The National :: "Exile Vilify" (video)

The National :: "Exile Vilify" (video)

The National wrote a song for a video game and then had a contest for a video. This is that video.

The National :: Exile Vilify

Review: Clogs - The Creatures In the Garden of Lady Walton

Review: Clogs - The Creatures In the Garden of Lady Walton

For whatever reason, the music of today's youth (as proclaimed by the blogosphere, at least), is categorically steeped in escapism. The political and social angst that sharpened the edges of independent music for the past four decades has all but disappeared, leaving behind a post-romantic generation much too cynical to believe in the world-changing power of music.

How else can we explain the incoherent impressionistic lyrics that pervade the music scene today? Pastoral scenes are abundant: Animal Collective's adobe slats; Grizzly Bear's Veckatimest island; any Joanna Newsom song, ever.

The independent music of the past half decade has been consistently drawing itself away from the political world and finding comfort in simple, natural landscapes. This movement may in itself be a protest against the seemingly ineffective quagmire of today's politics.

In many ways this new musical escapism has been captured in the work of Clogs, a quartet of classically trained indie-rockers (including two members of The National) that compose a complex hybrid of folk and classical music that is drawn from improvised jam sessions. The band's last album, Lantern (2006), introduced a dimension of accessibility that was absent from their earlier albums. They continue this movement with The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton, a sprawling yet compact album that introduces vocal structures to the band's instrumental landscapes.

From the very first track this realignment becomes obvious. A round of choral vocals introduces the "creatures" of the album; the listener is transported to a medieval realm at the sound of these minstrel harmonies and one could argue we never leave.

The strongest song on the record is "On the Edge" sung by My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden. Her vibrant melodies are complimented with a delicate arrangement of guitar, strings, bassoon, and percussion that elevate the song, along with her celtic-classical vocal style, beyond indie-folk into the previously mentioned pastoral scenery.

With The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton, Clogs has successfully drawn a structural boundary around their wandering style that utilizes strong vocal performances from a variety of indie musicians (Sufjan Stevens, Matt Berninger, Shara Worden). The end product is an otherworldly work of paradox that is strange and vast yet is consistent and contained within its own predetermined space. 


8.4 / 10


The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton is released today, March 2 on Brassland 
Purchase the album


mp3: Clogs - On the Edge 

My Favorite Albums of 2010

My Favorite Albums of 2010

2010 Was the Best Ever!

As best as this year as been for music, with all the leaks/rumors of albums for next year I am beginning to think that 2k10 might be even bester. Stereogum just posted their 25 most anticipated albums of 2010 and while their list is fantastic and and very blogcore, mine is a little different/personalcore. With few exceptions, all of the bands below hold onto the notion of an album as a cohesive and coherent form and are apt at producing music within the constraint. While some people are all worried about this particular form, I prefer simply to enjoy it and not worry about its sustainability. For this reason and in no particular order, I am looking forward to contributions from:

Idiot Box - Lots of Videos About Music 5/14/09

Idiot Box - Lots of Videos About Music 5/14/09

Idiot box

n. Slang

A television.

I am pretty sure that the best podcast ever is This American Life from NPR. And even more sure than that, Andrew Bird is pretty much the most NPR friendly musician ever. This all makes this video not only make sense, but be really awesome. The track is called “Eugene”, via here.

One of the albums that I absolutely cannot get enough of this year comes from the francophone Amadou and Mariam whom Scott turned me onto last year. The song is right from the middle of their album Welcome to Mali and is called "Masiteladi." For sure worth a watch. The whole album is this immediate and listenable so if you dig this, definitely check out the album.

On the Shins current tour they have been playing a couple new songs. One is called "The Rifle's Spiral" and the other (below) is called "double bubble" which features the rhythmic stylings of Modest Mouse's drummer Joe Plummer. It certainly is a lot more bouncy. Look for a new album 2010ish maybe. Via Stereogum

SNL. JT. Blah Blah. Funny etc.

Here we have The National playing their Dark was the Night Favorite "So Far Around the Bend" on Fallon. I really dig this track even though its a little peppier than most of Boxer. I would love to see them center around an album around this "its fall and I am melancholly but still in a good mood" vibe.

Uhhh. Half of Death Cab doing an interview on...CNN? Yeah idk why. For ten minutes too. Best question ever "How do you guys get your mojo?" Chris Walla looks like Luke Skywalker. Also apparently Death Cab is the "perfect marriage of four guys."...Sexy.