Talk Talk - New Grass (and maybe more to be Edited-In?)

Okay, I checked this piece out among a bunch of other Talk Talk tracks the last few days and I can claim this may be the 1st piece I am kind of "getting" from them.

It's not mind blowing or life-changing that I can tell to me, unlike many fans feeling about especially those last 3 Talk Talk albums; but it flows and it has enough of a nice Jazzy atmosphere that I follow the appeal without it dragging or seeming pretty boring (compared to many other pieces from Spirit of Eden and The Colour of Spring I have listened to).

Maybe Laughing Stock is the record that will work for me?

I dunno. I can see some of the better Sigur Ros work drawing from this.

I mean I don't expect to be grabbed by them suddenly like XTC did at 1 point for me, but I probably think giving more of their music more time could be worth it. Maybe even The Party's Over and It's My Life given they are more New Wave/80's Pop stylistically I guess.

Archive - Axiom [Album + Film] (2014)

5/26/15 9:38PM

Here's what I posted on Facebook a bit ago.

This new Archive record "Axiom" is really good. Wonderful atmosphere with the textures and heavy ambience. I think I already enjoy it more than their last LP. I want to find a way to see the film even more now.

Archive have impressed me again with this new Soundtrack/LP of theirs "Axiom". These guys continue to do great work and the music world have next to no idea who they are (for better or for worse).

I just hope I can find a way to see the film this soundtrack is for at some point.

Great record.  Not long, but long enough. The 10-minute instrumental track may be one of the best pieces the band has ever made. It's like Sigur Ros or something, in that it creates this mood that I could listen to for a lot long than the main theme goes for.

Is it an album of the year candidate? unlikely, but given this year has been pretty spotty, this record may find it's way pretty high on my year end write-up.





4/22/14 5:31AM
http://archiveofficial.com/

I didn't realize they had this coming, and coming so soon, although Archive are somewhat prolific, so it doesn't seem so surprising. This seems obviously, more in the soundtrack vein than anything else, and dark thematically. Regardless, it's a new Archive record and even a film that I'd like to check out if possible (given it's International, who knows how easily it'll be made available and when i.e...I could be sitting here a year or 2 from now and not been able to see it).

They just shared the video for "Distorted Angels" below, and there's a trailer of sorts on their website linked above.

May 12th is the release date per that website listed below.

edit: 1 of the trailers is also linked below.



We are delighted to be able to share with you the tracklisting and cover artwork for our next album Axiom. In contrast to previous albums Axiom consists of one continuous 40-minute piece of music that evolves through seven tracks: 

“Distorted Angels”
“Axiom”
“Baptism”
“Transmission Data Terminate” 
“The Noise of Flames Crashing”
“Shiver”
“Axiom (Reprise)”.

“Recording the bells at Greenwich church certainly set the ball rolling to what became Axiom,” recalls Darius.
“I'm not a hundred per cent sure what I had in mind when I decided we should record the bells, but I just felt it would be important somehow in the genesis of the new record. The music came first; the album was written seamlessly, with one idea falling into another, one singer falling into another. It's a musical journey with a clear beginning and end, but you can certainly pull out six parts that could be distinguished as songs."

The central theme of the bells was the starting point in creating ‘Axiom The Film’. NYSU director Jesus Hernandez:
“We saw our role as composers of a kind of visual soundtrack for the music. Our challenge was to translate the band's script into images”


'Axiom' the film will receive it's world premier at the London Sundance Film Festival on Friday 25th April. General tickets, which include the film screening and admission to our Brooklyn Bowl gig, go on-sale at 9am tomorrow and can be purchased here:
http://www.sundance-london.com/ 

We will then perform the album live to accompany the film at a one-off worldwide exclusive performance at the London Roundhouse on 29th May. This will be our biggest UK show to date, following sold-out shows in the capital last year at Heaven and KOKO, so make sure you are there to share this event with us. 
http://www.gigsandtours.com/event/archive/roundhouse/750745


The film will also be shown in 5.1 surround sound in select cinemas across Europe to coincide with the album’s release. Both album and film will be released worldwide on the band’s own Dangervisit label (through PIAS/Cooperative Music) on 12th May.

Sigur Rós - Kveikur (2013)

1 Brennisteinn
2 Hrafntinna
3 Ísjaki
4 Yfirborð
5 Stormur
6 Kveikur
7 Rafstraumur
8 Bláþráður
9 Var

Drop date is June 17th.

The song in the video below, which is the opening track, the last 3 minutes are pretty sweet. But the 1st 4:40+, some of the comments about this *new* direction for them, which I interpret as them more or less combining shoegaze and industrial sounds, being a good *new* direction, I can't say I agree with.

But then again, Valtari and I'd estimate most of what they've done since () has been somewhat predictable and underwhelming. Sans for the Heima film, although that was more of the film itself, rather than the music alone.

However, with another new record, these guys are getting rather prolific, along with Jonsi solo record a few years ago, I wonder if they are suffering a bit from the The Flower Kings/Omar Rodriguez-Lopez disease in that just because you've written and recorded music, doesn't necessarily mean it's the best work you can make right now. I.e., maybe they could use a (new/outside) producer?

Someone like Rick Rubin or Brian Eno perhaps?

Anyway, I'll hopefully get to check this out, although I said the same about Valtari last year, and I maybe listened to it twice. And I actually spent even more time listening to music last year, as opposed to this year thus far, I have not spent even 2/3 the amount of time with new music sadly, yet.

Sigur Rós - Valtari (2012)

Ég Anda (“I Breathe”)
Ekki Múkk (“Not a Peep”)
Varúð (“Caution”)
Rembihnútur (“Double Knot”)
Dauðalogn (“Dead Calm”)
Varðeldur (“Campfire”)
Valtari (“Roller”)

their homepage here has "Ekki Múkk (Not a Peep)" streamable


Sigur Rós - Ekki múkk from Sigur Rós on Vimeo.

Release date is May 28th.

Jonsi has been rather prolific in recent years, along with the band. I recall posting before how I've always liked them, but at the same time, never found them addictive. Although I think the Hipsters have overrated them a bit in recent years. Their last record was okay at best. Takk was a little better. And those last two definitely aren't at the same level as () and Ágætis byrjun.

Plus the soundtrack Inni last year which I honestly never got around to hearing, nor seeing sadly. It was at St. Anthony Main for only 1 week and I wanted to go, but the timing didn't allow me to.

I expect the Hipsters to claim this better than anything in 2012, at least for awhile, which sadly, may end up detracting from my interest. But maybe this one will be an exception.

link

Sigur Ros have announced full details of their new studio album 'Valtari', which will be released in May.

The Icelandic band, who have now returned from an ''indefinite hiatus'', will release the follow-up to 2008's 'Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust' on May 28.

The record contains a total of seven tracks, with the band yet to state whether they will be releasing any songs ahead of the album's full release.

Sigur Ros will play their first UK show for four years at this summer's Bestival in September. They are also booked for festivals in Canada, France, Japan and Ireland.

Bestival will take place from September 6–9 at Robin Hill Park on the Isle Of Wight. For more information about the event, see Bestival.net. New Order and Stevie Wonder will headline the festival.

Sigur Ros' last release was 'Inni', a concert film and live album, which came out in November. It documented the group's final two shows of their last world at London's Alexandra Palace.

Sigur Rós - Inni (2011?)

embeded video removed (it kept forcing your browser to load it's actual page, i.e. going away from this page).



link

just passing this along. Sigur Rós, a band who I highly respect, but have never found to be addictive. Perhaps they'll make something soon I will, or just hearing this new record could change my feeling about their other work, some of which I do find pretty breathtaking (namely the documentary DVD Heima).