tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29152537198743408222024-03-14T05:58:08.707+00:00Some Call It Noise....The Art of AudioElliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-79185123996946519372018-06-19T19:53:00.003+01:002018-06-19T19:55:09.853+01:00Hell-On - Neko Case<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial", sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">It takes a determined person to carry on
working through the devastating aftermath of a house fire. It takes something
more than determination, to record an upbeat song called <i>Bad Luc</i>k the
day after the event, in a country thousands of miles away from the home you’ve
just lost. Yet, this is what Neko Case did during the production of her latest
album <i>Hell-On</i>. The album’s cover features a picture of Case, on fire
herself, wearing a wig made of cigarettes and she even went on to film a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1qzgDlDlNg" target="_blank">video for the song</a> in a studio set
depicting a burnt out living room. In interviews since, Case has been
philosophical about the fire, noting that the people and animals she loves are
all safe and that her lost possessions are just “stuff”. Case reserves her ire
for other, more deserving targets a point she hits home time and again on her
new album.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: normal;"><span lang="IT" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: IT;">Case</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">’s
feminism is very much to the fore in this album and her always poetic, often
enigmatic lyrics both uplift the women who have influenced her and detail some
of the many injustices borne against both herself and woman kind in general. One
example of this, <i>Halls Of Sarah,</i> may also be the best song Case has
written in years. “</span><span lang="DA" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: DA;">Sarah</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">”
is an avatar for the countless women who have been used as muses and “</span><span lang="FR" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: FR;">inspiration</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">” by artistic men only to be
silenced and dehumanised in the process, whilst female artistic voices have
been simultaneously ignored. Moving from tender alt-country to brilliantly
anthemic pop-rock, <i>Halls Of Sarah</i> is an absorbing and layered piece of
production work and songwriting as well as a powerful social statement. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: normal;"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Hell-On</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">
isn’t all, big picture commentary, there is still room here for some more
personal stories. <i>My Uncle’s Navy</i> for example chronicles one man’s cruel
bullying of Case as a child. Through waves of deep, chorus drenched guitar,
Case’s voice doesn’t betray much anger, though her lyrics tell another story. The
line “I hated those who gave him access to our days/ the ones who did nothin’/
I still can't love them” which presumably refers to her estranged parents, is
delivered with a calmness that renders the emotion in those words even more powerful.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">On songs such as <i>Furnace Room Lullaby</i> from the album
of the same name, Case has managed to capture a ghostly, ethereal quality that
is both compelling and chilling and demonstrated her impressive knack for
writing dark, eerie songs. <i>Hell-On</i>’s title track, which opens the album,
has some of those qualities and whilst it may not have the same creepy,
darkness as <i>Furnace Room Lullaby</i>, <i>Hell-On</i> is a powerful opening
statement. The tense, creepy-carnival-esque glockenspiel at the start gives way
to Case’s strong, yet soft vocal over a singular strummed guitar. This simple
arrangement easily grabs your attention, purely because of how powerfully stark
it is.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">As she has done with previous albums, Case surrounded
herself with trusted collaborators for the production of<i> Hell-On</i>. Laura
Veirs and K.D Lang, with whom she made 2016’s <i>case/lang/veirs</i>, make an
appearance as does her New Pornographers bandmate A.C Newman. A standout
addition is Mark Lanegan on <i>Curse of the I-5 Corridor,</i> which lies
somewhere between backing vocals and a duet as his and Case’s voices weave in
and out of each other. <i>On Sleep All summer</i>, a Crooked Fingers cover,
Case enlists the help of the song’s composer Eric Bachmann. This slow, sad duet
is a standout on the album though interestingly, it has more in common with <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztzfr1PjFCY" target="_blank">the version recorded by The National and St Vincent a few years ago</a>, than
Bachmann’s original.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Neko Case’s reputation as a musician has hinged primarily
on her voice. It’s certainly a remarkable instrument and its qualities are
almost unique in contemporary music, though I feel it can often overshadow her
talent as a songwriter and a producer. <i>Hell-On, </i><span>however proves to be a showcase for both those skills</span>, with
Case’s production choices and arrangements complimenting the songs beautifully.
It’s an album that could only be made by someone with a strong idea of what
they want to say and the hard-won understanding of their own work and voice
that comes with experience. It’s clear that Case has put all she has into this
record, even at times where not doing so would be perfectly understandable. The
result is a strong and compelling album that demonstrates just how talented Neko
Case is.</span></span></div>
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Name="envelope return"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="line number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="page number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of authorities"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="macro"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="toa heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><iframe allow="encrypted-media" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="380" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed?uri=spotify:album:7I141P48NQw206up7jBezG" width="300"></iframe></span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-66941319909898221412018-05-21T07:08:00.000+01:002018-05-21T07:11:48.394+01:00The Lookout - Laura Veirs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxcJkiRqZ3s6-Sbkojp8Ly4QbIv1NR5Pskb4apoF8CXLNGkpe2P4zRFqXAFF4_BgmOkGY7d3TScaBFOVIo74kNdBGmdRiQpoVMMpvUn74gEo6EIRx2pOpGQUgs4mAOMXy5ay3dmsHNVyWX/s1600/a0476987958_16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxcJkiRqZ3s6-Sbkojp8Ly4QbIv1NR5Pskb4apoF8CXLNGkpe2P4zRFqXAFF4_BgmOkGY7d3TScaBFOVIo74kNdBGmdRiQpoVMMpvUn74gEo6EIRx2pOpGQUgs4mAOMXy5ay3dmsHNVyWX/s320/a0476987958_16.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Laura Veirs' new album <i>The
Lookout </i>begins with <i style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">Margret Sands</i>,
a track that would fit in perfectly on any of her records from the last 14
years or so. The soft acoustic strumming and harmony vocals that sound as if
they were recorded in a beautifully acoustically treated cave, are part of the
style that Veirs and her longtime collaborator and husband Tucker Martine have
honed to perfection. It’s a sound that has come to feel familiar over time, but
due to Veirs’ ability as a songwriter never feels tired or overplayed.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It's partly because fans of Veirs are so familiar with her signature sound that the second track seems like
such a departure. <i>Everybody Needs You</i> has a more electronic sound to it
than almost anything Veirs has done before. Programmed drum samples and delayed
vocals give this song an airy feel, quite different from the grounded acoustic
guitar of the record’s opener. Though not so different as to be jarring, the
track is a pleasant change of style and paves the way for the following song <i>Seven
Falls</i> to open with a synthesiser, before heading back to more familiar
territory. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Generally Grateful Dead covers
rarely manage to live up to the originals, Veirs makes a rare exception with
her take on <i>Mountains of The Moon</i> from The Dead’s 1969 album <i>Aoxomoxoa</i>.
Shedding the odd, faux medieval tone of the Dead’s recording, Veirs’ version is
wonderfully hazy and peppered with country music influences. It’s an approach
that pays tribute to the Grateful Dead by incorporating elements of their wide
ranging sound, while simultaneously diverging significantly from their version
of the song.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Track titles like <i>The Meadow</i>,
<i>Heavy Petals</i> and <i>Margret Sands</i> hint at a preoccupation with
nature and as Veirs herself puts it “the need to pay attention to the fleeting
beauty of life and to not be complacent”. <i>The Canyon</i>, a song about the
loss of a loved one, encapsulates this sentiment perfectly. Lines like “I’m
here now but my time will come / to be blowing through the canyon” demonstrating
Veirs’ ability to take comfort in the natural order of things.</span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The Lookout</span></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> feels like a deep breath midway through
a stressful day. Meant to calm the listener (and the writer as well I think),
it’s Veirs’ reaction to the fear and instability of living in Trump’s America.
But whilst the sound of the album is as tuneful and easy on the ears as Veirs’
previous work, the tension and worry is audible under the surface. Lines like
“I can't read these people / I can't read their eyes” from the album’s title
track, betray the unrest under the music’s comforting placidity. It’s not an
album of certainties or solutions by any means, though it is in its own way a
hopeful album. Veirs makes sure to take stock of the thing’s she’s thankful for
and with lyrics like “Gather the children / And hold them close / And teach of
love / And peace devout / When it grows darkest / The stars come out” it’s
clear she sees some light in the distance.</span><br />
<br />
<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2404728188/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 470px; width: 350px;"><a href="http://lauraveirs.bandcamp.com/album/the-lookout">The Lookout by Laura Veirs</a></iframe>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-75044514141144536902018-05-06T01:19:00.001+01:002018-05-21T06:13:49.528+01:00The Prodigal Son - Ry Cooder<style type="text/css">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizAZjlYTaIeXpidkroYFeu54y-OQ-o4wiArWqbg9VqTelqH040hegYnDxZsduGzokryvMYtLjwNLwIWYl5T0crv5RKTe2u1uTYTBO33Cpjm2G_POM9HbP_jiEAgeRp9Xa1mqxsuH8oFk4C/s1600/SharedImage-79590.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="575" data-original-width="575" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizAZjlYTaIeXpidkroYFeu54y-OQ-o4wiArWqbg9VqTelqH040hegYnDxZsduGzokryvMYtLjwNLwIWYl5T0crv5RKTe2u1uTYTBO33Cpjm2G_POM9HbP_jiEAgeRp9Xa1mqxsuH8oFk4C/s320/SharedImage-79590.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">Musicologist, composer and renowned guitarist Ry Cooder’s last album (2012’s <i>Election Special</i>) was an entire record of songs about current affairs. Primarily a swipe at the Republican Party and its supporters, the album covered the many things Cooder finds wrong with America and its political system, in a style not dissimilar to the folk and blues tunes of old that he has so readily drawn from in the past. In hindsight, <i>Election Special</i> may have been better saved for the next election cycle, when Cooder would have had a much deeper well of hypocrisy and horror to draw from. But many of the points he makes on that album and its predecessor, <i>Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down,</i> hold up well enough to re-appear on his new record <i>The Prodigal Son.</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">Cooder gets right to down to business with<i> Gentrification. </i>As a track heavily influenced by African guitar playing builds behind him, Cooder decries the spread of coffee shops and “Googlemen” buying up poor urban areas and forcing the inhabitants out of their homes. It’s delivered with a wry sense of humour, though the argument he’s making is honest. And one that has weighed on his mind for years, as evidenced by his 2005 album <i>Chavez Ravine</i>, which focused on a particularly brutal example of gentrification where a Latino neighbourhood in LA was bulldozed completely to make way for a baseball stadium.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">You can’t revisit old blues and folk music as much as Cooder has over his long career, without including some religious songs in your repertoire. Christianity features heavily in <i>The Prodigal Son</i>, from the title of the album, through to the dark, dirge-like version of Blind Willie Johnson’s <i>Nobody’s Fault But Mine. </i>Whilst in his haunting original, Johnson’s fear of losing his soul to the devil and was palpable, Cooder expands on Johnson’s unease here. Soft, but menacing sounding strings and brass sit under Cooder’s plaintive, moaning vocals, like some distant terror, simply biding its time. A loan slide guitar interjects a minute or so into the track and reminds us that this is a blues song but it does little to ease the discomfort. A choir softly joins in with Cooder’s singing and I’m torn as to whether this chorus is trying to help him save his soul or if it is made up of the voices of the damned calling him to join them. The result is stark, thoroughly disquieting and as atmospheric as any of Cooder’s much celebrated soundtrack work.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">Having memorably covered his <i>How Can A Poor Man Stand Such Times And Live </i>in his early years<i>, </i>Cooder again<i> </i>revisits the catalogue of American folk singer Blind Alfred Reed. <i>You Must Unload</i> is presented here as a hymn against hypocrisy reinforced by Cooder’s simple yet powerful arrangement. Written in 1927, the song’s message rings true over 90 years later. Perhaps even more so. When Cooder, backed by a less sinister chorus this time, sings lines like “You money loving Christians who refuse to pay your share / You must unload”, it’s hard not to think of the myriad of televangelists and political figures in the present to whom these lyrics apply.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">Cooder again mixes religion with politics in <i>Jesus and Woody</i>. Here he imagines a conversation between Jesus and Woody Guthrie, with Christ seeking some solace in Guthrie’s “Oklahoma poetry”. It’s a tender tribute to Guthrie, whose political folk songs have had an obvious effect on Cooder’s own work but it also takes aim at the same targets as <i>You Must Unload</i>, with Jesus’ admission that he “like(s) sinners more than fascists”.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">For all the references to God and the Devil on this album, it’s left unclear as to whether this is an expression of Cooder’s own faith or if he’s simply using the religious imagery to make a political point. His inclusion of Budha in the lyrics to <i>Nobody’s Fault But Mine</i>, is perhaps a clue that Cooder’s personal beliefs are somewhat more complex and varied than the music lets on.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">Whilst Cooder’s legendary guitar skills are not at the forefront here, his work as a producer and arranger makes up for it. Whilst the production isn’t sparse exactly, Cooder has defiantly tailored the sound of this album to focus on the songs rather than the instruments playing them. With <i>The Prodigal Song</i>, Cooder’s contemporary take on American folk and blues pays loving tribute to its roots as well as taking a stern, critical look at where America is today and how much hasn’t changed.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1"><i>The Prodigal Son</i> is out May 11</span><span class="s2"><sup>th</sup></span><span class="s1"> on Fantasy Records. You can<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/05/03/606072797/first-listen-ry-cooder-the-prodigal-son" target="_blank"> listen to it here (via NPR)</a> until then.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
<br />Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-16209308865444520042018-04-29T02:45:00.002+01:002018-04-29T02:47:11.967+01:00Years - Sarah Shook & The Disarmers<style type="text/css">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghoOBetrcGhGTZGIVvRZUn41qoaKfAIoo4ym3yfYf7XYnYyUQr2bBGXurvtjn_JEffMxQyXyrsp7XpgAawXbq2EqThrq4mK9HoeCnS33_s6FTeuJB2KK6Q66EJ6FTvXJIKzHcBGw2vscUB/s1600/a4272373641_16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghoOBetrcGhGTZGIVvRZUn41qoaKfAIoo4ym3yfYf7XYnYyUQr2bBGXurvtjn_JEffMxQyXyrsp7XpgAawXbq2EqThrq4mK9HoeCnS33_s6FTeuJB2KK6Q66EJ6FTvXJIKzHcBGw2vscUB/s320/a4272373641_16.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is a distinct weariness to <i>Years</i>, the new album by Sarah Shook and The Disarmers. Shook’s songs are full of angst and disappointment over failed relationships and the people on both sides of those relationships. But along with the anger there is a sense that every break up and argument catalogued here is, understandably, wearing her out.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">However, this album is anything but tiring to listen to. It may not be anything new to combine elements of country and rock, but <i>Years </i>has a sound that’s very much it’s own. It’s clear that Sarah Shook and the Disarmers take some inspiration from a diverse range of classic country music, though Shook’s delivery and lyrics are clearly not the overly polished stuff of Nashville past or present. Tracks like <i>New Ways To Fail</i> have a touch of the Bakersfield sound to them, whilst <i>Damned If I Do, Damned If I Don’t</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>has a Rockabilly meets Honky Tonk feel. But despite having the hallmarks of some classic country sounds, the tone of the record is grittier, more rough around the edges than a lot of country music and really fun to listen to as a result.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Shook’s lyrics also incorporate a twist on classic country tropes, and she happily plays around with gender roles and perspectives. Women rarely get to be the hard drinkers in country music but Shook is willing to take on that role, claiming that booze is “the only thing left that I got that I can / Make me feel the man I used to be” in <i>The Bottle Never Let’s me Down</i>. Also, the pleading, locked out drunk on <i>Damned If I Do… </i>is a familiar figure in country lore (think Hank Williams’ <i>Move It On Over</i>) but one that, again, has usually been played by a man. Obviously Shook doesn’t shy away from self criticism here. And it’s that honesty when it comes to her own faults that makes songs like <i>Good as Gold</i>, where she takes a soon to be ex-lover to task, seem even more cutting.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Whilst it’s Shook’s songwriting that stands out most on the record, the Disarmers deserve some credit for the fantastic job they do backing her up. The intertwining lines of pedal steel player Phil Sullivan and guitarist Eric Peterson in particular provide some of the most memorable moments of the album and work perfectly with Shook’s melodies. It’s the cohesive sound of a band that’s been playing together for sometime and know just what they’re doing.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Years is above all, an honest album. It’d be easy to categorise these songs as well written works of fiction if it wasn’t so easy to hear the weariness in Shook’s voice. That’s not to say she’s not giving it her all in her performance here, she clearly is, but Sarah Shook means every damn word of this record and it shows.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.bloodshotrecords.com/album/years" target="_blank">Years is out now on Bloodshot Records</a></span></span></div>
<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3912273626/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 786px; width: 350px;"><a href="http://sarahshookthedisarmers.bandcamp.com/album/years-2">Years by Sarah Shook & the Disarmers</a></iframe>
Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-31429745616224335552017-01-31T05:53:00.001+00:002017-01-31T06:01:07.603+00:00Give A Glimpse Of What Yer Not - Dinosaur Jr<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Dinosaur Jr are one of American indie rock’s most interesting stories. Loud, loose and noisey but with a strong sense of melody, not to mention some some of the best musicianship in the punk scene, they were one of the most beloved bands of the late 80’s underground. Along with many other groups of the era, they signed to a major label and had some commercial success during the early 1990’s when alternative rock was thrust into the mainstream. However by that point, the original band had crumbled due to clashing personalities. So for most of their major label period, the band consisted of guitarist/singer J Mascis and various session musicians, before Mascis finally retired the Dinosaur Jr name in 1997. The story of the band has been well covered and for an engaging and more detailed account of the early history of Dinosaur Jr, I can thoroughly recommend the band’s chapter in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Our-Band-Could-Your-Life/dp/0316787531">Michael Azzerad’s “Our Band Could Be Your Life”</a>.<br />
<br />In the early part of this century, after both J Mascis and bassist Lou Barlow (also of Sebadoh and Folk Implosion) had embarked on decent solo careers and Azzerad’s book had generated some renewed interest in the band, the original line up of Dinosaur Jr reformed and have just released the 11th studio album with the band’s name on it.<br />
<br />Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not, is not an album that you could mistake for a record by any other band. Even down to the cover, toned with copious amounts of purple (Mascis colour of choice), this is clearly a Dinosaur Jr album. Even before the first note, you know what you’re in for. “Goin' Down” has all the hallmarks of a classic Dinosaur Jr song. Chugging power chords, a strong drum beat, Mascis' slack vocals and the beguiling guitar flourishes that he uses to punctuate his songs. As expected there is a powerful solo, delivered in Mascis’ signature style. In fact it’s so much of that style that it seems eerily familiar, perhaps plagiarised from one of the band’s earlier records?<br /><br />“Tiny” again harks back to the band’s earlier work, this time taking on some of the smoother edges that the band adopted in the 90’s. With it’s catchy, memorable melody it’s easy to guess why this was chosen as the album’s lead single. Whilst “I Told Everyone” and “Good To Know” both serve to prove that Mascis hasn’t lost his ability to write fantastic guitar riffs, his best guitar solo in the first half of the album is reserved for the Lou Barlow penned “Love Is…”, one of Barlow’s two contributions to the album. Not surprisingly, it’s Barlow’s songs that depart the most from what would be considered “The Dinosaur Jr Sound” and feature instrumentation that, in a rare move, steps ever so slightly away from the guitar, bass, drums formula of most of the band’s other songs.<br /><br /> “I Walk For Miles” find’s the band exploring early Black Sabbath territory with a heavier sound than usual. It’s not an unwelcome change of pace and serves as a bit of a break because as soon as “Lost All Day” starts, we are back on familiar ground.<br /><br />“Knocked Around” and “Mirror” don’t deviate much from what you would expect, though the first half of “Knocked Around” is far softer than the rest of the record. Mascis’ signature guitar tone is still present though, leading the listener to expect (correctly in this case) that soon the gloves will come off and the volume will go up.<br /><br />The most surprising cut on the album is saved for last. Lou Barlow’s “Left/Right” is a bit more experimental than the rest of the album. There’s some synthesiser drones mixed in and whilst it’s not a total departure from what we’ve come to expect here, there is at least some room for movement.<br /><br />Overall, I like this album. It fulfils what I want and expect from a Dinosaur Jr album in pretty much every way. But, inevitably perhaps, it’s not their best work. There is nothing here to truly surprise me. The lyrics that focus on social isolation and lost love are the same as they’ve ever been and each song on this album has a well worn, familiar feel to it. The album’s title, Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not, seems almost prophetic in that there really are only brief glimpses of the musically unexpected on this record.<br /><br />If Dinosaur Jr were a younger band, this would be anathema. But as a band that have been going for over 30 years on and off, they’ve created a legacy and a signature sound. One that is often imitated but never equalled. It’s not that they’ve never deviated from the formula (check out the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbkvr4KqO3k">trumpet part on 1997’s “I’m Insane”</a>) but after decades together and apart, they seem very much aware of where their strengths lie and they’re going to keep playing to them.<br />
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Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-35282747567567654062016-12-21T08:54:00.000+00:002016-12-21T08:56:19.192+00:00Three Reviews On The Sampler<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Over the last couple of months, I've been writing and recording occasional reviews for Radio New Zealand's much loved music review show <a href="http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/thesampler" target="_blank">The Sampler</a>.</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV86Z1cHjaZAmp_lIFhcFJDP5JS3Pqeumx0BJ4iFOIJO_UJ-_Cqb3VlzN5guYtDzOa6wgQ6d8buoq8nECVkoj5T2A-8r2GN4hSipw2B3E7gqQ4PxlihrduJtlEtw_Icz9nFmgDPxzpic8S/s1600/1475921784_61dyxvldbal._ss500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV86Z1cHjaZAmp_lIFhcFJDP5JS3Pqeumx0BJ4iFOIJO_UJ-_Cqb3VlzN5guYtDzOa6wgQ6d8buoq8nECVkoj5T2A-8r2GN4hSipw2B3E7gqQ4PxlihrduJtlEtw_Icz9nFmgDPxzpic8S/s200/1475921784_61dyxvldbal._ss500.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmQ6CvW6HCcqqza-f8wYDW__PEjrFG36XCFcB1bVO-aT5ThXBLQljx6-gA253H01Q8ZzLOLcVXKL6cE080W8NIvafWtFN7rF5jamJXPwK1AYsQAVv-Ny8bIXSllH0JbseNnjYEQ-_4PBlb/s1600/MI0004100739.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmQ6CvW6HCcqqza-f8wYDW__PEjrFG36XCFcB1bVO-aT5ThXBLQljx6-gA253H01Q8ZzLOLcVXKL6cE080W8NIvafWtFN7rF5jamJXPwK1AYsQAVv-Ny8bIXSllH0JbseNnjYEQ-_4PBlb/s200/MI0004100739.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The venerated Nick Bollinger, The Sampler's producer, writer and host, has very kindly made room for my reviews and has been incredibly helpful and patient in showing me how to write a decent review for the radio. It turns out that writing words to be spoken out loud is a rather different task than writing them to be read on the page.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Given free reign to pick the new releases I wanted to talk about, I picked the records that resonated with me most in the last few months.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Driver-By Truckers' <i>American Band</i>, is the political album that 2016 seemed to need. Though it mainly deals with the social pain that America has suffered through over the last few years, it seemed eerily prescient in this of all years. <a href="http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/thesampler/audio/201821536/american-band-by-drive-by-truckers" target="_blank">You can hear my review here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After <a href="http://somecallitnoise.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/dd-dumbo-live-at-st-pancras-old-church.html" target="_blank">2 long years</a> of waiting, the D.D Dumbo album came out this year. Initially I found it difficult to get to grips with, as I was rather attached to the live versions of tracks like "Walrus" (to hear those versions, I highly recommend <a href="https://youtu.be/qpb4zlpp9xw" target="_blank">this great video</a> from NPR). But it grew on me and soon I was happily lost in the dense production and myriad sounds on <i>Utopia Defeated</i>. <a href="http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/thesampler/audio/201823494/utopia-defeated-by-d-d-dumbo" target="_blank">You can hear my review here</a>. There is also a rather enlightening <a href="http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/nat-music/audio/201825368/d-d-dumbo-australian-avant-pop-prodigy" target="_blank">interview with D.D Dumbo</a> himself by <span style="background-color: white;">Kirsten Johnstone</span> that is well worth your time.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Finally, I talked about Flock Of Dimes' <i>If You See Me, Say Yes</i>. I've long been a fan of Jenn Wasner's work with Wye Oak, as well as the early Flock Of Dimes singles. She's a brilliant songwriter and musician and this album was a great showcase for those skills as well as, for the first time, her talents as a producer. <a href="http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/thesampler/audio/201826956/if-you-see-me-say-yes-by-flock-of-dimes" target="_blank">You can hear my review here.</a></span><br />
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Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-3909609059523302022016-07-28T23:26:00.005+01:002016-07-28T23:59:01.034+01:00Engine - American Music Club<div class="p1">
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<span class="s1">American Music Club’s <i>Engine</i> is an album made of small tragedies. From broken relationships to injured alcoholics, each song catalogues a dark moment in somebody’s life. Right from the very start there is a sense of foreboding. “Big Night”, is a cello and acoustic guitar dirge, that describes a battered but ultimately loving and functioning relationship. Despite the dark, minor key of the song and the opening line of “Big nights are black and blue”, there is a sense of hope in this story, unlike many of the other tracks on this record. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Whilst Mark Eitzel’s poetically melancholy lyrics throughout <i>Engine</i> serve as the unifying feature of the album, the sound and structure of each song is different from one track to the next. From the rich cello drones of “Big Night” to the sparse guitar of “Mom’s TV” to the feedback squeal of “Art of Love” to the accordion on “This Year”, each song has a unique sound and energy to it. Despite the variance, the different styles and instrumentation work wonderfully with the lyrics and Eitzel’s voice, helping to keep, what at times can be a very dark album, from becoming overwhelming. Credit is also due here to producer Tom Mallon (who went on to work with Thin White Rope as well as engineering Chris Isaak's <i>Wicked Game</i>), for managing to craft the diverse sounds and styles of <i>Engine </i>into a fully cohesive album.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Outside This Bar” is the album’s stand out song by quite a distance. An energetic (at least in relation to the rest of the album) anthem of angst and booze, the lyrics are an almost Bukowski-esque tale of drunken pain and confusion. With the line “Outside this bar how does anyone survive”, the narrator perfectly demonstrates his sense of entrapment and confusion at how anyone lives a lifestyle different to his own alcohol fuelled existence. The instrumentation and vocal delivery of this track also lends a feeling of anger to the song. It’s as if the desperation on display would lack the impact it has unless it was delivered with such force. The song also features the odd combination of a distorted sounding rhythm guitar and a clean lead guitar, cleverly reversing the classic sound combination that rock bands have used for decades.</span><br>
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<span class="s1">“Clouds” traverses similar compositional territory to “Outside This Bar”, with layers of fuzzy guitar sitting below the barely contained contempt in Eitzel's vocals. The gentler “Nightwatchman” has an almost shoegaze feel to it with strummed acoustic chords beneath a chiming lead guitar. “Art of Love” on the other hand is a heavy, chugging monolith of a song that would not have sounded out of place on any number of records coming out of Seattle around the same time. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">The depth and melancholy on display here are a prime example of why American Music Club have the dubious honour of being called the progenitors of “Slowcore”, an overly simplistic term for a series of introspective american indie rock bands. Whilst it's plain to see what inspiration bands like Red House Painters and Idaho have taken from them, the music on <i>Engine</i> is too wide ranging to be held under a single sub-sub-genre. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">This was the San Francisco based band's second album, released in 1987. It marks a significant leap forward from their debut (1985’s <i>The Restless Stranger</i>) presenting them as a band with incredible musical and emotional depth. Whilst it may not be a go to party record, as a listening experience it is completely engrossing. Each song serves almost as a short story and the album as a collection of them.</span></div>
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Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-75844792773881731452015-11-06T00:52:00.000+00:002015-11-06T00:55:51.271+00:00Courtney Barnett - Solo Show at Slow Boat Records<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Having recently made the move from the UK to New Zealand and just this last week to Wellington, I’m now in the process of familiarising myself with the local music scene (amongst countless other things in my new hometown). Whilst this can often be a hard process to start in a new city, especially when you’re no longer energetic enough go to every gig you see advertised, I’ve found local record shops to be the key. There are countless books, blog posts and documentaries that attest to the fact that if you’re lucky enough to be in a city with a great local record store, then it can be a brilliant resource for discovering what’s going on musically. For me, in Wellington, <a href="http://slowboatrecords.co.nz/" target="_blank">Slow Boat Records</a> would appear to be that store.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Slow Boat isn’t a well kept secret by any means, in fact it’s somewhat of a New Zealand institution. The longest running independent record store in the country, it’s a favourite spot for serious music nerds, casual fans and visiting musicians alike and boasts a pretty amazing selection of records from all over the world. So it makes perfect sense that Slow Boat is where I saw my first proper gig in New Zealand, a lunchtime, in-store, solo show by Courtney Barnett ahead of her sold out show at Bodega that evening. </span></span><br />
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Based in Melbourne, Barnett is a critically acclaimed indie rock musician whose debut album <a href="https://open.spotify.com/album/5FpTrIArvT20xUSpGRXGLY" target="_blank">“Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit”</a>, is a masterpiece of noisey, loose and most importantly clever, alternative rock. The songs on this record, though very well constructed, can at times seem like they’re almost on the verge of collapse due to the energetic but amiable looseness of Barnett’s performance. But it’s always seemed to me that the band dynamic and sound is pretty vital to the music on this record. Her great performances of songs like the wry, dissatisfied “Pedestrian At Best” on various US TV shows did everything to convince me of how good a musician and lyricist Barnett is but also reinforced the notion that these were “band” songs.</span></span><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So needless to say I was intrigued as to what this solo set would be like as I and about 150 other people crowded amongst the racks at Slow Boat. Right from the start I was struck by how funny Barnett’s lyrics are. As much as I’d admired her storytelling abilities when listening to the record, there was something about seeing these songs performed live that made me and others in the crowd laugh out loud. Lines like “The paramedic thinks I'm clever ‘cause i play guitar / I think she’s clever ‘cause she stops people dying” - taken from <span class="s2"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcnIhzaDTd0">“Avant Gardner”</a> -</span> delivered in Barnett’s deadpan, pretenceless style are so simple and true that it's hard not to find them funny</span><span class="s1" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. There is also an emotional honesty to these songs that seems somewhat effortless. The melancholy “Depreston” moves almost seamlessly from a story about house hunting to pondering the life of a woman who’s house is being sold after her death. Somehow it captures perfectly the mix of intrigue, sadness and frustration that those situations can create but without ever feeling forced or overwrought. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Barnett was in a genial mood, chatting with crowd, telling funny stories about the origins of her songs and, when she became distracted by it halfway through her rendition of “Dead Fox”, pausing to marvel at a poster advertising an old Bob Dylan and Patti Smith show. When she’d finished and left the stage, the store’s manager returned to thank her and lead the crowd in singing happy birthday to Barnett, who had turned 28 a day or two ago. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's safe to say that at no point during the show did I feel the absence of a band. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These songs can carry their own weight and are just as effective if they’re played with a full band or by one woman with a telecaster. The fact remains that they are clever and well written and the loose, noisey sound on the record, is just one way they can be performed. Perhaps it’s the definitive way but it’s not by any means the only one.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Courtney Barnett's album </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit” is <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/sometimes-i-sit-think-sometimes/id960342539" target="_blank">available now on iTunes</a>.</span></div>
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Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-54574855207504196782015-06-02T13:34:00.000+01:002016-07-28T09:59:11.609+01:00Universal Truths And How Records Don't Owe Me Anything<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwVjpp0d6IRRAhNlfYBQW6YstwsX3uwyITinE7x3CgxotHlhd2QUoV7vkMRl8n2V5VhNnP_lgyNPhiGJJMu6Xm9Glw-lthNFeK-tD_isNh5o0aJPPgCCl0wI9iOfOIfv-qbpwq2Pao7nDt/s1600/20cb90dc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwVjpp0d6IRRAhNlfYBQW6YstwsX3uwyITinE7x3CgxotHlhd2QUoV7vkMRl8n2V5VhNnP_lgyNPhiGJJMu6Xm9Glw-lthNFeK-tD_isNh5o0aJPPgCCl0wI9iOfOIfv-qbpwq2Pao7nDt/s320/20cb90dc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve written about <a href="http://somecallitnoise.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/mark-kozelek-live-at-union-chapel.html" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="background-attachment: scroll; background-clip: border-box; background-image: none; background-origin: padding-box; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: repeat; background-size: auto;">Mark Kozelek’s songwriting</span> </a>before. I have expressed my doubts over the direction his writing has taken in recent years and I have to admit that at his Union Chapel show in 2013, I was ready to write off his next album completely. But, as it turned out, “Benji” was a good record. It was in keeping with the nylon string guitar and spiel of events style of songwriting that Kozelek has insisted upon for the last few years, but in songs such as “Carrisa” some of the emotional depth that had been missing from his more recent tracks had been restored. There were feelings being expressed rather than just a long list of events. It offered me some hope that maybe Kozelek had found sturdier ground in this new song writing territory. I had hopes that this might lead to more considered lyrics or even a move towards his earlier, more traditional style of writing.</span></div>
<br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">With the release of “Universal Truths” however, my confidence is again shaken. Not only is the album another string of events record, which many reviewers are comparing to pages of a diary put to words, but Kozelek seems to have given up on the performance of the songs as well. Throughout the record his vocals are near indecipherable. The opening track even has sections where double tracked vocals are out of time with each other so it sounds like there are several people trying to drown everyone else out. The fact that this record was written and produced within a year of “Benji”, a year where Kozelek has been busy making a fool of himself and</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;"> <span style="background-attachment: scroll; background-clip: border-box; background-image: none; background-origin: padding-box; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: repeat; background-size: auto; color: black; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.stereogum.com/1705450/sun-kil-moon-the-war-on-drugs-can-suck-my-fucking-dick/wheres-the-beef/" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">arguing</a> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">with </span><a href="http://www.uncut.co.uk/uncut-editors-diary/the-mark-kozelek-problem-68764" style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">anyone and everyone</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">, shows. All in all, I’m not impressed and it seems that I’m not alone. I enjoyed “Benji”, I enjoyed the joint album he did with The Album Leaf and if he was to produce material of that quality, I would be ok with that. But what do I really want? Honestly, I want a return to the days of “Carry Me Ohio” or even the later day murder-ballad beauty of “</span><a href="https://open.spotify.com/track/6VknwGdxUu4Z1WAfHdx6dv" style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">You Missed My Heart</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">”. That’s what I’d really like to hear. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">But that’s </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">my</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;"> problem. Because I paid nothing for this album. I haven’t stolen it from a download site, I didn’t get an advance copy. I don’t own a copy of it at all. But it’s </span><a href="http://www.sunkilmoon.com/skmuniv2015/" style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">free to listen to </a><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px;">on the Sun Kil Moon website. So in listening to this album, I have really lost nothing except the time it took, which I gave up freely. To my mind, when I’m in a situation like this, I can’t be angry at the artist. Yes, he has made a record that does not live up to my expectations of him, but what does that matter? Ultimately if he is happy with this record and is willing to make it available to people to listen to for free ahead of release, then he has fulfilled every criteria he needs to in order to make an album and make it available for purchase. This is one of the great advantages of being a music fan in the internet age. You get to try before you buy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In the years before the internet, putting out an album that may or may not be what is expected was a serious risk for both band and label. There was a lot at stake. You had to invest serious money into getting physical copies pressed, distributed and marketed. Then people had to part with their hard earned money to buy them. Putting out an album like “Universal Truths” just a few decades ago would have been a big gamble. There would be a backlash, as there is now. But when people are asked to pay for a record, without hearing it first, as you were back then, does that not then mean that the artist needs to live up to at least some of the expectation? There is no denying that creative freedom and artistic control are important and an artist should be allowed to produce work they feel is truthful to their ideas. But when you are asking people to pay money to purchase that work, for all intents and purposes, on good faith, should you not take the audience into account? I think so. I also think that now that that good faith agreement has been removed from the equation, due to the changes in music consumption caused by the internet, artists have less of a responsibility to cater to the audience with their recordings. Also, because music is so readily available for nothing, smaller artists and even not so small ones are <a href="http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/2010/how-much-do-music-artists-earn-online/" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;">making less money from recorded music</a> all the time. So, if we’re not going to pay people for their work, don’t we at least owe them their creative freedom? How can we demand product for free and then be upset that it’s not what we want, especially when there is so much else out there?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">So does all this mean “music was better before the internet because you had to try harder”? No, I don’t think so. Music hasn’t got worse; it’s just become less valuable, because it’s more readily available and far cheaper. Music is a subjective thing. Its worth as art is fluid and all dependent on who is listening. There are still great bands and artists making great music and there always will be. But music is now much easier to produce and distribute. If you have access to the internet, you have a way in which to create and distribute your own music. Without all the risks involved, without the costs and the obstacles, making and distributing music has become an open field that artists have rightly taken advantage of.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">We now live in a world where, if you don’t particularly like one album, there will probably be 2 or 3 that came out in the last week that you will love. This is why good music criticism is more important now than ever. Because there is so much out there that you need someone you trust to guide you. To tell you which albums you might like if you liked, this one. But that could be a whole conversation on it’s own. I think it’s great that pretty much every taste is catered to with such great ease now. But that ease does come with a price.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the paradoxes of the internet is that it gives people the freedom to express themselves in a multitude of ways but it also invites apathy through attainability. The fact that music is so easily attainable does mean that when you find a record you love, the victory is a little less sweet because you didn’t need to fight so hard. You didn’t have to know a guy who told you what obscure rock magazine to read to see what albums were coming out that month, save up for the album or even go to a record store to buy it. You just had to go on spotify and type a word or two. Or click a link. And that’s amazing. But it does mean that the onus is now on you to build that connection. You have to really pay attention to the music you love, invest your time in it. Make it mean something to you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Of course you can have opinions on records. In fact, you <i>should</i>, because music doesn’t mean much if it stirs no emotions in you at all. But no artist owes you anything in this day and age where his or her music can be heard for little to nothing. I’m never going to love “Universal Truths”, but I’ll find other records this year that I love, and still don’t have to pay for. As long as Mark Kozelek is happy with the record then it’s really achieved its purpose. He’s the one that put in the work making it. All I had to do was listen for an hour, for free.</span></div>
Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-40994256580756728922015-05-28T15:22:00.000+01:002016-07-28T10:05:06.714+01:00Rodriguez Live At The Albert Hall - 27/05/2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmAUFK-9PFMxDRML49Cg1p31IO3afFg9ATa0bWOT5kbXno2Um_bB5w1vrIjKXOqB0sCwdElp-IP_QBIDhydV4il4f7AnWU_kQwJNiJd98f_bXcJgF1NagJhTuB4noO1Sw9pBQchySowirs/s1600/coming_from_realityCoverLrg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmAUFK-9PFMxDRML49Cg1p31IO3afFg9ATa0bWOT5kbXno2Um_bB5w1vrIjKXOqB0sCwdElp-IP_QBIDhydV4il4f7AnWU_kQwJNiJd98f_bXcJgF1NagJhTuB4noO1Sw9pBQchySowirs/s320/coming_from_realityCoverLrg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I’ve been
to a lot of concerts in my life. Like nearly every music lover my age, I’ve spent
half my life going to see bands play from the smallest bars to the biggest
arenas. I’ve seen hot, new up and coming bands, acts at the apex of their
careers and well established musicians that started playing decades before I
was born. Rodriguez at the Albert Hall was not one that I will easily forget,
but perhaps not for the reasons you may expect.</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The
<a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/5PrHzxc3kFm4hIrGNmelpX" target="_blank">Sixto Rodriguez</a> story is a good one. If you haven't seen it, the academy award
winning documentary “<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2125608/" target="_blank">Searching For Sugarman</a>” is well worth your time. A little known singer songwriter from Detroit, his <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/5PrHzxc3kFm4hIrGNmelpX" target="_blank">two albums</a>, released in the
early 70's, were commercial flops in the US, despite his obvious talent and the
faith of his producers and record labels. His music career went nowhere and he
settled into a life of manual labour and factory work.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Unbeknownst
to him, he had become a huge success in South Africa. Despite the limited availability
of his albums for some time, he had developed a huge following amongst the
growing counter culture during the era of apartheid, becoming more well known
and loved than both Elvis and the Rolling Stones. But he was nowhere to be
found. With no knowledge of the success and adoration awaiting him in South Africa,
Rodriguez never toured or recorded after 1973. It seemed to his fans that he
had just vanished and rumours of an on stage suicide were rife. Eventually, in
the late 1990's a couple of intrepid fans tracked him down and contacted him,
eventually arranging a concert in South Africa and re-igniting Rodriguez's
musical career. The film disregards some aspects of the story, notably the fact
that he had toured Australia in 1981 and still had a following there, but it’s
an undeniably interesting tale that’s made all the better by being told through
an engaging film. So, since the 1990’s his career has been growing steadily,
his two albums were reissued in 2009 and with the release of “Searching For
Sugarman” in 2012, his notoriety skyrocketed. Now at the age of 72 Rodriguez is
now playing sold out shows around the world, including two nights at the Royal
Albert Hall.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I had
heard Rodriguez’s records when the film was released and I enjoyed them. Both
albums are the kind of tuneful, clever psychedelic pop that was a big part of
my childhood. I could hear echoes of Love’s “Forever Changes” in the
arrangements and hints of Dylan in the lyrics but with an original voice that
kept it engaging. I didn’t quite see what had resonated so strongly with the people
of South Africa but I’m a white man in London in 2015, far removed from the
political and social climate of that time and place. Overall though I enjoyed
his music enough that when the opportunity presented itself, I went to see him
play.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I
must have missed something. I’m sure of it. Whether the crowd at the show had all
come from South Africa or I was just not paying proper attention to either the
records or the documentary, I’m not sure. Whatever it was, the level of
adoration and excitement for Rodriguez was beyond anything I’d seen before.
First of all, the Albert Hall, which for those of you that are unfamiliar is a
huge, prestigious, victorian concert hall in London, was packed to the rafters
with fans. Who from what I could see, were predominantly white, older men,
occasionally with their wives or kids in tow. Then there was a standing ovation
for Rodriguez before he even got on stage. A good two minutes before. When he
did finally come on stage, shuffling and supported by two of his daughters,
there was even more applause, followed by near constant declarations of affection
from audience members. This kind of unfettered love is rare to see at any
performance but for a man who released two albums four decades ago and who
most of these people have only been aware of for three years, It seems almost
impossible. But, again, I thought to myself “I’ve just not picked up on
something. I’m sure once he get’s going, I’ll get it.”</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzJnVmuKgKl4k6axRP9YCucpwAVW70r3l41M-ANNF7vUhkKejOR_PcE8-hSIqxzoPP0JS_z0jJ5cd1fchWZdGYMaSAuqfOBUQ-y07NoGo2ll0pkR_CrctNUY7tIxdMQ4tVjTDvBApVLeGz/s1600/IMG_2076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzJnVmuKgKl4k6axRP9YCucpwAVW70r3l41M-ANNF7vUhkKejOR_PcE8-hSIqxzoPP0JS_z0jJ5cd1fchWZdGYMaSAuqfOBUQ-y07NoGo2ll0pkR_CrctNUY7tIxdMQ4tVjTDvBApVLeGz/s320/IMG_2076.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rodriguez on stage at the Royal Albert Hall</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">My
main thought about Rodriguez throughout the set was how frail he looked. His
walk was a slow shuffle and he leant on a table placed next to him for support
as he drank from two cups of tea between songs. At 72 he’s not a young guy but
when I think of other performers around his age, Springsteen, Neil Young, Ray
Davies all of who still have tonnes of energy, it’s
a little jarring. That said, he played his guitar with gusto. A frenetic and
complex strumming that, whilst not always audible, still looked like he knew
what he was doing. His vocals on the other hand were often mumbled and slightly
off key, sometimes lost behind the backing band. But the crowd loved it, roaring
with appreciation at the end of each song and continuing to shout about how
much they loved him as he conferred with his band between numbers.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">For a
man who has been praised for his song-writing and compared favourably to the
great writers of his generation, Rodriguez seemed determined to cram as many
covers into his set as he could. “La Bamba”, “Blue Suede Shoes”, “Somebody To
Love” and others were all wheeled out, sometimes it seemed even to the surprise
of the backing band who I could see pulling confused faces and occasionally
shrugging to each other. As is sometimes the case with older artists, it was the
band that was doing the heavy lifting. The rhythm section were tight and
energetic and quite frankly I would pay good money to watch the lead guitarist
jam out on stage any night of the week. Though they were able to cope with the
curve balls they were being thrown, each song seemed to follow a distinct
pattern. Rodriguez would start playing, the band would join in and halfway
through the song, there would be an extended guitar solo that lasted for the
rest of the number. After a while, the band would signal to each other and the
drummer would make it very obvious that the song was coming to an end. I’m not
sure how rehearsed or planned this was, but it seemed clear who was leading
who. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I’ve
seen shows in a similar vein to this before. Brian Wilson is a great example. A
revered, older songwriter plays his hits to an audience of devoted fans whilst
the majority of the work is done by a tight group of much younger musicians. And
to my mind, there is nothing wrong with that set up. It affords some people the
chance to relive their youth for a couple of hours and for younger audience
members to get a glimpse of musicians that have inspired countless others and
made a huge impact on our cultural world. With artists like Brian Wilson, I
completely understand the draw and I completely understand why they have such
devoted fans. What perplexes me about Rodriguez, is that he has managed to
garner the same love and appreciation from a UK audience in what is essentially a very short career and I don’t quite understand why. Both of his albums are
great, but there are only 2 of them and they’re 40 years old now. To my mind,
for an audience to respond with such adoration as they did to this show, there
either needs to be a large, well known body of work to draw from (Brian Wilson
again serves as an example) or a performance that dispels all doubt (ever seen
Springsteen play a 3 hour show?), neither of which were present here. I don’t wish
to come off as cynical or mean spirited, Rodriguez deserves success and
recognition for his work and his story, but I saw and heard little to support
the fervor of his fans. But in the end, being able to instil that kind of
devotion in people is something to be admired, even if I’m not sure I see it
myself.</span></span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-80974001140452496792015-05-20T15:47:00.004+01:002015-05-20T15:48:27.750+01:00Field Recording: Horse, Carriage & Bus - Kensington Church Street<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/206374020&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">One of the odd parts of working in one of the richest and most well to do areas of London is that you occasionally see things on the street that you rarely see anywhere else in the city. Royal motorcades to and from Kensington palace, billionaires leaving their mansions on the UK's most expensive street and police armed with machine guns to name but a few. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There's also a lot of horses. I'm not really sure why, but there seems to be more horses in Kensington than any where else in central London. In fact just the other day I saw a carriage being pulled by two horses weaving it's way through rush hour traffic on Kensington Church Street complete with two well dressed coachmen. It looked transplanted from a century gone by where that kind of transport was common place. If it had been in a film or TV show I would have called it a rather lazy British stereotype. I pulled out my phone but instead of taking a photo I made a recording of the horses as they passed a bus that had just pulled up.</span><br />
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<br />Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-17407387005553774712015-04-20T17:52:00.001+01:002015-04-20T17:52:38.628+01:00Field Recording: A Glitch On The DLR<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLSa8ZJ9Xuy9ZK2IdERSb5gBjxUA3LkeLI9Ci3o05VSAznERsWzyhINW5Z1z18lo6-llO5YRyE4lLWpecn8cu6M6cM-9xjoMlPmdcdlbYxCoJe2faFXN5Tzk6PAr0UlbGVuII_4yPwsvzX/s1600/dlr-route-map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLSa8ZJ9Xuy9ZK2IdERSb5gBjxUA3LkeLI9Ci3o05VSAznERsWzyhINW5Z1z18lo6-llO5YRyE4lLWpecn8cu6M6cM-9xjoMlPmdcdlbYxCoJe2faFXN5Tzk6PAr0UlbGVuII_4yPwsvzX/s1600/dlr-route-map.jpg" height="101" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">DLR map</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Public transport in London is a fact of life. Unless you are one of the chosen few who can walk to work or drive, you will end up on public transport at least once a week. being confined to a small space for a long period of time on a regular basis will, unsurprisingly, become rather monotonous. <a href="http://somecallitnoise.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/pitch-and-joys-of-being-music-nerd.html" target="_blank">I've spoken before</a> on this blog about how I try to lighten up the 2 hours of each day I spend on the tube by listening to podcasts.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">That said, every so often, something a bit strange happens that catches you off guard. Whether it's people in fancy dress, passengers exhibiting bizarre behavior or just something disgusting, public transport in London does throw you the occasional surprise. A few months ago I was on my way into work on the DLR (Docklands Light Railway), when I noticed that the automated PA announcements that tell you which station is next on the line had a weird delay effect. The result was a series of announcements that were pretty hard to decipher and for some strange reason, slightly unnerving. Because of these strange sounding announcements, passengers, some of whom see each other every day and never so much as acknowledge each others existence, we're smiling at each other and laughing slightly confusedly at what was going on. As I was standing next to one of the PA speakers, I pulled out my iPhone and began to record the announcements. </span><br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/201712986&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-62000804050055908752015-04-10T11:49:00.001+01:002015-04-14T13:45:34.087+01:00The Tefifon<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">One of my favourite things about audio technology is the vast amount of strange, obscure formats and machines that exist in the world. For every innovation that changed the way people listened to music, the CD for example, there were a handful of lesser know ones that never quite made it (hands up who still owns a Minidisc player?). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Tefifon is a little known audio format from 1950's Germany and utilises a thin, flexible vinyl strip to store music. It's coiled up inside a plastic cartridge much like an old 8-track tape would be. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/Techmoan">Techmoan</a>, a youtube user with a wonderful channel full of interesting and informative tech reviews (I really recommend his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLN2yCnHTG_6qjr-JAECy9Qnl_t6ek4CXD" target="_blank">HI-FI videos playlist</a>), got hold of a Tefifon and has produced a detailed and pretty fascinating deconstruction of the machine.</span><br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nBNTAmLRmUg" width="640"></iframe>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Whilst the machine can hardly be called groundbreaking and the audio quality isn't going to give vinyl a run for it's money, it's beautifully designed and the artwork on the cartridge sleeves is fantastic. It's a wonderful artifact and a clever idea, but I never want to hear that version of "Tutti Frutti" again.</span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-16013663708055540362015-03-30T14:20:00.002+01:002015-03-30T14:20:59.742+01:00Scott Carrier's Home Of The Brave<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMqUwsg0vQm8i_XQYqcZu_gmShGvVURwctxqhqojArPyyOzquNeKG2VNLcwcmGiwKVoV8nMuoB86Y0EInhtOO5AmyFbAwanayg-yNoks4zSXvPNlK3ni2R3Gc2Fb5AtsoaciWhyPwdEPYd/s1600/11013307_1558842631045248_6439416999862707831_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMqUwsg0vQm8i_XQYqcZu_gmShGvVURwctxqhqojArPyyOzquNeKG2VNLcwcmGiwKVoV8nMuoB86Y0EInhtOO5AmyFbAwanayg-yNoks4zSXvPNlK3ni2R3Gc2Fb5AtsoaciWhyPwdEPYd/s1600/11013307_1558842631045248_6439416999862707831_n.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/homebravepodcast">https://www.facebook.com/homebravepodcast</a></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
If you've spent much time listening to This American Life, the wonderful weekly radio show and podcast from Chicago Public Media, then there is a good chance you have heard a story by Peabody award winner, <a href="https://twitter.com/ScottCarrier57">Scott Carrier</a>.<br />
<br />
For me, what sets Carrier's stories apart form the other segment producers, writers and reporters on This American Life is his strangeness. His slow, careful way of talking and his high pitched voice make his segments on the show seem somewhat tense. Enhancing that feeling is the fact that his pieces are often quite personal in nature and punctuated with details of what seems like a uneasy life. For example, his latest appearance on the show, <a href="http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/551/good-guys-2015" target="_blank">in the episode "Good Guys"</a>, he talks about his wife leaving him after an episode where he tore the walls out of the house with out warning.<br />
<br />
But it's exactly this intensity and personal detail in his work that I find so compelling. Along with the slight uncomfortable feeling of hearing such details broadcast publicly, Carrier's humanity is really what shines through in all of his work, albeit in a slightly strange, other-worldly way. You feel that he really cares about the subjects he's talking about and the people he's talking too. There's a dry humor to his work as well. Often I feel, listening to his stories and his delivery, that I get some of the jokes in the work but not all of them. That some of the jokes are maybe just for Scott. Part of what keeps me listening is the hope that I maybe, later, understand a few more of them. <br />
<br />
That's why his new podcast, and the first show dedicated solely to Carrier's work, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/home-of-the-brave/id972388330?mt=2">Home Of The Brave</a> is so interesting to listen to. Carrier is a man who at various stages in his life has always carried a tape recorder with him and each episode contains some of those recordings together with some narrative context. Whether it's a conversation with an old friend, interviews with people about the end of the world or a compilation of various fascinating recordings from around his neighborhood, the show invariably makes for compelling listening. Carrier has a great skill for capturing people on tape. His recordings are so evocative and well assembled that you get an almost complete sense of who the people he's talking to are. People seem compelled to talk to him and open up in a way they wouldn't to most men with a microphone.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://homebrave.com/" target="_blank">The website for the show</a> is almost a perfect visual representation of the show. Simple and spare on details, but containing all you need to get a perfect sense of what's going on. Carrier's, frankly brilliant, photographs accompany a simple audio player for each episode of the show. A perfect example of the dry humor I mentioned earlier is the promotional video on the "about" page. It's
one minute and nineteen seconds of Carrier and his dog in the car,
listening and occasionally barking along to "Television Man" by
Talking Heads. That's it.<br />
<br />
<div align="centre">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/120756514" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> <br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><a href="https://vimeo.com/120756514">Augi Bear</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user14736940">Scott Carrier</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</i></span><br />
<div>
<br />
Home Of The Brave is the work of a man who has very thoughtfully and skillfully recorded and presented his interest in the world and people around him. The show is full of quirks and idiosyncrasies, but so is the world and so are people, so in that way, it's a perfect representation.</div>
</div>
Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-30413303719466390962015-03-26T16:14:00.000+00:002015-04-14T13:46:03.817+01:00Between The Ears With Dan Carey<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO3a1J2V7M75s_XPSiT5Xyg4rUIqHVnBTXnCHEsoLVGdeiAnT8Z0eoxy7tw3LHLxCKhks9slxAylIZeo9HOxfae-tTTp6dpnreQNOi_kln_M9UXO95DQgCXjZdepKs80nVoxYREyyWbfSg/s1600/bte.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO3a1J2V7M75s_XPSiT5Xyg4rUIqHVnBTXnCHEsoLVGdeiAnT8Z0eoxy7tw3LHLxCKhks9slxAylIZeo9HOxfae-tTTp6dpnreQNOi_kln_M9UXO95DQgCXjZdepKs80nVoxYREyyWbfSg/s1600/bte.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><i><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/bte">http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/bte</a></i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dan Carey is a record producer, songwriter, audio experimenter of the highest order and previous guest on the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/dan-carey-episode-41/id576728586?i=335755457&mt=2" target="_blank">Speaks Louder Than Words podcast</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Whilst we were talking for the podcast, Dan told me about a recent BBC Radio 3 documentary he had been a part of that focused on a tape recorder he had recently purchased. The machine came with a box of tapes, made in the 1950's and 60's which seemed to be of a group of friends in London. Alan Dein, the documentary's producer set about tracking down the machine's previous owner to talk about the recordings.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's a story about found recordings, the intrigue that makes them so compelling and how a seemingly disconnected series of recordings can prove to be a document of an interesting story.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">You can here the show in full <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b052zn08" target="_blank">here</a></span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">.</span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-22141755350986876242015-03-20T14:56:00.002+00:002015-03-20T14:57:27.771+00:00Field Recording: The Royal Mile<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNbzyfxHtzh1RitBA6EVpf5bTy4_PTas2QVDqlLHP3TdZX0Ndmais0mHO25L1hKk5B7EO3EfIH01HMdIkZ-xXhwSSPB3Jgew7caiT7l623zEWjUYHW53FJtEjTxTXHTRf_xVeU8v5l7YO3/s1600/IMG_1862.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNbzyfxHtzh1RitBA6EVpf5bTy4_PTas2QVDqlLHP3TdZX0Ndmais0mHO25L1hKk5B7EO3EfIH01HMdIkZ-xXhwSSPB3Jgew7caiT7l623zEWjUYHW53FJtEjTxTXHTRf_xVeU8v5l7YO3/s1600/IMG_1862.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
This recording was made outside of St Giles Cathedral on a recent trip to Edinburgh. My wife had ducked into one of the shops nearby and I was stood outside taking photos. As I took one of the cathedral, a busker further down the street began playing the bagpipes, something that occurs regularly in the more touristy areas of Scotland.<br />
<br />
Perhaps it's the natural reverb from the large stone buildings and cobbled streets that gives this recording an eerie and atmospheric feel and makes the pipes seem somewhat distant and removed from the street noise but there was a certain quality in the atmosphere at that moment that
inspired me to pull out my iPhone and record a voice memo.<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/196393926&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-37331281007655315612015-03-18T11:31:00.001+00:002015-03-18T11:32:44.927+00:00Podcast: Jeff Middleton<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJb9UPHY74iogD6biwYIAUimpM6FEYn3syweFQa3csmDnBbnP2JOIiehx9jW854nN_ZDPnDsUlcB4mnxV39G2eYlmHtGuoJT_H338cSw1f2Ts90skP3FzxVl1KDp492MsqlMqn0KbkvIta/s1600/LOGO2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJb9UPHY74iogD6biwYIAUimpM6FEYn3syweFQa3csmDnBbnP2JOIiehx9jW854nN_ZDPnDsUlcB4mnxV39G2eYlmHtGuoJT_H338cSw1f2Ts90skP3FzxVl1KDp492MsqlMqn0KbkvIta/s1600/LOGO2.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As a British person, Country music is pretty much a mystery to me. I know what it is, I know where it comes from and I have a rough idea of what it sounds like. I enjoy classic country music, I listen to artists like Caitlin Rose and Steve Earle but I know that a lot of the Country I love is either considered alternative or from a by-gone era. From what I can tell, that's only the tip of the iceberg. What about the country music that dominates radio stations in the southern United States? I know so little about that side of Country music, yet it is it's own, separate, multi-billion dollar industry.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I was lucky enough to get to talk to Nashville songwriter and guitarist for <a href="https://open.spotify.com/album/32tRzmHVO5OxNv7IK36x24" target="_blank">The Dirt Drifters</a>, Jeff Middleton. In between songwriting sessions on a recent UK trip Jeff, very graciously and with great patience answered my questions about Country music, Nashville and his own adventures in songwriting.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">You can <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/jeff-middleton-episode-42/id576728586?i=337844842&mt=2" target="_blank">download the podcast for free on iTunes</a> and you can <a href="https://twitter.com/J_Mid" target="_blank">follow Jeff on twitter.</a></span></span><br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/196455438&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-39260054889818251902015-03-04T16:12:00.003+00:002015-03-04T16:33:37.983+00:00Pitch, A Podcast For Music Nerds & Non-Music Nerds<style type="text/css"></style>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCA_wh_T_I_njYjy84cwjmm_JeiM9wHupRcVzy39H0xqYTvrk3cTqUNI9SPbZ6qhcbO5LJ5Aq8tNFv1jIGgC73jf4DgBGPE_AbHclcn2UG2fSRUbNcKNtp8FT3N4pHgXVn7g9NUIE6OH-/s1600/pitch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCA_wh_T_I_njYjy84cwjmm_JeiM9wHupRcVzy39H0xqYTvrk3cTqUNI9SPbZ6qhcbO5LJ5Aq8tNFv1jIGgC73jf4DgBGPE_AbHclcn2UG2fSRUbNcKNtp8FT3N4pHgXVn7g9NUIE6OH-/s1600/pitch.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">I've found recently that my time
spent with headphones on, has become increasingly spent listening to
podcasts instead of music. I have a job where music and listening to
music, sometimes the same track several times in a row, is a big part
of what I do. At my desk I am constantly listening to music of all
kinds on many different formats for many different reasons.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">But I've found that when I'm
heading off for my day in the office or I'm finished and going home,
I prefer not to listen to music. My ears won't appreciate the
subtitles of jazz or withstand the volume of hard rock or navigate
the new textures of electronica. I need something identifiable,
relatable but engaging enough so that I don't fall asleep on my 1
hour commute. So I turn to podcasts. </span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Like all aspects of media, the
internet has thrown the doors wide open for unsupervised and
unregulated production of audio programming. One of the top rated
podcasts available and a personal favourite of mine, Marc Maron's
WTF, is produced independently in his garage. Podcasts also allow you
to listen to great, professionally made radio shows from far flung
lands. American public radio productions like this American Life and
the audible delight that is Radiolab have found huge new global
audiences as podcasts. There are podcasts on almost every subject you
can think of and probably a few on subjects you would rather not
think about. Of course there are plenty on music.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">One of my favourites is the
independently produced Pitch. No other podcast out there captures my
enjoyment of the geeky minutia that surrounds music as well as Pitch
does. It's a podcast for music lovers who like stories and story
lovers who enjoy music. Presented and created by Alex Kapelman and
Whitney Jones, Pitch is different from other music shows in that it's
not an interview show (like <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/speaks-louder-than-words/id576728586?mt=2" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;"></span></a><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" target="_blank"><i>some</i> podcasts</a></span></span>) or a new music
programme as much as it is a series of short audio documentaries.
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Each episode takes on a small but
interesting aspect of music. Whether it's the rise of <a href="https://soundcloud.com/hearpitch/6-karaoke" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Karaoke</span></a>, the
story of a <a href="https://soundcloud.com/hearpitch/5-moulty" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">song about a drummer</span> </a>in a 60's band or the strange laws
around <a href="https://soundcloud.com/hearpitch/10-please-no-dancing" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">dancing in New York</span></a>, Kapelman and Jones tell each tale with a
level of interest that is usually only reserved for the obsessed, but
in a way that even those with just a casual interest in these
subjects will find enjoyable. My personal favourite is episode 3,
“Rock The Longbox”. Not just because it goes into detail about
the most (justifiably) maligned type of record packaging there is but
because it's a story about how music, specifically R.E.M's “Out Of
Time”, can make big changes in the world at large.</span><br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/141526030&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">The podcast also has a wonderful
newsletter too, discussing the most talked about music stories of
each week and shining a light on some of the more important and
perhaps not as widely covered stories that affect music listeners and
the industry itself.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">As someone who is often ridiculed, in a </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> good-natured way,</span> for his music nerd tendencies, I have to say that
I find Pitch's tone and content comforting. It's nice to know that
small, sometimes almost unnoticeable parts of music lore and
knowledge can be used to create relatable and interesting stories.
That the minutia of it all can be used to do what music essentially
does, build a strong, meaningful connection to the outside world. </span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">You can get Pitch <span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/pitch/id815088332?mt=2" target="_blank">here on iTunes</a></span>
and follow them on twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/hearpitch" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">here</span></a>.</span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-75235242898709117262015-02-18T16:50:00.002+00:002015-02-19T17:56:02.764+00:00Podcast: Dan Carey<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/191736762&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicurXFpq_g58aekNB8Jg8QVW1-rIPRKo6YCtCxISCfhxp6qOEPy1Ox1h7Oi-g4pSxXZGGK5IktJ6RZ9fPGaoNG8FrpdE7MFR4uTuqXRVwch3cn3FVG3SrMjTY5lCHp3uab4ipyRYGNVRCp/s1600/1779056_571774609576392_1104704674_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: auto; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicurXFpq_g58aekNB8Jg8QVW1-rIPRKo6YCtCxISCfhxp6qOEPy1Ox1h7Oi-g4pSxXZGGK5IktJ6RZ9fPGaoNG8FrpdE7MFR4uTuqXRVwch3cn3FVG3SrMjTY5lCHp3uab4ipyRYGNVRCp/s1600/1779056_571774609576392_1104704674_n.jpg" height="265" title="" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dan's Studio (via <a href="https://www.facebook.com/407259169361271/photos/a.571774549576398.1073741830.407259169361271/571774609576392/?type=1&theater" target="_blank">Speedy Wunderground's Facebook page</a>)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to spend a morning in Dan Carey's studio in London. A veritable Aladdin's cave of music making, the main room is filled with guitars, synthesisers and recording gear, a big neon sign advertising<span style="background-color: #eeeeee;"> his <span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="http://speedywunderground.com/" target="_blank">Speedy Wunderground</a></span> re</span>cord label hangs on one wall. Although the room is somewhat chaotic, you get the sense that it's perfectly set up for Dan to work in and that he knows where everything is. He's in his element amongst all the cables and switches</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;">Dan Carey has written for or produced (or both) big, chart topping acts like Kylie Minogue, Franz Ferdinand, Lilly Allen and Sia as well as less well known, but equally as lauded artists such as Kate Tempest (with whom he is currently working on a new album), Emiliana Torrini, Toy and Chairlift. The Chairlift album (<a href="http://open.spotify.com/album/5IpQTw8xTvaDEiRya15Tst" target="_blank">2012's "Something"</a>) was a record I was particularly interested in talking about as it's one of my favourite albums of the last few years and a potential candidate for a later entry on Some Call It Noise.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;">You can <span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: #eeeeee;"><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/dan-carey-episode-41/id576728586?i=335755457&mt=2" target="_blank">download the podcast</a></span></span> </span>for free from iTunes or stream it via soundcloud. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"></span>
Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-69609972288964432912014-12-23T16:23:00.001+00:002014-12-23T16:24:31.274+00:00Podcast: An Interview With Luke Fitton<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ1CfMrWhlaRlAOpCzoczcdtm0X-DEIPwcTGSYmqXkhZqQ2Gwyc7TjeruK1pmrblEQkLCWqBHS1vzLCondqu5B0h9DuTPDZ76xV3VbE8FiQ5PpKdg-Wk8XxJ4gtyCFJaBMPkPakQ9Oh9cV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-12-23+at+16.21.26.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ1CfMrWhlaRlAOpCzoczcdtm0X-DEIPwcTGSYmqXkhZqQ2Gwyc7TjeruK1pmrblEQkLCWqBHS1vzLCondqu5B0h9DuTPDZ76xV3VbE8FiQ5PpKdg-Wk8XxJ4gtyCFJaBMPkPakQ9Oh9cV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-12-23+at+16.21.26.png" /></a><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My final podcast of the year is a chat with Luke Fitton. Whilst he's not quite yet a household name, Luke has had a hand in music that will have made itself audible to even the most oblivious of people. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As part of the Xenomania songwriting and production team, Luke has worked with big selling pop acts like Girls Aloud, Little Mix and The Gossip, honing his skills as a songwriter and producer in one of the most successful pop production houses of the last 20 years.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But Luke's work is not all confined to the studio, he's also a working musician. We discuss the life of a gigging guitarist and all that comes with life on the road, comparing his earlier jobs to his current position as guitarist for Kylie Minogue's touring band. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/episode-40-luke-fitton/id576728586?i=327650557&mt=2" target="_blank">Download the podcast free from iTunes.</a></span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-30389377484136944002014-11-28T14:39:00.000+00:002014-11-28T15:03:25.370+00:00Podcast: An Interview With Emily Phillips<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/179019590&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Emily Phillips is a songwriter who has written with artists like John Newman ("Cheating"), Rizzle Kicks (multiple tracks on both albums) and Jazz singer Kate Dimbleby. She got her start in music when Damon Albarn, who was her flat mate at the time, gave her a guitar and told her to write a song. Years later she has toured the world with her band Transcargo, built herself a successful career as a songwriter and started a family with husband/bandmate Ant Whiting.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Emily very kindly invited me down to the studio she and Ant work in to talk about music, creativity, Russian echo units and a rather unpleasant event involving a spider, an audience of 50 people and the man who wrote "Delilah". </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/episode-39-emily-phillips/id576728586?i=326274042&mt=2" target="_blank">Click here</a> to get the podcast on iTunes.</span></span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-75932614649783264142014-11-13T14:06:00.001+00:002014-11-14T00:09:22.040+00:00D.D Dumbo Live At St Pancras Old Church - November 9th 2014<style type="text/css"></style>
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj38OwxhU8wKKEkrpK41aI0_135l6rsbqz0UzHI8Mwj99PSaVjSMxjMc0pVGmgeZ5YpLHnLUl9RwI5eBKtr0qgFUQFuQM14YfQmaoo86NW4XDGYVXDTN9p-385KmFHm3G5JiA2JQUllPhpM/s1600/tropicaloceans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj38OwxhU8wKKEkrpK41aI0_135l6rsbqz0UzHI8Mwj99PSaVjSMxjMc0pVGmgeZ5YpLHnLUl9RwI5eBKtr0qgFUQFuQM14YfQmaoo86NW4XDGYVXDTN9p-385KmFHm3G5JiA2JQUllPhpM/s320/tropicaloceans.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Churches make for odd gig venues.
They're always atmospheric and interesting, not to mention
acoustically superior to most buildings but they create a sense of
reverence amongst an audience that, when paired with the wrong artist
can detract a little from the show. Luckily for me and the other 60
or so people at D.D. Dumbo's show at the haunting, cracked and
wonderful St Pancras Old Church in King's Cross, that wasn't the case
here.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Having first heard of D.D Dumbo
via <a href="http://www.npr.org/series/144918893/field-recordings" target="_blank">NPR's brilliant field recording's series</a>, I was intrigued to hear
more of his rhythmic, guitar driven music and to see for myself just how his approach to live performance works.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Judging by his sparse
between-song-chatter D.D Dumbo (Oliver Perry off stage) is a fairly
unassuming guy. Soft spoken, polite and funny. The songs themselves
though are complex, clever, and driven by almost irresistible grooves
and rhythms. A lone figure on stage, Perry creates these layered and
vibrant tunes from scratch using 2 drums, a modified Danelectro 12
string guitar, a loop pedal and a microphone.</span></span><br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qpb4zlpp9xw" width="640"></iframe>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">There's a percussive nature to D.D
Dumbo's music created not just by the drums but also his loops of
percussive clunks, clicks and chimes from his guitar. But whilst the
groove of the beat clearly pushes these songs forward, what really
shines through is Perry's guitar playing. There's a strong blues feel
to some of it and throughout the show I heard licks that could have
just as easily come from an album of African guitar music. There's
shades of Tureg, desert rock band Tinariwen in his playing. Probably
not the most common influence for a guy from Melbourne, Australia.
His set's opener, “Walrus” is a perfect example of his style,
almost a showcase song for all the elements that make him stand out.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The use of loop pedals in a solo
performance isn't a new thing but it's rare to see it done so well.
Perry has not only mastered the use of the technology, he's mastered
his instrument as well. His use of effects is a genuine enhancement
to the music and not there to cover any potential mistakes. On top of
this his songwriting is original and clever with melodies that go off
on tangents but never veer too far from being catchy and memorable.
On paper this may sound like there is too much going on at once for it to make
any sense but there is a real clarity to D.D Dumbo's sound that keeps
these songs from coming across as convoluted.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The set was relatively short,
seeing as his repertoire is limited by how new his career is (his
only release to date is the 4 song <a href="http://4ad.com/releases/22476" target="_blank">Tropical Oceans EP on 4AD</a>). I must
admit though, whilst I can't wait for his debut album to arrive,
there is a part of me that's worried. Would the studio recordings
stand up to the intensity and skill of the live show? The Tropical
Oceans EP would seem to suggest that it's possible but even so D.D
Dumbo has set the bar fairly high for himself.</span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span>
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Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-52202537265365713602014-11-05T14:35:00.000+00:002014-11-06T10:16:52.698+00:00Hiding In Plain Sight: The Low Sales Of The Ramones<style type="text/css">A:link { }</style>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMZkRqnOlfWo0nvI78T1W6WdAfqFDiNPxn39gqdgwhz6kXgFCP0JNPzyAVfYbXlqr-hI8GJvOrSJKzNf71MLLPz97O-sEZpMNPUToaC_F-1u-MXpyFR8tCxWEeJaPnvD3KL8ITkZyTEP2B/s1600/ramonescover2+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMZkRqnOlfWo0nvI78T1W6WdAfqFDiNPxn39gqdgwhz6kXgFCP0JNPzyAVfYbXlqr-hI8GJvOrSJKzNf71MLLPz97O-sEZpMNPUToaC_F-1u-MXpyFR8tCxWEeJaPnvD3KL8ITkZyTEP2B/s1600/ramonescover2+copy.jpg" /></a></div>
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<div align="LEFT" style="widows: 129;">
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A
few months ago, Tommy Ramone passed away. The last surviving member
of the original line-up of the Ramones. I could write here about the
history of the band, talk about the hey-day of New York Punk, debate
whether it started in America or England and go over hundreds of
other points that I have far less knowledge than some other people
might. Suffice to say that Tommy Ramone was a vital member of the
band and without him, rock music would not be what it is today, but
I'll leave the biographies and tributes to people who know more about
Tommy than me. For example, Jon Wurster of Superchunk and Bob Mould's
band wrote a </span><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="zxx"><u><a href="http://www.spin.com/articles/jon-wurster-remembers-tommy-ramone-rip/">really
nice piece about Tommy</a></u></span></span><span style="font-size: small;">
and the band. </span></span>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span>
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<div align="LEFT" style="widows: 129;">
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> What
struck me about the death of Tommy Ramone (</span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Thomas
Erdelyi outside of the band) was that he was the last living Ramone
who played on the band's first record, 1976's “Ramones”. More
shockingly, he was the only member who was alive to see it sell
enough copies to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA). The record passed that milestone just
a few weeks before his death. It's the only Ramones album, aside from
'best of' compilations, to have sold enough copies to qualify. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">To
people uninterested in the music industry's, self congratulatory
award system, the term “gold record” may mean nothing other than
a vague sense that a record has had some sort of commercial success.
In terms of cold, hard figures, the RIAA certification for a gold
record means that it has sold 500,000 copies in the USA. 500,000.
That's half a million. In terms of today's sales, with the commercial
music landscape decimated by illegal downloading and subscription
streaming, that's a big amount to sell. Whilst albums like Taylor
Swift's “1989” which is on course to </span></span><span style="color: navy; font-size: small;"><span lang="zxx"><u><a href="http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/chart-alert/6304339/taylor-swifts-1989-set-for-biggest-sales-week-since-2002-13"><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-style: normal;">sell
1.3 million</span></span></a></u></span></span><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">
in the USA by the end of it's first week, proves that giant, hit, pop
records can still happen, commercial music sales are not what they
once were. Any up and coming major label rock band would be pleased
with sales of 200,000 these days and a band on an independent label
would be happy with a fraction of that. But 1976 was the era of
records like “Frampton Comes Alive”. Selling records back then
was big business. Peter Frampton's live album was released in January
of 1976 and had sold over 1 million copies by April. “Ramones”
has taken 38 years to sell half that amount.</span></span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">The
biggest selling album ever in the USA (I'm using examples from
America as the RIAA certification only covers sales in the US) is
Michael Jackson's album “Thriller” which has sold 29 million
copies. The Eagles Greatest Hits (1971-1975) has sold almost as many,
whilst “Led Zeppelin IV” has sold 23 million. But these albums
are all commercial behemoths from well known acts with big marketing
budgets behind them, theres no way the Ramones could compete
commercially with these records. So what about bands that are
comparable to the Ramones? The Sex Pistols might be a good place to
start. Another widely loved punk rock band who released their debut
album in the late 1970's on a large independent label that was later
swallowed up by a major. “Never Mind The Bollocks” had reached
the 500,000 mark in December of 1987, 10 years after it's release and
was certified platinum (sales of over 1 million) less than five years
later. How about The Clash's eponymous debut album? Twelve years
after it's US release in 1979 it had </span></span><span style="color: navy; font-size: small;"><span lang="zxx"><u><a href="http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist="><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-style: normal;">sold
the requisite number of copies</span></span></a></u></span></span><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">
to receive a shiny, framed LP. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">So
what is it about the Ramones that meant they didn't sell albums? They
were certainly accessible enough. Compared to the sneering,
untrained, “dirtier than thou” sound of the Sex Pistols or the
righteous, class struggle war cries of The Clash, the Ramones were a
pop band. “Blitzkrieg Bop” for example, is as catchy as early
punk gets. The Ramones lyrics weren't about being the antichrist, or
bold political statements. They were about life as a young person in
New York. Sex and drugs (“Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue”, “53</span></span><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><sup><span style="font-style: normal;">rd</span></sup></span><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">
& 3rd”), girls (“I Don't Wanna Hang Around With You”,
“Loudmouth”) and Juvenile delinquency all feature in the album
somewhere. It's the very essence of what rock music has always been
about. Mix this with a new, faster, dirtier sound and it should have
re-written the rulebook. But change is always resisted. Read any
account of the early days of punk and you'll find copious stories of
bands being laughed at, rejected or worse. Even the Jon Wurster
article I mentioned above talks about the Ramones being bottled off
stage for being a punk band.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Yet
the change did happen. Punk became accepted. The Ramones were on Top
Of The Pops here in the UK performing the Phil Spector produced “Baby
I Love You”. Johnny Rotten is now doing butter commercials on TV.
The Sex Pistols sold a million records. So why haven't the Ramones?
It's not as if the impact of their music has faded away. Bands have
cited the Ramones as an influence since the late 70's. Hardcore punk
bands like Black Flag and Naked Raygun took what the Ramones had
started and ran with it. In the 90's Kurt Cobain named the Ramones as
an influence in several interviews and members of Green Day, whose
pop-punk sound owes a huge debt to the Ramones, </span></span><span style="color: navy; font-size: small;"><span lang="zxx"><u><a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/1442906/peers-praise-joey-ramone-the-man-and-the-musician/"><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-style: normal;">named
their kids after them</span></span></a></u></span></span><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">.
“Blitzkrieg Bop”, the first track on the first side of Ramones,
has been featured on countless video game, film and television
soundtracks not to mention compilation albums. It's presence is
pervasive. It's recognisable around the world. Yet the album that
spawned it has sold a fraction of the number of copies that the debut
albums of Ace Of Base, Avril Lavigne and Linkin Park have. </span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"> But
maybe it's this pervasiveness that has damaged the Ramones sales.
Perhaps once people had purchased the movie soundtrack or compilation
with “Blitzkrieg Bop” on it, they didn't feel the need to go out
and buy the album. Could the same fate have awaited The Sex Pistols if
“Anarchy In The UK” had been a bit more radio friendly? The
Ramones catalogue doesn't vary much. Especially during the early
years at Sire. The songs don't all sound the same by any means but
the band has their story and they're sticking to it. So perhaps
consumers thought it best to just cherry pick the best songs rather
than buy the whole album? What does it say that, “Ramones Mania”,
a compilation put together by Sire after the band jumped ship for
Chrysalis in 1987, has sold more than any of their full albums?</span></span></div>
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</span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> Maybe
it was a question of availability? As with any type of commercial
media, a record is usually most popular around the time of it's
release. Especially in the era of vinyl when physical copies had to
be pressed and distributed to stores, keeping a record that wasn't
selling in print and available to buy was a cost that labels and
retailers were unwilling to pay. If Ramones records were sitting
around on the shelves of record stores, taking up valuable retail
space instead of being sold, they'd be sent back. If a record company
keeps getting records sent back as unsold, well whats the use in
producing more? Up until the end of the 1970's “Ramones” was
available in the US. But according to </span></span><span style="color: navy; font-size: small;"><span lang="zxx"><u><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Ramones-Ramones/master/39341"><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-style: normal;">discogs</span></span></a></u></span></span><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;">,
it wasn't until 1994 that it saw another pressing. It wasn't really
until the turn of the century that the album became constantly
available outside of the second hand market.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;">Now
though, there is a very large amount of Ramones music out there. Box
sets, compilations, live albums and a comprehensive re-issue program
by Warner Records can all be found easily in any record store. In
fact I would go so far as to say that the Ramones catalogue is a
shining example of a major label getting re-issues right. Each of the
bands albums for Warner was re-issued with bonus material and
extensive liner notes in 2001. It showed, in my opinion, a level of
care and appreciation for the band and it's music despite the fact
the albums never produced big sales. A luxury not afforded many
bands. Perhaps it was the constant availability of these reissues, as
well as other versions that have come out on a variety of formats
since then, that has pushed sales as high as they are now. </span></span> </div>
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</span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg5lDQY58Md7iMpXavJgx6QrdyrUCAPZO0U2GXT-lKr8ko3cJ1enDOjya_dGerRPXhzwYjHo7PekxDkWPbIV_JolfC8Q4xP9e2I0AfvQ8WY-aA1gvawPJ8fFCR59SOPEdxLPF2DcTBeYlr/s1600/ramoneslogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg5lDQY58Md7iMpXavJgx6QrdyrUCAPZO0U2GXT-lKr8ko3cJ1enDOjya_dGerRPXhzwYjHo7PekxDkWPbIV_JolfC8Q4xP9e2I0AfvQ8WY-aA1gvawPJ8fFCR59SOPEdxLPF2DcTBeYlr/s1600/ramoneslogo.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arturo_Vega" target="_blank">Arturo Vega's </a>design for the Ramones</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;">Like
Black Flag after them, the Ramones became victims of retro fashion
long after their dissolution. T-shirts with the band's logo on
started appearing in clothing chains in around 2002 and soon the
Ramones image had been co-opted by people who knew little about the
music. For me a perfect example of this was an appearance by
Australian soap-opera-actress-turned-pop-singer Holly Valance on
Channel 4's overly frenetic and loud morning show RI:SE. When asked
by presenter Ian Lee if she liked the band, whose T-shirt she was
sporting, she looked at him blankly and said “No, I just liked the
design”. If anything, this moment sums up the Ramones place in
mainstream popular culture. Ubiquitous and influential but also
unheard. Hiding in plain sight. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #252525; font-size: small;"> It's
this vast difference between the band's cultural impact and their
sales that just seems so unfair to me, but perhaps I'm missing the
point. The Ramones legacy is not about record sales. You can still
hear the Ramones influence in rock music today. “Blitzkrieg Bop”
has joined the likes of “Smoke On The Water” and “Smells Like
Teen Spirit” in the pantheon of classic, easy to learn, opening
chords. They helped build a whole new type of music and paved the way
for countless other bands. So what if they sold less records than
Peter Frampton?</span></span></div>
Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-31261937061678435282014-08-21T17:53:00.000+01:002014-11-05T14:44:54.318+00:00Podcast: My Conversation With Marika Hackman<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/163945159&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;">I've been a fan of Marika Hackman's for a while. Ever since I was introduced to her particular blend of smart, literate folk and electronica, I've been interested in hearing her where she goes next. The thing that always intrigued me most about her was the dark, violent content of her lyrics and imagery which contrasted so well with her almost fragile voice. The tone of her music is complex and brooding but there is always melody and subtlety enough to to keep it from becoming a hard listen. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;">Needless to say I had questions, so when Marika agreed to talk to me for the Speaks Louder Than Words podcast I set about going over her back catalog looking for comparisons and clues to the meaning behind her songs. In our conversation I found her to be intelligent and thoughtful and not afraid to discuss her reasons for doing things, which made this one of my favourite interviews so far.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: small;">
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Download the podcast for free on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/episode-37-marika-hackman/id576728586?i=317903938&mt=2" target="_blank">iTunes</a> or listen to it via soundcloud below. You can listen to Marika's music on <a href="http://open.spotify.com/artist/5DGJC3n9DS0Y9eY5ul9y0O" target="_blank">spotify</a> or on <a href="http://marikahackman.com/" target="_blank">her website</a>. </span></span>Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915253719874340822.post-15173571379246861192014-03-22T15:22:00.000+00:002014-11-13T14:07:11.223+00:00Royal Blood, In Conversation<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif5a4S-T6z4o4aylVFAeBvsoOjeV4z0RpVO98htaB2uiHstuh_vtN6cqr1fg4i5rNFvOBHw8Tw1AkyDcPyBX8X1rchklXDLUffbVa9NJaXSmtFYYqBxyT0fdnWsFJuhHg-jzVhATkafRZ3/s1600/Bal0nTDIMAEme8n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif5a4S-T6z4o4aylVFAeBvsoOjeV4z0RpVO98htaB2uiHstuh_vtN6cqr1fg4i5rNFvOBHw8Tw1AkyDcPyBX8X1rchklXDLUffbVa9NJaXSmtFYYqBxyT0fdnWsFJuhHg-jzVhATkafRZ3/s1600/Bal0nTDIMAEme8n.jpg" height="320" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by Ben Thatcher (<a href="https://twitter.com/BenjiTalent" target="_blank">@BenjiTalent</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;">Around this time last year, I heard
Royal blood for the first time. “Out Of The Black” sounded at
once violent, forceful and almost brutal yet it was very melodic and at
times catchy. “Figure It Out” had the same force behind it but was more complex and had an
undeniable swing to it. They had that incredible sound too. Big,
thunderous drums and a guitar sound that seemed so meaty and
sonically diverse that it was hard to distinguish between bass and
guitar parts. But the overpowering thing about it was the tightness
of the playing. These were guys who had played together for a long
time and knew their material back to front, obviously. Imagine my
surprise then as I found out that there was only two of them, there
was no guitar and they had only been together for a matter of months
before recording the songs. I was impressed before, now I was amazed. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;">After a whirlwind year, during which
they've signed with Warner Records, released two singles to near
universal praise, become the toast of BBC Radio and just returned from their first SXSW,Royal Blood are
now getting ready to release their first album. I've been lucky
enough to get to know the band over the last year (the photo above is of Mike and I at a christmas party) and we finally managed to
work out a time to sit down with Mike and Ben to talk about their
music.</span></span></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/episode-33-royal-blood/id576728586?i=276587146&mt=2" target="_blank">Click here to download</a> the Speaks Louder Than Words Podcast for free. </span></span></span></div>
Elliotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16367396810515254109noreply@blogger.com0