Shonen Knife : Super Group [Album Review]

Shonen Knife is one of those bands people seem to love or hate. An all-girl Japanese group formed in 1981 and influenced heavily by the Ramones, their career has been lengthy and has influenced musicians from Nirvana to Sonic Youth. Sure, the vocals are a bit off-key at times and no, the music isn't hyper-inventive or anything really new. But the girls have a vibe that brings back memories of a simpler time: part '60s, part punk, part Japanese surfer girl.

On their new album, Super Group, all the songs have a similar construct and feel, so it would be pointless writing a track by track dialogue. However, for comparison, if you interbred The Ramones and The Shangri-Las, you'd get this sound. Part wailing banshee-little girl lost-hormonal adolescent boy...that's the vocals in a nutshell for you.

The track 'Muddy Bubbles Hell' has a slightly dark vibe and musically, seems reminiscent of Australian '80s bands like The Stems, who had a penchant for the '60s jangling guitars of bands like The Chocolate Watchband; '60s garage music.

'Deer Biscuits' (yes, lyrically the songs are like something from a bad trip) is a Shonen Knife tribute to country and western. Oh yes, you thought it couldn't get more bizarre; this is only track four, and already my mind is a little messed up. With lyrics like "Deer, deer, deer biscuits, smells like soy bean flour"...can you understand why I'm feeling a little bent?

"Let's have a BBQ party, it's a sunny day, let's have a BBQ party, under cherry trees", followed by something about carrots, marshmallows, and juicy meat, then "Don't worry about your diet". "Butterflys are dancing, little birds are singing...". Look, I've always wanted to be critical about this band because frankly, the singing's terrible in parts and the music's been done before...but I can't. The girls have so much spunk and the songs are so innocently cute and jaunty that I have to love them. Oops! So much for my sordid reputation as an uber critic. So I'd say that means 'BBQ Party' is my favourite track on the album, yes.

(I don't have a reputation, by the way, for being an uber critic...sadly, I'm not as mean as Lester Bangs used to be, which does sometimes make for more interesting reading, I know. I'm just honest.)

Their cover of Wings' 'Jet' is even endearing; could be the accent...The girls rock out on the guitar solo, and the sound they achieve is that wonderful, dirty, gritty, Detroit grunt a la The Stooges.

Although released in November 2008, for some reason Super Group was only now sent to The Dwarf for review. Better late than never, and if you're a rabid Shonen Knife fan, you probably have the album already. This offering, overall, gives me the impression that three Japanese Sandra Dee's stumbled upon a garage full of guitars and drums and performed the surfer-dude scene of a Gidget film; you know, the scene where all the cool surfer kids are doing the twist in capri pants, tied gingham tops and pigtails? EXACTLY like that.

For a band that has been around now for 28 years, unbelievably Shonen Knife sound current in this era of everything old is new again. And seriously, I can't think of a better compliment for music of the early '80s, that its raw innocence and energy is still relevant. So if you've never heard these girls before, and you like the sound of what you've read, go out and discover them. You'll be the third generation to do so and you won't regret it.

Listen to Shonen Knife on MySpace.

This review was written for The Dwarf.

Twitch the Ripper : Don't Go Out Tonight [EP Review]

I've been watching these guys on MySpace for a while now, and their sound has always interested me. It's intriguing to find a band early on, listen to their music develop and become more refined. This EP, Don't Go Out Tonight, by Connecticut band Twitch the Ripper was worth waiting for.

From the first track, 'Fade', Lonn's drumming strikes me as complex; consideration has been given to make the percussion layered and almost predatory in feel. Some beautiful vocal harmonies by Jon Dobyns elevate this track while maintaining a consistent dance-floor appeal. 'Strip' screams "SINGLE!", a throbbing tribal beat accentuating the blatant sexuality in the vocals. This track has a more popular construct than the rest of the EP and I believe would be eaten up by angst-ridden music fans. Probably mostly female in gender, if you've noticed the appearance of the Twitch boys...

'The Unknown' begins with a mesmerising vocal 'drone' accompanied by a glitchy beat and midway through, leaps into an instrumental explosion. 'Clean to get Dirty' is the standout track to me, with chorus vocals so sensual they are worthy of their own porn site. Interestingly, the tempo and intonation of some of the drumming and vocals echoes Madchester music of the early '90s (thinking Stone Roses), and I can hear some definite NIN bass influence. It's all good because Twitch owns the sound and these are not influences worn on the sleeve.

'Thirst' begins with a Gary Numanesque synth line creating a dark and erotic atmosphere. Much of the sauciness throughout the songs is the result of Dobyns' voice, which is quite alluring and gently androgynous. This track's composition is reminiscent of a Martin Gore / Depeche Mode song, with similar melodic lines and structure interspersed with simple, twinkling guitars. The most sublime track on offer; dreamlike and rapturous. 'Under the Cover' is an interestingly constructed song, with elements so diverse as to appeal to the listener on vastly different emotive levels. Its trance-like keys melt into guitars in the genre of early Cure, however the style is indefinable. Quite brilliant.

So many upcoming bands lately are all about the looks and little about the music. It horrifies me when I get an album to review if the haircuts in the promo pics are too spot-on; usually indicates little aural substance. It's nice when the package is complete and the music delivers; there's something to be said for a band doing it the hard way, unsigned to a major label. This EP has pleasantly surprised me and just makes me wonder how Twitch will evolve in the future. Maybe after some time performing their songs live, some of the smoother edges will roughen up a little, becoming more dangerous. I can't wait to hear these guys in a few years, because I definitely think they're on to something. I highly recommend this EP...that means buy it!

Visit Twitch the Ripper's official website.

The nail that sticks out...

Like the apple in my favourite fictional work, the iPhone app has been held up to artists as the ultimate temptation: a way to personalise content to their fan bases through a mobile communication device.

Fans have been following the tedious process of Apple's approval process of the Nine Inch Nails (NIN) app via Trent Reznor's regular Twitter updates. A company that can't provide a delivery date for a service promised to a client, and continually misses deadlines? Sounds a tad unprofessional and a bit like the plumber down the street who tells me he'll be around some time soon to do the work, whenever he's free, but can't give an actual date or time. Then again, the plumber isn't listed at number 4 on Lovemarks top 200 list of 'lovemarks'. [For the uninitiated, a 'lovemark' is an advertising term for a product that retains a fanatically loyal customer base.]

The latest installment comes as quite a surprise. In a response to NIN admin, Apple said:

"Thank you for submitting nin: access to the App Store. We've reviewed nin: access and determined that we cannot post this version of your iPhone application to the App Store at this time because it contains objectionable content which is in violation of Section 3.3.12 from the iPhone SDK Agreement which states:

"Applications must not contain any obscene, pornographic, offensive or defamatory content or materials of any kind (text, graphics, images, photographs, etc.), or other content or materials that in Apple's reasonable judgement may be found objectionable by iPhone or iPod touch users."

The objectionable content referenced in this email is "The Downward Spiral". Since the app is live on the App store, please make the necessary changes to the application as soon as possible, and resubmit your binary to iTunes Connect. Thank you."

So, let me get this straight. A couple of weeks prior, Apple approved the baby shaker app, which they then had to remove due to public outcry after it had been on sale for several days. Yet, they won't approve content targeted at NIN fans due to some rude words in a NIN song? Do they not realise that the only people likely to download a NIN app would be NIN fans, quite used to the lyrical content of Reznor's music?

There would seem to be quite a reasonable solution to all of this: only make adult content (or in this case, adult lyrical content) available to adults. If someone clicks on a check box saying they're over 18, they can download it. This would then significantly decrease Apple's liability. Not having an iPhone, I have no idea how these things work. Please feel free to indulge me with the ins and outs, although even a simple explanation would probably bore me to death.

Why would a company even enter into negotiations with an artist, knowing some of the artist's lyrics contain explicit words, if they have a strict censorship policy? Oh sorry, I mean the "iPhone SDK Agreement". Seems a tad on the daft side. Are they so out of touch with the music industry that they aren't aware of music that's been around for 20 years?

Reznor is outspoken in his appreciation of Apple products; I believe these are unpaid, voluntary endorsements. Due to the quantity of his fans, I believe he has single-handedly inspired some people to purchase iPhones by promising an app. Apple would be foolish to provoke the ire of this massive fan base. With the power of the Twitter, these days it only takes a second to let thousands of people know exactly what you think about a product or a company.

The bone of contention I hold with this entire matter lies with the branding of Apple. It is in no doubt that their advertising and products are targeted toward consumers in the creative industries: artists, designers, musicians. Aren't these people the ones who are expected to push boundaries and challenge existing norms of society? To be blunt, aren't these the people who sometimes write lyrics that challenge sensibilities or might contain lewd words? Aren't artists people who sometimes paint naked bodies to confront society about its double standards?

How very MySpace Arts and Culture of Apple to censor a NIN app. When MySpace decided to promote artists through a specialised profile, they failed to realise how hypocritical it might seem that in order to publish artwork on MySpace, it needs to be censored i.e. no nips, bums or fannies. Oh, and especially no knobs. MySpace Arts and Culture is "a place for artists", as they say, but only those artists who homogenise their artwork...which they have to do even if they upload their art to a private profile and don't allow under 18s to have access. All in a day's work for Big Brother. Conform or be destroyed.

I have a bit of a thing for old ads, especially the silly propaganda ads from WWII or the 50s. I found an obviously doctored one the other day, but it suits the content of this post: "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down". In this case, it's a NIN getting hammered by an Apple, but it's all the same. There's no place for censorship in the creative arts, and there never will be. Apple, of all companies, should understand this, otherwise, we can simply assume their entire marketing campaign targeted at creatives and the concept of 'individualism' is a load of bollocks. ["Surely", you cry, "no marketing could be complete rubbish?" But yes, perhaps it is just all hype.]

OSI : Blood [Album Review]

OSI is a progressive experimental band formed by guitarist Jim Matheos in 2003. The name refers to the short-lived US government agency -- the Office of Strategic Influence -- which was established post 9/11 to manufacture and promote pro-US propaganda in domestic and foreign media. Matheos initially recruited Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, bassist Sean Malone, and Chroma Key's Kevin Moore on keys, who then progressed to performing vocals. After Malone left the band, bass was replaced with synth tracks and then played by Matheos himself, and on their new album, Blood, Portnoy was replaced by Gavin Harrison (Porcupine Tree) on drums.

Moore's voice never ceases to unsettle me due to its uncanny similarity to vocalist Eric Woolfson from the Alan Parsons Project. It's the juxtaposition of this gentle, soothing voice with the glitchy, theatrical music that usually makes OSI such a pleasure to listen to. And just when you think you have them pegged into a genre or style, a song comes along with the balls to whip you a little around the ears.

Such a song is the first track on this album, 'The Escape Artist'. Beginning with Metallica-esque guitar picking and wicked '80s synth sounds, this song explodes into a metal-head's wet dream. Second track, 'Terminal', is more predictable in style and gently rolls along, ironically similar to the style of Alan Parsons. Very Chroma Key.

Third track 'False Start' is more Rammstein and has some wicked drum/guitar breakdowns. 'We Come Undone' returns to the Chroma Key formula, perhaps too much Moore and not enough...Matheos? Regardless, this is a song that will please the tech fans out there, who can sit for hours pondering how certain sounds were made. The keyboard in this is trance-like and mesmerising. For me, personally, the static sounds are merely disruptive in this particular song and don't suit it at all (I bet some fans will completely disagree with this perspective). The repetitive clap drum is also highly irritating.

'Radiologue' disrupts the hard/soft/hard/soft track listing order to date and is the first song on the album that seems to be a perfect amalgamation of the two musicians' styles. This is truly enjoyable: a well-constructed song with considered elements that fuse to create a definable style.

'Be the Hero' is another harder song, with great lyrical percussion...but similar to the other more guitar oriented songs on the album. 'Microburst Alert' is less predictable and, again a great fusion of glitch with some interesting drumming. Perhaps because Moore doesn't sing on this song, it manages to gain independence from the Chroma Key sound.

'Stockholm', featuring lyrics and vocals by Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth), sounds like a completely different band. This track resonates with echoes of Massive Attack, that pondering groove which reaches deep inside you. I love this song, and perhaps this indicates I like an OSI that sounds less like Chroma Key, and the only way this can be achieved is through Moore stepping down on vocals more frequently. A song with feeling and heart. Towards the end, the guitars pound in, and hammer renewed intensity to the end. 'Blood', the title track, is another softer track...more of the same.

Compared to previous OSI albums such as Office of Strategic Influence, the lyrics on Blood are more...mediocre, slightly too obscure. The music is less math prog-rock and the two styles of music are so disparate it seems they should be on separate albums. I wonder if Portnoy's departure affected the tone of the music considerably, as his drumming style was more complex? I ponder if another vocalist would bring more impact to OSI's music; Moore's vocals suit perfectly the Chroma Key style, but not so much the harder, faster songs of OSI. Overall, not a memorable OSI outing, but with some interesting tracks. Hopefully, by the next album, a more cohesive line-up and additional guest vocals will add something special to the mix.

Check out the OSI website here to get your copy of Blood. The album's special edition comes with a bonus disc.