Top 4 of March 30 - April 5, 2014

By: Zack Baker, Editorial Director

1. Saintseneca - Dark Arc 

By Sarah Weingarten, Contributor

The combination of Appalachian folk and indie pop is unusual. But the fact that both genres are compatible on Saintseneca’s second album, Dark Arc, is even more unusual. The folksy pop sound grows on the listener. It also makes Dark Arc a phenomenal album to listen to on repeat, all summer long. Hell, get an early start and start listening to it right now. The quirky, off-beat but simultaneously heartfelt lyrics take some time to learn, so until then there will be lots of humming and mumbling. I am thoroughly impressed with this record and personally have been listening to the album every day since my first listen. Saintseneca has found its musical niche and flexed its expertise with Dark Arc.

2. The Flaming Lips Dark Side Of The Moon Thing Was Totally An April Fool's Prank After All

So, the week before last, the music-blogosphere was absurdly abuzz with the announcement that The Flaming Lips, a band known for doing weird and out-there projects (see: Zaireeka), would be releasing an album to complement and fill out the experience of Pink Floyd's masterpiece Dark Side Of The Moon. Every outlet you could possible imagine fell for it, and instantly turned red on April 1 when Funny Or Die pulled back the curtain on the whole gag.

3. Wu-Tang Clan Continued To Make Very Strange Moves

Hot on the heels of announcing widely-available reunion album A Better Tomorrow (that's kind of felt like a cash-grab since it was revealed), the legendary hip-hop collective announced another new release titled Once Upon A Time In Shaolin. Except this album, a double-disc oeuvre, will only be available as a single physical copy complete with absurdly ornate packaging. The album will not be available anywhere other than on that single set of discs. The band has reportedly received offers in the millions for the release, and the album will be making its way around the country with a museum-exclusive listening party-tour. Thanks to Pitchfork for the heads up.

4. This Week In Drake™ 

It seems like the Vancouver superstar can't seem to stay out of the headlines. This week, Drizzy dropped two new singles, somehow finding the time to drop bumps just in time for the Drake-feens to avoid withdrawals. Following "Trophies," Drake's now released both "Draft Day" and "Days In The East." "Draft Day" is the real conversation starter, with Drizzy taking a visit to Namedrop City, calling out Chance The Rapper and comparing himself to Katniss from The Hunger Games, not to mention that very sneaky diss on Jay Z. Drake's taking names, but I still like him way more as a spectacle than a rapper. And I think there's a special kind of value in that.

Top 5 of February 9-15, 2014

By: Zack Baker, Editorial Director

1. Sun Kil Moon: Benji 
By Sarah Weingarten

Benji is just a sad album. A mopey, depressed album about death and the fear of it. But Sun Kil Moon pinpoints unhappiness perfectly without being angsty. Listeners just have to be in a sad mood to listen to Benji and as a stressed college student avoiding responsibilities, that isn’t very hard. Sun Kil Moon eloquently depicts different varieties of sadness, giving Benji dimension, which is why this album deserves to be on loop. 

2. Behemoth: The Satanist 

By Justin Silk

Five years passed between Evangelion and The Satanist. The longest break between Behemoth albums to date occurred because frontman and main songwriter Nergal was diagnosed with leukemia. Nergal overcame it and, with newfound motivation, was anxious to return to the studio. The Satanist truly sounds like the most inspired Behemoth album to date and is a culmination of the many different styles that the band has experimented with throughout the years. The tight selection of songs and even pace of the album makes it a joy to listen to, and the quality of the music is extraordinarily high. It is debatable whether The Satanist is Behemoth's best record, but it's hard to deny that it definitely feels like the band's most complete work to date. On its tenth album, Behemoth enhances its legendary status as a band and delivers blisteringly brutal, pure evil blackened death metal.

3. Dag Savage: E&J 

By Travis Boswell

Exile and Johaz have only been working together for a few years now, but they sound like they've been collaborating for a decade on E&J. Johaz is a relative newcomer, but glides over Exile's beats effortlessly. He drops plenty heartbreakers about his formative years, but keeps it light with plentiful punchlines when necessary. Exile continues to be on top of his game with his soul-sampling, piano-laced beats. He's been producing classics for over a decade now, and E&J is another compliment to his great track record.

For fans of Exile's past collaborations, E&J has guest appearances from most of them. It does become a problem when they start to get more spotlight than Johaz, but with music this good it's a minor complaint. 

4. Kanye Remixed "Drunk In Love" 

I haven't even heard the original version of this song, but this remix was the perfect Valentine's Day gift. Not only do I finally understand the "surfboart" jokes now, but I also got to hear Kanye West turn "Little Drummer Boy" into a sexual innuendo. It's one of Kanye's most sexually graphic verses in recent memory, and he put out "I'm In It" last summer. 

5. Drake Said Things

First, Drake went off on Macklemore for his Grammy win. Calling him out not only for winning, but also for ignoring every nominee but Kendrick, Drizzy let The Mack know exactly what was on his mind. That was fairly honorable. When he lashed out against Rolling Stone for giving the cover they had promised him to the (late, incredible) Philip Seymour Hoffman, Drake drew some vitriol. Complaining about a lost cover isn't exactly good form, and even less so when it's to one of the most talented actors of our generation. Drake is on one, and regardless of how you feel about his comments, it's fun to sit back and revel in the aftershock. 

September 24 Releases, 2013

By: Zack Baker, Copy Editor

New releases are on the light side this week, but that doesn't mean there isn't any great music dropping. Everyone seems to have jumped out of the way this week to make room for the OVO-headmaster himself (Drake), but a few other upstarts are on the calendar with our Canadian friend. 

Obviously, the most talked-about album hitting shelves today is Nothing Was The Same, Drake's latest full-length. The album's been pulling hype for the past few months with consistent lead-up singles spanning the genre grab bag that Drake occupies. There's radio-banger "Started From The Bottom," R&B-Drake classic "Hold On We're Going Home" and the controversially named "Wu-Tang Forever." 

Drake isn't breaking new ground with NWTS, but the production has been stepped up a level and Drake has a more consistent flow than on his past two albums. If you're a Drake hater, I doubt this release will convert you to The Church Of Drake™, but it's the best Drake album that Drake has ever made. Drake.

Odd Future-affiliated neo-soul duo The Internet dropped Feel Good today, and it's a marked improvement over their debut, Purple Naked Ladies. Fresh off a nationwide tour supporting Mac Miller, The Internet have put together a fantastic jazz-funk-soul-R&B-vibey-whatever album that doesn't sound like anything else out at the moment. 

Delicate chords tumble precariously over snappy basslines and fantastic drums, creating music that doesn't need to get into your face to prove its worth. Early single "Dontcha" and late album cut "Shadow Dance" are the best of the bunch here--they exemplify the fantastically aimless feel of the music and Syd's vocals drape perfectly over the chilled out instrumentals.

Scottish synthpop trio Chvrches also have a new effort out this week, and it's an album that I'm sure to be listening to through the end of the year. The Bones Of What You Believe is the culmination of almost two years of hype-building and scattershot releases from the group, and while many tracks have been kicking around the blogosphere for some time, the album still feels remarkably fresh.

Since the band caught some attention with "The Mother We Share" in late 2011, it has been expanding on what fans can expect from a Chvrches release. "Lies," "Gun," "Recover" and the subsequent Recover EP established the band's core sound, and thankfully The Bones of What You Believe reaches beyond those expectations. From the hard-hitting "Lungs" to the drifting "You Caught The Light," Chvrches prove that there was a reason behind all of its buzz.

Apart from these releases, the week is pretty sparse. There's a new Kings of Leon album, which I assume sounds like a Kings of Leon album, and a fantastic new Mazzy Star release to give a little more competition to the great Northern radio savior. Not the most amazing week for new releases, but plenty to keep you busy until Danny Brown's Old on September 30th.

April 2 Releases, 2013

By: Zack Baker, Copy Editor

This week has basically been the week from hell for me. I’ve been buried under papers, exams and quizzes for every single one of my classes, so taking a break from all that stress to check out this week’s new music was much needed for me. And luckily, this week’s releases rule in so many different ways.

Up first is Tyler, The Creator’s Wolf. If you’ve been paying attention to music at all for the past few years, you know who Tyler is. The ringleader of hip-hop collective Odd Future, Tyler’s been putting out music that varies in theme from offensive jokes about rape and homophobia to introspective tracks about his estranged father and social anxiety issues. His collective’s gained quite a following, and the follow-up to his 2011 release Goblin has been hotly anticipated. Wolf is a continuation of these themes, and while production quality has gone up significantly, the weird split between Tyler’s styles has only become more prominent. Next to the album’s numerous high points (“Jamba,” “Answer,” “IFHY,” “Rusty,” “Tamale” and “Lone”), a lot of the songs on this 18 track opus fall flat.

The Cold War Kids also dropped Dear Miss Lonelyhearts and, even though I’ve never listened to the group before, I thought I’d give it a shot. Based on what little I know about the band, this album definitely seems to be incorporating a lot more electronic stuff than their previous albums (it’s 2013, what else is new?). Lots of really thumping basslines here, and Nathan Willett’s vocals fit right in with the chaotic instrumentals below them. Seems like some pretty groovy stuff for anyone looking for a harder take on indie rock with a dash of electronic influence thrown in for good measure.

So, New Kids On The Block are apparently back. How could I pass up the opportunity to see what a band who peaked well before my time are producing well after their prime? 10 is an album with a deeply confusing name (it’s not the ten year anniversary of anything as far as I can tell, nor their tenth studio album), a fantastically outdated album cover and no discernable style of its own. Particularly strange and hilarious is “Remix (I Like The),” which sounds like what would happen if Nickelback tried to do a psuedo-dance track and talked about remixes as a metaphor for a female dancing. Pretty much everything else here sounds like an attempt to bring the boy band craze back, and while it’s nice to reminisce about what bad taste we all had back then, the album doesn’t serve any purpose other than that.

This week also brings the release of new albums from Alkaline Trio and Bring Me The Horizon if you like your music on the heavier side, and Telekinesis and Generationals if you’re more keen to the indie rock persuasion.