Album Review: "From Pelican Shores"

Review:

From Pelican Shores is the debut release from brand-spanking new synth-pop project Glacier Island. It was released independently on iTunes on August 17. It's got like 12 tracks and is slightly more than 44 minutes long.

Phew, now that the stats are out of the way, let's look at the actual tunes. Musically, the album is quite stunning. It's apparent that a lot of work has been put into the songwriting and organization. These songs just feel upbeat and happy, and sounds like Hellogoodbye meets Owl City. Memorable moments include "Airborne," "On the Moon," and "Scuba Dive." "Boat" especially is a powerhouse of a feel-good track and definitely starts the album out right.

Glacier Island has obviously spent a great deal of time and energy mixing their tracks into delectable sonic layercakes piled high with copious amounts of sweet smooth audible frosting. However, a slight problem with the recipe is apparent. It has to do with the baking process. I'm not sure if Glacier Island just wanted to get their music into fans' hands as soon as possible, or if they accidentally overlooked some parts, but there are some mastering problems. Occasionally a vocal or synth lead will peak, causing a slight rattle or buzz. This really is a definite shame, because this album has so much going for it that it absolutely deserves the purest, most clean representation available. These issues are probably not something the ordinary fan will take issue with or even notice, but I heard them and they unfortunately took away from the overall experience.

Those small criticisms aside, however, From Pelican Shores is simply a delight to listen to. The guys in Glacier Island have done a solid effort here, and deserve all the publicity they can get. Check it out.

Video:


Links:
MySpace
iTunes

5 Most Meaningful Music Videos

As the title of this post obviously states, below are 5 videos that are very meaningful to me. They get me deep down, inspire me, and challenge me. I love music videos, and think they are a spectacular form of art that lets filmmakers express their ideas much the same way as a short film, but without the need for any messy dialog, sound effects, or even plot (at times). This isn't a comprehensive list by any means, nor will it stand the test of time, but these videos are the ones I could come up with now, and they are very very good. If you have any others to share, proclaim them in the comments below.

5. Stars: "Fixed"


This song is gripping and powerful, and even though the music video is only shots of the band interspersed with frantic, nearly imploding footage of graveyards and other depressing architecture, it is very well-done, and an impressive effort.


4. City and Colour: "The Girl"


This video seems to encompass all the emotion that the song is trying to convey, and does it quite admirably. And while watching people playing instruments doesn't normally make a good video for me, I appreciate the departure from the norm with the video's structure and methodology.


3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: "Maps"


Seriously, this isn't typical. My favorite style of music video is narrative, but already three videos on this list have been principally performance-based. However, when it's as well thought out and executed as "Maps" is, videos like this can be fantastic. I mean, look at this video. It's magical.


2. Angels & Airwaves: "The Gift"


Now this my typical style of video. I love the story here, and combined with the song it makes for a simply transcendent experience. Somewhat bashfully, I'll admit that I think there's something hopelessly romantic about a girl saving a guy from certain imprisonment, death, or something worse. I think that's all encapsulated here.


1. Funeral for a Friend: "Into Oblivion"


Well, just to defy my own convention one final time, it turns out that my favorite, most personally moving music video is one with nearly only performance footage. I love the parallel between the emotional journey of a sailor and the storm he is sailing through, as well as the arresting way that the contained environment of the screen takes over the entire set, plunging the viewer in the midst of both the story and the storyteller's mind.


And now, to round out the experience, watch something less meaningful, but certainly not less epic. I give you Shrimp on a Treadmill.

I'm Seeing Stars

Have you ever showed up to a party extremely late, where everyone's already having a good time without you? That's how I feel about Montreal indie-pop band Stars. They've been at it for a good 9 years now, since the release of their first EP in 2001. They only reason I've heard about them even now is that a friend just told me to check out one of their tunes the other week, and since then I've been enraptured by two of their albums:


Sad Robots EP


The Five Ghosts

The first is a glorious EP that Stars released in 2008, and the second is a scintillating, gorgeous masterpiece that just dropped on June 22. I really love this band's deep, moving lyrics in conjunction with their groovy leads and hooks. At any rate, here's an outstanding music video:

Brand Who?

I love the New York alt-rock band Brand New. The only thing is, I have no idea why anyone else does.

Brand New has been around for quite some time now. I think I probably first heard of them from a Thrice tour poster, as the two bands used to tour together a lot. I had always supposed that Brand New supported Thrice, or that the two were at the most on par in terms of popularity and prominence.

Then the Fall 2009 tour rolled around. The concert posters had shown BRAND NEW in massive letters with the minuscule text "with THRICE" hiding underneath. I was surprised, as both bands had just released new albums, and were both very prominent and respected. At any rate, I wanted to go to a show nearby, but an evening class conflicted with it, and my friends drove off without me.

When they got back, they gushed to me about a massive venue that was filled to the brim with restless, excited fans. They also told me that, while Thrice had performed a respectable (but short) set, Brand New had blown everyone away, performing their entire latest album, as well as several other fan favorites (all the while exhibiting nearly no band dynamics as they merely stood on stage looking depressed). Apparently, Brand New played for a good long time, and nobody was complaining.

Lest you accuse me of hating on Brand New, remember that I did say I love them. They have a remarkably unique, intriguing sound, and their music gets to me deep down inside. However, they do surprise me. Despite their most cacophonous and earth-shattering tendencies, the ladies fawn over them. Despite their most tender and sensitive moments, tough, masculine guys heartily rock out to them.

I guess it's safe to say that Brand New is one of the world's (or at least North America's) favorite niche bands. I always thought that Thrice was much more accessible to a much wider audience, but it turns out that Brand New is obscenely popular, even among many of those who wouldn't appreciate other bands in the genre. I don't know how they do it, I can't even guess, but one thing I do know is that I don't want them to stop.

Check out their diversity:

Heart-throb:


Heart-attack:

MicroKORG Madness

Like 100,000+ other people, I own a Korg MicroKORG analog modeling synthesizer, one of the best-selling synthesizers of all time. Among its owners are many bands and musical groups, both famous and unknown. I thought I would share my own unofficial list of notable MicroKORG owners and players. The list is comprised of my own personal research, as well as me simply noticing MicroKORGs in concerts, music videos, and pictures. I'm going to keep adding to this list as I learn of more. Feel free to tell me about bands I missed. Here's the list:

-The Album Leaf
-Amadeus
-Anthony Williams
-Argo Navis
-Arsonists Get All the Girls
-Atlas Sound
-Attack Attack!
-Beast
-Bloc Party
-Chrome Hoof
-Chromeo
-Cobra Starship
-Crystal Castles
-Cypress Hill
-Death Cab for Cutie
-Delays
-Devo
-Digitalism
-Duran Duran
-Editors
-Elbow
-Enter Shikari
-Four Year Strong
-Good Old War
-Goose
-Handsome Furs
-Justice
-Jean Michel Jarre
-The Killers
-Kings of Leon
-LCD Soundsystem
-Le Tigre
-LIGHTS
-Long Range Hustle
-Lymbyc Systym
-The Mae Shi
-Mates of State
-Metronomy
-Mohammad Pazhutan
-Mylo
-The Neptunes
-Owl City
-Polysics
-The Prodigy
-Rami Jaffe (Wallfowers, Foo Fighters)
-Röyksopp
-Soulwax
-Stars
-Switchfoot
-Unicorn Kid
-Underoath
-Wintersleep
-Xiu Xiu
-Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Next Elvis #13: Sky Sailing

Info: Sky Sailing is one of the many side projects of Adam Young, the man behind Owl City. I came across Sky Sailing when I was perusing the web for content for another post. Sky Sailing is merely acoustic guitar, piano, and voicebox, and I have seen it described as simply "Owl City unplugged," but I think that there is a lot more promise here. Building off Owl City's massive success in the past year, yet developing a different style of expression, Sky Sailing will likely be able to cut out its own niche and remain uniquely independent. Right now, there are two demos up on Sky Sailing's MySpace page, and the record is scheduled to drop on July 13. Let's hope the rest of it is as good as what's up there now.

Sounds Kind of Like: The Send, The Postal Service, and of course, Owl City.

Bio: Check out this introductory blog on Sky Sailing's MySpace.

Why it's going to be the next Elvis: Sky Sailing seems to have some pretty nice, refreshing tunes. Plus, interest is almost guaranteed on the heels of Young's recent successes.

Video:


Links:
Website
MySpace
Facebook

The Proliferation of Adam Young

Everyone knows about Owl City and the one-man band's first single "Fireflies," but did you know that Adam Young has seventeen (and a half) projects all told? Here they are:

1. Owl City
2. Port Blue
3. Swimming With Dolphins
4. Windsor Airlift
5. Insect Airport
6. Dolphin Park
7. Seagull Orchestra
8. Nuclear Suplex
9. The Grizzly
10. El Uno Clarence, The One Clarence
11. Basketball
12. Chester Mcwiggins and the Kowboy Kidz
13. Novel
14. Aquarium
15. Blue Dallas
16. Keehar
17. Sky Sailing
18. And, possibly in the future, Goodbye Dubai with Matthew Thiessen of Relient K.

And now, videos of the projects I couldn't find on MySpace.

Novel:


Aquarium:


The only project I could find absolutely nothing on was Blue Dallas. Thanks to this page for providing the list.