South Jordan – Only Halfway EP

Most bands form out of friendship or managerial decisions, but not Indiana’s South Jordan. Although very close now, the group arose from a song writing contest at Indiana University. Vocalist Mike Hall submitted a piece that attracted the attention of producers Mike Chen and Bobby Campbell, and in March 2008, they formed the band. Their first EP, Only Halfway, is a good debut (especially for a band that has only been around a few months), but it also has something that keeps it from being great.

Besides producing, Campbell plays piano and guitar, and Chen plays drums. This six track (though really only five song) EP showcases a lot of talent, and it’s a short (under a half hour) but pleasant listen. However, there is a lack of maturity and uniqueness that keeps it from really standing out among better contemporary piano based acts.

Only Halfway opens with “Fatal Flaw” and one is immediately reminded of Andrew McMahon and Something Corporate. It’s a simple, very catchy track with nice production. Hall has a pure, recognizable voice and Campbell and Chen provide warm music for him to sing with. “Take Your Time” is simply too corny and commercial. It sounds like the ending piece of a teen drama show on Disney or MTV. This is piano rock for twelve year olds, not adults. “Heading To Mars” isn’t quite as clichéd, and it has a nice bridge, but it’s still not as developed as it should be. “Katie” is a break-up song that is too happy for the subject matter so the emotion doesn’t come through. “Skin and Bones” makes interesting use of a cello, and it’s the deepest track on Only Halfway, but that’s only by comparison. Finally, “Not A Trace” has some electronic effects and vocal harmonies that set itself apart from its predecessors, and it fits well as an album closer.

South Jordan has definitely taken a page from commercial, adolescent aimed bands like Something Corporate, but they lack the same depth and maturity (SoCo’s North is a great album). And going beyond that, South Jordan is nowhere near the level of unique, powerful, and complex songwriting and production of, say, Rufus Wainwright, Tori Amos and Ben Folds. The music sounds nice but leaves little when it’s done.

Only Halfway is good for the high school crowd, but if they want to move beyond into the real world, they need to build up their strengths and become a lot deeper. True, the melodies are memorable (especially the opening track) and band plays well, but that’s only surface things. The artists I’ve mentioned are exciting, affective and very personal. They place their own spin on familiar themes, often employing uncommon instruments, other singers, etc. They flesh out the bare bones piano songs to masterpiece tracks, while South Jordan doesn’t. Again, this only a short debut EP so the band is far from final judgment, and they certainly have the talent to become a much better act.

Deerhoof – El Paso – Club 101, Texas – 2008-11-10

I’m a new fan of Deerhoof’s. Yes, after so many years of picking up their new album each and every time and tossing it aside, something finally, finally ‘clicked.’ Back around June they had announced a big American tour and one of their stops would be El Paso, Texas — a town they hadn’t toured in over seven years. These kinds of shows — that feature bona fide, dynamic, startling great bands — are few and far. So with every chance, I took full advantage of re-listening to their catalog and am proud to be a new convert.

Some more prefacing is required: I was the promoter for the show. In close contact with the club owner, I organized posters and fliers around town; met with bar and coffee shop owners to drop off promos to play and met with local media outlets about the show. Needless to say, I had a lot invested into the show. The San Francisco-based band showed up with two interesting opening acts. KIT’s loud and experimental rocking was a bit much but Experimental Dental School’s catchy and loud rock was a nice appetizer to the main act.

The show was a success with a decent turn out. The band relished in the fact that they had an energetic crowd to perform to. Greg Saunier later explained that their last stop in El Paso was a failed one; a concert that only featured two members in the audience. It was due to this that the band “put El Paso on the backburner” as Saunier stated but he and the bandmates proclaimed that this was a mighty return that would surely inspire future visits—one can only hope.

I was lucky to “get” this band an honest two weeks before the concert. Their newest album, Offend Maggie features an even balance of Deerhoof-trademark smart and catchy pop with immaculately orchestrated music. Although it isn’t as musically expansive as their previous releases, it sounds uniquely impressive and it translates very well live. Songs like “Snoopy Waves,” “Buck and Judy” and “Fresh Born” all sounded crisp, tenacious and full of energy.

Satomi Matsuzaki is a sight to behold. The small and petite singer is lively and her nifty mannerisms add to the band’s genuine soul. Ed Rodriguez and John Dieterich’s natural chemistry was evident throughout the entire show. The ebb and flow of the music all transcends through the guitars and they sounded loud, snappy and vibrant. They are split with Saunier’s impeccable drumming. He sits right in between the two guitarists and he is, without a doubt, the band’s beating heart—his fills are unmatched, his fervor remarkable and his musicianship utterly outstanding.

The band later attacked with “+81” and other fine fodder from previous albums. A lot of critics scoffed at the addition of Rodriguez’ guitar because they were expecting a bigger, fuller sound on Offend Maggie but this new live setting makes for a huge success with that aforementioned addition. A personal favorite of mine, “My Purple Past,” sounded simply amazing at the show. Those stacked chords, the diminished progression and Saunier’s pounding drums made up the highlight of the night for me.

They left the stage before coming out for a short encore and boy was it exciting! They performed a rousing rendition of “Basket Ball Get your Groove Back” with Matsuzaki stomping around the stage with a lion’s head (fake, of course) as her disguise. After the show, the band stayed for autographs and to meet the fans. Speaking to someone like Rodriguez and Saunier was refreshing. Not only were they polite and courteous but their amiable demeanor was well appreciated. This is a band that is chock-full of talent and promise, catching them live was a decision that paid off dividends. If they stop by your town, don’t miss them.

Kanye West – 808s & Heartbreak

Kanye West has always been one of music’s most enigmatic characters. His brash confidence which borders on near self-arrogance is sometimes too much for people to handle and yet his music is, unquestionably, supreme with every single one of his releases. One thing to note about West is that he knows what he is doing — with every album, every new direction, every interesting move, he seems to be a few steps ahead of the hip-hop game. And it’s with his latest masterpiece, 808s & Heartbreak, that he has demonstrated, with impeccable skill, that he is supreme, yet again.

This is still hip-hop. Even at its purely musical expression or for the sheer aesthetic feeling, this album is rich in hip-hop. Not only is West stretching the boundaries of music, he is re-creating and defining what he has already mastered. The album is rooted with themes encompassing love loss, difficult life changes, broken relationships and frayed outlooks and perspectives. A song like “Bad News” doesn’t shy away from its topic matter. The music is supported by a snazzy snare line, trembling piano chords and bass that is heavy in the low register. Of all of his albums, this is the one were West has openly embraced his lower end. Your speakers will rattle and shake with the vibrations, as West sings about “waiting on a dream that never came through.”

Take a look at the title, its brilliance at work. Not only does it musically and emotionally explain the subject matter but it’s direct, blunt and most of all, honest. West had previously worked with another super-producer, Jon Brion, who introduced him to the TR-808 drum machine. It’s main use is to create rhythmic patterns, very similar to tribal drums and West felt it was a great way to convey emotion through percussion. The second part is obviously about the universal theme, misfortune. In West’s case, this included the passing of his mother and the breakup with his long-time girlfriend, and this is where the auto-tune comes into play. This robotic, voice shifting style is used on every single song and West chose it because he felt its exaggerated sound reflected heartbreak. Thus, we get the mix and match of emotion and heartbreak with the TR-808 and auto-tune.

West is a superb musician and he conveys it in so many ways. All of the female vocals on the album are done by Esthero and they definitely bring out an air of comfort. Whether it is his choice of Lil’ Wayne’s (those two sure have worked together a lot in the past two years huh?) gritty, almost breaking down rapping at the end of “See You in Nightmares” or even the gorgeous, choir-layered voices on “Say You Will;” these are all fine, highly musical decisions that are being made.

The highlights are all over the album but none sound as sweet as when the drums pound away the loudest. This happens on the lead-single, “Love Lockdown,” in an impressive fashion. It all starts with a booming bass, then comes West’s poignant, synthetic vocals before one of the best musical moments of 2008 occurs: those hammering snare drums. Everything from the cadence to the volume to even the exact rhythm is downright powerful. Then there is the album’s proper closer, “Coldest Winter,” that beautifully borrows from Tears for Fears’ “Memories Fade.” The melody is everything in the song but its more of those pulsating beats that make it such a compelling listen. This is West’s elegy to his mother and the emotion curdles throughout your entire body as he sings, “Goodbye my friend, I wont ever love again…never again.”

When everything is said and done, 808s & Heartbreak is just another example of West confirming that he is one of music’s best artists. He calls this “pop art” and he shows us all that something like the auto-tune — widely disregarded and ridiculed — can sound, succinctly, magical in the right hands. It doesn’t matter what your personal opinion about West is; he isn’t here to please that part of your life. But he does make music for everyone and he does it in such a dazzling manner; with four unbelievably close to perfect albums under his belt, its clear that he will be one of the greatest remembered artists of our time.

Interview with Alison Shaw of Cranes

The band Cranes has created consistently compelling, melodic, and distinctive music – vocally, instrumentally, and song structure-wise – for over two decades, and the band members (the core of the band being siblings Jim Shaw and Alison Shaw) don’t follow musical trends. Their intense debut album Self-Non-Self ratcheted up a harsh, ominous tension with shearing guitars, pounded drums, industrial noise, and Ali’s tormented, sharply exclaiming vocals. The songs on their breakthrough album Wings Of Joy contrasted minor chord progressions of austere piano notes and classical strings, and Ali’s disquieting, baby’s breath vocals against serrated guitar lines, deep drums, and grinding mechanical accents.

After an exhilarating time opening for The Cure on the Wish World Tour, the band released the album Forever, which exuded a soft radiance, incorporating smoothly flowing guitar lines, ponderous strings, and hushed, wistful vocals. Follow-up album Loved added a variety of instruments and rhythms along with ethereal gravity and breathy, but assured vocals. The band then branched out with the French spoken word and classical strings of La Tragedie d’Oreste et Electre. Next album Population 4 purveyed a more accessible rock and pop sound, with strummed guitars and plaintive, clearer vocals.

After a break of a few years, Cranes returned with the low-key Future Songs which featured quietly strummed guitars, subtle electronics, and sweet, introspective vocals. The album Particles & Waves continued in a lighter vein, with gentle ambient electronics, strummed guitars, and airy, pristine vocals. The band’s most recent endeavor is the self-titled album Cranes that was released on October 13, 2008. The band also just completed a month-long European tour that kicked off on October 14 in Paris and ended on October 29 in London.

Delusions Of Adequacy: Hello Ali! It’s so wonderful to be doing this interview with you. I’ve been a long-time fan of Cranes and it’s such a thrill to be able to ask you all about your music and what the journey has been, and is, like. These are exciting times for you and your brother Jim. You have a new self-titled album out and just finished a European tour.

How is preparation going for the release of your new album? Can you give some details about the album, like who is involved in its creation, what the overall sound is like, what instruments and recording methods were utilized, and how the recording process went?

Alison Shaw: The album came out a few weeks ago and we are really excited about it! For the recordings it was mostly just Jim and I, we recorded it in our studio at Jim’s place, sometimes moving things to my flat to record vocals. It’s a little more electronic than previous albums… Acoustic guitars, some spacey sounding noises, cello, piano, samples and drums…

DOA: Who is in the band now and who did you take on tour with you? Did you play at venues that you’ve already played at or are there some new venues in the mix?

Ali: We just got back from the tour last week. The group is currently Jim on guitars, Paul Smith on guitar, Ben Baxter on bass, me singing and playing a little guitar and our new drummer, David Hirschheimer. We had played at the La Loco in Paris before and also at VK in Brussels, but all the other venues were new to us.

DOA: How did your European Tour go? What were the shows like? Did you have time to visit the cities of Paris, Brussels, Rome, Milano, and Koln?

Ali: The tour went well! There were five of us on stage, me Jim, Paul, Ben and Dave. We had a lot of interviews and a radio session to record in Paris, so we didn’t get to do much sight-seeing there, but we all went for a walk together in Koln as we arrived a day early and we visited the Gaudi Cathedral. It was awesome!

DOA: Your previous album, Particles & Waves, was released in 2004. Have you been working on your new album since then, or have you been able to take a break and smell the roses, so to speak?

Ali: I went back to University in 2006 and have been studying for an MA in Creative Writing. I finished it in September just before the tour started so it was quite a hectic period!

DOA: The new album was released on October 13, 2008. How is the album available for purchase – in stores, sold directly from your official record label Dadaphonic, and/or as downloads online?

Ali: The album was released in stores on October 13th in most of Europe… UK, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland. It will be released in Germany distributed by Indigo Records on November 19th. CD’s are also going to be distributed in USA by Forced Exposure… We are waiting to hear what the release date will be for those…

Also, this week the album become available on iTunes Europe and all the major download outlets in Europe. On December 4th it will be released via iTunes in America and should also be available from all the other download outlets in USA too from Dec 4th…

The CD is also available by mail order direct from us at http://www.cranes-fan.com/

DOA: You started Cranes with your brother Jim in the mid-1980s. Whose idea was it to form the band and how did you and/or Jim envision your musical future at that point?

Ali: Jim had bought a drum kit and I had started to learn guitar. We started playing together in our Dad’s garage. We had no idea what we were doing really. After a while we found a music shop where you could hire a four track porta-studio for the weekend, so we used to spend all our time doing that. We became a bit obsessed by the recording process after a while.

DOA: Your first recording was a cassette called Fuse that was released in 1986. Do you remember how many copies were made of this and if it’s available for purchase anywhere? It’s quite the rarity!

Ali: Originally there were 200 copies, which were released by a local label called Bite Back. Then in the early nineties we ran off another 200 copies so. I think there were 400 altogether. It sounds terrible though… I wouldn’t recommend it!!

DOA: From what I understand, John Peel was instrumental in spreading the word about your band, and you recorded a Peel Sessions in 1989. Do you have any remembrances of what it was like playing for John Peel?

Ali: Our first Peel session was recorded in July 1989, a week after the Self Non Self album was released. Our friend Ian Binnington at Bite Back sent the album to John Peel and he began to play songs from it on his show, one each night for four nights… We couldn’t believe it! Then at the end of that week John Peel’s producer rang us and said that they’d had a cancellation and would we like to come and record a session that Sunday? It was the best thing that had ever happened to us! We were so excited. We drove to London to the BBC studios in Maida Vale and there was a plaque on the wall saying that Bing Crosby had made his last ever recording there. It was our first time in a real studio, with proper engineers and everything. The producer of the session was called Dale Griffin and he used to be in Mott the Hoople.

DOA: You performed a song called “‘Til Tomorrow” during your Peel Sessions in 1989. Is that song available anywhere else?

Ali: No, we only ever played it the once.

DOA: What were the years like between the start of the band and 1991, when Wings Of Joy was released to widespread critical acclaim? Was it a period of struggle or was everything going smoothly?

Ali: It was kind of a struggle from 1986-89. In order to record Self Non Self we borrowed some money to buy recording equipment and got into some debt. We took so long trying to get it right, spending weeks at a time staying up all night and not eating much! We didn’t play many gigs; we weren’t really a band at that time. After Self Non Self came out things took off a bit, with the Peel session. Some managers and labels approached us. We recorded another session for John Peel in March 1990 and then eventually signed to Dedicated/BMG later that month.

DOA: Sorry for this picky question, but why is the song “Self-Non-Self” not on the album of the same name, but on the Wings of Joy album instead?

Ali: The song was never part of Self Non Self. It was just an old song that we had lying around. Jim thought it would be funny to call it “Self Non Self”…Then, on the next album, Forever, there was a giveaway track that was called “Wings of Joy”… Jim being awkward again!

DOA: Is the song “Reach (live)” on the Self-Non-Self album the same song that appears on your download-only release, Live at Amsterdam?

Ali: Yes.

DOA: After Wings Of Joy made its mark, you followed it up with two beautiful albums, Forever and Loved, and then released a French spoken-word album, with classical strings accompaniment called La Tragedie d’Oreste et Electre, which was based upon the play “Les Mouches” by Jean-Paul Sartre, which, in turn, was based on the Greek mythology of Orestes and Electra. How did this unusual and interesting project come about and who was involved with it?

Ali: We were in the studio recording the Loved album and Jim sampled the sound of the studio chair, which was making a weird creaking noise. Then he pitched it down and looped it, and that became the underlying sound for the first track on Orestes and Electre, (“Comme Je suis Libre”). It was a weird disturbing sound but he layered some oboe and French horn sounds over in a contrasting gentle melody. He had also started to write some really interesting orchestral pieces. I don’t know why, but when I was listening to it, trying to think of some lyrics for it, I was reminded of a quote I had learnt years before when I had read the play when I was learning French. So I recited some lines that had stuck in my mind over the music. Then I went home and found my copy of the play and read it again and was sort of profoundly struck by it and I thought that we should try to write music for the whole play. So we wrote some more music and I edited some scenes and we made our own adaptation of the play. It was at the height of ‘Brit Pop’ in England and everybody thought we had gone mad! Jim and I originally wanted to release the album as a double album with Loved as we recorded it during the same period. On the one hand at that time, we were moving towards a more upbeat sound on some songs on the Loved album, but on the other hand we had these sort of experimental tendencies. In the end Orestes came out as a separate album in 1996. We were really happy that Jean-Paul Sartre’s publisher and his estate gave us permission for the release, as they very rarely allow anybody to perform or record extracts from the original text.

DOA: The 2-CD EP Collection: Vol. 1 & 2 was released in 1997 and it includes many EP tracks and a couple cuts from La Tragedie d’Oreste et Electre. Who decided to compile and release this body of work?

Ali: BMG wanted us to do a compilation… It was sort of an obligation, after our contract with them had ended.

DOA: On the second disc of the EP Collection there are two hidden tracks, the smoothly stunning “Slide” and your classic “Starblood”, spaced after the last song, “Dance of the Furies”. Why are they not included in the regular listing of songs?

Ali: Can’t remember! It was probably to do with the running order…

DOA: Who had the final say in the track listing of EP Collection, Vol 1 & 2? I’m curious to see how the included songs were decided on, and why songs like “Shine Like Stars” and “Leave Her to Heaven (II)” were not included on the compilation.

Ali: Jim and I had the final say on the tracklisting… I can’t really remember why certain tracks were included or not. We both have to like a track to include it and sometimes one or the other of us goes off certain songs and so they don’t get used. Also, you can only fit a certain number of minutes onto a CD, we had to limit it a bit!

DOA: A promo EP called Lilies was released around the time Loved came out. Was the purpose of Lilies to promote the studio album? Was it meant to be sold to the general public? Who decided to release this promo that includes the wonderful song “Shine Like Stars”, which I don’t think was released anywhere else?

Ali: This was (I think) a radio promo single that only came out in America. It was put together by Arista in America who released the Loved album and we didn’t know anything about it.

DOA: You took a break of a few years between the albums Population 4 and Future Songs. During the interim, you formed your own record label called Dadaphonic, and you released both Future Songs and Particles & Waves on the label. I’m assuming your new album is also released in this manner. What has it been like to own and run the record label?

Ali: It has been good. Can’t imagine doing it any other way now.

DOA: I’m assuming you have more freedom, but also more responsibility, which impinges on that freedom, in running a record label yourself. Do you handle the day-to-day business of Dadaphonic, or does Jim, or do other people?

Ali: Yes, the freedom thing is definitely good! We have to organize things quite carefully and you have to be quite motivated, otherwise nothing happens. I do most of the day to day stuff, with Jim sometimes chipping in. We make decisions about things together. It was hard on the first album that we did, Future Songs, because the process of releasing an album, getting it manufactured, trying to raise money, finding distribution, publishing, etc… was all really foreign to us as that side of things had been done by other people on our earlier albums, but now we have a bit more experience it is a little easier, we work with really nice people (at SRD) who distribute us in lots of different countries and help us a lot, and we have a publisher, Mute Records who are really supportive.

DOA: You’ve been on several tours, most memorably opening for The Cure on their World Tour in 1992. What has touring been like for you (best times, worst times, craziest times) and what do you like to do when you visit new cities or countries?

Ali: The tour with The Cure was amazing. It was our first major tour and we played 50 shows in USA with them and 51 shows in Europe… It was great playing with The Cure, getting to know them and visiting wonderful places. Also we have been to Mexico several times since by ourselves since then and we love it there. We’ve had a lot of memorable times… Have been touring for a very long time on and off! We love Italy and had a great time on the recent tour there. Worst time was having a van break down 5 times on a tour a few years ago and we got stranded in the Swiss mountains in deep snow in -15 degrees…

DOA: Over the years you’ve collaborated with other musicians, not as part of Cranes, but as a solo vocalist. How do you decide on which musical projects to work? Could you give some details about these collaborations and how they came about?

Ali: Sometimes people ask me to sing on things and if I like it and if they seem nice, then sometimes I do it!

DOA: I think your most recent work is on the album Hons by Dokkemand, i.e., Norwegian musician Marius Grotterud Egenes. The album comes out in Europe this month and in December in the U.S. What is your contribution to his album?

Ali: I sang and wrote lyrics for one song which he sent me by email. I emailed it back to him and then he took out the vocals and edited it into the actual version of the song. I really like the album. It’s great! I just heard it yesterday. I had no idea it was going to be released all over the place though. The singing on my track is really basic… I’m a bit embarrassed about it!

DOA: You’re also featured on the song “Endormie” by the band Twine, based in Baltimore, Maryland. How did you end up collaborating with Greg Malcolm and Chad Mossholder? The result is beautiful and melancholy.

Ali: They sent me a song while we were recording the Particles and Waves album and I thought it was an interesting project. We transferred it onto our recorder at Jim’s and I made up some words and sang on it…

DOA: A long while back you worked on a side project called In Rain with Rudy Tambala of A.R. Kane. Rough Trade released 3 songs, I’m assuming as an EP, “Grow”, “…And Julie Rose”, and “Sleep”, and I’ve had the pleasure of hearing all 3 songs, and I think this collaboration produced glowing results. What was it like working with Rudy?

Ali: It was great. It was a long time ago, 1990 I think… I went to London several times over the course of a year where he had a studio and we wrote and recorded the three songs.

DOA: You recorded some Christmas songs, possibly live, one being “Christmas Angel” and the other “Happy Christmas (War is Over)”. I’m just curious if you recorded these for a charity, or other, event.

Ali: These were both recorded for charity compilation records in America.

DOA: Jim scored the soundtrack to the short film Scarborough Ahoy!, directed by Tania Diez. Did you work on this project at all? Any insight on how Jim created the soundtrack? Did he watch the finished film and then come up with the music?

Ali: We worked together on some of it and some of it he wrote by himself. We were in the studio recording the Loved album at the time, so several of the tracks in the film are adapted versions of songs from that album, i.e., “Beautiful Friend”, “Paris and Rome”, “Shining Road”, which the director had chosen. Jim also wrote some really nice instrumental pieces. There’s one called “Pier Scene” that I really like and we also used a song that had some trumpet on it that our Dad had played back when we used to record back in the garage!

DOA: You sing on “Your Sweet Love”, a song by Trash Palace (i.e., producer Dimitri Tikovoi). How did you get involved with this project?

Ali: A friend of Dimitri’s, an artist called Jean-Louis Murat had one of our albums and he had played it to Dimitri, when Dimitri was looking for vocalists for his project. Then he sent me a CD of some pieces of music and asked if I’d like to sing on one. Dimitri wrote all of the music for the album and then approached different singers for different tracks. John Cale did one, Brian Molko, Micheal Sheehy…

DOA: What are some of the perils and pleasures of recording an album in your home studio? I read in the French magazine Elegy from 2004 that you lost some of your songs due to a recording machine that broke down! Since you have a home studio now, does that put a constant pressure on you to work as a band, or does it free you up time-wise to work on songs when you want?

Ali: We often seem to record over things by accident! Also recording at home means you sometimes spend too long on things, going over and over. But also it gives you the freedom to come back to things and develop them at your own pace.

DOA: You hand-crafted and printed up a lyrics book titled Til the Stars Shine in 1998, with song lyrics mainly from your studio albums. Did you do this due to fan requests to know exactly what you are singing about, or did you want your words to exist as a separate entity away from the music – as poetry, as a written document, as something less transient than a song?

Ali: This was in response to requests from fans! For years I didn’t want to separate the lyrics from the music, but when I finally sat down and typed out all the lyrics to all the songs, I found that it did tell a sort of story, a kind of emotional map of that period. I thought it would be quite nice to collect them all together.

DOA: Going into more detail about your lyrics, you write of love and loss, desire and restlessness, longing and hope, and your words clearly stand on their own without musical adornment. The lyrics you’ve written from the start and up through Population 4 seem more conflicted, where you’re sailing some stormy relationship seas. Do your lyrics reflect your own specific experiences and emotions? Are your lyrics primarily focused on one particular person?

Ali: They usually reflect what has been going on around us at that time.

DOA: On the more recent albums Future Songs and Particles & Waves, you vocals are much clearer and listeners can discern what you are singing. Your sound has also changed over the course of your career, evolving in a general arc from turmoil to calm (well, with the exception of the Population 4 album, released in 1997, that roils the waters a bit.). Does this overall progression have to do with your outlook on life, and that perhaps you feel more centered now than before, or does it depend upon who is in the band and what their contributions are?

Ali: We never plan how things will sound, we just keep working at it until a sound sort of emerges. We do edit quite a lot though, getting rid of stuff we don’t like.

DOA: I find it interesting that the themes of your lyrics and your vocal delivery go hand in hand with the music Jim (and others) create(s). It’s like you’re on the same wavelength.

Ali: Yes, you sort of tune in to each other I guess.

DOA: I’ve read in other interviews you’ve done that the song-writing process usually involves Jim coming up with instrumental pieces and that you go with the musical flow and incorporate your lyrics and singing into the mix.

Ali: Yes, often it works like that, although sometimes I come up with the guitar and voice for a song and then Jim works around that.

DOA: Since you are the main song-writer of Cranes, do you have any interest in becoming a novelist or poet or other type of writer where the printed word is the main event?

Ali: Well, the main project for my MA was to write a novel. I haven’t finished the whole book yet, but I have completed 40,000 words. It’s a children’s book. I’d like to record it as an audio book one day.

DOA: This is totally subjective on my part, but on certain songs on Particles & Waves, I’m detecting the influence of Mojave 3 members Neil Halstead and Rachel Goswell in some of the folk-tinged strummed guitar sounds and Jim’s singing on “Every Town”. Am I totally off-base with this assessment?

Ali: I really like Neil and Rachel’s songs, love their solo albums too, but can’t think of any connection with the Particles album! We’ve known them since 1993 when we toured with Slowdive but hadn’t seen them for ages. We asked Rachel to play a show with us, at the ICA in London after Particles and Waves came out though and it was great to see her again. She had just released her solo album at the time…

DOA: I have to ask, since there is a bit of a Slowdive connection here, if Slowdive’s song “Alison” has anything to do with you?!

Ali: No.

DOA: Your songs have been used in movies and commercials, one extract of which, “Astronauts”, was played in an American Express commercial featuring actress Kate Winslet. How did this all come about? Will more of your songs be playing in future commercials?

Ali: Quite a lot of our songs have been used in films and TV dramas over the years, usually just background stuff that you wouldn’t really notice much. The American Express advert came out of the blue, somebody heard the song and thought it worked for their advert and they approached us. It’s quite rare for something like that to happen, so not sure if it would happen again, but we like it when our songs are used in films! We are published by Mute Song and they sometimes circulate our albums to TV and film people so you never know!

DOA: What music are you into these days?

Ali: I really like Sigur Ros and I loved their film Heima! I like Blonde Redhead, Ladytron, The Kills…

DOA: Your non-musical interests include, at least academically-speaking, literature and language, and you can speak French and Spanish. What type of literature do you fancy the most?

Ali: Well, I hadn’t read much for a while, but I got back into the habit while working on my MA. I re-read some Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. I love those! Read lots of other more contemporary novels and some literary theory stuff. Had to write an essay discussing whether or not there is a connection between creativity and ‘mourning and melancholia’ with reference to Freud and works of Fyodor Dostoyevsky! I really like Dostoyevsky, I love his books and ended up doing loads of biographical research about him which was really interesting. The Freud stuff was really heavy going though!

DOA: Have you been keeping up with learning French and/or Spanish at all?

Ali: Spoke a little French when we were in Paris recently and last spoke Spanish when we were in Mexico a few years ago.

DOA: Cranes is based in Portsmouth, England, and I think your home studio is located there, but you moved to London at some point and traveled to Portsmouth to record material. Are you still living in London or have you moved back to Portsmouth?

Ali: I moved back to Portsmouth a couple of years ago, but still spend quite a lot of time in London.

DOA: This is a totally girly question, but I love your fashion sense and I was wondering where you get your empire-waist, and other, dresses from? I just love that style!

Ali: Anywhere really. Some are thrift store, some from high street shops, some I make myself.

DOA: I would like to thank Ali with all my heart for her replies to my in-depth, inquisitive Interview questions. I know it was overwhelming to go through all the detailed questions, and I deeply appreciate that she took her time and energy to respond to my questions.

National Beekeepers Society – Pawn Shop Etiquette

The record’s title track begins with muted guitar notes, the humming of an organ and the soft, occasional strum of an acoustic guitar. The resulting mood, accumulated near the end of 13 songs and 34 energetic minutes, is one of exhaustion, if not a kind of broken-down resolution, a tired resolve. “Like a sick, sad dog, you’ve been trained/ to an idle happiness/ Hope you change,” the singer offers, his voice a solitary figure. “Pawn shop etiquette is demeaning/ Pawn shop etiquette is demanding.” The songs then builds, accented by semi-soaring electric guitar, the understated shuffle of drums, the creeping insinuation of sliced-up white noise, but it never quite reaches a fever, instead choosing to maintain a somber pulse. The result is emotive, even unsettling.

What’s even stranger about the song, the record’s last, than its apparent attention to melancholy is how much it differs from what surrounds it. You can say plenty of things – and you should – about Pawn Shop Etiquette, the sophomore outing from Madison’s National Beekeepers Society, but one adjective that rarely, rarely, rarely will come to mind is mournful. The record surges and bristles with a startling energy, the kind of enthusiasm and focus of purpose to which one hopes young bands still aspire. This is music played with blood constantly pumping through the veins – exciting, life-affirming stuff – and not some academic exercise in genre mimicry, no matter how much it pledges allegiances to the ghosts and purveyors of pop’s past. This is a record to get excited about.

And where does all that enthusiasm lead us? Well, every song on the disc seems to fall neatly into place, from the choppy guitars and distorted fuzz-bass drive of the album-opening “Look At Me” (“Look at me, look at me/ I’m on a magazine/ Pretty people should be heard/ Pretty people should be seen”) to the bluesy asides of “Suburbanite” to the slacker-revolution Pavement-isms and guitar meltdowns of the incredible “Confidence.” The record seems to far out-span its running time and, let’s cut to the chase, it shows a firm grasp of hooks and melody that should have critics drooling all over themselves.

Nowhere is this more evident than on gems like “So Hardcore,” which buttresses catchy, “My Sharona”-style verses with snarky vocals and psych-rock bridges, or “Given In,” with its rousing guitars and hand-claps, or the too-short romp “Upon The Hills of Georgia.” (Only complaint on “Georgia:” if you’re going to go to the trouble and quote Pushkin, make the vocals a little more audible.)

Elsewhere, the quartet cranks up verses and choruses that exhibit just how tightly wound an outfit they are. For this, turn to the excellently titled “Orange Is For Apathy,” where guitar solos and a background of screamed vocals float above and around electronically assisted percussion, or “Sixty Five,” which, glassy guitars and all, is one of the most danceable tracks in the mix.

“Don’t Go Takin’” could make The Kinks blush. “Fall of Rome,” with its “Where Is My Mind?” intro on acoustic guitar, channels The Pixies. “Lazy” starts as a lazy Sunday blues exercise but, once it kicks into gear, will kick you flat on your back.

Is it a great record? Perhaps. It has a focus, a kind of sonic theme running through the proceedings, that you’re not likely to find in many records this year. In short, it’s composed without sounding as such and that’s no small feat. It’s invigorating. It’s as catchy as the winter flu. And it delivers on all the promise of the group’s jangly-guitared, self-titled debut and then some. What more could you want?

Soft Targets – Heavy Rainbow

Soft Targets are a pop-rock trio from Tallahassee, Florida. The group’s influences are obviously varied as we see elements of the most contemporary indie rock mixed with a little glam rock and stretching even to some classic rock riffs. This would be a winning combination, yet the execution makes for forgettable listening experience, minus a few shining moments.

The first song is a great example of what this band should continue to aspire to be. “Something Else” is a delicate indie-pop gem and it opens the album pretty strongly. One thing you should note about this band is that they never really use a heavy guitar sound. Their music is mostly pretty soft, with one guitar, a keyboard, drums and bass, yet they manage to sound big in their own way. The keyboard line really steals the show in this opener. Next is “Calm Me Down” where they shift gears a little bit. It opens with a pretty derivative guitar riff and continues with some pretty enticing melodies. The problem becomes readily apparent here: Jesse Corey’s vocals. He tries to hard to insert glam rock influences, such as David Bowie and unfortunately it ends up falling flat. Had he used a more soothing vocal style here, it would have been a more engaging listen.

The next song “Sugar Glass” has the same feel of “Calm Me Down”; it has that kinda of old 50′s jazz-rock feel, yet it is drastically slower. It’s not a very solid track, and becomes boring very quickly. Thankfully, “The World Looks Bigger Now” picks up the pace again, and is quite engaging for a while thanks to the fact that Corey decided to downplay the glam feel in his voice for this one. I absolutely loved the little guitar bridge toward the end of this one. It was simple yet, it carried a poignant feel with it. “Surrendering Slow” is another slower track, this time with a dancy beat to it. This is one of the best tracks on the album as it carries a simple yet engaging melody.

OK, there are a few tracks on here that are strong enough to sustain little interest. Other than the few I mentioned, “Under Control”, “Skyscraper” and “Small Straight” are on the right track. The problem with the overall record is, for example, on songs like “Off Season”, and “Calm Me Down”, where the band exhibits great proficiency with their instruments, yet they write ultimately unmemorable songs as a whole. Even the songs I argued as good tracks can be un-engaging at times, yet they do possess some good ideas.

If you like soft indie-pop music, then Soft Targets may be for you. Not the most engaging stuff at times, yet there are a few bright spots here and there. These guys definitely have some potential.

Goddamn Electric Bill – Topics For Gossip

More often then not anything labeled electronic gets the reputation of being cold and impersonal. While that’s largely true, despite all their talk of computer worlds and man-machines I find Kraftwerk to be the opposite; warm, inviting, and oddly comforting. Much like the music of those 4 power stations, Jason Torbert’s project Goddamn Electric Bill extends this bucking of the trend by creating a sublime album filled with human warmth.

Topics For Gossip does what any respectable second album should do which is expand on the ideas of the first without exact repetition or to stray too far off course. Many moments sound oddly familiar, like second cousins of the first album, Swallowed By The Machines. This, is a good thing as that album was rooted in feeling despite the keys, synths, drum machines, and other plug in-able instruments. Comparing the two it now seems that Machines was quite simple in it’s construction. I’m sure Torbert would balk at that idea, and rightfully so, but Gossip is a far more sophisticated and dare I say, mature, album.

Two things on Topics For Gossip will receive the most notice. The first being more instrumentation in the form of (mostly) acoustic guitars. The second being vocals. As in Torbert’s and not samples. Remember how RJD2 did that about face and decided to make an indie rock/pop record? Gossip is like that only with far superior results. Torbert uses his voice and guitar skills to enhance each song and not to reinvent the wheel. From the album opener “The Morning Commute” the new instrument shows its face but not before the scene is set with pulsing beats and a melody that shimmers like a sunrise. Once the guitar makes its entrance it isn’t showy or draws attention to itself. As the album progresses more songs revolve around acoustic guitar melodies much like early Dave Pajo/Aerial M did creating an expansion of sound and movement.

“Our History, Part 2,” does in fact pick up where the first part (on the debut) left off but not for long. Only for a minute or so do we hear some nearly tribal drumming before turning into another song altogether, this time with Torbert softly singing. Lyrically it isn’t the most poetic verse ever written but that’s because he’s more interested with sound and scene then breaking new ground. Later Torbert’s vocals shine on “Ten Thousand Years,” with a building instrumental verse that explodes into a bright moving chorus.

GDEB somehow makes music for any scenic occasion. As fall sets in and leaves change this was my soundtrack for football season, elections, and wool sweaters. With Torbert based in sunny southern California, I can’t imagine he’s come across these things too often. But somehow this music is also perfectly suited for the sound of waves hitting the shore, the breeze coming in off of the ocean. It’s also adaptable for late night drives alone. It’s an album that will allow you time to think. Lest I give into hyperbole, it’s an album of the year. Torbert has created another stunning work full of real feeling and honesty, something rare in this particular field.

Belleisle – Longstanding

Originally a duo from Montreal, singer-songwriters Tasha Cyr and Rebecca Silverberg expanded Belleisle into a quartet for their debut album Longstanding. The album contains 13 tracks and approximately 38 minutes of reserved folk-pop with pretty vocals, but nothing that you would want to hear more than a couple of times, if that.

The slow, acoustic-based tunes are mostly plodding, folksy frameworks colored in with vibraphone, melodica, piano and bass, while subdued and smoothly sweet vocal harmonies hover on top. An occasional glint of electric guitars add a bit of hum but not enough to keep this collection of tunes from being considered underwhelming folk-pop. The songwriting is far from polished and is mostly dull with nothing contagious or grabbing. The only thing that is remotely endearing are the vocals and even they wear thin over time.

The songs on Longstanding fail to yield any emotional response and are void of any pop hooks or hummable melodies and listeners will be hard pressed to make it through the whole disc without hitting stop. In fact you’d be better off if you skipped it altogether, unless you like folk-pop that burns slowly with a smooth, mellow light.

The Dark Romantics – Heartbreaker

In ninetieth century America, The Dark Romantics were poets who explored the darker side of human nature, the psyche and Transcendentalism. They had a pessimistic view of the world. Today, The Dark Romantics are an indie rock band from Florida whose sophomore effort, Heartbreaker, exploits a similar attitude. While undeniably reminiscent of their idols, the LP has enough passion and memorable moments to make it a winner.

The band was founded by vocalist Eric Collins, who has been compared to A.C. Newman (New Pornographers) and Thom Yorke. There is also a bit of Freddy Mercury and The Strokes (but with better songs). Joining him is his brother-in-law, Denison Marrs, their wives, Carla and Amanda Jones (yes, they’re sisters), and drummer Fifi Saloman. Heartbreak is a “…dark, sexy, transcendental and romantic…” record that turns the pessimism of the poets into something beautiful.

First, special attention should be paid to the “Heartbreaker” tracks (parts 1-3), which serve as an opener, intermission and closer. Parts 2 and 3 are short electronic preludes that are very original, beautiful and slightly chilling in how much emotion they convey in a very simple way. Specifically, part three sounds a lot like Anathema’s song “Closer,” as both have computerized effects on the vocals to present a voice devoid of human qualities. The title track, as expected, includes parts of the previous two and is simply great, and, since these are radically different from the rest of the album, show that The Dark Romantics are capable of diversity.

As for the rest of the disc, it’s not as unique as the “Heartbreaker” trilogy, but it still has a lot of fantastic moments. “Love & Pain,” the second track, starts to show a similarity to other bands, but has a catchy chorus, and Collins successfully represents desperation. “This Is Young Love” is a slower song, but that doesn’t take away from it being one of the best tracks, and they keyboard fits nicely. Actually, this is one of a few songs, both vocally and musically, that bare the same tone as sadder No Doubt tracks (which isn’t a bad thing). “Never Been Loved” is Heartbreaker‘s best track. The verses build up well to the chorus, which will get stuck in your head for days. Collins excels at showcasing a strained emotionality, and it is never clearer than in this song. That, combined with a wonderful string arrangement (which is true for the whole disc), makes this a really great song, plain and simple. “W.G.L.Y” has very nice interplay between the guitar and strings, and is very orchestral. While all of Heartbreaker features suburb vocals, affective music, and an uncommon but completely successful use of keyboards, strings, and electronic noises, these songs are the cream of the crop.

The Dark Romantics does sound like other bands (like The Strokes), so at first listen it may not captivate. Personally, I wasn’t impressed the first time I listened to the disc (I only got through a few songs before I gave up). But after the second play through, the true skill and uniqueness of Heartbreaker revealed itself. The songwriting and production is top notch, and prove that a band can technically sound like other bands while having the talent to rise far above them.

Although I’ve never heard this grou’s debut or follow-up EPs, I can tell that Heartbreaker doesn’t succumb to any sophomore slump. There isn’t anything revolutionary on here, but there is something special. Collins and his band/family have crafted a fine collection of emotional, catchy and all around wonderful material. The “Heartbreaker” pieces are especially interesting and succeed at carrying a heavy weight with simple tools. If The Dark Romantics interweave these techniques with its regular sound more on the next outing, it may be even better, and I’d love to hear it.

My Milky Way Arms – My Milky Way Arms EP

My Milky Way Arms is a collaboration between Houston, Texas-based MilkMan and Tim2K. They formed the band in the summer of 2007 and recently released this self-titled, resplendent 5-song EP that gravitates towards colder climes in its sparkling, crystalline electronic sounds that evoke the remoteness and wonder of the Arctic, while retaining a human warmth that comes from the sighing, exultant vocals. All the songs luxuriate in a shimmering, expansive, sustained, melodic high produced by the distorted electronics and guitars and arcing skyward, harmonizing vocals that are layered into and expand upon pop-song structures.

The euphoria commences with “Magneto (Aahhh!!!)” which incorporates bashed cymbals, drum beat, sustained organ-like notes, bell tones, and vocals that recall Jonsi of Sigur Ros on the verse sections. The soft focus vocals are shadowed with curves of slow guitar and up-tempo cymbal tap, until the delightfully vibrant chorus of “Ahhhing” vocal harmonizing and loops of light, bright bell tones comes in. There is a blissfully fuzzed-out component to this song, as well as to all the other tracks on this EP, so that the vocals are half buried in the mix most of the time, going with the melodic flow of the song. The lyrics “So it begins. / The whole world sinks in.”, however, do rise to the surface amid a build up of drum beat, guitar, pelting synth notes, and vocals that take on a hint of melancholic longing by the end of the song.

The “verse, chorus, verse” pop-song structure of “Soft Alarm” is extended with multiple rounds of interchanging calm verses and upbeat chorus sections, contrasting sustained organ notes and a wobbly, drawn-out, bubbling sound with faster drum beat, smashed cymbals, and rapid bass line. There is a static-like background sound throughout the song that creates a thick texture against which light and hazily mellow vocals, bright xylophone notes, and jingling bells play out.

While this “Unbearable Lightness of Being” doesn’t star Daniel Day- Lewis or Juliette Binoche, it features a pop structure brightened by layers of shining bell tones and blissed-out “Ooohs” and “Ahhhs” on the chorus, a clacking wood beat, buzzing synth and flute-like notes, and a grinding, low-end bass line. Near the end of the song, high pitched, sustained electronic notes and three-stranded vocal “Ahhhs” highlight the main vocal line, lifting the song up to harmonizing heaven.

The standout “Sunshine” is true to its title, a glorious, diffuse, and dreamy number with a continuous burnished, heightened wash of sound, like certain Sigur Ros songs on a high, with just enough dissonance to cut the glimmering, sugary effect. Warped, heart-tugging synth notes vie for affection with a low-key, echoed, thumping beat, short-riff guitar notes, and runs of tinkling bell tones on the verses, then it’s all attenuated uplift with high register vocal “Ooohing” and a hollow, distorted jet engine guitar line swooping in amid dashing electronic blips and light bell notes.

Closer “All Awful Impossibilities” is more straightforward in tone and lyrics, but the vocals are still somewhat buried under a snowfall of sound. The vocals are sweet and high, like Jonsi of Sigur Ros, resting against delicate runs of several harpsichord-like notes that form a swirling pattern. The chorus builds up with cymbal bash and tap and a rapid beat with brightly flitting electronic blips and squelches forming a sonic undercurrent. The pace slows on the verses, with sing-talking vocals backed by angelic, wordless harmonies and a vividly strummed guitar line. The dynamics of this song fluctuate between tranquil verses that drift along with sweet vocals and agitated, electronic-based chorus before it all dissipates with the sound of burbling synth notes.

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