alternative / rock / blues

Yesterday, someone who isn't really interested in music asked me a question. He asked me why I was so obsessed with it. He didn't understand it, just like I never understand people who are completely uninterested in this wondrous world of sound. My answer was simple: music is freedom. Music can come in every form. Every emotion can be translated into sound. For me, music is an alternate universe, parallel with ours but completely different and unbound to the laws of both nature and psychology. 

Today, I grabbed 'Before Beyond', the second album by Swiss band Scratches, from the pile of things to review. After only a few songs, I found myself thinking about yesterday's conversation again, especially the part where I mentioned that music comes in many different forms. Later, after listening to the entire album, I had written down a bunch of references, including Radiohead, Simply Red, Pink Floyd, Alannah Myles, Lou Reed, Applecraft, Tina Turner and Lauren Hill. I know, those bands have very little to do with each other.

Fact is, 'Before Beyond' contains a bunch of excellent pop songs with elements from shoegaze, soul, blues and americana. Yet, there is also a grittiness to be found, much to my delight. Although the songs are well-written, they are not always easy digestible. They grab your attention and almost make you listen to them. I like that, it proves that this is far from the rubbish that the world of pop music barfs out these day. Perhaps, in a way, you can compare the approach of Scratches to that of Nick Cave, with an eye for detail and quality.

It's also very hard to pick out a favorite track since each of them seems to have its own identity. 'Lonel & Iness' is quite catchy, which is nice. 'Beautiful' is a Jane Birkin & Serge Gainsbourg kind of blues ballad which sent chills down my spine. 'Give Me your Pain' is an absolute tearjerker, in the best possible sense of the word. The list of compliments can go on and on, especially after a few listens. That being said, yes, this album might need a few spins before it starts growing on the listener, but still, it's a damn strong effort.

'The Crow And The Sheep' is another highly recommended song and another deeply emotional soul ballad. I can easily imagine this one being played live in a gloomy jazz club. However, I prefer to witness this live in a decent venue, which obviously means that I want to see this stuff live. I'm sure it will be an intense and emotional experience. But now comes the hardest part, who to recommend this one to? Well, simply put: everyone who is into high quality alternative pop music. Check it out, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

​Serge

pop / rock

You might know Asger Techau from Danish indie rock band Kashmir, where he takes care of the drums. However, since the inception of the band in 1991, Asger Techau has been writing a number of songs on his own. Now, after eleven years of writing, he finally compiled these songs on an album, aided by musicians he knows and respects. The result is an album full of gentle pop rock songs with a lot of atmosphere and emotion.

Opener 'Breathe' immediately reminds me of Depeche Mode, even though this music is far away from synthpop. I think the reference comes from Techau's voice and song lines which are often quite similar to the synthpop deities. The reference will also remain present throughout most of the songs, often accompagnied by people like Nick Cave, David Bowie, Franz Ferdinand , Coldplay and Kaiser Chiefs . I guess that's not a bad set of names to be compared with.

My favorite tracks are the bluesy 'Brother' and the earworm 'Big City Dropout'. That being said, there are plenty of earworms on this album. I'm positive that some of these lyrics and vocal lines will be immediately recognizable when you hear these songs again. They also have the capacity to get stuck in your head, which in this case is a good thing. Other songs worth mentioning include the hit-sensitive tearjerker 'No Misgivings' and the indie rocker 'Iron Betty'.

So if you like decent songwriting skills, emotive rock ballads and a relaxed atmosphere, you surely have to check out this gem. It's just one of those albums that make your daily tasks a little bit more enjoyable, capable of putting a contented smile on your face. At least, that is what happened to me when I listened while doing the dishes. I'm sure this music is suited for a lot more activities than that too. So go ahead, get your hands on this album.


Serge

alternative / progressive / pop / indie

Don't you just love those albums that defy classification? Don't you just want to see the face of the record store owner who has to decide where to place a certain album in order to find customers for the thing. Will he put it in the krautrock and psychedelic section, or maybe in the stoner-division, or how about the immense department of pop music? Or indie? Listening to this album apparently makes me imagine that store owner go mad and eventually solving the problem by ordering enough copies to put it in all of the above. 

Underwater Sleeping Society is a band from Finland who, apparently, add a progressive touch to bittersweet pop songs from the sixties. With this new album, they return after a hiatus of six years, in which they "learned to be a band again and play for the fun of playing". In a way, you can definitely hear that on 'Instrumental Healthcare', which, by the way, is far from instrumental. There is a certain feeling of joy and utter pleasure, flowing through the melancholic pop melodies. 

If I have to compare this music to other artists, I guess I'll mention bands like the Beatles, Jefferson Airplane, Coldplay or The Flaming Lips but just as much electronic acts like Air or ​Röyksopp Opener 'A Ghost In The Room' for example, can be seen as an ancient pop song, enhanced with electronics and elements from post-rock. The result is pure melancholic bliss, guaranteed to make you smile.

Another aspect I like about the album, is the sense of modesty. Not one element, instrument or vocal line gets intrusive or overpowering. Instead, everything remains of a calm, listenable level. It feels like the songs are made by musicians who allow the music to write itself rather than showcasing their own technical abilities. And I like that. It's clearly audible in some my favorite tracks, 'Tomorrow's Yesterday' and the somewhat grungy psychedelic rock song 'Hexagon Eyes'.

Another song worth mentioning is the gloomy 'Big Fish Don't Know' which proves that Underwater Sleeping Society doesn't really cares about styles and genres. In this song you might encounter a hint of reggae, dressed in an indie rock atmosphere. Brilliant. 'Catnip Love' is another favorite, once again a track that beautifully combines the old and the new. Oh well, let's just say that the whole album is a welcome deviation from the harsh, in-your-face music that dominates today's underground scene. Check it out, you need something like this...


​Serge

indie / alternative / pop / singer-songwriter

Well, I guess it's time to get this review online. In the past month or so, I've spent several hours listening to the album and rewriting the whole article, only to have it end up in the drafts, waiting to be published. Why so? Well, this simply is a difficult album to describe. For starters, the album reminds me a lot of one particular act but I can't remember which one and that is bloody frustrating. Second, this takes a dig into my entire non-metal musical knowledge, especially the alternative corners of the pop music industry.

First things first, Klein is German multi-instrumentalist Lutz Nikolaus Kratzer. According to the biography, he loves all the instruments in the world, except panpipes. 'Bengal Sparks' is his third album under this moniker, one on which he surely comes up with a heap of instrumentation and electronics. He throws all of those instruments into nifty pop songs, here and there aided by either Mr Vast or Kuoko. 

Throughout this album, an massive load of bands come to mind, from Massive Attack over Ween to Sonic Youth. There are elements from shoegaze, from noise, from trip-hop and even some grunge licks. Yet, all of those elements have been blend into uplifting songs. It's not hard to start shaking your ass to 'Lowride', 'Parking Lot' or 'Nicotine Princess'. Speaking about 'Lowrider', this song is the indie rock version of an electro clash song. You know, Ween plays Goldfrapp, or something like that.

Come to think of it, I'm starting to believe that my little problem is solved. The band I couldn't remember, which is described in the opening paragraph, is probably Ween. The blatant disregard towards genre boundaries, the cheek-in-tongue approach, the joyful yet often gritty sound, this might have well been a Ween album. That also explains why I wasn't very fond of the album at first but love it now. It's the same with everything recorded by Dean & Gene, it needs to grow and gradually show its true brilliance.

So yes, I've grown quite fond of this one. It has become an excellent companion for my daily chores. The trippy 'Silly You' is one of my favorites and 'Ghosttown' definitely deserves a mention because both Massive Attack and Tricky completely forgot to write this beauty. Or how about 'Neon Fog', an americana tune, interlaced with soundscapes and shoegaze and I don't know what else. This is too good to be ignored, this whole album is. 


​Serge

indie / pop / folk

Cheers!Land  is an album released by 椅子 Chairs', an indie/ independent/ folk rock band from Taichung, Taiwan. With a clear sonority, and a very fresh and outspoken approach to indie rock as a whole, Cheers!Land sounds immediately remarkable, with a cautious, but nevertheless extrovert identity thrown into it. With songs amazingly built at the core of melodic resonances, with some elements of fresh pop and out layered marks of delicate and original pieces of soft indie music, very urban scenes and a young generations flavor, subtlety added as primary ingredients, give to this album a promising feature for these musicians to showcase their talent and overall potential.

Although it seems at first very fresh pop music, radio friendly oriented – and at a certain point while listening to this album, this is exactly what they could be labeled of –, their sound does have a wider appeal, a higher ground of consistency, and an intriguing, bold and daring originality. Sometimes a little too much pop, nevertheless you will feel some kind of magic while listening to this album. With some very peculiar elements of soft urban eastern pop rock, these youngsters really have an interesting talent, that they explore exceedingly good. With calm melodies, and very serene songs that easily cool down your heart, the virtuosity of these guys tell a lot about their seriousness and compromise towards their music, regardless of their abilities. Although a lot of their songs are in English, and the influence of western music is apparent in the whole album, at a certain extent, Chairs' manages to build a sonorous identity of their own, being interchangeably lucid, incredibly solicit and astonishingly sincere, all at the same time.

With ten tracks, being them Island, Annual Ring, Kaleidoscope, Dream Silently, The Formosan Dance, Scenery, The Golden Age Blues, Finally Home, A-Hui and Cheers!, Chairs’ does have it all to be the next big thing on their native Taiwan, at least to the younger generations. With some degree of adventurous feeling in their music, maintaining a higher seal of melancholic art, and a superior sense of originality, while at the same time holding a great range of popular appeal, they easily combine together all the elements that could launch them to stardom in their country. Being melodically soft without being too exaggeratingly pop, and being peculiarly popular without renouncing a higher appeal for artistic singularity, Chairs’ really does a great work on this particular album. With what appears to be an already fully matured line of work, a polyvalent goal of artistic excellence, and a very strong view of lucid objectivity, this is a band that really knows their potential, and what they have to do in order to achieve what they deserve. An interesting album, although somewhat impossible to please anyone outside the sphere of melodic pop/ soft indie music, Cheers!Land is an interesting album, that does have it all to be a landmark of the genre, in their native Taiwan.   

So, if soft pop/ indie rock/ melodic folk is your thing, you should give Cheers!Land a chance. I promise you will not regret! 


​Wagner

pop rock 

​There's no lack of 'quite odd' albums on Merchants Of Air.  Some of them are laying on the pile of albums still waiting to be reviewed.  They're often hard to write about because they don't really resemble anything I'm acquiainted with.  For a while, the album I'm reviewing now has been one of those.  Even now, after carefully listening to it a few times, I still don't really know what to say, or write.  What I do know is that I quite like it.  

Brainsqueezed is a French project, founded by Sebastian L. in the nineties.  Between 1997 and 2010 he wrote the majority of the songs.  These were released on several demos during the years.  However, in 2014, the songs got somewhat of a make-over.  Sebastian rewrote some arrangements and invited Claire from Opal Sounds to sing.  That seemed to work quite well and two brand new songs were written.  Now, the album seems to be complete and ready to be released upon the world.

Musically, you can compare the music on this album with a blend of blues, soft-rock and pop music.  The songs, mostly ballads, usually maintain a subdued capacity, gently floating through my speakers.  Here and there the tempo and intensity go up, resulting in some quite strong pop rock songs like 'Pay'.  Yet, the majority of the album drives on a very slow pace and shows a great deal of melody.  My favorite song is 'Second Awakening', which reminds me a bit of Pink Floyd meets Led Zeppelin, especially in the atmospheric department.

I think this album will often find the way to my stereo, mainly because of its unobtrusive character. This is not really something for the stubborn hard rocker, nor for the metalhead and it might sometimes be a bit too heavy for the pop fans.  Yet, this is something for the soft rock afficionados out there, for people who like solid songwriting and a great deal of melancholy.  


Serge

funk

Most of our readers will probably already know that we at Merchants Of Air like a little bit of variation once in awhile.  So when something completely different from our usual content appears, I'm often quite curious.  I do enjoy a lot of different musical style.  In fact ,there's only a few genres I really dislike.

Venkman is an English quintet, influenced by the likes of Kate Bush, Prince and Michael Jackson.  This ep is the follow up for a pretty successful single and a decent overview of what this band is capable of.  I think, and I actually hope, that a full-length will be released in the near future because as far as I'm concerned, this could be the future of pop music.

Venkman blends funk and pop-rock together and turns the whole into four uplifting song.  Although they're highly danceable, there also seems to be a flair for experimentation, even reminding me of some experimental heavy bands like Sleepytime Gorilla Museum for instance. Other bands I think about are Cranberries and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

'Tapout', 'The Friar' and 'Deep Sea Diver' are cheerful songs but my absolute favorite is the funky rocker 'Andrew, You're Horizontal Again'.  This definitely is a party starter and it will probably find the way to my media player often from now on.  So if you want something different or you just like quality pop, rock and funk music, this certainly is your cup of tea.


​Serge