The Gowi Zone -- Currently Listening: 2022-2023

[RockyRaccoon]

[mickilennial]

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Paramore by Paramore
Release Date: April 9, 2013
Genre(s): Power Pop
Origin: United States

When I first heard Paramore I was in high school and only really starting to get into music as a dedicated passion. Weird to think it was ten or eleven-ish years ago when I first heard All We Know Is Falling and it was the sort of pop-punk influenced stuff that appealed to me at the time as I was still in a phase where there was a lot of carryover stuff I enjoyed from middle school (such as Sum41 for one example). But I was never in love with them from the onset and by the time Riot came out I liked a few songs but that was about how much Paramore struck me.

Fast forward to the band’s identity crisis and in-fighting as well as one attempt to be Jimmy Eat World I feel Paramore has matured and hit their stride with this pop-rock album, this self-titled. Williams has become the songwriter that she always wanted to be here and the music is full of fun and introspective pop songs with some odd experimentation choices (post-rock textures on “Future” and “Part II”) on a few of them. As far as their discography stands this is their most ambitious and cohesive album yet, feeling complete (albeit a bit long for them) and earnest. The lyrics are better than they have ever been, and the musicianship is better than anything they produced with the Farro brothers. Brand New Eyes attempted to make their go at a “Bleed American”-type album and staggered, but in the follow up to that record they do that attempt and more. At the end of the day this comes out as the biggest surprise out of Paramore’s discography and I feel like it will stand tall among their contemporaries work as those peers struggle with the same type of ambitions and turn out uninspired shoddily written works.

Kind of weird that a Paramore album is this good.

Favorite Track: “Future”

[mickilennial]

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Ghostlights by Avantasia
Release Date: January 29, 2016
Genre(s): Power Metal, Rock Opera
Origin: Germany

After pretty much making the best album of his career in The Mystery of Time, Tobias Sammet decides to backtrack and release something that is more restrained as well as something that lends itself more to stadium rock theatrics than power metal. Upon my initial few listens since this came to my attention I thought I was listening to a Meatloaf album with occasional metal moments. That’s not to say it isn’t good but it was most certainly not what I was expecting after Sammet had perfectly blended his influences on his previous album with Avantasia. That’s not to say The Mystery of Time wasn’t less theatrical, but it was still a power metal album rather than this sort of AOR with power metal moments we got with this one. Though with that said, after some time I got to enjoy what Sammet wanted to do with Ghostlights and I think while it’s not my favorite thing ever I’ll be listening to it in decent rotation. Though part of me feels like this is out of tone with the last few albums Sammet produced as Avantasia and is much more suited to his other project: Edguy. But I’m not Sammet and it is ultimately his decision to make that call. If you like power metal-lite and Sammet’s work it is definitely a go for you.

Favorite Track: “Let the Storm Descend Upon You”

[mickilennial]

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Sweven by Brooke Waggoner
Release Date: January 15, 2016
Genre(s): Chamber Pop
Origin: United States

I don’t know what it is about the decade’s variation of the female singer/songwriter, but much like Agnes Obel and Sharon Van Etten I find something appealing about going into Sweven on even the first listen. The primary focus here is the chamber pop-inspired strings and piano alongside Waggoner’s voice— a voice that I suppose some would find very generic as far as indie pop styled songwriters go… but for some reason it works for me. But my favorite tracks aren’t completely generic affairs, a fact I find clear as you listen to the strong atmosphere that is created from the chamber pop influences that sit next to Waggoner’s lyrics that are heartfelt introspections but I suppose when you go into an album like that it isn’t entirely surprising. When you say “singer/songwriter” or “indie pop” you seem to get an idea of what a record is going to be, but I feel that shouldn’t stop the music from being emotionally executed or created with care. My favorite off the record is ”The Splitting of Yourself in Two” as a sort of example of what I get out of it. Might not be for everyone but I will stand by in saying there is quite a bit to like about this record.

Favorite Track: “The Splitting of Yourself in Two”

[mickilennial]

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Antics by Interpol
Release Date: September 28, 2004
Genre(s): Post-Punk Revival
Origin: United States

I suppose looking back, Antics isn’t a particularly original addition to the indie rock canon but hearing it at that point in time? It’s kind of nostalgic and magical for me. I’m not judging it for its significance as a time capsule for me as if I went that approach I would be praising the approach of many bands, some of which that have nothing but “Yeah, I listened to that in high school” feelings for me. So there must be something else to it for me.

Interpol was a gateway band, introducing those Joy Division and The Cure soundscapes but packaging them in this contemporary indie rock package right as the post-punk revival movement was starting to get off the ground, or at least as far as the mainstream consciousness was concerned. I was around fourteen and still coming to terms with my mother’s death as I sat in a identity crushing academy that curbed individuality in the guise of professionalism. I was suffocated, bitter, and felt an inner rage growing within. The lyrics and mood of Interpol reached out to me, and things didn’t feel so insane anymore. There were other bands that helped with this, but none as influential on my music journey; Interpol was my push into indie rock and post-punk. I’m sure I would’ve approached and found a way to those genres if I didn’t have it, but Interpol got to me first. But Interpol wasn’t just moody; I found their music’s pop hooks infectious, I found the tones appealing, and I found them the most interesting band of the post-punk revival that was going on at the time.

But what about now? Wiping away childhood connection and nostalgia, how does it make me feel? Does Antics hold up for me? I would say it does. I enjoy it a lot; the tones, the detached melancholic yet romantic lyricsm, even the indie rock & post-punk contemporization sounds appealing with just the right amount of restraint but also the knowledge to know when to encapture the listener with a hook. That said, I think it isn’t just one aspect that makes this record quality for me… no, not at all. It is all of it; the childhood connection, recognition of my musical journey, and the music itself having a quality I go for that makes Antics special. I still listen to it in decent rotation to this day.

Favorite Track: “Narc”

[mickilennial]

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Jewels of Crime by Atlanter
Release Date: January 22, 2016
Genre(s): Progressive Pop
Origin: Norway

This one is a weird diamond in the rough, I suppose. Jewels of Crime is a progressive pop-meets-indie rock sort of number that owes its allegiance to many artists that have come before them. What I find most interesting for this record is, that, despite of the eleven track length it feels so eclectic in its backdrop without resulting to a lengthy tracklist or sporadic inconsistent sort of eclecticism we see a lot with “progressive” musicianship.

Generally what I am reminded most of in the foreground is The Police with accents of Genesis, and Beggar’s Opera. But it’s not simply a indie rock band calling back on Genesis and The Police but also incorporating sequences that wouldn’t be offset by psychedelic rock or krautrock bands of the same time period; a fact that is abundantly clear by these dense textures, almost mathy movements, and ethnic guitar patterns. For an indie rock record to do this isn’t revolutionary or really insanely innovative but the sounds to me feel interesting and engrossing. I think for fans of indie rock, progressive rock/pop, or somewhere in-between will gather a lot out of this like I did. But if you find yourself at odds with atypical indie rock choruses and vocals or the progressive music that Atlanter draws from it might not be the best experience for you.

Favorite Track: “Light”

[mickilennial]

Somebody give me stuff to listen to and force to "review" plz.

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[RockyRaccoon]

[Skinny]