Album a Day (DVD Edition): Einstürzende Neubauten - Palast Der Republik

Einstürzende Neubauten loves their fans. I mean truly its difficult for any band to stay together three decades and retain such control over their music so Neubauten turns to the fans for support and in turn reward them. One such reward would include a 2004 "supporter-only" concert (in reference to the band's initiative to put out work without a label but rather the financial backing of their fan-base via donations) at Berlin's Palast Der Republik, an iconic building that housed, amongst other things, the East German Parliament, though this rather be a skeleton of the former building which was in the process of being torn down (a beautiful reference to Neubauten's name which literally means Collapsing Buildings). A video of the show was recorded and released as an exclusive supporter's only DVD and would not be released to the public until 2006. It's a good thing too because this is a great DVD for an Einstürzende Neubauten fan. If you haven't seen a Neubauten show then you are missing out. The band is widely recognized for their unique use of industrial machinery, products, waste, etc. in their music making and all of that is on display here with garbage cans, power tools, sheet metal, PVC pipes, and even the building itself. As the show goes on the usage only becomes more creative with highlights including a moment where a series of beer can boxes filled with who knows what and tied together by string is dragged around the building by one of the band members as part of one of the sequences of "Grudstueck". My personal favorite moment is when the band uses an air compressor with a mobile made of bottles, a device that was explored in depth on the album Perpetuum Mobile. The song selections are really solid with a mix of iconic older tracks such as "Haus Der Luege", "Armenia", and "Sabrina", newer songs like "Youme & Meyou" and the epic "Perpetuum Mobile" and then the highlight has to be the middle of the performance which includes "Grudstueck" movement from the 2nd supporter-only album. Another innovation and show of love towards their fan-base is featured on several songs where the band is supported by a 100-piece chorus made of their supporters enlisted directly from their website. One of the things I love about Neubauten has been their ability to take experimental music and make it accessible. That whole idea translates very well to this DVD because you get a mixture of concert and performance, like watching Stomp. Its easy to watch this DVD over and over again to notice all the different ways in which the band is creating sound. In fact a DVD like this should be mandatory for any kind of college sound program, especially for foley artists and experimental musicians. But even if you're not super in to experimental music this is a fun show to watch, chill out to, and just enjoy the pioneers of industrial music dressed up in nice suits showing you don't have to be rich to make music. The DVD also includes two bonus tracks that are part of the concert but for some reason omitted as part of the main DVD movie ("Die Befindlichkeit Des Landes" and "Redukt"). The video of the show could be slightly better but the sound recording is phenomenal. Favorite Tracks: Haus Der Luege, Armenia, Youme & Meyou, Perpetuum Mobile, Grundstueck, Was Ist Ist, Sabrina, and Redukt

Album a Day (Concert Edition): Rasputina w/Larkin Grimm at The Troubadour (West Hollywood, CA 8/14/10)

Yes! I actually went out to a show last night. This doesn't seem that amazing because I used to go to concerts on a weekly basis when I was an undergrad at Ithaca College in Ithaca, NY and back then I didn't even have any money. I would ask my parents for 80 dollars and I would live off of that for upwards of six months. I mean we had a cafeteria, I rarely needed to drive my car, and I was going to concerts for free doing interviews for my radio show. But now I have a job, I have artwork to make, and I live in Los Angeles where concerts are expensive (though hopefully I will now be returning to my free show ways between this blog and writing for a Magazine! Keeping my fingers crossed for Gary Numan in the Fall). But regardless of all that, last night's show was really spectacular as both bands had a great energy but the style of music was something that you could just relax and absorb. Up first was an act I had not heard of up until this point by the name of Larkin Grimm. We all know opening acts can be a crap-shoot but I thought Larkin Grimm was great. She was funny, talented, interacted well with the crowd. She came out with her three-piece band (Larkin on guitar and a harp that she was able to strap on like a guitar, a girl on bass, and guy that was an entire percussion section unto himself) all adorned in feathers which I'm not sure if that was their particular style or more in-line with Rasputina but I thought they were a nice compliment to everything. Larkin Grimm combines a nice mix of folk, indie and soul that results in sometimes beautiful, sometimes maddening music. I think she played to the maddening just a bit because of the Rasputina crowd (which she pointed out how different a reaction she got from Rasputina fans when mentioning that one song was a little gorier of a tale than others). I loved the job the drummer did as he not only played the drums with various different kinds of sticks to create different sounds but also, like a good percussionist should, had an array of other tools of sound. It was also really interesting to notice Larkin Grimm's affinity for the West as permeates in the style but comes to the forefront in the song "Ride That Cyclone" from her 2008 album Parplar (an album I certainly hope to be reviewing in the near future). The Yale graduate actually grew up in the south born in Memphis, TN and eventually relocating as a youth with her hippie parents to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Georgia (not quite the west but you get the idea). I thought Larkin Grimm's music and personality were both incredibly charming and I became a fan. Rasputina was equally amazing. I've been a fan of Rasputina for a long-time now but this was my first time actually seeing them in concert. The first thing I wrote down while taking notes about this show was "real musicians have afghans" referring to 2nd chair and first male cellist the band has had, Daniel DeJesus' afghan he sat on during the show. Of course all three band members (1st chair cellist, founder, and banjoist Melora Creager, the aforementioned Daniel DeJesus, and percussionist/punk-rocker Catie D'Amica) were sitting during the performance which I thought couple with The Troubador set-up added for a really intimate show. Even though I have lived in Los Angeles for three years this was actually my first time to The Troubador. My compatriot, Brian, and I came early, found free street parking, and enjoyed a nice West Hollywood dinner at a Brazilian Restaurant by the name of Bossa Nova. I thought the food was excellent with generous portions for decent prices. The Troubador (or Doug Weston's Troubador if you're a dick) is a great little venue with hardly a bad spot in the house (though I wish the stage was just a big higher so I didn't have annoying obsessive fans starting to sit on the stage in front of me towards the end of the show. Seriously, this one girl was on her knees, on the edge of the stage right by DeJesus taking pictures to her phone. DeJesus looked over at her at one point to make sure he didn't accidentally hit her with his bow. But on a side note she fell down off a curb after the show so all is right with the world). The Troubador has a nice upstairs section you can also watch the show at (I think its for advance ticket buyers but I could be wrong about that) which I did not venture to but seemed cool if you like sitting. Back to the show itself, Rasputina played a variety of songs from a variety of albums which my friend Brian (a slightly more dedicated Rasputina fan than me) pointed out seemed largely in couples. I loved all of Melora Creager's banter between songs including that in the band's free time they are statisticians for fun, they have found ways to combine their work and pleasure, and that 92% of Rasputina songs are true. Melora also had a great line about how she lives in a very homeopathic community and when she was pregnant everyone pressured her to have a home birth. Well she had compromised by having a home Caesarean section. I also enjoy how smart her quips were including a line about the next song being accepted recently as the theme song for a new sitcom about Emily Dickinson. The crowd was a very dedicated fan-base, yelling out request after request in spite of Creager stating that this was not the time for requests but that it would come later until she finally submitted and played "Watch T.V." from How We Quit The Forest. The musical highlights for me were "Rats" from Cabin Fever!, "Watch T.V.", the covers (which of course Rasputina is famous for) of The Undertones' "Teenage Kicks", Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here", and CCR's "Bad Moon Rising". In addition I also loved all of the encore songs which featured "Bad Moon Rising" from The Lost and Found (2nd Edition), "Hunter's Kiss" from Cabin Fever!, "Wicked Dickie" and "Possum of The Grotto" from Frustration Plantation, "Diamond Mind" from How We Quit The Forest, and finally finished off so well with "The New Zero" also off of How We Quit The Forest. Overall a great show and I was home by 1:30 (if you like sleeping, which I do).

Album a Day: Hollywood, Mon Amour - Hollywood, Mon Amour

If I were a religious man I would make Marc Collin my personal lord and saviour. But I'm an atheist so I'll have to settle for a lot of admiration. First Marc Collin brings the world his bossa nova-style punk/post-punk/goth/modern rock/new wave cover band Nouvelle Vague featuring some of the most talented female vocalists France has to offer. Not good enough for you? (Wow, selfish much?). From Marc Collin's genius mind we also get Hollywood, Mon Amour, which much like Nouvelle Vague is a nod to the French New Wave (Nouvelle Vague translating from French to mean New Wave) with the name being a play on my favorite French New Wave film, Alain Resnais' Hiroshima Mon Amour. The music style is very much the same but the aim of this project is more geared towards reworkings of movie theme songs. As both a lover of the Nouvelle Vague-style and a filmmaker I adore this 2008 self-titled release for its emotion-melting abilities and wise song choices. In league with Marc Collin's tastes displayed with the Nouvelle Vague-project, all the film's are from that decade I was born in to called the 80's. I really like this collection because Collin doesn't always have to go for the most popular songs (though there are plenty of those there as well) and so I think the album doesn't necessarily just play like a compilation but rather allows Hollywood, Mon Amour to explore a variety of styles and put together a cohesive album. Collin's arrangements are so beautiful and I think this release has a particularly calming effect that allows the listener to occupy a space inside the album for sixty or so minutes of the album. However Collin is not alone here once again aided by many of his Nouvelle Vague compatriots and a bevy of talented femme fatal vocalists including Skye, Katrina Ottosen, Nadeah, Dea Li, Yael Naim, Cibelle, Nancy Danino, Leelou, Inga, Bianca Calandra, and the incomparable Juliette Lewis. Though I wish this release could have included my favorite Collin-co-conspirator, Melanie Pain, it was refreshing to see a mostly new line-up of women from the aforementioned sister project Nouvelle Vague. I feel like I could write entire entries about each track but the story of the album is a lot of sexiness in a slue of great song choices. Collin really takes the time to reinterpret these songs and so a track like Survivor's "Eye of The Tiger" (from the film Rocky III) traditionally elicits that image of a montage of preparation where Hollywood, Mon Amour's version feels more like a retrospective tale told by the campfire. Another great example would be the theme from the Bond film For Your Eyes Only (one of two Bond songs on the album with the other being the infamous Duran Duran-penned "A View To A Kill"), which one would traditionally think of with deception, secrecy, etc. but here the band creates this amazing sense of intimacy. The real soft spots in this album for me have to be "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do" and "When Doves Cry". Collin's sense of emotion is so well complimented by songs that are fairly emotionally epic on their own. The limited edition version of the album also contains three great tracks including Berlin's "Take My Breath Away", the theme from Electric Dreams, and the theme from Butterfly. This is a beautiful record and there's a lot of appeal here whether you're a fan of Nouvelle Vague, Marc Collin, any of the singers, any of the films, etc. so I highly recommend picking this up and here's hoping that this project is not just a one and done. Favorite Tracks: Call Me, Eye of The Tiger, When Doves Cry, A View To A Kill, Flashdance...What a Feeling, Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do), For Your Eyes Only, and Don't You (Forget About Me)

Album a Day (EP Edition): Combichrist - Frost EP: Sent To Destroy

I would say I pretty much always enjoy the work of Andy LaPlegua whether it be Icon of Coil, Panzer AG, Scandy, or in this case Combichrist. Of his projects Combichrist is my least favorite but not because it's less than good but rather because I just love the other projects so much. However, as good as those bands are I think Combichrist+remix=gold. Whether its Combichrist remixing or getting remixed I'm generally satisfied with the result. I think the quality result comes from two factors. The first is that Combichrist is without a doubt the most popular of LaPlegua's projects, I think even surpassing Icon of Coil which is certainly a feat so that is going to attract a lot of wanting to remix his music. The second reason is that a lot of credit has to be given to LaPlegua for his choices on who to work when it comes in terms of who to remix and who to be remixed by, often seemingly trading a remix for a remix. This isn't to say that all the remixes are great as the 2008 Frost EP: Sent To Destroy (yin to the yang of the later released Heat EP) demonstrates both good and ok remixes (thankfully none are bad, some are just neither here nor there). The EP is essentially divided in to three parts beginning with two original tracks, "Sent To Destroy" and "Prince of E-Ville" sandwiching an instrumental version of "The Kill", followed by three remixes of "Sent To Destroy" by Rotersand, Northborne (which features former Icon of Coil bandmate Christian Lund), and Suicide Commando, and three remixes of "Prince of E-Ville" by Babyland, Accessory, and Caustic. The three original tracks here are great. "Sent To Destroy" is a pretty standard industrial club anthem about war, nukes, post-apocalyptic scenarios. I do particularly like the chorus "Your God sent us to destroy". I was actually a little less impressed with the remixes of this song, especially the Rotersand Rework (although I do always love that Rotersand calls their remixes "reworks) as Germany's Rotersand usually puts out really interesting remixes that can take songs in entirely different directions. Its not bad, its just not all that different from the original version, same thing with the Northborne remix. The only remix I really enjoyed of this song was the version by Suicide Commando. Suicide Commando is a band that pretty much usually just makes other songs sound like Suicide Commando songs but its consistent and good. I normally don't like instrumentals as I'm big on vocals but I though the instrumental version of "The Kill" was very catchy and since Combichrist vocals are often just used as another instrument in a song I didn't miss the vocals. If anything the lack of vocals probably helped break up the EP just a little. As good as the title track of this EP is I thought the real standout here was "Prince of E-Ville" is a really funny track poking fun at members of the Goth/Industrial scene. I especially love the line about smoking Cloves and the sample from the film The Convent. I don't think Combichrist is lyrically breaking any ground or anything T.S. Eliot would be proud of, which is probably the reason Combichrist is my least favorite as LaPlegua has shown more thought and talent with Panzer AG but that's not the point of Combichrist. Combichrist is fun and "Prince of E-Ville" takes that fun to a higher level, like if Voltaire made aggrotech (maybe someday). The remixes here are much better with Los Angeles' Babyland probably putting in the greatest effort on the disc if nothing else but for taking the song and making it sound like something different but still catchy and adding guitars. The Accessory remix is pretty standard fair but solid and the other standout of the CD is probably the Caustic remix. I actually can't even say what Caustic's Matt Fanale changed about the song but there's something just tighter about it that really works. Overall this is a solid release for people that like remixes with slick production and slick artwork. One thing you can't say about Andy LaPlegua is that he skimps on releases with this forty-six and half minute EP. Favorite Tracks: Sent To Destroy, The Kill (Instru:Mental Version), Prince of E-Ville, Sent To Destroy (Sacrifice Remix by Suicide Commando), Prince of E-Ville (Princess Mix by Babyland), and Prince of E-Ville (Caustic Remix)

Album a Day: Berlin - 4Play

Legendary 80's new wave band Berlin probably never REALLY got their just due. Sure, there was the popular hit "Take My Breath Away" but instead of that becoming their breakthrough song the band somewhat faded into obscurity and were plagued by problems ultimately leading to their breakup, disputes over rights to the band name (which was eventually won by Terri Nunn), lineup changes, etc. that never really helped the legacy of the band. So it was nice to see Nunn's recent incarnation of the band at least artistically rebound with 2005's 4Play. This album (which at just over half an hour and mostly filled with covers and live tracks should be called an EP) is the first really solid release of newly recorded material in several years (also depending on whether or not you liked 2002's Voyeur). The album features two new songs with the heartfelt "Scream" and club-worthy "Down and Dirty". I really like both of these songs and they show off Berlin's ability to grow and progress being able to hang with more modern electropop bands likes Ladytron, Robots In Diguise, and Goldfrapp, but I think the "Scream" is the real standout of the two. The song is emotional, has great structure to it, really nice synth work by Mitchell Sigman (though all band members are credited on the writing of the song). The vast majority of the album are covers including less surprising covers of Peter Gabriel's "Big Time", Prince and The Revolution's "Erotic City", and David Bowie's "Fashion" with "Erotic City" really being the best of these more expected covers of other 80's artists. "Erotic City" is already a great song and perhaps one of the more underrated Prince and The Revolution songs. Berlin has this great ability with covers to stay true to the nature of the song while really owning it and changing something perhaps just by being themselves which I think helps draw in fans of the original songs while pleasing old Berlin fans and creating new ones. This is probably best displayed on another track on this album which is a cover of Marilyn Manson's "The Dope Show". I first heard this song when it was released on a Marilyn Manson tribute album titled Anonymous Messiah. I played this song for years in the Goth/Industrial club scene and there's just something so pleasing about this cover and I actually had another DJ turn to me and say, "Who's covering this?" When I mentioned it was Berlin the DJ did a double take with a smile growing on his face. Terri Nunn also has a solo cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" that I think is good but doesn't really do Nunn any favors for building a new audience. The other cover on the album is a live version of Depeche Mode's "Never Let Me Down Again" which is one of two live tracks on the album with the other being the classic Berlin song "No More Words" with the original line-up of the band from VH1's Bands Reunited. This is really great and anyone that is familiar with VH1 live tracks knows that the recording is great because you get a great mix of studio professional recording while still retaining a live feel that people want from a live track. The iTunes version of the album omits the "For What It's Worth" cover but includes an acoustic version of my favorite Berlin track, "The Metro". I really wish this had been included on the album as I can never get enough versions of "The Metro". The production on this album is really tight and I think 4Play is successful in offering something for the old fans and something to build new ones that I hope will eventually result in at least one more studio album. Favorite Tracks: Scream, Erotic City, The Dope Show, Down and Dirty, No More Words (Acoustic from VH1's Bands Reunited), and The Metro (Acoustic iTunes version)

Album a Day: The Trinity Project - The Subtle Movements of The Entropy Engine

I am one hundred percent in favor of side-projects because its very easy to say, "Well, this is the main thing I want to be known for and here are my other interests so I should explore those as well." As an experimental filmmaker I often branch out into writing (short story, poetry, and these meditations on other artists' works), DJing, and someday I'll probably get back into narrative film where I started (just as a side thing), so I totally get the idea of side-projects. Unfortunately we don't see this often enough in music and so either bands can become parodies of themselves and the music is just the same thing over and over or the band alienates their fans by doing things that are perhaps far too out of the realm of that particular project. Ego Likeness' real-life married couple Steve Archer and Donna Lynch completely understand this as both are not only musicians but they also paint, draw, write and who knows what else goes on in their creative world. So one of the results is Steve and Donna's 2002 release The Subtle Movements of The Entropy Engine under the name The Trinity Project. The album shows off Archer and Lynch's more experimental side that pushes the musical imagination. The album starts off with the complex 20 minute title track. Archer mentions in the liner notes that he had the name for the song/album about two years before doing anything with it and then recording the whole thing in about two weeks with intentions to later make the work into a film (eight years later we haven't seen the film pop up, but lets not blame the band as Ego Likeness' popularity has only gone up. But if you see them then ask when we're getting that). The title track has great movement to it and could certainly be put in the same class with a Godspeed You! Black Emperor. All the songs are good on here and you can tell what other kind of artistic modes that Archer and Lynch work in because many of the songs have a very non-linear quality to them. This non-linear mode is very interesting in relationship to the title which would see to refer to a slowing of the passage of time and observing those small gestures that can be made. My personal favorite tracks on the album are those with Donna Lynch's spoken word. I love Lynch's poetry (if you haven't read it then you are really missing out and should rectify this immediately) and so having the ability to hear it spoken aloud with noise and music only amplifies the experience. I hope some day that Lynch releases an album of just spoken word tracks with or without musical accompaniment. There are three of the spoken word tracks and my favorite of those is "50 Degrees Longitude 85 Degrees Latitude" (the other two are "If I'm Not Careful I'll Start To Get Scared of The Walls" and "Tornado") in which she recounts as a child developing a skin disorder that began to resemble a map. Lynch is very honest in her poetry (which at least on this album is always real stories) and so there's a very playful quality in things that are otherwise emotionally painful. Let's not forget that Steve Archer also is able to show off his numerous skills throughout the album not only musically but the album booklet also include some examples of his photography and artwork that are just so dense. And if that wasn't enough the booklet also includes little artist statements by both Lynch and Archer about several of the individual tracks giving you insight about the work each contributed and their thought process going in (yet another reason I personally prefer physical over digital). This album is up and down beautiful and I hope that someday we see another release from The Trinity Project. Favorite Tracks: The Subtle Movements of The Entropy Engine, 50 Degrees Longitude 85 Degrees Latitude, Love Gesture, If I'm Not Careful I'll Start To Get Scared of The Walls, The Flock of 1000 Sparrows, Votive, and Tornado

Album a Day (Digital Edition): Emergency Pizza Party - Shine Avenue

As a general rule I'm very particular when it comes to nerdcore because Nerdcore usually means comedy and comedy in music is often just bad. Its not that music can't be funny its just that its either lazy or if you looked at a Venn diagram of musicians and comedians you would not find a lot of crossover (now who's nerdy?). By the way, if the term nerdcore is confusing then let's have a short lesson: Nerdcore is a sub-genre of hip-hop about self-proclaimed "nerd" topics (if you don't know what those include then there's a revenge movie from the 80's I can highly recommend). What's particularly interesting about these solo artists and groups is that, just like the earlier days of hip hop, everything is pretty much DIY and the vast majority of the music comes from sampling. In theory all of this sounds great but in my experience a lot of Nerdcore bands just lack any sort of real talent so please don't take it lightly when I say that Emergency Pizza Party is a great fucking group and this Junior release from the Orlando-natives proves it. I first saw Emergency Pizza Party several years ago when my friends Zombies! Organize!! took me along for a convention both bands played at in the greater Fort Lauderdale area. I though EPP did a great job and an even better one while playing a show with Z!O!! not long after at the legendary Respectable Street (or Respecs for any South Floridian) in West Palm Beach. To me though, Shine Avenue is their most musically mature album really covering a variety of hip hop styles and showcasing the different talents of the band. I think what sets EPP aside from many of the other acts and puts them in the elite of their genre (amongst those like MC Lars and MC Chris) is the level of seriousness they put in to the music. This isn't to say they take themselves too seriously as a lot of fun is had on this album, but rather there's a certain level of thought put in. This comes across the in great flow of the album with a really cool intro track like "Now Hiring" featuring Kabuto The Python, ending the music part of the album (there's a sort of joke track at the end) with a smooth track like "The Easy Way" and paying homage to some of the great hip hop albums by having a cool little comedy track in the middle where all the group members are trying to one up another on disses while one guy just doesn't get it. My favorite parts of the album tend to come from MC Wreckshin who also has some great solo work that is worth checking out as I would equate to the Method Man of the group and Betty Rebel who probably has the tightest rhymes and is featured on my favorite track of the album, "Kiss Kaboom". There's some nice guest appearances on here from Kabuto The Python, Rappy McRapperson, Chaotic Logic, KZA, and one of the more notable Nerdcore Rappers in the form of ZeaLouS1. My only complain with the album is that I could do without the homophobic moments, though if Nerdcore is really a hip hop sub-genre then perhaps its somewhat fitting but I really wouldn't miss it if it was gone. But this is really a small complaint as this is overall a really tight album from a band to watch out for as they may be one of the ones to break through the Nerdcore-genre if they keep this up. Favorite Tracks: Now Hiring (feat. Kabuto The Python), Reppin, Punch-Out!!!, Kiss Kaboom, Never Make The Airwaves (feat. KZA), and The Easy Way