Love of Diagrams - Nowhere Forever (2009)

It's been two years since Love of Diagrams released their follow-up to 2007's Mosaic, which I loved.  Why, then you ask, did I wait until this month to listen to it?


Well, the band is from Australia, so the CD was available only as an import.


"In that case," you say, being a reasonably logical person of sound mind and body, "why not just download it from iTunes or Amazon?  No shipping, no import -- right?"


Answer:  because the digital files were available only as "imports" as well.


Yes, these are electronic files.  Yes, there is no "transportation" of these files or physical reason why these cannot be transmitted.  Yes, this is incredibly dumb.


In  any case, I'm happy to have had the chance to finally get a listen. Nowhere Forever is a sea change in sound; at first I heard a lot of similarities to Sugar's Copper Blue (and tonally that is the most direct comparison for the first half of the album), but the more I listen to it, the more it sounds like The Lilys' In the Presence of Nothing.  


I feel like I'm listening to the next piece in a student's portfolio:  they're now less about juxtaposing angular guitars against the vocals, and more about making a statement with a driving tone, then slightly tweaking it to make their final point.


"Lookout" and "Mountain" exemplify this perfectly:  it's a wall of 1994 grunge, spat at in the final third by a lilting guitar riff that's simple but very powerful.  You get pulled in by the undertow; it's a war of attrition you'll eventually succumb to.  This shows in the song lengths: 3 of Mosaic's 13 songs were longer than 3:45; only 1 of Nowhere Forever's 11 songs is shorter than 3:45. 


Despite the huge tonal shift in the music and song length, it still works.  It lacks the highs and lows of Mosaic but is consistently strong for the first seven songs before petering out on the last four.  


But I'm still not sure on this one.  I wrote 90% of this review two weeks ago, but have been vacillating on whether this is great or merely good.  I'll say this:  the first 3/4 make a really nice rock album.  The dropoff at the end knocks it down a peg.


CD Placement Rating:  Portable CD Case.


- Snilch

Music Pride. Here's Proof. I Promise.

One correction from last post: Ken points out (with video evidence, no less!) that XTC actually has made a handful of live appearances since 1982, as part of an acoustic radio tour in 1989 and also making sporadic TV appearances, such as this one on Late Night with David Letterman. (In the first clip, that's Andy Partridge who looks like a cross between Bob Mould and Freddie Mercury; in the second, that's him with the top hat).

Conclusion: I still like my story better, with the downside being that it's not true. Details, details... thanks, Ken.

Here's a whole bunch of crap I've been listening to. (And yes, I am working on your mix CD's.) In alphabetical order:

• James Dean Bradfield – The Great Western (2006). The lead singer from The Manic Street Preachers gives us one great song (“That’s No Way to Tell a Lie”) and a bunch of innocuous ones. Pick up the song on iTunes; the album is only for the MSP completist.
  Verdict: Sell-back Pile 1.

• Love of Diagrams – Mosaic (2007). Their EP was first profiled here. This is a very solid album by a band that has a great sound at a young age and a ton of potential. My worry is that this first album is a little too polished, if you know what I mean. “Form and Function” is a great example: it’s a great leadoff track, it’s nicely produced – it’s a great song. But it’s a little too slick for its own good. That isn’t to say that should deter you from picking it up – I’m just being cranky and taking it out on Love of Diagrams. This album is absolutely great: poppy, guitar-driven, mid-to-uptempo indie rock. Somehow I hear a cross of INXS, Pretty Girls Make Graves, The Dresden Dolls, Pylon, and Rainer Maria, if that makes any sense. (Not much does make sense in this review, come to think of it.) Bottom line: I really like this album and will definitely check out their next one. This one is one of my new favorites.
  Verdict: Highly recommended. Car CD Changer.
  
  
• New Young Pony Club – Fantastic Playground (2007). I saw the video for “The Bomb” on MTV2’s Subterranean and was hooked. And you probably know one of the songs – “Ice Cream” was all over TV as a commercial. They’re young, it’s danceable, it rocks! I could play “The Bomb” all day every day. Really good guitar-synth-girl singer pop, although not really a complete album. You can tell they have a great album in them… as long as they avoid input from the A&R people.
  Verdict: Recommended, especially if you like bands like CSS. (I won’t name names… Andrew.) Portable CD Case.
  
  
• Silversun Pickups – Carnavas (2006). This is actually getting more airplay now, I believe, than when it was released two years ago. I really like these guys –- this is an excellent indie rock album, IMHO. But what really sold me on the band was watching a live clip of “Lazy Eye” on MTV2, which is much more fierce than the studio version. If they can channel a little of that energy into a studio album… now THAT would be something. Think Kill Hannah meets Built to Spill. Excellent album.
  Verdict: Highly recommended. Car CD Changer.
  
  
• Sum 41 – Half Hour of Power (2000). When I mentioned Sean was a fan of these guys in this post this post, he corrected me -- he tells me he was actually into Green Day. And The Spice Girls. Seriously. No, seriously, I can’t make this stuff up, and I wouldn’t say that about anybody if it weren’t true (not even Sean). This is a decent album, but like All Killer No Filler, it’s a bit saccharine-ey. Sweet taste but not filling. So Sean – sorry for the incorrect attribution. (P.S. Scott was under the same impression I was about you liking Sum 41. So I blame you.)
  Verdict: Not recommended. Neither are The Spice Girls. “Peaches” Pile/Pile of Death.
  
  
• Squirrel Bait – Squirrel Bait (1985). This was one of two albums these Louisville, KY teens released before Peter Searcy went out to do his own things and the rest of the band formed Slint. Musically, it’s punk-ish and pop-like. “When I Fall” is the best of a decent group of songs. I’ll keep it as a historical document.
  Verdict: CD Rack.

• Linda Thompson – Versatile Heart (2007). Linda Thompson returned in 2002 with Fashionably Late, her first record in 17 years, which was remarkable as she had finally recovered from hysterical dysphonia, which is essentially a psychological condition that resulted in her inability to sing, and thus had completely halted her career. She followed that album (which was fine but not really remarkable) with this one in 2007. Most famous as the second half of the “Richard and Linda Thompson” duo, her voice is still amazing, but this album does not do it for me.
  Verdict: Not recommended. Pile of Death.

• Richard Thompson – Sweet Warrior (2007). The other half of the duo. Richard Thompson has tended to have had one monumental album each decade (Shoot Out the Lights in the 80’s and Mock Tudor in the 90’s), and decent to excellent albums in between. This falls into the former category. “Dad’s Gonna Kill Me” was an absolute scorcher live, and when you understand that “Dad” is slang for “Bagdad,” you realize that this song has a lot going on. "I'll Never Give It Up" and "Johnny's Far Away" are classic RT songs. “Needle and Thread” is also a keeper. On the other hand, there a bunch of tracks I’m on the fence about. It’s not a bad album -- I just have plenty of other excellent albums by Sir Richard I’d rather go back and listen to.
  Verdict: Enjoyable for RT fans. Otherwise, buy yourself Mock Tudor or the gold disc of Shoot Out the Lights (which really is worth the extra $$$). CD Rack.
  

• Year of the Rabbit – Year of the Rabbit (2003). When I hinted here at my musical man-crush on Ken Andrews, who know it would take 10 months to actually follow up on it? (Hmmm… you don’t seem surprised.) Year of the Rabbit (like On, which was reviewed in the above link) is another band for Ken Andrews after the breakup of my all-time faves, Failure. This album is not terribly complicated, but I really enjoy it. “Rabbit Hole” is a great leadoff track and Ken follows up with great song after great song: "Last Defense," "Absent Stars," "Vaporize, and "Hunted" are highlights for me too. (Yes, I just referred to almost half the album as “highlights.”) A little heavier and grungier than Failure, it’s eminently enjoyable. There is a unified “sound” to this album that is great. Not a bad song in the bunch; I wish they had done another album together.
  Verdict: Recommended. Car CD Changer.
  

- Snilch

Quick Hits

Here's the latest on a few albums I've checked out recently.

• Luscious Jackson - Greatest Hits. 2007. Luscious Jackson was one of my favorite bands of the '90's, and this compilation has all of their singles. But their albums were better as a whole, not as one-offs. It's not a bad place to start, but I'd take Natural Ingredients, Electric Honey, or Fever In Fever Out over this compilation any day. For diehard Luscious Jackson fans such as myself, there are a couple of rare songs ("Love is Here" & "69 Annee Erotique") worth grabbing, but the four remixes that are included as "new material" just don't cut it for me.
  Verdict: Not recommended. Sell-Back Pile 1.

• Love of Diagrams - EP. 2007. Thanks for the recommendation on this one, Yves. "Pace or the Patience" immediately grabbed me, but as I've listened to their EP I've grown more interested in the other two originals. Think slightly experimental, mid-to-up-tempo indie rock with a little fire in their belly. Great voice on Antonia Sellbach as well. Plus they throw in a Pylon cover ("Cool")! The kids know their musical history -- who knew? Their full-length debut will be released in the next two months, and I will be buying it.
  Verdict: Recommended. Portable CD Case.
  
  
• Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? 2007. Thanks for the recommendation on this one, Pitchfork. Pitchfork put it into their "Best New Music" category and had this to say: "Their darkest and most experimental record to date... an album as harrowingly savage in its depiction of breakup psychology as it is inexhaustibly replayable." If by "inexhaustibly replayable," they mean, "playable twice," then I'm with them. This album does have great packaging, but that's about it. Otherwise it's not... good.
  Verdict: Perfect gift for people you want to piss off or sever future contact with. Not one redeemable song. Goes into The Pile of Death (formerly Sell-Back Pile 2).
  

- Snilch