984. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Abattoir Blues/ The Lyre of Orpheus (2004)

Track Listing

Abattoir Blues:

1. Get Ready For Love
2. Cannibal's Hymn
3. Hiding All Away
4. Messiah Ward
5. There She Goes, My Beautiful World
6. Nature Boy
7. Abbatoir Blues
8. Let The Bells Ring
9. Fable Of The Brown Ape

The Lyre of Orpheus:

1. The Lyre Of Orpheus
2. Breathless
3. Babe, You Turn Me On
4. Easy Money
5. Supernaturally
6. Spell
7. Carry Me
8. O Children

Review

How often does a double album do exactly what it should? Having not a single skipable or less than great track, looking like an excess of talent rather than lack of editing? Being able to separate the two halves perfectly according to mood, content and concept and doing both equally good? Not very often, but that is exactly what happens here.

Nick Cave gives us what is one of the finest double albums in history, with less filler than the White Album, less bloated than The Wall... the only comparable one would be Blonde on Blonde but there is more variety here... even if I would be hard pressed to put this very excellent album above Blonde on Blonde.

Nick starts off by defying expectations, after Nocturama and Blixa leaving no one expected that the first half of the double album could be as aggressive and rocky as it ended up being, and in the second half he does creepy sensibility as only he can do it, making beauty and the grotesque seem like best friends. Getting older and his albums keep getting better.

Track Highlights

1. Hiding All Away
2. Breathless
3. Cannibal's Hymn
4. Easy Money

Final Grade

10/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

The double album was recorded by Nick Launay at Studio Ferber in Paris in Spring 2004 by The Bad Seeds line up of Nick Cave, Mick Harvey, Thomas Wydler, Martyn Casey, Conway Savage, Jim Sclavunos, Warren Ellis, and James Johnston. It was the first album by the band in which Blixa Bargeld did not take part. Cave decided to split drumming duties for the two albums, having Sclavunos drum on Abattoir Blues and Wydler on The Lyre of Orpheus.

Someone made a funny video for The Lyre of Orpheus:


Final Grade

983. Devendra Banhart - Rejoicing in the Hands (2004)

Track Listing

1. This Is The Way
2. It's A Sight To Behold
3. The Body Breaks
4. Poughkeepsie
5. Dogs They Make Up The Dark
6. Will Is My Friend
7. This Beard Is For Siobhan
8. See Saw
9. Tit Smoking In The Temple Of Artesan Mimicry
10. Rejoicing In The Hands
11. Fall
12. Todo Los Dolores
13. When The Sun Shone On Vetiver
14. There Was The Sun
15. Insect Eyes
16. Autumn's Child

Review

Davendra has something of Bert Jansch, something of Nick Drake, something of Vashti Bunyan (who he collaborates with in the strangely reminiscent of early Rod Stewart title track) but then he also has something if himself, a kind of nervous singing more reminiscent of the Velvet Underground than any other folksy bands.

This is what makes him the most original thing appearing in the alternative folk scene since the 1970s, reinvigorating the whole musical style and leading many people to dig up others.

I know this happened to me after my first encounter with Devendra, I owe him my love for Nick Drake and Vashti Bunyan. He is very much not afraid to acknowledge his influences and in this way he has given new life to musicians which were almost forgotten in the early 2000s. And his music is pretty nifty too.

Track Highlights

1. This Beard Is For Siobhan
2. Tit Smoking In The Temple Of Artesan Mimicry
3. This Is The Way
4. Will is my Friend

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

The music review online magazine Pitchfork placed Rejoicing in the Hands at number 193 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s.

This Beard is for Siobhan:

982. Arcade Fire - Funeral (2004)

Track Listing

1. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
2. Neighborhood #2 (Laïka)
3. Une Année Sans Lumiere
4. Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
5. Neighborhood #4 (Kettles)
6. Crown Of Love
7. Wake Up
8. Haiti
9. Rebellion (Lies)
10. In The Backseat

Review

What can I say? It is probably one of the few albums widely adopted by the hipster mob which I can firmly put myself behind. This is a true work of genius, and this is really not an hyperbole.

Funeral is a concept album that works perfectly as a whole, each track also works perfectly by itself with incredibly inventive arrangements and a sense of controlled chaos which is bitter-sweet.

The lyrics are at the same time cryptic and evocative, and the alternating joy and melancholy of it all makes the whole album a thrilling ride. It might not be the quickest album to sink in, as there is so much happening throughout, but when it does sink in it will never leave you. Indispensable.

Track Highlights

1. Rebellion (Lies)
2. Neighbourhood #2 (Laïka)
3. Wake Up
4. Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out)

Final Grade

10/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

Preliminary recordings for Funeral were made during the course of a week in August 2003 at the Hotel2Tango in Montreal, Quebec, and the recording was completed later that year.

Rebellion (Lies):

981. Icarus Line - Penance Soirée (2004)

Track Listing

1. Up Against The Wall Motherfucker
2. Spit On It
3. On The Lash
4. Caviar
5. Spike Island
6. Kiss Like Lizards
7. Getting Bright At Night
8. Big Sleep
9. White Devil
10. Meatmaker
11. Virgin Velcro
12. Sea Sick
13. Party The Baby Off

Review

The rarest of things in 2004 is an interesting rock album, and this definitely gets there... only it really isn't interesting enough. Not much here is original but the album is perfectly listenable.

It fortunately avoids the tropes of Indie or Nu-something and goes for powerful noise with an underscoring melodic line, really all you need from a rock album. They make good use of feedback and other "accidental" noises but it has been done before and better.

So it is a good album all told, just not particularly exciting or original, and it gets slightly boring after a while. Also it is coming just before a trio or quartet of really good albums here so I am kind of looking forward to them. And this while good just doesn't give me the excitement I need right now. If I want to listen to this I'd rather put on some Suicide or Pere Ubu which are a whole different kettle of interesting and share some points with this.

Track Highlights

1. Spit On It
2. Seasick
3. White Devil
4. Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers

Final Grade

8/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

In the summer of 2006, Buddyhead Records released a double-vinyl version of the album. The album features the original mix by Alan Moulder as well as a remix by Aaron North.

Up Against the Wall, Motherfuckers:

980. Brian Wilson - Smile (2004)

Track Listing

1. Our Prayer
2. Heroes and Villains
3. Roll Plymouth Rock
4. Barnyard
5. Old Master Painter / You Are My Sunshine
6. Cabin Essence
7. Wonderful
8. Song for Children
9. Child Is Father of the Man
10. Surf's Up
11. I'm In Great Shape
12. Workshop
13. Vega-Tables
14. On a Holiday
15. Wind Chimes
16. Mrs. O'Leary's Cow
17. In Blue Hawaii
18. Good Vibrations

Review

So there was this album which was meant to come out after Pet Sounds and it was to be called Smile. Ironically not a lot of smiles seem to have gone on in the business of producing it and when Brian Wilson finally lost it and even set fire to the tapes it became the great lost album in musical history.

In 2004, Wilson being somewhat recovered by now, he got together with a backing band and decided to finally record the album properly. And we got this. Of course it is always hard to live up to the promise of such a mythical work but this comes pretty close.

The impact of Smile is somewhat minimised by the fact that some of the songs from it were later published in other Beach Boys albums, such as Good Vibrations, Heroes and Villains and Surf's Up. While these might be some of the best tracks here, the album works as a conceptual work as well, consisting of three main suites and it is a beautiful piece of work. Had it come out when it should have it would have been a contender for those mythical top spots reserved by critics for Pet Sounds and Sgt. Peppers. As it is, it is still an extremely impressive work and a truly smart, polished and beautiful album, we are all richer for Brian Wilson finally releasing it. Thanks.

Track Highlights

1. Heroes and Villains
2. Surf's Up
3. Good Vibrations
4. Mrs. O'Leary's Cow

Final Grade

10/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

On February 20, 2004, 37 years after it was conceived, a complete version of Smile was performed by Wilson along with his backing band, which includes former Beach Boys guitarist Jeff Foskett, members of The Wondermints and percussionist Nelson Bragg, in a live performance at the Royal Festival Hall in London. This performance was made whole by the addition of either lost or newly-composed lyrics that filled the gaps left open by the original 1966-67 Beach Boys sessions. This show was followed by subsequent performances elsewhere in Britain.

Recording of the new version of Smile began in April 2004 with his ten-piece touring band, augmented by a ten-piece string section and an acoustic bassist. The basic tracks were taped at Sunset Sound in just four days, with overdubbing and mixing continuing through April, May, and June.

First Two tracks: