SOUNDTRACK: CALLA-Calla (1999).
I got this album when a patron donated it to the library. I had never heard of this band, but the other CDs he donated were really cool so I grabbed this one, too. This is an almost entirely instrumental album (vocals are whispered when present) that feels like a soundtrack to a futuristic Western. “Tarantula” opens with some creepy, ghostly sounds and then what sounds like spurs walking across the landscape. When the guitar comes in it sounds like an old Western. In many ways this album reminds me of a great band called Scenic, although this one makes more use of electronics, which gives it a more eerie feeling.
“Custom Car Crash” has a very Western feel. Over creepy scraping sounds, a clean guitar plays very simple guitar lines and chords. When the keyboard lilts over the noise, it’s quite eerie. This song has vocals; deep, almost whispered vocals, and I can’t really make them out, There’s also a live bonus version at the end which really captures the studio version, but which I think is better. “June” has a slow droney sound: more atmospheric than anything else–it seems maybe ten years ahead of its time). The 8 minute “Only Drowning Men:” introduces more guitars and a lit of tension. From the noise a delicate guitar pattern emerges for the last minute of the song.
“Elsewhere” is full of buzzy guitars; there’s a live version at the end of the disc as well. “Truth About Robots” is my favorite track, a real melody over the noise. Despite its length (just over 2:30), it tells a full story.
“Trinidad” comes a surprise because it opens with bass (you don’t hear much bass on this album). But “Keyes” is so quiet as to be almost not there. “Awake and Under” on the other hand has a great guitar and bass sequence with spoken lyrics (reminiscent of many indie bands of the 90s) but which is very effective here. There’s a live version as a bonus track and it is a highlight.
This is more interesting music for creating atmosphere, but not something I’d listen to a lot. I was surprised to find out how many albums they had out.
[READ: March 2, 2012] “A Prairie Girl”
I’ve enjoyed Thomas McGuane stories before, but I wasn’t sure if I’d like this one as it opens with a brothel. Since I’m thinking about the implications of sex in Gravity’s Rainbow, the last thing I needed was a hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold story. But this isn’t that. And it has a brothel with a very funny name: The Butt Hut . The Butt Hut closes down when the madam dies. Most of the women moved away (either with local men (to the dismay of many) or on their own). But one girl who stayed was Mary Elizabeth Foley.
Mary Elizabeth attended church weekly, but most of the people gave her a wide berth—literally an empty pew. It was finally decided that someone should speak to her since she wasn’t going away. And so Mrs Gladstone Chandler, wife of the town’s bank owner and all around respected individual, sat near her during the mass. Afterward, she asked Mary Elizabeth: “Where are you from?” Mary Elizabeth answered “What business is it of yours?” And she soon had her pew back. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY-How Strange, Innocence (2005).
Explosions in the Sky is one of those instrumental bands that the kids are raving about these days. Bands have been doing instrumentals forever, really, but I guess about a decade or so ago, some bands started specializing in an all instrumental format. Bands like Scenic, Mogwai and Godspeed You Black Emperor are probably the forefathers, although to be honest I can’t think of too too many more bands doing the style (aside from the Constellation Label in general). These bands work a great, atmospheric sound, usually building to a crescendo and pulling away before reaching the ultimate climax. This album is EITS’ first, recently reissued. There are some bands who hit their stride running on their first record, these usually seem to be bands that aren’t too complicated. Nothing wrong with them, in fact their debuts are often stellar, as if they were born playing their style. EITS is not one of these bands. 
I Just Read About That... 