Com Truise - Galactic Melt

Let me say first that I hate the term "chillwave". For about a year or so now everyone in the music blog community has been arguing over whether or not this is a genre. Some say it is, but it's just a trend that will/is fading fast. Others think it is and absolutely love it, calling themselves "chillwavers". Then there are people more like me who don't see the point in arguing over genre tags instead of just listening to the music and deciding whether or not you like it based on, yaknow, what it sounds like. The only reason I go into genres on here is for other people's benefit and because to properly review it I need to give an idea of what something sounds like. For those that don't know chillwave, if it is a genre, is basically electronic music with heavy heavy use of effects, synthesizers, looping, etc. People draw similarities to synth pop and new wave from the 80's, just more modern sounding.
Anyways, now to talk about the actual album. Com Truise, despite having a name that I assume is specifically designed to annoy those with OCD and dyslexia, is a new persona of a man named Seth Haley, who apparently has many personas. I've never heard his music before and this is my first go, so I'm not going to try and go into much detail. The music here is something that makes me think of the 80's version of Tron. That's basically the mood here. I wouldn't really call it upbeat but it's not negative either. I think it's safe to say that this guy really really likes his synthesizers. This album is from what I can tell, 100% electronic. Anything that isn't electronic is probably sampled and then put through so many effects that it no longer sounds organic in the least. Which isn't always a problem, a lot of electronic subgenres that I like do things like that. However here everything just feels kind of... smudged. The album cover is kind of appropriate in showing how it feels. It seems like what this guy might do is make basic outlines of his song, then just wipe his hand through it and smudge it. Which sounds like it could be really appealing, but to me it isn't. There are a lot of moments I like here but then things will just go all out and blur together so much that it just kind of gives me a headache. There are times where there's just too much synth going on all at once and it just buries any sort of appeal in it for me. I love electronic music, and I love synth, but I've found that it's rare for that "wall of sound" effect to work well with it. The production here most the time turns pretty much all of the many layers all the way up, and you can feel the beat shaking but other than that all you can think is "OH MY GOD SYYYYYYYNTH". You get drowned in it, instead of being able to swim in it. It's kind of how I feel about some heavier noise rock bands, but in an electronic context. Which I realize some people really like that feeling. If you do, then disregard what I've said. But it's just not for me.
I'm a big lover of a lot of things that influence this album. I love my 80's synthpop, IDM, etc. But I think what this album is missing is a genuine feeling. It feels too random to me. Like he had the base figures of really good electronic songs, but then just added so much to it it lost all it's feeling. Kind of like when you over edit a piece of writing or a speech or something. But this might appeal to you if you really like loud, in your face, wall of sound type music and also like yourself some synth. However I haven't seen that line blur too much. There are appealing electronics here, and some moments where I feel like what I'm asking for is being achieved, but they are brief and not too dominant here. If you like electronic a lot and my complaints don't seem like they would bother you all that much, go ahead and give the link I provided at the bottom a try. If it appeals to you, then you'll like this album.

2/5

Favorites: Air Cal, Broken Date
Listen (samples of all songs): http://ghostly.com/releases/galactic-melt

Wild Beasts - Smother

This is one of those occasions where I feel like I'm really late on the bandwagon. Wild Beasts are a four-piece "indie" group from England that have been causing a bit of a buzz lately. I didn't hear of them until this album, but apparently they've been around since about 2002. However this is only their third full length LP, following two very well received predecessors from 2008 and 2009. And although this is my first time hearing one of their albums in their entirety, I've heard some of their earlier works for the sake of this review and their sound has definitely been evolving.
Smother isn't too much of a departure from their sound, but I'd say it's definitely a departure in mood. Their first two albums seemed much more playful, where as this one seems almost sinister, but in a very sexual way. Just about every song and all the lyrics on this album are about sexual desire. And normally for me that would get boring after a bit. Don't get me wrong, I like my sexy songs, but unless you change it up and manage to keep it genuine or put an interesting twist on it I will get sick of it. But thankfully this album steers from that, in my opinion. The music itself and the way it's presented is itself seductive, but strange. When the first song "Lion's Share" comes on (if you're not familiar with Wild Beasts) it will no doubt seem strange to you, the vocals and lyrics in particularly and probably even put you off. However as things go on it quickly is very appealing and very addicting, and the second you let your guard down it just grabs you. For me it was a very fitting experience with the context of the album. Because that's just how seduction works. It takes you by surprise and, if it's tricks work, you're sucked in and you're stuck. Within the first couple songs it's performing it's mating dance for you, and then you either stay excited and wanting more, or leaving annoyed and put off. And if you stay wanting more, I can tell you you'll be quite satisfied with what you get.
I had a bit of trouble on how to tag the genres of this album. It has elements of indie, I suppose, and it's influenced by quite a bit of electronics, but I really don't like putting it under either of those blanket terms. A lot of people are calling it "dream pop", which I've had little experience in, so I'm not too sure if that's what you'd call it or not. But it is very dream like, and it does have pop moments, so why not. However I think production wise this probably doesn't fit in with any of those. The production is very clean, little to no reverb whatsoever, which in my opinion is refreshing because sooooo many lately have just been drowning themselves in reverb, no matter what genre they are. I like reverb sometimes but lately I've been getting so sick of it that this is incredibly refreshing. However this album, the vocals in particular, can be kind of hard to swallow. There are two vocalists, Hayden Thorpe, and Tom Fleming. The former singing in a falsetto that seems almost alien like vocals, that can be really off putting at first but you either grow used to it and start to love it very quickly or you'll go in the entirely opposite direction just as fast. The latter however, while being by no means a baritone, has a deeper voice and sings in his own strange way that sounds almost... throatless? I have no idea how else to describe it. Kind of how you sound after you've finally gotten over a terrible cold you had for like a week and your nasal passages are clean for the first time in so long. Something like that. Anyways, in my opinion Tom's vocals don't bring as much to the plate as Hayden's do, and the tracks where he's leading are probably my least favorites, but at the same time I think that without that dynamic there this album wouldn't be quite as appealing. As for the instrumentation, it's incredibly cerebral. There's a lot of percussion going on, and very beat orientated tracks with the vocals leading the way most of the time. And while there are lots of guitar and bass things going on their less in the foreground than you'd maybe expect. Then with the production there are a lot of subtleties going on that compliment the instrumentation and give it more of that other worldly feeling. None of these songs are particularly upbeat either, but not sad either. They fit the content of the song meanings very well though, and on songs like "Plaything" and "Lion's Share" they are appropriately inviting, but in almost a suspicious way. And songs like "Bed of Nails" and "Albatross" give almost a feeling of yearning, just like the songs. Like a desire you can't have, or desiring something that you used to have.
I don't have any particularly big gripes with this album, honestly. However I can say there are some short, rare moments where I might lose interest in the song, although it's usually very brief. It's just there are a few songs in here that at times feel they start to kind of lose themselves and you want it to have some sort of major shift to grab you back. For me these moments mainly occur on the tracks that Tom is taking the lead vocals, which might be my main problem. Others might find his additions more interesting than I do, but this gripe is really the only one that I have and other than that I can say this album has got me completely addicted to it's ethereal take on desire. This album has quite a few tracks that I absolutely love and the rest fall just under that.
I would suggest this to anyone that likes some odd music, or seductive music. However if you're really picky on your vocals, or really cynical about them, you probably will be put off. But I highly recommend you listen to a song or two, because that should immediately tell you whether or not this is your thing. What do you have to lose besides a few minutes? I can see some people really not liking this sort of thing, but those that do will likely fall in love with it. Give it a shot.

4.5/5

Favorites: Bed of Nails, Albatross, Plaything
Listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUJYqhKZrwA

Starfucker - Reptilian

Starfucker is a Portland based electronic band that formed in 2007, and since then have made lots of waves in the local area. I myself living in Oregon have experienced a lot of that hype, and since their first album with Polyvinyl records came out in March they've been grabbing quite a bit of attention not just in the local community. Don't let their immature name get to you.
Simply put, this is a very summery feel good album. These songs are upbeat and danceable, pop even, but I also think that fans of pure electronic could find themselves getting into this. The production is great, far better than I expected since I'm so used to seeing them as a low budget local band. However all the sounds here are very clean, and you can hear all of what's going on without it feeling like the instruments are fighting over who's going to get the spotlight. The vocals aren't really stand out here, not like usual bands at least. They're hidden under a bit of reverb, which can bug me personally sometimes but here it goes with the music pretty well and makes the vocal more of another layer of instrumentation to enjoy than something to latch onto like a vocal. You hardly notice the lyrics, but I don't think that's a problem. There isn't really lyrical genius going on here, that isn't the point of the music. It's simple and fun. Some of the songs on here I can easily get up and dance to, like Julius and Bury Us Alive. Others I can see myself playing retro games to, like The White of Noon and Mystery Cloud. So you get enough variety when it comes to atmosphere, while not getting much with mood. Usually I like albums that take you on a journey, so to speak. Here you're not really getting that, however what it does very well in my opinion is capture a single moment in time, a mood and a feeling, one of ethereal happiness and exploration of your imagination.
Now I do have a few minor issues with this album. First of all there are some tracks with intros and outros with some sample of a guy talking, and it just kind of takes me out of the experience and I find myself wanting to fast forward through it. I'm not sure where this sample comes from or what he's saying, I honestly don't pay attention, but it kind of gives me the same vibe as Carl Sagan's videos, which in contrast with the mood this album puts you in is just a weird combination. Now this might just be a personal gripe, I've always been annoyed with just dead pan talking thrown into tracks where the rest is singing. It's not a huge deal though. When it does happen it's not for long, and it's only a few times through the album, so I can look past that. However there are some songs on this album, particularly in the middle, that I find myself getting distracted on. They don't hold my attention and excitement as well as the others. They aren't bad, but I find myself waiting for the next stand-out track. These are small issues and as a whole I really enjoyed this album.

So in conclusion, this album is great for electronic and dance pop fans alike, and would be excellent to put on your stereo for summer of 2011. It's simple, it's upbeat, it's fun, I think with this album they're really starting to claw their way to the big leagues, and I can't wait to see what comes next from them.

3.5/5
Favorite tracks: Julius, Bury Us Alive, The White of Noon