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July 28 Upcoming gigs in Seattle
July 04 We are REM and this is what we do when you're not lookingThat was how Michael Stipe introduced the third of a five night run of unique rehearsal concerts in Dublin's Olympia Theatre. In their own words, this experiment in "terror and music" gave loyal fans a glimpse at the songs destined for the next R.E.M. album, yet not fully polished. For the most part, the fans cooperated and were appropriately silent, then rapturous throughout the gig.
As promised, the bulk of the evening was devoted to show-casing new songs. We were treated to 11 in all. The sound is predominantly guitar heavy (Peter's mandolin on one track notwithstanding) and certainly louder and more direct than any of their last three albums. A couple of songs would fit neatly between the sounds of Monster and New Adventures in Hi-Fi, while others are tightly-crafted, melodic indie rockers.
With Michael singing lyrics directly from his laptop - amid frustrating Macro pop-up warnings - the band sounded invigorated and despite claiming nerves, played the new songs impeccably. As proof that the songs are not the finished article, Michael scribbled notes and adjustments over his lyric sheets mid-song.
REM were clearly having fun and this was most apparent during their show-boating of 8 songs from their back catalogue. This was far from a greatest hits package, but instead treated us to rarities from the Reckoning and Fables of the Reconstruction albums. Gems such as Driver 8 and Little America gave the band an opportunity to rock-out and re-live their youth. One of the highlights of the night was the classic 'So. Central Rain', unbelievably sounding better than ever and delivered with bundles of energy and enthusiasm.
Presumably, bootlegs of these work-in-progress songs will circulate the Net imminently, but this should only bolster anticipation for the forthcoming album...indications are looking up. April 09 march into the seaThe mix tape for March is a mixed bag of loud and quiet gems. Current favourites are Modest Mouse (must buy their new album) and neat sequeway into Jose Gonzalez's gorgeous 'Crosses'. Surjan Stevens track is a killer too... yet another album to buy, no doubt. Two Cow Garage are another fun find, as much for their uncompromising, simple punchy songs as their attitudes - like they were born to be rock stars. Fear of Flying remind me of some 80s band that I can't think of, but it's a cracking tune that always grabs my attention. More Noise April 05 2007: A good year for musicThe Shin's latest long-player, Wincing the Night Away still remains top of my 'album of the year' list for 2007. It's an utterly brilliant, likeable, enticing collection of songs. Surprisingly, it stands up to repeated listens much more than I expected and what I thought were mediocre songs have become my favourite songs (Australia).
Ditto Arcade Fire's Neon Bible, a stunning album by any measure. Already, I think I prefer it to their debut, and my enjoyment is still growing. Current favouites are Black Mirror, Neon Bible and The Well and the Lighthouse.
The fun doesn't stop there. I'm currently salivating over the growing list of albums I must and will buy, including:
February 17 february starsFeaturing almost all new music, this is not as rock-heavy as January but packed with quality...am currently loving the new Bright Eyes song, Patrick Wolf's track and the new Brett Anderson song. Only recently found the Radiohead track, from the excellent Help - War Child cd from a couple of years ago.
Bonus nostalgia track: rock out it's january!Here's the first in a series of 12 monthly mix CDs I've decided to make. The first month is made up of mostly 2006 music that I've only recently discovered, but is generally all brilliant. Current favourites include Phantom Limb, A Stare Like Yours and Baby's Coming Back To Me.
January 05 Tape-tastic riffsTapes 'n Tapes are new to me, but I'm already a big fan (2 months too late to see them play in town:( ). Hailing from Minnesota, they're a four-piece specialising in distinctive, punchy songs, packed with melody as much as sharp, brilliant rock riffs.
There's shades of Kings of Leon and pieces of Arcade Fire in their sound, yet it remains original, unpredictable and snappy. They've got the instant likeability in their songs, that makes you want to re-listen to each song.
My current favourite songs of theirs:
Go buy some here. November 03 Radio Free DublinThe airwaves finally have a safe place of refuge from boyband crappery and pop-Idol idiocy. PhantomFM is back on the air broadcasting real music for the interested ear on 105.2 fm. August 10 The CorporationThe 2003 documentary film The Corporation is a must-see watch for any employee of a modern corporation. It quickly and honestly strips away the polished veneer of well-known and well-loved global brands and graphically illustrates their collective, relentless cut-throat agenda.
'The Corporation' makes for enlightening - and sobering - viewing. Almost from its inception, corporations adopted an aggressive, voracious appetite for growth and control.
A common theme running through the film is an examination of a corporation under the typical categories of a psychological assessment. Posing the question 'are corporations psychopathic', it provides a compelling argument. With such certain qualities as unremitting lying, unapologetic profiteering, lack of guilt feeling, it's not difficult to understand the analogy.
One of the most revealing insights was the stark revelation that corporations are essentially automoton-like, conscious-less masters with hapless executives, directors and workers. Even ecologically minded CEOs admitted that they are largely helpless in their roles and must continue the corporation's remit regardless.
Ethics clearly have no role when individuals feel no moral responsibity - this is the central message of the film. Belonging to a faceless corporation empowers otherwise-well-intentioned individuals to act in less-than ethical ways. Accountability is delegated to such a granular level that no one individual can claim resposibility for any negative consequences promoted by the corporation.
Seen in the context of the this film, Google's 'do no evil' motto appears utterly laughable. Positioning themselves so piously, it will be interesting to watch as they stumble through the inevitable mire.
I'm suddenly reminded of an old Manics song. But anyway, why not steal a copy of the film and start thinking ;) ? July 27 Cathartic tunes and other interesting playlistsWindows Media Player is great for creating playlists based on year released, rating, composer or generic song 'genres', but they're pretty broad and therefore not of great use (The Beach Boys and Metallica are both returned in a search for 'rock'). This means you typically end up with predictable playlists based on dull, formulaic groupings. I thought it might be good to create some original playlists with more offbeat categories.
For example, how about a playlist of songs that were performed at the same music festival (e.g. every song from my library that was played at Oxegen 2006) or songs that reference "New York" in their lyrics, or songs that have featured in the same TV shows. As you can imagine, this would throw together some interesting song combinations. What would be even cooler would be an option for me to download new songs that would neatly fit inside my selected playlist - in the above example, it could be the new BellX1 single or an old The Who song that was played at the Oxegen festival.
It shouldn't be too difficult to start categorising music content in these new imaginative ways. The obvious solution is to tag everything in a big database - and let people tag songs themselves, increasing the pool of music tags. It would throw up some great combinations of songs and let you hear your music in more interesting contexts. That way I could download a new feed of tags for 'indie songs played on KCRW' - and start playing if they're in my library, or let me listen/download any that I'm missing.
How cool would it be to get such song tags as 'cover version of David Bowie song', 'produced by Rick Rubin', 'inspired by Led Zeppelin II', 'drum solo', 'late night driving music', 'heavy on the reverb' etc.? The possibilities for unique and interesting matching of songs are endless.
Here's my first list of songs that I would tag "cathartic tunes" (a.k.a. angry grunting songs). Songs in my library that are fueled by anger and the perfect antitode to a highly stressful day:
April 30 The perfect three minute pop songClocking in at bang on three minutes, Hackensack is a slice of pop perfection from the band with a seemingly limitless bag of tunes, Fountains of Wayne. The FoW have long been peddling jangly guitar pop with infectious melodies and catchy, quirky lyrics. Although sticking to their tried and tested formula, Hackensack firmly hits the bullseye.
Hackensack is a nostalgic song about a guy dreaming about his childhood sweetheart: the FoW excel at dreamy, uncomplicated story-telling. Thankfully, Fountains of Wayne don't do tragedy or profound introspection, for this is perfect sunny-weather, car driving musical bliss. March 31 This song won't change your lifeBut it may enrich it a little bit! With the amibitious title of 'A Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left', Andrew Bird immediately mis-directs his audience, who may be expecting wildly left-field indulgence or even Manic Street Preacher-like rhetoric. Instead, he delivers a lush, beautifully arranged pop song that wraps around its listener and offers instant satisfaction and rewards repeated listens.
Beginning with a soft, strumming Nick Drake-style melody, Bird could have stopped singing after 44 seconds and the track would be complete. What follows is a neat segue into jangling guitar, looping, plucking violin and dangerously-infectious whistling. Neat lyrical work rides a wave of strings until a shimmering crescendo. This is the soundtrack to a movie you haven't seen yet.
Dowload and enjoy here. January 30 ShiningShining January 09 disappear hereLunar Park by Brett Easton Ellis Comfortably Ellis' best novel to date, Lunar Park is a pleasure to read. From the outset, the reader is persuaded to believe that the book is factual - an account of the writer's turbulent recent life. Ellis then begins twisting elements of his personal life into an alternate reality where not only does the reader doubt his writings, but confusingly, he does too. Ostensibly a story about the trappings of fame and responsibility, a healthy dose of macabre (immeasurably more affecting than anything Stephen King has written) pulls the book in another direction before the over-arching theme of family resolves (but not quite) the narrative. As with his previous books, his raw talent for capturing people shines through - particularly their shortcomings. Lunar Park contains elements of horror, suspense, drama, satire and comedy, yet none of these sufficiently describe its undoubted brilliance. Ellis has created a novel that immediately takes hold and convincingly places the reader into his world. This is a book that will happily reward a second and third reading... highly recommended! September 29 The price of lifeInteresting article on the ethics of compensating victims of terrorism.
September 26 doesn't remind meSometimes, there's nothing better than a musically-indexed memory. Every song, artist, album links directly to an event or time in your life; hearing the first few bars immediately stirs the feelings and images associated with when the song entered your life. However, at other time, it's nice to have music that doesn't remind you of anything (but unlike commercial radio, is still enjoyable to listen to). Simple listening pleasure, uncomplicated by flashbacks of memory. Worst/best offenders:
(Temporarily) doesn't remind me of anything:
May 19 Tune of the dayFor the type of mellow satisfaction usually only gained through premium cigars and aged whiskey, listen to 'Poor Boy' (Nick Drake) loudly. |
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