A collaboration between Art Brut and Frank Black is a marriage made in witty, punky heaven, and while Art Brut vs. Satan may not quite live up to fans' wildest fantasies -- say, a cross between "Formed a Band" and "Debaser" -- having Black produce this album was just what the band needed. Despite its bright moments, It's a Bit Complicated lived up to its name, occasionally sounding a little studied and stifled. However, this installment of the world according to Art Brut recaptures much of the loose, freewheeling fun they had back when they formed a band. Like the obsessive music fan he is, frontman Eddie Argos isn't just a Pixies aficionado but a Frank Black and the Catholics devotee as well, and Art Brut vs. Satan has more than a little of the direct-to-two-track energy of Black's Catholics album. These songs were bashed out in just a few weeks and still feel fresh and raw: the excellent anthem to rough-and-ready recording "Slap Dash for No Cash," in which Argos tells Brian Eno to "cool his warm jets," embodies the album's sound perfectly. Musically speaking, Art Brut vs. Satan holds some of the band's most direct work, a no-frills mix of punk and indie that puts the focus on Argos' fascinations and manifestos. Though his lyrics have gotten less intimate since Bang Bang Rock & Roll, Argos has found ways to expand on his everyman-with-a-meta-twist persona: "Alcoholics Unanimous" and "Mysterious Bruises" (which features a brilliant nod to the Bobby Fuller Four with the line "I fought the floor and the floor won!") bookend the album with songs about drinking, a subject matter close to Argos' heart; on "The Passenger" (no, it's not an Iggy Pop cover), he sings about public transportation with the same amount of passion. Maturity -- or lacking it -- is still a huge theme, most poignantly and amusingly on "Am I Normal?," which turns the classic preteen question into a self-loathing examination of crushes and panic attacks set to stabbing guitars, while "DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake" revels in just how delicious arrested development can be. And as always, Art Brut continue their mission to exponentially increase the amount of music about music: "Demons Out!" is the righteous flipside to "Bang Bang Rock & Roll"'s radical populism, with Argos shouting "the record buying public shouldn't be voting!" Best of all, though, are the songs where all of these topics collide, like "What a Rush," which throws together morning-after regrets, a battle of the sexes, and record collections to the rollicking refrain "Parents, please lock up your daughters!" "The Replacements," meanwhile, uses discovering a favorite new/old band as a jumping off point for trusting a band (or a person) enough to really like them, with used and reissued CDs proving that love can be sweeter the second(hand) time around. This joy of discovery and rediscovery is what makes Art Brut's music so vital at its best: They may be eternal adolescents, but they're also true believers in what made rock & roll great in the first place. They won't hide -- can't hide -- that enthusiasm, and it's contagious on Art Brut vs. Satan.
Art Brut may sound like a one trick pony upon first listen but throughout their last three records, they've showed both a consistency and a willingness to tinker with the sound. While the first record Bang Bang Rock & Roll laid the blueprint for what the band wasn't. It's ...
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Eccentric and uber-funny English and German art punk/wave band Art Brut are named after French painter Jean Dubuffet's definition of outsider art: art made without thought to imitation or presentation by prisoners, loners, the mentally ill, and other marginalized citizens.Art brut is fronted by "Top of the Pops" fan Eddie Argos (vocals), and is currently rounded out by Jasper Future (guitar), I...
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Eddie and the bruisers return with their third long player of songs about love and hate. And comic books and chocolate milkshakes.
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Art Brutby Jessica Gentile • May 13, 2009 Art BrutArt Brut vs. Satan(Downtown, 2009)Art Brut makes music about the music they love. Art Brut vs. Satan is an ode to various strains of the punk and indie scenes, as well as the DIY ethos that spur them. Heavily accented Brit Eddie Argos waxes lyrical about the lo-fi aesthetic to the point of romanticism, but rightfully so. "Slap dash for no cash,.
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Art Brut has been that odd band during these days of albums that are too polished but trying to be real and organic. Make no bones about it, this band has no interest in being Arcade Fire or TV On The Radio. I like both bands but thank God, warts and all, they are more like the Ramones, The Damned or Black Flag. After two really cool and fun albums, Bang Bang Rock & Roll and It's a Bit Complica...
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Art Brut prove that they're still one of the most punk bands we've got going for us.
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Puns, observations and epigrams with an underlying seriousness of intent can all be found in this third full-length release from a band featuring one of the early 21st century's best documenters of young urban British life. One of those bands that will either speak directly to you, or not at all, reckons Jude Clarke.
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‘Art Brut Vs. Satan’ is definitely one of the best album titles of the year so far. Eddie Argos, the lead ‘singer’ (ok, he doesn’t really sing but instead exclaims his way through lyrics), is also a reasonably funny guy. His words on debut album ‘Bang Bang Rock & Roll’ in 2005 were charming and [...]
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Art Brut's "Alcoholics Unanimous", the first single being taken from their upcoming album "Art Brut vs. Satan" (due 20.04.2009 in Europe on Cooking Vinyl, produced by Frank Black) ..Bring me tea!!!
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Art Brut's "Alcoholics Unanimous", the first single being taken from their upcoming album "Art Brut vs. Satan" (due 20.04.2009 in Europe on Cooking Vinyl, produced by Frank Black) ..Bring me tea!!!
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Have you ever wondered how you would go about recording an album with Black Francis, in Salem OR, in 10 days? Well, here is your answer. The official guide to Art Brut vs.Satan;..
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Both Billboard and Rolling Stone had only good things to say about the Brit band’s newest album release Art Brut VS. Satan, out now On Downtown Records.BB: “The English rock act Art Brut has established itself as the class clown of the indie scene, creating lightweight punk songs with a sarcastic edge.” “The seven-minute closer, [...]
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Art Brut may sound like a one trick pony upon first listen but throughout their last three records, they've showed both a consistency and a willingness to tinker with the sound. While the first record Bang Bang Rock & Roll laid the blueprint for what the band wasn't. It's ...
More >
Art Brut has been that odd band during these days of albums that are too polished but trying to be real and organic. Make no bones about it, this band has no interest in being Arcade Fire or TV On The Radio. I like both bands but thank God, warts and all, they are more like the Ramones, The Damned or Black Flag. After two really cool and fun albums, Bang Bang Rock & Roll and It's a Bit Complica...
More >
Art Brutby Jessica Gentile • May 13, 2009 Art BrutArt Brut vs. Satan(Downtown, 2009)Art Brut makes music about the music they love. Art Brut vs. Satan is an ode to various strains of the punk and indie scenes, as well as the DIY ethos that spur them. Heavily accented Brit Eddie Argos waxes lyrical about the lo-fi aesthetic to the point of romanticism, but rightfully so. "Slap dash for no cash,.
More >
Here's the new Art Brut song from Art Brut vs Satan, produced by Frank Black (Pixies). I didn't like Art Brut when I first heard them but that vocal delivery over catchy as hell post-punk sticks with you. Then you hear it again and all of a sudden, instead of seeming weird and unappealing, it sounds familiar and pleasant. Or maybe I just played too much FIFA '08 and the soundtrack seeped into m...
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Cockney indie rockers Art Brut have released details of their new album. Art Brut Vs. Satan will be released in North America on May 12th. The album, the band's fourth, was produced by Pixies honcho Frank Black. Here's a look at the track listing:Alcoholics Unanimous DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake The Passenger Am I Normal? What a Rush Demons Out! Slap Dash for No Cash The Replacements Twist
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The first track on Art Brut's forthcoming "punk-as-fuck," Black Francis-produced Art Brut Vs. Satan is "Alcoholics Unanimous." The tale of drinking too much and dealing with it the next day isn't especially harrowing -- we're expecting later songs like "Demons Out!" and "Mysterious Bruises" to be more worthy of the dark overlord. For now, "AU" finds Eddie Argos going on about apologetic group ...
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Art Brut are an amazing rock n roll band from London, UK. For more info, check out http://www.artbrut.org.uk.
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Puns, observations and epigrams with an underlying seriousness of intent can all be found in this third full-length release from a band featuring one of the early 21st century's best documenters of young urban British life. One of those bands that will either speak directly to you, or not at all, reckons Jude Clarke.
More >
Eccentric and uber-funny English and German art punk/wave band Art Brut are named after French painter Jean Dubuffet's definition of outsider art: art made without thought to imitation or presentation by prisoners, loners, the mentally ill, and other marginalized citizens.Art brut is fronted by "Top of the Pops" fan Eddie Argos (vocals), and is currently rounded out by Jasper Future (guitar), I...
More >
Eddie and the bruisers return with their third long player of songs about love and hate. And comic books and chocolate milkshakes.
More >
Art Brut's Eddie Argos has let slip (well, not really) who's going to produce that next Art Brut album....
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Eddie Argos from Art Brut has always reminded us of a bit character in "Trainspotting" and this new clip, for "Alcoholics Unanimous", a mockumentary three minutes day-after recounting of life with the drink, is a perfect example of how it...
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Alcoholics Unanimous |
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| 2 DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake |
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| 3 The Passenger |
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| 4 Am I Normal? |
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| 5 What a Rush |
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| 6 Demons Out! |
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| 7 Slap Dash for No Cash |
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| 8 The Replacements |
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| 9 Twist and Shout |
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| 10 Summer Job |
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| 11 Mysterious Bruises |
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Click to purchase…
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 "Art Brut vs. Satan")
