambitious EP-a-month project. This was later condensed to make up most of the 2007's The Broken String, Bishop Allen's first for Dead Oceans.
The band (at its core a duo of Justin Rice and Christian Rudder) is at its peak on Grrr..., sticking to basic guitar pop with the occasional embellishment in the arrangements. Nearly every song is a tightly wound pop construct in a similar vein as Spoon, and in just a few releases the band has gone from barely notable to indie-pop's Little Band That Could. (It also doesn't hurt that The Broken String's "Click, Click, Click" was featured in a Sony camera commercial, and the band made an appearance in last year's teenage hipster mash note, Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist, and Rice himself has made the rounds in a number of films over the past few years).

The infectious, bouncy one-two punch of "Oklahoma" and "The Ancient Commonsense of Things" is as good as anything the band has done, and if those songs weren't both so hooky, the fact that they're nearly identical to one another might be a major complaint. Any band can write lyrics, but the "la la las" and "oh oh ohs" are just as important, and Grrr... is filled with 'em, especially on the latter track. Meanwhile,"True or False" has a summery, boozy shuffle, while the galloping "Rooftop Brawl" and the Spoon-esque "Cue the Elephants" show the band sticking with what makes great rock - taking a few chords and a good hook and driving them into the ground.

Each Bishop Allen release has been a vast improvement over its predecessor, so here's hoping the trend keeps up.

Bishop Allen - The Lion & the Teacup


Bishop Allen - The Ancient Commensense of Things


Bishop Allen - Click, Click, Click (live on the Street of NYC)

N.A.S.A.: The Spirit of Apollo

N.A.S.A. is the radically-cultivated musical alliance of lifelong partners in crime, Sam Speigel (Squeak E. Clean) and Ze Gonzales (DJ Zegon). Similar to the cosmic voyages it shares its name with, The Spirit of Apollo's appeal lies in exploration. Staggering geographical and genre intersections barrage Apollo's 17 fresh tracks, which took over 5.5 years from conceptualization to completion. All of the artists featured on this album personally collaborated with N.A.S.A. to contribute their vocals to these original compositions.

According to the duo, "N.A.S.A. stands for North America/South America, and contains a number of superstar artists from both coasts of the U.S.. It is about as far from a tension-building geographical showdown as a record can get. Rather, The Spirit of Apollo was born with the righteous goal of bringing people together through music and art," and that is exactly what they did.

The late Ol' Dirty Bastard gives his last Wu-Tang shout outs, alongside Karen O and Fatlip on "Strange Enough," Tom Waits bellows with Kool Keith on "Spacious Thoughts," and Kool Kojak and DJ Baboa lay down some Brazilian funk on "O Pata." The strongest tracks here don't necessarily cater to every artist's typical sonic platforms.

The familiar strand that ties these diverse songs together is Apollo's persistent indebtedness to vintage Brazilian soul and funk records. The deep, warm groove on "Samba Soul" (feat. Del Tha Funky Homosapian and DJ Qbert) or "Gifted"'s sparky electro rap (feat. Kanye West, Santogold, and Lykke Li) could blast through speakers at any Sau Paulo party. In fact, N.A.S.A.'s globetrotting eclecticism saw its beginning at DVNO's bustling studio party, where Clean and Zegon met. Even after a self-inflating collaboration of rock-meets-rap disposition ("Intro,""The People Tree,"" and "Money"), their album still avoids many of the awkward associations that come packaged with most cosmic party records.

Funky "Money" and the reggae-toned "The People Tree" established that David Byrne's unconventional alliances with Chali 2na, Z-Trip, Gift of Gab, Chuck D, and Ras Congo can progress beyond mere obsession or originality. Both set the slinky late-night vibe that Barbie Hatch, RZA & John Frusciante tease out for "Way Down." By track 16, "The Mayor," Ghostface Killah, The Cool Kids, Scarface, and DJ AM jolt a set that's too chummy with terrestrial party music. That statement may read criticism, but The Spitit of Apollo manages to be almost as amazing as Clean and DJ Zegon's A-list wrangling abilities.

Along side the creative melodies and ferocious beats, a number of N.A.S.A.'s friends have lent their visual talents, and animated music videos for several of The Spirit of Apollo's tracks. Some of today's most highly-regarded street artists such as Shepard Fairey, Sage Vaughn, Barry McGee, Marcel Dzama and others were profoundly involved in these creations. Hope you enjoy!

N.A.S.A. The Spirit of Apollo Documentary Trailer
N.A.S.A - "Gifted" (Feat. Kanye West, Santigold & Lykke Li)

"Money" (Feat. David Byrne, Chuck D, Ras Congo, Seu Jorge, & Z-Trip)

"Way Down" (Feat. RZA, Barbie Hatch, & John Frusciante)

Loney Dear: Dear John (Polyvinyl)

Given the light, upbeat nature of Loney Dear's last album, 2007's Loney, Noir, it is more than slightly staggering to hear the electronic beats and timid vocals of "Airport Surroundings," the first track off Loney Dear's fifth album, Dear John. For the followup to his highly regarded international debut, song-writer Emil Svanängen has turned Loney Dear's light pop upon itself, resulting in a darkly textured, electronic-tinged album that may shock at first listen. But after the initial surprise has worn off, it becomes clear that Dear John is one of Svanängen's best albums, overshadowing Loney, Noir's delicate indie pop with its soul baring honesty.

"Everything Turns to You" is a deligtful and passionate reflection on desire; while "I Was Only Going Out" highlights a beautiful vocal melody and searching lyrics over a resonant, organ-filled backdrop before the lively, whistling outro offers a touch of aural comfort to Svanängen's sad-voiced honesty. "Harsh Words" is a quiet plea highlighted by Svanängen's restrained vocals and building acoustic backdrop, and "Harm" slowly evolves with tension underneath it's abruptly beautiful melodies and calm departure. Loney, Noir was graceful and refined, an indie-pop masterpiece in its own right. But Dear John brings the full feeling and substance of artistic vision - yearning, questioning, searching, and hope. Dear John is Svanängen's true masterpiece.