| Bright Eyes | Reinvent The Wheel | Four Winds EP | |
| Ben Kweller | Gypsy Rose | Changing Horses | √ |
| Neko Case | People Got A Lotta Nerve | Middle Cyclone | √ |
| Morrissey | It's Not Your Birthday Anymore | Years of Refusal | √ |
| Conor Oberst and the Mystic Vallet Band | Corina Corina | Gentleman's Pact | |
| Ben Kweller | Hurtin' You | Changing Horses | √ |
| Jenny Lewis | Acid Tongue | Acid Tongue | |
| Neko Case | Fever | Middle Cyclone | √ |
| William Elliott Whitmore | Rest His Soul | Song of the Blackbird | |
| Justin Vernon | Easy | Hazeltons | |
| Marissa Nadler | Little Hells | Little Hells | √ |
| Bon Iver | Brackett, WI | Dark Was the Night | √ |
| Sufjan Stevens | John Wayne Gacey, Jr. | Come On, Feel The Illinoise | |
| Ferris Wheel | Lay Down | Goody Twos | |
| The Hood Internet | Single Foxes (Put A Wood On It) | Beyonce vs Fleet Foxes | |
| Creaky Boards | Lie To Me | Brooklyn is Love | |
| Bishop Allen | The Lion and the Teacup | Grr... |
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Playlist for 2-24-09
It was just another Tuesday. It was cold as shit.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Middle Cyclone
So, I’m one of those people who have a tendency to get really into a band or artist and download/buy the entire back catalogue and then not really listen to it ever again. Leaving me then with a pile of music and hardly any plays. Who doesn’t do that though? A band you liked puts out a new record and you like it, but the back catalogue is better and then you just don’t care anymore? I can name like 40,000 times that’s happened to me (No, I cannot actually name them all). So, naturally I was interested when my good friend Fred Knittel (WKDU music director) was ecstatic about the new Neko Case record, Middle Cyclone.
Neko Case is a serious veteran of the indie/alt-country/folk world. She has a 10+ year career and 14 records (with various projects as well, most notably The New Pornographers). Neko is one of those people who if you want your record to be perfect in ever single way…. You talk to her and have her sing. Her hauntingly beautiful voice fills ever little section of your ears and slowly sneaks it’s way into your brain and then throttles it like it’s trying to choke you out. She is the true vertan of the scene, holding firm with her staunch DIY ethic.
She writes beautiful, haunting music with a voice to back it up. The record starts out strong with ‘This Tornado Loves You’, a more alternative country song, with the perfect amount of singer-songwriter twang to her voice. The record immediately picks up again on track 3 and throws you face first into awe with ‘People Got A Lotta Nerve’ with the lead guitar filling your head (well, hopefully yours too when you go buy the record. Yes, I said buy. And yes, I mean you) with a meandering path begging you to follow into the chorus that is nothing but golden. The following track is again, nothing but brilliant, a perfect example of her brilliance; the song opening with a bare minimum of instrumentation, letting her voice shine through as the track picks up a downtrodden feel, her voice shines through and gives it a bright light. The record keeps going with more hauntingly beautiful tracks like ‘Vengeance is Sleeping’, ‘Middle Cyclone’, ‘Magpie to the Moring’, ‘I’m An Animal’, and ‘Don’t Forget Me’; most notably, the record ends with a beautifully calming 32 minutes of marsh noises, primarily the sounds of crickets chirping… I don’t know about you, but, that’s the coolest thing ever (Okay, maybe sliced bread might be better or Girl Scout cookies, but, I think you get my drift). I listened to the record twice through before I even knew it was over.
Over all this record is a perfect example of the true singer songwriter prowerss that is Neko Case. She has created another amazing record, trumping 2006’s Fox Confessor Brings the Flood.
Neko Case is a serious veteran of the indie/alt-country/folk world. She has a 10+ year career and 14 records (with various projects as well, most notably The New Pornographers). Neko is one of those people who if you want your record to be perfect in ever single way…. You talk to her and have her sing. Her hauntingly beautiful voice fills ever little section of your ears and slowly sneaks it’s way into your brain and then throttles it like it’s trying to choke you out. She is the true vertan of the scene, holding firm with her staunch DIY ethic.
She writes beautiful, haunting music with a voice to back it up. The record starts out strong with ‘This Tornado Loves You’, a more alternative country song, with the perfect amount of singer-songwriter twang to her voice. The record immediately picks up again on track 3 and throws you face first into awe with ‘People Got A Lotta Nerve’ with the lead guitar filling your head (well, hopefully yours too when you go buy the record. Yes, I said buy. And yes, I mean you) with a meandering path begging you to follow into the chorus that is nothing but golden. The following track is again, nothing but brilliant, a perfect example of her brilliance; the song opening with a bare minimum of instrumentation, letting her voice shine through as the track picks up a downtrodden feel, her voice shines through and gives it a bright light. The record keeps going with more hauntingly beautiful tracks like ‘Vengeance is Sleeping’, ‘Middle Cyclone’, ‘Magpie to the Moring’, ‘I’m An Animal’, and ‘Don’t Forget Me’; most notably, the record ends with a beautifully calming 32 minutes of marsh noises, primarily the sounds of crickets chirping… I don’t know about you, but, that’s the coolest thing ever (Okay, maybe sliced bread might be better or Girl Scout cookies, but, I think you get my drift). I listened to the record twice through before I even knew it was over.
Over all this record is a perfect example of the true singer songwriter prowerss that is Neko Case. She has created another amazing record, trumping 2006’s Fox Confessor Brings the Flood.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Playlist for 2-17-09
Tuesdaytuesdaytuesday whoootwhoot!
Best show yet, hands down.
And yes, I played Iron&Wine twice because Rainer and Tim wanted it again. And the Sufjan track was for Rainer too.
Best show yet, hands down.
| Ben Gibbard and Feist | Train Song | Dark Was The Night | √ |
| M. Ward | Shangri-La | Hold Time | √ |
| Bright Eyes | Land Locked Blues | I'm Wide Awake It's Morning | |
| Vetiver | Another Reason To Go | Tight Knit | √ |
| She&Him | I Should Have Known Better | Volume 1 | |
| Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele | Oh Pairs! | The Good Feeling Music Of Dent May and His Magnificent Ukuele | √ |
| The Appleseed Cast | The Summer Before | Sagarmatha | √ |
| Two Tongues | IfI Could Make Do Things | Two Tongues | √ |
| Rilo Kiley | I Never | More Adventerous | |
| Dave Sitek | With A Girl Like You | Dark Was The Night | |
| The Weakerthans | My Favorite Chords | Left and Leaving | |
| Elliot Smith | Trouble | Thumbsucker OST | |
| Iron&Wine | Stolen Houses (Die) | Dark Was The Night | |
| The National | So Far Around The Bend | Dark Was The Night | √ |
| Phosphorescent | To Sick To Pray | To Willie | √ |
| Conor Oberst | Get-Well-Cards | Conor Oberst | |
| Iron&Wine | Stolen Houses (Die) | Dark Was The Night | |
| Sufjan Stevens | Say Yes! To Michigan! | Greetings From Michigan, The Great Lakes State | |
| Conor Oberst and Gillian Welsh | Lua | Dark Was The Night |
And yes, I played Iron&Wine twice because Rainer and Tim wanted it again. And the Sufjan track was for Rainer too.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Tallest Man On Earth
(NOTE: This record has actually been out for quite some time, and just recently available in the United States and I've been listening to it since December. I just now wrote a review for Philadelphia CP and wanted to post it here too)
It’s rather infrequent that I get so into a record that it consumes a lot of my thought. It’s only happened a few times in my life. In the 5th grade when I bought blink-182’s Dude Ranch and Green Day’s Nimrod., in middle school when I listened to Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On for the first time, and in high school when I heard Bright Eyes’ I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning, and frankly, I’ve been waiting for that moment since 2005. I think it’s happened again.
I happened to have the fantastic opportunity of seeing Swedish folk master, Kristian Matsson, aka The Tallest Man On Earth open for Bon Iver (Another favorite record of mine from 2008) in late December. There was something about that uncharacteristic warm December night (It was like 60 degrees on December 18th, what’s up with that?). He had an awkward stage presence and I thought he might of just been uncomfortable or not used to playing large crowds, but when he started playing music…. I was entranced. I went immediately upon his conclusion to buy the record, Shallow Gave, and I have yet to stop listening to it.
The record opens with an interesting note, the track ‘I Won’t Be Found’. The track is rather sparse compared to the others, featuring a second melody, usually another guitar, or banjo, or mandolin. But it none the less is entrancing, and made me want to listen more. The 3rd track, ‘Honey Won’t You Let Me In’ is one of my favorites and definitely has a country feel to it, with a beautiful chord progression matched by Matsson’s crooning voice. ‘Shallow Grave’ comes in with a intense lo-fi sound featuring a banjo melody. The record continues on and then comes to the fantastic track, my favorite by far, ‘The Gardner’. A subtle metaphor for a lover who’s become jaded by his lover who has moved on and found a new boyfriend and the scorned lovers attempt at becoming even by, well, making the new boyfriend fertilizer for the ground. Half way through this folk gem import from Sweden, there is no possible way that you couldn’t be hooked (Unless you aren’t into folk).
Overall, this is probably one of my favorite records of 2008, had I known about it before the end of the year, it would have been in my top 10, hands down. However it arrived in my hands too late. However this record receives a solid 9.5/10 for nearly pretty much perfection.
It’s rather infrequent that I get so into a record that it consumes a lot of my thought. It’s only happened a few times in my life. In the 5th grade when I bought blink-182’s Dude Ranch and Green Day’s Nimrod., in middle school when I listened to Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On for the first time, and in high school when I heard Bright Eyes’ I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning, and frankly, I’ve been waiting for that moment since 2005. I think it’s happened again.
I happened to have the fantastic opportunity of seeing Swedish folk master, Kristian Matsson, aka The Tallest Man On Earth open for Bon Iver (Another favorite record of mine from 2008) in late December. There was something about that uncharacteristic warm December night (It was like 60 degrees on December 18th, what’s up with that?). He had an awkward stage presence and I thought he might of just been uncomfortable or not used to playing large crowds, but when he started playing music…. I was entranced. I went immediately upon his conclusion to buy the record, Shallow Gave, and I have yet to stop listening to it.
The record opens with an interesting note, the track ‘I Won’t Be Found’. The track is rather sparse compared to the others, featuring a second melody, usually another guitar, or banjo, or mandolin. But it none the less is entrancing, and made me want to listen more. The 3rd track, ‘Honey Won’t You Let Me In’ is one of my favorites and definitely has a country feel to it, with a beautiful chord progression matched by Matsson’s crooning voice. ‘Shallow Grave’ comes in with a intense lo-fi sound featuring a banjo melody. The record continues on and then comes to the fantastic track, my favorite by far, ‘The Gardner’. A subtle metaphor for a lover who’s become jaded by his lover who has moved on and found a new boyfriend and the scorned lovers attempt at becoming even by, well, making the new boyfriend fertilizer for the ground. Half way through this folk gem import from Sweden, there is no possible way that you couldn’t be hooked (Unless you aren’t into folk).
Overall, this is probably one of my favorite records of 2008, had I known about it before the end of the year, it would have been in my top 10, hands down. However it arrived in my hands too late. However this record receives a solid 9.5/10 for nearly pretty much perfection.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Valentines Day
It sucks. Doesn't it? I think so. But maybe that's just me. I don't get the whole, one day out of the year where you are allowed and encouraged to show your love for your partner/girlfriend/crush/wife. I don't understand it, I don't think I ever will, but I am also one of the new who is forever doomed to that life. That's probably why I started listening too, playing, and writing music. Which brings me to my little diatribe for the day.... Which came first? The music or the misery?
Interesting, no? I believe John Cusack said it the best in (My tied-for-first-favorite movie of all time) High Fidelity in the opening monologue:
"What came first, the music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns, or watching violent videos, that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?"
Interesting, no? I believe John Cusack said it the best in (My tied-for-first-favorite movie of all time) High Fidelity in the opening monologue:
"What came first, the music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns, or watching violent videos, that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?"
I think that's pretty telling of now awesome the movie is. Right? Right. None the less, Rob Gordon, the fictional man created by author Nick Hornby (One of my favorite authors, by the way. And yes, High Fidelity was a book before a movie. He also wrote About A Boy and that horrible movie Fever Pitch [But he's British so Fever Pitch is actually about cricket and not baseball]), was able to hit the nail on the head. There are THOUSANDS of people out there who write songs about lonliness and unrequited love but they never seem to be the ones who win in the end, do they? I know I don't.
Did they write music because they were miserable? Or were they miserable because they wrote music? I like to think the first, rather then the latter. Rob Gordon goes on to later explain how there were people who were all over censorship of music in the gangster rap explosion in the 90's and late 80's, but no one ever did anything about music. Music is filled with broken hearts and tearful songs about love and loss but they go unnoticed. It's like a pile of shit. You can dress it up and gussy it up, but, it's still, well, it's still frankly a pile of shit. You can put whatever happy, sing a long melody you want over the happiest major chords ever, but, it's still about your broken heart that you're wearing on your sleeve. People talk about the birth of emo music coming with Guy Piccioto and Rites of Spring (The very first band to be labeled in the "emo" genre therefore giving birth to later amazing bands like Fugazi, The Get Up Kids, Sunny Day Real Estate, Jimmy Eat World, and the first Weezer record. Then later spawning terrible bands who grew up LISTENING to those bands, like Panic! At The Disco, My Chemical Romance. Not emo. Repeat, not emo) but it really started at the birth of the minor scales when music was really seriously looked at in the renisance periods and classical periods when people were able to deconstruct music and put music theory to work.
I certainly, as a song writer who preforms primarily as a singer-songwriter (and in a few other projects but this not the location for such shameless promotion), draw on everything that happens in my life for my music. Every miniute I spend pining for a girl goes out of my head, into my arms, to my fingres, and out my pen into my notebook and then evetually to my guitar. It's all about the catharsis of your mind. I personally know that without that, I'd have exploded like that guy at the end of that Monty Python sketch about eating too much at dinner. Every minute I spent miserable at the end of my last relationship while I was away was transcribed into a song that I happen to love. Every minute of my yearning for a girl to return my phone call (Before she turned out to be a deceptive whore) was written down, and I can definitely say I feel better about it.
So naturally, they were miserable and then chose to write the music for their own safety. Music is a lost art form, in that very little can say very much in todays world where we can hire someone to write our lyrics and have a computer make us the song and then correct our vocal pitches so we stay on key (T Pain). That's why I have to do what makes me feel good. And that is write music.
I'll never forget the first song I ever heard. It was Elvis Pressley covering the Isley Brothers' 'Unchained Melody'. It was probably the most perfect song I've ever heard. The music is nothing but A+ and the emotion in Elvis' voice still, to this day, 15 years later, makes my knees wobble. I remember, I put it on a mix tape for a girl and she didn't quite get why I was so in love with the song. ANd I remember thinking, is this tape wrong? Is she stupid? Am I stupid? But no, it just turned out she wasn't really into me. But none the less, mix taping is another lost art form, now that i think about it. Rob Gordon said it the best (Again)
"The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don't wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules."
Did they write music because they were miserable? Or were they miserable because they wrote music? I like to think the first, rather then the latter. Rob Gordon goes on to later explain how there were people who were all over censorship of music in the gangster rap explosion in the 90's and late 80's, but no one ever did anything about music. Music is filled with broken hearts and tearful songs about love and loss but they go unnoticed. It's like a pile of shit. You can dress it up and gussy it up, but, it's still, well, it's still frankly a pile of shit. You can put whatever happy, sing a long melody you want over the happiest major chords ever, but, it's still about your broken heart that you're wearing on your sleeve. People talk about the birth of emo music coming with Guy Piccioto and Rites of Spring (The very first band to be labeled in the "emo" genre therefore giving birth to later amazing bands like Fugazi, The Get Up Kids, Sunny Day Real Estate, Jimmy Eat World, and the first Weezer record. Then later spawning terrible bands who grew up LISTENING to those bands, like Panic! At The Disco, My Chemical Romance. Not emo. Repeat, not emo) but it really started at the birth of the minor scales when music was really seriously looked at in the renisance periods and classical periods when people were able to deconstruct music and put music theory to work.
I certainly, as a song writer who preforms primarily as a singer-songwriter (and in a few other projects but this not the location for such shameless promotion), draw on everything that happens in my life for my music. Every miniute I spend pining for a girl goes out of my head, into my arms, to my fingres, and out my pen into my notebook and then evetually to my guitar. It's all about the catharsis of your mind. I personally know that without that, I'd have exploded like that guy at the end of that Monty Python sketch about eating too much at dinner. Every minute I spent miserable at the end of my last relationship while I was away was transcribed into a song that I happen to love. Every minute of my yearning for a girl to return my phone call (Before she turned out to be a deceptive whore) was written down, and I can definitely say I feel better about it.
So naturally, they were miserable and then chose to write the music for their own safety. Music is a lost art form, in that very little can say very much in todays world where we can hire someone to write our lyrics and have a computer make us the song and then correct our vocal pitches so we stay on key (T Pain). That's why I have to do what makes me feel good. And that is write music.
I'll never forget the first song I ever heard. It was Elvis Pressley covering the Isley Brothers' 'Unchained Melody'. It was probably the most perfect song I've ever heard. The music is nothing but A+ and the emotion in Elvis' voice still, to this day, 15 years later, makes my knees wobble. I remember, I put it on a mix tape for a girl and she didn't quite get why I was so in love with the song. ANd I remember thinking, is this tape wrong? Is she stupid? Am I stupid? But no, it just turned out she wasn't really into me. But none the less, mix taping is another lost art form, now that i think about it. Rob Gordon said it the best (Again)
"The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don't wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules."
God damnit Rob, you are so right. AGAIN. I digress....
Bottom line.... I'm slowing turning into somewhere in between Rob Gordon and my father (Which isn't a bad thing, I love my father) and people wrote music because they were miserable.
Bottom line.... I'm slowing turning into somewhere in between Rob Gordon and my father (Which isn't a bad thing, I love my father) and people wrote music because they were miserable.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Playlist for 2-10-09
I WAS ON TIME! YEAH! And there was an awesome valentines day set. Plus a few others.
| Bon Iver | Re: Stacks | For Emma, Forever Ago | |
| Bright Eyes | First Day Of My Life | I'm Wide Awake It's Morning | |
| The Get Up Kids | I'll Catch You | Something To Write Home About | |
| The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart | Stay Alive | The Pains of Being Pure At Heart | √ |
| Darwin Deez | The Bomb Song | Darwin Deez | |
| As Tall As Lions | Love, Love, Love (Love, Love) | As Tall As Lions | |
| Raphael Saadiq | Just One Kiss (Feat. Joss Stone) | The Way I See It | |
| The Morning Light | The Love | The Sounds Of Love EP | |
| Mae | Just Let Go | Singularity | |
| Marianne Dissard | Track 1 | Live At WKDU | √ |
| Specie Circular | Anthelion | Expansion | √ |
| William Elliot Whitmore | There's Hope For You | Animals In The Dark | √ |
| Vetiver | Rolling Sea | Tight Knit | √ |
| She&Him | You Really Got A Hold On Me | Vol. 1 | |
| Elliot Smith | Thirteen | Thumbsucker OST | |
| The Tallest Man On Earth | The Gardner | Shallow Grave | √ |
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Short one on 2-3-09
Sorry, I was madddd late today, I have many a midterm in the next few days, er, rather, day, so I have been studying my ass off for that. But! I had a great show, you missed a good one, we had a power 7 minute set from my great friend Monika with In Grenada, The Mae Shi, and Joshua James. Another review will be coming later this week as well, most likely Friday.
| Kurt Vile | Freeway | Constant Hitmaker | |
| Matt Pryor | Still, There's A Light | Confidence Man | |
| The Tallest Man On Earth | The Gardner | Shallow Grave | √ |
| Bon Iver | Beach Baby | Blood Bank EP | √ |
| Bon Iver | Babys | Blood Bank EP | √ |
| William Elliot Whitmore | Johnny Law | Animals In The Dark | √ |
| In Grenada | Beating Heart | None?? | |
| The Mae Shi | Divine Harvest | Hlllyh | |
| Joshua James | FM Radio | The Sun Is Always Brighter | |
| Conor Oberst | NYC-Gone, Gone, Gone | Conor Oberst | |
| Conor Oberst | Moab | Conor Oberst | |
| Darwin Deez | The Bomb Song | Darwin Deez | |
| DENT MAY & HIS MAGNIFICENT UKELE | Meet Me In The Garden | THE GOOD FEELING MUSIC OF... | √ |
| Morrissey | I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris | I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris Single | √ |
| The Seatbelts | Tank! | Cowboy Bebop |
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