Andrew Bird - Noble Beast

Artist: Andrew Bird
Album: Noble Beast
Released: January 20, 2009
Label: Fat Possum, Bella Union Records
Stars: 4.0
Skippable Tracks: 1
Must-listen/purchase Track: Tenuousness

Alright, time to step it up a notch! I'm going to have to start using proper grammar and spelling. This blog might actually get read now. We'll see how that goes.


Andrew Bird is a singer-songwriter from Chicago, who has just released his sixth studio album - Noble Beast. The whole feel of the album is very Folk Rock, and at times Indie Rock. Since he purposefully tries to keep listeners on their feet, some tracks don't find their direction until a minute or two into it. Think of a folk song, a pinch of Thom Yorke, some violin, a hint of glockenspiel, a tune that you might hear in a Western film, mix, and you have a song from Noble Beast.

The album is full of great ballads,rock tunes, and songs with many twists and turns. Over-all sound would be mellow, and something you should not listen to while operating some kind of heavy machinery.

I only found one track that I would choose not to listen to as a stand-alone track (Nomenclature), but if you are listening to the album from start to finish, the track just blends in. It simply had too many twists and no climax. This is followed by Ouo a 20 second track of nothingness, but thankfully he picks it up with the next track.

Overall, this album has its brilliant moments, and deserves a high rating. Check out his MySpace, or preview and purchase the album at eMusic.

Must-listen/purchase track:

Rocky Votolato - Makers (2006)

Artist: Rocky Votolato
Album: Makers
Released: January 24, 2006
Label: Barsuk/Second Nature
Stars: 3.0
Skippable Tracks: 0

Just when you thought there wasn't going to be anymore posts, you get one more.
I know I am a whole lot late reviewing this CD. Truth is that when I purchased this CD I only downloaded selected tracks since I ran out of credits on my e-music account. This month I remembered that I had some tracks missing and decided to complete the album.

Makers is about the 7th album/lp released by the Seattle born singer Rocky Votolato. Votolato is one of the founders of the band Waxwing, which gained a bit of success during the late 90s and early 2000s. Votolato's solo stuff is very singer/songwriter and extremely mellow compared to Waxwing.

Rocky Votolato gets to show off his amazing guitar picking skills in songs as Uppers Aren't Necessary, and compliments it with his soft soothing voice. Although a lot of the lyrics are what you might call slightly depressing, you do know what to expect from the tone of his voice and acoustic melodies. Lyrics like "Heaven or heavenless, we're all headed for the same sweet darkness" and "Death keeps calling me, she's gonna set me free" are pretty good examples.
Other tunes have a heavy country influence, and are slightly more upbeat. A good example would be the songs Tennessee Tracks, and Tinfoil Hats. If you are in the mood for something relaxing, Elliot Smith kinda mood (Not that he's at the same level), Rocky Votolato is a great choice.

As an album, I don't think its going to be remembered as a masterpiece, but individual tracks are absolutely amazing to listen to in a mix. Try listenining to a couple of tracks first, and then decide. Personally I can never seem to get through the whole album, makes me wanna hit the bottle, and hey!, life ain't that bad.

Decemberist

Album: The Hazards of Love
Label: Capitol Records
Release Date: March 17, 2009
Stars: 5
Skippable Tracks: Zero

This album is a perfect example of why I love to listen to an album from start to finish with no breaks. It was love at first listen, and I think it feels the same way towards me too; so that’s awesome.
The album was released March 17th, and I have listened to it straight through about ten times by now. I believe the band’s original plan was to make this album into a musical, but later decided that it was not going to work out. This amazingly artistic masterpiece is arranged in a way that a love story develops from the first track to the last, taking the listener through many different genres of music. Even the tracks become characters, re-appearing throughout the story.
There are probably only a couple of tracks that can be played on their own, so I’m posting the complete album below. Put aside one hour to listen to the tracks and try to follow the story. It begins with a short interlude that sets the mood; it’s dark, mysterious, and intriguing. After the interlude a folkie song begins to play introducing the main characters William and Margaret. They toss in some power cords on the next track, followed by some baroque music, some riffs right out of Black Mountain, and so on.
I can only imagine how much work it took the band to put together something like this, so it is being labeled a masterpiece on my part. William and Margaret’s relationship develops throughout the album, and the music perfectly compliments this.
The best Album released this year, and may possibly be one of the top 5 albums of 2009 according to Smigs Reviews.

The Hazards of Love

Animal or Not Animal ?

Album: Animal/Not Animal
Label: Merge Records
Release Date: December 17, 2008
Stars: 4.5
Skippable Tracks: Zero (Animal) One (Not Animal)

Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s may have not picked the best name for their band, but they sure know how to pick tracks for their albums. The band and the record label could not come to an agreement on which tracks to release on the upcoming album; so two versions were released. The band’s arrangement was released under the name Animal, and Merge Records’ arrangement was given the name Not Animal. I was completely oblivious to this when I first heard about the release of the new album, and ended up listening to Not Animal first. The albums are almost 50% different from each other and are quite a bit of a different experience. Animal is pretty mellow from track one through twelve, while Not Animal takes you through a rockier route. The label’s arrangement would have scored a 3.5, but this album receives a whole star more.
So how can you tell if you have purchased Animal or Not Animal? That’s easy! If you see an Animal on the cover…you’ve got Animal. No animal? Then…yeah, you get the idea.
If you like Arcade Fire, this would be a nice addition to your collection. Although I would put their sound more on the mellow side of the scale. I’m including a link to a track as usual.