This week, I’ve got another four albums for your listening ears. There will be three new albums from the past week (on a monday to monday basis) and one classic album we’re celebrating the anniversary of.
Just a reminder: if there’s an album YOU want to see covered that we missed (or a review that you disagree with) write a review of your own and submit it right here!
Garip – Atlin Gun
5.5/10
Anatolian rock is a subgenre of rock that incorporates elements of traditional Turkish folk music.
Altin Gun have been the premiere executors of such a genre, their previous few outings have been both sonically interesting and enjoyable.
I had no idea who Altin Gun were until I decided to review this record. Before listening to this one, I got into their 2018 debut “On” and loved it. It was exciting in this psychedelic, tropical way. It felt like I was lost in a forgotten world, tucked away in between mountains and a lake.
Unfortunately, this album was so, so boring. I did not care about any track. I won’t say any of it was bad– in theory I should love it. It’s the same stuff I loved about their first album but for some reason it’s just totally uninteresting to me. Bad? Certainly not. I would rather listen to this than Joji or something.
I kept listening and kept forgetting it ended. I kept waiting excitedly for the next song to start hoping that something fun would come out of it. Nothing did, however. I wish I could pinpoint to you, the reader, as to why it’s so asinine to me but I simply can’t.
I just don’t care! I flat out, straight up, all over do not care about this album. Listen to “On”. If they continue producing albums like this, hopefully their next release is called “Off”.
Carnival – Trauma Ray
7.5/10
Who doesn’t like shoegaze?
Texas-based band Trauma Ray are one of the best new names in the scene and are pioneering their bizarre blend of shoegaze with metal, of all genres. The result is quite pleasant, albeit a little short.
While both genres are very dense, the walls of sound they present are usually quite different from each other, and Trauma Ray effortlessly blends the two influences. Both the pounding drums, and chugging riffs from metal, and the hazy vocals and constant noise from shoegaze.
Being an EP, there’s less than 25 minutes of content here, so I don’t have a ton to say. What is present though, is quite nice.
Spiral Staircases – Larry June, Curren$y & The Alchemist
4.7/10
Here’s the thing about The Alchemist—his beats are always good. I don’t remember the last time I saw any song or album featuring his talents that wasn’t pleasant. When it comes to abstract hip hop, I’d bet on him more than most any other producer (although I think he’s slightly beat out by Madlib). He is extremely consistent, is what I mean to say.
I don’t want to call his beats stale. Maybe tired is the word? Again, absolutely nothing wrong with what he’s doing but he can only apply the same few ideas so many times before I stop caring. His last major release was with Armand Hammer, who are not only incredible producers in their own right, but are also great rappers; their chemistry added so much to The Alchemist’s sound and gave us a nice blend of the in there and out there.
I don’t want to diss Larry June or Curren$y. Their voices aren’t unpleasant, nor are their flows; much like the rest of the album though, they’re extremely mediocre. Vanilla ice cream if you will. It’s by no means bad but just… I couldn’t care less about it.
Throughout each listen I found myself nodding my head along to the beats and certainly enjoying them but I feel like I’ll forget about this album in a few weeks.
Kalk zamen kuri no hana – Sheena Ringo
9.1/10
Sheena Ringo broke into the scene at the turn of the century with her sophomore record “Shouso Strip”, one of the highest quality japanese pop rock records of the 2000s. Had she continued down this path, there’s no doubt we would still look upon her career pretty fondly. I would anyway. Despite that, just making shimokita-kei wasn’t enough for Sheena Ringo, and her next major record marked a shift away from more traditional rock to something totally unique.
“Kalk Zamen Kuri no Hana”, which means “Chlorine, Semen, Chestnut Flower” (for some reason) is an exhilarating, fresh take on rock, with countless unique genre influences, instruments and song styles. It’s one of those albums that you simply have to immediately listen to again after your first listen—and maybe a few more times after that.
The album wastes no time showing you that Sheena Ringo’s sound has dramatically changed, with the opener “Shuukyou” (Religion) featuring a heavy string introduction. Thick, pounding drums come in followed by casual vocalizing and a heavily distorted guitar. The following track “Doppelganger” is totally different. The main riff here is performed by a bassoon, accompanied by jazz-esque piano, all over desperate electronic drumming. Her vocals are put through a distorted filter too, leading to her sounding otherworldly, perhaps alien at times. The following track “Meisai” (Camoflauge) is just another rock track.
This three track run tells you all you need to know about “Kalk Zamen Kuri no Hana”. Not only that Sheena Ringo is jumping vibes and genres every single track, but that her quality is consistent enough song-to-song that it’s easy to listen to.
I could write this whole section about my favorite song “Yatsuke Shigoto (Daimyou-Asobi-Hen)” (Rush Job (At Play With a Feudal Lord-)). It starts with a collage of field recordings, such as a news bulletin bumper, clips from said news bulletin, tv static, a vacuum cleaner and more. Through the radio effect, you hear the intro to the song play distorted; once the vacuum ends though, the song comes in clearly. There’s not a single noticeable guitar piece in this entire song. Instead, she’s arranged a piece made up of mostly strings, pitched percussion and a harpsichord.
It’s so, well, fun! The gentle touches of glockenspiel throughout make the strings ever brighter and the drums keep things upbeat despite the instrumentation. This willingness to have fun with the composition makes every track unique and exciting.
This album captures everything I love about art pop and art rock. It has to constantly be inventing itself. It has to emphasize a specific feeling through its music. Most importantly, it has to throw in a few instruments that rock wouldn’t otherwise feature. Give it a listen!
