Bon Iver, Bon Iver

I've been waiting for this for quite a while now, and NPR has it available through their First Listen. Bon Iver's second, self-titled, LP!

I think music can be appealing for many reasons, but you usually connect to something because it hits you in a personal way. For me, this album's fatefulness is almost too much. Justin Vernon, Bon Iver's main man, is Mr. Wisconsin, and this record, just like his last, has it literally written all over it. America's Dairyland isn't particularly known for it's production of musical prodigies (other than This Man), but JV does us proud!

I'll spare you the emotional sap that I can write here and just tell you to listen to the record, a couple times through for best results. But make sure you know the lyrics...Justin wants you to know what he's singing.

Weekend, Sports

This album would have landed squarely within the top 15 of my "Best Albums of '10" list had I been ambitious enough to follow through before the stroke of midnight on December 31st.

Instead, I'll just tell you about it now.

I'm still a bit confused about the title; Jock Jams this is not. The entire length of Sports is full of droney, space rock. Joy Division and Interpol are a couple bands I'd liken Weekend's sound to. Weekend's strongest components are its rhythm elements. Prominent and melodic bass lines and lots of drums. Vocals and guitars are used mostly as additional layers of sound.

I've listened to this album at different times, and I've found it to have an odd chameleonic effect. When I'm in a crappy mood, Sports echoes my sorrow, and when I'm feeling optimistic, the album has been uplifting (unlike the Antlers, whose music just depresses me no matter what).

Additional note: if you like to listen to music while bathing, this stuff is perfect...above- and below-water aural differences seem to be minimal, ha!

Fin de 2010

Always proving to be more difficult than anticipated, here is my personal "End of Year, Best of" list. Because I'm all for instant gratification and I hate suspense, I'm beginning with my ultimate fave album of 2010 and I'm just going down the list sequentially until I get bored.



1. Arcade Fire, the Suburbs: Before its summer release, this album was being hailed as indie rock's most hotly anticipated album. Do I hate being predictable? Yes. Is this album fantastic? Yes. Win Butler, Regine Chassagne, and Co. don't set the bar low. The album's a concept: childhood life in suburban America (Win grew up in Houston). While ambitious to the core, the Suburbs still manages to hit emotional cords on a tiny and intimate level. Taken one at a time, the songs are like miniature vignettes, and when woven together, they create a grand, sweeping tapestry. I feel like I'm waxing uber poetic on this one, but I think that's Arcade Fire's point. They make you feel something, even if its just the lumpiness of your ponytail hitting the headrest while you bounce your head to the vibrant beat of "Ready to Start." http://thewildernessdowntown.com/

2. The Black Keys, Brothers: The Black Keys have a surprisingly deep catalogue for a band that's only been around since 2001. Brothers is the sixth full-length release by the band, and the first to hit real mainstream success; production by Danger Mouse is largely responsible for the latter feat. This time around, the Black Keys' usually heavy-handed blues rock is lightened up with readily accessible pop and Motown sounds. The result is a fantastically catchy album with not a throwaway track to be found. As I've said, I'd be just fine being Dan Auerbach's Ex Girl. http://pitchfork.com/tv/%23/musicvideo/8911-the-black-keys-next-girl-nonesuch

3. Yeasayer, Odd Blood: Released at the beginning of the year, this album could have been easy to overlook for a "Year's Best" list. But no way, it's just too great. While not explicitly an album about heartbreak, it is funny how certain sounds and lyrics can remind one of certain places, people, and emotions. This record is an interesting amalgam of many sounds from many places; specifically, Indian instrumentation cloaked in a blankie of chillwave and weird. When I listen to Yeasayer these days, I find myself reflected in Kristen Bell's character from the "Madder Red" video: burying those boogery, bloody, hairy pet rocks. http://pitchfork.com/tv/%23/musicvideo/8528-yeasayer-madder-red-secretly-canadian


4. Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. So it is with Kanye. The man spews shit, then he produces pure gold. While his ego is almost repulsive enough to make you ignore him completely, the music he makes is undeniably fresh and creative. Add to that equal parts controversy and celebrity quest spots, and you have a mega-hit of a record. Pitchfork gave MBDTF a 10.0 (almost unheard of), and while I give the Chi connection significant weight in that review, the album flows, well, beautifully, with every track catchier than the last. It really is an enjoyable album to listen to, and at least Kanye has enough self-perspective to know he's a jerk.

5. Janelle Monae, the ArchAndroid: Upon first listening to the ArchAndroid, I was strongly reminded of the Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Less of an MC and more of a singing whirling dervish, Janelle's first full-length release is diverse, long, and ambitious; we're talking 18 tracks revolving loosely around the story of a messianic android sent through time to rescue her people. That idea was lost on me as I listened to the music, and instead found myself awed by the beauty of Janelle's voice and the pure strangeness of the album's progression (in a good way). She goes from wailing over Big Boi's rap in "Tightrope" to sounding like a futuresque Sleeping Beauty singing about leaving her underpants in "Wondaland." Absolute fave track of the album, and possibly my #1 song of the year is "Cold War," with a bassline lifted right from under Outkast's "Bombs Over Baghdad" and a disarming one-take video to match. http://www.jmonae.com/video/cold-war-music-video/

6. Woods, At Echo Lake: 2010 was a year full of retro sounds...surf rock and psychadelia ga-lore! And if I had to hand out an award to my favorite throwback album of the year, Woods would get it. I don't have a problem with artists paying homage to their infuences, but I do have difficulty listening to a record that doesn't acknowledge like 5 decades-worth of musical evolution. This is where Woods gets it right. The band is heavy-handed with the Neil Young emulation, and At Echo Lake is heaped with Byrds-y guitar lines and harmonies. However, their sound does give way to more current inspiration. Listen to "Time Fading Lines," and you can hear the Shins taken to a 60's psych-folk field filled with lavender and willow trees (at least that's what I get).

7. Darkstar, North: Darkstar is my darkhorse this year. I probably wouldn't have even known about this electro duo's release if it were not for NPR's "First Listen." Listen I did, and love as well. Darkstar is signed to Hyperdub records, which is a lable that reads acts like a who's who of the glitchy, dance club sound. On this go-round, Darkstar slow down and smooth out the frenetic pace. It's an electronic album no doubt, but a finely tuned and chilled out one at that. Listening to songs like"Aidy's Girl is a Computer," "Deadness," or "Gold" puts me in a hyper-aware state of calm, kinda like I'm a passenger on a high-speed train sitting with a mug of chamomile tea in my hands. https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQJE-hUlvUVMUUQu_JQwPacXr5tC3QYY0Gxb6cgxnfypE2HOtZk51VbfuY9hKcndHUCXP8KPT2UCaRqK_5CeCYjXYrqWyS2AA0BI7WH3uA2nB5wQisMTiUILBFNNWaSDTuqOTMiCINzSM/s200/DarkstarNorth.jpg" />

Under Byen, "Unoder"

Obsessed with this video:



Under Byen is a Danish post rock band with something like 11 members. Translated, their name means "Under the City," fitting for their otherworldly sound, which is ironically produced using fairly traditional instruments like piano and strings. Absent is any sort of guitar and minimal digital sampling. Beautiful.

Salem

Ugh, so I totally should have written about this band a week and a half ago when the time was totally apropos (I feel the need to "sleep on" my music, or something). Instead, I'm writing about Salem's King Night well over a week post-Halloween. Oh well, it's still a great album.

So this band is highly electro, with hardly a human sound to be found on the entire thing. It's all time-warped beats, Gothic-style chants, down-revved raps, and skittery samples. I knew I loved this music from the first listen...I heard it on the radio and remembered the band's name, only to find I had noted them on a sticky note months before. Salem is at the forefront of a Chillwave sub-genre (thanks pretentious Indie rock) sometimes called Witch House, Ghostwave, or Reapgaze...I get a huge kick out of these names, by the way.

I tried to understand what it was that caught my immediate attention regarding bands that have this very distinctive sound, and came to the conclusion that I'm reminded of dreaming. Kind of like those flying or paralysis dreams where you can't seem to control your movements and everything seems oddly slowed-down. That's how I'd describe Salem's creepy sound.

A little more research, by way of SiruisXMU and the NY Times, I gained some insight into the fittingly dark origins of this sub-genre. DJ Screw was a hip-hop pioneer of the "chop and screw" style of record spinning at clubs back in the 90's. He'd spin a record at a pace so sluggish, it resembled the liquid consistency of prescription-grade cough syrup, which was, and continues to be, a popular mode of intoxication for many hip-hop clubbers. DJ Screw ended up dying ten years ago of a Codeine overdose, but the influence of his sound is more present than ever (read this great article to see what I'm talking about: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/07/arts/music/07witch.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&emc=eta1).

Listen to a few Salem tracks here:

"King Night"

http://www.aquariusrecords.org/audio/salemknghtking.m3u

"Trapdoor"

http://www.aquariusrecords.org/audio/salemknghttrap.m3u

The Hold Steady, live

One of the best shows I've been to this year, and what a way to open up what has turned out to be a month full of live music! The Hold Steady played at the Vic on October 1 (I'm three weeks late in writing about it) and what a great show they put on! But what makes a concert so memorable? I think the answer boils down to several criteria, and they all have to align to create a great and memorable live experience.

A. The band has to be into it! The Hold Steady are known for their relentless touring and they have quite clearly grown comfortable with playing to a live audience night after night for months on end. However, their show was anything but routine for concert-goers; their stage presence was great and they looked like they were really having fun up on stage. The above picture was not taken by me, but, I assure you, Craig Finn really does move, wave, and gesture like that the entire time.

B. The right tunes need to be played. Sometimes artists play new material or their personal faves in lieu of what they know fans crave to hear. The Hold Steady did a great job of incorporating songs from a smattering of their collection. They also played the stuff that gets the crowd moving. "Chips Ahoy!"was a personal fave, and the 4-song encore and mini jam was a nice way to close out the show.

C. The right friends. It's always fun to go to shows with a group of friends, but sometimes it can be difficult to keep everyone together--some people want to be close to the stage, others want to hang back, others make frequent drink/bathroom trips. I went with Murph; we stayed in a spot with a good view, and we were quite content to just chill and listen (I think I may have gone to the bathroom once though). An unexpected bonus was the predominance of male attendees...we were two chicks in a sea of boys, yay!

D. Miscellaneous. Factors like the temperature of the venue, the behavior of the crowd, and the ambiance of the hall/arena/room all contribute to overall satisfaction or disappointment. Also, psychological well-being is important; when I get to a show thinking "Poo, these heels hurt," I know it's gonna be a long concert. I'd much rather go in thinking "Woohoo, Hoegaarden on tap!"

She's an Iconic Artist

And her name is Britney Spears. Those titular words were spoken by none other than the luckiest/most recognizable manager in recent pop music history: Larry Rudolph. To quote him fully, "She's an iconic artist...she's like Madonna. She's here to stay." While the first part of that statement is certainly true, I hope with all my heart that Brit is here to stay.

However, when I first read that bit, I found my emotions flickering between excitement and embarrassment. Why am I so sheepish about my love for Britney?...I mean, I'm not really; all of my best friends know that my iTunes contains a nearly complete archive of her musical catalogue. Yet, I am always initially hesitant to admit this.

Perhaps it's the pop-readiness/sell-out factor of her work...perhaps it's her 2007 head shaving incident...perhaps it's her cringe-inducing usage of the English language. But all of these things end up making her more likable, more relatable, and more human.

The woman is clearly business savvy, as she's been THE pop princess since 1998's "Baby One More Time." She has, albeit errantly, steered her career in the most lucrative of directions. Everyone wants to work with her, and we all want to be her too. She's one of the world's biggest celebrities, and she's been that way for over a decade. She's fought personal demons while the world watched, only to come back with another chart-topping record...and another.

It's easy to find celebrities otherworldly: they're incredibly beautiful, really rich, and driven by Texas-sized ambition. But, for some reason, Britney still seems kinda like the girlfriend who always has your back. Perhaps it's her very human missteps that make her seem real...I mean, who hasn't wanted to crack an umbrella through a windshield?...it's just that Britney CAN.

To drive home my point of Ms. Spears' appropriate place atop the pop-cultural mountain, here's what she's workin' with:

• 100 million album sales world-wide
• Estimated net worth of $150 million
• Production by the likes of Bloodshy & Avant, Max Martin, the Neptunes, Moby, and the Outsyders.
• Total concert performances entertaining more than 10 million spectators
• Really toned legs

Alexander, "Truth"

Been waiting weeks for this! Alexander is Alex Ebert a.k.a. Edward Sharpe

Of Montreal, "Sex Karma"

Catch a filmed performance of Of Montreal's "Sex Karma" featuring Beyonce's lil sis, Solange.




http://pitchfork.com/tv/%23/episode/2826-of-montreal/1

Deerhunter, "Helicopter"

My fave song from Deerhunter's latest album Halcyon Digest is given the video treatment. Low-fi but nice.



http://pitchfork.com/tv/%23/musicvideo/8371-deerhunter-helicopter-4ad

Dance Yourself Happy, My Life Motto

If Psych Today tells me so, it must be true. What I've hoped for for years is confirmed by numerous studies from around the world: dance makes you happy!

I'm going to keep pretending nobody can see me while I'm jamming on the road and in my apartment with windows wide open.

I wonder if study results would prove the same for getting take-out from Cozy Noodles...

http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/201008/mind-your-body-dance-yourself-happy

OK Go, "White Knuckles"

These dogs have gumption!

Sufjan Stevens, All Delighted People

Last month, seemingly out of the blue, indie darling Sufjan Stevens released his All Delighted People EP. Almost simultaneous was the announcement that he would release a full-length record as well. Titled Age of Adz, the album will be released on October 12, 2010.

I have downloaded All Delighted People and was, indeed, delighted by it. A couple singles from Age of Adz have also hit the airwaves, and that project seems just as promisingly wonderful. Alternative radio stations are abuzz about Sufjan, and so it's made me wonder, "Who is this person, creating such a stir and so recklessly purging all this music out to the masses?"

Sufjan certainly is an intriguing figure. I've compiled some interesting facts, gathered from careful research (Wiki really). Read on to find a bit more about the man:

• Sufjan's label, Asthmatic Kitty, is a family affair. He and his stepfather founded the label in 1999, and named the business after their kitten Sara. Both the label and the kitty were based in Lander, Wyoming due to the latter's need to breath thin, dry air.
• Sufjan (SOOF-yahn) was not named by his parents. The founder of the spiritual community Subud gave him his name, meaning "comes with a sword." Sufjan's parents later gave him the option to change it, but he couldn't think of anything better.
• Sufjan seems to have a strong fascination with animals. Label name aside, his work was greatly effected by the sudden death of his childhood dog, and he's written a song about the supposedly extinct ivory-billed woodpecker.
• The title of his new LP is easy to mispronounce. The last word in the title "Age of Adz" should be pronounced like "odds," not what Don Draper does.
• "Age of Adz" was inspired by the schizophrenic artist Royal Robertson. Much of Royal's work depicts his vivid dreams of aliens & apocalypse and uses media like cardboard, markers, and glitter. Sufjan made a conscious decision not to create a Royal biography but, rather, focus on broad themes like love, anxiety, and death.
• Sufjan's older brother, Marzuki, is a nationally recognized marathoner.

Check here for news on Sufjan and other Asthmatic Kitty artists: http://www.asthmatickitty.com/

Download singles here and here:

http://sufjanstevens.bandcamp.com/track/too-much

http://sufjanstevens.bandcamp.com/track/i-walked

Robert Plant Still Sounding Good

As much as I love Robert Plant, there are certain times when I have a difficult time listening to him sing. After Led Zeppelin broke up in 1980, he started releasing material on his own, and I've never been a huge fan of that stuff...I thought his voice was whiney and oddly falsetto. I was so relieved to hear he still had it in 2007, with the release of Raising Sand, the great and memorable album he did with Alison Krauss.

He's back at it with his new album Band of Joy, which just so happens to be the name of his very first band from back in the '60's. The record's a collection of cover material and in a similar vein sound-wise as the Raising Sand stuff - old-school, blues, bluegrass. Not quite Zeppelin-style rocking out, but the man's 62 anyhow.

A couple instant faves are "Silver Rider" and "Harm's Swift Way." Listen here:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129178865

Band of Joy's official release date is Sept. 14.

Lars-y Bling

Over the past couple weeks during my twice-daily city/burbs commute, I've observed a new car phenomenon. Candy-colored rims! Last week alone, I counted 4 cars sporting 'em. Differing from the more generic murdered-out black, the colored rims I've seen come in shades of chartreuse, cotton candy, and blueberry, and are most usually sported on white cars.

Well, lucky me, my little VW GTI, Lars, happens to be white! I'm thinking that if I can find the right shade of purple, I can tape off certain areas of my wheels and spray paint away. I can also imagine this "simple" DIY project going terribly amiss. See my vision for Lars, below.

Pre-modification:


Lars-ified!:

Flip Cup Failure

This weekend I played several rounds of Flip Cup. I was very upset with my performance...I hate losing at Flip Cup! I'm so glad I don't have anything to do after work today because I think I'm going to practice.

Owen Pallett a.k.a. Final Fantasy a.k.a. Arcade Fire Guy

Owen Pallett came onto my radar after watching his A.V. Undercover clip (see August 4 post). He was one of those artists I had read about a lot, due to buzz surrounding the release of his album Heartland early this year, but until that one-song performance I had never actually listened. I was an immediate convert. Turns out he's immensely gifted - one of those people who just opens his mouth or picks up a violin and, like magic, pretty sounds!

So his sound is certainly orchestral, with theatrical vocals, but he also throws in some electro elements. While listening to Owen, I'm reminded of the Magnetic Fields.

Owen has his hand in quite a few musical projects. He's released three solo albums, one under his real name and two under the name Final Fantasy. He's contributed string arrangements to Arcade Fire, including this summer's The Suburbs. And he's had numerous collaborations with artists like Grizzly Bear, Beirut, and Arctic Monkeys.

All these things are really great, but what actually made me purchase some of Owen's music was my discovery of the title of his second Final Fantasy album: HE POOS CLOUDS!!

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Kate Bush, Queen of the Universe

Kate Bush is quite possibly my favorite artist ever. I can't think of anyone more creative, risk-taking, or beautifully unusual. I understand how her music is an acquired taste for some (the woman's a huge quirkster), but I'm always struck by how much of an unknown she is here in the States.

She's epic in the UK, and has been since she was a 19-year-old chart-topper. Kate was signed to EMI records in 1976 after a little help from a family friend named, oh, Dave Gilmour. A few years later she released her first LP titled The Kick Inside, which is a surprisingly mature album, considering that Kate was just 13 when she penned some of the tunes.

She quickly rose to fame across the pond, in no small part due to her unusual voice and knack for taking really nice pictures (see above, she's lovely). But Kate's career was carried by her own determination and willingness to push the bounds. She took control of her music's direction by learning about production and sound engineering. The result was the creation of her landmark album, Hounds of Love (1985), a concepty double disk, the second half of which details a drowning victim's last night in the water.

Her last release was 2005's Aerial, another great double album. I'm not aware of any more current material, but I'm always in anticipation something new from Kate.

Here's "Wuthering Heights," Kate's debut single:
http://www.giantpanther.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Kate-Bush-Wuthering-Heights.mp3

Active Child

Loving this song by Active Child:

Cover Love

Here are a couple covers to ponder. I'm putting up Cee-Lo's cover of "No One's Gonna Love You" by Band of Horses and Barbara playing Kid Cudi's "Pursuit of Happiness." I chose these two because they reflect a musical style negative-image of each other: an R&B star covering an alt-country tune and folk-rock upstarts taking on hip-hop. LOVE both of them!

Cee-Lo, "No One's Gonna Love You"

Barbara, "Pursuit of Happiness"