Alan Sparhawk is part of the indie band Low. They take a minimalist approach to music, with slow tempos and and a delicate sense but not in an indie-for-the-masses kind of way that Mumford & Sons do. When he wants to make a bit of a ruckus, he gets going with his band Retribution Gospel Choir. Their first couple records had a more power pop kind of feel, but their latest record, simply titled 3, contains only 2 songs, both of which clock in at nearly 20 minutes. Side A is titled "Can't Walk Out"and Side B is titled "Seven." Both tracks are modern guitar epics, especially "Seven" which features the great Nels Cline from the current incarnation of Wilco. The leads in that song are traded off between Sparhawk and Cline and even casual familiarity with Wilco's latest records one will easily tell which lead is who. Sparhawk's playing is more straight-forward and thick toned; Cline is much more angular, operating in the highs. It's a nice mix, both guitarists work well together, and it makes for a big change from the poppy-ness of the last EP. They are playing DC9 and I would totally go but it's Valentine's Day. Ugh. Stupid tour manager; who books that night!?!
Here's the creepy ass video (though also kind of howlingly funny) for "Seven." I don't know if anything really weird or odd or whatever happens because I only watch for a minute or so.
Speaking of long tracks, Neil Young reunited with Crazy Horse in 2012 for the enormous Psychedelic Pill. I saw enormous because it has two tracks that run over 16 minutes, "Ramada Inn" and "Walk Like A Giant," and one, "Driftin' Back," that runs nearly half an hour. It's these three songs that are obviously central to the record and show the band in great form musically. There isn't much sophisticated about it. The opener "Driftin' Back" has the feel of a studio jam that just goes on and on and on. Lyrically it is kind of terrible, Neil singing about getting a hip hop hairdo and wanting his mp3s or some kind of nonsense. But the classic Neil sound is there, soloing with gusto between the silliness. He's old, sure, and he isn't going to be writing any more songs like "Old Man" or "Cinnamon Girl" but he can still make the Earth shake.
Here's the album closer, "Walk Like A Giant." Check it out for a few minutes and you'll get the idea!
Now that I have reverted back to primal ways of listening to music (vinyl through headphones) it is giving me an opportunity to really listen to the records. It is also making me much more picky with what I purchase. I have subscribed to eMusic for a long time. Since I have converted to vinyl as my primary mechanism I have seriously downgraded my digital commitment. Instead of the shotgun approach of getting new music I am now doing a lot more reading and researching and listening online before making an order. There is a local record shop but they don't have a selection of new stuff really. It's primary a vehicle for selling off and buying old stuff. Cool, but I am most interested in getting new records (though I have bought a nice pile of old stuff).
One of the bands that have made it through this new found prudence is Baltimore's Arbouretum and their latest record Coming Out Of The Fog. It is 8 tracks of Crazy Horse-esque guitar anthems and mellower country-ish jams, country in this sense of Americana. Guitarist and vocalist Dave Heumann is the main song writer. His voice stays in the lower registers which occasionally climbs up the ladder. The musicianship is great; lots of great guitar work that remains the focus but doesn't get in the way. The chords are fuzzed out for the chunkier songs, giving it a nice full Neil Young kind of vibe. A few of my band's songs have the same kind of vibe, but these are better by far. The lyrics are imagery heavy, sort of high school-ish in spots but very good in others. Like: "Everyone says/It'll come to an end/Oh, the oceans don't sing/Of impossible things."
Key tracks include the Soundgarden churn of "The Promise" and it's story of ocean voyages giving way to the elegant piano and guitar and slide of "Oceans Don't Sing," the very 90s grunge of "All At Once, The Turning Weather." The one misfire is the album closing title track; it seems like a throwaway, not really fitting in with the rest of the record.
I'd recommend it to Neil Young fans and fans of sludgy guitar work that doesn't get to the sharp point of metal.
