Every Time I Die - "Ex Lives"
A special holiday should be declared when the southern-tinged, hardcore outfit known as Every Time I Die releases a new album, and I have treated its last two releases as such.
The Buffalo, N.Y. quintet has returned with an album that hearkens back to old mathcore days of ETID, as well as taking what the group has learned from the past few albums and incorporating it in a much more mature way. But do not fret, because the southern and groove influences that have been so prevalent in its past albums still runs strong on this release.
"Ex Lives" leads off with "Underwater Bimbos from Outer Space," a track that is primarily rooted in technical hardcore. It feels like a tune that could have fit on ETID's "Hot Damn!" release from 2003. Keith Buckley provides another one of his admirable one-liners in the song's closing breakdown, declaring "I refuse to be the only man put to rest in a mass grave."
A few other highlights on the album include the beautifully melodic and old-school rock 'n' roll influenced "Revival Mode," which features a guitar solo from John Christ of Danzig fame, and "Indian Giver," a track that takes influence from the special type of sludge metal that Mastodon offered on its earlier works.
I will go out on a limb and say this is the best and most complete release by ETID thus far. On many tracks the band has somewhat found its way to its more chaotic days of "Hot Damn!" and "Last Night in Town," while successfully incorporating its beer-drinking, southern grooves from the past three albums. Many may argue the band has been combining these successfully in the past anyway, which I will not argue, because it has; it's just more obvious on this release. But the more impressive bits of the album are the tracks where ETID branches outside of its comfort zone, such as the previously mentioned songs "Revival Mode" and "Indian Giver." With "Ex-Lives" ETID take its abilities and influences to new, mountainous heights. I can only imagine what the band has in store for us next time.
Robert Pollard - "Mouseman Cloud"
I have never had a negative thing to say about indie rock god and Guided By Voices mastermind Robert Pollard. In his massive discography, he comes off with a sincerity that is just too hard to deny. I feel that even the slick-produced GBV album "Do the Collapse" is a monster of an album, despite the overwhelming amount of naysayers who will bash the album for deviating from his lo-fi tendencies and lack of strong material.
The "Mouseman Cloud" is not Pollard's most fascinating or best work, but it is an album I enjoy quite a bit and, like most of his work, it's just an odd album. Tracks such as "Dr. Time" and "Bats Flew Up" really play to Pollard's best strengths: short and sweet rock 'n' rollers with particular emphasis on his unique and odd poetry. Although, these songs are highly enjoyable little tunes, Pollard really shines when his brand of poetry is paired up with the somewhat progressive and slightly psychedelic title track. On the track, Pollard sings "Pigs in the oyster dip squeal for the oxygen drip." These lyrics perfectly represent the loose and disjointed nature of the track.
I think it is difficult to do Pollard's work justice with a written review, as his genius is sometimes beyond my comprehension and beyond human description. "Mouseman Cloud" is a solid, pleasing album written by a tried and true legend. It is not the most groundbreaking work on the planet, but he has already blazed brilliantly artistic paths in the past that many artists can only dream about.
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