We are proud to present Gang Gang Dance?s much anticipated second full length release entitled God?s Money. With God?s Money Gang Gang Dance creates a modern music which reorients the palette of electronic music into an or... more »ganic context, manipulating sound, rhythm and melody in an almost mercurial manner. Painstakingly recorded over the course of a year at Junkyard Audio Salvage, the band utilized whatever means were available to them to craft their sound: drums of all shapes, sizes and circuits, various keyboards and synthesizers, midi-triggering guitar scenarios, vocals reconfi gured via a guitar effect pedal and even the occasional aluminum chair. Blending their hypnotic rhythms into a highly structured compositional style or soaring in the lofty heights of practiced improvisation, this recording follows in the footsteps of the bands previous output, all while marking new ground. In between writing and recording God?s Money GGD spent the last year playing to packed houses in NYC, Europe and on the road with Animal Collective. Exploding with an energy & confi dence rarely seen these days and coupling it with such a heightened level of musicianship the band has turned even the most casual of spectators into full on believers. With magazines such as The Wire, The Village Voice, I.D. & XLR8R having already run features on the band, the press is falling into the ranks of the converted. God?s Money is the height of GGD?s uncompromising sonic pursuit which has spanned the better part of the band?s fi ve year history. Some of this can be gleamed from previous groups the members have been in, including Cranium, Actress, Ssaab Songs & Angel Blood. Though God?s Money may be interpreted as the band?s high-water mark of sorts it is much more the raising of the tide as they continually to push the boundaries of the palette of sound itself with no sign waning.« less
We are proud to present Gang Gang Dance?s much anticipated second full length release entitled God?s Money. With God?s Money Gang Gang Dance creates a modern music which reorients the palette of electronic music into an organic context, manipulating sound, rhythm and melody in an almost mercurial manner. Painstakingly recorded over the course of a year at Junkyard Audio Salvage, the band utilized whatever means were available to them to craft their sound: drums of all shapes, sizes and circuits, various keyboards and synthesizers, midi-triggering guitar scenarios, vocals reconfi gured via a guitar effect pedal and even the occasional aluminum chair. Blending their hypnotic rhythms into a highly structured compositional style or soaring in the lofty heights of practiced improvisation, this recording follows in the footsteps of the bands previous output, all while marking new ground. In between writing and recording God?s Money GGD spent the last year playing to packed houses in NYC, Europe and on the road with Animal Collective. Exploding with an energy & confi dence rarely seen these days and coupling it with such a heightened level of musicianship the band has turned even the most casual of spectators into full on believers. With magazines such as The Wire, The Village Voice, I.D. & XLR8R having already run features on the band, the press is falling into the ranks of the converted. God?s Money is the height of GGD?s uncompromising sonic pursuit which has spanned the better part of the band?s fi ve year history. Some of this can be gleamed from previous groups the members have been in, including Cranium, Actress, Ssaab Songs & Angel Blood. Though God?s Money may be interpreted as the band?s high-water mark of sorts it is much more the raising of the tide as they continually to push the boundaries of the palette of sound itself with no sign waning.
CD Reviews
A weird, wonderful breakthrough!
Scott Bresinger | New York, USA | 07/18/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I honestly don't know whether to grin or groan at the prospect of yet another Brooklyn hipster band. Since Williamsburg is now officially overexposed as a hipster haven, it's theoretically safe to dismiss any new music emanating from its gentrified environs. Well, my dear shoppers, in this case that would be a grave mistake, since in Gang Gang Dance the bar has been raised, the envelope has been pushed, the next level has been attained and all other cliches can give it a rest: this is the breakthrough album of the year. It will make you hipper just by clicking on the above sound samples. Just imagine how fulfilled your shallow little lives will be if you actually throw down some silver for this sure-to-be-treasured product! No amount of cheap irony can disguise my enthusiasm for Gang Gang Dance.
A truly weird blending of styles takes place here. Psychedelia, ambient, glitchy electronica, dub, tribal rhythms and some mutated strain of pop are locked in sweaty sexual congress and the child they produce has a cry so beautiful you won't want to feed it for a week. This is "world music" if by "world" you mean "Mars." Fans of the Cocteau Twins and Bjork have a new band to obsess over. Some naysayers will start whining about how they resemble Animal Collective. These people are retarded. While the Collective are a fine thing, their often gimmicky confections often float away on the ether, bereft of any unifying structure. GGD, on the other hand, give just enough indication that they're actually playing a song before the computers come in to turn that song on its head.
This is some seriously messed-up stuff, but stoners and other hippies need not apply. This is music for people who like to keep their minds turned ON, thank you very much. Oh yeah, and you don't have to live in Williamsburg to "get it," which is a good thing, 'cause I wouldn't move there anyway. That place is so OVER."
One of my All-Time Favorites
Justin V. Thibault | Philadelphia | 03/05/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Alright, listen. I am a pretty critical person, especially when it comes to music. The fact of the matter is, if you listen to a LOT of music, you will have a harder and harder time finding albums you really love, because the bar keeps getting raised in your mind. God's Money is probably my favorite album of the past year because it defies everything I expect music to be, but I can certainly still call it music without any hesitation, and beautiful music at that.
Anyone who is trying to put this in some stupid genre like freak folk or whatever is doing a huge disservice to the album. Firstly, it really doesn't sound anything like Animal Collective, or whatever else you are trying to compare it to. Any sonic similarites are coincidental - the intent of the two groups is completely different. Secondly, this music is best appreciated without any context, just on the merits of its composition, instrumentation and production. Don't even think about Brooklyn or stupid stuff like that. It really has nothing to do with the music.
If you are reading any of these reviews, and listening to the music, wondering why anyone would rate God's Money highly, you truly haven't understood the album yet. Yes, there is something there, you just need to discover it, and once you do you'll be amazed you ever lived without it. I really mean it - look how many reviews I've ever written for anything after using Amazon for like 6 years. It's that important to me to share this album with others."
Weird, wild stuff
somethingexcellent | Lincoln, NE United States | 12/22/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I owe my enjoyment of God's Money entirely to a friend of mine who convinced me to give it a chance after I'd listened to one track from the release and it didn't sink into my craw. I did as he said, and sat down and listened to the entire album. After the first listen I was mildly intrigued but not wowed, but by the end of the second spin, I'd been won over. A strange group that mixes freak folk, electronic ambience, and tribal passions, these New Yorkers have created a bizarre hybrid album that's worth checking out if you're looking to veer off the path a bit.
One of the main factors in deciding whether or not you enjoy God's Money will be your tolerance of the vocals of lead singer Lizzi Bougatsos. Veering wildly between using her voice as a subtle texture and going full-force with almost Yoko-ish wails, she's one of the primal forces holding the album together. Usually, I don't find myself enjoying such overly theatrical female vocals, but it actually tends to work. After opening with a shorter introduction track, the album launches into "Glory in Itself / Egyptian" and Bougatsos babbles and sings, croons and howls over pounding drums, cascading electronics, and bursting waves of synths.
"Egowar" follows and takes sounds that are usually new age fodder (pan flutes, rain sticks) and twists them into a dancey, world-music laced track that melts into a glorious overload towards the end. "God's Money V" takes on a more aggressive feel again and the dark instrumental mixes juicy synths with polyrhythmic kitchen-sink percussion that melts into "Before My Voice Fails," a track that progresses like a bastardized opera with multiple layers of delayed vocals from Bougatsos, almost proggy instrumentation. The final blowout of rattling percussion, scorching guitars, and soaring vocals is one of the best moments on the entire disc.
Between the longer tracks are shorter instrumental pieces that fit the mood of the album quite well and offer up some nice textural pieces from the group. "God's Money VII" sounds like an ephemeral piece of old 4AD music (think This Mortal Coil) and "Untitled (Piano)" is a shimmering pool of liquid notes that slowly falls apart and completely off the reels. At just under forty minutes, the nine tracks on the album are just about the right length to drop in and pop you in the mouth, then scurry off into some dark corner again. It's probably not for everyone (my wife asked "is this the Muppets doing electronic freak folk?"), but for me it's a great mix of left-of-center music that manages to stay just on the side of "not annoying in their weirdness."
(from almost cool music reviews)"
Very un-American
David W. Holt | ANN ARBOR, MI USA | 04/23/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I'm coming a little late to the party here......but I just got "God's Money". For the first 15 years of my listening to experimental/electro, music like this was almost always from Europe, most likely Belgium or more recently, Japan. So it's good to see us Yanks catching up a bit.
At times the decidely avant garde vocals get a bit much for me and it occasionaly sounds like they're trying a bit too hard, but overall the music is gorgeous and simple/complex at the same time. I'd give it 5 stars but I'm feeling a bit niggardly. Overall a beautiful audio experience."
Track Listings (9) - Disc #1