rock | timotheories

Sweet Release (July Talk, Touch review)

Posted on September 19, 2016 by Tim Kuefler

Ever wanted to dial back the clock, dear readers?

Once we learn that time is the most precious commodity we’ll ever have, it becomes something that a lot of people beg and plead over. When really they should just appreciate the time they have and make the most of it. And sometimes when we are good little boys and girls, we get rewarded with things like July in the month of September.

July Talk – Touch
released September 9, 2016
********** 9/10

July Talk is a Canadian alt rock band, and one of the hardest working acts in town. Well not necessarily in my town, but across Canada, the United States, Europe, and even Australia, they’ve been touring almost relentlessly since they first got traction with their debut self-titled album in late 2012.

Then in 2013 they released a deluxe version of the album with four additional tracks, and I bought that album. A couple years after that point, July Talk were gaining the attention of the US market so they released another version of their album with another three additional tracks.

But they just kept touring and touring. And it’s probably why they were able to keep releasing singles from that first album, and to help us Canucks fall in love with them.

Then July Talk decided to release their follow up album this month, it’s called Touch, and quite frankly, I can’t get enough. Previously Dreimanis and Fay would play their voices off of each other, but they are starting to grow into their sound all the more, and exploring more collaboration and synchronicity between them. If the first album was about trying things and experimenting with who the leader should be, Touch is a recognition of the old adage that playing together is more fun than alone.

And that’s what this album is even stronger than the first one. There is a unity to it’s overall message, what happens when we lose connection with one another? Opener Picturing love has a wonderful piano lead-in and gets our minds out of the old July Talk mechanisms right-quick. The following track Beck + Call confirms that this is not a one man or one woman show, or even a him VS her kinda album – Fay does her part to guide us in, and Dreimanis keeps us boxed in with his howls.

The energy between the two lead singers is tight throughout, and I personally think best demonstrated in Push + Pull, whether that is obvious and cliche can be your call.

There are of course some softer songs like Strange Habit, Jesus Said So, and the title track (which is also the end track). My second favourite track is Lola + Joseph, which fits snuggly between their new material and what we know of their past, and the pacing falls somewhere in the middle too. This is disco-blues after all folks, so we are going to get a wide range of emotions and sounds, but those waves of building sounds are represented well here.

I fully expect July Talk to continue to grow as a band, and if I’m being honest with myself, they’ll probably round out my top 20 bands within the next year or two.

I was almost at the point of emotional overload when I found out that July Talk was releasing a new album in September friends. I might have mentioned this already, but they were my first ever Melodic Monday entry almost exactly a year ago (October 5, 2015). And while I think they deserved that 8 I gave their deluxe album, this one is a 9 all on it’s own, without the benefit of time and rereleases.

If you want to travel back a couple of months, you should probably listen to to July Talk. But that’s just a theory.

Tim!

Instructions Not Included (Glass Animals, How To Be A Human Being review)

Posted on September 5, 2016 by Tim Kuefler

Being a human being, is sometimes about being, and sometimes it’s more than being human.

I personally want for nothing when it comes to emotions, experiencing most of what life has to offer in my nerve-endings. Though there are some highs I’ll likely never witness, but that’s okay. Biologically I’m a special snowflake, and I know that I can’t compete with every other life model out there – limited edition baby.

Know what I’m sayin’?

Glass Animals – How To Be A Human Being
released August 26, 2016
********** 10/10

Glass Animals are an English indie rock band that make indie rock.

Just kidding, they are an indie rock band that combine psychedelic pop, trip hop, electronica, and R&B together to make their sweet sweet music. They have been active since 2012 and have made two studio length albums through their associations with Wolf Tone, Caroline International, and Harvest Records. Lead vocalist Dave Bayley had originally planned to go to medical school, but the band was picked up after Adele’s producer Paul Epworth saw the band performing.

These guys are eclectic as fuck. And I realize that’s not very poetic, but as you spend time with that sentence, you’ll start to dig back some layers, much like what I experienced as I listened to this album over quite a few listens. I found it very difficult to put down and even more difficult to not sing along as I learned the music and lyrics, letting my imagination run with the music.

Glass Animals are really good at jam packing a song full of weird noises and making it sound like there wasn’t any other option. The hooks are catchy and the beats are clean, not to mention that this is an album about people. Featuring anecdotes from people, though we’ll never know if those samples are staged or not. But I’m not sure it really matters, because the cornucopia assembled here just worked rather well. I’m gonna have a hard time putting this one down, and that’s saying a lot because I really liked the new Goo Goo Dolls, Weezer, Radiohead, The 1975 and Kendrick Lamar albums I’ve reviewed this year, but I seem to have pineapples in my head now courtesy of Pork Soda. And I want to play Nintendo mainly because of Season 2 Episode 3.

It’s an album of diversity and empathy. Mama’s Gun has an orchestral quality to it, but the lyrics reveal a disturbed portrait of a woman on a mission of remembrance, and it’s beautiful to listen to – It actually gave me goosebumps. And then they follow it up with the hip hop genius of Cane Shuga.

This is not your parent’s concept album folks, it’s full of human beings being human. There is no real start, middle or ending, because you can listen to anyone of these tracks separately or as the authors intended. That’s the rollercoaster of life. It’s lonely, but yet in that loneliness there is a comfort knowing we all collectively share that experience – full of happiness, sadness, anger, tears, sex, humour, and a host of other feelings.

An excellent survey into the human condition all in all. These guys might be glass animals, but they know a thing or two about being human. Join me here tomorrow, same bat time, same bat channel for another pop culture sensation from the 1960s, reimagined.

Tim!

Never Change (Descendents, Hypercaffium Spazzinate review)

Posted on August 29, 2016 by Tim Kuefler

If I were ever to write a personal ad for music, it might look something like this.

Man seeking a band, must have a sense of humour, honesty, authenticity, and ferocity. Experience with bullshit, but zero tolerance for it preferred. Please apply within.

I hope there are some souls out there that can answer the call.

Descendents – Hypercaffium Spazzinate
released July 29, 2016
********* 9/10

The Descendents are an American punk rock band which formed in 1977. It wasn’t until 1980, however, that they really became punks and a major player in the LA scene. This was when Stevenson brought on his school friend Milo Aukerman as the lead singer. The Descendents have released a total of seven studio albums now over their 24 year plus career, and the current lineup includes singer Milo Aukerman, guitarist Stephen Egerton, bassist Karl Alvarez, and drummer Bill Stevenson.

A lot of people will tell you that Milo Goes To College (from 1982) is their best, but I will whole-heartedly disagree. Their last album, Cool To Be You, was released in 2004 and holds up amazingly well, with all of the energy and unique perspective that the group always brings to the table.

This energy is what has influenced a plethora of pop punk and skate punk bands and especially some of my personal favourites – Blink 182, NOFX, Fall Out Boy, Green Day, The All-American Rejects, and The Offspring.

But let’s talk about Hypercaffium Spazzinate. It’s what you’re here for after all.

These gents play the kind of punk rock that transcends the typical limitations of the genre because while they do enjoy some of the simple chords and hooks, the content is always quite intelligent and relevant to where they are in the current lives. That and those chords evolve over each song, taking tracks into some more epic. For instance, Limiter is one of my favourite tracks and a song about Aukerman’s son, who is taking medication and which Aukerman believes is limiting his potential for success in life. It starts simply enough, but watch the melody progress along, it’ll take you by surprise.

They continue to mix a perfect blend of irritation about certain elements of life with a quality of sound that hasn’t been lost due to age. They even address this legacy with self-referential tracks like No Fat Burger and Beyond The Music. Asking you to reflect with them and also laugh at how their problems may have changed, but they still complain in the same ways.

Of course there are catchier tracks like On Paper, which is a great joke about those of us with well organized portfolios, resumes, and internet dating profiles, but without presence of purpose in person. And of course Testosterone is a modern replacement of the previous efforts to counterattack against the mainstream cool, this time focusing on those who will trample all for career bullion.

And when you listen to Smile, you can’t help but do so yourself. Because these guys are punk rock nerds, and are making exactly the kind of music that we need goofy, clever, and full of heart. This band continues to hit the same notes, but they never seem limited by their sound, it’s an ever-present blend of satire and whimsy.

The Descendents are the kind of musicians you could take home to your mom, but which you could also bring out to party with. They continue to make music at their own pace, and no matter what the call is, they answer it with silly and salty punk rock. Hopefully they keep that shameless halo on their list of special skills.

Tim!

A Return To Reform (Radiohead, A Moon Shaped Pool review)

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Tim Kuefler

We all have a point in our life when we do terrible things, and everyone around us, including ourselves suffers, but I truly believe that out of tragedy greatness can be achieved… And that’s what this week’s music review is all about.

Radiohead – A Moon Shaped Pool
released June 17, 2016
********* 9/10

This is the 9th studio album by Radiohead. Radiohead are an English experimental rock and electronica band that formed up in 1985, which as a personal anecdote, is the year I was born. Made up of Thom Yorke (mostly lead vocals), Jonny Greenwood (mostly lead guitarist), Ed O’Brien (guitar), Colin Greenwood (bass), and Phil Selway (drums), they have all worked together since the band’s formation.

Two more fun facts before we move into the review. First, their breakout single, Creep, was released in 1992, the year my youngest brother was born which demonstrates the 7 year gap between their formation and “breakout” succes. Second, Radiohead has used the same visual artist (Stanley Donwood) to design their album art, Thom Yorke’s solo ablums, and Yorke’s part-time gig, Atoms for Peace.

A Moon Shaped Pool has a really high score on Metacritic and has received high praise in all of the album reviews I’ve read thus far. As a long-time fan of the band and despite really really enjoying this new album, I am at something of a loss though as I don’t own nor have I really listened to their previous record, The King of Limbs. I mention this because at it’s time of release I had heard bad things about TKOL and couldn’t be bothered with it.

And now I read statements about how much of a hot mess King of Limbs was, and while I personally see why this is an excellent Radiohead album, I can’t make that comparison.

But fuck that, it shouldn’t even matter. If we all operated in a vacuum this review would be incredibly different, so you got my backstory, my perspective and I suspect the review is all the richer for it.

I remember when I was a bright young university student. Full of angst, rebellion, and a thirst for melancholy. It only made sense that one of my professors thought I was a huge fan of Radiohead, a joke not lost on me at this stage of my life.

But Radiohead have traded in their mopey sad songs for dreams and the eternal – This is best showcased on the tracks Daydreaming and Decks Dark which are early enough in the record to solidify this new position.

Opener Burn The Witch is typical of Radiohead and well constructed like a much needed timepiece for our generations arm. Especially since it’s an older song finally realized in studio format. The story about lynch mobs can be applied to any number of current pop culture and political hysteria too.

And in case you were wondering, the electronics that made Radiohead synonymous with alienation and genius, and consequently the root of numerous imitations, is alive and well. If you listen to Identikit, The Numbers or Tinker Tailor Soldier Sailor […] in isolation, you’ll get that old familar feeling.

On Present Tense, I’m reminded of the entire vibe of the amazingly good album In Rainbows, which is cool because that album came out in 2007 and Radiohead have been honing this song since that time period. But the best is definitely last and will pay service to true fans. True Love Waits has been part of their archives since the mid 1990s.

I can’t say enough good things about this album, because the band fused two things. They took what we love about Radiohead and simultaneously helped themselves push forward, which is the reason why they keep making records. Would I say this is their best album ever? I don’t know, but would I say it’s one of the best albums of this year or even of this decade. Yeah, yeah I would.

Sometimes you have to hit your lowest low to realized what the hell you were doing there in the first place and why you care about what you care about, The King of Limbs was definitely a low point for Radiohead, A Moon Shaped Pool is a demonstration of a return to their power to reform. And yes I am using multiple definitions there. I’m theoried out friends, I’ll see you tomorrow with a movie review.

Tim!

Four-Letter Word (Holy Fuck, Congrats review)

Posted on June 6, 2016 by Tim Kuefler

Blasphemous or obscene language. That’s what I read when I looked up profanity in the dictionary.

Apparently it bothers some, offends others, and it irreverent to many. We could put attention on the Internet, loosening morals, higher education or any number of subjects, but the point is this. When you use a swear word, people will pay attention.

At least for a minute or two. Holy Fuck.

Holy Fuck – Congrats
released May 27, 2016
******** 8/10

Holy Fuck is a Canadian electronica band currently on the Young Turks label. The band uses live instruments and several non instruments to create their unique sound, which sounds electronic but is not created with laptops or tracks. For example, they’ve been known to use toy phaser guns in their songs. Seriously.

A good instrumental act is hard to find, but once you do, you better hold on tight because their sound will be a snowflake in the summer, beautiful and unique, but fleeting. You can capture it and put it under glass, but it won’t function the same way. That’s probably why the best instrumental acts are often on independent labels, untapped and underexposed potential.

Suffice it to say Holy Fuck are a good indie instrumental act, though you are probably wondering how Congrats fares as an album overall, right dear readers?

I personally really like House of Glass, that opener uses a really cool baseline and what sounds to be sirens to evoke darkness without ever being explicit, and wait for the build up – it’ll give you goosebumps. Tom Tom and Sabbatics are also some kind of wonderful. Tom Tom with it’s glitchy soundscape and haunting vocals and Sabbatics with it’s ever-rising climb of rhythm.

This is the kind of dance album that we could have used 4 or 5 years ago, but which the band wasn’t around to make. Likely because they were recharging after 3 strong album efforts and an end of the dance-rock heavy era of the oughts.

And with that consideration, the true question remains – are Holy Fuck still relevant? Or were they ever?

Holy Fuck is both my electronic dream and electric nightmare. Their capacity to produce non-electronic sounds that actually sound better than the real thing is simply fantastic and proof that au naturel is how I like it.

The supposed problem though, is that dance rock doesn’t have a lasting impression with the masses, at least not one that helps you remember it as a good experience. And unfortunately Holy Fuck is also something of an exercise in construction. They figure out a way to make a track and piece together the disparate elements, but never take a real risk to produce higher level sonic bliss. Kind of like that friend which you know will make you laugh and you feel perfectly comfortable with at the party, but isn’t going to floor you with philosophy later on.

It’s hard to fault them though, when the beats are so bumpin. To quite Anthony Fantano, I’m feeling a solid 7.5 to an 8 on this one… And transition.

Holy Fuck aren’t a gimmick band, despite what moments of this write-up might tell you. If anything, I suspect they are subversive little dance-rock enthusiasts and they wanted a way to play music while poking holes in some of the weaker genre elements.

With Congrats they’ve successfully done that, but the question remains. Are they still relevant?

Tim!