Depakote – It Aint ‘94 Anymore

Depakote offers his beats for free so don’t feel guilty picking this one up. I am relatively new to the field of instrumental hip hop and so called ‘mix tapes’ but I think I will enjoy the ride. This 14 track 31 minute record or short and sweet and doesn’t beat around the bush with tight beats to bob your head to but also enjoy thoroughly. Laid down are infectious grooves riddled with soul/funk nostalgia, heavy hitting bass kicks and even some nice electro pickings for every type of listener. Whether it be the hard hitting rap over track ‘Paint it on the Walls’ or the simply divinde vocal sample in ‘Spork’ this record de-live-rrrrsss.

Maudlin of the Well – Part the Second

I feel like posting some Toby Driver related stuff because Willy Wonker Hates You did and because Toby Driver can bust out some amazing shit. Part the Second was a long time coming and was made possible by many generous fans donating to the records production. The album is offered for free because of this, and it is one hell of a record.

I won’t go through the ordeal of stating the track titles – they are ridiculously long and pretentious, but I feel MotW deserve to name songs as they do because the tracks are full of awesome. From the blissful strings and sax on track two to the stoner/sludge metal infused nature of the closing track. There is just so much to take in with every single listen. Give it a go, it is free!

Avishai Cohen – Flood

It’s hard to find anyone that will disagree with the notion that the trumpet is an instrument of beauty, elegance and emotion – seemingly translating from notes to spoken word and easily transposing a scene or a picture into sounds. However, to be able to use this instrument properly you have to possess skill, this skill is enigmatically displayed and flirted with all over Avishai Cohen’s extensive discography. None more so than on his second installment of the big rain trilogy.

Working backwards, Cohen began with After the Big Rain, a rollicking meditation surrounding nature’s beauty following the flood, briskly painting strokes of watercolour brushes across his musical landscape with moments of brilliant improvisation and touches of serene soundscapes. On this release Cohen strips back his sound to include on a piano, minimalist percussion and of course his muted and open, oft times effect laden trumpet. Cohen conveys the beauty in a flood from nature’s perspective in his compositions rather than the terror that is often seen from a human perspective. The record opens with deft piano ushering in light percussion tapping away in the background before Avishai’s trumpet chimes in. Almost as if meditating on an aspect of nature you become engrossed in the clarity and connection felt betweent he players as they feel out territory and work on specific ideas eminating from one another.

With tracks ranging from 2 minutes to fifteen then is room for expansion and introspection, with solo trumpet abodes and fully fledged almost free jazz explorations. Bring on the first installment I say.

Random Post for Anonymous #10

Ok so it has been a while since I have done one of these, but I was walking this morning, yes, walking. And while I was walking I was thinking which was also astonishing because I havn’t really ‘thought’ about anything like I had this morning. I started toying with the idea of re-incarnation and what would happen in that transient space between the ending of life and the beginning of another. Does one fade away and then be squeezed (quite literally) back in with all memory seemingly wiped away never to be pressed upon again? Or is there something that occurs between these two chasms of the end and the beginning?

This thought actually occured as I wondered about myself and my qualities…talents if you will. Not that I have any magnanimous talents to begin with but moreso my personal being in a sense. What do I most enjoy and what am I good at doing? I am very good at ruminating on a myriad of ridiculous happenings in my day to day life, but I don’t really enjoy this path. I enjoy listening to music, and spend the great majority of my day setting time aside to grace my ears with some sort of melody…but I am hopeless when it comes to playing it. I found this strange irony in these two premises – as if I had been only designated half of something and not been allowed to experience a quality to it’s full extent.

To explain what I mean is going to be tedious but play along. If I was good at ruminating, I mean proficient and I did it gracefully and wrote what I felt into a novel, or a book, or something maybe I could become successful doing so. Yes, I am good at ruminating but I don’t dwell on what I want to at all, and thus do not enjoy it. Leading me to music, I enjoy and obtain pleasure form listening to music, to sounds, to vibrations, but I don’t know or have the persistence to create those sounds. I feel as if I’m seeing in black and white and do not have the full picture.

This brings me back to my original idea of the transient gap between the end of life and the beginning of another (if we are to assume re-incarnation is not a fallacy). Was I given a choice in what sort of life I would lead? Once I made that choice was that decision wiped from memory before I entered my new life? It makes me laugh to think what kind of masochistic being would choose to live a life half fulfilled. Maybe, when the time comes for me to map out my next life I’ll be a bit more kind.

Good Old War – Only Way To Be Alone

Alot of people call this folk music but I don’t really want to. More harmony pop than folk really. Good Old War hark back to times when it was cool to play in a band with two acoustic guitars and a drummer while all of you would sing in perfect three part harmony with one another. Despite the sad tales on this record there are some very upbeat and fun tracks, in fact the whole album is extremely catchy in a Beatles/Beach Boys kind of sense – so if you’re looking for something to instantly grab your ear and you know you will enjoy then give this a go.

Trevor Tchir – Sky Locked Land

Canadian Trevor Tchir’s fourth album and the first to hit my ears carries the feeling of heavy historicity with it, dense with true life stories of towns no one has ever heard of and tribulations that unless were sung no one would care. Tremendously executed folk and blues is what you’ll find here with full band compositions and one man excapades of cancion rich with harmonica, mandolin, banjo, keyboards and of course guitar. The tunes take solice slightly behind the smooth-like-whiskey voice of Tchir who narrates stories of love, loss and happiness through the eleven track LP. I think I will  have great fun playing this for the rest of this season’s summer days.

Karate – Unsolved

Karate bring the shit back to basics, a guitar, a bass, some drums and some vocals. Fortunately what they do with their instruments is anything but basic, majoring in jazz studies at some prestige university these guys blend rock, jazz, indie and blues into one coherant and pleasurable package. This record is certainly a great sampler for getting into these guys – contaning songs ranging from as little as 3 minutes to the epic closing track This Day Next Year clocking in at just under 12 there is something to inspire and feel connected with.

Lead singer Farina called it quicks 2 years ago due to problems with his hearing being developed by the loudness of the bands live show – i don’t really blame him, if I was deaf how could i listen to these warm tunes? Great for a late night drive.

The Mars Volta – Sydney, 20/01/10 @ Hordern Pavillian

So, on Wednesday night I saw The Mars Volta for the fourth time in my life. It was awesome. Opening with Son Et Lumiere/Inertiatic ESP was something that I would never thought I would ever see. It was a pretty jam packed set with cuts from all their records bar Tremulant, but the band really shined throughout the jams of Eriatarka and especially Cicatriz ESP where excitement could not be contained when Elitch conjured up a massive closing groove that hand Juan, Omar and company grinning from ear to ear.

Mastodon were watching closely to the side of the stage whole show and Cedric appeared to have a lot of fun interacting with Mastodon’s singer, almost coming to tears of laughter during Roulette which was pleasant to watch as I always thought he was such a seirous guy. Omar was on point with his guitar work, from frenetic work during Viscera Eyes, L’via L’viaquez and Goliath to his middle eastern inspired tones during the extended cuts. Cedric, although flat at some points was amazing and didnt fail in giving me chills on numerous occasions.

Dissapointments were little however I couldn’t hear Ikey at all, and the band sorely missed Adrian’s Sax during the Amputechture material. I was extremely impressed with the new drummers dynamics, hitting the drums with brute force but also with delicate touch during the quieter moments of the set. Once again this band justifies my flying interstate to see them solo.

Emancipator – Safe in the Steep Cliffs

I think i’m in love. The kind of love that when you think/dream/see it you just smile. To be quite honest with you, I am only on the fifth track of my first listen and I am captivated, in fact I fear that this record will just ruin music altogether because it is so amazing that nothing else will meet it’s rigirous standards.

Emancipator’s first effort ‘Soon it will be Cold Enough’ was a winter anthem, a frosty embarkment upon a ship sailing into the dense mist, while ‘Safe in the Steep Cliffs’ creeps slowly through the night begging to be played when the sun goes down, comfortably shrouding any sense of danger but not afraid to take you on that journey where things might not go as planned. Take the seemingly restrained aggression of  ‘Old Devil’ with it’s plucking of banjo and intense violin all carried by a heavy beat crafted from the tears of butterflies.

It was as if Emancipator had read my mind and laid out everything that I wanted in this record, from the emotive almost classic rock guitar leads in ‘Nevergreen’ to the sombre and soft saxaphone passages in ‘Black Lake’…never have I encounted something of such beauty. I will not be providing a link to this record, solely because this record DESERVES your ten dollars. Click on the album art to purchase and enjoy responsibly.

Alex Stretton

Sargent House/RLP Production -Donate for Haiti

As everyone knows the earthquake in Haiti is probably one of the biggest natural diasasters in history, in response Sargent House and RLP productions have set up a donation fund – simply visit this link and you will be taken tot he SH/RLP sampler cd which you can purchase for a pay what you want price – all, and I mean every cent of this purchase goes to the relief fund for Haiti. Please give generously.