Not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but Deftones’ Chino Moreno has got a pretty excellent new side project. Last year, Crosses released a dark, electro-heavy debut EP, and now they’ve returned for another one. You’ll find no reverb-heavy guitar work here, no trademark shrieking. Instead Moreno croons through optimistic melodies and synth lines. The upbeat vibe, as is best evidenced on “Purient,” is reminiscent of the feeling from Deftones’ previous, brilliant outing Diamond Eyes. The project thus far is a great distraction for those of us waiting for new material from the primary band, and perhaps a teaser into their gradual progression.
Today I continue a series of posts dedicated to the best albums of the last decade, posting analysis of one album at a time.
30. One Wolf – S/T
Yesterday Daniel Markham released a solo EP of new material, straying far, far away from the alt-folk background of his primary songwriting venture One Wolf. Those of us who have seen the band perform live saw the transformation coming a long time ago. The sound of a One Wolf album and a One Wolf show are two different animals. One is quiet, reticent, calculated. The other is high-energy, eventful, fucking LOUD. As Markham currently makes steps to combine the two with his newer songs, we should step back and dust off his finest creation – One Wolf’s debut album.
Deviating from the straightforward alt-country of previous project Waiting to Derail, Markham, along with drummer Zach Davis and bassist Brad Ivy (Sammi Rana joined the band later), amp up the diverse instrumentation, abstract lyricism, and, most importantly, the power of a simple hook. “Don’t Take It Personal” is a Cobain-esque passive-aggressive ode to shitheads in a redneck bar, many of which One Wolf has reluctantly played in. “H(A)unted” is the album highlight, a lamentation on self-identity. “Roads” is a timeless commentary on lost love and moving forward, strung together with a naturally beautiful melody. Here, underneath all the confusion, we find optimism in Markham’s lyrics, as in the two-stepping affair “Close Your Eyes” and the surreal “Sleeper.”
Keeping to traditional melody, yet remaining progressive in texture, Markham and the rest of One Wolf created the blueprint for how they would approach this album’s sequel, and how Markham currently tackles his newest efforts. Overall, it makes for a remarkable listen, one that cannot be duplicated, and an album only a fool would pass up. Years later, One Wolf’s debut is still Markham’s finest work, and one of the best Hub City creations of the past decade.
Daniel Markham’s solo ventures have been significantly darker and Deadsy-er than his alt-country leanings in One Wolf material. We first heard this turning point in the band’s second album, and then last March in Markham’s Demonstrations album. And now, in the six-song Hexagons, Markham, now residing in Denton, has turned the knob up on the sustaining, thunderous guitar sound. Still, those trademark Markham traits remain – lyrics signifying love and loss, alienation, and pensive lamentation. And let us not forget about the strong affinity for crafting an infectious melody. All in all, it’s refreshing to hear that familiar voice delivering new creations. Hopefully we won’t have to wait as long for the next batch.
Every Saturday, I post a 15-20 minute podcast featuring some tracks I’ve been jamming the previous week, as well as some commentary and random musings from yours truly. Enjoy!
Tracklist:
Cloud Nothings – Stay Useless
The-Dream – Rockin’ That S***
Cloud Nothings – Fall In
The-Dream – I Love Your Girl
Daniel Johnston – True Love Will Find You In the End
I’m an even 4-4 for my playoff picks, but that hardly matters now that my precious Packers are out. Having said that, I think I’ve got the right picks this time around for sure. This one’s in Mass, and Tom Brady has been playing better than he has in his entire career. So that’s pretty damn good to say the least. The Ravens have a pretty explosive defense, however, and the Patriots…well….don’t. Still, Flacco is a hot-cold QB, and New England will ultimately win this one.
New York Giants vs. San Francisco 49ers
This one should be fun to watch, and currently it’s impossible to predict. Eli Manning has been going strong, and the Giants defense is on a roll after stomping my Packers at home. The 49ers are formidable on both sides of the ball, especially their D, and they have home-field advantage, which is a big deal to me….but I’m gonna go with the Giants this time, strictly because they handily beat a better team last week, whereas San Francisco barely pulled it off against the excellent Saints.
Yesterday, Culture Greyhound joined millions of websites, including Wikipedia and Google, in protest of two bills making their way through Congress that could forever jeopardize a free and fair Internet. The House’s SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) and the Senate’s PIPA (Protect IP Act) are poorly worded pieces of legislation with the intentions of stopping digital piracy of intellectual property. If passed, what the bills could actually do could permanently change the Internet. The bills would censor the web and impose crippling restrictions on American businesses, seemingly with little to no judicial review.
Since the protest, many House members and Senators have dropped their support of the bills, and things are looking up. The Obama administration has expressed publicly their wariness with the bills, and a few controversial provisions in the bills have been dismissed altogether. But they are far from dead: next week the Senate will vote on PIPA, while House members will debate SOPA in February.
Wikipedia probably said it best yesterday: “SOPA and PIPA are just indicators of a much broader problem. In many jurisdictions around the world, we’re seeing the development of legislation that prioritizes overly-broad copyright enforcement laws, laws promoted by power players, over the preservation of individual civil liberties.”
Cloud Nothings’ sophomore album Attack On Memory is exactly that, according to leader Dylan Baldi: it’s an attack on the former memory of the band. It’s more raw, angry, and even more unpolished than the self-titled debut. Perhaps that’s the influence of producer Steve Albini, but Baldi’s songwriting is darker, more grand in scope, and more ambitious in delivery. They’ve replaced ooh-wah choruses for increasingly strained vocal work and more minor key arrangements, but try as they might, there’s still plenty of pop material here. This time around, however, the finished product might have more in common with Male Bonding than Wavves. Like Pinkerton did after the more accessible Blue Album, Attack On Memory is slightly flawed, but wholly bold, introspective, and mature. It’s a strong step toward a gradual shift for the long term, warts and all.
Stream the whole thing below. It drops on January 24.
Reign of Terror, the sophomore album from Sleigh Bells, drops on February 21st, and the first single “Comeback Kid” follows in the same vein as the blisteringly loud Treats. It’s available for download on iTunes as of today. I can honestly say, after hearing this and the equally impressive “Born to Lose,” I am more stoked for this release than any other currently.
