Skip to main content

DeVotchKa, This Night Falls Forever

DeVotchKa, This Night Falls Forever


The Colorado indie rock quartet launches full bore into arena rock without losing its eccentricities and if “chamber arena rock” is an oxymoron, it’s also fitting. DeVotchKa toured with a symphony a few years back and it stuck: almost every track includes a string section, which lends a grandeur to the already sweeping sound. The similarity between Nick Urata’s voice and Bono’s does nothing to diminish that — it’s not an identical voice but it often seems to resonate at the same precise emotional frequency. The Eastern European folk of DeVotchKa’s roots are not as audible here, but ethey still sound like a bunch idiosynratic indie kids, who slur their dipthongs and allow their imaginations to run free. Highlights: “Straight Shot,” “My Little Despot,” “Second Chance”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Richard Thompson, 13 Rivers

Richard Thompson ,  13 Rivers Richard Thompson — 13 Rivers Arguably the most consistently engaging artist of the last 50 years, Richard Thompson continues to write deep, dark folk-rock songs with an acerbic wit married to a soft, calm wisdom. This new album isn’t widely divergent from his established catalogue but miraculously Thompson, who was already a guitar hero in the 1970s, still manages to grow as a guitarist and sound fresh. Working highly intricate riffs into the undergirding of each song’s frame, he also solos on every song and as usual, his virtuosity remains connected to the music, always moving the songs forward rather than grandstanding. Plus, Thompson’s one of a kind voice only deepens in resonance over time. Highlights: “Trying,” “O Cinderella,” “Bones of Gilead”
Post a Comment
Read more

Jacob Banks, Village

Jacob Banks ,  Village With the British, Nigerian-born future soul singer’s full-length debut, Jason Banks discovers the point at which today’s forward-thinking alternative R&B comes full circle and connect with classic R&B. Banks’s arrangements are contemporary, much of his instrumentation electronic and advanced, and he makes relevant enough cultural references to blend in with the hip hop set. his voice, though, recalls the soul men of yore, with a mighty, stirring baritone of which he is in full command. His voice rings out with power and sensitivity in equal measure. Banks brings some fusion from outside R&B world too, with traces of reggae and African sounds. This one’s worth checking out even if you don’t think you like soul or R&B. Highlights: “Kumbaya,” “Caroline,” “Unknown (To You)”
Post a Comment
Read more

Czarface & MF Doom, Czarface Meets Metal Face

Czarface & MF Doom ,   Czarface Meets Metal Face A match made in comic book hip hop heaven, it’s easy enough to predict what happens when  Czarface Meets Metalface  and it’s even easier to love. Czarface, already a comics-inspired collaboration — between Wu Tang’s Inspectah deck and the Boston underground rap duo 7L & Esoteric — delivers top-notch, east coast, street level boop bap with densely packed rhymes. Supervillain-themed, iron mask-wearing MF Doom offers more abstract, cosmically minded lyrics but his flow is just as kinetic and his vibe is just as pulpy. The two acts commit hard to their fantastical ethos, playing the comics imagery to the hilt in both the songs and in the interludes. If you enjoy your cultural touchstones — musical and fictional — intersecting, this is a blast. Highlights: “Phantoms,” “Forever People,” “Astral Traveling”
Post a Comment
Read more