Deft Punk

Billy Talent (2003). Billy Talent takes its curious handle from a character name in the 1996 mock rockumentary Hard Core Logo, which traced the continuing adventures of an aging Vancouver punk band. The reference is probably more resonant in the Talent's home base of Toronto; everywhere else, it's a little awkward. Fortunately, the quartet's eponymous Atlantic release struggles mightily to make music matter more than moniker or stylized genre revivalism. Over a muscular, relentless, and viciously catchy 40 minutes, the band checks the wiry, melodic punk of the Buzzcocks while working Fugazi's dueling vocalist dynamic and searingly precise guitar breaks into its own three-minute anthems…

The band formed in the middle of punk's '77 explosion, but quickly began seeking out new, hitherto unexplored space. Vastly influential, Wire's myriad adventures remain entirely inspiring, even after all this time. Toasting their 40th anniversary, the band will release new album 'Silver/Lead' through their own pinkflag label. As a preview Wire have shared new cut 'Short Elevated Period', and it's a deft fusion of the band's pop / Brutalist sides, a mixture of old and new that unsettles and provokes.

Instead of settling down in front of the mixing board for another dance album (a lá Technique or Republic), New Order returned in 2001 with a sound and style they hadn't played with for over a decade. Unsurprisingly bored by the stale British club scene circa 2001, the band opened Get Ready with a statement of purpose, a trailer single ("Crystal") featuring a host of longtime New Order staples: a sublime melody, an inscrutable set of lyrics, a deft, ragged guitar line kicking in for the chorus, and Peter Hook's yearning bass guitar taking a near-solo role. Though there are several allowances for the electronic-dance form New Order helped develop, Get Ready is a very straight-ahead album, their first work in 15 years that's focused on songwriting and performance rather than grafted dance techniques…

Instead of settling down in front of the mixing board for another dance album (a lá Technique or Republic), New Order returned in 2001 with a sound and style they hadn't played with for over a decade. Unsurprisingly bored by the stale British club scene circa 2001, the band opened Get Ready with a statement of purpose, a trailer single ("Crystal") featuring a host of longtime New Order staples: a sublime melody, an inscrutable set of lyrics, a deft, ragged guitar line kicking in for the chorus, and Peter Hook's yearning bass guitar taking a near-solo role. Though there are several allowances for the electronic-dance form New Order helped develop, Get Ready is a very straight-ahead album, their first work in 15 years that's focused on songwriting and performance rather than grafted dance techniques…

Charming Hostess is a whirl of eerie harmony, hot rhythm and radical braininess. Our music explores the intersection of text and the sounding body– complex ideas expressed physically, based on voice and vocal percussion, handclaps and heartbeats, sex-breath and silence. We live where diasporas collide, incorporating piyyutim and Pygmy counterpoint, doo-wop and niggunim, work songs and Torah chanting. The texts speak of mysticism and sex; angels and demons; and the trials and joys of love and sex…

The Bad Plus - Never Stop II (2018) {Legbreaker Records}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 271 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 121 Mb | Cover | 5% repair rar
© 2018 The Bad Plus / Legbreaker Records
Jazz / Post Bop / Post Modern Jazz / Piano Trio

The first album from the Bad Plus since Orrin Evans took over the piano chair from departing co-founder Ethan Iverson, 2017's Never Stop II is a focused, atmospheric set of all-original songs. Technically, the album is a follow-up to the band's first album of all-original material, 2010's Never Stop. However, with Evans on board, the album primarily works as a debut for the trio. That said, Evans fits in nicely with bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King, and the band sounds both fresh and familiar. For Evans' part, he brings over 20 years of experience and deep post-bop chops to the trio. Nonetheless, these songs retain the trio's immediately recognizable style, rife with spare melodies, off-kilter rhythms, and subtle, genre-bending aesthetics.