Chimpomatic

Bob Log III

My Shit Is Perfect

I first witnessed the enigma that is Bog Log at White Trash, a converted Chinese Restaurant in deepest, darkest Berlin. He instantly blew me away and is hands down one of the best live acts I have ever witnessed. A one man band playing ear splitting slide guitar, kick drums, singing through a telephone attached to a bike helmet that he wears through out. And what an enourmous glorious racket it was.

Being such a forceful live proposition, I approached 'My Shit Is Perfect' slightly apprehensively, as it seems his sound would be impossible to translate, but it is surprisingly cohesive and listenable record. So whilst Bog Log remains a one trick pony, what a great one it is. The opening 'Goddam Sounds Good' is foot stompingly catchy, the funky 'Manipulate Your Figments' has the air of early Beck and the ramshackle playfulness of 'Bumper Car' shows a welcome change of pace and that he can do something (slightly) different. Long live Bob!

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4th Mar 2009 - Add Comment - Tweet

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M. Ward

Hold Time

4AD

If I've counted correctly, this is M. Ward's sixth studio album - not including She and Him, last year's well received collaboration with actress Zooey Deschanel.

What's new this time around? Well, not much to be honest . The honey soaked vocals are still very much to the fore and M. Ward will certainly never lose his understated elegance. Yet despite the Glam drum effect on 'Never Had Nobody Like You' or the Orchestral backing to the title track, it all seems very familiar. You can't help the feeling that Ward has done it before and done it better, notably on 'Transfiguration of Vincent' and the excellent 'Transistor Radio'.

So although it's hard to criticize something that is played and sung so beautifully, it just isn't particularly exciting.

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13th Feb 2009 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Animal Collective

Merriweather Post Pavilion

Domino

So here it is, Animal Collective's much anticipated ninth studio album: Merriweather Post Pavilion (apparently named after their favourite venue) arrives with similar claims that greeted their previous few releases; namely that these would be proper songs, rather than the sprawling sketches that characterised their earlier work. The fact that none of the songs clock in at over six minutes, does seems to suggest a new more disciplined agenda.

Opener In the Flowers doesn't quite fit this claim; with its plodding build, it feels rather like a prelude and is slightly underwhelming. However, moving into the blissful My Girls, it all begins to make perfect sense, with Panda Bear's melodic stamp all over it and is utterly delightful. Then the stomping, playful My GIrls take things in a positively sing-a-long direction by Animal Collective's standards.

From there on in, it is apparent that the sound on Merriweather Post Pavilion has evolved markedly since Strawberry Jam, and on the whole it's a lot more accessible record. This time around their reliance on samples and loops seems to have focused them, such on the stripped back Daily Routine (Guitarist Deakin is absent from this record). Yet Animal Collective's real skill is their ability to extract melody from the strangest of places and as the album goes on it slowly seeps deep inside your head.

So whilst Animal Collective remain an acquired taste and are not ever likely ever to make something that isn't hard to categorise, Merriweather Post Pavilion is as an original, joyous and warm album that you're likely to find this year.

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14th Jan 2009 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Best Of 2008

Marmot

Music

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago: best album of the year by far in my book. Every song is great.

Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend: great songs and manages to sound like Paul Simon in a good way.

El Guincho - Alegranza!: this year's Panda Bear, nearly.

TV On The Radio - Dear Science: their sound came together spectacularly well and they managed to take their song writing up a notch.

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - Is It The Sea?: does a live album count? Slipped out almost unnoticed but is unbelievably good. Bought new vigor back to past songs.

Honorable mentions:

Pete Molinari - A Virtual Landslide : Chet Baker sings the Medway Blues.

Flight Of The Conchords : Very funny and surprisingly listenable.

Film

There Will Be Blood: for the first hour the best film I ever saw. Not so sure about the ending though.

No Country For Old Men: for the haircut.

The Orphanage: old school scary.

The Dark Knight: a bit long and self important but still one of this year's best.

Gigs

Smog @ St. James Church: even though they didn't play 'Dress Sexy At My Funeral'.

Jamie Liddell @ Koko: really.

Jim James @ St. James Church: hauntingly good.

Bog Log III @ 100 Club: his rendition of 'Clap Your Tits' was quite beautiful

TV

A year without television for me.

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17th Dec 2008 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Saint Etienne

London Conversations: The Best of Saint Etienne

Universal

It's hard to believe that Saint Etienne have been around for two decades and there is something heartwarming about their longevity, despite their obvious awkwardness. To this day, they remain something of enigma and certainly hard to pin down.

Revisiting their back catalogue is an interesting experience: although there are no revelations as such, it does give you the feeling that there is more to them than you might have thought. You could argue that there was always something of style over content about them, and that their best tune Only Love Can Break Your Heart was their debut single and not even theirs, but Neil Young's. Yet, when it works it, they can be irresistible; the early singles (Nothing Can Stop Us, Avenue) still sound completely fresh; a seamless mixture of 60's Pop, contemporary production, with their tongues slightly in their cheeks.

On subsequent singles they would sail so close to the edge of straight chart Pop, that it's indistinguishable from the 'real' thing. He's On The Phone, one of their most memorable tunes could easily be mistaken for Stock, Aitken & Waterman era Kylie Minogue (unsurprisingly they even ended up collaborating with her), which is not necessarily a bad thing, depending on your point of view.

Later tracks, settle into a more laid back and cinematic sound. With which they seem to become more comfortable in their own skin; Bad Photographer in particularly is great. They took this to its logical conclusion with their album and film Finisterre and also a greater sense of documenting their London surroundings, from which this compilation draws its name.

Although it's hardly going to win over a legion of new fans, London Conversations is well worth looking at. As a compilation, it documents their evolution brilliantly and certainly paints a vivid picture of what they are: an inventive, brave band you should cherish; bless 'em.

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8th Oct 2008 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Best of 2007

Marmot

iron and wine
+
animal collective
+
radiohead
+
panda bear
+
lcd sound system


boom!

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18th Dec 2007 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Panda Bear

Person Pitch

This is the third album from Animal Collective's drummer Noah Lennox, yet don't expect any Keith Moon style shenanigans. This is an utterly serious and ambitious sonic adventure. However, it differs from Animal Collective with it's immediate warmth and coherence. Person Pitch is simultaneously experimental and abstract, yet always accessible and immediate. A pretty hard trick to pull off.

Imagine Brian Wilson playing the restaurant at the end of the universe and you've pretty much got it.

Makes Kings Of Leon sound like Status Quo (cue the heckles).

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2nd Apr 2007 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet

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