tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85573128998696544262024-03-05T13:18:43.485-08:00inhighfidelitySound Recommendationsinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comBlogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-8597413691445708822011-03-21T20:12:00.000-07:002011-03-21T20:40:55.423-07:00Lift To Experience - The Texas-Jerusalem Crossroads<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5HJe3ZL298qd3vBziYK34pv-LtwSnkFCFoC0GEv_7DL-FcwLlC5JAMDLU0_o7B-fgk85_7uLgI6NNqirOxEm6IajHOXyDzV_OMYtUiTs4PjiJt8gwYgXCbHPjbFFTDc-Ql9m61a3KFhIJ/s1600/Lift+To+Experience.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5586742451245752114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5HJe3ZL298qd3vBziYK34pv-LtwSnkFCFoC0GEv_7DL-FcwLlC5JAMDLU0_o7B-fgk85_7uLgI6NNqirOxEm6IajHOXyDzV_OMYtUiTs4PjiJt8gwYgXCbHPjbFFTDc-Ql9m61a3KFhIJ/s200/Lift+To+Experience.jpg" /></a><br /><div>In 2001, Lift To Experience released what we at In(High)Fidelity like to call a Stone-Cold Classic: an album that transcends time and place; an album that we listen to just as much now as we did when it was first released. Joshua T. Pearson, the group’s singer/songwriter/guitarist, is about to release his first solo album since the band’s untimely demise, so we would like to take this opportunity to reflect on one of our all-time favorite albums.<br />Championed by John Peel, Lift To Experience were a three-piece band from Texas. Their one and only album is an epic song cycle built around the idea that Armageddon is on its way and God has called upon three Texas boys to lead his people to the Promised Land. In the hands of Pearson – the son of a preacher – the band addresses the religious themes in a manner that is both poetic and bad-ass – the music drenched in beautiful squalls of guitar,waves of feedback and hard-hitting drums.<br />There is an air of mystery about <strong>The Texas-Jerusalem Crossroads</strong> that has only grown in the years since the disintegration of the band - not long after the release of the album - and Pearson’s retreat from the spotlight. Perhaps it is the Catholic guilt that I carry around that draws me back to this album again and again, however I’m more inclined to think it is just because it is an amazing album.<br /><br />Listen to Lift To Experience: <em>Down Came The Angels</em> (<strong>The Texas-Jerusalem Crossroads</strong>)<br /><object width="100%" height="81"><param name="movie" value="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F1488796"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F1488796" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object><span style="font-size:0;"><a href="http://soundcloud.com/rocktympans/josh-t-pearson-lift-to-experience-down-came-the-angels">JOSH T.PEARSON (LIFT TO EXPERIENCE) - down came the angels</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/rocktympans">rocktympans</a></span></div>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-55723224205047578232011-03-20T11:12:00.000-07:002011-03-21T20:45:22.824-07:00Sharon Van Etten - Epic (2010)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltF8IlVc-fXRjHWiWfDPFSUHVpW1WZBu3NeHNQbG4EyDegL8zPHsB3cSHdzL_WQh3Nrms4my1fTPmdec_eduiDsWb6KLS3f7Q4MD4WHc__weT4MSHxI3xnV7f6uHeoSH6Q2sAUnLcr3dK/s1600/sharon-van-etten-epic-cover.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 176px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5586231020041500242" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltF8IlVc-fXRjHWiWfDPFSUHVpW1WZBu3NeHNQbG4EyDegL8zPHsB3cSHdzL_WQh3Nrms4my1fTPmdec_eduiDsWb6KLS3f7Q4MD4WHc__weT4MSHxI3xnV7f6uHeoSH6Q2sAUnLcr3dK/s200/sharon-van-etten-epic-cover.jpg" /></a><br /><div>A girl in Tennessee wants to write music and sing songs but her boyfriend is unsupportive of said girl’s creative endeavors (very unsupportive). Girl leaves boyfriend, writes songs about the end of a relationship; heartbreak and sorrow abound. Girl records songs and releases her first album – a plaintive affair which combines girls beautiful vocals with a lone acoustic guitar. People begin to take note.<br />Girl begins to heal from aforementioned heartbreak (as much as one can heal from heartbreak, I suppose) and writes a new batch of songs. This time she is not singing about her boyfriend as much as stepping out from an oppressive relationship into a world full of possibility (though a world still fraught with relationship struggles); a little wiser and a little stronger than before.<br />Instead of just a guitar, the girl works with a producer who augments her songs with more sounds: some drums, some slide guitar, multi-tracked vocals and a little echo here and there. The album is a departure from the earlier work – albeit a slight one – and the girl playfully calls the seven song mini-album <strong>Epic</strong>. Her voice is powerful and fragile all at once. Her songs are excellent and stay with you long after the final note has been played. The girl’s name is Sharon Van Etten.<br /><br />Listen to Sharon Van Etten: <em>Don't Do It</em> (from the album <strong>Epic</strong>)<br /><object width="100%" height="81"><param name="movie" value="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F8605818"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F8605818" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object><span style="font-size:0;"><a href="http://soundcloud.com/skipsterus/sharon-van-etten-dont-do-it">Sharon Van Etten - Don't Do It</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/skipsterus">skipsterus</a></span></div>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-73592032303773560652009-04-19T15:49:00.000-07:002009-04-19T16:21:11.391-07:00Common Market - The Winter's End EP (Hyena Records, 2008)With few exceptions, the state of modern-era commercial hip hop is a very sad one. "Bling" is most certainly not in, as the average man and woman on the street is more concerned with where their next rent check is coming from, as opposed to how many diamonds (see: cubic zirconia) they can fit onto one ring. The "fairytale-nightmare" of thug-life has come to a crashing halt.<br />Luckily, the underground is ready to surface. In fact, dynamic acts such as Aesop Rock, EL-P, Blue Scholars, and the mighty Common Market have been keeping hip hop alive - albeit under the radar.<br /><strong>Tobacco Road</strong>, Common Market's 2008 masterpiece was an amazing leap forward from their strong debut album - and has been on high rotation at In(High)Fidelity since it hit the streets last September. Tracks such as <em>Trouble Is</em>, <em>40 Acres</em> and <em>Nina Sing</em>, highlight Common Market's aim to raise people's consciousness and at the same time raise their hands.<br />While Common Market - DJ Sabzi on the ones-and-twos / RA Scion rocking the mic - never shy away from weighty topics, <strong>The Winter's End</strong> EP (a digital only release), seeks to bring to a close the themes on <strong>Tobacco Road</strong>; to welcome in Spring in the Northern Hemisphere; and to also give Common Market fans something to sink their teeth into before another full-length drops.<br />Common Market is hip-hop for fans of good music. Their creativity and the message they carry with it appear to be growing sronger and stronger with every release.<br /><br />Check Out: <a href="http://www.myspace.com/commonmarket">http://www.myspace.com/commonmarket</a>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-89962906104000243042009-04-18T00:06:00.000-07:002009-04-18T00:15:28.535-07:00Record Strore Day RundownAs you may be aware, your trusty scribe has been know to lend his pen to other publications whenever the mood strikes. Check out Ben's latest piece for The Rundown, where he talks up the glory that is Record Store Day. <a href="http://www.rundown.com/article.php?article_id=520"><strong> Click here!</strong></a>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-33512742967309045412009-04-05T07:45:00.000-07:002009-04-05T08:30:54.102-07:00The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - The Pains of Being Pure At Heart (Slumberland Records, 2009)From the opening jangly guitars of <em>Contender</em>, the first song from the Pains of Being Pure At Heart's debut self-titled album, you will find yourself immdeiately hooked by the echoes of Brit-Pop's glory days circa 1986. The warm, infectious melodies; the superb boy/girl harmonies of singer-guitarist, Kip, and keyboard player-vocalist, Peggy, are enought to set your head swimming.<br />With an album running time of 34 minutes 58 secs - The Pains Of Being At Heart find a way to incorporate elements of shoe-gaze, good old-fashioned pop hooks and teenlove angst into songs that will be playing over-and-over in your head long after the record has stopped spinning.<br /><em>Young Adult Friction</em> is a perfect example of the band's winning combination.<br />Wall-of-sound guitars, fragile vocals, a propulsive drum beat - and the repeated refrain of "Don't Check Me Out" that closes out the song, which begs for a crwod sing-a-long. <br />Other songs on the album, including <em>This Love Is Fucking Right!</em> and <em>A Teenager In Love</em>, give you a firm indication of what this band is about. Forget about Heartbreak and 808s - try out some heartbreak with drums, bass, guitars and vocals. You will find it far more rewarding.<br />The Pains Of Being Pure Heart's bandwagon is well-and-truly rolling, and we here at In(High)Fidelity are hitching a ride. Ignore them at your own peril.<br /><br />Check Out: <a href="http://www.myspace.com/thepainsofbeingpureatheart">www.myspace.com/thepainsofbeingpureatheart</a>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-63032326505289427352009-03-28T08:28:00.000-07:002009-03-28T09:11:32.126-07:00It Ain't No Surprise - Leopold and his Fiction (Native Fiction Records, 2009)Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man is without doubt one of the coolest, darkest films about the wild-west ever made. In the opening sequence, a meek accountant, played by Jonny Depp, finds himself stranded in the frontier town of Machine - a place not entirely dissimilar to hell on earth. <br />Machine is the complete antithesis of Mill Valley - the wild-west version of Marty McFly's hometown, depicted in Back To The Future III (possibly the weakest link in one of the greatest trilogies of all time). Even Bufford "Mad Dog" Tannen would not survive long in a town like Machine.<br />Which, in a round-about-way, brings us to Leopold and his Fiction - a very fine rock 'n roll band who hail from present-day San Francisco. Their sound is grounded in American roots music - blues, country, and healthy doses of garage rock. However, there is an edge to their music, a darkness at the edge of town that leads one to believe that they would be the perfect house band for the Machine Tavern - surely not a place for the faint of heart.<br />The band's debut album (featured here in 2008) revealed a band with a lot of promise, and <strong>Ain't No Suprise</strong> firmly delivers on that promise. In the louder moments (hear the excellent <em>Sun's Only Promise</em>), the band gives themself space to stretch out - crashing cymbals punctuating the howling guitar and organ leads. The quieter moments are more reflective, an acoustic slide-guitar accompanied by a plaintive, almost wistful voice, as on the gentle <em>Tiger Lily</em>. <br /><strong>Ain't No Surprise</strong> is one of the great new albums of 2009 and should serve to bring Leopold and his Fiction to a much wider audience. Here at In(High)Fidleity HQ, we are only to happy to do our part to help make that notion a reality.<br /><br />Check Out: <a href="http://www.leopoldandhisfiction.com/mediapage/index.html">www.leopoldandhisfiction.com</a>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-43538503258131712682009-03-15T13:43:00.000-07:002009-03-16T21:39:30.950-07:00Bon Iver - Blood Bank (Jagjaguwar, 2009)At times, I am prone to making hyperbolic comments such as "I think the world would be a better place if everyone took the time to listen to Bon Iver at least once a day." However, is it hyperbole if I genuinely believe it to be true? <br />With their debut album, <strong>For Emma, Forever Ago</strong>, Bon Iver more-or-less took over my stereo in 2008. I bought the album on CD and then upgraded to vinyl. I proceeded to buy copies for friends and family, imploring anyone within earshot to immerse themselves in the restrained emotional beauty that was sure to pour forth from the speakers.<br /><strong>Blood Bank</strong> is a four-song EP that builds upon the foundation set by <strong>For Emma, Forever Ago</strong>, and while the sound isn't a grand departure from the earlier album, I am certainly not complaining. The EPs final track, <em>Woods</em>, is a beguiling piece of music, on which Bon Iver main man, Justin Vernon, builds an entire song out of a single couplet, that is multi-tracked time and time again and manipulated with the studio tool of the day: auto-tuning. <em>Woods</em> is strange, fantastical and fantastic all at once.<br />If I had to make one criticism of <strong>Blood Bank</strong>, it is that with only four songs, it is over all too quickly. That is a pretty piss-weak criticism, though. If you have not yet discovered Bon Iver, wait no longer.<br /><br />Check Out: http://www.myspace.com/boniverinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-4720877523663113902008-10-30T22:05:00.000-07:002008-11-22T08:40:12.379-08:00Eddy Current Suppression Ring - Primary Colours (Aarght/Shock 2008)Hailing from In(High)Fidelity's musical and spiritual home of Melbourne, Australia, Eddy Current Suppression Ring hark back to a time when Australian bands like The Saints and Radio Birdman played brash, bratty rock'n'roll - and played it well. In a time when it is increasingly difficult to find a rock'n'roll band who plays just that: good, old-fashioned, meat-and-potatoes rock'n'roll; Eddy Current Suppression Ring need no bells or whistles to set themselves apart from the pack. <br />Drums, bass and guitars lock on to a groove; singer, Brendan Suppression, sings-speaks-screams over the top of a mighty fine raucous sound, and everyone is happy - i.e. all the folks here at In(High)Fideltity HQ.<br />The grooves are catchy as hell and embed themselves deep into your sub-conscious. It is just like that time when you and your mates were driving at high speed up the Hume Highway, listening to Neu!, just before ducking into the Dubbo zoo.<br />Brendan Suppression's lyrics are at times playful, yet for the most part, are poignant reflections of life in these troubled times (though he would probably never admit as much). The band leaves all pretension at the door, and yet, their ability to write intelligent songs - while never abandoning the brashness - is something to behold. <em>Colour Television</em> is perhaps the greatest anti-T.V. song since the Disposable Heroes Of Hyhoprisy's early 90's classic, <em>Television</em>. While, <em>I Admit My Faults</em>, is a man owning the fact that he is imperfect - something quite a few people should come to terms with. <br />The album's pinnacle, though, is the rip-roaring <em>Which Way To Go</em> - a sure bet for our end-of-year, best of 2008 list. Meat and potatoes never tasted so good.<br /><br />Key Tracks: Which Way To Go, Wrapped Up, Colour Television, I Admint My Faults.<br /><br />Check Out: http://www.myspace.com/eddycurrentsuppressionring <em></em>inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-182518238276632552008-10-20T20:26:00.000-07:002008-10-20T20:33:54.813-07:00Rock'n'Roll RundownOur intrepid editor has been known to lend his pen to publications other than the amazingly good In(High)Fidelity. Check out his most recent work for L.A.'s Rundown right here:<strong> <a href="http://www.rundown.com/article.php?article_id=388">Rock'n'Roll Rundown</a>. </strong>You're sure to recognize a few old favorites and a couple of new ones.inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-52225530132520782572008-10-12T09:30:00.000-07:002008-10-20T20:49:31.376-07:00Okkervil River - The Stand-Ins (Jagjaguwar, 2008)You know things have been busy at In(High)Fidelity HQ when we've have had our hands on the new Okkervil River album for over a month, and haven't yet found the time to write about it. For those of you who haven't been paying attention, we think that Okkervil River are the bee's knees, or, as Reinhoff would say: the cat's pyjamas. <br />Make no mistake, with the release of <strong>The Stand-Ins</strong>, our expectations prior to hearing the album were ridiculously high. Having seen the band improve with each new release, anything but the best could have very well tainted our view of Okkervil River permanently (Editor's Note: We have recently been researching the difference between "super fan" and "stalker" - luckily, we are still a short way from "stalker" status).<br /><strong>The Stand-</strong>Ins is an amazing album, and, quite possibly, the band's finest-to-date. At this point in his career, Will Sheff has few equals. His literary talent with words is explified on the Stand-Ins with tracks like <em>Singer Songwriter</em>, <em>Blue Tulip</em>, and <em>On Tour With Zykos</em>. His voice packs more of a punch than ever before and the band is on fire. <br />Holding a mirror up to both the life of a working rock'nroll band and the world of stage and screen might end up as a self-referential wank-fest in the hands of any other band. However, Okkervil River are not any other band. The subject matter is handled with a mixture of affection, empathy and disdain, backed by a soundtrack that reminds us of a time when the album, as a format, was still king.<br />I could write an entire thesis on this album, however, reading that would simply detract from the time you should be spending listening to it. So get out there and start listening. <br /><br />Key Tracks: Lost Coastlines, Blue Tulip, On Tour With Zykos<br /><br />Check Out: www.okkervilriver.cominhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-74631044876919768662008-09-06T10:44:00.000-07:002008-09-06T14:30:38.215-07:00Peter Bradley Adams - Leavetaking (Sarathan Records, 2008)<strong>Leavetaking</strong>, the second solo album from Peter Bradley Adams, is a warm and inviting exercise in less-is-more songwriting. A mostly mellow affair, Adams mines a rich vein of American music that dates back to the Laurel Canyon crowd of the sixties and beyond. It is an album rich in texture and emotion, the sound of a man quietly pouring his heart out onto tape.<br />Prior to striking out on his own, Adams was a member of Eastmountainsouth, a group that was signed to the Dreamworks label by Robbie Robertson, a key member of The Band. If an endorsement from In(High)Fidelity isn't enough to grab your attention, then it would be foolhardy to ignore the judgement of a man, who in addition to being a part of the classic Americana album, <strong>Music From Big Pink</strong>, also served time with Bob Dylan and played an intrical part in the recording of the <strong>Basement Tapes</strong>.<br />Peter Bradley Adams sings with the conviction of a man who has lived, loved and lost. The album's opening track, <em>The Longer I Run</em>, speaks of an man suffering for his art, a man who "breaks his own heart to keep writing these songs". While, <em>Under My Skin</em>, is a paen to a love that transcends the everyday, the kind of love that consumes you whole.<br />Peter Bradley Adams is a modern-day troubadour of the highest order, and <strong>Leavetaking</strong> is an album that will stay with you long after the final note has played.<br /><br />Key Tracks: The Longer I Run, Under My Skin, Always<br /><br />Check Out: http://www.myspace.com/peterbradleyadamsinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-59365449002652853692008-08-21T21:05:00.000-07:002008-08-21T21:47:09.395-07:00Why? - Alopecia (Anticon, 2008)<em>Simeon's Dilemma</em> is one of finest tracks on Why?'s incredibly fine album, <strong>Alopecia</strong>. It also utilizes an interesting spelling of the name 'Simon'; it looks Old Testament. Stranger still, is the little known story of how I came to be made aware of Why?'s music. Not very oddly, my old housemate - an excellent source for quality music - alerted me to the existence of Why?, recommending I give them a listen.<br />My old housemate's name: Simeon (spelt with an 'e').<br />Yet, the story does not stop there, for before I was able to give Why? a listen, I received another email from Simeon. He faced a dilemma brought on by a heady mixture of hard inner-city living, a fondness for the amber ale, life as a part-time student and a full-time connoisseur of only the finest musical delights.<br /><em>Simeon's Dilemma</em><br />Weird... and Why?'s music is a little bit weird too, but in a very cool way. An eclectic melding of inie-guitar-pop-meets-a-little-bit-folkie-meets-ernest-hip-hop-troubadour. When is the NME going to start coming to me for genre descriptions? <br /><strong>Alopecia</strong> is an album unlike anything else your'e likely to hear this year. It is utterly original; a melding of music, words, and mulitple genres in order to create something entirely new. <br />Aside from all of my hype, though, the music is just really good. Listening to this type of music will make you cooler.<br /><br />Key Tracks: The Vowels, Pt. 2; The Hollows; Fatalist Palmistry<br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/whyanticoninhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-189213397395290482008-07-27T10:19:00.000-07:002009-04-05T08:24:22.576-07:00Girl Talk - Feed The Animals (Illegal Art, 2008)Building upon the sampladelic stylings of 2006's much-lauded, <strong>Night Ripper</strong>, Girl Talk (aka Gregg Gillis) has taken his cut-and-paste-on-crack stylings to even greater heights on his latest release, <strong>Feed The Animals</strong>.<br />For music-nerds and dancefloor-fiends the world over, each new Girl Talk release is like some teenage wet-dream: a popping, locking, and dropping trip through modern musical history. Girl Talk's ability to bring seemingly disparate musical genres together is quite astounding; his ability to borrow from a multitude of artists to create something entirely new and original is, quite simply, jaw-droppingly brilliant.<br />To give you some idea of why we are so in awe of Girl Talk's skills, it is reported that in order to create <strong>Feed The Animals</strong>, Gillis managed to squeeze somewhere in the the vicinity of 300 hundred samples into the albums 14 tracks. Yet, it is not simply the number of the samples, but the way in which they are seemelessly interwoven, that reveals the true genius of Girl Talk.<br />Currently our favorite album track, <em>Hands In The Air</em>, blends Tag Team's <em>Whoomp! There It Is</em>, with Big Country's, <em>In A Big Country</em>, with Kraftwerk, and Hot Chip, and Afrikaa Bambastaa, and the Velvet Underground, and Aerosmith, and Michael Jackson, and Genesis, and so on and so forth. Excellent.<br />So, while copyright attorneys the world over breathe a collective sigh of despair, download Feed The Animals for the price you wish to pay, before the physical version hits record stores in September.<br /><br />Check Out: http://www.myspace.com/girltalkinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-48972132129961010712008-07-23T20:31:00.000-07:002008-07-23T20:48:59.597-07:00In(High)Fidelity Giveaway!!! Falcon!!!You need only look below this posting to see what we think of Falcon's very cool debut EP. Now - in conjunction with the Planetary Group - In(High)Fidelity is happy to present you with the opportunity to win a copy of this stunningly assured set of songs.<br /><br />The first two people who send benedmonds@hotmail.com an email, with "Falcon Giveaway Yes Please" in the subject line, will each receive a copy of the EP... Good luck.inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-37291116011261772742008-07-19T10:25:00.000-07:002008-07-19T15:03:49.016-07:00Falcon - Self-Titled EP (Friends Of The American Songbook, 2008)Falcon's debut EP is as good as any that In(High)Fidelity has heard in recent times. Soaring and cinematic, even at is most powerful moments, there is a fragility to Falcon's music that keeps it from floating beyond the stratosphere.<br />Jared Falcon was a song-writing prodigy in the small town of Petaluma, California. Recording over 300 songs onto a Fisher Price tape recorder before finishing high school. To say that Falcon was prolific a prolific writer would be an understatement. Sadly, though, while Falcon was able to translate his view of the world into songs of heartbreaking beauty, he was not able to detach himself from that same heartbreaking world, and, as a result of poor mental health, was never able to properly record his amazing songs.<br />Enter Shannon Ferguson and Neil Rosen, two of Falcon's classmates, who, having relocated to New York City, have paid the ultimate tribute to their troubled comrade, by recording his songs in a manner that does them the justice they deserve.<br />The opening track, <em>The Sandfighter</em>, is a slow-burning gem, that sets the tone of this compelling collection of songs. Comparisons to the likes of Arcade Fire and the National start here - and are well deserved. <br />With five songs recorded for this EP, In(High)Fidelity's mathematics whizz has calculated that their remain... a lot of songs yet to be put to wax (and he didn't even use a calculator). With so many songs yet to be recorded, we can only hope that a full-length Falcom album will follow shortly.<br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/falconmusic<br /><br />Key Tracks: It's only five songs... all of them.inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-41931668176846490022008-07-19T09:19:00.000-07:002008-07-19T10:02:03.078-07:00The Presets - Apocalypso (Modular, 2008)For the benefit of our readers in parts of the world that aren't Australia, I would like to clear something up. Australian rules football is not rugby; it is not soccer; and, it is not American football. It is completely its own sport, and, in my humble opinion, far superior to any of the codes mentioned above.<br />The Richmond Football Club, who are one of the oldest clubs in the Australian Football League, are the team that In(High)Fidelity support; and, in the more than two decades that we have offered them our heart, each season they have retuned it to us just a little bit more broken. It takes a special sort of person to continually support a really crappy team for a really long time... it does strange things to your psyche.<br />At this point I'm sure you're wondering: "The folks at In(High)Fidelity have finally lost their mind", which wouldn't be too far from the truth; however, all of this relates to The Presets.<br />Julian Hamilton, lead-singer and keyboardist of The Presets, also supports Richmond; and so, I immediately feel a bond with him, as all Richmond fans do. What I am trying very poorly to illuminate, is the fact that it is not always music that initially draws us to a particular artist. Perhaps it is the way they look; maybe you like the artwork on their album; maybe you like their name. Whatever it is, go with it.<br />Having been drawn to the Presets for the most bizarre of reasons, I have fallen under their grimy, electronic, dance-rock spell. Apocalypso that feels like it was made for dancefloors the size of stadiums. <br />It also reminds me of 1999 for some reason. This one I can't explain, and in no way do I think the sound the Presets is somehow dated; there are just some songs on the album that remind me of 1999. 1999 was a great year for In(High)Fidelity, so it can only be a good thing. <br />So, in closing, check out the Presets and, as a weird-looking-old-woman-who-should know-when-to-quit once said: Get into the groove.<br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/thepresets<br /><br />Key Tracks: Kicking & Screaming; Yippiyo-Ay; Eucalyptusinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-2383125377712996502008-06-29T13:51:00.000-07:002008-07-04T08:45:16.307-07:00Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer (Sub Pop, 2008)In the three years since Wolf Parade released their debut album, the excellent <strong>Apologies To The Queen Mary</strong>, the members of the band have splintered into numerous side-projects, which, given their quality, almost threatened to over-shadow the achievements of the original group. In fact, with the success of singer/keyboardist, Spencer Krug's Sunset Rubdown, and singer/guitarist, Dan Boeckner's Handome Furs, some began to think that perhaps Wolf Parade had become the side-project.<br />Such concerns were put to rest, however, when the band retreated in 2007 to the Arcade Fire's studio-within-a-church, to record their second album, <strong>At Mount Zoomer</strong> (named for the sound studio owned by Wolf Parader, Arlen Thompson).<br />On their new album Wolf Parade continue the sonically adventurous journey they began on <strong>Apologies To The Queen Mary</strong>, with nine tracks that twist-and-shake between the upbeat keyboard driven pop of <em>Soldiers Grin</em> to the more pensive <em>Call It A Ritual</em> and the psychedelic freak-out of <em>California Dreamer.</em><br />As with their first album, the lyrical content of <em>At Mount Zoomer</em> is delivered with a heavy dose of the cryptic. If you are looking for a straight up boy-meets-girl/boy-loses-girl/boy-has-a-heavy-heart song; you are unlikely to find it on this album. <br />While a good deal of modern music is bland to the point of despair, Wolf Parade paint their music (and their album artwork) with a wash of vibrant and exciting colors. Here at In(High)Fidelity, Wolf Parade hold a special place in our heart - you should buy their album. <br /><br />Key Tracks: Soldiers Grin, California Dreamer, Fine Young Cannibals, Kissing The Beehive.<br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/wolfparadeinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-15569231049933814922008-06-14T11:00:00.000-07:002008-06-29T14:40:18.176-07:00The Dodos - Visiter (Frenchkiss Records, 2008)There is a great scene in one of The Simpsons' Halloween specials, in which Mr. Burns is secrectly Count Dracula. When Lisa tries to tell Homer that Burns is a vampire, Homer laughingly retorts: "Oh Lisa, Vampires don't exist. They're make believe... just like elves and eskimos." That line always makes me laugh. <br />Sadly, the Dodo bird no longer exists. According to my research, the dodo bird was a flightless bird that lived on the island of Mauritius and has been extinct since the mid-to-late 17th Century. There is nothing funny about animals becoming extinct. <br />Somehow, in my mind, this all ties into the fact that the Dodos, a very cool two-piece band from the San Francisco area are not only existing, but thriving in a time when each week seems to bring new reports of the extinction of the music industry as a whole. <br />The truth of the matter is, people have always, and will always, need to hear and play music. It is a part of who we are: even when we are sleeping, our hearts are still keeping time. More importantly, as long as group's such as the Dodos continue to consturct albums as enjoyable as <strong>Visiter</strong>, music will remain a vital component of our culture.<br /><strong>Visiter</strong>, for the most part is a mellow, folky affair. Intricate compositions - ruminations on love, loss and life in general - disguised as simple pop songs, in the way that all great pop songs have been since the earliest days of the Brill Building writers. <br />Using the simplest of tools - a guitar, some very impressive drumming, a litte bit of banjo - the Dodos have created an excellent album that will no doubt fly under the radar of the general public (as all great art seems to), however, flying at all is a pretty impressive feat for a flightless bird.<br /> <br />Key Tracks: walking, ashley, undeclared, god?<br /> <br />Check Out: http://www.myspace.com/thedodosinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-16832065169053793622008-06-14T09:53:00.000-07:002008-06-14T10:45:53.644-07:00Fuck Buttons - Street Horrrsing (ATP Recordings, 2008)Firstly, members of my family have been known to read this blog, so I would like to apologize in advance for the use of profanity in this piece. However, there is really no way around it when you're writing about a band called Fuck Buttons.<br />In my opinion, if you decide to call your band Fuck Buttons - an obviously provacative moniker - your music should be loud, weird and obnoxious. If the newly reformed New Kids On The Block changed their name to The Shit Eaters and were still spewing out tracks like <em>Hanging Tough</em> and <em>The Right Stuff</em>, it just wouldn't be right (Editors Note: <em>NKOTB's music does eat shit, so it may be right</em>). Luckily, Fuck Buttons' music <strong>is</strong> loud, weird and obnoxious (in the best possible way).<br />My trusted friend, Mr. Martin, turned me on to Fuck Buttons a few weeks ago, and I have been listening to them solidly ever since. As he told me, they are all "weirdo atmospherics and screamo vocals", the music is dense, often dark, and utterly compelling.<br />Building tracks such as <em>Sweet Love For Planet Earth</em>, and the amazing <em>Race You To My Bedroom/Spirit Rise</em>, with a mulititude of electronic textures, tribal-like drumming, and vocals that sound like they have been recorded in a cement mixer, Fuck Buttons create walls of sound that must be listened to at high volume (tinnitus be damned!). <br />If Sigur Ros are the house band in heaven, then Fuck Buttons are keeping the masses dancing down in hell. <br /><br />Key Tracks: Sweet Love For Planet Earth, Okay Let's Talk About Music, Race You To My Bedroom/Spirit Rise.<br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/fuckbuttonsinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-47583721631482641212008-05-31T09:28:00.000-07:002008-05-31T10:16:09.519-07:00Leopold and his Fiction - Self-Titled (Native Fiction Records, 2006)I am somehwat behind the curve in discovering Leopold and his Fiction - a group whose sound, much like their name, belies the fact that there are only two people in the band (Editor's note: <em>As with gangs, a band of two is the smallest band possible</em>). <br />Leopold and his Fiction's music is a very cool blend of country and blues inflected rock'n'roll, that harks back to a time when life was a little bit simpler, though no less hard. The opening track, <em>She Ain't Got Time</em>, is a thick slice of Nuggets-era garage rock, while <em>Shakey Mama Blues</em> sounds something like the Strokes crossed with a heavy dose of Robert Johnson and Howlin' Wolf.<br /><em>Be Still</em> refines the bands sonic attack somewhat, allowing the strength of the songwriting to shine through, while <em>Miss Manipulation</em>, with its plaintive slide guitar and melancholy feel, is a quiet case study on how members of the fairer sex are able to bend we mortal males to their will.<br />Leopold and his Fiction have not set out to re-invent the wheel with this, their debut album. They have, however, filtered generations of American music through guitar, drums, and microphone into a sound that is all their own; and a mighty fine sound at that.<br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/leopoldandhisfictioninhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-850714114462069072008-05-10T09:55:00.000-07:002008-05-10T10:34:01.617-07:00Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple (Downtown Music, 2008)For a good part of 2006, no matter how hard you tried, it was difficult to make it through the day without hearing Gnarls Barkley's upbeat-musings on mental well-being, or lack thereof, in the shape of their hit-song <em>Crazy</em>. It was unlike any other music of the time; it was, and still is, an amazing song and deserved all of the hype it received. <br />I bought the group's first album, <strong>St. Elsewhere</strong>, on the strength of <em>Crazy</em>, and while it had its moments, I was disappointed by the album as a whole. Don't get me wrong - the pairing of Danger Mouse (note: if you need to be told who Danger Mouse is, you have been living under a rock for the past five years) and Cee-Lo Green had its moments of brilliance, however, there was just too much filler on the album.<br />As a result, I was reluctant to purchase the duo's latest album, The Odd Couple. Following the phenomenom that was <em>Crazy</em>, the hype surrounding the new album has been minimal; and while many bands suffer from a sophomore slump with their second album, Gnarls Barkley have gone above and beyond anything they have done previosuly.<br />The album's second track, <em>Who's Gonna Save My Soul</em>, is sublime, rueful and amazing. It has the feel of a classic soul track, re-invented for a time rife with post-millenial tension. As soon as I heard it, I rushed out and bought the album. <br />Cee-Lo Green once again delves into the darker regions of his psyche, his crooning equal parts mournful and menace; Danger Mouse's production work equals anything he has done thus far. With <em>Crazy</em>, Gnarls Barkley established themselves as a great singles group; with <strong>The Odd Couple</strong>, they have establsihed themselves as a group capable of creating entire albums brimming with imagination, creativity and soul. Very cool.<br /><br />Key Tracks: Who's Gonna Save My Soul, Run (I'm A Natural Disaster), Would Be Killer<br /><br />Check Out: http://www.myspace.com/gnarlsbarkleyinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-12113015740463265052008-05-03T08:49:00.000-07:002008-05-04T18:29:00.109-07:00The Whigs - Mission Control (ATO, 2008)In 1955, riots broke out in cinemas across Britain during the screening of a film titled "Blackboard Jungle", in which rock'n'roll outlaws, Bill Haley & The Comets, played their soon-to-be hit, <em>Rock Around The Clock</em>. Rock'n'roll was still in its infant stages, and it seems it was all too much for the people to bare, though in those days, dancing in the aisles would have been considered rioting.<br />Some years later, a wise philosopher was prone to saying, "I know, it's only rock'n'roll, but I like it." And, later still, a young preacher from Western Australia implored: "Let there be light, let there be sound, let there be drums, let there be guitars. LET THERE BE ROCK!" <br />Luckily, The Whigs have followed the call of their forefathers, and, with their latest album, <strong>Mission Control</strong>, have unleashed eleven songs of unbridled rock'n'roll upon an unsuspecting world. In their music, you can hear the swagger of Australia's You Am I, the pop sensibility of Britain's Doves, and the southern-rock inflection of America's My Morning Jacket. <br />Album opener, <em>Like A Vibration</em>, and the awesome, <em>Right Hand On My Heart</em>, are smoking-hot, and while the band aptly display their tender side on tracks such as <em>I Never Want To Go Home</em> and <em>1000 Wives</em>, they truly shine when their amps are turned up to eleven. With so much rock goodnes on offer, The Whigs need to be heard.<br /><br />Key Tracks: Right Hand On My Heart, I Never Want To Go Home, Like A Vibration <br /><br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/thewhigsinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-62106704667371436622008-04-19T10:41:00.000-07:002008-04-20T11:30:52.808-07:00Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles (Last Gang Records, 2008)Remember when you were young and liked to dance? When clubs were crowded with glow-stick waving, jaw-grinding youth; and the music was uplifting to the point of euphoria? Well, those days are gone, my friends. Enter Crystal Castles.<br />Crystal Castles are the greasers of today's electronica scene: all leather jackets and torn jeans, more likely to be carrying switch-blades than glow-sticks. Ethan Kath is responsible for the duo's music, while Alice Glass shouts/pouts/sings her vocals over a sound that is a melange of gritty electronica and digital beeps, bips and squeals. Glass, at times, reminds one of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O, albeit an angrier, feistier Karen O. The track, <em>Love and Caring</em>, feels like a short hug, followed by a swift slap to the face.<br />With tracks like <em>Untrust Us, 1991 </em>and <em>Vanished</em>, Crystal Castles' music is dancefloor ready, though their mission appears to be making music for the dark side of the dance floor. A point perhaps best exemplified through their collaboration with Los Angeles' own avant noise-makers HEALTH, on the punchy track <em>Crimewave</em>. Very cool. <br /> <br />Key Tracks: Vanished, Crimewave, Love and Caring, 1991<br /> <br />Check Out: www.myspace.com/crystalcastlesinhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-62019103616217080122008-04-17T21:06:00.000-07:002008-04-20T11:47:13.773-07:00National Record Store Day - April 19thApril 19th is National Record Store Day here in the U.S., and I don't see any reason why it can't be International Record Store Day across the globe. Turn off your computer, put your Ipod in a drawer, get in your car and drive to your local record store.<br />Record stores are home to all types of good folk, miscreants, hipsters, vinyl junkies, confused teenagers, old peope in tie-dyed shirts, and, of course, your faithful scribe, who has been at least two of the above at one point or another in his short lifetime.inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8557312899869654426.post-8237504044900902552008-04-03T16:01:00.000-07:002008-04-03T16:36:30.401-07:00Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala (Secretly Canadian, 2007)I was at school in 1995, when I noticed that someone had scrawled "I hate myself and want to die" across the desk I happened to be seated at. In the spirit of sharing, I don't mind telling you that I had my fair share of angst throughout my teen years (that's the whole point of being a teenager, isn't it?), however, I was taken aback by the sight of those seven words. I was genuinely concerned for whomever had written them and hoped they were simply venting in the odd way that teenagers tend to do, rather than harboring any genuine ideas of self-harm. I'm not sure how much later it was that I discovered that it was Kurt Cobain, Mr. Angst himself, who had made the phrase "I hate myself and want to die" (in)famous. <br />Life can be hard, hearts can be broken, and people can be cruel. I argue, however, that it would have been far more constructive if Kurt had have said "I hate myself and need a hug". Which, brings me to Jens Lekman's wonderful <strong>Night Falls Over Kortedala</strong>: an album that is the musical equivalent of the hug you need when life has used you as its own personal doormat. <br />Jens is a pop-classicist of the highest order and each of the album's 12 songs is catchier than the next. He is also a highly talented lyricist, which is best exemplified on <em>A Postcard To Nina</em>, in which he is asked to pose as his lesbian friend's boyfriend at a family gathering.<br />Incorporating doo-wop, sock-hop and pop orchestration that would do Hal David and Burt Bacharch proud, <strong>Night Falls Over Kortedala</strong> is an album that will pick you up, dust you off, and send you back out on your way.<br /><br />Key Tracks: And I Remeber Every Kiss; The Opposite Of Hallelujah; A Postcard To Nina; Your Arms Around Me<br /><br />Check Out: http://www.secretlycanadian.com/onesheet.php?cat=SC160inhighfidelityhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09614891518185782947noreply@blogger.com