No Color – The Dodos

The Dodos push aside their prior dullness, and give us something that's actually halfway-decent again.

Dodos are back to being a duo, in case you didn't know. I say that because I didn't. I wouldn't have had thought they were anything more than a two-person band if I didn't witness them take away the show when they opened for the New Pornographers in the Summer of 2010. It may have been that third member that made Time to Die so uninteresting, as they managed to be more assertive with creativity on No Color.

On their new release, The Dodos do what they always do. “Black Night” moves quickly, being perpetuated by Meric Long's extremely swift finger-picking. This energy is built by Logan Kroeber's heavily bassed heartbeat rhythm. (Note: Kroeber does not play with a bass drum, but rather synthesizes his low percussion sound with tom drums.)

I get the impression that the Dodos are fixing their mistakes, making up for the laziness that seemed too evident on their last release, Time to Die. The second track “Going Under” is a beautiful, memorable piece that will remind Dodos fans of their greatest songs, such as Visiter's “Fools” or Time to Die's seemingly single gem, “Fables.” This song will be one of the quintessential Dodos tracks, observing all traits that make up the Dodos' character: Kroeber's drum-rim-beating syncopation combined Long's sing-along chorus. Then of course, there's a powerful acoustic breakdown later in the track. [Insert sigh of relief.]

On “Don't Try to Hide It” the Long pulls your attention with an unusually folky strum pattern without a drumbeat that pounds on every note. Kroeber doesn't fail to deliver though, with something more tribal on this song. Long chants his mind-sticking chorus: “Don't try and hide it/Don't try and fight it”. I feel as if I could hear this performed right outside, with just some kid strumming away abusing his bass drum; it's a very realistic track where Long takes a step back from fast, bluegrass picking to perform something more approachable.

“When Will You Go” demands more sentimentality than it's more traditional predecessor. It's choppier, in a manner that goes outside of the Dodos typicality, but rather in a not-as-bright Vampire Weekend “A-Punk” way.

The next song, “Hunting Season” has a grungy, rough electric guitar melody that comes in during the middle of the song. It's strange and confusing, giving the song a sound as if it belongs on some lo-fi record from 15 years ago or possibly on your local “alternative” station-- regardless, it's rather peculiar and presents an awkward problem with the album; the electric guitar is distracting from the other voices of the songs. It also appears earlier in the album on “Don't Try to Hide It.” Although this is one of the stronger tracks on the record, it only sorta works here; it's still very upfront and blatant, deteriorating one's ability to appreciate the intricacy of Long's acoustic lines being interwoven with Kroeber's pounding.

“Don't Stop” is the conclusion to No Color and is a solid one at that. It's not some obnoxiously long epic tail that just throws around different lines of instrumentation, but rather it's curt, with an attractive, slower verse that covers Long's guitar at it's quickest and most elaborate. The song eventually slows, and with that, Kroeber eventually takes the musical attention and assists in building up the last minute of the song to an end.

No Color, although more of a comeback for the Dodos, does not have the same dynamic character as Visiter, which had 14 very distinct tracks. In general, they tend showcase the same style on each song on No Color. Nonetheless, it's extremely evident that the Dodos have the drive to try to erase past mistakes and drive themselves to stressed-phrased oblivion.

Let England Shake - PJ Harvey

5.0/5.0

PJ Harvey chants like Björk with the stature of an activist, complemented by frightening reverberation and lyrics.

PJ seems to call a meeting and give the low down on England in the album's first and title track. The conclusion? It's engulfed in isolation, having been destroyed, and it needs to desperately be woken up. PJ calls upon the country to “shake”, singing “weighted down with silent dead/I fear our blood won't rise again.” The lyrics force blame for England's less-than-likable state on the uncaring, as “indifference” appears to the victor in whatever battle the country was involved. The song's rhythm beats as if it were to follow marchers, those who greatly desire to see a better future for England. Backed with a xylophone melody, PJ's voice echoes as if through a microphone in a lecture hall to orient listeners with her thoughts in regards to the condition of modern England. 

PJ seems testy on the subject of England's state and determined to assist in its betterment, as she begins on album's next song, “The Last Living Rose,” with “Goddamn Europeans!” The accent of the guitar appeals to her aggravation; strums coincide with PJ's list of England's previous character with attacking syllables, giving it a dark attitude yet one that is honest and ideal for a call to action. She describes England as “beautiful” in the second line; however, the following imagery leaves listeners with a rather different concept, presenting England as a place someone would begrudgingly visit: “Let me walk through the stinking alleys/to the music of drunken beatings.” England's PJ Harvey is vicious, utilizing spiked words and rigid musical phrases.

Royal trumpet sounds whimper pathetically in the beginning of the song, “The Glorious Land.” It mostly serves as an annoyance to the other goings on of the track-- a track that causes shivers with the way PJ projects her voice. She chants alone, in brief when calling out “Oh America!” but is joined by a team, for a stammering “Oh England!” showing that she is far more curt with America. It seems as if she's crying out to the people of England in sympathy and desire to reach out. She even questions on the next track, “The Words That Maketh Murder”: “What if I take my problem to the United Nations?” This song in particular has the chorus appearance of a 1950's pop single-- a very spooky one, like a haunted version of The Four Lads' “Istanbul.”

“England” best represents PJ's English depression. Her country's title track is softer and more sensitive than the freaky anxiety presented by the previous tracks. She sings in a high register as she does throughout the album, but it's particularly evident in this song, giving her a Thom Yorke presence (see: “Reckoner” from Radiohead's In Rainbows.) “I live and die through England/Through England/It leaves a sadness/Remedies never within my reach,” PJ Harvey sings, clearly broken by the condition of her home. It's the most believable when she makes her vocal break later in the song, turning it into a heartfelt piece.

Let England Shake moves quickly from “England” on, with a continued focus on her country's destruction. On “Bitter Branches,” she tells her crowd of listeners to “wave goodbye” with their “bitter branches” for arms to rifled soldiers, building up the distinct sense of decrepitude that England has faced and will inevitably face. PJ Harvey also maintains her position on the final track, “The Colour Of The Earth”, which she describes as, “dull and browny red/The colour of blood I'd say.” It has the musical charm of a happy-go-lucky Irish tune, with lyrics that do not represent the same blissfulness.

It's relieving to hear a female, singer-songwriter that doesn't pain my ears with something so painfully built up with romantic apprehension that wraps itself up so much in stereotype. PJ Harvey luckily is a very different type of songwriter. In Let England Shake she puts herself on a pedestal-- not in a demeaning manner, but in a way that forces people to listen and possibly realize the state of their own country.