Author: Michael

Posted in Album Reviews

Grizzly Bear – Shields (2012)

Posted on by Michael

After extensively touring the Veckatimest album, Grizzly Bear took time off before regrouping to work on their fifth studio album, Shields. The band reconvened in Marfa, Texas before scrapping those sessions and starting again at singer Ed Droste’s family’s house in Cape Cod with bassist Chris Taylor once again producing. The foursome created an album that was a bit more raw and in your face than previous efforts.  First track and single, “Sleeping Ute” is dramatic with crashing guitars and drums and “Half Gate” gets darker, more sinister as it wears on.

On several tracks, it’s the drumming of Christopher Bear that really stands out.  His work on “Speak in Rounds” stands out amongst in the intricate guitar work, and the rhythm section really lock in during the excellent “A Simple Answer”. Both Ed Droste and fellow singer Daniel Rossen both have their moments among the album’s 10 tracks. A true collaborative effort, Shields was the band’s highest charting album in the US (#7) and is another excellent piece of work.

8.5/10

Posted in Paper Chase

Cormac McCarthy – The Road

Posted on by Michael

The Road, the acclaimed novel by Cormac McCarthy, was originally published in 2006.  The plot takes place in a burned-out America and follows “Papa” and his young son as they head out in search of the coast. Steering clear of the burned out walking corpses; the two deal with freezing weather, marauders, lack of food, and little warmth. They find tins of food along the way as they carry all their belongings in a shopping cart, searching for that elusive coast on a taped together map.

McCarthy is a master of making the entire endeavor intense and foreboding as the two wander across the country side.  There is a sense of dread throughout but the reader will root for the two to make it to their seaside paradise.  The Road won several awards including The Pulitzer Prize for fiction. It was later made into a movie and is listed as one of the best books of the 21st Century by the New York Times.

9/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Madonna – Bedtime Stories (1994)

Posted on by Michael

Closing the chapter on the Erotica/SEX book era, Madonna continued into the 90s with a gaggle of co-songwriters/producers/arrangers on 1994’s Bedtime Stories. Initially working with producer Shep Pettibone, Madonna decided to move in an R+B/New Jack Swing direction with several producers including mega producers Babyface, Dallas Austin, and Brit Nelle Hooper.

The album starts off promising with “Survival” a decent track with this new sound before the acoustic guitar driven single, “Secret” appears. A simple but effective beat creates a groove and while the chorus is also simple, the “mmmm, something’s coming over me” was easy for 20 somethings to sing on a drunken dancefloor. However, the nifty bass work from Meshell Ndegeocello cannot save the inane lyrics of “I’d Rather Be Your Lover”, better is the pop fun of “Don’t Stop”

Nellee Hooper lays down laid back grooves on several tracks including “Sanctuary” that contains a Herbie Hancock sample. Intriguingly, Bjork co-writes “Bedtime Story”, a throbbing beat that sees Madonna’s vocals float over top. The song points to the future sound that Madonna will carry on with on the Ray of Light album. 

The two other single released from Bedtime Stories are “Human Nature” and “Take a Bow”.  The former is a response to the backlash that followed the SEX book. The slinky number barely scraped into the US top 50. Far better is album closer, “Take a Bow”. A true collaboration with Babyface sees them co-write/producer together where he also handles the background vocals.

The bittersweet ballad sees Madonna say goodbye to a relationship where she’s “always been in love with you” before the stinging lyric “the show is over say goodbye” appears a few lines later. The lush production makes the song one of Madonna’s very best on an album that is warmer in sound than Erotica but doesn’t have enough truly great songs on it to make it a really good album. A 30th Anniversary edition is due for release in late November.

7/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Suede – Antidepressants (2025)

Posted on by Michael

In the last year, all the big Britpop bands have released albums and/or performed massive concerts – Oasis, blur, and Pulp have all participated.  Suede is the next band up from that early 90s period and in interviews to promote their newest album, Antidepressants, singer Brett Anderson has called out his peers and remarked that his band’s return is a continuation of releasing new and vital music; not a nostalgia act.

First song and single, “Disintegrate” is indeed vital.  A throbbing beat creates a dark tension with hard hitting guitars on a track that Anderson has called a “dark celebration of your own demise” as he sings – “come down and disintegrate with me”. The drumming of Simon Gilbert is a highlight throughout, particularly on songs like “The Sound And The Summer” and tribute to Anderson’s son on “Sweet Kid”. The title track sees Anderson talk/sing like Fontaines D.C. when he says, “I’m on antidepressants, I just lie awake”.

There is a dark theme running throughout the album but still moves beyond the shadows. “Dancing With The Europeans” is a melodically catchy song and “Trance State” adds synths effects for more atmosphere.  There is a warmth to the slower “June Rain”.  While Anderson needlessly calls out other bands that are performing far bigger shows, Antidepressants is another solid release from the band well into their second phase.

8/10

Posted in Paper Chase

Yuval Noah Harari – Homo Deus

Posted on by Michael

The follow-up to his very successful book, Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari looks to the “History of Tomorrow” in his book Homo Deus.  Released in 2016 the book explores what has happened over the last several decades.  Hunger, wars, and disease have become more manageable for most people/countries. As noted, most people are more likely to die of overeating than being malnourished. The book then looks to what may happen in the future – the continued rise of AI, new ideals, the importance of “dataism”, not to mention the rise of new god humans to replace Homo Sapiens. 

While it was published 9 years ago, much of it is still relevant today and it’s fascinating to read in the midst of all the changes happening in the world in just the last 9 months. The book talks a lot about AI and the super-rich using technology to increase their wealth and life expectancy, leaving most of the world behind to suffer as their jobs are replaced by computers and are left with little meaning.  It’s certainly a dystopian view. As he notes, Harari tells his ideas of the future to a colleague who’s reply is that she hopes she’s dead before all this happens.  It was exactly what I thought as I was reading the passage.

While many others don’t agree with his view, as noted in various reviews, Home Deus is a fascinating look into the future.  It’s one that will surely get the reader to think about what this will all actually look like and what he/she wants to leave behind for the next generation.  It’s hard to fathom what happens tomorrow, but in a lot of ways, tomorrow is already here.

9/10