Owen: \u201cAt Home with Owen\u201d (Polyvinyl Record Company)<\/p>\n
When I first saw the new Owen CD that the musical geniuses over at Polyvinyl Records sent me I was excited but simultaneously apprehensive about first listening to it. It may sound kind of odd but I was so blown away (still am) by late 2004\u2019s \u201cI Do Perceive\u201d, the intricate, eclectic hooks and the sardonic, clever and ultra-witty lyrics, that I was hard-pressed to imagine how a follow-up could even come close to equaling that magnum opus but by then end of the first cut, \u201cBad News\u201d, I could. By the time I got to track 5, \u201cBird in the Hand\u201d I knew this was another winner; a new high.<\/p>\n
A piece of icing was a smooth cover of \u201cFemme Fatale\u201d, done without changing much of it at all, which shows how classic a song that is, in the sense that it is timeless; it could just as well have been a brand-new song, if it weren\u2019t for the fact that it is now 40 years-old, in other words there\u2019s nothing dated about it.<\/p>\n
I am truly thrilled about \u201cAt Home with Owen\u201d; the most excited I\u2019ve been about a new release in a long time. I really loved it from the first listen, just as I did \u201cI Do Perceive\u201d when I got it almost two years ago now, in January. I don\u2019t want to go overboard with praise here, it might go to his head if it starts getting around, but I am a big fan.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not just the mellow, cool, breezy music but the very wry, laconic lyrics that have really endeared me to Owen, who is really Mike Kinsella, from Chicago, but since he is in so many other musical projects, like Joan of Arc and American Football to name just two, Owen is just a new persona to differentiate himself, I guess; I don\u2019t really know the reason, but, for the record, that is the deal with the name thing.<\/p>\n
Listening to the lyrics are candy enough, but when I was reading the transcribed lyrics on the inside sleeve of the CD case they were so stark, so simple-looking that it at once was amazing how that sparsity of wordplay was a mirror to my own sensibilities in many ways and that writing down idioms and ideas like that looked so easy but then when you go back and listen to them you understand it may seem simple when they come up in your mind but it\u2019s only simple if you can write it down quickly before it goes away, so ephemeral they are. (http:\/\/www.owenmusic.com or http:\/\/www.polyvinylrecords.com) \u2013 KM.<\/p>\n
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31 KNOTS: \u201cPolemics\u201d EP (Polyvinyl Record Company)<\/p>\n
A short, short EP (only 19 minutes and some seconds), \u201cPolemics\u201d is just a tease. One just gets going when it ends, after just five bitchin\u2019 tracks, the first of which is just a minute or so of metal machine music.<\/p>\n
The second track winds you up, it jumps in, with both feet and a hair dryer; yow. 31 Knots are a unique act, very original, not derivative or copycat. I like finding brand-new stuff like this, stuff that no one else knows about (at least not the unwashed masses) it is a heartening thing to know that there are actually living, breathing people who are still creating interesting art and music and that it isn\u2019t all just in my head!<\/p>\n
\u201cPolemics\u201d is something that shows potential and I hope that in the not-too-distant future I will receive a full-length CD in the mail to review and that it surpasses my wildest expectations. (http:\/\/www.polyvinylrecords.com) \u2013 KM.<\/p>\n
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Cale Parks: \u201cIlluminated Manuscript\u201d (Polyvinyl Record Company)<\/p>\n
Mr. Parks, a sometime member of Joan of Arc, Georgie James and Cex, has just recorded this breathtaking atmospheric thing that reminds one of fellow Chicagoans, Tortoise, which also recalls older (1970s) art bands like Can, Faust and Gong.<\/p>\n
Mostly instrumental, the tracks on \u201c\u2026Manuscript\u201d morph into one another, with wispy, ambient vocals and vocalizing, but no structured lyrics, as such. If you have \u201cMusic for Airports\u201d in your record collection then you\u2019ll no doubt really dig this new CD which is uniquely ambient, that is, Cale Parks has his own styles and sounds but they are ones that aren\u2019t without precedent.<\/p>\n
When you hear the opening cut, \u201cPretty Boring\u201d you know you\u2019re in for something different. That is for sure; whether or not it cliques with you. The breathtaking aural \u201cscenery\u201d is a trip of pure psychic pleasure for you and your friends.<\/p>\n
\u201cIlluminated Manuscript\u201d will serve as a perfect backdrop for your meditation hour, to help you unwind to go to sleep, to drive you home after a stressful day or to lose yourself in during a long airplane ride or train trip, etc. (http:\/\/www.polyvinylrecords.com) \u2013 KM.<\/p>\n
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Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin: \u201cBroom\u201d (Polyvinyl Record Company)<\/p>\n
Another winner from Chicago\u2019s awesome indie label, Polyvinyl Records, SSLYBY is a jingle-jangly, mellow pop outfit; they have nice harmony and rhythm and heavenly pop hooks and dada lyrics that go along well with the music. \u201cBroom\u201d can maybe be described as a neo-psychedelic hipster grooves, one after the other; I didn\u2019t think it was either a rehashing of someone else or too derivative of something in general, but it did evoke memories of lazier, happier, carefreer days when one didn\u2019t have to think too much.<\/p>\n
The singer has a breezy, laid back and breathy voice, it sounds like it has arrived to your ears riding the wind, a good complement to the soft sounds: the piano, acoustic guitar, softly strummed, brushes used here and there on the drums, et cetera. A nice chill-out record to play after getting bashed into the wall all night, \u201cBroom\u201d will put you in that perfect mod mood.<\/p>\n
The songs I liked the best were: \u201cOregon Girl\u201d and \u201cHouse Fire\u201d; but of course the whole CD is really well done; pretty and stylish and poignant and everything one could ask for in a pop CD \u2013 except saccharine gut-rot commercial crap. (http:\/\/www.polyvinylrecords.com) \u2013 KM.<\/p>\n
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Headlights: \u201cKill Them with Kindness\u201d (Polyvinyl Record Company)<\/p>\n
\u20265, 4, 3, 2, 1 \u2013 Blastoff. Alpha Centauri\u2019s Headlights are now selling their CDs on Earth: \u201cKill Them with Kindness\u201d is the first one to make it to our ears. A really super-duper awesome pop record with jams, hooks, riffs and ethereal beauty and great songs too. It will make you lose yourself; \u201cKill Them with Kindness\u201d is a narcotized disco thriller that is conducive to trances and it could only be on a label as great and forward-looking as Polyvinyl Records.<\/p>\n
This is the soundtrack to the best, most surreal dreams that I have and now I can experience that sensation by listening to this CD. If you dig Stereolab, Tortoise, Apples in Stereo you will have an instant rapport with Headlights.<\/p>\n
It stuck with me right away; on first listen I was swept away and instantly became a big fan. That is a rare thing for me: to be taken in by something this quickly- songs like \u201cPity City\u201d; \u201cSongy Darko\u201d; \u201cLullabies\u201d. A lot of times it takes several listens to get a full appreciation for something new, but not with this one, it just cliqued with me right away. That is the best recommendation I can give to something, musically, that is. (http:\/\/www.polyvinylrecords.com) \u2013 KM.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Owen: \u201cAt Home with Owen\u201d (Polyvinyl Record Company) When I first saw the new Owen CD that the musical geniuses over at Polyvinyl Records sent me I was excited but simultaneously apprehensive about first listening to it. It may sound kind of odd but I was so blown away (still am) by late 2004\u2019s \u201cI Do Perceive\u201d, the intricate, eclectic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[360],"class_list":["post-169","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive","tag-owen-other-cd-reviews"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4135,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2011\/03\/17\/owens-new-cd-single\/","url_meta":{"origin":169,"position":0},"title":"Owen’s new CD-single","author":"Kent","date":"March 17, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Owen: O, Evelyn Polyvinyl Records, 2011 www.polyvinylrecords.com www.owen.com Reviewed by Kent Manthie Mike Kinsella is a busy guy - he is a brilliant songwriter, a great drummer and a clever guitar player. These qualities keep him in demand - he\u2019s got several projects he works in - he\u2019s an on-again\/off-again\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "music"","block_context":{"text":"music","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5412,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2011\/10\/20\/owen-is-back-better-than-ever\/","url_meta":{"origin":169,"position":1},"title":"OWEN is Back & Better than ever!!!","author":"Kent","date":"October 20, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"OwenTweet Ghost Town Polyvinyl Records, 2011 www.polyvinylrecords.com Reviewed by Kent Manthie The new CD by Chicago\u2019s Owen, Ghost Town will prove to people that Mike Kinsella is not just a small-time nobody, but a great talent that deserves a bigger audience. He is a talented multi-instrumentalist, an especially gifted guitar\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/PRC-224-Ghost-Town-Cover-Art1-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4166,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2011\/03\/18\/joan-of-arcs-new-cd\/","url_meta":{"origin":169,"position":2},"title":"CD review: Life Like by Joan of Arc","author":"Kent","date":"March 18, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Joan of Arc Life Like Polyvinyl Records 2011 www.polyvinylrecords.com www.joanfrc.com Reviewed by Kent Manthie It\u2019s been 14 years so far and still the brilliant revolving-door- \u201ccollective\u201d known as Joan of Arc are still making awe-inspiring CDs. The new one, entitled Life Like is a bit more cohesive, with a more\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "music"","block_context":{"text":"music","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/lifelike-cd-cover-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3161,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2010\/11\/01\/indie-takeover-one-cd-and-two-seven-inchers\/","url_meta":{"origin":169,"position":3},"title":"Indie Takeover: One CD and Two seven-inchers","author":"Kent","date":"November 1, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Aloud Exile Lemon Merchant Records www.allthingsaloud.com Reviewed by Kent Manthie What to make of Aloud? Hmm\u2026it\u2019s not your everyday pop-rock-hip\/hop-emo-nu-metal CD but a horse of an entirely different color. More oriented toward hippie groovin\u2019, folkified, laid back mellowness, Exile, their newest release has some interesting routes less traveled in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "music"","block_context":{"text":"music","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":926,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2009\/06\/20\/new-music-joan-of-arc-trespassers-william-worriedaboutsatan-reviews-by-kent-manthie\/","url_meta":{"origin":169,"position":4},"title":"Joan of Arc, Trespassers William, worriedaboutsatan ~ By Kent Manthie","author":"admin","date":"June 20, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"New Music Reviewsreport my Kent Manthie Joan of Arc: Flowers Polyvinyl Records, 2009 Legendary Chicago scenesters, Joan of Arc, have just released Flowers, their latest CD. Amazingly it is another brilliant, innovative and unique (which goes without saying) album. In 2007 JOA put out Boo! Human an equally great CD\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "music"","block_context":{"text":"music","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5821,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2011\/12\/06\/a-refreshing-blast-of-mellow-music\/","url_meta":{"origin":169,"position":5},"title":"A Refreshing Blast of Mellow Music","author":"Kent","date":"December 6, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Victor Villarreal Invisible Cinema Joyful Noise Records, 2011 Tweet Review by Kent Manthie This, the new solo CD from Victor Villarreal, guitarist extraordinaire, Invisible Cinema, is a real departure from his appearance on the latest Joan of Arc CD, Life Like, on which he appears as one of the twin\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Invisible-Cinema-CD-cover.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/169","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=169"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/169\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=169"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=169"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=169"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}