The Juice Box: Reviews & Other Junk
 

So, I've been here over a year. I've perfected lurking down to an art form, and over the past year as I've read through journals, countdowns, reviews, etc., I've lost count of the number of great music discoveries that I owe to this forum. That being said, this journal represents not just an attempt to possibly give something back, but also an attempt to give myself a kick in the ass and post more.

I'm not really sure what direction this journal will necessarily take, hence the title. I really didn't want to limit myself and incorporate only a single genre or purpose. I've got some albums lined up to review and some other ideas I'm kicking around, we'll see what happens:thumb:

That's all for now. I hope anybody reading this finds it somewhat enjoyable:p: I should have the first entry up soon.

Approved, now crack on with it.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nzK5uZ5SS_...20/1118cd4.jpg
Isis
Panopticon
8.6/10
Post-metal


Isis was formed in 1997. The band went through a few lineup changes and produced two EPs before finally releasing their first LP, Celestial, in 2000. Celestial is a very powerful album, very much a legacy of Isis’s roots in sludge and doom-metal. The album is full of monstrous, sludgy riffs, jagged guitar feedback, Aaron Turner’s coarse growling, and other incomprehensible noise, but under this sonic assault is the foundation for Isis’s future progression. The intentional shift in dynamics, the crescendos, the thematic concepts continued throughout the album, laid the groundwork for Isis’s future as an avant-garde, post-metal band.

These post-metal seeds came to fruition in Isis’s second and generally most-revered album, Oceanic, the album considered by both fans and the band members themselves to be Isis’s turning point. The band kept the trademark growls and riffs from Celestial, but used periods of ambiance to help accentuate the changing dynamics. This ambiance came in the form of clean guitar, clean vocals from Turner, and even female vocals by Maria Christopher. The end result was an album that solidified the post-metal genre, and gave inspiration to a wave of bands that would follow in its footsteps (Pelican, Cult of Luna, Russian Circles). Oceanic was also a concept album, with a loose storyline about a man who falls in love but then later commits suicide (by drowning) after finding out his lover was involved in an incestuous relationship with her brother. The album was incredibly well-received, and was and still is considered a landmark album in the post-metal genre. Pitchfork’s usual over-the-top review described Oceanic as “caterwauls offset by meditation,” and Allmusic describes it as “a masterfully complex symphony of majestic noise and melody, an all-consuming trip into the earth and mind that defies genre and, often, description -- simply put, a triumph.”

However, Isis, in my estimation at least, did not reach their apex until two years after Oceanic, when they released their magnum opus and third LP, Panopticon. As with their previous two full-lengths, Panopticon has a running theme. The term “panopticon” references a prison design popularized in the eighteenth century, where a central viewing area enables guards to view prisoner movement without the prisoners knowing if they’re currently being watched. The album’s cover art, a satellite photo, illustrates a modern application.

Sonically, Panopticon takes its predecessor Oceanic, trims the fat off, and tightens up the rest to create a jaw-droppingly good record. Even though both albums are about the same length, Oceanic to me still slightly overstays its welcome, whereas Panopticon never once feels like it drags on. The entire album has an ever darker feel than Oceanic, with the cleaner, ambient sections being very brooding and gloomy, and the crescendos bitter and bleak. There is also continuity: whereas Oceanic had the two-minute untitled interlude, Panopticon flows together without interruption. In my mind this is a good thing, because for most atmospheric music such as post-rock/post-metal, the best albums are the ones that are able to cohesively combine tracks so that there is minimal interruption for the listener.

I’ve always envisioned Isis’s music like tectonic plates, slowly and methodically moving toward each other until they collide (and mess up the state of California). On their previous albums, these collisions were raw and discordant, which I believe was their aim. However, the high points on their previous albums could often distract from the softer, more ambient moments. On Panopticon, however, the climaxes fit right together with the soft moments, working in perfect harmony, highlighting each other while still allowing the listener to appreciate both. Truly, this album is a perfect example of a band perfecting their sound, honing it down to laser-like precision. And what a treat it is to be able to hear.

I’m going to avoid a track-by-track review because I really believe this album needs to be heard (like most post-rock/metal) in its entirety to be truly appreciated. However, I have linked some Youtube vids to give an idea for those who may have never heard this band or this album before. I highly, highly recommend this album, it’s one that I keep coming back to over and over and over again because it literally never becomes stale, and I always find something new I can appreciate with every listen.

Isis is a band that I'd heard of occasionally but never actually checked out at all. After reading this though, and listening to the 1st link, I think I'm gonna get right on that. :thumb:

Rad to see someone else on this forum that posts like half as much as most members. I'm more of a reader then a writer on the boards, myself. Sad to say I haven't seen you around though. =( A good start on your Journal, I have a few ISIS albums myself, though maybe after reading that I'll actually give a few of them a spin.

Thanks guys. I forgot to mention too, links are available for any of the stuff I'm posting in here. Just PM me or post here and I'll be happy to up it.

Juice's Top Ten of 2009

I’m going to dedicate the next several entries to a countdown of what I believe are the top ten albums released this past year. Hopefully it’ll be a combination of some obvious choices and a few that you might have overlooked or not gotten around to yet. Obviously the list isn’t all-inclusive, I’ve been incredibly lazy this year and haven’t always kept up to date on new releases. However, I think that I’ve compiled a solid countdown.

Before I start the list off with #10, however, I’m going to take a look at a few albums that I would have predicted to be in the top ten at the beginning of the year, but for whatever reasons were disappointments. Shame, shame, shame on these bands:p:

The 2009 Hall of Shame

http://www.mikeportnoy.com/images/bl...verlinings.jpg
Dream Theater
Black Clouds & Silver Linings
6.3/10

Okay, so I probably wouldn’t have predicted this album to make my top ten list. Actually, if Dream Theater hadn’t created Images & Words, one of my all, all, all time favorite albums, I most likely would have given up on them years ago. After the release of the weird but appreciable Metropolis II in 1999, these guys have gone largely downhill. Octavarium had its moments, but Systematic Chaos was garbage. However, because I listen to Images & Words at least once a month, every time Labrie & Co. announce a new album, I seem to develop a musical Alzheimer’s. Black Clouds & Silver Linings is slightly better than Systematic Chaos, but that’s sort of like winning the tallest dwarf award. It’s bloated and pretentious even by DT standards, and the band doesn’t really cover any new ground.

http://thefulmerazzi.files.wordpress...lbum-cover.jpg
The Decemberists
The Hazards of Love
6.6/10

When I heard the words “rock opera” mentioned in connection with this album before it was released, I knew it would either be an absolutely brilliant album or else a disappointment. Sadly, it’s the latter. In all actuality it’s not a bad album, it just (for me at least) grows stale about halfway through and is difficult to digest in one sitting. As someone who thought Picaresque was a solid album and that The Crane Wife was one of the best releases of 2006, this one fell short.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_pTaohOis60...2BIncident.jpg
Porcupine Tree
The Incident
6.8/10

I wanted to like this album. I really did. I was psyched when I heard Steven Wilson announce that the new release would be two discs, with the one being a nearly hour-long thematic concept album. But come on, Steve. You cannot release exceptional gems like In Absentia and Fear of a Blank Planet, and then try to pass this off as belonging in the conversation with those, or anywhere near the conversation for that matter. I don’t get it, I really don’t. From the band blatantly ripping themselves off (the title track sounds like a bad remix of Sleep Together) to the cringe-worthy lyrics (I’m drawing the line! I’m drawing the line!) to the completely disjointed nature of the first disc that ruins any flow the album might have by inserting garbage filler tracks after every song that actually works, I’m not even sure where to focus my criticism. I’ll just leave it at that I guess. I really thought that the album was a joke the first time I heard the leak. Biggest disappointment of ’09 for me.

This was definitely one of the biggest disappointments of the year for me. I loved The Decemberists right up to this album. They go through all sorts of styles, and some of the songs really do disgust me. Like, "The Queen's Rebuke/The Crossing." Were they trying to do some sort of heavy metal thing? They failed miserably, they're a baroque pop band and that is easily what they do best. I miss the sea shanties, good storytelling and so on of their Castaways and Cutouts and The Crane Wife. I think they just tried to hard to do a whole mess of styles for each character or something, when they as a band really can't pull it off. Obviously I didn't enjoy this album quite as much as you :laughing:

Oh and that Isis album? Their best. I love it.

Wow I've been a lazy bastard for the past week...blame the holidays. Anyways, here's the beginning of the Top 10 of 2009:

#10

http://www.melodicamente.com/wp-cont...rk-300x295.jpg
Muse
The Resistance
7.3/10

I’ll admit I was somewhat…concerned…about this album prior to its release. Can you blame me? Muse produced Absolution, one of the finest albums to be released this decade, and then followed that up with Black Holes & Revelations, which, although good, was definitely a step back. Several songs still blend together even to this day for me, where it seems like Bellamy & Co. just ran out of ideas. Even the great moments on Black Holes were a hint that the band was moving further and further away from their sound on Absolution and further into electronic experimentation with their music.

So forgive me. When Bellamy announced that the new album was called The Resistance, that the first song released was called United States of Eurasia, that he was experimenting with a symphonic arrangement that would take up a chunk of the album…yes, I was a little skeptical. And yet, even with all that (yes, even with United States of…oh hey Queen, didn’t see you there), I actually like this album. Yes, it does have its flaws. Yes, there are points when I want to scream at the band to play their damn instruments more. There are parts where I don’t know what the hell they were thinking (Guiding Light, I’m looking at you). But…there are gems here. Undisclosed Desires, even without a drummer or a guitarist, is surprisingly good. The Exogenesis trio of songs are also great, I just wish Bellamy had devoted more than 12 minutes to them. Bellamy’s vocals throughout the album are great as always.

Overall I still do have several issues with this album, but I’m going to sneak it in at #10 here because it is still growing on me with each listen.

Some really cool posts in this journal already, especially Isis. I agree with the review the whole way through, no matter how many times I listen to it there will always be something fresh jumping out of the speakers to intrigue the listener.

Might check out that Muse album, sounds decent :)

Finals are going to kill me, but I'm determined to get this thing done by New Year's. Going to have to pick it up.

#9

http://kjnb.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/octac.jpg

The Mars Volta
Octahedron
7.4/10

There’s a common argument or indictment I’ve heard many people use in regards to The Mars Volta. It goes something like this: “Frances/Bedlam/Amputechture is probably my favorite TMV album, but dammit, if they would just cut out some of the damn random noise/not put so much filler in their tracks/cut down on the studio effects, they’d be so much better and I could listen to them more.” In other words, if they would just FOCUS, they could produce something truly spectacular. Well, to anybody who’s ever said something similar to that…

Here you go!

Not that this album is nearly that simple. But for all the crap this album has taken (although I did enjoy the Hitler Youtube video on the subject), 90% of it isn’t deserved. Some criticism is obviously valid. Thomas Pridgen’s performance on Bedlam was so good that, amazingly, Jon Theodore, who is an equally incredible drummer in his own right, wasn’t even missed. Pridgen, however, all but disappears on Octahedron, his bat**** craziness held back by the timidity of most of the album. And apart from Cotopaxi, there are no moments of pure frenetic energy that made the previous TMV albums so great. And I wouldn’t put this album above any of the 3 albums I listed above. But that doesn’t mean Octahedron can be written off. This is by far Cedric’s best vocal effort to date, and it’s nice to hear his voice without it being filtered through multiple layers of effects for once. Teflon is going to go down as a top 10 track in the entire TMV discography. Cotopaxi is a teasing reminder that they haven’t abandoned the sound that brought them to this point. Props to TMV for being willing to experiment mixing up their sound, and major props for being able to do that effectively without losing their identity in the process. And that's why they're at #9 on this list.

Merry X-Mas all. Finals are done, and as a holiday treat and because I still want to get this done by 1/1, this is a special double edition of the countdown.

#8
http://www.curatormagazine.com/wp-co...ilion-2009.jpg
Animal Collective
Merriweather Post Pavilion
7.5/10

I'll be honest, this album might be higher up the list except that I was pretty late to the game regarding hearing it. Also, this was my first foray into Animal Collective, so I'm still digesting the album as a whole.

Obviously though, this album would top a lot of people's similar lists, and with good reason. This swirling mixture of electronica, dream pop and Beach-Boys esque harmonies took me a few listens to appreciate, but on about the 3rd listen it did indeed click. My Girls is obviously a phenomenal song, but I almost think I like the opener, In The Flowers, more. Overall though there's no song that I really feel like skipping when I listen to this, hence it's entry at #8.

#7
http://bothbarson.files.wordpress.co.../10/folder.jpg
Fuck Buttons
Tarot Sport
7.5/10

I can't say that I enjoyed this album more than the debut Street Horrsing. I really didn't feel like there were any songs on Tarot Sport that could match Okay, Let's Talk About Magic or Race You To My Bedroom. Also, the extra ten minutes that Tarot contains makes the album slightly overstay its welcome in my book. But that doesn't mean this album should be overlooked. Once again, this duo manages to create an impressive display of electronic noise. Space Mountain is fantastic. These guys avoided the sophomore slump with this album, and it will be exciting to see what they can create in the future.

So this whole top-ten thing obviously never panned out as I was hoping, never really had time to do it properly. Since I need to update this and I have other reviews I'm anxious to get to, I'm just going to finish this off.

6. Russian Circles-Geneva
This post-rock/post-metal group from Chicago brings the goods again. Following up their fantastic debut Enter and their equally brilliant sophomore effort Station, Geneva sees R.C. both sticking with their strengths and experimenting with their sound. The addition of strings on Geneva make it a slightly different listen from their previous two albums, but doesn't hinder these guys from producing some kick-ass instrumental music all the same.

5. Isis-Wavering Radiant
More post-metal here. First review in this journal is Isis's Panopticon, which should give you some idea of how eagerly I was awaiting this album. However, there was some trepidation on my part as I really felt that In The Absence Of Truth was their weakest album to date, and I was very curious to see whether they could return to the form I loved so much in Panopticon. Luckily, Turner & Co. hit this one out of the park. I won't put it above Panopticon, but it's much much better than ITAOT and equally as good if not better than Oceanic.

4. Lightning Bolt-Earthly Delights
Downloaded this album on a whim. Had never really listened to much noise rock, at least not like this. Holy shit was I blown away. Definitely a sonic assault. What really does it for me with this album is the drumming, which ranges from crazy to fucking insanity. And I still laugh whenever I listen to Funny Farm, just too good.

3. Mew-No More Stories...
Another album that I downloaded having never listened to the band previously. Needless to say, after I listened to this one I made a frantic backtrack through the Danish art/prog/pop band's discography. Although I am seriously impressed with their complete body of work, for now I'll still say that this album is my favorite of theirs. Maybe it's only because it was the first one I heard, but the whole album is just great. Very solid. Easy to hum along to but not simple enough to fade into background music.

2. Brand New-Daisy
I'll be the first to admit I thought BN would never top The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me. Although I was impressed with the band's ability to mature enough to create a record of that considering their pop-punk roots, I was seriously expecting to be disappointed by Daisy. And...how wrong, how wrong I was. Daisy is the musical equivalent of a surge of adrenaline. Vices, the first track, is one of the most off-putting opening tracks I think I've heard...but it definitely sets the tone for the rest of the record. The band hits and hits heavy, but the songs are concise and to the point. They don't linger, there's no filler intros or wasted time, with the whole album clocking in right at 40 minutes. Even better IMO than TDAG.

1. Silversun Pickups-Swoon
A lot of people will claim they knew what their #1 album of 2009 would be in January when Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion was released. I had to wait until April. As soon as I heard Swoon, though, I knew it would be a shoe-in for this spot. As many spins as I gave Carnavas, SSP's brilliant full-length debut, I've listened to this one even more. It's just so good, both the individual songs and the way they're put together on the album. Fuzzy is really the best adjective to describe this album, but it's not just the guitars, it's Aubert's vocals, alternating between dreamy and edgy, and the drumming, and the way all of the instruments just blend together so well. There is no weak point on this album as far as I'm concerned. From the hypnotic There's No Secrets This Year to the brilliant build-up in Growing Old Is Getting Old to the laid-back Draining, it's just phenomenal. Definitely no sophomore slump here.

Time to get this rolling again. The top 10 list was a disaster:laughing: (I'm never doing an end of the year list again, I've already downloaded at least 5 albums from 2009 that would nullify albums I listed here), but time to stop hiding in eternal shame and start posting some kickass music again. And this album right here is some kickass stuff.

http://static.boomkat.com/images/113440/333.jpg

65daysofstatic
The Fall of Math
9.2/10
Post-Rock, Math Rock, Electronic/IDM/Glitch

“This negative energy just makes me stronger. We will not retreat. This band is unstoppable!”

Indeed. Thinking logically here, it’s probably difficult for a band to be stopped before they release their debut album, but just in case you had any thoughts of trying, this reclusive group from the UK decided to give us a masterpiece right out of the gate: their magnum opus (though One Time For All Time is deservedly in the conversation), a phenomenal mixture of post-rock, math rock, and glitchy IDM.

What makes this album so great is the way it’s able to combine elements of the different genres I listed above without ever sounding chaotic or out of control. Particularly for the post-rock genre, it redefined what could be done with the cathartic peak-valley-peak formula that is often maligned by critics of the genre. In my opinion, this belongs right up there with albums such as Ágætis byrjun, Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven, The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place, etc. And the album seems like it’s almost aware of that, as the awkwardness sometimes seen on genre-defining records simply isn’t present here. It has a sense of power, from the cryptically apocalyptic opener Another Code Against the Gone to what is probably their best known track, Retreat! Retreat, to the thick, dense riffs of I Swallowed Hard Like I Understood and This Cat Is a Landmine. Aren’t We All Running, the ending track, is so breathtakingly powerful that it nearly knocks the wind out of you.

Also, I can’t let this review end without a quick mention of the drumming on this album, which is simply amazing. What can I say, I’m a sucker for solid drumming, and if I had to pick a specific thing about this album that I liked the most that’d be it. Most of the drumming on the album is done by a human being, there are some moments that feature computer beats but it flows so well that it’s almost indistinguishable. The math rock tendencies of the band really highlight how impressive some of the instrumental technicality is, as often the songs are changing between weird time signatures. If you don’t find yourself air-drumming along to this album at several points, there’s something wrong with you:p:.

As I said earlier, to me this is by far their best album, although I understand people who consider One Time For All Time, their second album, to be better. One Time For All Time is definitely more polished, probably slightly more focused. But it just doesn’t contain the power that The Fall of Math has. This album grabs you and shakes you, long enough to make you appreciate it but short enough to always leave you wanting a little more. If you haven't heard it, I cannot recommend it enough if you're a fan of any kind of electronic or post-rock music.

http://img-fotki.yandex.ru/get/3211/..._bdda24a9_orig
Immanu El
They'll Come, They Come (2007)
8.9/10
Post-Rock, Ambient, Dream-Pop

Before I begin this review, I need to get something off my chest: I love Sigur Rós. They take the breathless climaxes of the greatest post-rock bands, the most soothing and blissful ambient tones, and some of the most dreamlike, ethereal vocals on the planet, and they combine them into music that is completely original. Bands like Múm can come close sometimes, but nobody can do what Sigur Rós does. Another reason I love these Icelanders is their ability to channel the entire emotional spectrum through their music, from the frenzied triumph of Glósóli to the numbingly melancholic Vaka to the bubbly innocence of Gobbledigook.

Phew, that feels better:p: As you can clearly see though, this is not a Sigur Rós review. So why am I bringing them up?

Well, sometimes, I might be in the mood to listen to Sigur Rós, but maybe I’m not ready to hear Sigur Rós themselves. Maybe I don’t have the patience to devote to a full album. Maybe I can’t handle Hopelandic vocals at that very moment. Maybe I just want music that sounds like SR without the entire package.

During these moments, I turn to Immanu El’s debut album. There’s enough to this album so that calling it Sigur Rós-lite doesn’t do it justice, but if you want cliffs, there it is. Most of the album consists of mellow, laid-back guitar, piano, occasional strings, ambient noise, and Claes Strängberg’s dreamy vocals. He’s no Jónsi, but Claes definitely holds his own. The lyrics themselves are in English, and are minimalist but extremely powerful. There is the soft/loud post-rock dynamic very prevalent here, as well as just some gorgeous dream-pop stuff in tracks such as Home. Another hint to the sound you can expect is the album art. It’s a very peaceful fifty minutes, with even the crescendos being more uplifting than necessarily powerful. This album is warm, at least that’s how I would describe it.

About 1/5 of the album is taken up by the opening track, Under Your Wings I’ll Hide, which is one of the most brilliant and beautiful songs I’ve ever heard. Classify it under whatever genre you like, it’s universally gorgeous, with dynamics transitioning seamlessly until the final triumphant climax. Home features some gorgeous string work. White Seraphs Wild showcases some beautiful piano. These tracks are all individual, yet they blend together very nicely. My personal favorite, however, is the closing track, …In Valleys. This song puts everything together, from the warm, tranquil piano chords to the strings to the beautiful vocals, all together in a final apex.

So: if you’re a fan of Sigur Rós, or ambient acts such as Hammock, or any post-rock, you really owe it to yourself to give this a spin. I know I made a lot of comparisons to the Icelandic giants, but They’ll Come, They Come is far from a knockoff. These guys are very original and very good at what they do.

I dig Hammock for sure.. I'll definitely check your recommendations out. Thanks for this. :)

Np. As always, if you have any issues, just shoot me a PM and I'll get it sorted for you.