Wonderfully rustic acoustic British folk from a band who were so uncomfortable working in a studio that they recorded out in a field near the Thames River. You can actually hear bird song in some of the quiet moments at the beginning or end of a song.
Heron’s debut eschewed drums completely; it’s just acoustic guitars with organ and accordion touches and nothing overwhelming the gentle vocals.
Nellie McKay is a songwriter of many styles and moods. She’s clearly in a pissed off mood here.
McKay’s Geoff Emerick-produced 2004 double-disc debut, Get Away From Me (a play on Norah Jones’ Come Away With Me) was a breath of fresh air. Her Doris Day look and pose on the cover seemed at odds with the Parental Advisory sticker below her picture.
McKay is said to be the first woman to release a double album as her first release. Originally, her contract with Columbia called for 13 songs, but McKay aggressively lobbied her label for a double album, including bottles of wine, a PowerPoint slide show, and a mock photo of her threatening Emerick with a gun. (Allmusic).
“The Big One” is from Pretty Little Head, her second album, released on her own label. It too was a double and included a 44-page color booklet. McKay bounces cheerfully between crooner jazz, reggae, rap, and songs that sound like full-fledged Broadway-style production numbers. Stylistic diversity, ambitious arrangements and intelligent lyrics are hallmarks of her work.
Truly one of the brightest lights in pop music, McKay seems to have a long road ahead of her as an artist. Given that she seems to enjoy careening her music career like a bumper car, it should be fun for everyone.
King Missile is basically New York-based poet/performance artist John S. Hall and a revolving cast of musicians who come up with sympathetic settings for his droll, mostly spoken word narratives.
“Jesus Was Way Cool” was a big college radio hit for the band and one of their two best-known songs (along with 1992’s “Detachable Penis”, an unlikely MTV and alternative radio hit). Interestingly, it was at a 1991 concert that Hall joked to the audience that the title of their next single would be “Detachable Penis”. He later decided to go ahead and write the song.
The band first came to my attention when a girlfriend lent me a mixtape with the title “Way Cool Tape”, which not only served as my introduction to King Missile but to John Hiatt as well. Wish I could have a look at that tape today–I’d like to see what other treasures it may have contained.
When several years passed after their 1998 Failure album, I’d assumed the band broke up. Turns out John S. Hall was attending law school. He has since opened his own practice specializing in entertainment law.
From one of the most well-received Americana/indie folk albums of last year, the prodigious self-titled debut by Seattle band The Head and the Heart. It’s an album of beautiful harmonies, confident performances and lyrics that belie the youth of the band members, who are all in their twenties.
From a record that made several 2012 year-end best-of lists, Tame Impala’s Lonerism album. The band clearly shoots for a psychedelic late-60’s sound. Sounds a little like a Revolver outtake.
Every Moment Has A Song 