Cool Song

Sorry for the shortness as of late. A few long days followed by tired nights. You know how it is.

My friend sent me this today, and it's awesome, and NOT entirely cause it reminds me of Bjork. Thanks, Morgan.

Also if you don't listen to Bjork, what kind of person are you?

Best Music Video Ever. I speak primarily in hyperbole.

The Many Faces of Rob Thomas

I feel like this video and the title speak for themselves.

My favorite Rob Thomas face is the German Porn Star (when he's holding the accordion!) What's yours?

Another Kanye Post

Today my friend sent me this awesome article from Pitchfork that details Bon Iver's work on the new Kanye West album. Let that sink in. Bon Iver is on the new Kanye West album. Also, he hung out with Rick Ross!

Here's the link to the interview. I'm tired but will put more up tomorrow.

Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space

... by the band Spiritualized is one of the best albums ever released.

It was written around the time that the band's singer/songwriter J. Spaceman broke up with the band's keyboardist Kate Radley, after she secretly married Richard Ashcroft of the Verve. J. Spaceman more or less drowned himself in cocaine and heroin, and the songs reflect it. Although I doubt it was entirely intentional, it serves as a concept album about their breakup and his drive into addiction. The songs are fairly straightforward but incredibly well written.

Key tracks: "Come Together" "I Think I'm In Love"

New Kanye Track

Tonight Kanye West posted a new song off his still-untitled album due out in November, and if you want to listen to it/download it, click here. As those of you who have heard this/already clicked the link know, Beyonce guests on this track. It's not bad, but I don't love it like I do Jesus Walks or Flashing Lights. When it first started playing I thought it was a mistake, in fact. After a few listens I think this is something I'll probably keep listening to this summer, and probably long afterwards, but I don't know... it's just not as good as I expected from this partnership. It's no Umbrella, I guess.

I did really like the part at the end where he says "Imma let you finish but I got Beyonce on the track." 

Review Day

I know these albums came out a week or two ago, but I didn't have this blog then. Also, I apologize if these are somewhat incomprehensible. I'm tired and sometimes things that make sense to me don't really work for anyone else. Also I haven't written a ton of reviews and am still finding my own voice here. Either way, click on the links and listen to the music or I will fight you.

The Suburbs - Arcade Fire

It's pretty safe to say I was gonna love this album no matter what. I have a hard time believing Arcade Fire can do any wrong. There's something about Win Butler's voice that makes me feel whatever it is he feels like I am experiencing it myself, and Regine Chassagne sounds like an angel, even when she screams.One thing that did surprise me is, though I expected it to sound different, there was a surprising amount of synth on Ready to Start. That threw me for a loop and almost gave that song a bizarre '80's vibe that was the last thing I expected from them. My only complaint is one or two tracks run a little longer than I'd like them to.

Since I grabbed this album a week or so ago, I haven't been able to listen to much else. I imagine this will get as much play as their previous work in the near future, which is a lot.
9.5/10

Recommended Listening: "Suburban War" "Rococo"

King of the Beach - WaVVes

I went into this one unfamiliar with the artists' previous work and had heard minor comparisons to Green Day and the Descendants, so I think I was expecting something a bit different. That being said, once I got used to what was happening I really started to dig it. Took me till track five (Baseball Cards) but I can dig it. You can definitely tell it's Jay Reatard's (RIP) old backing band, and that's definitely not a bad thing. Post Acid came across as surprisingly poppy to me, and I gotta say I enjoyed it. It finally started to remind me of Green Day around track eight (Idiot) and in the good way.

Overall, I'll be checking out his back catalog most likely, but I don't know for sure if I'll be listening to this a lot a few months from now.

8/10

Recommended Tracks: "Green Eyes" "Baseball Cards"

 
 

Summer Songs

Seems like every summer, there tends to be a song that really fits the feel of the entire thing. At least I've kind of found that to be true for the last eleven years. Usually it's not a song released that summer, though sometimes it is. Here's my eleven year archive:

2000: Mayonaise - Smashing Pumpkins

In junior high I was obsessed with Smashing Pumpkins. This particular summer I only really listened to Siamese Dream and Core by Stone Temple Pilots. This is the song that best represents that summer in my mind for sure.

2001: El Scorcho - Weezer

This was the summer I finally bought Pinkerton and my life was never the same. High school wasn't so bad, suddenly. I'm able to overlook Weezer's present sins simply because of this album.


2002: Die, All Right - The Hives

I love The Hives, and this song is fun no matter how often I listen to it. Howlin' Pelle is an amazing frontman and not to be trifled with. They better release a new album soon.

2003: Ball and Biscuit- The White Stripes

2003 was the year of Elephant, and I stand by this song as its best track. I'll even say it's the best thing Jack White's even written. This song makes me want to be a better guitarist.

2004: Into the White - Pixies

I was on a huge Pixies kick this summer after having watched Fight Club five times within a month. I do not regret that decision.

2005: The Last Polka - Ben Folds Five

I was in a toxic relationship at the time, and I felt like my world was crumbling around me. I could relate to this song. Also it's fun to sing at the top of your lungs.

2006: Jack the Lion - Harvey Danger


This song is incredibly fun. I finally listened to this entire album this summer and fell in love with it. Still can't understand how these guys weren't huge.

2007: Universally Speaking - Red Hot Chili Peppers

This was the soundtrack for me finally being on my own. Finally being in a different state from my family, finally paying my own way. Great song.

2008: New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down - LCD Soundsystem

This song sold me on LCD Soundsystem and put me on a path that led to much better music. Amazing song and video. I swear my friends and I had this same concept for a music video for this song completely independently of this video.

2009: Happiness - Elliott Smith

I don't want to remember a ton about last summer, but I do remember listening to this almost nonstop for days. Still love the chorus at the end.

2010: Through the Roof 'N' Underground - Gogol Bordello

Guess that brings us up to now. Not much to say about this song except sometimes the only way to go is through the roof, and sometimes you gotta go underground.

Was a Time...

Oh, to live in England during the '90's. As far as I can tell, that was the best time and place for music that I've ever heard. So much great music coming out of there. Unfortunately a lot of it didn't get huge stateside, which I don't understand. The songs are so well put together I can't really imagine people not loving it. Obviously Radiohead and Oasis did pretty well, but these other bands could do with bigger followings, I feel. Cue Basic Britrock-from-the-'90's-primer.

Blur

Okay, maybe they're not hurting for fans like a lot of bands from the same era, but they should have been bigger. Yeah, Damon Albarn's doing pretty well for himself with Gorillaz, and they're a lot of fun, but Blur was far better. They were incredibly versatile. Check out these songs:

Beetlebum - Blur
The Universal - Blur
On Your Own - Blur
Sing - Blur
Tender - Blur

The Verve

Bittersweet Symphony was a pretty huge song, but the rest of their stuff was pretty widely ignored over here for the most part. Tragedy, cause it's fantastic. Even the reunion album was decent, which is incredibly rare. Some songs that aren't Bittersweet Symphony:

Lucky Man - The Verve
Rather Be - The Verve
The Drugs Don't Work - The Verve
She's a Superstar - The Verve
Sonnet - The Verve

Travis

I'm only referring to the first album, which I prefer to the rest of their stuff. The rest is good, I just prefer a good old fashioned rock song you can sing along with. All I Want To Do Is Rock is the perfect example of a song like that. One of my favorite videos, too.

Primal Scream

Unfortunately most people I've encountered who have heard of Primal Scream have only heard of the album Screamadelica. It's a great album, and it is their best, but why stop there? It's all good!

Movin' On Up - Primal Scream
The Glory of Love - Primal Scream
Loaded - Primal Scream

Pulp

Jarvis Cocker is one of the best lyricists of all time, period. Unfortunately Americans know him best as the guy who sings the song in Fantastic Mr. Fox with the banjo. Also he has the same birthday as me. Just an idea as to how cool this band is, William Shatner covered one of their songs on his album Has Been.

Disco 2000 - Pulp
This is Hardcore - Pulp
Do You Remember The First Time? - Pulp
Bad Cover Version - Pulp (OK this one is from 2001. The Video is so awesome that it has to be included.)

Others to familiarize yourself with:

Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space - Spiritualized
Connection - Elastica
Trash - Suede
A Design For Life - Manic Street Preachers
Alright - Supergrass
Sleep Well Tonight - Gene
Wide Open Space - Mansun
Hypocrite - Lush
Bigmouth Strikes Again - Placebo (It's a Smiths cover, but still awesome.)
I Wanna Be Adored - The Stone Roses

It's Hot and Dry Outside.

And it's making me tired and lazy. I'm not gonna lie, I'm running on fumes tonight. Here are some songs that feel like the weather has felt all summer.

Crystalized - The XX
Stop Breathin' - Pavement (this one's a bit quiet, sorry)
I Quit Girls - Japandroids
I Got Lost - Dinosaur Jr.
Opium - Marcy Playground
Fight the Power - Public Enemy (Mostly due to the movie Do The Right Thing, which is excellent.)

Songs that Don't Necessarily Remind Me Of Summer:

Hurdles Even Here - The Decemberists (How often do you hear the word 'ovaries' in the first line of a song? Not often enough.)
Can't Make A Sound - Elliott Smith (This is the happiest I've ever seen him.)
Commandante - The Mountain Goats (This band is grossly underappreciated.)

Yeah, They Still Got It

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine posted this video on my Facebook page as a joke.

Go ahead. Watch it. I know it's Nickelback. I know it hurts. I'm sorry.

Okay, you watched at least the first little bit? Good! Now we can talk about it! One thing I like to do when I see something that... (crazy? brilliant? wrong?) is imagine the conversation that led to it. P.S. I can't be bothered to learn the band members' names.

Nickelback #1: Okay, bring it in, team. Band huddle. I just don't get it. People don't like us. Why?

Nickelback #2: Impossible! Everyone loves us! We are rock and roll!

Nickelback #1: Remember the time in Europe when someone threw a rock at us? Let's be honest. Something we do makes some people not like us.

Nickelback #3: I'm just spitballing here, but maybe as a band we should adopt an African baby.

Nickelback #4: My soul is dying. Hello?

Nickelback #1: Not a bad idea, Nickelback #3. We'll keep it on the table as a solution. But right now we need to find the problem. Now, one thing I'm sure it's not is our music. Our music is amazing.

Nickelbacks #2 and 3: Agreed.

Nickelback #1: I don't know about you, but I'm really proud of our lyrics. I think we write some really deep stuff. Hey, I'm just really proud of the music we make on the whole. It's all great.

Nickelback #2: Yeah, I can't imagine people not liking something I myself am so proud of. We really bring the ruckus.

Nickelback #4: I can't sleep at night anymore, cause I feel like a fraud. This isn't rock and roll.

Nickelback #3: Well, we haven't played a house party in a really long time. People seemed to like that.

Nickelback #1: That's it! We don't rock parties very often! I mean, we all know how to party (heh heh), am I right, fellas?

(I imagine a lot of bro-fives occur right here.)

Nickelback #2: Well, we can't just rock one house party. No one but them would ever know. The word of mouth wouldn't be strong enough.

Nickelback #3: Why don't we just pretend to rock a party on a music video?

Nickelback #1: Yeah, and at the beginning, we'll have people be all "Nickelback sucks! Nickelback is the lame!" and then at the end of the video everyone that said that will have a beer with us!

Nickelback #4: I'm not even human anymore. Just a shell of a man.

Nickelback #2: Brah, there's gotta be babes. Babes dancing. Yeaaaaah!

(More bro-fiving. Nickelback #4 starts weeping.)

FIN

The song is possibly the worst song I've heard in years. One thing I do enjoy after the song starts playing is that even the dancers in bikinis aren't really into the song. Seems like Nickelback's a joke to them too. Kudos, dancers.

Stuff to Cleanse your Audial Pallette after that Fiasco:

Tiger - Maximum Balloon ft. Aku (Listened to this probably 200 times since Tuesday)
Wide Eyes - Local Natives (Awesome song, awesome band)
I Can Change - LCD Soundsystem (Best track of 2010 so far)

This is the Closest I Will Get to Seeing James Brown Live...

...since he is dead.

Tonight was the fifth concert in SLC's Twilight Concert Series, a free... series of concerts that happen in Pioneer Park. So far this year the lineup has included Modest Mouse, Beirut, Girl Talk, and The New Pornographers, which I saw all of save Girl Talk. Tonight was something a little different: a straight up funky soul concert. I figured it would be a good time, but I had no idea what lay in store for me.

Opening Act: Jamie Lidell

I had heard of Jamie Lidell. I knew he was British, I knew he had reinvented himself as a soul singer of sorts about five years ago, and I had heard the song Multiply, which I enjoyed. We approached the park shortly after he had started, and it already sounded like a good time. The setup: one drum kit in the back, a bassist, a guy alternating between guitar and keyboards, another drum kit up front that was set up in a way that I don't want to describe here, Jamie Lidell, and Mr. Jimmy (I think that's what he called him), a balding keyboardist with a mullet from Arkansas who was fun to watch.

Long story short, cracka can sing. Oh boy, can he sing. He's the only white guy I've ever heard that sounds almost exactly like Corey Glover from Living Colour live. It was intense. He also was a lot of fun in between songs, making outlandish claims about his success and whatnot. Excellent performer. You could tell he was having the time of his life up there. We were already digging the music, when the band walked off stage leaving only our man Jamie. He started singing into a sampler and adding effects and ended up doing four part harmonies with himself. No easy feat. The band came back, and they once again brought the thunder. First time I've ever seen an opening act walk off the stage to the entire audience (myself included) chanting for more. And then...

Headliner: Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings

I was slightly more familiar with their music, having heard their cover of Woody Guthrie's This Land is Your Land during the opening credits of 2009's Up In the Air (a fine film, by the way) and a few other songs here and there. The band came out and got the audience hyped up, and they were great. Spot on. Starting stage right, they had a trumpet, tenor sax, bari sax, drummer, auxillary percussionist, bassist, and two guitarists. Finally, after a few minutes of them playing their hearts out, Sharon Jones came out.

It's very rare you see someone who is that good at working an audience. Two or three songs in, she convinced security to let a guy in the front row on the stage so she could serenade him. She dragged one solid groove out for at least five minutes, and it never got old. Near the end of the show, she collected a few items from the front of the audience to autograph. A shoe wound up on stage, and she signed it. They hammered through their set. By the time they were halfway done, I wasn't sure if I had legs anymore. Right now, in fact, I'm completely exhausted, but I couldn't be any happier with the show I saw tonight. If I had any complaint about their set, it was that the encore was a little short. Oh well.

Recommended Listening:

Stay With Me (Baby) - Lorraine Ellison (great song in a similar, yet slower, vein) 
A Change is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke (same deal)
New York City Cops - The Strokes (oh no! wild card!) 

A Tale of Two Cities

I'm just gonna jump right in here rather than bother introducing anything.

I love Las Vegas. It's a magical place. It's possibly the tackiest major city in the Union, and certainly the most unabashedly trashy. And up until recently, Vegas was what it was, love it or hate it. (Lately, they've been pushing to make it more family oriented, which it is, if your family loves strippers and expensive alcohol.) What I find most interesting about it though, is basically, there are two sides to Las Vegas: Night Vegas and Day Vegas.


Day Vegas!


Day Vegas takes place whenever the sun is out. It's most noticeable when the weather is 100+ degrees outside, but you'll notice it even when it's not. Day Vegas is a brutal, desolate, lonely wasteland with the smell of cheap alcohol and poor decisions permeating the air. The food is as bad as the waitress' moods. It's so unrelentingly hot!


Night Vegas!

Night Vegas is the exact opposite of Day Vegas. The buffets are magical! Everyone's a high roller, even if you only have three dollars to your name! You're invincible, and there isn't anything anyone can do about it! Even though all you can smell is cigarettes, it's not so bad. Even the heat seems to have let up a little bit. Yes sir, in Night Vegas, everyone's a champion, even when they're losing.

Naturally, the music you listen to in Day Vegas feels terribly out of place in Night Vegas, and vice versa. Some tips to get the right mood going for both:

Day Vegas Music!

Jockey Full Of Bourbon- Tom Waits
Bankrupt on Selling- Modest Mouse
Going Out West- Tom Waits
Mosquito Song- Queens of the Stone Age
Stagger Lee- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Night Vegas Music!

Flashing Lights- Kanye West ft. Dwele
Run This Town- Jay-Z ft. Rihanna and Kanye West
Never Change- Jay-Z
I've Got The World on a String- Frank Sinatra
Piano Man- Billy Joel (but only at a dueling piano bar!)

Songs You Should Check Out Unrelated to the Rest of the Post:

I Wish This Song Was Louder - Electric Six (cause it's fun) 
Gold Soundz - Pavement (I am constantly baffled as to why no one I know has heard of Pavement.)
That's Entertainment! - The Jam (Same with The Jam. Paul Weller is a legend.)