Radio Ladio

Hey all, just a quick post today, I've got some more extensive updates coming up in the next couple days. Was listening to Metronomy today and came across this video. They're a group from England and their album from last year entitled "Nights Out" is a great listen. The video is quite bizarre but I think it suits the group and song nicely. More very soon!

Heligoland

That, my dearest readers, is the name of Massive Attack's new album. It has been confirmed by the band themselves and it's out next year on February 8th. Here is the track listing:

Heligoland:

1. Pray For Rain (vocals: Tunde Adebimpe)
2. Babel (vocals: Martina Topley-Bird)
3. Splitting the Atom (vocals: Robert '3D' Del Naja, Grant 'Daddy G' Marshall and Horace Andy)
4. Girl I Love You (vocals: Horace Andy)
5. Psyche (vocals: Martina Topley-Bird)
6. Flat of the Blade (vocals: Guy Garvey)
7. Paradise Circus (vocals: Hope Sandoval)
8. Rush Minute (vocals: Robert '3D' Del Naja)
9. Saturday Comes Slow (vocals: Damon Albarn)
10. Atlas Air (vocals: Robert '3D' Del Naja)

Judging by this video the album will sound more along the lines of Mezzanine and less like 100th Window:

The Tubes

I just stumbled upon this classic video on Youtube. I don't know who The Tubes are but they sound good and their lead singer has got some moves. Nice glasses too.



This one is pretty good too:

Beak>

Geoff Barrow of Portishead makes up one third of this new band out of Bristol England. Their debut self-titled album was recorded in a small room over a twelve day period. Comparable in terms of sound to bands such as Can and Tortoise, Beak's debut is very much like Portishead's last album in that it has an overall dark mood to it. There are some brilliant moments on this album but the rushed production of it is ultimately what prevents it from being truly great. Had the group taken more time to edit the album they would've realized that a couple of the tracks plod on with no payoff. Nevertheless Beak have their moments of greatness here. Opener "Backwell" begins with a precise bassline that moves along like a heartbeat and then breaks out half-way into Krautrock bliss. "Battery Point" is another highlight track that would give bands like Radiohead a run for their money. Throughout the album I couldn't help but notice the influence of Can in the music. In the sixth song, "Iron Action", the influence is undeniable:



Despite it's disappointing moments Beak's debut is not one to pass up.

DMAT EP Details

It's been a long time coming but a DMAT EP is on the way. Track details are listed below and in addition to some older songs, a new one (possibly) will be on there too. It will be available for download off of DMAT Matters on December 1st, just in time to put it on your decade end best of lists...

Unnamed DMAT EP:

1. Deliverance
2. It's Just the Way You Are
3. Nice Night For a Walk
4. Falling Snow
5. ???

The Greatest Music Video Ever

Thanks to the Tough Garee for the recommendation. The initial drag of the cigarette is what makes this truly great.

Heart of Cygnus

This two piece band hail from Los Angeles and are all about concept albums. Sophomore album "Over Mountain, Under Hill" is based upon the works of JRR Tolkien and is an epic compiling of progressive rock. Influences the band have listed include Iron Maiden, Queen and Megadeth and listening to Heart of Cygnus you will quickly begin to hear these influences at work. They have the lightning pace of Iron Maiden, the experimentalism of Queen and, at times, the heaviness of Megadeth. The band are not well known (yet) and their work may be hard to come by but it's worth the effort to find. I would definitely recommend picking up the aforementioned album and be ready to get their next album "Tales From Outer Space!" which is due November 18th of this year. Judging by the amazing track on their MySpace the band is getting better and better with each album.

"The music scene has got me down..."

Blockhead's "The Music Scene" is the best album of the year. 2009 may not yet be over but for 10 months no other release I've highly anticipated has lived up to expectations. The music scene does have me down; it's in a stagnant and unoriginal state with those bands in throwback mode making me want to throw-up. Music fans too have got me down as they just accept that as being the way things are now and will listen to any old band that "sounds" like a band from the past. This is perhaps where "The Music Scene" resonates the strongest with me; Blockhead seems to be feeling the same. All one needs to do is take a look at the album cover, the ruined animal-run streets of New York being a perfect metaphor for the state of the music scene.

Musically Blockhead has hit another home-run. It can be a tough task to keep the listener interested in an all instrumental album, you have to make it varied yet cohesive at the same time. "Uncle Tony's Coloring Book" is fantastic but it is kind of all over the place and isn't all that complete as an album. With "The Music Scene" Blockhead has made not only his most cohesive instrumental album but also his best to date. Opener "It's Raining Clouds" changes midway from hip-hop to drum and bass and showcases Blockhead's innate ability with drumbeats. One of my instant favorites was "Attack the Doctor"; the bit near the end is stunning and dare I say it a bit festive sounding. "Four Walls" implements the much maligned Auto-Tune to perfection by adding to the song's vocal sample rather than being at it's forefront. Final track "Farewell Spaceman" is the pièce de résistance of "The Music Scene". It's irresistibly catchy beat and perfect meshing of samples most definitely makes it a front contender for song of the year. It does make me wonder though, is this the end of Blockhead? Is this album his swan-song? Is this last track a cheeky way of him saying that he's had it with the music scene altogether? It seems a bit unlikely but nonetheless it does make you wonder.



This album may not have the same effect on you as it has on me. Everyone has their own reasons for liking a certain artist or album and it's ridiculous to assume that everyone will like Blockhead as much as me. I will say this: do not pass it up, listen to it several times and allow it to sink in. The music scene may not have you down after hearing "The Music Scene".

Reader Request #1

Artist: Wendigo
Album: Audio Leash
Requested by: Stan Kovich

Go to Google and type in "wendigo audio leash" and you'll get nothing but links to torrent websites. That's how little there is to find on the web about this Hungarian band, which is surprising to me as their album sounds very mainstream. This is not a bad trait for a virtually (possibly) unknown band to have I just find it a bit interesting. Wendigo is not a band I would normally listen to but I can appreciate what they have done with this album. They know how to write a great riff and a number of their songs had hooks that I immediately noticed, opener "Reach" being a prime example. So while it's not necessarily an album I would listen to all the time I would still recommend it to those of you who like it loud and hard. Loud and hard is sometimes just what I need.

Verdict:
Matters

Made a Boo-boo

So I'm lying here surfing instead of sleeping and while checking over Blockhead's MySpace I make a great discovery. His album is available! It doesn't get a CD/vinyl release until next year but is available digitally as of today. Oops, I made a boo-boo.

Quick Update

I've decided that since I have a few more followers now that I should try something a little different. Here is a basic rundown of how it will work:

1. E-mail me an album recommendation.
2. If I haven't heard it I will try and listen to it and provide a short review of it.
3. If I have heard it I will decide whether or not to post about it.
4. At the end of the review I will label it with one of the two phrases: "Matters" or "Doesn't Matter"

This will be a once a week event and my goal is to involve the reader more in the blog process. Over time the result of such a format will be more variety and more exposure to music that most people haven't heard. In addition to this new format I will continue with my old ways and post every so often as I see fit.

Here is my e-mail if you are unable to find it on my page: mbcrossley18@yahoo.ca

RJD2's New EP

"Tin Foil Hat" is it's name and it features seven new tracks. From the sounds of it RJ has decided to go back to his hip-hop roots. It's hardly a surprise seeing as how "The Third Hand" (see older post for more) was not well received and fans were unhappy with the pop route RJ was taking with that album. The EP is a prelude to his album "The Colossus" which is due early next year and if it's any indication as to how the album will sound it's bound to be another classic. RJ's on the top of his game once again; each song is tightly produced, a characteristic that few DJs can rival. Fourth track "When It Wobbles" would've fit right in on 2004's "Since We Last Spoke" and fifth track "Thine Planetarium" never feels overlong even though it clocks in at over nine minutes. "The Move" is the only song that has vocals and is a fresh addition to an otherwise instrumental EP. "Tin Foil Hat" might be a little bit difficult to track down so if you are unable to find it I suggest you be patient and wait for the album, it will be worth the wait. Here's a teaser: