Summer has come to a close, and now it is back to the books.
Thankfully this past season left us with a copious amount of quality new music to carry us through all of the upcoming late nights in Payson. In no particular order, I have chosen just five of what I believe to be the most noteworthy albums of summer 2011.
Psychedelic rockers, Portugal. The Man truly glam up their beats in their newest album “In the Mountain in the Cloud.” Alaskan natives, all now currently based in Oregon, have truly grown in popularity since their start as a band in 2004 and are now signed with Atlantic Records. These 11 new tracks are reminiscent of vintage glam-rock ballads sung in the ’70s when the hair was big and the glitter was aplenty in the music scene. The quartet’s lead singer, John Gourley, screeches and coos, filling the air with emotion in songs such as “So American,” using his lyrics to remind us “there’s a madness in us all.”
Ernest Greene, more popularly known by his stage name Washed Out, has left the bedroom studio and MySpace world and signed with Sub Pop Records before his summer release of his debut album, “Within and Without.” This LP defines the chillwave genre of music with all of the synthesizers and broken up electronic sounds. The album is filled with cracking snares and bold drumbeats on most of the songs, and my personal favorite is the chilling cello on “Far Away.” This nine-track debut album is an ethereal synthpop masterpiece that is a solid beginning for this upcoming new artist.
It was only five years ago that American indie folk singer-songwriter Justin Vernon formed Bon Iver. This past summer, the self-titled album “Bon Iver” was released to the public. This 10-song album is an ambitious musical change from the first album, “For Emma, Forever Ago.” Vernon has been quoted saying that each song on this album represents a place, and he recorded each of these songs in a remolded veterinarian clinic in Fall Creek, Wisconsin. This album allows listeners to escape whatever their current situation in reality is and enter into a surreal state of mind and tap into their own deepest thoughts. Vernon creates a thought-provoking journey with his comforting voice, peaceful guitar riffs and ethereal musical tones on each and every track.
Founded in 2002 in New York City, the American experimental rock group Battles dropped their second album, “Gloss Drop,” this past summer. The trio paired up with notable artists such as Gary Numan, Kazu Makino and Yamantaka Eye to create their funky track listing of their newest LP when their original lead vocalist, Tyondai Braxton, left the group for good after recording their first album, “Mirrored.” With their front man out of the picture, Battles went a different direction from “Mirrored” when they created “Glass Drop” and started slowing their roll a little on their beats making the album a bit more of an easy going groove. Sure, songs on the album such as “Ice Cream” still contain a true disco rhythm that has the possibility of making your face fall off if you get too into the beat. With this album in its entirety, Battles seems to have found a good balance of funky fresh and melodic rock tunes without steering too far from their first album.
Yes, the Beastie Boys are still together and making music that can seriously blow your mind. It is hard to believe that Mike D, MCA and Ad-Rock not only are still very much alive and well but they are still creating as high-quality songs as they were all the way back in 1979 when these three rappers got together. “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two” was the perfect summer album to start off the season, and this album will continue to be one of my personal favorite albums to listen to while driving. This new album is a thicker, more intense sounding Beastie Boys than was previously heard on albums such as “Check Your Head” and “III Communication.” “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two” combines live instrumentals and samples with simpler beats and very upfront vocals. The vocals of this album are heavy on the sound effects as well as on the distortion and EG which gives their sound a much edgier noise. The Beastie Boys are an unstoppable trio that deserves to be heard by all.
Obviously there are a number of albums that came out this summer that I sadly did not touch on. Some albums that I would personally suggest looking into on your own time would be “Feel it Break” by Austra, “Helplessness Blues” by Fleet Foxes, “Simple Math” by Manchester Orchestra, “The Moonlight Butterfly” by The Sea and Cake, “Circuital” by My Morning Jacket, “It’s All True” by Junior Boys and “Suck It and See” by Arctic Monkeys.
