I got paid to do this.
1. "Roads" - Portishead
I'm assuming everyone was paying attention last year when Portishead announced that they would be releasing their third album cleverly titled Third. I understand that it was a big to do since they were coming back to the music scene after quite a few years away, eleven to be exact. The new album received praise and appeared everywhere- magazines, websites, that year-end mix that someone gave you that's now collecting dust at the bottom of a drawer because it had "Viva La Vida" from Coldplay on it.
My point is everyone loved it, except for me of course. When I first heard that Portishead was coming out with a new album I was on the bandwagon with everyone else. My elation could not be contained. This band was a part of my music loving history. How could I not be excited? What I failed to remember was that music had shifted directions since the release of their first album Dummy from which the song "Roads" comes from. Today's scene didn't include the ground-breaking trip-hop that Portishead first made famous. Personally though, I think Massive Attack had a bigger influence on trip-hop, but I'm not here to split hairs. I digress.
I was disappointed with Third. I got what I didn't expect, but that's my fault for not having an open mind about it. It doesn't bother me, I still love the band and I still agree with the consensus that even though Portishead was out of the music scene for so long they delivered an album that's edgy and current. But seriously, no matter how many more albums Portishead releases, they won't compare to the love I have for Dummy, and for this song "Roads." It's the line, "I got nobody on my side, and surely that ain't right," that really sums up the way I want Portishead to be forever. Dark and gloomy with a chance of heavy rain. I know, I ask too much, but I promise to give their next release a better listen to. Ten more years to go.
2. "Security" - Otis Redding
Otis' voice is like a bucket of ice water dumped on you when you've been sulking in your own self-pity for too long. It wakes you up, slaps you in the face and says, "Hey! Let me carry all your burdens for you through my songs." That's pretty much how I feel when I listen to Otis Redding. I don't have to be sad because he's already sad for me. The sign of a true soul singer.
He left us too soon, but his legacy lives on. "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay", his first and only number one hit, didn't top the charts until a year after his death. In 1989 he was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. In '99 he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement award. And so on. And so on. And so on.
You know how some people want to believe that Elvis or Tupac or Biggie aren't really dead? Well, Otis is my Elvis, Tupac, and Biggie. Even though we all know these artists are dead and gone their music keeps us alive. It keeps our spirits up. When I listen to "Cigarettes and Coffee" it really is a quarter to three in the morning and I'm sitting with my baby doing nothing but smoking, drinking coffee, and enjoying my time with her even though in reality I'm by myself in a Starbucks and irritable because everyone around me is smoking and I have quit. Maybe I should try a little tenderness? BA-ZING!
3. "Edmund Street" - The Rosebuds
Forgive my ipod for picking yet another Rosebuds song for a 5SIAR post. And it's not even a good one either. I love The Rosebuds, but I dislike this song. Not one of their best in my opinion.
So I guess I've found the kryptonite to this blog. Repeating bands and/or repeating songs. I want this blog to be entertaining for the reader, but I can't do that when I get the same band twice in a row. I don't want to cheat and skip a song, but I don't want to be repetitious either. Any suggestions you the reader might have will be greatly appreciated because right now I'm at a bit of a loss.
4. "Blood Roses" - Tori Amos
This is the beginning. Where my love for music took root and started growing. It was the album Boys For Pele from Tori Amos. I'm not kidding when I say it is one of the most influential albums on my life. People give me funny looks when I tell them this, but it's to be expected. Tori doesn't exactly have a very large male fan base. Looking back I don't know what turned me onto that album so much. Even though I rocked out to all the grunge that was coming out I couldn't connect with any of it. It was the piano, and not the guitar, that made an impact on me.
Boys For Pele allowed me to branch out into other genres and styles I didn't even know existed. In fact, now that I think about it the same girl in high school who told me to listen to Tori also told me to listen to The Pixies and Pavement, two bands that are arguably the most influential on modern indie rock today.
Funny story. While in the piano class I'm currently taking (shared mostly with teenage high school students) my instructor was talking about the differences between the harpsichord and the piano. She asked, "Who here has heard a harpsichord being played?" I was the only one who raised a hand because I immediately and almost instinctively thought of the song "Blood Roses" which is played entirely on the harpsichord. She then asked where and when I heard to harpsichord. This is the part where my heart started racing and I was sweating like Meatloaf on stage while singing "Bat Out Of Hell". All eyes were on me and if I said what I wanted to say I most likely would've been laughed at by these children. Even though I'm older than anyone in that class I was sucked back in time to when I was in high school and being a closet Tori listener. So of course I lied and just said that I heard some dude play the harpsichord at the Tampa Bay Performance Arts Center a few years ago when in all actuality I saw Tori play it back in '97 during the Boys For Pele tour. For the rest of my life that night will be one of the best nights ever. To be honest, Tori plays into a lot of my best nights, and some of the worst.
5. "Behold The Wolf" - Summerbirds In The Cellar
I'm from Central Florida, so are the trio Summerbirds In The Cellar. I'm also a bit picky when it comes to local music. There's not too much of it that I like. I've gone to local shows in Tampa, Lakeland, and Orlando and there are times I've walked out of the bar because I didn't like what I heard. Even though I've seen Summerbirds play quite a number of times I have never, or will ever, walk out on their show. They are the one and only band from this area that I sincerely enjoy listening to and seeing live. There are others that are close to memorable such as Band Marino and The Dark Romantics. They aren't bad bands by any means, but the pay off isn't quite the same.
It's catchy in a good kind of way. The kind you can dance to, or at least moderately shake your body to while they are pounding out the heavy and not-to-overly dramatic synth rock they are known for. That's why I feel that you have to see them live to fully grasp the music they are making. On that same note it makes me feel bad saying that. I like this band, really I do. They should be signed to a label already. And I think that if they can harness that live sound and put it in disc and vinyl form, then I don't think they will have any problem getting the props they are deserved.
Seriously, when you open for bands like The Faint and R.E.M. and are scheduled to do shows with Deerhunter it's hard to keep saying no. There's a reason why Summerbirds In The Cellar has caught the attention of these big name acts. Listen to their albums With The Hands of the Hunter It All Becomes Dead and the follow-up Druids then go see them live. You'll see what I mean. And if you don't, I don't want to see you hopping on the bandwagon when they make it big. We will kick you off.
Thanks again for reading. Lunch time!
Friday, February 20, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
#1
Let the journey begin.
1. “Reindeer” – The Knife
I’ve always been a bit on the fence with The Knife. Some of their songs I absolutely love. Others, well, there’s a reason they don’t have a high play count on my ipod. If the songs “Heartbeats” or “Pass This On” don’t come on I usually skip to the next track. I know, it isn’t fair, but this is why I created this blog; to force myself to listen to music that I would normally skip over. I’m guilty of being a fair weather listener. I guess that’s the proper term?
Sometimes I only like a band or artist for their popular songs. Big deal, right? Wrong! If I wanted to be that kind of listener and purveyor of music I’d stick to listening to the radio for the rest of my life. That, in my opinion, is suicide, so I’m not going to allow that to happen. So with the inaugural post of this blog it’s quite fitting that a Knife song that I have never listened to before be played.
Right off the bat the thing that impresses me the most, as per usual with a Knife song, is the minimalist layering of instruments. Some electronic artists tend to overdo it by piling more and more sounds into their songs to the point of there being no point. It becomes a harsh blend of too much rhythm and too much atmosphere. Less is more, and that is something I have always admired about the Swedish siblings Karin Dreijer Andersson and Olof Dreijer who make up The Knife. They know how much instrumentation to program and then let Karin’s voice carry the rest of the song.
However, I’m not too keen on the lyrical content of “Reindeer.” Something about Santa Claus being faster…fatter? Hell, I don’t know, but the song does have the makings of making onto a Christmas mix. But honestly, if it came down to picking “Reindeer” or “Another Lonely Christmas” from Prince, I think The Knife would find themselves sitting on the bench.
2. “Never Tear Us Apart” – INXS
This song, under any circumstance, should never, ever, ever, ever, EV-ER be skipped over. It should be played at maximum volume wherever you might be at the time it comes on. If you’re in the car then roll down your windows and let the cars next to you hear it at the stop light. Yes, you may get some odd looks, but those are looks of jealousy because everyone else only wishes they could be as bad ass as you are blasting Michael Hutchins voice at peak volume.
You should also sing along. Hearing “Never Tear Us Apart” automatically gives you the right to turn your surroundings into a karaoke bar. I’m just waiting for the day that it comes on over the speaker in some random grocery or department store. I will, without fail, start singing. Yes, I will get those looks. No, I will not care. Though now that I think about it, how often does this song come on in a public place? I mean, it’s not like its 1987 anymore. But regardless, it’s a great song that deserves to be played every time it comes on. Again, do not skip it. Ever.
3. “Waiting For The Carnival” – The Rosebuds
So I promised myself when I decided to start this blog that I wouldn’t include anything personal on here. This song almost made me want to break my promise considering what has been on my mind lately. But it isn’t blog appropriate.
It talks about fireworks, waiting, hoping, love, and being there. That’s enough sentimentality for one blog I think.
I love The Rosebuds, more people should too. Every new person I meet that asks me for a new band to listen to I always suggest The Rosebuds. As far as husband and wife bands go, I would give them a higher rating than Mates of State. Now, far be it from me to want to step on the toes of those die hard Mates of State fans out there, but, you have to admit that sometimes they’re just a little too happy pop. Sometimes you need some sad pop thrown in the mix. I would suggest the entire Birds Make Good Neighbors album as your starting point then work backwards from there, and then forward again. “Waiting for the Carnival” is on The Rosebuds’ debut album Make Out, but again, start with Birds Make Good Neighbors. Your heart will thank you for it. And maybe, just maybe, that blue bird of yours will eventually find its way home.
4. “Atlantic City” – Bruce Springsteen
Ah, the boss. There’s no denying him and there’s no denying that this song, no, this album is incredible. Surprisingly a lot of Springsteen fans aren’t aware of the album entitled Nebraska. It’s a pity too because it’s one of the folk albums I believe everyone should own. In my opinion, it’s easier to swallow than any Dylan album. I know, I know…that’s a pretty bold statement, but not for us Springsteen fans. To be quite sincere the only Dylan album I can really tolerate is Blood on the Tracks.
Nebraska was forged in a barn with nothing but a 4-track, a guitar, a harmonica, and the usual Springsteen passion for singing about the trials and tribulations of the every man. It is the quintessential soundtrack to play to either ease your woes or fall further into depravity, or in my case, both at the same time. It makes you realize that yes; someone else feels the same way I do. Someone else has that annoying itch called life that can’t be scratched.
I don’t need or want to explain what this song is about. That would be taking away from the pure gut-wrenching honesty that it harbors within. You’ll just have to go find out on your own. Seriously, go listen right now, but I must warn you- The harmonica will, in my friend Jake’s words, “pierce your soul.”
5. “Gone Daddy Gone” – Gnarls Barkley
This song is a usual skip for me. Perhaps maybe it was the ridiculous video that went along with it. I despise fleas. But no, that’s not it.
It’s because I genuinely do not like the song. I didn’t like it when Violent Femmes originally did it. Still don’t like it now that Gnarls Barkley covered it.
I know this blog is all about weeding out the bad songs I don’t want on my ipod, but there is a rule I made for myself that I must follow. If I am to have an album on my ipod, in this case St. Elsewhere, I have to keep it whole. I can’t just delete tracks from it. It’s like a carnal sin to me. I would rather delete the entire album, but therein lies the problem; I like pretty much everything else on St. Elsewhere. So I suppose through this journey down the road of the music that’s on my ipod I just have to make a decision once I find a song I don’t like. Does the album go, or does it stay? More research is needed, and I am positive that during this journey into my music taste I will discover more songs I don’t like, which in turn will tell me more about myself.
Onward we go…
1. “Reindeer” – The Knife
I’ve always been a bit on the fence with The Knife. Some of their songs I absolutely love. Others, well, there’s a reason they don’t have a high play count on my ipod. If the songs “Heartbeats” or “Pass This On” don’t come on I usually skip to the next track. I know, it isn’t fair, but this is why I created this blog; to force myself to listen to music that I would normally skip over. I’m guilty of being a fair weather listener. I guess that’s the proper term?
Sometimes I only like a band or artist for their popular songs. Big deal, right? Wrong! If I wanted to be that kind of listener and purveyor of music I’d stick to listening to the radio for the rest of my life. That, in my opinion, is suicide, so I’m not going to allow that to happen. So with the inaugural post of this blog it’s quite fitting that a Knife song that I have never listened to before be played.
Right off the bat the thing that impresses me the most, as per usual with a Knife song, is the minimalist layering of instruments. Some electronic artists tend to overdo it by piling more and more sounds into their songs to the point of there being no point. It becomes a harsh blend of too much rhythm and too much atmosphere. Less is more, and that is something I have always admired about the Swedish siblings Karin Dreijer Andersson and Olof Dreijer who make up The Knife. They know how much instrumentation to program and then let Karin’s voice carry the rest of the song.
However, I’m not too keen on the lyrical content of “Reindeer.” Something about Santa Claus being faster…fatter? Hell, I don’t know, but the song does have the makings of making onto a Christmas mix. But honestly, if it came down to picking “Reindeer” or “Another Lonely Christmas” from Prince, I think The Knife would find themselves sitting on the bench.
2. “Never Tear Us Apart” – INXS
This song, under any circumstance, should never, ever, ever, ever, EV-ER be skipped over. It should be played at maximum volume wherever you might be at the time it comes on. If you’re in the car then roll down your windows and let the cars next to you hear it at the stop light. Yes, you may get some odd looks, but those are looks of jealousy because everyone else only wishes they could be as bad ass as you are blasting Michael Hutchins voice at peak volume.
You should also sing along. Hearing “Never Tear Us Apart” automatically gives you the right to turn your surroundings into a karaoke bar. I’m just waiting for the day that it comes on over the speaker in some random grocery or department store. I will, without fail, start singing. Yes, I will get those looks. No, I will not care. Though now that I think about it, how often does this song come on in a public place? I mean, it’s not like its 1987 anymore. But regardless, it’s a great song that deserves to be played every time it comes on. Again, do not skip it. Ever.
3. “Waiting For The Carnival” – The Rosebuds
So I promised myself when I decided to start this blog that I wouldn’t include anything personal on here. This song almost made me want to break my promise considering what has been on my mind lately. But it isn’t blog appropriate.
It talks about fireworks, waiting, hoping, love, and being there. That’s enough sentimentality for one blog I think.
I love The Rosebuds, more people should too. Every new person I meet that asks me for a new band to listen to I always suggest The Rosebuds. As far as husband and wife bands go, I would give them a higher rating than Mates of State. Now, far be it from me to want to step on the toes of those die hard Mates of State fans out there, but, you have to admit that sometimes they’re just a little too happy pop. Sometimes you need some sad pop thrown in the mix. I would suggest the entire Birds Make Good Neighbors album as your starting point then work backwards from there, and then forward again. “Waiting for the Carnival” is on The Rosebuds’ debut album Make Out, but again, start with Birds Make Good Neighbors. Your heart will thank you for it. And maybe, just maybe, that blue bird of yours will eventually find its way home.
4. “Atlantic City” – Bruce Springsteen
Ah, the boss. There’s no denying him and there’s no denying that this song, no, this album is incredible. Surprisingly a lot of Springsteen fans aren’t aware of the album entitled Nebraska. It’s a pity too because it’s one of the folk albums I believe everyone should own. In my opinion, it’s easier to swallow than any Dylan album. I know, I know…that’s a pretty bold statement, but not for us Springsteen fans. To be quite sincere the only Dylan album I can really tolerate is Blood on the Tracks.
Nebraska was forged in a barn with nothing but a 4-track, a guitar, a harmonica, and the usual Springsteen passion for singing about the trials and tribulations of the every man. It is the quintessential soundtrack to play to either ease your woes or fall further into depravity, or in my case, both at the same time. It makes you realize that yes; someone else feels the same way I do. Someone else has that annoying itch called life that can’t be scratched.
I don’t need or want to explain what this song is about. That would be taking away from the pure gut-wrenching honesty that it harbors within. You’ll just have to go find out on your own. Seriously, go listen right now, but I must warn you- The harmonica will, in my friend Jake’s words, “pierce your soul.”
5. “Gone Daddy Gone” – Gnarls Barkley
This song is a usual skip for me. Perhaps maybe it was the ridiculous video that went along with it. I despise fleas. But no, that’s not it.
It’s because I genuinely do not like the song. I didn’t like it when Violent Femmes originally did it. Still don’t like it now that Gnarls Barkley covered it.
I know this blog is all about weeding out the bad songs I don’t want on my ipod, but there is a rule I made for myself that I must follow. If I am to have an album on my ipod, in this case St. Elsewhere, I have to keep it whole. I can’t just delete tracks from it. It’s like a carnal sin to me. I would rather delete the entire album, but therein lies the problem; I like pretty much everything else on St. Elsewhere. So I suppose through this journey down the road of the music that’s on my ipod I just have to make a decision once I find a song I don’t like. Does the album go, or does it stay? More research is needed, and I am positive that during this journey into my music taste I will discover more songs I don’t like, which in turn will tell me more about myself.
Onward we go…
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Preview
Greetings and salutations fellow music lovers.
Lately I've been having a problem with myself and the technology geared toward bringing music to the masses. I'll be driving in my car or sitting at work listening to music and I will skip through tracks after putting my ipod on shuffle just to find a song I want to hear. I've become judge, jury, and executioner to songs that come on my ipod without really giving them a chance to play. These artists are on my ipod for a reason, right? What good is having 80 gigs worth of music if you're not going to listen to it?
So tonight after thumbing through a book entitled The Best Music You've Never Heard I decided to delve into my main source for listening to music- my ipod. It certainly doesn't come close to the same experience as listening to an album on vinyl, but it doesn't have to, the ipod is there for convenience; To plug in and have all your favorite albums in the palm of your hand.
Which brings me to the purpose of this blog. It's a way to force myself to listen to something new every day and write about it. Nothing big, just a few sentences about the song, the artist that created it, and how I feel about it. I promise not to do repeats.
Keep checking back. The first installment of 5 Songs In A Row will be posted soon.
Your faithful writer,
Nick
Lately I've been having a problem with myself and the technology geared toward bringing music to the masses. I'll be driving in my car or sitting at work listening to music and I will skip through tracks after putting my ipod on shuffle just to find a song I want to hear. I've become judge, jury, and executioner to songs that come on my ipod without really giving them a chance to play. These artists are on my ipod for a reason, right? What good is having 80 gigs worth of music if you're not going to listen to it?
So tonight after thumbing through a book entitled The Best Music You've Never Heard I decided to delve into my main source for listening to music- my ipod. It certainly doesn't come close to the same experience as listening to an album on vinyl, but it doesn't have to, the ipod is there for convenience; To plug in and have all your favorite albums in the palm of your hand.
Which brings me to the purpose of this blog. It's a way to force myself to listen to something new every day and write about it. Nothing big, just a few sentences about the song, the artist that created it, and how I feel about it. I promise not to do repeats.
Keep checking back. The first installment of 5 Songs In A Row will be posted soon.
Your faithful writer,
Nick
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