Joanna Gruesome- Peanut Butter Review

 

Joanna Gruesome

Peanut Butter

Slumberland Records

When listening to Joanna Gruesome I am reminded of a litany of bands none of which are Joanna Newsome. Bands like Los Campesinos! who Joanna Gruesome share the hometown of Cardiff, Wales with as well as Perfect Pussy, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and even Broken Social Scene. Unfortunately on “Peanut Butter” Joanna Gruesome sound so similar to their influences that it inhibits their ability to create any sort of original sound themselves. It was hard to feel like I was listening to a Joanna Gruesome album when many songs employed techniques or sounds that are done better by other bands or sound just a bit dated. Too often I was reminded of other acts during "Peanut Butter". I found myself constantly thinking "Oh this track sounds like..." instead of feeling like this was a new listening experience.

Joanna Gruesome employ a noise pop sound mixed with punk aesthetic. No songs on “Peanut Butter” even reach the three minute mark. Constantly balancing the line between noise and melody the band attempts to write loud but catchy tunes. All over this album Alana McArdale and Owen Williams harmonize very beautifully. My complaint is that when riding either side of this line the band sounds too much like its predecessors. “Peanut Butter” has a bit of a dated sound to it in 2015 seeming to fit in better with the rise of indie that characterized the mid 2000s. This album has issues of originality as well as distinguishing itself on a track by track basis. Too many tracks are filled with driving guitars followed by McArdale’s distorted, shouting, and desperate vocal delivery with harmony sprinkled in between. “Peanut Butter” is hardly versatile, but seemingly tries to be. The album is not relentlessly pounding like “I Have Lost all Desire for Feeling” or filled with the pop hooks of “Romance is Boring”. Rather “Peanut Butter” feels lost and directionless trying to fall somewhere between these two records. 

On tracks like “Honestly Do Your Worst” Joanna Gruesome employ the same vocal effects that Meredith Graves uses on most of her songs. Even Alana McArdale’s delivery and breath control on this track is shockingly similar to Graves on the track “II”. “Psykick Espionage” falls into this same plague. However, Joanna Grueome do write some good tracks on this album that I did really enjoy. The song “Crayon” is excellent because the band is not going for one of the two sounds it typically employs, rather it blends the two to create a nice melodic yet powerful and fuzzy track.  The album also ends with “Hey I Want to be Your Best Friend” which is the slowest track on the album and filled with endearing lyrics. 

Joanna Gruesome strikes me as a band still experimenting with its sound. This album has tracks that prove the band does not have to sound like a second rate Los Campesinos! or Perfect Pussy if they blend these two sounds effectively. These songs seem to flip a switch between melody and noise, but the songs sound best when the band attempts to blend the two for a more cohesive output. An approach with more direction could really be something spectacular, but right now the band’s material is rather forgettable.

4/10

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Tom K. 

5/26/2015 

Mbongwana Star- From Kinshasa Review

Mbongwana Star
From Kinshasa
Nonesuch Records

You’re probably not going to hear anything as unique as this release from the Congo. Mbongwana Star is a 6 piece band that define their style as “space afro punk rock electro”. As hard as this may be to believe the group does a successful job pinning all these sounds together not just on the album, but on each and every individual song on their debut album “From Kinshasa”. Although this is the groups’ debut album the creative fuel comes from a couple of 50 year old veteran musicians, Coco Ngambali and Theo Nsituvuidi, who employed four younger musicians to create their unique and genre pushing work. 

The tracks on “From Kinshasa” seem to incorporate a number of influences such as trip-hop, afro-beat, and funk as well as “space afro punk rock electro” they describe their music as on their Facebook. These are songs you can either dance to or find yourself drifting through space alongside. Whether the vocals are being sung or used in a spoken word style the beats are unrelenting. The driving traditional African drum rhythms keep the album grounded while the guitars and synths try to transport the listener to a Congolese nightclub that somehow found itself among the Jovian planets. Another African rhythm tradition the Congolese collective incorporates is shout and response technique. The chanting which is done primarily in Lingala along with the drums are the only indicators of this being an African project. The instrumentals sound like electronic music that could have came from anywhere making this project live up to the “World” genre that is being applied to it. The songs have depth and layers to them that are reminiscent of DJ Shadow yet have powerful driving danceable rhythms that would make Fela Kuti groove. The lone ballad “Coco Blues” does a nice job relaxing the releasing the listener from the rhythm and shows Mbongwana Star can make more than just dance tracks. The lead single “Malukayi” is a cohesive track that shows just how fun a Mbongwana Star track can be. Filled with plenty of electronic noise and catchy repetitive ethereal sounds, this track displays how Mbongwana Star can create an atmosphere and keep you trapped there for six minutes without ever sounding stale. 

This album has one of the most contemporary sounds of any record I have heard thrown into the “World” genre. If you’re looking for a foreign and unique experience this album has enough pop and catchy melodies to keep any listener entertained. This is a truly fresh and unique piece of work that should keep you heading back for more listens because of the depth of the void Mbongwana Star creates.

7/10

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Tom K.
5/25/2015

Artist Interview: Thom Wasluck of Planning For Burial.

I am honored to announce the first interview for the blog has taken place with a musician I admire very much. Thom Wasluck, the sole driving force behind the vast soundscapes and brutally honestly lyrics behind Planning For Burial was nice enough to have a chat with Have You Heard That New. Thom gives some excellent insight into his early days, touring, work with Dan Barrett, and some new details on his upcoming LP. Check it out below!

TJ: So you have a tour with SANNHET and King Woman coming up. Are you excited to tour since it’s such an infrequent process for you? Or is it kind of an anxious endeavor? 

Thom: I feel like I usually do a lot more mini-tours. I haven’t been touring lately so I’m really excited. I love these two bands. King Woman is amazing. SANNHET is amazing. The people in the bands, we're all friends we talk all the time. Being on tour with people who you’re comfortable is a lot of fun. 

TJ: And that’s a bit how your relationship with Deafheaven is too correct? 

Thom: The thing I like about playing shows with Deafheaven is I have been following them since before Deathwish. We were trying to get them to do a split with me for my record label Music Ruins Lives before the Deathwish thing happened. I love catching up with them and try to see them whenever they’re in town. 

TJ: I know the fans can expect to hear “Desideratum” tracks as well as some new stuff but what about “Leaving”? The album did just get repressed after all. 

Thom: I pull out those songs once in a while live. The difference is “Leaving” I never planned on touring live. The way I like to play live the songs from “Leaving” don’t always work. I’ll do droney versions of some of those songs, but a lot of the stuff isn’t meant to be played live. It’s rare. Maybe “Humming Quietly” will get played. I was actually playing “Being a Teenager and the Awkwardness of Backseat Sex” in my room yesterday. A lot of the stuff is just really old and was written when I was 22-23 years old. I’m 31 now you know? A lot of these shows will open with a droney version of some of those songs from “Leaving” though so I guess in a way it is happening. 

TJ: Going back to that time, talk about how you hooked up with Dan Barrett and Enemies’ List for that “Leaving” release. 

Thom: It was the early days of Twitter. I would just talk to Dan Barrett on Twitter. I was a fan of Have a Nice Life already and “Leaving” was already done when I was listening to them. I thought the label was cool. We had similar ideas about what the project should be I think. This one day I e-mailed “Leaving” to Dan and he responded, “Wow I want to put this out.” So it was a product of just being friends and chatting with Dan from time to time. 

TJ: I’d like to hear more about the specifics of how your tours come about? Since your performances and albums are all just Thom is that how your coordinate your tours as well? Does The Flenser help you out at all or is Planning For Burial’s tours entirely Thom? 

Thom: For the most part I do all the booking myself through friends. “Hey do you know where I can play?” That sort of thing. It’s mostly through friends. This one an actual agency was involved because we’re all bands on The Flenser label and we’re all friends so that’s how that worked. Usually I have to connect with friends though and do house shows. 

TJ: Ever considered expanding the project to multiple members for your live sound? Speaking of Dan Barrett I know one of the many reasons he did not want to tour after “Deathconciousness” was the struggle to get the live sound up to par with the album. Is that ever a concern of yours? 

Thom: It’s always going to be Thom. Always. It’s not freedom to me otherwise. It’s totally my schedule and when I want to do things. I enjoy having that autonomy.

Just for the record on Have A Nice Life and touring I don’t think it’s ever going to happen because in 2011 we were working on Giles Corey and I got an e-mail about practicing and playing live with them. Dan wanted me to play second guitar, but it never really came together. There was a lot of talk like “oh lets get together here and work on stuff.” Now Dan is super busy with his family and work. Its going to be hard to get everyone together in Connecticut to practice. Years ago it could have happened. I don’t want to say it will never happen, but right now I don’t see it. 

TJ: You recently tweeted about making SANNHET listen to Marilyn Manson’s Anti-Christ Superstar while on tour? Were you a fan of his growing up? What was appealing about him? 

Thom: To this day and I’m almost 31 years old , that is tied for #1 album of all time for me. It’s a huge influence. I was in 3^rd grade when “Portrait for an American Family” came out and I was into it because my friend’s older brother was really into that scene. For the most part I’ve always been a really big fan of his work and I thought the new album (The Pale Emperor) was great too. 

TJ: Alright I’m looking forward to the split you do with Manson next year then. I know you’re in the process of the third LP. How is that coming along? 

Thom: I haven’t been working on it for the last month or so. I’ve been kinda rusty on playing my set so I had to warm up and practice. I don’t sit down and write stuff really traditionally. The songs just kind of come naturally to me. A lot of times I’ll throw away some of the stuff I work on. I have 4 tracks recorded and three songs if that makes sense. One song is going to be  two tracks.

TJ: That sort of leads into my next question then. Can we be expecting another shorter 5 track album or something a bit longer? 

Thom: This one is already at four songs and that’s just side A. This one is going to be a bit longer. That two track song will be even longer than “Golden”. 

TJ: Does it have a title? 

Thom: A title is in mind. I’m pretty sure of it. Really sure of it, but it could still change so I don’t want to say just yet.  

TJ: The key subject matter of LP3 is going to be your issues with substance abuse. First of all congratulations on your sobriety. What made you decide to abstain and how difficult has the process been? 

Thom: The biggest part of the process is just to cool the fuck down and to prove that I can do it. I did it cold turkey. I just said, “Nope I’m done and that’s it.” I think it was a product of boredom. I moved back to my home town where I don’t really know anyone anymore. I go to work I come home and get really blackout drunk for 7 days a week for months. I was writing about this topic a lot prior to my sobriety but I had a moment where I couldn’t remember a drive home from the bar after work. I went with these co-workers of mine. That was the turning point for me. It’s important for me to clear this up because people might think the album is about a relationship but it’s really about this period of my life that involved boredom and drinking. 

TJ: Do you think your new found sobriety will influence the album’s themes or the Planning For Burial sound in any way? if not on this album perhaps the next? 

Thom: This is kind of a one-off thing. I don’t know. When “Leaving” was recorded and done, and I don’t think a lot of people know this, but I was straight edge till about 27. The drinking itself never impacted the writing. Maybe on live performances to loosen me up. I wrote about it because it became a problem. 

TJ: I’ve now asked a couple questions in a row about the Planning For Burial sound so I want you to elaborate on what that is exactly a little bit more. I’ve heard your project referred to as shoegaze, post-metal, doom metal, ambient, gloom-gaze. Does a genre label matter to you? What genres would you place Planning For Burial under? 

Thom: I don’t really care. I don’t choose any of them. They don’t matter to me. Its up to the listener. One of my favorite bands is pg.99. They were always called punk rock but those guys are clearly part of the screamo scene. Another band I think of is A Silver Mt. Zion. They have that album “This is Our Punk Rock”. That album is obviously not a punk album, but it is the essence of punk. They are doing what they want how they want. I consider myself a punk artist in that way, but also a blues artist. I mean when you think about blues it’s a lot of repetition and letting your feelings out. I’m not calling myself a blues artist in terms of genre, but in terms of the essence of what blues is about. 

TJ: Talk about your obsession with pedals and new pedal boards. Anyone who follows you on twitter knows you’re always scouring the internet for new pedals and buying new pedals. What are some of your favorites or what pedals are key to the Planning for Burial sound? 

Thom: I have a 10 dollar Electro Overdrive going into a Little Big Muff that really give me my distinct sound. I actually do not use any reverb. My reverb is so low in the mix it just gives the pieces a little more body. The other keys are a Carbon Copy Delay sound and the Boss Space Echo which is awesome. I use that for longer tap tempo type stuff.

TJ: So you were a fan of that Prurient album that came out this year. Any Other albums catch your eye so far this year? Looking forward to anything? 

Thom: I’m not sure what exactly is coming out in the future. One album that’s really cool is “Drowse-SoonAsleep”. It’s by this guy Kyle Bates from Portland. I played a house show with him when he was in a full band. Post-rocky metal kind of stuff. We kept in contact we’d talk here and there. I love the SANNHET and King Woman records from this year too. 

TJ: Any small-time acts from Pennsylvania or otherwise you think fans of yours should be on the look-out for right now?

Thom: They’re not small time but Title Fight was on the outskirts of where I’m at and I loved their record from this year. A friend of mine from Ohio does an industrial ambient project. “Witness To The Flood” by Nyodene D is what it’s called. I’m all about it right now.

TJ: Before I go got to ask if there are any other details you want to share about LP3 before I let you go? When can fans expect details or a possible single? 

Thom: It’s all too early to tell. I have four tracks recorded right now, but I’m worried about their flow. I don’t know what is going to be saved for the record. The plan is the record is completed and handed into the label by December 31^st. 

Thank you Thom Wasluck for the exciting information and insight as well as being an overall awesome person. Try to catch him on tour at one of the dates below! 

  

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Tom K. 

5/21/2015