Localretard-Media » Featured Review http://www.localretard.com Tue, 13 Apr 2010 03:43:28 +0000 en hourly 1 Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion http://www.localretard.com/featured-review/animal-collective-merriweather-post-pavilion http://www.localretard.com/featured-review/animal-collective-merriweather-post-pavilion#comments Thu, 22 Jan 2009 19:14:24 +0000 localretard http://www.localretard.com/?p=266 AC-MPP
I’ve only recently gotten into Animal Collective, so I decided to try out their newest album and start backwards. Merriweather Post Pavilion is a good LP, simply because it catches your attention very quickly. I can see this album being on MANY top ten lists.

Having listened to their back catalog recently as well, it is apparent that Animal Collective decided to go the more euphoric route with this album. Many artist have done this same routine the past year, including Panda Bear (the band not the member of Animal Collective), The Octopus Project, and Deerhunter. Not to say it’s a bad thing, because I believe it works. Hardcore fans complain that it’s not the Animal Collective they know though. If there is one thing I learned about music is that it is very subjective and never constant. Artists will change and grow up…music is truly the ever evolving organism. Get used to it because it happens to the best of them.

Now off of that rant, back to the music. The line up on this album is quite good because they put their catchiest songs both in the beginning and at the end to hook you. Quite clever Animal Collective.

Be sure to take a listen to this album because it might surprise you. If your a fan of MGMT, Grizzly Bear, or The Mars Volta…you should check these guys out.

5 Tracks to listen to:
- In The Flowers
- My Girls
- Summertime Clothes
- No More Runnin
- Brothersport

]]> http://www.localretard.com/featured-review/animal-collective-merriweather-post-pavilion/feed 0 The Books – The Lemon of Pink http://www.localretard.com/featured-review/the-books-the-lemon-of-pink http://www.localretard.com/featured-review/the-books-the-lemon-of-pink#comments Sun, 30 Nov 2008 04:46:33 +0000 localretard http://www.localretard.com/?p=6
The Books may not sound like a familiar name, but I’m fairly certain you’ve heard their music. “That Right Ain’t Shit” was used as the soundtrack in an advertisement for a Hummer vehicle, and “Tokyo” was used in a commercial to spread awareness about HIV. So they are fairly well known considering Nick Drake gain some notoriety the same way (a song was featured in a Volkswagen commercial). The Books are an experimental, aleatory, folk band from New York, who use sound bytes heavily in their music. The founders and consistent members are Nick Zammuto and Paul de Jon, who founded the band in 2000. “The Lemon of Pink” is the second album in their discography.

First off you guys should know “The Lemon of Pink” is a very short album, clocking in at roughly 37 minutes. That being the only downside, to me, because it leaves you wanting more of it’s weirdly enchanting, off key banjo and raspy voiced goddess, that sings with the passion of Janis Joplin, and that’s just the intro song. Many of you probably don’t know what aleatory music is, please allow me to explain, it means that the overall general path of the music is set but the details are left up to chance. This has been around as early as the 15th century, but didn’t gain popular precedent until the 1950′s.

The Books are a very interesting band that have kept me appeased throughout their discography. My only regret is I didn’t hear about them earlier, because then I may have gotten a chance to see them live. There are rumors that they will not be recording another album…let’s hope that not true.

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