Thanks the great blog Twentyfourbit, I've come across new singer-songwriter Jessica Jalbert.
I can't find much about her except that she's from Edmonton, in Canada and she has an album titled Brother Loyola out about now.
Here's a lovely track, Lack of a Lake, that you can get for free on her site
I love the sweet nostalgic feel of her sound, the voice reminds me a bit of Holly Miranda or a quiet version of Annie of Giant Drag fame.
It's not all twee and quietness though, single Paris Green does have some layers of guitars and beating drums. I'm a tad less convinced by her voice here though.
Last but not least for you electronica lovers, previous dream-pop single Necromancy has been successfully remixed to create a great soundtrack to a lazy Sunday Morning in bed.
Now it's time for a croissant dipped into milky coffee, if you'll excuse me.
That was the track that defined 1993 for a lot of indie kids and music lovers. Fade Into You by the Californian duo Mazzy Star on their 2nd album So Tonight That I Might See
How many teenagers wanted to get close and personal with Hope Sandoval...and I knew quite a few girls who wanted to be her as well...
The song has this timeless nostalgic feel, the sadness that lingers after a love affair ends...oh the tears that have been shed listening to this record!
So Mazzy Star then, Sandoval and David Roback appeared on the dream pop scene back in 1989, a year later they released a first opus She Hangs Brightly; the dark art nouveau with gothic undertones visuals of that album paved the way for the musical content: brooding and psychedelia-tinged folk with Sandoval's child-like voice half soothing half creepy
It took them 3 years to serve us a follow-up album: So Tonight I Might See, and with it came world-wide fame. The production is more mature and Sandoval's voice more seductive and velvety.
This is my favourite track on that album: 5 String Serenade ( I dare you not to melt)
After a Third album Among My Swan, the band went on a hiatus to pursue solo careers. Sandoval released a couple of albums and went on tour whilst Roback produced Beth Orton's Central Reservation amongst others.
Then last week, it was revealed that Mazzy Star would come back with a new song ( the first one in 15 years) with a full album to follow. That first single will be available for Halloween ( they always had a gothic undertone) and a small trailer hit Youtube.
Today, Pitchfork brings us the B-Side from that single.
I'm really looking forward to a brand new slice of Mazzy Star. You?
From November 21st until the 27th in Brussels, Indie music will be celebrated via the wonderful Autumn Falls festival. It's been going on for a few years and the bill keeps showcasing impeccable taste in the talented and oddball musical landscape. About 50 artists will take part in this indie extravaganza in various venues throughout Brussels. Full listing on the festival's website
On November 24th, don't try and call me or invite me anywhere, I will be at the Cirque Royal to watch 3 excellent acts do their stuff on stage. First up is Pinback, a Californian stalwart indie band that many of my music lover friends love love love ( yes you @exexalex and @mikediver). Since 1999 they've released 4 albums and a 5th one is planned for 2012. They're consistantly good live so it's a good 'entrée en matière'
For mains, it will be mister Bill Callahan of Smog fame, I've talked about him many times on this blog so won't spoil your intelligence with more rambling about how wooooonderful a songwriter he is.
Callahan can be moody on stage but his voice and music are well worth the ticket fee alone.
He gave us 12 lo-fi albums as Smog and has put out his 4th effort under his own name back in April. The single from Apocalypse was 'America'
Then the cherry on the cake that night will be Low, the trio from Minnesota who encapsulated the Slow Core genre in the mid 90s
They released their 9th album "C'mon" earlier this year on Sub Pop. I love them, I just do : the harmonies, the simplicity mixed with some harshness and the lancinant, near psychedelic sounds...it's just perfect!
Autumn Falls holds another little gem in his programme: She Keeps Bees. If you like artists like Patti Smith, Cat Power or even old Pj Harvey you must try some She Keeps Bees. Live, you just want to hug Jessica Larrabee, she's standing there so fresh and un-starlike full of jokes and joie de vivre. Then she sings and her voices fills up the space with so much soul...
I completely missed the released of Dig On last spring so here's an old favourite of mine 'Cage Match'
You can see her at the Botanique on November 26th as support for Pink Mountaintops
I'd also like to point out several other highlights quickly:
On the 26th if She Keeps Bees is not your cup of tea and you prefer dancing, then head to the AB for Metronomy + SX + Holloys + Babe Rainbow and the great Germans Tarwater
Now, still on the 26th the rockers amongst you will be making their way to the VK for a full dosage of decibels courtesy of Chrome Hoof, Part Chimp and Alkerdeel.
And because Tim Cedar is a very old friend of mine from when he was in a band called Ligament here's a dose of Part Chimp to wake every up.
And for you, Lana Del Ray fans, try a dose of Marissa Nadler please, you may just be seduced by the real deal and she'll be in Brussels on November 27th with Scott Matthews and A Winged Victory For The Sullen.
Autum Falls is a festival held in various venues across Brussels from November 21st until the 27th, organised by Tout Par Tout Booking agency
Some artists are constantly good throughout their career, they keep creating beautifully crafted pieces of music. One such artists is mister Cass McCombs; he will be releasing his 6th album later this fall so maybe it's time to have a look at his prolific outputs.
I don't know much about McCombs apart from his music and the fact that his albums are put out by Domino Records. So let's focus on the music then...
Back in 2003 he released a first album (after an EP the previous year) that was critically acclaimed. Simply titled 'A' it showcased McCombs's talent for soothing melodies, odd lyrics and that latent dreamy sadness.
First track is called I Went To The Hospital and leaves you in no doubt about the American's abilities. it's a terrific piece of music, what a way to start your first album!
2 years later McCombs came back with PREfection,an album that kept going in the same direction than its predecessor.
Then in 2007 came Dropping The Writ, and with it a slight change of musical landscape: less reverbs, less indie postures, more Americana and folky sounds. As Pitchfork wrote at the time McCombs stopped gazing at his feet but started staring at the stars instead. And it worked a treat. On that LP there is a song "Full Moon Or Infinity" that probably is in my top10 favourites songe EVAH
Releasing albums at the rhythm of one every 2 years, we only had to wait until 2009 for Catacombs, yup the boy'still enjoying playing with words and is not afraid of auto-derision. For most of his teenage years and early adulthood, Mc Combs travelled across America and this 4th album is very much a troubadour on the road type of album. Again, the melodies are flowing effortlessly and softly in the listener's ears. First single was Dreams Come True, Girl with some vocals from Karen Black, and is tinged with 50s influences.
Back in April, McCombs served us a fifth helping of his original yet comforting music ("Wit's End") and lo and behold! we won't have to wait another 2 years for the next installment as Humour Risk (See, told you the boy was funny with words) will be with us in November. Reasons to be cheerful, right? We'll be well cosy at home this winter with an extra dose of McCombs. Yes, dreams DO come true ;-)
I hope you'll check this talented and orignal artist and am praying for him to give a show in Belgium soon. Despite following his career since 2003, I've never seen him live...
For the past 2 weeks I've been thinking about Sparklehorse, musical project of Mark Linkous who died back in March 2010. He's one of these artists that seem to influence so many others yet never got quite that high recognition he deserved. A sensitive soul who made a music layered with emotions, feelings and still at the heart of it a certain freshness and even naivety. To me, his music often shined with a lot of light and often triggered a smile.
Why am I thinking about Linkous at the moment? For 2 reasons: the first one is Twin Falls who's debut album "Slow Numb" was released mid September on CowshedMusic. This is another singer-songwriter hiding behind a band name, in this case West Country boy Luke Stidson.
I found a link to their soundcloud and their song "Monkey is a singe" was reminiscent of Linkous' Sparklehorse. The rest of the album is more folky and alt country, you can download a free track on their website if you're curious.
Reason number 2 for going back to my Sparkelhorse CDs is a superb musical project called "A Winged Victory For The Sullen". Composed of Dustin O'Halloran and Adam Wiltzie, AWVFTS marries classical music with some post-rock sounds and dusts the result with some ambiant to create absolutely stunning pieces of music. O'Halloran and Wiltzie were making music with linkous and created this hybrid project in his memory. Oh boy, it's sublime, moving, enthralling...when I told you he inspired many to create music.
Their self-titled album was released early September in Europe and if you like music that will keep you in its arms during the long winter night, this album is for you.
So thank you Mark Linkous, thank you for your 4 Sparklehorse albums, thank you for the collaboration with Fennesz, thank you for your Dark Night Of The Soul project with Dangermouse & Lynch and finally thank you for the legacy and still inspiring great people to make fabulous music.
I very much remember the first time I heard "To Young To Love" back at the start of 2009 - it was heavy and dark like a winter rainy day. It was dangerous and seductive, it was hypnotic and inebriated, short of breath and spinning. You bet I loved it. The band, who chose the rather silly name The Big Pink, was signed by 4AD, which added a stamp of quality.
They followed this first single with Velvet which was more in the same veine: layers of guitars in a shoegazing mood, deep noisy electronica and slightly naïve lyrics delivered in a passionately bored tone ( yes it's possible) This band was creating very sexy music that brought us deliciously back to the mid 90s but with a current edge.
The album A Brief History of Love was a tad disappointing. It's not easy to create 11 tracks of the same intensity as their first 2 singles, even for seasoned musicians like Milo Cordell and Robbie Furze. However it led us to believe that they have what it takes to take the next album a step further.
The gigs were urgent, sweaty, rock'n roll and mesmerizing, especially at the small AB club; the band was less convincing at festivals but that was to be expected despite their latest single Dominoes being played everywhere and transforming them into pop stars.
This week they're releasing a first full video for their new single out in November, it's called Stay Gold
They've kept the same 'winning recipe' used on Dominoes with the big cheering pop chorus, adding touches of Celtic undertones. To me, it sounds weaker, even washed-up, it sounds like a band who are willing to be less creative to keep the masses happy. Good on them if it works I guess.
Maybe I'm too hard, it's still atmospheric and the lads have a right to play slightly lighter and easier music. Maybe I just liked them too much before.
The full 2nd album Future This will be out still on 4AD in January 2010 and whilst waiting for it I'll keep playing those first single of theirs, you know to keep the expectations high :-p
It took me about 6 months to start liking music again. Add an extra 2 or 3 months to want to write about it and share bits of music that excite, endear, surprise me... and we reach 9 months. hum.
Thing is, when you write for other people, it takes an extra energy or motivation to take to the computer again when you get back home late, when the last thing you want to see is a Facebook page or a blog.
But, here we go again. I took my time, but I now feel ready to talk about music with you, to go back to gigs and buy records. First, it started with a tour of my old favourite records: singing along, dancing in the kitchen, remembering how I know some songs by heart because the lyrics are so beautifully crafted. You know, falling back in love again.
Then I kept that little Facebook page that's been fed with snippets of new music that I came across. That's how I stumbled upon First Aid Kit's cover of Fever Ray's "When I Grow Up". And then... gosh I wanted to write about it!
Covers, a difficult art: stay too close to the original and you get labelled a copycat without a vision, appropriate the song to your own style too much and you lack respect to the original. There is a fine balance. Some artists are master at surprising us with covers that manage to stay true to the songs ' roots yet shed a new light on it.
Back to First Aid Kit, they first came to the public awareness in 2008 with a cover of Fleet Foxes' "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song". The Söderbrg sisters followed this first good impression with a lovely album titled "The Big Black & The Blue" in 2010.
Folky harmonies and that naïve seriousness only encountered in teenage voices made them stand out with what was a very decent first effort.
In 2012, they will be back with a 2nd album "The Lion's Roar"; to whet our appetites and show us how much they've grown they've just served up this stunning cover.
I love the original: dark, moody and transporting us to the limit of danger. Yet this fragile cover, with all its differences stays true to the Fever Ray tracks whilst transposing it in a different world. Amazing feat by Klara and Joanna!
Let me know what your favourite covers are and we'll do a blogpost or two about the best ones...and don't forget to keep your ears peeled for The Lion's Roar
One of the highlights of the fabulous Nuits Botanique bill this year is the presence on May 20th of Kristian Matsson, the man hiding behind the pseudo The Tallest Man on Earth. This Swedish singer-songwriter is responsible for 2 good albums: Shallow Grave in 2007 and The Whild Hunt this year. It won't be his first show at the Bota, a venue that loves seeing its artist grow.
Matsson went through Jools Holland's studio and recorded this lovely Dylan-esque version of "Loving All"
