Hope your day was lovely, safe and warm. Ours involved:
early rising
wonderful and thoughtful presents given from and to brothers
a wonderful lazy flurry of snow in the morning
tasty French toast with buttery, spiced pears and apples
a toasty day-long fire
the usual putting together of stuff that took longer than expected
leftovers for lunch (see the putting together part)
a trip to the urgent care to confirm (sort of) second case of strep in the house this week and then finding a pharmacy that was open
A big ole standing rib roast with a garlic/horseradish/herb paste along with roasted potatoes, mushrooms, garlic and onions, haricort verts and red peppers and a salad topped with pomegranates and pine nuts.
And of course, there was still plenty of rocking going on!
Anyone who knows me, knows that I am sentimental sap when it comes to Christmas. More specifically when it comes to the whole holiday season beginning with Thanksgiving, running through Christmas with the lazy winding down to the new year. I love everything about it (just about). I love all of our family traditions from our tree raising traditions, to cookie making, to train and light watching, to the music and cooking, to the actual day of Christmas itself. And then all the little things seem to be all the better during this season.
A fresh dusting of snow is somehow a bit more magical in December. The slanting low light in the late afternoon as the sun settles in and the lights emerge for the long dark night. Fires somehow seem a bit more romantic. And clementines--I love clementines in December after a warm meal, but before the cookies! Okay, so I really am a sap.
Now that said, I realize that lately the I don't enjoy the season as much as I used to and have wondered why. But this past week as The Captain struggled with a bout of bronchitis, I realized what the answer was (and how obvious and predictable it was). See, he came down with it the night before we got a few inches of snow last week--the first of the year. And as we all headed out to work and school, I was cheering him up saying that he got to hang out at home, cuddled on the couch by the tree and watch the snow come down and it reminded me of a Christmas my sister and I were both sick the week before Christmas and how much fun we had in the long run being home that week--yes even illness is better at Christmas.
The point was that I realized I used to spend a good deal of time basking in the things I love about the season and now I spend most time running from one moment to the next. That is, of course, the natural reality of working and having a family who all have activities as well, but it gave me pause and made me realize that even with all that happens in our busy lives, there is time to be had. Now that time comes at the expense of other things--namely not trying to get everything done and done perfectly--but that is really worth it particularly when it comes to slowing down and focusing on what is important.
I don't mean avoiding all the hustle and bustle--that is in some way very much a part of the charm of the season--but rather setting some things aside for the time being and recognizing that often, less is more.
Terribly obvious and trite, I know, but I thought I would write that down to help me remember. Now will someone kindly send me this post next year just before Thanksgiving next year?!
Hope you all are finding some time and space to bask in the season with your loved ones!
I know that some of you have been seeing all the year-end best of lists that are piling up out there and saying sure I can see Paste’s list or NPR’s or Spin’s, but when, when will we get a list from cpsland? (Actually some of you are probably just wondering if there was ever going to be a post that is about anything other than why I never seem to get around to posting anymore.)
Others are probably thinking that I am cutting it pretty close as you wait for the list so you can do your Christmas music shopping for your loved ones—you are waiting on me, right?
Others are thinking—I guess I could wade back though his blog and find each music review and decide what to buy (after all given how infrequently he posts it shouldn’t take that long), but damn, it would be nice if someone would just remind me of which ones he liked all in one place.
Others are wondering if there aren’t some discs out there that perhaps I have been secretly listening to, but not blogging about (surely this must be the case given his blogging rate as of late).
Others probably just Googled “extravaganza” and randomly ended up here.Welcome.
Okay, so here we go—my short list of albums I would recommend.Some I discussed early this year.Some I have not found time to write about.And there is even a hangover from last year that I never got around to.Bottom line, these are all “albums” that hold together all the way through.
First up, because I don’t think you will see this one on any of the big name lists and I really just love these guys, is Frontier Ruckus with Deadmalls and Nightfalls.I like this album even more now than when I first reviewed it.This is a great gift for most because it is one of those bands that is just getting discovered by more and more folks so you can look like you are on the edge (well, sort of).
Leaving Michigan and heading over to Brooklyn we find two other albums that ate up huge amounts of my listening time this year:The National’s High Violet and The Walkmen’s Lisbon.Both got my attention and admiration earlier this year—here and here--along with everyone else in the universe.But don’t let the success of these albums scare you away, they are both solid from start to finish and will surely be pointed to when people look back and talk about the Brooklyn sound from the early 2000s.
Now in a similar vein as these slacker-esque-indie-singer-song-writer-rock bands (that is a compliment), comes the new album by Deerhunter which I have yet to write about.As you can tell from the reviews over at the big board, Halcyon Digest is a solid album that delivers on its name.As Pitchforknotes, this “is a record about the joy of music discovery, the thrill of listening for the first time to a potential future favorite, and that sense of boundless possibility when you're still innocent of indie-mainstream politics and your personal canon is far from set.”
Speaking of critically acclaimed albums that I have yet to write about, let us not skip over the new Arcade Fire album, Suburbs.I almost didn’t put this on the list, because even though this is clearly their best album to date . . . and in many ways it eliminates some of my ambivalence about this talented group . . . and the angst over everything the suburbs stands for is more in line with my own angst . . . I somehow still feel something holding me back.Perhaps all the praise and first place finishes this album is receiving?Not sure.But the bottom line is that one way or another, this album is worth a listen and no one should be disappointed to find it in their stocking.
Shifting gears to the alt-country side of the world, Justin Townes Earle’s new album, Harlem River Blues, is wonderful.I am not convinced it is good as Midnight at the Movieswhich I loved, but the focus on New York and really the first three songs are just about as good an opening as you could ask for.As PopMatters not so subtly puts it:
It takes balls of steel to write country blues about the Harlem River, living in Brooklyn, and working on the Manhattan subway line as if one were singing about rural life in the Appalachian hollows. Justin Townes Earle confidently writes and performs these 10+ songs as if he’s singing about life back in Tennessee instead of the Big Apple, and does this so damn convincingly that you believe him. It’s a neat trick, and a tribute to Earle’s artistry that he does this so well.
So for you honky-tonkers out there, this is a definite pick-up.
Now at this point, I feel like I am writing an awful lot about albums I love, but haven’t bothered to write about—isn’t that helpful.So let’s jump back to a summer favorite that I have also been recently revisiting and still really enjoy (and isn’t it time for a woman lead in this list any way?).I am speaking, of course, about The Mynabirds, otherwise known as Laura Burhenn and her band.As I noted this summer, this is a wonderful country-gospel-blues Stax-like album with Burhenn imitating just about every female vocalist out there while still holding her own identity.Neat trick—you should check it out.
And speaking of the traditions of jazz, I never wrote about Vijay Iyer’s critically acclaimed album Historicity last year—despite the fact that it topped many a list for the year and is well worth it.This is a complicated and dense album—you will be amazed at the sound a trio can produce, but the point is, you will be amazed.So for any jazz lovers who happened to miss these two great albums—take care of that lack right now.
Okay, so that is definitely enough—I mean really, the staff here is pretty small.There are a bunch of albums I have listened to this year that didn’t make the list—but really it isn’t very holiday-like to write about things not to buy, right?I mean, artists need to earn their keep too.
Here is hoping you all have a great holiday season—even are already having one given how late I am here. Let me know which albums I should have checked out that I didn't--I already have a list going, but would love to hear your thoughts. I will save my resolving to blog more for the new year!
We here in cpsland hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying the beginning of the crazy, fun holiday season. We are in the midst of our traditional holiday launch leaving me considerably off-line although there is some activity over at the Brothers K for family and friends.
Hope all are safe and warm--back soon with some recommendations for musical gifts from this year!
The Sales Job: This is where someone tells you about this session at a conference and how they need someone who has the knowledge and expertise on this ever so complex topic and the only person they could think of was you. “It has to be you. Will you present at our conference?”
“Aw, thanks, I mean, okay, sure” (blush, foot shuffle).
Denial: Stage two immediately ensues and you forget that you have agreed to present.
Mild Irritation: Stage three involves suddenly realizing that a dark cloud has been forming over you and you realize you have been touchy and mildly irritated and you are not sure why until you remember that you have agreed to present at this conference which is only a week a way and you have not done anything to prepare.
Deep Denial: Despite the conference only being a week away you manage to suppress thinking about it under the rationalization that you have far too many pressing things that must get done first.
A Bout of Professionalism: The presentation is only three days a way now and really, it is time to act like the professional you are. So you begin to pull together your notes, check on information, look for new data, but really you have three days yet.
Panic: One day out and it is definitely go time. The reality that you will be in front of folks the next day drives you to get finally it together (kind of).
The Mirror Stage: You present in the next few hours and while you have lots on paper, you really have not said a word out loud and it feels like you are about to deliver the most boring lecture in the world. Yes, it is embarrassing, but you realize that if you don’t practice this thing, you are never going to figure out how to say what you want to say and not be a rambling idiot. So you close the door and give that bad boy a run through which of course leads to frantic revision.
The Jumanji Stage: As you head to the presentation, you begin to invent possible scenarios by which you still will not have to present: A blackout perhaps? Or maybe all conference attendees got food poisoning at lunch? Or perhaps someone was playing Jumanji in the building and the room you are presenting in was overrun by wild animals and no one dares return!
Acceptance: You arrive, no natural catastrophe of fantasy stampede has occurred and there are, in fact, people there to hear what you have to say. You are introduced and now there is nothing to do but accept what you have done and must do.
Schizophrenia: You begin and realize that this is not actually anything that is really all that challenging. You are surprised that people have, in fact, chuckled at the jokes and seem engaged in what you are saying. Then, suddenly, you realize that you are thinking about the fact that you are presenting at the same time that you are presenting which then makes you worried that you are not saying what you think you are and now there is a third layer of meta going on . . . breathe, present.
Relief and Resale: Presentation over and, suddenly, all is better with the world. “That was a great talk, I can’t thank you enough. We could really use you at our conference, do you think you could present for us in a couple of months?”
“Aw, thanks, I mean, okay, sure” (blush, foot shuffle).
For the last several weeks, while this blog has been silent on the matter of music, several discs have been receiving significant listening time here in cpsland, but none has been listened to as much as the latest effort by The Walkmen.Lisbon, which actually came out earlier this fall, is, in this writer’s humble opinion, the best album this band has released to date.
Now some will disagree on the grounds that this album has continued down a path the band has been taking toward slower, sparser, and quieter tunes.True, this album is no Bows and Arrows in terms of rock intensity, but many of the same qualities are still present, just toned down and more nuanced.The songs have more variation and textures, more space and ultimately are more lyrical.
When I first wrote about The Walkmen, I explained that I simply did not get them at first, in part because lead singer Hamilton Leithauser’s approach seemed to always be slightly off—off tune, off tempo—unconnected with the driving music underneath.It was accepting that tension between vocals and music that was key to coming to appreciate what the band was doing.
That tension is still there to a certain extent on Lisbon, but it only in your face here and there on rockers like the opening song “AngelaSurfCity”—which Pitchfork reviewer Tom Breihan puts on the top of the heap of Walkmen songs with “The Rat” and “In the New Year”.More often, that tension is resolving as many of the songs on Lisbon are crafted with the vocals wholly integrated into the song and Leithauser’s singing is simply beautiful (all the while maintaining his edgy, flat. slacker sound).
That is most clear on the back end of the album which slows down with each song.Who would have ever thought these guys would have a song called “Torch Song” (which is actually sung at the pace of a torch song)?They do—and, in fact, they seem to be getting comfortable in this new skin.As Leithauser’s sings in “While I Shovel the Snow,”
For now I’ll take my time For now, I can’t be bothered . . . There is no life like the snow life
That can only mean one thing.There next album is going to be a blazin’ rocker.
Until then, I highly recommend this album with it mix of mid-tempo rockers and slow burners—I predict it will be one that you come back to repeatedly.For samples, I was tempted to give you the closing title track which is a great reflection on the everyday and then that wonderful opening rocker (allowing you to enjoy that wonderful disc-replay- rollover), but decided on two others.
First up is a “Blue as Your Blood” which perhaps reflects best all the band’s talk about the album being influenced by early Sun Record recordings, but more importantly is a great example of the sparseness of many of these songs which also maintain their unique mix of guitar, drums and vocals.And then, I couldn’t help but share that “Torch Song” in which the band seeks a song to slow down all the madness.Leithauser moans that he doesn’t know that song, but, of course we are listening to it.
I have written before about my experiences with movies on planes and the not so subtle messages they seem to send to parents who travel for work. So, today as I left my family to fly to the west coast (again) for work I thought someone was trying to protect me when it became apparent that the headsets in our row didn't work so we would not be able to listen and therefore watch the in-flight movie. Just as well, I was deep into reading Spooner by Pete Dexter. But then I started running into passages like these:
Spooner delivered the town's morning newspapers, beginning two hours before school and in the winter it was often still dark when he finished. Once in a while a garage door would open as he walked past, and he would stop and watch as the car slowly emerged, the wife behind the wheel . . . driving the breadwinner off to the train station. Most everybody worked in Chicago, twenty-odd miles to the northeast. The husbands . . . stared poker-faced out the car windows as their wives backed out of the driveway, expressions deadened into some joyless exhaustion . . . as if the world had been drained of taste and color and even the notion of escape.
Out on the [baseball] field, a boy with an enormous head was laying a fresh chalk line . . .Calmer [the father] thought it wouldn't be such a bad thing to lay chalk lines. He was catching himself at this all the time lately, picturing himself trading jobs, usually for some kind of work that would be finished for the day when it was finished for the day, that would leave him time to rest and read. Other jobs, other lives. It was strange how often it came up.
I thought I might not ever get back to this crazy blog thing, but the reasons aren't all bad. One great reason for being absent is that Neats and I actually stole away for three days in Maine to belatedly celebrate her putting up with me for 20 years of marriage (and a few before that). There was much eating and lazing about, but also some wonderful hiking in the woods up along the coast--and of course, plenty of colors to peep.
It is amazing how even three days seems like such a huge amount of time when you aren't responding to work and kids' schedules and all of life which seems to make the day fly by. It allowed us time to actually have long conversations and talk through life and our kids and the future in a way we felt we hadn't done for years it seemed.
And there was food and wine to slowly enjoy as we talked. If ever in Portland, which was our base, may I recommend:
And at some point, stop in for breakfast at Bantliff's Cafe (and yes order the Lobster Benedict). All of which is why you need to go for long walks during the day which feed your other senses. See.
So anyone who reads this blog knows that I have some particular opinions on food. Some might say that I am even a bit of a snob about food--I like to think it is more about having a semi-refined palate. This most often gets played out in our household when I refuse to stop at fast-food joints when time is tight. The boys all know that I really, really prefer that we don't eat prepared, institutional food and have no problem sharing my opinions on this matter with others.
Now that said, I know that given schedules, it is sometimes almost unavoidable that there are times when fast-food is the answer, but the boys still relish the chance to point out that they got to indulge. As evidence, I offer up two exchanges from this week.
1. At a school event this week:
School Principal to the Engineer: Hey, there is that new Wendy's nearby. I stopped there and had those new spicy chicken nuggets. They were pretty good. Do you like those?
Engineer: My dad doesn't like us to eat fast food.
Nice. The eight-year old giving the school principal some nutritional education.
2. A Wednesday night (note that Wednesday's at our house are crazy as the boys go straight from school to piano lessons and then have to go straight to baseball practice--including a uniform change in the van and I race from work to practice):
The Captain to me after getting home at 8:30 pm after baseball practice (in a gleeful 5-year old voice): Hey Papa, guess where we ate dinner tonight? You're going to be angry! McDonald's!
Well it is autumn--best season of the year. Where the last of the harvest arrives and the colors change and thoughts turn to piles of leaves, stews, fires, jazz and red wine. Oh and all the $#%@# I have to get done. I have one day left of this weekend, here are all the things I should do.
Harvest those last big basil plants, clean, dry and freeze pack it with parsley and oil for winter pesto.
Move two smaller trees from backyard to front in place of the two saplings the deer have already eaten.
Stake all (then) four smaller trees and net them to protect from the stupid deer (perhaps venison stew?).
Change the header on this blog--I mean, c'mon it is really not summer now is it?
Post something, anything, over on the family blog.
Listen to that pile of new discs that just arrived--perhaps while getting the pile of uncased discs people have given me organized into cases with some art work.
Mow the lawn (yeah, right).
Continue to work on list of minor home repairs that need done--Spackle, touch up paint, order new front door hardware, etc.
Call a variety of people back--all about the various upcoming visits that are scheduled.
Try to ignore work.
Review field assignments from The Engineer's baseball game yesterday (he and they rocked!) and put new assignments together for next two games.
Watch final Tigers game of the season.
Attend first play of the season at Imagination Stage with the family (pretty sure that will get done).
Figure out a bit more about what Neats and I are going to do in Maine for our upcoming little get away (besides sleep).
So as you are all aware Dear Readers, there are three boys in this household--ages 10, 8 and almost 6. And really, shouldn't three boys of this age have a dog (or two)? Of course they should. But here is the problem--or more accurately, the two problems.
OK, they aren't problems, they are our cats who we love (of course). That would be Allsop on the left and Dexter on the right. These guys have been with us a loooong time. Allsop is going on 17 and Dex on 19--but both seem to be hanging in there just fine (well, Alls is going blind, but since she sleeps all day it isn't that big of a handicap). We have had them for going on 17 years now since we picked them up at the Humane Society in Salt Lake City and we can't imagine subjecting them to a dog--seems like we would be determining their fate right there.
Now when it comes time for a dog, we will of course be taking a trip to our local Humane Society or equivalent. First, cuz we just really aren't pure bread type of folks. And second, because it is the right thing to do. If you don't believe me, the let OK Go convince you.
So good friend Lisa B. who runs the most awesome hightouchmegastore (HTMS) has been trying to get me to listen to--no, revel in--the music of Rufus Wainwright.So I finally picked up a couple albums, but I just couldn’t make up my mind.So why not go to the expert, right?
CPS:So I finally have a couple Rufus Wainwright album's now: Poses and All Days Are Night: Songs for Lulu. Would you say that these are fairly representative--that is, if someone likes, loves, or dislikes these two albums, can they count on feeling similar about others? Or are these exceptional in any way in your mind?
HTMS:OKAY.
Whoops, didn't mean to do that caps lock thing, but here we go: I would say that Poses is representative of Rufus W.'s songcraft and insouciant lyricism. I would say that Songs for Lulu is more of a departure--it feels like an album of art songs more than pop songs, even though his pop sensibility is there too. I think both are splendid recordings and I really am loving Songs for Lulu.
But Poses is more of a piece with Want One and Want Two, and Release the Stars, I'd say. A song like "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk," for instance, is perhaps the ur-Rufus song--maybe one of his best--and it's on Poses, a recording that can be listened to with pleasure from start to finish (that sentence is just about content free, I think. Sorry about that).
So what are you thinking about Rufus at this point?
CPS: First of all, who said this blog requires content?
Okay, so here is the deal--I am pretty ambivalent, but feeling like that must be due to some deficiency on my part--like I just don't quite get the whole Rufus thing. That said, your first answer here clarifies some things as I much prefer Poses for starters and "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk" is a great tune (when I heard it the first time, I thought I was going to love that album). But before we get into any particular album, a few general reactions about my ambivalence.
First, he has a very unique sounding voice that is all laid-back, piano bar-like, but it masks some very good lyrics--which is not to say that the voice and lyrics don't go together. But I find myself feeling like there is a certain sameness to the sound and I long for a bit more variation between songs. Now, I know that there are plenty of artists who have a pretty repetitive sound, but for some reason this one tends to make me tune out after a while. When I really listen closely to Poses for instance, I find each song independently to be really strong and well crafted, but I have never really felt like I have enjoyed the whole album together as a whole.
Perhaps this is a seasonal -setting thing? Somehow, I feel like I should be listening to these albums late at night as embers die in a fireplace with a glass of red wine and not in a car or on headphones, or at the beach or even in summer? Is that true for you or does his music actual transcend that type of categorization for you?
HTMS:It might be, of course, that he's just not your style of artist. One thing I think is great about RW is the instrumentation on his songs--so to me, they don't really all sound the same. That said, having just revisited the tracks on Poses, I can see why you'd actually feel that way. It's interesting how you sort of construct the artist in your mind, conveniently leaving out the parts that are less interesting (I have, for instance, constructed a great acting career for Sean Connery entirely out of The Man Who Would Be King, The Russia House, and The Untouchables).
The voice, for me, took some warming up to. It's strong, and has a great range, and it's unique, and it's good. But there was a quality to it--a lassitude, dragged out a little, and paradoxically a little brassy--that made me think, Dude, you must shape your embouchure so that your tone is more rounded! But now, I love the quality of the voice, and I love the diva in it--the Ethel Merman of it all. No accident that he did the iconic Liza Minnelli concert, practically note for note. He *is* a diva.
So what I'm saying is, just buy the whole oeuvre, for crying out loud. Because there are riches awaiting you. One: "What a World" (on Want One). Two: "I Don't Know What It Is" (also Want One). Really, pretty much all of Want One, and on Want Two, there is "Little Sister," "Art Teacher," and "Waiting for a Dream." All pretty much amazing. Bonus: "Going to a Town," on Release the Stars.
CPS:Funny how these exchanges crystallize stuff. See I was just saying that perhaps my problem with RW is that it is all too Broadway-diva like for me. Any hope that I had of being a big fan of that genre has been driven from me by a certain Broadway-obsessive culture I have found myself in the last years. It makes me knee-jerk, I know, but, really, how does one stop that?! You don't. You account for it--although it probably means that I might not ever really find myself listening to Songs for Lulu.
So, I am going to keep Poses in the mix--and I really agree with the songs you have picked out here as highlights, particularly "California." And we shall see if that moves me to move back to Want One or Want Two. Fair enough?
HTMS:Tragic. Alas and woe. Is what I have to say about your stance vis a vis the theatrical elements of RW. I get it, you can't really do anything about that. But do you find Lulu to fit the description? I was thinking of them as more in the line of classical art songs. I need to listen to that again, clearly. I find Lulu to be a departure for RW, a beautiful one.
Okay, I'm going to suggest some tracks to listen to (I know I did in a previous installment in this exchange, but just for good measure), because maybe that's where you'll find the RW you like or even love--track by track, one good song at a time:
"Going to a Town" (on Release the Stars)--really, you just must hear this. It is passionate and gorgeous."Do I Disappoint You" and "Tulsa" (also on Release the Stars) "Oh What a World," "I Don't Know What it Is," and "Vibrate" (on Want One--this whole recording is splendid, in my opinion) "Little Sister" and "Art Teacher" (on Want Two)
There are also terrific tracks, such as "Barcelona," on Rufus Wainwright.
For an interesting cross reference, I also suggest you listen to Martha Wainwright's eponymous recording and/or I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too.
Well, I'm sorry you didn't get converted to the RufusWainwrightChurch of the Insouciant Diva. I really do hope you'll listen to the songs above--at least to "Going to a Town." It's part of my daughter in Scotland's "heartbreaking songs about America trilogy" (other tunes: "I'm Not Ready to Make Nice" [Dixie Chicks] and "Jesusland," [Ben Folds]). That's an endlessly expandable list, by the way. Speaking of Ben Folds: what is your view?
CPS:Okay--Want One will go on the list and I will go another round--I promise.For now though, I’ll drop a couple tunes from Poses on the blog here for other uniformed folks to check out.You have a favorite video to suggest for sharing?As for Ben Folds, well that is a whole new discussion!
Here are the video picks from HTMS:
HTMS: Both of these are live, and solo piano--I think you see the structure of the songs and the melodies, as well as hear the lyrics clearly and beautifully, this way.
Here's "Going to Town"
Here's "Art Teacher":
And for those interested in Poses here are a couple tracks that are both HTMS and CPS approved.
I think I made it pretty clear, particularly back when I was running The Tuning Room, that what I have always really wanted to do was take part in a group blog about music. Nothing serious, just a few of my friends who I talk about music with fairly regularly, sharing what they are listening to, why they like it and just music-related nonsense. That, however, has never really come to fruition.
But recently, I have been engaged in an online discussion with one friend about one artist which I will soon be sharing with you. I am hoping this will be something I get to do with other friends as well as a way to bring their voices to the blog. We'll see--or perhaps they will notice that I am just slowly moving them toward the edge of jumping into the group blog pool. After all, what are friends for?!
I have a couple little sticky notes floating around my computer in some form at most points. On those sticky notes are scribbled names of musicians I have heard, read about, or know are coming out with new music that I want to keep in mind for my next purchase. I have one of those hanging from my right speaker at work which is filled mainly with upcoming releases--you know all the hip new tunes I was going to get in on early.
So it was a little embarrassing to return from vacation and see that almost all of the albums on that little note were currently (or recently) available on NPR's First Listen feature. So much for hip.
OK, so NPR has really, really cranked up there already good commitment to music, but what does it say when my list so closely corresponds to theirs. Go ahead, say it. I'm old. That is what is says, and I know it so you don't have to sugar-coat it. When you are getting your hip music from NPR, you are definitely sliding into a certain period of your life. Next thing you know I am going to be getting recommendations for new music from Reader's Digest.
But really, I am okay with it. I am not going to back away from my list--in fact, I am still looking very much forward to what is on it (in all of its predictable-ness). So what is on it already?! Okay, here is what is in the running.
Despite my previous ambivalence, I am pretty sure to be checking out the new Arcade Fire album, The Suburbs, which continues to pull in positive reviews over at the big board.
Not sure (but pretty sure) I will check out the new album from Jenny Lewis with her beau/band-mate Jonathon (Johnny) Rice. I am a bit worried that Jenny & Johnny's I'm Having Fun Now will be a bit too poppy, but am counting on Lewis' acid tongue to carry the day.
An album I didn't really have on my list but, well, I saw on NPR's First Listen (sigh) is the new album from Justin Townes Earle whose first two albums I thought were really worth attending to.
Beyond those, I am still chewing on some Josh Ritter albums I have picked up and will probably pick up one or two more to see what I finally think. I also have been working through some Rufus Wainwright thanks to Lisa B. and am trying to figure out what I think there. Likewise about a whole bunch of stuff sent to me by College Roomy including The Lilac Time, Lloyd Cole and a bunch of jazz. Speaking of jazz, I have also been listening to the latest Jason Moran and Brad Mehldau, so at some point I might figure out what I think of those and let you know.
So what am I missing and what are you listening to?
So that week off the grid really turned into two and (don't take this personally, dear readers) but I didn't really miss it. In fact there are a whole bunch of things I didn't miss while gone on vacation, including:
95 degree code orange (or red) days;
taking 20 minutes to go five miles;
too long work days (yes, already) trying to address the fact that we have more work to do than staff to handle it;
standing in a Metro car (after said work day) with a bunch of other tired grumpy DC workers;
stress (and, yes I know all the right things I am supposed to do to address it, but really I would just rather not have it);
realizing that there are multiple trips coming up that will take me away from the family;
mindless nonsense; and, of course,
feeling guilty for having life dominated by work.
In fact, it has seemed to me that it took work a much shorter time to erase vacation than it did for vacation to take hold of my psyche--which then made me wonder what I did miss while on vacation. Certainly their were colleagues and friends it was good to see again. And it is always great to be in your own home, particularly one you have invested a lot of time and sweat in, but we always make a home where we are.
Ultimately the list is pretty short. Hmmmm . . . . .
The house we are staying at on Lake Michigan is wonderful. The only thing that hasn't worked perfectly is the wireless connection. So the bad news is that The Artist and I have not been able to do our normal blogging. The good news is that we have had plenty of time to focus on these.
Today is the bittersweet final full day, so we might start a little back-posting over at the Brothers K, but more likely we will get back to perfecting beach life.
Finally. Vacation has arrived. Okay, technically, I still need to do a few things, clean up the house a bit more for our wonderful house sitter, pack, yada, yada . . . but let us be clear. I do not have to commute in the August heat of DC anymore this year (well, one day but by then it will feel like September right?).
So to celebrate we have made a few modifications here. I jumped over to a new template with a bit more breathing room in it. I made a header change which includes a picture from vacation two years ago. You want to be there, don't you? I do. In fact I will be in just a couple days--ahhhh, the big lake.
So, blogging will be even slower than usual here for a while. There may be a picture or two, but any real blogging will be over at The Brothers K where The Artist and I usually listen to the waves in the cool morning hours while we upload photos from the previous day and record our thoughts on food, sand castles and the wave crashing rumpus from the previous day. Let us know if you want an invite to the family blog!
For now--hope all is well in your world. Breathing out . . . .
With all of the many releases this summer, I didn't see this one coming or know it would get so much of my attention, but as it turns out, The Mynabirds have given us a wonderful album for mid-and late-summer. I ran into this album, What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood , thanks to All Songs Considered who had Laura Burhenn and her band in for a Tiny Desk Concert. I wasn't sure that the album would turn out to be a keeper (it is), but I could tell instantly that I really liked Burhenn's voice and style.
The album, which you might guess just from the title (or the cover), is rooted in gospel and blues, but in that wonderful way that bleeds into country, R&B, Motown and even a little rock and roll. Now don't think it is all heavy--this is a pop album at its heart with Burhenn holding the various styles together with both her writing and her sultry alto voice which is a wonderfully muscular at times and gentle in other spots. As Pop Matters notes:
Binding together the disparate influences of slow-burning, hot-piping soul; swaying, sassy girl group pop; a gospel-tinged hymnal quality that lends her husky, smoke-burnished voice a ringing, striking command; and the sputtering, exhilarating abandon of garage rock, Burhenn creates a stylistically divergent yet singularly inspired sound that’s at once charmingly reverent and spiritedly self-supportive.
And let's say just a bit more about her voice. Neats and I sat around trying to figure out who she sounds like. This is difficult because she sounds like a lot of people on different songs. Ultimately we couldn't decide on any one singer, which seemed like a compliment in and of itself. But then I read the Pitchfork review and was pleased to read they had a list of comparisons as well.
The material recalls artists such as Dusty Springfield, Laura Nyro, and Linda Rondstadt, but the sound and style come closer to more recent touchstones-- Jenny Lewis' best moments on her own and with Rilo Kiley; Cat Power circa The Greatest and Jukebox; Fiona Apple's collaborations with Jon Brion.
And just to add one last quality that makes this a wonderful summer album is that it comes in at barely over a half an hour long--because really we don't want to get to serious now do we? But if this genre and female vocals are your thing, you should pick this one up as it is definitely worth a listen.
I intended to give you a couple samples to give you a taste, but alas had some probs with the mp3 rip and find myself here writing this post with only one song on my computer and with the actual disc in another state with my family (lucky them). So you are just going to have to do with just one which is a nice R&B piece and still gives you a sense of the album. I had hoped to follow that with the closing track "Good Heart" which is all country (and has the beauty of leading you back to the title track on the disc-replay-rollover). But do check this one out.
The little storm we weathered put a bit of a hold on this post, but not on the perpetual cooking based on what our garden produces. No, we continue to be grateful for what our garden produces while also feeling a bit subservient to the constant demand of veggies that need to be eaten--a perfectly acceptable set of conditions under which to exist. Of course, we have to listen to The Captain note (with a certain edge in his voice) that this is yet another meal with "only vegetables"!
Here is a brief inventory of what we have been eating over the last month (or you can just skip to the pictures and salivate over the bounty).
Lettuce: It is actually a sad week here because we are eating the last of our lettuce--we haven't bought a leafy green since April and have been grateful for each and every bowl. We will see some this fall for the early picking as the cold melts away next spring.
Cucumbers: Did I mention that "powerless" grill meal? Key was the cucumber salad. See we have more Japanese cucumbers than you know what to do with. Neats made a chilled cucumber soup that was great (although a bit salty thanks to some intervention by the boys), but we kept adding cukes, different herbs and yogurt to it and it was a side that just kept on giving and giving.
Eggplant: For instance, that cucumber mix was a wonderful side to the eggplant and chard curry--so yummy. I apologize for no pictures of that beautiful dish. Then there was the lasagna with eggplant layered into the middle of it.
Peppers: those peppers I added to the grill menu--ours, thank you very much. And recently we picked a whole slew and stuffed them with a wonderful Mediterranean couscous that had black olives, pine nuts, garlic and herbs in it. More to come with the peppers.
Beets: also a bit of a sad day as we are now out of our wonderful golden beets. We sliced them in salads, put the greens in home-made goat-cheese ravioli, roasted them and served them warm with the beet greens on the side with feta. Earlier next year for these guys.
Carrots: We also have a good crop of carrots this year that are tasty as all get out--even if I think of them as a winter veggie. And as you can see, they are beautiful!
And lastly, but so not leastly, Tomatoes! Yes they are on and we have been slicing them left and right--they are so new we haven't even dare put herbs or cheese with them. We just keep eating them plain--maybe with a little salt. Oh glorious day.
Okay enough--here is a sampling of the veggies/dishes to give you an idea. I am off to slice me a tomato!
It was Sunday afternoon and it was still really hot. We knew the cold, storm-filled front was coming, but I thought it was arriving closer to 5 pm. But just after 3:30 pm the sky went dark--really dark. The boys were just finishing up a bit of Wii-time and Neats was catching a few minutes with a book and I was contemplating the next garden-centric dinner (more in another post) when I realized it went quiet and then went wicked.
The wind erupted and in a manner of minutes was almost horizontal--like something I had not seen since living in the Midwest. I had been tracking the weather on the computer but had not seen anything about the tornado warning we would later learn had been issued. Not that I needed a radio to tell me what we should do. We all hit the basement fast as the front came in. The power was off seconds later and no more than 20 minutes later the front had passed.
When we emerged, our yard was a mess--branches down all over, plants laid low, pots tipped over--but no major damage. We hunkered down to wait out the loss of power, skipped the gourmet meal and had sandwiches and what not from a quickly opened and closed refrigerator. After dinner, a quick walk up the street showed us we had not been overly cautious. Debris was everywhere and whole trees were ripped out of the ground. See for yourself.
These are some of the worst, but the damage all over the neighborhood was significant with branches and wires down on every block. It wasn't a tornado, but bad enough!
We would have reported earlier, but we haven't had power for 48 hours--it is just back on a bit ago. The upside is that the storm wrenched all the humidity out of the air for the time we lost power, so for the first time in weeks we enjoyed the weather. The boys survived without any video game access (and I survived without music) although The Artist at one point called out: "Come back power! I miss you electricity."
Indeed. On the other hand, it wasn't so bad being disconnected. Looking forward to that same feeling due to vacation rather than inclement weather.
As if having just endured a long, grey winter followed by a cold, rainy spring and emerging into the wonders of early summer, Frontier Ruckus sighs and settles in to look back on what they have passed through and forward to what will replace the past. Deadmalls and Nightfalls, the bands second full album, is all about the shedding and sloughing off, abandonment and change, and (as always seems the case with lyricist Matthew Milia) memory and place.
Now, I had some significant angst as the release of this album approached because I love their first album The Orion Songbook so much and my expectations were high. No worries. Just about everything that I liked about that first effort holds true here. Milia's lyrics are as lush and poetic as ever filled with nature and smells, creating landscapes jam packed with imagery--as if Walt Whitman is walking through Michigan with a guitar. The album opens with Milia buzzing and worrying that "all the vegetation in the settled world is stirring" which it will continue to do throughout the album.
Musically, the album is both similar to the first album . . . and not. I thought that the first album got a bit "musical saw" happy (a minor criticism), but that is clearly not an issue here. The songs rely on Milia's guitar and Davey Jones banjo to build songs around with various instruments from fiddle to horn to harmonium providing texture and giving individual songs a different feel. As I noted when the album started streaming I was particularly happy to hear Anna Burch singing harmonies on this album as her steely voice is a perfect counter part to Milia's lead vocals. Overall, the songs are extremely well constructed and the band (and the production of the band) is clearly getting a bit more subtle and sophisticated.
At the same time, I have to say that my first reaction was that I wanted a bit more, um, ruckus. In fact, I was surprised to see PopMatters suggest that the main difference between the first and second albums was the "diversity of pace and rhythm in almost every song." I agree that there is sophisticated constructions on many songs, including "Ontario" as PM notes, but overall this album has a much more even tempo to it than the first. It is also somewhat more laid back, particularly on the back half of the album which is considerably more subdued than the first album which has a number of wonderfully rambunctious songs throughout the album.
On the other hand, as I listen (and listen and listen) to Deadmalls & Nightfalls, each and every song grows on me and this is part of what makes this album such a strong album. It is wonderfully similar and different all at once and, ultimately, at least, an equal to the first album--which is to say, not to be missed!
Now, you can still hear the whole album over on the band's Facebook page, but let me put up a couple samples for you to hear. But let me make a special request here. I don't often get the chance to write about and recommend bands that many of you won't have heard of--but that is the case here. And that means that this is a band that both needs and deserves your support. So after you listen to some of their tunes, go buy this album and while you are at it, get their first one too.
Deciding which songs to share was difficult given how much I am enjoying the whole album. "Silverfishes" was always clearly going to be one I wanted to share as it is simply a classic Frontier Ruckus song. After that it is tempting to put something from the first half of the album which is so strong with the two opening tracks really just setting the stage perfectly. But let me switch gears a bit and share one of the wonderfully slow songs which also includes some nice fiddle work that makes you think that might be a feature we see more of in the future. These two tracks also come in the middle of the disc (tracks 5 and 7) so you get a sense of the shift between the front and back half of the disc.
Listen folks. It is hot. Really hot. Really, really hot. I know I have already complained once this year, but when you start getting not just heat advisories, but excessive heat advisories (cuz it is going to be like 103 friggin' degrees) and folks are talking about two weeks of 90 plus degree days in a row (after a previous 11 day stretch of the same), I claim a little latitude in how much I get to complain. But, hey I am a positive kind of guy, right. So I am trying to focus on the upside.
After all it is only a couple weeks until we head north to the big lake where we will be joined by Little Sis and her kids. And until then, we have the benefit of great shade trees, central air and half a house that is down close to the cool, dirt earth.
Then again, being trapped in the house is a bit less enjoyable when the summer cold grunge is running rampant through the brothers with the Captain down Monday and Tuesday, the Artist picking it up late Tuesday into Wednesday and now the Engineer taking it on today. But hey, they are strong boys who rebound quickly--and they are cute most of the time so their mother probably won't strangle them.
And let's face it, I am lucky enough to have a job and that takes me out of the house, so, perhaps, I will miss the grunge (we all know how mothers are stronger than fathers and fight through mild illness immune to these things anyway). Then again, all of my colleagues seem to think that having sick children isn't enough of a challenge and so have brought their own versions of the grunge into work.
But really, I can't complain. This all shall pass and in the meantime, the garden continues to give and give. Eggplant, peppers, spinach, chard, carrots, squash, cucumbers and tomatoes are just about to turn. Of course, we have to go out everyday to water so as to try and keep these poor plants alive since it is hot--did I mention it is hot? So hot, in fact, you don't want to go out and do anything in the garden. Oh, and by the way, rain is becoming a memory and when it does rain it makes you think Noah's family must be around building something, but then it goes away for another week (it is more like wandering in the desert than 40 days and 40 nights).
Sorry, I didn't mean to start again, really. Because hey, we are all here and together and someday we will look back on this episode of summer cabin fever fondly--really we will!
Every once in a while, an artist comes along that manages to break through my self-imposed set of rules regarding the intricate relationship between the seasons and music.Everything about The National’s music tells me that I should be listening to this during late autumn as the light goes low and the days chill and shorten--or in the actual dark days of winter--or at a minimum during a long stretch of rain-soaked grey days in spring.But definitely not in the lush, long days of summer.
There is nothing about The National’s albums—either lyrically or musically that says summer.There is nothing that you could really be described as up-tempo (there is some driving pieces, but nothing that makes you consider getting up to dance).That might be just as much because there is nothing you would really describe as upbeat.Certainly nothing you could describe as light-hearted and carefree.And yet, here we are in July and I cannot stop listening to this band, which I have been for the last several months straight.
My listening started with the band’s fourth album Boxer and was quickly followed with the recently released High Violet—both of which deserve attention.Both albums share certain qualities.
Musically, there is plenty of mid-tempo to slow-paced tunes, many of which build with more and more guitar and keyboard being layered on as the song progresses. Drummer Bryan Devendorf’s work is critical and often adds contrast with a faster-paced, rhythmic phrasing underneath, although most often with a muted tom-tom sound than any in your face rock-drumming—and cymbals are close to nonexistent with the exception of the hi-hat.I am not sure if anyone every gets above the middle-C register on these tunes.Lead singer Matt Berninger’s voice is deep, gravelly and ominous and most songs frame that tone and character.That said, one of the things that make these albums (and they are most definitely albums) so solid is that while there is a certain consistent sound through them, the songs are carefully and complexly built which gives the album a rich variation which is probably why I keep listening.
Lyrically, Berninger is clearly working through a bit of angst in these songs.I don’t mean that in a simple way as these songs aren’t overblown teenage angst (not surprisingly, since these guys aren’t teenagers—as if that stops other songwriters from adolescent obsession).Know this seems more driven by emotional struggles of everyday life in young-but-aging-adulthood—relationships, careers, self-identity and generally trying to figure out navigate life in a material and superficial world toward emotional happiness.But this is also where the albums differ for me.
Boxer seems much more concerned with figuring out one’s place in life, careers and accepting (or not) the long stretch of adulthood and all the responsibilities that entails.Not surprisingly given the career paths of these guys, much of that seems to focus on the grind and rat-race of work life and the status chasing that permeates so much of professional life.The SilverCity professionals that run through this album seeming stand in for past lives abandon for a truer calling--although you never quite get the feeling that anything is remotely figured out here.Fitting in is not something that you get a sense that these guys do real well (or at least believe they do).Even the songs that seem more hopeful seem to be more about escape and starting over than anything else.
High Violet is a more personal album in many ways.There is still that sense of running from the professional rat-race, but the songs here seem to have more on an inner-focus than the previous album.Songs look both forward and backward searching for answers in relationships, family and share a general self-reflective assessment.But here again, don’t go looking for a writer that has solved theses questions.The lyrics of these songs are much more about process than answers and The National seems quite happy to live there.
Now, I don’t want to leave with the impression that these albums are just dark and depressing.Not true.They are wonderfully crafted musically and lyrically and leave listeners fully engaged and plenty to chew on--like any good piece of art should.
I have been waiting to get a bit closer to July 20th to place my next disc order so I can include the new album from Frontier Ruckus, Deadmalls & Nightfalls. This album will surely get much more attention from this here blog as I totally fell in love with their first album, but I had to note today's wonderful surprise. Mid-afternoon as I trudged through the first day at the office and the second day of jet lag, I got the notification that the new album was streaming over at the band's Facebook BandPage.
I obviously haven't listened closely yet, but let me just say that I was very happy to hear Anna Burch (I assume) singing harmony on the album even though she appears to have left the band--those harmonies were a key component of their sound on the first album. So go check it out and I'll be back to this one for sure after I have it on disc and listen to it a few hundred times.
The Hunger The noticeable silence here has been due to a week-long work trip up to the great city of Seattle.Not that I saw much of it since most of the time was spent in meeting rooms, both large and small.The highlight was a series of dinners with colleagues at the end of long days of work—almost all which featured seafood.Highlights included the:
crab cakes and kasu marinated black cod at Steelhead Diner (best restaurant of the week); and,
the curried mussels and olive-crusted halibut at BlueAcre.
May we all be so lucky to live in a place where that kind of seafood is found on every corner!
Travel Karma or You Can Never Get Ahead So my travel to Seattle started at 4:00 am Tuesday morning and looked like a long day which involved a connection through Atlanta (don’t ask).However, upon arriving at the airport gate I found myself being paged and told the direct flight had seats and was leaving now if I wanted to hop on.Uh, yeah.But what about my luggage—on its way to Seattle?Well, we will see once we get there.Alas, first bag off the plane.But now I am in Seattle at 9:30 a.m.—surely I won’t be able to get into my hotel room.Wrong again—straight in I go.Wow, that was some stroke of travel luck.
But of course we all know one fundamental rule—air travel basically bites and you know that for every good turn, two bad ones are on there way.Fortunately, I only had to wait for my return trip.We get to the airport, board the plane, pull away from the gate, stop, only to hear the captain announce that he heard a “funny noise.”Back to the gate—an hour of waiting to discover all was okay and away we go again.Unlike, the earlier experience with baggage, my bag was not first—not that it would have mattered since we had to wait 45 minutes for our bags to be unloaded.
When all was said and done, we got home three hours later than scheduled—exactly the amount of time that I saved on the way out.Hmmm.
That’s OK, It’s Just a Once in a Lifetime Event Now leaving home always carries a load of sadness and guilt with it, but this one had a extra kick.You see, Emmett starts Kindergarten this Fall and as a result, he gets to go to the summer session which just happened to start the day I left for Seattle.Now technically, his first day at the new school is in August, but still it was a drag to miss his first actual day.Better mark my calendar now for the Fall because who would want to miss this?!
You would think with a four day weekend, I could get a post up here but I tell you dear readers, the pool, baseball and the Wii take a lot of time and work! Of course there has also been cooking--and the more time consuming "planning to cook" activity which these days amounts to looking out at the garden and seeing what we are overrun with and must eat and eat now.
It never fails that when we plant a garden, I tend to think of it all coming on at the same time leading to thoughts like: "we'll have fresh lettuce and tomatoes for salads, sandwiches and what not" or "doesn't a fresh pea and eggplant dish sound good?" Of course the reality is that it comes in waves. First came the lettuce (which is still coming in piles), followed by peas and then cucumbers and now peppers and squash. Really--no complaining here. It is great to buy virtually nothing for dinner and to eat these wonderfully fresh veggies. Here are a few dishes from the last week.
First up is your standard fresh veggie dice with peas, peppers, zucchini and summer squash.
Then you got your quick cesar salad out of our fresh lettuce with garlic crostini.
Lastly here is a zuchinni / summer squash ricotta cheeze cake which is more of a quiche.
This last one might be of interest, so here is the recipe as I did not just breezily whip it up out of thin air--although I did modify to use the many herbs we have growing using primarily oregano and rosemary this time around.
Now I will be gone for a week and when I return expect to thinking about what to do with our giant chard, the malabar spinach, eggplant and maybe, just maybe a tomato--oh let there be tomatoes!
