Cling .|: Beyond Your Dreams (Video Review +)

In 2006, I critiqued Cling... 

Cling ~ "Sonic Spells" EP
Sonic Spells" is extraterrestrial aping electro-pop. Much like my prior victimization in several alien invasions, curiosity pushed me toward Cling, but slowly drained my life force (sorry, no probes). Cling are Susi Lavender (lyrics and vocals) and Gerald Patient (programming and production). The UK duo adds deliberate & liquidy cadences with heavily distorted warble. Before you form an opinion that Sonic Spell is an AcidPro-like production … their sound, on balance, renders quality programming/productions primed for college radio.In small strips, their output is absorbing. Over the course of a full length record, though, Cling's the similarity of the arrangements (particularly with non-remixed song versions) and tepid compositions troll along. The one exception is the finale. "Haunt You" (Trance Mix) works wonderfully as a Poe-like pulser. It startled me from my zombie-like hold and allowed me slip away from Cling's Sonic Spells invasion somewhat elated.

It felt like I cannonballed into SNL's "Deep House Dish".


Even though my review was harsh, Cling responded with grace. It stuck with me (even though I have the foggiest idea what was written). 

Cling just emailed me their new video the other day. Since I changed my website and stopped using my name, it is impossible for them to realize that I was the jackass that wrote them up in the past.
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Their following is impressive. In less than a week "Beyond Your Dreams" amassed 4,000 views. Most indie artists have a hard time cracking 1,000 months after posted on YouTube. They even have a 264-0 like vs unlike rating -- the most I have seen without a thumbs down!

Apparently, with this track, Cling invented the genre, "chillstep". Gerald figured out how to coordinate a template to boost instead of drag Susi's hypnotic vocals. I did not think he had a chance.

Cling's vocal approach has over-saturated the market for many years and it is almost impossible to make a record sound good without being a total ripoff of another act. Gerald's perseverance and production wizardry has paid off. "Beyond Your Dreams" represents his stunning evolution. Also stunning is the track's representation in video.

There is nothing that appears indie about the "Beyond Your Dreams" music video. It is exquisitely shot and elevates the sonic experience. The intent of a music video is to quickly entice fans and potential fans stumbling on to it. Cling does so without cheap gimmicks like Goldfrapp [a relatively similar artist whose ELO ripoff is given a peculiar Satan visits Xanadu treatment] ...


If "Beyond Your Dreams" is not an aberration and represents Cling's current incarnation, then they have found their groove and will undoubtedly expand their audience.

Check out Cling's MySpace page!

(FYI: They frequently offer FREE downloads!)

Bruhn .|: Pull From This End

Bruhn sent this boilerplate email earlier in the month:

"Hello Die Music Die,

 We’re an indie rock band from Portland OR by the name of “bruhn”. We just finished our first full-length album called “Pull From This End” and are now in the process of promoting our record. We’re hoping to get a review and write up. We would love for you to give us a listen. Any and all feedback is appreciated.  We will attach our song “Hollywood” to the email.

You can download a free copy of our album at ...
Thank you for your consideration.

Take Care.
bruhn"

Many music critics are overwhelmed with such emails. In fact, it represents an alarming majority of submissions. They populate my "Spam" folder. To address this nuisance, I randomly plucked bruhn's for reviewing "Pull From This End". Instead, crankiness took over ...

Damn. Damn damn. Damn damn damn! My bias shows like a tramp stamp on a skank.

I cannot adequately review music when this feels like the internal dialogue of a band that submits music spam ...
"Here buddy, I'm throwing this out ... just hoping some idiot will like it and give us free press. If not, well, we don't give 1/2 a shit (maybe a 3/4 on a good day). If you dig it, cool. Still, whatever ... it's not like we're personally invested. We'll digest it, if it's good and share a 1/4 shit with you (if you're lucky)."

"Pull From This End" is hazy, cool and completely throwaway -- it's part of the new wave of dream pop. It is a solid "B-" album. There is nothing mindblowingly good or bad about the record. Appropriately, it kind of sounds like the artists are sleeping with their instruments and mics. The cover art is just as inspired. I guess I can term their overall effort as "emailing it in".

Say what you will about mailing it in -- at least it requires a person to get out bed. A person can  "email it in" from the can. 

The truth hurts, but this is what most music reviewers think. I know that bands don't think of it in those terms; considered are the dollars and time emailing saves. An email does not replace the feel of a new CD and the realization that a struggling indie band gives enough of a damn to spend $2-$3 with the hope of getting their music reviewed. When I think about the time, cost and effort put into their self-publicity, it encourages me to really listen and give a fair shake.

Nothing impresses on me more than an artist, outfit or indie label that will write a letter, put in a CD and throw in a key chain or something when cash is virtually nonexistent. These days, it's rare to even earn enough in the business to eek out a living.  Unless someone emails something that is extraordinary, I cannot justify pissing in the face of the gambling artists that deserve press.

Snareburst .|: Beta

Qualification out of the box ... I hate reviewing electronic music (referenced in an earlier blog entry)! Snareburst's sound is described as "Electronica Psychedelic Dance".

J. Shepherd (from Intolerance Records) asked me to give this a chance and that I would like it more than "Alpha (Demo)". I could not find my review for the CD and don't recall listening to it. It is possible that it made promoted PTSD, so I chose to bury it deep into my subconscious. In my lifetime, there are many such musical beasts in my mental jungle.

Snareburst is musical terrorism. After listening to three songs, I got Nam flashbacks. I never even went to Vietnam! What the hell is going on here? I have a pulsating headache and blood is dripping from my eye socket. Unfortunately my ears are in tact.

This is the last time I try something like this. I need to promise myself that if I put the CD in and can't get past 45 seconds of the 1st track, I just need to burn the motherf@Y&#(. Seriously, I'm butthurt over this.

I held on to this and listened to it five times to see if it would grow on me. It did not. I became more enraged each listen. I have nothing positive to write about this except that I can provide the band's new T-shirt image of of I survived Snareburst and I don't want to effing talk about it or (better yet) a mutant Ipod suffering from PTSD ...

The evil belches of sound were so damning that it made their one non-offensive track, "RGB"  tolerable. Here's its lulzy video ...



Somehow they are grabbing gigs, so there must be massive marketing or sadomasochist musictards that enjoy going deaf and seeing others cry, convulse and croak. The gigs may be filled with undercover Pentagon officials looking for zee next level weapon against terror. Like the old saying, you can only fight terror wuth blaring Snareburst (or something like that).

Another custom niche for "Beta" are YouTube Poopers. Anything on a Snareburst record can inspire video fail like this ...


My kid told me that I shouldn't write anything mean because Intolerance Records packaged this in an awesome hoodie. He quickly retracted after one minute of listening. Maybe quasi-sane and sober people aren't Snareburst's target audience.

I appreciate that they are aiming to perfect a niche for folks with curious music fetishes. If you create something unique, there is always an audience for it. Snareburst does carve a sonic path. I can belittle the "Beta" all I want, but opinions are subjective. Even then, I admire "Beta" for bringing something gonzo to the surface.

The Better Death .|: The Better Death

The Better Death ...

The group name and eponymous EP inspires thoughts of whiny emo like this:



I realize that a Radiohead song from 1993 is an outdated reference to the genre -- so what. The Better Death defines their music as, "Sounds like L7 without the Vaginas... Radiohead with the Balls... Math rock without the calculations... Bruce Lee before Seattle... Rebellion without the eyeliner... Old School for the future." Alrighty then (in fairness to them, they did qualify their L7 comment in their  CD Baby description).

"Message To Your Rival" starts off "The Better Death" with a spastic progressive alt rock adventure. Check out the "live" version ...


I was cognizant of the fact that this track is badass, but had no idea why, so I repeated it and realized that "Message To Your Rival" was a prime mutant jolt of Queensrÿche and At the Drive-In.

What I did fear was that The Better Death made the mistake of sequencing their best cut 1st. Even if the rest of "The Better Death" is decent, it will feel like they wet my bed.

Disaster averted! Although "Message To Your Rival" is my favorite track on the EP, their sequencing logic is sound because the song does not have the most commercial potential. "Devoted Like Flies", the 4th of six tracks, is the rendering that can play immediately on modern rock and college radio. Here's its snippet ...



See what I mean? This At The Drive-In and Alice In Chains hybrid is even more captivating "live". If you attend one of their performances, you would likely leave with this song stuck in your head regardless of its order in their set list.

For a self-produced debut EP, "The Better Death" is incredible. Each member of the four-piece outfit adds to its convincing dynamic. There is no mistaking that the sound is late 1990's/early 2000's alt rock, but their footprint and adroitness in the genre propels a provocative experience.

Check out The Better Death's site!

Michael Kenzik .|: Death Of A Chain Smoker

Michael Kenzik is self-identified as a progressive folk artist, but applying that genre to "Death Of A Chain Smoker" is inappropriate. He is a singer-songwriter ... plain and simple. If shoved into a corner and forced to listen to:


, I would describe the album as accessible version "Closing Time" (Tom Waits). Unlike Waits, you do not have to be the certain type of music fan and in the right mood to appreciate Michael.

At first, I was afraid that Mr. Kenzik's dark and lengthy record (15 tracks) would be a difficult listen. Strangely, His metaphorical wordplay helped me escape my human bias and gain point of view (or hear) access with him in his compelling personal journey.

"Death Of A Chain Smoker" chronicles Michael's increasing pessimism based on complications from: heartbreak ("Think Of Me As That Bird" and "In A Little While"); isolation ("Church Music For A Religion That Does Not Exist");  delirium ["Planting Geraniums In Iraq" (see below)] and etc. The music features guitar (both acoustic and electric) and an intimately whimsical production (which perfectly balances the record's mood).

As a critic, I look for missing or misplaced elements from a recording. My greatest testament is that I do not know how Michael Kenzik could have made "Death Of A Chain Smoker" any better. The songs are so well-written and the music has such sufficient variation (within his wheelhouse) that never becomes an arduous listen.

Live performance of "Planting Geraniums in Iraq"

Check out Michael's MySpace site!

Critics commonly get an envelope of awesomeness. The publicist/record label/artist determines your worthiness by the shiz that's sent. For example, if you get a CD and a one page intro, they are just throwing darts hoping a decent review will be posted. Intolerance records sent me an inflatable fucktoy, key chain, poster, mouse pad (who in the hell uses those anymore?) . I need a hoodie damn it, but that's a little steep to e-beg for -- especially since this is an unbiased review. ;-)

J. Shepherd gave me a ring a little while ago asking me to review his artist. I was a little off from the Vicodin that I need to take and made my stoned responses as awkward as hell. I told him that I was launching Die Music Die, but it is obvious that he already drafted everything to Ape Quake. I can't be pissed because of the bounty received. I have no fucking clue what I'll do with these items, but they're sweet nonetheless.

**WHITE RAPPER (AKA BLIZZARD MAN) ALERT**



The CD does not include an image of the artist. Sure, many black artists use a pot leaf or cash money and what not on their cover, but the 1st thing I think these days when I see an entire booklet without an image is ... white rapper. In fact, I saw only one image of the artist in all of the stuff I was sent by Intolerance Records. It was buried somewhere between the white dildo and mouse pad.  Without doing that research, his moniker is Wally Boy Wonder ... enough said.

"Day of the Rising Tide" has a lot of tracks -- 18 in all. Intolerance Records clearly loved everything he laid down and apparently wanted to make sure you get your money's worth. For me, it's a little overkill for an unfamiliar artist. Some tracks feel like filler. For example, there are a number of cuts like "Swagger" that just don't stack up. With that out of the way, there's a lot to dig here.

Wally Boy Wonder (WBW from here on out) does not like to be pigeonholed. The ditties range from campy retro-inspired dance "Wobble Bobble" (with Duma Love of the disbanded Cibo Matto) and "See Saw" to personal "Simple Life", "An Angel and St. Mark" and "Fam" to bazaar "Prehistoric" and "Zodiac". Those tracks give you a glimpse inside the curious mind of WBW.



J. Shepherd produced "Day of the Rising Tide". His beats were not consistently mind-blowing, but felt right with the content. The dance tracks were shakeable -- "Wobble Bobble" made me bounce so hard, I nearly forgot that the song's hook was "body like a soda bottle". Other tracks, were molded around the lyrics (i.e. "Prehistoric" has a raw almost untouched production). 

A final note on the "Day of the Rising Tide". I'm  a sucker for kooky pop culture references in hippity hop. WBW provides many. In one delirious song, "That Boy", he managed to recall the director and stars (Alfred Hitchcock and Jimmy Stewart + Doris Day) from the 1956 flick, "The Man Who Knew Too Much". Other references include: Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees ("Simple Life"), Van Gogh ("Zodiac") and yada yada yada. Mixing oil and water (i.e. unfamiliar shout outs with hip hop), sticks with me and will induce me to revisit.

check this artist out here at his label's site!

Artichoke .|: 26 Scientist Volume Two: Two Newton - Zeno

I'm old and lame. When I am not pushing paper, time wasters are sought. Much of it has been devoted vegging to lame TV like The History Channel. Watching biographies of dead people or re-enactments of ancient wars fills my useless information void . It also allows for procrastination of housecleaning (as a bonus, gives me a flimsy excuse for existing parasitically). Don't judge me!

Another excuse for parasitic living is Artichoke's "26 Scientist Volume Two: Two Newton - Zeno". The CD happens to be an indie pop compilation of quirky mini biographies for 12 dead scientists with an additional tune for "the unknown scientist". It manages to be somewhat informational and so enjoyable that casual listening would likely allow to bypass Artichoke's muses.

Timothy Sellers is the mad mind behind Artichoke. He wrote, performed and produced "26 Scientist Volume Two: Two Newton - Zeno". The music brews a semi-precious and lo-fi concoction of Super Furry Animals + Apples in stereo + They Might Be Giants. Just when you start to zone into his surreal dream of lo-fi deliciousness, he'll cleanse the palate with aural acid (yeah, there are moments that he'll throw in something intentionally unlistenable -- bastard).

I keep listening because of my masochistic nature allows me to enjoy being bitch-slapped every once in awhile. Many of you, I am convinced, understand my hunched-over position too. Tolerating those pieces gives you a sense of entitlement and prevents it from being universally loved -- like you've earned the opportunity to enjoy yourself.

Although the disc has an obvious lyrical theme, it plays with multiple personalities. Timothy's 1st four tracks reel you in and peak with his catchiest song, "Young, Thomas (1773-1829)." Each cut is so engaging, you can't help to listen to what else Artichoke has in its bud. "26 Scientist Volume Two: Two Newton - Zeno" following four tracks feeds paisley through the fog machine, but finally comes to terms with each side of its personality with the final six tracks.

Artichoke is not for everyone, but many would enjoy its delirious mood, oddball theme and frugal production.

check this band out here!

The Surf Zombies .|: Something Weird

There are only so many times you can go to YouTube to check out live footage of Olivia Newton-John lypsynching, "Magic". In my case it was 47. I was absolutely mesmerized. The song is a melodious monster. Her dancing is sexy as a white girl can be and she IS the prettiest singer of all time. Name a cuter one and I will cut you. I'm not messing.

At about play #45, I wanted to make an evolutionary "Magic" video that tracked her performances of the song from its 1980 inception thru 2009. I stole the flash files and got my editor warmed up. At #47, I asked myself, "What the hell is wrong with you?"



15 years ago, I would kicked my own ass if that version seen this beaten down wuss that I've become. It was then that I realized that I needed a creative outlet. If ass bleeding was creative, it would be an evolutionary video of "Magic", though. Maybe ass bleeding is the wrong selection for creating a delicious creative adventure.

Wiping away from ass bleed, I found The Surf Zombies submission hovering over the ledge above my toilet. I popped it in. Without reading the booklet or paperwork, I thought, "Damn, this sounds like Dick Dale." You know, the instrumental music that saturates the "Pulp Fiction" soundtrack. It's nasty.

"Something Weird" is a collection of bad ass original guitar-oriented instrumentals that stand up to anything heard from the aforementioned legend. There is a darker vibe on some of the tracks that recall Joey Santiago's Pixies heyday. Believe me, the vibe of this is fun and would play incredible at an old hipster club or in the background of an active adventure.

As a CD though, its 21 tracks of similar sounding jaunts tire. There are no vocals (outside of a cliched counting intro) and only slight tempo variations. A few of the cuts start to venture a little to the surreal, but did not go far enough -- I could see something beautiful (like Olivia Newton-John) on the horizon, but The Surf Zombies dropped me off on the wrong side of the canyon.



If you are itching for a fix of surf rock ... check this band out here!