ROULETTE 36

"If I could just see straight, I'd probably head straight for the door..."



Coldplay - Viva La Vida [Viva La Vida, 2008]

I should not like this song. For a long time, I've despised Coldplay, after a moment of realisation that their lyrics were downright embarrassing. But though the whole album hasn't warmed to me, the lead single from it is much more impressive than almost all of their previous output. This isn't inane attempts at cuteness or shallow imitations of depth, but a song capturing a specific feeling via an extended metaphor: the loss of power with the loss of love, working as both literal story of a fallen king and metaphorical tale of a modern-day romantic with a broken heart. I'm honestly impressed, and I hope they keep it up.

Ben Folds - Cologne [Way to Normal, 2008]

Hearkening back to some of his older work, "Cologne" is a piece about letting go. Folds is well and truly vulnerable here, at his best, filling the song with the tiny details. There's something very touching about the countdown and the idea of both wishing for a connection ("in my hotel room I'm wondering if you read that story too, and if we might be having the same imaginary conversation...") and trying to disconnect ("I'm letting you go."). The piano and subtle strings works wonders to make this a frail, emotional piece.

Carissa's Wierd - One Night Stand [I Before E, 2004]

I've been so immersed in this year's offerings, I sometimes forget to listen to old favourites. Favourites like this bizarre tale of broken people, the type of song Carissa's Wierd does best. The male/female harmony adds to the feeling of disorientation and haziness of the titular one night stand, while adding a universal quality to the proceedings. It happens to everyone, male or female. The strings and guitars mourn in the background. Beautiful.

And don't forget, search for more at The Hype Machine; purchase albums or mp3's at Amazon, Amazon Canada, Amie St., cdbaby, or Insound.

100 POSTS!

Wow, I hadn't even noticed, in my music-related lull, that I'd hit my big One Oh Oh. Luckily, as I was checking in here to do an admittedly lacklustre roulette, this little fact spurred me to want to something a little more special. Back in November (ah, so long ago!), I premiered this little blog to little fanfare, moreso a way to clear my head than anything else. Since then, I've graduated high school, switched my little 30 gig iPod for an 80er, and tBoS has gotten itself on the magnificent Hype Machine! I'm still a little fish, but I've at least hatched, and that's thanks to you guys!

That said, I think the best way to acknowledge the passage of time is to homage my first post without copying it. Back then, I posted my top 10 according to my iPod. it's funny how things can change, as you'll see when I revisit that idea with a completely new Top 10...

ALDEN'S iPOD'S TOP 10 MOST-LISTENED TO SONGS!

10. Emilie Autumn - Shalott
(Album: OpheliaC; 2006)
(Previously Featured: ----)

9. Carissa's Wierd - Sofisticated Fuck Princess Please Leave Me Alone
(Album: Songs About Leaving; 2002)
(Previously Featured: ----)

8. Sia - The Girl You Lost to Cocaine
(Album: Some People Have Real Problems; 2008)
(Previously Featured: Roulette 6)

7. The Dresden Dolls - Mandy Goes to Med School
(Album: Yes Virgina...; 2006)
(Previously Featured: Showcase: The Dresden Dolls)

6. Poe - Walk the Walk
(Album: Haunted; 2000)
(Previously Featured: Showcase: Poe)

5. The Dresden Dolls - Sex Changes
(Album: Yes Virgina...; 2006)
(Previously Featured: Mystery Post 2 [Live Radio Version])

4. Carissa's Wierd - Ignorant Piece of Shit
(Album: Songs About Leaving; 2002)
(Previously Featured: Roulette 7)

3. Poe - Not a Virgin
(Album: Haunted; 2000)
(Previously Featured: Showcase: Poe)

2. The Dresden Dolls - Half Jack
(Album: Yes Virgina...; 2006)
(Previously Featured: ----)

1. Poe - Spanish Doll
(Album: Haunted; 2000)
(Previously Featured: Showcase: Poe)

(Search for more at The Hype Machine. Purchase albums or mp3's at Amazon, Amazon Canada, Amie St., cdbaby, or Insound.)

Instead of talking about the individual songs, most of which I've posted about previously (with 3 exceptions), it would probably be more valuable to talk a little about how my tastes have shifted so radically and compare the two lists a little.

First off, the dominance of three bands: The Dresden Dolls, Poe, and Carissa's Wierd, with 3, 3, and 2 respectively. I would say this relates to 'new iPod syndrome' - that is, when your play counts have been wiped (as mine were) I began to listen to certain bands more and others less. My main 'good playlists' have been playcount driven (on my old iPod, the minimum was 7 plays; on the new iPod I have one 7, and another at 3). With thousands of songs at my disposal, shuffle is often a ponderous exercise when not connected to Itunes.

Another is my discovery of A) how much I love The Dresden Dolls and B) how smooth Poe's Haunted sounds when listened as an album. Amanda Palmer and Ann Danielewski (of the Dolls and Poe respectively) are wicked vocalists. However, though Palmer is the stronger voice, Danielewski's sense of production is unparallelled. While she probably had aid in producing the album, it just feels like such a personal affair (and the subtle links to her brother's genius book House of Leaves, and the inclusion of tapes left to her posthumously by her father are also included seamlessly, enhancing rather than detracting).

Since November, I've both started really listening to the lyrics of both and bought Danielewski's brother's aforementioned novel, House of Leaves. Palmer is relentless and shameless as she tackles issues no-one else would touch with vigour and humour, while Poe's songs are lush, beautiful pieces of work. Listen to "Spanish Doll" and tell me it doesn't break your heart just a little.

Meanwhile, the purchase of the new iPod also changed something else. Artists like Andrew Bird, The Fray, Imogen Heap and Tegan and Sara, who appeared on November's list, had become overplayed to me. Having lost the built up play counts from the old iPod, and having been played to near exhaustion already, they didn't have the power to make the climb alongside the Dolls. In fact, none of last years (fantastic) offerings have made it to the top 10 yet. Sia, the only one to survive the iPod switch, had an album release in early 2008 just as it occurred, perfectly timed for the new list. Even with this, early favourites off Problems didn't make the cut (say, "Academia" or "Soon We'll Be Found"), only second-wind favourite "Girl".

Another interesting note: Every single song here is led by a female vocalist. In fact, the highest spot held by a male vocalist is #12, Andrew Bird's "Imitosis", and then at #17, Angie Aparo's "Cry". In total, only 18 male vocalist led songs made it to my Top 60 (and only 26 in my Top 100!). As equal-opportunity as I claim to be, apparently the shift is more obvious than I'd like to admit. Something to rectify in the future, as there are many male vocalists I love who get trampled by their female equals.

I will be the first to admit that I am a child of the 2000's, despite my childhood during the 90's. Not one of these songs is from before the year 2000; in fact, on my 'pod, I have only listened to 16 pre-2000 songs more than twice, and I only have 618 of them on the pod at all. In fact, I only have 44 songs pre-1990 - and over 30 of those are The Smiths! This fits in with my more modern tastes in terms of TV and movies, as well. It's sad, because I have enough music from the past 8 years to last me another 10 years...*

(* Note some-much of my music has no marked year, so more may be hiding.)

So, my resolutions for the next 100 posts?

---> Listen to more male vocalists, or at least in great volume. I'm sure things will even out soon: Andrew Bird, My Latest Novel, The Fray, and Snow Patrol should all be coming out with new albums by the end of 2009 (hopefully). Unfortunately for them, they'll be contending with Amanda Palmer's solo debut and new albums from Kate Havnevik, Lily Allen, Jem, Dido....

---> Seek out more pre-2000's music and actually try to enjoy it. I've heard a lot of the mainstream stuff, but I have to give more stuff a chance. I'm beginning to get into older albums of Radiohead, Magnetic Fields (particularly 69 Love Songs), and Aimee Mann's discography, to name just a few.

---> Try not to burn out The Dresden Dolls or Poe like I did Andrew Bird, who I still love but need a break from.

---> Blog more! In the past few months I've been letting go of a lot of my blogging, mostly lost in what to write about with too much music to listen to. I have a To Do list of posts that I would like to begin on, especially as I have a lot more free time nowadays and plenty of music-related passion.

So, yes. Apologies to older readers who already have most of these songs and all readers who have been annoyed at my sparse posting. Will rectify that. In the meantime, enjoy these and await my next post!

~ Alden

THE SECOND GLANCE: COVERS #2

Wow, it's been a while since I've done a proper covers post, huh? Been building up quite a nice collection here, so I'm hoping you'll like the ones I've set aside for this time around. Actually gonna give you some double shots, see how different people recreate the same song.

The Magic Numbers - Crazy in Love (covering Beyonce)
The Puppini Sisters - Crazy in Love (covering Beyonce)

This song has popped up everywhere, from the radio in its initial run back in 2003 to appearing on Dance Dance Revolution recently. It's also a pretty popular cover, and both of these take the original and do something interesting and great with it, showcasing the desperation behind Beyonce's fancy beats. The Puppini Sisters send the song back into the 1940's, keeping the fast pace but replacing the modern hiphop stylings with olden-days style background music, and harmonizing the song with three voices. Meanwhile, a recent discovery for me, The Magic Numbers' great take on the song, a more low-key indie style interpretation, deconstructing the song back to its core emotions. Far from the fast dance beats of the original, this version is a depressed male-vocal led song bemoaning the loss of a lover, despite making no lyrical changes or changing the actual mechanics of the song.

This Mortal Coil feat. Elizabeth Fraser - Song to the Siren (covering Tim Buckley)
The Czars - Song to the Siren (covering Tim Buckley)

This Mortal Coil's version has been a longtime favourite, first of my older sister Kara's and then my own. Elizabeth Fraser (of the Cocteau Twins) does an amazing job of the song, even if some of the words become a little blurred, its still completely beautiful. Little did I know, a band I recently discovered called The Czars released a covers album a couple years back that included a magnificent cover of the song as well. At an epic 7 minutes long, its a gorgeous pursuit and a real contender for the best cover version of the song.

Shannon Wright - Asleep (covering The Smiths)
Carissa's Wierd - Asleep (covering The Smiths)

I will admit I think The Smiths' "Asleep" may the the saddest song ever composed, barring none. I'm in love with it, and the intense emotions I associate with it, and I'm always intrigued by covers of it. Carissa's Wierd brings a real stripped-down, almost spoken sound to the song, with very simple instrumentation. This half-singing brings another style of sadness and desperation to the song. I find it hard, meanwhile, to properly describe Shannon Wright's version, which is also beautiful even as it sometimes comes off as a little overdramatic, a little too affected to draw out the emotions the original does. However, few songs can compare to the original "Asleep", and both of these are brave and relatively successful attempts to look at the song from a new angle.

Tricky - The Lovecats (covering The Cure)
OK Go - The Lovecats (covering The Cure)

Hearing rapper Tricky's take on the immortal song is interesting, as in his hands the song is dark, raspy and seductive. The song always had elements of sexual intrigue to it, but this takes the excitement of the original and turns it into an invitation into the darkness; Tricky's lovecats must be black cats, the avatars of a dark enchantress, drawing you away into the night. OK Go, meanwhile, are more faithful to the original but also have their own sound attached, adding a bit of crazed playfulness. The original "The Lovecats" is a rather creepy song when you get down to it, and both of these covers do that great justice.

Utada Hikaru - With or Without You (covering U2)
Scala & Kolacny Brothers - With or Without You (covering U2)

Japanese pop star Utada Hikaru takes on an old favourite, and does it very well here. Her voice is low, with the emotions clear in it; the desperation, the sadness and even the anger are evident in her rendition. The simple piano works great before more music kicks in properly. Her voice is magnificent here, taking the heights impressively. Meanwhile, a potentially even more beautiful version comes from our favourite chior Scala & Kolacny Brothers, whose version of the song is breathtaking, truly. If you've been following this blog I'm hoping you've picked up a song or two of theirs in the past, and I'd say this is one of their best.

And, as a bonus, the lonely but awesome...

Sia - Gimme More (covering Britney Spears)

Now, this doesn't have a partner, but it stands pretty well on its own. It takes Britney Spears' expensively produced and sexy song and turns it into a stripped-down piano-and-vocals performance that reeks of sadness, sleaze and sex. Sia's protagonist is a sad creature, an exhibitionist trapped in her own need for attention and sex but not, in and of herself, sexy. It's sad and yet, Sia's vocals are still wonderful and draw you into the song. Then, you begin to hear that same person in the original, trying her best to be sexy and yet coming off as desperate and self-deluded.

ROULETTE 7

Time for another roulette!

1. Emilie Autumn - Juliet (Sendspace link)
Album: Enchant
"The sky will fall but I don't care."

2. Angie Aparo - Spaceship (Sendspace link)
Album: The American
"It was a holiday for the underpaid; everybody got a haircut and lemonade."

3. The Dissociatives - Somewhere Down the Barrel (Sendspace link)
Album: The Dissociatives
"I'm plagued by small town fascists, like a rash on my skin."

4. Flowers From the Man Who Shot Your Cousin - Lay Down Your Arms (Sendspace link)
Album: Hapless
"There are many here who hunger, and there are many who despair."

5. Carissa's Wierd - Ignorant Piece of Shit (Sendspace link)
Album: Songs About Leaving
"If the shoe fits, then put it on. Wear it like a crown."

These are mostly first-timers for the blog, but moreso underappreciated favourites than one-hit wonders. 'Arms' is an excellent sleep song, and the last comes from a man who would later front Band of Horses and Grand Archives. And remember, check out the albums you think you might like.