Welcome to our first installment of Scores & Highlights. The title is pretty self-explanatory; each month or so we'll hand out grades and, in some cases, mp3's of albums we never got around to reviewing. For this segment, we're going to focus on albums released in January, and hopefully have a February post coming soon.
Black Mountain - In the Future
(Jagjaguwar; 2008)
Grade: 81.0%
[mp3]"Tyrants"
Sounds like: A wonderful hybrid of Sabbath and Neil Young. Should have been recommended back in January.
Blood on the Wall - Liferz
(Social Registry; 2008)
Grade: 75.0%
[mp3]"Hibernation"
Sounds like: Every great alternative/grunge band from the late 80's/early 90's rolled into one.
Chris Walla - Field Manual
(Barsuk; 2008)
Grade: 52.6%
Stream various tracks at MySpace
Sounds like: Gee, I dunno, Death Cab for Cutie.
Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark
(New West; 2008)
Grade: 68.0%
Stream various tracks at MySpace
Sounds like: Ambitious Southern Rock Opera; or, what I imagine Kevin Drew has in mind every time he writes a song with a little twang.
The Helio Sequence - Keep Your Eyes Ahead
(Sub Pop; 2008)
Grade: 60.3%
[mp3]"Keep Your Eyes Ahead"
Sounds like: A band equally obsessed with Modest Mouse and 80's pop. Still, it could be worse.
Hello Blue Roses - The Portrait is Finished & I Have Failed to Capture Your Beauty
(Locust; 2008)
Grade: 30.0%
[mp3]"Shadow Falls"
Sounds like: The portrait wasn't the only thing that failed to capture any beauty, though its a nice reminder as to how good Destroyer albums are.
Human Bell - Human Bell
(Thrill Jockey; 2008)
Grade: 58.4%
Stream various tracks at MySpace
Sounds like: Instrumental post-rock influenced by folk and blues. Depending on your perspective, its either as good or as boring as it sounds. I'm going with the latter.
Jeffrey Lewis - 12 Crass Songs
(Rough Trade; 2007/8)
Grade: 50.0%
Stream various tracks at MySpace
Sounds like: Folkie/troubadour musician covering punk rock. Not bad, but wears thin after a while. 6 Crass Songs might have been a better route.
The Mars Volta - Bedlam in Goliath
(Universal; 2008)
Grade: 62.1%
Stream various tracks at MySpace
Sounds like: Their most accessible album since their first, but still a little too over-the-top at times. The best songs re-affirm why you should never count them out.
Radar Bros. - Auditorium
(Merge; 2008)
Grade: 60.3%
Stream the first four tracks at Radar Bros. website
Sounds like: Grandaddy never broke up, they just ditched the electronics and made a vaguely alt/country-ish record.
Sons & Daughters - This Gift
(Domino; 2008)
Grade: 42.2%
Stream various tracks at MySpace
Sounds like: An inconsistent and overproduced mess. Some songs remind me of X, so I guess it can't be all bad.
Thao - We Brave Bee Stings and All
(Kill Rock Stars; 2008)
Grade: 77.7%
[mp3]"Bag of Hammers"
Sounds like: Exuberant pop/rock songstress that's just one commercial away from being 2008's big thing.
Xiu Xiu - Women as Lovers
(Kill Rock Stars; 2008)
Grade: 67.3%
[mp3]"F.T.W."
Sounds like: Xiu Xiu with a full band. Like other Xiu Xiu albums, there are standout tracks, but it's mostly obnoxious. Stay especially far away from their cover of "Under Pressure"
Friday, March 14, 2008
Scores & Highlights:
January 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Catching Up
Because we're all busy at Range Life, with school, work, or in some cases, both, we're just not able to cover every little thing we want to cover. I honestly don't know how other blogs do it. However, we're just as obsessed with music as we've ever been, so here's a post catching you up on shows and songs we haven't covered yet. (A post briefing you on albums we missed is in the works) I hope you've got a few minutes, 'cause this might take a while.
Shows:
There have been plenty of additions to the concert calendar to make a note of. Feist has scheduled a show in St. Louis, Man Man and Yeasayer are tag-teaming Omaha, and the Mission Creek Festival in Iowa City (yes, Iowa City) is shaping up to be a good looking, affordable music festival with Dan Deacon, Cursive, Range Life favorites Evangelicals, and Headlights. Colin Meloy is playing a solo gig in a few Midwest cities (including dear Lawrence at the gorgeous Liberty Hall), Radiohead tickets go on sale Saturday (in case you forgot), and last but certainly not least, the Breeders (you know, Kim Deal's other band) are hitting up the Bottleneck! The concert calendar is updated and ready for your browsing.
Songs (mp3's):
Ruby Suns - "Tane Mahuta"
Unlike Vampire Weekend, "Tane Mahuta," as well as all most of the Ruby Suns upcoming album Sea Lion, manages to balance pop music with African rhythms and NOT sound incredibly boring. Of course, that's just my opinion. Regardless of your stance on Vampire Weekend, this track is worth a listen. And just so you know, "Tane Mahuta" is not even one of my favorites on the album, its just the one Sub Pop wants available for free. My hands are tied, but trust me, this album (out March 4) is delicious, especially if you're a fan of Animal Collective.
Grand Archives - "Torn Blue Foam Couch"
Listen to the first two seconds, and what do you hear? Its the beginning of "Suffer for Fashion," isn't it? I swear, every time I hear the beginning of this song, I'm waiting for that fucking baby to go "la la la," and some really good glam rock. Moving on, this is the first single from the first album by Grand Archives. A lot of attention is heading the band's way mostly because this is singer/guitarist Mat Brooke's first post-Band of Horses release, but what's more important are the songs. Like the Ruby Suns, this particular track isn't my favorite off the album, but again this is Sub Pop (I'm convinced they do that on purpose) and my hands are tied. However, fans of Iron & Wine and, yes, Band of Horses, should keep an eye out for the self titled debut, which is out this coming Tuesday.
Bon Iver - "Skinny Love"
Technically, this song is far from new, as Bon Iver's debut, For Emma, Forever Ago, was self-released last fall. Since then, Bon Iver has been signed to Jagjaguwar, and this coming Tuesday the album gets a proper release. The song "Skinny Love" sounds to me like Tunde Adubimpe of TV on the Radio started a solo freak-folk project. Its damn fucking awesome, that's for sure.
Songs (stream):
Here's a smattering of 2008 songs that I'm currently digging.
Los Campesinos! - Hold on Now, Youngster is available 2/19 via Phantom Sound & Vision.
Lightspeed Champion - Falling Off the Lavender Bridge is available now via Domino.
Beck - Odelay [Deluxe Edition] is available now via Geffen.
Born Ruffians - Red Yellow & Blue is available 3/4 via Warp.
Evangelista - Hello Voyager is available 3/11 via Constellation.
American Music Club - The Golden Age is available 2/19 via Merge.
Hello, Blue Roses - The Portrait is Finished &I Have Failed to Capture Your Beauty is available now via Locust.
Atlas Sound - Let the Blind Those Who Can See but Cannot Feel is available 2/19 via Kranky.
The Whitsundays - The Whitsundays is available now via Friendly Fire.
Thao (ed: not Than) - We Brave Bee Stings and All is available now via Kill Rock Stars.
Get Well Soon - Rest Your Weary Head You Will Get Well Soon is available now as an import via City Slang.
Lykke Li - I'm Good I'm Gone is available now as an import via...you know, I'm not sure, but you can order it from Amazon for only $9.99.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Listen to Xiu Xiu and More Thao While We Attempt to Write Their Reviews
With school having started back up, we're all getting a little busy again, so I hope you'll accept our apology for not having a fresh album review up yet. In the meantime, here's some mp3's that will hopefully tide you over for now.
Xiu Xiu - "F.T.W."
Thao - "Bag of Hammers" (Jenna will cry if you don't listen to this one)
[Midwest Slant] Xiu Xiu and Thao are hitting the road together, stopping in several Midwest cities along the way. Lookie here:
3/13 @ Maintenance Shot (Ames, IA)
3/31 @ Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center (St. Louis, MO)
4/01 @ Randy Bacon Gallery (Springfield, MO)
4/02 @ Conservatory (Oklahoma City, OK)
Xiu Xiu's latest album, Women as Lovers, and Thao's latest album, We Brave Bee Stings and All, are both out now on Kill Rock Stars.
Friday, January 25, 2008
First Listen Friday:
Tulsa, Thao w/GDSD, and Hot Chip
Man, it's been a long week of work and I'm looking forward to the weekend. Last weekend was jam packed with a trip to Springfield to see the incredible Yo La Tengo, and the work week was filled with stress and overtime. This weekend I vow to take it easy!
Here are some tracks that have got me through.
Tulsa - "Rafter"
The echoing guitars and vocals evoke a nice relaxing mood. I Was Submerged came out late last year from this band out of Boston.
Off of her upcoming album We Brave Bee Stings and All, to be released next week. I've certainly braved some metaphorical bee stings this week.
Hot Chip - "Ready for the Floor"
The soothing voice of Alexis Taylor takes the edge off. The Range Life staff is excited about this upcoming release and there will certainly be more to come from the blog.