THE QUIET MOMENTS MEANT MORE TO ME, SECRETLY

Prerequisite: Understand that any incoherence is (hopefully) to do with sleep-deprivation.

Johnny Boy

You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve

Every time I hear the new Editors' single, Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors, my mind drifts and this is the song I think of. That drumbeat is so familiar. It's not the exact same - but when recalled through hazy memories and backward glances, it seems to be.
It almost feels wrong to feature this song as we step warily into Summer, when the song feels like its stuck in a permanent Winter - instruments played by frost-bitten hands, all exuberance and frustration, in front of kids with rosy-cheeks. A song of star-sparkles, countdowns and sleigh-rides; (seemingly) playful banter mixed with sincere sentiments.
But, in a way, it also feels right to feature this song. A reminder of Christmas* - a time of believing in something, be it Jesus or fairies or human kindness or the healing power of nature, etc. In these crazy, summer days filled with barbecues and drunken after-parties it's good to remember that sobriety can be just as pleasant. Just fill your living room with friends and watch ancient sit-com reruns on TV - perhaps after a nice Sunday dinner, or a swim in the lake. It's not that cold this time of year you know. [Info]


(image)

The National

Fake Empire

It's almost as if the spirit of Leonard Cohen is hanging from the chandelier, smoking a Regal Filter and breathing hot and heavy in your ear. But it's a tired, resigned Leonard Cohen - all romantic longing and nostalgic regret. And try as his band might to lift the tune - blowing upon embers to rekindle a fire - they're actually the ones making the song sadder; bitter reminders dressed up in jubilant brass and lively percussion. Once upon a time things were so precious - life was exciting, everything was beautiful. Now its only the memories of easier times that remain; but recalling those bygone moments almost keeps them alive. [Info/Buy]

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Said The Gramophone featured Fake Empire** just-the-other-day, and unwittingly nailed my opinion on The Twilight Sad's debut: it's perceptibly flawed - and I won't deny it - but it feels right that it's flawed. All truly beautiful things are flawed (we would probably be too suspicious of them otherwise) - yet it's the fact that they carry their flaws in such a way that we shrug them off, dismiss them, (eventually we might not even notice them). They wouldn't be the same without these minor imperfections - and we love (when we truly love) people, places, albums, et cetera, for what they are, not for what we want them to be. And my obsession with this song feels like more than just a casual fling.

*Even the clever title seems like a barbed rebellion against the consumerist nature that plagues Christmas. Sometimes it's ok to sit in and enjoy yourself; relaxed in a room full of casual smiles and easy conversation. At least that way the rent gets paid.
**I have no doubts about posting this song: it is a summer song, lilting and catching sunlight, smoke rings, sadness and the dearest of memories. Surprisingly, I'm not a fan - per se - of The National, but they do have their moments.

I SAW YOU WITH YOUR MAKE-UP RUNNING DOWN

Elliott Smith

All Cleaned Out

There is no beginning. You (the listener) are thrown face forward into the frame. Straight in with the melody and the there-before-you-realise chorus. The misery of (maybe) a mother, who goes through new-boyfriends like she goes through old Biro's and cheap-beer, curled up in a sheet of note-pad paper and thrown from a window; gliding as it catches the air and reflecting sunlight in the same way that a mirror reflects eye-wrinkles and fake-tan-streaks. [Info / Buy]


(image credit: Ann Ranlett)

Patrick Wolf

The Libertine

It could be the creaky instrumentation that starts an episode of Poirot; melodramatic, curious, hackneyed, adored. The gallop of hooves and the troubadour lyrics; despair in a light-of-calm. "The circus girl fell off her horse - now she's paralysed." Cold and unforgiving, yet passionate and inspired - so altogether unjust, unhappy, unsatisfied and so altogether alive. "I'm going to run the risk of being free." Evocative of the type of controversial wisdom that be gleaned from aging leather-bound books - mere pontification on the fact that "the shackles that bind us are those that keep our lives unified." And (perhaps) unfulfilled. [Buy]

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Patrick Wolf had some convinced he was retiring. But really he's just taking a break. And this is good news.

OUR SLEEP IS LIKE A MIX-TAPE: #3

A mix for patio-parties underneath shimmering sunshine. Electro, house, pop, etc - the kids in skinny jeans and skin-tight t-shirts (cap-sleeves! yeooo!) are listening to this music while they eat their lunch. A few guys with cardigans and scarves on are sitting on a bench, smoking a cigarette, and listening to this music. Some guys playing basketball - behind a school / beside a play-park - have got their sneakers on and when they rest they absorb the sunshine and the music. They love the beats. They love their dancing feet. They love to shimmy, sway, sashay across the court. The house-beats follow their footprints across the gravel.

Dancing Feet Need To Feel The Beat



Van She - Sex City (Nightmoves Remix) [Info]
Test-Icicles - What's Your Damage (Alan Braxe & Fred Falke Remix)
Superpitcher - Happiness (Lawrence Mix) [Info]
The Streets - It's Too Late (High Contrast Remix) [Info]
Radiohead - Street Spirit (Funkagenda Remix) [Info]
Professor Murder - Free Stress Test (Harkin & Wolf Remix)
New Order - Temptation (Secret Machines Remix) [Info]
Moby - Lift Me Up (Mylo Mix) [Info]
Midlake - Roscoe (Beyond The Wizard's Sleeve Remix) [Info]
The Knife - Heartbeats (Rex The Dog Remix) [Info]
José Gonzalez - Crosses (Stanton Warriors Remix) [Info]
Junior Boys - In The Morning (Hot Chip Remix) [Info]

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Click to download all tracks as a ZIP file.

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love, xo

TELL ME THAT YOU LOVE ME MORE

Feist

One Two Three Four

It starts off simple, slow and sweet with Girl-Scout guitar and Feist's trademark scratchy vocals. But soon enough, everyone around the campfire who can play an instrument decides to join in - even those who can only finger-click and hand-clap - to create this ebullient atmosphere; this reckless abandonment. It's so joyous - a song (penned by New Buffalo) filled with wonder and adolescent innocence. [Buy]



Soko

I'll Kill Her

I meant to feature this song around the same time as everyone else did, but somehow I never got around to it. Pleasing enunciation with a French accent; almost-but-not-quite spoken-word. Old-school guitar riffs which carry - and create their own - melodies, and simple one-note solos hovering just above. Chirpy, crisp, but oh-so-sad in its own way. Bitterness and obsession dressed up in quirky, playful clothes. [Info]

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You can find an eighty-three minute long radio-show for which Pharrell, Ratatat and Soko picked songs - and played some of their own - here.

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There's a bouncy castle and a chip-van - offering free food - outside. The sun is out and it's sidling up to the clouds and smiling. There's a speaker-system throwing old-school tunes across the grass. And if I was DJ-ing that Feist track would be played every hour. Somehow this feels worth mentioning.

YOUR RED SKY AT NIGHT WON'T FOLLOW ME NOW

The Twilight Sad [Buy / Info]

Cold Days From The Birdhouse

I woke up last night at 11:38PM. I haven't been to sleep since. A phone-call shook me out of my sleepy reverie. The phone-call ended, the words spoken were forgotten. But before that phone-call I had a dream. An ex-best friend was getting a piggy-back from a best friend. We were at the beach, right beside the ocean. I felt the sand curl around my toes, the warmth sinking into my skin. She was up on his shoulders; they were running. Everytime I caught up with them I tried to reach out to her, to feel the touch of skin on skin, hand on hand. And every time, they ran faster, further. She remained out of reach. When I went to rest my arm on her shoulder it was shrugged off.

I thought I didn't understand the opening motif of this song. I heard the words but they meant nothing to me. But the voice - intimate and warm, crackling like logs upon a campfire - the voice that sang them nearly broke my heart.

I realise now that I understand what those words mean. To me, at least. "You make it your own / But this is where your arm can't go." Everytime I try to rest my arm on her shoulder it will be shrugged off. I will never comfort her the way I did, once.

At the time, I thought I was making no difference. I knew that I couldn't possibly know how she felt. I'd never experienced the physical death of a loved one. I still haven't. But I did things that I knew how to do. Writing notes, sending supportive texts, sharing emotional songs. Often there was no reply. I didn't know what she was thinking; how she was coping. I didn't know if her brave face was all smoke and mirrors; if she was actually breaking inside. Afterwards though, she wrote a short card. A thank-you. It's under my bed, in a shoe-box stuffed haphazardly with memories. The magic from my life that's been captured, like lightning in a bottle.

"Your red sky at night won't follow me now / I won't wear your shoes" Friendships can develop out of mutual respect, trust, love. Friendships can develop out of shared experiences, walking in each other's shoes, empathising.

Friendships can develop out of similar likes/dislikes, loves/hates. But I only remember the things she used to like: bands, places, books. Any new interests she develops I won't be able to discuss with her. Anything new in her life I won't know about. When there's beautiful weather in her part of the world, it won't be something we share in common; it won't be something we discuss when there's nothing left to say. Never again will we sit together on steps and find shapes in the sky - in the clouds. I won't receive post-cards from her when she's in far-away places. No more magic will be conjured or captured.

Splinters of sentences rise up in the air like smoke that won't lift. Reminders of a scar that never heals. ("another hotel", "a romantic gesture", "another phone-call.") And can you hear that steady staccato-tap of a piano key that remains constant throughout? Like the second-hand's tick on a Grandfather-clock. It's the sound of time moving steadily on. The decay of memories.

What will happen when the memories run out? When I can no longer taste her in the air, or remember the way she walked when I hear battered Converse crunch along dusty gravel. When I can no longer look out upon a village, or a lake, or a meandering road along a cliff-side; when I can no longer look upon a thatched cottage, or a delicate painting, or the flowers - the roses, and the tulips, and the daisies - in a city-park and think, "This is beautiful. She would have loved this." What happens then? Is it as if she never existed? Except for some elegant hand-writing on an old-fashioned thank-you card? Will several words of hers, regarding a time I don't remember, be all that I have left? Will I just have a scar on each of my hands - a cigarette burn; knuckles dragged along a pebble-dashed wall - from long nights wrestling with impossible choices. Will I even remember those long nights?

"I won't clip your wings." Cowardly choices dressed up as good intentions. It is only in my dreams that I reach out to her, try to pull her close again. Even if things changed, circumstances and situations, I wouldn't even know the words to say to her. I could smile. I could hold a conversation for a few seconds. But after that I'd be lost. I'd chain-smoke; I'd drink myself silly. I'd stutter; I'd trip over my words. It's hard to understand how people once so close can be so distant.

"Will you come back?" She was up on his shoulders and they were running. Everytime I caught up with them I tried to reach out to her, to feel the touch of skin on skin, hand on hand. And every time, they ran faster, further. She remained out of reach. When I went to rest my arm on her shoulder it was shrugged off. I think I'm grateful for this.

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This song is a perfectly constructed collage of thoughts and feelings. Invigorated, emotional, achingly beautiful. The sadness of life. The difficult decisions, the failed friendships, the silent betrayals. The need to keep moving on. The steady piano key... Even the slide-guitar that opens the song signals change. "You won't follow me now." [Buy / Info]

I WANT YOU TO PICK UP THE PHONE AND HUM THE DIAL-TONE

New Buffalo

Cheer Me Up Thank You

The vocal quirks - the deep sighs, the panned harmonies - remind me of Imogen Heap, but maybe slower, simpler. And is Sally Seltman really happier, or as she puts it, cheered up? Or is she still melancholic over the loss of a friend or a lover or a sibling yet trying to put on a brave face. It's no mistake that on its second outing the tail-end of the clichéd mothers-little-helper line, "and look at what we've got", is drowned out by wash-away coo's. Yet, when the song is this lovely I'm not sure that the pervading sentiment (whether truth or façade) even matters. But I do sometimes wonder. And why is it so lovely? The same words, looped, the music a constant, why do x + y = pleasing? Once again, maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe the song should be gratefully soaked up, absorbed and accepted without any real thought - like the words of loved ones sitting at the bedside of their comatose belovéd. The sentiments drift through the air and then wash away. [Info / Buy]



Tegan and Sara

Where Does The Good Go?

Not to turn this into a RIYL session, but: RIYL if you like The Weepies (mp3: Rocks & Water). Or recommended if you like pop music that is catchy, defiant, but inherently miserable. The dual harmonies are to die for; the sentiment is heart-breaking. [Info / Buy]

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The entirety of Somewhere, Anywhere by New Buffalo is exquisite.

Triptych Festival: 25th - 29th April

So, Triptych starts today and carries through 'til Sunday (gigs strewn throughout Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Edinburgh). As a Glasgow resident, here are the local one's that I'm interested in:

Triptych Festival



Cat Power (mp3: Wonderwall) performing on the Renfrew Ferry with Tom Brosseau (today/tomorrow)

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CSS (mp3: Music Is My Hot Hot Sex), Prinzhorn Dance School, Ratatat (mp3: Seventeen Years) at Barrowlands (tomorrow)

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65daysofstatic (mp3: Retreat! Retreat!), Kling Klang, Stuart Braithwaite (of Mogwai) DJ Set at Subclub (Friday)

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Etienne de Crecy, Loose Joints, Stevie Elements, Andrew Divine at Art School (Saturday)

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Ballads of the Book: Idlewild, King Creosote, Sons & Daughters, James Yorkston, Emma Pollock, Lord Cut-Glass, Alasdair Roberts, Aidan Moffat, Mike Heron, Karine Polwart (mp3: The Good Years), Norman Blake, Trashcan Sinatras, Foxface, Hal Duncan, Rodge Glass, John Burnside, Bill Duncan, Alan Bissett (mp3: The Rebel On His Own Tonight), Robin Robertson, Laura Hird at Tramway (Sunday)

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Beyond The Wizard's Sleeve: Erol Alkan & Richard Norris (mp3: Roscoe) at Admiral's Bar (Sunday)

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Unfortunately due to lack of funds, I probably won't make it to that many of the gigs. Perhaps I'll go to David Kitt at ABC (not a Triptych gig) tonight though.

OUR SLEEP IS LIKE A MIX-TAPE: #2

The internet is an odd thing. When it's gone you instantly want it back so you can Google that festival, find out what gigs are happening later on in the week, check your e-mails, use Dictionary.com to define that word, find out an album release date, check out the cinema listings for your area, research whitening toothpastes in order to find out which of the commercially available one's is the least abrasive, find out what the weather looks like for tomorrow ('cause you're praying it's a nice day so you can go to the park and take pictures, but you don't know yet if you should even bother waking up), tell the world about that one New Buffalo song that's been on repeat all week, etc, etc.

But when you get it back, you wonder why you were so desperate in the first place. Anyway, for now it's back. It will be gone in an hour. While it lasts, I'm taking the opportunity to share with you some songs. Been working too hard? Been staying up too late? Been raining all day? Rest your feet on the chair next to you, drink some alcohol, and quietly buzz. You deserve a rest. You deserve a party. Shout-outs to Kiss Atlanta and Palms Out Sounds for bringing many of these to my attention. You want this mix described to you? Chilled out electro that indie kids can enjoy, party songs that never really become anthemic, pop songs for lovers of abstract paintings in art-galleries, music for the single man to put on while he's in the garden, sipping at his alcoholic drink.

Indie Kids Don't Dance



Editors - Munich (Pase Rock Bip Remix) [Info]
Daft Punk - Around The World (Killdahype Remix) [Info]
Lo-Fi-Fnk - Wake Up
Hot Chip - Colours (DFA Remix)
Chromeo - Needy Girl (Bloc Party's High School Prom Remix) [Info]
Van She - Kelly (Cut Copy Remix) [Info]
Vampire Weekend - Walcott (Insane Mix #2)
Bloc Party - Blue Light (Engineers Anti-Gravity Remix)
Peter, Bjorn & John - Young Folks (Punks Jump Up Special Disco Mix) [Info]
Dead Disco - The Treatment (Metronomy Mix) [Info]
Justice - D.A.N.C.E. (original)
Teki Latex - Les Matins de Paris (Surkin Remix) [Info]
Snowden - Anti-Anti (Treasure Fingers Remix) [Info]
Simian Mobile Disco - It's The Beat (The Teenagers Remix) [Info]
The Secret Handshake - Too Young (The Toxic Avenger Remix) [Info]

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Click to download all tracks as a ZIP file.

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[Info] = website of the remixer.
Listen in the order shown. Or don't.

SHE WAS OUT OF CIGARETTES, SO I WALKED HER TO THE STORE

!!!

Must Be The Moon

This song is a slut. It doesn't make a big deal about it. It swaggers like it would swagger if we didn't know it was a slut. It is what it is. It's as infectiously catchy as STD's. If you smile at it, it'll take you a walk. All of a sudden you're in its arms in your own bedroom. And as it gets redressed later on, it'll be casual about its nakedness, and if you point it out, it'll look at you and be like, "yea, I know, I'm getting dressed now". I can't stop listening to this song every time I put the CD in. I'm charmed; and if asked would I ever go for a one-night stand again with this song, I'd probably say no, but in my heart the answer would be yes, yes, yes! Oh, please! [Buy]

!!!

Intensify

Highly regarded by !!!'s fans, (their best song yet, apparently), this makes me dizzy. I only heard it the other day. It sounds like a live session to me. Like they were in the middle of Soho one day, drinking, and they said to the bar-staff, "Hey guys, is it alright if we just set up here? Maybe, play a song or two?". And normally the response would be "No, of course not", but the sun was out, and these kids were charming. So they shrugged, nodded "yes". And it's like they recorded the whole thing, there on the spot, with the band just sort of glancing at each other with half-smiles and happy-smirks, jamming it up, instruments coming in and out of songs like restless guests at house parties ("hey the kitchen is where it's at man! - actually, no, I think I want to sit down in the living room for a minute"). Can you feel it intensify?! Can you feel it? Put your hands up! C'mon!

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These songs are for everyone who celebrated the weekend and the start of the week with alcohol and friends.

WE ALL HAVE HAD SUCH A BEAUTIFUL START

(image: Worth 1000)

The Voom Blooms - Politics & Cigarettes

A little flash-back to a recent yesteryear (I believe this was recorded in 2005?), which is still relevant today. Insistent, marching drums, interwoven dual-guitar riffs, and passionate vocals struggling to be heard, all leading to the mildly dramatic chorus: "you and I, we're coming home". All done with just a slight nod to Interpol.

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I first heard this track on the sadly departed blog, The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday.

BONO - POP STAR, POLITICAL CAMPAIGNER AND DEMI-GOD

U2 Songs - Live, Covered, Remixed

Scala & Kolacny Brothers - With or Without You
Rogue Wave - Seconds
J-Lo vs. U2 - I'm Real A Little While (Mash-up)
RX - Sunday Bloody Sunday
The Edge - Sunday Bloody Sunday (live) (incorrectly labeled)
Benjamin Costello - Sunday Bloody Sunday

Today, Bono (lead singer of U2; real name: Paul Hewson) was awarded an honorary knighthood. Due to being Irish, he will not be able to use the title 'Sir', though he did suggest some alternatives: "Lord of lords, your demi-godness," he quipped. His new title, is in fact, Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE) and he believes he will be able to put it to good use in the never-ending fight against world poverty - "An award like this actually really helps me get through a few doors I wouldn't get through", he remarked. Last year MTV named him the most influential pop star of the past 25 years. Ends.

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I finally updated my blog-roll. It took ages. That will be all.

ON BUSES THAT MOVE THROUGH THE NIGHT WE SLEEP

Montag - Sorry We Are Closed
M83 - Teen Angst (Montag Remix)

I'll confess: I know little about Montag. But what I have heard (the songs above and a variety of other things) is enough to get me interested. I love the Teen Angst remix - the first time I heard it my breath caught. Well, he has a new album, entitled Going Places, coming out on May 29th and a quick run-through of the contributors is enough to get the pulse racing. Here's the ones that excite me the most: Owen Pallett of Final Fantasy, Anthony Gonzalez of M83, Amy Millan of Stars, Au Revoir Simone. I will be awaiting the album with eagerness and anticipation. Will you? [Tracklist]

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Au Revoir Simone

Sad Song

A little maracas from the bench beside the park. A few fingers tapping on the picnic table, just inches away from a couple of friends with their heads laid down. An effort to remain cheerful even though you can see the clouds taking shape overhead, the sky slowly darkening. You can see the lake through the trees. There's a sailboat on it doing it's daily trip back and forth. And there's people with trumpets in it! They're giggling and laughing, smiling at you. You try to return the gesture; to suppress the fear of loss. You remember that it's only when you have something beautiful that you are able to fear its loss. And you have that; so you smile back, and count yourself lucky. [Buy / Info]

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Final Fantasy cover versions of songs by Mariah Carey, Bloc Party, Arcade Fire, Joanna Newsom, and more, are still available here.

EVERYONE IS KIND OF LAZY WHEN IT'S TIME TO KISS THE LADY

The stunningly beautiful Lisa Lobsinger's profile rose, quite noticeably, when she started touring with indie-rock legends (nay, GENIUSES) Broken Social Scene. She became another member in their ever changing roster of female vocalists (Feist, Emily Haines, Amy Millan). She likes to sing barefoot. When she sang "Anthem For A Seventeen Year Old Girl" my eyes welled up with tears. When she moved, my eyes followed her. I had to force myself to stop staring, so I could concentrate on the other members of the band. Broken Social Scene at Mandela Hall, Belfast = best live gig I have ever attended? Damn right.



Reverie Sound Revue

An Anniversary Away (demo)

Anyway, she's also the lead singer in a little known band called Reverie Sound Revue who make dreamy ("Reverie" coming from the French word, "Rever", meaning "to dream") lullabies, full of soothing syllables, and easy going ambiance. I thought that after her Broken Social Scene recruitment they had broken up, but no... it appears they are now working on their debut album some five years after their formation. And above you'll see the first available track (a rough demo) from it. Pretty sweet, huh? It's a bit more eerie and ethereal than previous songs, and I like it. I am EXCITED. Although, I think it's also the thought of getting a physical disc with sleeve-notes featuring her beautiful face. And people call me shallow.



Reverie Sound Revue

Walking Around, Waiting Downtown
This City Belongs To Us
Rip The Universe
One Marathon
Passes and Passports


Enjoy catching up on what the band sound like, and learning what you should (maybe) expect from their forthcoming album (which as yet has no release date, and (I think) no record label).

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Broken Social Scene

Anthem For A Seventeen Year Old Girl
It's All Gonna Break (live)

By the way, if you've never experienced Broken Social Scene live, you've never lived. If you haven't discovered their music yet, now is the time. Actually. One of my favourite bands, despite only finding out about them with the advent of mp3 blogs (and my subsequent discovery of said blogs), and the release of their FANTASTIC, yes, FANTASTIC, chaotic, beautiful, swirling, production-wise absolutely-spot-on, self-titled album. I really love this band. [Buy]

WE MIGHT KISS WHEN WE ARE ALONE

Damien Rice released his debut album, O, in Ireland in 2001. I doubt you knew about him then unless you were an Irish resident at the time. My brother was just getting over his first big break-up, and brought the album home from Dublin one weekend, and I was instantly won over. The songs meant a lot to him, mainly for the bitter, caustic lyrics which he could relate to: "God may forgive me, but I, I whip myself with scorn" / "Cheers darlin', here's to you and your lover-boy...", etc.

Time went on, Damien Rice released a radio-friendly version of the song "Cannonball", the public went mad (long-time fans got mad) for the good-kid-done-heart-broken shtick. And consequently, Damien Rice became a household name. It took him close to six years to finally release his second album 9, much to the dismay of his fans. Irish animated piss-takers Eyebrowy made a sketch wherein an excited Damien Rice talks with his secretary on the phone. The conversation topic? The possibility of once again re-releasing O, this time in America: "What's the title they're thinking of? 'Cannonball Plus Nine Other Songs'?! That's brilliant! Why didn't I think of that?! Yea, tell them to go ahead with it!" Slightly scathing, perhaps, but definitely not without a grain of truth. In between the release of the O and the eventual release of 9 came a plethora of singles, re-releases, and of course the B-Sides album (which is, in itself, fantastic).

Many fans rejoiced when 9 was finally released. Some just replied, "Damien Rice? Who's he again?" No matter. It's a quality album with some brilliant tracks; some critics say it surpasses O, but for me that's definitely not the case - perhaps due to my emotional connections with the album, or perhaps due to O actually being the stronger album. [Buy]



Damien Rice - Radio 3FM

9 Crimes (live on Radio 3FM)
Rootless Tree (live on Radio 3FM)

Anyway I thought it was time to share some Damien Rice with you all. You'll notice that the piano that characterised lead single, "9 Crimes", is absent - replaced by guitar. Lisa Hannigan's vocal contribution is fantastic, as always. Piano takes main-place on "Rootless Tree", softening a song that before was an angry mess of fucked-off vocals and reckless guitar playing - Damien Rice creates an emotional ballad out of a song that was originally titled "Fuck You"; impressive. [Buy]

Damien Rice - KCRW

Delicate (live on KCRW)
Volcano (live on KCRW)
The Blower's Daughter (live on KCRW)

Perhaps the greatest strength of O's construction was the plentiful use of strings to add drama and emotion; thus it's interesting to see how the songs fare without any tricks - songs rendered as songs; simply guitar and voice; a father telling a story to a child and then seeing how well "the story of O" holds up when not seen in a cinema with SFX-galore. And the songs, like good stories, fare very well indeed.



Damien Rice - Extras

I Remember (live on Letterman)
Creep (Radiohead cover live on Today FM)

"I Remember" was one of my favourite tracks off O, for various reasons: the lyrics, including the line "I remember December"; the way it starts like a ballad and then veers off-course into a chaotic emotional frenzy. If you compare and contrast Radiohead's acoustic version of "Creep" (to be heard on the My Iron Lung EP), to Damien Rice's, then the latter is thoroughly underwhelming. Still grand though.

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Benjamin Costello

Volcano (Damien Rice cover)
Older Chests (Damien Rice cover)

Nothing to say about these other than: they're enjoyable covers. Benjamin Costello is currently working on recording his first album.

WHEN YOU FEEL SO LONELY IN YOUR HEART

I'm going to tell you something now, that I obviously don't need to: There are a lot of pleasures in listening to music. Like, yea Frank, I know! One of them though, is when you get stuck on a single track off an album (for instance, on !!!'s newest LP it's "Must Be The Moon"). Slightly strange however, when you're stuck on Track One Side One, as they say. It's not that the CD player's broken, but your fingers are. It's an uncontrollable urge to sacrifice hearing any other song and contentedly settle on the first song instead.


(image: Euro Disco)

Sally Shapiro

I'll Be By Your Side

Well, that's how it is with Sally Shapiro's Disco Romance, anyway, (the track in question called "I'll Be By Your Side"). It's almost shameful how much I like it; it feels like a guilty pleasure. It's a throwback to eighties Euro-Disco, full of melodramatic flourishes and pretty vocals (with the occasional one awash in synths). I can't shake the feeling that I'm listening to an indie version of "Final Countdown" (yea, that one, by Europe). In the end though, I'm not too fussed. I'll stick to my guilty pleasure, my hairbrush hit (as Radio 1's detest-worthy Sarah Cox would say), 'cause my fingers move and all of a sudden it's on repeat; so what's a guy to do but give in?

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Sally Shapiro's Disco Romance got a glowing review in Pitchfork. I don't know whether it was merited, because, as you know, you can't judge a book by its cover (incidentally, that's how I decide which books to consider buying), and you can't judge a CD by its first song (I have the CD is its glorious entirety, but I'm not feeling inclined to turn off "repeat" just yet). Pitchfork probably had a similar problem: "I'll Be By Your Side" came in at #27 on their Top 100 Tracks of 2006. [Buy]

YOUR HEART FELT GOOD

I've never been one of the hardcore fanatics. I discovered The Moon & Antarctica (Modest Mouse) the same time I discovered Perfect From Now On (Built to Spill), Emergency & I (The Dismemberment Plan), Either/Or (Elliott Smith), Finally We Are No One (Múm), Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven (Godspeed You! Black Emperor!) and a couple of other gems. It was near Christmas and I'd just read a post on a message board listing a user's ten favourite albums. I respected his taste and so I went with it, straight onto Amazon, and about four weeks later straight into my CD player. The wonder of it all is that this was back (must be about six years ago now? I lived in a different house then!) in the time of Napster (which I rarely/never used) and dial-up. A time before blogs and the Hype Machine. A time when there were far fewer ways to sample an album. I bought all of those albums on good faith, and good faith alone - I knew nothing about, and had heard nothing by, any of the artists.

But wow. Yes, WOW. A word that succinctly indicates jaws-dropping; a short word suggestive of awe. Its use is just: a lot of those albums are gemstones, precious things I hold close to my heart. Albums I listen to either frequently or every now and then that still hold a magic sparkle. Albums that made me, very seriously, truly appreciate music for probably the first time ever.

However, as I said, I'm not a fanatic. I've always appreciated Modest Mouse, but at times they're too raw, or difficult, or inaccessible, and I don't have the patience. The Moon & Antarctica however, is a great album. But, in my opinion, so is their new one. As an avid fan of The Smiths, obviously I'm likely to be swayed by the inclusion of their guitarist, Johnny Marr. And he does lend a touch of accessibility.

Many bloggers/critics/etc either hate (yea, hate) or merely dislike We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank, some find it mediocre, but few like it. I am one of the few. I guess I've never really been ecstatically delighted by the Modest Mouse sound, and thus I have no problem with their slight diversion from it. Perhaps surprisingly, the album is likely to end up one of my favourites of the year. Therefore, you should get the album (no, but actually: do it) and see for yourself what all the fuss (positive-and-negative) is about. There are too many aspects to discuss here (the fragility of "Little Motel", the clear-cut pop-single "Dashboard", the constantly brilliant vocal-deliveries, the guitar-work of Marr, etc, etc).



Modest Mouse

3rd Planet (album version)
3rd Planet (live at KVRX)
3rd Planet (live)

One of the first times I ever listened to The Moon & Antarctica was in an ex-girlfriend's (the term is for clarity - in reality it's too cold; too dismissive of everything that's been & gone, everything that still is) house. It was the first time I ever stayed the night there. The first track on the album, "3rd Planet", is, in retrospect (I don't know if it was actually during this song, but that's how I remember it) the song that sound-tracked the first kiss since we had separated, and consequently the sound-track to the entire rekindling of the relationship. Unfortunately, that line that everyone remembers, "I've got this thing that I consider my only art of fucking people over" is applicable. Nevertheless, the song is magical, personal, beautiful. [Buy]



Modest Mouse

We've Got Everything

"We've Got Everything" should be played in house-parties, in kitchens of University Residences, in bedrooms of young lovers. It's an exclamation of joy, of delight; a proclamation of a fierce and burning love for life. Maybe it's sarcasm, a piss-take of people who do think they know and have everything. Maybe not. I like to think of it as a semi-serious (the chuckle at 1:09) celebration - but of what? - of EVERYTHING. Of life, love, knowledge, science, literature, the world. Fuck it, it's all out there and it's ours for the taking. Coming from a mature* Isaac Brock it just sounds like a reminder to University kids, youngsters, hipsters : you have the potential to be anything / everything! ; so do it: aspire to it and achieve it. And it makes perfect sense coming from an underground indie band done good. [Buy]

Some other music for you to get your fanatical teeth into:

Modest Mouse Covers

Josh Ritter - Blame It On The Tetons
Goldspot - Float On
Sun Kil Moon - Tiny Cities Made of Ashes

*Incidentally, the message on "3rd Planet" was the exact same: "My boss just quit the job, says he's going out to find blind spots, and he'll do it" [i.e. Do whatever the fuck you want. You might as well. You can. And once you realise that, the possibilities are endless].

ADDENDUM: HEARTBEATS

Previously on Say Anything Syndrome: "Heartbeats is a great song, and by using the foundations of it, it's pretty hard to go wrong."



Heartbeats

The Knife - Heartbeats (Leitworks Rework)[Info]

This cover concurs and reaffirms the previous statement. Leitworks keep it simple and turn Heartbeats into a slow-burning electro lullaby; if that wasn't what it was to begin with.

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[Seven Versions of Heartbeats]

I DREAMED OF ALL THE DIFFERENT WAYS

David E. Sugar

Just Like Heaven (The Cure cover)

I was predisposed to like this cover, (I've always liked the song), thus, I'm bound to fall for a restless electronic rendition with earnest, excited vocals. The sense of frantic motion, the urgency and immediacy. The desperation to run, run, run, and tell her, tell her, tell her, that you love her! The pauses between the vocals feel forced - caused by a pair of out-of-breath lungs, a need to think, or something else entirely; the sense of never wanting to stop, to stand still, not even for a second - always wanting to stay in motion. Like lovers in a park, prior to their picnic - walking, running, skipping, laughing, for hours.



Taking Back Sunday

Just Like Heaven (The Cure cover) (56kbps)

Maybe you dislike Taking Back Sunday, but this isn't a full-band playing. It's a guitar and a voice - the way the song feels like it should have been recorded - real, true, cough intact, vocal cracks remaining. A pillow-soft serenade, a kiss with sleep-soft lips - yet not as smooth as the metaphors suggest, still slightly coarse; dreaminess kept in check by reality.

The Cure

Just Like Heaven (.m4a)

So, bearing that in mind, maybe the original is too crowded? Maybe it should be stripped down, with all those drum beats, piano keys, and fiddly bits removed? Or maybe it's perfect?

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Say hello to a weekly installment of covers, each and every Monday, until I run out.

WE ARE A CALENDAR ENTRY: WORLD WATER DAY MIX

Not to turn this site into a collage of world causes, or anything, but the Guardian informs me that today is World Water Day. I remember in Cubs we were told to think about water, and how we take it for granted, followed by the mandatory slide-show presentation. I think we were told that baths are better than showers, if you like to have a long wash. But worse, if you prefer a short wash? I think that's how it went. Well, today's the day we think about these things, with the topic being "Coping with water scarcity"... and then there's the debate about water-tax... and so it seems there's no better time for a post involving songs and water. And some of these are really really good!



World Water Day 2007

Colour Revolt - Mattresses Underwater
Damien Rice - Cold Water (live)
Sorta - Water Music
Justice - Waters of Nazareth (Erol Alkan's Dur Dur Durrr re-edit)
Richard Hawley - You Don't Miss Your Water ('Til The River Runs Dry)
Leah Abramson - Waterworks
Fionn Regan - Blackwater Child
Rachel's - Water From The Same Source
The Weepies - Rocks & Water (live)
Griffin House - Waterfall

Fionn Regan makes catchy down-tempo folk music, and his live performances are captivating - just as you're about to drift off into your own reverie, he draws you in with poetic one-liners like "pull a diamond from your sleeve", or playful introductions like "this one's for anyone who has been dumped by fax machine, or fountain pen, or been pick-pocketed, or met that guy who steals your eyelashes and then comes back for your eyebrows.... "

To this day I have never seen Damien Rice live, despite being a fan ever since O came out in Ireland. I want to see Justice live. I know little to nothing about the other bands featured on this mix, other than the fact that they have pleasing songs. Smile.

Another thing Fionn Regan said that night:

"this song is for anyone who has been in a kebab shop at 3am and starting drumming their fingers on the counter like it's a grand piano and your friends say "we've had a good evening... but i think we should get a taxi"

--- I well know the feeling.

Normal service shall continue shortly.

I'M ON YOUR SIDE WITH THIS

So, who enjoyed St. Patrick's day? Ireland didn't win the Six Nations (no!), which was a bit gutting. But, much later on, I ended up in a club full of Scottish people, wearing Guinness hats, dancing to "She is handsome, she is pretty / she is the girl from Belfast city!" So you know, pretty fun, from what I can remember.

Berkeley

Colour Me In

The Redneck Manifesto

The Dillon Family Dancers

Fittingly, these songs are by Irish bands (huni, i'm home! - Glasgow, you are a lot better for live music, but Ireland, you have just as many bands to fall in love with!) These songs loiter, shyly, about the room before they fully get to know everyone. And there's an edge to them. As if, at some moment (The Redneck Manifesto slip out from under the gentle funk dress and into something more aggressive and sexual at 2:10; Berkeley break in with the angst-ridden drums at 3:54), they're just going to throw themselves out a window ("haha, bet you didn't see that coming!"), or else they're waiting for the ideal moment to run around the room dancing, making everyone laugh. Because they're charmers, through and through. Even if they won't admit it at first.