Actress - Hazyville

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With a jolt, you are woken. Your eyes burn. You are lying prone in this wasteland. Your brain goes into overdrive, doing a diagnostic of the situation. It takes a moment for your eyes to register their surroundings. Forms eventually take shape into recognizable landmarks on the terrain.

You life yourself off the dry, cracked ground and dust yourself off. Your tattered clothes and lack shoes are the first thing you notice about yourself. Behind you is the pit. You have no recollection of making your way out of it, but you are glad you are no longer left to rot down there.

Looking ahead you see a door to a small, rusted over shack. With a knock at the door, you attempt to gain the attention of anyone who might be present. After a few attempts, you give up and walk back a bit to gain a better of view of where it is you currently are. Small, sheet metal buildings greet your vision. You realize you are in a shantytown of sorts. A dilapidated sign. 'Hazyville'.

Sounds of static surround you. These sounds are unfamiliar. They are loud. Buzzing. High frequency snarls and snaps invade your brain and form new connections within. It is then you notice the monolithic radio towers in the distance. They are unlike anything you have ever seen. They stretch miles upward, with no sign of a top. Could this be what you are hearing? You don't recall being able to hear radio waves, but you wouldn't be surprised.

The shantytown now looks different as well. It looks oddly futuristic, even for what appeared to be such a desolate state of society.

You do a 180 and face opposite the towers. The sight of a large, metallic city comes into view. Lights flash and swing across the sky above the city. Suddenly, with boom, an engine can be heard. A spiked vehicle approaches with great intensity and makes a stop in front of you. The door opens and you get your first sign of possible life. Or do you? Behind the wheel of the vehicle is a machine. It points to you and then points to the seat behind it and then points to the city. It seems to be asking if you want a lift. You think briefly, and accept the machine's offer.

Miles go by. You are on your way towards civilization as you hear the booming thuds draw ever closer.

Calories: 331.4
Distance: 2.56mi

Swans - My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky

I sort of went in knowing this would not be the type of album that is good for workouts. Honestly, though, I came out of it with a more positive feeling about its possible use as such. I can't say I'd recommend the whole album, because there are just too many times where it slows to a crawl. When it does pack some punch, it does it in a way that can easily motivate someone to run. Songs like "Jim" and "Eden Prison" really pull out all the stops and jam pretty hard.

Sonically, the My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky is impressive in a way I'm not entirely qualified to elaborate on. If you like Embryonic or Godspeed You! Black Emperor, definitely give this album a try.

Calories: 335.0
Distance: 2.72

Death Grips - The Money Store

What's really left to say about this album? It's been analyzed to death, put on pedestals of grandeur, and blows some systems real good. Tonight I decided to workout to my personal favorite album of 2012 so far. (DGNLDW33 COMING SOON) The Money Store is sheer bombastic, penetrating experimental hip-hop that is as sharp as the knives MC Ride uses to cut you to pieces.

The real money makers on this album are "Get Got", "The Fever (Aye Aye)", "I've Seen Footage", "System Blower", and "Hacker". They are the fastest and equally most hard hitting on the album, and will cause you to forget what you are doing and lock in on the noise that is obliterating your ears. Those tracks got me up to the fastest I've ever run when not being actively pursued by something.

Stay noided.

Calories: 400.0
Distance: 2.98mi

Liars - Liars

Holy shit is this album intense. Right out of the gate I was sprinting like my life depended on it. Like I was out for blood. The intensity never really lets up either, which really got my adrenaline pumping. The loud, wailing guitars, the punctuated drumming sitting below thick bass lines and heavy distortion. Each song has it's own sense of style, sometimes being a noisy as possible, other times just content to slow it down slightly for some funkiness. Liars really hit their stride here, and made me hit my stride too.

I ran my quickest mile (and two miles) so far and almost instantly could tell this album was something to be cherished for my workout times. Guttural. Visceral. Stunning. Perfect.

Calories: 362.7
Distance: 2.83mi

Dan Deacon - Spiderman Of The Rings

Spiderman Of The Rings sounds like a swirling, pulsating NES cartridge on fire, and I mean that in the best way possible. It's absolutely fun and exhilarating minimal electronic music that is really sort of hard to describe. At points it is very beat heavy while other times it is composed of merely a xylophone warped and modulated to the extreme, layering over itself and consttantly glitching out. Some songs contain chant-worthy hooks that just make you want to yell along, which is always a quality I enjoy. This is especially true on the third track, which is almost twelve minutes long and is fun the whole way through.

In a workout sense, this album is just always on. The only downtime you're going to get on it is the fourth track "Big Milk" which is the xylophone track. Otherwise be prepared to get up and move, because it doesn't really stop until its over. I recommend this album for your gym near you.

Calories: 394.0
Distance: 3.03mi

The Flaming Lips - Transmissions from the Satellite Heart

Transmissions from the Satellite Heart is definitely indicative of The Flaming Lips' future sound. From it's wildly loud and screaming guitars to it's cheerful upbeat melodies. Of course it still sounds like an artifact of the early 90's, it has aged surprisingly well against it's modern counterparts. Wayne sounds younger and less refined, but it still sounds as fun as ever. Fun is something The Flaming Lips always bring to the table.

My only problem with the album was from a workout sense. It sometimes tends to slow down in to more downtempo acoustic portions. While great on the ears, it isn't too great for the motivation. The album rarely does it though so it's something I'm willing to overlook.

Calories: 354.2
Distance: 2.73mi

Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity

Friend Opportunity is a really weird album. With elements post-rock, indie rock, psychedelic, and sometimes chiptune combining together, it's uncanny to hear it all combine almost seamlessly. This album is also packed to the brim with a wide variety of just plain strange sounds, with the last track being completely composed of them. Even though the last track does drag quite a bit, the rest of the album far makes up for it.

Calories: 324.0
Distance: 2.50mi

Bear In Heaven - Beast Rest Forth Mouth

Bear Rest Forth Mouth is an engulfing experimental rock record that really shocked me. I was expecting it to be just another experimental rock album, but was surprised with its use of electronic flourishes and its amount of indie rock choruses. I can't easily pin down any other describable styles; you'll just have to trust me when I say its an empowering record. I felt compelled to give this workout session my all, and this record delivered perfectly.

Calories: 360.0
Distance: 2.81mi

Gang Gang Dance - God's Money

The only way I can really describe Gang Gang Dance to new possible listeners is that they sound like an Indian experimental rock band. With its heavy elctroclash influence, God's Money comes off as very psychedelic but also quite heavy in beats. The end result is a accessible album that can be enjoyed by fans of electronic music and experimental rock alike. As far as working out, it exceeds far past my expectations of the band. Even when the beat is almost completely lost and it  starts spiraling out of control, it still maintains a interesting ability to keep up one's motivation.

Calories: 323.4
Distance: 2.51mi

Max Tundra - Parallax Error Beheads You

If I were to have describe Max Tundra's music in one word, it would definitely be 'quirky'. The eccentricities of Max Tundra come from break-neck tempos, falsetto vocals, chiptune-esque styling, and the ability to have very hyper electronic music that doesn't come off as feeling corny in the slightest. The music often gives me an almost nostalgic feeling, which may be because it sounds like a video game that may or may not be glitching out furiously. Even in it's sprawling eleven minute finale, Parallax Error Beheads You never drags because new sounds are constantly being introduced, fleshed out, and iterated upon in inventive ways. Lightning has struck twice this week, and perfection is the result.

Calories: 361.2
Distance: 2.80mi

Dirty Projectors - Rise Above

Rise Above is the third album I've heard by Dirty Projectors, and it definitely sounds like the precursor to Bitte Orca. With its multilayer guitar strumming, Longstreth's idiosyncratic vocals, the occasional lulls into a false sense of security followed by walls of noise, and the abundance of female backing vocals all point it to Dirty Projectors definite forte. The often very abrupt changes in time signatures and the beat focused song structures keep the album fresh and exciting while running.

Calories: 369.3
Distance: 2.91mi