Ahh! Monica!

Ohh! Monica!

Don't you wonder sometimes, 'bout sound and vision?

Is it just me, or have big, expensive hi-fi systems become far less trendy status symbols? Obviously download-able music has become commonplace, and in doing so, it has made the CD player an unnecessary device for many. But it seems that the iPod/iPhone/iEverything age has made the huge sound system (with "mega bass" and speakers that are 5 ft high proudly displayed in the lounge/chill out room; the type of thing you could win on The Price Is Right or buy from shops like Quantum) a tragic, 90s, middle-class embarrassment. It used to be impressive but now it's a little bit sad.

These days, you're "with it" if you can fit your entire music and DVD collection onto your 6000GB iPod video that also connects to the internet better than any computer ever could.

I'm sure this observation is nothing you haven't all thought of before, but it just struck me over the weekend while I was looking for a new CD player. How quickly the grand becomes tacky.

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Also, how funny is the word "Ghetto Blaster"?! It's so descriptive of a classic stereotype (pun not intended but certainly approved). It is not used to play music but to "blast the ghetto". And it's great how, in the 80s, everyone seemed to refer to "ghetto blasters" without even a hint of irony. And how old people still called CD players "ghetto blasters" or "boom boxes", even until recently!

I don't know how to like these bands

Not that I feel like I have to like them, but the following are very popular, critically acclaimed, successful bands that I just don't get. I guess there's no great mystery as to why I don't like them; it's just not my type of music, but I'm sure everyone has their own equivalent list, so I'll share mine anyway.

The Foo Fighters
Somehow, for me, any Foo Fighters' song sounds like it's been playing for about 10 minutes, regardless of its actual length. They've got an impressive discography but I just don't think I'll ever like them.

Kiss
It is beyond me why this band is so huge. They're nothing but an overblown gimmick. For most of these bands it's a case of "it's not you... it's me"; but with Kiss, I think it's them.

Nine Inch Nails
Most people have nothing but good things to say about Trent Reznor and his music. I can see how innovative he is. I like 'Head Like A Hole'. But that's about it. What am I missing with this band?

Beastie Boys
I like a bit of 80s hip hop (De La Soul, Public Enemy are great!) but I don't think I've ever enjoyed a Beastie Boys song. I didn't even go through a brief faze of liking them.

Arctic Monkeys
Time will eventually tell us if these guys are the real deal, but I'm willing to take a stab and say "no, they are not". "Chav rock" doesn't really appeal to me, and I think they're one of many hyped up British bands that no one will remember in ten years. I thought The Libertines were a better band.

It feels good to get that out there. Anyone else want to confess?

Keep It Hid

I highly recommend the debut solo album by Black Keys singer and guitarist Dan Auerbach. It's a very solid and surprisingly diverse collection of songs and you instantly get the impression that the Bach is loving the freedom of not doing a Black Keys album (not that there's anything wrong with that) . Keep It Hid opens with the gospel-tinged 'Trouble Weighs A Ton' and followed by the rocking 'I Want Some More', you have to wonder where on earth this album is taking you. The tracks draw their influence from various genres, including country, gospel, and 70s rock; but it's clear that Dan Auerbach has a genuine love for blues music. If this all sounds a bit 'adult contemporary', like something Ray Lamontagne would release - fear not! There's enough fuzzy, dirty guitar and psychedelic moments to steer this album well out of the path of bland, flavour of the month mediocrity. There's enough Black Keyishness (goodness me, what a painful description) to please fans of that band but not too much to make this project a pointless exercise.

The Bach has an awesome voice; so textured, whatever that means. Also, at times (especially in the Black Keys), he sounds like he's singing into a tin can, but in a good way. Apparently some of the lyrics for this album were written by his dad, although there's nothing in the liner notes that confirms it (EDIT: Yes there is! 'Whispered Words' by Charles Auerbach). Keep It Hid should not be kept hidden but... made visible? Kept in the clear? Whatever, just give it a listen.

Great Opening Tracks

Some albums kick off with a smash hit single, dedicate the next three or four tracks to singles and then get progressively worse with every track after that. In that context, of course the first song on the album is going to be a "great opening track"; this isn't what I'm talking about. I think a great opening track has to be a part of a great album. While, on one level, it will have the honour of being a first impression of an album full of equally good songs, it will also be irreplaceable as the opening track; perfectly placed.

Here are some of the most memorable opening tracks:

Break On Through (To The Other Side) - The Doors (The Doors)
I can't describe why, but this song would be a good start to any album. It's such a short, sharp, punchy, aggressively catchy song!

Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan (Highway 61 Revisited)
This song stands alone on it's own merit, but within the context of Highway 61 Revisited, it is an awesome achievement.

Come Together - The Beatles (Abbey Road)
Here's an example of the softer, perhaps riskier, opening to an album.

London Calling - The Clash (London Calling)
Those steady, urgent opening chords...

Thunder Road - Bruce Springsteen (Born To Run)
By the time this song is finished, you are left totally pumped for whatever else the Boss has to throw at you in this album. You don't even care that the next track isn't half as good.

Debaser - Pixies (Doolittle)
I love how the album starts with a just a bass line, and then blasts into wild, catchy, addictive, glory. The order that the songs are in on Doolittle (the best Pixies album without a doubt) is pure genius.

Fight Test - The Flaming Lips (Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots)
This concept(?) album begins wonderfully with an accidental Cat Stevens rip-off that will be familiar to many.

Wouldn't It Be Nice - The Beach Boys (Pet Sounds)
Now, I'm not much of a Pet Sounds fan and I'm definitely not a Beach Boys fan but this song deserves its place in great opening track history.

Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels) - Arcade Fire (Funeral)
It's great how this song builds in intensity until it has reached the powerful sound that will sustain the rest of the album.

Hourly, Daily - You Am I (Hourly, Daily)
This is strange: an acoustic little ditty, opening up a classic Oz rock album? Yes, and it works perfectly. I suppose you could call this a semi-concept album (the whole album takes place over a day... not that the length is 24 hours... you know what I mean). The title track serves as a prologue to Good Mornin', and I often remember the lyrics "don't let there be something sour in my coffee, fourteen year olds are screaming 'get out of my country'".

Can you think of any others?

A Five Year Crash Course In Music

I would like to point you in the direction of this blog. It's an ambitious project by someone called Ang, attempting to listen to and review a classic album every week for the next five years. This year is devoted to the 60s; next year, the 70s, and so on.

I like it because, quite often, she is reviewing an album with a fresh pair of ears. Sometimes, I find it more interesting if someone is writing about something after hearing it for the first time, rather than being an expert. She's picked many great albums, so it will be quite an educational five years.

Concert Reviews

I went to see Ben Kweller last night. He was excellent. But I'm not going to write about it because I've realised, I don't like concert reviews. There's nothing a review can convey, that comes close to being at the concert; you might get an idea of the set list and you can read about the vibe, but you can't experience it. Unlike a movie or album review, you can't read a review of a concert and then decide to go and see it (you sort of can if it's on two nights, but it's not the same concert is it?).

What do people think of concert reviews?

Smog Lyrics Part I

I'm not sure how much of a market there is for this, but I'm going to do a series attempting to interpret Smog lyrics. He writes some weird but evocative phrases.
Here's the first installment:

'Cold Discovery' from the album Dongs of Sevotion.

And though your teeth have gnashed through death
Still you come to me so gently
And find a soft place on your body
And rub me with it

Of this I won't soon forget
You're the one that will remain
You're the one that will remain

Bust a lock with a rock
Don't need a key to have me
This was your cold discovery

We needed a fever then we needed a cure
The bait no longer lured
Say goodbye quick as you can
A car waits for me just across the border

Wish me luck no good luck no bad luck
Just wish me luck in my cold discovery
That you are gone
My cold discovery
That you're the one
That will remain

Oh I can hold a woman
Down on a hardwood floor
Oh I can hold a woman
Down on a hardwood floor
And her teeth can gnash right through me
Looking for a soft place
And of this you won't soon forget
I had no soft place for you to rest
And this was your cold discovery

I can hold a woman
Down on a hardwood floor
I can hold a woman
Down on a hardwood floor
And this was my cold discovery

Few saw it for what it really was

I think this song is about someone coming to terms with the fact that they are emotionally hardened and incapable of a loving relationship. It hints that the relationship may have been an abusive one. There is a contrast between soft and hard; the woman is associated with both softness and hardness ("And though your teeth have gnashed through death/Still you come to me so gently/And find a soft place on your body/And rub me with it") while the man is characterised as hardness alone ("bust a lock with a rock", "hardwood floor", "I had no soft place for you to rest"). The song's view of a functional relationship seems to be that both members need to compliment each other's hardness with the softness that they also possess. If a member of this relationship has only hardness then they cannot compliment the other person.

The woman's "cold discovery" is realising that her lover is emotionally incompatible with her, and does not have the compassion to soften the hardened parts of her personality. The man's "cold discovery" is the realisation that he is like this. He discovers that he is to blame for the failure of the relationship, that although the woman's "teeth can gnash right through him", she still has a softer side. His cold discovery is that cannot say this about himself, which is why the woman is the one that will remain, while he must leave ("a car waits for me just across the border").

The line "I can hold a woman down on a hardwood floor" implies that the man has abused the strength he has over the woman. I don't think it's referring to rape; I get the impression it's about an argument gone too far, that the man is realising how violent he is capable of being. This is the point where they both make a "cold discovery", and the relationship collapses. The man is now in a situation where he must confront the truth about himself. He wants some sort of closure to the relationship but knows he cannot ask for much, after what he has done ("Wish me luck no good luck no bad luck/Just wish me luck in my cold discovery").

The last line is the man's confession of why the relationship ended. That few saw it for what it really was but he admits the blame must rest solely on his hardened shoulders. It's a confronting song.

Eclectic? Really?

A lot of people use the word "eclectic" to describe their taste in music. What this usually means, is that they like rock and/or pop music. Is it really eclectic to listen to Metallica and Jack Johnson? They're both expressions of popular music and both have been played on Top 40 radio. They might not sound the same, but they are both influenced to some degree by blues music, and I don't think they're that far apart, in terms of their genre. Surely, for a music collection to be truly labelled "eclectic", it would need to contain music as broad as classical baroque, jazz, Peking opera, traditional Celtic folk songs, Indigenous Australian music, and Western contemporary music.

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with listening to a limited area of music; I have a very limited taste, and nearly all the CDs I have would fall comfortably within the "alternative rock/pop" pigeon hole. I'm just pointing out that it's not eclectic.

Modern Britpop

I'm finding the latest wave of Britpop (I know Britpop died when Oasis released 'Be Here Now' but it's still a cool term) to be quite bland and uninspiring. Bands like The Kooks, Kaiser Chiefs, Razorlight, Babyshambles, Franz Ferdinand, The Cribs, The Fratellis, Arctic Monkeys etc... They all sound alike and their sound isn't that great. It seems the days of interesting British bands are over (for the time being anyway). Pulp, Blur, Supergrass etc were good bands with character. Jarvis Cocker was a character (still is), but the members of these current bands all seem like twats (to use the vernacular).

Can anybody recommend some good, new British music?

American Hardcore

The other night I watched American Hardcore, a documentary on the hardcore/punk scene in early 80s America. It's basically just fragmented interviews with people like Henry Rollins and Ian Mackaye, with some live footage of prominent bands. A few things occurred to me when I watched it:

1. I would have been ecstatic about this film about 10 years ago. I loved this music when I was a teenager, but as far as I was aware, there was limited access to American hardcore bands in Tassie. Now, I don't have as much interest in it.

2. All of the hardcore guys that were interviewed, said that they were sick of rock music and thought that punk was boring. They thought that most music had become too generic and they wanted to do something different. What they didn't acknowledge is that most of the hardcore bands from that scene sounded exactly the same! The Circle Jerks, Minor Threat, 7 Seconds... there's not a lot of variety.

3. These guys prided themselves on not being able to play their instruments and just making loud, fast noise. However, this film implied that there was a general consensus that Bad Brains were a highly respected hardcore band on the scene because of their music ability and tightness as a band...

4. It's funny to see men in their 50s that are still trying to be punk; still dressing and acting the same way they did when they were 18. Most of these guys came across as huge nerds. Except for Henry Rollins, whom you wouldn't dare call any kind of name.

The best Kings of Leon album

Is Youth and Young Manhood. I don't think they've been able to match the quality of songs on this, their debut album. The Kings have a raw, swampy sound that I'm sure many other bands wish they could replicate. If you are thinking about buying a Kings of Leon album, this is the one to get.

Aha Shake Heartbreak - Not bad. The whole album sounds great, but there aren't as many memorable tunes, as there are on Manhood.

Because of the Times - On this album, the boys went for a more sonic vibe, and it works pretty well. Half of the songs on here are brilliant ('Fans', 'Arizona', 'The Runner', 'On Call'), the rest of the album is decent but not super.

Only by the Night - A grand attempt, and you have to give them credit for trying out a different sound. The songs tick all the boxes but they didn't make me want to re-play them. In my opinion, what made them so exciting on Youth and Young Manhood, is not present on this album (something that I can't really back up, because this album is by far their biggest hit. Clearly I'm in the minority).

La Blogotheque's Take-Away Shows

I don't usually post links or videos here, at least not on their own. But if you haven't seen any of the Take-Away Shows, then you simply must do so.
From the website:

Every week, we invite an artist or a band to play in the streets, in a bar, a park, or even in a flat or in an elevator, and we film the whole session. Of course, what makes the beauty of it is all the little incidents, hesitations, and crazy stuff happening unexpectingly. Besides, we do not edit the videos so they look perfectly flawless, instead we keep the raw sound of the surroundings. Our goal is to try and capture instants, film the music just like it happens, without preparation, without tricks. Spontaneity is the keyword.

Some of the notable appearances have been from Beirut, Sufjan Stevens, Jose Gonzales, Fleet Foxes, The Shins... whoever picks them has fine taste.

Here's the website
and here's their YouTube channel

PrYdEri'S LiMp bIzKiT PaGe

Sometimes if I'm doing a bit of research for this blog, I stumble on all sorts of music related websites. Some of them are very minimal, with no links, no nothing. Like a church website. More often, if I'm searching for song lyrics, I'll end up on a site that is completely cluttered by advertising that surrounds the tiny bit of information that the site was set up for. I'll be tempted with offers of ring tones, online blackjack tournaments, and "singles in your area", and about 5 extra pages will spring up from nowhere.

What I don't see so much of are fan pages like this. These DIY websites were very popular when I was about 15 and are now a thing of the past; partly because of blogs, partly because they're crap. Check out PrYdEri'S LiMp bIzKiT PaGe. It's not mine, at least I don't think it is - it doesn't look like it's been updated since 1998 so I suppose it's possible I made it and forgot about it. But I was never a huge fan of Limp Bizkit (weren't they great?), so that's unlikely. I love the lowercase/uppercase teen angst writing, and the fact that every page has about one item with "more to come soon" promised. It's been 10 years, and we're still waiting.

Awkward Bushfire Relief Concert

I got this idea from a Facebook status of Tracey's. Midnight Oil and Kings of Leon will be playing at a fundraising concert at the MCG in March for the bushfire victims. 'Beds are Burning' and 'Sex on Fire' are two big hits that will surely be performed... is that a good idea?

Here are some other potentially awkward songs for a bushfire concert:

Elvis Presley - Burning Love
Talking Heads - Burning Down the House The awful Tom Jones/Cardigans cover would be even worse.
Bruce Springsteen - I'm On Fire
Bloodhound Gang - Fire Water Burn Imagine how the refrain of this song would go down...
Arrow - Hot Hot Hot The disco vibe of this song would make it doubly inappropriate!
Deep Purple - Smoke on the Water
The Doors - Light My Fire
Johnny Cash - Ring of Fire
Jesus and Mary Chain - Catch Fire

You should listen to...

Nick Drake - Bryter Layter



Some people have called this the ugly duckling of the Nick Drake trilogy. I can kind of see why; besides the hideous album cover, there's a lot of weird instrumentation on this album and it doesn't have the trademark Drake glumness. It has quite a 70s sound, and it borders on being, perhaps too 70s. But Bryter Layter is a very solid album with some wonderful songs. There's a lot more to it than the much praised Pink Moon, in my opinion. It opens with a cinematic sounding instrumental track and the songs remain surprisingly upbeat throughout. I can understand why this album's sound might grate with some, but I think it's right up there with Drake's other stuff (on par with Pink Moon but not as good as Five Leaves Left). If people have put you off this album, it's worth giving it a go anyway.

By the way, if you haven't heard them, you should definitely listen to Nick Drake's other two albums as well.

Ethnic Parody Bands

If you like stereotypes, terrible puns, and music - something you can lose a lot of sleep over, is trying to think of potential ethnic parody bands. Here are some that Nick G and I created.

Italian 80s pop/rock band - Mario Speedwagon

Japanese post-punk band - Sushi and the Banshees

African soft rock AM radio number one hit making duo - Zaire Supply

Orthodox Jewish metal band, quite big in the late nineties - Fear Phylactery

Communist Russian hillbilly southern hard rock band - Lenin Skynyrd

Traditional Greek indie band - Smash Your Plates Say Yeah

Dutch rock band (inexplicably) big in the nineties - Counting Croquettes

Belgian alternative/folk punk band - Violent Flems

Arab rock from the 70s - The Dubai Brothers

Zimbabwean fascist post punk band - Mugazi

Militant Colombian hip hop - FARC da Police

Cheesy Indian folk group - Mumbai Ya

Godly ManCrush

Here's a song that Aaron Johnstone and I wrote at the Tasmanian Christian Convention, over the new year. It was recorded by Anthony Rochester at the Winter Palace. It took me a bloody long time to work out how to get it to play on my blog, but hopefully it will. Let me know if it doesn't work.

Just to give the song a bit of context: it was written for a "talent" night at the aforementioned convention and is about one of the speakers, Paul Harrington. And it's called 'Godly ManCrush'.

Singers that are an acquired taste

Sometimes it takes a little while to warm to a singer's voice. For example:

Bob Dylan - The classic. So many people can't get over his voice; they see it as an obstacle to overcome, in order to get to the music. I actually love it - even the weird "lay lady lay" variant.

Neil Young - Sounds a little bit like Kermit the frog but his voice adds so much emotion to the songs.

Kate Bush - I can remember hating her voice when I first heard it; I thought it sounded so over the top. Now I think it's brill.

Ben Kweller - It took me a while to get into his music because it sounded to me like he was putting on that singing voice. I'm used to his voice now, and I think he's pretty genuine.

Joanna Newsom - Sort of sounds like she could be deaf, or a bit special, if you know what I mean. Her odd voice adds an interesting texture to her music (which is already interesting enough).

Anyone that's a little bit country.

Great Final Songs

By "great final songs", I don't mean just a good song that happens to be the final track on the album. I'm referring to good songs that are a fitting end to the album; songs that seem to know what the previous 10 or so songs have been doing.

An album's closing song is, quite often, a bit different to the rest of the album. Sometimes it foreshadows the sound of the next album. I think the perfect final song has to be in response to a near perfect album. Otherwise it's just a good song, and you could just download it from iTunes.

Here are some great final songs that spring to mind:

Mothers Of The Disappeared - U2, The Joshua Tree
Although the big hits are found at the beginning of this classic album, it still finishes strongly with this mesmerising song.

Find The River - REM, Automatic For The People
This album finishes on a great note thanks to this beautiful song.

Indifference - Pearl Jam, VS
A great rock album and one of the finest things to come out of the grunge era; Pearl Jam's 'VS' closes with a slightly eerie, depressing but excellent song. Musically, this album is reasonably varied so it doesn't seem out of place at all.

Rock n Roll Suicide - David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust
This song has a very conclusive vibe to it. The opening chords sound so perfect after the big riff based rock tracks that precede it. Lyrically, it is a great epilogue to the album's story. Probably my favourite Bowie song.

A Day In The Life - The Beatles, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
This would have to be high up on any "best closing tracks of all time" list. After you hear this song, it doesn't matter how many silly songs there are on this album, 'A Day In The Life' redeems them.

You Can't Always Get What You Want - The Rolling Stones, Let It Bleed
An epic ballad - always a great way to close an album. This perfect album finishes as strongly as at starts (Gimme Shelter), with one of the Rolling Stone's best.

Street Spirit (Fade Out) - Radiohead, The Bends
This is probably one of the most sombre songs ever recorded. But it brings the album to a close, leaving you a little bit numb in the process.

Desolation Row - Bob Dylan, Highway 61 Revisited
An 11 minute, heavily poetic, exercise in surrealism would not be the average person's choice to put on the end of a rock n roll album. But it works brilliantly. I reckon it's a better song than 'Like a Rolling Stone'.

Can you think of any others?

Drag your blanket blindly

Most of the time, writing music or being "in a band", is considered cool. It doesn't matter what kind of job you have; you can be a doctor, lawyer, shelf-stacker, plumber, prostitute - you can still do music on the side. In fact, if you're serious about making music, it will alter people's perceptions of your crummy job; if you work at a supermarket but write songs on the side, your choice of occupation is justified because you clearly have a passion. If you just work at a supermarket and don't aspire to anything else then you're considered a loser/bum/loserbum.

It seems an exception however, if you are a church minister or a youth pastor and you do a bit of songwriting or band practise on the side, then your credibility crumbles. A guitar playing pastor just seems painfully uncool. I think there are few reasons for this:

1. With any other job you have the convenience of being able to say that music is more important to you than your profession, i.e. "I don't like my job that much, I just do it to enable myself to play music". You can't really do that if you're a pastor, and you'd have to question the motives of any pastor that gives up his church in order to focus more on his band. With a pastor, music will always be a secondary passion, and I suppose this makes it seem less genuine.

2. I automatically think of the most cheesy, middle-aged, Hawaiian shirt-wearing pastor that's ever lived. If you do that, it's easy to assume that any pastor is just using music to try to feel young again.

3. Pastors are Christians, therefore they will be in Christian bands. And Christian bands are terrible.

4. Some people are suspicious of church workers, so they might think there's an agenda attached to their musical hobby. And some of the time, this might actually be the case.