Now that autumn is pretty much over I think it’s time to finish up my Autumn Jams series. Here are some of the albums that I’ve found relevant in the past months:
Living With Yourself – Mark McGuire
I heard this guy on some mix back in October and I thought “Well, this is some cool ambient music”. I eventually got his album and I can say that it’s pretty much the same song I heard (Brainstorm (For Erin)), in a whole album, which isn’t necessarily bad. If you like ambient/psychedelic/instrumental/spacey music this is beautiful. If you aren’t that kind of horrible person, move on with your boring life. The guitar work is amazing here, by the way.
Throat – Little Women
I don’t know if I should be even talking about this, but I was recommended this album earlier this year and for some reason I did end up getting it. I loathe dislike avant garde and this didn’t change much with this album. Except I can actually stand it, and it even peaks my interest sometimes. It’s stressful and annoying and I would even say damaging, but it makes me feel all those things, which is something. When I hear this album something happens in my brain and I start feeling strange and I want to scream and throw something at someone. It’s a different experience. It makes me want to kill myself.
This is Happening – LCD Soundsystem
As the hipster that I am, I love LCD. I will be seeing them live in December (don’t expect a huge “In Retrospective”, I have finals) and I am very eager to go there and get drunk and be mindfucked. This album is one of my favorites this year, and supposedly, LCD’s last. Well, it’s a great closer for a great career. “Dance Yrself Clean” is a surprising experience the first time you hear it, “All I Want” has that charm that made me fall in love with “All My Friends” and “Pow Pow” has that funny aggressiveness that is so characteristic in LCD’s work. It has everything, just like any other LCD album. Is it better than Sound of Silver? Perhaps. It’s a matter of personal taste.
Some people find them boring, but I love this band.
Inception Soundtrack – Hans Zimmer
Yes, I loved the film. I had to get the soundtrack. I did. It is amazing. Especially when I’m studying or doing something where I don’t really pay attention to the background music. Otherwise it’s just boring.
Stuck On Nothing – Free Energy
These guys were touring with Titus Andronicus earlier this year. That may or may not have influenced me picking their album. I don’t really remember. But it’s good that I did get it, because it’s tons of fun. They have this awesome 80’s vibe to them with their simple sound and their crazy solos. They go along with Titus because Titus is kind of depressing and pessimistic and these guys are the opposite, yet they sound pretty similar to normal people (not me). “All I Know” is one of my favorite songs this year.
Total Life Forever – Foals
Foals were here last month. They played some festival and I heard they did great, I was too busy hearing Arcade Fire give the concert of their lives. I wish I could have seen them, I fell in love with their stuff the first time I heard it. Their sound is hard to explain; all I can really say is that I love their bass, and that they have a very natural, flowing sound. I guess the keyboards are what does it, but I honestly don’t know what makes them sound so original. Perhaps it’s the nearly monotonous voice, or the stereo beats. Whatever it is, it makes these guys sound awesome! Get this, now.
Sit Down, Man – Das Racist
I recently presented this to a dear friend of mine and he fell in love with the “hahaha jk” song. I don’t know why I listen to this. It pretty much is the music that you’d expect to be done by a stoner. With some really genius lines. Don’t listen to this, you’ll get hooked.
Brothers – The Black Keys
I used to hate these guys. I don’t know why, I had never heard them and I’d never seen them but for some reason I didn’t like them. Then I heard one of their songs somewhere and quite loved it (I think it was “Lies” from their previous album Attack & Release). I was eagerly anticipating this album and I’ve been constantly listening to it since it came out. I heard a friend say that it sounds like what they’ve been aiming for since they started and I can agree with that. Even though there is more instrumentation than their previous releases, they still sound simplistic and bluesy. Great album, perhaps their best to date.
Teen Dream – Beach House
I got this album because I heard someone say, and I remember this clearly, “I didn’t know I needed another dream pop album until I heard Teen Dream“. That pretty much sums it up. It’s not anything new or amazing but it is beautifully done. It’s catchy and relaxed. For some reason I don’t take it very seriously but I do like it a lot. These kids were here earlier this year and I deeply regret missing their concert.
Infinite Arms – Band of Horses
Band of Horses, in my opinion, are a band that has gotten progressively worse. Their debut album was really, really good. I liked it a lot. Alt country at its best. Nostalgia surrounds this record in my mind. Simpler times, I hear it say. Then I could never get into their second album. It wasn’t bad, but I didn’t like it. I was pretty indifferent towards this album when it came out. I think I got it about a month after its release or something like that. At first I didn’t pay much attention to it and swore it was nothing worthy of my attention. Then, a few months later I decided to give it another chance and my opinion on it changed. It still doesn’t come close to Everything All The Time, forever and ever the best Alt Country album in recent years. But it’s still a good, solid album. Perhaps I should even give another chance to their second album, whatever it was called.
That pretty much sums up the most relevant albums that I’ve been listening to in the past months. There are still plenty more, but either I don’t like them a lot, or I don’t have much to say about them.
The Strangulation 