Ecovillage – Rhonda De Sant Pere 7.4

                Ecovillage create expansive music. It is ambient yet feels a bit like rock. Without any particular percussion it manages to conjure up images of shoegaze. To some degree I’m reminded of a less distant Tim Hecker as the melodies are more noticeable and intimate. 

                “Rhonda De Sant Pere” begins the two-track EP. Out of wisps little movements are formed. The two Swedes (Emil Holmström and Peter Wikström) deftly avoid any stasis in the movement. Vocals appear somewhere on the periphery of the piece. Sustained tones morph in the background. Nothing is ever quite focused but it feels better having a lush, meditative sound than something overpowering. Little inclusions of nature field recordings add to the pastoral feeling of the piece.

                The second half sprawls for over ten minutes. You don’t really notice the time pass by. “Amadeu I” is more melancholy. Fragments of guitar and violin appear out of the murk. Eventually these all build together into a satisfying conclusion. I’m reminded a little bit of Sigur Ros in this song, perhaps this kind of psychedelic music is native to Scandinavia, I’m not entirely sure.

                I am sure about the EP’s quality. Really it came in the nick of time for me. My only hope is they release a full album next time. This is the kind of music you can sit back with and let wash over you for a while. I’d suggest doing exactly that.

Heart-Sick Groans – Look!!! These Three Painters of Hits Have Done It Again 7.7

                   Sweden exports a great deal of cheerful bands. Perhaps there’s a certain struggle with the dark cold place to bring happy joyful music. If that’s the case, then Heart-Sick Groans work tirelessly to make the environment a little warmer, a little happier. With only 15 minutes, they make you wish they had written a few more songs. 

                No worries though. Their music is as casual as casual can be. All the arrangements are ideal, perfect. Right from the beginning “Ballajero Beach” you’re brought into the beginning of summer. Every promise that beginning offers is displayed on this collection of six songs. It breezes by with a smile.

                My favorite song on here would have to be “Last Night Out with the Gang”. Yeah, don’t worry. The song titles give you a pretty good idea of the hanging out vibe existing all over the place. Vocals match the mood set by the instruments themselves. As a personal preference, I enjoy the more low-key, slower tempo songs. 

                The whole thing is great. Reading that they’ve been around since 2007, I hope they continue to keep putting out sweet little gems. For while I would enjoy every group releasing albums, I understand that may not work out the best for all bands. Heart-Sick Groans do this music out of a sense of love for the sound, and you can really hear it.

The Skull Defekts – Peer Amid 6.8

               The Skull Defekts will remind you of a hypnotic version of Shellac. Steve Albini’s cranky vision is put into full force on this album. A certain level of aggression exists throughout the whole album, as does an extreme use of repetition. 

                Repetition is both the album’s greatest strength and weakness. On “Peer Amid” the bombastic nature of the repetition, coupled with the loud volume, makes it wonderful. “Join the True” does a fairly decent job of this, with the singer’s voice doing a perfect job of matching up with the instrumentation.

                On other songs, the effort falls flat. “In Majestic Drag” it starts out promising but outstays its welcome. A few other songs do the same thing. I’m a fan of extreme repetition, but somehow a lot of these songs grow stale, even a bit annoying. That bothers me as I hear a lot on the album I’d like a bit more with perhaps slightly tweaked. 

                For the most part, these Swedes have a pretty good idea of what they’re doing. Even though I can’t connect with it in the way I’d like, I still think it’s a fairly decent effort. Had the lengths been changed a slight amount, with perhaps a greater use of distortion (like I heard in the opener) I’d have warmer feelings towards it. As it stands, they nonetheless manage to create some interesting tracks which will get stuck in your head.

Tape – Revelationes 6.2

                Tape is a group consisting of brothers Andreas and Johan Berthling. From Sweden, they trod along in this album with vaguely affecting music. But at the same time, it basically fails to leave any real lasting impression on me. Since it is so tastefully done, it is hard to accuse them of outright theft. I do wish they had spent more time on creating a specific sound than going with this pleasant yet forgettable path. 

                “Dust and Light” the first track on here, left me feeling hopeful about this group. It is a good track, better than most of what makes up the rest of the album. The guitar work is nice on here, reminding me of Tristeza’s better songs. Guitars glisten as a mournful organ comes in and the whole piece builds up nicely. 

                Most of the album goes a different path. Lacking any real intensity, it sort of shuffles forward. Personally, I have nothing wrong with a band taking its sweet time (hence why I love bands like Tortoise) but when they do it so monotonously, I get a bit bored. Tortoise doesn’t rely solely on the fact of group play; they tried that on “It’s All Around You” and failed. Somehow Tape failed to get that message.

                While I don’t hate this album, I hear moments which show a better album is in them. There are aspects of the sound which suggest next time they may get a more interesting perspective.

RadioSeed – Train of Transformation

                I’m really hoping there’s some sort of 90s ambient trance revival. Maybe it is on the cusp of happening, as witnessed by such groups as Games and RadioSeed, who seem to hold the same feeling of nostalgia I had for the era. Each day I’d turn on the radio to get constantly more unabashedly sweet, well-paced vocal heavy stuff. Those times, I’m convinced, need to return.

                Well, it appears RadioSeed’s been busy concocting another bunch of songs for an upcoming EP. Regarding when it will be dropping, we’ll have to hope around springtime, though who knows when spring will arrive with all these false starts. 

                Here’s one of the songs which will be on that EP. The sample selection in the beginning “You’ll never reach” is so perfect. Peter really has done a great job with the sounds, pacing, and melody. Everything is rather subtle, the approach, the style. Light little flourishes help it rise above a great deal of just endlessly looped stuff. If you listen closely, you can hear the sound growing thicker and thicker. 

                Maybe the EP will come out right in time for spring. Let’s hope. 

                The Song Itself.

Rules for dealing with the Westboro Baptist Church People

               Occasionally I try to give out important social skills to improve your life. Whether it is how to act at Karaoke, getting a MIX CD together, or just learning more about writers, I guide you through this crazy world we live in. Believe me though; nothing is crazier than the Westboro Baptist Church.

                Here a group of people have made a career out of pissing people off. Not just by thumbing their noses at you, but by protesting at funerals for fallen soldiers. Each time someone attacks or assaults them, or in any way bothers them, they sue. An entire legal practice has been made off of their idiocy, the Phelps Charted Law Firm. Great deals of money are generated by this, literally hundreds of thousands of dollars. Basically, they support themselves by being the world’s biggest in-real-life trolls. 

                Their insanity would be funny if they weren’t so serious about it. Some of their targets are absolutely abhorrent, such as their insistence of protesting at Marines’ funerals. Basically, they are internet trolls if internet trolls had a $200,000 traveling budget and a couple of sign holders uttering complete nonsense for a couple of hours. 

                Other targets of theirs appear to be almost nonsensical. Sweden draws their ire, as does the Italy, which they call “mobster-breeders”. The language at times becomes so intense, so hateful, that one wonders if they even are a church or the most obtuse concept art known to man.

                Below are a few ways of dealing with them that hopefully will limit your intense disgust at these foul-mouthed losers from Kansas.

1.       Do not get too close – Many of their successful lawsuits come from people assaulting them. I mean, if you see a couple of jerkoffs who traveled halfway across the country to protest at your best friend’s funeral, you’d be bothered too. Avoid physical contact

2.       Keep your cool – No need to rile them up. Keep in mind these are just words, and, while deliberately made to be as hurtful as possible, they can’t actually physically hurt you. If you try to threaten them or in any way bother them, they’ll leave. 

3.       Make out – Uh, if you were a part of a giant, cult-like, hate-filled family, imagine how angry you’d be if you saw other people making out. That’d annoy you, I’d imagine. Bring a boyfriend. Bring a girlfriend. Bring multiple friends. Kiss in front of them, effectively melting their hearts (just kidding, but your love will counterbalance their hate to some degree).

4.       Not Today, Fred – This is a great sign. Fred Phelps heads up whatever you want to call them (they aren’t a church since no church recognizes them as such). Let him know you’re not okay with him today. My God loves everyone. 

5.       Raise money – For every minute they protest, have people contribute money. You’d be surprised how energized an 81 year old man can be by hate alone. Usually there’s a few of them, I guess they take turns protesting everything on Earth.

6.       Make a website called “Godhates____.com” and refuse them the weblink – This is a good idea. They have websites like “GodhatesAmerica.com”, “GodhatesSweden.com”, and so on. Block this problem. Create sites like “GodhatesBelgium.com” or “Godhateslefthandedpeople.com” or “Godhatesitwhenpeanutbutterstickstotheroofofyourmouth.com”. Creating these limits the amount of websites they have, or at least bothers them. Apparently one of the members of this cult is fairly skilled with website layout. I have zero idea of how that happened. 

7.       Counter-Protesting in General – Every time I’ve counter-protested some ridiculous group (something that happens quite often in New York) I’ve ended up meeting great people. So while they are awful, countering their arguments is fairly easily. You know, you just might make a new friend.

8.       Call a couple of Motorcyclists to Protect you – A motorcycle club who acts as a buffer between the Westboro Baptist Church and normal people. They go around the country, helping others just like you. The Patriot Guard Riders are a great group of peoples. 

9.       Ignore them – This goes under the age old advice to dealing with internet trolls: don’t feed the trolls. By paying attention to them you encourage their behavior. If you’re unable to do this, to ignore their awfulness, feel free to use the other tips.

10.   Go to the UK – They can’t go there. Under the UK’s quintessentially English-named law “Least Wanted List” they are barred from ever entering the country. 

Basically, ignoring them is the best strategy. Some have posited the idea that he doesn’t care at all about what he protests against. None of this protests are against a particular person, just a group, idea, or country. Since Westboro Baptist church is such a nutty group, see the following link about their existence as a profit-making entity: The Theory

I hope this list gives you some way of coping with the distress they cause.

RadioSeed – There Has to Be More 7.2

                 Peter Wikström heads up this delightfully happy summer-obsessed band.  In case you needed more evidence on how nice the Swedes are, there’s this album. As I hear the radiators shaking, I remember that at some point things will become colorful again, like this work.

                Most of the sound is based in 90s style techno. House influences are immediately recognizable, as the beat goes on. Sounds seem to whoosh around. The vocals could be seen as somewhat cheesy, but it is delivered so sincerely as to feel like he truly means it. If you missed 90s ambient trance, well, here’s your chance to revisit those good times. Peter’s not joking with this homage to that great sound.

                “Raspberry Cream Dream” might strike some as being too sweet or sugary. You might have encountered this song on one of the famous “Blalock’s Indie/Rock Playlist”. There’s a reason for this song’s inclusion, it is overlooked and one of the true gems of the album. Swirls of synthesizer joy help make the song live up to its title.

                Other songs possess even more happy energy, in case that was possible. Sweden’s actually a pretty dark place, so it is amazing how such bright and shiny music can emanate from such a dark, cold place. “You make me better” is another extraordinarily sweet spot.

                I liked this. Mull over the tracks a bit. While the first reaction might be “this is cheesy” try to temper the cynical impulse and take it for the leisurely pop it is.  

Anders Dahl – Habitat 7.1

You know field recordings, correct? How they are supposed to embody a particular environment or space. Well, let’s say somebody wanted to make a field recording without nature. Anders Dahl (named after a famous Swedish botanist) does exactly that. Each sound on here isn’t natural; it has been artificially created in order to create a new experience.

Insect buzzing, the sounds of birds, and water drops are all part of the aural landscape. This sort of sucks you in, slowly. It truly is one of those immerse “I can’t believe somebody did this” experiences. Perhaps the experience becomes even more overwhelming once you realize that the artist spent 4 years compiling the sounds into something which feels so relaxed and natural.

Had Luc Ferrari lived to see this, he would’ve been positively thrilled. The amount of effort needed to bring this together is absurd; quite honestly, most musicians wouldn’t have bothered to put in the time. Yes, this isn’t something you’d want to return to very often, but on a cold dead winter day, it reminds you of the warmth that summer brings.

Anders Ilar – Cellular Memories EP 6.1

If I had any advice to give about this EP, it would be the following: skip the first two tracks. Those reek of lame hand-claps and stale pacing. Retro is a big sound right now, but they aren’t retro, they just sound amateurish. Ping sounds on the second track confirm it isn’t used in a particularly novel way.

Skip immediately to “Ulterior Motives” which is very creative. Taking some heavy stabs and re-configuring them is extremely creative. After it has been rearranged, the customary beats come in. Sure, some of those feel a bit overused, but that’s alright. Arrangement-wise, it works perfectly and that’s why it is the highlight of the album.

The end “Ocean Sonata” doesn’t work as well. Essentially, it goes on too long, in some epic song form, but the quality of the tune doesn’t lend itself well. In other words, it gets boring eventually. But it is still better than the first two tracks.

Anders has an idea of what he is doing. But it seems like if he did better editing of his material, perhaps working on avoiding a lot of techno cliques, it would be infinitely better. “Ulterior Motives” and, to a lesser extent “Ocean Sonata” work specifically because of this.