Electronic – Extraordinary Nobodies

Exploring Other Genres: YAH! – Rock und Roll

YAH!

8/10

We have to kick off this review by wishing a happy three year anniversary to the record label FilthyBroke Recordings. Extraordinary Nobodies has had the pleasure of becoming fairly close with Michael and some of his friends over the last couple of months, and we’d like to congratulate them on reaching such a milestone. From trusting us with early press, to genuinely taking interest in the other material we’ve written about, our relationship with FilthyBroke has open up a ton of opportunities. For that reason, we would also like to extend our thanks and wish Michael many more years putting out great music.

Which takes us to the meat of the article… A discussion on the record being released to help celebrate the third year of FilthyBroke Recordings. We’ve had to put this in the Exploring Other Genres category, for it’s not hip-hop; this record truly cannot be shoehorned into any category (but we’ll be discussing that a little later). You may now be asking, what is this record? Who is this record by? Where can I listen to such a record? Will this record cure my irritable bowl syndrome? Probably.

But it’s time to stop asking questions and start receiving answers.

The record is Rock und Roll, a release by the one and only Dean Cavanagh under the name YAH! If the name Dean Cavanagh sounds familiar to you, it’s probably because he’s an amazingly talented and well traveled individual. From the electronic music outfit Glamorous Hooligan, to running the magazine Herb Garden, to being a critically acclaimed screenwriter, Dean has seemingly been everywhere and done everything. When a figured such as him comes out of the woodwork to drop an album, ears perk up. Even if the release doesn’t set the world on fire, it’s almost a certainty that it will be stuffed to the brim with creative and unconventional ideas.

Rock und Roll is no exception.

Much like Walter Gross’ Vestige from earlier this year, Rock und Roll is an album that is incredibly difficult to define using conventional genre outlines. Each individual song has so much going on instrumentally that it’s like being smacked with wave after wave of musical eras and influences. One minute Dean has you convinced that you’re about to bite into an electronic dance epic; two minutes later the rug has been pulled out from under your feat and you’re bobbing your head to retro surf rock. That’s not exaggerated either, throw on “Big Knee” and then wait a few tracks until you hit “Rumble in Berlin.” There’s even some distinctly punk-flavors to the album, such as the drum pattern on the otherwise synthetic “Dungeness Bank Holiday.”

In spite of all of this, Dean managed to structure the album in such a way that all the sounds fit together. Tracks felt as if they belonged, and served a purpose. With all the styles happening at once, this is really a commendable accomplishment. With Rock und Roll being only eight tracks long, there was a big risk of something feeling out of place. He avoided this entirely, leaving the end product to be a very satisfying listen; moreover, he kept the album consistently engaging even though there were no vocals. That can be a hard task for instrumental works, but not so for the YAH! mastermind.

If there’s one thing that can be said about this album, it’s that Dean Cavanagh is not afraid to “try trying” in any sense. Some of it kind of works better than others, but as a whole, the project is a blast to listen to. The fun thing about Rock und Roll is that it works marvelously both as an active listening record, and as a background soundtrack to whatever you’ve got going on currently. The playfulness the album exudes is also fitting as we move out of the dreary days of winter into the crisp warmth of early summer.

Rock und Roll feels like an album that ten different people could like ten different things about, so definitely consider giving it a look if you’re craving something a little different. A little change can be major musical palate cleanser, and this album is certainly a dose of different.

Album Review: Niku No Sekai – Flesh World Vol. 1

by Dustin

fleshworld

7.25/10

For nearly eight months we have regularly been reviewing albums here at Extraordinary Nobodies. Between our standard reviews of new releases, and the brand new “why was it good” retrospective category, it’s safe to say that we really love reviewing music. Yet, if one was to sort through our review archives they’d notice something odd… We have reviewed zero instrumental albums! This seems like a bit of a tragedy, as instrumental releases have been a big part of hip-hop forever.

Yet, the first instrumental album we’re going to have a look at isn’t even necessarily a hip-hop release! It is more of an ambient record, but it shares a lot of elements that instrumental hip-hop fans will be familiar with! This is particularly true for those who are interested in the alternative side of production. Plus, we do what we want. Fuck genres.

Moving on…

The album in question is Flesh World Vol. 1, a collaborative effort between two established artists (of SCRTS and Chinatown’s Pormer) released under the name Niku No Sekai. This project came out under the relatively young DOOMTRIP Records, a label which specializes in cassette based releases (you should follow them on twitter, sometimes they do awesome download code giveaways). Flesh World Vol. 1 was recorded on new years day, and saw release on DOOMTRIP in April.

So we’re a little behind the times here, but again, we do what we want.

Flesh World Vol. 1 is perhaps one of the most atmospheric releases to come out this year. The overall vibe to the tape is very chilled out, spacey, and slightly unnerving. It is not a long release by any means, but the sound is very cohesive throughout. Those who are already acquainted with ambient releases will most likely love Flesh World Vol. 1. It sounds like space. Listening to this album is like taking a trip through the galaxy while stoned.

The use of distance and beat changes on Flesh World really gives it life. Five tracks feels more like seven or eight, and there is a tangible environment with every second of playback. Though it’s ambient, the record isn’t afraid to grab your attention and force you to focus. The opening track, “WW4”, is a prime example of this. It has some really interesting switch-ups; moreover, the track is over ten minutes long but doesn’t feel dull for a second.

It is a dense piece of art. Don’t mistake “ambient” with “empty”, because this tape is immensely dense listening. Flesh World Vol. 1 is a record that will eventually demand your full attention, even if it does also make excellent casual listening. It is musically interesting enough to be much more than simply background noise. It certainly feels like there is a new sound to discover with every subsequent listen.

There are just so many things happening at once. It is a delightful and fun chunk of material to sink your teeth into.

For the hip-hop fans reading this blog wondering if they should give this tape a listen, yes, you definitely should. If you’re a fan of the stoned-out sound found in the cloud rap scene, this tape is probably going to be right up your ally. It’s a more developed sound as a product of needing to stand out without vocals, but there are clear similarities. Give it a listen, you probably will not be disappointed. Maybe you’ll even discover a new genre that you’ll enjoy.

Album Review: FLANCH – FLANCH

by Dustin

flanch

8.75/10

Enter FLANCH, Peter Timberlake and Ben Peterson’s music and visual project. The sixth release on Darling Records, FLANCH is an ambitious project to say the least. It took risks to create something that could stand alone as unique.

These risks were certainly worth taking.

Topically, FLANCH is rooted in stressing confusion brought as a byproduct of social changes; moreover, there is a strong emphasis on how this impacts the individual at a multitude of levels. Primarily the focus seems to be on the conflicting nature of losing ones religion after being deeply entrenched in its values. There’s also an apparent battle between the diminishing religiosity and an active lust for hedonistic pleasures (relative to the previously rooted religious values) in the individual.

No discretion, and no protection,
Just hold your breath and hope for death,
Before the soul’s possession.
(graace)

It should also be noted that this intersection of belief and non-belief is quite personal. Peter Timberlake, the main producer behind FLANCH, was a devout Christian for many years before entering his currently faithlessness. Though the vocals were provided by a plethora of artists, Timberlake’s message and vision was not lost.

To add to the thematic richness of this album, blurring lines between the offline and online worlds are also explored. FLANCH observes how the internet as a creation has completely changed the way we live and the way that interpersonal connections are made; however, there is also an awareness that it’s far easier to be allured by smoke and mirrors. When exploring these places it’s not in a negative tone, but rather caution towards something not fully understood.

I met you online, and I like your pictures,
But I don’t know if you’re a real person,
Don’t play with my heart anymore.
(tender)

While these thematic elements are quite expansive, they do not get lost within each other. FLANCH does an amazing job at finding balance by blending elements together. The end result was a spectacularly cohesive album. FLANCH is the type of album that will warrant more than a single listen to digest everything that is happening at once. Fortunately the music is absolutely addictive.

The production on FLANCH is really quite magnificently terrifying. The futuristic and experimental nature of the instrumentation leads to some beautifully off-kilter moments. Fitting of the topics at hand, FLANCH sounds audibly anxious, lost, and haunting. At times the production feels near other worldly, like the alien offspring of electropop and experimental glitch-hop.

The vocals, provided by an array of guest artists, were also quite interesting in the overall picture of this album. Vocal performances playing off of the religious themes felt suitably larger than life. At times the vocals stepped away from the human and were edited to feel genderless, synthetic, and mostly robotic. The sonic dichotomy was utilized creatively, with vocals placed together in a way that played amazingly well into the topic of on-and-offline worlds melding.

It should be mentioned that the singers and emcees on this project really helped make it special. It feels like their talent could be easily lost in everything else that was going on with this album, so it felt important to give them their credit as well. FLANCH seemed to be as much a collaborative project as it was a debut for FLANCH as an outfit.

FLANCH packs an insurmountably thick sounds into a short listen. The music is out of left field, wondrous, and emotional. The album is thematically engaging, and challenging enough to keep the listener coming back for more. Admittedly it might not click for everyone, nor does it seem like it’s supposed to; however, what FLANCH has delivered may hold up as one of the most creative, outside-the-box projects of the year.