Hazey's Musings on Melodic Motifs - Shibuya-Kei on Sundays!

[alelsupreme]

wait people actually listened to nothing but jazz

thats insane id never want to hear a sax again if i did that
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Romanelli wrote:

We're all fucked, lads.

[dihansse]

[Antonio-Pedro]

[alelsupreme]

[HazeyTwilight]

29th July

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Henry`s Dream by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds

I never got why Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds were so acclaimed up until I listened to Tender Prey earlier this year. I just instantly fell in love with its dark songs, jerky instrumentation and gothic nature. This still continues the morose tone but somehow sounds grittier, dustier and more sombre while still having its lively moments. It's also a lot more tightly written, which benefits it greatly. I guess this was influenced by The Good Son (I listened to the first half and never finished it but I plan to finish it), where they officially started to deviate from their murky post-punk roots, but this album manages to bring back most of the tenebrosity back. Even though Henry's Dream loses a little momentum near the end, it's still an excellent album in his discography.

95
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[HazeyTwilight]

31st July

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Oceanic by Isis

Panopticon was my first exposure to these guys, and I absolutely adored it. If Black Sabbath were the band that encouraged me to dip my toes into metal, then it was Isis (as well as a few other acts like Opeth and Mastodon, for example) that made me take the plunge. And I have never looked back since. I had a feeling I was going to like this album, and I was not disappointed. This has all of the aspects that Panopticon would later perfect, but it is set under a heavier distortion and production (not that its a bad thing because they have awesome execution). It's also has more melodic moments, as there are certain guitar licks and vocal lines that are so catchy! So yeah, I really dig this.

95
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[HazeyTwilight]

5th August

Boxer by The National

The National have become one of my favourite things ever since I heard Trouble Will Find Me last year and High Violet finally clicked with me at the start of this year after feeling indifferent to it for the longest time. I also heard Alligator about a month ago, too, which was really good. So, I thought I'd revisit this album since I haven't heard it in full in ages. In comparison to their other releases, Boxer is their most cohesive and introspective album. It doesn't have quite the emotional intensity that the other albums present, but it's more of a subtle kind of sadness, and I think the album benefits from that.

90
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[HazeyTwilight]

10th August

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Little Girl Blue by Nina Simone

Where has Nina Simone been all my life? I always intend to listen to her, but never do, for some reason. But now that I have heard her first album, I'm really glad I made the decision to listen to her, finally. Her voice is one of life's most precious treasures - one of the best voices ever, obviously. Her competent skills as a pianist, along with the in-and-out appearances of bass and drums, creates a fully realised mood for the album. When she's on her own, the mood is haunting and misty; but when she's accompanied by Bond's bass and Heath's drums, it becomes a lot more lively. But, something about these more upbeat tunes feels off, like it's some kind of act. Perhaps maybe the reason why these tracks are intercut with the more sombre and personal songs is that she has to keep up a false persona in order for the others around her to not be concerned, but that just sets up an undercurrent of loneliness. I don't know, I'm probably looking too much into this. This is a stellar debut!

90
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[craola]

[HazeyTwilight]

16th August

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Silent Shout by The Knife

Bizarre, cold and distant, yet it's nauseating and has some weird compositional choices. Very different from the summery Heartbeats (the only song from them I was familiar with before this). I like it, but, it gave me a disorientating headache.

75
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