The Beatles Eight Days a Week and Hollywood Bowl Review

September has been a big month for Beatles fans since not only did we get a reissue of the 1977 live album, “The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl“, a new documentary titled “The Beatles: Eight Days a Week” has also seen a limited theatrical run and Hulu exclusive streaming. I’ll review both of these as a hardcore Beatles fan while also trying to take new fans into consideration.

The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl was originally released in 1977 and contains songs performed in August of both 1964 and 1965. The newly remastered version makes the album a lot more listenable. I listened to a vinyl rip a few years back and couldn’t get past the production and screaming girls. I’ve since become a lot more tolerant when it comes to production as I’ve delved into their bootleg offerings. Some of the highlights of the album are their most well known tracks like She Loves You and Ticket to Ride. The track list does feature some tracks I’m not a big fan of though like Dizzy, Miss Lizzy and Boys. There’s also four bonus songs that weren’t on the original release including: You Can’t Do That, I Want to Hold Your Hand, Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby, and Baby’s in Black. I’d say check this out if you’ve exhausted the studio albums, Past Masters, Anthology, BBC Live, etc. On that note, I’d personally recommend the Esher Acoustic Demos if you haven’t listened to any of their bootleg material. It has demos of White Album songs (and ones that didn’t make it onto the final album) and the low production value reminds me eerily of Guided By Voices.

The Beatles: Eight Days a Week promises more insight into the early years of The Beatles. The documentary starts at the inclusion of Ringo and basically ignores Pete Best and the band’s earliest years (though they do talk about Hamburg a little bit). The movie ends right before Sgt. Pepper’s release. The film is generally well made, but it really doesn’t bring much new insight. It’s also a bit padded for what it is running at just under two hours. Another problem I have with the film is that it didn’t feel personal enough. A lot of the interviews were from people who watched from the sidelines rather than people who  knew the lads personally. I was hoping for more anecdotes from Ringo and Paul.

Since they heavily promoted it alongside the Hollywood Bowl reissue I thought the majority of the film would talk about specific concerts, but this isn’t the case.  It’s more of a general overview that’s great for newcomers but will leave hardcore fans wanting more. Not a bad way to spend your time, but I don’t know if I would subscribe to Hulu just to see it. Overall, the movie just seems unnecessary. They should make a documentary highlighting George Martin (who they barely even mentioned in this film) since he sadly passed away earlier this year. That would be more necessary and would possibly bring more insight than this film did. I personally see him as being the fifth Beatle. His production and consideration is what truly made the studio albums shine. Hopefully they decide to make a documentary highlighting his influence in the near future.

Curse of The Baleful Caller Review

Psychofon is a German record label that signs experimental artists like Ostrich von Nipple and Randy Rose of Residents fame. I’ve had the opportunity to listen to a review copy of the upcoming Psychofon Records release titled Curse of The Baleful Caller by a new collective known as Locust Fellow & Friends. The recording features a variety of artists including: Mr. Locust Fellow, Ostrich von Nipple, Shitty Bedford, r0b0t, Savage Joe, Baba Hotek, The Hatchling, and Phillip Ian Tube.

 

As you can see, the album artwork is absolutely gorgeous. The artist, Poxodd, has previously worked with Ostrich von Nipple before as well. While many bands think of album artwork as an afterthought, the exact opposite is true here. The songs are directly influenced by the artwork and they both help paint a clearer picture. Both the music and the art work hand-in-hand in creating a psychedelic experience.

The record has twelve songs (six on each side) and runs at just over forty minutes. The album is very atmospheric and it features tribal instrumentation that reminds me of a lot of Coil at times. Many experimental albums tend to be completely instrumental, but Curse of The Baleful Caller contains distorted singing and many spoken-word monologues that accompany the music well. It makes careful use of electronics while also utilizing more traditional instruments like the electric guitar. Wonky Tarts Too, the 11th track, is probably my favorite on the album – it has an almost tropical feel to it. I listened to the album several times using both headphones and speakers, and I see it as more of a headphone album. It has a well-defined sound as a grand psychedelic soundscape.  I’d easily recommend this album to fans of groups like Coil and The Residents (especially if you like their post-2000 output).

 

The album will be available for purchase on September 15^th as a 12″ vinyl in both black and blue splattered styles. The records will also come with a download code card. Click here or the image below to learn more about Curse of The Baleful Caller and Psychofon Records.

What’s Next For ho7mes Tech and Tunes ?

I have been meaning to write about the rest of Ralph Records’ artists ever since I made my Residents articles over three years ago on Rateyourmusic. I will focus on writing about some of them in the near future. Charles Bobuck has also been very busy lately and I’ll most likely write an article on the songs he’s been producing. If you haven’t seen it already, check out my article on my favorite Residents/Bobuck releases from 2000 onward.

Stay Tuned!

Best Album and Video Game of the Year So Far

We are around 3/4’s of the way through 2016 and there has been a ton of great video game and music releases. Today I’ll talk a little bit about both my favorite album and my favorite video game of 2016.

I’ll first start with Monster Hunter Generations. The game is a semi-sequel to last year’s Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate was probably my favorite game of 2015 along with Splatoon, so it’s no surprise that Generations is also a quality title. It incorporates many elements such as locations and bosses from the previous portable Monster Hunter titles while also bringing new things to the table as well. For example, there are now different Hunter Styles that allow you to customize your character even further by adding abilities like jumping into the mix. I personally have stuck with the traditional Guild Style. I have already poured countless hours into the title and it has only been out since July! The series may be a bit hard for newcomers to get into, but the difficulty curve is definitely worth it in the long run. I’d highly recommend this game and pretty much any other game in the series.

Deakin’s first solo album was definitely worth the wait. He had been working on it ever since he crowd funded for it’s completion way back in 2009. The album is only just over a half an hour, but I feel like that makes it even better. There is absolutely no filler on this release and it’s an album I can listen to several times in a row which is somewhat rare for me. Deakin is mostly known for his contributions to the group Animal Collective, and I would honestly say this release is better than any Animal Collective album. The album is a neo-psychedelic record with plenty of psychedelic folk influence. The majority of the songs are long with a few interlude-like tracks here and there. The longer tracks never overstay their welcome and the shorter tracks are also essential to the listening experience. Deakin really surprised me with this release and he is now my favorite member of Animal Collective because of it. He has a beautiful voice and should be featured more in the forefront on future group releases. As it is, the only physical version of Sleep Cycle is a cassette version only given to crowd funding backers. This is somewhat of a shame as I would love to own this on either CD or vinyl.

So there we have it. These are definitely the biggest highlights of the year for me. However, the year is not over yet. Will other new releases top these by the end year? Only time will tell. Thank you for reading and stay tuned for more!

My Favorite Music Releases of the Decade

While the previous decade was great in its own right, I’d argue that the 2010s blow it out of the water. In this article, I’ll focus on four of my favorite releases from this decade.

The Big Blue / There is a Light in You – SULK

I usually don’t pay much mind to singles, but this one is a special case. Most modern singles come with one song that usually ends up on the album anyway. While The Big Blue ended up on their debut album Graceless, the b side, There Is a Light in You, is only available through this single. SULK draws inspiration from the late 80s/early 90s baggy and madchester scenes as well as shoegaze, biritpop, and neo-psychedelia. They have often been compared to The Stone Roses, and I think that is a fair comparison.

The Big Blue is by far my favorite song from their debut album, and the b side is exceptional and could’ve fit perfectly onto the album. Clocking in at around seven and a half minutes, this single perfectly showcases the band’s highlights in a tight and convenient package. They’re currently working on a sophomore album and recently released a single titled Black Infinity (Upside Down).

jumping off a building – father figure

father figure is a screamo (the offshoot of emotive hardcore, not the bastardized term for mediocre metalcore) band from Texas who shares members and influence with Flesh Born, Innards, and Two Knights among others. The music has a distinct influence from Midwest Emo from bands like Snowing, and it also has a hint of math rock as well. The ep has a run time of just under 10 minutes and contains no choruses for the most part. Just a quick shot of perfect screamo.

They released a demo, an album, an ep, and a split with Marcy before their demise in 2013. Even though new content hasn’t been released, they have occasionally played shows and had a discography compilation released on cassette through the Friendly Otter label. If you can’t get enough of the band (as their total output is only around 40 minutes), I’d highly suggest looking into the member’s other projects, this ep by Two Knights in particular was recorded the same year and has a similar sound.

Good Vibes – William Bonney

William Bonney was formed 2010 and features members from the band Merchant Ships. Both bands are similar to father figure since there is a heavy emphasis on midwest emo, but I’d argue that William Bonney has more post-hardcore influence within their music. Good Vibes is around twice the length of jumping off a building and this time allows the songs to develop further. Extremely catchy, heartfelt, and well worth your time.

The band unfortunately broke up in 2013. Fret not though, several other bands share the same members and influence as well. Some examples are Park Jefferson, Knola, Midwest Pen Pals, and Knuckle Puck. These have a lot less emphasis on screamo and are generally more midwest emo oriented though.

The Powers That B – Death Grips

I saved my favorite of the bunch for last! I’ve actually awarded two Death Grips albums a 5/5: this and No Love Deep Web. I thought I would put more of an emphasis on The Powers That B since I love them both for more or less the same reason musically, and I have a bit more to talk about when it comes to TPTB. Both are exceptional releases though.

Death Grips is an experimental hip hop that incorporates many electronic and punk elements into it’s music. They randomly released an album titled Niggas On the Moon on June 9th 2014 and explained that it was only the first part of a double album named The Powers That B. The second half, Jenny Death, was promised to be released later in the year. Niggas on the Moon is an incredibly original album. Each song focuses on irregular beats and incorporates samples of the famous singer Bjork. I love how each song meshes into each other in a sort of Abbey Road-like style. While many hip hop releases are tainted by unnecessary skits, I’d argue that NOTM doesn’t have a single dull or out of place moment. There isn’t a single thing I’d change about this album.

So Niggas on the Moon quickly became my favorite release of the 2010s, and there was another half of the album yet to be released! Needless to say, I was extremely hyped for Jenny Death and so were other Death Grips fans. Many people showed tons of interest in the album even though only the name had been announced. In a surprising turn of events, Death Grips had announced just a month after release that they had broken up, but still planned to release the followup later that year.

A few months later, the covers for both Jenny Death and the complete album, The Powers That B, were showcased through their Facebook page. Many people speculated on where the photographs were taken and if they could lead to a clue about the album’s release date. I remember people distinctly saying it was going to be released on the night of the blood moon among other insane predictions.

Well the new year started and fans were pissed that the album wasn’t released as promised. However, they released an instrumental album titled Fashion Week on January 4th. The names of the songs: Runway J, Runway E, Runway N, etc. spelled the phrase “JENNY DEATH WHEN“, which had previously been an inside joke among fans. This fueled the flames of course and prompted exploration of the upcoming fashion week in order to find clues about the release. On March 16th they did the most unexpected thing ever: traditionally announced its release date as March 31st, almost a full year after their previous installment. Even though the entire piece hadn’t been released yet, two singles for the album were released just ahead of this announcement and the third was released at the end of 2014.

The album as a whole finally leaked on March 19th 2015, and the wait was well worth it. While being tied to Niggas on the Moon, Jenny Death has a completely different sound. The music has a larger emphasis on guitars rather than electonics and irregular drumming patterns. I personally prefer NOTM, but Jenny Death does contain some of their best work. Shortly after the leak they announced a new tour and that they may indeed make more music. Later in 2015 they released a side project album as The I.L.Y’s. Even more recently, they announced a full new project titled Bottomless Pit.

Well there you have it. Since I only included 5/5 releases, there are obviously 4.5/5 albums I didn’t talk about. You can see those below as well as my 5/5 albums from the previous decades.

Albums I’ve Given a 5/5 To (Most Recent to Oldest)

My Ratings From This Decade (Highest to Lowest)