Indie and Lo-Fi music reviews

Mr. Montgomery does a great job with the 4 tracker. Imaginitive use of effects and the e-bow. Has a homemade feel to it though. That might turn off some folks, not me though. I don't think I'd like this stuff as a steady diet, but, it has it's place. Nice mood music. Try it, you might like it!

i believe the reviewer who says this was composed after roy spent the night atop an inca pyramid is actually thinking of the album Temple IV. this release has a lot of the same sort of ebow enhanced layered guitar droning one expects from roy montgomery, but adds a few more instruments and some vocals from time to time. if you are used to his instrumental works like temple IV and scenes from the south island, these additions can be a little shocking and slightly annoying at first, but after spending some time with it, the whole album flows together very well, and roy's voice and lyrics fit in perfectly. i still prefer his soundscapes using just guitar, guitar, and guitar, but i don't need 20 albums of the exact same thing from any artist, and this is an excellent change of pace from mr. montgomery.

a beutiful album, one man an ebow and a four track. the songs melt together to form images of bliss, this was writen after the artist spent a night in a south american inca temple. beutifully layered building to cresendos then fadeing back, ebb and flow. amaizing album

A slight, modest recording, more or less alternating between instrumental guitar/organ music and solo Will Oldham songs. The organ songs are cheap toy music sounding, very indie rock: thin meandering melodies crudely played, but at least they're short. The four "real" songs are equally crude but far more loveable. Will sounds nice and close, like Days in the Wake but with slightly glossier production. Each is good, but nothing amazing. "Do what you will do" is repetitive, similar to "You will Miss me When I Burn" from Days in the Wake, same feeling as well. "The Risen Lord" which as stated above culls it's lyrics from some D.H. Lawrence poem is actually very good. Occasionally the language takes on a cumbersomeness that is not alien to some of Will's own lyrics but overall the song has an epic majestic quality and a lovely lilting melody. "Allowance" is another simple but effective song, as is "Black/Rich Tune". Overall a very mediocre album for Mr. Oldham but compared to a lot of the world's music, very good. There are no glaringly bad songs, but no extremely memorable ones either. I recommend this record only for fans that want to hear everything Will has done.

I love Will Oldham. I especially like him on an acoustic guitar playing alone. One of my favorite Palace albums is Days in the Wake. I've never been able to get into his instrumental album as they are too sparse for my taste and I feel like the songs with singing are more relevant. However, on this album I like the blend of the two styles. The sparse instrumentals in between songs either echo the melody from the previous song, or just set a mood of isolation. I really enjoy this album and strongly recommend it to anyone considering his EPs. I would recommend Hope first, and this one second. Enjoy.

This is another solo effort by Will Oldham, and it first it may seem a little strange. Some songs have a vocal version and an instrumental version, but once you're used to this, you'll find that this CD is as good as the other ones!

Hey..what can I say?
It's got crazy liner notes by Richard Meltzer and a great opening song (Titus and Wet Nurse) by Guided by Voices.

That alone is worth the price.

I just can't believe I haven't heard this before, I'm so electrified with it!! This is a wonderful concept CD which reminds me of 'Tommy' from The Who and of 'Hommy', a crazy 1973 salsa opera from the Harlow Orchestra. This album is perfect for those like me that ask themselves 'what Indie is'? but haven't heard something besides Grandaddy or the Fiver. So, this CD helps you answer that question. Believe me that after listening to this CD you will do like me: you will order everything from all the bands here. Seems that the Indie bug has bitten me, doesn't it sound like that? Check it out and enjoy.

I had read a lot about It Was Hot, We Stayed In The Water and The Glow, Part 2. Supposed classics. Wanted to hear them. But I live in Australia, so I couldn't find them even in the hip indie stores. They did have Don't Wake Me Up, and it was secondhand. So I bought it. I don't know what the later Microphones records sound like, but Don't Wake Me Up does have a definite "early work" sound to it. I'd suggest you should probably try the abovementioned albums to start with, if you want to get into the Microphones.

Still, this one's good. It's only 39 minutes long, and the songs blend together, but in a good way. Very pretty melodies, sleepy indie-pop vocals often buried in sound, boy-girl harmonies, interesting lyrics. Lots of noise--surprisingly, for a band with such soft vocals. Kind of reminds me of the Olivia Tremor Control--short songs with catchy melodies that aren't developed for long enough to make a complete pop song before they end or dissolve into experimental noise. In a good way. If you like that sort of thing (and I do), you'll probably dig it. Especially if you're already a Microphones fan.

You're welcome. What, you'd like to send me a copy of The Glow Part 2, just to show your appreciation? Wow, that's so nice of you.

From the shores of Anacortes to the thickets of Quinault, people get yer microphones and listen to these songs.

i thought i typed a review for this already, but they most not have posted it. oh well.

Sure everything changes, evolves or whatever - but refined Swell
is an oxymoron. The atmosphere created on previous albums made you feel as if it had been recorded live - at a pub - where you got to know the band intimately - while doing shots of Jaegermiester or something - so that by the time you're on the final tracks you're singing along and feeling the depth of your rock and roll soul. Generally I love a candy coating, but Swell made me love feeling rusty, dusty, and like some of my hair might have got singed (cause there's kinda like a smell) ... I digress.
New Swell still has the grooves and the hooks (probably more so) usually in multilayered sonic blasts (i.e. 'Everybody Wants to Know', 'East-N-West', 'Inside a Bomb', etc.) and are true to their unique song stuctures and understated imbelishments such - as on the end of 'This Story'. At best (and still this album better than anything else released in the new millinium) it's a pleasant reminder of vintage Swell (before they took out the smell).

So, I left that previous review and I posted a little erroraneous info... the previous album was "For All The Beautiful People" and not "Too Many Days Without Thinking"... I can't believe I temporarily misplaced that info... but I still maintain... both are masterpieces worthy of all ears... each of Swell's albums flow right into the next (even if you throw all the singles in between them)...

Yes... again... Swell has been at it for well over a decade and virtually none of you have noticed... I would like to at least think that there is a loyal college audience, but a majority of them as well are amongst the un-enlightened... hmmmm... all I'm saying is OPEN YOUR EARS... Swell has made some incredible albums and is showing absolutely no signs of letting up... this album flows right off of where "Too Many Days Without Thinking" flowed to... but seriously... if you are not versed in what these guys are about, try to find the albums "...well?" and "41"... you won't be sorry that you did... and shame on all of you if you don"t!

Shoe In and some sonatra are typical Geoff Farina. The secret stars, in my opinion, is one more outlet for this amazing song writer. If you are a fan of Geoff's solo album buy this, too. I would have gave it 5 stars, but I'm not a fan of the other artist's work on this album, but Sister Brother is a tight track. Her work on the last album was beautiful, though.

Every song on this album delves into some deeper realm, each farther from each other. It ranges from punk rantings ["Can U Feel It?"] to doleful, whistful, beautiful melodies ["Shoe-In"] to a take on 60s soul music ["Sister, Brother"], and each attempt is brilliance. The harmonies between Geoff and Jodi are highlighted by masterfully understated guitar work and heart-wrenching lyrics. I can see why bands like Death Cab for Cutie and Ida are such devoted, self-proclaimed fans of this band. These songs never miss their mark.

The Secret Stars is the name of a duo, Geoff Farina (of Karate fame) and Jodi something-or-other. Most of the tracks are experimental, slow, sparse pop songs.

Lyrically, the content tends towards quite simple, honest descriptions. There are some gems though, like a couple lines from "Melt": Turned your head / and looked at me / made a "V" for victory / maybe it's a peace sign / for the piece of me / you left behind / with you.

Ida (the uber-group), took the Secret Stars song "Shoe-In" and turned into what it, perhaps, a perfect song: "Come to dinner with me / We'll walk down the main street / all dressed up / We'll make time for coffee / I know that caffeine makes you sad."

The original, by the SS, is so sweet and endearing it makes you want to hug somebody.

I read a quote by Geoff somewhere that the Secret Stars make songs for friends to kiss and snuggle to. I think that just about sums it up.

There are some harsher, more experimental songs on this album, and those afraid of something new may be turned off by some of the noise on these tracks. C'est la vie. They are all brilliant.

I was disappointed a little by Jack's last couple of efforts "Buzz Me In" and "Monkey Paw" but "LPA" more than made up for it and kept my faith in Logan. "Bulk" is one of my Desert Island Discs and this is not too far behind. Great sound - Great Lyrics - Great record

Once again, Jack Logan has put together some of the most comfortable, finely crafted music you could imagine. This album fits like a glove. Great stuff from a great songwriter.

It's so depressing to listen to Jack Logan's music and know that it will never achieve the popularity it so rightly deserves. This is yet another album he released that only gives further proof that he may be one of the most talented singer/songwriters around today. It all seems to come so effortlessly. For 34 minutes, you can put this CD on and it wraps around you, it holds you close, it feeds you tomato soup and hot chocolate. Buy it now so Jack can stop fixing refrigerators for Pete's sake.

The editorial reviews and buyer reviews are very precise, but really don't describe this music. (Besides and oud is a string instrument, a ney is a wind instrument.) Okay, imagine a B science fiction movie circa 1950 from the Middle East. That is an apt description of this music. Sometimes the idea of something is better than the execution of something. This is not going to be everyone's piece of cake but it is still eatable.

If Muslimgauze needs an introduction, you haven't had your ear to the dirt for too long. Like the sublime archeology that adorns the record sleeve, give thanks that this set has been unearthed.

Lo-Fi India Abuse (the title scrawled by Bryn Jones on the DAT master he sent to BSI) shows Muslimgauze in fresh and varied form, focused on a minimalist pallette of hand drums, sine-wave bass, sick distortion, and drop-out dub delays. All the tracks feel live and hands-on; not labored over, but with real staying power nonetheless. The recording and mastering are immaculate, with devastating low end, and tablas so crisp you swear the drummer's four feet in front of you wearing a cloaking device. Some of the tracks are reconfigurations of Systemwide songs, elements of which were torn straight off their Sirius CD. Bryn and BSI have left it to the attentive to determine which tracks are versions, and which are straight up `Gauze.

A. Antalya drops you smack in the center of the Souk, a tide of humanity surging to the whistle. Romanie Abuse and Valencia in Flames tear holes in your speakers' mids, as obtusely looped live bass patterns keep you stumbling forward, blacking out and coming to from the deadly delays. Al Souk Dub brings you back to the market, with a bassline so subby you won't even know it's there unless you have 12" or bigger woofers. Catacomb dub flanges the hats and dubs the rhythm until the dub becomes the rhythm, until the void itself is being dubbed - as dope a testament to Bryn's compulsive genius as you'll hear on any release that came before.

B. Possibly the baddest track on the disc, Dust of Saqqara drags a glowing meteorite out from under Zoser's step pyramid, cracks it open, and slowly gets the glowing green ooze all over the place. Android Cleaver resurrects Eldridge as a loping automaton blazing like Westworld. Dogon tabla calls the Great Fish God out of the deep with sweet, aquafied keyboard trills, and Nommos' Afterburn sends him back to the Sirius system with rocket fuel burning hot, white, and deafeningly loud.

Brush away the sand, put your ears to the cut-glass headphones of the ancients, and leave this place behind. Now.

This is one of the most varied Muslimgauze releases around, and I've heard a lot of them. Heavy hand drumming, big dub basslines, crackling dropouts and disorienting delayed dropouts make for a mesmerizing listening odyssey. Many Muslimgauze releases are sort of 'thematic', in the sense that they stick to one basic style, tempo, or groove structure, but not Lo-Fi; it's got a great variety of tempos and textures, but definitely stays on the beat side - Arabic/electro futurepast! Terrific production and mastering. This one's a must! To all those who think 'you've heard one Muslimgauze, you've heard them all' - forget it. Check this out!

a lot more accessible and therefore quite a bit more enjoyable than the monstrous _bulk_, which also happens to be the critics' darling. nothing pretentious here, just rock 'n' roll straight-no-chaser. jack could be the second coming of CCR or something. there's something distinctly fogertish in the way he approaches rock music: with genuine enthusiasm, a little grit, and no frills.

Logan might just be an American original. He does the art for his records, and other fellas (I think Logan might like me to say 'fellas').

Musically, what he does is not unlike Mark Eitzel or Leonard Cohen, only minus the pretension and plus a bunch of damn fine poetry. He allows music, but...

But. When he plays, he is a blend between Barenaked Ladies and American Music Club. He's sharp and funny, but more depresed than...well, Eitzel...


The great thing about Logan is that when you leave his records, you feel like you know someone. He's the least enigmatic songwriter I've ever heard, and I'm a Loudon Wainwright fan, so I should know about revealing songwriters.

He sings about losing his daughters because of his lifestyle, of not understanding society ("Teach me the rules/I beg of you...I wanna do it right").

It's bare bones, and sounds like a few guys in your living room, but this is still a great record. Give it a shot.

The 40+ tracks on BULK revealed a songriter of staggering diversity, and a stubbon will to keep it all down on the farm. MOOD ELEVATOR picks up right where BULK left off. The same obssessions rain on---love, loss, death & cars. "Teach Me The Rules" starts things off on a lively enough note. Though doom is narrowly escaped on "Unscathed", "Chinese Lorraine" has some pretty "awful news". Logan brings it all to a fore on "Ladies & Gentlemen". There aren't many songs quite like it. I haven't the slightest idea what it means, but it makes you wonder. I'd be loathe to say there's one bad track on this record, but "What's Tickling You" can try your patience after repeated listens. Die young anthems like, "Neon Tombstone" more than make up for it though. The best is saved for last. I'd be hard pressed to find a more haunting progression of songs than "What Was Burned", "Vintage Man", "Suicide Doors" & "Bleed". Though he may have played it slick on BUZZ ME IN, Logan & his "Enablers" have gone back to basics of late with things like TINKER & MONKEY'S PAW. They have their moments but MOOD ELEVATOR and BULK capture Logan at the top of his game.

Possibly not in the Top3 Cope albums(that would be Peggy Suicide,Saint Julian and World Shut your Mouth)but still quite a good record by one of England's top songwriters of the 80's,90�s.First track 5o'clock World is a good opener ,containing one of Cope's best known lines "I know a place where we can hide from the human race".Vegetation is a cool sounding,smooth tune but Charlotte Anne is THE track on this album with Cope's voice at its prettiest making a compelling connection with Julian's usual instrument embelishments.My Nation Underground,the song,never struck me as brilliant but gels ok with the rest of the album.China Doll is yet another highlight with its sweet melody an enchanting pace.Someone like Me is faster and leads to the one track that still resounds the Teardrop Explodes'sound-Easter Everywhere.The pretty medieval tinged I'm not losing Sleep is followed by last track The Great White Hoax which ends the album in a nice way.A classic pop album worth checking out.

This deserves 4.5 stars really, but doesn,t earn a 5 star rating due to the drop off in quality toward the end. Although having said that, there's not many (any?) CD's that I can think of which could possibly carry on the standard of genius of "Charlotte Anne", "China Doll" and the like. Probably Julians most commercial work, it has been unfairly maligned for that very reason. I guess people need to consider the fact that commercial doesn't have to mean inferior (although it usually seems to), and I have fond memories of Julian and band on TV around the time of this. It is for this reason that I started to investigate Copey, and what a wealth of musical enjoyment that one clip opened up. Definitely out there, definitely worth investigating in any way shape or form, his music and/or writings will change the way you view the world and others.
You may not agree with his views, but you will certainly enjoy hearing and deciphering them. Plus, it also rocks rather well. A good place to start for the uninitiated, but Floored Genius Volume 1 offers better value.

this cd is one of my favorites,at par with "Saint Julian"