This album is one Rufus Wainwright needed to record — and not because of all the upheaval in his life at the moment.
Between launching an opera and dealing with the illness of his mother Kate McGarrigle, Wainwright was probably not in the position to craft an album with a grand production.
All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu is Rufus Wainwright unplugged — just him and piano. Even without the demands on his time and attention, the downsizing of his sound is a much-needed reaction to the trajectory of his previous work.
If his albums continued to swell, one of them would eventually burst.
Hold on … is that a backbeat thumping behind Sigur Rós singer Jónsi? And not just a backbeat, but a dance beat?
That was my first reaction when I heard "Go Do", the opening track of Jónsi’s solo album Go. Sigur Rós’ previous studio album, Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, featured some uncharacteristically up-tempo moments but not enough to stretch an entire album.
Jónsi goes further than Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust ever did, piling on thick beats, whimsical orchestration (courtesy of Nico Muhly) and stuttering samples in a beautiful mess of music, buoyed by his distinctive falsetto.
If you’re a newcomer to the works of Hüsker Dü — as I am — don’t start with Zen Arcade.
That was my mistake. The critical scuttlebutt says this sprawling double album is essential listening in the Hüsker Dü oeuvre, but given the way it was recorded — in 85 hours with mostly first takes — it’s a hot mess and not necessarily a good first impression.
Said scuttlebutt also indicates New Day Rising is the band’s best album, and if I started there first, I would have become a fan sooner.
Zen Arcade tried to be many things at one time, something New Day Rising avoids by concentrating on being fast and hard. The band’s sound changes little from track to track, Bob Mould’s thin guitar slicing through the strangled bottom end of bassist Greg Norton and drummer Grant Hart.
Part one focused on Japanese artists, part two on classical music, and now part three covers Western popular music.
I should just clear my entire backlog, because I’m not sure when I’m going to muster the energy to profess my love for Santigold, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, Shiina Ringo’s MoRA boxed set (which I never got around to purchasing, dammit), or the Replacements.
And yet, I keep that back log around because somewhere in all my sloth is an optimist who wants to get things done.
I usually never remember to write a gay-themed entry for Gay Pride Month till the very last day of June. So I’m writing this entry in May.
In 2008, I found myself paying attention to a lot of gay-identified artist — Matt Alber, Sam Sparro, The Dead Betties, hey willpower. I hoped 2009 would be just as fruitful, but I couldn’t really muster much passion for what I did find. I won’t make any assumptions for 2010, but releases by Rufus Wainwright and Jónsi do make me hopeful.
A few of the titles mentioned here are catalog. As a summer campaign for re-runs on NBC once stated, "It’s new to me."
Back when eMusic had a moratorium on major label content, I turned to Lala as my source for what I call the "paid preview" — a low-cost way to sample an album before I make a full purchase.
But then eMusic introduced Warner Music Group titles into its catalog, and my reason to use Lala evaporated. In the past, I would turn to Lala when I wanted to explore catalog titles by Emmylou Harris, the Replacements or Talking Heads. Of course, cheap ass that I am, I would never actually download anything from Lala — I’d just stream it.
The introduction of Warner titles in eMusic’s catalog meant I wasn’t tethered to a web site in a browser — I could download a title instead and play it at my leisure. Yes, eMusic’s Warner titles aren’t extensive, but they have enough for even a cursory exploration.
As a result, my patronage of Lala declined. When Lala announced it would offer the remaining balance in my Lala wallet as either iTunes credit or a check, I chose the check. I can use it for an eMusic booster pack. Or maybe to buy a CD.
Most of the titles on this list were downloaded from eMusic or they could be.
Tokyo Jihen has something of a perception problem.
Shiina Ringo said she was ending her solo career to focus on the band back in 2004, giving the impression that solo Ringo and the group would be creatively independent. But with Shiina taking on the lion share’s of the songwriting — and of course, serving as front woman — it’s tough not to think of Tokyo Jihen in terms of its origin: a touring support band.
Then there’s Shiina’s solo work with which to contend. How could a band live up to the towering legacy of one of its members? Otona was nice and all, but it was no Shouso Strip.
What, then, can Tokyo Jihen do to escape the shadow of Shiina Ringo? Sports offers a pretty good answer: Nothing. Just keep doing what they do best.
It’s taken me more than a decade to resume my exploration of Emmylou Harris’ earliest work, and I wanted to blame Elite Hotel, her second album, from scaring me off. In reality, the fault lies with Pieces of the Sky.
Harris’ stunning debut threaded together songs from diverse eras and genres with a seamless performance that still sounds rich many decades later. It left such an impression, Elite Hotel, which I also bought at the same time, didn’t have much of a chance.
Nor did any of her other early albums.
Thanks to the convenience of online stream (RIP Lala), I got around to listening to Luxury Liner, Harris’ third album. Why did I wait so long?
Part the first of these latest Slush Pile entries focused on Japanese releases wallowing in the limbo of my backlog. This entry focuses on classical albums.
At first, GTD actually helped to organize all the listening I had spread out over various services and formats. I even managed to write a few reviews as a result of the process.
But then I started slacking. The Weekly Reviews stopped, and my Next Action Items languished in limbo. I also let myself get thoroughly distracted by learning .NET/C#, as well as other various professional self-training activities. (I have declared 2010 my Year of Professional Development.)
Soon, my list of reviews on which to catch up grew. Right now it’s up to 66 items. I had hoped using GTD would cut down on the number of round-up entries I write, but really, some albums I encounter really don’t need full-length reviews.