Seven February Music Releases You Should Listen To

If you were a listener of my Monthly Music Wrap-Up podcast you might have noticed its been absent from the site lately. Time constraints lead me to choose writing more over the excessive amount of effort I was putting into the podcast. (I'm currently working on a hosting solution to make all the released episodes available again, but for now just email me if you missed any.) Don't worry though, I'll still be pointing you toward great new releases each month, in the form of this here article series.

2012 is looking to be a great year for music, and February was where things really started off. So, which of the newly-released albums are worth your time? Well, I can't claim to have listened to everything put out in the month of February, but here are seven album releases that I quite enjoyed, and think you should give a listen to as well.

Music Review: Useless ID's Symptoms

Symptoms is Israeli punk band Useless ID's eighth full length...and it shows. They know what they're doing, and they've gotten pretty good at doing it. I like it quite a bit, but there's still something about it that nags at me, and it's probably completely in my own head.

The record is chock-full of extremely well-formed songs. The music isn't particularly ground-breaking or unique, but it doesn't really need to be. Pretty much every track on the album is brilliantly structured. There aren't any lulls in the entire thing; the momentum just pulls you straight through to the end. Plus, almost every song has numerous little cool moments that help punctuate them, be it an awesome drum fill, a killer riff, or a really sweet transition. Still, despite the quality song writing, I don't really see myself listening to this more than the occasional revisit every few years.

Director Jay Cheel Seeks Funds to Make Next Feature-Length Documentary 'How to Build a Time Machine'

Crowd-sourcing your project's budget has become all the rage, especially amongst indie-type creators. And why wouldn't it, what with all the success stories lately. Well Canadian director Jay Cheel is hopping on the bandwagon and asking for help to fund his second full-length documentary, How To Build A Time Machine. The movie will dig into the tale of John Titor, a supposed time-traveller from 2036, who travelled back to 1975 to obtain an IBM 5100 computer, then stopped off in the year 2000 and set off the imaginations of an Internet community of time-travel enthusiasts with details about the future and how his time machine works.

But you've already donated to several projects just in the last month or so and you feel plenty of warm-fuzzies having given to deserving endeavors; Why should you care about yet another? All you'd have to do is watch the simultaneously fascinating and hilarious campaign video after the jump, but I'll tell you why else you should.

Australian Comedian John Robertson Crafts a Maddening and Hilarious YouTube-Based Adventure Game

24 hours ago I'd never heard of John Robertson, but now I can't get his voice out of my head. Mainly the words "dark", "room", and "light switch". That's because about two hours of my Friday afternoon were used desperately trying to find a solution to his devious YouTube-based adventure game. For the record, I beat the shit out of it, entirely by myself. Ain't no GameFAQs walkthrough for this game, son!

You start your quest with Mr. Robertson's angry-looking face -- ominously floating in the darkness -- informing you that you've awakened in a dark room. From there you can decide your next actions by clicking on the choices given to you via annotation links on each of the videos.

It might seem pretty simple, and therefore easy to conquer, but trust me, he pulls some clever little tricks to keep you guessing. I was convinced at least three times that I'd figured out his trick, only to discover that it was merely a red herring. When I finally figured out one of his tricks and started down the correct path, there was still quite a mental hurdle to get over before the fabled "good ending" was playing on my computer screen.

It was an incredibly frustrating journey, but having a comedian narrating it for you quells some of that growing anger; and finally figuring out the solution is remarkably satisfying for a series of YouTube videos. It's easily worth it. Hit the jump to start your adventure...if you dare.

Streetlight Manifesto Incite a Boycott Against...Themselves?

Ska band Streetlight Manifesto -- fronted by Tomas Kalnoky, founder of Catch 22 -- have asked their fans to stop buying their albums and other various merchandise. Well, at least from any source that isn't their own website or at one of their concerts. It's all part of their increasingly stressed relationship with the label to which they are currently signed; Victory Records.

The post on their website eschewed mentioning specific grievances, likely to keep things as lawsuit free as possible, but they don't speak favorably of Victory in general. "...artist-hostile, morally corrupt, and generally dishonest company, with whom we have had the displeasure of being associated due to a contract that was signed years ago." are some of the more choices words.

The band has their third proper full-length in the works for this summer, which will complete their contract, and they aren't concerned with how you get your hands on it as long as it doesn't involve giving money to the label. In situations like this, I always wish bands would just record an hour of themselves randomly yelling obscenities into a microphone and release it to fulfill the label's requirements, then put the real album out with someone else. That'd be much funnier.

If you want to read up on some of the lawsuits and battles Victory has had with their own signed artists, their Wikipedia page has a fair amount of examples. Otherwise there are some Streetlight songs after the jump to entertain you.

Propagandhi, The Lawrence Arms Both Vaguely Tease New Albums

Two punk giants have started talking about their new albums. Propagandhi's Chris Hannah has been tweeting during the studio sessions for their upcoming, as-of-yet-untitled sixth full-length, and vaguely slated the release of the album for this summer. "Label secure, but TBA. It's more mysterious that way." He joked. This may be a bit sooner than expected for most fans of the band as their last several albums have had more than four years in between and we've yet to pass three years since Supporting Caste's release.

But even Propagandhi's biggest gap between albums has nothing on The Lawrence Arms. Its been nearly six years since the release of Oh! Calcutta! with nary a peep out of the Chicago natives. Alright, there was that EP in 2009, but I've been whining for a proper follow-up to the new frenzied sound on their last LP for years now; and I might finally get it later this year. Bassist/Co-Singer Brendan Kelly has also taken to Twitter and briefly mentioned an otherwise unannounced new album. No word yet on a release date, name, track listing, number of songs...really anything, but just the fact that they're working on one and it might be coming out this year is enough for me at the moment.

Unfamiliar with these two amazing bands? Hit the jump for some song samples to get you stoked for their upcoming releases.

Unoriginal Soundtracks Podcast: Catherine Edition

Every other Wednesday, I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for relevant terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and uncover hidden gems. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

Catherine is drenched in adult themes and alcohol. That makes for a varied playlist of fun blues, rock and roll, and funk about drink; and introspective post-punk and folk-rock about love and marriage.

Matt's Best and Worst Things of 2011 Awards

2011 is far and gone at this point, so why not dole out some awards? There was so much new and notable from last year in every form of media and a lot of it deserves some love and recognition. That's why I've decided to make up my own awards to give out in categories I also made up. Forget about an Oscar or that lame gramophone statuette! These are Matt's Made-Up Awards of 2011. 

Best Plot Device that is Never Explained – Midnight in Paris

A surprise hit during the summer and Woody Allen's highest grossing movie to date, Owen Wilson plays Gil, a confused and creatively lost screen writer on vacation in Paris with his fiancée. He wants to venture into writing serious literature and not just Hollywood fluff scripts, and hopes to find it in the streets of of the city that inspired artist alike.

Soon enough, something happens that gives Gil just the motivation and inspiration. I won't spoil it here, but trust me when I say it is unexpected and is never fully explained how it happens. For those who have seen the film, you know what I mean that the plot device that Allen uses really doesn't need any explanation. Doing so would lose focus of what is more important to this story, which is how Gil goes about finding what he needs in his life and not what he wants. Check out Tom Heistman's review he did back in June for more info (spoiler free). Personally, this is my favorite film of 2011.

Honorable Mention – Another Earth
A science fiction drama centered around two people and how their lives are affected by a second Earth as it comes closer to our planet. The parallel world is not the focal point of this movie but serves as a backdrop to the plot. This "Earth B" is never fully explained how it came to be, only speculated in brief moments. Just like Midnight, it offers a great vehicle to the story. Explaining it with facts and wordy science would only bog down the film's allure.

Music Video: Math the Band - Four to Six

When I interviewed Math the Band on Shuffled episode 25, they laid out their game plan on rolling out their upcoming album, Get Real. While the album has yet to drop, the first in a series of music videos featuring ever single song on the new album came out a few weeks ago. Directed by Jonathan Yi, the music video is fast and might legitimately be considered insane enough that it needs to be dragged into an institution. I personally cannot stop watching and laughing at it.

Other videos are in production from Math the Band and should be released over the next few months along with Get Real. Also be on the lookout for them this spring as they hit the road with Andrew W.K.'s American tour. If you live in the lower 48 and the video has you interested in more off this band's certifiable crazy style, check out their tour schedule for more details. Want to know more about Math the Band? There is more to be shared on my interview with them on Shuffled and a making of short on Vimeo. Read on to see the video "Four to Six."

Insufficient Funds: Agents of Change - The Buzzkill Mixtape

Insufficient Funds is a recurring post in which we feature a free, or very close to it, piece of media that you can enjoy without over drafting your bank account. So if you're low on funds, stay tuned to Cerebral Pop.
Chicago-based hip hop band Agents of Change are out to destroy everything for you by being the biggest buzzkills possible. Alright, really they just want to educate people and talk about awful things happening every day in our society in order to get others talking and thinking and put it into the collective conscious a little bit more.

I'm gonna show my lack of knowledge with this Insufficient Funds because I don't listen to very much rap or hip hop. What does the term 'mixtape' mean in hip hop culture? Is it always the artist rapping over other artist's beats? Does it always consist of not only studio-recorded songs, but live recordings, and plenty of collaborations? Are mixtapes always free?

Well, no matter what the "norm" is, The Buzzkill Mixtape from Agents of Change has/is all of these things. It's also pretty damn good.

Code Hero: A Game that Teaches You To Make Games

Since the days of RPG Maker and Fighter Maker, the idea of creating a video game has been an intriguing idea to me, and likely to millions of other gamers as well. Now it seems that someone is trying to make this dream a reality. Code Hero has a very simple premise; it's a game that teaches you to make games. How? Using a code gun, you and a potential co-op shooter partner set out to create a game inside the Javascript Unity 3D engine.

Primer Labs has a noble goal ahead of them and one that I hope they can get off the ground. As of this writing they have less than a week before their Kickstarter ends. If something like Code Hero can actually help teach people to code games then the creative output could rival any other attempts of user generated content we've seen so far.

Donate to the Kickstarter campaign here. For only $1 you can have instant access to the beta version of the game that is currently available, and perks get even better from there. Hit the jump for the Code Hero trailer.

The Aquabats! Drop Promo for The Aquabats! Super Show, Premiering March 3rd

It's a good week to be a fan of musicians with TV shows, because following the mc chris cartoon teaser is a promo for The Aquabats! Super Show. If you're a parent like me, you probably hate all of the shows that your kids like. My only exception is Yo Gabba Gabba!, which both my daughter and I enjoy in our own way. One of the main reasons I like that show is because it was co-created by Christian Jacobs, a.k.a. MC Bat Commander of The Aquabats!, one of the zaniest bands around, who also put on one of the best concerts I've ever seen.

It's rare that a band can make both the parent and their child laugh with their goofy lyrics, but Aquabats succeeded in doing that for my daughter and I with their last release, Hi-Five Soup!, which I reviewed here. (There are so many weird punctuation situations in this post because of their love for exclamation points.) So it's only natural that they release a kid's show of their own. And that's what they've got coming on The Hub Network, Saturday March 3rd, 11 a.m. EST.

I don't know about you, but I'm gonna go buy some sugary cereal and wake up early (11 is early when you work second shift) on Saturday with my kid so we can watch The Aquabats! Super Show! Hit the jump for the show's promo ad and get excited to act like a kid again.

The mc chris cartoon Teaser Trailer Reveal

Mc Chris dropped a love bomb on his fans this past Valentine's Day via his profiles on twitter and facebook; sharing the first glimpse into his upcoming Kickstarter-raised cartoon show. Funded by fans last summer, the aptly titled "the mc chris cartoon" will be animated by Titmouse Inc. and air on Adult-Swim. When the new show will be released has yet to be announced, but with the reveal of this teaser it shouldn't be too far away.

Over 1,000 backers pledged more than $71,000 to get this show off the ground. The plot seems to follow mc chris's overarching adventure spanning over his last several albums, and features subjects from stagnate record sales to the zombie apocalypse. With the team up of the mc's nerdy wit and the studio behind cartoons such as the brütal Metalocalypse and the short Scott Pilgrim vs. the Animation, this looks to be a solid venture for Adult-Swim. Ready to go on a multi-dimensional treasure hunt?

Check the teaser after the jump and listen to last year's Shuffled episode for more info on Chris Ward.

Horrorpunk Masters 'Cancerslug' Re-Press Entire Discography, Get Ready for US Tour

If you were a subscriber to The Monthly Music Wrap-Up podcast, you'll probably remember me playing some Cancerslug in October in lieu of the pretty awful new Misfits album. Their frontman, Alex Story, is spreading himself as far across the horrorpunk genre as possible; fronting not only Cancerslug, but his solo project Alex in Ash, and various other side projects that I can't find much info on. Oh yeah, and long-time Misfit's guitarist Doyle also made him the singer and lyricist for his horrorpunk super-group Gorgeous Frankenstein; and with good reason. In my mind, Cancerslug is keeping horrorpunk alive, while a Jerry Only-fronted Misfits and the slew of copycat bands are just cheesing it up more and more everyday.

But if you feel like you're behind on Cancerslug's impressive 12 album back-catalog, don't worry. They've just re-pressed every one of their previous albums and put them back up for sale in their store. If I may make a few suggestions; Book of Rats is one of my all-time favorite albums, The Beast with Two Backs is the first CS album I heard and always a classic, Tales of a Butcher is their most recent with many remakes of older songs, and the UnNameable EP is very well produced and probably one of their heaviest.

You can sample all the songs right on the site, or hit the jump to sample some of my favorites, as well as check out the dates for their upcoming US tour.

Shuffled #27 - Scratch and Hiss

Every other Wednesday either Matt or Alex C-Y share their love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as their tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy.

This week on Shuffled, we try something different (surprise!). Tyler Abstract joins me as we spin a few tracks from our personal stash of vinyl records. In fact, the whole playlist for this show are rarities and not available for purchase in digital formats. It's possible to find some of them on CD or in your local record shop if you dig on vinyl like we do. If not, enjoy this slathering of music from video game remixes to Jamaican folk and much more. Check the links below for some of the tracks I was able to hunt down elsewhere. A fair warring: All of these tracks were ripped from records, so the audio quality is all over the place (such is the nature of the beast). Enjoy and be on the look out for an extra scratchy track by a beloved early 90's alien!

IndieGala Has A Ball, Invites More To The Party

The IndieGala, now in its second iteration, has decided that it wants more, more, more! One more game, that is, and a spiffy new soundtrack. Still! More!

If you've already purchased the bundle, the added game, the original Hacker Evolution, will be available for you to download immediately. If you have yet to purchase the bundle, you'll get Hacker Evolution no matter what iteration of the bundle you buy. But if you want the soundtrack, you'll have to open your wallet a bit more. The soundtrack? Music by someone named Ulrich Schnauss. I don't know who he/she/it is, but I'm sure it's wonderful*!

For more details about the IndieGala bundle and what its purpose is, follow this spiffy link: IndieGala.

*not endorsed by CerebralPop.com.

The Secret to Being a Real Music Fan: Like What You Like, No Matter What

So, Bon Iver won "Best New Artist" at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards this Sunday. Did we all get the memo with the assortment of canned responses to give our friends, family, and colleagues in case the subject comes up? I'm going to go with, "Ugh. They aren't even good anymore. I used to like their first album, but the second one was just awful. Can't believe I was a fan."

In reality, I did like their first album more than their second, but that's really just because it holds a special place in my heart. It came along and surprised me with its somber beauty, and I'd venture to say it's one of the best break-up albums ever released. But honestly, I don't have to justify my opinions to you. They're my opinions, and no one else's thoughts or actions -- whether they be yours, a professional music critics, or the judges for the Grammy Awards -- can change them. Well, unless you managed to convince me that Justin Vernon's lyrics were actually about an awesome sandwich he'd made that he never got to enjoy because he dropped it on the floor. Then I probably wouldn't be able to take the album seriously any more.

But aside from that unlikely scenario, I'm probably going to keep feeling the same way I do about Bon Iver. That's the wonderful thing about music. Just because I say something is good, doesn't mean you have to think it's good as well. My opinion does not have to have any effect on your opinion, unless you choose to let it. And a band "going mainstream", "selling out", or "hitting it big" doesn't really factor into this at all.

Insufficient Funds: Breton's Free EP "The Blanket Rule"

Insufficient Funds is a recurring post in which we feature a free, or very close to it, piece of media that you can enjoy without over drafting your bank account. So if you're low on funds, stay tuned to Cerebral Pop.
UK-based electronic band Breton are priming new listeners for their no doubt illustrious musical careers by releasing a free 5-song EP entitled The Blanket Rule. I'm not entirely sure what the rule is, but the music is quite excellent. (I assume the rule is to not eat food on someone else's blanket. No one wants you wiping your nasty food-covered fingers on something they're gonna snuggle with later.)

Breton do things a little differently. They fancy themselves a "multimedia collective", which is their way of describing their practice of cutting and chopping up sounds from a variety of genres -- as well as their own uniquely created ones (like intentionally breaking speakers and playing inside bank vaults) -- and combining them into driving dance beats. The press release describes them as "deconstructing and reconstructing popular culture." Sound familiar? They're the musical version of this very website!

Hit up this link to download the EP for free, or hit the jump to hear a few sample songs.

Unoriginal Soundtracks Podcast: LA Noire Edition

Every other Wednesday, I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for relevant terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and uncover hidden gems. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

This punk-heavy playlist is completely period- and genre-inappropriate; not a smooth saxophone or smoky-voiced dame within earshot. But don't let that stop you enjoying a selection of great music that covers the same subject matter as Team Bondi's unique, studio-killing LA Noire.

It's Always Bloody In Dead Island: Becoming a Movie Character, and then Breaking Out of the Role

There have been many films that portray a foolish decision made by an idiot. It happens often during the course of horror flicks, repeatedly leading to the demise of Dingleberry McNoname. Most of these nincompoops conjure me to speak, out loud, as if they can hear me.

“Don’t go in there,” I say. “Don’t forget your gun!” I courteously remind them. “I warned you,” I eulogize. It’s a sad, bewildering way to end the fictional life of a fictional character on a good-not-great movie.

Yet there I was, living a nightmare, driving recklessly down a narrow road on Banoi Island. I skidded around a corner, as nervous as a teenage girl with braces and holy-cow-those-are-magnifying-glasses glasses, who’s waiting for the phone call from the hottest guy in school (who is really her blood brother that was given-up for adoption by her promiscuous mother, but neither one will find out until they are to be married years down the line), hoping that I could make it safely back to the lifeguard tower. Blood clouded my vision; most of my weapons were broken because I was gang-attacked by a group of overly-cruel zombies; and the truck I was careening around in was in a bad way.

Things looked grim.

Independent artist Clara Engel raising funds to record new album, Ashes and Tangerines

Alright, I'm pretty awful at describing music anymore than just "good" or "I don't like it," so trying to find a way to convey the wealth of sounds that I'm currently hearing from Clara Engel's last album might just prove to be my undoing. The Toronto-based musician already has seven releases, and from what I've heard of Secret Beasts (her 2009) album, I've been missing out. Variety is the spice of life, and Clara can go from sweet and beautiful to scary and brooding (and everything in between) in no time flat.

She aims to release her next album some time in May, and is hoping you'll be so kind as to help her fund some of the recording. Like countless other artists these days she's put up a fundraising campaign with the promise of perks to those who donate enough. Mainly the album itself, but also some of her artwork if you're a big spender. To me, these campaigns are always worth it when you're interested in the album anyway. You give a little money now to feel like you're charitable, then later you get awesome music that you completely forgot you've already paid for! And you support independent music, which is a necessity of life.

You can donate to/pre-order the album here, and you can pick up some of her previous releases over on her bandcamp page. Check out some sample songs from her last CD after the jump, as well as a video of her performing a song from the upcoming Ashes and Tangerines.

London-based duo The Hazard Archive release promising new single

One of my most anticipated albums this month is Shearwater's newest release, so when I got an email from a band who said they were similar I was more than intrigued. The Hazard Archive do indeed have the same sort of melancholic sound as Shearwater; the type of music I find most pleasant in those long winter months where everything can feel cold and barren. It adds a sense of beauty necessary to tolerating the temperatures.

The Hazard Archive don't have much to show for themselves yet, but their double A-side and this new single have more than piqued my interest in a debut full length. I'll be keeping an eye out for more from this promising new band. For now you can listen to or download their music here, or check out the video for Embers -- their newest single -- after the jump.

Shuffled #26: The Other Bands Edition

Every other Wednesday either Matt or Alex C-Y share their love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as their tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy.

  

When I go to a concert to see a specific musician, I try my best to see all the other bands playing the same gig. It's a great way to discover new sounds, while at the same time a chance to expand my music library. This episode of Shuffled is a playlist dedicated to some of the openers and headliners I've see over the past year. To narrow it down, I limited myself to bands and musicians who are connected to the interviews I've done so far (with a random little ditty at the end of the show).