Brand Spankin' New!
16 April, 2013
With this blog, I've often been slow to jump on the proverbial bandwagon - but not today! No, sir, the albums featured in today's article were all released in the last two months. And they're all radical, dudes. Check them out...
Tartufi – Before I begin, I’m throwing this out here: every damn track from their latest LP, These Factory Days, could be a contender for Dandelion’s Festive 50. In my humble opinion, of course.
Who are these guys, though? Tartufi are a band out of San Francisco that can channel the forces of nature through their instruments. Their music is a grandiose, climatic form of hard-edged rock, that bristles with spiky guitars and bass lines, yet is drenched in harmonious vocals. Precision and beauty merge together seamlessly. Nothing conventional about their song structure, either; none of Tartufi’s songs really come to a chorus, or even regular verses; instead, each tune rushes forward, into dynamic jams and new movements. Just listen to the wondrous, 7-minute “Underwater”, a spirited journey driven by galloping snares and tinted with bittersweet violins. Or Rocker’s pick, “Seldom”, which opens with a very heavy metal-esque bass line, yet features such lovely and mystic vocals.
A beautiful outlier, “Glass Eyes”, leans more towards the folk-ish nature that the vocals elsewhere suggest. It’s a largely acoustic track, with the sweetest violin accompaniment – but with some sweet electric guitar solos towards the end, too, as the track flourishes into its full glory.
Picking the standout from These Factory Days is no easy feat, when every track swells into euphoric highs and defies expectations. However, if I could dare choose one, I might settle on “The Furnace of Fortune”, which rests briefly in an enchanted verse concerning the title before plunging onward in epic, progressive metal style. Glorious.
Please, please buy this album from Tartufi’s Bandcamp page. The digital download is $7, but the band also offers a gorgeous CD for $10 (well, $12 when you count tax) that offers a bonus track. Definitely jumping on that myself once I collect my next check.
Tartufi – Before I begin, I’m throwing this out here: every damn track from their latest LP, These Factory Days, could be a contender for Dandelion’s Festive 50. In my humble opinion, of course.
Who are these guys, though? Tartufi are a band out of San Francisco that can channel the forces of nature through their instruments. Their music is a grandiose, climatic form of hard-edged rock, that bristles with spiky guitars and bass lines, yet is drenched in harmonious vocals. Precision and beauty merge together seamlessly. Nothing conventional about their song structure, either; none of Tartufi’s songs really come to a chorus, or even regular verses; instead, each tune rushes forward, into dynamic jams and new movements. Just listen to the wondrous, 7-minute “Underwater”, a spirited journey driven by galloping snares and tinted with bittersweet violins. Or Rocker’s pick, “Seldom”, which opens with a very heavy metal-esque bass line, yet features such lovely and mystic vocals.
A beautiful outlier, “Glass Eyes”, leans more towards the folk-ish nature that the vocals elsewhere suggest. It’s a largely acoustic track, with the sweetest violin accompaniment – but with some sweet electric guitar solos towards the end, too, as the track flourishes into its full glory.
Picking the standout from These Factory Days is no easy feat, when every track swells into euphoric highs and defies expectations. However, if I could dare choose one, I might settle on “The Furnace of Fortune”, which rests briefly in an enchanted verse concerning the title before plunging onward in epic, progressive metal style. Glorious.
Please, please buy this album from Tartufi’s Bandcamp page. The digital download is $7, but the band also offers a gorgeous CD for $10 (well, $12 when you count tax) that offers a bonus track. Definitely jumping on that myself once I collect my next check.
David Tantamount – Absurd yet rockin’ singer/songwriter. Methinks fans of John Maus and Ariel Pink will get a kick of this dude – he’s got a fantastic voice, that ranges from a low croon to a derisive snarl. Behind him is the rawest electric guitar bashing through chords, with some minimal, even quirky synth bits.
Y’know, my writing professor once told me that rock n’ roll songwriters can’t be poets – but Tantamount IS a poet, if ya ask me. Rather than telling a cohesive story, he harnesses clever word plays and strings together mellifluous syllables – “choke that tramp that’s trav’ling out“, “gangsters ganging in the night“, “spin the entire tire”– to create utter nonsense. When do tennis shoes float, anyway? Since when do blueberries ride javelins, or strawberries fly dragons (“Hurtling Javelins”)? And what on earth is an “ivory burn”? Beats me. But I’m entranced. Even the singular “Love Doesn’t Allow Me To Lie” – where the title is the only lyric – sounds fantastic through Tantamount’s crazy range and the massive power riffs. One of my favorite lines, though: “I tried to live the dream – to microwave two popcorn bags at once” (“You Didn’t Keep a Diary”). By the way, I mentioned “Spin The Entire Tire”? That one ROCKS. Hard. Not that other ones don’t, though, because “Exercise is Intimate”, which chugs like a machine and features some wicked vocal acrobatics, is also quite awesome. And let’s not forget “Hourglass Math” (what does that even mean?), with its killer riffing and smashing drums. Yeah, I love this dude already, even if both his albums sound fairly homogenous. He’s got such a cult-ish charm. And y’know the best part about David Tantamount? His entire discography is free on his Bandcamp page! Although, Mr. Tantamount, if you’re reading this, know that I’d gladly send some cash your way – I feel so criminal for downloading your work for zilch! |