They end up making a valid point about how all artists age - they either try to get with the times (and loose some of there base following in the process), or they stick with their classic sound (and see there followers slowly grow old and die, or become disinterested).
Had a great time doing an interview with singer/songwriter Peter Eldridge (of the New York Voices) today. Keep an eye out for it on jazz.about.com in the coming days.
Yes, we're well aware that you voted for this year's Undercover to include only bands that hadn't played last year. But if you look at the numbers carefully, you'll see that lots of people (47%) were okay with returning acts, particularly if they were one of the top vote-getters from last year. But really the reason we wanted to invite Baltimore duo Wye Oak back into the round room is that they're awesome. Their new album is called Civilian, and it's an early-ish contender for best of the year in at least one book around here. And oh man, Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack (along with Callers' Don "Donzig" Godwin on tenor horn) didn't disappoint. They tackled Danzig's "Mother" with exactly the amount of seriousness it deserves. Jenn even wore a special black hoodie and allowed herself to be temporarily tattooed in an homage to the former Misfits frontman. This song was chosen for Undercover by way of reader suggestion: About six of you thought it would be a good one, and you were right. (Oh, by the way, Wye Oak will be the only repeat performer from last year. Respect.)
Great cover by a super cool/talented band. The AV Club is great, if you haven't checked it out yet.
As we embark on this endeavor, I am often discouraged by the scope of what we're trying to accomplish.
Our goal is to intelligently write about music, but beyond that simple but challenging goal, we are trying to broadly write intelligently about Quality; and not only identify and categorize Quality, but explain and derive its source. Too add to our struggles, we aim to derive its source in ourselfs and each other. While all the time being intelligent. As if that alone wasn't challenging enough.
Our contributors are looking to me for guidance. As Editor, my task is to not only determine the content that we produce, but more importantly, ensure that we are speaking to our goal(s) with every entry. I assume this will become more manageable with time, but most likely only because time will have passed and will therefore seem easier with time. And perhaps after time, more goals will arise, or the current goals will strengthen. Like designing the website, hopefully the more pieces assembled the easier it will be to place them.
But as for now, all we can do is keep plugging ahead. I take solace in our goal(s) and continue to pursue their promise.
As I casually listened to some new music this fine Friday morning, I stumbled upon an album with spectacular artwork:
As soon as I hit play I started to feel this familiarity wash over me. I had heard this before - yet I hadn't. I began to have this conversation in my head: "Do I like this?" "I think I just might." But why, why did I like it. Of all the albums I've recently acquired, this was the one I felt most comfortable approving of.
So I started to do some research. Why did I like this music? It's been a topic I've been obsessed with for weeks. Not, why is this music good? But, why do I like it? The internet told me why - one of the singers on this album is... wait for it... Bon Iver frontman, Justin Vernon. Big surprise. All Tiny Creatures is a band from Madison, WI, (basically the same band that made Volcano Choir, Unmap), featuring probably one of my favorite singers.
So duh. I felt a little stupid for not knowing about this album before I heard it. Something most music conscious listeners would probably commiserate with. As music people we're supposed to know when good stuff is coming out - especially from bands we know and like.
And maybe that's a misnomer. How should I know before hand that I'm going to like something? When good people are involved, should they make good music? We've seen this theory disproved many times. Great musicians sometimes make horrible music. Mistakes are made - risks are taken. Outside forces control certain aspects at times that take away from the musical process.
In today's Digital Media, Internet Distribution ecosystem, musicians can create music fast and send it out even faster. This can certainly reduce those outside influences (as the record industry is almost non-existant in internet distribution), but it can also encourage musical risk, which unchecked, can be a bad thing. If a musician cannot edit themselves effectively, they need a great producer there to take up that responsibility.
This all being said, I had a big revelation today. Not only was I unaware of All Tiny Creatures, but I ended up going back and listening to Unmap. It sounds great - more so that I remember before (honestly, I hadn't really listened to it much). But why do I think it's good now? Because I know Bon Iver is in it? Yeah, maybe. Dumb.
Here's a blast from the past. Looking back all the way to 2007, and the Charlie Christenson Quartet. This set featured Linda Oh (bass), Roy Assaf (piano), and Jaska Lukkarinen (drums).
Set List 2/2/2007
Charlie Christenson Group
500 Miles High
New Years
I’ve Never Been in Love Before
For All We Know
Seven Steps to Heaven
Always Knew
I’m Old Fashioned (Linda to start)
Atlanta
-Break-
Milestones
Poinsettia
Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most
Eagles Goth
No More Blues
Blower’s Daughter
Bye Bye Blackbird
Blame it on My Youth (Roy Duo)
I Love You
Old Plans on the Shelf
Songs to be added in : Stella by Starlight, The Way You Look Tonight
Just like to formally announce my new pet-project. TheFaure.com
Continue below for our artsy mission statement. Way more info to come.
Gabriel Faure - Composer
Imagine for a moment a place - a place where musical minds of different ages, genres, temperaments and tastes could come together, work out their differences whilst celebrating those differences simultaneously. Imagine being able to change someone's mind for the better - not by shouting them down, but by opening their eyes. Imagine having an artistic voice - and having that voice not only heard, but listened to and acknowledged.
No one can give you these things - they must be stolen in the night - and you must be organized. This is our goal: to elevate the whole of musical taste. Not just the educated, not just the upper crust, not just the young and the wealthy, the whole. All of it together.
Rachelle Ferrell is as unique as a singer comes - but not because of musical genre. She’s one of those hybrid jazz, r&b, pop divas that have been on the scene about as long as there has been a scene. Ferrell’s got vocal chops galore. The highs, the lows, the screeches, you heard that right, screeches. She’s got it all. That’s the good news and the bad news all wrapped up into one. She can do whatever she wants, and typically does.
This particular performance of Autumn Leaves from 1989 starts off generically enough with the standard intro from the Cannonball/Miles version, but quickly gets out. When you see her mouth go all crazy around the 30 second mark you know this isn’t going to be your grandpa’s version of Leaves. And, as much as a singer with braces can get tribal, it gets a bit tribal in there before the intro is through. You don’t see many jazz/r&b/pop singers getting crazy on stage in front of a big crowd much these days, and I have to say, it feels quite refreshing. But on to the song. We’ve still got about eight minutes to go.
That sound she makes the first time she sings the word “autumn” is what we in the vocal biz call a “Brittany Spears.” It’s not really singing. It’s more of a guttural speaking of the word that certainly is meant to have a great deal of feeling, but always ends up sounding a bit digestive instead. Al Jarreau does this too, but, I dare say is the only one that can do it and still sound legitimate (Jarreau is not just another one of these jazz/r&b/pop singers - he’s the king).
Please pause a moment at the 1:55 mark and consider her pronunciation of the word “saouwuoung.” Thank you.
I’m definitely proud of her for improvising. It’s a tricky thing for a singer for a number of reasons, and many don’t even attempt it. Although I’ve heard some great solos by Ferrell, this one starts out with a combination of r&b stylized moans and, for the most part, random frills and runs. Not a lot of real melody there. Or rhythm. But when it comes to feeling, forget about it.
The high notes sound great and they really ramp well into the next chorus, but then we realize the frightening truth that all that high singing has temporarily turned Ferrell into a brain eating zombie. And then, just when you think she’s going to break out of your computer and knock on your front door the aforementioned screech pulls the whole glorious solo together.
At least the piano player has some class (4:30).
Once the saxophone takes over I’ve suddenly forgot what makes this performance so unique, as I seem to have stumbled into a Jamie Abersold after school special.
It’s gets real nice and ghetto the last time through the chorus and this most unique of unique vocal jazz rides is about to come to an end. But through it all we learned a bit about what is possible and can still hopefully fall asleep at night without the threat of a zombie Rachelle Ferrell knocking on our door.
Here's a brief caption from an interview the AV Club Twin Cities did a bit ago with singer, pianist, and composer Ben Folds regarding his most recent album with Nick Hornby.
He mentions towards the end of the interview that in the old days he used to sign as many burned CD's as real ones. The interviewer asked him if he though that was stealing. His response is copied below, and I think it's both telling and true.
AV Club: You never felt like burning CDs was stealing?
Ben Folds: Yeah, I’ve always been fine with it; I let people know that right up front. I feel bad for record companies now. No matter what kind of karma they had coming to them, I still feel bad about how they have to scrap to make a living, and how many of my friends have been laid off. [...] It’s not a pretty place. But having said that, I also know how much I made from royalties from record sales alone. It’s not very much. Most artists would be surprised at how much money they make from selling records. So the question becomes “Hundreds of thousands of people will listen to your music, but they’ll be stealing it from your record company,” and you say, “Well, what does that mean to me?” Nothing. Really, nothing. That aspect of my business didn’t make that much, so I don’t care.Metallica said that they care, and maybe they were making more off of record sales, I don’t know. But all those artists who signed those petitions to stop people from stealing their music, well, maybe they should have checked to see how much they were making from royalties first. But it doesn’t bother me, I’d rather have the hundreds of thousands of people hear my music. [Laughs.] To me, having a record company is the way you look famous and important, to let people know that you’re sanctioned by “the man,” and when you go play gigs, it’s like “as seen on TV,” that kind of thing. But I know that stealing music has been bad for people, I’m not going to say I’m happy for it, but it’s not a bad thing for music. It’s a bad thing for the music industry. And those two things are different.
You may have noticed (although probably not) that my website has been down for some time now. Well... I finally wrestled it back from it's captures and am in the process of rebuilding it.
