A Look at Last Week's Releases

We were a little slow last week and missed a few key releases. So before Tuesday hits and there are even more new albums to talk about lets get some of last Tuesday’s out of the way. This week I’m going to look at Foal’s studio debut Antidotes while Ed examines Cut Copy’s In Ghost Colours. We’re going to throw a third review at you thanks to Nick, a fellow blogger and friend. He’s reviewed Man Man’s Rabbit Habits.

Foals
Antidotes
[Sub-Pop]

Ah, hype. There was a lot of noise about this record coming into April 8 and with plenty of good reasons. I decided to give this album a listen after hearing it was Battles for people who can’t handle Battles, which for me was actually a selling point. I tried my hardest to get into Battles critically acclaimed Mirrored and then tried again when the end of the year lists began to pop up, but to no avail. I didn’t think “math rock” was for me and I knew I hated Math the Band, or was it Mute Math?

Either way, math scarred me. Despite this, I jumped into Antidotes with only a few hesitations and by the time “Cassius,” one of their singles and the second track on the album, was done I think I got over my fears. (I even checked out Math the Band again and remembered it was Mute Math that sucked, not them. Sorry, guys.)

The record is certainly technical and math-y, but I don’t know if I would give it the math rock label anymore so than the dance punk label. The guitars definitely remind me of a band like Minus the Bear, but instead of getting stoned and occasionally swaying around Foals drives the listener to get up and do something. Melissa even noted that they remind her of the Klaxons, that would of course if you replaced the rave with more rock and a few really well placed horns.

And although you can certainly use other bands to talk about Foals, you can listen to Antidotes without wanting to go back to what it may remind you of. That is what makes this album a winner. And it is because they do a good enough job here - a job worth writing a review about and certainly a job worth giving a listen to.

Download:
Foals - Balloons
Buy It


Cut Copy
In Ghost Colours
[Modular]
by Edward Gaug

Sadly, I cannot think of the last band I listened to that came from the land down under. I know that Australia has a pretty solid music scene, but it escapes me to think of another band, other than Cut Copy, that calls the island home.

Unlike some bands that instantly are categorized by the land they call home, Cut Copy displays no obvious signs of being something different than a normal indie-dance rock band that you would find in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Cut Copy’s best aspect is hands down its beats, whether they are trippy, like the ones used for the song “Out There On the Ice” or more ’80s-esque like the Michael Jackson-sounding samples on “Nobody Lost, Nobody Found.” Dan Whitford’s vocals blend perfectly with the mixture of electronic samples, and the steady snare and bass play from Mitchell Scott.

Unlike a lot of albums that fit into this dance rock subgenre, Cut Copy strays away from the typical overuse of cymbals and over-the-top synthesizer lines, leaving them with a stronger instrumental basis to stand on, which proves to be successful for the Aussie trio. At 15 tracks, In Ghost Colours seems longer than most other albums I have reviewed recently that could quickly be lumped together with Cut Copy, but with enough contrast from track to track, the album flies by and eventually ends without warning. There is no slowing down as the record comes to end and leaves the listener on a pretty high note.

Buy It


Man Man
Rabbit Habits
[Anti-]
by Nick Viccione

Labeling music as experimental has been played out ever since Frank Zappa pioneered the genre in the ’60s and ’70s. The genre has gotten downright annoying. But don’t tell that to Philadelphia five-piece Man Man.

I was obnoxiously skeptical before listening to this album considering Ed wants me to do album reviews of bands I have not heard of before. However, upon first listen of Rabbit Habits I found myself pleasantly surprised. Not only was I able to listen to the entire record all the way through, I actually found myself enjoying Man Man’s quirky experimental indie-rock.

I may be able to attribute my liking of this album to my father, who used to play Frank Zappa around me all the time when I was just a little tot (to anyone who is a fan of Frank Zappa, that could probably explain why I am so strange now). I am sure that Man Man hears the comparisons to the legendary Zappa all of the time—it was the first thing I thought of when I was only a couple of minutes into listening to Rabbit Habits.

The experimental blend of funky vocals, piano interludes, well-placed random instruments such as accordions and saxophones and awkwardly acceptable guitar lines make this album much more fun than I expected. “Top Drawer,” track eight, stands out as the star song to my ears. It has the catchiest vocal and bass lines that I have ever heard.

Buy It


Notable releases we didn’t have time to review, but worth checking out:
Fleet Foxes’ Sun Giant EP on Sub Pop
New Bloods’ The Secret Life on Kill Rock Stars
Tapes 'n Tapes' Walk It Off on XL
The Breeders' Mountain Battles on 4AD