I Am The Fun Blame Monster Posted by djmaru

Menomena: "E. Is Stable" and "Oahu" From I Am The Fun Blame Monster [Muuuhahaha!, 2003] I think the thing that upsets me the most about this whole music thing, or at least frustrates me the most, is the time commitment that's involved. I mean I've got about 300 records sitting next to my turntables that I have yet to listen to, and with a steady stream constantly coming in, that pile doesn't seem to have diminished over the last year. That makes it almost impossible to keep up with all the new music that's coming out, and even though my interest in the latest Def Jux or indie rock record have waned considerably, I think I still realize how much amazing music is passing me by. This fact became all too clear to me when I listened to Menomena's first album entitled I Am The Fun Blame Monster. I remember reading the review on Pitchfork months ago, thinking that they sounded like something I would dig and proceeding to etch them somewhere deep in my music memory bank. Well a couple weeks ago I came across their album on soulseek and proceeded to download it (which is of course wrong and is an activity I don't condone). I listened it on the way to school the next day and was simply mesmorized by what I was hearing, so impressed in fact that I made a special trip to Amoeba Records that night to pick it up. The $32 price tag for a vinyl copy, although quite high for a new release, didn't phase me as I was determined to get this piece of music on wax. At home I realized what justified such an expense after it took me three minutes to figure out how to get the record out of the sleeve. It unfolds like a typical gatefold cover would, although neither end yields a record. Instead their is a center piece that, when applied with enough brain power, unfolds kind of like one of those cootie catcher things you used to make in elementary school, with the surrounding area of the "catcher" made to look like the gaping mouth of a monster, and out of this mouth comes the record. Very cool concept indeed, but so annoying that it prompted me to slip it in a plain white sleeve and file the cover away so I never have to deal with it again. Nevertheless, this seems to be the type of creativity that embodies Menomena, a three-piece outfit from Portland, Oregon who's frontman Brent Knopf decided to write a special computer program called Deeler that would allow his band to "improvise short ideas and use them as the building blocks for broad, loop-based compositions which they then learn to play live." Mmmkay, whatever. I'm not sure if I quite get it, but the music is unbelievably lush and deep, borrowing sounds from hip hop, glitch, and indie rock and sort of throwing it into this musical soup. For a better idea of what their influences are, Dusted Magazine did a nice feature on their current likings that do manage to make subtle appearances in their music. I must say, I had a hell of a time deciding what songs to present here since almost all of them are worthy, but naturally I seem to be drawn to the drum heavy tracks, one of these being "E. Is Stable." I just love the way the individual components come together, from the guitar slides, clumsy bass line, soft piano keys, aggressive drums, and punctuated vocals. "Oahu" is probably my favorite track on the album. For whatever reason thoughts of Boards of Canada, Tortoise, Coldplay, and Savath and Savalas have all gone through my head while listening to this track, but really it sounds nothing like any of them and that's why I think so many people are going nuts over these guys. I won't go into the details of this one, just do yourself a favor and download it, turn your speakers up high, lay down, close your eyes, and let your mind wander. So lovely. Much more information can be found on their website(god forbid they have any fans in Japan). Really though, their website is on some serious early 90's look what I can do with webpages shit. Arduous to get through, but there's some worthwhile information there including rare and unreleased tracks, weird pictures, and random tid bits. I must emphasize again the abominable design skills which I'm sure is supposed to symbolize some kind of irony. Stick to making music guys.