The 80's Extravaganza That is Passion Pit

Ok, so Passion Pit does sound like they were ripped straight from the eighties via some Bill and Ted kind of time-space experiment. There’s the eight bit keyboard sounds, the occasionally too-drum-machine-sounding drum machine parts, and of course those damn kids (who sound like they should be doing a Hands Across America spot) singing background. So what separates these hipster darlings from some of the other eighties throw-backers like Ra Ra Riot and MGMT (who are basically just a Duran Duran Cover band)? The answer, my friends, is skill.

The band’s debut LP Manners crackles with creativity. Each song is a masterwork of disparate pieces built on top of one another to create something much greater than their sum. This layering gives the music a texture which could almost be called symphonic (except that that term now has too many dorky prog-rock connotations. Sorry Dream Theater). The intricacy with which these songs were put together, and the incredible attention paid to the smallest detail is what sets this band apart.

A perfect example is the track “Folds In Your Hands”. This song is incredible for all the different keyboard tracks that weave through the song, no single one completely carrying the melody. If any one piece was removed the whole song would fall flat like a house of cards. Here we also have a microcosm of the remarkable rhythmic variety on this album. The song opens at the verse, which is carried by staccato blips and chimes, before it opens up to the chorus where a giant synth blanket is thrown over everything. After the choppiness of the verse, the chorus comes in sounding like a clump of silly putty being pulled apart.

This isn’t to say the album has no detractors. For sure, many will have problems with singer Michael Angelakos’ high pitched, squirrelly voice. Especially since you can’t even understand what the hell he’s saying for more than a couple words at a time. And the lyrics you can understand don’t seem to make much sense.

But even this apparent weakness is turned into something interesting when the band uses it to find new harmonies by putting Angelakos’ lead vocals along side another vocal track with the sped up effect (think any Kanye produced song from about five years ago) on the song “Sleepy Head”. The result is a mash up of electronic and weird that is completely fresh.

Good music is good music no matter what context it presents its self in. Sure Passion Pit sounds eighties to the extreme, but if you can look beyond that there is some really rewarding music on this album. And even if you can’t, well, this music is still catchy as hell no matter how you slice it. So have some fun with it.

These Are My Twisted Thoughts On Radiohead's New Song

Was anyone else really confused about the new Radiohead song ("These Are My Twisted Words")? I mean...Who? How? WHY? The innovators of pop-music dispersal posted this song all by its self to a fan site, At Ease, on August 12 with very little info to go along with it, setting the internet abuzz. Was it foreshadowing a new EP? Was it Thom Yorke's contribution to the impending New Moon sound track? Nope. The band officially claimed credit for it on August 17. It turns out they had finished the song and just really wanted to get it out there, sans more conventional accompaniments (like other songs). So now that we've had time to get our minds around where the song came from (and get over our disappointment that there are no others coming in the foreseeable future), lets think a little about the song its self.

"These Are My Twisted Words" is pretty damn eery. The song starts with around two and a half minutes of instrumentation, during which reverberant flourishes (guitar?) float in and around a dissonant chord progression. The beat is frenetic and persistent, nothing distinguishing verse and chorus (but come on, would you expect that from Radiohead?).

And the mood certainly doesn't lighten when Thome Yorke's vocals kick in. A haunting, wind-like echo follows his lyrics which I won't even bother to try to decode for you. As per usual nearly any interpretation is valid, though they do seem suggestive of a mind struggling to get a grip on something ("When are you coming back?/I just can't handle it"). During the vocal section the creepiness is ratcheted up, as the rest of the band throws in some sonic daggers reminiscent of "Climbing Up The Walls".

The song certainly sounds very Radiohead. The linear structure, the weird sounds, the reverb all over EVERYTHING is all very familiar. But let's be honest here. Doesn't this sound a little sparse for a Radiohead song? The opening two and half minute instrumental seems a little too atmospheric. It just sort of runs across the same ground over and over. And with the exception of 3 cymbal crashes towards the end, the drum beat virtually never deviates from its original course.

Overall, "These Are My Twisted Words" is absolutely more interesting than 90 percent of the music being made these days. But after the sweeping statement made by In Rainbows a little over a year ago, this song seems to fall a little flat. Maybe that's the problem, though. Maybe putting an individual song up against an entire album, with the depth of In Rainbows, will always fall in favor of the album. "These Are My Twisted Words" would certainly be a solid contribution to a well rounded collection of songs. So maybe Radiohead just needs to get down to some serious work.

Wilco (The Contented Middle-Aged Rockers)

Well, they've done it again. Wilco are no strangers to right turns, and Wilco (the Album) is no exception. It seems with every new release the Chicago rockers can't help themselves from frustrating fans who have only just gotten used to their most recent curveball. Though this time around the misdirection is more subtle. The jam band-esque aesthetic is still in tact. And Nels Cline definitely remembered to bring his reverb pedal for those slide guitar parts. But after listening to this album for several weeks I'm left wondering, where are the intricate arrangements? Where are the unique sounds? And why the hell is Jeff Tweedy doing a romantic duet with Feist? This collection of tunes certainly carries forward the country/jam rock sound that Wilco's previous album (2007's Sky Blue Sky) layed out. But many of the more interesting elements of Wilco's past efforts seem to have gone missing.

Take, for instance, the ablum's first single, "You Never Know". There is certainly nothing wrong with this song. It's a catchy, uptempo, sing along tune that will no doubt inspire more than a few head bobs. But if people want to hear some acoustic chugging on major chords, while a couple average-voiced dudes "oooh" and "ahhh" their way through bland harmony parts they could just as well listen to CSN.

And this is pretty indicative of much of the album. Acoustic strumming has largely taken the place of overdubbed experimentation and mind-boggling arrangements. Gone are the guitar-solo-upon-guitar-solo expeditions of "Impossible Germany". Absent are the electronic experiments of "I Am Trying To Break Your Hear". Wilco have definitely settled into a sound - emphasis on "settled".

The band does have a couple momentary flash-backs to their trippier days, most noticeably on "Deeper Down". Here we find the kind of swirly slide guitar parts and anti-radio song structure that had been a staple of the band circa 2002 (Yankee Hotel Foxtrot). And "Bull Black Nova" has a repetitively thumping beat that leaves the listener feeling pleasantly quizzical. Definitely the two highlights for listeners expecting that old Wilco frenzy.

Ultimately though, the album just feels too easy. It has the sound of something thrown together by a few guys who have become really comfortable playing together. But Wilco has never been about being comfortable. Wilco has been most successful when pushing to create new and interesting music. But there is precious little of that here.

This is a band that has made their money off of upheaval. Drama has worked for them. I'm not saying that they will only make good music while Tweedy is on drugs, or ex-members are suing over royalties. But could we at least get an unexpected firing of a keyboard player or some weird sonic experimentation that their label refuses to put out? Just a little? Please?