Happy Holidays From Thrill Jockey
Tuesday, December 2, 2008 at 05:42PM
We here at Fig & Mint would like to join with Thrill Jockey, one of our many favorite labels, to help make this holiday season (you know Christmas, Festivus, or whatever seasonal reason you find to celebrate) that much better. In the spirit of the season(s) Thrill Jockey will provide a free download each day of Advent (which counts down to Christmas each day in December for those unfamiliar with the tradition). Head over to their website and check out the Advent Calendar for yourself.
The material available will be drawn from not only Thrill Jockey's label, but from labels with which they are affiliated for distribution purposes. Among these are Sonig, Mosz, Load, Numero Group, Fat Cat, Arts & Crafts, Ecstatic Peace, Rune Grammofon, Smalltown Supersound, Young God, Touch, Holy Mountain, Editions Mego, Siltbreeze, Bloodshot and Apestaartje, just to name a few. The entire list of labels that they distribute can be found here.
This year there have been a number of excellent releases from Thrill Jockey, including The Sea and Cake's ethereal pop wonder Car Alarm, Pit Er Pat's experimental noise orchestration High Times, and Fiery Furnace's live panorama Remember. Check out the label's MP3 distribution system FINA and maybe you'll find a present for yourself or someone else to share between the airing of grievances and the feats of strength.
New Music: Free Jay Bennett Album
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 at 12:52PM As the year winds down, the pickings start getting a bit slim. The new Kanye record is really the only highlight for today, and other than that you have a new Killers album, a second volume of Rivers Cuomo home recordings or a Daft Punk 2CD + DVD gift set. The first two cover the range of space between 'meh' and 'blah,' but the Daft Punk thing may actually be worthwhile.
Jay BennettSo, in the interest of posting, well, interesting news, let's turn our attention to former Wilco guitarist & multi-instrumentalist Jay Bennett, who is dropping a new album for free at Rock Proper called Whatever Happened I Apologize. It's a brief, lo-fi collection of acoustic songs that he opted to release prior to the album that has been in the work for some time called Kicking at the Perfumed Air. Here's what Jay himself has said about the album:
It is stark, stripped down, and acoustic based—more so than any other record I have made. I really wanted to capture the simpler and more emotional nature of the songwriting, and I knew that the only way I could do this was to put it together quickly, with no second-guessing, and no heavy deliberating about minor details. Consequently I would have to learn to embrace the resultant imperfections—and I have. All of the vocals are done live to my own acoustic guitar accompaniment, so it has some “warts,” but, in my effort to not forsake integrity for technical perfection, the album ended up feeling more honest, immediate, naked, and cohesive to me. I am very proud of presenting myself without my typical voluminous bells and whistles. I am left wondering why I haven’t done this more often in the past.
That attitude certainly sounds different than the nitpickiness that contributed to his dismissal from Wilco, as evidenced in I Am Trying To Break Your Heart, but I've listened to the album through and it's actually quite good, particularly his cover of Daniel Johnston's "Wicked World" and the final song "Little Blue Pills." Wilco certainly hasn't suffered after his departure from the band, but I always valued Bennett's contributions, particularly the lush arrangement of Summerteeth, much of which is to his credit. Perhaps a victim of the Dickey Betts syndrome (an underappreciated talent who subsequently gets too big for his britches), it's nice to know that Jay Bennett is back making good music again.
Download the album here.
New Frightened Rabbit: "Last Tango in Brooklyn"
Thursday, November 20, 2008 at 02:05PM 
Frightened RabbitThis post doesn't have a whole lot of significance like the earlier post by me or the wonderful seasonal post by Gary, but I've been listening to The Midnight Organ Fight almost nonstop for the past month, so anything Frightened Rabbit related gets me all excited. I'm hoping this new track is the early rumbling of an in-progres album, but every indication I can find points to the this song being picked up from the cutting room floor that is now being distributed freely around the Net to continue to drum up support for the talented young Scots. This quote from Hippies Are Dead sums up what everyone seems to know about this mysterious new track fairly well:
Yum. Tasty. More Frightened Rabbit, complete with "sad, sad, sex". Does it get better than that? We thinks not. Seriously though, apparently the Australian zine The Lifted Brow got their hands on a new Frightened Rabbit Track "Last Tango In Brooklyn", and Pitchfork was kind enough to dig up an mp3.
The track is a quick acoustic lament of love lost, and melodically reminds us a fair bit of "The Twist" from the band's last record. Although production wise, it's far simpler then the stuff on Midnight Organ Fight. All in all, we're not totally shocked that the track ended up as a giveaway, since it seems a little less compositionally complete then the band's album material. That being said, we're pretty much suckers for these guys at the moment, so anything they put out there, we're gonna gobble up.
Well, the song sounds awesome, so enjoy!
Julian Koster's Christmastime Singing Saw Spectacular
Thursday, November 20, 2008 at 12:16PM 
It should be known first off that I am somewhat of a holiday purist, yet a seasonal curmudgeonist. I disagree with the millions of Americans that put up Christmas decorations and start playing holiday-specific music before we have even had Thanksgiving. It isn't that I am such a huge fan of Thanksgiving or anything. It's just that you can't celebrate certain holidays before their due time. I mean, we are now starting to "get into the Christmas spirit" mid-November. Next thing you know we will be hoisting wreaths and garland before Halloween. We will just cover the Christmas greenery with some of that fake spiderweb stuff. You see? This is just an outright silly slippery slope. As the good man once said, "this is not Nam, there are rules."
Well, all of this aside, there is one thing that has made me break my rule of not doing anything Christmas-related until after Thanksgiving. It was Julian Koster's (The Music Tapes, Elephant 6 Collective, Olivia Tremor Control, Neutral Milk Hotel) new Merge Records release The Singing Saw at Christmastime.
This is an album unlike any other Christmas album you have ever heard. It is filled with lo-fi and sometimes eerie instrumental versions of old Christmas favorites such as "The First Noel", "We Wish You a Merry Christmas", and "Silver Bells". Truth be told, it sounds something like only Tom Waits could get away with. However, this album does work for Koster. I mean, granted, you can't put this album on at an office party or family dinner when people are expecting Bobby Darin, but it does have its place.
The aforementioned idiophonic creepiness that defines much of the album is actually a plus in this case. Aside from "Jingle Bells" and "Frosty the Snowman", the weird whine of Koster's saws perfectly accents some of these age-old tunes that have turned, in the last century, from songs of praise and celebration into a marketing soudtrack for corporate and retail America. You definitely have to be patient to get past all that; but if you spend enough time with this fantastic little album, you might just find yourself thinking about what Christmas used to mean to you, or what it can mean for you in the future. You might even find that you are not so averted to those old holiday tunes as you once thought that you were once you listen to them Bobby Darrin-less and through the ears of Koster and his saws. You might be able to just sit down and really appreciate, for the first time in a long time, a different take on these songs while you let yourself be filled with Christmas cheer. And it might all happen before Thanksgiving; in which case, that is okay, too.
Now, here is what is really cool. If you want, The Music Tapes will actually come by your house (that's right, the place you live) and play a few of these tunes for you. All you have to do is check their tour schedule below and email them at musictapescaroling@gmail.com with an invitation no later than the day before they are to appear in your city.
Here are the tour dates and cities:
11-21 Austin, TX
11-22 Denton, TX
11-24 Lawrence, KS
11-26 Minneapolis, MN
11-27 Madison, WI
11-28 Chicago, IL
11-29 Grand Rapids/Lansing, MI
11-30 Ann Arbor, MI
12-01 Toronto, Ontario
12-03 Buffalo, NY
12-04 Geneseo, NY
12-05 Oswego, NY
12-06 Bennington, VT
12-07 New London, NH
12-08 Boston/Cambridge, MA
12-12 Philadelphia, PA
12-13 New York, NY
12-14 New York, NY
Tracklisting for the Album:
1. "The First Noel" - 2:26
2. "Frosty the Snowman" - 1:36
3. "Silent Night" - 2:18
4. "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" - 1:48
5. "Jingle Bells" - 2:41
6. "White Christmas" - 2:44
7. "Silver Bells" - 3:17
8. "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" - 2:51
9. "O Come All Ye Faithful" - 1:25
10. "O Holy Night" - 4:16
11. "O Little Town of Bethlehem" - 1:44
12. "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" - 2:07
Umphrey's McGee Set Inventive Release for '09
Thursday, November 20, 2008 at 09:16AM 
Please, don't call them a jamband. Though their ever changing setlists and improvisational sections characterizes their live show, much like their heady predecessors Grateful Dead and Phish, the band themselves more closely identify themselves with progressive forefunners Zappa, King Crimson, Yes and Genesis (the early Gabriel influenced Genesis) because of their focus on composition over improvisation. Now, in the wake of their growing fanbase, Umphrey's has planned an innovative release for their pending 2009 album, Mantis. Per their press release:
Umphrey's McGee’s one-of-a-kind pre-order campaign for their highly anticipated new studio release, Mantis (January 20, 2009 / SCI Fidelity Records) is already being recognized as a brilliant and innovative use of digital technology. The power of this new pre-order concept is in the hands of the fans. Umphrey’s offers fans more free bonus content the more Mantis pre-orders they receive; the fans “unlock” levels of content by getting more of their friends to pre-order the album. The idea is to give the fans incentive to help spread the word about the album, and to offer a totally unique music experience.
Here at FM, we're doing our part to get all the available material for Mantis, and you can keep up with what other Umphrey's fans are saying with the chat widget below. Also, be sure to preorder your copy and get more news by clicking here.
David Wroblewski Talks About The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 at 05:59PM 
Photo courtesty of Sadie Thibodeaux
This entry is by Guest Contributor Lizz Gardner
Last night, I trekked out into the Chicago chill to see David Wroblewski, author of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, interviewed for Writers on the Record with Victoria Lautman at the stunning Harold Washington Library downtown.
It was an interesting interview (also a quiet one, because the microphones were not working) with Wroblewski, a software designer who took ten years to produce his first novel -- a 600-page monster. On the length of the book, Wroblewski commented, “You don’t get a choice in these things. Your story is your story. You don’t know how long it’s going to be.”
The book is set in rural Wisconsin, Wroblewski’s old stomping ground, and revolves around Edgar, a fourteen year old mute (but not deaf) boy, whose family breeds and trains Sawtelle dogs. Wroblewski admitted this is a fictitious breed and wishes the reader to envision their own interpretation, allowing them to make the story as personal as it is to the author.
Wroblewski, who had a brief stint with theater, chose to skip over Lautman’s question of the Shakespearian allusions in the novel. It was obvious to me that the novel had the loose skeleton of Hamlet (dead father, evil brother, lots of portentous ghosts, five "acts"). I was surprised, though, that he ignored the topic all together. It’s quite an accomplishment to have your own successful story develop as the ever-so-intimidating Bill Shakespeare rolls around in the back of your head.
The interview lasted for one hour with a brief break. In the last few minutes, the audience was allowed to ask questions. A middle-aged blonde asked, “How did you know you’re a writer?” Wroblewski sighed, and sat quietly for a moment. He confessed he won an award in tenth grade for a short story about wolves, but quickly gave up the craft because he didn’t meet any girls. The audience giggled. Finally Wroblewski told all: “Writing became the creative outlet I needed.” In a way, he never knew he was a writer, he discovered how he needed to be one.
To hear the entire interview, tune into the WFMT broadcast on Sunday, September 23 at noon.
----
You can find hardback copies as well as collector's editions of Wroblewski's The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by clicking on the picture below.
Your Favorite Indie Artists Cover Their Favorite Cheesy Pop Songs
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 at 09:16AM 
Who actually puts stock into that coquettishly elusive and fickle quality known around the webs as "indie cred?" Well, not well-loved musicians apparently. One thing we try to push here at Fig & Mint is that writers, critics and bloggers (like us) are not nearly as influential as we perceive ourselves to be. We illustrate this point by conducting interviews with musicians and always asking them what music they're really into or currently big on. The answers have been as varied as Cradle of Filth and Count Basie, yet surprisingly few artists have named other hipster sweetheart bands like Grizzly Bear, Animal Collective, Beach House and others as something that they're into (Editor's Note: Since we, the editors, are all hipster douches, we, of course, are certainly and wholeheartedly infatuated by the aforementioned bands nonetheless). Perhaps most interesting, three artists crop up in nearly every interview I do, with the respective musician(s) saying at least two of the following three names: Elvis Presley, Prince and/or Michael Jackson. The Royal Court of popular music will apparently ever be so.
In light of this, I found Pitchfork's article on the upcoming second volume of Guilt by Association particularly intriguing. Rather than talk about it, I'll let you read and decide for yourself.
The Guilt by Association record does promise to be something that I'll patently enjoy, as my musical partner and I have been known to spring covers of "Jessie's Girl," "Summer of '69" and "Hit Me Baby One More Time" on our unsuspecting Sunday morning church group. Currently in the works: John Michael Montgomery, "Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)." My favorite so far is My Brightest Diamond's cover of Soft Cell's (left) "Tainted Love" and Jukebox the Ghost's "It's a Beautiful Life." Wow...I don't even think I've given Ace of Base a thought since jamming out to them at the skating rink in 6th grade...
 |
|
|
Tuesday is New Music Day!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 11:27AM With the new Animal Collective track floating around the Interwebs today, some of the other new music that's sure to entertain may have a tendency to get lost in the shuffle. But not here at Fig & Mint.
Anathallo - Canopy Glow
My favorite new record this week is Canopy Glow from art-pop ensemble Anathallo. After rehearsing for months in the Chicago church where they were living and performing at Coachella, the septet was ready to make a new record. And it could be the best work the accomplished group (the lineup has rotated quite a bit through the years) has produced. Streaming audio or downloadable tracks for Canopy Glow are, as far as I know, restricted, but if I get something from Anticon I'll add it to the post. For the time being, you can preview the album here.
Update: I received a link from Anticon with an embeddable player. Enjoy!
Phish - At the Roxy
This is a great set, even for someone like me who has an overlarge, overstuffed folder devoted solely to Phish shows, meticulously arranged and labeled. 1994-1998 is generally considered to be the golden age of the Vermont quartet's exploration into dynamic musical invention and live presentation, sometimes causing early or late periods of the band's development to be overlooked. This set, a complete reproduction of their famous 3 show run in Atlanta, February 19-21, 1993, is showcased in its entirety (like the Hampton Comes Alive or Island Tour releases), leading to a total playing time in excess of 8 hours. For any fellow Phish-philes that may be reading this post, it's interesting to note that a "Hold Your Head Up" jam appears each night, sandwiching "Love You," "Terrapin Station" and Neil Diamond's "Cracklin' Rosie," respectively, and the "Reba" that drops out of "Wilson" on the 20th is my personal favorite, making it near the top of the list for greatest ever (I'm a Phish nerd...trust me, I know). Preview here.
Ladyhawke - Ladyhawke
Pip Brown, a New Zealander now living in London, drops her debut album of danceable synth grooves toady. This will be one for fans of MGMT, Empire of the Sun and Prince. Synthy dance stuff is not usually my favorite, but this is a good album and Brown is a talented multi-instrumentalist (keys, guitar, drums). Plus, another kiwi-Londoner put out one of my favorite albums of the year (Liam Finn). Preview several tracks from this one here.
Belle & Sebastian - BBC Sessions
Though not as numerous or aromatically fetid as Phishheads, never underestimate the rabidity of Belle & Sebastian geeks. I like Belle & Sebastian quite alot, but as I'm not as fluent in their musical history as I am with, say, Dylan or the Dead or Uncle Tupelo and subsequent groups, so I'm not especially qualified to discuss the nuances of these performances. From what I understand, though, these sessions were vitally important in the development of B & S and the spread of their music. And to the ears of the uninitiated, the tracks sound great. I can detect the subtle differences in these early versions of some of my favorite tracks like "The State that I Am In" or "Slow Graffitti," and the historical value of the second disc, the final session with founding member Isobell Campbell, makes this two-disc set good enough for me. Preview here.
###
Other items of note:
Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys Will Release a Solo Album in February
Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 11:20AM 
The Nonesuch Records homepage announced this morning that Dan Auerbach (Guitarist and Singer for The Black Keys) will be releasing a solo album on February 10, 2009. This release comes on the heels of a very successful 2008 which found Auerbach and the other half of The Black Keys, Pat Carney, relasing a raucous rock-n-roll album produced by Danger Mouse (we here at Fig and Mint are huge fans of this album and urge everyone to go out and buy it) as well as a live DVD.
Word has it that Auerbach chose to record all of the tracks himself as sole musician and producer. This seems to be a fairly ambitious undertaking for the Akron, Ohio blues-rocker especially since the more responsibility he takes on the more it reflects on him if the album is a flop. Fortunately for Auerbach, he has yet to make a bad album with the Keys and I doubt that he will anytime soon. As of yet, there is no cover for this album, but we will keep you posted.
Ennio Morricone Offers to Score Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds"
Monday, November 17, 2008 at 05:51PM 
Word is out on the streetweb that film composing legend Ennio Morricone may have a significant role in the score of Tarantino's war film Inglorious Basterds. First reported in the Italian media, Morricone apparently is interested in bringing his in-depth orchestral approach to scoring at least a few songs, if time constraints prevent him from producing a complete score. According to Variety:
Tarantino will finish shooting the film in February and has to deliver it by the end of April in time for Cannes," said Morricone. "That doesn't leave me enough time to do the music. Either I start working on it before he stops shooting--after we discuss it together--or I just can't do it.
Morricone is best known for his remarkable work on the soundtracks for classic Spaghetti Westerns. Among his most famous are those in which he collaborated with former schoolmate and producer Sergio Leone: A Fistful of Dollars, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Once Upon a Time in the West.
Film buffs and music nerds will recall that Tarantino did a fantastic job of borrowing from Morricone's catalogue for some of the material from the not inglorious Kill Bill juggernauts as well as the recent Grindhouse thrill-ride Death Proof. This, however, marks the first time that Morricone will actually compose new music for Tarantino (or Tarantino have original music scored for a film of his), since "il Maestro" turned Quentin down for Pulp Fiction supposedly because he didn't feel his music would work for what Tarantino envisioned. Morricone would add to an already stacked deck, as Tarantino secured Samuel L. Jackson as a narrator, to go alongside on screen actors including Brad Pitt, Mike Meyers (don't worry, just a cameo), Mélanie Laurent, and others.
Also, if you see Morricone today, wish him happy birthday, as he turned 80.
Joe's Half Hundred: Counting Down the Top Albums of 2008, Vol. 2
Friday, November 14, 2008 at 01:00PM It's time now for the second installment in my Top 50 of 2008 countdown. Last week featured albums 50-41, which shaped up like this:
50. Marco Benevento - Invisible Baby
49. Koushik - Out My Window
48. Coldplay - Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends
47. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
46. Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Lie Down in the Light
45. Thievery Corporation - Radio Retaliation
44. Panther - 14 Kt. God
43. Beck - Modern Guilt
42. Wale - Mixtape About Nothing
41. Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple
So, moving on....
40. Brightblack Morning Light - Motion to Rejoin
Motion to Rejoin, Brightblack Morning Light's third album, is certainly a continuation of where they ceased on their 2006 self titled work for Matador. The music builds and ebbs with subtle changes in organ progressions and reverb laden sax lines, drifting around lengthy song structures with the (apparently) primary goal of just...like, totally chillin' out, dude. The New Mexico band is known for their hippie-lib leanings, including the legal drug agenda and speaking out against the military-industrial complex, which may make the music a bit easier to understand. Motion to Rejoin is expertly timed and composed bluesy gospel driven organ rock, perfect for an afternoon nap, hipster dinner party or schwilly bong hit with your most totally brodacious bros. Rad.
BRIGHTBLACK MORNING LIGHT - "HOLOGRAM BUFFALO"
39. Basia Bulat - Oh, My Darling
If we were counting down the most adorable albums of 2008, Canadian folk sweetheart Basia Bulat would easily take the cake. Oh, My Darling is a collection of sweet little gems: accessibly poppy folk songs that become more deeply interesting with each successive listen, revealing layers beneath the deceptively simple lyrics and modest accompaniment. What emerges is a musician concerned with issues much larger than one may initially think, justifying the critical praise her debut has received and her big name producer (Howard Bileman - Arcade Fire).
"Before I Knew" by Basia Bulat
BASIA BULAT - "IN THE NIGHT"
38. Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue
A characteristic of several albums in this countdown (around the 25-40 range) is the presence of one or two really terrible tracks hiding among a collection of songs that would otherwise be utterly brilliant. The first of these tragically flawed records is Jenny Lewis' Acid Tongue, which casually flaunts it heavy reliance on established musical styles to great success...for the most part. The album openers, "Black Sand," "Pretty Bird" and particularly the sprawling blues jaunt "The Next Messiah" display Lewis' knack for creating a sound concretely indebted to country, classic rock and/or soul stylings while maintaining the ever present twinge of her own creativity. Unfortunately, one or two songs fall on their face, as they accomplish neither retrospective nor introspective transcendence ("See Fernando," "Carpetbaggers"). That's OK, though, because we don't need the unstoppably sexy and clever More Adventurous Jenny Lewis all the time; the strengths Acid Tongue go much farther than do its weaknesses.
37. The OaKs - Songs for Waiting
As I was going back and listening to the albums on this range of the list to prepare for this post, I was struck by how severely I underrated this album. It belongs in the top 20, but it had been awhile since I'd listened to it when I finalized the list, so it will unfortunately be lain to rest at a devalued 37. Oh well, perhaps the music rating gods will forgive me. The OaKs combine prog chops with indie-folk stylings to create a complicated yet accessible metanarrative loosely based around the last days in the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Trust me, it sounds much more confusing than it actually is. Just how good is it? Well, I may get criticized by hordes of hipster would-be experts, but it's as good or better than The Crane Wife. Yes, I'm serious, it's just my opinion, take it for what it's worth. If you think I may be lying to you, then view it as a personal challenge and buy the album (proceeds from the album sales are donated to aid humanitarian causes in Afghanistan, where bandleader Ryan Costello lived for two years). Oh, and by the way, percussionist Matthew Antolick is one of the sickest drummers alive. Stream the album in its entirety here.
36. The Sea and Cake - Car Alarm
The Sea and Cake have always been one of the top bands for dinner party playlists. Nearly every bit of music on their vast catalog has an enjoyable ambience that is fun to digest, not overwhelming yet interesting enough to deserve closer attention. Car Alarm, though, finds the mellow rockers sharpening their strings a bit, as there is almost a biting edge in the more aggressive patterns with which they toy. Sam Prekop's vocals are as smooth as ever, but upon closer inspection the lyrics don't easily fit in with the palatable froth that characterizes some of their earlier albums. Add some uncharacteristic electronic elements and a current of power that continuously propels the motion of the album and the result is [possibly] the best Sea and Cake album to date.
THE SEA AND CAKE - "CAR ALARM"
35. Lykke Li - Youth Novels
Combining a multitude of instrumental surprises in deceptively spare arrangements with an infectious personality may not be the generally accepted formula for creating a great pop record, but Sweden's Lykke Li has done so to great effect. Her hooky songs would most like have a broader commercial appeal if coupled with some generic techno and swelling crescendos, but the [nearly] all acoustic accompaniment leads to an eminently more inventive and fresh record. What's more, the live presentation is lent its proper focus, as the audience is drawn directly to the tremendous onstage energy of Lykke herself.
36. Marah - Angels of Destruction!
The second of the nearly mortally flawed records on this countdown is from the Brooklyn rock revivalists Marah, and almost doesn't recover from the lyrical foul-up "Blue But Cool" that comes in after a truly great opening string of songs. The first four tracks are so strong, in fact, that you may almost wonder how this album isn't listed among the ranks 21st century king rock 'n' roll albums like Elephant, Is This It?, Rubber Factory or Boys and Girls in America. Fortunately, the steam accumulated during the careening, firestorm of an opening patiently survives the mid-album stumble and recovers nicely with the latter songs: "Can't Take It With You," in particular, could easily fit on Wilco's Being There, drawing another contrasting shade on the rock canvas the brothers Bielanko are so adept at creating.
Marah - "Old Time Tickin' Away"
33. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Pershing
Pershing could very well be the handbook for clean, poppy fun. There's nothing terribly offensive or remarkable to draw controversy towards the verbosely named Missourians, but damn it's a good record. The hooks and riffs are so catchy this is one that promises to buzz in your ears for days after it's been played. In a musical environment dominated by lots of bands trying to be overly artistic (which isn't always a bad thing...many artists near the top of this countdown have done just that) it's a breath of fresh air to turn on a record that is simply, highly, repeatedly enjoyable. Although the album as a whole sits at a comfortable 33, I'll readily admit that "Some Constellation" is easily one of my top 5 or 10 favorite songs of the year. Boo yah.
SSLYBY - "SOME CONSTELLATION"
32. Ida - Lovers Prayers
For a band with seven albums, all of which are remarkably poignant and beautifully composed, Ida may well be the gold standard in under publicized greatness. Lovers Prayers is an exceptional continuation of their body of work, as it appears starkly minimal and fragile as crystal upon first glance, only to open itself up to a myriad of subtle layers, changes and emotional depth hiding in the grayest corners. Each successive listen further illuminates the craftsmanship of these haunting folk ballads, so much so that I fear I may not have placed this album high enough either, simply because I haven't examined it with the proper attention. Formed in New York by Elizabeth Mitchell and Daniel Littleton (now married), Ida has been quietly making gently folk records for over 15 years. The attention garnered by Lovers Prayers, recorded in Levon Helm's home studio in upstate New York, may now proffer the group some well-deserved acclaim.
IDA - "THE LOVE BELOW"
IDA - "WILLOW TREE"
31. Adele - 19
As a teenager, Adele Adkins was posting demos on her Myspace when she got a call from Virgin Records. She thought it was a joke. She was a few months into her twentieth year when her album was certified platinum, but her monster hit 19 is more than pop candy. Her voice is sensitive, emotional and stands a head and shoulders above other artists in the now prominent British soul revival (Amy Winehouse, Duffy). Her credibility reaches into critical and musical circles as well, as the record has been nominated for several prestigious awards (The Mercury Prize, BRIT Critic's Choice) and she has been asked to cover a Raconteurs song by this guy who's pretty good himself named Jack White (her version of "Many Shades of Black" became the B-side of the single). Apparently Paul McCartney, Bjork and Kanye are big fans as well. If you haven't heard anything from this album yet this year, there's a good chance you've been out to sea, so I'll post a preview track for you, good sailor. My favorite tracks on the album are her Dylan cover ("To Make You Feel My Love") and the original, "Best For Last."
Album Review: Nico Muhly's Mothertongue
Thursday, November 13, 2008 at 11:36PM 
It is kind of a task to explain Nico Muhly’s music. One is, at once, face to face with the problem of trying to articulate just how important it is to experience his music without resorting to the cliché of that kid in class that inevitably winds up saying “well, you just have to hear it” after repeated attempts of explaining something that he thinks is cool but really isn’t that cool. So, for the time being, I guess, just take my word for it that this is one of the few artists that you truly do have listen to in order to appreciate. A proper review is still in order, though.
To start, there is a little biographical information you need to know about Nico Muhly. He is a graduate of both The Julliard School and Columbia University. He has recently worked with Philip Glass in an editorial fashion. He has also composed string arrangements for Bjork and Bonnie “Prince” Billy and Grizzly Bear for their forthcoming album. He lives in New York’s Chinatown*, and makes ringtones for his friends using Garageband.
In his mid-twenties, he is at the avant-garde of young (well, young and old now that I think about it) composers in America. He is particularly deft at blending classical compositional techniques with a very healthy electronic musical sentiment. His newest album Mothertongue is a sort of three-part quest that explores this kind of style better than anyone that I have heard.
The first part (which consists of four movements**) is reminiscent of not only Philip Glass, but a more emphatic On the Transmigration of Souls-era John Adams. The densely overlapped female vocals in these four movements brings to mind a sort of updated Songs from Liquid Days. After a couple of movements, this first section starts to sound a little like the Baroque popiness of Sufjan Stevens without the comforting yet hopeful sadness that marks Stevens’s work. Muhly’s mark is similar, but he extends that noticeable Stevensian sadness into something more like dread.
Muhly really picks up on this in the three-movement*** section that features more horns and operatic-type vocals. Think Antony Hegarty meets a drunk, Russian horn quartet. I know this description is kind of crazy but if you think that was bad, just wait. The second movement, in particular, sounds like a less-laughable Sweeney Todd with a serious harpsichord habit.
The three-movement final section entitled The Only Tune is particularly interesting. It blends select elements from all of the prior movements and sets them up as a sort of background texture for the more dominant folksy sound. This folksy sound, in short, is like a trio of Shane MacGowan (The Poques) switching vocal duties with Will Oldham while Sufjan plays virtually every instrument that he knows, especially his signature banjo. What’s most compelling in this section is the magical-realism found in the final movement’s lyrics. They tell of a sister that commits sororicide, and the dead sister floats down a stream where a miller finds her body. The miller then different body parts from her corpse to make a fiddle. All the while, Samamidon**** is softly crooning a refrain after each line: “Oh, the dreadful wind and rain.”
This is probably one of the most ambitious albums I have heard thus far this year. Understandably, this album is not and will not be for everyone. But, taking it on its own merit and accomplishments and complexity, it is worth noting. Pitchfork actually described the album as “glib” and full of “facile pastiche.” I will ignore the fact that Pitchfork actually called an artist glib and facile, and admit that there will certainly be people that hear that in this dense album. However, this album falls into that dense, artistic statement category where I believe that most people that are interested in branching out and procuring an interest in something a bit more experimental that Crystal Antlers find themselves right at home.
*As a side note in its purest form, I am jealous of the fact that he lives in Chinatown. When looking for apartments in Chicago, I really wanted to move to Chicago’s Chinatown (which is significantly smaller than New York’s). The reason that I chose instead to live in a hideously small and expensive experiment of an apartment on Chicago’s North Side was that my girlfriend didn’t want to have to smell veggie Lo Mein and/or Crab Rangoon every time she came over. Being newly accomplished at dealing with silly arguments like this, I simply called her a racist and moved on from the idea.
**Mothertongue I: Archive; Mothertongue II: Shower; Mothertongue III: Hress; Mothertongue: IV: Monster
***Wonders I: New Things & New Tidings; Wonders II: The Devil Appear’d in the Shape of a Man; Wonders III: A Complaint Against Tomas Weelkes.
****Samamidon (Sam Amidon) is a folk auter from Vermont that is pretty impressive in his own right. Worth checking out.