Review: Caravan Palace /

<I°_°I>

Rating: 4 Stars (Silver)    * * * *

The frontrunners of the electroswing movement over in France include names like Parov Stelar and Caravan Palace.  The latter has released their third studio LP, the first since 2012's "Panic".  "<I°_°I>"  (pronounced phonetically as "Robot") takes a different direction from the group's previous efforts.  Gone are is the gypsy dance style of 'Brotherswing' and the hardstyle grind of 'Clash'.  Instead this might be their most volatile work yet, which is saying a lot with Caravan Palace.  On one hand we have the bounciness and indecipherable lyrics of 'Comics' and the thumping 'Tatoos', and the other we have have the mellow chugging along funk of 'Wonda' and 'Human Leather Shoes for Crocodile Dandies'.

Caravan Palace have been pros of mixing catchy dancable beats with soul catching melodies and it shows on this record.  My favorite moments are the instrumental breakdowns such as the backmasked vintage sounding synth on 'Comics', the beautiful piano chords in the bridge of 'Tattoos', and the chopped and manipulated saxophone on 'Lay Down'.  As always it is difficult to tell whether certain instrumental layers are live playing or electronically sequenced, as well as whether theyre even performed or sampled.  It's one of the groups little fun mysteries.  '<I°_°I>' is also much more pop friendly, with more emphasis on bombastic vocals than Panic or their self titled debut.  While this could easily be offensive to a longtime fan, here it is done rather tactfully and done with restraint, as most of the album is fairly sparse vocally aside from subtle vocal bits that are difficult to make out.

With its highly unconventional name, <I°_°I>  is a fantastic third effort from Caravan Palace.  No complaints here.

Review: Kamasi Washington / The Epic

The Epic

Rating: 5 Stars (Gold)    * * * * *

Kamasi Washington brings a behemoth of a song collection to the spotlight with "The Epic", a daring triple album of refreshing jazz fusion.  As a massive aficionado of Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock's respective fusion eras, I was stoked to discover this album as a new album in 2015.  What an album it is, being a whopping three hours in length, a feat that almost no musician would dare to throw to their listeners in a single release.  In this case, those three hours are well worth the effort if the listener is willing to digest this monster.

Washington had previously made ripples in the public spotlight appearing as a saxophonist on Kendric Lamar's famous To Pimp a Butterfly.  Thankfully he has been able to use that fame to draw attention to his fantastic work as a solo artist.  I for one welcome the reintroduction of jazz into the present scene, as I strongly believe that it contains an array of beautiful emotions rarely experienced in the current decade.  Jazz classics like Davis' 'In a Silent Way"' and Hancock's 'Chameleon' fill me with a sense of tranquil neutrality, a feeling that can best be described as viewing the darkness as your friend.  I felt this rare beautiful feeling on this album when I first heard the Rhodes piano chords in the outro of 'Miss Understanding', the kick off track of the second disc and then again when hearing the repetive but gripping melody of 'Re Run Home', a song that plays the same role for the third disc.  While I would consider those two moments to be the highlights of the album, the rest of the music has just as much purpose with minimal moments that could be described as filler.  Mighty impressive considering the amount of material being presented.

Vocals caught me by surprise on what I thought was to be a purely instrumental record for the tracks 'The Rhythm Changes', 'Henrietta Our Hero', 'Cherokee', and 'Malcom's Theme', the last of which contains vocal samples of Malcom X himself.  The inclusion of lyrics felt controversial to me at first on a jazz album, but they are a nice addition and add a new dimension on a lengthy collection where no human presence could potentially become weary on the mind in a single sitting.  Another recurring set of vocals are the use of choirs on many of the tracks, which could be the closest thing to a flaw that this album has, as they might come off to some as slightly overused or even pretentious. It is only a small price to pay however.

I am a collector of physical merchandise when it comes to music albums, nothing boosts my opinion of a record quite like having a satisfying package to encase the music.  After hearing this record I went out and purchased the physical product to have a proud spot on my music shelf.  It did not disappoint, The Epic comes in a wonderful 8 panel digipak (I despise jewel cases), with three discs labeled "The Plan", "The Glorious Tale", and "The Historic Repetition".  Albums today should take note of this inspiration and intention of giving a visual concrete element to the soundwaves.

A tiresome yet rewarding three hours, The Epic may well be my favorite album of 2015 thus far, the only other contender being the new release from electroswing titans Caravan Palace.  I hope that the moods conveyed by Washington persevere for sometime in the music industry as a result of this release.

The Twelve Fundamental Laws

I.  An individual shall not harm another individual for reasons other than unquestionable self defense, in a setting of war, or by a trial by peers in a court of justice.

II.  All sexual activity must be completely and absolutely consensual between all parties involved.

III.  A society must not be established and enforced in such a way that favors one religion over others.  

IV.  Individuals shall not be oppressed or judged on the basis of their race, religion, gender, or orientation; only by the nature of their actions,

V.  Property owned by individuals must be respected as the property of the individual, theft is not to be permitted.

VI.  Involuntary ownership of another human being is not acceptable under any circumstances.

VII.  A government must conform to the will of inhabitants of the territory it governs, all possible measures must be taken to put this principle into practice.

VIII.  War should be a last resort and only come to pass if absolutely no other measures of peace are possible.

IX.  Any measures of punishment by the government or law enforcement on citizens must not be in conflict with the will of the majority of society.

X.  Leaders in government should receive their positions based on the merits of their previous actions

XI.  All individuals ought to keep the well being and happiness of both themselves and their fellow individuals in mind in all that they do.

XII.  Individuals should fight for the honor and dignity of other individuals that they feel have been wronged by any other individual or entity.

Musings About God

Just some thoughts and looking into my own brain about God and religion in my current mindset.

 

For every religion there are billions who do not adhere it to it. Yet many of these religions claim simultaneously that their idea of God is loving, yet will punish those who do not adhere to it. It would appear to me that the True God has not designed the universe in a way that expects humanity to adhere to a single set of beliefs amoung many sets that are mutually exclusive. If the idea of an exclusive God presented in these religions is the correct one, wouldn't you expect that the choice would be more clearly presented? It is almost by chance that adherents of religions adhere to the religion that they do. In my view, a Sovereign God, and the one that I believe to exist, would not make the "one true path" to him so obscure as the main organized religons present. He would not make the path something that so many people would be deterred from, using their God-given reason.

Many say, if you don't subscribe to any organized religion, why believe in God at all? How can one arrive at the conclusion that God exists using reason? This is a good question, and belief in God does require some degree of faith in something beyond simply reason. Of the classic "proofs of God" the cosmological arguement is my personal favorite. When one thinks about it, there indeed needs to be an uncaused cause of everything. Some time ago the counter to the cosmological arguement would have been "If God is uncaused and eternal couldn't the universe simply have been uncaused and eternal?" This made sense prior to the development of the Big Bang Theory. The expansion of the universe suggests that traced backward through time, the universe began from a singularity and stretched outward. It is now commonly accepted that the universe did indeed have a beginning. The universe could not have been it's own uncaused cause so it would seem that something created the universe. Granted, this cause of the universe could be something else besides God, it could be a multiverse or some impersonal non-living force. However the beauty of Deism is that the power that created the universe doesn't have to be so clearly defined like those of organized religions. Perhaps the Creator is a mind made up of extradimensional membranes or string vibrations. I personally think that since the universe is so intricate in detail and beauty, that the Creator does indeed have a will and thought this whole thing called the universe out pretty well, on a level we could never hope to grasp.

The Eternal Friend

Some stream of conscious writing I did while at work (shh don't tell):

God was there in the beginning, God will be there in the end. Before the big bang, God was there. After the heat death of the universe, God will still be there. We can't know for certain where we will be after we reach the end of our lives. But I am comforted by the thought that I will be in God's hands. Whether theres a heaven in the traditional sense or not, I have faith that we will be in God's care. Enveloped in light, in intamacy with the one who knows our every experience and detail. God is the Infinite Eternal Mind. God is the Limitless. God is the Uncaused Cause of All and the One who Transcends Space and Time. God is sovereign over everything. Though God's intervention is limited, God is the designer of the universe, sovereign over every body, energy, law, and detail. God is the Eternal Friend.

Flirting with Deism

Today I've started venturing mentally into areas I never would have even considered a few years ago. I think I've reached a point where my doubts in the infallibility of the Bible have reached critical mass and now there is a major shift taking place. I've begun to strongly consider identifying as a Deist. I don't think I can believe any longer some of the stories in the Bible, as well as the core doctrine of God only being accessible through the death of Jesus. However I find myself unable to completely reject Christianity, so at the moment I guess I would identify as sort of a Christian Deist, bouncing back and forth.

Deism is appealing to me because of its mental freedom. There is no need to take prophets from thousands of years ago at their word, or faith in a massive collection of stories that cannot be proven. One is free to completely believe in science. I cannot drift over to Atheism however, as my faith and relationship with God is far too important. I would be free to believe in God based on reason, and not by complete faith in a story. I feel that my relationship with God would strengthen and deepen if I didn't have the mental and moral shackles that traditional Christianity requires. Although I don't want to leave Christianity, I am finding it more and more difficult to believe that God requires belief in a penal substitution to enter into a relationship with him/her/it.

I don't know. I have a hard time leaving Christianity behind out of fear of falling out of favor with God because I've made the wrong decsion. But my own logic and reason seem to be pointing me in the direction of Deism, I don't feel much compulsion from God to remain with Christianity. We'll see what happens.

Ark Banknote Details

Just so I can save something I put together.

5 ark note - Lowest denomination. Is gray colored and has the portrait of James Hanson on the front, early parliament member and founding father. The reverse has an image of the Theopanian oblesk. Anti-counterfeit measures include a watermark and overlayed watermarks in the left corner, and a holographic strip.

10 ark note - Commonly used denomination. Is yellow colored and has the portrait of Nestor Halas, the 4th Executive Paramount of Theopanias. The reverse has a Trinitary Falcon, the national bird. Anti-counterfeit measures include a watermark and overlayed watermarks in the left corner, and a holographic strip.

20 ark note - Most commonly used denomination by regular people. Is green and has the portrait of Ezekiel Hallas, a Theopanian author. The reverse has the Chamber of Governance, the meeting place of Parliament's lower house. Anti-counterfeiting measures included multiple watermarks, overlayed watermarks in left corner, security threads, a holographic strip, raised magnetic ink, infrared and ultraviolet ink, and others that aren't made public.

The increased measures from the lower denominations are due to the raised risk of the denomination being counterfeited.

50 ark note - Commonly used denomination in larger transactions. Is blue in color and has the portrait of Beth Johnston, a woman's rights activist in Theopanias. The reverse has the Executive Mansion. Anti-counterfeiting measures included multiple watermarks, overlayed watermarks in left corner, security threads, a holographic strip, raised magnetic ink, infrared and ultraviolet ink, and others that aren't made public.

100 ark note - Most printed denomination, though not the most used by the average person. Has the portrait of Caleb Porter on the obverse, the 17th Executive Paramount. The reverse has the Supreme Court of Theopanias. Anti-counterfeiting measures included multiple watermarks, overlayed watermarks in left corner, security threads, a holographic strip, raised magnetic ink, infrared and ultraviolet ink, and others that aren't made public.

1000 ark note - Large denomination note that makes up a significant portion of arks in circulation, though the note itself is uncommon for the average person, and they tend to be used by upper class, banks, and businesses. Is indigo colored, and the Obverse has the portrait of Sarah Neichman, the 3rd Executive Paramount and a founding mother of Theopanias. Anti-counterfeiting measures included multiple watermarks, overlayed watermarks in left corner, security threads, a holographic strip, raised magnetic ink, infrared and ultraviolet ink, and others that aren't made public. There have been motions to have this note and the 10000 ark note removed due to their very large value and risk of being counterfeited or used in illegal transactions. However the Central Bank maintains that these notes draw a lot of attention when used in large quantities and have sufficent anti-counterfeit measures to prevent counterfeiting, and maintain them as active denominations.

10000 ark note - The largest denomination note, making up a large portion of arks in circulation compared to other denominations, despite rarely if ever being seen by the average person due to it's large value. Is gold in color and has the portrait of Joseph Chatillion on the obverse, the 12th Executive Paramount. The reverse depicts the Chamber of Providence, the meeting place of the upper house of Parliament. Anti-counterfeiting measures included multiple watermarks, overlayed watermarks in left corner, security threads, a holographic strip, raised magnetic ink, infrared and ultraviolet ink, and others that aren't made public. It's value is extremely large for a banknote and is one of the most valuable circulating banknotes of any currency.