Connecting The Dots...

I am in a weird triangle lately. First I was listening to Title TK by The Breeders, and then it moved to The Pixies Doolittle, which (let's face it) is a classic. Now, I've been listening to The Kelley Deal 6000, which is Kelley Deal's project that she started while the Breeders went on hiatus around 1995.

While Kelley Deal was in rehab for heroin addiction, she passed the time writing songs and centering herself. I haven't listened to TKD6K's first album, but I have taken a particular liking to their second album Boom! Boom! Boom!, which I've recommended in a previous post. I'd hate to compare it to The Breeders because it's very different, but there are a lot of similarities. Deal's vocals are somewhat like her twin sister's, and the songwriting is pretty neat for someone who had to learn to play the guitar to join The Breeders. My favorite track from the album is currently "Where Did The Home Team Go?" (pasted below)



Also, for you hip-hop fans out there, I'm sure most of you know, or will be happy to know that Kanye West and Jay Z's album Watch The Throne is coming out on August 1st. A friend (who is obsessed with Kanye West) played me this little number, which samples one of my all-time favorite songs, and I'm not gonna lie...I am pretty excited. The song is respectively called "Otis." I've pasted it below, enjoy.



Peace!

A Sunny Afternoon...

It's my first day back in Austin, and as sit at my patio, smoking a cigarette, I am listening to The Breeder's album Title TK. Kim Deal's soft voice and the rough guitars blending perfectly. I am kind of sad that I haven't discovered this album sooner, but as they say...better late than...

I came across a documentary about The Breeders called The Real Deal, which documents the time Kim Deal spent in East Los Angeles in the aftermath of the Title TK album. In the documentary, they play a good amount of songs from the album, my favorite being "Off You," which you can listen to below. I loved the portrayal of both the Deal twins personalities as well as Kim Deal's take on music and making it "rude" and "weird."



Also, I've been listening to Mumford and Sons (I'm only a year late, maybe an improvement?). I haven't been able to get the song "The Cave" out of my head for the past few days. I think I'm going to overplay it until I hate it, which I don't recommend. I like this live version they did for SPIN:



PEACE! That's all.

Old and Fresh

So, since I have been staying back in Corpus Christi for the past few weeks, my music listening has become sort of stalled in the sense that it is harder for me to go online and seek new musicians and artists to fill my time and ears with. So, I am privileged to be under the musical care of a good friend (who has been letting me crash on her couch), and listening to her eclectic and somewhat off-hand tastes. When I say off-hand, I mean she posted a video of The Spice Girl's "2 become 1" on my Facebook page as a "thank-you" and "I'm so happy you're staying with me" message. It was well-received.

But, her tastes are unparalleled to some. Since I've been staying with her, I've been more exposed to some great music, like Electric Light Orchestra (PS: I recently bought their 1981 album, Time, and I'd strongly recommend it). There's just something great about Jeff Lynne's songwriting. It's progressive, it's futuristic, it's fucking weird to be honest, but it's hard not to become totally enveloped in the intricate song structures and dynamic sounds.

Also, I've been listening to a lot of George Harrison, circa post-Beatles 1980s as well as a lot of Otis Redding, which is never a bad thing. No matter how many bad days, or how many distraught hours one can spend contemplating the nastiness that lingers within human society, it's easy to get lost in Redding's voice and forget about all that shit.

Now, this isn't to say that I was never exposed to these artists at many points in time of my life; however, due to my friend's love for overplaying great artists, I can only thank her for drilling greatness into my head for three weeks. PS: If you are reading this, you gotta stop listening to Bob Marley every time you get stoned. He's great and all, but that just screams huge cliche.

I'll leave you with a fantastic song by a fantastic vocalist. Enjoy. Peace!

Singles or Doubles?

Well, my summer is moving along gracefully, relaxing on couches, smoking bowls here and there, and listening to some good music. The catch-up still continues as I delve into the new music of older bands that I never got to enjoy in their subsequent rises to music stardom, or pseudo stardom. The bands in question: Beirut and The Horrors.

The Horrors are currently streaming their new album, Skying, on their web site, and I've had the pleasure of listening in... so far, I think the album is going to be a steady, welcome addition to the music they've put out in the past. Luckily, a friend of mine played me one of their albums and I wouldn't say I got hooked, but I gained an appreciation for their homage to the synth-heavy 80s. Skying maintains that trend, which is visible on their first single, "Still Life." I recommend a listen.

Now, a song that I can't get out of my head as of late... "East Harlem" by Beirut. I've always appreciated their blend of folk and pop, and their song "Scenic World," was one of my favorites in 2007? Or 2008? I don't know...some time around there. But "East Harlem" brings back those feelings for me, and it makes me very excited for their new album The Rip Tide, which is going to be released under singer/songwriter/mastermind Zachary Francis Condon's own Pompeii Records. The album is slated for an August 30th release. But in the meantime, you can listen to "East Harlem" below. That's all I got for today... PEACE!

Beirut - East Harlem by Revolver USA