Editor-in-Chief
Here
is a specially compiled list of a few excellent albums that you may not have
heard of or maybe just haven’t found the time to listen to. Whether or not you
are a fan of pop, rock, punk, or something much more experimental, you’ll be
sure to find something you like here.
Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to
Heaven –
Godspeed You! Black Emperor (2000)
Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to
Heaven
is the second album of Montreal based post rock band Godspeed You! Black
Emperor. The album is well known for its intense build-ups as well as its overwhelming
amount of instrumentation and is compromised of four 20 minute long songs, each
broken up into smaller segments of their own. On Lift Your Skinny Fists GY!BE explore a variety of musical ideas,
including long droning sound collages as well as lo-fi folk songs. The opening
track, “Gathering Storm,” begins with a subtle repeating guitar melody over a
soft droning horn arrangement. As the song progresses, more instruments being
to ascend, along with the guitar and horns, to the climax, which kicks in about
3 minutes into the song and sets the mood for the rest of the album. The album
received much acclaim from Pitchfork, who scored the album 9 out of 10, as well
as Allmusic, who gave the album 4.5 stars out of 5. After one listen of the
album, Lift Your Skinny Fists Like
Antennas to Heaven will definitely have you coming back for more.
Strawberry Jam – Animal
Collective (2007)
Animal
Collective’s seventh studio LP Strawberry
Jam dropped late 2007 and, aside from their critically acclaimed success Merriweather Post Pavilion, it has been
considered to be one of their very best works. On the album, the band displays their
unique tribal influenced take on psychedelic pop while adding a chaotic twist they
had developed on many of their previous releases. Strawberry Jam kicks off with
the explosive “Peacebone,” easily recognizable for its galloping rhythms and
incredibly catchy hook; it is an excellent introduction to Strawberry Jam for any listener featuring the signature yelps and
screams of vocalist Avey Tare that can be found on almost every song of the
album. With the unique instrumentation and songwriting presented on Strawberry
Jam, Animal Collective seemingly create a genre of specific to only themselves.
Psychic Chasms – Neon Indian
(2009)
Electronic
music producer Alan Palomo began writing songs for Neon Indian after abandoning
his previous music projects Ghosthustler and VEGA. The result was 2009’s Psychic Chasms, a set of 12 catchy
electronic psych-pop songs with a lo-fi analog spin. The album scored very high
with most music critics and Palomo scored big with the first single of the
album “Deadbeat Summer” which reached spot #13 on Pitchfork’s Top 100 Tracks of
2009. Psychic Chasms will surely be popular among fans of Toro Y Moi or Washed
Out.
Celebration Rock – Japandroids
(2012)
Vancouver
based indie noise rock duo Japandroids released their sophomore LP, Celebration Rock, last year. The duo
intended for the album to reflect the sound of their live performances, which
means using no double tracking on vocals and little, if any, guitar overdubs.
Celebration Rock is filled with many fun sing-a-longs for you and your friends
to listen to on a road trip or maybe before you get ready for one of those
coming-of-age events that you could only experience in a movie. Listeners of Titus Andronicus, No Age, and
Harlem will definitely find something to like on this LP.
Lonerism – Tame Impala
(2012)
Australian
psych rock band Tame Impala’s second full length LP Lonerism is a triumph of progressive rock and pop songwriting. The
album was recorded mainly by multi-instrumentalist and lead singer Kevin Parker
in various locations around the world. Tracks like “Feels Like We Only Go
Backwards”, “Elephant”, and “Apocalypse Dreams” became instant hits. Lonerism will find fans of Pink Floyd, the
Beatles, and the Flaming Lips listening over and over again.
Ceres & Calypso in the Deep Time –Candy Claws
(2013)
After
hearing their second LP Ceres &
Calypso in the Deep Time, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to see Candy
Claws slowly becoming one of the more popular acts of the year. On the new LP,
which was dropped during the summer, Candy Claws presents a selection of
carefully written pop melodies hidden beneath some very layered shoegazing
drones. Songs like “Into the Deep Time” and “Transitional Bird (Clever Girl)”
can be compared to the styles championed on My Bloody Valentine’s 1991 LP Loveless. On Ceres & Calypso in the Deep Time, Candy Claws create a
psychedelic wonder world that is hard to not love.
