My Review of The Rookie EP for The Swinging Bridge

When the hypnotic synth riff that drives opening single “Starfield” emerges from ambient noises to dominate the listener’s consciousness, it becomes clear that this is no ordinary bedroom electronica record. Building on this solid foundation, The New Division assemble a stadium-sized sound full of clattering percussion and laid-back guitars at the summit of which floats John Kunkel’s ethereal, reverb-drenched vocal. The glitchy rhythm and ‘80s snares of “Devotion” are reminiscent of a time when Joy Division, New Order, Kraftwerk, and Depeche Mode kept dancefloors packed until the wee hours of the morning. Its lyrical content, focusing on themes of solitude and spirituality, keeps The New Division firmly in such critically-acclaimed company—the purveyors of so-called ‘intelligent dance music’. Skittering cymbals and a pulsing bassline pick up the pace on “No Health” before smoothly flowing into the more rock-influenced “Nocturnal”. The rock influence remains in the ambient guitars at the beginning of “Festival”, a sound that would fit well on the last Ratatat album, before dropping an electro beat that has more in common with Deadmau5. Album closer “Bucharest” mimics the transition from hard-hitting club synths to more melodic lines one might experience on the way home from a night out, perfectly matched with lyrics about late-night conversations, loneliness, and the difficulty of communicating across cultures one might encounter both in the Romanian capital and The New Division’s hometown of Riverside, California. As a DJ, I appreciate their ability to balance a variety of songs capable of standing on their own and album-wide pacing to produce a smooth set of tunes that work extremely well in exactly the order they appear, from “Starfield” to “Bucharest”, almost like a narrative.

The New Division are clearly capable of producing a diverse array of electronic music, and their acoustic hidden bonus track hints at yet another direction they might go in the future. For an independently-released EP, The Rookie is an impressive effort. I had the privilege of seeing their CD release show in Riverside, and can honestly say it translates even better live, and with the recent addition of a drummer their act is sure to be even more compelling. Recent coverage from influential blogs like Pitchfork and NME (the British equivalent of Rolling Stone) leaves me hopeful that on their next effort they will have the benefit of a record label and its associated equipment and recording quality, distribution, and the possibility of a national tour so we East Coast residents can experience their music in the late-night environments it seems destined for.

- This is my original text. Check the final version at The Swinging Bridge here: http://media.www.messiahsb.com/media/storage/paper1242/news/2011/02/16/Entertainment/The-Rookie.Ep.Review-3975156.shtml

The Future of Music

In case you were wondering, rap music is here to stay, but-regardless of what will.i.am. may tell you, it isn't all about that boom boom pow. Rappers are increasingly collaborating with live musicians, touring, and engaging in other "rocker" behavior, as proved by Kid Cudi's performance on Letterman with Ratatat, a string quartet, and backup singers:

Even Jay-Z has connected with so-called "hipster rappers" like Cudi, Pharrell (of N.E.R.D. and The Neptunes), and Sant(o/i)gold, along with more standard pop/r&b/hip-hop collaborations (wife Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Kanye West, Swizz Beatz, Mary J. Blige, Memphis Bleek, P. Diddy) and a show-stopping John Mayer performance, all of which were showcased in his Fuse-televised 9/11 benefit show at a sold-out Madison Square Garden in front of a live band (all of which can be found here).

Genre blending is the future. I read an academic paper that claimed hip-hop was the most postmodern form of music because of its basis in sampling and recontextualizing other material in our postmodern age. From Girl Talk's collage of pop samples, to M.I.A.'s Diplo-produced, Clash-sampling reggae/hip-hop "Paper Planes" (which was then sampled for T.I., Lil' Wayne, Kanye and Jay-Z's "Swagger Like Us"), to rappers' and popstars' current electronic obsession, the future of music is going to look a lot like Kid Cudi in front of an indie/electronica band, a string quartet and backup singers on late night TV.