Tegan & Sara Sainthood Bonus Tracks

With a little mindless wading I fell upon a YouTube featuring tiny samples of b-sides not on Tegan & Sara's new album Sainthood. Two of the tracks come "bundled" with the Itunes version of said album ("Light Up" and "Wrists" I believe). However, with a little more digging I managed to find out that there are actually four b-sides, the other two being "Sheets" and "It Was Midnight" (oddly enough I like them better than the first two). So, in short, here are all 4 "bonus tracks" for your listening pleasure (all available via Itunes).

Itunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/sainthood-bonus-track-version/id335608360

Wrists:


Light Up:


Sheets:


It Was Midnight:

The Jim Ivins Band - EP (Album Review)

I recently got a chance to listen to the The Jim Ivins Band's new 5 song EP. The best way to describe it is spartan and heartfelt rock of the non-try-hard variety. One thing I find markedly refreshing is the fact that the band itself is so honest and happy-go-lucky heart on their sleeve pussycat-sweet - there's nothing really spurious about them. Now, I'm sure by that description you probably assume you would be in for some sort of peppy go-go music, but actually, cynic, there is a lot of starry-eyed angst between them (at least musically).

The album starts off with "Fall Flat" with classic buzzing bee guitar riffs and flying "around the world" drums. The lead singer - Jim - has the perfect twin pistol vocal rage: high to low, it always hits its target - even when he decides to go for a copious amount of 9MM notes (which he does here). Overall, nothing really falls flat here - lyrically, the song breathes effervescent emotion and the candy smoke ring pretty bridge will squeeze your heart with fiber wire. Very touching.

Another notable stand-out - and one of my personal faves - is "The Chance," which is just pure buoyant fun and features some of the album's most fervent lyrics ("I muster up the courage just to open my mouth wide, and give a glimpse of just what's going on inside"). The riffs have a certain happy yet doleful twinkle to them, almost Gin Blossoms-esque. This song is especially interesting due to how some of the lyrics are purposely anchored in ignorance and/or have an impenetrable avidity (see: "the excuses to meet you are all gone so I'll make one up."). As you can see, you can pretty much play chess with this song. There are myriad pieces and much to contemplate.

The drums on "Back to Reality" are a real jawbreaker - calling them "face-boffing" would be an understatement - These drums could beat you into a state of permanent unconsciousness. As for the lyrics, they are simple yet covert ("I'll be waiting... in a memory"). It's hard to really say anything bad about them because they're sung in such a positively ear-kissing way, with ample conviction. Though, unlike most of their songs, this one isn't really constipated with good lyrics. However, even though I kind of liked "Nothing's real till she goes home" I still pretty much stand by my opinion - this song is kind of redundant and superfluous, albeit catchy. So I guess it evens out.

Every Day's Another Goodbye is a nice fleecy acoustic song. The lyrics once again run an unpredicted hook through your mouth and quickly reel you in ("Goodbye to my stomach, my pride"). Ironically, one of the lyrics is "'cause it's up for interpretation." That pretty much sums up all their songs: Everyone is liable to walk away from them with something different (think: a Goya painting, only less dark... and a lot less baby eating). It should be noted that a tiny sum of the lyrics are kind of hackneyed - for example: talk of "drifting farther" is simply trite no matter how you parse it. A couple adjectives here and there would have worked wonders for this song. Not to mention, the song really hangs during the last 30 seconds or so - just a bunch of acoustic guitar with no real hook, no chorus, no punch. The Chance and Fall Flat ended with a good one-two, however this one doesn't, and in turn ends up accidentally uppercutting itself in the process.

In summation: An excellent EP for the length with a prodigious amount of hi-quality material by a pretty much ego-less band who have got the right mindset and follow the age-old short but sweet "less is more" pop-rock science and it pays off nicely. I should also mention that the last song on the EP - How To Hold On - is by and large the most interesting. There is a blatant contradiction in:"Even though you're gone, just want to know you're not leaving." The line is interesting in that, while obtuse, it catches a certain denial twist in regards to love (as well as a feeling of querulous longing). Goes to show that a handful of EP-songs can be even more satisfying than say a full-length album with 12-13 which would probably have its share of buttnugget filler. These guys take their time, they don't put out quantity over quality in the moment detritus, and that is respectable.

Now, if it were up to me, these guys would be shucking Chicken McNuggets at little kids in a successful Happy Meal promotion... but I guess you can't have everything. So i guess I'll just do the next best thing and use all of my newfound star-power and proceed to overdose fat Elvis-style on this EP again, as well as this - now slightly irrelevant - song the inimitable caterpillar 'browed lead singer, Jim, made about Halloween, aptly titled: "It's Halloween." Check it out. It's scary good.



Links:

The Jim Ivins Band Twitter
The Jim Ivins Band MySpace
The Jim Ivins Band - Back To Reality EP

Final verdict (on the EP): 4 1/2 stars

Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures (Album Review)

Josh Homme (QOTSA), David Grohl (Foo Fighters), and John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) team up and in turn create a so-it-right-now rock "supergroup" with their debut self-titled album Them Crooked Vultures. (Homme on drums/guitar, Grohl on vocals, John Paul on bass). Them Crooked Vultures sounds a lot like QOTSA only with better material. In fact, I will go out on a limb and say this debut is better than the last few albums these people have made with their own respective bands. Talk about an unflappable will to rock.

Seriously, this is head-pecking rock at its best.

Now, first, let's talk about that album cover: that's one moody flagitious looking vulture - plus, it looks totally crooked! The red white and black very much remind me of the album cover for the QOTSA album "Songs For The Deaf" - simple yet effective. Intentional or not, the look and quality are pretty much on par with said album, which really is a great thing. However there is a picture of the band standing around - sorry, looming - and one of them is holding an umbrella. What does that even mean! That confused me more than that vulture in that one Hostess commercial... but I digress.

The first two songs on the album are truly mind molestingly great, especially Mind Eraser, No Chaser which features table pounding riffs and both Homme and Grohl harmonizing. Amusingly, the album ends with some soft syrupy trumpets - totally unexpected and unintentionally funny. Another stand-out is "Elephants" which is pretty much the "jam" of the record, and the lyrics "Pachyderms full of germs" totally kill me (so vulture-esque!). If anything solidifies John Paul Jones' statement that Them Crooked Vultures is the best band in the world it's those lyrics (/sarc, just kidding, but their catchy supersonic riffs do put them up there). Scumbag Blues sparkles greatly with Homme's trademark falsetto ear candy and some really hook-y bass playing. Though there is one song that I have tried to fight myself into liking: "Vandoliers." The song features a certain (insert drums) triteness which kind of sucks goat dong. However, the riffs kind of have a magnetic grab to them what with the whole Spanish flavor. Los Crooked Buitres?

One song that is kind of middling-at-best is Interlude With Ludes (great title, though). The cringe-worthy vocals, banal whispers, and "garbage can drums" really do nothing for me, and the only thing that really saves it is the semi-morose ending lyrics: "I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I am." A redeemer of sorts would have to be Caligulove (nice wordplay). The intro will probably turn you into a dancing foot twisting imbecile like Elaine from Seinfeld, and there's a lot to (Caligu)love about the face buffeting tribal drum thrash. The song ends with soft piano music, another throw you for a loop kind of thing like they did on Mind Eraser. The gem of the album has got to be Gunman which has some interesting "swooshing" doped up riffs and solos as well as a highly clappable bridge. The last song on the album is Spinning With Daffodils which starts off with very somber and sweet piano playing that you would expect to hear playing during a Hallmark commercial while a pregnant woman is looking outside a rainy window. It's not that great of a song, though, the vocals are kind of hard to make out and I would put this together with Reptile as the only songs that would make you do that left and right hand tilting motion and basically say "it's okaaay" But hey, it has some tambourines and stuff. Does that count?

In summation: The fact that people laud this band as a "supergroup" and cite the members won't exactly hurt album sales, but I find it kind of annoying as it then makes that part of the selling point and takes away a bit from the music itself doing that (good for business, bad for me - I find the term "supergroup" incredibly irritating). In "short," Them Crooked Vultures have officially succeeded in doing what they sought out to do, and that is sweeping me off my feet (both literally and figuratively).I like most people hope this album and Them Crooked Vultures isn't just a one time thing, because these guys are extremely talented. I guess you could even call them...vultureosos.

Final verdict: 4 1/2 stars