Lykke Li, Crystal Castles, Art Of Fresh, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, etc

Well this has been sort of an off week for me. I don't know if I'm coming down with something or if I'm still suffering from a bit of a non alcoholic Nuit Blanche hangover, but my energy level has been virtually nil since Monday. Sadly, that means that I was in bed on Wednesday and didn't get to the Vesta Varro show, as I had initially intended. I will however attempt The Dears show tonight (had to pay for this one so the motivation level is a bit higher) and hopefully Murray et al will have my full attention.

In the meantime, I finally got around to listening to a few CD's that bloggers and other forms of music media have been singing the praises of over the course of the last year or so, and although I don't think that I have the moxie to throw up any full reviews of these ones, I would certainly like to give you my two cents.

All of my friends have been touting Lykke Li ad nauseum, and I have to admit that the incessant gushing has caused me to ignore this one longer than I should've. I also heard that she was in town several months ago supporting El Perro Del Mar and that many in attendance left after her set and didn't stick around for the headliner. Being a huge El Perro Del Mar fan, this news made me mad. However, I would now like to go on record as saying that I have been ignorant, and I hope that my friends can forgive me for sporting such unqualified attitiude. The fact is that Youth Novels is a stellar album, and the mood and feel of the album reminds me of Charlotte Gainsbourg's 5:55 release a couple of years ago. Her vocals are hushed and understated, and the album is the sultry warm blanket of a downtempo sunset, immediately making me feel comfortable and at home.

Lykke Li is playing The Mod Club on Friday October 24th.
Myspace: Lykke Li

Crystal Castles is another band that I put off listening to due to the hyperactive hype surrounding them, but in this case, upon listening to the album, I feel like I'm justified this time. I'm not one to give many bad reviews, but I just have to admit that I'm not getting it. When I was young, there was kid who lived in my neighbourhood that we used to tease for holding his tape recorder up to his Atari video game system and recording the musical accompaniment to Pac Man. He'd then throw this into his walkman and listen to it for enjoyment. That's what the Crystal Castles sound like to me. The gimmick gets old really fast and the album is just plain boring. It's too bad because ultimately, regardless of my earlier comments, I really wanted to like this band. The controversy surrounding them regarding plagiarism issues and the like has intrigued me, and I love cheering for the underdog. But first and foremost, I've got to enjoy the music and in their case, I just don't. Ultimately though, one man's opinion isn't going to change anyone's mind and the fact remains that the Castles are huge and they keep getting bigger so, y'know, good for them and all that stuff.

Crystal Castles are playing Circa on Friday October 24th.
Myspace: Crystal Castles

As I've mentioned before, asking me about hip hop is sort of like asking Pauly Shore about wise career moves. My knowledge on the subject is very limited. All I know is that when it comes to hip hop, I know what I like and I know what I don't like. And I like Art Of Fresh. The duo consists of D.O. and Slakah The Beatchild, the latter of which I've gotten to know quite well in a musical sense and have grown to be very respectful of. What I like about him is that he keeps his brand of soul / R&B/ hip-hop, etc from sinking to the lowest common denominator, keeping it clean and slick sounding without relying on overproduction and too much manufactured instrumentation. This keeps his music sounding organic and real. Admittedly not every song on Back To The Earth turns my crank, but tracks like Get Free, Out This World and We Can Do It have enough of that old skool vibe to keep me entertained.

Myspace: Art Of Fresh
Finally, while we're in a rhythm and blues frame of mind, I have been incredibly negligent in not listening to Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings a year ago, when 100 Days 100 Nights was officially released. This is soul music in its purest form: raspy voiced, delta blues based huskiness, designed to take you back to a time when the soul sound was identified by funky horns, subtle drums, shout-along backup singers and an undeniable groove. Sharon plays the role of female counterpart to James Brown very successfully and although the idea of perfectly capturing that 60's New Orleans vibe is a ludicrous notion to say the least, Sharon should pride herself in coming pretty darn close and providing a reasonable alternative for those who long for a newer version of that sound, without sounding too new.

Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings are playing Kool Haus on Wednesday October 29th.
Myspace: Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings