here they are:
"Dance of the Clairvoyants" by Pearl Jam: You may find yourself...listening to a song by Pearl Jam. And you may ask yourself, "Why doesn't this sound like Pearl Jam?" And you may tell yourself, "This is not my beautiful Pearl Jam!" This seems to be the reaction many have had to Pearl Jam's latest effort, the surprisingly quirky, "Dance of the Clairvoyants". After nearly 30 years of existence, perhaps Eddie and the boys thought it was time to expand their horizons a bit...and did they ever! The cosmic, almost psychedelic lyrics seem a bit out of place for Pearl Jam as well, and to top that off, it's the first Pearl Jam song I've ever heard with synthesizers! "Dance of the Clairvoyants" clearly dances to the beat of a different drummer!
"Everything Has Changed" by Best Coast: Do you know who loves rock and roll? Bethany Cosentino, that's who! I would not have expected Best Coast to adapt an early '80s hard rock sound a la Joan Jett, but that's exactly what she does here in Best Coast's latest song, "Everything Has Changed". I guess everything HAS changed, although the song is in the key of G major, like most Best Coast songs tend to be. In the song, Bethany recalls what a mess she used to be, and how glad she is that things have taken a turn for the better. I liked Best Coast better when they had a sweeter sound and a more lo-fi approach to their music, so hopefully musical direction is not what Bethany means by "change"!
"I Want More" by Kaleo: Kaleo were truly one of the most eclectic groups of the 2010's. They had taken on folk-rock ("All the Pretty Girls"), Hozier-ish indie-pop with some soul ("Way Down We Go", their biggest hit so far), and even Led Zeppelin-esque hard rock ("No Good"). "I Want More" marks Kaleo's return to folk-rock. It is a sweet, pleasant song. The whistling in the beginning and middle of the song only adds to the cutesy vibe the song has. "I Want More" describes exactly what I want from Kaleo. I want more songs like this one!
"Unreal City" by M. Ward: M. Ward has a lot of the spirit of the '60s in his music, typically either folk-rock or a light form of blues-rock. "Unreal City" touches on that aspect that everyone associates with the '60s that Ward hasn't touched upon yet: psychedelic rock, albeit with more synthesizers than guitars, in this case. This is probably the first M. Ward song I've heard in which he doesn't use guitar as the central instrument. I must say, it's a little disappointing to hear more and more musicians turning away from the guitar, since that's the instrument I like best, but on the plus side, this song does have an adventurous, meandering sound that M. Ward's other songs don't have, so it adds a bit more dimension to his catalog. Oh, and thankfully, a guitar solo does come in the middle of the song, but it's only on during that part.
Showing posts with label M. Ward. Show all posts
Showing posts with label M. Ward. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
New songs for the 4th of July 2018!!
It's a Wednesday AND the 4th?! Let the celebration begin!!
"Apollo" by St. Paul and The Broken Bones: There seems to be a trend this year for contemporary musicians who emulated '60s R & B previously to go one decade forward for their next release. Leon Bridges has already done it this year, and now it's St. Paul and The Broken Bones' turn. It's a bit disappointing to hear the Alabama sextet go from an Otis Redding styled sound to a more disco influenced one, but "Apollo" is not a bad song. For one thing, it still contains the horns that SPATBB's other songs are known for having. However, the resulting song still sounds like what it'd be like if Wilson Pickett tried covering "Rock With You" by Michael Jackson. Something here just doesn't add up. At least it has a groovy rhythm, though.
"Humility" by Gorillaz: The Gorillaz and The Monkees have a few things in common. Aside from the obvious fact that both groups are named after primates (and how they're also perpussly myspelld rokgrüps), they're also both bands who...well...aren't really bands! The Monkees were originally marketed as a "TV band", and Gorillaz are a cartoon band. Yes, a cartoon band, similar in concept to The Archies and The Chipmunks, but far more edgy and modern than either one. Among their best known songs is the aptly named "Feel Good Inc.", the feel-good techno-pop summer jam of 2005. "Humility" is another feel-good summer jam for the band (or faux-band, rather), although it has a slower, more chilled out sound than "Feel Good Inc." The lyrics of "Humility", centering largely around isolation, are also darker in tone than "Feel Good Inc." They both SOUND like feel-good songs, though!
"Miracle Man" by M. Ward: M. Ward's musical style has always felt a little out of step with current trends, but that's part of his charm. His latest song, "Miracle Man", sounds a bit like Roy Orbison's "(Oh) Pretty Woman", especially in the beginning. Another thing "Miracle Man" shares in common with Ward's other material is its short length, barely measuring up to a mere 3 minutes. The song itself isn't exactly a miracle, but the way it was released kinda was. It arrived quietly, without any real hype surrounding it. How perfect, then, that we're hearing this one for the first time on the 4th of July, so it can start off life with a bang!
"1950" by King Princess: Both the title of the song and the name of the performer here are somewhat enigmatic. I mean, what's a "king princess"?! Is it a king or is it a princess...and does that mean there's a Queen Prince as well?! The title of the song also seems somewhat arbitrary. 1950 wasn't really known for being a particularly memorable year, after all. Turns out, there's an explanation for both, and they're both discussed in the song! The moniker "King Princess" comes from how the performer is a lesbian, and therefore a "princess" by gender, yet a "king" in terms of what people expect her behavior to be like. As for the year that gives the song its title?! Well, it actually represents the decade of the 1950's, when LGBTQ people were far more oppressed than they are today. The song is a protest against people who are not open minded about those whose sexual orientations aren't "traditional". So has society now gone back to "playing 1950", as King Princess says in her song?! Yes and no, to be honest. However, the point of the song is to challenge societal norms more than it is about asking whether we have truly made progress in our points of view about sexuality.
"Apollo" by St. Paul and The Broken Bones: There seems to be a trend this year for contemporary musicians who emulated '60s R & B previously to go one decade forward for their next release. Leon Bridges has already done it this year, and now it's St. Paul and The Broken Bones' turn. It's a bit disappointing to hear the Alabama sextet go from an Otis Redding styled sound to a more disco influenced one, but "Apollo" is not a bad song. For one thing, it still contains the horns that SPATBB's other songs are known for having. However, the resulting song still sounds like what it'd be like if Wilson Pickett tried covering "Rock With You" by Michael Jackson. Something here just doesn't add up. At least it has a groovy rhythm, though.
"Humility" by Gorillaz: The Gorillaz and The Monkees have a few things in common. Aside from the obvious fact that both groups are named after primates (and how they're also perpussly myspelld rokgrüps), they're also both bands who...well...aren't really bands! The Monkees were originally marketed as a "TV band", and Gorillaz are a cartoon band. Yes, a cartoon band, similar in concept to The Archies and The Chipmunks, but far more edgy and modern than either one. Among their best known songs is the aptly named "Feel Good Inc.", the feel-good techno-pop summer jam of 2005. "Humility" is another feel-good summer jam for the band (or faux-band, rather), although it has a slower, more chilled out sound than "Feel Good Inc." The lyrics of "Humility", centering largely around isolation, are also darker in tone than "Feel Good Inc." They both SOUND like feel-good songs, though!
"Miracle Man" by M. Ward: M. Ward's musical style has always felt a little out of step with current trends, but that's part of his charm. His latest song, "Miracle Man", sounds a bit like Roy Orbison's "(Oh) Pretty Woman", especially in the beginning. Another thing "Miracle Man" shares in common with Ward's other material is its short length, barely measuring up to a mere 3 minutes. The song itself isn't exactly a miracle, but the way it was released kinda was. It arrived quietly, without any real hype surrounding it. How perfect, then, that we're hearing this one for the first time on the 4th of July, so it can start off life with a bang!
"1950" by King Princess: Both the title of the song and the name of the performer here are somewhat enigmatic. I mean, what's a "king princess"?! Is it a king or is it a princess...and does that mean there's a Queen Prince as well?! The title of the song also seems somewhat arbitrary. 1950 wasn't really known for being a particularly memorable year, after all. Turns out, there's an explanation for both, and they're both discussed in the song! The moniker "King Princess" comes from how the performer is a lesbian, and therefore a "princess" by gender, yet a "king" in terms of what people expect her behavior to be like. As for the year that gives the song its title?! Well, it actually represents the decade of the 1950's, when LGBTQ people were far more oppressed than they are today. The song is a protest against people who are not open minded about those whose sexual orientations aren't "traditional". So has society now gone back to "playing 1950", as King Princess says in her song?! Yes and no, to be honest. However, the point of the song is to challenge societal norms more than it is about asking whether we have truly made progress in our points of view about sexuality.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
New songs for January 27th, 2016
here they are:
"Confession" by M. Ward: Until he came out with the pseudo-blues-rock number, "Never Had Nobody Like You", back in 2009, I didn't really know M. Ward as anything other than the "Him" to Zooey Deschanel's "She" in "She & Him". Since then, I've heard a few other M. Ward solo songs. Most of them tend to be gentle indie-folk-rock tunes. "Confession" is a bit like that, but with the electric guitar sound that first put him on the map as a solo artist with "Never Had Nobody Like You". Like most of Ward's songs, "Confession" is short, at only 3 minutes and 14 seconds. There is one thing that makes "Confession" stand apart from the rest of his material, though, and that is the mariachi horn sound featured near the end of the song, which was perhaps inspired by fellow indie-folk-rockers, Calexico.
"Hey No Pressure" by Ray LaMontagne: The little folk-rocker that could! Until two years ago, Ray's songs were rather mellow folk tunes, which were occasionally spiced up with the use of a sax and a rhythm section, but not much more. "Supernova" really put the "rock" factor in his typically folk-y material, sounding reminiscent of groups like The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac, and "She's the One" heavily recalled the pounding blues-rock of The Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post". "Hey No Pressure" is both the hardest rocking AND longest (at around 6 and half minutes) song that Ray has put out so far! If not for Ray's trademark husky yet yearning vocals, this song could well be mistaken for a song by The Black Keys, or perhaps even Tame Impala, given its length and its oddly placed synth solo towards the end. "Hey No Pressure" brings about the most pressure you can imagine in a Ray LaMontagne song, but in a good way!
"Pink Balloon" by Ben Harper: Can Ben Harper survive without The Relentless 7? The answer to that, apparently, is yes. Although "Pink Balloon" starts with an acoustic guitar, it still rocks pretty hard for a Ben Harper song without The Relentless 7 backing him up. "Pink Balloon" is an interesting song. A bit like hearing a roots-y Delta Blues version of Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On", complete with an electric guitar solo in the middle of the song. The lyrics of "Pink Balloon" don't have very heavy subject matter, as it just seems to concern a girl who walks around with a pink balloon, not much more. "Pink Balloon" is probably one of Ben Harper's finest songs, with a sound that would more than likely please both his original roots-rock fanbase and his later hard(ish) rock fanbase.
"Where the Night Goes" by Josh Ritter: If "Getting Ready to Get Down" was too upbeat for most Josh Ritter fans, then "Where the Night Goes" should win them back. Although the song features an electric guitar solo (a rarity so far in Ritter's material), it still features the bittersweet mellow sound and mystical lyrics of the typical Josh Ritter song. One thing that makes "Where the Night Goes" distinct from other Josh Ritter songs is the sudden change of key from D sharp to F that occurs in the middle of the song, as Josh's songs don't usually feature key changes. "Let's see where the night takes us, let's see where the night goes", Josh Ritter sings for the chorus of the song. The night seems to be taking us to an imaginary place where city cafes meet the woods of nature!
"Confession" by M. Ward: Until he came out with the pseudo-blues-rock number, "Never Had Nobody Like You", back in 2009, I didn't really know M. Ward as anything other than the "Him" to Zooey Deschanel's "She" in "She & Him". Since then, I've heard a few other M. Ward solo songs. Most of them tend to be gentle indie-folk-rock tunes. "Confession" is a bit like that, but with the electric guitar sound that first put him on the map as a solo artist with "Never Had Nobody Like You". Like most of Ward's songs, "Confession" is short, at only 3 minutes and 14 seconds. There is one thing that makes "Confession" stand apart from the rest of his material, though, and that is the mariachi horn sound featured near the end of the song, which was perhaps inspired by fellow indie-folk-rockers, Calexico.
"Hey No Pressure" by Ray LaMontagne: The little folk-rocker that could! Until two years ago, Ray's songs were rather mellow folk tunes, which were occasionally spiced up with the use of a sax and a rhythm section, but not much more. "Supernova" really put the "rock" factor in his typically folk-y material, sounding reminiscent of groups like The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac, and "She's the One" heavily recalled the pounding blues-rock of The Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post". "Hey No Pressure" is both the hardest rocking AND longest (at around 6 and half minutes) song that Ray has put out so far! If not for Ray's trademark husky yet yearning vocals, this song could well be mistaken for a song by The Black Keys, or perhaps even Tame Impala, given its length and its oddly placed synth solo towards the end. "Hey No Pressure" brings about the most pressure you can imagine in a Ray LaMontagne song, but in a good way!
"Pink Balloon" by Ben Harper: Can Ben Harper survive without The Relentless 7? The answer to that, apparently, is yes. Although "Pink Balloon" starts with an acoustic guitar, it still rocks pretty hard for a Ben Harper song without The Relentless 7 backing him up. "Pink Balloon" is an interesting song. A bit like hearing a roots-y Delta Blues version of Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On", complete with an electric guitar solo in the middle of the song. The lyrics of "Pink Balloon" don't have very heavy subject matter, as it just seems to concern a girl who walks around with a pink balloon, not much more. "Pink Balloon" is probably one of Ben Harper's finest songs, with a sound that would more than likely please both his original roots-rock fanbase and his later hard(ish) rock fanbase.
"Where the Night Goes" by Josh Ritter: If "Getting Ready to Get Down" was too upbeat for most Josh Ritter fans, then "Where the Night Goes" should win them back. Although the song features an electric guitar solo (a rarity so far in Ritter's material), it still features the bittersweet mellow sound and mystical lyrics of the typical Josh Ritter song. One thing that makes "Where the Night Goes" distinct from other Josh Ritter songs is the sudden change of key from D sharp to F that occurs in the middle of the song, as Josh's songs don't usually feature key changes. "Let's see where the night takes us, let's see where the night goes", Josh Ritter sings for the chorus of the song. The night seems to be taking us to an imaginary place where city cafes meet the woods of nature!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Leap Year Blog Post?!?
That's right!!! So, to make this more "special", here's a "leap" ahead as to four songs that I will be likely to review within the next month or so:
1. "Can't Find" by Eddie Vedder
2. "Don't Leave Me INe Me Quitte Pas)" by Regina Spektor
3. "Out of the Game" by Rufus Wainwright
4. "This Isn't Everything You Are" by Snow Patrol
And now, on with the REAL show...
“On the Run” by Kaiser Chiefs: I’ll admit, I didn’t think much of Kaiser Chiefs when they debuted in the mid 2000’s with the Knack-ish power pop song “I Predict A Riot”, but they grew on me. “Ruby” is one of the sunniest slices of alt-pop I’ve ever heard, and “Never Miss A Beat” is quite a catchy tune as well. “On the Run” has a bit of a darker tone than the Chiefs’ previous songs, but, like most of their songs, it has memorable moments. The fragmented synthesizer sound of “On the Run” pretty much defines the song, and it has a somewhat danceable rhythm (though not as much as their previous three hits). Paul McCartney was one of the first famous people I knew of to praise the music of The Kaiser Chiefs, and it’s no wonder, really, as both McCartney and Kaiser Chiefs are British rock musicians known for their melodic but irresistibly rhythmic music. “On the Run” doesn’t seem like it has the same sort of sound that McCartney would favor, but what can I say, sometimes bands need room to grow, and Kaiser Chiefs seem like the type of band who would benefit from doing so.
“Primitive Girl” by M. Ward: It’s only two minutes and twenty seconds, but Zooey Deschanel’s backing man from She & Him churns out a charming piano-rocker with “Primitive Girl”. Ward’s material is usually rawer (though still kinda folk-y) and more guitar focused than how he comes off as on “Primitive Girl”, so he almost comes off sounding (musically) more like Zooey than himself! Aptly enough, “Primitive Girl” SOUNDS primitive, with its repetitive note sequences, starkly arranged instrumentation, and small amount of words. Ward’s fans were probably expecting more from him than this, but songs like “Primitive Girl” are among the best kind of indie songs – the cute kind!
“Temporary” by White Rabbits: Despite the name of this band, White Rabbits have little (if anything) to do with Jefferson Airplane. Their sound is a lot more contemporary than that, and comparable to bands like Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, TV on the Radio, and Modest Mouse, all of whom are far more influenced by new wave and post-punk than psychedelic. Unlike most of the songs I review, it’s hard to tell where the guitar is in this song (until the solo), yet it’s quite easy to tell where the bass is throughout the song, as the bass (and synthesizer) serve as the dominant instruments in “Temporary”. In contrast to the thumping bass-and-synth sound of the song, the vocals in “Temporary” are more wry and detached, the combination of which comes off sounding a bit like The Cars crossed with Radiohead, with a techno influence added in as well. In addition, the cover of White Rabbits’ latest album alone gives hints as to how off-the-wall their sensibilities can be. On it, their name is written backwards, the album title is written like an all black Jackson Pollock work of art, and even the title of the album itself (Milk Famous), sounds bizarre and enigmatic.
“That Dangerous Age” by Paul Weller: Paul Weller was once the frontman of the heavily Kinks-influenced British punk group, The Jam (fans of the movie “Stranger Than Fiction” would probably be familiar with their sarcastic “ballad”, “That’s Entertainment”). Since splitting apart from The Jam, Paul has released a couple of solo albums, but so far, no songs from any of those albums have gotten near as much attention as his latest song, “That Dangerous Age”. This time around, though, Ray Davies is not the British rocker Paul Weller is trying to imitate, but instead, the sleek disco-meets-punk type sound David Bowie had in the middle of his career! I have yet to figure out what “dangerous age” Weller is referring to, but at this point, it doesn’t matter, because the song is already catchy enough!! What an awesome comeback!
“When the Ship Comes In” by The Chieftains and The Decemberists: This song is pretty much folk-rock all over the place, but in varying styles! It is a cover of a song by folk-rocker master Bob Dylan, with instrumentation by Irish folk group The Chieftains, and vocals from contemporary folk-rockers The Decemberists! Of course, this being a cover of a Dylan song, the lyrics have a very folk-y feel to them, too, but more in a sea shanty kind of way, with all of its maritime imagery (seagulls, shorelines, sand, ships, etc.) It’s not a very somber song, either, in fact it has a rather jolly, upbeat sound to it, in a way that might create mental imagery of what it would be like if “Riverdance” met “Spongebob Squarepants”. The Decemberists spinning tales from the briny deep?! Hasn’t happened before, but so far, I really like it!
1. "Can't Find" by Eddie Vedder
2. "Don't Leave Me INe Me Quitte Pas)" by Regina Spektor
3. "Out of the Game" by Rufus Wainwright
4. "This Isn't Everything You Are" by Snow Patrol
And now, on with the REAL show...
“On the Run” by Kaiser Chiefs: I’ll admit, I didn’t think much of Kaiser Chiefs when they debuted in the mid 2000’s with the Knack-ish power pop song “I Predict A Riot”, but they grew on me. “Ruby” is one of the sunniest slices of alt-pop I’ve ever heard, and “Never Miss A Beat” is quite a catchy tune as well. “On the Run” has a bit of a darker tone than the Chiefs’ previous songs, but, like most of their songs, it has memorable moments. The fragmented synthesizer sound of “On the Run” pretty much defines the song, and it has a somewhat danceable rhythm (though not as much as their previous three hits). Paul McCartney was one of the first famous people I knew of to praise the music of The Kaiser Chiefs, and it’s no wonder, really, as both McCartney and Kaiser Chiefs are British rock musicians known for their melodic but irresistibly rhythmic music. “On the Run” doesn’t seem like it has the same sort of sound that McCartney would favor, but what can I say, sometimes bands need room to grow, and Kaiser Chiefs seem like the type of band who would benefit from doing so.
“Primitive Girl” by M. Ward: It’s only two minutes and twenty seconds, but Zooey Deschanel’s backing man from She & Him churns out a charming piano-rocker with “Primitive Girl”. Ward’s material is usually rawer (though still kinda folk-y) and more guitar focused than how he comes off as on “Primitive Girl”, so he almost comes off sounding (musically) more like Zooey than himself! Aptly enough, “Primitive Girl” SOUNDS primitive, with its repetitive note sequences, starkly arranged instrumentation, and small amount of words. Ward’s fans were probably expecting more from him than this, but songs like “Primitive Girl” are among the best kind of indie songs – the cute kind!
“Temporary” by White Rabbits: Despite the name of this band, White Rabbits have little (if anything) to do with Jefferson Airplane. Their sound is a lot more contemporary than that, and comparable to bands like Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, TV on the Radio, and Modest Mouse, all of whom are far more influenced by new wave and post-punk than psychedelic. Unlike most of the songs I review, it’s hard to tell where the guitar is in this song (until the solo), yet it’s quite easy to tell where the bass is throughout the song, as the bass (and synthesizer) serve as the dominant instruments in “Temporary”. In contrast to the thumping bass-and-synth sound of the song, the vocals in “Temporary” are more wry and detached, the combination of which comes off sounding a bit like The Cars crossed with Radiohead, with a techno influence added in as well. In addition, the cover of White Rabbits’ latest album alone gives hints as to how off-the-wall their sensibilities can be. On it, their name is written backwards, the album title is written like an all black Jackson Pollock work of art, and even the title of the album itself (Milk Famous), sounds bizarre and enigmatic.
“That Dangerous Age” by Paul Weller: Paul Weller was once the frontman of the heavily Kinks-influenced British punk group, The Jam (fans of the movie “Stranger Than Fiction” would probably be familiar with their sarcastic “ballad”, “That’s Entertainment”). Since splitting apart from The Jam, Paul has released a couple of solo albums, but so far, no songs from any of those albums have gotten near as much attention as his latest song, “That Dangerous Age”. This time around, though, Ray Davies is not the British rocker Paul Weller is trying to imitate, but instead, the sleek disco-meets-punk type sound David Bowie had in the middle of his career! I have yet to figure out what “dangerous age” Weller is referring to, but at this point, it doesn’t matter, because the song is already catchy enough!! What an awesome comeback!
“When the Ship Comes In” by The Chieftains and The Decemberists: This song is pretty much folk-rock all over the place, but in varying styles! It is a cover of a song by folk-rocker master Bob Dylan, with instrumentation by Irish folk group The Chieftains, and vocals from contemporary folk-rockers The Decemberists! Of course, this being a cover of a Dylan song, the lyrics have a very folk-y feel to them, too, but more in a sea shanty kind of way, with all of its maritime imagery (seagulls, shorelines, sand, ships, etc.) It’s not a very somber song, either, in fact it has a rather jolly, upbeat sound to it, in a way that might create mental imagery of what it would be like if “Riverdance” met “Spongebob Squarepants”. The Decemberists spinning tales from the briny deep?! Hasn’t happened before, but so far, I really like it!
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