Make Me Armored

So what's in The Scourge of the Sea's album Make Me Armored? Well, to answer that question, each of you must first look within yourse-- err, nevermind.

I'll make it short today, I'm not feeling very intelligent. Listen to The Scourge of the Sea's Make Me Armored now for fun and profit. Buy it too.

MP3s:

The Scourge of the Sea - Out of the Trash
The Scourge of the Sea - Goodbye, Darkness

Clark is Intelligent?

IDM. Intelligent Dance Music. It's one of those genre titles that has always bothered me. To me, including the word "intelligent" in the name of the genre is completely pretentious. Intelligent Dance Music, because all the other sorts of dance music aren't intelligent? I doubt it. I have yet to hear an IDM album that anyone could easily dance to. Oh, the irony.

Clark's Body Riddle is a record that many classify as Intelligent Dance Music. If I had known this before I first heard it, I doubt I would have listened to it. It's not that I don't like IDM, it's just that.. it's such a ridiculous name for a genre. At any rate, I did listen to the record. It blew me away.

When I first heard the record, I thought of Ratatat. Both Ratatat and Clark seem to have the same sort of vibe, if you will. A certain shred of similarity. That's not to say Body Riddle is unoriginal, because it is original. Very much so. When I listen to the album, it feels like a sort of analog-electronic combination that is exceedingly aurally pleasing. I couldn't stop listening.

MP3s:
Clark - Herr Bar
Clark - Herzog

Buy:
Clark - Body Riddle

Yoko Kanno -or- Now You Truly See Me

I must confess, I enjoy an occasional Anime from time to time. Ah, Anime; a topic I'm sure anyone reading has already made his or her mind up about. Without getting into the whole Anime issue, I will attempt to post about a soundtrack of an anime I enjoy.

The Cowboy Bebop Original Soundtrack set blends folk, jazz, funk, and a certain science-fiction element that makes for an irresistible combination. In addition to this blend, many other types of music appear in the collection. Indeed, it would be a great task to list all of the different styles. The soundtrack collection (3 OSTs, 1 Best of, 5-cd Limited Edition Box Set with a bonus EP) is extensive. Japanese composer Yoko Kanno displays her extremely eclectic talent throughout the entire collection. There is a great deal of variance from track to track in each OST, and the best part is that nearly all of it is high-quality music.

MP3s:
Yoko Kanno - Space Lion
Yoko Kanno - Forever Broke
Yoko Kanno - Road to the West
Yoko Kanno - See You Space Cowboy
Buy:
OST 1 (including Space Lion)
OST 2 (including Forever Broke)
OST 3 (including Road to the West and See You Space Cowboy)

Making Circles

So I'm a hypocrite. On the very post after my emo-bash-fest (see below), I'm following it up with a borderline indie-emo (does that exist?) band. Emo haters, please don't write this band off before you lend them your ear, even if only for a few seconds.

The Seldon Plan's Making Circles (click for purchase information) is a slow-tempo, pensive listen, almost demanding to be heard from start to finish in one unadulterated chunk. The CD does possess the uncanny ability to make one introspective, though not through angst-ridden lyrics. Their inclusion of a 50s-ish sounding bit of propaganda to students of the time in one of their songs is just one example of the captivating creativity found on this album.

As an added bonus, this band is signed to the internet-only label Magnatune.
This means you can buy the CD guilt-free, knowing that the band will receive half of however much you decide to pay for the album (anywhere from 5 to 20 dollars). I've bought several CDs from them and highly recommend it.

MP3s:

The Seldon Plan - Making Circles
The Seldon Plan - Top Left Corner

I Will Fall Asleep to You

Sometimes I get extraordinarily lonely. I know this is a feeling nearly anyone can relate to; everyone will be alone at some point or other in their life.

Music has always been a great way for me to augment my depression. In my younger years, I would listen to emo whenever I got sick of life. Angsty teenagers and emo seem to go hand in hand. As my taste in music has changed, however, I have found myself shying away from so-called 'emo' music. I won't get into why; nearly all of us have made up our minds one way or the other over that genre of music.

To me, other genres seem to evoke more emotion than emo; bands should not have to write lame angst-ridden lyrics to evoke emotion. In my search for something . . different . . I came across 65daysofstatic. Most classify 65daysofstatic as part of the realm of post-rock. That is, [generally] instrumental music in which instruments traditionally used in rock music are used in unconventional ways.

65daysofstatic imparts a sense of frantic uneasiness. It's what keeps me coming back for more. After hearing the first track on the album I will often sit mesmerized until the album has finished playing. I can't recommend the band enough.



MP3s:

65daysofstatic - Drove Through Ghosts To Get Here
65daysofstatic - Mean Low Water

Hello (and Goodbye As Well) -or- ¡Forward, Russia! Will Indeed Steal Your Heart

This is my first venture into the world of music blogging.

I am an avid reader of many music blogs myself (Gorilla vs. Bear, The Rich Girls Are Weeping, Music (For Robots), and the like), but until recently I had never considered writing about music myself. On a rather strange whim that came over me tonight, however, I decided that I should very much like to try my hand at the art.

Really, I don't have a whole lot going for me to gain any kind of readership. I have no special connections in the music world. Others would probably consider my taste in music only somewhat appealing (see my last.fm profile). Few shows come to my area (Columbia, MO isn't exactly the most kickin' place on earth). Despite all this, however, I have decided that it could not hurt to try.

So, on to the music.

I have decided that I shall call to attention a band that I find exceedingly interesting. ¡Forward, Russia!'s musical style is really rather different than any other band that I've ever heard. The lyrics are cryptic and hard to understand. The songs seem erratic. They use ordinary rock instruments in very unordinary These things add to their unique style. Granted, I am by no means any authority on music, but in my opinion their music is of the most creative I've heard recently.

It is for this reason that I disliked this band when I first heard them. It's true I may not have been really paying much attention the first time I played through their album, "Give Me a Wall." This may be why I did not like it at all. I suspect other factors may have contributed to my initial opinion of their music, though. Human nature seems to belligerently oppose that which it has never before encountered. By the second play the music had grabbed me. Listen to these songs a few times, and maybe they will grab you too.

¡Forward, Russia! - Thirteen
¡Forward, Russia! - Sixteen