Alexander Boe – Kill the Elderly
Naming your song Kill the Elderly is like staging a play and offering free cookies. It’s bound to get people interested, but there better be something to keep the people the snacks run out.
Fortunately, in spite of what the title might suggest, Mr Boe is a man of good taste who is able to create a fully fleshed-out track straight out of a 4-track recorder. Some of the very best musicians know how to make things work even when not a lot is going musically. Alexander Boe’s talent and experience allow him to do just this.
The singer’s vision of a murderous rampage is punctuated by a breezy, confident funk backing. If you are actively on the lookout for a weird lo-fi rock concoction to accompany drinking your morning coffee, you may well be in luck.
Vctm Cltr – Vast Montana
Somewhere around the mid-1990s, record labels started downsizing. This meant that the once significant record advances bands would be awarded were generally gone unless they were provided to R.E.M. or Metallica. Recording over, virtually, a backing track became the norm, and it’s something we are stuck with today.
With that being said, and I mean this in the most complimentary manner possible, it isn’t easy to imagine Vctm Cltr’s Vast Montana being recorded on a major label in any era. It’s difficult seeing a big-time producer OKing some of the recording choices here. And, because of that, it’s a slice of DYI heaven.
The duo provides a punchy cow-punk attack to their ode of Montana. But, it’s the backing elements and various sounds that enter the mix which really sell the song for me. There are voices that sound like someone entered the studio by mistake. There are backing vocals, of sort. There is a percussion element that sounds like the musician stepping over a squeaky toy. It’s all kind of wonderful, really.
