Review: V/A - Rock Of Ages Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

This review was originally syndicated with Tone Deaf, and reproduced here in its entirety. 

Various Artists - Rock of Ages Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Sony Music, 2012)

Guitar Hero and Glee have a lot to answer for, but perhaps we can start the inquiry with their bastard child – namely, the Rock Of Ages soundtrack.

Whether simulating a rock star with a plastic instrument in the comfort of your loungeroom, or selling a message that ‘anyone can be a pop singer’ - from the wheelchair-bound geek to the clean-cut preppy  - both forms of entertainment are essentially about mimicry. Like them, this soundtrack of the movie adaptation of the 80s MTV Generation musical is too.

The effect however, isn’t as heroic or cheesily rewarding when the people performing the same glorified karaoke are some of Hollywood’s biggest and richest stars.

Enter Tom Cruise…. Sorry, “Stacee Jaxxx”… singing Guns N Roses gold standard, “Paradise City”, the track that opens the compilation is pretty much a microcosm for the whole shameless experiment.

Review: Beach House - Bloom

This album review was originally written for Beat magazine, and published in print and online, where it was featured as 'Album of the Week.' It is reproduced here in its entirety

Beach House - Bloom (Sub Pop, 2012)

There’s a brutally efficient way to summarise the Baltimore duo’s fourth LP, and while labelling it as Teen Dream 2 is perhaps not an unsurprising summary, it unfairly underlines a ‘if it ain’t broke’ mentality that betrays Beach House’s characteristically organic craftsmanship.

Naturally Bloom’s predecessor was the pair’s breakthrough album, critics and fans alike flocking to the most accessible evocation of their gently nostalgic dream pop yet, besotted by its beauty and brilliance. Fashioning a sequel that matches its slow-burn appeal, Bloom is more of a casual extension of Teen Dream’s successes than a daring artistic leap. But again, that takes nothing away from its haunting effect and unfussy vividness.

Review: Last Dinosaurs - In A Million Years

Last Dinosaurs - In A Million Years (Dew Process, 2012)

Much like Little Red and Hungry Kids of Hungary before them, Last Dinosaurs' debut confidently re-packages the hook-laden guitar pop of Phoenix and The Strokes for an Australian audience, relying heavily on slick production punch to compliment the group’s youthful enthusiasm.

Reviews: Mystery Jets - Radlands, Patrick Watson - Adventures In Your Own Backyard

The following album reviews originally appeared in print for triple j magazine's April Issue (no. 60), 

 Mystery Jets - Radlands (Rough Trade)
Radlands was recorded in Austin, TX and Mystery Jets want you to know it. From a song called 'Lonestar' (obviously) to the lilting blue-eyed country of 'Roses'; the sonic influence of Americana has rubbed off on their considerable knack for penning smart pop.

Broadening their approach and ambition, there’s choirs on 'Sister Everett', glam somp for 'Saviour' and the buzzing Britannia allusions of 'Greatest Hits'.

It may be their most inconsistent set to date, but it’s all the more interesting for it.

Mystery Jets - "Sister Everett" by forcefieldpr

Patrick Watson - Adventures In Your Own Backyard (Domino)
Little has progressed in the musical world of the Canadian singer/songwriter, but that’s no bad thing. Despite recording exclusively in his Montreal apartment, his third LP possesses his typically sweeping musical elegance.

His uniquely haunting falsetto populating intimate chamber hymnals (The Quiet Crowd) and lush arrangements alike (Lighthouse). There’s a cinematic quality too, from the Sufjan Stevens-meets-Ennio Morricone of the title track to the closing instrumental, 'Swimming Pools', sounding like a Donnie Darko migrant. In a word: beautifully evocative.

Patrick Watson - Into Giants by DominoRecordCo

Review: Battles - Dross Glop

Another album review for Beat street press, originally available both in-print and also online. Reproduced here for the AMR'ers.

Battles – Dross Glop (Inertia, 2012) 
The unique rumble of Brooklyn art-funk-fusion outfit Battles has always been begging to be remixed. Now, thanks to the sweeping success of their sophomore album, the un-spoonerised Gloss Drop, their music undergoes a full makeover. 

Review: Daniel Rossen - Silent Hour/Golden Mile

An album review for Beat magazine, originally published in-print and online. Reproduced here in its entirety

Daniel Rossen – Silent Hour/Golden Mile (Warp, 2012)
While the collective musical world awaits the follow-up to Grizzly Bear’s Veckatimest with baited breath, their members have instead spent the downtime working on various other projects. The latest of which is this tidy little EP from guitarist/vocalist Daniel Rossen. 

Review: Grimes - Visions, My Best Fiend - In Ghostlike Fading

The following album reviews originally appeared in print for triple j magazine's March Issue (no. 59), they are reproduced here in their entirety. Featuring previous 'Introducing...' inductee Grimes and Brooklyn's My Best Fiend.

Grimes - Visions (Inertia/4AD)
After two records that mix the unexplored with the atmospheric, performance artist/DIY muso Claire Boucher emerges from Montreal’s underground with her first release for 4AD. As informed by Enya as by Aphex Twin, the bizarre futurism of Oblivion and Vowels=space and time finds crystalline vocals gliding over a beatific underbelly, while the ninety seconds of Eight contains an album’s worth of ideas. Visions possesses more stimulating sounds than songs, but it’s bound to inspire cult fandom – if not hailed a sleeper hit
Grimes - Genesis

My Best Fiend - In Ghostlike Fading (Warp/Inertia)
The cloud-bursting sleeve and atmospheric title merely hint at what the contents confirms, a Brooklyn band revelling in a pre-MGMT mode of bluesy psychedelia. Cracking Eggs and the swooning Jesus Christ follow the blueprint laid out by Spiritualized’s narcotic excursions; slow-mo tempos and see-sawing chords that swell into crashing, gospel-abetted, seven-minute grandiosity. Their aloof simmer, and vocalist Fred Coldwell’s twang, can occasionally drive to distraction, but at their best – such as on the spacey Pink Floyd lilt of ODVIP – they’re a folkadelic trip.

Review: The Ocean Party - The Sun Rolled Off The Hills

A Beat magazine review, originally published in-print and on-line. Reproduced here in its entirety

The Ocean Party - The Sun Rolled Off The Hills (Independent, 2012)
It’s not every band that can put support for both the mannered indie of Oh Mercy as well as maverick lothario Dave Graney on their CV, or for that matter, get the seal of approval from the latter.

The Ocean Party, five lads originally from Wagga Wagga now relocated to Northcote, have done just that, they must be chuffed with Graney likening them to "early Orange Juice." While we’re making comparisons, it’s worth mentioning peers like Twerps and Dick Diver. The Sun Rolled Off The Hills is yet another debut of lo-fi, melodious indie, filled with neat, clean guitars, gentle melodious hooks and some wry lyrics. You could vaguely lump them into the Flying Nun Records/Dunedin sound revival that’s happening, except that they’ve substituted the typically melancholic streak with that of a lazy, summery vibe and never shy of making a few local references (Northcote Station and Shepparton, take a bow).

Review: Deep Sea Arcade - Outlands

A Beat magazine review, originally published in-print and online, reproduced here in its entirety

Deep Sea Arcade - Outlands (Ivy League, 2012)
On the strength of Outlands, the debut for Deep Sea Arcade, it would be extremely tempting to label the Sydney five-piece a ‘beat combo,’ the lingering influence of the '60s on their sound almost deems the tag suitable.

Lead single Girls could easily soundtrack the summer of love, with its meaty chord changes, kaleidoscopic production and even some ‘sha la la las.’ By the group’s own admission it was originally conceived by "jamming on a guitar riff that was essentially Wild Thing backwards."

'I Know They're Gonna Love It' Review: The Darcys - Aja

Steely Dan fans can be a fussy lot, but when it comes to covers and tributes, they’re also a starved lot. There’s probably a fairly good reason for this, less to do with their brand of seventies soft-rock falling out of vogue and more to do with the sound musical knowledge it takes to tackle Donald Fagen and Walter Becker’s imposing catalogue; that, and some major chutzpah. As it turns out, Canadian band The Darcys aren’t lacking in either.

Yeo - Home: the album, the interview

“You know… ‘XOXO, Selma Blair.’ And I was just ‘That just happened. Awesome. There’s my first review!” Melbourne-based musician Yeo is recalling his tweet from the Hollywood actress in response to linking her his new single of the same name, “and the song’s got nothing to do with her. I’m not a creep, I’m not just writing about this superstar that I have a crush on. It’s about a break-up, her name is just a vehicle for it.” Driven by deftly-plucked banjo, rolling snare and some speedy acoustic picking, Selma Blair is the first taste of Yeo’s complete stylistic u-turn towards alt-country, folk and classic rock on his third independent record Home (available for free or courteous donation right now).

Review: TV On The Radio - Nine Types of Light

Another review from triple j magazine, this time the lead review on TVOTR's fourth LP

TV On The Radio - Nine Types of Light (Interscope)

Has it really been three years since the all-conquering urgency of DearScience? Its contents championed by the blogosphere, beloved by purveyors of intelligent music and in turn built substantial anticipation for its follow-up. During that down-time, side-projects emerged to sate the faithful that – although serviceable – couldn’t hide what they were: fragmented parts of a greater whole. In particular, multi-intstrumentalist/production linchpin Dave Sitek’s Maximum Balloon, which sounded like TVOTR only with a turnstile of guest vocalists.

It’s with relief and open arms then, that after Tunde Adebimpe’s leisurely half-spoken opening on Second Song, that the Brooklynites instinctively click into a spirited pulse encouraged by Kyp Malone’s wiry guitars and some dishy horns.

Album review dump

Here's a lil' collection of some of the short 'n' sweets that graced the reviews pages of triple j magazine over the course of the year, have a nibble.

Richard In Your Mind - Sun (Rice Is Nice)

Following swiftly on from the acid-washed playground of last year's My Volcano, our nation’s very own underground Flaming Lips (is that an oxymoron?) deliver their third set of kaleidoscopic pop. Sounding less daring, but more confident, Sun delivers a set of hazy tunes threaded with a borderline-obsession with the titular gas giant. Cuts like Mountainhead, lead single Vision and the ironically cheery She Took The Sun Away trade their sample-based brand of organised chaos for mellower moods without sacrificing the psychedelic pop saturation that defines their appeal.

Richard In Your Mind - Vision by FBi Radio

Review: The Trouble With Templeton - Bleeders

The Trouble With Templeton - Bleeders (Tiny Monster)

It seems that musical prodigies are almost de rigueur in the Australian music landscape these days, thanks to the spotlighting of the likes of triple j Unearthed and their focus on young, unsigned talent –there’s a fair few musical kids out there whose talent outstrips their years.

That being said, how many can you name who, at the ripe age of twenty one, are delivering chilling troubadour ruminations worthy of the UK’s rich folk heritage? Enter one Thomas Calder, operating under the Twilight Zone name-checking The Trouble With Templeton. Despite hailing from the typically sunny Brisbane, his sincere grain and earnest guitar-plucking are closer to a chilly English sensibility of moody folk.

Review: They Might Be Giants - Join Us

They Might Be Giants - Join Us (Idlewild)

They Might Be Giants, or TMBG to their friends, are perhaps pop music’s most well-known cult act. They’ve been running unimpeded for three decades now, under no-one’s creative demands but their own, producing an overwhelmingly prolific body of work in the process. A prodigious history that includes fifteen(!) studio records, at least three children’s albums, and one very catchy TV theme tune (Malcolm In The Middle trivia fans); and yet, as treasured as they are to their fans they equally are an alternative musical cornerstone that many remain blissfully unaware of.

Join Us, the group’s first ‘serious’ album since 2007’s The Else, makes no concessions to the uninitiated. It’s a product clearly tilted towards the converted, adding another eighteen tracks to the group’s already heaving back-catalogue, but at its heart it may well be the band’s most all-encompassing and accessible set since the turn of the decade. 

Review: Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto

An edited version of the following was syndicated with Beat magazine, but for all you AMR purists - here's the director's cut:

Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto (Parlophone)

The difficulty with reviewing Coldplay’s latest, is that it’s going to be rendered important or successful by the sheer size of their audience. They have, to their credit, remained hugely popular for a decade now; but despite attaining global ubiquity they’ve yet to really shake things up in the way their forebears Radiohead, R.E.M. and U2 have. All have managed, in their own culturally impacting careers, to straddle the fine line between commercial success and critical irreverence; but Coldplay have yet to ‘do a Kid A’ so to speak, let alone make their own Up or even an Achtung Baby; though 2008’s Viva La Vida came close, produced as it was by Brian Eno. His provocative methods did marvellous things for Bowie and the aforementioned U2, and they seemed to challenge Coldplay to deliver what was the group’s most eclectic and intriguing set yet. So with Eno back on board for Mylo Xyloto you’d expect more winning trips outside of their comfort zone, but for all intents and purposes, it suffers from a bad case of sequelitis. Despite its adventurous title, and even the promising digital EP that preceded it, Coldplay’s sixth studio album is a safe affair, void of the risks and rewards of its predecessor.

Review: Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds

Noel Gallagher - Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds (Sour Mash)

While I haven’t taken the time to investigate Beady Eye, the other half of the Oasis split, and while it would be too didactic to simply call Noel ‘the good guy’; he always seemed – musically at least – a far more interesting character than Liam. After all, he was the chief songwriter for the large majority of Oasis’ back catalogue. The man whose alchemy was in taking a simple set of chords and binding them to an everyman appeal that struck the hearts and minds of a generation.

'Mon The Biff

Biffy Clyro - Revolutions // Live At Wembley (WB/14th Floor, 2011)

It’s easy to imagine rock titans like Foo Fighters and Muse selling out the gargantuan Wembley Stadium, but it’s a considerably impressive mark of their boon in popularity that the Scottish misfits, who were the support act for both, have achieved the same feat. Biffy Clyro have worked harder than most to fill that arena, their underdog story climaxing back when they broke out of the alt-rock ghetto with Puzzle in 2005. Having altogether shed the wiry eccentricities of their earlier material for leaner and more focussed work without obscuring their fiery energy or fans, an army of followers under the banner cry of: “mon the Biff”

Over Here, Over There, Every-fucking-Where

First mentioned back at the start of Feb, what follows is the review proper for...

British Sea Power - Valhalla Dancehall (Rough Trade, 2011)

 Once, it seemed that British Sea Power were content to forever circle the edges of full-blown, mainstream popularity, favouring instead to blossom as one of Britain’s mid-tier indie bands. That all changed with 2008’s Do You Like Rock Music? a concerted tilt at leaner cuts with more focused energy, leading many answering the title’s question with a resounding ‘Yes!’

The Crucible

My latest batch of music reviews for Beat:

• Local dream-pop outfit, the frustrating-to-type Sikap Sempurna's self-titled debut EP
• Portland, Oregon's experimental art rockers Menomena Live @ The East Brunswick Club

and you can still catch reviews of:

• The Hidden Venture - Live At St. Andrews,  
• Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde,  
• Pearl Jam - Live On Ten Legs
• and, of course, Radiohead - The King of Limbs

you want more? you asked for it

Esben And The Witch - Violet Cries (Matador)