Despite Redefining Records’ hiatus the last couple months, the music world kept spinning as usual and I thought I would give a brief recap some of the records I was spinning during this time. Take a peek~

RELAXER

alt-J

“FUCK YOU. I’LL DO, WHAT I WANNA DO”

Nothing describes this album better than the final lines from track four, “Hit Me Like That Snare.” Relaxer is the third studio album from Leeds-based indie rock band, alt-J and it puts their full creative force on display. On this album the band continues to do what they do best, weirdness. But that’s a broad generalization. What we have here is some real diversity. “3WW” is a beautifully crafted ballad that builds fingerpicked guitars, haunting piano melodies and intimate vocals to a big finish, Ellie Rowsell of Wolf Alice (who also have a new album dropping soon) gives a vocal feature that fits like a glove. The album also includes a very original sounding cover of “House of the Rising Sun,” electronic-fueled jams like “Deadcrush,” as well as attempts at blues, grunge, and classical/gospel-esque music. The album is a bit all over the place, and runs fairly dry at the end with the final three tracks. Overall not a perfect record, but it’s hard not to appreciate alt-J’s willingness for the unconventional. It’s quite obvious they really don’t give a fuck what people think and just make stuff that sounds cool to them.

Favorite songs: “3WW,” “In Cold Blood”

7.4/10

Everything Now

Arcade Fire

Win Butler and company scream “Everything now, I need, I want it, I can’t live without it” repeatedly through the album’s single and opening track. The truth is you could probably live without it… BUT I think it’s still a solid album! You could say that it shows ‘signs of life’. Everything Now is fifth studio album from Canadian indie rock gods Arcade Fire and it represents a continuation of the band’s recent move towards dance music following 2013’s Reflektor. If you are a die hard fan of the band’s older sound, circa Funeral through The Suburbs, then you will probably be unhappy here. If you appreciate a more new wave, electronic infused sound, this album is actually pretty dope. “Creature Comfort” is a jam you won’t mind having stuck in your head for a few weeks and “Put Your Money On Me” is a steady, sexy synth ballad about true love that won’t make you cringe. I really appreciate their attempt to tackle themes of internet culture, instant gratification, and tech anxiety. I do however, believe good chunks of the album are underdeveloped or rather shallow at times. The “Infinite Content/Infinite_Content” pair was an intriguing idea but seemed to fall short regardless. There are a couple of honestly bad tracks on this thing which isn't typical of the band but you can pretty much skip “Chemistry” and “Electric Blue,” the latter of which was a real shame because it had such a cool groove and instrumentation but was ruined by Régine Chassagne’s horrid vocals, which were a consistent letdown throughout the album. Overall, totally worth a listen though! I also enjoyed the album’s closer “We Don’t Deserve Love.”

Favorite songs: “Creature Comfort,” “Put Your Money On Me”

6.2/10

Sacred Hearts Club

Foster the People

Three years since releasing Supermodel, Foster the People returned earlier this year with their EP, III which contained three tracks that would eventually be included in their newest and third studio album, Sacred Hearts Club. I mainly ignored the first two tracks and wrote them off as mediocre because the third track, “SHC” was fantastic and I think it’s one of their best songs ever. Now that I’ve listened to the whole album, I think the other two tracks were actually pretty solid as well, especially “Pay the Man.” Overall, Sacred Hearts Club is a bit of a mixed bag (seeing a trend here). The album doesn't seem to have a consistent flow or any kind of goal except to explore the different sounds this band is capable of creating, which it does fairly successfully. The official lead single from the album, “Loyal Like Sid & Nancy” shows off their production ability and passion for EDM style electronics, while it was well produced, I think the track itself is on the bland side but it should please radio listeners. I was more impressed with the electronic sound on the final track, “III.” The interludes, “Orange Dream” and “Time to Get Closer” are a nice attempt at glueing some of the scattered pieces together but also fail to do anything interesting or unique. If you are die-hard fan of the band’s first album, Torches, you will probably enjoy “Static Space Lover” which features a great performance from Jena Malone.

Favorite Songs: “SHC,” “Static Space Lover”

7.1/10

Woodstock

Portugal. The Man

After the release of 2013’s Evil Friends, Portugal. The Man quickly skyrocketed to being one of my favorite bands. They have an amazing live presence and an apparent aptitude for unique songwriting. That made the anticipation for the next album heavy and the expectations high. Woodstock is the band’s eighth full length record and was mostly disappointing. The album is not bad, but it’s miles below what Evil Friends was. The first single, “Noise Pollution” had a dark, edgy sound and was decent enough. I don’t think the song got many people excited but it certainly didn’t deter listeners. Then of course we got the second single, “Feel It Still” which was an absolute hit, and deservingly so, it was one of the catchiest songs of the summer. The track itself undeniably hinted the bands movement towards a more pop sound. The rest of the album followed suit, save for a few tracks. The opening song, “Number One” had a cool baseline but is otherwise terrible. “Easy Tiger” is more of the same. A good chunk of the rest of the songs are more attempts at catchy pop songs that aren't too terrible. The incredibly unique songwriting off their last album was no where to be seen here.

Favorite Songs: “Keep On,” “So Young”

5.9/10

Soft Sounds from Another Planet

Japanese Breakfast

I was excited to discover Michelle Zauner’s solo project this summer. Soft Sounds from Another Planet is refreshing and intensely personal, giving it a sense of being a debut album when in fact, it is actually her second record under the name Japanese Breakfast. On this album, she creates some really great soundscapes and ambience while still delivering solid pop vocals to keep things interesting and exciting to listen to. The instrumentation is impressive throughout and her guitar playing draws from a heavier punk influence that adds nice contrast. About half the songs are on the slower side which can run dry but they fit the lyrical themes, she clearly wears her heart on her sleeve on these songs. However there are a couple of tracks that really lay down good grooves and are hard not to dance to.