Friday, October 31, 2008








































The Present-World I See





Happy Halloween! Everybody have a safe and fun werewolf bah mitzvah! Spooky, Scary!
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9 comments:

KJH said...

Boys becoming Men. Men becoming Wolves!

6:54 AM
Anonymous said...

I was really unimpressed with this album, especially considering who helmed the project.

12:31 PM
Anonymous said...

That's too bad. I really like it. Perhaps you were expecting something more along the lines of an album with explicit songs. I think it's more of a sound collage or ambient album than it is something like Animal Collective or Born Ruffians.

9:08 PM
Lukas said...

Joel-
I was hoping that it would be more along the lines of Animal Collective. After all, Sung Tongs had a lot of non-linear moments; very little was strictly pop-song oriented.
I agree, it is definitely more sound collage-y, but it feels too haphazard and underdeveloped. Definitely some great moments on this, though.

Just not quite my thing.

7:15 PM
Anonymous said...

I think it must be a matter of preference then. Because sonically, the album is pretty dense. And most of what occurs over the course of it's 46 minutes, even in terms of things like pacing and atmosphere seems pretty deliberate to me. If I was being pressed for an example I'd probably point first to the most obvious one. That being that it's a continuous play record where virtually every track blends in to the next one, and overall gives the impression of the album's sum parts acting as a singular larger piece. This is a pretty common trait found in sound collage/ambient/noise/experimental/whatever records. And I'd say compared to a lot of the most respected of those it at least holds it own. Again, the restraint shown throughout its runtime is really very refined. And personally, I hear quite a few new neat sounds and new takes on familiar sounding effects that I haven't heard before. Plus it's fun to hear some of the same musical ideas that one would find on albums like Sung Tongs and Strawberry Jam cropping up in a different context here.

These are a few of the reasons I really like this record. But I'm also well aware that the same record isn't going to resonate in the same way with everybody or anybody for that matter. Maybe it should come with a disclaimer that says something like: "Warning: This is NOT an Animal Collective album." :)

3:48 PM
Anonymous said...

or maybe you should just get really high before you listen to it.

4:00 PM
Lukas said...

that's cool, I respect that. I know at least two members of gang gang dance, and noah lennox (though I think he's slightly biased) love this band, so you're definitely not alone in adoration for this band/album. I definitely liked a good deal of it, and the continuity is impressive. If you care, or really want to know (and this isn't just a plug) my more articulate thoughts on the album, you can read my review.

7:23 PM
Anonymous said...

It's good to read your thoughts on this album fully elaborated upon. However, most of the arguments in your article hinge mainly on the notion that the 'song' never really kicks in. And not to belabor the point, but I think if you approach it from a less stringent pop perspective, you might be able to appreciate it more than you already do. Thanks for sharing your opinion either way! You sure are a good writer....

8:43 PM
Lukas said...

thanks man, I appreciate it. And I think I'll give it another listen, taking your reasoning into account.

9:44 PM

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