This Week’s Best Albums: April 20, 2010
Trans Am: Thing (Thrill Jockey)
Began as a sci-fi soundtrack for a project that fell apart, Thing is Trans Am’s most ambitious — and greatest — album to date.
The trio’s spacey synth rock is at its most dynamic and dramatic, and its jestful elements are all absent again. Infused with more Goblin or John Carpenter influences, Thing is darker than anything else Trans Am has done, but it never loses its head-banging MO.
Drummer Sebastian Thomson acts as a no-nonsense beat machine that drives squiggly and sometimes sinister sounds, and multi-instrumentalists Philip Manley and Nathan Means serve as conduits to otherworldly vibes. Thing marks a milestone for Trans Am and hopefully portends sounds to come.
Trans Am: “Heaven’s Gate”
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With its debut full-length, London’s Nedry presents a level of craftsmanship that can take bands a decade to achieve.
A buzzing, semi-glitched electro base — with amorphous, synthesized bass lines — is accented by alternately canorous and distorted guitars. High-voltage drum-and-bass trades with careful balances of electro-acoustic indie elements.
And this is all before mentioning the head-turning vocals of Ayu Okakita, who draws rightful comparisons to Bjork throughout Condors. Her breathy delivery could use development into more of its own style, but any way that you slice it, this is one hell of a freshman effort.
Nedry: “A42″
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Michael Leonhart & The Avramina 7: Seahorse & The Storyteller (Truth & Soul)
The biography of Michael Leonhart reads like a wünderkind’s ascension to power, with multiple Grammy awards and appearances on more than 100 albums. His list of associated recordings and performances is both arresting and bizarre, featuring names like Bill Frisell, Brian Eno, and DJ Spooky alongside Lenny Kravitz, Bobby McFerrin, and Steven Tyler.
His latest solo album contains elements of so many genres that it’s hard to keep count. Chiefly, Seahorse & The Storyteller might best be termed indie acid funk — a style that’s both heavy and dreamy, jazzy and moody. Swells of strings, tinkling percussion, haunting female vocals, toy pianos, and wandering, echoing horn solos complement a steady dose of brass grooves and high-register singing. Tablas, sitars, and other Eastern instruments show up as well.
This stunning combination should appeal to fans of Shawn Lee and Ben Perowsky’s Moodswing Orchestra as well as Sufjan Stevens and Akron/Family.
Michael Leonhart & The Avramina 7: “Seahorse & The Storyteller”
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TRUTHLiVE: Patience (Interdependent Media)
MC and DJ Evan Phillips has gone through a lot — three heart surgeries in his youth — so he would be understood if he didn’t hold the most optimistic outlook on life.
Fortunately, it seems that he’s emerged from trying times with a greater appreciation for life, and his new album — produced by Jake One — is down-to-Earth posi rap.
Much of the lyrical content of Patience is meant to uplift or serve as sage advice, including Phillips’ observation that “it’s easy to knock down; it’s easy to take.” Some tracks, such as “The Bush Years,” tackle recent political history — but do so in a way so as to urge people to be their best selves.
TRUTHLiVE: “Ready, Set, Go”
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Gotan Project: Tango 3.0 (XL)
Though it is built upon the French folk and Argentinian tango that reflect its members’ ancestry, the Paris-based Gotan Project is much more than a trio of preservationists; its unique mixture is just as reliant upon hip hop or nuevo tango.
The trio’s syllable-rearranging name is a nod to this, and after a decade together, the shuffling styles remain as cohesive as ever. The most surprising aspect of Gotan Project’s career may be that Tango 3.0, a mix of instrumentals and vocal-led songs, is only the band’s third studio album.
Gotan Project: “La Gloria”
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Honorable Mentions
Against Me!: I Was a Teenage Anarchist digital EP (Sire)
Asche: The Easter Island Phenomenon (Ant-Zen)
Caribou: Swim (Merge)
Roky Erickson w/ Okkervil River: True Love Cast Out All Evil (Anti-)
Horse Feathers: House with No Home (Kill Rock Stars)
Kayo Dot: Coyote (Hydra Head)
The Kissaway Trail: Sleep Mountain (Bella Union)
Mike Reed’s People, Places & Things: Stories & Negotiations (482 Music)
Opio & Unjust: Mark it Zero (Hieroglyphics Imperium)
Prizzy Prizzy Please: Chroma Cannon (Joyful Noise)
Lou Rhodes: One Good Thing (Motion Audio)