5 posts tagged “kristine”
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1/30: Seattle, WA @ Triple Door[1] 1/31: Portland, OR@ Doug Fir[1] 2/02: SF, CA @ Swedish American Hall[1] 2/07: Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg 2/08: New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom 3/17 – 3/29 – Little Ones support 4/1 – 4/13 – What Made Milwaukee Famous support w/ the exception of NYC 3/17: Tempe, AZ @ Clubhouse 3/18: San Diego, CA @ House of Blues 3/19: LA CA @ Henry Fonda Theater 3/21: Pomona, CA @ Glass House 3/22: San Francisco, CA @ Fillmore 3/25: Sacramento, CA @ Harlow's 3/28: Seattle, WA @ Showbox at The Market 3/29:Vancouver,CA@Commodore Ballroom 4/01: Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre 4/02: Omaha, NE @ Waiting Room 4/03: Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue 4/04: Chicago, IL @ Metro 4/05: Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall 4/07: Toronto, CA @ Opera House 4/8: Montreal, CA @ Club Soda 4/10: Boston, MA @ Paradise 4/11: New York, NY @ Terminal 5 4/12: Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club 4/13: Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero [1] w/ Port O'Brien - Acoustic |
At first listen, Nada Surf’s fifth album , Lucky, which is to be released in the United States on February 5, 2008, on Barsuk Records, sounds like an easy –going great bunch of harmonious indie songs. When you really listen and focus on the lyrics though, you hear that each song tells a story of something deep and honest, filled with images of restlessness and conflicting desires, longing, mortality, renewal, hope, excitement of parenthood, family history, and the elusiveness of love. What makes this album so desirable beyond the lyrics is the blend of uplifting music complimenting singer/guitarist Matthew Caws emotional voice which brings these songs together as purely blissful. The honesty in his voice makes you really feel for the stories being sung, while bassist Daniel Lorca and drummer Ira Elliot add in the essentials that carry these songs and make them sound so alive and beautiful. No wonder these guys have been together for thirteen years strong.
"I tend to be pretty hopeful about things further in the future, but full of anxiety about the next eight hours…I think I'm manic depressive without the mania. Yet I'm ready to be cheerful at the drop of a reason. I’m always looking for rapture in music." Caws jokes.
I can tell this album was really well produced. It just has that great sound quality to it. Nada Surf co-produced and John Goodmanson (Death Cab For Cutie, Sleater Kinney, Blonde Redhead) did an amazing job producing, mixing, and engineering this masterpiece.
According to their MySpace page, The
first song on the album, See These Bones, was inspired by a visit Caws made a
few years back to the Crypt of the Capuchin Monks in Rome, who created a macabre but stirring
environmental sculpture from the bones of their departed brethren. Caws says,
“It’s a chilling place. Seeing all those old bones up close really drives home
that this is it – and you better make the most of your life. Ultimately, it’s
uplifting. I left there in a bizarrely good mood.” Joining them on this song is Ben Gibbard from
Death Cab For Cutie, and Harvey Danger’s Sam Nelson.
A few other guests on the album include English singer-pianist Ed Harcourt, on “Weightless” and “Beautiful Beat”, which are two really great songs with strong lyrics and upbeat tunes, and John Roderick, on “Ice on the Wing”. – which references Caws’ family lore: his grandfather’s adventures as a fighter pilot and an ambulance driver in two world wars and his father’s rearing in (and escape/excommunication from) a British religious cult.
One of the other really catchy songs inspired from the beginnings of a long awaited romance , “I Like What You Say” uses clever lyrics -
“They say if you’re not lonely being alone
Boy there is something wrong”
Also from MySpace - “The Fox” melds the personal and the political, the delusions in a relationship mirroring lies from the government. The image in the chorus – “On the grass at Beachy Head/On the cliff to which you’ve been led” – almost pilfers the scene in the Who’s Quadrophenia when protagonist Jimmy launches his scooter off the enormous grassy cliff on the Southern English coast: Caws says “We visited Beachy Head when I was a kid and I remember standing on the slope and sensing that if I took two or three more steps down the soft grass, I would just tumble off. I remember feeling like I was standing right next to death.”
Two songs on Lucky reminded me of nostalgic 60’s and 70’s folk songs , very much Beatlesque as well. The closer, “The Film Did Not Go ‘Round” , written by indie singer Greg Peterson, is haunting of lost love and spooky enough reminds me of The Beatles “Yesterday”.
Nada Surf is going to be on tour to coincide with the release of Lucky.
For more on Nada Surf , check out their website www.nadasurf.com
01/27/2008 09:05:26
Kristine
my♥posts
www.nadasurf.com
I had never heard of the band ,The Somnambulants until about a month ago when Vu passed on their cd to me, let alone did I know that their current cd, Paper Trail, is their third, just released on August 21, 2007. Originally from Brooklyn, the now San Francisco based duo has been creating their unique blend of indie/electronic/synth-pop since 2000.
The Somnambulants are Joseph White – producer, lead singer, bass player , synth, and programming, and Channing Sargent on vocals and keyboards. According to their history, Joseph White built the first Somnambulants songs from music soundtrack pieces while he was a film student. No wonder their name was taken from the somnambulist character – Cesare- in the 1920 German film “ The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”.
White’s echoed voice reminded me of a haunting Moby or Ian Curtis vibe on many of the tracks on Paper Trail. It was really hard to choose one song to review, because they all had something memorable to offer with their perfect blend of electronic synth. While every song sounded different than the next, a few were beautiful and melodic while the majority very dark with more electronic , harder synthethics in a way that works for them. Listening to this album it sounded very indie, and very addicting.
“Take It On” samples a tad mellower White’s vocals with a nice blend of Channing’s as well, with their collaboration of keyboards and sythnpop. Their website: somnambulants.com surprised me with their video for this song, which is a little more pop than indie, yet quite pleasant on the ears.
September 18, 2007 4:11 AM
kristine
my♥posts
kristine@weheartmusic.com
www.somnambulants.com
So the first thing that comes to my mind when I hear all four songs on Cedar Avenue’s “Running Home” EP is that they’re so damn good they belong in Zach Braff’s movies. If you’ve ever seen any of his movies, you know Zach personally chooses the songs for the soundtracks. I guess what I’m trying to say is, if you love non-intrusive, emotionally sung beautiful music , you’ll really dig Cedar Avenue. Doesn’t hurt that their EP was produced by Brian Johnson ( Coldplay, Lifehouse, John Mayer)
Named after a historic Twin City street in Minnesota, where singer/guitarist Jesse Matthews and bassist Kyle Wachter grew up near, this band of four talented musicians show that their simple look and melodic collaboration takes on a natural goodness , and for being this good, it’s pleasant easy listening to the ears. The songs on the EP easily flow together, nice if you’re into acoustics, but “Running Home” is one of the stronger tunes. In their bio, Cedar Avenue notes their similarities to Goo Goo Dolls, Switchfoot, and Damien Rice, and to be honest, it took me a handful of listens til I actually did realize the comparisons because even with, they have a strong natural sound of their own. Jesse Matthews can carry a tune nicely ( a man with a beautiful voice is always a good thing) and his band are playing some shows in their home state that would be worth checking out. Go to their myspace page for tour info and to hear their other songs as well. I wouldn’t be surprised if they became really successful in the near future. They seem to have a good thing going, and know how to express it.
www.myspace.com/cedaravenuemusic
“I'm coming home today
To a place I've never been
And if I find my way
Will you greet me with a kiss?
You cry like a child but you kiss like a sinner
I'm coming home to you either way
And when these wings begin to weather
I'm running home to you like a child”
--kristine sleepblur
Peter, Bjorn & John are an indie band from Sweden. Together since 1999, Writer's Block is their 3rd and most recent album. I haven't heard much from them, although after hearing this song , featuring Victoria Bergsman of The Concretes, on one of those cell phone commercials on tv , I've had "Young Folks" stuck in my head.
From their official website peter,bjornandjohn.com: With the SONG – first single”Young Folks” they have created an indie-anthem for 2006. It starts off with surging, funky drums, addictive maraca shaking, crazy bongos and a pleasantly lo-fi bass-line; all this wrapped up in a whistling melody – the result sounds like a mix of a wild west B-movie and a schoolyard full of fuel-engine kids. The song, that features Peter in a duet with Viktoria Bergsman of The Concretes, deals with that first period in brand new relationship when you are nervous and dazed, when you’ve just met and only want to be with each other whilst at the same time worrying about how much you want to show your true self to the other person so as not to scare them.
”If I told you things I did before,
told you how I used to be,
would you go along with someone like me?”
- Young Folks
~kristine
PB&J AT FIRST AVE, Minneapolis
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Kristine have forced my hand on my PB&J concert review, which, of course, I have been too lazy to actually write about. I wanted to mention that they played here May 9th, and here are some photographs from Brody.
I just wanted to mention a few things about the show: "Young Folks" was the obvious favorite. Before the show even began, there was a pre-recorded sitar (an Indian instrument) version of "Young Folks" and everyone was going apes off that and the band haven't even gotten on stage!
The other thing I wanted to mention was that the last song on the encore is "Teen Love", which is a Concretes cover. What's interesting about the Concretes and how they're related to PB&J is that Victoria (I think), is the singer on the studio version of "Young Folks". The other amazing thing about this live rendition is that they incorporated "Teenage Kicks" into the song ("I wanna hold ya, wanna hold you tight, get teenage kicks all through the night, alright!"). Only the really old folks got the Undertones joke anyway :/
I asked Peter later on why they decided to put in the Teenage Kicks line and he said, "we just one day made it up and put it in to the song, because they sound similiar to 'Teen Love'."
PS, added the German version of Young Folks. Must be seen to be believed.
UPDATE: Hear three covers of "Young Folks" at cover lover.
vu 
Links: www.peterbjornandjohn.com
even when you want to fight
self-directed lives
i want to know what it'd be like to
aim so high above
every card that you get dealt you
always love
hate will get you every time
always love
hate will get you
and i've been held back by something
you said to me quietly on the stairs
you said
hey you good ones
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