Clark ft. Thom Yorke - "Medicine"

Veteran electronic producer Clark's new record Sus Dog was executive produced by Radiohead's Thom Yorke, who adds his ghostly vocals to the track "Medicine." The video also incorporates deep fake technology to merge Clark and Yorke's faces together.

Clark - "Clutch Pearlers"

UK producer Clark returns with a new album called Sus Dog, which was executive produced by Thom Yorke and focuses more on Clark's voice for the first time. "Clutch Pearlers" features lots of whimsical percussion and a childlike vocal turn.

My Favorite 25 Albums of 2014: 25-21

It was an odd musical year for me, with a lot of strong releases coming out right at the beginning of the year then the rest of the year plodding along with many good, but disappointing records. This is one of the first years in a long time that I could not come up with 50 top records so, instead, I will be short and sweet this year with my Top 25:

25.

Phantogram - Voices

While not completely ditching the glitchy beats and edgy tension of their debut album Eyelid Movies, Phantogram's major label debut Voices does up the gloss factor more, and that push and pull between two worlds is what creates the magic this go around. Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter know their way around a hook, and blast forward with some of their catchiest singles like "Nothing but Trouble," "Black Out Days," and "Fall In Love;" but also can dial things back on the excellent ballads "Bill Murray" and "My Only Friend."

24.

Taylor Swift - 1989

1989 is a proudly glitzy, 80s synthpop throwback that wears its heart and influences on its sleeve. It's a bold move from the 25 year old Swift, and one that she expertly executes. While there will always be debate about the relevance of Swift's work, is she really brilliant or just brilliant at appropriating pop trends, there is almost no debate here that 1989 is the most hook-filled pop record of the year, and is just plain fun.

23.

Clark - Clark

When we reach the end of the world and are staring into the abyss for the last time, Clark's self-titled album is likely the soundtrack to the event. The music here is simultaneously humane and annihilating. Machines churn and burn against one another while small rays of light are briefly allowed in and, just as your body starts to feed off the warmth, Clark throws you back into the blistering maelstrom, tossing aside all hope of survival.

22.

The Juan Maclean - In a Dream

With the ending of LCD Soundsystem, The Juan MacLean became DFA Records' de facto flagship act. Known more for killer singles ("Happy House"), The Juan MacLean had put out good records, but never something consistent enough to be considered a "great" one. In a Dream is the first step in rectifying that situation. With only a couple of slight missteps, the record is a fun, buzzy analogue daydream, full of killer singles like the sleek "A Simple Design," the shimmering and trance-like "I've Waited So Long," and the day-glow house of "Here I Am."

21.

Cloud Nothings - Here and Nowhere Else

Sometimes you just crave a great rock n' roll record, with blistering, hook filled guitars, pounding drums, and rumbling bass lines; no muss no fuss rock. On their last record Attack On Memory, Cloud Nothings almost made a perfect record which, for me, was only hampered by some needlessly long songs that tended to overstay their welcome. Here, their latest record Here And Nowhere Else takes off brilliantly from that last record's template and aside from one 7 minute track, blasts through perfect three minute tracks full of amazing melodies, bratty attitude, and enough force to blow a building down. Moving from Steve Albini's more murky production on Attack On Memory to a clearer, more focused approach from John Congleton, Here And Nowhere else has a singular focus that propels the record forward at a breakneck pace, which makes each moment more dazzling than the next.

Jam of the Day: Clark -"Winter Linn"

I love all the textures in this haunting track from Clark.

Videos of the Week

Cold front slams into Atlanta last night. Here are the videos this week that warmed my cold feet up:



Tongue in cheek video making fun of Taylor Swift's dating persona.



Gorgeous clip from Kindness and Robyn, featuring simple portraits of their families and friends. It is quite touching.



The band WATERS performs their song in a parking lot while frontman Van Pierszalowski wanders through LA's skeezy Pink Motel while weird things go on.



Hypnotic and strange clip from ambient artist Tim Woulfe.



Gorgeous animated clip from Field Report.



Amazing abstract clip for this haunting track from Clark.

Jam of the Day: Clark - "Unfurla"

Gorgeous electronica from Clark, finding him once again elegantly towing the line between head-scratching IDM and dance floor bangers.

Album Review - Clark: Iradelphic

Clark
Iradelphic
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

Starting with the icy IDM experiments on his debut Clarence Park, through his twisted, beat heavy compositions on Body Riddle, Turning Dragon, and Totems Flare, Clark (a.k.a. Chris Clark) has always attempted to balance the tension between the organic and synthetic. Clark's use of live drum samples has been key in the development of his sound; his beats seeming real yet not quite of this world. It's been three years since the release of Totems Flare, and now finds Clark releasing his latest opus, Iradelphic, which finds him at a bit of a crossroads. For those expecting the almost impenetrable soundscapes of his previous albums, there are hints of that on the album, but the album finds itself frequently seeking less computer based territory. In fact, Iradelphic features almost more acoustic instrumentation than electronic. When the opening track "Henderson Wrench" unfolded I first thought I got the wrong pressing of the release. Layers of acoustic guitars twist and turn through each other, with only vague wisps of electronic percussion in the background, the organic reverie interrupted only at the end with some booming drum flourishes.



Which leads into first single "Com Touch" which takes its time building, starting with old analog synths emulating classical motifs before segueing into a typical Clark-ian beat frenzy. The blurting bass synths bumping and pushing against the furious waves of keyboards.



And that is the intriguing as well as the confounding thing about Iradelphic, that you never get the sense that this is a Clark record. You know in your heart it is, his name is on the label, and there are Clarkesque elements throughout, however, as a complete work, it feels curiously scattershot and difficult to pin down. If you were to hit random on the CD itself you would swear you were listening to different artists. There are two tracks with Martina Topley-Bird which function as an almost acoustic, trip-hop duet. "Open" leading the charge with a requisite hazy vocal turn from Topley-Bird leading into "Secret" which acts as an almost coda to "Open."





There really is no indication from these collaborations that it is Clark, not that it is necessarily a bad thing, it is just difficult to assimilate them within the confines of this record. Clark is more successful when he merges the acoustic with the electronically more fluidly. The ambitious three part, ten minute long "The Pining" is a master class in sequencing and pacing. Over rising keyboard drones and steel drum pads, Pt. 1 moves into a cloud of swirling guitars, percussion, and electronic effects, before getting more intense and jazzy with admirable bass work, then pausing for a drum breakdown, where the elements of the earlier motif flows back to the forefront. Pt. 2 is more frantic, featuring a skittering beat platform, with echoes of the dense bass synths and guitar work from earlier, adding layered vocal samples underneath. The final part adapts the melody to a choir of bell synths before fading out with calm analog ambiance.



Which would have been a good ending point, however, Clark throws in a final ambient closing track, the Boards of Canada-lite "Broken Kite Footage," which is a lovely droning piece but seems superfluous after the ambitious "The Pining." Which is another nagging issue with the record, the pieces themselves individually are almost across the board interesting great tracks but as a collective whole, don't appear to have a lot of connection to one another. The pastoral IDM of "Tooth Moves" bumps into the blurting and burbling "Skyward Bruise/Descent," whose atonality rubs wrong against the Topley-Bird tracks. The scraping guitars and meandering atmospherics of "Ghosted" slap abruptly into the gorgeous piano meditation of "Black Stone." The variety of tracks, as well as their sequencing, creates more confusion than tension, and would have benefited either from some better transitions, or a more homogeneous palate.

These issues I have with the record don't ultimately derail the enjoyment of most of these pieces. There is just a bigger learning curve in getting into the whiplash flow of the songs. Admirably, Iradelphic is a transitional record that finds Clark trying to not be pigeon holed with a certain sound, looking to expand on his prior work while still honoring it. At this stage, it is stretched a little too far, coming across less cohesive than it should. There is a interesting seed planted here though, one that hopefully will bear fruit.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.

Jam of the Day: Clark - "Com Touch"

I cannot get this track out of my head. It is the perfect mix of past sounds and future textures, and a slamming track to boot.

Clark: "Secret (ft. Martina Topley-Bird)"

New song from famed IDM producer Clark, featuring the recognizable hazy vocals of Martina Topley-Bird. It's an unusual track for Clark, as it is fairly muted for him. It is a light bossa nova like track, with only occasional dips into the Clark pool of harsh electronics. It is an interesting direction for the auteur.

Mondkopf: Rising Doom - Album Review

Mondkopf
Rising Doom
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

Mondkopf, AKA Paul Régimbeau, the Paris-based electronic artist, released his first album in 2009, the well received Galaxy of Nowhere, and has become a go-to remixer for artists like Caribou, Black Devil Disco Club and Golden Filter. His second album Rising Doom is an eclectic, yet focused release drawing from everything from house, electro, industrial, and techno. It is a lush, dark affair sounding akin to a dance version of Massive Attack's Mezzanine, finding lots of dark corners to hide out in. The beats are heavy and dark, with raw synths buzzing and clanging in the background. Rising Doom works best when the tracks focus on the beats and not so well when detouring into more ambient territory. The flow of the album gets compromised by too many ill placed beatless instrumentals that threaten to undermine the album as a whole. But the tracks that work, and there are many, are so well produced and sculpted that, in the end, the album still is effective.

Rising Doom is one of the first electronic releases in awhile that doesn't seem indebted to the dubstep genre, focusing more on machine-like aspects cultivated from artists like Tri Repeate ++ era Autechre, Clark, and some of the beat music from Flying Lotus. Although the music is pretty heavy at times, there are lots of touches throughout the record that bring it back down to a human level. "Day of Anger" contains some lovely Satie-esque piano melodies that bookend the throbbing menace of the mid-section, with thumping percussion and buzz saw synth lines.



The twinkling keyboard patches of "Sweet Memories" lighten the load of the churning, lurching percussion and low end bass.



And the crackling, glitchy synths, and dirty programming of "The Song of Shadows" could become unbearably tense, but the mid-point of the song is broken up with a gorgeous passage of cor anglais and organ.



Some of the less beat-driven tracks, in an effort to create more variety for the album, seem to fall flat within the context of the other songs. "Moon's Throat" falters under a heavy handled throat gurgling vocal sample and LSD trip synth lines. And the closing pair of "My Heart Is Yours" and "Fossil Lights" attempt to end the album on a note of M83-like grandiosity, but the two tracks feel half-hearted at best, with the closing 8 minutes of "Fossil Lights" being all build with no real release.



The album would have worked better if he had continued making tracks in the vein of ""Beyond The Golden Valleys" whose cavernous drum beats and squeltchy synth lines are consistently engaging,



the bee-swarm industrial haze of the throbbing "Where The Gods Fall,"



or the pulsing Portishead meets Justice track "Deadwood."



Rising Son is an excellent sophomore release for the up and coming French producer. Unfortunately, he makes the mistake a lot of artists do on a second album which is making changes to their sound that go too far outside their comfort zone and end up straining their signature sound. I applaud the fact he wanted to push his sound, but wish he had left it to a couple of tracks, rather than half of them.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and peaks one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.