Friday Random Ten, 11/06 : Good Math, Bad Math

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Mark Chu-Carroll (aka MarkCC) is a PhD Computer Scientist, who works for Google as a Software Engineer. My professional interests center on programming languages and tools, and how to improve the languages and tools that are used for building complex software systems.

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Friday Random Ten, 11/06

Category: Music
Posted on: November 6, 2009 2:58 PM, by Mark C. Chu-Carroll

Porcupine Tree, "Kneel and Disconnect": New Porcupine Tree! It's always great to get new stuff from these guys. It's good, but it's not up to the quality of their last two albums. (But given that their last two were utterly amazing, that's not much of a criticism.)
Mind Games, "Royalty in Jeopardy": Some prog that I recently found via eMusic. They've got a sound that I describe as being sort of like a mix between Yes and Marillion. They're very good - I wouldn't put them in the top ranks of neo-prog, but they're not at the bottom either.
Riverside, "Cybernetic Pillow": Now, these guys, I would definitely put in the top ranks of neo-prog. Riverside is a Polish prog-rock band, formed by members of a couple of other heavy metal bands. They're absolutely brilliant. This track is off their album "Rapid Eye Movement", which I'd recommend as a first Riverside album.
Marillion, "Hard as Love (acoustic)": This is the version of "Hard as Love"" from their recent acoustic album. HaL was one of their louder, poppier, catchier tunes - a Marillion rocker. To call this just an acoustic mix doesn't do it justice. They took the basic bones of the song, and completely rebuilt it. It's an amazing change. The acoustic version swaps the bridge and the chorus, completely changing the fell of the structure, and turning it into something that's almost a ballad. Amazing, and much better than the original version of the song.
Thinking Plague, "This Weird Wind": Thinking Plague is a group that I have a hard time describing. To me, they sound like a very out-there post-rock group with classical influences, but I've been told that they call themselves a "Rock in Opposition" band. What they are is a distinctly peculiar ensemble. They've got vocals, but they use the singers voice like it's just another instrument in the mix - it's not leading the song in any way, it's just part of the music. The music itself is frequently atonal, with a very peculiar sound. The guitarist sounds very much like one of Robert Fripp's GuitarCraft students - but when I mentioned that in the past, he showed up in the comments saying "Who's Robert Fripp?" I love Thinking Plague, but I have a hard time recommending them - they're so strange that most people won't like them. If you're a big fan of both neo-progressive rock and 20th century classical, then definitely give them a listen.
EQ, "Closer": IQ is back! IQ is a progressive band that got started around the same time as Marillion. Also like Marillion, they started off sounding like a Peter Gabriel-era Genesis rip-off, but they've evolved their own very distinct sound over the years. They're absolutely fantastic - I'd put them up in the top of neo-progressive bands with Marillion and the Flower Kings. And they just released a new album, which is absolutely fantastic.
Sonic Youth, "Rain King (live)": Very typical Sonic Youth - strange tonality. Loud. Tons of hidden complexity. Brilliant. And performed live! No studio tricks here.
Kayo Dot, "The Useless Ladder": Another very hard-to-describe band. Roughly, they're what you get when a progressive metal band decides to start writing 21st century classical chamber music. Very, very highly recommended.
Red Sparrowes, "And By Our Own Hand Did Every Last Bird Lie Silent In Their Puddles, The Air Barren Of Songs As The Clouds Drifted Away. For Killing Their Greatest Enemy, The Locusts Noisily Thanked Us And Turned Their Jaws Toward Our Crops, Swallowing Our Greed Whole": It took me longer to type the title of that than it did to listen to it. Red Sparrowes is a really excellent post-rock band. But frankly, this track just annoys be because of the damn title.
Rachel's, "A French Gallease": A beautiful track by my favorite of the classically-leaning post-rock ensembles.

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Comments

Is the Sonic Youth track from that deluxe reissue? I haven't gotten it yet, but live recordings tend to show them in a very good light.

Posted by: Zachary | November 9, 2009 11:52 AM

Hi Mark - a couple corrections:

"Thinking Plague ...To me, they sound like a very out-there post-rock group with classical influences, but I've been told that they call themselves a "Rock in Opposition" band."

Not so. We have never approved of that term. It's non-descriptive, meaningless and mis-applied. I like your description better, frankly. But I'd porbably call us "advanced" or "avant" progressive.

"The music itself is frequently atonal, with a very peculiar sound."

I would contest the idea that TP is "atonal". More like polytonal or "extended" tonal. We have tonal "centers", but they may be more ambiguous or juxtaposed with other centers. It's why the music does NOT sound like, say, 12-tone music. Many have said that our music is "hummable" (with enough listens)...

" The guitarist sounds very much like one of Robert Fripp's GuitarCraft students - but when I mentioned that in the past, he showed up in the comments saying "Who's Robert Fripp?"

I'm that guitarist, and I've admired Fripp ever since 1970 when I first heard Crimson. So, that wasn't me, and I have NEVER participated in Fripp's GuitarCraft program. I'm a 'self-created' guitarist - not a Fripp 'product'.

"I love Thinking Plague, but I have a hard time recommending them - they're so strange that most people won't like them."

I'm thrilled that you 'love' us. However, I don't think we're so 'strange'. We're just "modern" (as opposed to "post-modern"). It's a "rock" music aesthetic applied to a 20th century harmonic/rhythmic sensibility. However, it's not random (aleatoric), 12-tone, atonal (per se'), nor totally "inaccesible". It just takes more listens. We're really more like neo-romantic/polytonality performed by a "band" with guitars, bass, drums, synths, samplers, pianos, saxes, flutes, voices, ocassionally with accordions, harmoniums, etc. Your readers can hear samples here: www.thinkingplague.org Judge for yourselves.
Mike Johnson

Posted by: Anonymous | November 11, 2009 8:26 PM