Spinster #7 Good memories falling apart into far off places

Finally! Time to do one of these

I’ve been having a few weird days, and these following albums remind me of my time in England… I’d like to write a short story for you, but the reviews will suffice for today, methinks…

Tweaker – The attraction to all things uncertain Ex-drummer and all around nice guy from Nine Inch Nails, Chris Vrenna (aka Tweaker) decided to continue the magic of his previous album on this one. You can feel the love of musique concrete, since he continues to sample a few noises from real life and manipulate them. I found this album because I obsessed over his soundtrack for the American McGee’s Alice videogame. A few guest vocalists on the odd track complete the album, although Chris Vrenna’s own voice is quite hypnotic. The disc takes me back to those long walks in Nottingham, a while ago. Oddly, the music matched the autumn skies, overcast and gloomy, with those red-leaves coloured trees that I loved to watch while doing my jaunty walk through the streets. It’s either a soundtrack for a little gnome living in small bungalows in the Midlands or an allegory for that long commute to work. Superb.

Best tracks: Full cup of coffee, Microsize Boy, Linoleum, Take me alive, Years from now, Empty sheet of paper.

Check him out if you dig: Chris Vrenna (obviously), Nine Inch Nails (the more calmer, instrumental part), The Dust Brothers, Death in Vegas, Aphex Twin, Autechre, David Sylvian, Cliff Martinez, Gorillaz, Shawn Lee.

Want a second opinion?
http://www.dailycal.org/article/6547/music_reviews
http://www.cosmik.com/aa-february02/reviews/review_tweaker.html
http://killtheradiostars.blogspot.com/2008/01/quin-sea-seguidor-del-rock-industrial.html
http://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/tweaker/the_attraction_to_all_things_uncertain/

Check their website?
Tweaker’s place (with mp3s!)

Mad Season – Above It was waaaaay back in ‘95 when I first heard this supergroup, an amalgamation of Seattle’s best. I never understood why I never bought the album until 6 years later, when November Hotel started to creep into my dreams. The simplicity of the song matches only the complicated nature of the solo and that series of contrasts (calm, soothing melodies with dark lyrics) are what really sold me the idea of Mad Season so much that I rate them higher than the original groups it was made from. River of Deceit is sheer poetry and Long Gone Day gets the Midas touch from the man, the legend, Mark Lanegan. It really is an under appreciated gem from an era that is mostly remembered now for Nirvana, Pearl Jam, flannel and Beavis and Butthead.

Best tracks: November Hotel, River of deceit, All alone, Long gone day…aww, heck, all of them!

Check ‘em out if you dig: Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Mark Lanegan, Screaming Trees, Queens of the stone age, Wellwater Conspiracy.

Want a second opinion?
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:gud0ylmoxpvb
http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/madseason/albums/album/302265/review/5941176/above
http://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/mad_season/above/

Check their website?
No cigar, only a wiki.

Feeder – Comfort in sound Another group that I hold dear, just by the sheer good memories it brings me because of the day I first heard them. It was a nice Barbecue in Nottingham, with good friends, good drinks and fantastic music. I was not allowed to go near the stereo, as I was marked as having “bizarre musical tastes” by the rest of the people around me. Which turned out to be good, because otherwise I wouldn’t have heard Buck Rogers (from their previous album, Echo Park) or heard the fantastic song that sold me these guys, Comfort in sound. Previous to the release of this album, tragedy struck on the Feeder camp, as their drummer, John Lee, passed away. Even if the disc was already done, you can feel a bit of an aura near all the songs. What sold me this album is the frankness of the songs: sad but still with a ray of happiness here and there. Forget about tomorrow sounds a bit like U2’s Beautiful Day, but thankfully, the similarities end with the opening. Godzilla is the rocking bit of the album, which feels a bit out of place, but it’s a welcome change from the loving, nostalgic (heck, LONGING) atmosphere the entire album oozes. Beautiful.

Best tracks: Comfort in sound, Just the way I’m feeling, Forget about tomorrow, Come back around, Godzilla (where they go a bit Filter on us).

Check ‘em out if you dig: Ash, Delays, Eels, Mansun, Supergrass, Turin Brakes, Weezer, The Constantines, The Brakes (UK).

Want a second opinion?
http://www.leedsmusicscene.net/article/2257/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/music/2002/10/21/comfort_in_sound.shtml
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ktsqoarawijz
http://www.contactmusic.com/new/home.nsf/webpages/feederx22×10x02

Check their website?
Feeder’s website

Belong – October Language I bought it without knowing a single thing about it. I just saw it on the bargain bin of my local cd store and was tempted to do a blind buy on it. Sometimes it has worked, sometimes I’ve tanked with my choices. I think what grabbed me where the song titles, so I gambled upon it. I listened to it late at night, in those moments before getting to sleep and although I was sleepy, I never fell asleep until the disc ended. It’s quite relaxing, depressing and moving, all at the same time. I can honestly recommend all the tracks, but the one I’ve been listening to the most is Remove the inside, which starts with a highly distorted riff that saturates all senses, a bit like your auditive senses are on fire. As the track progresses, it starts to mellow out into a “contemplative mood” that frankly can make me go into tears, associating the song to something that happened to me a bunch of years ago. Cathartic? Probably. Noisy? Sure as heck! Trippy album for all who love ambient noises.

Best tracks: Red velvet or nothing, I never lose, really and the fantastic trip that is Who told you this room exists? But lately, the one that really gets me and defines this group for me is Remove the inside.

Check ‘em out if you dig: Amusement parks on fire, Nine inch Nail’s The Fragile, Brian Eno, Passengers, Malcolm Clarke, Stars of the lid, Fennesz, Growing.

Want a second opinion?
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:1meyxdkb6ol0
http://www.almostcool.org/mr/1676/
http://dustedmagazine.com/reviews/2685
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/15918-october-language
http://www.prefixmag.com/reviews/belong/october-language/14861/

Check their website?
Belong’s MySpace

PS: Coming soon…essays!

Tags: Belong, Feeder, Mad Season, Tweaker