Music reviews from the folks at KWLC
Date 10/2/2003 12:00 AM | Topic: Arts & CultureDeath Cab for Cutie's new album towers above generic popZach Hawkins
KWLC StaffLet's make a list. Things I love about autumn: crisp air, falling leaves, and the new Death Cab for Cutie album.
When this disc showed up in the mailbox at KWLC, I felt like a kid opening a birthday present. In fact, I may have emitted a short-but-audible squeal. I apologize to those who had to witness this.
So you're asking: what's so great about Transatlanticism? Are you just spouting its praises because Death Cab for Cutie's name was recently dropped on Fox's "The OC"? Of course not (In fact, I think Fox is way out of its league here . why don't they just stick to the watered-down pop/punk that Orange County is really known for?).
The truth is that Transatlanticism is an amazing dose of the moody/quirky indie pop that has elevated Death Cab for Cutie to the status of one of the premier bands on the college radio scene. I attribute their success to Ben Gibbard, who is the heart of Death Cab. This guy knows how to write a song.
His melodies are simple and they will break your heart. And his words remind you that lyric writing is still an art (no matter how hard Top 40 pop artists try to reduce it to a mindless chant of "yeah girl" and "baby"). Here's how he starts "A Lack of Color," a song about a lost love: "And when I see you, I really see you upside down / But my brain knows better, it picks you up and turns you around."
I'll put it this way: Transatlanticism is like a soundtrack to a grey, overcast Sunday afternoon. This is the kind of music that makes you stop and listen-not because of a whacked-out guitar solo or anything, but because it speaks to you.
When it comes out on Oct. 7, you should definitely check it out.
Death Cab for Cutie write songs with emotional substance. Photo: Internet.
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Artist:
Rachael SageSam Drong
KWLC StaffSomewhere between Ani DiFranco and Tori Amos lurks another 'righteous babe' who is perfectly content with living her musical career in the shadows of a larger pop music scene.
Her name is Rachael Sage; she is not only a singer/songwriter but also a poster child for today's renaissance woman. In addition to performing and recording she is also a graphic designer, an extra in movies, a jingle writer, and she owns her own record label.
DiFranco and Amos undoubtedly inspire her music, yet hints of Sinead O'Connor and the Indigo Girls can also be heard throughout the album. Simple piano melodies give Public Record the organic stripped-down sound that other women of her genre are best known for.
MPress Records is responsible for her fifth and latest release, and describes the record as "an album that wrestles with the concepts of perspective, sobriety and doubt, pitting those vulnerabilities we always feel against long-held goals."
Her sound is by no means original, but if it's a 'Lilith Fair' sound that you are after, give Public Record a listen.
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Artist: Atmosphere
Lindsay Kimball
KWLC StaffHmm . indie rap? I'm not kidding. "Indie" tends to be a word associated with rock, especially in this review column, but Atmosphere is the king of indie rap/hip-hop.
Minneapolis' Atmosphere has been around since 1997 when they released Overcast! but the group wasn't well known until their 2002 release God Loves Ugly.
Now the latest release from rapper, Slug, and DJ/producer Ant, Seven's Travels, continues with their style of introspective, non-commercial hip-hop. You won't hear anything in Seven's Travels about tail feathers, bling-bling, or magic sticks in theerrre.
What you will hear are references to their hometown like Uptown, Liquor Lyles, and the band Lifter Puller. You will also hear innovative beats ranging from the funky piano rhythms of "History," to the retro samplings of "Bird Sings Why the Caged I Know," to the salsa styling of "The Key's of Life vs. 15 Minutes of Fame."
Atmosphere make honest and realistic hip-hop that is more relatable to the average person because we all don't roll on dubs and flash ice.
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