Shuteye Unison - Shuteye Unison review

Originally posted at www.thesilentballet.com

Score: 6.5/10

Shuteye Unison rose out of the burnt embers of The Rum Diary. While this act remained relatively unknown, the tricking and somewhat soothing sounds of Shuteye Unison’s new record, a self titled affair which totals in at just over thirty minutes, will surely guarantee them at least a modicum of success. Bearing in mind these links, regular readers will soon note that this isn’t the first time we have covered these young fellows. The Rum Diary were succinctly described in our Tracking the Trends series as “one of California's more interesting bands” and having “a stunning work of art in its midst.” Kind words, but now it’s time to see whether Shuteye Unison can live up to the reputation of their previous incarnation.

Thankfully, they do not disappoint. Shuteye Unison offers similar genre swapping and splicing that was clearly favoured in The Rum Diary, but musically they have come on leaps and bounds. The compositions featured on this self-titled record are incandescent wonders. Flitting between spaced out and dreamy vocals that would make My Bloody Valentine proud, as well as darker pieces like “Fields Landing,” which features Bradford Cox vocal atmospherics over a dark American voiced sample and what can essentially be described as Texas Chainsaw Massacre noises, Shuteye Unison have clearly increased their musical repertoire.

For those who prefer their music wholly instrumental, Shuteye Unison is not for you. However, if you can stomach someone flexing their vocal chords, this record offers a real treat for your passive ears. Moving between tribal-come-dub murmurings much in the same vein as Pocahaunted as well as a pre-occupation with primordial mutterings such as the sun, shadows and water, you cannot deny that Shuteye Unison manage to compress an awful lot into this rather short offering. The only qualm I had with the lyricism is that it did border on dreaded trite territory, such as in the aforementioned “Fields Landing” where the singer’s interest with the “party tonight” sounds like the inane mutterings of the fellow on Weezer’s “Undone - The Sweater Song” as opposed to anything truly interesting or, dare I say it, “deep”.

While Shuteye Unison do move between any genre they sit fit, opener and the final composition, “CRF030608” and “Through Dunes” feature a bubbling ambient piece which, while it isn’t in fitting with the rest of the record, is a soothing addition that adds wonders to the overall effort. All in all, while it’s a relatively short affair, Shuteye Unison’s debut has a somewhat hypnotic affect on the listener and comes strongly recommended.

Olympus Mons - Nothing's Gonna Spoil My Day Today review

Originally posted at www.LoudandQuiet.com

Olympus Mons are evidently one very confused young band. Mistaking ‘energy’ with ‘talent’, these three young men, named Aaron, Norbert and Moran for those who are interested, thrash their guitars in an pseudo-angular manner and whack those skins like there is no tomorrow, but unfortunately for them (and the listener) the noises they create are not particularly interesting or noteworthy.

Opener, ‘Martial Law’ sounds like vocalist Aaron is having an argument with one of his many multiple personalities. First, he splutters on about standing and stopping, which sounds more like a description of a creaky old bus as opposed to the anecdotes of a sharp and witty indie raconteur, then, another dimension of Aaron enters into the piece and waxes lyrical about “spending money on tax and military” in a rather irritated manner. Sadly, these statements come across as more half-arsed “war is bad, yeah?” thoughts as opposed to having any real depth or substance.

Olympus Mons stumble on in this manner, discussing kitchen sink tales that are incredibly insular and almost impossible to relate to. The trio rattle through flat-sounding songs, with lyrics that barely go anywhere. On ‘Journey Chapter VII’ Aaron shrieks “learn to read between the lines”, the problem is that there are no lines to begin with. Olympus Mons rely on shouting unrelated words at the listener, which becomes terribly tedious after 16 songs, and while this could be considered a stab at projecting some sort of lyrical fluidity to match the frenetic instruments, Aaron’s rambles begin to sound more like a shopping list as opposed to insightful thoughts.

It isn’t until ‘Follow You Down’ that the listener really grasps the underlying ideas behind Aaron’s lyricism and in turn, Olympus Mons. Throughout this track, Aaron shrieks ‘let’s be A listers, we’re gonna have it all/ look at my face I’m in the News of the World/I’m in The Sun’. While ‘Follow you down’ seems to be referring to a certain character of rock and could even be viewed as an attack on the intricate relationship between British indie pin ups and the tabloids, Aaron seems to genuinely want to become an ‘A lister’. For all the snarling attitude of this piece, the listener cannot help but notice the fame (or should that be tabloid?) hungry nature of Olympus Mons.

Bearing this in mind, Olympus Mons’, or specifically, Aaron’s phrasing begins to make more sense. This is in no way an attack on the lead singer, it is just that his voice is phenomenally high in the mix when compared with the rest of the band, but his mimicking of the vocal tricks of Kele Okereke and Luke Pritchard weaken the album significantly. Bloc Party dominate the first half of the album, with the groups signature mirroring of Kele’s vocals constantly appearing as a cheap party trick on Olympus Mons’ debut, then on ‘Sell me to the Wind’ Aaron tries a different tactic and goes for Pritchard’s strange method of singing certain words; time becomes “toooime”, line becomes “loooine” and so on. Frankly, you would be forgiven for thinking that this disjointed album is some sort of Frankenstein creation made up of half ‘Silent Alarm’, half ‘Inside In/Inside Out’.

While it always disheartening to knock a relatively new and fresh band, Olympus Mons seriously need to note the difference between being influenced by a band and mimicking them. For now though, Olympus Mons will remain a mystified and needy young group and ‘Nothing’s Gonna Spoil My Day Today’ is, in turn, an energetic but somewhat disappointing record.

4/10

Bingo Times Smoking Loopholes Press Release

Originally posted on www.MarketWire.com. Consequently featured in Canada's National Post newspaper.

Bingo Site Finds Smoking Loopholes

LONDON, ENGLAND--(Marketwire - Sept. 12, 2008) - BingoTimes.com (www.BingoTimes.com) the independent online bingo comparison site, have entered into the smoking ban debate to help bingo halls losing business because of the ban.

Research carried out by BingoTimes.com found that if bingo halls doubled as prisons, hospices, parks or theatres, players would be free to smoke.

The research was prompted by a survey of its site visitors whereby a staggering 75% noted that their local halls were quieter since the ban. Holly Emblem, editor of BingoTimes.com, observed; "we were shocked by our survey results, so much so we researched the ban and sought out loopholes to help players and bingo halls." BingoTimes.com have outlined their ban loophole hit list, which players can use if they wish to 'dodge' the ban in their bingo halls. The hit list is as follows:

1. Residential Bingo

Players can smoke in their local bingo hall; provided it also acts as a prison or hospice. If halls squeezed in a prison cell, or even provided health care, then players could legally smoke.

2. Performance Bingo

The ban states that performers can smoke if it affects "artistic integrity" and is integral to the performance, so, players should convince their local bingo halls to put on all singing, all smoking productions of Oliver.

3. Green Bingo

While the UK hasn't seen much sun this year, the ban only applies to "premises which have a ceiling or a roof", why not play bingo in the park? BingoTimes.com reckon there is definitely a future for this eco-friendly game, so watch out for bingo in your local park.

4. Smoke Bingo

The ban states that tobacconists can by-pass the ban if customers are sampling their tobacco. If bingo halls started selling tobacco, then players could 'sample' their wares while they play.

5. Bingo Mad

Finally, BingoTimes.com recommend players should turn their bingo halls into mental health units, as if enough players were diagnosed as needing care then the hall would stay open and players could smoke! When asked how they're feeling, players should definitely reply; "bingo mad".

About BingoTimes.com

BingoTimes.com is a UK based independent online bingo comparison site featuring reviews of the UK's top online bingo sites, as well as bingo bonuses, free bingo and tips on how to get the most out of your online bingo experience.

Glasvegas - Glasvegas review

Originally posted at www.loudandquiet.com

A band that accompanies a 7” release with a cover of a Nirvana song can be accurately described with one of the following two words; ‘geniuses’ or, to be honest, ‘fools’. Admittedly, I’m not a particularly big grunge fan, but Glasvegas’ boldness (or some would argue cheek) to accompany their new single ‘Daddy’s Gone’ with a cover of ‘Come As You Are’ was a particularly brave move. Thankfully, their debut album, ‘Glasvegas’ follows in this bold and brash vein.

Glasvegas tend to wear their hearts and influences on their sleeves. When the listener isn’t treading on egg shells as front man James Allan recalls less than sunny memories of childhood, they are able to pick out meta-songs, that is, songs which reference other works by musicians. On ‘It’s My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry’ Allan growls “What’s the Story Morning Glory? I feel so low I’m Loveless”. Album titles hidden in that lyric have been duly capitalised, but Glasvegas certainly swing towards the My Bloody Valentine wall-of-noise side of things as opposed to the shouty anthems of Oasis. ‘Flowers & Football Tops’, which, despite the title sounding like Danny Dyer’s attempt at lyricism, is actually a sweltering proto-shoegaze-come-rock affair and never before has the childhood lullaby ‘You Are My Sunshine’ sounded so poignant and haunted.

Allan’s, and of course, his merry bunch of men and women that make up Glasvegas have a knack for twisting nostalgic, “sunshine” memories and turning them into something much darker. Flick through the album and you are treated to ‘Stabbed’, which can be aptly summarised as gang warfare versus a classical piano piece, versus Arab Strap.

Even ice cream is traumatic to Allan, as he recalls in ‘Ice Cream Van’ – “there’s a storm on the horizon/I can’t see the sun/I’ll keep waiting on the pavement/for the ice cream van t’ come”. However, Allan’s broken down murmurs do come with an explanation. In ‘Geraldine’ he reveals a protagonist tight-rope-walking between life and death, who is only saved by Geraldine, a social worker who howls “When you’re standing there/on the window ledge/I’ll talk you back from the edge”.

The polarity expressed throughout Glasvegas’ debut is perhaps one of their most interesting aspects and adds new dimensions to the record throughout subsequent listens. Switching between moments of bliss ambience like the aforementioned ‘Ice Cream Van’ and swirling, moon lit songs such as the Echo and the Bunnymen-influenced ‘Polmont on my Mind’, Glasvegas move between stark, contrasting emotions like musical shape shifters, which all add up to one key fact about Glasvegas’ debut…It is a revelatory listen.

9/10

Calexico - Carried to Dust review

Originally posted at www.loudandquiet.com

Ten years on from Calexico’s second (although you could argue, first “proper”) record, ‘The Black Light’, the multi-talented duo that is Joey Burns and John Convertino, alongside a rag-tag bunch of musicians whose names are only uncovered by those brave explorers of the CD sleeve, have returned to their roots with their sixth “proper” album ‘Carried to Dust’.

One aspect of Calexico you can never escape from is their fixation with travelling. Always in a state of flux, they’re constantly on the road, trekking to a destination, but leaving the listener never sure if they actually reached it. However, rather than settling down and playing I-Spy the group have sound-tracked their travels and brought us lucky listeners some very special albums over the last 12 years.

‘Carried to Dust’’s album art work presents a young woman, eyes fixed on the road, heading towards a highway that you can’t quite make out. The car is clear as day, but that ever stretching road just escapes us somehow. Fragmented and mystical, it’s not there. Bear this in mind when listening to album closer ‘Contention City’ and notice that dark feeling in your stomach enveloping you. That’s what Calexico must feel every time they hit the long road and press record, and they are inviting you to feel it too. However, let’s hold that record button for now and instead opt for rewind, so we can find out the inner-workings of ‘Carried to Dust’ and more about this infinite trip. Rather than starting the journey with the band, the listener is simply a hitch-hiker; picked up from one point on the map and dropped at another with the title track marking the entry into the hot, stuffy desert. While a geographical description may seem odd for music, this seems to be exactly what Calexico are aiming for - with all of their previous bodies of work we have been picked up and dropped off. Sure, we joined in with some of the conversations along the way and even felt emotionally linked, but we were always missing parts of the puzzle…We were never always in their car, heading towards the horizon, we simply travelled from point A to B and were then left to our own devices on the roadside as the band sped away into the ever-reaching distance.

So, if this album has one specific motif, it’s of dangerous journeys into the heart of the sandstorm. Vocalist, Joey Burns, has a very distinct whiff of Leonard Cohen about him and if it can be pin-pointed to a particular Cohen-moment, it’s ‘Waiting for a Miracle’, which as it turns out, is one of the first pieces of music we hear in Oliver Stone’s Natural Born Killers, which, in tern, focuses on never ending journeys. I’m not for a moment suggesting Joey and John are about to go Mickey and Mallory, but the desperate and emotional nature exhibited in Stone’s creations is played upon heavily in this record.

Just like the listener, various musicians hitch-hike their way into Calexico’s vehicle and guest here. Sam Beam makes an appearance on ‘House Of Valparaiso’, then presumably, is dropped off and left to continue his own journey with Iron & Wine. Perhaps the most prominent “hitch-hiker” is Amparo Sanchez whose track on the record, ‘Inspiración’, completely rejuvenates the album’s landscape and turns it from a desperate desert into swinging Spain. Sanchez soon bids Calexico farewell though, treading back onto the quiet roads, and the horizon shifts once again, with ‘Slowness’ marking Calexico’s return to the miles of highway.

And to finish, we reache a revelation: ‘Carried to Dust’ is all about the ride, never the destination, and as soon as ‘Contention City’ ends, we are presumably booted out of the car (for now), bags in our hands and the sun in our eyes as we watch Calexico continue towards the horizon. Sure, we might feel cheated for a moment, but the memories of our time on the trek are enough to keep us warm and, thankfully, there is always another record and another chance for us hitch-hike with Joey and John. So for now, we place our thumbs out and hope for the best in the warm desert sun…

8/10 in stores Sept 8

Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line review

Originally posted at www.loudandquiet.com

Ra Ra Riot are, if the internet is to be believed (and obviously, it never lies) a six piece “amorphous blob” that have wormed their way into the collective-consciousness of indie fans everywhere. Perhaps “intelligent indie” fans should be the correct phrase, but let’s face it, IDM already occupies the top spot for “worst genre name ever” and I really don’t want to coin another equally terrible saying. Anyway, back to ‘The Rhumb Line’; this “amorphous blob” has only released one other record (aside from an initial demo EP), a self-titled EP that features a few early recordings of songs that are now neatly re-worked and fitted onto ‘The Rhumb Line’. As with any album that features reassessments of earlier recordings, there tends to be derision between newcomers to the band and hardened aficionados who cling to the fragmented recordings of their heroes and downright refuse to let the re-evaluations seep into their ears. Well, surprisingly, ‘The Rhumb Line’ far surpasses Ra Ra Riot’s earlier EP.

Ra Ra Riot have a recognisable air to them, but rather than relying on a tired formulae to create verses that will appeal to the masses, the group instead borrow carefully created sounds that tread the dangerous line between familiarity and uniqueness. Thankfully, Ra Ra Riot have made it over the border, they are new refugees in the land of “uniqueness” and it seems certain that they will have their visas granted and become permanent residents in this sparse, barely populated, but magical space.

The group employ the call and response vocals of Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan of Stars fame and lyrically, the waltzy and intimate relationship perspectives offered up by lead singer Wesley Miles, screams of ‘Heart’-era Stars. However, rather than following suit with this obvious knowing nod to those chirpy Canadian troopers and in turn sounding a lot like Morrissey, Miles instead prefers the breathy style of Andrew Bird. The results of this ‘melting pot’ are remarkable, and I haven’t even mentioned the frantic choir-esque chorus reminiscent of good-old Arcade Fire in songs like ‘Ghost Under Rocks’.

Whereas the EP preferred minimal instruments, this full-length debut comes complete with a sweeping, whooping orchestra of noise that simply won’t be soothed. Some may argue that Ra Ra Riot lost their “intensity” with this new album, but these new recordings are throbbing masterpieces. Crammed with charmed guitars, a pulsing violin that competes with vocals for attention and a desperate lead singer who manages to find leeway above everything else to tell us of his loves lost suggests a “blob” that hasn’t lost a smidgen of its original fire, in fact, it seems to be turning into quite the inferno.

7/10