4 posts tagged Veronica Falls

I posted my Top 25 Albums list exactly one month ago, way earlier than I had ever done before in the past. Although there are about ten to fifteen albums I would have loved to include, this is a solid representation of the kind of music and genres I was really moved by this year. One thing I noticed is that I listen to far more singles and EPs in the electronica genre — anything experimental and noisy is worth four minutes of time — but when albums are concerned I favored more traditional set-ups (guitar-based rock and pop). Even Bibio’s Mind Bokeh, for example, is an electronic album rooted with a myriad of guitars and organic instruments. A winning combo.

There’s a balance between those genres that feeds my younger childhood and adolescent experiences, and also a strong signal of where music is headed. Bradford Cox’s Atlas Sound demonstrates this approach to music time and time again, and he succeeds, while Thee Oh Sees are a straightforward psychedelic guitar-rock fury that is irresistible. I don’t really see myself deviating away from these kinds of records for a long time.

25. Regina: Soita Mulle (Friendly Fire)

24. True Widow: As High As The Highest Heavens And From The Center To The Circumference Of The Earth (Kemado)

23. Bibio: Mind Bokeh (WARP) 

22. Unknown Mortal Orchestra: Unknown Mortal Orchestra (Fat Possum)

21. Crystal Stilts: In Love With Oblivion (Slumberland)

20. Thundercat: The Golden Age of Apocalypse (Brainfeeder)

19. Toro Y Moi: Underneath The Pine (Carpark)

18. John Maus: We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves (Ribbon Music)

17. Destroyer: Kaputt (Merge)  

16. Thee Oh Sees: Carrion Crawler/The Dream (In the Red)

15. Young Montana?: Limerance (Alpha Pup)

14. Disappears: Guider (Kranky)

13. Mogwai: Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will (Sub Pop)

12. Dirty Beaches: Badlands (Zoo Music)

11. White Denim: D (Downtown)

10. Patten: GLAQJO XAACSSO (No Pain in Pop)

9. 400 Blows: Sickness and Health (ORG Music)

8. Iceage: New Brigade (What’s Your Rupture?)

7. Belong: Common Era (Kranky)

6. I Break Horses: Hearts (Bella Union)

5. PJ Harvey: Let England Shake (Vagrant)

4. Veronica Falls: Veronica Falls (Slumberland)

3. Shabazz Palaces: Black Up (Sub Pop)

2. Kurt Vile: Smoke Ring For My Halo (Matador)

1. Atlas Sound: Parallax (4AD)

When I’m old and grey and my grand kids ask me about music in the 2000’s I’ll simply point to a photo of Bradford Cox. That’s right. I’m going to have a large section on the wall in my living room dedicated to musical heroes. Whether Bradford is releasing Atlas Sound records or co-writing with Deerhunter he can do no wrong. His songwriting is leagues beyond anyone else, and his mastery of the basic components of sound-sculpting (effects, gadgets, technology) is carried out with such care. Cox reveals pain, fragility, sarcasm, love and fear like they’re everyday household items that we swallow like pills before leaving to work each morning.

As the years have passed, Bradford comes across more and more like a typical American-bred young man dealing with all of the same bullshit that gets fed to us when we’re young, or at least that’s my impression. The real world turned out to be less colorful and kind than our teachers, parents and neighbors led us to believe, and Bradford is our spokesman. He makes music for our escape, and in exchange, he needs an audience to comfort those memories that curate our fleeting musical moments where we all drift away. We, the listeners, are in a closely-knit relationship with Bradford, and Parallax takes us to third base.