Album a Day (Single Edition): Icon of Coil - Android

In general I'm not a big fan of singles for a few reasons: First off, they often take up almost as much if not just as much (I have yet to see more) room as regular CDs with only one to four songs (more than four and you've got an EP on your hands). They also usually include some b-side that if you're a die-hard fan you have to have and singles usually have a much more limited pressing life so the disc can become rare so having that one song can get expensive unless it gets released on some sort of b-sides or rarities collection at which point you're pissed that you spent the time tracking it down. There's also the price. If you are a fan of imports like I am then you can wind up spending as much for a single as you would a regular album from the States. Now, a lot of this is solved in the digital age and we're already seeing fewer singles get released physically (unless as bonus-tracks on an album). The thing is that the rarity of that single is often what makes a b-side or remix on it so hot, especially if the song has club value. This was certainly the case with Icon of Coil's Android single. In the early 2000's Icon of Coil was one of the top two or three most popular EBM bands even pushing on the doors of mainstream consciousnesses with their 2002 release The Soul is in The Software which featured the popular goth/industrial club songs Access And Amplify and Other Half of Me. By 2003 their fanbase was craving new material and so the band released the precursor to what would become their third and final album (at least for now) Machines Are Us (great album). While Machines Are Us would wind up having the familiar Icon of Coil sound, the single Android told a different story, perhaps one more indicative of the direction the individual members of the band would take. The title track is a much more aggro and sounded closer to vocalist Andy LaPlegua's new project Combichrist (which has now become just as popular as Icon of Coil was). It's also interesting to see the two remixes of the song on the album are from LePlegua's Combichrist (though I'd actually say the Combichrist remix makes it sound less Combichrist-like bizarrely enough) and main-Icon of Coil-programmer Sebastian R. Komor's Moonitor. The two remixes are decent but what really makes the single worth it is that b-side I talked about earlier, a cover of Front 242's Headhunter. For anyone that was going to Goth/Industrial clubs in the late 80's early 90's they will remember the popularity of this song and then again in the late 90's when the band re-recorded the song and released it in 1999 with a slew of remixes. Generally when people make lists of club anthems in the goth/industrial scene this song will make everybody's list so you can venture the guess that there have been a number of covers of the song, however none quite so successful as this one. IOC does such a great job respecting what the song means and then finding subtle ways of reinterpreting it that makes for a great cover and a rejuvenated club track. This is also so interesting in Icon of Coil's discography because this to date was their first and only cover. I guess my point in all this is that if you're going to do a single then using Icon of Coil's model is probably a good one: A song from an upcoming album that will create intrigue, a rare b-side (maybe a cover), and a couple of remixes (and using those remixes to promote your other projects since you're not sticking with this one is probably a good idea as well). Favorite Tracks: Android, Headhunter, and Android (Mix by Combichrist)

Album a Day: Celldweller - Celldweller

History has shown us time and again that new things are frightening. When my friend Kilean first played Celldweller I wasn't really sure what to think about the album, though I knew I had to hear more so I contacted the label and asked if they could send me a copy. As I listened to it more I started to find songs I could identify with but others still seemed odd. Then as time went by the odd songs began to grow on me as well. Change is good and Klayton, the mastermind behind Celldweller, is no stranger to change. Technically this self-titled 2003 release is the debut of the Celldweller act, this is not Klayton's first rodeo, having performed/fronted a number of projects under various aliases that might start to sound familiar including Circle of Dust, Argyle Park, and Angeldust (alongside illusionist Criss Angel). I absolutely love this album and this project may be the most mature work that Klayton has ever done. Both the initial sense of confusion and later love for the album is really rooted in the genre-blending that Klayton implements in his work. With mixes of metal, industrial, EBM, drum 'n bass, house, and trance, at first you would think would just not go well together but Klayton just has such a clear understanding of music and taste level that he knows what works well, when to push forward and when to step back. This level of musical aptitude goes even further as Klayton was able to involve a lot of experimentation and retain a lot of hooks that allows for the album to be so accessible to the general audience while enabling thought from the complexities of the album. There's also really nice contributions to the album by Jarrod Montague from Taproot lending his drumming skills on the track I Believe You and electronic artist Fluffy Starr adding vocals to Frozen, The Stars of Orion, and Welcome To The End. I think the first half of the album is the catchier part with tracks like the very catchy Switchback, which later became a single with a music video. Klayton has said that there were about 50 demos for Switchback (two of my favorites being included the Beta Cessions, a two-disc compilation of early versions and instrumentals from this album) and all the hard work really shows in the finished product. The first half of the album also includes some highlights like Stay With Me (Unlikely), Under My Feet, and Afraid This Time, but I think the real gems are the two longer tracks (both coming in at over seven minutes) The Last Firstborn and Frozen. The Last Firstborn is really what I was talking about earlier when it comes to experimentation on this disc as the song moves back and forth between metal driven industrial and a mix of drum 'n bass and Goa style trance. Again, this would seem to be too much to handle there's something about it that just works. Frozen is a little bit more traditional but might be the underrated club track of the album just on its pure raw energy and emotion alone. One of my favorite aspects about the album does come in the latter half where Klayton demonstrates a technique implemented on Circle of Dust's Disengaged wherein Klayton takes songs from earlier in the album and reconfigures them in a way that I wouldn't quite calling remixing but rather re-imagining. Here it is with the song Stay With Me (Unlikely) which he turns inside out for the track later in the album entitled Unlikely (Stay With Me). The result isn't one of my favorite songs but still interesting nonetheless. Overall I think this is just a really solid album that has a great flow that is as good whole as it is separate and has spawned several remix CDs, a collection of early versions and instrumentals, and a number of online remix contests (and most of this additional material is certainly worth exploring). Favorite Tracks: Switchback, Stay With Me (Unlikely), The Last Firstborn, Under My Feet, Frozen, Afraid This Time, and So Sorry To Say

Album a Day (Boxset Edition): Various Artists - Century Media Records 10th Annivesary Box Set

In 2001 Century Media Records, home to some of the most diverse and prolific metal bands around the world, released a three-disc box set in honor of the labels ten year anniversary (though this is really the 10 year anniversary of their foray into the States as the label actually started in Germany three years prior, but let's think of it like a wedding anniversary). I thought that since we were only about six months away from the twenty year anniversary that this might be a good time to discuss this release (a bit of a teaser if you will). First of all, I can't begin to say enough good things about Century Media Records as they not only put out some many amazing and forward-thinking metal bands in a variety of metal sub-genres but also I just always had nice personal dealings with them when I was doing my Goth/Industrial college radio show, The Last Exit, back in Ithaca, NY in the early-mid 2000's (the years just after this release actually). I remember when Lacuna Coil was really just taking off in the states and touring with Type O Negative. I asked a contact of mine at the label if we could make an interview happen at The Palladium in Worcester, MA and they were very helpful with the hook-up (this would go one to be one of the bigger venues I would interview in) and I was able to share 30 minutes with the beautiful Cristina Scabbia thanks to the good folks at Century Media. I love label box set's because you know the hard work that goes into a release like this. The compilation has to really represent something that the people putting it together, the founders, the bands, the past and present staff, and especially the fans are going to feel represents each of their individual interests and come out as accurate. In addition, when you're still an active label then you are going to have to live with this release for a long time. To this end I think that this compilation is really successful. I love the division of the first two discs between Western and Eastern Hemisphere because this gives the perception that CMR is really a global metal label which is true for the most part, although most of the bands are from either Anglo-America (The US and Canada) or Europe (though their bands certainly do tour worldwide). The division between the discs makes for an interesting study because you can try to understand the differences amongst metal bands on that global scale between the two metal superpowers. The first two discs really show off the diversity of metal that has been on the label (including some sub-genres I've never even heard of) covering hardcore, noisecore, mathcore, sludge metal, power metal, extreme metal, rap metal, technical metal, groove metal, death metal, metalcore, progressive metal, heavy metal, industrial metal, goth metal, doom metal, crossover thrash, and honestly the list goes on. Now this may seem funny to anyone that takes part in a particular scene knows all the sub-genres that come with it (I certainly do from my years in the aforementioned Goth/Industrial scene) but I think that also speaks volumes about Century Media Records open-mindedness to good metal. Included with the release is a beautiful 90 page booklet that includes stories by several bands that have been on the label and more often than not the stories include, "When no label wanted to sign a band that made (insert your metal genre) Century Media listened to our sound and were excited to sign us." and the vast majority of those bands have gone on to garner a great amount of success. In fact, the second disc of all the Euro bands clearly illustrates how Century Media got behind female-fronted metal bands such as Lacuna Coil and The Gathering long before any one else. The first disc is filled with great American metal that makes you want to head-bang with the red, white and blue but the second disc may be closer to my heart as I've always had an affinity for European metal bands like the previously mentioned Lacuna Coil and The Gathering in addition to Nocturnal Rites, Moonspell, and Tiamat amongst others. The funny thing you begin to notice when looking back and forth between those two discs is that there are more bands of certain genres than you thought from those given areas. Like I would have thought all the power and fantasy metal would be on the Eastern Hemisphere disc but then you have North American bands like Seattle's Nevermore, Colorado Spring's deceptively European-sounding Jag Panzer, and Tampa's Iced Earth. Conversely I thought the majority of death and industrial metal would come from the US but Germany's Morgoth covers both of those genres in addition to The Netherland's Asphyx, and Rotting Christ, which really verged more on grindcore in their earlier days. So you would think when listening to the two discs that you'd get this very different sound that's distinct for each part of the overall compilation but there's a lot of diversity all over and I think that is really what represents this label. This release also just features some of my favorite bands including Shadows Fall, Strapping Young Lad, Lacuna Coil, Arch Enemy, Iced Earth, Eyehategod, The Gathering, and Moonspell but introduced me to some bands I wasn't really familiar with but would like to check out more of like Sentenced, Nocturnal Rites, Borknagar, and Jag Panzer. I think that's really representational of what is good about this release and that is that if you are a fan of these bands then this is a great release with a lot of nostalgia. If you don't know these bands or this label then this is a great starter pack to get introduced to a variety of metal genres and bands so you can figure out what and who you might like. This is also shown between the first two discs which are a compilation of songs from various label releases between 1991 and 2001 which is great if you're not a metal head and don't own most these releases. But if you do happen to be a complete metal junkie then you're treated with the third disc of Rare and Unreleased recordings including a track by label founder Robert Kampf's band Despair. I'm glad that this disc wasn't just padded with live recordings (in fact the only live recording is a really good one of Iced Earth's Colors). The other great thing for old fan and new fan alike is the 90 page booklet with stories from the bands about the label and just their own experiences, an interview with Robert Kampf, more stories from a few past and present staff members, and the discography of all the releases up until this compilation. I also just really appreciate the first story by Stuck Mojo which discusses their relationship with Pro Wrestling (of which any of my readers knows that I am a big fan) which anyone that was watching WCW back in the late 90's remembers the Diamond Dallas Page vs. Raven and The Flock music video that the band did. This is accompanied by a great picture of the band holding DDP's various title belts. The packaging is just beautiful with pictures of the bands and Century Media staff all over the booklet which itself has gorgeous artwork of the ocean and old-world maps all bound in an understated black box with "Century Media 10 Year Anniversary" and a big X in silver on the cover. Normally I would be skeptical of a release limited to 10,000 copies worldwide but when Century Media (perhaps the biggest label in metal) says there are only 10,000 copies then I feel like owning one is a big deal (even if I did get my copy used for four dollars) so if you can get a copy then I suggest you do (even if you have to spend more than four dollars). Favorite Tracks: Disc 1 (Western Hemisphere): Demolition Hammer - .44 Caliber Brain Surgery, EyeHateGod - Sister Fucker (Part 1), Merauder - Master Killer, Only Living Witness - No Eden, Iced Earth - The Hunter, Strapping Young Lad - Oh My Fucking God, Jag Panzer - Black, Turmoil - Playing Dead, Shadows Fall - Of One Blood, Nevermore - The River Dragon Has Come, God Forbid - Broken Promise. Disc 2 (Eastern Hemisphere): Morgoth - White Gallery, Samael - Flagellation, Tiamat - Whatever That Hurts, The Gathering - Strange Machines, Moonspell - Opium, Borknagar - Oceans Rise, Nocturnal Rites - Destiny Calls, Lacuna Coil - My Wings, Angel Dust - The One You Are. Disc 3 (Rare & Unreleased): Samael - Manitou, Stuck Mojo - Fuckin-4-$$$, Nevermore - System's Failing, Moonspell - Ataegina, The Gathering - Adrenaline, Morgoth - Indifferent, Sentenced - Digging The Grave, Nocturnal Rites - The Journey Through Time, and Tiamat - The Children of The Underworld

Album a Day: Gavin Friday - Shag Tobacco

A classic album by a classy musician in the form of Gavin Friday (ex-Virgin Prunes). This third album by Dublin-born Friday would be his last for about seven years, instead shifting his focus to other artistic endeavors. I love this album as Friday's music oozes sexiness with a thin layer of filth just to cap the whole thing off. The whole album has a lounge feel to it and yet there's also a deep complexity to the work though in the end Friday is really just a romantic. And that isn't necessarily "romantic" in the "boy loves girl", "girl loves boy","girl loves girl", "boy loves boy", or "two boys love a girl and a dwarf" sense (though surely that is in there, except perhaps for the dwarf), but rather a romanticism for words, culture, art. The best example of this may be in the track Caruso which is a tribute to the Italian Opera singer Enrico Caruso. Friday is able to tap his purest of emotions and translate that into his music. For that reason it should come as no surprise that one of the songs on the album, Angel (not my favorite song, but a good tune) would be used on the soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann's film Romeo + Juliet. At times it feels like there's an effortless quality to the album that contributes to a relaxing atmosphere but again the complexity of themes that are in each song and also span the entire album are just great and then are mixed in with beautiful music that demonstrates Gavin Friday and contributor Maurice Seezer's diverse musical talents, as can be seen on several tracks in which Fridays sings through a megaphone that he calls the stronzophone. One of the highlights on the album for me is the cover of T-Rex's The Slider. The original version of The Slider is a usual affair you would expect from T-Rex (which even as popular as they are, they still remain one of the most underrated bands). Friday slows down the track just slightly giving it an almost creepy feel that really makes the skin crawl. In general Gavin Friday has a great understanding what to do with a cover as would later be demonstrated with his appearance in the Neil Jordan film Breakfast On Pluto where Friday portrayed glam-rocker Billy Hatchet playing a cover of Sweet's Wig-Wam Bam. In both instances Gavin Friday really makes the song his own while still paying tribute to the original. In addition to a certain level of seriousness there is also a great humour all over this album on songs like Mr. Pussy and Dolls. This 1995 album also shows why its so well worth having physical albums as the liner notes include the prose of Irish novelist Patrick McCabe. The story requires several reads and still doesn't make much sense but has beautiful imagery and manages to incorporate the titles of the songs from the album. This album can usually be found pretty cheap used so even if you're still skeptical then I recommend you spend the 5 dollars and give it a shot, I'm sure you won't regret it (or if you do then fuck you). Favorite Tracks: Shag Tobacco, Caruso, The Slider, Mr. Pussy, You Me and World War Three, and My Twentieth Century

Album a Day (Film Score Edition): Bernard Herrmann - Bernard Herrmann's Music From Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo"

Certainly any film composer will list Bernard Herrmann as one of the greatest composers of all and no one could even be blamed for putting him at the top of that list for providing the world with the music to Ray Harryhausen's Jason and The Argonauts, François Truffaut's Fahrenheit 451, Brian De Palma's Obsession, Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone, Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver, and of course almost every Alfred Hitchcock film including my personal favorite (both for the film and the score) Vertigo. Bernard Herrmann's work is genius enough on his own but to me Herrmann's work always got pushed to its very limits by the macabre brilliance of Alfred Hitchcock. One of the most difficult elements about scoring a film like this is that there is a necessity in the story where things have to start in one style and really shift during the turning point of the film without seeming like two different scores. Herrmann's soundtrack allows for all of the emotional complexities of the film that Scottie goes through because of his condition (which is vertigo in case you had a hard time figuring that out), love, paranoia, obsession, etc. A complex film needs a complex score and Herrmann was clearly up to the challenge. What I love about this score the most is that it really captures the collaborative process of filmmaking because you have Hitchcock setting the tone with the story, which is really brought to life by James Stewart and Kim Novak and then enhanced to such a great degree Herrmann's score that shows his true understanding of what Hitchcock was going for. Of course this isn't a movie review, but rather a discussion about the soundtrack which is just such a delight to listen to even outside of the film, though the release I have only includes about half the original score. The score was first released in this 34 minute version that includes most of the major cues and was the only release available until 1995 when a version was re-recorded with Joel McNeely conducting the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and then in 1996 another version was released but this time of the master recordings which were not kept in the best of conditions. A third release came in 1999 with James Conlon conducting the Paris Opera Orchestra for the only ever recording of the full seventy-four and half minute score. I personally like the first copy the best because I'd rather listen to the original version of the score then a recorded one like the McNeely version (which isn't complete either) or the Conlon one (which is actually very rare to get a hold of anyway) and while I haven't heard the 1996 release (though I do plan to) the fidelity issues could be a problem. The tones are beautiful in this film and I can't even do justice to the analysis of the score in relationship to the rest of the sound design of the film as whole papers have been written on the subject but there are great little nuances such as the two-tone falling motif that imitates the fog horns at either side of the Golden Gate Bridge (a centerpiece of the film's San Francisco locale). If you love scores, film, or just beautiful music then you should pick this up as its inspiring to work to, great to chill out to, and is just highly emotional without being gratuitous. Favorite Tracks: Vertigo Prelude and Rooftop, Farewell and The Tower, and Love Music

Album a Day (EP Edition): Voltaire - Banned On Vulcan!

Voltaire just makes me smile. New York artist/musician Voltaire has been making people smile for years in a scene filled with people that a lot of people mistakenly think don't want to smile, including many of those within the goth scene itself. Originally self-released as a rare EP mostly only available at live shows, Banned On Vulcan!'s four tracks all quickly became favorites of Voltaire's live audiences (and if you haven't seen Voltaire live then pick up his live CD and attempt to find out what you're missing) and so it was eventually released on Voltaire's label at the time, Projekt Records. If you haven't figured it out by now this EP is a tribute to the most popular sci-fi television franchise of all time, Star Trek, which produced five television series (six if you count the animated show that ran from 1973 to 1974) spanning 30 seasons plus eleven movies including the newly relaunched J.J. Abrams franchise that is bound to produce at least one sequel. I have to admit that I was a big Next Generation fan as a kid and also watched the first few seasons of Voyager so I have a geek love for this album on top of just being a big Voltaire fan. What makes this EP so good and Voltaire's music in general is really his attention to detail. Voltaire is one of the smartest men I have ever met (something that hopefully his students at The School of Visual Arts greatly appreciate) and so while it's obvious that he is an avid fan of Star Trek, he also wasn't simply satisfied at simple jokes that only a Trekkie would get. There are a lot of really intelligent and clever lyrics put into the twelve and half minutes of this EP. The mini-album starts off with such a bang with the song Worf's Revenge where Voltaire raps from the perspective of the Klingon Federation Officer Worf from Next Generation and later Deep Space 9 fame. Voltaire should rap more often because he does a great job on this track. I love when he says that never sweats a Romulan because he's just a limp-wristed Vulcan with a bad attitude. There's just this great infusion of Trek knowledge with gangsta-rap stereotypes like talking about his cock (his head isn't the only part of Worf that's got ridges) or "I hate the tribbles, those little furry shits...but I love my Klingon bitches because they got three tits". The second track, The USS Make Shit Up, is probably the best (though only my 2nd favorite) covering all of the ridiculous plot devices of each Star Trek series with the exception of Enterprise which wasn't out at the time of this EP (though Voltaire later rectifies this on his live CD with a bonus verse about the Scott Bakula prequel series). Not only does Voltaire sing here about all the ridiculous situations throughout Star Trek but also takes the opportunity to ponder questions like how the Klingons went from looking like Puerto Ricans dressed in gold lamay to heavy metal rockers from the dead with frizzy hair and lobsters on their heads (pointing out the addition of the more prominent ridges over time). The third song, The Sexy Data Tango, was not really a favorite of mine for a long time but there's just something about the idea of Data as a sexual being that one appreciates over time and Voltaire does such a great job once again taking the Star Trek theme but marrying it to a style like a tango that one would not necessarily think to blend but completely works. The last track, Screw The Okampa! (I Want To Go Home) is my favorite on the EP and one of my favorite Voltaire tracks period. This take on the classic West Indies Folk Song "The John B. Sails" made famous by The Beach Boys as "Sloop John B." take the perspective of one of the crew members of Voyager just wanting to get the fuck home playing off of the plot of Star Trek Voyager where the crew of USS Voyager led by Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) is stranded in the Delta Quandrant for seven years. Even if you're not a Star Trek fan this is still a great collections of songs that are fun, diverse, catchy, and perhaps will teach you something about one of the Mecca's of geekdom. It's also just always impressive what Voltaire can do with just an acoustic guitar and how fitting he looks as a Vulcan (Vulcan's are so goth because they are basically emotionally dead). Favorite Tracks (all of them): Worf's Revenge (The Klingon Rap), The U.S.S. Make Shit Up, The Sexy Data Tango, and Screw The Okampa! (I Want To Go Home)

Album a Day: Black Tape For a Blue Girl - 10 Neurotics

Ten albums over twenty-three years, in addition to five EPs that generally contain at least some new material, is a lot of effort for one band, especially when you take into consideration a lot of that work falls on Sam Rosenthal who is also the head of Projekt Records (the premier label for all things ethereal and darkwave in addition to goth rock, dark cabaret, ambient, and neo-classical). Though Rosenthal's fingerprints are all over this album, he certainly wasn't alone as this alone may be the most star-studded for the band yet with a lineup including Brian Viglione (The Dresden Dolls), Laurie Read (Attrition), Athan Maroulis (Spahn Ranch), and one of my absolute favorite musicians in the form of the beautiful Nicki Jaine. The album also features great guest appearances by Lucas Lanthier (Cinema Strange), Black Tape alums Elysabeth Grant, Lisa Feuer, and Michael Laird, and the bandmate of Rosenthal and Jaine's other band Revue Noir, Gregor Kitzis who you may also know as the violinist for Voltaire. This is just a great album up and down and I think the new lineup in addition to the appearances by old band members has really helped rejuvenate the Black Tape project. I suspect the real muse here has been Nicki Jaine who ever since joining up with Rosenthal for the aforementioned Revue Noir has seemed to really light a creative spark under Rosenthal who hadn't released a new Black Tape album since 2004's Halo which was good but not nearly as strong as 10 Neurotics, perhaps relying more on old Black Tape sounds rather than pushing the envelope and continuing to grow like is so evident on this album. It also doesn't hurt that the songs featuring Jaine as the main vocalist pretty much feel like they could be straight from Jaine's discography (which if you haven't checked out then you are missing out on of the most talented musicians I have ever heard) but enhanced by Rosenthal's own music and production skills. I think Rosenthal's strength in this album is really recognizing the strengths of the musicians he's working with, collaborating, and adjusting the style to fit theirs while retaining his own trademark sound. I'd say one of the better examples of this would be the track The Pleasure In The Pain which features former Spahn Ranch member Athan Maroulis on vocals. The track really borders on the industrial sound that everyone is familiar with for Maroulis but the acoustic nature of the song leaves it in Rosenthal's realm. One of my favorite tracks on the album is The Perfect Pervert which reminds me a lot of two of my favorite films: The Image and Maitresse (both about the fetish world and S&M relationships) not just because of the S&M content but also about the relationship between the fetish world and the day to day world that inevitably sneaks in. In fact the whole album plays like a foreign film to me with a great mix of intelligent ideas, old world and new world sounds coming together and just stunning imagery next to funny little moments. There's a great variety of sounds on this album with the more Nicki Jaine-esque tracks, the classic Black Tape songs, and then other sounds that touch more on the dark caberet of Brian Viglione or just nice singer/song-writer tracks like Love Song. The production on this album is tight which really with Rosenthal with help from Steve Roach, no one should be surprised. The album also comes with a wonderful booklet full of beautiful pictures of naked women alongside pictures of the band member's, lyrics, etc. Great work by all those involved in the album who are clearly all master's of their craft, and a special hats off again to Nicki Jaine for how much I adore hearing her say "fuck". Favorite Tracks: Sailor Boy, Inch Worm, The Perfect Pervert, Love Song, Rotten Zurich Cafe, The Pleasure In The Pain, and Curious, Yet Ashamed