45rpm

Six Organs Of Admittance

2006-07-06T23:19:00.000-04:00

A Star Guest Review by Ian

When bmags had asked me to review the latest installment by Six Organs of Admittance, I was not entirely sure how I would react to the bizarre psychedelic rock that Ben Chasney is so well known for.

The Sun Awakens is filled with an incredible sense of imagery, which all comes together to form a brilliant atmosphere in a story of the sun exploding and ending life as we know it. This album isn't as much about rocking out as it is about telling the story of life's pitiful demise. Chasney is trying to create a spooky album, and with titles like 'Bless Your Blood' and 'Torn by Wolves' how can we expect anything less?

The album starts off with an acoustic guitar as the front man with the slightest essence of percussion in a beautiful and melodious song entitled 'Torn by Wolves.' The track is just long enough, at just under 2 minutes, to give you a feel of the direction the album is heading. 'What direction?' you ask. Why, you will have to continue reading and listening to find out.

As the stand out track, clocking in at a whole 2 minutes and 57 seconds, 'The Desert is a Circle' seems far too short, and I wish it were about 2 minutes longer. The mix of electric and acoustic guitars lends itself with all of its beauty to this fun western style song. "Wolves Pups" is essentially a rewritten version of the first track, “Torn by Wolves,” that was created to bring back that feeling of neutrality, but half way through the song a noisy electric guitar drowns out the beauty of the acoustic guitar. This noise takes you in a substantially different direction towards a more eerie feel that comes out to you saying, "Can you hear it? This is the beginning of the end."

The first six tracks lead up to the long-winded centerpiece named "River of Transfiguration." This track is not your typical jam out; it is so soft and so quiet. So quiet in fact, that if you don't have your speakers turned up loud enough you will be missing the atmosphere that is being created by the light instruments. The highlight of the song is when they bring in droning monks adding to the atmosphere created by the use of what seems like an insurmountable number of instruments. This 24-minute jam session is about 15 minutes too long, sadly, and it can become very repetitive.

This album was a disappointment at first, but it must be understood that you are listening to a story. The atmosphere created from these well written tracks is nothing short of amazing. It is really too bad they did not make more beautiful and lengthy songs before they concluded it with one ridiculously long track. Now despite this 24-minute track at the end and a few other troubling elements, this album is great.

Rating: 3.5/5 or B-

(Ian is not a writer, nor much of a reader. But the dude is a hell of an uploader...major shoutout to him for helping resurrect the dead 45rpm - bmags)

Some interesting instumental music that you may or may not like.

2006-07-03T11:51:00.000-04:00

So i've been listening to a lot of instrumental stuff recently, partly cos i've been playing with Audition a bit, making mixes, rather than compilations, for friends/my car/for fun, and instrumentals lend themselves to more interesting mixes than just a simple crossfade at the end - you can layer tracks together a to introduce a stronger sense of continuity - but I digress. Partly cos this blog has been embarassingly dead recently, and partly because I'm bored, I thought i'd share three of the more interesting discoveries I've made.

The Timeout Drawer. I can't go past good use of a Moog, especially when used in such an unusual context. I never thought the humble keyboard could rock so much. Unusually among the post rock crowd, these lads have little use for the 'quiet' part of the quiet/loud/quiet formula, and, to this guy at least, its a welcome change. I do love bands like Mono and Mogwai, who, when they choose to rock out, damn well rock out properly, but I tend to lose patience with those who persist for too long with the more ambient passages. GB!YE, i'm looking squarely at you. For this reason, my next recommendation might seem unusual, but hey, I'm not a usual guy.

Byla. This is what ambient music should be like - enough variation between tracks that you can put this on your headphones, shut your eyes, and enjoy the music, rather than be lulled immediately into slumber. You can hear Closer to the Centre here, which, while not really indicative of the rest of the album, is my standout track.

Ellis The Vacuumchild.Yes, it's a stupid name. But these Swedes are having fun, and it shows in the music. Relatively short songs, except for the closer [Ellis fears Chloe - I wonder if Chloe is as fright-inducing as Satan?] this is post-rock trimmed of the fat.

Living in the Citay

2006-05-30T22:00:00.000-04:00

a painter's lazy review of premodern rock piece

The grammar will be offf, the effort marginal - I am now working manual labor.

I have a story for you all, however, one truly relevant to this great album, citay's self-titled debut (though more like a side project of Ezra Feinberg and Tim Green). In late March of second semester, I had returned home from Mizzou for spring break '06 sponsored by Girls Gone Wild. Late in the week I was going to visit my friend at Loyola, so I took the hour train ride from the suburbs to the citay (this play won't get old!). Browsing through my ipod, I wanted to hear something that I had not yet given full attention to. The touch browser stopped at Citay.

The album begins with such a familiar sounds. Strumming acoustics and droning southern rock guitar chords slowly advance like a trickle of water before the dam breaks. The vocals sound like they are being whispered in a bathroom shower, taking a back seat to the wonderful instrumentals.

At the front of this album's exploration is the acoustic guitar. Citay takes the dark mood and elements of 70's rock bands Led Zeppelin among others and strip away the distortion, without it losing any less edge. Nice Cuffs is the standout track for me, starting off with light strums on the acoustic, before stalling and falling off. A sudden explosion of winds and electric guitars and drums break forward into the song and never looks back.

Citay has is very much like the myriad bands looking backwards to try and find out how to go forwards. However, the refreshing spin of looking at 70's rock instead of 80's overdone post-punk scene makes the album wonderfully fresh and new sounding.
-B-

Serendipity

2006-05-18T19:27:00.000-04:00

So for a couple of months now I've been wondering who wrote the song on the Sony Bravia commercial - the one with all those bouncing balls. Anyway, about 6 months ago, I had my parents down for dinner, and I was showing off my new home theatre set up to my old man with the Nick Drake - Treasury SACD, and my mum LOVED it. My parents and I have never had much in common musically, so I'm pretty stoked, but more than this, I've now opened up a whole new world in the previously very sparsely populated category of 'Things to buy my Mum and Dad for birthdays/christmas/mothers/fathers day'.

So for Christmas Mum gets a couple of Belle & Sebastian albums (Dad still gets Scotch, its just the rules).... given with some trepidation, because a. Just because she liked Nick Drake doesn't mean she'll like B&S, and b. There's no guarantee my Mum is actually capable of telling me the truth if she doesn't like them, and I could have started down a path that leads to Mum having a pile of indie/folkish records gathering dust in a cupboard somewhere, to be brought out only when I'm around to spare my feelings.

It come to Mothers day and I'm browsing my local record store, when I stumble across a CD called Modern folk, and I think - Perfect! Not only should my Mum dig most of this stuff, but if she likes some artists in particular, then I've opened a treasure chest of future gift options. It's got Sufjan, Devendra, Antony & The Johnsons, Final Fantasy - all the usual suspects, so I grab it, take it home and have a listen (just to make sure Mum will dig it). One of the few artists I hadn't heard was Jose Gonzalez, who I must admit I had assumed must be a tropicalia artist from the latin name, and the fact that I had heard of him, and in the online musical circles I travel this tropicalia stuff is fairly popular, but its never done much for me. This was the standut track on the album for me, so I decided I need to grab his album, the 2003 release Veneer.

I'm bumming around the house listening to this album, thinking what a fool I'd been for not investigating this guy before, just because of a name, when I hear it. The song thats been bouncing around in my head for months - the song from the Sony commercial. I just love it when I discover gems like this purely by accident.

Danielson - Ships

2006-05-18T19:13:00.000-04:00

Or how I learned to stop worrying about unemployment and learn to love the yelp.

Daniel Smith has never made an album that I've found especially entertaining, or even worthy of a second listen. Considering this, Ships is the most dramatic turn i've seen an artist make since Britney Spears with Toxic! We can only hope he does not get knocked up twice in the future, and marry a back up dancer.

The album opens up with an Smiths voice eerie and isolated, "Before I turn upon a new, there stood still a ship." The opening verse sets stage for the most vivid and provoked imagery I have received from an album in quite a long time. The whole tone of the album seems like it was written for a musical, with a main character pondering and fighting before large outbursts of the Danielson Famile emerge, like an elementary school chorus mimmicking him.

The arrangements are large and grandiose, yet very chaotic. Somehow, on this album, Daniel Smith manages to weld all the sounds together in a remarkably cohesive fashion. Wind instruments, banjos, brass all work independently and build up slowly in the songs before moments of true bliss where they all come together in harmony. "Did I Step On Your Trumpet" is perhaps the most fun of the year. "Cast It At The Setting Sail" starts off with Smith enticing the rest of the band to come in yelping "Come on!". This is likely the albums most accessible song, where his voice is not so all over the place and animal collective-esque. There is a high chance this album is hit or miss, but its definitely one to say you've heard. Check out "Cast It At The Setting Sail" and tell me what you think in the comments section

Cast It At The Setting Sail - http://www.bigupload.com/d=FC875A16
-Ben Magnuson

45rpm Radio / Number 3

2006-05-13T09:50:00.000-04:00

It's that time again, time for the 45rpm Radio / Podcast! This week, it's more than just the Smashing Pumpkins. In fact, I packed more music into this podcast than ever before, so sit back and enjoy!

[Link] 45rpm Podcast 3

This week's show is (again) in M4A format, due to it being created on a Mac, and due to the fact that I haven't found a program to encode from M4A to MP3.

If you download this, and have an encoder, and want to... oh, I don't know, be a nice guy or girl and encode this for us, that would be awesome. Just post it in the comments for this post, and we'll give you some credit!

Black Ox Orkestar - Nisht Azoy

2006-05-07T19:32:00.000-04:00

Having spent nearly a year hibernation, Constellation Records (home of flagship post-rockers Godspeed You! Black Emperor) is back in bloom with a flurry of new releases including a sophomore release from the Black Ox Orkestar.

Black Ox Orkestar's "Nisht Azoy" (translated as "not like this") continues from where their debut "Ver Tanzt?" left off with its decidedly European Jewish folk tone incorporating yiddish melodies and middle-eastern harmonies tied together by klezmer tradition. This may all sound a tad alienating to the average indie rocker but with members from Silver Mt. Zion and Godspeed You! Black Emperor present Black Ox Orkestar manage to provide the familiar sense of brooding and malcontent that provides a context for listeners unfamiliar with Jewish folk and unable to comprehend vocals sung entirely in Yiddish. Nisht Azoy's real strength lies in it's eccentric energy that at times pulses with syncopated poundings of the drums and at others swoons with delicate violin melodies giving the entire album a raw, live feeling that transports the listener through an array of slightly quirky emotions.

It's three years now since Godspeed You! Black Emperor announced their indefinite hiatus and, according to popular belief, post-rock came to a grizzly end. With records like "Nishy Azoy" Constellation Records seem eager to demonstrate that there still is the same vibrant indie scene in Montreal, but as passionate as these records are, they can never recreate the ethereal quality present in the early releases - from when Post-Rock was at the forefront of relevant indie music.

...

Coincidently Silver Mt. Zion have announced their intentions to release a new album this year as well as a live album. These releases will be supported with a tour covering most of Europe and North America. Hopefully that crazy orchestra/band/choir/thing will prove me wrong. You can get your hands on a bootleg of the brand new track "Blind, Blind, Blind" by clicking here.

45rpm Podcast / the Ducer!

2006-05-06T22:07:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the delay on this week's podcast, but all is explained on the show. Also, beware, this is in M4A format, but we're working on getting a MP3 version up.

One more thing, no streaming of this one yet, you'll have to download it.

[Link] 45rpm Podcast 2

Five more summer albums

2006-05-06T21:03:00.000-04:00

Bmags post got me wanting to share a bit of my favorite summer albums as well. I just wouldn't feel content leaving this in a comment so I am urged to make this into a post. So lets do this!

Radiohead - Hail To The Thief : Who ever said a summer album had to be happy, or upbeat, et cetera? Radiohead's last album is probably one of the first titles to pop in my head when people talk about summer albums. It's creeping atmosphere will match those gloomy summer days, where everything's sticky with humidity and the temperature is soaring into the unbearable.

Yo La Tengo - I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One : For those dreamy nights where everything is just cool. A mellow album to end a perfect summer day. The trio's songs feel perfect for a summer romance or just kicking back and lazing about. Maybe even a reminder fall is just around the corner, but a warming reminder I mean by that.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah : This recent band was an easy choice for me to put up hear. I pretty much spent all of last summer with this in my cd player. An awesomely fun album that'll go well when you're just hanging with friends having a good time.

The New Pornographers - The Electric Version : This isn't just a summer album, the whole band is the exact fit for the summer months. All of their cds have the perfect pop for just having fun. The Electric Version has plenty of them too, from "The Laws Have Changed" to "All For Swinging You Around" you just can't help but want to dance.

Of Montreal - Satanic Panic In The Attic : Okay I seriously just listened to this like last week for the first time and it has got me itching for summer to come already. This is sunny pop with weird psychadelic twist. One listen and you'll be lifted into a happier mood. And on a closing note this group is catchy as hell, you just won't get them out of your head, so give it a listen sometime and feel the summer love.

Forty5rpm is Summer-Lovin'

2006-05-04T22:14:00.000-04:00

Favorite Summer Albums!

Alright, RIAA, you've felt the wrath of Justin. You've felt the wrath of spelling errors. I've felt the wrath of domovoi. Now feel the sun, baby.

One of my favorite quotes from Thom Yorke - I could give it to you exactly, but I should be studying for a German 1200 final exam for tomorrow - is how he explained that music represented a timeline in his life. Listening to "Endless Summer" on tape reminded him of going to some crazy british ice cream shop and using "the loo" when he wasn't even a customer (may or may not have happened).

This is what makes music special - certain songs hold such sentimentality over us that we can even enjoy Limp Bizkit's "Nookie" without stabbing our ears with a flaming Q-tip because it reminds us of the seventh grade lunchroom, and everyone asking the philisophical question of what exactly that cookie was that she was taking (and where exactly was she going to stick it?). And with this in mind, no season holds more special musical memories for me then summer. Here is a list of my favorite summer albums, i hope you, too, will post some of yours in the comment section. MP3's will be coming, but, I have a German Oral I'm ignoring (if i haven't told you that, yet). In no order:

Broken Social Scene - You Forgot it in People : Arts and Craft's darlings, Broken Social Scene, stole my heart last year with their performance at Intonation Music Festival. I can think of no better song to play air guitar too by the poolside whilst flexing my muscles then Cause=Time.

The Go! Team - Thunder, Lightning Strike! : One of the most fun albums that I've ever heard, this incredible mixture of samples and instruments is an incredibily vital listen. A great album to play while throwing the bean bags with some feminine boat drink next to the road.

Pernice Brothers - The World Won't End : This album is filled with so many pop gems it's hard not to put a smile on. A great album to put on for your friends, though, probably not barbecue music.

Danielson - Ships : Now, I haven't really been able to try this out during summer, but this 2006 release just made me feel all warm inside. So, certainly, add in the summer sun and you will melt to these infectious melodies and vocal arrangements.

The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds : Probably the ultimate summer album ever made. One of the greatest albums ever made is perfect for summer with its beautiful harmonies and wonderful lyrics. I was just going to write "God Only Knows" - 'Nuff Said ... but I'm not Ryan Schreiber.

[Link] Danielson's website
[Link] The Go! Team on myspace

EDIT: apparantly "the Lou" is spelled "the loo"...WHO KNEW?!?!?!?!?!

So tell us, what are your favorite summer albums?

An Open Letter to the Record Industry

2006-05-03T20:54:00.000-04:00

Dear Record Industry,

Hey there. You don't know me, but I'm a pretty big fan of yours. Let me rephrase that, you didn't know me, that is, until last week. I think you know who I am now, and you know what? Whatever. It's cool. Let me introduce myself... my name is Justin Peterson, and I've been a huge supporter of yours since the age of 11. It's true!

My first tape, yes, a cassette tape, was 'Achtung Baby' by U2. It was great, but I'm sure you already know that. I played 'One' at least two times every night before I had to go to bed.

My first CD, when your industry lumbered into the not-as-of-then-titled Digital Age of music, was 'Gish' by the Smashing Pumpkins. It could have also been Nirvana. I don't remember. It was 1991-ish. Again, I was young. I think both of those bands did pretty good for your business... But who's counting?

I look fondly back on my days in middle school, sitting by the radio at night, waiting for my favorite song to come on so I could press 'record' on my boom-box. Sometimes we would call into the radio station and request songs, back when radio stations had real DJ's and could pay what they wanted... all good things come to an end though, I suppose.

It was fun making mix-tapes of all the new singles and trading them with friends in school. Getting to hear a new band I didn't know about, and then waiting later that day so maybe the DJ would mention when the album was coming out. See, back then, we didn't have the internet to go and look up new bands and find out album release dates... we just sat by the radio, or read a copy of Rolling Stone in 7-11 during the summer before getting kicked out back into the summer sun.

Those were the days.

Things are easier now, or at least, were. Napster came out of nowhere! It was amazing, being able to download a song, or maybe a whole album that you didn't have... but that rarely happened, since we were all on 36k modems.

And then that jerk from Metallica ruined it all for us. He's a jerk. I don't like him. Complaining to you and to our Government that the music fans were taking money away from him. The nerve! Why should he be cheated out of a few more million dollars? When you're rich, you can never have enough money, and when people steal from you, man, you get pissed off. Like I said, he's a bitch. Oh, what? I didn't mention he was a bitch?

Well he is. Still is, too. And a jerk. And a pansy. You saw the movie, you know what I'm talking about.

And then, Recording Industry, you got all righteous on us! Why, people were sharing music, turning kids on to a whole mess of bands they had never heard of. Mom's, Dad's, brothers, sisters, everyone was trading music. It was a great time! No one was getting hurt.

So, what did you do? You turned on the fans. You didn't just slap a few hands, oh no. You starting SUING! How very American of you! And everyone was a target!

The 12 year old girl with three Britney Spears songs? SUED!

The 62 year old man with some Dean Martin? SUED!

The 17 year old kid with a Metallica album downloaded? SUED! AND SUED AGAIN!

Now, listen... I get it. No, really, I do. The black and white version of the issue is simple. Music was stolen, people broke the law, they got into trouble. It's not that insane. If you steal a beer from Circle K, well, you get into trouble too.

But there's a grey area here too, and Big Business and the Government aren't too fond of the grey area. They frown upon it. Because things aren't simple in the grey area.

You, R.I (do you mind if I call you that?), wonder why... Why is the industry going down? Why can't we turn a buck? Why why why?

Your reason? Online illegal downloading. SURE! Why not? It's an easy target, kids are getting cd's for free and not buying them anymore, so go ahead... point the finger at them. This must be the reason why things are bad. So sue them! Take away their money! Good idea... this will show them that they should buy albums.

Oh, but wait. They don't have money anymore, because you took it from them. And you also took their love of music (I'm sure it was in the court papers somewhere that you 'had to').

But... what if? What if it's NOT illegal downloading that's causing your industry to slid, R.I? What if it's something else? And what could it be? You know, we are American's after all. And after awhile, American's do one thing REALLY great... we learn the truth about things.

Take George W Bush for example. He's your friend, right? Well, more than half this country thought he was great! They even re-elected him. But, they soon realized, just like the rest of us knew, that he is and was and will always be a giant ass-clown. It's true. It said so in Wikipedia.

Take Oil and Gas for another example. Most of us, even way back in the 70's, knew that this was a bad road to be on, and something had to be done. Well, most of America can see the light now, but, you know, we're American's, it took a little long, and now we must pay the price, literally. But it's okay, because eventually things will work out... or we'll all just die. Either way, someone wins.

And now look at the Music Industry.

For the longest time, we had one choice... if we heard a song on the radio, we bought the cd. Even if it was the only good track on the album, we had no other choice. SURE, we could buy singles, but those cost 10 bucks for a song, and for a few more dollars, we could get the whole album. There is bound to be another good track or two on there... right? No, really... right?

Then came Napster. Bearshare. Limewire. Kazaa.

If we got lucky, we might be able to download a few tracks from an upcoming album before it was to be released in stores... see what the artist had to offer.

You know what we found out?

Most albums are filled with pure shit. (This fact is also on Wikipedia).

Now, instead of paying the 18.99 (On Sale, no less!) at FYE for the new DMX album, we could just download the single and the remix of the single for free, save our money, and take out lady-friend out to Arby's for a nice dinner.

The American Buying Public FINALLY got smart. They stopped buying into your shit.

Sucks, I know, but again... we are American. It's our way!

And now you're all pissy, R.I. Record sales are down down down. Single sales? Why, those are on the up and up! iTunes is making you a boat-load of cash! People are actually buying those one or two songs an album, instead of downloading them. Good for you, you're big business wheels might actually be turning!

But you're still upset with people downloading music. And now it's worse, because these things called 'Music Blogs' are just popping up everywhere. And even WORSE yet, they're giving away few tracks from up and coming new artists, underground acts that you have no hand in (it's very Punk of them), and on an occasion or two, some new tracks from a major label release... like, oh, I don't know... Pearl Jam.

This upsets you. However, I'm at a loss as to why. I mean, these people are doing a good job at hyping albums and bands before they come out. Don't you pay people to do that? Aren't they called A&R men? What are they doing these days?

So, because this upsets you, something has to be done.

Why, I have a good idea! Let's sue some more! Theaten! Bully! Sue!

AGAIN, why are you scared of these Music Bloggers? THEY'RE DOING THE JOB OF AN A&R MAN FOR FREE!!

FREE!!!!!

You're bleeding money, why not save some?

But again, this is all in the grey area. You don't see too clearly into this area. You can't tell the difference between the guy who's giving away the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album for free on his blog and the guy who's giving fans 2 tracks (and one of those is on the radio, for free!) and hyping the album and telling people to buy it the day it comes out.

You just can't tell them apart. Maybe you need glasses.

I agree that giving away an unreleased album isn't fair. It only encourages a person NOT to buy the album at dirt cheap prices Tuesday at Best Buy.

But you know what, R.I? That person who downloaded the album and didn't buy it on Tuesday? He wasn't going to buy it ANYWAY, ever. So no skin off your back really.

However, what about the girl who downloaded the two tracks from Such-and-Such music blog? Well, she only has 2 songs. She might not have ever liked the RHCP, and those two tracks might not have changed her mind. In which case, still no skin off your nose.

...oh, but, what if... what if she downloaded the two sample tracks, and said "Hey, you know what? I'll give that album a chance!"

What of her now?

Without the sample tracks, she wasn't buying anyway. But she liked what she heard, and for 10 bucks at Target, she decides to pick it up Tuesday.

Looks like it's a win-win situation!

... what's that? Oh, what about the person who downloads the album early? Yes, what about them?

Well, in most cases, not all, but some, that person who goes out of his or her way to download a leaked album PROBABLY likes that band. They probably are a huge music fan, one who buys cd's every Tuesday. In fact, they're such a huge music fan, they just can't WAIT the two months left until said album comes out... they need it NOW.

That person will buy the album they downloaded for free each and every time.

Yes, they will actually buy the album!

Now, I don't want to upset you, but this last Tuesday, I, myself, bought 4 albums that I had previously downloaded months in advance. I didn't need to, really, because I had them on my iPod, but since I'm such a music fan, I like to support the indie music stores and the artists.

Don't be mad. :(

I guess what I'm trying to say is this...

You need to stop putting out shitty albums. You need to stop telling us what's cool, and paying off MTV and VH1 and shoving bands and artists that YOU know are crap down out throats. We're tired of it. And it shows, right?

Once you do this, maybe you'll see an upswing. Bring up quality, you bring up quantity sold. It's pretty simple. My sister knows that. She's 5.

And stop just calling everyone who's ever downloaded a song, or an album, for free, a criminal. We're not.

Mosy of us... we're music fans. And we love music. And we want everyone to be as excitied as we are about music. Don't make us hate you, or hate music, because you can't afford to piss off too many more of us. We're all you have.

And you're all we have.

I need to go, I'll write you back soon, I promise.

Yours Truly,

Justin Peterson
Music fan

Greetings RIAA

2006-05-01T15:40:00.000-04:00

I hope you enjoyed your stay.

I hope the record companies on your behalf enjoyed their free advertising. It must be foreign to them to not have to pay someone to have their artists played.

-----

EDIT: Long editorial on it's way.

Let's Impeach the President

2006-04-29T00:51:00.000-04:00

Neil Young's new album hit the internet today (in steaming format only), "Living With War". Recorded in about two weeks, starting at the end of March, and finally receiving a final mix a week or two ago.

That choir you hear on each track? 100 singers, recorded over 12 hours. And you might also hear some ELECTRIC guitar, which is always nice to hear from Mr. Young...

Available (I assume) on most Digital Music services this coming Tuesday (May 2), and in stores shortly thereafter... probably the following week or so.

Here's the tracklisting...

01: After the Garden
02: Living With War
03: the Restless Consumer
04: Shock and Awe
05: Families
06: Flags of Freedom
07: Let's Impeach the President
08: Lookin' for a Leader
09: Roger and Out
10: America the Beautiful

[STREAM] Neil Young Living With War

[LINK] Neil Young . com

Tool - 10,000 Days out today...

2006-04-28T21:53:00.000-04:00

... in Australia anway, and first off, the leak was not a decoy. Even though i like the album, I was kinda disappointed, cos it would have been a great fuck-you to those of us determined to get our hands on stuff like this early, but also i'd have gotten double the value - if I liked the decoy, surely i'd have loved the actual album.

Also, the artwork is just about the best I've seen - the cover has a pair of stereoscopic glasses attached, and all the images within the booklet are 3D if viewed through them. Having the glasses attached to the CD case might sound tacky and cheap looking, but believe me, its very well done.

As an amusing side note, it appears that a certain proportion of the albums distributed to record stores today actually contained the disc for Korn - Live instead - i'm very fucking glad the guys in my local record store had figured that out before I went in, because if i'd have been home before i realised that I had the wrong disc i'd have been one very unhappy camper.

So as far as the album goes, I like it a lot - apart from The Pot - this doesn't belong on a Tool album, it seems a very lazy effort, and probably won't be included when I put this album on my ipod.

All in all, very happy with the album, with the obvious exception, and the artwork makes this well worth the purchase. Dig it.

Album Review: The Flaming Lips - At War With The Mystics

2006-04-28T15:15:00.000-04:00

First let me start off by mentioning that I've never been a big Flaming Lips fan, most likely because I haven't given one of their previous albums a full listen. Sure I've heard a Lips song here and there from different commercials and movie soundtracks, but I've never really embraced their sound. At War With The Mystics, should it be a window into the music and style of the Flaming Lips, really shows me what I've been missing.

"Free Radicals" the second track on the album, has an all too eerie sense of Prince. Say whaaaat? I always thought the Lips were just a psych-rock band.. boy was I wrong. Diversity is a quality many bands do not embrace, the Flaming Lips on the other hand do just that on this album, embracing many different styles from funk to electronica. Tracks like "My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion" and especially "Vein of Stars" take you on a tranquil spacey trip, music you can get lost to. The album impresses me when it mixes between luscious soundscapes, electronic beats, funky guitar riffs, and some good ol' foot tappin music that just might make you want to get up and dance. From the outside looking in, I can't compare this with any of the other previous Flaming Lips releases, but this album alone had provoked me to dig deeper into their collection to find out what I've been missing all these years.

[MP3] Free Radicals
[MP3] Vein of Stars

45rpm Radio: ON HOLD

2006-04-28T09:15:00.000-04:00

No new Podcast/Radio/Audioblog (whatever you want to call it!) today. It's my fault, really. But I have a good excuse though. I'm in the process of switching over from my old PC to a brand new iMac, and the process is taking a little bit of time.

This includes buying all new recording equiptment for the iMac. Before, I was using a Line6 GuitarPort, which I used for recording demos of me and my friends, and more recently, the 45rpm Podcast.

But, sadly, the GuitarPort doesn't work on Mac's. However, I do have a M-Audio Firewire Solo on it's way, which will sound even better than the GP. But it's not here yet.

HOPEFULLY... hopefully... I can get a Podcast up in the middle of the week, and then another one next Friday, just to make up for the lack of one today. This is all a good thing though, because it's going to sound even better with the new equiptment, so just hold tight!

Sorry for the delay, kids.

forty5rpm Classic Recommendation

2006-04-27T22:22:00.000-04:00

The Zombies - Odessey and Oracle

The Zombies are one of the best examples of a post-mortem success story. Their American release of their second LP, Odessey and Oracle, was lost in obscurity until 1969 - two years after the album was released - when a DJ found "Time of the Season" and put it in heavy rotation. The song became a hit, and the band became critically acclaimed. Unfortunately, there was no band. The Zombies broke up before the record was even released in 1967, leaving behind this gem of an album. The complex harmonies and vocal arrangements are a treat, and makes this a great summer album. Check out songs like "A Rose for Emily" and "I Want Her She Wants Me" and try not to fall in love with the heartfelt lyrics and incredible melodies. (mp3's are on their way)

Album Review: The Dresden Dolls - Yes Virginia

2006-04-26T01:12:00.000-04:00

Amanda Palmer's voice has a stage presence even when it's on a record. It's easy easy to get people to turn their heads with a simple spin of one of her songs. If you don't know who Ms. Palmer is, well you might be able to connect with just a mention of the name 'Dresden Dolls'. Her vocal grasp remains probably the biggest draw of the duo. I nominate her and Brian Viglione for the producing some of the most dramatic music to come pass in recent years. With that I am most definitely not alone. The piano and drum duo's sophmore album 'Yes Virginia' continues from the same thread of their self-titled album, and that is in no way a bad thing.

The sound this time around comes off a hell of a lot more defined. If anything most of the songs on the album have the high energy drama of songs like "Girl Anarchonism"and "Coin Operated Boy" from their debut. The first three songs are completely in your face and take off like bottle rockets. A real gem is "Modern Moonlight" a high energy rant, "Everyone was messaging like it was going out of style/it was just the cynic in me/god, I love communicating!/I just hate the shit we’re missing." Palmer's voice is perfectly laidover a frantic piano with drums marching in the background, then for the chorus cuts down to a more mellow feel rounding the song off perfectly.

The next song follows off nicely, the jazzy "My Alcoholic Friends". "Delilah" might bore, as it's only Palmer and a piano, but the song has evough merit to be on the album. It only feels like a left over after the first four songs. The cd however kicks back into speed and comes up with another slower song only shortly after with "First Orgasm". Now being a boy you're probably going get kind of squirmy and giggly at the lyrics, although the track has an overall depressing feel giving off sparks of post break up depression.

It picks up again with "Mrs. O" although still a slower song, it's dramatics are much more present, and then "Shores of California follows up. It gives a glimpse into what girls and boys look for in relationships showcased in Palmer's always witty lyrics. "Why all these conflicting specifications?/maybe to prevent overpopulation/all I know is that all around the nation/the girls are crying and the boys are masturbating."

The last four songs aren't too satisfying but good none the less. "Mandy Goes To Med School" takes a similar approach as "My Alcoholic Friends" and succeeds just as well. "Sing" has an addition of a guitar which can feel a bit awkward at first but it manages to end the collection of songs nicely.

Overall The Dresden Dolls is almost assured a batch of new fans with this release, although it can feel like more of the same, it is a marvelous record and manages to one up their first release. Some slow points make the pace stagger a bit, showing up kind of inopportunly but they are in the end necessary, but as a whole everything clicks.

[LINK]The Dresdon Dolls on Myspace

ADVANCE WARNING: Sonic Youth

2006-04-26T00:20:00.000-04:00

Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped

The most difficult task of trying to review a Sonic Youth album now is whether to compare their latest album to their immaculate back catalogue, or to analyze it as is - and how relevant the songs are to modern music. Fortunately for Rather Ripped, Sonic Youth's 21st album (but hey, whose counting at this point) is another formidable album from the longtime New York experimental rockers.

The album starts off with the wonderfully poppy 'Reena', which features clean, swirling guitar riffs that float around and intertwine with Gordon's voice as she sings, 'You keep me coming home again'. The song breaks off in the middle from the light guitar work and chugs towards you, with guitar, bass and drums all becoming one for 10 seconds of wearisome fun before breaking back into the song again. This is a familiar trick from the band that continues to perfect their guitar sound and songwriting in this their 25th year together. 'Incinerate' has Thurston Moore take over on vocals with a catchy guitar lick that is so light it seems in hard contrast to the lyrics of the song - Moore sings, 'You flicked a match onto my brain'.

The signature track of the album could very well end up being 'Do You Believe in Rapture', a track so seemingly simplistic it squeezes so much beauty out each note. Moore's voice is somewhat highlighted due to the minimal guitar and slight electric drums behind him, yet when all the instruments come together it produces one of the freshest sounds on the entire album.

Unfortunately, 'Rather Ripped' does drag a bit towards the end, as each song starts to sound alike and run together. While individually each track is strong enough to not be considered filler, I do wonder if some tinkering in the track listing could help this effect. The poorest track on the album is by far 'What a Waste', which poorly connects the first and second half of the album. While not bad musically, Kim Gordon's singing on this particular track is rather awkward, and is featured by a particular cheesy chorus as she groans 'what a waste ... I can't wait, to taste your face'.

One of my favorite moments of the album occurs in the back-to-back tracks of 'Lights Out' and 'The Neutral'. 'Lights Out' features Thurston Moore on the vocals over deep guitar notes, with poignant songwriting and an acutely somber tone. This song is followed by the Kim Gordon sung 'The Neutral', a more upbeat song that where the highlight might actually be Gordon's voice. 'The Neutral' features such good bass playing that I can’t help but wish it was featured more extensively on the record, but after all, this is a guitar driven band, always has been and likely will continue to be.

The band handled the departure of Jim O'Rourke without missing a step. The fact that a band is still making relevant music so long into their musical careers is just another bullet to their list of incredible achievements. This is by no means a groundbreaking record, nor one that will blow anyone away on the first listen. However, this album is a great listen, and one that has some staying power. The most incredible and unfortunate thing for Rather Ripped is that it's a Sonic Youth album, depending on which way we choose to look at it.

ALBUM REVIEW: Ms. John Soda - Notes And The Like

2006-04-25T17:45:00.000-04:00

Imagine you're sitting on a beach. A cool breeze offsets the balmy sunshine. You've parked yourself in an exceedingly comfortable deck chair, and an expertly efficient waiter is placing a cool, refreshing drink in your hand the very moment you finish its predecessor. This is the album playing in the background.

Evoking early Stereolab (and hey - what can be wrong with that?), this is a simple, charming and catchy album, its lack of variation one of few criticisms that can be leveled its way. However the album never outstays it's welcome - an unsettling trend among too many artists these days is the desire to fill the entire capacity of the Compact Disc format, which can often leave the listener more fatigued than delighted when attempting to appreciate the album in its entirety.

An unlikely result of a collaboration between Couch's Stephanie Bohm and The Notwist's Micha Acher, this is considered a part-time pursuit, but the variation from the styles imposed upon them by their full time groups breathes a refreshing life into this album; an almost joyous celebration of the atypical. If only all part-time jobs were this fun.

Under the Covers

2006-04-24T19:49:00.000-04:00

Ahhh... the 60's. If there is any one time I could travel back to, this would be it. Everything was nicer, cleaner. The bands and music were better. It was quite the time to be alive... or, so I hear at least (as I was born in 1981, the year that MTV was launched, and ruined music forever)

Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs (singer / guitarist of the Bangles) want to take us back to those long past, but never forgotten, summer days of the 60's.

On their album Under the Covers: Vol 1 (using the fake band name, 'Sid & Susie') they cover such ground from the Beatles and the Beach Boys (surprise surprise!) to Neil Young (two tracks on the album), the Mamas & Papas, the Who, Bob Dylan and more. Some of the tracks are known, others are hidden gems.

For those of you who aren't in the 'know', or just didn't listen to alternative rock radio in the 90's, Matthew Sweet brought us 1991's "Girlfriend". Pop-Rock at it's best, kids.

[LINK] Sid & Susie on Myspace

LINKS REMOVED (Because I don't want to be ass-raped by uh... you know who... )

[MP3]SID & SUSIE CINNAMON GIRL (Neil Young)
[MP3]SID & SUSIE SUNDAY MORNING (the Velvet Underground)

Pumpkins-a-Go-Go

2006-04-24T01:32:00.000-04:00

Straight from PITCHFORK (but can you trust them?)

"Smashing Pumpkins Reunion Is a Go"
Amy Phillips reports:
"It's official, the Smashing Pumpkins are currently writing songs for their upcoming album, their first since 2000. No release date has yet been set, but the band plans to begin recording this summer."

Well, there you have it-- the latest update on the Smashing Pumpkins reunion, taken straight from the band's official website. That's all. Nothing else to report, sorry!

No, we don't know who exactly is in the band now, although we assume it's some combination involving Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain, since Billboard.com reported earlier this year that the pair signed a management deal under the Smashing Pumpkins name."

So there you have it. Most of that was already known, but hey, it's good to hear something.

I believe Melissa Auf der Maur also has stated that Billy was working ONLY with Jimmy on the 'new' Smashing Pumpkins. Which is okay with me, because that's really the heart and soul of the band anyhow...

[LINK] the Offical Smashing Pumpkins website (it's back!)

[MP3] the SMASHING PUMPKINS
"Machina II / the Friends and Enemies of Modern Music"

(the link takes you to a site where you can download all 25 tracks for free!)

ADVANCE WARNING: Pearl Jam

2006-04-24T00:53:00.000-04:00

Let me first state that I might not be the best person to review the new record by Pearl Jam. The reason for that statement lies in the fact that I happen to love Pearl Jam. They're one of my all time favorite bands.

I went to middle school in the early 90's, so I grew up with the Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Soundgarden... and of course, Pearl Jam.

Some of my favorite memories revolve around music, and this is no exception for PJ.

I remember buying "Vitalogy", PJ's third album, and listening to "Better Man", and my Mom came in the room and asked, "What is he saying? 'Butter Man'? What does THAT mean?" Good times, trust me.

So, what does Pearl Jam have left to say after more than 15 years in business?

Quite a lot actually.

It seems that the four years it took them to write and record this album (the longest time between albums for them) and entering into a new recording contract has allowed the band to create their best album in years.

2002's "Riot Act" seemed to find the band at their most overtly political, with songs that blasted then (and still current) president Bush ("Bushleager", "Green Disease"), however, "Pearl Jam" (cleverly self-titled... perhaps a sign of a creative rebirth?) finds them JUST as political, if not more so, especially on "World Wide Suicide" and "Gone", where Vedder sings "When the gas in my tank feels like money in the tank", you know exactly whom he's targeting.

This album, for some reason, reminds me a lot of "Vitalogy", as most of the songs are heavily guitar-driven. It also feels like a lost classic album that they recorded years ago, but are just now putting out. It's exciting and familiar all at once. No song on this album is wasted, everything is in it's right place.

The aggressive songs are aggressive, and the slower songs are beautiful. Eddie Vedder and co. seem to be on some sort of a mission, as they sound refocused and re-energized. It's also refreshing to see a band that has maintained their integrity over the years, and have never once compromised or apologized for what they've done or stood for.

I don't think that this album will win them any new fans, but I really hope it will... hopefully some kid will pick this album up and find out that there's more to music than just screaming about hating your life and your parents and girlfriends.

But the longtime fans? This is what they've wanted for years.

LINKS REMOVED AT REQUEST OF RIAA
[MP3] PEARL JAM "Life Wasted"
[MP3] PEARL JAM "World Wide Suicide"
[MP3] PEARL JAM "Marker in the Sand"

45rpm: Now on the Air

2006-04-23T16:17:00.000-04:00

The 45rpm Music Blog not enough for you? Need even MORE excitment? Well friend, you've come to the right place... welcome to the FIRST installment of the 45rpm Audioblog.

On this week's show, we have new Pearl Jam, the Raconteurs, the Format and many more.

This is a few days late, due to... uh... things (i.e, I went to Universal Studios yesterday)... but expect this to be uploaded EVERY Friday. Each week, we'll have new bands for you to sink your teeth into (or is that your ears?)... In any case, enjoy!

[MP3] 45rpm Audioblog / 04.23.06

Skyliner

2006-04-21T20:25:00.000-04:00

Here's a bit of a break from all of the live gig reviews, a nice track review. So to start off, if you know nothing of them, the band I am going to talk of here is Boards of Canada.

Boards of Canada has made its mark in IDM as one of the most influential electronic duos in the genre, and they plan to keep on going strong. The two Scots aren't taking another couple years of hiatus after last year's album, The Campfire Headphase. To the delight of many fans they've already began prepping a new EP for the summer. Trans-Canada Highway is the marked title for this six track EP (including "Dayvan Cowboy" from The Campfire Headphase and then a remix of it).The original date of release was to be 6/6/06, which is classic BoC and gives any Geogaddi fan a slight smirk. Although it's been moved up by a little more than a week to May 29th. Although not as cool sounding, it's a great treat to those who want the EP in their hands as soon as possible.

A new song off the EP is "Skyliner". At first the hardcore Boards fan might say "this is too clean for the Sandison brothers." Although if you can get past that you might come to realize it echoes much of their back catalogue. The airy synths that whisp past your ears may give you a bit of nostalgia for 2000, reminding you of their EP A Beautiful Place Out In The Country. The track is definitely very reminiscent of those sort of minimalist techniques they would use back then. And etched a bit deeper in the track you might find a sort of Geogaddi influence in the winding percussion, a sort of muted "Julie & Candy" showing through. Although easily, there's no denying The Campfire Headphase sound that overlays the entire song. You may feel dissapointed at first, buyt with only a few more listens and you can toss it into the rest of their works and it fits in nicely while staking some of its own territory. If this is any hint of the rest of the material on Trans-Canada, any Boards fan should find themselves fulfilled and any newcomers will find it a nice time to hop in on the duo's music.

To listen to "Skyliner" you can just head over to Marcus & Mike's myspace: here

Along with this EP comes the first BoC video ever released, a short that is accompanied by "Dayvan Cowboy", taking a very Boards approach it can be viewed: here

Akron/Family - Live @ Taylor John's House, Coventry

2006-04-21T12:02:00.000-04:00

Akron/Family - Live @ Taylor John's House, Coventry (19/04/06)

If you had attended this gig after hearing the self-titled album alone, you may have been a little overwhelmed. But you could not possibly have been disappointed with the incredibly energetic and frantically intense performance put on by this group of lo-fi rockers. Yes, half the audience left during the 15-minute folk-metal jam, a sever attack on aural senses and the primitive acoustics of Coventry’s latest venue on its opening night. But the remaining followers were totally entranced. There were many psyched-out beard-wearers in the crowd rhythmically jerking along with bassist Miles Seaton, who had the most fantastic handle-bar moustache, and made good use of it with incessant fidgeting and asylum-inspired squirming.

The group started with Moment, the second track from their split LP with the Angels of Light. The raucous screaming and rattling feedback flirted dangerously with metal genre riffage. But it was blended with the simultaneous grace and beauty that you’d come to expect from this talented foursome. Towards the end of the track the players fell back on themselves, singing together over melodic guitars as if the last three minutes of brazen ecstasy has been just some wonderful nightmare that you’d rather not forget.

There are times during the Akron/Family live experience, of the layers of noise, the spatulas and screw-drivers against guitars, and microphones thrust down blaring throats, where you might feel a little bit lost. Other than their opening track, they only played two others off their officially released material (Suchness and Running, Returning), both warped behind unclear vocals and binging dissonance. But the charm of not giving a shit, of not simply regurgitating their material as it was recorded made that night something exceptionally memorable. I applaud the guys for making the step from the minimally beautiful to confrontationally appealing. Whether they’re just trying to make noise, or doing whatever is most fun, the disorientation and entrancement was well-worth the stay.

Dinosaur Jr. Live 4/12/06

2006-04-21T11:13:00.000-04:00

Last Wednesday night at the wonderful Blue Note in Columbia, MO, alt-rock legends Dinosaur Jr. were about to take the stage (for a large $25 per head sum!). I looked around in disbelief, as I have been to many shows at the Blue Note the past few months, and this was by far the ugliest. Perhaps this is superficial, I don't know, but I do know from going to a lot of shows that a good crowd can help make the concert. Dinosaur Jr. did not have that crowd.

I arrived just in time to catch Warhammer 48k, one of the local bands that was opening. Their lighting consisted of a strobe light into the crowd that was probably the most annoying thing I could've imagined. Then, they started playing and that became the most annoying thing I could've imagined (Priestess had not started playing yet). While they had instrumental moments that proved quite enoyable, this "doom metal" (self proclaimed I believe) band made sure to ruin them with screaming vocals that became downright laughable.

The second opening band Priestess came roaring with some sort of Prog-Canadian-type-metal that was quite forgettable. The songs were rather cookie cutter and throw away. Here is just another "back to the basics" 80's metal band that fails to realize to bring back the music they love, there has to be a new element that makes the dead genre current. Without this, they are just a cover band with their own dull, lifeless material.

Finally, Priestess left the stage and I was about to have my first Dinosaur Jr. experience. I was well prepared, and I very cutely unpacked my pristine ear plugs that I had purchased from walmart the previous day, and found a nice place for the onslaught of loud, violent bass and Masci's cutting guitar notes. The sound was, first and foremost, very loud, by far the loudest show I have ever been to. A negative though was the vocals were very difficult to hear and were continually getting louder and softer, making it very distracting.

The crowd after every song was shouting song requests over and over. I hope to preach some concert etiquette at the current moment: crowd-performer interaction is great, but certain things such as yelling song requests and repeatedly screaming "I love you ___" are the most annoying possible things to do at a concert for the people around you. Please refrain, public. Anyways, a fantastic rendition of "Grapes" was played in midset that was by far the highlight. Beautiful cutting guitars and the perfect amount of notes played, nothing else later could match the energy or precision of this song. One disappointing factor was that so little of the new stuff was played, no doubt due to Lou having rejoined, but I personally was really looking forward to some of the songs like "Feel the Pain" with such fun guitar licks. Overall, it was fantastic to see these legends up on stage, but for the price and sound, I left a little unfulfilled.

Sigur Ros - Live @ the Enmore Theatre, Sydney.

2006-04-21T01:24:00.000-04:00

Thought I might kick this off with a lil' review of the most recent show I attended -

Sigur Ros - Live @ the Enmore Theatre, Sydney, 12.04.06

Stunning. Transcendent. Sublime. Word such as these might seem like needless hyperbole when used to describe a bunch of guys playing music for an assemblage of like-minded people in an old theatre, but from this writer's perspective, they barely do justice to one of the finest shows I've ever been privileged to witness. The Enmore Theatre in Sydney's inner west is one of my favourite live venues - acoustically superb, and small enough to ensure that every seat in the house has a perfectly good view - I had very high expectations for this show, and I was not disappointed.

I'm a relatively recent convert to the beauty that is Sigur Ros - I first heard them maybe three years ago, having heard them spoken of in the same breath as Mogwai and Godspeed You! Black Emperor, but my first impressions were far from favourable. I loved Vaka from word go, I even used it in a sequence I cut of a cruise my wife and I took through a Norwegian fjord in late 2003, but the rest of the ( ) album never really grabbed me. It wasn't til I heard Glosoli in the second half of 2005 that my interest was piqued once again, and I bought Takk on the day it came out on the strength of that song alone, but again, the rest of the album didn't impress. It wasn't until early this year when I gave ( ) another listen that I really started to appreciate what beauty these fella's were capable of. So anyway, to cut a long story short, I actually missed out on getting tickets for this gig - they sold out before I had made up my mind whether to go, and I was forced to pay over the odds on ebay once I realised I couldn't afford to miss out. In hindsight, it was worth every cent.

After a nice quick feed at the Thai place across the road (one of four within spitting distance from the Enmore, an overabundance that makes me wonder how they all manage to stay in business... but I digress) we got in just in time to catch Amina, who were impressive in their own understated manner. Our seats were 3 rows from the back, but in a mid size venue such as this, they afforded a nice high view of the stage, and a great vantage point to appreciate the wonderfully visual show these guys put on. The three guys sitting next to us provided some between-set amusement, obviously under the influence of something fun - the first of them to arrive sat by himself for about half an hour, periodically giggling to himself.

The band came out and, after Takk was used as an intro, launched straight into Glosoli, with the front of stage scrim displaying a their awesome light show. I had read about how effective this was, with Jonsi backlit from below to cast a very tall, slender shadow on the scrim, and random visuals projected from the front, but never fully imagined just how effective it could be. Jonsi's voice was breathtaking, and any concerns I had had that such a delicate sound might get lost in the mix, especially during the more cacophonous crescendo's, were immediately allayed. But for Vaya and Staralfur, I could not have hoped for a set more indicative of my favourite tunes - Hoppipolla, Saeglopur, Ny Batteri, Olsen Olsen, E-Bow as well as the outstanding Hafsol were represented beautifully, but of course, the high point of the night was the encore - the magnificent Popplagiv. By some margin my favourite Sigur Ros tune, every expectation of how this might song might sound live was met and exceeded - it literally sent shivers down the spine. This is the band's second visit in as many years - I for one hope they will continue to visit with such frequency, and I'll be first in line for tickets.

Setlist:
Takk
Glosoli
Ny Batteri
Saelopur
E-bow
Hoppipolla
Meo Bloonasir
Olsen Olsen
Njosnavelin
Svo hjott
Heysatan
Hafsol
Smaskifa
--------
Popplagio

For those interested you can get mp3's of the entire show here - http://www.auroboros.net/sigurros.htm

Lossless .flac's are also available via BT, from here - http://www.drrnwbb.com/bt/details.php?id=85

This is the start of a beautiful friendship... or something

2006-04-20T22:34:00.000-04:00

...or THE GRAND OPENING of the 45rpm Music Blog / Audioblog!

(That isn't actually us... we're much worse looking)

So yeah! Welcome. I suppose this is the part of the post where I try to sell you on what it is we're trying to do here, so I guess I'll do that...

First off, this started as something I kind of threw out there as an idea, but I didn't think it would actually work. Me and some of my friends from a message board (it's secret! but if you frequent atease, then you may know about it) wanted to actually write about the bands we love and the bands we're just finding out about and share them with a BIGGER circle of friends.

But we're also going to try to do it bigger and better. Music news, reviews, early warnings, leaks, whatever! Also, every week, we're going to have a Audioblog (or Podcast, whatever you want to call it), brought to you by yours truely, and hopefully, some of the guys here. poop

There may be up to 7 or 8 posts A DAY here, unlike the 1 or 2 you find on other blogs... we're going to keep you busy.

And we're also going to bring you mp3's of the bands we like and write about. Could it get us in trouble? Maybe. There's only one way to find out. Some of what we post you may love, some of it you may have, and some of it you may hate. But you're going to find SOMETHING here, I promise you that.

There's a ton of Music Blogs. However, we thought we could do it better... and if not, then we know we can do it much worse! We're shooting for the stars here, kids.

Also, as you can see, most of the cool stuff is still in the pipeline, coming your way in a matter of hours and days. I'm going to be working to get everything up to full speed very shortly. But hang in there with us... we'll get a RSS feed up and e-mail links and WHATEVER else we can think to throw at you.

Sit back and enjoy, it's going to be fun.