The phrase "Shell-Shock" gets throw around a lot in modern vernacular, but I doubt that the majority of the people who use the word really consider its meaning. In short, it is condition whose name historically refers to the manner in which a soldier would "lock up" due to the mental and emotional trauma of being constantly bombarded (or shelled). You will frequently hear this phrase uttered in plain dialogue... Dave walks through his office and sees his co-worker looking exhausted and frazzled and staring blankly at a computer screen, and says to his neighbor "Golly-gee, Bob looks shell shocked." But Bob hasn't been sitting in a trench, and Dave has never been behind enemy lines.
...and neither have I, for that matter.
But I do know the feeling of being constantly bombarded.
And anyone who knows me knows that I'm a little shell-shocked. Instead of tracking through the Ardennes Forest, music was my front-line offensive. And I'm only realizing now just how far I've retreated from the front lines over the last few years.
Unlike war, however, music is (or ought to be) a joyous facet of my life. It becomes an enemy when the joy goes out of it, when it becomes a struggle.
A few months ago I (quite literally) found joy again, as I helped to put together a new group called June and the Wolfe. No lofty goals, no uber-ambitions... just writing and singing and trying to forget about life for a few hours. In rediscovering the joy in playing music, I am reminded of all the things I used to love about music... and how the simple act of playing music for the sheer love of it will open up so many doors...
At a gig at Goodbye Blue Monday, I met a band... a band with a sound that stirred up feelings and emotions I hadn't felt in a very long time... not since I was a sound engineer at Hamilton St... the pleasure of not just being able to enjoy a piece of music, but also the rush of hearing something brand new for the first time... the surprise, the unexpectedness... the not-knowing-what-to-expect-ness and subsequently LOVING it... god, I missed that feeling.
This one definitely ranks up there with Joiya and Chalet Chalet and Pas/Cal.
Freedom Tickler. Brooklyn, NY.
A very simple quartet consisting of a singer, banjo/guitarist, bassist, and minimalist drummer. Appalachian Shape-Note-esque singing (if anyone even knows what shape notes are anymore) meets ambient drone-ish with some Uncle Tupelo and twang thrown in. Despite the instrumentation, the band reminds me a lot of Low or Ida at times. Played with them a few weeks ago... they've got an EP due out next week that I'm beyond jazzed on... They've got a demo for "Hot Tub" on their myspace. You might not dig it because of the demo-ness, but trust me, it was HUGE live.
I cannot wait for this EP.
Freedom Tickler... if you're reading this... Thank you.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Found: Something I didn't quite realize I'd lost.
I'm reaching a point in my life now where I am forcefully fighting off my age, passionately attempting to pursue many elements of my life I used to love but have since fallen by the wayside... literature, design, but most of all, record shopping.
I had a cathartic day at the record store last week. It has been so long since I've been record shopping.
So here's what I got.
Daniel Martin Moore - Stray Age (Shake It!/SubPop)... Just some dude from Kentucky that was picked up my Sub Pop. If you're into the whole M.Ward/T-Bone Burnett minimalist old-timey Americana sound, this record is for you. The Sub Pop release includes one extra song not on the Shake It release, and a limited edition (of less than 200) comes with a 4-song 7" of demos and alt takes and hand-numbered artwort. Good job, Sub Pop. The production is light, simple, yet at times striking and exceedingly fluid. Almost dreamy.
Santo and Uohnny - Hawaii (Canadian American) I'll confess... I have a weakness for Santo and Johnny. I've seen Johnny Farina more than once in concert. And when I die, I want "Sleepwalk" played at my funeral. Hawaii is a pure summer, outdoor, "sitting under the trees with lemonade in your hand" record. That said, I will undoubtedly wear this record out before the summer is through.
Thats a lie. I'm a workaholic. I have one day off every two weeks. Literally. So, no, I suppose I won't really be wearing this record out. But I will be playing it as much as I can.
Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - Herb Alpert Presents... (A&M) No real reason behind this one, other than that my other copy is almost unplayable at this point, and is about to be chopped up and made into a pickguard for one of my custom-builds.
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - The Pillowcase EP (Shout!) I've been looking for this EP for ages, ever since Austin Powers came out and I'd heard that Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs were going to collaborate on a 60's-inspired covers-record (as a near-direct result of Ming Tea). That said, this EP is exactly what I expected it to sound like... poppy, jangly, nearly-British-but-not-quite... LOVE it.
Compass - Antonio Rumori b/w Estacion Especial 7" (Sharkattack!) Although I paid $4 bucks for this, I lump it in with my "dollar bin hopefuls"... nabbing a few records from the dollar bin about which I know nothing but look really well put together. Just from a design aspect, this record DESERVES to be bought. Two-color R/B press on unbleached recycled cardstock, excellent composition, clear red vinyl... Top notch. The tunes aren't bad, either, if you're into that minimalist-meets-casiotone/8bit sound. Calling it an 8bit 7" would be selling it short, however... its actually a very well put together piece. While Side A is abrasive, with a driving beat pushed along by a coarse sine wave an overly simplistic beat machine (which sounds like something along the lines of the old Ace Tone/Roland Rhythm Ace), the B side is quite soothing.
That last one was very important, as it did something to me that no record has done in a long time: It made me think. It made the gears start to turn... it made me ask questions... questions that had not been asked in a long time:
Who is Compass?
What label is this?
Do they still exist?
Who else is on this label, and are they as awesome as Compass?
I can say for certain that had I found this one single when it first came out in 2001, it would most likely have ranked up there with my personal discovery of The Robocop Kraus. Okay, maybe thats a little extreme. They are, however, at the very least on the same level as Chalet Chalet, for whom I ran sound once while they were on tour (crammed onto an awful and ill-fitting Hamilton St showcase), bought their CD (TWICE... after the first was stolen), and subsequently bought a bunch of stuff from their label.
This feels good.
I feel it is also important to note that I have begun reading Wax Poetics again.
This also feels good.
Good.
G'night.
I had a cathartic day at the record store last week. It has been so long since I've been record shopping.
So here's what I got.
Daniel Martin Moore - Stray Age (Shake It!/SubPop)... Just some dude from Kentucky that was picked up my Sub Pop. If you're into the whole M.Ward/T-Bone Burnett minimalist old-timey Americana sound, this record is for you. The Sub Pop release includes one extra song not on the Shake It release, and a limited edition (of less than 200) comes with a 4-song 7" of demos and alt takes and hand-numbered artwort. Good job, Sub Pop. The production is light, simple, yet at times striking and exceedingly fluid. Almost dreamy.
Santo and Uohnny - Hawaii (Canadian American) I'll confess... I have a weakness for Santo and Johnny. I've seen Johnny Farina more than once in concert. And when I die, I want "Sleepwalk" played at my funeral. Hawaii is a pure summer, outdoor, "sitting under the trees with lemonade in your hand" record. That said, I will undoubtedly wear this record out before the summer is through.
Thats a lie. I'm a workaholic. I have one day off every two weeks. Literally. So, no, I suppose I won't really be wearing this record out. But I will be playing it as much as I can.
Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - Herb Alpert Presents... (A&M) No real reason behind this one, other than that my other copy is almost unplayable at this point, and is about to be chopped up and made into a pickguard for one of my custom-builds.
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - The Pillowcase EP (Shout!) I've been looking for this EP for ages, ever since Austin Powers came out and I'd heard that Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs were going to collaborate on a 60's-inspired covers-record (as a near-direct result of Ming Tea). That said, this EP is exactly what I expected it to sound like... poppy, jangly, nearly-British-but-not-quite... LOVE it.
Compass - Antonio Rumori b/w Estacion Especial 7" (Sharkattack!) Although I paid $4 bucks for this, I lump it in with my "dollar bin hopefuls"... nabbing a few records from the dollar bin about which I know nothing but look really well put together. Just from a design aspect, this record DESERVES to be bought. Two-color R/B press on unbleached recycled cardstock, excellent composition, clear red vinyl... Top notch. The tunes aren't bad, either, if you're into that minimalist-meets-casiotone/8bit sound. Calling it an 8bit 7" would be selling it short, however... its actually a very well put together piece. While Side A is abrasive, with a driving beat pushed along by a coarse sine wave an overly simplistic beat machine (which sounds like something along the lines of the old Ace Tone/Roland Rhythm Ace), the B side is quite soothing.
That last one was very important, as it did something to me that no record has done in a long time: It made me think. It made the gears start to turn... it made me ask questions... questions that had not been asked in a long time:
Who is Compass?
What label is this?
Do they still exist?
Who else is on this label, and are they as awesome as Compass?
I can say for certain that had I found this one single when it first came out in 2001, it would most likely have ranked up there with my personal discovery of The Robocop Kraus. Okay, maybe thats a little extreme. They are, however, at the very least on the same level as Chalet Chalet, for whom I ran sound once while they were on tour (crammed onto an awful and ill-fitting Hamilton St showcase), bought their CD (TWICE... after the first was stolen), and subsequently bought a bunch of stuff from their label.
This feels good.
I feel it is also important to note that I have begun reading Wax Poetics again.
This also feels good.
Good.
G'night.
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