SLV Is Of This Kind

Some of you might know who SLV is without actually knowing who SLV is.  Those of you in the know would recognize SLV as being Sandra Lilla Velasquez from the Latin rock and roll band Pistolera.  What’s different about SLV is Sandra’s approach to building music and how drastically different it is from her day job.  Her latest album under this moniker, This Kind is a stretch for her and challenges her mindset as a musician as it’s well out of her wheelhouse and experiments with a diverse sound palette.

This Kind is an absolutely gorgeous downtempo record that has more in common with Sade and Morcheeba than punk rock.  I have to admit that This Kind blew my mind.  I was not expecting something so lush, sensual, or texturally complex as this record turned out to be.  Sandra, her songwriting partner Sean Dixon and the ever spectacular Meshell Ndegeocello combined forces to construct some of the most beautiful soulful and sexy chilled out tunes I’ve heard this past year.  You can tell throughout this record that Sandra embraced the freedom to experiment and express herself in new ways and ran with it.   

From lush string arrangements to ambient synths and chilled beats SLV ‘s This Kind is a spiritually ornate and  extravagant record.  Sandra has created an intimate soundworld that pushes the boundaries of what she’s comfortable with.  While doing this usually ends in disaster for most in her case it might just hark a new direction.  This Kind is kind of amazing and the sort of record that shows great songwriters are still great songwriters no matter the genre.

Los Crema Paraiso Are A Peculiar Bunch

I have no idea how to best describe the sophomore album by Los Crema Paraiso except to say it's all a bit twisted.  De Pelicula is an energetic ride through everything ever and includes the craziest amalgamation of musical influences converging to make the most solid musical statement ever recorded.  De Pelicula has it all and that's just in the first three songs.  We're talking metal, jazz, Latin, funk whatever, it's all actually on this record.  As the band notes, “our music sounds like a combination of high speed bossa nova with a jazzy modern waltz, and percussive atmospherics with a warmth and sweetness that only a mix of these elements can bring.”  Exactly.

These guys can play, are unafraid to experiment, compose songs as if they were done on the fly and do some amazing covers of Depeche Mode and Tears for Fears!   Their take on, “Personal Jesus,” is one for the ages.  Los Crema Paraiso are an amazing unit of musicians who take their Venezuelan roots mix them with North American and European influences, a few chemistry sets, a couple of odd times changes, perhaps some psychedelics and wind up with songs that are so frenetic and organic that it's hard to believe this is all done by a trio.  De Pelicula is fantastic in every possible way.  It's a record that keeps you guessing and leaves you in awe when they change direction.  There's no way to predict what these guys are going to do next because they come at you from every angle with so many different approaches it's overwhelming. 

De Pelicula is music the way it should be; passionate, energetic, and ridiculously fun.  Los Cerma Paraiso are amazing at what they do and they allow their passions to take root in every song here and as a result the record is an honest work of art.  

Giant Panda Guerrilla Dub Squad Find Bright Days

What happens when a band you know changes direction 180 degrees and heads off in that direction?  Well, if you're like me you kind of wonder if you're listening to the right band, double check the CD, and then read the band's bio and learn that this is nothing new.  You see, the Giant Panda Guerrilla Dub Squad pulled a fast one on me.  Their latest album Bright Days takes a left turn and speeds away in a direction far, far away from the reggae they normally play. This, believe it or not, is nothing new for the Panda's.  Apparently way back in 2012 the band explored this alter ego with their album, Country.  Much like Country, Bright Days is a twangy rustic record that sounds more like it was born on the prairies of Iowa then the beaches of Jamaica!

Yes, it's true my favorite oddly named reggae band is now doing country music.  Think of it like the Blues Brothers playing, “Rawhide!”   A fish out of water kind of thing.   It's crazy but it's true and what's even weirder is that it's not half bad.   Bright Days is Americana with a bit of verve to it.  Sure it's dusty and rustic but you can't shake the reggae out of the Panda's completely as the record is upbeat and even features a few instrumental riffs into native territory.  This whole thing really shouldn't work at all, I mean it is two totally different worlds soundclashing here but it actually does work and the Panda's aren't just being ironic about it.  They fully embrace Americana on Bright Days and do a good job of playing with the definitions of what they're about.  I love their versatility and the fact that they can play twangy, jangly, pastoral pop on top of reggae and dub makes them an even better band. 

Bright Days may have been a risk but it was worth it.  The Pandas are fueled by creativity and open mindedness and their love of music apparently knows no bounds.  Bright Days is a great record that shows just how diverse this band can be.  They might be the Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad but deep down I know their cowboys at heart!    

Bunnygrunt's Volume 4

I have to admit when the new Bunnygrunt album showed up and it looked like Black Sabbath's Volume 4 I was really, really hoping they did a twee pop cover record of the metal classic.  I wasn't disappointed that they didn't because the songs that actually make up their version of Volume 4 are pretty darn strong on their own without the hand of Ozzy overseeing it.  While not Sabbathy in the least Bunnygrunt crank up the guitars, fire up the twee and bash heads with indie rock on this romp through jangly guitars, cuddle core choruses, and a whole hell of a lot of fun.

What I found most interesting about Volume 4 was just how indie rawk these guys have become.  This isn't Jen Fi in any way shape or form and the whole thing kicks butt from start to end.   Regardless of what direction they take on any of the songs here, each of them are as catchy as the flu and have that wry sense of humor the band has always had.  I mean the first song is called, “Gimme Five Bucks,” how can you not chuckle at songs like that especially with a giant Ozzy cat on the cover of the record.  Throw in sugary sweet girl/boy vocals and you have a record that's just about as perfect as lo-fi can be while not taking itself too seriously.  I think this is why I've always liked Bunnygrunt; they're seemingly goofballs who still have incredibly awesome tunes. 

While Volume 4 is a 100% Sabbath free, it is filled with 100% awesomeness that straddles the line between indie pop and indie rawk with superb balance.  The record is a harmonious ruckus and is a solid notch in Bunnygrunt's legacy of indie pop goodness.  Now if we can just convince them to do a tweepop version of “Supernaut,” that would be amazing.

Marshmallow Coast's Vangelis Rides Again

Despite the exceptionally cheesy cover art for Marshmallow Coast's new album, Vangelis Rides Again is really quite good.  This former member (Andy Gonzales) of Of Montreal and Music Tapes has always brought some fantastic stuff to the indie pop table and this album is no different.  And while the record looks like some sort of Scooby Doo rejected storyboard art, the music contained inside is pure lo-fi indie pop bliss. 

Vangelis Rides Again sits somewhere between an easy-listening record, Of Montreal and a sad creepy pop record recorded in a basement.  It's a fragile record that's loaded with hooks and melodies that while not overly produced or overly jolly does some significant ear worm damage anyway.  As if to prove that point, the fact that Andy weaved, “On Broadway,” into an indie pop tune is simply something that has to be heard.   It's probably my favorite moment of the record and it shows Marshmallow Coast to be adventurous and fun while sounding like he's broke indie pop down to its respective elements.  Other songs have this ambient and dreamy like texture to them that sound a bit 80's-ish as they wash over you.   Just listen to the downtrodden synths of, “Forever,” and you'll hear it for yourself...it's almost depressingly cool.

Vangelis Rides Again is an intriguing little pop record that feels lo-fi, dreams of more, but knows those dreams will never be.  Slightly weird with a hint of sadness Vangelis Rides Again may not be the feel good hit of the summer, fall, or winter but it is pretty darn good and shows that Marshmallow Coast still knows how to write a decent record.

Nation Beat Embarks On A Carnival Caravan

Nation Beat's latest ep, Carnival Caravan featuring Cha Wa, is a five song trip to Brazil via New Orleans.    It's a crazy mash up of party atmospheres that lends itself to an upbeat, up-tempo, percussion fueled vibe that's filled with energy.  This short record is an ethnomusicologist’s dream of what cross cultural pollination is all about.   South American maracatu drumming meshes with New Orleans second line rhythms and funk to fuse a sound that's as celebratory as it is unique. If you were to look up quirky music in a dictionary Nation Beat would be next to the definition.

From the funky vibes of “Casa Diamante – Sew Sew Sew,” complete with fuzzed out guitars to the extremely catchy fun of the NOLA fueled march of, “Liza Jane,” you'll have no idea what continent you're on, what influences are playing off one another and why you can't stop tapping along.  National Beat are truly a Carnival Caravan and they're taking their party from the streets of the French Quarter to the carnivals of Brazil and everywhere in between.  Carnival Caravan is the sound of diversity and a lot of fun.

A Lunchbox of Smash Hits

I'm not 100% sure Lunchbox's single Smash Hits does indeed contain any actual smash hits but what it does contain is a shambolic romp through the indie rock canon.  Frenetic, noisy, and a bit chaotic Smash Hits is an energetic and noisy amalgamation of sloppy guitars, geeky vocals, and hooks the size of Texas.  The whole things sounds like it might just spin off the 7” and break apart but Lunchbox manage to hold it all together for the six songs that make up this record.

Smash Hits is messy fun.  It's jumpy, hyper and is obviously fueled by a bit of pop ADHD.  It's all over the place musically but the melodies are as strong as steel and they rope your ears in.  Lunchbox may bash their way through this record rather quickly but I bet you remember at least one riff or chorus for days.  Smash Hits is good stuff and its proof positive that good things do come in small speedily delivered packages.