If you know me at all, it's not surprising that I have reserved the last post for Nightwish. I have been listening to Nightwish for about 10 years now, and unofficially declared them my "all time and forever favourite band" shortly thereafter. I have never been disappointed by Nightwish because I believe Tuomas (the lyricist, keyboardist and primary composer) is one of the most honest musicians out there. His integrity is second to none. And so long as he keeps doing what he likes to do and believes in it, I can never be disappointed.
Nightwish has a history of outdoing themselves for their newest album. This time they've decided to release a full length movie in conjunction with the CD, both titled Imaginaerum. Even without the movie (which won't be released until the spring at the earliest), the music stands quite well on its own. Nightwish has a fairly distinctive sound, but it's hard to compare the albums to each other. There has always been a natural progression, but I find it hard to say, for example, "Century Child is /better/ than Oceanborn" because they are so different. What Oceanborn does, it does well, and same goes for Century Child, but they essentially have nothing in common other than being Nightwish CD. However I do see Imaginaerum as a kind of culmination of their previous works. I kind of see it as this spiritual cross between Angels Fall First and Once. This might sound odd, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense to me. It combines the huge, explosive orchestral sound of Once with the openness of Angels Fall First. And all three of these CDs represent a beginning of sorts. AFF was Nightwish's first release and the beginning of their fusion of heavy metal with female vocals and the big sound that envelops their music. Once begin their relationship with the LSO and Pip Williams (who arranges the orchestral parts) and the new level they'd reached as a band. And now Imaginaerum is truly the beginning of Anette's integration into the band; it's the first time they've made a film; and I believe looking back in several years we will see this as a major turning point for Nightwish.
The soundscape is unlike anything I've heard before. Particularly since Once, Tuomas has been playing with ethnic sounds and incorporating music you might not expect to hear in a Finnish metal band. They started using uilleann pipes on Dark Passion Play which gave some songs a distinctively Celtic sound; well, they took that sound and really ran with it this time. The break down in "I Want My Tears Back" is basically a highland jig; it's kind of awesome. "Slow Love Slow" is also kind of jazzy; not 100% jazz, but that's fine because it's just supposed to capture the feeling, which it does quite well. The orchestral work is most impressive, with intense percussion sections, a children's choir, and some very strong choral passages.
I'm also wondering if Tuomas was listening to a lot of 80's music when he was writing Imaginaerum; there are a lot of vocal lines and guitar riffs that are reminiscent of that time, as well as the overall sense of hope that encompasses the album.
There's some really cool stuff they've done; there are at least three tracks where they have music come in on the second beat of the bar, which is a very cool sound, and not something you hear that often. The last song, which is split into two tracks, is also unique. The first part is a really intense piece in four movements, followed by about seven minutes of prose read by different people. Then to cap it off, there is a six minute orchestral arrangement of themes from Imaginaerum. I didn't know what to make of it at first, but it makes a whole lot of sense upon listening to it again and again.
Lyrically there are some new themes too, and, as always, Tuomas has found interesting new ways of using the English language.
In preparation for the release of the album, I'd been reading and watching plenty of interviews with Tuomas and had noticed something very different. He's had some very dark periods in his life (resulting in Century Child and Dark Passion Play). But he seems much happier now; he said Imaginaerum is a celebration of life. And indeed it is! I wouldn't say it's a "happy" CD, but there's a certain amount of hope and bliss that I haven't heard since Angels Fall First. By the end of the CD I feel a great sense of calm, which I've never felt before after a Nightwish CD. In fact, normally I can't listen to a Nightwish album more than once a day because they're so intense that I feel drained afterwards. I think if I heard Once or Dark Passion Play several times a day I would be exhausted. But Imaginaerum, as emotional as it is, is at peace with itself. Century Child, Once and Dark Passion Play all finish on rather dark tones; Wishmaster and Oceanborn had a sense of finality, but it was not uplifting; and Angels Fall First finished with a sense of uncertainty. It's almost as if Tuomas is getting more comfortable in his skin.
This is a phenomenal achievement for Nightwish, and I really want to share it with everyone. Nightwish has an incredibly diverse fan base and I've met so many people who get so many different things out of it. If you haven't listened to Nightwish yet, now is the time!
Music video for Storytime: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g8ykQLYnX0
and a little clip with each band member talking about the album: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_c701C91xE
www.nightwish.com // @nightwishband
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 30, 2011
A pair of hardworking hands
This the second of three entries about great music I've heard this year! In retrospect I probably should have started earlier and made more posts, but here we are. Today I talk about three albums from three of my favourite countries: Canada, Finland and Japan!
Some people might remember the name Kazzer from earlier in the decade. He is a Canadian hip hop artist who started off his music career with a really spunky album, Go For Broke. It was one of the earliest exposures to hip hop I had and it's stuck with me after all these years. A number of years later when he released his second CD, Broke, it was easy to see times had changed. There was still the same man, and the same hip hop/rock elements present, but the tone had darkened considerably. The songs were all a lot darker. After yet another quiet period, Kazzer has reemerged as Redlight King.
The title of the CD speaks volumes: Something for the Pain. The upbeat days of “Growin up in the 80s” and “Puddem Up” are but a memory now. The tone is decidedly dark. In fact, it only seems to spiral downwards as you go through the album. The last track, When the Dust Settles Down, is one of those honest moments that so rarely appears in popular music. It's a summary of some of the hardest times he's been through, without any fluff or exaggeration. It's a bleak way to end the CD, but it makes sense. I think it maintains his integrity; if they had finished with more bombast it would have changed the sound altogether.
Redlight King is for all intents and purposes a rock group, but Kazzer's distinctive vocals still steer the ship, sometimes dipping into a rhythm and tone more akin to his rapping on previous albums. And the rough edge his voice has tells as much of a story as his lyrics.
One thing I really love about this album is the story of how they came to use a sample of Neil Young on the track Old Man. This is the first time Neil Young has allowed anyone to sample his music. The band had a bit of a struggle to go through, but in the end once he'd heard it, he had no problem with them making it into a song. It's a testament to Kazzer's perseverance as a musician. He's been through so much so far, it only makes sense that he wouldn't give up on something he was committed to.
Check out the music video for Old Man
and an acoustic version of Comeback
redlightkingmusic.com // @theredlightking
---------------------------
Norther gave itself a fresh start with Circle Regenerated. No band could continue on in the same direction after parting ways with a founding member, guitarist, vocalist, composer and frontman—and those roles were all performed by Petri Lindroos The band was already starting to reinvent itself when the original drummer was replaced by Heikki Saari. He brought a freshness to the music and a drastically different style of drumming with him. Now with a new vocalist and guitarist on board, I think Norther has really found its place and there is a lot of room for growth.
Even with three new members, Norther still has the familiar sound they’ve had since 2003’s Mirror of Madness, which I'm not complaining about. You can expect to hear breakdowns, contrasting clean and harsh vocals, ambient strings and plenty of solos. However, neither Circle Regenerated nor their last album N have explored alternate time signatures much. Norther’s second, third and fourth albums all masterfully tackled 5/4, 6/4, 7/4, 10/4 and 12/4. There are a few time signature shifts here, as in Some Day, which has an alternating 3/4 and 4/4 scheme. I don’t think complex time signatures in and of themselves make music better, but it can enrich a piece when done properly, and since I know Norther is more than capable of producing quality songs in something other than common time, I would hope they will do more when the songwriters feel it is appropriate.
The biggest adjustment is Aleksi’s vocals. He has not only taken over Petri’s position for harsh vocals, but has also mostly replaced Kride’s back up clean singing. I still think Petri is one of the best at what he does, but Aleksi does a good job of injecting his style into the music. After a couple of listens, you realize he fits right in; in fact, comparing the two singers is a moot point, as they both have completely different approaches. Aleksi is less melodic with his “screaming” but has a greater variety of timbres. His technique and range are showcased nicely, as in The Hate I Bear, where his singing is layered on top of his harsh vocals.
As always, Norther displays its softer side with songs like Falling, which is kind of like a power ballad, only more hardcore. The band makes good use of acoustic guitars, soft keyboard pads, strings and choirs to express some really powerful emotions. Make no mistake: Norther is not a band of adolescents who haven’t coped with their feelings yet. They are in touch with some very powerful emotions, and just because they’re loud does not mean they’re angst-ridden or just angry. My favourite track, Some Day, talks about dreaming of the day when you’re free, when you’re released from whatever pain that binds you. Another track, We Do Not Care, is about solidarity, and not being dragged into the madness around you. This isn’t anger or hatred; this is genuine human emotion at work. There is so much waiting for the listener to experience.
The digipak version contains three bonus songs, including a beautiful keyboard/synth instrumental, an acoustic song from guitarist/vocalist Kride, and a cover song of Swedish rock band Lambretta. The two original bonus tracks are quite respectable in their own rights. One thing I'd like to see Norther explore in the future is a song spanning ten or more minutes. Long songs aren't automatically good, but it presents new challenges for the songwriters and opens up the possibility for new sounds and forms.
I'm really pleased with the release and hope that Norther gains some more international attention.
---------------------------
This last CD was one of the biggest surprises for me this year. The latest Legend of Zelda game came with a bonus CD, which is a collection of music from its 25 year history arranged for orchestra. The first time I heard an orchestral arrangement of a video game track was about ten years ago and I was pleased as punch, but the novelty soon wore off. A lot of games from the 8- and 16-bit era had music that was not really suitable for arranging. That doesn't make it bad; it just doesn't work when you try to play the Mario theme with a 50-piece orchestra. It wasn't conceptualised that way. It's the same when some rock bands try to add orchestral instruments to the music. Too often it sounds forced because the rock music was written and then the strings or percussion or whatever was added afterwards.
Even some games with music that begs to be orchestrated (Final Fantasy, Zelda, Chrono Trigger, etc.) have received poor arranging. But this is by far the best orchestration of video game music I've ever heard. One of my biggest problems with game medleys is that they frequently sound like this: theme/theme/theme/theme; or alternatively: theme/awkward transition/theme/exaggerated rit./theme. But the Wind Waker Symphonic Movement on the CD actually sounds like a movement from a symphony. It might have a few more themes than your typical symphony, and it's not exactly in sonata allegro form, but it works. The arranger cleverly used a transitioning theme to get between melodies. The main feature of Wind Waker was travelling by boat around the world. This is seamlessly incorporated into the movement, and works doubly well because of the double meaning: musical transition and in-game transition.
For a while, Zelda games have been experimenting more with overlaying music and transitioning unnoticed from one piece of music to another. For instance, you might be walking through the forest in the game, and as you approach an enemy (or one approaches you without you noticing), the music will slowly shift as a warning. If you walk away from the enemy, the music will return to normal. This eliminates the necessity for a “transition piece,” which might be awkward in a game where you don't change perspective for an enemy encounter (as you would in most Final Fantasy games, for instance). This sounds like the idea they were going for in the orchestral arrangements. I was very happy with this CD, particularly since it was so unexpected; I mostly ordered the limited edition version of Skyward Sword for the gold Wiimote.
The Wind Waker Symphonic Movement
Some people might remember the name Kazzer from earlier in the decade. He is a Canadian hip hop artist who started off his music career with a really spunky album, Go For Broke. It was one of the earliest exposures to hip hop I had and it's stuck with me after all these years. A number of years later when he released his second CD, Broke, it was easy to see times had changed. There was still the same man, and the same hip hop/rock elements present, but the tone had darkened considerably. The songs were all a lot darker. After yet another quiet period, Kazzer has reemerged as Redlight King.
The title of the CD speaks volumes: Something for the Pain. The upbeat days of “Growin up in the 80s” and “Puddem Up” are but a memory now. The tone is decidedly dark. In fact, it only seems to spiral downwards as you go through the album. The last track, When the Dust Settles Down, is one of those honest moments that so rarely appears in popular music. It's a summary of some of the hardest times he's been through, without any fluff or exaggeration. It's a bleak way to end the CD, but it makes sense. I think it maintains his integrity; if they had finished with more bombast it would have changed the sound altogether.
Redlight King is for all intents and purposes a rock group, but Kazzer's distinctive vocals still steer the ship, sometimes dipping into a rhythm and tone more akin to his rapping on previous albums. And the rough edge his voice has tells as much of a story as his lyrics.
One thing I really love about this album is the story of how they came to use a sample of Neil Young on the track Old Man. This is the first time Neil Young has allowed anyone to sample his music. The band had a bit of a struggle to go through, but in the end once he'd heard it, he had no problem with them making it into a song. It's a testament to Kazzer's perseverance as a musician. He's been through so much so far, it only makes sense that he wouldn't give up on something he was committed to.
Check out the music video for Old Man
and an acoustic version of Comeback
redlightkingmusic.com // @theredlightking
---------------------------
Norther gave itself a fresh start with Circle Regenerated. No band could continue on in the same direction after parting ways with a founding member, guitarist, vocalist, composer and frontman—and those roles were all performed by Petri Lindroos The band was already starting to reinvent itself when the original drummer was replaced by Heikki Saari. He brought a freshness to the music and a drastically different style of drumming with him. Now with a new vocalist and guitarist on board, I think Norther has really found its place and there is a lot of room for growth.
Even with three new members, Norther still has the familiar sound they’ve had since 2003’s Mirror of Madness, which I'm not complaining about. You can expect to hear breakdowns, contrasting clean and harsh vocals, ambient strings and plenty of solos. However, neither Circle Regenerated nor their last album N have explored alternate time signatures much. Norther’s second, third and fourth albums all masterfully tackled 5/4, 6/4, 7/4, 10/4 and 12/4. There are a few time signature shifts here, as in Some Day, which has an alternating 3/4 and 4/4 scheme. I don’t think complex time signatures in and of themselves make music better, but it can enrich a piece when done properly, and since I know Norther is more than capable of producing quality songs in something other than common time, I would hope they will do more when the songwriters feel it is appropriate.
The biggest adjustment is Aleksi’s vocals. He has not only taken over Petri’s position for harsh vocals, but has also mostly replaced Kride’s back up clean singing. I still think Petri is one of the best at what he does, but Aleksi does a good job of injecting his style into the music. After a couple of listens, you realize he fits right in; in fact, comparing the two singers is a moot point, as they both have completely different approaches. Aleksi is less melodic with his “screaming” but has a greater variety of timbres. His technique and range are showcased nicely, as in The Hate I Bear, where his singing is layered on top of his harsh vocals.
As always, Norther displays its softer side with songs like Falling, which is kind of like a power ballad, only more hardcore. The band makes good use of acoustic guitars, soft keyboard pads, strings and choirs to express some really powerful emotions. Make no mistake: Norther is not a band of adolescents who haven’t coped with their feelings yet. They are in touch with some very powerful emotions, and just because they’re loud does not mean they’re angst-ridden or just angry. My favourite track, Some Day, talks about dreaming of the day when you’re free, when you’re released from whatever pain that binds you. Another track, We Do Not Care, is about solidarity, and not being dragged into the madness around you. This isn’t anger or hatred; this is genuine human emotion at work. There is so much waiting for the listener to experience.
The digipak version contains three bonus songs, including a beautiful keyboard/synth instrumental, an acoustic song from guitarist/vocalist Kride, and a cover song of Swedish rock band Lambretta. The two original bonus tracks are quite respectable in their own rights. One thing I'd like to see Norther explore in the future is a song spanning ten or more minutes. Long songs aren't automatically good, but it presents new challenges for the songwriters and opens up the possibility for new sounds and forms.
I'm really pleased with the release and hope that Norther gains some more international attention.
---------------------------
This last CD was one of the biggest surprises for me this year. The latest Legend of Zelda game came with a bonus CD, which is a collection of music from its 25 year history arranged for orchestra. The first time I heard an orchestral arrangement of a video game track was about ten years ago and I was pleased as punch, but the novelty soon wore off. A lot of games from the 8- and 16-bit era had music that was not really suitable for arranging. That doesn't make it bad; it just doesn't work when you try to play the Mario theme with a 50-piece orchestra. It wasn't conceptualised that way. It's the same when some rock bands try to add orchestral instruments to the music. Too often it sounds forced because the rock music was written and then the strings or percussion or whatever was added afterwards.
Even some games with music that begs to be orchestrated (Final Fantasy, Zelda, Chrono Trigger, etc.) have received poor arranging. But this is by far the best orchestration of video game music I've ever heard. One of my biggest problems with game medleys is that they frequently sound like this: theme/theme/theme/theme; or alternatively: theme/awkward transition/theme/exaggerated rit./theme. But the Wind Waker Symphonic Movement on the CD actually sounds like a movement from a symphony. It might have a few more themes than your typical symphony, and it's not exactly in sonata allegro form, but it works. The arranger cleverly used a transitioning theme to get between melodies. The main feature of Wind Waker was travelling by boat around the world. This is seamlessly incorporated into the movement, and works doubly well because of the double meaning: musical transition and in-game transition.
For a while, Zelda games have been experimenting more with overlaying music and transitioning unnoticed from one piece of music to another. For instance, you might be walking through the forest in the game, and as you approach an enemy (or one approaches you without you noticing), the music will slowly shift as a warning. If you walk away from the enemy, the music will return to normal. This eliminates the necessity for a “transition piece,” which might be awkward in a game where you don't change perspective for an enemy encounter (as you would in most Final Fantasy games, for instance). This sounds like the idea they were going for in the orchestral arrangements. I was very happy with this CD, particularly since it was so unexpected; I mostly ordered the limited edition version of Skyward Sword for the gold Wiimote.
The Wind Waker Symphonic Movement
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Tusken Raiders
There has been some great music in 2011. I could go into great detail about everything I've heard, but instead I've decided to write three relatively concise posts as an overview of the year. I'll include links to the artists' webpages, music videos and song downloads where possible.
This is the second year that I've been listening to hip hop/rap regularly. In the Spring of 2010 my brother Scott introduced me to a group from Portland, Oregon called Sandpeople. It's currently comprised of nine emcees and a DJ and their output of work is simply massive. In addition to their group albums, most members have at least one solo CD to their name, and many of them have formed duets or trios, further increasing the size of the catalogue. And their work ethic is quite impressive! Many of these guys release multiple projects per year, and frequently make songs or entire albums free for download.
Two CD's stood out in particular for me. First up is Sapient's oddly titled Eaters Vol 1: Tusks!, which is the first in a series. This one deviates slightly from his other solo projects in that there is hardly any rapping on it. Instead, it's a collection of beats that have been worked up into tracks unto themselves. The flow is smooth; it's great music for lounging around and relaxing.
Sapient has produced much of the Sandpeople's discography, all of his solo projects and many others. Tusks! wholly embraces the sound that Sapient has been building. He’s a little bit indie rock, a little bit hip hop and whole lot of filthy electronic sounds. Sapient finds harmony between live sounds (guitars, drums and keyboards), samples, synths and his vocals (speaking, rapping and singing). This album is easily the cleanest of his solo work thus far and has such a wide variety of timbres that nothing really sounds out of place. Trifle With Me sounds like it belongs in the future with its heavy synth work, while Earbugs and Cool Walter work in trumpets, flutes and other orchestral sounds.
This is something completely new for Sapient, and yet it’s not entirely surprising. Saying he hasn’t left his comfort zone for this album isn’t for lack of doing something new—in a way he doesn’t really have a comfort zone. Past Sandpeople and Debaser albums have showcased some of Sapient’s work that isn’t “strictly hip hop” so Tusks! has a familiar feel to it, but he’s just brought it to the next level.
Next up is LAME from Iame; you could almost call it a concept album based around the mispronunciation of the emcee's name (I-am-me). Iame takes some lighthearted shots at himself and those who see him this way. There’s also a more serious examination at who he has become and how this misinterpretation of his name has potentially affected his persona. More than being self-referential and reflective, this is a meta-album. Lame is a real treat to listen to. With respect to his Sandpeople crew, Iame is less political than some, and maybe trash-talks a little less, but is just as outspoken and he has no qualms about expressing his beliefs.
As I've mostly only listened to Sandpeople, I've become fairly used to their type of producing (done mostly by Sapient, and former crew member Simple). Lame was produced entirely by Smoke M2D6; the beats fit Iame's words perfectly. The album is quite serious for the most part, and the beats are rather sober. Nothing is overproduced, there are no clashing electronic sounds or mismatched lyrics and music. There is a very organic feel. Despite the lack of progression in looped beats, it doesn't get stale.
It's hard to mistake Iame's voice for another's. It sounds like his mouth is just a little too big for the words he's saying (or the other way around). His rapping is rather straightforward, which is not a bad thing; rather it reinforces his message. Instead of getting lost in metaphors or hiding behind analogues, Iame is pretty honest. Which is still something that's pretty new for me. I'm rather used to listening to lyrics that are mysterious and ambiguous. I appreciate the change, however, and listening to rap has given me a new perspective on writing lyrics. It's given me more to think about in terms of rhythm, sentence structure, word choice and rhyming.
The features on Lame are perfect. Each featured artist matches Iame beat for beat, which I find it pretty rare. Neither outshines the other; it's just what the track needs.
Iame also gets a little sentimental on the track Domestikated; not something you hear too often. It's much appreciated.
For the last track on the album, if I close my eyes to listen I can’t tell if I’m dreaming, or if I’ve left this world and am floating away in the cosmos. The music is so spacey, the words pierce through the sound cloud and go right to your mind. Another song with a really important message, Iame finishes the album with a simple message: “This light fades in so many ways, don’t waste it.”
If you've never given hip hop a serious chance, or if you're looking for something new, now is the time! Check out the impressive list below for releases this year from the Sandpeople.
Sapient - Eaters Vol 1: Tusks!
Sapient - Use This Ark //free download - http://sandpeoplemusic.com/sapient_usethisark.zip
Sapient - Blissless Yield music video - youtube.com/watch?v=5mzMvQMGimo
Sapient - Inglorious Days music video - youtube.com/watch?v=t9LvDp2jQbg
www.sapientkills.com // @sapientkills
Iame - Lame
Iame - No Kansas (feat. Snafu) // free download - http://www.heavennoise.com/dl/IAME_NOKANSAS.zip
www.heavennoise.com // @iamemusic
Gold - Chainsmoke
@goldinibagwell
Al-One - Talk of the Town // free download - http://www.freshselects.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Al-One-Talk-Of-The-Town-EP.zip
@alonetheremedy
Illmaculate - The Green Tape // free download - irapbetter.com
Illmaculate - Skrill Walton EP // free download - irapbetter.com
www.irapbetter.com // @illmaculate
OnlyOne - Sandpeople Music presents: OnlyOne
OnlyOne - Muck (feat Chase Moore, prod Furtado Yuen) // free download - http://sandpeoplemusic.com/Leaks/OnlyOne_Muck.mp3
All info can be found at www.sandpeoplemusic.com // @sandpeople
This is the second year that I've been listening to hip hop/rap regularly. In the Spring of 2010 my brother Scott introduced me to a group from Portland, Oregon called Sandpeople. It's currently comprised of nine emcees and a DJ and their output of work is simply massive. In addition to their group albums, most members have at least one solo CD to their name, and many of them have formed duets or trios, further increasing the size of the catalogue. And their work ethic is quite impressive! Many of these guys release multiple projects per year, and frequently make songs or entire albums free for download.
Two CD's stood out in particular for me. First up is Sapient's oddly titled Eaters Vol 1: Tusks!, which is the first in a series. This one deviates slightly from his other solo projects in that there is hardly any rapping on it. Instead, it's a collection of beats that have been worked up into tracks unto themselves. The flow is smooth; it's great music for lounging around and relaxing.
Sapient has produced much of the Sandpeople's discography, all of his solo projects and many others. Tusks! wholly embraces the sound that Sapient has been building. He’s a little bit indie rock, a little bit hip hop and whole lot of filthy electronic sounds. Sapient finds harmony between live sounds (guitars, drums and keyboards), samples, synths and his vocals (speaking, rapping and singing). This album is easily the cleanest of his solo work thus far and has such a wide variety of timbres that nothing really sounds out of place. Trifle With Me sounds like it belongs in the future with its heavy synth work, while Earbugs and Cool Walter work in trumpets, flutes and other orchestral sounds.
This is something completely new for Sapient, and yet it’s not entirely surprising. Saying he hasn’t left his comfort zone for this album isn’t for lack of doing something new—in a way he doesn’t really have a comfort zone. Past Sandpeople and Debaser albums have showcased some of Sapient’s work that isn’t “strictly hip hop” so Tusks! has a familiar feel to it, but he’s just brought it to the next level.
Next up is LAME from Iame; you could almost call it a concept album based around the mispronunciation of the emcee's name (I-am-me). Iame takes some lighthearted shots at himself and those who see him this way. There’s also a more serious examination at who he has become and how this misinterpretation of his name has potentially affected his persona. More than being self-referential and reflective, this is a meta-album. Lame is a real treat to listen to. With respect to his Sandpeople crew, Iame is less political than some, and maybe trash-talks a little less, but is just as outspoken and he has no qualms about expressing his beliefs.
As I've mostly only listened to Sandpeople, I've become fairly used to their type of producing (done mostly by Sapient, and former crew member Simple). Lame was produced entirely by Smoke M2D6; the beats fit Iame's words perfectly. The album is quite serious for the most part, and the beats are rather sober. Nothing is overproduced, there are no clashing electronic sounds or mismatched lyrics and music. There is a very organic feel. Despite the lack of progression in looped beats, it doesn't get stale.
It's hard to mistake Iame's voice for another's. It sounds like his mouth is just a little too big for the words he's saying (or the other way around). His rapping is rather straightforward, which is not a bad thing; rather it reinforces his message. Instead of getting lost in metaphors or hiding behind analogues, Iame is pretty honest. Which is still something that's pretty new for me. I'm rather used to listening to lyrics that are mysterious and ambiguous. I appreciate the change, however, and listening to rap has given me a new perspective on writing lyrics. It's given me more to think about in terms of rhythm, sentence structure, word choice and rhyming.
The features on Lame are perfect. Each featured artist matches Iame beat for beat, which I find it pretty rare. Neither outshines the other; it's just what the track needs.
Iame also gets a little sentimental on the track Domestikated; not something you hear too often. It's much appreciated.
For the last track on the album, if I close my eyes to listen I can’t tell if I’m dreaming, or if I’ve left this world and am floating away in the cosmos. The music is so spacey, the words pierce through the sound cloud and go right to your mind. Another song with a really important message, Iame finishes the album with a simple message: “This light fades in so many ways, don’t waste it.”
If you've never given hip hop a serious chance, or if you're looking for something new, now is the time! Check out the impressive list below for releases this year from the Sandpeople.
Sapient - Eaters Vol 1: Tusks!
Sapient - Use This Ark //free download - http://sandpeoplemusic.com/sapient_usethisark.zip
Sapient - Blissless Yield music video - youtube.com/watch?v=5mzMvQMGimo
Sapient - Inglorious Days music video - youtube.com/watch?v=t9LvDp2jQbg
www.sapientkills.com // @sapientkills
Iame - Lame
Iame - No Kansas (feat. Snafu) // free download - http://www.heavennoise.com/dl/IAME_NOKANSAS.zip
www.heavennoise.com // @iamemusic
Gold - Chainsmoke
@goldinibagwell
Al-One - Talk of the Town // free download - http://www.freshselects.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Al-One-Talk-Of-The-Town-EP.zip
@alonetheremedy
Illmaculate - The Green Tape // free download - irapbetter.com
Illmaculate - Skrill Walton EP // free download - irapbetter.com
www.irapbetter.com // @illmaculate
OnlyOne - Sandpeople Music presents: OnlyOne
OnlyOne - Muck (feat Chase Moore, prod Furtado Yuen) // free download - http://sandpeoplemusic.com/Leaks/OnlyOne_Muck.mp3
All info can be found at www.sandpeoplemusic.com // @sandpeople
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
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I could probably start a lot of posts with, "Glenn Gould got me thinking..." It doesn't necessarily come just after watching an interview either. Occasionally I'll have an experience and it will occur to me during my thought process that Gould had an opinion on it, and that just opens it up for more discussion (in my head).
I'll start with Gould. In an interview with Humphrey Burton in 1964 he declared that the concert hall was dead. As he saw it, by 1999, people would either no longer be attending concerts, or attendance would decrease dramatically. Some of his reasons included: increased ticket prices/decreased interest, better home listening environment and irrelevance to modern and future listeners. This third point in particular interests me today. Burton, an avid concert-goer, insisted that listening to music on a stereo system at home took away from the concert experience and created a rather unnatural one instead. Besides, he said, classical composers such as Beethoven wrote his music with the idea that it would be played in a concert hall. Gould countered that while that was true, Beethoven would not have imagined his pieces being played at Carnegie Hall, or Royal Festival Hall or indeed anywhere else but perhaps one or two places he knew well. Therefore, it was Gould's conclusion that we were already creating unnatural experiences by playing these pieces outside of their intended performances places.
I thought about this more today after I had spent some time composing at the university. It had crossed my mind before, but never had it struck me so hard as it did today. My tool for composing is the piano. I can compose some on paper or by messing around in a notation programme, but if I really want to accomplish anything I have to spend a significant amount of time in front of a keyboard. I don't know if this is considered a problem, or if it's merely an "occupational hazard" so to speak, but my dilemma is thus:
1) Generally when I compose at the piano for the piano, I'm composing for myself. That is, I'm not a technical virtuoso, and I tend to favour certain styles of playing, therefore I will tend to write things I can play, or I know I would be able to play. This is not 100% accurate, but in a way it is the basis of my composition for piano.
2) In line with the first point, when I hear my music being played in my head, I'm playing it. However, I am not a performer, and I know I will probably not play most of these pieces. Does it make sense to write music for me? Would it make sense to write music for someone else if I knew they wouldn't be playing it?
3) I have used more than a dozen pianos and keyboards to compose. Beyond my mindset on that particular day, the instrument I'm using and the room I'm in have an incredibly strong effect on my music that cannot be downplayed or disregarded. At McGill I have used a couple of older Steinways that shaped certain sections of the pieces I've been working on lately in ways that the Yamahas haven't, and vice versa. The touch of the keys and the action might make me inclined to write a passage more staccato, or with more pedal. If areas of the piano or certain keys are out of tune that can also sway my feelings on chord voicings, or I might just avoid those strings altogether. A weak bass might keep me in the middle register, and out-of-tune upper strings might push be towards the lower end.
So what might have started as a chord progression on a Kawai in a basement apartment in St. John's is now being transformed in ways I couldn't have imagined on unfamiliar pianos in Montreal. My music is going through changes daily because someone broke the C#6 string, and Eb2 is out of tune, and the Steinway I normally use is already taken. And I'm composing music for performers who don't exist. I think Gould had a certain point about how we listen to music. He also predicted that listeners would have such control over music in their homes it would be a lesser experience to go to a concert hall. We are all changing the way music is being created and perceived. Like Gould, I think that is one thing that attracts me to recording. We can create the 'perfect' circumstances for the music to be performed. It's not just about archiving these pieces, and it's not just about playing them. It's about creating a particular atmosphere with the music. Recording in the right studio with the right instruments, and performing the proper editing and mixing/mastering is now as much a part of composition as writing the notes.
However, right now I'm listening to Sibelius' 3rd symphony and becoming increasingly distracted by it. Until the next time!
I'll start with Gould. In an interview with Humphrey Burton in 1964 he declared that the concert hall was dead. As he saw it, by 1999, people would either no longer be attending concerts, or attendance would decrease dramatically. Some of his reasons included: increased ticket prices/decreased interest, better home listening environment and irrelevance to modern and future listeners. This third point in particular interests me today. Burton, an avid concert-goer, insisted that listening to music on a stereo system at home took away from the concert experience and created a rather unnatural one instead. Besides, he said, classical composers such as Beethoven wrote his music with the idea that it would be played in a concert hall. Gould countered that while that was true, Beethoven would not have imagined his pieces being played at Carnegie Hall, or Royal Festival Hall or indeed anywhere else but perhaps one or two places he knew well. Therefore, it was Gould's conclusion that we were already creating unnatural experiences by playing these pieces outside of their intended performances places.
I thought about this more today after I had spent some time composing at the university. It had crossed my mind before, but never had it struck me so hard as it did today. My tool for composing is the piano. I can compose some on paper or by messing around in a notation programme, but if I really want to accomplish anything I have to spend a significant amount of time in front of a keyboard. I don't know if this is considered a problem, or if it's merely an "occupational hazard" so to speak, but my dilemma is thus:
1) Generally when I compose at the piano for the piano, I'm composing for myself. That is, I'm not a technical virtuoso, and I tend to favour certain styles of playing, therefore I will tend to write things I can play, or I know I would be able to play. This is not 100% accurate, but in a way it is the basis of my composition for piano.
2) In line with the first point, when I hear my music being played in my head, I'm playing it. However, I am not a performer, and I know I will probably not play most of these pieces. Does it make sense to write music for me? Would it make sense to write music for someone else if I knew they wouldn't be playing it?
3) I have used more than a dozen pianos and keyboards to compose. Beyond my mindset on that particular day, the instrument I'm using and the room I'm in have an incredibly strong effect on my music that cannot be downplayed or disregarded. At McGill I have used a couple of older Steinways that shaped certain sections of the pieces I've been working on lately in ways that the Yamahas haven't, and vice versa. The touch of the keys and the action might make me inclined to write a passage more staccato, or with more pedal. If areas of the piano or certain keys are out of tune that can also sway my feelings on chord voicings, or I might just avoid those strings altogether. A weak bass might keep me in the middle register, and out-of-tune upper strings might push be towards the lower end.
So what might have started as a chord progression on a Kawai in a basement apartment in St. John's is now being transformed in ways I couldn't have imagined on unfamiliar pianos in Montreal. My music is going through changes daily because someone broke the C#6 string, and Eb2 is out of tune, and the Steinway I normally use is already taken. And I'm composing music for performers who don't exist. I think Gould had a certain point about how we listen to music. He also predicted that listeners would have such control over music in their homes it would be a lesser experience to go to a concert hall. We are all changing the way music is being created and perceived. Like Gould, I think that is one thing that attracts me to recording. We can create the 'perfect' circumstances for the music to be performed. It's not just about archiving these pieces, and it's not just about playing them. It's about creating a particular atmosphere with the music. Recording in the right studio with the right instruments, and performing the proper editing and mixing/mastering is now as much a part of composition as writing the notes.
However, right now I'm listening to Sibelius' 3rd symphony and becoming increasingly distracted by it. Until the next time!
Monday, October 31, 2011
it will all come to pass....
Both the good and the bad. There are some days, like today, when I sit down at the piano and it really feels like 88 keys simply isn't enough. I wonder if all that needs to be said has already been said, and everything is now just superfluous. Have all these notes been spoken for? Today as I sat on the bench all I could think was, "I've heard these notes before." And I wonder how far we have to reach to create new music. How much has to be new, and how much of it is okay to be familiar? Is it enough for it to be good music? Has "new" become the bare minimum?
Nevertheless, I have hope other days that there's still room for one more piece.
Nevertheless, I have hope other days that there's still room for one more piece.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
going with the flow
Looking back at some assignments I did that were supposed to be written within the parameters of modality or tonality, one thing stood out. I was always in a rush to push the boundaries of the tonal framework. There are instances where it was obvious I was just dying to include a bII in a major key, or I just had to quickly modulate to bVII, or I thought it would be fancy to include some extra secondary dominants. And mostly it's not bad....just really obvious--especially as I listen to them because I know what that person was thinking. I hear those sections and they make sense, and they're "legal" moves, but it feels like the notes were just hovering over all the previous notes, waiting for an opportunity to leap in and add a little spice to the mixture.
I believe I was too eager to do something that would make the piece stand out, when in fact it just ended up making the section stand out. There's no subtlety. And I understand that at the time I was thinking, "I couldn't possibly write another ii-V-I. I haven't included a borrowed chord or altered dominant, that must be what's missing." And of course I was wrong. I think I was trying to "fix" a section, or make it "more interesting" without necessarily listening to the overarching scheme.
In fact, as listened to one piece I distinctly remember thinking to myself that I /had/ to include a particular progression. And it is so obvious. I hear it in other music too. Using "special" vocabulary really requires a lot of care. If I'm listening to a piece in common time that switches to 7/4 and I don't notice because it sounds so natural, then the composer has done his or her job. It really sounds so basic when I say it that way, but it's true. More and more I'm coming to see that organic composition is the key. You can throw pretty much whatever you want in a piece, and as long as it sounds like it belongs there, the end result will sound much more satisfying.
I believe I was too eager to do something that would make the piece stand out, when in fact it just ended up making the section stand out. There's no subtlety. And I understand that at the time I was thinking, "I couldn't possibly write another ii-V-I. I haven't included a borrowed chord or altered dominant, that must be what's missing." And of course I was wrong. I think I was trying to "fix" a section, or make it "more interesting" without necessarily listening to the overarching scheme.
In fact, as listened to one piece I distinctly remember thinking to myself that I /had/ to include a particular progression. And it is so obvious. I hear it in other music too. Using "special" vocabulary really requires a lot of care. If I'm listening to a piece in common time that switches to 7/4 and I don't notice because it sounds so natural, then the composer has done his or her job. It really sounds so basic when I say it that way, but it's true. More and more I'm coming to see that organic composition is the key. You can throw pretty much whatever you want in a piece, and as long as it sounds like it belongs there, the end result will sound much more satisfying.
Accidents can happen
What was I thinking? That was over two years ago now, so I have no idea. And now that I'm composing again and going through old scores (and half scores and quarter scores, etc....), I'm finding all sorts of gems like that.
And don't get me wrong, I think this bar is marvelous. When I listened to it again, it fit perfectly. I just find it incredibly peculiar. The most interesting part for me is the ambiguity of notation. How many of those are supposed to be Eb? When I use Sibelius 7 now, if I were to write that top note, it would automatically give me a courtesy accidental (fourth wall broken!), as it would if I started a new bar with an E--provided I clicked the space for E without selecting sharp, natural or flat. However, when I wrote that in Sibelius 5, it obviously didn't do that.
It is entirely possible that I wrote it without realising. At the time that was composed I was working on two or three other pieces for quartet for composition class. I quickly dropped all of them but one, so I might have missed out on this little point. I knew I wouldn't be taking the piece any further, so I wasn't too concerned with details at this point; there were no dynamics, phrasing or articulation marks to be seen.
I think its nature being accidental makes the most sense. If I really had intended the high E to be natural, I would have notated it. But I still wonder if the next E is supposed to be Eb (which is how it is played back in Sibelius). I am neither keen on the picardy third nor the split third (neither of which really fit this position, but you get my drift), which makes me doubt that it was intentional.
And yet, it sounds really good. I both lament the fact that I don't think I would have thought of that and am grateful that I have moments of...convenient forethought? I'm actually discovering a lot of inspired moments in this piece. I've spent the last few days tempering my hastiness and reorganising my thoughts, which is making it much more coherent. Onwards!
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Idea fixation
What happens to an idea after you’ve thought of it? Do they go anywhere? Do they get better over time if you think about them more? Do they disappear if you stop thinking about them? What if you write them down and forget about them? What does it mean when someone else has the same idea as you?
For various reasons I haven’t been very musically active for the past year and a half. Recently I recalled that I had started working on orchestrating a Sibelius sonatine almost two years ago but couldn’t remember where I had put it. Yesterday I found it and decided to pick up where I had left off. It was an odd experience. I recalled vividly many of the ideas that I had penned. I think this is a good thing because it shows a certain consistency; that is, there were still ideas I agreed with. It would have been frustrating to go back to ideas that I no longer thought were relevant or interesting. I studied this particular sonatine during my last year at MUN, and I still enjoy listening to it. I decided to arrange it for orchestra for two main reasons: 1) studying and playing it lent a certain insight that would have been missing if I hadn’t known it as intimately, and 2) I believed the piece had colours and ideas that could be exploited with an orchestra.
I’ve completed the first draft of the first movement, with minor revisions already to what I had written last year. But as I moved forward I ran into some interesting situations. Yesterday and today I came to the point in arranging where I was working with material that was now repeating in the piece. My dilemma was thus: do I go back and look at what I did for the similar section already and copy it? Is that considered “cheating?” I didn’t want two similar sounding parts being at odds with each other within the same piece, particularly when it is so short. I could try to remember what I had done, or come up with a different take on it. However, I would eventually be entering it into notation software and see what I had already written anyway. Would I lose integrity by “copying” my previous work? Would the music lose its integrity?
In the end I decided in favour of consistency. Even if I had continued on and devised contrasting material for similar sections, I would have seen in them side by side eventually, and most likely one of them would have had to leave. This situation aside, I will still run into consistency problems once I’ve laid all the parts out. After all, it is only a first draft, with two halves being written so far apart. When I started it, I would have had very specific ideas, and I was immersed in that music at the time. I think this is why some of the ideas stood out so strongly for me and I could still hear the sounds I had imagined. My main goal this time around was to get my brain thinking musically again. I found it surprisingly easy to get back into, in terms of productivity. There have been plenty of times when I have attempted to pick up where I left off a piece. Usually I cannot get myself into the mindset of composer; it’s as if I’ve been removed from the piece long enough that I’m just a listener now. I hear the ideas—some of them I like, some of them I know shouldn’t be there. But I’m at a loss for what to do. And sometimes I’ll return to the state I was in when I was last working; I’ll tweak what’s there and then stare at the notes for a while. I wonder what will happen with those ideas.
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