After attending five separate Christmas gatherings among family and friends this year I'm pretty much partied out. So although the FOMO was hard to shake off entirely, it was an overall easy decision to turn down the 3+ New Year's Eve celebrations I was invited to in lieu of a quiet night with my immediate family and some good books. That's why I saw the following song by Courtney Barnett, from her debut LP Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit released April of this year, as an apt alternative to Auld Lang Syne (apart from being one of my favorites from the record).
"Nobody Really Cares If You Don't Go To The Party (Live)" by Courtney Barnett
It is with great joy that I share the musical debut of Dear Other, the brainchild of Marc Barnes (of BadCatholic fame) and his cohort from Steubenville, Ohio. Their EP titled The Exitus and Reditus of Andrew Darkside Parrish is a poetic exposé of the search for both the meaning of one's life and the meaning of the meaning of one's life. Delivering a baroque-folk-slash-progressive-punk-mini-opera-of-sorts, the band leaves no philosophical stone unturned in its challenge of modernity's apathy towards moral autonomy. My favorite cut from this is the middle track, featured below. And if you happen to be feeling particularly charitable this time of year, half of the Bandcamp sales for this $4 record go to support the Harmonium Project, an initiative to revive the art culture in Steubenville.
Last week I started watching the BBC psychological/crime drama series Luther and its pilot episode featured "Gun" by Emilíana Torrini during a scene where the titular character went in search of a weapon which was key to solving an exceptionally clean homicide. The song's brooding atmosphere and the sweet-and-jerky vocal delivery are reminiscent in style to Björk, another Icelandic musician, albeit with a peculiar approachability like that of adult contemporary. This led me to listen the album where this song is from, 2008's Me and Armini, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
I have been struggling for some time with finding approaches to update this blog with brief, meaningful and regular posts. I have experimented with different article formats (7 Quick Takes and shorter band bios are examples of this) but all that has resulted are numerous drafts for awesome themed posts that take too much of my time to write.
So for the sake of keeping this project alive, I am looking to post weekly at minimum not ten things or seven things but one thing... just one song or story with accompanying text that takes less time to read than listening to a typical track. I want this blog to serve as an avenue of musical encounter where you stumble upon an interesting tidbit that intrigues you enough to search out more on your own (which is the typical mode of discovery for me).
And without further ado, here's "Learned to Surf" by Superchunk (also featured in a previous post) from their 2010 album Majesty Shredding (an indiepunk record well worth listening through in its entirety).
Those familiar with the psychological thriller / slasher film American Psycho (based on the novel of the same name) will recognize Patrick Bateman as the sociopathic yuppie protagonist of the story who tries so desperately to fit into high society but finds it increasingly difficult to control his baser tendencies. As part of this mask he puts on to seem normal, he frequently entertains guests at his home with very detailed monologues centered about popular 80s musicians and their more well-known songs. Although the content of his dissertations are more shallow than they are insightful, these monologues provide an unexpected comedic respite in the midst of a macabre plot. So without further ado, here are Mr. Bateman's takes on three pop artists and their "hits".
Their early work was a little too 'new-wave' for my taste, but when Sports came out in '83, I think they really came into their own - commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He's been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far more bitter, cynical sense of humor. [...]
In '87, Huey released this, Fore!, their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is "Hip To Be Square", a song so catchy most people probably don't listen to the lyrics - but they should! Because it's not just about the pleasures of conformity, and the importance of trends, it's also a personal statement about the band itself!
The Feast of All Saints' Day is this Sunday and in preparation for that I thought it'd be an interesting exercise to explore the different ways that sainthood is referred to in popular music. The cult of the saints has been a celebrated practice in Christianity for millennia, predating even the Latin descriptor "sactus", and the effects of this tradition has shaped both cultures and their art all around the world. In this day and age it is not uncommon for artists to self-canonize either their work or themselves (as in the case of St. Vincent or Saint Motel), but whether this is done in a sense of allegory or irony it speaks to the fact that the world as a whole still beholds the qualities of God as ideals to be revered, even if at times the One is not. But I would say that the way of the saint isn't so much disdained as it is misunderstood. As Venerable Fulton Sheen would say, "Not 100 people in the United States hate the Roman Catholic Church, but millions hate what they mistakenly think the Roman Catholic Church is.” So below are seven songs with subtle allusions to saints that I've dug up from my library and playlists.
1. "St. Louis Blues (W.C. Handy Cover)" by The Isley Brothers
Before the hockey team, this blues staple set in the city of St. Louis, Missouri, was originally composed by W.C. Handy at the turn of the 20th century and tells the tale of a spouse in dire straits over the absence of their partner. Although the venerated French monarch is not directly referenced to in the song, the city's name gives testimony to the grand tradition of invoking the intercession of a saint particular to a founding community's devotion by dedicating the place after them (many American examples are listed here, here and here). In regards to the song, there exist many different covers and this one by the Isley Brothers appears in the same album as their hit "Shout" and their take on "When the Saints Go Marching In".
2. "Dao of St. Paul" Third Eye Blind
From the 2009 album Ursa Major by alternative rockers Third Eye Blind, the protagonist of this song feigns indifference towards a woman he still has feelings for in an effort to exercise the Dao (or Way) of St. Paul, possibly alluding to his letter to Philippians which was penned in prison and includes the words "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: rejoice!". And though I don't pretend to know much of anything concerning Daoism or any other Chinese philosophy, this podcast I recently listened to served as an approachable introduction.
3. "Saints of Los Angeles" by Mötley Crüe
Serving as comeback hit for glam metal veterans Mötley Crüe, the title track from the band's ninth album got it right about saints being persons worthy of imitation but missed the mark with regards to the behaviors that should be emulated. The good news is that the city has a new auxiliary bishop who does an excellent job in the leading-people-to-sainthood department.
I decided to search the words "Stockholm Syndrome" into Spotify and was not disappointed. The phrase is named after a 1973 bank robbery in Stockholm, Sweden and refers to the phenomenon wherein hostages develop feelings of empathy towards their captors, even to the point of defending them. This theme has extended to the realm of art and music and has been used as a tool to convey the inability for one of leaving a harmful relationship or situation because of the strong feelings attached to it. So below are my top seven picks of songs with the title "Stockholm Syndrome".
1. Muse
You can count on prog rockersMuse to deliver the intensity with equal parts groove and edge. My favorite song of the list and the one I've known the longest, there are multiple renditions of this song out there including the original, a live version (which borrows the riff that would be used in "Psycho", a song written 7 years later), a string quartet cover and a lullaby composition for toddlers.
2. blink-182
This song by blink-182 captured the essence of their eponymous record, revealing a more introspective and personal approach to songwriting than their prior pop-punk hits which would carry through to the respective band members' side projects (+44 and Angels & Airwaves) during their extended hiatus.
3. Yo La Tengo
For the longest time I was only aware of the above two songs sharing the title "Stockholm Syndrome" and then I stumbled across this gem by Yo La Tengo. Hearing their indie approach with tinges of 60s/70s open-air folk rock got me interested in discovering what other varied ways a song with this title could be expressed.
With fall in full swing all of my "real-world" responsibilities have ramped along with it. As a result, my blogging has fallen by the wayside and although I've been thinking a lot about what to write it unfortunately does not equate to writing a lot about what I think. So I'm going to take a cue from a notable female Catholic blogger and start a series of "7 Quick Takes Friday" posts where I summarize some interesting discoveries or concepts I stumbled upon in the last week.
1. Due Credit
My first exposure to "7 Quick Takes" was through Leah Libresco's blog Unequally Yoked. She's known in many internet circles for her very publicized conversion from atheism back in 2012 and though I can't speak for her past material I can say that I've enjoyed the unique melding of theology, ethics, mathematics and pop culture from her most recent posts.
2. Extra Credit
It was through three such posts from Leah's site (here, here and here) and two podcasts from NPR (here and here) that I was more or less being told that if I didn't listen to the original soundtrack from the new Broadway musical Hamilton that I would be one of those people who lived under a rock. Well, I can still see the sun and all I can say for the musical is that high school history teachers better be prepared for a lot of midterm research projects on the Revolutionary War.
"Cabinet Battle #1 (Live)" from Hamilton
3. Old Sounds
I'm not one to listen to re-runs of podcast, mostly because I have an exhorbinant number of subscriptions and it's a challenge to keep up with the weekly releases. But this week's From the Top episode was one of the first ones I ever heard, Show 303 from Interlochen, MI. Part of what kept me listening was that I was hoping that the introductory piece would be the one I was searching the name of for weeks. And lo and behold, it was! "Die Moldau" is a Czech symphonic piece composed in the 1870s by Bedřich Smetana and named after the great river that runs through the Czech Republic. This composition is also used in the intro sequence of the Symbolon series (as confirmed via Twitter).
Well, sorta... I just recently got out of a YouTube bender looking up eurodance tracks from the mid-90s to mid-00s and this is what came up. If this happens to inspire any discotheque adventures, be sure to bring your best look.
10. "Believe" by Cher (1998)
This is the song that got me started down this rabbit-hole after it was featured in the Stuff You Should Know podcast on Auto-Tune.
9. "Heaven (Bryan Adams Cover)" by DJ Sammy and Yanou featuring Do (2001)
I first encountered Voxtrot while listening to the Smiths' radio on Pandora. Their song "The Start of Something" showed a surprising proficiency in creating an 80s jangle atmosphere with a modern indie pop structure which allotted the merit for the band to be placed in the same playlist as Moz and the gang. That song was from their first release, a 5-song EP in 2005, and it would be another two years until the band came out with their self-titled debut album. Tracks like "Kid Gloves" render the repressed romantic restlessness characteristic of Voxtrot's typical melodic and lyrical composition, which sounds like a page ripped from the diary of a dejected 20-something hipster.
Unfortunately, Voxtrot's fall from indie rockdom was as swift as its rise. After a number of disjointed single releases, lead singer Ramesh Srivastava announced the breakup of the band in 2010 and thereafter began a solo musical venture. As a result, their last recording, "Berlin, Without Return", can be considered the farewell to a journey which began simply as... the start of something. But with a line like "When I see you naked, I see more than the flesh" it's a shame that the music scene is indefinitely deprived of a band that can deliver the pensive and vulnerable poetry of those striving towards authentic love in an otherwise self-centered and relativistic world.
Yes, it's been over two years since my last blog post. With that being said, let's get back to the music.
Thanks to NPR and Spotify I've been able to discover music in a fresh and exciting way. Most importantly, I've been able to encounter new music as it becomes available! Sure, there have always been bands that I would occasionally track to see if their getting ready to release new material or see if I missed the launch by a couple of days (or years...). But now the music comes to me, whether in the form of a podcast hosted by music experts or an artist radio station via music streaming or in relation to other new discoveries. If feels like the old days when television used to air music videos on the regular.
And thanks to this new-fangled technology (new to me, at least), I've been able to listen to A TON of great releases from this year alone. Without further ado, what to listen to from 2015!
Nota bene: To prevent favoritism, all albums are listed in chronological order.
24 Albums I've Listened To So Far
Sleater-Kinney – No Cities to Love 20 January 2015
I'm actually glad this came first on the list because it's my top discovery so far. Coming out of the northwestern riot grrrl scene of the mid-90s, Sleater-Kinney had an active career in the first decade of their band-ship, releasing 7 albums and maintaining a strong underground fanbase. After a long hiatus, they come back strong with No Cities to Love, making punk fun to listen to again and challenging the notion that indie rock is just for soft acoustic background music in car commercials.
“Bury Our Friends” by Sleater-Kinney
Of Montreal – Aureate Gloom 3 March 2015
To me, Of Montreal always seemed like a band too eccentric for me to get into (like the Flaming Lips, but a lot less coherent). It's still hard to listen to Aureate Gloom from beginning to end without scratching your head, but I'm floored not only by the musical complexity of their experimental pop but also by how funky it some of the tracks are. A little bit of trivia: the title for the opener "Bassam Sabry" is a reference to the Egyptian civil rights activist who "accidentally fell from a balcony under unclear circumstances" last year.
“Bassem Sabry” by Of Montreal
Modest Mouse – Strangers to Ourselves 17 March 2015
My only exposure to Modest Mouse before Strangers to Ourselves was their better-known singles and Good News for People Who Love Bad News, and this unfamiliarity with their erratic sound makes it difficult to give an accurate review. I can say that more than once I felt that the album was unevenly paced, with semi-manic vocals being carried by a slow and steady rhythm. If you're not too familiar with the band, I'd suggest listening to one of their other five albums for a more proper introduction.
"The Tortoise and the Tourist" by Modest Mouse
Chastity Belt – Time to Go Home 20 March 2015
I'm not super impressed by Chastity Belt's latest release, Time to Go Home. Having a post-punk atmosphere and a college rock groove, it was a slow burn for most of the record mostly due to a lyricism that doesn't take itself too seriously. However, there are some redeeming moments when the tempo speeds up.
“Joke” by Chastity Belt
Liturgy – The Ark Work 23 March 2015
I never thought I'd be listening to black metal, but here I am... listening to black metal. Granted, the bandmembers of Liturgy (along with their compatriots Deafheaven) would describe their approach as "transcendental black metal" which have the purists up in arms and screaming "Blasphemy!" (how ironic...). Most of the time their sound is an extreme form of shoegazing, but in any case The Ark Work is a totally different kind of animal. The harsh shrieks are replaced by drone chant, synthesizers make frequent appearances and there's even a tinge of hip-hop (see "Vitriol"). It's a decent listen, but I was expecting something more along the lines of "Tragic Laurel". Their longest track, "Reign Array", is an accurate cross-section of all their trying to accomplish in the record. And if for some reason you find the sound unbearable after a minute of listening, at least try to wait out until the bagpipes come in (yes, bagpipes).
