"Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space" by Spiritualized
Space-rock, Dream Pop, Shoegaze Dedicated (1997)


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For Listeners Of: My Bloody Valentine, The Cure, The Stone Roses, Radiohead, Blur, Beach Boys, Pop music in general

Though shoegaze is a fitting genre for this kind of sound, this album goes a bit deeper than just clouding a pop song behind layers of flanger and distortion, Spiritualized goes a step further. Gospel and blues play a large role in the songwriting, and the horns and harmonicas on certain tracks such as "Come Together" (not a Beatles cover) turn what would have been good songs into spectacles. One of the reasons that Ladies and Gentlemen is such a great album is that the album is extremely diverse while also being extremely focused. In other words, each track is a unique experience, while still maintaining an otherworldly, uniform sound.

Aside from the gospel and blues elements, as with anything related to shoegaze, this album gets pretty fucking noisy, usually to a stellar effect. Frontman Jason Pierce begins "All of My Thoughts" with the declaration "Don't know what to do by myself/ cause all of my time was with you" with instrumentation that is equally as somber. The direction of the song quickly changes as the bass begins its groove and the guitar fuzzes out of comprehension, reflecting that instead of letting these truths to depress him, they energize him almost to the point of spite.

The album and (near-perfect) title track begins with an eerie yet soothing announcement from keyboardist Kate Radley that names the album, and sums it up better than I can. Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space may be one of the most appropriately titled albums I've ever heard.

Key tracks: Title track, "Come Together", "Electricity", all of them really minus "The Individual"

"Cove" by A Weather
Slowcore/Folk 2008 Team Love



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Because this band just released an album and reminded me of their incredible existence, I've decided to recommend their first full length (instead of the new one, nonsensically of course, which is called Everyday Balloons)

Anyway, to the description \/

A Weather is a sad band. This is true. Not in a "woe is me, everyone is against me" way, but more in a cuddle up and escape from the world kind of sad. They describe themselves as "The things that stuffed animals would tell you if they've had a few too many." Duo-ed by two singer-songwriters Aaron Gerber and Sarah Winchester with lovely intertwining boy-girl harmonies you've probably come to love in indie music. Think Stars mixed with Beat Happening with Iron and Wine. Good stuff. Not actually stuffed animals.

Song that stands out for me is album opener "Spiders, Snakes," a simple beat with simple but great guitar and A Weather's trademark great vocals. This song is a great example of the band, with lyrics ranging from sadness (are you pissed that when things got bad/ there was only one set of footprints of footprints in the sand?), to cathartic isolation (do you read when you go to bed/or do you lay their shaking instead), and simple enjoyment (I want cinnamon buns in the morning air in airport waiting lines). There's even a reference to Bedhead in the song (see last post for more information).

Pretty much, A Weather is a great band that you'll listen to even when you're not sad, but just because they're just so great.

For Listeners of:
Neutral Milk Hotel, The Magnetic Fields, Beat Happening, Boy Most Likely To, Stars, Iron And Wine, Norfolk And Western, Bedhead, Kings Of Convenience, Belle And Sebastian, Math And Physics Club (<-- expect a review of this band soon)

Thank you friends

"Beheaded" by Bedhead
Indie/Slowcore 1996 Trance Syndicate


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Indie is a word that is thrown around like it doesn't mean anything anymore, a word that is to soon have a cliche existence such as Alternative or Punk also live in. Indie as a genre defining term was first used in England to describe late eighties independent musicians such as Lush, Primal Scream, The Cure, The Smiths, Jesus And Mary Chain and such bands. These bands were truly independent and creating a new sound and are now referred to as British indie and put into sub genres such as Shoegaze and Britpop.

America saw its birth of Indie music in early 90's acts such as Bedhead. Bedhead can be easily heralded as the most unrecognized influential band of the 90's. Their influences reach as far as Explosions In The Sky, to American Football, to Spoon, to A Weather, and to most any band that calls themselves Indie.

This album was one of the albums (along with WhatFunLifeWas) that helped solidfy Bedhead's importance to early indie and post-rock. It was released in 1996 on the Butthole Surfer's Trance Syndicate label.

Beheaded is a casual, dynamic, and polyphonic experience through many different themes. Bedhead's sound is created by three intertwining guitars, an often capo-ed bass, and backbeat drumming. Their songs are generally dynamic and have a mellow intro/verse/chorus/verse/chorus/loud climactic part structure (think Explosions in The Sky with lyrics). What also makes this band stand out is the singer's voice, which to me sounds like a combination of Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan and Velvet Underground's Lou Reed; which makes for an amazing mellow, alto, sort of raspy voice.

Thematically the album discusses multiple themes such as escapism, human relativity, and creative output and its reception by others. Not only does it convey these through lyrics, but also through song structure and compositional techniques.

For Listeners of: Spokane, Thee More Shallows, Explosions In The Sky, Spoon, Carissa's Wierd, Do Make Say Think, El Ten Eleven, Maserati

"Hospice" by The Antlers
Folk/Post-Rock 2009 Frenchkiss Records


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The Antlers were started by lonely musician Peter Silberman who then found a band and created this here album. This was my album of the year last year, coming completely out of nowhere.
Stylistically, this album lives somewhere between well crafted, emotional, and intimate folk music of Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, and Grizzly Bear and dynamic, "epic" sounding bands such as Mogwai or Sigur Ros.

Dynamic is THE word to describe this album musically. What is also important to note is how well the arrangements work with the thematic elements of the album. Thematically, Hospice mulls over the rising and falling of emotions that go alongside a new relationship, a marriage, discovering the loved one has cancer and its aftermath. With this gives a range of emotions, all of which have undertones of jaded nostalgia. The arrangements fit this in expressing how these feelings were dealt with, by hiding. This is expressed by the vocalist, Peter Silberman, sharing his story with twisting metaphors and colloquialisms then escaping to hide behind a backing bands crescendo and support. This is to express , something we all as music lovers find, the utilization of music as a healing device or catharsis.

Two tracks that stand out in this album are the album's first real song and microcosm "Kettering"." Kettering does a good job of sharing what the album will be like but not quite giving it all away. It accomplishes this with an interesting use of slowly adding textures and instruments to give a sense of driving towards a goal.

Ultimately, Hospice is an album that is both meaningful and musically engaging, something that makes an album a long time favorite for any music lover.

For listeners of: Grizzly Bear, Fleet Foxes, Sigur Ros, Bon Iver, Mogwai, The Decemberists, Elliot Smith, Neutral Milk Hotel

New Member of The Family

Joining me in my musical meanderings will be my dear friend Daniel Blat. Posts will come soon

~~Jordan~~

Daydream Nation

Artist: Sonic Youth
Album: Daydream Nation
Label: Enigma (1988), Geffen Reissue (2007)
Genre: Noise-Rock, Post-Punk, Alternative Rock
Influences: John Cage, The Stooges, MC5, Television, The Velvet Underground
Influenced: Everyone who plays a guitar

Download Day Dream Nation

1988 was the year that Sonic Youth, the most notable underground band of the Reagan years, reached its apex. With a noisy, undecipherable debut in the early 80's underground scene known as No-Wave, Sonic Youth had been growing into something quite unlike its contemporaries. Starting with the 1986's Evol and followed by (my 2nd favorite) Sister in 1987, they had begun to allow pop and rock structures into their songs, not just belligerent noise. In 1988, they achieved the perfect balance of noise and rock, creating unforgettable 70 minute track by track perfection. The track that will catch everyone's first listen is the anomalous lead track "Teen Age Riot", a beautifully constructed rock song (arguably, the first real indie rock song ever written), displaying the chemistry within the guitars as well as within the rhythm section. The rest of the album, is a tad bit more abrasive, but instead of painfully abrasive as with previous records, the abrasiveness is not only tolerable, but sublime. "Hey Joni", my favorite track, is perhaps one of the greatest rock songs ever written. The already unbelievably hard riffs and driving beat explodes out of silence. And then steadily, the song builds and builds and builds to power that not even Led Zeppelin could dream of (which could be said for most of the album). Avoiding a track by track praise, I would like to sum it up and say that no where out there, is there a more complete album. Beach Boys quality songwriting with Bad Brains energy. What else is there?

-Daniel Blat

Albums I Have To Get Out Of The Way vol. 1

To even consider to be sharing music with others, there are a few albums that need to get out of the way before we start delving into great new things.

First
"In The Aeroplane Over The Sea" by Neutral Milk Hotel
Psych-folk 1998 Merge Records



Download In The Aeroplane Over The Sea


This is a legendary album that I think everyone should know, especially if one says they like inde/folk music. This album has touched on and influenced everything from Bright Eyes, to Beirut, to The Decemberists, even to Brand New. It's one of those albums that you love first listen and them more and more you listen, you understand it more and more and love it more everytime and never get tired of. Wonderful on all levels, especially lyrics.

For listeners of:
Beirut, Bright Eyes, The Decemberists, Barzin, Great Lake Swimmers, She & Him, Oh No! Oh My!, Of Montreal, Andrew Bird, Grizzly Bear, Joanna Newsom, and Indie/Folk

Second
"Loveless" by My Bloody Valentine
Shoegaze 1991 Creation Records



Download Loveless

Shoegaze was anthemed when this album came out, as Breathless is to the French New Wave, as The Bible is to Christians, as Bob Marley is to Reggae, Loveless is Shoegaze. Created by the ever meticulous Kevin Shields, also known for the soundtrack to Lost In Translation, Loveless is a hazy forray into and between all levels of sound, song, and the sonic world. Loveless was once described to me as "seeing The Beatles live through a broken piece of glass." Easily the deepest recording I've ever heard, everytime I listen to it I hear a new texture of sound.

For Listeners of:
Slowdive, Lush, A Place To Bury Strangers, Jesus And Mary Chain, Ride, Chapterhouse, Explosions In The Sky, Swervedriver, Jesu

Thrid
"The Glow Pt. 2" by The Microphones
Noise-Folk 2001 (reissued 2008) K Records



Download The Glow Pt.2

This album was a big transitional album for me, as it bridged the gap between folk music, my old love, and noise and experimental music, my newer love. This album is the perfect balance and juxtaposition of several opposite themes, both thematically, compositionally, musically, and lyrical. Those themes being, Beauty/Noise, Self/Outer World, Structured/Chaos, Consonance/Dissonance. The way this album treads between these worlds is why I consider it to be among the best albums ever made.

For Listeners of:
Charalambides, satanstompingcaterpillars, Thuja, Six Organs Of Admittance, Thanksgiving, Mount Eerie, Castanets, Gowns

First Post Intro

This is to be a music blog by Jordan Barger
I am pledging to be quite up to date about it
and being nice about it

I like music myself
I play music myself
I support music myself




Thanks future friends