[scottgendel-blog]

So back in the day (and still a little bit now) I was super-obsessed with the label 4AD, which had a very clear aesthetic sense that's almost impossible to describe.  One of the most interesting 4AD bands from the early 90s was "His Name Is Alive," which was mostly one guy, Warn (or Warren, depending on the album) Defever, a Detroit native who played a billion instruments, and messed around in his home studio, and took the most weird left-field conceptual risks of almost any band I know.  You'd be listening to his albums, and suddenly there'd be a great reverb-drenched reggae song with 7 female vocalists.  And then the next thing would be a really pretty song with random free jazz solo.  Then something Beach Boys-ish but with distortion and violins.  And you just never knew what was going to happen, but 95% of the time it was totally awesome, if sometimes a little inscrutable.  If you'd curious about this stuff, you should check out his album "Stars on E.S.P." which is both an absolute masterpiece and kind of impossible to understand.

This is all to say that I pretty much lost touch with what he's been up to until last month, when I read a glowing, very convincing review of his new album "Tecuciztecatl."  Don't ask me how to say that.  As Pitchfork describes it: "A concept record that comes with the worrisome descriptor of 'psychedelic rock opera,' Tecuciztecatl involves a proggy narrative about a young woman who discovers she is pregnant with twins - one good, one evil - and must seek the help of a demon-hunting librarian."  And then each track is written from the perspective of a different character.  And then there's that unpronounceable title.  And then there's the crazy maneuver where the album, mostly made of short songs, opens with a 14-minute guitar-fueled jam full of slow builds and choral vocals and loud guitars. And basically: WTF?!?!

If I haven't scared you off yet, you should know that the album is completely amazing.  The first few tracks have an intensely guitar-heavy feel, very "70s classic rock but weirder" in sound, then the album slowly turns more and more inward as it goes, and by the end is kind of like folk music on acid, covered in a layer of electronic soundscape.  But the thing is, these songs are GREAT.  I get them stuck in my head all the time.  The production is BEAUTIFUL.  It shifts between so many styles and completely inhabits and NAILS them all. Somehow the concept works, in that the album feels really cohesive as a narrative, so that listening to it feels like a real emotional and musical journey. I am completely head over heels in love with this album. 

I feel like I can't ask you fine people to just sit down and listen to the album, so this is the first 9 minutes, a track called "The Examination."  It goes directly into the next track, but let's just start with this one.  It's kind of a straight-up hard rock song, and it's also kind of a minimalist-inspired textural exploration, and it's also got beautiful vocal harmonies, and a really cheezy Frampton-style guitar solo, and it's as good a place to start as any.  If you enjoy it, I VERY much recommend giving the whole album a listen, as it's one of those "the whole is stronger than the parts" kind of albums.  SO SO SO GOOD.  AND WEIRD.  AND GOOOOOOD.  

[scottgendel-blog]

Okay, so let me preface this before you listen: This is a playlist of my ten favorite a-ha songs that are NOT "Take On Me."  Let's be clear: "Take on Me" is pure awesome, a 1980s classic.  But I'm always a little bummed out that nobody knows anything else by a-ha, because they're a surprisingly good band.  I mean, the synth sounds are cheezy as all get-out, and some of the songs are rather melodramatic and/or corny.  BUT!  If you are able to enjoy some cheese, you will find very well-crafted songs with fascinating harmonies, great singing, powerful dramatic arcs, and generally a whole lot of super-catchy awesomeness.  So, give it a shot!  Learn about a-ha beyond "Take On Me."  You'll be glad you did (I hope)!

[theaudioclub]

All right, another obsession.  My Brightest Diamond, and singer Shara Worden.  She’s on the front lines of the “let’s blend classical music and indie rock and see what happens” movement, and I think she’s probably the most successful at it.  Her songs work incredibly well as pop tunes that will get stuck in your head for days… but also there’s incredible instrumental parts, clever rhythmic & metrical tricks, and so much musical detail it boggles the mind.  And her voice is AMAZING.  She actually works quite a lot as a singer for other composers’ works… many of the hip NYC-type composers use her as the vocalist for their art songs and such.  She started out as a classical singer before moving into this realm, and the control she has over her voice as a result of that is a big part of her appeal to a vocal nerd like me.

This is the first track and “single” off her new album “This is My Hand.”  There are other songs I like better at the moment, from this album and from others, and I’d be happy to share them (I’m obsessed with three of her albums, so I have lots to choose from)… but this is a great intro to her style, and the way she seamlessly blends so many different ideas into one awesome thing.  Also, she used a drumline on this album.  Because hell yeah!

Also also, I am 99% sure that I’m going to get to see My Brightest Diamond in concert next month at a cool little bar/club, and I could NOT BE MORE EXCITED.  I hear their shows are ridiculously awesome.

[scottgendel-blog]

Okay, country music was mentioned in another thread as something that is hard to get into for a modern nerdy musician type.  And I can get that, for sure, as it took me until some time in my mid-20s to start appreciating it.  Not the super-twangy glitzy posturing of mainstream country, but all the rich stuff happening in less popular veins of country music.  One of the first bands that really made me start appreciating the genre was Hem, and they're still one of my all-time favorite bands. They're a simply gorgeous mix of country music, orchestral lushness, chamber folk, and a dash of Burt Bacharach-style balladry. Some of the most PRETTY music I've ever heard. Sally Ellyson's voice is one of the most beautiful things on Earth.  The orchestrations are incredible, over-the-top but filled with amazing little subtle details and clever ideas.  Perfect music for a rainy day, or getting lost in your headphones for a while.

So, here's a little playlist of some favorite songs by Hem.  They're just an incredible band, and their music is so gentle it can take a few songs to really get the hang of what they're doing.  Plus, I'm having a hard time narrowing things down.  I suggest listening to this without too much multitasking, to really appreciate all the layers of amazingness, the incredible warm production values, the beauty of Sally's voice, the way some of these songs are so simple but have huge impact.

I've arranged these songs in order of when they were released, to give a sense of the band's (subtle but interesting) evolution.  "Half Acre" is a completely brilliant song, probably the band's most famous one, off their first album "Rabbit Songs."

From the album "Eveningland," "The Fire Thief" is the first song of theirs I ever heard, and that was when I became smitten.  It's a little more obviously a "country" song than "Half Acre," but has a timeless quality about it, and a plush orchestral sound that got me hooked bigtime. "Pacific Street" is just a frickin' gorgeous ballad. And "Lucky" is probably the most "country" of all the songs here, but still full of orchestrated goodness and an excellent catchy tune.

"Hotel Fire" and "Not California" are from probably my least favorite Hem album, "Funnel Cloud," but they have a more direct kind of songwriting that's a little less appealing to me (because I miss the atmospherics of their other material) but very powerful in its own way.

"Departure and Farewell" (the album) just came out in the past year, as a sort of comeback, and I'm totally blown away by it.  The title track opens the album, and it's a dramatic stunner.  "Walking Past the Graveyard, Not Breathing" is a bit of a different sound for them, a little jazz-inflected, and it's quickly become one of my favorites because the lyrics are so wonderful, and the music is so genre-bending but crazy catchy.  "Tourniquet" was the single (or as close to a single as Hem gets) for this album, and it's just lovely and quiet and full of feeling.  A great ender for my little playlist.