Looking for new music? DJs at WVAU share their thoughts on a range of recent releases.
Flaming Lips | The Terror
An electronic journey into the outer space of your inner mind.
There's a constant feeling of death and rebirth on "The Terror."
This feeling is not linear as some of the band's past albums have been, but rather it is a tension that persists throughout the entire album.
Lead singer Wayne Coyne's vocals continue their climb into a higher register with every album, and the words themselves become less important. It's more about the ethereal feeling behind every slurred syllable.
The krautrock influenced, hyper-distorted electronic symphonies feel like the soundtrack to a descent into a black hole of nothingness or being woken by a bright light of new hope, often at the same time.
Leaving behind the more story-oriented approach of some of its past albums, the Flaming Lips deal more with visceral emotion on this album, with highly repetitive, oscillating electronics that drive the listener deeper into his or her own head, while the atmospheric guitar feedback gives a sense of isolation.
By the end, there's no closure, no definite return to earth, but you still feel somehow enlightened after taking the journey.
Recommended If You Like: Kraftwerk, Pink Floyd, Black Moth Super Rainbow
By Sean Meehan, "We're Hilarious," Saturdays 6-8 p.m
Iron & Wine | Ghost On Ghost
Southern folkie expands sound, writes music that sounds like sunshine.
Far removed from the days of "Sodom, South Georgia," Iron & Wine mastermind Sam Beam has grown into a songwriter as comfortable with strings and horns as he is with an acoustic guitar.
His most recent record runs the gamut stylistically, from the Beach Boys-esque harmonies of "Joy" and "Sundown (Back to the Briars)," to the clear funk influences found on "Low Light Buddy of Mine" to straight-up jazz tunes like "Grass Windows" and "Lovers' Revolution." "Ghost on Ghost" is a lot like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates: you never know what you're gonna get.
As a whole, the record is incredibly upbeat and features sunshiney but never sugary production that lends many of the song a naturalistic, folkie aesthetic that sometimes screams
