NPR Music CBC Radio 3Foals at Union Hall (05/08/08)
Despite much hand wringing I decided at the last minute not to attend this show, lucky for me, (and people reading this), Abbey Braden of PunkPhoto.com was there to capture all the action.
Top and Bottom Photos: Abbey Braden
Check out the full Punk Photo flickr set over here.
Drake digs the new releases from After The Jump alums Foals, and new metal warriors The Sword, while he gives REM’s “Accelerate” a best thing you’ve done for me lately award. -ed.
Drake’s Take: New Releases 04.01.08
Last week, we were spoiled by getting The Black Keys new one last week, so this week we poach from next week’s bin, as the debut album from much hyped UK dance-punk act Foals hits Rhapsody a week early. Beyond that, there’s plenty here, including a new release from the (sort of) revitalized R.E.M., along with new ones from Sun Kill Moon, Colour Revolt, Los Campesinos! and my fave metal band The Sword. Add to that some great compilations like a Willie Nelson box set and a collection of rarities from Apples in Stereo, and you’d think that would be enough — but we’re also blessed with live albums from The Rolling Stones (soundtrack to the Scorcese film Shine a Light,) Muse and The Decemberists’ Colin Meloy. Listing all this even has me wondering whether I’m pulling some April fools day prank, but it’s all here, enit.
Playlist: New Releases 04.01.08
Sub Pop scores once again, landing the debut from this young Oxford band, in Rhapsody a week early. It’s a debut that many across the pond are calling the best you’ll hear all year, and there’s a lot of merit to that hubris. Comparisons to the dance punk of Rapture and (early) Bloc Party are bound to come, but there’s both more dance and math-rock than both those bands, and less pop to be sure. The first singles, “Cassius” and “Balloons,” get the feet moving, but they also hit on a more visceral sense. There’s also some mood-shifting here as well, and the beauty of “Electric Boom” sort of serves as the heart of the album, an album that will be talked a lot of about, I’m sure. For the UK release, Foals left off their previous hit singles (“Hummer” and “Mathletics,”) as neither fit the sound that producer Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio, Liars, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) achieve for them here, but both make it on the Sub Pop release as bonus tracks.
Download: “Balloons”
Video: “Cassius”
When this Austin band’s debut Age of Winters came out in 2006, it pushed me to do a piece on the New Heavy, recent metal that even indie rockers can get down with. Their seemingly sincere D&D-inspired lyrics (think Neil Peart) delve deep into geek territory, and with Gods of the Earth, they go even deeper. “Mother Maiden and Crone” references the Triple Goddess, “To Take The Black” is about George R.R. Martin’s fantasy epic “A Game of Thrones”, and “The Frost-Giant’s Daughter” is the title of a Conan the Barbarian story. I say just roll your ten-sided dice and play the track that corresponds… your HP may dwindle from neck damage, but you’ll make up for it with serious HMXP (Heavy Metal Experience Points).
Full Album Stream at MySpace
Download: “Fire Lances of the Ancient Hyperzephyrians” [mp3]
I wrote about this one yesterday for Ear on TV, only leaving out the criticism. I still believe it’s their bast album since Automatic For the People, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s as good as it or any album prior to that. The trio has drifted since Bill Berry’s exit, and this is as close as they’ve come to sounding relevant again, and they’re trying hard at the ‘relevant’ part, that’s for sure. The album was previewed a couple weeks ago on Facebook (using iLike,) streamed on imeem last week, and the band even snuck in La blogotheque’s Take Away performance (#89 - sample below,) which has to this point featured smaller, up and coming acts, the biggest thus far being Arcade Fire. Songs like “Living Well Is The Best Revenge” and “Houston,” show they still have some gas in the tank, even if the lead single (”Supernatural Superserious”) and “Until The Day Is Done” are color by number tracks. The album ends strong starting with “Mr Richards,” with it’s textbook John Strohm (Blake Babies, Antenna, Velo-Deluxe) riff, and continues strong all the way to the final two bursts of energy (“Horse to Water” and “I’m Gonna DJ.”)
Irving Plaza Blender Theater
