Parts & Labor - "Ghosts Will Burn" (mp3)
Parts & Labor made my 4th favorite album of 2006, and so far they're the only artist from that list to make an appearance on my list in progress this year (although Styles P.'s already got something new out that I should probably check for). Anytime an artist, especially a rock band, puts out back to back albums in two consecutive years, I'm inclined to root for them, though, especially since Mapmaker is at least as good as, and maybe better than Stay Afraid. Covering the Minutemen is a pretty reliable way to get on my good side, too. The drummer posts to ILM and seems cool enough based on my limited interactions with him, but I don't really know the dude, so I'll praise his band without reservation.
The vocals are still kind of their weak spot, although they've improved somewhat from the last record (the froggier of the two singers belongs on this roundtable, but really I'm one to talk). I can't really focus on the lyrics even with the lyric sheet in front of me (the stream of consciousness-style lack of punctuation is just hard to look at), but they seem decent enough. My favorite part of the album is the midway stretch that begins with "New Crimes" and runs for the next few tracks, peaking with "Ghosts Will Burn." The latter begins with an loud, grinding noise that gradually reveals a melody, which sounds like it was played on a modified vacuum cleaner. My girlfriend's exact response, when I was listening to it yesterday: "what is that horrible noise?...no really, that's awful." It's kind of the apex of their whole abrasive yet beautiful aesthetic, although if I had to really pick the best part of the album, it would be the vaguely surf guitar-ish melodies on "New Crimes" and "Fake Rain."
Parts & Labor made my 4th favorite album of 2006, and so far they're the only artist from that list to make an appearance on my list in progress this year (although Styles P.'s already got something new out that I should probably check for). Anytime an artist, especially a rock band, puts out back to back albums in two consecutive years, I'm inclined to root for them, though, especially since Mapmaker is at least as good as, and maybe better than Stay Afraid. Covering the Minutemen is a pretty reliable way to get on my good side, too. The drummer posts to ILM and seems cool enough based on my limited interactions with him, but I don't really know the dude, so I'll praise his band without reservation.
The vocals are still kind of their weak spot, although they've improved somewhat from the last record (the froggier of the two singers belongs on this roundtable, but really I'm one to talk). I can't really focus on the lyrics even with the lyric sheet in front of me (the stream of consciousness-style lack of punctuation is just hard to look at), but they seem decent enough. My favorite part of the album is the midway stretch that begins with "New Crimes" and runs for the next few tracks, peaking with "Ghosts Will Burn." The latter begins with an loud, grinding noise that gradually reveals a melody, which sounds like it was played on a modified vacuum cleaner. My girlfriend's exact response, when I was listening to it yesterday: "what is that horrible noise?...no really, that's awful." It's kind of the apex of their whole abrasive yet beautiful aesthetic, although if I had to really pick the best part of the album, it would be the vaguely surf guitar-ish melodies on "New Crimes" and "Fake Rain."
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