Get Your Fix: Album Reviews by the CoolJunkie Staff

September 4, 2008 2:26 PM
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Various Artists - Nobody Knows Anything - DFA Presents Supersoul Recordings
by: Marcos Colón

If you Wikipedia ‘DFA Records’ you’ll get the basic information. Founded by Tim Goldsworthy, James Murphy and Jonathan Galkin in 2001. Headquarters are located in New York City, and the genre’s feature electronic, dance-punk and disco music. Well, due to their recent various artists release titled Nobody Knows Anything, another genre could possibly be tagged on to their profile; minimal techno. Every hipsters favorite dance label has just dipped into the Germans’ waters, producing tracks that will introduce a movement to American dance-rock fans that consider Cut Copy and MSTRKRFT the end all be all of electronic music.

As mentioned previously, on Nobody Knows Anything, the American label decided to globalize their sound by working with two-year-old German label Supersoul, hence the minimal tech tracks like the album opener Lost by producer Xaver Naudascher and other tracks that feature the same digital computer glitch distortion that Simian Mobile made popular. For those of you who fear change, there’s even the basic one-two electro tracks like Walter Jones’ Deutoronomy Brown and The Odyssey Sound. There’s one thing for sure on Nobody Knows Anything, they definitely show their love for the analog sounds of the 80s, and this is definitely apparent throughout the album.

This is a fresh breath of air for the record label that always seems to be supplying the masses with artists and producers that keep the dance floor busy. This move could symbolize a shift in the direction of the label as they look to take their sound and image onto the global stage. DFA could be label in America that has the commercial appeal to bring electronic music to the ears of the unfamiliar, quite possibly changing the minds of the unfamiliar who’ve always thought that it ‘all sounds the same.’

Sound and Fury - Sound and Fury
by: Damon Dewitt

They say you cant judge a book by its cover, well you cant judge a CD case by its content. At first glance, Sound and Fury comes off as a metal militia that takes no prisoners. Metal, heavy is the sound and ‘heavy is the crown.’ Most people, music fans or not, hear the word metal and make the bad medicine in your mouth face. People who have no sense of music genre hear loud guitars and screaming singers and automatically classify the sound as metal. But make no mistake, Sound and Fury’s self-titled debut is not metal. If you want to get technical, they are more like garage rock with post-classic rock and punk influences.

Seemingly mixing the sounds of early punk bands stemming from the late 70s such as the Ramones, Sex Pistols, Misfits, Sweet and maybe a little bit of The Clash with the standard classic rock formula of intro, verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, guitar solo, chorus, outro. To make simple and compact the critique, Sound and Fury is a cheesy 2008 attempt at early AC/DC, most noticeably in the lead guitarist’s playing style during solos. I’d say the highlight of the band however is the lead guitarist. With mediocre percussion and weak baselines, the lead guitarist is the one member you should tune in while listening. If for some crazy reason “AC/DC” doesn’t ring a bell, take Black Sabbath-esque riffs and add playschool lyrics. The album does stay consistent from start to finish.

This album will speak to any “know it all” high school sophomore looking for a way to vent and rebel against the more than likely proper sound structures in their suburban setting. At least Sound and Fury has their demographic down, the younger crowd is the giant that keeps CD sales afloat.

D:Fuse - Thanks for Listening
by: Michael Maryanoff

Amongst the blips, bleeps and dark vocals of today’s techno, it’s easy to forget about a simpler time, when dance music consisted of no more than an empty warehouse, a few glow sticks and pounding, repetitive basslines. Thankfully for those of us who want to be transported back to a time where the bongos were abundant and synthesizer cheesy, D:Fuse has just released Thanks for Listening a collection of 13 of his original track and remixes over the past 10 years.

There are many compilations out there that showcase music over a long period of time, but to look at how music has changed over the past decade from the perspective of one artist can be an interesting experience. For instance, compare D:Fuse’s remix of Bill Hamel’s 1999 trance track Perspectives, full of hissing snares and pounding kick drums, and the much more subdued She Rides, released two years later. It’s interesting to see how he transitions from one genre to another, while sticking to the same sound. D:Fuse’s sound really developed during the earlier part of this decade, so there is a very distinct trance, tribal, and progressive house influence.

While D:Fuse does span different genres throughout this album, he doesn’t deviate from his core sound. Don’t anticipate anything heavier than what you would expect from a guy who brings a cowboy hat and electric conga to his live performances. The album serves its purpose as a sampling of D:Fuse’s body of work, but you might want to avoid it if you aren’t a fan of late 90’s dance music.

The Dandy Warhols - Earth To The Dandy Warhols
by: Ash Laidlaw

Back with a new album, the Dandy Warhols’ Earth to the Dandy Warhols continues their trend of artsy, psychedelic-tinged rock and brings it to the ears of their waiting fans. Fuzzy guitars and often unintelligible vocals are the norm on this release, along with electronic keyboards helping the album along. Aiding in their newest release is guitar legend Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, lending his skill on the 60s psychedelic rock influenced track Love Song, along with Mike Campbell of The Heartbreakers who contributes with his talent on the banjo.

The album opens up with The World Come On, a driving rock song that is an excellent introduction into their newest offering. From there, the album takes us through its highs and lows and a lot of that grey stuff in between. Tracks such as Talk Radio and And Then I Dreamt of Yes just don’t present anything groundbreaking, instead serving as filler tracks for some of the album’s highlights, such as the aforementioned Love Song. Legend of the Last of the Outlaw Truckers also stands out, with a fast paced country rock beat that would go well with a glass of whiskey. Welcome to the Third World is also a standout, taking us back into the 70s funk disco era and fusing it with the Warhols’ own sound.

Overall, the album, while having some strong suits, doesn’t have its share of hooks and catchy melodies that were more common among earlier Warhols’ albums. It’s not a poor album; it’s just not particularly great. If you’re a fan and enjoy the fuzzy psychedelic sound that the Warhols present, then there’s no doubt that you will appreciate at least some of the material on the album. If you’re not, then maybe this spacey step over the ledge may just not be for you.