Blogcritics Author: Sleeveless Sundays

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Music Review: The Arcade Fire - "Intervention"

Sleeveless Sundays — Fri, 15 Dec 2006 08:52:30 EST

Oh the sophomore CD. How it can break a band! The pressure to not only repeat but better the first effort is just plain scary stuff. Especially when you're from Canada, and you win a few album and track of the year awards, and start opening for U2, and basically steal everyone's attention from Portland and Austin or wherever we make good music and put it way up in Canada. So scary that it's taken indie favorite The Arcade Fire over 2 years to reproduce. And all indications are that it's been worth the wait."Intervention" features one hell-of-a church organ, rumored to emit such magnificent textured sound as to bring tears to the eyes of crybaby frontman Win Butler himself during recording. This church organ, the real base of the song, doesn't slowly meander around hymnal-paced chords; instead it moves through progressions like an axe wielded by the Boss himself! How Springsteen is this song? The Arcade Fire do list Brucey in their myspace page as one of 3 important-enough-to-list-on-my-myspace-page influences, and he's evidently the one pulling the most weight on this track. "Intervention" gives us war, religion, community charm, and community escape and everything else that we want to hear all over again on this album. After this one it's hard to imagine that the Arcade Fire's sophomore effort will disappoint. Here via Gorilla vs. Bear via Said the Gramophone via BBC Radio[mp3 - Intervention]

The Best New Tracks.

Music Review: TEPR - "Coke and Cream"

Sleeveless Sundays — Wed, 6 Dec 2006 12:37:06 EST

TEPR. A Google search returns these acronyms: Towards the Electronic Patient Record and Technology Entrepreneurs of Puerto Rico. I have no fricken idea what TEPR really stands for, if it is even an acronym at all, because i don't speak french. Perhaps it is a missing-vowel web 2.0 spelling a la flickr. At any rate, I don't even give two diddlies about what it really means, because I just can't stop listening to it. Evidently French guys really know how to shake some ass. TEPR, which may or may not consist of one wacky frenchman (information is limited), is just plain silly fun. Recipe for TEPR song: One part M83 (the fun part), two parts dance, a dash of arcade and top it off with a healthy dose of squealing keys. Result: over 5 minutes (a generous helping!) of Instant Party. This song is everything there is to like about M83 (one of my favorite french electro-outfits) without all that downer seriousness. It's got beyond cheezy riffs. It's got a throbbing beat. It's just plain begging to be played at your house party as soon as that one group of cute girls are thinking of leaving cause they aren't sure if it's really the kinda party they go for plus they went out to dance anyways. Because it will make them dance. And stay for hours. TEPR is potentially be releasing an EP entitled En Direct de la Cote (Google translation = On Line of the Dimension?) on November 27th. Or, perhaps it was already released last November. No matter. Just listen to it.[mp3 - Coke and Cream]

The Best New Tracks.

Music Review: Bloc Party - "Prayer"

Sleeveless Sundays — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 09:47:34 EST

2006 is a year flying high on grandiosity: warm-ish reception to My Chemical Romance's mega-opera-arena-rock release, The Killers releasing at #2 on the pop charts, The Hold Steady channeling The Boss and writing about Boys and Girls in America. Bloc Party, too, are simply not content to muddle around in the mediocrity of everyday indie rock, and have decided to up the ante on "Prayer". They've replaced their debut album's signature 'oh-oawhs' with meditation-style 'ohm's and 'oh-ah-oh's and piled on a multitude of effects, to the point that it would all just seem overblown and ridiculous if it weren't so damn wonderful of a song. Listen to this track and you'll see what I mean. The keyboard movements in the chorus may as well be a full-blown strings section, the drums are relentless, and Kele Okereke fills his voice with desire and pleas "Tonight make me unstopp-a-ble / and I will charm / I will slice / I will dazzle them with my wit." Who in the hell do these guys think they are? Can you even begin to imagine the music video for this track?! According to their mySpace page, Bloc Party Sounds Like "melodic and dark, danceable yet powerful: something that will keep you yelling for more." Sounds spot on; honestly this is closer to a t.A.T.u. song than a rock song. And I for one couldn't be happier. Tour-mates 2007? Only time will tell.[stream - Prayer]

The Best New Tracks.

Music Review: Tokyo Police Club - "Citizens of Tomorrow"

Sleeveless Sundays — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 13:05:45 EST

"This is not how we planned it / But we've gotten ahead of ourselves / Computers rule the planet / And the moon and mars as well." Apocalyptic visions of spaceship-dwelling human slaves subjected to robot rule. Post-punk Canadian quartet with impressive, tight drumming, catchy Strokes-ish guitar riffs and a whole bundle of adolescent freak-out energy. Tokyo Police Club. These kids may be barely legal but are already getting some well-deserved attention in the media for their top-notch debut EP. Les Savy Fav-ish guitar and bass interplay with amusing (read: forgettable?) lyrical content, and although adolescence shines through, the melodic foundations of the songs is undeniable. Things to like about "Citizens of Tomorrow": The clever, catchy and stuttering mini-solo. The relentless drums. Fun yelling. Lyrics about robots blowing you apart in front of your loved ones if you try to escape. Be forewarned!TPC's members are teetering upon a bulging mass of critical acclaim, and for a couple of young indie kids that's probably pretty frightening. With just an EP out and all the buzz circulating, TPC can probably head in almost any direction with the music on their next release, and that's a scary, scary place to be. The intense weight of all those 7.9s and 6.8s and '3 1/2 bunnies out of 4' can really add up, and living up to those expectations is often a band-crusher (remember fellow Canadians Hot Hot Heat?). Here's hoping they keep their heads down, focus all their energy dancing and rocking, and leave all of our expectations out in space. [mp3 - Citizens of Tomorrow]

The Best New Tracks.

Music Review: The Blow - "Fists Up!"

Sleeveless Sundays — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 09:27:45 EST

Oregon is awash in musical talent. It is literally on fire. How many fantastic bands are going to come out of the Pacific Northwest? Is it the incessant rain? The dark grey isolation? The fact that it's more or less Canada? Menomena, The Decemberists, The Thermals, and Sleater-Kinney. The Shins moved there for gods sakes, and the list goes on! It's as if some great billowing energy emanates from the wild mountains, gigantic trees, and storm-whipped ocean and somehow channels itself right into mind of anyone in the region with half a brain that thinks about picking up an instrument.The Blow consists of beat-master Jona Bechtolt and beautiful voice Khaela Maricich. Their latest album, Paper Television, is all heartfelt, home-brewed pop, packed with intriguing beats and clever lyrical content about love, heartbreak, and sex. They have been, according to their myspace page, working tirelessly to create "an essential pop music formula" and damn if they haven't gotten pretty close. Album opener "Pile of Gold" starts the show with a frantic beat Missy would kill Beyonce for. On the doo-wop-ish "Parenthesis," Khaela puts forward the most lovely, brash statements on the album, like "When you're holding me / We make a pair of parenthesis.""Fists Up" is the highlight of the album. It seriously must be one of the most appealing pop tunes released all year. The last minute and a half is a climax of heartache and synthy waves and layers of Kheala's wonderful voice that, even in the album's longest song, is just simply not long enough."My love is a fortress / My love is the Louvre / But it can't ever thrive / If I'm forced to keep proving (it)." Who would go and break a heart like that?[mp3 - Fists Up]

The Best New Tracks.

Music Review: Diplo - "Shake It Over And Over" (Hot Chip Remix)

Sleeveless Sundays — Thu, 9 Nov 2006 01:45:57 EST

So if you haven't heard this year's The Warning, get on the boat! Hot Chip's sophomore album boasts memorable tracks and leaves both indie kids and clubhoppers drooling for more. The title track lays it all on the line: "Hot Chip will break your legs / Snap off your head." Are you kidding me? Snappy electrobeats and these kinds of lyrics (delivered with absolute dead-pan sincerity) make this one of the this year's best albums so far.Everyone's favorite d.j. Diplo, who gained quite a bit of notoriety last year for mixing and releasing M.I.A.'s Arular as M.I.A./Diplo's Piracy Funds Terrorism Volume 1 before Arular was even available, is by all counts still on the forefront of the mash-up rage. Diplo posted this remix of one of the catchiest songs from The Warning on his mySpace profile a while back, and it is just infectious. No, seriously. Try playing it at the office or around the roommates and watch how confused everyone gets as they try not to dance. Most of the song's deliciousness really comes from Hot Chip's brilliance; they get the credit for the fantastic stuff like "K-I-S-S-I-N-G-S-E-X-I-N-G". But adding in a little "Baby work it out" every now and again really spices up that bouncy flavor. What's that other song called? "Bojangles"? By Pitbull? Whatever, you know you love it.[mp3 - Shake It Over And Over (Hot Chip Remix)]

The Best New Tracks.

Music Review: Math and Physics Club - "Darling Please Come Home"

Sleeveless Sundays — Fri, 3 Nov 2006 09:39:51 EST

I've decided this song, "Darling Please Come Home," refers to camping, and here's why. The chorus starts out with "the fireflies are out," an obvious reference to summertime, since those buggers all die in the winter. (And somehow are reborn every summer. Does anyone know how?) The lyrics then go on to refer to "when the coals burn way down low." Everyone knows that coals mean fire and a fire means one of two things: winter and/or campfire. But winter is already out of the equation 'cause of them fireflies... so we're obviously talking about camping. But this is followed by "Darling, won't you please come home" at the end of the chorus. Evidently, this band lives in the woods. No biggie though, since the boredom of the forest life has obviously given them plenty of time to sharpen their guitar talents.Now let's get serious. Math and Physics Club have crafted their songs based on twangy jangly delayed guitar leads that dance and weave around crystal vocals throughout both verse and chorus. These songs, amazingly, have the ability to evoke feelings of both nostalgia and happiness at the same time. It almost doesn't make sense. It's like being sad 'cause you're thinking of a time in your life you always want to remember because it made you happy. But while thinking of that time, you become nostalgic and sentimental when all you really wanted to do was think happy thoughts. Actually, that makes a lot of sense. What doesn't make sense is how they do it so well. Math and Physics Club have woven a wonderfully curious campfire quality into their tracks that is immediately accessible yet compellingly original.On "Darling Please Come Home," lead guitar bounces playfully around simple, effective lyrics, while fantastic drums push the song forward in an stumbling, joyful fashion. Dude's having girl problems, but he's all 'no worries.' He says, "It'll work out. Cheer up, kids... what's not to love about some warm coals, a sunset, and snuggling up with a honey-bunny? Just listen, relax, enjoy."[mp3 - Darling Please Come Home]

The Best New Tracks.