GILDEDNOTION

gildednotion bring periodic reviews and editorial pieces on the modern world of music

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Alt J (∆) - An Awesome Wave

Few artists come into mid-mainstream with the powers of intelligence and phrenic imagery under their belt... but then again alt-J are a whole different cup of tea. And I don't mean your bog standard, steaming mug of tea, but one of them strong, herbal teas with flavours from every source imaginable. Released under the Infectious Label (funny that), alt-J have gained so much popularity that they completely sold out their 2012 tour and released more dates for next year. All this from a band that virtually slipped quite unoticed into our lives this summer.

An Awesome Wave is an album that draws from a variety of genres; from folk to trip-hop to alt-pop and back again. Each morsel is a small work of art and it's no shock that three out of four members were studying the subject at university. Lead singer Joe Newman meanders his way through each track, controlling each song at his will. His pretty, folksy vocals juxtapose against each astute piece, leaving you thoroughly mesmerised.

You can tell this fourpiece have clearly thought out each segment to their record with the inclusion of an intro and interludes which fall wondrously into opening track Tessellate. A tinkling backbeat verging on acapella and perfect rhythmic timing ensure a captivating foundation. The rest of the album has its ups and downs, keeping a rather samey basis overall. However, there are some simply jaw dropping compositions including the xylophone tinged Breezeblocks which foretells a story of a twisted, jealous lover. It will literally take you hours to dissect, believe me. Fitzpleasure is a completely mind boggling amalgamation of tra-la-la chanting, a gritty bass dirge and lines such as Steepled fingers, ring leaders, queue jumpers, rock fist paper scissors, lingered fluffers. Yes, alt-J do seem to be in a different world to us and yes,  they break all the rules of a regular compostion and glue back them back together again, but they are also one of the most exciting, unusual and moderately ground breaking new acts to come out of Britain for a while. With a Mercury prize under their belts and a mindset close to that of Radiohead, alt-J are taking their fine art to a galaxy far, far away.

Kindly contributed by Harley Cassidy

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Jake Bugg - Jake Bugg

Ok, so tune into The X Factor every Saturday night and no doubt you will come across a another young upstart attempting Ed Sheeran covers, acoustic guitar in hand and sob story to match. But you know what, fuck those guys, 'cause Jake Bugg is here and he really means business. Channelling the rather mature idols for his young eighteen years, Bugg's debut record is induced with the flavour of Donovan, Buddy Holly and Bob Dylan. This kid is the real deal. Championing Alex Turner-esque lyrics and a yearning Definitely Maybe passion to get out of Clifton, Jake Bugg has succeeded where no other young troubadour has (yes, not even Sheeran). He really wants it. 

The record opens with Olympic soundtrack Lightning Bolt, laden with skiffly guitar strings and a thumping backbeat (very similar to much of the record), hoping for a chance to "jump on that lightning bolt". It's clear that Bugg has a talent and a knowledge far beyond his years and with songs like Seen It All and Broken, it's quite astonishing that a council estate teenager has wrote such astute and heartfelt lyrics. Future anthem Two Fingers yet again carries the same theme of wanting nothing more, nothing less than to better himself and "kiss goodbye to every little ounce of pain". "I hold two fingers upto yesterday/Light a cigarette and wish the world away" is just the raw, emotive lyrics that churn out of Mr Bugg at freewill. 

Alternative music may well be getting a new revival, whether it be The Vaccines and Two Door Cinema Club's chart battle or the surge of popularity for indie kids Peace and Palma Violets, but all these bands lack the one thing that has made Jake Bugg a hype magnet: authenticity. 

Can you remember the first time you heard Paul McCartney plea for someone to love him over a simple yet beautiful harmony? Or when you heard Noel Gallagher bare all emotion to create a ballad that still to this day is untouchable? The people are crying out for a new artist to literally wipe the shitty smirk off every other singers face and simply stare gobsmacked in wonderment. Jake Bugg is the answer. Artists from Example to Jimmy-effin-Page have hailed him as something special. 

Take a close listen to the The Ballad of Mr Jones, a sweet little ditty that details the viewpoint of someone who has seen a wronged man get revenge on the people who killed his wife. Beneath Jake's scowling exterior however is an extraordinary gentleness and wisdom that can be seen on Simple As This and Note To Self, two disarmingly elegant and folksy tunes that shield the vulnerable soul within. Bogging with charm, insight and wit, Bugg produces a record that is both enamouring and disarming. It's quite clear that this is just the start of big things for young Bugg.

Harley Cassidy

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Jens Lekman - I Know What Love Isn't

"I don't like breakup records that pat you on the back" said Jens Lekman in a recent interview, and I think that is a perfect precursor to his latest album, and self-proclaimed debut, 'I Know What Love Isn't' (although it is his third full length). Jens seems to have written some of the most-bittersweet and quaint tracks of the year, delivering the harsh truths of breakups and the grief that comes from them in a nonchalant way, usually backed by an intricate compositional production that is layered so uniformly that all instrumentation fits together as one body of work. Lekman's lyrical ability is proved throughout, with an impeccable attention to detail in his narrative, and brutally honest interpretations of his own inner monologue, or his own experiences of the last few years or so, with "The World Goes On" telling the story of a particularly eventful birthday, involving bush-fires in the state of Victoria, encounters with violent characters that result in a mouth of dirt, and a romantic escapade with an acquaintance. Lekman's baring-all attitude to articulating his own experiences shows an excellent credibility that rarely strays from a literal interpretation.

The album begins with an excerpt of the final track, "Every Little Hair Knows Your Name", which is played delicately on piano as opposed to the guitar rendition at the end of the record, which also delivers a heart wrenching recollection of his mindset immediately after the end of a relationship, revealing his brief flirting with working out and writing songs about what had happened, and how he held back whilst revealing it, and clearly as time has gone on, these feelings have ripened and fermented into a gorgeous version of events. This album has been massively anticipated for some years, and is definitely a worthy conclusion to the wait, with some impressive guitar work, minimalist instrumentation and layered composition, this is one of the most tightly produced albums I've heard this year, and some of the most honest lyrics I've heard in a long time.

best tracks: The World Moves On, Every Little Hair Knows Your Name, Erica America, She Just Don't Want To Be With You Anymore

worst tracks: The End Of The World Is Bigger Than Love

Jacob Thompson

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the little indians - an album from the little indians

It’s been well over a year since strife arose within band You, Me And Everyone We Know, which resulted in four of the five members leaving.  Two of those members, Kyle Gibson and Augustine Rampolla, didn’t waste time lingering over the outcomes.  Since the split the two have kept themselves busy filling in as touring members of Hellogoodbye, and perhaps more importantly, writing music together as The Little Indians.

It’s clear to see that the duo have been influenced by their work with Hellogoodbye, as well as previous band You, Me and Everyone We Know.  The familiar uplifting choruses never run dry once throughout An Album From The Little Indians, but that’s not to say that the album isn’t diverse, it has much more to offer than just that.  On their debut, The Little Indians have finely crafted 11 songs, each with their own individual highlights.  This is usually something hard to come by in the genre of indie/pop as songs tend to find it difficult to separate themselves from one another, however The Little Indians have executed it with style.  The duo clearly demonstrate their abilities to find an infectious melody that would make even the most gloomy day seem instantly more pleasant.  

The album opens with ‘Vernacular’, where the listener is greeted warmly by dreamy vocals which will feature prominently throughout the album, along with reverb-laden guitars and an organ.  The song begins delicately, before picking itself up and adding more layers to create a wonderful experience for the listener.  The following two tracks ‘Go’ and ‘Roped In’ grab the listener; or rope them in, for lack of a better phrase.  Augustine Rampolla’s voice glides over each track, often accompanied by melodic harmonies somewhat reminiscent of The Beach Boys.  When all the vocals are combined with the tightly sewn musicianship, the tracks come across as mature without losing the essence of The Little Indians, which is ‘to bestow that unexplainable pleasure’ that the duo have found in their favorite records, upon others with their own music.  The subsequent tracks all play their part in portraying this vision, as each one delivers the same high standard without much flaw whatsoever.  This all goes to create an immersive experience for the listener, one which would be difficult to fault for it’s ability to come across as lively and cheery.

<a href="http://thelittleindians.bandcamp.com/track/a-song-for-fun-times" data-mce-href="http://thelittleindians.bandcamp.com/track/a-song-for-fun-times">A Song For Fun Times by The Little Indians</a>

The closing track ‘Night Owl (A Dream)’ ends the album on a wondrous note, without coming across as over-the-top.  Perhaps one of the best things about the final track is that it technically features more than one song, which allows the listener to soak in the album for just that little bit longer.  

The record as a whole is a finely crafted showcase of the duo’s best work thus far. The album ticks all the right boxes, in terms of production, lyrical content and style.  The happy-go-lucky charm of The Little Indians sound does well to separate them from the already crowded genre of indie/pop.  Let’s face it, when music sounds this convivial it’s hard not to fall in love with it.

The future for the pair seems as bright as the sounds they have created, and hopefully in years to come that won’t dim.  As long as the band can retain the ability to not take themselves too seriously and have a good time while doing what they love, they should be able to spread unexplainable pleasure through the music they create for a long time to come, if An Album From The Little Indians is anything to go by.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://thelittleindians.bandcamp.com/track/go" data-mce-href="http://thelittleindians.bandcamp.com/track/go"&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Go by The Little Indians&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Curtis Radcliffe

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The Mallard’s side of their split 7” with Thee Oh Sees as a part of Famous Class’ Less Artists More Condos series, which has also featured Future Islands and Deerhoof!

This song is called Over and Under, and I think it is definitely worth a listen or a buy from Famous Class records!

BUY/LISTEN

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Thee Oh Sees - Putrifiers II

John Dwyer has been very busy for the last 15 years or so, fronting some of california's most prolific garage bands for some years. From Pink and Brown, to Coachwhips and The Hospitals, all have garnered critical acclaim and legendary status through their wild performances and trademark lo-fi, tape machine sound. Thee Oh Sees is John Dwyer's only project right now, but it'd be wrong to give him all of the credit. Thee Oh Sees' line up also contains Brigid Dawson, who's gorgeous vocals recently appeared in Ty Segall's latest single, and Petey Dammit, who acts as the band's bassist, but confusingly plays a Baritone guitar. Starting as a solo endeavour making psych-folk noise collage, Thee Oh Sees have gone from OCS to The OhSees to Thee Oh Sees, and have constantly contorted their sound since around 2006, at a two-album-per-year consistent pace. Putrifiers II is a refinement of the sounds of Carrion Crawler/The Dream, released last year, which also saw the release of Castlemania. 

Putrifiers II reverts back to a much more nostalgic sound, and has a lot of sonic-links to the 60's. It is also one of the more uniformed releases by Thee Oh Sees, and one of the only records they've released in their 8 years that conforms to one sound throughout. The production and recording of each track seems much cleaner than their previous efforts, and is much cleaner than the earlier recordings from John Dwyer when they were OCS. 

The album begins with a picked guitar part, after which thumping drusm play in vocals from Dwyer and Dawson, complimenting eachother throughout, a theme which continues through most of Thee Oh Sees' previous releases. There seems to have been a mellowing out of the group's styles, and while Putrifiers has it's loud and heavy moments, there's also a couple of slowed down songs, particularly "Will We Be Scared?" and the closer, "Wicked Park", with twee vocals, slow tempo and acid-sodden lyrics conjure nostalgic imagery from the 50's and 60's, and are huge highlights on this album.

Putrifiers II definitely has a more directional sound from Thee Oh Sees, and reverts back to their Sucks Blood era in a cleaner and more concisely composed way than has previously been achieved. Stylistically, Putrifiers is an excellent 14th edition to their discography. 

Best Tracks: Wicked Park, Will We Be Scared, So Nice, Lupine Dominus 

Jacob Thompson

Listen on Spotify

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Cat Power - Sun

Five years in the making and Cat Power has unleashed a rather distinctive new album upon us. Withdrawing away from 2008's loungey covers album Jukebox, this is Chan Marshall's latest offering of original music since 2006, when she released Memphis-generated The Greatest. Directional as ever, Cat Powers slog in the recording studio has not gone to fruition as she releases a set of ambient tinged, yet somewhat homogeneous songs. Her drinking problem and break up have however left a rather messy stain on her latest work and the opening track, Cherokee, carries a somewhat depressing theme. With lyrics such as I never knew pain/I never knew shame, Cherokee is just the initial taste of a rather insipid cocktail of tunes. One thing you can never criticise Marshall on though is her talent to convey personal emotion through a series of strange percussion and shuffling breakbeats. Her usual bluesy aura has gone and is instead replaced with a more experimental sound that has been extensively over-dubbed. The title track is so head spinningly distorting that you wonder whether you've accidentally taken some psychosis provoking drug that is making you hear five Cat Powers. Pattering piano keys and pulsing drums accompany the electro-funk cream of the crop Ruin, intertwining naturally with Marshall's muted hushed vocals. In contrast, Human Being relies on lyrical grandeur and the ultra long Nothin But Time is a mash up of fluctuating Teardrop Explodes style mind manifesting with backing vocals by none other than Iggy Pop, whose hollering in the background confirms it as the albums official lets-have-a-song-that-is-empowering-and-life-affirming track. Words don't come much more sharper and accrediting than the tracks layed down on Sun and although it falls short of expectations due to the half a decade wait, Miss Marshall's music is still as enticing as ever.

BEST TRACK: RUIN

LISTEN IF YOU LIKE: REGINA SPEKTOR, PJ HARVEY, FEIST

Harley Cassidy

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ariel pink's haunted graffiti - mature themes

Ariel Pink is the pseudonym of Ariel Rosenberg, a Beverly Hills recording artist, producer and all round eccentric. Haunted Graffiti are his band, with whom he has released several records, as well as a short amount of solo-material, all fitting to a similar theme, an avant garde frankenstein of genres, creating a glorious clusterfuck of sound, with the lo-fi left in. He’s been releasing active for over 10 years, but only raise to true prominence in 2010, with Before Today, his cleanest at the time. Mature Themes is his second major label release, with him being signed to 4AD in late 2009, and Before Today being released the year after.

Ariel is known for his quirkiness, from generally explicit lyricism, to overly-simplified composition, and a total break in tradition from most of the genres he emulates in all of his previous releases. This release actually seems fairly normal when compared to that. Although the quality of recording and production has increased on a steady curve since his first albums, this one seems to be the cleanest release, although there is still an ever-so-slight feel of nostalgia, like each track is thinly veiled in time.

The contents of this LP seems to be quite a diverse selection of stylings, with folk themes, 60’s-style pop songs and a few darker moments later on. If anything, this album serves to be a declaration of genre-independence from Pink. He’s trying his best to disestablish himself as a Lo-Fi artist, and more of an intelligent creative, an excellent composer, rather than that “guy who stayed on stage and refused to sing while his band carried on”. Admittedly, there are some weak moments on this album, with the title track and “Kinski Assassin” sounding very cheap. There are other bland moments in this album, but the flavourless sound is often out-weighed by a nonchalant wit displaced commonly throughout Rosenberg’s discography (a 4:35 track about Schnitzel is definitely a highlight).

There’s a certain keenness to this album that really presents Ariel’s lyrical and song-writing ability, on top of an excellent representation of Ariel’s vocal range on a lot of the tracks (Is This the Best Spot? Symphony of the Nymph), and a fantastic emphasis on the synths used, and the effects thrown about throughout the album. 

This is a really solid release from Ariel Pink and his Haunted Graffiti, and shows a lot more musical maturity to previous releases, and serves as an excellent follow-up to his cleaner and more pop-like Before Today. Although there are weak moments, the strong moments thoroughly outweigh them, and continue the avant garde legacy started in the mid-nineties. 

LISTEN

Jacob Thompson