Active Child - You Are All I See

Music has high tasks. With the evolution of technology and genre, it's difficult for a band to, well, exceed expectations; in some cases, it's very hard for an individual to exceed expectations. One requires not just innovation, but an intuitive self-discipline. A manic show of soundscapes battling talent, production quality versus song writing is often the spectacle modern music is reduced to. As disappointing as that is, there are occasional don't reduce themselves or, alternatively, attempt to go beyond their potential or overdo it. Pat Grossi, aka, Active Child, is one of the rare successes...

Pat Grossi plays harp. He does synthesizers. He uses them to make music. And the result is nothing short of magnificent...

The best way to imagine You Are All I See is a modern interpretation of classic ideas. Think of it as a contemporary innovation applied to rebirth simplistic music knowledge...

Active Child is your music class with creativity. Active Child is an amalgamation of revolutionist approaches on overused instruments and sounds. Active Child is a variety of appealing descriptions, but still doesn't quite complete what one feels it began, be that a positive or negative thing. You Are All I See is impressive, but its substance sometimes feels substandard. The opening track is grasping, Playing House (featuring gloomy R&B artist How to Dress Well) and High Priestess carry the first half of the album and, because of that, it soars. Beautiful textures with an array of talents on display give it a copiousness rare in most other albums. But, as always, interest will wain as the album continues...

Pat Grossi's voice is very fitting and the quiet falsetto defines his music very well. But by "Way too Fast," it borderlines a tedious quality. It has very little to do with his voice, but the context. Perhaps bringing in a guest artist should have been reserved for the second half of the album as the refreshing quality of it could have produced a substantial amount of variety to continue to carry it. It's not that the second half is bad, however, it simply lacks in comparison to the first. But that's a common fault with most albums, no? In an ADD generation, it's natural to tire of a band after some of their best material is complete. It's because of this albums by bands as varied as Sigur Ros and Vampire Weekend can succeed with their albums. They promise something to keep you listening, and the enticing works. Whether it's that one or two song(s) or whether it's a climax to conceptual piece, anything of the sort, is not of importance. It's just that You Are All I See doesn't really go beyond what it establishes itself as...

Overall, the album is a refreshing vision of music itself. It's unfortunately the standards that the album itself imposes that makes it seem like a disappointment at times...

It's because of this that it's rendered as that median album; it's one of those albums that is a step or two away from some impressive territory unseen before, but won't reach it without polish and patience. I want the second album to exceed what this has established. I want Pat Grossi to find himself a comfortable territory and be incredible within it because a man may win a race among others, but pit him against different (not better, different) competition, and it will not have the same result.

Is post rock dead? And if so, what follows....

The future of music is uncertain. I mean, in a business aspect. I mean, as stated by Thom Yorke, it's dying. This can mean one of two things...

i) Corporate music grows. The media's favorite, "darling" bands are going to be the focus as that's where the money is. Independent labels will fade, or, to some extent, have their operations altered to better suit the market. This ominous, and very possible future is looming and could mean the death of the constantly touring, perpetually promoting indie bands. However, the alternate is much more appeasing...

ii) Since there is little money to be made in music as a smaller band, only those with integrity and desire to express themselves will get involved in music. That means that you will listen to a new band and they will resonate with a passion that drove them towards a bohemian definition of success. There is this fallacious understanding that only bands that can be profited on succeed, but now there will be this drive to make music for making music and it will be supplemental to their other jobs. Money won't be an issue. Shows will be for fun, and the spectacle will benefit from such an instance. But where will theatrical, conceptual music belong? Where will post rock belong? The thing is, in both instances, it seems to be in an intermediate gray zone...

Post rock doesn't instigate a rabid fan base. The personality in post rock is lacking and for any post rock band to succeed to some extent, it has been on quality and dedication from a loyal group of fans. In the former scenario, it is easy to see how they will fade and dissipate. But in the latter, could they succeed? Rather, could they benefit? But as stated earlier, can it really inspire dedication from its fans? To state it simply, post rock is defined by a few major players. Let's use two examples to break down such a prospect.

Explosions in the Sky have a cinematic sound. There are sordid soliloquies, climatic crescendos, collapsing conclusions... Everything about them defines how post rock, when done correctly, can move and inspire. Example? Your Hand in Mine. The song itself has an emotion and feeling related to it. In it, one realizes that Your Hand in Mine, though it could be capturing a present moment, is better thought as a recollection, a past event, a memory. Even better yet, it is the concluding song on The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, so that feeling of closure is present. This is the band that could survive in the latter scenario. Their sound reflects their attitude towards music and the band itself is a statement of emotion...

But what of a band like Codes in the Clouds? Those post rock bands that are in success purgatory... These bands will probably dissipate in this latter scenario as, and it was hinted before, outreach and relation would be important to guarantee any kind of progression in the dying industry. Their sound is lacking in that very finite quality that will prevent them from surviving the degeneration. The complexity is simply lacking, but they still fall too far from accessibility. Their artistry simply won't be enough to last...

The fate of genre is based on some possibilities, but a few likely probabilities as well. One can simply assume that, like genres that have faded in the past, its two decade run will lose its momentum. Fortunately, we can take solace in knowing that every genre is accessible to some extent, just post rock will need new innovations, if you will, that may separate it from what we know. Of course, one must first define the essential qualities of the genre to really determine what's next, but those slow bands like This is Your Captain Speaking may be left behind whereas those bands blending sounds, e.g This Will Destroy You with electronic layers, may survive. It just seems like in each situation, it's a genre that will likely degenerate or be forced to change to some extent...

Vondelpark, or, why James Blake should watch his back, or, why the electronic era is entering reform

Meet Vondelpark. They are from Surrey. They don't have a Myspace. They don't have much outside of a website. In fact, search Vondelpark, and you will come up with the actual park in Amsterdam. Want to impress people with some obscure band? Try out Vondelpark. But, of course, there is more to a band than their obscurity...

They have a record out. Or, rather, they have an EP out. It's called NYC Stuff and NYC Bags. It's almost 22 minutes. That's it. They aren't necessarily electronic music. They aren't exactly a threat to James Blake. What are they? They are an enigmatic trio with an even more enigmatic sound. Imagine ice on a counter top. Picture the way it slowly turns to water than drips drips drips into a growing puddle to the floor below. As it gathers, each drip creates a splash bigger than the last. Vondelpark reminds me of that ice. It's cool. But, it's water at heart meaning that it's a simplistic sound that under its conditions, appears as something else. The more you look at it, the more it reduces to what it is. But that's why this EP is so perfect...

Vondelpark never exceeds its set boundaries. In fact, they define their own boundaries. The production is exceptional for its minimalist origins as these hobbyists show an enormous amount of potential from their enthusiastic project. R&B style vocals are topped with well written guitar parts and enormous, textural keyboards and synths perfectly package this EP... 

But there is also the possibility of the debut fall short of their potential. My recommendation? Check out this band. Cherish them. Let their debut come out and get praised by musical outlets. Brag about how much you loved them before hand. Then, as you bore of their sound (back to the ice metaphor, it will reduce to water over time), slowly distance yourself from them. But when their popularity slowly dissipates, you can come back to them after the heat has reduced, and they will be that cool ice once more...

Bombay Bicycle Club - A Different Kind of Fix

To be a talented band in Britain is not unlike being the bright kid in an advanced class. As it is with most professions, a certain quality must define and separate you from the mess of others that reciprocate your skills. To say Bombay Bicycle Club is a talented band brushes the surface of their identity, for the band can be defined by a number of intricacies that depart them from masses of simply "talented" bands. Yet, they don't have the crucial commercial success abroad...

It should be noted that Bombay Bicycle Club is more reminiscent of an actor than a raving schizophrenic. I will do my best to modestly explain...

A truly great actor can develop a character, make words a being and embody ideals. The best will flawlessly adapt a role and, as a result, depict an ideal, or, rather, a set of ideals. They can take on not just contrasting roles, but complete antithetical juxtapositions of others or self; the raving schizophrenic will have contrasting and conflicting personalities and struggle to maintain an identity in that mess...

Bombay Bicycle Club is coming off of Flaws, an acoustic album built upon bouts of insecurity, bittersweet sentimentality and modern angst. The songs were in themselves subtle conflicts of emotions and ideas (e.g Ivy and Gold, a song about lost love set to an upbeat, whistle driven tune) yet it faltered in comparison to their inaugural release, I Had the Blues But I Shook Them Loose. One can, well, attempt to condemn the band for pursuing their ambitions and interests, but isn't more appropriate to belittle a band for the opposite? As a result, the tepid anticipation was short of palpable and the fallacious idea that the band was going to, again, recreate itself, spread...

Let it be stated: A Different Kind of Fix is different, but it is distinctly Bombay Bicycle Club. With this cynical pessimism contrasted by a naive optimism towards the album, it is yet to disappoint. Unlike some trending band no one has heard of, the album has an air of, well, longevity to it. As I stated earlier comparing the band to an established actor, they have adopted a new album (pardon the pun) flawlessly. The sound is distinct and unique while still maintaining a simplistic appeal. Lead by the vocals of Jack Steadman, now joined by a full time female back up vocalist, the album reaches a new level of depth and intricacy that wasn't exactly missing, but wasn't as distinct in past releases...

There are two very common trends in music:
The repetition trend is where a band will maintain their sound, be it intentional or not.
The other is the thesis, antithesis, synthesis trend. This is where  band will have a sound, then contrast it, but later form an appropriate median. For Bombay Bicycle Club, they've now found that median. They aren't that rock band that has failed to break apart from a large and ambitious crowd, nor are they yet another rudimentary acoustic band. Instead, they are presented with an almost nostalgic collection of synths with nearly immaculate production...

Indubitably, the album has one or two songs that don't quite stand at the same level, but there is such a consistency and maturity to the band that has simply appeared on this release. Though they weren't infantile, they simply have achieved a higher level of intellect in their music. If you look at the trend of music in 2011, it's been mostly innovative, new voices taking well known sounds to a new level. Rather than let a common sound become sterile, acts will inject some new energy or quality to reinvigorate it. When listening to A Different Kind of Fix, one doesn't just hear a sound that is synonymous with a panoply of thoughts, emotions, uncertainties etc., but a modern adaptation of simple music. By throwing some complexity into the common "rock: sound, by rebuilding and reconstructing familiar grounds, the album will be refreshing yet friendly; it's that one person you can become attached to or feel like you've known forever because they remind you of an ideal...

The highlights are, of course the singles. Dubious? Check out Shuffle or Lights Out, Words Gone. They are not only fitting examples of the album's sound, but some of the best songwriting in mind. Keep in mind that the album is an eclectic enough mix that a full listen is suggested, though. Songs like Your Eyes, Beggars and Leave It are fitting exhibitions of the bands intellectual and original sound and will exceed their established norm. How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep is the ideal opening track. The melody is infectious; the theme and words simplistic. But what's most important is how familiar and welcoming the sound is. You won't listen to the album and think "This is something I've never heard before," but rather "This is something that exceeds what's expected in its classification." I urge you to check it out. Though for most, the album may not exceed that 7-8/10 threshold, it may be that album to you that breaks free of a defining genre and create its own niche...

What's up for the band now? Bombay Bicycle Club is currently touring Europe. Soon, they will do some east coast stops with Two Door Cinema Club to further promote themselves. North American success is not guaranteed, but based on the surprisingly good first release, the warm and rudimentary second, and now this album, the band has a repertoire that may not guarantee them success, but will make it a probability.