Grrrrrr. If this was a blog about work, you would probably see the steam rising from your monitor everytime you point your browser at Tracks and Gigs. Am I having a bad week? Yes. But, this isn't a blog about work so I shall say no more.
Anyway, there is life and there are great upcoming gigs. Recommending a forthcoming gig is a bad idea really. As anyone who has ever seen Cat Power live will know, anything can happen at a gig. But still, all things being equal the wonderfully named Pineapple Folk Yuletide Gathering will be an amazing night.
It takes place at Union Chapel in Islington on 8th December (with additional nights in Glasgow and Manchester. Check local listings for details). Union Chapel is easily my favourite venue. Still a working church, it is such a beautiful place to see a concert and I've seen some great gigs there over the years.....Smog, Low, Iron and Wine and Willard Grant Conspiracy all spring to mind.
The line up for the PFYG is simply superb.
Opening up will be Alasdair Roberts, the Scottish singer and guitarist who plays some lovely traditional folk songs. I have yet to see him live and can't imagine a better place than the Chapel to finally hear him play.
There will also be an hour long set from The Mountain Goats (see the post from last week for more on them), which I am tremendously excited about, especially as they will most likely be playing some songs from their forthcoming new album 'Heretic Pride'.
Headlining will be Micah P Hinson. Micah is a singer-songwriter from Memphis who has led a colourful live and produced two stunning albums of country noir. 2004's 'Gospel of Progress' album recorded with the assistance of the Earlies was a stunning debut. I saw him play live twice that year, a wonderful show at The Borderline (which incidentally was the first gig I ever attended with my girlfriend) and a night at The Union Chapel supporting Iron and Wine. I have yet to see him play a full band show though and have heard these are awesome, so if anyone from Pineapple Folk is reading, will this be an acoustic or electric show??
Anyway, Micah returned last year with 'The Opera Circuit', another collection of gorgeous country, rock and folk songs. Looking forward to seeing him play again.
If none of this is enough to convince you, there will also be a 'Special Guest' and there will be roast chesnuts, mulled wine and other festive treats on offer!
Tickets are on sale now from wegottickets.com
a review of the night will appear here on 10th December.
Wednesday 31 October 2007
Friday 26 October 2007
Beirut 'The Flying Club Cap'
Zach Condon, aka Beirut, returns with his second full album after last year's critically acclaimed 'Gulag Orkestar'.
The Balkan stomp of Beirut's debut left me a little cold. It had some nice sounds and was good background listening but I was looking for songs and I didn't find any memorable ones. To add to the disappointment I found his voice rather annoying. I tried so hard to like it, the record got an awful lot of attention and it felt like I was missing out on something wonderful, but something just didn't click for me and that record.
With this album, Condon has moved away from the Eastern European sound and fixation and turned his attentions to France. 'The Flying Club Cap' is essentially a baroque pop album with lots of piano, brass, violins and accordion. It feels like a much more relaxed album than its predecessor with several low key piano ballads.
Some of the arrangements are stunning, particularly on the gorgeous 'A Sunday Smile' and listening to the music is a real pleasure. I first listened to this album after a particularly awful day at work and it had a remarkably soothing effect.
I am still not a fan of Condon's voice and the lyrics can be a little patchy although often very evocative, but this is a sumptuous listening experience.
8.0
The Balkan stomp of Beirut's debut left me a little cold. It had some nice sounds and was good background listening but I was looking for songs and I didn't find any memorable ones. To add to the disappointment I found his voice rather annoying. I tried so hard to like it, the record got an awful lot of attention and it felt like I was missing out on something wonderful, but something just didn't click for me and that record.
With this album, Condon has moved away from the Eastern European sound and fixation and turned his attentions to France. 'The Flying Club Cap' is essentially a baroque pop album with lots of piano, brass, violins and accordion. It feels like a much more relaxed album than its predecessor with several low key piano ballads.
Some of the arrangements are stunning, particularly on the gorgeous 'A Sunday Smile' and listening to the music is a real pleasure. I first listened to this album after a particularly awful day at work and it had a remarkably soothing effect.
I am still not a fan of Condon's voice and the lyrics can be a little patchy although often very evocative, but this is a sumptuous listening experience.
8.0
Thursday 25 October 2007
The Mountain Goats
The fantastic news that The Mountain Goats are coming to the UK in December has inspired me to write something about them, despite the fact that the new album isn't out til next year.
The Mountain Goats is essentially U.S singer-songwriter John Darnielle and assorted friends and colleagues, mainly Peter Hughes and Franklin Bruno. John has been making music under the TMG moniker since 1991 and all albums up to 2002 were recorded in a lo-fi , boombox style which consisted of John strumming an acoustic guitar whilst singing/shouting his lyrics over the top. These early albums make for incredibly intimate recordings but would be largely useless were it not for the fact that John is one of the best lyricists and storytellers I have ever heard.
TMG first came to my attention in early 2003. My friend Jason recommended them to me and I purchased 'Tallahasse' in HMV Oxford Street during a pre-gig (Smog at the Union Chapel) spending session. Playing it the next day I immediately loved it. I knew nothing then of John's lo-fi history, but this was a beautiful album presenting the story of a married couple on the verge of divorce. The songs generally mixed pretty acoustic melodies such as 'Idylls of the King' with blazing, loud expressions of anger such as 'See America Right' and 'Oceanographers Choice'. It made for a heady mix and is still a really exciting listen. It also contains the magnificent 'No Children' which contains fantasic lyrics like
"I hope I cut myself shaving tomorrow
I hope it bleeds all day long
Our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises
We're pretty sure they're all wrong
I hope it stays dark forever
I hope the worst isn't over
And I hope you blink before I do
Yeah I hope I never get sober"
It has to be one of the most sing-a-long-able songs ever! Anyway, 'Tallahasse' got me completely hooked on TMG (9.0).
After spending some time buying as many of the lo-fi albums as I could find and afford, and coming to the conclusion that 'All Hail West Texas' (8.9) was the best, I didn't have too long to wait for the next album as 'We Shall All Be Healed' arrived in early 2004. This was billed as John's first ever autobiographical album and contained songs about his teenage years. The Mountain Goats website declared "All of the songs on We Shall All Be Healed are based on people John used to know. Most of them are probably dead or in jail by now." The main themes of the album were motorcycles and drugs. To my ears it wasn't as amazing as 'Tallahasse' and had a few too many forgetable songs. It had some great songs too though, such as the gorgeous 'Your Belgian Things' but I don't find myself playing this much (8.2).
2005 brought the release of 'The Sunset Tree', another autobiographical album concerning John's youth but this time focussing on domestic violence and John's relationship with his stepfather. This is an absolutely stunning album with both poignant and escapist lyrics. The first five tracks of the record make for an unbelievably enthralling opening and you will be singing 'This Year' ("I am going to make it through this year/ If it kills me") to yourself after a couple of plays. The album ends with news of his stepfather's death on 'Pale Green Things' a beautiful, quiet finale. This is a superb record. Two years after its release I still play it regularly and if you are new to TMG, this is probably the album to start with. (9.8).
Last year saw the release of 'Get Lonely' and I'll post here a review of this album that I wrote at the time...
The Mountain Goats ‘Get Lonely’
4AD
The Mountain Goats, essentially singer-songwriter John Darnielle and assorted friends, built up a solid fan base on the back of their early lo-fi releases recorded directly onto cassette player. The albums featured Darnielle’s nasal, shouty vocals over violently strummed acoustic guitar and showed him to be a wonderful storyteller and lyricist. Since signing to 4AD in 2002 the Goats have discovered recording studios and production and have made a series of polished albums all focussed on a particular theme.
Last year’s ‘The Sunset Tree’ was an extraordinarily powerful album about Darnielle’s childhood experiences with a violent stepfather and was probably his finest work yet. This time he has written a set of songs about the end of a long term relationship and there are marked differences from his previous records.
The shouty vocals have gone, to be replaced by a hushed whisper and quieter, slower singing voice, the music is lush, all acoustic guitars, piano and strings and the songs are some of the saddest you’ve ever heard. The lyrics are incredible studies in loneliness and desolation. Unlike other break-up albums, there is no anger or bitterness, the album simply describes the character’s struggles to get through each day. There are only two breaks in the sombre musical tone, ‘Half Dead’ uses The Smiths’ trick of coupling incredibly painful lyrics with a jaunty melody and could well get radio play, while ‘If You See Light’ is an incredible two minute blast of paranoia where the character hides from neighbours and friends during an attack of panic (“when the villagers come to my door/ I will breathe shallow breaths from high up in my stomach”).
Elsewhere the songs paint a portrait of sadness and loneliness but the album is never depressing. It may take a few listens for the melodies to properly form, but when they do this is a superbly polished album. With acoustic balladry ever more popular, Darnielle may win new fans with this collection of acoustic songs that are a million times more literate than those in the charts at the moment. (9.5)
I've never managed to see John play live, so I'm really looking forward to the London show in December, but if you've never heard of TMG or bought any of their music, I hope this post may inspire you to check them out.
The Mountain Goats is essentially U.S singer-songwriter John Darnielle and assorted friends and colleagues, mainly Peter Hughes and Franklin Bruno. John has been making music under the TMG moniker since 1991 and all albums up to 2002 were recorded in a lo-fi , boombox style which consisted of John strumming an acoustic guitar whilst singing/shouting his lyrics over the top. These early albums make for incredibly intimate recordings but would be largely useless were it not for the fact that John is one of the best lyricists and storytellers I have ever heard.
TMG first came to my attention in early 2003. My friend Jason recommended them to me and I purchased 'Tallahasse' in HMV Oxford Street during a pre-gig (Smog at the Union Chapel) spending session. Playing it the next day I immediately loved it. I knew nothing then of John's lo-fi history, but this was a beautiful album presenting the story of a married couple on the verge of divorce. The songs generally mixed pretty acoustic melodies such as 'Idylls of the King' with blazing, loud expressions of anger such as 'See America Right' and 'Oceanographers Choice'. It made for a heady mix and is still a really exciting listen. It also contains the magnificent 'No Children' which contains fantasic lyrics like
"I hope I cut myself shaving tomorrow
I hope it bleeds all day long
Our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises
We're pretty sure they're all wrong
I hope it stays dark forever
I hope the worst isn't over
And I hope you blink before I do
Yeah I hope I never get sober"
It has to be one of the most sing-a-long-able songs ever! Anyway, 'Tallahasse' got me completely hooked on TMG (9.0).
After spending some time buying as many of the lo-fi albums as I could find and afford, and coming to the conclusion that 'All Hail West Texas' (8.9) was the best, I didn't have too long to wait for the next album as 'We Shall All Be Healed' arrived in early 2004. This was billed as John's first ever autobiographical album and contained songs about his teenage years. The Mountain Goats website declared "All of the songs on We Shall All Be Healed are based on people John used to know. Most of them are probably dead or in jail by now." The main themes of the album were motorcycles and drugs. To my ears it wasn't as amazing as 'Tallahasse' and had a few too many forgetable songs. It had some great songs too though, such as the gorgeous 'Your Belgian Things' but I don't find myself playing this much (8.2).
2005 brought the release of 'The Sunset Tree', another autobiographical album concerning John's youth but this time focussing on domestic violence and John's relationship with his stepfather. This is an absolutely stunning album with both poignant and escapist lyrics. The first five tracks of the record make for an unbelievably enthralling opening and you will be singing 'This Year' ("I am going to make it through this year/ If it kills me") to yourself after a couple of plays. The album ends with news of his stepfather's death on 'Pale Green Things' a beautiful, quiet finale. This is a superb record. Two years after its release I still play it regularly and if you are new to TMG, this is probably the album to start with. (9.8).
Last year saw the release of 'Get Lonely' and I'll post here a review of this album that I wrote at the time...
The Mountain Goats ‘Get Lonely’
4AD
The Mountain Goats, essentially singer-songwriter John Darnielle and assorted friends, built up a solid fan base on the back of their early lo-fi releases recorded directly onto cassette player. The albums featured Darnielle’s nasal, shouty vocals over violently strummed acoustic guitar and showed him to be a wonderful storyteller and lyricist. Since signing to 4AD in 2002 the Goats have discovered recording studios and production and have made a series of polished albums all focussed on a particular theme.
Last year’s ‘The Sunset Tree’ was an extraordinarily powerful album about Darnielle’s childhood experiences with a violent stepfather and was probably his finest work yet. This time he has written a set of songs about the end of a long term relationship and there are marked differences from his previous records.
The shouty vocals have gone, to be replaced by a hushed whisper and quieter, slower singing voice, the music is lush, all acoustic guitars, piano and strings and the songs are some of the saddest you’ve ever heard. The lyrics are incredible studies in loneliness and desolation. Unlike other break-up albums, there is no anger or bitterness, the album simply describes the character’s struggles to get through each day. There are only two breaks in the sombre musical tone, ‘Half Dead’ uses The Smiths’ trick of coupling incredibly painful lyrics with a jaunty melody and could well get radio play, while ‘If You See Light’ is an incredible two minute blast of paranoia where the character hides from neighbours and friends during an attack of panic (“when the villagers come to my door/ I will breathe shallow breaths from high up in my stomach”).
Elsewhere the songs paint a portrait of sadness and loneliness but the album is never depressing. It may take a few listens for the melodies to properly form, but when they do this is a superbly polished album. With acoustic balladry ever more popular, Darnielle may win new fans with this collection of acoustic songs that are a million times more literate than those in the charts at the moment. (9.5)
I've never managed to see John play live, so I'm really looking forward to the London show in December, but if you've never heard of TMG or bought any of their music, I hope this post may inspire you to check them out.
Tuesday 23 October 2007
favourite song
Choosing one favourite song has to be the hardest thing in the world to do. Picking a favourite album is bad enough. Most days I would say 'Don't Stand Me Down' by Dexys is my favourite album of all time, for a bunch of reasons which I will write about one day but at the moment I can't think of any album being better or more 'playable' than 'Separation Sunday' by The Hold Steady.
As opposed to reviewing the Twilight Sad or Tiny Vipers albums, today I thought I would write about the song that if I absolutely had to choose one, I would probably say is my favourite song.
It is 'Walking' by Tindersticks.
It is a low-key, quiet, murmur of a song. When they play it live you don't hear cheers from the audience like you would when they play 'City Sickness' or 'Patchwork'. It is so gentle it is almost a lullabye. But it is perfect. Perfect.
Opening with a sombre keyboard refrain, it doesn't sound much like a Tindersticks song until you hear Stuart Staples murmur
"Wake up
Its alright
I don't need to know where you've been
You went for a walk
out of my sight
You went astray again"
Such a typical Tindersticks lyric. He repeats it as the song goes on, adds a verse, repeats it again, changes it slightly, all while the song builds ever so slightly, the hint of a violin here, the strum of an acoustic guitar there. You wait for it to build into a Tinderstick-esque crescendo, all violins, trumpets and guitars, like a 'Sleepy Song' or a 'Raindrops'...
but it never does. It keeps on building towards this, but never gets there. and the song is all the more magical for that.
There's no conclusion to the lyric, no resolution, no twist at the end, just a feeling that continues throughout the 5 minutes and 7 seconds of the song.
There are times and days when I only want to listen to this song.
As opposed to reviewing the Twilight Sad or Tiny Vipers albums, today I thought I would write about the song that if I absolutely had to choose one, I would probably say is my favourite song.
It is 'Walking' by Tindersticks.
It is a low-key, quiet, murmur of a song. When they play it live you don't hear cheers from the audience like you would when they play 'City Sickness' or 'Patchwork'. It is so gentle it is almost a lullabye. But it is perfect. Perfect.
Opening with a sombre keyboard refrain, it doesn't sound much like a Tindersticks song until you hear Stuart Staples murmur
"Wake up
Its alright
I don't need to know where you've been
You went for a walk
out of my sight
You went astray again"
Such a typical Tindersticks lyric. He repeats it as the song goes on, adds a verse, repeats it again, changes it slightly, all while the song builds ever so slightly, the hint of a violin here, the strum of an acoustic guitar there. You wait for it to build into a Tinderstick-esque crescendo, all violins, trumpets and guitars, like a 'Sleepy Song' or a 'Raindrops'...
but it never does. It keeps on building towards this, but never gets there. and the song is all the more magical for that.
There's no conclusion to the lyric, no resolution, no twist at the end, just a feeling that continues throughout the 5 minutes and 7 seconds of the song.
There are times and days when I only want to listen to this song.
Monday 22 October 2007
Bob Dylan - The Other Side Of The Mirror - Live At The Newport Folk Festival 1963-1965
It should be noted that this review is not of the DVD which is released next week, but of the film broadcast on BBC4 last week. Although I am led to believe they are one and the same, so, anyway...
This film documents Bob Dylan's appearances at the Newport Folk Festivals in 1963, 64 and 65. It contains previously unseen footage, along with some bits that you may have seen on 'No Direction Home' and various documentaries.
Not being a huge fan of Early Folky Bob, I was not particularly excited about the songs from 1963, however the footage here is brilliant. Firstly it reveals a different world from festivals and gigs of the 21st Century. For part of his performance, Dylan sits in the middle of the audience, who are listening attentively to his every word. One guy sat behind him seems to have had a big grin attached to his face and he doesn't seem to even blink throughout. Compare that to audiences at gigs these days, who would be chatting to each other during the less well known songs and taking photos of Bob with their camera-phone.
The highlights of the 1963 film are probably 'Talking World War III Blues' and 'Who Killed Davey Moore', both bright, brilliantly written songs that have passed me by due to my prejudice against the early days of Dylan's career. I now know what I was missing. It is wonderful to watch the young, fresh faced Bob sing these songs. The only disappointing song here is a diabolical version of 'Blowin' in the Wind' where Bob is joined by Joan Baez, The Freedom Singers and Peter, Paul and Mary. It is hard to hear anything at all apart from Baez's very 'distinctive' singing.
1964 shows Bob looking more confident and dressed all in black. You can start to see signs of what is to come. This is probably the weakest performance of the three. Joan Baez joins Bob for most of the songs and seeing them giggle their way through 'It Ain't Me Babe' seems to entertain the crowd but does not make for great viewing forty years on. It is impossible not to feel sorry for Baez though, you can see her devotion to Dylan and you are aware that he is about to embark on a complete change of direction that will be hard for her to understand. Highlights of the '64 footage are 'Mr Tambourine Man' which Dylan performs solo and 'With God On Our Side' with Baez. It is amusing to see the festival announcer trying to introduce the next act and being completely drowned out by shouts from the audience for Dylan to return.
When he did return in 1965 it was with a band and an electric guitar. Much of this footage, you may have seen before. He starts with a thrilling version of 'Maggies Farm' and although you know the story already, it is still shocking to hear the volume of the boos when they finish playing. Next up is a version of 'Like A Rolling Stone' which is almost as magnificent as the version at the Albert Hall concert a year later. Again the song ends with booing and Dylan and his band leave the stage. It does seem that a lot of the booing was because of the poor sound quality as well as an unwillingness to appreciate Dylan's new sound because when the announcer asked if the audience would like 'Bobby' to play one more song, there is a huge cheer. He returns with an acoustic guitar and plays 'Mr Tambourine Man' before ending with 'Its All Over Now Baby Blue' which is a goodbye to the Newport Folk Festival and that era of Dylan's career.
This is a magnificent film. If you are a Dylan fan it is required viewing, just to see the amazing change in Bob in just three years and some absolutely amazing performances. Even if you are not a Dylan fan, the film is a superb document of the time and the changes that were taking place. Enthralling stuff.
9.7
This film documents Bob Dylan's appearances at the Newport Folk Festivals in 1963, 64 and 65. It contains previously unseen footage, along with some bits that you may have seen on 'No Direction Home' and various documentaries.
Not being a huge fan of Early Folky Bob, I was not particularly excited about the songs from 1963, however the footage here is brilliant. Firstly it reveals a different world from festivals and gigs of the 21st Century. For part of his performance, Dylan sits in the middle of the audience, who are listening attentively to his every word. One guy sat behind him seems to have had a big grin attached to his face and he doesn't seem to even blink throughout. Compare that to audiences at gigs these days, who would be chatting to each other during the less well known songs and taking photos of Bob with their camera-phone.
The highlights of the 1963 film are probably 'Talking World War III Blues' and 'Who Killed Davey Moore', both bright, brilliantly written songs that have passed me by due to my prejudice against the early days of Dylan's career. I now know what I was missing. It is wonderful to watch the young, fresh faced Bob sing these songs. The only disappointing song here is a diabolical version of 'Blowin' in the Wind' where Bob is joined by Joan Baez, The Freedom Singers and Peter, Paul and Mary. It is hard to hear anything at all apart from Baez's very 'distinctive' singing.
1964 shows Bob looking more confident and dressed all in black. You can start to see signs of what is to come. This is probably the weakest performance of the three. Joan Baez joins Bob for most of the songs and seeing them giggle their way through 'It Ain't Me Babe' seems to entertain the crowd but does not make for great viewing forty years on. It is impossible not to feel sorry for Baez though, you can see her devotion to Dylan and you are aware that he is about to embark on a complete change of direction that will be hard for her to understand. Highlights of the '64 footage are 'Mr Tambourine Man' which Dylan performs solo and 'With God On Our Side' with Baez. It is amusing to see the festival announcer trying to introduce the next act and being completely drowned out by shouts from the audience for Dylan to return.
When he did return in 1965 it was with a band and an electric guitar. Much of this footage, you may have seen before. He starts with a thrilling version of 'Maggies Farm' and although you know the story already, it is still shocking to hear the volume of the boos when they finish playing. Next up is a version of 'Like A Rolling Stone' which is almost as magnificent as the version at the Albert Hall concert a year later. Again the song ends with booing and Dylan and his band leave the stage. It does seem that a lot of the booing was because of the poor sound quality as well as an unwillingness to appreciate Dylan's new sound because when the announcer asked if the audience would like 'Bobby' to play one more song, there is a huge cheer. He returns with an acoustic guitar and plays 'Mr Tambourine Man' before ending with 'Its All Over Now Baby Blue' which is a goodbye to the Newport Folk Festival and that era of Dylan's career.
This is a magnificent film. If you are a Dylan fan it is required viewing, just to see the amazing change in Bob in just three years and some absolutely amazing performances. Even if you are not a Dylan fan, the film is a superb document of the time and the changes that were taking place. Enthralling stuff.
9.7
Friday 19 October 2007
Laura Barton, who I think I have yet to disagree with, writes in today's Guardian about how note perfect warbling of the type we hear on X Factor and Mariah and Whitney records rarely actually conveys any emotion at all despite the vocal histrionics. It is all about false emotion and this is what makes X Factor an essentially pointless exercise.
Emotion in music rarely goes hand in hand with note perfect singing. This got me thinking about some of the vocal performances that always stick in my mind but wouldn't get the singer past the audition stage in the X Factor:
If you have never heard Mark Eitzel's 'Songs of Love' album, you are missing something truly special. A recording of a gig at London's Borderline in 1991, when Mark sang some songs accompanied only by an acoustic guitar, the album is pure emotion from start to finish. Listen to him singing 'Western Sky' close to tears and at one point having to stop himself mid-song to compose himself
"Please be happy baby
and please don't cry
Even though the parade has passed us by
you can still see it shining
shining in a Western sky"
Its an incredible performance.
I also love the way Craig Finn sings 'Cattle and the Creeping things', particularly this verse
"she's got a cross around her neck that she ripped off from a schoolgirl in the subway on a visit to the city
she likes how it looks on her chest with three open buttons
she likes the part where one brother kills the other
she has to wonder if the the world ever will recover
because cain and abel seem to still be causing trouble."
I don't know why I love the way he sings this song so much. He sings it the same way he sings all the Hold Steady songs, as kind of a shouty war correspondent reporting from the front line. Its just when I hear him sing that verse, I always want to hear it again straight away.
I also love hearing 'What a Life' by Juliana Hatfield because I really like the way she coughs right at the start of the song.
Anyway, I think Laura is right. There are lots of funny and strange reasons why you might like certain vocals or even just the way someone sings a certain syllable. But they very rarely have anything to do with hearing a pitch perfect singing note. Unless you are Simon Cowell.
Emotion in music rarely goes hand in hand with note perfect singing. This got me thinking about some of the vocal performances that always stick in my mind but wouldn't get the singer past the audition stage in the X Factor:
If you have never heard Mark Eitzel's 'Songs of Love' album, you are missing something truly special. A recording of a gig at London's Borderline in 1991, when Mark sang some songs accompanied only by an acoustic guitar, the album is pure emotion from start to finish. Listen to him singing 'Western Sky' close to tears and at one point having to stop himself mid-song to compose himself
"Please be happy baby
and please don't cry
Even though the parade has passed us by
you can still see it shining
shining in a Western sky"
Its an incredible performance.
I also love the way Craig Finn sings 'Cattle and the Creeping things', particularly this verse
"she's got a cross around her neck that she ripped off from a schoolgirl in the subway on a visit to the city
she likes how it looks on her chest with three open buttons
she likes the part where one brother kills the other
she has to wonder if the the world ever will recover
because cain and abel seem to still be causing trouble."
I don't know why I love the way he sings this song so much. He sings it the same way he sings all the Hold Steady songs, as kind of a shouty war correspondent reporting from the front line. Its just when I hear him sing that verse, I always want to hear it again straight away.
I also love hearing 'What a Life' by Juliana Hatfield because I really like the way she coughs right at the start of the song.
Anyway, I think Laura is right. There are lots of funny and strange reasons why you might like certain vocals or even just the way someone sings a certain syllable. But they very rarely have anything to do with hearing a pitch perfect singing note. Unless you are Simon Cowell.
Thursday 18 October 2007
a song for today
I haven't listened to 'Ys' by Joanna Newsom much this year. I listened to it virtually non-stop at the end of last year but I just haven't felt like listening to it much recently.
This makes me think that it may be an 'Autumn album'. It wouldn't be alone, I listen to the Innocence Mission almost exclusively in Autumn and Winter, they just don't make so much sense in the Summer. I remember walking to work in the snow last February listening to 'Birds of my Neighbourhood' and at that moment it felt like the greatest album ever.
Anyway, this morning something made me want to listen to 'Emily' on the aforementioned 'Ys'. Its funny how songs can sometimes just pop into your head like that.
So, I'm sitting here at work with one ear of my headphones in and listening to the most amazing music, which has nothing to do with my today or the place where I am but is raising my spirits all the same.
I think I'll be listening to this a lot for the rest of the year.
This makes me think that it may be an 'Autumn album'. It wouldn't be alone, I listen to the Innocence Mission almost exclusively in Autumn and Winter, they just don't make so much sense in the Summer. I remember walking to work in the snow last February listening to 'Birds of my Neighbourhood' and at that moment it felt like the greatest album ever.
Anyway, this morning something made me want to listen to 'Emily' on the aforementioned 'Ys'. Its funny how songs can sometimes just pop into your head like that.
So, I'm sitting here at work with one ear of my headphones in and listening to the most amazing music, which has nothing to do with my today or the place where I am but is raising my spirits all the same.
I think I'll be listening to this a lot for the rest of the year.
Tuesday 16 October 2007
Radiohead 'In Rainbows'
Tracks and Gigs have been bothered by the postal strike. My copy of the new Beirut album has yet to arrive, despite being posted last Wednesday. Which makes it all the more pleasant that 'In Rainbows' arrived approximately 3 minutes after I ordered it.
I'm not fond of download releases. I like to buy a record or a cd and peruse the sleevenotes whilst listening to it for the first time on my stereo at home. Call me old-fashioned. So, I will buying 'In Rainbows' in a physical format in December and therefore paid 'very little' for this download.
I am also old-fashioned in that I was a huge Radiohead fan up to the point when 'Kid A' was released. Just couldn't get my head around it, where are the songs?? I liked 'Amnesiac' a bit more and 'Hail To The Thief' a bit more still but I basically never stopped hoping they would come back with a 'guitar album'.
I saw them live in 2003 at Earls Court, which is a horrible venue. I'm used to seeing gigs in small venues, not sitting in an aircraft hanger while requiring binoculars to even see the video screen of the band. Possibly the least intimate gig I have ever attended. I also found Radioheard to be awkward. Every time they played a 'Paranoid Android', a 'Let Down' or a 'Just' they would always follow it up with a 'Gloaming' or a 'Scatterbrain'. I can understand why they did it, it just annoyed me.
I have played 'In Rainbows' four or five times so far and it is my favourite Radiohead album since 'OK Computer'. Its not a return to guitar based music or an album of songs with choruses that you can sing along to, but something about it just sounds and feels like a step forward and a raising of the game. '15 Step' and 'Bodysnatchers' open the album in a surprisingly upbeat way, the latter even sounds positively punky. After that a more sedate pace takes hold, but the album is never less than enthralling.
'Nude' is a quite beautiful ballad, 'Weird Fishes' is fast and entertaining and at one point reminds me of 'Planet Telex', 'Faust Arp' is a poppy Beatles-ish number and 'Reckoner' is the best track here, a sublime, woozy thing of great beauty.
For an album released as a download which arrives as separate mp3s, this is a remarkably complete album. Its an album you'll want to play all the way through, because it creates a mood of its own. This sounded great on Friday evening, at the end of a very stressful week and on Sunday morning, in the middle of a relaxing weekend. Its just a great album to listen to.
8.8
I'm not fond of download releases. I like to buy a record or a cd and peruse the sleevenotes whilst listening to it for the first time on my stereo at home. Call me old-fashioned. So, I will buying 'In Rainbows' in a physical format in December and therefore paid 'very little' for this download.
I am also old-fashioned in that I was a huge Radiohead fan up to the point when 'Kid A' was released. Just couldn't get my head around it, where are the songs?? I liked 'Amnesiac' a bit more and 'Hail To The Thief' a bit more still but I basically never stopped hoping they would come back with a 'guitar album'.
I saw them live in 2003 at Earls Court, which is a horrible venue. I'm used to seeing gigs in small venues, not sitting in an aircraft hanger while requiring binoculars to even see the video screen of the band. Possibly the least intimate gig I have ever attended. I also found Radioheard to be awkward. Every time they played a 'Paranoid Android', a 'Let Down' or a 'Just' they would always follow it up with a 'Gloaming' or a 'Scatterbrain'. I can understand why they did it, it just annoyed me.
I have played 'In Rainbows' four or five times so far and it is my favourite Radiohead album since 'OK Computer'. Its not a return to guitar based music or an album of songs with choruses that you can sing along to, but something about it just sounds and feels like a step forward and a raising of the game. '15 Step' and 'Bodysnatchers' open the album in a surprisingly upbeat way, the latter even sounds positively punky. After that a more sedate pace takes hold, but the album is never less than enthralling.
'Nude' is a quite beautiful ballad, 'Weird Fishes' is fast and entertaining and at one point reminds me of 'Planet Telex', 'Faust Arp' is a poppy Beatles-ish number and 'Reckoner' is the best track here, a sublime, woozy thing of great beauty.
For an album released as a download which arrives as separate mp3s, this is a remarkably complete album. Its an album you'll want to play all the way through, because it creates a mood of its own. This sounded great on Friday evening, at the end of a very stressful week and on Sunday morning, in the middle of a relaxing weekend. Its just a great album to listen to.
8.8
Friday 12 October 2007
admin information
TracksandGigs is a Monday-Friday operation. You will find nothing new here at weekends. Just so long as you know.
Next week, I will have reviews of the new Beirut and Jens Lekman records. I buy all the records I review. In the unlikely event of you being a band/record label and wanting me to review your record, please contact me via this blog. Cheers.
Next week, I will have reviews of the new Beirut and Jens Lekman records. I buy all the records I review. In the unlikely event of you being a band/record label and wanting me to review your record, please contact me via this blog. Cheers.
Paul Heaton new songs, gigs
Tracksandgigs will receive no credibility points and certainly will not get a mention in Drowned In Sound or Pitchfork for admitting to a liking for the work of Paul Heaton. But, we don't care.
The Beautiful South may be unfashionable but Heaton is and always has been a superb songwriter and a great singer. I have seen the Beautiful South live on two occasions. The first time was in a very small venue and Heaton was extremely drunk, the second was in a much larger venue and Heaton appeared to be sober. Both gigs were great and unlike some I wasn't bothered by the amount of middle-aged couples wearing matching sweaters at the gigs. Who cares if they know that some of the lyrics are 'ironic'? I have to say I know little of the drug fuelled world of Holly, Gideon and Charlemagne but that doesn't stop me singing along to all the songs when I see The Hold Steady play live. Some people liked TBS because Heaton was a great songwriter and other people liked them because the tunes were nice and easy to listen to and they liked the other singer better because he had a "nicer" voice. It matters not.
Anyway, TBS split up last year due to "musical similarities" but now, as TracksandGigs suspected, Paul Heaton is BACK with a new band, new songs and a tour. Paul is now calling himself Horace Heaton Jr (his mum and dad are Horace and Doris Heaton...) and the new songs sound NOTHING like the Beautiful South, if anything more like the Housemartins. Upbeat, guitar-driven and fresh, this is a very exciting new direction for Heaton.
Hear demos of the songs here:-
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=242459102
Paul, please add a second London date. Cheers.
The Beautiful South may be unfashionable but Heaton is and always has been a superb songwriter and a great singer. I have seen the Beautiful South live on two occasions. The first time was in a very small venue and Heaton was extremely drunk, the second was in a much larger venue and Heaton appeared to be sober. Both gigs were great and unlike some I wasn't bothered by the amount of middle-aged couples wearing matching sweaters at the gigs. Who cares if they know that some of the lyrics are 'ironic'? I have to say I know little of the drug fuelled world of Holly, Gideon and Charlemagne but that doesn't stop me singing along to all the songs when I see The Hold Steady play live. Some people liked TBS because Heaton was a great songwriter and other people liked them because the tunes were nice and easy to listen to and they liked the other singer better because he had a "nicer" voice. It matters not.
Anyway, TBS split up last year due to "musical similarities" but now, as TracksandGigs suspected, Paul Heaton is BACK with a new band, new songs and a tour. Paul is now calling himself Horace Heaton Jr (his mum and dad are Horace and Doris Heaton...) and the new songs sound NOTHING like the Beautiful South, if anything more like the Housemartins. Upbeat, guitar-driven and fresh, this is a very exciting new direction for Heaton.
Hear demos of the songs here:-
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=242459102
Paul, please add a second London date. Cheers.
Wednesday 10 October 2007
"its funny how you remember the summers by the records"
So said Kevin Rowland on 'Reminisce Part 2' and of course he was right.
This Summer (the Summer that never begun) will forever be the Summer when I fell in love with the music of the Hold Steady. 'Boys and Girls in America' will always be the album of this Summer and 2nd July 2007 will forever be remembered for the best gig I have seen so far.
I used to go to lots of gigs but things have changed a bit. I suffer from anxiety and one of the results of this is I worry about sleep. Going to gigs became something that was really difficult to do and I've only been to a few in the last couple of years. Everything was organised perfectly for the Hold Steady gig though- a couple of days off work, we booked a hotel in London quite near to the venue, nothing could go wrong.
And incredibly it didn't.
I had an idea of how amazing it might be to see the band live and I thought I could only be disappointed, it could never quite reach the highs I was imagining. But it was even better. Craig Finn was an unbelievable frontman that night, so full of energy. The songs all sounded great, I sang along as much as I could whilst trying not to draw attention to myself. I got 2 great t shirts. We had a wonderful time and I'll never forget that gig.
Thank you to The Hold Steady. You can't possibly know how much that gig meant to me.
Now I need to have the confidence to have more nights like that.
This Summer (the Summer that never begun) will forever be the Summer when I fell in love with the music of the Hold Steady. 'Boys and Girls in America' will always be the album of this Summer and 2nd July 2007 will forever be remembered for the best gig I have seen so far.
I used to go to lots of gigs but things have changed a bit. I suffer from anxiety and one of the results of this is I worry about sleep. Going to gigs became something that was really difficult to do and I've only been to a few in the last couple of years. Everything was organised perfectly for the Hold Steady gig though- a couple of days off work, we booked a hotel in London quite near to the venue, nothing could go wrong.
And incredibly it didn't.
I had an idea of how amazing it might be to see the band live and I thought I could only be disappointed, it could never quite reach the highs I was imagining. But it was even better. Craig Finn was an unbelievable frontman that night, so full of energy. The songs all sounded great, I sang along as much as I could whilst trying not to draw attention to myself. I got 2 great t shirts. We had a wonderful time and I'll never forget that gig.
Thank you to The Hold Steady. You can't possibly know how much that gig meant to me.
Now I need to have the confidence to have more nights like that.
Buffalo Tom - Three Easy Pieces
Buffalo Tom have been making music for almost twenty years. God, I feel old.
I remember my best friend giving me a tape (cassette tape. look it up on wikipedia kids) of 'Let Me Come Over', Buffalo Tom's third album, released in 1992. I still have the tape for sentimental reasons. I instantly loved the album. 'Let Me Come Over' mastered the quiet/loud/quiet alternative rock sound of the time and featured some killer rockers and some gorgeous ballads. Its a great album to play now if you want to hear how alternative/indie rock sounded in the early 90s. It contained 'Taillights Fade' an anthem of such majesty that I find it hard to believe, even now, that it wasn't a huge hit. Embarrassingly, 18 year old me liked to think the lyrics were about me and Winona Ryder..
"Read a thing about this girl
She was a hermit in her world
Story was much like mine
She could be my valentine
and although we've never met
I won't forget her yet"
Gaaaah! Who didn't have a crush on Winona Ryder in 1992 though?
Anyway, Buffalo Tom were always the bridesmaid and never the bride. Dubbed Dinosaur Jr Jr early in their career they released two superb alt.rock albums ('Let Me Come Over' and 1993's 'Big Red Letter Day') at a time when all anybody wanted to hear was grunge. Then, when they returned in 1995 with 'Sleepy Eyed' a really poppy, catchy collection of upbeat rock songs it was the summer of Britpop and The Tom did not live in a house, a very big house in the country so the album received none of the plaudits it warranted.
After one more album, the subdued 'Smitten' in 1998, nothing more has been heard from them; I assumed they had split up. Vocalist and guitarist Bill Janovitz released a couple of countrified solo albums and bassist and also vocalist (as documeted in the sleeve notes of their Best Of album, he always sings the sensitive ballads) Chris Colbourn worked on various 'projects' and I have no idea what drummer Tom Marginnis was up to. Anyway, now, unbelievably, they are BACK! With a new album and a tour!!
I have lived with this album for a couple of months now because I wanted to get a real feeling for it before writing my thoughts down. I approached the album with some trepedation because, honestly, Buffalo Tom have such a great back catalogue it was hard to know how they could make a new album that could make me want to see them live and hear anything other than all the old stuff.
Well they have. Its like they've never been away. As ever, the album is a mix of rockers and ballads. Chris Colbourn sings more than he used to, its almost 50/50 between him and Bill. The first two tracks are great, catchy rockers that could have been on Sleepy Eyed (great opening line for the album by the way- "I'm gonna draw you in like a bad phone call/ I'm gonna draw you right in" . Buffalo Tom fans- you can just hear Bill singing that line in that gruff, yearning voice of his can't you? Well its as good as it sounds.
Track 3 'You'll Never Catch Him' is a lovely Colbourn ballad but then track 4 really ups the ante. 'Bottom of the Rain' is a very, very fine song indeed. A straight-ahead rocker with some wonderful guitar, it contains a chorus that you will be singing all day long and could be an anthem for the now grown up indie kids of the early 90s...
"Where'd they go?
Where are all those golden years"
Luckily, the album is able to maintain these high standards. There are only a couple of forgettable tracks ('Good Girl' and 'Gravity') and there are some wonderful highs including piano ballad 'Pendleton' and the epic final track 'Thrown' which sounds like it means an awful lot to Bill Janovitz.
I am not sure how many new fans this album will attract ("not Buffalo Tom again", said my girlfriend last night, as I headed towards the stereo), I have a suspicion that you may have "had to have been there" to appreciate how great the Tom were in the early 90s and I am pretty sure that their London gig in December will contain more thirty-somethings than a This Life convention.
Still, if you're a fan you will love this and if you've never heard of the band and are curious, give the new album or 'Let Me Come Over' a try. Pretty sure you won't be disappointed.
9.0
I remember my best friend giving me a tape (cassette tape. look it up on wikipedia kids) of 'Let Me Come Over', Buffalo Tom's third album, released in 1992. I still have the tape for sentimental reasons. I instantly loved the album. 'Let Me Come Over' mastered the quiet/loud/quiet alternative rock sound of the time and featured some killer rockers and some gorgeous ballads. Its a great album to play now if you want to hear how alternative/indie rock sounded in the early 90s. It contained 'Taillights Fade' an anthem of such majesty that I find it hard to believe, even now, that it wasn't a huge hit. Embarrassingly, 18 year old me liked to think the lyrics were about me and Winona Ryder..
"Read a thing about this girl
She was a hermit in her world
Story was much like mine
She could be my valentine
and although we've never met
I won't forget her yet"
Gaaaah! Who didn't have a crush on Winona Ryder in 1992 though?
Anyway, Buffalo Tom were always the bridesmaid and never the bride. Dubbed Dinosaur Jr Jr early in their career they released two superb alt.rock albums ('Let Me Come Over' and 1993's 'Big Red Letter Day') at a time when all anybody wanted to hear was grunge. Then, when they returned in 1995 with 'Sleepy Eyed' a really poppy, catchy collection of upbeat rock songs it was the summer of Britpop and The Tom did not live in a house, a very big house in the country so the album received none of the plaudits it warranted.
After one more album, the subdued 'Smitten' in 1998, nothing more has been heard from them; I assumed they had split up. Vocalist and guitarist Bill Janovitz released a couple of countrified solo albums and bassist and also vocalist (as documeted in the sleeve notes of their Best Of album, he always sings the sensitive ballads) Chris Colbourn worked on various 'projects' and I have no idea what drummer Tom Marginnis was up to. Anyway, now, unbelievably, they are BACK! With a new album and a tour!!
I have lived with this album for a couple of months now because I wanted to get a real feeling for it before writing my thoughts down. I approached the album with some trepedation because, honestly, Buffalo Tom have such a great back catalogue it was hard to know how they could make a new album that could make me want to see them live and hear anything other than all the old stuff.
Well they have. Its like they've never been away. As ever, the album is a mix of rockers and ballads. Chris Colbourn sings more than he used to, its almost 50/50 between him and Bill. The first two tracks are great, catchy rockers that could have been on Sleepy Eyed (great opening line for the album by the way- "I'm gonna draw you in like a bad phone call/ I'm gonna draw you right in" . Buffalo Tom fans- you can just hear Bill singing that line in that gruff, yearning voice of his can't you? Well its as good as it sounds.
Track 3 'You'll Never Catch Him' is a lovely Colbourn ballad but then track 4 really ups the ante. 'Bottom of the Rain' is a very, very fine song indeed. A straight-ahead rocker with some wonderful guitar, it contains a chorus that you will be singing all day long and could be an anthem for the now grown up indie kids of the early 90s...
"Where'd they go?
Where are all those golden years"
Luckily, the album is able to maintain these high standards. There are only a couple of forgettable tracks ('Good Girl' and 'Gravity') and there are some wonderful highs including piano ballad 'Pendleton' and the epic final track 'Thrown' which sounds like it means an awful lot to Bill Janovitz.
I am not sure how many new fans this album will attract ("not Buffalo Tom again", said my girlfriend last night, as I headed towards the stereo), I have a suspicion that you may have "had to have been there" to appreciate how great the Tom were in the early 90s and I am pretty sure that their London gig in December will contain more thirty-somethings than a This Life convention.
Still, if you're a fan you will love this and if you've never heard of the band and are curious, give the new album or 'Let Me Come Over' a try. Pretty sure you won't be disappointed.
9.0
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