Who would think that one of the best curators of underground music would be a network that specializes in cartoon shows for adults? We've always loved Adult Swim for shows like Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Superjail but we have to give it credit for its singles program: an annual event where the network gives away downloads of new singles from less-than-mainstream performers every week throughout the summer.
Now that Fall has officially begun and the last single was dropped on September 22, Music Times reflects on all 16 and ranks them accordingly. Don't take it too hard if your favorites finished closer to the back than to the front...the majority of these were well worth the download.
Editor's Note: We've tried as hard as possible to judge these pieces on audio quality alone, not for the awesome gif artwork that accompanied them on Adult Swim's site.
16) "Bigger Party" by Speedy Ortiz (07/14)
Speedy Ortiz, namely vocalist Sadie Dupuis, produces plenty of sharp, punchy lyrics and that tradition continues during the verses on "Bigger Party." Unfortunately it can't save the unfortunate hook" "I'm really sorry for the time I made out with all your friends/I really am a s--thead." If you can't figure out how to sing that smoothly, don't worry, neither can she. Head back to EP Real Hair for some better 2014 Speedy Ortiz listening.
15) "Want Me" by Machinedrum (06/16)
We kind of have an imaginary situation where this track would make sense as a soundtrack: Mario and Princess Peach meet at the beginning (or end) of some new Nintendo title and the princess laments the loss of passion between her and the plumber before breaking things off. If that description didn't do anything for you: Imagine the airy electric keyboards of the newer games compiled with glitchy drums and a voice clip repeating "back when you wanted me," and you'll have Travis Stewart's contribution to the Singles program.
14) "Amps, Drugs, Mellotron" by Tim Hecker (07/07)
Maybe we're just dark people but we were really stoked about Tim Hecker's 2013 album Virgins. So perhaps we were a little biased when "Amps, Drugs, Mellotron" turned out as cheery as it did. "Cheery" is a relative term of course and the track is certainly in the ambient line of work that we expect from the Quebecker but it was certainly a lot brighter than Virgins. We would have like to see this tune lengthened and developed a bit more but hey: That's what future record are for. We warn you in advance that the song doesn't really give off the vibe of "amps" or "drugs."
13) "Spooners" by Diarrhea Planet (08/04)
This is about as pop-punk as a band with four guitarists can get, we reckon. Or at least that's the opening of the song. The worst-named group on the planet has always been talented at making it sound like every one of those guitarists is in the studio at the same time but we gotta hand it to drummer Casey Weissbuch for sounding more powerful than any of them. When you play a minority instrument, you gotta do what you gotta do.
12) "Coupe" by Future (07/28)
The battle between quick two-seaters and fancy four-doors continues and Future is opting for the latter...at least for the moment. The quality of the rapper's Honest surprised us (at least this correspondent) and "Coupe" would fit right into the mix. It's got a darker beat in line with "Move That Dope" but far less domineering, as KaCe The Producer plinks at an electronic keyboard, a sound that keeps in theme with many of the singles program downloads. This is one song best experienced with the music video, which you can check out below:
11) "Atlanta" by Mastodon (ft. Gibby Haynes) (9/08)
If you predicted that Mastodon would come up with some absurd time signature or psychedelic concept for its homage to its (and Adult Swim's) home of Atlanta, you clearly didn't catch "Linoleum Knife," the band's contribution to Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters. Much like the aforementioned classic, "Atlanta" is straightforward yelling and riffing, with Brent Hinds and Bill Kelliher going shred-crazy toward the end. The Butthole Surfers' Gibby Haynes isn't from Georgia but he always makes just enough not-sense to appear in an Adult Swim promo.
10) "Drug Reference" by Oozing Wound (08/11)
Chicago thrash band Oozing Wound was described by The New Yorker as "happy to be a cheap imitation of Metallica and Slayer." That was meant in good humor but it's a tad unfair to compare a band with intentions such as Wound's to a group as straight-faced as Slayer. A more likely comparison point might be Municipal Waste, a Virginia thrash group hellbent on partying but hellbent nonetheless. Oozing Wound doesn't sing about World War I (a popular thrash theme we feel) but it has fun. A "fun imitation of Metallica and Slayer" sounds more accurate.
09) "My Darling Don't Cry" by Run The Jewels (09/15)
El-P's beat for "My Darling Don't Cry" takes the basic stomping bass approach of other recent RTJ single "Blockbuster Night Pt. 1" and mixes in footwork-style sampling to create a rhythms as attention-deficit-disordered as anything we'd expect from the emcee/producer. Killer Mike has been hot on what we've heard from the do so far as they build up to Run The Jewels 2 and we kind of wish he would get more mic-time here. We'd have to go back and measure the allotment each gets but it seems as though El dominates the track.
08) "The Clarity" by Sleep (07/21)
No track on this list has developed as many headlines as "The Clarity," which marked the first new track from stoner metal icons Sleep in nearly two decades. Matt Pike hasn't forgotten how to trudge through the sludge and shred later (no surprise to High on Fire fans) and justify his constant lack of a shirt, and Jason Roeder of Neurosis does right by Pike's playing with his own heavy hammering. The single approaches ten minutes in length but that's nothing on the band's last release, the hourlong song/album Dopesmoker.
07) "Cosplay" by Captain Murphy (08/18)
Flying Lotus (also known as Captain Murphy when rapping) was an obvious invite for the singles program, considering his hip-hop alias is presumably a reference to the network's classic Sealab 2021. The creepy witchcraft vocal opening sounds straight out of a Lotus record and the emcee is remarkably sincere in his hybridization of nerd culture and the hip-hop high life. "These ho's is zombies" he snarks before comparing his escapades with women to the titular costumed activities.
06) "Dust" by Destruction Unit (06/23)
Regardless of genre, there's a beauty in building up to a massive hook. Destruction Unit, back after its own lengthy hiatus, gets it. Things start out alright during "Dust" but rise to awesome-status with a wall of apocalyptic noise during the chorus. The noise stands for all the technical aspects of the shoegaze movement while vocalist Ryan Rousseau's vocals attacks everything that the genre stands for with his approach, if not with his lyrics.
05) "Lost Prophet Report" by Ka (09/22)
"Lost Prophet Report" sounds like a leftover from Ka's 2013 album The Night's Gambit, which is to say it sounds pretty damn good. The rapper is experiencing a surge, at least in terms of appreciation, after crossing the 40th birthday line. The themes are as dark as ever, featuring thick rhythm and a paranoia-inducing keyboard-line. The only one not scared is Ka, a prophet from the darkest corners of Brooklyn.
04) "From The Kettle Onto The Coil" by Deafheaven (08/25)
Many criticized Deafheaven—the creator of 2013's best album, Sunbather (by this writer's estimation)—for not being "real" black metal. The fact that the band was willing to play with other instruments and major keys was enough to turn off the fans of "pure" Norwegian stuff. Although "From The Kettle Onto The Coil" is still as big and experimental as the Sunbather session it still sounds a little more traditional compared to the standards. Things are dark throughout and vocalist George Clarke delves into the rasp-style snarls as well as the screams we've come to expect.
03) "Giorgio's Theme" by Giorgio Moroder (06/09)
If you weren't aware of Giorgio Moroder before, you sure did after listening to Daft Punk's Random Access Memories, which dedicates a whole song to an interview with the Italian synth-pioneer. He might not have come up with a snazzy title for his track but he brought so many layers of melody that we forgot to care. Approaching eight minutes without a single word spoken, Moroder's theme should serve as an inspiration to all EDM DJ's: You don't need a celebrity guest or vocal hook to keep us entertained.
02) "RP Technic" by RP Boo (09/01)
The Chicago footwork scene is experiencing a surge in popularity following the salutes to deceased producer DJ Rashad earlier this year. Here's another icon in the scene that you should experience while still alive: RP Boo employs adrenaline where others might call it rhythm. "RP Technic" (pronounced "technique") is a rapid-fire instrumental, detailing a soundcheck in the same way a squadron might prepare planes for warfare. Don't get comfortable. That's the point.
01) "Star Spangled" by Fatima al-Qadiri (07/04)
Jimi Hendrix is responsible for the most renowned adaptation of "The Star-Spangled Banner" but should he be? Did he ultimately change the song or merely interject some wicked guitar solos in between passages? We'll stop before your dad gets mad but Fatima al-Qadiri truly reimagines the national anthem to suit the style she laid out on her excellent 2014 release Asiatisch: lingering, minimalist synthesizers with lengthy gaps of silence, left as if to force us to contemplate their existence. Although many consider anything a note off of Francis Scott Key's original to be sacrilege, there is something strangely patriotic about al-Qadiri's rendition. Kuwaiti-born and New York-based...a fairly American tale.
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