Floater: album due 5/28

Discussion in 'Art & Culture' started by Tiassa, May 17, 2002.

  1. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    37,884
    New Floater album due 5/28

    The seventh album by the Oregon band Floater is scheduled for release on May 28. Having heard a couple of the tracks in development at various concerts by the band, I'm prepared for a mindblowing album.

    The album's distribution will, as always be spotty°. On the west coast, you can usually find it in independent record stores, and I have, before, seen their CDs at Tower Records, so it's possible they'll get some national distribution. Floater is currently with the Elemental Records label, which has in the past carried Sweaty Nipples° and Cherry Poppin' Daddies.

    The coming release will be Floater's fifth studio album, alongside two live releases and then a small handful of singles. Best known for the song Danny Boy, from their second studio album, Glyph (a condition which irks them--I've actually seen them refuse to play the song for a frothing crowd), Floater is, in my opinion, the definition of consistency. Once thought of by their local fans as comparable to Tool, the band chose to go in a different direction and are currently providing one of the only truly alternative sounds in rock and roll.

    I will, in fact, be seeing Floater tomorrow night in Seattle°. Hopefully, I'll be able to tell you a little more of what exactly to expect from this album. But judging from past experience--the live development of Watched Over by Crows and King Rabbit (a video° in .mov format is available here) built much anticipation, and it's worth noting that the band did in fact deliver with the studio releases--I'm expecting a brilliant album from these guys.

    A musician friend of mine complains that they won't write a pop song. Take that for what you will, but it's an ironic point since he, as a pop musician, despises the audience he will play for.

    But you need not take my word regarding Floater. If you have a Gnutella client (Limewire, for instance, or our own kind host's Aquisition for OSX users), you can hear them for yourself. Or you can check out a couple of mp3's, including Medicine Woman, an obvious and admitted nod to The Police.

    thanx,
    Tiassa

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!



    Notes:

    ° Spotty distribution--Part of the problem is that I never buy their albums from stores; they're usually $10 at the shows, and the band gets more money out of that deal, anyway.

    ° Sweaty Nipples--I have never heard or seen any recordings from the band via Elemental; the website used to list them alongside the now-defunct Henry's Child on their website.

    ° Seattle--Scheduled for 5/18 @ Graceland, $8.00 adv., w/Point Defiance & Alkai Diggins

    ° King Rabbit video--In an ironic twist, I encountered playback difficulties with a PC that has a faster processor (but less RAM) than my iMac. Synchronization went to hell, but I just watched the video as I was writing this on my iMac, and it's fine. Good luck. It's not that special of a video, anyway. Merely promo. I'd recommend the mp3's, or I'd be happy to "promote" (unofficially) the band and send you any mp3 from their discography. I'm here part of the day, and you can reach me via AIM for that, if you need (I haven't bothered sending files via MSN yet) ... ID for either is baronszurke (@hotmail.com for MSN).


    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!


    (from left: Dave, Pete, Rob)
     
  2. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  3. goofyfish Analog By Birth, Digital By Design Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    5,331
    The sun is touching me so strange...

    I downloaded a few mp3s by these guys, including
    "Danny Boy" and "Cinema", and I have to say: I like.

    So how about an update on their appearance in Seattle?

    Peace.
     
  4. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  5. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    37,884
    Alter

    Greetings from Salem, Oregon. I'm down visiting the folks for the weekend, and catching a couple of shows. Earlier this week it was Queens of the Stone Age at Graceland in Seattle--a crushing, monstrous performance. Haven't seen a show that heavy in a while. Last night, Thursday, was QOTSA again, this time at Berbati's Pan in Portland, and tonight it is Floater at the Crystal Ballroom in Portland.

    And that's the important one.

    The last Floater show in Seattle has been described as one of the best performances seen in a while, and possibly ever. I disagree, though our bootleg library probably has 40+ of Floater's shows on MD, and most of those (95%) were taped by the guy who gave me the "best performance" review.

    I'm thinking of a Floater show at the Crystal a few years ago, during the recording of The Great Release which rivals it, and a couple of performances from Angels in the Flesh that absolutely crushed me, and the Crystal Ballroom show for the release tour for Burning Sosobra absolutely buried me.

    So tonight, having heard only part of the album (Alter is the title), and that portion live, I'm expecting an earthshattering performance. It'll take a bit to match the QOTSA show last night, but several people I talked to after the set were aware of the Floater concert, and I must admit that the youthful energy of an all-ages show might be enough to put the hometown (e.g. Portland) boys over the top for that comparison. Heck, even the guy I bought shoes from today (no sales tax

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

    ) is going to be up at the show tonight, so we're hoping for a doozy. It's the kind of show that has the potential to wreck a place, except that Floater's fans, generally, understand the point that if you like a room, you treat it nicely or else management won't invite the band back. But the force of the music should be sufficient to wreck the building, anyway. I've seen Floater nearly destroy a club with pure energy.

    So, with much excitement, we go forth. We go forth. Ooh ... lasagna before beer. I'm fortunate.

    thanx,
    Tiassa

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     
  6. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.

Share This Page