I've been a little distracted lately, so the blog has been little more than a dumping ground for nifty links with a snide or snappy paragraph appended to humanize the entry.
Well, I'm defragging the hard drive now, which gives me the downtime to cobble together a real entry...this week's musical purchases.
Contrary to the beliefs of the RIAA and like-minded corporate rights groups, downloading music does not immediately transform well behaved commuters on the information superhighway into bomb-throwing, soap-hating anarchist Yippes burning to stick it to the man where it counts...right up his musical royalty chute!
But it does provide a level of consumer protection that ensures you'll only buy a bad CD on purpose, not because you didn't know any better.
Petra Hayden and Bill Frisell
It must have been filed under Hayden instead of Frisell, because I missed it up until yesterday. Very much in Bill's "americana" vein of gentle old-timey playing, spruced up here and there with some tasteful distortion and loops. My first exposure to Petra...she has a lovely voice for harmony, but when she's singing with one voice I'd characterize her sound as "sweet but not filling".
It's an album of mostly covers, good ones. The high point for me (and the reason I immediately bought the disc instead of waiting for a used one to come around) is the first track; Satellite, originally by one of my pound for pound favorites Elliott Smith. The alchemy of Bill Frisell playing those delicate guitar parts nearly sent me toppling off the listening station stool in a diabetic coma of ecstacy. Petra is no Elliott, but the lovely harmonies do the song justice, and it's nice to hear it WELL recorded (the original, from his self-titled second album on the trendy Kill Rock Stars label, sounded like it was recorded on an old 8 track in someone's basement).
The rest of the disc is fine on first listen, with some other standout tracks (I Don't Want to Grow Up, John Hardy). I have the feeling it will grow on me.
Wolf Parade - Apologies to Queen Mary
Another winner from my crusade to avoid being a lame geezer who's musical evolution ceased at high school graduation. They're part of the burgeoning Montreal scene spearheaded by the quite excellent Arcade Fire, and have chops enough for any three normal bands. My music geek buddy James played some of their stuff at a drunken debauched dance party we had a few weeks back, so I jumped on this one. First impressions are good- they're tight, the singers can sing (always a worry with "indie rock") and they write great songs. Worth the price of admission for the brilliant, showstopping I'll Believe Anything, one of those perfect songs I'll still be listening to 20 years from now. Perfectly paced, it builds to a cyclone of a finale that leaves you delirious, breathless and spent.
New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
I'll admit it, I buy these cats primarly because I can't get enough Neko Case, the best voice in popular music today. There's a ton of music here, and I won't even pretend I've listened to it enough to figure out half of what's going on. But there are several standout tracks showcasing Neko (Bones of an Idol, These are the Fables)that rule. The rest of them sound pretty good too.
Pick up her fabulous country noir release Blacklisted from a few years back. Calexico backs her and the whole affair couldn't be more potent and atmospheric. I had the good fortune to catch her opening for Calexico last year, and they reprised their roles from this album, leaving me prostrate with joy. Her voice has even more of a velvet laser beam quality live, it could drill a hole through the world to China and emerge retaining enough force to entrance an entire city in the Gansu province.
note for bobo
There's some Test Department up on alt.binaries.sounds.lossless!
Relive your youth!
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