Category: Album Reviews

Posted in Album Reviews

Baths – Obsidian (2013)

Posted on by Michael

bathsIf you could draft indie rock bands like fantasy football, Will Wisenfeld (aka Baths) would be the very definition of a sleeper. His debut album, the understated Cerulean, was picked by several websites as an honourable mention for album of the year and as one of the “best albums you didn’t hear”. Lumped in with the chillwave phenomena, Cerulean was a decidedly warmer affair than that label would suggest.

New album, Obsidian has a similar sound but is more direct and adds a whole new level of despair that was not present on the 2010 debut. Wisenfeld battled the E Coli virus that left him bedridden for months and heavily influenced the often bleak themes explored on this third release (Pop Music/Failed B-Sides was quietly released in 2011). “Where is God when you hate him the most” (“Worsening”) and “I have no eyes, I have no love, I have no home” (“No Eyes”) are typical of the thoughts throughout.

While the mood is similar, the clattering rhythms and melodic synth lines on tracks such as “Miasma Sky” and “Phaedra” add a glitch pop shot into the equation. Obsidian can be stark and hopelessly introspective at times but the more focused approach makes for a more compelling experience than the often hazy and vague feel of the debut.

7/10

Review also found at UMFM.com

Posted in Album Reviews

Phosphorescent – Muchacho (2013)

Posted on by Michael

phosphMatthew Houck has released six albums as Phosphorescent but it was the last one, 2010’s Here’s to Taking it Easy, that gained the project more widespread attention. Originally from Alabama, Houck now makes his home in the very trendy Brooklyn borough. While he fits in well with the NY hipsters fashion wise, musically Houck has far more in common with Willie Nelson whom he paid tribute to with an album of covers in 2009 with To Willie.

Born out of a failed relationship and losing his home in the aftermath of the last tour, new album Muchacho wears those scars on its sleeve. After a Beatlesque “Sun King” like introduction, “Song for Zula” shows where Houck’s head when he intones that “I saw love disfigure me”. You can practically feel a lump form in your throat when the horns come in on “Muchacho’s Tune” while the raucous chorus of “A Charm/A Blade” is an absolute joy.

There is definitely some truth to the knowing line in “Down to Go” when Houck sings, “you say, ‘oh, you’ll spin your heartache into gold’”. For several albums in a row, Phosphorescent has done just that. 2013 has seen many great albums released and Muchacho is definitely one of the highlights.

8.5/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Austra – Olympia (2013)

Posted on by Michael

austraIn 2011, Austra garnered critical acclaim for their debut album; Feel It Break which featured the operatic charged single “Lose It” as well as the darker edged “Beat and the Pulse”. In the early summer, Austra’s second album came out on Toronto’s Paper Bag Records. Recorded mainly in Michigan, Olympia was more of a collaborative effort between the three core band members (along with co-lyricist Sari Lightman) than the mainly bedroom project of their debut.

Like Feel it Break before it, the most striking aspect of Olympia is lead singer Katie Stelmanis’ classically trained voice. This adds an extra layer of vulnerability to early standout “Forgive Me” where she pleads, “What do I have to do to make you forgive me?” and lends further intrigue to the single “Painful Like”. While retaining the iciness of the debut, Austra has added live instrumentation to tracks such as “Home” and the excellent “We Become” which brings a more human element to their sound.

There may be a lack of punchy singles that propelled Feel It Break but ultimately Olympia feels like a step up in songwriting as highlighted on stark album closer “Hurt Me Now”. You can see for yourself when Austra return to Winnipeg with a highly anticipated show at the Garrick Centre on October 5th.

7.5/10

Review also found at UMFM.com

Posted in Album Reviews

Deerhunter – Monomania (2013)

Posted on by Michael

deerhunterWay back in the early to mid-90s, American indie rock was dominated by bands that prided themselves on the lo-fi esthetic. Albums by Pavement, Archers of Loaf, Guided By Voices, and Sebadoh were filled with fuzzed up alt rock that buzzed with reckless abandon but still contained perfect pop nuggets next to all the noise. Bradford Cox is locked into this sound with Deerhunter’s fifth album, Monomania.

The distorted vocals of “Neon Junkyard” and the abrasive “Leather Jacket II” open up the album in the true spirit of ’94. But then this gives way to guitarist Lockett Pundt’s glorious “The Missing” with its chiming guitars and expert “auxiliary hi-hat” work from drummer Moses Archuleta. “Dream Captain” sees Cox asking the “dream captain to take me on your ship” as he’s a “poor boy from a poor family, there’s nobody left to take care of me”. Monomania really hits its stride midway through with the hand clappy “T.H.M”, the introspective “Sleepwalking” and the tough yet vulnerable “Back to the Middle”.

Bradford Cox and Deerhunter never seem to take the easy road. They could have delivered an album filled with tracks such as “Memory Boy” and “Helicopter” from previous effort Halcyon Digest which just may have seen them have a post MPP Animal Collective type year. Instead, they make a left turn and deliver a scruffy batch of songs that can make for a rough first listen but quickly show their heart when put on repeat.

8/10

Review also found at UMFM.com

Posted in Album Reviews

Camera Obscura – Desire Lines (2013)

Posted on by Michael

cameraIn the 17 years since their inception, Glasgow’s Camera Obscura has released some of the most perfectly crafted pop songs that the indie world has been lucky enough to hear. “Lloyd, I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken”, “Let’s Get Out Of This Country”, and “French Navy” are but a few examples. Four years after the release of My Maudlin Career comes Desire Lines which was recorded in Portland and features Neko Case back-up vocals on several tracks.

Camera Obscura continues to be a vehicle for the songs of lead vocalist Tracyanne Campbell. While seemingly guarded in interviews, Campbell’s ups/downs, fears and insecurities are always on full display within the songs of the band. “On a cold morning of you arriving, I was struggling for survival” and “you treat me like a queen but like a queen I don’t know if I’ll be slain” are themes many of us can relate to, but may not be able to say quite so eloquently.

Both “Troublemaker” and the fabulously named “Fifth In Line To The Throne” feature terrific guitar solos while Tracyanne tries to figure out a failing long-term relationship and just where she stands with her king respectively. “New Year’s Resolution” lists “writing something of value” as a goal while Corey Lander’s keyboard melody and Lee Thomson’s drumming add much colour to the country-tinged “Break It To You Gently”.

The overarching sadness of many of their tracks is what typically gets the most notice but there is also much humour to be found. The knowing “Every Weekday” line of “We’re going to make a record then sail around the world, we might not storm the charts completely but we’ll do our very best” is the band at its most charming. Elsewhere, 30+ year old listeners who no longer can make it out of the house every weekend will cast a smile to the apologizing sentiment of “I Missed Your Party”.

Desire Lines is the fifth album release for Camera Obscura and just might be their best. Campbell’s conversational lyrics are as poetic as ever and the band really shine throughout. Classic sounding without being retro and mature beyond their years, Camera Obscura are quickly becoming a Scottish National Treasure.

8.5/10

Review also found at UMFM.com