RIP - Eddie Van Halen

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        I wanted to take a quick minute and share my deepest condolences the family and Friends of Eddie Van Halen, who passed away today from a battle with cancer at the age of 65. It's truly a great loss for the community. Rest in Peace Eddie, you changed the world, we will never forget you. 

Kurt Vile - "Speed, Sound, Lonely KV (ep)"

Photo credit: https://store.matadorrecords.com/pub/media/catalog/product/cache/efacd7ae70ea5536df7d34da21510682/s/p/speedsoundslonelykv.jpg

        Departing from some of the usual fare found here on Mainly Tuning Out, I wanted to spend some time talking about Kurt Vile's new extended play. I'm relatively new to the Kurt Vile scene having gotten on the train with his album Bottle It In and a few live projects performed on NPR's Tiny Desk series. At first, I was a little put-off by his loose performance approach and his general musical aesthetics, but something about it kept drawing me back into the mix. Now I'm a pretty big fan.

        I'm currently working through Neil Young's discography (which has been a bit of a journey, holy smokes does he have a lot of albums), and there's something very similar to Kurt's offerings, yet, it still sounds wholly like Kurt's own music. I'm sure I'm not the first person to draw those two together in such a way, but there's a beautiful honesty to their musical and lyrical approach that is magnetic, even if off-kilter now and again. 

        Vile digitally dropped Speed, Sound, Lonely KV (ep) on October 2nd, 2020, and it features five songs with a total runtime of ~22 minutes. The biggest surprise on this album is the duet on the song "How Lucky" that features the late John Prine (RIP), which was a delightful and perfect track. The album was released on Matador Records, and physical copies are available for pre-order now, slated to arrive around mid-January, 2021. 

        What about the music? Well, that's the meat of this place of business, isn't it? Super short story: It's great. Fear not, we'll be going track by track like we always do here, but honestly "It's great," is the moral of the story and you should go listen to this EP right now. I'll be here when you get back. 

        

        The album starts with the song "Speed Of The Sound Of Loneliness." It sounds like classic Kurt Vile, picked rock/country chords, backed by some piano that interplay with the guitar in a cheery way. Vile sings in his best early Neil Young inspired voice bouncing between contrary ideas, "You come home late, and you come home early. You come home big when you're feeling small. You come home straight and you come home curly, sometimes you just don't come at all." It moves right into the chorus, "What in the world has come over you? What in heaven's name have you done? You've broken the speed of the sound of loneliness, you're out there running just to be on the run." The chorus and the next verse are bridged by a delightful mandolin lick. The lyrics continue painting a relationship that's on the rocks in an odd calm self-reflective moment, "How can a love that'll last forever get left so far behind?" What a great way to set the mood for the album, reflecting on life, with some classic Americana music backing these moments of awareness.  

        Next up is the song "Gone Girl". This track opens with a country vibe with that classic one-two, one-two bass line holding the beat, and finger-picked guitars. The solo after the chorus sounds like it's being played on a resonator guitar which I thoroughly enjoy, but it could also be an electric guitar through some effect-pedals. Lyrically, this song is about lost love, "she's deliciously tall, sort of long girl. She's delightfully small, sort of song girl... That's nothing compared to the fact that she's a gone girl, gone like a knock on the door, gone with yesterday and before, gone with the wind forevermore." A pleasant-sounding song, which is a great juxtaposition to the lyrics. 

        The third track is my least favorite song on this EP, and it happens to be the longest one at six minutes and thirty-four seconds. It feels like a leftover track from Bottle It In, especially in the basic song structure and vocal performance. It's still a good song though. It's a dreamy sounding song, very well layered. One of the verses resonated with me as far as the topic matter of the song, " I like the feeling of being sentimental, and also a little mental. I don't mind crying, but I prefer them be tears of joy over rage. Anything over rage, anything over mind, and everything over age, I'm over that." If you enjoyed Bottle It In, especially the single "Bassackwards," You'll enjoy this track. 

        Next is "How Lucky." John Prine's performance was an enrapturing treat on this song. Originally by John Prine, it feels like the torch being handed off from one generation to another, though I'm sure that's not the intent. It feels natural, and the two vocalists mix together will. How lucky can one man get? For Kurt, quite, and honestly, if we all think about how amazing it is that we managed to get a chance at life in this world, I think we are all pretty lucky. This track is a gem. The only bad thing I have to say about it is that I wish it was longer than three minutes and twenty-three seconds. 

        The track finishes up with a song titled "Pearl." The chord that is picked that starts off this song is a great choice, and Vile's vocals are hit with a touch of reverb that layers nicely with the music. The lyrics feel like they're talking about some of the challenges and reflections of a parent watching their child start exploring the world, "where you been now, little girl? Where you been now, little girl? Why'd you come back looking stoned? ... I can see your eyes all filled with sand, I can see you in there up to your chin, tell me girl, now where you been?" This is a close second as far as favorite tracks. The guitar licks and overall vibe of this song really strikes a chord with me (no pun intended). 

        This EP was a delightful surprise to see come down the pipeline, and I will probably spin it two or three more times before the day is out. Check it out, and send me your thoughts! You can listen to the album here, and you can pre-order a physical copy here. 

Dark Tranquility - "Phantom Days"

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         Dark Tranquility dropped a new track titled "Phantom Days" through Century Media Records on Friday, September 11th, 2020. This new track comes from a new album that's set to drop on November 20th, 2020, titled Moment. This will be their first release since 2016's Atoma. If you're into heavy metal than this name shouldn't be unfamiliar as they've been writing since 1989, and are an integral part of the Gothenburg metal scene. If you're new to this band and/or this genre than you're in for a treat! Melodic Death Metal is a subgenre built on a foundation of melodic riffs while still working with the general structure of standard Death Metal. It's fast, it's got amazing melodies, and some of the best-growled vocals in the Metal genre. 

        Honestly, after all is said and done, it's a pretty great track. It starts with a faded in ambiance before kicking in with a harmonized lick that transitions into the chorus riff which is quite catchy. Mikael Stanne's infamous vocals kick in with the line "It doesn't make it any less real once you feel it, rage with the fire of insight, these are the days that favor the emotional, an amplified belief." It segues to a pre-chorus moment that feels quite like power metal before kicking into the chorus riff again. The solo is pretty great too. I greatly enjoy how the verse/chorus lines blend in and out of each other, though I have to counter that statement with my dislike for how little variety there is in the lyrics. Over 50% of the lyrics are the ones written above, and the song comes in just under four minutes in length. 

        I have my issues with the lyrics, but I've just concluded my sixth and seventh time through the track while writing this piece and will be going in for an 8th once I'm done writing, and honestly, the music sounds so good that the lyrics don't much matter. My gut tells me the lyrics in this song will have more importance in the context of the larger album, but time will have to tell on that one. If you are interested in pre-ordering the album, you can do so here! 

The Jazz Project - Album 88: Joe Harriott - John Mayer Double Quintet - "Indo-Jazz Suite"

            To further my understanding of Jazz, I'm listening through Jazzwise Magazine's "The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook The World". Each album is presented with my stream-of-consciousness thoughts for each track, my general thoughts of the album as a whole, and any relevant information I can capture about the album. Also included is my drink of choice while taking the album in. Thank you for joining me on my journey to [partial] Jazz enlightenment.

Album 88
Joe Harriott - John Mayer Double Quintet - Indo-Jazz Suite
Drinking: Ardbeg 10

Photo credit: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61Ycf2gn8-L._SL1280_.jpg

1. "Overture": This song starts with some pleasing sitar music and traditional drums. Another instrument I don't recognize jumps in and immediately starts this fun interplay with the sitar and percussion. Soon after, traditional jazz instruments stop by and start riffing over the original instruments and it's awesome! It's got this intoxicating groove. About a minute and a half in the music jumps over to a more stereotypical jazz rhythm section while keeping the original percussion around. I can't keep my head from bobbing while these changes happen. I'm imagining a bustling town on a hot and muggy night. The muted trumpets provide this searing sound that keeps the track popping. A cool flute solo cuts in, like the narrative of the song jump-cuts to a jazz club and Sarah Vaughan was performing, but with a small hint of that Indian flavor added in. The band keeps riffing around each other as the song starts thinking about closing, and in the last minute and three quarters, the traditional instruments return, backboned with that upright bass. What a tantalizing track!
   
   
2. "Contrasts": A cool percussion piece works under a solid walking bass line. A piano starts to riff in and around the bass and percussion. Soon the flutes and trumpets square off for the melody. Something about this track is quite conversational in it's feeling. I get a slight Vince Guaraldi vibe to the piano at times. The bass goes into a solo right before the Indian instruments return. After it's solo the bass slicks right back in to keep the groove going. The sitar adds some welcomed atmosphere to the track as the flute solo in this section kicks in. It reminds me of Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull fame. It wouldn't surprise me if he was influenced by this album in some way (Anderson that is). With four minutes left on the clock, the muted trumpet surgically slices its way into the song to provide a sharp solo. The sitar/flute interplay returns though the transition is not as sharp as the previous track. However, a saxophone solo comes out of nowhere, similarly to the earlier trumpet solo, it's an excellent solo though. The syncopated drums are very pleasant as they bring the track to a close. I'm shocked at how easily the flute fits in with the Indian instruments.  
   
   
3. "Raga Megha": I'm loving this instrumental. This track is very soothing. I found burning some Palo Santo wood really brought something to this experience, especially with the smokey scotch. A few minutes into the song there is this weird, jarring solo, but it quickly is replaced with a great section focusing on the traditional Indian instruments. A pair of flutes join in and make the section pop. The two groups interweave with each other so well in this song, I'm amazed two rather different styles could mesh so well. It's interesting though, I didn't get sucked into this track as much as the previous ones, but I found it the most pleasant to listen to thus far. 
   
   
4. "Raga Gaud-Saranga": This has the most serene opening. It sounds like a misty sunrise over the ocean. It almost has a Celtic vibe to it before the sitar joins in the mix. Very pleasing. The sitar solo is amazing. It's so easy to get lost in the moment. It's followed by a ripping flute solo that just blew me away! The shred is strong on this track. Out of nowhere the muted trumpet announces its existence and suddenly we're transported into a swinging jazz tune. It gets even better when the mute comes off the trumpet and you can hear it's full glory. At about four minutes and fifty seconds, we start hearing both worlds start crashing into each other, each vying for attention before the piano comes in to calm everyone down. The interplay continues as the song finishes. I'm saddened and disappointed that we didn't get to go back to that amazing intro. 

Overall Thoughts: It was the fastest 35 minutes I think an album has ever been. It was really cool to see every instrument get a turn in this mad experiment gone so totally right. It's not in my top 10 favorite albums, but I'd buy it if it had a semi-good deal on it. What kept it from being truly blowing me away was the fact that both styles were dancing back and forth. There wasn't any true blending of styles into something new, and I was hoping the album would go there. 

Info: This album was released in 1966 via EMI Columbia. It was one of the first successful blends of Jazz and Indian  music. Jazzswise Magazine's blurb says it was "not as successfully integrated as their subsequent Indo-Jazz Fusions I and II," which I will seek out on my own time. It features Joe Harriott on alto saxophone, Coleridge Goode on bass, Allan Ganley on drums, Chris Taylor on flute, Pat Smythe on piano, Diwan Motihar on sitar, Keshan Sathe on tabla, Chandrahas Paiganka on tambura, Kenny Wheeler on trumpet, and John Mayer on violin and harpsichord. 

Listen to the album here! 

If you loved the album, you can buy it here! 

The Ocean - "Pleistocene"

Photo credit: https://pelagic-records.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/pel150_cover_digital_medium.jpg

        It's a good time to be a fan of The Ocean, not only is there a new album coming out, the track releases leading up to it have been beyond delightful. On Friday, September 11th, 2020, The Ocean dropped a new track titled "Pleistocene" from their forthcoming album Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic which is due to release on September 25th. We've featured two of their previous track releases from this album here at Mainly Tuning Out, and if you like what you're hearing today you should check out "Oligocene" and "Jurassic | Cretaceous". 

        "Pleistocene" begins with a different vibe from the previous tracks. It's a little jarring at first but it doesn't take long to wrap you up in the moment. It begins with a single pulsing synth note that feels like an alarm going off. A few second later bass, synths, and what sounds like a piano join in and reinforce that note while the drums play in the space between. Shortly vocals join, backboned by strings; the pair adding a slight middle eastern vibe to the mix. The singer is singing with clean vocals, and the recipe works as he sings the opening line: "we all can only take so much, some more than others. And our individual tolerance for stress, for loneliness, is so subjected. But there's no tolerance at all for hopelessness." As this passage progresses the strings start joining the drums and interplay among the vocals, creating a truly gripping moment. 

         After the first lyric the music begins to swell into a more traditional sound for The Ocean, with growling vocals, and that crushing guitar tone. It's a great moment. At ~2:07 the music returns to the verse, but it's a more intense version. There are weird guttural, whispered, and menacing vocals just under the singer's vocals, and it feels like the volume on the instruments are dialed up a few notches. Then it's back to the chorus at ~3:02. The strings are louder and like the second chorus, this moment just feels more intense than the previous one. 

        The music transitions to a new moment at ~3:34 to a slower chord change before transitioning again to a stripped-down version of the music featuring just guitars, bass, drums, and growling vocals singing, "And no one could tell the moment when you disassembled, when your restless heart froze, and you sank below the ice eyes wide open." Crushing vocals backed by a crushing moment. This moment continues on before it switches to one of my favorite moments in the current set of releases at ~4:56 where it speeds up to a killer Black Metal moment complete with that wailing gasping black metal vocal style. It truly creates a climactic moment, and this moment is sucked away into a breakdown-like moment at ~5:50 that the band rides on until the song ends. The riffing is so heavy here, and you'll catch yourself headbanging right along with each beat. 

        "Pleistocene" is a heavy-hitting track that transitions in and out of each section effortlessly, creating a sonic landscape that you can experience several times and still discover something new. It holds its own with the other releases and only gets me more excited to take in this album once it drops. If you haven't heard this track yet, you should get on that, you're missing out. 

If this is your jam can pre-order Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic here.

Finntroll - "Mask"

Photo credit: https://www.centurymedia.com/media/artist/banner/637286855312882520.jpg

        If you're into Folk Metal, Finntroll should not be a foreign group to you. If you haven't dabbled into Folk Metal, it's a wildly good time. The origin of the band/name come from, to quote their Facebook:

"It is a troubled tale that has been told many times before… Anno 1997: during a night of alcoholic carnage in Finland Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta (guitar) and Jan "Katla" Jämsen (vocals) conceived of a band that fused the darkness and grandeur of black metal with the traditional Finnish hoedown-music. The resultant sound was FINNTROLL. The namesake came from an old Finnish legend where Swedish priests coming to Finland had an encounter with a wild-looking man who killed most of their party. The survivors came back bearing the tale of the FINNTROLL. Anno 1998: A year later Skrymer, Tundra, Trollhorn and the mighty Beast Dominator joined the band that soon became the biggest name in the rising Folk/Pagan Metal scene – even if they never aimed for sitting at the head of that table."

They also frequently are made up to look like trolls, which is pretty awesome too.

        

        On September 4th, 2020, they dropped a new track titled "Mask" from their forthcoming album Vredesvävd, which is due to be released September 18th, 2020 via Century Media Records. It is some classic Finntroll! It begins with an epic opening backed by synths before descending into a ripping riff over their singer's growls. The music video is quite enjoyable as it is a shaky-cam tromp through the woods following the band as they appear to track down a druid resurrecting the dead. The chorus is equally delightful as the string synths rejoin the mix to give the speedy guitars a traditional folk flair. The track may only be a tad over three minutes, but it's definitely worth checking it out. It's speedy, epic, and everything there is to love about folk metal. 

        Want to pre-order the album? You can do so here! 

The Jazz Project - Album 89: Jackie McLean - "Let Freedom Ring"

           To further my understanding of Jazz, I'm listening through Jazzwise Magazine's "The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook The World". Each album is presented with my stream-of-consciousness thoughts for each track, my general thoughts of the album as a whole, and any relevant information I can capture about the album. Also included is my drink of choice while taking the album in. Thank you for joining me on my journey to [partial] Jazz enlightenment.

Album 89
Jackie McLean - Let Freedom Ring
Drinking: Yorkshire Gold Tea

Photo credit: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41SMBDMB70L.jpg

1. "Melody For Melonae": The track begins with an ominous piano intro, with excellent descending melodies with the piano and saxophone. McLean's tone is clear and cutting, and creates an excellent listening experience. I'm seeing rainy days and the feeling of not wanting to go to work. It also stirs feelings of being aware of the daily grind. This combo is incredible! The fill in the spaces around each other very well. This track has a certain heart to it that feels very pleasing to listen to. As the song progresses I get more of a feeling of the wonder and imagination of a child, at every turn, there is something new and exciting. The high register screams are like a crazy tea kettle of boiling jazz that can really wail. We go back to a little bit more of  that walking-to-work-in-the-rain vibe as the piano goes into its solo. The bass is walking underneath this section while maintaining this balance of being present without overtaking the stage. What a hard balance it must be to hit. I'm not in love with the later parts of the piano solo, though those big open chords it switches to in the last few minutes are beautiful. I wish there were more of those throughout the track. The licks at the end are just as sharp as the beginning of the song. Truly, an excellent piece of music. 
   
   
2. "I'll Keep Loving You": This song is a cover of Bud Powell's work. It opens with a classic piano sound, timeless. Additionally, the bass tone is amazing. This music is like seeing your wife in a beautiful dress and falling in love all over again. I love the stirred snare sound in this song. this track holds the balance between technical skill and delicate melodies so well. I'm not sure I would have chosen to put those wailing saxophone squeals in, as it felt quite jarring, but something must have inspired him to perform them. At the start of the last two minutes, there seems to be this tension building. Perhaps another lover has appeared? During the last minute, the tension passes as Jackie starts performing some licks to close out the track. 
   
   
3. " Rene": Once the band gets going, this track has some sizzle to it which I thoroughly enjoyed. Part of this enjoyment comes from the use of space created by the non-rhythm based portions of the band. Nothing is jumping out in my imagination for this song, but it's certainly great music. I'd put this on while cooking for sure. 
   
   
4. "Omega": This song starts with some tasty interplay riffs from the band that works as a foundation for some even tastier soloing from McLean. It's excellent stuff. This might be my favorite track on the album. It's almost like Progressive Rock/Meal in nature. It keeps bouncing from this cool mellow part to these great standard jazz phrases. It's a non-traditional song structure and I'm loving it. To me, this sounds like a sound-wave, and as it descends into the valley we get a cool melodic experiment, and as it rises to the peak we get this high voltage combo riffing together. It keeps rising and falling between these two points and it is truly captivating. This could go on forever and I would listen to it gladly. 
   

Overall Thoughts: This album feels like the perfect combination of a lot of different styles, especially the popular ones in play during this era. The way the band plays and explores each avenue feels very authentic, and very skillfully. Truthfully, it left me feeling quite speechless. 

Info: This album was released in May of 1963 via Blue Note records. It was produced by Alfred Lion at Van Gelder Studios in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. It features Jackie McLean on alto saxophone, Walter Davis, Jr. on piano, Herbie Lewis on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. Fun fact, allegedly "Rene" is named after his son, and "Melody for Melonae" is named after his daughter. 

You can listen to the album here, and you can purchase the album here.