The Mars Volta - Noctourniquet

Finally, we are no longer kept in the dark. Goodbye unconfirmed rumors: The Mars Volta's new album has an official release date, official art and an official tracklisting. Check it out on their official website. I don't know about you, but I'm REALLY diggin' that cover art. Now we just have to wait. Or listen to their more recent bootlegs.

Short STRAIGHT hair?! WTF, Cedric?

A Confession (and a Genesis Classic)

My very favourite music, as you might have guessed, is prog. And as we all know, prog's flagship groups are the almighty King Crimson, Yes and Genesis. Now, since I officially declared my undying love for said music around the age of 14, I'm very embarrassed to admit that I've just heard Genesis' The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway in its entirety, for maybe the third or fourth time in my life, and that this is the first time I actually "get it". I know, I know, I'm a disgusting poseur, and deserve to be buried alive in a coffin made of "popular music" CDs...
In case some other sad posers happen to come across this post, they can get The Lamb in two parts here.

What can I say about this particular album that hasn't already be said? Probably nothing, but I feel obliged to share a few of my thoughts on it: for one thing, the songs on this one are odd in the typical Genesis way, but certainly odder than most of their other work. Perhaps this is why it took me so long to actually listen to it and even longer to get into. (At least for now) I find the first half of the album better, although the second part does contain its own share of timeless songs (Lilywhite Lilith, Anyway, The Lamia) along with a few freaky psychedelic interludes, it also has more of the "odder" pieces, which kept me away from it for a long time. I like the fact that The Lamb is a classic Genesis album, although it has nothing of their typical pastoral sound found on other records, which I assume is due to the almost total absence of acoustic/classical guitars. I also really dig the weird keyboard/synth sounds that Tony Banks used on it: they come off as futuristic (for 1974, that is) and vintage-y at the same time. These two factors are actually quite important for the band, and because of them this record manages to stand out among their works. It may not be their absolute masterpiece, but it is most certainly one of their most unique albums. And no songs represent this uniqueness as much as The Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging, and Back In N.Y.C., a couple of pieces that are swiftly becoming my favourite songs from this album, even though I found them both "too odd to like" at first. A few other gems would have to be Fly On a Windshield/Broadway Melody of 1974, Hairless Heart, Lilywhite Lilith and the title-track. But really, this is a concept album, so I shouldn't even be recommending single songs! Oh god, I really am a poser...

I just heard "Invisible Touch"... I LOVE Genesis!

Gentle Giant

     Above: my own masterfully executed tribute to Gentle Giant

This is one band which really BLEW MY FUCKING MIND. I truly admire them beyond words. Each individual band member can play every instrument ever invented, and play it well.
Just look at this:

Far out man...
You can get their debut album here. Can you believe this stuff was released way back in 19-fucking-70? Way ahead of anything else from that year. If you want a few specific high points, I'd have to say that they are "Giant", "Funny Ways", "Alucard", "Isn't it Quiet and Cold?", "Nothing at All", "Why Not?" and "The Queen". Download the thing.

Magma - Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh (1973)

Interesting title, eh? It is in fact in Kobaïan - a language spoken on the planet Kobaïa (duh!). This planet is the birthplace of drummer and musical mastermind Christian Vander and the setting of most (if not all) of this French band's albums.
You know how Pink Floyd were famous for their grandiose concept albums? Well, Vander took that idea to the next level, and through the years has built up a concept discography with Magma. Over ten studio albums, they tell the (surprisingly long and confusing) story of a group of people fleeing a doomed Earth to settle on the planet Kobaïa, With conflict(s) arising when the Kobaïans — descendants of the original colonists — encounter other Earth refugees. All of this is explained in Kobaïan of course, making the albums' liner notes (or alternatively, the internets) the only way to figure out what the hell they're singing about. And they don't even tell the story in chronological order!

Apart from that, what makes this band revolutionary? For one thing, their sound: imagine a Carl Orff-meets-jazz-and-plays-hypnotically-repetitive-militaristic-compositions, sung by a choir with some ridiculously exaggerated falsetto vocals. And dare I say that there's a hint of Philip Glass style minimalism? That's pretty much what Magma sound like on this album. It is a sound which transcends all musical genres, to the point where the label zeuhl had to be applied to their music (and subsequently that of other French bands that would follow in their footsteps). Zeuhl is a Kobaïan word meaning "celestial". How cool is that? Playing music for which no human word exists? Pretty rad in my opinion!

                                        
                                           DAT DRUMMER - Impresses me every time

 

                                                                  Powerful stuff...

Anyway, here you go: Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh
Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.