This year has been a surprising one for music. After last year I thought to myself, “How could this year possibly be better than last year for music?” And you know what? Album after album I was shocked, no musical lull in sight. Nothing but quality as far as the eye could see. Well, quality in terms of the albums I was looking for. In particular, bands that released somewhat unimpressive sophomore albums came back this year with some intense and riveting releases. Bloc Party, The Stills, The Killers, and Longwave all regrouped and recalibrated to create releases that will please initial fans as well as fans of their new directions.
Without further ado I bring you the AZLTRON Top 10 Albums of 2008.
10.The Notwist – The Devil, You & Me
The Notwist released their first album since their 2002 stylistic breakthrough Neon Golden this year. This album features a more linear song structure, less blips and clicks, and it is all the better for it. The best songs are built off of acoustic guitar chords and Marc Acher’s saccharine voice. Added into the mix occasionally are emotionally charged tremolo strings and minor key flourishes. A listen to the album from beginning to end runs a full emotional gamut from uncertainty, to sadness, to elation. The Notwist have done it again.
M83 came back this year in a big way. Anthony Gonzalez continues to plug away after the departure of Nicolas Fromageau and the towering sound of M83 has never been more accessible. Emotionally charged piano instrumentals to full on 80′s pop songs surge and percolate throughout the entire album. If there is a director out there trying to ellicit intense emotion from viewers using only music, there’s not an album out there that can reduce a listener to tears and then convert those tears to joy by the end of the album.
Boohoo has crafted an album that combines two of my favorite genres, delicate indie pop as well as touching electro pop. Normally you’d think that bleeps and blips next to glockenspiel and acoustic guitar and heavenly melodies wouldn’t normally work. Normally, you’d be right. Boohoo combines them together in such a way where it makes sense somehow that solo acoustic guitar song should come right after an electro twee jam. It’s a further testament to the album that the topics of the songs revolve around television shows, tabloid magazines, and of course grocery stores. Fans of Peter Bjorn & John and Jens Lekman will find a lot to love here.
The Killers hung up their Vegas suits and synths and grew moustaches. Their music morphed into christian country tinged post punk imitations of Bruce Springsteen in an attempt to prove that they weren’t a one trick pony at the new wave revival ranch. They accomplished this mission with their sophomore release Sam’s Town and even unleashed an epic single to rival anything they’ve done in When You Were Young. But where were the sleek synths and dance rhythms that drew so many people into their music in 2004? They were present, but with about a pound of sawdust draped over them. On Day & Age, they haven’t abandoned their new found dusty direction, but they’ve enhanced it with everything that they know they do well with a pinch of a spicy something new. Now, not only huge guitars, smooth synths, and dancebeats mark the album but saxophone and steel drums make an appearance as well. The Killers have reabsorbed their best influences and show of some new influences to make an album that is undoubtedly all killer and no filler.
Mason Proper had a busy year this year; releasing not only their Shorthand EP, Jonathan Visger’s North South EP, but also a brand new full length entitled Olly Olly Oxen Free. The first song The Fog is a great rallying point for the rest of the album because it seems as if all the musical elements in this release are floating around in the atmosphere as a phosphorescent gas that they’ve somehow managed to capture and contain in a magical cauldron of musical goodness. Every element in their songs seems buoyant somehow, guitar riffs ring in the air and the vocals increase the precarious altitude of each song like helium in an untied balloon. Like riding in a glass elevator, Olly Olly Oxen Free is meticulous, utilitarian and spine tingling. Look down all you like.
5.David Byrne & Brian Eno – Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
Where else are you going to find two artists who are not only veterans of popular music but legends in thier own right, who continue to redefine the boundaries of what their music entails? Nowhere. David Byrne and Brian Eno have crafted a masterpiece here. Christening this new work as electric gospel. The term fits perfectly, the work here is largely uplifting major chords and David Byrne somehow manages to create an uplifting message out of lyrics like “I heard the sound of someone laughing, I saw my neighbor’s car explode”. Rife with bass percolation, soothing harmonies, and clever lyrics, you’ll be hard pressed to find an album this diverse that can please so many people.
Walter Meego’s Voyager is a cornucopia of electronic pop goodness. The first track Forever acts as the guy who starts the wave at a big stadium concert. It makes a big feel good splash that carries through till the end of the album. Justin Sconza’s helium tinged vocals accent perfectly the heavily phased bass processed synths. This album feels good to listen to. This isn’t just a feel good party starter, undoubtedly if you’re looking to get a party started you won’t find a better primer than Walter meego but, just as much attention is paid to the atmosphere and melodies as it is to beats. I’ll leave you with this: listen to Keyhole, it will blow your mind.
Longwave came back in a big way this year. Longwave was previously dropped from RCA after the departure of two of their band members. Even when they were unsigned and the future of the band was uncertain, Steve Schiltz and company strove to continue recording and playing. The Indie Label Original Signal
intelligently picked up Longwave and put out their latest album Secrets are Sinister which is such an incredible return to form you have to hear it to believe it. All the shoegaze elements from The Strangest Things are not only present, they are turned up to eleven. The guitars soar, the bass grinds with foundation shaking ferocity and Schiltz’s uplifting lyrics in the face of certain doom and gloom makes this one of the best releases of 2008.
Few artists these days can transport you to other worlds through just a few notes. Thieves Like Us does just that. We as the listeners are transported, after just a few finely produced arpeggio notes, into a world of not only late night debauchery and good times but also a land of neon grids and nobility. There is a majesty to the way that the electronic elements combine here. The synths just don’t play over the beats. They crash over them like waves on a rocky shore. The songs play out like an epic play. At times the beats kick in with reckless abandon, but the song after will masterfully describe the cost of living that way. The persistent bass throbs like a hangover after a heavy night of drinking or it pounds in your mind like a guilty conscience. It’s the songs that come after the more heady dramatic ones that stand out though, the songs of reconciliation, of coming to terms with what has transpired and making the best of it. These songs make Play Music an intensely emotional album and a collection of songs that I would be proud to have score the soundtrack of my life.
It’s been four long years since The Faint released a new full length album. But, luckily as soon as the bass on Get Seduced kicks in, you know the Faint are back and we are in for a treat. Todd Fink’s astute observational lyricism is this time directed at all kinds of sociological structures. From tabloids to religion, to the origin of the universe, to arguments with others and even arguments within yourself. Whenever I describe The Faint to people who have no idea what electronic/indie/punk is, I always say that their songs are very direct, very confrontational but also extremely intelligent, and Fasciinatiion has undoubtedly solidified that notion inside my skull. The Faint pick up right where they left off with Wet From Birth and without warning surge into uncharted territory like the rap-esque Fulcrum And Lever, to the razor sharp ballad Fish in a Womb. Every note of Fasciinatiion has been looked over, every effect finely tuned after endless tweaking. The album is wrapped in a warm blanket of sonic experimentation that will make it a gem for decades to come.
At the end of November I was able to cross off an item off of my “Before I Die To Do List”. I went to see David Byrne perform live at the landmark theatre in Syracuse. After a startlingly short drive (Less than an hour!) I arrived and with the help of an elderly usher found my spot. Always up to date on the current topics in the areas he tours, David Byrne opened with saying he hoped there were no shopping related deaths in the Syracuse area.
Then Byrne and his first class band and three dancers all adorned in white clothing began the show. Starting with the lead single off of the new album he made with longtime friend Brian Eno “Everything that Happens Will Happen Today”; “Strange Overtones”, then moved onto another cut off of the new album “My Big Nurse”. Following this David Byrne played a satisfying smattering of songs from the Talking Heads albums that Eno produced back in the late 70′s and early 80′s. Including “Air” and “I Zimbra”.
Byrne also played “Help Me Somebody”, a track from the album that he and Eno collaborated on in 1981 (27 years ago!) from their singular album “My Life in the Bush of Ghosts.” He even paused for a moment to remark that the “Found Sound Vocals” featured in the album would be called “Samples” today. During the song the two female dancers and one male dancer frenetically bounded across the stage and made various poses, looking springing alarm clocks or penguins carrying around eggs in between their legs.
As if waiting for the perfect time to strike, David Byrne unleashed a veritable A-Bomb of dance/funk elation on the crowd with a rousing rendition of “Houses in Motion” from the Talking Heads album “Remain in Light”. The song differing from the introspective groove on the album seemed much more like Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” i.e. a full on funk fest. There was not a soul in the place not getting down. When the song ended there was so much applause I was worried we were going to standing ovation ourselves out of a concert.
Luckily, David kept on trucking playing even more highlights from many Talking Heads albums, including the hit “Once in a Lifetime”, “The great Curve”, “Life During Wartime”, and “Heaven”.
All throughout the dancers seemed like kids during bring your kids to work day, as if Byrne said to them: “You can be on stage, but you have to do something really cool behind me!” Their euphoric expressions made them look like ridiculous puppets or kindergarteners let loose on stage. You couldn’t help but smile for looking at them.
One cool move the dancers had in their arsenal was to lay the backup singers on the ground and turn the mic stands upside down. Their inclusive dancing found all kinds of ways to incorporate the backup singers and sometimes even David himself. At one point one of the dancers even hurdled over Byrne’s head while he played guitar. The stage was quite literally their playground. They later even brought guitars out to mimic Byrne and dance around him, forming a line of faux-guitaring playing which Byrne was all too happy to hop around with.
The crowd that was present at the David Byrne show was profoundly interesting. There were the uppity indie kids (like me) along with all kinds of other people. From kids who were dragged along with their parents, to parents reliving thier 80′s heyday, to the aged college doof. Yes, I have seen the future of doof-dom and it is annoying. A man with a hat on and a beer in each hand, dancing in the isle next to a gimli look-alike hippie that thinks standing and dancing in his seat is some kind of grand way of sticking it to the man and testifying to the music…when it’s just making the people in the row behind you mad because they paid just as much to be there as you did.
After much cheering and stomping and all the other things that crowds do at good shows, Byrne and company returned to the stage. They encored three times. first with a blazing version of “Burning Down the House”. Then they played the Talking heads breakthrough hit “Take Me to the River.” Their final encore was a sublime rendition of “Everything That Happens will Happen Today”, the title track off of the new album. That song could quite possibly be the best song put out this year. I couldn’t think of a better end to such a perfect night. Talking Heads – Houses in Motion
The Killers’ new album “Day & Age” marks their return to the sublime dreamy pop that got the kids excited in the first place. With “Sam’s Town” they tried to please the guy in the crowd that made fun of their make-up and suits, what they didn’t realize though, was that he paid to get in. They already had the backwards hat frat crowd. I remember when I opened my door for a doofy R.A. my freshman year and he saw my Killers shirt and couldn’t stop talking about how great the album was.
That said, this time around The Killers do push their style in ways that do succeed wildly. From the slow burning opener “Losing Touch” that makes excellent use of left over “Bones” horns, to the dance ’till you drop beats and synths of “Human”, to the most complete return to Hot Fuss Form “Spaceman”. The Killers set the tone early, they are back, and then they give you a tour of Vegas with reckless abandon. Like on the cowboy steel drum funk that is “Joy Ride”, the song is unabashedly fun, but Brandon Flowers’ earnest vocals ground the debauchery with the wide eyed wonder of a designated driver caught in the spotlight.
On “Sam’s Town” it felt like The Killers were spinning their creative compass, on “Day and Age” it feels as if they’ve thrown it out and just headed towards a star. Brandon Flowers still uses his more “salt of the earth” lyrical approach but this time around the music itself towers as tall as his words. Where as on “Sam’s Town” there was no monolith of sound to sweep up those hometown ambitions. That means, yes, they use the power ballad more than once, “A Dustland Fairy Tale”, “This is Your Life”, and “The World We Live In”, where they sound more like Duran Duran than they ever have before, and strangely enough it’s a good thing. “Day & Age” offers up a smorgasbord of obvious influences of the band in each song like the decidedly Talking Heads-esque “I Can’t Stay” to the Curish “Goodnight Travel, Travel Well” that uses circular synth patterns that sound an awful lot like “Pictures of You”, but they also imprint their unique stamp on each song and even make songs that have great potential to seem gaudy or redundant, “Neon Tiger”, and made it sound somewhat fresh and new. Even the album art fits perfectly with the warm glow that the album leaves you with. A glow warm and good enough to let me finish this review with the phrase; “All killer, no filler” and mean it.
The Brighton Port Authority has released a new video for their song “Seattle” featuring Emmy the Great. The video production technique is subtle and captivating, the song is soothing and swingin’, and I couldn’t think of a better song to listen to in the wake of this historic election. A new day is dawning in America, indeed.
The BPA, or Brighton Port Authority, is a new project headed up by Norman Cook (Fatboy Slim) and features the talent of David Byrne, Dizzee Rascal, Emmy The Great, Iggy Pop, Pete York, Jack Penate, Jamie T, Martha Wainwright, Conan, Olly Hite, Lateef, Ashley Beedle, Simon Thornton, Thomas Gandey, and Justin Robertson.
The lead single off of this album is entitled “Toe Jam” and features David Byrne as well as Dizzee Rascal on vocals. All of the manic energy you’d expect from a Fatboy Slim track are present packaged neatly with feel good horns and the happiest bass you’ll hear this year. David Byrne is on a roll right now, first he releases one of the best albums of the year with Brian Eno, and now he’s collaborating with Fatboy Slim and a host of other talent. His performance on this is reminiscent of his later talking heads work, and when Dizzee pops up to deliver a couple lines he just kills it. This whole affair is something like:
“Hey you got Talking Heads in my Fatboy Slim!”
“I know, and here’s a pinch of Dizzee Rascal to spice it up!”
“Oh Yeah, This is Fantastic!”
The video for this single is even more engaging. It features a 70′s style freakfest shown on T.V. Since it’s on TV there are a plethora of censor bars, but the use of them is unlike any use of a censor bar you’ve ever seen before. This project created a new medium; “Censor Bar Art”. You’ve got to see it to believe it.
This is really a momentous album. David Byrne and Brian Eno working together again for the first time in over 20 years. They of course worked on the famous “My Life in the Bush of Ghosts” album, and a handful of Talking Heads albums, most notably the classic “Remain in Light”. This album was a great surprise to me as I enjoy the work of both men immensely. Brian Eno really revolutionized production and continues to do so in his solo work and with popular bands and musicians. Artists that Brian Eno has worked with over the years include Roxy Music, David Bowie, U2 and most recently Coldplay. David Byrne is of course an intellectual punk/funk visionary, whose later solo works, while satisfying, lacked a certain immediacy and relevance. It was nice to see him mellow out and his vocals are still as good as ever, but he needed to be pushed out of his comfort zone a bit.
That is exactly what has happened on “Everything that Will Happen will Happen Today”, Brian Eno once again carves a careful soundscape of melodies, beats, and whimsical genius, with the songwriting genius of David Byrne, present at a level we haven’t seen in over ten years. Important themes like violence in society, terrorism and domestic issues skirt around an album that beamingly is two musicians reveling in their craft. There are mostly mid or downtempo songs here, but these guys are seasoned enough to make every song an aural journey worth taking, whether it feels like a sweeping retrospective, a nice sit on the back porch in a rocking chair, or a casual visit to a night club, you can’t help but say “They’ve still got it!”
I’m writing a paper on electronic music and the influential popular artists and composers who brought attention and acclaim to the genre. One premiere artist of the genre is Brian Eno whose contributions to the musical world include collaborations with David Byrne of the Talking Heads, David Bowie, John Cale, U2, the B-52′s, not to mention his many solo albums. I’d listened to Eno’s album Another Day On Earth before (A couple years ago), but I wasn’t in such a place to appreciate it as I am now. He isn’t called the father of ambient music for nothing. When I say ‘ambient’ I don’t mean recording the sounds of the woods and playing them back, I mean absolutely beautiful melodies and spacious unobtrusive production. If ever I reach my goal of completely ‘zen’-ing out my living space, Brian Eno’s work will be played a great deal. MP3 – Just Another Day – Brian Eno MP3 – This – Brian Eno
Vivek Shraya is an up and coming independent artist from Toronto, he employs electronic blips and beeps and the occasional guitar stab to create inventive ultra-clean, radio friendly (under three minute) pop songs. Shraya’s vocal capabilities could easily garner him radio attention if only the moons would align; at times his almost ethnic pop vocals call to mind what David Byrne would have sounded like if he had natural singing talent, and while we’re talking ‘Heads’ the whole album has that light poppy feeling that wouldn’t be out of place on the last few Talking Heads albums. Could a cover of “And She Was” be in the pipeline? Anyway, Shraya compiles several seemingly disparate styles into a unique cohesive whole. it’s interesting that he’s backed up his catchy polished pop with Gary Numan-lite style synthesizers. I don’t know what else he would use to flesh out his songs but the electronics certainly bring in a unique crossover element. Pure pop but with an electronic edge; a good example would be “Chemistry” (4), which sounds like the Donna Summer classic “I Feel Love” crossed with Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer”. There is also the woozy Bowie-esque “Fevered”(3) that sounds like Suffragette City with keyboards. Other highlights of the album include the punchy “Your Name”(2) which features guest vocals from Sarah Quin of Tegan and Sarah Fame, Her rhythmic chiming adds an interesting flavor and texture to the groove. The catchiest cut on the album in my opinion would have to be the album’s namesake track “If We’re Not Talking” (8), which has a similar psuedo-musak feel that made Royksopp’s “Remind Me” with Erlend Oye so memorable. Overall, the brief format of Mr. Shraya’s songs and their cleanliness leaves you wanting more. Like a light but enjoyable breakfast.
This year has been a surprising one for music. After last year I thought to myself, “How could this year possibly be better than last year for music?” And you know what? Album after album I was shocked, no musical lull in sight. Nothing but quality as far as the eye could see. Well, quality in terms of the albums I was looking for. In particular, bands that released somewhat unimpressive sophomore albums came back this year with some intense and riveting releases. Bloc Party, The Stills, The Killers, and Longwave all regrouped and recalibrated to create releases that will please initial fans as well as fans of their new directions.
10. The Notwist – The Devil, You & Me
9. M83 – Saturdays = Youth
8. Boo Hoo – Hypermarché
7. The Killers – Day & Age
6. Mason Proper – Olly Olly Oxen Free
5. David Byrne & Brian Eno – Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
4. Walter Meego – Voyager
3. Longwave – Secrets Are Sinister
2. Thieves Like Us – Play Music
1. The Faint – Fasciinatiion
