10
thursday, October 23,2008
MUSIC SHORTS.
PARTS & LABOR
RECEIVERS
POP/NOISE
Distant voices, feedback and
radio static build up into a formi
dable wall of sound. Suddenly, out
of the chaos appears an insistently
propulsive guitar pounding out
power chords and a defiant voice
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Endorsed by:
Durham People's Alliance • Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People • North Carolina AFL-CIO • North Carolina
Association of Educators • Brady Campaign to End Gun Violence • Humane Society • Planned Parenthood • Sierra Club
BOn the issues that matter most, compare B
the candidates for Congress:
Pgyiri P r ’ ce _ BJ Lawson
Fou ght against and will work to roll back the Bush tax cuts to the Tax Fairness Opposes the progressive income tax, federal corporate taxes and
wea thiest one percent. Supports the Earned Income Tax Credit the estate tax. Favors elimination of the EITC and child tax credit
and other progressive tax relief.
Authored the Price Education Affordability Act. Supports Education Favors elimination of the Department of Education. Opposes low
expanded opportunity through Pell Grants and federal loan interest student loans because they are "distorting the economics
assistance for needy students. of higher education."
Will work with Barack Obama to achieve universal health Health Care Be , ieV es "healthcare is not a responsibility of the federal
coverage. Favors Im mediate expansion of coverage for uninsured government." Opposes expansion of children's healthcare and
c i dren and tax credits to help small businesses cover employees. tax incentives for employer-provided insurance.
Strongly supports a woman's right to choose under Roe v. Wade. Choke Favors reversal of Roe v. Wade. Believes abortion should be illegal"
even in the case of rape or incest.
Favors responsible measures to keep guns out of the wrong hands. Gun Control Opposes restrictions on carrying concealed handguns on school
grounds, college campuses, and other areas.
Supports hate crime and employment nondiscrimination Civil Rights Does not believe sexual orientation should be included in hate
legislation that cover sexual orientation cr j me 0 r employment nondiscrimination definitions.
Supports affirmative action. Affirmative Action Opposes affirmative action.
Learn more about both candidates’ positions at www.votesmart.org.
DAVID PRICE _ Vote early or on
i CONGRESS mmmmmmm Tuesday, November 4th!
| Paid for by Price for Congress |
singing, “Sometimes I think this
never was my home/ A1957 kind
of heaven-sent remote control.”
That’s how “Satellites,” the huge
anthem that opens Parts & Labor’s
Receivers, begins, setting up the
model for the rest of the magnifi
cently modern album.
Receivers concerns the difficulty
of being heard in a world where
people communicate in so many
ways that it creates an oppressively
scattershot din that’s nearly impos
sible to overcome.
Throughout Receivers, exqui
sitely rendered noise underlies
intensely catchy pop gems with
huge melodies and lyrics that strive
to galvanize the unheard together
to be noticed above the static.
But nothing on the album is that
simple. Sure, die anthems are huge,
but there’s always a tense struggle
between melody and noise.
And while the contrast is essen
tial, the modem sounds also make
up major parts of the album’s tradi-
Congressman David Price
Progressive Leadership for the Triangle
Diversions
tionally “musical” passages.
In “Nowheres Nigh” a wall of
feedback convalesces into a dis
torted organ that lends the song
an air of blissful resignation that
makes its emotion resonate.
This blend of the abrasively futur
istic and the comfortably grandiose
provides plenty of sonic fireworks.
The triumphant glee of distorted
bagpipes closes “Little Ones” with
a bang, and the prog-influenced
keyboard part on “Wedding in a
Wasteland” vaults and prances like
a tap dancer on speed.
All in all, Receivers is a wonder
fully entertaining call to arms that
shows how, with enough effort, the
squall of modem life can be boiled
down into something that’s beauti
ful and accessible.
-Jordan Lawrence
GANG GANG DANCE
WroSSSS’ 0 *
SAINT DYMPHNA
AVANT-ROCK
Gang Gang Dance must be
crazy. An appropriate assumption
as its new album, Saint Dymphna,
takes its title from the patron saint
of mental illness.
The band has moved its sound in
a radically different, if not entirely
unexpected, direction on its fourth
full-length and follow-up to 2005’s
well received God’s Money.
Where God’s Money was a behe
moth of percussion and experimen
tal inner workings, Saint Dymphna
builds on this foundation, using
these percussive backbones in con
junction with synthesizers, dubbed
out bass lines, squalls of guitar and
Liz Bougatsos’ wailing vocals.
On the new record Gang Gang
Dance definitely delves into depths
the band has never explored before
by taking on pop music in its own
New York experimental style.
“Princes” begins with oscillating
synthesizers building and droning
before a pounding hi-hat rhythm
comes in over a two-step bass line.
Then grime MC Tinchy Stryder
steps in, delivering a hyperactive
rap that’s perfectly placed.
The album’s lead single and
obvious highlight, “House Jam,” is
one of the best singles of the year.
Pumping an organic, old school
jack vibe with Bougatsos doing her
best Kate Bush vocals, the song is
a triumphant dance-floor-stomper
that challenges even as it caresses
the listener.
It’s a fine line for a band to walk
between experimentalism and
accessibility without compromis
ing integrity. On this record Gang
Gang Dance walked the high wire,
dove into a glass of water, and then,
to the astonishment of all, started
swimming.
-BenPittard
RACHAEL YAMAGATA
ELEPHANTS... TEETH
SINKING INTO HEART
POWER POP
The piano has never sounded
so good as it does with Rachael
Yamagata playing it.
With her complex songwriting
and piercing vocals, Yamagata
proves that she’s deserving of
attention on her third release, a
sprawling double album.
Yamagata’s emotion heaped
tracks connect easily with the
listener because she sings with
feeling that makes you hang on
every word.
On Elephants ... Teeth Sinking
Into Heart, she captures listeners
with a voice that can change to
carry almost any emotion.
Her voice carries desperation,
love and loss with enough power to
make the album into a rare gem.
On the first disc, Elephants,
she creates a more intimate sound
with minimal instrumentation
besides the piano.
Teeth Sinking Into Heart is
more rock based, with guitar and
drums.
The two discs display
Yamagata’s range, as she com
bines melancholy with a more
contemplative edge.
Her songwriting, emphasized
on the first track “Elephants,”
expresses a desire to move on
from the heartache of her life.
With lyrics such as “If elephants
have past lives/ Yet are destined to
alwaywjfmember/ It’s no wonder
how they scream/ Like you and I
they must have some temper,” the
song is unforgettable.
With a clear mastery of her
instrument and a fiery passion
for her songs, Yamagata forces
her listener to feel exactly as she
does when she’s playing.
-Rachel Arnett
THE STARS EXPLODE
THE STARS EXPLODE
irtckirk
POWER POP
The Stars Explode, the brain
child of local singer/songwriter
Doug Edmunds, has produced a
refreshingly lively new album.
Edmunds seems to be heavily
influenced by classic rock bands,
particularly the Beatles, but there
is also an element of originality in
the songs that is often absent from
many produced by current rock
groups.
The guitar progression on “Lost
on Planet Love” sounds eerily simi
lar to that found in the end of the
Beatles’ “You Never Give me Your
Money.”
In certain songs, Edmunds’voice
sounds remarkably similar to John
Lennon’s.
Besides a similarity in style to
the Beatles, The Stars Explode
possesses an ability to captivate
the listener.
The majority of the songs are
upbeat and downright catchy.
There are also many layers within
each song, but they blend together
to form a finely tuned whole that
comes across as interesting rather
than just noisy. There is something
new to discover about the album
upon each listen.
-Cassie Perez
OASIS
DIG OUT YOUR SOUL
ickirtrtt
ROCK
Even though Oasis decided to
name its newest record Dig Out
Your Soul, it’s hard for listeners
to ignore the desire to start dig
ging out the older, better Oasis
albums.
Granted, Oasis’ ever-present
anthemic ability does make you
want to sway to the music or sing
the lyrics at the top of your lungs.
But the Gallagher brothers have
Sathj (Tar Mppl
clearly been listening to their old
albums too much, and, slowly, they
begin chipping away at the sound
the nineties came to adore.
Overused guitar riffs mixed with
philosophical lyrics leave audienc
es begging for time-transcending
singles such as “Wonderwall” and
“Don’t Look Back in Anger.”
Did they get over their alcohol
abuse? Probably not, but this time
it leads them to write such lyrics
as, “Shine a light on your fire when
you come on in/ I got my heebie
jeebies in a hidden bag/ Tell me
what you desire, and we’ll bag it
up.” Seriously, what are you talk
ing about?
Thankfully, Liam offers redemp
tion with “I’m Outta Time,” as he
sings “If I’m to fall/ Would you be
there to applaud/ Or would you
hide behind the law?”
The expressive ballad captures
the heart and attention of the lis
tener as the band drifts into the
heartache of the lyrics.
Despite how average it can be,
Dig Out Your Soul isn’t bad and
won’t scare off already converted
Oasis fans. But it certainly doesn’t
live up to the band’s glory days.
-RachelAmett
MAGNETIC MORNING
A.M.
ickicCrte
POP/ROCK
Magnetic Morning’s first full
length LP, A.M., does not possess
the attractive power suggested by
the group’s name.
Most songs just seem to be a
cacophony of sound that lack a
distinct melody.
One song, “At a Crossroads,
Passive,” seems to be reaching for
a distinct sound, but sadly falls
short, coming across as a bizarre
hybrid of sounds, reminiscent of
generic new wave styles with a bit
of Coldplay mixed in.
The album lacks direction, and
seems to be a disjointed attempt
at infusing rock with avant garde
stylings.
Although the album is disap
pointing, it’s not completely ter
rible. A.M. might be useful as a
study tool if one is looking for a
little white noise to promote con
centration.
To put it plainly, Magnetic
Morning’s album just doesn’t hold
the listener’s interest for long.
-Cassie Perez