Indie
New Pete Droge: The Droge & Summers Blend
Aug 4th
Pete Droge just added Volume One, a new EP by The Droge & Summers Blend, to his Puzzle Tree Online Store today. The EP is made up of 5 tracks, and you – the picky music consumer – have the option of paying what you want, a la Radiohead’s In Rainbows. I just picked up the digital download for the default price of $2.99, and they are well worth it. Head over to Pete’s store to listen to the tracks and download if you fancy. The EP is officially released later this month.
The Summers in The Droge & Summers Blend refers to Elaine Summers, a Seattle area musician and artist who shares the vocals with Pete. They recorded the songs on nearby Vashon Island.
I’ve been a fan of Pete’s since his debut, the Brendan O’Brien-produced Necktie Second, back in 1994. There’s just something about his vibe – relaxed, genuine, gentle – that has always sat quite well with me.
Here’s one of the tracks – a happy-go-lucky, summery kind of tune…
Listen: The Droge & Summers Blend – Tie the Knot (mp3)
Name Your Price at Pete’s Puzzle Tree Store.
David Gray, “Fugitive”
Jul 30th
David Gray has managed to exist just outside of my listening radar, crossing over here and there. What has always struck me is the depth of soul that he is able to breathe into every tune I’ve had the pleasure of hearing. That soul is abundant in the first single off his upcoming release Draw the Line due out September 22nd. Titled “Fugitive”, Gray says the image of Saddam Hussein being pulled out his spider hole inspired in part the lyrics for the song. The result is a striking and moving bit of singer-songwriter heaven which I’m sure will get many spins in the coming month and has me looking forward to the coming release.
For a peek behind the curtain Gray has shared this bit of film during the recording process:
Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace
Something like that, right? Is that what you want?
Jul 19th
“Daddy, what’s stream of consciousness?”
My nine year old daughter was in the back seat of our minivan as we were heading home from summer day camp and laid yet another way beyond her age question on me. For a moment, my thoughts went back to when she was four years old and asked me if George Bush was a Christian. And if he was, why would he send people to kill other people if it was murder and breaking one of the Ten Commandments? I think Jean Piaget, developmental psychologist of the early and middle 20th Century, was rolling in his grave to hear a four year old express a question dripping with formal operational thought.
I actually could’ve used Piaget in answering not only the question from five years ago, but the current one that had piqued her curiosity.
“Why do want to know, hon?” I asked her.
“Well, we were talking about rap music today at camp and one of the counselors said that rap was cool because it was like stream of consciousness. So I want to know what that is.”
So, I spent the next few minutes explaining to her what it meant…how random thoughts can be strung together in a seemingly related way to express a thought or mood. Or both.
“Let’s listen to a song like that.”
I knew she’d make this request and I had the perfect one in mind…the Song of the Summer of 2009.
American Sam Spiegel (aka Squeak Spiegel) and Brazilian Ze Gonzales (aka Zegon) came together in 2007 to create a massively cool indie hip hop band called N.A.S.A. No, it’s not your father’s space agency but actually North America-South America…a sisterhood and brotherhood of unity that, quite frankly, our country could really use right now. All of their music reflects this mood quite wonderfully.
On February 17, 2009, the duo released The Spirit of Apollo. There are several great tracks on this record as well as a collection of guest stars like David Byrne, John Frusciante, Tom Waits, Santogold, George Clinton, and a wide variety of rappers and hip hop artists.
The track that really grabbed me, and officially became OCD (Obssesive Compulsive Disorder) song #1 of 2009 (review of OCD #2 to appear here soon) – and what I played for my daughter to illustrate the beauty of stream of consciousness – was “Strange Enough”, featuring the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard (Wu Tang Clan), Fatlip, and the seriously stunning on several levels Karen O (lead singer of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs). What an absolute fucking corker of a song!
I think I have played this track every day at least once since it came out in February and, for whatever reason, it has become synonymous with this summer. Virtually everyone I have played it for has downloaded it. It’s rhythm is tight. The mood is intense and the lyrics are just plain cool. “Freak show pantie lover…but I’m getting too old for this like Danny Glover” or “Wild boy cowboy entertainer…insane…Purple Rainer”(special shout out to our Prince loving host of this site) are just two examples of how much fun this song is.
And Karen O’s bit is mega fucking cool. Towards the end of her rap, which is essentially the chorus of the song, she breaks down and giggles, asking Squeak and Zegon, who were presumably in the control room while she did her part…
“Something like that, right? Is that what you want?”
To which, the reply from Fatlip is:
“Perfect.”
No shit. Track of the Summer. Period. Heck, it might even be the Song of the Year but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We still have five months left of 2009. And there is this track (serendipity!) on the new Yeah Yeah Yeahs album…
Hear: Strange Enough (mp3)
Buy: Spirit of Apollo
Visit: N.A.S.A. Official Site | MySpace
Discovering Discovery
Jul 8th
As side-projects go, the pairing of Rostam Batmanglij (keyboardist for Vampire Weekend) and Wes Miles (vocalist for Ra Ra Riot) makes perfect sense. The results however, are as far as you can imagine from the twee indie pop of the pair’s respective bands. Trading in guitars, violins and afro-beat for synths and 808 drum machines, Discovery is an unabashed love letter to the days of electro-pop past.
The record opens with the one / two punch of the jubilant summertime “Orange Shirt” followed by the equally brilliant (and insanely catchy) “Osaka Loop Line”. “Can You Discover?” is a chopped and screwed re-imagining of Ra Ra Riot’s “Can You Tell”. Angel Deradoorian of Dirty Projectors lends her vocal shine to the hook of “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend”. The dynamic “So Insane” is easily my favorite track of the bunch and is shaping up to be a contender for my summertime jam. The record covers the hipster spectrum from reggae-tinged (“Swing Tree”) to R&B through twee-tinted glasses (“Carby” (featuring Batmanglij’s bandmate Ezra Koenig)) to a timely (albeit, ironic) cover of The Jackson 5 hit “I Want You Back”. The record wraps just shy of 30 minutes and almost begs an immediate second (and third) listen straight away.
It’s not ground-breaking but Discovery’s LP could very well be the indie-pop record of the summer.
You can stream the entirety of LP at Discovery’s Official Site.
Discovery – “Osaka Loop Line” (mp3)
Buy LP: Amazon (available for only $3.99!)
Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace
Wilco (the Album)
Jun 30th
Wilco
Wilco
Wilco will love you baby
Wilco (The Album) hits real & virtual shelves today.
Pick it up on Amazon
Brent Randall and his Pinecones
May 29th
I dipped into the inbox tonight and discovered this little gem from Halifax, Nova Scotia’s own Brent Randall and his Pinecones. Hell yeah, Brent and Band. It’s a catchy, dreamy little ditty and I thought I’d pass along…oh, and there’s an odd video to go along with it.
Hear: Strangelove (Don’t Be Lazy) [mp3]
Check out the album, We Were Strangers In Paddington Green, on
Links: Official Site | MySpace
Ick’s Pick (Week XXI): Grizzly Bear, “Veckatimest”
May 28th
Hype, the likes of which that have been heaped on Brooklyn’s Grizzly Bear, can be an incredibly tricky minefield to navigate. On one hand you’ve got the ear of the tastemaker, the hipster elite and the blogosphere all clamoring to sing your praises before you’ve even released your first record. On the other, there are the uncontrollable expectations and the inevitable backlash when the wind blows in the next best thing. Needless to say, the expectation level going into the band’s second record Veckatimest is, in a word, epic. The question is, does it live up to the hype?
The answer is; Kind of. It’s a solid, meticulously produced record. The songs are engaging and it gets better upon subsequent listens. Veckatimest is clearly meant to be listened to as a whole and has a well definied beginning, middle and end.
The record opens with a breezy acoustic guitar shuffle accompanied by a Rhodes piano, building orchestration and the unsteady vocal warble of “Southern Point”. The ambition of the track and it’s use of dynamics hits the mark and sets the tone for the rest of the weekend. “Two Weeks” brings the choral vocal harmonies to the forefront of the Beach Boys inspired pop track. It bears repeating here that the production of this album is stunning and you’ll find that each voice is given it’s due space and the choral effect is spacious.
“Cheerleader” (mp3) evokes a slinky film-noir feel with reverb drenched guitars and provides a dark turn to the mid point of the album. The steady mid-tempo waltz of “Ready, Able” soars and is one of the true standout tracks. “I Live With You” starts quite simply and is beautifully orchestrated with the greatest of intentions and falls apart to delusions of grandeur that come off more contrite than convincing. Veckatimest closes with the stark and stunningly beautiful “Foreground”, providing a perfect coda to the record.
Whether you buy into the hype or not, this record at very least deserves a listen without any expectations.
Grizzly Bear – “Two Weeks” (Video)
Buy Veckatimest: Amazon | Amazon MP3 | iTunes
Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace
Kingsbury, “Atlantic City” and “Southern Accent”
Mar 28th
Kingsbury has been at the top of my listening pile for what seems like weeks but is more likely months. Their latest release Lie to Me is a beautifully nuanced post-rock work (you can download the entire EP at the bands official site). The band recently released a pair of covers Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City” and Tom Petty’s “Southern Accent” featuring Matt Butcher on vocals. Each track is a quiet reflection on the original, capturing the essence of the lyric and definitely worth the listen.
Kingsbury – “Atlantic City” (mp3)
Kingsbury – “Southern Accent (feat. Matt Butcher)” (mp3)
Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace
Video Break: Ra Ra Riot, “Can You Tell”
Mar 26th
Somehow I missed Ra Ra Riot’s sticky sweet video for “Can You Tell” but I’m fixing that now. Seriously how can you not love it for all it’s twee goodness?
Buy The Rhumb Line
Ick’s Pick (Week X): Cursive – ‘Mama, I’m Swollen’
Mar 11th
This week I thought I’d adventure off to unfamiliar territory again. I just couldn’t get myself all geeked up to listen to the new Kelly Clarkson or Chris Cornell / Timbaland over and over. So I decided on Omaha’s Cursive, mostly because of their label, Saddle Creek, which was founded by Conor Oberst.
I can affirm, after a few listens, that:
- Cursive do indeed rock. And…
- Their drummer’s name is Cornbread Compton. That’s reason enough to buy this album as far as I’m concerned.
The album kicks off with “In the Now”, featuring a feedback/effects laden intro, and launching into the repeated chorus “Don’t wanna live in the now / don’t wanna know what I know”; followed up later with “So history repeats / ‘cause present won’t repent”. It’s short, simple and ferocious, like a lot of moments on this record. I find it pretty cathartic myself.
“From the Hips”, which the band kindly offers up gratis on their web site, starts off slow, before singer/guitarist Tim Kasher’s squealing “right?!” brings in the up tempo, double beat madness.
“I Couldn’t Love You” has Kasher channeling his inner Robert Smith – which makes sense – Cursive was picked by the Cure to open for them on their 2004 tour.
You won’t believe how soft and pleasant they can make a song called “We’re Going To Hell”. But there’s also an underlying doom and creepiness. The song has sort of a Pixies-like vibe going on too.
And the boys get downright evil on “Mama, I’m Satan”:
I’m writing out a confession
My fathers and brothers
Raped your sisters and mothers
We are the sons of butchers
All in all we’re pawns
The darkness of mankind stirs in us all
Songs like “Mama, I’m Satan”, “Let Me Up”, and “Mama, I’m Swollen” – and really the feel of the record – take the listener into the darkness – some ugly fugly places. I feel like taking a shower and finding a church, and I’m not even that religious. Holy smokes…
For those looking for some quality power-indie-post-punk, and aren’t afraid to step into the shadows for a while, this album fits the bill.
Links: Official Site | MySpace (be sure to listen to “Dorothy at Forty” – one of the rockin-est grooves I’ve ever heard) | Last.fm
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