Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?

Of Montreal have really got their nose to the funk-stone on their latest offering, “Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?” Incorporating a heady mix of Prince-like soul, Flaming Lips influenced weirdness and even quite a bit of disco, this CD is as infectious as it gets. Now when I say disco, I don’t mean real disco, but I mean the type of disco that mainstream 70’s pop bands would occasionally venture into, like Alan Parsons or ELO (and by the way, does it sound like a lot of bands are being compared to ELO these days? Has pop finally eaten itself?)

If you stop dancing long enough to listen to the lyrics, you’ll recognize that the content is actually rather depressing. The song, “Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse” occasionally utters the phrase “c’mon mood shift, shift back to good again.” What’s funny is that I actually found myself laughing when that line was uttered because it’s set to the happiest beat I’ve ever heard. “A Sentence Of Sorts In Kongsvinger” starts out sounding like one-hit wonder George McRae’s "Rock Your Baby" from 1974 before turning into an Abba-esque type of number. (And yes, the song titles are all strange like that.) The CD’s central piece is a little ditty called “The Past Is A Grotesque Animal” which is a bit of an animal itself, clocking in at almost 12 minutes in length. It’s completely cynical and emotional and very very angry. "Some how you red rovered the Gestapo circling my heart." Yep, definite issues. Overall, a pretty strong album although it’s about partway through that song, when the CD starts to feel a bit long for me. It’s only 50 minutes long, but it feels a lot longer for some reason. Still, it’s one of the most original releases so far this year, and if you’re looking for something new, and you know what it’s like to feel alone, this CD is perfect for you.

Of Montreal will be at The Opera House on March 13th. Tickets are $15.

Download:
Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse mp3

Visit Of Montreal’s myspace page.
Purchase “Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?” here.

The Apples In Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder

Well, it’s been 5 years since The Apples In Stereo have graced us with their presence. In the past, while part of the glorious Elephant 6 family, The Apples kept me deliriously happy by providing me with some of the greatest pop songs ever written. Well, obviously time has been very kind to them. Their latest release, “New Magnetic Wonder” ranks right up there among some of their best work. I haven’t been paying attention to the lyrics close enough to determine if this is, in fact, a concept album, but it does have that concept album feel to it. But in a good way. Right from the opening robo-ma-tronic introduction to “Can You Feel It?” encouraging us to “turn up the stereo,” you know that this CD is going to put you in a blissful state of glee. “Same Old Drag” is an outstanding song, filled with as many hooks as one could cram into a 3 minute song. It’s also filled with more delightfully cheesy vocoder harmonies than Jeff Lynne could have ever dreamed possible. Hillarie Sidney (who apparently has left the band?!?) gives us a few splendid vocal moments, particularly charming in “Sunndal Song.” Robert Schneider’s voice is in the usual good form, whether sung with bombast as in “7 Stars” or with startling maturity as in “Play Tough.” The songs are linked together with several short sound bites that help to hold the album together as one coherent piece of work. It’s been a while, but it’s really good to have The Apples back again.

The Apples In Stereo are playing at Lee’s Palace on February 20th.

Downloads:
Same Old Drag mp3
Sunndal Song mp3

Visit The Apples In Stereo myspace page.
Purchase “New Magnetic Wonder” here.