Posts Tagged ‘Dinomania’


22.12.2008

Top 20 EPs of 2008 (1-10)

posted by Will

in Year End Lists

Click on album artwork for more.

#10 – Fleet Foxes “Sun Giant” (Sub Pop)

- I listened to the Sun Giant EP much more than I did the band’s following self-titled LP. Take that for what it’s worth.

#9 – The Gaslight Anthem “Señor and the Queen” 2×7″ (Sabot)

- Simply put, this band can do no wrong.

#8 – Shuteye Unison “Self-Titled” (Parks And Records)

- Moody, atmospheric indie rock played with huge intentions.

#7 – Little Lungs “Hoist Me Up!” (Self-Released)

- From the ashes of Each Others Mothers and Tin Kitchen comes Little Lungs. Pieces of those bands exist here but Little Lungs throw in a more punk rock approach.

#6 – Lanterns “Apocalypse Youth” (Self-Released)

- Huge pop hooks buried underneath swirling guitars. Lanterns are Trail of Dead without the pretension.

#5 – Dinomania “Text Messages” (Bark And Hiss)

- I was addicted to these songs upon my first listen. Not sure what the future holds for this mysterious outfit but I hope it includes more music in 09!

#4 – Tin Armor “Self-Titled” 7″ (Whoa Oh)

- Tin Armor are what Smoking Popes once were. Yeah, I said it!

#3 – Look Mexico “Gasp Asp” 7″ (Tiny Engines)

- The first release on the label I started with some buddies. I already loved Look Mexico but these songs cement the band as one of my favorites! And they’re super cute too!

#2 – Iron Chic “Demo” Tape (Dead Broke)

- Do you miss Latterman? You shouldn’t after hearing the first five songs from Iron Chic. So amazingly good!

#1 – Annabel “Now That We’re Alive” (Self-Released)

- I listened to Now That We’re Alive so many times this past year. I feel incredibly privileged to have worked with the band for Beartrap. Debut LP upcoming…stoked!

08.12.2008

Ben’s Top Ten Songs of 2008

posted by Will

in Year End Lists

Ben Hendricks – Annabel – Kent, Ohio

1. The Twilight Sad – “Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did.”
2. Dinomania – “Text Messages”
3. Death Cab for Cutie – “Cath…”
4. M83 – “Kim & Jesse”
5. Tin Armor – “The Roof and the Rod”
6. See Urchin – “To Be Yours”
7. The Notwist – “Boneless”
8. Des Ark – “Two Hearts are Better Than One”
9. No Age – “Teen Creeps/Things I Did When I Was Dead”
10. Cheap Girls – “Kind of on Purpose”

03.12.2008

Bradley’s Top Ten

posted by Will

in Year End Lists

Bradley Robinson – Tampa, Florida

Top 10 is based on number of times the album was played, which was the only meaningful measure I could go by. Honorable mentions go to Cheap Girls, The State Lottery, and Dinomania.

10.  Scream Hello – Smart & Stupid EP
9.  Shuteye Unison – s/t
8.  Unwed Sailor – Little Wars
7.  Lite – Phantasia
6.  September Malevolence – After This Darkness There’s A Next
5.  You May Die In The Desert / Gifts From Enola – Harmonic Motion Volume I
4.  This Will Destroy You – s/t
3.  Algernon Cadwallader – Some Kind of Cadwallader
2.  Sybris – Into The Trees
1.  The Samuel Jackson Five – Goodbye Melody Mountain

15.07.2008

They Mean Us: Friendship Lottery

posted by Bradley

in Music Reviews

In the midst of the high-definition, words per minute and frames per second lives we lead, it’s easy to forget that it’s the things we don’t say that often leave the most lasting impressions.  No matter our language or vocabulary, it’s the non-verbal cues and clues we give that unravel all the words to unmask our true intentions or dispositions.  The most poignant of speeches can be reduced to mere background chatter by an unkempt appearance and anemic voice.  Staring at her tits while complimenting her wit…you see what I mean.

Music is much the same way.  Assuming the shoegaze position for an entire live set can crumble even the biggest wall of sound. Many otherwise great songs have been ruined by the likes of an amateur vocalist, and vice versa.  McAllen, Texas’ They Mean Us side-step at least one of the above pitfalls and prove themselves as masters of the unspeakable.  Their titanic album Friendship Lottery is truly one of the great communicators in the Instrumental genre that is tarnished by repetition, imitation, and for some, stagnation.

Typical to the genre, They Mean Us take a little longer to get their point across (“Pickle Seals” is the shortest of the six tracks clocking in just shy of the four minute mark), but by no means overstay their welcome.  Rather than spend needless bars crafting celestial crescendo, They Mean Us rely on deft shifts of theme, tempo, style and perspective to draw the listener in.  The sheer grace of it all is what keeps you there.  Whimsical, That’s Your Fire era Aloha-esque vibraphone phrases, intricate American Football style guitar picking, rolling prog-rock bass lines, warm cello and tasteful electronics: Friendship Lottery takes the best elements of the past decade of music, fuses them, layers it, and executes it perfectly.

They Mean Us and Friendship Lottery bring to the table a peerless brand of post-ish rock without the drama, and math-rock without the geometrics.  It’s less filling, and tastes great.

Genre: Instrumental/Math-Rock

RIYL: Toe, The Six Parts Seven, Dinomania

Label: Self-Released/Look Again Media

Dan Mason

04%20Dan%20Mason.mp3

www.myspace.com/tmu

18.06.2008

Bark And Hiss!

posted by Will

in Asides, Music Musings

Check Out Bark And Hiss!

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16.06.2008

Dinomania: Text Messages

posted by Will

in Best New Music, Music Reviews

I would write an 80’s album for your honor if you just text back. So begins the fabulous debut EP from Dinomania which is appropriately titled, Text Messages. While I have not found too much information about the band, it does include a former member of the instrumental outfit, The Six Parts Seven. While Dinomania do indulge in vocals, this EP feels more like an instrumental journey. Perhaps that is because the lyrics often possess a stream of conscious flow to them. But, while the lyrics might not be the focal point here, they do add a subtle charm to the songs while never detracting from the band’s alluring arrangements. Dinomania’s songs have a curious air about them as they float above you in an almost dreamlike state. Perhaps this is way off base but I am reminded of Stereolab at times especially on the track “Airstream”. “Math Biographies” sounds just as angelic as Antlers (songs like “Water Tupelo” and “Catalpa”) were on their debut LP earlier this year. The song continues the clever wordplay practiced throughout the EP by Dinomania. The band provide us with four songs that mesmerize and hypnotize at each and every captivating turn. A full length is scheduled for release later in 2008. Color me excited.

You can download the entire EP here. All four songs are down below as well.

Genre: Indie/Pop

Label: Self-Released

RIYL: Antlers, The Six Parts Seven, Anathallo

Text Messages

Dinomania - Text Messages.mp3

Airstream

Dinomania - Airstream.mp3

Math Biographies

Dinomania - Math Biographies.mp3

Greyish-Brown Folding Chair

Dinomania - Greyish-Brown Folding Chair.mp3

www.myspace.com/thedinomaniacorp