Podcast!!!
Direct Download
Show Notes:
Episode 16, In which Lola misses parts of 24 for the sake of her podcast
1) Fridge, "Cut Up Piano and Xylophone" (Playing during my first talkie part)
from their label site, Temporary Residence.
2) Field Music, "Closer At Hand" (from AOL Music's site, Spinner).
3) Miles Cool, "My Old School" (Steely Dan cover) found on Coverville's website.
4) Midlake, "Roscoe" (from Insound)
5) Andrew Bird, "Heretic" (from Artist Direct)
6) Explosions In The Sky, "Welcome, Ghosts" (also from Temporary Residence--for some reason this song isn't on their band page, but it's on the MP3s page. When you first go to the site, click on the main graphic to enter the site. At the top of the site you'll see a row of birds. Find the bird that corresponds to the MP3s link and click on it. The mp3s are listed alphabetically--"Welcome, Ghosts" is under Explosions in the Sky.
That's it for tonight. The Lola girl is going to bed. Have a happy whatever it is--Tuesday, Wednesday, whatever day you're reading this...
Monday, April 09, 2007
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Five Songs I'm Loving This Week
Ooh...while I'm thinking of it...let me mention: Podcast either tonight or tomorrow night...
Lismore, "1979"
I hadn't heard this song in years (five at least) until I heard this version on one of the podcasts I listen to. I was wandering through the cubicles at work, searching for decaf coffee (a neverending and often unfruitful quest), and I was also obsessing about how much I hate my job and how I must leave before I go crazy and just start screaming. This song came on, and suddenly instead of mentally kvetching, I began to feel like I was gliding. I looked at the wall to my left, the rows of cubicles to my right, the flat carpet below, the flourescents above, and suddenly I felt above it all. I felt beyond that place; beyond any of that unhappiness mattering. Sometimes good electronica can do that...especially if it's applied to a song I consider an iconic piece of music from my second childhood (AKA my 20's).
Website
Myspace
Not an exact reproduction of the band Lismore
Jarvis Cocker, "Baby's Coming Back To Me"
Perhaps I've gotten obsessed (re-obsessed) with the 90's? Perhaps I miss the simpler time in my life...but, yep. This is the guy from Pulp. You know, the guy who was gonna meet that girl in the year 2000. Also, the guy who wants to sleep with Common People (my favorite Pulp song) and duets with William Shatner? Well, he's back with a solo album called Jarvis. I've heard a few of the songs from the album, and I originally wanted to post "Ruling The World", but he uses the one word in the English language I find personally offensive and can't bear to hear. I don't think he means to imply that unfavorable women are ruling the world--I think it's another way of saying "assholes rule the world". I guess if I were a guy, I would probably find that offensive. I think of assholes as applying to guys. Anyways, I took a shining to "Baby's Coming Back To Me", also, so I decided to use that one. It's slow and charming, in a light 50's way. It's the song they would play at the end of the sock hop--the "all couples dance" song. It retains the heart of what I love about Pulp's music--it seems like a throwback to another era, yet it still seems timeless. The way "Disco 2000" will always mean something to me long after I forget the actual year 2000. (Thanks to Inhouse for posting the songs).
Myspace
Wikipedia
(404 on the website listed on Myspace)
Jarvis Cocker, or at least part of him
The Mother Hips, "Time-Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear"
Ooh! I heard this band a few days ago. I was looking up information on the new Kings of Leon band, and this band was mentioned in the same article as being similar to them. They definitely rock with the same abandon and pure spirit of the boys of the South. They have a little My Morning Jacket in them, too. Something about this music makes me want to wear jeans and live on a commune. Nothing has ever made me want to do that. Not even certain substances. The band apparently has been around for 15 years. Well, mentally I haven't been around for a full 15 years, so that can explain why I haven't heard them before.
Website
Myspace
This is an old picture of The Mother Hips, but isn't it a great picture?
Andrew Rothman, "Papa Was A Rolling Stone"
Moxie (my iCat) doesn't like this song, but I think it rolls. It's frikkin' awesome. I don't remember much about the original song, but this version could've been lifted right out of the 70's. I'm not saying that the reason it's excellent is because it's a faithful rendition. No--it's awesome because the man's voice is monumental. It embodies all of the soul of the song. The piano and the other instruments are just there to underscore what already lives and breathes in his vocal. My heart clenches when he says his daddy had another family and would steal to pay his bills, I feel the pain rolling out of the speakers. (Thanks again to Coverville for this song).
I think Moxie's too young to get it. If she's a good kitty I'll play "Let's Go To The Mall" for her again.
Website
(No Myspace found)
This the only picture of Andrew Rothman I could find. Please, don't shoot the messenger. His website is gorgeous, though--he's a graphic designer as well. Unfortunately the picture of him on that site is part of the wallpaper.
Page France, "Junkyard"
I don't like a lot of Page France's songs--some of them are a little too treacly for me. However, this is one awesome song. One awesome song is enough to make me love an artist. In this case, they had me at "rattle with the car parts". Anyone who says someone was told to glow majestically and love until their hands bleed...okay, so yeah, the lyrics are kind of weird. I really like off-the-wall lyrics, even if they make no sense (hey, "1979" has lyrics like "I don't want to lose these zipper blues"...I can't be judgemental).
Website
Myspace
Purevolume
Page France
Ooh...while I'm thinking of it...let me mention: Podcast either tonight or tomorrow night...
Lismore, "1979"
I hadn't heard this song in years (five at least) until I heard this version on one of the podcasts I listen to. I was wandering through the cubicles at work, searching for decaf coffee (a neverending and often unfruitful quest), and I was also obsessing about how much I hate my job and how I must leave before I go crazy and just start screaming. This song came on, and suddenly instead of mentally kvetching, I began to feel like I was gliding. I looked at the wall to my left, the rows of cubicles to my right, the flat carpet below, the flourescents above, and suddenly I felt above it all. I felt beyond that place; beyond any of that unhappiness mattering. Sometimes good electronica can do that...especially if it's applied to a song I consider an iconic piece of music from my second childhood (AKA my 20's).
Website
Myspace
Not an exact reproduction of the band Lismore
Jarvis Cocker, "Baby's Coming Back To Me"
Perhaps I've gotten obsessed (re-obsessed) with the 90's? Perhaps I miss the simpler time in my life...but, yep. This is the guy from Pulp. You know, the guy who was gonna meet that girl in the year 2000. Also, the guy who wants to sleep with Common People (my favorite Pulp song) and duets with William Shatner? Well, he's back with a solo album called Jarvis. I've heard a few of the songs from the album, and I originally wanted to post "Ruling The World", but he uses the one word in the English language I find personally offensive and can't bear to hear. I don't think he means to imply that unfavorable women are ruling the world--I think it's another way of saying "assholes rule the world". I guess if I were a guy, I would probably find that offensive. I think of assholes as applying to guys. Anyways, I took a shining to "Baby's Coming Back To Me", also, so I decided to use that one. It's slow and charming, in a light 50's way. It's the song they would play at the end of the sock hop--the "all couples dance" song. It retains the heart of what I love about Pulp's music--it seems like a throwback to another era, yet it still seems timeless. The way "Disco 2000" will always mean something to me long after I forget the actual year 2000. (Thanks to Inhouse for posting the songs).
Myspace
Wikipedia
(404 on the website listed on Myspace)
Jarvis Cocker, or at least part of him
The Mother Hips, "Time-Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear"
Ooh! I heard this band a few days ago. I was looking up information on the new Kings of Leon band, and this band was mentioned in the same article as being similar to them. They definitely rock with the same abandon and pure spirit of the boys of the South. They have a little My Morning Jacket in them, too. Something about this music makes me want to wear jeans and live on a commune. Nothing has ever made me want to do that. Not even certain substances. The band apparently has been around for 15 years. Well, mentally I haven't been around for a full 15 years, so that can explain why I haven't heard them before.
Website
Myspace
This is an old picture of The Mother Hips, but isn't it a great picture?
Andrew Rothman, "Papa Was A Rolling Stone"
Moxie (my iCat) doesn't like this song, but I think it rolls. It's frikkin' awesome. I don't remember much about the original song, but this version could've been lifted right out of the 70's. I'm not saying that the reason it's excellent is because it's a faithful rendition. No--it's awesome because the man's voice is monumental. It embodies all of the soul of the song. The piano and the other instruments are just there to underscore what already lives and breathes in his vocal. My heart clenches when he says his daddy had another family and would steal to pay his bills, I feel the pain rolling out of the speakers. (Thanks again to Coverville for this song).
I think Moxie's too young to get it. If she's a good kitty I'll play "Let's Go To The Mall" for her again.
Website
(No Myspace found)
This the only picture of Andrew Rothman I could find. Please, don't shoot the messenger. His website is gorgeous, though--he's a graphic designer as well. Unfortunately the picture of him on that site is part of the wallpaper.
Page France, "Junkyard"
I don't like a lot of Page France's songs--some of them are a little too treacly for me. However, this is one awesome song. One awesome song is enough to make me love an artist. In this case, they had me at "rattle with the car parts". Anyone who says someone was told to glow majestically and love until their hands bleed...okay, so yeah, the lyrics are kind of weird. I really like off-the-wall lyrics, even if they make no sense (hey, "1979" has lyrics like "I don't want to lose these zipper blues"...I can't be judgemental).
Website
Myspace
Purevolume
Page France
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Five Songs I'm Loving This Week
Dybdahl, Thomas "A Lovestory"
Starts with a quiet grandness. Like you're in a nearly empty apartment, and you're so high above the city that the only thing you can hear, the only thing tangible is this impressive, insistent piano line. The singer's voice weaves in and out of the song, much like the guitar does--as if the two were playfully chasing each other. Dybdahl sings the notes with underwrought emotion: never exaggerating the sadness inherent in the song, but leaving it slightly on the side of melancholy, thus keeping the sentiment from lapsing into sappiness. The tone fits the lyrics perfectly: don't let the title fool you. This isn't a song about a current lovestory--it's a song about accepting the end of a lovestory and loving it for what it was. It's about putting the past in the past and still being able to love the memories and laugh.
Website
Myspace
Thomas Dybdahl, looking like he gave up his comb for lent
Weeping Tile, "Don't Let It Bring You Down"
Caveat: Since researching the band, I've found out that A) this song is hella old (1995--that's old in music blog years. Oops, oh well) and it's led by a singer-songwriter I love--Sarah Harmer. I didn't know all this before I wrote the following paragraph. I'm tired, though, so I ain't rewriting it. You can rewrite it if it means so much to you.
This is a little more honky-tonkin' than I usually go, but I've shown I like me some country once in awhile, and besides I've got a place in my heart for female singers who own a song as wholly as this woman does. She sings this so well. She sounds like Kristen Hersh (really!) if Kristin Hersh was all "I wanna write a kinda bluegrass song". This is a raucous of a song, and after all the gently gliding folk songs I post it's nice to include a kick of a song that ya can get drunk to. I love how she says "don't let it get you down...it's only castles burning...find someone who's turning, and you will come around". I will come around, miss lady who sings like a banshee on fire.
Website
Wikipedia Entry
(No Myspace)
It's a shame Weeping Tile isn't together anymore. It sounds like they're still friends, though (and the two women are sisters)
Uncle Seth, "Still...You Turn Me On"
I listen a podcast called Coverville alot. In fact, I know a few songs I post/podcast in the next few weeks will be songs I heard through this podcast. It's an awesome podcast; regularly updated, and the music is generally very good (except when he does a special "Worst Covers" podcast.)
This was not on the worst covers list, though. This actually fits in perfectly with the Weeping Tile song: another slightly alt-country song (though this leans more toward folk than bluegrass) with amazing female vocals.
Her voice is stark, pleading, persuasive and pervades the song as if it were a sharp knife and the song were, well, butter. Yes, her voice is that sharp, folks. The original artist for this song is Emerson, Lake and Palmer. I'd honestly never heard the song before I heard it on Coverville, but this version is so good that I almost don't want to hear the original.
Website
Myspace
Nice picture of Uncle Seth. They had a sexy picture available, but I was in a nice mood.
Winter Took His life, "When You Said You Headed Home"
This song is more winsome than the others; the vocals are wispier, but the tone evokes a sense of winter, of isolation--just as you would think a band called Winter Took His Life would. I can't determine exactly what the song is about, but it seems to be a reflection on past memories: She asks to hear someone's stories and for them to remember things they'd done together. Huh...maybe this is an answer to Thomas Dybdal's song? Interesting...The band is actually one woman, Susanna Brandin, from Swedin (I have a Scandinavian thing going on: Thomas Dybdal's from Norway). According to her website, she's friend with a band I posted not long ago: We are Soldiers, We have Guns. Lots of "W" bands, huh?
Website
Myspace
Susanna Brandin from Winter Took His Life
Album Leaf, "Always for you"
Ambient music has a new star with this band. I first heard them a few years ago, and I was highly impressed. This is from their recent (6 months old) album Into The Blue Again. I love ambient music, but too much of it is cheap keyboard drivel. This isn't typical Ambient, though. There isn't anything anonymous about this; it doesn't blend. It stands out--it's unique from other ambient and electronica, while still making me feel like I'm floating in a star system. That's the ambient I love.
Website
Myspace
Music.Download.Com
Guy from Album Leaf looking very, very happy. They had pictures of the whole band, but they were taken from very far away and they looked like dolls.
Bonus:
I just wanted to mention a few songs I'm not officially including.
Scott Walker's song "Darkness (Plague of Locusts)" is just freakin' crazy-ass weird-ass freaky-ass shit. I'm not joking. It's weird-ass stuff. I'm oddly compelled by it. I'm not exactly jamming to it, but I feel drawn to it, as a teenage girl is drawn to a vampire in a horror movie. I feel a little like I'm in an old Hammer Horror movie when I hear the song. It's just weird-ass shit. I feel this weird urge to let people know about it, though. Scott Walker's been making music for several decades, and in fact he's signed to one of my favorite labels, 4AD. I think I found the song here. The song comes from 4AD's compilation Plague Songs. Cool name, huh?
His Label Page
Wiki Entry
That song actually inspired me to make some CDs for two Podcasters I love, Dawn Miceli and Drew Domkus of The Dawn and Drew show. The next bonus song is from their website, and it's a loving tribute to their sugargliders. It's called "Naughty Sugarglider" and it's by Lord Kool. It's hosted on Dawn and Drew's song page along with other great songs Dawn, Drew and D & D admirers have recorded. It's an awesome song and it's on my favorites list every week. I'm not including it in the body of the blog, though, because I'm not sure how Dawn and Drew would appreciate me appropriating the song for my blog. So, I'm just linking to the song (but not hotlinking!). I loves the Dawn and Drew and want to be part of their inkernet for years and years to come. Oh, and I love Sugargliders, too (though I've never owned one)!
A Sugarglider
Dybdahl, Thomas "A Lovestory"
Starts with a quiet grandness. Like you're in a nearly empty apartment, and you're so high above the city that the only thing you can hear, the only thing tangible is this impressive, insistent piano line. The singer's voice weaves in and out of the song, much like the guitar does--as if the two were playfully chasing each other. Dybdahl sings the notes with underwrought emotion: never exaggerating the sadness inherent in the song, but leaving it slightly on the side of melancholy, thus keeping the sentiment from lapsing into sappiness. The tone fits the lyrics perfectly: don't let the title fool you. This isn't a song about a current lovestory--it's a song about accepting the end of a lovestory and loving it for what it was. It's about putting the past in the past and still being able to love the memories and laugh.
Website
Myspace
Thomas Dybdahl, looking like he gave up his comb for lent
Weeping Tile, "Don't Let It Bring You Down"
Caveat: Since researching the band, I've found out that A) this song is hella old (1995--that's old in music blog years. Oops, oh well) and it's led by a singer-songwriter I love--Sarah Harmer. I didn't know all this before I wrote the following paragraph. I'm tired, though, so I ain't rewriting it. You can rewrite it if it means so much to you.
This is a little more honky-tonkin' than I usually go, but I've shown I like me some country once in awhile, and besides I've got a place in my heart for female singers who own a song as wholly as this woman does. She sings this so well. She sounds like Kristen Hersh (really!) if Kristin Hersh was all "I wanna write a kinda bluegrass song". This is a raucous of a song, and after all the gently gliding folk songs I post it's nice to include a kick of a song that ya can get drunk to. I love how she says "don't let it get you down...it's only castles burning...find someone who's turning, and you will come around". I will come around, miss lady who sings like a banshee on fire.
Website
Wikipedia Entry
(No Myspace)
It's a shame Weeping Tile isn't together anymore. It sounds like they're still friends, though (and the two women are sisters)
Uncle Seth, "Still...You Turn Me On"
I listen a podcast called Coverville alot. In fact, I know a few songs I post/podcast in the next few weeks will be songs I heard through this podcast. It's an awesome podcast; regularly updated, and the music is generally very good (except when he does a special "Worst Covers" podcast.)
This was not on the worst covers list, though. This actually fits in perfectly with the Weeping Tile song: another slightly alt-country song (though this leans more toward folk than bluegrass) with amazing female vocals.
Her voice is stark, pleading, persuasive and pervades the song as if it were a sharp knife and the song were, well, butter. Yes, her voice is that sharp, folks. The original artist for this song is Emerson, Lake and Palmer. I'd honestly never heard the song before I heard it on Coverville, but this version is so good that I almost don't want to hear the original.
Website
Myspace
Nice picture of Uncle Seth. They had a sexy picture available, but I was in a nice mood.
Winter Took His life, "When You Said You Headed Home"
This song is more winsome than the others; the vocals are wispier, but the tone evokes a sense of winter, of isolation--just as you would think a band called Winter Took His Life would. I can't determine exactly what the song is about, but it seems to be a reflection on past memories: She asks to hear someone's stories and for them to remember things they'd done together. Huh...maybe this is an answer to Thomas Dybdal's song? Interesting...The band is actually one woman, Susanna Brandin, from Swedin (I have a Scandinavian thing going on: Thomas Dybdal's from Norway). According to her website, she's friend with a band I posted not long ago: We are Soldiers, We have Guns. Lots of "W" bands, huh?
Website
Myspace
Susanna Brandin from Winter Took His Life
Album Leaf, "Always for you"
Ambient music has a new star with this band. I first heard them a few years ago, and I was highly impressed. This is from their recent (6 months old) album Into The Blue Again. I love ambient music, but too much of it is cheap keyboard drivel. This isn't typical Ambient, though. There isn't anything anonymous about this; it doesn't blend. It stands out--it's unique from other ambient and electronica, while still making me feel like I'm floating in a star system. That's the ambient I love.
Website
Myspace
Music.Download.Com
Guy from Album Leaf looking very, very happy. They had pictures of the whole band, but they were taken from very far away and they looked like dolls.
Bonus:
I just wanted to mention a few songs I'm not officially including.
Scott Walker's song "Darkness (Plague of Locusts)" is just freakin' crazy-ass weird-ass freaky-ass shit. I'm not joking. It's weird-ass stuff. I'm oddly compelled by it. I'm not exactly jamming to it, but I feel drawn to it, as a teenage girl is drawn to a vampire in a horror movie. I feel a little like I'm in an old Hammer Horror movie when I hear the song. It's just weird-ass shit. I feel this weird urge to let people know about it, though. Scott Walker's been making music for several decades, and in fact he's signed to one of my favorite labels, 4AD. I think I found the song here. The song comes from 4AD's compilation Plague Songs. Cool name, huh?
His Label Page
Wiki Entry
That song actually inspired me to make some CDs for two Podcasters I love, Dawn Miceli and Drew Domkus of The Dawn and Drew show. The next bonus song is from their website, and it's a loving tribute to their sugargliders. It's called "Naughty Sugarglider" and it's by Lord Kool. It's hosted on Dawn and Drew's song page along with other great songs Dawn, Drew and D & D admirers have recorded. It's an awesome song and it's on my favorites list every week. I'm not including it in the body of the blog, though, because I'm not sure how Dawn and Drew would appreciate me appropriating the song for my blog. So, I'm just linking to the song (but not hotlinking!). I loves the Dawn and Drew and want to be part of their inkernet for years and years to come. Oh, and I love Sugargliders, too (though I've never owned one)!
A Sugarglider
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Podcast!
March 24th, 2007 #15, "Introducing Moxie"
RSS
Direct Download
Show Notes:
Lead-In Music: Postscript, "Untitled 2"
Hera, "Don't Play This" from SXSW.com
Her Website and Myspace
Postscript, "This Is" (from Fanatic Media)
Myspace
Website
The Northern Two Learning To Weld (mp3 directly from the band)
Myspace
(No website listed)
Blonde Redhead, "23" (from Spinner.com, though I originally got it from Fingertips)
Website
Myspace (not the bands, though, it seems)
Airliner, "Everything That's You" (from Labrador)
Couldn't find a website, but he has a listing on Last FM!
Roger O'Donnell, "For The Truth In You" (Dntel Remix) (from Artist Direct
His website confuses me :( I couldn't find a Myspace.
Whoa! I just read the bio! This is the Roger O'Donnell from The Cure! Well, I'll be flabbergasted! Cool!
Micah P. Hinson, "Jackeyed" (from SXSW)
His label's website
Myspace
That's all for tonight--it's frickin' 11. I've been doing this for almost 12 hours straight (except for a few hours I spent walking). I'll have another blog entry next week and another podcast in two weeks.
March 24th, 2007 #15, "Introducing Moxie"
RSS
Direct Download
Show Notes:
Lead-In Music: Postscript, "Untitled 2"
Hera, "Don't Play This" from SXSW.com
Her Website and Myspace
Postscript, "This Is" (from Fanatic Media)
Myspace
Website
The Northern Two Learning To Weld (mp3 directly from the band)
Myspace
(No website listed)
Blonde Redhead, "23" (from Spinner.com, though I originally got it from Fingertips)
Website
Myspace (not the bands, though, it seems)
Airliner, "Everything That's You" (from Labrador)
Couldn't find a website, but he has a listing on Last FM!
Roger O'Donnell, "For The Truth In You" (Dntel Remix) (from Artist Direct
His website confuses me :( I couldn't find a Myspace.
Whoa! I just read the bio! This is the Roger O'Donnell from The Cure! Well, I'll be flabbergasted! Cool!
Micah P. Hinson, "Jackeyed" (from SXSW)
His label's website
Myspace
That's all for tonight--it's frickin' 11. I've been doing this for almost 12 hours straight (except for a few hours I spent walking). I'll have another blog entry next week and another podcast in two weeks.
Five Songs I'm Loving This Week
Before I start: Podcast either tonight or tomorrow!
Cassettes Won't Listen, "F**K and Run" (explicit--this version and a clean version can be found here)
This is my favorite song from Liz Phair's excellent 1993 debut Exile In Guyville. The whole album was a snapshot in time: a snapshot of my silly youth, a snapshot of Liz Phair herself since I don't think her later music has had the same rawness and incalculableness (word?) about it.
Cassettes Won't Listen took the rawness out of it, but what's left is still a really good song, and their interpretation is interesting and strangely kind of upbeat. it doesn't sound sad anymore.
Myspace
Website
Cassettes Won't Listen sees a bug and jumps up on a chair like a little baby girl cassette! (Photo by Bob Martus)
AA Sound System, "Laissez Faire" (originally from SXSW's site)
I'm still only about 1/12th through listening to all the free songs on the SXSW site. There's a torrent download for all 1,200 (or however many) of the songs but I kept getting an error message when I tried to download it.
Luckily, though, with their band name starting with an AA and all, this was one of the first songs I heard. I have a feeling it's going to end up being one of my favorites--even if I listen to all of them. Despite the singer saying he snapped at someone like a dragon in full bloom, there's nothing harsh or snappish about this song. It's smooth, drifting and gorgeous. The song itself is laissez-faire; content with being it's own peaceful self. It makes me want to drift along, watching the sky and tops of trees go by. I know--can I be any more of a sap? Probably--don't test me. Anyway, as the singer says, "it's all gonna work out fine" and I feel just fine when I'm listening to this song.
Myspace
Website
AA Sound System get some learnin'
Brianna Lane, "Still Alive" (Warning: Yousendit link--only good for 7 days)
I first heard this song on one of the podcasts I listen to, and I fell absolutely in love with. Of course I couldn't find a copy of it online, so I did something bold, innovative and I'm sure completely unheard of: I e-mailed the artist and asked her if I could put her song on my blog. I had no idea if she'd respond, but I'd have a better chance of getting the song if I e-mailed, so I did. I know--the suspense is killing you. Did she e-mail back? Did she let me have the song? Well, duh, Sherlock. I'm posting it, aren't I? :)
I'm posting it as a Yousendit link, though, because she asked me to take it down after a short while, and I knew I'd forget, so I figured Yousendit was the surest way to go since the .mp3 is automatically taken down after 7 days.
The guitar work in this song is lovely, and Brianna's voice glides along the music as surely and effortlessly as the guitar does. She actually reminds me *alot* of my friend D. Mangione who goes by the stage name Josephine Sweet.
I'm grateful Brianna let me borrow the song and I hope you love it as much as I do.
Sweet picture!
Myspace
Website
Rooftop, "Hallelujah" (Warning: Yousendit link--expires in 7 days)
I've heard several versions of this song. At least six versions. Up until now my favorite version (and one of the few that I thought got it right) was Jeff Buckley's. The way his voice cracked so often; I could feel the pain and the gravity in each word. Whereas his version conveyed the wretched pain inherit in the song, this new version is full of hope and reverence, which also has a place in this song (the name of the song is "Hallelujah", afterall). This woman pushes each note out with striking brilliance and soulfullness. This woman's voice is brilliance and soulfullness. I still love the Buckley version, but I've found salvation with this version. Just listen to her voice.
This is not a great copy of the song, though: it's from NPR's Open Mic series and there's talky-talky at the beginning (and it's not me doing the talking). I searched to the rooftop for a good version, but no luck. I'm doing this as a yousendit link because *though* I got it for free through a podcast, NPR doesn't offer it for download on their site, and I don't feel like messing with NPR. I'm sure they'd be polite about their Cease and Desist letter, but still...anyhoo...the song will be up for 7 days. The video is below:
Video
Website
The Rooftop
The Twilight Sad, "Cold Days At The Birdhouse" (originally from Promonet)
I got this from IODA (Independent Online Distribution Alliance). If you write about music or have a music podcast, it's an important resource. If you just love music, it's a great place to go. Their podcast is called Promonet, and this song came through that.
This song is heavy on guitar, but yet also has one very gentle, very unobtrusive piano note repeating in the background. The song is contradictory at times, but it's the mixture that makes it so compelling. It starts off slowly and contemplative; sounding like a country song done celtic. It progresses into a series of clashing and thrashing guitar parts, which just gives me all the more to look forward to as the song reaches the end. Huh...wonder if the "red sky at night" line is a reference to The Fixx. Maybe not; would be cool, though.
Myspace
Label Site
I think one of the band members is stuck in the guy in the middle and is trying to come out John Hurt-style. (Photo by Neale Smith)
IODA asked me to post the following as part of my user agreement. I couldn't get it to work at all on Myspace, and I'm not entirely sure it's working now.
More On This Album
Before I start: Podcast either tonight or tomorrow!
Cassettes Won't Listen, "F**K and Run" (explicit--this version and a clean version can be found here)
This is my favorite song from Liz Phair's excellent 1993 debut Exile In Guyville. The whole album was a snapshot in time: a snapshot of my silly youth, a snapshot of Liz Phair herself since I don't think her later music has had the same rawness and incalculableness (word?) about it.
Cassettes Won't Listen took the rawness out of it, but what's left is still a really good song, and their interpretation is interesting and strangely kind of upbeat. it doesn't sound sad anymore.
Myspace
Website
Cassettes Won't Listen sees a bug and jumps up on a chair like a little baby girl cassette! (Photo by Bob Martus)
AA Sound System, "Laissez Faire" (originally from SXSW's site)
I'm still only about 1/12th through listening to all the free songs on the SXSW site. There's a torrent download for all 1,200 (or however many) of the songs but I kept getting an error message when I tried to download it.
Luckily, though, with their band name starting with an AA and all, this was one of the first songs I heard. I have a feeling it's going to end up being one of my favorites--even if I listen to all of them. Despite the singer saying he snapped at someone like a dragon in full bloom, there's nothing harsh or snappish about this song. It's smooth, drifting and gorgeous. The song itself is laissez-faire; content with being it's own peaceful self. It makes me want to drift along, watching the sky and tops of trees go by. I know--can I be any more of a sap? Probably--don't test me. Anyway, as the singer says, "it's all gonna work out fine" and I feel just fine when I'm listening to this song.
Myspace
Website
AA Sound System get some learnin'
Brianna Lane, "Still Alive" (Warning: Yousendit link--only good for 7 days)
I first heard this song on one of the podcasts I listen to, and I fell absolutely in love with. Of course I couldn't find a copy of it online, so I did something bold, innovative and I'm sure completely unheard of: I e-mailed the artist and asked her if I could put her song on my blog. I had no idea if she'd respond, but I'd have a better chance of getting the song if I e-mailed, so I did. I know--the suspense is killing you. Did she e-mail back? Did she let me have the song? Well, duh, Sherlock. I'm posting it, aren't I? :)
I'm posting it as a Yousendit link, though, because she asked me to take it down after a short while, and I knew I'd forget, so I figured Yousendit was the surest way to go since the .mp3 is automatically taken down after 7 days.
The guitar work in this song is lovely, and Brianna's voice glides along the music as surely and effortlessly as the guitar does. She actually reminds me *alot* of my friend D. Mangione who goes by the stage name Josephine Sweet.
I'm grateful Brianna let me borrow the song and I hope you love it as much as I do.
Sweet picture!
Myspace
Website
Rooftop, "Hallelujah" (Warning: Yousendit link--expires in 7 days)
I've heard several versions of this song. At least six versions. Up until now my favorite version (and one of the few that I thought got it right) was Jeff Buckley's. The way his voice cracked so often; I could feel the pain and the gravity in each word. Whereas his version conveyed the wretched pain inherit in the song, this new version is full of hope and reverence, which also has a place in this song (the name of the song is "Hallelujah", afterall). This woman pushes each note out with striking brilliance and soulfullness. This woman's voice is brilliance and soulfullness. I still love the Buckley version, but I've found salvation with this version. Just listen to her voice.
This is not a great copy of the song, though: it's from NPR's Open Mic series and there's talky-talky at the beginning (and it's not me doing the talking). I searched to the rooftop for a good version, but no luck. I'm doing this as a yousendit link because *though* I got it for free through a podcast, NPR doesn't offer it for download on their site, and I don't feel like messing with NPR. I'm sure they'd be polite about their Cease and Desist letter, but still...anyhoo...the song will be up for 7 days. The video is below:
Video
Website
The Rooftop
The Twilight Sad, "Cold Days At The Birdhouse" (originally from Promonet)
I got this from IODA (Independent Online Distribution Alliance). If you write about music or have a music podcast, it's an important resource. If you just love music, it's a great place to go. Their podcast is called Promonet, and this song came through that.
This song is heavy on guitar, but yet also has one very gentle, very unobtrusive piano note repeating in the background. The song is contradictory at times, but it's the mixture that makes it so compelling. It starts off slowly and contemplative; sounding like a country song done celtic. It progresses into a series of clashing and thrashing guitar parts, which just gives me all the more to look forward to as the song reaches the end. Huh...wonder if the "red sky at night" line is a reference to The Fixx. Maybe not; would be cool, though.
Myspace
Label Site
I think one of the band members is stuck in the guy in the middle and is trying to come out John Hurt-style. (Photo by Neale Smith)
IODA asked me to post the following as part of my user agreement. I couldn't get it to work at all on Myspace, and I'm not entirely sure it's working now.
Download "Cold Days From The Birdhouse" (mp3)
from "The 3rd Annual IODA SXSW Opening Day Bash Sampler"
by The Twilight Sad
ioda
Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at
eMusic
More On This Album
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Five Songs I'm Loving This Week
First off, let's all congratulate Lola on winning the "Stupid Move of the Week" (and it's only Sunday!) award. I decided to come to the coffeehouse, brave potential loudness, obnoxious teenager-ness and having to type on a laptop, all for a change of scenery. Anything to get away from my living room and my same old laptop (love ya girl, but I need a break).
So I packed the laptop up and walked the few blocks here.
Yes, and I left all my notes at home. I can reconstruct most of it, but it's gonna be a chore remembering where I got everything. Let's see how I do.
Los Campesinos!, "You, Me, Dancing"
You've got to love a band who takes on part of their band name, punctuation included, as their last names. So, no, the Campesino!s in this band aren't all related, and Campesinos! isn't their given names...or maybe it is. Maye that's where they got the band name...no, I'm pretty sure I read that they took that name as their last name, a la The Ramones.
The song starts off deceptively slow, but soon hypes up to Mates of State levels. Their vocals actually remind me of Mates of State--hyperactive, exaggerated and taking a shotgun approach to singing, veering between actual singing and "talk-singing". Still, the fun of a song like this is the shotgun approach. It's like dancing; it may not always be the most perfect (or sometimes the most recognizable as being what it is), but the point is that it's done with true gleeful abandon and a sense of spontaneity. They must be having fun, because there's laughter at the end of the song.
Los Campesinos! look like they're having fun. "You Me Dancing" is from the EP Hold On Now Youngster. I found the song through Fingertips Music. The band offers their new single "We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives" through their website. They also have a Myspace.
Delorean, "Heather, Remind Me How This Ends" (from their 3rd album You Can't Win)
I actually have Delorean's last CD (yes, I actually own a CD...) and I liked it a lot, so when I saw that they had new songs, I was very interested. This song is very alt-country--very back porch, looking at your pick-up in the yard and pettin' your basset hound on a lazy Sunday evening. I love those types of songs.
I'm not sure if Heather ever told him how it ends, though, 'cause it just kind of ends. Guess she didn't. She missed her cue.
I got this song from the ever-wonderful podcast/radio show/music blog In House With Jeremy Petersen. He has awesome taste in music and frequently includes complete mp3s on his blog for some of the songs he plays. I couldn't find a Myspace for them, but--oh how cool! According to their website, their touring with Kristen Hersh. What an awesome bill!
Delorean (the band, not the car)
Dean and Britta, "Words You Used To Say" (from the album Back Numbers)
If you've heard Luna or Galaxie 500, then you've heard Dean Wareham. Those bands were staples for my generation. Along with Spacemen 3 and other space-trippy bands of the late 80's and early 90s, these bands fueled certain nights for me and helped me to identify the years that turned me into an adult (the same years I nearly slept through).
The spaciness is still there, but it's more of an underlay in this song, not obscuring the vocals or the melody, but enhancing them. This song has a bit of a meandering tone, much like the Delorean song. Alt-country for folks who like to gaze at the night sky and dream of other realities? Okay, I'll buy it.
There's a video for "Words You Used To Say" on their website. They also hae a Myspace. Thanks to The Yellow Stereo for the mp3. You can listen to samples of each song from the album on their label site, Rounder.
Dean and Britta say "What we do in between sets is our business. If we want to sit in a bathtub, we can..."
***
This coming up week is South By Southwest, in my mind the holy grail of music festivals. I've never been, but one day I will...mark my typing. I will go.
The website for SXSW (as it's known to those of us in the know) lists hundreds of mp3s for the bands scheduled for the festival (hundreds and hundreds of bands will perform). I've trolled through part of the list, but it's gonna be awhile before I make it all the way through, so expect lots of these songs to make an appearance on my blog/podcast in the next few months.
Hera, "Don't Play This" (from the album Don't Play This)
Okay, I offically LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this song. I don't just love it, I love it times three. What is not to love about a song that's so obviously a bitter anti-love song. She says if the person ever gets another kiss, she hopes he/she "chokes on it". Ouch! Anyone who's ever left a bad love situation will fully comprehend the meaning...although it makes me laugh when she says "this is a song I'll never play". Obviously she has played it--I found it on th SXSW site. Maybe she means she's never played it live. Why would they feature it on the festival's site if she's not going to play it, though? Maybe she's talking about a different song she'll never play. Maybe she's singing a song about a different song..maybe...
Hera's originally from Iceland, but if her English sounds perfect, it's because she's lived in New Zealand since she was twelve. Hera's Website and Myspace. (The cat has more respect for the bird than I do for you...)
***
Ughhh...I remember another thing I hate about sitting in a coffee shop for more than an hour...I'm lactose intolerant, but I get mochas with milk anyway 'cause they don't make light soy milk. I'm usually ok for a little while, but then after about 45 minutes, the stomach troubles start. Usually by then I'm home...not now. Now I'm still at the coffee shop and I made a pact with myself earlier not to leave the coffee shop until I finished the blog because I am not going to stll be working on this as 11 P.M...ughghghgh...it hurts...mommy, make it go away.
Anyways, now on to the next song.
A-Sides, "Cinematic" (from their upcoming album Silver Storms)
"...say something cinematic..." What a romantic line. It sounds very ideal and dreamlike. I'm not sure exactly what he means by it, though. He says "say something cinematic, or become a tragic figure". A lot of cinematic figures were tragic, so it seems like someone could be tragic whether they're quoting a movie or not
I'll quote Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
I am not going to sit on my ass as the events that affect me unfold to determine the course of my life. I'm going to take a stand. I'm going to defend it. Right or wrong, I'm going to defend it.
-Cameron Frye (definitely not a tragic character)
MP3 available on the SXSW Site and their Website. They also have a Myspace.
Cameron Frye, Ferris Bueller's Day Off
***
I need to go home.
I've got to start taking my digestive troubles more seriously.
***
Remember I'm taking the next few weeks off. I'll be back with a new episode of my podcast and a new blog entry on March 25th, 2007.
First off, let's all congratulate Lola on winning the "Stupid Move of the Week" (and it's only Sunday!) award. I decided to come to the coffeehouse, brave potential loudness, obnoxious teenager-ness and having to type on a laptop, all for a change of scenery. Anything to get away from my living room and my same old laptop (love ya girl, but I need a break).
So I packed the laptop up and walked the few blocks here.
Yes, and I left all my notes at home. I can reconstruct most of it, but it's gonna be a chore remembering where I got everything. Let's see how I do.
Los Campesinos!, "You, Me, Dancing"
You've got to love a band who takes on part of their band name, punctuation included, as their last names. So, no, the Campesino!s in this band aren't all related, and Campesinos! isn't their given names...or maybe it is. Maye that's where they got the band name...no, I'm pretty sure I read that they took that name as their last name, a la The Ramones.
The song starts off deceptively slow, but soon hypes up to Mates of State levels. Their vocals actually remind me of Mates of State--hyperactive, exaggerated and taking a shotgun approach to singing, veering between actual singing and "talk-singing". Still, the fun of a song like this is the shotgun approach. It's like dancing; it may not always be the most perfect (or sometimes the most recognizable as being what it is), but the point is that it's done with true gleeful abandon and a sense of spontaneity. They must be having fun, because there's laughter at the end of the song.
Los Campesinos! look like they're having fun. "You Me Dancing" is from the EP Hold On Now Youngster. I found the song through Fingertips Music. The band offers their new single "We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives" through their website. They also have a Myspace.
Delorean, "Heather, Remind Me How This Ends" (from their 3rd album You Can't Win)
I actually have Delorean's last CD (yes, I actually own a CD...) and I liked it a lot, so when I saw that they had new songs, I was very interested. This song is very alt-country--very back porch, looking at your pick-up in the yard and pettin' your basset hound on a lazy Sunday evening. I love those types of songs.
I'm not sure if Heather ever told him how it ends, though, 'cause it just kind of ends. Guess she didn't. She missed her cue.
I got this song from the ever-wonderful podcast/radio show/music blog In House With Jeremy Petersen. He has awesome taste in music and frequently includes complete mp3s on his blog for some of the songs he plays. I couldn't find a Myspace for them, but--oh how cool! According to their website, their touring with Kristen Hersh. What an awesome bill!
Delorean (the band, not the car)
Dean and Britta, "Words You Used To Say" (from the album Back Numbers)
If you've heard Luna or Galaxie 500, then you've heard Dean Wareham. Those bands were staples for my generation. Along with Spacemen 3 and other space-trippy bands of the late 80's and early 90s, these bands fueled certain nights for me and helped me to identify the years that turned me into an adult (the same years I nearly slept through).
The spaciness is still there, but it's more of an underlay in this song, not obscuring the vocals or the melody, but enhancing them. This song has a bit of a meandering tone, much like the Delorean song. Alt-country for folks who like to gaze at the night sky and dream of other realities? Okay, I'll buy it.
There's a video for "Words You Used To Say" on their website. They also hae a Myspace. Thanks to The Yellow Stereo for the mp3. You can listen to samples of each song from the album on their label site, Rounder.
Dean and Britta say "What we do in between sets is our business. If we want to sit in a bathtub, we can..."
***
This coming up week is South By Southwest, in my mind the holy grail of music festivals. I've never been, but one day I will...mark my typing. I will go.
The website for SXSW (as it's known to those of us in the know) lists hundreds of mp3s for the bands scheduled for the festival (hundreds and hundreds of bands will perform). I've trolled through part of the list, but it's gonna be awhile before I make it all the way through, so expect lots of these songs to make an appearance on my blog/podcast in the next few months.
Hera, "Don't Play This" (from the album Don't Play This)
Okay, I offically LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this song. I don't just love it, I love it times three. What is not to love about a song that's so obviously a bitter anti-love song. She says if the person ever gets another kiss, she hopes he/she "chokes on it". Ouch! Anyone who's ever left a bad love situation will fully comprehend the meaning...although it makes me laugh when she says "this is a song I'll never play". Obviously she has played it--I found it on th SXSW site. Maybe she means she's never played it live. Why would they feature it on the festival's site if she's not going to play it, though? Maybe she's talking about a different song she'll never play. Maybe she's singing a song about a different song..maybe...
Hera's originally from Iceland, but if her English sounds perfect, it's because she's lived in New Zealand since she was twelve. Hera's Website and Myspace. (The cat has more respect for the bird than I do for you...)
***
Ughhh...I remember another thing I hate about sitting in a coffee shop for more than an hour...I'm lactose intolerant, but I get mochas with milk anyway 'cause they don't make light soy milk. I'm usually ok for a little while, but then after about 45 minutes, the stomach troubles start. Usually by then I'm home...not now. Now I'm still at the coffee shop and I made a pact with myself earlier not to leave the coffee shop until I finished the blog because I am not going to stll be working on this as 11 P.M...ughghghgh...it hurts...mommy, make it go away.
Anyways, now on to the next song.
A-Sides, "Cinematic" (from their upcoming album Silver Storms)
"...say something cinematic..." What a romantic line. It sounds very ideal and dreamlike. I'm not sure exactly what he means by it, though. He says "say something cinematic, or become a tragic figure". A lot of cinematic figures were tragic, so it seems like someone could be tragic whether they're quoting a movie or not
I'll quote Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
I am not going to sit on my ass as the events that affect me unfold to determine the course of my life. I'm going to take a stand. I'm going to defend it. Right or wrong, I'm going to defend it.
-Cameron Frye (definitely not a tragic character)
MP3 available on the SXSW Site and their Website. They also have a Myspace.
Cameron Frye, Ferris Bueller's Day Off
***
I need to go home.
I've got to start taking my digestive troubles more seriously.
***
Remember I'm taking the next few weeks off. I'll be back with a new episode of my podcast and a new blog entry on March 25th, 2007.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Podcast!!!
(Direct Download)
Schedule for my vacation:
I will be off the interwaves beginning the weekend of March 12th. I'll have one more blog post before then, but I won't have any more podcasts until the end of March. I'll be back with a new blog post and podcast the weekend of March 24th.
Shownotes:
1) Cezanne, "I've Got So Much" (from a Media site called Fanatic. I can't find it on the site, so here's the direct download. Cezanne's Myspace.
2) Miho Hatori, "Barracuda" (from LastFM).
Miho's Website.
3) Quien Es Boom, "Brittle Britches" (Oops--I got the band and title mixed up on the podcast). From Audiofile. Their Website .
4) Albert Hammond Jr., "In Transit" (from Audiofile). Albert's Myspace.
5) Narrator, "Panic At Puppy Beach" (from Insound). Their label website.
6) Apostle At Hustle, "My Sword Hand's Anger" (From Salon's Audiofile) They have label's website and Myspace. Wow...almost all of these came from Audiofile. I've gotta learn to spread the wealth a little.
7) Canasta, "Imposter"
8) Canasta, "Shadowcat" (both from their website)
Canasta's Myspace
(Direct Download)
Schedule for my vacation:
I will be off the interwaves beginning the weekend of March 12th. I'll have one more blog post before then, but I won't have any more podcasts until the end of March. I'll be back with a new blog post and podcast the weekend of March 24th.
Shownotes:
1) Cezanne, "I've Got So Much" (from a Media site called Fanatic. I can't find it on the site, so here's the direct download. Cezanne's Myspace.
2) Miho Hatori, "Barracuda" (from LastFM).
Miho's Website.
3) Quien Es Boom, "Brittle Britches" (Oops--I got the band and title mixed up on the podcast). From Audiofile. Their Website .
4) Albert Hammond Jr., "In Transit" (from Audiofile). Albert's Myspace.
5) Narrator, "Panic At Puppy Beach" (from Insound). Their label website.
6) Apostle At Hustle, "My Sword Hand's Anger" (From Salon's Audiofile) They have label's website and Myspace. Wow...almost all of these came from Audiofile. I've gotta learn to spread the wealth a little.
7) Canasta, "Imposter"
8) Canasta, "Shadowcat" (both from their website)
Canasta's Myspace
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Five Songs I'm Loving This Week
Matthew Ryan, "And Never Look Back" (from the album From A Late Night Highrise)
What a deep, gravelly, honest voice this man has. It's funny--the music starts out like a New Order song (relax--that's good), but it also sounds like alt-country--specifically, it sounds like it could be Tim Easton. Perhaps that's due to influence--Matthew Ryan is currently touring with Tim Easton (I bet I'd make a good detective).
So, it's the best of my worlds: electronic pop merged with alt-country. Why hasn't this been thought of before? I first heard this song World Cafe Live--a great resource for any genre music.
Yay for sites that aren't flash! Matthew Ryan's flash-free Website and Myspace.
Copeland, "When You Thought You'd Never Stand Out" (from the album Eat, Sleep, Repeat)
Yes, I realize there are words I use frequently for description ("lovely"), and yes, I rely too heavily on comparison to aid my description (his voice totally sounds like Fran Walsh's from Travis!). Perhaps though I consider myself a writer, it's best that I keep music writing a hobby. I'm going to try to do this lovely piano meditation justice, though. The melody seems pre-ordained; exquisitely gliding along a tailor-made path, as if the melody were already there and the singer is following its direction as much as we are. His voice is high, clear and personifies the melody without flaw. The vocals and music are so clear that it sounds like the song was recorded either in a loft high above the world or a very large cathedral. It makes me feel like I'm in a big, open space, though I'm really in my apartment. There's some nice interplay between the main vocalist and a female back-up vocalist who comes in at the end. Though the song is primarily piano-driven, other instruments such as violin and guitar interweave into the melody to change focus and flesh out the song.
Copeland's Website and Myspace. I got the MP3 at Artist Direct.
Sam Phillips, "Reflecting Light" (from the album A Boot and A Shoe)
This...is...this...
Her voice reminds me of Jane Siberry's voice in Jane's song "Miss Punta Blanca"--her delivery also brings to my mind K.D. Lang or Michelle Shocked. The song is timeless...like a Billie Holiday song that got left behind and only recently caught up to us. More so, it's reminiscent of the quintessential female country singers of the sixties...Loretta Lynne and Patsy Cline. Definitely a bit of Patsy Cline in the song.
But there I go comparing again. I'm sure Ms. Phillips would like me to talk about what the song sounds like, not who. Her timeless, lilting voice rushes along as if it were a current--breaking and eddying, rising, but dropping right before it goes over an edge. Her vocal carries with it a simple guitar part, an undercurrent of piano and a violin that sneaks in, unassumingly lifting the song beyond any threat of simplicity.
Sam Phillips' Myspace and Website (this song and others are available at her site). She sings on Gilmore Girls, too. Sadly, she says she doesn't know how that whole Luke and Lorelei thing will turn out.
Milosh, "Couldn't Sleep" (from the album Meme)
This song reminds me of the beach in Montauk in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It seems timeless, placeless, like it might be part of someone's imagination. Yet I recognize it for what it is, and I don't question it for a second. It unlocks something in my brain and makes me want to start walking with no clear intention of stopping.
It's labeled as trip-hop, but I'd say if it's trip-hop, it's trip-hop for people who like Michel Gondry movies.
Milosh's Label Site and Myspace
Retro Song:
Cibo Matto, "Sci Fi Wasabi"
Okay, this song doesn't mix at all with the other songs, but I've been holding it for a rainy day when I needed a fifth song :) I found this copy on this site--I was looking for information on Mito Hatori, who I posted about a few weeks ago. I have the actual CD with this song somewhere, but who knows if it still plays. I loved Cibo Matto back in the day (ten years ago or so), but Viva, Woman! was my album. I loved that damn thing.
Cibo Matto, unfortunately, are not a unit any more but the two main members are still very musicially active. There is an outdated Cibo Matto page, but you'll do better going to the individual members' websites.
Yuka Honda's Website and Myspace
Miho Hatori's Website and Myspace
I don't know much about the two guys in the back, stage left, but the guy on the right is Sean Lennon. He has a new album out and Yuka Honda is supporting him on tour.
Podcast either tonight or tomorrow!
Matthew Ryan, "And Never Look Back" (from the album From A Late Night Highrise)
What a deep, gravelly, honest voice this man has. It's funny--the music starts out like a New Order song (relax--that's good), but it also sounds like alt-country--specifically, it sounds like it could be Tim Easton. Perhaps that's due to influence--Matthew Ryan is currently touring with Tim Easton (I bet I'd make a good detective).
So, it's the best of my worlds: electronic pop merged with alt-country. Why hasn't this been thought of before? I first heard this song World Cafe Live--a great resource for any genre music.
Yay for sites that aren't flash! Matthew Ryan's flash-free Website and Myspace.
Copeland, "When You Thought You'd Never Stand Out" (from the album Eat, Sleep, Repeat)
Yes, I realize there are words I use frequently for description ("lovely"), and yes, I rely too heavily on comparison to aid my description (his voice totally sounds like Fran Walsh's from Travis!). Perhaps though I consider myself a writer, it's best that I keep music writing a hobby. I'm going to try to do this lovely piano meditation justice, though. The melody seems pre-ordained; exquisitely gliding along a tailor-made path, as if the melody were already there and the singer is following its direction as much as we are. His voice is high, clear and personifies the melody without flaw. The vocals and music are so clear that it sounds like the song was recorded either in a loft high above the world or a very large cathedral. It makes me feel like I'm in a big, open space, though I'm really in my apartment. There's some nice interplay between the main vocalist and a female back-up vocalist who comes in at the end. Though the song is primarily piano-driven, other instruments such as violin and guitar interweave into the melody to change focus and flesh out the song.
Copeland's Website and Myspace. I got the MP3 at Artist Direct.
Sam Phillips, "Reflecting Light" (from the album A Boot and A Shoe)
This...is...this...
Her voice reminds me of Jane Siberry's voice in Jane's song "Miss Punta Blanca"--her delivery also brings to my mind K.D. Lang or Michelle Shocked. The song is timeless...like a Billie Holiday song that got left behind and only recently caught up to us. More so, it's reminiscent of the quintessential female country singers of the sixties...Loretta Lynne and Patsy Cline. Definitely a bit of Patsy Cline in the song.
But there I go comparing again. I'm sure Ms. Phillips would like me to talk about what the song sounds like, not who. Her timeless, lilting voice rushes along as if it were a current--breaking and eddying, rising, but dropping right before it goes over an edge. Her vocal carries with it a simple guitar part, an undercurrent of piano and a violin that sneaks in, unassumingly lifting the song beyond any threat of simplicity.
Sam Phillips' Myspace and Website (this song and others are available at her site). She sings on Gilmore Girls, too. Sadly, she says she doesn't know how that whole Luke and Lorelei thing will turn out.
Milosh, "Couldn't Sleep" (from the album Meme)
This song reminds me of the beach in Montauk in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It seems timeless, placeless, like it might be part of someone's imagination. Yet I recognize it for what it is, and I don't question it for a second. It unlocks something in my brain and makes me want to start walking with no clear intention of stopping.
It's labeled as trip-hop, but I'd say if it's trip-hop, it's trip-hop for people who like Michel Gondry movies.
Milosh's Label Site and Myspace
Retro Song:
Cibo Matto, "Sci Fi Wasabi"
Okay, this song doesn't mix at all with the other songs, but I've been holding it for a rainy day when I needed a fifth song :) I found this copy on this site--I was looking for information on Mito Hatori, who I posted about a few weeks ago. I have the actual CD with this song somewhere, but who knows if it still plays. I loved Cibo Matto back in the day (ten years ago or so), but Viva, Woman! was my album. I loved that damn thing.
Cibo Matto, unfortunately, are not a unit any more but the two main members are still very musicially active. There is an outdated Cibo Matto page, but you'll do better going to the individual members' websites.
Yuka Honda's Website and Myspace
Miho Hatori's Website and Myspace
I don't know much about the two guys in the back, stage left, but the guy on the right is Sean Lennon. He has a new album out and Yuka Honda is supporting him on tour.
Podcast either tonight or tomorrow!
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Five Songs I'm Loving This Week
It's been another rough week (my MP3 player died...thank you for your condolences), so the narrative on this isn't going to be as spiffy, or well thought-out, or coherent as past entries. I apologize to the bands, but I'm just one tired little chicken. I'm also supposed to be writing a review for North Atlantic Explorers, and I will, but I'm so frikkin' tired.
I will be taking a "vacation" from the blog (and podcast) starting the weekend of March 10th and March 25th (with the next entry being on March 25th). I will be taking an actual vacation for half of that, though I doubt I'll be going anywhere. I will be resting and hopefully having fun.
I will be posting next Sunday (Feb. 25th) and March 4th. There will not being blog posts or podcasts after that until March 25th. The total non-musical Lola time will be three weeks. I'm tired, y'all. I'm getting a tad bit burnt out, so it'll be good.
Kamikaze Hearts, "Top Of Your Head" (from the album Oneida Road)
This would be a good song to play on the way to Dragon*Con. Only because he says "40 miles 'till Atlanta". I could play it right as we hit 40 miles to Atlanta. It would take a lot of planning on my part, though, and I'm not sure that particular spot is marked by a sign. I suppose it could just be ceremonial--even if it's 50 miles, the thought will be there.
Anyways, this is a very nice, very relaxed Alt-Country song about (I suppose) a road trip, and someone's head sticking out from underneath some blankets. They're talking in the car about the good things they'll have in the end. I basically just gave away the plot of the song. Don't hate me! I love the spaciousness of his voice--it sounds like they're recording on the open road, or maybe just a very open recording space.
Gotta love the name of the band, too--Kamikaze Hearts. We're all on a love suicide mission ;)
The boys getting perty. Kamikaze Hearts' Website and Myspace. The MP3 can be found here, on their website.
Breaking Up, "Caring is Creepy"
I loved The Shins' first album. I loved some songs from The Shins' 2nd album. I have yet to hear The Shins' 3rd album, but the few songs I've heard sadly haven't made an impression on me.
This is a cover of a Shins song from their first album that did make an impression on me, and continues to impress me, even years later. This version is from The Bluegrass Tribute to The Shins, and it is Bluegrass--gloriously and honestly so.
**Special note, Googling a Shins song and the phrase "breaking up" gets you lots of hits having nothing to do with this cover version.
A Bluegrass Tribute To The Shins
Here's the write-up on the tribute album from the label that released it. I can't find crap on the band--not even a Myspace page. Unless they're main musical genre is ambient.
Husband and Wife, "Battlecab Dramatica" (Live from WIUX)
Of course it's not hard to figure out what first guided me towards this song. Uh, a little similarity in name to a certain Scifi show?
The show could be about Battlestar Galactica...the singers asserts he's tired of running, though in BSG I don't think they have to necessarily change their address every time they jump. They've probably had to change their address twice--once when the colonies were first attacked and they ran, then again when they had to desert New Caprica. Let's just hope their Galactical Mail Service (GMS) is up to snuff and gets their stuff to them in a timely fashion.
Unless the GMS is run by Cylons...
Anyways, regardless of any BSG reminders, this is a very lovely, haunting song. I really like the way the melody goes when he says "Stephen, I'm sorry". (Is there anyone on BSG named Stephen? Is there a Stephen Adama?)
Hey--according to their Myspace, they tour with Anathallo, a band I adore. Coincidence, huh? Husband and Wife's Website and another site, Musical Family Tree. "Battlecab Dramatica" originally appeared on a 2005 split EP with another band, Away With Vega.
James Eric, "Sexy Back"
Because covering a Justin Timberlake song is always funny.
"Dick In A Box", anyone?
This isn't James Eric's only cover, he's got several to listen to in an embedded player on his Myspace. I found this song on Liza's blog, Copy, Right? The reviews on the Myspace site give the singer/composer's name as James Laczkowski; Eric is probably a stage name. I've heard way more unusual names than Laczkowski. 20 years on and I still can't pronounce Johnette Napolitano's (Concrete Blonde) name. Well, I can say it, but I always trip up on it. I can never spell it--I had to look up her name just now and copy/paste. Anyways, James Eric has a ton of songs available on his website.
James works hard to let his vulnerability show.
Retro: Modest Mouse "Trailor Trash" (from The Lonesome Crowded West)
Modest Mouse have become fairly famous. Well, famous among people who listen to the music I listen to. This song is from ten years ago, though, and was released on an independent label called "Up Records". (Please e-mail me if you have the rights to this song and want it down--yes, I am paranoid).
Anyways, it's an awesome song and gives you an idea of what Modest Mouse were like before they struck it in the big time.
Modest Mouse's Website, Myspace and Wiki article.
It's been another rough week (my MP3 player died...thank you for your condolences), so the narrative on this isn't going to be as spiffy, or well thought-out, or coherent as past entries. I apologize to the bands, but I'm just one tired little chicken. I'm also supposed to be writing a review for North Atlantic Explorers, and I will, but I'm so frikkin' tired.
I will be taking a "vacation" from the blog (and podcast) starting the weekend of March 10th and March 25th (with the next entry being on March 25th). I will be taking an actual vacation for half of that, though I doubt I'll be going anywhere. I will be resting and hopefully having fun.
I will be posting next Sunday (Feb. 25th) and March 4th. There will not being blog posts or podcasts after that until March 25th. The total non-musical Lola time will be three weeks. I'm tired, y'all. I'm getting a tad bit burnt out, so it'll be good.
Kamikaze Hearts, "Top Of Your Head" (from the album Oneida Road)
This would be a good song to play on the way to Dragon*Con. Only because he says "40 miles 'till Atlanta". I could play it right as we hit 40 miles to Atlanta. It would take a lot of planning on my part, though, and I'm not sure that particular spot is marked by a sign. I suppose it could just be ceremonial--even if it's 50 miles, the thought will be there.
Anyways, this is a very nice, very relaxed Alt-Country song about (I suppose) a road trip, and someone's head sticking out from underneath some blankets. They're talking in the car about the good things they'll have in the end. I basically just gave away the plot of the song. Don't hate me! I love the spaciousness of his voice--it sounds like they're recording on the open road, or maybe just a very open recording space.
Gotta love the name of the band, too--Kamikaze Hearts. We're all on a love suicide mission ;)
The boys getting perty. Kamikaze Hearts' Website and Myspace. The MP3 can be found here, on their website.
Breaking Up, "Caring is Creepy"
I loved The Shins' first album. I loved some songs from The Shins' 2nd album. I have yet to hear The Shins' 3rd album, but the few songs I've heard sadly haven't made an impression on me.
This is a cover of a Shins song from their first album that did make an impression on me, and continues to impress me, even years later. This version is from The Bluegrass Tribute to The Shins, and it is Bluegrass--gloriously and honestly so.
**Special note, Googling a Shins song and the phrase "breaking up" gets you lots of hits having nothing to do with this cover version.
A Bluegrass Tribute To The Shins
Here's the write-up on the tribute album from the label that released it. I can't find crap on the band--not even a Myspace page. Unless they're main musical genre is ambient.
Husband and Wife, "Battlecab Dramatica" (Live from WIUX)
Of course it's not hard to figure out what first guided me towards this song. Uh, a little similarity in name to a certain Scifi show?
The show could be about Battlestar Galactica...the singers asserts he's tired of running, though in BSG I don't think they have to necessarily change their address every time they jump. They've probably had to change their address twice--once when the colonies were first attacked and they ran, then again when they had to desert New Caprica. Let's just hope their Galactical Mail Service (GMS) is up to snuff and gets their stuff to them in a timely fashion.
Unless the GMS is run by Cylons...
Anyways, regardless of any BSG reminders, this is a very lovely, haunting song. I really like the way the melody goes when he says "Stephen, I'm sorry". (Is there anyone on BSG named Stephen? Is there a Stephen Adama?)
Hey--according to their Myspace, they tour with Anathallo, a band I adore. Coincidence, huh? Husband and Wife's Website and another site, Musical Family Tree. "Battlecab Dramatica" originally appeared on a 2005 split EP with another band, Away With Vega.
James Eric, "Sexy Back"
Because covering a Justin Timberlake song is always funny.
"Dick In A Box", anyone?
This isn't James Eric's only cover, he's got several to listen to in an embedded player on his Myspace. I found this song on Liza's blog, Copy, Right? The reviews on the Myspace site give the singer/composer's name as James Laczkowski; Eric is probably a stage name. I've heard way more unusual names than Laczkowski. 20 years on and I still can't pronounce Johnette Napolitano's (Concrete Blonde) name. Well, I can say it, but I always trip up on it. I can never spell it--I had to look up her name just now and copy/paste. Anyways, James Eric has a ton of songs available on his website.
James works hard to let his vulnerability show.
Retro: Modest Mouse "Trailor Trash" (from The Lonesome Crowded West)
Modest Mouse have become fairly famous. Well, famous among people who listen to the music I listen to. This song is from ten years ago, though, and was released on an independent label called "Up Records". (Please e-mail me if you have the rights to this song and want it down--yes, I am paranoid).
Anyways, it's an awesome song and gives you an idea of what Modest Mouse were like before they struck it in the big time.
Modest Mouse's Website, Myspace and Wiki article.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Oops! One of my songs from my Five Songs post this past weekend didn't work. I tried to upload it again and it still didn't work.
Here's the link to the page where I got it:
Nostalgia, "Airliner" (Towards the end of the page)
***
Here's the link to the page where I got it:
Nostalgia, "Airliner" (Towards the end of the page)
***
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