10 line record review: Marnie Stern - This is It and I am It and...

Marnie Stern - This Is It & I Am It & You Are It & So Is That & He Is It & She Is It & It Is It & That Is That (2008, Kill Rock Stars)


SOUNDS LIKE if a member of Sleater-Kinney fronted the band Battles, with a little bit of 80's guitar virtuosity resting on top.

APPEALS TO those with short attention spans.

FINDS SUCCESS IN Stern's virtuosic guitar technique, always used for good and never for evil.

FINDS DEFEAT IN some tracks lacking as much substance as the frenzied pace would suggest.

SONG TITLE THAT MOST APPEALS TO NICK "Roads? Where We're Going We Don't Need Roads"

TITLE is 30 words long, 60 shy of Fiona Apple's When the Pawn...

SKEPTICS BEWARE that this record is incredibly unique from any other female rock musician out there (this is no Liz Phair story or anything)

VIDEO PROVES that face paint is BACK, baby!


Marnie Stern - "Transformer"

PHIL'S STAND-OUT TRACKS are "The Package is Wrapped" and "Shea Stadium"

BEST OF 2008? This is a favorite to crack my Top 10.

cd review #1

This is an absolute great album. I feel it represents the 1960's avant garde really well in the "concentrated chaos" style. By this I mean the group improvisation is focused. You can tell that every one in the band is playing off of each other opposed to a full "freak out" session like an Albert Ayler album, and the conpositions are certainly rehearsed. Moncur writes great tunes, I am a huge fan of "Air Raid" and "Monk in Wonderland." The icing on the cake is the post jazz messenger, pre-Sidewinder Lee Morgan. This was his first record appearance for blue note since his leave from the messengers to overcome his heroin addiction. You can hear that this kind of playing isn't really his bag at the time but he sounds open to what he's hearing and plays remarkably well. I'm sure this session influenced him when he started with the area of style he worked on in the late 60's and early 70's. Jackie Mclean sounds great. Its nice to know that this session led up to his work with Moncur on his album Destination...Out! Bobby Hutch...man that guy makes any album come together. He takes up the chords job of the recording and supports well. Bob Cranshaw was the house bassist for Blue Note at the time and you can't help but think this is the same guy who in like 3 months goes from playing this style, to the funky sidewinder with Morgan and sounds comfortable in both settings.
Go buy this album. Especially if you are trying to get into the jazz avant garde or have mix feelings about it.

Grachan Moncur III- Trombone
Jackie Mclean Alto Sax
Lee Morgan Trumpet
Bobby Hucherson Vibes
Bob Cranshaw Bass
Tony Williams Drums
recorded 1963

Jamie's Album Recommendations

Heavy Rotation

Deerhunter - Microcastle (2008)
shoegaze, ambient, indie

One of my favorites this year.








Fuck Buttons - Street Horrrsing (2008)
electronic noise, ambient

Nick, this is what we listened to in Montreal that you said you liked (and I recall you wanted to start a band based on this style).






Flying Lotus - Los Angeles (2008)

They call this experimental hip-hop. Kind of sometimes ambient, tribal space beats. Very short ideas make it more tolerable than if they had been turned into top 40 rap beats.

Guilty Pleasures

Kings of Leon - Only By The Night (2008)
rock

It's kind of lame bro music but I like it every now and then.