Dieselboy

Glad to hear it!

FETCHER.

Brilliant journal so far dieselboy, good write ups. I'll watch the videos later though.

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Dieselboy

Thx Kayleigh. Glad you think so.

Yeah, I think it's kinda impossible to watch all the video's on this site. Users here are just linking them constantly, and if you did watch them all you'd never get to listen to any of your own music probably.

Makes me feel bad when I skip video's in other peoples journals cause of this, but I really don't expect people to watch all the ones I post either. I've sorta been trying to put little hints or guides/markers as to what would be the best part of certain vids to check out though. Or which might be the best single video to click in a certain post. Even if people just read and don't click anything though, it's all good I suppose.

FETCHER.

Nah I was on my iPod, sorry I didn't elaborate!

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Dieselboy

For my next review I'll be discussing my favorite album of 2009. I wish now that I'd started this journal sooner, as I wanted to. Now, instead of it being the cool thing to do, it's just going to be "so last week", but oh well. I've seen this album mentioned here and there on the boards, but never seen it get a proper review, so I guess it's up to me.

Dieselboys Best Album of 2009 - La Roux (Self-Titled)

Some quick artist info:
La Roux is a duo of Eleanor (Elly) Jackson and Ben Langmaid. Elly being the "face" of the outfit, and Langmaid being more behind the scenes and secretive. The groups chosen name, La Roux, is quite interesting in itself. It is french for "Red-haired one", but is the male version of that term. This fits Elly well enough, as she keeps her sexual preferences well hidden. Indeed, she even seems to enjoy the confusion and talks about how well it fits her, as she sees herself being androgynous. In some of her videos she is beautiful, while in others she is quite handsome looking (is that the best way to say it?).
All this is interesting, but don't be worried that it might be some kind of distraction from the music quality, cause this is some great music. Very 80's synth-pop inspired, but sounding very fresh at the same time. Her vocals are quite unique and I've heard plenty of complaints about how they're too high pitched or ruin the music and such. I got used to them quickly enough after giving them a chance and really love them now, so maybe something to keep in mind if you aren't feeling her singing at first. On to the album:





When you first press play you're greeted with a bouncy and fun synth line that is interupted abruptly when Elly starts singing. As stated earlier, her voice is not conventional, and I still find it a bit jarring even to this day when I start this disc up.
Once you're over that though, this track is pretty great, with some nice sing-a-long ooooohhhhh's throughout and a bridge at 3:10 that is really very beautiful. It only lasts a few seconds and then you're jarred out of it again as it quickly ends and the singing resumes. This was the second single released for the album. I think In For the Kill is a fairly decent opener.





Following the opener is a song called Tigerlily. Interesting, as it really doesn't sound quite like the rest of the album and could be described as a bit more agressive sounding. One interview with Elly I saw, she picked this one as her favorite tune on the album as she reasoned, "It the least 'white' sounding track on there." Another good bridge in this track as the music stops and we here a very creepy sounding man talking about stalking a lover. His voice sounds very similar to Vincent Price in MJ's Thriller. Definitely a note-worthy song.





The third song on the album, Quicksand, is my personal favorite and was also it's first single. The synth line in the chorus is truly amazing and at 1:30 yet ANOTHER amazing bridge...probably the best on the cd. It's obvious if you listen, why this one was the one picked to represent the album first.





Towards the middle of the disc is another highlight called I'm Not Your Toy.
The intro to this song is pretty tight, and never fails to perk me up and get me excited for the rest of the track. It's just one of those intro's that's just so identifiable. It starts with a nice little melody of an mellow instrument that I can't identify, sounding nothing like anything previously heard on the disc. Then at about the 15 second mark the music completely stops and there's a catchy little drum breakdown, and then the music all starts again. It really just has to be heard.
I'm just going on about the first few seconds here, as if the rest of the song isn't great...well it is. This would probably get my Top Chorus of 2009 honors if I was lame enough to make such a list. It's almost embarrassing how much time that part has been stuck in my head since this CD released.

(Check out the first 20 seconds if nothing else.)

I'll stop with those four, because I don't want to make this review too bulky and discourage people from checking it out. That's just the singles though. Other tunes on this are just as quality. Songs like Colourless Colour and Cover My Eyes are favorites as well, and are right up there in consideration for my second best song. Believe me when I say that I rarely skip songs on this disc and I play it through even to the last, Growing Pains, which is just another amazing tune among so many.

In the end, I feel like many people will pass this disc by because of the pop label and maybe the cover which is a shame. Its worth checking out if you're a fan of any of these; the 80's, synth-pop, catchy vocals, or even just great chorus's.

1. In For The Kill
2. Tigerlily
3. Quicksand
4. Bulletproof
5. Colourless Colour
6. I'm Not Your Toy
7. Cover My Eyes
9. Fascination
10. Reflections Are Protection
11. Armour Love
12. Growing Pains

VEGANGELICA

Hey Dieselboy,
I've been enjoying your journal. I like the musical taste pie chart Tore made for you. Isn't he a hoot? And so helpful. Electronica isn't a genre I know much about, so your perspective and knowledge are helpful to me. Your journal style is friendly and personable. It's fun to hear how excited you are by the music!

So far I've especially liked "All That Makes Us Human Continues." The video, combined with the music, makes me think of being under a wooden dock as light reflects off a lake onto the wood...or perhaps being in a house or ship under construction with shafts of sunlight flitting through trusses or scaffolding in timelapse photography. I especially liked a sound he incorporated repeatedly in the music...it sounds like a ship's deck or a wooden floorboard creaking when under tension while someone walks on it. The lullaby bell-like melody combined with the powerful lower notes makes me imagine the song is describing the delicacy of his child's life that is so fleeting while also being connected to the lives of those around her (parents, ancestors, and humanity in general).

I also enjoyed La Roux's music, particularly "Tigerlily." Her voice didn't surprise me...she has nice clear high notes and a strong middle range. It suits their music well.

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Dieselboy

Haha, thx. Yeah, I love this journal to be honest, and am having a lot of fun updating it. I'm kinda learning as I go, and I feel it was pretty sloppy at the start, but improving. I have quite a few items in mind that I want to talk about still, and I really hope it will continue to be helpful if you are able to keep up.

Very cool interpretations. I can see all those things you mentioned as I watched it again with those in mind. Personally, I always pictured the first half of the song as the middle of the night and early morning, with not much going on and just the creaks and groans of the house settling as he, or someone, thinks about their kid. Then around the 4:00 to 4:30 mark in the song, the sun comes through the window, the alarms go off and they get out of bed to get their child dressed. Then the rest of the song is them walking down the street holding hands in slow motion, on a sunny day, to get to the bus.
I think both work. That's what's great about songs like this right? There's no right or wrong way to interpret it.

Dieselboy

Surfer Blood - Astro Coast

To be released on: January 19, 2010

Inspired by Gavin B.'s recent recent Song of the Day entry about Laika & the Cosmonauts, I went on sort of a mini-hunt for some more surf music. Incredibly, I came across this very cool group from Palm Beach, called Surfer Blood, who is actually set to release their debut album Astro Coast on the 19th of this month.
After reading up on them, and listening to samples on Amazon, I am pretty excited for this groups release atm. The amount of styles they mix, and the happiness they convey through their sound, makes this sound like a great choice to play at any fun outdoor function...ESPECIALLY the beach. I feel like I sometimes fail to describe sounds accurately enough for these boards, but I will tell you what another reviewer used to describe this debut:

Sounds like fun to me. I would probably add that they do sound a little lo-fi, if that is the correct term. Just not extremely polished.

Their single, which they've been using to pump the album, and playing on live shows, is called Swim (To Meet the End). I've just been playing this over and over on youtube these past few days. While the vocal intro here is a bit abrupt, the rest of this tune has the nice grungy rock sound that sorta takes me back to my high school days, while being light-hearted enough to keep a smile on your face. The way his voice changes range during the chorus was really bugging me for awhile, cause it sounded so familiar. I figured it out as I was making this post though...it sounds very similar to the singing style on the chorus of the Adam and the Ants song Stand and Deliver. The little xylophone part leading up to each chorus is a nice touch as well here, even if it is very short.

Surfer Blood - Swim (To Reach the End)

NumberNineDream

Needed to add, that what adds to her androgyny is that "La" which is the female pronoun... before the masculine adjective.

Didn't find her vocals unconventional, maybe cause I never got to understand what is considered truly "conventional". So anyway, I didn't get jarred or jolted by her vocals, I kinda enjoyed In for the kill but I much preferred Tigerlily, that I think I'll consider as my favourite of the four. As for the other two, I pretty much agree with what you said in your description.
...they've got great videos all around by the by.

Really good write up from the beginning till the end. I somehow needed a beginner's guide to La Roux, and I think this journal entry has successfully introduced me to them. I'll maybe download the album later today, to enjoy in its fullest.

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Dieselboy

Yeah, true. What you said about the "La" part of their name makes sense. Feel a bit dumb for not realizing that.

About the bolded part...I think unconventional mighta been the wrong word now. I don't think it means what I think it means. I'm too lazy to look through a dictionary and find a better choice now though.
I am a little surprised you didn't mind her vocals off the bat. Usually that's the first thing people will talk about when she's brought up or this CD is put on, in my experience. That's cool though.

Hope you enjoy the rest if you do check it out.