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August 31, 2005
Sound Raft
It's always an interesting day when you get to listen the first few times to one of your favorite band's new records. It can be a whole day of discovery, of drama, tension, happiness, perplexion, and many other random feelings.
One of my favorite bands, like in the top five favorite, are the Super Furry Animals, from Wales. Their new record, Love Kraft
I wasn't so sure at first. Every SFA record is so different, and they always manage to create something new while keeping a distinct vibe that is all theirs, that no one else could ever have. Love Kraft is no exception, but on the first few listens the songs seemed so mellow and, well, kind of boring. At first. I was kind of scratching my head thinking, well, is it going to take the live show to turn me around? Are these guys getting old or something? Where is the GUITAR? After the almost non-stop grunts and groans and wails of Britt Daniel, this took some getting use to.
Then I realized I wasn't listening to it loud enough. I simply turned up the volume and voila, there was Love Kraft, my new second favorite record of the moment (after you know what, and if you don't know what, you haven't been reading me very closely.)
What is it about these guys? The electric piano? The Hot Chocolate-esque disco chords? The Catalonian choir? What seems like a nickle scraped on an electric guitar's strings a la Jonny Greenwood? Or is it all of those things wrapped into one perfect package on the opening song, Zoom? It's a song that cries out for you to ingest something and lay on the couch in the dark listening over, and over, and over.
Not that I'm gonna do that. Unless someone's got a hookup. Just kidding (I think.)
From that adventure, it just goes on and on. Strings and horns on Atomik Lust bring you down to a mellow zone, only to have your head blown off mid-song by a 1970's style guitar solo with a hint of piano poundage on the perimeter. Throughout, harmonica, cowbell, la la la's, more strings, and lyrics like this:
Let's get our shit together
Insane with crackbrainz
I'd love to see the ending someday
Of Citizen Kane
Those wacky Furries! The whole vibe is very lush on this record. I can't wait till they tour here again and I can groove with the select few Southern Californians who know about these guys. In the meantime you can listen to Love Kraft HERE. For the uninitiated, start with Cabin Fever and go backwards. Don't forget, volume is KEY.
Posted by Shannon at August 31, 2005 7:45 PM
Posted to Adventures in Rock and Roll
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