Anathallo Canopy Glow

Anathallo has more to do with musical theater than rock ’n’ roll. This equation works for some folks–Sufjan Stevens comes to mine, as does The Polyphonic Spree. And, in fact, Canopy Glow is crammed with the same syrupy horn and string arrangements–the same bubbly, yet bittersweet harmonies–that made Sufjan’s Illinoise so affecting. Yet, unlike some of their peers, Anathallo’s sophomore effort feels over-written and over-processed–sexless. Tracks like “John J. Audubon” and “Bells” are jam-packed with melody, yet bereft of hooks. There’s nothing to hold on to. Minor miracles appear here and there–Erica Froman’s ghostly harmonies opening “All the First Pages,” the tart cello darting through “The River”’s mid-section. But for music of such density, Canopy Glow doesn’t leave much of an impression.

Alva Noto Unitxt

Carsten Nicolai (a.k.a. Alva Noto) fueled the stereotype that “glitch” techno was as exciting as listening to a CPU save a file. Why the hell didn’t he release records like this eight years ago? The first half of Unitxt brilliantly melds the rhythms of hip-hop and fax machines into a mechanical funk that so many artists failed to screw together. Nicolai merely uses scrapes of static, kick drums, and bleeps that dart between the stereo speakers as deftly proven on “U_08-1.” Sadly, Nicolai’s lofty concepts later sink the album when he converts digital graphic files into sound. The idea of literally making music from images is striking, but the results are painful: 15 tracks of squealing, modem-like noises that punch the ear. Unforgivable.

The 12 Days of Christmas, Day 2

Each December, the XLR8R staff takes a few minutes every morning to spout off about what we’d like to see wrapped up and under the tree come December 25. Today, XLR8R.com scribe Maverick Newberry is looking to score–with a Score! 20 Years of Merge Records subscription, that is.

I fucking hate snail mail.

Honestly, I venture down to the mail room of my apartment building about once every two weeks, only to open the little silver door and see a tidal wave of credit card offers, donation requests from religious nuts, and coupons for Big Lots land at my feet. I was thinking the other day that if I could have any Christmas wish fulfilled, it would be that something worthwhile comes through the post once in a while. Then, like she’d read my mind or something, my co-worker told me about Score!, and she wasn’t talking about cruising the local dive up the street–or the porn mag of the same name.

Score! Merge Records: The First 20 Years is Merge’s forthcoming subscription package honoring the label’s 20th anniversary (duh) that comes with 14 different compilations, to be mailed out over the course of 2009. Call it a box set on steroids.

Besides the compilations–containing tracks from the Merge catalog curated by the likes of David Byrne, Jonathan Lethem, Miranda July, and a bunch of others–a subscription includes the Merge Remix CD (reinterpretations of Merge songs by Jason Forrest, Battles, Junior Boys, and others), a Merge Covers CD (non-Merge artists covering Merge artists), a 350-plus-page book of every Merge record cover ever made, a Scharpling and Wurster comedy CD, and a big box in which to store everything. Basically you’re getting a shit-ton of music and artwork hand-delivered to your door that you’re not going to find in most places (like, you wouldn’t find it at Big Lots, for instance). Definitely worth trudging down to the mail room for.

MSRP: $199
Score! Merge Records: The First 20 Years subscriptions are available through January 1, 2009.

Day 1: Keurig Platinum B70 single-cup coffeemaker
Day 2: Score! Merge Records: The First 20 Years
Day 3: Low Self-Esteem by Katie West
Day 4: New Balance 420 and PF Flyers’ Number 5
Day 5: Essential Art House: 50 Years of Janus Films
Day 6: Kenwood TT756SL 2-Slice Radio Toaster
Day 7: The Ghostly Box
Day 8: Pentax SMC DA* Series 16-50mm F2.8 and 50-135mm F2.8 DSLR lenses

Heavenly Creatures

Jeremy Jay‘s sophomore full-length is slated for release sometime next year, but while he puts the finishing touches on that, he’s given us this video for the song “Heavenly Creatures,” off his debut album, A Place Where We Could Go. Journey with the indie-pop troubadour through wooded pathways and forests that look fit for the set of a lovey-dovey period film–appropriate, since Jay’s music is often concerned with romantics.

Paco Osuna “Mindacid”

Though he’s yet to unveil a proper artist album, Paco Osuna has plenty of minimal techno for us to enjoy, including remixes for Richie Hawtin, the Orbeat EP, and tracks like this one. If you can’t translate the extensive biography on his MySpace page that’s written entirely in Spanish (or if you’re too lazy to bother), we’ve done the biographical legwork for you over in our Artist To Watch feature.

Paco Osuna – Mindacid

RZA Report: Album, Tour, Film

Someone’s got a busy year ahead of him. DJ, producer, and de facto Wu-Tang leader RZA will release a new album, tour, and also put his acting skills to good use in 2009.

Afro Samurai: The Resurrection will drop January 27. It’s the second soundtrack to Spike TV’s animated show of the same name, for which RZA collaborated with the likes of Sly Stone, Rah Digga, Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s son Boy Jones, and others, which makes the album something of a who’s-who in hip-hop.

RZA’s been known to take the occasional acting gig as well, and he’ll be making an appearance alongside Seth Rogan, Leslie Mann, and Adam Sandler in Judd Apatow’s Funny People, set to hit theaters in Summer 2009.

Lastly, he’ll hit the road tonight for a tour with the Wu-Tang Clan, performing in U.S. cities through mid-January.

Afro Samurai: The Resurrection
01 Combat (Afro Season II Open Theme) feat. RZA, P. Dot
02 You Already Know feat. Kool G Rap, Inspectah Deck, Suga Bang
03 Blood Thicker Than Mud “Family Affair” feat. Reverand William Burke, Sly Stone, Stone Mecca
04 Whar feat. Kool G Rap, Ghostface Killah, Tash Mahogany, RZA
05 Girl Samurai Lullaby feat. Rah Digga, Stone Mecca
06 Fight for You feat. Thea Van Seijen
07 Bitch Gonna Get Ya’ feat. Rah Digga
08 Bloody Days Bloody Nights feat. Prodgical Sunn, Thea Van Siejen
09 Kill Kill Kill feat. Rugged Monk
10 Nappy Afro feat. Boy Jones
11 Bloody Samurai feat. Black Knights, Dexter Wiggles, Thea Van Seijen
12 Dead Birds feat. Killah Priest, Prodgical Sunn, Shavo
13 Arch Nemesis feat. Ace, Moe Rock
14 Brother’s Keeper feat. Reverand William Burke, The RZA; Infinite
15 Yellow Jackets feat. Ace, Moe Rock
16 Take the Sword pt. III feat. 60 Second Assassin, Leggezin; Crisi, Christ Bearer, Rugged Monk, Tré Irie, Kinetic, Reverand William Burks, Bobby Digital
17 Number One Samurai (Afro Season II Outro) – The RZA ; 9th Prince

Dates:
12/10 Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
12/11 Fort Collins, CO – Aggie Theater
12/14 Chicago, IL – House of Blues
12/15 Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
12/17 Cleveland, OH – House of Blues
12/18 Rochester, NY – Main Street Armory
12/19 Philadelphia, PA – The Trocadero Theatre
12/20 New Haven, CT – Toad’s Place
12/21 Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
12/23 New York, NY – Hammerstein Ballroom
12/27 Lancaster, PA – Chameleon
12/31 Baltimore, MD – Sonar
01/01 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
01/02 Providnence, RI – Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel
01/04 South Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
01/07 Norfolk, VA – The Norva
01/08 Richmond, VA – Toad’s Place Richmond
01/09 Greensboro, NC – The N Club and Red Room
01/10 Charleston, SC – The Music Farm
01/11 Charlotte, NC – Amo’s Southend
01/12 Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre
01/13 Columbia, SC – Level

Photo by Josh McNey.

Salem “When U Sleep”

Salem recently dropped the Water EP on Merok Records, and the Michigan-based trio had its drum machine close at hand for the release. Irregular rhythms made by numerous percussion sounds dominate the EP, which marks the trio’s U.K. debut. Of course it wouldn’t be a Salem track without some haunting, incomprehensible vocals and a ghostly string section, both of which the band provides on this track.

Salem-When U Sleep

Fucked Up Plans 2009 Tour

Toronto’s finest hardcore punk outfit, Fucked Up, has just unveiled a long list of tour dates slated to begin January 16 in Ottawa. The band, presumably set to play material from its 2008 album, The Chemistry of Common Life, will be joined at various stops by the Vivian Girls, Pissed Jeans, Mika Miko, and others.

Fucked Up recently praised No Age and lamented over the fact that Metallica is still around on XLR8R‘s ongoing Best of 2008 series. Read their full rant here.

01/16 Ottawa, Ontario – Maverick’s
01/17 Montreal, Quebec – La Sala Rossa*
01/18 Portland, ME – SPACE Gallery
01/19 Cambridge, MA – Middle East (Upstairs)
01/20 Brooklyn, NY – Danbro Warehouse^
01/21 Philadelphia, PA – Kung Fu Necktie
01/22 Baltimore, MD – Talking Head
01/23 Charlottesville, VA – Outback Lodge+
01/24 Charlotte, NC – Milestone
01/25 Atlanta, GA – The Earl†
01/27 Gainesville, FL – Sluggo’s#
01/28 Pensacola, FL – Engine Room#
01/29 New Orleans, LA – Ducbo%
01/30 Houston, TX – Walter’s on Washington%
01/31 Austin, TX – Emo’s%
02/02 Albuquerque, NM – The Launchpad
02/03 Phoenix, AZ – Phix Gallery
02/04 San Diego, CA – Casbah!
02/06 Los Angeles, CA – The Echo!
02/08 San Francisco, CA – The Independent!
02/11 Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge
02/12 Omaha, NE – Waiting Room
02/13 Grinnell, IA – Gardner Lounge at Grinnell College
02/14 Chicago, IL – High Concepts Laboratory (early show)
02/14 Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle
02/15 Pontiac, MI – The Pike Room

* with AIDS Wolf
^ with Vivian Girls, Pissed Jeans
+ with Vincent Black Shadow
† with the Carbonas, Bukkake Boys
# with Iron Livers
% with Iron Age
! with Mika Miko

Photo by David Waldman.

Best of 2008: Vivian Girls

Brooklyn’s garage rock trio, the Vivian Girls, decries style trends, loves shitgaze.

What was the best music trend of 2008?

Well, this is a no-brainer for us–we love lo-fi punk/shitgaze. Music like this is great because it’s really catchy, but still not immediately accessible to the average listener.

What was the best album of 2008?

Yellow Fever Cats and Rats EP. They’re a really good kinda lo-fi bass-driven three-piece from Austin. Jennifer, the lead singer, is a great songwriter and has a beautiful voice.

What was the best style trend of 2008?

I don’t know if I really like any of them or even know what they are. In fact, I just Googled “2008 style trends” and everything that came up looked stupid. I just try to dress like an ’80s yuppie.

What was the worst style trend of 2008?

I hate wide-legged pants and maxi dresses. Please! Everyone looks better in clothes that fit them! As for indie/punk trends, I’m not a huge fan of those hats with the crazy colors and prints, not because they’re ugly but because too many people wear them.

Who or what will be big in 2009?

I predict Jay Reatard will keep getting bigger and bigger. He’s on a roll right now.

MP3: “Where Do You Run To?”

Best of 2008
Drop the Lime
Abe Vigoda
Bradford Cox
Andrew Jeffrey Wright
eLZhi
Cut Copy
Fucked Up
Evidence
Vivian Girls
Matt Furie
dj/ Rupture
Telepathe
The Death Set
Holy Ghost
Mochipet
CTRL
Plump DJs
Jose James
Worship Worthy
Peter Beste
Hercules and Love Affair
Magda
The Alchemist
DC Recordings

Lee Jones Electronic Frank

Lee Jones is one third of Berlin-based collective MyMy, whose Songs for the Gentle was one of the most beguiling long-players of 2006. While that album featured horses on the cover, Electronic Frank is adorned with a zebra; Jones’ debut solo album could well be seen as a similar genetic mutation. Though Jones apparently relocated to the German capital for love not music, Electronic Frank plays, in part, like a (relatively restrained) paean to his adopted hometown and the club culture he discovered there. This is most explicit on standout track “MDMAzing,”which makes reference to deep house and techno but is littered with all manner of samples (cocktail piano, strings, elephants). All good stuff, albeit not quite up there with MyMy’s output.

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