It certainly came as a surprise to me when I saw that this album was out; it was not supposed to be released until mid February, and it was one of the albums that I was really looking forward to, so you can really imagine how excited I was to listen to it when I found it that it had been released. It did not let down! It was perhaps a little bit different than I expected. Here we go with my first full album review!
The album starts with the familiar poppy track "Blessa." I think this was a wise choice because it allows the listener to start with something they already know, and perhaps give them some motivation to listen to the album from the start and go through the whole album, as opposed to skipping around (NB: Although each song could stand alone very well, the first time you listen to it I think you should listen to the whole thing through without stopping). "Blessa" is certainly the most upbeat song on the album, and I think starting the album with a song as infectious as Blessa is another good choice; it is another way to hook the listener.
From there you move on to "Minors," a slower song that stays fairly mellow and lyrical, as oppose to more music focused of the rest of the album. The music itself is fairly simple (definitely one of the simpler songs on a musically fairly complex album in my opinion), and the lyrics evoke a sense of longing for something different ("I know it is not the truth / Is this how it is?"). The music and lyrics of the verses make the song sound like it is out of a film from the 80's (I'm thinking brat pack type movies), in the scene where the main character doesn't know what to do or is sad.
Starting with "Minors" and moving on for a few songs, the songs don't pop out at you as much, but not in a bad way. They feel a little bit like you are seeing T y M perform or DJ; the songs start flowing into each other and are bit more laid back and peaceful, the type of thing you just listen to and relax. It is as if they are part of a short set that you just groove to.
The next song is "Imprint After," a funkier jam. This funky/disco-y (although it is way too slow for disco, you understand what I mean... I hope) song perhaps does not pop out, to me that is, in any particular way, but is still an excellent track because of its catchy tune and the fact that it gets you moving a little.
The next track, "Lissoms" (don't ask me what that means), is an instrumental track that is essentially just a nice synth beat that starts to pick up the pace of the album again after the two slower previous songs. It is the perfect example of the track that feels as if it is part of a set. It flows into the fifth track, "Fax Shadow." This track has a certain cut up feeling to it, with choppy samples, weird delays put on the different pieces of the song, and the varying styles in the song. I think that this cut-up feeling certainly makes the title appropriate for the song. The vocals in a couple parts are very Dirty Projectors-esque; with oohs and ahhs and vocals that start high and descend with each syllable, it certainly is reminiscent of Dave Longstreth and Angel Deradoorian of the DPs.
"Fax Shadow" turns into "Thanks Vision," a song that is much more similar to the chillwave genre that T y M has been lumped into. The beginning in particular is a lot like Chaz Bundick (T y M)'s fellow South Carolinian "chillwaver" (term coined: n., one who listens to and rides the chillwave and/or generates the chillwave; thinks that the coolest thing to do is just close your eyes and listen to music; listeners slightly pretentious) Ernest Greene (AKA Washed Out)'s "Belong" and "Feel It All Around"; it has those ubiquitous synths and sound effects characteristic of chillwave.
The next song is "Freak Love," which is a bit of a build up song. At this point you know that "Talamak" hasn't played yet and there are only a few songs left, so the anticipation is certainly very high. It is analogous to when you are at a concert and there is one song that you really want to here that hasn't been played yet, and you just know and feel that it is coming and will be the next song. Although this may seem like "Talamak" is overshadowing "Freak Love," I do not believe that that is so; I think that what "Freak Love" was created for was that build-up track sensation. It has a sort of amorphous sound that is multi-layered and varied, giving it a sound that you can't really pin down, contributing to the feeling that something is coming. I think that the thing that the sound is closest to is actually Animal Collective.
As I said, the anticipation for Talamak has reached its peak, so when "Freak Love" starts to fade out and those distinctive rolling notes start to fade in from the background and then the two chords the play through the whole song first hit (which is where the actual songs starts on the album, whereas the single starts with the rolling notes), there is a moment of complete gratification. "Talamak" is truly a gem, and even if the rest of the album wasn't good (which is certainly not the case), "Talamak" would make up for it. I won't talk too much about "Talamak" because I have talked about extensively in other posts, I'm sure most of you have heard it already, and this review is getting a little long, but I will include the mp3.
"Talamak" goes quickly though; it is 2 minutes and 30 seconds of bliss and then it turns into the slower "You Hid," and from here the album just sails on through. "You Hid" is a relaxed song that is again characteristic of the feeling of a continuous mix. The next two songs start to pick up again and deviate from that continuous mix feeling; they are a little more upbeat and have more potential than many of the other songs to be stand alone singles. "Low Shoulder" is one of the other songs on the album that is more typical chillwave, and certainly has the potential to be a stand alone song that becomes popular. The album then ends with the titular track "Causers of This," a slightly poppy track. While I do not love the last two songs quite as much as the continuous part of the album (tracks 2-9), they are still quite good and "Causers of This" ends the album well. At about the halfway mark of the song, everything in it starts getting repeated, cut up, sampled and distorted, leading to a build up of energy, ultimately ending the album with high returns and a feeling of completion.
I think there are two things that really make this album stand out: the fact that it is not very similar (with the exception of just a few songs) to chillwave, which can sometimes all seem the same, and the quasi-DJ set/mix aspect of it. While gapless albums are certainly not rare, I think the feeling of having one long mix is certainly a boon for his music. It sets an environment that really is definitive of his music and allows it to shine. When I saw him perform (the first time I actually heard of him), he just had his laptop and a synth, and played straight through everything; it all flowed together into one great set. The Troubadour is a pretty small venue and he went on pretty early (he was the first opening act of 2). There were only around 10-15 people there, so when he walked up to the front of the crammed stage and went to set up his laptop/synth I at first thought he was a roadie/techie, but then he started playing and I was mesmerized. This album certainly captures the feeling of an intimate, dancey, enjoyable mix experience, and I am looking forward to his other LP due out toward the end of '10.
Here's the link for Talamak; you can also download some more of his tracks in these posts. I suggest you buy the album.
mp3: Talamak
-- A Teenage Elephant
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