Tegan & Sara

Being as band-loyal as I am, I’ve over-acquainted myself with the fact that every now and then one of my favorite artists will fall short of producing an album quite as well as their first, or at least the one that I’ve fallen in love with… but that in itself is an outcome of “growth,” and “change” and subsequently personalizing my taste in music. I see it more as an artist giving me… say, options.

How can I say no to that?

Where some might agree that Sainthood is lacking, I feel the need to defend Tegan and Sara’s sole objective to develop a technically professional sound, moving from that acoustic set in your bedroom to the sound booth of their studio. It’s always a win-win situation with these girls. Granted, the lyricism is much more straight-forward and simplistic than familiarly metrical and didactic… but that leaves less room for the story-making and more opportunities to really see these girls eye-to-eye in these true-life black-and-white situations.

In opposition to the desperation and longing found on So Jealous and The Con, Sainthood refreshes the brokenhearted and defeated with the satisfaction of not necessarily letting go but truly accepting things with that much needed arrogance. Dustier riffs, less chord variations and more bridging… indeed, another collaboration with Chris Walla has amounted to a very alternative slash punk feel, as heard in tracks like “Don’t Rush, “The Cure,” “Northshore,” and “The Ocean”… yet the twins remain to be youthful and cunningly pop. Not much can be distinguished between the “old” Tegan & Sara and these newly saints. The album is arranged in a seamless order that plays all the way through.

MP3 Tegan & Sara – Alligator
MP3 Tegan & Sara – Someday

Track Review: Suckers – "Save Your Love For Me"

“Save Your Love For Me” by Quinn Walker you may remember was one of my favorite songs of 2008. In its previous form I talked about how the electronic backing and his falsetto/baritone recalled Berlin-era Bowie.  The new version by Suckers (of which Quinn is the frontman) retools the song completely, turning it into a sprawling epic, and it somehow makes it tons better.

This song has been given a dreamy intro with a pretty, chiming guitar playing the main theme while the weird synths have been replaced with lovely, tranquil piano. Quinn’s vocals in the original version had a sort-of goofy charm and while he’s still singing some off-the-wall lyrics like “this world’s a colonoscopy”, the vocal performance is now eloquent and much more dynamic (the guy has amazing range). Stripping the song down to the basics keeps the incredible guitar solo during the bridge from being lost under all the noise and the expanded instrumental palette (including live drums!) also makes a huge impact.  The climax of the song with all the vocals converging for a cathartic “whoa-oh-oh-oh” sing-a-long is completely brilliant. Suckers succeeded here in turning already great song into a masterpiece. I know these guys are working on some great new material, but I hope this isn’t the last of Quinn’s songs that they dig out of obscurity.

MP3 Suckers – Save Your Love For Me
MP3 Quinn Walker – Save Your Love For Me (original solo recording)

I'll Do Anything to Be Happy

My ladyfriend refuses to play the Noah and the Whale’s first album, Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down, unless it’s exceptionally beautiful outside. Which makes sense, the music is perfect for those sunny days when there is not a cloud in the sky. The First Days of Spring, despite the title, is almost the polar opposite. It’s an album full of overcast music, with the few rays of sunshine peeking through now and then. While the first album was mostly about the joy of living in the moment, particularly “5 Years Time,”* the songs here are mostly about lost love and everything that goes with it. Just look at a few lines from “My Broken Heart”: “I thought I believed in love/But I didn’t see it through,” “I’ve been looking for hope these days,” and the refrain “You can’t break my broken heart.” These are the words of someone who has been severely damaged and is trying to figure out what happened and how to move on.

The second half of the record finds the band realizing that while things might be bad right now, they’re going to get better. Compare those lines from “My Broken Heart” to these from the choir-filled “Blue Skies”: “I’ll do anything to be happy,” “It’s time to leave those feelings behind,” and “I don’t think that it’s the end/But I know we can’t keep going.” By the time the song erupts, the band sounds ready to move on from a devastating relationship and get back to some of the joy of their first record.

Noah and the Whale aren’t anything exceptional, and they probably won’t re-align your worldview, but they do make some damn fine music. I’ve found myself coming back to Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down, every now and then, which is more than I can say for a lot of the albums I buy. They can get a little self-important, and the music borders on grandiose at times, but let’s take a cue from the band’s own playbook and just enjoy it while we can.

MP3 Noah and the Whale – My Broken Heart
Mp3 Noah and the Whale – Blue Skies

*Bonus: Here is the aforementioned “5 Years Time,” because it’s such a good song and because I think the new album is more enjoyable if your know where the band is coming from.

MP3 Noah and the Whale – 5 Years Time

Banjo or Freakout

In the music video to Banjo or Freakout‘s “Upside Down” an Indian, a football player, a guy in a chicken suit, an angel, a solider, a Playmate bunny, a man covered in blue paint, and the Grim Reaper are all seen running and jumping into the ocean in slow motion. It’s a striking sequence and the band’s music has a surreal, transcendental quality that fits those images perfectly. Banjo or Freakout is the moniker to Alessio Natalizia, a London-based bedroom-pop artist who’s made a name for himself on the internet by covering artists from Burial to LCD Soundsystem to Vampire Weekend. It’s his own mesmerizing dream-pop songs though that caught my attention and makes him a likely candidate to be the next breakout indie star (he’s already being hit up by gorilla vs bear, stereogum, and pitchfork).

Although Banjo or Freakout have yet to release a full length album, Alessio has a few singles and EPs under his belt including the Upside Down EP, from which the aforementioned track gets it’s title. “Upside Down” is a great introduction to the artist, with its lush instrumentation and radiant melody. The song layers summery acoustic guitars, ocean wave effects, and tinkering piano into a warm blanket of hazy noise with Allesio’s warbly vocals serenading the listener. The result is absolutely sublime, one of the most absorbing and hypnotic tracks I’ve heard all year. “Mr No” is another single that has more of an electro-pop feel while still featuring his dreamy atmospherics and otherworldly vocals. It’s been a while since I’ve been this impressed by a new artist, I’m quite certain that Banjo or Freakout has a very promising future ahead.

MP3 Upside Down
MP3 Mr No

Here’s a few of Banjo or Freakout’s covers. While I still definitely prefer his original material, these are all pretty great.

MP3 All I Need (Radiohead cover)
MP3 Something Great (LCD Soundsystem cover)
MP3 Burial – Archangel (Burial Cover)
MP3 Love Lockdown (Kanye West cover)

Purchase Banjo or Freakout music at Half Machine Records. Watch the dream-like “Upside Down” video at Vimeo.

Sufjan Stevens – Live @ The Highdive

Sufjan Stevens could have easily sold out the any number of theatres, ballrooms, or pavillions in Chicago but he chose to take his sole Illinois stop on this tour at a tiny rural bar called The Highdive in Champaign, IL. The show sold out instantly and 300 very lucky fans got to see what he was calling the “Sufjan Stevens Workshop Tour”, which as you can imagine, included a number of brand new works-in-progress.  I’ve been a Sufjan fanatic ever since seeing him four years ago during his Illinois tour and since he hasn’t released a proper full-length album and has only toured sparingly since, the prospect of seeing him again and hearing new songs was very exciting.

Sufjan was joined by a modest-by-his-standards six-piece backing band with each member playing a variety of instruments and standing behind pages of sheet music that they flipped through as if they were the London Symphony Orchestra. Not your typical bar show, to say the least, but we’re talking about an artist who’s recent projects include 5-disc box set of Christmas music and a multimedia symphony about the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. The first track played was a  “Impossible Soul”, which Sufjan explained was a response to a reporter who asked him why he never makes any love songs. The tune showed a continuation of the direction Sufjan began taking with “You Are The Blood” with electronic dubs and twisting, complex orchestral movements. Anyone who though Sufjan was getting too complacent with his pretty, baroque neo-folk will undoubtedly be impressed by these ambitious, sprawling compositions.

Perhaps to contrast the wildly different styles, the older songs that Sufjan played were primarily the quiet, acoustic-based folk that he does so well (which he humorously referred to as “strummy-strum” songs).  He played three songs from his majestic gospel-folk opus, Seven Swans,  “Transfiguration”, “To Be Alone With You” and “Dress Looks Nice On You”. All were performed beautifully, and this being the first time that I had ever heard any these songs being played live, made it even more special. Sufjan played one track from Greetings from Michigan, “The Upper Peninsula”, which was a complete surprise at the time, but has since become a standard for this tour. The song’s haunting melody and chaotic electric guitar came off wonderful live, and served to highlight a track that I’ve long overlooked.

My favorite of all the new songs played was “All Delighted People”, a stunning track that was well over 10 minutes and took more twists and turns then perhaps any Sufjan song before it.  The song is broken into two distinct parts, the first beginning with a solemn opening with Sufjan singing over a French horn before building towards a triumphant cacophony of instruments with trumpets, distorted guitar, and drum fills (all while interjecting lines from “Sounds of Silence”). The second half of the song is much more melodic and centered around the repeated lyric “I love you alot, I love you from the top of my heart” with vocal harmonies, staccato horns, and lovely piano orchestration. I can’t wait to hear this song recorded, I think it will blow people away.

Being that he was in the Illinois, Sufjan Stevens couldn’t get away without playing a few songs from his most acclaimed album. The devastatingly beautiful “Casimir Pulaksi Day” was played first and was as moving and heart-wrenching as ever. The song also included one of the more humorous moments of the night, when Sufjan’s voice cracked on of the high notes and he stopped to practice his vocal scales saying “the second try is always better”.  “Jacksonville” was also played and featured one of the band’s tightest instrumental performances. “Chicago” closed the main set and was played acoustically with a horn solo during the bridge and outro.

Amidst the new songs played was one that was familiar to those who saw Sufjan Stevens on his 2006 tour (or have listened to live recordings), “Majesty Snowbird”.  He began the song by playing the main riff and joking that he wished he had that as his ringtone or doorbell.  The tune is one of his prettiest and most epic compositions and though it really benefits from having a full orchestra, the stripped-down version was still nothing short of enchanting.  The encore was “There’s Too Much Love” which was by far the catchiest of the new tracks played with a melody that stayed in my head long after the performance ended. The eight minute track was far from top 40 material though, with odd time signatures, glitchy electronica, space-age synthesizers, and an absolutely wild trumpet solo at the climax. All in all, I immensely enjoyed seeing Sufjan showcase these new tracks and I applaud him for exploring his more adventurous side. I feel incredibly lucky to experience of my favorite artists in such an intimate setting, and I think everybody that was present would agree that this was a truly unforgettable night.

MP3 Sufjan Stevens – Dress Looks Nice On You
MP3 Sufjan Stevens – Casimir Pulaksi Day

There’s alot more Sufjan Stevens pictures after the jump. Click here for the entire set.

Kings of Convenience

The Kings of Convenience are back at it again. The indie folk-pop duo from Bergen, Norway has once again found their way into my heart and at the top of my playlist. At a lost for words in the face of perhaps what might be best described as “timeless,” Erlend Øye and Eirik Glambek Bøe are truly… well, convenient. Their third official release features no percussion or drums and while that sounds about as empty as a court room, the beat of your heart is sure to suffice.

What I love most about this “couple” is their ability to delve and elaborate on the simplest subjects of human behavior. As optimistic as those happier notes strike, the content and breadth of this album is completely serious. I’m always surprised at how differently they can enact one situation. Declaration of Dependence takes on the spectrum of duality, turning the tables twice and over again… never straying from their minimal use of production techniques and ultimately apprehending the quality of “lounge” music with a brush of Brazilian strings, so intimately light and weighted by emotion.

It has an overall Simon & Garfunkel feel, assuming that a comparison was even required of me. As we all know, anything these guys touch turns to gold so I probably don’t even have to ask you to listen to this… but as moved as I remain and how inclined I was to write this, I feel a preface should be enclosed and I couldn’t have worded it better than my dear friends at Remedy…

“Declaration of Dependence is the story of two people living two very different lives sensing that they are immensely more powerful together than apart. In that sense it is the most adult, the most mature record Kings of Convenience have ever made. That it is their most gripping, their most revealing is, if anything, just a by-product of that honesty and their endeavor.”

MP3 Kings of Convenience – Mrs. Cold
MP3 Kings of Convenience – Renegade

Kings of Convenience – Boat Behind (Video)

The #balloonboy mix

It’s been four days since America was glued to their TV screens watching a empty balloon floating through the air, American Beauty-style. At the time, we of course believed that a six-year old boy named after a F-Zero character was helplessly trapped in the balloon (even as CNN balloon experts said this would be physically impossible).

From there the story has spiraled out of control faster then a Coen Brothers movie, complete with with dysfunctional family drama, elaborate hoaxes, reality television deals, storm-chasing, appearances on Larry King, small town sheriffs, uncontrolled vomiting, rap videos, the Colorado National Guard, and “Go, Falcon Go” t-shirts. This is truly one of the most bizarre news stories of the year (and maybe decade). It’s already inspired a swarm of Internet memes and I think it’s deserving of it’s own mix.

MP3 Flaming Lips – Approaching Pavonis Mons by Balloon
MP3 Jens Lekman – Sky Phenomenon
MP3 Grizzly Bear – Colorado
MP3 The New Pornographers – The Fake Headlines
MP3 Guided By Voices – I Am A Scientist
MP3 Architecture in Helsinki – Where’ve You Been Hiding
MP3 !!! – Myth Takes
MP3 Ratatat – Falcon Jab
MP3 Yo La Tengo – The Lie And How We Told It

Sunny Day Real Estate – Live @ The Metro

One topic that often comes up when talking about music is what past band you wish you could have seen live. One of the bands I always bring up is Sunny Day Real Estate. After their debut was released in 1994 they toured less than a year before breaking up, and by all accounts they put on a hell of a live show.  For some people, My Bloody Valentine, The Pixies, or the upcoming Pavement shows might be the end-all be-all of reunion tours, but for me I don’t think anything will ever top seeing Jeremy Enigk, Dan Hoerner, Nate Mendel, and William Goldsmith playing together for the first time in 15 years.

What makes this particular show at The Metro in Chicago even more special is that band’s groundbreaking debut album, Diary, was recorded in Chicago at Idful Studios. Dan Hoerner mentioned to the crowd early on that this show felt like coming home. They chose The Jealous Sound, who had previously supported them on the Rising Tide tour, to open up the show. The band fit the SDRE sound to a ‘T’, melodic guitar, emotive singing, and pounding drums. I can’t say that I was rushing to buy any of their albums afterwards, but they put on a solid, enjoyable set. A nice little warm-up for the phenomenal show that Sunny Day Real Estate provided.

From the very beginning, Sunny Day absolutely tore the place down. The crowd was rapturous in their praise as they took the stage to “Friday”, before kicking right into one of the most well-known and bombastic songs in their arsenal, “Seven”. The band didn’t let up for a second, rocketing through some of their best tunes, the commanding “Shadows” came next and then my all-time favorite SDRE song, “Song About An Angel”, which was completely freakin’ beautiful. I’ve loved that song for years now and seeing the band’s impassioned performance was deeply moving.  From Engik desperately screaming emotionally-packed lines like “sometimes you see right through me” to Goldsmith pounded out those profoundly intense drum fills, it was nothing short of breathtaking.

The band threw in a couple surprises, the first being a track from How It Feels To Be Something On, “Guitar and Video Games” which, partly because I didn’t expect to hear it (it was the only track not from their original line-up played), and partly because it’s such an awesome song, brought a huge smile to my face. They also played a fantastic new song that was very melodic (dare I say poppy) and featured some great Edge-like guitar. It was a blast seeing this band interact with each other, you could really sense how special this tour was to them. Enigk put everything he had into the performance, he may not be able to hit every high note like he used to, but he has not lost an ounce of his fiery passion. Goldsmith pounded the living crap out of the drums song after song and his brilliant fills seemed even more machine-like and precise than on record. Mendel is true pro, gracefully providing the tight, walking bass lines so essential to the sound. Hoerner was probably the most estastic of the group, he couldn’t wipe the huge grin off his face, even as he produced those massive, reverb-drenched guitar riffs. His enthusiasm was contagious; suffice to say, there was a lot of love going around at the Metro that night.

The band closed out the set just as strong as they had opened it. One of the band’s most complex and unique compositions, “J’Nuh”, began the final thrust forward and featured one of the best instrumental breakdowns of the night of with the muscular prog-like guitar riff, bending time-signatures, and back-and-forth vocal harmonies from Enigk and Hoerner. The triumphant sounding “47” followed with more guitar heroics and the set ended with the brooding Diary closer, “Sometimes”.

The encore began with what many consider to be Sunny Day’s defining song, “In Circles”. The thrillng start-stop dynamics of the song exploded out of the speakers and the bridge of the song was re-arranged to be much cleaner and forceful. You would think that a reunion show would be the last place to try out a new drum arrangement on your most popular song, but it turned out incredible, and everyone in the building sang along. The band played one more, the cathartic “48”, before calling it a night. For a band I dreamed about seeing since my childhood, I couldn’t have had higher expectations for this show, and I’m proud to say that Sunny Day Real Estate exceed every one of them. I can honestly say this stands out, not only as one of the best shows, but one of the best nights of my life.

MP3 Sunny Day Real Estate – Seven
MP3 Sunny Day Real Estate – Song About An Angel
MP3 Sunny Day Real Estate – J’Nuh

View the more Sunny Day Real Estate pictures after the jump. Click here for the entire set.

Pygmalion Fest: The Hood Internet, RJD2

(Picture via Stereogum)

In keeping with the celebratory, unifying nature of Pygmalion Festival, it was very fitting to end it all with a huge dance party. The last acts of the fest to play were YACHT, the Hood Internet, and RJD2 each bringing their own unique electronica / dance styles to the table. I unfortunately missed all but the last few seconds of YACHT, walking in just as electro-pop jam “Psychic City” was closing their set, so the first act I really got to experience were mash-up artists, The Hood Internet.

It’s impossible to talk about these guys without comparing them to Girl Talk, since they basically use the same formula of cutting up different parts of popular songs, turning the place into a crazy, sweaty dance party in the process.  The biggest difference I could tell musically is that Hood Internet are much more focused on modern hip-hop / top 40 pop tunes (I think the oldest song I heard was “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”), but when you got a mix that includes artists like Lil Wayne, Weezer, Kanye, Modest Mouse, and Michael Jackson, that’s completely ok. Although they have a ways to go to reach the pure euphoria of a Girl Talk show, I had a great time dancing to these dudes and would definitely recommend checking them out when they come around to your town.

MP3 The Hood Internet – Bille Wildcat Jean (Michael Jackson vs. Ratatat)

(Picture via JBW911)

While Hood Internet was about a full-out club bangin’ dance party,  RJD2 brought the slow groovin’ jams and technical prowess. While some DJs are content to mix on their laptops, RJD2 takes a much more hands-on approach with a collection of vinyl LPs that he flipped out and carefully synced.  All the while, a montage of videos that ranged from Evil Dead 2 to  vintage blow-dryer commercials to scenes from The Matrix played behind him.  It was a much more cerebral experience than you may expect from a DJ set with a variety of instrumentation and genre-mixing ranging from soul, disco, to classical.

The highlights of the set were the songs where RJD2 cut loose (such as “Good Times Roll Pt. 2.”) which allowed the crowd to go from rhythmic swaying to some good ol’ fashioned bumping and grinding.  It was also great to hear “A Beautiful Mine” (aka the Mad Men theme song) dropped near the close, which elicited probably the biggest crowd reaction of the set.  Despite a slight drop in momentum from the raging Hood Internet set, RJD2 put on an enjoyable show and provided a memorable end to Pygmalion Festival.  I’m already looking forward to next year.

MP3 RJD2 – A Beautiful Mine

Check out the musicforants.com flickr page for more Pygmalion pictures.

Pygmalion Fest: The Books, Iron & Wine

After a very bountiful three days of music festivities, Pygmalion was entering it’s final moments and Saturday began with Iron & Wine‘s highly anticipated headlining set at the Krannert Theatre. The Books opened the show with a set that mixed found footage with avant-garde musical accompaniment. Although I’ve always admired the band, I’ve never quite invested enough time listening to the Books but for the few songs I was able to see of the show, they left quite an impression on me.

The videos that were projected during their performance were hilarious at times (informational videos about hypnosis) and tranquil and picturesque at others. The music itself was far folkier than I had imagine, with cello, banjo and acoustic guitar being the prominent instruments played spliced together with electronic elements and samples that gave the band their unique sound.  The best track I saw was set closer, “an owl with knees”, a trippy song with some spirited cello playing.

MP3 The Books – Take Time

(photo via Stereogum)

I’ve seen Iron & Wine twice before, both in large outdoor settings and both with a full band.  While experiencing some songs like “Boy With A Coin” and “House By The Sea” from Shepherd’s Dog with the full-bodied sound that the band provides is a must, nothing compares to seeing Sam Beam solo with just an acoustic guitar and the most potent instrument, his voice. The Krannert Theatre provided an immaculate setting for the show, the acoustics were and fantastic and the simplistic stage set-up directed the focus squarely on the gorgeous sounds that Sam provided. He opened with his cover of The Postal Service’s “Such Great Heights” encouraging the crowd to sing along, which we were eager to do. Throught the show, I’ve rarely seen an artist who encapsualated an audience’s interests so intently, the crowd sat in complete, utter silence as he performed, activily interacted with him in between songs, and erupted in applause after each song finished.

The night brought an eclectic setlist with tunes from all of Iron & Wine’s albums and especially focusing on, for obvious reasons, his earlier, more acoustic-based work. The songs from Our Endless Numbered Days, which included some of Beam’s most intricate acoustic compositions such as “Sunset Soon Forgotten”, “Naked As We Came”, and “Sodom South Georgia”, came off particularly well showcasing his skilled finger-picking and delicate vocals. Stripped down versions of songs like “Woman King” and “Peace Beneath The City” were also fascinating to watch performed solo and, in my opinion, improved both songs.

The clear highlight of the set was “Trapeze Swinger”, which I consider to be the quintessential Iron & Wine song. Although the track is amazing in it’s recorded form, the live version trumps it in just about every way. While on record, it keeps a consistent pace and tempo, the live arrangement started slowly allowing the wonderful lines (“I heard from someone you’re still pretty” gets me every time) resonante. From there the tempo progressively quickened on each subsequent verse before stopping suddenly before the song’s climatic final verse. The dynamic performance served to amplify the song’s heartbreaking beauty.

The night also served to remind us that although Sam Beam has long graduated from a solo act, that some of his prettiest acoustic songs have been his most recent like the drop-dead gorgeous “Resurrection Fern” and set-closer “Flightless Bird, American Mouth”. Regardless of the fact that it was featured in a teen vampire movie, “Flightless Bird” is one of my favorite Iron & Wine tunes, and the stark, minimalistic version that we heard was stunning. The focus was purely on Beam’s heavenly vocals and although it’s cliche, you really could hear a needle drop as he hit that final falsetto. After a brief encore of “History of Lovers”, he left the stage to uproarious applause. A brilliant, triumpant performance from one of the great singer-songwriters of our time.

MP3 Iron & Wine – Sunset Soon Forgotten
MP3 Iron & Wine – Resurrection Fern

Follow the jump below for more Iron & Wine pictures. Click here for the full set.