Some great releases in the last couple of months

Let me first say that I like a little time to digest my music, so posting a disc of the week doesn't seem too appealing to me, I'd rather post my disc of last week, or maybe in this case, last month.

First up: Cryptacize - Mythomania. I've been a fan of Chris Cohen's refined pop sensibilities since his days in Deerhoof (you know all those soft, ambiguously moody songs off the Runners Four? Those are his.) But I think this record tops any of Chris' post-Deerhoof output, edging out The Curtain's 2006 record Calamity, and the slightly-disappointing-but-still-pretty-damn-good first Cryptacize record, Dig that Treasure. Where those two previous albums are a bit guilty of half baked ideas (how ever great those ideas may be), this (Mythomania) is an album of very complete, fully conceptualized pop songs. The songs at first seem simple: the kind of song you'd write in an afternoon, but don't be deceived, these are songs that smell of sweat and perseverance. There's an incredible attention to detail here, without giving up any of its natural swagger. CD$17 LP $18

Second: John Maus - Love is Real. Love is Real may be a 2007 record, but I'd never heard of the guy until last week (and since I'm willing to bet that 98% of you have never heard of him either, I feel comfortable including him in this week's picks) He's been a long time member of Ariel Pink's band, Haunted Grafitti. CMJ wrote this about him back in 2006: "It took this Ariel Pink cohort five years to write and record his debut album, and only five minutes to become more annoying than Ariel Pink." I happen to think that Ariel Pink is amazing, but am perhaps willing concede that he's maybe a little annoying, or at least I could see why someone could find him annoying. But if Ariel Pink is annoying, I think that John Maus is definitely less annoying. He's more polished, and less grating. But this sounds like faint praise, this is a great set of songs, and I recommend it highly. CD $17 LP $22

Third: Reiko & Tori Kudo - Light. This cd only release comes in a beautiful cardboard package with art cards. Reiko and Tori Kudo are a husband and wife team that front the wonderful Japanese band Maher Shalal Hash Baz. This recording stays away from the band format, relying heavily on Reiko's piano. Like most of their output, this is beautiful, strange music. CD $18

Fourth: Group Doueh - Treeg Salaam. The second Group Doueh release on Sublime Frequencies. If you're familiar with the first record, you're in for more of the same: noisy, distorted guitars playing infectious North-African dance music. LP $27 ...also, Omar Souleyman - Highway to Hassake 2LP $32

Egyptian Light Orchestra

If you bought tickets for the Egyptian Light Orchestra show that was postponed, and decided to hold on to your tickets, the show has been rescheduled for July 8th at the Sala Rosa.

Carrot Ocarina

This guy is amazing, he seem to devote much of his time to creating musical instruments with vegetables, including a many kinds of ocarinas (carrots, mushrooms) and a cucumber trumpet, you can check them all out on youtube. Anyway, this is my favorite of his instruments, it's the carrot ocarina (slide type).

New Grizzly Bear - Back in Stock

... and Animal Collective - Feels LP reissue, and two Sublime Frequencies titles on vinyl should be in tomorrow (if not, then Tuesday... Omar Souleyman!!!)

Bach is like Bluegrass...

... or traditional jazz: to someone who hasn't devoted a lot of time to listening, it won't take much time before it all begins to sound the same. It takes some listening time to appreciate the subtleties of the music.

A couple of years ago, I had a bit of a traumatic time, and found myself listening almost exclusively to Bach. I don't know what it was, maybe the extreme sense of organization, or the complexity buried within simplicity.

I find myself drawn to the keyboard music of Bach. I know I'm not the only one, looking through dollar bins at various stores, beautiful old recordings of Bach's cantatas are as easy to find as Hall & Oates. I guess orchestration is an older equivalent of production (or over-production): it tends to date things. A guitar and voice recorded with a single mic will always sound classic, regardless of content, when compared to extravagant productions that will easily give away the era of the recording. I guess that this is a round about way of saying that the imposed simplicity of Bach's keyboard music leave these recordings (and pieces) sounding more timeless.

The other thing that I notice as a record store owner, is that the only Bach that anyone seems to want to buy is Glenn Gould's recordings. Perhaps it's Gould's status as an eccentric, and pharmaceutical drug addict, but I think that it's a mistake to ignore other recordings. Not to take away from Gould's legacy, I think, for instance, that his first recording of the Goldberg Variations is a beautiful, fiery recording that deserves every bit of its legendary status. But here are a couple of reasons to consider other recordings:

1. Gould recorded exclusively on piano (the only exception to this that I know is his recording of The Art of Fugue on organ), and besides the obvious observation that the piano wasn't around in Bach's lifetime and that he didn't compose for the instrument, I would suggest that piano isn't really an ideal instrument for Bach. The keyboard instruments in Bach's time (harpsichord, clavier and organ) didn't have the ability to convey dynamics (the note was on or off, and couldn't be played loudly or softly). The advent of the piano's dynamic range eventually gave birth to the Romantic era of classical music. I feel that the piano is far more appropriate an instrument for say Chopin's emotive immediacy. Bach's music is emotionally distant, and deserves an equally distant performance.

2. Gould's performances of Bach were much faster in tempo than most of his predecessors'. He had a lot of technical prowess and didn't mind showing it off. And as a result of his obvious influence on other pianists, the accepted tempos to play Bach became faster and more frantic. I prefer a more measured approach to Bach.

I'd suggest listening to recordings by Gustav Leonhardt on harsichord or clavier, or Sviatoslav Richter on piano (yes, he plays piano, but definitely practices the more measured approach I was talking about.) And I'd suggest the following pieces as good places to start: Goldberg Variations, Well-tempered Clavier (especially Book 2), The Musical Offering, and The Art of Fugue.

Four great new local releases!

Tune-Yards - Bird Brains (Marriage) LP $12






Clues - S/T (Constellation) CD $14 LP $17






Think About Life - Family (Alien8) CD $13






Elfin Saddle - Ringing for the Begin Again (Constellation) CD $14 LP $17

Julie at Phonopolis