Come find out what you've been missing!
Anyone who purchased a copy of the Shortwave Dahlia EP (And if you haven't already, you're really missing out!)
The band is eager to hear your opinions on the tracks and would love if you swing by either their MySpace (http://myspace.com/Shortwavedahlia) or their Live Journal Community and let them know how you liked it, what tracks were your favorites or even what you'd like to hear more of from them.
Also, you can purchase the EP and individual tracks from Amie Street or at their MySpace.
Since LJ is being a little bitch again, here's the post I was making over there, crossposted:
Been an insane week. But the good news is this time tomorrow I will have central air in our house. And that is enough reason to celebrate!
I'll try and get the Friday Vid Post put together, but my computer was dead in the water until late this morning, so I'm playing catch up and with my boss out, the whiney divas have come out of the woodwork.
Wherein I try to do some justice to the new Shriekback Album, "Glory Bumps"
I can only tell you that my words will not do this album a lick of justice. It's pure ear candy through and through.
Track by track:
1:Hooray for Everything: Big stomping percussion, awesome horns and Barry doing his best snarly vocals. And Barry wasn't kidding about the childrens' choir at the end. Awesome opening song. Big Sounding!
2: Bride Stripped Bare: "She's ready made, and weapons grade..."What a great opening line. The one song that sounds the most "Shriekback" brand of song (as thought there is any "typical" Shriek sound!).A relationship song, but a contentious one. An almost Siouxsie reminiscent guitar line over the top.
3: Burying the Bunny: Very serpentine. Barry mentioned a New Orleans funeral and I get that sense in the music. Very bluesy vocal delivery. Random piano, brass bellowing, wailing sax and a gospely backing choir rounds out the fat tone for the song. Love the Zombie Bunny ending! Love this song a ton.
4: Bittersweet:Don't care what Barry says, the percussion on this is amazing and sells the song. It changes tempo throughout and gives the song an emotional roller-coaster feel. Melancholy piano, Leonard Cohen-esque vocals. Orchestral, yet spare at the same time. Lovely. In a rain soaked misery way.
5: Amaryllis in the Sprawl: Definitely can hear the "Big Night Music" feel in this. Jazzy, dark yet beautifully melodic. An almost Middle Eastern feel in some of the keyboard accents.Percussive, yet subtle. Dare I say swirly. Late night listening, washes over you and engulfs you.
6: Mahalia: I think this is my favorite track on the album. May have converted the husband using this song. Barry at his deepest, vocally. Very jazzy rhythm, kind of shuffle percussively. I dare you to listen to this song and not feel the irresistible urge to dance or at least move. Visualize a late night smoky bar. Couples on the dance floor. The break in the song is amazing. Piano drives this song along with the percussion.
7: Glory Bumps: Is it telling that the song opens with the strains of organ? Barry as sardonic observer. You can hear the sly delivery, and gods love the Gospel choir backing up the sinister baritone. Piercing sax. You can almost see the Church of Shriek. Hallelujah!
8: Squanderer: Another fantastic song. BIG guitars. Distorted backing vocals. Dark sounding. Barry working the baritone with big shouty choruses. Almost industrial with a shuffle percussion. AWESOME
9:Devil's Onions: Opens with a deceptive jangly guitar. Growly vocals. Song is almost bouncy. Woodwinds slither through the song, giving a melancholic overlay. Longest song on the album, but doesn't feel like it. Nicely indicting lyrics. Lots of interesting textures here.
10: Yarg 7: Instrumental. Ambient. Perfection. I could put this on constant rotation and bliss out for hours. Muted pedal piano, keyboards, chimes and bass. What a fantastic ending to this album.
Cool stuff what has arrived at Chez Ellis lately
1: "Bad Ass Faeries": With a contribution by our own Keith R.A. DeCandido and my own personal idol, Faith & the Muse's Monica Richards. Am looking very forward to reading this!
2: The above reviewed "Glory Bumps" by Shriekback, which came with a copy of the "Having a Moment" EP and a Glory Bumps badge which I have adorning my backpack as we speak.
3: The Mission's "God is a Bullet" album which is a fantastic throwback to their first three albums without being a tired re-tread. LOVE this album!
4: (Via Netflix) Finally saw "The Prestige" and LOVED it. My Christian Bale lust remains unabated.
5: Recently saw Lisa Gerrard in concert. And I highly recommend seeing her live if you get the chance. She is AMAZING. How she hits some of the notes she does, let alone generates the sounds she can without any audio trickery? Just phenomenal.
All in all, my sweets, although the family drama from last week is still lurking around, and although work is trying to KILL ME, I think things are about to take a turn...if not for the better, at least not for the worse.
And I'm writing a ton. Thanks in part to My lovely friend Tinhuviel allowing me to read some of her fantastic Maul Fic. Triggered some story ideas that had been stubbornly refusing to manifest.
Have a fantastic weekend, my dears.
Been very busy lately.
Work has been a bear so please ignore my prickly attitude if any gets flung your way!
Here's the real update:
Some of you know that I do some work with jackalberson & ethangrim with their band Shortwave Dahlia.
I've been working on their webpage, and I co-mod their community on LJ.
I really want to pimp these guys big time!
They're an excellent band with a fantastic sound. Reminiscent of New Order, The Cure and Wire with some major electronica and Alt Rock thrown in for good measure. THey've started doing some shows around the Memphis Area where they are based, but with some exposure and an already growing fanbase, they could branch out and do shows all over the place.
Their webpage can be found at Official Shortwave Dahlia Site And they also have a MySpace Page here: Shortwave Dahlia MySpace
They have an EP you can purchase here: Shortwave Dahlia @ Amie Street
Here you can download individual songs at 5 cents a pop! A fantastic deal for some excellent music.
These guys work incredibly hard on their music and I'd love to see them break huge.
Seriously, give them a listen!
I received a parcel from Metropolis Records yesterday. Two weeks in advance. The ear shattering squee I emitted upon seeing it has caused the tragic explosion of several neighborhood small dogs. VNV Nation--Judgement.
This album is everything I hoped it would be!
Not a bad track on the entire thing!
Ronan's vocals are incredible, ranging from soaring to growly to poignant. How is it his vocals keep improving album after album? The tone of the record is much warmer (I believe he recorded a lot of the tracks in analog) and the mix is fabulous
Tracks:
1: Prelude-- Soaring instrumental. londubh says it sounded like the Blade Runner soundtrack. Have to concur.
2: The Farthest Star-- Another soaring upbeat track. Reminds me of Arena from Matter & Form. Lyricaly it speaks to making change in the world. The first of several thinly veiled political songs.
3: Testament -- "We Conquer Paradise, just to burn it to the ground" Fantastic song. Bit of an intensity to it. Keyboards sound like guitars here.
4: Descent -- Spoken word over ominous DARK throbbing music. Here's those growly vocals I was talking about. Ronan sounds almost frightening on this. Lyrically...just as dark as the music.
5: Momentum -- Another change for Ronan vocally. Reminiscent of the early years in it's monotone delivery, but the timbre is deeper than usual. Fast Paced as the title would suggest. No big sweeping chorus, and is more instrumental than song structure. EXCELLENT for driving. Nice propulsive break about 4 minutes in.
6: Nemesis-- Currently my favorite on the album. Has the angry intensity that Entropy had on Matter & Form. Pure EBM. Ronan is practically spitting out the lyrics. VERY politically tinged lyrics."Those who shout the loudest impose their will, Upholding laws that serve the few."--very much a call to arms against the status quo in global politics.
And the chorus "Judgment Day is not coming...soon enough" Impossible not to get a rush from this song.
7: Secluded Spaces -- First of 2 ballads on the album. I like this one better. The music is very light and symphonic, and Ronan's vocals are mixed a little quiet, but it suits the song. Lyrically its about hope and self-reflection. Possibly the PRETTIEST song that VNV has done.
8: Illusion--Second ballad. Lyrically sounds like Ronan is giving advice to someone who has reached the end of their rope. It's about hanging on and standing your ground in the face of oppression and bullying. Musically, a little precious, but it works. Not my fave on the album, but still a beautiful song.
9:Carry You-- My second favorite song on the album. Ronan's vocals on this song give me chills. Incredibly soaring in the way that "Beloved" was. Musically very upbeat and has a chorus break that can bring tears to your eyes if you're in the right mood. Very much about staying strong in the face of adversity, a popular topic with VNV.
10: As it Fades: The mirror reflection of "Prelude". A beautiful denouement for the album. Gentle and orchestral and sweeping. Again very cinematic in scope and tone.
All in all, a satisfying listen and definitely at the top of the VNV heap. I for one was glad that they kept themselves to the two instrumentals at beginning and end. And Ronan has widened the scope of VNV's music yet again.
Now I'm chomping at the bit to see them at the end of April. SQUEE!
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Recent Comments
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raveneye said:
[ciò è buono]Oh hush! You guys are amazing and the music is a classic case of the whole is the sum of... read more
on Updates and whatnot....Pimping an Excellent Band! -
ethan grim said:
[c’est top]pretty high praise there, li'l missy! ;) I should point out that Jack is the real mastermind, but I guess... read more
on Updates and whatnot....Pimping an Excellent Band! -
jackalberson said:
Yeah...I totally see the monolith-esque quality in it. read more
on VNV Nation New Album!!
Lisa does good work, doesn't she? :) read more
on Shortwave Dahlia!