Crap, I Meant to Post this Video from the New Men EP "Campfire Songs," due in October

No Age "An Object" is so awesome. So is "Deep Trip" from Destruction Unit

I was looking forward to the No Age album all summer.  Every album they release is a huge step forward not just for them, but for music in general.  You can call that an overstatement all you want: go ahead. Done?  Personally, I have a hard time thinking of many bands today that are making such impressive albums on a consistent basis.  While the albums are great alone, they seem to build on their predecessors and use that starting point to make something more dynamic and engaging for listeners.  They hone their songwriting each time out and manage to make more melodic and accessible albums without simultaneously making their music sound poppy. For instance, this album has friggin strings on it (would you ever expect that after the first two No Age albums?) and they pull it off in inspiring fashion.  Shit, I'd even say its the best track on the album.  The same song,  also features what sounds like a real live bass guitar, hinting that maybe the duo will opt for more drum and bass live jams in the future.  However, I won't be able to catch them at the Empty Bottle September 14th due to a wedding in Madison, WI.  As usual, I'll see if I can make another show in the region but I literally have like 6 weddings to go to in the next two months.  Anyway, here is that song I was talking about.  It is called "An Impression" and closes out the first side of the LP.  
An Impression.mp3
Even though I was salivating over the thought of a new No Age album for the last several months, I got distracted by the Destruction Unit album since they both came out on the same day.  After tracking down a copy of the old D-Unit split with Black Sunday then catching the Marshstepper show last month, I started getting all into the Ascetic House dudes and I had August 20th circled as the day "Deep Trip" came out so  guess I neglected to sear the No Age release date into my mind.  Also, I'm sure it didn't hurt that Sacred Bones sent that friendly newsletter to remind us when their new albums were coming out.  I'm sure SubPop sent me a reminder as well but they're newsletters are über cluttered and hard to sift through with a roster that massive. This album is a ripper indeed and while nothing at all like Marshstepper, it is a 8 solid tracks of rampaging art-punk.  I'd say post-punk but really its way too fucking punk to be post anything.  The packaging is incredible and while I don't want to spoil too much, I'll just say that I am still not 100% convinced there are no psychedelic enhancers tucked inside the sleeve somewhere.  I don't really have a standout favorite from this record so I'll just put the finale up ("Night Loner") as it gives listeners the best chance to gather a clear idea of what the album is all about. 
Night Loner.mp3

They are on tour with various bands this summer but will not be gracing Chicago with their presence this time around.  If you live elsewhere, check the show listings page at the Sacred Bones site. And here's a video they did last year.

I Put Those Videos on Youtube

Yes, I do have a page at youtube.  If it isn't listed on the side over there to the right, here is the address:  http://www.youtube.com/crimesgalore

So there are a bunch of other videos on there too ranging back to SXSW 6 years ago and my first drive to the Los Angeles.  And wow, is it strange seeing those old videos...
It simultaneously feels like the time has flown by AND a lot has happened since then.  I don't know if those are necessarily mutually exclusive but it is totes an odd feeling.  

Digression aside, I just put seven videos from the Pharmakon, Wolf Eyes, and Marshstepper show up there.  I'll throw a  in here then go to crimesgalore at utuber for the rest.  Noisy as hell and man do I suck at filming shows....so I guess, be warned?

 So here is Pharmakon:

And Wolf Eyes:

Take it easy and be nice when possible. 

I Still Have Tons of Pharmakon and Wolf Eyes Pictures and Videos from the Chicago Show During Pitchfork Weekend

I'm having problems getting the videos to upload so here's some Pharmakon pictures for now.   

Believe the hype: she is amazing live.

So no commentary necessary...show was awesome.  Pharmakon reinforced what I thought and took me from 'meh' to fan on the strength of the performance.  Wolf Eyes learned from their run-in with T. Mahoney and stuck to playing riffs most of the time.  These were savage, monster riffs too...not some JV crap you'd get at an Undertones show circa 1984.  The new album deserves our respect and the band earned my continued admiration. 

Oh and quick side note: I'm working on some new music that I expect to have ready to post in the next week or so.  I got most of the samples and instrument tracks ready and am just trying to make early 80s no wave more exciting because I can't get the DJ out of me.  

I Have No Excuses For Why I'm Not Alerting Everyone on My Theory for Music-Loving in a Post-Record Review World

I really should've been updating this badboy lately.  That is not to say that I'm not busy.  I am busy and have a ton of stuff going on but I am also keeping track of new music.  I started buying records again and have literally added like 8 or 9 new crates to my collection in the last year or so.  At first, I kind of just bought any album I loved at one time or another regardless of the pressing or if it was new or used.  I think I bought every No Age and Microphones/ Mount Eerie album I could find right off the bat before looking around for late 80s/early 90s stuff I grew up on: just about everything available from the Pixies, Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Fugazi, Radiohead, Jesus Lizard, Slint, Yo La Tengo etc. Then I started working on my 70s pre/post punk (but not 70s punk; tacky) collection, followed by records I loved in college.  I loaded up on stuff from DFA, Jagjaguwar, Secretly Canadian and K records (I must've bought 25 LPs from K when they had a big sale last year), as well as (mostly) reissues of  everything from Television, the Dead Boys, the Clash and early NYC bands to Joy Division, PIL, and Gang of Four.  While at first this was done with little concern about getting a good deal or even buying stuff that would retain its value, I started paying more attention around this time and decided I was done with reissues.

I know I'm forgetting stuff here but believe it or not, this is all just prelude.

Anyway, there comes a time when you are sick of buying records you've heard a million times and that time arrived for me shortly after getting all the alt-rock and late 90s/early 00s college radio stuff I could ever want from the big labels of the 90s like Merge, Matador, and Touch and Go.   While lots of this stuff was still reissues or stuff that never went out of print, I stopped buying new records whenever possible and just started buying used albums from bands and labels I was into at the time.  No way was I going to pay $17.99 for Jesus Lizard reissues (remastered or not) when I could get used copies of the OG pressings for a lot cheaper.  

I think I need to add here that I wasn't being stupid or wasteful per se; just that I hadn't yet begun to look at records as the investments they are nowadays.  Either way, I always got good prices from the record stores in town and I never bought anything without first double-checking prices on Amazon and/or discogs to make sure I wasn't overpaying.  Further, there were plenty of good deals to be had on amazon with their warehouse deals and my prime subscription and I totes got some records way cheaper than they would've been at the stores or via the artist website.  Especially considering the absurd %10.5 sales tax in Chicago.  

Eventually, I wised up and began looking at big picture concepts like avoiding reissues when possible or waiting for stuff to show up used.  New records just aren't worth the extra money unless its an album I have been anticipating for a minute like the new Vampire Weekend album or the Var record that came out last month.  As for reissues, they're mostly bogus unless they're first time on vinyl or have been out of print for so long that they're impossible to find. 

I began scouring the newly arrived used bins at my stores of choice in town and began buying stuff I got into post-college.  While my tastes have gradually become more and more psych-rock and (later) 'darkwave' oriented,  I had one problem: RECORD REVIEWERS ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO TRUST THESE DAYS.  Ten years ago, I could read a review on Pitchfork and trust it (aside from hip-hop which is funny because they used to suck at reviewing it and now that and metal are their only real strong suits these days) enough to get the album.  I was rarely disappointed and basically knew what to expect before I even listened to the album.  Last time I trusted a Pitchfork review, I ended up with that 2nd No Joy album that is mediocre at best. 

Everyone is too concerned with being contrarian so it always seems like song-craft and talent are ignored if the image isn't SHOCKINGLY NEW!  While I could list a bunch of other blogs I used to trust inherently and am now inclined to do the opposite of what they suggest, the growing inability of critics to base their opinions on the actual quality of an album doesn't bother me so much anymore.  Either way I look at the situation, I just don't have a go to place for reviews I can trust these days and googling the name of the band and record and hoping for an intelligible review is a dodgy proposition at best.

For avid music fans like myslef, it doesn't really matter what critics dream up these days.    Why?  Because the internet is vast and we can listen to at least a handful of songs from any album out there if we look around.  For me, I just do what I did when I was a punk rock 13 year old buying used cds 5 days a week: find a label you dig and explore the catalog.  Back then it was Dischord, Lookout, Recess, Vagrant, Fat Wreck, and other DIY labels I trusted enough to buy albums I knew nothing about other than the fact that they were on labels I dug.  I'm not as foolish anymore but it doesn't matter too much: in the 16 years or so that have passed, things have chanced quite a bit. Now I don't have to trust anyone: SOUNDCLOUD is a motherfuckin game-changer.  

Example?  Sure.  I liked the first couple albums by the Men and they were popular enough (at least in Chicago) for me to buy without having a 5 star review to point me in their direction.  But gee, this record sure as hell looks a lot like that Religious Knives album I randomly got on clearance at Princeton Record Exchange back when I was still compiling the ultimate 90s college rock collection.  Oh, what do you know?  Same label.  Huh, lets just search this label and wow, look at all those releases.  From that point, I just have to work my way through the Sacred Bones catalog and read all the press release type blurbs pertaining to each album while keeping track of the ones I thought sounded interesting.  Then I can go to the Sacred Bones Soundcloud page and verify that I dug the bands I thought I would.  Amen Dunes led to Psychic Ills, which led to Lust for Youth and War (now Var) before I even noticed the dude from Iceage was in War. And then it was like 'oh wait, Moon Duo is the dude from Wooden Shjips? That should be worth a shot.'  And then you find out Moon Duo had an EP on Captured Tracks so you think its worth checking them out.  A few bands later, you find another label the same way.  And then a quick dig through that label leads to another equally awesome label in the same fashion.  And just when you get sick of those labels, someone says yo check out this band on this label and it all starts over again.   


Or you know, you just go to shows and like the bands you weren't there to see. 

   

And hit me up if you want to use my stack of download cards that I never use.