A man wakes up in a space station.  He stands at one of its many large windows, looking out at big blue Earth, aghast.  He’s not sure how he got here.  He misses someone.  It is cold.  He looks at his old map of his old home.  Drops it.  It is useless here, besides.  He is orbiting Solaris now.  He will spend his time here, dancing and cowering about his dislocation.

In 2004, Liars released They Were Wrong, So We Drowned, and it was important to talk about the Harz Mountains and the witchy woods of New Jersey.  In 2006, they released Drum’s Not Dead, and it was necessary to talk about the group’s move to Berlin and the deliberate recording sessions at Planet Roc Studios.  Then, most recently in 2010, they released Sisterworld, and we pretty much just talked about Los Angeles. So goes the old real estate cliché: “Location, location, location.”  It’s the only cliché one can safely utter about the trio if you wish to emerge the conversation unscathed.  Yet when Liars opens WIXIW with “The Exact Colour of Doubt,” I have no idea where on Earth I am (“I” because I am alone, the music tells me so), much less where I am headed.  WIXIW shuffles all the pieces off the map.

Which is to say that Liars’s sixth long player, pronounced “wish-you,” doesn’t welcome a discussion like the aforementioned records because WIXIW isn’t about or defined by any specific place.  In a recent interview with Pitchfork, vocalist Angus Andrew stated that, “From the very start, I was hoping not to use microphones.  The whole idea of setting up a mic to a speaker represented a distance I wanted to get rid of.”  The record is, at least in part, about distance, then, the space between two mapped objects and what is inevitably lost in traveling  through that space: the long journey from human voice to human ear.

It makes logical sense that, after some unpacking, WIXIW is a predominantly electronic record.  What better way to combat the mediation of countless air than by eliminating it from the equation insofar as it is possible?  D.I. Everything.  Emancipate the drum kit from the four to twenty microphones it takes to record it.  On the other hand, this method – using electronics to approach greater intimacy – is an unconventional one; very rarely do we associate synthesizers and drum machines with intimacy or closeness.  Complicating matters more, the electronic instrumentals themselves aren’t billowing with whispers or secrets.  They are, as one might expect from Liars, icy and anxious.  They do, however, afford a directness (at least in theory) that the microphone does not.  This is the theoretical point.  And where “artificial” intimacy might struggle, Angus croons or whines, sometimes like an Amnesiac-era Thom Yorke.  Lyrics enter: “I wonder/I wonder where you go.” (“The Exact Colour of Doubt”)  “I wish you were here with me.” (“WIXIW”)  Because human intimacy is the point, too – the human point.  It is a difficult balance between two seemingly disparate concepts of closeness – one clinical and inhumane, the other personal and vulnerable, but Liars handles the task, as is their way, with intelligence and restraint.

Considered emotionally and theoretically, WIXIW is a complicated thing, intermingling the “artificial” intimacy of electronic equipment and human intimacy, human intelligence, and, well, serious woe.  It is the paradoxical desire for both estrangement and real closeness.  It is violence and fragility.  It is brainy and emotional.  But Liars is a cogent band; the most cogent band we have, I’d argue, and WIXIW is more evidence in support of the claim.  The man leans against the white perimeter walls of the space station.  He’s still unsure of how he got here.  He misses someone, faintly.  He smiles, however, weakly.   He nods.  His spacesuit is on the ground next to him.  Sleepy, nude, he lies on his side and closes his eyes but can’t sleep.

3.5 / 5 bars

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Liars – “The Exact Colour of Doubt”

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Liars – “No. 1 Against the Rush”

Guest post by Chad F.

“Rock’n’Roll is shit at the moment,” declared Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist, lead singer of the Hives, during a recent interview with the UK’s The Guardian. He continued on, referring to emo as “pretty shit,” then added, “Rock’n'Roll is fifty drunk people in a room who want to have fun, but there’s something extremely unsexy about it being perverted into middle-class guilt and whining.” Obviously, it’s clear that Howlin’ Pelle feels less than optimistic about the current state of things; but these are pretty bold statements from the singer of a band whose recent release does little in the way of making it better.

There was a time in music, not too long ago, in fact, that in order to be taken seriously, a band had to put ‘The’ in front of their name: The Strokes, The Vines, The Libertines, The Cribs, The Futureheads, The White Stripes. The Hives were among the forefront in that pack, finding great success in in the early 2000s with energetic hits like “Hate to Say I Told You So.” Sadly, however, the time for ‘The’ has passed, and unlike some garage-rock revival bands who have managed to survive by moving forwards, the Hives seem hell-bent on moving backwards.

Which is not say that it’s all bad on Lex Hives, the band’s first release in almost five years. “1000 Answers” is a fast-paced jam with a classically punk riff. The band have also experimented with some new sounds and styles, like on “Midnight Shifter,” which is pure rockabilly fun. On that track, a joyous and fierce piano carry things along nicely, but most other tracks are just quite simply a drag. Album opener “Come On” is clearly meant to get the party started; the whole song is made up of shouts of “Come on! Come on! Come on!” and, yeah, that’s all. It might have worked if it didn’t feel so inauthentic. For the most part, It will leave you less pumped and more irritated.

However, the worst offender has got to be the album’s first single, “Go Right Ahead.” It’s not much more than an extended version of “Come On,” because although there are lyrics, they aren’t worth much. If this an attempt to save Rock’n'Roll, it’s clearly a lame one; “Go Right Ahead” is a glorified pop song. You’ll probably hear it on the radio tomorrow because, hey, if the Kings of Leon were able to cut off their hair and become the champions of mainstream music, then why not the Hives? America could totally learn to love five wacky Swedes in matching suits.

Lex Hives is an attempt to go back to garage rock basics, but despite lines like “we’re gonna drink, fuck, and fight all night,” it’s all just way too clean to be effective. The album is over-produced, taking moments that should be spontaneous and sucking all of the honesty out of the equation. Lex Hives might be worth a listen for fans, and admittedly, I have heard that these guys do put on a pretty nice live show. But at this point in the Hives’ career, it’s either shape up or ship out.

1.5 / 5 bars

Go Right Ahead by The New Yorker

Come On! by The New Yorker

Midnight Shifter by The New Yorker

Blaxploitation films? That’s my shizz. The unfiltered hyperviolence, sexuality, and overall vulgarity in these films should not only be recognized for their unabashed appeal to one’s raw desire to be entertained, but also celebrated for their importance during the pivotal years of the Civil Rights movement, specifically the 1970′s, and Blacks’ presence in the film industry, the way they wanted it. The controversial films saturated the market, mostly starring and produced by solely blacks by riffing off a sensationalized formula. This formula arguably highlighted everyday struggles for minorities in urban areas with contemporary music that the masses loved to hear and could relate to, Funk and RnB at the time. But what would the soundtrack to a serious*, modern day/futuristic Blaxploitation film sound like? Be cool, my babies. Oh No is here take all your questions. And then some.

I took this album to have a two pronged purpose. The lyrics from Oh No and friends (Erick Sermon, Rapper Pooh, MF DOOM, Roc Marciano, Guilty Simpson, MED, Chino XL, et al) are all about pure show, talking up their tough character and ability to call the shots. And the beats are the product of Oh No taking samples from D’Urville Martin’s Dolemite (1975) and throwing them into a time machine set for 2020, with spacey synth melodies, uncut and uncooked boom bap, and a silver back gorilla to mix it all up.

The lyricism, on the whole, exemplify an updated version of what some people deem to be the first raps ever to be said on a public stage by Rudy Ray Moore in Dolemite, whether it was beating up junkies who stole from him or telling the tale of a monkey’s arrogance over a lion in the jungle. In other words, it’s your everyday my-swagger-is-greater-than-yours-with-the-occasional-narrative routine. The standout track for me is “The Hitmen.” Roc Marciano spits the gem, “Never been bitter/Keep a long arm like a sinner/Send shots that’ll bend you like a bartender/Marked tender in the palms of a hustler/Banana links splasher/Hard motherfucker.” There are a few exceptions to the braggadocio like “Life Games,” “Dues and Don’ts,” and “Let’s Roll.” On “Let’s Roll,” Damani uses an extended metaphor of a pimp talking to a prostitute to explain how the rap game works for newcomers, as a veteran.

This album is a serious head-nodder with the bass turned all the way up. But that’s just what I expected from the Stones Throw Records artist.

3.5 / 5 bars

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Oh No ft. Roc Marciano – “The Hitmen”

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Oh No ft. Damani – “Let’s Roll”

*Black Dynamite (2009) walks the thin line between paying homage and serving as a satire of Blaxploitation films. Regardless, it’s a great film. On the other hand, Planet Asia’s Black Belt Theatre (also the name of the film he will be starring in) imagines a Blaxploitation film soundtrack with Hip Hop, transporting you back to the 1970′s but with the steez of 21st century emcees.

Huh, remarkable producer Daedelus, who has been focused on more original material as of late, has returned to the mashup craft with this track. Unfortunately, it’s not his best. Sure, the DJ Trouble rip pairs nicely with Nina Persson of the Cardigans’ endearing vocals, but the track definitely feels overextended. I could see this working better as a segment in one of Girl Talk’s fluidic tracks.

Rise and Bangs, Shine and Works by Daedelus

People are pretty excited about the big return of Fiona Apple– even those who were not old enough to appreciate her music the first time around (myself included). She has, for the most part, stayed pretty under the radar since the huge success and attention that surrounded her debut in 1996. But on June 19th Fiona will release a new album called– wait for it– The Idler Wheel Is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw, and Whipping Cords will Serve You More than Ropes Will Ever Do. The title of her latest single is, thankfully, less wordy; it’s called “Werewolf,” and it emotes that sort of both warmth and chilliness that we’ve come to expect from Fiona’s music. It was worth the wait to hear Fiona sing, “I could liken you to a werewolf the way you left me for dead/But I admit that I provided a full moon.” The song closes with the unexpected yet appealing sounds of an elementary school crowd of kids, laughing and screaming away in the distance. It’s all beautiful and weird, just like you might remember.

Werewolf by fionaapple

While the kids in Be Your Own Pet were always pretty fun to listen to this side project from brothers Jake and Jamin Orrall has been a much more rock n’ roll enterprise. A preview to their July 17 album Hypnotic Knights, “Six Pack” is the band’s new single, which sounds so much like an old Weezer B-side it makes me want to break out my “Jamie” 7″ and play some video games. It’s fun as hell, and a perfectly welcome addition to any summertime playlist. Bonus points for the Mets t-shirt in the above photo.

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Disclaimer: I don’t play video games. So I didn’t realize that video game soundtracks were something worthy of review– until I heard HEALTH’S Max Payne 3, that is. Less like a game soundtrack and more like a dreamy, driving film score, Max Payne 3 is a sharp companion to the game that you will enjoy whether or not you’re even playing. 

Opening with the menacing, melodramatic “Sampa” and then ripping right into the pulsating “Shells,” Max Payne 3 hovers between fast and slow, building sophisticated moments of tension. Word on the street is that the Max Payne games are about as action-packed as they can get, featuring a titular hero who becomes a vigilante after the death of his family. He’s moody, he’s intense, and he’s haunted by surrealistic nightmares and feelings of isolation. Seemingly, HEALTH have taken all of this into account while crafting the Max Payne 3 soundtrack, because it all plays out like a dark, twisted fantasy of fun.

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US producer Goldroom’s track “Fifteen” has been a popular song for remixers, but Parisian DJ Oxford has the best, most summer-appropriate take. I’d have to categorize his library as “house,” which unfortunately tends to render music generic in consumers’ minds, due to the absolute inundation of said genre on the internet lately. Don’t fall for it. Check his music out – his cover of Housse de Racket’s “Aquarium” is great, too.

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