100 - Classic Album; One Of The Best Of All Time
99-90 - Exceptional Work; Rush Out And Get This
89-80 - Very, Very Good; You Should Still Go Out And Get This
79-70 - Not Bad At All; Might Actually Be Worth Your Time
69-60 - Has Its Moments But On The Whole... Meh
59-50 - Won't Make Your Ears Bleed; Won't Make You Dance, Either
49-0 - Don't Waste Your Time; You're Smarter Than This (Probably)
Now... onto the reviews:
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah/ Some Loud Thunder Clap Your Hands Say Yeah were every blogger’s favorite find back in 2005. Their self-titled, self-released debut was hailed as the coming messiah of indie music by almost everyone who heard it. Despite its inconsistencies, it definitely marked CYHSY as a band to watch in the future. So why now, as they release their sophomore effort, Some Loud Thunder, has everyone who championed this band now turned on them? Is it the ridiculous indie mentality of eating our young (i.e. - anything we throw our weight behind that gains mainstream success)? The reviews for this surprisingly consistenly solid release can only be described as tepid at best. For all of the promise that their debut showed, it was wildly inconsistent. Some Loud Thunder is quite the opposite, beginning with the opening title track’s first line, “All this talking / Think I’d have something to say…” which is muddled underneath a mountain of Flaming Lips producer Dave Fridmann’s studio sludge n’ fuzz, but not in a bad way. “Emily Jean Stock” follows and is imbued with a late ‘60’s pop sound that somewhat recalls faceless British Invasion bands. And of course several tracks (which include “Love Song No. 7,” “Goodbye To Mother And The Cove,” and “Underwater (You And Me)”) recall the band that is probably the closest genetical comparison to CYHSY, Talking Heads, but Some Loud Thunder’s two standouts are without a doubt “Satan Said Dance” and “Five Easy Pieces.” The former is a trippy and danceable piece of craziness with an ear-catching (and eyebrow-raising) refrain, while the latter is the perfectly languid closer to this eclectic release. Forget every other review of this album – those jerks don’t know what they’re talking about. Besides, who do you trust? Them, or us? The choice is obvious.
Dirty Rating: 85/100
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah On MySpace Music
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's Official Site
Of Montreal/ Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? First thing’s first – if you’re stupid, don’t even bother with this album. “Heimdalsgate Like A Promethian Curse” and “Cato As A Pun” will be too much for you to wrap your pea-sized brain around. Bright Eyes just put a new album out – that might be more your speed. For the rest of us, Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? is a darkly challenging listen. If there was any justice in this world (and judging by the state of today’s entertainment industry, there isn’t) “Gronlandic Exit” would be the thinking person’s summer jam. Kevin Barnes has taken his depression over his separation from his wife and young child (as well as a healthy helping of synths) and used it to craft one of the most bleakly danceable records of the past few years. Checking influences like Prince (“Faberge Falls For Shuggie”) to David Bowie (“She’s A Rejecter”) throughout, Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer’s centerpiece is the near-12 minute dirge “The Past Is A Grotesque Animal” which is a gut-wrenching purge of all of Barnes’ (numerous) demons. Aspiring musicians, take note – if nothing else, pain will lead to a great record 97.4% of the time.
Dirty Rating: 83/100
Of Montreal On MySpace Music
Of Montreal's Official Site
Grant-Lee Phillips/ Strangelet After raising the stakes with his last two releases, anticipation was high for Grant-Lee Phillips’ latest record, Strangelet. Unfortunately that anticipation has been met by a forgettable collection of songs by a musician who should know better. All but abandoning the stark acoustic arrangements of Virginia Creeper and nineteeneighties, Phillips has glammed up the instrumentation on songs that sound like T. Rex-era Marc Bolan rejects (“Raise The Spirit”) or saddled others with banal lyrics (“Hidden Hand” and “Johnny Guitar”). That’s not to say that Strangelet is without its moments (“Soft Asylum (No Way Out)” and “Fountain Of Youth” are two tracks worthy of note) but nothing stacks up to the quality and beauty of his previous two outings. Phillips has gained some modicum of notoriety as the troubadour for the fictional town of Stars Hollow in the TV series Gilmore Girls, and perhaps the lack-of-quality nightmare that has been the final season of that show has spilled over into his music. Now that The CW has put it out of its misery by canceling it, maybe Phillips can snap out of his funk and get back to putting out good records because God knows Strangelet isn’t really one.
Dirty Rating: 62/100
Grant-Lee Phillips On MySpace Music
Grant-Lee Phillips' Official Site
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