6: Fortress, Innit?

Fortress (2008)

Protest the Hero

Vagrant Records

If you listened to Protest the Hero's first album, A Calculated Use of Sound, you'd expect them to be going nowhere beyond the local hardcore circuit. Quite frankly, it was unremarkable pop-punk with a-dime-a-dozen political attitudes. If you were then to move on to their 'proper' debut, Kezia you'd think to yourself "Holy fuck". It was described as Metalcore by some and it was described as Emo by others, but jesus christ that album was musically complex. Personally, I hate the aesthetic on that album, but I love the music and that's really saying something.

When Protest the Hero announced that their latest album, Fortress, would be a departure from their previous sound, that was a very, very good sign. Nothing could really have prepared me for what Fortress had in store. It takes influence from not only almost every sub-genre of metal, but from Jazz, Classical and even Dub Reggae. What's more is that it manages to integrate these styles fluidly into a sound that is uniquely their own. Nothing is here 'for the sake of it'; every riff and nuance seems perfectly in place. They knew where to draw the line in genre-experimentation and retained a compositional elegance to go with their tongue in cheek way of going about things. Add to this that each member is virtuoso at their instrument and you can easily imagine the scale of technicality on show. The only aspect of the instrumentation which is questionable, is the falsetto vocals of Rody Walker. In my opinion, he is an incredibly versatile vocalist, whose delivery is absolutely flawless. But that's precisely it; that's my opinion, and when it comes to this band, nothing seems to divide people more than his vocals. My guess is that the reason for this is a sort of macho "falsetto = gay" attitude among many metal fans. At any rate, his technical ability can only be praised, regardless of any personal qualms. While his prevailing style is falsetto crooning, he is capable of from death grunts, growls and screaming, straight into some of the most astounding clean vocals I've ever heard from a male.

When it comes to the rest of the band, everything is seemingly perfect for the job. While they are accused of "Yngwie Malmsteen Syndrome" (i.e. non-stop technical wank) I doubt you could find a single passage in the album in which there is a solo. The band is constantly working as a streamlined and efficient unit. Song structure will never be sacrificed for technicality, and it is this aspect that sets them further apart from Yngwie Malmsteen than most bands. The fact is that virtuosity does not equal musical masturbation so long as it's used cleverly. I'd consider a guitar solo in an Arctic Monkey song "wanky" not due to the technicality (or lack therof) but due to the fact that it's just been placed there for the sake of it. Moving on, Fortress is a concept album, although lyrically no longer politically charged. They've grown up since Kezia. Fortress is philosophically charged, making statements about the nature of language, the diminishing role of the goddess within religion and the inherent violence of our species.

The lyrics, framed by the music, creates one of the most satisfying listening experiences I've ever had. In fact the only aspect of this album that let's me down at all is the production. It's too damn clean. Every blip and crack has been removed from their sound. For such visceral and human music, it's far too perfect. I would kill for this album to be remastered with the production of Kezia. 

But that is essentially a small gripe that I have with an otherwise flawless album. It's honestly one of the most exciting albums I've ever heard, and when I imagine what Protest the Hero will be capable of by the release of the next album? There aren't words.

5: Movies Round Up No.1

I've had 2 weeks free (kinda) due to holidays so I watched some films. Here are the ones that I have anything to say about. 

Not necessarily the best ones.

Cthulhu 

(Dir. Dan Gildark) 

An homage to H.P Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, Cthulhu tells the tale of a man returning to his home town in sleepy New England, only to find that it has become subverted by the Dagon Cult, a group of religious nuts whose aim is to revive the ancient god Cthulhu in an attempt to bring about the end of civilisation. Having read approximately a third of Lovecraft's oeuvre of fictional work, I was apprehensive about this film.

Having watched it, I have rather mixed feelings. On the one hand, the cinematography is for the most part pretty good, especially considering the budget and the film is saturated with references to many of Lovecraft's short stories, evidence of the director's obvious passion for the source material. Then in the other hand, the acting and dialogue can be awkward and b-movie-esque at times. The plot, in trying to be surreal and disconcerting, comes across as scatty and poorly thought through.

While the film's attempt to handle the subject of religious intolerance against homosexuality is certainly admirable, it is to the detriment of the overall feel of the film. It comes across as preachy and overbearing, while at the same time shallow. The best horror essentially means nothing. It is driven by man's fear of the unknown, something that Lovecraft was a master of. While there are moments in this film which display an understanding of this, they are fleeting and the overall picture is very much a contrived gay-rights after school special, saying nothing new. Again I'd like to emphasise that I'm not a bigot. I don't dislike the message; it's that it's a blatantly obvious message that I didn't need to be told by a film that purports to be about ancient tentacle-gods. That's just condescending.

4/10

My Kid Could Paint That 

(Dir. Amir Bar-Lev)

When Abstract Expressionism became a prominent art movement in post-war America, headed by controversial figures such as Rothko and Pollock, people criticised it in a way that can be summed up with the title of this film; "C'mon. My kid could paint that". This film addresses that issue ...and the issue of cynicism in modern art ...and the ethics involved in media hype. In fact, this film is the antithesis of Cthulhu. Unlike Cthulhu, which simply has one crummy message which it chooses to stretch out for 100 minutes, this documentary has about 10 valid ones that it has to cram into 70 minutes, which in the end leaves you with plenty to think about, if a little bemused. 

Essentially, this film is the story of a 4 year old girl named Marla Olmstead (whose abstract paintings have been sold for up to $30,000) and her rise and fall from fame while she remains perfectly oblivious to it all. Reactions to her work vary from claims of child genius to claims of fraudulence, and even more so the claims that Abstract Expressionism is so shallow that it could be done by a child. After accusations that her father has been helping her - if not painting everything for her - on news show 60 Minutes, the film takes an odd turn. Suddenly you become aware of the position the film maker is in himself, with interviewees asking him questions about how he plans to portray the family on film. Will he become just another news outlet, shaming the family and trying to drag whatever entertainment they can out of them?

Bar-Lev pulls it off in the most honest way possible; by making himself a character. I won't give away too much more suffice to say that in the end everything seems to resolve itself, yet you're left unsure still what to make of the girls parents.

Decide for yourself; http://www.marlaolmstead.com/home.html

7/10

I'm out of interesting (well, I at least think so) opinions on films so here's a list of films which I've recently seen with an 'out of 10' rating beside them;

Survive Style 5+ 

Dir. Gen Sekiguchi

Colorful, funny and with a short attention span, you can tell that both the director and producer used to specialise in commercials. It's like Pulp Fiction and Gozu  had a love child (Gozu is by the way, one of my favourite filmsand you should check it out if you don't mind the lack of a coherent plot).

Made me gain some respect for Vinnie Jones.

8/10

Man On Wire

Dir. James Marsh

I have come to a conclusion as to why this film has 100% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.com (basically all the reviews have given it at least 60%). It's not because it's the best film of all time. It's because it's the least objectionable. With that said, I have no problems with the film. Pretty clear cut, nice, insprational film with nothing too controversial in it.

7/10

Religulous

Dir. Larry Charles

This documentary is basically one man's quest to show the world how much better off everything would be without god and the dangers of blind faith.

Ultimately, Bill Maher comes across as slightly bigoted, but he's funny enough that he get's away with it. Barely.

6/10

4: American Don and so forth

American Don (2000)

Don Caballero

Touch and Go Records

Let's wind back the clock on Don Caballero for moment. Before their two most recent efforts, the exceptionally average and unremarkable World Class Listening Problem,  and the forced-comedy song titles of Punkgasm. Before Damon Che decided he was Don Caballero. Before Ian Williams Left.

Released in the spring of 2000, American Don  was the result of the bands collaboration in the studio with producer Steve Albini, most famous for producing Nirvana's In Utero and The Pixies'Surfer Rosa. Following what seems to be the trend they had of switching around band members every album, this was (in my opinion) the most streamlined and functional line-up the band had ever had (or would ever have). The band had been boiled down to its very extreme with just guitarist Ian Williams, Drummer Damon Che and newbie bassist Eric Emm on board, but this album is essentially the battle between Che's quirky and flamboyant drumming, with William's subdued and organic guitar. Never has a band with two such opposing musical personalities been able to form such a whole sound. That reminds me - I should probably give those not in the know an overview of what this band actually sound like.

Since their first album For Respect in 1993, Don Caballero's aesthetic had been slowly morphing from the crunchy, rhythmically-complex heavy-metal that Damon Che obviously favours as a songwriter (although he hates the term math-rock, Che is considered a pioneer within the genre), to the flowing, mechanical minimalism of Ian Williams. Following that in 1995, Don Caballero 2 was more of the same in terms of guitar tones, but the style of guitar work had much changed, with Williams' alien, 'extended guitar' techniques coming to the fore. 1998's  What Burns, Never Returns was, to all intents and purposes, the tipping point. This was an album with head-bobbing alterna-rock riffs one second and delay-saturated pseudo-jazz passages the next, tipping their hat to the Cocteau Twins and Miles Davis simultaneously. It seemed to be in equal measure Che and Williams' styles combined. When we look at Williams' free-jazz side project - Storm and Stress - and the following Don Cab albums (primarily written by Che) and then imagine what would happen if they had a bastard child, that child would be What Burns, Never Returns.

And what followed when that child grew up would be American Don.

I never think of this album in terms of songs. I can only ever listen to it as a whole, because that's the way it works best. It's an experience. It's a collection of moments that flow into one another. It's comparable in many ways to post-rock in that sense, with each song closer to a classical composition than it would be to a 'rock song'. In a far more literal way it has gone beyond the form and aesthetic of rock music while retaining the instruments and the kind of rebellious sensibility that define it. Here, the guitar is almost unrecognisable as the same instrument that spurred rock n' roll, heavy metal and punk music. Emm and William's have morphed their instruments through looping devices that have allowed them to create dense layers of melody and counter-point that would otherwise require far more performers. Imagine a kind of 'Frére Jacques' application of this technique; playing a short guitar lead and then gradually adding details and harmonies. Bass is sparse, but the warm tone and simplistic melodies are like butter to the ears. The effect is startling. It's the musical equivalent of abstract expressionism.

As always the drums are flashy, complex and almost never repeat themselves. It's as if Che plays nothing but fills. His virtuosity has led to many fans being in awe of the band for that alone, ignoring the true songwriting capacities of Williams and the contrast between their two styles. It has also led to many to dub American Don as their worst, as Che's drumming is somewhat more subdued on this release.

While the band called 'Don Caballero' continues to tour, the real Don Caballero died with American Don, Damon Che being the solitary member of the original lineup on all subsequent releases. The follow up, World Class Listening Problem, was a massive step backwards in terms of songwriting, harking more towards the unrefined experimental metal of their early releases, while trying to retain fans of American Don by applying imitation-'Williams' style guitar riffs. Their latest, Punkgasm was a further step away from their peak, with the band descending into sub-standard math-rock clichés.

Williams went on to form the critically acclaimed neo-kraut band Battles, who seemingly attempt to create a musical fusion between man and machine, a kind of expansion and development on ideas from American Don yet with further exploration of timbre.

It doesn't look like they'll ever collaberate again.

3: Leo's Summer Mega-Mix '09

I've been thinking about the best way to spread the word about obscure/not so obscure (but equally good) music via the 2, maybe 3 people that have read this web log and I came to a conclusion; I must complile the ultimate summer mega-compilation booster pack, and redeem those who have not tasted the glory of multi-genre-spanning insanity art.

So here it is in all it's flavours and shapes (flavoursome it is, but certainly not square)

LEO'S SUMMER MEGA-MIX '09

Tracklistings

01. Laser Bitch (Genghis Tron)

02. 6b Panorama (Aesop Rock)

03. Father O'Blivion (Frank Zappa)

04. Legs (Massacre)

05. Assassins (Lightning Bolt)

06. 4ft Car (Chris Morris)

07. Mt. Saint Michel Mix+St. Michaels Mount (Aphex Twin)

08. Dali's Car (Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band)

09. De Anza Jig (Primus)

10. Nero's Intention (Lye By Mistake)

http://www.mediafire.com/?id2jmwmjzk4

There it is. An ultra-collection of noises and tid-bits for you ears to swallow, and your brain to digest. I may do this again, I may never post on this blog ever again. Who knows.

2: My Mediocre Music

I'm too lazy to re-write all this, so I copied and pasted this from a forum I frequent.

In chronological order (so from worst to best, basically);

Whatcha Got Zeke?(2007/08)

1. Let's All Go To The Lobby (1:58) 

2. Old Bitch (2:46) 

3. The Overlook (0:52) 

4. Yum Yum (5:00) 

5. The Screaming of the Lambs (2:24) 

6. Right the Fuck In (1:13) 

7. Too Rare To Die (1:27)  

I'd say the worst stuff that I've done. I was just getting to grips with the program and this was the fuckabout I came up with. Not absolutely terrible, but really immature. Too many film quotes and that, and I was trying too hard to make up drums and stuff. I really wish I recorded The Screaming of the Lambs in better quality, but I lost the Ableton file out of incompetence. 

http://www.mediafire.com/?mkz2zoqojgj  

Neon Workout (2008)

1. Quantum Stretches (2:09) 

2. Spacejog (1:02) 

3. Cosmic Cycle Machine (1:10) 

4. Bath (Release) (3:25)  

An improvement on the first one. S'alright like. I was in a good mood when I wrote this stuff. Bath is nice. 

http://www.mediafire.com/?tbmuy4mggic

Merry Christmas (2008)

1. Silent Night (4:05)

2. 12 Days of Christmas (5:36)

3. Jingle Bells (5:52)

I made these three songs over 2 or 3 days at christmas and liked 'em together so I put them in a .rar and slapped them on mediafire. The most ambient stuff I've done for definite. Complete absence of any beat. 

http://www.mediafire.com/?jwmzzdtrtmj  

The Admirable Crichton (2009)

1. Ultra-Marine Blue 

2. Wrecked 

3. The Admirable Crichton 

4. Coconuts for Luncheon (1:00) 

5. Gov' 

6. In Pursuit of Tweeny 

7. Rescue 

8. Crichton Once More 

9. Escape  

Loosely based off this odd kafka-esque feeling I got from watching the terrible 1950's comedy/drama, The Admirable Crichton. Also, the first thing I did where I actually planned the album out. All the tracks bar 6 and 4 were written with the intent of putting it in this specific album and fitting the start and end into that order. 4 and 6 are two tracks I had recorded that I felt would balance out the album a bit. If you listen to only one thing from this list, let it be this. 

http://www.mediafire.com/?ginjuym4ljt  

I'm currently working on an abstract musical interpretation of Kafka's The Castle, and I'll post tracks in progress if there's any interest.  

FEEDBACK WANTED AND ENCOURAGED POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE

1: Centralia and that

First post on my new web log. 

Hi.

....

I think I'll review one of my favourite albums for the sake of something to do. 

Here you go.

Centralia (2007)

Car-Bomb

Relapse Records

Centralia, the debut of the aptly named Car Bomb (a band who by their own admission are akin to "a jet engine propelling gravel into your skull"), is damn near perfect. It's 32 minutes of flawlessly crafted, incredibly well written, technical... something. Unlike 90% of bands you'll hear, it's nearly impossible to glean many influences from listening to their music alone (they list Bjork and Meshuggah as amongst their favourites)so you need to think up long contrived, and slightly comedic sentences to try to do them justice. Think Experimental-Metal meets Hardcore and Faith No More in a crack den run by Carl Jung and Dante Alighieri and you're in the right mindset. From the opening drum roll of Pieces of You, the album launches into a series of seriously spazzed out, yet totally cohesive math-metal vignettes on the subject of existance. Basically, if you enjoy getting punched in the face with wisdom, you'll love these guys.

Highlights include the 28 second long Rid (Pure, stop-start calculated noise), the almost-rapped vocals of Cellophane Stilletto and Best Intentions, the sheer insanity of His Eyes and (in my opinion) the bands centrepiece; that freaky harmonic thing the guitarist does throughout the album. I have no clue how he does it, but it adds this intense, frenetic energy to the music in all the right places, most notably towards the end of Hypnotic Worm. Pure musical gold.

As continuing my attempt to describe to the music in words could never be truely do it many favours, let's focus on the lyics for a moment;

Caught up in a frenzy like rats crawling on there belly

Staying low to the ground to escape the hundred-million K

Reasoning technology has never soothed the taste of ease

That's running from our lips to blind us in our greedy eyes

Force us to pave the blind shroud of hell.

This machine was built from the 

Metal that we scraped 

After the last world war

Hunger for blood

During peace time

Advance

(Best Intetions)

Now, I'm not sure how many of you listen to metal, but if you want a frame of reference to gauge these lyrics by;

 

Do I have the strength to know how I'll go? 

Can I find it inside to do what I should have known? 

Do I have the strength to know how I'll go? 

Can I find it inside to do what I should have known? 

My lifestyle determines my deathstyle 

(Life is pain) 

Rising tide pushes to the other side 

(Life is pain) 

My lifestyle determines my deathstyle 

(Life is pain) 

Rising tide pushes to the other side 

(It's all the same) 

(Frantic from Metallica's best selling St. Anger album)

Ok, I'll admit that Metallica never really stood a chance here, but I figured I should probably contrast Car Bomb's virtually unknown ode-to-an-atom-bomb to a single that got to #21 in the US Billboard's top 200 chart. I'm unsure whether or not that's a testament to the writing prowess of chaps in Car-Bomb, or a damning piece of evidence against the intelligence of the general population of the US...

At any rate the album's best moment happens to be it's last. The final track HN51 (named for the strain of bird-flu that may kill us all [Metallica reference hurrr]) is perhaps one of the most haunting pieces of music I have ever heard in my life. It the first half consists of a rather flowery description of the symptoms that the eponymous disease entails, drawled rhythmically over a guitar sounds like a swarm of locusts, coming to fuck you up. The piece climaxes (and ends) with the vocalist screaming at you, with balls out;

The ending is coming prepare for the eradication
The ending is coming
Annihilation coming

With sentiments of finality and futile apocalyptic-desperation, I could honestly not think of a better ending to that album, nor to this review.