Gone Is Gone - Gone Is Gone

Supergroups can be really amazing, or really really really freakin bad.  Gone Is Gone is a Metal Supergroup made up of Mastodon's Troy Sanders, Queens of the Stone Age's Troy Van Leeuwen, At The Drive In's Tony Hajjar, as well as Mike Zarin.  Overall, that's a huge lineup, and my expectations were pretty damn high.  I wasn't expecting a full length album from Gone Is Gone for quite some time.  Then we got this Self Titled EP, which is seriously almost as long as an album.  So let's not waste any more time shall we. 

This not-so-short EP starts with “Violescent”.   I know this is a metal album and all but there has to be a more graceful way to ease into the track.  Right off the bat the guitars are doing close to nothing to me, hell they almost sound flat.  A lot of these tracks have the same Sludge/Stoner metal feel that you would expect to hear from these artists, but there also just happens to be a hint of doom metal in there as well.  Sadly, just from the intro alone it’s obvious that we’re diving into one of the tamest metal releases of the entire year.  There are instrumentally some highlights occasionally, and Troy’s vocals sound solid.  But as a whole, “Violescent” just sounds so incredibly uninspired.  The bands that these boys come from: Mastodon, Queens of the Stone Age, At The Drive In, are all known for having very ambitious works.  “Violescent” on the other hand just sounds so soulless.   The track as it goes on continues to have very tame instrumentals, and even worse little to no chemistry between anyone.  And this is supposed to be a single?  Whoa nelly. The guitar solo towards the end brings back a little heaviness, but even that is tame when you look at Troy’s older solos.  Up next we have “Starlight”, which right off the bat sounds darker.  At least it’s trying to be much darker, but it doesn’t work at all, it just ends up sounding goofy and sort of cliche.  While the drums pack a punch, Troy’s vocals I’m not feeling in the slightest bit.  Here Troy sounds like he’s going for this huge over the top theatrical sort of metal sound, and it’s far from what I want to hear.  Then we have the lyrics, holy shit the lyrics.  There is not a single lyric here that isn’t a gigantic let down as well as being filled to the brim with a laundry list of the worst cliches in metal.  On top of all of that, the production on this just sounds freakin awful, and when the chorus rolls around it’s one of the most depressing metal moments I’ve heard in a very long time.  “Starlight” once again also shows that there is literally little to no chemistry between any of these men, and when it comes to everything else I just can’t for the life of me take anything seriously.  When I hear the intro to “Stolen From Me”, I can’t help but perk my ears up a little bit, the guitars and drums here sound instantly better.  Then out of freakin nowhere these keyboards pop in and absolutely throw all of that away.  And because I wasn’t already digging these vocals, the moment I hear Troy’s vocals here I lose it.  These are borderline crappy Nu-Metal vocals.  Overall, “Stolen From Me” sounds just as safe and “factory made” as some of the last few tracks here. There are a few moments that give you a taste of something heavy, but as a whole there’s nothing remotely exciting going on.  Even the post-chorus which kind’ve helps make things more interesting is instantly watered down by this production.  This really isn’t good man.  On “Character”, Gone Is Gone once again are trying their hardest to force an atmosphere.  When you think about the bands that these guys came from, you really would think they’d succeed.  The reality is though that “Character” goes absolutely nowhere.  Then we have this ridiculous voiceover that pops in. It’s insanely cheesy, and one of the most cliche things I’ve heard so far, but it kinda works.  I wouldn’t mind it at all if there was actually something else going on on this track.  There are some cool guitar tones here and there sure, but outside of that there’s nothing.  These guys seriously need to hunker down.  

Once “One Divided” starts, things actually start to look up a bit.  The drums here sound legitimately heavy, and while the guitar intro is absolutely awful the later guitar work sounds just fine.  As far as vocals and lyrics go, “One Divided” picks up the pace just as much, with over-the-top lyrics that are so out there that they actually work just fine.  This track takes a hard left turn though towards the end.  It’s really weird, as soon as I get comfortable with enjoying this track, Gone Is Gone drop everything and get all experimental for the rest of the track.  It’s a start, but I can enjoy most of “One Divided”.  Then we have “Praying From The Danger”.  Right from the intro we can tell this has some nice bite to it.  The vocals here pull off that slight doom metal feel they’ve been toying with quite well, it almost sounds like something you’d hear on a black metal record.  There’s some serious darkness here, but then we get to that main guitar riff, man that is just so bland.  Once the verse starts though things pick up, it’s nothing unbelievable but it’s much more tolerable to say the very least.  It is however the sludgiest thing I’ve heard here so far, and that chorus is one of the heaviest here as well.  “Praying From The Danger” at its core does what it’s supposed to do, and shows that Gone Is Gone can indeed show signs of unity.  Then we have “Recede and Enter”, which definitely keeps with the tone of the last few tracks.  But at it’s core it’s just more of the same rehashed.  I do like the background instrumental, it gives me that slight chill that I look for in metal, but in the minute and a half this track sticks around I'm ultimately left unaffected.  Then we have the EP’s finale, “This Chapter”.  Right from that opening riff I am 100% not feeling this at all, this sounds like a metal song that takes itself entirely too seriously.  When things speed up and start going, it does improve, but it’s only ok at best.  As far as vocals go, I’ve never been a fan of Troy’s softer material, and this is no different.  This project is messy as all hell, there are a few moments of unity though which make me think just maybe these guys can pull something great off someday.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lCaxOUNpcI

Rating: 5.9/10

Give A Listen To: "One Divided", "Praying From The Danger", that's about it.  

Overall Thoughts:  This thing is meessssssssssyyyyyy.  Half of these tracks have little to no unity between the band members, and sound more like a messy jam between a bunch of guys who just met.  For every genuinely cool, heavy moment here, there are plenty of cringe worthy moments that feel so safe and "factory made".  There is however a track or two here that makes me think maybe Gone Is Gone can have some chemistry at some point, we shall see.

The Avalanches - "Wildflower"

16 years ago, The Avalanches released "Since I Left You".  Since then it's become one of the most beloved and influential electronic albums ever.  Listening to it still to this day is an experience, as The Avalanches dive deeply into the world of samples to create truly incredible new dance/electronic.  However, The Avalanches know how to keep their fans waiting, as they've apparently been working on this album on and off since 2005.  Rumors here, reunions there, I never thought this album was gonna come out.  But would ya look at that, here we are in 2016 with a brand new Avalanches record.  And yes I'm very aware this review's pretty late, but so was this album man!  Lets start this bad boy shall we.  

As far as the intro to “Wildflower”, honestly I don’t really have that much to say.  “The Leaves Were Falling” is only seconds long, and consists solely of sound effects of what seems to be someone trying to find a radio station to listen to.  It’s kinda cute, but that’s all I have to say.  On the other hand as soon as this track is over, The Avalanches explode into the gigantic “Because I’m Me”.  This track is beyond huge, it has a very distinct vintage flair, but it’s far from full of itself.  It takes a bit to get going, but the moment that it does it’s just such a wonderful, feel good moment.  The horns are triumphant, and Camp Lo’s contributions here go over very smoothly.  “Because I’m Me” is one to get you up and get you moving clearly.   But more than anything it’s a wonderful display of the overall feeling of this album.  “Wildflower” is far from “Since I Left You”, it’s much peppier and cheery.  Not to mention, the nostalgia feel on this track and most of the album for that matter is overwhelming.  But The Avalanches pull it off well, blending their breezy styler of electronic music with some Neo-Psychedelic rock, as well as occasionally some Rap.  The album cover is just as colorful and lifelike as most of the music on here.  My only real issue right off the bat, and for most of the album, are these transitions.  “Since I Left You” so many years ago sounded like one long, continuous experience.  Some of the transitions on “Wildflower” seemingly take freakin’ forever and offer up a whole lot of nothing.  Up next on the track list we have “Frankie Sinatra”, the first track released from this album.  Now I’ve listened to “Frankie Sinatra” tons of times since it’s been released, and I can enjoy it now.  But when I first heard it, I really didn’t know how to take it.  It’s just a really strange track, especially in between these unbelievably colorful, semi-psychedelic electronic tracks.  “Frankie Sinatra” has this weird, sort of Calypso, sort of twisted carnival theme to the entire track.  And then we have the features, which totally add to just how bizarre it really is.  First we have Danny Brown, who may just be my favorite rapper in the entire world right now.  The utter insanity, highly animated verses, and strange voice that Danny has, really make this track more strange and darker than it already was.  Then we have MF Doom also on this track, one of underground Hip Hop’s most legendary and mysterious voices on this one as well.  “Frankie Sinatra” is completely unlike the rest of the album, but it’s funky and enjoyable.  The rap verses actually blend well with the strange horns that pop in and out, but this one definitely sticks out like a sore thumb, and plenty of hardcore Avalanches fans aren’t going to dig this.  Up next we have “Subways”, another of the earlier tracks released from the album.  Funk is the name of the game here, and it is undeniable as this track begins.  You literally never know what flavor of electronic music you’re going to hear next when diving into an Avalanches record, but that’s half the fun.  “Subways” for example almost has a disco feel to it, this album here is gonna make you get up and move.  As far as the sampling on these tracks so far, of course it’s solid, and it’s a spectacle within itself (Be honest, isn’t it just so freakin cool listening to some of these tracks and hearing a sample you recognize).  “Subways” is just a solid dance tune, as far as going deep with samples it’s a little tame, but it’s solid.  “Going Home” is up next, and it’s basically an extension of “Subways”, using the same chorus and other lyrics.  It’s still very groovy and dance oriented, but at it’s core it’s just a glorified interlude, taking most of it’s content from the last track.  That’s not a bad thing, but I would have much rather them made “Subways” an extra minute or so and added some of these extra layers, quotes, and effects on.  There are some sweet ad-libs here to appreciate though, so it’s not all for nothing.  Then we have “If I Was A Folkstar”.  Right off the bat we’re dealing with some serious grooves again, this time with the inclusion of Toro Y Moi.  This actually sounds like something Toro Y Moi would have done a few years ago, and honestly he fits in wonderfully.   It’s very sunny, peppy, and it occasionally dips into a more psychedelic sound.  But once again I feel like things took a little too long to get started, absolutely nothing happens the first minute or so on “If I Was A Folkstar”.  Once that groove hits though it’s brilliant, so much so that I would call this one of my favorite tracks on the album.  Toro Y Moi almost sounds a little too at home here, his contributions are absolutely adorable and fantastic.  Moving on to another one of my favorite moments here, “Colours”.  Now this is where the heavy Psychedelic Pop elements come in, and boy do they ever pull it off.  “Colours” is easily the brightest, cheeriest track we’ve heard so far here (And that’s saying something).  They almost sound like one of the seminal 90’s Psych Folk/Psych Pop bands, maybe The Olivia Tremor Control.  That mostly comes to the hazy, sweet, dreamy vocals of Jonathan Donahue.  His vocals here take the already sunny atmosphere here and makes it even more sunny and cheery.  Just listening to tracks like this make me so happy, I wouldn’t have minded if this track was even longer.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLRPDovCpmM

Up next we have “Zap!”, and by this point in the album The Avalanches have thrown every rule in the book out the damn window and have shifted for a very weird album.  “Zap!” is easily the strangest interlude we’ve heard yet, filled with all sorts of bizarre samples.  There’s not much to dig into, but it’s oddly sweet for what it is.  Next up is “The Noisy Eater”, and the more this album goes on and on, it reminds me more and more of The Olivia Tremor Control, but that’s just me.  “The Noisy Eater” is probably the most bizarre track yet, featuring Biz Markee of all people.   I mean if you’re looking for a novelty track look no further, this one isn’t epic, and it certainly isn’t “track of the album” status.  However, it’s kinda cute and funny at parts.  Honestly I can see kids eating this track up (No pun intended).  The one real gripe I have with “The Noisy Eater” is that Beatles sample.  I mean c’mon, you’re going to go through all the trouble to sample a Beatles track, “Come Together” at that, and you’re going to waste it on a novelty track like this? C’mon boys.  Outside of that I don’t entirely hate it.  Up next is “Wildflower”,another interlude that’s on the short side, quite a lot of those here.  Once again though I don’t really have a lot to say about this one.  The rhythms are haunting and all, but outside of that there’s really not much going on here. On the other hand, “Harmony” is absolutely stunning.  The intro grabs you right away with lush string arrangements that compliment the beat wonderfully.  “Harmony” compare to some of the weirder tracks here is just so bright and optimistic, how refreshing.  The sampling on this one is just as solid as you could imagine, and the overall mood is just entrancing.  The album itself as a whole has this bright sunny atmosphere that I can’t help but adore.  There’s going to be people who don’t like this new, more psychedelic approach shown here by The Avalanches, but it’s so warm and inviting that I can’t say no.  “Live a Lifetime of Love” doesn’t waste a single second, throwing you headfirst into the psychedelic atmosphere.  The rap verses here by Paris Pershawn honestly fit in perfectly, and Ariel Pink’s contributions are solid as well (Of course, Ariel strives off this type of atmosphere).  “Live a Lifetime of Love” isn’t the most memorable track here, but it absolutely adds to the undeniably feel good atmosphere of the album.  Now while overall I haven’t really been into the interludes, “Park Music” surprisingly has quite a bit of bite to it.  The rhythms here are dreamy, the atmosphere is deep, and everything from the almost goofy guitars to the swirling vocals are super sweet.  THIS is what I expect from an Avalanches interlude.  Then we have “Livin’ Underwater (Is Somethin’ Wild)”, and let me tell you, there may have been small psychedelic moments before, but this is the heaviest psychedelic feel we’ve had so far.  It’s bizarre, it’s fuzzy, but it’s also very sweet and innocent.  The strings here are gorgeous, and the light vocals are very playful, this one could have been longer though in my book.  It’s still very enjoyable while it is here though.  

The Avalanches aren’t done throwing curveballs at us just yet, up next is “The Wozard of Iz”.  This one brings the funk back hard and there’s some serious bass in there, and everything about this beat is absolutely fantastic.  It may be completely off the wall, but it’s also the most ear grabbing track I’ve heard in a while.  Danny Brown is back for this one, and his ad-libs in the first minute or so are fairly memorable against the sunny feel of everything else on “The Wozard of Iz”.  As Danny’s verse starts, things get even more airy and even more psychedelic rock influenced if you believe it.  His verse, while it’s a little less animated and much more under control than usual, is done pretty damn effective.  As a whole, “The Wozard of Iz” is brilliant.  Up next we have another actually solid interlude in the form of “Over The Turnstiles”.  Here, we have lush strings, and one of the most colorful atmospheres we’ve heard in a while.  It’s 42 seconds long, but it’s a very enjoyable 42 seconds.  “Sunshine” is up next, and that huge blast of nostalgia is back with an absolute vengeance.  All of these vintage pop sounding instrumentals are just doing this album so many wonders.  No pun intended, this is easily the sunniest track here, I can’t stress enough just how overwhelmingly happy and warm this album is.  Everything on “Sunshine” is so uplifting, from the swirling keyboard melodies to the overpowering luscious strings.  Yes, they could have gone a little deeper with the vocal sampling, but at this point in the album “Sunshine” is pretty much exactly what I wanted to hear.  Brace yourselves boys and girls, we have a few really oddball tracks coming up.  First we have the interlude “Light Up”, and let me just give a lukewarm welcome back to that freaky carnival feel from earlier.  The vocal sampling here is solid and all, but this track overall is just weird.  It’s easily the strangest track I’ve heard in a while, a little too weird, especially after the last few interludes had such personality.  Then we have “Kaleidoscope Lovers”, the most psychedelic track here by far.  However, thankfully as trippy as this gets, The Avalanches keep it fun and bouncy.  “Kaleidoscope Lovers” though is very hard to keep track of.  There’s plenty of great elements, but it just takes so long to get going, and when it does it just doesn’t sound nearly as streamlined as other tracks here.  Jonathan Donahue is back for this one, and honestly his vocals are probably the most enjoyable element to this track.  “Kaleidoscope Lovers” isn’t terrible, but I just expect so much more.  “Stepkids” takes us right back to that heavy psych-pop sound of the 90’s, and it’s definitely more my speed.  We’re back to a much bouncier and playful vibe, and while the vocal snippets are strange they fit in pretty well.  While I do dig all of that though, I feel like “Stepkids” literally has no bite to it.  Finally, we have the album’s outro “Saturday Night Inside Out”, which thankfully is much more straightforward and ten times more enjoyable.  It’s strange and quirky, with an opening monologue from David Berman and one of the more bizarre instrumentals I’ve heard in a while.  However, that all comes together nicely and makes a super interesting track.  The samples make for a brilliant upbeat feel, while remaining just as sunny and epic as you’d expect.  David Berman’s monologue pops back in and remains just as intriguing, with Father John Misty’s backing vocals adding to this incredible atmosphere.  This is the outro I was hoping for. 

Rating: 8.1/10

Give A Listen To: "Because I'm Me", "If I Was A Folkstar", "Colours", "Sunshine"

Overall Thoughts:  "Wildflower" is absolutely different from "Since I Left You".  After 16 years though, I had no idea what to expect.  I was pleasantly surprised with this new more psychedelic sound, which I know isn't for everyone.  I just find the much peppier, happier sound of The Avalanches to be incredibly interesting sound for them.  Add that all with an intense feeling of Nostalgia and you've got quite the sound.  However, a lot of the interludes here are often completely unnecessary.  "Since I Left You" was so streamlined, it sounded like one long experience that was just incredible. "Wildflower" is a fantastic experience, but there are more than a few hiccups.  However, they're really onto something with this new sound, and I hope I don't have to wait another 16 years to see how it evolves.  

BadBadNotGood - IV

BadBadNotGood (Or BBNG) are a canadian Jazz band that I've been absolutely fascinated by in the past few years.  I got into them the same way most people did, from their unbelievable back catalog of covers, including covers of Ol' Dirty Bastard, Joy Division, Nas, My Bloody Valentine, Earl Sweatshirt, and James Blake.  The groups first two albums were absolutely brilliant from start to finish, but when it came to their last album, I was sorta underwhelmed by it to be honest.  But I still had hope for the Jazz Trio (now a Quartet), and I heard they were bringing in a slew of collaborators for this, their appropriately titled fourth album.  So here goes "IV", the newest album from BadBadNotGood.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWJolDnITe0
(The groups absolutely stunning cover of James Blake's "Limit To Your Love")

This album starts off basically where their last album left off, with “And That, Too”.  The intro to this one shows us that BBNG are not done with experimenting with electronics in their music, the keyboards here are a major player.  It’s the atmosphere that really hooks me about this one.  While I liked “BBNG 3”, the atmosphere was a little lacking in my book.  On “And That, Too”, the atmosphere is just as semi-dark as I loved on “BBNG 2”.  Those woodwind arrangements are absolutely stunning up against this slow paced Jazz piece.  “And That, Too”, isn’t the most exciting track here, but it’s a solid intro to the band, as they introduce a rhythm in the first few seconds and constantly build on it.  Now, this is the first full length BBNG production with Leland Whitty as a full-fledged band member.  They’ve had contributions from him in the past tons of times, but this is his first rodeo as a BBNG member, and his contributions to the band are fantastic.  I’ve always thought BBNG and Whitty’s collaborations were always spot on, and here his sax, flute, and seemingly countless other instruments playing really compliment the band.  Moving on to “Speaking Gently”, the band continues on with more keyboards, but still sound super hip and keep to their Jazz roots.  These aren’t the sharp keyboards that showed up on their early recordings though, these are much more personalized keyboards that sound just as wonderful as every other instrumental here.  Alex Sowinski’s drums on this one sound absolutely incredible, he’s always impressed me so much.  It’s so early in the album, but it’s already very apparent that BBNG have grown and honed their craft so much over the years.  This track almost has an almost whimisical, soaring rhythm, as Whitty’s woodwinds and brass float in and out not losing any momentum.  “Chompy’s Paradise” much later in the album is the most haunting thing I’ve heard on the album so far.  While there’s no vocal guest on this track, there isn’t a vocal guest they could have gotten that could sound more hurt than Whitty’s horn does here.  BBNG always take their instruments and give them such personality, and it’s quite the spectacle.  As the track continues on, it contains some of the most smooth moments we’ve heard from the band so far.  Sowinski here produces an almost tropical sounding drums, and Whitty’s horns and such float in, it’s pure magic.  No, it’s not as exciting and spontaneous as their earlier recordings, but you have to give BBNG so much credit, the band’s original material has gown by leaps and bounds.  Then we have the album’s title track “IV”, which doesn’t waste a single second.  Instantly, “IV” is the most straightforward Jazz track that they’ve ever touched, as most of the time over the years they’ve been classified as almost “Post-Jazz”.  “IV” though literally sounds like some of the big boys of the Jazz world, not a bunch of guys in their 20’s trying to make Jazz cool  While the more straightforward sound doesn’t do way too much for me, the energy here speaks volumes, and every members performance is absolutely stunning.  Whitty sounds like he has about 10 cups of coffee and he is just letting it all out, and Matt Tavares’s keyboards haven't sounded this interesting the entire album.  Now I usually like the band’s left field approach to jazz and some of BBNG’s tracks with heavier atmosphere, so this one overall isn’t my favorite.  But if you want to see an excellent display of what each band brings to the table, this is a must listen, and it’s easily the most epic track here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WAQ9Gi-wuM



Now, BBNG have had collaborators in the past, but they really went all out on here.  Sometimes it works wonderfully, other times not so much.  First we have “Time Moves Slow”, featuring Sam Herring from Future Islands on vocals.  This track is one of the smoothest hear, with Herring’s almost soulful vocals, giving this track almost a smooth R&B sound.  And honestly, BBNG pull it off amazingly.  This is easily the warmest thing I’ve heard from them in years, and Herring, who I’ve always thought was such a unique vocalist works so great here.  He usually has such a commanding, completely dominating performance.  Here is no different, but man does it ever sound brilliant up against these smooth Jazz rhythms.  As far as the instrumentals go here, there isn’t anything too wild happening, but BBNG are taking things slow and being unbelievable support to Herring, and they pull it off flawlessly.  “Time Moves Slow” even goes as far as sounding like an old vintage pop song in a way, and it’s really something special.  Then we have “Confessions Pt. II” featuring the Arcade Fire’s Colin Stetson, another home run.  Right off the bat the tone of that Saxophone is absolutely ear grabbing, and that beat is completely undeniable.  As far as a funky tone goes, this track has the strongest one here.  It may be an out of control, chaotic funk, but it’s absolutely entrancing.  If those horns didn’t already sound personified earlier in the tracklist, “Confessions Pt. II” is the next level.  This one almost comes off as a jam, but it’s absolutely brilliant and completely eye-opening.  The chaos just continues on, as every instrumental just keeps getting more fierce, to the point where they sound like they’re just gonna start ripping one another apart. This may be one of the longest tracks here, but I don’t mind one bit.  Everything is so epic, so grand, I wouldn’t mind if it went on even longer.  Not to mention, Colin Stetson on this track adds plenty.  In the last few years he’s been working more with ambient music, which isn’t terrible, but this was a very interesting change of pace, and his tenor sax really sounded wonderful here.   Than we have some sort of underwhelming collaborations.  For one, we have “Lavender”, featuring KAYTRANADA.  Just from the opening notes alone you can tell this is easily the spaciest track here by far, and we’re back to a much more electronic sound.  Some of the early sound effects used are genuinely unsettling, and honestly sound like something right out of “Alien”.  While it works overall, this one for me is a little too electronic and spacey.  There are some great moments here don’t get me wrong, but the atmosphere to me just seems so forced.  Not to mention these are some of the tamest instrumentals on the entire album.  KAYTRANADA’s extra percussion playing here is barely noticeable, and usually I dig his stuff, this just seems so average to me.  Then we have “Hyssop of Love” featuring Mick Jenkins.  From the start it’s pretty solid, we’re back to this sort of lurking heavier Jazz that I’ve come to know and love from BBNG.  This sound to me is always going to be my favorite from BBNG, cause honestly I just love the way you never know whats coming next.  Now I’m not really familiar with Mick Jenkins, and for the most part he sounds alright.  His slow, hazy delivery works a whole lot better than a more aggressive rapper.  During his verses, BBNG do some really fantastic stuff behind him, giving off this really mysterious vibe straight out of The X Files or Twin Peaks.  On the other hand they sound almost hopeful and sweet during the chorus, but what really brings this one down is Mick Jenkins lyrics.  For the most part they’re fine, but then he starts rapping about drugs and I just don’t think it’s necessary here.  Still, it’s ok, just a little underwhelming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWIIPX_5rbM


BBNG aren’t done just yet, “Structure No. 3” grabs your attention right away with this creeping, mysterious vibe thats so hypnotic.  Now I know that some people listening to this really aren’t going to have the patience for this atmosphere, it does take a bit to sink in.  But, if you’re a fan of old school BBNG there’s no reason you wont dig this.  The synth’s here are completely unexpected, almost goofy, but they work unbelievable up against this slow-paced bop.  Then out of nowhere everything picks up and “Structure No. 3” becomes the most exciting track we’ve heard in quite a while.  This is just a great, old school BBNG jam, hell I would have even dug an extra minute of this.  Then we have “In Your Eyes” featuring Charlotte Day Wilson.  The intro here is absolutely stunning, no words can even describe it.   “In Your Eyes” is totally something different for the band, and I don’t have enough good things I can say about it to be honest.  This is easily the classiest sound they’ve ever produced, one that can be much more widely appreciated.  It’s one of the lighter tracks here, almost whimsical, and when Charlotte Day Wilson comes in it just gets incredibly soulful.  This might just be the track that gets BBNG a bigger audience, but you know what, I’m ok with that.  It has a vintage sound, while remaining surprisingly hip, and as it goes on it just keeps getting better and better. It’s the furthest thing from what I was expecting, but I can’t say enough good things about it.  Finally we have “Cashmere”, the albums finale.  This is one intro here that isn’t giving away too much at all, but it’s great to hear the instrumentals come in slowly one by one.  The pianos here are sweet, the cymbal taps are on point, and once again this track has almost a jam feel to it.  That is until the string sections come in.  Man oh man, how far these guys have come since their debut.  They went from being three teenagers covering hip hop tracks with jazz instrumentals, to this.  There’s some really fascinating percussion on this one, and when the strings come in they are simply incredible.  Just hearing those trumpets float in amongst everything else already happening just makes me so damn happy.  At first I really didn’t know what to think of this album.  But it’s clear that BBNG are growing up right before our very eyes, transitioning from their early recordings to becoming young Jazz masters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cs4qZ9SBubc


Rating: 8.4/10

Give A Listen To: "In Your Eyes", "Time Moves Slow", "Cashmere", "Confessions Pt.II"


Overall Thoughts:  You know I really didn't know what to think of this album going into it.  I don't mind when BBNG tangles with electronics, but I feel like they need to focus on evolving their craft.  At the end of the day, that's really what they do here.  Sometimes it's sweet and soulful with a vintage flair, while other times it's as exciting and chaotic as the band's early recordings.  Every member sounds like they've grown immensely, and compliment eachother wonderfully.  As for the collaborations, more often I feel like they've chosen solid collaborators, to the point where they often sound so natural.  However, the real star here is maturation.  BBNG show here that they've grown from being three teenagers with an undying love for Jazz and Hip Hop, to young men who are true Jazz masters.

Blink 182 - "California"

What's to say about Blink 182 that hasn't already been said?  I mean in the late 90's and early 2000's, they were easily one of the cooler bands in the world pumping out great Pop Punk albums constantly.  With the release of their self titled album in the mid 2000's, they started getting a mixed reaction from their longtime fans.  I still don't really get that, I thought their self titled was pretty solid, some low moments here and there but overall it was solid.  Then there was the first breakup of Blink, only for them to come back and reunite for 2011's "Neighborhoods".  Outside of a single here and there, I really wasn't a fan.  Now here we are, 5 years later.  Tom DeLonge has since left Blink 182. and has been replace with Alkaline Trio's Matt Skiba (which I honestly had no idea of until about 2 weeks ago).  Now I'm a huge fan of Skiba, and on top of that I heard that John Feldman of Goldfinger was producing this, so far I was pretty interested. Let's see how the rest of this album pans out.  

First off we have "Cynical".  There's no fancy intro, not even close, we just go directly in to Mark Hoppus's verse, to be honest it really doesn't sound like he's aged that much at all since the last time we've heard from Blink.  At first listen, Mark And Matt's vocal harmonies seem a little awkward, they do get better throughout the album but here they just seem a bit forced.  Not only that, you just kinda expect Mark and Tom's harmonies, so it take a bit of getting used to.  I feel though like Matt's getting the short end of the stick though.  I mean for the most part, he dived right into this band out of nowhere and adapted to their sound very quickly.  On top of all of that, they give him quite a bit of time on the mic, you're going to get used to him quick.  Travis Barker hasn't lost a single bit of his energy which is a huge plus.  Now, I'm not too crazy about the verses here, but Mark and Matt come together and pull off a solid chorus, a running theme of the album.  "Cynical" at the end of the day though is a huge double edged sword for me.  I'm happy that it's on the shorter side, because I wasn't into those verses at all.  On the other hand, I feel like it barely got started.  Up next we have "Bored To Death", one of the first tracks released from the album.  That intro literally sounds like something a Blink 182 cover band would pull off.  Actually, it sounds like Blink 182 trying way too hard to be themselves.  As the track continues, it sounds more and more like a +44 song (+44 being the side project of Blink 182's Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker).  And that's not really too shocking, Mark's the star of this one big time.  The verses have tons of cliche's but for the most part isn't too bad, atleast not nearly as bad as that pre-chorus (That's just depressingly bad).  However, the chorus itself really picks up a lot of slack and just is already catchier than anything on Blink 182's last album.  Overall "Bored to Death" is a solid single, but my problem with a lot of these tracks is just how short of breath they are.  These tracks often have a solid structure and have all the basics down, but just feel so unfinished, this one isn't a bad track at all though.  But hell, there are a few really solid tracks on here.  Take "Los Angeles" for example.  The intro on this track is almost dark sounding, and is easily the coolest and most unique intro on the entire album.  It's still not on the same level as say their old stuff, but this is definitely more their speed.  Here, Mark, Matt, and Travis (which still is weird for me to say...) sound rejuvenated and energetic.  Occasionally Travis's drums sound a little tinny, but I'm willing to overlook it.  Yes, the post chorus is a little cheesy, but overall I have no real problems with "Los Angeles", I think it's a solid tune.  Later on in the album we have "Kings of the Weekend", which instrumentally right from the start is pretty solid.  It has easily one of the better riffs your going to here on the album, and Travis's drums are sounding great as well.  As far as the vocals go, Mark here doesn't sound like her clambering to hold on to his younger years.  Sure, it has it's cheesy moments here and there, but it's absolutely not as "desperate to be cool" as other tracks I've heard from them in recent years.  If you can get past a few goofy moments here and there, you'll see one of the few moments here where this new lineup of Blink 182 are a complete unit.  "Rabbit Hole" later on in the album has it's ups and downs.  As far as aggression goes this is the easily a highlight of the entire album.  Most of the tracks here feel pretty tame for Pop Punk tunes, but "Rabbit Hole" is easily one of the most punk moments here.  This is one of the few tracks here that I feel like the verses do a great job of building up the chorus.  Sadly though, the chorus here is just about the flattest chorus on the entire album. And that's a real shame, because everything else here is Punk as hell.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lic0oCDMfwk

Oh boy, well boys and girls I got just about everything I loved out of the way, and you know what time it is.  It's time for go on a nice long list of grievances, and boy do I have a few.  Lets start with "She's Out Of Her Mind", nice and early in the album.  It starts off pretty straightforward with some punky bass,  instrumentally they honestly sound right where I want them to be.  But as soon as those verses start, oh my dear God.  These are Blink verses that would have been acceptable when they were goofy teenagers, maybe.  But now that they're all in their 40's, it's just bizarre.  I kinda almost feel sorry for Blink, it's definitely harder for them to make relevant, fun pop punk this late into their career.  I mean the most exciting thing here is Matt Skiba's vocals on the chorus, his contributions are some of the most "Punk" things I've heard so far.  As far as Matt Skiba's verse here, it's solid, more so than Mark, at least on this one.  As far as Travis goes, well he for the most part sounds the same.  But overall this track is just unbearable.  Than we have "Sober", which right off the bat I can tell I'm going to freakin' hate.  The chorus on this track is so cheesy, while the verses aren't absolutely horrible aren't anything memorable either.  I mean it's obvious and I really shouldn't have to say this at all, but man oh man are these guys slacking on the songwriting.  All of the "Na-Na's" throughout the track make me want to skip over this one entirely and move on.  If that wasn't bad enough they literally take all of the worst parts of this track and continuously rehash them.  "Sober" tries to be so epic and grand, when honestly it's completely flat.  Lets move on to "No Future", and right off the bat let me just say thank freakin' goodness Travis can still play, he's easily the most energetic thing about this album.  As this one goes on, we're treated to lyrics we've probably heard from Blink since 1997, and you're damn right it's annoying.  The verses  here are painful, but ironically the chorus on "No Future" is easily some of the catchiest material on the entire album.  Instrumentally, this one is pretty solid, but those lyrics need to be just thrown out completely.  But I have to give Skiba praise, he's venturing into completely new ground on this album, and as far as his performance goes it's been alright.  Whose ready for a couple of tracks named after places?  I'm sure not, but I'm gonna discuss them anyway.  First we have "San Diego", which right from its opening guitars I can tell is going to be painfully bad.  This track at the end of the day is just another completely failed attempt at Blink writing a serious track.  Back in the day, they had a few really solid serious tracks here and there, but these days Blink and serious songs just do not mix well, and "San Diego" is no different.  These  added instrumentals here just are so bad, the synthesizers, the acoustic strumming, it's absolutely awful.  One thing I have to say I enjoy about this album though, are the chorus's, I feel like this is at least catchier overall than "Neighborhoods".  If they just dropped some of these tracks like 10 production levels, and cleaned up their songwriting, I wouldn't be nearly as pissed off.  Oh boy, but they're not done, we still have the album's title track, "California".  Just hearing that intro makes me want to throw up and stop even thinking about this album, This one, I don't even want to think about too long.  There isn't a single lyrical moment here that is the slightest bit impressive, it's almost like they aren't even trying.  Like, not even the chorus here is worth a listen, I'm just gonna move on.

The hits really just keep on coming!  "Teenage Satellites"starts off sounding pretty solid, but that gets thrown out once I hear the same boring songwriting and these awful piano notes popping into the verses.  It's not the first time I've heard those pianos here, but man they are just so bad.  This track does have a few catchy moments here and there though, but it's just so freakin' safe. To be honest though, "The Only Thing That Matters" is....surprisingly great.  Honestly, everything here sounds like the Blink 182 that I went through High School listening to.  The instrumentals are upbeat, the lyrics (including a very subtle nod to Reel Big Fish, I caught that) are much easier to swallow, honestly why can't they do more like this?  If they did an album that sounded more like this, I'd be genuinely interested.  But then we have other tracks on here that make me want to take that all back, like the absolute most boring track here, "Home Is Such A Lonely Place".  Hearing this intro I literally want to scream and run far far away from this album.  It sounds sorta Emo from time to time, and Mark somehow pulls off his most ridiculously bad verse yet.  It's so bad that I literally have no jokes for it.  There's parts that sound Semi-Lullabyish, whoever thought that was a good idea really needs to think more next time.  When Travis comes in, it gets a little better, but overall this is just about the worst thing I've heard from Blink in years.  Next up is "Left Alone", which as soon as it starts it's literally the exact opposite of what I want to hear from these guys.  The synths are back, and literally Blink should never bring synthesizers into consideration.  Once again we have a pretty solid chorus, but both Mark and Matt's verses are absolutely dreadful.  The drum fills have gotten cliche at this point as well.  These piano notes keep popping up during the chorus to illustrate that BLINK 182 HAS FEELINGS MAN!!!!  But where the hell is the fun?  Where's the songwriting?  Where's the sense of humor?  Oh wait, I found the "humor".  It's right here on "Built This Pool"!!! Just kidding, I'm never going to get those 17 seconds back.  Grow up.  And because that wasn't enough, "Brohemian Rhapsody" at the end just needs to take even more precious moments of my life away as Mark Hoppus just so happened to feel like the most asinine lyric of the decade, that pisses me off more than anything.  I wouldn't have been amused when you were 24, and I'm sure not amused when you're 44.  

Overall Rating: 5.9/10

Give A Listen To:  "The Only Thing That Matters", "Los Angeles", "Kings of the Weekend"? I Guess?

Overall Thoughts:  You know I was really interested on how this was going to turn out.  And I gotta say I'm really disapointed.  They can clearly still churn out catchy choruses, and Matt Skiba honestly fits in pretty nicely.  However the songwriting is in DESPERATE need of work.  Not to mention the overall feeling of this album is just so lifeless and bland, nice try boys, better luck next time.  

Blood Orange - "Freetown Sound"

Blood Orange is the musical pseudonym for Devonte "Dev" Hynes.  This guy throughout his musical career has tackled everything from Dance-Punk, to Folk, to his newest incarnation as Blood Orange tackling an old school R&B, Funk, and Synth pop sound.  Now I first heard his stuff a few years ago, and I did like it.  "Coastal Grooves" and "Cupid Deluxe" both had plenty of great singles, but I had my issues majorly.  For one, I could barely get through either one of them without feeling like there was too much filler.  Both albums started out so strongly, but by the end of both of them I was struggling to remain interested.  My other main issue was his vocal guests, but I'll address that later, I want to dive right in to Dev's newest venture, "Freetown Sound".

This album starts off on a slow, smooth note with “By Ourselves”.  Dev treats us to some super classy pianos and some incredibly smooth vocals.  There are a few elements here that seem a bit cliche, especially when dealing with “retro” sounding music.  But for the most part it ushers in the rest of the album solidly.  The production is still hazy and dreamy, but over the last year or so Dev has really stepped his game up as far as production goes.  Overall it’s a solid intro, and it leads into the next track, “Augustine” wonderfully.  This was the first track I actually heard off of “Freetown Sound”, and I was hooked immediately.  It’s much more upbeat when compared to the album’s intro, with some funky bass and synths.  This is ALMOST obvious Michael Jackson worship, but to be honest Dev absolutely nails it.  The synthesizers here are triumphant, literally taking every element from his last album “Cupid Deluxe” and streamlining it.  All of the little details on “Augustine” really make it special, from the lone piano notes that add so much emotion, to that so simple yet absolutely haunting and catchy chorus.  Dev doesn’t give too much away on the verses here, little to nothing at all, but they’re still mesmerizing, and build up wonderfully to the chorus.  The vocal harmonies that occasionally pop in and out are charming, and to be perfectly honest, this is the exact single I wanted to hear Dev make, one of my favorites of the year so far.  Up next is “Chance”, which contains plenty of powerful samples, it’s clear that Dev was very meticulous when it came to the material put on this album.  This track has almost a minimalistic atmosphere, something I wasn’t expecting but I’m totally fine with.  The chorus on “Chance” is super breezy, with the chilling keyboards adding this great sense of mystery here.  It’s tracks like this that really just drive home the fact of how much Dev has grown over the years.  He literally took every element that was good about “Cupid Deluxe” and made it all sound so much more streamlined and mature.  The harmonies are exquisite here, and the soulful saxophones that pop in are just so impressive.  Not to mention, those back and forth vocals towards the end are a bit cliche usually, but here they work wonderfully.  One of my favorite tracks here is up next, “Best To You”.  This track doesn’t waste a single second of our time.  Now, ironically what turned me off the most about “Cupid Deluxe”, were the guest vocalists.  None of them were “bad”, but they just to me seemed unorganized and not as well thought out.  Almost every vocal guest on “Freetown Sound” goes above and beyond expectations, which especially goes for Empress Of on “Best To You”.  Her vocals here compliment the feel of the track so wonderfully.  The hook here isn’t only the catches we’ve heard so far, it might be the catchiest hook on the album.  The contrast between the vocals here up against the pounding beat is absolutely mesmerizing.  Before we get to the next part of the album, we’re treated to a short interlude, “With Him”.  Nothing too much to report here, but the dreamy saxophones up against the hazy production is wonderful.  Now, Blood Orange’s music isn’t for everyone.  A lot of people are going to say Dev may be stuck in the past as far as production goes, but I think he’s absolutely nailing it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXtzcViZPGA


Up next, we have “E.V.P.”, which easily has the heaviest groove we’ve heard yet.  This track is straight up funky, and very heavy on the synth.  Hell, I would even go as far as to say Dev sounds straight up sleazy here, and it really comes off great, hell maybe even dangerous sounding.  The funky guitar licks are fantastic, as well as those prominent bass slaps.  The chorus here, while it’s catchy and insanely memorable, is also haunting and wonderfully dreamy.  “E.V.P.” has a completely different feel than the earlier tracks here, but that funk is undeniable.  Then we have “Love Ya”, and let me tell you, just hearing that siren start this one off had me on the edge of my seat with excitement.  This is a duet here with Zuri Marley, and honestly it comes off absolutely wonderful.  Every single vocal guest here is hand picked and far from just some random person brought on just to sing and leave.  No, every duet, every vocal feature is absolutely flawless, and compliment Dev perfectly.  This is one of the sexiest tracks we’ve had so far, with super smooth saxophones that are too cool for their own good.  “Love You” isn’t the most memorable track here.  But, it sticks with the atmosphere wonderfully.  “But You” is up next, and is more of a slow burner of a track.  Lyric-wise this album as a whole is just such a gigantic statement, and that alone is going to be one of the biggest draws of this album.  “But You” honestly is probably the cheesiest track here, it’s not absolutely terrible, but it’s definitely on the corny side of the spectrum.  Instrumentally, there’s nothing too crazy going on here either, but as a statement it works just fantastically up against the rest of the album.  Not to mention it contains one of Dev’s most heartfelt and sincere performances yet.  A few tracks in a row have been on the slower side, and I need a bit of a wake up, and I absolutely get it in the form of “Desiree”.  This track is upbeat, funky, but still remains on the more dreamy side.  Honestly, while I haven’t loved every track, it’s still holding my attention, which is what I’ve had a problem with in the past with Dev’s material.  “Desiree” is a brilliant track, with the production on this track being the real star.  On that note, I know that Dev did all the production on his own here, good job dude!  I would even go as far as to say I wish “Desiree” was a bit longer.  I digress though, this track rules.  Then, we have “Hands Up”.  This track isn’t terrible, but I do feel like it’s a bit underwhelming.  Dev’s vocals, which so far I’ve been fine with, don’t do nearly as much for me here.  On other tracks he really comes into his own, but here he just sounds kind’ve bland.  The backing vocals do in fact help quite a bit, but even instrumentally this track just feels a little too safe for my liking, plus I know Dev can do better.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDIAVlcRgLY


Up next we have a long string of really fantastic tracks, which is much more than I can say for Dev’s older albums.  Sure, they had there share of great moments, but this is so much more consistent.  “Hadron Collider” grabs me right from the first moment, with a fantastic atmosphere and some great guest vocals by Nelly Furtado of all people.  Half of the vocals here are so distant and hazy sounding, making for one of the dreamiest tracks here we’ve heard so far.  While the vocals are all hazy, that doesn’t take a single thing away from the harmonies, they’re literally just as solid as earlier on the album.  The only complaint I have about “Hadron Collider” is that honestly it could use a gigantic chorus.  However, there’s enough here to make up for that, with an absolutely stunning piano break and some of the more gorgeous moments you’re going to hear on the entire album.  “Squash Squash” is up next, and you can hear that funk brewing from a mile away.  Or at least it feels that way, with Dev hinting at another funky track here, but it instantly changes moods.  However, Dev sounds downright angelic here, so I have zero complaints.  The funk aspect does eventually show up, it’s heavy too.  But what’s most interesting about “Squash Squash” is the sense of mystery.  Even while it’s at its grooviest, it never gives away too much, honestly it doesn’t fit the mood of the album at all.  That being said though, I absolutely love it.  It’s a complete shot out of left field, it’s soulful, it’s glitzy, it’s funky as hell, while at the same time mysterious and absolutely gorgeous.  Than we have another fantastic track “Juicy 1-4”, which starts off with chilling bongos as well as some distant, yet highly prominent synths.  Going into this project I was worried that a lot of these later tracks would blend together, but Dev here sounds completely rejuvenated and full of life.  The atmosphere here is a little cold, and sort of on the minimalistic side, but honestly it works.  The chorus here is absolutely stunning, and more than anything I’m just shocked at how little complaints I have about this album.  Yes, it occasionally get’s a little cheesy.  Yes, the production isn’t going to please everyone.  Yes, it’s filled with Michael Jackson and Prince worship all over.  But Dev rolls with it very well honestly.  “Better Than Me” is up next, and it’s one of the most upbeat tracks on the entire album.  It all starts with these playful keyboards, and quickly becomes a duet between Dev and Ms. Carly Rae Jepsen.  Dev’s vocals here are alright, but I could have used a little more enthusiasm.  The contrast in the vocals though works quite nicely.  The chorus here is what makes “Better Than Me”, as it’s easily the sweetest thing we’ve heard in a while as well as one of the catchier moments of the entire album.  The second verse absolutely picks up quite a bit and absolutely beats out the first verse, regaining my interest entirely.  While Carly Rae fits wonderfully here, I expected a little more from Dev, but it’s still solid.  There are a few let down’s throughout though, such as “Thank You”.  While I really enjoy the jazzy saxophones at the start, everything else I’m really not that into at all.  All the other elements here just seem to be dragging along, even though Dev sounds fine and the atmosphere is spot on.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6AbIEa431I


Time to wrap this bad boy up.  Dev really sticks with the consistency of this album, and honestly it's impressive.  On "I Know", Dev instantly grabs your attention and doesn't let go.  Not only does he sound fantastic, he sound completely engulfed in the atmosphere.  The hazy production and dreamlike energy continues on, making "I Know" more of a spectacle than anything.  When it picks up, it almost sounds like an old Neon Indian track in the best way possible.  For a very late album track, "I Know" is honestly one of the most experimental moments here.  Honestly though, Dev pulls is off wonderfully.  Everything from Dev's vocals to the mysterious heavy keyboards is absolutely stunning.  Then, we have the album's finale, "Better Numb".  As far as sound goes, it's not exactly what I expected, it's a very stripped down sound.  However, it stops you in your tracks completely.  It all sounds so incomplete, with Dev not giving away too much vocally.  Strangely it works though, as its mystery and beauty are stunning, and it shows that Dev has plenty more planned for the future.


Rating: 8.6/10

Give A Listen To: "Augustine", "Best To You", "E.V.P.", "Desiree"


Overall Thoughts: When it's come to Dev's work in the past, I've always wanted to love it, but just had too many small problems.  There would be fantastic tracks, but also plenty that I just couldn't get into no matter how hard I tried.  And don't get me wrong there's some filler here as well.  However, Dev has improved immensely in the past few years.  His production has become stellar and he's become such a fantastic writer.  Also, while the vocal guests on his last album "Cupid Deluxe", every vocal guest here is hand picked to perfection, and complement Dev unbelievably. Not to mention, the personality and the statements Dev gives us here are worth a listen on their own.  Now, if you weren't a fan of Dev's hazy, dreamy synth funk to begin with, there's a possibility it's still gonna be just as boring to you.  But Dev's grown so much since a few years ago, so you may still want to give this a try.   If you're looking for a funky, personal R&B album with great retro flair with tons of levels, look no further.

Bat For Lashes - "The Bride"

I first started obsessing over Bat For Lashes with the release of "Two Suns".  I thought Natasha Khan's blend of Folk, Indie Pop, Baroque Pop, up against a strangely mystic, almost foreign sounding atmosphere to be absolutely breathtaking.  Her followup 2012 album "The Haunted Man" showed Natasha branching out into some more elaborate, slightly more electronic sound, which she honestly still pulled off very well.  Outside of that, Khan's been pretty quiet for the last 4 years (Outside of that Sexwitch project she did with the members of TOY, which I feel like no one paid attention to, but I thought was actually really interesting).  Then all of a sudden I hear about Bat For Lashes doing these elaborate over-the-top shows where concert goers were asked to where formal attire (With Khan herself performing in a wedding dress).  I thought that was one hell of a marketing plan, especially since this new album here is called "The Bride", and quickly this became one of the albums I've been anticipating the most.  Without any more waiting, here's Bat for Lashes "The Bride",

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1vtr9fXdg8

(The track that got me hooked completely on Bat for Lashes).

This album starts off with the very cute and enchanting “I Do”.  It’s filled with whimsical keyboards and light harp pluckings, paired up with Natasha’s soaring angelic voice.  Now when I first heard this track months ago, I didn’t know what to think.  It’s the shortest track Bat For Lashes has ever done by far, and there’s really not much that happens within it.  But honestly, when it comes to the context of the album, it fits really perfectly.  Now I’m going to explain the concept of this album once, cause I don’t want to repeat myself.  “The Bride” is essentially about a bride whose husband dies in an accident on their wedding day, and everything that follows (Which starts off kinda sad with her thinking about honeymooning alone, but then ends up having to do with aliens at one point…..I think?).  But as far as “I Do” goes, it’s a solid intro.  It builds up the joy that our protagonist feels thinking of the vows her and her fiancé will share the next day.  The strings that eventually float in foreshadow something bad may just happen soon.  It’s far from the biggest track or the boldest statement, but Natasha sounds absolutely heavenly beyond words, and it sets up for later tracks.  I’ll give you this though, listening to this track by itself is a little underwhelming.  Up next is “Joe’s Dream”.  Right off the bat, were treated to a much somber tone, with slow guitar licks and even slower pounding drums.  This track just has such a looming presence, with gigantic tones and a thick atmosphere.  Natasha here sounds absolutely heartbroken, like she’s really given it 110% to come off as this Bride character.  The chorus here is short (if you want to even call it a chorus), but it’s easily the most chilling thing I’ve heard from Natasha in years.  While the story here on the album is far from streamlined, and it often gets a little cluttered, Natasha constantly makes it believable.  The atmosphere here continues to be absolutely suffocating, and every instrumental is so calculated and precise. The last Bat For Lashes project, “The Haunted Man”, was strong, but it also lacked a certain mysticism and spirituality that this has here.  “Joe’s Dream” is stunning, so much so that I honestly feel like this track should have been a single.  Next up we have “In Gods House”. Going into this album, I did hear there were some synth pop elements, and low and behold, here they are.  “In God’s House” starts right off with heavy synths melodies, but still remain heavy in atmosphere, clearly this is the most somber record Natasha’s done by far.  Now while this track is very important to the narrative, it’s a little sluggish at times.  The chorus though picks up nicely, featuring spiraling keyboards as well as an absolutely stunning vocal performance.  As “In God’s House” continues, it just keeps getting heavier in tone.  The atmosphere throughout “The Bride” is just fantastic from start to finish, and Natasha’s performance shows just how invested she is in this story.  There are a few moments on this track that honestly I wish would speed up just a little, but it’s a solid track.  Up next we have “Honeymooning alone” which starts off with some fantastic, and very mysterious guitar licks.  Natasha’s performance here is so cold, in a good way, in a way that she truly sounds broken.  The chorus here could use some work, but the atmosphere here is top notch.  There are so many little details here that make everything sound so good, like the absolutely stunning harps that come in.  And while the chorus does need work, everything else here is business as usual.  Solid!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds9eR3UbOXk

Next up is the main single from this album, the incredibly synth-poppy “Sunday Love”.  After a few tracks absolutely dripping in agony, it’s actually a nice pick-me-up.  “Sunday Love” though, while it’s more energetic is still somber in tone, just not as brooding and hulking.  To be honest, it’s probably the most upbeat track I’ve ever heard from Bat For Lashes in general.  This track here contains most of the elements of the rest of the album, breezy vocals, haunting melodies, a sense of mysticism as well as a sense of great sadness, the works.  To be honest, Natasha’s voice translates very well to this synth-pop sound, the fact that she's working against this sound is interesting by itself.  Overall, I really don’t have a single bad thing to say about “Sunday Love”, I think its a great single.  Sadly though, we have some of the more “out-there” and repetitive moments on the album coming up.  “Never Forgive The Angels” right off the bat is clearly a slow burner, with lumbering guitars and a creeping riff that sounds like something out of a really twisted experimental band. Natasha here sounds so unbelievably somber it’s scary.  She literally sounds completely on her own and isolated.  However, outside of that, it’s a little boring.  There are interesting moments here and there, but at it’s core it really needs to pick up a little.  Not just a little, a lot.  While Natasha’s performance here is absolutely stunning, everything else I’m really not that into at all.  The backing vocals that come in for the second half however do help quite a bit.  But still, while “Never Forgive the Angels” is important to the context of the story, more than anything it kinda just put me to sleep.  Than we have “Widow’s Peak”, musically possibly the strangest track here.  Natasha’s performance here is actually unbelievable, and nothing short of completely entrancing. This album’s taking some weird turns instrumentally, but Natasha remains the driving force of everything here.  I mean for the life of me by this point in the album I’m just so freakin confused about everything going on as far as the story goes.  And instrumentally, this track is easily the messiest one here.  Natasha though keeps me glued to my speakers, as she continues to drive the atmosphere on “The Bride”.  On the other hand “Close Encounters” is another completely bizarre track, but one that works wonders.  Instantly this track reels me in with it’s stunning string section.  The vocals here are about God knows what, either aliens, or spirits, whatever it’s completely off the wall but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t completely on board with this track.  “Close Encounters” has some of the most stunning performances of this entire album, as Natasha works closely with the string section to produce an absolutely chilling performance.  Sure, the storyline is a bit hard to follow, but that happens, it’s still freakin’ cool.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBfZooPrmfo

“Lands End” in the last final third of the album actually sounds like a huge throwback for Bat For Lashes, as Natasha returns to her much more folky roots.  The string section playing behind her piles on the atmosphere, while the folky guitar plucks make this track overwhelmingly beautiful.  What makes “Lands End” such a solid track here, is balance.  Here, Natasha sticks just as much to the narrative of the story, while remaining musically just as interesting.  “If I Knew” is up next, and to be honest it’s kind’ve middle of the road.  Obviously Natasha’s vocals and the atmosphere are still absolutely gorgeous.  But tracks like this one as well as others really make me wish this album had just a little more bite to it.  Eventually the instrumentals pick up a bit which makes up for lost time.  And it’s a real shame too, because this might just be Natasha’s most heartfelt performance on the entire album.  Like I said though, if this album just had a tiny more bite to it, it would be near perfect.  Take for example “I Will Love Again”.  Right away this track completely has me hooked.  The distant, pulsating synths and strong bass lines completely engulf Natasha, leading to one of the most looming tracks here.  However, Natasha’s performance is hopeful and empowering, especially for her Bride character.  Natasha sounds so confident, as a glimmer of hope is heard in the music completely surrounding her, a very fitting mood for this point in the album.  Lyrically there’s nothing too jaw dropping going on here, but everything else fits perfectly.  The instrumentals are stunning, and the dual vocals are heartwarming and perfectly placed.  Which leads us to the album’s outro, “In Your Bed”.  Honestly, at this point there’s not much to report.  Natasha’s performance is heartfelt, with some oddly lively keyboards. “In Your Bed” is nothing too extravagant, but it’s a solid outro.  It’s slow, powerful, and it shows just a little more hope for our Bride character.  Solid stuff Natasha. 

Rating : 7.8/10


Give A Listen To: "Sunday Love" "Joe's Dream", "Close Encounters", "I Will Love Again"

Overall Thoughts: Overall "The Bride" is just another very solid work from Ms. Natasha Khan, aka Bat For Lashes.  Lyrically I'm more engaged in this than her last album, "The Haunted Man".  Concept albums are hard to pull off for the most part, and while this starts off very strong it does get a little convoluted by the end.  It's super weird at times, but it absolutely keeps you engaged.  As far as the instrumentals go, this is some of the synthiest material Natasha's ever released.  Honestly that's going to piss a lot of people off, especially since she got her start in the music world as more of a folky artist.  But her voice translates well to this sound change to be honest.  Here and there your going to find a few filler tracks, but for the most part Natasha's performances are nothing short of incredible.  But there's definitely some weird moments on here, not to mention the few folky moments we do get here are kind've boring. Natasha though saves this album from being completely boring, immersing herself completely in the story and giving us some of her most passionate performances.