Yard Act ft. Elton John - "100% Endurance (Elton John Version)"

Photo by Rachael Paley

Leeds post-punkers Yard Act surprisingly team up with Elton John for a reworking of their song "100% Endurance" which was found on their recent album The Overload. It's quite touching and lovely.

Album Review: Queens of the Stone Age - ...Like Clockwork

Queens of the Stone Age
...Like Clockwork
Rating: Grrrr

Josh Homme brings his revolving cast of support players back to life for Queens of the Stone Age's sixth album ...Like Clockwork. In the past, Homme has sometimes bitten off more than he could chew, littering his work with so many guest stars that you felt like he was crashing Timbaland's studio. A lot of his collaborations make sense, for example adding drum god Dave Grohl in the mix on Songs for the Deaf, to me, QOTSA's best and most consistent record. However, some just plain don't work and feel like Homme leaning on the shoulders of his famous friends, i.e., Julian Casablanca's vocals on "Sick Sick Sick," off Era Vulgaris, or Jack Black's "handclaps" on "Burn The Witch" from Lullabies To Paralyze. But more often than not, he gets it right, and thankfully on ...Like Clockwork there is a seamless quality to the flow of the record, and while there are some very heavy hitters here (Trent Reznor and Sir Elton John), no one sticks out like a sore thumb, and they are nicely integrated into the QOTSA fold. In the past, my main issue with QOTSA albums was the fact that there would be two or three amazing, killer singles and the rest, while not horrible, felt an awful lot like filler. Going into first listens of ...Like Clockwork this weighed heavy in the back of my mind, however, I was pleasantly surprised how cohesive and solid this record was.

For me, QOTSA excel when they just let the riffs rip and the volume amp up. There are almost too many treasures here to choose from, with Homme feeling more inspired that he has in years. The blistering onslaught of "My God Is The Sun" drives on forcefully under Grohl's fierce drums, squalling guitar work, and fuzz bass,



album highlight "If I Had A Tail" is a proto-Rolling Stones bluesified strut,



"I Sat By The Ocean" is a slowly building track of intertwining guitars, handclaps, and a steady backbeat,



while the raucous "Fairweather Friends" features an all-star cast of supporting players (Trent Reznor, Sir Elton John, Nick Oliveri, and Mark Lanegan) but somehow they all fit into the mix together with no showboating.

And there are lots of more toned down moments that add to the flow of the record while not making things come to a full stop. "The Vampyre of Time and Memory" is a elegantly goth ballad, focusing on gorgeous piano and Homme's supple voice, closing title track is a surprisingly moving piano ballad with Homme stretching his voice high into his upper register, and "Kalopsia" is an atmospheric, relatively understated collaboration between Homme and Reznor,



Seriously, I was expecting ...Like Clockwork to be another middling record from QOTSA that I would pilfer for the killer singles, leaving the flotsom and jetsum of the filler tracks culled on the wayside. Imagine my immense surprise when the record turned out not only to be one of QOTSA's best records but, quite frankly, also one of the best rock records of the year. Sorry Mr. Homme for ever doubting you and your talent.

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.

Album Review: The Killers - Battle Born

The Killers
Battle Born
Rating: Meh

The Killers 2004 album Hot Fuss was a guilty pleasure of 80s synths and 90s Brit pop affectations that made up for in pure hookiness what it lacked in intelligence. Of course, the band, like a lot of acts that feel pure pop music is not taken seriously, tried to become the next great American guitar band on the follow up Sam's Town, which found The Killer's thinking they had been possessed by the spirit of Bruce Springsteen. Thankfully, beneath all the bombast and shlocky attempts to reach the cheap seats, the album actually was a pretty stunning (almost) train wreck that somehow was able to give out enough pop goodness to save itself. After being taken down a peg or two, Brandon Flowers and Co., returned with 2008's Day & Age which sought to merge the two albums into one, and while it had some really fun pop tracks, it was weighed down by two many attempts at making "important" music. After 4 years, The Killers latest record Battle Born finds the band back in the Sam's Town mode, going for an epic sound that just doesn't really suit them, and instead of going for a singular Springsteen-like sound, they are all over the map here, borrowing from everyone from U2, Coldplay, Garth Brooks, to Elton John, and never fully set into a groove on the record. Too often the songs just sound calculated to evoke an emotional response that is just not earned. The record works best when it stops trying to be so important and just lets the hooks speak for themselves.

Lead track "Flesh and Blood" uses skyscraping synth lines and a rousing chorus that elevate the song to another classic Killers track; of course it helps to try and ignore the silly lyrics. "Runaways," while basically another cribbed track from Springsteen, has the decency to wear its influence on its sleeve.



On "Deadlines and Commitments" locks into a nice groove early, with subtle synth lines, and a kept in check vocal from Flowers, growing into a forceful chorus.



Even "Heart of Girl," a collaboration with Daniel Lanois, and sounds exactly like an outtake from The Joshua Tree, is such a gorgeous track full of interesting sonic embellishments, it transcends its copycat qualities.



The only time that The Killers step outside their comfort zone is the achingly beautiful ballad "Be Still." Flowers stretches his voice to amazing levels of emotion, pulling a performance out of himself I never expected. While the song threatens to fall over the line into treacly territory, his voice just powers through it.

But for most of the record, there is just too many tracks trying too hard to be something they are not. Where artists like Springsteen sung about going out on the town, or hitting the road, there was always a deeper social/economic context going on that elevated them from mere party tracks. Here, The Killers mistake thinking their lyrics are profound but are merely cliche ridden. Despite an interesting keyboard opening "The Rising Tide" becomes just another lackluster guitar track with silly lyrics like "let's go out tonight/there's a mystery underneath the neon light." "The Way It Was" is a trite boy in a fight with his girl take that lacks any sort of new revelations; "Miss Atomic Bomb," an apparent homage to Elton John, again gets mired in cliched lyrics about dust clouds settling, looking back on neon nights, and racing shadows in the moonlight; while things get completely embarrassing on the country-rock hybrid "From Here On Out" which is practically unlistenable.

Battle Born is a curiously un-fun record, lacking the goofy smarts of Hot Fuss, the over the top silliness of Sam's Town, or even the spacey disco vibe of Day & Age. It just sounds like a retread of better ideas and songs from other bands and artists. Funny that the two bonus tracks on the Deluxe Edition of the record show more spunk and verve than the remaining songs on the official tracklist. Sometimes bands just need to know that we like them for their strengths, and The Killers' strengths are pure pop songs. They should stick to 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 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.

Kate Bush: 50 Words For Snow - Album Review

Kate Bush
50 Words For Snow
Rating: Grrrr

Eccentric British art-rock goddess Kate Bush is never predictable, releasing music at her own pace and not following any trends. You are not going to hear any hip-hop rhythms or dubstep breaks in her tracks. 50 Words For Snow is only her second release of new material in over 17 years, and is a particularly odd concept album about snow. Each of the tracks touch in some form on snow, winter, and how human beings and nature interact with one another. It is a languorous album, with only 7 tracks, the shortest of which is just under 7 minutes, while the longest clocks in at almost a quarter of an hour. Bush is in no hurry to get to her destination, allowing the songs to breathe and choose their own path. Most of the tracks are composed of merely piano, and delicate backing instrumentation, and of course, Bush's dramatic voice. Only someone like Bush could create music this loopy and strange and make it come out haunting and moving, rather than silly and out of touch.

The album begins without even Bush singing. Her son takes over the reigns at the beginning, using a voice that is surprisingly Bush-like. "Snowflake" is ostensibly a track about a snowflake falling to earth, however, in Bush's capable hands, it transcends any literal interpretation. Bush's one line throughout the track "The world is so loud/Keep falling/I'll find you" transforms the song into a meditation on dreams.



"Lake Tahoe" moves into Scott Walker Drift territory, providing an almost operatic tale of a watery spirit who appears at the edge of the lake in winter searching for her dog. The song continues the albums themes of searching and longing. The almost 12 minute run time borrows from jazz, classical, opera, allowing the listener to be enveloped in the wintry mix of icy pianos and muted percussion.

Lake Tahoe (50 Words For Snow) Kate Bush by niekvdh

Probably the most accessible track on 50 Words For Snow, is album centerpiece "Wild Man," which adds the first noticeable beat and pop song structure. Well, the most structure a song about a yeti can be. Bush identifying with the monster: "I can hear your cry/Echoing 'round the mountainside/
You sound lonely."

Kate Bush - Wild Man by antirecords

Only Kate Bush could write a song about a seduction and sexual encounter with a snowman and have it become a metaphor for the temporal nature of all relationships. "Misty" is one of the many standout tracks on the album; the ghostly piano and minimal strings providing the perfect canvas for Bush's expressive voice, that only seems to get more substantive with age. But Bush is not afraid to allow others to take over the spotlight or collaborate with her equally. On the stunning "Snowed In At Wheeler Street," Bush is shockingly joined by Elton John, who provides one of his most genuinely beautiful vocal performances. Reigning in his usual over-emoting, John adds gravitas to the haunting tale of time and star crossed lovers who are always on the cusp of meeting, but are doomed to be apart.



The only real misstep on the album is the title track "50 Words For Snow," which is literally what the song is about. Using Stephen Fry reciting made up terms for snow, it wastes one of the more interesting musical directions on the record, a deep-seated Middle-Eastern groove, by not transcending the literal trappings of the song.

Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow by DJ Dan Buskirk

At this point in her career, Bush doesn't really have to prove anything to anyone, and can essentially record an album of the sound of grass growing and it would probably be a success. I respect that she takes her art seriously and does whatever she wants. Like Bjork, her most influential and groundbreaking days are likely behind her, but that doesn't prevent her from pushing her aesthetic in new directions. 50 Words For Snow is a most welcome return for Kate Bush, and we can only hope there is not such a long hiatus between this and her next release.

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.