Article here.
They give it a 6.5/10. My sense is that the reviewer paid more attention to the idea of Portugal. The Man "selling out" with this record than I did. Not that I know enough about their previous releases to make that judgment , but I do think I gave greater consideration to the music itself than Eric Harvey did.
Regardless, the experience of reading a Pitchfork review of an album I had just covered was rewarding. Nothing wrong with being the early edition.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Album Review: Portugal. The Man - The Satanic Satanist
Some bands tend to make recordings that invite introspection or self-consciousness. Listening to Pink Floyd's "Time," for example, is like hearing your brain's gears at work. Other bands create music that you want to hear while moving through the world. Portugal. The Man's The Satanic Satanist is a collection of this latter type of music. And it swings like it could be the indie rock fan's soundtrack to the summer.
The sound on Satanist is dark and bluesy, with electric rhythm guitar up front in the mix that's often accompanied by keyboard. Lead singer John Baldwin Gourney is magnetic at times, though I have to add that his voice is almost a dead ringer for Adam Levine's of Maroon 5. But the sound is only part of the feel. These melodies that the band has summoned are entirely fresh and invigorating. On "The Sun," the backing vocals paint a lush picture in broad swaths with the line "We are all, we are all just lovers." "The Woods" is a soulful, beat-driven groove with some great lyrical repetition throughout. And the closer, "Mornings," features breathtaking lead guitar riffery alternating with Gourney's most intense vocal performance on the album. The song rolls thundering to the finish line with lyrics like "The sunrise that builds into days & even more days/And as it rolls burning burning up like the trails of the comets pulled tails."
Portugal. The Man seem to have come upon a particular moment in their creative journey at which they've achieved the cinematic touch. They are in a place where they can make records that move us and compel us to move. Fittingly, only one or two songs on The Satanic Satanist don't flow without pause into the next track. It's as if Portugal. The Man are aware of their grasp of the kinetic capacity of music, and they don't dare let go.
The only hesitation I have as I listen to this album concerns track 1, "People Say." In one sense, it's a fun song with a tight and catchy chord progression. However, if I were forced to draw a comparison to other music, I'd call "People Say" the awkward child of an Oasis-O.A.R. marriage. And that's the post-Morning Glory Oasis. Putting the most accessible song in the first slot of your album isn't a bad choice in most instances. But here Portugal. The Man almost patronize their first-time listeners, rather than intrigue them. Big picture: this is merely a misstep in an otherwise spectacular collection.
So the force is with Portugal. The Man, yes. Not having heard much from the band's prior releases, I can't say where this album sits on the group's trajectory. But they do have a show coming up at the Mercury Lounge in August that I will certainly try to get out for. And after hearing Satanist on repeat for the past two days, I think it's safe to say that the band has hit one on the sweet spot.
You can hear the entire album at Lala: http://www.lala.com/#album/360569445921457774
And if you like it as much as I do, order the CD. It comes in some trippy fold-out packaging.
The sound on Satanist is dark and bluesy, with electric rhythm guitar up front in the mix that's often accompanied by keyboard. Lead singer John Baldwin Gourney is magnetic at times, though I have to add that his voice is almost a dead ringer for Adam Levine's of Maroon 5. But the sound is only part of the feel. These melodies that the band has summoned are entirely fresh and invigorating. On "The Sun," the backing vocals paint a lush picture in broad swaths with the line "We are all, we are all just lovers." "The Woods" is a soulful, beat-driven groove with some great lyrical repetition throughout. And the closer, "Mornings," features breathtaking lead guitar riffery alternating with Gourney's most intense vocal performance on the album. The song rolls thundering to the finish line with lyrics like "The sunrise that builds into days & even more days/And as it rolls burning burning up like the trails of the comets pulled tails."
Portugal. The Man seem to have come upon a particular moment in their creative journey at which they've achieved the cinematic touch. They are in a place where they can make records that move us and compel us to move. Fittingly, only one or two songs on The Satanic Satanist don't flow without pause into the next track. It's as if Portugal. The Man are aware of their grasp of the kinetic capacity of music, and they don't dare let go.
The only hesitation I have as I listen to this album concerns track 1, "People Say." In one sense, it's a fun song with a tight and catchy chord progression. However, if I were forced to draw a comparison to other music, I'd call "People Say" the awkward child of an Oasis-O.A.R. marriage. And that's the post-Morning Glory Oasis. Putting the most accessible song in the first slot of your album isn't a bad choice in most instances. But here Portugal. The Man almost patronize their first-time listeners, rather than intrigue them. Big picture: this is merely a misstep in an otherwise spectacular collection.
So the force is with Portugal. The Man, yes. Not having heard much from the band's prior releases, I can't say where this album sits on the group's trajectory. But they do have a show coming up at the Mercury Lounge in August that I will certainly try to get out for. And after hearing Satanist on repeat for the past two days, I think it's safe to say that the band has hit one on the sweet spot.
You can hear the entire album at Lala: http://www.lala.com/#album/360569445921457774
And if you like it as much as I do, order the CD. It comes in some trippy fold-out packaging.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Song of the Day: Nick Drake - "Hazy Jane II"
I was first drawn to Nick Drake by the song "One of These Things First," which played from my father's iPod on a backroads drive one day. It was perfect for the occasion - delicate yet rambling. When I looked up the song later that day on Lala, it sounded just as good as in the car. That's my test for any song I discover while driving - does the song feel the same when I'm standing still?
But I'm going to recommend "Hazy Jane II" first. It's just a better song; it feels to me like a folkier version of Sprinsteen's "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)". Right now I'm listening to the entire Bryter Layter album for the first time, and it's a truly exciting listen. You can here "Hazy Jane II" and the rest of the album here. (You'll have to do a quick register on Lala if you haven't already. Do it, it's a great site and it's free.)
But I'm going to recommend "Hazy Jane II" first. It's just a better song; it feels to me like a folkier version of Sprinsteen's "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)". Right now I'm listening to the entire Bryter Layter album for the first time, and it's a truly exciting listen. You can here "Hazy Jane II" and the rest of the album here. (You'll have to do a quick register on Lala if you haven't already. Do it, it's a great site and it's free.)
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Classic Rock on FM Radio - What It Is, and What It Isn't
"Classic rock was originally conceived as a radio station programming format which evolved from the album oriented rock (AOR) format in the early-1980's." - Wikipedia
Classic rock is not a synonym for rock and roll from the '60s and '70s (and '80s?); instead, it's a mere term coined by radio program directors as a marketing tool. From what I can tell, the narrative went something like this: In the 1980's, as new rock releases strayed from that "classic" sound (see punk and New Wave), separate radio programs were needed to cater to fans of the older sound. In that moment, our imagination of what rock and roll meant became forever blurred.
As the influx of new music for these classic rock shows slowed to a halt in the '80s and '90s, playlists were slimmed down drastically. There are other reasons for this, too, namely the Telecommunications Act of 1996 which killed small broadcast companies and freeform radio. Regardless of cause, today's classic rock stations are by and large grossly inaccurate representations of rock and roll. Shadows of their former selves. Historical portrayals no closer to the mark than 6th-grade Social Studies textbooks.
Let's take a gander, shall we, at the last ten songs played on the classic rock station I grew up with: 95.9 The Fox, "Fairfield County's Only (damn!) Classic Rock Station"...
Now, here are some songs you will never hear on 95.9 The Fox or your local classic rock station:
So, the bad news is, if satellite radio doesn't catch on in the long run then most of our descendants will live harboring the illusion that rock history can be summed up in 500 songs or less. The good news is, digital music lasts forever and the good stuff will be waiting patiently in hard drives and servers for our childrens' children to discover and cherish.
By the way, the Wikipedia entry on "Classic Rock" is a recommended read: Classic Rock
Classic rock is not a synonym for rock and roll from the '60s and '70s (and '80s?); instead, it's a mere term coined by radio program directors as a marketing tool. From what I can tell, the narrative went something like this: In the 1980's, as new rock releases strayed from that "classic" sound (see punk and New Wave), separate radio programs were needed to cater to fans of the older sound. In that moment, our imagination of what rock and roll meant became forever blurred.
As the influx of new music for these classic rock shows slowed to a halt in the '80s and '90s, playlists were slimmed down drastically. There are other reasons for this, too, namely the Telecommunications Act of 1996 which killed small broadcast companies and freeform radio. Regardless of cause, today's classic rock stations are by and large grossly inaccurate representations of rock and roll. Shadows of their former selves. Historical portrayals no closer to the mark than 6th-grade Social Studies textbooks.
Let's take a gander, shall we, at the last ten songs played on the classic rock station I grew up with: 95.9 The Fox, "Fairfield County's Only (damn!) Classic Rock Station"...
- The Who "Who Are You" - gets enough airplay already as the theme song to CSI
- Jimi Hendrix "All Along The Watchtower" - gee, you hear this one all the time, but when was the last time they played Dylan's original recording?
- Led Zeppelin "Over the Hills and Far Away" - great song, overplayed
- Billy Joel "Only The Good Die Young" - why don't they ever play "Summer, Highland Falls"?
- Bryan Adams "Run To You" - ah, yes, Bryan Adams, he's got that classic rock sound. I've never actually heard of someone owning a Bryan Adams album.
- Robert Palmer "Bad Case of Loving You" - great song. Not gonna argue this one
- The Doobie Brothers "Black Water" - great song, overplayed
- Bon Jovi "You Give Love a Bad Name" - I feel like these hair band songs are thrown in to draw the slightly less-ancient crowd. Classic for who?
- The Allman Brothers Band "Melissa" - great song, overplayed. And they had so many gems you just don't hear anymore.
- Queen "We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions" - at the tiny but crazy-profitable intersection of music and sports
Now, here are some songs you will never hear on 95.9 The Fox or your local classic rock station:
- Neil Young "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere"
- The Rolling Stones "Loving Cup"
- Bob Dylan "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue"
- Elton John "Amoreena"
- George Harrison "Beware of Darkness"
- Rod Stewart "Every Picture Tells A Story"
- Traffic "Dear Mr. Fantasy"
- U2 "Bullet The Blue Sky"
- The Who "My Wife"
- Anything off Joni Mitchell's Court and Spark
So, the bad news is, if satellite radio doesn't catch on in the long run then most of our descendants will live harboring the illusion that rock history can be summed up in 500 songs or less. The good news is, digital music lasts forever and the good stuff will be waiting patiently in hard drives and servers for our childrens' children to discover and cherish.
By the way, the Wikipedia entry on "Classic Rock" is a recommended read: Classic Rock
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Song of the Day: Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - "The Tears Of A Clown"
I was listening to Marvin Gaye Radio on my Last.fm app, wondering if any Motown song could ever top "Heard It Through The Grapevine," when this song came on. Now, I had heard "The Tears of a Clown" many times as a little kid riding in the back seat of Mom's minivan. Mom liked to listen to golden oldies on KOOL 96.7 (now defunct). The nostalgia I felt as I listened once more was overwhelming. And this, I thought, was one of the most compelling powers of music.
There really isn't a better sound than classic soul with a great melody, as on "The Tears of a Clown" (though in my mind, there's still no better soul record than "Heard It Through The Grapevine"). You should give it a listen here.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Review: iPhone Radio Apps - Sirius XM vs. Last.fm
Last week I decided to download the free 7-day trial of Sirius XM Radio on my iPhone. Since I'm already a subscriber (with a radio in my car), I am eligible for a $3/month upgrade to the iPhone app. $36 a year for my favorite channels like Deep Tracks, The Spectrum, and The Loft seemed like a good deal.
The trial period now ended, I've decided there's no reason at all to upgrade. Not when the Last.fm app is so well-executed and so, well, free! Riding the train out of Manhattan yesterday - my trial period over - I actually felt relieved that I could fire up Last.fm again without feeling like I was wasting precious time. Listening to the custom artist station "Sun Kil Moon Radio," the only thing I missed about Sirius XM was the DJ's voice and the vague sense that I was participating in some experience with other people. That's not worth $3 a month to me.
Here's where the Last.fm app trumps the Sirius XM app:
The trial period now ended, I've decided there's no reason at all to upgrade. Not when the Last.fm app is so well-executed and so, well, free! Riding the train out of Manhattan yesterday - my trial period over - I actually felt relieved that I could fire up Last.fm again without feeling like I was wasting precious time. Listening to the custom artist station "Sun Kil Moon Radio," the only thing I missed about Sirius XM was the DJ's voice and the vague sense that I was participating in some experience with other people. That's not worth $3 a month to me.
Here's where the Last.fm app trumps the Sirius XM app:
- Better station selection - in fact, infinite station selection. You can create a station with a playlist of artists similar to any act you select (i.e. "Sun Kil Moon Radio")
- Better artist info - when a song by some obscure indie band comes on, you can actually read their Wikipedia-style bio and get a sense of their career
- Price, obviously
Song of the Day: JJ Grey & Mofro - "The Devil You Know"
If you've ever listened to JJ Grey & Mofro, then you don't need me to tell you this: Grey hails from the Florida Everglades. Listening to "The Devil You Know" and the rest of Orange Blossoms, an immediate awareness of the heat and the swamp sweats through to your ears. The sound resembles Creedence at times, though Creedence never had a horn section.
Check it out: JJ Grey & Mofro - "The Devil You Know"
Check it out: JJ Grey & Mofro - "The Devil You Know"
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Review: Best Music Discovery Website
For folks with highly evolved music discovery habits, the Internet has become the resource for finding new songs or albums to add to the library. Radio and word-of-mouth have always been there, but some of the best music websites offer greater personalization and customization than radio could ever offer (even satellite). And while hearing about a great new (or old) track from a buddy is always fun, how often over the course of your week do you get that chance? The Web is always on.
So I've decided to write up my thoughts on a number of music discovery sites. I only chose sites that I've had plenty of experience with. Also, I only chose sites that offer full-length listens for free. Let's be honest - free listens are what we all crave in our quest for new music. The list was thus narrowed down to 6 sites: Last.fm, Pandora, YouTube, MySpace, Lala, and Imeem. Then I judged the sites based on features I look for when I'm scouring the Web for music - features like comprehensiveness of the library, ease of use, number of free listens allowed, and speed/quality of streaming. The results, from worst to first, are as follows:
6th Place: Pandora
This is a little unfair, because Pandora is conceived by its designers as an Internet radio site rather than an on-demand streaming site. As a result, you cannot simply search for that song you just heard in your car and listen to it. Instead, you create a custom station based on the sound of a specific artist or song.
Regardless, I feel justified in reviewing Pandora here because it's an extremely popular site (and one of the most popular iPhone apps). My thoughts are as follows: Pandora has a deep library that covers both major label and indie catalogs. It's an easy and fun site to use. The inability to skip songs an unlimited number of times when you'd rather hear something else is disheartening, and probably the main reason I rarely go to Pandora anymore. The streaming program is especially robust, however, and pauses in the music are very rare (depending on your Internet connection, of course). So - if you're looking for a customized radio that you're willing to let play without much input, then Pandora may be the solution. But if you really need to find that song you just heard, or even if you're just surfing for something new, there are better options.
5th Place: MySpace
Facebook's scatterbrained nemesis happens to be a decent music discovery engine as well. Unfortunately, a few details are holding it back. On the positive side, basically every artist has a profile on MySpace, with at least a handful of songs available for streaming. In general, you can listen to those songs an unlimited number of times. If you're lucky, the artist you searched has an entire library uploaded to the profile.
However, those artist pages are often lacking the precise song you want. It depends: if the song is a new single, most likely you'll find it. But I've often had issues finding even year-old songs on MySpace. The library is, in a word, inconsistent. Also, the programming is pretty weak. Lots of songs have choppy playback. You need quite a strong Web connection to enjoy MySpace. And the pages hardly have a standard format; often, you'll have to scroll through other media (video, photos) before you find the music player. All in all, MySpace is a hassle.
4th Place: YouTube
Oh, YouTube, how you have changed our lives...and pissed off content owners. YouTube probably has the best streaming speed of any music site, as well as an easy interface that we're all used to. It offers unlimited listens to all its content. And its user-uploaded library is pretty complete, too.
But that library is in peril due to many record labels' actions to have their content removed. I'm not going to take a side on that issue at the moment - besides, that would be another post altogether. Suffice it to say that last week when I tried to embed a YouTube video of Van Morrison in The Last Waltz on to Hot Riffs, I found not a single audio or video track available. The video had been removed. This doesn't bode well for YouTube's future as a viable music discovery site.
Listen, if you can find it on YouTube, great. But if you need a one-stop shop for music streaming, read on.
3rd Place: Last.fm
Last.fm, built and operated in Britain, is my favorite website. Bar none. The concept of Last.fm is so elegant: offer a tiny software download that records every song listened to in iTunes or on an iPod to an online database, automatically create a profile for the user based on what they listen to, and recommend new music to the user based on their taste and the tastes of similar site users. I have found countless new (to me) acts through Last.fm. It may well be the best use of cloud computing I've seen (aside from Google).
So why do I give it a 3rd place finish? For one, only certain tracks are available in full-length streams, and even those tracks can be listened to for only three plays before you get the 30-second sample instead. Even if that's all the plays you'll ever need, there's the issue of streaming speed: often my solid Internet connection isn't enough to handle an entire Last.fm song without a skip.
A final point: Last.fm also offers a customizable radio that blows Pandora out of the water. You can skip through songs an unlimited number of times, and the selections are based on users' listening habits instead of the judgments of Pandora employees (Google the Music Genome Project for a further explanation of what goes on behind the scenes at Pandora).
2nd Place: Imeem
High-speed streaming, deep and eclectic user-generated library, unlimited full-length plays, easy interface: Imeem is a wonderful tool. I recommend it to anyone who needs to find that one song now: search the database and most likely your song is there. You can even make playlists of your own using songs that are already on the site, although after a time some of those songs will become the dreaded 30-second samples.
Imeem doesn't have every song, but it does have most. I get the sense that the labels are having a tricky time with Imeem, as they are simultaneously supporting the site financially and issuing takedown notices for some songs. As with YouTube, this isn't a good sign. But for now, Imeem remains a great resource for full-length tracks.
1st Place: Lala
Have you heard of Lala? My guess is that out of the six sites I've reviewed here, Lala is the least popular. But by my standards, it's also the best. If you visit lala.com, you will instantly appreciate the clear and attractive layout. If you search for a few songs, you will soon realize that its database contains virtually everything you need - both major label and independent. And the streaming code is robust. You can watch as the playback bar chases the data-loaded bar while the song is playing; the data bar almost always stays a distance ahead of playback.
Lala also offers a great option for the serious Web music voyager: for an average of 80 cents per album, you can buy an unlimited stream of an entire album. The songs will go into your "Music Collection" on Lala, and will be playable from any browser thereafter. I use this feature all the time, and for about $10 total I have accumulated some great music over the past few months that I simply needed to hear several times before I bought the CD or downloaded the iTunes track.
All in all, Lala is the best one-stop solution for discovering and hearing music that's new to you. However, I have to be honest: I continue to make use of all these sites in my quest for online music. I recommend that you get yourself a free account at a number of these sites if you're going to be hunting for music on the Web in the future. As always, enjoy the music!
So I've decided to write up my thoughts on a number of music discovery sites. I only chose sites that I've had plenty of experience with. Also, I only chose sites that offer full-length listens for free. Let's be honest - free listens are what we all crave in our quest for new music. The list was thus narrowed down to 6 sites: Last.fm, Pandora, YouTube, MySpace, Lala, and Imeem. Then I judged the sites based on features I look for when I'm scouring the Web for music - features like comprehensiveness of the library, ease of use, number of free listens allowed, and speed/quality of streaming. The results, from worst to first, are as follows:
6th Place: Pandora
This is a little unfair, because Pandora is conceived by its designers as an Internet radio site rather than an on-demand streaming site. As a result, you cannot simply search for that song you just heard in your car and listen to it. Instead, you create a custom station based on the sound of a specific artist or song.
Regardless, I feel justified in reviewing Pandora here because it's an extremely popular site (and one of the most popular iPhone apps). My thoughts are as follows: Pandora has a deep library that covers both major label and indie catalogs. It's an easy and fun site to use. The inability to skip songs an unlimited number of times when you'd rather hear something else is disheartening, and probably the main reason I rarely go to Pandora anymore. The streaming program is especially robust, however, and pauses in the music are very rare (depending on your Internet connection, of course). So - if you're looking for a customized radio that you're willing to let play without much input, then Pandora may be the solution. But if you really need to find that song you just heard, or even if you're just surfing for something new, there are better options.
5th Place: MySpace
Facebook's scatterbrained nemesis happens to be a decent music discovery engine as well. Unfortunately, a few details are holding it back. On the positive side, basically every artist has a profile on MySpace, with at least a handful of songs available for streaming. In general, you can listen to those songs an unlimited number of times. If you're lucky, the artist you searched has an entire library uploaded to the profile.
However, those artist pages are often lacking the precise song you want. It depends: if the song is a new single, most likely you'll find it. But I've often had issues finding even year-old songs on MySpace. The library is, in a word, inconsistent. Also, the programming is pretty weak. Lots of songs have choppy playback. You need quite a strong Web connection to enjoy MySpace. And the pages hardly have a standard format; often, you'll have to scroll through other media (video, photos) before you find the music player. All in all, MySpace is a hassle.
4th Place: YouTube
Oh, YouTube, how you have changed our lives...and pissed off content owners. YouTube probably has the best streaming speed of any music site, as well as an easy interface that we're all used to. It offers unlimited listens to all its content. And its user-uploaded library is pretty complete, too.
But that library is in peril due to many record labels' actions to have their content removed. I'm not going to take a side on that issue at the moment - besides, that would be another post altogether. Suffice it to say that last week when I tried to embed a YouTube video of Van Morrison in The Last Waltz on to Hot Riffs, I found not a single audio or video track available. The video had been removed. This doesn't bode well for YouTube's future as a viable music discovery site.
Listen, if you can find it on YouTube, great. But if you need a one-stop shop for music streaming, read on.
3rd Place: Last.fm
Last.fm, built and operated in Britain, is my favorite website. Bar none. The concept of Last.fm is so elegant: offer a tiny software download that records every song listened to in iTunes or on an iPod to an online database, automatically create a profile for the user based on what they listen to, and recommend new music to the user based on their taste and the tastes of similar site users. I have found countless new (to me) acts through Last.fm. It may well be the best use of cloud computing I've seen (aside from Google).
So why do I give it a 3rd place finish? For one, only certain tracks are available in full-length streams, and even those tracks can be listened to for only three plays before you get the 30-second sample instead. Even if that's all the plays you'll ever need, there's the issue of streaming speed: often my solid Internet connection isn't enough to handle an entire Last.fm song without a skip.
A final point: Last.fm also offers a customizable radio that blows Pandora out of the water. You can skip through songs an unlimited number of times, and the selections are based on users' listening habits instead of the judgments of Pandora employees (Google the Music Genome Project for a further explanation of what goes on behind the scenes at Pandora).
2nd Place: Imeem
High-speed streaming, deep and eclectic user-generated library, unlimited full-length plays, easy interface: Imeem is a wonderful tool. I recommend it to anyone who needs to find that one song now: search the database and most likely your song is there. You can even make playlists of your own using songs that are already on the site, although after a time some of those songs will become the dreaded 30-second samples.
Imeem doesn't have every song, but it does have most. I get the sense that the labels are having a tricky time with Imeem, as they are simultaneously supporting the site financially and issuing takedown notices for some songs. As with YouTube, this isn't a good sign. But for now, Imeem remains a great resource for full-length tracks.
1st Place: Lala
Have you heard of Lala? My guess is that out of the six sites I've reviewed here, Lala is the least popular. But by my standards, it's also the best. If you visit lala.com, you will instantly appreciate the clear and attractive layout. If you search for a few songs, you will soon realize that its database contains virtually everything you need - both major label and independent. And the streaming code is robust. You can watch as the playback bar chases the data-loaded bar while the song is playing; the data bar almost always stays a distance ahead of playback.
Lala also offers a great option for the serious Web music voyager: for an average of 80 cents per album, you can buy an unlimited stream of an entire album. The songs will go into your "Music Collection" on Lala, and will be playable from any browser thereafter. I use this feature all the time, and for about $10 total I have accumulated some great music over the past few months that I simply needed to hear several times before I bought the CD or downloaded the iTunes track.
All in all, Lala is the best one-stop solution for discovering and hearing music that's new to you. However, I have to be honest: I continue to make use of all these sites in my quest for online music. I recommend that you get yourself a free account at a number of these sites if you're going to be hunting for music on the Web in the future. As always, enjoy the music!
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Song of the Day: Grant-Lee Phillips - "Spring Released"
This guy's sound isn't quite rock, nor is it pop. "Spring Released" and the other tracks on Mobilize (2001) exist somewhere in the space between genres, in a place where melody is enough.
Grant-Lee Phillips was never a commercial success, and you won't find his work on terrestrial radio. Heck, you'll have to search long and hard to hear a song of his on satellite radio (in 6 years of XM listening in the car, I've only heard him once or twice). But if you give Mobilize a couple listens, it will wash over you in the same way that a new Radiohead album does.
Yes, I do find Grant-Lee Phillips' music to be satisfying on the same wavelength that OK Computer is satisfying. Forget the claim made by music critics that Phillips is an alt-country musician. Like I said, genres don't really apply to him. Try "Spring Released," you'll see. (By the way, it appears my embedded music widgets are only playing 30-second samples. For this song, I am linking to a full-length stream. Should work better.)
Grant-Lee Phillips - "Spring Released"
Grant-Lee Phillips was never a commercial success, and you won't find his work on terrestrial radio. Heck, you'll have to search long and hard to hear a song of his on satellite radio (in 6 years of XM listening in the car, I've only heard him once or twice). But if you give Mobilize a couple listens, it will wash over you in the same way that a new Radiohead album does.
Yes, I do find Grant-Lee Phillips' music to be satisfying on the same wavelength that OK Computer is satisfying. Forget the claim made by music critics that Phillips is an alt-country musician. Like I said, genres don't really apply to him. Try "Spring Released," you'll see. (By the way, it appears my embedded music widgets are only playing 30-second samples. For this song, I am linking to a full-length stream. Should work better.)
Grant-Lee Phillips - "Spring Released"
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
One Chord
Sometimes that's all it takes for a song to electrify your mind. One chord, summoned ever so delicately by a combination of instruments, and preserved in a recording which now lives on forever in our hard drives so that we can come back to it, again and again, whenever we need to feel that lift.
Scrolling through my iTunes today, I thought about this. If I had to pick out only one moment in all of recorded music - one chord - to call my favorite, which moment would it be?
Well, that's just an impossible question, isn't it? I know I can't answer it. But I did give a lot of thought to the answer, so here are a few of my very favorite chords in all of rock:
Bruce Springsteen - "Darkness on the Edge of Town" - 0:52
I only became a real Bruce fan after hearing this song. His radio hits are great, and those were the only tunes I knew of his for a long time. But when my girlfriend, a longtime Bruce fanatic, played me this song, my appreciation of Bruce shot through the roof. "Darkness" feels like a walk in the night, and the D minor 7th chord that hits on the word "edge" is like a rare Italian sports car that speeds by with a gust of wind. It's unexpected; it leaves you thinking "What was that?" The intrigue in this moment is overwhelming. The chord is really beyond words, but I'll call it magical.
Darkness On The Edge Of Town - Bruce Springsteen
Bob Dylan - "Like A Rolling Stone" - 0:01
The drum is struck once, and then that opening chord: thick, reeling, and all nostalgia. The chord is a cue for us as listeners and as Americans, a switch that goes off in our heads and flips a sepia-toned lens down over our eyes. Immediately engaging yet mysterious in its ability to compel you, this is perhaps the only rock song to deserve the books that have been written about it (see Greil Marcus' work). You know this song already, but it's always a fresh sound when you hear it.
Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan
Elton John - "My Father's Gun" - 2:12
There is a rather subtle and muffled electric guitar that trickles in and out of this gem from 1970's Tumbleweed Connection. Then there is the presence of the brass section, giving the sound breadth and muscle. The song rises and falls like most songs do, but the difference here is in the interaction of the horns and the guitar. That interaction drives the second half of the song, when the chorus repeats continuously and builds in our minds a la "Hey Jude." But the horns and guitar come together most beautifully at 2:12, when the chorus overflows and Elton hits the word "bend." This song kept me up late at night when I first bought the Super Audio (hi-def) CD and played it in surround sound. Elton at his most powerful and visceral.
My Fathers Gun - Elton John
Scrolling through my iTunes today, I thought about this. If I had to pick out only one moment in all of recorded music - one chord - to call my favorite, which moment would it be?
Well, that's just an impossible question, isn't it? I know I can't answer it. But I did give a lot of thought to the answer, so here are a few of my very favorite chords in all of rock:
Bruce Springsteen - "Darkness on the Edge of Town" - 0:52
I only became a real Bruce fan after hearing this song. His radio hits are great, and those were the only tunes I knew of his for a long time. But when my girlfriend, a longtime Bruce fanatic, played me this song, my appreciation of Bruce shot through the roof. "Darkness" feels like a walk in the night, and the D minor 7th chord that hits on the word "edge" is like a rare Italian sports car that speeds by with a gust of wind. It's unexpected; it leaves you thinking "What was that?" The intrigue in this moment is overwhelming. The chord is really beyond words, but I'll call it magical.
Darkness On The Edge Of Town - Bruce Springsteen
Bob Dylan - "Like A Rolling Stone" - 0:01
The drum is struck once, and then that opening chord: thick, reeling, and all nostalgia. The chord is a cue for us as listeners and as Americans, a switch that goes off in our heads and flips a sepia-toned lens down over our eyes. Immediately engaging yet mysterious in its ability to compel you, this is perhaps the only rock song to deserve the books that have been written about it (see Greil Marcus' work). You know this song already, but it's always a fresh sound when you hear it.
Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan
Elton John - "My Father's Gun" - 2:12
There is a rather subtle and muffled electric guitar that trickles in and out of this gem from 1970's Tumbleweed Connection. Then there is the presence of the brass section, giving the sound breadth and muscle. The song rises and falls like most songs do, but the difference here is in the interaction of the horns and the guitar. That interaction drives the second half of the song, when the chorus repeats continuously and builds in our minds a la "Hey Jude." But the horns and guitar come together most beautifully at 2:12, when the chorus overflows and Elton hits the word "bend." This song kept me up late at night when I first bought the Super Audio (hi-def) CD and played it in surround sound. Elton at his most powerful and visceral.
My Fathers Gun - Elton John
Monday, June 22, 2009
Song of the Day: Blitzen Trapper - "Sleepytime in the Western World"
This band and this album (Furr) turned me on to indie rock. The word "indie" has this weird connotation, describing music that's both liberated from mainstream limitations and subjected to the judgment of an exclusive and sometimes self-important little world, also called "indie." Until recently, I had imagined all indie rock to be experimental, aimless, and incoherent. Perhaps my imagination had been colored by the brutal performance that Clap Your Hands Say Yeah put on up at college a couple years ago. I don't know.
I started reading Pitchfork.com about a year ago, in hopes of finding a second opinion on some album reviews (the first opinion came from Allmusic.com). What I found was that this little indie world had a lot of good music and good taste to go along with the crap. Blitzen Trapper's Furr was the first record I gave a full listen as a result of the review I read on Pitchfork, and there have been many records since. But Furr has gotten a lot of straight-through-no-skips listens from me in the past year.
"Sleepytime in the Western World" is not the most immediately accessible song on the album, but it's the first track and it might open your eyes like it opened mine. Give it a little time, and you may be looking for the next Trapper concert on the East Coast like I am.
I started reading Pitchfork.com about a year ago, in hopes of finding a second opinion on some album reviews (the first opinion came from Allmusic.com). What I found was that this little indie world had a lot of good music and good taste to go along with the crap. Blitzen Trapper's Furr was the first record I gave a full listen as a result of the review I read on Pitchfork, and there have been many records since. But Furr has gotten a lot of straight-through-no-skips listens from me in the past year.
"Sleepytime in the Western World" is not the most immediately accessible song on the album, but it's the first track and it might open your eyes like it opened mine. Give it a little time, and you may be looking for the next Trapper concert on the East Coast like I am.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Song of the Day: The Band with Van Morrison - "Caravan"
The first time I saw The Last Waltz was on an enormous projection screen at a friend’s house. I was in high school at the time, and neither my musical taste nor my music collection had expanded very far yet. At the time I was still accumulating songs one by one on Kazaa or Limewire. But that night, watching “Van the Man” strut around and kick his leg up while Robbie Robertson and the Band belted out the chorus on “Caravan,” my outlook on rock music was forever changed.
In some ways, The Last Waltz concert (1976) came at the end of the golden age of rock and roll. The Beatles were over, the Stones were past their prime. Dylan was meandering. Maybe that means something to the folks who were alive in 1976. But to me, The Last Waltz means the greatest rock moment ever captured on film. And if I was given the task of explaining rock and roll to an alien, the first thing I'd do is pop The Last Waltz in the DVD player.
The concept is so perfect. What I mean is, The Band's career sans Dylan ran from '68-'76 (ending with The Last Waltz concert). That was the golden age, in my opinion. That captures the peaks of Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones, the end of the Beatles (the best part), Woodstock, Joni Mitchell, Clapton, Neil Young, and countless other acts with unreal albums from that time period. Not to mention The Band itself, which is possibly the most underrated act of the classic rock era (and my favorite band ever). So the Last Waltz brings all these folks together on one stage. Oh, and Scorcese took care of the filmmaking.
Have you seen The Last Waltz? If not, do yourself a favor and watch it on the biggest TV you've got, with the sound up. And pay attention to "Caravan" with Van Morrison. If you like classic rock, you're gonna love this.
Oh, but of course they took down all the video and audio of "Caravan" online. So here, I'll show you video of "Don't Do It," another great performance that plays in the opening credits. This'll get you excited to watch the whole thing at home.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The Listening Experience
From what I've been told, listening to music used to be a sacred thing, preserved in ritual. Our parents would get the urge, go to the living room, run their hands across the record shelves until they found the album, then slide out the vinyl from the sleeve, place Side 1 on the turntable, place the needle in the groove, and press play.
Listening had a place and a process. The means of listening were delicate and precious. I won't say the sound was better, I'm not going down that road. But the experience was richer in comparison to most listening habits today.
How does it happen today? Throw the earbuds in, click-click-click on the iPod, and we're golden. Right? Well, it certainly is faster that way. And we should all be thankful we aren't listening to Donovan like our parents did.
But how close to the music are we with those earbuds in? Are we dedicating ourselves to the experience? Let's face it: music has taken a serious backseat to movies in terms of cultural significance. I think that's at least partially due to the actual experience of consuming the medium: While movies still require a couple hours of our focused time in a fixed place - the theater or the living room television - music can be had anywhere at any time. We lost our grip on the listening experience somewhere along the way.
Now, I'm going to indulge in a little stereo bragging, but I'm only going to do it as a way of exposing how far out of the mainstream my listening habits are. Here's my setup:
LaCie 500GB external hard drive > Mac mini > Decco DAC/amp > Klipsch Synergy F-1 speakers
I also have a Sony Super Audio CD player (and a collection of Super Audio CDs) which runs through the Decco as well. And all the connecting cables between my components are top-notch. Oh, and I listen to XM satellite radio in the car.
So yeah, I'm an audiophile. When I want an album, I buy the CD and import it into my iTunes twice - once in compressed form so it will fit on my iPod, and once in Apple Lossless format for home listening. And those Super Audio CDs - they were only manufactured in numbers for a few years in the early 2000s, but to me they are the equivalent of HDTV. Which is to say, they blow me away.
Believe me, I know I'm an oddity in this day and age. Who buys CDs anymore? But I feel like this stereo is my version of an HDTV. I'm in front of the speakers for hours each day. This is my movie theater. And I feel like a lot of people who really love music deserve better than the earbuds they've grown accustomed to.
Now, if they would just bring those stereo prices down...
Listening had a place and a process. The means of listening were delicate and precious. I won't say the sound was better, I'm not going down that road. But the experience was richer in comparison to most listening habits today.
How does it happen today? Throw the earbuds in, click-click-click on the iPod, and we're golden. Right? Well, it certainly is faster that way. And we should all be thankful we aren't listening to Donovan like our parents did.
But how close to the music are we with those earbuds in? Are we dedicating ourselves to the experience? Let's face it: music has taken a serious backseat to movies in terms of cultural significance. I think that's at least partially due to the actual experience of consuming the medium: While movies still require a couple hours of our focused time in a fixed place - the theater or the living room television - music can be had anywhere at any time. We lost our grip on the listening experience somewhere along the way.
Now, I'm going to indulge in a little stereo bragging, but I'm only going to do it as a way of exposing how far out of the mainstream my listening habits are. Here's my setup:
LaCie 500GB external hard drive > Mac mini > Decco DAC/amp > Klipsch Synergy F-1 speakers
I also have a Sony Super Audio CD player (and a collection of Super Audio CDs) which runs through the Decco as well. And all the connecting cables between my components are top-notch. Oh, and I listen to XM satellite radio in the car.
So yeah, I'm an audiophile. When I want an album, I buy the CD and import it into my iTunes twice - once in compressed form so it will fit on my iPod, and once in Apple Lossless format for home listening. And those Super Audio CDs - they were only manufactured in numbers for a few years in the early 2000s, but to me they are the equivalent of HDTV. Which is to say, they blow me away.
Believe me, I know I'm an oddity in this day and age. Who buys CDs anymore? But I feel like this stereo is my version of an HDTV. I'm in front of the speakers for hours each day. This is my movie theater. And I feel like a lot of people who really love music deserve better than the earbuds they've grown accustomed to.
Now, if they would just bring those stereo prices down...
Song of the Day: Drive-By Truckers - "A Ghost To Most"
As I sit here with wet feet, just off the train back from rainy Manhattan to rainy Connecticut, pondering what this blog can become, my body is warmed by the slide guitar in this beautiful song. Drive-By Truckers might be my favorite band of the past decade, and "A Ghost To Most" really captures the essence of their sound. It's a sound that has progressed away from the triple-guitar attack with which they made their mark in 2001 with Southern Rock Opera. (That album remains an incredible listen for me. Do yourself a favor: listen to Disc 1 of SRO with the lyrics sheet in front of you. Southern rock hasn't been that relevant or that good since Ronnie Van Zant died.)
The Truckers shuffled through a few new members in the time since SRO. Their sound has matured, becoming crisper and cleaner without losing any of that southern swagger. What you hear in "A Ghost to Most" is a band finding their sweet spot in mid-tempo rock and roll.
Baby every bone in my body's gone to jumping
Like they're gonna come through my skin
Well, that's exactly how I feel when I hear the Truckers.
The Truckers shuffled through a few new members in the time since SRO. Their sound has matured, becoming crisper and cleaner without losing any of that southern swagger. What you hear in "A Ghost to Most" is a band finding their sweet spot in mid-tempo rock and roll.
Baby every bone in my body's gone to jumping
Like they're gonna come through my skin
Well, that's exactly how I feel when I hear the Truckers.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Song of the Day: Fleet Foxes - "Mykonos"
Which song will I do first, which song...Actually, this was an easy choice. "Mykonos," from the Sun Giant EP (2008), touches a place inside your head where you keep your adventures locked away.
You go wherever you go today
That's what lead vocalist Robin Pecknold sings in the outro. Where are you going when you listen to this? I am trekking through a vast desert of pristine, untouched sand.
Hope you enjoy.
Mykonos (Album) - Fleet Foxes
You go wherever you go today
That's what lead vocalist Robin Pecknold sings in the outro. Where are you going when you listen to this? I am trekking through a vast desert of pristine, untouched sand.
Hope you enjoy.
Mykonos (Album) - Fleet Foxes
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