In the Flesh, Vol. I: Wolfgang strutz.

In the Flesh (if I keep it up) will be a series of posts of awesome music by people I know IRL. Most of them will probably be close friends of mine. But today's ITF is an exception, in that I don't really know her that well. The lovely lady you're hearing is named Madelyn, and she plays a banjo or two. She described her music as "Hindu spiritual folk," which I'd pretty much agree with. Her album, Wolfgang sitz., spans chanting, meditation, sassy blues and folk, and if I'm not mistaken was self-recorded. It's semi-lo-fi and delightfully light. Favorites include "FolkLore" (above), "Sat Dat" and "Dazing Days".

Sweet and Fleeting

Some things just aren't meant to last. You know it, but you see it out and enjoy it while you can. (I could stand to think this way more w/r/t women.) As I began to come of age as a music fan, I started to realize that certain albums I liked probably wouldn't be in rotation further down the road, and that they didn't really matter to a lot of other people. When I was 15 I was hooked on Juturna by Circa Survive. I actually still like it a fair bit, and to my surprise have some good friends who liked it back in the day. But it's kind of a rare, closeted mutual love, like we were all in marching band together or something.

The latest album in that vein for yrs truly would be Foals' Total Life Forever. Foals are decidedly what Will Sheff would call a "mid-level band": they've got the chops to be signed to Sub Pop, but they've never managed to garner the snob-level acclaim that some of their other labelmates have. And to be a bit blunt, rightly so. I love Foals, but I know in my heart that they're "just" a mathy, atmospheric dance rock act. Most people don't appreciate (see: care about) the subtleties that make their bloopy guitars different from say Bloc Party or Maps and Atlases, and you need most people on your side to be relevant.

That being said, I like this album a lot. Like I think I like it more than I should. But fuck doing what you should. Despite its Nevermind-cum-movie-poster album art and weird title, Total Life Forever is a step forward for Foals. Their earlier Antidotes only stood out slightly from the rest of the dance-rock pack, but TLF feels more unique and mature. It's funkier, more emotive, has better lyrics; it's better in every way. Even if I'm bound to look back on it as "just another indie rock album" from my youth, it's good enough to make Foals my 13th most listened artist for the last 12 months (thx last.fm), which is no small feat.

Yasiin Bey - N****s in Poorest

As I just learned, Yasiin Bey is probably better known to you as Mos Def. Whatever you call him, he's a pro, especially at tearing down Jay-Z songs (a la "The Rape Over" [a burn on "The Takeover"]). As someone who thought Watch the Throne was too bloated and gaudy to be really enjoyable, this is pretty vindicating.

Breaking: World Officially Over

*facepalm*

Review: Patrice & Friends - Champagne Saunas

What if you inverted part of the Chillwave formula; instead of dropping funky pop from house tempos to 85 BPM, you pump it up to 145, 150? You'd get Patrice & Friends, give or take an 808. Champagne Saunas is a smart and successful attempt at bringing some pop sensibility to juke, and I am smitten. Its 11 tracks are as fast-paced and spazzy as any Addison Groove or Ramadanman cut, but the old school funk jams layered on top of the hyper/-repetitive booty bass makes for a collection of songs that you can sing along to as hard as you'll want to juke to it.

I have some minor gripes with the production, and at times it seems like the samples do all of the heavy lifting, but those are minor blemishes on what's otherwise a solid listen front to back. Saunas' cohesiveness lends it an air of musical maturity, and although all of the tracks are cut from a common formula there's enough musical and lyrical contrast to let each stand out. "Back Room" is dark and abstract; "Dancefloor Whispers" is glittery disco euphoria; "Stutterin'" is wistful and melancholy. I wouldn't expect Champagne Saunas to light the world on fire, but it's a brilliant experiment in juke that'll please more than a few ears. Check it all out on Bandcamp:

On Repeat: Bonobo - "Eyesdown" (Machinedrum Remix)

Behold: a half-assed update for my loyal reader(s). I've listened to this track roughly 8 times in the past 24 hours. There's some dance music that seems way too fast to actually dance to (Gabber, Juke, DnB, whatever this is) but there's an interesting contrast at work in this remix that makes it worthwhile to at least braindance/head nod to. The drums are jittery, light, almost microtonal, and the vocals are on the quick side, but the sweeping, spacious pads loom in the background like a slow-moving cloud. And that vocal arp made up of "so slow" is to die for. Mmm.

You Know I Couldn't Last

Wherein I become the nth person to write about Lana Del Rey. Lizzy Del Grant has generated a lot of hype, and as buzz artists do, a lot of hate too (her horrible SNL appearance hasn't helped there). There are a lot of quixotic debates about her authenticity, which to me seems like a waste of breath; she's very obviously a fabrication, a pop star in progress produced for crossover alternative appeal. So to me, the question becomes what the worth/appeal of that fabrication is, and why it provokes the reaction that it has.

In this Jezebel article one of the authors' distaste is related to the fact that she seems like a "'pre-fabricated indie' affair," which is a pretty unsettling contradiction. And it's that contradiction that I think makes Lana Del Rey so challenging (see: divisive); it's not just that she's constructed, but rather what she's made of. A self-described "lolita lost in the hood", her project combines retro Americana and Hollywood glamour with a sultry, pseudo-gangster persona. Her image is built on all of the nostalgia and kitsch that's become synonymous with hipsterdom, but in a way that's very overtly and unironically sexy. And when was the last time "indie" was really "sexy"?

So we're faced with a crisis of aesthetics, and that's really the crux of this Del Rey business. The once-esoteric(?*) realm of analog pictures and retro clothes is being repurposed as a vehicle for a pop singer. And really it was about time, wasn't it? In the age of instagram, chillwave and Urban Outfitters, it's a good branding decision more than anything. Her iffy live performances have created a lot of backlash, but what if she survives? We might be experiencing a shift in the means of seduction. Stay tuned.