Sunday, February 12, 2012

02/13 – 02/17:

Glass Rock, Baby Baby Baby

Glass Rock is a band I found purely at random one time on eMusic. Glass Rock emerged from two other bands, Tall Firs and Soft Location, combining forces. This is their 2nd album. On their first, they had a real talent for creating mood and atmosphere, but the actual songs didn’t stand out as much as they could. Here, they’ve kept all that mysterious feeling and applied it to songs with a little more unique personality, and it’s a fine upgrade. The album’s highlight, a song in two parts called “Documentary,” begins as a sparse, intimate tune before leaping into a full-band, full-sound take that is the best song they’ve recorded so far. Glass Rock is music for after hours, winding down after a crazy night.

Glass Rock, “Runaway”

Himanshu, Nehru Jackets

Every one in Das Racist promised new mixtapes this year, and Heems is the 2nd one out of the gate with Nehru Jackets. The whole thing is produced by longtime friend Mike Finito, and was released in association with New York non-profit SEVA, whose members appear on the album rapping and singing in Punjabi. There’s also guest appearances from the usual suspects like Kool AD, Lakutis, Danny Brown, Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire, Despot, Fat Tony, and Big Baby Ghandi. But it’s still Heems’ show, and while it might sound like he could get lost in the tide of guest stars and participants, he certainly doesn’t. He brings the ethos that has made Das Racist one of the most interesting forces in hip hop to bear here. That is, he has completely ridiculous songs like “Jason Bourne” (it’s about Jason Bourne) and “Computers” (It’s about liking computers) at one extreme, and then he has songs that are anything but ridiculous like “NYC Cops,” basically just a powerful list of atrocities committed by that police department, and “Juveniles Detained in Guantanamo Bay,” which is about what it says it is, at the other. He’s smart and silly in equal measure, and it makes for a lively listen.

Nehru Jackets is as much a showcase for Mike Finito as it is for Heems. His productions are fantastic throughout, and can be traditional boom bap or draw from some pretty surprising sources (Hip hop beats made from PJ Harvey and Kate Bush songs? Yes, please). Together, they created easily the most entertaining album I’ve heard so far this year, and they didn’t even charge for it. You can get it here.

Heems, “Jason Bourne”

Ani Difranco, Which Side Are You On?

I feel weird to suggest that having a baby had a profound effect on Ani Difranco's music, but it really seems like the case. I certainly understand how having a child would change your attitudes or priorities, but I would expect that to manifest in the lyrics, in new things to sing about. But the change in her music isn't just what she sings, it's how she sings, how she composes, how she thinks of her albums.

She's only released 2 records since becoming a mom, and just like Red Letter Year, this one is a scattershot effort, dipping into a new musical genre on every track, generally happy and hopeful instead of your traditional Ani moody and worried and angry. Her post-baby music isn't afraid to have big production values and over-the-top arrangements, to carene from sound to sound in a way that pre-baby Ani never would've done. Her music could be very different from album to album, but not from song to song. Every album was a pretty unified musical statement. Post-baby Ani seems to be going with every impulse that comes her way. It makes for enjoyable songs, and surprising, but not necessarily great, albums. Which Side Are You On? isn't quite as bubbly and happy as Red Letter Year, but... the difference is pretty negligible. The title track feels a bit like a rehash of a political song on her final pre-baby album, the mostly soul crushing, heartbroken Reprieve... only polished up and made less depressing. Even when she's singing a song about politics, women's roles in society, subjects that have always been close to her heart, she just seems so much less... worried about it. It's a weird transformation, indeed. She's released music as a young woman and a mature woman, in straight and homosexual relationships, married and divorced, under Presidents she liked and Presidents she hated, but nothing seems to have had the impact on her entire way of thinking and working that her child has.

Maybe it just boils down to the opening lyrics of the swinging, horn-and-fuzzed-out-guitar-driven "If Yr Not:" "If you're not getting happy as you get older, you're fuckin' up."

Ani Difranco, “Which Side Are You On?”

Protest The Hero, Kezia

Protest the Hero’s first album was ambitious, invigorating, and spectacular. Mixing metal, prog, punk and even folk influences, presenting a surprisingly effective concept album, and showing off serious musical chops, it’s as strong a debut as you could ask for from a band. In later releases, they would pare down the stylistic mishmash and get to really exploring a prog-metal sound, but here it seems that no idea is out of bounds, and that kind of reckless abandon is infectious.

Protest The Hero, “Heretics & Killers”

D'Angelo, Voodoo

As I write this (Faaaar in the paaaast), I just saw footage from D’Angelo playing in Paris, and it sure is nice to hope he’s finally worked out all his stuff and decided to get back to making music. This album was one of the strongest in the sea of amazing Soulquarians-related releases in the late 90s and early 2000s. Packed with layers, nuances and surprises, with intentionally vague vocals that demand a replay, this album was a puzzle waiting to be put together, and it was rewarding to do so. I guess a lot of peoples’ experience with it begins and ends with the “Untitled” video (Which caused a co-worker of mine at the time to begin excitedly referring to D’Angelo as “The buck-naked-est man!!”), but that’s just scratching the surface of what this album had to offer. Questlove seems pretty confident that it will finally get a follow up this year. I can’t wait.

D’Angelo, “Devil’s Pie”

Lazerbeak, Lava Bangers

Lazerbeak, one of the producers of the mighty Doomtree collective, releases his first beat tape. This package apparently brings together a variety of work that never quite made it onto past Doomtree releases, which have been turned into a continuous mix by DJ Plain Ol’ Bill. Beak’s productions come in a dizzying variety when working with his Doomtree compatriots, from somber, spare tunes to songs that can tear the house down, but here he mostly focuses on keeping the party going. I love instrumental hip hop (All hail DJ Shadow’s early work in that area, and Doomtree member Paper Tiger, too), beat tapes usually don’t get much play from me. Because, as good as the music may be, it tends to sound like what it is, what it was designed for: background music for vocals that never come. Much credit to Lazerbeak, then, for making these 20 tracks as entertaining and exciting on their own as they would be with vocals. I can’t even imagine them with vocals, in fact, so well do they work as presented. Doomtree wins again.

Lazerbeak, “Walk It Out”

Rancid, Rancid 2000

Rancid chose to follow their most experimental album with their most hardcore, taking a large portion of their fanbase by surprise and making me the happiest clam. Rancid 2000 found them operating at blistering speed, producing their most frenetic and intense music to date. But even in that arena, they were able to bring plenty of variety (something aided by having 3 very different singers in the band). From vicious assaults to nigh-on pop tunes that just happen to be really fast, there’s all kinds of material whipping past you in this record’s brief running time, and it is glorious. My favorite of their albums, no question.

Rancid, “Don Giovanni/Disgruntled/Loki”

There you go.

--D

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