(I had this saved to my drafts folder, but never actually published it. Here it is, better way late than never. I've got another post queued up for February links that I'll post later this week. I'm not going to edit it, but I didn't end up getting the newsletter together for this post, which is why I delayed it. I've got it going now, and will be sending out the first issue this week as well.)
A couple quick items of house-keeping before we jump straight into it: the first thing is that this is the first month that a post in the Monthly Fascination series will be accompanied by an issue of my all new newsletter. Christened "Frequent Fascination" to tie it into this series, as well as lean into my love of alliteration, it will consist of a list mix of content from this post as well as a few other things that other may find interesting. It's the first time that I've tried to do something like this and I'm interested to see how it goes. If you're interested, you can sign up here. Secondly, I'd love to hear some feedback on these posts. Are they worth while? Does the format work? Should they be more…or less? Whatever you think, drop me a line.
The three links that really caught my attention this week all coincidentally had to do with the idea of created space. Two relate to created space that we build around ourselves, and the last with the identity that we build around that space.
Brand Design for Pedro Salmerón, Architect by Buenaventura
I was really drawn the simplicity and flexibility of this system for the architect Pedro Salmerón. Speaking from experience, it's such a challenge to create identities for creative practitioners of any sort. Consisting of basic rectangles and 45 degree slashes to structure space, with subdued textures and a very neutral palette to round everything out. The designers at Buenaventura did an excellent job creating something interesting that also lets the architect's work take center stage.
A Map of Every Building in America by the NY Times
A fascinating project. Maps that don't answer questions, but instead suggest them. The thing that really sticks out to me is the interplay between humans trying to structure the environment and also being structured by it at the same time.
An Algorithmically-Derived Personal National Flag
With our global culture increasingly dominated by nationalistic fascists, the discussion of what ties out together as country(wo)men has never been more important. What if we didn't pledge unwavering allegiance to symbols that come laden with centuries of burden? A project by the Puerto Rican design firm Muuaaa suggests that maybe we should find strength in our own beliefs and symbolism. Leaning on a system that generates flags from a subset of an individual's choosing, the studio created a way for people to walk away with their own national identity.
That's it for this month. I hope that you found some of these tidbits stimulating, or at least interesting. Let me know either way, and thanks for your time.
Let's be clear about this one: despite the braggadocios title, this album isn't going into the annuls of rock history any time soon. The lyrics aren't clever sonnets laid over virtuoso finger picking. Despite this, it's such a fun record to listen to. Over it's roughly 30 minute run time, it stacks one toe-tapping track right after the other. Before long you're nodding to the rhythm and pumping your fist during the chorus. Good times start to finish.
You might look at this album as a bit of a cheat. It is—after all—a collection of 5 EPs that Hanni El Khatib put out over 2016. If you look at it with the perspective of 2015's Moonlight however, it holds together as complete album. And like Moonlight, it's somewhat all over the place. From straight ahead, bluesy garage-fi tracks to others driven by synths and disco beats. That pattern has become El Khatib's modus operandi, so it is less of a distraction and more like the variety bag of jelly beans. Even though you get a few black licorices, the variety is the point. And some of those combinations? Quite tasty.
The first of two albums on this list that I never thought would exist. I've been a fan of Gorillaz since I saw the 
I don't quite remember how Here Lies Man came onto my radar. What I am sure of, however, is that their sound grabbed my attention immediately from the first listen. Their sound has been described as Black Sabbath playing afrobeat, which isn't the worst characterization but does gloss over the intricate repetitive rhythms that underpin each track and support distorted vocals that have little relation to Ozzy's theatrical delivery. Their sound is certainly heavy though, and it's wrapped around a rich tapestry of noisy fuzz that much more closely brings to mind psych rock than metal.
Everything that B Boys put out sound like a love letter to punk. Not punk now, but punk the way it was in England in the late '70s and early '80s. Dissonant music played by kids who went to art school and still believed that a song could change the world. That's the sounds that led me to fall in love with punk, and I do again every time I listen to this record.
If B Boys are playing nostalgic punk chords, Wavves typifies the modern archetype of a punk auteur. Despite being the solo project of Nathan Williams, at no point does this release become monotonous or one-note. It's both fun and personal, with a lo-fi garage aesthetic that belies a layered structure. In short: really good stuff.
Guerilla Toss are kind of a weird one. They popped up on my radar originally when they were still based out of Boston, but I can't say that I spent too much time listening to them until this album. And the more that I listen to them, the more I draw connections to late-era Devo with the use of quirky synths and dancier rhythms. Depending which track you listen to, there's also an undercurrent of post-punk's disco-fueled disillusionment.
Every year I have that one album that I keep hearing about, but that takes a while for me to "get." That award this year definitely goes to Aliers' The Underside of Power. If you heard about this one and slept on it, I really recommend giving it some more spins. From the start, every track is a sonic assault. It's fast, heavy, distorted and angry, but it's also passionate, visceral, and extremely compelling. Politics are driving force behind so much of the music and the band isn't shy about voicing their opinions. While some won't appreciate the mix, I say bring it on and know that I'll be listening.
I'm glad that the guys in DFA patched things up, because I'm really enjoying these post-reunion releases. I was absolutely obsessed with The Physical World when it came out a few years ago so Outrage! Is Now had a pretty high mark to measure against. It falls a bit short though, without a ballad like "White is Red" or an aural assault on the level of "Turn it Out," but there are still plenty of great hooks and fantastic overall heaviness. [ASIDE: Is that really the best they could do for cover art?! 
As with the Gorillaz release, I was pretty sure that album would never come into existence. Then when I heard about it, I was also pretty sure that I wouldn't be into it. Mr. Murphy has been up to some 
On the surface, Adore Life isn't the assault that Savages' self-titled début was. After spending some time with it, the reality is that intensity is boiling slightly under the surface. This album is at times raw and brutal, yet shows a measure of restraint where the previous release was stuck at 11. For that reason this album was a bit of an initially slower burn, but I've really come to embrace it.
The weirdness of this album came out of nowhere. As a fan of Segall's previous releases and other projects, I've really enjoyed his fuzzed-out garage style. For Emotional Mugger however, Segall takes that formula and adds on layers on complexity and weirdness, from the child-like lyrics to vocal affectations. The result is like a garage version of a DEVO cover band, including a 
There are a lot of things to like about this album, starting with the cover art. It's not big on subtlety but does set an interesting tone and is a fantastic representation of music behind it. And while I've listened to Santigold's other albums, this is the first one that really grabbed me. The lyrics are a great mix of poetry with just enough to get a hold of so that you can figure out some meaning. In the end, it's a collection of catchy pop music that is used as tactic to deliver subversive jabs at our selfie obsessed, overly commercialized culture.
I'm such a fan of this band. They play on the stereotype of a girl band in a way that is really intelligent, but at the same time raw and honest. In contrast to some of their previous releases, this album weaves in some more nuanced lyrics and subtle song structure that breaks up the full-on garage rock assault that has previously defined their sound. For that reason I think this record will have more staying power than some of their others.
PUP follows up their fantastic début with another really solid release. Honesty and unvarnished emotion wrapped in staccato guitar riffs with shout-along choruses remain the hallmark of the band. While none of the tracks are as sticky as 
It took me a while to come around to M.I.A. The covers of her albums always embodied a "trying too hard to be ugly" aesthetic and it took a while warm to her aural approach as well. Thankfully I smartened up a couple of years ago, as I've come to recognize both how talented she is as a musician but also how unique it is to have a female, non-White viewpoint in popular music. AIM might not be her best record, primarily because it doesn't sound like she's pushing things much sonically or lyrically as on other albums. There are some really great tracks, however, and even a consistent release from M.I.A. gets on my list.
I was never the biggest Against Me! fan. I started listening to them in the As the Eternal Cowboy era, and things went off track starting with New Wave. This is the first album since that one that felt like a return to form, but also a progression. While politics were the glue that held early albums together, issues of gender and more personal relationships have moved to the forefront with this release. Dynamics within the band have been widely discussed in the music press, but this is the first album of theirs in a while that feels like things are starting to settle and they're returning to creating the winning formula of heart-felt songs at the intersection of punk, garage, and folk.
Goat came on super strong for me late this year. I stumbled across their previous release (World Music) and really loved it. It's unlike anything else out there, but at the same time so familiar. I've described their music as demo set for a modern Jodorowsky fever dream. Mixing sounds from international folk music with elements of psych and progressive rock with obtuse lyrics and the occasional punk lick, this band really ticks the boxes for me. It's a product of the modern world, but also quite out of its time. As far as Requiem itself; I'm not sure if it measures up to World Music but it's excellent in its own right. Side note: I was really thrilled when the 
If you haven't noticed yet, I have a certain weakness for nostalgia. The past is ripe for strip mining, and Josefin Öhrn is well aware. Also a Swede, her music mixes garage and psych, with a repetitive and spacey sound. Fortunately these tracks avoid a lot of the pitfalls of psych music with relatively short runtimes and a brisk pace. Öhrn's sugary vocal style enhances the effect, making it nearly impossible to not get caught up in this album.
