Early Man - Nine Riders

I'm still sorting through freegal now and again, looking for new metal bands that rarely anyone has heard of before.  Last week I found the impressive Early Man, a New York now-two-piece who will shred your face off if another band hasn't already.  And if said face has already been shredded beyond recognition, then they will shred it down to the bone.  This is heavy metal, but not the deep-throat vocal, thrash in every direction metal that is hard to escape these days.  Early Man plays metal that could restore your faith in the genre if you've been tainted by the likes of too-heavy-for-their-own-good outfits (don't get me wrong, they exist, and they shouldn't) or more-pop-than-metal-what-are-you-doing-calling-yourself-metal collectives.  This is what metal was before the genre exploded into subgenres.  This is...the way it should be done.

My current favourite of their songs that I've sampled is "Nine Riders," which makes me wish that I hadn't quit guitar lessons about six years ago.  You could say that this has some Halloween-y elements to it if you'd like.  It has a very dark feel to it...our quest for blood will never end?  Yeah, this is Halloween.  But the real star here is the guitars.  They will make you have an aneurysm of epic proportions, because I doubt that you've heard a band play like this in a long time.  There is a simple point to this posting..what does Early Man prove?  You don't need to scream to be heard.  You can be just as loud.

Kings of Leon - Pyro

Honestly speaking, I never understood the hype involving Kings of Leon.  In my eyes, they didn't offer anything new to the world of music and I just didn't get why everyone liked them so much.  "Sex on Fire?"  Really?  Then again, I am always the one to be proven wrong.  As far as I know, the band has broken up or is taking a break or something dumb like that, but their music still finds its way to me, this time in the form of Canadian comedy show Video On Trial, in which comedians make fun of music videos.  Usually, the songs they review are Top 40 in nature and typically never beautiful in my eyes.  The point of all this?  I was proven wrong twice.

Now, the first, and likely only song by Kings of Leon that I will ever like is the simple "Pyro."

Why is this the best of the worst band to ever call themselves a band?  Because it's actually a good song that I can listen to more than once without vomiting.  The lead singer (I don't really want to find his name) also sings with some sadness and regret in his voice, something I have not noticed before in my casual listening before "Pyro."  Dare I say it, is this song beautiful?  Yes.  Because it is sad.  And it is good.  The chorus is wondrous, the guitars are listenable, and there is a strange feeling that this a powerful song, even if it has nothing to do with fire.  Huh.  The enigma that is my taste in music...  So to all of my fellow Kings of Leon haters, give this one a try, see if I can prove you as wrong as the band proved me.

Peter Wolf Crier - Settling It Off

Sometimes indie is all you need.  And sometimes indie calls to you in the form of a duo from Minnesota who could outplay any quintet from another state.  Said duo, Peter Wolf Crier, offers a flawless, yet melancholy in tone ditty that is "Settling It Off."  In this selection, you might notice a few electronic-y elements.  The acoustic guitar, or the guitar in general, isn't the star here.  Instead, it's the shake of what quite possibly could be a tambourine, as well at vocals that will burrow deep into your psyche.  You won't know why it's good, but you'll know that it's good.

The line then recite a little prayer for truth reminds me of the good ol' Burt Bacharach song, but in a good way.  I'm always one for putting a new spin on the oldies.  "Settling It Off" is subdued indie, for those rainy days when you want to listen to sad-sounding music and the sound of droplets beating against your basement window.  It might be sad, but it is beautiful.  Peter Wolf Crier has a way with this fine line between beautiful sadness and another depressing indie song, but they pull it off.  I commend them for it.

Jason Mraz - Plane

Just so everyone knows...I liked Jason Mraz before We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things.  That album was nothing compared to his previous effort, Mr. A-Z.  Now that...that was the soundtrack to my '06.  Less acoustic guitar centered, more piano, it was just a brilliant piece of music that even my younger self could recognize.  I fell in love.  There were a lot of wondrous selections on that disc, but none other struck me at first as the five-and-a-quarter minute masterpiece that was, and still is "Plane."

Have you ever flown before?  I have once in a cramped fusel lodge between my biology teacher and the window seat.  There's something about looking down at a city and watching it disappear into the clouds, and vise versa.  It is a strange sight.  "Plane" is the soundtrack to such a moment.  Who lies below the plane, and what are they doing at this moment?  Melancholy-ish emotion in music was something that Mr. Mraz did with such grace and beauty, and even though he doesn't do much of this anymore, we at least have evidence of what used to be.  I cannot wait to call you, and tell you that I landed somewhere, and hand you a square of the air.  Lyrical genius.  Dear Jason, please do what you did in Mr. A-Z again for your die-hard fans.  We miss this.  Well, I do, but I feel speaking for everyone will get my point across better.

Amaranthe - Hunger

Amaranthe is a Swedish "melodic death metal" band, though I would scoot them towards the "post-hardcore" genre instead, maybe even "power metal" if I really had to.  The group features stylings from three vocalists: clean female, clean male and male throat.  Variety is the spice of life, after all.  I discovered them during my tour of the world of metal via Youtube, and was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked a handful of their songs.  "Hunger" is definitely the best of the bunch (with honorable mention to "Automatic" and "1000000 Light Years").

Why?

Some might say three vocalists in a band is two too many, but here you've got a contrast between the singers and the screamers.  It's just fun music.  It's easy to tell when a metal or hardcore band take themselves too seriously, and it makes it hard to enjoy the music as I would like to.  Amaranthe, I've decided on what genre to put you in..."fun metal!"  And the chorus?  It's beautiful.  I would enjoy metal even more than I already do if more bands had a woman vocalist in contrast to their growler.  Maybe the Swedish are on to something...

Swollen Members - Lonely One

I need to take a break from mashups of metal and Lady Gaga to get back to showcasing an underrated genre that isn't titled "Ov Fire and Bad Romance."  Yes, rap can be underrated.  When people think of rap, they think of what you're probably thinking of right now.  Well, forget everything you've ever thought about the rap genre...again...because I've mentioned this group before.  Swollen Members are likely my favourite Canadian group that operates outside of the metal scene.  They could out-rap any American rhymer in less than a second.  I'll be listening to Madchild and Prevail do their thing until they stop (god forbid).  "Lonely One" is quite possibly some of their best work, even if it came from the iffy Armed To The Teeth. Still worth buying, but iffy.  But redeemed by "Lonely One."

Rap has a formula of success to me.  You know that, but let me remind you.  Good background beats, good lyrics, and something different.  Swollen Members has all of that here.  These two masterminds are at their best when the theatrics are at a minimum and you can hear the emotion in their raps (see my "Moonshine" post...hell, take a listen to that track).  Madchild always sounds sombre when he takes the subdued approach.  Case in point, the perfect chorus: she tried to kill my art, she couldn't feel my heart, still good start, man with the loaded gun, she said I was the only one.  Pops said "I told you, son," still phone me like you owe me one, now she don't control me, but no one hold me, walk slowly the lonely one, still the one.  And there you go.  Well, I think Prevail says it the best...

Searching the world for a group like this, I can say with confidence not another exists.

Mariachi el Bronx - 48 Roses

I'm all for blending genres.  We know that now, after all of these posts and all of my harping about this is the way music should be.  Rarely am I left speechless, though.  Rarely am I this intrigued by something I have never heard before.  I suppose there is a first time for everything, including the bridging of Latin, rock and mariachi together in three and a half minutes of pure fantastic music.  Some worry the risk may not be worth the reward.  Those people haven't heard of Mariachi el Bronx, or their hardcore side, simply known as The Bronx.  The band takes a break from hardcore in this number, the roller coaster that is "48 Roses."  Lyrical genius, blending genres, taking risks....I am in heaven.

So father, forgive my cold shoulder, I just don't have the time to console her.  I can fall back in love when I'm older.

You would never know that this band usually veers towards the hardcore side of rock.  Here you have a lush, romantic sounding song that is ironically all about heartbreak and the aches.  I've gone and created a mess, but Mariachi el Bronx has gone and created a masterpiece.  My knowledge of mariachi doesn't exist beyond the episode of My Name Is Earl where the Hickey brothers travel to Mexico, but this...this will draw you in.  If something is done well, anyone will listen.  Maybe The Bronx should quit the hardcore biz and continue to dress in ornate jackets and pick up where they left off with "48 Roses."  I wouldn't argue, though I am now off to look up their rock items on youtube.  Happy listening (because I assume you will listen to this song)!

Yellowcard - Cut Me, Mick

I've been a Yellowcard fan since Ocean Avenue, though it was their following releases, Lights and Sound and Paper Walls, that are really their best work.  The new album (name omitted so that you will never listen to it) was too poppy for me and didn't take enough risks.  But their older work still stands as some of my favourite music in my library.  Is it possible to narrow down their amazing work, combining alternative with the violin, to just one song at the top of the ladder?  Yes, though it is a bit of a daunting task.  Still, the best of the best is "Cut Me, Mick" from Paper Walls, and after one listen, you'll likely agree.

This is a song of nostalgia, reminiscing of yesteryear, and remembering the good times, though there is a flogging sadness you can't ignore.  The chorus says it all: you are the one that I need, you know that I can still bleed, bring me back to life.  This is a song for all of those who have lost someone, as a reminder that there is hope, and there is closure that comes from tragedy.  Yellowcard is the master band of emotion put into alternative music.  This isn't mainstream (though one could make an argument about the last album...).  This is the way music should be done.  Forever.

Owen - Good Friends, Bad Habits

Owen is the solo project of Chicago's own Mike Kinsella, and what a project it is.  It's quite possible that lyrical genius has never been so wondrous and fantastical.  It doesn't hurt that it helps to drown out the horridity (is that a word?  apparently not) that is Drake's new song playing on the TV.  But back to good music!  Owen is indie with a little dash of folk, pure and simple.  He's a master on the acoustic, and a master of words.  Example?  "Good Friends, Bad Habits."

Good friends with bad habits
And a tendency towards negligence
Just petty thieves and addicts
Don't hold anyone

This is one thing and one thing only: good music.  In the world of music, where awful people are becoming popular and you see the same five videos over and over on a 4 hour cycle, there are artists like Mike Kinsella who are doing what they do best.  Take a hint from him, world of music.  Be good like him!  Oh, and my absolute favourite line of the entire song?

Literary romantics
They'll fuck like Wilde
And they'll die like Hemingway

School of Seven Bells - Iamundernodisguise (Alternate Version)

A little more than a year ago, I was enlightened by the entity that is rcrdlbl, source of all music that's too good to be true...yet is.  The first rcrdlbl artist that I became momentarily endeared by was the always beautiful and always haunting School of Seven Bells, now a duo of Benjamin Curtis and Alejandra Dehaza.  An older track of theirs, one that pulled me into the world of "independent indie" music, was the alternate version of "Iamundernodisguise," which isn't terribly alternate from the original.  I'm not complaining.

Some may call "Iamundernodisguise" shoegaze, some might call it indie, and some more might say this is pop (though, I don't know who).  Whatever it might be, this is brilliance.  You have no theatrics here.  All there is are the instruments and the artists behind them, crafting something that could blow the mind of the most uptight person you know.  When it happens, you'll know.

I am neither breather or speaker
I am neither walker or sleeper
I am neither sister, brother, son or daughter
So hold me in chest, is my heart a drum of water?
I am under no disguise...

Eluveitie - Inis Mona

Veering back to the path of folk metal, in the last week I also discovered the Swiss collective that is Eluveitie.  Now, epicness comes in many forms, but I doubt you've heard something as epic as them.  I'll tie them with Arkona as my new favourite band...for now.  The eight-piece act often sings in the extinct language of Gaulish, either in growls or wondrous vocals form the female group members, but in "Inis Mona," they sing in English about the mythical island.

From 2008's Slania, "Inis Mona" sounds as Celtic as its namesake.  You've got a string section behind the guitars that makes this all the more haunting, as well as the melodic sound that drew me deep into the world of folk metal.  And the chorus?  Well, if the verses don't pull you in, then the refrain will: I close my eyes, Inis Mona, and reminisce of those palmy days.  I moon o'er you, Inis Mona.  As long as I breathe, I'll call you my home.  Eluveitie won't be for everyone, I know.  If screamo or death growls send you turning the other way, then I am afraid you're missing out on something that will make your ears bleed in a good way.  I promise no more folk metal for a while, but wanted to leave the genre on a high note.  Eluveitie is likely as good as it gets (Arkona too...I can't say a bad thing about them).

Marissa Nadler - River of Dirt

El Camino, take me home.

Beautiful indie songstresses aren't very few and far between if you look at music today.  But a good indie songstress who have a wonderful voice...now that is light finding a needle in a stack of needles.  Marissa Nadler is an artist you likely haven't heard of before (and if you have, I commend you).  The music industry tends to brush these sorts of musicians under one giant carpet, and you have to go looking for gems like this.  Her haunting, though not-too-sad "River of Dirt" restores my faith in the fact that there are good indie female artists hiding behind the woodwork.  You just need to rip out some panels.

With the constant strum of a guitar and Marissa's dreamy voice, you've got a conjured view of dusty country roads and that damned el camino.  Take me back to the river of dirt, or take to wherever in the world this song is meant to be.  This is the kind of song that comes up on your ipod, but you don't feel the need to change to a different track.  You want to listen to "River of Dirt" and its soft beauty over and over again.  Some people know what they're doing with a gift of music.  Marissa Nadler does.

Lights - Cactus In The Valley

Lights might be the best Canadian songstress to come out of the north since Ms. McLachlan.  Well, she hasn't reached such a level of epicness yet, but she's pretty damn good.  I got her latest release, Siberia, in the first week it came out, and was generally pleased with how it turned out.  It's less pop, more electronic than her debut, and experienced the expected growth I hoped to see Lights gain as an artist.  Though the obvious choice for a feature would be the fantastic-in-its-own-right "Toes," I see reason to look at the underdog of the album; the slowed-down and sombre "Cactus in the Valley."

"Cactus in the Valley" is without the synths and keyboard riffs of the rest of the album, instead showing just Lights and a few soft sounds in the background.  Lights is also a tad of a lyrical genius, in the lines if my yesterday is a disgrace, tell me that you'll still recall my name and wipe the mark of madness from my face, show me that your love will never change.  This song shows that Lights can be just as powerful on her own as she is with a cavalry of electronica behind her.  I'm already on the edge of my seat for album three.

Monarchy - You Don't Want To Dance With Me (Moonlight Matters Remix)

I've long lamented the idea that there is a way of doing things (music, of course) that is the way things are supposed to be done.  I'm not too such if I've ever tackled the way that dance music is supposed to be done, but if I haven't, then I am about to.  And if I did....just pretend that I never said anything.  That'll make things easier for everyone.  Monarchy team with vocalist Britt Love for the powerhouse "You Don't Want To Dance With Me," which is taken to a new level of catchy-and-overall-fun by Moonlight Madness.  Who knew two rather mysterious men from the UK could leave such an impact on the pop genre?  Well, we do have it nailed into our brains to expect the unexpected.

The original "You Don't Want To Dance With Me" is a tad more slowed down than you might expect, though still filled with fuzzy synths that don't scream 80's throwback.  More like this is the right way of doing it.  Moonlight Madness speed things up, adds  few hints of musical magic, and there you go.  Genius.  Now, the original isn't that bad, but the remix is going to knock your socks off.  Take that to the bank, but don't cash it because it'll likely bounce (blame a lengthy shopping trip in the T.O).  Point is, now and again you need a good dance song.  Another lamentation there: now and again you need something like this.  I'd be an idiot not to write something about this masterpiece.

Arkona - Yarilo

Let's stay on the path of folk metal, shall we, and recognize the fact that I have a new favourite band that graced the last post.  Oh, Arkona...you know the way into my brain through my ears with fantastic metal.  After discovering "Goi, Rode, Goi!" I came across a Youtube video of "Yarilo," which is notably more folky than the former.  However, this isn't folk without death growls and guitars that would make the great composers of the enlightenment weep.  According to my brother, Masha "screams like a man."  That she does, but that is why she is my new hero.  She growls better than any male lead singer I've heard before...even the great Mr. Walker (sorry Rody, I had to say it!).  Note to self: add her to my list of inspirational people on Facebook.

I was able to find the Russian (in Cyrillic) lyrics for "Yarilo," whose title comes from one of the great Slavic gods.  Funny, as this is one of the greatest two and a half minutes that has ever been documented.  You have to watch the live performance online...it will knock your socks off.  Arkona, none before you had pulled a two-posts-in-a-row streak on my blog.  For that, I commend you.

As well, I must apologize for repeated absences in the past.  You know how university is...full of needless and copious amounts of work.  However, I will be back with my spin on the world of music Sunday with gaps far and few between after that.  Be there!

Arkona - Goi, Rode, Goi!

The thing about metal music is that there are more subgenres than an average person can be aware of at anytime.  We're all familiar with death metal, prog metal, melodic metal, etc.  Last night, I discovered a subgenre I've only heard about, but never decided to give a listen.  Folk (or pagan) metal, and even by not distinguishing between those two words, I could probably ignite a heated debate between my school's metal club (which I never attend; I can't say that black and death metal strike me as it does with the majority of members).  In my eyes, or ears, folk metal is a tad more melodic than its counterparts, and those who do it best are not from this side of the world.  In fact, I might have to change my mind about the best music coming from Ireland.  Russia is moving up the ranks, especially with the wondrous collective that is Arkona.  Fronted by the amazing Masha Scream, we see that women in metal can put men in their place, growling in the process.

The first song of theirs I discovered was the epic "Goi, Rode, Goi!"  This is what Iron Maiden would sound like if you replaced Bruce with a woman, let her scream, and left the entire band with memories erased in the wide expanse that is Siberia.  Masha puts all throat vocalists to shame here, to powerful guitars riffs and what sounds like some sort of bagpipe-like instrument (you can hear it, I know you can! I doubt it's a bagpipe though).  Even when her voice is clean, it's just as atmospherically troubling as it is beautiful.  I think I have a new hero.  Since last night, I've been looking up songs by the band on Youtube and staring in awe and the power they wield.  This is the way metal should be done now.  Forget all of those other subgenres.  Folk is the way it will be done from now on.

ME & LP - Bonnie Says (No Shitty Ride)

Now and again, your music taste calls for something breezy and tropical and island-ish.  Don't fret, internet world!  I've found you a bare-minimum-acoustic-guitar-laden tune that will pull you from the fall funk and insert you into a lush, island setting.  Here is "Bonnie Says (No Shitty Ride)" by California collective Me & LP.  This is what you get if you give Jack Johnson some more flair (not that I'm saying anything bad about Mr. Johnson...) and a female accompanist.  Arguably, the combination of two such vocalists is a startlingly amazing.  Could "island folk" ever be this good?

"Bonnie Says" is a musical artist's rendering of a beautiful beach, where men in shorts and a button-down buttoned not all the way up wear aviators and play ukulele.  Bonnie says well, you know it ain't right, but this is right.  Well you know, she ain't mine.  This song belongs to everyone.  And if you don't have it, then what the hell are you waiting for?

Boris - Spoon

I've long cemented a belief that the Irish made the best music in the world.  It's still true, though there isn't any denying tat they face serious competition from Japan.  Example?  Prolific noise outfit Boris.  I've sampled a few of their tracks before, but none have struck me quite like the new selection that is "Spoon," a dreamy song that sends you off into the far reaches of the clouds, where percussion is heavy and vocals are angelic.

Atmospheric music tends to be some of the best, luring your emotions in long before your ears know what's going on.  Boris is a trio that knows atmosphere.  The genre might be called noise, but this isn't going to give you a headache.  In a short and sweet review such as this one, the point is simple.  Listen to more noise.  What are you afraid of?

Arise & Ruin - End of the Road

Is there such this as fun hardcore?  There is now.  I've been a busy bumble bee this week, running around the city and studying the society of pre-Imperial Russia.  Fun stuff.  Even more fun?  A good metal song that comes on my ipod that has a knack for getting me out of a funk.  "End of the Road" does just that, and comes from the now defunct Guelph, Ontario metalcore act Arise & Ruin. 

A song that's entirely screamed is something I tread carefully.  It can be done well, or it can become a mess of metal.  "End of the Road" is just throat, splayed against some fantastic guitar work, and works like no other.  This makes me look to the heavens and wonder WHY ARE THEY BROKEN UP?  This is metalcore done better than nearly every other act I've heard.  Listen closely and you might be able to make out some fantastic lyrical work:

This world had been a never ending battle of good and evil.
I've searched far and wide for the answers to your treason.
Solidarity amongst man is crucial for survival.
Across this everlasting plain this road comes to an end.

Note to all metalcore bands: if you're good, DO NOT BREAK UP.

Matthew Dear - Soil To Seed

Electronic makes for good music to raise you from a studying rut.  I'm not sure if Matthew Dear's "Soil to Seed" is true electronic, but it is good.  Great, really.  It's not a fast tempo piece that thrusts you to the dance floor, but gets your shoulders moving.  The lyrics are sung, or spoken rather, with a hint of depression or sadness, which suits the fluid background beats pulsing in the foreground.  This isn't the electronic music you thought you knew.

If you could put "Soil to Seed" in a setting, it would be an underwater highway.  Yes, you read that right.  You can hear something in this song that takes you into the depths of the sea, while this same something places you in the driver's seat of a car.  This must be what mermaids play on their radios when driving from castle to castle.  Just as soon as this two-and-a-half minute masterpiece has begun, it is over, yearning for you to reopen your music player, and hit rewind.

Yelle - Safari Disco Club

Time for your mind to be blown.  French electropop.  Watch out.  The queen of said genre?  Yelle, France's answer to Lady Gaga, less pop, more electronica.  This chanteuse can sing.  As I've mentioned before, music crosses boundaries; you don't need to know a language to understand a song on an internal level.  With the danceable, catchy track "Safari Disco Club," you've got something that flows true in "Mercure Au Chrome Et P'tits Pansements" and "J'ai Pas Peur Du Micro."  French?  Pishaw.  If there is a language that is universal, it is good music.

The only part you'll likely understand is the chorus's repeating les animals danse dans le safari disco club, meaning in the literal translation: the animals dance the in safari disco club (thank you, French education up to grade nine).  It doesn't matter.  Yelle's lovely voice isn't the only star of this show; you have the electronic beats pulsing in the background, sounding like some sort of industrial, jungle-ish orchestra.  It kinda sounds like music from the jungle, eh?  Man, I want to go to a safari disco club now...

Black Light Dinner Party - Small Boxes

Is this really post number 100?  It feels like it was yesterday that I first featured RAMESH's "The King," and now we're here in October.  I would like to thank everyone for viewing and reading.  After all, I'm writing for an audience.  For post 100, I thought long and hard about what greatness to showcase for such an event, and then considered something.  Perhaps I shouldn't do the expected, mentioning a song by a mainstream band that I've been listening to for years.  Perhaps I should do what I came here to do: share unknown gems with the world.  I have been doing mostly Top 40-ish songs lately, but with post 100, it's time we return to our roots with a haunting indie number.

Hence, "Small Boxes" by Black Light Dinner Party, a New York collective with an eye for synths.

This is a beautiful, yet melancholy blend of light piano strokes, indie vocals and electronic not-so-background music.  That said, in defense that the instrumental side of this song is just as important as words.  And here is another amazing example of lyrical genius...you promised her she'd laugh a little, you promised her I take it all back, you promised her things you'll never get, I promised her that I would hold her hand.  This is true beauty in music, and even if I had said that before, it's a dirty lie.  THIS is it.  Everything you've heard before was garbage.  "Small Boxes" is a song that not everyone can appreciate, but to those who can, this is why I blog.  For you.

To another hundred posts...

LYRICS: Whitehorse - Emerald Isle

I've noticed recently that people have been visiting fromalt2zen looking for the lyrics to Whitehorse's "Emerald Isle."  I figured it was about time that they're on the internet, so others can appreciate the song as a whole, so here they are!  These lyrics belong to Whitehorse; I don't own them in any way.

I’ll wait on the emerald isle for you to come and rescue me

From every step I can’t make

Feet don’t you ever break, drag me over that line

Halfway around the medicine ball is far enough to blow me back

Like you broke the bank on the ticket worth every damn nickel

Well, you got me that time

‘Cause I’ve been on the road one day too long

Can’t hear the record for another sad song

Look at all these faces

Can’t all be wrong

That’s a lot of my heart out there

Did you fly a million miles for every single one that I ran

I don’t know which of us is crazier, oh sweet baby

That’s the madness I desire

And there’s a twinkle in the Clifton sky

Been there forever

And lights the way for the waters

The jackals and the lovers

And the broken streetlights

‘Cause I’ve been on the road one day too long

Can’t hear the record for another sad song

Look at all these faces

Can’t all be wrong

That’s a lot of my heart out there

So do we keep running through the motions, baby?

Knowing that someday’s gonna come maybe

When you can’t keep your pretty mouth from saying

I wanna go home

I’ll wait on the emerald isle for you to come and rescue me