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(02/28/13 10:58am)
Thom Yorke’s infatuation with progressive electronic music has been apparent ever since the Kid A/Amnesiac sessions. In his first solo record, The Eraser, Yorke rejected the guitar-driven rock of Hail to the Thief and instead dove into a minimalist, loop-heavy aesthetic. In the past few years, Yorke has found inspiration in the sounds of contemporary UK bass music, even dabbling with DJing at the Low End Theory and Fabric, notorious hotspots for electronic music. 2011’s The King of Limbs drew heavily from 2-step and future garage and the band even commissioned a remix album featuring the likes of Pearson Sound, Blawan and Jamie XX.
(02/21/13 10:31am)
Over a twenty-year career, Mark Kozelek has established himself as one of the definitive singer-songwriters of his generation. As front man of legendary sad sacks Red House Painters, he was the lynchpin of the slowcore movement in alternative rock. Marrying slow, intense, dissonant and bleak instrumentation with harrowingly personal lyrics, Kozelek created music that really spoke to the experience of feeling pain and despair. Although he’s maintained his honest songwriting approach, Kozelek has diversified his music over time, experimenting with folk, classical and Spanish guitar under the moniker Sun Kil Moon, and he’s even covered songs from bands far removed from slow, introspective music. In 2001, he created an all AC/DC acoustic cover album, and in 2005 he released a Modest Mouse cover record, Tiny Cities. For an artist committed to trying new musical approaches, releasing another album of covers would be somewhat repetitive.
(12/06/12 10:40am)
Another year, another year-end music review from Recess. 2012 gave us a wide array of solid music, including an impressive selection from young electronic musicians (e.g. Shackleton, Holly Herndon and Laurel Halo) and many solid new albums from unironic rock groups (e.g. Japandroids, Swans and Ty Segall). Everyone’s already talking or talked about some of our favorites—Grizzly Bear, Frank Ocean, Beach House, the xx, Kendrick Lamar and Fiona Apple—so we figured we would use this space to talk about the albums that didn’t get as much notice. Obviously we can’t write about all of the albums we enjoyed listening to, so if your favorite’s not on here, go to our list online and add a comment. Without further ado, the Recess-approved albums of 2012:
(11/01/12 6:51am)
As the only group on campus that focuses on the work of African American playwrights, Karamu Theater Company offers a unique cultural perspective to the Duke community. Although the group was first started in the 1970s, it went on a brief hiatus and is now looking to make a comeback with its upcoming fall showcase.
(10/25/12 8:20am)
Music critics and taste-making blogs seem to come up with new terms every day for the rising genre du jour. Chillwave, vaporwave, trillwave were all invented even before artists started making the music itself. Cloud rap, however, preceded its label, gaining steady steam over the past year and a half. Heavily indebted to Southern hip-hop and trap, cloud rap is also distinguished by ethereal, dreamlike beats that often use wordless, dramatic vocal samples and abstract lyrics that are deliberately absurd. Its producers often rely on unconventional sample sources, incorporating elements from experimental, ambient, and even pop songs into their beats.
(10/18/12 8:20am)
Ever since the release of their titanic debut F#A#Infinity, GY!BE has cemented itself as one of the premiere post-rock bands. The Montreal collective is acclaimed for its use of wide dynamic ranges, unusual instruments, anarchic found sounds, and Satanic album-packaging. The intensity of the music is made more pronounced by their use of classical composition techniques and many tracks have multiple movements. After a 2003 tour supporting new LP Yanqui U.X.O., the nontet went on indefinite hiatus until 2010 when they reunited for a world tour. In typical Godspeed fashion, the band released ‘Allelujah! with absolutely no publicity, selling them quietly at live shows this month. ‘Allelujah! is the band’s first record since 2002’s Yanqui U.X.O., which emphasized concise songwriting rather than their usual lengthy build-ups. ‘Allelujah! represents a strong return to what made Godspeed famous—music that traverses several distinct emotions in a single track.
(10/04/12 8:35am)
If there’s one word to describe The Mountain Goats, it’s prolific. Singer-songwriter John Darnielle, the one-man tour de force behind the Mountain Goats moniker, has released over 67 albums, singles, EPs, anthologies and collaborations over the last twenty years. Whereas most bands break up after a few tours, the Mountain Goats keep pushing on. They are the rare group who not only release music consistently, but consistently release good music. Although some purists insist the transition to hi-fi on 2002’s Tallahassee ruined the band, Darnielle’s singing and songwriting has remarkably broadened and diversified from his early days recording songs on a boombox. Transcendental Youth, the band’s thirteenth full-length album since 2000, stands out as one of the freshest Mountain Goats album in years.
(09/20/12 7:18am)
Since their sophomore release Yellow House, Brooklyn collective Grizzly Bear has been lauded for songwriting that merges pop with a real eye for texture and ambience. With each release, Droste, Rossen and co. have expanded their sonic palette. The insularity of apartment-recorded Horn of Plenty gave way to the more ambitious cabin-sojourn Yellow House and then the meticulous and expansive Veckatimest. Shields, though a fine album with a few choice cuts, doesn’t build as successfully on the band’s past as does their earlier work.
