Songs You May Have Missed #210

01 Nov 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

elliott

Elliott Smith: “Pretty (Ugly Before)” (2003)

Though born in Nebraska and raised in Texas, Elliott Smith is identified most strongly with Portland, where he spent most of his singer-songwriter career.

Alcohol and drug addiction, as well as depression, informed his frequently melancholy work.

Smith died in 2003 at age 34 under clouded circumstances. His death was never conclusively ruled a suicide or a homicide. The stab wounds to the chest that killed him have never been conclusively determined to be inflicted by Smith himself, as opposed to his girlfriend, who was present and had been fighting with Smith at the time. Smith had no hesitation wounds typical of a suicide, and though there was a suicide note, it has been claimed that his name was misspelled on it.

Regardless, he died too soon. But left us some beautiful melodies.

Songs You May Have Missed #209

01 Nov 2012 Comments Off on Songs You May Have Missed #209

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,


ambulance
Ambulance LTD: “Stay Tuned” (2004)

Although Spanish Harlem, New York band Ambulance LTD (pronounced “el tee dee”) apparently still exist, they’ve been prevented from releasing new material since 2006 due to their label, TVT, filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy. Also affected were labelmates Polyphonic Spree, in case you wondered where they’ve been too (I thought not.)

“Stay Tuned” is a standout from their 2004 debut. The band’s sound–they’re commonly categorized as “dream pop”–is very close to that of one of my favorite indie pop bands, Winterpills (see: Recommended Albums #10).

Songs You May Have Missed #208

29 Oct 2012 2 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

gil

Gilberto Gil: “Andar Com Fé” (1982)

Brazilian legend and Caetano Veloso collaborator Gilberto Gil’s sometimes political and topical songs led to his arrest by the Brazilian military and eventual exile to England, where his career continued both as musician and social activist.

“Andar Com Fé” is not one of Gil’s more subversive tunes, unless catchiness is a crime. It translates thusly:

I’ll walk with faith/Faith doesn’t usually fail

Faith is in a woman/Faith is in the coral snake, in a piece of bread

Faith is in the tide, in the dagger’s blade, in light, in darkness

Faith is in the morning, Faith is in nightfall, Faith is in the summer heat

Faith is alive and healthy, Faith is also about to die, sadly in solitude

Right or even wrong, Faith goes wherever I go, on foot or by airplane

Even those who don’t have Faith, Faith usually follows

Through yes and through no

Songs You May Have Missed: #207

25 Oct 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

bangles

The Bangles: “Something That You Said” (2003)

The Bangles made a return in 2003 with their Doll Revolution album, fifteen years after their previous LP, sounding like they hadn’t missed a beat.

Oh, and for some reason the album was their first to be officially credited to The Bangles. Previously, although everyone had called them The Bangles, their official name was actually just Bangles. Kind of like Eagles and Eurythmics.

Songs You May Have Missed #206

25 Oct 2012 2 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

jay

The Jayhawks: “I’d Run Away” (1995)

Alternative country, or “alt-country” (or Americana, or No Depression, or Insurgent country) was apparently as difficult a genre to name as to define. Basically it’s a country-rock hybrid that got its name during (and probably because of) the “alternative rock” branding of 90’s rock music. (Why bands like R.E.M. and U2 got labeled “alternative” in the first place I’ll never understand, but that’s another matter.)

The sound of alt country could be pretty diverse: some of it sounded like traditional honky-tonk country music, some leaned toward bluegrass, some was essentially rockabilly, and some could almost be called contemporary folk. But most music that fit the loose heading (or many headings) seemed to share a lo-fi aesthetic and a heartfelt lyrical style that eschewed the clichés of mainstream pop. Steel guitars didn’t hurt, either.

The Jayhawks, who actually made their first album in 1986, are considered to be among the godfathers of the movement. By the time of the release of 1995’s Tomorrow the Green Grass LP which included “I’d Run Away” some would claim they were already verging on jumping the shark of alt country for a lighter, more pop-leaning sound. But as far as I’m concerned the record is among their very best work–and the band is my favorite in the genre.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/01/30/songs-you-may-have-missed-312/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2016/05/04/songs-you-may-have-missed-588/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2015/06/24/recommended-albums-63/

Songs You May Have Missed #205

23 Oct 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: , ,

cowpoke

Benjamin Gibbard: “Something’s Rattling (Cowpoke)” (2012)

Ben Gibbard is best known as lead singer of indie rock band Death Cab For Cutie (a band which by the way took its name from this The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band song, which appears in the Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour film:

and for having been married to Zooey Deschanel for two years.

Gibbard was also a member of The Postal Service, who released one highly regarded album in 2003. “Somethng’s Rattling” is from his 2012 solo debut. He mixes an old time country western yodel with a mariachi arrangement to channel Marty Robbins here.

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