adolescents "o.c. confidential" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
this is the first new album by orange county's punk rock 80s punk sensation in 20 years who along with contemporaries: bad religion, 7 seconds, and all/decendents (i mean they were interchangable, right?) changed the direction of punk rock into something a little more sleaker and refined that all the punk rock kids could skate to. now i love all these bands, but i've always had a problem with where punk has ended up because of them. adolescents were a tight band that had melodies that you could hum too. back then it was different, but now it is waaaay too much the norm. in my opinion punk should be sloppy and chaotic. i've always said, it's hard to be punk when you're trying to harmonize your voices. So here we are with a new adolescents record and i don't know what to think. they haven't changed all that much, but the things that made them different then make them blend into the crowd more today. tight distorted guitars with decent singing on top, with much needed (i'm not kidding here) political themes. the songs are good, but nothing ever stands out and i think most people will miss their message. i hope adolescents make another album, but remember that you'll get your message out there better with an explosion rather than random gunfire.
finger records; http://www.fingerrecords.com
a happy death "a happy death" demo cd
reviewed by chris beyond
this demo starts off pretty well with the first track "another kind of beauty" but makes me worried if i'll like the other tracks or not since their sound could so easily veer into hot topic territory. the second track "cosmic prankster" almost reminds me of a cross between joy division and seven seconds. could be good music to listen to while you sit in your bedroom on your bed with your new girlfriend or boyfriend who's never been over before. he or she would say, "hey, what's this band playing in the background?" you'd then say, "it's this new band called a happy death." "really? i like their sound, but what a boring name" "i know. wanna make out?" "totally." and nine months later you have a baby.
a happy death; http://www.myspace.com/ahappydeath, seveninchesofwax@yahoo.com
artichoke "26 scientists volume 1 anning - malthus" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but i'm a designer and i have to say that even if i wasn't already familiar with artichoke, i'd still think that the cover art here is telling me that i'm going to enjoy this album. this is the album that artichoke promised us was coming when we interviewed them last year and it does not disappoint. every song on this album is not only a pleasure to listen to, but its also a learning experience. why, you ask? . . . . . . . . . . . . i said, "why you ask?!?" . . . . ok, thank you. the reason why is because each song on this album is named after, and teaches you all about, different famous (and a couple not so famous) scientists. ...and it's not annoying like you think a modern take on this would be. personally, i loved those albums when i was a little kid that had songs about science and nature and this is a nice throwback to those days only the songs here are as excellent as any other artichoke song you may have heard on no-fi "radio" or local college stations.
this album really is amazing in that it manages to throw in all this information about these people without the lyrics suffering under the burdon. sometimes they make you work to hear some of the lyrics, but that's part of the fun. among the 13 tracks presented here, you'll find songs about charles darwin, marie curie, thomas jefferson (yes, he was a scientist too), and my favorite song on the album which is about werner heisenberg who was awarded a nobel prize for discovering quantum mechanics. as they stated in their no-fi "magazine" interview, they have picked each scientist to correspond with each letter of the alphabet. the only thing i can "criticize" about this album is that i would have changed the song order a bit, but it's a weak caveat to a great album. fans of they might be giants and weezer (before rivers decided to sell out) should love this, but the songs are so good that i imagine a lot of people will like this anyway. and, hey, they produced this album themselves and you have a duty to further the causes of both science and good music and get this album right now. so when is volume 2 coming out?
artichoke; http://www.artichoketheband.com
the dials "flex time" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
the first notes of the first song on this album "dead beat" instantly make me happy and i don't know why. this album is filled with simple, but effective pop-punk. it's been a long time since anyone has said anything nice about "pop-punk" and there are several good reasons for it, but this band shows you that when it's done right, it really can work. it's hard to make any totally solid comparisons, but maybe somewhere between the primatives and buckner & garcia. yeah a strange comparison, i know. just try to imagine the primatives covering "pac man fever" and you'll see what i mean. wait, you've never heard of the primatives? who the hell are you? anyway, this is a solid debut album and is perfect for background party music. and not to bring you all down, but dials drummer doug meis (who is really good on this album) was killed recently in a car accident. his work really comes through clearly and you can really imagine him in the studio going nuts on the drums on many of the tracks. it sounds like they plan to go on which is good, but i can't imagine it would be easy to fill his shoes. i guess we'll have to hear the next album to see.
latest flame; http://www.latestflame.com
eel "people people" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
no this isn't a new cd by mopey pop sensation the eels. this is eel from japan and these gals are modern electronic music wizards not too unlike cornelius' wackier tracks from his"fantasma" album. this album could easily be the soundtrack from some epic retro cartoon. perhaps that's something put into my head because of the excellent (and seriously i can not stress how totally excellent) album artwork by cozy tomato which reminds me of that bizzare cut-out style kiddy artwork from the mid sixties and disneyland's small world ride. my only "problem" with he album is that there is an audio commercial in the middle of the album trying to get you to go out and buy their first album. i hope that doesn't become a trend. otherwise, while i don't understand japanese and thus the lyris to the songs here, i can say that it all sounds good and would make a good addition to your collection. then you can download it to your ipod and use it as an alternate soundtrack to disneyland's "it's a small world" ride.
records of the damned; http://www.recordsofthedamned.com
candypants "candypants" cd
reviewed by quin
i sort of go back and forth with this cd. lisa jenio can really sing and the band sounds great. but the songs don't seem like they know where to go from one to the next. still they all have a tongue in cheek and silly quality that i always enjoy. the songs are very reminiscent of they might be giants and that's a very very good thing. i can hear this especially on "mandelay". there's a jazz sound on the CD that I also like very much. i can see this band playing shows with layabout. they're different, but they go together. this is another band that I really want to see live.
sympathy for the record industry; http://www.sympathyrecords.com
flut "puppy 4 life" cd
reviewed by quin
i reviewed this band's ep a while back and I have to say that this full length cd is alot better. the thing i really like about this band is the sound they create without a guitar, just a drum and a bass mostly. the songs have good tunes, but some of them go on a little too long and don't change much. but lily has a nice voice and i love the way they utilize the trumpet on some of the songs. also, the band seems to have an element of silliness that could make for a great live show. the best song on here is "manbody", and while I don't like the title "jammy jam"...that song is a great instrumental. "puppy 4 life" is a catchy little tune as well. come to think of it, the second half of this cd is better than the first. how unusual. well, this band is pretty unusual too...in a good way.
flut; http://www.flutmusic.com/
the hectors "the hectors" cd ep
reviewed by chris beyond
this is pretty pop music, but i'm not sure if it is totally reaching me. that's not their fault though, because they really do sound good. vocals good. instruments good. perhaps it's just my mood at the moment. the instrumentation really reminds me of something in between the bands lush and even, dare i say, the cure. maybe i want to hear an additional instrument in the background straying from the set path a bit. ...something a little off-kilter that bends the music a bit more. so, yes, this is a good cd and it could be perfect music in the background while you get ready for school or work in the morning, but it just needs something different to help it break off from the pack. maybe on their next album?
tarantism records; http://www.tarantism.com
human host "invisible arteries" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
this takes me back to the kind of stuff we reviewed in early issues of no-fi "magazine" back when we were made of paper. odd electronic beats, eeire high pitched noises, wailing, and weird samples layer over screaming vocals, keyboards, and whatever other instruments they can throw in there. ok, maybe it's a little more "professional" than a lot of that original stuff. my favorite track on this cd is titled "apogee" and it is probably the most listener friendly track on the album...at least to the type of listener i am. for example "airborne particles" is a little rockin' number, but not exactly my own general taste. "distant light" is pretty nice and sounds like it should have run during the end credits of an old super nintendo game. and with all the craziness, the album ends in this sweet little acoustic guitar ditty. all in all an interesting experience to take on. it might be best listened to in the middle of a wide grassy knoll for the ultimate experience.
baths of power; 48 glen alpine rd., pheonix, md. 21131, www.geocities.com/ccsuicides
javelins "no plants just animals" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
what the hell is with all the cool album art i'm getting in the mail all of the sudden? it's like bands figured out, "oh yeah, if i want the right kind of people to hear my album, i should try to maybe gussy the album cover art up a little." even before i put in this cd, i'm already loving it. kinda like eel above, this album also has kind of a kiddie art kinda vibe (done by shawn knight) which continues in and on the cd itself. the music contained on the cd? well they are a batch of fun short songs (the way most songs should be, by the way. most of the beatles songs aren't even three minutes long). filled with catchy little hooks and a guitar that often sounds like it is sending messages to outer space, this is a fun album to listen to at a party or even just kicking back by yourself. i wonder if they knew that there was a band from the 60s called the javelins? and it even has extras hidden inside the disc. first off, this is the first time i've gotten a cd that has the entire album already encoded to mp3. then there's also a live music video recorded in detroit last year. what more could you want? why are you so demanding?
suburban sprawl music; www.suburbansprawlmusic.com
the john francis & imposters "the earnest manbo suite in e major" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
this album starts off quietly with only the sound of a typewriter which to me evokes something a little off-kilter...as if william s. burroughs is typing a story on his living insect typewriter that will be translatd into the music contained within this cd. the music itself reminds me of a lot of different bands that probably influenced this band which then turned them into their own thing. i can hear a little soundgarden, neal young (especially from the dead man soundtrack), poster children, and even sonic youth (from their made in usa soundtrack album). so while not exactly original, they are doing something different with those sounds. coming back to the typewriter sound, i love how the typewriter actually plays along with the first track thus cementing the feeling i got from it. what follows the 11 minute first track (which itself would be great in some quiet road film like the other two soundtracks i mentioned) is 14 tracks of continuous typing noise until the final track which is more of a epilogue to the first track rather than a song that stands alone. good stuff to listen to while camping in the black woods while hanging out with mugwumps.
chuckbeat; http://www.chuckbeat.com/main
kite operations "dandelion day" cd
reviewed by sabrina cognata
kite operations' debut album "dandelion day" is the private genius of musicians whom pressed their classical training into a play dough mold, transforming it into something more than pretty pop music. the album unfolds like a new relationship, starting with melodies that stimulate your frontal lobe, smooth like stretching honey and moving along to the unrestrained boom of a liaison's proverbial bumps in the road. the album stirred thoughts of the costal part of southern california, the way the beach kisses your toes as you approach the surf. it felt new, but familiar. kite operations carefully crafted this album in a way which makes it easily marketable to most listeners, but still maintains a profound individuality setting it apart from the dribble available in your local music store.
as the night wind howls in the chamber of my inner ear, i close my eyes to endure its masterful ring.
k.o.a. records; http://www.koarecords.com
m-set "c.e.o.s killed the radio star" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
wow. this is heavy hard rock. seriously, this may be a little too hard rock for me. oh, don't get me wrong...i don't mean in a hard, punk kinda way. that's would be more than fine. what i'm saying is best described in the first track of this album in which hard hitting guitars play over the chorus, "she likes to hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!!!" in perfect time, tuning, and harmony. right before a totally rippin' guitar solo that would make any american ninja proud, someone shouts, "watch me!!!" needless to say, this a perfect example of the kind of album i created no-fi "magazine" as an alternative for. they play and sing just fine for the kind of music they do. and while they carry themes of anti-corprative rock, they still play what i would consider to be corporate rock. it's like when the bush administration passed the "clean air act" that actually did just the opposite and allowed companies to pollute more than they had been able to in a long time. remember that band blues hammer in the movie ghost world? they could open for this band. i do appreciate their themes of anti-corporate music. seriously, i do. it is very lacking in music today. but perhaps these cds would be more appreciated by rock city news or circus magazine. it's not punk. it's not bending music into a new and interesting direction. it's just not my thing.
m-set; http://www.m-set.com
passiou "please don't eat me" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
this album starts of like an explosion, not unlike the end of every other sonic youth song in concert (all of which i love, by the way). the music is perfect, but i wish they did something a little different, production wise, with the vocals in the opening track "love angel." in fact i think the vocals on most of this album (but not all ofthem) needed a little something more than the foggy echoey production they get here. in some songs they work. i mentioned sonic youth and the tone of this album actually does remind me of the "kill your idols" album with maybe a hint of "bad moon rising" in there. with a potential influence like that, how am i not going to like this? in fact i like this album a lot and i've only listened to it a few times so far. maybe they'll just have to call me in to help produce their next album. the songs go from political to personal and they definitely draw you in. this album great for moolight visits to the park or hanging out in your friends garage that was converted into a den.
mt6 records; www.mt6records.com, passiou.tk
the press fire "the press fire" cd ep
reviewed by quin
this is really good and alot of fun. when i listen to it i think of old l.a. band and no-fi "favorite" don knotts overdrive. too bad there are only two songs here. i want more. i need more! both songs are equally good. i really like the title "robot with human heart". but I guess I should describe the music. the vocals on the first track remind me of the mai shi, but they are raspier on the second song...kinda like early jawbreaker. the beat is bouncy and the guitars seem to hold it all together. this is really really good stuff from a band I hope to hear more from.
the press fire; www.thepressfire.com
the primos "demo cd" cd
reviewed by quin
this is a crazy l.a. band that you may have heard about. i haven't seen their live show yet, but I've heard they are quite entertaining. apparently they dress like turtles when they play. chris and i disagree about this, but unfortunately the gimmick doesn't translate to the cd. the songs are simple and dumb little stories. however, I am going to go way out on a limb and say that this may very well be honest to goodness outsider music. i get the impression that the band believes they are really great. whoever wrote the lyrics has to be completely insane. the song "cat's tail" starts off with the guy singing, "this is a tale of a cat's tail..." oooh, very clever word play. so, if you like truly bad music, you may want to check this out.
the primos; http://www.theprimos.com
rademacher "rademacher" cd ep
reviewed by chris beyond
this cd was sent to me in a hand stitched cd cover. do you know how hard that makes it to give an album a bad review? well luckily, this is actually a good ep debut from the band rademacher. like passiou above, they also seem to have a sonic youth influence and actually also remind me a little bit of artichoke mixed with pavement (in the way of vocals). the four tracks represented here are all different experiences in themselves. I love it when a band can play with different sounds and yet never sound like they are just trying to cross genres or are straying away too far from a central sound that makes the band what they are. my favorite track is "robot show" which i've already played on no-fi "radio." i'd really like to hear more from this band in the future, but hopefully not too far down the line.
rademacher; http://www.rademachermusic.com
sixteens "fendi" cd ep
reviewed by chris beyond
i first saw san francisco's sixteens when they performed at the silverlake lounge opening for the centimeters. the lights were dim in the club except for the red lights which almost seemed to be coming from the band rather than an outside source. they gave me a copy of their last album which i love and it has a couple tracks that i love to play on no-fi "radio". this is a follow-up to that album. the first track on this ep called "fancy fingers" continues their almost liquid sky-esque style of new wave and, if i'm correct, i believe that they use a sample from the film suspiria to punctuate certain parts of the song. it makes you want to get up and march in place to the beat. the next track "figurative character" has vocals that sometimes sound like they're being broadcast in a subway station, but in a good way (whatever that means). the last track "factrix" sounds very similar to a public image limited song. i wonder if it's about the 70's s.f. industrial band factrix. moving on to the album art, the cover is done by psychic t.v. frontperson genesis p. orridge and would look even better on a vinyl cover, but is still nice as presented here. the songs can be a little lengthy and drag a little bit for my personal tastes, but it stays interesting and definitly the kind of music you can just sit back and listen to while you read or boil carrots.
hungry eye records; po box 204033, tompkins square station, new york, ny 10009
ymck "family music" cd
reviewed by chris beyond
one cool thing i learned about the latest version of itunes when loading this cd into my computer is that instead of the nonsensical strings of letters, numbers, and characters that i used to get when putting in japanese cds, i now get the proper japanese characters that i absolutely can not understand due to my lacking any kind of basic japanese reading or writing skills. way to go ymck for making me feel back about that fact yet again. i kid of course. most of the tracks have english names and being that they are from japan, I'm lucky to even get that. you know that 8-bit music revolution that's been happening here in the states? well, people in japan have been doing it for a lot longer and this album is a product of that. in fact if you didn't hear the smooth female vocals over each track, you would swear that you left your nintendo on since the early ninties and somehow accidentally piped the sound through your stereo. don't you hate it when that happens? you know why you don't? cuz it never does. duuuh. anyway this is fun dinner music with delightful bouncy jazzy electronic sounds that would go great with chicken kiev. and hey, because i'm such a nrrrd, i have to tell you that their name ymck is a reference to 4 color printing. yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. yes the k stands for black. those four colors make up almost every color you see printed in magazines, record covers, birth control boxes, etc (just not "5th colors like silver, gold, etc). those four colors make up most of the album's 8-bit style artwork (all of it actually if you think about what i just told you). in america, we usually call it "cmyk". isn't that crazy? no? shut up then. try to teach somebody something and look what i get.
records of the damned; http://www.recordsofthedamned.com
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you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but i'm a designer and i have to say that even if i wasn't already familiar with artichoke, i'd still think that the cover art here is telling me that i'm going to enjoy this album. this is the album that artichoke promised us was coming when we interviewed them last year and it does not disappoint. every song on this album is not only a pleasure to listen to, but its also a learning experience. why, you ask? . . . . . . . . . . . . i said, "why you ask?!?" . . . . ok, thank you. the reason why is because each song on this album is named after, and teaches you all about, different famous (and a couple not so famous) scientists. ...and it's not annoying like you think a modern take on this would be. personally, i loved those albums when i was a little kid that had songs about science and nature and this is a nice throwback to those days only the songs here are as excellent as any other artichoke song you may have heard on no-fi "radio" or local college stations.
the first notes of the first song on this album "dead beat" instantly make me happy and i don't know why. this album is filled with simple, but effective pop-punk. it's been a long time since anyone has said anything nice about "pop-punk" and there are several good reasons for it, but this band shows you that when it's done right, it really can work. it's hard to make any totally solid comparisons, but maybe somewhere between the primatives and buckner & garcia. yeah a strange comparison, i know. just try to imagine the primatives covering "pac man fever" and you'll see what i mean. wait, you've never heard of the primatives? who the hell are you? anyway, this is a solid debut album and is perfect for background party music. and not to bring you all down, but dials drummer doug meis (who is really good on this album) was killed recently in a car accident. his work really comes through clearly and you can really imagine him in the studio going nuts on the drums on many of the tracks. it sounds like they plan to go on which is good, but i can't imagine it would be easy to fill his shoes. i guess we'll have to hear the next album to see.
kite operations' debut album "dandelion day" is the private genius of musicians whom pressed their classical training into a play dough mold, transforming it into something more than pretty pop music. the album unfolds like a new relationship, starting with melodies that stimulate your frontal lobe, smooth like stretching honey and moving along to the unrestrained boom of a liaison's proverbial bumps in the road. the album stirred thoughts of the costal part of southern california, the way the beach kisses your toes as you approach the surf. it felt new, but familiar. kite operations carefully crafted this album in a way which makes it easily marketable to most listeners, but still maintains a profound individuality setting it apart from the dribble available in your local music store.