Last week I visited Toronto and did a strange repeat of my music store jaunt in Phoenix. My friend I randomly passed by Soundscapes and I ended up buying another Console and Colleen CD. They would’ve been cheaper online (how weird is it that the Canadian dollar and the US dollar are almost worth the same now?) but…WHATEVER, impulsive buying isn’t the end of the world.
I’d share some tracks with you but my Dell laptop stopped reading CDs after I got back from my vacation. Which is pretty bad. This might be a sign that I’m supposed to get a new iMac since lack of a CD drive is very inconvenient. And it’s a two-year-old Dell. So here’s a random song by The Softlightes that I particularly like:
Actually, I like all the songs on their album, Say No! to Being Cool. Say Yes to Being Happy. I’ve had this album for months (it came out in February) and wanted to write about it earlier, but…instead I just kept listening to it and ignoring this blog. SO NOW I AM WRITING ABOUT IT.
The title fits the album. It’s…happy. And it is cool, but it’s primarily happy. And then cool because it’s happy. Yeah? Maybe? There’s a song called “If The World Had Cookies” for god’s sake. Cookies are possibly the only thing that’s right with the world. There’s also a song about microwaves and robots. Everything is quite poppy and happy in that “fat clouds and rainbows and teddy bears” (there is such a music genre, I swear) kind of way. Here’s another example for you to listen to:
You know I’m obsessed with Magnet, right? Maybe not.
I’ll admit I haven’t been listening to him much lately, but I haven’t heard anything about him either. I just happened to come across this Filter US Recordings Blog and LOOKS, THERE’S MAGNET NEWS. Why the hell couldn’t anyone have told me this stuff earlier?
Argh. [shakes fist] Whatever. I suppose I should be happy to hear that the new Magnet album will be out in the US on September 18th and that he’ll be touring with Stars in November. The problem with that is if he’s only touring with them in November, that doesn’t seem to include the east coast. Which affects me because I live on the east coast. And…um…yes.
I should’ve gotten Feist’s “The Reminder” earlier. Like when it first came out in May.
But I’m slow. So I have it now. And I really like it. I listened to it while passing through the swampy marshy crap in the Meadowlands under a murky sky that looked as though it were about to barf rain, yet it all looked pretty while listening to Feist. SHE IS DRUGGING ME, THAT’S WHAT, OMG.
Nah, not drugs. Just prettiness. Here are two examples of the prettiness:
I suppose I could post some lyrics that I really like, but …lyrics don’t usually mean a great deal to me unless I can relate to them. And I suppose they wouldn’t mean a great deal to you either unless you had some connection to them. And these lyrics are kind of depressing, so nevermind.
Actually, I like this bit from “So Sorry”:
We’re so helpless
We’re slaves to our impulses
We’re afraid of our emotions
And no one knows where the shore is
We’re divided by the ocean
And the only thing I know is
That the answer isn’t for us
No the answer isn’t for us
Mild depression may be abated by watching Charlie the Unicorn. Enjoy:
If you didn’t watch it in its entirety (and you know who you are, NO HIDING)…you should. There’s a really catchy song at around the 2:30 mark. Why deny yourself of such joy? Whyyy?
Pelle Carlberg has a bunch of albums, none of which I have listened to. Yet. But I have listened to his band Edson thanks to a friend who gave me their poppy album For Strength some years back and they’re quite peachy. So I assume Pelle in solo form is also peachy. Bursting with juicy…happiness inducing…Swedish…flavors…of some sort…thatIhaven’tidentified…um.
This song is actually kind of depressing. I can bend the lyrics to fit my life’s problems at this very moment, and….JESUS, I’M DOOMED, AWESOME, ok. [sobs in a corner for a while]
Oh, so Pelle is doing a little tour in the US, two dates in NYC, for his latest album In A Nutshell coming out in the US on July 3rd.
May 27 - Luna Lounge, Brooklyn, New York
May 29 - The Supermarket, Toronto, Ontario
May 30 - Small’s, Detroit, Michigan
May 31 - Beachland Ballroom, Cleveland, Ohio
Jun 2 - The Delancey, New York, New York
Happy colors! Dancing! Smiles! Craziness! Basically the opposite of my world, which is full of earth tones, sitting, frowning, and normality! Or something! I love the continual movement of the camera in all the non-dancing scenes and every little step and pause taken by Patrick and all the twirls and claps in between. Is that weird? Choreographed walking? Strolling? I don’t know. I really like the pause at the 1:15 mark, but I have no idea why.
I thought that I wouldn’t like any of his other songs—I’ve listened to bits of his older albums before and never got into them—but then a friend kindly donated the album to “Robyn’s iTunes” and it turns out that I like it. A lot. At least until I get sick of it. It’s a weird mix of…stuff. Hell, I’m not writing an album review; there are no standards here. WEIRD MIX OF STUFF, THAT’S WHAT IT IS. Stuff that expands in your brain and fills in every squishy crevice with beeps and thumps and pianos and horns and maybe the screechings of soaring fireworks.
He’s playing at Bowery Ballroom on May 9th. Which I only just realized is the day before my (second) graduation ceremony. Crap. Stupid graduation. I’ll just be very tired that day.
It’s mainly Fran’s voice that makes me smile, but the whole band is…pretty important, last time I checked. So! Travis makes me smile. Watch the video for Closer, the first single off their upcoming album, The Boy With No Name coming out on May 10th [via torr]:
My thoughts while watching the video:
Supermarket…oookay…
Damn, I really don’t want to work in a supermarket. Again. (My first job was bagging at Stop & Shop in high school)
Fran…is a giant chipmunk? This is a weird supermarket.
…This song is very pretty.
Aw, everyone is like, HAPPY AND STUFF, and full of so much joy, they have forgotten the suckiness of being in a supermarket!!! Fran’s singing heals all emotional wounds. Wow.
Fran is sweeping his arms around. Why that makes me happy, I don’t know.
CAMEO, OH DEAR GOD.
Aha…pwnd.
Muzak kills everything.
Kissing between random young peeps feels oddly serious for me. Should’ve just stuck with hugging. Yay! Hugs!
I want a happy hug.
…Now I am filled with sadness.
I didn’t say they were deep thoughts or anything.
Most of Travis’s videos are great, not in the groundbreaking sense but in the “it will make you smile and maybe laugh a bit” sense. Which is good for those times when you realize life sucks. …Which is most of the time. Especially when, after listening to this song, I thought about who I have in my life that I wouldn’t mind leaning on. Or rather, wouldn’t mind me leaning on them and crushing them with my lead-like density (yes, I’m thinking of the physical sense of leaning on someone, not the…I dunno, mental lean-age). And there are very few people who fit that description. It’s possible that I could gain more of these people, but I think I’m more likely to lose the ones I have now.
Annnnd thus I am inspired to write about the PB&J concert I went to nearly two weeks ago. (I’ve been a bit busy/lazy lately. It’s finals week and I somehow need to not fail things while say goodbye to people and eat as much in Paris as possible and buy a million gifts and blah blah blah, not that I’m complaining or anything considering that when I walk out of my apartment and turn left I have a full-on view of the Eiffel Tower.)
I disappointingly took very few trips for someone who is studying abroad for one semester, but I managed to plan a weekend trip to London that coincided with the concert. Which was great because there were no concerts I wanted to go to in Paris (or by the time I found out I wanted to go, it was too late).
twinkly
After wandering around under the depressingly early sun-less sky, I met up with my awesome host/longtime Internet friend Leanne, ate a burger for the first time in months, and we both made our way through the chilly weather to ULU.
Peter
Standing in the venue was the most New York City-esque experience I had since leaving NYC. Being squished up against the stage reminded me of the Bowery Ballroom, except…smaller. With additional legal cigarette smoke. And with everyone speaking English.
Bjorn, Peter
I was most struck by how differently they played their songs live as opposed to on the album. Not that they replaced their instruments with chainsaws or anything like that, but…ye know, more noticably different than live performances of other live artists. Either I was really tired, or they made some of their songs longer. Or maybe some songs just feel long, like one of my favorites:
It feels endless to me, but it’s only 3 minutes and 50 seconds long. Uh. Maybe it’s just my inherent lethargy.
Victoria, Peter
Victoria Bergsman came out in some ridiculously cute purple dress + vest outfit (you will rarely ever hear me comment on people’s clothing; I usually don’t give a crap) to sing her part for “Young Folks” while Peter did some furious shaker shaking. This song was obviously everyone’s favorite song.
Bjorn, John
Oh yeah, there are other members of the band; I just didn’t get good photos of them. Although Peter and Bjorn did the most talking, John did randomly get a few words in, which were somehow the only words that stuck in my head. He mentioned that the band usually ate Thai food, but went for Japanese food that night instead, consisting of some fish on rice thing. I didn’t get the impression from his nonchalant manner that he was trying to be funny; there was just…something funny about it. The randomness.
The setlist went something like:
* Let’s Call It Off
* See Through
* The Chills
* Paris 2004
* Far Away, By My Size
* Start to Melt
* Big Black Coffin
* Amsterdam
* Young Folks
* Objects of My Affection
* Up Against the Wall
…not including the possibly 4 songs during the encore.
I know this is one of the least enthusiastic reviews one could possibly write, but I really did enjoy the concert aside from the subsequent stench of smoke in my clothing. That night I ended up going to sleep much earlier than usual if it’s any testament to my tired-ness.
I think $15 is alright for their Mercury Lounge show. WHY MUST YOU WHINE? The London show was 10 pounds, aka almost $20. Yes, that exchange rate makes my eyes bleed too. The only souvenirs I brought back from London were four packs of biscuits and a Cadbury advent calendar.
— update-ish —
The Mercury Lounge shows seem to have sold out already. Oooops.
I’m supposed to be studying for my computer programming final that will kick my butt in less than 12 hours, but…
[beep boop] BEGIN PROCRASTINATION TIME [beep boop]
Loney, Dear
I don’t remember whether I talked about Loney, Dear before, but judging from the infrequency of my posts, I’m going to assume, “not so much.” Here is a song that I quite like from Solonge:
Oh, am I supposed to convince you to download this song? Besides, “Because I like it”? Well…
bun bun
BECAUSE BUNNY SAYS SO. You can’t resist the bunny. Do as bunny says. Bun bun bun.
(Where did bunny come from? My housemate got her as a gift for our homestay family. I told her it wasn’t a good idea, but my god, this bunny melts our icy cold hearts with fluffy fluffness goo. It’s sick.)
Inspired by guitar pop from the 80’s and indie bands from the 90’s they sound like a Swedish relative to Echo & The Bunnymen, New Order och The Jesus and Mary Chain from the future.
Last night I felt like I needed a happy brain-wooshy song. I looked through my some-thousand mp3 library and couldn’t decide what to listen to.
..And then something random in the dusty cobwebbed part of my brain said, “The Spinto Band has a fun song, yes?” And I replied, “Uh, I dunno.” Because I didn’t remember from the handful of times I had heard their music. Then I make my way to their myspace page and listen to “Oh Mandy” about 20 times in a row because, indeedio, it made me happy.
I loves me some lilting mumbly singing. Truly.
Then I thought that they must have a spiffy music video to go with it. Thankfully, they do, stop-motiong animation and all:
And like any good Internet-happy band, they have a blog to make stalking easier.
The Soft Lightes’s video for Heart Made of Sound makes me happy. Words. Colors. Stop-motiong animation. It’s semi-abstract fun, like arts and crafts up the wazoo to the 100th power. Nothing necessarily complicated, but it’s definitely time consuming and the product of more creativity that I’ll ever have. [via Design*Notes]
I have no idea why, but I’m semi addicted to this song by The Shins:
The Shins - Sleeping Lessons [removed]
…Which means I may get sick of it soon. Hm. I hope not. Their upcoming album, “Wincing the Night Away”, doesn’t come out for another three months, which I didn’t know when I came across it. [cough] It’s the first album by them that I’ve really liked; maybe I should listen to the older ones again.
I haven’t actually bought Beck’s new album “The Information” yet, but I’ve been listening to it for a few days. (DO NOT ASK HOW. SECRET INFORMATION.) I will buy it eventually, like after I stop caring that it costs $10 on amazon.com and 16€ at amazon.fr.
The Information
Why isn’t the CD in my possession yet? Sadly, the videos and songs that have been popping up on his website until the release of the album didn’t catch much of my attention. The trend with Beck albums for the past few years is that my interest in them has decreased. Don’t ask me why. (I maintain my beck fansite somewhat half-assed…oh well.) However, I do like his new album, even more so because of the videos that I had initially written off as “…huh?”
happy fun times
That’s what’s nice about em. They’re random. Lo-fi. Weird. Download them all courtesy of ShotsRingOut.com. Right now I’m watching the video for “New Round” (one of my favorite songs so far) and it’s just a bunch of friends hanging out. With instruments. Wearing random clothing. In settings accentuated by fake backdrops and houseplants. I also like this video in particular because it doesn’t have any effects aside from fading in and out. It’s a video you could make with your friends if you have a lot of em…and if they’re a bit odd. (Who likes normal people anyway? Psshaw.)
Beck described the video making process to Celebrity Week:
We bought a couple of video cameras, set them up in the same room, one of them had the green piece of paper and people just sort of stopped by. We had a whole side room full of wigs and toy rifles and a bunch of nonsense [like] spacesuits … There is something in these that is sort of awkward and unprofessional and charming.
It gives me a nice, warm feeling. Mmm. But I can’t wait to see the Michel Gondry video for “Cell Phone’s Dead”.
After letting We Will Build seep into my brain for just a few seconds (through I Guess I’m Floating), I knew that I liked them. Don’t you love it when things just click like that?
I would try to describe the awesomeness my brain felt when I listened to them, but someone else already wrote a great description. I will steal quote from Big Static for your benefit (and so I can go to sleep more quickly):
Have you ever felt the intense desire to listen to something friendly? Not perky or hyper or courteous but just friendly? It might sound like a dull concept but We Will Build are anything but. With a nice blend of influences such as Air and Ratatat, these two Canadians are the musical equivalent of a nice tender hug and frankly, as much as it makes me sound like a wuss, I like little else in the world more than hugs, musical or physical
I totally agree. Nothing really compares to hugs. Not even chocolate. But what do you do when you’re alone? So very alone? …With a source of music? You listen to the music that hugs you back. Kinda. Not really. It doesn’t have arms.
Their myspace page lists their style as “powerpop/electronica”. Simple and true. Their songs range from lullabye-ish to something that would make a good soundtrack to “jumping on the bed under the influence of too much sugar”. As for what that means, you should just download all their songs to see for yourself. ALL OF THEM. Take advantage of their generousity.
Even though a part of me thinks myspace is a virtual bucket of ugly crap, I turn to it as the easiest way to listen to music that I otherwise can’t find. “Huuh, their official website doesn’t have any media, but surely they have a myspace with songs.” This works out most of the time…as long as myspace is working (which happens every now and then). Here are some bands with short descriptions:
Port Largo
Port Largo (myspace): Danish, synth-rock-pop, kinda reminds me of Mew/Sigur Ros…because of somewhat unintelligible high-pitched singing. You know the type. Favorite song: “Another State of Mind”
The Ballet
The Ballet (myspace): New York, indie-pop/”Belle & Sebastian after too much cotton candy” (–Logo), bleepy keyboard and clappy drum machine lines, lovingly handcrafted album (sold out). Favorite song: “In My Head”
Kunek
Kunek (myspace): Oklahoma, atmospoheric, sad, delicate, kinda-reminds-me-of-Coldplay (hope that’s alright). Favorite song: “A Sign of Life”
One Trick Pony
One Trick Pony (myspace): Los Angeles, kinda reminds of Sondre Lerche, but I don’t know why. Is it the croon-y voice? Sorry, that wasn’t much of a description, I’m too lazy. Favorite song: “Box Song”
Hooray for Earth
Hooray for Earth (myspace): Boston, synth-y pop rock, and their name is HOORAY FOR EARTH, which might be the main reason I’m mentioning them because this isn’t exactly my kind of leisure listening music. Favorite song: “Take Care”
I haven’t listened to Weird Al in years due to lack of interest, but you can’t deny that it’s awesome, yes? Unless you don’t get it. I’m not sure whether it’s good or bad that I understand all the references. At the very least, they don’t all apply to me. (But I have Star Wars posters on my wall. And I used to love MC Escher. And I have a soldering gun.)
I’m not sure what’s wrong with mayo though.
(A little reminiscing: in 6th grade I remember blasting “The Night Santa Went Crazy” around the holidays and singing it with my friends over and over again. We were just cool. …Yeeah. Please tell me we weren’t the only ones.)
Is it alright that I really like the video for The Pipettes’ single “Pull Shapes”?
It’s so…random. I mean, the cast of overly happy dancing characters is deliberately random and awkward. But that’s the point, right? They should’ve thrown in something even more random, like in this fan-made video for OK Go’s “A Million Ways” that features a dancing mattress in the background. It doesn’t matter if the dancing is only mediocre— it has a dancing mattress.
I hadn’t heard of The Pipettes until I read about them The Music Slut. Identical outfits, coordinated dance-ish moves, and poppy 60s tunes. So cute, it hurts. I like it.
I’m not sure where the name for Elephant Parade came from, but it seems to fit. What does that mean? …I have no idea. If I replace “elephant” with a different animal, it just doesn’t work–Squirrel Parade, Hamster Parade, Whale Parade? They don’t sound right. (But maybe that’s because there is such a thing as a parade of elephants while as far as I know, a parade of squirrels/hamsters/whales is less common.)
What does Elephant Parade sound like? I would come up with my own description, but other people have done a much better job at it than I could. Here is an equation of choice words pulled from various reviews:
What I thought most (I mean, aside from the adjectives I just listed) while listening to their album “Bedroom Recordings” was that I felt as though I were listening to something too personal and lo-fi for it to be meant for the general public to hear. A fun album for close friends to enjoy that somehow leaked out to others who were lucky to hear it. And I mean that all in a good way. The occasional bit of unintentional distortion/wind adds makes the songs lovelier. More than that, I like Estelle Baruch’s and Ido Fluk’s soft, effortless singing over simple acoustic guitar and keyboard melodies. My favorite song features Estelle’s warm voice accompanied by sustained piano arpeggios:
Elephant Parade - Boat Song [removed]
They look as cute as they sound, possibly more so:
cue heart melt-age
You can download another song at Zion B’Ayin and read an interview at Whiskey & Apples. If you like what you hear (and you do), support them by buying their painfully short CD. It’s over before you know it, but hey, 22 minutes is still better than zero.
Elephant Parade sounds more “real” to me for some reason than other music. And it’s not like other music sounds…”fake”. But. Well. Maybe you know what I’m talking about after listening to their songs. Nothing is overdone. All I hear is sincerity.
New Yorkers can see the pair in action for free at Pete’s Candy Store on August 25th.
The other title for this entry was “Endless sweating”, but that’s kind of gross.
endless people?
The sun didn’t keep people away from this week’s Pool Party with headliner Of Montreal. The other performers were Asobi Seksu, Irving and Enon. I was mainly interested in Asobi Seksu and Of Montreal, which left a lot of time in between to bake and unintentionally bathe myself in my own sweat.
makeshift pool
You could cool off in this accidental puddle (or the slip-n-slide in the back).
ice cream
Or by eating Ben & Jerry’s. I wouldn’t normally go for a small $3 cup of cookies and cream, but I wasn’t hungry for anything else. Besides liquids.
Asobi Seksu
Irving
I liked Asobi Seksu most out of the first three bands, but that’s probably because I’m most familiar with their music. I don’t have much to say about Irving or Enon besides that they played and…I watched. I’m just glad that no one died in a pool of their own sweat.
Of Montreal
The members of Of Montreal came out waving home-made flags before Kevin Barnes appeared in his stylin’ green miniskirt, ruffled red shirt and red high-heeled, thigh-high boots. Good lord. He changed outfits two more times during the show. Because he is just that awesome.
the sunglasses make sense, but the hat?
I don’t remember the setlist, but I remember them playing “Old People in the Cemetery” in particular because…it’s a song about old people in a cemetery. It’s funny, in case you haven’t heard it before. They played at least new song from their upcoming album…of course, I have no clue what it was. At some point Kevin pointed out that there was a fork on the wall. I liked that. (But why is there a fork on the wall?) The set ended with a cover of Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” for an encore.
Aside from the heat and feeling more like a sponge than a human, it was a fun day. The event seemed well organized to me, although I heard that there wasn’t enough water. (After the show there were definitely enough empty water bottles strewn about the pool floor to give someone who likes recycling a bit of moolah.) I’m pretty sure that the beer line wasn’t as scary as at the Bloc Party show, which resembled the DMV. On a bad day.
about
Welcome to “the oh so quiet show”, yet another blog for me to lash my ego upon the world wide web and litter it with useless information. I rarely update this blog; it means nothing. Visit diskobox.net to view my other sites.
Favorite song: “Another State of Mind”
