The Rock Blogger

The following songs are from At the Drive In’s final landmark album The Relationship of Command (2000). This is probably my favorite post-hardcore album, its energy searing and lyrics kaleidoscopic.

Damn I miss these guys. Oh well, we still have The Mars Volta at least.

Invalid Litter Dept

One Armed Scissor

Pattern Against User live

Torche. Meanderthal. Hydrahead Records. 2008. 4 stars.

I’ve seen Torche perform twice before, opening for Mogwai and Jesu, and I while I was impressed by their crushingly loud sets, they just seemed like a slightly above average doom band.  To my pleasent suprise, their latest LP Meanderthal lives up to the internet hype with its brisk and infectious stoner metal jams. Sounding like a cross between Queens of the Stone Age and Pelican, Torche’s songs are full of tight melodies and furious riffs, moving along at a speedy pace while still laying down the heaviness. The majority of the tracks here are short and sweet, with only one song pushing past five minutes, making Meanderthal a breezy and accessible listen that begs repeating.

While Torche successfully culminate several styles together in a satisfying package, there is no ‘Feel Good Hit of the Summer’ to knock it out of the park. Still, that may not be a bad thing, since Torche will fair well with the avant-stoner crowd (fans of Boris and Isis take note). Torche may sound like a band teetering on the fence between arena-rock stardom and the underground, but they’re still carving a sizable niche for themselves with their ‘fun’ brand of doom metal. If Meanderthal is any indication, I’m expecting many more great things to come from this band.

Torche “Healer” - live
(Hey, the lead singer has the same Jesu shirt as me!)

Empyrium. Weiland. 2002. 4.5 stars.

This was the last, and probably most rewarding, album from Germany’s Empyrium. Their unique neofolk sound remains intact for their final outing, with greater emphasis on atmosphere and dramatic vocal delivery. The haunting German chants, acoustic interludes, piano keys and swelling strings work together in fluid, transcendent compositions, underpinned by swift, subtle drumming. The occasional flute, horn and brass accompaniment is also welcomed and lends many of these songs a certain grandiosity.

Weiland’s sound is full of mystery, nostalgia and catharsis, as delicate guitar passages lead out into orchestral climaxes and back again, laying out emotional processions into the wild unknown. The use of baroque choir-like harmonies (use again recalling the early work of Ulver) is chillingly effective, moving Empyrium closer to their neoclassical aspirations.

Weiland comes across as an almost ancient experience, whether through raspy whispers or a bellowing tenor, evoking some lost connection to a natural spirit. Empyrium’s project is instrumentally complex and riveting and manages to stake its territory at the forefront of the neofolk genre. While their sound is dark and moody, Empyrium manages to play a stable balancing act between delicacy and aggressive release. There may not be any clear standouts on this disc to return to casually, as everything blends together in a cohesive form, demanding full, meditative attention. The power and beauty of this album is well worth the time still. This is evening music with intense, contemplative energy and showcases Empryium at the height of their creative powers.

Empyrium - Die Schwäne Im Schilf

This is a beautifully shot (unofficial) music video for New Order’s "Ceremony", quite possibly my favorite song from them. I’m not quite sure who directed this, but their use of Super 8 photography is brilliant, with film grain and striking colorization adding to the melancholic sounds and images. A fitting and moving tribute to one of the greatest bands of the post-punk/new wave era.

Multiplication of the Arcs

Yves Tanguy 1954.

A sublime and puzzling work from one of Surrealism’s many underwritten geniuses. Organic shapes clutter an alien landscape, contorting into vaguely familiar forms, like those of animals, plants and people. A deeply psychological painting that can be read as an illustration of some subconscious realm, a transient and indefinable dream.

An interesting series of videos I found on Youtube pairing Mogwai’s “My Father My King” with the classic vampire film Nosferatu. They don’t show the entire film, but the editor here skillfully tells its story concisely across Mogwai’s 20 minute epic. Very cool.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Photo by Sorina Dragusanu

This indifference was the greatest gift

Along the shores so rough and swift

To erode the feelings of the day

Rocks and feathers in the clay

The fists of fights, the aches of pains

All carried off with the rain

And across the muddy water ran

The final thoughts of a drowning man

Urfaust. Drei Rituale Jenseits Des Kosmos. 2008. 4 stars.

Urfaust is a maniacal black metal band from Holland that incorporates noise rock and doom elements into their swirling, disturbing compositions. This recent EP features three long untiled tracks that waver between hypnotic drones, terrifying screeches and some stunningly operatic vocals that give this a baroque edge. The level of experimentation here is impressive and pushes their sound into dark ambient passages. Intense and expressive, Drei Rituale is one of the more unique contributions to the genre and serves as an adequate introduction to a challenging band.

Urfaust - Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos - Samples

The Tallest Man on Earth. Shallow Grave. 2008. 4.5 stars.

Sweden’s Kristian Matsson is The Tallest Man on Earth, a finger-picking virtuoso who plays inspired Dylan-esque folk songs. Matsson’s unique, crackling voice, lyrical imagery and complex guitar work puts him head and shoulders above the genre’s current mainstays, delving into a nostalgic and timeless sound. The songs here convey a feeling of weather-beaten discovery, where runaways and wanderers trace highways and open plains.

Accompanied solely his acoustic guitar, Matsson bellows out his serpentine verses with great passion, especially on highlights “I Won’t be Found” and “Where Do My Bluebirds Fly?”. The sparse yet intimate musicianship reinforces this album’s singular vision, drawing you into a darting stream of consciousness. Fans of Dylan, Will Oldham and Neutral Milk Hotel should take note of this release, as it seems to possess that strange magical quality that hides within eccentric, wonder-struck personalities. What The Tallest Man on Earth lacks in originality, he makes up with spirit, leading you into welcoming pastoral landscapes.

The Tallest Man on Earth - It will follow the rain (Live)

Esmerine . Aurora . 2005. 4 stars .

Esmerine is one of the lesser known projects to come out from the Godspeed/Silver Mt. Zion umbrella, playing sorrowful instrumentals centered around Becky Foon’s cello. She is joined by multi-instrumentalist Bruce Cawdron, whose graceful piano melodies and unusual percussion work gives their collaboration an experimental edge.

If you are familiar with Godspeed You Black Emperor or any of their many side projects, you’ll appreciate Esmerine’s subdued but cinematic flavor, opting out of lyrics and familiar song structures to play heartbreaking requiems that occasionally weave into unexpected places. Aurora, the duo’s second outing, features both brooding epics (the 16 minute "Histories Repeating as One Thousand Hearts Mend") and succinct recitals (like the remarkable "Why She Swallows Bullets and Stones").

While the music takes a generally somnambulist tone, its beauty is undeniable, as each swooning moan of the cello aches with sensitivity. The amount of emotion being poured into these movements, no matter how slowly it reveals itself, is certainly humbling. The album’s more moody and disturbing moments have enormous gravity to them, casting down an atmosphere of tension and despair rivaling the most expressionistic horror films. Its delicate parts also have a lyrical weight, displaying Esmerine’s subtle sense of melody and pacing. Sure, some of the sparser portions of this disc are rather abstract, perhaps a little too slow moving as well, but its overall impression is a lasting one. Fans of post-rock are sure to be pleased by this, even with the complete absence of guitars and regular drumming, as its dark compositions are full of intense drama. A criminally overlooked band and album.

“Why She Swallows Bullets and Stones”