Reviews Update, 2008 Thus Far
Posted June 3rd, 2008 ·
Summer is upon us (pretty much, it’s still 60 and raining here), and I thought I would try to streamline the site a little bit, we’ll see how it goes. Well, I wasn’t ever going to get quite so formal with doing reviews, but as the year goes on, and there are albums I have reviewed, and ones I haven’t that I love more than the ones I have, I figured I would try to standardize the review system here at DBF by throwing out a number on these bad boys. This may also help if all of my nonsensical ramblings don’t really convey what I’m talking about, sometimes giving a number maybe will help clarify the bigger picture more. Obviously your mileage may vary, and you may or probably will disagree with me on what I lay out here, but therein lies the beauty. I think my intention is not to try to slap a number on an album, but to try and convey a sense of even when I may praise certain albums that there may be other albums out there as well that I think are certainly worth checking out, and I haven’t been doing album reviews but for the past month or so anyway (concert reviews are still the main thrust of what I’m going for and the more important part still). So take it with a grain of salt, but here is a recap of the ones I have reviewed with a little number, and ones I haven’t but have loved with a little number, and I will put them all on a standard review page for a quick reference for what is worth checking out in my book.
So, these are albums I have already covered in full blown reviews along with a little BV rating and link to the original review:
Islands – Arm’s Way – 82
Lemuria – Get Better – 75
Last Shadow Puppets – Age Of The Understatement – 81
Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs – 74
The Fairline Parkway – A Memory Of Open Spaces – 74
Portishead – Third – 92
The Teenagers – Reality Check – 76
Tokyo Police Club – Elephant Shell – 83
M83 – Saturdays=Youth – 75
Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours – 80
So, with that being said, let me cover some of the other good releases thus far this year that I hadn’t gotten to a full review quite yet (but I have written up live shows on every one of these I think).
Black Mountain – In The Future
BV Rate: 86
An incredible return of classic blitzing riffs and total rock outs. This album really feels like it could have been rocking audiences back in the 70s, but it does not in any way feel dated either. The construction here is at times trippy and psychedelic and atmospheric, but it always is the calm before a total rock out storm. This is just a great rock album from a band that really knows how to put it together extremely well. Highly recommended.
Live Review
Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
BV Rate: 87
A truly awesome modern folk album that is intimate and moving all at once, with just brilliantly constructed songs, the only fault of the album is that you just wish there was more of it to listen to. There are many songs here that are just classics I think and some of the best put together songs so far this year, with such luminaries as “Blindsided”, “The Wolves (Act I & II)” and “re: Stacks”, I often find these songs stuck in my head. Very highly recommended.
Live Review
Lightspeed Champion – Falling Off The Lavender Bridge
BV Rate: 87
While this album is quite poppy in many places, I just really love the way it comes together, and I think it is subtly complex as well, so that while there are some sweet harmonies and melodies here, they don’t get stale quickly and they don’t feel overdone or old. The album sounds very fresh and has some really brilliantly constructed songs that are some of my favorites of the year. I think Dev certainly nails it on a lot of these songs and they are just damn good, and it is so catchy I think you would have trouble hating this album. Highly recommended.
Live Review
Los Campesinos! – Hold On Now, Youngster…
BV Rate: 88
This album grabbed me from the very first listen and I thought this was something really special. Now I will admit this is in terms of its core sound a fairly straight up indie rock kind of sound, but I think the way they flesh out the sound with the instrumentation and the clever and smart vocals/shouting and lyrics, mixed with a great energy and a sense of humor, it all just comes together perfectly on this album and it is really one of my favorites of the year. While the quick, catchy pop melodies will grab your ear initially, it is the depth of the album that will keep you coming back. Highly recommended.
Live Review
The above are really the cream of the crop so far this year I think, but the year is still young so we will see what the rest of 08 is going to bring us. I will continue updating the review archive page as the year goes on so you can see where my head is at as we move on down this windy road.
