Foxygen - We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic

Hello everyone! we recently just passed 1000 views, which is a big milestone for me.  I am so happy people have been taking the time to read my opinions on music.  Thank you so much.  Why don't we celebrate with an album review. This week I am thinking people might like Autre Ne Veut's Anxiety, but screw you man! I'm a punk at heart, so I'm doing Foxygen's new album, We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic (I'll save Anxiety for next week).

Wow that is a mouthful, and I think it really goes a long way to demonstrating the bombastic, sassy energy that this band puts into their music. On this album, they seem far more comfortable settling into some steadier grooves then in their previous LP, Take the Kids off Broadway, but they still come off sounding like the Rolling stones haven't been taking their ADD medication.

"I see a red door and I want it painted black, no blue, no yellow, no lets leave it red, no LETS KNOCK IT DOWN!"

Of course, I would not necessarily count this against them, but I can easily see how their music could seem ridiculous or uncommitted.  The high energy, tempo changes, and strange lyrics don't exactly paint a graceful picture as much as they do a burlesque parody of 70's rock and roll.

However, on this new album, the lyrics are a lot more comprehensible and more personal than on Take the Kids off Broadway.  Like in the song "On Blue Mountain" which seems to detail a fracturing relationship with Christianity.  The control of energy in this song is just fantastic; the tempo changes smoothly a couple times as the bass and organ swell and burst, and Sam France just screams "On blue mountain God will save you" till it sounds like he basically dies of exhaustion.  Another quite personal track on this album is the song "No Destruction," which talks about getting rejected by a girl for being a pot smoking ne'er do well.  The first verse is quite calm, but his depression turns to frustration in the second verse as he comes back to repeat the same phrases in such an angry sarcastic spit.  It's no mystery how he feels.

Rejection, frustration, failure, and fun all seem to be pretty major themes in this album.  Even on the more relaxed elevator, psych-rock single "San Francisco."   Though I was initially put off by the mockingly cheerful melody and the vocalists' disinterested delivery, the chorus of this song is seriously infectious.  The reverb on the female voice makes it sound like it is inside the singer's head, telling him his decisions are o.k. because "She was bored anyway."  The crass attitude of this song also carries over into my favourite track "Oh Yeah" which should have you dancing at least by the time they start singing the hokey pokey in the second verse.  There is also some stellar guitar work hidden in the background.

The whole album is deeply rooted in smart ass sass, but what really makes it alluring for me is that they are able to take a fun attitude to some downtrodden topic matter.  It is teenage angst at its finest, where frustration and anger are motivated by excess energy and boredom, and validated by rock and roll and drugs.  I feel this album also stands against and mocks some of the music we most associate with rebellious youth culture, like it is a recognition of how patronizing it is to have music made specifically to appeal to the youth.  Foxygen's take on rock and roll is full of sass, which can make it sit uncomfortably between homage and parody, but this album is so full of Holden Caulfield likability and youthful exuberance, its hard not to love it.  Stay gold Foxygen.  Stay gold.

Discussion!

• Would you feel like this album could be a parody or an homage to 70's rock and roll?
• Do you enjoy Sam France's vocal delivery? or does his swing from flat monotone to hoarse screaming put you off?
• Is it too sassy to seriously convey some topic material you can relate to?

Let me know in the comments!

Youth Lagoon - Wondrous Bughouse

Oh boy.  This one is exciting.  I hope you all have had a chance to listen to Youth Lagoon's 2011 album, The Year of Hibernation.  The album is a sleepy, minimalist hug, that fits perfectly for any rainy afternoon.  Even though it explores topics of mental distress, it remains quiet and comforting all the way through.  In some spots it may also feel like it needs you to hug it back, especially when Trevor Powers quietly croaks "You make real friends quickly, but not me." on the opening track "Posters."  The album felt so friendly, it disappointed me greatly that it was only 35 minutes long, but now Youth Lagoon is back! and is he ever.

The first thing I noticed on Wondrous Bughouse, is that the comforting, careful ambiance is gone.  We have been thrown into a fuzzy , wild, unpredictable dimension of experimental dream pop and noise.  Someone must have given poor sweet Trevor Powers drugs...lots of drugs.

A Wondrous Bughouse Indeed

This new album is a very bold move from Youth Lagoon.  He has moved in a direction that I did not expect at all, the songs, and the whole album, are longer(almost 50 minutes), the tone is much brighter, the effects are heavier, and the song structures are much looser and more experimental.  It really reminds of the decision   that MGMT made on their sophomore LP Congratulations.  Rather than produce another accessible record in the same style, Youth Lagoon has decided to get more psychedelic and really see how far the rabbit hole goes.

And Boy Does It Go

 It definitely seems like a much more intuitive exploration of various mental states, than The Year of Hibernation, especially thanks to the more experimental song structures.  The first song that really grabbed me in this respect was the track "Attic Doctor", the song has this tipsy melody and a strange rhythm that makes it turn back in on itself like a snake, or a caterpillar.  Also, the intro,"Through Mind and Back", has this dissonant and hazy, droopy quality where it sounds like music were used to from Youth Lagoon is bubbling and melting away.  It sets the tone perfectly.

This droopy warbling sound is definitely a centerpiece on this album, and I absolutely love how the track "Mute" uses it in the keys to make it sound like some kind of broken carnival game.  This same tripped out carnival fun-house also makes an appearance in the song "Third Dystopia," but the picture is more painted by the wacky percussion here than anything else.  It also features nicely on the song "Sleep Paralysis" which wilts away slowly before turning into a introspective psychedelic waltz.

Make Sure to Dress Appropriately

Of course if all these fuzzy, rippling effects are too much for you, there are remnants of Youth Lagoon's older style, like in the songs "Raspberry Cane," "The Bath," and "Dropla."  All three of which have nice straightforward builds that were explored greatly on The Year of Hibernation.  They still differ from his earlier approach though, in that they are brighter, louder, and far more distorted.  Actually, if I had to point out one thing I did not like about this album, it's that the loud effects and distortion on these songs make it nearly impossible to discern the lyrics.  It can be uncomfortable and overpowering, but in most places it adds a hazy and watery lens through which to view this golden afternoon.

Discussion!

• Is this new album too much of a change in mood from The Year of Hibernation for you to still connect with Youth Lagoon's music?
• Do the effects obscure more than they reveal? Does what they communicate about the atmosphere come at the expense of connecting to the lyrics?
• Does Trevor Power's voice fit nicely with the other instrumentation? or is it too easily overpowered by the bright noisy, synths and keys?

Let me know what you think in the comments!