Matthew Friedberger
I'm not sure what makes 'Matthew Friedberger's' music appeal to me. It's got solid beats, guitar work, woodwinds and horns in places, lots of keyboard, and a bit of techo. It feels very lush, like 'Sufjan Stevens' but much more bad-ass.
Whatever it is, I'm sold, his latest release is two discs, the first 'Winter Woman' is what has me grooving right now, it's not quite as surreal and techno as the other disc 'Holy Ghost Language School'. Not being a big fan boy of the techo genre, it isn't surprising that I enjoy the lush instrumental numbers more than their synth-soaked brethren... the techno is growing on me, but I've got some progress to make yet :)
I should note that Friedberger is one of the key members of 'Fiery Furnaces', this is his first solo effort. I highly recommend reading the pitchfork media review by Rob Mitchum it seems remarkable objective and accurate.
Reviews:
Pitchforkmedia's Rob Mitchum - 5.0/10.0 It has come to my attention that people hate the Fiery Furnaces for any number of reasons: too many keyboards, fleeting pop moments lost amidst elaborate arrangements, unusual vocals, wordy lyrics, the insulting concept that an album might grow better with time rather than be immediately accessible. Suffice it to say that I don't agree with any of those arguments, but I'm certainly not so fanboy-blind as to foolishly believe the Friedbergers' music will or should be universally accepted. Yet what has become abundantly clear over the band's prolific four-year existence is that it's averse to compromise, despite the divisive response that attitude tends to breed.
One might suppose that solo album(s) from the chief Furnaces songwriter Matthew Friedberger would magnify his flaws/assets, and in the case of Winter Women and Holy Ghost Language School, one would be correct. The first albums released under his given name reflect an even less compromised vision than the comparatively commercial (chortle) work of his day job. Alone in the studio (save some drum parts from Tortoise's John McEntire), Friedberger is free to indulge his obsessions with offbeat production and musical storytelling, to different degrees of success between the two records.
Exercises for the reader:
Up The River
Becha Don't
Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company Resignation Letter
Whatever it is, I'm sold, his latest release is two discs, the first 'Winter Woman' is what has me grooving right now, it's not quite as surreal and techno as the other disc 'Holy Ghost Language School'. Not being a big fan boy of the techo genre, it isn't surprising that I enjoy the lush instrumental numbers more than their synth-soaked brethren... the techno is growing on me, but I've got some progress to make yet :)
I should note that Friedberger is one of the key members of 'Fiery Furnaces', this is his first solo effort. I highly recommend reading the pitchfork media review by Rob Mitchum it seems remarkable objective and accurate.
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Reviews:
Pitchforkmedia's Rob Mitchum - 5.0/10.0 It has come to my attention that people hate the Fiery Furnaces for any number of reasons: too many keyboards, fleeting pop moments lost amidst elaborate arrangements, unusual vocals, wordy lyrics, the insulting concept that an album might grow better with time rather than be immediately accessible. Suffice it to say that I don't agree with any of those arguments, but I'm certainly not so fanboy-blind as to foolishly believe the Friedbergers' music will or should be universally accepted. Yet what has become abundantly clear over the band's prolific four-year existence is that it's averse to compromise, despite the divisive response that attitude tends to breed.
One might suppose that solo album(s) from the chief Furnaces songwriter Matthew Friedberger would magnify his flaws/assets, and in the case of Winter Women and Holy Ghost Language School, one would be correct. The first albums released under his given name reflect an even less compromised vision than the comparatively commercial (chortle) work of his day job. Alone in the studio (save some drum parts from Tortoise's John McEntire), Friedberger is free to indulge his obsessions with offbeat production and musical storytelling, to different degrees of success between the two records.
Exercises for the reader:
Up The River
Becha Don't
Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company Resignation Letter
posted by JonBen at 5:47 PM
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