Labels: Almost Ready
Review by: Andy Malcolm
Basically I think comps are pretty worthless these days. Maybe ever. Unless you are attempting to sum up the state of a ‘scene’. Which is what records like All The Presidents Men did. And what “The World’s Lousy With Ideas Volume 8” does. For this record features the cream of the cop in the new Yankee garage / lo-fi – pop / indie scene, and it’s not just a bunch of throwaway crap like on various comps what have been released over the years. Vivian Girls open up and present us with “Lake House” which is a gorgeous slice of fuzzed out laziness that could have come straight off of that awesome Katie the Pest CD that not enough people know about. Rectify that please, if you enjoy this sound you need to be listening to Katie the Pest. The absurdly prolific Blank Dogs bounce off the end of that with their typical synthy “dark wave” or whatever you’re supposed to call it, basically they sound like Joy Division gone wrong. I can’t say I regularly sit down to listen to Blank Dogs, but I do enjoy them and in small doses they are particularly enjoyable. If you listen to that 2 x 12″ thing in one sitting, you are a tougher person than I. Times New Viking may steal the show on here with the stunning “A Lot Of Paintings”. I’ve struggled with this bands albums but this song is so super sweet. No production, messed harmonies, complete failure – plenty of bands do the thing where they record into something with the fidelity of a dictaphone, but Times New Viking are capable of writing an awesome song, and that is what sets them apart from the knuckle dragging masses. Intelligence did a fairly unremarkable LP on In the Red recently, but this loping fuzzy garage rock piece is eminently listenable, good work chaps! Guinea Worms wind down side A with a lumpen, loafing punk effort, great bassline and it sounds pretty drunk. I reckon this is somewhere between Moss Icon and something hipper. I like this a lot.
Flipping to side B, Sic Alps do the throw away track of the record, pointless noise and feedback, zzz. Easy to skip them to the ultra hip Thee Oh Sees, who actually disappoint with their effort, a fairly average slice of their garage rawness with echoing vocals. You’ll find far better on their most recent LP, but that’s not to say this is terrible. An average Thee Oh Sees effort is of more interest than song A by generic garage band B. Next is Tyvek (you should be getting the picture by now, the line up on this comp is astonishing), who deal a slow burning effort that meanders and like Guinea Worms is somewhere between Moss Icon and something hipper. This band is seriously impressive, and I just wish their LP on Siltbreeze had been a bit better. Rounding things out on here is Pink Reason, who do this towering epic, spiralling guitars and stoned vocals, there is so much to like on this track, teetering on the edge of falling apart. The way it builds and with the tribal drumming, this sounds really in the ball park of any number of mid 90s emo bands that anyone who likes this kind of music would be so quick to disown. It’s just the vocals that differ. I’m not making this up. This could have been on Goldenrod or something. Best track on the record.
So, um, easily the best comp I have heard in a lot of years. This record makes me very excited about new music. I hope it does for you too.