Anchor and Braille is the side project from Stephen Christian of Anberlin, and according to the picture below from their twitter they might of just signed a deal with Tooth & Nail Records.
Exciting news? I bet a lot of people haven’t yet heard of Anchor and Braille and to be honest I have heard some stuff from them but not until recently. The music is different, melodic, and ambient at best. I would say they are super sleepy, good chill music.
I will be interested to see what the new stuff sounds like. I really like Anberlin but not so much A&B. I think it is because my expectations for Anberlin and A&B are different. I suppose I’ll have to listen to the new stuff with an open mind, and wait of official news of A&B signing to T&N.
To say that I am fan of MuteMath is a understatement, let’s be honest one of my groomsmen got me the bass guitar from the Typical Video. The first time I saw them about 5 years ago I found something really unique and different. I instantly fell in love with their live show and their music. That was what set this band apart. There was nothing else out there that was similar. It was hard to put a label on them or to pin them down into describing their sound. The closest thing I could think of was Paul’s vocals reminisced of Sting, while the instrumentation was very experimental, and some parts down-tempo ambient while others very heavily electronic and drum based. But then I feel like that description doesn’t do MuteMath justice because you can hear some jazz influence in their music, which makes sense being the band claims New Orleans. I remember the first show we saw them at I was with my friend Email and we drove from Austin to Dallas. The whole way there Email was telling me that I was in for something really cool. I had no idea what he was talking about. Then I saw them perform.
Still, after the first show I remember trying to describe the sound to my friends and often ended with “you just have to see them live.”
Fast forward to now and even though I have seen them close to 6 times I still love this band. If you have not heard this new record Odd Soul check it out on Spotify. That is all I am asking is you listen because there are not many bands I would go out of my way to vouch for but MuteMath is solid. Even with their new release its a progression from Armistice and the album still kicks butt.
Here are some quick thoughts about the new MuteMath record Odd Soul.
1. Odd Soul is the opening track and the first song released from the new record. The band did a really clever remix contest that spawned off some very eclectic mixes of the song. There is even a dubstep version. The song is heavy on bass and guitars and even pretty gritty at that. The first time I heard Odd Soul, the song reminded me musically of The Black Keys, which now that I have mentioned it you guys need to tour together.
2. Prytania is a pretty fun groovy track. Darren really gets the credit for that. I haven’t heard much back story on Prytania or who they are, but one quick Google search proves that its an old theater in New Orleans which paints a different picture because I figured Prytania was a woman. The more you know…
3. Blood Pressure is the first single that hit radio stations. Consequently the song is also the one that is getting most talked about. The song was a collaboration from Darren and Paul but from the interviews I have heard Darren has talked most about the backstory of the song and how it relates to his childhood. Lyrically it’s pretty transparent and Blood Pressure talks about the pressures of living up to the expectations set forth by parents, society etc. Specifically for Darren it was his fundamental Christian childhood. He has mentioned the documentary Jesus Camp a few different times. I am familiar with the documentary and have seen Jesus Camp. I will say the film is pretty bizarre. The video is also out for this song and I am anxious to see how MuteMath performs it live.
4. Tell Your Heart Heads Up is another drum and bass driven track. I have started to notice that the guitar parts on the record sound like they were written by a bassist. This may or may not be true, because at the start of this record Greg Hill left the band, which means that Roy might have lent more help towards the guitar parts, but that hasn’t been confirmed that is just my speculation. Tell Your Heart Heads up seems to be pretty reflective lyrically and I often wonder what I would tell my former self if I had the chance.
5. All Or Nothing is hands down my favorite off the cd. I often joke to people that this song is like the movie Inception based upon the fact that All Or Nothing feels like a song within a song. This is also the only song off the album that feels like a throw back from their first self titled record. See Noticed, Stare At The Sun, and Obsolete for reference. With that being said my favorite part of All Or Nothing kicks in between 2:40 and on. The progression is so freaking delicious its weird to even call it that. I should also note that this is probably one of the albums highlights musically. The song is Inception, and is another one I can’t wait to see live.
6. Sunray isn’t exactly an interlude for the album but this isn’t a throw away track. Sunray can stand by itself and I am glad they brought a song like this back into the structure of the album. I don’t really remember hearing anything like this on Armistice. I think another great and really unique thing about this band is their ability to just jam and play their instruments and let the music speak for itself. To let the music itself transcend and fill the space. This would be an excellent example, and something I was really excited to see included on Odd Soul. I should also mention that Sunray transitions really well into Allies, which is another thing that I missed from the second record.
7. Allies brings that gritty, bluesy, funky swagger back into the mix. This sound is definitely taking precedent in the new record and I love it. The reason being is because this new sound I mentioned earlier is different but at the same time still has a faint linger of MuteMath. Paul’s vocals really shine on Allies.
8. Calveries picks right up where Allies left off. So far I can honestly say there isn’t a sleeper or snoozer track off this new album. This song gets really interesting half way through and seems to do a complete 180. Another jam track that will probably translate into something incredibly live. Darren destroys his drums on this song.
9. Walking Paranoia I really wonder what the initial ideas and plans were heading into the studio? I say that because this album is sounding completely different from anything they have done in the past. Roy tears up the bass on the opening of this song, and then Walking Paranoia transcends into something really funky once the song really kicks in. I have tried looking up the lyrics to the song but haven’t found anything yet. Paul sounds like he has used some different fuzz effects for his vocals on this record which sounds really cool, but sometimes makes it hard to understand.
10. One More is one of the more mellower tracks off the record, and is a good indication of how versatile this band is, and how talented of musicians they are. Another thing that I love about this band is how well Darren and Roy compliment each other. The drums and bass go so well together on this track its ridiculous. I don’t know if the writing process starts out with Roy on bass and then Darren comes in on the drums etc. but this track is a fine example of how you can build a song off a bass and drum track. Check out the bass parts in the very beginning very amazing. Where are my headphones, I want to listen to this song headphones on volume up, which by the way is a tip because there are some really cool add ons sprinkled within the record that you might miss on regular speakers.
11. Equals is the 11th song off the cd and I feel like this is a throw back to the MuteMath of old. For me nothing really stood out about this track but maybe I need to listen to it more.
12. Quarantine is the longest track off the record and like the previous two MuteMath releases it seems like they always include one song that spans 6 minutes. I think this is more of the experimental side of MuteMath breaking off and into the studio to see what happens happens. The song really gets awesome towards the end and the 7 minutes seems to pass by pretty fast. The problem with longer songs is somewhere in the song you get bored or lost and have the urge to want to change it. I never really got that urge while listening to Quarantine.
13. In No Time is the sleepiest track off the new record, and also the last track. There are some others that were released off the deluxe version but this is the closing off the regular release. I think that this track is pretty fitting on its placement on the album. I couldn’t really imagine this song anywhere else besides the last track. I think it’d slow down the momentum of the record too much if it was placed after Blood Pressure or any other song. That being said the song reminds me of You Are Mine from the first LP.
Point blank. Odd Soul is the best album MuteMath has done, and at the same time Odd Soul is something entirely different from anything else MuteMath has done. I have often wondered what has taken so long for MuteMath to break into the main-stream arena and really get on some big tours, because I think the music that MuteMath puts out is so much more capable then what they have received in the past. They have had some success and made some appearances on Late Night TV but they have never really had a huge radio hit. Maybe with Odd Soul that will change, because Odd Soul is solid there are no filler tracks, no miscellaneous extras. This album is worth picking up so spend the 14 bucks on iTunes, buy this album support this band, and if they come to your city see them, because its very seldom a band like MuteMath comes around.
I am beyond ready for some new Switchfoot. I really feel like this last record Hello Hurricane put Switchfoot back on the map. I think when they went independent, they had some time to regroup, reconfigure, and really get a fresh start. I’ve read some interviews that said the new VV record will be a lot different from anything else Switchfoot has done. Jon mentioned that the album will be a lot more bass and rhythm driven than guitar and will contain some spoken word. The label released a press statement shedding some light into the new record.
“Vice Verses is a record of tension and release. It’s an attempt to describe the polarity of the human experience. The sunlight and shadow. The highs and lows, laughter and pain, hope and fear, doubts and belief,” says lead singer/guitarist Jon Foreman. In title track he writes; ‘Every blessing comes with a set of curses. I got my vices. I got my vice verses.’ So we live in the tension – pulled and stretched thin. Vice Verses is soul music – attempting to get to the heart of the human experience: Living in the tension and turning it into song.”
Vice Verses is the work of a band that is so restless, they devote an entire song (“Restless”) to the condition. It’s that very uneasiness – an unwillingness to choose the treadmill over the triathlon – that fuels the band’s forays into new musical territory and Jon Foreman’s unflinchingly honest lyrics. You can hear the tension build along with the first chords of album opener “Afterlife,” leading into a bold statement of intent: “I’ve tasted fire I’m ready to come alive/I can’t just shut it up and fake that I’m alright/I’m ready now/I’m not waiting for the afterlife….I believe we start forever now.”
Songs like “Afterlife” and “The War Inside” take the harder-edged approach of Hello Hurricane a step further, creating what Billboard has called “powerful, anthemic rockers…like an amalgamation of U2′s ‘Achtung Baby,’ Linkin Park.” Overall, Vice Verses is a more eclectic collection than its predecessor with quiet gems like “Souvenirs” and the title track butting up against the infectious “The Original,” reminiscent of Foo Fighters, and the biting, largely spoken-word “Selling the News.” The latter is a poetry slam Beck-meets-Beastie Boys style examination of a media-mad nation: “America listens the story is told/the hard sell, all caps, all bold…begging the question mongering fears/stroking the eye and tickling ears/the truth ain’t just what it appears/we’re selling the news.”
I am working on a review of Vice Verses and that will be released next Tuesday along with my interview with Tim Foreman, but below is the track listening from VV.
1. Afterlife
2. The Original
3. The War Inside
4. Restless
5. Blinding Light
6. Selling the News
7. Thrive
8. Dark Horses
9. Souvenirs
10. Rise Above It
11. Vice Verses
12. Where I Belong
What do you think?
What are you looking forward to most with this new record?
Do you think it will be as good as Hello Hurricane?
Were you surprised by the fact that they took a new route with their sound?
What questions do you want answered from my interview with Tim?
*Update* ESPN is streaming the entire new album from Switchfoot on their site.
The new record is out and is incredible, the guys should be stopping by the studio on Monday October 3rd while they are playing in Dallas. Find out more details about the show on The Door’s website.
Tour Dates Below
Sep 30 – Las Vegas, NV – Hard Rock
Oct 01 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theater
Oct 03 – Dallas, TX – The Door
Oct 04 – Austin, TX – Emo’s
Oct 05 – Houston, TX – House of Blues
Oct 07 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL – Revolution
Oct 08 – Orlando, FL – Beacham Theater
Oct 09 – Atlanta, GA – Masquerade Theater
Oct 11 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
Oct 12 – Richmond, VA – The National
Oct 13 – Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory
Oct 14 – Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
Oct 15 – Towson, MD – Recher Theater
Oct 16 – New York, NY – Irving Plaza
Oct 18 – Boston, MA – Royale
Oct 19 – Montreal, QC – Club Soda
Oct 20 – Toronto, ON – Phoenix Theatre
Oct 21 – Pittsburgh, PA – Club Zoo
Oct 22 – Covington, KY – Madison Theatre
Oct 23 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall
Oct 25 – Grand Rapids, MI – Intersection
Oct 26 – Detroit, MI – St. Andrew’s Hall
Oct 27 – Chicago, IL – Metro
Oct 28 – St. Louis, MO – Pop’s
Oct 29 – Lawrence, KS – Granada
Oct 30 – Denver, CO – Summit Music Hall
Nov 01 – Magna, UT – SaltAir
Nov 03 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market
Nov 04 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
Nov 05 – San Francisco, CA – Regency Ballroom
Nov 06 – Sacramento, CA – Ace of Spades
Nov 08 – Los Angeles, CA – Mayan Theater
Nov 09 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
Nov 10 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
Nov 11 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues
Maylene and the Sons of Disaster is an American, Southern metalcore band formed in 2004 in Birmingham, Alabama. In 2005, Maylene and the Sons of Disaster signed to Mono Vs Stereo and released their self-titled debut album. The band name and concept are based on the legend of the criminal gang of Ma Barker and her sons, noting that evil lifestyles will be met with “divine justice”.
MATSOD released a lot of new info recently about the new record IV. The album comes out in stores on September 27th and the artwork from above is off the new record. It also looks like they decided to go with the IV album title despite mentioning they might do something else in a interview I had with the band. Maylene also just released the first song of the upcoming album on Revolver Mag’s website. Hear the new song and a description from Dallas about the new meaning here.
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