So...many...reviews

Here are my reviews! This week (the week after RT) has been one of the busiest weeks of my life, so I apologize if I don’t go way in depth – I’ll do my best!

***

Autumn Bluff – Lovesick Lullaby: Cool, straightforward pop track. I love the ending. Awesome production from David as expected. Reminds me of late 90s, post-NSync boy bands. Like um, BBMak, or something, except I don’t recall them having electronics. But the little guitar licks in there definitely gave it a retro vibe for me. I’m trying to phase Autotune out of my own recordings (I used NONE on Grenadine), so it was easy for me to shake my head at some of the little autotune artifacts, but I have a strong feeling David doesn’t really give a shit, and that’s the Record Time spirit!

Lobster Shanty – Tremendous: I’ve talked to Joe a little bit about this one already, but overall I’m most impressed by it’s authenticity and uh…lack of irony? This is pure, uncut, Colombian funk. I appreciated the extra percussion in the 3rd track, and all the little electronic embellishments. Definitely a big achievement recording this in two programs, with two artists on two different schedules. Also props as usual to Joe for his 6th record time…the only one with 7 being yours truly!

DJ Cleveland – Tessie : Keeee-yoot

Five-Minute Fanclub – Tongue-Tied and Twisted : Maybe it’s just cause I talked to Eric throughout the week, but to me you can really hear the hard work that went into this one. I think his album and mine have a lot in common – we really pushed ourselves toward a really specific goal, but you can still hear “classic Eric” every once in a while. To me, “Mary Ann is Having a Baby” is the obvious standout – you come up with a title like that and you barely have to write a song. The 50s ballad towards the end was my favorite part of the album…and I’m not sure if they did that specifically, but it seems like it was pulled right from the Avett Brothers playbook. I also have to note that I chuckled at the low vocal notes in “Whisky Bottle” – Eric, you’re a tenor after all.

Logan Bradley – HzlHrst : Logan and I have so much in common, yet our musical “philosophy” really couldn’t be more different. We seem to both enjoy a mix of traditional and non-traditional elements, but start from opposite ends of the spectrum and move towards the middle (me being the traditionalist and him being the experimentalist I sometimes wish I was). But anyways, this album is sweet. I particularly liked it because I know it was even more rushed than usual – I can deconstruct it a little better than his others because there’s not quite as much going on. Usually Logan’s stuff just totally baffles me, in a good way – this one shows his “human” side, if I may be cliché. My favorite track is definitely “Without a Murder.”

Clock Systeme – Droides: A true electronic voyage from Barney and Will – I love the concept and it sounds like you guys had lots of fun. I like it because of its true Record Time spirit – very random and without regard to anyone. I’m not sure what else to say about it…but it might be the best production I’ve heard from Barney, and I would like to hear more clock systeme.

Mike Weber – Morning Waits for No One: All I know is Mike found a keyboard! I have, of course, followed Mike’s artistic progression for a long time, and this album is really weird to me. It’s got a very neutral, almost a little dark mood to it. It’s like he’s right on the edge of a new sound, but I’m not sure which element is really going to take over on his next record, whenever that may be. I think the title track is by far the best…I’m not sure if I’m just imagining this but it seemed to have a really interesting progressive structure. And I liked all the extra percussion. I remember when Mike used a Nalgene bottle in our dorm room because he didn’t have a set of claves. I wonder if that bottle made its second appearance here?

Todd Kevin – Jejune Oeuvre: I like his band name because, while Todd can be a last name, Kevin really can’t. This is a weird-ass album. It’s like The Avett Brothers played by, no offense Kevin, a schizophrenic. And not in the way that the music is really all over the place, it’s that the vocals are just slightly wacky, animated quality, where I could see Kevin playing this and talking to himself in a padded room somewhere. I guess, like the most “pure” Record Time albums, I like this one because it doesn’t seem to be made for an audience. I hear a little Randy Newman too, actually, especially on “All These Days.” I also like “You Dog…” And like someone else said, 37 minutes…whoa.

Andrew Miller – Paroxysm : I’ve heard this piece about 1000 times coming out of Andrew’s room. It’s awesome and one of his best. General Grievous would be proud.
Michael Joiner – Sister: A cute song, unless I am missing some kind of ironic thing going on in the lyrics. I enjoy the very insistent organ.

Intraphase – A Boy and his Demon: Nice and ambitious, which I always like. Reminds me a lot of Pain of Salvation, which used to be one of my favorite bands. It’s a big achievement to use real drums on record time, so props for that. I also liked the use of sound effects (I use em on everything). And hey, blastbeats! Nice, man, real nice.

Christian Lyon – Young Man EP: Cool, very modern sound. Great production, great vocals, great everything. Really tasteful use of keyboards…really tasteful everything. Literally the only thing I really care about is vocal melodies, and you’ve got that down for sure. I don’t have a lot of specific things to say about this one, because it’s fairly straightforward stuff, but I really think this EP is a standout in RTVII. I really hope you come back for RTVIII!

DonkeyDonker – Henry VIII: I have to admit, I never listen to music like this, know nothing about it, and so can’t really say much about it without sounding stupid. But I guess I’ll say this…I’ve never heard an “ambient” album that’s so…in-your-face? (Unless you count Sunn O))) which I guess I do). I’m really not sure how it’s supposed to be listened to. But the production is great, I like the variety, and I like the eventual “payoff” of the beats towards the end. Definitely a unique album in the group, so I hope you return for VIII as well!

Jiva – The Atma: Zakk is pretty much an engineering prodigy as far as I’m concerned – obviously there’s always room for improvement, but his passion for both the process of recording and for learning in general is gonna make him pretty much unstoppable. Because it obviously sounds great, and because I’m jealous I’ll go with some actual criticism – next time I’d like to hear some real tight composition, as this stuff is more “jam”-oriented. I’m kind of anti-sampling these days, as it’s hard to tell who’s the real deal…I know Zakk is, and has been learning some serious theory, so I want to hear it in action!

Jonathan and Jason – The McWaffle: Not sure what to think of “The People’s Champion.” I’m pretty sure Jason is Christian, so I’ll assume this is just a fun play on some of the ridiculous Christian music out there. Dancing in the Rain is pretty straightforward pop, but I love the voice – must be Jonathan, as I don’t think I’ve heard it before. I know Jason will be back next time…just keep it up!

V. Mel – One Minute Rave: I will only remark upon the genius of mixing two synth patches at different tempos (starting at 0:06). It’s profound, really – in our lives, how can we dance when there are two songs playing at once? Do we take life at the slower tempo, or the faster one? Indeed, no matter the choice, our lives amount to little more than a One Minute Rave.

The DuPage Amiable Society – A New Fall : Cool minimalist indie…congrats on 7 songs! The autotune is a little distracting for me, but otherwise this is a nice collection of tracks…don’t have a lot to say about it! Just keep making music and developing your style…I think this record is a good jumping-off point.

Ben X – XE : Not really familiar with this style, but as I said with another record, I enjoy that sort of randomness/thrown-togetherness that I think should be present in all Record Time albums. This album has really quirky mixing (in a good way), that makes me think it would sound crazy on huge speakers – there’s not really a focus on any one instrument…makes for a pretty unique sound, I think…but again, I’m pretty ignorant on this type of stuff.

F.E.A.R. – Night Terror – Even crazier than Dennis’ last one (on RTV I believe?). Total atonal chaos. The obvious comparison is Nine Inch Nails, but this is ballsier, and I think more interesting than Trent’s recent stuff. I really like one specific sound in here – it sounds like a choir or something, but I doubt that’s what it is. I dunno. It’s cool.

James Danger – Sentiments and Romances : I’m not sure WTF this album IS…but I really honestly love it, or at least the general idea of it. People often talk about various styles having a sort of “drunken” or “hangover” vibe, but it’s usually pretty forced…here, it actually applies. I’m not sure if that’s anywhere close to what you were going for, but that’s really what it feels like to me. The few times I’ve gotten a little tipsy in my apartment and picked up a guitar, most of the time I forgot to actually play anything. And when I did, it basically sounded like the first 2 tracks. Good, weird work.

Kris Eckman – The Devil & Isaak : MESHUGGAHHHHHHHHHHH! Sorry, couldn’t help it. I like the last track best by far…lots of variety, and I enjoyed the denser mix towards the beginning. In general, the guitar really should be doubled, but eh, who cares. I actually really liked the acoustic sections – I don’t think I’ve really heard anyone put djenty and folky stuff side by side, but it works. And in general, I think it’s a really colorful album…reminds me of myself in a lot of ways, and by myself, I mean Devin Townsend, because I basically just copy his albums one after another. Anyways, great work, and a really huge step up from your last one.

Oberon – Self-Titled: This one actually came as sort of a breath of fresh air, given the order I’ve been listening to everything in. I was like, “Oh hai chord progressions.” I am really impressed you were able to do 4 polished tracks with real drums and everything. We get a lot of weird stuff in Record Time, partially because it’s ideal for experimentation, but mostly because writing weird stuff is easier. Writing really solid pop songs is tough, and it’s even tougher doing it with another person. I don’t have a ton to say about the music itself, as it’s not really my style, but I think it’s a really big achievement, and hopefully you guys made some strides in recording this. Production-wise it definitely has a high-quality demo sound (which is impressive in itself given the time frame)…you guys should use these songs to get some gigs!

Paul Marquissee – Journey’s End : I know this album represents a ton of work (Paul strikes me as somewhat of a workaholic), and it shows. Totally unique, great production, interesting compositions. I like tracks 3 and 4 the best, as they’re a little more “hooky” and I’ve only listened to the album once. I only wish we could have heard more of Paul’s vocals, after reading about them! This album, like many others, seems like a mashup of influences I’ve never heard. I guess that’s the key to originality. And great job Kylene…this isn’t just Paul Marquissee, you guys need a band name!

Pigeon – Crooked Legs: This reminds me a LOT of Jim O’Rourke, who I listened to quite a bit for a short time. Really cool chords and great vocal melodies (and harmonies!). I like that you stuck to just guitar and vocals, whether out of choice or necessity – makes everyone else’s albums look pretentious. There is definitely something special about your writing…would love to hear it with slightly tighter production.

Aaron Webster – Sex Affairs of Ghosts: This EP is awesome. Track 3 may be my favorite piece of RTVII. Never heard anything like it. Hopefully this does not offend, but to me this is the kind of stuff that I would turn off 9 times out of 10, but when I’m in just the right mood, there would be no other choice. “Ghost Wife” is the best, obviously because it’s the fastest. I think you could go faster, and I hope that you do.

Connor Boyle - Equestrian EP: Great titles. And I like that Connor has a really consistent and specific style going. This is one of those albums that really embodies the Record Time spirit...seemingly random elements and pretty raw production...I love it. Not much else to say about this one, unfortunately!

Strange Battery – Grenadine: Please, for the love of God, don’t judge me on this album.

***

Overall I think the theme of RTVII was...hard work. A lot of us have jobs now, and have a quarter of the time we used to spend on recording. But somehow the quality keeps getting better. Hope you guys had at least a little fun!