The NME got in on the act early. This Sunday the Observer Music Monthly publishes its top 50. So I thought I might as well have a go. I wanted to get mine done first and see how much common ground I’ve got with the OMM seeing as its my favourite music mag. It’s harder than you’d think to select just 50 albums that span 2000-2009. I’ve had to leave out some records I really like. But here we go… Please comment as you feel necessary!

50 – Daft Punk: Discovery.

49 – Bob Dylan: Modern Times.

48 – Camille: Le Fil.

47 – Arctic Monkeys: Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not.

46 – The Blue Nile: High.

45 – New Order: Get Ready.

44 – Mercury Rev: All Is Dream.

43 – R.E.M.: Accelerate.

42 – Fionn Regan: The End Of History.

41 – The Beatles: Love.

40 – The Avalanches: Since I Met You.

39 – Badly Drawn Boy: The Hour Of Bewilderbeast.

38 – Roots Manuva: Awfully Deep.

37 – Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever ago.

36 – Mark B & Blade: The Unknown.

35 – Coldplay: Parachutes.

34 – Malcolm Middleton: Into The Woods.

33 – Seafood: When Do We Start Fighting…

32 – Doves: The Last Broadcast.

31 – Duke Special: Songs From The Deep Forest.

30 – Morrissey: You Are The Quarry.

29 – Guillemots: Through The Windowpane.

28 – Bruce Springsteen: The Rising.

27 – The Gaslight Anthem: The ‘59 Sound.

26 – Billy Bragg & Wilco: Mermaid Avenue Vol. II

25 – Richard Hawley: Coles Corner.

24 – Fleet Foxes:  Fleet Foxes.

23 – Athlete: Vehicles & Animals.

22 – Spin Doctors: Nice Talking To Me.

21 – Sigur Ros: Takk…

20 – Goldfrapp: Felt Mountain.

19 – Maxïmo Park: A Certain Trigger.

18 – Delirious?: Glo.

17 – The Shins: Wincing The night Away.

16 – Ben Folds: Rockin’ The Suburbs.

15 – Green Day: American Idiot.

14 – Neil Young: Living With War.

13 – Ray Lamontagne: Til The Sun Turns Black.

12 – Death Cab For Cutie: Narrow Stairs.

11 – Idlewild: The Remote Part.

10 – Johnny Cash: American IV: The Man Comes Around

An extraordinary achievement for a man in his final year. Johnny Cash’s last ‘proper’ album has the power to bring me to the edge of tears. I bought it the week he died in 2003 and played it a lot. A mixture of originals and covers, Rick Rubin’s brilliant production means there’s pathos dripping from every track. ‘Hurt’ is one of the songs of the decade which couldn’t even be ruined by that dire Nike advert. When I first heard ‘I Hung My Head’ it stopped me dead in my tracks. Just like most of the rest of this awesome album.

9 - Interpol: Turn On The Bright Lights.

I think there’s a good case to be made for Interpol as the band of the decade. To my shame I’m yet to see them live but their three dark, brooding and melodic albums demand that I get round to it soon. I think their debut is the pick of the bunch. Starting with ‘Untitled’ which takes its cues from the shoegazing bands of the early 90’s, the album goes onto channel the best of My Bloody Valentine, Joy Division and classic Krautrock. I suppose it can be said about all the records in the list but I can’t listen to this album too many times. It sends me to sleep, it wakes me up and generally soundtracks my life.

8 – Vampire Weekend: Vampire Weekend.

The drums alone deserve some kind of award. Chris Tomson is, for my money, the best drummer in a rock band at the moment. But this isn’t Keith Moon fury, or John Bonham theatrics. He sees the drum kit as a melodic and harmonic instrument. The kit is a lead instrument here and when allied to fantastic songwriting, it’s a winning combination. The African influence if overstated (this isn’t even the noughties’ Graceland, let alone Fela Kuti or Ali Farka Touré). However, the hints of afrobeat are enough to make this stand out from the crowd. Walcott is a great track – but there aren’t any duds here.

7 – Grandaddy: The Sophtware Slump.

This outstanding record is often compared favourably with ‘OK Computer’. Well, I’ll put my cards on the table. There’s only one winner; and it isn’t Radiohead. Grandaddy are impossible to categorise, but this record combines the best bits of alt-country, electronica and post-rock. The audacity of a 9 minute opening track has been matched by many bands. The difference is they’ve not made a song as arresting as ‘He’s Simple, He’s Dumb, He’s The Pilot’. ‘The Crystal Lake’ is among the best songs of the decade while ‘Undreneath The Weeping Willow’ showcases a brilliant knack for melancholy. Released at the start of the decade, very few records have got anywhere near matching Grandaddy’s Magnum Opus.

6 – The Hold Steady: Boys And Girls in America.

‘Best bar band in the world blah… blah… blah’ said the music press. Talk about damning with faint praise. The Hold Steady are one of the greatest bands of the 21st Century, full stop. And though their earlier albums are packed with gems, this breakthrough album sees their manifesto fulfilled. How many bands could start a record quoting Jack Kerouac but never fail to be fun? The sound was compared to classic E Street Band and that’s probably as close as you can get to describing this joyous racket. Craig Finn’s lyrics are always interesting and frequently brilliant. So looking at our checklist we’ve got superb music, superb lyrics and some guys that seem delighted just to be playing rock and roll. It’ll do for me.

5 – Elbow: The Seldom Seen Kid.

I suppose too much has already been written about this album. It’d be easy to include ‘Asleep In The Back’ to prove I’ve liked Elbow since I used to play them on student radio in 2000. But that would miss the point: for once, the awards committees, journalists and hype-merchants got it right. This is an amazing album. There’s not an average track in sight in an hour’s running time. Picking highlights almost seems crazy, but ‘Grounds For Divorce’ and ‘On A Day Like This’ have deservedly grabbed the headlines and soundtracked a million daytime DIY programmes. But some of the less well know tracks contain stunning music and lyrics. When Guy Garvey croons ”We kiss like we invented it” on ‘Mirrorball’ it’s enough to melt your heart.  We await their next move with eager anticipation.

4 - Midlake: The Trials of Van Occupanther.

Take a moderately successful Texan indie band and give them a copy of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’. Stand well back and light the blue touch-paper. Doesn’t sound promising does it? How wrong could we be??? This was THE album of 2006. Inventive harmonies, layered synths and lyrics pining for the antebellum South came together to produce a stunning record. The guitar solo that comes halfway through ‘Head Home’ is one of my favourite musical moments of the decade, but this album contains several contenders for that title. The real genius of ‘…Van Occupanther’ is its ability to keep you on your toes. Just when you think it may slip into mid 70’s FM rock pastiche, the band pulls out a track like ‘Young Bride’ which forces you to admit this is a record which is far more than the sum of its considerable parts.

3 – Damien Rice: O.

David Gray is a perfectly decent singer songwriter. The same can’t be said for the likes of James Morrison and James Blunt. But how any of them came to be spoken of in the same breath as Damien Rice is beyond me. The irishman deserves to be in far better company (Jeff Buckley for example). This debut album was a slow-burning word-of-mouth behemoth that managed to retain artistic dignity while being offered on 2-for-1 deals in Tesco. Its strengths have been repeated endlessly, but any blogger who can’t find room for Lisa Hannigan’s beautiful vocals, the stunning string arrangements or the strange re-working of Silent Night is a fool. If this album has a flaw, I’m yet to find it. I can’t pick one track as a highlight because the others simply look at me reproachfully and say ‘actually we’re all rather lovely’. And they truly are.

2 – My Morning Jacket: It Still Moves.

This album sounds like the best party you’ve ever been to. If you want to label it I suppose it’s alt-country. But what on earth does that matter when the music is as much fun as this? Don’t get the idea this is some kind of comedy record though. Howling vocals, squealing guitars and pounding drums fuse together to create a brilliant racket. ‘One Big Holiday’ has a guitar hook to die for, but this isn’t an album of simple pleasures. The genius of the songs reveals itself slowly. The first time you hear it, it sounds like these are well crafted and edited jams. But like Led Zep at their peak, the tracks are more cunningly moulded than that. Crazy Horse are another reference point and when talking about a rock and roll band there are fewer bigger compliments than that. It’s a long record (71 minutes) but unusually for an album of that length, it doesn’t outstay its welcome. Superb.

1 – Stephen Fretwell: Magpie.

I’m annoyed I couldn’t find a decent picture of this album without the parental advisory sticker on it. Ok, maybe it doesn’t make an ideal present for a toddler, but any parent who’s doing their job properly should be investing in this if their child shows any kind of serious interest in music. It’s as close to a perfect record as its possible to get. At the start of the decade, Scunthorpe’s Stephen Fretwell found himself in Manchester as a promising singer-songwriter. A little while later, he was in a recording studio creating some of the most beautiful music that great city has ever produced. By 2004 it was ready for release. In reality, the Manchester thing is a bit of a red herring. Fretwell owes little to the genius of the Smiths and Joy Division or the more prosaic talents of Oasis. He’s just a good old-fashioned acoustic troubadour. So who are the key influences here? I’d guess Neil Young, Bob Dylan et al. But that doesn’t tell you much about this record’s greatest strength. Fretwell’s gift for melody is astounding. Songs like ‘Emily’, ‘New York’ and ‘Rose’ are beautifully crafted and sung. But there isn’t a track here which leaves you cold. You may know ’Run’ as the Theme of ‘Gavin and Stacey’ but don’t stop there. Investigate it immediately. Buy it and love it. There’s only one album of the decade after all; whatever the Observer says!

6 November 2009

Minneapolis, MN

This is a show I went to after hearing just one song by J. Tillman, called “Though I Have Wronged You”. It’s got spare acoustic strumming, hushed vocals,  three-part harmony… these kinds of things usually find their way to my ears, and then I don’t rest until I’ve seen the artist live.

Funny, then, that I still have yet to see Josh Tillman’s other gig — the Fleet Foxes — for whom he is drummer. Their album was certainly a nice surprise last year, and I had at least one chance to see them in San Diego that came and went (don’t ask me how many times that happened in grad school!).

As a consequence, my interest in the Foxes is unfortunately waning. Until I see the live show and witness the passion Robin Pecknold puts behind those pastoral-ass lyrics, I have no other point of reference besides the performances on the album (which, after many listens, are sounding WAY to reverb-y)

Anyway, even if I never get to see Fleet Foxes live, it was a treat to see J. Tillman, whose performance brings an earthiness and beauty I expect accompanies a typical Foxes’ set. Also, since few fans of the buzz band have likely ever heard of Tillman, I got to see him at an extremely intimate venue, the Music Box Theatre. A proper playhouse with a balcony, the crowd only took up the seats right in front of the stage, so it felt like a private staging.  The sound was just right… can’t really use the word “warm” enough to describe it. It was like we were wearing long johns and snuggies but were all still sharing a big blanket and lounging by a fire. (Good enough?)

I suffered a bit from not knowing more of J. Tillman’s songs, and the slow, drony melodies tended to make all the tunes sound the same (the inverse of the “all album, no show” dilemma?). But I was delighted toward the end of the set when he broke into “Though I Have Wronged You”, the one song I knew, and gave it an unexpected, rocking coda, courtesy of his 4-piece touring band. Also, after I got home and downloaded his most recent album, Year in the Kingdom (a steal on emusic), I was delighted to discover that same warmth on record.

Check out the super-weird video for “Though I Have Wronged You”

A few months ago, I read the ultimate graphic novel, Alan Moore’s Watchmen. It is indeed an amazingly good book. I don’t normally cross over other media into this music based blog, but Watchmen is a story I read and can see it cinematically as well as imagining a great soundtrack to accompany it. I’ve seen the film yet, read first though as I thought it would be sacrilege to see it before i had read the novel. Although good, I have to admit that I was disappointed by it as a whole. It misses out major parts of the novel, but it is visually an impressive like-for-like copy. I even wrote notation on what i liked and what I didn’t, the dislikes out weigh the likes by a strong margin.

The soundtrack though, was one of the best things about the film, it had some inspired choices, including Hendrix. But, here is an alternative soundtrack formed from ideas when I first read the novel. I’ve compiled a short playlist to go with each of the 12 chapters of Watchmen.

Chapter 1
The Futureheads – He Knows

Chapter 2
Joy Division – Dead Souls

Chapter 3
Blondie – Heart of Glass

Chapter 4
Arcade Fire – My Body Is A Cage

Chapter 5
Radiohead – Karma Police

Chapter 6
Thom Yorke – Skip Divided

Chapter 7
The Strokes – What Ever Happened?

Chapter 8
Fleet Foxes – Heard Them Stirring

Chapter 9
The Cribs – Ancient History

Chapter 10
AC/DC – Back in Black

Chapter 11
Elle Milano – This Is How It Ends

Chapter 12
Echo & The Bunnymen – The Killing Moon

Listen and you’ll hopefully enjoy.

Diane Birch me lembra Antena 1 e música de elevador. Mas eu gosto.

Da Emily eu sou suspeita pra falar toda e qualquer coisa. Ela é linda e foda com Metric ou sem Metric, com Broken Social Scene ou sem. Enfim. Amor.

Tem mais de um ano que toda vez que eu escuto o cd do Fleet Foxes eu penso “como eu adoro ouvir música boa!”.

De trend is al een tijdje bezig, maar popmuziek met folkinvloeden wint terug aan populariteit de laatste maanden. Denk maar aan het succes van Bon Iver, Grizzly Bear of recenter Mumford & Sons. Mijn ontdekking van deze week wordt door muziekrecensenten omschreven als het Britse antwoord op Fleet Foxes. Da’s meteen een referentie die kan tellen, hoewel TLS toch ook een zeer eigen geluid heeft.

The Leisure Society, afkomstig uit de vruchtbare muzikale bodem van Brighton (Fatboy Slim, Blood Red Shoes, The Levellers, The Kooks) wordt door Elbow frontman Guy Garvey frequent genoemd als ‘the next big thing’. ’The Sleeper’ (met bonus-cd) is de ideale cd om zowel de herfst als de winter te overleven. Alle nummers ademen melancholie, weemoed en de groep bedient zich van een uitgebreid instrumentarium gaande van dwarsfluit tot viool.

Het is een cd geworden om liefdevol te omarmen en te koesteren. Luister naar single ‘The last of the melting snow’, ‘We were wasted’, ‘The darkest place I know’ of de inventieve cover van Gary Numan’s ‘Cars’ (op de bonus-cd). Bij ‘A matter of time’ loeren Arcade Fire en Beirut mee over hun schouder. Bij elke luisterbeurt ontdek je weer nieuwe dingen. Liefhebbers kunnen de bonus-cd integraal beluisteren als ze hier eens gaan kijken/luisteren. Ja, met deze schijfjes overbrug ik makkelijk de periode tot de lente terug in het land is. Geen herfst of winterdepressie voor mij dit jaar!

Yes, it is up for argument, of course. But I know what i hate, and for these albums, there was nothing to hate on, save a stray throw-away track here or there. That’s pretty much how I determined which albums to include and which to leave off: did the WHOLE product deliver? I didn’t limit myself to numbers, as in only 2 for each year, but instead just went with albums I could not leave off unless some Strokes hater held a gun to my head. It’s complete coincidence that I ended up with the nice, sort-of-round number of 25.

This list is not exhaustive, I’m sure people will mention a few that I’ll kick myself for forgetting while I was making this. Others will mention albums I wish I could forget, such as anything by TV On the Radio, a band that I cannot for the life of me understand why it is so well-regarded. One last heads up: don’t bother offering any Dave Matthews or John Mayer suggestions. They have, at best, 3 or 4 good songs between them, definitely not enough for placement on such hallowed ground.

2000:

sunny day real estate—the rising tide

This album is full of jangly guitars and soaring vocals bellowing beautiful lyrics–it always makes me remember the ocean and the beginning of my marriage. All good memories. 

Fave tracks: One, Tearing in My Heart

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coldplay—parachutes

Damn, gotta say, when this came out it seemed like Chris Martin and company actually had a chance of giving Radiohead a run for the money in the art-rock circuit (that is a circuit, right?). But then all their albums sounded exactly the same. Not saying they didn’t have good songs on other albums, but come on: most of it sounds exactly the same–for example, one single song on Viva la Vida, their latest, has been the subject of upwards of 5 different plagiarism lawsuits by artists ranging from Cat Stevens to Steve Vai. Regardless, Parachutes was a beauty when it came out, and when you factor in the sweet memories that go along with it for me, it’s only gold.

Fave Tracks: Trouble, We Never Change

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ghostface killah—supreme clientele

It could be argued that this album signaled the death knell of what many hip hop purists (such as yours truly) consider to be “true” hip hop. Yes, we are elitist bastards.  But without getting into arguments about the greatness (or lack of greatness) of Lil Wayne and Chamillionaire, anyone can at least appreciate the cementing of Ghostface’s status as the best rapper to emerge from Wutang Clan. I mean, have you heard Iron Man? And then he follows up with this a few years later. BEASTLY! Listen up. This was as good as it was going to get for many, many years (one could argue).

Fave Tracks: Buck 50, Wu Banga 101

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2001:

radiohead—amnesiac

The first of two Radiohead albums on this list, Amnesiac constantly ended up in my regular rotation during the glorious “Aughts.” It is possibly one of the most accessible ‘Head albums, surpassed perhaps by only 2008’s In Rainbows in terms of listenability.

Fave tracks: Pyramid Song, Knives Out

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white stripes—white blood cells

I remember exactly where I was when I first heard this introduction to The White Stripes, and how many albums can you say that about? It blew my freaking mind. Jack White entered the realm of genius for me with his fusion of old blues and modern rock. There is still no better stimulant on the market for getting a day started off than this banger.

Fave Tracks: Hotel Yorba, The Union Forever

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the strokes—is this it?

Here we have the controversial British version of the cover for this first Strokes album, which was of course not available in the more prudish U.S. But with or without that art, it was still a revelation, and came out the gate with more buzz than a thousand beehives. Backlash followed, of course, but regardless of whether Julian Casablancas can actually sing or that his voice was doctored with various studio trappings to make him sound better (a charge I don’t buy after hearing their later efforts), this album along with White Blood Cells is a killer on every level.

Fave Tracks: Someday, Hard To Explain

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bjork—vespertine

There are some incredibly beautiful tracks on this album. Bjork is from another planet. Her voice itself is poetry. I love her.

Fave Tracks: Hidden Place, Pagan Poetry

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2002:                                                                

neko case—blacklisted

The first of three albums by Neko Case, this album showcases her voice in a way that makes the term alt-country not sound completely stupid. For whatever reason, I am reminded of the Michael Scott quote in the TV show “The Office,” when he says, “ You don’t call retarded people retards. It’s bad taste. You call your friends retards when they’re acting retarded.”

Fave Tracks: Tightly, Pretty Girls

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the flaming lips—yoshimi battles the pink robots

From crazed punk beginnings to the masterpiece that was ’99’s The Soft Bulletin, this follow-up to that revelation of Wayne Coyne’s song-writing ability was a true window into this incredibly sensitive soul. And after meeting him in person (and basically forcing him to take a copy of my book), I can say that he is about as genuine a rock star who also happens to be a real person as any rock star has ever been. If that makes any sense.

Fave Tracks: Ego Trippin’ At the Gates of Hell, Do You Realize??

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beck—sea change

I first heard this Beck album while “working” as a DJ at UNC Greensboro’s 10 watt student-run radio station. It’s the first full-length Beck album that I know of that has him actually writing lyrics some sense can be made of—a real (wait for it…) sea change in his style. It is also heartbreaking, about his breakup from some model, I hear.

Fave Tracks: Little One, Lost Cause

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2003:

yeah yeah yeahs—fever to tell

This 3-piece, Karen O-fronted band is garage rock at its finest as far as I’m concerned. She’s so weird and rock-starry. I’d be afraid of her in real life. Which is just how she likes it, I’m sure. Just listen how she whispers “I’m rich, rich, rich rich rich. I’ll take you out boy.” F-ing hardcore, regardless of the tear sliding down her cheek in the “Maps” video.

Fave Tracks: Rich, Y Control

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death cab for cutie—transatlanticism

For me Ben Gibbard is sort of the poor man’s Thom Yorke, and a total bastard (he married my imaginary girlfriend, Zooey Deschanel). But with this album and his other project, The Postal Service, he pretty much cemented his place in the starry night of my soul or whatever. He writes some catchy shit. But I think an Amazon reviewer said it best: “If you’re an overblown emokid with a yen for the melodramatic, you should buy this CD. You may now stop reading.”

Fave Tracks: Lightness, Passenger Seat

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2004:

air—talkie walkie

This album is on here because I like it more OVERALL than their previous Aughts effort, 10,000 hz Legend. But to be fair, there are a couple of songs on that generally disliked album that are some of my favorite Air tracks, such as “How Does It Make You Feel” and “Vagabond.” But this record is definitely more cohesive and sets a great mood for being drunk/high/tired, so we’re going with this one. And for the record, it is WAY beter than 2007’s Pocket Symphony.

Fave Tracks: Run, Another Day

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danger mouse—the grey album

While this is not officially an album you can buy, since Danger Mouse never got the rights to any of the Beatles or Jay-Z tracks he used to make this groundbreaking album (which, for anyone living in a musical cave for the past ten years, is a mash-up of The Beatles’ “White Album” and Jay-Z’s “Black Album”), I would be remiss not to include it on this list. For better or worse, DM started the massive wave of mash-ups with this effort, and also got himself a pretty good paying gig as half of Gnarls Barkley. Plus, this shit just kicks. Whoda thunk it?

Fave Tracks: Encore, 99 Problems

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2005:

my morning jacket—z

I believe that, along with Death Cab, Dashboard Confessional, Bright Eyes and My Chemical Romance, My Morning Jacket helped create and nurture the wimpy mid-Aughts  juggernaut that was known as Emo. But unlike Dashboard and Bright Eyes, they don’t totally suck. This is one of my favorite albums of all time. So, cheer up, Emo kid.  

Fave Tracks: It Beats 4 U, Knot Comes Loose

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eels—blinking lights and other revelations

Mark Everett is the frontman of EELS (or eels), and is probably, when I really consider it, the person I most relate to as far as “getting” exactly what he is talking about with the majority of his songs. This double album has songs on it that I absolutely hate (such as the co-penned with one of the guys from R.E.M. “Hey Man”), but since there are over 20 songs on offer here, there is definitely at least a full album’s worth of incredible compositions. My favorite memory associated with this record is painting my daughter’s bedroom in preparation for us to move into our first owned home. Tears me up just thinking about it.

Fave Tracks: In the Yard Behind the Church, I’m Going To Stop Pretending That I Didn’t Break Your Heart

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2006:

neko case—fox confessor brings the flood

Second Neko album on the list, and arguably her best ever. Her voice reminds me so much of Patsy Cline’s. She is a true artist, with seemingly little care about her “image” as far as whether or not she fits into the sterotypical chanteuse mold. She’s all about the voice. Example: her album “Blacklisted” was supposedly named that because while performing at Nasvhille’s famous Grand Ole Opry, she took off her shirt (I never heard if she was completely topless or just offended the genteel southern sensibility with her bra alone) and was banned for life. Totally punk, and what puts the “alt” in her country stylings, I can only suppose.

Fave Tracks: Star Witness, Dirty Knife

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decemberists—the crane wife

Along the Flaming Lips album that follows, this was the last album that my wife and I shared. Every time I hear the 3-part Crane Wife song the album is named after, it destroys me. In a good way. I’ll leave it there. Don’t want to make a complete fool out of myself, after all. Not drunk enough for that anyway. Give me a few hours. Perhaps that dragon will rear its head in the comments.

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beck—the information

This album is the epitome of cool. And one of about 45 albums that Beck released in the Aughts. I’m still not sure if I’m being impartial enough regarding choosing this album over, say, Guero or Modern Guilt, but whatever. These year/decade-end lists are always subjective and come down to much more about what effected the listener personally more than something like whether the songs held complexity in their structures. This album came with a DVD of every song being lip-synched by Beck and his friends, and I would often put it in the DVD player and hit repeat on it over and over again. It was like having a bunch of tripping acid-freaks to keep me company through surely some of the strangest times in a lifetime of strange times.

Fave Tracks: Cellphone’s Dead, No Complaints

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the flaming lips—at war with the mystics

They played a free show in Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park on May 21, 2006 in support of this album. It was amazing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoIohWnbVSk

Fave Tracks: My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion/ Vein of Stars

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2007:

radiohead—in rainbows

As I said earlier in this post, this is probably the most easily listened to Radiohead album (which is most likely why it won or was nominated for more Grammys than any other from their amazing catalog, most notably OK Computer, which is (not so) arguably one of the greatest albums ever recorded). But this one is definitely right up there, and if nothing else serves to cement Radiohead’s place among the greatest bands to ever record together.Plus, they gave it away for free on the internet, and that’s totally kickass.

Fave Tracks: Nude, All I Need

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amy winehouse—back to black

Fuck this album. I can’t even remember why I have it on here, and it was easier to write this sentence than to screw up the formatting on this post by erasing it.

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2008:

MGMT—oracular spectacular

When I finally got up to NYC to meet my agent and publishing house handlers in January of this year, MGMT was still all the rage, and I therefore felt much less of a cultural disconnect than I had originally feared, ’cause I’d been on this bandwagon for a long time, based mainly on the fact that two hippie guys made up the band and had lyrics like, “I’ll move to Paris, shoot some heroin and fuck with the stars/ You’ll man the island and the cocaine and the elegant cars,” which totally runs contrary to their hippie guy image. Plus many of the songs on here an infinitely hummable, as my 9 yr. old daughter will happily testify.

Fave Tracks: Time To Pretend, Kids

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fleet foxes—fleet foxes

I first heard Fleet Foxes when they appeared on SNL in January. They are from Seattle (how cliche…1991 called, it wants its premiere underground music scene back), but sound like they are Straight Outta Appalachia. Which is kind of disturbing to me, since this means that the two most well-known Appalachian-sounding artists are from the west coast (the other being Los Angeles’ Gillian Welch). But no matter. Listen to this record and know that what you are hearing is authentic bluegrass-tinged. Every time I hear it makes me yearn to go back to Kentucky, if Kentucky weren’t so littered with ignorant rednecks and memories of unbridled happiness that make everything now pale in comparison. And you just can’t live like that.

Fave Tracks: White Winter Hymnal, Blue Ridge Mountains

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2009:

neko case—middle cyclone

I’ll be the first to admit that my exposure to much new music has been severely hampered this year, so it’s pretty anemic of me to only have one album listed for 2009, and to have the one album listed be by an artist that already has 2 other albums on this list. But this record is my favorite of Neko Case’s so far, and her insightful lyrics never cease to amaze me along with her incredible voice. Plus almost all the songs are about love (a first time for her), and the album ends with 28 minutes of frogs and crickets making night noises, which is a perfect way to fall asleep. So there’s that, too.

Fave Tracks: The Next Time You Say “Forever”, The Pharoahs 

ARTIST OF THE DECADE:

I decided on this designation based solely on who had the most presence on the list. Radiohead, Flaming Lips and Beck came close, with two albums each on here, but in the end it wasn’t enough. Thanksfully I didn’t have to think much on it, since only one artist had three albums on my list, and that was, of course,

NEKO CASE

She’s incredible. Have I mentioned that yet? Watch this video, buy her albums, thank me later.

Check out GIVE Seattle – it’s a really awesome and cheap! album. It’s nice to have for yourself and also a great gift. And it benefits charity.

For only $7, you can download an mp3 album featuring over 25 tracks from Seattle artists, including: Fleet Foxes, Grand Archives, Head Like a Kite, Hey Marseilles, Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, The Blakes, Ben Gibbard, Throw Me the Statue, The Long Winters, Dave Bazan and more. Whew! That’s a lot of good stuff.

And the best part is 100% of the proceeds go directly to Arts Corps and neighborhood food banks.

You don’t even have to live in Seattle to buy it – it’s available online!

If you are local, you can also buy the download codes at Caffe Vida, The Croc, Easy Street, EMP, Sonic Boom, University Book Store, and The Sorrento.

Steinkind – Deutschland Brennt

Bon Iver – Skinny Love (Live 2008)

If These Trees Could Talk – Malabar Front

The Subs – Music Is the New Religion

Fleet Foxes – White Winter Hymnal

S.I.T Wolf X

Seattle Times
There’s zero downside to “GIVE,” a downloadable benefit compilation of 30 genre-spanning songs by Seattle musicians. At $7, you’re paying less than a quarter per song. Every cent of that $7 goes toward local hunger relief and arts education. Each of the songs — most of them exclusive — is good. “GIVE” is the sort of big city/small pond collaboration that could only happen in Seattle. Every facet — music, engineering, graphic design, server space, organization, promotion, etc. — was donated. From the sponsors to the bands, “GIVE” demonstrates the Seattle music community is all things to all people, if the people are willing to dig a little. Bands include Fleet Foxes, the Moondoggies, Visqueen, the Saturday Knights, the Maldives, Grand Archives, Cave Singers, Gabriel Mintz, Arthur & Yu, Talbot Tagora, Hey Marseilles, Pearly Gate Music, Tea Cozies, Fatal Lucciauno, Fresh Espresso, Josh Morrison, Sera Cahoone, Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band. “GIVE” is available for download today, November 17th.

PERFECT FOR:

driving, background music at work, background music at home, hanging out with (chill) friends, actively listening

PUT ON A MIX CD WITH:

Fleet Foxes, The Script, John Mayer

I have to go ahead a throw a huge THANK YOU!! to meredith who posted on my Fleet Foxes review and recommended I listen to KOC. I google’d them this morning, previewed one track, and then proceeded to purchase “Declaration of Dependence” and “Riot on an Empty Street” and have not stopped listening since.

They are Erlend Øye and Eirik Glambek Bøe from Norway. They have topped the charts in Norway, had some presence on the UK Charts, were Top 10 and up in Italy, and barely got anywhere in the US (which is why I have lost faith in this country’s ability to realize what talent is).

I feel like KOC paint this gorgeous musical picture with every song they sing, the guitar, the transient violin and piano parts, act as the autumn leaves, trees, and the ground, and when their voices come in they are both the sun and the breeze. I know this may sound really weird reading it at first, but please just try to imagine it. Their harmonies are impeccable, beautifully blended, and full of heart. “Riot on an Empty Street” seems to be the more upbeat of the two albums I purchased today.

Their timing is nothing short of perfect. I feel like I may be over hyping these guys, but they are truly one of a kind- and if you give them a chance, you will see for yourself. They may sound like a lot of different bands out there, but they have won me over as a loyal listener.

I love this type of music because I can put it on almost anywhere (except the gym…. maybe for stretching) and they just become the soundtrack of the moment. Whether or not you can actively listen to their lyrics, the mood and ambiance they create with their sound is enough to keep it on…..repeat.

What do they sound like? Okay.. I’d say a modern Simon and Garfunkel, or a more monotonous (in a good way!) Fleet Foxes.

Fabulous*

Today isn’t a day for new music per se … honestly, these are songs that I just felt like listening to … that’s all. Enjoy …!

Ryan Adams – “Come Pick Me Up”

Fleetwood Mac – “Rhiannon”

M. Ward –  ”Chinese Translation”

Iron & Wine – “Naked As We Came”

My Morning Jacket – “Where to Begin”

Band of Horses  – “The Great Salt lake”

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – “It’ll All Work Out”

Ben Folds Five feat. Regina Spektor – “You Don’t Know Me” (not folky but whatever)

Fleet Foxes  – “Ragged Wood”

Patty Griffin – “Long Ride Home”

Ryan Adams – “Wonderwall” (cover)

The Shins  – “Young Pilgrims”

Ben Folds Five – “Such Great Heights”

Damien Rice – “Delicate”

Meiko – “Hawaii”

Blur – “Tender”

A few weeks ago I wrote a short entry regarding my plans for compiling a monstrous list of the top 100 albums of the past decade, from 2000-2009. Since the end of the year rarely yields any real gems in the music industry, I felt that this would be as good a time as any to start our list, so below are the first ten, those ranked 91-100, and the rest will follow of the course of the next few weeks. As we move along let me know what you think.

100. Guns N’ Roses – Chinese Democracy (2008)
There are few albums that match the level of anticipation that followed this, G N’ R’s first album of original material in 17 years, but nobody really knew what to expect. The result was, well, interesting. Some tunes like the title song and “Shackler’s Revenge” rock like only Axl & co. can, some, like the excellent “Better” and “Catcher in the Rye” seem to hint that the band still has great things ahead of them, and then there are songs like “If the World,” which sounds like some cheesy James Bond theme reject. It’s no Appetite for Destruction, but it’s not bad.

99. Johnny Cash – American IV: The Man Comes Around (2002)
There are few figures in the annals of country music with the kind of well-deserved stature that Cash had and this album, one of five produced by Rick Rubin, was a fitting goodbye to the Man in Black. His baritone was well-worn with age, but that only added character to this set of songs reflecting on a life well lived. With the end in sight, Cash’s selections were particularly poignant, particularly “Give My Love to Rose,” “We’ll Meet Again,” and the heartbreakingly beautiful “Hurt,” a song originally performed by Nine Inch Nails. Some of the choices go a bit overboard in the sentimentality (do we really need versions of “Desperado” and “Bridge over Troubled Water?” but I guess when you’re a 70+ year old music icon, you’ve earned the right to play anything you want.

98. Iron and Wine – Our Endless Numbered Days (2004)
Sam Beam’s mostly one man band is oftentimes compared to past artists like Nick Drake, Simon and Garfunkel, and Elliott Smith. His fingerpicked acoustic guitar style is both beautiful and haunting, while still being quite listenable and rarely boring. On an album where the songs tend to blend together, “Naked as we Came” is one that stands out as truly great. After a hard day, this is a great one to just turn on and relax to.

97. Mos Def – The Ecstatic (2009)
Mos Def is an anomaly in the world of modern rap music. His lyrics are intelligent and socially conscious with a style that is as inventive as anybody working today. Songs like “Auditorium” and “Quiet Dog” incorporate interesting samples with good beats that complement Def’s flow nicely.

96. Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)
This one hasn’t held up as well for me as other albums (hip hop and otherwise), have over the past decade, but it still deserves a spot for its timely shock value and cultural significance in the early part of the decade. Though he soon became a parody of himself, this album really shook things up in 2000, providing a quite a subversive shock through the establishment with infamous songs about dangerously rabid fans and killing his girlfriend.

95. Warren Zevon – The Wind (2003)
In 2002, wry singer-songwriter Zevon was diagnosed with inoperable terminal cancer. Rather than engaging in treatments that might prolong his life but leave him incapacitated, he decided to record this, his final album. The Wind retains much of Zevon’s characteristically dry and somewhat morbid sense of humor, while offering up the poignant views of a man who has reached the end of life’s road. His cover of Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” takes on a lot more meaning when sung by someone in his state and the album’s finale, “Keep Me in Your Heart,” is a fitting goodbye for a singer-songwriter who tasted success, but never let it control his artistry.

94. The National – Boxer (2007)
Best characterized by vocalist Matt Berninger’s deep baritone and their downbeat style, The National had been playing together for several years before becoming critical darlings in the last half of the decade. Their style is expansive and lush, with songs like the politically motivated “Fake Empire” and the incredible “Mistaken for Strangers” (which is probably one of my favorite songs of the decade), this album is definitely one that needs to be heard.

93. Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes (2008)
With vocal harmonies reminiscent to those of past acts like Crosby, Still, & Nash, Fleet Foxes burst on the scene in 2008 with one of the more unlikely success stories of 2008. “White Winter Hymnal” is an inescapably catchy song that will grasp hold of your brain and not let go.

92. K’naan – Troubadour (2009)
I imagine that Mogadishu-born Muslim rapper K’naan just shakes his head at American rappers and their tales of life on the street saying, “You think you have it hard?” His rhymes cover timely topics involving the problems in his homeland, from civil war to pirates. Troubadour, his sophomore release, is heavy on special guests, some of which work better than others, but the overall product is quite good, especially in songs like “Somalia” and “Wavin’ Flag.”

91. Bon Iver – For Emma, Long Ago (2008)
In early 2007, following two devastating breakups (one with his girlfriend, the other with his band) and a strong bout of mono, Justin Vernon retreated to a cabin in northern Wisconsin for three solid months of solitude. Armed with his guitar, some old recording equipment and a load of heartache, Vernon took on the name Bon Iver and created this album. Songs like “Flume” and “Skinny Love,” feature little besides an acoustic guitar and Vernon’s aching falsetto, but that’s really all you need. This is one beautiful piece of modern day Americana.

To follow up on Camstyles post I have been pulling some long hours in front of the computer these days, working on new projects. Like many of us out there I suffer from music ADD. So when an artist or album comes a long that I play over and over I know it’s something special. Lately I have been getting into indie, blues rock, dream pop, and of course some techno. Here are some artists that have helped me pass the time; in each genre:

INDIE:

Sub pop’s fleet foxes hailing from Seattle, some nice easy listening that can be listened to loud or soft depending on your mood, enjoy…

15 Mykonos (Alternative Version)

04 tiger mountain peasant song

BLUES-ROCK:

The Black Keys, I kept hearing their name everywhere for a few years but never really listened to them. Until I started watching the HBO show ” HUNG” thier song I’ll be your man is the theme song for the show, so I got some of their albums and really enjoyed what I heard.

05 Lies – The Black Keys

03 Black Keys – The Big Come Up – I’ll Be Your Man

DREAM POP:

I first heard Silversun Pickups at a friends house the other night. I first I thought it was a new Smashing Pumpkins album then I though it was Girls against Boys. Then I realized I had to have it. Check these guys out… serious!

03 – Growing Old Is Getting Old

04 – It’s Nice To Know You Work Alone

TECHNO:

Shadow dancer, I just love these guys!

01 Cowbois (Original) ( watch out for the drop at 1:30)

13 This Is This 1 ( no need to work dj, this track does everything for you )

ghost on tape: check out the mix this dude just did for xlr8r

Ghosts_On_Tape_-_Magadishu_Night_Life

enjoy guys!

2008 was het baardenjaar. Dat had natuurlijk een aanloop en ook de uitloop is nog duidelijk zichtbaar, we mogen dus best van een baardendecennium spreken.

2008 was opvallend omdat het toen de nieuwe hippe bands waren die het haar welig lieten groeien op het gelaat. Denk aan Fleet Foxes, Bon Iver, Band Of Horses en TV On The Radio, om het maar niet te hebben over gearriveerde baarddragers als Will Oldham, Devendra Banhart, Dennis Wilson en ZZ Top.

Simon Reynolds  verklaart in The Guardian de terugkeer naar de baard als een verlangen naar de wildernis, als een protest tegen de moderniteit. Flavorpill zet simpel de vijftien engste en bekendste baarden ooit op een rijtje.

For those who thought organic option was only available in the food menus and grocery stores, open your mouths for a fresh injection of natural banjo harmonies and strictly natural beats. New York’s band Tall Tall Trees have set themselves for an  unprocessed music foundation, which developed through the release of their debut album. The band’s members Mike Savino and Mathias Kunzli join Modern Mystery after their show at the Bowery Electric and share the recipe used for cooking up their tunes.

What is the story behind the band’s name?

Mike: Tall Tall Trees is a song written by Roger Miller, who is one of my song-writing heroes. We kind of wanted something that is really organic and natural, so when we came across Tall Tall Trees it kind of clicked.

How did the band start making music?

Mike: The band was originally a trio. Looking back at the datebook we started writing in 2005, but that wasn’t really the band.Then Mathias and the guitarist Kyle joined and we started playing acoustic.

Who are your influences and what is the main inspiration behind your music? It doesn’t have to  be limited to just the music spectrum.

Mike: The thing that four of us have in common is that we’re all freelance musicians. The main thing for me is just getting the music out. Just exposing our chemistry as a band and our friendship is a big part of our music and inspiration. I just love hanging out with these guys, we have so much fun playing together.

How did you pick up your instrument?

Mike: I was originally a bass player and went to school for it. There was a trip when I went to Brazil and I was playing electric bass. We would be in the country side of Brazil and the rest of the band had all acoustic instruments and were able to play with street musicians and hang out and just play all night. Having an electric bass I didn’t have a chance to share that. I picked up on some percussion but I really love to play string instruments. After the trip I looked into my closet and up on the top was this banjo that I toyed with as a teenager but I pulled it down and that same day I wrote two songs, and it kind of took off from there.  Our sound is really organic, I don’t ever see us using a computer while playing onstage.

Mathias: I initially wanted to play drums very early, but they didn’t offer it in school In Switzerland. It wasn’t until I was 13 that it went through and I actually followed the sound and went to school for it, and I still haven’t stopped.

How long did it take you to record your debut album and would you say you’re pleased with it?

Mathias: It took us a long time merely because we didn’t have any cash to go anywhere in a proper situation where we can go and record in a studio all together. Also, Savino just kind of started messing around with sounds and the banjo. We just did it all in our homes, passing around the music files.

Mike: So in the end it took about a year. It also took so long because we’re all so busy involved with creating music outside of the band. We had a lot of fun recording, it has  New York in it. It was recorded in Harlem, also in Brooklyn, there’s also the New York marathon in there, we were just trying to capture our environment in the music. We’re very proud of it and and wouldn’t change a thing. We’re working on our next one, where we hope to be recording together in the same room.

Do you have any favorite songs to perform during shows?

Mike: It all depends on the day and the sound. Also the audience is a big deciding factor. If the people are more rowdy we like to hit it harder, but if it is more of a listening crowd, which we don’t really have that much then of course we’ll jam with more mellow sounds. A balance of both sounds is great, through which we tried to make the album more eclectic.

If you guys could time travel which band or artist would you want to play with?

Mathias: Oh man! The first stop would have to be the 70’s, probably check out Hendrix, Aretha Franklin, The Beach Boys. Mike: But we’re also recovering jazz addicts.

Have you guys discovered any good tunes lately?

Mike: I love Akron Family, Dr. Dog, Fleet Foxes. I’ve also been getting into Dirty Projectors, I mean there is lot of good music out there.

Mathias: I checked out a lot of the stuff Michael mentioned. I explore sporadically, I rarely have time to check out music. When I get home I never have music plating, I mean I do sometimes. I’ve been packing up my house and moving and I realized that for 2 days I’ve listened to nothing.

What are your interests outside of the music scene?

Mathias: I’ve been getting into photography, just checking out a ton of art, I’m into some visual arts, really into animals. All I really would love to do is just take photos of animals and work for the National Geographic. I would sell my drum set in a minute.

Mike: For me, I love to read. I have a limited scope, but I love art. I think a parallel life path for me could have been art. I guess I have a basic artistic inclination.

 When did you decide to take a full-time role as musicians and leave your day jobs?

Mike: The weird thing about us is that we’re all music school graduates.From the start of moving here to New York is when I kind of decided that that was the goal. I had a switch go off, I saw a really great show and I realized that I could encompass that too.

 What do you guys like about being part of New York City scene?

 Mike: It’s so alive, just look outside.The thing about playing music here, that’s different from Los Angeles, there’s such a massive amount of things you can get into here, I mean I’ve played with so many different types of music, that varies from belly dancing bands, afro-beat, jazz, rock anything that you can think of. There are so many musicians here that you can collaborate with, learn from, it’s extremely wild. It’s all about diversity here.

Is it your first time at the CMJ?

Mike: As Tall Tall Trees, yes.

Do you like it so far?

We haven’t seen much of it, since we’ve been so busy. Although, we’re planning to go out and check out some shows.

If you weren’t a part of this band what would you be doing?

 Mathias: Be a part of another band probably, or do something else involved with music.

Do you guys have any upcoming tour dates or shows?

Mike: We have a couple of shows coming up, one in November with this great band called Phonograph. Also going to be playing at the Columbia University and the Brooklyn Chapel, have a  great acoustic vibe.

What’s next for the band?

Mike: Well, we’re writing, we’re playing, we’re hoping to earn some money to produce our next record. Hopefully, things will keep moving forward. Mathias:We want to thank anybody who is willing to check out our record and come see the show.We’re just here to make people smile, make good music and sing our hearts out

-Viktorsha Uliyanova

I lack motivation and have been watching music videos all night.

Good article from the Guardian on the prominence and meaning of beards in noughties indie music.

Here’s the conclusion:

But if face-fuzz has become an epoch-defining signifier in leftfield rock, what exactly does it signify?

Let’s look again at Fleet Foxes’ He Doesn’t Know Why, where the group sound like angels but look like satyrs. Here, beardedness is tantamount to a visual rhetoric, almost a form of authentication, as though the band are wearing their music on their faces. The video is a symphony of shades of brown. There’s even livestock mingling with the band as they play, goats whose tufty throats accentuate the band’s bewhiskeredness. The promo’s earthy colour-palette and the group’s greasy beards amount to a blatant case of the image following the music’s lead, together invoking a hallowed era of rock history: 1968-69, the first time that rock grew bearded. On He Doesn’t Know Why, the sound and visuals are equal parts Crosby Stills and Nash, and The Band.

With Fleet Foxes’ 2008 debut album featuring ditties about red squirrels and meadowlarks and song titles like Ragged Wood and Blue Ridge Mountains, it hardly takes Roland Barthes to decode the band’s beards as the literally facial expression of a perennial American yearning for wilderness (a longing seemingly felt most fervently by those who didn’t grow up anywhere near rural areas). In this symbolic scheme, facial fur = fir (and pine, spruce, maple, shagbark, hickory, et al), while Gillette = the timber industry, or perhaps “mountain top removal” mining. In a silent but eloquent protest against modernity, Fleet Foxes have turned their chins into miniature Appalachian forests.

So much of the music I listen to strains for authenticity – I think the writer is right to see beardedness as an extension of this.

Read the whole thing

Spot the real man

September 9th, 2009

For anyone who’s been paying attention (hi Mum), I mentioned, in the last blog, that we were off to see Fleet Foxes on Monday night. With Chris prepping himself for a trip to Spain; Niall, Doug and myself (along with our Sicilian ray of sunshine, Marika) made our way to Dublin’s Vicar Street venue on Thomas Street.

The show was a sell out (in 41 minutes precisely, according to Doug “Stato” Farrell), so the 1,500 venue was buzzing nicely.

I like Vicar Street and had forgotten how much until I got there. Even feels intimate whether you’re standing or up in the gods, and the sound is always top notch. The bar’s cool for a purpose built venue and features a nice big homely fireplace and 10 foot brass teddy bear (I kid you not).

I must admit I’m not overly familiar with Fleet Foxes, but Doug (a big fan) and Niall had seen them previously (in the same venue, actually) and promised me it’d be a bit special.

In keeping with the quick sellout, there was a palpable sense of anticipation. When the band did appear, it became obvious I was in the minority as a blow in.

Fleet Foxes are impressive.

Fact.

Would they make me want to go out and form a band?

Probably not.

But my knucklehead tendencies are well documented.

So I’ll shut up and give praise where praise is due.

I personally hadn’t heard harmonies delivered like that, live, in….well, ever, actually. They had some killer tunes -including an amazing final encore, featuring their equally beardy support band, Blitzen Trapper.

Another highlight was a show stopping rendition of Neutral Milk Hotel’s “Two Headed Boy”.

This was actually a sweet surprise for us because, about this time last year, an augmented Reader’s Wives performed a tribute show to NMH’s album “In The Aeroplane Over The Sea”.

I’ve just realized that Neutral Milk Hotel is possibly the one band Reader’s Wives unanimously cherish.

Well, them and The Smiths.

And The Beatles.

And maybe, Radiohead.

And Reader’s Wives, obviously.

But I digress….

To be honest Two Headed Boy really made my night because, truth be told, for the first 15 minutes of the gig I was worried that all I would hear was amazing harmonies and maybe not much of a dynamic show.

As pointed out by friend of ours after the gig (who had more than a little insider knowledge), the live appeal of these hirsute unassuming Seattle-lings was aided greatly by the hilarious deadpan stylings of drummer Josh Tillman. Also he’s an amazing kit player to boot. We knew he’d been the most experienced and prolific of the group and presumed he was a senior member.

Googled him this morning.

He’s younger than me.

Bastard.

Laters,

Disko

X

Soundtrack : Take a wild guess…

September 7th, 2009

The dust has settled and this morning our adventurous jaunt to Ireland’s premier festival, Electric Picnic, is sinking in.

We were to play in the area known as the Mindfield . As a more intelluctual (some might say pretentious) side of the festival, it was peppered with a theatre tent offering abridged Shakespeare and comedy; a spoken word / poetry tent (which I had vacate almost immediately because I didn’t want to piss myself laughing at some ‘oul one reading some god awful verse with about as much enthusiasm as a corpse) and our own Leviathan tent – hosting “Political Cabaret”.

…..

Yeah, I know. That’s what I thought.

Anyway it was actually quite entertaining – economists battled politician battling socialist battling every fucking irate / drunken punter going.

Lots of swearing and accusations, but that’s pretty much how Irish people have been handling the recession anyway.

So business as usual except with microphones.

We had picked up Danny our manager (legend) from Dublin airport around 1ish and got to the festival site  around 3ish.

We discovered we were way too early-ish.

We were scheduled to go on at 6.15, so we gave ourselves a little bit of time to wander into a couple of the larger tents and caught a great set by Dublin band Jape and then Billy Bragg giving the crowd shit (quite rightly) over the Lisbon vote; to which, oddly, some people whooped and applauded to.

Trying to be as professionally punctual as possible (try saying that drunk), we trudged over to the Leviathan tent. Here we discovered the debate was still raging on.

And on.

And on.

And on.

Once the shouting had died down and the drunken, fist waving polemists had finally admitted that they were way too hammered to remember their original point (s) – it was game time.

And what a game.

Aided by a great sound (thanks Evin) and some enthused dancing, we pretty much played our best show ever.

Odd seeing that written down, but it’s true.

Crowd was fantastic – like a sea of Bez’s – and anyone who stuck a curious head in, not only stayed but joined in.

Yeah, that qualifies it, alright.

Pulling that off in a periphery tent whilst Bat For Lashes, Klaxons and fucking Brian Wilson were kicking off, is pretty damn impressive (editor’s note : Bat For Lashes never showed up, Klaxons are shit and Brian Wilson just smiled and drooled, apparently).

Smiles all round and we swiftly made our way back to Doug’s motor to get Danny back for his red eye flight on Sunday morning (the trip back was a little less swift than planned after a nearly fruitless attempt to find an open petrol station in the wilds of  County Laois. However, thanks, to Chris’ GPS on his Blackberry it was a lot swifter than it could have been).

The next day we were untethered from our manager and decided to travel a little later as to avoid the hanging around. We didn’t count on the All Ireland Hurling Final providing a 2 kilometer tail- back on the motorway, but as before, things were running late and we had loads of time to spare.

We arrived to catch the end of a lecture / presentation by legendary rock and roll photographer Bob Gruen. Bob’s been in the business 40 years and it was pretty amazing seeing his snaps of everyone from the Sex Pistols, The Clash, Dylan, Springsteen to Bon Jovi (!) and Green Day.

Showtime was upon us again but, due to my ever present genius, I had forgotten my bag of leads and pedals, as well as Niall and mine’s guitar straps. Leads were found and Niall myself looked quite punk rock as we improvised by using duct tape to fashion straps for ourselves.

We knew we probably couldn’t top the previous night and were a little nervous when we saw that the tent filled out and we only had about a dozen people in front of us. The main stage was in full final night swing and we had lost a lot of people due to our unintentional later stage time.

In a testament to the band’s attitude we played our asses off and, thanks in no small part to Niall’s talent at audience interaction, we managed to end up with the tent, at the very least, three quaters full.

We felt like winners again and after a barnstorming encore we ended up with the crowd on their feet and bopping away.

After loading the gear into our van, we then legged it back to Doug’s car once more to gleefully return to Dublin for some much deserved rest.

All in all a triumphant weekend.

Back to work in the studio this week - but not without the small matter of going to see Fleet Foxes tonight…!

See y’all soon!

Disko

X

Soundtrack : Smokestack Lightning – Howlin’ Wolf

Lyrics

I just downloaded Fleet Foxes debut album, illegally, but it’s all right. Fleet Foxes says so.

They say they couldn’t have made the album, without the inspiration of the many albums they’ve illegally downloaded themselves. And so, they don’t think it’s wrong when people download their music, it’s just the way it is, and the way a lot of people are discovering music today. Nice. I don’t download a lot of music. Nearly none. I like buying the records, and really owning them, having them. But I don’t think piracy is a terrible crime. I believe that you should buy the records of a band, if you are going to call yourself a real fan.  Anyways. I just think the whole thing with piracy is really interesting. And it’s nice when some talented musicians who’s not already really well-known (and probably not quite rich) like Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails, says that they don’t mind people getting their music for free. Sharing is caring. Thank you Fleet Foxes. I’m looking forward to listen to the album. I already love White Winter Hymnal.

A couple of you may have noticed I did not write this post in the morning as usual, but rather at night. My corporate overlords have decided to “help me” by providing my team with “resources from India”. Part of my job now is to teach them my job, which also means I will be less productive in my job. I am of the belief this is the beginning of the end for my current job but I have no choice. To facilitate this change I will be going to work in the early morning. I am excited about the prospect of seeing sunlight during the winter months by getting to leave work early but it is bittersweet. Perhaps if I am really successful in the transition of knowledge I will be laid off and then be able to see sunlight all day! Or perhaps because of this post I will be laid off much like Dooce and my blog will sustain me. However, given I have earned about $0.24 in referrals to Amazon after 7 months, perhaps I should fill out that application for food stamps now. I am tempted to simply refer to my Indian counter parts as “my replacements” at work in front of my boss and my boss’ boss. Spiteful? Perhaps. Funny. Definitely!

Yum! Food stamps here I come! I do like a plate of beans and rice!

Anyway, you can expect my songs of the day to be coming to you at night instead of during the day for the foreseeable future. I know all my regular readers may be put out by this… all one of you… but be strong, you and I, we will survive! On the plus side I am far more verbose and hopefully quippy in the evenings when I’m all awake fat and happy. (In the mornings I am just fat.) I can’t tell you how many times in the morning I have spent 15 minutes writing 2 sentences and literally said “crap” out loud. As I reread all I have written tonight it does all still have a “blah blah blah” quality to it. I am just not a writer I guess. Perhaps I should quit this blogging thing and go be a real DJ. Would you be sad? Would I be sad? Would my future radio listeners be sad when they hear be blabbing? Inquiring minds want to know!!!

Moving on…

So I’ve been listening to the Fleet Foxes’ album, also named “Fleet Foxes”, over and over this week. At first it just seemed like some nice chill background music, but now I am hooked. I want more, like zombies want more brains to eat. I am saddened that it is the only album, and yet overjoyed that there are additional songs by them I have yet to hear from the extended versions and the singles. The Fleet Foxes are good and I must share them with you. This song is one of the better ones I think, but the album is very solid and likely to appear on my “Must Own Albums” list in the not so distant future. Recent obsessions though… right now!

Song Recommendations

If you like this song, I also suggest:

• The Decemberists
• Grizzly Bear
• Iron & Wine

I also suggest the music genre:

• Baroque Pop

Click here for more info on Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes – “Your Protector”.

The MP3 may be purchased here:

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes

Real Estate's debut self-titled is set to drop on November 17th

PREVIEW: VISIT Real Estate’s MySpace
WE GIVE IT: 14/20 Watts

In Janurary, the indie scene was abuzz with anticipation of Real Estate’s debut release, brought on by a hint dropped in the form of demo track, “Fake Blues.” The promising foursome, who hail from New Jersey, invoked thoughts of the Jersey Shore with tuned-down surfer rock ripe for consuming today’s lazy-loving indie scene. Their self-titled debut album accomplished just that, but unfortunately with a bit less enthusiasm than may have been originally thought.

Real Estate opens the album with a lonely guitar riff that brings the group into “Beach Comber,” which starts setting sights fairly high. The simplicity seems promising, but a bit too similar to the same tuned down approach of groups like Fleet Foxes. The sound is hardly refreshing, but comforting nonetheless. The group settles into a security reminiscent of albums past (read: indie released in 2008), but rarely departs from that security, much to our disappointment.

The record takes advantage of the popularity of simplicity in today’s indie scene, but much to its detriment, never reaches the depth achieved by some of their peers. Instead, it remains loftily afloat a sea of indie, with very little supporting it from beneath. While reaching a few high points on the aforementioned “Beach Comber” and their all-too-obvious psychedelic rock attempt, “Pool Swimmers,” they definitely show potential. Those are hardly enough to keep the album going strong, however.

Overall, the record is pleasing, but seemingly empty. The beach dwellers of Real Estate have managed to assume a state too relaxed for a group releasing their debut and it shows up negatively in the music. Fans of the genre may find a few moments of enjoyment in the record, but in the end will be left wanting a bit more. For the time being, we may have to sit back and wait for a sophomore release for Real Estate to hopefully realize their full potential.

– John Luposello