Music Tapes, The / Music Tapes For Clouds And Tornadoes
Album: Music Tapes For Clouds And Tornadoes   Collection:General
Artist:Music Tapes, The   Added:Aug 2008
Label:Merge Records  

A-File Activity
Add Date: 2008-11-30 Pull Date: 2009-02-01
Week Ending: Feb 1 Jan 25 Jan 18 Jan 11 Jan 4 Dec 21 Dec 14 Dec 7
Airplays: 2 3 3 2 2 1 1 6

Recent Airplay
1. Aug 31, 2011: bricolage
Song For Oceans Falling
4. Dec 10, 2009: Musically Assured Destruction
The Minister Of Longitude
2. Dec 07, 2010: No Dead Air
Majesty
5. Oct 08, 2009: Musicially assured destruction
Nimbus Stratus Cirrus (Mr. Piano's Majestic Haircut)
3. Feb 04, 2010: orangeasm
Nimbus Stratus Cirrus (Mr. Piano's Majestic Haircut)
6. May 28, 2009: best of orangeasm part i
Majesty

Album Review
Danny Neumann
Reviewed 2008-11-14
Free-form, lilting, lo-fi, psychedelic. Sounds like scratchy field recordings of traditional British and Irish songs. Throaty, emotive singing, which often breaks into rubato solos (ie, free tempo). The musical saw and heavily-plucked banjo chords are featured on almost every track. Lots of other whimsical instruments. By a past member of Neutral Milk Hotel, this is your typical Elephant 6 Collective album. This guy seems pretty bright and takes his music seriously. No detectable FCCs, Main picks: 4, 5, 15

1) (1:22) Ghostly singing saw, throaty singing, ping pong ball tapping noises, dramatic classic movie strings. Starts sparse, gets pretty trippily layered. Starts crying out names of clouds.
2) (0:55) Just singing saw, with some distortion. Creepy.
3) (2:59) Sparse, plodding, with heavily plucked banjo. Same throaty singing.
** 4) (2:45) Great song. Noisy, percussive, exuberant, epic. Poppy, catchy. Heavily reminiscent of Olivia Tremor Control.
** 5) (2:45) At first, waltzy, drifting, with a ghostly chorus of singing saws. Becomes upbeat, with this incredibly catchy piano line with tambourine. No vocals except “Nimbus, Stratus.”
6) (3:14) A little reflective. Accordion. Has this percussive triplet line that starts and stops, punctuated by emotive singing. A lot like Radiohead’s Exit Music.
* 7) (3:58) Another lilting song, also somewhat reflective. Builds up with that singing saw sound, violins, a folksy bass line.
8) (6:04) Pokey, sparse, sadder song. Sounds like it’s played on an old scratchy vinyl. Dramatic singing saw and brass at the end, with maybe some accordion. Gets sparse again, yelpy, emotive and sad.
* 9) (0:54) Just singing saws this time. Sounds like a chorus of ghosts. Dramatic, rich, and yes, creepy.
* 10) (4:46) Strong, upbeat, very similar to Beatles at points. Military drumming. Incongruous fill every so often with solo euphonium and percussion.
11) (3:38) Sounds a lot like other tracks on this album. Sparse with heavily-plucked banjo chorded and yelpy vocals.
* 12) (1:01) The ghost chorus makes a reappearance. More delicate and pretty this time.
** 13) (4:48) Banjo, strings (viola, cello heavy), free form, ¾ waltz. I’m getting this uncontrollable urge to start clog dancing. Cool plucked strings part. Momentum comes in and out.
14) (0:32) Beautiful, antique solo baritone voice, with background noise and talking.
** 15) (3:40) Carefree, tom-heavy drumming, vocal dum-dum-dum’s and warm scratchy synth, in swung 5/4 time

-dannyn

Track Listing
1. Saw Ping Pong And Orchestra   9. Kolyada #1
2. Schedrevka   10. The Minister Of Longitude
3. Freeing Song For Reindeer   11. Manifest Destiny
4. Majesty   12. Kolyada #2
5. Nimbus Stratus Cirrus (Mr. Piano's Majestic Haircut)   13. Cumulonimbus (Magnetic Tape For Clouds)
6. Freeing Song By Reindeer   14. Julian And Grandpa
7. Tornado Longing For Freedom   15. In An Ice Palace
8. Song For Oceans Falling   .