Giant Sand - "Jumpin' Jack Flash"

Giant Sand are an Alt-Country band from Tucson, Arizona led by Howe Gelb. Giant Sand also features John Convertino and Joey Burns who have a side project band called Calexico (probably more well known than Giant Sand.) I heard a review on National Radio the other day of the new album from the expanded version of the band... aptly named 'Giant Giant Sand.' Howe Gelb's baritone/bass singing voice was mentioned during the review and although I am well and truly aware of that fact, the song that came to mind that typifies that is their version of The Rolling Stones' "Jumpin' Jack Flash." It's like a 45rpm single put on at 33rpm and the treble turned down and the bass turned up to 11.

Mercury Rev - "Holes"

This song is so cinematic, so ethereal, so orchestral, so dreamy and beautiful... in fact I could go on forever. Let's just say it is a masterpiece. The first time I heard this I was on my way home from work and had to stop to pick something up and this song came on at that time. I couldn't get out of the car until it was finished and luckily the bFM DJ announced who it was. I was obsessed, and remember, in 1998 you couldn't just go home and download it. So I (probably the next day) went to Real Groovy Records and bought the CD. I had heard of Mercury Rev but had never taken the time to listen to them. After hearing "Holes" I kind of felt that I had robbed myself of something good. The album 'Deserter's Songs' was a fine work of art and I remained loyal thereafter. The start of a beautiful relationship.

"Start the Engine and Reverse"

Today on this song blog we will have a short film interlude. This is a short film from the 'Your Film Festival', which is at the voting stage now. You can find the 50 semi-finalists on youtube. "Start the Engine and Reverse" is a chilling one-shot film from Russian entrant Andrey Zagidullin.
The music will be back again tomorrow.

Public Image Ltd - "The Room I Am In"

"The Room I Am In" has Public Image Ltd's John Lydon in a poetic guise. This track from the recently released PiL album 'This is PiL' is in a speak-song style and is about the isolation and despair of council estate living and drug taking, of course. There is not much middle ground when it comes to this song, I suspect... either compelling (like it is to me) or just annoying. Let's hope you are in the former category.

Mark Ronson - "Stop Me (If You Think You've Heard This One Before)"

STOP!!!

Scout Niblett - "So Much Love To Do"

Scout Niblett is an English singer-songwriter now based in America. She certainly wears her American influences on her sleeve.... Catpower being one such example. She has also duetted with Will Oldham on a few occasions, which kind of makes sense because her own music shares the same gothic nature. "So Much Love To Do" is minimalist at best but the strength is in her voice. An outstanding artist who has for too long been under the radar.

Kora - "On My Mind"

Kora are a Whakatane reggae/dub/funk band featuring four brothers and a friend. From the very first time I heard this song "On My Mind" I could hear some classic Prince mixed with some Che-Fu. However, a mate of mine couldn't find an ounce of Prince in this song at all. There isn't really a point to where I am going with this... except that we can all enjoy great music even if we can't agree with the influences we hear.

Siouxsie And The Banshees - "Happy House"

My internet is up and running again... so this is a happy house once again. And here is Siouxsie and the Banshees to tell you all about my happy house.

Kraftwerk - "Telephone Call"

I am having major Internet problems. Thankfully, with a borrowed 3G device I can quickly post a song that relates to my frustration... well, not really, but it is a telephone company at fault. So that is a good enough excuse to post this fantastic piece of classic Kraftwerk.... Again, sorry.

Lee Hazlewood & Lula - "Nothing"

We all know of Nancy and Lee for obvious reasons but it is a pity we don't all know of Lee and Lula. Lee Hazlewood got the career of Nancy Sinatra back on track and is primarily remembered for his association with her... but he was a gifted songwriter, producer and musician apart from that collaboration. "Nothing" is from Lee Hazlewood's final album 'Cake Or Death' and it proved that his sense of humour was still well and truly alive this late in his career. You want to know what is wrong with this song?.... "Nothing".

Nick Lowe - "(I Love The Soung Of) Breaking Glass"

Nick Lowe may be more known as a producer than a musician, although, he did have a hit with his song "(I Love The Soung Of) Breaking Glass" in 1978 and the album it appeared on 'Jesus Of Cool' was critically acclaimed. His career as a producer was very fruitful. He produced the first five Elvis Costello albums, which would be the reason "(I Love The Soung Of) Breaking Glass" has that familiar piano sound, at the very least. He also produced the debut album by The Damned. "(I Love The Soung Of) Breaking Glass" has the most prominent tambourine sound ever... obviously for the breaking glass effect... either cool or annoying. I say cool.

Metric - "Help I'm Alive" (Acoustic)

Metric have a new album out and hopefully it will be as great as the previous one 'Fantasies' which did set a high standard for them to emulate. Actually, let's go back to that previous 'Fantasies' album from 2009. "Help I'm Alive" was the first single and this acoustic live version was available as a free download from their website. I love the original album release but this version is so special it didn't take long before it was the default radio playlist choice. Down to just two members with Emily Haines on piano and vocals and James Shaw on acoustic guitar. This was one of my songs of 2009. A seemingly effortless performance from Emily Haines... but spine-tingling all the same.



Album/Single version

Pixies - "Winterlong"

Winter is here and because I love winter so much, especially a good Taupo winter, I wanted a positive winter song. I know there are plenty of great songs that celebrate winter affectionately. But I couldn't get past Neil Young's "Winterlong" even though it does not fit the criteria. I'm not going to stop now... so here is "Winterlong" covered beautifully by The Pixies. COOL!

The Beta Band - "Dry The Rain"

The Beta Band's 1998 album 'The 3 Ep's' (a compilation of their first three EP's... as the name suggests) was one CD that spent a lot of time in the player. It was the type of album that rewarded you more and more over such a long period of time. It was part experimental, part Beck, part electronica, part indie rock and 3 parts coolness. "Dry The Rain" was even featured, as itself, in the movie High Fidelity. An Oscar-worthy performance it was too.



The Movie performance

Shea Seger - "Isn't It Good Tonight"

I missed a couple of days on this blog due to a weekend away.... so let's get straight back to business. Today we have a track from a debut album by an emerging artist in 2000. The album "The May Street Project" was recorded in London after Texas singer/songwriter Shea Seger had moved there to embark on a musical career. After she signed to RCA and released her debut, the musical career should've been fruitful. The album, recorded with producer Martin Terefe, was a sensational debut but was somehow ignored by radio programmers, while being critically acclaimed. Real Groovy Records in Auckland were promoting it and that was where I got my copy... on their recommendation. It resonated with me and I still enjoy it, either as a whole album or as individual songs played on Bitter FM. I can't agree with the Sheryl Crow similarities. Maybe if Sheryl Crow was produced by Beck... then it may be justified. The addition of breakbeats, although sometimes subtle, to her bluesy/folk-rock style combine well... throughout the album. "Isn't It Good Tonight" has 70's soul strings added to the modern beats and exceptional vocals. All in all, a laid-back classic yet to be discovered.

La Femme - "Sur La Planche"

There is a question I hear all the time... you know the one. It goes "If The Cure were actually a French Surf band and they first released "A Forest" in 2010, what would they sound like?" Well, here is the answer.

Townes Van Zandt - "Waiting Around To Die"

Townes Van Zandt was a Texas folk-country singer songwriter who never found the success he deserved. His cult status stayed with him until his death in 1997. His career was littered with setbacks, with many of them self inflicted because of his alcohol and drug addictions. There was shock treatment for his bipolar disorder early on and a few years before his death he had signed his whole catalogue over to his third wife and their children during their separation... which left him broke and living on what he earned from concerts, and they were mostly in dive bars at this point. His drug and alcohol problems also contributed to his death at the age of 52. "Waitin' around to die" was his first single and came from his debut album 'For the Sake of the Song' released in 1968. It is about the life of a rambler and his troubles from an abusive father, to time in prison and the obvious drug and alcohol problems.... which could've been seen as biographical years later, due to his own drug abuse.



"Waiting Around To Die" Lyrics


Sometimes I don't know where
this dirty road is taking me
sometimes I can't even see the reason why
I guess I keep a-gamblin'
lots of booze and lots of ramblin'
it's easier than just waitin' around to die


One time, friends, I had a ma
I even had a pa
he beat her with a belt once 'cause she cried
She told him to take care of me
headed down to Tennessee
it's easier than just waitin' around to die


I came of age and I found a girl
in a Tuscaloosa bar
She cleaned me out and hit in on the sly
I tried to kill the pain, bought some wine
and hopped a train
seemed easier than just waitin' around to die


A friend said he knew
where some easy money was
we robbed a man, and brother did we fly
the posse caught up with me
and drug me back to Muskogee
it's two long years I've been waitin' around to die


Now I'm out of prison
I got me a friend at last
he don't drink or steal or cheat or lie
His name's Codeine
he's the nicest thing I've seen
together we're gonna wait around and die
together we're gonna wait around and die

Kimbra - "Settle Down (Live SXSW 2012)"

I first posted the original version of this song on this blog in January 2011 but this version just has to be heard. I am not surprised at all about her impending international success, regardless of it being on the back of the Gotye single. Partly because she had already released an album here and was well established as a solo artist before the Gotye single "Somebody That I Used To Know" was released and partly because she has genuine talent. The album 'Vows' is typical of a talented singer/songwriter still finding her feet. There are some exceptional moments and some others not so. To the unfamiliar, other than the Gotye hit, it may be hard to be convinced she isn't just jumping on the Gotye bandwagon... but to the familiar, the timing may be fortunate but she is worthy of the hype. Well, you be the judge. Here are two classic examples of her talent. First up is "Settle Down" live from SXSW with great vocal looping on stage... or, um, on the lawn. That is followed by "Plain Gold Ring" which was recorded live at Sing Sing studios and it is another brilliant performance, this time with a band. She comes across like a jazzy R&B P.J.Harvey by the end of this one. Stunning! I've also added the original "Settle Down" video because it is so good.



Kimbra - "Plain Gold Ring" Live at Sing Sing Studios



Kimbra - "Settle Down"

Meiko - "Leave The Lights On"

"Leave The Lights On" by American singer/songwriter Meiko is close to the perfect pop song. It has all the attributes a hit single needs... on second thought, it does lack the blandness of many mainstream hits. I suppose the point I am making is that "Leave The Lights On" could be the best thing on commercial radio. It's from her second album 'The Bright Side' released just recently.

Exitmusic - "Passage"

Exitmusic are a New York four-piece band featuring (husband and wife) Devon Church and Aleska Palladino. They are obviously Radiohead fans (who isn't?) because their band name comes from a Radiohead song. It turns out that Aleska is also an actress and has a part in Boardwalk Empire. Exitmusic have been a real find for me... they tick all the boxes. Their debut album 'Passage' has just been released on the Secretly Canadian label. The title track has an eerie atmosphere that could be described as a more bleak Beach House with some Portishead similarities. It is so cinematic... it could be the soundtrack to the cold misty winter's day we had today.

The Sex Pistols - "God Save The Queen"

Okay, no more depressing talk about unemployment figures and being in the doledrums. All is forgotten because we have a long weekend ahead of us. It is Queen's Birthday Weekend in New Zealand... so we've got someone to thank for that. Oh, and I think she may be celebrating a diamond jubilee. God Save the Queen.

The Chills — "Doledrums"

The latest worldwide unemployment figures make depressing reading. I think the word of the year for 2012 will be "Austerity"... we hear it many times every day, whether it is at local government, national or international level, it seems nowhere is exempt. So instead of trying to be positive about the situation... how about a song about being unemployed.