IMPORTANT NEWS + DOUBLE ALBUM OF THE DAY

This is a long post and its late so i will be quick about it, but theres a lot i have to share.

CC NEWS BULLETIN:
A. If you don't already know, FlyLo has come out with another piece of his black magic to scan a Cosmogramma proof of purchase (be it booklet, cd, vinyl label, whatever) to give you a free download of alt takes from the album. Do it if you bought it. They are awesome (cf attached example). 
Cosmogramma Trigger/// ///Galaxy in Janaki (2008 Version) - Flying Lotus

B. Daedelus has done a mix for International Tapes. I have yet to listen, but the track list is all over the place. If you know Daedelus' live performance, you know that is the best thing you could possibly ask for. Its bound to be epic. 
We All Have Magical Properties Mixtape - Daedelus @ International Tapes (via 92bpm)

C. One of Passion Pit's members has put together a mixtape (released through RCRDLBL) that includes some really good remixes by PP as well as some other very cool tracks that they like (including an awesome remix of Proxy's 8000). Check that out, its free and we love them.
Passion Pit Mixtape @ RCRDLBL


ALBUM(s) OF THE DAY(s)

Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)

Uh-huh. Okay… hmm. Um. I don’t know what to say about this album. I have more questions than I do statements. Who ARE you, Mr. West? Or, who do you THINK you are? Where is the substance in this album? [referencing various consumer products and popular personalities doesn’t mean anything] What are your lyrics about (as cool as it sounds, how exactly does one put a pussy in a sarcophagus)? What IS your fantasy? [actually please don’t answer that] Why has this album gotten so much critical praise? I don’t understand. Mr. West’s Dark Twisted Fantasy IS an impressive studio effort, but as a whole, it falls way short of the hype. Sure, Monster and Power are cool (especially Monster - what a collab, and very energetic.. nicki minaj saves the day). But per my previous album review, the lyrics are important along with the music. There is nice layering and detail to the music, and its obvious that a lot of effort (and multitracking for gods sakes) went into it. It definitely has its moments but there aren't enough of them! As for the libretto [can i call it that? i’m sure he would] it just.. doesn’t make sense. Sorry Kanye, I can’t play along with your dreams.

Now for something completely different:

The Tallest Man On Earth - The Wild Hunt (2010)

This is one of the greatest albums I have heard in my entire life. I mean that seriously. Since his previous album (Shallow Grave, 2008) Kristian Matsson’s sound has seasoned and become even more intense and honest. He is a masterful musician, going solo on every track but having the presence, focus, and finesse of an entire ensemble of artists. This comes through even on recorded media; try seeing him live. I have never seen anything like it. 

Having seen his live performance is by no means a bias, however, as I judge this studio album. The songs of the Wild Hunt are genius. The Tallest Man takes full advantage of his musical resources, his songs flying across all the strings of his various instruments. His voice is powerful, raspy, carnal. You can even hear his microphone clipping in a few places, but it adds to its gravelly, genuine grace. Lyrics are soaked in meaning. Some songs (like “King Of Spain”) seem to make little sense until one line elucidates the entire song’s meaning. Others are extended metaphors (“The Wild Hunt”) or even just abstracted conversations (“The Drying Of The Lawns”). Whatever the song, there is little meaningless wordplay like I might find in some pop albums (c.f. previous review), and misunderstanding a verse just makes me want to go look up the lyrics and read them over and over ‘till i understand. He has so much creative, even (dare i even say?) spiritual energy and power that I can’t help but be overwhelmed every time I listen. An amazing work. Please, please, please buy this album. If you to hear something truly special, you will find it instantly.

enjoy your weekend.
///patkins///

Album A Day I: Tegan And Sara's The Con (2007)

Girl bands are awesome. So are family bands. So.. a family girl band? These guys would be awesome even if the The Con wasn’t an absolute gem of songwriting. But gender and genetics aside, this IS a gem of songwriting. I’ve never called anything that before, because for years I never really even paid attention to lyrics as an integral part of music. This album showed me the error of my ways. It came into my hands and I found myself in a conversation with the recommender (my girlfriend) about how lyrics are much of what matters for her when listening. Living with The Con for a day or two has convinced me.

The music in this album is purposeful. Not the most intricate, multi-instrumented, harmonically complex of albums, it would be easy to dismiss it as boring and straightforward. However, that’s what is so magical about it - it is straightforward. This is an honest, direct style of music that grabs me and makes me listen. The lyrics, however, make The Con what it is. The lyrics follow (what i see as) the course of a divorce of a young marriage, beginning with “I Was Married” and ending with “Call It Off.” They are accessible, clever and, well, lyrical. The music and lyrics accompany each other so perfectly that each song has a one-ness that is really sublime. At the end you aren’t left wanting more, you are left wanting another listen, just to catch another word of the Con’s story.

///patkins///

a new series of posts and geotic's new project

i have come to the not-so-startling conclusion that i have much too much music that remains unlistened-to. trying to maintain something resembling a role in an upstart musical blog, along with having various musical interests (and lots of similarly interested friends that like to share) means i have a lot of good material in my iTunes library with a play count of zero. This combined with the remaining 7 days of vacation i have left has led me to start an Album-a-Day series of posts where i write about the things i haven't seriously listened to yet, like Cosmogramma (Flying Lotus), Teen Dream (Beach House), My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Kanye West), Sunset Tree (The Mountain Goats), The Age of Adz (Sufjan Stevens) and 4 x 4 = 12 (Deadmau5). 

i feel that music blogging, just like hosting a personal youtube channel dedicated to narrated videogame walkthroughs, has a certain amount of egoistic value associated with it. i mean, you post about music, tell people its really awesome, and urge them to spend their money on it. on one hand a discussion of culture and art, on the other maybe a power trip of personal taste. that isn't my aim here. hopefully you will read (or not read) my blurbs about albums and hopefully you will follow (or follow) the download links to various tracks i post with them. if you have any albums i should listen to, let me know at shnaily@gmail.com. happy reading!

Also: Geotic (AKA Baths AKA Post-Foetus AKA Will Wiesenfeld AKA one of CC's personal heroes) has a new album. Please donate, download and listen HERE. Its great listening. Maybe i'll talk about it heheh

///patkins///