Trying to Fit the World Inside a Picture Frame

2010-03-24T23:59:00.000-07:00

Phoenix is Giving Away Live EP

As a grand "merci" for the warm reception surrounding their latest offering Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, Phoenix is offering up a free live EP of their performance in Sydney.

Track list:

1 Lisztomania
2 Lasso
3 Fences
4 Girlfriend
5 Armistice
6 Love Like a Sunset
7 Rome
8 1901

Download it via a zip file exclusively HERE and let the dance party begin.

Simian Mobile Disco : Temporary Pleasure

2009-11-18T22:02:00.000-08:00

As proponents of analog synths and drum machines, tech house duo Simian Mobile Disco open their sophomore album with a momentary exploration of sound and texture. Consistent in pace and tone, but varying in overtones until that unmistakable sound comes in - the voice. And not just any voice, but the voice of Super Furry Animals' Gruff Rhys. Thus unfolds most of the album, laden with - and perhaps a bit distracted by - guest vocals.

Only three tracks on this sophomore album feature the duo alone. "10000 Horses Can't Be Wrong," "Synthesis," and "Ambulance" provide a return to the groups minimal techno styling and are the more convincing tracks on the album. "Bad Blood," which features Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor, incorporates a more tropical rhythm and is one of the guest tracks that does not seem to fall as flat. Repetitive but melodic, this track marks what seems to be the better run of the album.

"Turn Up the Dial" is monotonous in tone but varies nicely in form and vocal rhythms, which keeps the vocal line from becoming too disconnected. "Ambulance," the third and last instrumental track follows just before the closer, "Pinball." In the final track, which features Telepathe, the instrumentation is sparse but catchy and effective a la M.I.A. Too often, though, the album drags beneath the weight of the guest appearances and loses sight of the sonic arrangements below.

Simian Mobile Disco - 10000 Horses Can't Be Wrong

Simian Mobile Disco - Synthesize

Simian Mobile Disco - Ambulance

Mayer Hawthorne: A Strange Arrangement

2009-11-04T01:53:00.000-08:00

On his debut, A Strange Arrangement, 29-year-old multi-instrumentalist Mayer Hawthorne channels Smokey Robinson and Isaac Hayes. This makes Hawthorne a candidate for the original Motown label rather than Peanut Butter Wolf's Stone's Throw imprint. But, Hawthorne's incorporation of the odd breakbeat upgrades his brand of soul into the present time - without turning it into neo-soul. Hawthorne's mostly falsetto/occasional baritone finds its stride on "Let Me Know." The Supremes would do well with the up-tempo horn honks and handclaps on "Your Easy Lovin' Aint Pleasin' Nothin'." And "Maybe So, Maybe No" finds Hawthorne crooning sassily, puncturing honeyed tones with Stevie Wonder borrowed "la-la-las"

Mayer Hawthorne - Maybe So, Maybe No

Mayer Hawthorne - Just Aint Gonna Work Out

General Elektriks: Good City For Dreamers

2009-11-04T01:14:00.000-08:00

Herve Salters, the man behind General Elektriks, is known for his keyboard prowess. This is apparent on General Elektriks' 2005 debut, Cliquety Kliqk, and even more so on Good City For Dreamers, where it sounds like Salters has split himself into a five-piece electro-indie pop outfit. Dreamers plinks along pleasantly, Salters' voice soothing and unobtrusive, paying homage to various influences (Sly Stone, Eurythmics). "Cottons of Inertia" is deliciously comforting with its temperate rhythms, and just when you start drifting off, "You Don't Listen" brings you back with squalling guitars. For the most part, Dreamers is a quirky take on The Beatles' white album.

General Elektriks - Take Back The Instant

General Elektriks - Raid The Radio

Grizzly Bear: My Long Awaited Homage

2009-09-17T00:25:00.000-07:00

Alright, I know it's past due, but I needed to release a homage to one of my favorite artists at the moment....(I'll keep it short but sweet).

For a band that released no new music in 2008, Grizzly Bear certainly had a busy year. First there was a performance in which the Los Angeles Philharmonic served as the most unlikely opening act in indie-rock history. Then there were five shows at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where they were asked by Paul Simon to perform a few of his songs for a career retrospective. Previously unheard songs were debuted on The Late Show with David Letterman and Late Night with Conan O'Brian, and the band was the handpicked opening act for Radiohead. But by the end of the year, the Brooklyn quartet remained just as mysterious and indefinable as they had been at the beginning, as if repeated exposure had only added another layer of content to digest for a band whose music already didn't make for easy one-sentence descriptors. Perhaps it's easiest to understand Grizzly Bear by recognizing what they aren't.

Compare them to other recent NYC buzz bands and the difference becomes clearer. They aren't the head of a stylistic movement like the strokes. They have no outstanding, charismatic member like Karen O of Yeah Yeah Yeahs. They have no unified visual motif like Interpol. But what they do have is one of the most distinctive, transcendent sounds of any band in indie rock, part lush psych-pop harmonies, part avante-garde textural experimentation.

Grizzly Bear - Two Weeks - Live on Later with Jools Holland on the BBC

Grizzly Bear - All We Ask (Black Cab Sessions Chapter 79)

The Dead Weather: Horehound

2009-09-16T06:59:00.000-07:00

From the moment primary vocalist Alison Mosshart (The Kills) begins to sing "Hang You from the Heavens" from The Dead Weather's debut single, anyone familiar with the last decade of Jack White's musical output will recognize his influence. Horehound, the first full-length release from this supergroup, which includes guitarist Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age) and bassist Jack Lawrence (The Raconteurs, The Greenhornes), rumbles with the dark power that has characterized much of The White Stripes' recent work. Mosshart often seems to be delivering a Jack White impersonation and, shockingly, it's a pretty damn good one. By stepping out from her relationship with her main collaborator, James Hince, Mosshart is no longer the smoldering indie rock seductress, and instead gives us new character, closer in spirit to RTX-era Jennifer Herrema.

Interestingly, this album is at its weakest when Jack White is taking the obvious lead. One example is the funk-infused "I Cut Like Buffalo," with lines such as "You know I look like a woman/But I cut like the buffalo." The otherwise awesome "Treat Me Like Your Mother" is soiled by the "time to manipulate" breakdown where both singers spell out the word manipulate.

Thankfully, White spends most of his time behind the drum kit, providing a blistering , bleak backbone for much of this record. It's the perfect summer album for anyone who was a huge Zeppelin fan in high school (or back in the day for that matter). Check out the rocking blues of "Bone House" or the sweaty opener "60 Feet Tall," which features a nice little solo from Fertita.

The Dead Weather - Their Oral History and Future Plans

The Dead Weather - Treat Me Like Your Mother

Mew: No More Stories Are Told Today I'm Sorry They Washed Away No More Stories the World Is Grey I'm Tired Let's Wash Away

2009-09-10T23:04:00.000-07:00

Don't let the unwieldy album title or the pictographic clown-butterfly composition fool you. Danish trio Mew is certainly impressive, but still a few concept albums shy of bat-shit crazy. In fact, No More Stories is fairly tame in comparison to 2005's sinuous and gloomy song suite, And the Glass Handed Kites. Where Kites stockpiled instrumentation, No More Stories cuts the fat and makes do with the group's new orientation (bassist Johan Wohlert left the band to concentrate on fatherhood).
Jonas Bjerre, Bo Madsen, and Silas Utke Graae Jergensen have forged onward in some remarkable ways. No More Stories starts with the tick of a clock on opener "New Terrain," but quickly reverts to Kites' twisted haze as a din of vocals, cymbal crashes, and guitars come together and strive for our attention. Admission single "Introducing Palace Players," starts largely as an outstanding instrumental breakdown - drums and guitars sway and stutter in unison as murmurs of keyboard fill in the gaps. Singer Bjerre's falsetto is firmly attached to the expectations here. The sensuous space rockers "Beach" and "Hawaii" and the repeated piano on "A Dream," are as simple and straightforward as the trio will likely get. They're all very welcome after Kites' infamous rigidity.

The ambitious "Sometimes Life Isn't Easy" may be the only interruption of ideas here. Compressing an elderly vocalist, a steady handclap bridge, and a choir into a five minute track may be too much for some, but I have to admit, it's a bit catchy. Despite this small shift, No More Stories' closest cousin is Mew's other primary daydream-inducing album, breakthrough Frengers. So when a mesmerizing, fragile song like "Cartoons and Macrame Wounds" references the intricate art of knot decorating, it's also a suitable metaphor for the music Mew creates. No More Stories is the most intricate batch of songs they've produced, but practical enough for daily listening.

Mew - Repeaterbeater

Justice: A Cross the Universe CD/DVD

2009-09-05T01:57:00.000-07:00

This is a live album and documentary DVD from everybody's favorite French house duo. The live set was captured in San Francisco's Concourse Design Center last year, with Justice performing alternate versions of tunes from their Cross album, along with some other goodness. The recording illustrates the grandiloquent edge that separates Justice from their Daft Punk forefathers - the last track, "Final," samples Metallica's "Master of Puppets," and one imagines fans head-banging to the climax of their night of dancing.

The DVD is an entertaining tour documentary from the duo's U.S. visit last year, and proves that the arena rock lifestyle of yesteryear remains a valid lifestyle choice. The band stumble through the U.S. with their aggro, gun-obsessed tour manager and eccentric Sam Elliot-voiced bus driver, taking in America's strange landscape, along with a mountainous share of its sex, drugs, and rock and roll. Oh, and incarceration. "Enfants Terribles" is the phrase I believe.

Justice - A Cross The Universe DVD Preview

Eels: Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire

2009-07-22T22:22:00.000-07:00

Rather critically eluded to at times as "a poor mans Beck," Eels, created by Mark Everett, aka E, has primarily been denied his due, despite crafting a damn impressive body of work. Be it the rambling, infectious life-cycle production of 2005's Blinking Lights and Other Revelations, or 1998's Electro Shock Blues, a dim deliberation on the death of his mother from cancer, he's constructed fine concept albums, intensely personal without submitting to cheesy sentimentality

Here, E abandons the openly personal, and takes on the character Hombre Lobo, meaning warewolf in Spanish, and apparently rejuvenates the suffering of "Dog Faced Boy," the so-called protagonist of a song from 2002's Souljacker. The story picks up when Lobo enters adulthood as an erratic outsider, desperately wanting for love and human connections, hence the record's subtitle, 12 Songs of Desire.

Lobo abandons the orchestration and experimentalism that saturated Blinking Lights, stripping tracks down to a primal base, similar to Howlin' Wolf (coincidence?) in the bluesy starkness of this back to basics rock and roll record, one that alternates between slashing rockers and crippled ballads.

"Id rather be alone than try to be someone I'm not," Everett confesses with resignation on the tremendous blues of "Ordinary Man." Some might say he's assumed a character here, probably in large part to deflect much of the attention attracted to his personal life via his previous albums and recent autobiography, but this record is still pure E - invigorating in it's obsession, desperation, vulnerability, and brilliance.

Eels - Tremendous Dynamite: Making of HOMBRE LOBO Trailer

Eels - Prizefighter from HOMBRE LOBO

Eels - In My Dreams from HOMBRE LOBO

Bishop Allen: Grrr...

2009-04-26T22:19:00.000-07:00

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

2009-04-13T21:06:00.000-07:00

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)

2009-04-01T23:10:00.000-07:00

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.

Röyksopp - Junior:

2009-03-24T20:29:00.000-07:00

After Four long years of anticipation (by myself at least), the Norwegian duo has finally made their much anticipated return. Röyksopp released their third studio album last week titled Junior (to be followed by Senior shortly after in late 2009), and the result is nothing more than intoxication. Based on the first half of this release, this run is sure to be a success.

Opening with a short stint of laughter that soon becomes a bouncy beat of floating vocals, Junior sets a high tone of fun and anticipation. As we've seen before on the duo's two previous releases, Röyksopp takes on the talent of numerous female vocalists for more than one track, constructing a medley that balances nicely with the accumulating synth. Junior exhibits four guest singers — Lykke Li and Robyn (from Sweden), fellow Norwegian Anneli Drecker, and Karin Dreijer Andersson, veteran to past Röyksopp albums, and also the lead vocalist of the electronic-music group The Knife.

The duo, consisting of Torbjorn Brundtland and Svein Berge, were schoolmates in their hometown of Tromsø, toying with electronic instruments in the early 90s. They didn't debut as Röyksopp until years later when they met again in Bergen. The city was a pivotal scene for underground electronic music at this time, and the band worked with other Norwegian musicians such as Frost, Kings of Convenience’s guitarist and singer Erlend Øye, Those Norwegians and Drum Island in what was called the Bergen Wave.

We can be sure that Röyksopp will always have plenty to say about their music, but when asked to explain where the band's third proper album, Junior, fits in the band's discography, Svein Berge, one half of the Norweigan electronic duo, explains, "If Melody A.M. was a relaxed journey inwards on a Sunday afternoon and The Understanding was more uptempo, with more vocals and a hint of melodic catchiness, then the new album is a mix of the two."

Torbjørn Brundtland, the other half of the duo, goes on to commingle the modesty of Berge's description; "Making this new album was like mining in the mountains. When you think of a mine you think of one that is already many kilometers deep, and people work inside it. But sometimes one has to start a new mine, so you start digging the crust of the earth. And we had to find a good spot to start digging."

Four years after the release of The Understanding, Junior has Berge and Brundtland writing, performing, arranging, mixing and producing all 11 tracks. Setting aside the mining metaphor Brundtland says, "Junior is an outgoing and direct album. It’s the youthful part of Röyksopp. We are young in bodies and old in heart. Or is it the other way? We have a certain schizophrenia -- we want to make both energetic and really quiet music." Berge adds "People should be on the look out for the more quiet and introverted Senior due out late 2009." While Brundtland concurs, "Yes, the concept of Junior will stand clearer after the release of Senior."

Overall, Junior is captivating and simply delightful. A steady groove and magnetic presence makes the entire album surprising at first, but grows better as the small details come forth after a few listens. I'm not sure if Junior will be one of the best albums of 2009, but it definitely has a strong presence within the genre.

"Once again proving the duo as forerunners of the electro/dance-pop fusion genre and pioneers of wonderfully bizarre sounds, Röyksopp delivered big on Junior and has raised both the expectations for and intrigue surrounding the follow-up album Senior due later this year." according to Garens

Beirut/Realpeople: The Case of the Bi-Polar Stepbrothers

2009-03-21T15:30:00.000-07:00

While these 11 tracks by Zach Condon are mostly new, they don't comprise a proper follow-up to his 2007 LP, The Flying Club Cup. Instead, they fill out two distinct EPs, packaged together. The first is March of the Zapotec, credited to Beirut. The second is Holland, credited to Realpeople, which was Condon's solo project prior to Beirut.

On March of the Zapotec, Condon shifts away fom his Eastern European fixation and heads south of the border. While researching a film soundtrack in Oaxaca, Mexico, he became interested in the region's funeral bands. In a small village called Teotitlan del Valle, he met the 19-strong Jimenez Band, and began to collaborate with them using a translator.

The resulting EP is powerful, but also a bit slight. Only half of its six songs include Condon's lush vocals, and instrumentals range from 30 seconds to two minutes. Still, the small package contains remarkably big music. Reminiscent of New Orleans funeral bands meet the 3 Amigos, this is wearily triumphant party music. Delirious box steps and waltzes fill up with stylish parade strings, baggy tubas and bleating trumpets, antic climaxes and sagging slumps. On songs like "La Llorna," where Condon sings, he sounds impressive but lacks charisma-as we've heard before, it feels like he's singing from behind heavy-lidded eyes.

If the stately extravagance of Zapotec is too imposing, Holland is more roundly satisfying. It's fun to hear Condon loosen his collar for this featherweight synth-pop project. Traces of Balkan strings emerge, but the EP is mostly taken up by whizzing programmed drums and lively synth melodies. Condon's voice-which usually sounds cloudy-opens up like a clear blue sky in this context. Holland reveals a relentlessly serious musician embracing the value of good old-fashioned fun. Where has all of this been hiding all these years????

Peter Bjorn and John: Swedish Trio moves into the future via the '80s

2009-03-19T18:27:00.000-07:00

These tuneful swedes had already been making records for four years by the time 2006's Writer's Block turned up on the playlists of everyone from NPR to Kanye West, and now it's time to follow up that commercial breakthrough. While 80s synth pop has come back into fashion after years in the critical wilderness, it still counts as a big creative shift for the trio to move so confidently into over-the-top electronic imitation on their fifth studio release. Still, Living Thing is hardly a reverent tribute to the era of Depeche Mode and Wham!, as the trio augment robot riffs and splashy drums with very human handclaps and vocal bass lines, never failing to mix up their experiments with gamelan-tinged garage rock and African guitar pop. The album is uneven by previous cut and dry standards, but the band earns high marks for proving their hooks can translate into any stylistic language.

The Black Cab Sessions

2009-01-20T02:05:00.000-08:00

Last month I came across a extraordinary site called "The Black Cab Sessions" based out of London by a group called Hidden Fruit. The premise behind the site is to take artists from around the world that are touring in the London area, pick them up in a classic "Black Cab", and record a live song while driving through the streets of London. With a motto of "one song, one take, one cab", they claim that "the sessions are all about great music and the venue strips this to its essence. We aren't picky about genre, and will happily open the cab door to anyone who will blow us away". These intimate performances embody the lo-fi ethos of the indie rock scene and have have gained a cult following of viewers both on their own website and on You Tube

The Black Cab video clips begin with a screen showing the name of the artist and date the session was recorded. This is followed by a shot of the cab driver, who has just been informed that his cab will play host to the sessions, introducing the artist. The rest is just a raw session of a self selected tune, usually followed by a comment like "wow, I've never played in a moving cab before!" It is an experience within itself......

During the performances, the artists often have to react to the unusual venue. For example, during the New Pornographers session, the two musicians can be seen bouncing up and down in their seats as the cab hits speed bumps. The performances are also shaped by the limited space afforded by the back of a black cab; many of the bands that play are only represented by part of the band.

I was blown away to find that some of my favorite artists such as Bon Iver, Spoon, Fleet Foxes, The Kooks, My Morning Jacket, Death Cab for Cutie, Jens Lekman, Young Republic, and The National, just to name a few, were featured on this site.

Following my last blog about the Fleet Foxes, I will begin by posting their Black Cab Session first:

And now a little My Morning Jacket. Check out the 1980's Omnichord that Jim James uses for 'Touch Me I'm Going to Scream pt. 2':

Take a little time to browse the various sessions on this site at your own leisure, and I'm sure that you will be as impressed as I was. I will leave you with a few more videos to get you on your way:

Spoon:

The Kooks:

Death Cab For Cutie - No Sunlight

Lightspeed Champion:

White Winter Hyminals - The Fleet Foxes Are Busting Out of the Den

2009-01-20T00:07:00.000-08:00

The Fleet Foxes, led by vocalist-guitarist Robin Pecknold, are a Seattle based harmonic folk quintet that take the sounds of 60's psychedelic pop, gospel and folk; mixed with the beautiful harmonies of four out of the five members to create a melodic sound that is unmatched by anyone else on the market. In 2006, the band released a self titled EP, followed by a second release in April of 2008 titled Sun Giant. Unconvinced that this second EP represented their true intentions, they released their first full length debut album titled Fleet Foxes two months later, which sports the 1559 painting "Netherlandish Proverbs" by Pieter Bruegel on its cover. Pecknold stated: "When you first see that painting it’s very bucolic, but when you look closer there’s all this really strange stuff going on, like dudes defecating coins into the river and people on fire, people carving a live sheep, this weird dude who looks like a tree root sitting around with a dog. There’s all this really weird stuff going on. I liked that the first impression is that it’s just pretty, but then you realize that the scene is this weird chaos. I like that you can’t really take it for what it is, that you’re first impression of it is wrong.'
Much like the painting, at first sight the burly appearance of the band makes it seem as if they trekked straight down the Cascades to stock up on a weeks worth of rations, but once they open their mouths, you will find a rich and resonant sound that will blow your mind. The Band is comprised of Robin Pecknold on lead vocals and guitar, Skyler Skjelset on lead guitar, Christian Wargo on bass, guitar, and vocals, Casey Wescott on keys and vocals, and Josh Tillman on drums and vocals.

A Few days ago, I found what appears to be a side project of Pecknold's called "White Antelope" out of Port Townsend, Washington, streaming two songs on their MySpace page. One of the songs is folk standard 'False Knight On The Road', which will feature as a B-side on the upcoming Fleet Foxes single 'Mykonos', and on the re-release of their self-titled 2008 debut album. It was recorded solo by Pecknold last year.

He told Chocolate Bobka: "I used to post demos of songs on that page before the record came out. The 'Guitar Duet' thing dates back from when we were recording the LP and the cover of 'False Knight'. I posted the first demo of 'Blue Ridge Mountains' (when it was called 'Stirring', before the other 'Stirring') on there before which I might put that back up....it had different instrumentation and was kinda cool.... Right now I am alone in this house we've rented to record the next record in, and tomorrow I am going to record a cover of 'Ridge Rider', the Judee Sill song, for this compilation. Trying to write new stuff is hard right now for some reason".
From what has come out of Pecknold thus far, I have no doubt that his next creation will be nothing short of brilliant!

Getting back to the Fleet Foxes, The acoustically-inclined Seattle band has certainly tapped into a particular ilk of people that devour indie-folk acts on blogs everywhere, resulting in a rabid following. The blogosphere’s manic enthusiasm for new bands often becomes deflated later on, which instigated a recent Fleet Foxes MySpace quote ("Hey friends. It's just music. We really love you.") “If I could have that quote say ‘don’t expect anything,’ I would put that,” Pecknold quips. With a band as prone to reinvention as Fleet Foxes to helm, it’s hard to doubt his forecast.

For all of you who have not had the pleasure of indulging in Fleet Fox mania, I leave you with a few videos to nourish your pallet...they have remained #1 on my playlist for the past 6 months, so I hope you enjoy them as much as I do: