Spice Girls and Pavarotti

Check out this performance of Pav and the Spice Girls. It's bizarre. It sounds like Pav is trying to blow them off the stage with a completely different song.

Emo

Angus shares the ingredients of a good emo song. I might try writing one sometime.

You should listen to...

Beth Orton - Central Reservation


This is a bit of an old favourite that I've been listening to heaps recently and have not yet gotten sick of. It's such a good album. Beth Orton is a talented songwriter but she also has such a mesmerising voice - it's very difficult to turn off her music. Maximum recommendations.

State Songs #2 - Alaska

Stephanie Says - The Velvet Underground

I'd love to go to Alaska, it looks awesome. It seems like it would be one of the most beautiful but bleak places on earth. A bit like this song, funnily enough. 'Stephanie Says' is a really pretty sounding pop song but it has a tone of isolation and disconnection. I think the song is about a girl that's grown so numb and tired of life and human interaction that she's basically living in Alaska - in her mind. The cold climate of Alaska is likened to her outlook and mood.

But she's not afraid to die
the people all call her Alaska
Between worlds so the people ask her
'Cause it's all in her mind
it's all in her mind
They're asking is it good or bad
It's such an icy feeling
It's so cold in Alaska

If my interpretation has any merit, then Alaska is seen as a state of mind, which I think is pretty cool. It seems like a place where there's no reprieve from the cold and the bitter elements of winter - a bit like Hobart gone wrong. The literal meaning of "Alaska" (in the Eskimo dialect from which the word originates) is "the object towards which the action of the sea is directed." Pretty grim place then.

I'm curious about other people's interpretations of this song. Have a listen to it.

State Songs #1 - Alabama

(I'm going alphabetically)



Alabama - Neil Young

There were a few songs I could have picked. Most obviously, 'Alabama Song' - which The Doors and David Bowie have both recorded and 'Sweet Home Alabama' (by Lynyrd Skynyrd), which was partly inspired by the song I ended up choosing. 'Sweet Home Alabama' was written in response to Neil Young's 'Alabama' and 'Southern Man' - two songs about racism in the south. These are the songs that are referred to in the verse:

"Well I heard Mr Young sing about her
Well I heard ol' Neil put her down
Well I hope Neil Young will remember
A southern man don't need him around anyhow"

I chose to dedicate Neil Young's song to Alabama, mainly because I like it more. Also because it is written from the point of view of a visitor (Neil Young is from Canada), as I have never set foot in Alabama, it seems more appropriate to pick a song coming from that point of view. I identify more with this song because it is pointing out something that needs fixing. To me, cities, nations, states etc are nothing more than communities of people - they are not something that should be glorified and praised just because you were born there and despite anything dodgy that might happen there. And that seems to be what 'Sweet Home Alabama' is about. It's a fun song but it has an air of blind patriotism that misses the point of Neil Young's 'Alabama'.

Do you like American music? (I like all kinds of music)

At our house the other day, Joel was trying to name all 50 US states. He just about managed to do it, with the help of a few generous clues. During this spontaneous, geographical quiz (not nerdy at all), it occurred to me how familiar all of the names of these places were. Even for someone that's only spend 4-5 days in the USA, these place names trigger some significance, because they are so often mentioned in the songs we listen to and the movies we watch. Thanks to modern cultural history, hearing the name of an American state in a song gives it a form of romanticism; it gives a folk song instant authenticity. This cannot be said of Australian place names, at least, it's much harder to name-drop an Australian town without sounding like John Williamson or be taken seriously. Not many would bother writing a song like "Launceston Blues" or "Love in Maribyrnong" (Paul Kelly probably has written these songs, I'm not sure).

Songs about European cities don't have the same effect either. Perhaps it's too pretentious to write about a weekend you spent in Rome or Prague. Or perhaps these places come laden with too long a history; connotations that would override the song itself.

Given that so many people have written songs about America, I've decided to find a song for each US state. The song can either be about a state or it can simply mention it in passing (which should make it a bit easier). Stay tuned for my first state dedication.

Walking Songs

Plenty of crusty compilation CDs have been released with titles like "The Best Ever Driving (bogan) Songs". The concept of driving songs has been discussed to death, but you don't often hear about walking songs. Some songs are really good for walking.

There's a definite type of song that I like to walk to. The song doesn't have to be about walking, but it usually will be about thinking or reflecting - things that happen when you walk by yourself. Most often, walking songs will be slower than driving songs. That makes a lot of sense because the average human will be slower than the average car (you heard it here first!). Apart from that, I can't quite put my finger on why some songs are better for walking than others... I think it helps if the singer is walking in the video clip.

Here are some songs I like to tune into when I walk:

The Wanderer - U2 and Johnny Cash
Streets of Philadelphia - Bruce Springsteen
Ain't Talkin' - Bob Dylan
Under the Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Moonlight Mile - Rolling Stones
Have You Ever Seen the Rain?* - CCR
California Dreamin' - The Mamas and the Papas
The Unforgettable Fire - U2
Downbound Train - Bruce Springsteen

Does anyone else have any walking classics?

*Yes I have.

Pfft. Amateurs!

Not to sound like a snob, but I hate it how actors in amateur musicals (and other theatrical productions - I just said musicals to keep this in theme with the rest of my blog) put on grotesquely exaggerated Australian accents - often in bits that are meant to be funny. The UniRevue is a case in point. Why do they do this? Does it happen naturally when they project their voice? Or are they under the misapprehension that the voice is funny? No one talks like that; even the most boganic of creatures would turn their nose up if they encountered someone speaking with that kind of voice.

I'm Your Man

In this song,

If you want a lover
I'll do anything you ask me to
And if you want another kind of love
I'll wear a mask for you

Do you think Leonard Cohen is referring to S&M? Or is he saying "if you want to sleep with someone else, I will turn a blind eye"?

You should listen to...

Sufjan Stevens - Illinois


It's a very long album and, as a result, it's rather overwhelming for the first couple of listens. On the flip side, you can listen to it many times and half of the songs still seem new. It really does grow on you. There are some fantastic songs on here but the most rewarding experience comes from listening to the entire thing because it flows so well as an album. Some of the musical arrangement is quite bizarre (Nick Gross said it sounds like music from a musical - which I think is an accurate description) but it quickly becomes normal and you have to take a step back to realise how weird the album actually is. The highlights for me are 'John Wayne Gacy Jnr.", an almost uncomfortably sad song about the serial killer, and 'The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out To Get Us!', which I think summarises the genius of the album, and is almost a mini-album in itself. But these songs really sound better if you hear them within the context of the whole CD. Another point of note: Sufjan Stevens is a Christian and you can hear traces of his faith in his lyrics but he's not some sort of Michael W Smith type. This is 'Christian music' that won't make you cringe.

Bono and U2

A lot of people seem to hate Bono. I don't really get it. Yeah, he talks about Africa an awful lot but everyone has their hobby-horse. Some people think he's arrogant; I don't get that impression. He has charisma - that's not arrogance. I've always thought he seems genuinely down to earth when he's interviewed. I guess he has an inflated ego but most rock stars do.

Here are some reasons why I think people don't like Bono:

- People don't like preachers. Paying $200 for a U2 ticket to listen to Bono rant about third world debt isn't something the average consumer wants to deal with.

- He makes people feel guilty. They feel uncomfortable being asked to give money to charities. Instead, they would rather say things like "if Bono gave half his money to Africa then there wouldn't be a problem". He might live an indulgent lifestyle, but he gives a heap of money to charity and spends a lot of his time being an advocate and instigator - more than most celebrities do. Even if he could feed the entire planet for decades with his loose change, why should it be up to one man to do so?

- They think he is fake. People can't comprehend that someone might want to care for human rights in other countries without having some sort of ulterior motive. They just don't believe he could be genuine.

- He has opinions. Strong opinions. Sometimes controversial opinions. Opinions on God, on politics, on humanity. People don't like that.

- His sunglasses. Some people don't like those.

Anyway, I like Bono. I think he's a good bloke. I reckon this Bono-bashing has led to people discrediting his music. It's certainly not very 'cool' to like U2 these days; they're often dismissed as a massively commercial talentless stadium-pop band. They're not an unpopular band, obviously. Millions of people like them, but the average music snob probably doesn't rate them very highly. U2 aren't my favourite band but there's no escaping the fact that Achtung Baby was a great, original and groundbreaking album, or that The Joshua Tree was one of the best albums of the last 30 years. The U2 of the 80s and early 90s were a very daring, exciting and talented band. People tend to overlook this now because they don't like Bono.

I'd be curious to hear other people's thoughts on Bono. Do you like him? Or is he annoying?

New Blog

In case anyone's interested, I've started another blog. It's about movies and can be found here. I still plan to update this one from time to time, so stick around.