Locrian - Rain of Ashes

Ashes Sweeping Low With Breath Of Bane

#114) Locrian - Rain of Ashes (2009)

 1. Rain of Ashes
 2. Sehsa Fo Niar

Rain of Ashes was recorded live on WMUC's DNA in the DNA during Locrian's summer tour in July of '09. the title track is nearly 30 minutes of Locrian's experimental metal/noise/drone/guitar fuckery. there are a lot of different parts that keep the track flowing and interesting. track 2 is the same track reversed. 

Antigama - Zeroland

This Place Is Too Far Away Too Remember Anything

#113) Antigama - Zeroland (2005)

 1. Seed
 2. Izaak
 3. Jazzy
 4. Starshit
 5. How
 6. The View
 7. Wounded Butterfly
 8. Sorry
 9. Zeroland

Antigama's 3rd album is another short, sweet burst of dissonant, chaotic experimental grind. as much as i enjoyed their first 2 records (Intellect Made Us Blind and Discomfort) i feel like they've really surpassed both those albums here, both in songwriting and production values. it also shows more of their experimental side. tracks 1 - 3 and 5 - 8 are short, violent experimental grind attacks. Starshit is a little over a minute of noise and screaming while album closer and title track Zeroland is a 9 and a half minute sound collage/rhythmic noise/soundscape. this is definitely my favorite of their albums so far.

Locrian - Rhetoric of Surfaces

Burying The Carnival

#112) Locrian - Rhetoric of Surfaces (2008)

 1. Drosscape
 2. Burying the Carnival
 3. Gruen Transfers
 4. Visible/Invisible
 5. Chladni
 6. Amps Into Instruments


Rhetoric of Surfaces is a compilation album.

tracks 1,2 & 4 were recorded on Something Else WLUW 88.7 (1,2 in 2008 and 4 in 2007)
1 is a previously unreleased track
2 was released on a split c30 with Continent
4 was released on a split c40 with Colossus

track 3 was recorded on Pure Hype WHPK in 2007 and was released on the No More Noise comp

tracks 5 & 6 were recorded by band member T. Hannum at 2 live gigs in 2006 and were released on II

the first 5 tracks are the more experimental noise/drone side of Locrian. while guitars are heavily prevalent in these tracks, they don't have the "metal" feel that's heard later on Drenched Lands, it's more experimental guitar noise than actual riffs. there are also no vocals. regardless, i'm not complaining, these are very cool tracks. the last track is more on the "metal" side of things. it's a great track and probably my favorite on the album. i hope these guys do more of these "rarities" type collections in the future considering how hard it can be to find their stuff (see my post on Drenched Lands to get an idea of what i'm talking about)

Antigama - Discomfort

Empty, Broken, Lost

#111) Antigama - Discomfort (2004)

 1. Flies
 2. Bloodmaker
 3. Stupid Fuck
 4. Who is My Enemy?
 5. Try
 6. This Structure Is Tight
 7. President Say Yes
 8. Sick I Am
 9. Shit From Arse
 10. Bolo
 11. Save Copy As...
 12. Discomfort
 13. Fala (The Seed Remix)

Antigama's 2nd full length, finds the band continuing with the  grind heard on their 1st record, Intellect Made Us Blind, and really upping the noise and chaos. this record is violent and dissonant as hell. the only thing i didn't like about this album was the Seed remix track. i liked the remix itself, my problem was the 7 minutes of silence that precede it. minor bullshit. overall though this was some sick punishing grind and i really enjoyed it.

Sleep Museum - Core

Ice Wall

#110) Sleep Museum - Core (2008)

 1. Shunned (Again)
 2. About Nothing
 3. Exultant Trees
 4. Ice Wall
 5. Night In Wire


this was a random purchase. i had never heard of the band before this but i'm definitely a fan now. the first 4 tracks are fairly minimal, synth driven goth tracks (they probably fit somewhere in the cold/dark wave side of things) while the last track is 27 minutes of noise and audio fuckery. i normally dig noise but i feel like it was out of place here, especially at nearly half an hour. don't get me wrong, it was a cool piece and i enjoyed it but i would've rather had a few more songs. that's really just a minor complaint as overall this was a cool album. i'll for sure be checking out the rest of this band's discography.

One Starving Day - Atlas Coelestis

Through The Starless Universe The Wind Still Carries Our Screams

#109) One Starving Day - Atlas Coelestis (2009)

 1. Meridians
 2. The Drift of Andromeda
 3. Black:Black
 4. Descending Orion
 5. An Evil Light
 6. Disclosure\Radiance
 7. Aurora
 8. Atlas Coelestis

the 2nd album from Italy's One Starving Day. on their site there's mention of their music being compared to a cross between Godspeed You Black Emperor and Neurosis. i'm not too familiar with Godspeed but this album definitely has a heavy experimental post-rocky vibe with occasional Neurosis-esque moments. of the 8 tracks, 5 have vocals (and the remaining 3 tracks are under 2 minutes and aren't really "songs") but despite that the album still felt largely instrumental to me. probably because the songs are anywhere from 7 to 13 minutes long. there's a lot of instrumentation going on here. harmonium, vocoder, mellotron, glockenspiel, cello, and alto sax are just some of the things used on top of the guitar, bass and drums.
this was a really cool album, i'm definitely gonna try to track down a copy of their 1st record.

Chicago Thrash Ensemble

Fucked Up On Shrooms At The Morton Arboretum

#108) Chicago Thrash Ensemble (2010/2011/2012)

 1. The Widow Maker
 2. Fucked Up On Shrooms at the Morton Arboretum
 3. Zack Alerted the Horde
 4. What the Fuck
 5. Silver and Zack Attack
 6. Kane Promo
 7. I Thought You Was Layin'
 8. The Flood of Spite
 9. Mine to Win, Mine to Lose
 10. Blitz Night
 11. Doom Noise
 12. The Legend of Dennis Thorneater
 13. Motorman

this self titled cd contains their 2010 self titled ep (tracks 7 - 13) and their 2011 Monsters of the Midwest ep (tracks 1 - 6) which were both vinyl only releases. i'm not positive about the years of release but whatever.

ripping old school thrash with a heavy hardcore influence, this shit fucking kills. there are so many rad riffs.. and how can you not love a band that has a song about shrooming at the Morton Arboretum? 
i really dug these eps. hopefully i'll be able to check these guys out live.

Vaura - Selenelion

#107) Vaura - Selenelion (2012)

        1. Souvenirs
2. Drachma
3. The Emanation
4. En/Soph
5. Relics
6. Obsidian Damascene Sun
7. Uncreated Light (Transfiguration)
8. The Column's Vein
9. Vanth
10. Selenelion
11. The Zahir



Vaura is a project consisting of members of Kayo Dot, Gorguts, Religious to Damn, Dysrhythmia and Secret Chiefs 3. the music takes elements of metal, shoegaze, post-punk and goth, among other things, and blends them together. Selenelion (which is the moment during a lunar eclipse when the sun and the eclipsed moon can be seen at the same time) is their debut record. even with so many musical styles incorporated into their music the album still flows  as a whole. it never feels forced or like it's just a collection of genres or something. i really dug all the different things going on on this album, from the metal and blast beats to the acoustic and gothy parts this album was really well done. in an interview with Brooklyn Vegan done back in February the band said they had half the tracks for the new record already recorded and that they're writing the rest now (with more blast beats!), i'm definitely looking forward to checking that out.
.

04/14/12: David O'Doherty - Let's David O'Doherty (2010)

04/14/12: David O'Doherty - Let's David O'Doherty (2010)

1. Unnecessarily Long Offstage Intro
2. Things You Could Have Done
3. You Better Not Have Illegally Downloaded This Album
4. You Are Not The Dream Audience
5. Death By Boardgames
6. Very Mild Superpowers
7. Your New Girlfriend is an Arsehole
8. The Old Popcorn Classic
9. Bangin'
10. Me and Tiger
11. Jupiter's Moons
12. A to Z
13. The Inventions That I Like
14. Sent a Text (To The Person The Text Was About)
15. I Am Definitely Alive
16. My Beefs 2009

     Honestly if you need to know what this ones about reread my review of his newest album "We Are Not The Champions". I picked it up off of his bandcamp after I had listened to Champions a couple times and this was also worth it. It's the same approach, stand up and songs played on a mini keyboard. It's another good album but not as good as his newest. There are some stand out tracks and songs on the album and its completely different material. the only song thats on both is "My Beefs" but even they are completely different lyrics on both albums. This is him 2 years earlier and already good at his weird comedy. (105)

04/13/12: Madlib - Madlib Medicine Show No. 10: Black Soul (2011)

04/13/12: Madlib - Madlib Medicine Show No. 10: Black Soul (2011)

1. To Promote Illogical Thinking
2. To Increase Efficiency of Mentation and Perception
3. To Promote the Intoxicating Effect of Alcohol
4. The Induction of Hypnosis
5. To Withstand Privation, Torture and Coercion
6. To Promote Amnesia
7. May Result in Shock and Confusion
8. To Produce “Pure” Euphoria
9. To Alter Personality Structure

     I'm eventually going to get through all of these it seems. Number 10. A mix of 60s and 70s soul, disco and funk. This is the first one I genuinely can't see myself listening to again. I just can't really get into this type of music very much. As usual, it was really well done, I just didn't like the music. I listened to the entire album that clocked in at just short of 77 minutes. "Black Soul" had a few surprising moments that I was able to get into but for the most part this just wasn't my thing. Still love Madlib though and i still have at least 4 of these to thoroughly listen to. (104)

04/12/12: Serengeti - Kenny Dennis E.P. (2012)

04/12/12: Serengeti - Kenny Dennis E.P. (2012)

1. Rib Tips
2. Don't Blame Steve
3. Shazam
4. Top That
5. Kenny Dennis
6. Flat Pop

     I'm going to be working backwards a bit, but this is the most recent release by Serengeti and his most recent release under his Kenny Dennis Alter Ego. I just don't think I want to take a ton of time explaining this. Kenny Dennis is a middle aged white dude from chicago with a thick Chicagoan accent that loves everything Chicago. The Blackhawks, the Bulls, the Cubs, Sausages, Brian Dennehy etc. Serengeti has released 3 full lengths as Kenny Dennis and has created a ridiculous and deep back story including beefs with KMFDM and Shaq. I haven't listened to the full lengths yet but I know I will because I get easily obsessed with this type of ridiculousness. The story with this album is that it is a prequel of sorts and has a more old school feel. Rib Tips is about food...He defends Steve Bartman, and he addresses his beef with Shaq in Shazam. What the fuck is happening. It's even more confusing that he is dedicated to a character that isn't as good at rapping as his real self is. Of course I like this and will be listening to more. The production is done by Jel and Odd Nosdam from anticon, so needless to say, I'm into it. They create a much more old school feel on some of the "older" songs and they blend a lot of disparate genres. Definitely gonna dig deeper on this one. I don't know whom to recommend this to but I'm in for now. Maybe I'll learn more on the full-lengths. (103)

04/11/12: Sigur Rós - Inni (2011)

04/11/12: Sigur Rós - Inni (2011)

CD1

1. Svefn-g-englar
2. Glósóli
3. Ný batterí
4. Fljótavík
5. Við spilum endalaust
6. Hoppípolla
7. Með blóðnasir
8. Inní mér syngur vitleysingur
9. E-Bow

CD2

1. Sæglópur
2. Festival
3. Hafsól
4. All Alright
5. Popplagið
6. Lúppulagið

     This Sigur Rós live album came out last year and I finally got a copy a couple weeks ago. Inni includes a DVD live performance and a 2 CD live performance. I haven't watched the DVD yet but I did listen to the 2 CD set. The sound quality is amazing. If it wasn't for the crowd noise in between tracks I probably wouldn't have even realized it was live. Its a really solid selection of songs as well. It spans their entire catalouge fairly well but theres more from their most recent album which makes perfect sense considering they were touring for that album. Its a really great album for a fan of Sigur Rós and it even closes with an unreleased track that was really great. They are an amazing live band, the recordings are spectacular and it definitely made me excited for their new album that comes out at the end of May.(102)

04/10/12: Serengeti - Family & Friends (2011)

04/10/12: Serengeti - Family & Friends (2011)

1. Tracks (feat. Yoni Wolf)
2. PMDD (feat. Owen Ashworth)
3. Long Ears (feat. Yoni Wolf & Becky Wolf)
4. Ha-Ha (feat. Hazel Brown & Martha Brown)
5. A.R.P.
6. Godammit (feat. Yoni Wolf)
7. Flutes
8. California
9. The Whip
10. Family & Friends (feat. Yoni Wolf)
11. Dwight

     I mentioned in my Son Lux review that I would also be listening to some Serengeti soon as a result of s/s/s, an Anticon Super Group with Sufjan Stevens, Son Lux and Serengeti. I soon realized that there were a lot of reasons for me to check out Serengeti. He is a rapper who has worked with many different producers. This album, "Family & Friends" fully demonstrates that concept. The production duties are split between Yoni Wolf of Why? fame and Advance Base, a new moniker of Owen Ashworth from Casiotone for the Painfully Alone (another band I planned to check out in the course of this project).
     I also read that Serengeti tends to embody various personalities and characters throughout his releases. The main character is Kenny Dennis and is kind of strange. I will be covering a couple Kenny Dennis releases over the next couple weeks, so I'll get into that later. Due to these goofy alter egos, he also has been compared to Buck 65 and that of course caught my eye. I also found that he is from Chicago. I bought a couple of his albums after finding out all of these facts.
     I started with "Family & Friends" because I wanted to start out on one of his more normal releases where he isn't playing a charcter. I was also a huge fan of the fact that Yoni Wolf Produced and Guest starred on half of the albums tracks. Both producers made really unique and cool beats. I can't say I preferred Yoni wolf or Advance Base. They both did an awesome job. The album is cohesive despite the alternating production. Serengeti has a cool voice, a good flow and interesting lyrics. It is a quality hip-hop album while being barely hip-hop. Serengeti takes influences from all over the map and he grouped with the right people to not make traditional music. This album was really great and a good intro to Serengeti.There is not a bad track on it. It lives up to its title seeing that he had so much assistance from his friends and some family members of said friends. (101)

04/09/12: Patrice O'Neal - Mr. P (2012) [Crossover Review 5]

04/09/12: Patrice O'Neal - Mr. P (2012) [Crossover Review 5]

1. Intro
2. Can't Care
3. Making Lots Of Money
4. TSA
5. Hate People Touching Me
6. Obama
7. Reparations
8. Race War
9. Tolu
10. White Women Are Pleasant
11. Black Women Get You Refunds
12. White Women Get Cold
13. Side Pussy
14. The Corporation
15. My Dogs
16. Start A Hoe, Stay A Hoe
17. I Like Hoes

     Here we are entry 100 already. I am a bit behind at the moment but I finally hit the century mark and therefore our next crossover review. Oksentaminen reviewed "Mr. P" a while back and I had been meaning to pick this up for quite sometime. I finally did pick it up. As much as I didn't want to do a stand-up album for a crossover, I had to because I was going to listen to it one way or another.
     It's still a bummer Patrice O'Neal passed away. He was super talented, super controversial and he was incredibly well respected within the comedy community. I highly recommend listening to his episode of the podcast "WTF with Marc Maron" if you want to get a feel for the type of guy he was and where his comedy comes from. He will talk about anything, fuck with the audience, make you gasp and make you think. I'm not gonna ramble on because oksentaminen really summarizes what he does well in the link I posted above. He's really entertaining, has really unique and shocking views of the world and he is not one to care what you think about him. He will be sorely missed and I wish I could have seen him in person. (100)

04/08/12: Son Lux - We Are Rising (2011)

04/08/12: Son Lux - We Are Rising (2011)

1. Flickers
2. All the Right Things
3. Rising
4. Leave the Riches
5. Flowers
6. Chase
7. Claws
8. Let Go
9. Rebuild

     Ryan Lott or Son Lux is another Anticon artist and was involved on the EP by s/s/s. I decided that I wanted to listen to the other people involved in that project. I'm glad I did and there are a couple Serengeti reviews coming up as well. He is an electronic artist who blends electronics with live instruments beautifully. His songs have a very orchestral feel despite being very electronic. Theres a lot of brass instruments and strings which is pretty sweet within booming electronic drum beats. Its almost hard to tell whats making the sounds when analog and digital is blended together so well. "We Are Rising" is a mopstly downtempo album. His singing is really good as well. I now understand better why he collaborated with Sufjan Stevens. Their voices are similar in some ways. These songs are slow, beautiful and interesting. The album never gets boring as he is constantly adding layers to a song and then changing it up with a more minimal approach on some songs
     Apparently this album was made for NPR's all songs considered challenge. This album was made in a month and that fact makes it all the more impressive. There are a few guest musicians from bands like The Antlers. I enjoyed this album a lot and will definitely check out more of his stuff. (099)

04/07/12: Omar Rodriguez Lopez - Cizaña De Los Amores (2010)

04/07/12: Omar Rodriguez Lopez - Cizaña De Los Amores (2010)

1. Soledad Y Silencio
2. No Hay Más Respuestas
3. Victimas Del Cielo
4. Corazón
5. De Piedra
6. Infiel Hasta La Muerte
7. Nada De Amor
8. Carne De Perro

     Omar Rodriguez Lopez has released a ridiculous amount of solo material when not working with The Mars Volta. I reviewed a random album earlier and it was more on the experimental side as much of his solo work tends to be. In 2010, he released many different albums that were all over the map. Some were very experimental or psychadelic or proggy. He started to also make albums a little more straight forward whether all acoustic, or just pop. I happen to be one of the fans that loves the results. It seems to have something to do with his then girlfriend and now wife, singer, Ximena Sariñana.
     She has sang on quite a few albums now and also within a fairly large range of styles. I really dig her voice so I can't complain that she keeps showing up. This is one of the albums she sings on. It is probably one of the more focused and straight forward albums with Omar but its still really great. The song structures are brief and traditional.The compositions are poppy at times but there is still an ever present psychedelic and rock vibe that is somehow driven by the poppy melodies of the singer. Pretty different outing by Rodriguez Lopez but still worth the listen. I wish I understood spanish. (098)

04/06/12: David O'Doherty - We Are Not The Champions (2012)

04/06/12: David O'Doherty - We Are Not The Champions (2012)

1. Two minute offstage introduction
2. (Please, Please) Lower Your Expectations
3. I hope you like this
4. Try To Think of Other Things
5. Party Song
6. Space cowboy, when are you going to return?
7. My greatest party animal story
8. Me and Shakira
9. The List
10. god v. the internet
11. This stupid job
12. My Beefs 2011
13. The best bit on the album
14. We Are Not The Champions

     I went to one day of last years Just For Laughs festival in Chicago last summer. It was called Demetri Martin and Friends and I went knowing that I was going to see Kumail Nanjiani, Kristen Schall, Hannibal Buress, Paul F. Tompkins and Demetri Martin. There ended up being one other comedian and he confused me and blew me away at the same time. He was Irish, he played songs on a tiny children's keyboard and told hilarious stories (sometimes with the help of said keyboard). Somehow through all of that I didn't catch his name. After the show and at home I went on twitter and was able to find out that the Irish Comedian I had just watched and been impressed by was David O'Doherty.
     I have been following O'Doherty (@phlaimeaux) ever since and have kept fairly close tabs on him. Recently, he tweeted the link for the new album on his bandcamp. This album and his previous album (listening to it soon) are only $6 each and this album comes with a bonus track that is a commentary track to play along with the album. I have yet to listen to the commentary but I will try to check it out soon. Seriously though, he's super weird, incredibly funny and somehow smart jokes sneak out as well. His songs really are hilarious, I recommend "Me and Shakira" and "Party Song" if you just want to get an idea of his "music".  He also does some standup and is a very talented and funny storyteller as well. Its probably good that he handles it that way because he'd probably be too much without the variety to break his songs apart. Really worth checking out. (097)

Blood Folke - Blood Folke

Winter's Summer

#106) Blood Folke - Blood Folke (2012)

 1. Winter's Summer
 2. Red Cardigan
 3. Merzerum
 4. Termintation Shield

there's not really a lot of info out there about these guys yet. they're a 3 piece (guitar/vocals, drums and viola) from Minneapolis and i'm pretty sure this is their demo, which is amazing considering how good the record sounds and how well they play together. they play crushing yet almost delicate post-metal.   i'm really looking forward to hearing what this band does next.

Goatvargr - Black Snow Epoch

During The Black Snow Epoch, The True Hunters Will Pursue

#105) Goatvargr - Black Snow Epoch (2010)

 1. Goatsbane/Scapewolf
 2. Bearer, Begetter, The Sovereign Wolf
 3. Dark Eyed and Frost Scorned
 4. Goatwalking
 5. Razed Under Cloven Hoof and Bloody Maw
 6. Wall of Goat
 7. Wall of Wolf
 8. A Black Drum Droning

Ghost - Opus Eponymous

Lucifer, We Are Here For Your Praise

#104) Ghost - Opus Eponymous (2010)

 1. Deus Culpa
 2. Con Clavi Con Dio
 3. Ritual
 4. Elizabeth
 5. Stand By Him
 6. Satan Prayer
 7. Death Knell
 8. Prime Mover
 9. Genesis

so it's Friday the 13th, what could be a better night to listen to Ghost's debut? 

i loved this album.

Dodecahedron - Dodecahedron

Man Will Fade In Front Of The Pillars Of Chaos

#103) Dodecahedron - Dodecahedron (2012)

 1. Allfather
 2. I, Chronocrator
 3. Vanitas
 4. Descending Jacob's Ladder
 5. View From Hverfell I: Head Above The Heavens
 6. View From Hverfell II: Inside Omnipotent Chaos
 7. View From Hverfell III: A Traveller Of The Seed Of The Earth
 
there's a great interview with vocalist M. Eikenaar and guitarist/songwriter M. Nienhuis over at Metal Obscur where they discuss how they would classify themselves musically (M. Nienhuis: When I was writing for DODECAHEDRON, I wanted to create music that is heavily rooted in the black metal genre. That was the starting point. But I felt there was more to gain when it comes to dismal atmospheres and aggression, and that I think is where we differ from other bands. When I started collaborating with J. Bonis I started to learn about sound synthesis, and with his skills there are no limits. We wanted to increase the levels of terror and dismal atmosphere, and if you look at the reviews that have been published so far, it seems that we have succeeded. So: black metal with a lot of aggression and dismal atmosphere would be a correct description. ) and if they're an "avant-garde" black metal band (M. Nienhuis: I don’t know and I don’t really care. People can categorize us as they wish, we can’t influence that and it’s not really important to us. We focused intensely on the production of this album with our own artistic vision and approach, not taking into account in what kind of scene we might end up or what people think of us.) it's always nice when a band says they don't give a fuck about genres.

Jesuit - Discography

Something's Wrong With The Fucking Radio, I Can't Find The Death March

#102) Jesuit - Discography (2011)

 1. Car Crash Lullaby
 2. Your Sharp Teeth
 3. Cop Glasses
 4. Hole In the Sky
 5. Servitude
 6. The Malady
 7. Suicide King
 8. Tranzor Z
 9. The Smooth Talking Son of a Bitch
 10. Trigger
 11. Canonize
 12. Expatriate

Jesuit were a band from Virginia that was active from '95 to '99.  the vocals are distorted, the lyrics are dark and amazing (i had a really hard time picking what i would use as my cover caption/title deal) the guitars noisy and the drumming tight as hell. as far as i can tell they only did one big North American tour in '98 with Dillinger Escape Plan (who guitarist Brian Benoit would join after Jesuit broke up) and Botch before breaking up. as the title of the disc states, this is their discography.

tracks 1 -3 are from their self-titled 7", released in '99.

track 4 is an awesome Sabbath cover that was on the In These Black Days Vol. 4 7" released in '99

tracks 5 - 9 are off the self-titled cd and 7" released in '96.

tracks 10 - 12 are off a self released demo tape.


this release was kind of a double edged sword. on the 1 hand this was an awesome cd and it's great to have all the material in one place but on the other hand it sucks that these 12 tracks are all there is from this great band. 

Hateful Abandon - Famine (or Into the Bellies of Worms)

I Am A Distant Memory Falling Away From Myself

#101) Hateful Abandon - Famine (or Into the Bellies of Worms) (2008)

 1. Rats Whisper Murder
 2. Diamond Spine
 3. Riding the Blade
 4. Avalanche
 5. Boiling Seas
 6. Painters Rope
 7. Lungs


this is their first album which i randomly picked up because the distro description was something along the lines of "what if Joy Division was a black metal band?" sold.
upon listening to the album though it's a little more than that. to me it's a combination of the cold, bleak despair of Joy Division with The Cure at their gothiest and some touches of black metal here and there. i really dug this album. i've always liked that old school bass heavy goth rock sound and the combo of goth vocals and black metal screams works really well.

these guys released their 2nd album last year and i'll definitely be checking it out.

volcano! - Paperwork

#100) volcano! - Paperwork (2008)

1. Performance Evaluation Shuffle
2. Africa Just Wants to Have Fun
3. Tension Loop
4. Fairy Tale
5. Slow Jam
6. '78 Oil Crisis
7. Sweet Tooth
8. Astronomer's Ballad
9. '-----------------
10. Palimpsests
11. Kitchen Dance

so it's our 100th post which means Crossover Time again. it was adam's pick and he chose this .

he discovered this band way back when for our 1st end of month theme, Local Bands. you can read his original post here.

as he states in his post this band incorporates a lot of different things into their sound. they're very poppy but also very experimental. Fairy Tale is probably a good example. it's a very poppy sounding song overall but it's pretty much buried under a layer of distorted synth noise. as good as the poppy parts are i prefer them at their noisiest. the singer has a good range and a lot of energy. i don't get the whole random Spanish lyrics thing but hey, if that's your thing he does it. the drums and guitars weave in and out of time signatures effortlessly and make for a compelling backdrop for the singer's range. i've listened to this album a couple times now and have found things i missed on previous listens. this was a really cool record, i'll definitely be checking out more of their stuff.

04/05/12: Madlib - Madlib Medicine Show No. 12: Raw Medicine (Madlib Remixes) (2011)

04/05/12: Madlib - Madlib Medicine Show No. 12: Raw Medicine (Madlib Remixes) (2011)

1-37. Untitled 1-37

     Yep, its time for some more Medicine Show. This is technically the first part of his remix series within the Medicine Show. The Black Tape while being a surprise extra entry in the series is part 2 of this. There are audio cues and decisions that tie the two together as a complete set. There are actually moments found on both records which really did make them seem more like a cohesive 2 disc set.This group of recordings is as diverse as No. 13 if not more. The musical influences that Madlib built beats out of are as all over the map as this entire series has been. The one thing that sets it apart is a more heavy focus on beats and production. At the base level its the same approach, random hip-hop verses from all over the hip-hop universe remixed with short compositions, and beats by Madlib. The reason I say its different is the fact that there are a lot more instrumental tracks and interludes that purely showcase his production skills. Anther solid entry in the Medicine Show. It's genuinely inpressive how Madlibs approach to production can make me appreciate rappers or songs that I previously had no respect for. (096)

04/04/12: Just Like Vinyl - Just Like Vinyl (2010)

04/04/12: Just Like Vinyl - Just Like Vinyl (2010)

1. Wisdom Teeth
2. Cardiac Harrassment
3. The Circulatory System
4. Big Words
5. Death of the Sheep
6. D.R.U.M.S.
7. Kite
8. Epiphany
9. No Friend of Mine
10. Pulled Apart
11. It's Over

     Just Like Vinyl is a band I found because of an old fairly guilty pleasure. I always enjoyed the band "The Fall of Troy" whether they were at their hardest or their poppiest. I think they got a little lumped into the whole screamo thing but they always had a more math rock feel composition wise. Frontman, Thomas Erak was a solid guitar player and a good singer. His singing ranged from a "Blood Brothers" type scream to his clean vocals that were very poppy and nearly falsetto.
     "The Fall of Troy" broke up a few years ago along with a promise from Erak to continue to make music. After that, I kind of forgot about them. I don't even remember who I compared to Fall of Troy within this project, but it made me think about them again. I decided to see if he had formed a new band yet and apparently I was a bit behind because he formed this band almost immediately after.
     It's nothing groundbreaking or game changing by any means. If you like(d) F.O.T. you'll like this band. They are fronted by Erak on Guitar and vocals and that makes them sound VERY familiar. I would have to say that this has distanced themselves further from the screamo label. They sound much more rock and roll. There are more clean singing moments and less screaming, but he has by no means abandoned screaming. There are some really cool and heavy instrumental tracks like the intro and there are some rvery proggy longer shifting moments as well. I'd probably only recommend this album to people who were already fans of what Erak does because I don't think there is too much he can do to distance himself from the Fall of Troy without completely changing it up and I doubt that'll happen. (095)

04/03/12: BADBADNOTGOOD - BBNG 2 (2012)

04/03/12: BADBADNOTGOOD - BBNG 2 (2012)

1. Earl (Feat. Leland Whitty)
2. Vices*
3. Rotten Decay*
4. Limit To Your Love
5. Bastard / Lemonade
6. CHSTR*
7. UWM (Feat. Leland Whitty)*
8. DMZ*
9. CMYK
10. Flashing Lights
11. You Made Me Realise (Feat. Luan Phung)

Written by BADBADNOTGOOD*

     I have already listened to this album a bunch of times and holy shit these dudes just keep getting better. This is by far their best group of recordings yet. These dudes are just ridiculously talented. From their bandcamp:

          No one above the age of 21 was involved in the making of this album. This album was recorded in one 10 hour session. Thanks to our friends, family, loved ones and anyone who fucks with us.

This album is perfect. There is not a bad moment on this album. I marked the originals but you should just go to their website and download it immediately. I was happy to see that they upped the amount of originals on this album. Almost half the tracks are written by them and they are some of the best original jazz tracks I've heard in a long time. They keep the hiphop feel while being so very much the definition of jazz. The more acoustic moments like the new recording of "Rotten Decay" are probably some of my favorite jazz moments ever.
     The covers are a very interesting group again this time. Odd future is represented via Earl by Earl Sweatshirt and a medley of Tyler, The Creator songs. I haven't heard anything by James Blake, but his two songs "Limit To Your Love" and "CMYK" made for some rad BBNG tracks. They also round the group of covers and the album out with a Kanye song and what is apparently a My Bloody Valentine Track.
     The additional musicians were just as talented the regulars and the addition of saxophone and guitar were incredibly welcome and added even more depth to an already incredible album. The guitar on the MBV cover leads to one of their loudest and darkest recordings yet. These dudes are ridiculously talented and I hope they keep releasing music at this incredible rate so that I can continue to be blown away this regularly. (094)

04/02/12: Fake Shark - Real Zombie - Meeting People is Terrible (2010)

04/02/12: Fake Shark - Real Zombie - Meeting People is Terrible (2010)

1. Six Sick Suck
2. Avril Kadaver
3. Siamese Disease
4. Running For The Razors
5. Jewellery
6. Angel Lust
7. Horses In Heaven
8. Sestri Levante
9. Puke Rawk *
10. Cherry Lava
11. Love Lice
12. Don't Forget

     *North American Bonus Track

     Alright, so this was another band shown to me quite a while back by oksentaminen. They make super catchy rock music. They are poppy somehow with a good dose of weird and experimentation. Their singer is really good. He has amazing range and covers a lot of different rock styles well. he sings super clean, has a good scream and has some weird vocals too. Their style is fairly consistent but still jumps all over the place. They have slower moments and faster more metal moments but they are always super catchy. Rad album. Another good recommendation from oksentaminen. (093)

04/01/12: Do Make Say Think - & Yet & Yet (2002)

04/01/12: Do Make Say Think - & Yet & Yet (2002)

1. Classic Noodlanding
2. End of Music
3. White Light Of
4. Chinatown
5. Reitschule
6. Soul and Onward
7. Anything for Now

     I reviewed "You, You're a History in Rust" way back at the beginning of the project and 90 days later I made it back to them. It is their third full length album. This is an earlier album than the couple I had heard already but their sound is fairly consistent from what I can tell. The songs are unique,  rolling instrumental compositions that tend to be fairly down tempo with a steady rhythm. Their music always becomes more interesting and attention grabbing through the use of additional keyboards, percussion, brass instruments, string instruments and even a touch of electronic music and sonic warping. There are a lot of really great moments on this album. The songs often start very minimally and quiet and build to a pretty great cacophony led by the horns. This album also had some very surprising and chill moments that are relaxing and almost atmospheric. I also would have to say that dispite the louder moments on this album, it is a more chill overall sound than their later albums. There was a less heavy use of distortion and just not nearly as loud. That's not a strike against "& Yet & Yet" it just has a little different feel but still is a great listen. They're definitely a post rock band but they have a really interesting sound. I really have yet to dislike an album by these guys and there's not a bad song on this album so I definitely have a couple more by "Do Make Say Think" to pick up. (092)

Misery Loves Co. - Not Like Them

Am I In Debt To You For Not Being What You Wished Of Me?

#99) Misery Loves Co. - Not Like Them (1997)

 1. It's All Yours
 2. A Million Lies
 3. Prove Me Wrong
 4. Owe You Nothing
 5. Complicated Game
 6. Taste It (Imaginary Gun)
 7. Deny Everything
 8. Them Nails
 9. Infected
 10. Feed the Creep
 11. Not the Only One
 12. Nothing Remains


Misery Loves Co. was an industrial metal band that was around in the 90s. this is their 2nd full length

overall i really enjoyed this album. except for Complicated Game. musically it's a decent enough song but the lyrics just really fucking annoy me.  MLC can't be blamed for this though as the song is a cover of XTC, a band i'm not really too keen on anyway. and in all fairness the original is terrible too.
as far as i know these guys only released 2 other full lengths and an EP or 2 but i'll definitely be revisiting them.

Monster Movie - Everyone Is a Ghost

Help Me Make It Right

#98) Monster Movie - Everyone Is a Ghost (2010)

 1. The World Collapsed
 2. Down, Down, Down
 3. How the Dead Live
 4. Bored Beyond Oblivion
 5. Everyone Is a Ghost
 6. In the Morning
 7. Fall
 8. Silver Knife
 9. Help Me Make It Right
 10. A Place in the Mountains

apparently  this is a "dreampop" band. this is not a genre im super familiar with but i dug this album. this is Monster Movie's 5th full length. the songs vary from super electronic to just acoustic guitars with a few electronic embellishments and places in between. there's a variety of instrumentation and a couple different singers but everything flows together nicely. most of the songs seemed kind of melancholy but still retained a pop sensibility.
this was a random purchase that i'm definitely happy with.

Monarch! - Dead Men Tell No Tales

Sailing Over A Sea Of Flames, Onward Towards A Sea Of Blood

97) Monarch! - Dead Men Tell No Tales (2007)

Speak of the Sea (2006)

 1. We Are the Music Makers (long version)
 2. Speak of the Devil, Speak of the Sea
 3. Dead Men Tell No Tales (Spoken Version)

No Song Can Drown Out 1000 Dying Screams

Die Tonight (2007)

 1. Winter Bride
 2. Swan Song

Monarch is from Bayonne, France and Dead Men Tell No Tales is a 2 disc reissue of their out of print 2nd and 3rd albums. they play some fucking crushing, glacial doom and have an awesome singer.

Speak of the Sea was originally limited to 666 copies. 

Die Tonight was also limited to 666 copies and continues in the blackened feedback/riff slab footsteps of the previous album. 

this shit is minimal, dark and slooooooow and it just jumped to the top of my favorite records list.

(End of the Month Theme: 80's Metal) 03/31/12: Danzig - Danzig (1988)

(End of the Month Theme: 80's Metal) 03/31/12: Danzig -  Danzig (1988)

1. Twist of Cain
2. Not of This World
3. She Rides
4. Soul On Fire
5. Am I Demon
6. Mother
7. Possession
8. End of Time
9. The Hunter
10. Evil Thing

     I don't know why I have been resistant to Danzig for so long. For as long as I've known oksentaminen he has said how great he/they are. When oksentaminen made the end of March theme 80's metal, I was a little nervous that I wouldn't be able to find something I truly enjoy. I started searching around a bit and realized that the first Danzig album came out in 1988 and immediately knew I had found my theme album. The only song I had heard previously off of this album was of course "Mother", which I always thought was a rad track. I finally checked out the album and I feel stupid for avoiding this so long. It really is a perfect metal album. Every track was great. Their style isn't over the top metal, but just awesome rock. The whole album flows together nicely, Glenn Danzig's singing voice is spectacular and all of the songs are rad as hell. The album had its share of heavy and softer moments and somehow at times still felt like an 80's hair metal record yet was saved by Danzig's awesome singing voice.
     I am a damn fool for waiting this long to listen to a Danzig album but I am glad I finally did. I apologize to oksentaminen for avoiding this obviously essential metal band. Great album and great end of the month listen. (091)

03/30/12: Viktor Vaughn - Vaudeville Villain (2003)

03/30/12: Viktor Vaughn - Vaudeville Villain (2003)

1. Overture
2. Vaudeville Villain
3. Lickupon
4. The Drop
5. Lactose and Lecithin
6. A Dead Mouse
7. Open Mic Nite Pt. 1
8. Rae Dawn
9. Let Me Watch
10. Saliva
11. Modern Day Mugging
12. Open Mic Nite Pt. 2
13. Never Dead
14. Pop Snot
15. Mr. Clean
16. G.M.C.
17. Change the Beat

     I've had this album since very early on in discovering how much I like MF Doom and his many different aliases but I never gave it a thorough listen until now. This was his first release as Viktor Vaughn and was also his first full length album he rapped on where it wasn't his own production. It was obvious it wasn't his own production but it still felt like an album that was his own. It still has a old school comic and superhero/supervillain feel like many of his own productions. It was nice to hear him rapping over a different style of production. His own production has a very old school analog feel while the producers here used a much more electronic sound at times. There were 4 different producers contributing beats and it still felt consistent. There were just a lot of genuinely enjoyable catchy songs on this album. Whenever there is a guest rapper it usually feels like the person should be there. It was all around a really solid hip-hop album. Daniel Dumile or MF Doom, or Doom, or Metal Fingers, or Madvillain, or Dangerdoom, or Viktor Vaughn continues to solidify him self as my favorite MC. (090)

03/29/12: Anywhere - Pyramid Mirrors (2011) AND Infrared Moses (2012)

03/29/12:

Anywhere - Pyramid Mirrors (2011)

1. Pyramid Mirrors
2. Dead Golden West

Anywhere - Infrared Moses (2012)

 

1. Infrared Moses
2. Anywhere

     First of all, I have to give oksentaminen credit for discovering this strange side project. It includes Cedric Bixler-Zavala of The Mars Volta on drums and sometimes vocals, Christian Eric Beaulieu of Triclops! on guitar, Mike Watt of Minutemen on bass and Rachel Fannan formerly of the band Sleepy Sun on vocals. They have a full length coming out in the near future but these are 2 recently released 7 inch singles that they started off with. Basically, Beaulieu and Bixler-Zavala formed the group after meeting at a mutual friends art show. They later recruited Watt and Fannan to round out the group. Their sound comes from Eastern Ragas. It's predominantly acoustic guitar with minimal electric guitars and electronics. There is a lot of percussion and its all complimented by Mike Watt's speedy bass playing.
     These tracks were interesting. of the 4 here. 2 were instrumental, one was sang by Fannan and one was sang by Cedric. Of course the track Cedric sings on is my favorite. I didn't really like Fannan's singing voice but at least shes sharing duties with Cedric and half of these songs were instrumental anyways. It's an interesting group with a fairly unique sound. They're describing it as "eastern acoustic punk" and I'd say that works. I don't really know how I feel about it. I didn't hate it, I didn't love it. I guess I got a little bored at times. I'm interested to see what they do on the full length but I don't know if this is really my cup of tea. Still worth checking out if you're a fan of any of the people involved. (089)

Morbid Angel - Illud Divinum Insanus & Illud Divinum Insanus: The Remixes

My Sickness Will Lay Claim

#95) Morbid Angel - Illud Divinum Insanus (2011)

 1. Omni Potens
 2. Too Extreme
 3. Existo Vulgore
 4. Blades For Baal
 5. I Am Morbid
 6. 10 More Dead
 7. Destructos Vs The Earth/Attack
 8. Nevermore
 9. Beauty Meets Beast
 10. Radikult
 11. Profundis - Mea Culpa

#96) Morbid Angel - Illud Divinum Insanus: The Remixes (2012)

Disc 1
 1. Laibach - I Am Morbid
 2. cEvin Key/Hiwatt Marshall - OmniDead
 3. Brain Leisure - Too Extreme
 4. The Toxic Avenger - 10 More Dead
 5. Malakwa - I Am Morbid
 6. Synascape - Too Extreme
 7. Punish Yourself vs Sonic Area - Destructos vs Earth
 8. HIV+ - Too Extreme
 9. Micropoint - I Am Morbid
 10. Metallyzer AKA John Lord Fonda - Too Extreme
 11. Evil Activities - Radikult
 12. Mixhell - Too Extreme
 13. Black Lung - I Am Morbid
 14. Mondkopf - Radikult
 15. Xytras - Existo Vulgore
 16. Toxic Engine - I Am Morbid

Disc 2
 1. Ahnst Anders - I Am Morbid
 2. Nachtmahr - Destructos Vs The Earth
 3. Skold - Profundis - Mea Culpa
 4. Black Strobe - 10 More Dead
 5. Miss Construction by Chris Pohl - Too Extreme
 6. Project Pitchfork - Destructos vs Earth
 7. Treponem Pal - 10 More Dead
 8. Scott Brown - I Am Morbid
 9. Fixhead - Radikult
 10. DJ Ruffneck - I Am Morbid
 11. Igorrr - Remixou Morbidou
 12. Tamtrum - I Am Morbid
 13. Tek-One - 10 More Dead
 14. Adrian - I Am Morbid
 15. The Horrorist - Existo Vulgore

 Bonus Download Tracks
 1. Combichrist - Destructos vs Earth
 2. Chrysalide - Nevermore
 3. Asche - Destructos vs Earth
 4. Sylvgheist Maelstrom - 10 More Dead
 5. Dead Sexy Inc. - I Am Morbid
 6. Roger Rotor - Radikult
 7. The Procesus - I Am Morbid
 8. Mulk - Existo Vulgore

so i decided to post both these albums together because they're what prompted me to listen to old Morbid Angel. it started when i heard there was going to be a remix album and it was going to have an Igorrr track on it. being an Igorrr fan i of course wanted the album but i figured i should hear the original album before checking out all the remixes. 

overall it isn't a horrible album. i liked quite a few tracks and there weren't any that were unlistenable or anything. i'm definitely curious to see what they do next.


as for the remix album, 2 discs, 31 tracks. the first pressing of the album also comes with a dropcard that lets you download 8 additional tracks for a total of about 3 hours worth of music. a few of these artists i knew but most i didn't. there are a lot of different electronic genres represented, from industrial and hardcore to clubby dance shit and dubstep (ugh). all in all you get 5 mixes of Destructos, 3 of Existo Vulgore, 12 of I Am Morbid, 4 of Radikult, 6 of Too Extreme and 5 of 10 More Dead and then a few random tracks.

about half of the remix tracks really stood out to me. decent enough

03/28/12: Shlohmo - Shlomoshun Deluxe (2010)

03/28/12: Shlohmo - Shlomoshun Deluxe (2010)

1. Tomato Squeeze
2. 7am
3. Spoons
4. Post Atmosphere
5. Hot Boxing the Cockpit
6. Dead Pixel
7. Teeth
8. Antigravity
9. Hot Boxing the Cockpit (Tokimonsta Remix)
10. 7am (devonwho Remix)
11. Antigravity (Fulgeance Remix)
12. Antigravity (Low Limit Remix)

     Time to figure out more of the so far brief but prolific timeline of releases by LA beat maker Shlohmo. I regret listening to most of his releases in reverse order more and more every time I listen to something else from him. This EP was released originally in 2009 I believe but the version I have was a digital re release with the 4 bonus remixes. The "Camping E.P." was released later in 2010 to put these releases into a little bit of perspective. There are a lot of similarities stylistically between "Shlomoshun" and "Camping" seeing that they were made so close together. I found that this EP sounded a lot more like Flying Lotus than his later stuff does. He was heavier on the beats and lighter on the atmosphere. At times he had bass lines that sounded very dubstep-ish which is probably why there were one or two tracks I wasn't crazy about. I'm not saying that Shlohmo was a completely different artist barely 2 years before his full length "Bad Vibes" because I can definitely hear his sound developing and becoming more his own throughout his many releases. It's still all good though.
     The included remixes were all solid. I may have actually liked the remixes of "7am" and "Hot Boxing the Cockpit" more than the originals. Solid release and it's worth noting that the track "Tomato Smash" on "Camping" is a reworked remixed version of the opening track of this release "Tomato Squeeze". (088)

03/27/12: BADBADNOTGOOD - BBNGLIVE 2 (2012)

03/27/12: BADBADNOTGOOD - BBNGLIVE 2 (2012)

1. Hard In Da Paint
2. DMZ
3. Banter
4. CMYK / Limit To Your Love
5. Rotten Decay
6. Bastard / Lemonade

     BADBADNOTGOOD continue to release a large amount of material even though none of them are even of drinking age yet. This is the second of 2 freely released live albums. The audio quality is fantastic and they prove that they are no joke. They are a great live band that I hope to get the opportunity to see for myself as soon as possible. As cool as their covers are, I definitely tend to enjoy their original material the most. I recently reviewed their single "Rotten Decay" and was absolutely blown away. I was obviously excited that it was included here. "DMZ" is also an original and in my opinion is a highlight of these recordings. These guys are super talented, and I can't wait to take a listen to their newest album "BBNG 2". (087)

Morbid Angel - Covenant

Stain The World With The Blood Of Man

#94) Morbid Angel - Covenant (1993)

 1. Rapture
 2. Pain Divine
 3. World of Shit (Promised Land)
 4. Vengeance Is Mine
 5. The Lion's Den
 6. Blood On My Hands
 7. Angel of Disease
 8. Sworn to the Black
 9. Nar Mattaru
 10. God of Emptiness

Morbid's 3rd album is another slab of death metal.. on this album they also focus more on the Lovecraft/Summerian god influence lyrically. while the first 2 albums were recorded with a 2nd guitarist, Richard Brunelle, this album was recorded as a 3 piece without him. the change didn't seem to affect anything as Covenant went on to become the best selling death metal album of all time. there's really not a lot to say about this album that i haven't been saying about the other 2. rad riffs and heaps of evil.

Morbid Angel - Blessed are the Sick

Lord Of Light, I Will Swarm Against You Now

#93) Morbid Angel - Blessed are the Sick (1991)

 1. Intro
 2. Fall From Grace
 3. Brainstorm
 4. Rebel Lands
 5. Doomsday Celebration
 6. Day of Suffering
 7. Blessed are the Sick/Leading the Rats
 8. Thy Kingdom Come
 9. Unholy Blasphemies
 10. Abominations
 11. Desolate Ways
 12. The Ancient Ones
 13. In Remembrance


Morbid Angel's 2nd album finds them getting more technical. not really a lot to say about this one. besides the intro there are 3 instrumentals on the album. "Doomsday Celebration" is a cheesy keyboard deal that sounds like old computer game music. "Desolate Ways" is a nice, melodic acoustic guitar jam but it feels really out of place on the album. "In Remembrance" is a piano piece that again is very melodic and well written but feels out of place on it's own. .

another Earache reissue. there are no bonus tracks but there is a dvd called Tales of the Sick: A Closer Look, a 60 minute documentary filmed in 2009 that contains interviews with David Vincent (bass and vocals), Tom Morris, who engineered and and mixed the album, and a few other people.

from what i've read most people consider this to be the ultimate Morbid Angel album. i liked it just fine.

Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness

The Time Is Right To Destroy The World

#92) Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness (1989)

 1. Immortal Rites
 2. Suffocation
 3. Visions From the Dark Side
 4. Maze of Torment
 5. Lord of All Fevers & Plague
 6. Chapel of Ghouls
 7. Bleed For the Devil
 8. Damnation
 9. Blasphemy
 10. Evil Spells
 11. Maze of Torment (Remix)
 12. Chapel of Ghouls (Remix)
 13. Blasphemy (Remix)

Altars of Madness is the official debut for Florida's Morbid Angel. they recorded an album called Abominations of Desolation before this but they didn't like it and it remained unreleased until '91.

this is another Earache re-issue and as such has a few goodies. tracks 11 - 13 are bonus tracks. they claim to be remixes but they didn't really sound all that different to me. also included is a dvd with a live show recorded on November 14th 1989 at Nottingham Rock City, as part of the Grind Crusher tour with Carcass (whose set from that night can be seen on the Wake Up and Smell the...Carcass dvd) , Bolt Thrower and Napalm Death. i didn't watch the whole set, i just kinda flipped through it for now but from what i saw it was waaay better than the Carcass dvd. it sounded good and looked like it was actually professionally shot. i'll have to come back to it at some point.