here they are:
"Afterlife" by Arcade Fire: Win Butler's orchestral indie-pop group are really going for ambitious songs this time around, aren't they?! Their "Reflektor" was 7 and a half minutes long, and their next big song for 2013, "Afterlife", is 6 minutes!! As its title indicates, "Afterlife" deals with death, specifically the loss of someone who was very important to one of the members' lives (though they never specify who). Not quite the meandering song "Reflektor" was, but it still has that sort of "progressive indie" feel to it. The final minutes of the song serve as its "grieving stage", during which Win Butler repeats the mantra, "It's just an afterlife", possibly for reassurance that everything will turn out alright for him.
"High Hopes" by Bruce Springsteen: When it comes to The Boss's material from the 21st century, it's definitely a mixed bag. He seems to like going for passionate, world weary ballads these days, but "High Hopes" is a rocker!! (Well, kinda) It features fiery electric guitar playing from Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello (complete with soloing in the middle), attempting to battle it out with the song's backing acoustic guitar. As with many of Springsteen's contemporary songs, "High Hopes" is a song that revolves around political angst. The song becomes even more triumphant during the chorus, with its brass instruments breaking down the angry walls of this song into a jubilant celebration! My "high hopes" go towards The Boss himself, to crank out more good tunes like this one!! I think he can still hang in there for quite a while!
"Little Games" by The Colourist: I haven't heard many indie/alt groups channel the spirit of Michael Hutchence (from INXS) quite so well as I have with this song!! Over a 1980's style drumbeat, an electric guitar roars loud enough both to rock and to make people dance, in The Colourist's "Little Games"! The smooth, suave vocals of the song also seem somewhat Hutchence inspired (though not nearly as high). "Little Games" is about cheating in a relationship, but with the song's super catchy vibe, you'd probably never know!!
"Love Like This" by Kodaline: Before I get started with this one, the name of this Irish indie-folk group is pronounced "KO-duh-line" (not "KO-duh-leen", as I originally thought it was). Perhaps the song's opening mandolin-ish sound makes it obvious they're Irish?! The harmonica makes it sound more like a Dylan or Springsteen song, though, both of whom, of course, are American. Kodaline's songs seem to all be love songs so far ("love like this won't last forever" is the chorus of this song, and their other big song, "All I Want", is about the longing to feel loved by someone). Their folk-rock sound has me drawn to their material regardless, though, it just makes them seem like such a calm, down-to-earth sorta band!
Showing posts with label Tom Morello. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tom Morello. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
New songs for February 22nd, 2012
here they are:
“Hallways” by Islands: Islands are an indie band that has been around for a long time, but haven’t gotten much attention for any particular song of theirs until now. Considering how maudlin Islands usually are, “Hallways” comes as a breath of fresh air, and that’s probably why it’s ending up being their “breakthrough” track so far. With its jaunty, piano-based sound, and a rhythm and chord progression that both seem somewhat derived from Creedence Clearwater Revival’s similarly carefree “Lookin’ Out My Back Door”, “Hallways” is not only a catchy song, but also one in which the title of it makes sense in hindsight, in that the rhythm and mood of it leave you wanting to skip and dance merrily through the “hallways”!
“Ho Hey” by Lumineers: “Lumineers” doesn’t exactly sound like the name of a part bluegrass/part indie-pop trio consisting of two men and one woman, but that’s what they are. The Lumineers manage to squeeze essential song elements like harmony, an infectious gets-stuck-in-your-head chorus (“I belong with you, you belong with me, you’re my sweet-ha-art”), and a catchy rhythm section into just two and half minutes in “Ho Hey”, which also boasts some of the most jovial, rockin’ banjos I’ve ever heard! If this song doesn’t put a smile on your face, I don’t know what will!
“It’s Time” by Imagine Dragons: Between the name of this band, and My Pet Dragon from earlier this year, I think I can officially declare that any indie/alt-pop band with the word “Dragon” in their name is pretty cool! The sound of “It’s Time” is absolutely phenomenal, especially during the verses, which seem to combine world music influenced string instrumentation with a marching band type rhythm! It sounds a bit more like a regular alt-pop song during the chorus, but by that time, the listener will probably be hooked on the song enough that it will just blend in with the rest of the song. That’s how “It’s Time” worked out for me, anyway!
“Origins” by Tennis: Along with Hockey (whose “Song Away” was one of the most successful indie/alt songs of 2010), Tennis are one of the few bands I’ve ever known to name themselves after a sport. Unlike Hockey, who had a rather Cars-ish new wave-y sound, Tennis draw inspiration more from bands of the ‘60s, like Jefferson Airplane, The Velvet Underground, and The Zombies (whose “Tell Her No” Tennis do an excellent job at covering) The lead singer of Tennis just happens to be a female with somewhat smoky, detached vocals, which makes them stand out among most contemporary bands. Even the instrumentation of this song is strikingly different, adding in a vintage ‘60s-ish organ sound and a lower than low sounding sax along with the more typical guitar/bass/drums sound. Are there any more good things about “Origins”? Yes, plenty! The lyrics are self-conscious and doubting, but written from an earnest point of view. Oh, and did I mention that lead singer Alaina Moore looks a little like Stevie Nicks?! Think we might just have a new babe in the music biz to talk about!!
“Save the Hammer For the Man” – The Nightwatchman (featuring Ben Harper): While perhaps not quite as unique in sound as the artist formerly known as Tom Morello’s “Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine” (from late summer of last year), “Save the Hammer For the Man” is still a powerful song. Or at least it tries to be. Musically, the sound of it falls somewhat flat (until the guitar solo, that is) in comparison to Tom Morello’s material both with and without Rage Against the Machine. For Ben Harper, it’s a “somewhere in the middle” song. Ben didn’t seem to get too much into exploring the deeper, darker side of blues and rock until about 3 years ago, but he’s been remarkable at doing so. In “Save the Hammer For the Man”, Ben Harper delivers his vocals quite powerfully and convincingly, but musically, it sounds like this could have been just another pre-Relentless 7 Ben Harper song. This is definitely not a bad song, though. Once the guitar solo comes in, “Save the Hammer For the Man” picks up, not just because of the guitar solo either. It carries through stronger afterwards, both musically and vocally. And lyrically, as always, Tom Morello drives home a challenging political statement that is still well worth listening to.
“See It For Yourself” by Sugar and The Hi-Lows: Another cute female indie vocalist?! Could it be?!? Yes, it could!! “Sugar” definitely seems like a good (nick)name for the lead vocalist of this band, not only because of how she looks, but also because of how she delivers the lines of this catchy, blues-y indie rock tune, with vocals that are as sweet and honey voiced as they are sexy! The lyrics of the song almost recall the “there’s no place like home” part of “The Wizard of Oz”, with their “it was right there in front of you all along” theme. Sugar and The Hi-Lows are a pretty new band, so I don’t know the name of the lead singer (or any members) yet, but what I DO know is that she can take my ruby red slippers into the Land of Oz anytime she wants to! Yes, that was a weird attempt at innuendo, wasn’t it?! :P
“Shiny Things” by Fanfarlo: Fan WHAT now?! Well, some of you might be familiar with the song “Harold T. Wilkins” (the one that goes “They sail the same STRAIT! They sail the same STRAIT!” towards the end of it), and Fanfarlo were the ones who did that one. “Shiny Things” comes from Fanfarlo’s second record so far, and its sound is a bit of a departure from the folk-rock sound of “Harold T. Wilkins”, as it goes for more of an icy new wave type sound instead. The sound of “Shiny Things”, combined with how detached the lead singer’s voice sounds, might as well be described as “Joy Division lite”, for while the song comes nowhere near close to the intensity of the late Ian Curtis’s gloomy post-punk band, one can still detect a Joy Division type influence in this song. The video for “Shiny Things”, with its surreal, somewhat disturbing images of people getting swallowed up by gold, also sounds like an idea that’s not too far off from the typical Joy Division song. Unbelievable that the same band who did the bouncy “Harold T. Wilkins” could come up with a more cynical, cold hearted song like “Shiny Things”, but perhaps that means I could expect something different from either of those two songs from Fanfarlo sometime in the future!
“Staircase” by Radiohead: And speaking of bands with a reputation for being icy and detached, Radiohead are probably one of the first bands that come to mind when describing such a musical mood! Truth be told, Radiohead are really much more diverse than that, but, as if by coincidence (from the last song I reviewed), “Staircase” could also be said to be somewhat of a Joy Division sound-alike (though it would probably garner comparisons just as easily to bands like Depeche Mode, New Order, and Kraftwerk). In typically clever Radiohead fashion, the lyrics to “Staircase” READ like a “staircase”, in that they wind up and down continuously. Though a return to folk-rock-y Radiohead (like they did on most of “In Rainbows”) would be nice, “Staircase” isn’t bad as far as the “weirder” songs in their catalog are concerned. Only one question remains. Why did they decide to release a new song in February of THIS year, when they already did so February of LAST year?! I guess we’ll never know, will we?!?
“Untitled (Love Song)” by Counting Crows: Untitled (Love Song) is an Interesting (Piece of Music), and it’s also a Cover (Of an Obscure Indie Song). Though Counting Crows released various songs on and off throughout the 2000’s, none of them came close to what they did in the ‘90s (especially not the mucky pop version they did of the classic Joni Mitchell song, “Big Yellow Taxi”, that should have been a forgotten version of the song, but which instead comes back to haunt me in grocery stores, fast food places, and everywhere else adult cotemporary stations are played). Someone must have talked to Adam Duritz and co and convinced them to crank up the electric guitars on their latest song (which, as mentioned before, isn’t actually theirs), because it sounds closer to the gritty indie-rock sound of Ryan Adams and My Morning Jacket (with a bit of Matthew Sweet influence thrown in for good measure) than it does the folk-y post-grunge of bands like The Wallflowers and The Dave Matthews Band (both of whom were frequently compared to Counting Crows). Not only do Counting Crows have their rock ‘n’ roll groove back on “Untitled (Love Song)”, but their organ player Charlie Gillingham delivers a forceful, dynamic Hammond solo, followed in a verse or two by some of the most Neil Young-ish guitar playing Dan Vickrey has done since the ‘90s!! Welcome back guys! A million other Counting Crows fans and I have really missed the way things used to be with you guys!
“Hallways” by Islands: Islands are an indie band that has been around for a long time, but haven’t gotten much attention for any particular song of theirs until now. Considering how maudlin Islands usually are, “Hallways” comes as a breath of fresh air, and that’s probably why it’s ending up being their “breakthrough” track so far. With its jaunty, piano-based sound, and a rhythm and chord progression that both seem somewhat derived from Creedence Clearwater Revival’s similarly carefree “Lookin’ Out My Back Door”, “Hallways” is not only a catchy song, but also one in which the title of it makes sense in hindsight, in that the rhythm and mood of it leave you wanting to skip and dance merrily through the “hallways”!
“Ho Hey” by Lumineers: “Lumineers” doesn’t exactly sound like the name of a part bluegrass/part indie-pop trio consisting of two men and one woman, but that’s what they are. The Lumineers manage to squeeze essential song elements like harmony, an infectious gets-stuck-in-your-head chorus (“I belong with you, you belong with me, you’re my sweet-ha-art”), and a catchy rhythm section into just two and half minutes in “Ho Hey”, which also boasts some of the most jovial, rockin’ banjos I’ve ever heard! If this song doesn’t put a smile on your face, I don’t know what will!
“It’s Time” by Imagine Dragons: Between the name of this band, and My Pet Dragon from earlier this year, I think I can officially declare that any indie/alt-pop band with the word “Dragon” in their name is pretty cool! The sound of “It’s Time” is absolutely phenomenal, especially during the verses, which seem to combine world music influenced string instrumentation with a marching band type rhythm! It sounds a bit more like a regular alt-pop song during the chorus, but by that time, the listener will probably be hooked on the song enough that it will just blend in with the rest of the song. That’s how “It’s Time” worked out for me, anyway!
“Origins” by Tennis: Along with Hockey (whose “Song Away” was one of the most successful indie/alt songs of 2010), Tennis are one of the few bands I’ve ever known to name themselves after a sport. Unlike Hockey, who had a rather Cars-ish new wave-y sound, Tennis draw inspiration more from bands of the ‘60s, like Jefferson Airplane, The Velvet Underground, and The Zombies (whose “Tell Her No” Tennis do an excellent job at covering) The lead singer of Tennis just happens to be a female with somewhat smoky, detached vocals, which makes them stand out among most contemporary bands. Even the instrumentation of this song is strikingly different, adding in a vintage ‘60s-ish organ sound and a lower than low sounding sax along with the more typical guitar/bass/drums sound. Are there any more good things about “Origins”? Yes, plenty! The lyrics are self-conscious and doubting, but written from an earnest point of view. Oh, and did I mention that lead singer Alaina Moore looks a little like Stevie Nicks?! Think we might just have a new babe in the music biz to talk about!!
“Save the Hammer For the Man” – The Nightwatchman (featuring Ben Harper): While perhaps not quite as unique in sound as the artist formerly known as Tom Morello’s “Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine” (from late summer of last year), “Save the Hammer For the Man” is still a powerful song. Or at least it tries to be. Musically, the sound of it falls somewhat flat (until the guitar solo, that is) in comparison to Tom Morello’s material both with and without Rage Against the Machine. For Ben Harper, it’s a “somewhere in the middle” song. Ben didn’t seem to get too much into exploring the deeper, darker side of blues and rock until about 3 years ago, but he’s been remarkable at doing so. In “Save the Hammer For the Man”, Ben Harper delivers his vocals quite powerfully and convincingly, but musically, it sounds like this could have been just another pre-Relentless 7 Ben Harper song. This is definitely not a bad song, though. Once the guitar solo comes in, “Save the Hammer For the Man” picks up, not just because of the guitar solo either. It carries through stronger afterwards, both musically and vocally. And lyrically, as always, Tom Morello drives home a challenging political statement that is still well worth listening to.
“See It For Yourself” by Sugar and The Hi-Lows: Another cute female indie vocalist?! Could it be?!? Yes, it could!! “Sugar” definitely seems like a good (nick)name for the lead vocalist of this band, not only because of how she looks, but also because of how she delivers the lines of this catchy, blues-y indie rock tune, with vocals that are as sweet and honey voiced as they are sexy! The lyrics of the song almost recall the “there’s no place like home” part of “The Wizard of Oz”, with their “it was right there in front of you all along” theme. Sugar and The Hi-Lows are a pretty new band, so I don’t know the name of the lead singer (or any members) yet, but what I DO know is that she can take my ruby red slippers into the Land of Oz anytime she wants to! Yes, that was a weird attempt at innuendo, wasn’t it?! :P
“Shiny Things” by Fanfarlo: Fan WHAT now?! Well, some of you might be familiar with the song “Harold T. Wilkins” (the one that goes “They sail the same STRAIT! They sail the same STRAIT!” towards the end of it), and Fanfarlo were the ones who did that one. “Shiny Things” comes from Fanfarlo’s second record so far, and its sound is a bit of a departure from the folk-rock sound of “Harold T. Wilkins”, as it goes for more of an icy new wave type sound instead. The sound of “Shiny Things”, combined with how detached the lead singer’s voice sounds, might as well be described as “Joy Division lite”, for while the song comes nowhere near close to the intensity of the late Ian Curtis’s gloomy post-punk band, one can still detect a Joy Division type influence in this song. The video for “Shiny Things”, with its surreal, somewhat disturbing images of people getting swallowed up by gold, also sounds like an idea that’s not too far off from the typical Joy Division song. Unbelievable that the same band who did the bouncy “Harold T. Wilkins” could come up with a more cynical, cold hearted song like “Shiny Things”, but perhaps that means I could expect something different from either of those two songs from Fanfarlo sometime in the future!
“Staircase” by Radiohead: And speaking of bands with a reputation for being icy and detached, Radiohead are probably one of the first bands that come to mind when describing such a musical mood! Truth be told, Radiohead are really much more diverse than that, but, as if by coincidence (from the last song I reviewed), “Staircase” could also be said to be somewhat of a Joy Division sound-alike (though it would probably garner comparisons just as easily to bands like Depeche Mode, New Order, and Kraftwerk). In typically clever Radiohead fashion, the lyrics to “Staircase” READ like a “staircase”, in that they wind up and down continuously. Though a return to folk-rock-y Radiohead (like they did on most of “In Rainbows”) would be nice, “Staircase” isn’t bad as far as the “weirder” songs in their catalog are concerned. Only one question remains. Why did they decide to release a new song in February of THIS year, when they already did so February of LAST year?! I guess we’ll never know, will we?!?
“Untitled (Love Song)” by Counting Crows: Untitled (Love Song) is an Interesting (Piece of Music), and it’s also a Cover (Of an Obscure Indie Song). Though Counting Crows released various songs on and off throughout the 2000’s, none of them came close to what they did in the ‘90s (especially not the mucky pop version they did of the classic Joni Mitchell song, “Big Yellow Taxi”, that should have been a forgotten version of the song, but which instead comes back to haunt me in grocery stores, fast food places, and everywhere else adult cotemporary stations are played). Someone must have talked to Adam Duritz and co and convinced them to crank up the electric guitars on their latest song (which, as mentioned before, isn’t actually theirs), because it sounds closer to the gritty indie-rock sound of Ryan Adams and My Morning Jacket (with a bit of Matthew Sweet influence thrown in for good measure) than it does the folk-y post-grunge of bands like The Wallflowers and The Dave Matthews Band (both of whom were frequently compared to Counting Crows). Not only do Counting Crows have their rock ‘n’ roll groove back on “Untitled (Love Song)”, but their organ player Charlie Gillingham delivers a forceful, dynamic Hammond solo, followed in a verse or two by some of the most Neil Young-ish guitar playing Dan Vickrey has done since the ‘90s!! Welcome back guys! A million other Counting Crows fans and I have really missed the way things used to be with you guys!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
7 MORE songs?!?!? WHAAA....?!?!
That's right!!! 7 MORE songs!! Perfect way to start the month of September! Here they are:
"Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine" by The Nightwatchman (a.k.a. Tom Morello, ex-Rage Against the Machine member): Would you have expected the guitarist of '90s hard rock group Rage Against the Machine to have suddenly reinvented himself as a Dylan-esque folk singer?! Probably not many of you would have, but around the mid 2000's he did so, and he did a mighty fine job at it too! The latest from Morello, "Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine" seems like where ends would meet for him, musically. While acoustic guitar and harmonica both play a central role in "Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine", the fast pace of the percussion makes it sound more like a rock song, and the chorus (just the song's title, really) is "sung-spoken" in an aggressive fashion more typical of a Rage song than a Dylan song. Hope to hear more of Morello channeling his inner Dylan sometime soon, he really does an excellent job at it!
"Bright Lights" by Gary Clark Jr.: Amazingly, there are three songs from blues musicians that are being reviewed this week, and this one is first in line! This song, Gary Clark Jr.'s ode to New York City (as he states in the opening line, "Woke up in New York City"), sounds more like it belongs in the 1970's than it does to the 21st century, with its flashy guitar solos and its propulsive boogie beat! Somehow, though, whoever produced this song made it sound polished enough that it sounds recent, in spite of the instrumental techniques used in this song. At 5 minutes and 13 seconds, the length of the song also seems more suited to classic rock than it does to modern/alt rock. Ultimately, though, it's songs like this one that make music all the more worth listening to in the 21st century, and it's also proof that rock 'n' roll is not "dead", despite what some people might think.
"Cruel" by St. Vincent: So how exactly does one classify a song like "Cruel"?! Electro-disco-classical-post-punk-hard-rock?!? Somehow, it kinda sounds like that. Aside from incorporating influences from multiple genres, "Cruel" also manages to evoke multiple emotions. The overall tone of the song is dark, yet the lead singer has very melodic (but sometimes desperate) vocals, and it's also a song that makes me want to dance AND play air guitar at the same time!! Yet I don't know if I'd feel entirely comfortable dancing to a song that's so ominous sounding, and also what is a rock 'n' roll guitar solo doing in a song that's supposed to be disco inflected...with post-punk creepiness?! There doesn't seem to be an easy way to define this song, but sometimes those are the best kinds of songs!!
"If I Had A Gun" by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds: Oasis might not be as big as they once were in the '90s, but WOW, the members are definitely still active!! Around February of this year, the band Beady Eye (featuring Liam Gallagher from Oasis on lead vocals) came out and released a fun, jaunty Beatlesque tune called "The Roller". Now it's the other Oasis brother, Noel Gallagher's turn in the spotlight. "If I Had A Gun" provides an introspective, poignant contrast to the bouncy, pop-y aspects of "The Roller". In some ways "If I Had A Gun" almost sounds like a "sequel" to Oasis' biggest hit, "Wonderwall", as both songs are slow, sweet sounding, prolific, and even in the same key (F sharp minor, though "Wonderwall" was capoed). It's unfair, though, to dismiss "If I Had A Gun" as a "ripoff" of "Wonderwall", since it is a song that takes on beautiful, reflective qualities of its own!
"Love the Way You Walk Away" by Blitzen Trapper: Though I only know three songs (including this one) by Blitzen Trapper, I love pretty much everything they have released so far! Much like Fleet Foxes, Mumford and Sons, and The Decemberists (all of whom Blitzen Trapper have probably been compared to by now), Blitzen Trapper are a bittersweet sounding neo-folk-rock band that have made a name for themselves among indie rock fans (including me)! That being said, I was looking forward to hearing what their latest song, "Love the Way You Walk Away" was going to sound like. Its sound seems kind of country-folk influenced, in a very laid-back, "traveling back home on the highway" kind of way. Though I was expecting it to have more of a Donovan-esque "psych-folk" sound the way other Blitzen Trapper songs (especially "Dragon's Song") typically do, "Love the Way You Walk Away" does have a very earnest, heartfelt sort of sound. This one (and probably the Noel Gallagher song as well) are my fave releases of the week so far!!
"River's Gonna Rise" by Warren Haynes: Like his song released earlier this year, "Man In Motion", the part-time Allman Brothers and Gov't Mule guitarist lays down some mean blues licks once again on his latest effort, "River's Gonna Rise". Unlike the frenzied, enthusiastic guitar playing "Man In Motion" boasted, "River's Gonna Rise" is a bit of a calmer song. This does not mean Warren doesn't show off his chops on his axe, though, he most certainly does. However, the feel of this song is a bit more earthy like B.B. King, and not so much a "guitar hero" Eric Clapton type sound. Somehow, the title alone seemed to indicate to me that this would be a calmer song, as this song uses the word "river" in the title, and that's what rivers usually are.
"T-Bone Shuffle" by Johnny Winter: It's quite amazing to me that three of the songs I've reviewed this week are blues songs. "T-Bone Shuffle", however, is by far the blues-iest of the three!! No complex emotions or "deep" lyrics in this song, and no weird chords or odd song structure either, just your basic 12 bar blues. As much as the gentle, poignant, bittersweet songs I review have become close to my heart, sometimes it's fun to just play the blues! It's great to listen to, and fun to dance to. No song I've reviewed so far has come as close to reviving the spirit of the blues as "T-Bone Shuffle" has, with its feel-good, toe-tappin', guitar blastin' sound!!
"Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine" by The Nightwatchman (a.k.a. Tom Morello, ex-Rage Against the Machine member): Would you have expected the guitarist of '90s hard rock group Rage Against the Machine to have suddenly reinvented himself as a Dylan-esque folk singer?! Probably not many of you would have, but around the mid 2000's he did so, and he did a mighty fine job at it too! The latest from Morello, "Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine" seems like where ends would meet for him, musically. While acoustic guitar and harmonica both play a central role in "Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine", the fast pace of the percussion makes it sound more like a rock song, and the chorus (just the song's title, really) is "sung-spoken" in an aggressive fashion more typical of a Rage song than a Dylan song. Hope to hear more of Morello channeling his inner Dylan sometime soon, he really does an excellent job at it!
"Bright Lights" by Gary Clark Jr.: Amazingly, there are three songs from blues musicians that are being reviewed this week, and this one is first in line! This song, Gary Clark Jr.'s ode to New York City (as he states in the opening line, "Woke up in New York City"), sounds more like it belongs in the 1970's than it does to the 21st century, with its flashy guitar solos and its propulsive boogie beat! Somehow, though, whoever produced this song made it sound polished enough that it sounds recent, in spite of the instrumental techniques used in this song. At 5 minutes and 13 seconds, the length of the song also seems more suited to classic rock than it does to modern/alt rock. Ultimately, though, it's songs like this one that make music all the more worth listening to in the 21st century, and it's also proof that rock 'n' roll is not "dead", despite what some people might think.
"Cruel" by St. Vincent: So how exactly does one classify a song like "Cruel"?! Electro-disco-classical-post-punk-hard-rock?!? Somehow, it kinda sounds like that. Aside from incorporating influences from multiple genres, "Cruel" also manages to evoke multiple emotions. The overall tone of the song is dark, yet the lead singer has very melodic (but sometimes desperate) vocals, and it's also a song that makes me want to dance AND play air guitar at the same time!! Yet I don't know if I'd feel entirely comfortable dancing to a song that's so ominous sounding, and also what is a rock 'n' roll guitar solo doing in a song that's supposed to be disco inflected...with post-punk creepiness?! There doesn't seem to be an easy way to define this song, but sometimes those are the best kinds of songs!!
"If I Had A Gun" by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds: Oasis might not be as big as they once were in the '90s, but WOW, the members are definitely still active!! Around February of this year, the band Beady Eye (featuring Liam Gallagher from Oasis on lead vocals) came out and released a fun, jaunty Beatlesque tune called "The Roller". Now it's the other Oasis brother, Noel Gallagher's turn in the spotlight. "If I Had A Gun" provides an introspective, poignant contrast to the bouncy, pop-y aspects of "The Roller". In some ways "If I Had A Gun" almost sounds like a "sequel" to Oasis' biggest hit, "Wonderwall", as both songs are slow, sweet sounding, prolific, and even in the same key (F sharp minor, though "Wonderwall" was capoed). It's unfair, though, to dismiss "If I Had A Gun" as a "ripoff" of "Wonderwall", since it is a song that takes on beautiful, reflective qualities of its own!
"Love the Way You Walk Away" by Blitzen Trapper: Though I only know three songs (including this one) by Blitzen Trapper, I love pretty much everything they have released so far! Much like Fleet Foxes, Mumford and Sons, and The Decemberists (all of whom Blitzen Trapper have probably been compared to by now), Blitzen Trapper are a bittersweet sounding neo-folk-rock band that have made a name for themselves among indie rock fans (including me)! That being said, I was looking forward to hearing what their latest song, "Love the Way You Walk Away" was going to sound like. Its sound seems kind of country-folk influenced, in a very laid-back, "traveling back home on the highway" kind of way. Though I was expecting it to have more of a Donovan-esque "psych-folk" sound the way other Blitzen Trapper songs (especially "Dragon's Song") typically do, "Love the Way You Walk Away" does have a very earnest, heartfelt sort of sound. This one (and probably the Noel Gallagher song as well) are my fave releases of the week so far!!
"River's Gonna Rise" by Warren Haynes: Like his song released earlier this year, "Man In Motion", the part-time Allman Brothers and Gov't Mule guitarist lays down some mean blues licks once again on his latest effort, "River's Gonna Rise". Unlike the frenzied, enthusiastic guitar playing "Man In Motion" boasted, "River's Gonna Rise" is a bit of a calmer song. This does not mean Warren doesn't show off his chops on his axe, though, he most certainly does. However, the feel of this song is a bit more earthy like B.B. King, and not so much a "guitar hero" Eric Clapton type sound. Somehow, the title alone seemed to indicate to me that this would be a calmer song, as this song uses the word "river" in the title, and that's what rivers usually are.
"T-Bone Shuffle" by Johnny Winter: It's quite amazing to me that three of the songs I've reviewed this week are blues songs. "T-Bone Shuffle", however, is by far the blues-iest of the three!! No complex emotions or "deep" lyrics in this song, and no weird chords or odd song structure either, just your basic 12 bar blues. As much as the gentle, poignant, bittersweet songs I review have become close to my heart, sometimes it's fun to just play the blues! It's great to listen to, and fun to dance to. No song I've reviewed so far has come as close to reviving the spirit of the blues as "T-Bone Shuffle" has, with its feel-good, toe-tappin', guitar blastin' sound!!
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