Random 5: (Not really random, my iPod is going in alphabetical order.)
Gene Clark-I Really Don't Want to Know: Ever heard a really bad Gene Clark track? I didn't think so. SO if he's covering a killer Loretta Lynn song, it's bound to be good. Gene Clark kills this this sorrowful ballad. Possibly even sadder than the original, due to a slower tempo.
Jason and the Scorchers-I Really Don't Want to Know: Bluesy rockabilly version, complete with harmonica solo. Ginger loves Jason, so I'm digging in. I like him. Some of the stuff is great, some is a little too bluesy/rockabilly. It's a great song, as I said, so it's not too bluesy-boring, but Clark's version is better. There are good breakdowns and dynamics. And it rocks.
T-Rex-I Really Love You Babe: Late-period T-Rex. I love it all. This one has great female back-ups. A good mid-tempo declaration of love. A nice fuzzy solo guitar tone. Glammy and psychadellic as only Marc can do it. A throwaway T-Rex song, but it would be many other band's best song.
Gene Clark-I Remember the Railroad: Not only another Clark song, but off the same album, Roadmaster. I need that vinyl, still. My birthday is coming up... Same mood as the Lynn cover. Slow, contemplative, sorrowful, gentle, beautiful. His smooth croon mirrored ny the pedal steel is a great blend.
Richard Thompson-I Ride in Your Slipstream: One of his moody minor shuffles. Not my favorite of his moods, but a decent tune. Definitely not his best. It's off Mirror Blue, which has one of my favorite songs of all of his, Beeswing. Every time I listen to one of his solo albums, I yearn for it to be all acoustic, finger-picking-traditional folk sounding sad songs. But I'll take what I can get from him, because the good stuff is mind-blowing.
In these 5 songs, none are from this decade, or even the 90s. I have been worried aboutmyself with respect to this trend, lately...
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Thank you Jack White
Just in time for another break-up, Brendan Benson returns with another break-up album. And it's stellar. Not just in the 'Someone Told My Story In a Song' way, but in the non-stop attack of great hooks, melodies, riffs, and Cheap Trick-isms way.
It's a shoe in for my album of the year, and I just listened to the new Wildhearts, so there isn't much left to knock it out. It's got rockers, acoustic ballads and even a Motown nod, complete with huge strings!
The first half of what would be the second side is 3 tracks of insane power pop perfection. 'Poised and Ready', 'Don't Wanna Talk', and 'Miserey', which features a part where he layers "do do do do"s that culminate in a saccharine "yeah" under "hey now", almost as if he just wanted to see if he could make it fit. He could. 'Don't Wanna Talk' has my favorite line: "You're soft to the touch/and hard to believe"
Thank you Brendan, you are getting me through another one! And thank you Jack White for releasing Mr. Benson from The Raconteurs long enough to make such a masterpiece.
Listen for yourself.
Brendan Benson
Credit to the OU.
Just in time for another break-up, Brendan Benson returns with another break-up album. And it's stellar. Not just in the 'Someone Told My Story In a Song' way, but in the non-stop attack of great hooks, melodies, riffs, and Cheap Trick-isms way.
It's a shoe in for my album of the year, and I just listened to the new Wildhearts, so there isn't much left to knock it out. It's got rockers, acoustic ballads and even a Motown nod, complete with huge strings!
The first half of what would be the second side is 3 tracks of insane power pop perfection. 'Poised and Ready', 'Don't Wanna Talk', and 'Miserey', which features a part where he layers "do do do do"s that culminate in a saccharine "yeah" under "hey now", almost as if he just wanted to see if he could make it fit. He could. 'Don't Wanna Talk' has my favorite line: "You're soft to the touch/and hard to believe"
Thank you Brendan, you are getting me through another one! And thank you Jack White for releasing Mr. Benson from The Raconteurs long enough to make such a masterpiece.
Listen for yourself.
Brendan Benson
Credit to the OU.
Here's what I thought about some random songs from my iPod...
Diagnosis - Weakerthans
It's almost dangerous the way he makes self pity sound so smart and well-thought-out. I've seen them 4 times and they never did this one. one of my faves. It's got that 2-part call and response guitar riff that i LOVE.
Terrion - Scanner
scanner sing about a place called terrion. good catchy fantasy metal. fun, like metal should be.
Starting to Come to Me - Elvis
what i've always thought of as a second tier song on one two good albums he released in the last 20 years, was revealed to be as totally awesome. i guess that's what happens when you listen to an elvis song amid lesser stuff (which is almost anything else)
Take Me Away - BöC
sweet riff off Revolution By Night.
Reason - Alligator Gun
I recently digitized this demo tape. it was right before Kucera left the band. they were gettig better and better. this is a great bill song that for some reason left with Kucera.
Symphony in Blue - Kate Bush
she's hit or miss and i'm still trying to wade through her catalog, but this lillting, dreamy melody is definitely a hit
Clowntime is Over - Elvis
the slow version. my preferred version is whichever one i heard last. this is the one off taking liberties, (now on the ryko version of get happy) and i always loved taking liberties all the way through, like an album. a sonically inconsistent yet consistently great album.
Don't Let It Bring You Down - Neil
always relaxing. great song. so warbly, so pretty, so comforting. "burnig castles" can never bring me down when this song is on.
Ash and Sadness - Koester
first version. great song. I'm honored to have co-writing cred for the sweet guitar riff.
Flame of the West - Big Country
more chest-puffing anthems. from their second album which is widely regarded as their best. i'm in that camp too, but the first 3 plus the EP are all equally stunning.
———————————1/22/08———————————
Are You Receiving Me? - XTC
Awesome early single for these quirk popsters. Great driving hook in the chorus punctuated by lofty floating breakdowns of verses. the video is equally fun and exciting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RApvaQ0uGTw
Sunny Side of My Life - Merle Haggard
A deep cut off Mama Tried. We all know how good the title track is and the record doesn't ever dip too far below that bar. Lots of good acoustic leads and fills typical of what was bubbling up in his sound at this middle/late-early period Hag.
Mexican Blood - Thin Lizzy
Post "Golden Era" Thin Lizzy is still damn fine R&R. This one has some marimba in it for the ethnic accent, so you know he's singing about a Mexican Girl. It's a sad trubador tale and a moving tragedy in Phil's earnest delivery. Wistful in the way Renegade is and almost as good.
Take the Long Way 'Round - Teenage Fanclub
GLR session version from the B-side from Start Again. It doesn't have the little Pac-Man Noise in it, but they hit the great vocal break down. One of the gems i got when i bought a box lot of every single from Grand Prix and Songs From Northern Britain. It was pricey, but I used money I won at blackjack on my parent's anniversary cruise. Know when to walk away.
Shake Me Baby - Junior Senior
Wow, this is a good song. These guys are kind of a dance band, but this song is a pretty straight up pop song (verse/chorus/midle 8th). Jangley guitars. great vocal melody. Inane lovey lyric–which I am more than cool with. They are Swedish, so it's better than I could write in Swedish! I need to listen to this album more . . .
Diagnosis - Weakerthans
It's almost dangerous the way he makes self pity sound so smart and well-thought-out. I've seen them 4 times and they never did this one. one of my faves. It's got that 2-part call and response guitar riff that i LOVE.
Terrion - Scanner
scanner sing about a place called terrion. good catchy fantasy metal. fun, like metal should be.
Starting to Come to Me - Elvis
what i've always thought of as a second tier song on one two good albums he released in the last 20 years, was revealed to be as totally awesome. i guess that's what happens when you listen to an elvis song amid lesser stuff (which is almost anything else)
Take Me Away - BöC
sweet riff off Revolution By Night.
Reason - Alligator Gun
I recently digitized this demo tape. it was right before Kucera left the band. they were gettig better and better. this is a great bill song that for some reason left with Kucera.
Symphony in Blue - Kate Bush
she's hit or miss and i'm still trying to wade through her catalog, but this lillting, dreamy melody is definitely a hit
Clowntime is Over - Elvis
the slow version. my preferred version is whichever one i heard last. this is the one off taking liberties, (now on the ryko version of get happy) and i always loved taking liberties all the way through, like an album. a sonically inconsistent yet consistently great album.
Don't Let It Bring You Down - Neil
always relaxing. great song. so warbly, so pretty, so comforting. "burnig castles" can never bring me down when this song is on.
Ash and Sadness - Koester
first version. great song. I'm honored to have co-writing cred for the sweet guitar riff.
Flame of the West - Big Country
more chest-puffing anthems. from their second album which is widely regarded as their best. i'm in that camp too, but the first 3 plus the EP are all equally stunning.
———————————1/22/08———————————
Are You Receiving Me? - XTC
Awesome early single for these quirk popsters. Great driving hook in the chorus punctuated by lofty floating breakdowns of verses. the video is equally fun and exciting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RApvaQ0uGTw
Sunny Side of My Life - Merle Haggard
A deep cut off Mama Tried. We all know how good the title track is and the record doesn't ever dip too far below that bar. Lots of good acoustic leads and fills typical of what was bubbling up in his sound at this middle/late-early period Hag.
Mexican Blood - Thin Lizzy
Post "Golden Era" Thin Lizzy is still damn fine R&R. This one has some marimba in it for the ethnic accent, so you know he's singing about a Mexican Girl. It's a sad trubador tale and a moving tragedy in Phil's earnest delivery. Wistful in the way Renegade is and almost as good.
Take the Long Way 'Round - Teenage Fanclub
GLR session version from the B-side from Start Again. It doesn't have the little Pac-Man Noise in it, but they hit the great vocal break down. One of the gems i got when i bought a box lot of every single from Grand Prix and Songs From Northern Britain. It was pricey, but I used money I won at blackjack on my parent's anniversary cruise. Know when to walk away.
Shake Me Baby - Junior Senior
Wow, this is a good song. These guys are kind of a dance band, but this song is a pretty straight up pop song (verse/chorus/midle 8th). Jangley guitars. great vocal melody. Inane lovey lyric–which I am more than cool with. They are Swedish, so it's better than I could write in Swedish! I need to listen to this album more . . .
Saturday, July 26, 2008
I just saw my favorite NYC band last night. It was at Lit Lounge, so it seemed like there were lots of people there. I'm always in front, so every show I see seems pretty full.
Anyways, the point is they were awesome. It was everything I want to hear at a show. Driving beats, dynamic arrangements, melodic, clanging guitars, busy bass lines and a singer with an impeccable melodic sense. They even did some guitarmonies. It was so satisfying. It was guiltily 90s sounding and I loved it. Best show I've seen all year*. I swayed and smiled the whole time.
Check Golden City out:
http://www.myspace.com/therealgoldencity
Then you can see me at their next show.
Maybe I've been watching too many Monk episodes, but as I watched the show, I actually concocted a plan of killing Jim and every other second guitar player who joined Golden City. That way, when nobody else would join, I could step up and be in the band. But then Monk would catch me and it would be all over, so I opted against that plan. Just kidding Jim ;)
* Including the Ginger shows, but excluding some moments from those shows and excluding the WiLDHEARTS show I will see in Sept.
Anyways, the point is they were awesome. It was everything I want to hear at a show. Driving beats, dynamic arrangements, melodic, clanging guitars, busy bass lines and a singer with an impeccable melodic sense. They even did some guitarmonies. It was so satisfying. It was guiltily 90s sounding and I loved it. Best show I've seen all year*. I swayed and smiled the whole time.
Check Golden City out:
http://www.myspace.com/therealgoldencity
Then you can see me at their next show.
Maybe I've been watching too many Monk episodes, but as I watched the show, I actually concocted a plan of killing Jim and every other second guitar player who joined Golden City. That way, when nobody else would join, I could step up and be in the band. But then Monk would catch me and it would be all over, so I opted against that plan. Just kidding Jim ;)
* Including the Ginger shows, but excluding some moments from those shows and excluding the WiLDHEARTS show I will see in Sept.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
50,000, 000 Elvis Fans Can Be Wrong.Elvis Presley had a greatest hits collection called 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong. There is a prevailing attitude that sales and popularity are unquestionable, inalienable and incontestable factors to the merit of a particular act. I say, no way. I say that at least for some of those outside the 50,000,000, 50, 000, 000 Elvis Fans CAN be Wrong.
Now, I have often been accused of championing the underdog or runner-up, simply for the pleasure of being contrarian. Pretentious? Contentious? Mais NON! I earnestly cling to the belief that I am true to my own muse when it comes to the music i like. I try not to let trendiness and popular or critical opinion filter my assessment in any way. I think this sometimes leads to unpopular opinions, but I also hold many popular opinions Of these popular opinions, I find that they are a mix of hip and square, alike. I know I come off as a snob and it's tempting to lump me in with the know-it-alls and the indier-than-thou types. I also know that sometimes I may judge an uber-popular band more harshly than an unpopular band. I still feel like I follow my bliss more than anything else when forming an opinion on some song or band.
So, I feel that if you, dear reader, are reading my blog, you should bear in mind that I believe 50, 000, 000 Elvis Fans CAN Be Wrong. If you are prompted to reply to something I write that strikes you as incendiary, and i encourage you to do so, please leave out the but-they-have-so-many-fans logic. It is not tendered here.
Why am I doing this?
My most coveted of potential rewards from rock stardom was never the girls. It was always the power to pontificate about music and have it be considered, nay accepted, by all of my fans. Like when The Minutemen told me to listen to Blue Öyster Cult, and I did, or when Teenage Fanclub introduced me to Gene Clark and we clicked. So with my dreams of rock stardom behind me, I step into the blogosphere with much lower expectations of followship, but at least with the platform to pontificate.
I often burden my friends with my musical musings. Many of them tell me I should rock critic, because I talk about it so much. To this I always say that I hate most rock criticism. It always sounds so self conscious or self righteous, that I can't bear to read it. Music is an extremely personal experience, so people criticizing it always find themselves on a slippery slope. I believe there are no absolutes in music. Only personal preference. So, for eveything I write on this site, the phrase "In my opinion" must be assumed. I will try not to be self conscious or self righteous and keep it all on a personal level, so that I am telling people not that I am right, but that this is how I feel.
My most coveted of potential rewards from rock stardom was never the girls. It was always the power to pontificate about music and have it be considered, nay accepted, by all of my fans. Like when The Minutemen told me to listen to Blue Öyster Cult, and I did, or when Teenage Fanclub introduced me to Gene Clark and we clicked. So with my dreams of rock stardom behind me, I step into the blogosphere with much lower expectations of followship, but at least with the platform to pontificate.
I often burden my friends with my musical musings. Many of them tell me I should rock critic, because I talk about it so much. To this I always say that I hate most rock criticism. It always sounds so self conscious or self righteous, that I can't bear to read it. Music is an extremely personal experience, so people criticizing it always find themselves on a slippery slope. I believe there are no absolutes in music. Only personal preference. So, for eveything I write on this site, the phrase "In my opinion" must be assumed. I will try not to be self conscious or self righteous and keep it all on a personal level, so that I am telling people not that I am right, but that this is how I feel.
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