SOSUS

So last night Matt and I went to see The Oranges Band live at the Ottobar with The Whigs and Two If By Sea (we didn't see much of either other band). It was a great concert, I must say they do a really lively set. On stage with them was a new bassist (Faye, I think), who I only knew to be a new member from all of the audience's yelling (positive, not negative). Even so the band seemed to be really enjoying themselves, which definitely helps to get me more into their music. Also, I was really surprised to find out that Matt and I were the youngest people there (as we were the only one's with X's on our hands), even with the club quite full. They're worth checking out, I especially like their song Ok Apartment (it's on their myspace page).

Check them out here:
http://www.theorangesband.com/
and on myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/theorangesband

I've been listening to The Octopus Project's One Ten Hundred Thousand Million (Peak-a-Book Records; 2005) all day. I originally got the CD about six months ago, but haven't really picked it up until today. It's been a great album to walk to, and I think there are several reasons why I like it so much. The band (at least on this one album) is similar in approach to The Books, but very different in execution. Where The Books try to make their computer-stitched-together songs still sound fairly traditional (this is in now way meant as a jab, I think they're use of dialogue as well as other more modern musical tools is incredible, but they do have less of a rough "edge") The Octopus Project is willing to allow there music to move farther away from traditional acoustic instruments, and towards a more digitally produced sound.

One of my favorite songs on the album is All Of The Champs That Ever Lived. The song starts off a short audio clip and then goes into a short bassline riff, with a staccato punch of static offering a source of percussion. After only a few seconds of build up the song takes an unexpected turn (one of the reasons I like it so much). Instead of a traditional build up of different harmony parts over the initial bassline, the bassline (along with the static) is abandoned for a jumpy drum beat, guitar-line and a kind of scratching audio clip (almost like a pick slide). Once this is fully developed, the band returns to the original bassline. The rest of the song is a continued transition between both of these parts, each being developed as the song progresses. The song finally builds up to a meshing of the two different parts, which eventually putters out, leading quickly into the next song (another good one, much slower though) titled Bruise.

The album is filled with fun songs to listen to, other favorites of mine (currently) include Music is Happiness, a fast-hitting jaunt with laser sounds and Hold the Ladder, a song whose percussion is mainly made up of sound clips and static, and has a really nice bassline and guitarline, which play off each other. The whole album is an interesting mesh of "laprock" (Laptop Rock... I am not sure if anyone really thinks of this as a genre, but I've heard it used), post-rock and noise. Puts me in the mood for the High Zero festival going on the weekend of September 14th - 17th in Baltimore.

http://www.theoctopusproject.com/

I just recently got my hands on the rest of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs Fever to Tell, and I must say, by far my favorite song on the album is "Y Control." A friend of mine just sent me the music video, which I think was directed by Spike Jones. The music video is incredibly dark, somewhat morbid, but at the same time has a light sense of humor, which makes it a lot of fun to watch. A discord is created between the humor and the seriousness of the video with the juxtaposition of the strange - as well as grotesque - actions of the kids in the video and Karen O's antics, which make the whole thing seem more like "make believe."

Ratatat's new album, Classics [XL; 2006] is a widely varied texture of genres. Sometimes hip hop, sometimes prog-rock, the album is largely atmospheric, consisting of repetitive hooks which beg for some sort of visual companion. In some ways the album is very "soundtrack-esque", but I mean this in a very good way. While not the most fascinating of albums, Ratatat has produced something worth picking up.

As the albums cover suggests, one of the most talked about songs on Classics is the song Wildcat, which features panther-growling sample, amidst a heavy bass line and a funky one-note guitar riff. Wildcat, as with the entire album, show off Evan Mast and Mike Stroud's ability to produce highly-energized instrumental music. What the album lacks in depth it makes up for in action: every song suggests body movement, and listeners can't stop tapping their feet.

Ratatat's ability to create incredibly inviting hooks is in some ways the cause of their limitations. The songs often take a long time to progress, and don't really live up to expectations. However, as most reviewers have seen this as a negative, I think its not as negative as it sounds. The limitations in Ratatat's song construction really speaks to the number of members in the band: two. I have a feeling that the members have made a commitment only to create music which they can easily recreate on stage. Where most bands add additional guitar and synth tracks which get lost in live translation (read: watching Led Zeppelin concert videos never did it for me), Ratatat has made a decision to keep things simple.

I have not been able to see Ratatat live yet, but something tells me they will extremely entertaining. While staying within the realm of simple guitar and synth loops, Ratatat's music will make you want to move, and is quite lovely for early morning wake ups. Ratatat doesn't offer its listener a strong, "moving" experience which people often attribute to their favorite music, but it does give you something to move to, a wonderful panacea for a bad mood.

http://www.ratatatmusic.com/

P.S. If you are in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area, be sure to check out Ratatat's upcoming show, on October 4th, at the Black Cat in D.C.

So the radio show starts next Tuesday, September 12th at 10 P.M. You can listen to the show here by clicking on the "radio" link in the upper-right corner of the page. If you miss the showing, its possible to listen to the show once its archived. When I find out the link to the archive page I'll post it.

In the meantime, please enjoy this cover of Joanna Newsom's Peach, Plum, Pear, done by Final Fantasy. I found it last night while looking around. I know nothing of Final Fantasy, but can say that I am really impressed with the cover and want to find out more (read: I am a sucker for violin loops).