The REVIEWS
Ásgeir
Afterglow (ONE LITTLE INDIAN/ COLUMBIA)
While Iceland’s Ásgeir may have began in the acoustic guitar realm on his debut Into the Silence , Iceland’s fastest ever selling debut album for a homegrown artist, he’s made quite a shift on his sophomore record. In fact, it seems he’s taken some cues from the likes of James Blake and Bon Iver, becoming more heavy-handed with the use of electronics. Though the melodies have matured, on Afterglow , the 24-year-old gives a poetic, intimate look at the inner workings of his mind, thanks to collaborating with his father, poet Einar Georg Einarsson. Afterglow’s first single, “Unbound,” shows the Icelandic singer’s step in a more refined and produced direction and the rest of his album follows suit. Songs like “I Know You Know” and “Stardust” show off a newfound anthemic quality the Icelandic troubadour has picked up along the way. (www.asgeirmusic.com)
By Ilana Kaplan
The Big Moon
Love in the 4th Dimension (STARTIME INTERNATIONAL/ COLUMBIA)
Buzz has long been building around London four-piece The Big Moon , and their debut demonstrates it wasn’t misplaced enthusiasm. The album starts already revved up, the all-female band led by Juliette Jackson flying straight into 2015 single “Sucker,” the first of a dozen sculpted tracks.
With charmingly breezy glibness, and sharp edges smoothed down, a honed collection of pop-rock songs follow as Love in the 4th Dimension unfolds. The general pattern sees a build with guitar bursts and staccato drumming, moving from Jackson’s confident delivery to carefully harmonized choruses.
There are hints of the aftertaste of Britpop in her style, but their music owes as much to the following generation. On the likes of “Happy New Year” and “Silent Movie Susie” they come across as a calmer, more soulful echo of The Fratellis, and a less jagged Arctic Monkeys, ramping each song up to a steadily impressive crescendo.
Their full-length arrival comes without the rawness often seen on debuts, an attribute working for and against them, and the energy sags by the end, but the balancing act achieved between weary soulfulness and excitement is not bad at all. Consistently solid, and sometimes more, the foundations look strong. If they continue to move forward and start to cut loose a little, we might be listening for a while to come. (www.thebigmoon.co.uk)
By Stephen Mayne
Big Walnuts Yonder
Big Walnuts Yonder (SARGENT HOUSE)
Big Walnuts Yonder sound almost exactly like what you’d expect out of a combo of Mike Watt (Minutemen), Nels Cline (Wilco), Greg Saunier (Deerhoof), and Nick Reinhart (Tera Melos), but unlike death, taxes, and other such predictable things, that ain’t no shame. Each member’s ability to combine weirdo prog-level precision and classic SST freakcore abandon is brought to the fore here, sounding for all the world like a breathy modern take on classic Beefheart (albeit minus the Howlin’ Wolf rips, and with a lot more effect pedals). This is the sort of thing which could’ve easily gone off the rails into “for-musicians-only” territory—and some might say that, on tracks such as the extended workout “Flare Star Phantom,” it does—but this crew bring a focused, songs-first mentality which keeps Big Walnuts Yonder in relatively accessible territory without sacrificing any of its sense of adventure. (www.sargenthouse.com)
By Dustin Krcatovich
BNQT
Volume 1 (DUALTONE)
Before listening to Volume 1 , first banish all expectations as to what this so-called super-group might sound like. Trying to figure out what a band featuring members of Midlake, Band of Horses, Franz Ferdinand, Travis, and Grandaddy will sound like is enough to give you a popsicle headache. But listening to it will no doubt elicit memories of super-groups past.
BNQT (pronounced: banquet) have not fashioned a record of grandstanding indie rock, but instead have infused their radio rock with styles and sounds that at times resembles those of The Beatles, Dire Straits, The Doors, Pink Floyd, and even ’70s pop band America. But before you cry foul, rest assured there is no mimicry going on here as Volume 1 bears the attributes of all the artists involved, but traces of these past super-groups are strewn throughout the album in varying degrees and with varying degrees of success.
On the positive side, opener “Restart” gets the album off to a good start with a groovy bass line and clever guitars. “Real Love” is probably the most Beatles-esque, with bouncy rhythms, clever arrangements, playful horns, and sunshiny vocals. “Failing At Feeling” and “100 Million Miles” sound the most like Grandaddy, mostly due to Jason Lytle’s vocals, but also because of the sprightly piano-based rhythms and woozy orchestrations. The Doors’ cavernous sound is reprised for “Hey Banana” while the keyboards on “Fighting the World” do their best Pink Floyd impression before including some wailing guitar licks ending in a pleasant swirl of sound.
The rest of the album is full of standard rock fare with occasional forays into adult contemporary. Although well executed and not distasteful, it’s hard to swallow given the resumes of the personnel involved. Overall, BNQT have a knack for extracting elements from some notable bands to create a roiling and rumbling rock ‘n’ roll mixture, but the band seem more intent on rocking out and having a good time rather than impressing.
Unfortunately the advice given in the opening paragraph was not followed and there were high expectations heading in to Volume 1 , planting doubts about what to expect with Volume 2 , if it’s even in this super-group’s plans. (www.bnqtband.com)
By Matt the Raven
British Sea Power
Let the Dancers Inherit the Party (GOLDEN CHARIOT)
Expecting the unexpected can work in the favor of bands like Radiohead, U2, and R.E.M. They build up a reputation for trendy experimentalism that is met with enthusiastic anticipation by their fanbase. But for a band on the fringes of the indie rock scene without a conspicuous fanbase, not knowing what to expect can be a cause for concern. Since British Sea Power have achieved varying degrees of success with past projects that include moody Britpop, arena-ready rock, film soundtracks, and retreads with a full brass orchestra, listeners will no doubt approach the unexpected of Let the Dancers Inherit the Party with some trepidation.
Thankfully, any apprehension, is quickly replaced with joy as the band has re-captured some of the majestic power that made their 2003 debut so intriguing. Saturated with the emotive mope-rock influences of bands like Travis, South, and James, the tracks play out like a veritable smorgasbord of U.K. alternative pop/rock. It’s like elements of each were mixed in a blender, resulting in a potent and entertaining Britpop cocktail.
But instead of a cheap imitation, it’s a tasty concoction. Customized with their own impassioned vocals and abundant quantities of shadowy atmospherics, British Sea Power hit their stride with the catchy, radio-friendly hook of single “Bad Bohemian” and the taut, polyrhythmic beats of “Saint Jerome.” The latter sounding as if it could be from Coldplay’s spunky little brother. Most of the tracks have elements that are immediately fetching with some slick bass lines, moody passages, and smoldering guitars.
The band aren’t afraid to explore their softer side either. In fact slower numbers such as “Electrical Kittens” and “Praise For Whatever” are actually the highlights, venturing away from pop structure while filling the contemplative and murky spaces with dreamy guitar melodies and airy synths.
Although not quite as ethereal as some of James’ later work or as artful as U2’s best Eno-influenced experimental rock, Let the Dancers Inherit the Party shows that British Sea Power certainly have that potential.(www.britishseapower.co.uk)
By Matt the Raven
The Bug Vs. Earth
Concrete Desert (NINJA TUNE)
Concrete Desert is an unexpected, yet welcome, collaboration by two esteemed veterans in their respective fields. Given their priors, it’s unsurprising that Kevin Martin (The Bug) and Dylan Carlson (Earth) are most focused on sonic heft here, but that weight is balanced with nuance and variety, utilizing Carlson’s sunbaked guitar and Martin’s dub-damaged electronic space exploration to conjure the most arid, cracked landscape this side of Morricone (or, on the risk of being too on the nose, Neil Young’s revered soundtrack to Dead Man ). In all the ways that such a team-up might slay, this is possibly the least obvious path, but it’s also the most rewarding. (www.ninjatune.net)
By Dustin Krcatovich
Chaz Bundick Meets the Mattson 2
Star Stuff (COMPANY)
For his new project, the ever-prolific Chaz Bundick, of Toro Y Moi fame, has teamed up with The Mattson 2, a duo of brothers that play freewheeling instrumental psych-rock. This full-length result is an indulgent set of psychedelic jam-band impulses and catchy stargazing ballads. The more pop-influenced songs, such as “JBS” and “Star Stuff,” sound like The Big Lebowski soundtrack if it featured more Pink Floyd. Occasionally the players wax overly noodly—“Steve Pink” doesn’t really need to exist, and the album wanders a bit before the vocals finally start on the third track—but overall this is an enjoyable collaboration for any lover of spaced-out, swirly psych-pop. (www.companyrecordlabel.com)
By Scott Dransfield
Jarvis Cocker and Chilly Gonzales
Room 29 (DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON)
Situated on a hillside overlooking Sunset
L to R: BNQT, Future Islands (photo by Tom Hines), Laura Marling, Conor Oberst, Sylvan Esso, Pharmakon Boulevard, Chateau Marmont has long been a preferred hideaway for Hollywood high society. It’s a hotel with a thousand tales, both sordid and scintillating, where the walls and décor breathe cinematic history. , a collaborative concept record by Jarvis Cocker and Chilly Gonzales, supposes
