Mini Post #2: Dogs on Acid

Pinkerton era Weezer is that you??

I can’t help but hear Weezer all throughout this debut single from Dogs on Acid, a band that came about from the fall of the legendary emo[1]  revival band Algernon Cadwallader.

I’m really loving the track “Make it easy”, it’s just a nice, fun, perfectly structured power pop song. I’m still not convinced this isn’t sung by Rivers Cuomo. From the opening line “the stop and go…” to the chorus with its softly sung lead up “I want time to be all mine”, the resemblance is undeniable. The transition between the two tracks consists of some feedback going into 4 cymbal hits which can’t be anything but homage to Tired of Sex.

the single on bandcamp, free download

 

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1  A more naive version of myself has been quoted as saying:  “a good emo band? Isn’t that an oxymoron?”. I’ve since learned that the music popularly labelled “emo” has almost  nothing to do with actual emo music, which as it turns out is largely brilliant. A post on this some day.

Mini Post #1: PWR BTTM

(Otherwise known as low effort posts)

I often think of things to write about, then realise it will take some amount of work,  and push it off into the ever distant future. To combat this (taking inspiration from my good pal Brandon) I’ll write some smaller posts.

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Yesterday I decided to look into the band PWR BTTM that I’ve seen mentioned around in the hip and happening circles. For reasonable reasons, I expected their music to be similar to queercore contemporaries G.L.O.S.S (aggressive hardcore punk with a message  very much worth yelling about), however what I found was surprisingly pleasant.

Watch their NPR tiny desk concert!

Glitter, swimming goggles, pink lipstick and red nails — these two gave one of the most charismatic performances I’ve seen. I haven’t been this impressed on fist listen in a long time.  I really appreciate how they are so comfortable and in tune with who they are. And of course, the powerpop-ish tunes are excellent!

A brief summary of the past 535 days

There is some amount of comedy in the fact that the last this blog was updated was with a “part 1 of 2” and a post detailing my rather bleak outlook on the idea of summer vacation. I am (ashamedly) very much a “part 1 of 2” kind of guy, and if the uniformed reader were to surmise my character from those two blog posts they wouldn’t necessarily be too far off.

The following is a brief summary (both for the uninformed and seasoned reader) of the comings and goings of my life since August 26th, 2015.

The me who existed at that time was just beginning university, heading into a major in Physics with vague ideas of a minor in Computer Science. That minor in CS revealed itself actually to be a minor in Math. But, in the same way (not really) that an electron goes through two full rotations to return to its original state, the minor looks like it may be Computer Science once more.

My first year went exceptionally well, and thus far second year has been, frankly, a tonne of bricks. But I manage.

In the interim, my tastes in music have expanded quite a bit (and in some sense, narrowed down in certain paths). I’ve talked about the struggle with breadth vs depth here before, having previously leaned very much to the depth end of the spectrum. I now think I have moved more to the breadth side. While i still place more value in depth (especially in terms of emotional impact), the desire for finding and hearing new and interesting music outweighs it.

I have had a wonderful time making some very amateur (and not to be taken too seriously) music both by myself  and with friends, some of which I post here. That link is to a playlist of the tracks which are mostly listenable, the rest on the account are snippets and ideas which aren’t fully formed. I am typically playing one of or some combination of drums, guitar or keyboards. Just look out for whatever sounds worst, and that’ll be me (or click on the track for a description).

I have also recorded and put out some stuff from a silly quasi-band made with some great pals here.

As for this blog, the tagline was always “a music blog, probably”, I plan to expand upon the probably.

 

 

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Music while writing: Bjork – Debut, Savages – Silence Yourself

Grass looks much greener, but it’s green-painted cement.

The two sides of grass for me are this:

The final weeks of high school vs. the endless numbered days of summer.

The consensus around school when the end was nigh was: “F*** Tha Police School”. Not a single person wanted to remain in there, myself included. But now that summer has come (and nearly gone), I find myself on the other side.

When you go to school you get to see your friends every day, get to learn some cool stuff, and none of it really matters, so there isn’t much to worry about. But everyone’s just looking forward to the care free days of summer. In the summer you get to do whatever you want, get to hang out with your friends whenever you want.

Except you can’t do whatever you want because you have a job, and you can’t hang out with your friends because they have jobs too. Your job takes up more time than school ever did, and takes a lot more out of you. You make a bunch of money but there’s nothing to spend it on, and you need to save for school anyway. You get one day off per week, with which you do nothing because you want to “save your time” and relax.

Summer is no fun.

Found my Wayhome, stayed three days, went the way home.

PART 1 of 2

It’s weird how much of life can depend of random chance. Listen to an album and and find your favourite band, read an article about a guitar and become a musician for life, go to a coffee shop and meet your wife. For me it was win tickets to a music festival, or rather have friend win tickets to a music festival.

I couldn’t get it out of my head that had the random selection happened a millisecond later my entire weekend wouldn’t have happened. I wouldn’t have met the great people I met, wouldn’t have seen some of my favourite musicians, wouldn’t be sunburnt. It’s strange.

On to the meat of it

This post will be who I saw, the next will be my favourites. Italics for the best ones.

In order:

Lowell – off to a good start

Saxsyndrum – A sax, a synth, some drums. Fitting name. Saw them by accident due to timing screw up, a happy accident.

Courtney Barnett – amazing.

The Gaslight Anthem – eh…

Viet Cong – One of the best shows of the weekend. Singer was wearing a Deerhoof shirt, and that’s enough for me.

Alt-J – Surprisingly lacklustre, I wasn’t feeling it and neither were the people I asked.

Neil Young – He’s still got it.

Fucked up – Only caught the end, definitely the most intense show.

Girl Talk – As one who’s not a fan of raves…

—End of First day—

The Beaches – All girl band for Toronto, they put on an awesome show.

Alvvays – Mildly underwhelming, I was a bit too tired to get into it maybe. Others loved it. Archie, Marry Me got the crowd going.

Manchester Orchestra – Sat down at the back, but still enjoyed it a lot.

Run The Jewels – I didn’t expect a mosh pit at a rap concert, but that’s what we got. They were amazing at controlling the crowd, music wasn’t bad.

Modest Mouse – The whole thing was surreal. More on it later.

Broken Social Scene – A fill in for Passion Pit, and about 20 times better.

Kendrick Lamar – The biggest show of the weekend, 30 000 people losing their minds is a sight to see.

Timber Timbre – Amazing as always. I’d seen them at the Isabel Centre in Kingston and that was one of the best concerts I’ve been to. For this one we relaxed and sat/chat in the forest.

Biggest regret was not sticking around for The Growlers after.

—End of Second day—

Sloan  – Surprisingly there wasn’t much of a crowd, hangovers and all, I guess. I was front row!! They had Penpals listed as the finale of the setlist but didn’t play it.

Chad Vangaalen – Excellent relaxing folkish indie rock. His stage banter was absolutely top notch, he may as well have done a comedy show.

St. Vincent – Biggest pleasant surprise of the weekend. Absolutely stellar show. The impromptu cover of Dig A Pony when her synth guys laptop broke was much appreciated.

Brandon Flowers – The killers weren’t bad, but his solo stuff is. Generic pop rock is no fun.

Yukon Blonde – A perfect way to close off the weekend. The music wasn’t challenging, but they absolutely had it down. It’s always nice when you can tell the band is having a good time, and they seemed to be loving it.

Sam Smith – Surprisingly great. I’m not too big a fan of his singles (try hearing them 14000 at work). His voice, his live band, and a cover of Ain’t No Mountain High Enough was enough to please anyone. We had to leave half way through to catch the bus, but it was a nice backdrop.

—End of Third day—

Cons: The sun.

Pros: The sun. For providing life on earth and all.

I am the worst

Simple as that.

I have no idea why I can never bring myself to write.

New post coming soon though, about the Wayhome music festival!! I may write about the summer as well (it’s not as great as it’s made out to be).

Onward and Upward

10) The Fruit That Ate Itself

I’m already regretting the order of this list. You may be thinking: “How in the heck could this be above We Were Dead?!?!?!”. Superfluous punctuation included. I certainly think that, as far as the skill and ambition that went into it, We Were Dead is better. But this list is all about sentimental value. Subjectivity and that.

This is the third release (sort of) by Modest Mouse, the second EP after their first album.

First off, I love the artwork. I think the way they wrote Modest Mouse is really cool, and I spent my first time listening to the EP recreating it (poorly). The back cover is even cooler, Ummagumma-esque. What’s even better is that I got it on coloured vinyl for about 15 bucks!

On to the actual music:

The whole EP is so out there for MM (is that even really possible though?). It’s less serious than their other albums, it sounds like they’re just having some fun. Sometimes music doesn’t really have to be serious.

The Waydown is so perfectly downtempo, it’s one of their few “chill” songs. The lyrics about gravity are a bit of a precursor to one of their best songs (see: Gravity Rides Everything).

Sunspots in the House of the Late Scapegoat is wonderful. Classic cryptic lyrics, and the jam at the end is great.

The title track is another one that’s just out there. If you take it seriously you’re gonna have a bad time, but as a simple fun song it’s pretty cool. I love the bassline. The lyrics are absolute nonsense, probably, but they work.

If Summer were released as a single it could have done well, I think. Simple, great popish song. At one point in the song you hear: “beep beep… damn who’s paging me now?”, which never fails to make me laugh.

Karma’s Payment is the one brilliant track on the album. It’s got this really weird quality, in that it sounds like it’s all moving forward. I can’t explain it, but the drums and periodic rattles and whistles and the way he sings really propel the song forward. Isaac Brock always does a really good job giving you little snippets of context in his songs, and lets you fill in the blanks. In three and a half minutes he can create a little story that feels real. Something like “I had not had any sleep, so I ate minithins to stay awake” seems so throw-away, but I think it adds a layer of depth. You can relate to it.

“I am not who I want to be, I probably will not ever be” is said so nonchalantly for such a massive statement, that it feels that much more sincere. It’s the same with Stephen Malkmus from pavement, John Darnielle from the Mountain Goats, Jeff Magnum from Neutral Milk Hotel, etc. etc. etc.

Tangent time! Isaac’s delivery is the opposite of a problem I’m trying get over with some other bands; Muse for example. Matt Bellamy is a brilliant singer, but I can’t connect with his lyrics at all. I wouldn’t call them superficial, but it’s just too theatrical for me to relate.

“Look to the stars, and let hope burn in your eyes, and we’ll love and we’ll hate and we’ll die.
All to no avail” – Muse, Stockholm syndrome

I’m sure some people find a line like that absolutely amazing, but it does nothing for me. The whole bombastic over-the-top thing is what Muse does, so it does fit. It’s a problem with me and not the music, which I hope I’ll get over.

Back to the actual post:

This EP is pretty cool. Don’t take it seriously and you’ll have fun.

P.S. I probably should have edited this a bit more, but studying and all…

The bottom of the best of the worst, well, what can I say?

I feel bad putting something in last place, but it’s got to happen.

Two for the price of none! It’s a twofer (oh god) this time, since I thought I didn’t have much to say. Turns out I did.

12) No One’s First, and You’re Next (2009)

It isn’t bad, it just isn’t as good. The EP’s got some great songs, but something’s got to fill the last spot.

Guilty Cocker Spaniels is stuck in my head probably more than any other song, it’s one of my favourite of their more happy/upbeat sounding songs (second to Missed the Boat). Standout lyrics: “I drew a blank, we put it in a frame”.

The Whale Song is one of the best jammy songs they’ve done. It’s not a typical MM song (is that even a thing), but it’s really top notch. It’s nice to see the cool guitar sounds from this song re-appear on the latest album. The two sets of lyrics on top of eacher eventually meeting up is pretty cool.

People seem to love King Rat, I think it’s pretty good. Autumn Beds and I’ve got it all (most) are both really standout tracks.

It’s a strange EP in that every time I listen to a song, I like it a lot, but there’s nothing that really keeps me coming back.

11) We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank (2007)

I actually love this album, but I love the other ones more.

March into the Sea, Parting of the Sensory, Missed the Boat and Spitting Venom are some of the best “new” Modest Mouse songs. Johnny Marr is absolutely brilliant in The Smiths, and he shines here too. Just for the fact that he was a part makes me want to rank this higher.

March into the sea was a song I didn’t quite like at first, but I think it’s one of the best “new” MM songs. It’s got the classic loud/angry and soft/pretty dynamic that MM is so good at. The “I’ll be beating my hearts record for speeding” bit is perfect.

Parting of the Sensory is another of their best. I’m still certainly uncertain whether “carbon’s anniversary” is a really cheesy pun on carbon dating. Musically the whole song is pretty dark sounding which works well leading up the spectacular ending. “A lifelong walk to the same exact spot” really ties in with “Someday you will die, and somehow something’s gonna steal your carbon”.

Missed the Boat is one of my favourite MM songs, especially the “tiny curtains open…” section. I’m still not sure what to take from the lyrics, but I think that’s the point. It’s a bit of a glass half full/emty situation. For whatever reason it’s my essential pre-exam song (along with Jupiter, Bringer of Jollity from Gustav Holst’s Planets). No idea why.

Those are the stand outs for me, on with the rest.

They seemed to throw the three big poppy ones, tracks 2, 3 and 4 together. They’re great songs, just different. I always liked “You told me about nowhere, well it sounds like some place I’d like to go”. Interesting that the big single, Dashboard, shares it’s main idea with Float On, the big single from Good News. “The dashboard melted, but we still had radio”, “the car was on blocks, but I was already where I want”, both ring true with “A fake Jamaican took every last dime with that scam, It was worth it just to learn some slight of hand”.

While the tracks don’t shine on their own as much, the middle half of this album works very well when you listen to it all together. It always seemed like one long song to me. We’ve Got Everything and Fly Trapped In A jar are both vaguely connected (which is just noticed now), with “Well, first off, Gary got drunk, fell asleep in his car ’til about noon” and “We’ve tried everything, like trial by fire” , followed by “First off, Gary was on trial and drunk before we’d left bed” in the next song. I always liked “Well, I hadn’t noticed, but the people really noticed that they really didn’t want us around. So not a single one of us will ever leave town”. Education is pretty great. In general, the MM fan base hates Steam Eugenius, which never would have occurred to me. Not the best, not the worst. It ties in well with the stasis stuff that crops up all around the album.

In a very un-Modest Mouse fashion (see: every other album), the ending is a bit lacklustre. If the album ended with spitting venom, I think the whole thing would work a bit better. That’s not to say People… and Invisible aren’t any good, but Spitting Venom is just a perfect way to end.

Overall, We Were Dead is certainly different, but it’s a great album.

Introduction to Modest Mouse List

Is modest mouse my favourite band? Probably.

I’ve just written a near impossible math contest, then an AP Calculus BC exam; yet, writing this list was the hardest thing I’ve done all week.

I’ll include the EP’s, since they’re amazing.

I’m not basing this on any real quantifiable measurement, just my own opinions, so this list will be drenched in sentiment. Most people probably won’t agree with my ranking (Sad Sappy Sucker over Good News, what?!), but that’s sort of the nature of music. The album in last place may be technically better in all regards to the one in first (it isn’t), but that’s not what this list is for.

Anyways… On with the list!

A Modest Discography

Well, my task was rank the Modest Mouse albums, and after a sloppy 2846 words, I’ve done 9 of the 12. And that’s being brief with most of them! No one wants to read that many words at once (or at all). So I’ll go album by album.

A reason to post!