"Blake Sennett is so boring" is what I said about two minutes ago.
I kind of chuckled afterwards because he is one important half of the band Rilo Kiley. Jenny Lewis packs so much pop on the album The Execution of All Things, while Sennett sort of brings the life down with his lazy vocals.
Although, I have to give him serious props for his tune "Ripchord" which is one of my favourite Rilo Kiley songs (so maybe I shouldn't be ripping him so hard):
It was brilliantly used in the film Conversations With Other Women in a sex scene of all places! I thought it was so tastefully done. Such a minimal, easy song to work with.
Which brings me to the film's soundtrack itself. Very bare, but classy. It showcases four or five songs all by the First Lady of France, Carla Bruni (now Sarkozy too). It was because of this movie I found out about her music. She's absolutely wonderful:
This is my five hundred and fifty fifth post. Some friends and I were speaking of numbers and their meanings culturally. Devan claimed that eleven was a bad number, Laura pointed out that thirteen wasn't highly regarded. Well, for a great change, 555 is actually not bad. In Thailand, 555 is interchangeable for laughing because in Thailand the number five is pronounced as "ha." So, it very roughly translates to "ha ha ha." It's obviously not used in person but more of a slang online.
555 in the North America is associated with being OK. In the Second World War, the radio response 5X5 means that you have full signal and full strength. 5 by 5 is another way of saying you're alright.
So folks, I'm five by five.
ODETTA
Have you heard of her? I hadn't until about two years ago around the time she died in 2008. Odetta Holmes was born in Alabama but early on in life moved to Los Angeles, California. She made it big in the fifties and sixties as a leading folk artist. Interestingly, Martin Luther King Jr. regarded her as the "The Queen of American Folk." She was one of Bob Dylan's main influences.
He said:
"The first thing that turned me on to folk singing was Odetta. I heard a record of hers [Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues] in a record store, back when you could listen to records right there in the store. Right then and there, I went out and traded my electric guitar and amplifier for an acoustical guitar, a flat-top Gibson. ... [That album was] just something vital and personal. I learned all the songs on that record. It was her first and the songs were:- "Mule Skinner", Waterboy", Jack of Diamonds"
"Who Have You Been Loving" is an amazing tune that Rich Terfry has been playing the crap out of. I like the recorded version so much for the Modest Mouse like guitar bits at the beginning. I dug everywhere around Youtube to find a recorded version, but absolutely no luck. So instead you getta link to his Myspace.
He's playing the Revival soon, I half want to go just to check out the venue. A lot of 'urban' (I feel incredibly musically ignorant to say that) artists play there, so I've never really had a reason to go.
It's kind of odd getting into a band that is so well-established. I just scratched the surface of the new Neko Case material (really not that new anymore!). But I recently heard this tune, care of Rich Terfry's amazing program Drive on CBC Radio 2:
I went through a four year period of not liking Metric. I really, really liked Metric in high school, especially with the release of Old World Underground, where are you now? and Live It Out. A bit later I dove into their older material around the time of their re-release of Grow Up and Blow Away.
I was eating lunch at Saving Grace last week and found myself completely taken by their electronic coos of Old World Underground, oddly enough just a week after I listened to the tune "Hustle Rose" on repeat.
"What is Life" is off of Geroge Harrison's brilliant album All Things Must Pass. It was the second single that came from that album. This made him the first Beatle gone solo to come up with two hit songs. The album was released in 1970 and the tune made it big in 1971.
Interestingly, Harrison originally wrote the tune for Billy Preston, but he didn't want to give it to him in his 'funky' period, he didn't actually give it to him. The tune was co-produced by the legendary Phil Spector and featured a hand selected ensemble, mostly comprised of the members of Badfinger.
I'm completely turned off by the fact that the song was revitalised by Olivia Newton John, whose peak was the movie Grease.
My favourite radio program is done by Rich Terfry, also known as Buck 65. I have to say, I don't really like his music, but he is really incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to music.
He started a fragment called 'Rearview Mirror,' where he features an artist from the past (although much of his on air radio play isn't all that new). His go today he featured a tune by Canned Heat, who I learned drew their name from Tommy Johnson's album Canned Heat Blues (1928). He died in 1956, around ten years before Canned Heat made it big.
What I didn't know was they crafted the song that served as Woodstock's theme. That tune is called "Going Up The Country" - a very light understated song. It was heavily used in the Woodstock film which I could talk to you about until your ears'd fall off.
"Like nothing you've ever seen... So visually seductive it essentially flips the brain off switch for you." Karina Longworth, Spout
I was incredibly taken by the film. Although I felt completely uncomfortable with myself and what I had just watched when I left, I feel a rush of excitement when I think about the film now. The film itself is completely different from anything I have seen before. Exactly what the reviews state.
I highly recommend seeing this film in a theatre for the grandeur and spectacle that it is. Seeing this on your computer screen will definitely not be the same.
Holy crap! Stevie Wonder is a legend. This clip was recorded in 1963 and he was only twelve!! TWELVE. It was originally just used to showcase his bongo playing, (with Marvin Gaye on the drums) but it really turned into something bigger with his epic yeah, yeah call backs to the audience.
Julie Doiron's artwork is pretty fantastic, always a little off beat. I learned today that the very beautiful artwork for the album I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day was painted by a fellow named John Claytor. Claytor is her ex-husband and father of her three kids.
Now, I hate to say it but I think I know a little to much of Julie Doiron thanks to Jian Gomeshi. I'm not sure to feel slightly voyeuristic or content to be more familiar with her. You can pry too.
I love Ben Kweller. I had the opportunity to see him in Ann Arbor, MI in the fall and it was one of the most intimate (although jam packed) shows I've been to. I find some artists to be a bit boring to watch alone, but Ben Kweller really does well, if not better solo.
Hear the tune "Red Eye," which I really like recorded. It's my song of the moment:
I'm a total sap in saying that I love this song. Every version and revisit of this tune I tend to really like. Especially the fusion of Sam Cooke's lovely "Bring It On Home To Me" and Smokey Robinson's "You Really Got A Hold On Me." You can really feel the lust and desire in the blend of the two tunes.
Since returning from California, I've really taken to the OC again. It's sort of nice to hear the music in it, they were really on the ball with song picks. MAZZY STAR:
I was all high on my horse for finding a Beatles cut of "Happy Birthday," but I completely forgot my favourite birthday related tune. It's a song called "Happy Birthday Girl" by Sondre Lerche. The music in the tune is very unattractive, but for some reason his voice overrides the cacophony of guitar sounds made. I recall him regarding it as one of the prettiest songs he's ever made.
I have these moments when I feel as though there is absolutely no music to listen to; while other times I feel as though there is so much.
Meet the Radio Dept., an artist I had always passed by in the record stores. The cover always reminded me of an old Bob Dylan album:
People always described it as great poppy music, I'm not sure if I'm feeling it, or not. I first heard "Heaven's On Fire" this morning and I really loved it. Still looking for something better!
Go see 'em Monday February 7, 2010 at Lee's Palace.
I've been trying to get over someone lately. There are certain things that remind you of that person. This reminds me of him.
Beyond that, the Talking Heads have really become a band that I really admire. I instantly liked "This Must Be The Place," but it wasn't until I saw the film Stop Making Sense that I really fell for David Bryne and co. The concert film was directed by Jonathan Demme, the Director of the film Rachel Getting Married. Another film very close to my heart.
I love artistic people, Benoît Piolard is exactly that. Thomas Meluch (his given name) is only 26, which I know is kind of scary because I'm getting progressively older. But what really wows me is that he's only a few years older than me. I remember the good 'ol days when I would lust for celebs like Nick Carter who was eight years older than me. Now, more than ever people my age are doing great things.
I suppose I'm due.
Piolard is definitely not shy to cash in on his versatility as an artist. His website showcases the words:
Read
Write
See
Hear
Know
Love
Get
Travel
Clever.
I wish I could jump on his music better than I have. But some of the sounds he uses are really great, some times tranquil, sometimes eerie. This is the shit movies are made of. Explosions in the Sky are the poster children for mood enhancing, accompaniment music.
I don't think this guy'd have the same effect because he just isn't that consistent in sound. I think his 2010 released album Lasted really lacks that. But it's really hard to say not listening to the album the way it was recorded, song by song, in order and with the intended delays between tracks.
My favourite track is the title tune "Lasted" off of the album by the same name:
Which reminds a bit of Mark David Ashworth's tune "Eggs":
I just finished watching and a bit of snoozing through the film All The Real Girls. I was instantly taken in by the soft words of Will Oldham (aka Bonnie 'Prince' Billy) in the opening credits:
To the closing tune, "Say Goodbye Good" by the Promise Ring:
And in the middle with Explosions in the Sky's "The Moon is Down":
Small town films have such a distinct feel to them. It was really nice to see Zooey Deschanel play an out of normal dead pan character role for herself!
Elephant 6 is a music collective of the 1990s, comprised of artists of Neutral Milk Hotel, Music Tapes, Apples in Stereo, Elf Power and the Apples in Stereo. I'm a little if as to whether if I should get a ticket in the whimpering hope that Jeff Magnum will make an appearance in Toronto. Pitchfork doesn't seem too hopeful:
During the 2008 tour, reclusive Neutral Milk Hotel frontman Jeff Mangumput in a few appearances. Considering that Mangum has been warming to the idea of showing his face in public lately, there's at least a remote possibility that he'll rejoin his old crew for a show or two on this tour.
This was drawn from my Last fm so it was straight off of my computer. I think it gets a bit off my portable too. But most accurately reflects what I listened to at home. Pretty impressive Bahamas ripped through my charts. Can you imagine listening to a song for four hundred minutes in one year, one single song. Impressive.
Mushman is quite possibly the most ridiculous band name I've ever heard. It is Patrick Fugit's band, who got good fame off of off beat movies like Almost Famous, Saved! and Wristcutters.
This song was actually featured in Wristcutters. I really dig it.
I frequently have a funny little conversation dealing with the ethics of downloading. It usually goes a little something like this:
Me: I really, really like to buy music. I love CDs a lot for the packaging and the artwork.
Other person: Oh, you must be totally against downloading.
Me: No, not really. I just choose not to do so because I've had really bad virus-related exeriences in the past.
So, with that being said. I have absolutely no reservations towards downloading. I've stumbled upon some really brilliant musicians from file sharing online.
With that perspective in mind, it troubles me to think about IRIS Distribution's new campaign against 'illegal' file sharing online. They're aiming at our impressionable youth with the intention of teaching them good internet practice.
I think they should save that one for the parents -
A while back I got into a discussion about Elliott Smith's album Figure 8. My whole point was that it was silly to have the two songs back to back with such similar sounding titles:
"Everything Reminds Me of Her"
"Everything Means Nothing to Me"
The person I was talking about it with suggested that it was intentional. Clever!
