Tag Archives: Rock

2015 Albums Preview – January and February

28 Dec

How was your 2014? As demonstrated by the Top Songs/Albums countdown, 2014 was an exceptional year for music. At the end of each year of this blog’s existence I have always found myself questioning how the following year will one-up the previous year, and every year I am surprised by the following year’s ability to exceed my expectations. While many contemn modern music, I always exclaim that good music exists when you life the veil of mainstream mediocrity, and The Music Court exists to help you strip off this superficial covering. Let us help you get a jump start on your 2015. Here are some albums you should check out during the beginning of 2015.

Absent Fathers by Justin Townes Earle – January 13.

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Absent Fathers is the apt follow-up companion LP to Single Mothers from the Americana troubadour Justin Townes Earle (Steve Earle’s son). Earle’s alt/country croon and guitar-driven tracks are worth a few listens to and, considering the success of Single Mothers, there is no doubt that Absent Fathers will be a solid release.

Check out more information on the album

What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World by The Decemberists – January 20

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If “Make You Better,” the Decemberists’ first single from its seventh studio album, is any indication of  what Colin Meloy’s new creation will sound like, I am happy to report that the music will blend The Decemberists’ recent drive to a more pop sound with its alternative roots. The music combines a Death Cab for Cutie sound with a little R.E.M. and even some Carbon Leaf. Then, of course, in typical Decemberists fashion, the song features some diverse instrumentation and creative harmonies.

Check out more information on the album

Vestiges and Claws by Jose Gonzalez – February 17.

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I am so very much looking forward to Vestiges and Claws. The album, Jose Gonzalez’ first solo LP release since 2007 (has it been so long?), is bound to be a 10-track testament to 60’s throwback acoustic music. “Every Age,” the official video of which is available on YouTube (and below), is classic Jose Gonzalez, relaxed and melodic with light percussion.

Check out more about this album

 

 

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Top Albums of 2014 – #2: Turn Blue by The Black Keys

24 Dec

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To be honest I was not sure where to start with this post on the #2 album of 2014: The Black Keys’ epic LP Turn Blue, an album eagerly awaited by a substantial fan base since the uber-successful release of the band’s 2011 album El Camino. My loss of words is directly caused by the plethora of topics I can discuss concerning this album. There is the continued partnership with producer Danger Mouse (who always finds his way onto the Music Court’s end-of-the-year charts with multiple bands), the Mike Tyson aided release announcement in March of this year, the Ghoulardi-inspired album title and the blue and pink Twilight Zone-esque spiral album cover, and, of course, the powerful 11 tracks that features sounds that range from psychedelic, low-key Broken Bells inspired keys to the upbeat blues rock that the Black Keys became famous for.

I’ll stick with the music.

The Black Keys, the baby of two childhood friends Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney, has produced excellent scratchy garage rock since the band’s inception in 2001, and since then the band has continued to evolve as an inventive propagator of engaging, catchy rock music, and this has helped the duo develop a loyal fan base. Turn Blue, the band’s 8th studio album, involved some tenseness (as expected in the creation of any album) and a lot of new exploration for the band, which helped produce some fascinating tunes that take the Black Keys out of its comfort zone.

“Weight of Love” is a perfect indication of this. The inception of the song draws out two chords, distorted guitar, and distended percussion.  The first two minutes plays like pre-Dark Side Pink Floyd mixed with Burton’s spaghetti-western inspired Rome. The song then transforms to a sprawling rock piece with echoed harmonies and wall-of-sound keys. There are so many elements magically combined into this piece and this combination is done incredibly well. It is masterful. The fear was that it would be too self-indulgent, but, instead, the song actually blends 50 years of rock music elements and takes on past and present with ferocity and listenability. Excellent piece.

“Gotta Get Away” is refreshing. It’s a jaunty on traditional Black Keys garage rock. It is an infectious song with drawn-out keys and jocular instrumentation. It’s just a joy to listen to, so do so, and have a wonderful holiday!

Listen to more – Black Keys Website

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Top Albums of 2014 – #4: Strange Desire by Bleachers

21 Dec

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Back in November I lauded Bleachers as the purveyors of ridiculously catchy music that refused to leave the musical amalgamation that is my mind. My opinion of the band has not really changed; although, I must say that Jack Antonoff’s project has moved in my mind from just plain catchy to musically skilled and complex; Antonoff melds a theatrical pop sound fit with expeditious percussion and dulcet instrumentation with the essential quality of catchiness, which the songs most certainly have.

Bleachers released its debut LP Strange Desire in July of this year and several singles have been cherry picked from the album, each cherry perfectly ripe and delicious. Singles like “I Wanna Get Better” and “Rollercoaster” have hit the charts with a mini fervor, similar to Antonoff’s last uber-successful project (Fun). I think the songs have also just scratched the surface of popularity; in fact, I see a remarkably successful 2015 for Antonoff and his fellow bandmates.

Strange Desire is an 11-track affair with tracks featuring Grimes and Yoko Ono – yes, Yoko Ono. The first four tracks are all super hits in my mind; seriously, the tracks are each monumental jaunty pop pieces that get feet tapping and heads nodding. The ethereal, heavenly keys and 80s-esque harmony of “Wild Heart” is followed by the key-driven, percussion-soaked harmony-laden swooning “Rollercoaster,” which is the perfect hit-the-road-and-drive-anywhere song. This is followed by an Arcade Fire-like “Shadow,” which moves with a creative rhythm section and ends with a twangy guitar riff that leads into this:

“I Wanna Get Better,” which is one of the best songs of the year, is a melodic agglutination of anthem vocals, sprawling harmonies, infectious keys, and rock-out percussion. The song just kicks some much butt, and it is tempting to just listen to it on repeat. Plus, I must say it fits the New Years theme quite well because doesn’t everyone want to get better.

Check out more from Bleachers on its website, Facebook, or Twitter.

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Top 10 Albums of 2014 – #10: After the Disco by Broken Bells

15 Dec

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There was a time, I figure, in the wee morning hours of a Saturday in the 1970s when the last remaining bell-bottomed disco dancers stumbled onto the street, tired and bedraggled with sweat and the last remnants of a Donna Summers song, when the disco was physically empty but still bulging with the swollen heat of the night. In that small gap before the clean-up crew cleansed the disco in advance of another night of musical debauchery is where I picture Broken Bells’ second LP release, After the Disco, set and recorded. I have this image of band members James Mercer and Brian Burton climbing onto the weary stage and playing a few tracks to a crowd of memories; the music, a delightful mix of spacey modern disco tracks mixed with an alternative rock groove 20-30 years before its time. This thought exhilarates me, so much so that After the Disco is #10 on the list of top albums of 2014.

After the success of its eponymous debut in 2010 and follow-up EP in 2011, Broken Bells, a super-group made up of Shins’ frontman Mercer and revered producer Burton, was urged to release a follow-up, and After the Disco is that, a wildly entertaining, drawn-out, alt/space/rock agglutination of musical influences and decades. The album was recorded with a 4-piece choir and the 17-piece Angel City String Orchestra, which was conducted by Daniele Luppi, Danger Mouse’s partner on the 2011 album Rome. The album met with much praise, reaching the top spot on the Billboard Top Rock Album and Alternative Album chart and #3 on the Top 200 Albums list. It is an 11-track ode to music in the late 70s and early 80s, a depiction of a difficult musical transition that featured fizzling disco and incipient punk.

“Holding on for Life” is the top track on the album. It features the airy voice of Mercer in front of a tamed disco-like beat that shines like a slowed disco ball, almost like a disco track slowed down to a steady but unhurried pace. It is a song that just needs to be listened to, so I will let it do the talking.

You can check out the rest of the album on Broken Bells’ website. Make sure to follow the band on Facebook and Twitter

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Top 10 Songs of 2014 – #2: “Mess is Mine” by Vance Joy

10 Dec

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Vance Joy (James Keogh) is not afraid of messes. A veteran of the Victorian Football League (before he left behind is football career to pursue music), Vance Joy, I’m sure, experienced many messy situations on the field. Heck, the mess might have been his, but the #2 song of 2014 is tinged with a bit of irony, because there is nothing messy about “Mess is Mine,” and there lies the draw of Vance Joy’s delightful tunes.

Since the release of “Riptide” in 2013, Vance Joy has taken the singer-songwriter genre by the storm; he has even received a good amount of mainstream radio play from the song, which peaked in the Top 10 on music charts in five countries. That was 2013, though, and this is a 2014 list. Vance Joy did release his first studio LP Dream Your Life Away in July, however, and with the album came the single “Mess is Mine.”

What makes this song good? The opening riff is inviting like a warm home or cup of hot cacao. Vance Joy’s conversational vocal turns him into a polish troubadour, and he sings with an effortless quality that is refreshing. The percussion varies from what sounds like a muted snare hit to organized hand claps, much in the vein of a less produced Phillip Phillips song. An old man river lead-in culminates into an ardent chorus followed by an agglutination of instruments and a Ritter-like howl. The song combines so many influences into a sprawling piece of vocal and instrumental beauty; it is pastoral in its simplicity, and the string-laden bridge is wonderful. Excellent song from a tremendous new artist – expect a whole lot more from Vance Joy.

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