Phosphorescent - Here's to Taking it Easy Album Review

Those familiar with the music of Matthew Houck, aka Phosphorescent, won’t be surprised by the title of his first batch of original songs since 2007’s exemplary Pride. They may, however, be thrown slightly off guard by the opening track; a rollicking, horn-led ode to Alabama. But Houck hasn’t completely forsaken the lazy, introspective Americana that earned him comparisons to Will Oldham and Neil Young. It’s more like he’s got half a cheek slouched on the couch, the other attempting a drunken waltz on his porch – case in point: penultimate track, Heaven Sitting Down.

Here's To Taking It Easy is more buoyant than almost anything Houck’s released before, but the highlights occur when he reverts to type, like on the meditative Hej, Me I’m Light and album highlight and closer, Los Angeles. Ultimately, Here's to Taking it Easy struggles for an identity: unsure whether it should embrace the light or slump down into the melodious murk once again.

3/5

Written for The Skinny

National Anthems

From their formative days in Cincinnati to the dizzy heights of Bloodbuzz Ohio, here's a chronological guide to The National's catalogue to date.

The National (2001)

Their self-titled debut rippled the consciousness of few, but for those who heard it, boded well for the Cincinnati outfit. It showcases an Americana influence not revisited substantially on any of the band's successive releases. It’s comparably inconsistent and the lyrics don’t visit the same depths of Berninger’s more recent work, though it boasts promise amongst a few notable tracks.

Choice Cut: Theory of the Crows

Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers (2003)

This excellent second album was the beginning of their fruitful relationship with producer Peter Katis and the first to rubber-stamp The National’s trademark sound. All at once funny, paranoid and self-deprecating, Sad Songs… is perhaps the most immediate album the band have released to date.

Choice Cut: Fashion Coat

Alligator (2005)

The album that brought The National to our attention, Alligator stands up as one of the most intricate, beautiful and compelling indie releases of our time. Matt Berninger’s abstract yet poetic snippets, sometimes screamed, sometimes crooned, are like daggers through the layered, almost symphonic arrangements of his band.

Choice Cut: Daughters of the Soho Riots

Boxer (2007)

We were worried about how they would follow up Alligator, but there really was no need; more restrained, but arguably more musically sophisticated, Boxer is a lavish, self-contained masterpiece. As with most of their work, this one requires patience, but the rewards are bountiful. Boxer’s critical praise was reflected in its commercial success. Having played Nice 'n' Sleazy when they were last in town, suddenly they were selling out the ABC.

Choice Cut: Fake Empire

High Violet (2010)

It seems criminal to attempt an appraisal of High Violet so early, but even after a month in its company, it’s abundantly clear that this is every bit as brilliant as any of its predecessors. The hooks are stronger, arrangements denser and lyrics as elegantly opaque as ever. Once again, The National have seen our expectations and raised them.

Choice Cut: Bloodbuzz Ohio

S&B Spotify Playlist: April 2010

This is the last one of these I'm able to do. Next week I am moving to South Korea for a year. I'm going to be living in Gwangju. Spotify doesn't extend to Korea, but they do have the fastest broadband connection in the world. I think I can get around to learning how to upload mp3s! It's obviously a massive change in every way for me, but one area I hadn't really considered until now is musically. I don't think I'll be doing as much music journalism as I do now. The city is pretty parochial by Korean standards, so I doubt there will be the opportunity to attend many gigs. I guess I'll be reliant on the blogs and websites I read for updates and hints on what to listen to!

The past month has been a really busy one, with organizing my departure, but I have been working my way through some great music. I've been really enjoying the new album by Three Blind Wolves, the new band of Ross Clark. I loved his debut album with The Scarfs Go Missing but I think he's taken it on to another level with this one. The track I've put on the playlist isn't even on the album and it's brilliant - there's real substance to this guy's talent.

I've not seen the movie The Road but I have been listening to the soundtrack. The opening track on this set is a beautiful number. Cave and Ellis seem to be getting better and more productive with age. The other new(ish) tracks are from Caribou, Ali Farka Touré and Tindersticks, all of which I've been loving. Looking at the rest, I can't help but think I've become a little predictable in my listening. Lots of guys with guitars, Americana and twangy guitars. Maybe the coming year is a chance for me to diversify a little. I'll be sure to give an update.

S&B Spotify Playlist April 2010

1. Nick Cave & Warren Ellis - The Road
2. Gillian Welch - Everything is Free
3. Deer Tick - Ashamed
4. Withered Hand _ No Cigarettes
5. Megafaun - Kaufman's Ballad
6. Three Blind Wolves - Sex is for Losers
7. The Mountain Goats - Wild Sage
8. Sun Kil Moon - Carry Me Ohio
9. Kath Bloom - Is This Called Living
10. Tyler Ramsey - Lost Girls
11. David Bazan - Please, Baby, Please
12. Neutral Milk Hotel - Oh, Comely
13. The Jayhawks - Over My Shoulder
14. Delorean - The Biggest Lie
15. R.E.M. - Laughing
16. Whiskeytown - Dancing With The Women At The Bar
17. Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté - Doudou
18. Lightning Dust - Antonia Jane
19. Tindersticks - Harmony Around My Table
20. Band of Horses - Plans (Grizzly Bear Cover)
21. The Lemonheads - Rudderless
22. Okkervil River - Black
23. Calexico - Victor Jara's Hands
24. Caribou - Odessa

My Most Listened to Albums of This Year Are...

1. The National - High Violet
2. Deer Tick - War Elephant
3. Clogs - The Creatures in the Garden Of Lady Walton
4. Galaxie 500 - On Fire
5. Band of Horses - Infinite Arms
6. Phosphorescent - Here's To Taking It Easy
7. Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
8. Townes Van Zandt - Anthology
9. Horse Feathers - Words Are Dead
10. Real Estate - Real Estate

Okay, this is a pretty strange list. I admit, it's also pretty inaccurate. It's aggregated using Last FM and is based on the tracks scrobbled from each album. Thing is, this year I've been listening to a hell of a lot of music on Spotify, not to mention on my mp3 player. Honestly though, The National's new album is undoubtedly the one I've listened to the most. If it were to include everything else, I think you'd find some Jo Newsom, Kath Bloom and David Thomas Broughton.

It would be interesting to hear what other people have been listening to the most?

jj - jj n° 3 Album Review

Last year, Swedish dream-pop outfit jj scored a critical hit with the imaginatively titled n° 2. n° 3 follows quickly on its heels and unsurprisingly treads similar territory. There are breathy, soulful vocals (My Life), sun-kissed rhythms (lead single and album highlight Let Go) and recurring chill-out mantras in abundance; the stoned mood even seeps into the song titles, (see Golden Virginia). jj do what they do very well, meaning you will emerge on the other side feeling relaxed and tranquil. There are hooks aplenty and an infectious number will be ingrained in your psyche for days. But it’s difficult to stay excited about an album this laid back. Occasionally, as on Voi Paralte, Lo Giocco, n° 3 is let down by a lack of vitality and it cries out for direction. The odd injection of adrenaline could easily have elevated this from merely a good record to something far greater.

3/5

Written for The Skinny

The Peryls - I Have Not Slept One Wink EP Review

Average English folksy type fail to capitalise on potential.

I Have Not Slept One Wink is as quintessentially English as pork pies, cricket and red post boxes. It’s quaint, cutesy and whimsical, taking influence from Revolver era Beatles and Bowie circa Hunky Dory. There’s a Dickensian quality to it that Oregonian Anglophiles The Decemberists spent a few years perfecting. The trouble is, The Peryls don’t do it half as well. Of the seven tracks here, four are disposable. It’s a frustrating statistic, as when they get it right, like on the melodious She Cried All Night Long, they reveal bags of potential. Too often, though, they are as tame and forgettable as afternoon tea.

2/5

Written for The Skinny

Clogs - The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton Album Review

Not only would it be unfair to call Clogs a National side project, it’d be inaccurate too, since they predate them and are arguably a larger influence on The National’s music than the other way around. The fifth album by Bryce Dessner and Padma Newsome (he behind their orchestral arrangements), is a wonderful, beautiful brew of neo-classical, chamber pop, Mediaeval folk and post-rock. It’s tempting to sit back and hurl adjectives at it, but few would do it justice. Sure, it’s lavish, but it’s tasteful too. Okay, it’s ornate and opulent, but it certainly isn’t alienating. Woven amongst the guest vocalists (Shara Morden of My Brightest Diamond appears on half the tracks, and Matt Berninger) are subtle touches of woodwind, brushes of percussion and lilting string plucks that continue to reveal themselves, spin after spin. Clogs have produced a veritable masterpiece, an album to immerse yourself and hope to get lost inside.