In 2002, my wife (who was my girlfriend at the time) and I went on a brief vacation to New York. As part of our attempt to get as full of a “New York City experience” as possible, we visited some of the major art galleries in the city. One of them (which I think was the Whitney, but I can’t say for sure) featured a sonic installation; a local artist had recorded a bunch of sounds from the roof of his Brooklyn apartment building, and then stitched them together to create a sonic collage. The end result was a bizarre, fascinating experience to listen to.
This brings us, in a very roundabout way, to Patrick Watson. Watson’s not from Brooklyn, nor does he create avant-garde sound collages, but listening to his album Wooden Arms created the same feeling in me that I had in that New York art gallery: the feeling of being surrounded by a meticulously organized soundscape.
“Soundscape” is one of those words that gets misused a lot, I think, but it’s one that definitely belongs to this album – listening to it creates a sense of an organic, lush surrounding that is sort of happening around you as you’re listening to it. As a result, there’s not a lot of stand-out singles on the album (except for the tracks Beijing and the title track), but that’s not really what it’s trying to be, so you can’t really judge the album by taking a song at random and listening to it – you need to get the full context of the album in order to get a feel for what’s going on.
One of the interesting things about reviews albums like these Polaris nominees is that it really drives home the question of what makes for a good album – is it a collection of good songs, or is it something that needs to exist as a narrative, cohesive whole? You arguably get a more artistic experience from the full-album approach, but it makes it harder for someone not familiar with an artist to try them out. That lack of accessibility can be a big barrier in today’s mp3 driven world, but it’s nice to know that there’s people out there still making albums like this one.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Gary's Patrick Watson Review
You know those grey, rainy Sundays you spend inside, maybe curled up with a blanket and a magazine? Perhaps you're feeling a tiny bit maudlin or a little contemplative and looking for a soundtrack that reflects your mood. This is the ideal morning for Patrick Watson's Wooden Arms. It's a haunting, comfortable and vaguely hopeful collection of songs - that satiate all the feelings you crave on those reflective and overcast days. Grab a mug of hot coffee, put your feet up and leaf through the newspaper while Wooden Arms unravels in the background.
This feels less like an album of songs and more like a fragile and beautifully crafted antique - as intricate as a ship in a bottle. You're almost afraid that listening too often could snap any one of these delicate songs in half, but that's sort of the great part about it. You're experiencing music with an old soul, and yet never once sounding like a throw-back to another time. It is wholly unique, something almost unachievable in this day and age.
Watson has the uncanny ability to instantly transport you to wherever his mind happens to be. With an amazing accuracy, he paints a musical picture that bounces from the swirling, eddying currents of Tracey's Waters, to the hurried, hustle of Beijing - capturing exactly what you would expect from the hectic city itself, weaving in and out through imagined people.
Granted the loud/soft dynamic of the album is sparse. Watson seems content with his quiet, subdued sound (something I lambasted the Great Lake Swimmers for). And while there's no question he achieves an intimacy with his songs GLS could only dream of, it would have been nice to hear a bit more range. Perhaps that would have taken away from the slightly twisted movie-soundtrack aesthetic he so deftly builds (David Lynch would be inspired).
I liked this album and I think it has a succinct quality that makes it perfect for closing out this blog. Watson is a supremely talented musician as witnessed by his 2007 Polaris win. But I think this makes him a definite underdog to repeat less than two years later. It does however say a hell of a lot about the care and passion he pours into his art, and should he produce an album like this every two years, I wouldn't begrudge the selection committee for nominating him again.
This feels less like an album of songs and more like a fragile and beautifully crafted antique - as intricate as a ship in a bottle. You're almost afraid that listening too often could snap any one of these delicate songs in half, but that's sort of the great part about it. You're experiencing music with an old soul, and yet never once sounding like a throw-back to another time. It is wholly unique, something almost unachievable in this day and age.
Watson has the uncanny ability to instantly transport you to wherever his mind happens to be. With an amazing accuracy, he paints a musical picture that bounces from the swirling, eddying currents of Tracey's Waters, to the hurried, hustle of Beijing - capturing exactly what you would expect from the hectic city itself, weaving in and out through imagined people.
Granted the loud/soft dynamic of the album is sparse. Watson seems content with his quiet, subdued sound (something I lambasted the Great Lake Swimmers for). And while there's no question he achieves an intimacy with his songs GLS could only dream of, it would have been nice to hear a bit more range. Perhaps that would have taken away from the slightly twisted movie-soundtrack aesthetic he so deftly builds (David Lynch would be inspired).
I liked this album and I think it has a succinct quality that makes it perfect for closing out this blog. Watson is a supremely talented musician as witnessed by his 2007 Polaris win. But I think this makes him a definite underdog to repeat less than two years later. It does however say a hell of a lot about the care and passion he pours into his art, and should he produce an album like this every two years, I wouldn't begrudge the selection committee for nominating him again.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Dave's Metric Review - VERY VERY LATE
What’s really left to be said about Metric’s “Fantasies”? It’s obvious that all three of us writer types on here like this record and for generally the same reasons. So I could go on here and repeat Gary and Ryan’s points, but then I’d be cheapening the experience for you the reader. Something Metric hasn’t done with this album
Ryan’s right – this album should be handed out on day one of indie song writing school. Gary’s right – Emily Haines’ voice is such a distinctive element, it provides an identity that other bands work years to establish. For me what this album does so well, and consciously, is change it’s mood and create atmosphere and really paint vivid pictures of the themes.
Chord progressions within songs, echoes on snares, and vocal effects all synced together perfectly travel me to a time and place that I’ve only dreamt of – a fantasy land if you allow me to point out the obvious. These subtle, yet monumental, musical shifts within songs, and from song to song give the album a very distinctive atmosphere, which in turn creates worlds for the lyrics to tell the stories in. These are songs for a movie that hasn’t been made yet – the movie we all see ourselves in.
To top it off, there is something for everybody on this album. The band moves itself forward with progressive songwriting, and acknowledges music’s past with their radio hit “Gimme Sympathy”. As far as “cool kid” bands go, I think Metric has finally gotten over themselves in that aspect, or rather a certain clique of the press has gotten over them as the “cool kids’ and they are freer to be who they actually are as a band. Which for everyone is way better – because they are allowed to be better.
If you haven’t already, put this album on and let it run. Don’t sit and listen and ponder the meaning of it – that is not where this album will hit you. It will hit you while you are emptying your dishwasher or barbecuing with friends, or hanging out with your lover. Metric sounds like it matters to people, and it brings people together because it provides a comfortable back ground for good times to happen. Let it ride and enjoy it wherever you need a good song – this one is full of them.
Ryan’s right – this album should be handed out on day one of indie song writing school. Gary’s right – Emily Haines’ voice is such a distinctive element, it provides an identity that other bands work years to establish. For me what this album does so well, and consciously, is change it’s mood and create atmosphere and really paint vivid pictures of the themes.
Chord progressions within songs, echoes on snares, and vocal effects all synced together perfectly travel me to a time and place that I’ve only dreamt of – a fantasy land if you allow me to point out the obvious. These subtle, yet monumental, musical shifts within songs, and from song to song give the album a very distinctive atmosphere, which in turn creates worlds for the lyrics to tell the stories in. These are songs for a movie that hasn’t been made yet – the movie we all see ourselves in.
To top it off, there is something for everybody on this album. The band moves itself forward with progressive songwriting, and acknowledges music’s past with their radio hit “Gimme Sympathy”. As far as “cool kid” bands go, I think Metric has finally gotten over themselves in that aspect, or rather a certain clique of the press has gotten over them as the “cool kids’ and they are freer to be who they actually are as a band. Which for everyone is way better – because they are allowed to be better.
If you haven’t already, put this album on and let it run. Don’t sit and listen and ponder the meaning of it – that is not where this album will hit you. It will hit you while you are emptying your dishwasher or barbecuing with friends, or hanging out with your lover. Metric sounds like it matters to people, and it brings people together because it provides a comfortable back ground for good times to happen. Let it ride and enjoy it wherever you need a good song – this one is full of them.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Gary's Metric Review
I feel a little strange reviewing this album. Back in March Dave and I spent a full week praising this album and listening to it relentlessly. You can almost hear us bickering - "I like it more." "No, I like it more!"
But schoolgirl antics aside, we had every reason to praise this album. Of the 10 Polaris albums it might be the most lush, well thought-out and well produced of the bunch. With Fantasies we find Metric at their creative apex to date, producing some of their finest work musically and lyrically.
That said, there's nothing that "speaks to me" about this album. It doesn't move me, make me think or provoke any other emotional response - it's just a really great album that's enjoyable to listen to. It's fun, danceable indie-rock that has virtually no controversy surrounding it or insight to impart, which is fine. Not every album has to touch that intellectual place or save some 17 year-old from a "dark time," (that's what MySpace is for). It's enough to create fantastic music and be done with it.
But I feel obliged to pass along something to you - dear reader - so I'll forage for a few musical nuggets to review. Like the fact that from the opening lines of the album you get the sense that singer Emily Haines is willing to put it all out there, bearing her soul no matter what the consequences:
"I tremble...they're going to eat me alive,"
Haines has one of those distinctive, Stevie Nicks type voices that sets her apart from the other girl-band singers. You can hear it anywhere (like buried in Broken Social Scene song), and know exactly who's singing. But now you can say the same thing about her lyrics. There's a familiarity these days in her words which are all told from the first person and are pretty intimate to boot. She seems more inclined than on previous albums to talk about herself without any deep metaphors or hazy allegories. Although she does still love a good turn of phrase.
As I said it's clear the band has stepped up its game on this album to produce something special (musically at least). And like Ryan pointed out in his post, this is just the type of album that throws a band from indie-darling to Billboard Top 40 material and appearances on Regis and Kelly. Some bands can handle that exposure and still create poignant, artistic music while others fall all over themselves to churn out more crowd pleasing milquetoast (Coldplay, I'm looking at you).
A band I've been into for many years recently jumped into the same sort of spotlight and I'm finding it harder and harder to listen to them when they seem so common place now. That special feeling of being one of only a few fans to appreciate them evaporates and suddenly the music doesn't sound quite as sweet. And so it's a special band that can achieve mainstream popularity and still hold on to their original fans.
I'm desperately hoping Metric knows that magic formula because I think they're going to need it.
But schoolgirl antics aside, we had every reason to praise this album. Of the 10 Polaris albums it might be the most lush, well thought-out and well produced of the bunch. With Fantasies we find Metric at their creative apex to date, producing some of their finest work musically and lyrically.
That said, there's nothing that "speaks to me" about this album. It doesn't move me, make me think or provoke any other emotional response - it's just a really great album that's enjoyable to listen to. It's fun, danceable indie-rock that has virtually no controversy surrounding it or insight to impart, which is fine. Not every album has to touch that intellectual place or save some 17 year-old from a "dark time," (that's what MySpace is for). It's enough to create fantastic music and be done with it.
But I feel obliged to pass along something to you - dear reader - so I'll forage for a few musical nuggets to review. Like the fact that from the opening lines of the album you get the sense that singer Emily Haines is willing to put it all out there, bearing her soul no matter what the consequences:
"I tremble...they're going to eat me alive,"
Haines has one of those distinctive, Stevie Nicks type voices that sets her apart from the other girl-band singers. You can hear it anywhere (like buried in Broken Social Scene song), and know exactly who's singing. But now you can say the same thing about her lyrics. There's a familiarity these days in her words which are all told from the first person and are pretty intimate to boot. She seems more inclined than on previous albums to talk about herself without any deep metaphors or hazy allegories. Although she does still love a good turn of phrase.
As I said it's clear the band has stepped up its game on this album to produce something special (musically at least). And like Ryan pointed out in his post, this is just the type of album that throws a band from indie-darling to Billboard Top 40 material and appearances on Regis and Kelly. Some bands can handle that exposure and still create poignant, artistic music while others fall all over themselves to churn out more crowd pleasing milquetoast (Coldplay, I'm looking at you).
A band I've been into for many years recently jumped into the same sort of spotlight and I'm finding it harder and harder to listen to them when they seem so common place now. That special feeling of being one of only a few fans to appreciate them evaporates and suddenly the music doesn't sound quite as sweet. And so it's a special band that can achieve mainstream popularity and still hold on to their original fans.
I'm desperately hoping Metric knows that magic formula because I think they're going to need it.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Ryan's Metric Review
There are some albums that we've been looking at over the past weeks that took a while to grow on me; I didn't particularly care for them on first listen, but the more I listened to them the more I dug them. That wasn't the case with Metric's Fantasies – I liked it right from the first listen, and subsequent listens have only served to deepen that love. I hadn't been expecting that, because I hadn't really cared for the Metric album previous to this one, Live It Out, or for lead singer Emily Haines' solo work that followed it; this album, though, really stand out as above and beyond the band's previous work.
Fantasies is one of those albums that attempts to be a lot of different things to different people, but unlike a lot of albums that attempt to do that, this one actually accomplishes what it sets out to do. It is simultaneously a fun, poppy record you can dance to, a lyrically complex indie rock record, and a reflection on the costs of becoming famous (in a vein similar to a record like Nirvana's In Utero album). Despite those different directions that the album's going in, it never feels like it loses its way at all, and manages to layer those different versions of itself into one nice little musical lasagna.
I know it might sound like I'm over-selling this, but Fantasies manages to do all this so well that it should be handed out on the first day of indie rock songwriting school. I've heard so many albums over the years that have tried to do what this album does, and does it in a way that makes it seem effortless.
Take, for example, a song like “Gimme Sympathy” (if you've been near a rock radio station anywhere in the country this year, there's a good chance you're already familiar with this one). This song is a textbook example of how to integrate a philosophical argument into a pop song, placing it within an easily understood metaphor (by asking “Who would you rather be, the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?”) and then giving equal credence to both sides (Haines sings “play me something like Here Comes the Sun”, but the song's title could be seen as a mashup of Gimme Shelter and Sympathy for the Devil) and ultimately letting the listener decide for themselves, rather than trying to get didactic in the bridge. The song serves as a good reminder that you can be deep while still being danceable, something that a lot of indie rock artists would do well to remember.
This isn't just one of the best albums to come out this year; it's one that is most likely going to catapult Metric fully into the mainstream, and will probably be talked about by music fans for years to come.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Dave's Great Lake Swimmer Review
I’m gonna be brutally honest here. I could only listen to this album once through top to bottom. It’s not because it’s completely un-listenable, although it is challenging to listen to, it’s because it doesn’t want to be listened to again and again. It’s an album that is for writers of music, not listeners of music.
It’s slow and it plods along meandering around itself, paying attention to the nuances that only a songwriter or musician would notice. It’s good, for those in the know. The same way I love “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip”, or any other TV show about TV shows, I get it because that is what I do. I found if you don’t make music, you have a hard time getting this album.
That is another reason I couldn’t get through this album more than once – my job. This week, and sad to say next week, my career is all encompassing, 18 hours a day. When I’m done, I’m exhausted and my mind races; full of schedules and budget concerns, “Lost Channels” is not the album that helps me escape that. In fact it amplifies it, creating a paranoia in me, where I feel in adequate at my job, in my relationship, and in life in general. I don’t need that. This album does not attract me at this time.
When I was at a wedding this week Erik Arnesen was there, playing music for his friends (Bride and Groom), he played perfect banjo, his voice was pitch perfect, it was moving for everyone there. He’s a talented performer, he’s a gifted songwriter, and he knows the craft he’s chosen in life. But “Lost Channels” is just that – lost.
It’s slow and it plods along meandering around itself, paying attention to the nuances that only a songwriter or musician would notice. It’s good, for those in the know. The same way I love “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip”, or any other TV show about TV shows, I get it because that is what I do. I found if you don’t make music, you have a hard time getting this album.
That is another reason I couldn’t get through this album more than once – my job. This week, and sad to say next week, my career is all encompassing, 18 hours a day. When I’m done, I’m exhausted and my mind races; full of schedules and budget concerns, “Lost Channels” is not the album that helps me escape that. In fact it amplifies it, creating a paranoia in me, where I feel in adequate at my job, in my relationship, and in life in general. I don’t need that. This album does not attract me at this time.
When I was at a wedding this week Erik Arnesen was there, playing music for his friends (Bride and Groom), he played perfect banjo, his voice was pitch perfect, it was moving for everyone there. He’s a talented performer, he’s a gifted songwriter, and he knows the craft he’s chosen in life. But “Lost Channels” is just that – lost.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Ryan's Great Lake Swimmers review
Lost Channels by Great Lakes Swimmers is a contemplative, melodic, subtle album that features musical and lyrical complexity and a host of talented musicians (both the band members themselves and special guests who sit in a a few tracks). This is, on paper, exactly the kind of album that I should really dig. And yet, with the exception of a single song (Still), I can't say that I really enjoyed listening to it at all. It's just a boring album.
It feels a little shallow to say that. Music is entertainment but, at the same time, it's art, right? And when you're appreciating a piece of art, you're not “supposed” to judge it on the level of entertainment, but rather on how effectively the artist conveys their message through their art, and how technically proficient they are in the creation of the art, of the themes and symbolism found within it, and that sort of thing. It's considered unseemly, in some circles, to even talk about whether or not you enjoyed an album, because that's an inherently subjective and fundamentally biased aspect of the album.
And yet, here we are. The problem with not thinking about the entertainment value of an album is that, if there's no entertainment there, your audience isn't going to keep paying attention long enough to get to the deep, artistic elements of the album; they'll have given up on you long before then. That was my experience with Lost Channels: I'm sure that, given enough time and enough listens, I'd be able to find something that I appreciated about the album, but I don't think it's worth the effort it would take to get through the boredom.
It feels a little shallow to say that. Music is entertainment but, at the same time, it's art, right? And when you're appreciating a piece of art, you're not “supposed” to judge it on the level of entertainment, but rather on how effectively the artist conveys their message through their art, and how technically proficient they are in the creation of the art, of the themes and symbolism found within it, and that sort of thing. It's considered unseemly, in some circles, to even talk about whether or not you enjoyed an album, because that's an inherently subjective and fundamentally biased aspect of the album.
And yet, here we are. The problem with not thinking about the entertainment value of an album is that, if there's no entertainment there, your audience isn't going to keep paying attention long enough to get to the deep, artistic elements of the album; they'll have given up on you long before then. That was my experience with Lost Channels: I'm sure that, given enough time and enough listens, I'd be able to find something that I appreciated about the album, but I don't think it's worth the effort it would take to get through the boredom.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Gary's Great Lake Swimmer's Review
I had a look at the long list of Polaris prize nominees a while back and was a little disappointed that some of my favourite albums this year didn't make the shortlist. The Stills return to form, k-os' amazing album Yes, and others were all passed over for the ten we've been profiling here. I was prepared to give the selection team the benefit of the doubt and give these albums a chance. I came in with an open mind and allot each album its due diligence.
Then came the Great Lake Swimmers.
I had big expectations from this band having liked the few tracks I’d heard up until now. But I’m beginning to think they’re best enjoyed in minimal doses. The shorter your listening time the less likely you are to be lulled to sleep by the boring and repetitive nature of the music. Thus saving yourself from a potential accident while listening in your car or traveling on the subway.
You start to assume the words “fun” and “hope” don’t get tossed around at band practice a lot. And you might have called the music depressing if wasn’t so hollow and devoid of emotion. Truthfully there’s nothing terribly organic or soulful going on here – just the musical equivalent of colour-by-numbers: Chorus goes here; bridge goes there; graceful fade-out starts now.
To be perfectly honest, this sounds like a record made by robots whose attempt at human emotion and feeling have fallen woefully short. But where robots have their artifice to blame, I’m still struggling to figure out what GLS’s excuse is.
Every song seems to be the same middling tempo and recorded at the same maddening whisper like they were trying not to wake the baby in the room (which they probably want you to think is a remote cabin in the woods somewhere). There are nods to a few folk-crooners like Bon Iver and Ray Lamontagne, but only in the most cursory ways and never ever approximating the sense intimacy and awe from either.
Everyone assumes that middle of the road music sounds like everything else on the radio, giving it a safe and hassle-free sound. But the truth is middle of the road music is anything that doesn’t challenge you, make you think and elicits something other than apathy. Sonically, Lost Channels is Dramamine for the ears and like your old college lectures dares you to stay conscious. The song title "She comes to me in Dreams" becomes wildly appropriate considering the narcolepsy inducing music it rides in on.
I brought up the long list of Polaris Prize nominees because I strongly believe there were albums that were far more deserving than this one that never made it this far. In this process I haven’t loved every album but I’ve always given props to the selection committee for music I could at least tell was filled with heart and devotion. If there was anything resembling those emotions on Lost Channels I sure as shit didn’t find it.
Then came the Great Lake Swimmers.
I had big expectations from this band having liked the few tracks I’d heard up until now. But I’m beginning to think they’re best enjoyed in minimal doses. The shorter your listening time the less likely you are to be lulled to sleep by the boring and repetitive nature of the music. Thus saving yourself from a potential accident while listening in your car or traveling on the subway.
You start to assume the words “fun” and “hope” don’t get tossed around at band practice a lot. And you might have called the music depressing if wasn’t so hollow and devoid of emotion. Truthfully there’s nothing terribly organic or soulful going on here – just the musical equivalent of colour-by-numbers: Chorus goes here; bridge goes there; graceful fade-out starts now.
To be perfectly honest, this sounds like a record made by robots whose attempt at human emotion and feeling have fallen woefully short. But where robots have their artifice to blame, I’m still struggling to figure out what GLS’s excuse is.
Every song seems to be the same middling tempo and recorded at the same maddening whisper like they were trying not to wake the baby in the room (which they probably want you to think is a remote cabin in the woods somewhere). There are nods to a few folk-crooners like Bon Iver and Ray Lamontagne, but only in the most cursory ways and never ever approximating the sense intimacy and awe from either.
Everyone assumes that middle of the road music sounds like everything else on the radio, giving it a safe and hassle-free sound. But the truth is middle of the road music is anything that doesn’t challenge you, make you think and elicits something other than apathy. Sonically, Lost Channels is Dramamine for the ears and like your old college lectures dares you to stay conscious. The song title "She comes to me in Dreams" becomes wildly appropriate considering the narcolepsy inducing music it rides in on.
I brought up the long list of Polaris Prize nominees because I strongly believe there were albums that were far more deserving than this one that never made it this far. In this process I haven’t loved every album but I’ve always given props to the selection committee for music I could at least tell was filled with heart and devotion. If there was anything resembling those emotions on Lost Channels I sure as shit didn’t find it.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Album #8 - Great Lake Swimmers
Artist: Great Lake SwimmersAlbum: Lost Channels
From: Wainfleet/Toronto, On
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