For my first entry I thought that it would be best that I pick something I really love. I know some of you have probably heard this album before, but I think Ripely Pine has so much to offer that it warrants repeat listens. As a debut album, Ripely Pine it is an epic that transforms largely unheard singer/songwriter tunes into grand multi-instrumental indie rock and folk arrangements.

Lady Lamb the Beekeeper (or just Lady Lamb as she is currently known) is the stage name of New England native, Aly Spaltro. Lady Lamb first started recording her music in 2007 in the basement of the video store where she worked. The owner of the store would allow her to use unused space in order to record her music. Many of the songs found on Ripely Pine were in fact written in this video store and appear as reimaginings on the LP. After several years of playing local shows and limited distributions of her music, Lady Lamb relocated to Brooklyn, New York where she recorded and released this album under Ba Da Bing Records.

While largely keeping to the same overall style of folk rock, the mood of songs is often varied. From the at times airy and eerie Bird Balloons to the hopeful and intimate The Nothing Part II to the driving Aubergine. Song structures on this album are notable by their refusal to follow normal conventions. Tempo changes are common throughout. Melodies are often picked up and abandoned in smooth, non-intrusive ways. This all leads many of the songs on the album to feel like a journey starting in one place and ending in a whole new exciting direction.

Aly Spaltro herself is primarily the singer and lead guitarist on this album, and the album truly showcases her talents in these departments. Her voice throughout the album is strong and well developed and leads to a sound that is much more mature than I expected from a 23-year-old. She also does not shy away from testing the range of her voice. As far as the guitar work goes, I can’t really speak to the technical prowess of it but it shows a wonderful knack for catchy riffs and clever punctuation. Along with Aly’s primary talents, the album is filled with a variety of instrumentation including a variety of brass, a slew of bowed instruments, organ, melodica, and clarinet. All of these extra elements often add valuable atmospheric background to many of the tracks. They make it clear that this grand reinventing of her humble beginnings was worth it.

Many of the lyrics on this album are in some way about love, and even more are about heartbreak and longing. All of which is clear even if you only catch the lyrics that are most prominent. However, what Lady Lamb brings lyrically is more than just love and heartbreak. It is almost surreal. She often mixes scenes of nature with raw descriptions of blood and body. Several songs start with playful metaphors only to end with painful lament.

I think most of the elements that I’ve been describing in this write-up are showcased in the song You Are the Apple. This is a song that opens with a blazing southern rock intro that quickly transitions into something sultrier. Eventually, the song slows to what is almost a march before the strings come screaming in to spark new life. The song hits its climax in one of my favorite lines ever for its raw and desperate image of missing a lost love.

But this is just what I think! What about you guys? I’d love to know what tracks stood out to you all. 

9:37 AM

I knew y’all knew a hip-hop album would be coming sooner or later. I was struggling to pick one, I wanted it to be a classic but I also wanted it to have meaning while also still being accessible to those who don’t listen to much hip-hop. And because I love East Coast rap, I knew I’d have to go with something by Mos Def and ultimately went with my one of my favorite hip-hop records of all time, his debut album Black on Both Sides. 

Mos Def (now goes by Yasiin Bey) is well known for his hip-hop career but also for his activism both in and outside the hip-hop community. This album explores  racial politics, police brutality, as well as his left-wing political ideologies. I emphasize this because this was at a time in hip-hop history where it was more commercially acceptable to be rapping about anything but politics, but Yasiin embraces this and does it in a, in my opinion, masterfully creative way.

Each track features thought provoking rhymes laid over beats inspired by jazz, 80s synth, and rock. If anyone is familiar with East Coast rap, it’s pretty evident how much influence groups like A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul had on Yasiin. There’s enough sonic variety between the tracks to still grab your attention and make you want to hear what Yasiin is saying behind his passionate way of rapping. I know some here don’t care much for lyrics, but I feel like it’s kind of hard to not want to hear what Yasiin is saying - his way of getting his words across is quiet unique for his time. In a way, Kendrick sorry of reminds me of Yasiin’s style because of his ability to want listeners to hear a message - to get more out of a song than just a cool beat and some creative rhymes. 

I’m intersted in hearing what your favorite tracks are. UMI Says is a pure classic for me, one of my all time favorite hip-hop tracks. But songs like Mr. Nigga, Mathematics, and Brooklyn are also instrumentally and lyrically well structured within the album. I will say taking some time to look up the lyrics of a couple tracks will only add to the experience. It’s what this album is known for but it’ll also allow you to understand what Yasiin is about and how hip-hop has evolved (and revolved maybe?) over time.

Yasiin’s eloquence shines on this record. He effortlessly drops bar after bar of lines that make the listener want to engage with him. He does so in a very cool, calm, and collected way as well - his voice is so smooth even when he’s rapping about very real issues minority communities face like the prison industry complex or police brutality. He has one of the most charismatic personas in hip-hop and I remember first listening to this album and really being blown away by his style and what he had to say. Hope you all enjoy!

7:01 AM

When thinking of an album to choose, I wanted something that I was ultimately familiar with. I ended up going with David Lemaitre’s debut, and so far, only LP. I had a few other choices in mind, but wanted to chose the one that most reminded me of fall.

Born in La Paz, Lemaitre moved to Berlin to pursue a music career with a grant from the German government as part of Germany’s “Initiative Musik” program. He was part of the rock band “Schulze Meier Lehmann” (of which I have not been able to find much footage) until breaking off in 2008. Since then, his Latitude LP has been his only major release.

 I like this album for several reasons. For one, it has variety. If genres mean anything to you, Latitude is predominately folk/pop. However, there’s something for nearly everyone here; if you don’t like a song, just wait for the next one. Whether you crave the gentle musings of Bon Iver, the upbeat energy of Kishi Bashi, or the hypnotic shouting similar to that of Panda Bear (see: “The Incredible Airplane Party”), Latitude has a lot to offer. I’ve always thought David Lemaitre “bites of just as much as he can chew,” so to speak. David Lemaitre’s ability to craft unique and sonic environments and atmospheres really pulled me into his music.

All in all, I think Lemaitre is one of the best musicians in the German music scene right now, and is overdue for some exposure in the states. Have fun with this album. Relax, and enjoy the fall weather. I’m sure there’s a lot to dislike here, so don’t hold back on criticisms.

Spotify Link

6:39 PM

       Dear and Headlights was an indie rock band based in Arizona, being active from 2005 until 2011. They only released two full length albums, and Drunk Like Bible times is the latter of the pair.

     Lyrically the band shifts from relatable to complex. Making references to relationship troubles, or something as universal as feeling lost in the world, one can feel the personal side to what singer Ian Metzger is saying. There are also more in depth lyrical themes. For example, the song Carl Solomon Blues was inspired by and references a Allen Ginsberg poem.

      I know not all of you like to focus on lyrics in an album, so I wanted to pick something that has both interesting writing, but also instrumentation. I believe that can be found here. While not overly complex, they create driving backdrops that are more ear catching than the general indie rock fare. I can’t speak for the drumming, but I find the guitar work very entertaining.

     Overall, this is an album I adore. The last two songs meld together into an emotional ending that when listened to in the context of the whole piece shows a large personal development in the band. I don’t want to give it away really, but the ending pair is one of my favorites ever. I hope you enjoy this album as much as I do, but if you don’t, I’ll still like you.

9:08 AM

I was torn on what album to pick this week.  On one hand, I wanted to pick one of my favorite albums that I've listened to a lot over the past 6 or 7 years.  On the other hand, this album by the now-defunct Macha has been in my head a lot lately.  From Athens, Georgia, Macha was a quartet that...ah you know what, I'm just going to let Wikipedia do the description.  Whoever wrote it did a fantastic job, although I'm not totally sold on the Mogwai reference:

"Macha's music combined the precision tension-and-release post-rock of Mogwai with the lush, hypnotic grind of My Bloody Valentine, along with elements of post-punk, kraut-rock and especially Indonesian Gamelan. The CMJ New Music Report opined that the band "may have invented a new genre - call it Indo-rock.

They incorporated a variety of instruments into their sets: Javanese zither, Balinesebamboo flute, hammered dulcimer, Hawaiian slide guitar, talempong nipple gongs and Nepalese shawms, vibraphone, and a '70s-era thrift-store organ called the Fun Machine."

Did someone say nipple gongs?

The gamelan in particular is a really nice addition to the sound of the album.  It adds a totally unique quality but I appreciate that it's not overdone; it doesn't define the album in any way, but certainly adds a whole new layer to the music, which is already fairly complex.

I enjoy a good instrumental album opener - this one has a great one.  Some of my favorite songs are The Short Life, Double Life, and Cat Wants to Be a Dog.

Curious to hear everyone's thoughts!  Next week, perhaps, I'll choose an album closer to my heart, but I have a feeling one or two of you at least will really appreciate this record.  It's excellent.

8:19 AM