Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
2. Adele – 21
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
3. The Decemberists – The King is Dead
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
4. Rufus Wainwright – House of Rufus
A massive 19-disc box set of all the magic of Rufus—live performances, albums, singles and b-sides. Even though I could never afford this, it makes the list for best releases. And my Christmas wish list.
5. Bon Iver – Bon Iver
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here.
6. Paul Simon – So Beautiful or So What
I have always surrendered to anything written by Paul Simon, but this album has charm and wit in spades. He even managed to hold back on that penchant for African drumming.
7. Florence and the Machine – Ceremonials
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here.
8. City & Colour – Little Hell
Although I’m the first to admit this album doesn’t top City & Colour’s previous efforts, it says a lot that it still crushes most other releases of the year.
9. Cake – Showroom of Compassion
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here.
10. J Mascis – Several Shades of Why
I’m not usually brave enough to name a favourite album, but this year it was easy. Mascis brings the power of Dinosaur Jr, the simplicity of bare and honest lyrics, and then his godlike guitar virtuosity, to bear in this true 2011 masterpiece.
It feels like it was only yesterday that we started hearing about The Decemberists. It amazes me to think that the band has released six official studio albums earning a spot amongst indie rocks biggest success stories. Cougar writer Emily added them to her list describing ‘The King Is Dead‘ as “A folky album with well-crafted song after well-crafted song; it is the quiet and beautiful dark horse in my collection this year“.
Jazmin mused that ” Something that makes The Decemberists one of my favourite bands is their ability to make each of their albums so very different but yet distinctively Decemberists-esque. The folk undertones of ‘The King is Dead’ are absolutely no exception.
Perhaps their best album since ‘Your Majesty’, ‘The King is Dead’ is the perfect mix of beautifully crafted acoustic melodies such as ‘June Hymn’ and singalong anthems such as ‘This Is Why We Fight’. If the best bands are those that keep evolving, The Decemberists’ 2011 outing is a case study in why they’re already a step ahead of the rest“.
Belgian-AustralianWally De Backer found the winning formula with his 3rd album under the Gotye moniker. ‘Making Mirrors‘ saw the multi-instrumentalist bring his unique Sting-meets-Ceelo sampling appeal to a greater audience no doubt led by the success of lead single ‘Somebody That I Used To Know.
Cougar regular Emily, who also wrote this gushing review, added ‘Making Mirrors’ to her year end list describing it as “an enticing combination of Motown sensibilities, haunting vocals, and upbeat energies, all crafted through samples and warped instrumentation. Definitely my favourite new artist, or at least new to me.”
Following her impressive debut ‘19‘ expectations were mighty high for Adele‘s comeback. Few could have imagined that the similarly numerically titled ‘21‘, propelled by the incredible single ‘Rolling In The Deep‘, would bring the young singer/songwriter to such dizzying heights.
Still, it would be wrong to attribute the Londoner‘s success solely to this lead single as there are plenty of fantastic moments on display ad demonstrated by the countless Adele tributes that exist on Soundcloud and Youtube.
Cougar writer Emily said “This is the album I’m not ashamed to admit I borrowed from my mum. Although Adele i always in danger of being overplayed, I still am not quite sick of her; for me it is her song writing that stands her apart from all the other ladies with pipes“.
Our boy Cole added ” I love Adele. I love her because she is more engaging with her voice and a piano than Rihanna and Lady Gaga are with million dollar stage productions. Her voice is heartbreaking and ‘21‘ has some of the most sincere young love tracks ever recorded. “Someone Like You”, “Rolling in the Deep”, and “Turning Tables” are all good enough to single-handedly carry a hit record. Whatever heartache (or genius songwriting partners) led to these beautiful songs was well worth it. I will still be listening to this album in 20 years.
Originally Emilywas going to write a ‘Weekend Videos’ installment for Gotye’s ‘Somebody That I Used To Know‘. Instead we liked her post so much we ended up turning it into a full album review. Here is what she had to say about the video:
‘Somebody That I Used To Know‘ has been the belle of the YouTube ball lately with almost 9 million views in the past 3 months (97 are from me). The clip reminded me of what a music video should be: a visually stunning accompaniment that enhances but doesn’t explain or narrate the song. The track itself is deliciously simple, with minimal instrumentation and vocals that alternate between bare confessional in the verses, and heavily layered harmonies in the refrain.
‘Making Mirrors‘ is the third studio album by Melbourne act Gotye, released in August. Gotye (pronounced gore-ti-yeah) is really one-man wonder Wally De Backer, armed with a sampler and the kind of home studio set up any musician would kill for. When he’s not drumming for indie rock trio The Basics, De Backer builds catchy songs on and around his own recorded samples.
But before you throw him in with Girl Talk (though who doesn’t love Girl Talk), it’s worth mentioning that the hook samples are obscure and generally brief, not the sort of recognisable licks that find their way onto a Kanye West album. Legend has it that De Backer began sampling after he inherited a hefty collection of old LPs from an elderly neighbour, which explains why most of the samples aren’t immediately identifiable. With this newest album, De Backer relied heavily on live recording drums and acoustic instruments, and then sampling and manipulating them for the desired effect.
The album has already supplied 3 impressive singles—the most recent, “Somebody That I Used To Know” is deliciously simple, with minimal instrumentation and vocals that alternate between bare confessional in the verses, and heavily layered harmonies in the refrain. It’s a formula that also works in the album’s first single; “Hearts a Mess” is catchy and powerful, more uptempo than “Somebody” but more haunting as well.
Every track on ‘Making Mirrors‘ showcases De Backer’s talent for crafting enjoyable and ear-grabbing tunes, but one track stands out above the others lyrically: “Eyes Wide Open,” the second single to be released. Even with a fairly complex instrumentation (including the catchiest gallop beat ever recorded), it’s still the vocals and lyrics that project the most. The song, which De Backer describes as a “dystopian vision” of the world’s future, is the first that he wrote in what we might consider the ‘traditional’ way—he constructed the song and then worked samples and live recordings into it, as opposed to building the song up from samples.
The rest of the album is a surprising mix of light and dark, with a few heavy songs interspersed between upbeat jams. But the real magic in this album is the pure joy that comes through most of the songs—they have the magnetic delight of motown, that tambourine clap-happy energy that has always made the Golden Oldies so irresistible. “I Feel Better” is the best example of this, since it could probably pass for a Four Tops song, with a twist.
De Backer records, produces, and mixes all the music for Gotye, and recorded ‘Making Mirrors‘ in his parents’ barn. I should probably pretend that it is his ingenious use of original samples, or his knack for production, that makes this album so solid, and the songs so dynamic. But truthfully, the songs stand on their own as well-constructed and memorable tracks, regardless of the recording methods.
As most music snobs, I profess to love analog and sniff at all things digital; but it is a more and more irrelevant point of reference these days, when even ‘live’ recordings are manipulated to fit modern standards of perfection. ‘Making Mirrors‘ is a pleasing combination of both, with layers that blend live and sampled tracks in a way that pop music hasn’t seen yet.
When a band of 20-somethings announce they are releasing a ‘ concept album,’ the proper reaction is generally scepticism. Even Manchester Orchestra’ s loyal fans may have had their doubts. But the ‘ concept’ is not your usual fantasy bus ride through self-indulgent musicianland—it is the searching journey of a 23-year-old songwriter, as he struggles with God, marriage, and life’ s difficult questions.
‘ Simple Math’ is not an album for the faint of heart; there is a gravity and a weight to every song that reaches beyond the typical alt-rock formula. There were hints of this on the band’ s previous two albums—particularly “ I Can Feel a Hot One” from their sophomore release—but this new album seems to perfect the style. The topics tackled on the album range from the spiritual to the everyday, but always in a questioning, thoughtful manner. Maybe it’ s because I’ m 24 and gearing up for a quarter-life crisis, but I was drawn to the vibrant honesty of this admission of youth’ s doubts and discomfort, even when you’ re not quite young anymore.
The first release from ‘ Simple Math’ is the title track, a well-crafted and well-chosen single. If Manchester Orchestra had a recipe for creating this dramatic, forceful song, it would most likely be one part emotive vocals, one part stirring use of a strings ensemble, and two parts honest and skilful songwriting. Lead singer Andy Hull is also the primary songwriter for the band, and this song showcases his talents as a lyricist. True to the album’ s theme, the song is structured around hefty questions and doubts—a series of “ what if…” questions that build gradually into a forceful bridge climax. “ Simple Math” has all the power and intensity of a great Snow Patrol song, but without the ad nauseam radio airplay. The second single, “ April Fool,” is more upbeat and energetic, with the vocals of Motion City Soundtrack and the guitar chops of Biffy Clyro.
After cutting their teeth on tour with top acts like Kings of Leon and Biffy, the boys of Manchester Orchestra head out for a headlining tour through America this month. The album was released on May 10—but you can a;sp unlock and stream it now from the band’ s website by correctly solving a (debatably) simple math puzzle.
Acoustic singer/songwriters are a dime a dozen these days. But how many can also claim to have headed one of the foremost bands of the American grunge movement? The king of guitar noise, J Mascis, has traded in his fuzz pedal for finger picking on a new solo album, “Several Shades of Why,” released in March.
Where I grew up, in woodsy Western Massachusetts, J Mascis is something of a local legend. His iconic alternative rock band, Dinosaur Jr. formed at the area’s university, and played its first gigs on the Amherst Common (allegedly, a shout of “Fuck the cops!” got the plug pulled pretty fast). When I was too young to understand genre, I assumed he was a rock star, like Ringo. When I was old enough to appreciate excessive noise and distortion, I listened to some Dinosaur Jr., and tagged along to a reunion concert in Boston. Now the thing that impresses me most about J Mascis, apart from his virtuoso status as a guitarist, is his serious prowess as a songwriter. He was the primary songwriter for Dinosaur Jr. until the band’s separation, and for the many bands he has formed since then.
‘Several Shades of Why‘ showcases Mascis’s talents not just as a lyricist, but also as a crafter of simple, beautiful melodies. Simplicity is the trademark of the album; when recording the tracks in his home studio, Mascis made a deliberate decision to forego all percussion (aside from the occasional tambourine) in an effort to “push everything in a new direction.” It is certainly a far cry from the heavy, distorted ‘wall of sound’ that put Dinosaur Jr. on the map. Most of the songs require little more than an acoustic guitar and some backing vocalists (Band of Horses’ Ben Bridwell, among others), although a small string section swells the title track.
The stand out tracks on ‘Several Shades of Why‘ are this title track, and the first single, ‘Not Enough’. Together they illustrate perfectly the range of the album as a whole—’Not Enough‘ is a folksy, fun, and upbeat jaunt, while ‘Several Shades of Why‘ is slow and thoughtful, with a single guitar line so heart-tuggingly sweet and simple, you can almost see tough and tattooed Dino fans the world around reaching for the tissues. And although the album is not their usual fare, those who fell in love with Mascis during the Dinosaur Jr. days of wailing 10 minute long guitar solos can catch a glimpse in ‘Is It Done‘ a slow and melancholy track which develops into a howling solo, almost as if Mascis couldn’t resist sneaking in just one.
Mascis is currently touring the US and Europe in support of the album, and when he played solo at The Garage on April 14th, I wasn’t sure how many of his old fans would embrace this ‘new direction‘. But with a crowd of 550, just shy of capacity, it would seem that I had underestimated their loyalty. Mascis sat at the very front of the stage with one black and tan electro-acoustic and two pedals, mumbled inaudibly between songs, and played through a mix of new solo material, old Dinosaur Jr. tunes, and a few songs from the in-between period. While he played some songs entirely acoustic, Mascis frequently switched to a distorted, heavier sound for the choruses. When he did, it became clear that this was the guitarist the crowd knew and revered—they howled and cheered whenever he plugged in.
After seeing him twice with a full band, it was strange and exciting to watch this one quiet man, with his trademark long white hair and thick coke-bottle glasses, captivate a massive audience with almost no effort at all. Though I’d always thought of J Mascis as our local rock royalty, it was strikingly clear atThe Garage that being local has little to do with it, and his renown as the instrumental and creative talent of a generation will continue to pack venues.
In just a few short months, Mascis will hang up the acoustic in favour of his trusty Marshall rig, for a set of decidedly noisier, full band shows with the again reunited Dinosaur Jr. They’ll be playing their 1988 album ‘Bug‘ in its entirety for each show, and the tour culminates at Alexandra Palace on July 1st.
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