Book Review: No Wave - Marc Masters

No Wave exploded threw the art spaces of lower east side Manhattan in the late 70s, and, as most explosions, died as quickly as it started with the bands disappearing before the smoke could settle. With an influence that still resonates today, it was the ultimate anti-movement. Drawing on primitivism, nihilism and destruction, No Wave gave host to Art school graduates, teenage runaways, performance artists, writers and filmmakers. With this not only came one of the most aggressive and abrasive genres to come out of New York but also a film style, which gave birth to new ideas on guerrilla cinema leading to the Cinema Of Transgression and influencing the likes of Jim Jarmusch, Steve Buscemi and Vincent Gallo.

Marc Masters gives us a book that follows the anti-movement from its forefathers of Suicide and Richard Hell through its primary four bands, which featured on Brian Eno’s 1981 ‘No New York’ compilation (James Chance and The Contortions, Teenage Jesus and The Jerks, DNA and Mars) and well as focusing on some of the many forgotten bands of the era (Red Transistor, 8-Eyed Spy, Theoretical Girls etc.) and then to it’s aftermath in the forms of Sonic Youth and Swans, who bought the ideas of No Wave to international fame. Marc Masters brings to live this short period of time through a selection of the photos taken from the time of it’s main hero’s (or anti-hero’s) as well taking extracts from media and the stories of the people who were there and the band members who sculted the sounds and ideas of the anti-movement. Towards the end of the book he establishes the importance of the heavily related No Wave Film movement that went hand in hand with the genre and Glenn O’Brien’s TV Party. Masters also includes a chapter on No Magazine and Tape 1, the leading zines of the genre, which gives us a full sense of the genre.

Along with the release of Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore’s book of the same name it seems No Wave is finally getting the notice it deserves and this book is a great way to introduce yourself to one of the most powerfully short lived genres of the last fifty years.

blackdogonline.com

Review: The Walkmen - You & Me

In 2004 The Walkmen were on top of their game. Indie dancefloor fillers like 'The Rat' and 'Little House of Savages', as well as an appearance on the O.C., brought them into the spotlight as one of the biggest acts during the garage rock revival. Unfortunately the album Bows + Arrows sacrificed a consistent LP for atmospheric, slow burning organ and piano songs that could not equal the power of the singles released from it. The next album A Hundred Miles Off received mixed reviews as well as a lack of promotion from Sony and their track-by-track cover of Harry Nilsson’s Pussycats was more or less unnoticed by the mainstream press. Now with a new record deal with Gigantic (or Fierce Panda for UK), the Walkmen return with their 5th, and arguably best album of their career.

The band have come a long way since the first album and precursor band Jonathan Fire*Eater. Gone are the slow, and sometimes awkward filler tracks, You & Me is packed with unforgettable tunes. Opening with 'Donda Esta La Playa', the mood of the album is set out immediately. Along with 'On The Water', the two tracks begin with rumbling cyclical riffs that allow Hamilton Leithauser’s vocals take centre stage. Both songs build to towering conclusions that are still dominated by Leithauser’s powerful voice telling of lost time and missed opportunities, this time accompanied by swelling organs and Paul Maroon’s yearning string arrangements. The album however is not full of dark, wistful songs. 'In The New Year' and 'Seven Years of Holiday' lighten the mood of the record. In particular, 'In The New Year' demonstrate how much the Walkmen have matured in their songwriting craft, as the guitar and organ seamlessly blend in together during the most memorable hook of the record.

Over the past eight years it has been fascinating to see how the Walkmen have changed. Originally compared to bands like Velvet Underground, early U2 and Television, You & Me seems to have been informed by Tom Waits, Roy Orbison, Nebraska-era Springsteen. This is highlighted by the band’s confidence to include eloquently personal ballads like ‘Red Moon’, ‘New Country’ and ‘If Only It Were True’. The confidence in Leithauser is no doubt the focal point in the album, not only in his delivery where he consistently pushes his voice out without any nervous tension, but his lyrics have definitely grown up from ‘See my aged 19 with some dumb haircut from 1960’ (see ‘We’ve Been Had’). Instead of songs about Bukowski-esque awkwardness and youthful frustration, here we find songs about being the only bachelor in a friend circle of newlyweds (‘In the New Year') and exhausted relationships.

This is not to say the rest of the band hasn’t changed with the singer. Their first two records relied mostly on clattering pianos and ADD-driven drumming, the rhythm section are much more relaxed, providing a shimmering interplay between the organ and guitar seen on ‘I Lost You’, while the drums and bass sustain the groove throughout the album, the band’s maturation has arrived in time for easily one of the most brooding albums of the year.

In fact, if one word were used to describe You & Me, it would be mature. Unlike the glut of alternative acts that are still trying to produce transparent indie-disco anthems, the Walkmen have managed create the perfect soundtrack to the loneliness and melancholy of staying in on a Friday night.

 

Review: Margot & The Nuclear So & So's, NOT ANIMAL

This belated release is one that is lucky even to grace our ears at all. Earlier in the year Margot & The So & So’s frontman Richard Edwards was in dispute with record label Sony Epic over the track listing of the band’s second full length album. However, the issue seems to have been neutralised by the evident compromise of the situation, Margot & The Nuclear So & So’s are to release two albums this Tuesday (7/10/08). The one reviewed here, Not Animal is the tracklisting chosen by Sony Epic, being open to wider purchase as it will be available on CD, vinyl and digital formats. The other is Animal! the album featuring the songs chosen by the band, only available on vinyl and digitally. Both albums feature 5 of the same tracks and the band have asked specifically to fans that they listen to Animal! before the label’s choice.

So this album is one that seems to draw on many influences, the one that is most noticeable, especially in Edward’s voice, is Ryan Adams circa Love Is Hell. He uses the fragility of his voice to really emphasise some quite sinister lyrics, which it must be said are somewhat reminiscent of Cold War Kids, where themes such as alcohol addiction, and alienation are pretty rife throughout. This band can sometimes sound a little like a mere vehicle for Edward’s songs on its grander occasions like album opener ‘A Children’s Crusade on Acid’, and so it is in the more lo-fi, downbeat tracks that this album really comes into its own. The stand out tracks being ‘Broad Ripple Is Burning’ (a track that has been around for sometime as a demo) and ‘Holy Cow!’. The production on them is a little dustier giving the tracks a rawer edge about them. The lyrics from ‘Broad Ripple Is Burning’ ‘And I’m wasted, you can taste it/ Don’t look at me that way’ are particularly poignant and sound really impressive on this record.

This is an album that does have its inconsistencies but also has some excellent stand alone tracks and is definitely worthy of a listen. I also highly recommend the Daytrotter session by the band, which should be available on iTunes which features a fantastic liver version of ‘Broad Ripple Is Burning.
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Review: High Places

After receiving excellent reviews and modest success for their singles collection 03/07 – 09/07 earlier this year, Brooklyn Duo High Places have now released their full-length debut. The self-titled album focuses on Rob Barber’s earthy polyrhythmic soundscapes brought to life by the warm and fluid vocals of Mary Pearson and is best appreciated through large headphones, only then can all of the spacious patchwork of the worldly (sometime otherworldly) textures and flowing melodies be fully taken in. Barber uses a wide array of natural and synthetic samples in the music and the textures created are reminiscent bands such as Animal Collective or Dirty Projectors.

The first single on the album opens with the lyric: ‘From small speck of stardust to wondrously sentient revolving and spinning in space’, a sentiment that seems incredibly apt for an album that is fascinatingly hypnotic and can leave your head spinning. Unsurprisingly, High Places is being released by Thrill Jockey and is easily in fitting with their avant-garde history as the legendary label who brought us bands such as Tortoise, ADULT, and Boredoms.

It is obvious from the outset that this is a complete album work and not a collection of standalone singles, although a couple of tracks stand out as the definite highlights. Vision’s The First… is the cornerstone of the album, boasting a tribal drumbeat and a fluttering and synthetic intro that enhances the pop sensibilities of the song. Pearson’s vocals are very prominent in the track and the melody is short and memorable, making this one of the most accessible songs on the album. The second significant highlight is the band’s first single and the concluding track, From Stardust To Sentience, which brings the album to a gratifying close with a delicate and effervescent atmosphere, trance inducing drum loops and lullaby vocals.

The remainder of the album ebbs and flows from song to song as seamlessly as Pearson’s vocals glide between the layers of sampled bongos, guitars and cutlery and crockery (recorded in their own Brooklyn flat). From the clanking rhythms of The Storm to the crystalline tapestry of the instrumental track Papaya Year, the album maintains a definite sense of continuity and purpose. High Places have created an incredibly intricate, worldly and sophisticated album, which reveals something more of itself with every listen. 

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