Album Review: VultureMoose - Unreal Reality

So, since we don't post a podcast every Monday now, we've decided that the Monday's sans 'cast, will be a joint blog post of some kind by us. 2 weeks ago it was a video showing some behind the scenes on our lives. This week is a review of an album by both of us. The album is called "Unreal Reality" and is by friend and former guest of the We're Friends! Company/Conglomeration/Amateur Rotary club VultureMoose!

How we did this was we both listened to the album independently of one another and wrote something about each song. Dash wrote what could be considered a story in a stream consciousness journey he went on while listening. James started out trying to break down the songs and analyze them tonally and with regards to structure, tempo, etc. But then, like Dash, he just wrote what he felt and saw in his mind. Then they wrote something about the album in general. And here we go!

1. "Good For Your Soul":

Dash - Walking to the sky. The sun is blue. A line of my friends bid me farewell and give a piece of themselves for courage. The vocals become more and more enveloped in the sound…the beauty of this journey is going to be overwhelming.

James - I know this song! VultureMoose has played it live. First images that come to mind: church and Andrew W.K. What do those drums remind me of?! Ghostland Observatory! One of the lyrics are “like a goddess to the sea”, and he definitely sounds like he’s underwater. Neat. This is his sermon, we are the parish.

2. "Kingdomm":

Dash - Immediate rad! Sailing to the horizon on a sea made of pixels and fruit loops. Crazy creatures surface from the depths and give high fives. The ship gains wings. The clouds are pin-up girls blowing kisses. Our vessel is going 5,000 miles an hour. Outer space.

James - Upbeat time! More vocals! Sounds like a continuation of the first track. Love that slight fade that goes into some weirdo keyboard/synth thing at around 1:42. The end bit reminds me of M83. “I could disappear and that’s just fine.” Yes! What’s that sample from?

3. "ForeverVoices":

Dash - There is a battle in the stars. General Mustache and his solar brigade advance. The stars are flickering so brilliantly. Will we win?

James - Oh shit. What is THIS?! Crazy drum sounds, even crazier vocals! Love the repeating loop in the background. This is a mixture of melody and dissonance. People are marching to this song wearing neon capes, holding staffs made of candy.

4. "Zoned":

Dash - A black hole made of love stops the carnage. Through it, everyone who was fighting watches as time disintegrates. General Mustache hugs everyone. Space Rainbow.

James - Simple, slow song. I dig the percussion that isn’t that main drum beat. I enjoy how he cuts out everything but one or two elements during this song.

5. "Discovery":

Dash - Ohhhhhhhh shit! Bar hopping? No. Fucking planet hopping. There are so many parties. This ship can only get to so many. Watching so many different beings as they celebrate in their own way. Traveling between planets, watching space turn into dizzying colors.

James - Space! That’s what this song is! Happy, but the lyrics are slightly melancholy. Maybe. I was gonna say this reminded me of 2001: A Space Odyssey, but it’s more Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Fun journeys through space with friends. Some sad times, some great times. Like this one a lot.

6. "Skippie":

Dash - What's in that cave? Let's go down. Down. Down. Down. Space bats! They're purple and emit light-up gas! The center of this planet is full of women! The women hand each of my crew a flower that shows them their earliest dream. Each person gets a smooch then it's time to to go.

James - IT’S TIME TO FUCKING DANCE. Everyone clap and spin! And be totally happy and thoughtful. Think about who you love. Dance to this song with the ones you loves!

7. "Into the Valley":

Dash - The ship has broken down. And in half. We are trying to reconnect, but there's a time tornado.

James - WEEEEEEEEEE. Yeah yeah yeah! This song totally energizes me. Can’t not move to it. It also seems to be saying, “I could be industrial, but I’m not gonna.” That’s something I’d love to hear, a harsh, angry, industrial VultureMoose album. Oh man, love the weird vocals. This needs to be in a chase scene. A guy running from men in suits.

8. "How I Began":

Dash - A celebration for the fallen. There is still so much to see, and they wouldn't have wanted us to stop for very long. We continue with only half a ship. Singing a tale of our comrades exploits as we approach a new solar system.

James - Running up stairs. No no! Running up a downward moving escalator that matches your speed. But never ever giving up. The earnest-ness in the act is almost cartoonish. A very, “Hey, we can do it!” song.

9. "Everything Under the Sun":

Dash - Morning on Robot Moon. They're friendly, but cautious. All we want is fuel. All they want is stories. Buildings made of math equations. We help them understand sadness and they weep with joy.

James - Oh man, love love LOVE this song. This is a robot screaming in frustration. An automaton who refuses to be automatic any longer. Multitudes of other robots look on to the one walking away from his work. And they watch it rip itself apart in a protest of servitude.

10. "Wishing Well":

Dash - Robot Moon turns into a giant carrier. They allow us to take command. We set a course for home. The stars are jiggling to the beat of this song. This song is how the robots express gratitude.

James - Puppy dance party! And a big ol’ bear is the DJ! This song is fucking grooooooove-tastic. Clap your paws and wag your tails!

11. "C Song":

Dash - Coming back always seems much quicker than leaving, in a way that feels like it invalidates the journey. It isn't until you realize the memories will be with you until you die that anything even seemed worthwhile.

James - We’re on a ship headed to new places! And everyone’s the captain! Also the ship’s alive! Oh wow, love how it gets slightly somber for a few seconds at 1:00 and again at 1:52. Giant mountains loom in the distance, but we’ll break through. Right? Night falls and we’re right in front of the mountains. We decide to go around, rather than through. We’re slightly scared and in awe. The mountains are eons older than us. And the mountains smile at us!

12. "Cruiser":

Dash - The time tornado brought the rest crew back home before us! It's name is Wes. Sitting back home, watching the sun dip. Dreaming of everything. What are we gonna do tomorrow?

James - Water space. Aquatic galaxy. There seems to be an urgent message in this song.

Unreal Reality sum up:

Dash -I hope Jeff never stops making music. There is so much joy and beauty to what he creates. I wish a could write a coherent, analytical review of the musicianship or whatever of this album, but I'm too stoked out. The track by track thing I did is everything I need to say. I was taken on a journey of awesome wonders.

James - Totally fun and joyful. Jeff knows how to make your heart sing and your booty shake. In terms of criticism, there were times when I could tell that drum beats would come in before I heard them and they did. The songs seem slightly formulaic in that they start out with one or two sounds and then build from there and then the sounds go away one after another. Also, the percussive beats in some of the songs were very similar. As a whole, this album totally flows and the songs work really well together. What's interesting about what I didn't love about this album is that those aspects aren't flaws. They're just things I don't love that I bet tons of other people enjoy. Also, Jeff writes great lyrics. Kudos friend!

This album isn't available yet, but when it is we will be sure to tell all of you.

-Your Friends

PS, Isn't neat that both of us had similar images in our heads for the songs? We both felt the theme of space throughout the album, and with "Discovery", we both mention having fun in space. And with "Everything Under the Sun", we both thought of robots! That's crazy!

Wayne is flame that can live in the water.

Lil Wayne is fire. Today I thought it would be fun to listen to all three "Tha Carter" albums and see what would happen. What started me on this path was seeing the music video for "Down" by Jay Sean featuring Lil Wayne.

Let me be clear. This is a HORRIBLE song, but Weezy shows up and lays something dope and now I'm all up in it. Apparently, this gentleman WILL NOT spit anything less than mad game no matter what the track is.

We begin with:

The fourth solo album by Lil Wayne was the first true declaration of independence. He begins the first track "Walk In" by welcoming you into, essentially, his brain. The were a couple of hot tracks, but nothing really arresting. This was an early Weezy, which is a weird statement considering it only came out in 2004 and he'd been rapping since like, '95 or something. He's coming into his own with this album, laying down his awesome flow, some sweet beats and fresh lyrics, but he didn't start take any serious challenges until the sequel.

Favorite Track - "SNITCH"

The opening track is immediately more engaging than the entire first album...and it basically never lets up from there. Tha Carter II takes a slightly more laid back approach production-wise. Not too say it's slack, there's just a little more room from Weezy too get different with his approach. There's some reggae and R&B mixed in really well with a lot of these beats. Wayne is really letting his mind go to some neat places lyrically.

Favorite Track - "Mo Fire"

Weezy officially becomes super famous and let's everyone know what happens to inside your brain when that goes down. He takes a lot of drugs, has sex all the time, has the hottest people possible give him beats and chills with everybody famous. The best example of how crazy Wayne PLUS how much he deserves to be as crazy as he wants to be is the song "Dr. Carter", in which he plays a doctor called in to resuscitate hip hop.

Favorite Track - "Dr. Carter"

-Dash

Fake Partying

So thank god for Twitter right guys? Where would be without it? I can't even imagine a world where I would not be able to passively stalk famous people. It's just too a cold a place. Luckily it does exist and people like Tim Heidecker are on it. Mr. Heidecker tweeted about what I am about to relay to all you lovely people.

What this is is apparently videos created by Microsoft to show people how to have a "Launch Party" for Windows 7, the updated OS. Why anyone would want to have a party for computer software is beyond me, but the folks at Microsoft are pretty smart right? Well let's take a look.



OH. OH GOD. Did you hear their laughing?! It sounded like desperation mixed with hate. And that one customer service line was totally ADR. That was just too weird. Who are these people anyhow? They seem to know each other. Let's watch another.



AAAAAAAHHHH. THAT PROGRAM IS JUST MS PAINT. NOTHING DIFFERENT. WHY IS THIS NEW?! Also, why is the one black person on the floor?! WHERE IS HER CHAIR OLDER FAKE-COOL LADY?!



"Dennis, you've always wanted to be the moviemaker." WHY ARE YOU BRINGING UP HIS LONG LOST DREAMS?! YOU KNOW HE'S TOO OLD TO START NOW! Anybody noticing the shots? They're always moving and doing quick zooms to make it seem more natural.

So yeah. Microsoft still has no idea how to sell a product. If we can tell people are actors, don't make them pretend that they're real people. It just makes everything creepy.

-James

Now playing: Behemoth - Demigod

Episode 38: Facundo, Cuffs, Talking Penis

Who wants an Episode 38? You? You? Ok ok, Episode 38s for EVERYONE!

DOWNLOAD.

We discuss:

James' and fake flying Cheetos!
Dash almost drinking piss!
Our guest Facundo and his wild antics!
Chiptunes! NOT 8BIT DUMMY!

Food of the week:


Songs discussed:

Cool Jumper by Wavves - Listener Facundo's choice
Make My Day by Common (featuring Cee-Lo) - Listener Cullen's choice

Music:

facundo - "robot love"

facundo - "Hunger4u"

Negative Approach - "Friend or Foe [1983 demo]"

Wire - "I am the Fly"

Can't Break These Cuffs:



Can't Break These Cuffs (Remix):



Also check out DANCING IS FORBIDDEN.

And FACUNDO.



EMAIL US OK.

As always, we welcome and would love you to email us about anything! So hit us at wearefriendspodcast@gmail.com

-Your friends

Video Game Shenanigans IN REAL LIFE

Who likes funny things?! Who likes video games?! Who likes the French?! The video I'm about to show you is a combination of ALL THREE. It's by Rémi Gaillard, a guy who in the vein of "Trigger Happy TV" and other ilk, messes with the public in brilliant ways. Here's an example. What's funny about this, to me, isn't the absurdity or craziness of the situation, but the fact people fall down a lot.



-James

Now playing: Fuck Buttons - Race You to My Bedroom / Spirit Rise

See the Leaves / People from the future will make fun of the way we made fun of people in the past.

Fall is wicked here. Chills and spills are all about and that means it's time for me to freak out because I'm bonkers for color. I'll be taking a drive to upstate New York this weekend and hope to come back with a few nice pictures of Pennsylvania trees.

Meanwhile, I'm on a jag of making fun of technology. Even though as I type this some kid in the future is literally pissing on my caveman corpse because I don't know what brainternet is. Why were early cell phones and soft-core porn the same thing?

-Dash

We're Friends! (a video)

-We're Friends!

Internet.

Former guest Abigail and I were once having a conversation about the internet.  I was going off on how much it can disgust me at times and how I can't fathom how it will progress.  Then she said something like: "Dude, the internet won't even be the internet soon enough."  I love having friends that are smarter than me!  Of course the internet won't be the internet!  Whether you view it as a regression or progression, technology and the way we interact with it is always going to keep evolving.  How will future generations laugh at us with our primitive understandings of "YouTube" and "Twitter"?  It's gonna be awesome.

-Dash

Ep. 37 - Iceland, Spain, America

The thirty-seventh episode of our podcast is sponsored by this man:

DOWNLOOOOOAD!

We discuss:

Dash wants to commit vehicular homicide!

James met a new person!

Doing whatever you want!

May/December relationships!

Food of the week:

Songs discussed:

Buildings Began To Stretch Wide Across The Sky And The Air Filled With A Reddish Glow by Red Sparowes (James' choice)

King of the Rodeo by Kings of Leon (Dash's choice)

As always, we welcome and would love you to email us about anything! So hit us at wearefriendspodcast@gmail.com

TELL A FRIEND!

-We're Friends!

PS - The We're Friends! Podcast is now BI-MONTHLY. This means that every OTHER Monday night a new episode will be posted. So in two weeks, episode 38 will arrive. But keep on coming back to the blog regularly for fun shit!

Three Frames.

Repetition is a frightening, wonderful thing.  You can doom yourself to doing the same thing over and over and over and over and over again OR you can learn something new every go around.  Three Frames is a very simple blog I follow on tumblr.  The set-up?  Take three frames from a movie and loop them, creating a new world.  The result?  Lose your fucking mind.

-Dash

MoMA Art: Part 1

A few weeks a go, my mother and I went to the Museum of Modern Art on one of their "Target Free Fridays", which means that if you go anytime after 4pm on a Friday, admission is free. Pretty neat! The one downside is that it's really crowded.

Now, before we get into it, I would like to say that I do not know much about art. I know what some of the styles are and how the pieces in that style are similar (impressionist, surrealist, cubist), I know the big names, but that's about it. I don't consider myself an art lover or enthusiast, not that I wouldn't like to be one. It just hasn't happened yet.

So anyways, when we went to MoMA, I wrote down the names of the paintings I liked the most. I didn't (at least not consciously) decide this through thinking which took the most skill to do, just which hit me for some reason. This post will show some of the art I enjoyed. Let's begin:

The Menaced Assassin - René Magritte

Phantom of the Past - Kurt Seligmann

Dr. Mayer-Hermann - Otto Dix

The Poet Max Herrmann-Neisse - George Grosz

The Birth of the World - Joan Miró

Umbrella and Bowler - Fernand Léger

The Duo - Giorgio de Chirico


More will be posted at some other time. Any of you out there like any of these pieces or want to share some of your favorites? Comment below or send an email at wearefriendspodcast@gmail.com

-James

Now playing: Mogwai - Glasgow Mega-Snake