Climate Control: The Next Massive Attack LP

I should probably disclose my relationship with Massive Attack. I discovered them as a companion to the mass amounts of Portishead I was listening to my freshman year of college. And a year later, they were the sole soundtrack to my life while I was engaging in “less than desirable” behavior. Once I shed my extreme debauchery skin, I found that Massive Attack may just be too dangerous to listen to. So, I shelved them for about 3 years, fearing relapse. Since then, I’ve found that I can dip my toes back into the troubled waters that are Massive Attack.

All that time, I was awaiting another album from the Britons ( at one time reduced to a single Briton). In 2006, I was teased with the single “False Flags,” thinking an album announcement was just around the corner. Instead, I got utter silence, and the trip-hop voices in my head began to demand satisfaction. Fast forward to 2009, and I’m teased yet again with the release of another proper LP. While the group now says “spring 2010,” they did deliver upon us the Splitting the Atom EP, which has raised more questions than answered.

The EP only puts forth two new songs, alongside two remixes. It’s safe to say, that Massive Attack are still able to produce that “sexy, slow crawl” trip-hop sound. “Pray For Rain” is a curious number featuring the vocals of TV On The Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe. The song is built around a strong, off-time drum beat, and features and excellent breakdown in the middle. It’s a definite slow burn, building up tension over it’s 6 minutes, before fading out at the end. It’s nothing really revolutionary for the genre. Actually, it sounds like it came off the stellar 1995 album Maxinquaye, by former Massive Attack collaborator, Tricky. Which, may not be new, is still a sound I’d love to welcome back into my life.

The title track, “Splitting The Atom,” is probably a better preview of what Massive Attack’s fifth LP will sound like. It’s shows us a Massive Attack that still builds a good atmosphere, but fails to really offer up any stand out moments. It’s a song that seems like it’s building up to a great pay off, only to simply end.

I’m still not willing to say that I’m disappointed with Splitting The Atom. However, it doesn’t exactly put my mind at ease. With the return of original member Mushroom, I still have hopes that a memorable Massive Attack LP is on the way. I’m just worried that they’re only shooting for middle rung material these days. But if 2010 passes us by, sans Massive Attack release, I’m probably just going to have to quiet those trip-hop ghosts and accept that Massive Attack just couldn’t survive in the new millennia.

-Chase

New Releases: Raekwon, Yo La Tengo, and Jay-Z

Dear Wizard Readers, we’re going to start a new format this week.

Well, we’re going to try it out for a while, and if you guys like it, we’ll keep it. But if I start getting flaming bags of dog poo or naked pictures of Ron Paul in my inbox….I’m shuttin’ it down, real quick!

Anyway, so instead of the standard reviews, we’re going to post the note-worthy releases for the week, and open it all for discussion. And if you guys want us to expand a blurb into a review, I’d be happy to oblige.

So, chime in and let us know! (Links included)

September 8, 2009

RAEKWON: ONLY BUILT FOR CUBAN LINX 2
Finally, it’s here! This is long awaited follow-up to Rae’s superb 1995 cut. Drug-dealing, ripping off dealers, scratchin’ and survivin’, and a heart-felt tribute to ODB makes this a hip-hop record worth talking about. Everyone is on their game on the mic (Rae, Method Man, Ghostface Killah) and on the boards (RZA, J Dilla). Feel like hip-hop has been in the gutter for the past few years? Well, grab your gat and your stash (vicariously of course) and let Raekwon restore your faith.

The New Wu (Explicit) (Feat. M…

YO LA TENGO- POPULAR SONGS
The indie paragons return with their latest LP. “Popular Songs” flexes the bands creative muscles, following up their excellent 2006 release, “I’m Not Afraid Of You, And I Will Beat Your Ass.” The trio keep things fresh for the albums 12 tracks, that closes with on epic note. Though at 15 minutes, you may not listen to it all that often. It’s an album that’s a perfect to ring in the fall.

Our Way To Fall – Yo La Tengo

JAY-Z: THE BLUEPRINT 3
The international rap mogul continues his un-retirement with another strong cut. The HOVA spends most of this record rapping about current music trends, haters, money, and…well, whatever the fuck he wants. Kanye runs the boards for most of the record, so his synth-heavy beats sets the tone for the album. “The Blueprint 3″ features some really strong cuts, but it may leave fans hoping for a true “The Blueprint” old-school hip-hop grind passing on most of it. (It drops on the 9th now, in order to combat an internet leak)

D.O.A. [Death of Auto-Tune] (E…

Well, that wraps up a busy week and ends the August music drought (save the excellent electo-R&B debut album by UK’s The XX)

Please contribute below and let us know what you think!

-Chase

Killin’ It: Neon Indian – “Terminally Chill” and “Deadbeat Summer”

I was recently telling Chris how badly I wish we could take credit for “breaking” Neon Indian in the blogosphere — after all, we were beating the hype drum nearly five months before P4k  inducted “Deadbeat Summer” into the bastion of Best New Music — but alas, we at Silence in Architecture are all too aware of our insignificance in the sea of white noise that is, ahem, “online music criticism.”

Delusions of self importance aside, the truth is that Alan Palomo’s new project (yes, the veil of anonymity has been officially lifted) would have been wildly successful in any capacity. Psychic Chasms, Neon Indian’s debut LP which is due out on Lefse Records in October, is not simply one of the best releases of 2009; it’s the kind of long player that feels comfortable in its own skin while boasting a creative restlessness that rewards frequent, repeated listens.

If you’ve been following the tracks that have been trickling down the wire these past few months, odds are that you — like us — have been helpless in your inability to stop jamming them. If you’re among those unlucky virgin ears, check out these gems below and have a better summer for it.  The dude from Grizzly Bear is daggin’ on it, and we think you should too:

“Terminally Chill” (mp3)

“Deadbeat Summer” (mp3)

[Neon Indian's official MySpace page]

[Lefse Records]

- Jezy

Black Milk – “Losing Out” (feat. Royce da 5′9″)

Following up the first single (“Give the Drummer Sum“) from 2008’s  phenomenal Tronic –  the cleanest, freshest and most out-of-control rap production of last year — is Black Milk’s newest jam, “Losing Out.”

Aside from being the strongest track on Black’s near-perfect album, it finds the Detroit MC/Producer working with the assaultingly gifted Royce da 5′9″ (see: Elzhi’s “Motown 25“) in one of the most harmonious vocal pairings this side of Madlib and Guilty Simpson:

- Jezy

New Music: Death Knelly – “Ruff Demoz”

“We are a part of a rhythm nation.”

It’s no great secret that lo-fi is becoming at the end of the decade what dance-punk revivalism was in the early 00’s: it’s ubiquitous, inescapable, and a seemingly free ride to the hyperbole-studded avenues of critical fawnery. No Age’s 2008 snooze parade Nouns, in particular, demonstrated how easily substance can take a backseat to style and still manage to hold the feelers of the blogosphere in an irrepressible  vice grip.

That being said, Ruff Demoz — the first collection proper from SiA-approved, one-man powerhouse Death Knelly — is not that kind of record. On one level, these songs are the “rough demos” they claim to be; still, there’s a sort of rag-tag cohesiveness here that keeps the tracks from feeling less like a haphazard throw-some-shit-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks effort, and more like a collection that — while it may not favor the sort of narrative strategy of A leading to B, then B to C and so on — is irrevocably indebted to the tightly focused vision of its maker.

Considering the tongue-in-cheek didacticism of “White Tigers,” or the lyrical intimacy of “Ladies of the Lake,” Ruff Demoz is a refreshing example of an artist doing something for his medium, rather than following the example of the slew of bratty lo-fi bloghounds whose recording quality is their only discernible claim to relevance. More than charm, which this collection has in strides, it’s got soul.

DK’s Chase Jackson has an impressive knack for mutedly discussing big-top human complications in a surprisingly small amount of room: from the trifecta of love, lust and sexuality  (“Child O’ God”) to the power of narrative and storytelling (“Don’t Shoot Out the Lights”), Ruff Demoz does more than display a remarkably effecient economy of language — it reminds us why we listen to music in the first place.

[Download the album here.]

[Read Silence in Architecture's interview with Chase Jackson.]

- Jezy

Review: Depeche Mode “Sounds Of The Universe”

A rum and coke.

That’s the motivation/courage I needed to write a review of the 12th full-length release from Depeche Mode, Sounds of the Universe. It’s not to say that I’m afraid that Dave Gahan is reading this right now, sharpening his knives. Nor is it because this album is so bad that I have to be buzzed (maybe tipsy) to begrudgingly write a review for it.

I’m drinking because I’m afraid of what I’ll say by the time the last period is entered.

Truth is, I’ve been going back and forth on this album since the day it first graced my headphones. Some days it’s like Gahan, Eigner and Gore wrote this album for me. Other days, it feels like they’re asleep at the wheel, and I’m the doomed passenger.

For the record, I’m a midpoint Depeche Mode fan: from 1984’s Some Great Reward to 1990’s Violator. Yeah, I’m all about it. So when I heard Sounds of the Universe’s single, “Wrong,” my spidey senses were tingling. A song that reverberated a “Stripped” era of songwriting. So if you’re like me, breathe easy. Sounds of the Universe follows with that classic Depeche Mode song-craft……..which is a blessing and a curse.

I mean, fact is, Sounds of the Universe sounds exactly like you figured a Depeche Mode album would. The opener, “In Chains,” is heart stopping. Other songs ( “Wrong,” “Hole To Feed,” “In Sympathy,” “Come Back”) call back to the Music for the Masses that I love to blast from my speakers.

However, the new side of Depeche that occasionally creeps out on the album ( “Fragile Tension,” “Spacewalker,” “Perfect,” “Jezebel”) simply just fall flat. In fact, “Jezebel” kind of makes me wince when I hear it. Apologies to Gore, who sings on the track, but the song is just simply unappealing.

So, therein lies the issue. Depeche Mode can still sound like Depeche Mode, yet can offer really nothing new to the people. I’m grateful that Gahan is still out there, making music that I’m happy to think dark thoughts about. But at the same time, I’m kind of disappointed that in 2009, they can’t stretch the boundaries like they used to.

Ultimately, Sounds of the Universe has something to offer for everyone, especially Depeche Mode fans. However, you may be disappointed that it won’t lead you to new heights.

-Chase

New Music: Moby “Shot In The Back Of The Head”

There was a point in my life where I was afraid to admit that I was a Moby fan. I hid Play from friends, fear of ridicule….. I blame you, “South Side.”

But now, a lot of people have come to terms that Moby makes good music. Well, most of the time.

Anyway, today, he announced his new album Wait For Me is due out June 30.

He also released this new vid, for the first single, “Shot In The Back Of The Head.”

Warning: This video is directed by THE David Lynch.

Rejoice accordingly.

-Chase

New Music: Neon Indian – “Should Have Taken Acid with You” and “6669 (I Don’t Know If You Know)”

Last night I was tipped off on a mysterious new project which, despite my best efforts, I’ve been unable to stop jamming. The anonymous party (parties?) responsible for Neon Indian are keeping a tight lip on his/their identity, a charming element of mystique which serves to enhance their already glimmering otherworldliness.

We may not know who is responsible for Neon Indian’s endlessly approachable groovescapes, but one thing is clear: this is some of the freshest, most invigorating new music I’ve come across in a good while. It’s lush, its infectious; it’s sexy, fun and meticulously crafted.

Throughout it all, Neon Indian manages to maintain a constant sheen of nostalgic bliss, of the youthful indiscretions of yesteryear combined with the malleable, imagined possibilities of the future.  Lyrically, “Should Have Taken Acid with You” is equal parts missed opportunity and optimistic romanticism:  “Should’ve taken acid with you / take our clothes off in the swimming pool /  Should’ve taken acid with you / tell my parents that I’m staying with you.”

For the purposes of trite classification, I’m thinking Orange Juice (the band) on a night drive through the city. Or the unassuming  electro-charm of Future Bible Heroes meets New Order for an after-school heavy petting session under the bleachers. The beauty of Neon Indian, though, is not so much that it resists classification, but rather that it somehow manages to be everywhere at once. Feast on a couple gems of auditory ambrosia below:

“Should Have Taken Acid with You“

“6669 (I Don’t Know If You Know)“

[Neon Indian on MySpace Music]

- Jezy

Review: Mastodon “Crack the Skye”

After all the commotion created by claims that Crack the Skye is Mastodon’s “eerie classic rock album” or a swan dive into full-on progressive rock, fans could be forgiven for approaching this album with a degree of trepidation.    Add producer Brendan O’Brien (unofficial sixth member of Pearl Jam and, lately, producer of some kind of ho-hum Springsteen albums) to the equation and this could’ve easily turned into an ill-advised toning down of Mastodon’s metallic force.  It’s true, there is some very prog-ish stuff about Rasputin’s religious sect, as well as a greater emphasis on Brent Hinds’ clean singing style, but they haven’t turned into Coheed & Cambria.  Thankfully, Mastodon are still at least one castrated furrball from anything like that happening.

At this point, Mastodon have placed themselves at the top of the heavy metal mountain, and this makes them an easy target for criticism from infinitely fickle (and often close-minded) metal fans.  Any time a well-loved metal group attempts to expand their style, there are always those ready to shout “sell-out”, and internet trawlers are already claiming that Crack the Skye is the weakest Mastodon album…presumably because it isn’t a carbon coby of “Remission” (“you know, cuz I was into Mastodon way before all these hipsters.”)  Whatever.  Mastodon have progressed with every subsequent album.  Their career trajectory reminds me in some ways of Death, another band who continued to expand their technical profeciancy and embrace increasing melodicism with each release, much to the chagrin of the hardcore death metalheads.  On the other side, you do have lemming indie rock fans who will eat up taste-maker approved Mastodon or Isis, but who wouldn’t dare go near other great (if less hip) metal groups like Entombed, Candlemass, or Morbid Angel.  However, it’s not Mastodon’s fault that Stereogum-smackers don’t know shit about Immolation and suck their thumbs to The Postal Service at night.  At this point I would like to note that I’m typing this while wearing a polo shirt…but I did have a dream the other night that I got a flame-engulfed skull tattoo that said “Heavy Metal”.  And I’m chugging Jack Daniel’s.  My metal cred sounds like a fucking Holiday Inn Express commercial.

Anyway, Crack the Skye is bursting with riff after soul-crushing riff.  Brent Hinds came up with the majority of his parts while recovering from serious brain trauma.  (I had a serious head injury when I was ten and all I could do was lay in bed and watch cartoons.)  The guitar parts on this album manage to balance technical dexterity, monstrous heaviness, and an ever-increasing catchiness.  Brann Dailor’s drumming is as brilliant and precise as ever, going a good way towards proving that percussion is the most important element of a truly successful metal record.  Personally, I’ve always thought that Mastodon’s one weakness was their lack of a truly distinctive vocalist, but they manage to, for the most part, make up for this by a deft interweaving of Dailor, Hinds, and Sanders’ vocals.

I have to admit that this album didn’t fully reveal its’ power until after close to ten listens, but since then it has only become more and more addicting.  I highly recommend throwing down a couple of extra bucks for the special edition which includes a DVD with a surprisingly engrossing making-of documentary.

-Chris

more about “untitled“, posted with vodpod

Notice

So, I goofed and accidentally switched the blog header to this generic abortion.  The problem should be fixed within the next couple of hours.  I decided to try out a cleaner, brighter look.  With no input from Jezy or Chase. Because I’m a tyrannical dictator.  There is finally a handy search option over there on the right.  Let me know what you think.

-Chris