Alternative?
- filed under Misc.
Interesting post over at MarathonPacks about how even “alternative” music creates its own canon. Writer Eric Harvey cites Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes as the two breakthrough artists in 2008 who “represented sepia-toned American ‘values’ and aesthetics most clearly; who, as ‘indie’ artists, gave casual music fans a safe alternative to digging too deeply in the stacks, while retaining a soupçonof hipness.”
Not sure where TV on the Radio fits into that argument, or if their own breakthrough last year undermines it, but there is no question that “indie” is as much a marketing niche as it is a true “alternative.” That is to say that it’s no more or less “alternative” than ‘country”, or “jazz,” or any other category of music created to steer consumers in a certain direction.
Crossing the Delaware
- filed under Misc.
If Barack Obama’s reference to George Washington today has got you interested in reading more about the Delaware crossing you might consider David Hackett Fischer’s “Washington’s Crossing.” A marvelous book that makes clear just how much was at stake when General Washington rallied his weary troops for that heroic crossing.
A New Day
- filed under Music
As we wait for Barack Obama to take the oath of office, Carrie Brownstein (formerly of Sleater Kinney) has a great post running through some of the music made by bands “that wrestled with the fear, uncertainty, disenchantment and frustration that for many people defined the Bush era and the events that unfolded during his tenure.”
The age of Bush was the end of the end of history — the point at which, as Americans, we had to grapple once again with the reality that events — falling towers, wars, hurricanes, recession — would dramatically shape our lives.
Different artists dealt with that growing reality differently. One of the best concerts I ever saw was Sleater Kinney in the winter of 01, as the nation headed towards war in Iraq. The band seemed consumed — the songs grew noticeably longer, the solos angrier, and full of feedback. They needn’t have sung a word to convey exactly how they were feeling.
Here are some songs I might have added to her list:
TV on the Radio — I Was a Lover. The demarcation line opens the song: “I was a lover before the war.”
Pearl Jam — World Wide Suicide. Sometimes protest is explicit….
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….And sometimes its just a terrible sense that something is very wrong…
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Radiohead — Bodysnatchers
Fleet Foxes — Blue Ridge Mountains. Like forty years ago, some chose to drop out…
…and some decided to make a stand.
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Bruce Springsteen — Magic
History hasn’t disappeared with a new President. But at least we will confront it full on.
Boy Bands
- filed under Music
In honor of the Jonas Brothers, who we saw perform tonight at the MCI Center, Ryan Adams covering “I Want it That Way.”
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Adams, by the way, has announced he is taking a hiatus from music due to “inner ear issues.”
Movie Watching in 09
- filed under Uncategorized
For a list of movies to watch out for in 09, head to The Playlist’s rundown of 60 that should be on your watch list.
The New Year
- filed under Music
Yes, yes, we know that U2, Springsteen, Grizzly Bear, Beirut, Morrissey and Franz Ferdinand have albums coming out in 2009. Below are some folks who are less well known to look out for in the coming year.
Stricken City
VV Brown
Carl Spidla
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Blk Jks
Liz Green
Lizzy Grant
Rokia Traore
Angela McCluskey
The Everybodyfields
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Mansfield TYA
Multitalent
- filed under Misc.
Dennis Cahill (see top ten below) is apparently a very talented photographer as well as a gifted and sensitive guitarist. See his photos here.
The Pendulum Has Swung
- filed under Politics
After the election conservatives were insisting that this was still a center-right nation. Today, the conservative Weekly Standard is arguing for an increase in the gas tax. The center of political gravity has clearly moved leftward.
Best of 2008
- filed under Music
Alina Simone — Everyone is Calling Out to Me, Beware
Just your standard album of modern Russian folk covers. You need not speak any of the language to understand every word.
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“Half My Kingdom”
Beach House — Devotion and Headless Heroes — The Silence of Love
The sounds of the carnival at night: hazy, gauzy, just over the ridge. Who knew Mazzy Star was going to be this influential?
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“Beach House — Darling”
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“Just One Time — Headless Heroes”
Bon Iver — For Emma, Forever Ago
Justin Vernon’s retreat to a remote cabin in the Wisconsin woods resulted in the year’s best album: love’s lost powerfully plumbed with acoustic guitar. When Vernon asks again and again, “What might have been lost?” on The Wolves (Act I & II), he is seeking an answer for every man and woman who has ever wondered about the roads not taken, and the ones that were pursued. The production is lo-fi; but its simplicity only accentuates the sound of Vernon’s heart breaking. No album in recent memory captured the isolation of despair — and the possibility of repair — better.
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“The Wolves (Act I & II)”
The version of Sarah Siskind’s Lovin’s for Fools below sums it up nicely: a gorgeous song about the impossibility of love.
Bonnie Prince Billy — Is it the Sea?
The Bonnie Prince, live in the British isles, reinterpreting his own catalogue with the Scottish folk band Harem Scarem. It might not have been the sea, but it was definitely something in the water — the ballads are gentler and the traditional songs are given renewed power.
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“A Minor Place”
Elephant Micah — Exiled Magicians
Joe O’Connell is Elephant Micah, and you haven’t heard of him because he doesn’t have a myspace page, isn’t on a major label, and seems uninterested in garnering much attention for his music. Unlike Jandek, he isn’t even famous for not being famous. He’s just a guy with a guitar, making music that could tear your heart out. So make sure you don’t tell your friends how wonderful he is.
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“Exotic Criminals”
Fleet Foxes — Fleet Foxes
Hazy, pastoral, voices like wind chimes on a lazy summer’s day. Like a cross between Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the Beach Boys, and the Dead.
http://www.vimeo.com/2143576Glasvegas — Glasvegas
A decade after Cool Britannia, gritty tales from the modern U.K. — broken families, knifings, and social workers — doo-wopped in a thick Scottish accent and bathed in Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound.
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“Go, Square, Go (demo)”
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“Geraldine”
Hayes and Cahill — Welcome Here Again
Irish fiddler Martin Hayes and guitarist Dennis Cahill spin wordless tales of depth and passion. A soundtrack to a timeless tradition.
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“The Clare Reel”
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“The High Jig”
Nick Cave and Warren Ellis — Soundtrack to the Assassination of Jesse James
It doesn’t sound particularly Western, unless the West is gorgeous, majestic, and haunting. In which case this soundtrack, my favorite since Eleni Karaindrou’s Ulysses Gaze, sounds exactly like the West.
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“Falling”
The Congregation — Congregation
Deep blues duo, from the other side of the pond. Victoria Yeulet’s voice is made for a victrola: big, brassy, and dramatic. Benjamin Prosser shadows her on guitar.
The Last Shadow Puppets — The Age of Understatement
A side project of Arctic Monkey Alex Turner, there is nothing understated about this bigscreened, orchestral homage to the swinging 60s and Scott Walker. Like an album full of James Bond theme songs.
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“The Age of Understatement”
TV on the Radio — Dear Science
Rolling Stone’s, Spin’s, and Entertainment Weekly’s album of the year? America’s best underground band finds mainstream success on its own terms. Attention grabbing for all the right reasons — smart, funky artrock that insists on you dancing along to the zeitgeist.
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“The Golden Age”
Wild Beasts — Limbo, Panto
An indie romp through dancehall Britain. Hayden Thorpe’s falsetto isn’t an acquired taste — either you will like it on first listen or turn it off immediately. I’ve had this disc on repeat from the moment I first heard it.
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“Brace Bulging Buoyant Clairvoyants”
Discs I missed in 2007:
The Everybodyfields Nothing is Ok and Amir El Saffar’s Two Rivers.
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