Its been awhile since one summer produced
so many compelling works from seminal artists who command respect in their fields.
And whether youre talking established vets or fresh new faces pushing
the musical envelope, its been exceedingly hard to throw a rock into a
record store and not hit a jaw-dropping exercise. So kick back while we take
a look at three of the best releases so far this sweltering season:
Flaming Lips, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots:
Their seminal album, The Soft Bulletin, is one
of alternative musics top releases of all time. Their thirst for innovation
has motivated them to compose symphonies of sound to be played, like their amazing
Zaireeka, on four simultaneous discs or, like the Boombox Experiments, on portable
stereos. So it is only fitting that the newest Flaming Lips release in three
years is filled with out-of-this-world noises, angelic harmonies, meditations
on death, life, science fiction and everything in between. Once lauded as the
loudest band of all time, 2002s Flaming Lips have dialed back the sturm-und-drang
and exchanged it for pure atmosphere on tracks like the surreal Are You
a Hypnotist?, the addictive downstrum of Do You Realize? or
the catchy Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell. The Flaming Lips worst
stuff is usually better than most of American musics finest, which makes
the amazing Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots one of the new millenniums
instant classics.
Sonic Youth, Murray Street:
Named for everything from the New York street where
an engine from one of the planes that attacked the World Trade Center landed
to the birthplace of Lionel Trains -- as well as the location of their own studio
-- Murray Street is Sonic Youths well-received return to the compact songcraft
left behind on their previous releases, A Thousand Leaves and NYC Ghosts and
Flowers. Filled with haunting exercises in aural soundscaping, Murray Street
keeps the volume low but the standards high. Witness the creepy guitar howls
in Disconnection Notice, the anti-ageist rant in Radical Adults
Lick Godhead Style, or the rumination on isolation in The Empty
Page, and the revelation that Sonic Youth has become one of independent
musics -- regardless of which label theyre on -- most reliable and
refreshing acts is not far behind.
DJ Shadow, Private Press:
Although Josh Davis started out a deck expert in
the underground hip-hop scene in -- of all places -- rural Davis, CA, he immediately
became one of the most respected sonic alchemists of the 90s upon the
release of his first album, Endtroducing, in 1996. A spaced-out foray into found
sound and addictive rhythm, Endtroducing filled his plate with so many projects
that it wasnt until this year that his long-awaited follow-up hit the
shelves. And what a follow-up. From the atmospheric thump of Fixed Income,
the apocalyptic lilt of Six Days to the addictive braggadocio of
Walkie Talkie, the mysterious DJ Shadows Private Press is
an entertaining entry into his already substantial list of accomplishments.
And its not just for hip-hop heads, either -- Shadows music is true
cross-generational, genre-busting artistry deserving of a listen no matter your
taste, race or style.
©
Melt Magazine 2002
|