Today's track is an absolutely stunning live cover of a Bob Dylan song by Richard & Linda Thompson from 1982. It's from the bootleg Hard Luck Stories; the whole show is really good and showcases RT's absolutely mind-blowing guitar playing. He really is on a whole different level from almost anyone else I've ever heard harmonically, on electric or acoustic. If you don't know his stuff then watch this and then go and listen to all of the albums he did with Linda.
This song is the best thing on the bootleg, and it beats the Dylan and Nico versions easily. Just stunning, especially Linda's voice and the harmonies on the chorus. Sorry about the slightly bad sound quality.
Richard & Linda Thompson - I'll Keep It With Mine
Showing posts with label mp3 of the day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mp3 of the day. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Monday, 4 January 2010
Mp3 of the day #7 - Snowstorm by Galaxie 500
Here's today's mp3, from the second Galaxie 500 record, On Fire. All day today I've been in a mood for this band. I think it's the combination of the greyness outside and the coldness inside (our hot water and heating aren't working) but they seem to work really well in winter. Their stripped-back production lends itself to this kind of day I think.
Anyway this particular one is a really nice song in a suitably wintry mood. Give it a listen!
Galaxie 500 - Snowstorm
Anyway this particular one is a really nice song in a suitably wintry mood. Give it a listen!
Galaxie 500 - Snowstorm
Saturday, 2 January 2010
Album Feature: Lift to Experience - The Texas Jerusalem Crossroads (2001)
Christian Rock. Two words which might as well be deliberately calculated to induce fear in even the most broad-minded of music fans. BUT WAIT. This record is definitely "rock" in approach, but it deals with the apocalyptic revelations of Josh T. Pearson; basically, that Texas is the Promised Land, and that in the forthcoming apocalypse only Texas is safe.
Right. So far, so strange. But as a concept for an album, it turns out to be a winner: the apocalypse has been used forever in noise/metal/shoegaze as a lyrical and musical idea, and taking it further into the realms of the sermon gives the guitar noise some context. Also it's a suprisingly broad theme, allowing the band to explore quieter moments spread among the eye-of-the-storm freakouts across the two CDs. The first disc introduces the concept, and the second brings the proverbial noise, the final climax of "Into the Storm" representing Judgement Day and the final retreat to the Lone Star State. Yeah, this isn't your standard Christian Rock.
Musically, this record is sort of what you'd expect given the space/drone-rock scene of Denton (the band's home town). The guitars drone and feed back, although it's not a noisy record, and there are moments of instrumental chaos among the really fairly conventional song structures. One interesting feature is that the whole album has very little overdubbing on it, and as there's only one guitar the sound is less filled-out that a lot of similar stuff. It's an interesting change from the walls of sound you'd find elsewhere and means the guitars depend more on delay and drones than simple heaviness. But only a few songs on the record go for such all-out heaviness. The band incorporates sections of what can only be described as narration with minimal guitar skeletons ("Down Came the Angels"), hymn tunes ("To Guard and to Guide You") and even a capella gospel sections ("The Ground So Soft").
Each disc is really a continuous piece, the songs segueing into each other, but it's possible to pick out highlights. "Falling From Cloud 9" updates dedicatory hymns to the band's modern aesthetic: "I've come this far and I said I'd go all the way but these fevered winds sway stronger each day. / Yeah I'm fool's gold, and my heart's not right but I'd still sell what's left in my soul just to pay the tithe", backed by air-rushing guitar parts and heavy percussion.
It's not all humourless sermon though; there are some great moments of self-mythologising humour in the lyrics, as in "These are the Days":
"These are the days that must happen to you
the stars are aligned for all God's chosen few.
So all you haircut bands, doing headstands,
thinking you'll turn the world upside down.
Put your guitars up over your shoulders. A new sort of experience is taking over
'cos we're simply the best band in the whole damn land.
and 'Texas Is The Reason'."
There are criticisms to be made: the consistency of instrumentation can mean there's little variety in the heavier songs, and the second disc is undoubtedly weaker. The noisier sections can feel unfocussed. But overall, this is a fantastic record, with heartfelt vocals and fantastic songwriting and arrangement. Even if it does have genuinely the worst cover art I've ever seen.
Mp3 of the day: Lift to Experience - The Ground So Soft
Right. So far, so strange. But as a concept for an album, it turns out to be a winner: the apocalypse has been used forever in noise/metal/shoegaze as a lyrical and musical idea, and taking it further into the realms of the sermon gives the guitar noise some context. Also it's a suprisingly broad theme, allowing the band to explore quieter moments spread among the eye-of-the-storm freakouts across the two CDs. The first disc introduces the concept, and the second brings the proverbial noise, the final climax of "Into the Storm" representing Judgement Day and the final retreat to the Lone Star State. Yeah, this isn't your standard Christian Rock.
Musically, this record is sort of what you'd expect given the space/drone-rock scene of Denton (the band's home town). The guitars drone and feed back, although it's not a noisy record, and there are moments of instrumental chaos among the really fairly conventional song structures. One interesting feature is that the whole album has very little overdubbing on it, and as there's only one guitar the sound is less filled-out that a lot of similar stuff. It's an interesting change from the walls of sound you'd find elsewhere and means the guitars depend more on delay and drones than simple heaviness. But only a few songs on the record go for such all-out heaviness. The band incorporates sections of what can only be described as narration with minimal guitar skeletons ("Down Came the Angels"), hymn tunes ("To Guard and to Guide You") and even a capella gospel sections ("The Ground So Soft").
Each disc is really a continuous piece, the songs segueing into each other, but it's possible to pick out highlights. "Falling From Cloud 9" updates dedicatory hymns to the band's modern aesthetic: "I've come this far and I said I'd go all the way but these fevered winds sway stronger each day. / Yeah I'm fool's gold, and my heart's not right but I'd still sell what's left in my soul just to pay the tithe", backed by air-rushing guitar parts and heavy percussion.
It's not all humourless sermon though; there are some great moments of self-mythologising humour in the lyrics, as in "These are the Days":
"These are the days that must happen to you
the stars are aligned for all God's chosen few.
So all you haircut bands, doing headstands,
thinking you'll turn the world upside down.
Put your guitars up over your shoulders. A new sort of experience is taking over
'cos we're simply the best band in the whole damn land.
and 'Texas Is The Reason'."
There are criticisms to be made: the consistency of instrumentation can mean there's little variety in the heavier songs, and the second disc is undoubtedly weaker. The noisier sections can feel unfocussed. But overall, this is a fantastic record, with heartfelt vocals and fantastic songwriting and arrangement. Even if it does have genuinely the worst cover art I've ever seen.
Mp3 of the day: Lift to Experience - The Ground So Soft
Friday, 1 January 2010
Mp3 of the day #5 - Will You Please Spend New Year's Eve With Me by Allo, Darlin'
Happy New Year! I really should have posted this yesterday, when it would have been appropriate and timely, but I forgot. Sorry.
Anyway this is the B-side of the new Allo, Darlin' single, The Polaroid Song. It's on Fortuna Pop!, go and buy it. This song is also on their Christmas EP, which I've been playing quite a lot recently for obvious reasons.
Anyway, this is among the softest of the new school of UK indiepop, a nice outing for Elizabeth Darling's lovely voice. There's something about her songwriting too which I'm not sure how to describe, it's just utterly free of pretension and double meanings and it's just completely pure. You can call it twee if you want, although I wouldn't.
Allo, Darlin' - Will You Please Spend New Year's Eve With Me?
Anyway this is the B-side of the new Allo, Darlin' single, The Polaroid Song. It's on Fortuna Pop!, go and buy it. This song is also on their Christmas EP, which I've been playing quite a lot recently for obvious reasons.
Anyway, this is among the softest of the new school of UK indiepop, a nice outing for Elizabeth Darling's lovely voice. There's something about her songwriting too which I'm not sure how to describe, it's just utterly free of pretension and double meanings and it's just completely pure. You can call it twee if you want, although I wouldn't.
Allo, Darlin' - Will You Please Spend New Year's Eve With Me?
Wednesday, 30 December 2009
Mp3 of the day #4 - Egg by Pele
Something that's really struck me this year (as I have mentioned on the show) is the use a few current bands are making of that late nineties, trebly, sounds-like-it's-in-a-funny-time-signature-but-probably-isn't guitar sound. So today's mp3 is by a band who used that kind of sound as a focus for some really nice instrumental albums a few years ago, Pele. This song is from Elephant, their third record, and it's a good summation of their kind of jazz-inflected instrumentals. Some great guitar playing and drumming too here.
Pele - Egg
Pele - Egg
Monday, 28 December 2009
Mp3 of the day #3 - So Damn Pure by Cass McCombs
Today's track is So Damn Pure from Cass McCombs' debut EP. It's fairly typical of that record, sleepy strumming plus a vocal that evokes Dean Wareham at his more narcotic. Not a particularly original sound, granted, but it's a very pretty record when you're in the right frame of mind.
Since the release of the EP (it's called Not The Way) he's changed quite a lot: I haven't heard that much of the newer stuff, but this has a certain charm of its own.
Cass McCombs - So Damn Pure
Since the release of the EP (it's called Not The Way) he's changed quite a lot: I haven't heard that much of the newer stuff, but this has a certain charm of its own.
Cass McCombs - So Damn Pure
Sunday, 27 December 2009
Mp3 of the day #2 - A Leaf by Okkervil River
Here's today's mp3. It's from Okkervil River's split EP with Julie Doiron (which I finally managed to find on CD the other day, one of the reasons I'm posting it). It's a classic OR take on the murder ballad with one of their typical twists, bits of it reminiscent of The President's Dead and bits of it more like their earlier stuff.
Actually the whole Okkervil River side of the EP is pretty fixated with death; there's a good cover of the the traditional song Omie Wise and the slightly more upbeat He Passes Number Thirty-Three but it's all fairly bleak. But then you kind of expect that from this band anyway.
The Julie Doiron (ex-Eric's Trip) side is really nice too so pick this up if you see it.
Okkervil River - A Leaf
It occurs to me that this mp3 of the day thing is going to cover a lot of the kind of thing I might play on the show, so there might be some overlap. I'll try to cover different things on here; it'll probably end up being stuff I've known for longer on here as opposed to newer stuff on the show in future.
Actually the whole Okkervil River side of the EP is pretty fixated with death; there's a good cover of the the traditional song Omie Wise and the slightly more upbeat He Passes Number Thirty-Three but it's all fairly bleak. But then you kind of expect that from this band anyway.
The Julie Doiron (ex-Eric's Trip) side is really nice too so pick this up if you see it.
Okkervil River - A Leaf
It occurs to me that this mp3 of the day thing is going to cover a lot of the kind of thing I might play on the show, so there might be some overlap. I'll try to cover different things on here; it'll probably end up being stuff I've known for longer on here as opposed to newer stuff on the show in future.
Saturday, 26 December 2009
Mp3 of the day #1 - Tremens by Sonic Youth
Firstly, I hope you all had a nice Christmas. I did!
I'm going to start doing an mp3 of the the day as often as I can while the show takes a break (hopefully daily). Here's the first. Not topical at all. Sorry.
Our first mp3 is by one of my favourite bands, Sonic Youth. It comes from the first in their SYR series of records, an outlet for their even-more-out-there-than-normal tendencies. I think it's the stand-out track on the EP, three minutes of brooding guitars, spacey echo and Steve Shelley playing some of the funkiest drums I've ever heard on a Sonic Youth record. It doesn't have a catchy tune or clever lyrics (or indeed any lyrics at all) but what I like most about this one is the whole aura of subdued dread, like the feeling I get from Spiderland or something like that. When the guitars do go noisy they don't overwhelm the song, brutal but restrained.
This is the sound of walking through the dark parts of a city at night - a feeling that a lot of Sonic Youth stuff evokes, but in a different way. Very nice.
Sonic Youth - Tremens
The first two tracks of the EP are well worth listening to if you like fairly minimalist and atmospheric improvisations. The last track is an anomaly, 6 minutes of very Merzbow-y noise. You probably need to be a big fan of both Sonic Youth and the Merzbow type of sound in order to get too much out of it. An interesting departure from almost anything else the band has done though.
I'm going to start doing an mp3 of the the day as often as I can while the show takes a break (hopefully daily). Here's the first. Not topical at all. Sorry.
Our first mp3 is by one of my favourite bands, Sonic Youth. It comes from the first in their SYR series of records, an outlet for their even-more-out-there-than-normal tendencies. I think it's the stand-out track on the EP, three minutes of brooding guitars, spacey echo and Steve Shelley playing some of the funkiest drums I've ever heard on a Sonic Youth record. It doesn't have a catchy tune or clever lyrics (or indeed any lyrics at all) but what I like most about this one is the whole aura of subdued dread, like the feeling I get from Spiderland or something like that. When the guitars do go noisy they don't overwhelm the song, brutal but restrained.
This is the sound of walking through the dark parts of a city at night - a feeling that a lot of Sonic Youth stuff evokes, but in a different way. Very nice.
Sonic Youth - Tremens
The first two tracks of the EP are well worth listening to if you like fairly minimalist and atmospheric improvisations. The last track is an anomaly, 6 minutes of very Merzbow-y noise. You probably need to be a big fan of both Sonic Youth and the Merzbow type of sound in order to get too much out of it. An interesting departure from almost anything else the band has done though.
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