This post is a translation of the third part in a series of music reviews by my best friend Vũ Lâm Đại (Ki) and his friend Syka Lê Vy (Ka) on their Facebook accounts.
Original review in Vietnamese by Vu Lam Dai & Syka Le Vy, English translation by Mai.
In her post, Syka explained why she chose to review in Vietnamese instead of English, and one of the reasons was “the thousands of English reviews out there”. Syka, there are billions of humans out there and that doesn’t stop us from being yet another human. Your thoughts are unique, and that’s what matters. 🙂
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Editor’s Notes: the album cover does not pass Mai’s censorship. If interested, the audience may visit the original post on Sunday Spirit for further spectacle.
The time has come. This month promises more ear-catching and familiar tunes than the last. Enjoy, everyone!
Link to Youtube playlist
Apparat – Ash/Black Veil (2011): Apparat is among Ki’s favorite German electronic artists. Apparat’s music is harmonious, dreamy, floating, and full of details. He has the talents to fire up any dance floor, but back to his creations, he aims toward a more individualistic and inbound type of rhythm. Ash/Black Veil shows Apparat’s signature: the multileveled sound, the grandeur of vast space, many climaxes, the lengthened voice. If you’re getting acquainted to electronic, looking for something comforting with quality, Apparat is absolutely not a bad choice.
Charlotte Gainsbourg – Memoir (2011): a snippet from the double album with Villager to be released this fall. Memoir brings to mind at times the antique streets in some little French city on a cold, cloudy day, other times the fragrance of the summer sun, of barley, of ripe fruits, of the wind spilling over a car window on the way home. The French colors in Charlotte’s English makes it difficult for us to understand what she is singing, but is it really important to understand? With her paper thin voice, her natural artistic soul, and an attractive personality, she makes every song irresistible.
Taragana Pyjarama – Ocean [Taragana Pyjarama EP (2011)]: a cool, breezy tone from Danmark. Ocean is open, spacious, with sparkling synth rhythm and comfort even for those who are unacquainted to electronic. This track is a proper refreshment for the hot summer days.
The Antlers – Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out [Burst Apart (2011)]: from a few prehearsed tracks, the upcoming Burst Apart seems like a promising album. Still unable to escape from the melancholy of Hospice (2009), but Every Night contains a little dynamite, a little spark and anger that wasn’t there before, as the song starts with the anxious acoustic guitar and ends with the thickening electric guitar. It is not necessarily better than their previous style of flimsy folk, but it is new and applaudable.
Katy B feat. Ms Dynamite – Lights On [On a mission (2011)]: a quick hear will render On a Mission an ordinary dance/pop album, but don’t let B’s look and voice fool you: her debut CD is sure and sound, and if properly promoted, each song can easily destroy any billboard. Unlike the mainstream music where the multi-talent is displayed by interspersing a few plain ballads among the upbeat tracks, Katy B’s style is showcased with a mix of the uniquenesses of British garage, R&B, funk, and even the refreshing dubstep, erasing the boundaries between them. Voice-wise, B is not an exceptional vocalist, but her strength, sweetness and solid techniques are enough to sharpen every single note in each track without making them cheesy. Between Lady Gaga’s aerobic music and Katy B’s organic tunes to make the legs sore from dancing, B is clearly the unknown winner.
Jamie Woon – Lady Luck [Mirrorwriting (2011)]: Yet another talented newcomer from the United Kingdom. A comparison with the fellow Brits James Blake and Katy B is inevitable. In terms of orthodoxity, Woon’s sound lies somewhere between B’s and Blake’s; in terms of style, perhaps Woon leans more heavily toward R&B than the other two. In Woon’s silky voice lies not quite the natural soul character of Blake’s or the other mainstream R&B vocalists (due to numerous layers of distortion, autotune and sound effects), but the basic style is R&B. Lady Luck is one of those special tracks where the minimal feel is oh so fulfilling: 2 altered sentences and a double-chord accord spread over 4 minutes are magically captivating. (Sidenote: I planned to include in this playlist a track that isn’t in the album, Blue Truth, rehearsal version, but I got too lazy to convert, so here’s the youtube link. It’s worth a listen!)
Fleet Foxes – Grown Ocean [Helplessness Blue (2011)]: After waiting for 3 years after the first album released in 2008, Fleet Foxes’ fans can finally be excited about the coming album this May. Grown Ocean‘s opening can remind us of The Dodos (see March Playlist); however, listen a bit deeper, and you’ll realize the difference between Fleet Foxes’ style and The Dodos’ explosiveness. There is no climatic development in the earthy rhythm, the entire song is covered in heartwarming happiness, sweet and cozy feelings.
Cloud Nothings – For No Reason (2011): the tunes of this noise pop/punk group from Cleverland are typical of the teenie boys with some artistic innerself, buy a drum, get a guitar to experiment, hack it out in a basement or a garage. The guitar is plucked nonstop, the drum hit continuously, a lack of structure and the lo-fi recording might just turn off any ear, yet the charm in that pure, light-hearted happiness is irresistible.
Explosions In The Sky – Trembling Hands [Take Care, Take Care, Take Care (2011)]: I’ve heard the new album leak of this band, and honestly felt a little exhausted (maybe I chose the wrong time to listen?) . Among the lengthy, nothing-new post rock tracks that require the ears’ patience and time, the short and straightforward Trembling Hands shines the brightest. Started bewitchingly with a rapid drum and machine-gun-like guitar session, then exploding in the second half, the song is indeed a hearty, emotionally rich piece of instrumental rock.
TV on the radio – Second song [Nine Types of Light (2011)]: The rumor of TV on the Radio’s return had seemingly died off as each member was busy with their personal projects, but at long last Nine Types of Light has surfaced with the band’s uniqueness. Still a love song, but unlike the rest of the album, Second Song contains something more simplistic, the drum and the strong core rhythm become a magnet to glue the whole song together.
The pains of being pure at heart – Belong [Belong (2011)]: the vintage movement has indeed come back strong, not only in fashion but also in music. The first track, which also carries the second album title, showcases a whiff of alt-pop from the late 80s to early 90s to remind us of the Smashing Pumpkins or My Bloody Valentine. This album tastes of the breezy summer, totally appropriate for a long trip to the faraways.
Gang Gang Dance – Mindkilla [Eye Contact (May 2011)]: This New York based band has set the Indie fansphere on fire as they release the single Mindkilla to advertise for the May-bound album Eye Contact. I saw a funny comment on youtube about this song: “It’s like Fever Ray got drunk at a party and hook up with Yeasayer, and gave birth to this song, crazy but wonderful.”
Bill Callahan – Baby’s breath [Apocalypse (2011)]: There are many opposite adjectives to describe Bill: sarcastic, conflicting, intimate, fleeting, distant, cozy, and all of them are churned together in his music, from album to album, from song to song… His voice is warm, so his songs are often mistaken as morose. But that’s not true. Bill is a compassionate poet, and his music is the unsatiable void between him and the worldly events, as well as between one human and the next. Apocalypse is his newest album since Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle (2009), which was also on my list of the best albums of 2009.
Holy Other – Touch [With U EP (2011)]: A surprise from Berlin, this dreamy slow-jam with one single sentence repeated over and over somehow cannot bore its listeners. It’s like a subconscious romance refusing to go away even after the heartbreaking goodbye, and at long last, a hope to reunite. I can’t imagine what would happen if this song were played in a club, would people start slowly disrobing and seducing one another like in the movie The Perfume?
Woodkid – Iron [EP (2011)]: I learned about EP out of total coincidence as I wandered through the pretty music videos online. There isn’t much information on Yoann Lemoine, also known as Woodkid, but from what little is available, he is quite the renaissance man: mainly working as a film director in media such as video, 8 to 35mm film, 2D and 3D animation, Stop Motion, photography, illustration, painting, screen printing, sculpture, collage, knitting, holograms, and more…. EP is a music project by Yoann Lemoine. Indeed, the MV (obviously directed by Lemoine) should be categorized with the classics, and it will certainly be in Ka’s list of “Best music videos of 2011”.
Covers etc.. by Ki & Ka
Reviews by Ki & Ka
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The Vietnamese Original is posted on Sunday Spirit.
Why translate and repost? Because it’s beautiful.
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Mai’s two-cents:
This collection rings a complete self-gratification, a perfect condiment to the lone-wolf syndrome for both the awake and the dreamy hours.
