onotob

The Mysical Music Release, vol 001

Hello boys and girls. You are receiving this email because you are, like myself, an open-minded music lover. Also, most of you were previously privy to my now-discontinued Workplace Condition Memos (thanks for coming up with the concept and subject line, McD) at Our Place of Work (known locally as “This Fucking Place”).

But being open minded and loving music do not an extensive and meticulously metatagged music collection make, however. That’s where I come in. You see, while you are out “living life” and “making friends”, I’m busy finding new music, downloading it, running it through an elaborate metadata process (I’ll have the IA done soon, I swear) and, finally, listening to and enjoying it. I do all this so you don’t have to.

Alas, increased security and scrutiny of hard drives at That Fucking Place have caused me to stop sending out the Workplace Conditions Memo. This has bothered me quite a bit, because not only do I enjoy finding and listening to new music, I love sharing it my friends (and writing witty little micro-reviews of the albums).

Now, thanks to the Power Of The Internet, the Memos can continue! And this time we don’t have to hide behind a fake subject line! In this rebirth of the Memo, we will be using BitTorrent in lieu of a network drive. If you wish to participate in this fun little act of sharing you will need to download and install a BitTorrent client. Don’t worry, it’s as boring as it sounds, but it’s easy.

[snip boring instructions]

If you want out of this list, please let me know and you’ll be forever banned, shunned, never to know exciting new music forever and ever.

And now, without further delay, is the Release!

Björk’s newest album, Medúlla, is an experiment in the human voice. Almost the entire album is composed of nothing but people’s voices, digitally manipulated, forming the beats and melodies. The result is positively sparkling! Vocal beat smiths Rahzel, Shlomo and Dokaka provide the rhythmic underpinnings (with help from Mark Bell’s expert programming), and Mike Patton and two, count ‘em two, choirs fill in behind Björk’s unmistakable screams and sighs. All in all, a triumph and a joy to listen to. Highlights: Where is the Line, Oceania, Mouth’s Cradle.

CocoRosie, a Parisian duo comprised of sisters Sierra and Bianca Cassidy, have produced something very unique with their album La Maison de Mon Reve. Filled with strange samples, staggering beats and hard-panned vocal tracks, La Maison de Mon Reve is an album I’ve yet to put a genre to. Think Fog meets Beth Gibbons meets Mazzy Star meets Beck. Seriously. Highlights: Terrible Angels, Good Friday, Candyland.

Frou Frou works in the tried-and-true formula of sultry female vocals over groovy beats and basslines ala Sneaker Pimps, Morcheeba, Portishead and Lamb, although Details lacks the instrumental imagination of the latter two. Moments spent in a more uptempo range keep things interesting. Good stuff for driving around with the windows down on a beautiful day. Highlights: Let Go, Must be Dreaming, Hear Me Out.

Oh, sweet heaven above, a new Mouse on Mars album! Radical Connector marks the return of this German duo with more vocals, more danceability, but with that all too familiar, squeaky, Mouse on Mars thing. I am one happy camper. Highlights: Wipe that Sound, Send Me Shivers, The End. Thrown in for good measure is their 1995 release Iaora Tahiti, the album that turned me on to these guys in the first place. So much perfection in a second effort.

Pest, a group of five Londoners coming out of Ninja Tune, produce the kind of uplifting and interesting electronic music that is so sorely lacking these days. Necessary Measures is filled with so much groove and so much life that I’ve had to get up and shake my money maker three times while writing these few short sentences. Highlights: Chicken Spit, Duke Kerb Crawler, Heard Yer Bird Moved In.

Rilo Kiley is a band’s band. These kids freaking breath music. Just look at the catalog. Not only have they released three full lengths as a group, but singer Jenny Lewis sang on The Postal Service’s album Give Up and toured with them, drummer Jason Boesel recorded with Bright Eyes and singer/guitarist Blake Sennett recorded, released and toured for his solo act, The Elected. (Which is really good. You should really listen to it. Yes, I’m talking to you, Mandi.) But did all this stop them from coming back together to put out another Rilo Kiley album? Well, if it had you wouldn’t be reading this little missive, now would you? More Adventurous is filled with alt-country indie rock goodness. If you don’t get out of your seat and dance to Portions for Foxes then I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to tell me only the good things about your mother. Highlights: Portions for Foxes, Accidental Deth, Love and War. Also included is their previous release, The Execution of All Things. I haven’t listened to that one nearly as much, so I don’t have nearly as much to say about it.

Jazzy, downtempo, groovy. What more could you want from an album, right? Zero7 (with or without a space? The Internet can’t decide either) dishes it out in generous portions on Simple Things. With an opening bassline that sounds straight from Air’s Moon Safari, producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker slip track after track under the radar of a cluttered life. This is music that sneaks up on you. It’d give you a foot massage if it had hands. Highlights: Polaris, In the Waiting Line, Out of Town. I’ve thrown in the bonus CD as, well, a bonus. Remixes and whatnot.