Music

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• 02/16/09

  Various Artists—Dark Was the Night Every once in a while, an all-consuming obsession with music can be good for more than tinnitus and awkward iPod jockeying at parties. Dark Was the Night is one such occasion, a double album of new songs from some of the best bands in indie rock, benefitting Red Hot, an AIDS awareness organization. With tracks from The National, Arcade Fire, and Beach House as well as collaborations between the Dirty Projectors & David Byrne and Grizzly Bear & Feist, it's kind of hard to justify not purchasing this.
  
  Intrusion—Seduction of Silence Intrusion is the nom de beats of one half of Detroit's Echospace, a group that takes the cold sounds of Detroit techno, feeds them into an echo chamber that sounds massive, and puts out the results. Intrusion keeps the space but injects enough island rhythms into the mix to make this sound like the soundtrack to a beach party on the moon. If you only listen to music on your crappy computer speakers you will not get this album so we suggest turning the bass up and listening to this loud.
  
  Various Artists—Thank You Friends: The Ardent Records Story This is a wonderful 2-CD retrospective of the seminal Memphis label, Ardent Records. Most people know the label primarily for the band Big Star, one of the great underacknowledged 70s rock bands whose greatness becomes more and more apparent with the passing years as you here so many bands cop their style (if you want to hear some of the inspiration for Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, go right to the source). The real surprise on this compilation is how great all the other bands on Ardent were. If you want proof, look no further than Lawson & Four More's "If You Want Me You Can Find Me."
  

• 02/05/09

  Asobi Seksu—Hush This New York-based band makes the kind of dream-pop that has been around for 25 years now and seems to always be good when it's done right. Asobi Seksu get it right because their lead singer has a really sweet and high voice that doesn't sound thin and weak. In many ways, the production really sets this album apart. Music based around distorted guitars can often sound muddy and undefined, but this record sounds really clear and, um, awesome.
  
  Telepathe—Chrome's On It This winter has been begging for just this type of moody, all-girl electro-dance music. We've been obsessed with the single "Chrome's On It". It's great how Telepathe so obviously takes certain cues from hip hop without embarassingly trying to create hip hop music. Instead they make music all their own, with contagious hooks, laser synths, and hard drums.
  
  Group Bombino—Guitars from Agadez Vol. 2 This is a vinyl-only release from the Sublime Frequencies label, a group of intrepid travelers who bring previously unrecorded world music sounds your stereo. This time they've returned again to Niger to record the sounds of Tuareg music, made by nomadic instruments who need to borrow instruments and set up electric generators in order to record. The music is truly awe-inspring, switching from wonderful acoustic guitar-based music to psychedelic and rocking jams. Act now, the print run on this one is limited to 1500 copies and it's essential listening.
  

• 01/20/09

  Abe Vigoda—Reviver EP Following up their strong debut album, Abe Vigoda release an EP that is all too brief. The sound is a somewhat more polished take on their lo-fi, rhythmic sound. We're addicted to the drums on "House" and are psyched that AV decided to cover one of our favorite Stevie Nicks songs, "Wild Heart."
  
  
  
  Metro Area—Fabric 43 London-based club Fabric has one of the best mixtape series going right now. They have managed to persuade top-shelf DJ's to record mixes for them and the results are consistently great. This time around they got Metro Area, who make great music themselves but are also inspired DJs and record collectors. The mix draws lines between neurotic post-disco weirdness and New Wave and keeps you dancing the whole time.
  
  Black Milk—Tronic Black Milk is a rapper/producer from Detroit who has been quietly putting his name out in the hip hop underground for the past few years. His third album is his best yet, a combination of soulful beats and boastful raps that is reminiscent of the work of Kanye West and the late, great J Dilla. In an industry that is more frequently relying on one great single and some formulaic filler on hip hop albums, it's refreshing to hear a great rewind-able album from a young talent.
  

• 01/06/09

  Animal Collective—Merriweather Post Pavilion Considering that the two songs that leaked from this album last month are some of the greatest pop music we have ever heard, the rest of the album could have been equally life-changing or a huge disappointment. We're happy to report that the rest of it is great as well. In fact, we have been listening to the album constantly for about a week straight. Armed with unforgettable pop hooks and mind-expanding electronic beats, Animal Collective deliver their most complete album to date.
  
  Wavves—Wavves As huge 90's nostalgists, we actually love that so many young bands are coming out with lo-fi tiny pop masterpieces. Wavves makes classic California rock music, filtered through punk rock and a whole  lot of distortion. The suburban slacker ennui is abundant, with songs like "So Bored," but who doesn't enjoy a little teenage angst from time to time?
  
  Here We Go Magic—Here We Go Magic Singer-songwriter Luke Temple's new home-recorded project is made up of his lovely voice, some great rhythms, and outdated synthesizers. The result is a fairly hypnotic mix that is somewhat reminiscent of Afro-pop. For such an off-the-cuff recording, the whole thing comes off as very polished and sure is fun to listen to.
  

• 12/11/08

  Mount Eerie—Lost Wisdom This is the first in a series of perfect winter albums during this Music update. We just got around to checking this album out and we have to say that we were very impressed. There's no use in waiting for Phil Elverum to release another album like The Glow, Pt. 2. Instead he continues to amass a growing body of work that is touching, lyrically complex, and unique in its combination of bleakness and warmth. It's a rare album that can pack in this much emotional impact in under 24 minutes.
  
  Fennesz—Black Sea Fennesz is perfect winter music because it can fade into the background or make you obsess over the smallest noises found in the mix. What has always set Fennesz apart from the mass of noisy laptop-wielders is that while most drone-based artists can be fully understood by listening to them for 5 seconds, Fennesz is an artist whose albums need to be heard in their entirety to be truly appreciated. Underneath all the buzzing and popping there are some of the most gorgeous melodies you'll ever hear.
  
  Neil Young—Sugar Mountain Live at Canterbury House 1968 We're not sure we'll ever get tired of the archival releases of Neil Young concerts that have come out the past few years. This one was recorded shortly after Young left Buffalo Springfield and the music is solo renditions of his songs with that group alongside some of his earliest solo compositions. It's hard to believe that the world-weary voice on this recording comes from a twenty-three year old Canadian. His career had barely begun and he already sounded like he'd seen it all.
  

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