"We're All Gonna Die" - My Thoughts on Heedfest 4

It wasn't official before this past weekend, but it is now: Guided By Voices is my favorite band. 

I have arrived at this conclusion after spending roughly 28 hours with 225 of the most devoted GBV/Bob Pollard fans in the world. We had all gathered in Dayton, Ohio - birthplace of aviation and Robert Pollard - for the 4th Annual Heedfest, essentially a fan festival celebrating all things Bob-related. This is what I learned:

1. It is possible to hang out with 225 people you've never met or interacted with before and have one of the best nights of your life. 

I spent Friday night at the Canal St. Tavern in downtown (more like ghost town) Dayton, where a band called Teenage FBI played Bee Thousand in its entirety. For those of you not familiar with Bee Thousand, you might as well stop reading this now. I had been on the fence about my favorite GBV album for quite some time (usually leaning towards Under the Bushes or Isolation Drills), but Bee Thousand is firmly cemented in the #1 position after witnessing Friday night's performance. It was surreal to be in a packed room where everyone knew every lyric to every song (even better than i knew them) and shouted along at the tops of their lungs. To sing "parallel lines on a slow decline" and "no need for fuuurther questioning" and "buzzards and dreadful crows - a necessary evil, i suppose" with hundreds of others while hoisting a beer in the air is to experience pure joy.

Video of Hardcore UFO's/Buzzards And Dreadful Crows

2. The only things you need to have a good time are 1. a remote location, 2. good music and 3. kindred spirits (oh, and a ton of alcohol doesn't hurt)

Following the show on Friday night, we all gathered at the Polish Club on the outskirts of the city, arriving in two coach buses after being picked up from our hotels. The Polish Club is the Field of Dreams of such a gathering - a tiny stage and picnic area covered by an old tin roof and nothing else around within earshot. The speakers were blasting A Salty Salute as we all emptied off the buses, and most faces were wearing grins as we surveyed the perfection of the scene. After a brief period of acclimation, some of us got back on the very same buses for a guided tour of Dayton, stopping by some of the pivotal locations that played a role in the development of GBV - now-closed bars they used to play at and the band shell where the I Am a Scientist video was partially filmed (where we all geeked-out and did our best attempts at Bob's rock kicks), among other locations. While some of it was kind of depressing (as most Midwestern cities are these days), it added a sense of history to the lore of the band. 

After shuttling back to the Polish Club (after a brief altercation with one of Dayton's Finest), we were greeted to two sets of GBV covers from the Heedonists and The Textbook Committee. I won't go into details, but there was more shouting, drinking, pointing, hopping, laughing, and arm-around-the-shouldering. In an attempt to capture some of the magic, I took little snippets of video with my camera and edited them together. I am not sure if people who weren't there will hate this or like it, but here it is:

Quadroheedia - Pretty Not Bad

3. Chanting "We're All Gonna Die" is a surprisingly liberating and appropriate thing to do, especially when everyone is in the best mood possible. 

Robert Pollard had just finished playing his new album, Moses On A Snail, on Friday night, and someone started chanting "we're all gonna die....we're all gonna die...". And when someone starts chanting something at a GBV event, everyone naturally joins in. At first I thought it was a rather morbid thing to do, but after a few seconds I realized how profound it was - to come to terms with your own mortality on a night where you experienced such camaraderie, knowing that there were like-minded people walking this earth who dug the same crazy stuff you did, and for a brief moment you had all found each other and were in each others' presence. At that moment none of us really cared about anything else except being inside that moment. It was damned powerful. And we all laughed about it and shouted louder and toasted, because I believe that we all felt the same thing.

---------------------------------------------

So yeah, I guess this is what I'm trying to say: music has the potential to be more than just something you like - it can bring people together and trigger instant bonds and friendships. So listen to more of it. But only the good stuff.


- Vbtk

An Actual Review: Wavves - King of the Beach

Wavves frontman Nathan Williams is a bitch. He's also an asshole, a coward, a dickhead, and an irresponsible, no-contributing zero.

If that sounds harsh, that's because it is. It's also the most prevalent theme on the SoCal band's third album, King of the Beach, which essentially plays like 40 minutes of ennui-fueled self-flagellation. It is for this very reason, however, that the album is successful. By exploring notions of isolation and inadequacy (balanced with boredom and leisure), he's also exploring, and in many cases successfully capturing, some of the most vital parts of youth. In an era of manufactured nostalgia through sonic signifiers and esoteric cultural references, Williams has found a way to create something honest, often times at his own expense.

It was really easy to dismiss the band's second album, Wavvves, as a Pitchfork, hipster hype-fueled fail parade shrouded in layers of fuzz as compensation for lack of ability. I said the same thing when I heard the album on first listen. After a while, however, it grew on me; the fuzz began to make sense in the albums' context. With King of the Beach, Williams has proven that he can not only hit the notes, but he can create a cohesive, still gritty yet clean record. I hope upon listening to KOTB, Wavvves detractors will give the latter another listen.

Breakdown backstory notwithstanding, Williams avoided a potential pitfall with KOTB by not only enlisting Producer Dennis Herring (whose resume includes The Hives, Modest Mouse and Ben Folds, among others) but also including his current bandmates Stephen Pope and Billy Hayes who formerly worked with Jay Reatard. These decisions enabled Wavves to create an album Williams wouldn't have been able to do alone. And for a man who appears destined to disaster when left to his own devices, the decision becomes that much more significant.

On to the music. I totally agree with my colleague Tim's assessment that the album is front-loaded. The caustic guitar that characterizes the first six tracks is more or less absent on the last six. Yet, in spite of the tone shift (from aggressive to spaced-out) between the two sides, the album retains its cohesiveness, due in large part to Williams' newfound grasp on melody and subtle production cues (like the dissonant claps that shudder in and out throughout the album).

In macro, one has to contextualize Wavves as a California punk band in the Internet age; which means they owe their sound as much to The Descendents as they do to the Beach Boys as they do to Animal Collective as they do to No Age. The true accomplishment of this album is synthesizing all of these readily available references into something that feels new: a more aggressive, youthful angst take on the summer fun inhabiting the (indie) music world at this time.

As the second half of the album seems to hint at a new direction for Wavves, it'll be interesting to see the perspective we get on King of the Beach when a new album is released, as we did this time. That is, unless Nathan Williams self-destructs by then.

Best Listened To: On a Saturday morning after you've been a dick to all of your friends the night before. Preferably drinking Gatorade to rehydrate as you sweat toxins in oppressive August heat, wearing Wayfarers.

Highlight tracks: "King of the Beach" is in the running for the track of the summer; just so infectious. "Idiot," as Tim said, has a great melody, and just thrashes. "Baseball Cards" is a great chill song. "Green Eyes," is probably the height of emotion on the album, and just has a flat-out awesome melody.

Wavves - King of the Beach by BubbleWolf

Best,
Erik

(Image by parttimemusic, licensed under Creative Commons)

First Impressions: Wavves - King of the Beach

New Wavves. Wasn't a huge fan of his last record (though I liked No Hope Kids a lot), but I've been hearing good things about this new one...let's just launch right into it (you can stream it here for free):

King of the Beach - leading off with the title track. good move. the sound is much cleaner and punchier than i expected. the verse is kind of a rip-off of No Hope Kids, but still pretty catchy. the chorus is a little lacking, but it does sound pretty nice when the instruments drop out. works nicely as a lead track. could have been a little shorter though, but i usually think that.

Super Soaker - i wasn't expecting such straight-forward pop songs. it's weird to have the vocals so clean (relatively speaking), especially since his pipes are not his strong suit (or so i thought). the song builds up to a pretty nice frenzy. backing band is really tight. nice second track. 

Idiot - wow, what a great melody. expectations have been exceeded so far. great production on this one, especially with the backing vocals. lead vox sound really good too. i continue to be pleasantly surprised.

When Will You Come - starts out with the classic 50's doo-wop drum part. heavy on the reverb and a nice change of pace. not crazy about the helium vocals, but the backing ooh's are nice. seems like an odd track to put at #4 (sounds more like a closer to me), but we'll see what #5 brings...

Post Acid - well, i've already heard this song a couple of times. i kind of hated it at first (mostly because the chorus reminded me of Jimmy Eat World), but it makes a little more sense in the context of the album. it's not the most interesting song on the disc, but i can see its appeal as a lead single. 

Take On The World - the album so far has been very cohesive, and this track continues in that vein. man, this really reminds me of another band, but i can't peg it (maybe a little Tripping Daisy?). wavves dude knows what he does well, as the same tricks turn up on most songs (not a bad thing though). really like the chorus on this one. might be my favorite of the tracks so far.

Baseball Cards - i used to love baseball cards, so this song already has my attention. this is more of the production i was expecting...a little more fuzzed-out and buried. nice effect on the hand claps. good backing vox as usual. pretty cool when the song turns. really dig the layered vocals and trippy synths. 

Convertible Balloon - hmm...not really sure about this one right off the bat. it makes me miss the last song. the 80's sound references are fun and all, but i don't think it comes together effectively.

Green Eyes - he's losing me a little bit here. i commend him for trying to change things up a bit, but he is straying a little too far away from the formula that had made the album really good up to this point. i was ready for the song to be over at the 2:30 mark...next song needs to be good. 

Mickey Mouse - good intro. very Animal Collective. love the harmony at the end of the phrases. kind of waiting for something else to happen now. liked the drop out, but was hoping it would come back in a little harder. i could really use a 2:00 pop song right about now.

Linus Spacehead - straight out of 1995. not a bad song, but it's a little too "alternative rock". was hoping for something other than a mid-tempo power chord chugger.

Baby Say Goodbye - is this Fountains of Wayne? seriously. was really not expecting a song like this. a little annoying, but still really catchy. i do enjoy how the dozens of overdubbed vocal tracks all meld together to close the song out. kind of want to hear this one again right away, since it ends completely differently than how it began.

Closing Thoughts

I was surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did. The album is front-loaded for the most part, and there were a couple of tracks that I could have done without, but I definitely will be listening to this one again. I can see the potential of many of the tracks getting stuck in my head ("you're never gonna stop me" is already in there).

Curious to hear what Erik thinks of this one...

VBtk 
 

I Stayed at Home on the Fourth of July

and I pulled the shades so I didn't have to see the sky.

Galaxie 500 - Fourth of July by lighthouseflashing

VBtk

2010 - First Half Album Retrospective

The year is officially half way through, so ..... lists! lists! lists!

Top 10 Albums of the First Half of 2010

10. Sleigh Bells - Treats - This one makes the list only because it was so thrilling to hear for the first time. Since then, the novelty has worn off a bit, but as the weather gets hotter, I can see this getting more and more time in the rotation. 

Fav Track = Infinity Guitars

9. Beach House - Teen Dream - They've been improving with each album, so it makes perfect sense that this one would be their best. Also, this is the most accurately titled album of the year.

Fav Track = Zebra 

8. Harlem - Hippies - Yeah, there are admittedly a couple of weak tracks on the album, but there are more than enough great ones to make up for those. And their live show at Mad Planet is going to be hard to top this year.

Fav Track = Gay Human Bones, with Friendly Ghost right on its tail

7. Midlake - The Courage of Others - Ton of haters on this one, but it provided the perfect soundtrack to many dreary winter drives in the Midwest. Now that the summer is here I haven't been listening to it much, but they put on a really good show at Turner Hall back in May and I imagine it'll sound even better as summer fades.

Fav Track = Acts of Man

6. Gord Downie - The Grand Bounce - This is a tricky one, because I don't think it's been properly released in the U.S. yet. But you can listen to the whole thing here. I've only heard the album about 4 times, but I can already tell that it's something special, especially because of the way Gord has been gushing about it in his interviews. 

Fav Track = The Hard Canadian

5. The National - High Violet - Like all good National albums, this one took a while to fully appreciate. It still drags a little bit before and after Bloodbuzz Ohio, but I feel like I'll understand their decisions before the year is through.

Fav Track = Bloodbuzz Ohio (although I fought it, for some reason)

4. Twin Sister - Color Your Life (EP) - It's an EP, so I am not sure it counts, but I am also not sure if that matters at all or not. They're probably my favorite new band, and I can't wait to see them play either in Chicago or Milwaukee in a couple of weeks. A refreshing change of pace from the lo-fi that dominates the NYC scene.

Fav Track = All Around and Away We Go

3. Spoon - Transference - I don't know how they do it, but they've managed to make a completely different sounding record and make it really good. I thought it was kind of dull at first, but it definitely rewards repeat listens. Spoon might very well be the most dependable band of the last 10 years. 

Fav Track = The Mystery Zone

2. Woods - At Echo Lake - I can't get enough of this one. The sequencing is especially strong, spacing out the pop gems and delivering an album that you want to listen to over and over again. 

Fav Track = Blood Dries Darker, but Mornin' Time has been sounding really good lately

1. Robyn Hitchcock - Propellor Time - Yup. This is the album I've listened to the most in the first six months of the year. It's the sound of a confident man. A total pro. Still playful, but with something to say. I enter a dream-like state in the middle of the record, only to be awakened by Sickie Boy. And this one's only going to get better with time. If you haven't listened to this yet, you really should.

Fav Track = Luckiness was my first love (sooooo good over headphones), but it changes daily

6 Most Disappointing Albums of the First Half of 2010

6. Blitzen Trapper - Destroyer of the Void - While it's not a bad album, I had really high hopes for these guys after Wild Mountain Nation, which was one of the best albums of 2007.

5. Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record - Forgive me, Jake, but I just can't get into this record. Sure, it's got some really great songs (Texaco Bitches, World Sick, Meet Me In The Basement), but there are also a ton that I can't help but skip over. I haven't given up yet, but it's looking bleak. 

4. LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening - Maybe it's my short attention span, but this one hasn't convinced me to listen to the whole thing yet. The trick he does on the first track is pretty rad (purposefully mixing the vocals really low for the first 3 minutes so you turn the volume up really high and get blown away when the rest of the song comes in), but the rest is hardly groundbreaking. All I Want has potential, but it's no All My Friends. Again, not giving up, and maybe seeing him live at Pitchfork will change my opinion.

3. The Hold Steady - Heaven Is Whenever - I don't really know what to say about this one except "I think they've lost it". The production sounds like crap and none of the songs stand out from each other. Maybe a 30-something year-old can only write from the 16-year-old perspective for so long...

2. Vampire Weekend - Contra - I guess I saw this coming, but it's still hard to accept. Their debut was so simple and catchy, and I fear that they've messed with the recipe too much. Cousins is a pretty good song, but the rest does nothing for me. 

1. The New Pornographers - Together - It's been said (by me) that you can judge a NP record based on the strength of the Bejar songs. Mass Romantic had Jackie and Execution Day (both really strong in their own way), Electric Version had Testament to Youth in Verse (!) and Chump Change (two of the best songs he has ever written), Twin Cinema had Jackie, Dressed in Cobras, Streets of Fire, and Broken Beads (more mature songs, but still pretty darned good), and Challengers had Myriad Harbour (one of '07s best) and Entering White Cecilia and The Spirit of Giving (both good, but nothing special). Now, on Together, Bejar has completely dialed it in. Silver Jenny Dollar gets boring after 15 seconds (because you already know exactly what the song will sound like), If You Can't See My Mirrors, well, it's no coincidence that you've seen this phrase on the back of almost every semi on the road - this song already existed in so many other forms and did not need to be rewritten, and Daughter of Sorrow plods along pleading to not be skipped. I can only hope this means that Bejar is saving his good songs for future Destroyer releases.

Along the way you've also got the Neko stinker My Shepard, which I actually "unchecked" in my iTunes so I would never have to hear it again. And I almost never do that. To their defense, the first two songs are actually pretty good, but the New Pornos don't even come close to meeting my high expectations with this one. More on this situation in a future post.

8 Albums from the First Half of 2010 That I Need To Spend More Time With
8. Titus Andronicus - The Monitor - Too much going on for me to process.
7. Phosphorescent - Here's To Taking It Easy - Like what I hear so far, but looking for the proper environment to listen in.
6. Wild Nothing – Gemini - Begging for July.
5. Tame Impala - Innerspeaker - Sounds like a September/October record to me.
4. Here We Go Magic - Pigeons - I expect this one to climb the ranks in a couple more weeks.
3. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti - Before Today - I listened to this one at the grocery store last night.
2. Delta Spirit - History From Below - Really good after one listen, but haven't heard it since.
1. Tobin Sprout - The Bluebirds Of Happiness Tried To Land On My Shoulder - Just haven't gotten around to picking it up yet.

Whew...let me know what you think!

VBtk