Question:When I head out, who the hell gun' mow yr grass? Simple question, but does it carry a simple answer? You can't just hire the grubby brat next door, nor the skinny fashionista screamo kid. The brat won't take care to ensure the job is done, and the screamo kid, although aesthetically minded, will avoid the labor as it may ruin his finely tuned hair-do whilst causing an increase in unwanted muscle mass (pushing the mower uphill). Although seemingly simplistic in theory, these small matters can get so convulted.
"The Magician", aka Nathan Moes, creates an ethereal world of melody based on this deceiving simplicity on his debut, tentatively titled "Who Will Mow The Grass When I'm Gone?". Considering the basic nature of the day's confrontations, we need to be forgiven for conceiding to the phrase, "I don't know"; a line The Magician confesses with accessible catchiness in the track "Indicator Stop Bath". The Magician seeks a certain serenity in light of confusion, which seems to manifest in his belief that relationships are paramount. If life (and the man!) is getting you down, at least you have friends (and sleep!). And yet, even these relationships may often experience the complexity of romance and the manifestation of ambiguity. Who will cut your grass when I'm gone, also, I was wondering if we're due for a DTR anytime soon?
The innocuously-poppy Belle & Sebastian infused vocals do well to help further the theme, as they create a safe and habitable environment, helping frame what is a deceivingly unassuming innocence dwelling throughout 'Who Will Mow Your Grass When I'm Gone". The album is full of what relates to friendship and romantic potential, but 'The Magician' also finds himself making light scratches on profundity as he sails through the song "Seven Seas" in search for a "bag of peas". In the song, The Magician confesses his failed search (alongside a failed pun), and yet, when he is "rotten to the core", he knows that his friends will "look inside [his] head, and put [themselves] there instead". It is only with a support network in which he will seek serenity, and in his failure, he paradoxically finds his 'peas' in the restoration offered him through community.
A simple quib for a very enjoyable disc.
Check out more of The Magician at www.myspace.com/themagicianmusic
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Episode 4: Kill! Destroy!
Song - Artist (Label)
1. Time To Pretend - MGMT (Columbia)
2. Indicator Stop Bath - The Magician (unsigned)
3. 7th Son - Born Ruffians ( Warp)
4. Call It A Ritual - Wolf Parade (Sub Pop)
5. Breaker - Low (Kranky)
6. Ant Whale You & Me - The Magician (unsigned)
7. Suedehead - Morrissey (Sire)
8. Foam Hands - Destroyer (Merge)
9. Dashboard - Modest Mouse (Epic)
10. Another World - The Shaky Hands (Holocene)
11. Sailing to Byzantium - Liars (Mute)
12. Have You Seen In Your Dreams - Miracle Fortress (Secret City)
13. Hopscotch Willie - Steven Malkmus & The Jicks (Matador)
14. 4 Minute Warning - Radiohead (XL)
15. Orange Spider -mewithoutYou (Tooth and Nail)
16. Apartment Story - The National (Beggars Banquet)
