This is Jason speaking to all of you loyal followers. How are all of you? I hope you’re doing well, because I know I have been.

I apologize for the hold up, and there will be reviews coming our from me in the near future. As some of you may know, I have moved from the Los Angeles area, to the Bay area for school. Its been hindering my ability to post frequently, but with the hard work I’m putting towards school, I’m hoping writing reviews will be my job.

But I have been listening to a lot of different types of music. So I’m not lagging it in that sense. 

Now to more pressing matters…

Zechs Marquise is a 5 piece Progressive Rock band from El Paso TX. If you’re a Gundam Wing fan, (Like myself) you might be thinking that name sounds like a character from that anime. Well, after some research, you find that they did name the band after the character-a fun little fact about the band. 

I’ve seen them twice before, but I had never heard anything official from them. As far as anything they had been playing at least. I wondered when they would release an album with the material they were playing on stage. After some time, Lo’ and behold, I’m listened to it now, walking around school, feeling like a boss.

Getting Paid is a fitting title for this album since you actually do feel like a boss when you’re listening to this. 

The production on this album is solid, guitars are crisp, the bass is full, keys are in the front of the mix, and the drums bring the whole thing together like how they should. 

Stylistically, I can’t really pinpoint where to put this album. Everywhere I look, they are categorized as, “Progressive Rock.” I agree to the definition of what Progressive Rock is, but on top of that, Zechs has a lot of repeating rhythms, but access a “groovy” sense of style at the same time. Lots of “Wah” effects, overdriven guitar, and weird synth sounds that just kind make you wonder where this might be headed. It is a very experimental album, and at times, it is hard to grasp, but nothing on the unlistenable side of things. This is an instrumental album, but there are some vocals on some of the tracks like, Everlasting Beacon of Light, and The Heat, The Drought, The Thirst, and The Insanity.

But for some of you who like vocals in your music, you should definitely give this album a chance. The 6.5 minute instrumental track, Getting Paid is something to witness as far as the experiences you feel when you listen to it, and just the head-bobbing rhythms that accompany this song. If you’ve listened to Zechs Marquise before, this is definitely an album that is completely different stylistically, and if you listened to that last album, don’t go into Getting Paid expecting the same results.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JO9pl7duvRg

What do you think?

Frabbits Rating: 7/10

Hello, dearest readers! How is your day going? Mine is going fantastic, because I am listening to a fantastic new band that I very much want to share with you.

What band is this, you wonder? They go by the name of ‘Jupiter One’ and their album ‘Sunshower’ is fantastic! They’re a hip, indie, jazzy, acoustic, synthy, happy band from Brooklyn, New York. K Ishibashi and Zac Colwell are the founding members of this fantastic band. 

Jupiter one has a perfect blend of electronic and organic sound that brings joy to my ears every time I hear it. You can’t help but shake your body when listening to this wonderful album. I’d love to share deep insight to their lyrics, but I’m still wrapping my head around the music! So I am still on phase one with this band, but you must know that they are fantastic. At times I get an 80s vibe from this band, which is a wonderful thing. But do not be fooled, they are a modern sounding trip to happy lane. Get their album, listen to it, and enjoy! 

Cheers, Johans

Hello, friends! How are you? Fantastic, I hope! I’m doing great. 

There. I was polite. Now, moving on to the music! This post I bring to you another favorite band named ‘Shane & Shane’ which is basically composed of Shane Barnard and Shane Everett. Believe me, their band naming abilities do not reflect their musical abilities in the least.

Let me begin by saying that these guys are acoustic guitar masters. Its unbelievable how much I’ve improved in my guitar endeavors just by listening to these guys. They developed a sound of their own… Its lovely. And their singing is angelic. Their harmonies don’t even sound like harmonies. They sound like some crazy awesome instrument from the 80th century!

They have a couple of albums out, all of which are fantastic. But I want to focus on the one titled ‘An Evening With Shane & Shane’ because this album was recorded live… But there is no way you’d be able to tell until the end of each song when the crowd claps. They are an acoustic band. That’s all I can say. They cover many genres and whatnot, but their use of the acoustic guitar is superb! They inspire me so much. If you are one who also delights in music that worships God, then this band will be one of your most precious finds. But if you don’t? You still should take a listen. Both Shanes and their arsenal of musicians are all incredibly talented and create passionate music that always leaves me in awe. 

For the most part, their music will lift you up and put you in a great state of mind.
 
I hate to say this again. But they are acoustic guitar masters. I can’t stress this enough… You will know what I’m talking about once you hear them! They’re not giant music revolutionaries, they’re not employing many seldom seen techniques… But they are definitely an entity of their own in the musical world. 

You wont think of these guys as edgy, fancy or whatever. But they are one of my favorites. 

A little apetizer

Cheers, Johans

3:09 - are you serious?!

Uh oh… a history lesson…

I first heard of the Flaming Lips back in high school, with their album, Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots. Ever since, I have been a fan of the music, and they haven’t really disappointed me at all since I first heard that album. The Flaming Lips is not a stranger to weird music, and weird psychedelic guitar riffs, and in all honesty, that’s what really drew my attention, and kept me listening to them. I have always had this strange fascination with this band, but a fascination that I don’t quite understand yet. I enjoy the music, but it hasn’t really stuck and grew on me like how some other bands do. It’s strange since I think this would be a band that would. But I digress.

Lightning Bolt is a bass and drum duo who I discovered through one of my friends. I’ve heard a lot of genre names thrown at this band, such as, “Noise Rock, NoiseCore, Mathrock, Experimental, Psychedelic Noise.” But whatever you want to  call them, they are indeed a very noisy band. Not in a bad way though…

So hearing that they did a collaboration really took me by surprise, but it was a very pleasant surprise. In my mind, these two bands are in different places. I don’t associate them with the other one, and the whole thing just seemed odd when I heard that they had done a song together. But also, in a way, I’m not surprised, because they would do something like this and just mind rape us, lowly listeners.

The song starts off with this bass groove that automatically attracts your attention. The repeating bass sounds are so punchy, and it is accompanied by a layer of this piercing noise that is comparable to a buzz saw cutting a thick layer of wood. The main part of the song stops for a bit, and introduces this weird synth build up, and goes back to the repeating parts. Every time I listened to this song, I always think, “Maybe if I put a tab of acid to my ear, this is what it would sound like…”

The vocals are somewhat terrifying as Wayne Coyne (Flaming Lips Vocalist) sings/screams the words “I WANNA GET HIGH! BUT I DON’T WANT BRAIN DAMAGE!” All the while the vocals shift subtly from lower to higher in pitch throughout the song. 

I don’t really know what to classify this song. I just recommend you give it a listen. I can only say the song has bits of everything that the 2 bands are, Noisy, psychedelic, overwhelming, exciting, and just a tad of monotony… The song isn’t very long, but it has enough impact to throw you off guard within a short amount of time.

Frabbits Rating: 9/10

What do you think?

Side note: Probably one of the better videos I’ve seen so far in 2011.

No, but a tin can.

If you are a fan of Anthony Green, you know about his 2008 solo release, Avalon. If you’re anything like me, you listened to Avalon that entire year, and absolutely fell in love with it. And you hung on every single word that Mr. Green sang. (I’m not reminiscing.) So, it was only natural for me to be eager to be able to hear anything new from his upcoming release, Beautiful Things. 

Big Mistake is the first official song to be released off Beautiful Things, and it can be downloaded for free here.

Good Old War was said to be playing the instrumentation on this song, and also produced by them, a long side Jason Cupp.

At first listen, I said to myself, “Oh man this has a pretty heavy country/folk vibe,” but it progresses to be the sound that I would expect from an Anthony Green release. It’s catchy enough for it to be stuck in my head, but also has a weird tune that doesn’t sound very appealing at first. With more listens it grows into something beautiful. This is more folky than his previous releases, but I noticed that he managed to sing in “Circa Survive style,” over a folk song. Something that wasn’t really heard too much on Avalon. 

The instrumentation is great, and it’s something I would expect from a band like Good Old War. The guitar parts aren’t really “guitar like” with the usual strummed style guitar, but more finger picking and slide style guitar. 

I may be biased toward the lyrical side to the song, so me saying that they are, “amazing” doesn’t say much. But they are indeed amazing. The way he words things, and the way he annunciates each syllable is rare among vocalists these days for some reason.

Green’s lyrics are just relatable in a general sense. I don’t ever get the vibe that he’s trying to be deep, or trying to be anything, for that matter. The words just speak volumes without much effort. I always get the vibe that he wrote the song for me, even though I know that is impossible. 

Rating: 7/10

What do you think?

Hello, Ladies and Germs! Its been a while since I, Johans, have written a post. Why? Because I’ve been a lazy vagabond. 

But I am back. Ironically, I feel very tired today. Continuing to the music!

This one is a biggie. I will talk about just one of his albums. His name? Brett Dennen.

Brett Dennen is a beautiful soul who is constantly teaching me new things through his music. He’s a madman on the guitar and a poet. He is my Dylan. (And Elliott Smith is my Lennon. heh.) Here is a man who is not only incredibly talented but tries to change the world through his music. Not just by singing about specific subjects, but by sharing wisdom he has acquired throughout his years. 

What album am I going to mention on this fine day? The title of the album is… You guessed it! Its a self titled! I chose this one because you can really feel the sunlight of his soul shine through. Its beautiful and mellow, full of life & smiles. He is a romantic, a poet, a political activist, a man with a broken heart, a man of hope. He wears many hats throughout the album… But he never loses hope. If you want to regain your faith in humanity, pick up this man’s album. I’ll name my 3 most played songs: Blessed, All We Have and Just Like The Moon. I would say its strongest undertone is romance. His album ‘there is so much more’ breaks my heart every time, and I suggest you pick it up right after you give his self titled a listen.

Brett Dennen is an acoustic child throughout this album. Rich guitar and wonderful instrumentals are what pulls this album together. I’ve never payed as much attention to each individual instrument as I have with Brett Dennen’s albums. He just has a team of wonderful musicians who are making love to their instruments. The beauty about his music is that you can really sit down, relax and enjoy the songs. Or you can get up and dance wildly in your room. Its a wonderful album and I recommend with all my heart. 

If you ever need some chicken soup for the soul, this song always seems to be the best medicine. 



 Cheers, Johans

Here it goes in no particular order.

1. Battles- Gloss Drop
 

2. Beach Fossils- What A Pleasure EP 

3. Death Grips- Exmilitary

4. Toro Y Moi- Underneath The Pine

5. Stresscase- Cut Me Off
 

A good friend of mine suggested that I review an album that is completely out of my element, and give a completely opinionated review, but non-biased as well. 

This was a lot tougher than I thought.

Not too long ago, we had posted on twitter suggesting what we should review. But to no avail, there were no responses.

As some of you know, I (Jason) work part time in a shoe store. It’s just some random summer job, and it pays for gas, so I can’t complain. This last week there was a spike in sales for, White Converse Chuck Taylors. The ages of the people buying this particular shoe ranged from tweens to about early “twenty-somethings.” I was kind of puzzled as to why people were buying it, and one of the customers explained that Wiz Khalifa was responsible for this.

All of this customers high school had been buying these shoes, and they are all the rage in his high school. I wanted to tell him that, “Chucks” have been popular since… forever… but I digress…

I thought that I would give Wiz Khalifas’ newest album a listen, since this is a perfect opportunity for “out of my element.” 

But I decided on baby steps for now, and just listened to the single, “Roll Up.”

So here we go.

Wiz Khalifa is a rapper based from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Wiz is only 23 years old, but has released 3 studio albums. His first album debuting in 2006, “Show and Prove,” his sophomore album, “Deal or No Deal,” and his latest 2011 release, “Rolling Papers.” 

His latest single, “Roll Up” has a lot of hits on YouTube, and rightfully so since this is no doubt, a catchy song. But that’s as far as it goes.

The instrumentals on the song are at most average. The reverb punch on some of the snare hits caught my attention a lot though, and really woke me up. It was almost ear piercing. The synth sounds on the chorus as well had been stuck in my head for about an hour, and they didn’t really sound bad. The only gripe I have about it, is that it sounds overly produced, poorly done, and fake. It sounds like someone went on garageband, selected a drum beat, put some synth sounds, added heavy reverb, and called it a day. Flaccid, and really repetitive would be good words to describe the beat.

The flow on the track isn’t that great. The intro to the song almost comes a bit abruptly. The more and more I listen to the song, I wonder why he decided to start rapping at that particular moment, or why he decided to start laughing, followed by an “UH!” right before the flow. It was just weird to hear. The first line doesn’t really explode either, which is a disappointment, and then stops, and starts again. The track seems really choppy. That may not bother a lot of people, but it seemed inconsistent till about a minute in to the song.

The lyrics are generic. If I could compare the lyrical depth of this single to another single, it would have to be Rebecca Black’s Friday.
If you’re a fan of Wiz Khalifa, I am sorry, and remember, this is only my opinion. There is really nothing going on in the “lyrics department.” Don’t get me wrong, I can totally see why someone would want to make a song about “being-that-dude-that-treats-a-girl-really-well-compared-to-her-current-boyfriend-and-she’s-having-an-affair-on-him-with-you.”

*run-on-sentence-inhale*

 I totally get that, but it’s just something that I’ve heard over and over again since I was 12. I also understand that it is very relatable for the general population, but it just wasn’t doing it for me. It sounded like Rebecca Black deciding what seat she wanted to take.

Track Rating: 4.5/10

Remember! This is just my opinion, so don’t get all crazy.

What do you think of it? Love it? Hate it? 

Let us know!

Twitter.com/FrabbitsMusic