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And happy new year!
A month late!
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It’s become something of a cliche to say that it’s hard to find good children’s music, but it’s very true.
Laura Veirs – Little Lap Dog Lullaby.
I’m sure my eight-month-old daughter can’t really differentiate between kids’ music and, say, NWA, but we’ve been trying to keep it light on recent car trips. So far, that’s meant Peter, Paul & Mommy and Free To Be … You and Me, both of which definitely have their moments (don’t get me started on Mel Brooks’s “I’m a baby!” sketch from the latter … no really, it’s amazing).
But now Laura Veirs has put out Tumble Bee, a record of kids’ folks songs, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It not only has Veirs’s great voice and guitar playing but intricate arrangements and song choices that are both fun (“King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O”) and somewhat somber (“All The Pretty Little Horses”). Woody Guthrie even makes an appearance when Veirs covers his sweetly funny “Why Oh Why,” and Colin Meloy pops up on “Soldier’s Joy” (perhaps returning the favor for Veirs’s appearance on The Crane Wife).
Whether or not you’ve got kids, you should pick this one up.
That awesome album art up there, by the way, is by Carson Ellis.
R.E.M. recently called it quits after 31 years together, and Robots David and Mark needed it to talk about it.
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There’s something about bands that wear influences on their sleeves while sounding like themselves. Girl In A Coma not only cops the Smiths’ jangle but adapts one of Moz’s song titles for their band name. But this is no imitation; this is just a band that likes what it likes.
Girl In A Coma has even opened for Morrissey, as well as Tegan and Sara, Sia, and the Pogues. Not many bands could cover that range, but these women can. Their fourth record Exits & All The Rest, out November 1 on Joan Jett’s Blackheart Records, is pop and rock, pseudo-punk and new wave. It’s awash in reverb but sharp as a tack. I think you’ll like it.
Stoked that Jeremy Warmsley found a new project that’s even more awesome than his old stuff. This song is beyond.
You were the first band I ever really loved, and you’re still my favorite.
Geoffrey O’Connor – Whatever Leads Me To You
I’m not as in touch with Australia as I used to be, having lost touch with its superior coffee and southern california-style beaches. It’s been more than three years Corey Delaney finally brought the continent kicking and screaming onto the national stage, a fact that Mr. O’Connor would probably rather have me leave out of this piece. But listen – I’ve been following his music for years now throughout his various bands and sounds. He’s constantly refining but seemingly striving for the same sound, just getting better at it each time. Now, when we hear the first keyboard chord of “Whatever Leads Me To You” we instantly feel the drama, are instantly teleported into the half-sordid image of the album cover. It’s a savvy start to an excellent song on a pretty great record, one that I find myself reaching for often.
When you’re looking for a place to spend your music dollars this month, I would highly suggest you set aside seven dollars for this wonderful little single from the freshly launched Storyboard Label 7″ series. It’s been a quiet few years for Joshua and Amber of Lightning Dust but perhaps they’ve put those years to good use. Although I enjoy their previous records, this is far and away their best single and I can only hope they can carve out some time to record a full length.
Villa Rosa – Leader of the Pack.
There’s something about Midwest hip-hop that’s so pure and wholesome, so without hubris and overconfidence, that I find totally charming. Don’t get me wrong, I love Kanye’s ridiculous boasting and Jay-Z’s outrageous claims as much as the next guy, but I also love people just doing what they do. Minneapolis hip-hop has its share of outsized personalities, but they’re largely down-to-earth and thankful they have a chance to hold your attention.
Which brings me to Villa Rosa’s Muja Messiah and Maria Isa. Their debut Blue Diamond Island is worth a listen. It’s a good slice of Minneapolis hip-hop, plain and simple. The record is out on September 17.
Oh brother, it has been a LONG TIME since I have posted anything. Sorry, Robots. I have no good excuse.
Not that I’ve been gone for two years, but perhaps it’s fitting that I’m posting a track from 2009. But Visqueen, purveyors of power pop and epic choruses, have music that is timeless. When “Hand Me Down” started, I was was struck by how Rachel Flotard’s voice sounds like Neko Case’s work with the New Pornographers, and then Case herself pops in for some harmonies. How about that.
This track is from the band’s record Message to Garcia, out now on Local 638 Records and available on Amazon. It’s a really lovely record, one that has moments of tenderness and subtlety for every catchy chorus. That amazing cover is the handiwork of artist Ryan Berkley, whose series of formally dressed animals is one of my favorite things. His “panda with a pipe” adorns my daughter’s nursery in a gold-colored frame.