Review: John Congleton and the Nighty Nite- Until the Horror Goes

John Congleton has delivered a masterpiece. Congleton, who has made a name for himself as the front man for the now defunct Paper Chase and as an engineer and producer, has had a pretty phenomenal past few years. I actually became familiar with him due to his production of the last St. Vincent LP (actually pretty much her whole catalog), and he has lent his engineering, session work and production to some of my favorite albums of the past few year, such as the aforementioned record as well as Chelsea Wolfe's Abyss, and my favorite album of 2014, Swan's To Be Kind, though his credits include hundreds of records.

With such an impressive but diverse resume, and my unfamiliarity with the Paper Chase, I had no idea what this album was going to sound like, but I knew it was going to sound fantastic. His production is always extremely well recorded, and this record is no exception. This kind of sounds like a distorted and warped version of synth pop, but through an extremely dark lens. These songs are super catchy and are inherently poppy in sound, but the throbbing synths, pounding drums and demented vocal performances give it a unique flavor. If you can imagine Fred Thomas singing about mortality, serial killers and the meaning of life through a compression filter, with Icky Blossoms as a backing band, all dropped in a cavern of reverb and weird soundscapes, you have his aesthetic. It's interesting to see this influences bleed into the albums he's worked on, and vice versa, because I definitely get traces of St. Vincent, Swans and Xiu Xiu on this album. Explosions in the Sky and Kirk Franklin's influences might be a little more difficult to pinpoint.

As previously stated, the lyrics on this album take some dark turns. Congleton really excels at the thing Kevin Barnes and of Montreal do where they put super depressing lyrics and dark subjects over super bouncy, sugary and upbeat music (I hear a little bit of them on 'The White Powerless'), though some sour piano chords and some synth work hint at something a little sinister. From the title(-ish) track 'Until it Goes', I hear a story of a killer or killers, who are now contemplating suicide after authorities find their murder house, along with their grizzly trophies, or at least that's how I'm interpreting it (did I mention I just binge watched all of Hannibal over the past month?). However, unless you listen to the lyrics, it's a indie rock tune with a catchy melody and some fuzzed out but bright synths and bells. I just love tracks that can mask their disturbing nature by offsetting it with an upbeat tune. He also has some great lines on this album. "If you want to see a dead body, take off your clothes", from the first track 'Animal Rites' just had such a bitter and haunting quality to it, and most of the music cuts out when he says it the first time, so it just sits their with you while you ponder its meanings.

This record is great, and I'm looking forward to what he does next, or what albums he'll be producing or engineering in the future. I see his name in the credits of Swans' upcoming album, The Glowing Man, which I was already excited for, so this record just amped me up even more. If you've listened any of the albums he's worked on and dug them, I suggest you look into this (A list of his credits can be found here:  http://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-congleton-mn0000215209/credits ). A fantastic album.

Out of a total of five stars, I give this:

Check back in soon for my Last Shadow Puppets review. Many other reviews coming soon.





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Mini Album Reviews: Domo Genesis, Explosions in the Sky & Open Mike Eagle / Paul White

I thought I would share some more opinions on some new albums. These are either records I didn't have a whole lot to comment about but still wanted to speak on, or the window of relevancy to talk about a "recent" album was winding down. So, let's jump right in.





Domo Genesis: Genesis
Domo Genesis, at first, didn't seem like a notable member of the Odd Future collective, but through his great features on other members' albums, or the surprisingly good Under the Influence 2, he changed my mind, so I was anticipating this a little bit. I can't say I loved it. Domo, though he raps well, and provides some decent bars, doesn't rap with a style to suit the super chill beats he selected. He's at his most aggressive and raspy, but over like jazzy, subdued beats. It's a weird combo that kind of throws me off. I feel like if he dropped his self imposed weed rapper image, and started rapping over some rowdier production, I'd enjoy it a lot more.




Explosions in the Sky: The Wilderness
I remember the first time I was introduced to this band, I was a prospective student at a college tour, staying with an RA and a few other prospective students, and he had to share his favorite band with us. The thing I took away from their sound was the sheer energy and climaxes they would build. They definitely shied away from that on this record, and instead of post rock exaggerated dynamics, they're experimenting in the subtle, softer areas on this record, which is definitely a change of pace. The fuzzed out grooves and rare instrumental climaxes are still where they shine, though.




Open Mike Eagle + Paul White: Hella Personal Music Festival
This record is fantastic, and I really feel this is what Macklemore wants to be. Open Mike Eagle is able to rap about social issues and personal topics and juggle that with witty and genuinely funny word play (that Lena Dunham GIRLS reference had me kind of weak the first time I heard it), and he's able to do it in a way that doesn't come off as corny or overly serious. It's a perfect blend, and the humor invites you in for him to share his opinions on issues, so whereas other rappers come off as preachy, Open Mike Eagle's rhymes are almost conversational in nature. Also, producer Paul Whit does his thing on here with some extremely varied beat work, covering all emotional and stylistic wave lengths. He does so in a way that provides a comprehensive emotional range for Mike to work with, without coming across as jumbled or lacking a cohesive aesthetic. A must listen for hip-hop fans into the more lyrical side of the genre, and most likely returning in my year end list somewhere.



Check back in later for more of my opinions on new records. Going to be tackling the new John Congleton record, as well as the new album by the Last Shadow Puppets soon.




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Review: Iggy Pop- Post Pop Depression

I don't know if you've been paying attention this year, but a lot of the old guard in rock music have been dying off: Keith Emerson, Paul Kantner, and probably most covered in the media, David Bowie. His last album, released shortly before his death, was David Bowie's reflection on death, and the culmination of his legacy. This was him gracefully staring into the blackness, and taking his first steps into the dark. In contrast, Bowie's friend and occasional collaborator, Iggy Pop, sees the darkness, snarls and raises his middle fingers.

Iggy Pop, most famously known for his role as front man of the proto-punk band, The Stooges, has always been well known for his wild antics, stage presence and general air of not giving a f*ck. On this album, Pop restrains his inner animal, ever so slightly, to deliver some introspective material, facing the twilight years of his life, and its end, hence the Post Pop Depression. He however, is a little less eager and accepting than Bowie, and a lot more bitter, and I expected nothing different.

Iggy has enlisted Josh Homme (of Queens of the Stone Age), Dean Fertita (of the same, as well as the Dead Weather), and Matt Helders (of Arctic Monkeys), to form his backing band. As such, you get some glimpses of these band's sound on the album, though a little bit subdued, and not enough to be distracting. I would have liked some more explosive drumming from Helders, but whatever. Minor nitpick. Iggy here also takes full use of his ragged voice, much like Bowie did on Blackstar. It's got a wild vibrato reminiscent of Bowie on that album, but I also get some vibes of Michael Gira during that whole Love of Life gothic folk period in Swans' career.

Though a little bit subdued, there are glimpses of intensity. 'Vultures', though complete with a chorus that has Pop making a weird cawing noise, ends with a sudden and jarring volatile screaming fit. There are the occasional hard rock riffs as well, but the real wildness here closes out the last track, 'Paraguay' in which Iggy goes on an absolutely freakish rant that is just amazing.

I think Iggy accomplished his mission here. He seems very concerned with leaving behind a legacy; more than just his name. And I think this along with his other solo work, and his work with the Stooges, will cement that legacy. I just really hope this isn't the end of his story.

Out of a total of five stars, I give this:

Check back in later, where I take a look at some other new albums. What did you think of this record? Are there any albums that you're getting into recently?


"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."

Review: Waldgeflüster / Panopticon- Waldgeflüster / Panopticon split

As stated in some of my previous posts, I really got into black metal in a big way last year (so kvlt black metal purists can just discount my opinion right now), and one of the bands that really drew me in was Panopticon. I really enjoyed the way that this one man black metal project blended traditional black metal aesthetics with the folk traditions of Austin Lunn's native American Appalachia. Also, to get this out of the way now, Austin Lunn is probably one of the best drummers of the one man black metal subset out there. A lot of the solo acts are lacking a little in this area, but he delivers amazingly well, and he's no slouch on guitar either. I really enjoy the kind of Thin Lizzy thing he has going on when he layers and harmonizes guitar parts during the more melodic lines of his songs. Autumn Eternal, Panopticon's latest, almost made my year end list, and was definitely one of the better black metal albums to come out in 2015.

This record is a split between the aforementioned Panopticon and the band Waldgeflüster, which roughly translates to Forest Whispers for us English speakers. I hadn't heard of the band, but I did a little research, to learn that they were a Bavarian group, and got their start roughly around the same time as Panopticon. The record is divided into two tracks for each band; one an epic length, multi-part song, and one softer, folky ballad to close out their half of the record. I enjoyed both of the band's offerings, and I'm definitely going to have to check out Waldgeflüster's other material. I really also enjoyed their mix of clean and screamed vocals, which kind of gave me an Emperor feel, except less orchestral, and the fiddle part on 'Der Traumschänder' was cool. The bands do compliment each other quite well, as they both kind of mix in that folk feel, with Panopticon leaning a little bit more towards the backwoods bluegrass kind. Not a whole lot of finger-picking banjos in Bavaria, I would assume.

The one complaint I would have, though minor, would have to be the drumming on the Waldgeflüster track 'Der Traumschänder'. It seems like the cymbals just ring way too much, which would be fine if they were going for a kind of lo-fi kvlt feel, but everything else is just so well recorded. I don't know if the wrong mikes were used, or the sound bleed wasn't dampened enough, but it kind of took me out of the song a little bit. Plus, to have Austin Lunn's literally insane drum take on 'Håkan's Song' come after it, it didn't do the drums any favors. Seriously though, the drumming from Panopticon is so fast, complex and disorienting because it is just so intricate and has a myriad of stuff going on. I know there has to be triggering, but apart from the toms on the blast beats, it would be very hard to tell. The intermittent fills are just crazy.

Anyway, I've probably bored you with all the drum minutia. All in all, I think this is a great showcase for both bands, and if you're a fan of either band, or are looking to dip your toes into some folk influenced black metal, this might just serve as a great sampler for you.

Out of a total of five stars, I give this:

What did you think of this split? Are there any albums that you're really excited about, or are interested in discussing? Let me know. Check back in later for my thoughts on the new (and possibly last) album from Iggy Pop, Post Pop Depression. 

"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."