I, Us & We "Mono"

Is it odd to anyone else that this band name includes every pronoun of the sort except for "me"?   Is it just me?   Okay then, I'll move on.    These are four songs from I, Us & We- which reminds me of "Me, Myself & I" but isn't.     They have a low-key vibe to them, churning out the softer side of electronic pop.   With piano keys and vocals that can remind me of Muse these are carefully crafted between Blue October and the more redeeming qualities of U2.

In some ways, this reminds me of something more on the electronic side of the coin, such as Twin Shadow or one of those producer types who creates all these beats and uses keyboard and synth.    But then there are enough guitar riffs in here, slow and cutting, that I'm hesitant to put an electric tag on it.     This is especially apparent in the song "Free", in which he can really sing so beautifully about how he is free.

"Lanterns" is a good example of the somewhat electronic side of these songs as it reminds me of Stabbing Westward without all of the teenage angst.     This also somehow brings out hints of a slowed down Duran Duran, which is never really a bad name to find popping up in your head when listening to music.

       As "Lanterns" sings about love being the cruelest game to play and being for dreamers, he ends with "I would say that love brought me to you".    An email, followed by a link I opened, a file I streamed and then a .ZIP folder I chose to download based upon the fact that I liked the first song I heard was what brought me to I, Use & We.    If I am to be what brings you to this wonderful music then so be it, but whatever path you should take I hope you do find this one.   

go nogo "New Folks Remixed" (Emerald and Doreen)

[https://soundcloud.com/emerald-and-doreen-rec/sets/go-nogo-new-folks-remixed-ep]

I had never heard the go nogo song "New Folks" before this EP and as it turns out, the original mix is not on here but rather there are three different remixes of it and two remixes of other songs by go nogo.     The first remix of "New Folks" is by Mal Holmes and so in some ways I do like to think of that as being the original, although I have since tracked down the original and listened to it.     Perhaps because I heard it first though it just kind of became somewhat normal to me, yet it is still a good song.

The second remix is by Ummagma and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't listening to this EP just to hear this Ummagma remix.     If you've never heard Ummagma you're really missing out, but if you have heard them before then it would seem as if you should add this remix to your collection.     Oddly, the third remix is by Go Satta, who I am not really familiar with but has other music on Emerald and Doreen that I will be listening to now because I really liked this remix.    I think going in I knew I'd enjoy the Ummagma mix- which I did- but I had no expectations for any of the other mixes and as such Go Satta just blew me away.

"Let It Show" is remixed by Statickman in a complete pull from the 1980's/The Wedding Singer soundtrack.   I love it.   It's so Human League.    But then the last remix, which is of "Sweet Lullaby" and is by Haioka, is slower, more drawn out in an electronic sense with big beats in the background.    I don't know if there is a proper term for this, so I apologize but you know how rappers figured out that their music would sound cool if they slowed it down and they called it "screwed"?  Does that term apply to electronic music as well?   Because I feel like that's what Haioka is doing and it's simply wonderful.

So this isn't really an EP by go nogo because all of the songs on here are remixed, though the originals are by go nogo.    And there are five different artists having their go at these songs, and the fact that the first three remixes are of the same song by go nogo doesn't seem to matter as each track stands out just as well on its own.   Whatever you call it, you should be listening to this one for sure.

Hannah Epperson "BURN"

[$5 CAD to Download // $15 CAD for 7" Vinyl // https://hannahepperson.bandcamp.com/album/burn]

I've been trying as much as I can in recent months- and really it was most of my mantra for the end of 2014 going into 2015- to not compare artists with other artists in a negative way.   This is simply to say that I no longer wish to say: "This sounds like <fill in the blank> only better!" because it's kind of that belief of putting someone else down to pick yourself up.    (Though I'm technically not picking *myself* up, just the other artist who sounds how I would like the first, not as good artist to sound)

These two songs from Hannah Epperson begin with beats, strings and an overall mix of electronic pop rock that musically has the makings of something like Gotye.     As strings are delicately plucked in the second song you can hear this as well.    It's very easy to please the ears with these intricate wonders of music on both of these songs.   I've listened to this through at least once trying to focus only on the music and pretend that the vocals do not exist (I sometimes wish I had the technology to pull the vocals out in some sort of music program way) and it is just fascinating to hear the many layers at work here.

On one hand, you have earth-shattering beats that make you believe this could be some sort of hip hop, and yet the style and grace of something classical in the string sense.   Now just imagine the stereotypical person who you would think of as liking classical music (snooty) meeting the stereotypical person who you would think of as liking hip hop (gangsta)   They seem so different, but when these two sounds clash on "BURN" it creates an all new form of beauty.

As you stop picking apart the music, listening for the various levels on which it operates, you do realize that, yes, this does indeed have some beautiful female vocals singing over it as well.    It reminds me of the first time that I heard Polly Scattergood or Kimbra, but back to what I was saying in the first paragraph-- one song particularly stuck out to me when listening to this and that was the theme song to the Netflix original series "Orange Is The New Black".    Of course that song, easily searchable for the artist behind it, is a song that I do enjoy because it gets stuck in my head when I binge watch OITNB but I am not a fan otherwise of her music.

Now I'll say something tired and cliche about how if that other artist sounded more like Hannah Epperson then I would certainly be listening to her as well.    But it doesn't really get much better than these two songs right here and regardless of what other artists you happen to like or dislike or maybe have just not heard of yet, "BURN" should be in your playlist if not your vinyl collection.

Portia Winters "epicotyl" (Exotic Pylon)

[€10 for CD or Download // https://portia.bandcamp.com/album/epicotyl]

This is my first time hearing Portia Winters but for once I don't feel badly about that because this is said to be her debut album.     What you have to understand about "epicotyl" is that it's a pop album at its heart but the pop qualities of it are then chopped up and screwed.     It's that beauty of Polly Scattergood mixed with something that Bjork only wishes she could create.

Through strings, beeps, electro blips and a twisted water dripping sound comes some of the most delicate and wonderful vocals you will ever hear.    You're going to need to listen to this one multiple times to truly experience it because it is just that complex.     Though there is quite a bit of audio manipulation, especially with the vocals, a song such as "There My Rest" seems to go untouched and is more reserved, almost as if a lullaby.

A song like "Revolution" though can come out much louder, closer to something electronic and mechanical-- an anthem if there was one on this album.     Phil Collins drums and vocal loops do come into play though maybe not literally.    It's funny because on a song like "I Won't Be There" it seems as if there are no instruments until steel sounding drums kick in, yet on "Now Go Down" it feels like it will be strictly instrumental with something that sounds like spoons.    That is until the vocals kick in and overpower everything else in the world.

This is one of those albums that you're going to listen to and think about afterwards because you knew that these things were possible with music because they've been done before but they've never been done this way.    Certain elements might not be touched upon as much as others previously but this is a pure work of genius and one of the best albums I have heard in a very long time.

Dan Deacon "Gliss Riffer" (Domino)

When I first heard of Dan Deacon he had just released "Spider-Man of the Rings".   As I look back at it now, I can see that was released in 2007 (really?) and so it's been about eight years since I last wrote about Dan Deacon.   I listened to his album that came before this, "America" (from 2012), but apparently didn't write about it.

From what I remember there was a lot of electronic experimentation on "Spider-Man of the Rings" and that doesn't seem to come out as much on "Gliss Riffer" or at least not right away.     On the first song this is more of a traditional distorted electronic rock with elements of pop and even female vocals accompanying him at times.     There are drum machines that offer up dancing beats and it kind of reminds me at times (on the second song at least) of "The Safety Dance".

But as this goes on it can shift from that rock sound of, say, Modest Mouse to what I remember in that far out way from Dan Deacon.    But I think the moral of the story here for me is that there were two albums released between "Spider-Man of the Rings" and "Gliss Riffer" so I should probably familiarize myself with both of them and maybe even the ones that came before "Spider-Man".

I don't remember much about "America" and am not even sure if I heard the one that came before that ("Bromst") but I will go back for them.     All I know is that I liked "Spider-Man of the Rings" and this seems like a bit of a jump from there (Again, missing pieces for me and all) but I still enjoy the hell out of it.

Mr Oizo "The Church"

Though this was released digitally in 2014 the CD version came out in 2015 and whatever the date is it doesn't matter because I've been looking for a reason to start listening to Mr. Oizo and this is my- and perhaps your- best way to get into these songs.    They're electronic at their heart but they have so much more than that.    It's audio samplings and beats mixed in ways I cannot describe.

You know, often times when I listen to music it can paint images in my head which in turn makes me think of it being the soundtrack to a movie.   It's hard to think of this as being the soundtrack to anything other than one of his films (I suggest "Wrong Cops") but the fact remains that if you like those films and the music in them then you shall like this as well.   And yes, that works both ways.     Just all around respect for this talented human being.

CVBox "What You Hear Is What You Get" (Lunatic Records)

[€11 for Record // Edition of 300 // €3 for Download // https://lunaticrecords.bandcamp.com/album/what-you-hear-is-what-you-get-lun03]

Moderately paced electronic numbers that tow the line between electronica and 8bit music.   Somewhat of The Prodigy or something else I am unfamiliar with and somewhat of the Beastie Boys these instrumental songs will either have you in a trance or make your body dance.

The first of these four songs is actually exclusive to the record release as well, so if you want to hear that one you're going to have to buy the record because it will not come as a download for you.     After listening to this enough times and without the first track I can tell you that having "Hitchhike the Plain" kick things off does seem to help the overall flow of this.

While I realize that a U.S. dollar is not worth as much as a pound you have to think of this download as being a pound per song (which hence is more than a dollar per song, but still) so in that sense it does kind of work out for you but I'd still say you need that first movement for the complete experience and as any DJ in any club can tell you, yes, this will sound most excellent spinning on vinyl.

ENL1TE "Five Tracks"

https://soundcloud.com/enl1te

I downloaded five songs from ENL1TE's Soundcloud and are reviewing them as an EP of sorts even though they seem to be singles.   The first two are with Tammy Infusion and are called "Greedy" and "Way Out".    The other three are with Valerie Broussard and are titled "Silent", "Superman" and "Vertigo".

These are all pop songs as they all have hooks, but they have that soul quality to them as well.    It's electronic on some levels but in other ways it reminds me of something straight out pop on the radio and all I can think right now is back to the songs where Nicki Minaj sings as opposed to raps and Rihanna... that sort of idea.

The thing is that any of these five songs should be on the radio right now and it'd make for an easy number one hit.    To offer up some full disclosure, I've been listening to the radio somewhat lately and I do hear pop songs more because my three year old likes them.    So there is this one particular song I keep hearing and I kind of like it but never hear the artist name.  

One day when I was at home thinking about it (and not driving because I always hear it when I'm driving and can't google then) I googled the lyrics to see who it was by.    I'm not going to tell you who it was by because it's somewhat embarassing and I don't embarass easily, but I will tell you that any of these tracks by ENL1TE would not be embarassing to admit you like.    Play them loud so your neighbors can thank you later.

Lunivers "Happy Route"

[http://lunivers.bandcamp.com/]

In March of 2013 these four songs were released as a record, compact disc and digitally outside of the United States but on February 16th (which happens to be my sister's birthday) these songs will be released worldwide on record as an edition of 500.    So if you are into collecting records, then be on the look out for this one to come a bit closer to you than the previous release of it.

It's kind of funny though because these four songs have been sitting on Bandcamp for almost two years now and they have a record to go with them so it's not just some sort of free download hidden in the sea of digital reviews I might encounter, so why has it taken me this long to find Lunivers?     If this wasn't going to be released worldwide I doubt I'd ever hear of Lunivers (Okay, one day I inevitably would) and so I am happy it is getting that because I got to hear it.

These four songs are electro techno synth powered bliss that channel Ladytron and Polly Scattergood.   Lyrics like "the sun is made out of kisses" recall Polly Scattergood and this is just overall pleasant and melodic.    There are beats and laser screeches in the songs, but it can also be a little bit of Kimbra.      With audio clips in French, spliced up and served fresh, there are also greater moments when the singing can remind me of Corrine Bailey Rae.

The best way to undoubtedly describe this is an electronic madness and I love it.    As I jot down notes about these songs all I can think when reading them back is that this seems like it might be too in your face, too obnoxious.    The fact of the matter is though that despite the fact that this can be described with a certain bit of madness there is also a calm reserve to it and I really enjoy that mix.    Don't get me wrong, this is high energy but it is the perfect amount of it.

QuiVive "Astral Gatecrashing"

[Name Your Price Download // http://quivive.bandcamp.com/album/astral-gatecrashing]

This is my first time hearing QuiVive not on cassette and it's the first release after the cassette I reviewed, so with all of the statistics out of the way let's get into the music.    It begins with these dark sort of rock n roll guitars and then drums come in as well.   The first song just has this overall tribal feel to it as there are ahh's and what also sounds like bongos and steel drum rhythms.     The second song changes it up into these bell tone patterns that skip and then the drum machine kicks in with them.

Within the second song that is this certain rhythm that although instrumental makes you want to sing still.   It goes do-do-do-doo-do-do-doot-doo and unless you hear it then it might not make sense to you.    This is key because the next song has female vocals of sorts over it as hip hop beats are spliced into it as well.    The hip hop beats do become a theme during some of the other songs as well, so it's hard for me to say that this is a specific genre but rather an exploration of several genres.

Really slick guitar notes come out on a song that is fittingly called "fast.cars" while some sort of frequency changes groove with the beats on the last track.    I have different perceptions of what vaporwave is but I can tell you that this is probably not that.   It could be chillwave, but that seems like such a broad term to me and I only want to use it because a) this music is chill and b) I feel like it should be in a genre that ends in "wave".

      As much as I always tend to think about how that is that and this is this, I want to sit around one day and really get a true understanding of not only what all of these different genre names mean (look at the tags on Bandcamp if you genre search) but just how if we take a certain number of them and cross them over into one another what that could be.   (What is chillwave + hip hop + the guitars + etc.)    The trouble is I simply don't have time because instead of attempting anything of that sort I would much rather listen to music such as this.  

Enter Shikari "The Mindsweep" (Hopeless / Ambush Reality)

When I first heard Enter Shikari it was 2007 and their debut album, "Take to the Skies", was about to come out.    I often wonder whether or not I still have that advanced CD with no artwork in my collection or if it was lost in one of my many moves since that time.    It doesn't really matter I suppose because I haven't really listened to that album in the eight years or so now that it's been out since back then but to see Enter Shikari still around and putting out one of the first new albums of 2015 got me interested enough to give it a listen.

All I remember about Enter Shikari is that they were a hardcore band- the singing and screaming kind- that encorporated bits of electronic music into their sound and while that might seem more common place now it was actually not as much when I first heard them.    This music still stays true to those roots as there are elements of screaming that bring out the inner Reach the Sky or Shut Down and at other times it's just overall dreamy.

I did expect some elements of Linkin Park to come out, as that seemed somewhat inevitable, but this electronic hardcore music also sounds like The Prodigy at times and I'm not sure how that happened but it's cool.   There are also moments of "Paranoid Android" era Radiohead which is just enough depth to make it so that you don't have to be ashamed to listen to this one.

Due to time restraints I am by no means saying that I'm going to go back and listen to every album by Enter Shikari but I am more likely to do that now than I was before I heard "The Mindsweep".     I'm actually also pretty likely to search for some live videos of Enter Shikari on YouTube now because I want to witness the sea of people moving in unison to the music.

Gunwaif "Arpega" [single]

 [[ Name Your Price Download // https://gunwaif.bandcamp.com/track/arpega ]]

We open with the sound of water and trap-clap banging type of noise.   Female vocals come out and there are some sort of screwed vocals being manipulated behind it as well.   There is a lot going on here, and when you dissect each individual layer I bet it still sounds good, but together, yeah, this is taking music to a whole new level.

Horns come in to bring out a reference to Cake and it feels like they did this whole song from start to finish then ran it through some machine in post production to have it chopped up.   Some instrumental bits now verge on this 8bit glass type of sound.    The horns come back but the trumpet more closely resembles a car horn now.

The water from the beginning seemed to stop with the singing, but now as we are nearing the end it has returned.   Perhaps we are merely pouring some out for our lost friends, but I have no idea.    This song is like listening to an entire album of songs layered over one another but without it sounding like shit.    You need to hear this song to truly understand what music is about.

Hyper Vigilance "Eat more medication demo tape"

[[$7 // Edition of 100 // https://hypervigilance.bandcamp.com/album/eat-more-medication-demo-tape  ]]

Whenever I see releases such as this I always want to try and figure out what the title means.   We're all medicated somehow, aren't we?  If you take Tylenol you're medicated on some level.    But this music implies something a little bit different and it's the type of medication you would hope it reaches- the psychotics.

On one side of this music are the beats.   It's not really electronic in that sense, as the beats are more of a thumping variety.   It's the pounding, the breaking... though there is a certain undeniable rhythm to it all.    Trapped behind this are vocals sceaming to get out.   Through static booms of doom these songs seem to be conflicted amongst themselves.

Equal parts Dana Fowler And The, dreamcrusher and I Like You, Go Home the music of Hyper Vigilance is electronic hardcore on paper but when you see that tag and think Atari Teenage Riot and the like that is really just not how this sounds at all.   it's that almost metal backing with a variation on electronica in front of it.

This music paints an image of a man in a straightjacket, locked inside a padded cell.  I like to think of The Joker or any number of other criminals in Gotham safely secure in Arkham Asylum.   The constant banging of the head against the door echoing through the empty halls reminds us all that we are at home.

Jonáš Gruska "Nočné oscilácie pre jedného" (LOM)

[[SOLD OUT // Edition of 10 // https://zvukolom.bandcamp.com/album/no-n-oscil-cie-pre-jedn-ho ]] 

On each of these four songs by Jonáš Gruska there is a distinct connection in the way that the songs are structured, yet they each have their own sound as well.    It reminds me of what would happen if an artist took a song like "Mary Had a Little Lamb" and played it on a guitar, then on a violin and so on with other string instruments.    They are all connected, yet they are not all the same.

The first track has these beeping whirrs to start things off and it sounds like the changing of frequencies.    This goes into a looping pattern which comes out with a kind of pinball game noise to it as well.    If I was listening to this on cassette or somehow not paying as close attention to Windows Media Player, I'd still hear the distinction into the second, quieter track whih is comprised more of blips and clicks like the drum machine of Phil Collins

As the second track grows in volume and tempo it gives way to the sound of glasses, really glass bottles being played as musical instruments.    We end with beeping, much like a hospital machine, which delivers sonic whirrs behind it and it almost has a sound where it could be in space.

There is guitar feedback almost out of nowhere, yet it flows so smoothly still, and then it turns into that hum of a drone and I feel that should be how it ends, as it would fade out as such but instead it gets this one last whoosh to lift us up before the end.    It's the sound of a toy whistle, maybe even a kazoo but in an electric sense.

The only way to get this cassette now is second hand but if I happen to see it out there in the cassette world I would be eager to try and get my hands on it.    Until then all we can really do is continue to download and listen to it from the Bandcamp page and then hope that one day maybe it will be pressed again.

WORKER/PARASITE "Proletariat EP" (Opal Tapes)

[[$8 // edition unknown //  https://workerparasite510.bandcamp.com/album/proletariat-ep]]

The first song on the "Proletariat EP" cuts like the whirr of a helicopter blade with static glitches mixed in.   The heavy noise reminds me of dreamcrusher on some levels and then it quickly changes into the second song.    "Bag of Beans" is a bit more upbeat, with beat loops and highhats added in as well.   There is something about the way that the tones sound, as if they're not proper drums and the such, but they do have a nice rhythm and overall electronic feel to them.

As the rest of this EP goes, the songs tend to lean towards the electronic side of things and really just seemed to have that glitch feel on the first song.    Sometimes there can be noises here and there that could be traced back to the original glitch, but for the most part this is electro-dancing fun.  
Hints of 8bit can come out towards the end and at one point there is a reoccurring whistle sound that is somewhat out of place.    I was so into the zone and focused when I was first listening to this that when the whistle noise came out I was looking around, wondering where that sound was coming from as it has that sort of smoke detector going off vibe to it.

This specific Bandcamp site gives no indication as to what this is an edition of exactly, but it does tell me that only eight remain at the time of my writing this which is why I went the digital route- there were so few copies left.   It was available from Opal Tapes originally but has since sold out there.  

So if you are not fortunate enough to get one of the last remaining copies of this cassette, it is still worth a listen either by downloading it or simply streaming.    The asking price for the cassette is $8, so if you're going to download it you should give the artist maybe four or five bucks so the music can continue to be made.

Additional Links: Opal Tapes // Opal Tapes Page for This Release