Ryan J. Hobson

Took some rallying to get out in the 3 degree rain and wind yesterday for a (long) run but made it happen. 13KM around the seawall via Burrard Bridge. It felt good but probably wasn’t ready for that distance right now. Still managed to get it down, slow and steady. Legs and lungs felt good; both feet felt better from there aches the previous run. Ended the run will an insane appetite. Needed some nutrition during the run. Strava link.

Energy boost song of the run: 

2017 and all of those runs are in the books. I met my 2017 goals (three half marathons and three 10KM races) and felt really good through most of it. By the the final half marathon in November I was mentally burned out and took a much needed break.

2018 has me thinking about new running goals. I’m still not certain what they are but I’m leaning towards another go at the marathon. I’ll see how these first two months of 2018 go before committing. If it’s not a marathon, my goal will be at least 2 half marathons. Why less than the last year? There didn’t feel like enough gap mentally between races. Once one ended it wasn’t long until having to ramp back up into training mode. The key for me is to try to keep running as enjoyable as possible. Not all runs are going to work but I believe most should leave me feeling better than I did before it. I also want to try keeping a running diary this year. Being my first run of 2018 here it goes...

It’s been two weeks since my last run. Today was 7KM, (see it on Strava) along my favourite route, towards Jericho Beach and back. Left heel felt sore on impact and right ankle was also sore throughout. Both felt better after about 5KM when they were fully warmed up. Temperature was good today with just a little January mist. Seeing the King Tide along the running route was a sight to see!

Energy boost song of the run:

It’s been four years since The Lumineers seemingly appeared out of no-where and took over radio for the next couple of years. This is the same band that played Vancouver’s Vogue theatre in 2012 but was then moved to the much roomier Deer Lake Park the following visit and will play that same park June 1st.

On Cleopatra the formula remains the same as what they laid out in their self-titled debut. Write beautiful catchy songs but usually come backed by a painful theme. The first single ‘Ophelia’, described as “is a vague reference to people falling in love with fame. That spotlight can seem like an endless buffet, but in reality, you’re just shiny, bright, and new to people for a quick moment-and then you have the rest of your life to live “ according to singer Wesley Schultz. It’s an immediately catchy song with the kind of sing-along infectious chorus The Lumineers have dominated speakers with.

The album bounces along at a good pace with a strong three-song opener that includes the fantastic ‘Sleep on the Floor’ and culminates with the album title namesake ‘Cleopatra’. The story telling and themes dealt with in the lyrics on this album beg for further listening. Sadness has never been shied from by The Lumineers. Case in point; listen as Schultz’s voice cracks and strains as he sings about a hospital stay during ‘Long Way From Home’.

I’m still not sure why in a streaming dominated world, artists need to release a ‘Deluxe’ version in addition to a regular album version but it is once again the case here. The three extra songs (and acoustic version of Cleopatra) are actually my favourite three songs of the entire album! ‘Where the Skies Are Blue’, ‘Everyone Requires A Plan’ and ‘White Lie’ is a brilliant run of three songs (much like the opening three) to close this album out. ‘White Lie’ is an absolute stand-out and might be one of the best tracks form The Lumineers camp… so far.

Essential tracks: Ophelia, Sleep on the Floor, Cleopatra, Where the Skies Are Blue, Everyone Requires A Plan and White Lie

The return of Vancouver’s seventies rock throwbacks, Black Mountain, has arrived! How better to tip the cap to the heyday era of classic rock than naming your fourth album, IV? But don’t mistake this album for an album stuck in the 70’s. Instead it’s a 70’s infused record that Black Mountain is able to put it’s trademark stamp on and fit it into today.

An absolute brilliant album cover greets you, featuring the Concorde and some sort of spaceperson looking over his/her/it’s shoulder, Black Mountain have tapped into their classic sound once again, this time with even more synthesizer. The album cover also acts a doorway or preview to the otherworldly dimension theme this album carries throughout.

The vibe on IV is fluid with a loose flow more prevalent then previous Black Mountain releases. Black Mountain have never been shy from long weaving songs but on IV there is a feeling of letting each song grow and breathe.

The haunting ‘Mothers of the Sun’ opens with an explosive riff and takes you across the Black Mountain sonic landscape for the next eight and a half minutes. Singers Stephen McBean and Amber Webber trade vocals on the song, building in the early parts to McBean’s ‘let’s count together…’ lyric, leading to another explosive riff and mid-point guitar solo.

Songs like ‘Florian Saucer Attack’ brings back the more sped up feel explored on ‘The Hair Song’ from their last album, 2010’s ‘Wilderness Heart’. While ‘Cemetery Breeding’ comes complete with a David Bowie ‘Ashes To Ashes’ riff.

The album closes with the spaced out epic ‘Space to Bakersfield’. It’s songs like this that Black Mountain shines. Where they’re able to take the live music element and put it to an album. The last line uttered from McBean asks ‘are we listening…’ before the music softly fades. Sung almost as if he’s taken off, looking back, wondering if you’ll join him, it is the perfect bookend to the huge riffs of the opener.

Essential tracks: Mothers of the Sun, Florian Saucer Attack, You Can Dream & Cemetery Breeding

Sometimes I felt like I was listening to a Queens Of The Stone Age (‘Break Into Your Heart’) record. Then Artic Monkeys (‘Choclate Drops’). All of the sudden, is this Bowie (‘Sunday’)? And then back to Iggy (‘Paraguay’).

Of course this is an Iggy Pop record. Maybe even Pop’s final record. What Josh Homme has been able to bring out of Pop on Post Pop Depression* is nothing short of exceptional. There are so many twists and turns on this record, Pop’s many influences bleeding through each song that if this is truly IT for Iggy, he’s going out as a master.

Brian Fallon has never made his admiration of Bruce Springsteen a secret. It is that Springsteen sound that has influenced the albums from his regular day job with The Gaslight Anthem. Titling a song ‘Nobody Wins’ is no doubt a tip of the cap to Springsteen’s unofficial motto, “Nobody wins unless everybody wins.”

Fallon’s latest, a solo project called ‘Painkillers’, picks up that Springsteen torch and runs with it. Immediately ‘A Wonderful Life’ starts and you’re transported to New Jersey. ‘Painkillers’ is reminiscent of the hopeful records that have made up the past decade of Springsteen records (see High Hopes and Working On A Dream). Through all of life’s tough and uncontrollable moments both singers are yearning to see the best of what life has to offer.

“George Fest – A Night to Celebrate the Music of George Harrison”

George Fest, not to be confused with Seinfeld’s George Costanza’s ‘Summer of George’ where he lounged in pajamas at home all day after being fired by the Yankees. Instead George Fest is a live album and concert DVD package documenting the George Fest tribute concert to former Beatle George Harrison, held at the Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles on September 28th, 2014.

The two album set is loaded with performers from all musical (or even comedy) backgrounds including Brian Wilson and Al Jardine of the Beach Boys, Dhani Harrison, Norah Jones, Wayne Coyne and Steven Drozd of the Flaming Lips, Conan O'Brien, Spoon's Britt Daniel, and Brandon Flowers of the Killers. Other performers included Ben Harper, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Ann Wilson of Heart, and Ian Astbury.

The list of performers combined with Harrison’s impressive catalogue is reasons enough to give this celebratory album a listen. As far as live albums go, often times what happens in the live setting doesn’t always transfer to the stereo. That is indeed the case in places here but overall the songs and guests performing them, more than make up for those places.

There are a few very special moments here. One of those is how good and how much Dhani Harrison sounds like his Dad. Dhani tackles ‘Savoy Truffle’ and ‘Let It Down’ leaving you thinking you’re hearing George himself deliver them. Other strong surprises came from the comedic corner, Conan O’Brien (‘Old Brown Shoe’) and Weird Al Yankovic (‘What Is Life’).

At times things don’t work on this collection and sadly the Brian Wilson spin on ‘My Sweet Lord’ is one of those times. On paper this had me the most excited…hearing a Beach Boy sing The Beatles, how can it go wrong? But sadly Brian just never sounds comfortable and suffers from what sounds like a mixing issue with his vocals sounding distant (and almost disinterested).

The artists don’t stray very far from Harrison’s original versions on this compilation but that doesn’t matter. Hearing different voices deliver songs you’ve known for years and no doubt loved, gives them enough of a new spin, worthy of future listens.

What this album also does is reinforce how strong the George catalogue of songs is.  The ensemble of singers that come together to close the album out with ‘Handle With Care’ and ‘All Things Must Pass’ cap off what sounds like a special evening celebrating The Quiet Beatle.

Essential tracks: Old Brown Shoe, I Me Mine, Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp, Savoy Truffle, What Is Life, Here Comes The Sun, All Things Must Pass

And within the first 10 seconds you instantly know Wolfmother is back! A ferociously perfect yell (that is almost a mirror to how Wolfomther started their career with ‘Dimension’ on their debut self-titled record) and guitar riff kick off the Andrew Stockdale led Wolfmother’s latest offering, ‘Victorious’.

The opening track ‘The Love That You Give’ is vintage Wolfmother and is exactly what made you fall in love with this group in 2005. The formula isn’t anything new but in 2005 it was a refreshing injection into the alternative rock & roll music landscape to hear that vintage 70’s classic rock sound.

So Help Me God

SWISH

Waves

The Life of Pablo

27 months after he started it, many stops and restarts later, four album titles, an ever-changing track list, culminating with a massive Madison Square Garden fashion release, Kanye West has (finally) delivered his seventh album, The Life of Pablo (TLOP).

Only a handful of artists’ album releases get me as excited as a Kanye release. He has defined hip-hop and published music that extends past the norms in the 2000’s like few others.

When the momentum of TLOP started to hit that feverish pitch and we finally had a release date (originally February 11th) the curiosity of what Mr. West would deliver was huge. An early track list tweeted by West himself had TLOP at 10 tracks, the same as it’s predecessor, Yeezus. This only helped fuel my excitement because that is one of the major victories of Yeezus, it’s succinctness. You (and Kanye) can thank Rick Rubin1 for the Yeezus trimming and keeping it to the strongest 10 tracks Kanye had at the time. For all of TLOP brilliance (and believe me there are massive stretches of brilliance all over this record. It’s an early completely impulsively pick already for one of the best albums of 2016) it begs to have the Rubin slash treatment. We may never know why Kanye took his original 10-song track list for TLOP and blew it open to be 18 songs but this is one of the downfalls here.

Tracks like ‘Freestyle 4’, ‘Silver Surfer Intermission’ and ‘Facts’ all stand out as unnecessary here in this collection. Even the amusing ‘I Love Kanye’ could be dropped and kept as the Saturday Night Live skit treatment it got on February 13th.

True to form Kanye produces and includes some of the best samples and sounds to be found in hip-hop. Songs like ‘Ultralight Beam’ sound completely fresh and original. Samples on the outro of ‘Father Stretch Mt Hands Pt. 2’ and the dance fuelled beats of the final two minutes of ‘Famous’ and the album closer ‘Fade’ are brilliantly used.

Kanye’s ego or antics in the media have never been enough to turn me off of his music. Admittedly there are lyrics here in TLOP that give me pause. They seem to be included for nothing more than shock value… as if ‘look what I can say’. There is a stretch of songs starting with ‘Famous’ then ‘Highlights’ into ‘Freestyle 4’ that all have start with Kanye lines that leave (at least me) dumbfounded on the outrageous nature of what he is actually saying.

But in the end it’s the overall sounds and Kanye’s swagger that just have the ability to complete stand out and come back again (and again). He has delivered a record that sounds like nothing else right now and THAT is what is most refreshing.

In ‘Feedback’ Kanye yells “Name one genius that ain’t crazy”… After the lead-up to finally hearing this record, West’s constant tinkering, his twitter account with seemingly no-filter, crazy seems to be the perfect word. But I’d caution to not shrug this record off as the musings of a crazy man. Instead I would encourage you to hear it as the sound of 2016, delivered by a man who’s made it his business to soundtrack the 2000’s better than most.

Essential tracks: Ultralight Beam, Waves FML, Real Friends, 30 Hours, No More Parties in L.A.

Faith No More meets TV On The Radio meets underground rapper Doseone and decide to cut an album? First thing I ask is: When and where can I hear this potentially amazing creation?

Nevermen is a trio consisting of TV on the Radio's Tunde Adebimpe, Faith No More's Mike Patton, and Doseone. Each of these members has their own unique sound so on paper the potential for something completely different is there. As much as this potential could have helped the album it also looks to be the main reason it bogs itself down.