Courtney Barnett - Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit (Album Review)

          I need to clarify a statement that some of my viewers/readers don't even know about, most likely. I stated "I don't really feel like I missed out on anything in 2015 all that much." What a dumb thing to say, especially after hearing this gem of a record. Courtney Barnett is an alternative rock artist from the wonderful land of Australia, a country that's easily #1 on my top 10 places I want to see in the next 10 years. 

Barnett's music didn't grab me at first, I tried out a few songs because of all the acclaim, but "Avant Gardener" was the first to stick. A friend sent me a few tracks from her then upcoming record, but I don't feel I gave them a fair chance to sink in. Months breezed by, and I finally queued up the long winded Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I just Sit. "

Elevator Operator" plays. "Okay, this is fun" I'm thinking to myself. Not only this track, but really all throughout, we see Barnett allowing her thoughts to run wild, without feeling messy in the slightest. Imagine your brutally honest friend that spews out a stream of consciousness. Now imagine that same friend making an album. THIS IS THAT, AND IT SOMEHOW WORKS MAGICALLY! 

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell. Don't go please. I just want you to know that the indie rocker's debut is worth your time, and your money. I bought a copy recently, and you bet your Rolling Stone collection I don't regret it. I've been kind of vague up to this point, so let's briefly talk about what went RIGHT with this record. 

Musically, this is top notch work. Her backing band kills it on nearly every song. From the lighthearted swimming pool love story "Aqua Profonda!", to the scorching single "Pedestrian at Best", they keep things fresh with ridiculously entertaining surf punk meets alternative riffs and drum patterns. Do they line up with Barnett's semi droll (not a criticism, just her style) vocals? Hell yes they do! In fact, I couldn't picture Courtney being backed by anything other than this garage rock-ish style, other than maybe grunge or...okay I'm not getting into Barnett conspiracy theories. 

I've already mentioned some of my favorite tunes, but I haven't even named some of the best yet. "An Illustration of Loneliness" is the perfect ode to the lonely lazy mind, sitting back and watching the paint dry while the clock circles round, as you think of that special someone. The fuzzy guitar line seems to have a few pedal effects thrown in there, and I really really dig the sound that it provides. "Dead Fox" has some damn catchy notes as well, and I can't fail to mention the wonderful build to the blissful little guitar solo in "Small Poppies" either. It's never a bad thing when you have a hard time narrowing down your favorite moments, now is it?

The album doesn't take itself too seriously either, Barnett has a snarky (and wonderful) sense of humor that pours in on "Nobody Really Cares If You Don't Go To The Party", which would have easily been in my top 25 songs of 2015, if I had actually heard it last year. I already mentioned the cackle worthy "Aqua Profonda!", which is quite simply just the best, but we've got "Debbie Downer" stealing the spotlight right out from under it. I love how 90s this song feels, featuring those splashy and colorful keys, a sunny sing along chorus where Barnett swears "I'm not fishing for your compliments", and the lovely drumming that is quite frankly some of the best percussion on the entire album. 

It goes without saying that the epic 7 minute "Kim's Caravan" kicks ass, as Barnett proves here and on "Depreston" that she can crank more down-tempo songs and still win. Lyrically, these are two of the more interesting cuts, in the sense that they require a bit more thought in order to absorb them. 

There's moments of songs here and there that I don't care for, as songs like "Dead Fox"get a little repetitive for me, "Small Poppies" overstays its welcome by a slight bit, and then the dull closer "Boxing Day Blues" really just dragging this album to its final resting place. It's a bummer to go out on a less than captivating moment, but the rest of this record more than makes up for a few moments that stall out. 

If you were like me and missed out on this album in 2015, give it a listen on Spotify and see what you think! It gets a glowing reccomendation from me, I hope you it enjoy it as well.

Thanks for reading! You can find me posting reviews every week on my YouTube channel, be sure to subscribe!

"Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit"
Release Date: 3/20/15
Album Rating: 4/5
Mom+Pop Records

-Jon from ARTV





















 

Bleachers "Strange Desire" Album Review

To see the video version of this review, visit my YouTube channel. Thanks for reading. -Jon



BLEACHERS. Sorta sticks in your mind for some reason, doesn't it? Bleachers is the name of the musical projected created by the guitarist of the multi-platinum selling band, Fun. He does have a name though, Jack Antonoff. You might also know him for his band Steel Train, which had a few minor hits before disbanding a few years ago, around the same time that Fun really started having success.


Is the man a one band wonder? Or can he balance two? Antonoff seemed like he was up to tackling two after the release of the burst of sunlight and joy "I Wanna Get Better", which serves as the lead single to Strange Desire. I immediately fell for this song's blissful charms, which has enough angst and heart to win over new fans, as well as ones that may have followed over from Fun fandom. 

Upon listening to this record, I find myself completely disenchanted with the direction of the majority of these tracks. Jack has made thrown his hat in the ring along with everyone else who seems to be following the trend of the 80's, but with even weaker results that you might imagine. 

The music is a real downfall for the album, often meandering about aimlessly, as Antonoff sings repetitively about a girl with a wild heart that he's been chasing for what seems like forever. Seriously though! How many tracks reference this girl and her wild heart? This causes much of the record to feel very bland and tasteless lyrically for me, opting to run in circles rather than move forward into something halfway good. 

There are plenty of connecting lyrical themes on the record, including the album opening and closing on the phrase "I really wanna be grateful", which gets particularly annoying on the album's closer "Who I Want You To Love". 

It's really a shame for the latter track I just mentioned, as it actually shows some potential. It opens up with an acoustic guitar and a smooth indie feel, that mainly satisfies, but could definitely do without the minute and a half outro.

Before I get to the tracks that I really can't even tolerate, why don't I point out some of the highlights that are actually worth checking out? "Shadow" and "Rollercoaster" were both released as promo singles prior to the full length, with "Shadow" having a slight edge in terms of interesting material.

I think I like "Shadow" because it offers up something new and unique when compared to the rest of the LP. The vocals sound different once again, with Jack almost sounding like a plethora of different vocalists rather than just one. There's more of a gang styled vocal approach on this one though, with a quickly paced synth line backing this edgy cut. 

Minus a few bright spots I've already mentioned, the rest of the record feels lackluster, and on occasion, downright awful. The album hits it's lowest of lows on the cut "Take Me Away" which features electronic musician Grimes. Auto-tune plagues and ruins and chance of decent vocals, simply for the fact that it's not used in a fun and playful way, but rather in a way that sounds like a discarded track from the latest Future album. SKIP!

Although not quite as bad, "Wake Me" still has a few elements that make me cringe. Lines like "I'd rather be sad with you than anywhere away from you" get repeated throughout the track and just irk me from a songwriting standpoint of view. The track feels passionless, especially in the vocal department. It sounds like it was written with Jack looking out the window on a rainy day, kind of murmuring his journal entries out loud as a guitar quietly shuffles in the background. 

"I'm Ready To Move On/Wild Heart Reprise" makes random use of the one and only Yoko Ono, and it just sounds downright weird. I can't quite tell if I like this track or not. It sounds an awful lot like "Menswear" from The 1975's debut record, and that kind of intrigues me considering I loved that song. 

There's a few that I'm pretty much indifferent on, "Reckless Love" and "You're Still a Mystery" for example. But I'm really just not enjoying this Bleachers record at all. Antonoff is clearly capable of so much more, just check out any of the Steel Train or Fun albums if you need proof. He's a talented guitarist that's trying his hand at something else, but it's really just not my cup of tea. 

Let me know what you think of Strange Desire in the comments, or on my YouTube channel which is linked several places on the blog, you just have to find them. This is all just my opinion, so let me knows tastefully and respectfully below. Until next time music fans.

2/5

-Jon

Key Tracks: I Wanna Get Better, Shadow, Rollercoaster

Steer clear of: Take Me Away, Wake Me, Like a River Runs

Hoodie Allen - "All American" (ALBUM REVIEW)

Hey guys,I haven't done a review on my blog in a little while,so here we go!

Hoodie Allen, aka Steven Markowitz, (yeah,he was raised Jewish), is undeniably growing his credibility and popularity as a hip hop artist. Hoodie has released 3 mixtapes, and 2 EP's so far as an unsigned artist. And the EP I'm reviewing today (which could have been released as a full length in my opinion) is his best work to date. 

On this EP, Hoodie decided to stop using borrowed beats and samples, and created his own beats from scratch with his producer.The former Google employee pulls out all the bells and whistles on this album, with production and lyricism. The rhymes are smart and witty, and his singing skills are showcased on the EP as well. The reason Hoodie is a gamechanger is because he doesn't rap and sing about what everyone else does constantly. Sure, he could probably right 50 songs about smoking weed,partying,and banging every girl because he's famous, but he doesn't. He writes tracks about things that actually happen in real life, things that most people go through.

His music is easily accessible, fun at times, and honest. Like I said, the smart lyrics are what really drew me into Hoodie's music. That,and his use of piano and keyboard in alot of his songs. The chorus on "No Faith In Brooklyn" and "High Again" are truly incredible.Plus there's alot of nicely inserted pop culture references in the songs (such as mentions of Lana Del Rey, Kourtney Kardashian, and an allusion to Mac Miller)

Ok,so what are the best tracks on the album? (I know that's what your thinking,don't lie) I heard the EP's single "No Interruption" first, and to this day it still amazes me when I hear it. Its the best song of 2012 so far in my opinion. The lyrics are truly amazing, and the production and booming bass simply add to the wonderful spirit of this track, which is truly the best on the album. So many lyrics from that track I want to quote,but I'll stop myself. Other favorites are "No Faith In Brooklyn", "Eighteen Cool", "Lucky Man", and "Top of the World".

But honestly,you need to listen to the whole EP to get the full feeling that Hoodie is sending out. Please guys,check this out,some of his mextapes are available for free! I'll even put a link to download "Leap Year" for free at the bottom of this post.

I love this EP guys,and this is coming from a guy who isn't a big fan of rap or hip-hop. Hoodie Allen has made me realize that this genre can still have credibility, when it comes to lyrics. What do you guys think? Heard it? Like it? Let me know. I'll be doing a video review on YouTube.com/AlbumReviewTV very soon, stay tuned. Thanks for reading.

Overall Rating: 4.9/5

-Jon

Link to download Leap Year Free: http://youtu.be/-mKejQ4oNAI (Click the link in the video description and the download will start)