Big Star

We listened to part of a Big Star song on Thursday, and unfortunately I was not in class on Wednesday to watch the documentary, so I am not very familiar with this band. I decided to look up some of their  music when I got home the other day and discovered this song, called "Kangaroo." This definitely falls into the "really sad and dark" phase of their career that you described to me. I would try and describe the way this song sounds, but I feel like the indie music website Stereogum does a much better job --

"The most bracing and outsized measure taken on an album of profoundly avant gestures, 'Kangaroo' is the musical centerpiece and a culmination of Chilton’s ever more radical vision for Big Star’s final album. Over the course of it’s cathartic three minutes and 46 seconds, Chilton sings in a pleading, plaintive tone to a would-be paramour — sounding deeply disoriented and not a little strung out. As the weirdest of all love songs unfolds amidst a sea of buzzing feedback and distortion, Stephens’s drums drop in and out unexpectedly, and Chilton’s guitar sounds nearly Eastern at times. The melody is lovely but elliptical and difficult to pinpoint, the overall effect not so much a pop song as a man simply unloading his addled head onto the tape. “Kangaroo” is as beautifully damaged as rock and roll gets, and sets a template for the experimentation of countless great pop acts going forward."

I plan on watching the documentary on Netflix on my own time, one day...... but for now, I will be enjoying this song:

Gray Area

Because my stupid Spotify app isn't loading, which supplies my entire music library, I have been listening to my own music less than I am used to. Despite this setback, I have started to listen to more 80's music (that is, more than I previously have), mostly because I'm watching two shows that are set in the 80's and are chock full of great music. I am currently digging into Hall & Oats after having You Make My Dreams" stuck in my head for weeks on end. As of now, I am enjoying "Out of Touch." I like the different sound of Hall & Oats, and their use of the keyboard and saxophone in "Maneater" is subtle but iconic. The techno sound combined with the rock and roll overall feeling creates something that I really like to listen to. Here are some of my favorites:

"Maneater"

"You Make My Dreams" (my all time favorite)

"Out of Touch"

Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young

I really loved listening to Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young in class, and realized I knew way more of their songs than previously thought. I've heard "Our House" many times, plus "Teach Your Children" and "Carry On." My favorite aspect of this group is definitely the four part harmony. It's incredibly impressive how they are able to synchronize their voices in such a unique way. Without the harmonies, I probably would not have enjoyed this band, because they seem to have an old-folk-sometimes-country sound that isn't exactly appealing to me. However, the harmonies keep me interested and appreciative. Their songs come up in lots of movies as well and I never realized it was CSNY until now! Here is "Our House" live in 1974 (The hair in this video is a bonus).

Winter Break

We talked about winter break in class the other day, and I spent part of my time in Washington D.C. While I was there I found this bookstore that my dad used to go to all the time when he was working in the Senator's office. It was a really unique and interesting experience walking around where my dad spent his years fresh out of law school. The bookstore had two levels, a coffee bar, and a space for author's signings. Hearing me describe it doesn't do it justice, because it felt like home to me. Like someone could just walk inside, sit down, and feel like they had lived there all their life. It certainly happened to me. I found a book full of short stories, with one page written in English and the opposite in Spanish. I am hoping that this catalyzes my goal of fluency in the Spanish language, although I am well aware I have a long way to go in that respect. When my dad comes home from his business trip, I'll post a link to their website. It is definitely a cool place you should check out if you ever happen to find yourself in Washington D.C.!

The Smiths

I have been listening to some of "The Smiths" lately after watching a movie that featured them in their soundtrack. I really like their retro sound and the thickness of the lead singer's accent. I feel like it emphasizes the feeling he is trying to communicate, especially in songs like "Asleep" (my personal favorite of theirs). I haven't exactly investigated them thoroughly, but a quote on Wikipedia states that "The BBC described The Smiths as 'the band that inspired deeper devotion than any British group since The Beatles,'" which I thought was especially relevant to our class studies. It's interesting to me to see just how many of the most popular bands in the world are British. It seems that Britain and the US have always been in tune (ha ha) in terms of the music industry, for each country continually produces groundbreaking bands as time goes on. It makes me wonder if there ever was a struggle between the two, or a battle to see who could rival the other's major band/artist at the time. (Was America jealous of the Beatles British success ...) Anyway, here are some of the songs I really like by The Smiths, I hope you like them:


I'm not sure why the video explores a graveyard the entire time, but here is "Asleep" --

"There Is A Light That Never Goes Out"

"This Charming Man"

"How Soon Is Now"

This Week

Basically this week I have been listening to nothing in particular, just a ton of songs on shuffle. On Spotify I found a playlist called "Hot Alternative" that was by Spotify itself, and has artists like Cage the Elephant (who I love), CHVRCHES, Grouplove, Portugal. The Man, Thao & The Get Down Stay Downs (who we talked about in class!!), Wavves, Jake Bugg, Atoms for Peace, Bastille, etc. I am really excited to listen to this playlist, which sounds weird because I'm listening to it right now, but I love becoming familiar with playlists and discovering which songs are my favorites. This is a really great playlist and if you have a Spotify (and if you don't, get one), then you should follow it. So far I really like everything on this playlist, especially
"Purple Yellow Red and Blue" by Portugal. the Man (which I think we watched in class a couple weeks ago?),
"Recover" by CHVRCHES
"Fall In Love" by Phantogram
"Black Sheep" by Gin Wingmore

Abbey Road

I really enjoyed listening to Abbey Road last class. The songs before the 14 minute melody were all extremely good; I knew pretty much all of the first half of the album already, and I didn't even know it. But regardless it was one of the best albums so far, in addition to Revolver and the made-up combination album of Sgt. Pepper's and Magical Mystery Tour. The beginning of the second half of Abbey Road was really cool, and I liked how it turned into a "super song" essentially. I noticed in one of the songs (Mean Mr. Mustard) they referenced "Pam" and then in the next song it centered around Pam (I think it was called "Polythene Pam") which was really interesting. The medley was a little long for me, so I kind of lost focus at the end. However the very fact that they were able to compose a 14 minute song that all flowed together and retained a melody throughout is super impressive. Overall, it was a great album. And now I am inspired to look up the history of the ever so famous album cover....

So apparently the photographer only had 10 minutes to take the picture while policemen stopped traffic. There was a Volkswagen Beetle car parked in the picture, belonging to someone who lived in the flats nearby, and after the album was released, the license plate (LMW 281F) was stolen repeatedly. It's hilarious. The car was sold for a ton of money and is now in a German museum. The bystander in the picture was an American tourist who didn't even know he was in the photo until after the album was released. There is a webcam pointed straight at the Abbey Road crossing, apparently, and I want to see if it actually works...

UPDATE: IT'S REAL. http://www.abbeyroad.com/crossing