Weekly Recommendations (06/24/09)

WeeklyRecs61790

J Dilla - Donuts

J Dilla

Donuts

[Stones Throw; 2006]

Links: J Dilla | Stones Throw | Purchase on Stones Throw

Released on February 7, 2006, on his 32nd birthday and a mere three days before his death, Donuts is Dilla’s masterwork. With this record, the Detroit-born producer has created perhaps the most soulful hip-hop of all time by weaving together samples from the 60s, 70s, and 80s and gracefully mashing them up in every way possible.

J Dilla may have passed on, but he has left behind a great body of work. This year alone, in addition to having a posthumous compilation released, entitled Jay Stay Paid, his beats have been used on Mos Def’s The Ecstaticand on DOOM’s Born Like This. There is no doubt that his music will be remembered and reused for years to come. Simply put, this is true hip hop.

RIP Jay Dee

-Evan Kaloudis

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X - Los Angeles

X

Los Angeles

[Rhino; 2001]

Links: X | Rhino Records | Purchase on Amazon

Los Angeles is likely one of the best records you’ve never heard. Like the work of Big Star or Nick Drake, X’s debut is a record that, although not without its acolytes at the time, nevertheless saw its reputation and prestige grow considerably in the nearly 3 decades since its release. So, yes – the keyword here is “influential.” But the considerable appeal of this record is not due to the pleasure an amateur pop-historian may derive from listening with contemporary ears. This is not a record to gently stroke one’s chin to, mumbling Oohs and Aahs and Yes, Indeeds – no, this record, simply put, kicks ass. From the opening Chuck Berry riff of “Your Phone’s Off the Hook, But You’re Not” into “Johnny Hit and Run Paulene” (a rather disturbing song behind the beautifully frantic playing), Los Angeles is almost non-stop intensity, with gobs and gobs of sinister, sexy style.

-Elias Isquith

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Modest Mouse - Everywhere and His Nasty Parlour Tricks

Modest Mouse

Everywhere and His Nasty Parlour Tricks

[Epic; 2001]

Links: Modest Mouse | Epic Records | Purchase on Amazon

Composed of the 2000 Night On The Sun EP and studio off-cuts from acclaimed The Moon & Antarctica, Everywhere And His Nasty Parlour Tricks is, at worst, an interesting snapshot of a modern indie band titanic, and at best, a stunning demonstration of Modest Mouse’s starkly evocative and mature style.

Fans will be able to pick out odd familiarities in the songs – shared lyrics between “Wilful Suspension Of Disbelief” and 2002 compilation track “White Lies, Yellow Teeth’, ‘3 Inch Horses, Two Faced Monsters” occurring in the outro to album track “A Different City” – and therefore hear the band straddling the broad, weary and cynical themes of The Lonesome Crowded West and the more quavering, philosophical and grandiose sound of The Moon & Antarctica.

Previously released “Night On The Sun” is an obvious standout, with the band firing on all cylinders; the subtle song development present in songs like “Trucker’s Atlas” or “Cowboy Dan”, typically cryptic lyrics – Isaac Brock imploring to ‘freeze your blood and then stab it into me’ – and an overall expansive and oddly claustrophobic atmosphere are all evident. “Here It Comes” and “You’re The Good Things” offer a more restorative mood, contrasting with the more unsettling, percussive “The Air” and the cycling, meandering feel of “3 Inch Horses, Two Inch Monsters”, before the EP concludes with an extended version of The Moon & Antarctica track “I Came As A Rat”. Essentially a combination of loose ends collated, the EP is, while perhaps not their best, certainly an engaging and deceptively disconcerting listen.

– Ian Floyd

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Boards of Canada - Geodaddi

Boards of Canada

Geogaddi

[Epic; 2001]

Links: Boards of Canada | Warp Records | Purchase on Amazon

Geogaddi seems, often times, to be unjustly overlooked by its masterful predecessor, Music Has The Right To Children. While one can’t really say that Geogaddi is more inventive than MHTRTC (which is probably the most important electronic of the past two decades), I feel that in the end, Geogaddi takes all of the creativity that MHTRTC has, pushes it further, and perfects what Boards of Canada started with MHTRTC, so much so that I would go as far to say that it is probably equal to their debut. Whereas MHTRTC seems to invoke childhood memories (as just about every review ever written about that album has mentioned) Geogaddi drifts more towards a darker territory. This is perfect music for a late night drive alone through an empty city, or if you want to stay with the childhood connections, it could also be looked at as a soundtrack to some of your darker childhood dreams (seriously listen to “The Devil is in the Details”), not necessarily the innocent childhood memories that are connected so much to MHTWTC. In the end, Boards of Canada crafted another masterpiece with Geogaddi, one that deserves more attention than it has gotten.

– Austin Nauert

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MewithoutYou - It's All Crazy

mewithoutYou

It’s All Crazy

[Tooth & Nail; 2009]

Links: mewithoutYou | Tooth & Nail | Purchase on Tooth & Nail

The evolution of mewithoutYou is nothing short of incredible. If, for example, you were to find the 2002 version of me and played this new record… I would never believe it was the same band. They’ve refined their sound drastically between each album, building towards the almost pastoral folk found on this, their latest work. Where A–>B Life was spastic and yelpy in post hardcore goodness, this album is refined and subdued.

The only similarities one could make are found in lead singer Aaron Weiss’ ever-brilliant lyrics. For example, in “Bullet to Binary (pt 2)” they keep the opening lines “Let us die, let us die! // then dying we reply:” However, the updated version shifts into a pastoral about fruits and vegetables, until the final epic coda “So why not, let’s forgive everyone, everywhere everything // all the time everyone everywhere everything.”

Numerous people knock the band for the religious symbolism/imagery found in a lot of their songs, arguing that it can be a bit hamfisted at times, such as the outro to the wonderful “Timothy Hay” (“What a beautiful God there must be”). I fall in the group of people that appreciates the imagery for what it is: a dude that is so filled with joy that he couldn’t possibly keep quiet. It always feels sincere, but never preachy. Weiss gives listeners the opportunity to join him, though, in the final song (“Allah Allah Allah”) when he tells his audience, “If you care to sing forgiveness songs, come on down and join our band (we’ll cut you like a sword!) // and sing forgiveness songs.”

Weiss’ voice isn’t for everyone, I’ll be the first to admit. But if you can give this album a chance, and spend some time focused on his lyrics, I’m sure it’ll prove to be a rewarding listen.

– Larry Weaver

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Sonic Youth - Sonic Nurse

Sonic Youth

Sonic Nurse

[Interscope; 2004]

Links: Sonic Youth | Interscope | Purchase on SonicYouth.com

Some believe that Sonic Youth improve with age. For me, their best album is still Daydream Nation, but this comes in right behind it. Sure, the trademark noise that Sonic Youth have built their career on is still here, but it’s in much more of a subdued manner. In fact, it sits next to tracks of beauty, much like “Unmade Bed”, “I Love You Golden Blue”, and “Peace Attack”. Granted, not every song on this album carries a pretty melody. “Pattern Recognition” starts things off with a bang, with Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo’s melting guitars sitting comfortably next to Kim Gordon’s William Gibson-inspired lyrics. Gordon does have the album’s absolute low point, in “Kim Gordon and the Arthur Doyle Hand Cream”. Thankfully, the wonderful “Stones” follows it up. “Stones” features some of the absolute weirdest lyrics I’ve seen in a Sonic Youth song, with a chorus of “the dead are alive/there’s danger/the dead are alright/with me”. Gordon redeems herself with the dissonant “Dude Ranch Nurse” and the gloriously beautiful “I Love You Golden Blue”, where she sings in her calmest tone ever. “Paper Cup Exit” is the only Ranaldo song to be found on this album, and it stands as one of his finest, and is one of the best 9/11 songs I’ve heard. The album drifts away with the beautiful, Moore-written “Peace Attack”. The song was written in 2003-2004, and to this day, it’s message still speaks volumes, no matter how weird it can get “nature sex/yawn winking”. Definitely still an album for the times, no matter how good The Eternal is.

– Ryan Nichols