I can’t say I am the biggest fan of Acollective as their music is not typically the style I get into, but they’ve totally captured my attention with their recently released video for “Breakapart”.
The video is a clever and humorous homage being paid to the only way music should ever be listened to. The track itself is pretty catchy too.
Check it out:
I loved the quick Pantera shot. That was hilarious and unexpected.
I remember the very first time Electric Six (E6) hit my ears.
I was working at a Borders Books, Music & Cafe in some fancy Cleveland suburb one night just minding my own business. One of my co-workers was unpacking all of the promotional CDs for the listening booths and asked me to help him out.
Flashback Memory: As I am sure many of your remember, there was a time when CDs were the staple of the music industry and at Borders, we literally had to manually input CDs into the CD players that were locked below the CD shelves. This was done so all you consumers could come in and check out an album prior to its release. Duh.
Anyways, I remember seeing a copy of E6’s debut release Fire sitting out on the counter. For whatever reason, I picked up the CD to see what it was all about and soon flipped it over to see the track titles. I decided to sneak in a listen after I put the CD into the listening station. I have been a fan ever since. I just sat there on the floor of the music department loving every song on that title. Needless to say, I snagged that CD the day it officially released and have had it in rotation for years.
I can’t say every release since Fire had as huge of an impact on me, but I have always appreciated what Dick Valentine and crew have done for 10+ years now. Last years Mustang left a pretty good impression on me, but I just was not blown away completely.
The Detroit garage/rock/funk/disco/jam/electronica/jack-of-all-trades genre-bending act just dropped an all new album titled Human Zoo. I am happy to say I mostly enjoyed the living hell out of it and I am pretty confident any E6 fan out there will too.
“Karate Lips” opened with an enthusiastic chant of “Electric Six” that quickly changed to “karate lips”. The song, clearly about some tough-ass women, was heavy on the funk with an electric indie rock style that closely resembled stuff you might hear from the The Faint.
“It’s Horseshit!” was almost too much for my brain to compute yet I loved it. It was like listening to a late 80s boy band infused with Daft Punk. Definitely a track that people can get weird to. The music and just overall feel of this song really resembled that vibe I first felt on Fire.
Valentine swooned beyond senselessly in “Alone With Your Body”. I listened to this track a couple of times over because I liked it so much. This was like the working man’s love jam. Valentine sang as a simple man with plenty of Detroit soul backing him up. I adored the back up singing as well as candid lyrics like “I’ll be there in a jiffy with a stiffy”.
“Satanic Wheels” grew on me after listening to it a couple of times. I loved the synth throughout. I felt like I was listening to typical E6 but with keyboard playing taking queues from 80s arena rock bands. It was psychedelic yet indie if that makes sense. I guess what I am trying to say is that this song ruled and was one of my favorites on the album.
“Gun Rights” was bizarre and unexpected. I thought I was listening to Ween mashed with Mike Patton. “Don’t take away my rights, my gun rights” repeated over and over with a fun Mexican folk melody. The quick spoken-word of Valentine in the middle just kept things even more interesting.
“I Need A Restaurant” just did not do it for me. The song seemed to just downgrade from all the craziness I previously was engulfed in. Sadly, I skipped this track halfway into and barely made it through “Worst Movie Ever”.
“I’m the Devil” sounded more like something Tenacious D would have done one of their albums. It was not terrible by any means but seemed more of a skit than a song. I almost wish Dave Grohl would have jumped in on this track dressed as the devil. I did like the Young Guns-like guitar playing style. The best part of this track was at the very end when apparently Jesus Christ had a speaking roll. Who knew he was such a burnout?
“The Afterlife” ended with a synth-pop tune that thankfully did not let the album end on a bad note for this listener. I wish it were a little more sped up but for what it is worth, it was not a terrible listen by any means.
Human Zoo overall was a blast. E6 continues to entertain but I will admit the latter portion of the album kind of fell short. Regardless, most of the release got me all sorts of excited just like their debut did over 10 years ago. This band in my opinion still entertains on a higher level.
For those of you who checked out the interview I did with Joey Cape months back, you may have learned about One Week Records. For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about, I suggest you take a moment and read that awesome interview.
Chris Cresswell of The Flatliners was one of the first artists to hole up in Cape’s abode and record an album. In one week, the two recorded 10 amazing songs and skipped out on any type of over-producing. The result was just an amazing release that I was not expecting.
Cresswell is typically known for his gruff vocals in The Flatliners but he’s completely cleared his throat for his One Week Record. In fact, I was set back for a moment on how different and appealing his singing style was. Having known he’s stripped down his style before, I suppose I just did not know what to expect prior to checking out this release.
Listening to “Meet Me in the Shade” was just so heavy on the heart. I could almost relate in my past to the feelings Cresswell transformed into song. Full of lyrics of dismay and solitude, Cresswell seemingly dumped heavy emotion into this track. I really fond myself enjoying the song even more so when the piano playing snuck in.
Picking things up was “Little Bones”, a track what sounds like some serious swooning until the moment you realize that the lyrics on this track were pretty much Cresswell tearing a certain someone apart for being a cold, heartless human being. The lyrics were amazing on this album.
“Stitches” really collaborated Cresswell and Cape’s talent in a great way in a song about healing and moving on. Perhaps the best part of this track is when Cresswell belted out “I fall in love again with the silence in this song” over and over at the end. Hands down, this was best track on this album.
Hearing the cover of Dead To Me’s “Arrhythmic Palpitations” was a nice bonus on this album. Cresswell recorded a damn fine version that I may seriously now prefer over the original. Everyone needs to hear this track.
“On the Day That You Died” was beyond somber and yet so beautiful. This is the kind of song that brings tears to eyes while saying goodbye to a loved one. Seriously, this track should be in the next Zach Braff movie he releases. So sad…
Overall, this album far exceeded my expectations and I am going to be pre-ordering the vinyl release soon as I know this will be an album I will listen to quite frequently.
I think the thing I like best about this album is knowing that Cresswell and Cape recorded all of the songs in 7 days in Cape’s home. I also love knowing that at the end, Cape handed Cresswell a Sharpie marker and told him to draw up the album cover.
The album is available digitally now on One Week Records for just 5 bucks. The album is also going to be pressed on vinyl (as previously mentioned) thanks to Fat Wreck Chords and will be dropping soon.
It’s pretty safe to say that 2014 has been the year of amazing releases by artists old and new.
Honestly I think I say that every year, but you know what? I mean it every single time I say it.
I have a new favorite band to listen to as of late and they are called Beach Slang. Featuring members of Weston, Ex Friends & Crybaby, this Philadelphia threesome is seriously one of the best new acts I have heard in a while.
If I had to compare them to someone out there in the music world, I would say an easy-going Jawbreaker. This indie pop-punk act defines themselves as: “Guitar, bass, and drums. Played loudly.” I could not agree more.
Recently, Beach Slang debuted their EP Who Would Want Anything So Broken? and I can not stop listening to it. Check out “Punk or Lust” and “Filthy Luck” to see why exactly I am all about these guys.
I seriously can not wait until Beach Slang drops a full length. I have the feeling it is going to be an incredible listen. Until then, good luck finding this EP on a 7″. I think it’s sold the hell out right now on Dead Broke Rekerds, but with good reason of course.
