Motion City Soundtrack - My Dinosaur Life: D

"Her Words Destroyed My Planet"

It is nearly impossible to extricate My Dinosaur Life from the concept of irony. It's inescapable, saturating every note, theme, and lyric that Motion City Soundtrack play and singer Justin Pierre sings. Listening to first track, "Worker Bee", in which Pierre screams "I've been a good worker bee. I deserve a GOLD STAR!", one can imagine the tech assistants snickering during the recording. The problem with My Dinosaur Life is that, in this same scenario, Pierre would probably look at them with a puzzled look, wondering why anyone would laugh at his seemingly serious lyrics. You see, with the release of My Dinosaur Life, it would appear Motion City Soundtrack have come down with the same ailment that has afflicted Weezer for nearly a decade. Instead of using irony as a tool to mold an identity for their sound, MCS have allowed irony to become their identity. It is no coincidence that My Dinosaur Life houses music widely different from Motion City Soundtrack's past releases. Those previous three albums' tunes revolved around themes of unsureness and vulnerability, Pierre's emotive voice fitting the material to an almost uncomfortable degree. Now, however, it sounds as if Motion City Soundtrack have finally gathered a confidence in their craft. Unfortunately for them, this results in an enormous drop-off in quality; confidence in spewing cringeworthy non sequiturs and nauseating pop culture references. So, ultimately, the good news is that MCS have finally found their identity, but the bad news is that identity entails the abandonment of all the elements that made them identifiable. How ironic.

Motion City Soundtrack - My Dinosaur Life: D

Surfer Blood - Astro Coast: B+

"Floating Vibes"

"Swim", the first single from Surfer Blood's debut album, never struck me as Astro Coast's highlight as much as many other publications proclaimed. In fact, I see that song in the context of the rest of the album as an outlier; the comical amount of reverb and admittedly anthemic chorus awkward juxtaposed with the clean guitar jams surrounding the track. Instead, I'm more partial to "Floating Vibes". Its speaker-rattling treble and general buoyancy is a much better representation of the elements that make Surfer Blood's debut such an enriching experience.

If you like "Floating Vibes", you'll enjoy the rest of Astro Coast. The album is thoroughly pleasant if not consistent, but never bereft of variance. Don't like "Fast Jabroni"? Perhaps you'll like "Slow Jabroni". And if not then, maybe the bouncy "Twin Peaks" is more your style, or the smooth "Harmonics", or the penultimate track, "Take It Easy". Don't like any of that? Eh, who needs ya.

In a way, Surfer Blood have released the perfect debut album. Astro Coast establishes a definite sound with some major songwriting potential at work, but never peaks early. There is much room for improvement and plenty to expand upon for future releases. This isn't the last we'll hear of Surfer Blood, and Astro Coast puts the band in a nice position to have an excellent career.

Surfer Blood - Astro Coast: B+

Spoon - Transference: B

"Written in Reverse"

For some reason, no matter how many times I try, I cannot get into Spoon. For all the critical acclaim that the band has received over the past decade, I have never really seen the Texas troupe as much more than an outfit content to spend a career coasting on an aura of cool that I'm not sure ever really existed. My only in-depth encounters with the band have been through hearing "I Turn My Camera On", a truly awful song, "The Underdog", actually quite a good song, and this album.

And any notion of Spoon being anything more than an adequate indie rock band was all but abandoned with the hearing of Transference, the band's fifth work. As I alluded to before, too much of Transference relies on the repetition of a few measures of music, and when those measures don't necessarily hold an ear for longer than a minute, Transference can feel like less of an insult and more of just a plain old disappointment.

But, lucky for Spoon, a good portion of the melodies crafted on Transference range from listenable to downright catchy. Songs like "Written in Reverse" and first single "Got Nuffin" prove to be pretty potent earworms. Nothing on Transference gets anywhere near outstanding, however, which only convinces me further that Spoon has just smirked unconvincingly past yet another album, high off a cloud of pure, unadulterated adequacy.

Spoon - Transference: B

These New Puritans - Hidden: B+

"Attack Music"

There is no doubt that Hidden is an album worth listening to, if for nothing more than the band's use of percussion. For eleven tracks, styles that span the spectrum of musicality are compiled, blended, and, most importantly, manipulated into something purely all its own. For that in itself, Jack Bennett and his group should be applauded.

However, Hidden has its major flaws, the majority of which lie in the fact that its songs, for however interesting they are, don't necessarily go anywhere. And for certain songs, that is fine, but any one that doesn't immediately spark one's interest starts showing some pretty conspicuous cracks once repetition sets in. "Drum Courts - Where the Corals Lie" is the best example of this problem. The song is six minutes of intricately-laid drum beats that begin to wear on one's patience once your realize that the lyrics debase to Barrett teasing you as to where the corals lie by the end of the track.

Despite its flaws, Hidden is a worthy listen; a collection of songs that will surely whet your pallet for music theory, but may be found to be lacking in overall songwriting clout.

These New Puritans - Hidden: B+

Freedy Johnston - Rain on the City: D

"Rain on the City"

You know that douschebag that walks around your town with an acoustic guitar and plays songs chemically engineered to be liked despite hackneyed lyrics and a penchant for cliched musicality? Bring him into your house, and he'll play on your piano some shitty ballad that's basically his acoustic work but (OMG) slower and (OMFG) even more vulnerable and cheesy? Yeah, well if that douschebag released an album, it would be Freedy Johnston's Rain on the City, one with almost as much uninspired, chick-baiting gobbledygook as that of a Jason Mraz concert. What might make Johnston worse than Mraz, though, is that Mraz knows that his music has little depth. It would appear that Johnston really believes this shit is inspiring people. And if you're somehow encapsulated by Rain on the City's depressing blandness, you have no one to blame but yourself.

Freedy Johnston - Rain on the City: D

Owen Pallett - Heartland: A-

"Lewis Takes Off His Shirt"

Owen Pallet can be an acquired taste, mostly due to his voice. Frail and often trembling, it can at times sound as if Owen is trying to converse with the melodies he creates rather than complimenting them. And when he harmonizes with himself, forget about it. The avalanche of avant garde is enough to take you out of the album, entirely. At least that's what happened to me upon first listen to certain parts of Heartland.

But look a little deeper, allow Pallett's voice to become familiar, and you will find Heartland to be quite an enriching experience. Not only is it an extremely well made album, it may be the best orchestrated album of all time. You see, Owen Pallett's MO is making music with little more in mind than a full orchestra and himself. This dynamic is reinforced by his live shows, which consist of himself, a violin, and a loop pedal recreating his albums' orchestral pieces one layer at a time. For Heartland, Pallett has the Czech Republic Philharmonic at his disposal, and he uses its musicians to their full potential. Songs like "Flare Gun" feature some breathtaking musicianship; songs where the orchestra is pushed to the forefront of the material rather than used as aural garnish.

Synthesizers, traditional pop percussion, and even bass can also be heard at various points of Heartland, all of which add another dimension to an otherwise wholly unique album. It also has a concept behind it (one I'm sure you're dying to know about) which, in context, clarifies some of Pallett's more bizarre lyrics. Heartland isn't to be missed as well made music for any modern music neophyte.

Owen Pallett - Heartland: A-

Laura Veirs - July Flame: A+

"July Flame"

July Flame is the kind of album that, once finished, will make you not want to breathe for fear of giving your musical experience a definite ending. In this fashion, few albums have endangered my life as beautifully as this one.

July Flame is the crowning achievement of Laura Veirs's career, and a near guarantee to be placed in my top five greatest albums of the year. Its songs are all steeped in whispery reverb and few are without an acoustic guitar. But make no mistake; July Flame is far from predictable. In fact, most of what makes the album so beautiful is the way Laura manipulates her craft in ways both reassuring and unsettling, but universally sublime. When Laura interrupts herself out of tempo to deliver the chorus of "Little Deschutes", it is undoubtedly awkward, but its repetition gives the song a memorable identity, one that will still be troublesome to get used to in even fifth or sixth listens. The tempo change in the middle of "Summer is Champion" was the moment that convinced me that July Flame was a classic.

Conversely, July Flame is not just music theory gymnastics. In fact, the greatest moments on the album are when Laura writes straightforward pop songs like the saccharine positivity-bender "Life Is Good" or the title track, where ominous percussion propels Veirs's verses of adoration for the titular month to a climax of voices all asking "Can I call you mine?".

July Flame has proven to be a stellar album for smoldering summer nights despite its January release, but the album's seasonal versatility should not come as a surprise to anyone. The songs of July Flame are perfect for nearly every mood, whether climatic or emotional. They can be soothing in fury or comforting in calm. The themes of July Flame are so universal yet so resonant, I have no problem imagining its songs being relevant to music listeners for generations to come. As long as mankind exists, there will always be self-doubt, there will always be yearning, and, always at some point, life will just feel good. Every mindset is a more than perfect excuse to listen to July Flame. Just make sure to remember to breathe when you're done with it.

Laura Veirs - July Flame: A+

Vampire Weekend - Contra: A-

"Run"

So what do you want me to say? That Contra is excellent? That, despite little musical deviation from their debut album, Vampire Weekend's newest is yet another keeper that will continue the band's domination of both Billboard charts and critical top ten lists?

Well it is. There isn't really much I could say about Contra that wouldn't be reiterating what critics have written about it since its release seven months ago. Songs like "Giving up the Gun" and, especially, "Run" are glorious pop romps that are both angelic and erudite, while songs like "Cousins" and "Holiday" own a certain spontaneity that hearkens back to the highlights of Vampire Weekend, such as that of "A-Punk".

But Contra isn't without its flaws, however slight they may be. Although an increased production value is welcomed to the overall album experience, some of Contra's songs suffer from far too meticulous planning, most notably on the otherwise exquisite "Horchata". And, although it may serve a narrative purpose, the Auto-Tune on "California English" is so distracting, it sounds more like a novelty jest rather than an analysis of what connotes identity.

Blah blah blah sophomore slump. Blah blah blah boat shoes. If you haven't listened to this album by now, it's a pretty good time to make it your album of the summer.

Vampire Weekend - Contra: A-