Category: Psychedelic (Page 5 of 10)

The Disco Biscuits: Planet Anthem

March 31, 2010 /


RIYL: Sound Tribe Sector 9, Umphreys McGee, String Cheese Incident

Planet Anthem is The Disco Biscuits’ first studio album since 2002, which inherently highlights how this is a band more known for their live prowess. The overdue album finds the band exploring a wider array of sonic directions, but the track selection seems to indicate that the band has fallen victim to Ryan Adams Disease – being such prolific songwriters as to lose the ability to distinguish which of your own songs are the best ones.

It’s hard to believe that anthemic live winners like “Rivers” and “Mirrors” didn’t make the cut here. “Mirrors,” introduced in the spring of 2009, is one of the most infectious tunes the band has come up with in years, and would have seemed the best chance for crossover appeal. But then, mainstream appeal has never really been a concern of these counterculture jam rockers. They’ve made a living by earning a diehard core following that will travel great distances to see multiple shows, and who aren’t particularly concerned about albums or singles.

2010 finds the livetronica stalwarts dabbling in hip-hop, dance and even disco flavors, somewhat ironic since that is not where the band’s name is derived from. Opening track “Loose Change” is one of the more intriguing songs on the album, with a big bouncy groove and some socially conscious lyrics about how “money is the root of all evil.” “On Time” and “You and I” have a dance pop flavor that may catch some fans off guard, as this is not the trance-fusion that fans have come to know and love. But the funky beat is still there. “Konkrete” has a trippy, dreamy sort of vibe mixed with a dark heavy groove. “Uber Glue” also starts out trippy, but then moves into a techno direction that is probably going to have some fans scratching their heads.

Rain Song” is one of the more unique tracks, mixing an atmospheric PJ Harvey/Morcheeba sort of vibe from guest female vocalist Ryat with the band’s psychedelic exploration. “Fish Out of Water” could well have been the name of the album, for the way the band is experimenting outside of its comfort zone. The song is more of a straight-ahead, mid-tempo rocker about a girl who’s “gonna make a rebel out of me,” with guitarist Jon Gutwillig finally taking a short solo. “Sweatbox” moves back into techno territory, but builds into a party vibe where “the room is getting hotter” with Gutwillig doing a little wailing behind his vocals.

The last three songs on the album return to the melodic jam rock sound the band is known for, showing they haven’t gone totally off the deep end. “The City” has a big beat and melodic motif with bassist Marc Brownstein getting philosophical about “sitting on a mountain top.” “Big Wrecking Ball” is even catchier, with melodic riffs and vocals from Gutwillig on a tune that seems primed to open up for live exploration. “Vacation” closes it out with an epic track that opens with some ambient ascension before shifting into space rock.

The band gets credit for taking creative risks instead of playing it safe, but some fans are likely to feel a bit puzzled about the overall output. Some of these tunes may grow on stage though, so it’s always hard to grade a jamband album when you know an incomplete is the most appropriate grade until the songs become more seasoned. (Diamond Riggs 2010)

Disco Biscuits MySpace page

CD Reviews, Electronica, Jam Band, Psychedelic, Rock

SXSW 2010 Quick Hits, Day 2: The Mother Hips, interview with guitarist Tim Bluhm

March 25, 2010 /

These veteran Bay Area rockers threw down a jamming set of their melodic psych-roots rock. The band loves to play in Austin and it showed. Bassist Paul Hoagland played his custom 12-string Hamer bass for the entire set, which helped pump up the groove on dynamic tunes like “Magazine” and “Third Floor Story.” Guitarists Tim Bluhm and Greg Loiacono were in fine form, trading riffs and harmonizing vocals throughout the high-energy set, which featured one melodic rocker after another. “Time-Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear” brought the short but sweet set to a rousing conclusion with a furious assault of fuzzy riffs and pounding rhythms.

“Our whole approach to touring these days is to find cities we like to play and go there all the time,” said Bluhm, whom I interviewed at the bar earlier in the afternoon. Bluhm said the band almost broke up in 2005-06, but couldn’t help but come back together. This has a been a boon for music fans, since the band’s last two albums have been among the best work of their career. 2009’s Pacific Dust was recorded at Bluhm’s own Mission Bells Studio in San Francisco, where he also produced the upcoming album from pal Jackie Greene.

mother hips

The band also seems to be jamming a little more these days, and Bluhm said that had been a back and forth process.

“We used to jam a lot, then spent a bunch of years intentionally not jamming, trying to shake these distasteful associations we were getting. But then, we always want to change, keep evolving, so right now we are jamming out more and enjoying it, it’s fun,” said Bluhm. Regarding SXSW, Bluhm said he loves to play it but finds trying to go out a bit much.

“I honestly find it’s overwhelming at SXSW, and I never have the patience to stand in line,” said Bluhm when asked about what other bands he wanted to see at the festival. He did say he’d enjoyed seeing Spoon the previous night and was looking forward to Or the Whale, whom the Mother Hips would share a bill with the next day.

Alternative, Artists, Concerts, Psychedelic, Rock, South by Southwest

SXSW 2010 Quick Hits, Day 1: Here We Go Magic

March 24, 2010 /

At 9:00PM it was up the street to Club Deville for Here We Go Magic, out of Brooklyn. It was another outdoor stage with Christmas lights, which provided a festive vibe, and the place was pretty packed. The sound was crystal clear but the first couple of tunes seemed like they were building up to something that never came. The third tune got a bouncy psyche groove going, though, which started to establish some more vibe. I couldn’t stay until the end of the set, but was intrigued enough to want to check them out again some time.

magic
Photo by Ben Ritter

Artists, Concerts, Psychedelic, Rock, South by Southwest

The Whigs:In the Dark

March 16, 2010 /


RIYL: Dinosaur Jr., Foo Fighters, The Replacements

In the Dark starts out by rolling over you with a wall of guitars that, far from dissonant and buffeting, instead envelops you like the wind before a promising storm, and like some great thunder, the Whigs continue to prove they are an experience not to be missed.

Coming off their well-received second album, Mission Control, and a series of acclaimed live shows (not the least of which was a standout performance at the 2008 SXSW), it is evident that the hard core touring and energetic playing has only invigorated their songwriting. In the Dark is the Whigs’ best album yet, and one that engages from beginning to end.

The album is power rock, through and through, but it never forgets that melody and rhythm shouldn’t be sacrificed for that power. It is the same for the lyrics, as throughout Parker Gispert is clearly singing from those hidden places where anger and regret fester, but he refuses to either rage or mope. There is as much a sense of resolute energy as anything, even when he sings “Kill Me Carolyn” or questions his lust for “Someone’s Daughter.”

Most of the album openly embraces their primary influence, the more hard-rocking post punk of the Replacements (most evident on “Automatic” and “So Lonely,” with no little bit of the Godfathers thrown in there on the title track and the opening “Hundred/Million.” The production is just tight enough and the arrangements original and lush enough to push it beyond any assumed imitation, and the first five tracks are solid Whigs.

Then, just when it feels like you have a handle on the album, they throw you a hard curve right in the middle. “Dying” comes on and everything shifts into a heavy rhythmic chant full of psychedelic influences. It tosses you into dark places only hinted at up until now. That is the flow of the album. An energetic, but evident descent into the viscera of the music, but then the steady, strong drive that leads us back out; an inverted emotional parabola that never slows, but never lets us off the ride, either. Check out “I Am for Real” as the perfect catharsis moment.

In the Dark ends with a mini-jam session of a song, “Naked,” at times minimalist and echoing, while at others a pulsing rocker. It is one of the more inventive and original works that lets the Whigs flaunt their talent, energy and idiosyncrasies.

Check out In the Dark. It is one of the better albums to come along so far this year, and it should win them new fans while pleasing their faithful. Listen loud! ATO Records 2010

The Whigs MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Indie Labels, Power Pop, Psychedelic, Punk, Rock

Jimi Hendrix: Valleys of Neptune

March 9, 2010 /


RIYL: Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Phish

The music gods have once again seen the time fit to bless us Earth-bound humans with some more musical treasure from the late 1960s, this time with 12 previously unreleased studio tracks (mostly from 1969) from the greatest guitarist of all time. They sound more like they were recorded in 2009, which is fitting since Jimi was way, way ahead of his time. Thanks go to Jimi’s timeless skills and mixing by the great Eddie Kramer, who engineered Jimi’s recordings back in the day.

The title track is obviously the centerpiece of the album, and for good reason. If one tried to imagine a lost track from the First Rays of the New Rising Sun sessions, this is exactly what you would hope for. It’s got the funky sound that Jimi was exploring more and more toward the end of his all-too-brief time here on this rock, along with the metaphysical vibe he was increasingly getting into, with lyrics referencing Atlantean love songs and impending Earth changes. It’s classic late-era Jimi – the louder you turn it up, the better it sounds. The song is sandwiched in between a smoking “Stone Free” and a cover of Elmore James’ “Bleeding Heart,” to open the album with three consecutive numbers featuring Billy Cox on bass, while the rest of the album has Noel Redding.

Jimi’s take on “Bleeding Heart” is an up-tempo bluesy rocker that sets the stage for deep blues treasure on “Hear My Train a Comin’.” The latter is well-known by fans of Jimi’s highly influential Band of Gypsys project, with the Live at Fillmore East version being one of Jimi’s greatest performances. But it’s always nice to get another version of a seminal jam, and Jimi is clearly feeling it here. Clocking in at seven and a half minutes, it’s the second longest track on the album (only “Red House” is longer), and it’s a showcase for all of Jimi’s skills with some nice scatting going on behind the first solo, and then some of his best wailing on the second solo.

The album also features two other premiere performances. “Ships Passing Through the Night” presents a mid-tempo tune about lonely ships hooking up and shaking the blues out of one’s hair. “Lullaby for the Summer” features Jimi riffing out all over, with the trio shifting directions toward a more syncopated groove in the middle of the song. This makes Jimi’s hot licks stand out even more, demonstrating superb use of sonic spacing.

“Mr. Bad Luck” is a funky blues workout from 1967, with Jimi clearly having been in a good mood during the recording. “Lover Man” gets a similarly tasty workout, but it’s Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love” that conjures the big jam. Several live versions have been released before, but this one is a keeper, with a nice breakdown in the middle that builds back up into a big crescendo.

Familiar classics “Fire” and “Red House” get fresh readings and Jimi’s playing is scintillating on each. “Red House” gets the deluxe treatment with an extended jam taking the track past eight minutes as Jimi digs deep into the blues well. The album closes out with “Crying Blue Rain,” a tune that starts as a slow burner but picks up speed until it’s cruising over a galloping bass line. Jimi doesn’t go wild, but his rhythm playing is quite inventive, creating a superb collective groove that shows how to play for the song. He’s still the master.

Blues, CD Reviews, Funk, Jam Band, Psychedelic, Rock

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