His Electro Blue Voice - "Mental Hoop"

Oh boy, now this is a band that I wasn't expecting to be so excited for.  His Electro Blue Voice is a duo from Italy whose music quite frankly seems to be boundless.  The first time I heard some of their early EP's I wasn't that blown away.  I wasn't really into their heavier sound, and I thought the production was iffy.  On the other hand, their 2013 debut "Ruthless Sperm" from start to finish was one hell of a trip.  There were elements of Punk Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Krautrock, Indie Rock, and about 20 other genres flowing in and out as rapidly as they were piling up.  It's a wild album, one that doesn't take too long to get going either.  And at 34 minutes, it really doesn't stay too long either.  "Ruthless Sperm" is an absolutely wild album, one that quite frankly has left me speechless.  Now, I didn't get a chance to listen to the singles released from this album beforehand, so we're diving in headfirst!

“Pool Cleaner” starts us off, and I’m gonna keep this short and sweet.  I have no idea what they were thinking with this whimsical, cheery instrumental to start of, but it’s not a good time for me.  On the other hand, “Ice Skull” is much more like it.  The guitars here are driving in this very intense way, and I just love the ferocity around the band’s shouted vocals.  The intensity of this is what really sells this one for me, however.  I mean, this is almost like “Nonagon Infinity” era of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard with it’s throttling madness.  These guys just really seem like they’re a fearless and exciting force in Post Punk, and I love that.  The vocals on “Ice Skull” are almost cheesy and shrieked ridiculously through the background, and you’re god damn right they’re a blast.  Everything about this one is in your face and explosive.  The production is grimy, the attitude is rebellious, this is much more of what I expected on every level.  And the way it all just concludes with this mass of noise, it’s brilliant boys.  “Scum Rat” on the other hand has a completely different flavor to it.  I love the thumping bass that brings out more of a Post-Punk flavor, and the intense guitars that follow.  But I think what really continues to bring me down to this are the vocals, there’s nothing fancy or sweet about them, they’re just so UGH slapping you right in the face with each belted out lyric.  This one brings in a whole lot more Noise Rock into the mix, with solo after solo and wonderful distortion everywhere.  But that Krautrock influence has also shown up by now, and that’s what really takes these guys to the next level.  There’s a level of hypnotism to this band the like of which I really haven’t seen in ages.  I mean, the way I get sucked into that bass groove and hazy guitar line, it’s actually incredible.  His Electro Blue Voice has a ridiculous sound, and the way they’re able to really flesh this track out over 4 minutes is truly brilliant. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nx7lFRbLOyw

    This album continues on with “Jaws”, and there’s something incredibly Old School about these guys that I can’t quite place my finger on, but it’s brilliant.  In a way, they really remind me of a lot of the Hardcore Punk acts of the 80’s, the way they’re giving it 100% and not giving a shit how it comes out.  This one almost has a groove with its very melodic guitar line.  It’s messy, very D.I.Y., and the intensity of this record hasn’t slowed down one bit.  The vocals are a little more questionable here, being masked behind this wall of distortion.   But if that’s my only complaint, and it is, His Electro Blue Voice are still on to something.  On the other hand, “Crystal Mind” has a much more current sound when it comes to Post Punk, and could easily go with bands like Iceage or Protomartyr.  But it packs a real punch in the attitude of the vocals and the continued intensity of some of these instrumentals.  “Crystal Mind” is easily one of the most crushing, throttling tunes here.  Not to mention, I just love the growl that comes with their vocals, it’s such an easy detail but it does so much.  When this track gets really revved up, some of these sonic verses really become mesmerizing.  The way these guys continue to blend all these very harsh genres continue to be really quite mesmerizing.   If His Electro Blue Voice came out with a little bit of a longer album, I can only imagine what they can accomplish.  Now, up next is the other interlude we get here, “Pool Painter”, and usually I really wouldn’t complain about these sorts of interludes.  But this really just messes up a lot of the flow of the album and just rehashes what the album started with and I’m not sure why.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smOHNrPsx40

    “Earthworm” is up next, and because that interlude proceeding it was so goofy and out of place, it really does sort of tamper with the start of this one.  Sure, this one is just as crushing and intense.  But I’ll be damned if the intro just doesn’t seem as punchy and the flow of this album seems faltered.  I do like the very over-the-top vocals and the brutally sludgy guitars, but I can’t get over just how off everything seems.  On the other hand, “The Wizz” with its hypnotic bass and Punk inspired guitars gets me back on track quickly.  This is the sort of triumphant tune I was dying to hear for the last few tracks.  The vocals here just seems so strangely melodic even though they’re just as harsh and rebellious.  This is the sound of His Electro Blue Voice, it’s mean and rough around the edges, but still strangely unified and joyous no matter how disgusting it is.  “The Wizz” rules in every way, shape, and form.  His Electro Blue Voice decide to end this off with a 13-minute finale in the form of “Onieut”.  The guitars on this one are much tamer and sludgy, but His Electro Blue Voice still remain heavy as hell.  As a matter of fact, this is easily the most hellish tune on the entire album.  It’s just so dense and dark and while the guitars are much more structured they’re just as noisy and grimy.  The way this track is just constantly building and getting bigger is seriously hypnotic.  “Onieut” never really seems to end, building up with solo after solo, wild instrumentals constantly, and hypnotic lips.  It’s the only way that this group could have really properly ended this album.  

Rating: 7.9/10

Give A Listen To: “Ice Skull”, “Scum Rat”, “Crystal Mind”, “The Wizz”

Genre: Post Punk / Punk Rock / Noise Rock / Krautrock / About 10 other genres 

Overall Thoughts:  Now I know I was very picky with this album.  But those two dumbass instrumental interludes really sort of messed up the flow of this album for me in a big way.   However, outside of that, these guys continue to be one of the most interesting acts in Post Punk.  The tracks here are aggressive, hypnotic, and strangely triumphant at the same time.  Not to mention, His Electro Blue Voice seem to constantly be changing genres and blending new ones in a very exciting way.  Hell yes this is a solid Post-Punk album. 

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - "Who Built The Moon?"

Ok, OK, so I've always been very wary going into side projects.  They're always just so hit and miss, and almost never like the band, they've originally stemmed from.  I've always been even warier going into side projects stemming from band's that hit close to my heart, like Oasis!  That's where Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds come in, featuring, of course, Noel Gallagher of Oasis fame.  So, that being said, the band's 2011 self-titled debut was underwhelming.  There were a solid handful of good tunes here, like "Everybody's On The Run", "AKA...Broken Arrow", and "If I Had A Gun...".  But a lot of these deep cuts quite frankly pretty awkward.  Noel often went for a very hip, current Indie sound that he sounded like he was trying way too hard to fit into, and I really never expected to hear much more from this offshoot band.  However, High Flying Birds next album, 2015's "Chasing Yesterday" was a HUGE step up.  Noel seemed to drop all the gimmicks here and was just working with a sound that you could tell he was so much more comfortable with.  The result, yes indeed often sounded like Oasis spin-off tracks.  But tracks like "The Mexican", "The Dying of the Light", and "In The Heat Of The Moment" were pleasant Alternative Rock tunes.  I don't think there was a single second on here that showed Noel really pushing any boundaries.  But it was indeed very pleasant to listen to.  Now, Noel is seriously taking High Flying Birds in a totally new direction and that's become clear by these opening singles.  Some of them I'm actually really excited by, some I'm sort of hoping will grow on me more.  Let's chat about this new High Flying Birds album!

This album starts off with “Fort Knox”, which when I heard outside of the context of the album, it certainly confused me.  Now, I do like the real sense of urgency this one brings to the table, it really makes me feel like Noel has a purpose this time around.  The instrumentals do all sound solid and the production is very glamorous as you would expect.  Now, as far as the vocals and Noel’s lyrics go on this one, I’m really on the fence.  Mostly because I feel like this track should either have been a full instrumental.  But no, we get these random short bursts of vocals that quite frankly seem a little incomplete.  I still think this one is alright, but this was released as a damn single, and as far as that goes this misses the mark. In the album’s context, it leads us into the album nicely, but outside of that, this is a little half-assed.   On the other hand, “Holy Mountain” really took me by surprise.  Now, this may be one of the most commercial and Pop-Oriented rock tunes I’ve heard all year.  But I’ll be damned if Noel can write a catchy hook.  This track is really something special, having a strong groove that honestly has me up and swaying around.  It’s groovy, sort of psychedelic, and has that old school tinge to it that I once went nuts for with Oasis.  Noel sounds completely rejuvenated and full of energy for once, which is really nice to hear.  Not to mention, I just love how punchy this it.  While the production on “Holy Mountain” does remain squeaky clean, this is a great tune.  Noel once again seems to have a major purpose.   The very punchy, cleanly produced tunes continue with “Keep On Reaching”.  I love just how bluesy this is, and just how classy these group choruses come off.  It almost has a Gospel or Soul undertone, which comes off really nicely.  Noel continues to have so much energy which I haven’t been able to say in years, we’re only a few tracks in and this is easily the most youthful he’s sounded since the glory days of Oasis.  “Keep On Reaching” also has a very whimsical tone to it which is really nice.  Now, I don’t really completely get the conceptual theme of this album, and the little I do get is bizarre let me tell you.  But it gives this album a purpose that Noel hasn’t had in years, and that makes me happy.  This album continues to have a very whimsical and almost Psychedelic feel with “It’s A Beautiful World”.  I absolutely love Noel’s very smokey vocals on this one, but it’s more than that.  This track just comes off so vast and wide sounding, I haven’t heard Noel within this much of a free atmosphere seemingly in forever.  Now, I’m not really that into some of the vocal effects on the chorus, I think there are a few times on this track that Noel is just trying a little too hard to be spacey.  But I still think Noel can seriously write an unbelievably catchy hook.  So far, outside of that hit-or-miss intro, this album has been stunning and invigorating for Noel.  I have no idea where the story is going, but this is still wonderful.

 
    “She Taught Me How To Fly” continues on with the very hazy, Psychedelic vibes of this album.  This one is a little less punchy and more laid back, and to be honest, this is sort of a down point in the album for me.  It’s just a little too bizarre, with one too many effects here and there, and more of a slightly unfocused atmosphere.  BUT, Noel does combat that nicely with writing one of the catchier tunes here, and his performance is still heartfelt and incredibly passionate.  I mean, this album really reinventing anything for Noel?  Absolutely not, far from it.  But I honestly can’t remember the last time I heard Noel more comfortable with what he was performing.  It’s sweet and heartfelt, and while I do wish the instrumental was a little more focused, “She Taught Me How To Fly” really isn’t bad.  “Be Careful What You Wish For” on the other hand has a more stripped down bluesy sound, and man is it ever cool.  I love the very smokey vibe to this one, and while this instrumental may just be the most straightforward here, it’s focused.   Noel’s performance on this one really knocks it out of the park, easily being the coolest and most refreshing vocal performances I’ve heard from him in ages.  The very hazy feel to this album continues, and there are certainly still plenty of psychedelic influences floating through the background as well as some seriously solid backing vocals.  As far as the concept of this album goes, I’m still just about as anyone can be.  But for a downtrodden, bluesy track, “Be Careful What You Wish For” is killer.  But after just how dreary that last one was, “Black & White Sunshine” is just the tune I wanted to hear.  This one is punchy and energetic, and almost sounds like a really decent lost, Oasis tune.  The instrumentals on this one are stunning, and Noel’s booming performance is just tugging at my heartstrings.  I had no idea that some Sci-Fi Psych epic was the answer to getting Noel’s career back on track and producing tunes that see complete, but whatever works man.  “Black & White Sunshine” is a joyous and incredible tune, and I hope we hear more like this in the future.  Now, I don’t really have anything bad to say about "Interlude (Wednesday Part 1)”.  This is a smooth acoustic interlude, and because it’s 2-minutes long it actually goes somewhere.  Now yes, it does sound like a bizarre carbon copy of Eminem’s “Stan”, but I don’t mind it.  It’s sweet, and while it doesn’t really advance the plot, it’s pleasant to listen to. 

    “If Love is the Law” brings us into this album’s final leg.  These strangely joyous and upbeat tunes continue to be really something special, let me tell you, mostly because it just gives Noel so much life.  It’s something he’s lacked the last few years, and it’s great to hear.  I love just how vibrant the instrumental is here, and just how gigantic and anthemic the chorus comes off.  Once again, the concept of this album seems to be getting more bizarre by the minute, but whatever works for you Noel.  Not to mention, there are so many great genres clashing on this one in such a vibrant way, it’s wonderful honestly.  Then we have “The Man Who Built The Moon”, which is a monolithic, slow and heavy tune out of nowhere.  It’s completely over the top, but it’s just the sort of big risk I don’t mind hearing.  Noel’s once again Bluesy performance brings this one down a few notches though.  I love just how melodic these verses and chorus come off, and just how dreary this one is.  But it still remains pretty damn catchy.  “The Man Who Built The Moon” is a little goofy, and if this ties in with the narrative I’m completely lost at this point.  But, this is still a really solid tune and is a really interesting late album surprise.  This album ends off with "End Credits (Wednesday Part 2)”, and sadly this one really doesn’t come off as pleasant as the album’s first instrumental interlude.  It’s still pleasurable to listen to, and it’s sweet and breezy.  But they really just took that other interlude and completely rehashed it.  I’m just a little let down by this finale sadly.  Overall though, this is a really solid late-career album from Noel, showing he has a lot left in the tank. 

Rating: 7.9/10

Give A Listen To: “Holy Mountain”, “If Love Is The Law”, “Be Careful What You Wish For”, “Black & White Sunshine”

Genre: Alternative Rock / Psychedelic Rock

Overall Thoughts: I'll be honest, I thought this was going to be just another toss-away album showing Noel trying to desperately crawl his way back into the limelight.  But to be honest, this is a bold collection of songs that show Noel getting into brave new territory.  While the concept behind this album is a little wonky and hard to follow, it's given Noel the purpose that his last two records completely lacked. 

The Body and Full of Hell - "Ascending A Mountain Of Heavy Light"

Full of Hell and The Body are both some of the most interesting and unique acts in Metal right now.  I first got into Full Of Hell around the time of their "Roots of Earth Are Consuming My Home" album.  This album was wretched and gruesome, and showed right off the bat that Full Of Hell weren't scared to push Metal boundaries.  The production on this album wasn't outrageously bold, but it sounded like the band was performing directly from Hell.  There were elements of Hardcore Punk, Grindcore, Powerviolence, as well as old school Heavy Metal.  And while this album wasn't perfect, I certainly wanted to hear more.  On their 2013 album "Rudiments of Mutilation", Full Of Hell remained constant on their ongoing, full throttle trip to hell with some of the most ridiculous brutal Grindcore around.  This album was a whopping 24 minutes, but it was packed with character and memorable performances.  Not to mention, instrumentals so rough they would knock your teeth out.   Then, earlier this year Full of Hell released "Trumpeting Ecstasy".  Spoiler alert, it's one of my favorite metal albums of the year.  This album is by far the most concrete, explosive and concise release of the Full of Hell catalog.  This album is only about 23 minutes long, but it's just damn brutal, with tracks like "Crawling Back To God" seriously standing out.  That's Full of Hell, but The Body on the other hand, are a completely different animal.  While Full of Hell have always sounded like tortured demons straight from Hell, The Body have always come across as even more tortured.  Right from their sluggish beginnings on their 2012 self-titled album, The Body were ridiculously heavy.  They were making Doom metal that was just so dirty and Sludgy.  But the vocals The Body provided were always just so fucking piercing that for a while I didn't know how to even take them.  But over time, they've grown on me, and their debut album is a solid introduction to this duo.  However, it became pretty obvious very fast that The Body were a truly fearless duo ready for constant experimentation.  Their next release, "All the Waters of the Earth Turn to Blood" is a truly far out Metal album.  Believe it or not, it's a collaboration with the Assembly of Light Choir.  And this album, I really don't want to spoil.  It's brutal and awesome, but I can assure you it takes tons of patience.  The Body's next release, "Christs Redeemers" once again, took a whole lot of patience, bringing in a lot of the same influences as they had on their last two releases.  But it was becoming quickly apparent that The Body were truly fearless in Metal.   The Body's next full length album, is one of my favorites of theirs, a collaboration with producer The Haxan Cloak, "I Shall Die Here".  This is The Body's most experimental and far out album to date.  Combining suffocating and production that's overwhelming, The Body created an album that is seriously almost a little too dark and depressing.  But it's still just another reason that The Body are one of the most Experimental and Genre-Defying acts in Metal right now.  Then in 2016 The Body released "No One Deserves Happiness", arguably their most experimental album to date.  This album had electronic passages, stunning vocal guests, chilling spoken word pieces and more, all revolving around The Body's sluggish Doom Metal.  Once again, The Body seemed fearless.  During all of this between Full of Hell and The Body's careers, they also got famous for their split EP efforts with other bands like Code Orange and Nails.  But in 2016, they came together for "One Day You Will Ache Like I Ache", an all-out assault on your soul and your ears. All bets were off with this one, and you could literally hear anything at any given moment.  Tracks like "Cain" and "Gehorwilt" were just so explosive and exciting.  There were some times where I wished that the band's more experimental sides would come out.  But overall, I loved this album.  And not for nothing, but the production on this album was brilliant.  Now, i thought that would be a one-off project between these two acts.  But Full of Hell and The Body are back.  And from the sound of it, this is literally exactly what I wanted to hear from them, a much more experimental and unconventional sound.  Let's talk about this album!

This album starts off with “Light Penetrates”, and The Body and Full of Hell are actually really taking their time with this very ominous and noisy intro.  it really has me on the edge of my seat though.  Oddly enough, some of those bizarre synths are actually quite colorful.  Then we have of course the legendary shrieked vocals of The Body’s Chip King roll in, and all of a sudden I’m in this hazy, psychedelic and violent metal atmosphere that’s just not what I expected.  It’s twisted, but it’s also almost beautiful in a way.  Chip’s vocals clearly aren’t for everyone, and if you haven’t liked them in the past, this is going to be no different.  Now, While this may not be the prettiest metal track I’ve heard all year, it’s majestic and grand in it’s own vicious way.  Then of course we have the bizarre jazzy breakdown towards the end which is oddly really exciting and wild.  “Light Penetrates” just further proves just how groundbreaking these two artists really are.   “Earth is a Cage” is up next, and I love just how industrial and throttling this one comes off.  There’s not patient intro here, just pulsing drums, heavy guitars, and legendary Full of Hell shrieks of Dylan Walker.  It’s intense, nonstop, and most of all an all-out-assault on your ears.  But as straightforward as this one is, it still seems so far ahead of the curve.   It’s melodic almost in a really strange way, and this is certainly going to be one for your “Pumping Iron” playlists.  But like I said, as straightforward of a tune for Full of Hell and The Body this is, this continues to sound just so vast and vivid.  They chose the right freakin’ album cover for this one let me tell you, because this is one of the most oddly vibrant metal releases I’ve heard all year.   Then we have “The King Laid Bare”, and I really have to hand it to these two.  These atmospheres are just so by-the-books and obvious sounding.  But with these two highly experimental bands working together, they really have come through and created some of the most hellish atmospheres I’ve heard all year.  Like, this is literally early 90’s Nine Inch Nails level of hell here.   I love just how abrasive every instrumental comes off, there’s certainly nothing polished about this one.  And when the more pounding instrumentals come in, it just gets more and more brutal.  Also, I love how Full of Hell’s Dylan Walker is almost constantly just in the background screaming his head off, making this one even more tortured.  But one thing I really have to commend Full of Hell and The Body on, is just how intricate these instrumentals are.  There is constantly something happening, and seemingly endless instrumentals all coming off at once.  “The King Laid Bare” continues to be wild and incredibly entertaining.  “Didn’t The Night End” is up next, and I just love how ugly this one starts with these grimy vocals and pulsating instrumentals.  But the real star on this one is the pacing.  This is easily one of the most expertly crafted metal tunes I’ve heard all year.  It’s just so easy too, with those banging gongs in the background and these industrial synths.  It all just seems so obvious, but with these two modern Metal legends coming together for this, it’s near perfection.  This is one of the most chaotic tracks here, with each instrumental seemingly just bleeding into one another constantly.  The vocals all around sound absolutely tortured, like they’re trapped in Hell and begging for forgiveness.  But by the sound of everything around them, they aren’t going anywhere. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8cRs9rGWYE

    “Our Love Conducted with Shields Aloft” starts off the second half of this album, and the unbelievable pacing on this album continues with this very wicked, pounding intro that really gets me excited.  But that’s what makes The Body and Full of Hell so good, they’re masters at setting a mood.  The very vast instrumental palette of this album continues with these very wild drums that seem almost Jazz influenced.  But the sheer force of everything around them is enough to bring everything down (WAY down to Hell that is).  Now, “Our Love Conducted with Shields Aloft” isn’t as oddly melodic as some of the early tunes here, but it’s still as explosive and expressive as this album has been.  These two artists just seem to keep pushing forward, no matter what it takes to push the boundaries of just how noisy and brutal their music can be.  Now, I do wish this track was maybe a little more structured, but still, it’s solid, mostly because of just how wild and out of control the playing is. “Master’s Story” on the other hand ushers back in the pulsating beats and jazzy drums like we heard earlier, as well as Dylan Walker taking lead vocal duties again.  In a really bizarre way, it’s tracks like this that remain bizarrely catchy, and seriously memorable.  As far as an instrumentally dense track goes, this is one of the lighter ones here.  At least at the start, because eventually these ridiculously heavy guitars come crashing in, and instantly this one is an all-out Doom assault.  This album, however, is more than just two of the most wildly experimental current Metal artists.  It’s a celebration of every great Metal genre that’s come about in the last few years, and it’s oddly beautiful.  “Master’s Story” is just so damn intense, but it remains so vast and free sounding like this was an actual recording from another dimension.  Then we have tracks like “Farewell, Man”, which bring in a slight Sludge metal influence underneath all of this Grindcore.  But that’s beside the point, this track is as intense and as in-your-face as any other tune here.  It’s messy and tortured,  but it’s also still incredibly dense sounding with seemingly infinite instrumentals coming at you from every angle.  “Farewell Man” is another one for your “Pumping Iron” playlist folks, with its sluggish drums and crushing guitars.  But no matter how brutal this all is, I dare you to try and look away.  This album ends off with “I Did Not Want To Love You So”, and they haven’t made a single easy or accessible tune yet, so why start now?  This track right off the bat is crushing and noisy, and maybe the most experimental thing here, am sot to a fault.  I still think as far as these two go they still have done an unbelievable job with this track creating a truly twisted and ugly atmosphere to get lost in. I do wish this one was maybe a little more structured, but that’s really my only complaint.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXcdG4lKLtg

Rating: 8.4/10

Give  A Listen To: “Earth In A Cage”, “Didn’t The Night End”, “Master’s Story”, “Farewell, Man”

Genre: Grindcore / Industrial / Sludge Metal / Experimental Metal / Noise

Overall Thoughts:  Now I honestly thought we weren’t going to hear another collaboration between these two any time soon, let alone one that’s just so good.  The two bands first collaboration album was very good, but this new one blows it out of the water in every way.  It’s explosive and dense, with hellish atmospheres and truly twisted vocals.  But it’s all done on such a vast palette that makes this all almost psychedelic and strangely colorful.  It’s an intense album and not an easy listen.  But at the end of the day, this all just serves as further proof that Full of Hell and The Body are two of Metal’s most ferociously experimental and fearless bands.  

Tove Lo - "BLUE LIPS (Lady Wood Phase II)"

Say what you will about Swedish Indie Pop star Tove Lo, I haven't always completely minded her music at all.  As a matter of fact, with her debut album "Queen Of The Clouds" there was a lot of really solid stuff going on.  Tracks like "Habits (Stay High)" and "Talking Body" were obviously far from the classiest of Pop tunes.  But they were catchy and stuck with you.  Plus, they obviously painted Tove Lo as quite the character, no matter how bizarre and kinky of a character that was.  In 2016, Tove Lo released her follow-up album "Lady Wood".  Now, when I heard some of the early singles from this, like "True Disaster" and "Lady Wood", I was impressed.  I thought the production was so much better, and Tove seemed focused on writing solid Pop tunes.  But the rest of this album really had me scratching my head.  Some of the ballads lost their steam quickly or seemed insincere, the features were atrocious, and Tove Lo just didn't seem focused.  Not to mention, after 12 tracks, you'd really think Tove Lo would start coming up with more interesting things to say than "I'm Horny".  Now, I'll give her new track "Disco Tits' this, it's certainly catchy and it does have it's moments.  But I really hope Tove Lo starts to branch out with this new album.  Let's chat about it.

Of course, because every album trying to be something it isn’t, this album opens up with “Light Beams (Part One)”.  It’s cloudy, hazy, drugged out, and I honestly don’t mind it much at all at first.  But of course, Tove Lo comes in talking about how she’s the *ahem* “Motherfucking Queen of the Disco Tits”.  Instantly, I have all sorts of questions, no thank you.  Now, spoiler alert, this album really isn’t a good one.  At first, I really wasn’t into the “disco tits” single at all.  I just feel like a whole lot of this is what we got from Tove on her first few projects.  It’s just a whole big mess of Sex metaphors and steamy moments.  Now, done in moderation, this could totally be a rebellious sound for Tove.  But when I hear it constantly in every other lyric, it’s just not flattering or interesting.  But believe it or not, “disco tits” has grown on me.  I love the smooth beat during the chorus and just how infectious and mesmerizing this one is.  But trust me, it took a LOT to love this one.  And if you’re not into this or think it’s just more of the same from Tove, that’s totally fine.  Then we have “shedontknowbutsheknows”, and instantly we’re going right back into this rabbit hole of sex and drugs.  Which once again, done in moderation could be fine.  But some of these lyrics I feel like have been taken directly from her last album, just altered slightly.  I do have to say, the hook on this one remains incredibly catchy and hypnotizing.  But I literally feel like way too much of “shedontknowbutsheknows” is being rehashed.  I would usually be sort of into this murky beat as well, but I just can’t get into this track completely.  Up next is “shivering gold”, and it’s moment like this that I really do wish I was more into this album.  Tove’s vocal performance here is commendable, and the more somber tone here that paints her as more of an emotional character is really refreshing.  Then the beat drops and quite frankly it’s just ugly.  Quickly, “shivering gold” comes right around to once again be nothing but raucous sex and drinking.  It’s quite frankly just getting seriously old really quick.  The chorus here is just as annoying and obnoxious, and Tove’s performance is spiraling out of control.  Every once in a while I do hear a synth tone or two that come off really cool and make me a little more hopeful for the future, but not too much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RQDPwODja4

    Now, a lot of the tracks here really don’t start off bad at all.  On “dont ask dont tell”, Tove’s vocals once again really sound great, and her more personal and much more human lyrics come off refreshing.  I wish the instrumental was a little more flushed out on this one, because I don’t really like hearing her on such a minimal beat however.  “dont ask dont tell” had some serious potential , because it was pretty nice to hear Tove a little more in the raw and not talking about sex as much.  But this one just gets repetitive really quickly and instrumentally really is putting me to sleep.  Now, “stranger” does rub me the wrong way from this intro, and really makes me question if this is a Synth Pop record anymore.  But I do have to swallow my words rather quickly because let’s be honest, this is easily one of the best beats here.  It’s determined, and while yes, some of the production is flashy and glitzy, I love just how over the top this one is.  Obviously, the guitars on “stranger” are a bit cheesy, but I don’t mind this one nearly as much.  Not to mention, because the last track was much more personal and toned down, her sexy vibe on this one is so much more interesting and comes off as actually steamy.  Sadly, “bitches” finishes off this act of the album on a seriously low note.  Everything that was sort of sleek and mysterious about the last track is just thrown out for which may be the trashiest tune here.  There isn’t anything on this track that we haven’t heard from Tove in the past, except she’s apparently down for being with girls now.  Not to mention, Tove just sounds so full of herself and just so proud of how “sexy” she is.  It’s not what I’m here to listen to, and it’s just about everything I hate about her.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7PzmnGLP3Y

    The second act of this album is called “Pitch Black”, and to be honest does show a lot of improvement.  The instrumental that starts this off is actually really cool.  Like, it’s only 54 seconds so I can’t really dive in too much.  But I love just how murky and dark this track is, I want some more of that!  Then we have “romantics” featuring Daye.  Now, this one is going for much more of an Alternative R&B vibe album, with some really silky vocals all around.  Not to mention, that absolutely booming beat is killer and 100% what Tove should be going for.  Now, I don’t think this is the classiest tune I’ve heard all year.  But between Daye’s smooth verse and this hazy atmosphere, I’m really into a lot of this.  It’s moments like this that make me think that Tove really does have a lot to offer.  Not to mention, it’s just really refreshing to hear her focusing more on melodies and piecing together an actual Pop tune.  “cycles” on the other hand is just plain awkward.  The instrumental that she picks on this album, while there are some good ones, there’s also a ton that quite frankly doesn't work for Tove.  As a matter of fact, the entire “cycles” track is incredibly awkward.  It’s not smooth, and if this is her trying to be edgy and “alternative” she’s doing it mighty wrong.  And no, lyrically this certainly doesn’t bring anything new to the table.  “cycles” just rubs me all sorts of wrong ways.  I do commend her for doing a more personal tune like this and all.  But putting a track like this up against a more cloudy atmosphere just sort of makes this one a major waste of my time.  But then I hear a track like “struggle” and I have a whole lot nicer things to say.  I really do love just how dark and grimy some of these late album tracks come off.  Hell, they come off more like some classic Synth Pop or even DarkWave.  And while some of the beats here are maybe just a little obnoxious, I do actually love how intense this all is.  I don’t know, it just gives this track so much more of a feeling that I can see going with Tove Lo.  And while yes, there are certainly still a handful of really awful and trashy lyrics, “struggle” is incredibly tolerable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwUij7E6hmI

    So by this point, I really thought like Tove was going in a more mature direction.  But sadly, “9th of october” is abysmal.  This has the same sort of mature tone to it and all, that really comes off like Tove THINKS this is a much more mature track.  But not for the life of me can I take this seriously.  This beat is just so sloppy, and some of the effects on Tove’s vocals later in the track are laughable.  Moments like this just really bring me down, especially with how much of this garbage she’s thrown at us before.  Now, I do like the very dark, almost Gothic atmosphere on “bad days”.  In a way, this almost sounds like something that Banks would have come out with.  Overall, this track is pretty solid.  I really like the pacing on this one, and for the most part, Tove seems to be on her best behavior.  The production is sleek, and Tove’s performance is actually interesting sounding.  Tracks like “bad days” really make me hope she calms the hell down and does more stuff like this.  Hell, I would even really love to hear her in a more dark, Alternative R&B atmosphere.   Now, I have been SLIGHTLY more impressed with this second half.  But then I see for a finale we have this lovely track title called “hey you got drugs?”.  I didn’t expect much from this one.  Now, for a track with this title, this is awfully quaint and almost sounds like the adventurous 80’s Pop that Carly Rae Jepsen did on her last album.  But let’s be honest, this is incredibly sloppy.  The icy beat is just not flattering to Tove, and everything else going on here is awkward.  Tove’s priorities as far as what she wants to do with her music just seem so out of whack.  Does she want to be the queen of Softcore Pop?  Or does she actually want to try and grow up a little?  Tove doesn’t know obviously, so how the hell are her fans supposed to?

Rating: 6.4/10




Give  A Listen To: “disco tits” (IT GREW ON ME),  “stranger”, “romantics”, "struggle"




Genre: Synth Pop / Dance / Electro Pop 




Overall Thoughts: Tove Lo remains a Pop Star that really doesn't know what she wants at the end of the day.  The first half of the album is a chunk of over-sexualized garbage that we saw on her first few albums, with a few decent tracks here and there.  The second half of this album shows Tove attempting to be more mature.  But more times than not, her attempt at an honest to God ballad is ruined by some ridiculous drugged out line or a lyric or two about how she needs Sex constantly.  There are a handful of decent tunes on here, some of her finest yet I would even say.  But I just feel like Tove remains so damn unfocused on what kind of star she wants to be.  

Baths - "Romaplasm"

Baths, aka the Electronic project of Will Wiesenfeld, is a project that sort of caught me off guard.  Like, I really wasn't expecting much out of his debut album "Cerulean".  But I found a lot of the music here to be totally playful and incredibly adventurous.  Will obviously had a ton of ideas and presented them wonderfully.  Now, some of the more stripped down moments on here (which really weren't many) were a little underwhelming.  But still, I found "Cerulean" to be a really nice start to Will's career under the Baths name.  Baths next up went on to release a sort of B-Sides collection in the form of "Pop Music/False B-Sides".  This, for the most part, was a very pleasant follow-up, with some of the softer and more ambient recordings really standing out in a big way.  But some of the tunes here that had vocals weren't nearly as pleasing.  Not to mention, overall this album wasn't as adventurous I felt sad.  Baths, however, returned with the much more enjoyable 'Obsidian" in 2013.  This album returned to Will's wildly adventurous roots.  Tracks like "No Past Lives" and "Earth Death" were curiously heavy and looming, while other tracks like "No Eyes" remained the Experimental Pop that fans had come to love from Baths.  But this album also showed Will incorporating more vocals to his music.  Which is totally fine, it made this album stand out from the rest of his work rather nicely.  However, it also leads to some of the album's more awkward moments, like "Incompatible". Now, it's been a few years since we've heard from Baths.  These new singles though have been lively, fun, quirky, and most of all show that Will is so much more comfortable singing.  Let's talk about this new Baths album!

    This album starts off with “Yeoman”, and I love just how sun-shiny and cheery this intro is.  But Will right off the bat shows us just how off-kilter he can make the sounds of Baths.  The synths are constantly shifting, changing tones and really helping Will’s music come off incredibly animated.  Now, let’s talk about these vocals.  Will sounds so much more comfortable with his melodies here.  On his last album “Obsidian”, I thought Will really still needed to work on that.  But this track is wild, experimental, and fun.  It’s also seriously touching, which always amazes me when Electronic artists can pull off.  I love just how expressive Will’s performance is as well, and just how colorful “Yeoman” continues to be.  This is easily some of the most fun I’ve had with Pop Music this year, even though it’s far from an accessible pop tune.  The instrumentals are all so lavish and seem to have their own personalities, what an awesome intro.  “Extrasolar” up next isn’t nearly as punchy or as cheery, but I actually really love the low-key groove on this one.  To be honest, I’ve never realized just how much I love Will’s voice.  It’s not a normal pop voice, it’s full of little quirks that certainly make it far from perfect, but it’s still charming.  The instrumentals Will keeps bringing to the table seem to be constantly shifting, unable to stay still.  But I can’t remember Will’s music ever sounding so vast and alive, it’s actually beautiful.  “Extrasolar” is far from your normal Pop tune or Electronic tune, but Will presents it wonderfully in a way that anyone can dive in.  The production on this album continues to be mighty warm and inviting with “Abscond”.  I love the jolly, more accessible instrumental on this one that really is much more in the line of straight up pop.  It almost reminds me of a much more interesting Pop tune from one of those Emo bands that tried their hand with this style.  But it’s just so bouncy and colorful that it’s so likable.  But I really think what makes tracks like “Abscond” work is Will’s performance.  His performance here is just so tender and actually seriously sweet.  Will’s writing these incredible love songs that quite frankly I didn’t know he had in him.  Then we have “Human Bog”, and I do love how all of these tracks start out so serene as Will really eases us into what he’s doing.  Now, I do really like the wonky production and the vibrant atmospheres.  But for my liking, the only major issue I have with this album are some of the ballads.  I see what Will’s trying to do on “Human Bog”, and I wholeheartedly respect it.  But I feel like that his vocals are just so much more interesting up against some more snappy and wild pop tunes.  When I hear the vocals within this track, I feel like I’m right back listening to “Obsidian” and feeling that Will isn’t nearly as comfortable with what he’s performing.  There are some wonderful, warm instrumentals here, and I do think lyrically Will continues to really know his audience.  But outside of that, this track is a little underwhelming.

    This album trudges on with the upbeat and strangely chaotic “Adam Copies”. Will’s very animated vocals along with this one’s hectic atmosphere actually make it seriously exciting. If the instrumentals before were constantly shifting and changing, this is next level. But that makes this one so interesting is just how intense it is. The instrumentals are still certainly playful, but they also pack a serious punch. The elongated instrumental break about hallways through however tones things down and is seriously beautiful. This album so far has been really wild, and makes it hard to sit still listening to it. Not to mention, I would seriously love to hear more heavy tracks like this from Will. The beat on “Adam Copies” hits so hard, and his intense screams towards the end are completely animalistic. I love this damn tune. Now, “Lev” once again sort of underwhelms me once again, it’s all of these softer tunes here I tell ya. I actually like the somber tone to the instrumentals here, and how much emotion there is in that. But it’s Will’s vocal performance that once again really doesn’t affect me. Plus, at only 2 minutes long, this really doesn’t have any time to get started. Now “I Form” actually goes in a much more quaint, singer/songwriter direction, which is actually a really interesting addition to the album. It actually ends up working really great. Will’s performance is once again mighty endearing and sweet, and everything about this instrumental remains wild and colorful. I love some of the backing sound effects that give “I Form” a seriously experimental edge. While all the while, Will’s performance and some of the strings really bring this one down and make it easier to swallow. This is a truly bizarre album, but I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun listening to Pop music. “I Form” is just so driving and intense, I love it all. This new Baths album in a weird way actually sounds like Passion Pit on a whole lot of Party Drugs. Then we have “Out” which has this super nice, thick groove which is just so bouncy and enjoyable. It’s moments like this that Will’s straight up Pop star comes out inside, and it’s a great moment. I love the snarky hook here and Will’s more delicate vocals that pop in. This album remains so vibrant and constantly shifting, it really does keep you engaged. It’s bouncy, fun, and totally far out there with some of the most experimental production, you’ll hear this year.

    “Superstructure” is up next, and as this album goes on, Will gets more and more fearless.  This is easily the most bizarre and experimental tune here yet, and it’s got quite the amount of interesting instrumentals in some strings as well as some others as well.  But this one picks up into another really intense and wild electronic tune.  Vocally, I wouldn’t say this is my favorite Will performance here, lyrically too.  To be honest, lyrically I’ve enjoyed how his sweeter lyrics have made this album a little easier to digest, which doesn’t really play a factor on “Superstructure”.  Vocally I’ve heard him a whole lot more charming too.  But ironically, I think Will still pulls it off and keeps my interest with this very intense beat and wild instrumental palette.  “Wilt” on the other hand once again is a really seriously quaint Piano Pop tune.  But Will sounds like he’s just so comfortable in this role.  It’s obviously far south of the rest of the tunes here, and this is obviously easily the most accessible tune here (even though the production is still mighty abrasive).  Will just sounds so sweet behind the Piano performing this ballad.  If he could take this quaint sound and make it even more adventurous sound, I really think he could make an album even better than the one he has here.   “Coitus” is up next, and I have to stress that Will really has to stop with these ballad tunes, cause this is really bad.  I think the production is really cool, and it is nice to hear Will behind the piano again.  And I DO really love just how sweet and endearing his lyrics are.  But come on, there really isn’t anything about his performance outside of that, that tells me this is a Baths tune.  There are some seriously lovely instrumentals, but it’s nothing that I haven’t heard at other points in this album.  Thankfully, with the finale “Broadback”, Will makes it clear that he still has quite a few more ideas in the tank.  I love the glitchy production, and just how heavy some of the instrumentals come off.  Not to mention, after hearing his very reserved performance, hearing his wild performance on “Broadback” is just so refreshing.  It’s intense, it’s fun, and it’s just so damn likable.  Also, this may just be the most melodic Will has sounded here. 

Rating: 8.2/10

Give  A Listen To: "Yeoman", "Abscond", "Adam Copies", "I Form"

Genre: Experimental Pop / Electronic / Glitch

Overall Thoughts:  This quite frankly, is the Experimental Pop album that I really needed to hear this year.  This album shows Will Wiesenfield at his most creative and emotional.  He's done music with vocals and lyrics before, but it's never come off this strong.  Will sounds like a real star here, blending vibrant and playful Electronic beats with Pop hooks in a way that I haven't really heard this year.  

Morrissey - Low In High School

Morrissey is a dude that really doesn't need an introduction.  Since his legendary run with The Smiths throughout the 80's and entirely throughout his solo career, Morrissey has always been a very controversial dude.  And it all started with his 1988 debut "Viva Hate".  This album was pretty by-the-books for Morrissey, and is a pretty important album for him.  Gigantic singles like "Suedehead", "Hairdresser On Fire", and "Everyday is Like Sunday" have become concert staples for Morrissey (when he isn't cancelling them that is).  But it's also an oddly experimental album for him.  Tracks like "Bengali In Platforms" and "Break Up The Family" have some weird world music influences that just don't work well for him, and certainly haven't aged well.  But overall, "Viva Hate" worked for Morrissey.  Now, Morrissey was still clearing some of the kinks out of his solo sound, as evident with his 1991 album "Kill Uncle".  This album had some amazing moments like "Pashernate Love".  But other tracks on here, while they were written rather well, were absolutely awfully produced.  There would be bizarre abrasive and experimental moments that came seemingly out of nowhere that just didn't work for Morrissey at all.  The result just sort of seemed underwhelming.  Thankfully, Morrissey really started sounding like himself on his 1992 release "Your Arsenal".  The material on this album was the jolly sort of Jangle-Pop that landed on the final Smiths album, but of course with tons of wit and tongue-in-cheek humor.  But more than anything, it just sort of sounded like Morrissey was totally comfortable with what he was recording.  On his next album, Morrissey got bigger, bolder, and darker with 1994's "Vauxhall and I".  It's an artsy album that starts off a little slow.  But by the end of it, I really feel like some of Morrissey's best tracks are on here.  From fan favorites like "The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get", to personal favorites of mine like "Speedway" (Which may be my favorite Morrissey track ever), there's something on here for everyone.  But towards the Mid 90's, Morrissey started to enter his weakest period.  "Southpaw Grammar" was the first time I was left completely lost for words after listening to a Morrissey album, and not in the good way.  This album was absolutely full of itself in the worst way.  The songs here were often ridiculously long for Morrissey, and overstayed their welcome quick;y.  Now, there were a few really solid moments, like "Reader Meet Author".  But outside of that, there was nothing here that really made me desperate to hear more.  Morrissey's bland years continued with "Maladjusted", which honest to God I couldn't tell you a single track from.  Thankfully, Morrissey in the 2000's seemed to be so much more interesting than any of his material in the 90's.  2004's "You Are The Quarry" was much heavier and more Alternative sounding for Morrissey, compared to his usual Jangle Pop.  But the result was Morrissey coming off super refreshed and sounding more in your face than ever.  Tracks like "Irish Blood, English Heart" and "First Of The Gang To Die" were just so well done, and Morrissey just sounded like he was really comfortable in his new sound.  Morrissey continued to expand his sound with one of my favorite album's of his, "Ringleader of The Tormentors".  This album had such a massive sound to it, with both controversial and catchy tunes like "I Will See You In Far Off Places" and "You Have Killed Me".  But at the end of the day, this album was just more proof that Morrissey was and remains one of Indie's finest songwriters.  Morrissey continued his 2000's hot-streak with 2009's "Years of Refusal".  This album had a seriously great chunk of tunes on it, from fan favorites like "I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris", to more solid deep cuts like "When I Last Spoke To Carol" and "One Day Goodbye Will Be Farewell".  Now, some of the slower, more ballad-like tunes here didn't really hit me nearly as hard, but still, this album showed than Morrissey had tons in the tank left.  But of course, during all of this, Morrissey has always been a very polarizing public figure, and it was just a matter of time before his music got overly-political and preachy.  That's what happened with his "World Peace is None Of Your Business".  I just was so underwhelmed by this album, and too many lines had me shaking my head.  Now, say what you will about these new singles from Morrissey, but I think that they really aren't THAT bad.  Let's talk about this new Morrissey album.

(Easily my favorite Morrissey Tune)

    This album starts off with “My Love, I’d Do Anything For You”.  Now, for an opening track I actually think this works out seriously well.  I love the sort of glitzy production, and for the most part Morrissey does indeed sound like he’s on his best behavior.  The instrumentals are punchy, and in a way this is the sort of gloomy downtrodden love song that he originally made waves with.  In a lot of ways, this actually comes off like a classic Smiths song, maybe something from their “Strangeways, Here We Come” album.  It is a little sluggish, but Morrissey makes up for that with very glamorous production and one-liners that only he can come up with.  As a Morrissey tune, this is actually well done. Then we have “I Wish You Lonely”, and the sort of slow, glitzy vibe of this album marches on.  This is the sort of Gloomy, Snarky Pop tune that Morrissey won my heart over with years ago.  It’s got plenty of attitude packed into an off-kilter love tune, which is really all I can ask for.  It’s moments like this that really stop me in my tracks, and make me think that Morrissey has plenty of gas left in his tank.  I love the whimsical production and Morrissey’s very haunting vocals.  But deep down, we’re slowly getting into some more Political under-themes, which is something I was really hoping that Morrissey would stay away from.  But have we talked about this cover art?  Clearly, that’s not going to happen.  But for now, I’m happy with “I Wish You Lonely”.  This album continues with “Jacky’s Only Happy When She’s Up on the Stage”.  Now, so far this have obviously been a very flashy album.  But some of Morrissey’s best music has been so damn pristine.  This is actually another really solid tune overall.  I actually love when Morrissey does these sort of biographical, grim tunes.  It works wonderfully for Morrissey, and I love the very cinematic vibe to all of this.  I feel like as each track rolls on though, Morrissey gets closer and closer to breaking out into political rants.  But so far, this is working just fine for my liking.  While I do wish some of these tracks were maybe a little punchier, this is far from bad.  Then we have “Home Is A Question Mark”, which is just so much drearier and hazier.  It almost has a weird Psychedelic vibe.  if it wasn’t for those Sleigh Bells in the background, this would be completely a foreign sound for Morrissey.  When it comes to these sort of gloomy, downtrodden tracks, Morrissey still has a ton in the tank.  This one is all about him not knowing what a “home” is because he hasn’t met anyone that makes him feel like where he lives is a “home”, which is a really interesting concept.  So far, so good.  But, it sure would be a real shame if Morrissey’s ego took over…..

“Spent The Day In Bed” is the first track here that quite frankly sticks out horribly.  The production on this track is just so wonky and not nearly as graceful.  Then we have Morrissey’s lyrics which have taken the biggest U-Turn imaginable.  They’ve gone sweet and endearing to quite frankly full of themselves.  I just really don’t want to hear any of this.  The melody to “Spent The Day In Bed” is certainly fine and jolly, and the snarky attitude of this one is totally fine.  I think this is a decent tune, but it really should have been approached very differently.  This is the first real slip up here, but this album is about to get so much worse.  Now, I really have no idea what he was going for with the extended intro on “I Bury The Living”.  But then this seriously obnoxious beat comes in and everything turns ugly.  Morrissey has done plenty of brooding, dark tuns before.  But this is just so incredibly ugly sounding, and that’s before these incredibly awful and stuck up lyrics pop in.  Morrissey has a lot of balls, that’s something we’ve known for years.  But trust me that doesn’t make this any easier.  All of this was imagery, and all of these statements that really make you questions just how much of a dick Morrissey really is, make this track seriously appalling.  Did I mention “I Bury The Living” is 8 minutes long?  Moments like this quite frankly don’t just make it hard to love Morrissey, but really make it sort of embarrassing to be a fan of his.  This track is everything I’ve hated about protest music in 2017.   Now, there was a time where a ballad like “In Your Lap” would have been really gigantic and welcomed.  But at this point in an album that’s quickly spiraling out of control quickly, this isn’t doing him any favors.  With each passing moment, this is quickly becoming an album completely about Morrissey’s ego.  His political views are coming into each lyric one way or another.  It’s just so exhausting to hear this, it’s literally sucking the life out of me.  The instrumental to “In Your Lap” is just so bare, and Morrissey’s performance isn’t at its finest. This album’s downward spiral continues, and it’s really tough to watch.  By the time we get to “The Girl From Tel-Aviv Who Wouldn’t Kneel”, I feel like I’m really running out of things to say.  I mean yea, the instrumental is is much peppier and classier.  Spanish music has always, especially in the last few years, been a real strong influence on Morrissey.  But lyrically, this is becoming more laughable by the minute.  Letting us into your life is one thing, but making an album 100& about yourself is something completely different.  I do other like the instrumental, I honestly think he could have done something seriously cool with this.  But it’s just becoming so evident very fast that Morrissey really doesn’t have any interest in returning to the tunes he once so easily crafted. 

    Now, “All The Young People Must Fall In Love” actually doesn’t start off too bad with a pretty slick instrumental.  But, I feel like we should play a game called “How can Morrissey take a sweet track and turn it into something else entirely”.  How in the world Morrissey took a sweet track about teenagers falling in love and managed to bring in Global Politics, is both confusing and seriously hilarious.  This could have been something special, honestly a track that really got him back on track.  Hell, this whole album could have been something special, but Morrissey just has his head so far up his own ass.  Up next is “When You Open Up Your Legs”, and the award for the most awkwardly cheery instrumental of the year goes to……this!  It’s gotten to the point where I would go down a list of things that are wrong with this one, but what’s the point?  It’s the same thing that’s been wrong with the last 4 tracks.  It’s just so blatantly political to the point where Morrissey really is shoving it down our throats.  And it’s a shame because this instrumental is something Morrissey could have worked wonders with.  Once again, this album could have easily been special, but Morrissey just can’t keep his mouth shut.  “Who Will Protect Us From The Police?” is up next, and I really haven’t talked about the production in a while.  But seriously, the production here has taken a ridiculous nosedive along with the lyrics.  The weird, electronic rock vibe that Morrissey is going for here is quite frankly laughably awkward.  Lyrically, with a song title like this, you’re damn right this is hard to stomach.  Morrissey isn’t on the far left or the far right or whatever, he’s in his own little terrifying world.  This album ends off with “Israel”, and right off the bat, the production is mighty questionable.  This very “epic” introduction just ends up sounding ridiculously muddy.  Ironically, I think this is actually one of the better songs on here, just because of how dramatic and passionate Morrissey’s performance is.  But hey, what do you know, the lyrics have me looking for a garbage to throw up in.  As this one goes on for almost 6 minutes, Morrissey adds nothing new of interest, and really ends up wrapping up this album horribly. 

Rating: 5.4/10

Give A Listen To: "My Love, I’d Do Anything for You", "I Wish You Lonely", "Jacky's Only Happy When She's Up On The Stage", "Home Is A Question Mark" 

Genre: Indie Rock / Alternative Rock

Overall Thoughts: This album is absolutely the worst thing Morrissey has ever done, by far.  The first few tracks here really give you some hope, showing that Morrissey can still really write a downtrodden, gloomy Love tune.  But the final 2/3's of the album brings in a combination of Morrissey's gigantic ego and even more gigantic political views, and mashes themall togetherr with some seriously messy production.  There are tracks here that could have been something special if Morrissey didn't make it about himself.  But he did, and it's truly a shame. 

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - “Polygondwanaland”

.......I seriously can't believe they actually released 4 albums this year.  Blah Blah Blah King Gizzard, Blah Blah Blah Psychedelic Rock band from Australia, Blah Blah Blah ok I've written four intros for this band this year roll with me.  Let's chat about this new King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard album!

(A personal favorite of mine)

This album starts off with “Crumbling Castle”.  It’s a smooth intro really, with some sweet licks and some hypnotic bass.  Now, of all of the albums, King Gizzard have released this year so far, this is probably the truest to their nature and easily their most Psychedelic.  I love the mysterious vibes to this one that makes the Psychedelic nature of this album just that much wilder.  The vocals are unhinged and often seem directly on the verge of really freaking out.  But the vocals stay smooth, as do the instrumentals which come off just as ready to break.  The solid riffs are here, but one thing that’s a really nice addition is this sense of Progressive Rock.  “Crumbling Castle” just has so much going on and just seems so vast.  Now obviously, a lot of people aren’t going on and just seems so vast.  Now obviously, a lot of people aren’t going to be into the idea of just sitting around for 10 minutes and letting King Gizzard really take them on a trip.  But if you’re a fan of older, wilder and more intense King Gizzard, this is going to be a real, late in the year treat.  But I think what really drives this one home for me is the wild and personality oozing vocals.  It’s NAME at his weirdest and most bizarre, but that’s something I’m always going to go crazy for.  My only slight critique is that I sort of wish that this track was a little heavier in moments.  And we certainly do get a lot of freak out moment towards the end, but I wish there were more.  Still, though, this is a wild start.   Then we have “Polygondwanaland”, and I just love the mysterious and very dark vibe of a lot on this album.  Just the way the bass on this one creeps along is so well done.  With all the wild and experimental stuff King Gizzard have pushed out this year, this track is just so refreshing and lovely to hear.  There are some really great harmonies, and some really pleasant instrumentals as well.  While “Polygondwanaland” isn’t as throttling or hectic as usual, I think that King Gizzard actually do really well with this sound.  It’s smooth, and most importantly incredibly hypnotic.  It reminds me a lot of what they were doing on “Flying Microtonal Banana”, with some cleaner production.  The plucked guitars and woodwinds are really nice additions as well.  Overall, this track works great.  By the time we reach “The Castle In The Air”, King Gizzard have really gotten comfortable, and it’s around this time that King Gizzard get really dangerous.  We’re treated with the same narrator who took us through the “Murder Of The Universe” album.  It’s a very rigid tune, one that seems so calculated and well thought out.  The guitars are tightly wound and the vocals are haunting.  Now, it may just be me, but I really feel like this is the album that I wanted King Gizzard to end this year off with.  It’s a real “Back to Basics” sound but in the best way.   I love just how sinister the harmonies are, and how the band has continued to keep some of these synths in their music as well.  “Deserted Dunes Welcome Weary Feet” is up next, and it’s clear that when King Gizzard gets into their groove, they can seriously come out with a dangerous and exciting album that’s constantly shifting.  This track is really starting to bring in a lot of the heavier and more chaotic instrumentals while keeping a lot of the haunting lyrical themes we’ve got in the past.  Also, if I may, this is easily the most Psychedelic album that King Gizzard have done all year.  But it’s seriously relentless, and “Deserted Dunes Welcome Weary Feet” ends up sounding like it’s alive and constantly changing.  So far, this album is shaping up to be a fantastic end to an incredible year. 

It’s moments like on “Inner Cell” that really make you think just how far King Gizzard have come in the last few years.  Moments like this just sound so mature, yet still volatile.  This one really takes a lot from the very hypnotic “Flying Microtonal Banana”, and is very rigid in performance.  But that’s what actually sort of leads to this ones downfall for me.  I love the vocals and lyrics to this one a lot.  But instrumentally where are the vicious and throttling passages?  Even more so, where are the wild vocal performances that I’ve come to know and love?  “Inner Cell” is just a little tame for my liking.  Then we have “Loyalty” which is so Synth heavy that I would have sworn this was made for the “Stranger Things” soundtrack.  I have to say though the band really works well with the Synths.  I love just how haunting and chilling “Loyalty” is, and while this one doesn’t really have too many weird or wild performances either, it works really well.  It’s hypnotic and seriously twisted in a  way that only King Gizzard could make happen.  The vocals on this one go right through you and maybe the purest evil sounding track here, and I love every second of it.  Not to mention, some of the pacing on this one is wonderful, especially in the later moments when everything gets so hypnotic.  The very tightly wound guitars continue onto “Horology”, I really don’y know how King Gizzard haven’t utilized this sound in so long.  But once again, this one sort of underwhelms me in it’s performance.  I really don’t feel anything from the performance of NAME on this one, it’s not nearly as disturbing or psychedelic, and it certainly doesn’t seem unhinged or wild.  To be honest, a whole lot of this one just sounds so wound up.  There are some nice moments, like some of the later and sweeter vocal harmonies, as well as the continued focus on the synths and strangely intense drums.  But outside of that, this one is flat.  But King Gizzard bounce back hard with the seriously mystic “Tetrachromacy”.  It’s when King Gizzard really go all out for these Psychedelic vibes and bizarre lyrics and concepts that they end up really hitting a home run.  This track is just determined at being weird, but  it’s tracks like this that end up sticking with me the most.  I feel like listening to “Tetrachromacy”, even after listening numerous times, is just so exciting.  Every time I hear this, I never really feel like I know what’s going to happen next, almost like it’s alive and has its own personality.  The grooves are intense, the playing is solid, and King Gizzard really just sound like they’re in their groove, and it’s great to hear. 

King Gizzard still have a ton of tricks up their sleeves.  “Searching…” is easily the grimiest and darkest track here.  But it’s backed up wonderfully with some seriously groove drums that have almost a World music flair.  It’s groovy, it’s hazy, it’s Psychedelic, and it’s totally King Gizzard.  As it rolls on, “Searching…” gets even more and more hypnotic, but remains seriously colorful (no pun intended, since by this point the album has gotten into discussing colors).  I think it’s just an all around great sound for the band.  And while I wish this one was a little longer or more unhinged, it’s still really well done.   Then we have the finale, “The Fourth Colour”.  This is basically what the entire album has been building up to.  Every track that I wish was a little more unhinged, is made up for with this wild track.  “The Fourth Colour” is completely off the rails and upbeat, and most of all colorful.  While the vocals all around are still pretty damn smooth, let’s be honest, everything else is out of control.  The guitars are constantly soloing and the drums are so intense.  It’s a vibrant track that just reminds us how volatile and wild King Gizzard are.  For an all out war of a tune, this one is really tough to keep track of.  But it’s also incredibly fun and exciting.  Hell yes.  

Rating: 8.2/10

Give A Listen To: “Polygondwanaland”, “Deserted Dunes Welcome Weary Feet”, “Loyalty”, “The Fourth Colour”

Genre: Psychedelic Rock / Garage Rock

Overall Thoughts:  Well what do you freakin' know, King Gizzard saved their best album of the year for last.  This album really takes the best of all three albums they've released prior and meshed them together for a wild and colorful Psychedelic Rock album.  It takes the hypnotic playing of "Flying Microtonal Banana", the unpredictability of "Murder Of The Universe", and "Sketches of Brunswick East"'s laid-back vibes, and brings them all together wonderfully.  While I do wish one or two tracks would pick up the pace a little, this album is an absolute blast, and I can't remember the last time I had so much fun listening to King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard. 

Electric Wizard - "Wizard Bloody Wizard"

Ok, so Doom Metal is a really hard genre to pull off, like a LOT of Metal's sub-genres.  But Electric Wizard right from the get-go really seemed to know exactly what they were doing.  Their 1994 debut "Electric Wizard" was a wild, fantasy driven sluggish metal album.  But it didn't come off as forced, it honestly came off like they were doing it for years and trained with some of the best.  Now of course, if you're not into Doom Metal it's a little tough to get into sometimes.  But if you're into this sort of very visual Metal with fantastic playing, this is one hell of a debut album.  1996's "Come My Fanatics..." was a little less impactful, but still a seriously bluesy and ridiculously fun to listen to.  But for me, I wanted to hear Electric Wizard come out with a truly classic album.  Which they did in 2000 with the unbelievable "Dopethrone".  This album was brutal from start to finish, with multi-part tunes often reaching well over 10 minutes.  But it was all so bluesy, so gloomy, and it ended up taking me to an entirely different world when listening to it.  Not only is it a blast, it's Electric Wizard at their heaviest and most technical and it's amazing.  With 2002's "Let Us Prey" though, Electric Wizard took a much different approach.  Yes, the band was still trudging along with some seriously slow and gloomy doom metal.  However, this was a much darker and much more hellish album.  The vocals were so much harsher and the atmosphere was so dense and dark.  It's still a really solid release, but it's certainly different for these Doom Metal masters. Up next, Electric Wizard released "We Live" in 2004.  Now, I don't want to say I was underwhelmed by this, but I was a little bit.  I thought this heavier direction the band was going in was just so good, and this album sort of showed them getting back to Doom basics.  Which trust me, is totally fine.  But this to me was just a step back.  Lyrically, I still loved how the band flirted with darkness.  But everything else about this album was awfully underwhelming.   Electric Wizard got back to their darker side with 2007's "Witchcult Today" however.  I wouldn't say this was as dark as I would have liked, but I loved the much grimmer lyrical content and a whole lot of the imagery.  Plus, the groove-based playing and the theatrical vocals just really worked well for the band here.  But still, Electric Wizard hadn't really blown me away completely in a while.  But quite frankly, that's exactly what they did with 2010's "Black Masses".  This album was so damn sludgy, easily the heaviest thing the band had done in years.  There were fantastic, dark visuals seemingly everywhere, and tracks like "Turn Off Your Mind" and "Venus In Furs" were strangely melodic.  This is an album that really caught me off guard, but I'm glad it did.  Electric Wizard continued to be the definitive Doom Metal outfit with 2014's "Time To Die".  This album at first listen may just be standard Doom Metal.  But the overall campiness here and just how over-the-top everything seems to be here makes this one just another truly solid Electric Wizard release.  Now, I'll be honest, I decided to sort of go into this album blind, just because Electric Wizard has always been a real ALBUM band to me.  So let's chat about this new Electric Wizard album!

    This album starts off with “See You In Hell”, and by this point in Electric Wizard’s career, you really ought to know where this album is starting off.  This is a very VERY slow, sluggish Doom Metal tune.  Now, instrumentally this is totally a viable tune.  I love the pacing, and just how beefy and powerful the guitars are coming off.  But what in the world is going on with Jus Osborn’s vocals?  They’ve always been, at least to me, somewhat mysterious and are at their best floating through the background like some demonic, otherworldly voice.  But no, his vocals are front and center here and quite frankly incredibly awkward.  Lyrically, I even feel like “See You In Hell” is right around where Electric Wizard should be.  But to me, this track doesn’t add u as one of the best outings from Electric Wizard.  There used to be such a griminess to their music like someone had stumbled across some occult recordings.  This track, and sadly a lot of this album, comes off a little too clean for my liking.  As a whole, “See You In Hell” comes off like a direct-to-DVD sequel to a decent horror movie that just doesn’t add up.  Up next is “Necromania”, and I do like the much dirtier sound to this one all centering around how heavy some of those guitars come off.  Now, Jus’s vocals once again are really sort of underwhelming.  But here, at the very least they are not front and center.  Also, the track is a whole lot more hypnotic and cultish sounding.  While I do with that Jus’s vocals were just a little bit harsher, I actually dig a lot of this track.  The band sound determined, and most importantly they do sound like they have a lot of ideas left, which is something I’ve worried about plenty of them.  Even lyrically, this actually sounds like something that would have come off of the band’s classic albums.  I’m still a little iffy on the production because I do remember a time when the production was so filthy it sounded straight out of hell itself.  But outside of that, this is passable.   At the very least, as this album goes on, things certainly do get sludgier.  “Hear The Sirens Scream” has the nastiest and grimiest riff yet, and easily sounds like it could have been on one of their true classic recordings.  But for some reason, I really just can’t get my head around Jus’s vocals, which for the most part I’ve always really enjoyed.  I feel like they have always aged well, but here they still just sound awkward.  But that’s enough nitpicking about “Hear The Sirens Scream” because I do like this one.  Even the production on this track is so filthy, and the distortion is heavy enough to go up against tracks on classics like “Dopethrone”.  I mean, I wouldn’t say tracks like this aren’t terribly outside of the box, Electric Wizard isn't reinventing anything.  But it’s still some mighty solid doom metal, and I do love just how visual some of the lyrics are.  

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

    “The Reaper” is up next, which has a ton of decent buildup and some serious tension, Electric Wizard has always been so solid at getting pacing down.  But too much of this track is just so damn corny.  Electric Wizard has always dance dangerously close to the “corny” label with fantasy and horror lyrics galore.  But here, it’s just becoming tedious.  Yes, the guitars are sluggish and heavy and the synths are just the sort of campy fun I’ve come to expect from Electric Wizard.  Outside of that though, this is just a bland tune.  At a tight 3 minutes, this really has no meat on its bones.  Now, “Wicked Caresses” is up next, and boy would it ever be a shame if that solid production just flew out the window entirely.  Spoiler alert, that’s what happens here.  I have no idea how Electric Wizard thought this track sounded good.  The guitars here aren’t nearly as thick and bulky.  As a matter of fact, they come off so tinny and ugly sounding.  I’m fine with muddy production, hell, it’s what the band has made a career out of.  But here, it just detracts way too much from what the band is trying to do.  Not to mention, Jus’s vocals have gone from sort of awkward to downright obnoxious.  The solos are muffled by how ugly a lot of the instrumentals are coming off.  Even lyrically, this track just flew by without affecting me at all.  I’m really not sure what happened to Electric Wizard here, but this track seriously isn’t good.  This album ends off with “Mourning Of The Magicians”, and this one’s slow, downtrodden riff and muddy opening feel really works for me actually.  This one is just so filthy and gloomy, aka everything I’ve come to know and love from Electric Wizard.  As far as vocal performances go, this is by far Jus’s most acceptable performance here as he is at his most sinister sounding.  He urges us to “Come together and feel it now”, and whatever that means he makes it sound brilliant.  It’s just such a twisted, bloody track that once again comes off seriously authentic.  But for one of Doom Metal’s most legendary acts, it’s almost too little too late.  Yea, this 11 minute monster of a track is brilliant and seriously well done.  But how come it took this long into the album?  And if you think one track is good enough to save this album, no, trust me, it isn’t.  As this one goes on and on, it just gets more winding, more intense, more melodic and seriously heavy.  This track could have easily ended up on one of the band’s earlier releases, and I seriously mean that.  Even lyrically this one just gets the right amount of cheesiness going, making this track work all around.  

Rating: 6.9/10

Give A Listen To: "Necromania", "Hear The Sirens Scream", "Mourning Of The Magicians" 

Genre: Doom Metal / Stoner Metal / Sludge Metal 

Overall Thoughts:  So, throughout their career Electric Wizard have remained pretty consistent, even into their later years.  But this is by far, their sloppiest album to date.  First off, for them this album is criminally short, it really barely gets started.  A lot of these tunes may have been better if they took more time and spread out until 10 minutes or more.  But that's far from the only problem.  The production and Jus Oborn's vocals are seriously not up to Par.  They've worked with muddy production for years, but this is muddy to the point where it just gets in the way.  And Jus's vocals, which I usually love, have taken a huge turn for the worse very quickly.  The few tracks on here that do stand out actually show that Electric Wizard still can pen some truly great Doom tunes.  But everything else on here makes me sort of think it's time to pack their bags.  

OCS - "Memory Of A Cut Off Head"

Oh boy, well this was another review that I wasn't expecting to have to do!  Nonetheless, what a nice surprise it is.  Thee Oh Sees are Garage Rock and Psychedelic Rock legends and for good reason.  The twisted mind of frontman John Dwyer, set amongst the usually very throttling and unpredictable Psychedelic Punk of the Oh Sees is just such a fascinating hybrid.  I got into these guys around the time they changed their name to Thee Oh Sees, right in time for them to release "The Masters Bedroom Is Worth Spending A Night In".  This album, maybe the band's darkest.  It's a drug-fueled party so loud and intense that this album practically bleeds LSD.  But it's a damn fun one, filled with sinister hooks and wild instrumentals.  It's a bizarre and dark album, but oh boy is it ever fun.  2009's "Help" showed Oh Sees really starting to get comfortable with their sound.  This was an album that was just as haunting from time to time, and truly strange.  But it began to show John Dwyer's roots in Psychedelic Folk/Pop, and it was wonderful.  Tracks like "Ruby Go Home" and "Can You See" were equal parts hypnotic and catchy.  But there were just enough tough riffs and big solos to please any Oh Sees fan.  What stinks is though, that I don't really have much to say about either the band's "Dog Poison" or "Warm Slime" album.  These two albums are a serious down point for Oh Sees, with almost no tracks at all really standing out. While nothing was necessarily bad about these releases, it just seemed like Oh Sees were running out of ideas and fast.  Thankfully though, Thee Oh Sees bounced back strong igniting what would become a string of incredible albums.  In 2011 the band released "Castlemania", an underrated gem in my opinion.  I love to hear John Dwyer at his most twisted, and that's what this album is.  Here, Thee Oh Sees stripped back their sound to create a much more Freak Folk and Psychedelic Folk sound.  This album was often incredibly dark, but it was also an absolute blast, sort of like a B-List Horror Movie.  Tracks like "AA Warm Breeze", "Spider Cider" and "I Need Seed" are just brilliant Oh Sees tracks, and this album shouldn't be missed. But for all of you out there.  But for fans of Thee Oh Sees at their heavier, 2011's "Carrion Crawler/The Dream" was truly next level.  This album is brutal and intense, and easily the wildest thing that Oh Sees have done yet.  The guitar solos are seemingly endless, and John Dwyer's performances are just so freakish and lovable.  It's easily the most Psychedelic thing Oh Sees had done up to that point, but it's still just a blast to listen to. Thee Oh Sees continued their prolific run with 2012's criminally overlooked "Purifiers II".  This album was a little more stripped back, honing in once again on John Dwyer's obsession with late 60's Psych Rock.  Tracks like "Hang A Picture" and "Flood's New Light" were just so catchy and memorable, while tracks like "Wax Face" continued the band's wild experimental streak.  But one thing remained constant, and that's how unpredictable Thee Oh Sees are.  With every album, I truly found myself never knowing what I was going to hear next.  The band's next release "Floating Coffin" showed them going hard back into the Wild, Psychedelic direction.  It's an intense album fueled by guitar solos and violent imagery, but it's also strangely easy to swallow.  As a matter of fact, when people ask where to start in Thee Oh Sees discography, I usually tell them "Floating Coffin".  But as decent as "Floating Coffin" is, I love hearing Thee Oh Sees at their most freakish and strange.  Luckily for me, Oh Sees would begin a long journey down that route.  2014's "Drop" was a return to the sort of very colorful, twisted Psych music that got them going years ago.  Tracks like "Camera (Queer Sound)", "The Lens", and "Drop" were both completely bizarre yet also really intriguing.  Dwyer's most twisted, vibrant lyrics yet appeared on here, but it still remained accessible and most importantly a blast.  2015's "Mutilator Defeated At Last" continued to show the band progressing down a weirder route which I loved.  This album had almost a Sci-Fi feel or at the very least a B-List Horror feel.  But I think what made these albums so much freakin' fun, was just how much fun Thee Oh Sees were having.  Like, you could literally feel that John Dwyer and company were just having a blast writing these very freakish and bizarre psych tunes.  But as I said, I love to hear Dwyer at his most freakish, which we certainly got with 2016's "A Weird Exits".  This album was a hard dive into a more Sci-Fi sound for Thee Oh Sees, and it was unbelievably wonderful.  Thee Oh Sees on this album basically were writing the exciting soundtrack to a bloody, over-the-top Sci-Fi movie, and man was it ever fun.  Now, I did think some of the more Jam oriented tracks like "Unwrap the Fiend Pt II" and "Jammed Entrance" would be so much more interesting in a live setting.  But this was still a very wild and exciting album that continued to show Thee Oh Sees were completely fearless.  Speaking of fearless, wild Psych Rock, that's exactly what we got earlier this year with "Orc".  Once again, some of the jams sort of gave me the impression that they would have been much better live.  But still, the majority of this album was completely wild and unhinged.  Now known simply as Oh Sees, this was a vibrant and often bloody album that proved that these guys were the absolute top of the food chain when it came to Psych rock.  So here we are, only a few months later with a brand new album from Oh Sees.  There's been another name change, as now they're just OCS.  But what's intrigued me about these new singles, is that the band is going for a more stripped back sound.  Even more interesting, is how the band is seemingly returning to their Freak Folk roots, and I've always loved that era.  So, lets talk about this new OCS album.

( A personal favorite of mine!)

This album starts off with it’s title track, “Memory of a Cut Off Head”.  It’s a very smooth intro, especially because OCS have made a career out of wild and scratchy production.  There’s a whole lot of elements going into this that quite frankly we haven’t heard from the group in quite some time.  Mostly, it’s that classic rock inspiration.  Dwyer since day 1 has been fascinated with that classic California Psych Pop and Psych Rock sound, and it’s on full blast here.  This track just sounds so cool, and in a really weird way comes off like John Dwyer truly fulfilling his Psych Rock fantasy.  Now, the vocals are super breezy.  But it’s just so nice to hear Brigid and John singing together again.  Some of their vocal harmonies are actually wonderful, and the strings flowing through the background as well as the visceral lyrics truly make this an OCS song.  This track ushers in the album wonderfully, and it’s just something I haven’t heard from OCS in a very long time.  Then we have “Cannibal Planet”, and as this album goes on I just can’t get enough of the vibe of this album.  Everything just comes off so tortured and twisted between the sweet licks and harmonies.  Now, this track really is an OCS track at heart, with all of this violent and truly creepy imagery that I fell in love with years ago.  But OCS take that sort of imager and give it this seriously catchy, memorable chorus and instantly we’re dealing with a totally different tune.  The amount of tension here is so well done.  Now, one thing I’ve always had a slight issue with when it comes to OCS is just how often they push material out.  Their album’s come out so frequently that sometimes they blend together.  On the other hand, tracks like “Cannibal Planet” and others here sound like it was thought about for a seriously long time.  Some of those backing instrumentals continue to be seriously twisted, like those keyboards that come off just so bizarre and tortured.  But then the strings and vocal harmonies turn this around and make it much easier to swallow and totally catchy.  Then we have “The Remote Viewer” which actually comes off like some of the material from their “Orc’ album, with that heavy fantasy vibe really coming off strongly.  Dwyer and Brigid’s performance here are just so light and eerie.  Now, on moments like this, I feel like this album falters a little bit, but only a little.  The thing is, I love the duo’s vocal performances so much, as they really bring in a lot of tension among their harmonies.  But instrumentally, this one is just a little too bare bones for me, especially after just how lavish and well thought out the last few tracks have been.  On the other hand, the sort of Noire vibe to this one is really charming, fans of Timber Timbre may seriously be into this.  Also, I love just how somber John Dwyer’s performance here comes off, describing himself as a “Junkie For Despair”.  In a weird way, it almost reminds me of just how tortured Josh Homme sounded on Queens of the Stone Age’s “Like Clockwork”.   “The Remote Viewer” I think could have been taken a little further, but it’s still really enjoyable in a lot of ways.  “The Baron Sleeps and Dreams” however right off the bat is much more colorful with some nice strings and tightly wound guitars.  It’s really charming with just how dark it comes off.  I actually really can’t remember the last time we heard OCS in such a very vast environment and working with so many instruments (honestly, probably never).   Obviously, there’s still a huge sci-fi element within all of these synths, but I’m really glad that Dwyer has kept that around, as it’s become such a part of their sound.  It gives the band a real apocalyptic feel, which matched up against the very harmonious vocals and stripped down sound is really fascinating.  It’s a really solid instrumental tune overall.  I’m not saying this one is anything to write home about, but it certainly fits the theme of the album and reminds you of just who you’re dealing with.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdESaiFT0n8

    “On & On Corridor” on the other hand, is one of the finest moments here.  This one goes back in the upbeat direction that we saw this album starting with.  And honestly, I really think that’s a good idea with tracks like “The Remote Viewer’ losing me at parts.  Not to mention, its tracks like this that really draw out the most harmonies between John Dwyer and Brigid Dawson.   I love the very twisted and psychedelic lyrics here that are pretty damn horrifying.  But it’s actually Brigid’s very ghoulish performance here that really brings this one home.  I love hearing OCS go all out with the weirdness, and that’s what “On & On Corridor” is all about.  In a lot of ways, this really is the biggest homecoming for old-school OCS fans.  There are no extended jams, low-fi production, or wild solos.  But it’s overflowing with personality, and it just an absolute blast.  I just really hope OCS keep this up.  “Neighbor To None” is up next, and it may be the most straight-up Folk Tune OCS have ever done.  I like a lot of the instrumentals, and I do like Dwyer and Brigid’s performances which get pretty heartwarming in a bizarre way.   But outside of that, I feel like this one is underwritten.  It’s one of the shortest tunes here, and while it is very sweet, it doesn’t have that OCS feel.  There are a few twisted lines here and there, but nothing about this tells me it’s an OCS track, and that sucks.  But “The Fool” right off the bat gives me that really uneasy feeling flowing through the background and I’m instantly won back.  Even with just how sweet and delicate Brigid’s performance is, there’s a real uneasiness to this one.  Like, these songs are really a whole new animal for OCS, because this is just about the sweetest and most heartfelt song that OCS has ever done.  But it’s seriously charming, and I can’t get enough of it.  Now, I know, I’m sounding like the biggest hypocrite after bashing the last track.  Mostly because this track really doesn’t come off like much of an OCS track either.  But it’s sweet and beautiful, and just works for me.  Plus, it’s Brigid all on her own, and that’s something I really haven’t heard.  But for all of you that want OCS to pick up the pace, “The Chopping Block” is for you.  This one instantly is more of a Folk-Rock tune than anything.  It’s moments like this that really win this incarnation of OCS over for me.  I love the return of some of the more bizarre and horror-themed lyrics, even though this clearly hasn’t gotten any heavier instrumentally.  In a weird way, this actually comes off like a stripped down tune from their “Castlemania” album. It’s got all of those classic Psych Pop/Psych Rock instrumentals, and Dwyer and Brigid’s performance is sweet (until you realizes just how out there the lyrics are).  It’s dark, it’s twisted, “The Chopping Block” is 100% OCS.  But it’s moments like this that excite me the most.  It’s moments like this, where Dwyer sounds so close to breaking out into a heavier verse that intrigues me so much.  With Brigid back in the OCS roster, and their music sounding more focused than ever, I feel like they can make their best album yet if they do a heavier and more Psychedelic album with Brigid.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DNyhdPZHho

    One thing I have to commend OCS on is just how uneasy the atmosphere is on this album.  With tracks like “Time Turner”, they really take on the sound of the Psych Pop band’s that inspired them and make it sinister.  I’m going to sound like a broken record, but once again I feel like the music here could have soundtracked a brutally violent animated film.  Now instrumentally, this one is a low point for the album mostly because it’s so repetitive and doesn’t end up going anywhere.  But while this track is far from the best tune here, there are still small elements here and there that certainly do excite me.  Obviously, “Time Turner” didn't need to be 6 minutes, however, especially with how one-dimensional it is.  This album ends off with “Lift A Finger”, and it’s actually exactly what I want to hear from them as a finale.  It’s a totally bizarre Psych Pop tune with plenty of darkness underneath.  It’s a really sweet tune, which is made a little more OCS like and unnerving by Brigid’s ghoulish performance.  It’s a straightforward finale, with plenty of horror-themed lyrics matched up with charming instrumentals.  It’s a nice ending, but man does it ever have my mouth watering for what OCS are going to do next. 

Rating: 8.1/10

Give A Listen To:  “Memory Of A Cut Off Head”, “On & On Corridor”, “The Fool”, “The Chopping Block”

Genre:  Freak-Folk / Psychedelic Rock / Folk Rock

Overall Thoughts: This is an album was I've been really anticipating.  This is the first time that OCS have done with Brigid Dawson in a very long time, but they pick up basically exactly where they left off.  Now, if you weren't into some of the band's early Freak-Folk sound, this is probably not going to be an album that you enjoy. But on the other hand, if you like hearing John Dwyer allow himself to really explore his influences, all while upping the weirdness factor as always, you may enjoy this.  No, there aren't any real guitar solos or freak outs instrumentally, as far as that goes this album is pretty tame.  But if you're into hearing something new from OCS, this is certainly a very good release from the band.