The Five Best Songs Of 2011 That You Haven’t Heard

By: Sean Kayden

Thursday – “Sparks Against The Sun” – Off their sixth studio album, No Devolución, Thursday have completely reinvented their artistry. Once upon a time they spearheaded the bygone era known as “emo”, but failed to make an indelible impression with the mainstream masses. They still had some great material in their back catalogue, but now in 2011, they’ve creatively expanded on their ever-so-evolving style. With “Sparks Against The Sun”, it’s one huge leap forward for a band that always seemed to have the aptitude to reformulate themselves. Ingrained in this song is some ambience and traces of their post-hardcore roots included with beautiful dark melodies and plenty of reverb. Make no mistake, Thursday created an arsenal of powerful tunes on their latest opus. “No Devolucion” needs your undivided attention.

Thursday - Sparks Against The Sun by Epitaph Records

New Animal – “Last Winter” - Born in Atlanta, GA., New Animal is the intrepid duo of Derek Burdette and Kris Hermstad. Together they’ve created an incandescent, expansive, and hypnotic self-titled record. Beautiful and daring, this is a rhapsody that translates vision into meaning. Take a little voyage into the wonderland of “Last Winter” –a new breed of sound to captivate all your inner sensibilities. I personally believe there aren’t any boundaries for how far their artistic endeavors may go. And whatever journey they travel, I’ll be along for the ride. You can download their entire debut LP for free at http://newanimal.bandcamp.com. Don’t hesitate; go discover what will seemingly become the most underrated (and unfortunately overlooked) album of the year.

Last Winter by NewAnimal

Work Drugs – “Sunset Junction” - Despite never visiting the city of Philadelphia, I’m starting to love what the city has to offer in the sense of independent music. First it was Sun Airway and now it’s the sedative-wave / smooth-fi group, Work Drugs. The virtually unknown duo of Benjamin Louisiana and Thomas Crystal has assembled such soothing, consolatory, and ethereal tunes. “Sunset Junction” is an intoxicating track that’ll put you on a mind-bending trip with no drugs required. Can’t beat that. Despite only a handful of songs in their repertoire, I suggest stop following the herd toward mainstream mediocrity and check out Work Drugs as soon as possible.

Sunset Junction by Work Drugs

Young Dreams – “Young Dreams” - I stumbled across this effervescent, tropical, electro-pop melody a few weeks ago. Kind of reminds me a little bit of Animal Collective in fragments. Anyway, Young Dreams (also the title of this song) hail from Norway and should be making quite the impact stateside in the near future. They are set to release two EPs this year. Their 2-song debut EP, “Young Dreams” arrived on iTunes this past February. Blast this song when you head to the beach. Guaranteed to get your senses churning and mind free of all unnecessary distress.

Young Dreams.mp3 by Young Dreams

World Tour – “Sparks” - Recently signed by Cascine, World Tour may just become your favorite band of 2011. “Sparks” is right up my alley — blissful, serene, and pensive. This is a sound to fall in love with it over and over again. You won’t find a more honest, ethereal or divine tune like this around. It’s the quintessential dream-pop song to navigate you during the most memorable summer nights.

World Tour - Sparks by CASCINE

Published on April 23, 2011 by Mountain Views News
http://mtnviewsnews.com/v05/htm/n17/p10.htm

Craft Spells - "Idle Labor"

Artist: Craft Spells
Album: Idle Labor
Label: Captured Tracks
Release Date: March 29, 2011
Review by: Sean Kayden

A resurrection of 80s new wave in 2011? I’m down for another go around. Craft Spell’s debut album, “Idle Labor”, is an influential album from those who did it best – New Order, The Cure and Tears For Fears. “Idle Labor” is an introspective, faintly desponding, reverie record that showcases singer/songwriter Justin Paul Vallesteros’ mesmerizing vocals, tenderness, and heartache. A dreamy, idealistic, straight from the bedroom produced album for the kids with the dreamer’s disease and those completely clinging onto a better, yet forgotten yesterday. I’m not advocating that Craft Spells are reinventing the wheel with their debut effort, but there is an innate catchiness and distinctiveness to their creative endeavor.

Everything you might expect from an 80s inspired record is found here. A recognizable atmosphere is set up with drum machines, synths, maudlin vocals, and dancing-alone-in-my-bedroom sort of bass reverbs. There is an eclectic yet cluster of emerging bands these days with the same summery, dream-pop, lost in thought style. Even when one thinks this genre has become oversaturated, an album such as this gracefully arrives to reassure you a new component can be added into the mix. I can’t even keep up with all the subgenres anymore, but “Idle Labor” falls under glo-fi, chillwave, 80s new-romantic and bedroom-pop genres. At the end of day though, it doesn’t matter what category they’re associated with. Simply put, this is beautiful, sensitive, somber, yet ironically inspiring work of art. I am enamored with this type of music persuasion and Craft Spells have easily established themselves as a band with a promising future.

However, Craft Spells isn’t headlining the revolution, but purely a significant player in the movement. Fans of indie darlings, Wild Nothing and Beach Fossils should find something commendable here to connect with. The party is short-lived though as the album clocks in right under 37 minutes. I like to think of “Idle Labor” as a mixtape sort of album. You’ll listen it to, embrace it for all it represents and then after awhile you’ll put it to the side where it becomes lost in your drawers. Years later when you’re enduring another transitional period in life, you’ll come across this previously beloved mix. It’ll seamlessly feel impeccably aged when you first pop into your CD player. A few moments later, you’ll become hypothesized by the subtle beauty, nostalgic undertones, and perfect nuances for a second time around.

Key Tracks: “Scandinavian Crush”, “The Fog Rose High”, “From The Morning Heat”, “Beauty Above All”
Rating: 8.8 out of 10

Published on April 16, 2011 by Mountain Views News
http://mtnviewsnews.com/v05/htm/n16/p10.htm

Source Code Review

“Source Code”
Release Date: 04/01/2011
Directed by: Duncan Jones
Screenplay by: Ben Ripley
Rated PG-13 for some violence including disturbing images, and for language.
Review by: Sean Kayden

Hurray! Hurray! After coming off a few less-than-stellar outings, Jake Gyllenhaal is back in the game with an irrefutable winning effort in “Source Code”. Additionally, director Duncan Jones’ (son of David Bowie) sophomore film proves that he himself is the real deal. His 2009 low budget sci-fi flick, “Moon” almost cracked my top 10 and utterly took me by surprise. I’m not the biggest sci-fi devotee, but Duncan Jones is a special kind of storyteller/filmmaker. Ben Ripley, a relatively unknown screenwriter with a few direct-to-DVD writing credits, wrote this brilliantly executed screenplay. It’s wonderful to see original ideas come into fruition on the big screen. We desperately need more movies like this and less sequels, remakes, and comic book adaptations. I really have to tip my hat to the independent studio Summit Entertainment for taking a chance with a fresh and invigorating concept from an anonymous screenwriter and a director with only one film under his belt.

“Source Code” grabs you right from the start. Jake Gyllenhaal portrays Captain Colter Stevens, a decorated pilot who awakens in the body of a man called Sean Fentress inside a train in Chicago. While on the train, he meets a woman named Christina (characterized by the captivating Michelle Monaghan). However, before he can understand what is occurring, a bomb goes off and destroys the train. After the explosion, Stevens finds himself in a capsule chamber greeted by Colleen Goodwin (the always superb Vera Farmiga) from a computer screen. Bewildered to why he’s located here, she informs him that he’s taken part in a scientific program that allows him to take over someone's body in his or her last eight minutes of life. It is then revealed that earlier that day, a bomb exploded and destroyed a train in Chicago. Goodwin notifies Stevens that is primary mission is to locate the bomb and discover who created it before another nuclear bomb detonates somewhere in Chicago. As he continues to oblige to his orders, Stevens starts to believe he can prevent the initial bombing from actually taking place. Source Code’s inventor, Dr. Rutledge (ferociously represented by Jeffrey Wright), sheds some light about the experiment. He notifies Captain Stevens that the Source Code is merely a simulation and that he cannot alter the past. Stevens strongly believes he can and his motives for trying to become apparent, as he grows fondly attached to Christina. However, Rutledge makes it painfully clear that he has one mission and one mission only. So Stevens is then transported back on to the train over and over again until he discovers the culprit behind the terrorist attack. One may perceive the repetitiveness of being sent back and forth onto the train to be tedious and boring, but that’s not the case in the slightest form. As we head into the second and third act of the film, more and more surprises begin to unravel. Source Code will undoubtedly keep you completely mesmerized from beginning to end. A true keep-you-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller that does more than just provides you a quick thrill or two.

Provided with a quartet of strong performances from Gyllenhaal, Monaghan, Farmiga and Wright, a dynamic screenplay and faultless direction, “Source Code” is easily thus far my favorite movie of 2011. This is Jake Gyllenhaal most electrifying performance to date. For me personally, it puts him in a whole new category. The ending may spark some controversy with the most devoted sci-fi fans. I honestly thought the film was going to end at a particular point, but it carried on for another five to seven minutes. Personally, I was still fully satisfied by it. I felt that the extended ending brought a whole new element and meaning to the movie. “Source Code” has a bit of an Inception feel to it, but definitely more restrained and less convoluted. This is an innovative, outrageously compelling, and thought-provoking film with plenty of heart and soul to boot. It’s the reason why we go to the theater and if more movies like Source Code can be developed, then mainstream Hollywood may not be a complete wash after all.

Grade: 4.5 out of 5

Published on April 9, 2011 by Mountain Views News.
http://mtnviewsnews.com/v05/htm/n15/p11.htm