The Berg Sans Nipple - Along The Quai

“The Berg Sans Nipple are an indie rock band from Nebraska and Paris, consisting of (but not limited to) Lori Sean Berg and Shane Aspegren.” Everything you read about Berg Sans Nipple has that sentence in it. I mean EVERYTHING! And you’d be pushed to find anything else written about these guys or their album, Along the Quai. Released in January on Team Love Records it seemed to sink without a trace. Only through the power of the interweb did I come across them.

I suppose it makes sense that the sort of guys who make music like this aren’t the sort to shout about it from the hill tops. And that’s a great shame, because Along the Quai is a beautifully percussive album. They prove that bongos aren’t the devils work. My hippy-hating girlfriend almost had me convinced otherwise. I haven’t told her there’s a Glockenspeil and cow bells in there too. But don’t let these words scare you – have a listen to the title track  and ‘Of the song’ below, and hear for yourself – this aint no stinkin’ hippy music.

The deeply distorted vocals are used sparingly, almost enough to consider this an instrumental album. I think the samples and loops have enough grain to retain the feeling of having been handled. It’s wonderfully arganic in sound and texture. Do you buy that? It’s true, but I can’t help think that I’ve oversold my credability with that one sentence.

Along the Quai won’t change the world, but it will make a sunny Sunday seem perfect.

THINK: Propellorheads with guitars, Tortoise with chunky beats.

READ: The Berg Sans Nipple myspace

WATCH: A funky live performance complete with instrument swapping

LISTEN: You can stream the whole album here

BUY: Along the Quai from saddle-creek

Nine Inch Nails – Year Zero

The latest Nine Inch Nails studio album is titled Year Zero and was released on April 17, 2007. It is a concept album that describes Reznor’s forecast of “how the United States government’s current policies will impact the world fifteen years in the future.”

Riiiight. Concept album. You mean like Mellon Collie & the Infinate Sadness? Cause at least half of that album ROCKED! Nope, this is Trent Reznor  we’re dealing with here – so if it is a concept album, the concept will be fleshed out and explored.  Maybe this quote is a better clue: “The term ‘marketing’ sure is a frustrating one for me at the moment. What you are now starting to experience IS ‘year zero’. It’s not some kind of gimmick to get you to buy a record - it IS the art form… and we‘re just getting started. Hope you enjoy the ride.“  Man, he was not wrong.

Most folks round these parts will whack the disc in their player and never explore the world of Year Zero further, and with respect to them, the review will limit itself to the elpee in question. But if you would like to explore this immersive world, read this post carefully.

Running 16 tracks long, YZ is a return to form for NIN. Trent runs out of disc space before he runs out of ideas, and that’s quite a feat after 18 years of music making.

Me, I’m not (below) and capital g were leaked on USB drives left in bathroom cubicles at concerts prior to the release date together with seemingly random audio and images. Teasers for year zero. (http://) Another version of the truth could be an Aphex twin track, because it certainly isn’t rock.

It would be fair to say that this isn’t a rock record. Nor is it industrial or an electronic record – it’s the fruition of Trent Reznors focused imagination now that he’s looked around rather than his usual rusted self loathing introspection. This album is huge – and getting bigger. Eighteen years on he’s still at it, still convincing, still relevant- and still no-one else sounds like this.

THINK: It’s NIN, it’s not going to sound like anyone else…

READ: NIN’s homepage and myspace, or Trent’s blog

WATCH: The Survavalism Clip

BUY: Year Zero at allofmp3.com

Borrowed Beats - June 07 Edition

G’day folks,
And welcome to the June 07 edition of Borrowed Beats.
Now that Borrowed beats is 16, we’ve had a look around and started to question why things are the way they are.
With the certainty of youth, we push back. We rebel. We kick out the rebel jams.
This poorly conceived outrage will take you places you wouldn’t expect. Even 16 year olds know not to mess with Phil Collins. Oh, the humanity!

I hope you enjoy this hour of outrage and disgust presented, as is the modus operandi here at triplejaysus, with more than a sideways glance at irony and the non obvious.
Thanks to Craig for sending our closing number my way. Your reward is in heaven. All 73 of them.

I hope you enjoy it folks,

G