The Audio Antihero Article
29 January, 2013
Earlier I told you that I purchased a special package from Audio Antihero that included two LPs and 1 bonus EP. Well, due to a request of mine, I netted TWO EPs in addition to the much-anticipated albums. Therefore, this special feature focuses on three artists from AAH: the Fighting Kites, Broken Shoulder, and Benjamin Shaw. Since that last one might require the most difficult review I’ve written yet, I’ll start with the first two:
Fighting Kites – Clean and tight-knit jam band. Difficult to say much about these guys, since I’ve got only four track from ‘em, off the Split EP. But they’ve got a bright sound, and a fantastic drummer. The ways that the two guitarists interact with each other is just delightful. However…
Fighting Kites – Clean and tight-knit jam band. Difficult to say much about these guys, since I’ve got only four track from ‘em, off the Split EP. But they’ve got a bright sound, and a fantastic drummer. The ways that the two guitarists interact with each other is just delightful. However…
Broken Shoulder - An introspective dabbler of noise. After being sidelined from the Fighting Kites due to a – big surprise – broken shoulder, Neil Debham began to develop his own project, one without the polish and warmth provided by his mates. As a result, he’s recorded some fine messes of experimental guitar sound, often very minimal and stark.
“Organomegaly”, for instance, is little more than a drone of buzz, that builds ever so gradually as a lone guitar wanders in a corner and, somewhere, a faint sound like a xylophone tinkles underneath. As the track progresses, the fuzz continues to swell, until it pulses and finally fades away. Quiet strumming often serves as the most identifiable “melody” in each track, if it exists at all; most tracks, however, are built on patterns of chaotic and stable parts. In “Morning is Broken”, for instance, Neil seems to be doodling on a synth the entire time; even though that section sounds random, bass lines pulse and guitars hum around it. In “Chocolate One Room Disco”, a steady and deliberate bassline guides the listener through alternating chords of synths and feedback; when it finally drops away, however, those hums seem just as natural and orderly. In summary, though Broken Shoulder deals in fragments and experiments, the overall effect is rarely ever frantic, overbearing, or jarring; indeed, the buzzes and hums of Neil’s tracks are usually quite meditative, and feel more organic than contrived. You can find Broken Shoulder in a thick handful of EPs on Audio Antihero, like his debut, the Split, and some graciously free live sessions on Barely Out Records. |
Benjamin Shaw: So, as I mentioned above, that package from AAH contained two LPs - the Nosferatu D2 album that I reviewed, and Benjamin Shaw's There's Always Hope, There's Always Cabernet. And before I really dive into the latter, I'll say this: Shaw is an illustrator, and he's compiled a fascinating lyric booklet. Lyrics are written (yes, written, not printed to look like writing) in a tiny, cramped handwriting, and curious sketches line the pages - an old man tying a woman to the railroad tracks for "Home", a man flying out a broken window into a wallpaper sky for "Interview", a stairwell with two people lying facedown at the bottom on "The Birds Chirp And The Sun Shines" (more on THAT one presently). Some sullen undercurrent runs through these illustrations, but the sorrow that each suggests is only abstract - until we spin the album.
There's Always Hope is a slow play. Not because it's bad - not in the least! Shaw just sings in a drawn-out way, quietly, in a rather limited register. "How To Test The Depth Of A Well" is the brightest and most lush number on the album, with its sweet flute swells and shuffling snare, and therefore rather misleading. Much of the album is quite stark - on "Interview", for instance, a single ukulele strums away while Shaw muses about the upcoming job interview for a dreary office position. Lyrics are self-defacing, and reveal an aching dread of the mundane. "The Birds Chirp And The Sun Shines", an ironic title, is a lovely acoustic number with a burst of off-kilter fiddle and moseying electric guitar, that bemoans the humdrum of a settled family life. Shaw weds simple beauty and profound sorrow so, so well. The most breathtaking track, however, is clearly "Somewhere Over the M6". Starting with an electronic loop and a sustained choir, the song steadily grows with guitars, bass, and various chirping sounds until it positively blossoms with sound at around 5'20". Absolutely spectacular. However, I'll tell you straight: this is a difficult album. By the time I reached "Hulk" (or "The Ballad of Dr. Banner", according to the lyric booklet), I felt drained. But, folks, you must hear this, even if you must stream it. There is something most profound here, which I can barely touch on in my humble writings. As before, you can order it or stream it on Audio Antihero's Bandcamp page. |