Twin Cinema Gets A 9.11235813
Reactions were mixed to the new New Pornographers we listened to a while back. However, a lot of you noted this album was a "grower."
Pitchfork gave Twin Cinema a 9.0, calling it the band's best album.
But who would've guessed The Da Vinci Code was a source of inspiration? Carl Newman tells CMJ:
John was giving Dan and I a tutorial on creating embedded loops that led to us accidentally creating the opening machine gun guitar riff that is the beginning of "The Jessica Numbers." John pointed out that the pattern of the staccato guitar hits was pretty much a reverse Fibonacci sequence. I'd never heard of such a thing. While flying to Buffalo to meet Amy's parents, I bought The Da Vinci Code and was shocked to see a reference to the Fibonacci sequence. I actually figured ou the first riddle before the "geniuses" in the novel. So of course this starts me thinking out about a possible bloodline between myself and Jesus Christ. Then about a month later, I'm working on "The Jessica Numbers" and Dan comments that it sounds like something from Jesus Christ Superstar. So do the math there.AC, JC ... it's all connected, man!
Check out two cuts from Twin Cinema courtesy of Matador:
The New Pornographers - "Twin Cinema" (MP3)
The New Pornographers - "Use It" (MP3)
And if you're into Fibonacci numbers, game theory, and other mathy things, check out my friend Kevan's posts at The Volokh Conspiracy. He is Volokh's "puzzle blogger." (Kev, you gotta sex up that bio a bit.)
Posted at 10:49 AM
Being "Volokh's puzzle blogger" sounds a bit sinister.
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I've only heard 5 leaked/previewed songs from the record, but I was pretty disappointed. Sounds like an A.C. Newman solo record to me. Not saying it's bad, just that...IMO there's enough "grower" music out there now (probably too much). I loved the Pornographers because their work was instantly likeable and carried a huge sonic punch. The tracks I heard pretty much lack that, except for "Twin Cinema," which sounds like a leftover from the "Electric Version" sessions.
.02
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get over youselves new p
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Upon purchasing and first listening to it yesterday, I made the same conclusion myself about how it's gonna take a few listens.
There's no question to me that it sounds like other songs from AC's solo record, but that's not a bad thing at all. I said to myself that the songs are solidly crafted, but but not quite the NP sound I've come to love so much.
All in all, I don't think I'm going to like it as much as their first two albums, but I still think it's a great listen with a number of standout tracks.
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The New Pornographers are nothing compared to the pop music juggernaut known as Fountains of Wayne. Joking. Sing Me Spanish Techno makes me want to cry, hug someone, and jump up and down simultaneously.
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I've had a leaked copy since late June. Give it some time, and you might find, like I did, that it's a lot better than the A.C. Newman solo album. Like that album, it has more ballads and experiments, but this band pulls them off much better.
And I'm pretty sure "Twin Cinema" IS a leftover from Electric Version, so that explains the similarity there.
Fountains of Wayne have some great songs. Mockers have not listened to Utopia Parkway.
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It takes a few listens, and like a lot of great albums, it does better in certain settings than others -- performing better in the car or on headphones, performing much worse in your house on the steroe, or on IPOD while running. I am loving it more and more since it came in the mail with its little vinyl friend from Matador.
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i want to smother carl newman with my love
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I haven't burned cd's in a looong time. Now when I try to save my scratched Rufus W, Want 1 by burning a copy of it, I realise that I don't remember how to burn a music cd! Could somebody please help me?
I have a iBook with no extra burn software, just the Finder. And iTunes. But I don't know how to burn from iTunes, so that doesn't realy help. Should I download some software? I dragged-dropped-burned from Finder and got myself 67:39 of silence.
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the new CD is kick ass, but the cover art is the UGLIEST THING SINCE FAT NICHOLE RICHIE and i'm not buying the album solely because i cant bear to have such an ugly looking piece of shit in my collection
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i want to anthropomorphize neko case's voice and make dirty passionate love with it
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Using iTunes to burn a cd....File=> New Smart Playlist. A window will open. Change "Artists" to "Albums." The type in the name of the album. Hit "OK." This will create a playlist solely of the album you selected. Select the desired playlist, if not done already. Then hit "Burn CD" in the upper right hand corner of the screen.
It will prompt you the rest of the way.
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Oh, and I think I agree with Pitchfork regarding Twin Cinema. I really like it.
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Thank you Rochinho! Some scratches are still there but fever.
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"...it's all connected, man!"
^ I <3 Huckabee's reference? Maybe?
Love the new NP album, by the way....
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the jessica numbers is kickass.
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"I want to smother Carl Newman in my love"
I second this comment...
mmm, redheads...
alrighty then.
Come payday..i will own TC. Until then...I'll mope about how broke I am. Internet torrents won't do!
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I'm diggin' it. It sounds like NP's take on a Ladybug Transistor record. But then, I've been listening to a lot of Ladybug Transistor lately...
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Is it me or does "Use It" sound a lot like a Yes song? I'm not complaining mind you, I'm just wondering if anyone else senses the influence of the prog-rockers.
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I'll agree to a slight with "Use It" being proggy. It's kind of an unusual song in that the melody and riffing are straight-forward pop, but there are other less-subtle complexities, like the massively aggresive drums that make it quite an earful.
I think my favorite track is "Falling through Your Clothes," just for the sheer departure value. It's definitely like nothing they've ever done before, and almost makes the band sound like they should be on Warp Records for second. The album is great. The NP are well on their way to splitting favorite album preferences among their fans the same way the Beatles and Beasties have in the past.
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Fountains Of Wayne do have some great songs. I don't see why they're not as good as New Pornographers. People keep on telling me how much I'd love the NP, and while I think they're good at what they do, I don't know. I just don't dig power pop. Granted, I think I haven't heard enough of their stuff to know.
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Actually, the first song is nice. Good production. Nice guit/synthy line panned left. The second one is interesting, but I think it would have a more engaging melody if he didn't hang on the last chord in the verse sequence for an extra bar like that. It's kind of a pointless "quirk".
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This album is wicked. Jackie, dressed in cobras! Wow. Critics said electric version was too samey. But Twin Cinema is anything but.
Could use some more Neko. But my life could always use some more Neko.
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It's a fantabulous record. Much more open and confident than the previous two, but with all the regular kickers.
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I don't see how anyone could be disappointed with Twin Cinema. It's better than Electric Version and up there with Mass Romantic. I mean, I'm glad they didn't just pump out another version of the first two records. But really, this album blew me away on first listen.
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It just doesn't really excite me. I loved the Slow Wonder. Read all these "it just sounds like an AC solo album, etc" comments so I gave it a couple more listens. There's going to be similiarities, obv, but my love for the Slow Wonder sets up (very unfortunately, I remind) a barrier of comparison. I much prefer Carl's solo effort.
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why is it that Pitchfork is always the sounding board for opinions of new records on blogs? of course pfork is gonna suckle on the NPs teet. i think there's a more comprehensive view of most new indie records over at metacritic.com
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I love 'Falling Through Your Clothes', but the clipped, taped vocals in the chorus is a real departure for them: A NP track without live singing is a bit oxymoronic, no?
My fave tracks: Sing Me Spanish Techno, These are the Fables, and all of Dan's stuff...
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Anyone else think the opening riff to Twin Cinema sounds like Winona's Big Brown Beaver?
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Just saw them at the In-store and they rocked Tower like never before. It was great. The record definitely is a departure--but a welcomed one. I love Neko, and if I want to hear her belt, I'll play Mass Romantic on repeat til kingdom come. They really created something awesome with this record.
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