Lately I've been listening to Memphis and The Whitest Boy Alive, side projects of a couple of my favorite bands, Stars and Kings of Convenience respectively. Torq (Stars) and Erlend Øye (KoC) both have distinctive voices that I really enjoy...they're definitely in my favorite male singers pile.
Leah and I were shopping in the SCAD store in Atlanta earlier this month when I heard a familiar voice over the sound system. The music sounded like Kings of Convenience mixed with dancepop, so I asked the shopgirl if it was a remix of a KoC song. "No, it's Erlend Øye...The Whitest Boy Alive." I never checked out this band when Dreams came out last year, but I'm digging the crap out of it now.
This is the blog entry where I stand up on my soapbox and proclaim my love for Josh Ritter. I think he's the king of Americana right now, to be rivaled only by the formidable Brooklyn songsters Hem. But this blog is about how much I love Josh Ritter. Right. To this day, I can't tire of 2004's The Golden Age of Radio, and Hello Starling's "Kathleen" is enough to make any girl weak-kneed. Show me a woman who isn't wooed by that song and I'll show you a woman with a heart of stone who is insusceptible to flattery:
"All the other girls here are stars You are the northern lights They try to shine in through your curtain You're too close and too bright...
And I won't be your last dance Just your last goodnight Every heart is a package Tangled up in knots someone else tied...
I'll be the one To drive you back home, Kathleen"
SWOON!
It was hard to pull myself away from "Other Side" and "Harrisburg," but I finally left them alone long enough to listen to The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter. Hyperbolic title? Maybe. I mean, most definitely, and for the best Ritter album it's got some stiff competition, but it's worthy in its own right as a more straight-up rock record than his previous efforts. And once again, I'm smitten.
Here's a few favorites from the new record: The Temptation of Adam, a more folky and traditional sound for Ritter. Yum. I dig the horn intro.
Rumors, I think this one has gotten the most attention of all the songs on the new record, and rightly so. I love the lines "And the string section's screamin' like horses in a barn burning up" and "Can't seem to forget you 'cause the music isn't loud enough."
Real Long Distance, a fun rocker tune with pounding keys and skronky horns.
You can, of course, pick up the record at all your favorite record stores and my favorite, the insanely cheap spun.com. Do yourself a favor and check out the other albums mentioned, too. It's love at first sight for folkies.
Oh, and:
That's what happens when you ask Mister Ritter to "smile stupid" with you.
Pinback will release Autumn of the Seraphs on September 11. I've got to say, I really don't like the album artwork or title at all. It seems like the work of one of those girls who are obsessed with angels and dark fairies...you know, the sort that have a large selection of angel statue photography on their myspace profiles. Not really my bag. Thank goodness the music on the album is classic Pinback and it doesn't sound like the tunes that might be more at home on a record called Autumn of the Seraphs. So far I'm digging "Bouquet" and "Blue Harvest" the most, but those tracks are not label-approved for posting so here's the promo single instead, along with my 2 favorite Pinback songs from previous albums.
what's next: the ninja cheerleader jumprope edition
The Go! Team's music makes me want to jump rope double-dutch style...if I had ever actually mastered that skill in elementary school. Double dutch and rope climbing were the bane of my third grade gym class experience. But I totally rocked the square dancing portion of the class! You haven't truly lived until you've experienced the full sass of my California Twirl.
Today was a big release date with Architecture in Helsinki, The New Pornographers, Josh Ritter, Earlimart, Minus the Bear, M.I.A., and Rilo Kiley all sharing space on the new release shelf of your favorite record store. But these days you can listen to an album weeks before its street date if you so desire and the cries of "what's next?" start before the ink has dried on the digipaks...the big music wheel keeps on turning and CD's keep on burning. So let's take a look at a few upcoming releases.
A Night Drive with a Healer after a Dark Day In the City
I have no clue how I discovered Chromatics. Some days I download every mp3 I come across on ye olde internete, then I don't listen to them for a few days and I don't remember the origin of the file. But anyways, I downloaded "Night Drive" and dug it, so that led to a search for more from the band. This is dark, sexy music with haunting female vocals, string sections, and drumpads.
Rogue Wave's got an album coming out next month...September 18 to be exact. Asleep At Heaven's Gate is keeping in the same vein as Descended Like Vultures, so it looks like the band's sound hasn't been affected by changing from Subpop to Jack Johnson's label. I've given the album a few listens but so far, I prefer Descended Like Vultures. Maybe it will be a grower.
I hate to end my blogging hiatus with such a short post but most of the time it's better to just let the music speak for itself anyway. Check out the sweet indie pop/rock of Brooklyn-based Via Audio. Jim Eno of Spoon produced their first album, Say Something, which is set to debut on September 25.
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