Metaform
Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
M3 Records
Rating: 4
Sonics: 2.5
This is the type of album you could have on repeat in your car for about a month of driving. You can pick it up at any point, and you'll be entertained. Metaform deftly combines live recordings with vinyl samples. He has a keen sense of song timing, weaving parts that sound longing or unsettling and throwing in a piece of ear candy just when you feel the need for some. Sonics are OK. There's a nice hint of vinyl warmth. Possibly due to the source material, frequency range is often lacking. There's some serious bass throughout, with a fast passage in "Lamenting Break."
Power Douglas
Pentecostal Fangbread
Rating: 2.5
Sonics: 2
Power Douglas' music is complicated and ambitious, with roots in punk, electronica, and hip-hop. Sometimes it devolves into noise, but these guys are trying intriguing stuff. The main problem here is the vocals. This may represent an unrelenting bias on the part of this reviewer, but half-rapping/half-talking sucks. This ersatz Def Poetry Jam junk rears its ugly head in Pentecostal Fangbread too often. Sound is hit-and-miss. Dynamics and clarity are generally OK, but songs like "Quail Dreg" sound muddy and flabby. The whole record is midrange heavy.
Astral
Sleepwalker
Vibraphone
Rating: 3.5
Sonics: 3.5
Astral is a San Francisco band trying to expand on the idiom of Cure-derived "dreampop." Their top strength is contrast. The blazing, polyrhythmic drum work of Scott Christy works like a bitter flavor that makes the ethereal sound of the guitars and singing sweeter. On first listen, the sonics on this album are '80s garage band crappy. It was recorded on analog 8-track with no digital mix. All the instruments are muddled together and high frequencies are absent. When you think about it, though, this is the perfect recording for this introspective music. "Better" sound would probably bring a sterility that these guys aren't after.
Esperanza Spalding
Esperanza
Heads Up
Rating: 4
Sonics: 3.5
Esperanza Spalding might be the Lebron James of jazz. There's not a whole lot wrong with her game now, but at 23, she has the potential to be monumental. The multilingual Spalding has a charming vocal delivery and obvious songwriting talent. Her composition's got room for growth, but her musicianship is already tip-top. Esperanza came up in music as a bass player featured by several well-known jazz acts, and she does intricate work on her own album. The sound of Esperanza is almost too rich, possibly done in an effort to make her voice sound as syrupy as possible. Nonetheless, the experience ispleasant, though it could use some more bass oomph.