Do Some Air Guitar

The new Blitzen Trapper album, which came out a few weeks ago, might just be the best album of 2008. No, this is not a joke. It is seriously amazing. I've always thought they were pretty good, and I was a big fan of Wild Mountain Nation, but on Furr they've taken huge leaps forward in terms of consistency and style. Better production, better variety, better pacing, better lyrics. They're daring to sound almost normal on some tracks - I know, most bands don't dare to sound normal, but then again BT is not a normal band. And most importantly, every song is astoundingly good, stuffed with hooks but never predictable. Have a listen:

Gold For Bread - Blitzen Trapper
From Furr (2008)

This song is Beck meets Lynyrd Skynyrd, and is just intensely, deliriously delightful. It's like they took three really good songs and proceeded to smush all of them together in one crazy schizophrenic package. Favorite parts: that amazing lead guitar tone, the twittering synths, the bits where he sings falsetto, and of course the hilarious nonsense lyrics.

Furr - Blitzen Trapper

The lead single, straight up Dylan pastiche. But it's stunning! Spare and simple, lovely melody, and words that actually carry a message and sound good doing it. First rate. If this band ever break through, it'll be on the strength of this one, and it will be fully deserved.

Saturday Nite - Blitzen Trapper

Tricks you into thinking it's a throwaway until you listen again and hear the 3 bajillion catchy parts squeezed into its meager two minutes (the last half of which is a completely untouchable outro). Goofy fun. I might even regret saying this, but this song reminds me, of all things, of STEELY DAN, Pretzel Logic-era. Not in terms of tone, obviously, but - the keybords, the major 7th chords, the brilliant pivots in terms of song structure, the ultra-smooth clavinet solo in the middle, the agility and accuracy of the sound. I don't know, maybe it's just me. Decide for yourself.

We Won't Be Undersold

Working Full-Time - Constantines
From Tournament of Hearts (2005)

Sometimes it takes just one little musical element to push a song over the dividing line between really good and truly great. In this song, it comes at 1:50.

These guys are seriously underrated, and put on a hell of a live show.

Shot Down - The Sonics
From Boom (1966)

If you don't know the Sonics, they're one of those bands who vie in the hearts of critics for that ever esteemed and pointless title of First Punk Band (along with the MC5, the Who, the Stooges, et al.). To my ears, they pretty much sound like the Who if the Who 1. were from Seattle, 2. were slightly worse musicians, and 3. only wrote songs like The Ox. This still adds up to pretty god damn ruthless. There's no question in my mind that in 1965, this band was the hardest rocking group in America.

This song has some serious heft, and it throws itself around liberally. The machine-gun-fire drum fill in this song is so, so satisfying.

Rawk

L'auberge du Sanglier/A Hunting We Shall Go/Pengola/Backwards - Caravan
From For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night (1973)

Not much to say about this one - just that I love prog rock, especially that of the epic and melodic variety. The violin kills on here, and that orchestral section, combined with those synths . . . mmm. Delicious.

One day I might do a good post on the Canterbury Scene - I listened to a bunch of it this summer. All those bands seem unjustly neglected, in my opinion.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, "L'auberge du Sanglier" means "Wild Boar Inn," as best as I can tell. As for "Pengola," I have no idea.

Secretly Wishing For Rain

September – David Sylvian
From Secrets of the Beehive (1987)

This song is appropriate for obvious reasons, but it’s also a very personal favorite. For me, this is the ultimate in “atmosphere over melody.” I mean, there’s really no tune to speak of in this song, just clever vocal twists and turns. Normally, mood alone isn’t enough for me to really sink my teeth into.

But what a mood! Everything is so perfectly placed – Sylvian’s voice, crooning and mysterious and playful and uneasy; lyrics that feel like a haiku; the piano, like brown leaves gently falling from the trees; those strings creeping in, so wonderfully inobtrusive, like a memory slowly remembered. My favorite bit – those last piano notes. They’re a musical semicolon, like pressing pause on the vcr, turning that movie into a photograph for just a little while. This is all in 78 seconds!

Note: This has to be the most pretentious thing I’ve ever written. I’ll try harder, I promise.

Happy Birthday To Me

When Yer Twenty Two - The Flaming Lips
From Transmissions From The Satellite Heart (1993)

Gravitate

Jitterakadie - Death Vessel
Exploded View - Death Vessel
Both from Nothing is Precious Enough for Us (2008)

I enjoy a great number and variety of folk songs, but I enjoy my folk music the absolute most served one of two ways: 1. Inordinately jubilant and clear as crystal, or 2. Totally fucking apocalyptic. Luckily, Death Vessel had the foresight to include one of each on their (excellent) new album that was released last week. The former song makes me smile; the latter makes me shiver.

This band is a happy new discovery for me. Their songs are thoughtful, well written, and terrifically arranged. Joel Thibodeau's alto-tenor vocals (yes, that's a dude singing) are mesmerizing - as unique as Joanna Newsom's voice, but with a more immediate beauty. I have a soft spot for pure voices - the cleaner, the better - and I've never heard a more spotless tone and delivery than what he provides here.

An interesting aside: This band now joins my roster of "Bands with awesome-yet-deceptive Death Metal band names." The list so far:

The Grateful Dead
King Crimson
Smog
Murder By Death
My Bloody Valentine
Styx
Meat Puppets
Primal Scream
Black Mountain
Destroyer
Dead Can Dance
War
Death Vessel

Any additions or revisions would be appreciated.

All I Hear Is Music

In the Wilderness (Rough Mix) - Genesis
From Genesis Archive 1967-75 (1998)

It's no secret that Genesis is my favorite band of all time*. I think that trying to explain the why and how of it would probably be pointless - I can't even fully justify it to myself anymore. Genuine love of the music mixes with nostalgia and the feeling of discovery in such a powerful way that they become inseparable, forming themselves into my musical DNA. I suspect that this isn't uncommon for most people with regards to their favorite band - thus the Backstreet Boys embark on their seventh tour. Genesis are admittedly a weird band for a kid to latch on to - it's just that when most 13 year olds in 2000 were listening to Nirvana, Eminem, and Creed, I was listening to 70s prog-rock. Thanks, dad.

But anyway, I was paying my audio-tithe to Gabriel and co. recently when I stumbled across this gem. It's a demo from their first album, From Genesis to Revelation, released in 1969 when the oldest band member was 18. As you might imagine, it's a pretty crappy album - made worse by an idiot producer who decided that overdubbing horns and strings onto pretentious, amateurish songs would give 'em some real pizzazz (it didn't). Luckily, the version on the terrific Genesis box set has a stripped down and far superior version.

Ignore the lyrics please - they're pure silliness. Just enjoy a lovely song by a bunch of young kids on summer break, played with palpable enthusiasm and intimacy, and topped off by a minor miracle of a chorus.

*Peter Gabriel-era

Run Devil Run

I've recently decided to start running again - my end of summer ennui usually results in a brief period of physical exertion, cut short by a crippling combination of school and terrible weather. Still, I like pretending to be in shape. This all leads to the rather interesting question: what to music to run to?

I first tried on Arthur by the Kinks. BAD IDEA. It's a great album, but . . . not terribly motivating. Or kickass. Granted, I should have realized that 1969 concept albums by rock/music hall hybrid bands might not make a great jogging soundtrack. Oh well.

That's when I remembered that LCD Soundsystem, aka James Murphy, teamed up with Nike awhile back and created a long format track specifically for this purpose. So here it is, all 46 glorious minutes of it.

45:33 by LCD Soundsystem (2006)

Running while listening to this for the first time was AWESOME. I've never been a huge LCDS fan (despite having seen them live - best concert I've ever attended) - you see, I'm a pop type of guy, and they're firmly in the dance/electro camp. But I now realize that, if you can't dance, you need to be running when you listen to them - physically involved in the sound, but not distracted to the point of ignoring it altogether. A boring 8 minute shuffle becomes hypnotic. I actually ran about 20 yards past where I usually turn - it was that involving.

I had forgotten how well Murphy knows his way around constructing a compelling beat, and how he's one of the few guys who can inject these grooves and workouts with real pop hooks - check out the glockenspiel in the 12th minute if you don't believe me - not to mention a sense of humor. This piece holds up well to anything Can or Parliament (or whoever) put out. Listen to this song on your iPod and walk around to the beat - you will feel like the greatest P.I.M.P. in the galaxy.

Oh, and I ran the 1.57 mile loop around my apartment (thank you Google Maps) in 16:17. Keep in mind that there were stoplights. And the end is all uphill. And I stopped at an ATM.

Sigh.

To Be Young (Is to Be Sad, Is to Be High)

New Romantic - Laura Marling
From My Manic And I EP (2008)

I had thought I would have so much to say about this song, but I'm finding writing a struggle today. So, I leave you with this:

1. Laura Marling is 18.
2. With this song, she simultaneously name-checks Ryan Adams and eclipses his entire solo output.
3. If I were still in high school I'd be listening to this song 5 times a day (as opposed to the twice a day I'm averaging now).

C'mon Get Happy

While I was looking through the songs I've posted so far, I realized that this blog is full of tunes that are seriously aching, plaintive, mellow, soul-searching, etc., and not many that are, y'know, upbeat. I dunno, I guess those are just the kinds of songs I've been attracted to lately - I can only wonder what my therapist would think. Anyway, since I have even more downers in the pipeline, I figured I'd mix it up a bit and try to stay! positive! today!.

Learnin' To Love - Ween
From La Cucaracha (2007)

I'm an unabashed Ween fan. Dangerous, I know - they're a band that seem to inspire either fanatic devotion or all-consuming loathing, depending on your tolerance of poop jokes and the effects of Scotchguard on the nervous system. I, for one, believe them to be technical wizards, unparalleled stylistic chameleons, and some of the foremost melodists of our generation. Plus, songs about squelching weasels are just hilarious.

This one is from their newest album, which for some reason just kinda came and went without anyone seeming to give a crap. One hundred and forty six seconds side-splitting smile-inducing silliness, and a hook that any Nashville native would kill for. Doo-ba-lep, doo-ba-lep, doo-ba-lep . . .

This Here Giraffe - The Flaming Lips
From Clouds Taste Metallic (1995)

I love the Lips, but here's the thing: I can almost never listen to just one song alone. Their albums are like little psychedelic ecosystems - all the parts support each other, building an entire experience for you. Listening to one of their songs out of context is, more often than not, a disorienting letdown. I need time to enter their universe.

This Here Giraffe is one of those happy exceptions to the rule above (along with She Don't Use Jelly, Buggin', and, of course, Do You Realize). I dare you not to smile while you listen to this song. That wonderful goofy bassline. That dancing guitar, playing hide and seek with you. And of course the chorus: "This here giraffe . . . laughed." That's the whole chorus. Man, if that don't put a grin on your face, it's time to renew your prescription.

Kiwis

Miss These Things - The Bats
From Daddy's Highway (1987)

Between the Lord of the Rings movies (meh), Whale Rider (mmm), and Flight of the Conchords (yay) New Zeland has gone through a bit of a pop-cultural renaissance these last few years. But ho! I say. Pray allow me to direct your attention to The Bats, a band 25 (25!) years old from Christchurch, and the best thing since Dame Kiri.

This isn't the best song on their first album, but it's my favorite one. I've never heard a song's chorus sound simultaneously so humble and so epic. It really has no business being as good as it is - but hey, as a former co-worker of mine used to say, my hands are tied. This song will cool you off in the summer and warm you up in the winter.

P.S. - You know, I've always wondered where the "Old Zeland" was that prompted the New tag. Well, thanks to the almighty Wiki my question has been answered - it's Zeeland in the Netherlands. Not Zealand in Denmark however! Take note - there will be a quiz.

Rondeau

Rose, liz, printemps, verdure - Guillaume de Machaut
c. 1350

Goin' a little old-school for this one. Guillaume de Machaut (c. 1300 - 1377) was a Medieval French composer and was generally acknowledged to be the "go-to guy" when it came to music in the 14th century. Reasons he was awesome:

1. He set his own poems to music, and was renowned as a great poet as well as a great composer.
2. He wrote the earliest Mass on record, the Messe de Nostre Dame (which is totally stunning).
3. His music is almost always beautiful while remaining extremely prickly. To my knowledge, only Machaut and Bach could write music as aesthetically pleasing as it is intricate.

I wish I could ramble on forever about the brilliant complexity of this piece. I wish I could, but I can't - mainly due to the fact that I have no idea what's going on musically. I ain't a slouch when it comes to music theory, but medieval theory is utterly beyond me. So, if anyone wants to give me a hand with hexachords, Guidonian hands, and musica ficta, well, you know where to find me. Anyway . . .

This rondeau in particular struck me immediately with that terrific lilting melody that kicks it off. The 4 voices criss-cross like crazy, singing countermelodies and counter-countermelodies . . . ah, my brain hurts just thinking about it. But it's beautiful! That's the crazy thing. Once you get those funky Middle Age harmonies in your ear, you realize just how lush and haunting and glorious the sound really is.

And the lyrics are perfect - simple and lovely, having aged stunningly well. Here's a translation:

Rose, liz, printemps, verdure.

Fleur, baume et tres douce odour.
Belle, passes en doucour.
Et tous les biens de Nature
Avez, dont je vous aour.

Rose, liz, printemps, verdure.
Fleur, baume et tres douce odour;
Et quant toute creature
Seurmonte vostre valour.
Bien puis dire et par honnour:

Rose, liz, printemps, verdure.
Fleur, baume et tres douce odour.
Belle, passes en doucour.



Rose, lily, spring, greenery.
Flower, balm and sweetest perfume
Beauty, you surpass them in sweetness.
And all the gifts of nature
You have, for which I adore you.

Rose, lily, spring, greenery.
Flower, balm and sweetest perfume
And since all creatures
You surpass in worth
I must say in all honor:

Rose, lily, spring, greenery.
Flower, balm and sweetest perfume
Beauty, you surpass them in sweetness.

I think Guillaume must have been getting all the 14th century honeys with stuff like that.

Eamus Catuli

Cubs in Five - The Mountain Goats
From Nine Black Poppies (1995)

This is the kind of song that makes me just love, love, love John Darnielle. Being funny and heartbroken all at once is a task most songwriters find impossible; here it comes across as simply effortless. Two minutes of bliss.

But hey, the Bucs did win Super Bowl XXXVII, and the Cubs are up 5 in the NL Central, so who knows? Maybe John has a shot after all.

Songs Without Words

Stephanie - Lindsey Buckingham
From Buckingham Nicks (1973)

Denise at 16 - Al Stewart
From Bed-Sitter Images (1967)

I think these songs both aim to capture the same sentiment; if not that of a first love, then a love of exceeding novelty and sweetness. They're both acoustic instrumentals, they're both from their respective artists' first albums, and they both make me feel . . . wistful? Bittersweet? I can't find the right word, but it's an extraordinary emotion. Sometimes lyrics are simply unnecessary - what words could create the moods of these songs? I also wonder about the title characters, what they look like, how they act - perhaps Stephanie is a little more bubbly, and Denise a little more coy.

Stephanie is from Buckingham before he joined Fleetwood Mac, off of his and Stevie Nicks's album (still unreleased on CD!). Denise is from Stewart before he achieved his limited fame in the 70's playing "historical storytelling" songs - a decision I wish he hadn't made. Songs about Sir Richard Grenville and Jean-Paul Marat can be fun, but from a songwriter of his calibre I prefer a tender song about a pretty girl. Sufjan Stevens, you'd be wise to listen.

Silver and Gold

Well-Heeled Men - Josephine Foster & The Supposed
From All The Leaves Are Gone (2004)

Sounds like: Vashti Bunyan + Incredible String Band + Jefferson Airplane + Weird. Be not afraid of the weird - there are layers of awesome hidden underneath.

My favorite part (guilty as I am to admit it) is that awesome section after the first chorus, with the snare drum and the triumphant/menacing guitar, like the title characters marching into hell.

Any Time Is A Good Time For Being With You

This is the right song at the right time.

This Heart Is A Stone - Acid House Kings
From Sing Along with Acid House Kings (2005)

Rob Halford + Words = Fail

48 hours ago, my knowledge of Judas Priest consisted of the following:

1. "You've Got Another Thing Coming" is a great song
2. "Breaking The Law" is a fun song
3. Lots of people like them, and
4. Their lead singer, Rob Halford, is gay (notable only in context of his hyper-macho surroundings).

Figuring there was no time like the present to familiarize myself with these iron titans of metallic might (note to self: no more metaphors ever) I went out and got British Steel, their classic album from 1980. After repeated listens my conclusion is as follows: they're not very good. I mean, the singing and shredding is more than proficient, but the songs are, for the most part, forgettable and the riffs sound like they were all written in the same afternoon.

However, one track in particular stood out to me as a worthy candidate for a feature post here, a song by the name of "Rapid Fire." First off, musically this song is one of the better ones on the album. It sounds exaaaaactly like "Ace of Spades" by Motorhead (not featured here due to a rule I just made up: if a song is in Guitar Hero, it isn't featured here) but slightly worse in every department. Still, "Rapid Fire" came out half a year before that song did, so you gotta give Priest at least some credit - it's pretty thunderous, the solos in the third verse pack some serious whoopass, and Halford's yell at the end is truly blood-curdling.

But the music is not what grabs me here, oh no no no. The lyrics. The lyyyyyyyrics. Oh my god. I mean, I don't normally ask a lot from metal lyrics - generally anything that mentions death and swords and fire and motorcycles will suffice, bonus points for Tolkien references - but this song . . . it enters a whole new realm of awesome stupidity. I think I'm intrigued most by the weird mixture of lines that actually do kinda work followed by lines that are so absurd they border on surreal. I'll point out my favorites and leave it to you to enjoy the rest.

Rapid Fire - Judas Priest
From British Steel (1980)

• "Forging the furnace for the final grand slam" - Uh oh. Firstly, forging the furnace? What? Isn't this kind of like saying "digging the shovel" or "running the feet" . . . or something? Also, the phrase grand slam only look slightly out of place until you realize that they don't have baseball in the UK, which then makes it look reaaaly weird. What sort of grand slam are they referring to, exactly? My money's on the one in contract bridge.
• "Leaving a trail of destruction that's second to none" - Hm, this is what I meant before. "Trail of destruction" is very appropriate. But "second to none"? Are Judas Priest trying to sell me a car or something? I don't think trails of destruction are easily compared and contrasted, anyway.
• "Shattering blows crashing browbeating fright" - Browbeating. Correct me if I'm wrong here, but I always figured that word meant mild intimidation, as in: I was browbeaten by the chess club president into playing the 3rd board. Whatever, it's practically Shakespeare when placed next to this one . . .
• "Fast devastating and desolisating the curse" - Yes. You read correctly. Desolisating. Rob Halford made up a word in his song. I assume he meant "desolating" or something like that, but . . . I just stare in awe at this line. I tip my cap to it. I salute it. Congratulations, Judas Priest; thanks to you the English language has indeed reached a new nadir. Never before has subtraction by addition been made so painfully clear.
  
• Oh whatever, I can't even bring myself to look at the third verse after that. Have fun with the rest of the song. If you need to reach me, I'll be bludgeoning myself unconscious with Samuel Johnson's dictionary.

*Extra-Super-Special Bonus Video: Observe how High on Fire handle the aforementioned problem: incoherent yelling!

The Blacksmith

I'm going to give this site another try, I think. It's summer, I'm alone, I'm bored, and I'm listening to lots of music. So: Time to impose my obsessions on an unsuspecting (and nonexistent) public.

The Blacksmith is a traditional English folk song, around for a while but first written down by my homeboy Ralph Vaughan Williams*. I like folk and folk rock a lot, and realized today that I have 3 versions of this song, so I thought I'd do a little compare and contrast action.

First off, the song itself rules; check out the uneven lyrical lines of six and five alternating syllables, the weird shifting time signature, and that haunting melody. As far as the lyrics go it's a pretty straightforward tale of unrequited love. The one line that's always intrigued me is

And if I was with my love
I would do my duty

I wonder what duty she's referring to here. Maybe I'm just a moron. Anyway, on to the songs.

The Blacksmith - Steeleye Span
From Hark! The Village Wait (1970)

• Steeleye Span is one of my favorite folk rock groups - mainly due to lead singer Maddy Prior, who has an ability to blend a gutsy delivery with a really beautiful tone.
• For me, though, the hero of this version is bassist Ashley Hutchings (formerly of Fairport Convention) - his playing is like a gliding counter-melody throughout the song, and he gives this version a real smoothness.
• Also, pay attention to the tricky drumming. Count along, I dare you.
• This version has a real cool groove to it, which I like. But all told, I think it's my least favorite of the three.

The Blacksmith - Steeleye Span
From Please to See the King (1971)

• Yup, they recorded a second version a year later, and it couldn't be more different. Slower and waaaay creepier. Between these albums Span lost some people and gained some others - most notably . . .
  
• Martin Carthy on guitar. Check out that gorgious, chilling chiming sound he makes in the beginning. Awesome.
• Oh hoh, there are also no drums on this version, leaving it to Maddy to guide the song with her vocals. I get the impression that she's really playing her character in the song instead of just telling us the story.
• Other things to note - screechy violin solo, way way cool a cappella breaks, eerie organ drone after the first verse.

The Blacksmith - Planxty
From Planxty (1973)

• Here's a straight up Irish folk angle on the song, and while that first version swings and the second one echoes, this one jangles.
• Man, the picking here is just tremendous. The mandolin is all in the left channel, and the bouzouki (yup, the bouzouki) is all in the right, which really lets you hear the manic interplay between the two.
• Is that a bagpipe you hear come in at 3:20? If Planxty were Scottish, yes. Since they're Irish, you get uilleann pipes.
• And you've just got to love that instrumental break at the end. The players start in on this cool melody completely separate from the rest of the song, and then the drums kick in . . . it's very nice.
• See them play it live here.
  

I'd love to hear what anyone thinks.

*Just for those who may not know, pronounced "Ray-f." Crazy English people.

Elna Baker