Weekend Update (HEALTH, Wolf Eyes, Arca, Spoon, Forest Swords, Kendrick, Gorillaz)

Weekend Update is where we catch up on stuff from outside of Minnesota that has caught our attention, but hasn’t made its way to a post of its own. Basically we are saving lazy music fans a trip to Pitchfork, so you are welcome for that.
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HEALTH :: EUPHORIA

Electronic outfit HEALTH cram a whole music documentary into one video. Pretty dramatic, and bordering on cheesy and overblown, but seem to navigate the pitfalls.

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Wolf Eyes “II”

This 5:34 extract from song number dos on these noise vets latest LP Right in Front of You is a sweet, melodic bubble gum pop son…just kidding. It is Wolf Eyes. I actually had the song open in two tabs playing at slightly different times and didn’t notice for a good minute and a half. It is a rumbling-yet-mellow noise freakout. It sounds like a murderer hiding in a swamp.

….you can also watch a “gig simulator” video watching the band in the studio HERE.

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Kevin Morby “Come to Me Now”

You want it darker? Good. Less than a year after releasing the stunning Singing Saw LP, Morby is back with another batch of songs recorded at the same time. The first song released from the LP is the stunning “Come to Me Now.” I’d say more about it, but you should just listen.

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Arca “Saunter”

Arca is one of the most forward-thinking, innovative artists working right now, electronic music or otherwise. On “Saunter,” the cinematic, swirling sounds that he has been building over the years come pouring through the speakers in a twitchy, hypnotic mess of sounds. Never a direct path to where you are going, but always worth the price of admission.

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Forest Swords “The Highest Flood”

Forest Swords last LP, Engravings, still gets lots of spins, so I was excited to see new material from the UK producer. “The Highest Flood” continues what makes his work so good: barely controlled dirges that are sweeping yet melodic, creating symphonic soundscapes that have just the right amount of darkness and foreboding. His music is somehow tense yet exhilarating.

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Kendrick Lamar “The Heart Part 4”

Young up and coming rapper releases teaser track for new album. I’ll be interested to see if he gets any coverage.

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Spoon “Hot Thoughts”

Old indie dudes make new record that continues their tradition of not making records that lose me. We’re a solid decade deep of new records every two years and they continue to find new (or at least not aggressively redundant) ways to untangle their trademark sound. It is frankly pretty amazing.

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Gorillaz “Saturnz Barz (Spirit House)”

Another beloved band springs back into our consciousness and shitty stereo speakers. While I like the songs enough (much of Albran’s non-classic Blur work takes time for me to decide if I like it or hate it), the video is worth posting. Their ability to create a whole universe out of their gag, at what I imagine is a large cost and time commitment that probably slows down the project, is impressive. Even if you aren’t a fan of the group, the video is fun to watch.