Audiophilia is DOOM’s rotating musical recommendation column. It’s where we come together to give you some listening choices every month. This month Aaron Poole and Michael Harris give you their picks.

Aaron:

Brothers Or Not is an Austin, Texas based rock band that is kind of a super-group of the Texan live scene combining former members of The Tastydaclyls, Veloura, and Westbound Departure. I would be remiss to leave out that I have been a fan of both Veloura and The Tastydactyls previously and was disheartened to see them both quit music, so it’s not too surprising that I was excited and pleased to hear that this band had formed.

This new, self titled, and debut EP from the band is a good representation of this mix of musical pasts. You can hear a touch of all previous bands in the songs. Blake Rawlings takes up lead vocals once again and it’s nice to see him really let loose and power his way through some of these songs. In the past, The Tastys bordered on that pop line but Brothers Or Not is rock without a shadow of a doubt. This is the kind of stuff you want to hear in a bar and sing/shout along to.

There is a significant change of pace in the four tracks with the song “Switch”. A much moodier and slower song but in my opinion quite possibly the most enduring because of it. While the others like “C. Gaines” has that rock edge, there is something still more cutting about the lyrics and tone with “Switch” that means while it may not be as catchy as the others, it will stay with you for longer.

Anyway, check out the EP preview below and if any of it takes your fancy you can download the whole EP for FREE at this link here.

Michael:

I heard this months pick on the radio of all places. That’s right folks, you heard it here. Radio is not dead! Not completely anyways. I tend not to listen to local radio because most stations operate on the standard model of only playing 15 songs about 50 times per day plus something classically popular every once and again. Recently, however, I’ve been giving a pretty good listen to KSPC Radio which is a very local college radio station that has a lot more freedom to play new and strange sounds (last week there was a block dedicated to Beatles covers that were specifically featured in Beatles movies, and every Friday they have a block of video game and video game related music).

That being established I was introduced to a band that I’ve been fairly enamored with over the past couple weeks: Dirty Ghosts. I really don’t know too much about the band, unfortunately. They’ve enlisted the production talents of hip-hop talent Aesop Rock for their album Metal Moon and I just really love the sound that they’re putting out. Easily the catchiest song on the album and the one that got me hooked is the first track on the album, “Ropes That Way”, another favorite of mine off the album is “19 in ’71”. If you want to do a bit of looking, the 7″ Single version of “Shout It In” is a bit better than the album with a cameo by Aesop Rock.

Metal Moon is available for listening in its entirety on Spotify if you want to give it a try. They’re also currently finishing up a tour with their final show in their hometown of San Fransisco.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention one of my favorite albums of the year with Milo Greene’s Self-Titled album released in July. Lovely album that I can’t stop listening to, no matter how much it makes me nostalgic for being in a relationship and having lovey dovey feels. Here’s my favorite off of their album and slightly reminiscent of Landon Pigg, “Silent Way”.

Fionn Regan is a rare musical treasure. From Bray, Co. Wicklow in Ireland he is a magical sort of folk musician who manages to both breath new life into a well worn genre and also be the epitome of it at the same time.

His debut album The End of History was critically adored and for very good reason. Incredibly crafted guitar rhythms mixed with both dreamy lyrics and heartbreaking tones created a jackpot of songs. A Mercury Music Prize nomination raised no eyebrows when it was announced.

His second effort The Shadow of an Empire came after a long 4 years of recording, marked by a rocky relationship with American label Lost Highway Records. This resulted in a never-to-be-heard album being shelved indefinitely and Fionn being dropped. However, The Shadow of an Empire bears no marks of this trouble and while not as well received as his first album was a brave change of direction with more electric sounds and a harder edge (the edge that Lost Highway deemed unsuitable).

I was happy to see that this third installment comes just a year and half later and with Regan on record as saying it was recorded in one week, he obviously had a much easier time of things. But will it turn out to be as good as previous offerings? Let’s see as I review the album in live time. 1 play through, thoughts as I get them.

1) 100 Acres of Sycamore

Oooh, interesting. He hasn’t really used strings before. It’s a lovely arrangement too. I like what it does just before the two minute mark. A more ominous song than I was expecting.

2) Sow Mare Bitch Vixen

“Sow, mare, bitch, vixen, I’ve always had a thing for dangerous women”. Yeah. Just… yeah. I f**king love this guy. Beautiful song. Really good.

3) The Horses Are Asleep

There is a much richer sound on this album to anything he has done before. And there is a confidence there, too. It really is a growth musically. I’m very impressed so far.

4) The Lake District

This is a nice song but it doesn’t connect with me much. I think the pace might be a bit too slow and soft and could have used a bit more “umph” in places. Or, you know, maybe a chorus or something. Yeah, I think that’s my problem. No chorus.

5) Dogwood Blossom

Pass. Seriously. Snoozed right through it.

6) For a Nightingale

Thank god the noise level went up for this one. Much better. A lovely summery tune. Summery is a word, right? My spell-checker tells me so.

7) List of Distractions

I’m always sceptical of the use of echo on vocal tracks. I find it distracting. I understand this is a personal taste but at this point I’m looking for anything to talk about. We went from a very strong start to quite a mediocre middle. “List of Distractions” is an ironic song title at this stage of the album.

8) 1st Day of May

I’m struggling to say anything other than “another nice slow song”.

9) North Star Lover

Let me tell you now. If I was a teenager, I’d love this record. If I had just been dumped and wanted to wallow in my room, I’d bloody love this record. Mainly because this record couldn’t hurt or leave me, but also because it would be great for that state of mind. However, today, I’m stressed, over worked, in a stable relationship and watching the clock. Don’t get me wrong, it’s lovely and all but I really need it to slap me in the chops right now to get my attention and instead it’s nicely filling the silence in the background. So while it’s a great listening experience, it’s really hard to be excited by what I’m hearing.

10) Woodberry Cemetery

Shades of Simon & Garfunkel at the start of this. In other news, I’m getting sleepy you guys.

11) Vodka Sorrow

Jesus… zZzZzZzZz

12) Golden Light

And so it ends, not in a blaze of glory but in a whimper.

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I know I’m a being a douche bag here. I know this album is going to grow on me with repeat listening. There is enough quality that I can tell the song craftsmanship is top notch. But I also know that I just wasn’t in the frame of mind to listen to this type of record right now. And that’s the thing, I think 100 Acres of Sycamore is Fionn’s least accessible album. It lacks the charms of his first and the energy of his second and hangs around in a place called “nice”. There are some welcome additions to the set list, but overall the end result is so-so for me.

Rival Schools released their debut album United By Fate way back in 2001. I was 17 and in high school. I fell in love with Walter Schreifels’ raspy vocals and disjointed lyrics. I was lucky enough to see Rival Schools play at a music festival that year and they were suitably impressive. To prove my infatuation with the band at this point, here is a picture of the 17 year old me with Roger Manganelli of Less Than Jake. They played after Rival Schools on the same stage and were nice enough to come out to the crowd for some photos. Note the mud all over me and the Rival Schools t-shirt I’m wearing.

I’d still have that t-shirt too if I didn’t buy it one size too large. Back then I was still under the impression I would grow into clothing. Yeah, that never happened. I wouldn’t share such an embarrassing photo if I wasn’t serious about how much I liked them. So, of course, just to mess with my tiny young mind they split up a year later. Considering the band was not Schreifels’ first (not by a long shot) I chalked it up to a restless group of musicians and hoped to learn a lesson from it all.

And then, rumours circulated a couple of years ago that they were getting back together and I started to feel that teenage twitch of excitement. Could it be possible? Would it sound as good this time round? I’ve had ten years to listen to United By Fate and I have become very attached to it. Will they be able to live up to the pressure of keeping us on hold for so long?

Pedals, the second album from Rival Schools, was finally released last month. 10 years after their last album. I managed to get my hands on it this week and I can now finally sit down and play the album in full. While I listen to it for the first time I’m going to review it. As always I only have the time it takes for the song to play to write my thoughts on it. Lets see if 27 year old Aaron is still a fan.

1) Wring It Out
Big rich sound. Oh god, I’ve got goosebumps already. There is just something very… it’s hard to explain… but I basically want to shout along to this. United By Fate always had that effect on me and this is doing the same. Hopefully this keeps up.

2) 69 Guns
Schreifels is a bit like Paul Banks of Interpol in the sense that you would recognize his voice anywhere. He’s not the greatest singer in the world but there is also no-one else that sounds like him. His writing style is very distinctive too. Rarely do his lyrics rhyme and as sentences they’re barely formed. I like them for that very reason.

3) Eyes Wide Open
There is something slightly dated about this one. I think it has something to do with the bass on the heavier parts. Interesting to hear the keys in the background on some parts though.

4) Choose Your Adventure
Big dirty beat. Not really expecting that sort of sound. Something a bit different. Interesting, but I wouldn’t like an album full of it.

5) Racing To Red Lights
First slow song. Not bad but the chorus is repeated a few too many times for my liking and as a result the song just plods along without really taking you anywhere.

6) Shot After Shot
I love the break on this. More songs should have a break-down like this. Bring back breaks! Few rock bands do them anymore or do them right.

7) A Part For B Actors
I like the drumming on this. It could have been just a slow song but the choice to have such a fast rhythm on the drums really adds a lot. I like this one.

8) Big Waves
Probably a bit of filler if I’m honest. But it picks up towards the end. Nothing special.

9) Small Doses
Another one I’m not crazy about. I think this album is starting to lose it’s momentum a little towards the end here. The energy has dropped and my attention is going a little with it. And something about the phrase “small doses everyone” is bugging the hell out of me.

10) The Ghost Is Out There
Here we go, back to the dirty beats at the start of the song but, wait, then it turns into a light airy number. And back again. Well, this is more interesting at least. The last couple just rolled along so I’m happy to hear something with more to it. Yeah, a good way to end things.

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If I’m honest I only loved about a third of it, liked another third and couldn’t care less about the last fraction. That’s not a bad reaction as few albums in the last year or so have gotten a better a reaction from me.

I look forward to listening to this album again and to hopefully catch some of it live at some point in the future because I think a lot of it will work better on stage. A positive experience but not a 5 star album which, when you wait 10 years for it, is a bit of a let down.

Radiohead are one of those bands who have changed a music scene and yet still derided by some of the public. They’re described by these people as “depressing” and “weird”. Seriously, I wish I was making it up but it’s sadly true. It’s like hearing people describe The Beatles as “lovey-dovey” and “boring”, you’d think that it wouldn’t happen but it does. Personally, I can’t understand how anyone with ears can’t hear that the majority of popular bands have tried to emulate them in one form or another since the release of The Bends and OK Computer.

Radiohead have been constantly evolving since their first album. Very few of their records sound just like their last and if you listen to Pablo Honey and In Rainbows back to back you’d find it hard to see the links. To me, this is the sign of true musicians. All too often I have been frustrated by bands who found a groove and stayed in it, churning out the same thing year after year. All of the great bands have tweaked their sound over time, it’s what shows true passion for the music they’re making.

With that said, I’m obviously a Radiohead fan but I hadn’t heard anything from The King Of Limbs. I have seen Thom Yorke dancing to Beyoncé on Youtube but I hadn’t heard the real music. It wasn’t available in shops for a good few weeks and I’m not the kind of guy to buy music digitally so I waited and kept my ears clean for the moment I could actually get my hands on the CD. So, now that I have it, I’m going to give it a live review for you here right now. Lets do this!

1) Bloom
That drum beat is really out of sync with everything else in the track, it’s all I can concentrate on. When we get to the horns and strings though it becomes quite beautiful. Just for the record, I’ll rarely talk about Thom’s lyrics because I’d be lying if I said I could understand what he’s singing, he’s a bit of a growler and I’m perfectly happy with that but it doesn’t help with dissecting the words as I can never cut through his drawl. The bass line is nice in this too.

2) Morning Mr Magpie
Oh, hello! This is pretty funky. And of course as soon as I mention that I can’t understand what he sings, I can hear him clearly on this track. I’m tapping my foot and enjoying every moment of this one.

3) Little By Little
This sounds like it could have been on In Rainbows but these faster beats that I’m hearing so far do effect the songs. If you think about the Amnesiac era of their music and compare those songs to what’s on this album; they’d be the big difference.

4) Feral
You know, this song really just feels like it was completely created on computer. There is nothing wrong with that, the majority of Hip Hop and RnB music is digitally created, but sometimes when you know it was made by clicking some buttons it takes a bit of soul out of proceedings. I guess what I’m trying to say is, I don’t dig this track.

5) Lotus Flower
Filler. I’m writing this with about 15 seconds left on the track because I had to write something. This moved me in neither a positive nor negative way. It just exists and I have no opinion on it.

6) Codex
This is a nice soft feeling song. It’s weird but I was hoping for more of this kind of thing, I think. Who knew that I’d be left waiting 6 tracks for something a bit more downbeat on a Radiohead album? I’m glad it’s here though. A touching song.

7) Give Up The Ghost
Thom Yorke is a great singer. He’d never get past the first round of a televised singing competition but his voice can be haunting and beautiful. It also dictates this stripped down, simple song. I like it.

8) Separator
Here we are at the end already (boo to 8 tracks). There are some nice parts to this song, mostly little instrumental pieces like the short guitar parts but they’re fleeting as the song constantly rotates it’s different moments. Not blown away but it’s good.

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As a whole I’m not sure how I feel about this. With 8 tracks I feel like I should call it a long EP rather than an album and to be honest I don’t think this is good enough to be compared to In Rainbows as a creative whole.

There are about 4 tracks that I can say that I liked and 4 that I just didn’t affect me. And when you buy an 8 track CD you’d want the ratio to be a bit better than that, to be honest. Of course, it being a Radiohead album I’ll probably grow to love the songs over time but I’ve listened to their other offerings before and walked away from my first listen with a more positive opinion.

“Hit and miss” is probably the best summation I can give.

I often read how The Strokes defined a musical movement in the early ’00s. How they were icons for rock/indie bands of that generation. And yet, I don’t remember a lick of that.

Sure, I remember the first time I heard “Last Night”. It was a damn catchy mix of melody and raw guitars. In fact, I liked all the singles I heard but not enough to purchase the album (with it’s rather saucy cover) Is This It. In fact, I even saw the band live before I had ever purchased any of their work. They played the main stage of Ireland’s “Witnness” festival many moons ago. I remember being impressed with the band’s live performance and Julian Casablancas’ rather crazy banter with the crowd.

The Strokes were one of those bands I liked but I never got excited about them to the same level as most of my friends. I’m even one of those odd-one-out types who thinks their second album Room On Fire is much better than This Is It. There is a lot more variety to the tracks and they really grew as musicians to make something far more re-listenable.

However, once again, their new album Angles was released this past weekend and I hadn’t heard a lick of the new stuff. But I had read some good reviews and bought the CD which I will now review in real time. No pausing, no second listens. These are my thoughts as I listen to the CD for the first time. Lets get to it.

1) Machu Picchu
Oooo, how 80s is this? Not what I expected at all. But after about a minute we go into those guitar riffs that define The Strokes’ sound. I love the bass line through this song though. Really cool song. I like this. Casablancas sounds great too.

2) Under Cover Of Darkness
Very sing-along-able song. Nice back-up singing on this track too. I’m a sucker for a good “oooh” and “aaah” harmony. Two very likeable songs so far. This is a good sign.

3) Two Kinds Of Happiness
Complete change of pace here. They’re channeling Coldplay’s sort of anthemic drumming in parts and then go very, very 80s pop in others. Interesting. Would be fascinated to experience this live.

4) You’re So Right
Not mad on this. It sounds like the soundtrack for an old Sega beat-em-up. In fact, if this isn’t a cover of a song from Streets Of Rage II, I’ll eat my hat.

5) Taken For A Fool
This is more familiar to their old catalogue. It’s strange, so many of the old Strokes songs sound the same but I rarely get tired of the formula. It’s like my old cohort Brian Fitzpatrick always says during times like these “sometimes a band only knows one song, but that song is great so you’ll listen to it 100 times”. I’m paraphrasing, but the sentiment is valuable here. That being said, it’s the only song on the album so far that has that classic Strokes sound.

6) Games
Am I reviewing a Robyn album? Big electronic beats again. I’m not really complaining, it’s all very listenable so far. It’s just not what I was expecting at all. All the reviews I had been reading before I bought the album claimed this was a return to Is This It territory. So far, I hear very little of that.

7) Call Me Back
Things slow down here. It’s interesting, there is a real progression in their music. Obviously the solo projects are expanding their musical universe.

8) Gratisfaction
This has a retro kind of sound to it than I’ve ever heard The Strokes do before. It almost sounds like a Thin Lizzy song. It’s a nice, and welcomed, change of pace. Yeah, major Thin Lizzy feeling off this, which is not a bad thing.

9) Metabolism
Muse. I’m sorry to be using so many comparisons. I know it’s a poor critic’s shorthand for explaining much more complex musical sounds but I only have the length of the song to describe what I’m hearing and the guitars on this give me a big Muse sort of feeling. Operatic rock.

10) Life Is Simple In The Moonlight
As the album closes with this moody number, I think I have to admit that I’ve really liked what I’ve heard. I’m a little disappointed that this is the last track, I’m ready to hear more.

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Overall, this is a solid album. For those hoping to hear another Is This It, you’ll be sorely disappointed as the sound has shoved from growly guitars to electro-rock. However, if you want to hear good music, this has what you need. Casablancas sounds as good as I’ve ever heard him and Hammond Junior’s trip to rehab hasn’t stunted the musical exploration that his solo-career has been fueling. I was very impressed and I’d recommend Angles to anyone who can get their hands on it. Top stuff.