Don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the general quality of fortune cookies, specifically the fortune part of the package, has deteriorated considerably, shifting from the old-fashioned vague predictions to advice reeking of platitudes cribbed out of hackneyed self-help books. I mention this because while noshing out the other day I happened to crack open a wild one.
It read as follows: “Those who take year-end best lists too seriously are destined to die miserable and alone.” And hey, on each side of this portent was a smiley face. Yeah, I’ll admit it freaked me out a little.
10. Mostly Other People Do the Killing, Blue
Placing a record I’m not likely to play a dozen more times in my life in the No. 10 spot? Why yes indeed. Not a tribute to Joni Mitchell’s fourth album, nor is it to my knowledge related in any way to the final film of the late Derek Jarman (the cover might lead one to this conclusion), Blue is a “note-for-note copy” of Miles Davis’ ’59 masterpiece made by an interesting and divisive group (and with this release, increasingly so).
Quotations are used in the sentence above for a fairly obvious reason; a note-for-note reproduction of such a complex work is an absurdity if not an impossibility, though MOPDTK get so close (I mean at times they get REALLY close) that accusations of plagiarism have been lobbed against Blue. Those charges are off base; but then what exactly is on target?
It’s less an elaborate prank, but as the inclusion of the typically amazing Jorge Luis Borges story “Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote” makes clear (well, kind of), humor is part of the strategy; namely, satire concerning worship of the masters, but also a postmodern playfulness that’s proven to be like sandpaper rubbing on scores of folks’ nerves. They needn’t get so upset. Kind of Blue is indestructible and its essence will never be replaced or replicated; but of course, that’s not really the intention of the sticky can of worms that is Mostly Other People Do the Killing’s Blue.
9. OOIOO, Gamel
A certain legion of crabs will eternally equate experimentation in the rock sphere with haughty and pretentious dicking around, but records like Gamel (and labels like Thrill Jockey of Chicago) help to make this notion an utter falsehood.
From opener “Don Ah”’s incorporation of everything from the Beach Boys to funky/Krauty prog to Animal Collective to Alexander Desplat’s soundtrack work for Wes Anderson (okay maybe I’m the only one to hear this last ref), Boredoms veteran and Wayne Coyne muse Yoshimi’s reignited OOIOO project is a terrific example of sonic exploration.
Appropriate to the album’s title, the influence of Javenese gamelan is in evidence throughout, so if the intersection of tribal mallets with sturdy expansionist ideas stokes a personal fire, then this puppy is legitimately comparable to a squeeze bottle full of lighter fluid prepared to squirt all over your kindling. But be careful with those matches, for Gamel is as inviting as it is conceptually rigorous. Hearing this stuff live would be a treat.
8. Nots, We Are Nots
The raw and art-tinged (though not arty) punk attack of Memphis, TN’s Nots (Natalie Hoffmann on guitar, Charlotte Watson on drums, Madison Farmer on bass, and Alexandra Eastburn on synthesizers) coheres into a surprising debut issued on hometown label Goner. And after initially reading of their shouty synth-punk ways, the description sorta primed me for a glob descended from the gullet of San Francisco’s mighty Maggots, but ultimately Nots are far too well-practiced and serious to fill that prospective void.
Instead, We Are Nots is basically impossible to imagine without the existence of the whole ‘70s Rough Trade shebang, though the atmosphere is tangibly more punkish; detectable in their approach is the stripped-down influence of Wire (check “Black Mold”) and as the record’s 26 minutes elapse, the dark edge of early Joy Division (please see “Static”).
If it’s all sounding rather Anglophilic, Nots avoid overdoing the scenario by yelling a lot and occasionally about topics kinda US-centric (“Televangelist,” “Talk Show”). They also keep the guitars and synths in equal balance, so “White Noise” exudes fumes reminiscent of late-‘70s California. Remains to be seen if another slab as great is in the cards, but if not, to paraphrase Bogey, we’ll always have this one.
7. Rhyton, Kykeon
Rhyton’s third and best LP (and second for Thrill Jockey) is a gift that just keeps on giving. Succinctly, they specialize in a merger of trad Greek and Middle Eastern styles/instrumentation with rock trio heftiness, but any fears of blatant tastelessness or even underlying insensitivity should be cast aside right quick.
Rhyton consist of Dave Shuford, former member of the No-Neck Blues Band aka D. Charles Speer, leader of The Helix (an outfit that’s nicely-chooglin’ Double Exposure, also put out by Thrill Jockey in 2013, is a pretty hot item as well), along with Rob Smith of Pigeons and Jimy SeiTang of Psychic Ills and electronic solo project Stygian Stride.
Their previous material is quite swell, but with Kykeon they manage to deftly blend, not graft, the aforementioned trad elements to non-doofus psychedelia and un-clichéd Krautrock settings, and the overall result is truly maximal. Smith’s a fine drummer, SeiTang is limber on the bass, and Shuford’s playing of the guitar, mandolin, and numerous instruments from Greece, Egypt, and Turkey seals the qualitative deal. Kykeon is a top-flight jam and a true grower.
6. Chris Forsyth & the Solar Motel Band, Intensity Ghost
And speaking of psychedelia, guitarist Forsyth and his working unit featuring six-string partner Paul Sukeena, drummer Steven Urgo and bassist Peter Kerlin, would sound fucking splendid cranking it from the stage of a medium-sized auditorium, three backs to the audience during extended instrumental flights in a set lasting for roughly four hours as the aroma of pot, patchouli, and sweaty armpits mingles in the air.
Intensity Ghost is released by No Quarter, an imprint proving to know a thing or two about contempo psych-rock; last year they waxed up the superbly outward-bound guitar brilliance of Born with the Caul from Cian Nugent and the Cosmos, a disc that climbed all the way to No. 3 on TVD’s list of the Best Records of 2013.
This LP isn’t as strong as Born with the Caul, but it doesn’t miss by very much, and the sound is broad enough that they easily sidestep any kind of pigeonholing. Across Intensity Ghost’s five tracks Forsyth and Sukeena naturally recall the guitar teams of the Grateful Dead, Television, and Sonic Youth, though a high ratio of the playing speaks in their own intertwined voices. Here’s hoping Forsyth keeps the band together, for if there’s a next one it could be an absolute monster.
